#magic of black sails I guess

[dragonsinthedarkness]

Lately I found myself thinking about James/Miranda relationship as a reversed version of Orpheus and Eurydice’s story, especially towards the end of it. Not because these two stories match well (they do not) but just because I like making this kind of classical comparisons and I'm stuck from a bit on the fact that, right before her death, for the first time Miranda was the one to refuse the progress to look back at the past. 

After the loss of Thomas, James let himself slip into a darkness comparable to the underworld, a darkness which so often threatened to swallow him whole. He walked on a thin line between a reign of death and an island of life, and if that darkness was that reign, Miranda was his island. 

During their whole journey of processing their grief and climbing their way back to a life that could be called such, she was the one always trying to drag him towards the light. To her, the life that might have been waiting for them in the future was that light, while the past was the darkness, and not because she deemed it forgettable or unimportant, quite the contrary indeed, but because while she knew how to keep and remember the beauty of that past and the light of it, along with the sorrow, she knew perfectly well how different it was for James. How he could remember the beauty of it, of course, but also knew how to put it aside in favor of the rage and the guilt, his gaze clouded by the pain and the unacceptable shame. 

She said it herself: she didn't want to forget that past, not the bright side of it and neither the inescapable sadness of it, its tragedy being the spring of that very beauty, the ruins existing only because there was something precious to be ruined in the first place; and at the same time, what could the dark of it matter, the injustice, the grudge, when it condemned the both of them to never be able to see the light again? 

First time I heard their discussion in ep.VII after knowing the whole story, I wondered how could she ask something like that of him, to forget and pass over what they had done to him just to gain a liveable life, but recently I've actually been wondering : how could she not?

I'm not taking any side in this, as I recognize Miranda's thoughts to be the most reasonable ones as they often are but at the same time I can't say I wouldn't act as stubbornly and desperately as James did in that situation, they're just really different ways to conceive one’s own existence, influenced by their own problems and conditions and mind. All I'm saying is that Miranda was able to see the light even if just from a distance, she was able to hope that one day they would have been able to truly see it. James was never. 

He just lied to himself about the possibility of it. He had plans and tactics and strategies, but for how I see it, those were all desperate attempts to convince himself of the contrary. He couldn't, maybe because of his personality, maybe because he knew that his situation wasn't one that could ever allow him to found real light in that world, maybe just because he loved her less than how much he had loved Thomas, less than how much she loved him, but whichever was the reason, he couldn't afford to see the light after that abyss, and I think Miranda was the first to know that. The one who knew him like no other, the one who loved him like no other. She knew that without help he would have never really been able to reach the end of that dark state of being. And she tried. She tried to help him in so many ways, because she loved him, she really did, and because she had the damn right to claim at least a decent life for herself. 

And here we come to the end, to Charles town.

Charles town could have been her success. Charles town was James’ surrender. For the first time she glimpsed one real chance of having him back, she saw in him the real intention to leave all of that darkness behind, to follow her, not leaving the past behind, never, but learning to move forward, finally allowing her a chance for a new life together. 

He was actually ready to accept even that miserable condition Peter Ashe imposed on him in order to get rid of the darkness, to climb to the light -as short lived as that might have been, at this point- to give Miranda a better alternative than the ones he had been able to grant her up until that moment (as I think his whole Charles town plan was led by the purpose of doing something to save her): as useless as we all know that would have been, accepting that bargain has probably been the most selfless thing James has ever done, even if he did it also for himself in a tired, desperate and contorted way. 

But Charles town wasn't only this to Miranda. 

Charles town was the discovery of the betrayal, because I believe she understood it all the moment she first saw that clock, I'm sure of it. Charles town was her umptheen attempt and her umptheen sacrifice. 

I think that must have been to her a similar quest to the Maria Aleyne's one: respecting James by telling him the truth, something he deserves to know, even knowing how he will react to it, knowing how impossible it would become for him, then, to go on with his plan, granting him a one way ticket to that darkness, or keeping him in the dark, bearing alone the weight of that knowledge, accepting to live with the helplessness to remedy that fatal injustice, only in the hope to finally make him reach that light?  

Would Orpheus reveal Eurydike a truth which risked pushing her back into the underworld just because it might be right for her to know it?

Still, things had been different, more desperate, back to the Maria Aleyne. Now the chance to succeed was real. 

And at first she made that difficult choice, which was selfish in a way, but definitely selfless in another, all at the same time.

And she did it because she loved him. 

She loved him so much that when she glimpsed, in that light, the prospect of losing him, she had to recognize that that light was -as James would have put it in the future- only their light, the light of a world the two of them couldn’t be part of anymore. 

She loved him so much that she had to look back. To the past, to him, because her James was still behind her, still in the dark, the only place where he was allowed to stay, and only that version of him was the one she truly loved. She loved the real James, with all his broken parts, not the one that could be seen under the lights of their lies. 

So she couldn't help giving up that false light, because she had wished for tranquility, a normal life -as probably anyone in her conditions would have done- but she was not disposed to give up the man she loved in order to gain that, as she hadn't been in the past, when the prospect of the future had been only dark and still she had not deserted the ones she loved. 

And when she turned back, this time trying to shield him from that light, the darkness at the pit ended up swallowing them both. 

Miranda died, and James was dragged back full force and imprisoned into the worst version of himself, the ruthless, autodestructive one. 

There are two versions of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice, and I think that the two of them taken together perfectly represent James’ reaction to her death and its circumstances.

In Virgilius’ one, Eurydice slightly resents Orpheus for his action, for his “folly” -as it is called- and (if we may call it that) for his selfish gesture of looking back, that she paid with her second chance to be alive. 

After Miranda's death, James dreams of her reminding him how he had resented her “because they were so close” and of course since that's a dream is what he knew he had felt. But that was…collateral to the condition he had been left stuck in. That was the childish resentment of having explicitly denied something he knew deep down he couldn't have. 

In Ovidius’ one instead Eurydice doesn't blame him because she can't resent being loved, and I think this is what James really felt. After all, looking straight at the truth of the situation and looking back at their shared history, I think there were no ways for him to actually, rationally resent her. (And in fact in his last dream about her she uses a past tense, “you resented me”, hinting that was something he had felt only in the moments when he was at his worst as when, always in the dream, he heard her apology).

Moreover, I think he perfectly understood the meaning of those last moments of hers, how important it was to her to make her voice be heard in that moment. In fact, despite the clear and growing doubt and rage (and worry) on his face while Peter and Miranda spoke, he didn't say a word, he let her speak, despite knowing the risks  and I think this is amazing and just proves how beautiful and respectful their relationship was, and that there were no way he could actually deem her responsible of their failure in that mission (doomed to failure since the beginning ‘cause of the truth).

What hurts even more about her death is the fact that it looks like they got closer to each other once again during that trip, as they hadn't probably been in years, and then…everything got lost forever.

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 2

Book summaries and submitted endorsements below:

The Burning Kingdoms series (The Jasmine Throne, The Oleander Sword, The Lotus Empire) by Tasha Suri

Author of Empire of Sand and Realm of Ash Tasha Suri’s The Jasmine Throne, beginning a new trilogy set in a world inspired by the history and epics of India, in which a captive princess and a maidservant in possession of forbidden magic become unlikely allies on a dark journey to save their empire from the princess’s traitor brother.

Imprisoned by her dictator brother, Malini spends her days in isolation in the Hirana: an ancient temple that was once the source of the powerful, magical deathless waters — but is now little more than a decaying ruin.

Priya is a maidservant, one among several who make the treacherous journey to the top of the Hirana every night to clean Malini’s chambers. She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, so long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides.

But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled. One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne. The other is a priestess seeking to find her family. Together, they will change the fate of an empire.

Fantasy, epic fantasy, politics, secondary world, series, adult

Running Close to the Wind by Alexandra Rowland

Endorsement from submitter: "Utterly hilarious romp. No actual sex, but somehow hornier than 90% of books with actual sex in them that I have read."

Avra Helvaçi, former field agent of the Araşti Ministry of Intelligence, has accidentally stolen the single most expensive secret in the world―and the only place to flee with a secret that big is the open sea.

To find a buyer with deep enough pockets, Avra must ask for help from his on-again, off-again ex, the pirate Captain Teveri az-Ḥaffār. They are far from happy to see him, but together, they hatch a plan: take the information to the isolated pirate republic of the Isles of Lost Souls, fence it, profit. The only things in their way? A calculating new Araşti ambassador to the Isles of Lost Souls who’s got his eyes on Avra’s every move; Brother Julian, a beautiful, mysterious new member of the crew with secrets of his own and a frankly inconvenient vow of celibacy; the fact that they’re sailing straight into sea serpent breeding season and almost certain doom.

But if they can find a way to survive and sell the secret on the black market, they’ll all be as wealthy as kings―and, more important, they’ll be legends.

Fantasy, humor, adventure, secondary world, queernorm, adult

[adokle]

(Insert pre-fight banter here)

---

Erron Black Vs. Ruby Heart. Cowboy vs. Pirate. Just a thing inspired by the Mortal Kombat 1 intro clashes. 

Ruby's a Street Fighter character now as of SFV I guess, but in my heart, this is a Mortal Kombat vs. Darkstalkers pic, with Ruby as a pirate from the 1700s who sailed into the Bermuda triangle and emerged in the modern day. Kinda how MKX Erron was preserved from the Wild West times till now via magic.

[drama--universe]

Learning cultures

Requested by anonymous: Hello! How are you? Your writing is divine, just...wow, speechless! Can I request a oneshot for LXC? The reader is a cultivator from a completely different country, she has different customs, different fighting style, different weapons, different magic... she traveled all the clans, Nie, Jiang, Jin and even Lan, in every clan everyone liked her even though she had different customs, she was kind and accommodating to everyone, forming strong friendships with JGY and NHS. Then she runs into LXC during one of the walks, literally slamming into him when she wasn't paying attention to where she was going. Of course, LXC didn't get mad, he made sure the reader was okay and went on his way. JGY sees all this and then teases the reader when he saw her blush😂 NHS then becomes something of a messenger as he passes letters from LXC and the reader to the other one 😂I don't know, somehow the request came to me, I hope it's cool, I don't ask for requests too much😄 take care and thank you!👋

Pairing: Lan Xichen x fem!foreigner!reader

Word Count: 2.9k words

You never really expected to find another country, you honestly just wanted to leave your home for awhile. You had set sail on the shores of your home country and now you found yourself on the shore of another. Your boat was wrecked and you went under, only to wash ashore later on while trying to not inhale the salty water. The sun shine down from it's spot up in the sky, making the sand beneath your hands burning hot and the air around you dry. You could practically feel the taunt from the sun as it challenged you, but you could care less. Your weapons felt heavy, the spear on you back was pulling you down back into the water due to it's weight and the twin daggers didn't help you out much either. Your bag was floating somewhere in the water and you didn't even want to think about where all your food went, probably already taken by the sea like your ship.

But even while nearly drowning, you were painfully aware of the eyes on you. Two curious eyes that made you wonder why they were not even in view.

Then you spotted it, a child staring straight at you with big eyes full of curiosity, almost sparkling as they spotted you. The kid wasn't tall, slightly on the thinner side if you'd compare with the children from your country, and you guessed that he'd been an early teenager. He was hidden behind a tree, eyes barely visible as he tried his best to stay hidden. The man behind him, you assumed it was an adult anyway, didn't share that thought as he casually strolled forward out of the woods. He seemed surprised by you and you were just as surprised, he looked quite different from you or anyone you had ever seen before today. He was a bit paler than you, silky black hair and thinner slanted eyes. The grey robes he wore were also unique looking to you, looking nothing like your clothes in the slightest. He spoke, the language unfamiliar to you and not even sounding like anything at first. You held up your hand for him to pause, getting up before focusing your energy to him. He spoke again and this time you understood him fine, thanks to some quick spell.

"Are you alright?" He repeated his question again as he held out one of his hands, which you quickly took with a thanks as you focused your spell to make him understand your words.

"Fine, fine... Could be worse." "Worse than drowning?" He asked and you opened your mouth to retort his statement, but closed your mouth again when you realized he was right. Not much worse than almost dying...

"May I ask who you are?" "Right! The name's (Y/n), pleasure to meet you!" You smiled brightly as you held out your hand to shake, surprised as he just bowed his head while revealing himself to be Meng Yao. The boy from behind the trees had also decided to join you, standing behind Meng Yao while sending you a bright and yet shy smile and introducing himself as Nie Huaisang. The conversation quickly moved on to your place of origin and how toy actually got here, which was then followed by Huaisang offering you a place to stay. You could hardly ignore the kid or his request, so you agreed.

Thus you found yourself on the grounds of the Qinghe Nie clan, meeting Nie Mingjue and being absolutely terrified of the man as he reluctantly agreed to let you stay thanks to Huaisang's pleading look. He reminded you much of your little brother, a cute boy who knew how to get what he wants. Although difficult, you tried to adapt as much as possible to their culture. Huaisang was quick to guide you through everything, starting with giving you a hanfu to wear. It was beautiful, a soft material used instead of the rough fabrics that you were more used to, and details were so difficult to catch that you could spend hours just looking. Then he and Meng Yao taught you some of their customs before explaining that every clan had different ones. It took you a couple of weeks to get the basics of the Nie clan before you set off to the next.

First the Lanling Jin clan, where some disciplines were kind enough to tell you a bit before you set of again thanks to the arrogant teenager(s) that kept mocking you. The second clan you went to was the Yunmeng Jiang clan, where you were taught by the daughter of the head of the clan. Jiang Yanli was the sweetest, never getting annoyed or angry as she taught you everything you needed or wanted to know. Wuxian, her adoptive brother, was even more excited to teach you things (pranks mostly) and he was always present when Yanli taught you. You only saw Jiang Cheng a few times, but you could tell that he was a nice person as well, just not visibly showing it to others. You stayed with them for 3 months, then you moved again to the final clan.

Gusu Lan, one know for it's strictness and their many rules to follow. You didn't really know what to expect from them, so having the kids from Yunmeng and from Qinghe join you for a sort of school was kind of exciting. You were just glad that you were allowed to join them, Meng Yao had sent you a letter saying that he got permission to take you as a Nie representative.

You actually enjoyed the trip up the mountain, unlike the others, as the view as astounding to see and the fresh air instantly woke you up from your drowsiness. Once past the gate, you could only marvel at the structures that were build in between the mountain. Of course you loved all the other clan buildings, but this one had a massive library that you just couldn't ignore. You just wanted to find out what kind of information the books in there had, what kind of knowledge you could possible gain you. Then you were inside, greeted by a man that you could only stare at. All the previous people you had met were attractive, both men and women, but this man was different. Maybe it was because of the confidence that he had or maybe just something else, but he looked dazzling. You almost thought you reached the heavens, the white and blue robes didn't make that thought any better. You also noticed the ribbon weaved through his hair to rest on his forehead, a cloud symbol laying between his eyebrows. It looked intricate and you wondered if you could take a closer look at it in some period of time later on.

You joined Yanli and some other girls to a dorm, settling in quickly after a short introduction. The robes on your bed were soft, feeling almost as soft as the clouds that were painted on the bottom of the robe and you were almost afraid of how quickly you would dirty the white and light blue colors.

A woman entered not much later after you got dresses, her robes a darker blue than you had seen others wear, and she asked everyone to follow her before pausing on you. You expected a mocking comment or something along those lines, the girls from Lanling hadn't been to quiet with their insults, but she just walked closer to you and pulled your belt up a bit before pulling your robes a bit down to make it lay flatter than it had before. You thanked her, bowing your head before following her out like everyone else. You entered a lecture hall, the men were all present already and you quickly joined Huaisang and Meng Yao before looking around. Two men entered, one an elder man that you assumed was the head of the clan when you saw his clothes and the other was the angelic man from the front gate. He was smiling slightly this time, mostly aimed at a younger boy in the front that looked very similar to him. The elder man spoke first, but you hadn't expected him to start rules. At first, you were carefully listening to his words but that changed around the 30th rule or so.

"How many more do we have to listen to?" "There are 3,000 rules in total, all of them are equally important. I do admit their wording could be shorter." You flinched as someone actually answered your question, turning your head slightly to see the angelic man. After blinking a few times, you nodded to acknowledge his words before turning to face the front again. Huaisang, who had heard of the number of rules, was already laying face down on the table and you couldn't help but do the same. It was only at the 580th rule that you shut off your brain, letting go of the translation spell that made you understand the elder and instead trying to push back your growing headache. It was like someone was pushing your head together at the temples, knives pushing into your skull and turning around once inside. It was painful, so much so that you just wanted to lay down and sleep right in this room. You couldn't, obviously, but you opted to just close your eyes instead in hopes that it would lessen slightly by doing so. So you closed your eyes, hoping that you would be left alone as the elder still listed the rules, you assumed he was anyway.

When you opened your eyes again, because of course you had fallen asleep, everyone else was getting ready to leave. You just followed, you didn't want to stay longer at the moment. Your headache, although lessened, was still killing you and you had some medicine in your bag that could help. You didn't wait for anyone, you just want to the dorm and shoved the medicine down with some water. Then you laid down to sleep, quickly moving on to the dream world.

Although it was early in the morning, you were wide awake and bringing with energy. You were the only person, beside the Lan disciplines, that seemed happy to be out for a walk. You didn't know why Huaisang looked so glum, the sights were beautiful and the cold breeze could easily wake up anyone from their slumber. Nonetheless, you talked him through the walk as you walked, a happy skip in your step and a big smile on your face. Your eyes weren't really focused on the road ahead of you, they remained on Huaisang during your conversation. Unfortunately, that also meant that you didn't see that everyone else had stopped. The result? You were abruptly stopped when you slammed into someone's chest, stumbling backwards until the person caught you. You looked up and we're surprised to see Lan Xichen before you, giving you a smile like you hadn't just bumped him.

"Are you alright?" He let go of your waist and you straightened your robes out before nodding at him, trying to ignore the way that your heart skipped a beat and how your face heated up.

"Please be mindful of your surroundings." He said before turning around and walking away, leaving you standing in the same spot with a look of surprise. Yet you couldn't help but smile a bit.

"You're so in love with him." Meng Yao speaks loud enough for anyone to hear as he passes by you, smirking at you before speeding up a bit as you kicked your leg at him. This action earned a disapproving look from Lan Qiren while Xichen just chuckled softly, which made your face heat up even more. Luckily, the rest of the walk was without you slamming into someone else again. However, you also noticed that Xichen lingered near you as you walked, almost like he was ready to catch you if you tripped again or something along those lines. Not that he made that clear, he just walked beside you at a decent distance, which only made Meng Yao raise his eyebrows at you suggestively once more. You ignored him without hesitation, instead focusing on the road and those interesting pebbles on the ground.

You didn't know how you ended up in this situation, sitting across Xichen while drinking tea and talking. But you also didn't really care about how you got here, you were too busy trying to keep your face neutral enough and not to just smile like an idiot. Xichen was explaining some stuff about the clan, the reasons for their colors and how their rules came into place, but you could only stare at him. More specifically at the cloud symbol on his forehead, which he hadn't noticed and if he had, he was kind enough to not point it out.

"Why do you wear that?" You blurted out in the middle of his sentence, realizing how rude this probably was and quickly apologizing after. Xichen paid no mind to this and kindly started to explain instead.

"It is a metaphor, it shows that we restrain ourselves." The explanation was simple, you were sure that he oversimplified the actual meaning, and Xichen was also quick to add that it wasn't something that just anyone could touch.

"Only close family members are allowed to touch the headbands. When we marry, our wife and future kids are also allowed." Xichen says and you felt a wave of disappointment wash over you, unsure of the reason for those feelings. The conversation moved on to other subjects, but somehow the thought of marrying Xichen had entered your mind and it wouldn't leave. You could only try to hide the slight blush on your face until you could excuse yourself to go to your class.

You never went to that class. and the thoughts of marrying Xichen turned into hopeful dreams that revealed your true feelings of the man.

The first letter you sent to Xichen was after your leave of the Gusu Lan clan. You added it to your letter to Huaisang, the paper folded neatly with Xichen's name on it. Xichen answered not much later, his response folded into the letter that Huaisang send you back. You didn't miss Huaisang's teasing in his own letter, you had no doubt that the boy had peaked into your letter. However, you first focused on Xichen's letter, because the man had called you his dear friend and you took a few minutes to just process that.

A dear friend was a start, maybe someday it say dear lover.

The second conversation was started by Xichen, asking you where you were traveling this time. You answered him, sticking in a small note of thanks to Huaisang that he helped you deliver the letters to Xichen. You received no you're welcome back, but you did get another letter. One that only made your heart ache as Xichen spoke of marriage, but he was to be clan leader after all and neither of you were still really young. But still with all that, you wished that he would chose you and not some clan's daughter that was chosen for him. Luckily, he didn't seem to mention his future marriage in any way, so you didn't see need to worry yet. Even though you were glad, you couldn't help yourself from asking if he had plans to marry. The letter was sent before you could actually control your actions, embarrassment entering much later and when it was too late to get the letter back.

You waited for two weeks for any kind of response from Xichen, but you got a very good response. You got Xichen in front of you, his angelic smile aimed to you and a letter in his hand. You took it with confusion, reading it's contents carefully.

Right at the bottom, written in the neatest letters stood a sentence that made your heart stop.

'I hope that we might marry someday.'

You were ready to faint at this point, not being able to control your magic as you made the letter go up in flames thanks to the sparks from your fingers. You only stared at the ashes before apologizing to Xichen, but he was just smiling at you like it was nothing. Then again, you had explained your powers to him or at least to some extent.

"I presume that to be a yes?" He asked and you nodded slowly, not really knowing what you were supposed to say to his proposal. You'd figure it out later, however, because you just wanted to hug him right now. So you did, embracing him and toying with the back of his belt as he threw his arms around your shoulders.

"How'd you know?" You dare to ask him, looking up to him with curious eyes as you awaited his answer.

"You often think out loud." Cue your face heating up as you hid your face in his chest, only making the man chuckle softly while parting your head.

You received one more letter later on from Huaisang, asking if the proposal went well. You burned that one as well.

[captainsvscaptains]

Battle of the Ships

Round 3 Part 3 Poll 1

Per Aspera : It’s a ship with several large masts with kind of magic sails.

Temeraire :

He's a uuhhhhhhh dragon.

While he's more of a 'plane' technically I guess, his captain is a navy captain, he's named after the original ship 'Temeraire', and something like 75% at least of the books takes place on/around navy ships... Plus he likes swimming so I guess in a way he's a sea-faring vessel??

As far as looks go; big-ass black dragon.

[willows-unnamed-rpg]

Post 1) Overall idea - turn based pirate rpg/ttrpg system

TLDR: I am working on a ttrpg system as a basis for a turn based rpg that is magic, piracy, and exploration. A focus on wealth and growth plus a vast world (hopefully). I am inspired by alot of things, mainly horror and pirate media, so the intent is a more darker setting

Ok onto the post :)

I figured if I actually want to get this bloody game in production I might as well start with a long post detailing some initial thoughts with some hope of any amount of actual engagement (doubtful that is). This thing has lived in my brain for weeks now and it has officially kept me up at night now. Figured I should post something out into the world. Now I guess I should have some form of organizing

Why a turn based rpg

Honestly, it's what I love. I grew up playing RPGs and I love table top RPGs. I figured it was this or action rpg and I don't want an action rpg. Granted it might fit the genre more but also I'm the one making it the thing so I get to call the shots (until someone else hops in if I ever get someone else)

I also Game Master several table top games currently so I have an understanding of combat flow and narrative, I am just used to others adding to the story rather than it being all me (since ttrpgs are inherently collaborative works)

I have some ideas for the system, something I want to go into detail when I am less sleep deprived, but in short I want it to be classless but still guiding the player to general play styles, like mage or tank. I know pirates and magic, but the whole magical dungeon diving fits exploring ancient ruins for money (plus casting a big old fireball at a ship sounds cool as hell).

So a custom rpg system?

Yes. Like I want it to work on its own as a standalone ttrpg system. Since I should be able to make it translate well into a video game. I mean that's the hope. I won't be the first person to do this (look at all the d&d games from the 1980s on dos to BG3, it works)

The idea as said above is classless with point buying perks (kinda like fallout). Unsure if I want it to be a d20 system but I am absolutely going for high roll is better since low roll systems hurt my head (looking at 2e dnd, had to learn it for some dos d&d games and it took a bit of getting used to). But it's all subjected to change since it's literally this post and my brain

Pirates?

You bet. Look, the only good pirate games are Assassin Creed: Black Flag and Sea of Thieves and both are subjective. Of course the big problem here comes from the question of how much time do we put into ship combat to make it fluid. Especially with turn based rpg combat. And I know that will be the challenge. I will not back down from this point. I want ship combat. Even if it's just boarding other vessels. I want fireballs to light gunpowder holds and deal massive damage. I want artificers repairing the ship and manning guns. I want the player to feel at full control and be able to react while making choices that fit into the system. Without it being full on simulation.

As for the player exploration off the boat, that should be easy, like any other RPGs. Of course I have done ttrpg games not video games so I know it will be a pain nonetheless but that's learning and art.

So about that world for exploring

I want that to be it's own post once I nail down the system's mechanics but in short, kinda an Isekai (well not literally, the player isn't from another world, not yet anyway) but all the "Species" (no idea what I want to use for the word) are not native to the world, and so they have been invited over time to explore a long dead universe that they brought in their own beliefs. Does that mean human Christianity mixing with let's say elven nature faith? It's been in my mind as a neat idea but also *yikes* as well. I want to be sure that I consider everything, including cultures who were exploited during the age of sail so I don't propagate more harm. So that will require a lot of research and help from those communities. I also don't want to plop in fantasy races "just because" since they probably won't belong. We tend to see them because Western fantasy is typically "eurocentric", and this game will not be. Pirates were European sure but that ignores so many other groups (Barbary Pirate, Malagasy, South East Asian. Again I need to do more research)

I have tied in my own Mexican culture into my ttrpg games before but that's my own culture and in a small group. This is far larger and I need to give the world the respect it deserves.

What kind of art style?

I am not a very good artist so this one will be in the air until I settle, but I need to grow or get help. I would like something near realism (Honestly like how the Paradox Strategy games tend to do art, EU4 especially since it's the right period of time but again that's eurocentric so who knows)

I can't settle on a style when I haven't even made custom stat blocks for creatures or even know what creatures will be in the game yet. I will say, I love pixel art but I'm aware of exactly how much work it takes to make it wonderful. I have exactly zero skill in most art/drawing and what I do have need work, so best get to doodling to get better

The story?

On my main blog I usually write (though I am bad at posting, let's not make that a habit shall we?) but that doesn't mean I'm good at writing. Writing like drawing is an art, so I need to work on this and get help from others as it warms up. I don't want to disregard writing, it's an rpg, it lives by the narrative.

Other than exploring the world for money, I like the idea of it being focused on either one country or one city. A pirate republic. You could leave on expeditions and come back and those would be arcs. Do everything around town, hang out with companions, romance, and then to move the narrative along we build up to an expedition that changes the republic. Kinda like Dragon Age 2 and Kirkwall (not going into it here since spoilers for the game) but I really like this idea. You can see growth and change and get an impact on the narrative. Obviously this isn't anything new. But it's always a good time

My Inspirations?

That is a hell of a question. I have alot, ranging from Dark Fantasy/Gothic Horror with Ravenloft, Dragon Age, From Software's Library, Lovecraft's work (he isn't gothic horror I know, Eldritch is different but also water monsters in a ocean setting hits good) to pirate media with One Piece, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies and the actual historical pirates I know.

And Obviously with any game, Lord of the Rings and System Shock 2 despite how far apart both are and possibly irrelevant they are.

I don't have any current "required reading" minus The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (and maybe The Dunwitch Horror?)

I guess my inspirations lead me to a darker world, which fits real pirates well

[darkwitch1999]

A Random Headcanon: Why Marc Anciel Should Never Have Coffee Part I☕🚫

So I have a few headcanons that I am going to be included in my fanfiction series about Marc Anciel:

He has two moms. Emerson Anciel who runs a coffee shop and Kiki Anciel who is an aromatherapist.

Despite his mother running a coffee shop, Marc isn't allowed to drink coffee since caffeine worsens his anxiety.

During the few times Marc sneaked some coffee, he tends to become a bit...eccentric.

Anyway, I had this idea in my head for a few days now and I just couldn't resist writing this out and sharing it on Tumblr. Basically, this takes place during the "Adrienette" romantic plans time and it's stressing him out big time. As for what happens next, well, just read and see:

Collège Françoise Dupont: Art Room 33

(Nathaniel walks into the room to see his frazzled and twitchy partner. Is he mumbling to himself? ) 

Nathaniel: (hesitantly) Uh… H-Hi, Marc. (approaches the writer cautiously and nervously) W-Whatcha doing?

(Marc immediately snaps his head towards Nathaniel. His mouth spread wide forming a massive, unhinged smile. Deep, dark circles caked around his eyes with his right eye twitching rapidly. His black hair resembled that of a bird’s nest. And his hands trembling terribly. His partner’s appearance immediately took Nathaniel aback.)

Marc: (speaks frantically) Nath! I’ve got it! I finally figured it out! 

Nathaniel: (nervously) Uh…figured what out exactly?

Marc: (grabs Nathaniel’s shoulders) The answer to Marinette and Adrien’s kissing problem! The solution was right in front of our faces this time, and we just couldn’t see it! It’s so simple! There’s no way they could mess this up for the 72nd time in a row! (starts shaking Nathaniel) OUR SHIP IS SAILING AT LAST!!!!! THE WAIT IS OVER!!!!!

(Nathaniel pulls himself away from Marc’s grasp, recovering from the feeling of dizziness from being shaken by the frantic writer. Perhaps these Adrienette first kiss plans were starting to take their toll on Marc? Nathaniel couldn’t argue that he too was starting to feel burnt out on drawing new plans to help Adrien and Marinette finally have their first kiss. Still, he could also understand why these plans would leave Marc feeling the most drained since he is the one who wrote over seventy different perfect romantic scenarios that ultimately fail over and over again. Guess it was only a matter of time before he snapped.)

Marc: (picks up his open journal and starts frantically shoving it into Nathaniel’s hands) It’s all written down right here! The ultimate solution! The one I should have just thought up a long time before I wrote those other miserably failed plans!

(Nathaniel took note of the bitterness and venom that was lacing the writer’s tone of voice. Additionally, he also noticed that his partner’s hands were increasingly shaking violently as he kept trying to shove the journal into his hands. Now Nathaniel was getting even more worried for Marc’s well-being.)

Nathaniel: (uses caution as he speaks) Marc, are you feeling okay? Y-You seem a bit…

(Unhinged? Crazed? Frazzled? Unstable? Disturbed? Fixated?)

Nathaniel: Tense?

Marc: (starts talking fast) Tense? Who’s tense? (unhinged chuckling) Certainly not me! You worry too much, Nath! I’m fine! Yep, totally fine! In fact, everything is going to be great now because now we have a full-proof plan to get Adrien and Marinette to finally have their magical kiss so that they just kiss already, live happily ever after, and we can all finally get on with our LIVES!!!!!

(Okay, now Nathaniel was fully convinced that Marc had finally snapped. When this latest plan fails, he definitely needs to have a long talk with his class about leaving him and Marc out of these Adrienette plans for a while. He would have gladly done so now if not for his unhinged partner forcefully insisting that he read the latest scheme that he has come up with this time.)

Marc: (finally manages to get Nathaniel to take hold of his journal) C’mon, Nath! C’mon! Read it! Read it! I’m telling you, this idea is foolproof! There's no way they could mess it up this time!

(Marc stared at Nathaniel with his twitching eyes and wide smile. Nathaniel, despite being disturbed by the writer’s insistence, took the journal and started to read through the page)

Nathaniel: (reading the page) “JUST KISS ALREADY, FOR FUC-”...Marc!

(Nathaniel gaped as he skimmed through the rest of Marc’s “plan”, which was actually just a double-sided five-page long rant about how frustrating Marinette and Adrien were. He was taken aback by how many times the writer used swear words in his rant. Though the artist knew Marc rarely cussed, he knew that whenever the few rare moments when the writer did use swear words meant that his hidden rage would be unleashed.)

Marc: Soooo, what do you think?

Nathaniel: (cringes) I think you should see your therapist ASAP. I…uh don’t think that this plan is going to work out the way you want it. Honestly, I don’t even know where to start drawing this out.

Marc: Well, if you don’t like that idea, I also came up with another one right here. (Flips through the pages and then stops at a page) Take a look!

(Nathaniel was hesitant about reading Marc’s other plan. If the first one was this bad, he could imagine how terrifying the alternative would have been. Despite this, Nathaniel decided to read what his partner had written. He then lets out a shocked gasp as he reads.)

Nath: Marc! No! We can’t do this to them either!

Marc: (whines) Oh c’mon, what’s the problem now?! This one has got to be flawless! They are so close to kissing, they just need a little push!

Nathaniel: (raises an eyebrow) And by little push, you mean having our friends literally push them together and force them to kiss? Marc, there’s no way we can do that to them! It’s wrong and I’m pretty sure it’s illegal too!  What the hell is wrong with you?!

(Nathaniel knew that Marc wasn’t thinking clearly. He knew that Marc was against trying to force love onto someone and a ruthless critique when it came to other writers trying to force their ideals of “perfect lovers” onto their characters when there were better choices for character pairings.)

Marc: (his smile slowly falters into a frown) What’s wrong with me? (starts to chuckle unsteadily) You think that something is wrong with me?! Oh let me tell you something, Nathaniel Kurtzberg, if there is something wrong with anyone, it would be MARINETTE and ADRIEN! (Starts anxiously digging his finger through his hair) You know, when Alya and Nino first approached us and asked for our help to bring Marinette and Adrien together, I thought to myself “This is going to be so much fun!” and “It will be just like writing a romantic love story but in real life!”. I was more than happy to help out our friends and I was excited to play the part of Eros alongside you. I wanted to see them both become our LONG awaited favorite couple and do all of that “cutesy” couple stuff that either makes others go “awwww” or shout “Get a room!”. But most importantly, I wanted them to be happy together and to finally get over acting all awkward around each other so everything is not always so tense and complicated whenever they are in the same room together! (grips the sides of his head) But those two…those two, Nathaniel, are just so FUCKING FRUSTRATING! Don’t get me wrong, I love Marinette. She’s like a sister or a cousin to me and she was the first friend I made here at Dupont. If it wasn’t for her, I would probably still be writing alone under the stairs every day and avoiding human interaction as much as possible. BUT THAT GIRL IS SO FUCKING CLUMSY THAT IT IS OFFICIALLY CRINGE!!!!! It doesn’t matter how I set up each scenario, she always manages to trip over, fall, and break everything that crosses her path! Never mind KISSING Adrien, we’ll all be lucky if she doesn’t KILL him first. Oh and speaking of Adrien, how can someone so well-educated be so FUCKING CLUELESS?! I mean, I get it. He was homeschooled and sheltered all of his life, but how can he be so OBLIVIOUS towards Marinette’s obvious crush on him?! Seriously, she literally acts like she has rabies every time she tries to talk to him and apparently, he has to pretend to be a wax statue to get her to “profess her feelings” to him, and yet that obvious sign still goes over his fucking head! (tilts his head to the side). So you want to know what my problem is, Nath, or as you put it “What’s wrong with me?”?! I’ll tell you what my problem is! My problem is that in addition to schoolwork and writing our comics, I’ve had to spend the last couple of months playing matchmaker for two of the most awkward people in our grade! Tell me, Nath, do you enjoy sleeping? I know I USED TO!!!! I didn’t expect the first couple of “Adrinette” plans to succeed and I would be lying if I said I didn’t anticipate a few setbacks, but for FUCK’S SAKE! IT’S BEEN MONTHS!!! MONTHS!!!!! I’m all out of ideas, Nath! I don’t know what to do! This shouldn’t be that difficult! She likes him and he likes her. We’ve established that. (Slams his head down onto the table and starts pounding his fist on the table repeatedly) HOW HARD IS IT TO GET TWO PEOPLE TO FUCK-.....

Nathaniel: Marc!

Marc: -ING KISS ALREADY!!!!!

(Nathaniel was at a loss for words. His partner was having a complete breakdown and he wasn’t sure what he should say next. Did Marc admit that he was losing sleep over this?! Marc hardly ever pulled all-nighters because he knew that a lack of proper sleep wasn’t good for his anxiety. The whole “Adrinette” plans were supposed to be like a side project. When did they let these romantic fantasies become one of their priorities?! Nathaniel knew that Marc didn’t like letting others down and that he always put his own well-being last, but this was extreme even for him. This must have been building up for a while, but why was he letting this all out now? What could have triggered this breaking point? Marc was fine yesterday, even after their latest “Adrienette” plan had failed, he didn’t show any signs of frustration or resentment. Honestly, Marc was acting like that one time he stayed up all night to rewrite their manuscripts for their comics after the original copy was lost and he drank-....That’s when it hit Nathaniel! The unhinged body language. His erratic fast-talking rants. His violently shaky hands. Nathaniel’s eyes quickly fell onto Marc’s blue Stanley tumbler cup with “My Hero Academia” stickers decorated all over.)

Nathaniel: (eyes Marc with suspicion) Marc, what’s in your cup?

(Marc immediately raises his head off the table and looks at the artist with nervously shifting eyes.)

Marc: Uh…what?

Nathaniel: (crosses his arms) Marc Anciel, you heard me. What have you been drinking out of that cup?

(Marc’s eyes darted around nervously as he actively tried to think up a cover-up. Nathaniel’s suspicions were confirmed as he noticed how the writer took his time to answer the artist’s question as well as how much his eyes kept shifting all over the place.)

Nathaniel: Marc, there’s coffee in that cup, isn’t there?

Marc: (frantically) What?! No! It’s not coffee! It’s just water!

Nathaniel: Your lying, Marc. If there was water in that cup, you would have just told me right away and wouldn’t have asked me to repeat myself. 

Marc: No! Nath, I swear I’m not lying! I swear on my life!

Nathaniel: (raises an eyebrow with a smirk) What about on your moms’ lives?

(Silence fell between the two boys. Nathaniel was playing dirty, but it was necessary to get the truth out. Marc then started fidgeting with his fingers nervously and let out a sigh.)

Marc: (avoids eye contact with Nathaniel) Okay fine, maybe it is coffee.

Nathaniel: (gives Marc a disapproving look) I knew it! Marc…

Marc: (frantically exclaims) Look, I’m under a lot of pressure right now! Our next meeting with the editor is in three weeks and I had to finish writing the ending to our next comic issue so you could start drawing the panels! Not to mention I had to finish my science homework as well as come up with more doomed-to-fail ideas for our desperate attempts to get our friends’ ship to sail! I needed it to help me stay awake and keep me going!

Nathaniel: (looks at Marc with a concerned, softened expression) Marc, you know what coffee does to you. Drinking caffeine makes your anxiety worse. You could’ve given yourself another panic attack or be close to one right now.

Marc: (forces a grin) But I’m fine, Nath! Everything is fine! I swear, you and my moms worry too much. I can handle a little caffeine. 

Nathaniel: Just how much of this “little caffeine” have you had, Marc? And I want the truth this time.

Marc: (eyes shift left and right as he twiddles his fingers nervously) I’ve only had one cup…or maybe two? ……give or take five?

Nathaniel: (eyes widen in shock) Marc!

Marc: (defensively) I said I was under pressure! 

Nathaniel: (points at Marc’s cup) That’s your fifth cup of coffee?!

Marc: Weeeellllll, technically it's my sixth cup that I just started drinking…

Nathaniel: (gives Marc a stern look) Ok, Marc. I think you’ve had more than enough. I’m cutting you off.

(Unfortunately for Nathaniel as he starts reaching for his partner’s cup, the writer immediately snatched it off the table and started backing away from Nathaniel slowly. This caught the artist off guard as he watched the wide-eyed, erratic boy hold his cup protectively against his chest. Nathaniel then put his hands up in a placating gesture.)

Nathaniel: (tries to approach the writer cautiously and calmly) Marc…let’s stay calm and be reasonable. You're not well and I want to help you. Please, give me the coffee-...

(As Nathaniel tries to reach for the cup, his partner lets out a loud hiss at the artist like a wild cat and bolts out of the art room, leaving the artist flabbergasted.) Nathaniel: D-Did…Did he just seriously hiss at me?

Well, hope you all enjoyed part one, and stay tuned for part two!

@artzychic27 @nerd-chocolate @username8746489 @andromeda612 @princessbutterflysposts @lady0lunamoon

[llaberration]

Coyne's Chronicles: Shadow Over Yfiria - Chapter 6

“Alan?”

“Hm?”

“Do you remember yesterday? When we agreed that you might catch more suspicious individuals if you didn't draw attention to us?”

“Yeah...”

Thenore sighed, once more running an eye over his companion. “That's... not what I meant.” Somehow, the well educated, well raised man who apparently had the intelligence to ace classes consistently throughout their years at the college, did not have the intelligence to know what 'keep a low profile' was. Rather than opting for normal, mid-range clothing like himself that drew the eye of nobody, the college mage had gone from one extreme to another... and was now dressed like a beggar. He had managed to get the scrappiest, most ripped up clothing Trevor had ever seen anywhere. That plan could actually have worked if the other mage were a little rougher around the edges, like himself, with his unshaven look and skinny form. Alan however, was well-blooded, with excellent pale skin, clean, groomed hair, a shaven face and quite a softness from eating too many bilberry pastries after dinner.

“Well what did you mean?” asked Alan, shooting him a look.

“You look like you robbed a beggar and put his clothes on as a fashion statement. Don't get me wrong it goes nicely with your 'stay away from me I'm clearly a dangerous lunatic' demeanour but... you're still scaring everyone off. It's just that now, they're less concerned that you're going to kidnap them and send them to the college, and more concerned that you're going to try and cannibalise them.”

“I suppose that's more your area of expertise?” replied Alan, giving him a pointed look.

Trevor let out a surprised, indignant snort at the speed and wit of this response coming from Alan, but it did take the wind out of his sails for criticisms for now. He flopped back on his barrel with his arms folded over his chest. “Fine. It's an improvement of some kind I guess.”

He felt off today for some reason. Something in his guts felt... wrong. He didn't know if it was his senses telling him there was a distant but present danger, or whether the pie at their inn last night had not been quite as fresh as the landlord had claimed.

“Morning gents.”

Trevor looked up to see one of the guardsmen heading over. “Oh hello Sir Boregar...” he greeted in a monotonous, not terribly interested tone. The wall guards rarely bothered speaking with them, but this one for some reason had taken an interest in the two young college mages. Sir Belfus Boregar was probably only five years older than them, and had little in common with his fellow guards, so perhaps that explained it. He was better-read than most of the normal soldier fare, from blue-blooded breeding apparently, and tended not to fit in particularly well with his peers. Perhaps that was why he had pinned himself to Trevor and Alan, who were equally shunned by the rest of the legion. “Any juicy magic yet today?” he asked.

His voice was thick with a hammy, posh accent. His black hair was slicked back heroically, and a small, clipped moustache graced his high-cheekboned, frustratingly chiselled face. The heavy metal chest plate unnecessarily adorned with muscle-pattern and bright blue cape completed the look, and Trevor felt a little bitterness in the back of his mouth as he wondered how anyone could stand to walk around looking so bloody perfect. “Not today,” said Alan, looking dejected. “Nobody exciting coming through at all really...”

“Hm, wonder why that is!” said Boregar, his stuffy voice hesitating a little as he looked Alan up and down. “I say...” he said, leaning over towards Trevor. “What happened to him? Did he get robbed?”

Trevor let out a little laugh-snort. “No. He's 'keeping a low profile' today.”

“Ah... I... uh... I see...” said the guard, still looking at the other mage, who had turned back to the crowd.

“And how is your day? How's Poffers? Ordered the execution of any more inanimate objects recently?” The commanding officer of this particular area of the wall was an older soldier with a few too many years of experience, at least when they were calculated by bumps to the head. Captain Hortense Pofiddle, also liked his whiskey. Not many days ago he had become so drunk on the legion's supplies that he had gotten into a 'fight' with a barrel and thereafter demanded its execution on the grounds of assaulting an officer. He was the sort of leader the college best liked to work with on the wall, because he basically ignored everything they did as long as it did not directly affect his precious guards. The soldiers were satisfied to work around him too. He was one of those leaders whose men were always happy to follow him, not because they truly believed he was capable, but more out of a sense of curiosity to what he would get up to next.

Even the government liked him, because his attitude to guarding the wall was so overly heavy handed that they knew not a single mouse would manage to get through without him seeing, and having it impaled a dozen times. When he got into his little 'accidents' with whiskey, their answer was normally just to send him more of it in the hope he would continue keeping his region of the wall more secure than a thief's lockbox.

Belfus shot Thenore a manufactured smile through clenched, overly white teeth. “You know we're not... supposed to talk about the barrel incident...”

Trevor gave a second, more satisfied laugh-snort. “My mistake. It must be great fun working in the military,” he said, sarcastically. “All the bullshit you can eat.”

The guard looked offended but only in an 'obligated to do so' manner. “Come now. With the plague getting more powerful all the time, I'd think your college would be grateful to us for keeping trouble away so efficiently.”

“Oh I'm grateful for that,” said Trevor, “Don't get me wrong I'm glad to have the wall keeping us all safe here... like a big pointy angry dad...” his voice trailed off as he looked up at the wall, unease shifting within him again. He hated being this close to it, unable to see half the sky over them... he knew this side was his home but... he did struggle with the reality of urbanisation sometimes.

Belfus watched the druid's eyes tune out, going vacant as his mind went elsewhere, and he shrugged, well used to this by now. All magic users were, in his experience, a bit odd, and these two were no exception to that rule. “He's... not very good at keeping a low profile is he?” he asked, watching a family of traders speed up to pass Alan as fast as they could, dragging their staring child.

“Hm? Wha? Oh. No. Not at all. He's pretty terrible at it, but he's enthusiastic and smarter than he looks so... at least he's got that going for him...” Trevor glanced sharply at the soldier. “But don't you dare say that to him. You two high bloods are bad enough without people going around complimenting you.”

The guard shook his head, “Alan is well bred but he's hardly a high-blood,” he scoffed, until he glanced at Trevor's grin and realised the man was making a mock. He huffed a bit, folding his arms, “Well. He certainly doesn't look like it today.”

Trevor chuckled, “You're not wrong. He looks like he was dragged through a gutter. I think even more people are avoiding him now than when he had the college robes.”

“I can hear you Thenore...” muttered Alan, giving momentarily up on his checking and coming over to look at the man. “Maybe if you got off that barrel and helped me, we might get a bit more done.”

“Well... that's an interesting idea... I could give up my duty guarding this extremely comfortable barrel...” said Trevor, sitting up. “Let me see... is there... anything around here that needs to be hit really hard by a bear?”

“Um... no?” said Alan, looking around.

“How about anything that needs to be chased down by a stallion?”

“No...” sighed the other mage, seeing where this was going.

“How about a misbehaving carrot that requires urgent attention from a rabbit?”

“I see what you're...”

“Anything that needs the keen nose of a bloodhound?”

“Orange.”

“What?” the Druid stumbled on his words at that response.

“Orange.”

Trevor realised the man's strange eyes were focused over his shoulder, “What?” he repeated, turning in place to stare behind him. There was nothing. Normal, boring people milling around. “What are you talking about?”

“Orange...” repeated Alan, his eyes twinkling like he had seen something both amazing, and quite impossible.

“Is he alright?” asked Belfus, frowning a little. “Is... he having some kind of episode?”

“No...” said Trevor, waving a hand in front of Alan, who completely ignored him. “At least I don't think so...” he had never seen Alan do exactly this before. It didn't seem like an entirely good or bad thing, so he gave the man's shoulder an experimental shake. “Alan?”

Alan brushed his hand off with a gentle but insistent movement, and then appeared to start wandering off into the crowd.

Trevor watched him, his dark eyes silently observing as the blonde man made off towards something he either could not see, or could not identify as special.

“Shouldn't we... uh... follow him?” suggested Belfus, cocking his head curiously, causing the chainmail around his neck to clank loudly against the tall collar of his outer armour.

“I... guess?” said Trevor, his senses starting to tingle that something might not be quite right as he watched Alan dodge off into an alleyway not far from the gate. A look of concern began to tug at his face as he hurried across the courtyard after his friend with Belfus clanking along after him.

Alan followed the orange, his complete and full attention on the bright glowing smear in his vision. He had seen almost every colour come from humans or animals before, but orange was completely and entirely new. Not only was this a new colour but it was vivid, shining like a beacon compared to the mute trails of the people around it. So bright he could barely see the individual beneath the colour. He knew this had to be something magical, but it was certainly nothing he had experienced before, and it had just strolled right in through the gate as though nothing was wrong... so it had to at least look human underneath all that.

He jogged a little, working to get closer, his sense of duty for the time being set aside behind a veil of wonder.

Coyne was already well aware of something being off. He had gotten past the guards and through the gate just fine, and dodged himself down the first convenient alleyway he had seen, striding like a local who knew exactly where he was going.

At first, he thought he had gotten away with it, the tense knot of muscles (and dragon) in his belly starting to relax.

A step on the cobble behind him however, made him realise that perhaps something was not exactly as he had thought. 'It could just be someone innocently walking' he reasoned with himself, but a glance over his shoulder caused every muscle he had to clench. “Fez,” he breathed ever so softly. “I think there's a crazy person after us...”

“I saw him... looks like someone dressed a lord in rags...” muttered the dragon. “He looks soft, I'm sure you can out-run him... but don't yet,”

“Why not?”

“We're literally feet from the wall still... if you draw attention you might get an entire legion after you.”

“So what do we do?”

“Get another look at him, let me see.”

Coyne hesitated, but looked over his shoulder, shocked to find the man was a lot closer, speedwalking much more swiftly than he had anticipated. He recoiled, going still as his eyes met the other man's, almost stumbling over his feet as he stared into the black orbs, lit only with a pinpoint of light.

“The eyes of an ancient...” breathed Fez's voice in his ear, sounding genuinely shocked. “Coyne! I want him!”

“What?!”

“I. Want. Him. Draw him into an alleyway.”

“We're IN an alleyway!”

“Find a more alley-like alleyway!”

Coyne, shocked that the man was still dreamily following, his strange eyes almost dazed as they stared at him, did as he was told. He didn't know what was going on... but Fez seemed to have a plan. He found one of the tiny access ways between buildings that was designed only for the most skinny people, as these were normally devoid of all life, and windows.

The man continued following, a fascinated stare on his face as Coyne wound himself around a corner into the dimly lit space.

“Now... let him get near you then put hands on him. Flesh, not cloth. I'm going to pass a spell through you...”

“You're going to what?!”

“Just do it!”

Compelled to obey, Coyne stopped, letting the strange, staring man catch up with him.

Alan got time to breathe the words, “What are you?” his eyes twinkling in wonder before Coyne reached his hands out and placed them one on the man's arm, one on his neck, the two nearest spots he could grab.

Instantly, the mimic's veins seemed to catch on fire as purple light spilled from his hands, crackling and glowing as the magic seized the man, obscuring him in sparkling, purple smoke. He seemed to disappear from beneath Coyne's hands, and the veil of magic faded. “Now grab him quick!” the dragon sounded hoarse from exhaustion.

The order from Fez puzzled Coyne, but as he looked down, he saw what the dragon meant. He had clearly worked the same spell on the strange man as he had put on himself... as he was lying on the cobbles, around three inches tall, and looking stunned. “Grab. Him.”

Coyne complied, snatching the small body up, holding it desperately in his hands as he began to hurry along the remaining length of the access way. He spotted people on a larger road ahead, and not knowing what to do with the tiny man, stuffed him into the carrying pouch in his shirt, clipping it firmly closed as he tried to appear normal and calm, emerging from the access way, smoothing his hair down and continuing away from the wall as fast as he could walk without looking suspicious.

“Good, good...” the dragon's voice seemed weak, and he had once again gone limp with exhaustion. “Keep him safe... I... want... him...”

Puzzled and terrified but trying hard not to show it, Coyne hurried to lose himself in the crowds, steering away from the wall.

Trevor was growing increasingly uneasy, his senses struggling to follow Alan's trail accurately. He lost him for a moment, then picked up the scent down one of the access ways again. Alan smelled clean, unlike a lot of the people here, and that was what made him trackable. “Here...” he said, rushing down the narrow path.

Belfus' armour scraped noisily on the buildings as he followed, but Trevor ignored the guard for now, his attention fully consumed pursuing his friend. A short way down the narrow walkway, he stopped dead, his scruffy hair all but standing on end as he felt the powerful whiff of magic use... strong magic. He looked around them, his sharp eyes searching for any clue as to what had happened. “This isn't wizard magic...” he muttered, as he bent down to examine the ground. “Something older... stronger...” he scowled, straightening up. His friend had met some kind of mishap here... he could tell because there was no more scent of Alan having continued down the path. “Alan?” he called, looking around, hoping his senses were lying to him. There was no magic that could simply make someone disappear, even teleportation magic was all but a myth, there was nowhere the man could have GONE! Frustrated with himself, Trevor snorted, looking up at Belfus, who was looking on with puzzled concern from his position, stuck by the armour in the corner where the alleyway turned. “He's just gone...” muttered Trevor, to update the man who did not share his animal like senses. “He's just gone but he can't just be gone!” he snapped. He let out a growl and dropped onto all fours, smoothly and quickly transitioning into a dog. A mutt of some kind, and began scouring the ground for answers with his vastly improved nose.

The scent of magic still dominated the scene, thick and powerful, it masked most information... he could find one spot where Alan's scent seemed to concentrate itself on the ground, but gained no further information than that. He snorted angrily, looking up at Belfus, who was still trying to un-wedge himself. Smoothly transitioning back into himself, he had to wait until he had a human tongue and teeth again to exclaim. “He's just gone! Something magical has taken him somehow!”

“So... what do we do now?” asked the guard. “He must be somewhere...”

Trevor frowned, “Oh what am I going to tell the college?! That I LOST their magical eye-man? I'll be weaponised and sent to the battlefields...” he shivered, grabbing the guard's shoulder. “We have to find him... now.”

“Alright so... how do we do that? Do you fellows have some way of... tracking each other?”

Trevor stared for a moment before giving the guard's chest plate a celebratory punch, the impact enough to dink the guard un-stuck, “Go on, back the way we came... I know what to do.”

He helped scrape the guard back out of the walkway, and dashed off down the street, the merry clanking sound intensifying as Belfus attempted to keep pace in his heavy set of armour.

Trevor arrived back at their lodgings with perhaps a two minute lead on the guard, already upstairs in their shared room, rummaging around in his belongings by the time Belfus clattered in, his normally perfect hair now out of place and damp with sweat as he leaned on the door frame, panting heavily. “What're...” he began, cut off as his breath ran out after only a single word. “we...” he continued, struggling to maintain full dignity. “Doing?”

“Aha!” Trevor let out a triumphant noise as he found what he had been seeking. He held it up in celebration, and Belfus eyed the trinket.

“Your... Meadowfield seal?”

The seal was basically a pendant cast in bronze, stamped with the rounded sigil of the college, and studded with nine gem stones, each representing one school of magic. “Yes... but more,” said Trevor, with a tone of conspiracy in his words. He brought the thing up to his mouth and using just a hint of magic, he whispered his name to it. Belfus watched with interest as one of the gems slightly to the right began to glow. “It tracks us,” said Trevor, holding up his right hand, on the middle finger of which rested a thick, gold band with an inset green gem. “Our college rings... which we can't take off by the way...” he said, circling his hand around the seal, showing that the glow accurately followed his ring. “Which means... as long as Alan is still alive... and on this continent...” he brought the thing back to his lips and whispered with magic once more, using Alan's proper college name.

There was a slight pause, in which they both stared at the trinket, breath held tight in their chests, slightly more so with Trevor. Then one stone glowed, and they both relaxed. “Right then... we know the way,” said the druid, grabbing his bag and hauling it onto his shoulder. “Let's go...”

“Wait...” said the guard, “I can't just go running off... what about my duties... what about...”

Trevor stared at him, a stare so intense that it froze the muscular man where he stood and caused him to shrink into his collar a little. “Are you telling me you're not going to help? An innocent young mage has been kidnapped on your watch and you're just not going to do anything? What is it with you soldier types... you always talk about rescue and adventure and yet when it swims up with a little bow on its head and bites you in the arse you just panic and hide in your little wall!”

“Well... I need to sign off... we need supplies...” the guard continued, his voice a little more timid now. “I need to at least tell Captain Pofiddle something...”

“Fine,” said Trevor, “I need to figure out what kind of magic that was anyway. And I suppose we don't want Poffers sending his legion out after you. I'll send a communication to the college to tell them we're...” he paused, twirling his fingers in the air. “Following a lead on a magical... something... and you tell your lot the same thing.”

“I can't lie to...”

“It's not lying. There was magic, we're following it. That's all they need to know,” said Trevor, feeling oddly alive to know that he was a) leaving the wall, and b) going to do something more than sit and broodily stare at passers by.

“Are you sure about...” Belfus was silenced as another hard stare was directed at him, and he turned around with a clatter.

“And leave the bloody armour at home!” snapped Trevor. “It's about as stealthy as a horse with buckets stuck on its feet.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

<<First || Previous || Masterlist || Next>> And so we reunite with the meadowfield mages in order to begin thoroughly ruining their day! Hanging out with a dragon sure does attract trouble.

[drakyns]

@frostblooms ; somewhat plotted starter. ♡

ㅤ“thank you… for this.”

ㅤwords were spoken from one corner of the shack as uneasy fingers fumbled with empty flasks and wild lavender strands. he had worn her a chief: a black fur coat weighing heavy on his back, gold accents and a far too high request. yet the detailed leather on his clothes and pleading greens showed another facet: he came not as a demanding king but as a desperate man. young dragons had been getting sick, stumbling on their feet, unable to set fly or suddenly falling asleep, even in dangerous places. they had resorted to everything back at berk, from herbs to prayers, but no effort seemed to pay off—eventually, even some of the older dragons seemed to be getting affected, their nights of sleep expanding for days or weeks. so håkan had set sail, going from island to island, land to land, castle to castle, village to village, hut to hut. a name came popping up now and then: amelia, the apothecary. perhaps she could help. finding her in the wilderness had proven thorny; it was almost as if fae magic safeguarded her shack. she had heard him through his exhaustion and urgency, making sense of his babblings, invited hiccup in… and simply smiled before looking for a book on her endless shelves. her whole place looked like something out of a fairytale.

ㅤ“i almost thought people like you didn’t exist.” and could anyone blame him? none of the fables had ever piped about them. “i mean, healer witches! that’s—incredible. and willing to help me with our dragons, no less!” it was… almost too good to be true, now that he stopped to think about it. suddenly, flashes of past experiences came to mind, and his expression twisted in disbelief, looking down at his cup. could this be a trick? a scheme? oh, gods. he hoped not. an awkward chuckle: “uhh… i’m guessing this tea isn’t poisoned, is it?”

[saintvainglorious]

Fics I Enjoyed September-October

10 fics total. Includes fics from the following fandoms: Black Sails, Harry Potter

Away Childish Things by lettered/@letteredlettered Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 154k | Teen & Up

Harry gets de-aged. Malfoy has to help him.

Elective Affinities by Caecelia Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | 86k (WIP) | Mature

It's 1976, and a strange new transfer student is about to turn Severus Snape's life on its head . . .

What We Pretend We Cannot See by gyzym/@gyzym Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 131k | Mature

Seven years out from the war, Harry learns the hard truth of old history: it’s never quite as far behind you as you thought.

where there's a will by aloneintherain/@captainkirkk Harry Potter | Gen | 8k | Teen & Up

Harry writes the first draft of his will when he’s fourteen.

Princes of the New World by x_etoile_x/@etoilesombre Black Sails | James Flint/John Silver | 38k | Explicit

“This is your plan?” Flint sneers, looking at Silver like he’d expected no better. “Hiding below decks like a rat?” “Now Captain, that’s unkind,” Silver pouts, trying to hide his hurt behind teasing reproach. All day he has tried to match Flint, to fight alongside him though he is ill-suited to it, and it has earned him nothing but disdain. Now it’s time to do things his way for a while. “Like a stowaway, at least.” After they have taken the warship and been cast out of the crew, Flint and Silver are forced to contend with each other and the nature of their relationship.

Far From the Tree by aideomai Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 112k | Explicit

The arrival of Harry Potter’s children—snapped back in time, the children themselves guessed, twenty or so years—was the most interesting thing to happen at Hogwarts for years.

Eager for the Sky by oknowkiss/@oknowkiss Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 35k | Mature

It was announced, just as the Triwizard Tournament had been, at the start of term feast. A year-long, international Quidditch varsity match — the inaugural Wizarding Academy Cup. In which Harry is Hogwarts' star Seeker, Draco is on the bench, and they both have a thing or two to learn about playing for the same team.

Like Lightning at Your Fingertips by potterwatch Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 43k | Teen & Up

The problem with living with another insomniac is, eventually, they find out you’re one, too. When Harry and Draco return for their eighth year, they think they’ll see very little of each other. Then McGonagall assigns them to room together. And the castle starts breaking. And there’s that thing with Potter’s magic.

Three's Family by darkbluedark Harry Potter | James Potter/Lily Evans | 19k | Teen & Up

It’s May 1979 and the Order has just apprehended a pair of mysterious wizards who look remarkably like a Potter and a Malfoy. Naturally, James Potter and Sirius Black are called in to identify the strangely familiar strangers and determine their backgrounds and loyalties. (This would be a lot easier if their captives weren’t convinced everyone they talk to is dead. It would also be easier if they didn’t spend half their bloody time bickering.)

The Bolthole by aideomai and Tepre/@tepre Harry Potter | Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy | 54k | Explicit

Harry is a hoarder, Draco is grief-stricken, and both are capable human adults who can definitely spend a month in a cottage in the Cotswolds together without ever talking about the time they slept together in eighth year. Yeah, no, totally.

[missfckingfortune]

I KNOW, SANTA IS SO EXCITED FOR DECEMBER TOO

I'm SO with you on all the AU's, you have no idea.

Historical, you're a woman after my own heart. 💕💕 I'm hearing regency, so I have a sneaky question, do you have any favourite setting for your regency? (purposefully keeping this vague but a country or specific tropes maybe?) 

And, if you're into the classics, do you have a favourite regency classic?

also HELLO on the hospital backdrop, I'm at the very least well into all the possible medical shows, it's an addiction I can't quit. (I have a whole google slides presentation about grey's anatomy to help me keep track 🤣)

If you're feeling like it you could give me your headcanons about what kinds of doctors elucien and your other favourite acotar characters would be? 😏

Also I did mean alternative universes but I can't blame you for naming these glorious fics (which are AU's too so it counts, really)

Some top tier headcanons, I'm also a firm Lucien has the smuggest, sexiest smirk believer and I love powerful, in-control Elain.

Everything you say helps, you talk to me, we become best friends, and I'm going to do the magic 😌 Till the next one, Santa 💌💌

SANTA I am gonna have to sit in your lap and let you spank me because I've been very naughty not answering this, and I"M SORRY. My favorite Regency classic has to be Pride and Prejudice. It's unmatched. I love every movie adaptation. i know this is an unoriginal pick, but I guess it's a popular one for a reason. I also really like Poldark. I'm not saying that's a regency classic; I just like it, haha. Aiden Turner and Elinor Tomlinson are just peak tortured horny souls together in season one. I've watched this a lot of time. It's not Regency either- but I also really like pirates. My favorite show ever made is Black Sails ( I have a tattoo about it- so you could say I'm a casual fan), and Pirates of the Caribbean is my guilty childhood pleasure. Oh wow, it certainly sounds like you're a Grey's Anatomy superfan. So, I could see Lucien as either a facial plastic surgeon ( despite not really caring enough to fix his own scar), an ophthalmologist or ophthalmologic surgeon ( hehehe eyeballs), or a good old front-line ED physician in the heart of the crazy. Cassian is undoubtedly an orthopedic surgeon, slamming bones and drilling cement all day. Az is path/rads ( no one sees him in the dark, so mysterious) Rhys is neuro don't talk to him. Elain is tough for me but I think for right now, I'd place her as a psychiatrist ( visions, hallucinations). What else can I tell you? What else do you want to know? Thanks for being such a wonderful santa!

[bu-blegh-ost]

tw for scary realizations i guess

had a horrifying thought just now so I'm gonna make you all think about it too. (spoilers for ep 105) Remember this big battlefield with navy ppl they encountered back there? And then some survivors that found a safe heaven on land? I kinda just realized that if there was any sort of civilization underwater in the Sakura ocean they all were first to go probably. Like there's no way anyone there could survive the entire ocean turning black, as they literally breathe in the foul substance that stareted it all, right? I mean sure, some species could go above water, but most of them would be commoners in terms of DnD and it would take them a while to realize what's happening, decide on what to do and like literally leave everything behind for a mere chance that it's better on the surface. Besides, the ocean going magically pitch black in a second would make it so hard to do anytrhing before the corruption starts seeping in...Like damn. From now on anytime the gang does literally anything on land, or sails on the black ocean I'll be thinking about the entire undersea population of skeletons and corpses laying gooped and dead at the bottom of the sea

[swampstew]

What's the Magic Word?

Chapter 27: Til Death

Major smut chapter

Rowena wiped her sweaty forehead with her arm as she finished clearing out a few acres of land in between the two mountain peaks. She had spent weeks terraforming the island to prepare the foundation for the castle hideout Kid wanted to build. Her next task was to stack slabs of rock from one of the mountains for the walls and flooring, but that could wait until tomorrow she decided as she began her trek to the ship. As she walked she was trailed by a young, black feline she found living off the land. It chirped at her and she bent down to scratch its chin.

“Sorry sweetie, the big man said no more cats on his ship.”

It mewled sadly.

“Yeah me too but don’t worry, once this castle is built, I’ll smuggle you in.”

The cat bumped its head against her hand and scampered off into the woods. Rowena had no idea what species it was, and she was curious of the light, spotty pattern she saw if the light reflected off the fur just right.

The Witch made a beeline for the bathtub as soon as she got on board and she let herself sink underwater. She didn’t know how long she stayed in there but when she came out Kid was sitting at his desk doing some paperwork. She pressed her toweled body to his back and kissed the nape of his neck.

“Hey, thanks for all you’ve done so far clearing out the land,” he said, not looking up from his work. “We’ll be sailing again soon to pick up supplies to build the rest of our base.”

“You’re welcome. How was your physical therapy today?”

“It was fine, my motor functions are responding well and I didn’t pop the stress ball today.”

“That’s amazing babe. You’re crushing through the anticipated timeline of recovery. Did UK say when you’ll begin testing out your Devil Fruit power with the arm?”

“No but I’ll start that before we leave here.” He pushed his hair back and motioned for Rowena to sit on his lap, wrapping his flesh arm around her waist as he inhaled her scent. She had been making a sweet, floral concoction to wash her hair from ingredients foraged from the island, and Kid loved the way it smelled.

“Ro,’ what is your role with the Straw Hats?”

“How do you mean?”

“I know your crew has a shipwright, an archaeologist, a swordsman, a doctor, and a pet, but what do you do?”

“Ah, well Chopper is the doctor, he’s a reindeer and not our pet. We have a navigator, a sniper, a chef, and a musician too. I guess I provide support. We all bring different strengths to the crew but our main fighters are Sanji, Zoro, and of course Luffy. The rest of us sort of work around them to help wherever and whenever we can.”

“Oh! I thought Straw Hat was the pet,” he smirked at his joke. “I see, then that’s what I want you doing here as we move forward with our journey. I don’t want to see you diving headfirst into danger. I want you to provide support to the crew and ship, keep them from harm.”

“What about supporting you or keeping you safe?”

“I said what I said. Don’t make me repeat myself.”

Rowena bristled and sighed before agreeing and pushed off him. She got dressed and sat at her vanity, working on something privately. Kid occasionally glanced at her as she rifled through pages and scrolls, jotting down notes and muttered under her breath. Finally, she got up and walked back to him, he leaned back in his chair.

“I want to carve a rune in your prosthetic arm.”

“Why?” he narrowed his eyes at her.

“Since you won’t let me keep you safe, the next best thing I can do is give you support. This is a protection barrier rune that activates once your blood is drawn. You gonna let me do it or what?”

He nodded at her, resting his arm to the table. She pulled out the dagger he made her and carved a small character to the underside of his arm. She blew away the metal shavings and brought the dagger to his flesh hand.

“This will hurt for a second,” she pricked his thumb. Carefully letting the blood drip on the tip of the dagger, she turned his metal arm awkwardly to let the blood fill the small carving.

“Didn’t feel shit,” he muttered with a roll of his eyes.

“Stay very still,” she muttered bringing his organic thumb to her mouth, licking off the smeared blood and pressed a kiss to the wound.

She lifted her wand just above the bloodied rune and in a hushed tone repeatedly chanted, “Repellendum malum minatur, ut nobis.”

Kid watched as the blood began to burn and the rune became deep red. She lowered her wand and the rune was completed.

“Ok let’s test it out,” she walked out of the cabin.

Kid followed her to the main deck, intrigued with whatever she was planning. There were a few crewmembers on deck and they all watched as the couple stood in the center.

“Ok so the way it should work is – if you’re ever in a tight spot and someone manages to make you bleed, the rune activates to produce a protective barrier around you. Ideally it should also have some kick to it. Ready?”

“Ready for what?”

Rowena didn’t answer, she only drew out her wand and unsheathed it. Before he could react or question it, she flung her beloved wand at him and the seastone-tip blade sliced his shoulder as it flew in the air before falling to the deck. The crew rose to their feet, some calling out in alarm.

He scowled at the minor pain he felt, looking down as the laceration began to bead with blood droplets. As soon as the first fat droplet fell, Kid felt a force shake him. In a flash, a massive purple mist barrier surrounded his body, thickening as it swirled around him. Then suddenly, Rowena was flung off the ship screaming in the air until she broke the water’s surface.

The crew and Kid rushed portside scanning the ocean for her. After a minute, a tunnel of water came from the surface with Rowena standing atop the crest straight to the main deck. Her hair coiled and twisted itself to release all the seawater it had absorbed.

“That worked out better than I expected! Happy early birthday Kiddo.”

Smiling, he drew her into a kiss, not even minding the weakened feeling that took over him as the sea water soaked his clothes and skin..

“Always outshining yourself,” he purred against her mouth.

“You seem to be the driving force that pushes me to get creative,” she kissed him back.

“I am supposed to protect and train you up,” he snickered.

“Fucking hell, can you take this mushy shit back to your cabin?” Killer crossed his arms at them.

The couple looked at each other before continuing to make out, this time they both made direct eye contact with Killer whose neck became a shade of deep red as he started twitching.

𓏧 𓏲 𓏲 𓏲 𓋒 𓏲 𓏲 𓏲 𓏲 𓏧

Rowena woke up at the crack of dawn and as gently as she could, extricated herself from Kid’s possessive cuddling to get ready for the day. Killer and a handful of crewmembers met her on the deck before disembarking off ship carrying massive duffel bags and large boxes.

Kid was in a sour mood while he stomped around the ship. He felt like some of the crew was missing, which he didn’t mind so much but the fact that Rowena and Killer were among the missing and had been for hours, annoyed the ever-loving shit out of him. On his birthday of all days. Assholes.

It wasn’t until late afternoon that his fiancé, best friend and a horde of pirates came back to the ship, all looking incredibly suspicious of something.

“Where the fuck have you been?” he barked at them.

“Preparing for your party!” Rowena smiled at him.

“Do you not understand what a surprise party is?!” Killer snapped at her.

“But he doesn’t like surprises,” she argued with a cocked eyebrow.

That softened Kid’s edge and he hid his smile, turning to watch the waves lazily slap against his ship while they debated on whether or not he liked surprises.

“Fuck a surprise party, show me what you’ve been up to.”

The entire crew disembarked and made their way to their future base – Cat even joined them, trotting alongside the Captain. They entered the clearing where Rowena had spent a month terraforming the landscape and Kid was left breathless at the sight.

The ground was completely leveled out and cleared of debris and foliage; she had settled large stone slabs to create a smooth floor foundation, and she had even set up tall stone walls against the mountain to create a giant, partially built entrance. It was embellished with what he assumed was an illusion as the walls had text on them that would blink and reappear – it spelled out:

 ☠️Happy Birthday Captain☠️

The band’s equipment was all set up just off the foundation. Fairy lights were woven around the walls and between barrels. A long table was set up with several glasses, bottles of liquor and barrels of rum framing the wooden table.

Killer, who had been dragging along a cart, uncovered and began to sort an array of Kid’s favorite foods on an empty table, opposite of the drinking table. Heat set down a giant box in the center of Killer’s dishes. Kid uncovered it and there was a gigantic cake with his jolly roger decorated in frosting.

“How the fuck did you pull this off?” Kid wondered aloud to no one in particular.

“Team effort,” Killer shrugged nonchalantly. “This motley crew of weirdos care about you or something.”

Beaming, Kid ordered everyone to start pouring drinks as he walked around taking it all in. Rowena watched him from the wall she was leaning on with the Massacre Soldier.

“Think he likes it?” she whispered.

“I’ve never seen him this surprised or speechless in the time I’ve known him; since he was this tall,” Killer lowered his hand until it hovered just below his kneecap.

“Aw little guy!” her lavender eyes twinkled.

Drinks were passed around and Kid took his place in the center, raising his glass in the air and the others followed suit.

“22 years alive in this miserable world and I couldn’t ask for a better crew to sail these wicked seas. Drink up fuckers, it’s time to party – next week we conquer!” he emptied his glass as the crew cheered and toasted. He made his way to the wall and pulled Killer into a giant hug, thumping his back excitedly. Killer wished him happy birthday again and then left the couple alone to get another drink.

Kid held out his hand and Rowena took it; he twirled her around, pulling her flush to his chest. She looked at him sweetly, “Happy Birthday Captain Kid,” she purred at him.

He crashed his lips against hers, slipping his tongue inside her mouth and dominating her. She moaned lightly against him and he pushed her up against the wall, sliding his flesh hand to cup her boobs.

Giggling she put a hand on his chest, “We have all night for that. Come on let’s enjoy your party first and then,” she whispered in his ear, making his cheeks flush deeply.

“Holy fuck well when you put it that way,” he grinned at her, giving her a final kiss before they walked to the liquor table and he commanded everyone to take shots.

As the night wore on and the pirates got slammed they all indulged in drinking games and eating every scrap of food until only the cake was left. Cat got the first taste when no one was looking. By the time Heat and Wire went to grab the cake and light the candles, part of the jolly roger had been licked clean to reveal spongy cake underneath. Shrugging to one another, they arranged the candles over the bare spot and moved on with the celebration.

Once the cake had been properly devoured, Kid started a mosh pit on the floor as Wire, Heat, Killer, and Gig began playing a punk rock show. At one point Kid got on stage himself and began to sing. Rowena was genuinely surprised that the man could hold a note. She knew that he had the ability to scream and shout for long periods without going hoarse, but to hear him singing was something else entirely.

Kid looked like a genuine rockstar god on the stage with his spiked coat and long locks thrashing as he banged his head to the music. He would switch between singing passionately and then switch to guttural screaming during the more hardcore songs. His deep voice sounded natural against the sharp chords and intense metal music; the Captain could seriously consider a career in music if piracy didn’t work out for him.

Then the final song happened. Kid didn’t take his eyes off the Witch as he put his entire soul into his performance. For the first time since she met him, Rowena felt as if she’d been the one put under a spell. The way his voice flirtatiously sang the evocative lyrics against the sweet musical caresses – a stark contrast from the emo music they had been playing. It was a dark and twisted love ballad. She felt her heart tighten as Kid continued his show.

And after all the sorrow / We'll be riding high And the truth of the matter is / I'll never let you go, let you go You go down just like Holy Mary / Mary on a, Mary on a cross Your beauty never ever scared me / Mary on a, Mary on a cross If you choose to run away with me / I will tickle you internally And I see nothing wrong with that

The pirates erupted into cheers as the show came to an end. Rowena raised her glass to her man and blew him a kiss while his bandmates rotated around the stage to continue without the redhead as their front man.

Kid leapt off stage and strolled over to her, taking a drink from one his crew’s hands, bringing it to clink against her glass. Toasting to each other, they tried to link their arms together and drink, which proved to be a problem since Rowena’s arms were hilariously shorter than Kid’s. He threw his head back laughing as she muttered a spell to clean the spilled liquor off herself. He only stopped for the briefest moment to lap up droplets of rum off her chest that she had missed entirely.

Rowena took drink after drink, knowing she would need it to release all the tension in her body for what was to come. Several hours of partying later, the Captain was officially over it and ready to for birthday sex. He practically dragged Rowena back to the ship, panting and petting over her before they even crossed the cabin threshold.

“I know you’re excited but this is one of those nights were we’re going to have to take it a little slower than normal,” she bit her lip, suddenly unsure if Kid was capable of being that gentle with her, especially drunk. Chuckling, he smoothed her hair and kissed her gently.

“It’s not my first time doing this, I’ll be careful with you. I don’t ever want to hurt you, especially with you letting me do this. It’s your first time yeah?” She nodded shyly. “Then I’ll make it the best experience for you.”

Kid started by kissing her neck lovingly, brushing through her hair with organic fingers as his metal arm gently directed her on the bed. Rowena relaxed against him, weaving her arms around his neck as he continued placing kisses on her jaw and face. She caressed Kid’s skin with her fingers, tracing along his muscles and occasionally giving them a squeeze to which he would flex, and she would moan into his mouth, gripping the hard muscles fervently.

It turned out the Supernova was more than capable of being verrrry gentle, at least when it concerned his Witch. He started their affair with soft touches on her body as he explored her vulnerable spots, stroking, pinching, and strobing lightly against her body as he undressed her like he was slowly unwrapping a present. He sucked on her nipples for every throaty moan Rowena let out as his fingers stroked her clit, feeling her body tense as he edged out her orgasm. He moved to slip his fingers inside her core, reveling in the gushing wetness he produced from her and he spread her silkiness down her labia and to her second, tighter entrance.

With a long finger he began to gently rub the outer rim of his Witch’s ass trying to loosen her up a bit. Feeling truly fucking grateful he was the first – and most definitely the last – man to touch and explore her in this way. Truly a gift.

He heard her breath hitch and he lowered his mouth to her sopping core, murmuring out a soft, “It’s ok baby, I’ll take good care of you,” and he plunged his tongue deep inside her, lapping up her juices as her body arced into his mouth.

He let out a chuckle that made her body break out in goosebumps from the sensation. He used his pinky to gently probe the entrance of her ass, her dripping slick lubricating the area, allowing him to slip his finger in to the first knuckle. Rowena let out a gasp of pain mixed with surprised pleasure as he stilled his finger inside her, allowing her to adjust to the new feeling.

Kid’s cock twitched in anticipation but he paced himself, not wanting to overstimulate his woman and ruin the experience for her due to his insatiable hunger.

“Doing ok?” he asked in a gruff voice.

“Yeah, keep going,” she lightly panted.

He grunted and began sliding his pinky further inside her, feeling her tight walls adjust to his digit as he continued fucking her pussy with his heavy tongue. As he began to slowly pump his pinky in and out of her, his mouth began a deadly assault on her clitoris. He flattened his tongue against her bundle of nerves, stroking her with his tongue, letting the tip of his wet muscle apply direct pressure to her clit as she let out choked gasps in response to his ministrations.

His cock throbbed and leaked out precum, staining his briefs as he continued stretching her body out. He added one, then two fingers, plunging them deep into her pussy. Pumping three digits in and out of her holes rapidly, lips pursed around and sucking on her clit as her whimpers became shrill screams of pleasure.

“Oh fuck Kid, how do you always feel so fucking good,” she drawled out in a haze, tears blearing her vision as she felt her body quiver from the pleasure.

Kid chuckled, “I’m good at everything I do.”

Using his metal arm, he carefully pulled his pants off, freeing his cock and settling it against her body. Kid enjoyed the feeling of her slickness soaking his sensitive skin as he rubbed against her core, letting out a throaty grunt of need.

Rowena’s hand snaked in between them and she lightly traced her fingers over his cock; gently pressing his erection more firmly against her as he edged them. They moaned in unison at the delicious feeling of steady friction on their most sensitive parts. She used her thumb to rub his sensitive head and Kid let out a loud, needy moan. Globby pearls of precum began to weep from his tip and leaked on her clitoral hood as a shooting flash of pleasure began to run through her spine to clit.

“Kid I think, I think I’m gonna…”

She could barely choke out the words as Kid sped up rocking his cock against her swollen lips, his tip harshly jutting into her clit. His precum was fully seeping out of him. After a few sharp thrusts, Rowena felt a taut pull in her lower stomach snap as her body contorted against Kid’s cock, releasing a stream of wetness as she let out a breathless screech from the sensation.

Kid gave her a salacious grin as he watched his Witch’s face go through several emotions, his pelvis now drenched from her squirting. He let himself enjoy her body, slipping his cock inside her to feel her heat warm his member as he lazily thrusted inside her while she rode out her high. Her body tightened against his throbbing cock and he grunted in response, wanting to desperately fuck her into oblivion right then and there. She seemed to want the same, her walls tightened immediately against his length in a vice grip as his cock filled her to capacity.

“Fuck, so fucking tight,” he grunted.

“You’re so fucking huge,” she moaned in response, wiggling her hips to create more friction.

Kid withdrew his pinky from her body and gripped her waist as he began to mercilessly buck into her pussy. Rowena responded by wrapping her legs around his waist to angle him deeper inside her, to keep him from leaving. The redhead threw his head back and let out a strangled cry as he could feel his orgasm peaking; he knew he had to act quick or he would lose himself before he could really enjoy her.

He allowed himself a few extra pumps, indulging in the sensation of her cunt trying to milk him before he pulled out completely. Before she could protest, he plunged his fingers inside of her to continue drilling her. He curled his fingers upwards, searching for that spongey spot he knew she loved so much.

As his fingers kept her occupied, he lined his aching cock to her tight hole and probed the entrance with his tip. She let out a small hiss and he pulled back. Kid gathered as much of her slick into his hand and lubricated his shaft with it, spreading it down and over her second hole before he stuck his fingers back inside of her pussy. He lined his cock once more and waited until he could hear loud, breathy moans once more before he attempted to breach her hole.

Using all the self-restraint he had left, Kid pushed the head of his cock into Rowena’s ass, stilling once his head was fully inside to let her adjust to the sensation. She had let out a sharp gasp that was quickly overtaken with the sound of needy lust as his fingers kept rubbing inside her, dragging her attention away from the foreign intrusion.

When he heard no other objections, Kid began to push further inside her, being cautious of any noises of pain. She let out none, other than small yelps of surprise mixed with moaning. He took that as permission to keep sliding in as he rolled his hips.

It took several minutes before he fully bottomed out in her asshole and he let out a fierce whisper, “fucking gods. You’re so…gnh…tight…I feel like I can’t breathe,” he rasped, black dots appeared in his vision.

Rowena responded by clenching her body, walls tightening around his fingers and shaft alike and it made them both gasp sharply.

“Oh fuck keep doing that baby. Goddamn I’m so fucking lucky to get to have you like this,” his voice was hoarse.

She tightened her walls again and Kid snapped his head up, searching for her eyes. Lavendar and amber irises found each other and she gave him a lusty smile, obscenely licking her lips and biting down on her full bottom lip; fuck he would do anything to see her make that face every single day.

Kid stretched his body out so he could reach her face and kiss her with ferocity, his fingers working overtime in her core as he sped his thrusting. Rowena let out needy mewls as he ravished her, her brain went dumb as he aroused every part of her until she was sure she would pass out from the overstimulation.

She focused on tightening her walls with every full thrust he gave her body, drawing out more vocalized noises from the Supernova than she had ever heard from him before. He was panting, grunting like an animal as the speed of his thrusting increased; he gave out throaty moans for every squeeze she gave him, a hiss of pleasure for every scrape on his skin and scalp her nails graced him with. And her favorite sound of all – the praising he showered her with as he neared his end.

“You’re doing so good for your first-time princess. You took my monster cock inside you without complaint and you deserve a big fucking reward. I’m going to give you everything,” he moaned into her mouth.

“Is my reward you painting my insides with your cum, babe?” Rowena moaned back as he licked her lips down to her jaw, sucking on her damp flesh.

“Aye but that’s not all. I’ll coat your insides, your outside and much much more after we’re done tonight,” he promised, voice getting gruffer and she could feel his cock stiffening inside her.

He was right at the edge. Using his fingers, he began to rub her g-spot faster, adding his thumb to her clit to make her come again before he could release. He knew exactly how much pressure and speed he needed to apply make her come undone again; her body arched upwards, screaming in carnal pleasure against him while his thrusting became erratic through her pulsating orgasm.

“HOLY SHIT KID PLEASE!!!!”

Tears flowed from her eyes as she squeezed her eyes shut. Her body officially on fire as she came down from her high, finally registered the burning sensation of his cock mercilessly fucking her virgin asshole. Squeezing her walls one final time, Kid let out a mangled roar as he came. He sloppily thrusted a few times, his cum shooting out in ropes deep inside her ass.

Kid was nothing if not a depraved man. Pulling out and while his cock kept pulsing with his release, he stood above her and fisted his length as his cum kept shooting out, landing on her waist, her tits, her jaw and her hair. Rowena watched him with wide eyes as his cock just kept gushing with cum and he gave her a wicked grin. He lowered himself to her pussy, pushing in until his pelvis was flush against hers and she gasped as he thrusted harshly in her, both hands supporting himself upright as he fucked into her.

The last of his cum had spilled out but he pushed through it and kept bucking wildly into her, forcing a final orgasm to wash over him. It didn’t take long as he watched his first load dripping down her body, felt it leaking from her ass as his balls slapped against her throbbing hole. With a final, beast-like roar, he slammed his hips harshly against Rowena and came again.

His cum overfilled Rowena’s core, thick whiteness flowed out of her as she let out a throaty whine while her lover milked himself using her body. With a groan Kid was finally spent and pulled out of her, leaning backwards to admire his work.

Rowena looked completely fucking ruined; her face was flushed red and she her chest was heaving from exertion. Her hair was plastered to her head and body and he could see his cum was already drying and cracking in her hair. His seed on her body was dripping down on his sheets; but the best sight of all – her asshole and pussy both oozing with his cum as both loosened holes leaked profusely.

Kid gently stroked her thick thighs as he steadied his breathing, occasionally dipping a finger into his seed and spreading it on her thighs.

“I wish I could take a picture of you like this, I want to remember this moment for the rest of my life,” he crowed, licking his lips in delight at her squirming underneath him.

Rowena gave him a cheeky smile, “there’s a camera in the chest from when we visited Dressrosa,” her eyes twinkled.

Kid shot up and ran to the chest, finding the desired item. He raced back and stood in front of her, putting his eye in the view finder and pressing the shutter. The polaroid flashed and the picture printed. He also grabbed Rowena a towel and helped wipe her off, laying together in bed as the picture developed.

It came out a little dark but it was otherwise perfect. Rowena was reclining backwards, slightly propped on her elbows with one hand squeezing a breast coated in his cum. She was winking at the camera, her tongue licking her upper lip and teeth with an impish look. The flash of the camera made his cum shine against her body, especially as it oozed from her holes. Kid grinned at the photo before tucking it into his nightstand drawer.

“Best birthday ever,” he hummed, hugging Rowena to his body after he had gently wiped her clean.

“I’m glad,” she giggled, gracing his pecs with sweet kisses.

“Rowena?” he shifted to look into her eyes.

“You’ve made me the happiest man alive. Not just tonight, but practically every night and day since you’ve been on my ship. At first I thought you just annoyed me, then I thought you were using magic against me. After I hated you a bit for giving me so many fucking exciting and conflicting emotions and anxieties and just…joy…I realized I didn’t hate you. Everything I originally thought was wrong. I was falling in love with you and I didn’t know or understand it. And when I did, I acted worse in some ways.”

Kid leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

“I’m sorry for every time I acted like a downright idiot and any time I hurt you, intentionally or not. You don’t deserve an iota of my ire; and as sadistic as I am, I don’t enjoy bringing you pain or making you sad. I can’t fucking stand it. It feels like I’m being stabbed in the heart. I can feel it in the depths of my rotten soul. I don’t want to hurt you. But I might sometimes. I’m your man, I should be lifting you up not dragging you down…I’ll do better. I’ll give you the world and all I want is for you to love me.”

Rowena hummed happily at him, reaching out to hold his mechanical hand. “How could I ever love anyone else? There is no one like you. I was afraid that I misunderstood love, that because I hadn’t experienced it before, I wouldn’t know if what we had was real love. But love is a choice just as much as it’s a feeling. A feeling that sits deep inside me, that stokes the flame in my heart. Through every moment we share, whether in happiness or sadness, will not waver. And to choose love, no matter what. To choose loving you through the things we experience together, separately, for now and all time. I wouldn’t want to change a single moment of our time together, all of it cultivated my love for you. You see me and you see the things I need that I don’t see for myself. You’re the source of my strength. And even though you haven’t told me your whole story yet, the parts of your past that sit so heavily in your mind – I will still love you. Til death do us part, Kid.”

He grinned at her, “Aye, til death do us part,” he mused, suddenly liking the corny phrase a lot more as he leaned down to kiss her. They embraced each other and fell asleep with intertwined limbs, their resting faces remained joyful through the night as they dreamt of each other.

Read on AO3

[your-local-uwu-artist]

HELLAO how about 6, 14, 15, and 25 for the Kirby OC ask game!!! :D

🗣️: If you could cast a voice actor to voice your OC who would you choose?

tbh I havn't really been able to nail a voice-claim/hc down for Button. Though I def think he would have a more masculine-sounding voice, but with some sort of quick to it (like being raspy or squeaky) the only thing I know for sure is he needs like, a loser white guy voice.... if that makes literally any sense

also I think they have the vibe of a character whos eng and jp voices are very different but somehow both work equally very well (like calcifur and meowth, both of those have very different directions taken with their voices but both work in the same way somehow??)

ummm some potential candidates are Charlie Day, Jack McBrayer, maybe Jason Ritter? Daniel thrasher has never voice acted but he's def a candidate

for jp something similar to either Nate's pkmn masters jp voice, or like, something very raspy and mascot-character esque

14. 🍱: If your OC had a dish themed around them at the Kirby Cafe, what would it be?

hmm I'm not sure? this isn't really my area of expertise: here's some random ideas tho~

-apple pie flavored waffle? shaped like a star of course

-little button shaped sugar cookies?

-half chocolate half vanilla cupcake? to represent the angel+demon thing, combine it with the sugar cookies maybe? have two of them decorated like his eyes mayhaps?

-apparently there is a way to make drinks glow in the dark but it requires a black light so dead end :(

-mac n cheese, idk how to make it cute but it needs to be involved

-wait! idea: pretzel shaped like a lyra?

15. 🧸: If your OC had any merchandise themed around them, what would it be?

now this one is actually right in my area of expertise I love toy design

for some less simple things:

one of those little craft kits that gives you the supplies to make something simple like a felt plush sewn together with yarn, you could sew a little small star-button billow, and a little kirby plush and the aesthetic is all Button themed. Or maybe a a friendship bracelet craft kit? there's a lot of potential craft kits what with being from patch land

or maybe a merry magoland themed re-ment set that features a little Button working a booth

or you know those little keychain plushies?

dude I could design these ALL DAY

hell I've thought a lot about button merch just with what I could feasibly make happen. Button acryllic charms? Button buttons? a Button themed candy bag keychain? those keychains with the little magnet heart accesories? I could do that with Button and characters he's shipable with. standee with tail wag? glow in the dark standee and the stand part is a magic circle? button enamel pins? button ACRYLIC PINS?

25. ⭐️: If your OC got their own spinoff game what would it be about and what would the gameplay be like?

a few ideas!

-epic yarn style! the story line is Button learns about Kirby's Magic sock and decides to visit home~

-game where you sail across the sea!!! Meta Knight wants you to collect a special flower that only grows on this one island, he's too busy with meta knight stuff to get it himself. So he has sent Button on this fetch quest. i guess you could make it into a platformer, but maybe it could be like a minigame collection? that would involve things like puzzle games to figure out navigation. or upkeep/tidying around the boat. maybe there could be 'events', like finding a waddle dee lost at sea and bringing them home. or needing to fix the boats engine

-prequel game of one of Button's journey's during angst-era. platformer but with a lot of puzzle aspects implemented

-if you wanted a more epic quest with co-op modes and all maybe Button caught wind of some powerful magic source and is seeking it in hopes of restoring his Halo, and of course theres a positive message in the end where no Button doesn't get his halo back but he got his Self worth back or smth. (the true halo was the friends we made along the way I guess) would still want puzzle aspects implemented

-game where kirby and co is on vacation but danger strikes and Button, Magolor, Taranza, and Marx has to take the place of Kirby and co.

-unrelated but take a moment to imagine Merry Magoland but with Button around doing his job. Imagine a special animation of them being shocked when the player gets a high score or smth

[fandomshatepeopleofcolor]

If anon is looking for western AAA games there’s like red dead redemption assassin’s creed fallout franchise mass effect tomb raider watch dogs deus ex etc. most of those are already open world RPGs of different genres. Most rpgs published by major companies go for open world nowadays.

I still suggest sailing the high seas for AAA though unless you’re supporting them for their diverse content or wait until they go like 50-70% sale. In this economy those prices are not worth it for the amount of content they give and the increase in sales doesn’t even really go to the dev teams anyway its more direct to the company. For me its just a metric to tell the companies I want more diverse content. Support Indie devs steam has its own indie tag to make it easy to find!

or if AAA isn’t a necessity open up steam and search by tag. I got 1200 results checking fantasy open world and rpgs on steam.

Some particular suggestions that I haven’t seen though I guess its because its been like 4 years since their release?:

- The Outer Worlds open world rpg scifi shooter is made by a AA company which is known for Fallout New Vegas Pillars of Eternity and SWTOR KOTOR II. The player character doesn’t get a romance but you do get a companion who is a sapphic asexual and you can help her get a girlfriend. Its has choices and relationships in a similar style to FNV

- Tell Me Why is a narrative adventure game by Dontnod who made Life is Strange. It features a trans man as one of the leads and Dontnod had this on their FAQ https://www.tellmewhygame.com/faq/ : “Trans, nonbinary and gender non-conforming staff at both DONTNOD and Xbox have made countless key creative contributions to Tell Me Why, including in character design, narrative and dialogue, building inclusive online spaces for the game, and much more. To ensure that Tyler’s character would resonate with a wide and diverse audience of trans people, the Tell Me Why team worked closely with two of GLAAD’s transgender staff: Nick Adams, Director of Transgender Representation; and Blair Durkee, Special Consultant for Gaming. For over two years, Nick offered foundational guidance on story and character, consulted on casting, and reviewed scripts at all phases of production. Importantly, August Black, Tyler’s voice actor [who is trans], also made significant contributions to Tell Me Why’s dialogue. During recording sessions, August provided edits to the script if he felt a certain line or moment did not do justice to Tyler’s story, making him an invaluable part of the creative process. August’s personal experiences also inspired key moments and lines of dialogue.”

I say why go for a game who names a trans character in the same ignorant way it named Cho and Kingsley when you could go for games that have creators who genuinely care for and listen to the perspectives and rights of the people they’re trying to represent right? In addition to all the other issues.

if magical systems in particular are a need aside from open world rpgs:

- Tiny Tina’s Wonderland – if you’re more familiar with borderlands this is a spinoff but spellcasting instead of guns

- Pillars of Eternity is fantasy from the same studio as outer worlds and is really good. Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire was the latest release

the TES games have been mentioned but I wanted to reiterate that there are 5-6 magic schools and 100+ spells for those games. Worldbuilding and roleplaying is very fun and makes it quite repeatable so worth the money. They all also have quite a prolific modding community especially oblivion and skyrim and it isn’t that hard to download mods to personalize the game. But even without mods its still fun to replay and go on sale along with ESO often enough

Most JRPGs in general have magic systems and are largely open world. All of the final fantasy games have magic. Adjacent is kingdom hearts. I’ll just add the Shin Megami Tensei series which is related to Persona. The Atelier series brand is alchemical magic. The “Tales of ____” of bandai namco series allows you to main the magical casting characters if you wish. Ni No Kuni is again fantasy setting. Valkyrie Elysium was recently released. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 too was released last year.

Forspoken is a recent game published by SquareEnix so its technically jrpg but its setting is western with a black main character that was rendered based off the VA who is half black caribbean. The main character is based in New York then gets transported to a fantasy world where she gains magic and mixes that up with parkour style movement. if you can’t afford it yet wait for a sale.

Check out golden week for sales since they tend to really go low for JRPGs during that time more than any other sale

Some indie games that have witchy elements:

Flying Neko delivery – if you like studio ghibli and kiki’s delivery service why not fly around on a broom as a cat making deliviries?

Little witch nobeta – you play as a little witch to explore ancient castles. The magical system is a bit limited but at the price you’re getting it I think its a good deal

Little Witch in the woods – 2d pixel art in the style of old school rpgs you play as a witch and make potions and cast spells, help people and refurbish your house.

Potion craft – not an rpg but its an alchemy simulator

Kena: bridge of spirits – not witchy but it has magic and exploration. Not quite open world in that you tend to travel linearly but you’re free to go back to places you’ve explored before. The gaming company partnered with a vietnamese animation studio and they based the animation on the environment of SEA/East Asia so if you’re from there and find the environmental aspects familiar in a fantastical way like buildings and the way the characters were conceptualized that’s why. from where im frm Kena costs the equivalent of $15 but it seems like its still expensive on steam US though as it costs $40? it tends to get 50% off on epic stores though so you can wait for its sale there

some upcoming indie games aside from witchbrook:

kitori academy – should be coming out this year. You’re a magical apprentice going to school to learn magic.

Lawmage academy – 2d pixel art old school style where you go to an academy to learn spells and craft potions

[berenwrites]

Beyond the Battle - Chapter 18 - Stranger Things - Steddie

Beyond the Battle­: Action & Consequence

Click here for All Posted Chapters

Summary: Steve hits things with a bat or gets hit depending on who you ask. He definitely does not have anything to do with the psychic stuff. That is El’s domain. However, as Vecna is defeated, the rules change.

Pairing: steddie (Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson)

Other Relationships: Steve & Robin, Steve & Dustin, Eddie & Dustin

Rating: Teen

A/N: Multi-chapter story, updated regularly. Honestly not sure how many chapters it will have yet because it's still a bit hand wavy in the middle, but definitely more than 12. Thank you to my beta for find my mistakes and to all those who read/like/reblog.💖 Follow #st:beyond-the-battle for updates.

Also on AO3

Chapter 18.    Making Plans

Wayne was coming over to visit Eddie again after lunch and, since Wayne was not in the know and it would be unwise for Eddie to be seen anywhere in Hawkins yet, it was agreed the party would meet at the Hopper/Byers house to talk strategy. Steve had promised to fill Eddie in on everything that happened once Wayne was safely off to work.

With that sorted, Steve was not expecting the phone to ring again.

“Hello, Harrington residence,” he answered, because he had been trained well.

At first all he heard was crackling.

“St … Steve,” he finally made out.

“Mom?” he replied, because he thought it was his mother, but the line was so bad he could barely make it out.

Whatever damage the almost-end-of-the-world had done to the phones was still being repaired. Local calls were almost perfect now, but the wider world was still not really happening.

“I can’t hear you,” he said, as slowly and clearly as he could, hoping that maybe his mother could hear better than he could. “The line is no good.”

“… okay?”

“We’re all fine here,” he guessed at the question, “and the house wasn’t touched.”

“… damage …. safe … evac…”

“I’m sorry, Mom,” he said, “I don’t know what you’re saying.”

The hissing and crackling was getting worse.

“Ste…”

The line cut off and a dial tone replaced it.

“Dammit,” he said.

He really didn’t want his parents worrying.

“Problem?” Eddie asked, coming down the stairs from where he had been taking a shower.

“That was my mom, but the line was so bad I could barely make anything out,” he revealed. “I just hope she could hear better than I could, because if they decide to come back, it will make things way more complicated.”

“They don’t know about the Upside Down then?” Eddie said.

“No, not a thing,” he said with a shake of his head. “Might be simpler if they did, but that ship sailed years ago and it would put them in danger, so … yeah.”

“It really is part of your core personality, isn’t it?” Eddie said, wandering over and taking his hand.

“Um, what?” he asked, because he didn’t follow.

“Keeping people safe,” Eddie said, leaning in and kissing him on the cheek.

He decided he really was blushing far too easily today as his face heated up.

~*~

Owens had pulled a house out of his little black book with literally no notice, so the Hopper/Byers residence was not a cabin in the woods. It was a decent sized house for the large, blended family. Steve pulled up outside it and was impressed, since it was the first time he had been there. He gave the place a good once over as he climbed out of the car, Dustin dashed from the backseat, and Robin all but fell out of the passenger side.

“You look like a realtor surveying a property,” Robin said, coming up beside him.

“Just getting a feel for the place,” he replied. “It’s nice.”

“Do you think the government could magic me a house too?” Robin asked with a laugh. “Then you wouldn’t have to sneak in my window when we have a sleepover.”

“Not sure even Owens would think that was a valid enough reason, Robs,” he said and linked his arm through hers. “And you’ve got to admit I’ve gotten better at it.”

“You couldn’t have been worse,” she shot back. “The first time you woke my dad and I had to pretend a bird flew into my window while you hid in the closet.”

“Kind of appropriate,” he said with a snort of a laugh.

“What? Oh yeah,” she agreed, also laughing.

Dustin had already been welcomed into the house by the time they made it to the door. What Steve really was not expecting was for Joyce to come straight up to him the moment he stepped inside and hug him. For a second, he froze, before eventually returning the hug in what he hoped wasn’t as awkward a manner as it felt.

“Thank you,” Joyce said quietly when she finally drew back.

“You’re welcome,” he said automatically even as the sincerity in her eyes made him want to duck away.

“Come on through,” she said, smiling at him and Robin, “everyone is in the den.”

At least that answered the question on whether Joyce knew about Hopper. As far as Steve knew, everyone else just thought they were here to talk about visiting Max in an orderly fashion.

As they walked in, the kids were already sprawled all over the furniture and the floor, along with Jonathan, Argyle and Nancy. There was one space left on the soft-looking couch next to Nancy, so Steve headed over to the corner out of the way and let Robin take the seat. Joyce walked over to where Hopper was standing off to one side.

“Okay, okay, enough,” Hopper called out, effectively stopping the loud conversation Mike and Dustin were having about something that Steve was pretty sure had nothing to do with why they were here.

“So, we’ve spoken some more with Max’s mom,” Joyce said into the relative quiet, “and only two people are allowed to visit at a time. Doctor’s orders. Max is still very weak after being in a coma for so long.”

“Then Lucas and El should go first,” Dustin said almost instantly.

Steve’s heart warmed at the kid’s definite tone. There was no selfishness in there, just Dustin’s knowledge of his friends.

“And under normal circumstances we would agree,” Joyce said with a nod. “We know Lucas was with her all the way up until the evacuation. But we think it should be El and Steve who go to see her first.”

Most of the eyes in the room swung round to look at him while Steve did his best not to react. El fixed him with one of her particularly contemplative stares.

“You think you can help her,” El said, and it wasn’t a question.

“I know I can,” he replied.

“How, Steve?” Dustin asked. “How can you be sure?”

“Because like a good scientist I’ve already run the experiment, just like you’re always telling me,” he replied.

“My dude,” Argyle said nodding, as if impressed.

“Who?” Nancy asked, as direct as always.

“Me,” Hopper said, and Steve found himself with a little breathing room as heads swivelled to look at the older man.

“You didn’t go to see Powell last night,” Jonathan said as the penny dropped.

“No, he didn’t,” Joyce said and there was just a note of pissed off in her voice that had Steve very glad she was clearly placing all the blame on Hopper.

“What was wrong with you?” Mike asked, voice holding an edge of challenge.

“Wheeler, do not ask questions you do not want the answers to,” Hopper replied. “Just accept what Steve healed in me is in the same ballpark as Max.”

“If Steve healed you by himself, why El and Steve, not me and Steve?” Lucas asked, and Steve couldn’t blame him.

If it had been Eddie or Robin in the hospital, he would have wanted to be in there first too.

“Because no one outside our group knows about Steve and me,” Will offered the obvious answer. “I guess we’re going to pretend El is the one helping Max.”

“That is the plan,” Joyce confirmed.

“I can do that,” El said with a nod. “It is better to keep Will and Steve a secret until we are sure there is no more danger.”

“Can you heal her all at once?” Lucas asked, turning back to Steve hopefully.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “The bone breaks, yes, that’s,” he searched for the right word, “natural healing. Her sight, maybe, it depends what exactly is wrong. I can fix it, but it might take more than one time.”

“Why?” came from Erica and she seemed genuinely interested rather than just trying to be difficult.

Sometimes it was hard to tell with Erica, but Steve was pretty good at reading her these days.

“There’s a point where I need to eat to refuel,” he replied.

“Like a car?” Dustin asked.

“Kind of,” he said as he thought of it, “but more like a generator recharging a battery. I’m beginning to get why El loves Eggos.”

“They are a good boost,” El confirmed with a smile.

“I prefer chocolate,” Will added.

“What happens if you don’t stop?” Dustin asked, ever the enquiring mind.

“We are not asking that,” Robin said pointedly. “We are making sure Steve listens to the little voice in his head and doesn’t do anything stupid like pushing it too far.”

“I didn’t mean he should do it,” Dustin protested. “I was just wondering if he knew what the consequences would be. That way we could prepare just in case he needed it.”

“He is right here,” Steve butted in, “and he doesn’t know.”

“Okay, jeez,” Dustin responded. “I was just asking.”

“I think we can agree finding out would not be sensible,” Joyce concluded for them.

“How long will it take?” Nancy asked.

Steve couldn’t do anything except shrug.

“It took me three days with Eddie, but there was the Upside Down involved and I don’t really remember how long each time took,” he admitted. “With Robin and Dustin, I wasn’t even aware I was doing anything, and with Hop it took somewhere around two and a quarter hours, but it’s not quite done.”

“So, you couldn’t just go back in once you’d eaten?” Jonathan asked, clearly intrigued.

“I could have,” he replied, “but I was too tired for it to be a good idea.”

“You were dead on your feet, Steve,” Hopper added.

“I know this,” El contributed her opinion. “The power is there, but the body does not have enough energy to use it. Only extreme need or emotion can overcome it.”

It was nice to have some backup about that at least. Steve shared a look with El and gave her a smile of thanks.

“So, it’s a suck it and see situation,” Lucas concluded.

“Pretty much,” Steve agreed.

“Can you choose what to heal first?” was Lucas’ next question.

“Not yet,” he replied.

“So you should be able to?” came from Mike’s direction.

One day the kid would drop the vendetta he seemed to have, but today was not that day.

“I’m mostly running on instinct,” Steve replied, crossing his arms. “I feel like I should be able to, but I don’t know how. It’s not like this comes with an instruction manual.”

“I thought it was against the guy code to read those anyway,” Robin said, which made everyone laugh.

He sent her a grateful look.

“How do we make sure Steve has enough time to do his thing?” Erica asked in her usual perfunctory manner.

“Yeah, two hours is a long time,” Lucas agreed. “Max’s mom is bound to come back in that amount of time.”

“Dammit,” Dustin said, “that could be a problem.”

“Joyce can take her to lunch,” Nancy piped up.

“Me?” Joyce asked.

“Yes, Mom, it’ll be perfect,” Will spoke up. “The whole town knows what you went through with me, it could be one mother to another. Max’s mom has been dealing with this all by herself since the evacuation. I’m sure she’d jump at it.”

Joyce looked a little unsure.

“And Hop’s a bit too big and intimidating to be a relaxing lunch date,” Jonathan added, and even Steve managed to dredge up a laugh at that.

“Thanks, Jon,” Hopper said in his driest tone.

“Oh, I suppose, yes, that could work then,” Joyce agreed.

“What about nurses and doctors?” Lucas asked. “When I would read to Max, they’d come in and out at odd times.”

“Ooh, ooh, I know,” Robin piped up. “Prayer circle.”

Steve didn’t immediately follow.

“That is perfect in this town,” Nancy agreed.

“I do not understand,” El spoke up.

“From the way Eddie described what he saw when Steve healed Hopper,” Robin explained, waving her arms around as she explained, “it looks a bit like meditating. So keep Steve’s back to the door, because a nosebleed is gonna rouse suspicion and if anyone comes in, El can start praying out loud. With the religious nutjobs in this town, that will get anyone backing off asap.”

“I am not sure I know how to pray,” El said, looking conflicted.

“Don’t worry, Kid,” Hopper said, giving her a smile, “I’ll teach you how to sound just like one of those hypocritical asses.”

“And the rest of us can pretend to be waiting our turn,” Dustin added. “That way we can give El a heads up if anyone is coming.” Steve felt himself relaxing a little. They had a plan, now all they had to do was execute it.

End of Chapter 18

Chapter 19