rutinburtnica

[zipzin]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Dungeon Meshi | Delicious in Dungeon Rating: Teen Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Marcille Donato/Falin Touden, Marcille Donato & Chilchuck Tims Characters: Marcille Donato, Falin Touden, Chilchuck Tims Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Crack, marcille misunderstands what aromantic means Summary: Things are simple, now that she understands it. Marcille’s just unsure why everyone is looking at her like she grew another head when she announces that she’s aromantic.

Note: this is all pretty much based on this panel from the adventurer's bible here and this story includes manga spoilers! my view of marcille which is that while she’s brilliant and an excellent scholar, some of her “streetwise” knowledge is suspect. Falin is her first friend (as much as she is Falin’s) because of her wacky development and I imagine that the *italian* society (and also the elves in general) have a traditional sense of marriage, etc. So in all, she’s pretty sheltered (she learned most of the curse words in the dungeons) and uneducated about things not in the popular elf romance books her mother would have bought her.

Falin felt her mouth salivate as Senshi brought the last dish to the table. Laois had already served himself stew and was eating while Marcille stared daggers at him.

“I'm so happy you're all here!” Laois smiled between bites.

It was the first time since her second resurrection that they had sat down for dinner together. Well, since it was only them.

They hadn’t tried to invite anyone outside of it, but it had been a relief that Yaad and Pattadol were locked in some negotiation together and Kabru took one look at the menu and immediately made excuses. Falin herself had tried to, but Laois had simply said, “You’re as big a member of this party as anyone.” And she’d blushed and dropped it, not just because she was excited to experience Senshi’s cooking again.

“Did it really have to be Basilisk stew?” Marcille sighed.

“You wanted my cooking,” Senshi grunted.

Marcille sighed louder and shared a look with a tired looking Chilchuck as she loaded her bowl. Izutsumi was carefully picking out bits that she wanted and avoiding almost all of the vegetables. Falin watched it all, feeling something like contentment lick her chest.

“Have you looked over the proposals I gave you?” Chilchuck asked and Laois sighed heavily.

“Please, no work talk,” He glared at Chilchuck, “I get enough of it all day. Kabru isn’t here, so nothing without my advisor.”

“Gee thanks,” Marcille grumbled.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Laois blushed, “Marcille you know I’d be completely lost without you.” Marcille glared him down, and he continued “But you have boundaries.”

“Thanks?”

“Marcille?” Chilchuck scoffed softly next to Falin.

“Have you walked into my bedroom in the morning to wake me up because you had some idea about the trade negotiations that afternoon?”

“No,” Marcille’s nose wrinkled, “Of course not. Your bedroom?!”

Laois looked mournfully down at his serving of stew, “And his latest project is finding me a suitor. He has a whole list of potential people and everything.”

Senshi shook his head, “You’re going to find a partner from a list?”

“No!” Laois said, “I mean, Kabru wants me to. Has them ordered by beneficial alliances, but insists that I can pick whoever I want.” He sighed.

The table lapsed into silence as they all ate, before Marcille said, “Well, I understand Kabru’s perspective, but I would never force you to make that decision.”

“Thanks Marcille.”

She smiled, “I couldn’t even imagine if you were trying to do that with me.”

Chilchuck rolled his eyes, “No one would take away your chance for a complicated romance and insane wedding.”

“What? No! I don’t want that!”

“You want a simple romance?”

Marcille shivered, “No!”

Falin felt like she had been eaten by the dragon all over again.

“What?” Chilchuck scoffed, “You don’t want to get married? You’re obsessed with those books!”

“The Dalitan Clan is literature, and has no bearing on me. I like to read about it,” Marcille huffed back.

“It's so long,” Falin muttered under her breath.

“You’re telling me you don’t want some selection of suitors vying for your hand?” Chilchuck pressed, “Maybe one with an eye patch and a white horse.”

An eye patch? Izutsumi laughed when Chilchuck caught her eye.

“Of course not,” Marcille grinned, “I'm aromantic.”

Falin’s mouth dropped open as she stared at Marcille. Laois froze with his spoon halfway in his mouth and Chilchuck’s face contorted into a shocked grimace. Senshi and Izutsumi continued eating as if they hadn’t heard anything earth shattering until Senshi looked up and caught Chilchuck’s expression.

“Good for you,” Senshi said.

“Thank you,” Marcille’s ears were tinged pink as she studiously stared at her stew. Falin dropped her own eyes as her mind whirled. She could feel Laois trying to make eye contact with her.

Her hand gripped harder around her spoon, digging in to distract her from the sudden desire to cry. That was stupid, no, just focus on eating, just eat. You had a beautiful, delicious, one of a kind meal in front of you. Ignore everything else. Focus on this amazing dinner. The good friends around her. Friends.

“Aromantic!?!” Chilchuck unfroze with a bang to the table, “Are you serious?”

“Yeah,” Marcille smiled, “I learned about it the other day. I had no idea there was a term for it.”

“You don't want to fall in love?” Chilchuck pressed.

Marcille's face stuttered, “No.”

“Have a partner?”

“No.”

“Get married?”

“No.”

“Chilchuck,” Laois said, “Cut it out.”

Chilchuck ignored him, “But you love those books.”

“Well yes,” Marcille said, “But that doesn't mean I want it to happen to me. I like reading about court intrigue and assassins but I would very much like to avoid any of that around me.” She glared at Laois like it would be in his control.

Falin wondered if it was possible to die of embarrassment. Was anyone noticing that she’d become a ghost?

“Okay,” Chilchuck rolled his eyes, “But why not romance?”

Marcille stared down at her bowl.

“Chilchuck,” Falin found her voice. Chilchuck looked at her, and something unreadable passed on his face. The tension dropped, not all the way, but he no longer looked like he’d just entered a room by himself to look for traps.

“Fine,” He frowned, “You don't need to explain.”

“Marcille?” Chilchuck said as he wandered into the library. He’d avoided Laois and Falin after dinner and had been halfway through an ale with Senshi before he decided that he couldn’t avoid talking with her. Her room and office had been empty and he’d resigned himself to this last location before he gave up on a good night’s sleep.

“Chilchuck?” Marcille's voice drifted through the stacks. He followed it and found her staring at a map, before forcing a smile at him.

“Look,” He dragged his foot on the ground and looked down. Fuck he hated this, he couldn’t look at her red rimmed eyes any longer, why had he started to like these idiots? “I'm sorry about dinner, I didn't mean to be so demanding. I was just surprised. I thought you'd want an epic romance based on,” He waved his hands about, hoping she could fill in the rest.

Marcille sighed and rubbed a hand through her already messy hair, “I mean, just because things sound nice doesn't mean that I want them.”

He frowned.

“I'd hoped, you know,” She sat heavily on one of the cabinets and he internally winced. “I'd hoped that the demon would take away my desire to not be alone.”

Chilchuck stayed quiet, and patted her leg trying to not dwell on the absolutely travesty that had come out of her mouth.

“When the Canaries were interrogating me and trying to prove how bad it would be, I just, there was a part where it sounded nice. That'd be more useful than my hair,” She huffed, “Now everyone chases me down in the morning.”

The wind rattled the windows as he stared across the room at one of the bookshelves. You wouldn’t know that countless adventurers might have gone through here, that books had been thrown around and shelves destroyed. It was now a perfect castle library filled with some books that were likely a century out of date.

“You know, loneliness is,” He sighed and rubbed his eyes. He should have brought another ale with him for this. “I was weird at dinner because I thought you were saying you're aromantic because you're scared.”

Marcille frowned, “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” He said gently, “Ignoring life spans, let's say your partner dies after you blah, blah, blah. No tragedy or anything, would you want that partner?”

Marcille sighed and began playing with a strand of hair, tangling it some more. “It's not just lifespans,” She said and then gestured at her ears and body, “I'm a half elf.”

“So?”

“I can't have children.”

He blinked, “Okay?”

“So I'll never be married.”

“Um,” He stared at her, “I'm not sure I understand.”

“Half-elves don't love.” She said simply.

He couldn’t stop the laugh that burst out of him and ignored the sharp look hidden behind the watering of her eyes.  “Marcille, are you saying you don't love Falin?” She didn’t say anything,  and he quickly added, “Izutsumi? Laois? Senshi?”

“That's not what I'm saying,” Marcille sighed, “I’m talking about romantic love. We don't get to be loved.”

“Marcille.” His voice grinded and he hated this, he hated everything, fuck, and squeezed her arm. He wanted to yell, to shake her but he kept his hand loose, the tension driving into the fist clenched at his side.

She turned away and rubbed at her face, and he decided this was the time to ignore the soft sounds of tears dripping down her face, “It's fine. I mean, one of the reasons I like the Daltian Clan so much is that Forva-”

“That blonde guy?” He couldn't stop the chuckle.

“No! That was General Hareus,” Marcille's neck was all red, “No, Forva is a half-elf and, well, I've never wished I was a full blooded elf.” She says hotly, “But it felt like he was written from my own brain. We just, we aren't ever to marry.”

“Because why?” He pressed, “You can't have kids?”

“It’s more than that,” Marcille pressed, voice rising. “But that’s a big part of it. We’re fundamentally different than anyone else-”

“You’re not.” Chilchuck interrupted her.

“You aren’t listening.”

“That’s because you’re saying absolute nonsense.” He let out a long breath, forcing the heat to die down in his chest, “You aren’t some unloveable kid just because you’re a half-elf. That’s not how anything works.”

“Regardless, I can’t have children-”

“There's a lot more to marriage and relationships than kids.” He scoffed.

“But there's no point without them.” Marcille said.

“No,” Chilchuck said, “It’s,” He paused as he tried to figure out what to say without sounding like a giant hypocrite. Sure, his marriage had mostly happened because of a pregnancy, but he was pretty sure that only sped along the inevitable. “I know elves are kinda weird about it all, but marriage's purpose is not procreation. For some, that's a happy addition, and for others, they don't want kids. Some marriages between people can never have kids-”

“Yeah, you know a lot of half-elves?” Marcille snarked.

“Pretty much just you, but marriage can be between two men or two women, I'm sure you can figure out why procreation with them can't happen naturally.”

Marcille froze and face turned white.

“Some,” he continued, as he fought down the laugh that threatened to bubble up and ruin everything at the way her eyes were bugging out of her face. “Some choose to adopt if they want children, and some chose to just enjoy each other-”

“Did you say two women?”

He took a slow breath, “Yes.”

What kind of fucking elvish frigidity did she grow up in? Was she truly so disconnected that she didn’t know queer people existed? Well, apparently she had learned about aro, but that was clearly a very recent development. Was he really going to have to walk through her entire childhood to figure this shit out?

“Oh.” It was like all the breath and life had been stolen from her.

“It's really common with dwarves,” He barrelled on, “But I believe most humans have a decent population who are. And half foots do too.”

She was still frozen.

“Marcille.”

She stared at him, eyes wide, breaths coming in little pants.

“I just, aromantic means that you don't have any desire for it. And some people don't, have no interest in romance or, um,” He coughed, “sex. That's asexual. Which is totally normal if you don’t care about it at all! Ace and aro are about personal preference, not some idea that no one could ever want you. And it’s not that there’s something broken about you, that’s just how some people are.”

He said carefully, “I'm not saying you need to pursue it, just, people can love you, regardless of your ability to have children. And I'm not saying that your fears aren’t,” well he would call them stupid, but that wasn’t helpful, “valid or that you need to pursue it’s, just, you can. There are people out there who can love you.”

In fact, there was one in this very castle, but it really wasn't his place to say anything.

Marcille turned to him, “THAT'S WORSE!”

“WHAT?! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?”

“YOU'RE SAYING PEOPLE CAN LOVE ME!” She screamed.

“HOW IS THAT WORSE?”

She pulled at her hair, “NOW I HAVE TO FACE THAT THEY DON'T! THANKS A LOT CHILCHUCK!”

“YOU'RE IMPOSSIBLE!”

She felt like her whole body was vibrating as she looked through the pages of The Daltian Clan. She was just, well, Chilchuck hadn’t said it, but Marcille was certain that he was thinking it, so fucking stupid. How could she not know?

There was a part of her brain that told her she was just freaking out, that whatever she was feeling for Falin was an intense platonic bond and there were no romantic feelings whatsoever. The rest of her was screaming that she needed to find the scene where General Hareus pledged himself to Forva and the rest would be solved.

Would she have attempted forbidden magic if it was Laois?

She flipped to the next page. She didn’t want to think about that too hard. It had all worked out, except now, she really, really needed to talk to Falin, and if she could only find that one fucking passage, so she knew what to say that would be extremely helpful, thank you very much.

A small knock echoed through her chamber and for a second she froze. Maybe they would just go away? Didn’t they know she was busy? And late?

The knock came again, followed by, “Marcille? Are you there?”

She snapped the book shut, “Falin?”

She wasn’t ready. She was going to have her speech prepared and know exactly what to say. Falin hadn’t finished The Daltian Clan, so wouldn’t know who she was ripping off. She ran her hands through her hair.

“Is now a bad time?”

YES! Marcille wanted to scream, but instead she carefully put the volume away and marched over the door. She affixed a grin to her face and opened the door. Falin blinked at her, and Marcille tried to adjust her face, but it was too late, Falin’s eyebrows were already furrowed in concern.

“No,” Marcille tugged at her robes. “Come in, please.”

“Are you sure?” Falin looked down at her.

“Yes, come in.” Marcille stepped back and opened the door wider, trying to hide her shaking hands.

Falin paused on the threshold for a moment before she walked in, smoothing out the front of her shirt.

“Hi,” Marcille said once she carefully closed the door.

“Hi.”

Marcille stared at her, feeling a humming in her chest and an electricity in her veins. Should she say something now? Hey Falin, how are you? Oh me, I’m good, I think I might be in love with you. Didn’t know that was an option. Haha. Anyway, good night. Hope I didn’t completely destroy our friendship.

Yeah maybe not now, Marcille swallowed. She could wait until she’d figured out the speech, gotten her a gift even, understood if this buzz of looking at Falin’s lips had existed forever or if she was just thinking about it now.

Falin played with her collar, “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” Marcille frowned, “What on earth do you have to be sorry for?”

Did Falin know where her missing Foundations of Elemental Biology was? She’d been resigned to buy a new one, but it hardly made sense that she was apologizing now. Half the castle was in bed and the book had been missing for at least a week.

“I, um,” Marcille strode forward and grabbed Falin’s hand as she floundered. Her body froze and Marcille instinctively released.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Marcille said, feeling the beginnings of a flush on her cheeks.

“No, that’s fine,” Falin closed her eyes and it was so odd (now, after five months of her being resurrected) that Marcille couldn’t help but stare, trying and failing to stop a small smile.

Oh.

She feels herself blushing as Falin wrings her hands in front of her. How did she ever ignore this? How did she think this bordered on anything she felt for Laois or Namaari? She wanted to bury herself in Falin’s chest, wanted Falin to consume her and hold her and keep her safe like she was part of a hoard, and she wanted, oh she wanted. She wanted, no she needed to throw herself at Falin, to be wrapped up, to kiss her.

How could she not know?

“I never wanted to make you feel pressured. Or uncomfortable.”

“Um, okay,” Marcille said, smile dropping, as her eyes squinted in thought, “Falin, I’ve never done anything that I haven’t wanted to.” It wasn’t technically true, but surviving on monster meat had been the smallest price to play to resurrect her friend.

“No, I mean,” Falin opened her eyes and Marcille felt a wave of joy rush through her. Golden brown, the wheat swaying in the wind, and looking at her with a single-minded focus Falin mostly reserved for whatever bug she’d found. Marcille tried to swallow, but her mouth was dry.

Oh fuck.

This wasn’t a new feeling, no, this was as old as their friendship.

“Marcille,” Falin breathed out, “I like you-”

“I like you too.” Marcille rushed out, feeling as if the pounding in her heart had doubled. So it was about this then. “You’re my best friend, no matter what Laois says.”

Falin sighed, “You’re my best friend too, and well, you must have noticed that I’ve been pursuing-”

“Hey,” Marcille cut her off, “We can talk about it again, but you don’t need to worry about me on your travels. I know you’re going East soon.” The hint of annoyance she tried to keep out of her voice at the thought of Falin near Shuro was ever present. Huh, maybe this was why she hated Shuro so much. And maybe she was sounding extra annoyed because she really wasn’t sure she could handle Falin leaving again so soon. She thought Falin was going to be here for at least a month. “I’m fine with that, I want you to be happy, please don’t stop on my account-”

“I like you!” Falin blurted out and then slammed her mouth shut and her cheeks blazed redder than Marcille had ever seen them.

“Okay?”

“I,” Falin gave a strangled breath, “I’ve been pursuing you, romantically.”

She’d been clubbed in the stomach. She couldn’t breathe. A cockatrice had bit her again. “Oh.” Her mind raced a thousand miles a minute, eyes wide as she tried to summon something, air into her lungs, her tongue to move, her hands. That, what!?

“I didn’t know you were aro,” Falin was saying.

If possible, Marcille’s cheeks turned redder than Falin’s.

“So, I’m sorry,” Falin continued, “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“Uncomfortable?” Marcille squeaked out.

“Yeah, I mean, I wasn’t trying to pressure you,” Falin said, “With the gifts or the time, or,”

Marcille blinked up at her. Falin had always been one to give her gifts, at school the flowers and nuts and leaves (and a few times bugs) which had usually been met with a baffled joy that was earmarked by Marcille’s busyness. Lately, Falin had been returning from the unearthed dungeons with crystals filled with mana and plants for her to study, and on one occasion, a gorgeous ring (that they’d both checked to make sure it wasn’t cursed).

“Oh, you were, courting me?” Was it really that simple?

Falin winced, “Yes, I’m sorry.”

Her heart pounded so hard she almost missed Falin’s plea. She placed a hand on Falin’s shoulder, “Falin,” She said and used everything in her power to not squeal and throw her body at Falin, “I would have told you if I didn’t like it.”

“Yes, but-”

“And I have a confession of my own.”

Falin blinked and Marcille stared down at her hands. Fuck, Falin had already done the hard part, and still Marcille felt like there was a weight on her shoulders trying to drive her through the floor. Jeez, this was embarrassing.

“I like you too.” Falin blinked and Marcille hastened to continue, “Romantically.”

“What?”

Marcille glanced down at her hand, and bit her lip, “I had no idea you were courting me, but please, don’t stop.”

“But you said you were aromantic?”

“Ah,” Marcille’s cheeks somehow got redder, “Well, I may have misunderstood what that meant. Chilchuck cleared it up for me.”

“Chilchuck?” Falin blinked.

“Anyway, that’s besides the point,” Marcille looked back up and traced her hand up to Falin’s neck, “Falin.” She licked her lips.

She could feel the heavy beat of Falin’s pulse and Falin stared at her, eyes darting down to her lips and then back up again.

“Please,” Marcille breathed out.

Time stopped. It stopped as Falin hovered above her, breath coming out in soft pants that Marcille was matching. They hung, staring at each other, circling like two stars, until they drifted closer and closer and finally! Finally! Time restarted as Falin carefully guided Marcille’s mouth to hers.

A supernova. Oh, let her be consumed!

A fission of something shivered down from Marcille’s mouth and rolled down her spine as her body screamed at a desire she barely realized she’d had. It started soft, a whisper of lips over each other and then Falin stepped forward, hands going to Marcille’s back and embracing her and Marcille let out a little whine.

Falin broke apart and stared at her and Marcille murmured, “Don’t stop.”

Falin bent down again, and Marcille hummed as her lips bit at her own, and she squeezed Falin’s neck, as she tried to, well, she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t thinking. She just needed more, more, needed it everywhere, touching her, devouring her. She needed it, she needed her. Now. Forever.

Falin broke apart, breathing heavily and staring at Marcille. “Wow.”

“Uh huh,” Marcille said, dazed and like there might be stars in her eyes or just her brain.

“I, um,” Falin carefully let out a breath, “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.”

“How long?”

Falin licked her lips and Marcille stared.

“It’s kinda embarrassing.”

“I don’t care.”

“Since I was fifteen.” Falin breathed out and Marcille leaned back.

“Wait, what? Really?”

Falin ducked her head, “Yeah, you were chattering on about some teacher, and how they were misrepresenting the cycle of mana in the body-”

“Professor Larkin,” Marcille gritted out. She still hated him. Why the fuck was he allowed to be teaching was beyond her.

Falin blinked, “Um, I guess, and you were on my bed gesturing wildly and I remember I just looked at you and all I could think about was how much I wanted you to be there forever. And how I wanted to kiss you.”

“Oh.”

If someone else walked in, they’d certainly think she had a fever with how red she was.

“I, um, I don’t know when, I just kinda put it all together.”

Falin smiled at her.

“But I think I’ve wanted to for a very long time,” She continued, “I’m pretty sure I’ve felt like this for ages.”

Falin kissed her forehead and then looked down at her, “I love you, Marcille Donato.”

Marcille ducked her head into Falin’s chest, feeling a spring of tears in her eyes and mumbled back, “I love you too, Falin Touden.”

[officialspec]

modern au but set in brisbane. is this anything

[tofixtheshadows]

I've been thinking a lot lately about how Kabru deprives himself.

Kabru as a character is intertwined with the idea that sometimes we have to sacrifice the needs of the few for the good of the many. He ultimately subverts this first by sabotaging the Canaries and then by letting Laios go, but in practice he's already been living a life of self-sacrifice.

Saving people, and learning the secrets of the dungeons to seal them, are what's important. Not his own comforts. Not his own desires. He forces them down until he doesn't know they're there, until one of them has to come spilling out during the confession in chapter 76.

Specifically, I think it's very significant, in a story about food and all that it entails, that Kabru is rarely shown eating. He's the deuteragonist of Dungeon Meshi, the cooking manga, but while meals are the anchoring points of Laios's journey, given loving focus, for Kabru, they're ... not.

I'm sure he eats during dungeon expeditions, in the routine way that adventurers must when they sit down to camp. But on the surface, you get the idea that Kabru spends most of his time doing his self-assigned dungeon-related tasks: meeting with people, studying them, putting together that evidence board, researching the dungeon, god knows what else. Feeding himself is secondary.

He's introduced during a meal, eating at a restaurant, just to set up the contrast between his party and Laios's. And it's the last normal meal we see him eating until the communal ending feast (if you consider Falin's dragon parts normal).

First, we get this:

Kabru's response here is such a non-answer, it strongly implies to me that he wasn't thinking about it until Rin brought it up. That he might not even be feeling the hunger signals that he logically knew he should.

They sit down to eat, but Kabru is never drawn reaching for food or eating it like the rest of his party. He only drinks.

It's possible this means nothing, that we can just assume he's putting food in his mouth off-panel, but again, this entire manga is about food. Cooking it, eating it, appreciating it, taking pleasure in it, grounding yourself in the necessary routine of it and affirming your right to live by consuming it. It's given such a huge focus.

We don't see him eat again until the harpy egg.

What a significant question for the protagonist to ask his foil in this story about eating! Aren't you hungry? Aren't you, Kabru?

He was revived only minutes ago after a violent encounter. And then he chokes down food that causes him further harm by triggering him, all because he's so determined to stay in Laios's good graces.

In his flashback, we see Milsiril trying to spoon-feed young Kabru cake that we know he doesn't like. He doesn't want to eat: he wants to be training.

Then with Mithrun, we see him eating the least-monstery monster food he can get his hands on, for the sake of survival- walking mushroom, barometz, an egg. The barometz is his first chance to make something like an a real meal, and he actually seems excited about it because he wants to replicate a lamb dish his mother used to make him!

...but he doesn't get to enjoy it like he wanted to.

Then, when all the Canaries are eating field rations ... Kabru still isn't shown eating. He's only shown giving food to Mithrun.

And of course the next time he eats is the bavarois, which for his sake is at least plant based ... but he still has to use a coping mechanism to get through it.

I don't think Kabru does this all on purpose. I think Kui does this all on purpose. Kabru's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder should be understood as informing his character just as much as Laios's autism informs his. It's another way that Kabru and Laios act as foils: where Laios takes pleasure in meals and approaches food with the excitement of discovery, Kabru's experiences with eating are tainted by his trauma. Laios indulges; Kabru denies himself. Laios is shown enjoying food, Kabru is shown struggling with it.

And I can very easily imagine a reason why Kabru might have a subconscious aversion towards eating.

Meals are the privilege of the living.

[littlelightfish]

This... this is a whole different kind of psychic damage here. When nightmares got Marcille, we get to knew that her's biggest fear is outliving her friends. This isn't even canon probably, but look at this. This isn't a "I don't want my friends to die" kind of dream. This is a "I'm terrified of loosing my daughters, of something killing them, and being incapable of stopping it" kind of dream. It's so simple yet it explains perfectly the whole of chilchucks character. He loves, he cares, deeply. But he, or doesn't acknowledges, or doesn't know what to do with that knowledge.

Besides that. Someone had to wake him up after this. Imagine the devastation in this man after he wakes up. He just saw his three little babys murdered corpses (or maybe he saw them die, wich isn't better). He would possibly not talk about it, and that would worry the hell out of the party, because we'll, they see him all down and only one of them knows what he saw. Imagine being the one to pull him from that nightmare. Seeing this man, usually so composed, fuking staring with tears and terror in his eyes to the composes of what you can only assume are his daughters. It would be heartwrenching.

Idk, I love this man so much...

[mintivee]

are you seeing this shit chucklefuck

[crispyliza]

I've got you all figured out fanartists

[feelo-fick]

request doodles on stream in a server :D

[llamahearted]

two people will go through similar things & learn to cope in different ways

print ♥︎ song

[lazylittledragon]

can't stop thinking about how well they nailed falin's 'weird little girl' energy. when she picked up a stick and said 'ooh a bug' i felt that

[pidgydraws]

🖋️ sleepover 🖋️

"...to further encourage the bearing of our souls and the telling of our most appalling secrets."

[justshipsandstuff]

Can’t get over how Kui almost let Fleki be Mithrun’s care taker in Melini

Bonus some Cithis being Cithis and stressed-out-of-her-mind Pattadol

[daistea]

Laios, Mithrun, and Kabru x Reader Headcanons

Word Count: 1,483

Falling In Love With You & Relationship Headcanons

* . °•★|•°∵ ∵°•|☆•° . *

Laois

It takes a little while for Laios to realize the truth of his feelings, to be honest. He doesn’t have much experience with romance, and actually not much interest in it either, so he sees you as a really good beloved friend. 

He falls in love without realizing and spends quite a while having no clue that he’s in love. Everybody else knows how he feels and are impatiently waiting and watching for him to realize it too.

Laios thinks of you often. Between the pages of monster doodles and notes are very badly drawn doodles of you. (He’s made you a monster-sona, it's very cool, but he's too nervous to show you.)

Laios says the sweetest things without realizing they’re sweet. He’ll always tell you that you look nice. He’ll always make sure you’re well fed. He’ll always make sure you’re safe.

He spends a lot of time around you. A lot. He’s like your shadow, or a puppy at your heels.

He only realizes how he feels after a big event, such as you dying in the dungeon, getting hurt, etc… 

But even then, he’s not really sure what to do with himself. He starts to get more nervous and pulls away a little bit, but his actions with you also become more weighty and serious. His touches are more meaningful, he looks you in the eyes deeply often when he’s talking to you, he tends to put a hand on your back to lead you through the dungeon (though he gets flustered when he does that.) Laios basically starts trying to put more thought into how he acts around you, trying to be cooler or more charming, but this isn’t very sustainable because he’s not being himself anymore. This is probably fixed by someone in the party telling him to stop, or by yourself.

Laios is a clingy partner. He’s very touchy and unashamed about it. He doesn’t realize he’s touching you half the time, it’s just habit. He’s the type to absently draw circles on your thigh or hand. 

He isn’t particularly jealous, mainly because he doesn’t realize it when people are flirting with you unless they outright say it. Then he’s just worried about you, and how you feel. He can be protective though, he just doesn’t really know what to do if it’s a human threatening you. 

Buy this man a bouquet of flowers once and he’ll start thinking about marriage. He likes affection from you. 

Laios’s love languages? All of it. Every type. Gift giving and physical touch are big for him though.

You ask Laios for a baby and he just thinks for a minute… His cheeks are a little pink as he asks, “What kind?” Preferably human, you say. He tries to hide his disappointment but agrees nonetheless. 

Kabru

Kabru is immediately aware of what’s happening with himself. The very moment he hears you laugh and thinks to himself, “Wow, what a pretty sound…” He’s like haha hold up! No. 

Kabru is a charmer and knows how to handle people. I believe he’s been in very light, casual relationships before, but nothing serious. At first, he’d assume his feelings for you are light, like usual. Nothing to be concerned about. 

He starts getting the urge to dissect your thoughts and put each of them into little jars for him to inspect. He does not say this out loud and tries not to show it, but he stares a lot. 👁️👁️

His feelings for you quickly become a chess game that he’s determined to win. Unfortunately, you’re eating the pieces when he’s not looking. 

He worms his way into your life very subtly. One moment, he’s asking you how you feel about the weather, the next moment he’s urging you to spill your childhood trauma. It’s only when he takes a step back and asks himself, “Why do I care so much?” that he realizes how serious of a situation this is. 

Of course, Kabru cares about a lot of people. He likes to know things. But this is different. He wants to know every little detail about you simply for his good pleasure. Sure, he files it all away into neatly organized cabinets in his mind, but he has no intent to use that information for anything but your happiness. 

For example: Kabru will most definitely remember that offhand comment you made about preferring a certain table at that one restaurant you visited three years ago. He’ll make sure you get that table. He knows exactly what you’ll order too. 

When he’s wrong about you, though, it baffles but simultaneously charms him. 

You people-watch together. He can probably read lips, and he tells you what the people around you are saying. 

He needs to keep you away from the dungeon. Not because of anything you did, but because he might go a little mad if he doesn’t at least try to keep you away from that lifestyle. 

Kabru is chivalrous and kind. He kisses your knuckles a lot, like a gentleman. He puts his hand on the small of your back. He fixes your hair if it’s messed up. He isn’t much for pda, but it’s obvious you two are a couple with the way he often whispers to you, catches your eye, and smiles at you. 

He’s a blanket hog. He doesn’t mean to be, but he is. 

Jealousy isn’t a big thing with Kabru. Sure, he feels it, but he stays calm and will simply wrap an arm around your shoulder and start a conversation with the person flirting with you. He’ll end up actually making their acquaintance and have a relatively okay conversation. He's still jealous, but distracted enough for it to not consume him. 

Kabru's love languages are acts of service and physical touch.

You ask Kabru for a baby and he just laughs. He thinks you’re joking. After a moment, it sets in that you’re not joking and he gets flustered.

Mithrun

Mithrun is vaguely aware of what’s happening when he’s falling in love, it just doesn’t seem like something he needs to acknowledge, think about, or act on. He’s wrong. 

To be honest, he doesn’t believe he’s capable of romantic love. He’s wrong.

It starts out very subtly. Mithrun starts to take more notice of the little things about you; the color of your hair in the sun, the color of your eyes, how your voice sticks in the back of his brain and refuses to leave. Mithrun knows what this means, but he doesn’t really care at the moment.

Then, it starts getting more intense. Without meaning to, he notices the shape of your lips, the feeling of your skin, the sound of your footsteps… 

This is when he starts getting a little curious. Is this a desire the demon missed within him? Is this a new desire forming? Huh.

Pre-ending Mithrun chooses to ignore it because what’s the point? This results in some irritation for him, longing looks(he doesn’t look longing on the outside, but it’s there on the inside. What everybody else sees is just... a slight look of determination on his face. He has no idea he's making that face either nor does he really care.) and unexplained protective tendencies that shock the canaries and, occasionally, himself.

Post-ending Mithrun chooses to dig deeper because this is a desire forming and he wants to hang onto every tiny molecule of desire he possesses with all of his strength. This results in soft touches at every opportunity he has, willingness to do whatever you ask, and his constant presence with no discernible explanation. 

Are you dating? Nobody quite knows, not even you. 

Mithrun was naturally jealous and possessive before The Incident. He doesn’t get like that again until you come along, and then it’s like his old self wakes up a little. Just a little. He doesn’t make scenes or get emotional over it, but he will calmly walk up to somebody that’s flirting with you, touch their shoulder, then teleport them away from you.

 If someone asks what you are to him, he simply says, “Mine,” or “Does it matter?” with a straight face.

He can be seen frequently wrapping his arms around you from behind and resting his head on top of yours if you’re shorter, or on your shoulder if you’re taller. 

On occasion, he will be caught with a small smile as he holds you. It’s rare, but it happens. What’s he thinking at those moments? No one knows. 

The canaries are incredibly nosy— aside from Pattadol— about your relationship, and Mithrun has no qualms about answering their invasive questions. 

Mithrun’s love languages are acts of service and physical touch. You’re the only one he likes touching. He doesn’t say I Love You often but he will definitely lean on you a lot and protect you even if you don’t need it. 

You ask for a baby and he calmly says, "Give me a week... What color do you want?"

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

[aphel1on]

AURGH auwarghh the autistic parental trauma... the epi was wacky hijinks then dropped this on us out of nowhere... (sobs) laios... laiiiiooooos

[stave-writes]

Scruffy! (Various Dungeon Meshi Men x GN!Reader)

Summary: Your boyfriend really needs a trim of his stubble, and he's asked for your help :)

Word Count: 1711

Laios Touden

We all know Laios does NOT like being scruffy, especially when Falin tells him he looks like their father. So, it's a lovely thing when he asks you to look after him and help him shave.

Laios had been a little finicky lately, ever since leaving the dungeon he was a lot more conscious about himself. Mainly, his appearance. Rubbing at his new stubble and brushing his blonde hair that had grown out in places. Irritation was plainly visible each time he felt the slight scratch of stubble against his fingers, even a slight huff to his tone afterwards. "Hey, could I ask a favour?" was his innocuous question, head tilting back over the edge of your sofa. After an inquisitive sound of acknowledgement from you, a slight smile rose on Laios's face. "Mind helping me shave? I also want to cut my hair but can't see the back."

This is how you ended up sitting on the edge of your tub, scissors working away at the tufts of hair against the nape of his neck. Each little brush of your fingers against his skin caused a small giggle or shuffle from Laios, if he were a dog, his tail would be smacking against your leg so hard it'd hurt a little. A smile was visible on his lips every time you'd lean over to peek at him, and he'd look up at you eyes full of love.

"Did you know that tons of monster species use grooming as a form of intimacy?" Of course, you did, you're dating Laios Touden, if you didn't you'd have amnesia. Instead of an eye roll, you gave a little smile and nod.

Reaching his hand up, a pat against your leg was a signal he hadn't just passed out between your knees while you worked at giving him the cut he liked. A quick kiss pressed to your lips was a thankful gesture, nuzzling into your face before moving to work on shaving his stubble to save you from the beard scratches.

Chilchuck Tims

I see Chilchuck as the type of guy to have some time dedicated to a little self-care, although shaving isn't a big problem considering the half-footer's ageing span. But! His hair does still grow, so some help may be needed there.

It'd been a week since Chilchuck asked you to remind him to go get a haircut, and he still hadn't gone despite your near-constant reminders. Post-its on the counter, on his lockpicking tools, hell you once stuck one on his face for him to see in the mirror. At this point, it was getting ridiculous that he hadn't even gone to try and get it done.

"You're going to cut my hair...? I can just go get it done in town-" He huffed a little at you, rubbing at the back of his neck with a small frown. Your adamance had his stubbornness outweighed almost tenfold, so you rolled up a stool behind his chair and began to figure out how to trim his hair.

Hair was scattered everywhere by the time you were done, and Chilchuck's ego was only a little bruised by the number of grey hairs you saw while trimming it. He didn't seem to mind it too much though, the presence of a wagging tail that was usually hidden away under his clothing batting at your leg. At least his hair was finally trimmed, and a thankful kiss was pressed to your knuckles as you got up to sweep away the leftover hair.

Senshi of Izganda

Senshi doesn't particularly care for shaving or even washing his beard but knowing the kind of bacteria facial hair can carry (and after a lecture from Marcille) he's willing to have you help him with that beard the size of Cousin It from the Addams Family.

"Ah, I suppose Marcille's nagging finally got to me, that's all. I hope you don't mind helping me wash my beard, it'll take a while." Senshi muttered slightly, looking aside as he asked you for just a little favour. It was hard to ask such a thing from you, especially with how much you'd done already for him by just being with him. He felt absurdly lucky when you agreed, setting his helmet and upper armour aside to clean off his beard and hair.

It was a nicer experience than usual having a loving touch working at his hair first to wet it, then lather it and working slowly to get all the dirt out. It took a long long time to finish the first round of washing the hair and beard, alongside the several other scrubbing and washing rounds. It was an intensive process, but being able to smell clearly the soap in his hair was a good bonus, alongside the lack of a helmet.

Letting him dry for a few hours was the best idea you'd had this entire time, able to bury your face against the wall of fluff you called Senshi for a long while. The smell was great and the warmth was greater, you could've honestly slept there if you wanted. But, you had a plan! Readying a comb, boar bristle brush and your sanity, you began braiding Senshi's hair into long thick plaits and tying them off once you were done. It was tenuous but an enjoyable closeness, as you pressed your face into his back slightly. You couldn't help but marvel at your work when you were all done. The happy expression on your face made it hard for Senshi to resist placing a kiss on the crown of your head, a soft look in his eyes.

Toshiro Nakamoto

A large part of the teachings Toshiro lives by is to exist as a convenience to others, not asking much and not putting his needs in the forefront. So, when Toshiro comes to you asking for help looking after himself? It's a sign of trust. He knows you.

"You...would you help me?" Toshiro's voice is quiet and soft as he addresses you, a slight crease in his brow as he looks towards you. It's hard to be vulnerable around you even if you're adamant in your love for him. Even as you assure him it's not a bother to help him and that you're here for him, it's still... nerve-wracking. It's hard for him to settle himself as he eventually moves first to sit down on your bed, having you brush out his hair and praise the length and colour of his locks, he's still worried.

He's guided towards your bath and urged to get into the warm water, leaning his head back so you can scrub away any remaining dirt and eventually, he peeks an eye open to see your face as you work at making sure he's sparkling clean. The slight furrow in your brow, your intense posture and a huff finally as you finish cleaning his hair. He can't help but smile at your effort to look after him especially as Toshiro can feel the exhaustion melt away at your careful consideration of him.

Before he knew it, he was basically asleep in your tub, head leant back with your fingers working at his hair and scalp. The feeling of safety was all he needed from you. When it was done, he dried off and changed into some comfortable clothes he'd left with you before curling up beneath your duvet, head resting into the crook of your neck.

Mithrun of the House of Kerensil

Mithrun struggles with self-care due to his lack of desires and is used to being looked after by others. With you, though, it was different. Your touch was imbued with love, and you didn't choose to look after him because someone ordered you to, just...because you wanted to see him cared for.

Looking after Mithrun sometimes could be a lot, making sure he ate and bathed and slept all while making sure he kept his mana up enough for his work with the canaries. So, it'd been easier to devise a schedule for all the things that would need to be done by day and then by week. Three baths a week, each one day apart. Three meals a day, four hours apart except for dinner which was at 6pm on the dot. A good schedule helped you and Mithrun look after yourselves, but you hadn't quite yet accounted for trimming his hair.

It had gotten longer than you had thought before you remembered to check the length of his hair, playing with the silver locks that framed his face and moved to cover his false eye a little. With a slight curl at the ends and parted just along the side, it was an easy style to maintain, especially for someone so consistently fatigued. So, when it came time to trim it down, an afternoon was allocated and Mithrun was given a book to entertain him while you worked.

On the floor, resting on a pillow was the middle-aged elf who you were looking after. Tilting his head forward a little, you brushed through those light-coloured locks and parted them into smaller sections before taking them between your middle and pointer finger, working to even it out and take a little length off. This process was repeated for each section of hair, fingers lightly brushing his face at one point which caused a little startled jump to come from Mithrun, looking at you with his good eye almost inquisitively. In the end, though, you finished off trimming it all quite quickly, evening it all out and even taking some longer strands from the front and braiding them like he'd done when he was much younger...before the dungeon.

Even if it was hard to see, a little smile played on his lips as he embraced your touches, leaning back after you proudly announced you were done. His face squished into your thigh, a little bump of his against you like a cat trying to get their owner's attention. Taking advantage of your curiosity at this action, your hand was brought to his face and he snuggled into it slightly, enjoying the reaction it spurred from you. He may not desire much, but he knows how to love you.

[lokh]

finding out shuro genuinely just likes bugs...

[crispyliza]

Fanfiction in the late 2000s-early 2010s was wild bc you'd find a beautifully written story with the most compelling heart-wrenching plot you've ever seen and the author's note would be like:

Author with a username like ~SasukesWaifuxD~ : Ohayo gozaimasu! ↖(^▽^)↗, I'm sowwy it took me so long to update (๑•́_•̀๑)

tsundere twink from their fic : It was about damn time you idiot (눈‸눈)

~SasukesWaifuxD~ : Hey now! It's not my fault the plot bunnies kept wunning away fwom me (╥﹏╥)

tsundere twink: W-watever, it's not like I missed you or anything (💢,,>﹏<,,) b-baka!