#original idea was a joke about why the garden king was killed

[house-of-mirrors]

Promised bad post (you'll never guess what's under the cut)

It came to me in a vision and it was my duty to make it a reality

[neoraso]

royal guard!minho

requested | some gender neutral hc for how he starts to wish he was maybe more than just a guard to you 

to put things lightly, minho was the ace of your entire guard

like he was better than anyone …at everything

so originally he was on (your father) the king’s immediate guard

he was nothing but professional and saved the king too many times to count even from like stepping on rocks idk 

when you turned like 17 and had to do more public appearances obv u were in a lot more danger so ur father jumped at having minho reassigned to u as the head of your personal guard “nothing but the best for his child”

the first time you met him… he only nodded or said yes or no to everything u asked him n ur jus like ok not much of a talker that’s not so bad ig haha ʕʘ‿ʘʔ

he was so quiet and “polite” for months despite you constantly trying to get something out of him

ur other guards always tried not to laugh bc if only u knew he had like two friends and was generally a pretty serious guy

but one day there was a festival in your kingdom’s central city so obv you had to make an appearance which u were very excited abt bc you only get to go into town like twice a year and THIS was one of those times

being “of age” and that much closer to taking the throne you might as well have painted a big red target on your head to signal people against the throne

everything was going fine, everyone was having fun and you decided to visit some of the booths and musicians around the square

minho was already suspicious of the situation and tightens the rest of your guard without u evenn rlly noticing but like

just as you turned to show these cute little candies to minho to maybe get a reaction for once -

the second he looks at you, someone moves to grab you but the flash of a knife in his other hand causes minho to jump immediately into action

honestly who knows what rlly happened minho moved so damn fast but the next thing you know, ur in the middle of your whole guard squad

looking through the gaps of their shoulders you see minho pinning down your assailant with a blade against his neck waiting for someone to arrest him even though he rlly wanted to just execute the guy right there 

the festivities were kind of killed for u after that bc you and your family were rushed back home which u might’ve been more sad abt if u werent in so much shock :<

obv minho was the one to escort you back but like all he said was “you’re okay?” and after u dumbly nodded with wide eyes he walked with you but kept a hand around your shoulder

no one really talked after that which wasn’t unusual for him but in his mind he was rlly like 

“?? ok i know its literally my job to protect this family but?? hm whyyyy do i seem to care sm more rnnn??//?” help him sdhskjd

u just looked so shaken up and disappointed and suddenly he was like damn </3 they rlly have no fun in their life and this one time they could was ruined :///

u had to stay inside for weeks after that bc it turns out there was a whole conspiracy to “eliminate” your family line so you waited in safety until the criminals were “taken care of” 

minho had everything triple checked around the castle for your safety and secretly made sure you had extra treats and warm drinks sent to your room sometimes with little notes that he had the cook pretend to have sent because lately he’d heard you had trouble sleeping sometimes he’s shy boy aw

he started to realize how much he had gotten used to your smile and your little jokes and the way you sometimes tripped on the corners of rugs. and he thought maybe it was a good thing you guys didnt have many interactions lately because he was way too attached

you on the other hand, couldnt even rlly complain about having to stay inside so much bc you had everything you needed and- you knew it was for ur safety but- it wassss kind of suffocating at times

u tried sneaking out at first ((just to the garden!!)) which obviously was a bad idea bc it’s impossible to get past minhos fcking hawk eyes lmao

he STILL didnt say anything like he would just follow right behind you

n like u kinda huffed but whatever honestly at least it was just him and not 15 other guards like everyone acted like you needed

plus it was somewhat comforting to have someone so solid around even if he never talked smh

one night you sat near the little pond and tried to calm your mind by watching how the moonlight rippled in the water

you can feel him behind you so u just turn around and look at him ignoring how he was already looking at you

 “would you at least sit with me?”

he kind of hesitates bc …what if someone tried to come up behind you? but with the sad look on your face he cant help but give in and sits on the stone bench at the opposite end of you

it becomes actually somewhat peaceful until you just decide to ask everything you’ve been wondering n u just blurt out-

“would it kill you to talk with me once in a while? i mean, talk like a normal person and not a machine? i dont bite i promise..”

he furrows his brow bc he’s shocked you cared at all and also he doesnt rlly know how to respond without being like “its not really in my job description to make conversation” but he honestly just thought you were being talkative out of niceties.

 before he could even form a sentence you continued,

“i mean- i’m always trying to get your attention. i dont get to meet many people for obvious reasons but my guards are the closest people to me-literally, and i dont want there to be a big gap between us just because of my status..”

he cuts you off before you ramble yourself to death 

“i didn’t know you were this troubled by it… i just take my job very seriously and i dont want to risk anyone’s safety for the sake of conversation”

u almost roll ur eyes but not wanting to be rude ur just like “even at home? i know you’re serious about your duties, believe me, i just… i get lonely.”

smthing inside him literally breakkkssss when you say that like u are such a pure and sweet person that deserves to have all the love and friends and fun in the world so he just gets quiet for a second and looks down

“im sorry.” he said it so softly you almost didnt hear him “i’ll be there for you more- if thats what you need. im essentially in charge of your safety and care and i’ll do anything to fulfill that responsibility.”

ok.

well this was good right? so why did you still feel unsatisfied?

“i dont want to just be a responsibility, cant we just be like friends? or…”

you cut yourself off before talking too much again

you had to admit to yourself you had developed a bit of a liking for minho, not just because he was probably the most handsome person in your kingdom, not even just because he saved your life, but he had really been a pillar of security in your life and you respected his loyalty and ambition.

he was more than admirable and everything you wanted as a standard for your kingdom

sometimes you let your mind wander to him getting on one knee and leading alongside you..

no, now youre getting sidetracked and delusional and he can practically hear the gears turning in your head so he stands up and reaches his hand out for you to grab 

“of course you’re more than a responsibility to me, come on, lets go inside it’s getting cold.’

taking his hand and realizing the conversation was over, you moved to link arms instead  as he walked you all the way to your bedroom door 

u slept a lot better that night 

from that point on you could not get rid of minho 

like everyone was borderline uncomfortable with how jarring his change in attitude was 

like he was constantly behind you looking right over your shoulder or grabbing your arm to stop you from bumping into things

even when he wasnt technically on duty he had taken it upon himself to give you little lessons in archery and even some defensive moves to help you protect yourself in case someone wasnt fast enough to help you 

your tried not to get flustered every time he adjusted your form and the way you could feel his breath behind your ear

or the head pats when he walked you to your room at night

or his hand on your back when you guys would take walks in the garden

honestly it did not take long until one night you were sat next to your pond and after some comfortable small talk you noticed how close his face was to yours

but he noticed you didn’t pull away even as he leaned in closer and finally just kissed you

when he pulled away and saw your eyes still closed and how soft you looked his heart almost exploded

“i didnt mean to make things weird i just,, couldnt help myself, sorry”

his rushed confession pulls you out of your daze and you’re so happy (a little shocked) but you’re quick to reassure him

“it’s ok, i’ve been wanting you to do that for a while …”

he’s jus like “rlly?😳”

obviously this complicates things a lot and you aren’t really sure if you would even be allowed to have a relationship with minho bc of ur position

or if he would get in trouble for breaking the rules of attachment to u

all of this is kind of racing thru both of ur minds as you look at each other but you laugh after u both start talking at the same time

you prod him to go first so he grabs your hands and says like

“look i care about you a lot, and i know we’re not really supposed to be doing this but if i can be by your side … beyond my duties…i would really love to. but if we can’t, i can survive with just being here to protect and serve you in anyway i can”

he’s so honest and genuine and earnest it shocked u a little

even tho you were uncertain abt the situation as well you knew you had grown a little too fond and dependent on minho that you would do anything to make it work

luckily an arranged marriage was not required for you so that wasnt really the issue, but falling in love with someone not at all royal..? it was a daunting thought how the idea would be perceived 

you wouldnt have said anything if you both weren’t completely sure of your feelings;  but you really could not imagine being content or safe spending your life with anyone else so you mustered up the courage to ask the king and queen…

when you brought it up to your parents they looked pretty concerned

minho went on the whole “i’ll do anything to protect them and this kingdom” speech and your father just waved him off and was like

“i know u would …. i’ll allow it because there’s really no one better to represent the kingdom and because i want only the best for my child ;)”

u and minho were literally in shock but just quietly said thank u and left the room

when you had privacy he immediately pulled you in for a kiss (maybe several all over ur face)

you had a lot to figure out and many responsibilities but now you had an amazing person by your side to help you through it :.) <3

[elsanna-shenanigans]

June Contest Submission #2: Safe and Sound

Words: ca. 5,500 Setting: canon divergent Lemon: lime CW: minor character death, grief, possible PTSD

It had stormed the night Elsa’s magic accidentally turned a lock of Anna’s hair snow-white. She remembered a loopy Anna cradled in her arms as the carriage rattled over rocks and divots on the way back to the castle; her little sister gazing up at her with those sea green eyes, darkened by night. A hand reached up and patted Elsa’s head with poor coordination as Anna said, “Now we match!”

Elsa’s heart ached - how sweet was Anna for that to be what she focused on, rather than how Elsa had nearly killed her.

But that would never happen again. They were going to listen to the trolls’ advice and seek out someone who could help Elsa learn to control her powers.

The following day, Elsa and her parents would begin jogging Anna’s memory, now that it had been taken from her for healing. Soon, she would remember all of those magic-filled days once more. It was a crucial part of the plan, not only to give Anna access to her own memories, but to allow her to be the pillar of support and love Elsa would surely need going forward.

But for the moment, none of that seemed to matter. Most important now were the sounds of thunder gently rumbling over their parents’ worried voices and sheets of rain crashing against the carriage windows, lulling both sisters into a bumpy, exhaustion-driven sleep.

* * *

The next storm Elsa remembered was a few years later. It was a hot summer day, sunny and humid, but the King and Queen had a break, so the family of four trekked out past the gardens for a picnic.

Kai had made sure their food baskets were full; it was all he could do since they refused anyone to accompany them during their family time. While her parents worked on setting up the food on a table, Elsa sat with perfect posture on the quilt protecting her dress from the grass. She grinned as she watched Anna, whose dress was beyond needing protection, as she played on a low-hanging tree branch.

“Elsa! Watch this!” the ten year-old exclaimed. As Anna’s knees held herself in place on the branch, her upper body dropped toward the ground, sending her arms swinging wildly.

“By the gods…” Elsa said under her breath as she scrambled to her feet and bolted for the tree. Anna was giggling when Elsa reached her, causing the older sister to slow down with relief. She still stretched her arms out to steady Anna by her upside-down shoulders. Their heads were at the same height, causing their bright eyes of ocean and ice to meet.

Suddenly Elsa felt Anna’s hands clumsily grab behind her, pulling Elsa forward. She thought her face was going to crash into Anna’s until her sister pecked a kiss upside down on Elsa’s nose. Elsa felt her face turn red and Anna said, “Aww, I was aiming for—”

“Elsa! Anna!” their mother called. “Come, girls; the picnic is ready!”

“Elsa, please help your sister get down from there,” added their father.

“Yes, Papa!”

When the girls approached the picnic, the king was looking past the fjord with a troubled look on his face. “There’s a storm brewing out there. If it approaches as fast as it looks, we might have to take our picnic inside.”

“Awww,” Anna pouted dramatically. “If we eat inside it’s not a picnic!”

Elsa hated to see her sister so sad. After some quick thinking, she spoke up, “I have an idea.” She planted her feet firmly in the grass and held her palms out. “Anna, will you do the honors?”

One excited gasp later, and Anna wrapped her arms around Elsa’s waist in a warm embrace, just like they did in their lessons.

Elsa closed her eyes. She felt the loving warmth around her waist and imagined it flowing into her heart, where she transformed it into energy, cold as ice. A chill ran down her spine as the energy moved through her arms. When it shot out of her hands, her eyes snapped open, softly glowing.

Blue ice magic flowed from her palms, spreading out around the family and their picnic spot. Quickly, five sturdy columns formed out of the ground around them. When they reached about six feet tall, they turned at an angle toward the center and joined together in a peak. A thick, strong ice canopy closed in between the supports, offering a shelter above their heads, clear as glass.

“That’s so cool!” Anna gazed above.

“Cold, even,” the King said with a smirk.

Elsa groaned, “Papa…” Her father made the worst jokes in the kingdom.

“This is beautiful, honey,” her mother smiled. “Great thinking.”

As her heart slowed down from the adrenaline, Elsa beamed. Making her parents proud and her sister happy, all from her magic… that was the greatest feeling in the world.

Elsa’s father softly clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Excellent craftsmanship. Now, let’s get this picnic started, because I’m afraid we’ll have to eat rather quickly. This is a wonderful canopy, but if a thunderstorm does roll through, we will still be safest back in the castle.”

“I understand,” Elsa said, trying not to let her shoulders shrink.

One day, Elsa vowed, she would be able to make an entire castle with her ice magic - big and strong enough to protect her family from any kind of storm.

* * *

It was a storm that claimed the lives of Elsa and Anna’s parents. They went out to uncharted territory in search of more answers about Elsa’s powers, leaving the sixteen-year-old to look after her sister, with the help of the castle staff.

Elsa could remember being worried about the storm when it passed through Arendelle. It rattled the windows and pelted rain against the glass. She remembered hoping it wasn’t going on the same path as her parents’ carriage. She remembered exactly one week later, they received the news.

Elsa didn’t remember much from the weeks that followed.

* * *

Some months later, another terrible storm passed through the kingdom. It was the middle of the night; Elsa hadn’t slept a wink. She lay on her bed, awash in numbness. Gazing at the dark ceiling, she tried so hard not to imagine her parents’ final minutes… But with every flash of lightning dancing across her walls, she could see the shape of a carriage tumbling down a rocky cliff. She squeezed her eyes shut.

Frost formed on Elsa’s bedsheets as a tear escaped against her will. She hadn’t cried since the funeral. She had to be strong, for Anna.

Knock knock…kno-knock……….knock

Anna.

Elsa swallowed, she felt a lump in her throat. “Come—” she tried to speak but no words came out. She tried again. “Come in.”

The door swung open and Anna shuffled in. A lightning strike illuminated her form, wrapped in a blanket. She reached the edge of Elsa’s bed, hesitating. The responding thunder-boom echoed through the castle and the flood gates opened. Anna threw herself on Elsa; they both began to sob, clinging to each other with all that they had.

Holding Anna close as they cried their aching hearts out, Elsa realized… this was it. They only had each other now. She squeezed her sister even closer, placing a kiss on Anna’s cheek as she blubbered and sobbed into Elsa’s hair.

Elsa wasn’t sure when they fell asleep, or when the storm settled down, or even which came first. But after that night, sleeping was different.

Anna came into Elsa’s room every night to share her bed and be lulled to sleep safely in her arms. Elsa liked the feeling it gave her, to know that she was Anna’s source of protection.

* * *

The following weeks felt like nothing but a series of nighttime thunderstorms. One night, when the winds were howling with extra gusto, Anna asked Elsa, “Do you remember when you made that ice tent for our picnic?”

“Yeah,” Elsa smiled at the memory. “Of course.”

They were laying face to face in Elsa’s bed - now officially their shared bed. With every flash from the storm, the window cast little diamonds of light which illuminated their faces.

“That’s the safest I’ve ever felt.” Anna revealed. “Underneath that shield of ice, nothing could get to me. Do you… do you think maybe, you could make one over our bed during the storms?”

Elsa had no idea the memory had meant so much to Anna. “You would really want that?” she asked in a quiet voice.

Anna nodded sincerely.

“Okay,” Elsa said. “I can do it, of course — but the room will get cold overnight.”

“I have extra blankets. And …maybe you’ll have to hold me extra close.”

Elsa’s ears felt like they were burning. Why did Anna say that so… suggestively? She must have been joking around. But Elsa would be lying if she said the thought of holding Anna extra close didn’t give her a peculiar feeling, as if there were butterflies fluttering around in her stomach.

When Anna came back with all of the blankets from her old room, they laid side by side, facing the high ceiling above. Elsa relaxed into the mattress apart from her arms, which she raised so that she was looking past her outstretched hands. A warm hand was placed on Elsa’s stomach. There was only a thin layer of silk between her skin and that soft warmth. Elsa smiled and closed her eyes.

She no longer needed Anna’s warmth to guide her powers; Elsa had perfect control over them. But she would never deny herself the chance to feel Anna so close.

Focusing on the magic inside her, a blue glow gently illuminated the room. Elsa’s eyes opened to see the energy flowing from her hands, bringing a small ice canopy to life, securely over their bed.

It was similar to the original, but modified: it had four sturdy legs and was shaped like a four poster bed canopy. A twinkling noise carried over the sounds of the angry weather as beaded ice strings dropped from the top edges, shrouding the sisters in a beautiful, twinkling drapery of ice.

Anna gasped. “Elsa! This is better than I could’ve imagined!” When the canopy was formed and the blue glow faded, she wrapped an arm around Elsa’s chest. “I love the beads. Thank you.”

“Anything for my baby sister,” Elsa whispered.

* * *

Elsa was turning eighteen before she knew it. She wasn’t sure how it happened - maybe she had been too distracted by thoughts of Anna and how close their bond was getting lately. Nonetheless, time had passed and it was suddenly, unapologetically, Elsa’s coronation.

She stood at the front of the chapel as the choir above sang their haunting tune. Was that dissonance supposed to make Elsa feel prepared for the burden of the throne? The chilly metal of the ceremonial objects in Elsa’s hands grounded her as the priest spoke. His words sounded like a different language as they couldn’t slip all the way into her busy mind. There were too many other thoughts racing through it to pay attention.

Is my posture correct? How high should I be holding these? Goodness, this is taking a long time… I wonder how Anna — she’s looking at me. Oh, right. Everyone is looking at me. No, don’t shrink down; stand tall. For Anna. Why is she looking at me like that? With eyes full of …?

BOOM.

Thunder clapped loudly, announcing the storm rolling through.

Elsa’s heartbeat quickened; she tried not to think about the connotation of thunderstorms. The loss of her parents - the only reason she was standing up there today - and the comfort she and her sister found in each other. With each thought she felt less prepared to be queen. How could she lead when simple thunder unraveled her mind and stole her breath?

Looking for something to ground her back to reality, Elsa found her. She locked onto those ocean eyes, as Anna gave her a knowing look and sympathetic smile. Of course. Anna knew what she was feeling. They had gone through the same grief, the same trauma, the same healing process.

Elsa felt her heart return to its normal pace, and the rest of the ceremony passed smoothly so long as the new queen stayed focused on the ray of sunshine in the front row.

Soon enough, the reception began in the castle’s grand ballroom. The first dance was traditionally reserved for the newly crowned royal and one of their closest relatives or partners. All eyes were on Queen Elsa and Princess Anna as they took to the floor - yet the two of them had eyes only for each other, as if no one else in the kingdom existed.

When they reached the center of the room, Anna held out her hand, “May I lead, Your Majesty?”

Elsa cracked a smile. “I think leading is in my job description now. But you can take the second dance, how does that sound?”

“Perfect!”

A minute into the dance, Anna leaned in close to say in a low voice, “It wouldn’t have been right without a fucking storm, would it?”

“I could’ve gone without,” Elsa smiled grimly. Then she leaned close into Anna’s neck to whisper, “And watch your language.”

Anna pulled back to make sure Elsa saw her stick her tongue out ever so slightly, not enough for anyone in the crowd to notice. The new queen shook her head in amusement. Leave it to Anna to make her first dance memorable.

As the sisters twirled with grace, Elsa was taken back to the royal dancing lessons they received together as children. They always had fun in those lessons; they made up new dance moves together just as often as learning the traditional ones. But this dance, in all its regality and significance, felt markedly different. They were not those little girls anymore. They had grown up, however much early and against their will. They could never return to that time of innocence.

Anna noticed the somber look on Elsa’s face. “Hey,” she leaned in to speak softly. “What are you thinking about?”

Elsa let out a soft sigh. “Those dancing lessons we had.”

“Ah,” Anna giggled lightly. “Those were good times. Simpler times.”

Elsa agreed. “What I wouldn’t give to go back. Back to the days when my greatest worry was whether I’d have to tell Mama you’d ruined another dress.”

Anna laughed and spun away from Elsa to show off her ball gown. “I think I’ve kept this one in pretty nice shape tonight.”

The dress was beautiful on Anna, with shades of green that brought out that special hue of her eyes, and a floral bodice hugging tightly to… her chest. Elsa felt her cheeks warm as she was forced to think about how physically grown up they were as well. The gown certainly accented all of Anna’s best features. Elsa dragged her eyes unwillingly up, back to Anna’s face, which she could have sworn was red from blush.

She realized Anna was looking at her for a response. Shaking her thoughts, Elsa said with a twinkle in her eye, “The night is young, Princess.”

*

When the night was no longer young, and the kingdom returned to their beds, the queen and princess returned to their bed as well. Tonight felt different for Elsa. Not quite because she had been crowned queen, but because she had become distinctly aware that she’d allowed herself to entertain inappropriate thoughts about her little sister. And now that Elsa was in a greater position of power, she felt almost sick climbing into bed with her.

Once she was sure Anna was asleep soundly (which didn’t take long with the help of the party wine), Elsa carefully removed her arm from her sister’s waist, and rolled to face the other direction. With a sigh, she tried her best to fall asleep without Anna wrapped in her arms for the first time in two years.

The last thing she wanted was to take advantage of the love Anna had for her, or even worse, lose it forever.

* * *

Elsa’s first full day as Queen didn’t see a storm, and she didn’t even see Anna, but she was still full of turmoil. Yet, she didn’t have a lot of time to obsess over her confused feelings, since it would seem that every small royal matter since her parents’ death had been put on hold until Elsa could deal with it. That made for two years of paperwork and decision-making thrust upon her shoulders all at once. It would take her weeks to work through it all, but she was doing her best to make a dent in it on her first day. She wanted to make a good impression on everyone looking to her for guidance.

At the end of the day, Elsa extinguished her candles, walked to her chambers, and was attacked by a large creature waiting inside the doorway. “Oh!” It was Anna.

“Elsa!” Anna exclaimed. “I’ve missed you so much all day!” She squeezed Elsa tightly, causing a satisfying crack in her back, which was aching from the chair she wasn’t yet used to sitting in. Anna continued, “I tried coming to see how you were doing but Kai wouldn’t let me anywhere near your royal office.”

Elsa returned the hug. It wasn’t like she couldn’t hug her own sister. “I’ve missed you too, Anna.”

“Will it always be like this?” Anna asked. “With you locked away all day?”

“No, no, of course not,” Elsa said, tucking a lock of hair behind Anna’s ear. “In fact, why don’t you help me tomorrow? I have to prepare my first royal address, and I could use some guidance…”

“Yes! Yes!” Anna wiggled with excitement.

Elsa couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ll make sure Kai is on the same page.”

As they settled into bed, Elsa could feel her resolve slipping away. She’d felt like shit all day because of how hard she was trying to push Anna away, and now that she was back in her arms, she could barely remember why she’d been trying to ignore her in the first place. Being around Anna just felt so natural.

Elsa was sitting up slightly against the headboard, with Anna nestled into her chest, falling asleep quickly. The queen sat still for a while, listening to the twinkling sounds of her ice beads as they settled down for the evening. Elsa had never taken down their bed canopy since that first stormy night. It was a permanent fixture of their room now; a tangible sign of Elsa’s protection over Anna.

Elsa had vowed to herself she would protect Anna from anything, but she’d never expected the threat to be from within. But were her feelings a threat? Could love itself be a threat? It didn’t feel like it, with her sister so close in her arms.

Slowly, Elsa leaned down and placed one gentle kiss on Anna’s forehead, relishing in the smooth warmth against her lips. How could Elsa’s feelings be wrong when that felt so damn right?

* * *

Over two years passed since Elsa’s first days as Queen, and she liked to think things had settled into a nice rhythm. She had her queenly duties under control, was getting more skilled at decision-making, and she and Anna had found ways to spend most of their time together. Apart from the constant, aching desire Elsa was quelling within herself, she was doing pretty well.

This night was a stormy summer evening, the first of the season, which meant Elsa was lying wide awake beside Anna, well after midnight. Their parents had been gone almost five years now. The wound from their sudden departure still felt raw, but also… old. It was a strange feeling to be used to a grief so deeply imbedded in your core, yet to still feel every strand of it as if it had just happened. The pain from their loss was simply part of who Elsa was now, and that didn’t seem like it would ever truly go away.

As Elsa stared at a portion of the ice beads hanging from their bed canopy, the room lit up from lightning, followed immediately by a deafening thunderclap. She sighed, “That was a big one.”

Anna, whom Elsa was still spooning from the time they went to bed, stirred. “Els?” She said, groggily. “You awake?”

Elsa placed a kiss on Anna’s shoulder. “The sky’s awake.”

Anna yawned and rolled to face Elsa. “How long has it been storming?”

“Since… you fell asleep, pretty much.” Elsa lifted her arm that had been aching from staying in one position for hours, and touched Anna’s hair, softly running her fingers through it.

“Oh,” Anna became sad, “I’m sorry you haven’t slept.”

“That’s ok,” Elsa smiled. “I’m glad you were able to sleep through part of it.”

“All due to your cuddles, I’m sure,” Anna nestled herself into Elsa’s chest to demonstrate. The smell of Anna’s hair - local berries - wafted into Elsa’s face. She took a nice long breath in through her nose to enjoy the scent. Maybe the slow, deliberate breathing would help calm Elsa’s heart through the soft intimacy. Maybe not.

“Your heart’s beating so fast,” Anna placed a hand on Elsa’s chest, above the low neckline of her night gown.

Elsa swallowed. Her brain was backfiring on what to say.

“Is it the storms? You could have woken me if you were scared,” Anna said, worry etched into her tone.

Elsa didn’t want to lie. She was tired of pushing her feelings down, and maybe it was the lack of sleep but … Elsa felt like taking a leap. “No…” Elsa raised her hand and softly touched Anna’s cheek with her thumb. “It’s this.” She lightly stroked Anna’s smooth cheek along her jawline. “It’s this easy intimacy we have. It—,” Elsa let out a breathy laugh, “It drives me insane how much I love you, and how I want you to be closer to me, even when your whole body is pressed against mine. I want - I want you closer. Closer than that.”

Elsa’s breath hung in the balance as she watched the realization dawn on Anna’s barely visible face. “Oh.”

That one word was about to crush Elsa’s entire spirit until Anna whispered, “Close, like this?” and, in one smooth motion, slipped her hand behind Elsa’s neck to cradle it as she boldly kissed her. Their lips were pressed together, noses squished close, as a shiver twisted down Elsa’s spine. Anna moved her lips against Elsa’s in a rhythm and tilted her head to find a better way for their noses to fit together. Elsa pulled away an inch to let out a shaky breath against Anna’s mouth, then inhaled deeply and kissed Anna back with every ounce of her repressed love escaping her soul.

As their mouths moved together, finding a comfortable speed, Anna pushed on Elsa’s shoulder to lay her on her back. They rolled together, and Anna laid her weight into Elsa’s body, her legs straddling one of Elsa’s. Their kiss was broken from the movement and Elsa was panting. Anna pressed her thigh closer between Elsa’s legs. “Is this close enough?”

Elsa closed her eyes and was embarrassed by the moan that escaped her throat. “That’s a start.”

* * *

There was a small, logical part of Elsa which wished that that had never happened again, but the rest of Elsa found herself looking forward to each next storm, since not one more had passed without the sisters making love. It was physical as much as it was mentally healing for them - as Anna had put it once, they were ‘cancelling out the bad’ about storms. And, well, they wouldn’t have slept anyway.

But two months had passed and the storm season was winding down. They had yet to really talk about their feelings apart from those electric nights. They also acted as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening during the day.

It had been eight nights now without a single rumble in the sky, and Elsa felt very on edge from desire. This morning she woke up before Anna, as usual, and stared in awe of her perfect freckled skin. Recently, Elsa had grown so used to the adoring way she viewed her sister, sometimes she had to remind herself why it was wrong. But she didn’t care anymore - Anna was her whole world and she would gladly lose everything else before she’d ever let go of her. She just had to be sure Anna understood that. That Anna didn’t think their nights together were anything less than life-changing.

Elsa carefully sat up, removed her silk gown, and crawled back under the covers. Her heart was beating loudly as adrenaline rushed through her system. This was bold and felt very unlike her, which made Elsa all the more excited.

She nudged Anna and gently shook her arm. “Hey, Princess.”

The heavy sleeper let out a groan.

“Anna.” Elsa tried again.

Nothing.

Left with no choice, Elsa’s fingertips found Anna’s waist and began to tickle.

It took a few moments before Anna awoke with a shriek and started twisting around, trying to escape the onslaught. More shrieks followed as Anna tried to catch her breath through being severely tickled. Eventually she was able to gasp, “Elsa — please!”

As soon as the words were uttered, Elsa’s fingers stopped.

“Sorry,” Elsa said, “Was that too much?”

“No, no!” Anna reassured her, “I just wasn’t expecting it.”

It was then that they both realized the covers had slid down to their waists in the commotion. Anna’s wide eyes were glued to Elsa’s chest. “Well, good morning, Your Majesties.”

Elsa felt her face turn red as she felt the urge to grab the covers and hide. But she took a deep breath and pushed her insecurities down, determined to follow through with her whole plan. Flashing a smile, Elsa nudged Anna’s shoulder to lay her on her back, then swiftly rolled toward her and straddled Anna’s hips, sitting up and resting most of her weight on her own knees. Elsa looked down, past her bare chest to see Anna blinking rapidly with raised eyebrows, trying to make sense of what was happening.

“I must still be dreaming,” Anna murmured.

“You’re not,” Elsa said, before leaning down to kiss Anna, gently cupping her face. “I want you to know how much I love you, Anna. It’s not confined to stormy nights, or fear-driven lust. I want you to be mine, I want you all the time. I love you more than anything.”

“Oh Els,” Anna reached up to touch Elsa’s cheek, “I already knew that, and I love you the same. I’m already yours — all yours, all the time.”

Elsa lowered herself to kiss Anna again, as her sister’s hands traveled smoothly up her bare back. Shivers coursed through Elsa’s spine at the sensation as she took in everything about Anna’s soft mouth and gentle touch.

The knock did not come early enough to serve as a warning before Gerda burst through the bedroom door. “I told them not to make eggs again, it’s been three days in a ro— oh! Your Majesty! Princess!”

Elsa shrieked as she rolled off her sister and pulled the covers up to her neck, far too late. There was a section of the ice beads that were gathered, giving full view to the doorway. Her stomach filled with dread. Not even at the fact that Gerda walked in on them - mostly because of the young servant next to her, jaw slack with shock at the sight. Before any more words could be uttered, the servant turned and bolted.

“Dear gods.” Elsa squeezed her eyes shut. Gerda had always been like a mother to them after losing their parents, so if she would’ve been alone this might not have been a big deal - but who knew how fast it could spread with that young girl running away.

Gerda set the breakfast tray down and approached the bed. “Ladies. I apologize for not giving proper warning. I’ll try to find the girl before it’s too late.” She reached a hand toward the covers and gave a soft pat which landed on Elsa’s leg. “For what it’s worth, I always knew. I love you both.”

* * *

It was too late. That very day, the whole castle was abuzz with rumors. Everything was happening so fast, Elsa’s head was spinning. She and Anna stayed in their room, door locked, curtains drawn.

They had a lot to discuss, and at the end of the day, Elsa was going to have to make the biggest decision she would ever make as Queen.

* * *

When night fell, the sisters were in the stables, preparing their horses under the cover of darkness.

“You’re sure about this?” Elsa asked quietly as they each tied their bags behind their horse’s saddles.

“Yes, Elsa.” Anna looked at her sympathetically. “You don’t have to keep asking.”

Elsa fumbled with a buckle. “I just need to be sure you’re ok. There’s no coming back from this.”

“I understand,” Anna said. “We never asked to be royal, we never needed the throne. All I want is you, and I don’t care where we live or our status. The way I see it, it’s better to run away and live freely than to stay and hide behind closed doors.”

Elsa was sure Anna would never know how much it meant to hear her say that.

As they walked their horses to the edge of the fjord, Elsa spoke in a low voice. “Gerda did decide to come with us, but I convinced her to wait a few days before riding out to meet us. So she’ll set our affairs in order and make sure Kai is settled as king.”

Kai had always been the next in line behind Elsa and Anna, as per their parents’ will. Nobody ever expected it to come to fruition, but Elsa felt certain Arendelle couldn’t be placed in more capable hands.

When they reached the water’s edge, Elsa gave her reins to Anna and stood before the fjord. She closed her eyes and summoned her magic. As the queen lifted her foot and stomped her traveling boot onto the water, it met cold, hard ice at the same instant as a sudden thunderous boom. Both sisters looked to the sky.

It was almost fitting for a storm to usher them out of the kingdom.

They rode through the night, over the frozen pathway Elsa made across the fjord, past countless trees, hills, valleys, and mountains. Arendelle became smaller the farther north they travelled. For most of the trip, they battled fierce rains, made better only by the ice shields Elsa held up above and in front of each horse.

They only stopped when they reached North Mountain. It was by far the biggest mountain near the kingdom, and would be easy for Gerda to find when she set out to meet them.

At the mountain’s base, the sisters stared up at the peak, high in the sky. It was dark at 4am, but the lingering lightning in the distance illuminated the view just enough.

“I think we should build halfway up, where that slope levels out a little,” Elsa pointed. “But this is as far as the horses can go, so I’ll start by building a ramp.”

After a kiss from Anna’s warm lips, Elsa began forming a huge ramp, which wound around the rest of the mountain a couple of times to keep the slope less steep. Anna watched nervously. She didn’t know the last time Elsa used this much powerful magic in one night. Maybe ever.

As the ramp formed, Anna followed with the horses. They appreciated the cobblestone texture of the ice as a relief for their hooves, which had been trudging through snow drifts ever since they’d reached the mountains.

Soon, Elsa’s ramp stopped and Anna found her standing in the center of an open space, with her feet directly in the middle of a huge snowflake design. Anna tied the horses to a railing. Elsa’s back was turned as she lifted a foot and slammed the boot back down to the ice. After a burst of blue light, Elsa raised her arms to the dawning sky, and with them rose a huge ice structure. Walls were rising out of nothing, forming multiple floors with windows and turrets. Two smaller structures formed beside the magnificent castle, a cottage for Gerda and a stable for the horses. They were finished at the same time as the castle’s roof tiles settling into place.

When Anna no longer heard the sounds of groaning ice, she rushed inside the giant doors. She stopped in her tracks to take in the view. Elsa’s ice canopies had nothing on this palace. A beautiful double staircase led up to a higher floor, leaving the ceiling of the first level high enough for an ice chandelier.

Beneath the chandelier, laid Elsa, collapsed from exhaustion.

“Elsa!”

Anna sprinted across the smooth floor, falling to her knees and sliding the last few feet to her sister’s side.

Elsa felt Anna pull her shoulders into her warm lap. She forced her heavy eyes open and smiled. Those freckles and ocean eyes were the most comforting sight, reminding her why she put out so much effort.

Lifting her head a little, Elsa uttered something, just before falling into a deep sleep. Anna leaned down to hear the words.

“Princess… you feel safe?”

[thegeneralguy]

The Champion of Olympus - Prologue

This is the first series I´ve ever worked on. I remember I saw a post about the gift of the gods from @absqrst in the past, so I worked a bit around that general idea. It´s gonna be long, but I hope the patience makes it worth your while. I want to clarify all the characters in the stories are adults.

The flaming chariot sped over the clouds as thunder roared through the night sky. The vessel of the sun had its usual flames dimmed, but there was no doubt who was commanding it.

“He must be really mad to be throwing such a tantrum.”

Said Apollo to himself as he drove through the dark clouds. He was in the middle of a particularly erotic composing session with Terpsichore, muse of music, when the message from his father blasted through the roof of the mansion and engraved the urgent message on the floor. His presence was being requested for an extraordinary session of the twelve. Apollo couldn´t even remember the last time he saw his family together, but it usually meant bad news for everyone.

The last time his father and Poseidon argued, a massive tidal wave ravaged the land of the rising sun down on earth. The celestial plane wasn´t always indifferent towards mortal matters, and Apollo made sure to keep inspiring those beautiful human minds in order to create both beauty and a form of expression that eased up tension in difficult times. The fact that his family was meeting again could only mean disaster, both for mortals and for gods.

The sky grew increasingly stormy the more the chariot approached the thunder palace. Zeus´s residence was directly on top of Mytikas peak in Mount Olympus. The home of the gods was on an entirely different plane than earth, but vaster and richer. It existed both parallel to the terrestrial plane, but above it in hierarchy, and was ruled by the will of the deities that inhabited it. Each Olympian had its dominion, but Zeus ruled above all.

The chariot slowed down as the imposing marble columns of the palace became visible. It stopped on one of the gardens, and Apollo rushed to the nearest entrance heading to the meeting. The door to the throne room was guarded by celestial Sentinels, the latest invention from his brother Hephaestus. The automatons had the shape of the pinnacle of the masculine physique and were made of gold with a tiny bit of ichor, the blood of the gods. They served mainly as guardians, although he had made use of a couple of them for more personal matters, like an extra boost for the sexual soirees he usually hosted.

Apollo could hear the heated discussion from outside the room. The Sentinels opened the doors and suddenly twelve pairs of eyes were instantly focused on him.

“Apollo. So glad you decided to grace us with your presence. Take a seat.”

Said Zeus with a sour scowl. He was indeed the last one to arrive. Even Hades was there, so it must be serious. He took his seat next to his brother Dionysius, who gave him a knowing look.

“How many were there this time?”

Asked Dionysius with a cheeky smile. Apollo remained with his sight to the center of the room, trying his best to ignore the provocations of his brother.

“Come on I´m dying for a little excitement. Things have been rather grim around here, and I´m dying for a little spark of *hic* entertainment.”

Apollo gave his brother an irritated look. The God of wine was looking as disheveled as ever. His muscular body was partially covered by a glowing white cloak, with some grape vines hanging from his belt and decorating one side of his head. He was holding his everlasting wine cup with one hand, while his face rested on the other.

“I was with Terpsichore. We were looking for some inspiration.”

“Right, right. Maybe next time I can join you both. I could use some inspiration too you know. Remember the parties we used to throw with the muses and the nymphs? I´m pretty sure you got more inspiration than you bargained for back then…”

A lightning bolt stroke right before Dionysus, who sighed and diverted his attention to Zeus.

“I apologize father. Please do continue to illustrate us with your crucial monologue.”

He said disinterested as he took a big swig from his golden wine cup.

“This is no joke Dionysus. It is the first time since the Titanomachy that we´ve faced a situation like this.”

Apollo had heard legends about the epic war against the titans, an event that changed the course of the world. His aunts and uncles fought alongside Zeus for ten years in order to dethrone Cronus and other titans loyal to the Golden Age regime. He tried his best to focus on the near future, but he couldn´t get past the next few days. He felt like a thick fog over him interrupting his vision of the future.  It was unusual for the god the sun to have his gift of prophecy clouded, specially in an event of such magnitude like his father was describing. His curiosity started to turn into genuine worry, and he focused his attention on Zeus once again.

“The Fates contacted me recently with news from the underworld. It seems that the king of the monsters found a way to break through the veil separating his prison in Tartarus from the rest of the infernal plane.”

“That’s impossible. The abyss in Tartarus is inescapable. Not even Typhon is capable of gathering enough power.”

Said Poseidon skeptically whilst stroking his magnificent beard.

“It is a different kind of problem brother. Typhon is trying to seep some of his energy into the terrestrial plane. We´ve grown disconnected from humanity in the last century, and Typhon is trying to take advantage so he can gain some adepts of his own in order to amass divine energy to break free. I already consulted with Hades, and it seems a breach in Tartarus´s security is not impossible.”

“But what would that mean for us father? We still have enough divine power to launch a counterattack if he does manage to escape, we will be ready for battle.”

Said the mighty Ares. The god of war was known for taking aggressive decisions that lead to confrontation. His mighty physique was a testament for his strength and his prowess in combat.

“Not if he gains some divinity himself. The monster already possesses enough strength on his own to blow up half of Olympus. If he acquires some power from human devotion, not even I will be able to stop him.”

It wasn´t fitting of Zeus to admit inadequacy of any kind, and Apollo knew it. He grew only increasingly uncomfortable imagining the possible outcomes of a monster invasion. In any scenario, Earth would face the biggest catastrophe.

“What do you suggest we do now father? Humanity isn´t what it used to be. The facilitated communication of humans has bred doubt and paranoia. It won´t be hard for Typhon to appeal to humanity´s loss of self in order to succeed.”

Said Athena who out of her siblings seemed the most invested in the problem at hand. Hades who had been cautiously quiet listening to the conversation raised from his seat to answer the wisdom goddesses’ question.

“It seems we got time on our side, my honorable niece. Infusing earth with energy direct from Tartarus will take time. And the first thing Typhon will try to gain are champions. Without some avatars directly on earth he is still powerless”

“Don´t be ridiculous Hades. There hasn´t been a champion on earth since ancient times. Let alone a hellish spawn from the original monster himself.”

Exclaimed Poseidon with a booming laugh whilst slamming his gigantic trident on the floor.

“Hades is right brother. A champion serving as a recruiter is the only way of gaining direct adoration. The negative energy coming from Typhon will take care of the rest. It´s only fair we do the same.”

Zeus´ stern face showed a glimpse of amusement, his muscular body almost twitching with excitement.

“It is time we choose a new Champion of Olympus.”

Everyone went completely quiet for a second. The incredulous eyes of the twelve Olympians were staring at the god of thunder. Then the room was immediately filled with chatter and discussion. Apollo looked around as his brothers and sisters talked aggressively between themselves. The idea of gifting divinity to a mortal hasn´t been touched in eons, so it was only natural for the godly unrest to take place. The ritual was long, complex and it required the cooperation of all the Olympians.

“But why father? What makes you think a new champion will do anything to stop the monster from breaking out? Last time we tried to make one divinity rejected him.”

Said Ares slamming his powerful fist on the armrest. The main reason the gods didn´t get celestial conduits on the terrestrial plane was because few humans were eligible for the gift. And even after getting one who was compatible with divinity, all Olympians had to agree on the candidate, and there was always someone who chose differently. If the will of one god was against the chosen one, the ritual backfired and the person would be consumed by the divine power.

“A champion will help us connect with humans again. Times have changed, and we won´t be able to amass enough power to retaliate against Typhon if we don´t gain adoration again. Besides, we are going to do things differently this time. Each of you will have the possibility of choosing one eligible candidate. Afterwards we will put the chosen ones through three heroic tests. The one that manages to complete the tasks will get our blessing, and so divinity will be achieved. If we all agree on these terms, we won´t kill the candidate during the sacred ritual. And we will be sure the best choice was taken.”

“It seems you already had this planned out brother.”

Said Poseidon in a slightly suspicious tone. It wasn´t unusual for his brother to come up with grandiose plans that required thorough cleaning afterwards. The god of the sea laid back his heavily muscled back on the chair and wondered about what Zeus was really planning.

“This is madness father. And even if the plan worked, we are not sure divinity won´t corrupt the champion. It has happened before. And I´m sure some of us won´t have Olympus´ best interest in mind when choosing a candidate.”

Said Athena whilst eying the god of wine, who was in-between drinking and undressing the Sentinels with his eyes.

“Of course, it would be you who started judgement sister. Perhaps if you sought interaction with other one than your precious little owl, you wouldn´t be practically embodying neurosis instead of wisdom.”

Said Aphrodite clearly in odds with her sister´s self-perceived moral high ground.

The room exploded in a cacophony of displeased voices. Apollo sighed as he looked at his family once again imploding on its own. He knew that deep inside everyone was excited with the idea of gifting a mortal with divine powers, it was a fascinating process. It allowed the gods to mold a person according to their needs, and of course desires. The trip down to the terrestrial plane could be a hassle, but nothing none of the twelve Olympians could handle. He was particularly keen on seeing what his normally silent brother Hephaestus and his hermit twin sister Artemis would come up with.

Suddenly Zeus slammed his hand on the giant round table on the center and thunder flashed all across the room and resonated with a deafening sound that completely drowned the gods´ anxious voices.

“The decision is made. According to Hades we got exactly until the next lunar cycle for Typhon´s energy to start leaking out of Tartarus. Until then the champion has to be chosen and ready with his task so we can avoid the most corruption possible. Each Olympian must have their candidate ready by the next full moon and present him before the celestial gateway on the base of Mount Olympus. That is an order.”

Zeus´s eyes flashed excitedly with the glow of golden lightning.

“Meeting adjourned.”

The king of the gods then disappeared with blinding thunder. Each god made their way out of the palace to get ready for the task at hand. Apollo got on his chariot and smiled. Apparently, a new form of inspiration was presenting itself to him, and he was going to enjoy every second of it. It was fitting for his father to turn a crisis situation into a competition, but this time Apollo was excited to participate. The chariot of the sun then departed hastily into the night sky as the thunder clouds dissipated and a dark moon adorned the firmament.

[mingtiddies]

prince!jihoon

genre: fluff at some point, a little funny??, prince au

word count: 2470

warnings: blood, gun violence (one shot fired), (it’s not very detailed but it’s there), mentions of sex

a/n: for some reason everytime i write for jihoon it’s super long jzhgdzjhg

● jihoon wished you would shut up

● which you’d understand if you were blabbing like prince soonyoung

● but your job made it kinda hard NOT to talk to jihoon

● you were the daughter of a high government official

● and you were following in the footsteps of your mom, by overseeing laws made by the royal family

● and also by advising the crown of laws they could make to improve the life of the kingdom

● and since prince jihoon was getting ready to be crowned king, he was already given the responsibility of making laws

● you’d seen first hand what some of the people were going through

● although crimes weren’t that big of a problem (your mom and the king had passed enough laws for the people to think twice about committing any crime)

● poverty was one that broke families apart and even started to take a toll on the economy of the kingdom

● and you had so many ideas to try and improve their lives

● the downside was that you had to talk to jihoon so he’d provide insight and actually submit the laws

● and prince jihoon hated it so much

● jihoon likes to be alone

● all the time

● so he avoided his staff as much as he could

● and jihoon loves to sleep

● and he’s also a terrible morning person

● but as future king, there’s no such thing as sleeping in

● the entire staff dreaded waking him up

● pls save them

● they thought it was a literal chore

● “rock, paper, scissors, the loser wakes up prince jihoon”

● so when you started barging into his room at 7am while the staff was deciding who would go in and wake the prince up, they felt so relieved

● so now you woke up jihoon on a daily basis

● “okay so i was thinking...”

● and the prince is irritated to no end

● one day you came to your mother’s office to review a few law requests

● and there was one from jihoon !!!

● (he rarely submits any)

● “y/n cannot speak nor approach prince jihoon for five to twenty minutes of his choosing each day”

● you laughed, albeit bitterly

● but boy almost hates you as much as soonyoung

● which is funny because soonyoung is a good friend of yours as you’ve helped his kingdom for a few months

● he has so much trouble trying to get rid of other princes

● for some reason??? they think jihoon’s kingdom is a good place to chill

● received a snap from prince seungcheol, from just outside the palace at the window

● creepy mf

● has once locked you in the dungeon

● the staff was so confused but so conflicted because your mom scares them but jihoon is the prince and his parents are the king and queen

● but you found it funny

● because you once locked jihoon in the dungeon too

● no one even noticed because he hides so much from the staff that they assumed he was hiding again

● has also locked you and prince soonyoung in the dungeon at the same time

● “WHY DO YOU EVEN HAVE A DUNGEON”

● “for annoying people like YOU”

● worst decision he ever made

● because that’s when soonyoung became your best friend

● (you also befriended soonyoung’s future wife who had so much trouble keeping him in his own kingdom)

● soonyoung now texts jihoon privately too

● he mostly told him to listen to you

● another reason jihoon wanted to lock you in the dungeon:

● you always kept finding him????

● how????

● not even the staff could find him

● at some point (none of you notice) he stops being irritated when you come see him

● he still wouldn’t talk to you but at least he wouldn’t grumble and groan at everything you said

● sometimes he’d smile !!!!

● and if you pointed it out he’d scowl and go back to being expressionless

● while all of this occurs

● tension grew between the wealthy class and the poor class

● so jihoon had to listen to you now

● and so one day you were walking the public royal garden with jihoon

● (which now seems like it was a terrible idea but the people knew who you were so being seen with jihoon was a good move when public relations had purposely spread rumors of the crown working on laws to improve the life of the lower class)

● suddenly someone in the garden screamed at the two of you

● they were clearly angry and they were talking about laws to help people like him

● and before the guards accompanying you could react, the man fired a weapon in your direction

● which was originally aimed at jihoon

● but hit you instead

● the bullet hit you in the arm near the shoulder, went right through

● panic spread so fast that it took them a second to realize it was you who’d been shot

● the screams from everyone had kinda drowned yours

● jihoon was the first to hear you and he almost flipped

● just as a guard laid eyes on you (and all the blood dripping down your arm)

● (finally)

● so they rushed you to the nearest hospital

● whatever went through jihoon’s mind, his entire demeanor changed

● you think you blacked out because you can’t really remember anything from after being shot

● like it was so surreal to you

● so now you’re in a hospital bed, your arm hurt as fuck and you still don’t understand how tf this happened

● jihoon was sitting next to your bed when you woke up, on his phone trying to calm down all the princes who had seen the news

● “you look like someone died”

● (for a second prince jihoon imagined his life without you in it, and not only was it boring but it was also lonely)

● “you almost did”

● “but i didn’t”

● “but you almost did”

● “but i didn’t”

● he wanted to kill you for a hot second

● “yeah well you still got shot”

● and it’s so obvious that it bothered and affected jihoon

● but before you could say anything else, prince soonyoung barged in

● a nurse tried to stop him because “prince soonyoung you can’t risk startling a patient”

● but soonyoung barely heard the poor nurse

● “OH MY GOD Y/N YOU’RE ALIVE”

● he hugged you but it hurt you so he apologized

● and then he started hitting jihoon????

● lightly hitting because well soonyoung doesn’t really have a death wish

● still very brave of him to even touch prince jihoon

● the prince’s patience was running so thin

● “HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO HER YOU MONSTER”

● to get him off jihoon’s case, you pretended your arm hurt more

● and it worked lmaoo

● because soonyoung immediately came to dote on you and make sure you were okay

● jihoon didn’t know and even he glanced at you worriedly before seeing your face

● your “i’m up to something” face

● and then you have like five princes in your room

● two of them being soonyoung and jihoon

● and the others were princes you’d advised on some laws

● prince minghao, prince wonwoo and prince chan

● you made one joke about being shot and everyone scolded you

● “who do we kill”

● “i need a name and a description”

● “i have royal hitmen on speed dial”

● “i already ordered his execution”

● jihoon said it so calmly?????

● it’s when he said it that you realized you were looking at him and him at you

● all the princes turned to him

● because

● that’s not really how it works here and even they know that

● the shooter would definitely be charged, but there was a protocol to follow

● and by ordering the man’s death, prince jihoon completely overlooked that

● (cough he did it for you cough)

● the princes tried to tell him

● but all jihoon replied was “he’s lucky i’m not the one executing him”

● and well it’s jihoon so would he ever admit he did it because he was angry because he almost lost you

● well surprise !!!! because he did admit to it

● the man was long found and killed 

● you had joked about prince jihoon killing to avenge/protect his people

● and he had muttered that it was just you and that he’d do it again

● which shouldn’t have been such a big surprise to you since you’d seen the look in his eyes when he had said he had ordered the execution

● oh and jihoon’s parents were pissed like seriously pissed

● a struck of luck would have it that the shooter’s actions had been so dangerous (not just for the crown and the royal court but also the people) that public relations released an immediate statement about executing the shooter as soon as he was found

● anyway so like “it’s just you though, and i’d do it again for you”

● !!!!!!!!!

● he then submitted a law that stated you should never be allowed outside of the palace’s premises without at least two royal bodyguards

● which your mother approved of, but not as a law lmaoo

● but it touched you that he cared enough to give you big men to protect you

● you teased him so much for hinting at him liking you

● and he tried to submit another law that said you weren’t allowed to talk about his feelings for you

● which !!!! actually proved to you that he did have feelings

● “you do realize my mother’s office deals with important laws right?”

● and you had the request for the law in your hand, neatly written, with the prince’s seal at the bottom

● he sat at his desk, nose buried in paperwork

● and you had a shit-eating grin on your face, leaning against his desk

● “i’m glad you’re admitting you like me though”

● the prince blushed madly and you tore up the official paper

● jihoon was almost offended as he watched the pieces dropping on his desk

● but that was okay

● because you then leaned across his desk and pecked his cheek

● it was funny because while your mother was very wary of the relationship you two began to share, the king and queen actually supported it

● your family was well respected across many kingdoms

● and it would be a plus for them to have you stay as your mother moved on to another kingdom

● it’s when the queen started pressing you and jihoon into making an announcement about getting engaged that jihoon thought

● ‘i do wanna marry her’ and that no one could be a better future queen than you

● so he did what he thought would make you both laugh at how ridiculous it was but also make you happy

● he submitted a law stating that he was to marry you at the date and location of your choice

● the squeal you let out scared tf out of your mom lol

● and she was even more confused when you ran out of the room but you’d tell her later

● it was morning

● and prince jihoon did not expect you to be reading it so early in the morning

● so when you barged into his room at like 7am he just groaned and told you to go away

● “prince jihoon, prince jihoon, prince jihoon, prince jihoon, prince jihoon”

● “let me sleep or i’ll call the guards on you”

● to be fair, you were extra annoying on purpose, bouncing on his bed and everything haha

● “jihoon~”

● he groaned again and covered his head with his covers

● which you found adorable

● your grumpy prince

● “come back in five hours”

● so unreasonable

● so you got up to leave and you were about to

● but who would you be if you didn’t tease him more? haha

● “hm i don’t know if i’ll still want to marry you in five hours, but suit yourself”

● and of course you were out of his room before he had time to process your words

● you greeted the staff on your way back to the office

● behind you people gasped and you could hear running?

● (i mean the staff hadn’t seen the prince running since he was a kid and some had never seen him run at all)

● so your words did have an impact

● although you did not expect the prince to trap you into his arms in the middle of the hallway

● “nevermind the five hours, please marry me”

● you were going to tease him a bit more

● but hearing the words coming out of his mouth rather than being written on paper kinda did things to you

● honestly you almost squealed again

● but you kept your cool and told him you’d marry him right now if he wanted to

● which he almost took to heart because he said let’s go

● you stopped him because there was no way the two of you would be getting married right now

● so he invited you to breakfast

● you had already eaten

● but you said yes regardless

● on your way to breakfast, you stopped by your mom’s office, leaving prince jihoon outside for a second

● “I’M GONNA GET MARRIED, I’M GETTING MARRIED”

● jihoon totally heard you and so did the staff walking past the prince

● he was so red lmaoo

● it was a tiny bit worth it

● you talked less and he hid less

● well at least he hid less from you

● the staff still struggled to find him, and he usually was with you

● as for you talking his ear off, it started to become a telltale sign for your nervousness and stress

● e.g when your work was stressing you out

● when you were trying to make surprises for him (birthdays were Not surprises rip)

● or when you got pregnant

● which is how he found out

● you had started advising him more than usual about laws

● just nervous blabbing about the future of children

● most of them were about protecting children, laws for orphans, laws for school

● and he kinda just put two and two together

● jihoon’s parents found it so funny that you got pregnant before the two of you were even king and queen

● parenthood had its ups and downs and both you and jihoon were relieved that you could raise your little one before being crowned

● jihoon didn’t think he could handle being a king and raising a baby

● by the time you were crowned your little prince was almost 10 years old and the two of you tried to avoid making a second one lol

● at the end of the day, if you were to be pregnant again, jihoon would be happy regardless

● around his third or fourth year of being king, jihoon developed baby fever

● him and his son both being only sons played a huge part in wanting to have another kid

● (he literally brought it up when you were having sex)

● “wouldn’t the gap be too wide between the two?”

● “let’s have two more then”

● you grumbled about being the one carrying the children for nine months

● but you ended up having two children anyways lmao

seungcheol ║ jeonghan ║ joshua ║ junhui ║ soonyoung ║ wonwoo ║ jihoon ║ seokmin ║ mingyu ║ minghao ║ seungkwan ║ vernon ║ chan

[aion-rsa]

Ghosts Series 2: ‘They’re stuck in an existence they didn’t ask for… like all of us’

https://ift.tt/35QzhQ6

The Ghosts creators have worked together for over a decade. To-date, the six-person team (Mat Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe-Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard and Ben Willbond) have written and performed in long-running children’s sketch comedy Horrible Histories, three series of fantasy sitcom Yonderland, feature film Bill, and two series of the supernatural BBC comedy Ghosts, with a third on the way. 

Channelling Mrs Merton asking Debbie McGee what first attracted her to the millionaire Paul Daniels, I ask Baynton and Howick via Zoom what inspired the group to write Ghosts, a sitcom about a group of individuals who frequently drive each other nuts, trapped together for what may well be eternity? 

Both laugh. “I’m sure we do drive each other nuts in many ways,” says Howick, “but the truth is, like the ghosts, what we always come back to in these episodes is that they love each other and don’t know what they would do without each other. I think that can be said for the group?” He looks to Baynton for confirmation and gets a happy nod. 

Considering the well-documented fallings-out and imploding egos of other comedy gangs – the Pythons not least among them – this level of harmony over such a long period feels remarkable. What’s their secret? “I think we keep each other honest,” says Baynton. “There are certainly heated debates.”

Heated’s too strong a word, says Howick. “We only really fight for our opinion, we never fight each other.” On the rare occasion that there isn’t unanimity about a particular topic, there might be a locking of horns and a democratic vote, but real arguments don’t happen. “There’s no animosity or jealousy with each other’s independent careers,” he explains. “We are our most important project. We have no desire to work each other up. We’re all genuinely fond of each other.”

That much is clear watching them interact. The online BBC press launch for series two was punctuated by the group making each other laugh. Silly voices. Running jokes. At one point, to the absolutely delight of his colleagues, Simon Farnaby’s crotch moved unavoidably front and centre as he stood up in front of his webcam to adjust a window blind. The rapport is real. 

Indeed, during UK lockdown, say Baynton and Howick, the group’s regular Zoom calls drafting Ghosts series three were a godsend. Aside from the boon of having regular work when so much of their industry was in uncertainty, being able to see friends for three hours on a Wednesday evening kept them sane. 

“It’s been a tonic in an otherwise relatively difficult and quite miserable time to have been able to jump on Zoom and make each other laugh with ideas for these characters that we love,” says Baynton. Entertainingly, when the group splits off into writing pairs, each does impressions of the absent characters while drafting dialogue. “It’s funny,” remarks Howick. ‘When we come together as a six, if we’re trying to pitch a positive idea, it’s usually done in a [segues into the regional accent of his upbeat character] Pat voice. Or if it’s a melodramatic idea or if it’s over-the-top, it might be a [Baynton’s Romantic poet character] Thomas voice.” 

Via video chat, it took a little longer for the group’s writing wheels to start turning. Ordinarily a new series would start with two weeks of the gang together in the same room. Stretching that to months of three-hour Zoom calls, fitted in amongst home schooling for the parents among them, was an adjustment. “The energy that you would bring to a room at 10 o’clock in the morning in an office wasn’t there,” says Howick. “You’d have to try and generate this feeling even though everyone was exhausted.”

Howick found himself seeking out frivolity to reach the right frame of mind. He played videogames. “If I sat and thought too hard about what was going on outside my door, it would make me really sad, and so in order to keep a vital part of me going, in order to meet with Mat and the others every Wednesday and keep that bright demeanour, it was good to do that.” The writing momentum started to return with the ease of lockdown, says Baynton. “The simple mental health-saving fact of being able to meet up with family in a garden helped a lot.” 

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Trying to write comedy against a such a serious backdrop of world events also felt uncomfortable, says Baynton. “You feel like it’s almost… immoral is too strong a word, but when there are nurses and doctors and teachers and crucially important people doing the work they do… It felt like an elephant in the room to be tap tap tapping away at a story about another day at Button House and what the ghosts are up to.”

It helped to know how warmly Ghosts series one had been received by its many fans. “What’s touching is when we do get messages from fans who say how much the show means to them. I know how important comedy has been to me in my life, so if we can be that to other people, it doesn’t feel completely frivolous.”

Ghosts, with its colourful selection box of characters (there’s a caveman, a headless Elizabethan, a 17th century witch, an excitable Regency woman-child, an Edwardian snob, a WWII captain, a 1980s scout leader and a 1990s Tory politician) may look frivolous, but series one had moments of real pathos. Baynton is proud of the fact that the series doesn’t shy away from the bleaker side of its ‘dead people’ premise. “If you really interrogate the truth of it – these are people who lived, people who died, people who loved or were thwarted or killed or suffered injustices or never got to love the person that they admired…”

The original idea was for a much bigger cast of ghosts, with everybody playing multiple parts, Horrible Histories-style. It quickly became clear that the story needed to home in on a small ensemble, giving the gang what Howick calls “its own silhouette”. Had they stuck with the original plan, “It would have been like The Muppet Show,” he says. “Every week would only have scratched the surface.” Too many ghost characters would have diminished the show’s emerging premise, says Baynton, which is about “being stuck forever in a tedious and endlessly repetitive existence.”

A bit like lockdown, we joke. Exactly, says Baynton. 

“We talk about this a lot. The way I see it is that their situation is just the same as a living person’s: they’re stuck, they’re in an existence they didn’t ask for, they don’t know why they’re there or what happens next. They know that there is a next ‘thing’ but whether they go to heaven, or hell, or something else, they don’t know. They’re just the same as people on earth.”

Howick agrees, “Their existence is very mortal in that respect.” 

Writing about the afterlife, a sense of existential metaphor is unavoidable, says Baynton. “There is something deeply relatable about it, which is where sitcom will always thrive. You can’t really fail to connect with a story about a person who doesn’t know what to do with their time or who feels stuck. Regardless of class or job or circumstance, that is all of us.”

If the ghost characters are all of us, they’re also peculiar to their time period. The collision and unexpected blending of different social contexts is where much of the series’ comedy comes from. Howick compares the composition of the group to Blackadder Goes Forth, which kept “ranks of characters from different classes stuck together in a hell hole, cheating death every single week.” 

The source of much of the comedy is thwarted status, says Baynton, “It’s the stuff of Alan Partridge and Hyacinth Bucket and Basil Fawlty… people who see themselves a certain way but who aren’t that way to the audience. Every single one of the ghosts is that to some extent. Anything that gave you status in life, you’re robbed of the second you die, so that’s already pretty funny in the sense of a captain who can’t lead, a wealthy woman who has no wealth, a politician who is not recognised as an authority, a poet who can’t pick up a pen, a Scoutmaster with no kids…”

“Not Scoutmaster!” interrupts Howick. “Adventure Club leader!” Before series one aired, they were instructed not to use the “Scouts” organisation name in scripts. “That was before they knew who Pat was going to be,” says Howick. Pat, for info, is a sweetie, and the Scouts should be proud to have him. He’s also a vibrant dancer, as series two, episode two shows. 

“There’s a lot of dancing this series” says Howick. “Without giving too much away, there’s dancing in the last episode. I think Thomas’ best dance is at the end.”

Fans can expect more playfulness with series two. Now that the characters are established and the tone has been taken to heart, the team could afford to experiment a little more. “With series two, because the audience hopefully are with us at this point, we can throw different curveballs,” says Baynton.

“In that way that The Simpsons or those long-running American things, you can suddenly do one in black and white, as if it’s a Hitchcock thing. We’ve definitely had fun. There’s an episode later in the second series which is a format of its own. We’re thinking about those things for series three, being free to be really playful with it.”

There’s a Christmas special episode to come, “the last one ever to be filmed!” joked Farnaby at the press launch. The timing on series two’s filming was especially jammy, with only one day lost to the UK TV and film industry shutdown in March. They made the decision not to use supporting artists in the last scenes filmed, set in a Medieval plague village. The irony of having to tell actors they couldn’t come and play plague victims because there was an actual plague wasn’t lost on them, says Baynton.

Thomas gets a gun in series two, they tease, and we’ll find out how he met his end. “The burning question for fans of the show is how the characters died, and you will find out some in each series,” says Baynton. “There are some we’re holding onto for as long as we possibly can, but rest assured, they’re coming!” 

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Ghosts series 2 starts on BBC One at 8.30pm, with all six episodes available to stream afterwards on BBC iPlayer. 

The post Ghosts Series 2: ‘They’re stuck in an existence they didn’t ask for… like all of us’ appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[lemonyellowlogic]

the harder the rain, the sweeter the sun: chapter six

-o-

masterlist

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-o-

chapter six: the garden

Roman kneeled in the garden bordering the left of the cottage and next to the river, his hands covered in dirt. Roman had been weeding for only fifteen minutes that day, but he was already wiping sweat off of his brow using his lovely red tunic.

It was a week since he had arrived at the cottage, and everyone’s jobs began to be obvious. Emile helped keep the piece and gardened as Remy worked on some spells, Diego took care of the chickens, Virgil cooked the meals, but Roman was still trying to find his place. 

He knew that they were allowing him to stay while he was wounded, but after he was healed, he had no idea if they’d let him stay or not, so he wanted to stay on their good side and help as much as he could. He wasn’t very skilled with gardening, as he was never expected to learn simple things such as that, his studies prioritizing law-making and governing more than anything else.

Remy gave him the job of working in the garden on the first day Roman was there, and Roman stuck by it, doing the best he could. He wasn’t perfect, originally pulling up a couple of carrots instead of weeds, but he got the hang of it. Emile was extremely helpful, but he stayed on his side of the garden while Roman worked on his, making communication slightly difficult. 

Diego still hadn’t spoken to Roman, though, other than a muttered apology later at dinner on the first day. Virgil apologized too, but laughed through it, thinking Roman’s puffy nose as funny as anything. 

Of course, he got sensitive when Roman picked on his lip, so that was fun.

Roman wants to talk to Diego, to understand why the boy hates humans, hates him so much, but Roman was...scared. The atmosphere around Diego was awkward, but it could be so much worse if he confronts him and it goes badly. 

Roman doesn’t want to divide the family for a second time, so as long as he and Diego aren’t actively fighting, Roman could deal with the tenseness.

As he ripped a dandelion out of the ground, his mind wandered from Diego to Remus. How was he? Was he happy that Roman was gone, or is he sad? Probably happy, they hadn’t been close in almost a decade. Did he really try to have Roman killed, or was that just a strange misunderstanding? 

Well, the ‘knights’ did say that they were to ‘report back to Prince Remus’, but that could just be a joke, right?

Roman hoped so, but he knew in his heart it wasn’t. Roman does love Remus, he’s his little brother and they grew up together, but ever since their mother died, and since Roman was chosen over Remus to be king, things had...changed. They grew apart, and Remus grew jealous.

Roman’s thoughts were interrupted by Emile standing with a groan as he stretched out his back, his wings spreading out before returning to their folded position. Roman looked over to him and he met his eyes, winking.

“So, Roman, you did a pretty good job today, do you think any of the crops are actually ripe yet?”

Roman hummed, thinking before nodding, pointing to his garden, “Sure, a couple of carrots are ready and I think the lettuce is too.”

Emile walked over, checking the plants before nodding, “I’d say you’re right. Could you be a dear and pick some to have with dinner and give them to Virgil?”

Roman nodded, saying, “Sure, I could do that.”

Emile thanked him before wiping his hands on his pants and walking inside to wash off the rest of the dirt.

Very soon, Roman had a head of lettuce in the crook of one arm and three carrots nestled in the other as he walked back into the house. Remy and Emile lay together on the couch, cuddling, Roman guessed, and Roman quickly passed them and lay the vegetables on the counter closest to Virgil.

He groaned, stretching his back out as he asked, “What do you wish me to do with these?”

Vigil, without looking up from the water boiling on the stove, snarked, “God, quit with the proper talk. Just ask where to put them.”

Roman flushed but nodded, his hands wringing each other behind his back, “Apologies, what should I do?”

Virgil chuckled to himself before looking up at Roman, his eyebrows shooting to his hairline, “My goodness, wash the dirt off of you, what were you doing?”

Roman looked down at his front and noticed that there was dirt caked to his tunic, and he brought his hands up to his eyes to see they were covered with it as well. Roman somehow got even redder, “I...I haven’t been able to wash up yet, I am so sorry, Virgil-”

Virgil cut him off with a wave,” Okay, okay, stop with the apologizing, you’re not in trouble, Roman, I’m just teasing you.”

He snapped his fingers and the dirt on Roman was teleported to the outside, falling down ungracefully outside the window, “You can make a salad, just cut up the lettuce and put it in this bowl, “ He snapped his fingers again and a large bowl popped into existence into Roman’s hands.

Roman sheepishly nodded, replying, “Okay, then.” before he reached over and pulled a knife from a drawer. He turned back to his head of lettuce and began to chop it up. Roman had expected for Virgil to kick him out of the kitchen, not give him a job, but he focused on making the best salad the dragon had ever seen.

Roman chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought of something to say, eventually choosing on, “Why do you like to cook so much?”

Virgil looked at Roman from beneath his bangs and a soft frown grew on his mouth, “I don’t like cooking that much, it’s just that when I was alone, my anxiety kind of convinces me that all food is poisoned or would kill me, so I got a habit of only eating what I cook, and it’s followed me to this day.”

Roman nodded, “Then why are you letting me make the salad?”

Virgil side-eyed Roman, “I’d love to give a dramatic answer about trust but I just don’t like cutting vegetables.”

Roman huffed out a laugh under his breath, and Virgil joined in, their chuckles filling the small kitchen.

“Where’re you from anyways? You talk so proper sometimes, I’d think you were like the prince or whatever.” Virgil huffed out a laugh and Roman froze, forcing one out as well.

“Uhh..” Roman’s mind stalled before the story he had jumbled together fit together in his head,”M-my family’s attorney practice was very renowned and we worked for many noble families, so I just...picked up their..um..lingo. ”

Virgil hummed, stirring the pot of beans next to the rice, “That’s interesting, I guess.” He shrugged, “I’ve never really been to human civilizations, and we don’t really have a justice system, just laws you shouldn’t break or face consequences, like being banished from your family-” Roman tensed, “-not like judges and what-not.” He turned to look at Roman, “What was your family name?”

Roman jumped, his mind going blank and he narrowed his eyes, looking back at Virgil, “What’s yours?”

Virgil glared back, “Okay, got it. Don’t like your family.”

Roman snorted, “Not that I don’t like them, they just don’t like me.”

“Serious?”

Roman hummed, carefully cutting the carrots into rectangular slivers, “Yes, it’s unfortunate, but I’m sadly used to it. But my family name was…” Roman thought about his mother’s maiden name, “Lopez. My name is Roman Lopez.”

Virgil smiled, wiping his hand on his black apron before putting it out to Roman, who shook it, “Nice to meet you, Roman Lopez, my name is Virgilius Nimr.”

“Nimr. I like it.”

Virgil rolled his eyes, but the smile stayed on his lips, “Thank you so much, I really needed your approval.”

Roman laughed, changing the subject, “Anyways, I finished with the salad, I think?”

Virgil looked at the bowl of vegetables and lettuce Roman had in his hands, “Yeah, that’s pretty good. Just rinse it once more then put it on the table. I’ll make a simple vinaigrette for it.”

“Alr-sure.”

Virgil grinned at Roman, “By the end of your stay, your ‘proper’ ass will be dead.”

“Hopefully not.”

Virgil shrugged, “I can hope.”

-o-

next

[coll2mitts]

#65 Beauty and the Beast (2017)

I’m burning through my Disney+ subscription, and instead of this forever cursing my drafts section until I work my way through the other lower movies on this list, you’re getting this one now.

Beauty and the Beast was my favorite Disney movie as a child.  Belle was smart, she read a lot, and she was a bit of an outcast, which were my only identifiers as a wee lass (other than being obnoxious and constantly having tangled hair).  I'm going to bet that this movie is the reason so many girls my age went through a Paris phase in their tween years.  I did take 3 years of high school French that I have almost no memory of.  

The original's animation is gorgeous, the songs by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman are iconic, and the romance between two people who learn how to trust and support each other... it's probably the reason why I've stayed in terrible relationships for way too long.  My father took me to see this movie in theaters when I was 6, and it is the first movie I remember crying during out of sadness.  There I was, while the Beast was dying, trying to hide the fact tears were streaming down my face because I didn't want my dad to see I was crying and not take me to see another movie again.  When they adapted it for Broadway, I listened to that soundtrack over and over...  "Home" was my favorite song, and the end still makes me cry like a 6-year-old.  It's perfect.

I had attempted to watch this remake once before.  I hated it so much I started drinking, and then peaced out so hard when Lumiere started moving that I had to watch Moana to normalize myself.  Visually, this movie is what happens when the Uncanny Valley turns into the fucking Grand Canyon.  Little did I know that this movie gets worse... much worse... as it goes on, and that Stephen Chbosky, the author and director of The Perks of Being a Wallflower made it this way.  A man who wrote one of my most beloved novels and movie adaptations helped in creating this narrative monstrosity, and that, out of all of this, was the deepest cut of all.

I'm not rehashing the plot, because I have too much to say about why this remake shouldn't exist, and I’m going to guess you’ve either seen the movie or are familiar with this almost 300-year-old story.  It took the source material and just murdered it in its attempts to update it.  I'm going to start positive and work toward the biggest issue I had with it, because I'm currently writing angry and that never turns out well for me.

Things I liked:

This may be controversial, but I did like Josh Gad's performance as LeFou.  I'm not saying what LeFou did made any sense (he suddenly was upset Gaston was making things up again?), but as an actor, Josh Gad was working with what he had, and I think he owned it.

Chip's introduction to Maurice - I actually paused the movie because I was laughing so hard.

The piano playing the funeral march when it tackled LeFou.

When Mrs. Potts said Chip smelled good when he turned back into a little boy.  It was a cute little detail.

The guillotine joke in "Be Our Guest" and the Les Miserables barricade reference.

I actually thought Cogsworth was adorable for being a CGI nightmare.  I don't know how much of my opinion of this was influenced by the voice of Ian McKellan.

I really liked the costumes, except for Belle's gown, which was definitely a downgrade.  Micarah articulated the issues with it perfectly.

Celine Dion singing the credits song was a nice homage to her cover of "Beauty and the Beast", although it sucks she's associated with this nightmare of a remake.

Little quibbles:

Whatever they did to Emma Watson’s voice made her sound like a robot.

Almost all the CGI, especially the Beast, was completely unsettling.  The wardrobe was the worst of it, holy shit.

They went out of their way to explain plot holes like "Why don't the villagers remember the castle?" or “Why is it snowing when it looks like the middle of summer in the village?” or "How did Belle get the Beast up on that horse?" when none of that really matters to the overall narrative.

The reaction to Belle teaching a little girl how to read was unbelievably eye-roll inducing.  Lindsay Ellis' video on this is so fucking good, watch it now - You don't have to read the rest of my ramblings if you do. #beastforshe

Ariana Grande slurring her way through "Beauty and the Beast".

It was nice to see Maurice updated from a manic inventor to a level-headed, sweet, competent, reserved man who treats his daughter like an equal.  Clock-maker Maurice that actually takes care of Belle reads better to me, and I like how they had him wander into the garden to get a rose for her - it's a nice callback to the original story.  The problem with doing this, however, is it negates the "crazy old Maurice" narrative that plays heavily into why the villagers don't believe his tale of the Beast in the first place.  If Kevin Kline, a put-together man (up until this point), wandered into the tavern looking disheveled and conveying a story about his daughter being kidnapped, I'd be like, "Shit, Maurice, what did you see?!".  But instead, the story goes out of its way to put him at the mercy of Gaston, and shoehorn in an attempted murder plot to really turn everyone against him - it's bizarre.

Medium quibbles:

Gaston went from being a well-liked, athletically inclined dude to a literal predator and murderer.  Belle was a beautiful status symbol in the original movie, but she becomes literal game to Gaston in the remake, as he refers to her as prey, or something to be hunted.  When Maurice gets in-between him and Belle, Gaston punches him in the face and leaves him out in the forest to be eaten by wolves?!  What does this add to the story?!  Gaston wasn't right for Belle because he wasn't kind and didn't intellectually stimulate her, but that nuance is wasted on the remake, turning him into a full-blown vengeful villain that will literally kill Belle's family to get what he wants.

The first time Belle is brought to her room, there is this long panning shot showing off how nice it is, and she comments, in wonder, how she thinks its beautiful.  They had the fucking nerve to play “Home” in the background of this scene, completely ignoring the original context of the song is sadness and despair.  But go off, I guess...

The Big Enchilada:

This is where my notes went from eh????? to WHAT THE FUCK, so be prepared.  How someone with enough emotional maturity to write Perks can make the Beast into such an abusive asshole is so fucking beyond me, I'm still trying to process it.

Beauty and the Beast is a romance at heart, which you would never know by watching this movie, as Belle and the Beast have so little chemistry it's painful.  This might be because the Beast is abusive to Belle at every turn in the beginning, making the pivot from enemies to lovers so completely unbelievable it's shocking.  The remake is already at a deficit as the CGI Beast is terrifying, in contrast with the cartoon, which has the ability to make the Beast cuddly with big eyes and an expressive face.  But they still decide to take all of the Beast's inner conflict out of the remake, remove his agency completely out of the relationship with Belle, and make him supremely unlikable in every interaction they have together.

There are a few scenes that illustrate this, starting with the dinner invitation scene:

In the original, the Beast sees the pain he's inflicted by pulling Belle away from her father, and offers her a tour of the castle and a bedroom instead of a prison cell.  He also invites her to dine with him, although he could have gone about it wayyyy better.  He confides in his staff that she is beautiful, and he realizes she can break the spell, but he doesn't know how to appeal to her.  His staff give him tips on how to be charming and not so intimidating.  He is receptive, but overwhelmed, because he hasn't had to interact with any other human in years.  When he discovers she doesn't plan on eating with him, his anger takes over because she refused his hospitality, and he's a king, so how dare she?  The staff try to help him appear genteel, cause again, HE expressed interest in being appealing to her.  When this doesn't immediately work, he throws a massive tantrum and tells them not to feed her.  When he looks at Belle later in the mirror, he hears the direct result of his actions as Belle is ranting to the wardrobe.  He laments she'll never see him as a human because his actions have pushed her away.

In the remake, it's not the Beast’s idea to give Belle a room, or to invite her to dinner - it is his staff's intervening that puts him in that situation in the first place.  He doesn't even want to get to know her because she's a daughter of a thief, and that's somehow below his current social status of recluse animal/human hybrid.  His staff persuade him to give Belle a chance as they're all invested in breaking the spell because they'll turn into furniture if they don't!  They give him tips to manipulate her into opening the door, he tries it, it fails spectacularly, he gets angry and he leaves - but not before calling his staff idiots...  I appreciate he's not as physically violent in this version, but he just acts like he couldn’t be bothered with Belle.  He does spy on her from the mirror, but she looks bewildered.  He doesn't know if she's lonely, or missing her father, or what...  There's no indication that how he treated her in that moment has pushed her further away.  Then he just stares at the rose like, "Well, shit, this ticking time bomb is still ticking!".  It's completely self-focused.

Oh, and then Mrs. Potts tries to handwave the Beast’s behavior away with, "People say a lot of things in anger.  It is our choice whether or not to listen," which, excuse me, WHAT THE EVERLOVING FUCK DOES THAT MEAN?!  You are in charge of how to interpret someone's actions, and you could just choose to ignore when they are being abusive??  I CAN'T.  She also tries to gaslight Belle into seeing how great the Beast is when Belle has had zero positive interactions with the dude since she's been there.  The wardrobe brings it up in the original, but this is after he's offered Belle a room and invited her to dinner himself, not by his staff...

The west wing scene and the Beast turning into less of a dick:

In the original, the Beast himself tells Belle not to go to the west wing.  Her curiosity brings her there, because she wants to understand more about him and what he is hiding.  She's invading his space knowing full well that she is invading his space.  When she is discovered, she's about to fuck around with something that is literally tied with the Beast's livelihood.  His anger is disproportionate, but justified, and you see that he immediately regrets his reaction after she runs away from him.  That’s why he goes after her.  Belle watches him risk his life to save her even though she broke a promise to him, so she decides to repay the favor by bringing him back.  They fight while she's trying to clean his wound, and they're both right in their perspectives, but the Beast acknowledges that yes, his temper got the best of him - he realized that the moment she bolted.  Belle then rewards his selfless act by thanking him, which sets his entire transformation in motion.  

He gives her the library because he expresses interest in doing something to make her happy, and he vocalizes he's falling in love with her.  He's delighted by her reaction.  During the ballroom scene, the way he looks at her, you can see he absolutely adores her.  He asks, "Are you happy here with me?" because he loves her, and her well-being is the most important thing.

In the remake, the staff tell Belle not to got to the west wing because it's a storage area.  She wanders over there anyway, for whatever fucking reason, and takes a glance at the rose behind the glass.  The Beast finds her looking at it and gets mad at her, even though he never told her not to visit him in the west wing, and she didn't fuck around with the rose.  When she runs away, he doesn't even look like he cares.  There is no reason for him to go after her, and there is no reason for her to help him back to the castle other than the plot told them to do it.  She doesn't help him with his wounds, and the staff are the ones to thank her for returning him.  She even asks the staff why the fuck they care about him, because he's such an asshole.  They justify his behavior because he had a cruel father, and damn themselves to his fate because they didn't stop a literal monarch from raising his son.  Belle continues to take care of him because she pities him?  He repays her kindness by insulting her taste in literature.

He doesn't even show her the library because he knows she likes books, he does it because he wants her to read "better" books.  Then he makes one joke about not reading Greek and THAT IS WHAT MAKES BELLE SWOON.  THE FUCKING GREEK BOOK JOKE.  I mean, I sort of get it, I fell in love with my ex because he made a bread pun, but he hadn't been continually abusive to me up until that point.  Belle starts to read out loud to him, and that's supposed to be the event that incentives the Beast to be better?  Even while Belle is singing about how much he's changed (he hasn't), he throws a boulder of snow in her face. The cherry on top of this sundae is his stoic question after they dance, "It's foolish, I suppose, for a creature like me to hope that one day he might earn your affection?" which not only sounds like complement fishing, it is primarily motivated by breaking the curse!  Only after she gives an indifferent answer does he ask if she'd be happy at the castle.

Oh god, and the death scene is cut off in the middle because we have to watch 2 minutes of the staff members permanently turning into furniture, which, like, I wouldn't think they'd want to castrate the emotional climax of the movie, but this whole thing is an exercise on how to fuck something already good up.

This movie fails so spectacularly at this basic love story, I can't begin to justify its existence.  I wouldn't recommend this to anybody.  If you want to watch new Alan Menkin content, watch Galavant, because this movie just pissed me off.

It was bold of Disney to end it with a beastiality joke, though.

[darkmindsthinktwistedthoughts]

Devil’s Trust pt3

Warnings: Strong language, Moblord styling warlords.

Masterlist

---

Chapter 3

He was not in the best of moods. His plans for the evening had been dashed with a single phone call that lasted for only a few minutes. Running his hand roughly through his dark auburn hair he took hold of a fist full at the back of his head and gave it a small tug in frustration. Why summon me? What game is the Devil King playing now? The private elevator gave a small lurch as it came to a stop on the top floor. He smoothed out his dishevelled hair and gave a deep sigh before plastering on an expression of ambiguous origin and entered the Devil’s lair.

The grandeur of the place annoyed him. Penthouse apartment on top of his own building and this is what he did with it? Walking along the corridor past the glass wall that revealed the private garden, a central pavilion past an elegant rock garden, shimmering water of a koi pond and beautifully manicured plants framing the path for walking. He felt himself twitch as an unwelcome thought as to its beauty entered his mind. Who would have thought such a place existed in Hell? There was a heavy-looking sliding door at the end of the corridor, propped open, and he knew without any guidance that that was his destination.

Stopping to look inside before he entered, he couldn’t help but feel the bile in the pit of his stomach churn. This place was really something else. The blend of modern furniture with items of antiquity felt seamless. The glow of the rosewood and lacquered items gave warmth to the contrasting cold metal and supple leather. He did wonder if all the rooms in this place were decorated like this or if it was just the Devil’s office. Knowing Nobunaga and his desire to surround himself with nothing but the best it was probably safe to assume that this level of dedication to all the finer things was abundant throughout.

There was a massive desk at the top of the room in front of floor to ceiling windows giving an unprecedented view over the city. A large sofa with a couple of chairs was in front of a fireplace with a large coffee table. There was even a drinks cabinet that seemed to take up quite a bit of wall space too. The rest of the items present looked as if they saw little use.

“You kept me waiting.” Nobunaga’s low commanding voice reached him from where he was sitting on a chair near the fire. Amber liquid glowed, already swirling in the crystal tumbler he had in his hand the decanter for which was placed on the table in front of him, another glass waiting patiently near it.

“And you are keeping me from my evening plans.” Shingen haughtily retorted and took a seat on the leather sofa without invitation. The sooner this is over with the sooner I can leave.

“You can submerge yourself under females another night. Tonight, I have need of you.” Nobunaga sipped his drink an infuriating smirk on his face as he cracked his mockery. Shingen tensed but managed to retain the composure he was known for. I’ll be damned if I let you break me again Nobunaga.

“As flattering as that is, I’m not interested.” Shingen shrugged and reclined back making a show of it. The leather creaked slightly under his shifting weight almost as if it were sighing at his moving mass.

“After all this time the old Tiger still has the energy to growl and yet all I see before me is a weak little kitten.” Nobunaga leaned forward and poured for himself and his guest. Shingen was making no attempt to help himself which given their history spoke volumes of the level of trust that remained between the two heads of family. In this world you learn that suspicions saved lives. To drink or eat something you hadn’t already seen the other consume was inviting trouble and it was a fundamental lesson to even the less seasoned members of their groups.

“Provoking me will only confirm my suspicions that you are nothing more than a spoiled brat who got in a foul mood because someone took away his candy. What did you summon me for Nobunaga?” Shingen accepted the drink still not partaking of it, he simply held the weighted tumbler on his thigh in his large hand. His black eyes meeting their red counterparts, steel versus flames in this undesirable alliance.

“You still have hold of your own network throughout the city correct?”

“Naturally. Such a thing that has been generations in its cultivation cannot be rendered dead overnight even by your hand. As long as I am still living the bonds of trust are tied, the network remains.” Shingen was first and foremost a trader in information. It was not something he had felt the need to hide as it was widely known among the different factions that that was his domain. In fact, it had served him well over the years. Strategies were only as good as the information held and if you wanted a war with words you sometimes had to get a little psychological with it. Much easier to gain success when the opponent is already panicked that you might know something too juicy to share.

“Good I want you to look into something for me.” Nobunaga nodded happily after accepting confirmation. That familiar entitled attitude did little to staunch the agitated Tiger.

“I am not one of your hounds. Don’t you usually use Akechi for this kind of thing?” Shingen shot out his reply and watched as it hit home. A subtle and almost completely hidden reaction happened. His hand definitely tensed I wasn’t imagining it.

“You might not be one of my “hounds” as you call them Shingen, but you are one of my possessions. It would be a waste to not use every pawn at my disposal on occasion.” Nobu’s voice held an edge to it that was part warning and part dare. The frustrating thing to this almost textbook masking of unspoken issues within the payroll was that Shingen could not deny that there was truth in the devil’s words. Had he been in his position it would be something he would be using to his advantage as well.

“You sit there and just expect me to take your barbs and bidding?” Shingen’s voice rose to meet Nobu’s. I would rather not think of how similar we can be at times.

“I expect you to do your job. Like it or not we are part of a united front and this threat we have on the horizon is coming whether you help or not. I would have thought the great Shingen Takeda would have recognised the importance of going into battle with as much knowledge as possible is preferable to entering a battle with nothing.” He hadn’t so much as moved in his chair and yet there was no denying the shift of his oppressive presence in the room.

“You’re rattled? The Devil King himself is worried.” Shingen held his ground but his gaze had become one of curiosity.

“I am not worried nor am I afraid. I have a dislike for things that are hidden from me. Things that would try to steal what is mine. Now go and find me my weak link. Find me the focus of my attack.”

---

It had taken most of the afternoon to get to the change of location and then unload the van. The neighbours had all begun their series of curtain-twitching and popping out to put items into the outside waste bins to get a look at the new arrivals almost as soon as they pulled up. Mitsuhide chuckled knowing all too well that this was the limit to a lot of people’s subterfuge in the world that was so different to his. It was more innocent and on a level with a child eavesdropping at a door.

“What are you laughing at?” [Name] looked at him curiously as she crouched down to let the cat out of its transport carrier. It gave a small grumpy sounding recognition to her as thanks for its freedom and darted off to explore its new territory.

“Nothing my dear. Nothing at all.” Mitsuhide glanced around the home that had taken on interior design inspiration from a child’s box fort. “So… what are we unpacking first?”

“The kettle. I’m gonna kill someone if I don’t get a coffee.” Casting out a flippant comment she started shuffling boxes around in an apparent search for the correctly labelled one.

“Really now? Well if you should find yourself with such a thing happening, I would hope that you remember to call me about it.” He smiled watching [Name] look over the boxes near her.

“Mobster jokes? Seriously? I was just using a common phrase Mitsu.” She huffed her words used to chastise him lost any negativity in them as she failed to suppress a beautifully happy smile from gracing her lips. Say what you like little mouse we both know you like it.

“And I was just stating facts, my dear. I think the kettle is in this one.” He slid a knife over the tape on the box and with a small popping sound, it opened revealing the chrome coloured appliance. She scooped it up and pivoted her body to go to the kitchen.

They were finally home. He had taken a lot more care and effort in selecting this place than any of his previous safe houses. It was here after all that he would be putting his greatest treasure. It had to be perfect, it had to be safe. He had researched and laid a path of paperwork thick enough to cover their trail linking it to several of his aliases in various ways to lead credibility to it all.

This was a milestone in a relationship even in the normal world. All though they had been living together already back at HQ it didn’t change how pivotal this was. As he mused over a turn of events, he had never thought possible in his life. His smirk softening into a more relaxed smile as he watched [Name] bounce around from box to box looking for cups and other things. I wonder if you know how far I would go to protect you. How far I’ve already gone and how much further I’d be willing to fall just to keep you safe.

---

To say his patience was wearing thin was little more than a joke at this point. His desk was covered in the correspondence that he had had with Esshu since the untimely demise of its former CEO. Each one a polite yet firm refusal to entertain any ideas of a merger. The names signing off on each had been different and each one was added to the growing list he was formulating to try to figure out the design of the inner workings of the beast.

A few days had passed since the Tiger had been set among the pigeons and the lack of enthusiasm to retrieve what he asked for irked him. The fact they simply didn’t just accept their position and dance to the tune specified proved he couldn’t discount Shingen as a possible assassin in this game.

Something else was annoying him as well. “Don’t you usually use Akechi for this kind of thing?” He might have known that Shingen would have spotted the elephant in the room. His once sharp tool that was so quick to cut that the opposition hadn’t even registered the damage until it was too late was now playing house. The blade blunt and discolouring with lack of use. A battle was coming, would his trusted predator still be fighting?

The other company was one thing currently outside of his control. He felt his blood boil as he looked at the rejections. They had no idea who they were messing with. He hated it but there was no changing fact. They say history has a way of repeating itself and he felt the cogs of time rewind to a certain point. If they are not with him, then they stand against him and will be treated like everyone else that had refused his dream. He will crush them, destroy them and take what he wants by force for the greater good. It’s not the first time he would have to come up with a plan for a hostile takeover. But who is he targeting? Nobunaga roughly bundled the papers together on his desk in a shambolic pile and spun in his chair to stare out of his window.

The city below stretched out as far as his eye could see. Pedestrians scurried through the streets making their commute. Traffic lights at each intersection caused the traffic to pulse down the roads of the city in a familiar and predictable way.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Mitsuhide was still performing his duties. All the bases were covered and targets met with precision. Currently, there was no reason to take action to regain his tool. Still, he was not a patient man and he knew there might still come a time when he would have to do something to “correct” the issue. I warned you once before… old friend.

---

[artemisegeria]

The Best Timeline

Title: The Best Timeline

Rating: T

Word count: 3599

Warnings: minor language and innuendo, ridiculousness

Summary: Wanda and Vision find a mysterious package on their doorstep. They open it to reveal a glimpse of their lives in another world. Endgame Spoilers.

A/N: It’s been weeks, but I’m still bitter about Endgame’s treatment of Vision. And it’s Paul Bettany’s birthday, so I’m giving him the recognition he deserves. While my underlying emotions are very real, I exaggerated some of my complaints for comedic effect (hopefully). This is not meant to be taken too seriously. Other than the essential point that Vision (and Paul) deserved better.

Also, some parts of the movie may be out of order/misremembered/omitted.

  Vision answered the door upon hearing the bell ring. No one was there. Instead, there was only a small package. He picked it up curiously to find a DVD. When he returned to the living room, Wanda asked, “Who was it?”

“There was no one there, but someone left this film called Avengers: Endgame. Very curious. The cover bears images of all our friends.” He handed it to Wanda for her to peruse.

The original six Avengers, of course, had the largest images in the center of the package, but Wanda also appeared on the back, along with a number of their space-based allies. Vision could only surmise that this movie came from an alternate universe where he and his friends were fictional characters. It was amazing that the actors chosen in that universe so closely resembled his real friends in his own universe. That would provide hours of fodder for speculation, but right now he simply wanted to see how events turned out.

He couldn’t help but notice that he was not featured on either side of the cover. That was perfectly alright. He was not upset in the least. Vision understood that there were many characters to take into account, but he still felt a pang in his synthetic heart that he did not merit one square inch of space. He was an Avenger after all, and a bearer of one sixth of the Infinity Stones. And his AI forebear had been important to Tony Stark far before that.

Enough time had passed that the worst of the pain surrounding Thanos’s attack had ebbed, but Vision was still concerned for Wanda’s well-being. However, she seemed equally interested in learning about this movie. “We should watch. Don’t you think, Vizh?”

“I agree.”

He slipped the disk into their DVD player. When he returned to the couch, Wanda cuddled closer against his side. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Clint Barton appeared on the screen. Vision watched Clint interact with his family, only to see them disappear into thin air. “What kind of monsters would show that?” Wanda asked. “Everyone knows about the Snap already, or at least the cover said.”

“I do not know. Perhaps it is a devious attempt at emotional manipulation, encouraging the audience to forgive Clint a great deal when he reacts to their deaths.”

Then a logo proclaiming Marvel Studios appeared on the screen. He wondered if it had any association with Captain Marvel in their world.

The image shifted to Tony and Nebula, adrift in the vastness of space. Carol soon rescued them. “I know that Carol is powerful, but the odds of her finding them are almost incalculable.” Another item to put on his list for another time. Vision did enjoy these problems in the middle of the night while the rest of the world was asleep.

“Yeah, I’m glad she did though.” Wanda and Tony were now on a much better footing. His role in bringing Vision back was a key step in helping them reconcile after Wanda returned. When Carol landed the ship in front of the compound, Vision could not help but tear up at Tony’s reunion with Pepper. They truly were a wonderful couple. He had been so happy to attend their wedding with Wanda after they had defeated Thanos, and to become a godfather to Morgan when she was born a year later.

They watched the faces of the Snapped people flash by. Vision held Wanda more tightly when her face appeared. She nuzzled his shoulder. “It’s okay now.” He nodded against the top of her head, but kept her close to him.

When the characters on screen started planning to fight Thanos a second time, Vision and Wanda truly started getting confused. In their universe, the Avengers and their allies all worked together for five years, preparing themselves for battle and gathering Infinity Stones, before attempting to face Thanos again. They absorbed alternate universe Carol’s idea to go after Thanos immediately. Carol in their universe was rightfully confident as well, but others had prevailed on her that they should wait to prepare a battle strategy and only fight Thanos at their full strength.

When the small contingent boarded the aircraft to travel to the Garden, Vision muttered, “This plan seems most unwise.”

“Mmhmm.”

Vision began to question his assessment when the group easily restrained Thanos and removed the Gauntlet. But when Rocket flipped it over to see the empty slots and Thanos explained what he had done, Vision felt a small measure of triumph. The scene ended with a somewhat startling shot of Thor cutting off Thanos’s head and walking away.

This was far different from what happened in their world. In their universe, Thanos could not resist the temptation of keeping the Stones intact. He bided his time while the worlds he destroyed struggled to carry on. The only precaution he took was to scatter the Stones throughout deep space, keeping their locations to himself.

Next, a black screen revealed that five years had passed. Vision watched Natasha face the holograms of their friends who were working across the galaxies to keep the universe together. They were having a remarkably similar conversation to one Vision remembered about a garbage scow and an underwater earthquake, but he wondered why he was not present. Both he and Clint, who had come back to Natasha and the Avengers after his family had disappeared, had called into that meeting. Clint had been stationed in the Midwest of the United States, infiltrating a local militia that was attempting to usurp the federal government in that area. Vision had been sent to the remnants of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland to act as a liaison once Bruce, Tony, and Shuri had revived him in 2020. Vision did not like to think about those days, but they were a part of him.

He watched Scott Lang detail his theory of how they could bring everyone back with time travel. Vision frowned. He remembered those debates that had endured for weeks about the feasibility of such plans. Firm lines had been drawn, confusion had reigned among those less versed in the science of quantum mechanics, and bitterness lingered long after they had decided that they would use a different plan. Fortunately, those feelings had been soothed by the time of the final battle, but Vision still did not want to dwell on it.

On screen Natasha, Steve, and Scott traveled to see Doctor Banner, now one with the Hulk. Vision had already accepted that the events in this movie were very different from what happened in their universe, but it was still odd to see the Avengers act as if they had not spoken to Doctor Banner for the full five years that had elapsed. In Vision’s own universe, Bruce had become an integral part of the team after the eighteen months spent merging with the Hulk. He had played a crucial role in bringing Vision back, along with Tony and Shuri. Working through the mostly successful project (in every way except that Vision had been left without any emotions) had been the catalyst to encourage the Avengers to trust and rely on each other again.

He still felt guilt over not mourning Wanda or any of his friends, though she insisted he could not help it. That is what Vision wished to forget, but maybe his emotionless logic had been necessary at the time. It allowed him to function without the grief that he would surely have experienced otherwise weighing down his thoughts and actions.

Vision forced his attention back to the movie. He and Wanda were even more taken aback when they reached New Asgard. Vision felt great compassion for that universe’s version of Thor. He was clearly struggling with guilt and anguish. Vision bristled when Rocket made a joke about his changed appearance. Rocket was not the most sensitive of companions, but whoever wrote his dialogue seemed to expect the audience to laugh at the joke. Thor’s depression was not something to be made the butt of a puerile joke.

It only grew worse as the writers continued to elaborate on making Thor a pitiful figure. What Thor had faced would be enough to make anyone turn to alcohol or food and to isolate one’s self from the world, but his character was unrecognizable from the one Vision knew. The Thor he knew continued to bear up admirably under the pressure of the Snap and had done everything in his power to help his people adjust to living on Earth. He had become a king in truth as well as name.

When the scene shifted to Tokyo, the rainy night suggested that it would not be a pleasant scene. Vision was still shocked at the blood and violence contained therein. Rhodes had mentioned that Clint was undertaking the murder of people he judged to be criminals throughout the world, but this seemed extreme even for him. When Natasha approached him, saying that she would not judge him for his worst mistake, Vision privately thought that the five years, more or less, of extra-judicial killings were far more than a mistake. Instead, it was an international crime spree that would take years to untangle in international courts, with so many countries battling for jurisdiction. Vision did feel vindicated in his assessment of the opening scene, comforting himself that none of this had ever happened. In their universe, Clint had tried to avenge his family by working to save what was left of the world and to bring them back.

When they reached the presentations concerning the Infinity Stones, Vision was once again somewhat affronted that they did not even mention him. This was the perfect opportunity to address his absence from the team and explain that his revival without the Mind Stone had left him without any emotions. Alas, they moved back to the time-travel debate.

Vision and Wanda watched as the teams split up, some going to Vormir, some to Morag, and some to New York in 2012. In their universe, everyone had hunted down the Stones together using a modified version of the device Rocket had used to detect Thanos’s second Snap. There was no more splitting up, only becoming a true team and unit.

Wanda shrieked with laughter at Scott’s comment about “America’s ass.” Vision frowned deeply, but he quickly smoothed out his features. He shifted his attention to the other events on screen. This section of the movie was a humorous look at the Battle of New York, though none of it had ever happened. Well, the events had likely happened in some universe if there were infinite alternate realities. He was drawn away from his contemplation when Captain Rogers started fighting an earlier version of himself and the camera focused again on his posterior while he admitted that it was “America’s ass.”

“Damn right, it is,” Wanda murmured with a smirk. Vision failed to hide his displeasure this time.

“I suppose it is aesthetically pleasing.” The tightness in his voice was clearly audible to Wanda. She paused the movie before looking up at him. She swung her legs over his lap and tilted his face down to hers, grinning at him.

“Not as much as yours.” She quickly paused the movie and leaned up to kiss him. He wrapped his arms around her waist to hold her in place as their mouths moved together. They finally pulled apart several minutes later.

Vision felt foolish for succumbing to jealousy so easily. “Thank you, Wanda.”

“Sure thing, Vizh. Ready to get back to the movie?” Vision nodded. The action resumed with Tony and Steve traveling even farther back in time. This movie’s treatment of time-travel was growing confusing even to his own advanced synthetic brain.

When everyone returned to the time travel platform and broke to mourn for Natasha, tears started rolling down Wanda’s cheeks. He clutched her more tightly. “It’s alright. Natasha is perfectly well.” She nodded against him, sniffling, and he handed her a tissue.

They finally reached the point where the Avengers prepared to use the Gauntlet. He did not understand why they were arguing over who should use it when the clear solution was the one they used in their own universe, distributing all six Stones among six individuals, reducing the negative side effects. He could recall the painstaking construction of their own version of the Infinity Gauntlet. Tony had made a chain that connected all six Stones. Each Stone fitting had another chain that allowed one of the chosen Avengers to hold it. Vision, Thor, Steve, Carol, and Bruce had been the ones chosen, due to their superhuman physiques, along with Tony. Alas, Vision could not communicate through the screen to correct their plan. Instead he was forced to watch Bruce’s struggle with the movement and the serious injury that resulted from it.

The results of their channeling the Stones’ power were similar though. Clint had smiled shakily upon seeing his wife’s face appear on his phone in both universes. Birds suddenly started chirping and a tree that had been Snapped out of existence reappeared. The most startling result in Vision’s universe had been that the Mind Stone had merged with him again, granting him his emotions. He shuddered a bit in memory of how the wave of years of suppressed emotions had crashed down on him at once, bringing him to his knees and causing him to sob. He was grateful for Wanda’s presence in this moment; he rested his head against her chest as she rubbed his shoulder. She paused the movie again, letting him breathe.

After several minutes, Vision finally raised his head to look at Wanda, cupping her face gently. He placed a soft kiss on her lips, and she smiled at him, her own eyes watering. He said, “I am ready to resume the film when you are.”

The screen showed the disguised 2014 Nebula leading Thanos into the compound. Wincing at the sudden destruction of the entire building, Vision wondered how the remaining Avengers would stand against such a force, whether what came next would approximate what happened in their universe at all.

At the time, the others had rushed to comfort him just as Thanos and his forces had appeared outside the compound, drawn by the energy signature of their second Snap. Vision had tried to join them. He had to do his part. But Natasha urged him to stay back until he had recovered himself while the others moved outside to confront Thanos. Vision would never forget the helplessness he experienced then, but the thought of his friends out there alone and the refusal to let the world be at that monster’s mercy pushed him into action within 3.65 minutes.

Thanos had just finished his grand monologue about being inevitable and coming to take back what they had stolen from him when Vision met the other Avengers. The out-sized figure sneered at him when he saw the Mind Stone. “I will enjoy killing you again, Living Machine.” Vision did not honor him with a response. Instead, Steve, Tony, Bruce, Carol, Nebula, Rhodes, Scott, Natasha, Thor, Rocket, Clint, and Vision all moved forward as one. Then, the battle had begun in earnest.

What occurred on screen was quite different. With only Steve, Thor, and Tony facing Thanos, and everyone else cut off in various parts of the facility, the battle seemed even more unequal. There was still the same pedestrian monologuing, but Vision was curious to see the resolution. He had no desire to ever pay any mind to Thanos again.

It looked as if the Avengers would truly be defeated once and for all when the crackle of static alerted Steve to a new presence “on his left.” It was thrilling when the first portal opened and T’Challa, Okoye, and Shuri stepped through. As more opened, revealing Peter, Stephen, and the lost Guardians, and many others, the swelling music caught Vision’s mind, even though he was certain about what would ultimately happen.

Wanda swung her legs back onto the floor and leaned forward eagerly as she flew through a portal with Bucky and some Wakandan soldiers. “I look awesome here.” Her powers did look majestic. Vision was awed once again that Wanda had chosen him when she could have had anyone she wanted.

“Always, dear.” He quickly shifted his attention back to the television, not wanting to miss a moment. The one remark that passed through his mind before he became completely engrossed in the spectacle was that it was fortunate that the villains were following movie logic and stopped completely while the heroes were still dramatically preparing themselves for battle. But that all faded away when he saw Wanda stand alone against Thanos. He would never cease to be amazed by her strength. And slightly aroused, if he were being completely honest.

Wanda glanced at him and smirked. Patting his knee, she said, “Later, darling.” Both of them had no more time to spare when Wanda joined with the other women on screen, and they all began to advance together. It was a compelling sight, though Vision couldn’t help but note that these women had barely interacted prior to this moment. It somewhat undercut the power of the image.

By that point, Vision realized that he would not be appearing. He felt a slice of disappointment run through him. It was petty, perhaps, but pettiness was part of humanity. He embraced it as he did all of humanity. So he allowed himself a few moments of bitterness.

Vision was drawn from his brooding as Wanda clutched his hand when Thanos and his army began to flake away into dust. It was a supremely satisfying moment, even though much of the film was a complete fiction in their universe.

When the scene shifted to Tony’s funeral, Vision bowed his head for the fictional Tony. Though he supposed they never grew close in that universe, Vision thought of how his own universe’s Tony had eventually become one of his closest friends. He noted that he still was not present among the Avengers, so he supposed neither Shuri nor Bruce had repaired him yet. Later, the camera panned to a shot of only Clint and Wanda.

His own Wanda frowned at their conversation. “I know people react to grief differently, but I have no idea why any version of me wouldn’t at least say your name. And it’s weird that I didn’t mention Pietro either.” Vision had to agree. He knew that Wanda still felt her brother’s loss keenly, even after many years, but she still spoke of the happier times often.

“I do not understand it either.” He could not hold it against the fictional Wanda, as she was at the mercy of writers who had their own strange agenda, apparently.

His wife wrapped her arms around him again, and he returned her embrace. “I’m glad we don’t need to worry about that.”

“Indeed,” he whispered into her hair, breathing in her scent.

Vision checked the time. They were very close to the end now. The scene turned to Steve standing on a miniature version of the time travel platform from the compound. Vision murmured, “This all could have been avoided if they had done anything but time travel.”

Wanda elbowed him lightly, and he subsided. Mere moments later Steve was shown to be an old man sitting on a bench. They watched as he handed his shield to Sam. Wanda voiced her shock vociferously. “Sam deserves it, but I don’t think Steve would ever just leave his friends and the world he spent twelve years adjusting just to go back to a woman he had made his peace with.”

“I concur.” In their universe, Steve was alive and well. He had finally taken a leave to address the years of trauma that he had suffered and was still leading the team with aplomb.

They watched as Steve danced with Peggy and the closing credits began to play. “Well, I could see how certain audience members might find the ending pleasing, no matter how nonsensical it is.”

“I guess. That’s just not my Steve.”

“Nor mine.” The credits began to play, with highlights from each of the main cast members. They were particularly beautiful. Clearly the artists had paid great attention to detail, but he still did not appear. Logic dictated that that was the case, but it was cold comfort.

Wanda returned to the main menu. “Ooh, let’s watch some of the bonus features!” Vision was not feeling enthusiastic about watching any more, but he nodded agreeably. They played through the deleted scenes, where he was also not featured or mentioned once. Then, there was a brief history of all twenty-two movies in the franchise, where the actor who played his character was featured momentarily. Paul Bettany was also an actor in their universe. Vision loved his movies, and Wanda did like to tease him that the man bore a certain resemblance to Vision. He was gratified to have an actor of his caliber portray him. Though it made him bitter all over again that he was not allowed to be featured even once in the credits of the culminating movie in the franchise. He deserved it after seven movies.

Vision supposed that in the end it did not matter because in this universe he was alive and well. Wanda’s warmth was pressed against his side, and they had their whole lives ahead of them. He was truly living in the best timeline.

[hookedonapirate]

The Princess and Her Sultan

Summary: Crown princess Emma of Misthaven is second in line to the throne, her brother Leopold ll being the first, but her parents see her with a future as a great ruler. King Rumplestiltskin of neighboring land, strikes a deal with King David, promising to uphold the peace between the kingdoms if Emma marries Prince Baelfire. With the promise of his daughter becoming future queen of the Dark Kingdom, David accepts reluctantly.

Before her wedding day, the princess is kidnapped and taken overseas. She is sold as a slave to a palace where Crown Prince Killian of Neverland ascends his father’s throne and is sworn in as Sultan. Meanwhile, Killian’s mother pressures him to sire a prince and presents him with gifts for his birthday, one of them including a blonde princess from Misthaven. Dazzled by Emma’s charm, intelligence and beauty, he summons her to his bedchambers every night and eventually finds himself casting aside his harem and centuries of tradition.  

A/N: Based on the reviews for the last chapter, most of you are wondering about James, and while he is not seen much in this chapter, more about him will be revealed as we move along. Also, a couple of you asked whether this will be noncon or dubcon. I will just say I'm not comfortable with writing either, and while the circumstances make Emma a slave, Killian will prove to be nothing like Baelfire. But I don't want to spoil it so I won't say anything further about it :)

Thank you @ilovemesomekillianjones for your wonderful beta skills and @gingerchangeling for all of your suggestions and feedback! This story wouldn’t be the same without these lovely ladies.

Rated: Explicit

AO3 l FF.N I Prologue l Ch 1

Chapter 2

The sun rises over Misthaven, casting a range of colors over the sky as Emma stares out over the sea from her balcony, once again longing for a life beyond the castle. Longing for a love that will consume her entirely, as opposed to the arranged marriage with Baelfire. She adores her parents and younger brother, but she is not meant to rule Misthaven. And she certainly does not wish to rule or have anything to do with the Dark Kingdom... or its heir. Emma is revolted by the idea, certain that only a lifetime of misery awaits her. How could she have possibly agreed to the idea of marrying him? Considering everything that marriage means, Emma can’t help but feel physically ill at the idea of having to lose her maidenhead to him, or even worse, being forced to carry his child.

It’s a few months before the wedding, and Emma’s parents are away, leaving her to oversee the housekeeping and provisioning of the castle, and the wellbeing of the kingdom. Snow is off to visit her dear friends, King Philip and Queen Aurora, who have recently announced the news of their first born, a baby girl they had named Isabella. Meanwhile, David is on a voyage, offering aide to Goldmark, which, under the reign of King Midas, was once a great trading kingdom, famous for its gold, until it went into decline after the loss of their king.

Emma’s parents have great faith in her judgment and wisdom and not a shred of doubt in her capability to manage the kingdom while they are away. She has learned everything a young woman must learn—music, spinning and embroidery—but also self-defense, swordsmanship, diplomacy and how to manage large households, because she will one day rule and deal with royal courts consisting of hundreds of people.

Emma removes her nightgown and slips into an ivory gown made of silk, with a low-cut, square neckline and long, flowing sleeves. Around her neck, she secures a necklace with an emerald stone her sweet brother had given her as a betrothal gift, with the clasp. After covering her shoulders with a long, topaz cloak, which flows behind her when she moves, she goes to Leo’s room, where he is sprawled out, sleeping soundly in his bed. She takes a moment to admire him with a soft smile, running a hand through his hair and dropping a kiss to his temple before leaving him be and softly closing the door behind her. She descends the spiral stairwell and moves through the castle, passing several guards along the way, but she ignores them and keeps making her way to her favorite place in the castle.

Crossing the threshold of her mother’s garden, she is greeted by the chill of the early morning air and the smell of fragrant flowers which immediately overpower her senses. Narrow paths weave through the many flower beds, fir trees, shrubs and rows of purple, red, yellow and orange flowers still flourishing at the end of summer. Emma walks along one of the paths which leads to a pond with a small waterfall. She lifts her skirts and sits near the edge, breathing in the fresh air. A sense of calm washes over her, clearing her mind from the muddled deliberations and settling the nerves twisting in her stomach that have plagued her since she had decided she did not want to continue her betrothal to Baelfire. This is her safe haven, her place to find clarity when she is left alone with her thoughts.

“Are you enjoying your time in the garden, princess?”

Graham’s voice interrupts her reverie, making her jump slightly, her heart stuttering a little in her chest as she presses her hand there. “I was until you startled me,” she teases, looking up at him with a warm smile.

“My deepest apologies, Your Highness,” he says sincerely, regret creasing his facial features.

“Tis alright. I only came to the garden because it helps relax me.”

“Did the night not allow you to?” he asks in concern.

Emma shakes her head. “Afraid not.”

“And why not, my princess? You must get your beauty sleep… not that you need it,” he adds with a wink.

Emma blushes and looks away, a small smile tugging at her lips. “There is much on my mind, I suppose.”

“Anything I can do to help clear your restless mind, Your Highness?”

“You could take me away for a while,” the princess replies before she can stop the words from tumbling off her tongue.

To her surprise, Graham extends his hand to her. “Your wish is my command.”

She looks up, studying his proffered hand suspiciously. Her reply was meant to be a joke, but he seems to have taken her words to heart. “But I was only joking,” she claims defensively.

Raising a brow, he looks doubtful. “Were you really?”

She blushes once more, a bashful smile creeping over her lips. “I suppose you caught me.”

“Come with me, Your Highness. I would like to take you sailing, if I may? The sea always calms me, and perhaps it will do the same for you.”

Emma is stunned by his offer, for he knows how much her father is against her venturing out into the sea. But she is not about to complain. A chance to have an adventure outside the castle walls gives her a thrill she cannot really describe. “You have a sailboat?”

“Aye,” he nods with a boastful smirk. “I am actually quite the sailor, which you will soon see for yourself if you allow me the honor to show you.”

Accepting his offer, she slips her hand into his, allowing him to help her up.

They have a basket prepared with bread, cheese, fruit and a flask of wine for their trip. She tells a servant to inform her brother she has gone for a walk and will return in the afternoon.

“May I ask what troubles you, Your Highness?” Graham inquires as they make their way through the woods by foot, Emma carrying the basket on her arm.

She looks down at her feet, wondering whether she should tell him or not. They had become friends over the years, since her parents had hired him, and she trusts him enough to confide in him about most things. Things which do not usually involve Baelfire or the unwished-for wedding, but she’s feeling emboldened at the moment by his offer to take her sailing. “Can you keep a secret?”

“Of course, Your Highness,” he replies without a doubt.

Emma sighs deeply, gathering the courage to tell him something she has not told another soul. “I do not wish to marry Prince Baelfire.”

Graham’s eyes blow wide, this revelation hitting him full force. “Please forgive me for asking, but for what reason, my princess?”

Emma looks over at him, his eyes full of curiosity. “Need I answer that?”

Her guard thinks about her question for a mere two seconds before chuckling. “No, Your Highness, you need not. The prince simply cannot compare to your stature. You deserve much more, my fair princess,” he bows humbly.

Blush spreads through her cheeks and a smile creeps over her lips uncontrollably. “Thank you kindly.”

“Tis but the truth,” Graham says sincerely.

The sight of the sea against the sky slowly creeps into their line of sight, the cerulean water sparkling and dancing under the golden sunlight. When they reach the harbor, Emma’s face clouds with confusion, for there is not a sailboat in sight, only a large ship at the port.

“Where is this boat you had spoken of?”

When Graham doesn't answer immediately, Emma grows panicked and looks to her side where she thinks he is, but it’s not until she whirls around when she finds him in front of her.

“Where is your craft?” she demands once again, growing angry.

“I am sorry, princess,” he whispers shamefully, his eyes pooling with sorrow as he looks behind her.

Fear strikes her like a thunderbolt, and she turns her head, seeing two men standing there. Emma’s throat goes dry and she swallows thickly, averting her attention to her guard. “Graham, I demand to know what is going on!”

“These men are to take you away from here.” His voice is hoarse and cracked, and the pain in his eyes is genuine. “I may work for your parents, but I was originally hired by Lady Maleficent to act as your bodyguard so I could kill you. But after meeting Your Highness I simply could not bear to act on such an injustice, so I paid a captain to take you away to safety. After lady Maleficent finds out you are still alive she will go after you. These men will protect you.”

Emma can’t believe her ears; she’s seeing red, her blood bubbling with rage. “I trusted you!”

“I know, I am truly sorry,” he murmurs, bowing his head in shame.

Her instincts tell her to run away, but before she can, two pairs of hands are gripping her arms, causing her to drop the basket from her hand, and it falls to the ground. Emma wrenches her body, struggling against them. “Unhand me this instant!” she cries out, her eyes full of rage.  

The men have a strong grip on her and she doubts they are there to look after her, especially when they pull her hands together in front of her and tie a rope snuggly around her wrists. Even Graham seems to be confused as he glances between the two men. “What are you doing? The princess is to be a passenger on your ship, not a captive.” Only when she hears the deep roar of laughter from behind, does she realize Graham is not speaking to either man holding her.

“About that…” The man emerges and stands in between Emma and Graham, his back facing her. She can only see his rich crimson clothing and his hair which is tied into braids, but she quickly realizes he is a pirate captain. He's wearing a long doublet adorned with gold jewelry and ornaments, velvet breeches and a tri-cornered hat garnished with an exotic red feather, and a sash is tied around his waist, holding a heavily curved cutlass.

Emma has only heard of pirates and the tales of these scoundrels who plunder ships and steal—but she is very aware they exist and that this man standing before her, and his crew are among them. “You see, your offer was outdone by another, and I simply could not refuse.”

“By who?” Graham demands, now full of rage. He tries to step forward, but two other pirates stand beside the captain daring him to do so.

“By Lady Maleficent. She has learned of your scheme through her little spies and came to me offering me a much better deal. So I took it. I am but a pirate, what did you expect?” The captain turns around, getting a good look at Emma, who is scowling at him fiercely and squirming in the crew’s hands. She can now see the captain’s face, his lips pulled into a devilish smirk. He wears gold hoops in his ears, which are not only an evident sign of wealth, but with the pressure on his earlobes, they possibly help ease seasickness, or so she's read. “Captain Blackbeard at your service, milady.”

“What will you do with me?” she asks angrily through gritted teeth.

“Whatever I please. You are mine now. The countess has sold you to me and now I will make even more gold when I take you to an auction house where you will be sold to the highest bidder. No ransom can possibly match what you will bring on the block.”

“You cannot do this!” Graham argues from behind him. “She is a princess! The king will pay you even more to release her!”

The captain cackles once more. “Have you not laid your eyes upon her?” Blackbeard asks in a menacing tone. He steps towards Emma, running his fingers through his long, braided beard as he scrutinizes her from head to toe. Closing in on her personal space, he gently grabs her chin, studying her facial features. His touch makes her skin crawl. “She is worth far more than a king’s ransom.”

Emma’s nose twists in disgust and she jerks her head, wrenching her chin from his hold and spits in his face.

The man wipes her saliva from his face and glowers at her. “You best be careful, princess, I may need your beauty and virtue to stay intact, but you best not test my patience. I have plenty of ways to make the voyage as insufferable as possible.” Emma glares at him, fighting the urge to vomit from smelling his foul breath. “Fight all you want, but you are mine now, so you might as well accept it.”

“I am no one’s!” she shrieks, thrashing against her captors.

Graham launches at Blackbeard, but the other crew members hold him back.

The captain turns to look at Graham, far from intimidated. “Go ahead and try to stop me. Your fate will be much worse than my princess.”

“You will be sorry when the king finds out about his daughter, Captain Blackbeard!” Graham promises, struggling against the pirates. “The king will make you and your men pay!”

Blackbeard laughs in pure amusement. “Good. I do enjoy a challenge, my boy.” He looks between his crew. “Take the princess to her quarters. She must be fed and pampered during the journey, and if she has one bruise or mark on her, may God help you!” he threatens menacingly and walks away, heading for his ship.

“Graham, you will pay for this!” Emma cries out as she’s hauled away from him, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Princess, I am so sorry,” he says, and she can see the honesty in his eyes. “If I had known this would happen, I would have never made a deal with him. Please believe me, Emma!”

She can no longer reply, too racked with hurt and anger from his betrayal as the pirates force her on the ship.

To her surprise, Graham climbs aboard; she hears the sound of his sword as he draws the metal blade from his belt and holds it up, prepared to fight. “You cannot take her!”

Blackbeard snorts. “Oh, but I can,” he pulls out his cutlass, meeting the guard halfway, “and I will.” The two men stare each other down as the captain slowly circles around the guard. “You are a fool for trying to stop me. I will behead you and toss your body in the sea for the sharks to feast on.”

Graham seethes with anger, and when the captain is in front of him again, Graham throws as much force as he can, swinging his sword at the captain, but Blackbeard deflects his efforts with his cutlass. The duel begins and the swords flash, the sound of metal hitting metal resonating through the deck.

When Graham gets the opportunity, he raises his sword above his head and collects his energy, striking his opponent. Blackbeard is caught off guard and notices too late as Graham brings his sword down in a slashing motion, sending Blackbeard to his back with a loud thump. The captain loses his cutlass, the metal blade clattering against the wood of the ship, producing vibrations that sound through the deck.

Emma’s heart ignites with hope as she watches the scene unfold before her eyes, her hands still tied together.

Blackbeard crawls to his cutlass as Graham once again raises his sword to deliver a killing blow when Blackbeard throws blinding powder into Graham’s face. He cries out, frantically dropping his sword, attempting to wipe the dust from his eyes and stumbles backward, tripping and falling to his back.

Emma cries out and thrashes against the men holding her, her heart tightening. She may be angry with Graham, but she still cares for him. Forbye, he is her only hope of escaping at the moment, but fear is quickly casting a dark cloud over the optimism she had felt seconds ago.

Blackbeard rises with a victorious smirk and walks over to pick up his cutlass, pointing it at Graham’s adam’s apple as he breathes heavily, his eyes daring the Captain to end his life. “I could kill you, but instead I will let you go, for the wrath you will receive from the king when he finds out his precious princess is missing, will be far greater than what I will do to you.”

With that, Graham is escorted off the ship by the crew as he shouts, “I will get you back, princess, I promise!”

“You won’t be allowed the chance, my father will kill you when he finds out what you have done!” Emma yells out her fear to Graham as the crew forces her to move, leading her to the quarters where she will be staying for the journey. She is relieved the captain let Graham go, but she has a sick feeling in her gut at what her fate will be when the captain sells her at auction. Yet she chooses to hang on to the faith that her parents will find her and bring her home.

The men prepare to set sail and the ship cruises across the waters of the Mediterranean for the next six days. Emma continues to fight against the captain and his crew, but every time she grows violent, they grab her and force her to drink a goblet of water after adding something to it to make her slip into unconsciousness. But her hands are no longer tied by rope, and she is allowed a small measure of freedom on the upper deck as long as she does not make a fuss. So, for the remainder of the trip, she stays calm and decides to make the most of it, taking in the beautiful scenery of the different islands the captain points out to her, and enjoying the fresh air and being out on the open sea rather than the security of her parent's castle as a princess. It is what she has dreamed about for so long, apart from the brutal reality that she is now a slave.

~*~

Graham informs David that Emma had been attacked and captured by pirates and that he had fought against them trying to rescue her. Although Graham is quick to tell of Lady Maleficent’s involvement, he neglects to mention that his employment by the said villain is the reason why the captain had an opportunity to take her in the first place, for he needs David to trust him to get the princess back. Graham feels miserable about what has transpired and is determined to atone for it. He convinces the king to let him buy her back so David can stay and protect his wife and son in case Lady Maleficent decides to go after them as well.  

Not knowing exactly where Emma was taken, David disguises himself as a poor peasant and goes to a tavern in Misthaven to gather information from the seamen who port there. Gathering intel on where to find her, he has a ship prepared for Graham that will take him across the Mediterranean to the slave market where Emma will be auctioned off. Determined to rescue his beloved daughter, King David will pay anything to buy her back and bring her home.

Back at a tavern in the Dark Kingdom, Prince Baelfire overhears some pirates speaking of a green-eyed, golden-haired princess being sold by Captain Blackbeard, who had spoken of his sale when he’d returned from the slave market. Baelfire doesn't catch a name, but she is rumored to be quite a rare beauty. He puts the pieces together, for King David had gone wild with rage at the news of his daughter’s disappearance, and goes to his father to spread the word. It matters not, though. God knows what the captain and his crew have done to the prince’s fiance; she has most likely been sullied and would be no good to him now. Rumplestiltskin tears up the contract and sets up a betrothal between his son and Lily once again, which pleases Lady Maleficent. Baelfire and Lily waste no time getting married.

~*~

The thunderous sound of hooves pounding against the leaf-littered dirt travels throughout the forest and comes to an abrupt halt when Killian sees a disturbance in the air and raises his hand to stop his men from moving any further. The screeching call of a falcon soaring across the sky is heard from a distance as Killian waits on high alert. James signals for the men to prepare themselves and they jump off their horses, pulling out their bows and arrows, forming a line of protection in front of the prince.

Killian can hear galloping horses in the distance, and gradually they come into view, along with men in capes riding towards them. The leader descends from his horse when he approaches, but is still a fair distance away, quickly kneeling and introducing himself as the chamberlain of the sultan as he presents a scroll to the prince. Killian senses something is off, for what could be so urgent that a carrier is being sent to him while he is away from the palace?

“I have brought news for my prince from the Grand Vizier, Geppetto.”

Killian jumps off his horse and approaches the man, taking the offered scroll, and stepping aside to read it. Scanning the letter from Geppetto, he learns of his Father's death which had ensued during a campaigning expedition when he had fallen ill. Brennan had died peacefully in his tent after his evening prayers.

Flooded with emotions—shock, sadness, fear, disquietude—Killian turns sharply, glancing at James who gives him a questioning look. With the expression on the prince’s face, he’s able to communicate with the falconer without words.

James’ expression clouds and he bows his head in respect, expressing his condolences for Killian’s loss.

A tear slides down Killian’s check. The prince had known this day would come, he just didn't know it would come so soon.

The capital is struck with grief at the news of Sultan Brennan’s death.

Brennan had been the youngest of his five half brothers and had rebelled against his father’s wishes when the eldest brother had been announced as the heir apparent. Outraged and determined to steal the throne, as Brennan had been made to believe he was his father’s favorite, he’d battled against his father—the sultan and ultimately dethroned him, sending him to a faraway land where he immediately met his death. Brennan then put his brothers and nephews to death to eliminate potential pretenders or threats, and his ruling over Neverland as sultan lasted eight years. Despite his shortened reign, Sultan Brennan was one of Neverland’s most successful and respected rulers to date. During his eight years of ruling, he had accomplished momentous success, including the expansion of Neverland by seventy percent.

Neverland, an empire where only men reign and hold absolute power, not to be controlled or ruled by women. The females of a sultan’s harem all enter as slaves, and if she is fortunate enough to birth a prince, she is traditionally never to return to the sultan’s bedchambers. Her sole purpose then is to care for, nurture and prepare the prince for the throne. But Brennan had been captivated by Kira. She had entered his harem as an Odalisque, a general servant, and had risen through the ranks of the harem hierarchy, enjoying her power and position as a bas-kadin when she became the mother of Brennan’s heir. After she’d given birth to a girl and then a boy, Brennan had sought her company once more, but when she became pregnant with Killian, Brennan had taken a gedikli to bed, a concubine whose status was far lower than Kira’s, subsequently fathering another prince.

The Sultan had a fierce temper and very high expectations of his three sons. And while Killian and Liam had acquired their father’s political skills, wisdom and looks—broad shoulders, high cheekbones, fair skin and sea blue eyes—their younger half brother took after Brennan’s fierce temper and determination to ascend the throne. But unlike his father, Declan had lost the battle, failing to kill off his brothers and was permanently exiled from Neverland. Liam and Killian, however, had a resilient bond, having the same father, which is rare within their culture. Neverland Sultans did not traditionally bed a woman after she’d bore him a son—in fact, it was a stark violation of the imperial harem principle—one concubine mother, one son—to prevent both the mother's influence over the Sultan and the feuds of the blood brothers for the throne. Killian would have gladly served under his brother, however, and the only reason Liam is not the one in Killian’s place is the battle that had mercilessly taken his life.

Killian returns to the Jewel of the Realm, the Sultan’s court where he had been sent as a young lad to study and learn the ways of his people. He had been appointed crown prince at age sixteen, and today ascends to take over the honorable legacy left by his father, Sultan Brennan, hoping he can live up to the expectations of his people—of his father. Killian hopes he can continue to be a man Brennan would be proud of.

Don't just be a man, my boy, be a great man, his father had always told him.

Upon Killian’s arrival, he greets his mother, the sultan valide, in her suite, pressing a kiss to the back of her delicate hand and asking to be in her prayers. He hopes he can live up to his father’s legacy and make his mother proud.

“May God bestow upon you, your throne and your crown longevity.”

Killian draws her into a hug, and when he pulls away he turns to his sister who bows and takes his hand kissing the back of it. “My lovely sister.” Killian smiles and urges her up to kiss her forehead. “Father will be greatly missed.”

“He will be,” Regina agrees with a small smile, unshed tears wetting her eyes as Killian wraps his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. Both his mother and sister have long, dark brown hair, the same color as Liam’s, and deep brown eyes that are now full of pride as they await the accession of the new Sultan.

“Now that Brennan is gone, you must be prepared to pass along his legacy, my son,” Kira says to him.

Killian sighs in exasperation, knowing exactly what her intentions are.

“You know not how much time you will have. Your father had eight years and God willing, you will have more, but we cannot know that for certain. You must find wives to bear you many princes, one who will take your place when you are gone.”

“Mother, I am aware…”

“Then why must you wait any longer? When is the last time you’ve lain with a woman who was not sterile?”

Killian’s eyes darken. The last time he had bedded a woman who was capable of birthing him a son and would’ve if not for her death while she was with child, it was Milah.

“Just as I suspected,” Kira sighs deeply. “I am sorry for what happened to Milah, but she is gone now, you must accept that and move on.”

Killian can’t hear this tale once more. He needs to leave before he grows furious and sad, and now is not the time, for he is about to be crowned Sultan. “Please, I cannot discuss this now,” he pleads with her.

Kira relents with a nod. “Very well.” She looks to the two odalisques in the room and calls them over. “I have a caftan prepared for you, my son.”

They kneel and bow their heads, one of them presenting a silk red brocade caftan, woven with gold thread and lined with black fur.

“Thank you, mother.” Killian accepts the caftan and leaves to prepare for the ceremony.

Kira calls upon the Jewel of the Realm’s Chief Eunuch who is charged with the protection and maintenance of the harem women.

“You summoned me, Sultana?”

Kira nods. “I want you to find my son four potential kadins, no matter the cost. They must be pure and untainted, never touched by another man. And only the most beautiful, with flawless skin that glows with good health. My son deserves only the best. They are to be trained and prepared to be presented to my son on his twenty-fifth birthday. At that time, we will celebrate with pomp and ceremony and present the gediklis to him. Can I trust you with this task?”

“Yes, Sultana.” With that, Nemo Nautilus leaves Kira’s chambers and sets out on his search for four promising concubines, which he knows will not be difficult, for he knows the prince’s tastes quite well. Killian has always been fond of women who were not only beautiful but warm and intelligent, fierce, independent and a bit mysterious.

As he scours the slave markets, word of a beautiful golden-haired virgin, eyes the color of emerald jewels, being sold at the next full moon reaches him, and not only do those attributes intrigue him but also the rumor that she is a princess of high stature. He finds out exactly where she will be auctioned off and leaves immediately.

~*~

Emma is still in shock by the entire ordeal—by Graham’s betrayal, by being captured by pirates and sold to an auction house. She has been left unscathed but misses her family so much, it’s painful. Cursing herself for ever wishing she had a life beyond the castle, she still clings to the hope that her family will find her.

She has resided at an auction house since the voyage on Blackbeard's ship had ended, and over the last several weeks, she had been bathed in perfumed waters, bleached in lemon to restore her true, milky skin tone and massaged with sweet smelling creams to make her skin smooth and silky to the touch.

While she has been pampered, protected and kept from the sun, word has swept the Mediterranean of the virgin princess with golden hair who will be sold by a purveyor of the most valuable merchandise in the world. She has faith that the rumors have reached her parents and that her family will come and rescue her. She believes in them; it’s the only thing she can believe at the moment.

The slave merchant explains that there is an opening bid on her of ten thousand pieces of gold, and though there aren’t many, the buyers are only the most powerful and richest men from around the world. Emma's heart flutters with panic and her stomach feels as though it’s filled with snakes slithering around her insides.

Pulling back the curtain, her kohl-framed emerald eyes sparkle under her elongated lashes as she peeks into the private auction room. Upon witnessing the company she has drawn Emma gasps through the thin veil draped around her face. There is another veil covering her hair and she’s wearing a delicate, champagne colored, ankle length gown which is held together by green ribbons, one tied around her waist and one at each shoulder.

On the other side of the curtain, there are fifteen buyers, and among them is Graham. Emma clenches her fists in anger when she spots him. All she sees is a fraud who had everyone in the Royal Castle fooled; he had her parents thinking he was truly looking out for Emma's best interest, but instead, he had been employed by another to do the exact opposite. She is torn between Graham's betrayal and the small spark of hope that he will buy her back. But all she cares about at the moment is getting back to her family, and she has a feeling Graham won’t be able to make that happen.

“Come, my lady. It is time.” Pulling Emma from her thoughts, a eunuch gently touches her arm and draws her out onto the center of a platform in the middle of the room.

All eyes are eagerly drawn to her.

The slave merchant announces her as, “a virgin princess, pure and nubile,” and removes the veil from her face, starting the bid at ten thousand gold pieces.

The bidding is so fast, it dizzies her as several men go back and forth, raising the bid higher and higher. But none of the bids are high enough for the merchant, so he has the eunuch loosen the ribbons at her shoulders, and the top half of the tunic falls to her waist.

Emma loses a breath, and Graham turns his head to avert his eyes, unable to watch, his fists tightening in anger. The room buzzes with excitement, many pairs of eyes drinking in her half-naked form, her high, fully blossomed breasts and rosy pink nipples on display. Some of the men look at her the way Baelfire had, with hungry, lustful eyes and a chilling grin, making her stomach churn.

Per the signal from the merchant, the eunuch removes the veil from her head and pulls out the pearl clasp from Emma’s hair, letting her golden locks cascade over her shoulders and down her back like a fan. Then he loosens the belt, allowing the entire fabric to fall to the floor, pooling around her feet, at which point silence fills the room as the men greedily feast their eyes upon her.

The princess goes numb with mortification as she stands stark naked from head to toe, her heart thumping in her ear. No man has ever seen her unclothed, and now here she stands for all the bidders to see. Some of them are licking their lips as their eyes scan her bare flesh, sending chills down her spine, and her entire body shakes. Her skin is flushed red with shame, her breaths shallow, but she chooses not to show her fear, as her parents have taught her. With the faith that Graham will outbid the other buyers, she stands tall and takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and does her best to mute out the shouts of the bidders as they continue to raise the price.

“Thirty thousand!”

“Thirty-five thousand!”

“Forty thousand,” the voice of Graham causes her to look over at him, and as ashamed as she is, standing there baring everything, her eyes plead with him.

“Forty-three thousand!” is the comeback from another, and Graham goes back and forth with him until the other bidder is defeated.

“Forty-five thousand!” Graham calls out.

“Forty-five thousand! Who will bid more?” Silence falls over the room, and Emma breathes a sigh of relief.

The gavel is raised to finalize the sale when a voice calls out, “The Sultan of Neverland bids fifty thousand gold pieces.” A tall man makes his way to the platform. “I am Nemo Nautilus, Chief Eunuch.” He drops the sack of coins at the merchant's feet. “You may count it.”  

“No need,” the delighted merchant states, accepting the gold as the chief eunuch covers Emma with a robe.

Graham leaps on stage and protests. “You raised the gavel to finalize the sale. She is mine!”

“But I did not knock with it. You are permitted to make a higher bid.”

Nemo raises his hand, signaling Graham to do so, but judging by the look in Graham’s eyes, he does not have enough to outbid Nemo.

Graham turns to the other buyers with pleading eyes. “Please lend me your gold and I will make sure you are rewarded with double by the king of Misthaven!” he attempts, but no one bothers to speak out against the Sultan of Neverland's Chief Eunuch. “This auction is illegal! She is betrothed to the heir of King Rumplestiltskin and the papers have been signed. She is as good as married!”

Nemo scoffs. “Your laws do not apply to us, just as our laws do not apply to you. You can either raise my bid or allow me to leave with my purchase.”

Graham has nothing more to offer, so Nemo retrieves Emma’s belongings—her clothes and necklace—from the merchant and turns to Emma, who fiercely snatches the items from his hands.

“Come, my lady,” Nemo says kindly. “We must go, now.”

Graham looks at Emma, his eyes full of sorrow and regret. Tears are streaming down her cheeks as Nemo gently takes her elbow, ushering her in the direction he is heading.

“Do not touch me!” she shouts angrily, her body once again overwhelmed with fear as she squirms against the Eunuch's hold.

Graham follows after her, calling out, “I shall go to Neverland with your father, and he will ransom you!”

“Do not lie to the girl. She is my Master’s now. She cannot be ransomed,” Nemo tells him.

She looks back at Graham, her eyes red and swollen as the distance between them gradually increases. “Tell my family I will come back to Misthaven! I will see them again!”

Graham nods, tears falling down his cheeks as he watches the princess being hauled away from him. How is he ever going to face her parents and break the news of his failures to them, let alone his betrayal?

Tagging:

@teamhook @onceuponaprincessworld @nikkiemms @resident-of-storybrooke @hollyethecurious @snowbellewells @artistic-writer @ultraluckycatnd @kmomof4 @darkcolinodonorgasm @lovepurplepumpkins @kiwistreetswan @therooksshiningknight @deathbycaptainswan @tiganasummertree @superchocovian @emeraldwitches

[gingerlexi2897]

When we go to Scotland as a family, we have one rule: we have to visit a castle every day and we have to sit in a pub every day. Thankfully, neither of these are very hard to find so we tend to do a pretty good job of following it. Since Itty and Erin are basically family at this point, we stuck to the rule and Erin would quite enthusiastically remind us of it about every 5 minutes.

The Saturday morning following Erin, Itty, and I’s adventure in Glasgow, we threw all of our laundry back into our backpacks, hauled our luggage back down the 4 flights of stairs, and took an UBER out to the airport where we collected our rental car. After a quick pit stop at Costco, (because why not?) we found ourselves heading north on the M90 towards Perth for a week of laughs, zero personal space, and of course, castles and pubs.

When Mum and I first visited Scotland back in the summer of 2014, we spent about a week in Perth and absolutely fell in love with the riverside city and the surrounding countryside. Since then, every time we have been back in the country, we have tried to at least drive through the town. It was here last summer that we met the Martins and the Crawfords after a Sunday church service at Tayside Christian Fellowship and first heard from them about camp in Hungary. So when it came to making our plans for this summer, we knew we wanted to be somewhere close to Perth and our friends there. Thanks to some help from the Crawfords, we were able to find a self-catering holiday let just up the hill from the River Tay and Perth, close enough to town yet far enough to feel like you were in the middle of nowhere.

The owners had converted what used to be an old stable block for Kinfauns Castle and turned them into 1 to 4 bedroom holiday cottages. When we originally made the plans and booked the cottage, we weren’t sure if Itty and Erin would be with us for this part of the trip, so we booked the two-bedroom and hoped for the best. If you’ve ever wondered how to fit 3 people in two single beds we would suggest pushing the two beds together, as well as being comfortable with zero personal space, having strong upper body strength to fight for your blanket, and oh bums to crack. It is genuinely a miracle that Erin, Itty, and I not only shared the two single beds but were squished into the backseat of a car for a week and didn’t want to kill each other. In fact, we only aggressively yelled when we decided to give running a try and I remembered a very important fact: I don’t run. 

For the two Sundays that we spent in Perth, we attended Tayside Christian Fellowship and spent the afternoons with the team that had been at Camp with us. I think being back with our friends from Camp was something that we had been looking forward to since we had left Budapest the previous week. After lunch at Jim and Carolyn’s, we gathered our bags that they had so kindly brought back from Hungary with them, and set about the task of washing ALL of our stuff. It seems that the day the Scottish team flew back to Edinburgh, it had absolutely poured, soaking everyone’s bags. Unfortunately, ours, even though they were hard-sided had not managed to stay dry. For the first part of our week at the holiday cottage was spent with nearly every piece of clothing we had with us strewn out on every possible surface in an attempt to dry it. Thankfully in all of the loads of laundry we did, only one pair of red socks snuck into a load of whites, so with pink-tinted clothes we set about to achieve our goal of a castle and a pub a day.

You’ll be happy to know that we achieved our goal of a castle and pub a day. We spent hours wandering the halls and gardens of Glamis Castle, the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Scone Palace, the crowning place of Scottish kings, and Blair Castle with its giant trees, amongst others. For us, it doesn’t really matter if it is an ornately decorated palace or ruins in a field, we love all castles equally. Just like we love all fuzzy Highland Cows equally. If you know me, you know I absolutely LOVE Highland Cows. From their wee legs to their fuzzy hair and everything in between. I may or may not have cried the first time I saw one in person 5 years ago. One of the things Erin and I discovered early into our friendship was our mutual love of cows, so one of the most important items on the list for Scotland was to see a Highland Cow. I wish I could share all of the pictures I took of her in the buildup to seeing these cows, but there simply isn’t enough room. It’s the little things in life that bring so much joy. Oh, and if you’re looking for gift ideas for either of us in the future, a fuzzy cow will do.

Mum, (and now Itty and Erin as well), are huge fans of the book and TV series Outlander, so when we found out that one of the towns used for filming wasn’t too far from us in Perth, we knew we had to go. Culross is this adorable, picturesque town with narrow cobblestone streets, ruins of an abbey, and a quintessential pub. It’s almost as if it has been entirely unaffected by life outside the city walls and it is just the same as it had been almost 400 years ago. Even though we blatantly ignored the menacing rain clouds on the horizon and ended up in the pouring rain, Culross was absolutely worth it.

While all of the touring was great, it was the evenings we spent with our friends that were the best part of the week. During the 7 days we stayed at the holiday let, we had the opportunity to see many of our friends who lived in the area and have them over to our little cottage either for dinner or just a drink afterwards. From silly jokes to discussions about theology or just local history, we covered it all. It really is the people that keep us coming back every chance we can get.

To more castles and pubs in the future,

Lexi

Songs for Scotland pt II:

Smack That – Akon, Eminem

Senorita – Camilla Cabello, Shawn Mendes

Lift Yourself – Kanye West

Sweet But Psycho –  Ava Max

Castles and Pubs When we go to Scotland as a family, we have one rule: we have to visit a castle every day and we have to sit in a pub every day.

[linkspooky]

I know you usually don't analyze the quality of writing, I'm not really sure if this question even qualifies as such. So, if you don't mind me asking, what do you think could've been done better in regards to how TG turned out? Or rather what developments would you've liked to see unfold?

Okay, so once again not a commentary on the quality of the writing but I can talk about a few things I would have liked more answers to. This is going to be pertaining to stuff mostly that happened around the ending because that’s the freshest in my mind.

#1 Donato

What does this mean Donato? Literally, what does any of this mean. Do the leaders of the clowns shift? Were you the leader for some time until you were captured by the CCG? Who was the crown, was it the one eyed king? Were there two one eyed kings as some people theorize? Donato you seem to be the only one old enough here do you think you could explain it to us? 

Donato’s final speech for his motivations basically just boiled down to something that would not be out of place coming out of Komaeda Nagito’s mouth. “I needed to kill all those people in order to make hope and justice shine all the more!” It’s not that I needed to get into the head of the child eater, but if Ishida was going to make the choice to play this scene as sentimental instead of giving Donato an oppurtunity to rip Amon a new one he could have at least gone with a motivation that... made sense?

Basically the entire Amon and Donato scene is a missed oppurtunity. There was a chance for Seidou and Amon to work together again and for Seidou’s growth to be acknowledged. THere was a chance for Amon to actually have to acknowledge people like Hakatori that he’s made the victims of as well, in person and not just... saying that he totally acknowledges that he’s been screwing up the world too in a moment of tell don’t show. 

Amon’s final speech is also peppered with the hypocrisies that a just better written confrontation scene could have solved a lot. For example let’s look at this moment right here. 

“Most ghouls are regarded by humans as creatures to be feared” Amon says while recalling the image of a ghoul who was living peacefully until humans went out of their way to hunt him down, then torture him to the point of insanity and kill his brother right in front of him. “Donato Porpora is absolute evil” Amon says, in his big speech about how actually the world is more complicated than he originally thought it was. These two ideas contradict each other, if there are shades of gray then why is Donato still absolutely evil? Is it because he ate children because if that’s the case Amon doesn’t even mention once about the Oggai, or the CCG’s habit of training child soldiers, both of those things which were important to his arc in its conception. The only named Oggai character is Hajime Hazuki who is Amon’s whole reason for going after Fueguchi so hard to the point of grave robbery. 

Amon still also approaches the entire scene like he’s merely an observer of ghouls, and not that he’s one himself. All of these things were things that could have been resolved if Ishida used Donato in his original capacity. Just as a character who exists to tear things apart, and especially to do so because of his strange affection for Amon. Play for Amon’s mind and make him stronger so Amon can rise to be a true hero of justice because Amon in particular is Donato’s favorite character. If Donato was going to turn out to be a two dimmensional character anyway then Ishida should have just used him to his full capability. For example you don’t have Emperor Palpatine make an emotional speech when he dies, you have him manipulate the protagonist to move him into action and then he gets thrown down an elevator shaft in the end. 

Imagine a confrontation scene where Amon is forced to face all the ugly things about his narrative he conveniently ignores. After facing them he overcomes them, but he actually has to face them, not just reappear after being offscreen for awhile and say he’s totally faced those things and come to those realizations. 

It would be using Donato better for his original pruppose as a character, rather than trying to make an emotional scene out of a character motivation that just doesn’t make sense. It would also make Amon’s long stagnation as a character before this make sense as well. Otherwise if the purpose was for Amon to just finish the manga with a big heroic speech about justice, and then defeating Donato by punching him after making his sword bigger why not write Amon actually pursuing justice and self reflecting before this point? The Amon that is written up until this point does not accept who he is, represses it absolutely, and avoids the main plot and confrontation as much as possible. He’s barely onscreen for one, and when he is onscreen he doesn’t make use of any of the information he’s been given before this point.It’s written like Amon is clinging to the vestiges of his past identity and unwilling to admit he was wrong or that he can move on, except then Amon just does and it’s fine. And that didn’t have to be that way, it’s not that everything preceeding it was bad writing but rather the set up does not match the eventual payoff we receive. The character who was written with an arc where he self reflected and grew was Seidou, however the character who was rewarded like they grew and changed in the end was Amon even though Amon is basically just the same character through all of Re:. 

Confronting Amon about literally any of this would have been a good move to alleviate a lot of this odd build up and pay off problems, but Donato doesn’t play it like a confrontation he just loses on purpose because of fondness for Amon. Which is fine but also, as I said before the emotions of the scene don’t make any sense at all, nor does Donato’s motivations he sounds like a Dangan Ronpa character so it’s a weird choice around. Not to mention Donato in the end answered none of the questions of his association with the clowns, the previous king, or clarified anything on the timeline which could have been a useful spot for that. 

#2 Ui’s Entire Subplot with the Garden

So the garden is an amazing world building idea, but it’s also something that should have been covered far more than it was in canon. The problem with introducing victims like the garden children into canon is that they kind of need their story to be told, just because their problems seem a lot more pressing than everybody else’s but that’s not really the case. The person who knows the most about the garden Furuta, as I jokingly said before we ever got more than a few pieces of his story got killed in a ditch by Kaneki because Kaneki doesn’t care that much about the garden. Which is... weird, because the garden should be a really big deal to anybody who hears about it. “There was human breeding going on, and these children are being forced to be child soldiers for life, and some of them are forcibly raped” you think would rouse most people with the ability to do so to an immediate call to action. If the ending of the story is a more empathic world like Ishida is trying to tell us it is, it’s weird that basically nobody cares about the garden of the children left behind in the garden after Furuta’s Washuu purge. 

Not only do we as an audience not get any more information on it in the sixty or so chapters after 101, but also it’s not revealed to any of the other characters besides Kaneki, even those with strong connections to the garden who it seemed like they were building up for a reveal towards, Ui,. We don’t know even what exactly and how much Take told Ui about what Arima’s plan was, and why he defected from the CCG because it’s a conversation that mostly took place offscreen except for a joke line of it that made it into an omake.

So we never get clarification on a bunch of key worldbuilding elements, all of thme having to do with the washuu and the garden, and also the garden children’s story really never gets told, or it’s only told tangentially to Kaneki’s story, and that in itself is a problem because the garden children are such huge victims it kind of necessitates the story be told. They are the literal bottom of the ladder, the lowest rung of society. 

It’s like “Why do people have a problem with Endeavor’s Redemption Arc in MHA?” and it’s not really the concept of an abuser getting a redemption arc in general, but rather that Endeavor’s perspective is being favored over his victim’s. Endeavor gets five times more screentime than Rei, his primary victim and we never see her chance of healing, or her chance to redeem herself as a mother to Shouto. Endeavor’s emotions and thoughts take precedent, but at the same time Endeavor’s not a victim to anything but his own bruised ego and hurt man feelings, so his story is a lot less narratively interesting to read. 

When you set up victims like this, it’s good to have their story be told. But we really only get to see them from an outsider’s point of view. Matsuri, one of the oppressors of the garden children gets a much happier ending than most garden children, and way more narrative coverage. And I’m not saying Ishida is bad for not telling the garden kid’s story, but rather that it’s such an interesting story it really should have been told rather than hinted at and it seemed so much like the last portion of the manga was building up towards that reveal and we just never got it. Only bits and pieces. Which makes me question why Ishida even introduced it in the first place if he was only ever going to leave it vague when it’s something that requires a lot more explanation than we were given. 

On that note what happened to Hairu’s head? Ishida at least told us her revival was impossible, but they had her head and body in preservation. Wouldn’t an Ui who had moved on make sure to at least recover the body and bury it?

Really it seems rather than Hairu was never going to be able to be revived to begin with, Ishida was building towards a revival and changed his mind at some point because a lot of ideas with Ui and Hairu’s plotline were pretty much dropped. What Okahira was referring to here was never explained, and also the kind of revival that Okahira himself experienced was never explained either even though they were given a brief mention in the epilogue. 

So yeah, the garden kids are kind of a big black spot. Especially since there are more garden kids being made into half ghouls by the CCG’s mad science (sorry the TSC) and nobody seems to see anything wrong with that. 

Especially since the TSC apparently made no effort to actually help the shortened lifespan of either of the garden kids until they stopped being effective soldiers. 

Just any kind of coverage on whether their lives are better or worse since the Washuu were purged, because it kind of just sounds like they’re being used exactly the same way the Washuu used them. 

[tolkienprincess]

Beyond Imagination (4)

Part fourth from…?

Part one

Part two

Part three

Not my gif. Gif goes to the amazing creators!

Pairing: Thranduil x female reader

Warnings: None?

A/N: English isn’t my native Language; also it is my first Fanfic. But please feel free to enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Middle-Earth Character, Tolkien does.

Side notes/Speaking: elvish / black speech

The Uruks and Orcs were searching everywhere, every village, every cave, every forest, but they couldn’t find you anywhere. How should they? You are a freaking faer changer, you could literally be anything.

“I am tired! And I am hungry! Couldn’t we get him a big bear or a big wolf and tell him that this is the little elf he wants? He wouldn’t even realize it!” one of the orcs shouts to his leader. The leader, a big Uruk, with an ashy skin tone and scars all over his body, looks at him in disgust, not saying a word, just looking into the wide.

“YEAH! Why do we even have to search for her? What`s so special about her!  If the dark Lord wants her he should search for her with his magic!” the second orc says agreeing with the first one.

“The Dark Lord is weak! That’s the only reason we are searching for her, because he can`t find the simple woman himself!” the first one screams and spit on the ground.

The Leader sets his eyes on the two orcs, standing side by side, he grabs his dirty blade and with one move, freed their heads from their shoulders.

“Anyone else who wants to question our Lord?!” the Uruk with the ashy skin says, looking at the rest of the group, pointing his sword at them. “No? Good, meat is on the diet!” he tells them and the whole group runs towards the dead ones, enjoying the meal.

~~~

You didn’t know how much time has passed since Legolas has found you in that river, but you were tired of being a prisoner, again. Guards in front of your room, no escape without the permission of King Thranduil, the only escape were the windows, you were sure Thranduil knows that, but he hasn’t locked the windows.

You pace back and forth in your room, like a wolf in a cage, mumbling to yourself “I hate it, why is he holding me here, in that damn room! If I were an enemy or a spy from mordor, like he thinks I am, they were already dead or at least imprisoned in mordor.”

Shifting your gaze through the room, everything was so pretty and flooded from light, everything were clean and they did all they could to make your staying at least bearable, you knew that but you are dying in that room. No one harms you like it was in mordor, you had food, water a warm bed, but it was still a cage to you. You flew from mordor to be free again, running around in the world like you wanted to, living in a forest and be a wolf, a wild animal like you truly are. But you were here, in Mirkwood.

Hearing footsteps approaching your room, Legolas, you could identify them already, followed from a little knock on your door.

“May I enter?” his voice was careful, like he would know that you were an animal which he could scare easily.  He visits you every day, asking how you were doing, if you would need anything…but what you truly wanted wasn’t his decision, it was his fathers. Which you barely see since your last escape into the garden.

Thranduil is doing like he wants, and your were sitting here, like a little pet for Legolas. You know it was cruel to even think something like this, because he is nice to you and even seems like he cares for you. Well, but isn’t it the same with a pet? You grumble to yourself, still walking back and forth.

“Yes.” Was all you could answer at the moment.

He opens the door and welcomes you with the same smile, since you meet him. Shining like it was the best part of his day to visit you.

“I have a little surprise for you. What would you think to come and check the borders with me? I am sure you are at least as bored as I am.” Beaming an even bigger smile at you.

Your raise one of your eyebrows, “This is a joke, right? If it is one, it isn’t really funny.” Avoiding his gaze you cross your arms behind your back, continuing to walk.

“No this isn’t a joke, I would never make fun about something like this. You look like an animal in a cage, and I want to change that, I want you to be happy here.” He mutters, looking at his hands.

Your eyes change their colour into a deep yellow gold, a sign that your animal instincts are stronger than your elf ones at the moment.

“What thinks your father about your little idea Legolas? I am sure he wouldn’t let this happen.” Looking at him from the corner of your eyes, you had stopped with your walking.

“Who says he knows anything about it? I am only here to ask how you are doing, then I leave and while you find a way out of here, I am going to wait at the entrance of the forest. We are back before anyone even notices your absence.” Raising his head he smiles at your direction, hopping you would be happy with his plan to get you at least a little bit out of here.

“What let you think I can escape? And get past all the guards without being noticed?” you tell him, looking at him, your golden eyes never leaving his, you could smell the change in his scent when he shifts under your gaze. Your lips curling into a little smile, which seems to hit him unexpected.

Clearing his throat “Oh I am sure you will find a way. I will see you then.” He closes the door behind him before bowing in your direction.

“What a cheeky little prince…” you mumble to yourself, looking out of the window you listen to your surroundings. Two, no three guards were walking the same path over and over again. You wait for the perfect opportunity and then jump, landing on the grass, like a cat. Without looking around you head straight for the walls and hide behind a pillar, the second guards walks past you and that was your keyword, you climb over the wall and a few seconds later were landing on the outside of the Kingdome. Checking the area you hear Legolas talking to the guards at the gate.

“I will be back in a few hours, daily observing.” He says before he walks over the stone bridge and leave into the forest. You smile to yourself, could it be the prince is a little fellow who is desperately searching for adventure?

Jumping over the river which flows around Mirkwood, you walk into the forest, enjoying the earth and the grass underneath your feet’s, taking a deep breath you listen to the forest. It was truly hurting you to hear him screaming in pain, hearing the trampling from the giant spiders above you, there filthy whispering in the desperate need for food.

You weren’t lying when you told Thranduil, that maybe there was an easy way to get rid of the darkness and these disgusting creatures in his forest. Slaughtering a few of them, hurt a few of them, and let them crawl back to their queen, if you find her and kill her, the spiders will flee and one problem would be solved.

Your eyes were beginning to glow, a growl erupts from your throat and your skin is tingling all over your body. Heat is spreading and an eyelashes impact later you were, finally in your true form, a big white beautiful wolf, you had a few scars on your body and a piece of your right ear were missing, the scars would only be visible in your animal forms. Elven magic hides the scars and wounds from battle and captivity.

Hearing the sounds from your surroundings, you could hear Legolas getting nervous, you could imagine what he was thinking. “Was she captured? Has anyone find her sneaking around? Did she left because she was tired of being here?” chuckling to yourself, which get out as a grumble in your wolf form. You make your way in the direction of the little prince, and you were absolutely right, smelling his nervousness you show yourself and step out of the protection of the bush, reveling yourself to him.

“Ah! I thought you let me wait forever!” he says, raising his hands into the air, seeming relieved to see you. Stepping in front of you,  but still a few feet's away, he looks you up and down, you are as big as a horse, the last time he has seen you in that form was when he had found you fighting against the orcs.

“Unbelievable how big you are, I have heard about skin changers, and that there creatures are way bigger than the originals, but I would have never thought it would be this much of a height difference. “ he mumbles to himself, circling you, to get a good look at your appearance.

He looks at your fur and your scars, stretching one hand in your direction without further thinking about it, your eyes never leaving him, you snap your head in the direction of him. He stands at your right side, you show your teeth’s and growl, your fur forming into a comb on your back.

“Don’t touch me!” your voice were much deeper in this form, sounding more like a beast, you lick over your teeth’s, you didn’t want to harm him, but nobody was going to touch you. You couldn’t remember the last time someone has touched you with another intention as harming you.

Legolas throws his hands into the air to show you he will not harm you, he whispers “I am sorry..I haven’t thought about it, it-it was just an impulse. I am not going to harm you, okay?”

Smelling the anxiety on him, you stretch your body, digging your claws into the ground while saying “I just don’t like to be touched, so for the next time, don’t do it. Not as long as I am begging you to do so.” The next thing you could smell on him was sadness, shaking your big head, you try to concentrate on the scent of the forest.

“It wasn’t my intension to upset you Legolas, I am no one who trusts easily okay?”  

Suddenly your thoughts were interrupted, you could hear trampling, and you knew exactly what it was “Orcs…” you whisper to yourself, looking at Legolas.

“I can hear them too.” He answers, meeting your gaze you two nod and run in the direction of their noises.  Without slowing down you couldn’t see Legolas at your side anymore, but knowing that he would bump into the fight soon, you were full of joy just imagine killing them.

Hiding yourself in the bushes which were surrounding the Orcs and Uruks, you listen to their conversation “Ugh! I am sick of this running around and searching for that skin changer bastard!” one of them shouts while looking around.

You could feel a rumble in your body, they were still searching for you, of course they would, and there was nothing the dark lord couldn’t have, if he wanted to. Expect for you, and that made him furious, to imagine that his bride to be could flee from mordor, he couldn’t take that shame.

“Don’t shout around like a baby which could stabbed! Everyone can hear you!” another one of them growl at the first one. There were at least 50 of them, which you could quickly count, but you could hear more, further away.

You step from one front paw of the other, couldn’t wait any longer to break their bones, feeling their blood running down your throat. When the group of 50 get nearer you jump out of the bush, your mouth wide open letting a growl erupt from your throat, jumping right in the middle of them. “There she is! Get her!” they shout, one of them blows a horn to alarm the rest of their group, you where fighting one after another, slitting throats open with your teeth’s, crushing them under your big paws, slaughter them with your claws. They were aiming for your legs, trying miserable to hurt you.

Hearing Legolas jumping out of the bush he shoots one arrow after another, hearing hoof trampling coming into your direction, you knew it was the elven. They arrive in the same time as the rest of the Orc and Uruks arrive, “Shoot them!” Thranduil shouts while stabbing one of them in the head, his moose fighting with his antlers to stop any orc to come near him.

The Elves killed, stabbed and shoots any orc they could find, fighting side by side with them, smelling the anger of the King, as you killed nearly all of them, you run after the last one and take him into your mouth, “Let go of me!” he cries in pain. You clench your mouth a little more so he cries out again “If you don’t shut up, you were whishing I had killed you!” you grumble, it wasn’t loud because you had the orc in your mouth but he heard you, stopping to kick around.

“What do you think you are doing?” Thranduil tells you, blocking your way with him on his moose. “I want to ask that bastard a few question, and I am sure you would like that too, aren’t you?” you rumble at him, all other elves were looking at you frightened, and stinking of fear. You walk past the King, in the direction of mirkwood, “This isn’t over. Legolas!” he shouts for his son, but he was already walking beside you, hiding his smile.

Being back in the Kingdome, Thranduil, Legolas and you were getting into the throne room, Thranduils stands tall in front of his throne, letting the orc fall to the floor, Legolas was immediately standing beside him. So he could be sure that everyone was save, the orc spits blood, coughing and spitting his next word while looking at the Elvking “You will get nothing out of me, zâgîrum ob durbal”.

Thranduil were standing in front of him in a blink of an eye, “Your words mean nothing to me glamog!” he spits to his feat and Legolas grabs his head and hold his dagger on his throat, letting him know that his life were attached to a little string. You were circling around them, still in your wolf form. When the Orcs sees you again “My Master is waiting for you bûrz ilzkâl”, “You can tell him to wait as long as he want and rot in his tower, I am not going back.” Your voice was rumbling in the halls, you close the distance between you and him.

“Enough of that nonsense!” Thranduil pouts angry at you and the orc, using the common tongue again so he could understand him. “Why are you still searching for the woman? What is it your master wants from her?” he place himself in front of him again, crossing his hands behind his back, looking at him with disgust and contempt. As the orc keeps quite and just stares at him, Legolas press the dagger slightly into his skin, letting him grown with pain.

You decided to give him a little push, you move slowly, Thranduil notice your change in walking and steps aside, the Orc looks at you with pure fear in his eyes, smelling it on him, you bare your teeth’s, letting your tongue glide over your fangs,  threaten him. You build yourself up in front of him, lowering your head on his height, he kneels on the floor, looking at you, he couldn’t look away, he was to afraid what would happen if he did. Your fangs only millimeters away from his face…

“He-He didn’t tell us what he wants with her! She is one of the last faer changer, I-I am sure he just wants her as a weapon, I-I…” he couldn’t end his sentence, because Thranduil relieved his head from his body, Legolas were holding the head in his hand, looking rather annoyed at his father.

“Why did you do that? I am sure he would have told us more.” He says to him. “Haven’t you heard him? He didn’t knew anything, so I freed him from his suffering.” Thranduil answered shortly, walking in the direction of the door putting his sword back into his sheath. Stopping beside you, “Maybe I misjudged you.” You just turn around, walking back to your room. No apology, that ignorant King, you thought to yourself, entering your room, you change back into your human form, going straight into the washroom. Washing of all the dirt, blood and the smell of death, you leave the bath and hear a light knock on your door.

“Come in Legolas.” You say, drying your hair before comb through it.  

“So he visits you so often, that every knock on your door could be him?” a deep voice rumble, you weren’t quite sure if you liked him, but you loved the sound of his voice.

You shrug with your shoulders, not turning around, he walks right behind you, “May I?” he says holding is hand out for your Comb. You let him have his way, still not looking at him, he takes it and carefully takes a hand full of your hair in his left hand, while comb it with his right.

“I am sorry for thinking you would be a spy..” he starts quietly, nearly sounding a little shy.

“..But you can’t be careful enough, I know.” You finish his sentence, finally looking at him through the mirror. His icy eyes were looking at you, they were a little bit darker than usually, you smile a little bit, your eyes changing there colour from black back to a golden tone. He answer your smile with a little smirk, taking you by surprise, “You should smile more often, it suits you.” You tell him without shame, which seems to take him by surprise. You could see his cheeks turning into a shade of dark red, grabbing another hand full of your silver hairs, he touched the skin of your neck, which caught you of guard, and you shrug at his gentle touch.

Getting goose bumps, “Did I hurt you?” he asked worried, you clear your throat and stand up “No, I am fine, thank you.” You answer him. “I am feeling tired, could you please leave me alone?” walking in the direction of your bed.

“Of course, I am sorry to have bothered you, Elei velui.” He tells you, bowing his head in your direction.

“Gin hannon.” You whisper, before he close the door behind him, you let yourself fall into the bed, burying your head in the pillows you let out a grown. “I hate it..” you mumble into them, “What’s so different from his touch..?” Maybe you should see what’s happening if Legolas touch your skin, would it be different? Was it only he, which made you feel this way?…

Word Glossary:

zâgîrum ob durbal – joke of a leader/king

bûrz ilzkâl – dark starlight

glamog – Orc

Elei velui – sweet dreams

Gin hannon – translation: Thank you (informal form)

TAGS: @nerdygaloresposts @mystarlighth @thranduil-is-my-king @you-had-me-at-hello-dear @saraholdtheh972 @partyelleth7601 can`t tag you at the moment dear, I am sorry!

Hope you enjoyed my next part, if you want more, please feel free to tell me!

[mr-puff-ball]

Research: game characters and 2D platformers…

For today’s lesson we are to look into characters from a whole host of media and find those we like and are to also look primarily at platfrormers of the 2D variety. In this post/s I will look at some inspiration that I have had for my project that I am to now refer to as “The Cult of Grosse.”

The first game I’m going to look at is Hollow Knight, a favourite to many players. It’s a 2D metroidvania, set in a world full of bugs where you, after stumbling across it, must help its inhabitants by killing a slew of enemies and taking the place of their long corrupted protector, at lest that is one of a few endings. The style is very noticeable in a crowd, with its more simple yet expressive characters, a small rim of black allows the characters to stand out against the expertly drawn back rounds. Near all enemies look distinct from one another, the only exception being civilian bugs who have been infected, who do get slightly repetitive, but only slightly. All the bosses feel memorable with unique moves and style, with some having a full area related to them making the fight feel more impactful. When looking at the characters you can feel that their smaller and more simple designed let Team Cherry make their animation better and quicker, allowing theme more ease what could be used in other areas such as cleaning rougher edges of other mechanics. When playing the game you don’t even think about how some areas are less than original, such as the gardens and green path, rather, your drawn into it’s almost mythical, dark world and don’t bat an eye, it is truly magical to look at. I would be inspired by the games simple character look and try and replicate its simplicity, however, while they were able to use more mixers to make their characters look smoother and cleaner, and with my games 64:64 pixel limit it would be hard to make them fit so well together like they accomplished,cans in all, they are better artists than me. And while the game is not heavily based on platforming in general, it dose have a few moments some would call platforming such as the movement upgrades that allow you to traverse better, some small puzzles found throughout such as a few found in Deep Nest and, of course, the memorable kings palace full of buzz saws, because why not? These test your movement capabilities and and sees if you have the skill, or patients, to survive.

Another game that I love as much (or even more) is Enter the Gungeon, the bird eyes view rouge like. This game is more fitting with its style, that being pixel based, but less with actual platforming. The only platforming your going to see is barrel rolling over pits unless you count escaping gunfire as the game is also a bullet hell full of pain and suffering. The game’s simple style allows the characters to look cartoon, fun and cute while also allowing them to look threatening, this also allows their bullets to be noticeable to the player with their simple round look and red texture, (some don’t abide to this but it is extremely common.) the characters are almost comparable to bobble heads but with actual soul and character, with portraits showing more detail allowing you to get a better look at them and see their personality, also their normal outfits tell you a lot about them even though the host of characters do look out of place together, however this odd group of characters actually leads into the story of the game, what is a joke yet climatic. The pilot exudes a personal charisma, similar to Han Solo what is understandable with the two being space pilots, even his items complement this such as getting discounts at stores for being hot. The convict, fittingly, is a criminal with her orange jumpsuit and her angered domineer. The hunter comes with a dog and has 2 starting guns, one bing a crossbow showing that she has business to attend to. Then there’s the soldier, wearing futuristic armour from the future and has an ability to call ammo. These character designs allow the player to quickly analyse their situation and know what they are getting into before even getting to the end of the game what tells you the characters reason for being here, that is to rewrite a mistake they made in the past by fittingly shootings themselves in the face. Amazing. Because of this I’m going to try adding more defining parts to Agent Cole Gates (the main character) such as a colour twirl to make him stand out, however he already has the smithy shades.

Kirby, perfect old Kirby, one of the most simple, bland and uninteresting characters named after a lawyer. Even in his own games he’s know as simple, one even shows you how to make a Kirby step by step. However, Kirby is a beloved icon of gaming, many not on the plinth of characters like Mario, link and others like Kratos and master chief, but pretty high. That most likely comes from his simplicity and likability, he’s pink, lazy and likes food, what is there not to love? Lots of Kirby enemies and friends are similar to him, they are balls, balls with a defining feature like a mouth, eye, fire, spike, so on so on. This shows that almost lazy designs can be good if you make them well with an effort for cuteness, at lest till the end where Kirby games lose themselves. Because of this I should try and make my characters more human so people can relate to them like so many do to Kirby and his personality, also I shouldn’t make them too creepy.

While this isn’t a game, rather a piece of music, I believe it should be talked about due to how it inspired me. The song Cabinet Man by Lemon Demon, a.k.a Niel Cicirega, tells the story of a now deceased person who have shoved their organs into an arcade cabinet and are living as a game. This is an odd song strongly based on polybius, the secret government game made ages ago and became a conspiracy by the people. Niel uses this to tell a story of grief and sadness what blossoms to a live and satisfaction what rots away and replaced with greed, anger and fear as he is to be replaced by home gaming systems. This song follows the tale of a villain, of a character who goes too far and starts abusing the power they have been given, but even at the end where he is beaten he doesn’t die, the song ending on a unknown end, with them presumably killing the robbers and continuing on with their murderous rampage. I’m a big lemon demon fan, and when hearing this song play when thinking of the idea for my game, it hit me like a cement truck, I had the perfect backdrop for my game.

[imagine-loki]

The Baseborn Princess and the Aesir Prince

TITLE: The Baseborn Princess and the Aesir Prince

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 4 AUTHOR: wolfpawn ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine you’re a bastard daughter of a king of a far off realm, the product of his drunken loneliness at battle. His guilt of cheating on his wife drove him to send you to live on Midgard, but due to the fact that his other children (and his wife) adore you, you’re often invited to visit. RATING: Teen and Up

It continued for another four weeks, girls throwing themselves at the princes and before long, the catty behaviour came out, lies and stories of every manner became normalised gossip of the girls thought to be most in the running, but in that time, Amelia had decided clearly she was not in any way interested in either royal in that manner, though she did enjoy their company, instead, she found herself completely in love with Thor’s friend, meaning the girls ignored her completely.

‘Wait, the red-haired burly one?’ Clodagh looked at her sister, slightly shocked.

‘No, the one next to him.’

‘The one that looks like you literally just killed his entire family and are sauteing his dog for dinner?’ Clodagh looked at the other two men with Thor, hoping she was not referencing the blonde haired one who somehow managed to have four women on his lap at once.

‘Oh Clods, you are so cruel. His name is Hogun, do you think Mother and Father would be angry?’

‘He is one of Prince Thor’s closest friends, I don’t think that is looked down upon, what is he like to you, is he nice?’

‘Yes, he is sweet and gave me a beautiful rose the other day as he passed me.’

‘Oh Norns, a romantic.’ She baulked.

‘You have no romance, Clodagh.’

‘If it makes me a giggly little girl I don’t want it.’

‘Shut up.’ Amelia smiled, hitting her sister with a pillow before Clodagh got to her feet. ‘Are you off to the library again? You can do that at home.’

‘Have you any idea of the number of books here Miels, I...honestly I would scrub chamber pots to be allowed stay and keep using that library.’

‘You are the weirdest elf in the worlds, I love you, but you really are.’ Amelia stated as her sister went to leave the room. ‘Take that squeaker with you, it doesn’t shut up when you’re not here.’

‘Fine, come on.’ She wrapped the hedgehog in a blanket and brought it in a satchel with her.

She was sitting in the library, reading silently when the hedgehog started grunting.

‘Shh, we’ll get in trouble.’ Again it made noise. ‘Fine.’ She began to read to it softly and it ceased making noise, instead getting comfortable and snuggling into a loose ball.

‘Are you reading to a hedgehog?’ She looked up to see Loki standing nearby.

‘Yes, I am, he is a fan of good literature.’ she explained.

‘I wish I had your confidence.’ Her brow furrowed at his comment. ‘You say stuff like that and you do not apologise for it, you are so confident in what you are saying, it is a trait to be admired.’

‘Most would think me odd.’ she smiled sadly.

‘They are envious.’ Loki sat beside her. ‘What did you name him? Spike?’

Clodagh laughed. ‘No, not very original.’ She looked fondly at the sleeping animal. ‘I don’t know, I jokingly called him Mortimer and now Meils is calling him “Morti”.’

‘Mortimer is a great name for a literature-loving hedgehog, it must be said.’ Loki grinned, looking at him.

‘Wanna see something cute?’ She reached into a little bag with a tweezers and pulled out a grub. As soon as she brought it close to the hedgehog, it immediately went from dozing to interested and gobbled it up.

‘That actually...can I try?’ Loki asked. She handed him the tweezers and he tried. The animal seemed dubious for a moment before taking the grub from him, unrolling after his snack and going over to sniff the Aesir prince. ‘I think I am being inspected.’

‘Careful, he has a terrible bite. The day I found him, his leg was injured so of course, he tried to protect himself, I got a terrible nip, it was terribly deep.’ Loki remained still as the hedgehog sniffed him, seeing him as no threat, he then went back to Clodagh to sleep again.

‘I think I passed the test.’

‘What test?’

‘Who is allowed talk to his elf.’

‘Am I his or is he mine?’ She joked, ‘Not really, he is a wild animal, he will have to go back to the wilds of the gardens sometime soon, I just want him prepared for winter first.’

‘Are elves better at communicating with animals?’

‘I don’t know, we are a more naturally aware species, so perhaps, but I am not sure.’

‘You have an incredible knack with him.’

‘I like to think I do with all my animals.’

‘You have more?’

‘Back home, yes.’

‘Tell me about them.’ he asked. ‘If you don’t mind.’

‘What would you like to hear?’

‘Who is your favourite?’

‘Rua, Rua is this fox that I helped once and now lives close by and visits all the time, especially if it is cold or wet. Then there is Pua, Pua as the name suggests, is a pig, it was abandoned because I think it was supposed to be one of those pet ones but turned out to be a normal one, so yeah, there’s him. Then there is a few more, but they have the biggest personalities. I see your father’s ravens a lot, they are beautiful, they say hello if I am in the gardens.’

‘They are nosy things.’

‘Not nosy, curious. They just like to try and understand their world, that is the great thing about ravens, they are so smart, such complex creatures.’

Loki looked at her as she spoke, with caring and passion. ‘You really care about animals.’

‘I do.’

‘That’s beautiful.’

They sat and spoke for a time more, not knowing who else was in their environs as they spoke of everything and anything.

‘Brother, there you are, I was looking for….a hedgehog?’ Thor walked over curiously to the pair. ‘Why have you a hedgehog, who is that?’ Thor demanded.

‘Who?’ Clodagh looked to Loki for an explanation.

‘My idiot brother is of the opinion we turned someone into a hedgehog, ignore him.’

‘Loki, if you are playing games…’ Thor went to take the animal only to receive a slap on his hand.

‘Leave him alone,’ Clodagh snapped. ‘Who are you to try and grab him in such a manner?’

‘That is my brother, the future King of Asgard you are talking to.’ Loki chuckled.

‘Being the future king does not give him right to harm Mortimer. What has he ever done to you?’ She held the hedgehog closer to her.

‘Loki?’ Thor looked at his brother, shocked at the manner the elf was speaking to him in.

‘This is Clodagh, one of King Sika’s daughters, she is a bit of an animal enthusiast and poor Mortimer here has been one of her victims.’ She glares at him. ‘Or patient, it's subjective.’

‘So that really is a hedgehog?’

‘Yes.’

‘Why is it in the palace?’

‘He is disabled, I am looking after him until he learns to forage with one eye.’ She explained. ‘See, this one is clouded, he cannot use it.’ She pointed out the damaged eye.

‘Right. Well, I suppose I owe you an apology then.’

‘Not really, you owe Mortimer one, though.’

‘What?’ Thor looked to Loki who was grinning widely.

‘Yes, Thor, apologise to the hedgehog.’ Loki smirked.

Thor looked down at the animal, who to his shock, was looking up at him expectantly. ‘Is he expecting this?’

‘He is quite intelligent.’ Loki conceded.

‘Well, I apologise for my accusation to you Loki and for trying to grab the little guy.’ Thor stated.

Clodagh looked at Mortimer who looked at her for a moment before grunting and curling up. ‘He accepts your apology.’ she informed him.

‘Good?’ Thor was unsure what to even say to that, causing Loki to chuckle. ‘I have seen you around.’

‘Well I am here because of this idea to get you both wives.’ she smiled.

‘But you have never introduced yourself.’

‘I am not Aesir prince wife material.’ She stated, getting to her feet and opening the satchel for Mortimer to scurry into. ‘I am sorry to be rude, but I need to go somewhere. Sorry, this is three for three with my lack of manners to meeting a member of your family.’ She commented before walking out.

‘She is very curious.’ Thor noted.

‘Yes.’ Loki smiled, looking after her.

‘And Unconventional. She doesn’t seem to adhere to any court etiquette, it is so odd, so….’

‘Refreshing.’ Loki stared to the space she had been.

Thor looked at his brother with a raised brow. ‘Why, Loki, I do believe you are smitten.’

‘How is Princess Kaitlyn?’

Thor grinned widely as he thought of the Princess that he met on the very first day that had captured his attention. ‘Very well, as usual. But that will not thwart my comments. You are very much enamoured with this Princess.’

‘She is different.’

‘Different does not equate to bad though, does it?’ Thor grinned as he looked at his brother.

‘No.’ Loki concurred. ‘No it does not.’

Neither brother realised they were not alone in the library as they spoke.

*

Amelia wrote to her parents, admitting that she was not interested in either prince, nor were either interested in her, but that she very much found herself caring for Hogun, a warrior friend of Prince Thor. Curious as to this man to take their daughter’s heart, Sika and Lydia came to Asgard with their brothers to see this man for the choosing ceremony. On their arrival, they were met by an elated Amelia who did not waste time introducing them to Hogun, who her family could clearly see loved her daughter as she did him, that was all they needed to know.

Lydia went in search of Clodagh, unsurprised to see an animal in her presence as she spoke to her. ‘How are you finding it here?’

‘Fine.’ Clodagh looked at her awkwardly.

‘You seem ill at ease.’

‘I was never meant for this.’

‘You still feel that way?’ Lydia felt disheartened on her behalf. She always hoped, given the right circumstance, Clodagh would find her place in the worlds, but she seemed to only ever feel lost. She was more at home with animals, but be it palace or countryside, she always felt as though she did not belong, and as a result seemed uncomfortable.

‘I don’t belong anywhere.’ Clodagh admitted.

‘We are all required somewhere, you will find your place, as we all do in this life.’ Lydia stated reassuringly. ‘Why not speak with Sika about it?’ Clodagh gave her a peculiar look. She rarely spoke with Sika, usually when they would be forced to my momentary bumping into one another, but it was so awkward, both tried to remove themselves from it immediately. ‘You are as bad as one another.’

‘Must be a natural trait, I am sure some being out there would love to study us.’ Clodagh joked.

‘I dare say they would.’ Lydia chuckled. ‘So, what can you tell us about this Hogun character?’

‘He makes Amelia so happy, he is courteous and polite and I feel as though she would be happy with him.’

‘But that does not make you happy?’ Lydia noted the sadness on Clodagh’s face.

‘She would stay here with him then, so I will not see her much anymore, I want her to be happy more than anything, same as the boys, but...part of me feels…’

‘We would all miss her, but sadly in this life, we cannot have it all our own way, including our sisters leaving realms.’

‘I know. I don’t want her to miss out on true happiness.’

‘Exactly, now come on, we need to get ready for the ball tonight, the princes have to make their announcement to the realms who they choose.’

Though she thought it was a waste of time, Clodagh did as she was instructed and got ready. Amelia helped her to ready herself, and for the first time since coming to Asgard, Clodagh put effort into her appearance, looking as much a princess as the other women when she came to dinner.

She and Amelia were talking to the girls they had befriended in their time at the palace, they were unlike the main factions that had formed as they were not interested at the task set to them, they were happier to make alliances so they were not bickering as others were. Knowing this, Frigga put them closest the top table, seeing that they were least likely to act up. It was while everyone was eating, the Aesir royal family at the top table and well within earshot when Laura, the Princess of Vanaheim came over to the table, concerning them all and smiled sweetly.

‘Clodagh, wow, you actually look like a princess for a change, what a nice difference this is for you.’

‘Not all of us are big into certain pursuits like clothes.’ She stated nonchalantly.

‘No, it is really a princess thing, you wouldn’t really know that though, would you?’ Everyone listening paused what they were doing. ‘I mean, you’re not even a real princess, are you, Clodagh? Afte all, bastards with some hussy Healer on a battlefield don’t really count as Princesses.’