#percival de rolo fic

[tripleyeeet]

FUTILE DEVICES.

"YOU ARE THE LIFE I NEEDED ALL ALONG."

SUMMARY: Zayis has never been the type to follow the law. So, when she's arrested for various counts of theft (among other things) and thrust into the roll of sovereign's errand runner to clear her debts, the last thing she expects is to end up becoming a Protector of Emon... or to fall in love. PAIRINGS: Percival de Rolo/Original Female Character (Zayis Marden) TAGS: 18+ content, canon typical violence, eventual smut, friends to lovers. Will tag everything accordingly as we go! A/N: Welcome to Summer tries long fic again. Wish me luck! Also, this fic will be following the events of the show. So, sorry to podcast listeners :')

MASTERLIST

-

PLAYLISTS

futile devices.

foolish girl!

-

CHAPTERS

one

*chapter two coming soon!

[blorbologist]

meet cute! he's in a cell and even after ages in there can't grow a fucking beard <3

also [YOU/DO I] LOOK LIKE [YOU/I] COME FROM MONEY BEING A CALLBACK BETWEEN THEM?!?!?!?! FCUK! ME!

[sunstone-smiles]

The Legendary Vox Machina Tickle Fight

Original request (from 🦋 Anon): "LE GASP!!!! UR A FAN OF VOX MACHINA TOO 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱 Omggggg can you PLEEEEEASE do day 18 tickle fight with the Vox Machina group? They're all so cute together and I'd love to see that!"

Author’s note: Omg, this turned into a huge fic, but I have no regrets, Lol. Here’s Day 18 of Tickletober: “Tickle fight” from August’s Prompt List! I hope you enjoy!

Series: The Legend of Vox Machina

Characters: Pike, Grog, Scanlan, Keyleth, Vex, Vax, Percy, and Trinket

Word count: 4,585

Summary: The Vox Machina crew is having a boring day, so Scanlan attempts to lighten the mood, but Grog’s misunderstanding of one of Scanlan’s words soon turns into a playful fight between the party.  Enjoy!

---

It’s just that kind of day, where the Vox Machina crew gets to relax with one another, but they’re teetering on the edge of drab boredom. They don’t want to go out. Too much effort. So whatever is available in their current cozy sitting room is what keeps them occupied.

Pike, standing on a chair so she can see better over a wooden table, cups a pair of dice in her hands; the sound of the dice clicking can be heard as she shakes them. Grog sits across from her with the table height at his stomach due to his large size. The muffled collision of dice can be heard in his hands as well.

“Ready, Grog?” Pike asks her friend.

“Ready!”

At the same time, they throw their dice onto the table. Pike counts the two numbers on her dice quickly. “I got a six!”

“A three! I win!” Grog celebrates.

“I hate to break it to you, buddy, but six is higher than three,” Pike says sweetly, understanding that her friend has difficulty with numbers.

“Aww…” Grog deflates a little. 

“It’s okay, buddy! We can try a different game.”

Grog leans back in his chair like all the muscles in his body have gone limp. “But we’ve already tried so many. I’m bored.” 

“Heh,” Pike leans her elbow on the table, “Can’t blame you there, buddy.”

“Don’t worry, everyone! Your savior is here!” Scanlan walks into the room, making a performance out of his entrance. He runs up to the same wooden table Pike and Grog are at, hops up onto a chair and onto the table like it was a stage and he was a vendor. “I saw that it was a little dreary in here today, so I know just how to lighten the mood,” Scanlan moves his eyebrows up and down when he says “mood.”

“Oh goody, more mind numbing dirty jokes,” Vex says from her seat across the room. Trinket’s head is in her lap as she passes the time by brushing his fur. Vax sits in a separate chair next to her, polishing his daggers. Meanwhile, Percy draws in his sketchbook as he sits in a chair up against the front wall near the doorframe, while Keyleth sits next to him in another chair and touches up the leaves of a potted plant.

“No no, nothing dirty,” Scanlan replies. “I have tailored this joke to be pristine and appropriate. Ahem!” Scanlan clears his throat loudly. 

“What do you call a cow that’s good at playing an instrument?” Scanlan asks his crowd of friends. He waits and looks around at each of them to keep them in suspense. Then, he answers. “A Moo-sician! Eh? Eh?” he winks and elbows the air.

All of his friends slowly look at each other before looking back up at Scanlan, unamused and in total silence. If crickets were in the room, they would be chirping.

Scanlan puts his hands on his hips. “What? Nothing? Tough crowd.”

“It sounds like you need to get better material, my friend,” Vax shows a brief smile.

“Yes, I would think you of all people would come up with better material than simple puns, Scanlan,” Percy teases.

“I don’t know. I thought it was a little funny,” Keyleth admits.

Scanlan gestures an appreciative hand to the Ashari. “Thank you, Keyleth! But as for the rest of you! How did you not find it funny?! That was one of my best rib-ticklers!”

Grog places a finger to his chin. “Oooh, wait! No wonder no one laughed, Scanlan!” Grog exclaims. The goliath stands from his seat and walks around the table to be behind Scanlan. “That wasn’t a rib-tickler! You got to use your hands. Like this!” Grog finishes his sentence by swiftly moving his hands under Scanlan’s arms and tickling his ribs. The smaller man jumps with a yelp in surprise and throws his elbows down to his sides. 

“Grohohohog!” Scanlan already begins giggling, “I didn’t mehehehean it literally-hehehe! It’s a figure ohohohof speech!”

Grog tilts his head, genuinely confused, “You’ve lost me.”

Pike perks up, a grin brightening her features like the glow of her divine magic. “Oh, yeah! Now this is something exciting!” She stands up straight like she was preparing to charge into a battle. 

“Tickle fight!!!” Pike calls out with the same ecstatic tone as if she was announcing a tavern brawl for everyone to see. She leaps onto the table and rushes over to Scanlan. 

“Grog, hold him for me!” she exclaims.

“You’ve got it, buddy!” Grog keeps his hands under Scanlan’s arms, easily holding the bard in place as his fingers wiggle against his ribs.

“Nohoho, no, no! Pihihihikehehehe!” Scanlan’s laughter increases when Pike joins in and scribbles at his sides. Scanlan curls himself to the side and tucks his face in his shoulder as Pike and Grog successfully team attack him. Scanlan’s joke may have not lightened the dull mood of the room, but his own laughter certainly does.

“Heh,” Vax chuckles as he watches from the sidelines. “Too bad for you, Scanlan. Looks like you’ve waged a war with Pike and Grog.”

“Remember our scuffles that usually turned into tickle fights?” Vex smiles at her brother.

“Ah, yes. You mean the ones I always won?” Vax returns a smug grin.

“Excuse me?” Vex says, playfully offended. “If I recall, you are more ticklish than I. I’d have you begging for mercy in seconds.” Vex places Trinket’s brush on her seat, keeping her eyes trained on Vax.

Vax places his dagger on the table and leans forward, keeping his grin and his eyes on Vex. “I beg to differ, Stubby.”

“Well, I’ll show you, Scrawny!” Vex exclaims and lunges her hands at Vax, immediately getting a solid scribble to his ribs. Vax yelps as the pulse of ticklishness hits his form, momentarily paralyzing him before he clamps his arms down to his sides, then shifts tactics to try and shove his sister away.

“Vehehehehex!” the male twin leans himself off his chair, then crashes to the floor. Vex pounces down after him and tickles his ribs from behind, causing Vax to release a secondary burst of giggles before he curls up and rolls onto his back to attempt to grapple his sister’s wrists. He leans his head back and kicks his legs behind her.

“See, now what did I tell you, dear brother? You’re still the more ticklish one,” Vex teases and easily slips her hands from Vax’s grasp to continue tickling him. There’s no follow up response from Vax except a continuous stream of giggles and a loud snort. Knowing the sound he just made, he curls himself onto his side and tries to hide his face in his arm.

“Aww, and you still snort too. How adorable,” Vex lays the teases on thick.

“Shuhuhuhut up!” Vax finally responds.

“Hey, that’s not very nice. It seems I just have to tickle you more to change your attitude,” Vex smiles and scribbles a hand towards her brother’s belly, causing him to curl himself up tighter. As the twins scuffle, Trinket happily growls at them before trotting off towards the doorway to lie down.

“Hehe, looks like the twins have already roped themselves into the fight,” Keyleth chuckles from her seat.

“It’s inevitable that siblings will get themselves into little squabbles from time to time,” Percy says beside her, not even taking his eyes off his sketchbook.

Keyleth turns to him with a smile. “Did you usually get into tickle fights with your siblings, Percy?”

He glances up at her. “Me? Oh no, no. I don’t do tickle fights.” He returns to sketching.

Keyleth tilts her head. “Huh? But, it definitely sounded like you were speaking from experience…”

Before Keyleth can ask another question, there’s a Scanlan sized giggly scream from the other side of the room. Grog has grabbed Scanlan’s arms and pulled them to the side to allow Pike to scribble into his underarms.

“A lihihihittle hehehehelp here wohohohould be–hehehe nice!” Scanlan shouts out to whichever one of his party members is willing to listen.

“Hold on, Scanlan! I’m coming!” Keyleth answers the call. She places the plant on her chair, then runs over in the direction of Pike. The Ashari makes it to the edge of the table and tries to swipe at Pike, like she was attempting to catch a rabbit, but Pike jumps back.

“Whoa!” Pike says. “Oh no, Keyleth!” Pike already giggles as she turns to run. She hops off the table and Keyleth chases behind her.

“Oh no you don’t, Keyleth!” Grog immediately puts Scanlan down and rushes to Pike's aid. Before the chase has even begun, Grog snatches Keyleth off the ground in a hug as she passes by the corner of the table. He places Keyleth’s feet back to the floor and scribbles into her sides, earling a squeak from the Ashari.

“Eehehehek! Grohohohog!” Keyleth giggles and squeezes her arms down. “Thihihihis height difference mahahahakes it sohohoho unfair!” she says as she realizes the ticklish predicament Scanlan must have been in.

“Sorry, Keyleth! But if you mess with my best buddy, you mess with me!” Grog grins as he carefully wiggles his fingers to Keyleth’s ribs, keeping her in place as she sways like a leaf in the breeze.

Pike twists on her heels once she hears Keyleth’s laughter. She smiles at her buddy Grog as a thank you. Past Grog’s form, however, Pike sees the wooden table they were just at. The once giggling form of Scanlan is now missing. 

“Huh?” Pike wonders. “Where did he–”

“Sneak attack!” Scanlan loudly announces his presence behind her as he digs his fingers into Pike’s sides.

“AHA!” Pike yelps from being taken off guard. “Hahaha! Scanlahahahan!” Pike darts her hands down in an attempt to pry the bard’s hands latched onto her sides.

“You thought you could just tickle me and get away with it? Oh no, no, no, Pike. You see, now it’s my turn to even the playing field,” Scanlan grins. “Who would have guessed that under all that armor that the mighty Pike is so ticklish?”

“Ohoho, yohohohou’re going to rehehehegret saying thahahahat!” Pike giggles.

“I regret saying a lot of things, but this is not one of them,” Scanlan replies.

Seeing six out of the seven party members get thrown into a tickle fight, Percy places his sketchbook on the side table next to his chair, then stands. “Well, if you all are going to continue fooling around with each other, then I think I should take my leave.”

Percy turns towards the doorway to exit. However, as the big brown bear sees Percy walking in that direction, Trinket trots in front of the doorway and blocks the exit. The bear growls at the white-haired man.

Percy takes a step back. “Wha– Trinket?”

“Good thinking, Trinket!” Vex says, seeing the exchange between her bear and the noble occur. “You’re not going anywhere without first joining the fight, Percy.” Vex glances to her bear, “Trinket, be a dear and get Percy, will you?”

Trinket happily growls at Percy. The noble takes another step back.

“Wait, Trinket!” Percy puts his hands up.

The bear growls again and charges at Percival. Trinket headbutts Percy square in the stomach, with enough force to push him, but not to hurt him. Percy hits the back wall as Trinket charges at him and, being the large bear that he is, Trinket easily traps Percy to the wall by having his head right up against his stomach. With another happy huff from the bear, Trinket begins nuzzling his snout into Percy’s stomach, finding a way under his dress shirt and vest for his snout to be most effective.

Percy flinches and his mouth twitches upwards; he tries to restrain his snickers while he attempts to shove Trinket’s big, playful head out of his shirt. “Trinket! Stand down, boy! I am not a toy for you to cuddle!”

“Good boy, Trinket!” Vex exclaims. She leaves her brother in a crumpled pile of giggles and runs over to help her bear. 

“Let me lend you a hand, Trinket,” she says, now standing beside her furry companion. “Or perhaps, two hands?” she wiggles all of her fingers at Percy.

“V-Vex! Don’t you da–AHare!” Percy closes his mouth shut once Vex lunges her hands at his ribs. A few restrained snickers start to trickle from the man as he turns his face away into his shoulder.

“Percival, you’re holding out on me,” Vex teases. “You do know that it’s a tickle fight, right? So, laugh a little,” she moves her hands up his ribs and into his underarms. Rather quickly, his snickers sputter and turn into full blown giggles.

“Vehehehex!” Percy completely breaks into an outpouring of bubby joy. He bends his arms down for protection, but that doesn’t stop the loveable bear from nuzzling into his belly. He tries to wiggle his way out of his predicament.

“There we go! We got him, Trinket!” Vex glances at the bear before looking back at Percy. “See, Percy? You would have missed out on all this fun had you walked out.”

“I will nohohohot be subjugated to-hohoho thihihihis childish gahahame!” He wiggles to the side and successfully dislodges himself from Trinket and the wall, then wastes no time in sprinting across the room.

“This isn’t over yet, Percy!” Vex exclaims. Right before she takes off for the chase, a woosh of black cloth passes by her.

“I’ll deal with you later!” Vax glances over his shoulder to his sister as he runs by.

“Yeah, right. We’ll see about that,” Vex smiles before following suit and running back into the frey.

Percy, knowing he’s a target, skids behind Grog and Keyleth and takes cover.

“Grog! Let me use your body as a shield!” Percy peeks out from the side of the goliath.

Grog’s view turns towards Percy. “Uh, okay.”

“I’ve gotcha, Keyleth!” Vax says from Grog’s other side and leaps onto the table, then he jumps off towards Grog. He lands on Grog and wraps his arms around the goliath’s neck, piggy-back style.

“Hey!” Grog tries to snatch Vax from over his back, releasing Keyleth from his hold. “Get over here, pipsqueak!” Grog spins from side to side to toss Vax off of him, but Vax keeps his grip. Grog sidesteps one way and nearly crashes into Percy, sending the noble stumbling backwards and onto the floor; when Grog sidesteps to his other side, Vex also stumbles backwards and onto the floor when she tries to dodge.  

Grog halts his movement to try and get a better grip on Vax, but the dagger wielder shows him a smirk and uses one hand to scribble at the goliath’s ribs while Vax’s other arm holds himself up by staying wrapped around Grog’s neck.

Grog jolts and a bigger smile grows on his already large features. “Hehehey! Vahahahax!” he tries to reach up at the half-elf again. “Nohoho fair!”

“No fair? We’re playing a tickle fight with a guy twice our size. Creative strategies have to be used, my friend,” Vax smiles at him. 

“And don’t forget about a little bit of magic!” Keyleth recovers and faces her palm towards Grog. Her hand glows and vines sprout from the floor, wrapping themselves loosely around Grog and brushing up against the rest of his torso.

Grog stops going for Vax and pulls his arm down as deep laughter booms from his chest. “Ohohohokay! Mahahahaybe I earned thihihihis!” Grog says through his giggles.

Vex stands up and leans an arm on Trinket. She sees Percy still on the floor, but she’s quite amused with the sight of their tallest ally being overpowered by tickling. She’ll call off her chase, for now.

“Ohohoho no! Grohohog!” Pike says through her own laughter as she hears Grog being felled by giggles from across from her.

“Oooh. What a shame,” Scanlan says over Pike’s shoulder. “It seems like you and Grog have fallen to the same tragic fate of revenge—WHOA!”

Pike uses a burst of strength to yank one of Scanlan’s arms and fling him to the floor in front of them onto his back. As he lifts his head up to regain his bearings, Pike pounces at him like a wolf and knocks him back to the floor. She dives her hands towards his sides, earning a shriek of laughter from Scanlan.

“Pihihihihike! Yohohou already had yohohour turn tickling mehehehe! Hahahave mercy!”

“I’ll consider it, if you help me help Grog,” Pike negotiates with a smile.

“Nohoho way! Hehehe started it!”

Pike shrugs, “Suit yourself then.” She crawls her fingers back up to his underarms, causing Scanlan to kick his legs out behind her and his giggles to increase.

Pike glances beside her to Percy, who’s still leaning back on the floor as he watches Grog’s current fate. “Percy! Come help me with Scanlan!” she says to him.

The noble shakes his head. “No, thank you. I’ve had my fair share of this fight for one day.”

“Come on, Percy. You’re got to have some fun once in a while.” She puts on a smirk. “Or are you too much of a stick-in-the-mud noble to do so?”

Percy’s stunned. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” Pike’s tone is one that’s begging to be challenged. Percy narrows her eyes at her, but Pike has already turned her attention back to the giggling bard.

“Now Scanlan, are you willing to help me assist Grog?”

“Yehehes! Yes!” Scanlan raises one arm above his head and purple magic begins to swirl around his hand. Pike pulls her hands away from him, allowing Scanlan—breathless and full of residual giggles—to summon his magical purple hand and glide it towards Grog. Scanlan rolls onto his stomach to see the world upright and controls the magic of “Scanlan’s hand” to tap Keyleth on the shoulder.

Falling for one of the oldest tricks in the book, Keyleth turns to look at the hand. “Huh? Hey!” She exclaims when the hand drifts down to tickle her side. When she twists to avoid it, the hand follows her and tickles the rest of her torso. Scanlan and Pike snicker from the sidelines.

As Keyleth giggles, her concentration on the magic vines falter and the vines retract back into the floor.

Now free, Grog swings his hand behind his back and grabs a hold of Vax’s ankle. He yanks the half-elf from his back and holds him upside down in front of him. A mischievous grin across the goliath’s features is what Vax is met with as he dangles from the ankle. 

Vax releases a nervous chuckle. “Any chance that you’ll put me down, big guy?”

Grog shakes his head like a child who’s gotten their way. “Nope. None,” Grog says and plunges a hand into Vax’s belly. The half-elf barks out a surprised laugh and clasps both of his hands to Grog’s singular large one in any attempt to pry it from his giggling belly.

“Well it wahahas wohohorth a shohohohot!” Vax says.

“All right, Grog!” Pike cheers. Scanlan dissipates his magic hand, releasing Keyleth, then plops onto the floor to take a well deserved break. 

“I’m coming to help!” Pike gets up to dash over to Grog.

“Hold on a minute, Pike!” Percy swoops in behind her and scoops her up into his arms, causing Pike to shriek as he lifts her in a hug off her feet. He has his arms wrapped under hers like he was holding a cat.

“Allow me to show you that a noble can indeed have fun,” Percy smirks. He tightens one arm around her while his other hand starts to scribble into her side. Pike jolts with another burst of giggles and attempts pushing on Percy’s arm to squeeze herself free.

“Pehehehercy, wahahait! I was just kihihihidding!” she kicks her feet in the air.

“Of course. I know that, Pike. But I have to protect the reputation of my good name. You understand,” he smiles. Pike’s squirming becomes strong enough to where Percy nearly drops her, but he catches himself and places Pike safely to the ground, though still with one arm wrapped around her and one tickling her to keep her in place. Percy chuckles as he kneels down, takes a seat on the floor, then pulls Pike into his lap to now have the ability to tickle her with both of his hands, sending her giggles even louder. 

Keyleth eventually recovers, arms still wrapped around herself. She processes her surroundings, noticing Vax’s situation.

“Oh no, Vax. Not again,” Keyleth straightens herself out and prepares her hand to summon more vines.

“I’m going to stop you right there, Keyleth!” Vex rams into the Ashari with a giant hug.

“W-What?! Vex, what are you–dohohohoing?!” Keyleth squeaks at the end of her sentence when Vex takes her turn at tickling the Ashari. 

“Well, you were about to help my brother out of his predicament, and I’m quite entertained by his situation. You wouldn’t want to cut that entertainment short, now would you?”

“Buhuhuhut Vax is in trohohohouble!” she giggles in response.

“Nooo, he’s fine. Look at him. He’s smiling, laughing. He doesn’t need our help,” Vex grins. Trinket happily huffs to himself. Seeing that his allies are enjoying themselves, Trinket trots away over to a spot behind a still resting Scanlan to lie down and watch the rest unfold, until his assistance is requested again.

Just then, a giggly scream from Pike catches Grog’s ears. The goliath turns his head to see that Percy is scribbling a hand at Pike’s belly while the gnome kicks and curls her arms around herself.

“Pike! Buddy!” Grog shouts. He drops Vax to the floor like a bag of gold and dashes over to Pike. Percy looks up just in time to see the massive goliath barreling towards him. His eyes go wide and immediately lets go of Pike. He crawls backwards on his arms and lifts himself to his feet as Grog approaches.

“Grog, wait! We can talk about this!” Percy turns to run, but Grog instantly snatches him off the floor and into his arms, holding him very similarly as Percy did to Pike. Grog spins to face his buddy, then wastes no time in digging a set of his fingers into Percy’s side. Percy lets out a startled chortle before his giggles find their way out again. 

“Pick on someone, your own size!” Grog grins behind him.

“Thahahat’s rich cohohoming from yohohohou!” Percy responds. He wiggles and slips his nimble self from Grog’s arms, ducking under them before running. 

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?” Grog says before he and Pike take off after him.

Vex witnesses Percy is involved in another chase. She chuckles. “See, Percy! Told you it wasn’t over!”

As she finishes her sentence, Vax suddenly lunges at her and tackles her to the floor. 

“And I told you that I would come back for you later,” Vax smirks above her as he darts his hands towards his sister’s sides. A minor shriek releases from Vex before she slaps a hand to cover her mouth, though Vax can see her smile twitching from under her fingers. Her other hand attempts to shove at Vax while the heels of her boots dig at the floor.

“Ah, ah, ah, sister. We will be having none of that. You saw me giggling my head off, it’s only fair that I see yours,” Vax crawls a hand up to her underarm connected to the hand blocking her smile. Vex yanks her hand down with a shriek that results in the joyful sound of laughter.

“Vahahahahax you a–ahahahaha!” The rest of Vex’s sentence is erased by her giggles. 

“Language, sister,” he playfully scolds her, knowing exactly what she was about to say. He turns to the Ashari. “Keyleth, want to provide some assistance?”

Keyleth nods with a smile, “Okay!” The Ashari makes her way over. She sits on her knees on the floor next to Vex’s other side and joins in, scribbling at Vex’s stomach. The giggles of the female twin grow higher in pitch as she attempts to protect and slap away the two pairs of hands scribbling across her torso.

“Twohoho against ohohone? Well I cahahahan play thahahat gahahame too!” Vex exclaims. “Trinket! Hehehelp me!” she shouts across the room.

The bear growls and lifts himself to his feet. Trinket begins charging forward. Scanlan hears the loud pounding of paws behind him and turns his head to see Trinket running in his direction. Scanlan leaps to his feet and runs straight, keeping his eyes on the bear. Meanwhile, Percy turns the corner on the other side of the room and runs right towards Vex, Vax, and Keyleth, though his eyes are also on his pursuers.

Almost at the same time, Scanlan and Percy look forward, seeing not only are they going to crash into each other, but into Vex, Vax, and Keyleth as well. They try to slow their movement, but Pike and Grog crash into Percy, while Trinket crashes into Scanlan, sending everyone crashing into the twins and Keyleth—which creates a party-sized dogpile with all the Vox Machina members.

As the “dust” settles, Trinket, who was on the edge of the pile, lifts himself up and finds Scanlan lying on the edge next to Grog. The bear nuzzles Scanlan’s neck as an apology, which slowly pulls Scanlan out of his dazed state. 

“Trinket,” Scanlan giggles as the bear gets in one final tickle at his neck. He shoves at the bear’s snout. “Come on, cut it out.” 

The bear growls with glee. As Trinket steps back, everyone else begins to slowly emerge from the pile. Eventually, they untangle themselves and stand to stretch their previously squished bodies.

“Well, that was a fight that I bet none of us were expecting,” Vax says as he stretches out his back.

“To think we were taking a day off and ended up fighting each other instead,” Vex mentions. “But that does seem like something we would do, doesn’t it?”

“I don’t know about you all,” Keyleth chimes in, “but I thought it was fun. I know I said something earlier with Scanlan’s joke and no one agreed, but I can’t be the only one who thought this was fun, right? I mean, it was enjoyable enough for Percy to join in.” She gestures a hand towards the white-haried man.

Percy crosses his arms. “My hand was forced into the fight, thank you. Under no other circumstances would I have joined.”

Pike shrugs. “Eh, all it takes is a few teases and poking fun at his royal title to get him to hop in,” she teases and smiles at Percy. Percy rolls his eyes, though he returns a warm smile to her as well.

“It was unexpected, but at least it brightened the mood,” Scanlan says. He turns to look up at the goliath. “You did good, Grog,” Scanlan compliments.

“Hehe, thank you,” Grog takes the compliment. He blinks a few times and puts a finger to his chin. “Um…what exactly did I do good again?”

Vax pats him on the arm. “You were just being yourself, big guy.” 

“And we love ya for it,” Pike hugs his ankle. 

“Aww, come here, you!” Grog picks her up in a gentle, but firm hug, then places her on his shoulder with a grin.

Some would say that they’re one odd bunch of adventures, but to them, they’re just one big happy family.

[liltaireissocute]

[PERC'ILDAN]

a quick art for my spouse's wonderful new perc'ildan fic

[bloodinmymilkshake]

Some Percildan headcanons

💫 Percy has constant nightmares, from which he is distracted by working at night on another crazy project, and only Vax notices his trembling hands and unfocused gaze and persuades him to sleep for at least three hours, promising to be there. Percy sleeps much longer and opens his eyes to find Vax sleeping next to him. Perhaps one of them hugged the other in their sleep, and this is very embarrassing (they are not together yet).

💫 Vax can be quite careless about his health when it comes to injuries (like “everything on me heals like on a dog”), but Percy notices blood on his clothes and treats his wounds, possibly with something like alcohol (they are in camp conditions). Perhaps one day Percy will have to stitch up Vax's wound alive, and Vax honestly tries to stoically withstand the pain, but tears appear in his eyes, and Percy gently begs him, like a child, to endure just a little.

💫 Vax tries to feed Percy whenever possible, as he notices that Percy eats infrequent snacks, especially while working. So Vax brings him a hot meal to the workroom.

💫 Percy is a non-tactile type of person and usually avoids being touched. But he never misses a chance to touch Vax, lays his head on his shoulder or plays with his hair, or warms himself against him, sitting close (Vax is very warm, and Percy is a man with eternally cold limbs). They always sleep in the same bed if there are no free beds in the place where they spend the night. Of course, Percy and Vax make excuses that friends sometimes do this, but the whole team notices that Percy allows Vax more than anyone else.

💫 Percy had never been in a relationship before. To be honest, he has no romantic or sexual experience whatsoever. During their first kiss, he doesn't know what to do with his hands and just brushes his lips against Vax's while his glasses slide askew. Vax just gently cups his face with both hands and kisses him very carefully.

💫 In the first months, Percy was afraid that their relationship was not as serious for Vax as it was for him. However, Vax himself offered to stop hiding and introduced Percy to everyone as his boyfriend.

💫 Vax is afraid to allow himself too much with Percy. Early in their relationship, Percy made it clear that he wasn't interested in sex (I'm headcanoning Percy as being on the asexual spectrum and Vax as bisexual, who has more experience with girls). Vax is not put off by this because he still loves Percy, however, very often their hugs and kisses are quite passionate and heated. One day they go a little further and Percy gets horny. Maybe he cums in his pants and just runs to the bathroom, leaving Vax to wonder what he did wrong.

💫 Sometimes Percy and Vax argue about who will be on top, not in a "I'm in charge" context, but in a "please relax, I want to please you, you deserve love and adoration" context.

💫 Percy can be very jealous, especially when it comes to Vax's exes. Sometimes Vax is really afraid that someone will get shot. Percy cools down quite easily when Vax kisses him in public or takes his hand to show that they belong together. But this doesn’t stop Percy from pressing Vax against the wall a little later, repeating “mine” many times in a hot whisper in his ear.

[demigoddessqueens]

Hello there may I request Percy from Vox Machina and Alucard from Castlevania with a male reader the two of them rides male reader face and male reader eats them out.

Absolute bars anon!! 🙌❤️‍🔥👍

MDNI,NSFW,SMUT 19+

Kinktober 2024

Percy

You practically had to gag the young man as his voice raised several octaves. He quickly found out that the more he tried to protest, the more devilish you were in denying him.

Even past the gag, Percy tried to be defiant as your lips wrapped around him. The nerves were more receptive than usual as his legs threatened to close around you. Hands were weaving through your hair tighter than usual. The taste of you from before still lingered on his lips.

If it wasn’t for the intimate environment, he would have tried to take charge and make you shiver.

“Are you going to behave, Percival, or am I going to have resort to other methods?”

With a defeated sigh past the gag, you could see the meek nod of his head as you made a meal out of him for more.

Alucard

He tried to stay quiet. Key word being tried.

You still had a blush on your cheeks after the obscene noises he had made while tasting you, but it wasn’t helping that Alucard was doing his best to look even more sinfully beautiful

Golden tresses were splayed out in waves on the bed pillows. Shirt and pants mussed and undone as fists clenched onto the sheets when you sucked him off. The trail that led down from his chest to the hips was just too irresistible.

“Are you gonna be a good boy for me, Alucard?”

The dhamphir could barely peak past his eyes that were practically glued shut in ecstasy.

The frantic chorus of “yess!” made the heat coil in your belly as you tried to not tire him too much. You wanted to enjoy the rest of this evening.

[nowyoursoulisforfeit]

I have said it before and will say it again: give Percy his thigh high boots and thing holster back. Just let me have this, please.

[critter-genfic-events]

Character Studies

This week, we have ten character studies recs - deep dives into main characters and side characters alike. Check them out beneath the cut, and let the authors know if you like them!

the beauty and the mess by batyatoon (2887,Not Rated) Warnings: None Pairings:

A long day at Whitestone Castle, waiting for Scanlan to wake up or for his friends to come back.

Reccer says: A great look at Kaylie in episodes 84 and 85, brutal and truthful and excellent in all the ways that hurt. (one of the tags is "everything's funny until it isn't" and it and this story live in my head rent-free.)

let's pick the truth we believe in by burningdarkfire (28108,Teen) Warnings: Implied/Referenced Abuse Pairings: Essek Thelyss/Caleb Widogast, Astrid Beck & Eadwulf Grieve & Caleb Widogast

Astrid kills Trent while the Nein are in Aeor. Caleb returns to Rexxentrum to make some peace with his past and make some sense of his future.

Reccer says: Very emotionally complex and beautiful writing

that i live (and you are gone) by DesertLily (2183,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: Keyleth/Vax’ildan, Keyleth & Vox Machina, Keyleth & Essek Thelyss

Keyleth’s perspective on the deaths of each member of Vox Machina as she outlives them all.

Reccer says: I liked it

afterimage by saturdaysky (2858,Teen) Warnings: Pairings: Deirta Thelyss & Essek Thelyss

The Umavi receives an unexpected petitioner seeking solace from grief. As ever, Deirta provides clarity. As ever, Essek chafes at the impossible.

Reccer says: It shows both Essek and his mother as extremely complicated characters, and is a fun dive into what living several lifetimes might do to a person

A single lonesome toll by dadrielle (snappilier) (3715,Teen) Warnings: very vague reference to suicidal ideation (in line with imogen's reference to it in canon) Pairings:

Character study of Bells Hells centered around their relationships with loneliness and how coming together changes that

Reccer says: I liked it

Eadwulf Grieve Is Dead! by tangereen (1112,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings: listed gen first, but also Eadwulf Grieve/Essek Thelyss, Clarabelle Clay & Eadwulf Grieve, Astrid Beck & Eadwulf Grieve

Eadwulf Grieve is legally declared dead and struggles to figure out what that means for his future and life.

Reccer says: Wulf gets to stick it to Ickythong.

The Cut of His Jib by Nenia458 (6544,Teen) Warnings: Choose not to Warn, PTSD Pairings: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III/Vex'ahlia, Keyleth/Vax'ildan (Critical Role), Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Vax'ildan, Vax'ildan & Vex'ahlia (Critical Role)

Along the treacherous route to a job, Vax (1) does not stab Percy for flirting with his sister (2) successfully stabs a pirate (3) learns something about their gunslinger that fundamentally changes his opinion of the man.

Reccer says: This is the perfect Percy, to me

With no Lapidary by Operafloozy (960,Teen) Warnings: None Pairings:

Ashton's hair requires a little extra work to take care of - much like the genasi himself

Reccer says: It takes a simple fact about Ashton - that their hair is a rock, and then thinks through what that might mean for them throughout their life.

Tenderness to You is Only Talk About a Bruise by thetickingclock (1439,Teen) Warnings: body dysphoria Pairings: Kingsley Tealeaf & The Mighty Nein

Mollymauk had woken up empty, but Kingsley is full to the bursting. It is so easy to be alive. It is hard, sometimes, to understand how much they love him. It is harder still, to let them.

Reccer says: The language is amazing, and the view of an Kingsley's extremely early days - learning who he might be among the nein is extremely evocative

Caesura by kinosternon (1486,Mature) Warnings: anxiety, alcohol/drug mention, canon-typical violence Pairings:

Scanlan dreams that one of Vox Machina has died.

Reccer says: The fic was written around episode 73 of the Vox Machina campaign and perfectly encapsulates Scanlan's state of mind in those late Chroma Conclave episodes. You can feel the break coming. Insightful and heartbreaking.

This is one of our weekly communally-generated gen rec lists. Every week we announce a new theme and allow anyone to submit a fic recommendation. Please note that the summary and content notes are provided by the reccer, and may be different than what the author has provided. Please assume good intentions all around. <3

And hey, anyone includes you!

We'll be starting off the next year with Vax! Maybe something celebrating his de-orbing?

Then, it'll be Reunions, Nott/Veth and Sendings!

Any fics coming to mind? Well, then use this form to submit!

If you're looking for some more, check out some fics written in the critter genfic bingo tag, or the older rec lists! Or you can request your own card and join in on the fun!

[thebest-medicine]

oooh how about 5. “I’m just… sensitive” with Percy/Vax 👀👀👀

Prompt 5 - "No- I'm just- uh- sensitive."

A/N: yessssssssSSSSSSSS. the boys are flirting.

,,,

“What’s wrong?” Vax asked, drawing back the arm he’d draped around his companion’s neck as he’d flinched away at the contact. He smirked. “Nervous being so close to–”

“No.” Percival pressed, cutting him off. Then, he let out a nervous breath. “I’m just- uh- sensitive… there.” He said quietly.

“‘Sensitive’, Freddy, really?” Vax's smirk widened at him. 

Percy gave him the most annoyed glare he could muster at the moment, but Vax wasn’t buying into it in the slightest.

“Where? Here?” Vax’s arm was back, hand grasping toward his neck. 

“Vax! Leave me alone!” Percy squawked, reeling backwards. “Stop it!” He swatted at the half-elf’s hands and scrambled back a few more steps before he knocked into a chair and nearly tipped over it. “Vax.” 

Vax was beaming, that curious gleam of mischief in his eyes. “Percy…” He sang, then caught him around the shoulders with one arm. It looped tightly, while his other arm scribbled swiftly up to his neck to scamper about for sensitive spots. He smiled jovially as Percy began to squirm, tugging uselessly at his arm. “Did you tell Vex? Kiki? They’re going to love this.”

“Stahop!” Percy hissed, gritting his teeth. “This is undignified!” 

“No, not yet. But you’re about to be!” Vax teased. “Once I find that spot again…” 

Percival screwed his eyes shut, trying to tug his chin down to his chest to no avail. Vax caught a particularly sensitive spot near the nape of his neck that had him squirming madly, butterflies rising in his chest. His knees buckled as he wheezed out a short laugh, and Vax brought them both down to the floor, clamoring over the gunslinger. 

“Dohohon’t!” Percy cried, his face contorting into a smile he desperately sought to avoid. 

“Too late for that now, Mr. ‘Sensitive’.”

…

[more sentence starter fic prompts]

[other sentence starter fics]

[read this & further CR drabbles on ao3]

[neopuff]

title: kisses word count: ~630 ships/characters: vex/percy, vax summary: Vex was so happy to hear his voice again. ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/60019693

x

Vex stared at his face - sunken cheeks, chapped lips, dark circles around his eyes - and she'd never seen a more beautiful, perfect sight in her entire life.

She took several deep breaths as the sound of his voice, a voice she never thought she'd ever hear again, filled her ears. She was so, so relieved. Her heart was still beating so fast, it felt like her chest was going to burst.

"...Vex," he whispered, his voice scratchy and hoarse.

Unable to stop herself, she grabbed his face and pulled him towards her, pressing their lips together. She needed to feel him and she didn't care who was watching.

Percy kissed back immediately, though his shaky hands struggled to grab onto her.

Vex pulled away for a brief moment, allowing Percy to speak again. "Vex, I-"

No. Hearing his voice just reminded her of the mistakes she'd made. She kissed him again, peppering small kisses on his lips and all around as she mumbled against his skin, "I love you, I love you, I love you."

His grip on her arm strengthened and he kissed her back feverishly, almost as if he'd just escaped from an endless, hellish nightmare. "I-I love you, too, but-"

She ignored him, kissing him still. Vex needed to feel him and touch him and hold him. She needed to make sure he understood exactly how much she loved him. She should've told him before and she'd never let him go without hearing it again. "I love you so much," she mumbled, barely aware of the tears that continued trailing down her cheeks.

"Please, Vex'ahlia-" Percy lightly shoved her shoulder, his hand barely able to keep a grip on her top. "I...this is very, um." His cheeks were bright red, positively burning, and he stared down at the floor.

Vex blinked twice, gently swiping her thumbs across his face. She quickly glanced around the room to find that most of their team had looked away from them (Scanlan and Grog excluded, of course), but the publicity of her displays of affection were leaving Percival deeply embarrassed.

She smirked at him, no longer feeling like she needed to cry. She felt almost normal for the first time in a long time. "I need to get some color back in your cheeks, darling. Makes you look more alive."

Percy huffed and looked back up at her, smiling. His eyes sparkled and he leaned forward to kiss her - just briefly, nothing like she'd been doing to him - and he pulled back to take a deep breath.

"Are you two done? I don't think I can take anymore of this," Vax called out from the other side of the room. Cassandra made a noise of agreement, though the look on her face showed that she was happier than she'd ever been.

"For now," Vex responded, helping Percy sit up straight. She kept one hand on his back and the other on his chest, feeling his heartbeat. "We should get you bathed and fed, darling."

"That sounds spectacular," Percy responded, leaning against her as what was left of his strength gave out.

Vex took another deep breath and allowed the rest of the team to take their turns hugging and kissing their newly revived friend. Some of them joked about how bad he smelled and she was surprised that she didn't notice anything wrong with him at all. All she could think about was how much she loved him and how happy she was to see him alive and breathing again. She had to stop herself from reaching out and grabbing him - he needed time to breathe and to be with his other friends and family again.

But Gods did she want to hold him and never let go.

[damejudyhench]

From my Heart and From my Hands

“Later,” Percy was barely able to croak through the sudden fog of lust clouding his brain, and then he was lost. He thought he might have dropped the wine glasses, but Vex’ahlia was kissing him and he was kissing her back, drowning in the taste and the smell of her, forest and leather and dark smoky liquor.

Percy believes he doesn’t deserve happiness. Vex believes happiness can’t last. Their first time together, inexplicably, makes them happy.

Aka I think I’m in love :D I think I’m in love D:

Second chapter now up! Thanks to @corancoranthemagicalman

[tripleyeeet]

FUTILE DEVICES. (1)

SUMMARY: Zayis, now recently bound to aid the council of Emon, finds herself (unwillingly) in the company of Vox Machina. PAIRING: Percival de Rolo/Original Female Character (Zayis Marden)

WARNINGS: Mentions of tiefling racism, multi POV. That's about it. A/N: Here we go, folks! WC: 5,869

CHAPTER LIST / MASTERLIST / AO3

-

The moment Zayis sees the knives come out inside the dimly lit tavern, she’s out. With a heavy sigh and a wave of her hand, her body instantly materializes from the far counter of the bar to outside the entrance; her tankard of ale still in hand as she curses under her breath. 

All day she’d been running errands for Allura and the council, sifting through the city streets for possible mercenary groups to aid the sovereign, and now she was tirelessly trying to unwind. Her body feeling a bit achy from collecting a rather lengthy list of ingredients for Uriel’s personal healer on top of all the information collecting and a little bit of selfish pickpocketing as a treat.

Taking a sip of her drink, she releases a sigh and sits on the steps. A heavy feeling pooling within her gut as she closes her eyes, trying to relax. Such a feat unfortunately proving quite difficult with all the fighting going on back inside. The various sounds of grunting and yelling alongside a myriad of smashing causing her to pinch the bridge of her nose in annoyance. 

Nowadays, no matter where she goes, it feels like all of Emon is at war with one another. Regardless of petty things like social standing, there always seems to be trouble among groups. Whether it's related to politics or nothing more than a mindless spat like the one occurring inside, it feels like the general peace has passed its point —the empty sounds of a wind gust or the flow of rain lost behind the constant bickering. 

It makes her sink further into the stone steps as she leans back, resting her elbow against the hard edge. Allowing herself to mentally exist elsewhere for a moment while her body remains stuck in the present.

Almost immediately, her thoughts wander to the deal she and Allura had made nearly a week ago: “If you swear your allegiance to the sovereign, he will pardon your transgressions, Zayis.” 

Even now, after nearly a week of such allegiance having been made, she still isn’t sure whether she made the right decision or not. Favouring a bit more freedom in her day, truthfully, the exhaustion she currently feels makes it a bit harder to be optimistic about the whole thing. The usual silver lining she tends to imagine even on her darkest of days falling short when she finds herself gazing into a future of endless commands from a rather demanding group of individuals. The grating sound of Fince’s voice specifically now echoing in her ears well after she’s had a few hours of reprieve from it. 

“Fucking Allura,” she grumbles to herself as she sips her ale. Her frustrations quickly becoming interrupted when she hears the crashing of a door behind her, followed by the sight of bodies being thrown overhead, causing her to duck. The panic of nearly being caught in the mess of the tavern keep and the supposed troublemakers that started it all, making her immediately adjust her cloak to hide her stolen tankard. 

“Does this mean we’re banned from every tavern in Emon?” she hears one of them say once they’ve settled. Followed by a short burst of responses she doesn’t quite catch since she’s still too busy processing her lack of solitude at the end of the staircase —watching as they slowly begin to stand and dust themselves off. Their unfamiliar faces thankfully paying her no mind as they proceed to groan and shift; a newfound tension brewing between them as they begin to argue back and forth.

Swallowing hard, she’s reminded then that she’s not supposed to be involved in any trouble. So, instead of sticking around, she begins to quietly stand and descend the steps, hoping the group before her might remain lost in their own little world and fail to realize how long she’s been sitting there, mindlessly staring at them. 

Unfortunately though, not even a second after she moves, a pair of eyes belonging to a lithe, white-haired man turn to catch her own. Their pale green hue sizing her up between his glasses as she calmly walks, staring back with equal judgement until she’s forced to turn her focus to the road ahead, wondering what the hell they could’ve done to get banned from every tavern.  

-

As her knuckles rap against the oak door of Allura’s office the following morning, she finds her mind drifting back to that same moment just hours before. The scene of bodies thrown alongside the mention of tavern banning —the image of the white-haired man’s gaze boring into her skin with gross judgement.

Releasing a huff, she narrows her eyes at the thought just as Allura opens the door, watching as the wizard gives her a once-over followed by an immediate frown. “Gods, you look like shit.” 

Of course I do. I barely slept, she thinks. Though, she doesn’t say that out loud. Instead, she just brushes past her friend and flops onto the lounger located in the corner of the room. Her mind still foolishly focused on the group at the tavern as lets out a sigh. 

“You wanted to see me?” 

In response, Allura chuckles and closes the door before turning to face her. “I did, yes. Uriel wanted to ask a favour of you.”

A favor?

Zayis closes her eyes and hums, settling further amongst the velvet beneath her aching bones. “And what kind of favour did old Uriel ask for, then?”

“He’s asked that you join me for a little field trip.” 

At the mention of a trip, one of Zayis’s eyes immediately opens to glance at her friend, noticing the faint presence of a smirk on Allura’s lips. The sight clearly hinting at something she knows the tiefling will enjoy, prompting her attention to shift.

“What kind?” Zayis asks, sitting back up. 

Allura sighs and drops down next to her, adjusting her skirts. “We’ve found a band willing to aid in the extinction of that beast outside of Emon. They’re… a bit rougher around the edges than some of the other groups, but they’re willing and able, so—” 

“So, you have no trouble leading them to death,” Zayis shoots back, cutting her off.  

“They agreed to the terms.” 

“Terms I’m sure the council didn’t even bother to explain,” she replies, scoffing out a laugh. The kind that sounds almost bitter as it slips between her lips —the kind that usually she hides whenever the other members of the council tend to talk around her. 

Knowing this, the wizard sighs again, her tone of voice immediately becoming laced with exhaustion. “We’re running out of options, Zay. You know that.”

Unfortunately, she does. With how things have been going with his supposed beast, she’s well aware that the impression it’s making isn’t in favour of the council’s efforts to keep Emon strong. 

On the other hand, though, she’s aware that the same council resorting to poorly vetted recruitment to exterminate the damn thing isn’t much better. Especially after having lost a fair amount of her previous clientele to the cause.

In fact, just the though of how many she knows that’ve been lost makes her swallow. The urge to argue and point out the flaws in the sovereign’s plan heavy on her mind as she opts for silence, knowing deep down there’s no point, considering her word is far from law. 

“Uriel wants you to keep an eye on them,” Allura eventually says, partially changing the subject with a more huffy tone than previous. “Follow them around and report back. Just like old times, yeah?”

Raising her brow, Zayis moves her arms across her chest and leans back, offering her friend nothing but pure skepticism. “Let me get this straight. You want me to go off with a bunch of strangers into the mountains and watch over them until we all inevitably die like everyone else?” 

“Not die. Survey. Watch and make sure they behave.” 

“Oh, okay so, babysit?” she deadpans.  

Allura lets out a heavy breath. A plume of frustrated air pushing through her nose as she reaches up to pinch the bridge, unable to deny the truth. That’s exactly what they want more or less. 

“Yes. Fine. Babysit. Whatever. Now, are you willing to do that or should I inform Uriel that you’d rather run errands for Fince and Krieg instead?” 

Almost immediately, Zayis cringes at the thought; her lips forming a scowl as she shakes her head. “You know I’d rather die than spend a day with either of those idiots.”

“Perfect. We’ll head to the ship then.”

After that, Zayis feels a gentle pat on her knee. The soft, pale hand of her friend giving her a quick squeeze before she stands up to grab her things, motioning for Zayis to follow. 

“I promise it won’t be that bad,” she assures, stepping aside to close and lock the door behind the tiefling once she walks through. “Honestly, you might find good company in some of them. They seem like your type.”

What the hell does that mean?

“Mm, somehow that feels like an insult.” 

“It’s not,” Allura chuckles, prompting Zayis to rolls her eyes and shove her palms into the pockets of her trousers. “It’s just an assumption.”

“An assumption based on…?”

The wizard opens her mouth only to quickly close it and bite back a smirk instead. “Oh, I don’t know. Aren’t you typically a fan of those less proper?”

It’s true she’s not exactly a fan of the company Allura tends to keep. Having grown tired of it over the years, she much prefers to keep herself hidden away from all the noble bullshit that surrounds her. Especially when she’s not required to engage. 

“Lura, I’m not a fan of anyone and you know that.” 

Somehow, that gets a laugh, causing Zayis to let out a deep breath and shake her head, wondering why her friend always has to insist on her meeting other people. She already has enough friends right now. She’s got Allura and Kima and her brother, Dharmir, and—

“Well, regardless, maybe you should open up more. Give people a chance.” 

Zayis looks at her incredulously, stumbling a bit as she debates whether to stop walking or continue; quickly opting for the latter. “And you want me to extend the branch to these rough around the edge mercenaries, was it?”

Allura, forever known to push, merely shrugs her shoulders as they move. Her expression hopeful, yet stern. Her eyes clearly conveying the sense that yes, she does want Zayis to do that. “Aren’t you a little rough?”

“No, I’m not rough. I’m just… not soft like the rest of you.” 

Allura offers a smirk. “You’re quick to forget you were the same at one point.”

For a moment, she falters; her expression shifting from annoyance to something else neither of them can really place. Something strange and distant that promptly has her blinking and clearing her throat to reset. 

“Yes, well, isn’t that the point of running away? To forget the past and all that,” she says back, her tone suddenly dramatic as she wisps her hand around, earning herself an eye roll that makes her laugh, causing Allura to drop the facade of professionalism for a moment to shove the tiefling’s arm —an act of violence that has Zayis feigning a gasp in response. 

“You dare shove your loyal servant? How rude!”

“Oh hush, you’re not a servant. If anything, you’re more of an errand boy.”

“Mm, cause that’s so much better…”

This time, it’s Allura’s turn to laugh as they weave through the halls; their conversation becoming more playful as the wizard continues to tease the tiefling about her lack of social skills until they find themselves at the back end of the castle. A ship resembling that of a pirate’s, sitting in the grass a few yards away, waiting to be boarded. 

As soon as Zayis sees it, she raises a brow at her friend who merely smiles and motions her to keep moving. The two of them swiftly arriving near the entrance of it so that Allura can speak with some of the workers while she turns to survey the area. 

Despite how often she’s at the castle nowadays, she’s never been here before. Since she’s pretty much restricted to the various Master’s offices or the main hall, even the winding path of hallways they took to get here is lost on her thanks to the distracting conversation. The area she now finds herself in making her eyes narrow as she scans the line of trees behind them before doubling back to view the castle’s stone walls coated in vines.

“Everything’s clear. They’ll be arriving shortly,” Allura then says, pulling her attention back. 

“Who?”

“Your new friends, obviously,” she teases, giving her arm a light pinch.

In response, Zayis swats her hand away with the end of her tail and scowls, deciding to remain silent as she takes another look around, suddenly remembering that she’s about to wander into the war zone of a creature who has a rather stellar winning streak at the moment. A fact that truthfully makes her skin genuinely crawl.

“So, I’m assuming you have some sort of plan for if things go south, then?” 

Allura blinks at her for a moment, clearly gathering her thoughts before she hums and looks towards the castle. “I won’t be joining, unfortunately. I have business to attend to, but don’t worry, if things don’t go according to plan just…” 

Just…?

Zayis can’t help but question the way her sentence suddenly trails off. Allura’s shift in tone forcing her to assume the worst as she raises a brow. “Just… what? Leave them behind?”

“I didn’t say—“

“No, I feel like that’s what you’re insinuating,” she immediately argues, causing her friend’s jaw to shift while her eyes roll. An obvious sign of having just been proven wrong, which immediately creates a rift between them. The familiar kind where they tend to stew in silence, avoiding each other’s gaze in favour of brainstorming their act of retaliation —to take a beat and prove the other wrong in order to claim victory in another one of their petty little spats. 

Thankfully though, the exchange is short-lived. Interrupted by a small sea of bodies being led by a group of guards, prompting Zayis to assume Allura’s mention of their supposed roughness goes far deeper than she’s willing to let on. 

“Ah, right on time. Hello, Vox Machina!”

Zayis scowls at her friend’s sudden change in demeanour, watching as she politely lights up like a fireplace; the apples of her cheeks rising up alongside the edges of her lips.

Truthfully, it makes her a bit sick how she can seamlessly switch sides like that, slipping between her old, much more rational-sounding friend to the Arcane Master who now stands beside her, showing little signs of anything but a calculated wizard who merely lives to serve Emon and it’s gracious sovereign. 

“Gods, it’s scary when you do that,” Zayis can’t help but comment quietly. 

“What?”

Instead of responding, she just turns to face her, mocking her lifeless smile as she holds her hands in front of her lap and bats her lashes, causing her friend to roll her eyes and scoff. 

“I don’t look like that.” 

“You do, actually.”

This time, Allura huffs, holding back the urge to tease her in return as the guards part ways to reveal the group, the image of their faces immediately making Zayis cock her head and narrow her eyes, quickly realizing who they are.

“I’m assuming you’re all ready to go?”

The group responds accordingly, their voices creating a chorus of positive responses that seem to muffle as Zayis looks them over, eventually landing on the white-haired man who’s already back to passing ocular judgement as he’d done the night prior. 

“Great. Come along, then. We’ll do introductions on the boat.”  

-

There are too many names to remember. So, after the introductions are over Zayis just focuses on roles. Rogue, ranger, bard, gunslinger, etc. 

It’s easier that way, she tells herself. Less of a hassle to remember on top of avoiding any sort of personal connection —exactly how she likes it, despite Allura’s obvious displeasure for the concept when she later motions to the white-haired man standing across the boat.

“That gunslinger’s got a staring problem,” she huffs, instantly matching the man’s gaze as he looks back to see what they’re doing. His curious eyes moving between the two of them before they inevitably turn back to the ranger beside him who gives him a rather smug smile.  

“You’re not much better, dear.”

All she does is huff and lean against the railing, turning her attention to the vast land beneath them. The forest appearing small and almost winding now that they’re coasting through the air, riding the breeze with the sails dropped. 

“I bet he’s racist,” Allura suddenly says, her tone full of sarcasm, causing Zayis to snort. 

“I mean, there’s always someone who’s got it out for the Hells.”

“Perhaps he’s preparing to slaughter you when no one’s looking.” 

Glancing back with a smirk, Zayis shakes her head playfully, watching her friend move to stand at her side and smirk back. Their previous moments of tension before boarding slipping away like the current of a whitewater river.

“So, you’re suggesting I be vigilant, then?” 

Allura nods promptly, her expression attempting to feign a sense of seriousness while holding back a laugh. “Yes, wouldn’t want you to die by the hands of some inferior human.”

“Says the human.” 

Both of them chuckle. The sound carrying over to the other group who glance over, watching as they continue to idly bounce this ridiculous narrative off of each other until Zayis is practically leaning over the railing in stitches while Allura tries her best to remain more composed. 

“Hush, you’re going to get me in trouble,” the wizard eventually says, still partially laughing as she wipes her eyes and attempts to clear the humour from her throat, causing Zayis to scoff. 

“Me? You’re the one who came over here spewing rumours about the supposed racist,” she says, subtly motioning to the gunslinger with her chin before she stupidly gives in and looks over to see him staring once again. 

This time though, he’s got a bit of a scowl going on; his lips twisting with discomfort alongside pinched brows. An obvious air of annoyance flickering through his features as she narrows her eyes in return, wondering if perhaps he managed to hear their little exchange.

If he had, he’s certainly being pretty civil about it, Zayis thinks. So, instead of dwelling on it, she shifts her gaze back to see Allura adjusting her skirts and smoothing her hair —obviously working to reset before she mutters a simple, “Yes, well, no more jokes. Back to business,” before wandering off to join the rest of the group. 

Once gone, Zayis releases a deep breath and straightens her back as she debates whether or not she should follow, already knowing the answer. She should go over. Well aware that it’d be the smarter decision, considering they’re about to step into the heart of something more dangerous than she’s used it, she knows it’s what’s required of her. Though, she still can’t deny that the thought of having to play nice and do the noble thing by casting aside her usual reservations is already giving her a headache as she wanders over; hands shoved deep into her pockets to stand next to their rogue with a huff. 

“As you can see the creature has already razed three villages and miles of farmland,” she hears her friend say.

In response, the group stares at her with curious glances. Ones that mirror her own as she tries her best to absorb the information through the heavy gusts of wind that rush right through them. The sound slightly muffling her voice enough to cause the tiefling’s commonly distracted mind to wander —a myriad of questions and answers as to what might happen once they land appearing all at once, forcing a frown upon across her face. The edges of her lips turning down as she then hears Allura mention the possible outcome of a kingdom wide starvation.

At which point, Zayis fully stares at her; brows pushed together in annoyance, realizing that her friend forgot to relay that part of the mission of prior. Along with a few other things she assumes she’s bound to discover as the ship begins to descend, prompting her to stumble slightly and bump into the rogue beside her.

Thankfully though, he doesn’t regard her when it happens. Instead, he just shifts away after she’s gained her footing and keeps his gaze forward, causing Zayis to release a breath of relief before she decides to wander off and grab her things so that she may take a moment to think about weight of the job she’s agreed to. 

Because truthfully, when she’d said yes, she assumed it was going to be some sort of body guard situation. Something dangerous obviously, but overall more simple —not some sort of hunt alongside a handful of strangers who clearly aren’t very trustworthy of her. (Or, so she assumes, based on the way their gunslinger always seems to be keeping a watchful eye whenever she moves the slightest bit.)

Which makes her wonder what exactly his deal is. Considering the rest of the group has pretty much ignored her presence entirely other than the odd glance, she can’t help but wonder if his gaze is actually predatory or merely just a lack of social awareness. 

Either way, she makes a note to be a little more cautious around him as she kneels down to sift through her bag, fingers slipping into pockets to grab a few things that might come in handy. Her attention now focused on the task at hand again as she deposits everything into her coat until she hears the sound of footsteps. Then, she’s back to anxiously wandering through the depths of her mind as she turns around to see the group’s cleric awkwardly offering a wave, a small smile plastered across her face as she wanders over. 

“Uh, hello!” she says. 

Raising a brow, Zayis doesn’t respond at first. Instead, she just looks the cleric over, eyes flicking between her stark white hair and pale eyes —focusing for a moment on the scar that lines the left before she releases a heavy breath. 

“Hi.”

She clears her throat as Zayis moves to stand and look down curiously, watching the woman’s eyes shift towards her group before returning. “Sorry uh, what was your name again? I’m Pike.” 

Pike. Hm.

“Zayis.” 

Despite the obvious discomfort that shifts between them, Pike smiles and holds out her hand; the gauntlet she wears flickering in the sunlight enough to cause Zayis to look down and tentatively grab it, producing a single shake. 

“Nice to meet you. We’re uh, happy to have you!”

“Are you?” 

The words slip out before she can stop them, prompting Pike to falter for a moment as their hands move apart, causing the space between to become open once again as the cleric uncomfortably laughs. 

“Well, I’m not opposed to it,” she comments quietly.

At that, Zayis narrows her eyes, trying to figure out how to respond. Mostly because she’s used to people being wary of her. Being a tiefling and all, it’s fairly common for people to react in uncomfortable ways when meeting her, especially if her presence is forced upon them like it’s being now. So, she doesn’t blame Pike for acting nervous if that’s the case. Nor the others, despite her own discomfort growing at their presence as time goes on. 

“Well, that’s uh, kind,” Zayis eventually responds before she clears her throat and looks away.

As she does, she catches the gaze of the others. All of them now staring as Pike chuckles to herself before looking too, motioning towards them. “They’re harmless, I promise. They just hate strangers.” 

Zayis hums, causing Pike’s laughter to slowly die off. The silence between them growing as she watches the rest of the group talk amongst themselves before a pair of them begin to wander over. Both obviously reluctant as their cleric moves to give them some space. 

“I know Allura already introduced us, but this is Keyleth and Vax,” she says, somehow still smiling through the tension, watching as Zayis remains silent for a while, obviously feeling a bit too overwhelmed by the sudden rise in bodies as she nods and swallows the urge to Misty Step away from it all.

“Hey! Allura mentioned you were coming with, right?” Keyleth says while Vax just looks between the small group with a raised brow, obviously keeping his thoughts to himself. 

“Yeah,” she admits, glancing towards the rogue who merely hums and looks back —his dark eyes aggressively sizing her up for a moment before the oddly begin to soften. “Though, I’m not entirely sure why, since you’ve already got a rogue.” The three of them share a look she’s clearly not meant to see. All of their eyes darting around to seek some sort of connection that’s obviously lost on her as she tries her best not to think about the fact that her chest feels like it’s on the verge of exploding out of her.

“Well, what’s your speciality?” 

The sound of Vax’s voice throws her off a bit. The tone of it surprisingly calm —almost gentle— as she regards him slowly. “Illusions mostly. Though, I’ll admit my fingers are known to get a bit sticky on occasion.” 

Somehow that earns a snort from him. Along with a nod that seems almost approving. “Well, as long as your fingers keep to themselves we’ll have no issues.”

She isn’t entirely sure what to say to that, so she just settles on a nod that quickly signals the end of their conversation alongside the ship beneath their feet beginning to descend, causing everyone to curiously look towards the bow. 

As they do, Zayis lets out a sigh of relief, happy to have enough of an interruption to get them to stop talking so that she can think as they walk over to survey the ground beneath them. The scenery appearing rather dead and lifeless compared to the bustling energy of the city she’s used to. 

“Where are we?” she hears Keyleth ask then, prompting Allura to appear seemingly out of nowhere to usher them down the steps —failing to answer the druid’s question until everyone’s off the boat except for her. 

“You’ll find The Shalesteps just beyond that hill. Good luck,” she tells them, her tone bordering on snobbish as she goes to turn away but pauses, offering Zayis specifically a mischievous smirk. “Oh, and please don’t uh—what is it you often say Zay?— Fuck it up?”

In response, Zayis offers a frown as she crosses her arms over her chest, refusing to entertain her friend’s stupid antics as she turns to walk away, accidentally bumping into the gunslinger in the process.  

-

Percy had recognized her almost immediately. The moment they’d met prior to boarding the ship, he knew that the tiefling awkwardly standing alongside Allura was indeed the same one he’d seen outside the tavern last night. The one who stopped and stared —a look of pure caution gracing her features as she simply strolled away. 

Back then, he assumed she was just being wary of them. Well aware of how most feel about tieflings as a species, he knew it was common for them to have a certain air of vigilance in response to strangers, especially at night in more rowdy areas. So, after the ocular exchange had occurred he hadn’t really thought much of it. Instead, he just assumed it was nothing more than a look of warning to keep his distance —a look he graciously heeded until her face had all but disappeared from his thoughts after Scanlan started talking about some flyer. 

Now though, as they walk the path towards The Shalesteps in search of information, Percy can't help but feel the need to conduct his own investigation. One that calls for a bit more prying. 

“You’re going to burn a hole into that poor girl’s face if you keep staring.” 

Blinking, Percy glances to his left to look at Vex who already looks like she’s about to call him out on doing something foolish. Based on the way her lips quirk into a bit of a smirk alongside her raised brow, Percy finds himself sighing. 

“I don’t trust her,” he says simply. 

Before he can stop himself his eyes move to look at her again with narrowed eyes; the constant pull of curiosity he’s held most of the way here flickering to ignite into a full-blown flame of skepticism. 

“To be fair, you don’t trust anyone. None of us do. It’s part of the job.” 

“She was at the tavern last night.” 

He hears Vex loudly sigh at that, causing his nose to scrunch as he looks back in annoyance. 

“What? You don’t think that’s a cause for concern?” 

In response, Vex opens her mouth to speak but is quickly interrupted by Vax calling for her, instantly leaving Percy to his thoughts again as she wanders off. His mind suddenly running rampant with more and more questions when he inevitably looks back at the tiefling, hardly caring about the apparent hole he’s burning or whether or not she finds his presence unnerving.

Because, unlike the rest of them, she appears rather cold. Almost like she doesn’t even want to be there, causing Percy’s curiosity to rise as he slows down his pace a bit to saddle up to the woman now fully gracing his sightline. His body practically moving on its own accord as it shifts to cock his head and look down at her. 

“You’re the tiefling from the tavern,” he states. 

Almost immediately her eyes shoot upwards to match his gaze; her mismatched irises staring back at him almost painfully as the hands in her pockets rise to cross over her chest. 

“I am.” 

“Hm.” 

He doesn’t need to hear her confirm it. From the moment he saw her stormy blue skin stained in white across her left eye, he knew that it was her. No other tiefling could match such a peculiar description. 

Still, though, he can’t help but release a small huff as she says it. Almost like he’s proud to have recognized the connection. 

“And now you’re here. Aiding us in our pesky pest control quest.” 

At that, she snorts, and truthfully the sound throws him off a bit. After only ever seeing her act like a stone wall amongst his friends, he can’t help but find it odd to see her show an emotion that isn’t just clear indifference. The sudden presence of it making his eyes narrow as he sees her upper lip quirk up. 

“Pesky feels like a bit of an understatement, don’t you think?” 

Releasing a deep breath, Percy nods. “Fair point. We’re not exactly dealing with your average opponent.”

“Yeah, not really.” 

There’s a long pause after that. The only noise between them being the scuff of their boots and the cacophony of his friend's voices idly chatting away about whatever it is that’s on their minds. The tension that’s already been established between them rising a degree or two when she inevitably looks at him, appearing almost angry. 

“How come you keep staring at me?” she then asks.

At first, Percy just keeps his gaze firm. As he works to gather his own thoughts, he lets his eyes roam from place to place, absorbing the sight of her tall, charcoal horns and thick, dark brows —the way her eyes never seem to widen enough to look full as they share yet another gaze of agitation.

After a few moments though, he relents with a sigh and turns his attention to the crowd ahead, watching as Scanlan yells at Grog about something inaudible before the Goliath picks him up and throws him over his shoulder. 

“Is it purely coincidence that we’ve run into you twice in the span of fifteen hours or are you perchance following us?” 

For some reason that gets a laugh out of her. A single ha that has him looking back over in annoyance to see her expression soften. 

“Unfortunately, it’s just a coincidence,” she tells him. Then, her hands uncross and return to her pockets as if she’s preparing to open up some more. “Last night I was thirsty and today I’m mostly hear running errands for the council.”

“Yes, I gathered that.”

She raises a brow —almost as if she’s surprised, causing him to shrug. 

“You don’t look all that keen to be here. Not that any of us should be given the track record of our peers.”  

All she does is hum then, prompting him to hum back as he begins to brainstorm what this errand of her’s that needs fulfilling might be. A couple of thoughts passing through until he gives her a quick once over, realizing what it is with a sigh. 

“So, you’re babysitting us then, I presume? Keeping an eye out for trouble.” 

“Pretty much.”

Percy doesn’t know whether or not he should feel insulted by that. Regardless though, he keeps whatever it is he feels in check as he mirrors her stance; pocketing his hands with a heavy sigh as they continue to walk. 

“Well, apologies for staring then —and bumping into you,” he says, swallowing hard. “I’ll be honest, it's not that often we acquire allies in such civil circumstances.”

After that, instead of building the conversation, another hum pushes through her lips, causing him to wonder if perhaps her overall coldness is merely her just being awkward. She is a rogue after all and based on his and Vax’s first meeting he can say the man was equally as aloof to speak to in the beginning. Maybe even more so. 

“Not very talkative, are you?” he can’t help but muse humorously. 

“Not much to talk about, really.”

“Another fair point. Though, we could properly introduce ourselves —seeing as we’ll be working together.”

After he says that, she gives him a long, hard stare; her gaze darting around his face just as he had done to her a few moments prior. The sight of it —as much as he hates to admit it— definitely makes him feel a bit uneasy. And although he appears to look unaffected on the inside he still feels a bit… messy. With his chest pounding a little harder at the sight of her scrutiny while his thoughts run rampant trying to gauge this woman’s intentions, truthfully he finds himself a bit lost until she speaks again. 

“Zayis Marden.” 

When he remembers to breathe again he nods his head, secretly wondering why that name rings a bell. “Percival de Rolo III.” 

“Charmed I’m sure,” she says, her voice suddenly teasing as she gives him a little bow that has him chuckling in confusion before they find themselves in view of their destination.

[ravendruid]

A Midnight Cry

You can thank @acharliek for planting the idea in my mind.

[Read the complete fic on AO3]

Percival was desperate. Vex’ahlia was despondent. Even poor, young Vesper was exhausted. The maids and nannies of the castle looked exasperated at the parents of the infant, having run out of ideas to provide the boy comfort to make him stop crying. Percival had tried every trick in the book that he knew from raising three children, plus all his siblings, but nothing had worked. There was only one thing he could think of doing, and if that didn’t work, Percy was afraid something was truly wrong with his son.

“Thank you for coming so quickly,” The man said as a form of greeting. He was wearing a travel cloak over his silk pajamas, the legs of the pants stuffed into his mismatched winter boots (he had been so desperate and distracted he didn’t even realize he had the wrong shoes on until he had been halfway down the hill). 

“It’s no problem, I was still awake,” The half-elven woman who accompanied Percy shrugged off. The man did a double take, and sure enough, Keyleth was still wearing a teal dress under her formal Mantle of the Tempest. Her hair was slightly disheveled after a long day, but it still looked braided and the flowers woven into her locks and around her antlered circlet were still blooming. 

“We have been trying for hours, but Vax’ildan won’t stop crying,” Percy explained. There was only so much he could fit into 25 words, so his priority had been to ask Keyleth to hurry over without sounding like Whitestone was under attack.

“Have you called for Pike? I’m sure she’s of more help than me.”

“We did. She didn’t find anything wrong with him. We’re at an impasse.”

Keyleth nodded at her friend. To her credit, she had no effort matching Percy’s quick pace, however, the man was so distracted he didn’t even realize there was a trail of flowers growing from the cracks in the cobblestone they walked on. Had he noticed this, he would have known Keyleth was just as anxious as he was.

[sunstone-smiles]

There's No Working On Winter's Crest!

Author’s note: Happy Holidays everyone! Merry Critmas because a Critical Role fic is here! I absolutely love how this fic turned out and it might be one of my new favorites that I've written. This fic is part of the @squealing-santa event and was made for wrestling!anon! 🎁 Thank you @squealing-santa / @cantsaythetword for all your hard work as host this year! Now on to the fic! Enjoy!

Series: Critical Role (Campaign 1) 

Characters: Percy, Vex, Vax, (and guest starring the Vox Machina crew and Cassandra)

Provided prompts:  “Forever love ‘character A doesn’t think they’re ticklish; character B proves them wrong’” / “…also love the Percy/Vex/Vax combo of ‘Vex & Vax are chaos goblins and Percy is wayyy too serious.’”

Word count: 5,328

Summary: Percival claims he has work to do when the rest of Vox Machina is decorating the castle of Whitestone for Winter’s Crest. Vex and Vax volunteer to persuade (or annoy) him until he caves in; however, their conversation skews slightly off topic when Percy has an unexpected, jumpy reaction to a poke Vax delivered when he was emphasizing his words.

---

The Winter’s Crest festival is just around the corner as citizens across Tal’Dorei prepare for the festivities, especially in the Kingdom of Whitestone. Snow drifts gently to the surface of the walkways and powders the roofs of homes in a coat of white that brings a literal meaning to the name Whitestone. Townsfolk are dressed in thick furs and winter resistant outfits to decorate the city. They put up strings of magic lights hanging across the streets, ribbons adorning homes and merchant stalls, and other handcrafted decorations—like snowflakes and snow-themed creatures that many of the children make—are displayed on the front doors of homes. The Sun Tree, the centerpiece of the Kingdom, has also been dressed with lights and ornaments for the festivities.

The castle of Whitestone is no different. Inside, currently lining the halls and the main foyer of the castle, the heroic group members of Vox Machina are in the process of putting up the decorations. Though unfinished, the area is already teeming with wintery accessories. Like the rest of the town, snowflakes are plastered on the walls or dangling on strings, small bulbs of magic infused light arcs across the edges of the roof, and fluffy cotton is clumped together to line the corners of the walls; it makes the room look like a portrait of a snowfall that breached inside the castle’s halls.

Cassandra, the current youngest heir of Whitestone, enters the wintery landscape. She gasps, glancing about the room with sparkling eyes like a child witnessing the beautiful display of a real snowfall.

“I love what you’ve done with the place, Vox Machina. It looks lovely,” Cassandra says as her sight indulges in every bit of her surroundings.

Keyleth, with a hand-made parchment snowflake in her hands, pipes up beside her. “Thanks! We saw that the rest of Whitestone was decorating, so why not give the inside of the castle the same treatment? At least to get everyone in the spirit of the Winter’s Crest festival.”

Cassandra chuckles. “I don’t disagree. I knew you would all be decorating, but this is already mesmerizing.”

“You can thank me for that,” Scanlan points to himself, speaking with pride. He’s standing on Trinket’s back and using the bear as a platform to reach higher ground. “I know a thing or two about preparing a room for special occasions,” Scanlan boasts. Trinket growls and shakes under his feet in response, nearly causing Scanlan to tip over.

Cassandra giggles again. Glancing about the room, she sees Keyleth choosing a new spot for her parchment snowflake, Vex and Vax stringing colorful orbs together, Pike standing on Grog’s shoulder as they both focus their decorations on the same wall, and Scanlan glaring at Trinket after the bear’s attempt to knock him off. Everyone has given themselves a project to add on to their winter scene. But, hold on… Where’s–

“Wait a minute, where’s Percival?” Cassandra asks, seeing no sign of her brother.

Vex answers. “Percy said that he had more important things to do,” she draws out her words sarcastically, rolling her eyes at the thought of the man’s decision. “If you ask me, I think he’s just being stubborn.”

Vax glances up towards the hallway behind Cassandra. He nudges his twin in the shoulder. “Well, look who decided to show up at the right time,” Vax gestures his head in the direction of the hallway. 

Vex and Cassandra turn. They see Percy walking across the foyer in their direction. He’s carrying a small wooden crate in his hands and his eyes are glancing inside of the box’s contents as he heads towards the other end of the room.

“Percy! There you are!” Cassandra calls his name as he passes by her. “Why aren’t you decorating with everyone else? I’m about to join them as well.”

Percy stops walking to properly speak with his sister. He shifts the box in his hands to get a better grip. “Because Cass, I have a lot of work to do. You all keep on decorating. I’ll join you later if there’s time.”

Vex barks out a laugh. “By the time you’re done tinkering, darling, the whole inside and outside of the castle will be finished.”

Percy narrows his eyes at the ranger’s claim, but pays it no mind as Cassandra pulls his attention with her own concerns. 

“But Percy, this is a time for joy and relaxation. What are you building that’s so important—” Cassandra places a hand on the box to sneak a peek inside. Percy yanks the box to the side and tears it from her view.

“That is none of your business, Cass. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some work that needs to be done.” Percy states before walking away and leaving towards his original destination.

Cassandra, Vex, and Vax watch him exit in silence as his form disappears into the hall and behind the palace walls.

Cassandra crosses her arms and grumbles. A little bit of her childish side shows despite how mature she usually holds herself. 

“You’re right, Vex,” she says while staring at the empty hallway. “My brother is a great, big, stubborn, pain in the–”

“A donkey! I made a donkey!” Grog exclaims from across the room while excitedly showing Pike his hand-made snowflake donkey.

“Nice, Buddies!” Pike complements from her spot on his shoulder.

Cassandra throws her hands down to her side with a huff and smooths out her dress. “You know what? I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.” She daintily stomps a few steps forward.

“Hold on there, Cassandra,” Vex places an arm out to stop her, smiling. “Allow Vax and I to deal with Percy. We know how to be more than enough of an annoyance in order for him to cave in.”

Vax leans over his twin’s shoulder. “Plus, he might put up more of a fight if it’s against his sister,” Vax smirks. Vex responds with a playful elbow to his stomach.

“You do have a point,” Cassandra concedes with a chuckle. “Alright then, I’m entrusting this task to you. Bring him out here and let’s show him how to be in the ‘proper’ Winter’s Crest spirit. I’ll check in a little later to see how things are going.”

“Will do, Cassandra,” Vex places their string of ornaments down with Vax and winks at the young de Rolo.

“We’re on it,” Vax says while already beginning to walk backwards. Vex joins him and they both make their way towards Percy’s direction.

***

Through the marble halls of polished white, Percy’s footsteps and the occasional rustle from his box of materials keeps him company. He passes by a few bedroom doors of his allies before he reaches his own room. As he repositions the wooden crate into one arm to free one of his hands, a third arm suddenly slings over his shoulders.

“Hey there, de Rolo!” Vax exclaims by his side. Percy jumps.

“Vax! Don’t sneak up on me like that,” Percy adjusts his glasses. Over Vax’s shoulder, he sees Vex walking up to join them.

“Sorry, friend. Hard not to when that’s your speciality as a rogue,” Vax shrugs one arm while the other remains around Percy.

“And don’t forget about me,” Vex leans her arm on Percy’s unoccupied shoulder and smiles.

Percy sighs between the two twins barricading him at his sides. “If you’ve come to convince me to decorate with you all, the answer is no,” Percy opens the door to his quarters. He enters, immediately heading straight towards his desk and leaving the twins behind. He places the crate on the surface of his desk with a clatter from the materials inside. 

Vax leans a hand against the doorframe. “Well, the whole point of convincing is to change that answer to yes,” the rogue persists. He watches as Percy reaches into the crate and pulls out onto his desk golden-colored gears, tinkering tools, and a small chest lined in purple velvet that has a similar shape and size of a box that could hold jewelry.

“Exactly,” Vex agrees with her brother. “And I think we’re both pretty skilled when it comes to our tactics of persuasion.”

Vax crosses his arms and switches to leaning his back against the doorframe. “You have struck quite a few bargains here and there, sister.”

“I wouldn’t say a lot, just when it was necessary. Like when I dropped the cost of that book that was thirty-five gold pieces down to twenty-five.”

“Twenty-five? I thought it was thirty?” Vax steps further into the room.

“No. That seems too low of a bargain for me. I think it was twenty-five.” Vex pauses. “Or maybe we met in the middle, like around twenty-seven?”

Percy lets out a long, irritated sigh. Without even looking at the twins, he says, “You’re not going to leave until I say ‘yes’, are you?”

“Ah, looks like Percival’s catching on,” Vax wraps an arm around the noble’s shoulder again, smirking at him. Percy crosses his arms.

The noble shakes his head with an eye roll to the side. “I know this isn’t going to work, but I’m going to try it anyway—is there any chance that you’ll leave me alone and let me work in peace?”

Vex leans on his desk. “Ha! Not a chance.”

“Thought so…” he grumbles.

���You see, Freddy,” Vax says. “You, my friend,” he gently pokes Percy in the side and leaves his finger pointing at him, “need to get into the holiday spirit. So stop. Being. Stubborn!” Vax delivers a poke for each of his final three words, adding slightly more pressure to the third poke for emphasis.

“Aah!” Percy jumps away from the third jab. “Vax! What was that for?” Percy rubs the spot on his side.

Vax puts his hands up to prove his innocence. “Whoa. Sorry, de Rolo. I didn’t think you would be so sensitive. Are you ticklish, maybe?” Vax genuinely asks for clarification; however, a slight hint of amusement curls its way into his voice.

Percy adjusts his vest. “Unfortunately for you and what you’re thinking about, no, I am not ticklish.” Percy flicks his eyes to the side, “Not anymore, at least. You surprised me is all.”

Vex, intrigued by his words, backtracks to his initial response. “So, you were ticklish once before?”

“A long time ago, sure. Cassandra would be an absolute menace with it,” Percy answers. “But I grew out of it,” he looks towards his desk.

The ranger listens to Percy’s words and watches his expression intently, trying to gain any insight towards his claims. She can tell that he’s speaking the truth, as far as he knows. Though, there are traces of uncertainty when Percy glanced away during his last sentence.

“Do you know that for a fact?” Vex exposes the brief blunder in Percy’s words.

The noble freezes. That got his attention.

“Well… I assume so,” Percy replies.

Vax smirks, catching on to his sister’s plan. “Ahh, so it seems Percival’s evidence is outdated.” 

“Meaning that the answer is still unknown,” Vex joins in with a smirk of her own. “You’re a man of science, right Percy? Let’s test our theory.” She wiggles her fingers at him.

Percy returns a glare in Vex’s direction, unfazed by her attempt to taunt him. “I already told you, I’m not ticklish. But you know what? I’ll humor you.” He turns to his work and resumes speaking over his shoulder, “Go ahead and try to tickle me because you won't get the reaction you’re expecting. And once you try, you have to leave me alone to work. Do we have a deal?”

The eyes of the twins widen. They glance at one another with silent expressions of shock before looking back at Percy.

“Did my ears deceive me or is Percy actually giving us permission to tickle him?” Vex gasps.

“We do have to agree to his conditions…” Vax ponders. “But, what the hell? We can’t let this opportunity go to waste.”

The twins excitedly step up to both of his sides as Percy continues his tinkering.

“So, where should we start? There’s so many spots to choose from!” Vex teases like she’s a tourist exploring a new town.

Percy sighs again from their antics, already regretting his decision to let them even try. “Just pick one and move on,” he says without even taking his eyes off his work.

“Well, poking his side got a reaction out of him in the first place. Let’s try there,” Vax suggests to his sister. The rouge presses his fingers into one of Percy’s sides, followed by a gentle wiggling. Percy jolts and bangs into his desk, though more so from the aspect of surprise rather than the attempt at tickling. With a quiet grumble, the noble regains his composure. He has no reaction when Vex presses her fingers into his other side, since he was expecting the attempt this time. He returns his focus towards his tinkering, as if the twins are nothing more than an itch that can be ignored.

For (barely even) a second, that is. Until the corner of his mouth suddenly twitches upwards. 

Percy neutralizes his expression, but every time he tries to refocus, his mouth pops back up into a quivering smile. His fingers subtly flinch as he works. The sensation at his sides grows more and more tingly. There’s a bubbly pressure building in his throat that’s slowly rising like steam in a tea kettle.

It occurs to Percy that, despite his arguments, he is, most definitely, still ticklish.

Percy, being as inconspicuous as he can, leans his head closer to his chest and shoulder to hide his wobbly expression. His arms nearly fall to his sides as a reflex of protection, but he attempts to stay as casual as possible to conceal his ticklishness from the twins.

“Are you sure you’re not ticklish, Percy?” Vax tilts his head with a smirk.

“Because for someone who’s not ticklish, you sure are trembling a lot,” Vex says, having a keen eye for the subtle shifts in his movements.

“It’s just…difficult to concentrate!” Percy steadies his words so he doesn’t stutter. However, one of the twins spiders their fingers up to his ribs, causing Percy to slam a hand on his desk so he doesn’t completely collapse forward. There’s another surge of pressure in his chest. His smile wobbles even higher like it’s a ship being elevated by a wave in a storm. Percy’s in big trouble now.

“Really? Does concentrating involve slamming a hand on your desk and nearly folding yourself in two?” Vex knowingly questions, confirming to Percy that it was her who experimented with a new spot towards his ribs.

“Y-yes! It does!” Percy responds, letting a stutter slip.

“Mmhm,” Vex hums as she reads him.

Technically, it’s not a lie. He really is concentrating…on not bursting out into laughter right in front of the twins. He bites his lip and curls his head closer to his chest and shoulder. He’ll never hear the end of it if he ends up letting the half-elfs hear a giggle or two slip. If he holds out just a little longer, they’ll give up and stop. Right?

“Let’s face it, Vex. Maybe he really isn’t ticklish anymore,” Vax states, although there’s a teasing demeanor that drips from his voice like the poison from one of his daggers when he’s about to strike. Vax slows his fingers down to a stop, giving Percy the slightest sliver of hope that he could prevail.

…Oh, who is he kidding? These twins don’t give up until they get what they came for.

Vax quickly scribbles his fingers into Percy’s stomach using a sneak attack. Although Percy holds back his giggles, a few airy snickers slip from the gunslinger before a loud snort emanates from his person like the echoing blast of an explosive shot. 

Percy immediately slaps a hand across his mouth. Time feels like it stops. A moment of dead silence passes as Percy senses his imminent doom approaching. He can already feel their grins searing a mark at the back of his head.

To his better judgement, Percy lowers his hand and slowly turns his head around. His back hits against his desk when he’s met with the two gleaming grins of the twins.

“Gotcha.” Vax smirks.

“Oh no–” Percy’s eyes are wide behind his glasses. Without further hesitation, the twins lunge at him. Percy lets out a startled scream. He clamps his hands to his sides as the half-elven twins take advantage at poking, tweeking, and scribbling the open spaces of his torso. Percy shimmies between them, protesting and shoving at the two through an occasional bark of laughter when one of the twins gets in a good hit; nevertheless, he still holds back his laughter from fully flooding into the room.

“Percy, you’re so squirmy!” Vex smiles as she tries to get a hit on his nimble form.  

“What else did you expect?!” Percy’s words trail with a giggle as he pushes Vex out of the way and tries to run, but Vax throws his arms around Percy’s waist and tugs him back. 

“He’s a fighter alright!” Vax says as Percy kicks and squirms in his grasp. The noble tries to push down on Vax’s arms and pull himself out of his hold, but Vax tugs his friend back towards him.

With his friend grappled, Vax wiggles his fingers into Percy’s sides, resulting in a surprised giggle from Percy. The gunslinger reels in his laughter, toning it down to a stream of snickers so he doesn’t allow the twins to hear the robust laughter their ears desire from his stubborn self. 

Percy shakes his head. “Noho! I’m not ticklish!” he shouts as an impulsive reaction, hearing the giggle in his own words. He facepalms to hide his flustered features and the embarrassment that comes with a critical failure of a deception attempt behind his hand.

“Gods, I knew you were stubborn but that is just flat out denial,” Vax smiles over his shoulder.

“Come on Percy. There’s no need to hide it any more, so cough up that laughter!” Vex darts her hands towards Percy’s ribs. Percy drops his arms to his sides with a yelp that’s finally followed by a plethora of unrestrained, wheezy giggles pouring out of the noble who refused to smile just a few minutes ago. 

“Ah, there it is,” Vex smiles.

Percy wiggles in Vax’s hold and buries his face in his shoulder for a moment, too overwhelmed to think of a snarky comeback. He forgets what to do with his hands after not being tickled for so long, but when Vax gives a quick squeeze to his side, Percy instantly remembers and latches on to the rouge’s wrists. He pries Vax’s hands from him and holds them hostage from his sides, but Vex suddenly scribbles her fingers at Percy’s stomach, which sends the gunslinger with another shriek of giggles stumbling away from his desk and collapsing forward to the floor. 

“Aaand down he goes,” Vax grins.

Percy lifts himself on his arms. He glances up and sees the open door for freedom, but he also sees Vex dash in front of him to block the exit. As the ranger moves her hands towards him, he springs to sit on his knees and wrestles Vex’s approaching hands, protesting, “Vex, no! No!” 

Percy tilts back to avoid her, allowing Vex the momentum she needs to grab his wrists and shove him over onto his back. Then, she immediately buries her scribbly hands into his torso, causing Percy to resume his giggling. (He should have expected Vex, the ranger with a bear as a companion, to have the advantage when it comes to anything like bear wrestling.) Vax soon rushes over and joins her at Percy’s other side.

“Now, returning to the topic at hand, why won't you decorate with us Percy?” Vex asks as she maneuvers her hands around Percy’s flailing limbs to scratch around his belly, occasionally having to pull away then release his wrist for a few moments to get a good scribble in.

“Hohohow many times dohoho I hahahave to say it! I’m wohohorking!” Percy exclaims while wiggling from left to right. He curls to the side with an enormous smile when Vax gets a scribble at his ribs. 

“Well, you’re not getting much work done like this,” Vax observes as he scratches at Percy’s other pair of ribs and corresponding underarm, making Percy curl up in his giggly ball even tighter.

“Vax has a point, Percy,” Vex agrees. “Either you spend your time decorating with us, or you spend it giggling on the floor. The choice is yours,” she teases. 

Just then, a delicate hand grips the doorframe. Cassandra peeks in. The confusion she first had on her face turns into an understanding smile once she sees her brother laughing with assistance from Vex and Vax. The cheerful sound of the room refreshes her with memories of their childhood, making her smile just an extra bit wider.

Cassandra repositions herself to lean back on the doorframe. “So, how’s the persuasion going?” she raises her voice so it’s heard over Percy’s peels of laughter.

Vex and Vax turn and see Cassandra over their shoulders. They share a smile with her, then return their attention to tickling Percy.

“He’s still being stubborn, as expected, but I think we’re making progress,” Vex scribbles a hand at Percy’s side to prove her point. Percy kicks out his legs with another cluster of giggles.

Cassandra also giggles at the scene. “Percival, I didn’t know you were still ticklish.”

“Neither did he a few minutes ago,” Vax replies for him. 

“Cahahahass! Hehehelp me!” Percy reaches a hand out to her before snapping it back down to for protection against Vax’s hand wiggling at his ribs.

Cassandra glances to the roof and taps her chin. “Hmm. Should I? I am on the side who wants you to come decorate with us…”

“If it helps you decide easier, Cassandra, Percy called you a menace earlier,” Vex mentions.

“Nohoho! I–” Percy shouts before he’s cut off by his own intrusion of laughter. 

“Really?” Cass puts her hands on her hips, playfully taking offense at the remark.

“Yep, a big, mean, menace of a sister. I heard him say it myself,” Vax attests. 

“Percy, did you call me a menace?” Cassandra asks with a lighthearted inflection.

“Nohoho! I mean, yes! But it wahahahas in a different context!” Percy admits. 

“I see. Well, I suppose I will help then.” Cassandra turns her attention to the twins. She places a hand to the side of her mouth like she was about to whisper a secret to them. “Vex. Vax. Make sure to get his hips. That was a spot that always got him laughing up a storm.”

“Whahahat?!” Percy shouts. It only then occurs to him the severity of Cassandra’s statement as the memory of his own ticklishness comes rushing back to him.

“Noted,” Vax nods.

“Cahahass, NO!” Percy tries to sit himself up like he’s about to lunge at Cassandra, but the noble is easily shoved back down to the floor by Vex and Vax.

Cassandra leans on the back of her foot like she’s about to sprint. She speeds through her next words, “Well, I’ll take my leave now. Good luck! I’ll see you out there decorating! Bye!” She springs forward and disappears behind the door frame, as if she is running away before she can get into any more ‘trouble’ with Percy; it’s another reminder of her child-like side coming out despite the mature part she plays.

“Cassandrahaha!” Percy yells towards the empty hallway as if he was cursing her name to the gods.

“Well, you heard her,” Vex says. “Let’s try it!”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait!” Percy objects. He flails his arms to shove and swat away the hands of the twins. Despite his efforts, the half-elven siblings are able to find an opening to push his hands aside and allow Vex to give a squeeze to his hips.

Percy curls forwards with a giggly screech before he crashes back to the floor with an outpouring of laughter. His laugh sounds like a squawking crow that’s learned how to chortle with an additional wheeze. But his laugh is far from being annoying; it’s adorable. His head tilts back and he turns it to the side as he pushes and shoves at the hands latched and digging at his hips, and the other set scribbling at his middle. 

“Wow, Cassandra wasn’t kidding,” Vax smiles, “His laughter really does spike there.” 

“Vehehex! Vahahax! Thahahat tickles!!!” Percy wheezes in a higher pitch, his mind too flooded with his own giggly reaction to think before he just stated the obvious.

“Really?” Vex remarks sarcastically. “Well, at least you’re admitting it now.”

“Sounds like we’re starting to knock some sense into him,” Vax says to his sister. He looks down at his giggling friend, “See, Freddy? Isn’t this so much more fun than working alone in your room all day?”

“I agree, Vax,” Vex says. “I mean, what is so important that you can’t leave your room to decorate and spend some time with us?” Vex teases with a rhetorical question.

“I was making a gift!” Percy shouts.

The twins immediately halt the momentum of their hands. Vex and Vax look at one another in stunned silence. They glance back to their friend, who’s steadying his breathing after expelling his remaining giggles.

“A gift?” Vex asks; her voice leans forward with a sense of curiosity.

The noble takes in a few more breaths of air. “Yes…”

Vex’s expression lifts to one of unbridled elation and she gasps as if she was just given the most exciting news. 

“Who is it for? Is it for me? Tell me! Tell me!” Vex questions him like a giddy child. Vex gives a quick scribble to Percy’s stomach. Percy jolts with another giggle and smacks her hand away. 

“It’s not for you! It’s for Cass,” Percy reveals. “Your gift is already finished.”

Vex shows him a soft, thankful smile.

“Cass? That same Cassandra that you called a menace earlier?” Vax jokes.

Percy rolls his eyes. “Yes, that same Cassandra, who I unfortunately love and care for. If you let me up, I’ll show you the gift.”

The twins each extend a hand out to Percy. They pull him to his feet, and he returns a silent ‘thanks’ to them. He straightens his vest and shirt from their scuffle, then walks towards his desk. When there, he places his hand on the velvet chest.

“This is what I was making for her.” Percy opens the lid. Inside, a small, metal figure pops up—a woman with long bronze hair in a ballroom dress designed for dancing. Reflective glass is the background for her stage as she waltzes from side to side on her platform in the middle of the box, occasionally performing graceful twirls. Her movements are paired with the rhythmic chimes of a bell that plays a lullaby-like version of the jolly Winter’s Crest Festival theme.

“It’s a music box,” Percy finally says.

Vex places her hands on her heart. “Oh, Percy. It’s beautiful.”

Vax wraps a gentle arm around Vex, pulling her close to him. “Cassandra is going to love it.”

“Promise me you wont tell her?” Percy glances at his friends.

“Of course, darling,” Vex nods. “We wouldn’t want to ruin a surprise like this.”

Percy closes the lid. “Now you know why I declined the offer to decorate with you all, and why I was so adamant about working. So if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get back to it.”

Vex nods again. “I understand, Percy. We’re not going to force you, especially since this is the reason.” Her voice is soft. It’s a drastic change from the teasing Vex that he heard just a few minutes ago. “But, we would still love it if you could come out there with us, if you get a moment.”

“Yeah, despite how much of a pain you can be, we enjoy your company,” Vax shows a soft smile.

“Vex…” Percy’s voice sighs ‘I can’t’ when his words don’t.

Vex continues, “All I’m saying is that I already know that you put a lot of time into Cassandra’s gift, and towards your other gifts, I can only assume.” She puts a hand on his shoulder. “We’re grateful of course, but I know that she, as well as all of us, would also be grateful if you could eventually take a short break and provide us with the gift of your presence.” Vex ends her speech with a soft smile. Percy lifts his head, allowing him and Vex to exchange a sympathetic glance. After their eyes speak their thoughts, Vex slides her hand off his shoulder, and she rejoins Vax. The twins make their way to the door.

Percy looks away from them and hovers over his desk. His peripheral vision shows the music box on one side, and Vex and Vax’s shadows disappearing from his sight on the other. He lays his hand on the music box. His thumb glides over the velvet material. He rubs it, staying silent amongst the clatter of gears turning in his mind.

Now Percy has quiet time to work on his gift—that’s what he wanted in the first place. It was a choice to either sacrifice time with his loved ones, or sacrifice time for his loved ones. They’ll understand his decision. Vex and Vax already do.

He looks once more at the music box. He thinks about Cassandra, Vex’s words, and the rest of his family just down the hall. He wants them to be happy. So does he.

Vex was right. She is pretty skilled in persuasion.

A long sigh, like he was expelling all the air from his lungs, releases from Percy. “Alright.” He pauses, relieved by the comfort that he’s making a good choice. “I’ll come.”

Vex and Vax turn around. “You will?” Vex’s eyes twinkle. “Oh, that’s wonderful, Percy!” She runs to him and grabs his arm. “Come on! Let’s not keep everyone waiting!” she starts tugging him from his desk.

“Vex, hold on!” Percy pulls against her and starts wildly placing some of the parts on his desk back into the wooden crate. Vex, too excited to wait, pulls him back and straight out the door before he can finish. Vax strolls right behind with a big, beaming smile on his face.

What remains scattered on the desk is a couple of the golden-colored gears, and the velvet music box resting safely beside, like a flower patiently waiting for rain to bloom. It’ll be right where he left it when he returns. 

***

When Vex and Vax tug him into the room with an announcement, everyone’s smile grows just a little bit wider than it was before. Grog, Pike, and Keyleth even happen to call out his name in unison like a gleeful cheer. It’s a warm welcome within their wintery landscape. 

Cassandra walks up to him, holding two hand-crafted snowflakes. “Glad you could join us, brother,” she says with a thankful smile and hands him one of the snowflakes.

Percy nods. A relaxed smile makes its way onto his features like he is getting cozy near a fireplace. He takes the parchment snowflake, then follows Cassandra to help with the most current wall being adorned by the Winter’s Crest spirit.

Over the course of their decorative snowstorm, lively conversation is held and some tea is brewed and passed around like the group is having their own little holiday party. Laughs are shared, memories are made when Trinket is dolled up in wintery decorations like a tree (to the bear’s reluctance), and their time together is priceless. 

Time is a gift that can’t be wrapped and tinkered with, but it can be cherished as one all the same.

[liltaireissocute]

[PERC'ILDAN]

heavily inspired by my partner's (both in life, crime and shipping perc'ildan) fic (read it, it's a god level of fan fiction); basically it's Percy discovering extreme sensitivity of elven ears

[soft--dragon]

Loosen Up

So recently I finished Vox Machina and if you haven't seen I highly recommend it!! SUCH a good show oh my lord. Can't wait for the third season to drop :D

You can view the relationships however you like, I don't mind ^^ (except Vex and Vax, they're siblings, don't be weird :/)

Word Count: 3,138

Warnings: Kinda spoils a plot line in season one but nothing major ^^

This is a SFW tickle fic, if you don’t like that then don’t read :)

It isn’t a secret that Percy is a bit of a stick in the mud.

Rarely did he let his walls down and simply be. Too caught up in his world of smoking guns and exploding inventions. A lifetime of heartache shutting his heart away in a cast iron keep that very few had a key to access. This also meant emotions such as joy, love, and contentment were rare to be exposed from behind those defensive gates.

That was before Vox Machina. 

A chaotic, rambunctious group of outcast individuals working with the skills they had to make it through another day. A ragtag family doing its best to survive in a world that would spit at their feet and tell them to fuck off. 

However, this family knew how to tell the world right back to fuck off too. 

Percy honestly couldn’t imagine his life with these people a few years ago, but now he simply could not fathom a reality without them. Tight-knit and stupid and loving, never faulting in their care. It was something Percy told himself to never take for granted, no matter how much they tested his patience. 

Much like tonight, where he was being subjected to the most irritating forces known to man: Vex and Vax when they were on the hunt for entertainment.

Percy is sitting near the fire, sketchbook in hand with rough charcoal drawings of new inventions scattering the pages. Vex and Vax have boxed him in by sitting on either side, peering at his notes and asking such incomprehensibly odd questions Percy wanted to know who the hell tutored these two monsters.

Honestly Vax, why would a pistol need a compartment for snacks? 

It took almost fifteen minutes before Percy's patience gave in and the notebook snapped shut with a dull thud. “Are you two quite finished?” Percy demands, staring at the duo with a narrow gaze. 

Vex grins, raising a hand in surrender. “We’re curious about your new inventions, love. Is there something wrong with that?”

Percy huffs, tucking his book into the folds of his jacket that is laid not too far from the flames, warming up for the night ahead. “Only when you keep badgering me to make a glove that turns whatever it touches into gold.”

“It would be quite helpful, dear.”

“And far out of my current capabilities, I’m not a wizard.”

“Oh, give yourself some credit, Freddy,” Vax grins. “Grow a beard and I’d say you’re plenty wizard-like. With your lifespan, you’ll need a cane before you know it, and it could act as your staff.”

Percy glares at him under half-lidded eyes. “Thank you, Vax’ildan,” he says sarcastically. “Remind me that I will die much sooner than the rest of you, just what I needed to hear tonight.”

Vex snickers, gently bumping his shoulder with her own so those green eyes look at her. “Oh come on, we’re just messing with you, Percival. What’s got you so grumpy this time?”

Percy gave her a mildly incredulous look. “I’m not grumpy.”

“He says while glaring, and with a bitter tone of voice,” Vax murmurs with a grin. 

Percy shoots him a dry look which the male elf only laughs at. “See? That’s exactly what I mean, man!”

Vex’ahlia laughs, dropping her arms over her bent legs and cocking her head to the side. “What is it gonna take to make you loosen up, Percy?”

“A good bottle of wine, some peace and quiet, and a book.”

“We have two silver to our name and a bear,” Vax counters. “Can’t quite match your aristocrat taste, but Trinket tells great stories.”

Trinket, nestled comfortably at the edge of the cave where the other party members are conversing, does not indicate that he knows, nor cares that his owners are talking about him. Percy envied that damn bear, able to go to sleep and easily block out the surrounding sounds. What a dream life. 

“Trinket is busy sleeping,” Percy tells them, “his stories will have to wait.”

Vex isn’t dissuaded by Percy’s bristling attitude, instead leaning more into his personal space just because she can. “Darling,” she says, “We just want to help you relax, is this such a big ask?”

“...Yes.”

“Aeugh, the drama of this man,” Vax chuckles through an exasperated breath, elbowing Percy’s side gently. 

The white-haired human flinches away from the contact with a start, his hand shooting down to rub the area. “Yes, yes, you’ve stated I am a dramatic piece of shit more than once, Vax. I believe your point is made.” 

The twins aren’t listening to Percy’s grumbles. The second he flinched, they’d locked eyes, a conversation played out with expression alone.

Vex narrows her gaze. Hurt?

No. Healed by Pike from the last mission.

Just startled, then? 

Seemed more than that. He knew we were right there.

So what are you thinking? 

Perhaps…

Vex perks a brow at her brother when his expression suddenly brightens in some kind of realization. Her eyes flit over to Percy who was unaware of their silent musings, still resolutely crossing his arms with a scowl that the fire did not deserve to be subjected to. She looks back to her sibling who is grinning now. Vax gives a small flex of his fingers, his eyebrows jumping up and down. Understanding hits Vex and her smile turns evil, nodding minutely. They wink at each other, the excitement for a game making them giddy though they contained it. Couldn’t let Percy catch on too early after all. 

“Percy~” Vex coos in her sultry voice, not missing the slight twitch in his face from her tone. The sight makes her all the more eager to extract the plan she and her brother had silently communicated. She lifts her fingernails to her eyes to examine them. “You sure we can’t convince you to loosen up at least a little?”

There was a scoff. “I’d like to see you try,” Percy muttered.

Oh excellent, an invitation. 

“Well, if the man insists, Stubby, who are we to ignore him?” Vax leaps for the opportunity with a grin that’s all charm and Cheshire-like. 

“I agree,” Vex smirks. “Shall we?”

Simultaneously, the two half-elves grab one of Percy’s wrists each and fling him onto his back, his arms being pinned by his head. A startled yelp leaps out of the human, the sudden gravity shift leaving him to stare up at the pair of matching grins. He tugs at his arms. They won’t budge. 

“What the hell are you doing?” Percy asks, bewildered and slightly on edge. 

“You said we could try and loosen you up,” Vex answers.

“By wrestling me to the dirt and pinning me down?” 

“Oh no, we just had to get you in a better position, dear heart,” Vax smirks.

“A better pos- for what?” 

The bemused and exasperated question only delights his captors further, and this is where Percival Fredrickson de Rolo the Third realizes a very fatal error. He had been encouraging the chaotic force that was the Elf Twins. He'd practically been asking for trouble. This realization only sinks in further when Vax’s free hand comes down to rest on Percy’s clothed stomach.

“Percy, you wouldn’t happen to be ticklish would you?” 

Oh.

Oh gods, no.

Memories spring to Percy’s mind of laughing himself hoarse while dogpiled under his siblings from the silly battles. The sensations scuttling everywhere, unstoppable and unbearable. His realization shows up in his face in the form of a pink flush and the beginnings of a wobbly grin that he desperately tries to keep under control.

“Oh, I see a smile trying to come out there!” Vex leers keenly, lowering her own hands to wiggle her fingers close to Percy’s side, delighting in his immediate response to wriggle away despite his efforts to seem indifferent to his dilemma. 

“V-Vex, this is ludicrous-” Percy splutters, his grin becoming wider by the second, his resolution foiled from years of inexperience in this game. 

“So you are ticklish, then?” Vax questions, his fingers gently pressing from where they are resting atop Percy’s lean stomach. 

The flinch and sharp intake of breath was answering enough. Percy’s ears were starting to burn from the attention, torn between wanting to wrench away and escape this playful teasing, or staying and trying to muscle through in a show of defiance. 

“I’m- it’s been a very long time since someone has tried,” Percy answers stiffly. 

The way the twins lit up made him cringe back, instantly knowing that was the worst thing he could’ve said.

“Well now we have to tickle you,” Vex exclaims like her word is law. Though, with her role in the group, it may as well be. 

Percy is most definitely blushing now. It was honestly adorable. “N-No you don’t!” He protests, his boots now shuffling into the dirt in hopes of dislodging his sudden capture. “I’m not even tihicklish!” Damn it.

“Was that a laugh?” Vax coos, delighting in a sound so rare from Percy who barely even grins on a good day. Percy is doing his best to try and become an ostrich with how far he’s turning his flushed face into the ground, stumbling refusals not quite managing to leave his lips coherently. 

“Why my dear brother, I think it was,” Vex chuckles. ‘Shall we see what else we can pull from our resident sour puss?”

“Thought you’d never ask.”

Electricity crackles through Percy’s sides and stomach in a split second, a strangled sound being pulled from a forgotten section of his vocal cords. His whole body instantly jack-knifes, legs trying to pull to his stomach to protect the sensitive areas suddenly under attack. Stubbornness makes him clamp his lips shut and bite his tongue, not wanting to give the twins the satisfaction of hearing him laugh again. He refused.

“Hmm, seems we’ve got a stubborn one in our hands, Vex,” tuts Vax, his fingers probing up and down Percy’s ribcage, noting every flinch and muffled grunt let out by the human. 

“Oh don’t worry, he’ll crack eventually.” Her eyes meet Percy’s and her smile makes his stomach twist in anticipation. She winks. “They all do.”

Her hand starts to slink down to his hip bones and- Nope. Nope. Nope. Not gonna happen, he’d rather get possessed by a demon again. Percy’s struggling kicks up, trying to find momentum with his legs to dislodge the grip pinning his wrists to the cave floor, still fighting not to crack as Vax’s fingers deftly squeeze his sides. He almost manages to heave himself to sit up, but a well-placed scratch at his lower back sends him crashing back down. His legs fly up to his stomach again, desperate to protect some part of his sensitive body while his chest shakes with restrained laughter. 

“Uh uh, not yet mister, we’re not done with you until you laugh~” says Vex, her hand dropping to lightly scuttle behind Percy’s knee that was right beside her.

Percy yelps, immediately kicking his legs back out, and scrunches into himself in a fast motion. The reaction made the twins pause, and he knew he was royally screwed. 

“Interesting, he might be like you. I think the gentler stuff works better on him,” Vex says to her brother, her hand dropping to Percy’s hips once more and scuttling her nails featherlight across the man’s skin.

“NoHAHaha!” Percy protests, his yelp swimming between stolen laughter that tries vainly to escape his throat, his head being tossed back against the floor as his body tries to do an emergency lockdown on his vocal cords. 

“Brilliant, sister,” Vax chuckles, and before Percy can prepare himself, he spiders his claws up along Percy’s stretched torso with a softened touch.  

Immediately, Percy sputters, and the dam finally cracks. “S-Shihihihit! Vehehex! Vahahax! Ohoho gohohod!” Percy gasps out through fits of boyish laughter, a sound so out of character for the gunslinger that it takes the twins aback in surprise.

His cheeks are flushed a rosy pink, standing out against his pale complexion and white hair. A wide, mirthful smile cracked out against his brooding face, nose scrunching in a way that couldn’t be described as anything but endearing. His body didn’t know whether to fight or fold, the long-forgotten instinct of childhood leaving him withering and laughing from the soft fingertips spidering along sensitive skin.

“Well, how about that,” Vax murmured, something gentle in his voice despite the mean wiggling of his nails on a particularly sensitive rib. “He can laugh.”

“Oh much more than that, dear brother,” Vex smiled fondly. “He isn’t grumpy now.”

Experimentally, her fingers swirl up Percy’s unprotected ribs to dance gently under his arm to see if it would have much effect. Oh, and it does. Percy practically squeals. High-pitched and panicked and childlike, his struggles for his pinned arms make a reappearance as the sensitive hollows are attacked by softly brushing nails. 

“Nononononohohoho VEHEehehex!” He pleads, scuffing the heels of his shoes into the floor in a half-baked bid for relief. “Fuhuhucks sahahake!” 

“That is utterly adorable,” Vax laughs, his own hand coming up to stroke deftly down Percy’s arm from wrist to armpit in a maddening pattern of soft touch. The strokes only elicit more half-bitten squeals and squeaks of protest, most noises swallowed up or blended into Percy’s laughter.

He knew he should feel embarrassed, his pride shattered into pieces from a few measly fingers and well-picked words to crack his defenses, but Percy couldn’t recall a time he’d last been in the middle of a play fight such as this. The sensations are foreign but not forgotten, too much and yet not enough at the same time. It was a conflicting state of escape or endure.

However, when Vax slipped a hand under his buttoned shirt to ghost gentle nails on his bare lower back, he was pretty sure his body got struck by lightning. 

“VAHAHAX! OHOHOhoho mihihy gohohod plehehehease! P-PLEHEhehehease!”” 

Vex and Vax pause in their movements and watch with awed amusement as Percy laughs himself mad from the briefest touch to his back, his full-bodied laughter quickly melting down into rich, honey-sweet giggles that shake his entire body. It didn’t seem real, that a sound so adorably childish could come from Percy’s mouth, and yet here he was, half curled on the ground, giggling up a storm. 

Vex and Vax share a fond, endeared smile and let go of Percy’s wrists, leaning away so he could have space to collect himself. The human wheezes through his tumbling giggles, his arms shifting to wrap around his middle as he slowly calms down. His eyes, which had been tightly closed, flutter open to show mirthful tears at the edges.

“F-Fuhucking hehehell,” he gasps, “I thohought I wahas gohohing to dihie.”

“Oh relax, we like you too much to kill you,” Vex snickers, offering her hand to Percy. She has to hold back a snort when he flinches mildly at her fingers, eyeing them distrustfully. “We’re done,” she promises.

After a suspicious look, Percy grasps her hand and allows her to tug him into a sitting position. One of his arms is still wrapped protectively around his stomach, his hand reaching far enough to rub that damn spot Vax had tickled for three seconds which caused him to fall apart. 

“Remind me to never piss you off,” Percy rasps, taking off his glasses to rub the tears in his eyes away.

Vax leans over to his supplies to snatch up his water skin, offering it to Percy who took it gratefully. “So,” Vax starts, watching Percy drink water like he hadn’t had it in years. “Soft touch and bad back, huh?”

Percy almost chokes. With a rough swallow, he recorks the water skin and clears his throat, stubbornly not looking at either of the twins. “Like I said, it’s been a long time. I didn’t think I still even was… well, you know.”

“What? Ticklish?’

Vex’s gentle tease makes Percy’s face burn for what felt like the millionth time that evening. He shoves his glasses back on his face despite the heat in his cheeks making them fog up mildly. The reaction makes the twins chuckle.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed, Percy dear,” Vex soothes, an arm wrapping around his shoulders and rubbing gently at the nape of his neck - tension knotting the area from hours of leaning over a workbench while inventing. Percy winced at the attention, both from the anticipation of another attack and the ache of his tense muscles. 

“It’s embarrassing,” Percy grumbles without much heat, sounding like a petulant kid. “My siblings always ganged up on me because of it.”

“You have a nice laugh, I can see why they would,” Vax hums, tucking his water skin back into his nearby cloak.

The surprised look on Percy’s face almost made Vex tackle him back to the floor and tickle him again just so he could hear how precious his laugh was. She held herself back though, he’d had enough for tonight anyway. He hadn’t been tickled in years, he’d need to be introduced back to the game slowly. Tonight was an excellent first lesson. 

“So, Percy’s ticklish then?”

The sudden voice made the trio jump and look up to the other side of the cave where the rest of Vox Machina were watching them with grins. Scanlan, who’d asked the question, chuckled at the human’s sudden flush. “Yeah no, we saw the whole thing, de Rolo. Don’t expect this to be the last time, that was cute as fuck.”

Grog chuckled deeply. “Very cute,” he agreed in that rumbling voice of his. Pike, who was sat atop his shoulder nodded enthusiastically in agreement. 

“Had no idea you could laugh like that, Perce,” she chirped, glancing at Keyleth who giggled softly. 

“It was quite sweet,” the Air Ashari tacked on.

Percy stared at the group of people he called family, his eyelid twitching slightly and cheeks flushed a rosy pink. His gloved hands come up to press over his face, knocking his head into his bent knees, wishing the floor would just cave in and murder him quickly. 

“Aww, I think we’re embarrassing him,” Vax cooed, his hand resting atop Percy’s head and gently ruffling his hair in a brotherly fashion. “It’s alright, Giggles, you know we do it out of love.”

“F’ck off and die,” came the muffled grumble buried into Percy’s hands.

The twins cackled, pleased that they not only thoroughly shattered Percy’s indifferent demeanor, but got him flustered beyond repair from simple, playful affection and loving words. They were gonna have fun with this new information. It was their right as a family to carry on the de Rolo tradition of making Percival Fredrickson de Rolo the Third laugh, they wouldn’t let Percy’s late siblings down on that front.