#rosalind got it bad

[lodgeofeilhart]

[wanderingaldecaldo]

Yesterday I started a wkit file for Madam President. Today I'm exporting meshes to edit in Blender for outfits. I'm fucked.

[livwritesstuff]

for @steddie-week day 5 | exes to lovers

fully and completely inspired by @emchant3d's divorced dad's post [x] from a few weeks ago bc i did not once stop thinking abt it

tags: modern day, artist!eddie, finance guy!steve, steddie as rich gay divorcees, sort of an accidental parent trap situation

They were too young, Steve thinks in retrospect – married at twenty-three, their daughter born when they were twenty-five, and then divorced before his twenty-seventh birthday.

He gets to think retrospectively because in a few years it’ll be a full decade since the papers for that last bit got signed. Now, Steve is thirty-four and sweating his ass off in a red polo and crisp jeans, the stiflingly hot July sun beating down on him as he scans the perimeter of a crowded playground for a familiar head of curly brown hair – not his nine-year-old. He found Rosalind already, wreaking havoc on the jungle gym. No, he’s looking for his ex (-husband, technically, but Steve usually stops at ex; the -husband part just makes him sad these days).

It’s custody swap day, which is either his favorite or least favorite day of the week depending on who the swap is favoring.

Today it’s favoring him which is why he’s slowly making his way around the edge of a playground in Bushwick, keeping an eye out for his ex, Eddie.

“Steve,” he hears from somewhere behind him. Steve turns towards the sound and sees not that curly head of hair he’d expected. Eddie’s hair is completely buzzed (which, for the record, was not the case last week when Steve dropped Rozzy off with him) and he’s wearing a paint-splattered white t-shirt tucked into old jeans and all that combined is making it reeeally hard for Steve to pretend he’s not crushing hard on the guy he divorced eight years ago.

“Dude,” Steve started, eyeing Eddie’s hair (or lack thereof) as he made his way to the section of fence that Eddie was occupying, “What–”

“Yeah, yeah,” Eddie rolled his eyes, “Rozzy already hit me with all the good zingers so you’re too late.”

“No, I don’t –” Steve stopped, “It’s…not a bad look, just…you know. Why the change?”

Eddie looked away.

“Long story,” he replied as Steve remembered (yet again) that he doesn’t get full access to Eddie’s world the way he used to.

Luckily for Steve, Rozzy runs up to them and spares him from having to figure out a response for that.

“We should get pizza,” she says. Steve’s eyebrows fly up.

“We should get pizza?” he repeats.

“Please,” she adds, her eyes shining, “At Dad’s? And we play Mario Kart? Dad said I’m getting good at 200!”

“He said that?” Steve asked, and he glances over Rosalind's head to see that Eddie is making a so-so gesture with his hand.

He’s never been all that good at saying no to his daughter (or anyone), so it doesn’t take much more convincing on Rozzy’s part for the three of them to head off in the direction of Eddie’s loft, with a pitstop planned for the pizza shop down the block.

They actually have a nice time.

It’s true that Rozzy is getting better at 200cc – good might be a bit generous, but Steve’s fine with that (he doesn’t know if his ego could handle getting crushed by a fourth-grader).

Just as they’re finishing their second grand prix (the Star Cup, because Rozzy likes the dolphin race), one of the other kids in the building knocks on the door and invites Rozzy over for a sleepover, which Steve agrees to because he remembers the illicit kind of joy in a summertime Monday night sleepover.

Eddie doesn't show Steve the door after Rozzy's gone. Rather, he pulls a bottle of wine from the fridge – an expensive Sémillon he says was given to him by a client.

“So the art biz is still going well, I assume,” Steve comments as Eddie pulls two vintage wine glasses out of a cabinet and pours them each a healthy serving.

Conversation about work manages to sustain them through the first few glasses (Eddie actually remembered that it’s been just over a year since Steve left his dad’s Fortune 1000 for a CFO position at a marketing company that had just graduated from small to midsize status). They work through the second quarter of the bottle talking about Rozzy, and the third vanishes even quicker while Steve spills some of the latest Harrington family drama.

While Eddie is updating him on how Wayne is doing, Steve finds that he isn’t really listening, distracted in the way he can’t help but notice how Eddie’s paint-stained t-shirt is actually more like an undershirt, and a size too small for him, the torso and sleeves tight around lean muscle, and there’s a thin silver chain around his neck and a scruff of facial hair around his jaw, and –

Steve doesn’t immediately realize when Eddie stopped talking. When he does, when his eyes finally unstick themselves from the buzzcut and drop back down to Eddie’s, he sees that Eddie is staring at him too.

Eddie’s tongue darts out to wet his lip.

“Ask me again why I buzzed my hair,” he tells him.

“Why’d you buzz your hair,” Steve asks, because he’s obedient like that (and because he really does want to know).

“Steve–” Eddie stops, a giggly, wine-induced hiccup of a laugh slipping out before he shakes his head, “An entire can of paint tipped ov–” He cuts himself off with another half-hysterical laugh, barely managing to say, “Spilled on my head,” before he was completely doubled over, and Steve is laughing too because he can totally picture it and because he had a bit more wine than he planned to and this is honestly the first time that he and Eddie have hung out without their daughter in…Steve doesn’t even know how long.

“Steve,” Eddie says again when they finally both recover, and his tone is completely different this time around and there’s a vulnerability in his eyes that wasn’t there before and something is happening, something is happening, “Please don’t kill me for saying this, but…fuck, it’s really kinda pathetic how badly I still want it to be you and me.”

Steve thinks he tries to respond, but then he was too busy kissing Eddie to do anything else, too busy scraping fingernails over Eddie’s scalp, too busy choking back a moan as Eddie sucks his bottom lip into his mouth, too busy tugging Eddie’s shirt out of his waistband to shove a hand up underneath and finding that he’s built more solidly than Steve remembers from the last time they touched like this, but something is telling him that’s true about Eddie – true about himself too – in more ways than one.

And if Rosalind comes home the next morning ready to ask how she’s getting back to Daddy’s house only to find that he’s already there, stealing Dad’s mug out of his hand for a sip of coffee when his own is right there…that’s a conversation for another day.

part 2

[armoricaroyalty]

Their relationship worked because Mary could usually talk Rosalind out of her bad ideas. The problem was that Rosalind was more than capable of talking Mary into her worst ideas.

Previous | Chapter Start | Beginning | Next

author's note: Thank you so much to @madebycoffee for making these poses for me (also it is coincidentally HER BIRTHDAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY COFFEE). These poses are perfect and incredible and amazing and I am so, SO grateful to her!

In case you missed it: there will be no story updates for at least a few weeks! I'm taking a creative break to do some travel and take care of some IRL stuff. Be back soon!

Transcript under the cut.

Rosalind's townhouse // Feb 2018

ROSALIND | ...ugh! We're only getting coverage on gossip sites. And like, more than half of it is just about my dress. ROSALIND | I was hoping we'd get picked up by some of the entertainment journalists. I mean really, how man princesses are out there composing film scores? ROSALIND | You're finally getting positive coverage, though. "Rosalind was accompanied on the red carpet by girlfriend Mary Yokoyama." And look, the shield didn't even call you foreign! They're learning. MARY | ...babe? ROSALIND | Hm? MARY | There's something I need to tell you. ROSALIND | Go ahead, then. MARY | Not now. Next week. ROSALIND | [ amused ] Why next week? MARY | You've got enough to worry about this weekend. ROSALIND | You know, I've actually been thinking about the trip... MARY | When you leave, I wait by the window the whole time. [ laughs ] Like a dog. ROSALIND | [ laughs ] Darling, you are druuuunk. MARY | Tipsy. And I'd say it sober. ROSALIND | Focus. You should come with me! MARY | What? ROSALIND | This weekend! To Morley! MARY | Babe...I wasn't invited. ROSALIND | You should have been. We're engaged, that's family. MARY | Roz, is it a good idea to antagonize your father right now? He's already pissed. ROSALIND | Oh, he's got no reason to be angry. He already gave his consent, and-- MARY | Not about the engagement. About the interview. ROSALIND | Oh, don't you start. I already got an earful about it from my mother. MARY | Good. I'm glad you're hearing it from someone other than me. You knew speaking to the press was a gamble, and this time, you overplayed your hand. ROSALIND | [ sighs ] I can't say you didn't warn me. MARY | Yeah, and I'm warning you again: don't push right now. Wait. MARY | He won't stay mad forever. He's your father, he loves you. ROSALIND | Loving me means accepting you. I'm not compromising on that. ROSALIND | ...and besides, I want you there. Even if it's only a weekend. I'll miss you. MARY | [ softly ] Babe... ROSALIND | ...and I'm not above ordering you to be there, either. MARY | [ laughs ] Be serious. ROSALIND | Darling, I always am. ROSALIND | ...especially about you. MARY | Stopppp! Quit making me blush. ROSALIND | Never. ROSALIND | In fact...I think I want you to blush more. MARY | Ah-- is than an order? ROSALIND | [ breathless ] Yeah. Now lie back. [ They make out. Among other things. ]

[rookie-chenford]

Dream a little dream of me

Description: Based on Season 4 Episode 17. Some things are the same and some things are my own added flare. So I hope you enjoy!

Words: 2617

Warnings: mentions of anxiety, lots of tears, mentions of what happened to Lucy. If there is any other warning I should put in here, please let me know!

A/N: This is a long one, so strap in for the ride!

Lucy emerged from her bedroom and stopped in the doorway. "What is that smell?" she asked cautiously.

Tamara smiled. "Breakfast. I saw this recipe on Cliptalk and wanted to try it." She placed the food on a plate and handed it over to Lucy.

"Ooooh, okay. It looks interesting." She takes a bite, contemplating all the flavors bursting in her mouth. "Okay, it's not bad; it has some uniqueness to it. For once, I can say this Cliptalk recipe isn't all that bad. What's all the fuss for?"

"I just want today to go well for you. I can't imagine having to tell the same story repeatedly and feeling like I'll never stop telling it."

"Well, I've told the story to my therapist a hundred times. I don't think one more time will hurt."

"I know, but it just seems so unnecessary for you to go through the worst moments in your life just so the D.A. can slap some more charges onto her time."

"All I have to do is tell the D.A. everything so they can prove Rosalind was an accessory in Caleb's crime."

"But is it even worth it when she's already serving four life sentences?" Tamara asked, concern and confusion laced in her voice.

"It's essential that she is held accountable for what happened. Most of her victims aren't alive to tell their stories, and I'm fortunate enough to do so." Lucy said with a bit of sadness in her voice.

Tamara nodded. "Fine, but I'm coming with you. Is Tim going to be there?"

Lucy let out a small chuckle. "You don't have to, and why would Tim be there?"

Tamara made her way around the counter, gathering up her stuff so they could leave. "I'm coming with you. That way, if you get upset, I'll be on standby with cute puppy videos and your favorite snacks. And I just figured he'd also be there to support you, like me." She smiled.

Lucy shook her head, a sad smile appearing on her face. "No, he won't be there. He's working today." She took a deep breath and grabbed her stuff. "Come on, let's go."

Walking into the main lobby of the ADA's office, Lucy took a deep breath and looked around, trying to come up with a small lie to have a moment to herself. "Umm, I am going to look for a restroom. I'll be right back."

"Do you need me to come with you?" Tamara asked with concern.

Lucy chuckled. "I think I can handle it. Will you let someone know that I'm here?"

"Sure thing."

Lucy quickly walked off and opened the first door that she saw. The lights were off when she entered, but she looked around to ensure she was alone. When she saw no one around, she leaned against the wall, her breathing becoming ragged. All the memories of Caleb and what happened to her quickly flashed through her mind. Her lip quivered, trying to keep her tears at bay. She squeezed her eyes shut and slid down the wall, trying to get the memories to disappear, a single tear making its way down her face. Once she felt she was okay enough, she wiped her face, got up, and exhaled a shaky breath. She cleared her throat and made her way out into the lobby.

As she entered, Tamara gave Lucy a soft smile that quickly dropped when she saw Lucy's red eyes. Tamara quickly dropped the conversation with the guy she was talking to and made her way over towards Lucy.

"Hey, you okay?" Tamara asked, concern lacing her voice.

Lucy looked around, trying to find Sara, the ADA she was supposed to be talking to. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." She waved her hand, dismissing Tamara.

Tamara could see the whirlwind of emotions in Lucy's eyes, but she didn't want to push her, knowing she'd already be going through a lot. Tamara nodded and squeezed Lucy's hand, letting her know she was here with her and was not alone during this difficult time. Just as Tamara was fixing to speak, she saw Chris quickly approaching them.

"Hi," Chris said, a little worriness written on his face.

"Hey, do you know where Sarah is? I'm here for trial prep."

Chris cleared his throat, his face a little paler than usual. "Umm, she is out sick today, and they asked me to step in. But it seems awkward, given our relationship. We can reschedule if you'd like?"

"Uhh, no, it's okay. We're professionals. We'll just be discussing the details of the case." Lucy said, stumbling over her words a little.

"Okay then, follow me."

Lucy turned to look at Tamara, a little bit of worry on her face. Tamara squeezed her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile. Lucy nodded and followed Chris to a conference room.

They sat across from each other, an awkward silence filling the room as Chris pulled out the files from his briefcase.

He cleared his throat. "Alright, let's get started. Did you ever hear Caleb talking to Rosalind on the phone?"

"Mm, no." Lucy's eyes cast down at the photos sitting in front of her.

"Did he talk about her as if they were communicating?"

Lucy took a deep breath before answering, her eyes now meeting Chris's "No."

"So, how do you know he was working with her?"

Lucy chuckled disbeliefly. "B-because she told me herself when I visited her in prison. She repeated the song I sang in the barrel. How would she know that if she and Caleb weren't communicating?"

Chris's voice faded into the background as she looked back at the photos, resurfacing memories of that day—memories of her tattoo, getting into the barrel, and trying to fight her way out.

"Lucy, I just want you to be ready."

She finally snapped out of it. "I'm familiar with the concept of trial prep." A hint of anger in her voice.

"I know," Chris said softly. "Uhh, how about we take a break?"

"Yeah," Lucy said, a little softer this time.

They left the conference room and made their way to the break room, where Tamara and her new friend were hanging out.

"I was wondering where you went," Lucy said as she entered the room, a smile forming.

"Two watered-down coffees coming up," Chris said in the background.

"How's it going?" Tamara asked.

"Uhh, great."

"This is Austin. He's saving the planet."

"It's Good to know someone is trying to. You can go; you don't have to stay here."

"Mmm, I don't know. I'm finding this whole law thing fascinating." Tamara said, trying to convince Lucy.

Lucy can see right through her, a knowing smirk appearing. "Uh-huh. And what exactly is so interesting?" She chuckled.

Before Tamara can answer, Lucy's face drops, tears forming in her eyes. Tamara's face turns into confusion, wondering what suddenly made Lucy's mood drop. She raises an eyebrow at Lucy, waiting for her to say something. Lucy turns around as Chris continues singing the song she sang in the barrel. Lucy hears Tamara ask if she's okay but doesn't answer. Her breathing picks up, a million questions going through her head.

Chris's face immediately drops at the realization, and he quickly turns to face Lucy. "I—I am so sorry. It was stuck in my head, and I wasn't thinking. It was thoughtless and stupid, and I'm sorry."

Tamara and Austin quickly exit the break room, and she quickly whips out her phone to call Tim. She wasn't sure what to say to him but knew Lucy needed his support for the rest of this trial prep.

"The- the uhh song was stuck in your head because you've, you've seen the video." Lucy's voice was shaky, trying to keep her tears from falling.

"Well, yeah. It's evidence."

"Ri-right. No, of course, you did. You're in the D.A.'s office, and it's evidence, so… you've…" Lucy's voice cracked, tears threatening to spill at any moment.

"Look, I should have told you I'd seen it. I'm sorry." Chris said as he walked towards Lucy.

Lucy stepped back as he approached her, making him stop in his tracks. "No, you said that part already." Lucy swallowed thickly. "Umm, I, I just need a minute."

"Lucy, please-'

Before he could say anything else, Lucy raised her hands. " Please, can you…" She stopped, unable to say anything else as her throat became tighter from holding back her tears.

Chris nodded and whispered a yeah as he walked out and closed the door. Lucy paced the floor, groaning and breathing heavily. She couldn't believe Chris would be so careless about singing a song that once brought her joy and now brings back her worst nightmares. She sat on the couch, her head in her hands, lightly pulling on her hair to relieve some tension.

After being in the break room for a while, Lucy lifted her head as a knock formed on the door. Tamara softly opened the door, her face falling when she saw the tears staining Lucy's cheeks. "Sorry to interrupt, but Chris just wanted to know if you were ready to continue."

Lucy wiped her face with her sleeves. "Yeah, I'll be out in a moment."

"Okay," Tamara whispered as she shut the door.

Lucy took a deep breath and stood up from the couch, fixing her clothes as she went to the door. She turned the knob and took one more deep breath before opening it and making her way back to the conference room. When she entered, Chris was already in there waiting for her. As he heard her walk in, he quickly put his pen down and stood up.

"Again, I am so-"

"Sorry. Yeah, I know." Lucy said, not wanting to hear another apology from him.

She reached the other side of the table and pulled out her chair. "Umm," She cleared her throat. "I- I need you to do something for me."

"Yeah, anything."

"I need to see the video."

The barrel video?"

"Yeah. You've seen it; half the lawyers in this building have seen it, and I haven't."

Chris took a deep breath. "Lucy, it's… It's incredibly hard to watch."

"I need to see it." She said with a more demanding tone.

Chris nodded his head and turned toward his briefcase. Pulling out his laptop, he opened it up and clicked the mouse several times before placing it in front of Lucy.

"Should I stay or…"

"Mnh-mnh, no. Umm, thank you."

Chris made his way towards the door and opened it, looking back at Lucy before leaving.

Lucy's hand hovered over the mouse momentarily before a knock interrupted her. She quickly moved her hand away from the laptop and looked up to see Tim opening the door. She pulled her eyebrows together, wondering why he was there.

She quickly stood up from her chair. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be at work."

"Tamara called and said you were upset, and she wasn't sure why. She was worried about you." He said, a look of concern on his face.

"I'm fine. She shouldn't have called you." A defensive tone laced in her voice.

Tim cocked his head. "Clearly you're not fine. I can see the redness in your eyes. You've been crying. Tell me what's going on." He pleaded as he made his way to Lucy, standing before her.

She looked down at her hands as she fiddled with her fingers. "I-I… Chris started singing the song I sang in the barrel as we took a break. He said it slipped his mind. I-I just hadn't put two and two together that he and probably every lawyer here has seen the video."

"Excuse me?" Tim questioned with disgust in his voice.

"He apologized already. Don't go all Tim on him."

"I should give that prick a piece of my mind. How do you let something like that slip your mind?"

Lucy could feel the anger radiating from Tim's body. She sat down in the chair facing the laptop as he paced the room momentarily, trying to keep from walking out the door and causing a scene.

After a moment of calming himself down, he looked over at Lucy. "What are you doing?"

"I need to watch the video."

"Video of what?"

"Of me in the barrel." She whispered.

Tim made his way over to the chair next to her. He spun her chair to face him. "Are you sure you want to do that?" He asked, grabbing her hands.

Lucy looked into his eyes, so he knew she was serious. "Yeah, I am."

"Do you want me to stay?"

"Will you?"

A small smile formed on Tim's face. "Of course I will."

Lucy took a deep breath and turned back to face the laptop, her hand hovering over the mouse. She looked at Tim, who nodded, letting her know he was ready. With one more deep breath, Lucy played the video.

It started playing, and the sound of her fist slamming against the barrel startled her. Tim quickly placed his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it to let her know she was safe. Lucy couldn't sit still. Her hand lightly scratched her forehead, kept moving her hair out of her face, and finally, her finger rested on her top lip, rubbing it back and forth. As she closes her eyes, the video continues to play in the background. She bounces her leg, her anxiety becoming heavier as the video plays. A single tear slips down her cheek. Tim looks over at her, bringing his hand up to wipe her tear away. This makes her break down into a full-on sob. He quickly wraps her into his embrace, rocking her back and forth and whispering that she's safe and he's here. He's doing anything and everything to get her to calm down. His heart breaks for her, hating that she put herself through this, but he also knows she had her reasons and won't ever question why.

Long after the video ends, Lucy finally calms down enough to pull back from Tim's embrace. She stares at her feet while he looks directly at her, waiting for her to speak.

"Thank you." She finally croaks.

Tim placed his hand under her chin, lifting her head to look at him. Her red and puffy eyes finally met his. "I am always going to be here for you. No matter what."

"I know," Lucy replied with a small smile. "Umm, I don't want to testify anymore. I don't want to keep reliving that day over and over again. I want to leave it where it belongs, in the past."

Tim nodded, shut the laptop, and grabbed Lucy's hand. "Then you don't have to testify. No one is going to think less of you. Now, come on, let's get out of here."

They made their way to the door, Tim opening it to let Lucy out first. Tamara turned around at the sound of the door opening, happy to see Tim bringing out a happier-looking Lucy.

"Everything okay?" Tamara asked.

"Yeah, it will be," she said with a smile. She turned to look at Chris. "I've decided I don't want to testify."

"Understandable." He nodded.

"I've been trying to prove how strong I am, but… I survived that. I don't have anything to prove." Tamara walked over to Lucy's side and hugged her.

"You don't have to explain yourself. We have enough evidence to convict her without you. I promise."

With that, Lucy, Tamara, and Tim walked toward the elevator and left. Leaving everything behind and never looking back at this day again.

[weaveandwood]

The Bard and The Blade Chapter 2: A Small Continent

Wyll/Named Tav | Slow Burn | Read on AO3 | Entire Work

Summary:

Rosalind has a poor showing in battle and the mission is a complete failure. Will Wyll change his mind about accompanying the party now?

“I’m sorry,” she blurted out before taking a large gulp of her wine, which he instantly topped up.  “For what?” He laughed. “For having a bad day? It happens to everyone. I have had a number of days end just like this, returning to camp with my metaphorical tail tucked between my legs, my only solace at the bottom of a glass of wine. Now…I can honestly say I haven’t died in the middle of a fight,” he smiled as he teased her, hoping it would help lift her spirits. He wasn’t ready to admit to her that the sight of her lying lifeless on the ground sent a cold dread through him, even though they had only known each other a little more than a day at that point.

AN: This chapter was born out of the fact that I am playing on Balanced mode (and am Not Good at the game, even though I enjoy it immensely) and a glitch in my Investigate Kagha quest. I'm hoping to update this fic every 2 weeks, alternating with Weave & Woods. Also big thank you to @druizard for the banner!

Dying the second day of their adventure wasn’t part of Rosalind’s plan, but as she woke up gasping for air with her three party companions standing around her, it was clear that was exactly what happened. She groaned as she sat up, her now pounding head in her hands as her elbows were balanced on her knees. 

“What happened?” She asked the ground, not wanting to make eye contact with Gale, Astarion, or especially Wyll out of sheer embarrassment.

“Wood Woads,” said Gale. “Nasty buggers, they got us all pretty good.”

“Speak for yourself, wizard. I am perfectly fine, thank you very much,” said Astarion, a hint of amusement in his voice. Rosalind glanced up. Gale and Wyll looked way more beat up than Astarion. She assumed he used his sneaking abilities to get around the majority of the fight. She had been friends with plenty of rogues growing up in the Lower City, she knew how they operated. 

“As I was about to say,” Gale said as he leveled a look at Astarion who was no longer paying attention, having moved on to look around the small island for chests that may have loot in them. “Luckily, we had taken down most of the mud mephits and the other Wood Woad before you went down. Wyll here got the final blast in right after you…well right after you died.” 

She looked at Wyll, who was staring off into the distance, not making eye contact with her. While she had to admit he looked extremely handsome as the sun shone on his face, this had clearly not been a good first impression on her part. He was probably rethinking their deal right at this moment and was plotting how to leave their camp and capture Karlach on his own, leaving her in the dust. She thought about resurrecting the Wood Woad to take her out again or crawling into a large tree trunk and never coming out. Maybe she could get Gale to cast an invisibility spell on her so she could slink off for good. All three sounded like good and valid options at this point. 

“Weren’t we supposed to find some sort of clue here about Kagha?” Astarion yelled from behind the large tree trunk. The whole reason they came to this area was to see what shady deal Kagha was getting into based on the letter they found in her quarters and hopefully try to talk her out of performing the ritual that would seal the Emerald Grove and set the tiefling refugees out on a road far too dangerous for anyone who wasn’t trained to fight. “There’s nothing here!”

Rosalind took Gale’s now outstretched hand and he smiled at her as he helped her up from the ground. What a good, kind man. She was glad she pulled him out of that rock. She walked stiffly to Astarion, groaning and rubbing her back as she did. “What do you mean, there’s nothing here? There has to be!” She was desperate for something to go right today. 

“Darling, I’ve looked in every chest, under each rock, and in every nook in this tree. There’s nothing. Either someone else got to it first, or we were duped and there never was anything here.”

She sighed. This was not her day at all. “Alright, let’s head back, I guess.”

As they walked the path through the swamp back to the grove, she found herself falling in step with Gale while Wyll and Astarion led the way. Gale was easy to talk to - partially because he loved to talk, and partially because wizards had always been so interesting to her. The way they practiced magic was so studied, so precise. Sometimes watching a wizard cast felt cold, calculated, formulaic - less about artistry, more about precision. Gale was on a different level - the way he moved his hands was faster than any wizard she had ever seen, and the spells he chose had a certain flair to them, either in the type of spell he chose or when he chose to cast them, which resulted in the most dramatic effect. An artist can always spot another artist, and Rosalind felt a kindred spirit in Gale. 

“You know,” he said softly as he slowed down, putting more distance between the two groups, “I think Wyll was angrier when you went down than he was during the goblin fight yesterday. An instant after you fell, the Wood Woad who caused your demise was nothing but ash. He was also the one to revive you. Astarion and I didn’t even have time to attempt to dig our scrolls of revivify out of our packs before he was already chanting the verbal components at your side.” He smiled, a knowing tone in his voice. “Interesting, don’t you think?”

Rosalind stopped in her tracks, her mind racing. Wyll revived her? Instantly, she was giddy as she pictured him pushing everyone away to rescue the downed, fair maiden. She giggled internally at the thought and caught herself starting to blush. On the other, more practical hand, it made complete sense. He’s a hero - of course he’d rush to her rescue out of a sense of duty. Part of the job. Just another day. She knew that. And the anger Gale described? Well, that was definitely because she was a failure and put them all in danger. Any thoughts she had of him potentially fancying her disappeared as quickly as they came, replaced by deep embarrassment again at being unable to hold her own on the battlefield that day. Living in a large tree trunk for the rest of her days now seemed like the most appealing option again. 

Maybe a family of raccoons would take her and her tadpole in. 

******

The mood at camp that evening was subdued. Wyll noticed everyone seemed to take their cues from Rosalind, effectively the party leader at this point, and Rosalind was not in the best of moods. She sat away from the rest of the group, using her fork to stab at the remnants of whatever vegetables remained in her bowl of stew Gale had prepared and muttering to herself.

He recognized that mood.

He grabbed two cups and a bottle of wine and walked over, sitting next to her on the ground. He saw her freeze for a second before looking up at him. She had the biggest blue eyes with flecks of gold. He hadn’t taken the time to appreciate them fully the other day, but he was sure he’d notice their beauty all the time now. He filled one cup and handed it to her before filling his own. 

“I’m sorry,” she blurted out before taking a large gulp of her wine, which he instantly topped up. 

“For what?” He laughed. “For having a bad day? It happens to everyone. I have had a number of days end just like this, returning to camp with my metaphorical tail tucked between my legs, my only solace at the bottom of a glass of wine. Now…I can honestly say I haven’t died in the middle of a fight,” he smiled as he teased her, hoping it would help lift her spirits. He wasn’t ready to admit to her that the sight of her lying lifeless on the ground sent a cold dread through him, even though they had only known each other a little more than a day at that point. 

She groaned, burying her face in her hands. “Don’t remind me. I have a scroll I can give you to replace the one you wasted on me.”

He placed a hand on her arm, the contact making her look at him. “It wasn’t a waste, Rosalind. It would never be a waste to revive a valued member of a party.” 

She sighed. “I’m not sure exactly how valued I am. I am sure everyone here thinks I’m awful and would leave me on the side of the road in a heartbeat. Well, maybe not Gale. I’m just…new to this. Fighting, traveling, roughing it. All of it. I’ve only been outside of Baldur’s Gate just a few times, and one of those times led to me being kidnapped by mindflayers. Once this is over I don’t think I’ll be venturing outside the city again for a good long while,” she said and laughed nervously, finishing her wine. 

Wyll took a drink, observing the rest of the party. Lae’zel kept to herself mostly, sharpening her blades each night. He had heard her admonish Rosalind for dying, ordering her to train with her during any free time from now on. Gale, Astarion, and Shadowheart sat together, laughing quietly at something. Gale looked over at them a couple of times as Wyll watched. He thought he saw a smile, a nod directed at Rosalind. Wonder what that is about? He turned to look at her and caught her staring at him, her chin resting on her hands. She quickly tried to look away, but he noticed the blush rising up her neck. He smiled to himself. 

“Refill?” he asked, holding up the bottle of wine, now half gone. 

“Please,” she replied, holding out her cup. 

“So you’re from Baldur’s Gate?” He asked, wanting to confirm that his suspicions on her identity were correct. 

“Oh! I guess we didn’t really get a chance to talk much. Eventful day yesterday, what with the kidnapping, the crash, and the battle with the goblins. I think I fell asleep 10 minutes after setting up my tent. Anyway…” She cleared her throat. “Yes, I’m from Baldur’s Gate, born and raised, in a manner of speaking. You’ve already figured out that I’m a bard. Hmmm, what else? I mainly perform in coffee shops and taverns in the Lower City, sometimes the Upper City - but those are few and far between. I’ve been asked to perform at private events and bigger venues but I turn them down every time. One must keep their reputation intact, you know.” She rotated her cup in her hands as she spoke. “Do…do you ever stop in Baldur’s Gate on any Blade of Frontiers missions?” She asked. 

He shook his head. “I was raised there, but left seven years ago. I was seventeen with an eye for adventure and haven’t been back since. I did enjoy seeing bards perform in the Lower City Plaza when I was a teenager though.”

“I used to perform at that plaza! My first paying gig was there. I was so nervous!” She smiled, her face lighting up as she reminisced. “It was such a big place, and it was the weekend so of course it was busy with people not even pretending to pay attention to me. I remember it so vividly! I wanted it to feel intimate so I cast dancing lights but instead of the cool blue they normally are when I cast, I changed them to be warm yellow, like candlelight. I thought I was so creative,” she laughed. “I think maybe twenty people listened to me that night, but I’ll never forget it.” 

Wyll couldn’t believe it. It was her - The Sunlark. What a small continent it was. 

“I wonder if our paths ever crossed before this. It’s such a huge city, it feels unlikely. But I got that gig when I was seventeen, and if I’m doing the math correctly, that would have been when you were sixteen, so there’s a chance,” she said, looking at him again and catching him smiling at her. “What are you smiling about?” She asked, taking a sip.

“I remember you. I saw that performance.” He finished his wine, the bottle now empty. 

He heard her choke on her wine and had to hold back his own laughter. “You did? And you remember it after all these years? It was either really good or really bad to be that memorable,” she laughed nervously. “Hopefully good, though,” she added.

The fire cast a diffused warm glow onto her, reminding him of that night. “Good enough for a sixteen year old boy to skip drinking with his friends at the Elfsong. And good enough to remember a pretty bard’s beautiful singing after seven years,” he said softly as he looked over and saw her shy smile, the faint blush returning to her cheeks. His gaze traveled over her face, taking in the faded bird tattoos, the scar above her eyebrow, her freckles, the scar cutting through her full lips. They looked soft. He saw her beautiful blue eyes do the same, pausing when they got to his lips. He realized suddenly that he had been leaning toward her, their bodies closer now than they were when he sat next to her. All it would take was him leaning in just a little more…

No, there wasn’t time for that. He cleared his throat and stood up quickly.

“It’s getting late, I should get to my tent. Tomorrow we hunt down Karlach and we’ll need all of our strength to capture that infernal devil. Goodnight, Rosalind, thank you for the conversation.” He bowed to her before turning and walking across camp.

******

Rosalind smiled to herself as she finished the last of her wine. He had seen her perform. He remembered her. He called her pretty . Gone was the embarrassment of the day. Gone was the desire to run away. Gone were the feelings of doubt and insecurity - at least for now. She was positive she’d make more mistakes, most likely tomorrow. But none of that mattered because the Blade of Frontiers complimented her singing voice. She would float on the cloud she was now on as long as possible.

Not quite ready to end the day, she went across the campsite to sit between Gale and Astarion, laughing at jokes they were telling at each other’s expense. Her favorites were the ones about Shadowheart’s permanent scowl - even Shadowheart managed to crack a smile at a couple of them. As the wine flowed between the four of them, however, the attention turned to her. 

“So, Rosalind,” Astarion crooned. “You and Wyll looked rather…cozy over there.” 

Oh, no.

She felt her cheeks get hot, sure they were turning bright red. “We were just talking,” she said, taking a long drink. 

“Please, the two of you looked like you were two seconds away from -”

“Now, Astarion,” Gale interrupted. “Rosalind and Wyll are young. Surely you remember what it was like to be so young after the heat of a battle? I could hardly blame them for their…closeness.” Rosalind choked on her wine again. Somehow it sounded even worse coming from Gale. 

“No, no. He was just cheering me up! It was a hard day, what with dying and the mission being a complete failure. That’s all. We both grew up in Baldur’s Gate, so we were reminiscing.” Gale, Astarion, and Shadowheart all exchanged a look that implied they didn’t believe her for a second. 

She looked up at the sky, squinting at the moon, now high overhead. Does that even mean anything for nighttime? She thought, suddenly wishing she had taken the time to learn just a little about life in the wilds and not focus her entire childhood on just surviving in the city. “Well! Look at the time! We should probably wrap this up - big day tomorrow, capturing a devil and all! I’m just…I’m just going to go to my tent now.” She turned on her heel and raised her hand to give an awkward wave. “Good night! See you in the morning!” She heard the sound of muffled laughter as she entered her tent. 

She took two deep breaths, thinking again about her conversation with Wyll. She smiled as she climbed into her bedroll, grabbing her small notebook she kept for jotting down notes, potential lyrics. She wrote “fire, wine, soft lips, almost kiss” on a page and closed it, holding it to her chest. 

“Sorry family of raccoons, I think my tadpole and I are going to be sticking around here,” she laughed to herself.

[agentsofmarvel]

some of my favorite agents of shield fun facts (season 3 edition) (part 1!!)

season one & two fun facts are on my page!! this may be the last season i do though :)

- the little tagline they used in the writers room for season two was “what will i become?” to reference skye’s new powers and learning about her family, coulson’s new position as director, and other character changes. in season three the tagline became “what have i become?” showing the characters evolution into season three and onwards.

- many of the writers also said that the season focused on emotional balance between characters. it was focused on the emotional connection between may & andrew, daisy & lincoln, coulson & rosalind, and fitz & simmons.

- after being taken by the monolith at the end of season two, elizabeth got no confirmation that jemma was alive and she still had a job playing her until being brought back for season three months later.

- the writers were a bit unsure of mack’s character evolution after season two but when they saw henry simmons acting they immediately saw “leading man material” and began to discuss him as a possible director.

- they had a “skye jar” in the writers room when writing season three because everyone kept forgetting daisy and writing skye.

- apparently jed & maurissa’s newborn guest starred in the first episode [03x01] sometime during the opening scene with joey. i watched the episode on Disney+ and i couldn’t find her though, maybe y’all can! [the bts picture i found has her in a blue stroller, dm me for the pic if you want!]

- the inhuman lash is played by matthew willig, a former NFL offensive tackle. he was chosen because not only his huge stature but his previous acting work. he had to take 4 hours in the makeup chair daily for the role.

- the character rosalind price was created to give coulson a role other than “the surrogate father”. both the writers and clark wanted to give him a romantic role. however, when they talked about her to the costume department they described her as a “female coulson”.

- as skye was written as the “eyes of the audience” in season one and bobbi was the same for season two, the writers created the character of joey gutierrez as the eyes of the audience of season 3 with inhumans.

- the writers created the relationship between daisy introducing joey into shield/inhumans to mirror coulson introducing skye into shield back in season one.

- joey’s character was supposed to be a more permanent character in the following seasons but actor who plays him, juan pablo raba, had just booked another show and he couldn’t do both.

- according to the costume designers, they describe coulson’s season three look as his “bad ass civilian look”

———

i am working on more season three facts rn, but i wanted to post some now!! also i wanted to take this time to show my support for the writers currently on strike (some of which wrote the scenes we love in aos!), they ask so little for the amazing work they do and i hope they get what they deserve in the near future !!

[bronx-bomber87]

Merry Christmas Eve to all who celebrate it :) We’ve reached S5. Which is unreal. It shouldn’t be since I’ve been writing these for 7 plus months now and yet ha. I remember BUZZING for this ep. Then being in shock It actually happened. This entire season felt like a gift from the writers.

The long awaited reward for the slow burn. Although I enjoyed every moment of that slow burn. Was very happy to get to this place I will say. You thought Tim’s brain was broken last ep? It’s about to be obliterated haha Once again some long gifs I’ll make to get it all in. Might be the theme for this season LOL I fit everything in that I could this ep was wall to wall moments. Let’s get going.

5x01 Double Down

We start out on a glorious high. Lucy is dreaming about kissing Tim. Making out really. Not only that but she is grinning like crazy as she does. Sure she’s had dreams like this before about him. No doubt in my mind she’s had naughty dreams about this man. (and vice versa let’s be honest) But now she had something real to dream about. A tangible moment. Didn't take long for that to take root in her subconscious ha.

Also in this dream we get another lovely angle to that kiss. It's like we got two first kisses everyone. It's glorious. They sure started this season off with spoiling us right away. He looks like he’s about to eat her face in this dream version. This is why she’s smiling so much heh I love having both angles. Real and dream version.

I like how the dream version is little spicier. Like this is her dream version of that kiss. How he’s cupping her face in this one. She wanted him to devour her like that. She would’ve been happy to be his meal for the night. Also showing Lucy has it SOO bad for him. Forgetting she has a blah BF at the moment. Chris who? Unfortunately as it gets good a knock startles her awake.

It’s Tamara waking her up. Lucy is legit jarred from her dream. We watch her struggle to come back down to earth. Her messy hair and reaction are too funny. This one of my all time fav Tamara/Lucy moments. She has to give Lucy a hard time about the kiss. Wouldn’t be her if she didn’t. It’s too cute. Lucy goes into mom mode about school. Telling her about Rosalind’s trial shutting the city down. Her normal route will be closed.

Tamara mirroring her going into protective daughter mode. Asking her if she wants her to skip class? I love her always wanting to put Lucy first. She tells her no. She will be ok and no where near Rosalind anyways. She is bound to the station with Tim anyways. Waiting for their OP to jump off. Tamara asking if it’s for the UC thing from the other night? Lucy confirms this.

Tamara’s giving her crap about the kiss. Lucy being defensive saying didn’t mean anything. Oh yes nothing. You weren’t just dreaming about it or anything…Mmhm…Then she says her legendary line. ‘Make out. Stop crime. That totally tracks.' LOL I love her so much. Lucy tells her to go to school. Tamara replies in kind telling her to have fun at work. With her boss. Who she kissed…

We then switch to Tim talking to Angela about said kiss. Now let me say how giddy it makes me he came to Angela about it. Yes she’s his best friend but he didn’t used to be this open with her. She had to pull teeth in 2x11 even when he asked for her help. This is a far more open Tim Bradford than we’ve seen before. He starts this convo then goes into full denial. Babe, you started this and she has great Chenford radar. You weren’t going to fool her. Not in the slightest. I love how she doesn’t let up the entire convo. Smirking this entire time through out it as well.

Asking how much did they practice? LOL Tim telling her it was just a kiss. No big deal. Angela’s reply is epic. ‘Then why are we talking about it?’ Boom. Mic drop. She is iconic in this scene. Sounds like he’s trying to convince himself more than anything else. Tim deflecting saying 'What if it wasn’t just a kiss for her?' Really asking 'Do you think she has feelings for me too?' Angela follows up asking if Lucy might have feelings for him? He looks so deflated when he says ‘No..’ Thinking no way Lucy could have feelings for him. Ugh break my heart Tim. When Angela gives me more logic it makes him said.

Telling him she probably saw the kiss as just as a weird work thing then. The defeated way he says ‘Right....’ Angela picks up on it immediately. Hence her next question to him. The way he says ‘No!' to her feelings question. He’s SO defensive. Not telling at all…Do you even believe yourself Timothy? His voice gets all high pitched. Just like Lucy does when she gets nervous about her feelings. He does his spiel about them both being in relationships. Being her boss. etc. Angela crushes it with some more solid logic. ‘All true. Not what I asked.’ God I love her. Also let’s note how deliciously tight Tim’s shirt is in this scene. Didn’t think I would let that slide by did you? Mmm.

We rejoin them in the interrogation room. Tim complaining how greasy his double is. How he hates it LOL Lucy comes in looking like a stunner. Notice Tim agreeing with Aaron’s assessment of how good she looks. She then mentions regretting the choice of thong idea LMAO I love her. Also you are going to be the death of him Lucy Chen haha What are you doing to this man? They received a call earlier and now waiting for a follow up to where to meet.

The phone goes off and Lucy gives the most ‘ in love’ look at him. She couldn’t adore that man standing in front of her more if she tried. Tim answers and Hajek tells them to meet his guys at an air strip. I love the silent communication between them. Always adore that about them. Lucy tries to get them more time saying they can’t just up and leave. How she looks requires lots of suitcases and precision.

Swing and miss sadly. Tells them to meet them there or end up in a coffin. Angela is scrambling because leaving the state is a whole other thing. Aaron saves them by letting them use his private jet for him and Angela to follow in. Lucy says they can follow the flight plan the pilot has to submit. Angela is relaxing a bit and decides to let them proceed. Aaron cracks me up asking about caviar selection such a goob. Says he'll just get an assortment. Ha I love him.

So begins them “pretending” to be a couple. When really it’s just them having no restrictions or boundaries on them. Getting to look, touch, flirt, and be free with one another. Under the guise of UC. It’s glorious really. I felt my brain stopped working multiple times in this episode the first time. Just like Tim. Lucy starts off STRONG explaining why they're late. Pulling Tim to her saying 'Their quickie wasn’t so quick.' Hot damn. (I can see this being a reason for them now a days too hehe)

They’re like magnets instantly drawn to each other. Gah I love it so much. I remember it being so hard to focus. Because they had their arms all wrapped around each other from the word go. The way they are all over each other in this hanger scene. It’s their normal banter but heightened. I’ll never be over her hand resting on his hip. His arms wrapped around her. The easy rhythm they quickly fall into. Almost like being a couple is the most natural thing in the world for them. I mean look at them. They are not struggling to sell this one bit.

The way they’re attached at the hip. Swaying together like they’re in their own world. Which what else is new with them? This is par for the course when they're together. They’re always in their own world when they banter. Only right now they’re allowed to touch and hold each other as much as they want to. And trust me they want to. It felt like I was dreaming as I watched this portion. Truly in a daze. I had to rewind and pay attention to the SL. More than once...

The smiles and the swaying gah they get me. They basically mirror the smiles and swaying from 5x12. Because they’re just as in love right now as they are 11 eps down the road. I love Lucy’s face when they get interrupted LOL It was the biggest scowl. Like excuse me you weren’t invited to this party.

I truly think they nailed this because it was their shot. They thought this was their only chance to be with each other without any restrictions. So they went for it as we can see. We all lapped it up like it was the last bit of water in the desert haha I’m giddy as he tells her to get on the damn plane. It's so cute. Lucy cannot keep her hands off him from the minute they start this. Tim is more than happy to oblige. Gah this is cloud 9 goodness.

The goodies continue on the plane as they head towards Vegas. I don’t know about you but first time I watched this portion I couldn’t focus. I was obsessed with her sitting on his lap basically. Leaning into him. Not only that but the start to Tim’s obsession we all love with her thighs. How he has his hand rests there naturally. Like his hand has found it's new home happily. Lastly their hands. I remember focusing so much on just their hands I missed dialogue. Had to rewind it to hear what was going on LOL

If you weren’t just as distracted by their hands and PDA you’re a lying liar who lies haha Or you don’t ship them. In that case why you reading this review right now? Ha I think they were both nervous about this being out of state. The hands weren’t necessary in the least. I think they were unconsciously grounding each other.

Finding comfort in each other’s touch. Also I think them being this way was incredibly natural for them. Just like everything else has been their entire relationship. Why the slow burn was so necessary. So when we got here it was basically a flawless crossover to this. Touching each other as much as possible and I love it.

Lucy cracks me up trying to get info on their job. Saying right now it's the world’s most boring bachelor party LOL Tim saying this is a job not a party. They finally tell them what their job is since they’re airborne. They ask them if they know who Roman Krupka is? They say nope. Apparently he imports Heroin to the Monarch cartel. Lucy mentions so the competition?

He continues on saying ‘Something like that.' That Roman is paranoid of computers. Doesn’t keep a written record anywhere. That the details of his operation exist in one place. One man called ‘The Brain .’ His name is Leonard Madris. Tim makes the comment isn’t is dangerous for one man to carry all that? They say yes and he’s usually kept under heavy guard. Never leaves the compound.

The reason they’re headed to Vegas is because of him. They’re received a solid tip he will be there this weekend. They find out their plan in this. They’re to take out the guards while he grabs Madris. Then they’re gonna torture the man for every detail. Then they’ll take over the business by doing so. Lucy is so cocky in her reply. I love it. Saying sounds like they should be getting paid more heh. Lyon tells them tough. So charming...

We rejoin them finding out Rosalind has escaped through Lyon. This is one of my fav moments of the episode. The way he immediately grabs her hand. Trying to ground her in this moment. Keeping her close to him so he can show her he’s there. Reassure her that she isn’t alone in hearing this. It’s just instinctual him doing this. Knowing this would be a massive trigger that would throw her off kilter. Trying to keep Lucy there with him. To stop her from losing focus and spiraling out.

Also the way Tim looks up at her. Checking in trying to get her to silently communicate with him. He needs to know she’s ok. Protective Tim is one of my favs. That immediate need to shield and protect her. Rosalind is a huge trauma trigger for her. He wants so badly to help her with this news. Look at how her hand is clutching his shoulder at first. He starts rubbing his thumb on her hand. Trying to get her to unclench. (Wasn't able to fit that one in but he does it.)

Tim being her calm in the raging storm she has going on right now. Her constant in this moment. Which is exactly what she needs. This man is so soft for her I’ll never be over it everyone. Tim isn’t able to get a read on her. She won’t look down at him. So he asks how long till they land? Lyon says 15 minutes. Tim tells them perfect. His cover being the mile high club. It’s his way of getting them a private moment. He needs to check in on her and he can’t do that with them around.

They head back and Lucy goes into full spiral mode. This is why he wanted to do this. She starts to be taken over by her fear and PTSD. Tim sees it taking over her. He tells her to stop in the softest way possible. Lucy takes a deep breath and little stomp but does. Telling her if she is not 100 percent in this it’s going to get her killed. Which ultimately will kill him in the process.

Lucy defends herself and says she’s got this. The news got to her at first but this is their one shot at Madris. That she is fine. I love him being protective and wanting to pull the plug just for her. The beautiful thing is he listens to her on this. Doesn’t bulldoze her and make a decision like he used to. He is trusting her in this moment. Letting her decide for herself ultimately. Which is such growth for him once again I can’t stand it.

He’s so ready to kill this OP if she’s not ok. I love that sfm. Letting her know that there is no shame if she does. He is there if she is ready to pull the ripcord. Tim is about to leave when she stops him. Tim looks so very confused once again. Lucy telling him it needs to look like they hooked up in here. Tim isn’t on the same page as her right now and it shows haha

Here comes that infamous airplane kiss. Has some similar aspects to their first kiss. Except way spicier this time around. Once again Lucy just pounces on Tim. He has to absorb the weight of her throwing her body at him. We watch him once again stumble into their kiss. Taken aback by her forcefulness. Her passion nearly knocking him off his feet. Tim isn't complaining once her lips collide with his though.

It doesn’t take long for him to adjust to it and go with this mini make out session of their's. He is adjusting much faster this time around. It’s all hands at first. His body absorbing the shock of her body slamming into his. Tim wrapping his arms around her anchoring her body to his. Lucy’s hands firmly planted on his face as she leads this kiss at first. Tim’s hands moving up her back fully enveloping her in his arms. Getting so very lost in her once again. Instantly melting into her.

I love how the kiss continues to get deeper. Sexier as well. Hot damn look at them above. Tim is the one chasing her lips as they continue this much spicier kiss. The way he’s leaning into her as they sway together. Two people in perfect tandem with each other. Not missing a beat. They were both so very thirsty in this moment. It’s all over this kiss. Tim running his hands up and down her back as he is savoring her. Lucy hands moving down his face not looking to part from him any time soon either. Tim isn't the only one getting easily lost in this.

Lucy’s hands sliding down his chest once again. This kiss getting deepened much faster this second time around. Their desire for one another is very evident. Tim can't keep his hands off her. Like I said for their kiss in 4x22. If they kept going his hands would end up on her face. He can’t keep them still and as she runs her hands down his chest. He pulls her closer to him not wanting to lose any contact with her. Eliminate any unnecessary space between them.

Her lips are quickly becoming a drug he is getting addicted to. He sure loves her upper lip. Captures it between his as he looks to further this impromptu kiss. *fans self* Look at him in that gif above. Wants her as close to him as possible. I just adore how softly he cups her face wanting to keep this kiss going. Totally forgetting about the mission and the men outside the door. All that matters right now is Lucy and her lips on his.

How Lucy has the self control to pull herself from him I don’t know. Gah it’s the grunt Tim does when she breaks off. *phew lord* That noise is doing things to me. Mmm. He was basically chasing her lips again when she broke off. Chasing that high of kissing her some more. He was very not ready for that to end. Also how glossy his lips look post kiss. She had her damn way with that man haha

He looks so dazed snd confused when she wipes his lips. Her hand shaking as she does this. I know we all joke about how “unnecessary” this kiss was. I think part of it was Lucy seeking comfort from Tim in this moment. The kiss quelling her Rosalind fueled anxiety. She needed to be connected with him for a moment before she could put it behind her or attempt to.

Tim was more than happy to oblige. Poor man has short circuited once again though. Eric once again the master of expressions comes through again. He doesn’t know how to restart. She’s like ok let’s do this and moves leaving Tim stand there in her wake. He is trying to figure out WTF just happened in the last 30 seconds.

We then get this pretty shot of them in the SUV. There is so much being said in the short time span of this shot too. We can see Lucy is still struggling with her PTSD. From the minute she heard the news Lucy has been scaling the walls emotionally. Almost like she’s back in that barrel. All her emotions threatening to drown her. Her lowering the window to get some air on her face. Cool her emotions down.

Looking at the bright lights trying to ground herself. To help her stay in character. Desperate not burn their UC covers. Tim looking over at her so much worry carried in eyes. She can feel his eyes on her and looks back at him. Their silent communication doing all the talking for them. She’s still in a panic but at least she has Tim with her. To keep her grounded and from spiraling out completely.

Tim giving the most space he’s given since this started. Not wanting to physically comfort her right now. Not because either of them want that space. It’s because he isn’t wanting to draw attention to her emotional distress. That would draw questions they can’t have right now. So they share a look and he doesn’t take his eyes off her. I love it so much.

Someone in the casino recognizes Jake. A girl. Which isn’t great. But does give us some protective Lucy which I always love. Finally getting to do that hair take down of her's. The one she threatened Stanton with back in 3x05. I love her taking charge of this moment. Getting this woman to back off. Don’t mess with Lucy Chen ya’ll lol They spot Angela and Aaron across the way after she lets this woman go. Figures this is the time to break off.

Lucy says she wants to gamble. See if they can get lucky three times in one day. Heh I love how he walks with her to them. Wish I could've fit the gif in. His hands on her shoulders from behind as they walk. Totally necessary to walk like this with her LOL I have a feeling this was possibly Eric being a goober steering her towards the table haha But either way I'm a happy girl with it. This was quite the married thing to do though regardless of why. I loved it. Also low key protecting her as they walk toward Angela and Aaron.

They update Angela on everything. Lucy’s first question is about Rosalind. Angela says she got a psycho lawyer to help break her out. We watch Lucy comprehend this. Saying 'Another Caleb....I knew it.' Then says Tamara needs protection. (No mention of Chris BTW) Her other fav human is with her. So no one else to protect from Rosalind. As they talk about this Lucy trying to keep her panic at bay but not doing the best job about it.

Angela picks up on it right away. Asking if Lucy is up for this? That she can pull out if she needs to. I adore Tim answering for her. Backing her and saying she’s solid. The look she gives Tim. My damn heart. He wasn’t gonna pull her till she told him to do so. Until then he supported and trusted her decision. The growth is astronomical in him. You see that written all over Lucy's face. It’s so damn good. You can tell she wanted to touch him as a thank you but stopped herself.

The minute they’re inside the room Lucy turns on the TV. Tim saves her from herself and turns it off. Saying they don’t know anything they don’t. Protective Tim is present through out this episode. Here for it. She is starting to spiral again and sits on the bed. She looks so tired and stressed out. Tim gives her a sweet compliment to cheer her up. He knows how down in the dumps she is about this. Wants to build her up in anyway he can. Saying how she's really good at UC. Just in awe of her once again.

The sweet smile he gives her when he says it too. Be more smitten Timothy I dare you. Lucy asks if he’s ok with her showering first? He says yeah. Then we see her break his brain once again. The door doesn’t close all the way and he gets a sneak peak of her naked back. He stumbles back to the bed trying not to look back at her. Replying 'Yeah... ok.. um fries.' LOL Lucy you have broken this man and I’m dying.

Eric once again crushes it with his facial expressions. Trying not to be turned on and needing a cold shower more than ever. What cracks me up is his sigh as he watches TV. Trying to drown out his dirty thoughts of her in the shower. She comes out saying the water pressure is epic. Wanting to steal the robes and asking if that's stealing? Tim says no it’ll just be charged to the room. She says ‘WE’ should take two then. There’s that married ‘We’ again.

You can tell Tim is antsy af to talk about their kisses. First off let me say how proud of I am of this man. This is the same man who couldn’t have a serious conversation with his current GF to save his life. He is the one to broach this topic with her. Once again making that first move. NEEDING to know if she’s feeling what he is very much feeling. Lucy is the one to bring this courage out in him. To want to talk about this.

He went far outside his comfort zone to get this convo started. Telling her it doesn’t feel like pretend to him. The look on his face as he says this. The hope in his eyes desperately trying to see if she is feeling their connection. Lucy panics and stutters in her reply. To me it’s not because she doesn’t feel the same. He has stunned her into silence. What she is worried about here is losing what they have.

To admit what’s going on between them means she now has something to risk. Something to lose if she does. Her person. The most important person in her life. Tim is far too important to her lose over them trying and possible failing. She is very aware it doesn’t feel like pretend. But isn’t willing to risk that. Ironically in a city like Vegas where one takes such risks. So she crushes Tim with her reply. Saying it’s an intimate act. It’s basic biology. You know a BS answer.

She is deflecting so she doesn’t have to risk losing him. Or confront this at all really. What she doesn’t know is the damage she just inflicted. Tim was already panicky from his convo with Angela about her not having feelings. He suddenly feels very alone in his desire for more. For feeling something. She’s basically rejected him in this moment. He is so sad with her reply.

He gives her one last chance with his ‘So you're saying it’s not a big deal? Doesn’t mean anything?’ She stumbles some more saying ‘Right?’ Wanting him to answer this question for her. She can’t possibly accept he wants her too. So she deflects once again. Tim put himself out there and she shut him down. Their convo is interrupted his cell phone. The looks she shoots his way break my heart. Knowing she’s hurt his feelings. When really she broke his heart a little.

It’s Angela with an update. He tells her he’s alone in the hotel with Lucy. Her ‘Uh oh’ always cracks me up. I love their friendship so very much. Her teasing is primo this season and it makes my heart happy. She is so shipping them and just wants her bestie to be happy. I love it. Telling him not to do anything she wouldn’t. He slams the phone shut and tosses it on bed. LOL

Lucy goes to dry her hair and there is a knock at the door. It’s the girl from earlier saying she knows he’s in there. Tim opens the door and gets hit in the face. They know he’s not Jake. Saying she told them he had a gut last time she saw him. That it was only 3 weeks ago. I mean that sucks for Sava. Means Jake was cheating on her long before 5x18.

He sends Wisco after Lucy and says he says not to kill her yet. Lucy is a BAMF and takes out most of the crew. This part is hilarious about her robe. I’m dying. 'Showed him the whole world just now.' Oh Lucy never change. Tim shakes his head so much I’m cackling. This is the woman you’ve chosen to love Timothy. So exasperated with he right now. I love how she stares down at him lovingly. But you know it’s just basic biology right Lucy?

I love love love him walking her up. That’s last bit of protectiveness being displayed. He doesn't want her to be alone. Tim saying he can’t wait to get out of these clothes. Lucy making a joke she isn’t going to miss that hairstyle. Then Tim is so cute and flirty says he kinda likes hers though. OMG he’s so damn cute. He is such a goner for her oh my word. Lucy’s smile not believing what she’s hearing. Gah this end portion was the death of me. Tim says I guess this is it as they approach her door. Saying they go back to being them tomorrow.

He almost seems sad about that fact. Lucy turning to him and sharing 'Right..everything that happened undercover they’ll leave behind'. No you won’t lol Then Tim does his dorky UC line and regrets it instantly. Scolds himself for that line. Basically saying why are you like this? LOL Cracks me up the way he shakes his head. Like why can't you be more smooth? Oh that's right because you're stupid in love with her and a nervous wreck about it. Funny pre-cursor to his 'Naked time.' line heh.

It’s then Lucy deciding to make a move here. All this talk about going back to being them stoking something inside her. Saying in a sense they’re still UC since they haven’t been debriefed. Tim not catching what she’s throwing down. Just replies 'I guess you’re right.' Lucy is eyeing him like she is ready to have him right then and there. Her ‘Mmhm.’. Trying to give him a hint as she flicks her eyes to the door. It’s then Tim starts to catch her drift. The look on his face when it hits him. Like he can't believe she feels the same way he does.

That there is something there. There is a whole lot of want and excitement in that man's eyes. Lucy has created a loophole of sorts. One where they’re still Jake and Sava. And what do Jake and Sava like to do? Have sex. Lots of hot sex. The amount of bedroom eyes Lucy is throwing at him is insane. The sultry inviting way she says ‘Do you want to come in?’ Tim falling back on his professional boundaries like he has for years. Tells her he shouldn’t…Not that he doesn’t want to. He SHOULDN’T. The song in this scene is solid too BTW. Whoever picks music for this show needs a raise.

Lucy nods and goes to open her front door. Tim looks longingly at her as she does. Lucy gives it one last go. Cranking it up on those sultry bedroom eyes of hers. Basically inviting Tim in to have his way with her. Gah Melissa killing it with the inviting stare. We watch Tim struggle outside her doorway. He has been fighting this instinct for YEARS. I’m sure whenever he had an impure thought he pushed it down. Shoved away any attraction to her. Pushed her away as well. Maintained the professional boundaries he set up years ago. (For the most part.)

Thing is he’s been slow receding those boundaries for years as well. Especially last season when that last bit of his wall collapsed. Slowly letting her into every aspect of his life. To the point that we are now here. Where Lucy is blatantly inviting him in for something very unprofessional. We see Tim have an internal battle with himself. Then basically says ‘F*ck it and comes in. His attraction and his draw to her winning out. He would be lying if he said he didn’t want this. Or hadn’t wanted it in the past before either.

Lucy asks him if he wants a drink? Can she make him one? Tim declining not wanting to waste any time in this precious loophole of theirs. Also didn’t need alcohol to have the courage to do this. He already pushed past that to even enter this apt. Not wanting to dull any senses or touch with alcohol. Wanting to be fully present with her. Lucy looks like was ready to jump his bones right then and there. The sexual tension is palpable. Their UST is off the charts with this entire scene but reaches critical levels once they’re inside.

Lucy understanding why he didn’t want that drink. Love her sweet but nervous smile as she goes to put her stuff down. It's then we see Chris there which ends up ruining everything LOL Just bleeding out on her couch. I love how Tim throws his head back when she see’s Chris is there. I’ll never forget that amount of hilarious memes Eric posted. People putting the funniest shit about him being there. I wish I could find them. They were SO funny. I’ll be honest as frustrated as I was in the moment I was glad they didn’t hook up. The UST was fantastic. Don’t get me wrong good god.

But it’s much better they got together the way they do this season. Way less mess and not worth the angst it would’ve caused for them to cheat on their SO’s. It’s the fact that they almost did that was so damn telling IMO. Phew well hot damn this was a beast to write. But I loved it. This premiere is fantastic from beginning to end. The amount of moments are unreal. Hell of a way to start out a season of non stop gifts. I haven’t watched S5 the number of times I’ve watched 1-4 so this will be fun. Excited to finish out this rewatch with you all as we count down to the S6 premiere. It’s 58 days btw...

~~~~

Side notes-Non Chenford

This isn’t something I enjoyed so much as it rubbed me the wrong way. Nolan getting a Golden Ticket. Lucy has accomplished more, done successful UC ops before and after she graduated FTO and is currently going on another UC but sure Nolan who was disgraced and held back gets one. Sure sure…it does for being Juarez in who I love so there is positives.

Tim telling Nolan he needs backup career when picking his assignment. LMFAO I LOVE THIS MAN.

Thank you thank you to this incredible fandom that has embraced these reviews. You all are amazing and I love every single like, comment and reblog I get. ❤️ shall see you all in 5x02 :)

[theflyindutchwoman]

Hey! How are you holding up? Just finished the episode and I haven't really recovered. I am sad, I am frustrated, I don't really know what's happening? I thought they were mature and Tim is so dumb right now, I can't even.

And Lucy? I can't even start to imagine what she's going through. She has been so badass for the 5 seasons and this season she just gets fail after fail and loss after loss and doesn't even get a good job storyline.

So sorry I didn't reply sooner but I first wanted to take a little step back in order to fully digest the episode. As much as the waiting is killing me, I actually appreciate the hiatus for that. I imagine your feelings may have changed a bit as well since then… or that was the impression I got from our different conversations here and there. How are you feeling now? A bit better or still frustrated?

I'm going to start with Lucy. I was rewatching the beginning of season 5 and this is hitting even harder now. Not because of the pining era. But because the narrative was already showing her isolation back then. I couldn't quite put my finger on why her storyline in season 6 felt so familiar but now I get it. This is merely the continuation.

As we all noticed, the scene of Tim breaking up with her had a very similar vibe to the one at the end of 5.02. But think back of when she went to Nyla for advice about going to UC school, when she was trying to confide to Aaron who was too caught up in his own drama to hear her… or when she spent hours locked in a freezer because no one realised she was missing - besides Tim, that is. And then, there was the whole Rosalind thing where Lucy had to push through her own trauma to help Chris deal with his and help Bailey stay calm. But no one ever took the time to ask her how she was doing with all of this (on screen). They all had good reasons, by the way, this isn't me trying to paint them as the bad guys. But this still has an eerie similarity to what is happening right now. Only there has been no payoff for any of this. Yet. It didn't seem to go anywhere. Until now. Same with her career : she nailed UC Academy, something that was supposed to help her standout come promotion time… She helped the FBI on a raid, she was asked to be the acting Watch Commander, she was told that the whole station had her back… And yet, none of this paid off either. Yet. So this is a great opportunity to finally connect all the dots that have been dropped for the past two seasons and give Lucy the amazing arc she deserves. I sincerely hope this will be the case.

As for Tim… Look, the reason why I didn't want a breakup (besides the fact that I dislike this trope so much), is that I was afraid that it would cheapen the whole "worth the effort / worth the risk" speech. You can't say that and leave at the first difficulty without downplaying the whole story. So I'm glad that the writers were able to find a way to circumvent that issue by showing Tim completely unravelling. Because this isn't about him thinking Lucy is not worth the effort or the risk… This is about him thinking HE is not worthy of her. And that changes everything. For me, at least. I still get the frustration. I still wish this storyline would have been done with them sticking together and trying to work through it. But I can understand his perspective, why he thought this would be better for her. And I can see how that could make them stronger in the end. So, just like with Lucy, I hope Tim's arc will be treated properly and carefully. I need to see the payoff, the progress… I need to see them heal. Separately and then, together. It's always hard to see where a story is going when it is still unfolding… But for now, I choose to remain optimistic and hopeful. Does that help you even a tiny bit?

[pyrosex]

Genderbend IASIP headcanons/generalizations

Mac is butch but is very insecure about her masculinity and didn’t like being perceived as a lesbian so she did try to perform femininity but was super uncomfortable during it

Charlie was dropped off in a basket on Man!Bonnies doorstep by her mom

Franny knew right away that Denise and Dee weren’t hers but was still pissed that the mother was Fem!Bruce

Charlie, Mac and Denise tried out for the cheerleading team in high school, but only Denise got in, Mac broke her pelvis trying to do splits and Charlie couldn’t follow directions, even then she didn’t last long

Mac’s full name is Ronette McDonald, Dee’s is Dedrick Reynolds, and Charlie’s is Charlotte Rosalinde Kelly

Dee frequently crossdresses for his characters, like in over the top drag queen fashion, he wants to go on RuPaul

Cricket is a prostitute with a bad pimp

Mac, Charlie and Denise have all gotten pregnant at one point

Mr. Mac is an alcoholic instead of a smokes

Charlie smells down there

Everyone has raging mommy issues

Maurice Ponderosa is a dog man

Dee is still as misogynist as ever

Denise has big honkers

Mac enjoys action movies with hot chicks and boobs

“Flashing Tits” = Hang dong

[lodgeofeilhart]

[dragonologist-phd]

Introducing: Shay Surana

In Summary:

Circle Mage turned Apostate, Somniari

Elven Mage (Spirit Healer)

Main School: Spirit Magic

Intelligent; Reserved; Focused; Secretive

Relevant Fic: And So They Burned

more rambling:

Backstory:

A mage with prodigious talent who was taken to the Circle at a very young age. They know they come from the Denerim Alienage and that their name was "Shay"; beyond that, they know nothing of their origin. "Surana" is a surname they picked out themselves

They were a quiet child who spent most of their time hidden away with books. Their talent with spirit magic was obvious from a young age, and Wynne took them on as her personal apprentice

Their Harrowing occurred when they were very young, and it kickstarted their Somniari talents

For the next few years, they kept their Somniari status hidden from everyone, knowing that if it got out they would be seen as a threat

They aided in Jowan's escape, but were caught by the Templars. With no Wardens around to interfere, they were sent to Aeonar as punishment

Connections:

Wynne: Being so young when they came to the Circle, Wynne was the closest thing to a parental figure Shay had. As a child they would follow her through the tower, and even sit in on lessons she had with older apprentices. They viewed her as something between a teacher and a mother, and often turned to her for advice or comfort. As they grew older, however, they became quietly frustrated with some of her advice- an occurrence which Wynne chalked up to Rosalind's bad influence

Jowan: Jowan was Shay’s first real friend at the Circle, and vice versa. They were both quiet, awkward children who preferred to spend time away from other people and did their best to look out for each other. As much as Shay tried to keep their head down and follow the rules, there was never any doubt that they would help Jowan escape

Rosalind Amell: Ros arrived at the Circle at an older age and was quickly brought into Shay and Jowan’s friendship. Among the the three, she was by far the most rebellious- yet Shay couldn’t help but be drawn to her, even when they knew she was heading for trouble

Sloth: Despite their talent, Shay nearly did not survive their Harrowing; the sudden attention from demons and discovery of their Somniari abilities overwhelmed them. Sloth protected them, and continued to do so for years; in exchange, it fed off Shay’s dreams and the weaker demons they attracted. Shay knew better than to trust the demon, but it was useful- and, in some ways, it was a familiar and comforting presence

Cyrion & Ellimere Tabris: After escaping, Shay finally managed to reunite with their father and adopted sibling. The relationship was an awkward one- especially with Ellimere, who’d had bad experiences with magic and spirits- but the reunion did give Shay a sense of closure

Romance:

Shay had a crush on Ros from practically the moment they met; the two eventually got together when they were still in the Circle. Like most relationships between teenagers, it was an open secret- technically not allowed, but people would look the other way so long as they maintained a level of discretion

Their relationship was always an open one. Shay had no interest in others, but Ros liked to flirt and fool around, and they didn’t mind

Their crush on Jowan was much more subtle, and they didn’t fully realize it until Jowan announced his plan to escape and they realized he’d been gone forever. By then they assumed it was too late to do anything about it

The three of them did eventually work things out and became a polyamorous trio

During the Blight:

After they were caught helping Jowan escape, they were sent to Aeonar with Lily as punishment

Ros and Jowan, having escaped the Circle and Redcliffe respectively, launched a rescue together. They were able to save Shay, but at great cost

Sloth had been destroyed by the Wardens, but a small piece of them remained behind as a Spirit of Repose, which sought out Shay and joined with them much like Faith did with Wynne

Epilogue:

Shay, Rosalind, and Jowan are all presumed dead by the Circles at this point, so they lay low and travel the rural areas of Ferelden, helping refugees where they can and doing work for the Mage’s Collective

When the mage rebellions kick off, the three of them aid the rebel mages. They remain wary of the Inquisition and its connections to the Chantry, but do offer their help as agents when circumstances become dire

By the time Inquisition happens, I think the three of them also have a kid together. Not sure of any details beyond that but I do think it happens

Misc:

Shay has a special interest in maps, atlases, and geography, partially inspired by their life spent in a tower

They’re a healer first and foremost and keep violence as a last resort. Even so, between them, Ros, and Jowan, they are by far the most dangerous

Music is something they really appreciate. They’re not Andrastian, but all Circle mages were required to attend services; the only part of that they enjoyed was singing the Chant

Sometimes they do miss the routine of the Circle, simply because it made things simple and was less overwhelming than the rest of the world (That said, they would never go back; they had too many choices taken away from them by the Circle)

Birds are their favorite animal, and they’ve always wished they could fly. If they ever had access to shapeshifting knowledge, they’d learn it just for that

[rosalind-learns-blogging]

ellery is running. ellery hasn’t stopped running. did ellery even stop running from the owners? ellery doesn’t know.

there is someone behind it. someone or something but somehow it is being followed.

is it the blood? there is a cut on its neck, a bite(?), it doesn’t know where from, the wolf(?), and there are cuts on its legs from branches and tumbles but the little bunny will not stop running.

the little bunny will not stop running away away from the wolf.

Rosalind followed Ellery for a while. Following and running behind and knowing exactly what she must look like, must feel like to Ellery. The way she must’ve felt to so many kids much littler than her after he left. She tried not to think about it for too long. But it was hard not to make the connection. Maybe she’s just as bad as she believed she was.

Rosalind did, eventually, stop running. She wasn’t tired, but she knew Ellery would keep running until he was sure nobody was coming after it. That’s how he got away. That’s how he survived. So, Rosalind stopped, and hoped not to lose Ellery’s scent. She called out to him, “Ellery? It’s just me, nobody else.”

[charmandabear]

Angels of the Night

Pairing: none (yet) Rating: M (currently) Word Count: 3.6k CW/Tags: implied/referenced sexual assault, ascended astarion, vampire spawn, harem dynamics, blood drinking

Summary:

Honestly, being a spawn of the Vampire Ascendant isn't too bad. Sure, there's the insatiable thirst for blood and never being able to see the sunlight. But lounging around all day in a giant palace being showered with beautiful dresses and the finest luxuries money can buy? Plus you get to hang out with your hot as fuck sisters when it's not your turn with the Master? And there's no shortage of blood to be drunk. After all, Baldur's Gate is just filled with ne'er-do-wells seeking to harm the vulnerable and unprotected. Thank god the Angels are around to take care of them.

This is a purely self-indulgent excuse to write about a life free of jobs and capitalism and mortality with my and my friends' OCs. I'm out here living my delulu fantasies and having a great time. Several of us are writing and uploading our own fics in this world with varying levels of angst and sexiness, which you can find on the Angels of the Night Cinematic Universe collection page.

All those gorgeous portraits of our spawn at a ball is done by the lovely Bun! In order from left to right, top to bottom, the spawn are: @pursuitseternal's Cordehlia (the Consort), Bun's Emille, @astarionancuntnin's Malva, my very own Rosalind, Pursuits' Merelind, and @lets-just-daydream's Zora~

It doesn’t take long for them to spot the perfect target.

“I dunno, little lady, you’re not exactly in a position to be turning someone like me down.” The Fist leers down his nose at the poor girl. She’s slight, her pale skin standing in stark contrast to her dark hair. But the first thing Alina sees is those sad, watery brown eyes, stained by the dark circles of a difficult life. 

“I’m not sure w-what you’re talking about,” the girl stammers, her eyes darting around for an escape. 

“The way I see it you’ve got two options,” he says in a low voice, his lips spreading into a sinister grin. “You can come upstairs with me, and I’ll show you a real good time, or you can come down to Wyrm’s Rock, and I guarantee that’ll be less fun.”

“Fuck the Fists,” Malva mutters under her breath, her void black eyes watching the pair carefully from behind her drink. It tastes like dirt, but it’s a more convincing cover than if the three of them were sitting in a bar without drinks.

“All Fists are bastards,” Zora spits, blowing a stray strand of blue hair out of her face. She shifts her gaze to Alina. “We’ll corner the Fist, you get the girl to safety, understood?”

The half-elf rogue scans the tavern, immediately identifying three points of egress, and nods sharply.

Zora knocks the rest of her whiskey back and slams the glass on the table. She links arms with Malva and they saunter over to the Fist and the girl as Alina melts into the shadows.

“If you’re looking for a good time, we know a place,” Malva coos, and the Fist whirls around on them. His expression quickly goes from one of indignation to unbridled lust, immediately forgetting about his original target. Zora leans in like she’s about to kiss him, before turning away and slinking off towards a side exit of the Elfsong. Malva presses herself against the Fist’s back, urging him to follow.

Once they’re out of eyesight, Alina slips up to the girl and puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. Despite using as much gentleness as she could muster, the girl nearly leaps out of her skin. “Sorry!” Alina hisses, covering her mouth in embarrassment. “Are you okay? Do you need to get out of here?”

“Oh! I– ah… sorry. Yes. Please.” Emotions cycle across the girl’s face before finally landing on desperately grateful. Alina takes her hand and pulls her in the opposite direction that Malva and Zora took the Fist.

“Come, I know somewhere safe,” she whispers as they dash out of the Elfsong.

Zora slips around the corner of the Elfsong to a dimly lit side street. She leans against the brick wall, examining her fingernails as the Fist and Malva reappear. 

“Now darlin’, what was that you were saying about a good time?” the Fist slurs before Zora whips him around and slams him up against the wall, his face pressed into the rough stone. 

“Trust me, love, we’re about to have a great time,” Zora smirks, grunting as she ties his wrists together with thick rope. 

“Wai– wha?” the Fist splutters incoherently as Zora turns him to face Malva, who begins unraveling the strip of terrycloth menacingly. 

“You? Maybe not so much,” she giggles and shoves the gag into his mouth, tying it tightly behind his head. His sounds of protest grow muffled as Zora kicks him further into the dark towards the sewer entrance.

Alina and the girl walk through the maze that is Baldur’s Gate back towards the palace. Alina is sure to take a route that takes them through decently lit but only semi-populated streets, the perfect balance to remain hidden but still safe.

“What’s your name?” she asks to make casual conversation as they walk.

“Er… Emille,” the girl wavers, hesitantly deciding to tell Alina the truth. Something about her energy puts Emille at ease, though she can’t quite identify what.

“Emille, do you have anywhere you can go? Do you have family looking for you?” Alina asks the question, but doesn’t need to see Emille’s downcast eyes to know the answer.

“No, I– I don’t have anyone,” she says in a small voice, and Alina squeezes her hand.

“Then I think you’ll like where we’re going,” she responds warmly. And for the first time since she laid eyes on the girl, Emille smiles.

Rosalind and Umbree are tangled together on the mass of pillows in the corner in view of the doorway to the favored spawn room. Rosalind lazily traces around the depigmentation in Umbree’s skin while Umbree laps at an open wound in Rosalind’s neck. Prudence is wrapped in a plush blanket on one of the beds, snuggling against Jurga, who is reading a book that Merelind insisted they read. Merelind sits in the corner, quietly plucking away on her violin as she composes a new tune.

None of them are expecting Alina to come bursting in with Emille in tow. They all jump up when the two enter, save Prudence, who just looks up from her blanket sleepily. Jurga rushes forward and immediately lays hands on Emille, cool blue healing magic surging through her frail frame. She blinks several times, seemingly surprised to be feeling better for the first time in ages.

“Oh my gods, who is this?” Umbree squeals with delight, and Prudence scrunches their nose in contempt of the sudden noise.

“Alina, what were you thinking, bringing a new girl here before checking with the master?” Merelind hisses, eyes darting to the open door. Lord Astarion is up in the ballroom with Lady Cordehlia, but she worries nonetheless.

“Relax, Mer, I had to bring her home. She has nowhere else to go,” Alina reassures her sister spawn, putting a protective arm around Emille.

Rosalind gently takes Emille’s chin in her hand, examining her gaunt and hollow features. “You poor thing, when was the last time you ate?”

“Erm… yesterday afternoon, I think?” Emille answers earnestly. Rosalind gasps and immediately turns to Alina.

“Go grab some of Master’s food from the kitchens. He won’t notice it’s gone, so long as you don’t get caught,” she instructs in a hurried whisper. Alina nods and slips out into the hallway.

“What’s your name?” Umbree asks excitedly, trying to keep her voice to a reasonable volume. 

“E-Emille,” she replies, nervously looking around at these five enthusiastic new strangers. Jerga swats everyone else away.

“Come, leave the poor girl and let her get herself right,” they say gruffly, leading Emille towards the large wooden tub around the corner from the door. 

“Please, she smells like she hasn’t bathed since before Umbree was turned,” Merelind says with a sly grin, and Umbree pouts.

“Don’t be mean, Mer!” she whines, and Rosalind puts an arm around her.

Jerga waves their hand, filling the tub instantaneously with steaming water. They start pulling at the frilly layers that cover Emille’s body, who despite being fully bewildered by this treatment, lets them do it. She’s just sinking into the tub when Alina returns with a basket full of thick loaves of bread, sumptuous cheeses, and a bottle of dark red wine.

“Please, you don’t have to,” Emille objects quietly, but Alina ignores her as she begins cutting slices of the bread and cheese. She hands them to Emille who devours them gratefully despite her halfhearted protestations and the rest of them look on with envy.

“Man, it’s been so long since I’ve had bread,” Umbree says wistfully, her mouth watering at the sight of the fluffy pieces Alina tears from the loaves. Merelind crosses over to the side table to grab a brush and some soap and beckons Emille to lean up against the tub.

“Come love, since you’re here we might as well get you fresh and pretty,” she says, not unkindly, as she wets the soap and begins to lather it into Emille’s hair. Rosalind picks up the worn dress that Jurga had discarded and examines the construction. Then she opens the wardrobe and sifts through the hanging dresses.

“You’ll have to make do with one of these until I can make you something better suited to your fit and style,” she says, glancing back at Emille to try to surmise her sizing. She finally decides on a rich red dress with gold trim, a deep plunging neckline and thigh high slits.

“Gods I can’t wait to take a bath,” Zora’s voice echoes down the hall as she and Malva return from disposing of the Fist. As they step into the room, they look around to see where the rest of the spawn had gone.

“Pru, where is everyone?” Malva asks, and Prudence silently points into the corner where the other four are still fawning over Emille. Zora groans when she sees the girl getting pampered in the tub.

“Alina, I thought you were going to bring her somewhere safe, not here!” she scolds the rogue, trying to tower over her despite only having a few extra inches on her.

“It is safe here, there was nowhere else!” Alina insists, handing Emille another piece of cheese.

“Yes, but have you told her what bringing her here means?” Zora snips, and everyone goes silent, looking at one another nervously. Emille blanches at the sudden shift in energy.

“W-what does it mean?” she stammers, cheese falling out of her hand and landing with a soft plop in the water. The spawn continue to exchange heavy glances until finally Umbree speaks up.

“Would you like to become super powerful and strong and awesome and also live forever?” she says with an excited squeak.

“And you can stay with us here and lounge around getting lavished in expensive gifts by the most beautiful man you’ve ever met?” Rosalind adds enthusiastically, and the furrow in Emille’s brow deepens.

“And what’s the catch?” she asks, eyeing the group suspiciously.

“You don’t have to say yes,” Zora responds ferociously.

Jurga waves their hand to reheat the water as they break the news. “You must pledge your life and loyalty to Lord Astarion, Vampire Ascendent.”

The air grows thick as Jurga’s words land before Zora lets out another disgruntled huff, and Malva turns her dark eyes towards her.

“Now that she’s here, if she does say no, she’ll be in danger,” she says coolly.

“Oh that’s fine,” Emille says with a wry smile. “I’m in enough danger as it is already.” 

Merelind scoops up some water and runs it through Emille’s hair. “That’s why you brought her here, isn’t it, Lina?” she says quietly, keeping her eyes focused on the dark strands running through her fingers. Alina nods wordlessly.

They all sit quietly for a moment, the silence broken only by Prudence’s quiet sleepy humming. They’ve picked up on the tune that Merelind had been writing, and the other eight listen to the soft broken notes coming from the bed.

“I… I would like to stay, if that’s alright,” Emille finally says in a shaky voice, breaking the spell of Prudence’s song. “I don’t mind becoming a vampire.”

“Vampire spawn,” Zora corrects, but she’s drowned out by Umbree’s shriek of delight. She flings her arms around Emille’s neck in complete disregard of the fact that she splashes water all down her front and plants an exaggerated smooch on the top of her head. Emille smiles in spite of herself. 

The eight spawn spend the next several hours pampering Emille, and even Prudence sits up long enough to conjure a flower crown of red roses to match the dress that Rosalind picked. They all babble excitedly as they get her ready, showering her with advice, stories, and hopeful sentiments. Emille quietly accepts their attention, basking in the feeling of acceptance for the first time in her life.

Once they deem her appropriately made up and prepared, they march her upstairs and into the ballroom where Lord Astarion is finishing dinner with his Consort, Lady 

Cordehlia. When the nine of them come through the large ballroom doors, Lord Astarion greets them with a single raised eyebrow.

“Oh?” he asks, the syllable reverberating off the grand walls. “Did my girls bring me a little treat after such a fine meal?” Lady Cordehlia delicately wipes the blood of the Fist off of her lip.

“My Lord,” Malva speaks with a clear voice that rings out in the hall. “In our hunt for your feast this evening, Zora, Alina, and I came across this woman being threatened with sexual assault from the Fist who so generously provided his blood for your meal.”

Lord Astarion’s eyes narrow, scanning Emille up and down. “Yes? And?”

“And can we keep her? Pleeeeeaaaassseeeee????” Umbree squeals, earning a few dirty looks from the other spawn.

Lord Astarion lets out a low chuckle. “Always so eager for a new friend, little love. What gives you reason to believe We have the resources to take on a brand new spawn?”

“I believe she’ll be a valuable asset to the team, my lord,” Merelind pipes up, and the eight spawn crowd around Emille protectively. Lord Astarion groans and shifts his gaze to Lady Cordehlia.

“Thoughts, my treasure?” he asks out of the corner of his mouth.

“They’re your spawn, my love,” she responds with a slight smile. “It’s your decision.” She does so very much enjoy how persuasive the girls can be when they team up like this. It often takes little pressure for the Vampire Ascendent to crack.

“My lord,” Zora speaks, and he looks at her with surprise. “I do believe… I believe that this is the best course of action, for both Emille and for us as a family.”

“Do you, now?” he hums, tapping a slender finger to his lips. “Well that certainly is convincing.” He looks at them for a moment longer before letting out a long sigh. “I cannot possibly say no to those faces. Yes, I will gift Emille with eternal life and bring her into our family. Please bring her to the guest chamber and I will be there shortly.”

The spawn all let out a collective cheer and Emille lets out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. They hurriedly rush her back downstairs and instead of turning right towards the dormitories, they lead her into a grand chamber on the left. They chatter excitedly before Zora shushes them all and takes Emille’s arm very seriously.

“What’s about to happen will be some of the greatest pleasure and worst pain you’ve ever experienced. Do not do anything you don’t feel comfortable doing. Our lord can be a bit of a cunt, and he doesn’t like hearing no, but he will respect it. Understood?” she asks Emille sternly, who gives her a shallow nod in response.

“It’ll be hard, but we’ll be here to help when you wake up,” Rosalind says with a kind look. Emille’s eyes grow wide and she nods again.

They’re interrupted by the sound of a cough in the doorway, and they all whirl around to see Lord Astarion standing there, unbuttoning his cuffs and rolling up his sleeves.

“Well ladies, you all begged for this, now leave me to it,” he barks, and they all scamper out of the room, leaving Emille with him alone. He closes the door behind them and looks up to the trembling girl in front of him.

“You needn’t be afraid, little one,” he coos, his voice suddenly much softer than it had been in the great hall. Her lip quivers, and he gently takes her chin in his hand.

“M-my lord…” she croaks, and he turns her head to face him.

“For tonight, and tonight only, you may call me Astarion.” He brushes a lock of dark hair behind her ears. 

“Thank you, m– Astarion.” A small smile cracks her timid facade. Astarion moves his hand down Emille’s neck and onto the collar of her dress, lightly running his fingers along the plunging neckline.

“Did Rosalind pick this out for you?” he asks, and Emille nods. “She does know how to pick the right color, doesn’t she?” He guides Emille to the far side of the room and stands her in front of an ornate gold mirror. She looks at their reflections, him standing behind her with his hands on her shoulders. Rosalind wasn’t joking when she said he’s the most beautiful man she’s ever met. His perfectly tousled white hair falls over his brow just so, and his piercing red eyes sparkle as they meet hers in the mirror. 

But she’s even more taken with her own reflection; the spawn did a wonderful job on her. Her hair is glossier than it's ever been, and for the first time in her life, she doesn’t have dark circles under her eyes. Her plump red lips match the red in her dress perfectly, which despite Rosalind’s concerns about fit, hugs her curves nicely, or what little she has of them. She turns slightly, pleased to see how good her ass looks in the dress. Astarion lets out a laugh.

“Admiring yourself, darling? I don’t blame you. You truly are an exquisite thing.” He bends down and presses his lips to her ear. “Drink it in, pet. You won’t be able to see it much longer.” Emille’s breath hitches as he plants a tender kiss on her neck. “Are you ready?”

She turns back to look at him grinning widely, all teeth and fangs. Her heart begins pounding in her ears, and despite her instincts warning her that she’s in mortal peril, all she wants to do is move in closer to him. She reaches up and touches his cheek, which is surprisingly warm for a vampire.

“May I–” she starts, and swallows nervously. He holds her hand to his cheek. “Can I kiss you… Astarion?”

“My dear, there is nothing I’d like more,” he hums, before pulling her in for a fierce kiss. His lips are sweet, tasting of cherry wine with just a hint of a metallic undercurrent. He deepens the kiss, slipping his tongue into her mouth and she lets out a light moan. He bites her lip and she whimpers as he draws blood. He pulls back from her with a smirk, a thin streak of her blood running down his chin. “You do taste just delicious,” he says with a sigh.

She stands on her toes and kisses him again, more hungrily this time, causing him to stumble back a few steps. He chuckles and pulls away from her, keeping his arms wrapped around her waist.

“Eager, aren't you?” he asks and she nods vigorously. “Well then, lie down my sweet, and prepare yourself.” He gestures to the large bed in the center of the room and she scrambles onto it, leaning back against the pillows on the wall. He looks at her with heavy-lidded eyes for a moment before crawling on top of her. He meets her lips with another kiss, his knee catching her thigh and grinding his hips into her. She whimpers and he moves his lips to her ear. “Ready, darling?” 

“Yes, Astarion, please,” she moans, and he wastes no time in sinking his fangs into her flesh. She lets out a cry at the initial pain that quickly melts into a high unlike one she's ever experienced before. The finest silkroot hasn't made her feel this way. He takes long gulps of her blood, his body pressing up against hers, his breathy grunts and hums of pleasure tickling her ear. She clutches his waist as he cradles the back of her head, keeping her still while he continues to take pulls of her blood.

Emille can't tell if it's minutes or hours, but it feels all too soon when her vision starts to fade. She's thought of death often, and this is far more peaceful than anything she ever imagined. In the arms of this beautiful man, it almost feels like drifting off to sleep.

Excruciating pain. How long has it been? Hours? Days? Years? Emille’s eyes slowly blink open, but her vision doesn't change from the pitch blackness around her. She's nestled in a tiny box lined with cushy satin. Her throat feels like it's on fire. If she doesn't get help soon, she's going to die all over again.

She tries to rasp out a cry, but her vocal cords are too dry to create any friction. She tries banging against the side of the box, but the thick cushioning muffles the sound. She feebly pushes out in front of her, but whether the top is too heavy or her limbs too weak, the result is the same.

“Rosie! Rosie, I think she's awake!”

The voice is muffled and Emille feels dazed. Her name isn't Rosie. Who is that? Where is she?

The sound of scraping stone and a blinding light. Emille squeezes her eyes shut in protection of it. She looks up to see a smiling face of olive skin and reddish brown hair looking back down at her. The name Prudence comes to mind.

Emille sits up to see eight smiling figures standing around her. One of them, she's not sure who, shoves a goblet into her hand with the sharp order, “Drink.” It smells divine. Emille knocks it back in a single gulp and immediately feels refreshed.

The figures around her slowly come into focus. Right. The other spawn. Her memories are slowly coming back to her.

The one with blue and purple hair, Rosalind she thinks, hands her a familiar looking dress. But it looks different. Nicer, somehow. Newer.

“I'm sorry, I had to take apart your old one to pattern this one. But I have your measurements now and I can make you new clothes whenever you want!” she says, beaming excitedly. Emille’s eyes dart around the circle and land on a brooding face with a scar across the lip that stretches as the woman smiles.

“Welcome to the family, Emille.”

[armoricaroyalty]

Previous | Chapter Start | Beginning | Next

author's note: now here are those wholesome sibling relationships we have all come to love and expect from my story!

Transcript under the cut.

Nakawe Palace // Armorican State Visit - Day 2

REPORTER | ...I'm live outside of Nakawe Palace, where the press and members of the public alike have gathered following unconfirmed reports that Crown Princess Rosalind has, for 3 years, conducted a secret relationship. REPORTER | This afternoon, Uspanian tabloid The Concordia Times broke the story of the Crown Princess's relationship with Komrebigan national—and accused murderer—Hakane Satō, also known as Mary Yokoyama. REPORTER | [offscreen] In 2013, Yokoyama was named as a person of interest in the still-unsolved disappearance of her husband, Noah Satō. She was questioned by Komorebigan police in 2013 and again in 2014, but released without charge. Blackwell Palace has yet to comment on this developing story... MARY | [offscreen] Are you sure this is a good idea? ROSALIND | Do you have a better one? MARY | No, but give me a week— ROSALIND | We don't have a week. ROSALIND | [in Komorebigo] Darling, is everything alright? You seem upset. MARY | [forcing a smile] I'm fine. [knock on door] ROSALIND | That's them, now. ROSALIND | You're late. MARY | Good to see you both. EMILY | Don't look at me! I was ready to go while he was still putting his contacts in. FREDERICK | Sorry. I was late getting back from Canarís. I ran into an old friend... ROSALIND | Well...whatever! Come in! Sit down! We need to talk... ROSALIND | So...I'm sure you've seen the news by now. FREDERICK | Heck, I've seen the reporters. They're still all outside, by the way. EMILY | Frederick... ROSALIND | Can you not be a smug know-it-all for 15 minutes? This is serious. ROSALIND | We don't know how the story got out. We're looking into potential leaks, but in the meantime, we can't allow the press to run with this. The longer it's in the headlines, the worse it'll be for the family. EMILY | I'm so sorry, Your Highness. This must be so difficult— FREDERICK | You've got friends in the press. Can't you get Vance Marshall or one of his cronies to kill this one for you? He's done it before. ROSALIND | It's too late for that. It's all over the Uspanian press and the major Armorican networks have already picked it up. Our only option now is damage control, and we'll need something big to bury this one. ROSALIND | [sighs] We need you. Both of you. EMILY | Both of us? FREDERICK | I don't think I like where this is headed... ROSALIND | [offscreen] The only thing that people love more than a royal scandal is a royal wedding. EMILY | ... FREDERICK | ... FREDERICK | Roz, are you shitting me? EMILY | Frederick— FREDERICK | You want me to propose just to bury an embarrassing story? ROSALIND | What's the big deal? You were going to do it, anyway— FREDERICK | get shit from the press every single day of my life! And you have never once lifted a finger to defend me, but I'm supposed to make major life decisions to spare you a couple weeks of bad press? ROSALIND | [offscreen] I am the Crown Princess— FREDERICK | Yeah! I know! You've never once let anyone forget it. ROSALIND | [offscreen] —I have to be beyond reproach. ROSALIND | Unlike you, I do not have the luxury of making mistakes. Everything I do has to be perfect, for the sake of the entire family! Everyone depends on me, Freddy! Do you really think the Armorican taxpayer would keep paying for your fuck-ups if I wasn't included in the bargain? FREDERICK | Oh, poor you, it must be sOoOo fucking hard being the chosen one! ROSALIND | IT'S NOT MY FAULT I WAS BORN FIRST YOU ENTITLED LITTLE— EMILY | [offscreen] [sobs] FREDERICK | ...Em?

[randomnameless]

Land 3 and 4 done!

Elves and furries!

Or the worst double standard with Alcina's tragick backstory while Gary eats scraps, and Reimann puts devoted Fodlan fans to shame with his bias against subhumans!

Elheim was...

Very green compared to Drakengard lol, however the interactions between the characters felt... stale.

I mean, compared to the constant back and forth + exposition from Virginia about how cities are different from Cornia, who is Gilbert, the people living in the desert and all, for the first part of the plot, we just follow Rosalinde, a dark elf, to meet her sister so she we can save her from the bad guys, and ask her where is the second magic mc Guffin ring.

Sure, we rescue some villages and characters along the way, but they aren't, imo, as integrated in their setting as the Drakengard ones. Still, we find former thieves/brigands/bandits Alain decided to spare in Cornia - and apparently they want to turn over a new leaf, so when their old gang wants to sell elf ladies (young and not so young) as slaves, they rebel and we deal with them.

I guess the difference in setting/atmosphere is due to Drakengard, well, being conquered by the bad guys, but it feels like they just conquered it and left it there, not really caring about it.

In Elheim, they're still around - it can be sort of explained by the fact that Drakengard was conquered 6 years ago (Cornia, Alain's home was done in 10 years and Bastorias was subjugated 8 years ago) when the conquest of Elheim is supposed to be more recent? - but I guess it plays/is due to the main boss of this area's agenda -

Unlike Cornia and the small villages here and there, or Drakengard and the large cities sprawled on mountainsides, here the cities are located kind of far from each other, with a lot of forests/green/lakes/small mountains around - it makes for long maps without a lot of stuff to seize, but at the same time, it means you have to check your stamina more frequently so it's different enough to be a regional difference compared to the previous setting.

The units are... something - all jokes aside, having units deal both magic and physical damage was a nightmare for my poor 0 res armors lol, but I reckon they can be kind of useful with the proper setup, too bad the "proper setup" was something I never found and actually, I like how the game still gives you "human classes" enemies too (from the evil empire, like a red loldier) so you're not only fighting against elves, but also against the same kind of enemies (albeit promoted) than you did before, and they use mixed teams like ones with elves and humans, to make you sure have to still rethink your strategies and can't send the same team you used in the former land and expect the same results.

The BGM though... is sort of there - a bit disappointing compared to Drakengard's but I got a newfound appreciation after hearing the final boss' theme The Witch's World, it's not the banger Heir of the Dragonlands was but the fantasy/dream TWW conveys made me realise what Elheim was all about (hell those titles have a meaning lol) :

Drakengard's final theme is all about Gilbert reclaiming his castle and being the true heir of his country, not by birthright but when push came to shove, he stood up and restored the country. Which is why Drakengard had some exposition and character drama centered on Gilbert, his family and helping him.

Elheim is, as sad as it is... all about Alcina's fantasy/dream, her downfall and a sense of tragedy, both because of what she used to be, and what she actually did for the sake of her dream.

Regarding Alcina, I'll try to keep the sodium levels to minimum but :

@megafan1993 I know your comment wasn't under an Unicorn Overlord post lol, but this is basically my feelings regarding Alcina, and the comparison with the boss of the following arc stings even more, all things considered.

Who is Alcina?

A witch who acted as the court witch/mage of Cornia (MC's land!) who has the "uses magic to not grow old too fast but will eventually" syndrome, and was around during the time of MC's grandpa, a dude named Gerard.

King Gerard knew how to use his sword very well - to the point of being called a sword saint! - and liked to use it "for the good of the people", but he was the kind of guy who didn't like doing King work, found his coronation a nice distraction and didn't like when his PM modified his bills/papers etc etc. Pissed with the life of a King, especially since he felt like he couldn't do what he wanted, he left the land, without warning anyone, to explore "Cornia" and see what her people needs, only taking Alcina with him : effectively ditching the country - but no worries, his father was still around !

Exploring the land, Gerard finds himself in an ambush/skirmish against Drakengard - the neighoubing nations with whom Cornia has had border issues/problems for centuries - and takes an arrow meant for Alcina, thus dies unceremonously.

Alcina returns to Cornia and people are starting rumours, like how she had been the king's "favourite" and how the situation sucks, because now Gerard left his kid daughter* (whom he never mentionned even once in all of his voiced lines) Ilenia (MC's mom) alone to assume the role of the ruler of Cornia**.

Now, Alcina was pretty much in luf with King Gerard, so much that when Ilenia faces a rebellion (aka the prologue) and asks for her help, Alcina accepts to help her, because Ilenia is King Gerard's daughter.

Then...

Ilenia is supposedly "dead", Cornia has fallen and the Gharnef-like Baltro tells her (or she deduces it herself?) that his magic doesn't turn people crazy, but use people as mediums to put foreign/other souls inside them and take control of the bodies. It's more like a channeling magic.

Seeing the possibility to be reunited with her Gerard-poo again, Alcina switches sides and joins with the evil Zenoiran Empire, but she has her own agenda you see?

Alain lived peacefully on a small island because Alcina, who knew where he was, never told anything to the evil Zenoiran Empire people. It's not out of the goodness of her heart, hell no. Alcina had an interest in keeping Alain alive... because she planned to use him/his body to channel Gerard's soul inside - with the added bonus that Alain is a pallet swap of his grandpa.

She knew Gerard would most likely despise her for using his grandson as a medium to bring him back (from the lines we got spoken by the guy, I doubt it, he never mentions his kid!children not even once, why would he suddenly care about his grandson?) but she just wanted to hear/see him one last time sad uwus

(which raises a fucking giant red flag, Alcina who knows this and knows Ilenia's body isn't around, would obviously have guessed she was too, used as a medium for a Zenoiran soul much like Renault and Hodrick! So, with that knowledge, she wouldn't have tried to find a way to save her? Especially since she came to her in her "direst time of need" in the first place! I guess seeing Gerard >>> saving his daughter, after all the man himself never gave a fuck about said daughter...)

I don't have the exact timeline, but Alcina then accepts to march on Elheim - which resisted the Empire because they elves protect their land with a magical forest, and only taught a select few humans they are friendly with and trust a lot how to cross it, but could never have guessed that Alcina would later turn on them! - and leads the evil empire there with a dude named Gary, the land is conquered and while Eltrinde, the current elf leader (the eng/european script comes up with a lot of "exclusive" elven words, in the script she's called a turenos (??) but the jp!audio just has her be a "miko", I guess mikos don't sound elvish enough to the western lolcalisers and of course they couldn't translate her title by the word "sibyl", aka her class name :/) surrendering to avoid casualties...

Nothing is heard about her, save for Rosalinde (Eltrinde's twin sister!) who worries about her, and we believe when we face her that she's also possessed like the other people we used to fight against (by, and it'll later be revealed, ancient Zenoiran souls channeled by Baltro's magic in those bodies) but no, Eltrinde was possessed by... Alcina herself!

"But why would she need an elven body? She already has hers!"

Apparently, given some clues here and there (Yana - Alcina's apprentice - rapport conversation with Rosalinde), we can surmise that Alcina wanted an elven body to get a longer lifespan without needing to use the dangerous "rejuvenation aka turning from a dried old fig to a stripper" spell.

Tl;Dr : Alcina wanted to have her romance/spend time with Gerard again, using Alain and Eltrinde's bodies as mediums, even if it means dooming the elven kingdom and the world in general -

And oh boy do we see the elves being doomed, because while the two other human countries had a suspicious "plague" going on, here Baltro - like our beloved Riev - drops any sort of subtelty behind his title as a necromancer, and revives elves he previously killed to fight the party, which enrages both Eltrinde and Rosalinde (a feat, because so far their plot mandated interactions where very lackluster, their reunion scene had no pathos or similarity to the Drakengard brothers or even Virginia reuniting with her long lost cousin!) and they swear to take him - and Alcina - down.

Ultimately, after Baltro rewarps away like the good dark mage he is, we fight Alcina - who saved both Alain and Eltrinde from Baltro and prevented a game over lol because she still wants their bodies for her uwu ritual - and both the map song (witch's world) + her various FB's and ultimately Yana asking her to rest in peace after she's killed participate in selling us the "tragic/doomed by love" vibe about Alcina, like, the tragedy is about her, this arc is about her, hell, the entire Elheim plot is about her.

I guess I already let some salt flow lol, but even if this isn't as hamfisted as Hresvelg Grey, I felt like this was a disappointment and a bit of a letdown compared to Drakengard's story.

Double-standard hour : I was loitering on redshit to find some stuff and I saw so many people trashtalk some dude called "Gailey" that I wanted to know what was his story and...

(FR-wise at least, "Gailey" is Gary lol.)

So, Gary was Unicorn Overlord's take on FE8's Carlyle, without the sympathy he had for Joshua.

Gary was very devoted to Queen Ilenia and part of her guard, when she "died" - pretty sure that if Alcina knew, she would never told him the truth - to him Cornia died, because there's no Cornia without Ilenia as its ruler.

So Gary accepts to work with Zenoira because his queen is dead, apparently he does this conquering stuff well enough to be distinguished during the Drakengard campaign, and is sent to Elheim with Alcina.

Alcina however is the main villain while Gary is a sidekick, and is relegated as such which pisses him - and he knows she is the one possessing Eltrinde! - but our party arrives, and he wants to take our head.

It doesn't work, apparently Galvius (the evil emperor who conquered everything and is the red emperor !) doesn't like it when his troops lose and Gary knows that if he returns to him, he'll be executed, but also can't remain in Elheim else the rebels will kill him and can't escape from that land due to the magic forest surrounding it (the one no one could cross save for elves and their trusted friends!).

To get rid of the magic forest, Gary thus decides to burn the "super magic tree" that gives power to the forest and fairies living inside who are also the source of power for the elves.

Alain's party finds Gary and kills him... or at least planned to do so, because he runs away after we rekt him and is actually killed by one of his soldiers (who wanted to bring his head to Galvius and explain that if the rebels got them, it's only because Gary was incompetent!). He has last words not to Alain, but to Jeigan Joseph and the other former members of Cornia's knights - they ask Gary why he betrayed and it's here that he tells them that he never betrayed Cornia, because Cornia died when Ilenia did, thus he had/felt no attachment/reason to fight for Alain.

He has the last word to Joseph though - who pulled a Finn when he escaped with kid!Alain while Ilenia fought (apparently to her death) to give him an opening - saying Joseph has no right to judge him, because when Ilenia was fighting for her life (and apparently died), Gary was by her side until the end (he was in her team) fighting for and with her, while Joseph ran away.

And we know - after Virginia's sidequest - that Joseph still feels guilty about having left Ilenia and escaped with Alain, wondering if their places couldn't have been reversed and if she should be the one alive, but he listened to her orders back then (something he doesn't reveal to Gary!).

In a nutshell, Gary had most likely unrequited feelings for his queen, did his best to save/protect her and fought with her, but when she died he felt like his world did and from that point dgaf about the world or what it was supposed to become.

Alcina... most likely had (unrequited ?) feelings for her king, felt like trash when he died and she couldn't save him, thus abandonned her job and while she did help his daughter at one time, in the end she was willing to see the world and her king's family burn to get another chance to live her love story with him.

They are pretty similar, but somehow treated differently when both did horrible stuff, however only Alcina gets the "tragedy sad uwus" framing when Gary dies unceremonously.

Yeah :/

Not find of that plot arc.

In their rapport conversations, the elves are more interesting than what their plot interaction led to believe and I liked the devs adding maybe like 70% of the elven npcs around being sort of assholish and quite biased because Alain'n'pals are "humans" and have a huge superiority complex regarding the rest of the continent (watermelon time for that one NPC who calls Bestrals "unclean" or "corrupted" like dude, what do you have against bunnies?).

-------

I heard Vanillaware rushed the ending of the game because they had a money problem or something, and well, Bastorias shows it lol.

We have maybe 5 plot quests - sidequests you are supposed to unlock way way later lol - and a cast of 3 characters who talk in turn, but don't really exchange or interact with the NPCs or the rest of the cast found there.

So yeah, I can see where the rush was lol

And yet, I still prefered the Bastorias arc -

First because while the maps are also as empty as the Elheim ones in cities and all, well I sort of prefer the "vast snowfields" vibe to the "large forests" one, even if I confess I really liked seeing/talking to the various people around - even if it was only for a sidequest (tfw a dude wants to sell Laguz slaves).

Second, because the BGM is both relaxing and yet foreboding/mysterious enough to keep you focused, even if I confess, I pressed + during some fights when wereowls were busy giving each other blue points lol

Oh, and werefoxes were... I won't judge people based on their kinks, but personnally, I was kind of weirded out by their sprites, like when I can crack jokes at F!Elven Fencers like "if they fall on their back they can't stand anymore like turtles if you flap them over", werefoxes are just... uh yeah. Not my cup of tea.

Plot-wise, Alain wants to get rid of Zenoira in this region too so it will diminish their forces (ludonarrative point : if you don't do Bastorias and go to the final map, Reimann pops us as a reinforcement unit with the feral plot characters you're supposed to meet in Bastorias, aka feral!Ramona and feral!Morad :( I guess Yunifi died alone, I hope she wasn't killed by her adoptive parents !) but everyone realises that there's some "illness" or stuff that makes some Bestral go mad/feral (does this remind you of something?) and while some pop up as yellow units who attack everything on sight, through the plot we later learn that it's not "illness" at all!

Much like the best Gharnef out there (sorry for your poll @crushednugget, but I believe science should have won!), Reimann - a former Cornian noble who was part of the band of traitors who sided against Ilenia in the prologue - uses his science + a magic rock to turn the animal people in feral versions of themselves to control them, and calls himself a genius while also revealing that this magic rock that those lowly subhumans only thought was a shiny rock that belonged to the lion (thus royal) tribe was actually the magic rock that makes people able to control the Bestrals (the subhumans).

We even have one rapport conversation from Joseph, that suggests that Reimann might have been involved in trafficking/enslaving/experimenting on subhumans before the game's events, as he was already trying to get his hands on Bestrals during Ilenia's reign!

Unlike Izuka though.... Reimann is betrayed by one of his "allies" - much like Gary! - who was... under his suit of armor... a bestral himself!

(Cucumber lolcalisation point : Eligor, when first met is talking to this place's Batta the Beast and at one point is pissed/haughty/upset and calls Batta a human - but in the jp!audio, I didn't hear any "ningen" mention at all. Eligor blows his cover in the us/eu script, but not in the jp version!)

Eligor is a rat bestral, and Bastorias has some sort of hierarchy/class system based on which kind of Bestral you are - cats are fishermen, owls are the "wise mayors", bears, foxes and wolves are fighters (but polar bears are selling weapons!) goats are innkeepers etc etc.

While it's upsetting that we never hear anything from the numerous NPCs around about the "rat tribe", given how Bastorias is presented we it's not that farfetched that rats were indeed seen as lesser or not as important/valuable as lion bestrals.

The Rat Tribe was captured by Baltro who used them for experiments to make them sturdier/stronger, everyone lost their mind save for Eligor who seems to be thankful to Baltro-sama to give him the means to reach his dream : become the King of Bastorias even if he is a member of the rat tribe.

As Morad (a lion!) tells him though, while his dream and ideals about making Bastorias a place for everyone to live with pride etc etc, he still tells Eligor that he resorted to stupid/ridiculous methods (aka mind controlling and sending hundred of bestrals to death fighting against each other and being a fucking member of Zenoira!) and would have prefered if they worked together, to which Eligor tells him that he dgaf, because even if it only lasted for the duration of the final battle, he finally got what he wanted being the King of Bastorias and commanding people thanks to the shiny magic rock.

No uwu sobest for Eligor unlike the gallons of tea we had to drink for Alcina though, maybe that's why i can appreciate this arc more lol

I think the nod to the reveal about Eligor being a rat and this arc wasn't the lolcalisation adding shit, but the sidequest with the... Rock Rats - former bandits Alain spared in Cornia lol - when you recruit/want to recruit the leader who's basically Robin Hood, he tells you that even if Alain started his quest with 5 people and thus isn't like the other evil Nobles (tm), you should always worry about someone who started from scratch and managed to become a leader, because they will cling to power and forget why they wanted it in the first place.

...That's basically Eligor's story, as told by another, metaphorical, rat!

Battle theme a Fleeting Dream is the general Bastorias overworld theme, with imo, the earlier feelign of something ominous being played/schemed and its climax - it's the same mystery/foreboding feeling we got in the overworld map, but with a feeling that "something is going on". A good catch for Eligor's plot and this arc in general, even if it was rushed.

Anyways after his death, more plot reveals - Morad the friendly (uhh) lion we met who acted as one of the main characters from this arc was actually a human changed in a lion with the power of the shiny magic rock, and the human girl, Yunifi, who was adopted by Ramona (owl mom) and Morad (lion dad) is very heavily implied to have been a lion princess herself, but turned in a human!

Nod to Fodlan discourse : upon finding Reimann's notes and researches about how to use the shiny magic rock to control bestrals - everyone in the cast agrees with Ramona's suggestion to burn those notes!

No "uwu censorship BaD" or "creature masquerading as a human is attempting to hide knowledge to keep humans ignorant!" -> those "researches" are basically some "how to perform mindcontrol and turn people against each other in 5 steps" lessons, so they are destroyed for the sake of everyone, the shiny magic rock will forever remain a shiny magic rock, and not a tool to control the minds of anyone else.

Gameplay wise :

The Bestrals have a gimmick where they are more powerful/get more mobility during nighttime, but some of their classes are more similar to the human ones than the elven ones.

I still have to use/play around the werefoxes and the werewolves, so far I only used the lion, the bear and the owl and while I know Yunifi has an unique class and can be built in a certain way to be completely broken...

I don't have enough medals to make more than 3 teams of 5 characters rofl - but I'll definitely try to play with some builds!

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Oh and in general, I guess i forgot to mention in the "this was rushed" part, but while we can see the rush - I still am flabbergasted at some details the devs added like, hm, the fact that when you use a skill that summons rain in Bastorias - aka tundra land - you don't get rain but snow!

Or the completely random stuff I just noticed today (tfw after 50h you still notice and learn something knew), when you pick a squad captain, the sigil/banner for that squad in the "battle screen" is the one of the "captain" of that squad!

So yeah, even if they're fighting in Alain's Liberation army, some characters still retain their identity and banners - Gilbert's team has the Drakengard sigil, Eltrinde/Rosalinde has the Elheim one and... Travis has the Tricorns (his bandit/merc group!) one lol

*Given how Virginia is Alain's cousin and Ilenia's niece, it means Gerard must have had two kids, assuming primogeniture works, Virginia's parent, must have been younger than Ilenia which means Gerard basically left his two children and role/duties as a king behind him because he was upset that people were disappointed in him/kept on meddling with his duties as a king.

**Through various supports and lines popping up here and there, we learn that while some people loved Ilenia and thought she ruled wisely and justly, some other people were very critical of her, given how she became Queen young and wasn't as battle-hungry as her dad before her : Tl;Dr, dying like a moron after ditching his throne, Gerard abandoned his daughter who had to face the same adversities - if not more - than he did, but she pulled through. I'll have to check the audio when I'll reach that moment to see if there's hidden salt, but she has a line to Alain in the True Ending where she's basically all "I'm not going to miss my son's coronation" and, well, with the knowledge that Gerard was crap, I wonder if Ilenia resented him a bit lol