#royalty gutsy

[carbonateddelusion]

ART FIGHT ATTACKS!!!

featuring...

@peapod20001 's Mace, @ars3n1ck 's Beef, @everyothermouse 's Kai, @intrusiveprince 's 04 and Gutsy, @sugar-rave-rabbit 's Aria, @pinkieglitterheart 's Samuel, and @rainecloud020604 's Universo!

[mellowwillowy]

HEAR ME OUT!! Please please please!!

Yandere!prince who fell in love with the lady in waiting of the princess he is supposed to marry

A forbidden love that he is ready to do WHATEVER it take to make it happend

Why would he marry a princess when there this being who can but the queen of fae to shame with theire beauty ?

I'M LISTENING NONNIE!!

Yan! Prince x (neutral-f/m) Lady-in-waiting reader

I've actually written fics similar to this concept! This one is about a princess and a crown prince, the crown prince was supposed to marry another noble of higher status but the crown prince and priest found a way to make you the wife instead! (fem! reader)

This one is about reader being the former Empress' lady-in-waiting with the crown prince snatching reader from his brother's grasp! You were supposed to marry his brother (a knight) but he broke his legs and gave him the illusion of choice by becoming a priest instead. (gn intersex reader)

And as for this concept...

mmh... I can see the Yan! Prince going feral over you... you are the most beautiful woman (right?) he has ever laid his eyes on, even more than the garden of flowers he fancies so much! What do you like? What do you dislike? He wants to know everything about you this instant. He needs to.

I don't have much to say but yeah, Yan! Prince is capable of doing anything, even going as far as convincing everyone with the stage he prepares for you. Oh, you are a guy? Just keep up with the farce and no one will know though he would wonder why the princess had a guy dressed as her lady-in-waiting... were you her fucktoy or what? That irritates him and you are not spared with his gentle ass.

I'll use Erickson again for this idea (hehehe crown prince...). Erickson, falling in love with you? The crown prince? Say goodbye to your kneecaps or ankles once he gets his hands on you.

So how does he annul this whole wedding? With the help of his twin brother, they'll both dig or make scandals that will trample the princess family's reputation. It's nothing hard for two people of status and power after all.

Now that her reputation is tarnished, the prince's family will annul the wedding and he'll convince his mother to take you in as one of her ladies-in-waiting. He'll praise you and coax her mother into taking you in, anything, as long as you get to stay under the same roof as him. You bet your life would be a living hell the moment you upset or piss him off even just for the slightest.

Next would be having your hand in marriage. This will be tough, considering his status as the crown prince. Should he convince the former Empress to make his brother the next Emperor instead? He doubts she'll allow it as the prophet's dice had chosen him to be the eldest despite being born second.

If he can't do that, then all he has to do is make a stage for you, a fake family of reputation that was at the edge of a downfall, convincing rumors of you circulating around the citizens and a load of lessons about the royalties' history.

Now that you are completely perfect, suitable to be his suitor, this nation's Empress, another problem spurts out. Noel, his brother, has also taken a liking to you.

Seriously, of all the affections he had received, he wishes to have you as well? He sure is a gutsy bastard, perhaps he should strip him from his status as a knight to teach him a lesson?

The same turn of events happened again, Noel's legs were broken, he was sent to the church and you were wed to Erickson, everything was smooth perfect.

Depending on Noel's love for you, if it was high, it'll reach the same conclusion, with him coming back to overthrow Erickson in the name of the church and God. The only difference was that you did not share that much fondness for the two of them, alas the ending had you died without any last words to them.

If his brother didn't love you that much, he wouldn't return and you are forever stuck with him until he dies. (yup, you don't get to die first, magic is not as hard as it seemed.)

[twentydaysofdrabbles]

The Concierge Plays Fetch - Sans (Part 10)

“So you are the reason for my sudden shortage of mustard.”

Sans raises his head from the pile of empty shot glasses and mustard bottles as you approach. “sweetheart,” he purrs in welcome, leering at you, bracing an elbow on the bar to turn to face you. “you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

Hmm, there seems to be a difference in his inflection as he speaks to you. Just like with Papyrus just a few minutes ago. How intriguing. 

The bar is empty, the Bartender having fled with a look of relief when he laid eyes on you. Reflexively, you go to stand behind the counter, taking Sans’ dirty glasses to begin rinsing them and putting them into the dishwasher. 

“Is there a particular brand of mustard that you prefer, Mister Sans?” You ask conversationally. Like Papyrus’ overloaded squat bar, you’re impressed at the variety of mustard and the sheer quantity of it messily arranged next to him. “Allow me to clear the empty bottles.”

You had barely waved your hand in the direction of the empty jars and bottles before it is seized in a gentle grip by ivory phalanges. The high quality cloth of your glove dulls the sensation of bone on skin. Teases at it. You find yourself wanting to...to...

“mustard-ing at the best kind,” Sans rumbles invitingly at you, his permanent grin taking on a...you think it’s a sultry look but you’re not sure. 

Your mind then processes his words. Was that a pun? You think it’s a pun. The d when he said mustard was fairly quiet...

Blinking slowly, you let a small smile crack your neutral expression slightly. “How charming, Mister Sans.” 

“why thank you.” He rubs the knuckles of his free hand on his chest, the red, high collared shirt showing signs of his afternoon binge. His black tailored jacket, luckily, hangs on the back of his bar stool. 

All this while, he still has your hand in his. Technically, it’s loose enough that you can easily pull away, but you find yourself just...waiting. For what, you’re not quite sure, but at the same time you’re not inclined to break contact just yet. How intriguing.

Sans doesn’t make you wait long, luckily. Firm teeth press to the back of your gloved hand in a courtly gesture right over your scar, though Sans ruins it by winking up at you. “come on, have a drink with me.” He gestures with his head to the shelves of drinks behind you. 

Your answer is on the tip of your tongue. “The Manager has moved the meeting forward, Mister Sans. King Asgore, Captain Undyne, and Mx Frisk are waiting in the Lounge for you and Mister Papyrus.”

“augh, the meeting,” he groans, letting go of your hand to reach for a shot glass that he fills with yellow mustard. As if he wasn’t the one who made the meeting happen in the first place. “well, if they’ve been waiting, ain’t gonna hurt to make ‘em wait a little more.”

The smile on your face spreads a little more. Gutsy for a guy who seems to answer to the King. “One would think making royalty wait would be inadvisable,” you say evenly as you reach for a glass bottle of soda, pouring it into a glass filled with ice. You don’t mention that it’s equally as inadvisable to keep the Manager waiting. “Mister Papyrus has gone to refresh himself.” 

“i bath he’ll be a while,” Sans sneers into his mustard, throwing it back like a shot. Red pilot lights of eyes drift to the glass of soda, placed on the counter in front of you. “not a drinker?”

“No,” is your only answer as you lift it to your lips to drink. It doesn’t go unnoticed that Sans’ eyes remain on the glass, on your lips. No, you don’t miss it, but neither do you acknowledge it. 

“former drinker?” Sans pries with a sly look.

You try not to sigh, but admittedly you do catch an exhale on its way out. To refrain from making any further comment, you keep your hands busy by clearing some of the empty bottles next to Sans’s elbow. They go right into the bin; you refuse to deal with the smell of mustard for the rest of the night. Particularly if they get on your gloves.

That, however, seems to be enough for Sans. He nods understandingly, “sodas why.” 

You despise the fact that he seems to be reading your reactions. He’s far too perceptive for your liking, truly.

“ain’t throwing stones here, sweetheart.” His red tongue slips from between his serrated teeth, glowing and ghostly and cleaning the shot glass. 

As much as you try not to stare, it’s a little hard not to. A quick glance is all. But it’s enough for Sans. 

“‘s a little tongue in cheek, but i can give you a private demonstration if you want.” Sans wriggles his tongue at you, undulating between his two fingers that he brings up to his eternal grin. “maybe later tonight?”

Flirt.

Your expression doesn’t change. It’s difficult, but it doesn’t change. And yet you don’t discourage him. 

“If you would finish your drink, Mister Sans, I shall show you to the lounge.” Your glass did not contain much to begin with, but you finish it in a slow sip, eyes locked on his.

Despite the deflection, Sans only seems to be tickled by your lack of rejection. He laughs in a rolling rumble, snatching the sole glass of whiskey beside him to finish it in one gulp. “’s not a no,” he sings through his exhale, licking his teeth. 

Again, you do not react. There is no break in your movements as you rinse the glass you used, as you gather the glasses he used, as you put them all into the dishwasher. “Are you ready, Mister Sans?” 

The skeleton pauses then, just for a moment. Seemingly rolling your choice of words in his head. When you look at him expectantly, he lets a rumbling purr vibrate from his chest, hopping off from the stool and throwing his jacket over his shoulders. 

Like the Cheshire cat eyeing a choice bit of cake, he purrs, “Lead the way.”

[clickbliss]

Astlibra Revison is an RPG of a tremendous scale

by Amr (@siegarettes)

Astlibra Revision

Developers - KEIZO

Publisher - Whisper Games

PC, Switch

As Astlibra opens, your character finds himself stranded in a cabin at the edge of a lake, with nothing but an endless forest in front of him. After years at the cabin, he finally resolves to escape, trekking for eight years without contact through the forest, with no idea of when he may finally reach the edge. 

Developed over the course of 15 years, by solo developer Keizo, you can feel the creator’s preoccupation with time and scale throughout Astlibra. The story’s themes are obsessed with time, with how our actions reverberate through it, and what we would do if given the opportunity to go back and change them. The scale of the game itself is tremendous, with system after system stacked upon each other in a way that wouldn’t feel out of place in a Tri-Ace title. Every system has been reexamined, throwing off the general assumptions of the genre.

Simple interactions such as buying an item from a shop have been complicated, requiring you to have the appropriate materials on hand to purchase them, keeping you on the lookout for new drops from enemies, or experimenting with the crafting system to see if you can work out the recipe. Grinding these materials will naturally push you into the multiple growth systems, with both a traditional skill point system, but also a sprawling map of character bonuses that can be purchased with gems dropped from enemies. This cartographic journey will unlock more abilities, and ability slots, getting you excited to head right back into combat and keep the loop going. 

Combat has the vibes of a later Ys title, if the series had continued following a sidescrolling format. The basic moveset isn't too complicated, with a ground combo, a launcher and spike, and a shield. Early on you'll also get an invincible back dash and magic spells, which enable some strong hit and run tactics. There's a varied arsenal to collect, and while they generally don't have significant moveset changes, considerations like range, attack speed and the unique skills you gain from mastering them keep weapons in rotation even as you progress. 

Positioning plays a huge part in combat, and the small cooldowns when your shield breaks, or your backdash ends can end with fatal damage if you're caught in the wrong group of enemies. Magic becomes essential here, providing crowd control and the ability to reposition yourself, with invincibility during the duration of the move. Mana builds through combat, empties outside of it, so you're also incentivized to use spells as soon as you're able, since you'll never be able to stockpile it for future battles. 

Despite the myriad ways to prevent damage, you'll rarely come out of a battle unscathed, so spending and refreshing resources becomes essential to surviving even basic encounters. Astlibra is unafraid to push you to take advantage of every system, to the point where the very first boss appears nearly unbeatable until you learn every system. It's an ambitious and gutsy choice, one of many that go against conventional wisdom in modern RPG design. Astlibra is full of these, and it’s a true feat that it manages to remain coherent throughout. 

A similar sentiment could be said about Astlibra’s aesthetics. Collaged almost entirely from a number of royalty free images and sound sources, Astlibra has a distinct look to it that calls to mind early Playstation games, where digitized imagery began to become popular. Stitching these images into a single world is a feat of its own, and it manages to stay coherent enough that it never draws attention to itself. Part of this is thanks to a group of professional artists, including Vanillaware veteran Shigatake, who provided the character portraits and sprites, and Haku Tatsufuchi, who created the art for the dragon bosses. The music is equally well selected, with a variety of musical styles, but all feeling as appropriate as if they were composed for the game. The most surprising were the tracks for the many emotional moments of Astlibra, which did a fantastic job selling the drama, something hard to do even in games with bespoke soundtracks. 

It’s those big character moments that form the core of Astlibra for me. Even as I enjoyed playing with the various systems of the game, all of it remained motivated by my desire to unravel the next mystery, and my impatience for the next plot beat. Astlibra is full of heart, and it was impossible for me not to be charmed by it. 

When you spend so many years working on a single thing, it’s hard not to lose faith in what you’re making, and harder to keep a coherent vision as you and the world around you continue to change. Despite the odds, Astlibra manages to hit on every aspect it tries for. It’s a triumph that kept me astounded at what a single person could accomplish. 

[plungermusic]

“I’m goin’ where the climate suits my clothes …”

In my minds eye Maverick Festival is always bathed in scorching sunshine, and sadly I’d dressed accordingly… as it turned out, this year epitomised the classic “Best pack a brolly and a jumper… and your sun screen too” British summer. Thankfully Maverick #16 had as wide a range of stormy, breezy, sunny and hot music on offer too.

Opening The Barn stage, and definitely on the bright and breezy side, was Jon Langford’s acoustic-led barroom Americana-with-a-splash-of-Irish (yes, we know he’s Welsh!) like the boisterous fiddle-and-piano-propelled Walking On Hell’s Roof Looking At The Flowers. He certainly brought plenty of vigour to get the show rolling, but for our tastes there was maybe too much of that particularly British undercurrent of tongue in cheek, knowing ironic delivery as exemplified by a very Squeeze-like Slightly South Of The Border.

Down at The Moonshine though, Chris Murphy [below] was in deadly earnest! With an appropriately Mephistophelean look, a somewhat gravelly vocal and solo fiddle (played in a variety of ways) enhanced with loops and pedals, he mixed traditional celtic and Appalachian music with ambient and heaver elements to great effect: from Early Grave’s backwoods hoedown stomp to the highlands-threnody-meets-badlands-trainride-soundtrack of Into The Past. A particular favourite was Halfway Around The World: epic in scope, ranging from sweeping ambient soundscape to full-on ceilidh fiddle lines, harmonised and doubled-up that raised the hairs on the backs of our Scots-expat necks!

Heading back toward The Barn we caught a brief snatch of A Different Thread’s Peacock stage set: some gentle Greenwich Village coffee shop folky Americana with delicate harmonies sung into a single mic (Old Time stylee), with splashes of Dylany harmonica, upright bass (and an upright drummer!) and even a hint of N’awlins-y Dr Johnishness in a whimsical whistling song.

Michael James Wheeler was just finishing up as we got to The Barn, looking and sounding the epitome of the clean-cut all-American country star, his Don Mcleanesque super-clear delivery with a hint of quavering vulnerability backed by big, chiming guitar chords.

One of the big draws this year for Plunger were Lonehollow [below], whose first ever appearance (of three over the weekend) was at The Barn. Rylie Bourne and Damon Atkins style themselves “a little bit country, a little bit rock’n’roll” respectively, and there was plenty of the latter in Damon’s gutsy vocal lead on Angel Wings and and a boogieing I Thought It’d Be Me, and of the former in Rylie’s aching Mary Ann with heartbreaking harmonies and the wistful Simple Town. Some lovely touches too of dark Nicksian menace in Lover and Stones, plus a slinky, funky road song Hard Slowin’ Down. Top notch stuff!

A Plunger favourite from previous Mavericks, Evangeline Gentle [below] brought her stunning hypnotic voice to The Moonshine. Right from the first blissful notes of You And I, a short a cappella with a traditional highland flavour, she had the crowd captivated. The enchantment continued through the  aching nostalgia of So It Goes, the hymn-like Good And Guided, and a languid cover of Simply The Best dedicated to her childhood heroine Tina Turner. Bad Girls a new song, drew on those times growing up in a small provincial town with a group of fellow ‘outcast others’. The closing ecstatic love song Sundays was as warm and abandoned as Sunday morning loving, and a formidable earworm for the rest of the weekend.

Back at The Barn, Tom Russell (storied country royalty with a pedigree including working with Johnny Cash and being the writer of the fantastic Gallo Del Cielo) [below] delivered a solo troubadoury set that drew a large devoted crowd to the barn, often singing along to his numbers like Hair Trigger Heart: it was accomplished enough but for us a little pedestrian and samey so I’m afraid to admit we wandered off…

We whiled away the remainder of the time before The Barn headliners down at The Peacock for much of Pepe Belmonte (another previous Maverick attendee we’ve always enjoyed) and his band’s set, including the louche Band-meets-McGuinness Flint lope of The Waterline with harmonica, mandolin and lovely piano accents; the Grateful Deadish boogie of (what we think was  called) The Bailiff Song, and more Dylany/Band vibes in the excellent Open Water.

By this time night (and a rather chill rain) had fallen, but the storming performance of Norfolk’s The Vagaband [above] raised the temperature and the roof with a spicy gumbo of southern roots, cowboy country, blues and more. Moody Western vibes came in Something Wicked This Way Comes with twangsome bottom-end guitar lines, great Hammond organ and some devilish fiddle, and in the rattling two-step of Not My Day To Die with its saloon piano and mandolin. Beautiful World was an easy-going, strummy country amble, while the drawled Black-Eyed Sally built slowly to a rumbustious country rocker. A high level of musicianship was evident throughout, but particularly in the slightly more out of leftfield tracks: White Noise, written in (and about) lockdown, had a sophisticated reggaeish slink to it, featuring classy electric piano, and a soully middle eight; while Wheels was a Madchester shuffle with more meaty Hammond and a storming fuzzy wah solo from Mark Howes; even the final crowd-pleasing stomp of Gabrielle was leavened by stylish fiddle and cymbal rich drums, peaking in a neat switch into Miss You-style discotastic funk. 

A very classy and steamy end to what had been a chilly evening, warming the cockles and raising the spirits ready for round two on Saturday.

[savgogh]

study music masterlist

 ☁ Ambient ☁

Library Sounds

Royal Library

Hogwarts Classroom

Book Cafe 

Summer kitchen

Howl's Moving Castle : Howl's Room

Cozy coffee shop on a rainy night

Relaxing Sounds of Cafe in Japan

Witchy Coffee Shop

Cozy Italian cafe 

Spaceship Room

Van, vibing across space

Seaside Art Room

Potion Shop

Hobbit Hole

Victorian era

221B Baker Street 

Hogwarts Express

☁ Lo-fi ☁

1A.M. study session

code-fi / lofi beats to code/relax to

Flowers ft. Nori

1 hour of aesthetic & calm lofi music 🌙

Little astronaut, big dreams.

Animal Crossing • Relaxing Music

[BT21] KOYA's Sleep Music

Mellow Vibe

Learn to relax

N A R U T O V I B E S

kit kat morning

Just wanna stay here forever

bollywood lofi

5:30 A.M Study🕞

Lo-fi for Angels (Only)

1 hour of rainyday lofi aesthetic music

☁ Classical ☁

you're following the mysterious student who is sneaking out of the dormitories  

Studio Ghibli Music Collection Piano and Violin Duo

4 Hours Classical Music for Studying, Relaxation & Concentration

Disney RELAXING PIANO Collection

a dark academia playlist to read to ☕️🍁🌙

Disney Violin Collection 

Dark academia music - Classical edition

a light academia classical study playlist 🕯🥐☕ 

I told the stars about you (a dark academia/royalty playlist)

Studio Ghibli Emotional Melody : Cello Collection with Calcifer

1 Hour of Ethereal Remix by A.Krishna

☁ Forest ☁

Woodland Ambience, Bird Song, Nearby Village

Enchanted forest

Swamp Sounds

Spring morning

Natural Calming Water

Into an enchanting forest

Tropical Forest

Forest at night

☁ Ocean waves / Underwater ☁

Underwater fantasy castle

Cozy Underwater Room

Ocean Waves white noise

Water themed Nintendo music

Gentle Ocean Waves

Early morning ocean waves

☁ Rain / Thunderstorms ☁

Animal Crossing Rainy Day

Rain on window

Cozy Room with Relaxing Rain Sounds

Rain Sounds on Tin Roof

Rain Sounds on Roof

Mountain Rain & Thunderstorm

Rain and Wind in Forest

Thunderstorm and a crackling fireplace 

Chimmy’s rainy garden 

☁ Study with me ☁

1 hour study with Natsu night ver.

1 hour Ghibli study with The Hanoi Chamomile (music)

1 hour study with Namjoon and Jungkook 

1 hour study with Wonho

1.5 hour pomodoro study with Study To Success

2 hour study with Tan Yi (music)

2 hour rainy day study with gutsy studygirl (rain)

2.5 hour pomodoro study with TheStrive Studies (music)

3 hour pomodoro study with The Sherry Formula (music)

3 hour pomodoro study with Sebastian Pirie (music)

4 hour study with Merve

4.5 hour pomodoro study with TheStrive Studies

5 hour study with MDprospect (music)

7 hour study with Study Vibes (with motivational talks during breaks)

7 hour pomodoro study with Kharma Medic

12 hour pomodoro study with James Scholz (rain)

12 hour study with Ari Horesh (rain)

( use this link or any other yt converter to download the video/audio! )

[tweedfrog]

Favourite part of blood sex & royalty has got to be Anne basically telling Henry she’s a heretic and therefore putting her life in extreme danger just so they can be like yeah look shes not like other girls! Shes gutsy!

[faithful-knight]

//🥊

For Asriel, Only if for some reason Asriel had attacked first would he choose to strike back. With him seemingly as powerful- if not more then Asgore. That and his big political standing, if aiges were to make so much as a scratch on his face, he knew that there would be hell to pay with all of monster kind. Perhaps even risk a war between the two races erupting.

Chara it is a very similar case, However, he is much less likely to use lethal force against them then their brother, Due to their lack of magic and their main weapon being a knife. But, This does not mean that he will not go all out using the quarterstaff, They have the body of an adult. So thus is enough for aiges to treat them as such.

@dreeming-royalty

[the-karma-cafe]

Love Me Dead | Levi Ackerman

a/n: obsessed with this gif and for WHAT mans so tortured makes my savior complex go brrr shkdjfgj /j

completely self-indulgent i just like the song a lot (songfics are weird to write for me tho sdfjk) anyway stream love me dead by ludo 🙄🙄

so the scenario is like üh time traveler!reader has to make money n decides to perform songs at a bar until they find a way to get back to da future but I don’t really get into it sdjfk

Warning(s): mentions of a roofie, attempted assault 

LEVI POV

I dropped into the seat next to Erwin, crossing one leg over the other. This was a waste of time.

I batted some smoke away from my face, sneering in disgust at the other patrons. I didn’t care how good this performer was, the bar reeked.

Erwin offered a polite smile. “They should be out soon.” I rolled my eyes and studied the people around me. They didn’t seem too focused on any performances, too entranced by their alcohol and conversation. Maybe Erwin was just using this as an excuse to get me out of my office—it wouldn’t be the first time. “Tch.”

The guitarist stepped out onto the stage, settling themself down on the stool. They were younger than I expected, prettier too.

They hummed quietly to themself, tuning their guitar. They seemed to be in their own little bubble, as if they’d be performing whether we were here or not. The guitarist looked up at their crowd, a small smile pulling at their lips. I frowned. Obviously no one’s paying attention. Why are they smiling?

They cleared their throat and began to pluck at the strings. A couple patrons looked over, grimacing. It didn’t sound very nice. I quirked a brow, glancing at Erwin. His smile didn’t falter.

“Love me cancerously,” They began, their voice smoother than expected. “Like a salt sore soaked in the sea.” They began to strum regularly, the song taking shape. Sea? My mind echoed. I wondered if I had misheard.

“High maintenance means you’re a gluttonous queen,” My eyebrows raised at this. Gutsy to say anything remotely negative about royalty. “Narcissistic and mean.” They strummed a bit more before looking up, a smirk twisting their lips. Their hand left the guitar to snap.

Some conversation quieted. Their voice roughened. “Kill me romantically,” they spat. “Fill my soul with vomit then ask me for a piece of gum.” They taunted. I blinked. I’d never heard music like this. Erwin might’ve been onto something. Gum?

“Bitter and dumb! You’re my sugarplum~” their voice rumbled on the pet name. “You’re awful!” Their voice and gaze softened. “I love you.”

The singer skillfully transitioned to an upbeat strum. “She moves through moonbeams slowly, she knows just how to hold me. And when her edges soften, her body is my coffin.”

They took a breath, their gaze turning mischievous. “I know she drains me slowly, she wears me down to bones in bed.” They winked. My lips twitched.

“Must be the sign on my head, that says, oh,” Their strokes grew angrier. “Love me DEAD!” They sneered. I found myself hanging onto their changing expressions. How could they move from loving to seething with a strum? “Love me dead,” The words around me fizzled from my consciousness.

“You’re a faith-healer on TV.” TV? Faith-healer? Their song held emotion and meaning, but some words were foreign. I couldn’t be mishearing all of them. “You’re an office park without any trees,” Again. Office park? “Corporate and cold,” they built. “Gushing for gold! Leave me alone.”  

The song grew angry again. “You suck so passionately.” they moaned, earning a few laughs from those paying attention. “You’re a parasitic psycho filthy creature finger-bangin’ my heart.” I muffled a laugh at “finger-bangin’.” Songs in these bars were never so vulgar.

“You call me up drunk! Does the fun ever start?” Call me up? I absentmindedly wondered if that was some new slang. Their eyes met mine. “You’re hideous.” They simpered. Irritation began to coil in my gut. Are they fucking talking to me?

“And sexy!” They smiled, laughing at my expression. The annoyance dissipated. I cleared my throat from embarrassment. Right. Not at me. Of course.

They resumed and finished their chorus. “Wow! Uh~” they moaned, clearly sexually, eliciting another laugh from their small crowd. They continued solely on guitar for some measures, regaining their breath. Their song built in speed and tension. I hadn’t heard the guitar manipulated in this way before. Erwin was definitely onto something. 

Not that I’d thank him for introducing me.

The tension dropped. “Love me cancerously,” their soft voice from the beginning had returned, the words almost a whisper. They whistled playfully. And just like that the song had roughened again. “Ba da da da da daa. Ba da da da da daa.” They sang some gibberish.

Their eyes floated to me again. “How’s your new boy?” Their voice was mocking and loud. “Does he know about me? You’ve got the mark of the beast. You’re born of a jackal!” A wh- 

“You’re beautiful~!” They sang, holding my gaze a beat longer than the other patrons, their eyes trailing over my form approvingly. I straightened up, feeling like I had something to prove to this random performer.

They grinned fondly, looking away to sing the chorus again. It ended quickly. “Oh,” their vocals caressed the word. “Love me,” they dragged it out before slashing down on their guitar. “DEAD.”

Smatterings of applause rang out, and a couple of tips were placed in their jar. That was the extent of their praise, yet they seemed happy anyway, cheeks flushed.

I blinked, forcing myself from my stupor. I turned to see Erwin’s expectant smile. “Well?” He prompted.

“I’ve heard better.” I hadn’t. “They kept winking at me it was obnoxious.” It was cute. “And it still reeks in here.” It did. I hoped the performer didn’t smell like this godawful place.

Erwin’s eyes twinkled knowingly. “Well now you know where it is, so you can avoid it.”

I nodded stubbornly, eyeing them in my periphery. They were chatting amicably with another customer. He handed them a drink and they happily took it, gulping it down after their performance. I narrowed my eyes at the interaction, but left with Eyebrows.

Hanji found Erwin almost the second we left, and dragged him away for something. I wasn’t listening, though I doubted it was important.

I made my way back to the base, wrinkling my nose in disgust at the place around me. It wasn’t the underground by a long shot, but its dingy alleys and dimly-lit streets were a far-cry from the clean roads I’d gotten used to in Wall Rose.

“..ey man, quit it.” A tired voice came from an alley behind me. I quirked a brow and stepped back, peering inside.

A low laugh rumbled in the dark. “You told me to love you dead, didn’t you? Don’t mind if I-“ A slap bounced off the brick walls.

I began to walk into the alley, their silhouettes becoming clearer as I neared.

“I wasn’t talking to you, jackass. Let me g-” the taller form grabbed the smaller one, wrenching them close.

“Now you’ve fucking done it.” The lower voice growled. “Bitch. You think you’re better than me? You won’t b-“

“Shit or get off the pot.” I grunted.

“Eh?” The taller form turned to me, dropping the person in his hold. I heard them cough weakly. His features became more clear to me as he neared. Typical brute you’d find outside of a bar, harassing someone. He towered above me, sneering. “What makes you think you can talk to me like that, little man?” He snickered, patting my head.

Rage surged through my chest, pushing my fist up and through his jaw. He flew backwards, hitting the ground hard. I wasted no time in crushing him with my boot. I dug my heel into his cheek. “You’re disgusting.”

Something touched my arm softly. I turned slightly to see the performer. They cleared their throat awkwardly. “Hey,” they started, but it came out raspy and broken. They winced, and tried again. “Sorry, you’ve already helped me out a lot. Could you take me to a hotel or something? I think he might’ve slipped something in my drink.” Their grip tightened on my arm to steady themself.

I hummed, turning back to the dickhead below me. I ground my foot further into his face, hearing him groan pathetically. The performer’s weight grew heavier and I sighed, turning to scoop them up. I’d haul them over my shoulder, but… 

I grimaced at the thought of puke on my jacket.

I peered down at them. They had already fallen asleep, their face peaceful. I stared for a minute.

“I’m not done with you.” his voice came from behind me again. I turned, boredom lacing my features. The attacker staggered up, twirling a knife from his pocket. “Heh, now wh-“ I cut him off with a sharp kick to the gut.

He fell to the ground, unconscious. I spit on him.

I glanced back down at the person in my arms. They couldn’t pay for a hotel and I certainly wasn’t going to pay for one for them. I began to take them to base.

I passed some strange looks on the way but silenced them with a glare. When I finally reached base again, everyone was already asleep. I mentally thanked Erwin for being such a hardass about curfews. The last thing I needed was some snot-nosed cadet standing up to me under the guise of a savior complex.

I dropped them on my bed unceremoniously. Not like I used it anyway. They curled on top of the blankets, shivering slightly. “Tch.” I pried back some of the covers and hoisted them up and onto the sheets, tossing the cover on top of them. A small smile graced their lips. My eyes lingered on it a beat too long for my liking.

I rolled my eyes and went to my desk. I had shit to do.

~

Y/N POV

I groaned, rolling over. I felt, well, fucking bad. I could barely remember… I furrowed my brow. 

I was singing in that bar… oh, there was that cute grumpy-lookin’ guy in the back… then Paul came up again with his stupid pickup lines… oh. It was blank after that.

“You awake?” A gruff voice muttered, their breath tickling my ear. I jumped, my eyes flying open. I feared the worst, backing away from them immediately. My eyes took a minute to adjust, the person in front of me waiting patiently as I blinked owlishly.

It was… the cute grump? I smiled, confused. “Did I get lucky?”

He huffed a laugh. “You wish.” He straightened up, raking a hand through his hair. I watched, a little mesmerized by how soft it looked as it fell back onto his face. “Your buddy from the bar got a little too friendly, and I’m nice.” He paused, pinning me with his stare. He had pretty eyes. I smiled softly and his brow furrowed in response, studying me.

“Thank you.” I pushed up from the bed, wobbling slightly. I steadied myself on his arm. “Sorry.” He remained silent. I leaned against his chest. “Sorry. Can I stay like this for a second? Everything’s spinning.”

He sighed, his arms winding around me. “Most people just ask if they want a hug.”

I laughed, subconsciously snuggling closer. “People ask you for hugs? But you’re so scary! I can’t see it.”

“Some brats are gutsy.” He shrugged.

I hummed, not having a witty comeback. My head felt fuzzy. 

I pulled back in his hold to meet his eyes, and suddenly wished I hadn’t. He didn’t even need to do anything, just making eye contact was enough to make my brain short-circuit. My gaze dropped to his lips. I licked mine distractedly. “Um, how can I make it up to you? Y’know, the whole…” I waved my hand around. “Thing.”

He hummed, breaking eye contact. His hand reached up and twirled a strand of my hair. He watched the movement with a disinterested look. “I’ll have to think on it.” A smirk tugged at his lips. “I have an idea on where you can start.”

I perked up. “Yeah?”

He lightly tugged on my hair, pulling me closer to his face. His eyes moved to my lips, his face drawing nearer. “Oh!” I whispered, leaning in.

He stopped. “Levi.”

“What?” I blinked, still focused on his lips.

“My name. Do you make a habit of kissing men you don’t know?”

I flushed. “I make an exception for cute ones, Levi.”

His lips twitched. “Good answer.” He dropped my hair and stepped back, crossing his arms across his chest. “I’ve helped you enough. Go before I make you clean for the next hour.”

a/n: ohmygod can i please get a hobby KSDJFHG bitches actin like bein a levi simp is a fulltime job its me im bitches

[israltale]

Darkness within

Alure smiled, while Kiros and Cobra trained at the Lake. They were now Three, if someone counted Solei who lived in the Vicinity of Order. Sadly to say, it wasn’t as peaceful as he had hoped.

Alure wasn’t sure if the King figured it out himself, had a spy or Solei couldn’t keep his mouth shut… but the Order Guards were now after them, especially after their Guardian. Kiros trained for that exact reason, to protect the Woman who was so Kind to them. 

“Hey.” Kiros stood in front of the thoughtful boy. 

“Oh… Yes?” He looked up to the Taller Hybrid. 

“So lost in thoughts, Nightlight?” Kiros asked, sitting down next to him. Cobra joined them only a little later.

“Yes… Actually i try to figure out how the King learned from us…” Kiros nodded.

“True… it only started recently. The Snake boy thought it would happen far sooner, but it’s apparently not to our changing… My changing was the last and is already almost six months past.” Alure nodded slowly. 

“Why is he after us anyway?” Of course he was curious of that. 

“It’s less you he is after and more Arisa who is in Danger.” Kiros blinked. 

“Why?” Cobra sighed. 

“It’s… a long Story and i don’t know if Arisa wants you to know about it. But the Gist of it is that the King wants her gone.” Alure shivered. 

“Is it because she is protecting us? From what you told me once… he hates everyone who is not Pure.” Cobra nodded slightly. 

“Yes, before the King could ascend the Throne, a lot of Citizen framed him for being a bastard Child… As you may have noticed in the Pure Blood Section is a certain… Colour line going. The King is actually a single coloured Dragon, which is normally only seen in the Citizen themselves.” Kiros blinked. 

“What do you mean?” Alure wanted to know as well. 

“You see… There is a colour class system in Isral… The normal citizen are mostly single Coloured, like Alure and Solei are.” Both Hybrids nodded. 

“The next class, mostly those who own a Shop are the double coloured dragon’s, like you Kiros. After that the Royalty and the high Generals, those are mostly Multi coloured. Meaning they have more than two colours.” Now Alure wondered how Millenia looked in her Dragon Form. Of Course she had to be one… Right?

“So what is the Thing with the King now? He is single coloured, so he should be multi coloured?” Cobra shook his Head. 

“That is the Point. Rulers are either double coloured or multi coloured, but there is a twist to them.” Both Hybrids stared at him. 

“The Rulers, or their Children change colour in the Light of Sun and Moon, so they are… hm let’s call it Holographic?” The smallest of the Three starred at him in awe, imagine how it must look to see a Ruler or their Offspring. 

“And that King doesn’t have that?” 

Cobra nodded. “Exactly.”

Kiros grumbled. “How did he got on the Throne then?” 

The Skeleton traced his three Scars. “At the Time the former King passed on, the older Sister and Potential Queen… The Citizen thought she was Dead.” 

Alure tilted his Head. There was something in his Phrasing. “But she isn’t?” 

Cobra smiled a bit. “Exactly. The older Sister is still alive and returned to her Home after some…. Complications.” The two Hybrids still didn’t understand why the King was after their Guardian. 

She was just the High Priest of the Land. It seemed to Click in Alure’s Mind. 

“Is the King after Lady Millenia, because she knows where the Princess is hiding?” Kiros blinked, that was actually a good reason. Cobra huffed, they were so careful about this, of course they didn’t catch the Hint. 

“Yeah… Arisa knows where the older Sister is… Being said, the older Sister is a threat to his Rule.” Kiros nodded in Understanding. 

“So he wants Millenia to find the Sister and execute her, so he won’t lose the Throne.” Cobra smiled a bit. 

“Something like that.” He somehow was glad they didn’t catch the hint. It was easier to leave them dumb, or they would do something stupid. On the Other hand, Cobra feared that it won’t take all to long for the Guards to arrive here and then not even Reeve can help them out anymore.

“Who would have thought, that the Personal Guard is watching some dirty Halfbreeds.” Cobra jumped to his Feet. 

“Grima…” A Man with snow white hair came out of the Shadows. 

Alure hid behind Cobra, while Kiros grabbed his Knives. 

“Where is she?” Grima commanded. 

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” Grima sighed. 

“I thought you would say that, so i brought a present.” He snapped his Fingers. 

“LET ME DOWN YOU DISGUSTING ASSHOLE!” Alure gasped, a Soldier was holding Solei in a tight grasp. 

“Bring Nocturne… Or this Halfling will suffer terribly for Lying to the Excellency.” Cobra growled at Grima. 

“I’m impatient and you know that…” He said, about to snap his fingers again. 

“Let him down, Grima.” Kiros turned, only to see Millenia come up to them. 

“Ah… There you are.” Grima said with a disgustingly smug grin. 

“Arisa…” Cobra looked at her in worry. 

“I told you to let him down.” Grima nodded slightly.

“Yes you did, but i don’t take orders from you.” Millenia sighed. 

“I thought so… Sharyu.” A large Scythe appeared in her Hand. Grima shivered excited. 

“You could hurt your little halfling.” He warned, standing close to Solei. 

“Co.” The other nodded. 

“Kiros, i will get Solei, once he is here run with Alure and him.” Kiros grumbled. 

“Alright…” Alure blinked. Cobra shoots forward, he was fast and dangerous. 

The guard was knocked out fast and Cobra ushered Kiros to run with the Boys. He first feared Grima would follow them, but the Man was after something else.

 “Oh please, no reason for such Violence. The King only wants to talk with his dearest Sister.” Cobra didn’t believe him. They were after her life, not after a TALK. 

“Grima… If i go to see his Majesty… will you leave them alone?” 

Cobra starred at her. “Arisa.” 

Grima laughed. “Of course, Princess. King Lysander is not that cruel. Talk with him and see for yourself that he has no ill intentions.” Grima said. 

“Arisa!” Cobra grabbed her Hand. 

“Co.. Protect them for me. He can’t kill me, if he wants this Realm to still exist.” She whispered. 

“Arisa this is insane.” She nodded. 

“I know, but it is all i have to protect them.” He finally let go of her Hand. 

“Hold out only a bit… i will get you.” She smiled at him, before walking up to Grima, leaving with him to the Capital.

Alure stared out of the Window, while Kiros patched up Solei. 

“This asshole attacked me out of nowhere!” Solei grumbled. 

Finally the door opened, but only Cobra walked in. 

“Where is Lady Millenia?” Alure asked.

“Grima brought her to the Main City… Apparently the KING wants to talk with her.” Cobra said, while he himself didn’t believe it.

Solei huffed. Alure stood up slowly and walked to the Door.

“Where are you going?” Cobra asked. 

“I… I forgot my book at the Lake. I just wanted to get it really quick.” He said. Kiros stood up. 

“Hey Snake. take care of the little Shit, i will go with Nightlight.” He said, Cobra nodded only. 

“Be back in 30 minutes.” Both nodding before they left. 

“Did you really forgot a book there, Nightlight?” Kiros asked, as they were away from the house.

“No… i wanted to see if the Water is telling me anything…” Kiros sighed. 

“So you are worried to…” The purple Hybrid nodded. 

“It was odd… why didn’t he ordered her to tell him where the Princess is?” Kiros blinked, Alure was right! 

“You think…” Alure nodded.

“Lady Millenia said she is living here because of certain circumstances… She doesn’t know where the Princess is, she is the princess. That’s why she never showed us her Dragon form!” Kiros heaved a heavy sigh.

“That Flower sure is giving us some trouble.” Alure ran up to the Lake once there, but it was as if the Sky itself turned even darker. 

“She said once to me, that there are the Ancestors of Isral living in here..” Alure whispered. 

“I may not be a Pure Dragon, but i love this place…” He stared into the Water, noticing that it had became duller, not the shining fluid he was used to. But still it reacted to Alure, slightly riling before it showed Alure something.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He could see the Great Castle from the order Vicinity, Soldiers bringing Millenia inside, thankfully she was unharmed. 

“It has been a while.” A Man said, Alure recognised him from Solei’s description, the King of Isral and also Millenia’s supposed to be Brother. 

“Your Highness.” Millenia said politely. Lysander seemed to rage the second he saw her.

“You really are gutsy, SISTER.” He spit out. 

“Raising an Army to get the Throne!” Millenia shook her head. 

“If i had wanted the Throne i would have taken it upon my return five years ago.” She said calmly. Lysander growled darkly.

“You simply couldn’t. But no matter now… I have good news, SISTER… I will once and for all, make sure you will never return here.” He said coldly. 

“Your Highness, it is impossible to kill the Dragon of Chaos… They simply will shatter once again.” One of his Men said. 

“I know, that is why, she will go to where she belongs… Some Brothels far away from Isral.” He began to laugh. 

“After all, that is all my dearest sister is good for. Spreading her legs for others.” Millenia stood there calmly. Alure starred at the Water, see ing the Soldiers bring his Guardian away from them even further. 

He wanted to scream at them, to cry, but then he heard her, as she glanced back to were the Vicinity is supposed to be.

“Sleep while the night is young. Dreams carry you far from harm. Free from alarm, safe in my arms, please live your life for you and for me.” He felt something around him, as if she was hugging him. 

“Still, you must carry on, bearing your burdens for long. My wish for you, can only come true… You’ll still be here when i am gone.” Alure sniffled, oh how often did he hear her sing this song, when he was about to fall asleep. His soul started to throb in pain. 

“Share your smile with the world. Live for the path you choose. Know you were the only one, that i could never bear to lose.” Alure felt hot, was this a song she used to sing for the King? Was it something precious to her? In the water he saw her turn her Head away from them. 

“Sleep while the night is young, dreams  carry you far from harm. My gift to you, too precious to lose… Know that you were the future i chose.” Kiros only could watch Alure stare in the water, not knowing what he saw. Then Alure screamed painfully.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Shit! Nightlight!”

Alure felt hot, painful and his soul throbbed. It was as if someone was ripping it out, while hate against the King was burning through him. 

The Dragon symbol in his soul, a dark purple, started to turn brighter, more blueish while it also started to bleed out of his Soul. Kiros was about to bolt to him, to grip his shoulders. 

‘Don’t touch him.’ Kiros stopped dead, a ghostly looking Woman in front of him. He never saw her before, but she felt familiar. A woman with shoulder long greyish purple hair and deep blue, sapphire like eyes. She wore a black dress as well, but she seemed… dead? 

“Nightlight is in Pain.” The Woman nodded. 

‘I know, but if YOU touch him his hate towards the King will devour you… Leave it to us.’ Kiros growled at this Woman. 

“Who are you?” The Woman smiled. 

‘Sharyu, i am the Scythe bound to Lady Millenia and a long passed Ancestor. Let us take care of sweet Alure.’ Kiros was still not convinced, but she was only there to keep him distracted, while other ghostly People surrounded Alure. 

The Small Hybrid yelped in Pain, but it also felt a bit like Relief. Someone was pulling out this painful Hate running through him. He blinked, only to see another Hybrid, with six large cyan coloured Horns. His sight was Hazy, as this Hybrid pulled him into a soft Hug. 

“Fear not, Alure. I shall safe what is dear to us all.” His voice sounded so Cold, so different from his Own, but he wanted to trust this Hybrid.

Kiros stared in disbelief. Alure was fine, but someone held him. Sharyu looked over her shoulder, seeing another Hybrid, the manifested Hate of Alure towards the King of all Dragons. Sitting there in the Cold light the Moon gave of. 

He had four tails and wings, while his six horns were Cyan coloured. 

“Tell me one thing.” He finally spoke, his Head raised to the Moon. 

‘This may be?’ Sharyu asked softly. Alure seemed to have passed out from the Pain his Hate had caused him.

“I was born under the Moon’s cold light… however this may be called?” Sharyu turned fully to him. 

’In our old Language… the word you may want to know is Narish.’ The Hybrid nodded slowly. 

“Then from this Day forth… my name shall be Narish, the Cold Light.” Kiros blinked. Finally noticing the similarities to his Boss. So this would be the corrupted Nightmare he knew and cherish so much. 

“Boss…” Kiros breathed. Narish finally gracing him with his one free eye light, this cold Cyan Kiros always loved. 

“There is one more, am i right?” Kiros grinned. 

“Yeah, Boss~ The Flowers personal Guard, he is back at the House.” Narish stood up, still cradling the passed out Alure.

“Then let us bring him there to rest and collect the other. Our Mission shall be to burn down all the Brothels in our way to find our Flower again.” Kiros smirked, that was something he really liked. 

“Alright, Boss~”

Cobra starred at them, as a way taller Hybrid walked in, with Alure in his Arms. Kiros was already a bit taller as Cobra, but this new one surpassed him even more. Cobra noticed that the new Hybrid was still shorter as his own Brother, but not by much he thought.

“This… doesn’t look like a book.” He said. Kiros chuckled. 

“Yeah, no Book. But the King also didn’t hold his promise… Boss here has more information.” Cobra turned his green eye lights to Narish. 

“Right, but first let us bring Alure to a Comfortable place.” Cobra nodded. 

“Solei is sleeping in the Back, let’s bring Alure there.” Narish nodded, as Cobra took the smaller Hybrid from him to bring the sleeping one to the bed. After that the Guard went back to them and guided them to the Kitchen Table. 

“Alure saw her in the Water of the Lake.” Cobra tensed as Narish started. 

“The King has ordered to bring her away into a Brothel.” Kiros growled immediately. 

“What?” Cobra hissed. Narish watched him.

“I want you two to come with me and burn down any brothel to find our Guardian again.” Cobra nodded. 

“But what about the Kids.” He asked. 

‘I shall protect them.’ Cobra looked up. 

“Sharyu?” She smiled at Cobra. It took him a while before he nodded. 

“Alright, let’s get Arisa back.” He said, standing up and clenching the Crystal he always had on his hips. They would get her Back.

Thanks to Cobra they could sneak out of the Wood without being caught or getting lost in the deep Fog around the Kingdom.

“How far are the Brothels away?” Kiros asked. 

“The Question is rather… where did he brought her? Do you know anything about it?” Narish nodded.

“Indeed. Far as i know from what i for being part of Alure is that they wanted to bring her FAR away from Isral.” Cobra thought about it. 

“There is a Red light District almost two days away from here. They probably used portals after exiting Isral.” He said thoughtful. 

“It would be faster with Arisa’s help.” Narish sighed. 

“Well, so how do we get there fast?” Cobra thought about it. Then there was the Idea.

“I know how.” He said walking to a bit away, using his Crystal to open a Portal. Narish raised his Brow bone. 

“This is… interesting?” Cobra smiled a bit. 

“There is a connection to my Crystal that holds my soul weapon and Arisa’s Necklace she always wears, it helps to bring us fast to her.” Kiros was impressed, this would save them a lot of traveling, but they already lost a few hours. 

Narish walked through the Portal, they had a Mission after all. Kiros and Cobra followed a bit after. 

The Red-light District bustled in the moonlight while some Women were trying to lure Men in. Narish looked disgusted at them. Cobra sighed, there were a lot of Brothels in this Area, it was basically a whole town made of Brothels, finding Millenia here was like searching a needle within hay.

Kiros turned to them. “So? What is the Plan?” 

Narish huffed, tugging his wings closer to him. “We need to find her, but i don’t think they will make it easy for us.” 

Cobra nodded. “Sadly no. We would have it easier if she used her magic…” 

Narish looked at him. “How so?”

Cobra chuckled. “If Arisa uses her Song magic then we could easily make out the Brothel she is in, thanks to Black Flowers growing around it.” 

Narish tilted his head. “She sang as she was brought away.” 

Kiros was impressed, Alure and in that Narish saw all that through the Water? 

“She did? Alright then let’s see if we find Black Flowers that look completely out of Place.” 

Kiros turned around, looking a bit confused. “Like… those?” 

Cobra and Narish looked to where he was Pointing at. Black Flowers growing their way to a Brothel deeper into the Town. 

“Yup, that’s her flowers.” Cobra nodded. Kiros grinned, almost bolting down the Street. 

Narish chuckled a bit. “How convenient, you can barely miss that. So if she wants to be found, she certainly will.” 

Cobra laughed a bit. “Yeah.” 

They started to Follow Kiros, who probably went to the tallest, most expensive Brothel there. 

Cobra sighed. “Berelia.” He whispered, the Crystal giving off a soft glow before turning into a large sword. 

“Convenient.” Narish said, but Kiros was not to be seen. 

“You think he is inside already?” Cobra asked, as if the Answer wanted to give itself in the higher Floors someone were thrown out of the Window, already dusting as he landed, a Knife deeply buried in his Back. 

“I presume that means…. YES.” Narish said flatly, his hands behind his Back as he casually looked to the dusting Person.

Kiros felt very stabby today, not only threatened they Solei, to be honest he hated him, but he was still a Hybrid. Then they kidnapped their Flower and now he had to run up to the 9th floor to collect their Flower before something happened. Yes Kiros felt very stabby, he would STAB anyone in his Way. 

The other Two were still not here, but he actually didn’t care about that. Finally he was up in the last floor.

“You stupid whore, are you to dumb to do this Right?” Kiros twitched, kicking the Door open. 

The Men looked up, in his hand a bundle of red hair. Kiros felt something hot inside him. It wouldn’t be so bad the need to stab a trillion knives into that Man… BUT! Kiros looked down to Millenia, her clothes in sheds and a huge bruise on her Cheek. Oh this Man would die! 

Kiros growled darkly at that man. “Get out you asshole, i payed for this Bit….” Kiros wouldn’t let him Finish as he already threw the first Knife. It settled in his Shoulder. 

The Man screamed loudly, releasing Millenia.

“ARISA!” Cobra went inside the Room Finally. 

“Take the Flower out….” Kiros said, taking the next Knife. 

“I will deal with him….” Cobra nodded. 

“Alright.” He took of his Coat to place it around Millenia. 

“Let’s go.” He said softly. Millenia looked bad… a Bruise on her Check, some cuts, but now he needed to get her out. 

“Co..” He shook his Skull.

“Not now, Arisa… Let’s get out of here.” He said, bringing Millenia out, only for her to blink in surprise, seeing face to face with Narish. 

“Guardian.” He whispered, touching her uninjured Cheek. 

“What…” Cobra sighed. 

“He was born from Alure… His Name is Narish, it’s a long story.” He said, while the Screaming from the Brothel became louder and louder.

Cobra went back in to assist Kiros, who was going rampage by now. Narish was with Millenia outside. 

“So you were born from Alure?” Narish nodded. 

“Exactly, i am his hatred that rose after seeing what the King did to you.” She flinched a bit, before Narish made her look at him. 

“We all cherish you greatly…” Millenia sighed. 

“I am aware, but still…” Narish didn’t want to let her Finish as he bend down, pressing his teeth on her Lips. Her silver eyes widening, while he kissed her. 

She didn’t know what to do, before he released her, just in time for Cobra and Kiros to return. 

“Flower!” Kiros turned her around and looked at her. “Are you fine?”

She smiled a bit up at him. “Yeah, he just hit me a bit, nothing all to bad.” Kiros sighed in relieve, before he as well, kissed her.

Narish chuckled a bit, it was obvious they loved her so much. “Narish…” He turned to Cobra. 

“I will take Leadership for the Hybrids. Millenia had enough to deal with already, i shall protect her and the rest.” 

Kiros broke the Kiss. “Sounds good to me, Boss~” He said with a grin, Pulling Millenia closer to him. 

Once back they would build a castle for them to life and as Narish had announced, he took Leadership for the little Group they had. Kiros immediately raising as his Right hand Man, Cobra assigned to guard Millenia even more. 

Narish taking Leadership made the Vicinity of Chaos turn mostly into a darker Place, only the Lake had sunshine, but all of them were fine with that so far.

[fe8meta]

The War’s Legacy

As a volunteer archivist at a local historical site, I’ve worked closely with books and documents largely between 150~250 years old. (If you’re curious, mostly regarding the period between the American Revolution to the Civil War, plus the anti-slavery movement. There’s also more “domestic” stuff like agriculture, science, mathematics, and religion.)

It got me thinking: In Magvel, how will the war, and the people who participated in it, be remembered? Most characters have a good portion of their lives left to live after the war too, but for those who are remembered down the line, their participation in the war will probably be their biggest accomplishment.

To start things off: more likely than not, anyone who wasn’t royalty or an important military figure is probably going to get forgotten, especially if fighting in the war was their only achievement.

(From my experience as an archivist, I’ve noticed that a great deal of people who were seen as the big movers and thinkers during their time have been lowered to one-note and forgettable in some 150-ish years of history. That’s not a lot of time!)

I think the list of characters who are remembered decades after their deaths on a continental scale (some characters may remain important figures in their own communities) would be the royals, the generals (Seth plus the Imperial Generals), and the Demon King (plus his cult).

The Royals

Ephraim: Regarding the war, Ephraim will probably get his war strategies and accomplishments written about. I expect a great deal of historians (particularly Renaian ones) debating his decision to abandon his homeland and bring the fight into Grado, though his later decisions will probably receive praise.

Eirika: Honestly? I think she’ll largely receive praise from future historians. Despite getting tricked at Renvall and the blunder of losing the Sacred Stone (on her route), I think historians would agree that her calculations were solid based on the information she knew at the time. Even if she had Seth advising her, she had no formal training in tactics or the art of war, making her achievements even more impressive.

~ / ~ / ~

Innes: Like Eirika, I think he’d be validated by historians, particularly for being the only one to actually predict and prepare for a wartime scenario. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but based on what we know of him story-wise, he probably would go down as one of the best leaders of his time.

Tana: She’s gutsy and I think she’ll at least become a popular figure for young women. Some historians may lambast her earlier captures attributable to her inexperience, but hey, if she got out alive than it’s not too bad. I think later in life, being largely free to do whatever she wants (within reason), she’d continue onto a path of public service, which she can probably gather great acclaim for.

~ / ~ / ~

L’Arachel: I think a lot of attention will go towards her theatrics. If you go with the idea that L’Arachel doesn’t actually lead her country (see the Solo Endings JP vs. EN post for details), I think her relationship with the other royals and how she’s involved in continental politics will be the primary focus in biographies. (She also, perhaps not coincidentally, has supports with all the other ruling royals, discounting Tana as she canonically never lands in a leadership position.)

Joshua: Joshua’s reputation will be very, very mixed down the line. He’s still has wanderlust and a gambling addiction, and regardless of his accomplishments as a king and Jehanna’s glorious revival, neither of those traits are a particularly good look. Not to mention that he abandoned his duty as prince for a solid 10 years, and then left Jehanna to its own devices again while going to stop the Demon King.

Even in Joshua’s dialogue after the final battle, he talks about returning to Jehanna in an almost resigned manner; no doubt he knows full well that he might not be received with open arms.

~ / ~ / ~

Lyon: Oh boy, what to say about Lyon. There are a lot of different ways this can go, branching from 3 options: Lyon’s involvement in the war is revealed in full, Lyon’s involvement is revealed but doctored to paint him in a more sympathetic light, or it gets entirely covered up/omitted and he goes down in history as an unfortunate casualty of the war.

No matter how you slice the first two options, Lyon’s legacy would definitely be extremely mixed, leaning towards the negative side. Not only is he on the wrong side of history, he’s also forced basically half the continent into the wrong side of history and ruined their military and did some very amoral things (reviving his father to use as a puppet, and by extension lying to the public, etc). Even the best doctoring can probably only redeem Lyon’s reputation from “the deepest depths of the sewers” to “neck-deep in the sewers.”

In the case where Lyon’s involvement in the war is covered up, it’s still only a matter of time before someone figures out the truth. With enough time, it can be relegated to a highly plausible and hotly-debated theory, but even so, it’s simply a matter of time. For an additional dose of irony, in this scenario, perhaps Grado nationalists down the line twist Lyon’s war into something “assertive” and depict it as the “correct” thing to do, when it was really anything but.

Vigarde: He’s in the same boat as Lyon. It really hinges on how the royals choose to depict Lyon’s situation to the public, because that will directly affect how Vigarde is seen. There’s little doubt that puppet!Vigarde’s actions probably destroyed popular opinion of him during the War. Whether he is redeemed on account of his situation or not is up for debate.

(Because the game doesn’t delve into Fado, Hayden, or Mansel much, I don’t have enough input to say how they’ll be seen by future historians.)

The Generals

Seth: He’s going to go down in history as a badass, let’s be real here. Took an attack from Valter himself to protect Eirika, didn’t let the injury debilitate him from fighting on the frontlines, mentored Eirika in the art of war during life-or-death battles, guided the twins on their journey, and continued helping them after the war’s end. Guy got things done, regardless of his personal sentiment about failing to protect King Fado.

Syrene: Technically a commander and not a general, but close enough that I’ll consider her. She... honestly doesn’t do that much on-screen. Doubtlessly she’ll be best remembered (on the battlefield) for being overpowered by the remnant of Grado’s forces, but at least she lived and (by the player’s discretion) kept all the villagers safe, so that’s something. At the very least, a coward she is not.

Carlyle: He’s going down in infamy. Like, his story can be crudely summed up as “I was loyal to Queen Ismaire partially because I wanted to bang her.” Yeah, that is not a good look. There isn’t even any interesting speculation or interpretations to make of his situation. He probably ruined the reputation of the Jehannan Army while he was at it.

Honestly, the only thing that would salvage his reputation is the fact that everyone who heard his confession is dead by the end of that battle. (Technically the map was a Seize Throne and not a Rout, but let’s be real -- we killed those guards.)

~ / ~ / ~

Duessel: The only Grado general to make it out alive. He’ll probably get a mixed reaction; those who praise him argue that he made the morally correct choice and had the nation’s best interests at heart. Some may criticize him for not acting sooner, while others may very well despise him as a traitor to the nation.

Selena: Another set of mixed reactions, though inverse from Duessel’s. She remained loyal to Vigarde to the very end, but people will debate where a knight’s loyalty should lie. It would also invite much debate over the ethics of Vigarde’s recruitment methods and whether it was a thinly-veiled manipulation tactic that citizens from poorer areas will fall for because it’s the only way to improve their livelihoods.

Glen: He’s like Syrene, except he died without doing much. If someone is interested in finding out more about him before his death, at least they have Cormag to interview. Depending on whether his two adjutants survived against Valter’s goons, if someone tracked them down, they might get a story out of them as well. That said, his history with Valter would probably be of great interest to Valter’s biographers.

~ / ~ / ~ 

Valter: Historians, psychologists, and scholars will have a field day with him and his circumstances. From his upbringing to his descent into madness and subsequent exile, to his reinstatement and brutality during the war before his ultimate death, there is a lot to unpack with him. People tend to have morbid curiosities and oh, will Valter sate that appetite.

Caellach: Caellach will probably be praised for being good at what he did even if he was ultimately on the wrong side of history. Since he started off as a mercenary, I feel like people won’t judge him too harshly. His potential betrayal and murder of Aias will be an interesting chapter to write about, though, since historians may have access to more knowledge on their pre-war relationship that we players don’t have.

Riev: He’s ugly, a Demon King cultist, and directly responsible for Lyon’s (and by extension, Grado’s) downfall. He’s going to be reviled for sure, though he will spark some interesting discussion relating to his history with the Rausten Church. A lot of speculation on how he came to became an adherent of the Demon King... or not, depending how whether that kind of talk is suppressed.

After all, if a former bishop converted, it not only challenges the legitimacy of the Rausten Church, it would also pique the interest of those who want to see what made Riev change his mind. And should someone also adopt his ideology, the continent can’t take another Demon King revival attempt.

Which leads me to...

The Demon King

Now, this will be a little game called “How many generations will it take before the Demon King gets relegated to a legend that no one believes in again.”

It’s also pretty important that the Demon King is not completely destroyed; he just no longer has his huge menacing body to use and will have to make do with those fragile human flesh sacks. But his soul is still intact, and if nothing is done to get rid of it for good, it’s setting up for a Part 3.

Like with Lyon, how information about the Demon King is handled by the characters after the world will probably have a huge impact. Not to mention the many implications the circumstances around his possession of Lyon has. Dark/ancient magic will most certainly face a resurgent wave of discrimination, far more than seen before. (Magvel was, from what we could see, largely apathetic about dark magic before Lyon’s attempts to redeem its name. Ironically, his actions will rekindle hatred towards it.)

As aforementioned, educating people on the Demon King and how dangerous he is may help ensure that nobody tries to mess with him again. On the other hand, it may inspire copycats who for whatever reason want the Demon King to be revived. (The game also never followed up on the implication that there’s a cult that worships the Demon King; we killed Riev and Novala, and destroyed Fomortiis’ body, but there may still be more members lurking in the dark.)

Meanwhile, trying to bury information about Fomortiis can also backfire down the line, especially if people don’t learn what the Sacred Stone is for and one day crack the seal open for one reason or another. (And we saw how well keeping the true Stone hidden behind trinkets while keeping its wearer in the dark of its true purpose went.)

This is making me imagine Demon King apologists down the line that provide an “alternative history” about the war and how it’s all some ancient conspiracy to lock him away and he “isn’t actually bad, just misunderstood”...

Oh hey, isn’t that the direction Dragalia Lost’s main story is going in?

[theneverendingpurplesky]

Ok, now I’m chapter 66 of Heaven Official’s Blessing and I’ll put my ramblings under the cut because of spoilers (btw, thank you for the likes, reblogs and comments in the other posts!  ❤️❤️❤️)

Shi Qingxuan: “no matter how good the intention, after being passed around, words will always end up becoming negative”

Me: well, that’s because the heavenly court is full of morons... actually, it makes sense considering that they’re a bunch of, in general, privileged and self-entitled rich people with a mass communication device.... oh shit, the Heavenly Court is like Gossip Girl.

Me before: Qi Rong went insane because Xie Lian fell.

Novel: Nah fam, he’s always been a crazy psycho and a bully.

Me:...oh, ok.

I have to say, I feel MUCH less charitable towards him than before. Insulting the people at the top is hilarious, insulting the ones beneath you makes you a bully (and he’s not a bully, he’s a full psycho).

And about that, something that called my attention was that in chapter 1 it says that Xian Le fell to chaos because of the Emperor’s cruel governing; I was like ‘Xie Lian’s father is a cruel Emperor...?’ I thought it was odd (Xie Lian seemed to have a good relationship with his parents, so how could he get along with them if the Emperor is cruel while he wants to help the common people??), so I considered the possibility that the Emperor when Xian Len fell was Qi Rong and not Xie Lian’s father and that Qi Rong governed a la Joffrey, but then XL’s parents would have to die within 3 years after Xie Lian ascended. I still think that’s a possibility, but the other chapters also show that Xie Lian did NOT get along with his father because of opposing views regarding royalty and the common people (his dad is a fucking snob), and details about Xian Le shows that the state of the country COULD lead to a rebellion, even with Xie Lian’s dad as the Emperor. I mean, when I read in chapter 1 about the golden carriages and lavish parade, I was like ‘if the country was so rich, why did the people rebel?’ and then these chapters show that while the nobility and royalty have this HUGE amount of wealth, there are still people living in the slums, in poverty or homeless... I mean, the disparity in wealth is shown to be so deep (the description of the royal palace in comparison to the nearby slums makes you go yikes) that it makes sense that people would grow increasingly dissatisfied. And actually, I was like ‘....is Xie Lian ok with this?’ but then we find out that he did NOT agree with his father’s ruling, but could not do anything against the king --> but I’m not sure if staying away was the right choice...  

And about the Crown Prince Xie Lian, I have to say, the author did an amazing job of portraying how different Xie Lian was when he was Crown Prince; I mean, yeah, he was “woker” and more humble/down-to-earth than the rest of the nobility but certain details made evident that despite that, his view of the world was still coming from a sheltered and rich young master. Like on the one hand, his understanding of the difference between his and Mu Qing’s privilege when he decided to cover him for the gold foil was fantastic, or him taking responsibility for all damages made by Qi Rong (including economic losses from vendors) was great. But on the other hand...

Novel: he didn’t bring a lot with him. Only 200 treasured swords.

Me:

Or when he was looking for sweets to give the poor children because he thought that giving them coins was too much like dismissing beggars and he thought it was inappropriate --> I have to say I was like ‘fuck your candies, Xie Lian! if I were poor/homeless, I would WANT you to dismiss me with your golden coins!!’

I mean, he was nice and humble, and was much better than the rest of the rich people when it comes to helping and understanding the common people, BUT his view was still one that came from someone who grew up being rich and royalty (something he couldn’t help since he was the crown prince in a country like Xian Le, but those details are very interesting, as that trait is not present in the current Xie Lian).

Jun Wu: “in this matter, you really worked hard for nothing, and pleased no one” --> FUCK YOU!! he saved the (rest of the) common people of Xian Le, he avoided them being killed or facing a new wave of discrimination, he avoided clashes and he contributed to the peace in the region, so fuck that ‘worked hard for nothing’ you snake (and this is why Xie Lian needs to elope with Hua Cheng and be done with the fucking heavenly court).

And if he sent Xie Lian because he’s the “only one he trusts” why didn’t tell him “hey the one that disappeared was the Earth Master and I’d sent him to be Hua Cheng’s subordinate as a spy, so Hua Cheng is probably involved” instead of just fucking sending him blindly to the Ghost City??? suspicious... And I love how every time Jun Wu tells him to be wary of Hua Cheng, Xie Lian is like ‘I suddenly can’t hear’ lol.

And thinking about Jun Wu's possible motive to have Xie Lian fail/fall, it called my attention that in Xian Le, the second-highest temple, after Jun Wu’s, was Xie Lian’s (and he only ascended for 3 years...), and I keep thinking that maybe he felt threatened by Xie Lie?? I mean, Xie Lian was suuuper popular and talented (he only cultivated for 2 years before ascending??) and he “disrespected” his parade and refused to apologize because, in XL’s view, he did the right thing, I mean when I read in chapter 1 “Then the Heavens would be the ones who are wrong. Why should the people who are right apologize to the ones who are wrong?” I was like ‘he’s totally right but damn, that’s a gutsy answer’, so I think Jun Wu saw Xie Lian as a powerful (lots of believers) young god who he could not control (or was not respectful enough) and may surpass him and said ‘hell no, he needs to be beaten’ and did it in a covert way while pretending to support him (....and totally not because I was watching old American Next Top Model’s videos and reading comments about how Tyra usually downplays/criticizes the girls that are more beautiful than her because she feels intimidated while pretending to be nice, and that made me think of Jun Wu as Tyra >_>....) 

[sagaballero]

FANFICTION world is a truly debrided, uncensored promised land, bastion of freedom and free-style writing. In this baroque puzzle, discovering a variety of gifted (and selfless) writers, that’s an utter comfort.

Ambivalent, Luxurious, Against the current, Organic, Gutsy, Dark, Gray, Transcendent, Outrageous, Extravagant... In the case of REYLOFICs the more I read the more I am tempted to explore the deep-end of this horn of plenty. But, on the journey, say nice things about those dream-machine storytellers is clearly a sane propaganda. Prodigal author without blinking, innate crack, inscrutable wizard or soft/dark underbelly... Whoever they might be, all credit to them for doing what they are doing and doing it so well. @5-cents​  Less is more. Able to write a play, a screenplay, got an eye for the (implied) obvious so as to preserve what counts. Sense of slangy imagery and naked poetry, science of dialogue, syncopated path and (film) cutting, she also has a thoughtful and mature love for the characters without give in to ease. Richer than rich, the whole thing smells like a melancholic lost perfume BUT not only... Classic and atypical at once because Style is firmly timeless.

Fever of predilection and indivisible pairing:

Hide and Seek - E

Because Tennessee Williams, Sweaty Southern Gothic, Ben Solo is a dark horse (with a riding crop), Rey ain’t just a “Baby Doll”, Volcano Snoke deserves an Oscar (!), Awakening is not a bed of roses, Because fooling around with Tennessee Williams is highly inflammable and SHE’s the man

Candyleg - E 

Pulpfic, Black Comedy, Roman noir, Cinematic at all points, Psyche and Eros between the lines, Outlaws everywhere, Supporting roles are being treated like royalty, Ren Solo is a case study and an authentic black horse, this story has many lives as huge zebra stripes, Subliminal Scorsese and Freud at the corner

FULL WORK

@lilia-ula​  The Holy Grail of sin. On the edge of lyricism, sophistication and decadence. If you start, you’ll be under her writing-perfusion/persuasion. This combo of Opium (or put your own fetish dish here) and Biggerthanlife-words should be felt and experienced. Beware to indelible effects! The guiltiest dose is often the best. 99% dubious Kylo Ren and an artful level of carnality that is second to none.

First meet, Heart stroke in unison:

The Autumnal Hunt of Alderaan - E

Medieval hunt haloed in black and gold (and deep carmine). Ritualistic, animalistic, shimmering fic like an ideal full circle (of sex practice). Need a teacher?

This Way Lies Ruin - E

Because possessive-obsessive, Death and the maiden, hunter and prey, Kylo Ren always has a plan, Sith-style courtship, Epic smut, Iconic chapters, A surprise awaits Rey! (all the time too)

FULL WORK @missbliss12​  Multi-talent. Multi-faceted in the likeness of her stories & comics. Irreverent, Witty, Hilarious. Radiant and enchanted-disenchanted, all this together. Impressive fluency and staggering poetic prose at work. Not a wasted word! High wire act.

A dream bubble apart:

The Good Fortune of the Skywalker Family - Teen and Up Audiences *still in progress

To be prescribed durably. Unclassifiable modern tale. Healing and sanely insane. Your line of fortune! When you no longer believe in anything but you still want to believe (and laugh), the Skywalker-Organa-Solo are all here to tell you: “Always look on the bright side of life.” 

FULL WORK

@persimonne  Positively contagious! Bold, Quirky, Adventurous, Whimsical, Cheeky. This not shy-writer has bountiful ideas and a very skillful pen. Her stories are unexpected and unconventional many times, not forgetting of being peppered with precious finds. Exquisitely funny too!

Latest unorthodox crush:

Just us now - E

Siblings + Starkiller + Snow + Chase + The world crumbling. The equation is simple, blatant, the story is unstoppable and made with love. In the best of taste & in the best spirit

A Victorian Sci-Fi story:

The Hand that feed - E  *still in progress

Enveloping, mysteriously intoxicating and deeply appealing. This monster romance has a massive charm on its own and an imaginative freshness. HER daring amorous temperament as much as HIS spellbinding power will not spare the common decency!

FULL WORK

@raevfitta  (aka slinden)  Fervent praises for this unquestionable storyteller! Prowess of writing, acuteness of senses and judgement, vigilant in choosing the slightest word, TRUTHFULNESS of facts and reactions... That’s why her insights and choices are relevant, deepened (and may become your persistent object of reflection). Addictive style, addictive work. Like a magnet! Trust and listen her discerning pen.

From the heart and the deep:

Storm King - E  *still in progress

“Two children are rescued from a kidnapper and murderer after years of torture and abuse.”

“This is a modern-day AU that will follow Ben and Rey as they grow up and deal with what happened, as well as their feelings for one another and how they transform over time.”

A post-traumatic story closely sutured with sharpness. The psychological approach is non-stop remarkable and her attention to characters, inestimable. They comes out of the blackness by carrying unfathomable feelings and wounds with them. Allusive or (most of the time) without filter, this journey into/out of the depths is utterly immersive and empathetic from the outset. Incompressible (painful) beauty. K.for King.

The time of a huis clos:

In Between Memories - E

“Two strangers awaken on a strange world with no memories of who they are or where they come from.”

This perspective of confinement -inside and out- is the promise of an exploration from every angle. A canonverse fic that reads like a rediscovery and where the characters are glaring truth. In this isolated place, filled with echoes and crucial daily deeds, nothing is trivial, everything is gripping, closest to the details. Subtle, hand-stitched work, fascinating to watch! With duality and LUMINOUS dead time

FULL WORK

IN CASE !DON’T FORGET TO CHECK THE TAGS! I’m just a free electron-reader not always aware of all the safeguards.

Also, loving word to these authors whose fics have spurred my greedy reading from the very start (my recollection being a maelstrom, it is merely a sampling).

World Without End by diasterisms @kylorenvevo

Go I know not whither and fetch I know not what by @voicedimplosives

Ashes in our Wake by @aionimica

The Soiled Doves by @fernybranca

Interstellar Transmissions by @ricca-raccoon & LovelyThings @little-scribblers-heart

Our Sentimental Scars by @ricca-raccoon

Whom Hades Seized by @nightsofreylo

Inspiration is Life!

TO BE Continued

[tiaragqueen]

Hang By A Thread

✂ Pairing: Yandere! Kim Seokjin x Reader

✂ Word Count: 1k

✂ Trigger Warning: Poisoning, physical abuse, degradation

✂ This story is fictional and for amusement only. I don’t believe any of the members would do this in real life. As always, thank you for reading and I hope you have a good day!

Do not re-upload my writing to another website or use it without my permission.

[Edited]

***

Anon asked: “May I request a oneshot for Yandere Jin’s reaction to you attempting to poison him? Thank you 💞”

My first request! I was about to use the royalty au for this because I couldn’t find the ‘right’ ending, but decided against it. I hope you like it, tho!

If you like my writing, please support me on ko-fi!

“Now, you’re only gonna listen to my words. Yes, now you’re only gonna look at me. Yes, now you’re only gonna fall for me. Yes, now let’s start, from now on.” – Play With Me [CROSS GENE]

        This wasn’t supposed to happen.

         The plan was supposed to work. After all, you’ve been planning this for weeks. You’ve studied his schedule, quirks, moods, to the point where you were able to identify his feelings from a single twitch of his lips alone. So, why? Why did it still not working? Why was freedom so hard to reach?

        And most of all, why did you even think that just because he wasn’t present in the same room as yours, he wouldn’t know what you were doing at all?

         Jin wasn’t too big on arguments. Once attacked, he would usually choose to be defensive rather than strike back. It was nice to know that he still considered his partner’s feelings as opposed to brutal offense. However, it seemed that today wasn’t your lucky day. Just like any other day you were stuck with him in this so-called ‘home’.

         Home? What the hell was home? All you knew was a hellhole whom you endeavored to depart as far as you could despite your seeming laziness and nonchalance.

         And of course, Jin was bound to notice your odd behavior. Because honestly? This wasn’t the first time you’d taken such a drastic measure to leave him and his toxic love.

         Contrary to what you thought about him, Jin wasn’t that delusional. He knew what he did was wrong – immoral. And if the reverse came true, where he was the captive of his own house and you were the captor, he would definitely try to escape. It was only natural because even the laziest person in the world didn’t want to be trapped in a possessive lunatic hell-bent on controlling their movements.

         But just because he acknowledged it, didn’t mean he would change what already happened. No, he couldn’t and he wouldn’t. Jin was a loyal man, after all. Once committed, he would go through hell and heaven with his partner.

         And, of course, all he asked in return were loyalty and affection. He wanted his efforts to be noticed, too. But clearly, you couldn’t see that. Rather, you were blind to the terrifying depth of his love despite his stream of loving words, expensive gifts, and soft touches. Because if you did realize, then you wouldn’t have attempted to poison him in the first place.

         You stood in the center of his office, eyes fixed on to the floor below. The silence was thick, and the constant ringing in your ears did nothing to ease the silent anxiety that racked your whole body. You hated how vulnerable you were under his gaze; how your hands trembled underneath the sweater paws as you waited in tensed anticipation of his next reaction. You wanted to get out and curl up on the bed. Anything to avoid the punishment that would surely come after your gutsy action.

         “I thought you’ve changed,” Jin spoke, voice laced with heavy disappointment. But you still couldn’t bring yourself to care because, in your mind, it was better to be a bit rebellious than being submissive altogether. An obedient bitch that only obeyed his orders as if he were your boss – your master. You were scared, sure, but at least you’d tried to be brave.

         You’d stood up for yourself. Now if only he was that petty bully, then this whole situation might be a bit easier for you to handle.

         But you were scared. So, so scared you might puke right in front of him.

         “Nothing to say, huh?”

         Jin turned his attention back to the screen of his computer. It replayed the footage of you adulterating his tea with some strange substance. Your profile was resolute as you slowly stirred the tea with a teaspoon, trying to make it as inconspicuous as possible. You didn’t know there was a CCTV in the kitchen, nor were you aware of its existence around the house. And judging from the angle in which the video was recorded, the camera must be hidden inside the glass-door cabinet that stored antique china.

         You really needed to move your butt out of the couch and start cleaning the furniture for once.

         Sighing, Jin opened one of the drawers and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. How did he get those, you had no idea, since Jin didn’t look like the type to use bondage on the bedroom. But you knew, those wouldn’t be used for sexual practice. Jin preferred practical punishment more than sexual. And, well, at least you were able to retain some of your dignity from the former. You didn’t know if you could bear the thought of being a moaning mess under his rough affection, and the shame that followed.

         The chair rolled away slightly as he stood up and approached your frozen figure. He pulled both of your hands and shackled your wrists with a single click. After that, he moved to sit back on the rolling chair and deliberately spilled the contaminated tea on to the floor.

         “Lick it.”

         You immediately snapped your head towards him, unsure if you heard it right. Maybe your mind was playing a cruel trick on you. Maybe you misheard it. Although you knew, he knew, you heard what he was saying. The order was crystal clear in your ears. No repeat, no hesitation, no reluctance.

         Sure, it was more lenient than any punishment you’ve had in the past, but it didn’t make it any less demeaning.

         “Lick it until there’s nothing left.”

         You stared at him for a long time, deciding whether or not he was being serious. His face was darkening in each second, and yet you still wanted to make sure he wasn’t misspeaking himself.

         “Are you deaf? I said lick it!”

         You flinched. Jin rarely raised his voice around you, opting to manipulate you through his cogent words instead. He didn’t have an acting degree and the face to complement it for nothing.

         Reluctantly, you bent down to your knees and leaned forward. Well, as forward as you could with bound hands. Strands of hair fell from your shoulders, some touching the little pools of brown tea.

         Before you could open your mouth and clean the mess he had created, the air was abruptly knocked out of your lungs. A sturdy foot flopped on to your back, pressing you against the floor.

         “I hate to do this, but bad girls need their punishments. You should be grateful that I’m not heartless enough to poison you back.”

         Jin pushed you down, even more, ignoring your muffled whine. “Now, lick it like an obedient bitch you are.”

[thankyoumskobayashi]

What Hua Cheng says: I'm hanging around to sightsee

What Hua Cheng means: I'm coming with you because I am in love with you and want to protect you. I also enjoy watching you lead investigations into supernatural matters because you're gutsy, levelheaded and clever. No matter what it is you are doing, I want to be there by your side as you succeed at whatever you've determined to solve. I have loved you ever since you saved my life 5 times and had to watch your name be tarnished and crushed beneath the mud. Now I want to watch and aid you to do anything you please, because you are royalty and it's about damn time you were treated like royalty again. You have my limitless powers at your disposal, but all you have to do to pay me back is tell me I look handsome. I crave your attention because I heeded all of your advice (save for one tiny sentence) all those years ago. Please validate me by melting my heart. You are cute and powerful and beautiful, so forget the scenery-- my eyes are on you alone.

[rockthecotswolds]

Once more unto The Barn, dear friends...once more...

The award-winning Barn Theatre is like that friend who says quietly and confidently, 'I have big plans'. There’s a silence, you all have a little josh about it and then they actually go and pull it off. In an epic way.

Following the beautiful production of Butterfly Lion (whose acclaimed writer Michael Murpurgo said 'It was so much better than the book...’) comes the Barn Theatre's first production of Shakespeare. 

Now if anyone was going to take on Shakespeare they may well start with Romeo and Juliet or a bit of Bottom and Titania but not our Rocker friends. They offer a full on blasting of fight and intrigue with their take of Henry V which is a masterstroke as it's contemporary, passionate and will leave you utterly transfixed. The pace never lets up and the cast delivers each line of Shakespearean text as clear as modern English. Phew.

The production sucks you in from the moment you arrive, as you find your seat (and are careful not to spill your v good wine from the bar) the cast jokes with each other on stage...we’re introduced to the happy, uncomplicated youth of today. Innocents, having fun, enjoying each other’s company ....unaware of the fate before them.

The cast is incredible with leads played by Aaron Sidwell (who's starred in a vast number of productions including Wicked and Ghost) and Lauren Samuels (Bend it Like Beckham and We Will Rock You), each member effortlessly plays several different roles in succession and each of them believable and powerful.

For those who may not know Henry V, it takes place in England and Henry has just been crowned. Several civil wars have left the country irritated and restless and in order to gain respect the new monarch must play down his wild past (fabulously played out in a nightclub) and show he is a true leader.  He tenuously tries to claim parts of France and unsurprisingly doesn't gain the support of the French but is undeterred and those Henry was close to during his time of revelry (who he dismissed when rising through the ranks of royalty) back him and prepare for war.  

Just before setting off, Henry hears of traitors plotting against him and executes three, including his friend. Battle commences and against all odds, the English win and the French surrender.  Peace negotiations include the marriage between Katherine, daughter of the French King and Henry.  There is a lovely scene with a chic and coy Katherine (wonderfully played by Samuels who also  plays 'Boy' a young soldier equally convincingly) trying to learn some basic English words to make the union with Henry smoother.

The story is brought up to the minute with references, via a vast, turbulent screen, to Brexit but, fear not those who’ve had enough of the subject, it’s much more than that - it’s about the banality of war and fragility of forced unions, the decisions of those in higher ranks, who are unaware and uncaring of the fatal consequences. The reminder that teenagers are one minute raving in T-shirts and jeans with their mates and then trussed in a uniform trudging through a littered battlefield the next.

There is anticipation as the cast moves deftly from stage to the aisles (fear not shrinking violets, there’s only one moment of audience participation) and the intimacy of the theatre and sensation of the production is equal to the buzz of seeing your favourite artist up close at the Edinburgh festival with the powerful and passionate performances you’d find at the National Theatre.

The original score is fantastic and costumes authentic and impressive.The set is a clever, simple scaffolding that is multi-faceted - from a convincing bookmakers to ladders over trenches. It’s a gutsy, thrilling production that stays with you long after the cast has taken its bows.

So if you’re missing the thrill of Game of Thrones or just need an evening of heart-racing action and dialogue then don’t delay - Henry V - runs for just another few days until 22 June.

The full cast includes: Matt Ray Brown (Exeter/Orleans), Alicia Charles (Bardolph/Williams) Elin Philips (Fluelllen), Lauren Samuels (Katherine/Boy), Aaron Sidwell (Henry), Adam Sopp (Pistol/Constable), Sarah Waddell (Queen of France) and Jonathan Woolf (Nym/Dauphin).

Directed by Hal Chambers with designs by Emily Leonard, fight direction by Christos Dance, movement direction by Kate Webster, composition by Harry Smith, projection designs by Benjamin Collins, sound desing by Chris Cleal and lighting by Sam Rowcliffe Tanner.

www.barntheatre.org