#savanna answers

[rakiah]

I just want you to know that I will always love and cherish you for the art you do

Especially when you draw Leona in traditional African (Yoruba) clothing. It brings me joy and I need to know how tf Vil wrapped his hair up like that because I could never

Dffgytyrefgy I’m gonna hide into the tiniest hole I can find but omg thank youuu ; ;

Also, thank you for reminding me to draw more Yoruba!Leona 🙏

Took the advantage to draw them in their funeral attire in Crownless then 🎵 These clothes are so nice to draw x3

And don’t be fooled by Vil, he got help from maids. Though, I’m sure he could be more than persistent to learn how to tie a gele by himself.

[catzgam3rz]

Sam dump c:

SAM OMG BELOVED BABY

COUNTER ATTACK

[darkspellmaster]

do you plan to write the sunset Savannah arc ?

If you mean Cloud calling on the Savanna or Tamashina-Mina, yes, I have plans to incorporate it. It will be a bit later on, after various other events, but yeah, it's coming up. I have a full timeline, only two events so far are not in Year one for Ciel, and they're related to Halloween.

[mjrtaurus]

Minozebra jumping on the marine escape ship unbeknownst to everyone and Iva noticing him covering for them at Marineford. Well covering might be a stretch, but very few of the people he's attacking are on the pirate's side and he's at least responding to Iva's voice.

They're able to bring him back with the other Revs when reuniting with Dragon and he's finally become docile enough to drop his mace.

He's currently being housed on Kamabakka where he's content to graze in the meadows and linger around the visiting executives until his rehabilitation can begin in earnest after the fall of the World Government.

Iva has no clue why this one is helped them until they were getting ready to take their leave. They hear Crocodile call out to him. By name.

Savanna.

He pauses at the sound of his own name after all these years, feels… something click back into place in his mind, and joins them on the ship with a bray.

He still doesn’t know who he is, but he does remember his own name. He does remember the scarred face of them man who called out. He does remember the voice of the purple-haired one. He does remember that somehow, some way, these are his friends.

This tattooed fellow… something about him stirs that same kind of resolve that he felt with the scarred man. Gentler, perhaps, but it’s still there.

So Savanna leaves this dark chapter of his life behind. The kamabakka adore him, and he adores them.

Just like he had when he was still himself.

[mcytshipsandmore]

Shattered Savanna Duo. Who gave them the right to have the coolest duo name? Just a sugar-daddy and his sugar-baby. (I hope y’all can figure out who these sillies are ;D)

Ok I looked it up and its Etho and Iskall, my only question is who's the sugar daddy and who is the sugar baby? -🍫

Use your emoji idiot -⭐️

I keep adding them

[softsimming]

What happened to Savannah other man?

Ooo messy boots lol. He's around, they text from time to time. They may have a meet up soon..

[grabby-smitten]

Concrete Jungle: King of the beasts

Summary: Buying a hybrid was not what you had in mind when you asked for independence. Sylus didn’t like humans but his owner was the exception.

Subjects: Albino lion Hybrid!Sylus x F!Reader

Word count: 4.1k+

Content Warnings: Hybrid AU, smut, owner reader, kissing, cunnilingus, P in V, breeding, cnc if u squint really hard, biting, textured tongue. Use of words like predator/prey, cunt, pussy, kitten. Not edited and no beta.

A.N: I learned that big cats can’t purr and I was so disappointed. Oh, well….ah! I might do one for each li. k bye 💋

“Are you sure, I need one?” You’ve asked your parents that question for the umpteenth time.

“Yes, a hybrid is a good caretaker and it would make us feel better knowing one is protecting you.” Your father answered with a tired smile, understanding your uneasiness but they weren’t going to change their mind.

Moving out and finally becoming independent was just one step away from happening. Your parents were against it at first. Coming from money means someone will always be after your trail, danger and they had overprotected you, their only daughter since… well, even before you were born. They weren’t able to have natural children so you were conceived through artificial methods. Which, according to your parents, was a whole ordeal and suffering. Details that you rather not know.

It was time, though, to deep your toes into a world of your own. You wanted freedom for once. No dozens of bodyguards, no tracking devices and no fear of the unknown.

The part of convincing your parents was hard. No, after no, after no. Until, the head of security, taking pity on you, suggested buying a hybrid for you. Not just any hybrid; one specially made to protect and serve.

Now it was your turn to profoundly refuse. Everyone had one and those who didn’t, desired one… like some kind of accessory. It sickened you and besides, you didn’t want another responsibility. You wanted your own life! Not taking care of some… dog? Cat? Fish?

In the end, you had no other choice but to agree and here you were, in some facility. Breeding facility? Training? You didn’t care enough to pay attention, honestly.

Walking behind your parents in an all-white hall, smelling like antiseptic and gagging at the chemical sensation in your throat, you started to notice how the white walls began to turn into cages. Placards hung in the walls near the tinted glass and steel bars of the cages with descriptions of the… hybrids?

Looking up from the labels, you finally realized you no longer were alone. Each cell was occupied by humanoid-shaped shadows. The tint of the reinforced glass obstructed your vision but it was clear they were there.

So lost in your thoughts, you didn’t realize a couple of strangers had joined your family. Paying a bit more attention to their chatter, you concluded they were doctors or scientists from this facility. They were explaining something about their products and that it was the best the market could offer. You frowned at their words. It was like you were buying a car… they even explained the insurance policy.

“And this specimen, right here, is our finest hybrid!” One of the men talking to your parents loudly explained.

You stepped closer to the placard and read the few words it contained. ‘Albino Lion Hybrid (Panthera leo Hybrid, large cat family Felidae). Apex predator (no natural enemy known). Renowned king of the beasts. More active at night. Preferable habitats: grassland, dense scrub, savanna, and open woodland. Nomadic male.’

Your eyes widened once your brain processed the information. This was no guard dog or house cat. Before you could utter a complaint about how obnoxious this all was, the tinted glass cleared and you were looking straight into a pair of scarlet eyes.

Sylus almost laughed at the face of the female standing outside his cell. The little mouse seemed in shock to see him there. What was she expecting? Where else would he be? If not caged and on display here— absurd, he thought. All humans that came here, came for one thing and one thing only; to purchase a wild species, a unique breed to flaunt to their peers. Sylus continuously thought about how weird these humans behaved in society. Their hierarchy dynamics were messed up and he despised that.

You felt his eyes mocking you, such deep red and the only thing you could feel was irritation. Frowning, you turned your head and left him. See how he likes grouching on his own.

Once you were a few steps away, the scientists or doctors stared at the red-eyed big cat hybrid with wonder and… respect? This place was bonkers, you thought to yourself.

“So this is the one?” Your mother asked and marveled at the sight of the lion hybrid. White-silver hair, large, powerful presence, and sharp features.

“Yes, ma’am. Our best subject. Well trained in all the aspects you requested and fairly knowledgeable which is hard to come by with these beats.”

Hearing all that gave you stomach reflux, the acidity burning your esophagus. Your dam was about to break and all your pent-up feelings would end up costing you your freedom if it wasn’t for the red-eyed hybrid. He knocked on the glass and you jumped, startled. You were surprised, he even beckoned you with a finger and again, surprised now with yourself, you automatically obeyed.

It was like a trance. A hypnotic daze of sorts. Both met face to face once again, only separated by the reinforced glass. For a moment you were distracted, the outburst you were about to have laid dormant in the back of your head.

What is this…? Sylus couldn’t help but feel a sense of familiarity. That’s why he was so close to the glass earlier too. He couldn’t see the other side a while ago but something was pulling him there. The whole day he felt restless and on guard as if something resonated within him.

Could this be—

“Ah! Marvelous! Look! They are already interested in each other! Sylus is not showing any signs of hostility or repulsion…” a different scientist exclaimed with eagerness, interrupting whatever connection you had with Sylus at that moment.

Not many words were needed to convince your parents after that show you and Sylus put up. Papers were signed, money transferred and a very confused Sylus was sedated and prepared for shipment.

The big city. Polluted air, noisy streets twenty-four hours a day, and hybrids everywhere. Most people carried one; a human with some animal characteristics, and now you were one of them too. Sylus was scheduled to arrive in a few minutes. All the things you would need to care for him were already in your apartment and even his paperwork. Name, birth, permits and you; listed as his owner.

The melodic tune of your ring bell announced the dreaded moment. You knew Sylus would be escorted here and that most of the traveling time he would have been sedated, but still the long distance between your new home and the facility he was kept in was almost six hours away. You feared a big grumpy cat.

Oh boy… grumpy was an understatement. He didn’t look happy. The moment he stepped foot in and all the straps holding him were taken off, he waited for the delivery people to disappear and he pounced. Surprisingly not on you. He went through all your stuff. According to the guide you received he was scenting. He went through your whole house; rubbing, scratching and overall making a mess.

“Stop! Hey, hmm… Sylus? You don’t have to scent my clothes.” You tried talking to him but he was not interested in your opinion, apparently. He just glanced at you and kept doing whatever he was doing before, like you were the one, not understanding. You had to snatch your underwear from his closed fist in a panic.

He went nonverbal for a week. A week! You were going insane. Yes, he obeyed. Yes, he was extremely independent and didn’t cause any more commotion besides the panty situation on the first day. But God… he was extremely quiet. It wasn’t until you commanded him to that you realized you should have read the manual until the last page; not only the summary.

“Sylus! Say something!” You demanded; going insane was not in your plans for the foreseeable future. They never told you he was mute or anything of that nature.

“Is there anything you need from me, my lady?” His deep and slow voice had your heart leaping out from your chest.

You just stood there, gaping and looking at him like you couldn’t believe he was able to make a sound. Yeah, not even his steps produced sounds. Sylus examined his human with a gleam of humor in his sapphire eyes. This face was a common one for her and he found it… almost endearing. It reminded him of the first time you two met.

“You can talk…” you whispered low and saw how his fluffy round, and white ears twitched. “You can talk!” Again, you exclaimed, pointing a finger at him in disbelief. “Why haven’t you said anything before?!”

“I wasn’t allowed to,” he calmly explained. That mischievous twinkle in his eyes never left, “my owner never requested me to do so until now.”

And that’s how you spend almost three days reading the darn manuals with a now very talkative feline.

You found that Sylus was more than just a pet. He could cook, clean and even force you to exercise which ended up backfiring. You couldn’t keep up with his supposedly healthy routine. A healthy lifestyle means a happy owner, and you would curse under your breath every time he repeated it.

In general, you were happy, he seemed happy and living with him was easier than you thought. Quickly, you two began to build a bond and it was a matter of time before he began to realize why it had been so easy to adapt to this human. His human which is how he referred to you.

Following the manual, you always made sure to have everything Sylus would need. Even his heats. At first, you tried to get him a heat partner and it was a mess. More like you were a mess. Even Sylus was surprised at how you ended up kicking out the poor rental gazelle hybrid in less than five minutes. You didn’t understand what took over you to be so… overprotective.

Oh, but Sylus was not complaining. Watching you almost declare war in his name gave him a deep satisfaction. So much so that he accepted to take suppressants for the time being.

After that incident, things began to change drastically. Sylus in return became a bit more aggressive towards any living creature that was in less than a mile radius of you. Growling, pushing, and even wrapping you with his tail and pulling you towards his body anytime he felt you were in danger. Yeah, you were in so much danger from the tube man… that air dancing balloon from the car wash a couple of blocks away.

“It can be that bad…” you took hold of his arm around your waist in a reassuring manner.

He’s been walking with you in his hold since you crossed paths with the inflatable dancing man.

“It has erratic movements. You never know what he might do next.”

Yeah, it was a recurring situation.

Yeah, he was prepared for everything and anything. Well, except one morning when his nose woke him up.

A sweet intoxicating scent traveled through his nostrils and shook him awake. He felt his mouth water, his canines aching, and his eyes turning into thin lines. The predator in him had been disturbed and its awakening meant trouble.

In all his years in captivity, he had never felt such hunger. Something was clawing in his chest, desperate to come out, each intake of air was pulling his sanity deeper and deeper while the monster surfaced.

Like any good hunter, he let his nose guide him through the house. Following such an intoxicating aroma took him to your door. There he stood—elaborated breathing, sharp fingers encrusted on his palms searching for restrain. You were inside; sleeping soundly in the early hours of the morning. He could hear your soft breathing mixing with his wildly beating heart. Knowing you weren’t aware of the predator outside your door sent a jolt of excitement through his body. Easy prey.

Was it you? Were you the one producing such… inebriant aroma? Why?

He took the handle with a death grip, his rational side fighting against instinct. He felt the urge to hunt, pursue, chase… this… this aroma and make it his own. With an internal battle raging inside him, Sylus felt the door weighed heavy on his palm, the handle burned, but he still stepped in.

His eyes adjusted to the darkness in the room, it made no difference to him that you slept in complete darkness; his ruby-red eyes could see just fine. Then, his gaze focused on your sleeping form, little movement from your steady breathing and you had no idea that a hungry predator stood at the foot of your bed.

But Sylus didn’t move, didn’t pounce on you like he wanted. Torn between instinct and duty, he was frozen in place, sweating and overwhelmed with indecision. Your scent was clouding his every sense, making it even more difficult to do the right thing. It was like time had stopped and the only thing on his mind was the palpitations in his groin for even letting his skin touch the hair surrounding you.

What was the right thing? He asked himself. Neck—cracking as his body suddenly shuddered in pain, Sylus was holding himself back by a fine thread.

He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. You were not like his kind who would accept mating just because of a sudden heat. You were human and he had that fact ingrained into his mind. With a whimper of pain and trepidation, Sylus walked over to the side of your bed; every step was excruciating for the hybrid. Once he reached the edge, he did like every other night shared with you. Sylus, silently whining, laid beside you and wrapped his arms tightly, but this time he kept a generous distance between his hips and your back.

He was not a mindless beast. Not to you.

“Sylus… I can’t breathe…” you don’t know when, you don’t know how, but Sylus always ended up sleeping on top of you like a weighted blanket. “Sylus!”

“You don’t wanna know what I did to the last person who woke me up.” Each word came with a little slur at the end, he was barely waking up. No a second goes by and you felt his spiked tongue grooming the nape of your neck and soft growls shaking your whole body.

“Someone’s happy today, hmmm?” You asked in a short breath, reaching for his round and fluffy ear. As you scratched, you heard the deep grumbles of satisfaction increasing.

“Smells good…”

You felt him sniffing all over your chest, deeply inhaling, moving his head downwards. Sylus pulled your covers in a hasty manner and kept descending. Your eyes widened as you realized where he was going and your feet quickly stopped him; placing them on his shoulder and chest.

“Sy-Sylus! S-stop!” Your hands joined your legs and feet, placing your palms on his mouth and the rest of his face. “What do you—“

You stopped mid question as you felt a bit of moisture in between your legs. In a panic, your mind counted the weeks since you moved in and you have forgotten to make an appointment for your birth control replacement… which meant you must be ovulating. How could you forget? It’s been weeks! With everything happening after moving, getting Sylus and adapting to the new city. You had completely forgotten…

A muffled sound came from behind your palm and then a rough tongue pushed against your skin. You slowly retracted your arm, looking at him with apologetic eyes. It was your fault, after all.

“I was saying that you seem to be in need of assistance,” he uttered, arching an eyebrow at your saddened face.

His heavy body was pressing against the sole of your feet, your legs kept him at bay and it surprised you how… physically insistent he was being.

“What do you mean?” You quickly replied, feigning ignorance and he seemed to know your every trick because his first reaction was to give you one of those salacious smiles of his.

“You can’t exactly lie to my nose, kitten.” He almost growled every word, sending shivers through your body. “You’re fertile.”

Before you could even utter a word to contradict his truth, his hands brushed the back of your raised legs for then his fingers gently tapped your skin. You let out a squeak of surprise and swiftly moved your legs, thus giving him an opportunity to nestle in between your thighs.

“If you’re making fun of me, it’s not funny,” you rebuked, but even as you said that the pressure and sudden ache in your lower regions began to increase with the proximity and weight of Sylus.

“I’m not.” He chuckled and it reverberated down your tummy, sending deep palpitations through your core, “you didn’t read the whole manual yet, now did you?” His finger gently tugged your chin, making you stare right into his crimson orbs.

“No…” you sheepishly mumbled, embarrassed of being found again and your lack of knowledge about some stuff still in the encyclopedia-like book you were given.

“Give me the order and I will deliver, Kitten.” He whispered, eyes calling for your surrender. Sylus was pushing the right buttons by being so close, touching you, and having you cornered right where he wanted you.

“You mean…” voicing your hesitation didn’t deter him from destroying your inhibitions, brick by brick. His eyes were hypnotizing, he would give you anything you wanted and you knew you would be safe, right?

He had you caged between his body and the bed, your mind going a mile per second and your heart racing just as fast. No, he wasn’t moving an inch more and you knew he wouldn’t unless you said so.

“Okay…” you sighed finally removing a burden from your shoulders, “h-help me.” You wanted him to alleviate your aching.

“As you wish, Kitten.”

Not soon had those words left his lips, he was on you. You felt the heaviness of the impact of his lips on you. He had seemed calm while talking but his actions spoke differently. Sylus’ kiss was demanding, fiery even. His tongue took no time to slip in between your abused lips, delivering tentative licks to yours; as if tasting and enjoying you.

He kept his low throaty snarls flowing over your body, crushing you against the sheets. You could taste him too, wild, intense, so Sylus. Two bodies lay in the bed, limbs intertwined. Sylus hands traveled up your body, fingers gripping at anything he could find, your moans being greedily swallowed.

His tail kept a steady thumping behind him, lulling you deeper into his embrace. You would let him do anything, be anything if it meant this fire ignited in your chest would never cease to exist.

Sylus grasped the back of your head, fisting strands of your hair for him to pull back and expose your neck to his aching teeth. He felt euphoria ran through his veins as soon as his pearl whites connected with your tender skin. A growl and the stinging stab on your neck made you gasp, hands gripping his collar to bring him even closer as if that was possible.

In a hurry, his other hand began to tear away your pajamas as his teeth continued to gnaw almost painfully at your throat.

In a blink of an eye, you were lifted and bent. Your face harshly met the warmth of pillows. Gone were your clothes. In what moment exactly? You don’t recall and you didn’t really care at that moment.

“I knew it– fuck– the moment I saw you, I knew it.” Sylus rasped out, breath suddenly hitting your nude backside. “This was mine before you even knew it.”

He suddenly lifted your hips, exposing your dripping core to his crimson gaze. You whimpered as the cold hair hit you, hands gripping the bedsheets, and that’s all you could see. Your own fist and abundant white.

“Sy-Sylus!” You shrieked.

Your exposed pussy was invaded by his mouth, and a low vibrating sound joined. His bumpy tongue lapped eagerly, the texture making you mewl and tremble as you unconsciously tried to pull away. Now the chuffing sound changed to a growl of displeasure, his hands quickly moved to your lower tummy and pressed you back against his awaiting lips.

A mess, a wet and sloppy mess. That’s what Sylus was, still holding your body against his face. He couldn’t care less about anything other than your flavor and sounds overtaking his entire being. He slurped, nipped and spit back in just to repeat it all over again.

It took no time to have you trashing and shaking on his grip, cuming on his face, the chuffing sounds intensifying with your moaning.

Skin on skin, no clothes separating him from you, you didn’t register when he freed his body of them. Too lost to care, too much at once to have a sense of anything other than Sylus.

“You take me so well… My kitten—made for me…” he growled as he slipped every inch of him. Your warm walls protested at the intrusion as he mounted you.

Pinning you down, chest pressed against your back and your face shoved into your drool-stained pillows.

“If you keep struggling, kitten… I– fuck, fuck– you’re making it really hard to hold back” he groaned as his eyes zoomed in on your head trashing and shaking. The predator in him just looming around the corner, his female ready for the taking.

“It’s too big!” Your scream was muffled by the pillow. As your wailing reached his ears, his cock throbbed and released a few ropes of white.

“You’re being so good, kitten. Just a… bit longer…” Sylus sighed with pleasure as the creaminess made it easier to thrust into you. Incessantly, hitting that spongy spot, making you cry out as you felt more burning cum filling you up. Both breathless, both panting and an arrange of noises filled the room.

“I feel so full! Sylus! I can’t!” Tears streamed down your face at how bloated you felt, but he kept pushing and bursting inside you. One after the other; face down you had no other option but to take it.

“Not full enough— you need more…” hips slamming into you, the squelching sound of your insides consuming the silence— him bottoming out again and again. “My cunt… will only have my cubs…”

You’re not sure how long it was, you were in and out. Lost a daze, being shoved, pressed and pounded mercilessly… Sylus voice swirled through your mushy brain— satisfaction, and ecstasy running wild through both of your bodies.

Blinking once, twice. You felt heavy and your foggy vision wasn’t helping. You still felt the aftermath of it all. Legs sporadically spamming, lower tummy so heavy and sore.

“You… came so much…” you whispered in between breaths. His cum was dripping from your tender hole, rapidly pooling on the bed. “Why?”

He shrugged, as he caressed your cheek.

“A lion’s thing,” he mumbled softly, pulling you closer and gently holding you.

The rest of the day you were spent. Too exhausted to do anything else. Sylus bathed you, changed the bedding, brought you drinks and food, and gave you the darn manual to finish it for once.

“Sylus!” You slapped his naked chest with indignation. “Here,” you pointed to an article you highlighted, “it says that lion hybrids can copulate for two to three days? Two hundred times in succession? Are you insane?” That explains a lot.

“I am just waiting for you to rest, humans are more delicate than I thought. We’re not moving from this room.” He deadpanned.

Your expression fell as his eyes seemed to show how serious he was being.

“I read that lionesses bite the male’s ballsack when they are upset or something,” you grinned wickedly. “I will do that if you don’t behave!”

“I wouldn’t oppose, sweetie.” He goaded. Your smile slowly faded as your threat was not working as planned. “So… I see you are feeling more… energetic.”

You threw a pillow at him before he pounced on you.

Ah, yes… a gentle protector a trusted guardian, but a beast on the sheets.

[written-in-knife]

Dressing for the Cloudcall

Leona Kingscholar x fem!Reader, pre-relationship

Word count: 4680 (dialogue heavy to start, stick with it, I find a rhythm in there somewhere)

Category: one-shot, fluff, angst if you squint really really hard

Leona's family is sneaky and knows him very well, and you get roped into some Cloudcalling dress up. And maybe Leona is into that.

I loved Cloudcalling on the Savanna but I was a little disappointed we didn’t get even a hinted outfit, and this idea has been bouncing around in my little walnut brain for MONTHS and it finally spilled out in the span of like two hours. Tried to keep Yuu ambiguous, female, hair long enough to braid and put into a bun, and she’s shorter than Falena’s wife. Your Yuu is six feet tall? Cool, Falena’s wife is taller 👏AS👏SHE👏SHOULD👏BE. Reading back, I think I have a crush on my own version of Falena’s wife, as I should. I just imagined the most beautiful woman I could.

Kifaji had to step away to take a phone call while everyone was checking out the food stalls and Leona almost looked grateful to see his back disappearing into the crowd as he handed you one of the baobab hibiscus teas. You thanked him quietly before sipping on the drink, as refreshing as promised. Grim was just about to pull everyone over to a meat vendor-- surprise surprise-- when Kifaji returned, a sly looking smile on his face.

"What's got you so happy, ya old bird?" Leona huffed as Grim drooled over the meat.

"My apologies, but I need to borrow Miss Yuu for awhile." Kifaji said simply, turning his ominous smile to you.

"What for?" Leona practically growled, putting a hand on your shoulder before you could even think to step away from the group.

"On such short notice, we could not procure an outfit for her." Kifaji explained, folding his hands behind his back. "I, however, did not want her to feel left out, so I made arrangements which are now ready. I will return her at your next destination."

"It's fine, Leona." You tried to assure him, patting his hand gently. "I do feel a little left out of the fun."

Leona clicked his tongue in annoyance before releasing your shoulder and crossing his arms.

"We're headed to Ivory Springs after this. Do not be late." He directed the command at Kifaji rather than you.

"B-But, Yuu look at this! And these!" Grim was actually drooling over the meat in the stall, turning back to you with tears in his eyes that practically begged you to let him stay.

You sighed heavily and shook your head. "Vil, can you keep Grim out of trouble for me? I won't be long."

"Of course." Vil nodded, glancing down at the direbeast as he cheered and danced around in a little circle. "I'll try my best to not let him eat through Leona's entire fortune."

"Good enough for me." You chuckled before turning to Kifaji, who smiled again and held an arm out for you to lead the way out of the markets.

You walked side by side with Kifaji to the entrance of the market, only for him to place a hand on your upper back to direct you towards a waiting black car just up the street. As you approached, a beastwoman in full guard regalia opened the back door for you to enter. You thanked her quietly before stepping into the blissfully air conditioned car, Kifaji getting in on the other side.

"It's not that far to the hotel," you chuckled as the driver reentered the car, "and I'm not as prone to heatstroke as Jack is."

"Oh, we aren't going to the hotel." Kifaji said, as if just remembering he "forgot" to tell you about it.

"Oh?"

There was a minute of silence as he didn't answer your unspoken question. A few turns through the city, he broke it, turning to you with a pleasant smile.

"Tell me, Yuu, what is the nature of your relationship with Prince Leona?"

You were shocked for a moment at the bluntness of the question. "Is this because I'm the only girl? Because I can assure you, we're all friends--"

"My apologies, that isn't what I meant." He cut you off with a small chuckle and a lift of his hand. "If you'd humor me?"

"I mean... we're friends? Friendly, at least." You explained, wringing your hands in your lap. "He's helped me out of a few tough spots, I've helped him. We hang out on occasion. He's nice, I dunno." You wouldn't dare say it out loud, especially to the chamberlain, but you sometimes secretly wished there was more there.

He gave you a warm smile, much like a father would give to a daughter talking about her crush. "I see. As you well know, I've seen to Leona since the day he was born, and I haven't seen him so... protective of someone since... well, ever. That boy has never exactly been friendly, let alone "nice" to just about anyone since his mother passed. It's refreshing to see."

You could feel your face getting hotter with each word the chamberlain said. You desperately wanted the subject to change. "S-So, if we aren't going to the hotel, where are we going?"

"The Royal Palace." Kifaji said casually, as if you were on your way to some unnamed park.

"What?! Why?"

"As I said, I made arrangements for your outfit. You need to look the part to represent your team!" He said, another sly smile on his face as he pumped his fist in front of him in an imitation cheer. "And, I regret to say, you stick out like a sore thumb among those boys."

"But-- I-I thought-- we--"

"And here we are. A short drive, is it not? The walk would have been significantly longer."

You looked out the window at the palace, a grand stone building at the top of the hill. It almost looked as if it were carved out of the rock itself. You were startled out of your thoughts as the driver opened your door for you again, the chamberlain outside waiting to give you a hand out. You thanked them both as you took the offered hand and stepped out, following Kifaji closely as he walked.

"So, uh... just pop in, change clothes, and head back down to the market, yeah?" You asked nervously as you glanced at the guards you passed by, feeling eyes on your back.

"Just so." Kifaji assured you, another sly smile as he stopped at a large set of doors already opened, swinging a hand out for you to go first.

You weren't sure what was about to happen. Maybe you'd be thrown in a dungeon for fraternizing with their prince, or maybe they meant to keep you here until Leona himself came to find you, or--

"There she is!" A booming and excited voice came from across the room as you entered, startling you to turn and look.

A mound of long ginger hair twisted into braids was running up to greet you, perched atop a muscle-bound mountain of a man. He was dressed similarly to Leona, but wearing white instead of black, still adorned in gold, an enormous smile on his face. The guards at the door stood at attention as he got to your side of the room, clasping your hand quickly in a firm and enthusiastic handshake.

"You must be the girl Kifaji told me so much about!" He beamed at you, reminding you so much of Kalim in this moment. Wait.

"So much?" You parroted, looking at Kifaji, who simply shrugged.

"Oh, you must tell me how you got Leona to be so... docile? That isn't the right word. He listens to you?! Insane!" The man rambled, still holding onto your hand. "You must tell me everything!"

"Falena, you'll scare the poor girl." Another voice rang out from the other side of the room.

The man, Falena, finally released your hand and turned to see the woman walking towards you. She was elegant and gorgeous and so poised, dressed in similar colors and patterns to her husband, also adorned in gold. You suddenly felt very intimidated as you finally realized just where you were standing.

"Oh, but my love," Falena sighed, still smiling, "think of everything we could learn! What's Leona like at school, anyhow?"

"H-He, uh..." you hesitated as the woman joined her husband’s side. It probably wasn't a good idea to tell them exactly how he was, and it wasn't a good idea to lie. Rock and a hard place. "He's certainly there."

Falena let out a booming laugh at this, his wife joining in with a laugh that sounded like bells in the large chamber.

"We know of Leona's troubles at school." She assured you, holding out a hand to shake. "I am Shani, and I'm sure my husband, Falena, did not introduce himself before launching into his questioning."

"I'm Yuu," you said, gently grabbing her hand and shaking it, "a pleasure."

"Likewise." She smiled warmly at you as you both retracted your hands. "Kifaji has asked me to dress you for the occasion."

"The festival?"

"Leona brought a girl home!" Falena cut in, the smile surely cemented on his face at this point. "A sign things are turning around for my little brother, to be sure!"

"O-Oh! No, wait, I'm--" You practically choked on your words trying to get them out fast enough, feeling your face burning again, "Leona and I aren't a couple!"

"I know! But everything Kifaji told us over the phone just makes it all the more interesting!" He gushed grabbing your shoulders. "Forgive me for being forward, but you smell like him! You must be together often!"

"I-I just keep watch while he naps, it's not like we--"

"Falena. You are making her nervous." Shani said sharply, trying to hide her amused smile as she swatted his hands off you and looped her arm into yours. "Come, we should get you into something else before Leona comes looking for you."

She didn't wait for a response before pulling you off towards the door she came through. You glanced back to Kifaji and Falena, seeing them both smiling at you, though Kifaji's looked nefarious. You faced forward again, looking up at the glamorous woman holding your arm, still amazed that you'd just met the crown prince and princess. Shani led you down the hall and into a large bedroom, turning quickly into a nearly equally large closet. Gorgeous outfits-- if you were to judge just based on the fabric-- lined the walls on either side, the far wall was large, open windows looking over the expanse of the savanna, and the wall behind was adorned with large mirrors. You couldn't help but be impressed as Shani practically floated across the room and picked up a dress that was already waiting on a chair and held it up for you.

"I hope you don't mind, I already picked something out for you." She explained as she approached. "Don't worry about the length, we can work with it however we need. This is going home with you."

"What? No, I couldn't." You said quickly as she deposited the dress in your hands.

"Do you see where we are right now? You absolutely can." She laughed, gesturing to the lines of clothes. "Go ahead and get changed, I'll be right outside, just let me know when you're ready."

Her nose scrunched up adorably in her excitement as she smiled even wider at your for a moment, her hands clapping under her chin once before she exited the room, closing the door behind her. Alone, you sighed at the absolute whirlwind you'd just gone through. You turned to the large mirrors on the closest wall and held the dress up to your body. It would definitely be long, but Shani was a tall woman who seemed to like wearing heels, so you weren't terribly surprised. Resigned to your fate, you began to change out of your current outfit. The dress had very thin straps, so your sports bra would have to go. Once actually in the dress, it fit remarkably well, other than the length. The thin straps spread down into a V neck and stretched to the skirt in the back, the skirt itself starting a little below the bust, similar to a halter top. You couldn't help but notice the patterns on the fabric coordinated to Leona's cloak, bright orange and black not helping the case. You folded your clothes into a neat pile in front of the mirror, honestly a little relieved how well the dress held up to movement, no risk of spilling out the sides or front when lifting your arms or bending over.

"Shani? I'm ready." You called to the door, hiking the skirt up to walk over.

She entered the room again with an excited smile, looking you up and down as you stood there.

"You are definitely shorter than me." She laughed as you let the skirt go, a few inches of fabric bundling up at your feet. "But we can fix that, easy. Ten minutes. First!" She walked over to a chest of drawers, pulling off a length of fabric she'd set on top. "Do you know how to wrap your hair? Keep it off your neck and out of your eyes."

"I do not." You shook your head prompting her to wave you off.

"I can teach you, it's very easy." She smiled, joining you at the mirror again.

She turned you to face the mirror, standing behind you and draping the fabric over your shoulders. She undid the braid your hair was always in, gently combing the knots out of your hair with her fingers.

"I always used to do this with my little sisters." She explained softly as she styled your hair to the top of your head in a large bun. "I love Cheka with all my heart and soul, but I do so hope we have a little girl some day, I miss having girls around to dress up with and do hair and everything."

"What, Cheka doesn't let you do his hair?" You smiled at her in the mirror as she began wrapping the scarf, making sure you were carefully watching her steps.

She laughed brightly. "He does! But as he gets older he may not. Plus, there isn’t exactly a ton of hair to work with, he prefers to keep it short."

"No, I get what you mean though." You said fondly. "I used to have my mom do my hair all the time, but she was always there to fix it when I eventually took it out and complained about it being in my face."

"Where are you from, by the way?"

Your face fell at the question. "It doesn't really matter. Crowley doesn't seem like he's able to send me back anyhow."

Shani looked like she was about to press further, but stopped herself. "There, all done." She said with another warm smile as she smoothed out some of the wrinkles in the turban style she'd done. "Not half bad, if I do say so myself."

"It looks great, thank you." You were smiling again, not pointing out the, again, same fabric Leona had on his scarf. Maybe it was a common pattern? You somehow doubted it.

"Now, I have a few accessories for you to tie it all together." She explained, walking over to a shelf opposite the chest of drawers. "I will have you put these on to see how they look, then you give me the dress and I will hem the bottom up for you."

"Thank you for this, Shani." You said sincerely, turning to look at her with a warm smile. "You really didn't have to go to these lengths."

"Nonsense, a friend of Leona's is a friend of ours." She assured you. "We want to make sure you enjoy your first time to the Sunset Savanna to the fullest."

..

Leona and the others had arrived at the palace, Leona planning to swipe a car to avoid having to take Kifaji with them. However, to his surprise, Kifaji was already outside speaking with one of the guards at the door.

"Oh for fucks sake..." Leona growled as he connected the dots.

"What?" Kalim asked, glancing over to the chamberlain. "Oh, it's Kifaji! Hey Kifaji!"

The chamberlain looked up in surprise at the call of his name, locking eyes with a furious Leona and giving him another sly smile.

"Wait here." Leona snapped at the group, not giving them a chance to protest before marching over to the door. "What the hell?!"

"Ah, Prince Leona." Kifaji said coolly as the guard stood at attention for the prince's approach. "I was under the impression you were not coming home during your visit."

"That why you brought Yuu here?" He spat. "Thought you were goin' to the hotel."

"I don't recall ever saying my arrangements were at the hotel." Kifaji said, though the infuriating smile and raise of his eyebrows suggested he knew exactly what he was up to.

Leona pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering expletives under his breath before looking back up. "Where is Yuu? We're goin'."

"She is changing, currently. You and your friends are more than welcome to wait inside, if you'd prefer."

"Yeah, ya’d like that, wouldn’t ya. Did Falena put you up to thi--"

"UNCA!"

Leona nearly instinctively side stepped the little ball of fiery orange that flung itself into his arms, grunting as the fuzzball impacted into his abdomen. Kifaji, while now safe from the verbal lashing Leona wanted to deal out, was not safe from the deadly glare that was shot his way.

“Quit clingin’ to me like that! Knock it off!” Leona snapped halfheartedly at his nephew who, undeterred by the tone, continued to beam up at him.

“I got so excited when I heard you were coming home!” The boy chirped quickly, grabbing his uncle’s hand and swinging it back and forth. “Can I hang out with you guys?”

Leona ignored the amused muttering of his schoolmates behind him as he rolled his eyes at the child’s antics.

Cheka continued, still swinging Leona’s arm around. “Mama said to be on the lookout for you! Do you wanna come play with me? We could play tag, or hide-and-seek, or--”

“Cheka.” Leona snarled, finally making the boy stop. “What was that about your mother?”

“Oh… I wasn’t supposed to tell.”

“Oh for fff…” Leona let the curse fizzle out into a loud grumble, trying to rub away the headache blooming in his temple. Of course it was Shani’s idea.

“I should go tell Mama you’re here!” Cheka said excitedly, darting off before Leona could stop him.

..

You slipped into the newly hemmed dress, a new length of fabric now flaring out the bottom that, once again, highly suspiciously matched the fabric of Leona's pants. Three times makes a pattern, damn if it didn't look good though. You were about to call out to Shani when you heard giggling through the door, and a boy's voice talking. You waited a moment before Shani knocked, sounding amused.

"All ready in there?" She called out.

"Yeah, ready." You called back, prompting her to enter the room.

Her smile grew ever wider as she looked at your outfit. "I've one more thing, and we need to be quick. Seems we've been found out."

There was a small gasp as Shani walked into the room, a tiny mess of ginger hair standing in the bedroom.

"I remember you!" Cheka said excitedly. "You're Unca's friend! From school!"

"I am! It's nice to see you again, Cheka!" You replied just as enthusiastically as Shani pulled one more thing off the shelf.

"It's nice to see you too! You match Unca!"

"I knew I wasn't crazy!" You nearly shouted, turning to Shani as your face burned again. She at least had the decency to look a little guilty.

"Yuu, you are a beautiful girl in an unfamiliar place." She explained, walking forward and wrapping something around your waist. "These are recognizable patterns of the leader of the Sunset Warriors, of the second prince, no one would dare do anything to you while you are wearing these."

"Do anything?" You echoed as she fastened the belt, which matched the rest of the boys'.

"Swindle you, pickpocket, worse." She listed grimly as she adjusted your necklace. "Sunrise City is as safe a city as any during a heavy tourist season. We want you to enjoy your time here, not wonder where your wallet may have gone."

"I..." you sighed heavily. "I get that. Thank you, really. This is all very generous."

"You can pay me back by marrying my brother in law." Shani teased as she exited the closet, making your face burn tenfold.

"Hey!"

"YOU AND UNCA ARE GETTING MARRIED?!"

"Oops…"

Cheka insisted you carry him through the halls, Shani nearly telling him to return to his studies before you assured her that it was fine. You spent the entire walk trying to explain to the boy that, no, you were not marrying his uncle. Cheka, however, kept talking about the imaginary wedding and all the things you needed to have there. You resigned yourself to not stopping him. He was talking about the cake when you entered the large room you'd first met Falena and Shani.

"Aha! There she is! A much more appropriate look for your guest, don't you agree, brother?" Falena said, prompting you to turn your gaze from Cheka to him, looking just in time to watch him clap Leona on the back.

Leona said nothing, just staring for a moment before clicking his tongue and looking away. You took this as annoyance for a moment before Cheka spoke up.

"Unca, unca!" Cheka said excitedly from your arms. "When you two get married you need to have a BIG cake, okay? And there needs to be chocolate, and 'biscus, and--"

"Married?" He asked incredulously, turning back to look at the boy, not able to hide the red on his cheeks now, before looking to Shani. "What did you do?"

"Children have impressive imaginations, don't they?" She asked pleasantly, taking Cheka from your arms to hers. "Thank you for letting me dress you, Yuu."

"Thank you for dressing me," you smiled at her, ignoring the burning on your own cheeks, "it was fun."

She smiled before taking your hand and leaning in to whisper to you. "If you cannot go home for school holidays, our home is open to you, just say the word."

You nearly teared up at this, simply nodding and squeezing her hand. "Thanks for everything, Shani."

Falena laughed as you walked over to join him and Leona, who had his arms crossed tightly over his chest. "I'd give you some words of warning, but you seem to know how to handle my brother better than I do at this point!"

"He's not so bad." You chuckled as he pointedly refused to look at you. "It was nice to meet you, Falena."

"You too! Come back anytime!" He beamed down at you before Leona grabbed your arm and started dragging you out of the room.

You waved back to the crown prince and princess as you were hauled out of the room and into the hall. Leona dragged you towards the entrance before making a sharp left a few doors down into another hallway.

"Leona--?"

"Shut up."

Your mouth closed with a clack of your teeth at his words, and you suddenly felt ashamed of your actions. Were you supposed to text him an SOS as soon as you realized where you were? When you realized what was happening? Before you could think about it further, he dragged you into a room at the end of the hall and shut the door, quickly caging you with his arms against it.

"What did they tell you?" He growled low, a dangerous tone you'd only heard a few times since you first stepped on his tail in the garden.

"N-Nothing--"

"Don't play dumb with me right now, herbivore, what did they say?"

"Kifaji and Falena kept saying that you're nice to me, and Shani said if I wore your patterns I'm less likely to get robbed." You said quickly, omitting her comment about marriage. "I was mostly with Shani, we talked about her sisters and my mom and the outfit, that's it."

His green eyes stared into your soul for a moment before he grumbled something under his breath, leaning forward to press his forehead against the wall next to your head.

"Leona?"

"Shani thinks she's funny." He said quietly, you could feel his breath against your ear as he spoke. "Makin' you match me, in public no less..."

"I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it--"

"Are you?" He asked, pulling back to look you in the eyes again, closer this time. "She's making fun of me."

"She's not."

"You don't know her."

"She's not making fun of you." You whispered, not breaking eye contact.

"You don't know what I say in those phone calls home." He muttered back. "Lemme guess, Shani already had that dress picked out for you, as if she plucked it from her own closet."

"...Yes?"

"You think the crown princess would ever wear the second-born's pattern?" He leaned in again, his jaw bumping your cheek as he moved to whisper in your ear. "She had that made for you, on purpose, for the day you eventually showed up."

"W-What do you say... in the calls home...?" You asked hesitantly, resisting the urge to reach your arms around him.

"Too much, apparently." He chuckled softly, lips grazing the shell of your ear. You felt like you would combust into flames any second. "Looks good on you though... suits you."

"L-Leona?"

He pulled back again, close enough to bump noses. "We have to get to the springs, otherwise our resident pretty princess won't play tomorrow." He whispered, still making no move to pull away.

"What..." your wet your suddenly very dry lips, not missing how Leona's eyes flicked down for just a second to catch the motion, "what did you mean by "when I eventually showed up...?""

"I said, don't play dumb, Yuu. You think I let just anyone braid my hair? You think I didn't notice that you do that while I'm tryin' to sleep?" He chuckled again, his grin almost looking like he was just flashing his teeth at you. "I pretend to not notice a lot of things."

"I'm not just anyone...?"

"You haven't been "just anyone" for awhile now." He muttered leaning in just a little closer, his nose brushing against yours gently before he stopped. "We need to go."

He let the moment hang in the minuscule amount of air between you for a second longer before finally pulling away, glancing over your outfit again as he did, making a triumphant little noise.

"Looks good on you." He muttered again before grabbing you by the arm to pull you away from the door.

Once you were out of the way, he opened the door again and walked out into the hallway, leaving you feeling like your knees were about to give out. With a moment to look around the room, you realized he'd pulled you into a bedroom that looked a little too similar to his back at the college.

"Herbivore." He barked from down the hall, kick starting you again.

"Y-Yeah!" You called back before hiking your skirt and jogging to catch up to him again.

If your friends, namely Vil, noticed the similarities between your outfit and Leona's, they were gracious enough not to say anything about it. You were, however, highly complimented on it, Kalim making a point to spin you around to see the dress twirl. Kifaji had a very self satisfied look on his face off to the side, which was quickly wiped away when Leona finally announced his plan to leave him in the dust.

..

Back at Night Raven College, you and Leona went back to your normal routine as if nothing had ever happened. You almost wondered if it had been a very sweet dream until you saw the dress in your closet again. You grabbed the skirt, rubbing the fabric between your thumb and index finger, as if to remind yourself that it was real. It had happened.

"What? You longin' for the Sunset Savanna again?" Grim asked from your bed, you'd nearly forgotten he was there. "I am. You really missed out on that meat, hench-human. I wouldn't mind goin' back."

"Yeah... me neither." You sighed, releasing the dress. You stared at it longingly for another moment before shutting the closet door to continue getting ready for bed. A very sweet dream indeed.

I DO NOT GIVE PERMISSION TO USE MY WORK TO TRAIN AI

MASTERLIST

[lustlovehart]

Oh wow, the Modern! Monster! TWST AU is so good <3 Now I’m imagining how it would go down with the other dorms.

Influencer!Reader heading to the savanna to investigate rumours about an ancient cursed tomb. Exploring through the vast chambers of the tomb, they come across an elaborate sarcophagus. “I bet there’s hidden treasure inside.” Reader tries to open it to no avail. It’s too heavy. Kicks the lid half out of a genuine attempt to get it to budge and half out of frustration. The good news: it actually worked this time. The bad news: the lid didn’t so much budge from Reader’s kick as it did fly open through the actions of the occupant of said sarcophagus. Reader is now face to face with a pissed off mummy, glaring daggers at having his rest disturbed. Reader, with a smile frozen on their face, slowly backs away…and makes a run for it. Scooby-Doo esque chase scene ensues.

Chat: “Who’s the actor? Looks uncannily similar to depictions of that one dead prince I saw in history class. Kudos for research!”

Ahh, I love this interpretation for Savanclaws's version ( ˘ ³˘)♥ Since so many people enjoyed the Modern Monster!Twst, I do plan on writing the rest of them if people are still interested!

Cw: Mostly just Leona x Influencer!Reader, but the others are mentioned, Murder, Reader low-key flirts with Leona even though he just killed their friend

Maybe you go in there having set up a fake tomb, one with your friend stashed inside so you can coincidentally open the cover and have them pop out. When you enter and set your sights on the coffin, it looks a little different from when you last saw it... The gold trimming is more extravagant, and it looks a lot more expensive... Whatever, if anything, your friend must've been really set on making it as realistic as possible; it'll make the video even more believable!

Then, when you get to actually opening the damn thing... It won't open. You even put down the camera to get a better grip on the cover. No matter what you do it just won't budge...!

"Gosh... This is embarrassing..." You swore it was way easier to open this thing before. Then, you finally kick it! and nothing happens... "Damn it, what are you doing in there-!" before you can even say your friends name, the tomb shoots open, and you're met with a person.

He's wrapped in bandages, threaded with real gold, though blood and old age wear down the luxurious style. His eyes are covered with a faint glow of green behind the cloth. and... are those lion ears on his head...? they're pierced, which you didn't think animal ears could- Why does that matter?! He's looking at you with murder in his eyes-!

"What the hell are you doing?"

...

You slowly step back, picking up the camera and looking at the chat as you record him. It only serves to piss him off more.

"Raw"

"Till his bandages come off"

"He looks a lot like the prince from my history class. Good casting"

"Can I cast him as my groom? To like, my wedding."

Well, if you die, at least you have footage of a dead prince look alike...! You think...If your streaming career fails, maybe this is what makes you famous...?

He steps out of the coffin, tilting his head as his bandaged tail swings back and forth. If you could see his eyes, you're sure he would be glaring daggers at you. Actually, he probably is.

You're about to ask him if those ears and tails of his are real. Better yet, that you sorta had a film set up here. But then you look to your side, the tomb you originally set up propped on the wall.

Blood covers the prop, the lid tightly sealed. When you look back to the man, he laughs once, a flick of his hand opening the cover. Your friend, dressed as a mummy, all sign of life seemingly sucked clean from them.

...

Why do you keep killing all your friends!?

"You gonna end up like them?" You can sense the confidence in the mummy's answer, his feet slowly stepping closer to you before he's face to face at you. You're so shocked your body can't move, even when he places a hand on the nape of your neck, his mouth leaning in, slightly jarred. He's ready to suck all vitality from your body, but then he pauses. "Wait... you're-"

You break free from his grasp, tripping over nothing, and despite his deep voice shouting at you to stop, you don't. Even as your surroundings turn to sand, bandages emerging to grab hold of your limbs, you run.

Not without recording this epic chase, of course. If you don't, no one will see!

You're just about to make it when you trip over your own foot. You don't even have the chance to fall before he catches you, wrapping you all in his bandages.

Oh, come on! You already have to deal with ghosts, zombies, and a stitched up corpse in your own home. This too?!

No matter how hard you shake in the cloth, you can't break free. His hands reach out and pull you in, chest to chest. He looks at you like he's inspecting some fine treasure with a close eye, centimeters away from your face.

"You're that human Ruggie and Jack watch."

...

You should be freaked out that other monsters know you too, but... You can't help but feel flattered you're known in the monster community. Even if they're the things you fake hunt in your videos...

Well... fame is still fame.

You fall back in his arms, having the beast follow along. Your back hits the wall, both your chests still touching as the mummy cages you between his body and the sandstone.

"Tell me more." Despite the fact he could very easily suffocate you, whether with his hands or controlled bandages, you continue your ministrations. You look to the side, making contact with your camera lens that faces the two of you, recording the interaction.

Sometimes, it's good to change up your content.

... Little do you know, on the other side of that camera, your other diligent monster followers watch a Mummy Prince, that they know all too well, practically breathe in your scent. Well, that's not fair at all... It’s no matter, they can always just commission you to come to their haunted locations too :)

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

Sorry if you've already covered this, but I was scrolling socials and saw that the San Antonio zoo got a large donation to expand their savanna habitat. The only thing that jarred me as I read through their expansion plans was apparently they're going to be outfitting some 'safari' vehicles so guests can be taken into the habitat to feed and interact with the animals (from within the vehicle). I was always under the impression that this kind of interaction wasn't necessarily good for either the humans or the animals-- is there a way it can be done ethically?? Anyway, I just thought it was interesting!

Ooo, okay, your question aligned with a thing I've been chewing on for a while, so let's talk ~ethics~ and ~philosophy~ aka this is gonna be a bit long. I do promise I'll answer your question, though!

The first thing I want to note is that you're really asking about two different things, which are almost always conflated these days when it comes to talking about animals: welfare (is the animal happy / healthy / safe) and ethics (is what's happening good / moral / acceptable). It's really important that we distinguish between the two, because welfare is an objective measure of physical and mental wellbeing, and ethics are a human construct that involves subjective interpretation.

A useful but highly oversimplified example of this is the bothering of cats for online videos. Pestering a cat to get a funny reaction once in a while may not impact their overall welfare. Welfare is the cumulative impact of an animal's experiences, which means that single acute moments may not weight heavily on the entire balance. If the cat is healthy, fed well, enriched, and has a good and positive bond with their humans, those momentary irritations for videos might not matter much. That doesn't mean that you or I, as viewers, might not still find bothering an animal for internet clout ethical. We can believe that humans shouldn't ever unnecessarily put their pet through negative experiences, and we can think that doing so just because it brings the human money or fame is distasteful. But! We have to recognize that as used in this example, those ethical stances aren't inherently tied to the animal's welfare state. Many people I know who dislike cat-bothering don't care if the animal has good welfare outside of that situation - they don't like that the situation occurs at all, ever.

So, back to your question. You're wanting to know if it's okay for a zoo to have a drive-through aspect of an exhibit where people get to feed the animals. You're asking if it's safe for the humans and for the animals (which is a welfare question) and if that type of interaction is ethical. I could just tell you that of course it's fine, San Antonio is an AZA zoo and their accreditation only allows them to do "good things" but that's now how it works here (nor is it the reality of accreditation).

The safety aspect is one I'm not worried about. It's actually a pretty common thing for reputable facilities to do some sort of vehicle tour in savanna habitats, whether in the guest's vehicle (safari parks) or on a hay-ride type vehicle (zoos). Many of those allow guests to feed out specific parts of their animals' diets. Offhand, I know Tampa and Fossil Rim both have feeding tours like this in a staff-driven vehicle. It's not specified from the zoo's press release, but I can guarantee you that guests will not be driving those vehicles - which means the interactions will be proctored by staff and what people are feeding out will be carefully regulated. The habitat is going to have rhino, giraffe, zebra, ostrich, and antelope/gazelle, and I'd guess that the drive-through is going to stick to those latter two and maybe additional species. Those are animals where a car is an appropriate safety barrier.

As to if it's ethical to do? It's spiny question, because it depends very directly on the ethical perspectives of the person you're asking. I think it's fine - you may not. Let's break down the different things that come into consideration on the ethical side, and my responses:

"The zoo is commercially exploiting animals by letting people pay to get closer." If the issue is that people paying to get closer to animals is using them for money, well, that's the business model of a zoo (non-profit or not, they still need revenue to operate). So IMHO it's not like it's "less ethical" than anything else the zoo is doing, using that framing.

"Zoo animals should be allowed to be wild and undisturbed by guests driving in their habitats." Zoo animals aren't wild, and their entire lives revolve around humans and the human work schedule. As long as a vehicle entering the habitat doesn't have a negative welfare impact (e.g. they're not scared of it), it's not very different from the rest of the routine of managed care.

"Feeding zoo animals will encourage people to try to feed wild animals." Thanks to obnoxiously viral content creators, people are going to try to feed wild animals no matter what. Doing it in a proctored situation where a staff member can try to do some education at the same time is probably the best possible scenario.

"People just do those tours to get close to cool animals." People are always going to want to touch the animals. If being able to pay for a tour keeps them from jumping the fence to try to pet a rhino, great.

There's one more that I want to talk about separately, because I think it's where a lot of confusion gets generated. It's this idea that "Humans shouldn't be interacting with animals at all, any interaction is unethical and bad for the animals." This is a welfare crossover, but not one actually informed by welfare science in a captive situation. And I think it's because the internet lacks nuance. Yes, it is absolutely correct to say that with wild animals, you should never ever try to feed a deer out of your car (or similar). It is incredibly harmful to those animals on both an acute and chronic timeline. But thanks to the rage-bait algorithms on social media and people endlessly justifying doing stupid, dangerous, bad things (and getting pushback for it), there's been a lot of bleed between the public's understanding of what wild animal welfare is and what captive animal welfare is. Combine that with the reality that captive animal welfare cannot be assessed or diagnosed from a single context-less clip, and that people with strong beliefs and no practical experience with the field/species/individual will pass judgement loudly to their audiences...

The result is almost a reflexive believe in many sectors of the internet that any human-animal interaction that isn't couched as a "rescue" is inherently unethical, for reasons people often can't articulate. Which is why, I think, so often people want to support certain aspects of captive animal management but feel guilty for doing so. I see this a lot in the questions the blogs gets, and I'm glad people feel comfortable asking, because it's important to think through not just the individual instances but the patterns leading us to question them.

So yes, I'd say that a staff-led experience in a vehicle chosen for safety is an ethical way to proctor an interaction between guests and certain savanna species. It will vary by facility - I'm always more wary about guests driving, although many drive-through safaris are fine - and by setup. I think what San Antonio is doing will be fine, though, and will be interested to see / hear about the setup when they start up.

If you've got a question about ethical captive management, I'm always happy to talk about it - but I'd invite you to poke around in your head a little and send me not just your question in the ask, but your thinking about why or why not something might be concerning. It's great practice for understanding why you relate to animal ethics the way you do, and where those beliefs come from.

[anime-in-new-albion]

The Love You Burn For ~ Leona Kingscholar

Summary: Leona is allowed to marry whomever he wants. And he wants to marry you.

Pairing: Leona Kingscholar X Fem!Reader

Genre: Fluffy Drabble

Word Count: 928

Warning: Leona is OOC but I don't care

Masterlist

It wasn’t like him to be this nervous. Yet Leona found himself pacing around his room, clutching at his hair every so often. His bottom lip was becoming raw from how much he was biting it with his sharp teeth. Every couple of seconds he would check the gilded clock on the wall, wondering to himself why she must always be so late.

Right when he was about to call for Ruggie to go and fetch her, the door swung open and she tumbled in. He paused, bewildered to see her, which he shouldn't be. He asked her to meet him in his room twenty minutes ago. However every time he saw her, it always felt like the first time he was experiencing true beauty. Despite her disheveled appearance and rather rumpled clothes, she was still the most beautiful girl in the entire world to him. It was because of that and the fact that she was so charming and intelligent beyond her years that made him fall so irrevocably in love with her. 

And it scared him to death. However, he told himself he wouldn't let his fear of how much he loved her get in the way of this moment. This was going to happen, no matter what.

“You needed to see me, Leona?” She asked, slightly out of breath.

Just as he suspected would happen, and what Ruggie teased him about when he mentioned his plan, Leona found his words caught in his throat. He fumbled with what to say but he didn't let his nerves show. He would not show her how much she unnerved him. "Yes, I did, yes.”

She nodded. “And the reason is…?”

“You see, the thing is...” And his brain went blank. Why was he trying so hard to find the right words? Couldn’t she see what he wanted to tell her and what was on his mind? Couldn’t she spare him the trouble of putting his thoughts into words and just answer his unspoken question?

Smiling her dazzling smile, she took his slightly sweaty hands in hers and he felt his breath catch despite himself. “It’s okay, Leona. Take all the time you need.”

“I want to marry you.”

Well that was less eloquent than what he was hoping for.

In the grand scheme of things, he didn’t even need to propose to her. As the second prince of Sunset Savanna, Leona could marry whichever noble he preferred, whether within their borders or in worlds beyond, no questions asked. But ever since this frumpy, clumsy, stunning baroness from his realm stumbled into his birthday ball years ago, he knew he wanted to be hers forever. She was everything he knew his brother Falena disapproved of, despite being of noble birth. She was cunning and crude, which contrasted against the loud albeit well-mannered household his oldest brother believed in. If anything, that was all the more reason he wanted to be with her. And the rules backed him up, stating he could marry any noble he desired, no questions asked.

Yet, despite this rule, Leona knew he had to ask. He wanted to hear her opinion about the idea, even if her rejection would break his heart forever. He cared about her enough that even if she didn’t want to be his forever, he would let her go. He loved her enough to put her happiness before his own.

Her eyes were wide and her mouth formed an o-shape. However, she still had his hands in hers. Sucking in her breath, she asked, “Are you sure?”

He nodded slowly, not liking what he was hearing. “I’m sure. Do you want to marry me?”

Again, there was a pause. “Leona, are you certain it’s me you want to marry?”

Confused, he questioned her. “What do you mean, am I certain? Of course I'm certain! That's a dumb question to ask.”

She smiled and shook her head. “Leona, dear, you could have any noble in the whole world. I wouldn’t even be surprised if your brother allowed you to marry a commoner. So why would you want to marry some common noblewoman who doesn’t quite fit into your family dynamic?”

“Because you’re not some common noblewoman who doesn’t quite fit my family’s dynamic.” He explained, squeezing her fingers affectionately. “You are eccentric, fun, and compassionate. Your intelligence in everything astounds me and your golden heart proceeds you. You make me want to become a better person, not just to my friends, but to you as well. You are whom I fell in love with and wish to spend my remaining days with. Besides, I also don't quite fit into my family's dynamic as well. But you don't see them tossing me out yet. However, if you do not feel the same way, I will stand by and let you be happy with whomever you prefer.”

“I feel the same way.” She breathed. “Of course I feel the same way you feel for me. I’ve loved you from the very first dance at your birthday ball. You captured my heart and stole my soul, and I don’t want it back. You are everything to me, Leona. I am just surprised that you love me so much you’d want to be with me forever in marriage. Forgive me, but you don't seem like the marrying type.”

“Of course I want to marry you.” He replied roughly before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I burn for you.”

She looked up at him with sparkling eyes and kissed his lips. “I burn for you too.”

[cozymochi]

I've been really curious about your OCs for a while, and the ask regarding Silver and Cecil got me wondering, what's Nyoka's relationship with the Savanaclaw trio? I've got a faint idea about what he thinks of Leona though (he's a Leona glazer [simp/j] from what I based on that one answered ask). Sorry if this seems too much or a bother though ✌🏻

This took me a hot minute to compile but I think this is as up to date as I can muster. Featuring lore crumbs. [Majority Under Cut]

Nyoka Relationships

🍩+🫖

Ruggie + Nyoka

Ruggie sees an opportunity to make good money. Y’know, if Nyoka actually took his offers. He’s never met a cobra beastman until Nyoka, and the only thing he ever knew about them is that they live far away, they’re closed off, and RICH.

And this Nyoka guy is the richest out of them all.

Being the little opportunist that he is, Ruggie may sometimes ask Nyoka if he has any jobs he can do. The guy’s loaded, there’s gotta be something, and certainly a nice generous payment to go with it! Ruggie is willing to offer gofer services, anything for a rich up-and-coming lil’ mini celebrity.

Nyoka typically declines these propositions should they come up. He was mostly raised to be self-sufficient and pick up after himself despite his environment.

He might dig around Nyoka’s trash to see if he can scrounge up any valuables. Leona never gives a shit about tossing away perfectly fine things! So, maybe this other super rich guy does the same once in a while.

Besides, It’s not like Ruggie is scared of him to begin with. If Ruggie can handle someone as domineering and lazy as Leona every day, he can handle some stiff and possibly stingy cobra too. (Disclaimer: Only thinks Nyoka is stingy because he won’t let him do work/favors.)

The two are certainly not friends, but they have no issues either.

——

Nyoka doesn’t care for Ruggie personally, but he can understand how a scavenger is essential to pick up what’s left behind.

He mostly keeps his distance, as he would with anybody else. Ruggie is not bad company by any means if they do cross paths, but he would rather not engage. He can kind of sense that Ruggie has ulterior motives and can suss them out pretty quickly.

It should be noted that there are zero hyenas where Nyoka is from. And even outside of Sunset Savanna, hyenas don’t exactly have a great reputation. He never met any until attending NRC. Anything he does know about hyenas is from osmosis, and it is already skewed heavily against them, so he is somewhat guarded im response to that as well.

He did find it unusual that many texts at NRC about the King of Beasts mention hyenas quite a bit. Back home, they aren’t mentioned at all in legends. It’s mainly just reptiles. Curious.

The most Nyoka can do is observe his behavior and put a pin in it. He might carry a small prejudice in the back of his mind.

🐺+🫖

Jack + Nyoka

There isn’t too much to say. Jack doesn’t know Nyoka. In fact, he wasn’t even aware somebody like that was even in his own dorm to begin with for a while. Jack isn’t exactly chummy with the people in Savanaclaw, nor pays attention to what they say. Besides, talking with fists is the better alternative if any of those punks really have something to say to him.

Sometimes the sheer scope of Night Raven College and its student body continues to surprise him.

As far as Jack is aware, he’s never actually seen Nyoka. They don’t run in the same circles. If he has, he probably passed by him without noticing. Considering that Nyoka wants to mostly be missed within the dorm, this is probably ideal.

It’s possible they may eventually run into each other, but it’s hard to gauge if they would get along.

——

On the other hand, Nyoka is at least aware of Jack through osmosis since he appears to have gained some manner of infamy within the dorm. Some of the rougher guys tend to grumble and about how annoying, uppity and goodie-goodie that frosh Wolf Beastman supposedly is.

So, at some point those grumblings would reach Nyoka while he’s lingering around a corner or hear it through the walls. Gossip is not exactly of any interest to him, but he will store it in his system so he knows what to be aware of.

However, being a third-year on a completely different schedule, he and Jack do not normally cross paths at all. He doesn’t know Jack personally, therefore has not formed many strong opinions. He has seen him a few times, as Jack sticks out considerably for a freshman (both in appearance and behavior).

As of now they do not know each other directly. Out of all the main trio, this is the most distant relationship, in that there really isn’t any.

It’s not clear how they would interact. Though, it’s possible Nyoka would find Jack’s manners to just be deplorable due to his more brute way of solving conflict.

🦁+🫖

Leona + Nyoka

(Oh man not the Scar and Ushari of twst. So.)

Leona was already aware of Nyoka beforehand. If tangentially at first.

The royal family used to be in contact with the Wadjets, especially while Leona’s father was still active king, but that friendliness mostly dissolved when changes were made after some incident occurred. But, Leona was a kid when that happened and had nothing to do with him or Nyoka, so it’s mostly irrelevant.

Due to both of their statuses, they have been in attendance at the same events in Sunset Savanna over the years, but never formally met each other until attending NRC.

So when the Dark Mirror assigned Nyoka to Savanaclaw he wasn’t surprised by the choice at all.

He already knew Nyoka is a sole heir and that the Wadjets have direct ties to mining resources in their neck of Sunset Savanna. With this being a shared interest for Leona, having that person in his corner is only a net positive in due time. (Or would be anyhow if he had any say back home.)

Being the perceptive person he is, Leona knows it’s not really in Nyoka’s nature to be around others. Cobras don’t exactly run in packs.

He doesn’t give Nyoka any special treatment or anything, that’s not how this dorm works regardless of species. That being said… if the merciful dorm leader allowed him to clean out one of the junkie vacant rooms just so he could have his own burrow to coil up in, then maybe this studious guy could share some of that book-knowledge with the rest of the dorm once in a while. 😌 Everybody has their place around there.

Of course, he’ll let other students in the dorm prod the cobra, everyone needs a little roughing up every now and then. Thing is: if he bites back that’s on them.

Sometimes he finds Nyoka’s habits eyebrow raising at times, but he doesn’t comment on it. He chalks that up to him just being a cobra or something. It’s not like there’s a ton of those guys back in his neck of the savanna anyway, so what would he know?/s

That aside, It’s nice once in a while to have an actual intellectual person to test his methodical wits with on an equal playing field. Even if that field is mostly a literal impromptu game of chess when the mood strikes.

Leona almost always wins of course, but that cobra manages to keep games just interesting enough to where winning feels like an accomplishment.

——

Nyoka views Leona as Savanaclaw’s “king” just like the vast majority of the dorm does. With Leona actually being a prince he treats him accordingly right down to ONLY referring to him as “your/his highness” and bowing when in his presence. He regards him with courtesy, as one hypothetically should.

(Meanwhile, Leona just calls him “cobra.” Why not, he’s the only one in the whole dorm/school.)

Formalities aside… Nyoka idolizes Leona more than one would think.

He has a fascination with Leona that he’s drawn to like a moth to a flame. To Nyoka, every word and move from Leona is so calculated; with no energy wasted on under-stimulating or inferior matters. Even how he presents himself is an interest. He is fascinated by every single aspect of Leona to the point it almost borders on obsession. Nyoka might be distinctly inexpressive, but when around Leona’s “fire” as he puts it, his thoughts tend to fixate. At least nobody can hear what he’s thinking. There’s a certain atmosphere being in Leona’s presence, and especially when he finally lets out that ferocity.

Whatever Leona were to ask of him, he would be willing to do it so long as it keeps this proverbial “fire” burning. The last thing he would want is for Leona’s fire to burn out entirely. That would be such a shame.

Leona doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about.

(Where Nyoka is from, stories of the King of Beasts say his spirit appeared in fire. So maybe that has something to do with it.)

Nyoka does not go out of his way to ever seek out Leona. He only arrives when he is specifically called. Nyoka makes sure that their encounters are meaningful, mainly via their chess matches. This leaves him plenty of time of observe and be a part of those mind games that Leona takes so much pride in.

Regardless, they remain on good terms with each other. Leona is arguably the only person within the dorm that he has any modicum of actual respect towards.

Nyoka can have one uncharacteristic oddity in his mind. As a treat.

[goooofy-goooober1121]

TWST Boys as Roommates

Partially inspired by irl events :P

Ask Box is Open!!

Read my most recent TWST work here!

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts

The Controlling One

Makes a schedule for chores and a list of house rules, but in a "I need to micromanage you" way

You could be set to clean the bathroom at 3:30 and he'd pop into your room at 3:30:01 and go "HELLO???? CLEANING DUTIES!!!!"

VERY strict study schedule so don't make a single noise or else he'll get mad at you. Don't even breathe in his direction

Trey Clover

The Kitchen Fiend

Takes up the kitchen all the time because he's constantly making sweets/baked goods

You get free samples out of it but you also end up not having space to make your own meals because he's busy using the appliances :(

Cater Diamond

The Talker

Now there's nothing wrong with chatty people but when I say The Talker i mean THE TALKER.

Will try to hold a conversation with you as you're trying to fall asleep in the middle of the night

It's a perfect night. There's soft thunder outside and the rain patters against your window. Your sheets are fresh out the washing machine and you took a very relaxing, soothing shower. Your pillow is cool beneath your head, and you're excited to finally go to bed after a long day. You're snuggled up contentedly, on the verge of sleep. That's when you hear it. "Hey you know I never really liked strawberries because--" -Cater Diamond, walking into your room at 1 AM.

Deuce Spade

The Overzealous Studier

takes his books and like twelve notebooks to the living room to study

You come home and the space is covered entirely in loose paper, mechanical pencils long abandoned and strewn randomly across the room. In the center of it all is Deuce Spade. He's crying. He's in the middle of Calculus. How will he ever make his mom proud if he doesn't get a 105% on this next exam?

The living room is off limits for the next few hours. You are banished to the shadow realm (your room)

Ace Trappola

The Noisy One

Blasts his music at the most inappropriate times

Studying for the BAR? Reviewing for the MCAT? Trying to read or make sure you don't fail your next quiz? Ace's music bleeds through the walls relentlessly.

Sings LOUDLY in the shower

Talks super loud on the phone with his friends

Invest in noise-cancelling headphones

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingscholar

The Sloth

Will put off chores unless asked to do them

But he'll get them done in his own time if that makes sense

The type of guy to see you doing the dishes and wordlessly hand you his dirty plate instead of cleaning it himself

You could ask him to drive you to the ER and he would reply "erm just use Uber???" like its ur fault you're ill

more respectful if ur a girl tho (he got that Sunset Savanna Feminism)

Naps anywhere and everywhere

Ruggie Bucchi

The "Sharing is Caring" Believer

Will ask if you can share your snacks

If you say yes he will take like 75% of them

Promises to replace them tho (and does)

What's yours is his and in return what's his is yours

Keeps track of everything you take tho

Bro probably has a sign out sheet

Jack Howl

The Gym Bro

Your cabinets are 80% protein powder

So much meat in your fridge bro

Gets very passionate about televised sports... sometimes a lil too much

Will yell at the TV

Goes all out for local sports events, like if you're in uni he's wearing school colors and decorating the dorm/apartment on game days

Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto

The Businessman

Sees this as entirely transactional

Will hold things over your head. Don't you ever let him help you with chores because he will use those instances to guilt you into doing things for him

Definitely tries to start "Azul Bucks" for household tasks

Runs a black market of study materials and test answers out of your dorm/apartment

Jade Leech

The Plant Parent

Loves collecting any and all plants. Your dorm/apartment ends up looking like a plant nursery

But he definitely is more inclined towards non traditional plants

Has a venus flytrap named Audrey and cares for her as if he birthed her

Probably has movie nights with her (it's Little Shop of Horrors EVERY. TIME.)

Definitely has some mushroom terrariums

Fan of carnivorous plants... you have to beg him to not get any of the stinky ones

Floyd Leech

The Flip-Flopper

He does whatever he wants whenever he feels like it

He can be super sweet to you one day and grumpy the next

Sometimes he lays across the couch all happy (his long ass legs take up all the space)

Sometimes he doesn't come out of his room and you wonder if he's still alive

Prone to boredom so be prepared for him to hunt you down or come bother you even when it's inconvenient

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim

The Rich Boy

Invites friends over but forgets to ask if it's ok with you

Comes home late from parties sometimes

Also throws parties without thinking about what you may be okay with :(

Forgets that not everyone is rich?

When you break your phone he says "oh well you can just buy a new one" like you can walk into the lobby downstairs and get one for $3.99 at the vending machine

When you explain to him that you cant he looks at you with those big old eyes and earnestly offers to buy you one

Will get you one even if you say no

Almost burns down the building trying to make pasta (he burned the water)

Please teach him to cook

If you want a nice apartment, room with him you'll get a flatscreen TV 4K Ultra HD and surround sound

I love him can you tell

Jamil Viper

The Responsible One

Honestly one of the best roomies on this list

He's a pretty mature guy and used to cohabitation (grew up with a sister, had to look after Kalim as a kid)

But he doesn't talk much, kinda just does his part and goes

Good roommate but not if you're looking to be friends with your roommate if that makes sense

9/10 roommate material for sure

Pomefiore

Vil Schoenheit

The Beauty Queen

Remodels the decor entirely to his liking

12 step night routine

He's a good roomie because he keeps his things clean but will for sure get on you if you're a messy person

Face masks and manicures are a weekly occurrence between you both

Judgy tho. Don't let him come into the kitchen while you're cooking he'll be like "do you KNOW how many (calories/sugar/carbs/fat) is in that???" and start listing off better/more balanced ingredients

Just let me eat my ramen Vil

Hosts a photoshoot in the dorm/apartment at least once

Rook Hunt

The Cryptid

Sometimes you're not even sure he's there?

Like you interact with him but he can be so erratic/eccentric that you wonder if the building has black mold and is making you hallucinate his presence

Learns your schedule for sure

Expect to run into him outside the dorm/apartment at least twice a day

Might have watched you sleep to learn your sleep patterns? Lock your door

Stalker (affectionately)

Epel Felmier

The Manly One

Does home workouts with Jack

You have to force him to Febreeze the living room afterwards

Following in Jack's footsteps, slowly invading your cabinets with protein powder

Brings you apples and apple sweets/pastries whenever he comes home from visiting his family

Likes to have his own Wrestlemania marathons

Ignihyde

Idia Shroud

The Gamer

Are we surprised?

Celebrates like he won the lottery when he pulls his next Genshin character

You can hear it through the walls

Messy room but he doesn't let it spread to shared spaces

You get a LOT of Doordash orders for him

Rarely leaves his room and when he does he's terrified of running into you

Get this guy some Lexapro

Ortho Shroud

The Kid

Like sorry not sorry but this is a whole child

Forces you to watch Bluey with him

It's like babysitting more than anything

Watches all three Sonic movies multiple times a month

Where are ur parents

Diasomnia

Malleus Draconia

The Old Man

It's like living with a senile senior citizen

Does not know how to use the microwave, you have to teach him

Squints at the TV remote and pokes at the buttons with a single finger

If you show him something on your phone he does the Mom Look (Holds the phone away from his face, squints)

Speaking of phones

It's like the only keys on his keyboard are 👍, O, and K.

Signs his name on text messages.

"Hey Malleus can you do the dishes tonight?"

"👍 - M.D."

Lilia Vanrouge

The Nocturnal One

Super active at night so again, invest in noise cancelling headphones

Banned from the kitchen

Pokes into your room at 3 AM asking mundane questions

Likes to play pranks on you

Keep an eye on him

Sebek Zigvolt

The Dramatic One

Will fall to his knees and apologize as if he committed murder if he realizes that he forgot to do a chore

"I must protect the peace of our dormitory!!!" he says before storming out to yell at the loud neighbors (it's past quiet hours)

He's a good roommate

Just a little passionate

Silver Vanrouge

The Oversleeper

Has like 80 alarms set and somehow wakes up to 0 of them

Will burst out of his room and speedrun getting ready about ten minutes before class begins

Naps a LOT

You've had to check his pulse to make sure he is actually sleeping and not dead multiple times

But he's a chill guy overall

[sweetbunpura]

Upendi - The Fierce, Lioness Princess 1

Yuu knew marrying Leona would come with the ups and downs of being a Princess, but she was going to put that power to good use and begin to help the people of Sunset Savanna.

WC: 1684

“Are these terms fair enough?”

A warm breeze blew through the council room. Spring has finally come to Sunset Savanna as the heat of the sun melted off the frost of the last winter frost. In the room sat Farena with the Sunset Council and across from them was Malleus with his two Royal guards. The draconic fae looked over the terms, flipping through them several times as he hummed.

“I would like more time to ruminate on this matter.” Malleus spoke eloquently. “Is that alright?”

“Of course, take as much time as you need.” Farena responded with a smile.

He grabbed the papers, bowed to them, and left the room with his guards. Once out of ear shot, Farena sighed.

“Do you think he'll agree, Kifaji?”

“I don't see why not.” The older beastman replied as they also began to leave the room. “This is beneficial to both countries.” The older man hummed. “Although, “He seemed to be contemplating the deal. If there was some way to get him more agreeable-”

“Mal!”

All heads jerked to see Princess Yuu, in her stylized royal garb, rushing towards the Briar Valley King with her arms wide open. Farena fully expected his guard to step in and stop her, but to his surprise, neither moved.

“Child of Man!” The King wrapped her in a hug. “How have you been?”

“Busy. There’s so much work that has to be done.” She sighed and placed her forehead against his shoulder. “So much that I’m sorry I had to cancel our tea date. I’m sorry about that.”

He shook his head. “Do not worry about it, something had come up that day for me as well.”

Yuu stepped back and looked at Draconia’s guards. “Silver! Baebek!”

“You still call me that ridiculous nickname!?” The light green haired guard snapped. “We’ve long since graduated NRC and have gone past that name, have we not?”

She simply smiled and opened her arms. “I missed you too.”

He huffed and shook his head before hugging her. “...It’s good to see you.”

“Mm-hmm.” She moved towards the other man. “Silver, how’s Lilia doing?”

“Enjoying his retirement.” Silver gave a smile and hugged her. “He sends postcards from everywhere he’s been.”

Unknowing to them, as they continued to talk and converse, Farena and the Council stared at them with wide eyes.

“S-she knows them and went to NRC with them as well?” Kifaji muttered.

“That is... shocking news.” Farena added in. “Wasn’t the school they attended an all male one?”

“Perhaps she snuck in.” One councilman, a monkey beastman, suggested. 

“No, she’s magicless. It would make no sense for her to do such a thing.”

“Then she is a special case.”

Another councilman chimed in, this one a meerkat beastman. “Wasn’t she supposed to be kept busy while King Draconia was here?”

“She was.” Kifaji answered. “Unless she completed all of it.”

Yuu’s eyes shifted from the group over to the lingering Council, the warmth in them left quickly as she glared at them. They jumped back and split apart, each muttering something about the princess, and leaving only Kifaji and Farena.

“My!” Farena laughed almost nervously. “Her and Thema have the same glare.”

“Indeed....”

They shuffled away, but Kifaji had a feeling that the Princess had more than just the King of Briar Valley and his guards in her backpocket.

Yuu waited for the men to disappear before turning her attention back towards Malleus. “So whatcha doing here?”

“King Farena and the council wished to meet with me about a possible deal.” Malleus held up the papers. “I was going to deliberate on it more and give them an answer at a later date.” He looked around. “Where is Kingscholar?”

“Leona?” He nodded. “We got Cloudcalling coming up and he has to oversee it, so he’s doing that.”

“And you?”

“Some diplomatic shit.” She sighed and crossed her arms. “Like who we should and shouldn’t invite to the event, thinking of all the rooms to give people and such.” Muttering under her breath, she continued. “And keeping me away from the slums and Ruggie.”

“I see.”

“Here.” Yuu started directing them down a hallway. “Let’s keep talking in the garden. I can brew some tea for you, if you want some.” 

“That would be lovely, thank you.”

“Mmhhmm, thank you.” Silver added in.

“Much appreciated!” Sebek chimed in.

They were soon seated amongst the many greenery that the castle grounds had to offer. The tea finished brewing and Yuu handed out cups to them.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what did the papers detail?”

“Here.” Malleus handed the papers to her. “You are more than welcome to look. I trust your judgement above anything else.”

“Thanks.” She took and read the papers over. “Hmm.” Yuu crossed her legs at the knee and took a sip of her tea. “....We don’t need your gold.”

“Pardon?”

“They're asking for your gold in exchange for the fruits we produce here.” She handed the papers back to Malleus. “If anything, I would exchange the fruits for the fabric Briar Valley produces. Right, Leona?”

“Yeah.”

Malleus, Silver, and Sebek watched as a very familiar tail dropped down from the branches behind Yuu.

“Leona-san has been here the whole time?” Silver blinked.

“Yeah.” Yuu took another sip of her tea. “That’s actually why I came back, they couldn’t find him and they knew he only answers to me when he gets like this.”

“I do not.”

“Really now?” She smirked. “Can you join us down here then?”

A few heartbeats passed before Leona dropped down from the tree and stretched. The prince shook the leaves from his hair and sat down next to Yuu with a yawn. He had started growing facial hair as wisps of it decorated his chin and stretched up to the sides of his face. The outfit he wore was close to Yuu’s and there was a wedding ring on his finger.

“Kingscholar.”

“Draconia.” Leona reached over and took some of Yuu’s tea. “What’s this about a trade?”

“Farena and the Council are asking for gold in exchange for fruit.”

“Typical.” He huffed and flicked his tail. “As she said, we don’t need the gold. We have plenty if they would open the mines.” Setting the mug down, Leona leaned back in his chair as his tail rested in Yuu’s lap. “We’re lacking fabric for mostly everything here. From clothing to sheets on beds. Spring may be here, but winter wasn’t kind to Savanna and neither is the night for that matter.”

“I’ll amend this at once.” Summoning a quill, Malleus began making changes. 

“You have picked up a lot since marrying Kingscholar.” Sebek said.”

“I had to because the council makes me want to tear out my hair and scream at them.” She placed her elbows on the table and sighed. “A bunch of old men running this country into the ground for the sake of keeping everything traditional.”

“We know the feeling all too well.” Silver added in as Malleus gave a small hum. “It’s a struggle, isn’t it?”

“You’d think they’re afraid of change or something.” She waved her hand. “But I’m not about to ramble on about them. Are you guys staying for Cloudcalling?”

“Are you inviting us to stay and partake in the festivities?” Malleus willed the quill away as the papers rolled up gently in his hand.

“Only if you’re able to. It’s in a few days, so you can give me your answer whenever.”

“Don’t I get a say in this?” Leona looked at her. 

“No. Wife privileges.” She smiled and kissed him as Malleus gave a soft chuckle.

“Thank you for the tea, Child of Man.” He got up and bowed. “I’ll be returning these papers to King-”

“Oh, Leona and I are coming too.”

“We are?” He grunted when Yuu swatted at his bicep. “We are.”

Before either of the men could move, Leona got up and helped the woman out of her chair.

“My, how marriage changes a person.” Malleus teased.

“Hush, Lizard.”

They left the garden and began making their way back to the main part of the palace. Stepping into the establishment, they spotted Farena and Kifaji.

“Ah, there you are, Leona!” Farena smiled. “And I see you’ve met with King Draconia.”

“Yeah.” Leona rolled his eyes.

“Here you are.” Malleus handed the papers to Farena. “I reviewed the terms and believe this is more beneficial.”

“Oh?” The older Kingscholar looked at the sheets. “Fabric?”

“Yes. Gold is far too accessible and common, but the way Briar Valley weaves our fabric is worth the cost of your produce.” Malleus held out his hand. “Do you agree to these terms?”

Kifaji leaned slightly over to Farena, but he waved him off and shook Malleus’ hand.

“They are. Thank you, King Malleus.”

“You’re welcome. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to continue spending the day with my friend.” He turned to Yuu with a smile on his face.

Yuu returned it. “Gimme one second, okay?”

He nodded and Leona directed them towards the exit of the palace. Once out of ear shot, Kifaji rounded on Yuu.

“That gold was needed.”

“For what? Another fountain?” Yuu glared at him. “If you want the gold so much, open up the mines and go grab it yourself.”

“I’ve told you time and time again-”

“You can’t keep using that broken record of an excuse, Kifaji.” She growled. “Do you know how many people we lost last winter because they didn’t have the means to keep warm?” She pointed at the papers. “The way they weave their material around makes it so you are never cold. So, you’re going to have to forgive me for directing him over towards that option.” Yuu poked his chest. “You may not think highly of the residents of this kingdom, but I do. Don’t pull this shit again, bird and that also goes double for you, Farena.”

Yuu ended the conversation there as she walked out of the palace, leaving Kifaji and Farena to stare at her with a surprise look.

Tagging: @kimdourden

[mjrtaurus]

Dragon walking out to the dusty pink fields of Momoiro and sitting down to listen to the birds as he waits. He's not even sure if he'll show up this time, he's been a bit skittish ever since his arrival. How tight of a hold do the instincts still have over his mind? Does he still see Dragon as a friend, or does he view the fellow zoan as a predator to avoid?

He gets his answer when a striped head pokes out of the rustling grass and the zoan user it belongs to inches towards him with a curious whinny.

"I'm glad you're here. I didn't know if you remembered what day it was or not."

Equally slowly and carefully, Dragon unveils the parcel he's brought with him. Falafel in a fresh pita, packed with vegetables and a splash of tahini.

"Happy birthday, Savanna"

Dragon remembers Savanna well from before Impel Down. He was one of the Okama that had initially joined up with the Freedom Fighters along with Iva. Let his zoan stripes play a major visual role in his drag performances.

His skill with a mace still translated through muscle memory, even today.

The zebra-man looked to Dragon, and then to the food. His favorite meal that had become a birthday treat once he’d joined up under the sword and crown and the snarling amaru banners. He snorted, flicked his ears and settled in the grass to eat.

Two things happened that day. Incredible things.

The first was Savanna pushing a portion of the food over for Dragon to take, and the second…

The second came after the meal, when Savanna rose to go back to the wilds.

“Thank… you…” said slowly, sluggishly. Like the words didn’t quite work with the way his mouth was shaped. But words they were.

All of Momoiro was buzzing and celebrating with the news.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

NRC Family interaction idea: I'd love to see your take if Leona ever meets Maleficia! She would be so happy to meet one of her grandson's best friends at NRC according to what Lilia told her. And while Leona wants nothing more than to refute that statement he would still have to be polite because not only is Maleficia a woman, she's also an important political figure. Yes I'm living for Leona's suffering as well

Nobody:

Nobody at all:

Me: Leona Granny Killer Kingscholar

Family means Nobody is Left Behind or Forgotten.

Hidden away in his secret garden, Leona thought himself free of Family Day. He knew of all the best hiding places in the Botanical Garden, the spots where the leaves and the flowers grew so heavy that they covered him entirely, body and scent. Cheka, Falena, Kifaji--none of them could hope to discover him here.

But then those lights started. Flickering green and gold, signaling the arrival of something ominous.

Leona immediately sat up, fixing his slouch. His fur stood on end, muscles tensing in preparation for a fight.

A blink, and a woman in black robes appeared before him. She was ageless, with skin pale and smooth as marble and shiny raven hair, a set of horns protruding from her head. The unmistakable mark of a Draconia. She stepped toward him, the plants surrounding her seeming to tremble and shrink away from her powerful presence.

"You're..." Before Leona completed his sentence, he was already lowering himself into a bow His voice became a silken purr. "Pray thee forgive my rudeness. I hadn't been expecting an audience with Briar Valley's reigning monarch."

"Be at peace, second son of Sunset Savanna... Leona Kingscholar." Maleficia raised a hand. "This is not a royal summons, nor a diplomatic meeting. I have simply come to witness my grandson's school companions."

Companions? Leona grimaced internally. He didn't much like the sound of it, especially not in relation to the lizard he so loathed.

"I'm honored by the suggestion that I am on equal social standing as the Malleus Draconia, but I'm afraid that isn't truly the case. Your grandson and I are on entirely different wavelengths."

She frowned. "Oh? But Lilia had informed me that Malleus has a close bond with a prince from the wilds. That is you, is it not?"

That little weasel...!! He spun all our arguments and grudge matches into THIS?! I'm sanding him the next chance I get.

"He says that you frequently have playful banter and compete in games together," Maleficia continued, her tone darkening. The air around her crackled with electricity--Leona could smell the stench of magic on her. "Are you insinuating that Lilia is a liar?"

"... No. No, of course not," he replied tactfully. "Begging your pardon, your majesty. I was overcome with bashfulness. Despite my looks, I'm a delicate, sensitive individual at heart. I don't enjoy airing my friendships publicly--what if some unsavory type were to slink along and attempt to manipulate our friendship in their favor? I would hate for it to come to that."

"... Is that so?" Satisfied with his answer, Maleficia visibly brightened. "I understand. My, Malleus selects such fine, mindful companions."

"You flatter me. I am not worthy of your praise."

"Fufufu. You're quite humble for one of noble descent yourself." Maleficia extended a hand. "I have a desire to hear stories of Malleus's school days with his dear friends. Will you care to enlighten me?"

Leona sucked in a breath through his teeth. This is for maintaining amicable relations between our kingdoms, this is for maintaining amicable relations between our kingdoms...!!

He forced a smile and offered his arm. "As the lady wishes."