#self-fulfilling prophecy lmao holding my head in my hands

[juicyspacesecrets]

Happy Holidays and A Happy New Year!

...ya’ll know the deal (#｀-_ゝ-)

Bonus:

misplaced baby

[stuck-in-the-ghost-zone]

mackerel!!!!! good morninnnnnnnng :] sharing my coffee with u :3 anyway. free ticket for whatever worm thoughts ur having!!! 🎫🎫🎫 cell is a fucking rollercoaster so like, u know, whenever u have thoughts w any degree of organization lmao!! the fucking.... charlotte interlude where danny just sits and watches the rest of the undersiders (teenagers)(aisha throwing a bag of chips at grue's head)(grue killed burnscar a member of the slaughterhouse 9)(terrifying)(they're both in demon masks and grue is in black leather)(supervillains who he's been hearing taylor talk about like they're a certain doom for hours)(kids)(people she loves)(she was doing so much for infrastructure for the docks which was also danny's thing) hammer out their game plan means a lot 2 me.... anyway it's been a while since last bothering u abt worm ask!! so. holds microphone up to u. hehehe :3

dude u have literally the most perfect timing ever I JUST finished the lung interlude. lol. Definitely not thinking about it at all. the next arc is called Drone. awesome ! like the fuckign. other word for male bees which have no stinger and are not as useful to the hive as worker bees and cannot even feed themselves without assistance from workers. often used in media to describe a mindless . well. drone. part of a hivemind. awesome loving the implications of this. i need 2 take a fucking BREAK

ANYWAY. CELL. GOD. MAN. FUCK. DEFINITELY *NOT* THE DIRECTION I THOUGHT THAT ARC WAS GOING TO GO. youve pretty much said everything I could possibly say about the Charlotte interlude. I do in fact have a screenshot of the part where imp throws a bag of chips at grues head. and also when they first get there imp and regent immediately start rummaging around for snacks. and they take the bags of gummies that charlotte was planning to put in the kids school lunches the next day. and . fucking RACHEL walking in not with huge monster dogs but with a bunch of puppies on colorful leashes. willingly handing puppies to two basically strangers. willing to go into a room with a bunch of children who don't know how to behave correftly around dogs and letting them play with her puppies. I cant even fucking talk about Rachel and how she's changed since the beginning of the story without getting so overwhelmed with it all i love her so much. I love her SO much dude.

having conflicting emotions about weaver !!!!!!!!!!!!!! i love taylor so much you know this about me. i am very excited to see another side of the heroes and get more insight into the inner workings of both the ward system and also the prt in general (definitely not going to think about nhw) BUT ALSO . I LOVE THE UNDERSIDERS TOO MUCH. IM GONNA MISS THEM SO MUCH. AND!!!! and. I don't know how they feel about this decision yet. I mean they were pretty laid back during their visit but I also know how good they are (esp tattletale) at . not letting onto things . putting up a front to keep appearances. aaughhh.

I want to know what the fuck was in the drawer that dragon showed taylor that made her agree to all of this right away. was it the new mask????? that's my assumption rn. speaking of which as much as I want to squish defiant sometimes I VERY MUCH love his robot girlfriend. defiant can stay as long as I get to see his weird fucked up dynamic with dragon. but he's on thin ice.

I do also really like miss militia.......... she's frustrating as much as the others are sometimes but. I like her. she knows things are fucked and is willing to hear out the other side even if she doesn't always act on it. OH ALSO SPEAKING OF HEROES really excited that parian and fletchette are undersiders now :) I like them.

uhhhhh uh uh uh I made that big long post about self fulfilling prophecies regarding the whole apocalypse in two years thing ,, my thoughts on that have not changed and have in fact been REINFORCED by lungs interlude . he specifically was given a two year time limit. hmm i wonder FUCKING WHY. god. I need to talk to dinah i need a dinah interlude. I need to know what she thinks of all of this

[liauditore]

LIAU MY BELOVED

ask game question

Jimmy x Martyn

:D

romeo asking for mirror birds in MY ask box?!!?!??!?!?! (i know u pref mirror birds but solidwood is too funny im so sorry)

ah yeah. these losers.

see, a lot of my thoughts surrounding these two would kind of spoil my own AU that i never make stuff for so im usually somewhat hesitant to talk about them but basically., (toxic!fh mention)

post-evo divorced property police is so real. ive always imagined it as a childhood friends situation, with martyn being a bit older than jimmy.

they probably caught feelings for eachother fairly late and already well into teenhood but neither of them were really sure what it was (this is maybe going a little bit into sexuality hc territory but ive always imagined jimmy as whatever the male equivalent of a useless lesbian is and martyns biphobic towards himself lmao).

i touched on this briefly in that one fic i wrote but i've always headcanoned martyn as being somewhat parentified and thus ties his worthiness to be loved into his ability to perform acts of service for someone rather than just.. existing and letting himself be loved.

so as jimmy became more independent, martyn becomes a bit more insecure about their friendship. this becomes a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy as he distances himself from jimmy, feeling like jimmy wouldn't love him if he didn't Need him, and jimmy in return feels confused and hurt as he helplessly watches someone he knew all his life drift away.

that + jimmy has this not-so-subtle crush on scott that martyn's always suspected. he's a jealous bitch.

The storm formed after a final sip, my fingertips frozen solid, I pretend that again I can see, you past the rails, ready to meet And I wonder is it too much to ask, to once more, hold you warm in my hands? To accept I can’t forget, and embrace what still fails to fade?

Milk Tea (Oktavia's translyrics) (because I wasn't kidding when I said these two were cheesy yuri to me lmao)

we had a clown to clown communication moment i think cus I also love the idea of them splitting up and meeting in Third Life years and years later (altho i like to imagine it as more of a voluntary separation).

some stuff copy+pasted from that cursed shipping doc i mentioned awhile back: ((scott + jimmy became a thing while martyn was gone pre-3L))

Now reuniting in 3L as fully grown adults after years apart, all those suppressed emotions come bubbling back up to the surface. An adult Martyn is much less unsure about what he's feeling and Jimmy still has those fantasies of what could have been playing on loop in his head. Of course, Jimmy is still attached to Scott and can't abandon his Bethrothed. He loves and knows what's best for him, he would sooner die than forsake his loyalty. But it does hurt when he hits him. Martyn still cares for Jimmy deeply, whether he wants to or not. He takes the time to keep an eye out for him, even though they had no real reason to interact anymore. He becomes one of the only people to realise what Scott was like with him, how devoid of love it all was. He throws out a line, offers to help him run away. Jimmy refuses. Betrayal. A second time. For the same man. Who cares about Jimmy anyway? (he always did take me for granted)

(a little note here before anyone sets me on fire - time works a bit differently in my writing and the players don't have exact ages but jimmy and martyn's age gap is probably not as dramatic as their cc counterparts)

(it's still there but neither of them even recognise their feelings as remotely romantic until they reunite as adults, as kids it's all just them being silly and having grade school drama with each other)

So uh yeah lots of mutual pining and suppressed feelings and puppy love turned angst👍 tis all i shall say cus i wanna make art of the rest lol

Just a second to lessen the ache, or minute to kiss it away I’d give all I have for the chance to go back to youth and you

[lethal-liability]

Ari's ranking of Imagine Dragon's discography

Here's something literally no one asked for! Anyway rankings are out of 10 and I'll have album stats at the end. Also any songs in the EPs that would later appear on Night Visions are just going under the album. I know that'll screw with their averages but I don't really care.

Imagine Dragons (2009) average rating: 7.2

I Need A Minute: 6/10 A nice fun song I used to like dancing around my room to. The lyrics are completely incomprehensible but I guess that's the point, I like it. The vocals are just a little bit too low

Uptight: 7/10 Funky beat, I really like the synth. I didn't listen to this one much as a kid but I really missed out this song kinda fucks.

Cover Up: 7/10 Some more funky bass and synth, getting into some of the more poetic lyrics that I like from them. Pretty solid.

Curse: 9/10 This 👏 was 👏 my 👏 favorite 👏 song 👏 back 👏 in 👏 the 👏 day 👏 Here's where my bias comes in cause this one gets an extra point purely for that. The lyrics don't really make sense but I would lay up at night coming up with complex amvs in my head to go along with it :) Still holds up to 11 y/o Ari's love.

Drive: 7/10 Again, another one I never really listened to as a kid. It's a pretty good, relaxing song, really different from the rest of the upbeat songs on the EP.

Hell and Silence (2010) average rating: 6.75

All Eyes: 6/10 Another funky song, nothing really special but pretty solid

I Don't Mind: 4/10 Honestly not a fan of this one, the synth is kinda annoying and the lyrics are kinda irritating

Selene: 8/10 Idk what to say I just like this song :)

Emma: 9/10 Honestly pretty much the same as Selene but with a chiller vibe, I like the raspier vocals. Extra points for that nearly yelled bridge HELL AND SILENCE I CAN FIGHT IT

It's Time (2011) average rating: 4.2

Tokyo: 3/10 Look I'm a sucker for funky synth OKAY. I don't speak Japanese but I don't have to to tell you Dan's pronunciation is really cringy. Deducting points for the kinda fetishy lyrics too.

The River: 8/10 This is one of those songs I like to listen to when I'm sad to make myself sadder so I can cry my feelings out. It's got a pretty, soothing melody and nice lyrics.

Leave Me: 2/10 This song used to make the feminism leave my body as a kid but I just can't bring myself to really do that anymore lmao. Come on Dan, that's two kinda gross songs on one album :/

Pantomime: 2/10 I. Really did not like this song as a kid. Like I had a playlist on youtube of all their music except this song. I was right.

Look How Far We've Come: 6/10 Hearing this song for the first time in like nine years was an experience. Not a bad song but dome of the lines are a little clunky.

Night Visions (2012) average rating: 7.33

Radioactive: 9/10 Ya know this is the song that got them famous and for good reason. It's a good song and great amv fodder.

Tiptoe: 8/10 It's gonna be harder to write about these songs going forward because these are ones I listen to regularly so I know I like them but yeah. Good song.

It's Time: 10/10 Radioactive may have been what got them famous but this was their first real big single and it was my favorite. I'm a big sucker for a mandolin and I think this is where they started to lean more into the folky sound than the synthy sound.

Demons: 9/10 Another one of their songs I used to listen to to cry and I don't listen to it much anymore because of that but it's still a good, poetic song that hits me in the feels.

On Top Of The World: 6/10 My mom had this as her alarm when I was in middle school so I couldn't listen to it for a long time. The lyrics are a little heavy handed sometimes and a little incomprehensible at others but it's an alright little tune.

Hear Me: 8/10 This album is a little confusing because they include some of their older synth heavy songs alongside their newer folky songs, but I won't complain with this song. Frustrated 13 year old me loved this song because I, too, felt that no one ever heard me when I talked. Ya know, 13 y/o things.

Amsterdam: 7/10 I have no idea what this song is about but it's pretty good.

Every Night: 5/10 This was their first and last try at what I call a "first dance bait" song. Ya know like Perfect by Ed Sheeren or Marry Me by Train? It's alright, just really heavy handed.

Bleeding Out: 10/10 Oh emo eleven year old me ate this edgy shit up. Is it a grimdark? Yes. But that's a plus for this song. This song makes me wanna scream every time I listen to it I BARE MY SKIN AND I COUNT MY SINS AND I CLOSE MY EYES AND I TAKE IT IN

Underdog: 6/10 Another cute song, not much to say about this one, it's alright.

Nothing Left To Say: 9/10 ANOTHER another song I cry to, this one still hits home for me. It's pretty and soothing but the lyrics are still heart wrenching. The instrumental at the end is nice and I like to fall asleep to it.

Rocks: 8/10 A nice upbeat song that is a little repetative but it's only about a minute long so it doesn't over stay its welcome.

Working Man: 5/10 This song isn't on spotify so I don't get to hear it often and I actually hadn't heard it in a while when I listened to it to do this. It's kinda trying to be a 9 to 5 type song but it doesn't really do it for me.

Fallen: 8/10 Another song I hadn't heard in a while since it's not on spotify but I'm more of a fan of this one. Another amv bait song to me but one with more of a triumphant vibe to it. I really like the vocals in the chorus.

Cha-Ching ('Til We Grow Older): 8/10 The hook of this song, cha-ching x3, has a big potential to become really annoying like some of their later songs (cough cough, Thunder) but they actually somhow make it work. This song hits me a lot harder now than it did as a kid cause god. Yeah. They're so right. We are all living until we grow older.

Smoke + Mirrors (2015) average rating: 9.06

Shots: 9/10 Hell YES my favorite album finally let's get into this shit. Anyway songs that make me wanna lay in a field of wildflowers. Well the music, the lyrics are pretty depressing. But that's what makes a great song ya know.

Gold: 9/10 Songs about the rich losing their humanity? Hell yeah. I fucking love the percussion and the synth in this one too.

Smoke and Mirrors: 10/10 The under appreciated masterpiece of this album in my humble opinion. Everyone always talks about Dream as the best song on the album but I really think it's this one. That yelled OPEN UP MY EYES gets me all the time I just really really love this song.

I'm So Sorry: 9/10 Real sexy bassline on this one. I can't tell what the fuck this song is about but I don't care because it goes pretty hard.

I Bet My Life: 8/10 I like the gospel vibes, especially the backing vocals, some of them out-sing Dan a little bit. This one also hits a little harder now that I'm grown up a bit.

Polaroid: 8/10 Another one with cool percussion, some of the lyrics are lost on me but I get the overall vibe of it.

Friction: 10/10 I have no clue what that string is at the beginning of the song but man does it fuck hard. God actually everything in this song goes pretty hard, I'm especially a fan of the vocals.

It Comes Back To You: 8/10 Nice chill song, I feel like this is one that's gonna hit in a few years. Not much to say about it tbh besides I like it.

Dream: 10/10 This song really does live up to the hype even if I like other songs better. It's really poetic and well composed. You really just have to listen to it to get it tbh.

Trouble: 8/10 The piano at the beginning is a little grating but it gets better. Again not much to say about this one, it's solid, just not one of my favorites.

Summer: 8/10 Another sexy baseline, another set of incomprehensible lyrics. I like it.

Hopeless Opus: 10/10 This one's a little weird but it was my favorite for a while. I like weird. Idk if anyone would agree with me but this one was kind of a self fulfilling prophecy, this really was a hopeless opus since, in my opinion, they've yet to make album as good as this one. Also. Guitar solo.

The Fall: 10/10 I like to put this song on when we get the first cold snap of the year after summer :) It's just really chill and I like the vibes and the vocals

Thief: 10/10 AAAAHHHHHH SONGS THAT MAKE ME WANNA RUN THROUGH THE WOODS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

The Unknown: 9/10 Cool percussion, I like the intermediate piano, it's a nice touch.

Second Chances: 9/10 I like the strings and the vocals. Another nice chill song.

Release: 9/10 I like that this one is completely acoustic, it's a nice send off for a great album, if a little depressing.

Evolve (2017) average rating: 5.5

I Don't Know Why: 10/10 I have wanted to choreograph something to this song for the fucking longest time oh my god. I really love the vocals and the synth in this one.

Whatever It Takes: 5/10 This one's alright. It's not great but it's definitely not the worst. Perfectly average pop song.

Believer: 10/10 I am a little bit biased with this one because I use it for my OCs a lot but like. It's a really good song. And I don't watch TV so I haven't gotten it ruined for me by commercials.

Walking The Wire: 6/10 I hadn't listened to this song in a while and it's really not as bad as I remember. I guess you can really tell that he was having marital issues when they made this album and that didn't really connect with me back then. But I'm kinda into a little bit of it now.

Rise Up: 4/10 Another really average, inspirational pop song. I like the raspiness of Dan's voice in most songs but it sounds so over processed in this song I can't stand it.

I'll Make It Up To You: 3/10 Wow okay never mind the marital issues vibe is coming back real heavily in this one. Idk it's just such Straight People vibes, I don't like it :/

Yesterday: 1/10 I associate this song with someone I don't talk to anymore and really wanna forget so it's kinda running at a deficit already. But. Um. It's not a good song otherwise. It's another weird song but something about this one just doesn't work.

Mouth Of The River: 7/10 I think I liked this one when it came out, idk why I stopped listening to it. It's pretty good. Not great. But I like the river imagery. Well. I like river imagery in general.

Thunder: 2/10 hhhhhhhhhhhh why did they think this was a good idea. Probably their most notorious song, I know a lot of people cite it when they say Imagine Dragons makes shitty music. I just think it's tragic that this is one of the ones that got super popular for some reason. However as someone who teaches children's dance classes, however annoying you think this version is, you haven't heard anything until you have to listen to the KidzBop version twice a week for a year. Not a complete 0 because I do like some of the vocals that aren't. That Part.

Start Over: 6/10 Another one I hadn't heard in a while, but it's pretty groovy. Not as heavy handed as some of the other songs, and that flute in the chorus is pretty cool.

Dancing In The Dark: 8/10 I like this one a lot, the processing on the vocals is a little wonky but I like the vibes.

Next To Me: 4/10 Yeah this was the "please don't divorce me" song. It's. alright. Really heavy handed, they probably should've waited to release this one but you know.

Origins (2018) average rating: 4.8

Natural: 10/10 Another one I'm biased for because I associate it with a beloved OC. But It's still a good song. I like it.

Boomerang: 5/10 Another song that just has an awkward hook with awkward delivery.

Machine: 9/10 I like this song a lot more now that I know the band is really outspoken about their experiences with mormanism and escaping it. But the irony of a song with a nonconformist message from a pop band is not lost on me.

Cool Out: 5/10 Idk I don't have much to say about this one. It's alright.

Bad Liar: 4/10 Oh boy more divorced dad energy. Hhhhhh I'm getting burnt out on this. For the record I have no problem with people going through things like this, I'm just not into these vibes in my music, especially when they're super desperate like this.

West Coast: 3/10 East coast supremacy. Also why are you trying to be Mumford and Sons.

Zero: 4/10 You know, the Ralph Breaks the internet song? God. That sure was a movie. The song is better, but not by much. It is fun and bouncy but I don't like listening to it too often.

Bullet In A Gun: 5/10 I used to really like this song but now I just associate it with an embarrassing character I used to stan so :/ I do still like the lyrics even if I don't listen to it anymore.

Digital: 3/10 I can't tell if this song is pro or anti technology??? And the electronic melody is annoying.

Only: 4/10 Hhhhhh I'm so tired. I don't like this one.

Stuck: 2/10 idk man. bad.

Love: 3/10 Really trying hard to be the Beatles here. :/ That's really not a compliment.

Birds: 5/10 This one's kinda nice, a little more original but like. I'm so burned out on this theme. hhhhhhhh

Burn Out: 10/10 Speaking of burn out. lmao, no I actually really like this one. I just recently listened to it kinda intently for the first time and I just. Wow. The second verse really gets to me. I feel like this song has a lot of the poeticness I liked from Smoke + Mirrors.

Real Life: 0/10 Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh obligatory "PHONES BAD" song from the folk pop band. At least when Bastille does it they don't literally say "turn your phone off!" in the song. I'm so tired. I'm gonna take a nap before I listen to the next album.

Mercury - Act 1 (2021) average rating: 7.46

Okay I'm still tired but let's do this. Also I've only heard this album like three times so far so this ranking is most definitely gonna change as I listen to it more.

My Life: 9/10 Holy shit this song is fucking heart wrenching and I first listened to it at like just the perfect time for me to ball like a baby listening to it. Literally my only gripe is I wish the tempo would've picked up a little bit earlier.

Lonely: 9/10 This song is equally fucking depressing but it's upbeat and I eat that shit up. The vocals are a little weird sometimes but I really like the pre-chorus a lot.

Wrecked: 8/10 Okay so this album is just gonna be gut punch after gut punch huh? Look, I was really going through some shit when they dropped this album so I like really connected with a lot of it. But yeah I like this song.

Monday: 4/10 Alright. Not a fan of this one. The metaphor is kinda cute I guess, even if it implies that like literally everyone else things your sweetheart is fucking insufferable. Actually. Who tf thinks monday is the best day of the week? Like what kind of person? But, uh, musically, it's kinda annoying.

#1: 7/10 Self-care babie!!!!!!! Okay but this is a nice song. Yes we all need to learn self love it's a fucking journey babe.

Easy Come Easy Go: 9/10 I really like this one, it might be my favorite on the album. My only gripe is the bridge/3rd verse/whatever it's called is a little bit clunky

Giants: 8/10 god DAMN those vocals. This is another kinda weird song but I'm into this one like I am with Hopeless Opus.

It's Okay: 7/10 Honestly I'm kinda tired of hearing "it's okay to be not okay" Like yeah I've been depressed for most of my life now I think I got that at this point. But I am a fan of "I don't want this body, I don't want this voice, I don't wanna be here but I guess I have no choice." Like damn even my gender crisis? Y'all are really just hitting all my nails from the past year right on the head huh?

Dull Knives: 9/10 OKAY ROCK RIFF I HEAR YOU, I just wish it would've lasted through the song instead of going slow again during the second chorus. But yeah, songs that make me wanna scream in the woods in the middle of the night.

Follow You: 8/10 ME AND WHO???????

Cutthroat: 9/10 HELLO AMV BAIT I MISSED YOU I wish it was longer. Also, love Dan's screamo debut I wish he'd just fucking scream his throat raw more often.

No Time For Toxic People: 4/10 okay I think we've established that I'm not a fan of completely unsubtle songs so I don't think it should be a shock that I'm not a fan of this one. The music doesn't really save it either.

One Day: 6/10 M E A N D W H O ? ? ? Not as much of a fan of this one as Follow You though.

Additional Singles but only one's I've already heard because fuck you there are so many of these

Battle Cry: 6/10 I thought this one was from some soundtrack but idk. A transformers movie I think? I can't find anything on it. Anyway, okay song. I like the line stars are only visible in darkness. The rest of the song is kinda repetitive

Born To Be Yours: 8/10 I like this song a lot. I have no idea who Kygo is but I'm a fan of this beat. For the record, this is more something I would use for my first dance.

Destination: 6/10 Another song I haven't hear in a while. I enjoy the vocals from the other band members. But it is an itunes sessions song so it's a little messy, probably could have been better if they'd recorded it as a regular song.

I Was Me: 7/10 A nice sad acoustic song, not much to say, I like it

Levitate: 6/10 This one is from that Jennifer Lawrence Crisp Rat movie no one saw. It's okay. I like the sci-fi vibes.

Lost Cause: 4/10 This one is from the Frankenweenie soundtrack of all things. This is another grimdark edgy song, but it just doesn't have the staying power to me that Bleeding Out did.

Monster: 8/10 This song was my fucking jam as a kid and was the song that got me into Nightcore in middle school so you know it's important to me. Still a big fan of it.

Not Today: 7/10 I actually saw the movie this was from, Me Before You. I would say this is another first dance bait song but I think they were just trying to match the vibes of the movie. The song is better than the movie though. In case you were wondering.

Ready! Aim! Fire!: 7/10 continuing the trend of songs from soundtracks, apparently this song is from Iron Man 3? Seems kinda weird to put a song about rebellion and revolution in a movie about a billionaire 🤔🤔🤔. Anyway it has a more electronic, industrial sound than most of their stuff which i appreciate. Still have to deduct points for being from a marvel movie though oops.

Roots: 10/10 Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh I love this song. Another another biased one because I associate it with one of my OCs but like. It's a good song.

Sucker For Pain: 5/10 Ya know that song from the Suicide Squad soundtrack? The masochist anthem? It's alright, I mean Dan's part is probably the best, the rap is okay I guess, I'm not a huge rap fan so I don't really know what constitutes a good rap. I guess the appeal of this song was all the big names but it just gets tiresome that there's a new voice every 30 seconds. Really gimmicky but Lil Wayne's part is kinda funny so I'll give it that.

Warriors: 8/10 More amv bait, another one I could've sworn this was from some soundtrack but I can't find anything on it. Pretty solid song.

Who We Are: 6/10 This sing is from one of the Hunger Games Movies, I can't remember which one though. Anyway it's fucking incomprehensible but I like it.

Conclusion

Okay so in order from Highest to Lowest ranked the albums and EPs are

Smoke + Mirrors: 9.06

Mercury - Act 1: 7.46

Night Visions: 7.33

Self Titled: 7.2

Hell and Silence: 6.75

Evolve: 5.5

Origins: 4.8

It's Time: 4.2

See and this is completly objective because if you had asked me to rank my favorite albums I would've put Night Visions above Mercury 😠 I did have a good time going back and listening to a lot of old songs I hadn't heard in forever

anyway I'm tired and this post no one asked for is over 3k words so I am going to bed good fucking night

[geraltschopshop]

Left To Ruins - P2

Summary: Something was stirring in the Continent, something dark. Everybody could sense it, even the village fool knew something was afoot. After completing a regular job, Geralt came across a woman that he thought was merely a fable - a woman who worked professionally like she was a witcher.

Characters: Geralt of Rivia, Cahir, OC

Genre(s): adventure, romance

Warning: fluff lmao

Word count: 4266

Something Brewing

 A few months had gone by. Geralt had seen Sage in most of the places he was in, too often for it to be a mere coincidence. He had grown rather fond of her. She was a woman that made sure every man she encountered treated her as their equal and if they did not, they would regret it shortly after. She was an honest woman that shared the same values as he did; she was not a murderer for hire, and she did not kill monsters that were no threat. She was practically an open book for him, except for some details of her relationship with Valamir. He was curious; this Valamir meant so much to her and was evidently a large portion of her life, but she seldom mentioned him without being prompted and even then, she would never divulge into details.

He sighed as he dressed himself in his black tunic, jacket, pants, boots and silver belt. His dear friend, Dandelion, had requested he joined him at a gathering in Cintra, where queen Calanthe planned to celebrate a victory she had claimed while overseas with her military. Geralt preferred royalty in small doses – or preferably, in zero doses – but the troubadour was very insistent he went. Various royal and military figures had been invited to attend, including Cahir, the Nilfgaardian knight. There had been rumours of his contempt for queen Calanthe circulating, but the woman never paid them any mind.

He entered the royal hall, accompanied by his friend who was carrying his lute. He had to leave his sword behind, much to his dismay, but so did all the other attendees. “Now, Geralt, I am going to grace this gathering with the beautiful lyrics I have written about you. In the meantime, please, drink and make some friends.” Jaskier said cheerfully as he patted his friend on the back and wandered off to the other musicians that had been hired. The witcher sighed once again as he picked up a drink of ale and took a gulp of it, leaning against a column. He scanned the room for someone he could socialise with when his eyes landed on a familiar face entering the hall – Sage. She was wearing a long, black dress, decorated with a silver chain belt that sat on her hips, long bell sleeves that were lined with tiny gemstones, and alongside her medallion, was a black velvet choker with a silver gemstone hanging from it, her hair was half pinned up and sat perfectly in loose curls, adorned with small white flowers, flowers he had never seen. He was surprised to see her, especially looking as elegant as she did. Their eyes met and she gave him a warm smile as she approached him.

“I did not expect to find you here, witcher.” She said as she sipped on some ale she had gotten on her way. He smiled slightly. “I did not expect to find you here, either, hunter.” She looked around at the other men in the room and wrinkled her nose at sight of them. “I prefer men that have egos so fragile, that they need to lie about their victories, in small doses, or not at all.” Her eyes then landed on Cahir, who was politely drinking and making merry with other men from other cities. She had quite a history with Cahir and the last thing she wanted was to see him again. “What the hell is Cahir doing here?” She asked quietly with evident bitterness in her voice. The witcher looked at her. “Do you know him?” “Yes.” As she replied, locked eyes with her; he smiled and gestured her over. “I will explain in a moment.” She said, taking a large gulp of her ale and walking over to the man, who led her away from the group of men he was sat with.

“It has been a long time, Sage.” The man said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it. She looked at him with a mixture of sadness and annoyance. “Not long enough, Cahir. What do you want?” She made no attempt to remove her hand from his; part of her wanted him to drop dead on the spot, another wanted him to never leave again. This was the man destiny had stuck her with – a man who had been driven mad with power and lost himself. She had met him a number of years ago when he was still a young, plucky knight in training, but talk of a prophecy had changed him to a point where she felt like she no longer knew him. Despite the madness in eyes, his love for her was still present. “I wanted to see you. You look breath-taking. I felt it would be a crime if I did not try to spend some time with you.” The unfortunate part of being in love was melting when they said the right things. She felt the butterflies she always felt returning. As she looked into his eyes, she felt her heart skip a beat and a blush forming on her face. Cahir smiled slightly – he had not been totally lost to the madness. A small semblance of his old self remained, and it only ever came out when he was around her, but it was never strong enough to overpower the delusions he had fed himself. “You still are not the man you were.” He did not react; he wrapped his other arm around her waist and kissed her softly. She did not resist; she gave in willingly. His lips were as soft and warm as she remembered. She pulled herself away before she found herself completely under his spell again, shaking her head and taking a couple of steps back to distance herself from him. The sight of him, his scent, his touch, all made her weak. He looked at her with slight hurt and surprise that she had pulled away. “Please, stop. It gets harder and harder to pull myself away every time, and I refuse to give in to a man that would not mind killing innocent people to meet his own goals.” Her voice had turned sad. He was driven by a prophecy and the power that was promised from fulfilling it; he had already slaughtered a number of villages without remorse and it never sat well with her. “Fine. Then return to that witcher I saw you talking to.” He replied back, obviously irritated. She scowled at him. “Bold words for a man that will not even listen to the woman he is meant to be in love with, but instead, listens to the words of the mage that stands by his side.” She spat back. She had tears welling in her eyes; even the strongest warriors were not immune to emotional pain. “Do you not trust me?” “No, I do not. You have broken many promises and betrayed many people in your fanciful conquest for power, so forgive me for finding it difficult to trust you.” “I would never do that to you.” “How am I supposed to believe you?” He had no answer. He had tortured and murdered his way through the ranks in the Nilfgaardian military, he had betrayed friends to get his power, he had no proof that he was capable. “I thought not. I am going to return my friend. Farewell, Cahir.” She turned and walked back to Geralt, who was still leaning against the same column he was when she found him. The witcher had been watching from afar and had seen enough to figure out that she definitely knew the man that had summoned her over and that they had a long history together.

“You do not need explain yourself; I can see you two are very familiar with each other.” He said, patting her on the shoulder in reassurance. He could see that tears had welled up and the last thing he wanted to do was upset her any more by having her explain her seemingly tumultuous relationship with the man that was now watching them. She nodded. “Unfortunately.” She wiped her eyes and put on a smile. “I did not come here to get upset over a delusional idiot. I came here to be a mediator if these men start arguing, which always happens.” She downed the remainder of her ale that she still had in her hand. He raised his eyebrows at her. “You are here for babysitting duty?” He asked as she took another tankard ale and returned the empty one to a passing servant. “Yes.” She took a large gulp of her drink. “Every time queen Calanthe holds these gatherings, I have been paid to stand here and wait until a dick measuring contest gets out of hand.” She scanned the crowds of rowdy men. “Their egos are all so fragile and thrive so much off the attention they get from glory that they make up stories about monsters they have killed. A few them have previously taken credit for my own monster slayings. Primitive beasts, all of them.” He could not help but snicker at the idea that this renown monster hunter is regularly hired to stop fragile men ripping each other’s throats out over fake victories. She glared at him briefly before their attention got taken away by the sounds of shouting between two men. “If you’ve really seen a hydra, how many heads does it have?” “Four!” “Wrong, it’s five!” She sighed and walked over to the arguing men that had clearly never seen a hydra in their lives. She knew a Hydra had seven heads, or more if one of the originals had been cut off. A battle with a hydra was not an easy one and she knew that neither of these men would have survived if they really had come face to face with one like they claimed. She put an arm around one of the men, friendly.

“Now, now, gentlemen, there is no use arguing over this.” “He’s calling me a liar!” “Do not worry, you are both lying through your teeth.” They both looked at her, outraged. “And what would you know about hydras, then, woman?” The other man chimed in. “My dear, I am the Grey Witch. I was slaying hydras before you took your first breath on this earth.” There were looks of scepticism and shock among the men that were present, but she was the only woman in the world, outside of queen Calanthe, that was fearless enough to stand in the middle of an argument between two fierce warriors and call them both liars, not sparing their egos. She took another gulp of her drink. “Now, if you two are going to argue over the appearance of a creature, make sure you do some real research. Hydras have seven or more heads. No less.” The two men just nodded, still in a state of disbelief that the Grey Witch was a real person. “You two better not argue over this again or I’ll beat your arses with the flat side of your swords.” She gave the man she had her arm around an overly aggressive, friendly pat on the shoulder and walked back to the witcher, rolling her eyes as she did so. The men decided to stop their arguing for that night; they would be fools to continue.

Meanwhile, Geralt had been watching Cahir; he had not stopped watching Sage since she left his presence. He could not tell if the man was scheming, or just simply lost in idle thoughts about the woman he was supposed to be in love with. The look in his eye said the former, but he could not begin to imagine what he could possibly be scheming. He knew the armies of Nilfgaard had become obsessed with some kind of prophecy, but it was unlikely he was staring her down over that. He decided he needed to keep an eye on that one. As Sage approached Geralt, something, or someone, caught her attention, an unfamiliar face. She usually recognised all of the attendees at this gathering, so it was unusual for there to be a stranger. She stopped in her tracks and watched the stranger as they skulked around a column by the entrance way, staring intently at the queen as she sat on her throne. She got the attention of a guard that was standing nearby her, not removing her gaze from the stranger.

“Do you know who that is?” She asked the guard. “No, ma’am.” “Tell the others to watch him while I ask her highness if she is familiar with him.” “Yes, ma’am.” The guard hurried off to tell the others their instructions while she approached the queen. The witcher had followed her gaze and was watching the stranger she had been eyeing in place of the guard that was handing out the instructions. “Your highness, forgive me, but are you familiar with the gentleman at the back that’s lingering by the columns?” The stranger was cloaked in a black robe with a mangled rope tied around the waist, almost like a dishevelled monk. The queen narrowed her eyes at the cloaked stranger. “No, I cannot say I do. Please, have him removed, Sage.” “Yes, your highness.” She replied, bowing her head and walking towards the guards at the back of the room, glancing at Cahir briefly as she passed him. Her path was cut short by the stranger standing in front of her. She could see the lower half of the stranger’s face; they had a scar that ran straight through the centre of the mouth from the nose to the chin and skin that was grey in colour. She stepped back to put some sort of safe distance between her and them. “The end approaches. All the monsters will come down from the mountains and soon all you wretched humans will perish.” Said the stranger with an unwavering smile. She looked visibly uneasy as she motioned the guards over to remove the stranger, who left willingly. Was this the doomsday cult she had heard about? There had been rumours circulating throughout various cities of a doomsday cult that believed the end was coming and it was in the form of the darkest, most wretched monsters coming down from the mountains and wreaking havoc on the human settlements, but until this point, it was believed to be just idle gossip amongst the townsfolk. As she watched the stranger be escorted out, she felt a hand on her shoulder – it was Geralt.

“Are you okay?” He asked, genuinely concerned. “Yes, I am fine. It seems the talks of that doomsday cult were more than just mindless peasant chatter.” “He was part of that cult?” “Yes.” She sucked in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. “I should go tell the queen about this. It would be useful for her, and likely for the other attendees here, to know.” He nodded in agreement. “You look unsettled. You should rest after this, Sage.” “I will take my leave after I have told the queen about the cult member, but I will not rest immediately. I want to find out a bit more about this cult so I can see what we are dealing with because something is telling me that this will not be the last time we have to deal with these people.”

 II

 Sage had retired to the room she had rented in a local inn for the evening. She had already bathed and put on her nightdress, which left her shoulders exposed and hung low cut. It was a warm evening and the last thing she needed was to sleep in something heavy and extra modest. She was combing through her hair when there was a knock at her door. She put down the comb and went to open her door, glancing at her sword to make sure it was close by, just in case. It was Cahir. “How did you find me, Cahir?” She asked coldly. “You rent the same room every time you are here, Sage. You are a creature of habit.” He said, smiling slightly at her. His smile was one of the little things he did that made her melt on the spot, that reminded her of why she fell for him in the first place. She reluctantly stepped aside and allowed him in before closing the door behind him. “What do you want, then? You are not a man that shows up, unannounced, without a reason, so please, get to the point.” She said, leaning back against the door with her arms folded. He stepped closer to her, placing one hand on the door, by the side of her head, and using the other hand to tilt her chin up to him. Her heart was racing, but she refused to allow herself to cave. “I came to see you, my love.” He responded softly. He gently grazed his thumb down her lips. She could feel her cheeks burning. It was still obvious that he loved her from the look in his eyes; no matter how deluded he was over this prophecy, his love never changed. She sighed sadly. “Destiny has a cruel sense of humour, binding me to you.” He did not respond, instead, he kissed her softly, cupping her face in the hand that held her chin. She had seen many fierce battles with monsters people could not begin to imagine, but somehow, this mortal man rendered her almost powerless with something as small as a kiss. She lifted her hands to his chest to push him away, but she could not find the strength to do so. He pulled away gently, leaning his forehead against hers. A tear rolled down her cheek.

“I have missed you.” His voice was quiet, gentle. “You know exactly why I stopped coming back to visit you and you have decided not to change. You cannot miss me that much.” She replied, pushing him back to create some distance between them. She had no issues killing a basilisk with her own two hands but pushing him away took every ounce of strength she had. “Sage, if this prophecy is true then I can rule the Continent, and I want to do it with you at my side.” He took her hand again. “But I did not come here to talk about that. I came here to see the woman I love.” He kissed her again, wrapping one arm around her waist and tracing her spine with the other hand. Her hands lifted to his chest to try and push him away again but had already fallen under his spell again; she rested her hands on his arms, kissing him back. He pulled away, sensing that she still wanted to resist. “I can stop if you want me to.” Her boundaries were the only ones he respected; if she wanted him to stop, he was prepared to do so, no matter how eager he was. She shook her head. “Shut up, Cahir.” She replied before kissing him again. First her nightdress, then his shoes, then his shirt and trousers. Despite how cold he appeared, his skin was as warm as she always remembered, his touch was gentle – it was as if the madman that walked in his shoes had vanished and the Cahir she knew had returned. He whispered his old sweet nothings, he took his time and for that night, they were the only two people in the world.

They laid on the bed, facing each other; everything felt calm and familiar. He grazed his fingers up and down her arm; she was the only person in the world that could ever make him feel at ease. He missed her whenever she was not around, but he could not stop his quest to fulfil the prophecy. The prophecy foretold that a man that was destined to find a book, buried deep within a lost crypt that had not been seen in centuries; the book was believed to control the balance of the world and could be used to unleash chaos. He craved that power – he wanted nothing more than for the entire world to bow to him. But he would have preferred if all of this came with the love of his life standing by his side. He had to stop thinking about it. Talking about the prophecy did nothing but upset her, and the last thing he wanted was to ruin the first night he had spent with Sage in a long time. “Where do you plan to go after tonight?” He asked, breaking the silence between the pair. She opened her eyes that had been closing as she felt increasingly relaxed. “Likely to the next village I find. There is always work for a monster hunter. Where do you plan to go?” He smiled as moved his hand to cup her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb. “Unless you plan to join the Nilfgaardian military, I cannot tell you.” She rolled her eyes before closing them again. He shifted closer and kissed her forehead, then closed his own eyes. He missed the comfort he felt sleeping next to her, and the happiness he felt waking up next to her, but it was a sacrifice he felt he needed to make. The pair drifted off to sleep, savouring their night together before they had to part ways in the morning.

 III

 Cahir had left without saying goodbye, much to the disappointment of Sage, but he did leave a black rose behind, which was added to the flowers that usually decorated her hair. She rode onwards, alongside Geralt, in search of another village. She knew the monsters and the roads of the south better than he did, so he opted to ride along with her; a bit of company never hurt anybody.

“Do you think the words of that cult carry any weight?” The witcher asked, almost thinking aloud as his thoughts had been preoccupied with the incident the night before. She shrugged. “There is no way to tell right now. There was not much information available about the cult, so they are either new or books about their history do not exist in regular libraries.” She had managed to do a small amount of research before her knightly lover had made an appearance, but none of her resources told her much about what they believed was going to cause the monsters to come down from the mountains. “I believe there is an archive around somewhere here in the south that belongs to a group of mages. They guard it with secrecy, but they also are not particularly powerful, just very learned.” “How do you plan to get in there?” “Just twist a couple of arms and the doors will swing right open.” She lilted with a smile. He chuckled in return. They resumed riding in silence before spotted a strange gathering of people in black hooded robes. He pulled back on the reins of his horse, as did she, and they watched them.

“It’s them.” He said quietly, his eyes not moving away from the group. They were gathered in a circle, surrounding one member who was preaching from a book; from what they could hear, the book was in the old language. They understood small amounts of the words spoken, but not enough to piece together the sentences. “Mountain…crack in the earth…unrelenting chaos…a book?” Sage was muttering to herself, trying to make sense of what the speaker was saying.

“Ah, the bastard child of an elf and a human, and her witcher.” Spotted. The entire circle of cult members was facing them, but none of them seemed ready to attack them. “Please, we mean you no harm. I understand you are trying to learn about our cause.” She dismounted her horse, as did the witcher, both with their hands close to their swords. “What cause is that, exactly?” She asked, cautiously eyeing the group, watching for any signs of attack. “We are giving everybody a chance to repent before they are punished for their sins.” “Let me guess. You plan to kill everyone that joins your cult so they will be saved, am I correct?” Geralt asked, looking almost bored, as if he had heard this before. “It is the only way to make sure the chosen ones are safe.” The speaker sounded deranged and unhinged – not unsurprising. “Of course. What do you believe will bring about this punishment you speak of?” “The book buried in our leader’s crypt! Someone will find it soon!” Her eyebrows furrowed at the mention of the book. Could that have been the book Cahir was trying to find? It was believed to be an immensely powerful book that controlled the chaos and order of the world, which is why it stayed hidden, to keep the world in some semblance of harmony. She mounted her horse – she had heard enough. “We must get to that archive. I think I might know something about that book.” She said quietly as Geralt also mounted his horse. “I also do not wish to listen to the words of this maniac.” “Agreed.” He replied as the pair rode off to find the archive. Were the prophecy and the doomsday cult connected? The signs, so far, pointed to yes, but how did they start? That was what the duo needed to find out. Something was brewing and they did not like it one bit.