#she didn't choose any of this!!!! and she didn't recruit them. they decided they wanted to join. goddamn forkle i hate him

[the-way-astray]

can i please kill him

[bloggerspam]

Just A Quail

for @reaching-writing , loosely inspired by Just a Quail, by Louie Zhong

===

"Do you ever regret it?"

Danny blinked away the stars floating in his head, constellations slowly fading away as it turns from his astrology book up to Sam.

They were lounging in Tucker's dorm room, waiting for him to come back from his talk with one of his professors about something or other.

Sam was on Tucker's bed, crocheting another one of her purple eldritch creatures—a baby yeti, gaping maw still missing its yarn teeth.

Danny was curled up on Tuck's roommate's beanbag chair, reading as they waited in comfortable silence.

"Regret what?" Danny finally answered after too long. Sam was fiddling with the working yarn, tapping her a chewed up neon green nail against her crochet hook.

"Letting me kill you." Sam croaked out, adamantly looking down at her lap and curling up just a little more. "Again."

Danny blinked again, taken aback. "No, of course not. Why?"

"I dunno," Sam bites her lip, still not looking at him. "It's nothing. It was. I was just thinking, is all."

Danny closes his book, unfurling from the beanbag to make his way over to the bed. He slides in on her left side, not too close in case she doesn't want to be touched, leaning back against the headboard and lifting an arm.

Her teeth are making indents, rubbing the purple of her lipstick off, but she scooches under it anyway. He squeezes her shoulder, leaning his head against hers, lets the silence sit for a moment as he chooses his words.

"What is this all about?" Danny finally decides on. "I didn't think it bothered you this much. Have you been thinking about this for the last 5 years?"

Sam jolts, but grabs onto Danny's hand so he's not dislodged, whispering. "I—it's just. You've been having issues lately…"

Sam reaches over him to cradle Danny's left hand, hold it down between their laps, tracing the lichtenberg scars with a tingly gentleness.

"Is this because of my last doctor's appointment?" Danny whispers back. "Sure, I have to wear a brace now for the fine motor skills, but I hardly have any finesse anyway—"

"Your heartbeat is slow." Sam cuts off, finally looking up at him with that violet gaze, "Too slow for NASA. You get trembles in your entire arm, and you won't say it but your left eye's been fucky with vision."

Danny purses his lips, tilts his head away with a careless shrug. "I can work as an engineer instead. Sam, what is this really all about?"

"I just—I had that ethics class the other day and it made me think, you know? Really think. About how I basically took away your one dream, how I could have just. We could have found a way, and you wouldn't have to deal with all this bullshit and get to be an astronaut." Sam looks down at her lap again, looking a little crushed. "I'm going to intern at my dream non-profit. Tucker's getting recruited for that Game company he's been talking about since we were thirteen."

"And I'm going to be in school for a long while yet." Danny finishes when Sam can't. Her shoulders hunch up and squeeze just a little to hard at his hand, if he were still human that is.

"Sam, look at me." Danny urges, grabbing her hand and twisting them so that he's cradling hers instead. He waits until she complies. "Sam, all I ever wanted to do was go to space, learn about the stars, see it all up close. Maybe build rockets."

Sam's face crumples, but Danny lets go of her hands to tilt her chin up, keep her steady. "I can still do all of that—I have done all of that. Sure, it's a little harder to do as a human, but I'm not human."

Sam starts to lose that teary look to her eyes, so Danny lets her go, leans back to look up at the glow in the dark stars they stuck up on Tuck's ceiling so he'd remember them when he's lonely.

"I'm okay with where I'm at. I'm okay being human and fragile and grounded, because that's not all that I am." Danny turns his head towards her, gives her a wide smile. "How's that song go? I used to think I'd wanna be a bird of paradise…"

"But I'm happy being just a quail." Sam's smile is wobbly, but it still warms him up all the same.

The door kicks open, Tucker stepping in with an armload of books he didn't have before and pausing at the doorway when he catches them on his bed.

"….Are you guys back together?" Tucker comes fully in, dropping the books with a loud cascading thumpthumpthump. "Or is it platonic cuddle time?"

Sam and Danny share a look, laughing. Tuck grins, jumping onto the bed and causing them all to bounce all over the place.

And it's good, of course it is. They're all together, after all.

Birds of a Feather.

[rottendollface]

Sub-Zero Relationship Headcanons.

Character: Sub-Zero | Bi-Han.

Warnings: NSFW, fem!reader, abusive relationship, jealousy, mental and physical violence (both sides), unprotected sex, breeding kink, public execution, vorarephilia, blood drinking, mention of: foot fetish, organized terrorism and wars, cheating and substance addiction, pregnancy; Black Dragon imagined lore.

A/N: At first I was writing it as a big ass fic but I decided to switch into headcanons. That's why Y/N has her past and surname, and Black Dragon is mentioned here. It may look a bit complicated and messy but I hope you'll enjoy it ⸜(⸝⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝⸝)⸝

• Bi-Han loves his women of different sorts. The one, who has his true adoration and devotion, isn't someone he will bring to the Clan and call his wife. She is an opium addicted junkie from a brothel and she is his favored darling. 

Bi-Han doesn't need an equal partner. He needs a woman that understands her place and admits his authority, a woman that will become his comfort and will eagerly birth him heirs. Bi-Han won't try to impress her with courting and gifts, there will be no romantic atmosphere and gestures. His offer is simple: a proper upkeep for a strong body and impressive fertility. She needs to be smart enough to play dumb in his presence and service his sexual needs without shyness. Bi-Han is in search of a beautiful piece of meat. He wants to show his wife off on official meetings and then rest with her after a long day of stressful work. To his regret only the brothel whore is able to give him everything he wants, except one thing – a reputation. 

• It won't be his first marriage. In fact, it will be his third. Bi-Han treasures loyalty and he is known for his violent character: in Lin Kuei betrayal is an unforgivable sin. The whole family of a traitor gets executed in the worst way possible by Bi-Han personally, and a traitor is forced to watch the whole process before it's their turn. Their heads on pikes serve as a reminder to other recruits until another traitor shows up to replace them – and Bi-Han's wives aren't an exception. 

He doesn't see his little love journeys to the brothel as treachery though. In the awkward hands of his wives he feels unsatisfied. Bi-Han is a man of a great physique: he needs to be pleased regularly and passionately, or else his hidden treasure will step into the game. Yet laying with an addicted whore is a roulette – she will open her legs to everyone who pays for a hit. The spectrum of emotions Bi-Han feels about her can't be described with just words. It contains primal desire, hatred, contempt, love, pity and another hundred of different emotions Bi-Han didn't know existed. The magic she creates with her clouded wicked fantasy is striking better than any drug. Bi-Han is searching for a woman who will replace her. She isn't as lovely and seductive as she was before: with every visit, she looks more of a corpse. Dark patches and hemorrhages are covering her grayed skin, and her veins are destroyed by her new addiction. She disgusts Bi-Han so much he disdains to touch her.

• Once Bi-Han heard of a unique breed of women, born under the Hei family. Wicked by nature, they are the best wives and the most terrifying enemies: inborn vengefulness makes them quarrelsome and violent. Their unquiet mind and hedonistic nature are always seeking for pleasures, especially the carnal one's. Such a description excites his mind and makes him seek for the Family. This is how he finds you.

• Bi-Han isn't a dream partner but he is easy to deal with if playing by his rules and you don't have a right to choose. He sees you on a diplomatic mission to your clan and falls for you immediately: your quiet, mystical aura drags his attention. You are the panther hiding in the shadows: first, he sees your eyes, that are looking at him, glaring with wildfire of scorn and enmity. When his gaze meets yours, you dare to show up: you step out of the dark, showing him your glory. Your traditional black dress is open frivolously, showing him a lot but not enough. You walk away, your fine bare feet make light steps and leave no sound. It's obvious that you're on your mind, a sly witch with an untamed attitude. Bi-Han knows how to break women like you, and he desires to test your smug character. Just by the way you walk – lazily, swinging your hips and showing off the curves of your soles – he can tell how good and rather creative you are in bed. 

• Your father agrees to send you out of the mansion quickly. He doesn't listen for the rest of the offering even, as if your departure is already a great gift for him. Bi-Han is… surprised at the reaction. The old fool realizes that the Hei clan will come into Bi-Han's hands after his death due to the ancient and simple rule – no woman is allowed to become a Grandmaster – yet he is ready to give everything away so someone can take you away from him. 

It makes Bi-Han hesitate. No way you would keep your father at bay – how was it even possible? Yet he sends his servants to announce to you the great news that you are chosen as Lin Kuei Grandmaster's bride. 

• Bi-Han expected everything but not you closing the door in front of his servants. Fuss around your door and their confused faces (for sure they are scared for their lives) are making Bi-Han irritable. He's used to getting everything without delay and your writhing makes him angry. You don't even respond to the knocking at your door, so he has to come and knock himself. Then, after a couple of minutes, you deign to show yourself. 

Lazily, you lean on the door frame, hands crossed on your chest and a smug smile shines on your dark cherry lips, showing teeth with sharp cuspids. “A boy in his mid thirties doesn't know how to court a woman, and expects her to fall on her knees for him.” You say in a mocking tone, so full of yourself and not afraid for anything.

Bi-Han knows this type of person. A psychopathic abomination of a human that survived through the countless fights and lost sense of fear and respect for the ranks; the type of people that treated violence like some sort of amusement, not an instrument for intimidation and nurturing. In your cold cloudy eyes, painted in a cat's manner with eyeliner, Bi-Han sees nothing but vice and narcissistic conceit. You test him with your gaze, the same one you gave him before. Unexpectedly for him, it turns him on.

You open your lips slightly, a searching stare goes through his features, and your emotions are changing on lustful interest. You are coming to him, close enough for Bi-Han to feel your presence and the fragrance of pomegranate from your hair, but not enough to sense you physically. You look up at him, batting your eyelashes, the height difference makes it tempting: through the neckline of your dress he sees the perky chest and black lace of your bra. “Better luck next time.” You whisper, smiling sinisterly. 

You come to your room and close the door again. The change of your emotions leaves him thirsty for more. On the same day Bi-Han sends the best gifts to your mansion but you are displeased with everything. All he sees is your sour face with angrily furrowed brows that makes him think it is impossible to please you. He doesn't ask for tips and you aren't willing to ease his life. “I want more than this!” you say, throwing exclusive jewelry at him.

Normally Bi-Han would take you by force and end your life afterwards for this kind of attitude – he hates disobedient and ungrateful women. Yet with you he enjoys being treated this way. You leave him with a sense of hunger and obscurity, and he comes back every time to be rejected again and again.

• Loving you is the only torture Bi-Han succumbs to in his life willingly. You are like a storm: dark, misty and cold by nature, but beautiful and enticing. He steps in your rainfall, savoring the alienation mixed with attraction you give to him. Bi-Han finds the way to win your heart: he scouts about your enemies and brings their severed heads to you. These people aren't just crooks and small fries – they are top flight, and Bi-Han can only muse about how they fell out of favor. He comes to you while you are changing your dress. You come to him to inspect what he had brought you this time. Dressed in an overbust corset, lacey panties and stockings with straps you aren't bothered by shyness. On the right part of your body, starting from the hip and till the middle of the thigh, there is a black tattoo of a snake in flowers – Bi-Han can swear he has seen this kind of design already, but he can't remember who was wearing it. 

He shakes the heads out of the bag and they fall under your feet. Without disgust, you step on one of them with your bare foot and turn it over to see the face. Then you smile widely, realising that all of the cadavers belong to your list.

• Lin Kuei meets you with whispers and speculations. You are not the same as the others: you step onto this land confidently, as if you are owning everything in here, including the Grandmaster himself. Your smile is sly and your gaze is cunning. Bi-Han realizes he knows nothing about you. Your past, your present and your future are murky. Your identity fits into the portrait of your family perfectly. Keeping you close is like holding a lit bomb without the option to drop it.

•  You keep playing on his nerves. You bask him with affection only to cast him off discourteously after. You laugh at his face and devalue everything he does for you but show gratitude with actions. You are fondling him to get violent later, scratch him till blood and punch him, leave bruises at his skin. If he dares to grab you the same way you do – you provoke him to go rougher, to mutilate and kill you, spitting lies and portraying him as a monster, exaggerating his deeds into absurd with your words. You are a mad woman but he wants you in all your states and prays to find you in a good mood, as he feels his addiction to you.

You deny him physical contact for as long as you want, don't even let him touch you. You are disgusted by his kisses, you hit his hand when he tries to take your palm and escape from his embrace. Bi-Han feels like nonentity but doesn't dare to force you into his touch. He wants to play the same game with you but he just can't: Bi-Han misses you constantly, and touching you is a reward he secretly lives for. 

When he goes to missions you are inspiring him. The way you use your tongue can't be copied by any other woman: you kill and cure with your words, you are blurring the lines between humiliation and praise. The power you hold over him induces Bi-Han on new achievements and conquests. Countless numbers of his enemies are dead because of the trust you had put into him. You destroy and trample his personality but you never question his fighting skill – admitting and worshipping his power, you show proper respect to his warrior side. Your love is his disease. Bi-Han knows: deep inside your rotten soul you care a great love for him, you just don't show it. 

• You have your own… needs. Unexpectedly for Bi-Han you possess blood magic. The power has its side effect – vampirism. Your blood isn't enough to cease the famine that awakens from time to time. With Bi-Han looming in front of you, you can't resist your desire: your eyes target delicious outlines of his tense vessels full of cold blood. His cryomancy has side effects as well: some of them are coldness of body fluids and low fertility, which makes it hard for him to impregnate you. 

You eye him as prey. Bi-Han is a perfect container of blood and fresh meat, eating from him won't bring you any infections. You imagine sinking your teeth into his neck and sucking his blood brutally, your jaw twitches in anticipation. You know how to lure him into your plan – sex makes him an easy target; you are sure, once you have Bi-Han pounding into you, he won't be against your teeth tearing his skin up. You are building your plan step by step. After intimacy you are studying the course of his veins, bringing your mouth to them and licking protruding parts, your tongue circles the bumps that are dangerously close to your canines. You like to lick on his neck, feeling his arteries pumping up with essential fluid. You let him get used to your strange affection. Bi-Han sees it as a specific way of appreciation from your side, not ready to admit that you want to drink his blood.

You are seducing him more and more. He knows this state of yours. Your stare gets unusually soft and alluring. You call for him with all your essence, bite your lips from eagerness. Bi-Han loves having sex with you. You lack any shyness and fuck as if it is your last day on earth. You are open to try new things and adapt to his fetishes, whether it is strocking his cock with your feet and rubbing his cum into the cloth, or emptying a full condom into your freshly fucked hole. Despite his low fertility, Bi-Han uses a condom only to see you taking it off during sex. Your readiness to be filled with his cum arouses him to the point his cock starts leaking. 

Kisses with you are mind blowing: you lick his lips first, then he bites at your tongue, sucking it inside his mouth. Your lips meet at the point, initiating a wet kiss, with saliva drooling on both of your chins. You bite his lips and tongue, hugging Bi-Han by his neck and bringing him closer to yourself. Bi-Han is attracted to you so much he breaks kisses only to lick your face like some kind of animal, till it becomes all wet. You are as eager as he is: your palms are wandering on his chest, creeping down on his pants and squeezing the sensitive bulge. You outline the contours of his erected member and start rubbing under a sensitive tip, extending your touch down on its shaft. 

It never ends with just one position. Your favorite are doggy and cowgirl: when taking you from behind, Bi-Han keeps you by your wrists, pulling you on his cock roughly; when you get on top of him, riding him lustily, you have a perfect access to his chest, your fingers trailing it down, leaving red traces with protruding blood droops from your nails. Your cunt spasms as you see it, your initial impulse is to bite him but you keep denying yourself. Before he cums, you lean to him, waiting for the right moment. Your cunt puts greater pressure on his cock, sucking it in and tightening around his length until you feel it throbbing and the first shot of cum hitting your walls. Exactly at this moment you bite into his shoulder, blood rushing into your mouth and running down on the sheets. Bi-Han grunts but keeps you closer, letting you drink as much as you need. His hands are covered with new scars, left by your teeth, but Bi-Han is okay with it.

• When his brothers leave, you become his only ally. Bi-Han expects to be treated the same way as before but you quit your games and provide him proper support. You see the family tragedy by yourself: when Liu Kang recruits Lin Kuei to help the Earthrealm resist against Quan Chi and Shang Tsung, you take the part in the plan unwittingly. Liu Kang and his minions aren't happy to see you – and they expose your past as if you should be ashamed of it. 

Black Dragon special squad; soldier Viper – that was your name before you left the clan and started a civilian life. There was no tragedy behind your retirement, you just grew out of the concept. Explosions, gunfights somewhere in the Eastern deserts, drug and organ traffic are cool when you are young. By your age you want to settle down and live a life of a happy woman. Your boss, Kano, still waits for you to change your mind and come back. You receive his calls from time to time and have a small chit-chat. Bi-Han is visibly perplexed by the news, but you don't realize the reason for such a strange emotion. For someone who has never shown interest in your past, he is overreacting, you are sure.

“You know, in Black Dragon we don't leave our comrades no matter the dispute.” This is the only salty thing you let yourself say to Bi-Han. He ignores it so you keep silent for the rest of the period of his internal healing. 

• You get softer with years you spend with Bi-Han. While your arrogance steps aside, his paranoia and violative tendencies against you are rising up. He doesn't trust you: Bi-Han suspects you in collusion with Scorpion and he is searching for proof of his fantasies. He becomes possessive over you, and your usual treatment over him causes Bi-Han to punch you. Your strategy doesn't work anymore: once you tell him to get rougher and he breaks your legs as a punishment. The fight with no victor follows – it is an act of mutual violence, when both competitors just want to hurt each other.

You end up being injured worse than him yet you show him like you feel no pain at all –  you keep smiling while bleeding out. Behind the nasty bravado hides fear and realization that another fight can be fatal. Your new routine starts at this point. You didn't notice how you got stuck in a swamp. Now it is you seeking to meet Bi-Han in a good mood, or else you will have a new bruise. You can't leave – and you don't want to. Your thoughts and decisions are complicated. You believe that everything will come back to normal after some time. 

• Bi-Han is jealous of other men. He doesn't let you leave your room without his or maid's escort. Your route is restricted and includes female quarters, his cabinet and a shared bedroom. You are not allowed to sleep alone anymore, as Bi-Han needs to control you during night hours. Bi-Han's heavy hand keeps you close while he sleeps, and he wakes up with your every move. You have everything you might need on the bedside table: water, napkins, wet wipes, some snacks (you are not allowed to leave the bed if you wake up earlier than him) and a book. You bathe together as well: he hugs you while you sit on his lap and rest your head on his shoulder. Bi-Han demands you to touch him: play with his hair or stroke his skin. 

• His tastes in intimacy changed as well. Bi-Han isn't interested in your consent, he takes you whenever he wants to. Your resistance arouses him even more: Bi-Han wrings your hands easily and gropes every part of you. You have to get wet – just to ease the process for yourself. Such behavior makes you lose all interest in sex, so you are imitating it for his happiness. Bi-Han is addicted to the fragrance of pomegranate and cherry coming from your hair, and olibanum on your skin. Arousing in the past, the way he buries his nose in your neck and chest  to inhale your scent, now is scaring you. Your smell is heavy and suffocating in its richness, Bi-Han can't help but to inhale the sweet intoxication coming from your body and lose his head over you again and again. He bites you till bruises show up, his cold-dead fingers squeeze your curves so hard it still aches a few days after intimacy. He presses you into the mattress with his weight, trapping under his body, so you lay still and play obedient while Bi-Han forces himself into your unprepared tight cunt. He grabs your neck, chill running down your spine as frost cripples on your skin. He feels your fear, and he appreciates the sacrifice you make for him: his lowest, animalistic parts came into the game when the family broke apart. Bi-Han feeds on your emotions, he wants you to show him the spectrum of pain and despair. His sadistic dream is to see you cry, while he cums inside you, dominating your body and proving for another time that it belongs to him.

• You are free to bite him however you want and have as much blood as you need, but you stopped drinking from him. Bi-Han takes you to public executions to awaken your bloodlust, but you don't seem to enjoy it. Watching another human being reduced to the bag of flesh and bones with blood staining every inch of the execution yard doesn't thrill your soul anymore. Your body is in a sleeping state, waiting for the hazardous winter of Bi-Han's soul to calm down. You can't function properly anymore but he keeps calling for a hunter inside you: Bi-Han cuts himself raw and brings the bleeding wounds close to your face to feed you. Such a rough manipulation makes you succumb to his will, and you force yourself to taste his blood, afraid of his generosity. Bi-Han wants you to need him, inspires you to think that you depend on him. 

•  One day you make him happy with your long awaited pregnancy. It is a great opportunity for Bi-Han to prove to you how weak and dependent you are. He gives you a taste of better medicine: he treats you better than before but doesn't let you forget what is waiting for you in case you seek disfavor. You become so careful you are afraid to speak freely: you don't want any stress to harm your baby. And Bi-Han is happy he can manipulate you through the child. 

[bubblecat-co]

Rook Roost AU Information

this Post will be updated and change with time when new thoughts, ideas, and such are added

General Information about the Basis of the AU.

All our Rooks exist with one another. They no longer have the nickname of Rook. They make up what I can only describe as an army. 

They find themselves joining the Veilguard becoming Agents of the Veilguard (much like in inquisition) by their owns means. Maybe some were recruited by other Agents, maybe they were forced to tag along by their Faction leaders, or maybe they just joined because they felt like it. Who's To Say (you is who!) 

The main base of Operation is a Lighthouse Adjacent to the Canon lighthouse in game. 

Design of lighthouse done by @i-creatied-au

The lighthouse shifts to the needs of those in it. So if some need a smaller island away from the main building for any reasons it obliges. 

Joining the Veilguard + Factions

Now with our Rooks no longer being The Rook™ it means they didn't travel with Varric or got kicked out of their Faction due to the in-game reason that caused the attention of Varric in the first place. they Can partake in some of the events

I.e. have a hand in the war of Banners, help with the darkspawn, be apart of the ruin expedition, etc. 

It just means that they aren't the main cause of it. 

Names

now we talk about names. With each faction assigning a name to our characters you can handle it differently. 

You can manage to work it in with the others who decide to keep the name (being some distant Cousin somehow or being adopted alongside them) 

Or you can completely rid your Rook of that name, give them a new one or just leave them without a last name. 

With crows it's easier to work in as house names and all that, but if you want to switch your Rook from house de Riva and give them to another house you can! (I.e. switching them from De Riva to Cantori or Arainai) 

@elfmaid brought up an idea for the Veil jumpers. That there's a dalish clan that will essentially adopt those who want to and let them have the last name Aldwir (the name of the clan)

Canon stuff!

The companions are distant from our rooks. They can have some interaction but they aren't very prominent to our stories. They are busy and have much more important stuff to handle than slumming it up with the agents. 

This AU Is focused on our rooks and their relationships (friendships, family, lovers, enemies etc.) Bring in Canon companions' waters that down a lot because obviously we love them! How can we not!? 

Timeline

Since dragon ages timeline is the way it is so everyone basically had made their own. I thought I would share just a little bit of info that sets a timeline (loosly)

Viago within the AU is around in his early 40s

Teia is around her mid 30s 

Inquisition was 10 years prior to the events of the veil guard (Best explanation is using ages. Aria is 28 currently but when the inquisition started she was 18) it's 9:52 dragon that’s about it with timeline. 

The Rook™

After Alot of debate with myself over how to handle The leader of the Veilguard here's how we'll handle that.

Rook is an enigmatic force. No one knows a thing about them. Not their gender, race, Faction, nothing!

Which means that we can do the funniest Thing ever and have a million different descriptions of Rook and have our people fight over who they really are (making it a running gag in stories and such.) 

Big plot decisions. 

This will mainly talk about Minrathous vs. Treviso and how that will be handled.

This will happen chronologically. 

The only factions that will be there will be Crows, Dragons, and jumpers (unless your Rook found their way to veilguard on their own without anything from their faction) 

Each rook can chose Themselves what city they will go lend aid to (i.e. Aria going to Treviso to help there with the Antam rather than Minrathous)

So far There is no set in stone what city the main Veilguard Will have a focus on. But the idea is there will be a poll you can choose for your city to be saved because we love the city or against it for angst Potential. (We love Angst!)

The city will still be devastated but The affects lessened a little do to the aid from Our rooks. 

Examples

Treviso will still have blight but the Agents will have a hand at getting civillains out of there safely and helping with water and food. Less people blighted and sick

Minrathous will still have Venatori control but the rooks can help protect the ciztens and make sure they are safe while dealing with venatori. Less people killed on the streets and not as many dragons have to get in hiding. 

Removing the biggest damage completely makes the venatori, blight, gods and such feel not as threatening. Sure, we have manpower, but sheer manpower can't stop it all. Especially when everyone is split up in two different cities. 

Now on to Our Rooks YIPPIEEEE!! 

So i'll start it off with the Factions

Each faction will have one Advisor (and possibly someone assist them)

The Advisor's basic deal is to be the main source of information from each faction and to handle out the missions (side quests) that their Faction is asking For help with. They will be the ones in constant contact with the Faction leaders and in charge of reigning in their faction within the lighthouse (well trying to) 

Now here's the thing about the Advisors. There doesn't need to be one for every faction. It's just a fun extra role to world build the AU more! 

Current Advisors

Aria (me!) - Crows 

Esha ( @i-creatied-au) - Shadow Dragons 

Ezra ( @lunammoon) - Watchers 

Caspian ( @seizethemage-main) - Veil jumpers 

Jin ( @wickedadaar ) - Grey Wardens

Now introducing The Rooks

You can do it however you like. We started falling into posting an Introduction on what changes in their story; what their personalities Are like and how they ended up joining the Veilguard in a singular post. As a way to let each other get to know our sweet rooks. 

(At some point I have a plan of maybe having a big link to everyone's introduction for easy access for everyone eventually. we'll see.) 

The Main Tags for the AU

#RRAU

#Rooks roost au 

#Rookiverse 

Then finally the tag where I will put information about the AU and such

#Rook Roost AU Info.

The most important thing about this AU is have fun! This is a fun collaborative AU for the community. Most of the relationships that started between different rooks all began with us having fun with different art, banters, and writing prompts. It's truly the soul of this AU.

[kazethlyanzara]

Background for the five

I was finally able to come up with a bit of background info for the five but will probably slowly change in the future, now to represent them and their background info.

EmeraldEclipse Solaria - Age 27. The jade eclipse rider from the planet Eralis-ash in the Galtar system, he was originally young and was from a rider team called "Voyagers" before growing up and was rising through the ranks, becoming a captain as he was able to form his own rider team as he was able to choose two candidates who just graduated while still looking to recruit more riders.

Fenikkusu Neko - Age 25. The swordswoman rider from the planet Hokori no honō, during her life when she was evacuated from her home planet she was taken care of by a retired rider as they became her mentor and taught her how to fight and the freedom fighters known as the "Space Riders". originally enrolled in the Elysium Academy to become a solo rider, she ends up enrolled into Olympus Academy by her mentor to work with a team as she soon meets a determined girl who she surprisingly became friends with.

Nebula Waves - Age 24. The magic-tech rider from the planet Santoria, she originally left her home to prove herself as the best magic wielder on her planet despite her lack of affinity for it. but after seeing the actions of the cult, she chose to become a rider instead and help everyone from different systems using tech combined with her magic as she enrolled at Olympus Academy as she later meets a lone girl who didn't interact with anyone until she introduced herself, able to becoming friends with her as they both graduated.

The Rehabs:

PowderLunar Khrās̄ - Age 22. The lunar tundra rider from the planet Blizzard-rah in the Galtar system, he was captured by the cult when visiting another planet. he was then forced mind controlled and became part of an experiment to absorb celestial powers of the riders as he could absorb the celestial powers of the moon, later on he was defeated by a rider team as he was helped into rehabilitation. wanting payback he was made a temporary rider to stop the experimental project, months past after that as he soon became an official space rider.

ZayEclipse Solaria - Age 19. The crimson eclipse rider from the planet Claret-onia in the Galtar system, she was adducted at a very young age, years later as she became of age she was also used in an experiment to absorb celestial powers as she could absorb the powers of the sun but was soon saved by two rider teams working together. she was later then rehabilitated, having no where else to go until a certain Jade rider took care of her like family as she decided to become a rider so that nothing like she experienced by the cult would never happen to anyone else.

Their skills and powers:

Emerald - skilled in hand to hand combat accompanied with his powers and high stamina. with the powers of the jade eclipse; he can do power infused punches and kicks, energy blasts, and flight(basically like captain marvel). with his overdrive mode he's able to use the ability with the limit of five times without resting each time he uses it but after that, the exhaustion gets to him.

Zay - with her crimson eclipse powers and the ability of energy manipulation, she creates reflective force fields and is able to push and pull things with full strength when using energy manipulation(won't hesitate to form weapons if needed to). with her crimson eclipse powers she's able to send volleys of projectile attacks, ability to phase, flight, mind manipulation(not that strong yet) and having the ability to heat things to any type of point.

Powder - uses weapons that are similar to escrima sticks along with his powers of the tundra lunar eclipse. the weapons can combine together to become a bo-staff as he uses his powers to enhance it to turn it into any type of melee weapon(with the staff: hammer, axe, great sword, lance, spear. as the sticks: basically any melee dual wielding weapon). besides enhancing his weapon, he's able to shoot lunar beams along with the ability to freeze anything with just a touch.

Fen - carries the royal blade known as 再生への道の鍵/"Saisei e no michi no kagi"/"key to the path of rebirth". along with the powers of the flames(uses it like a firebender) her flames reaching up to high temperatures if possible.

Nebula - with many possibilities of both magic and tech together, she uses it to help her companion as a support but can also fight, casting buffs(for example: physical strength buff, power strength buff, speed buff, durability buff, and stamina buff). (with other spells: she can cast star projectiles, nebula blast and stellar shield).

Au belongs to @onyxonline

[scurvgirl]

Learning about my Rook through banter. Just a little self-indulgent writing.

-

Bellara: So...you're Dalish, right?

Rook: Yep.

Bellara: But...you don't have Vallaslin.

Rook: I don't.

Bellara: Did you leave before you could get it?

Rook: No. My father isn't Dalish, and I was born in a city - I joined my mother's clan later. Didn't feel like the Vallaslin would suit me at the time.

Bellara: Oh.

-

Lucanis: Rook, what foods would you like prepared?

Rook: Anything really. Dalish, Free Marches, Tevinter, any kind of sea food.

Lucanis: Good to know.

-

Rook: You know, Taash, you don't have to choose to be Qunari or Rivaini.

Taash: What, you think I don't know that?

Rook: Hold your dragons. I'm saying - I'm Dalish and from a city. I respect the Vhenadahl and the halla. I sang prayers to Andraste and to the creators...before, you know, we knew shit.

Taash: Okay.

Rook: It's all important, and...you're all of it, put together into a unique experience of yourself.

Taash: I'll think about it.

-

Neve: Alright, your accent is not Tevinter, Antivan, Fereldan, or Orlesian. You're a Marcher.

Rook: She's found me out!

Neve: Now to figure out where.

Rook: Do you want me to tell you or is it more fun for you to put the clues together?

Neve: Don't tell me.

-

Rook: Fucking Venatori!

Harding: You really hate them.

Rook: Assholes kill people and use my gods as a fucking excuse.

Harding: You made that one explode.

Rook: Yeah, well, sometimes we deal with personal shit by exploding an evil shithead.

-

Neve: I've got it.

Rook: Oh do tell!

Neve: Kirkwall - Varric recruited you, told you to keep where you're from a secret.

Rook: Good thought but nope. Not from Kirkwall, and thank goodness for that.

Neve: Dammit.

-

Lucanis: You're quite good with that blade Rook. Who taught you?

Rook: My mother. She's a very skilled swordswoman. All of her kids are mages but she insisted we all learn how to defend ourselves with weaponry against Templars.

Lucanis: Smart woman. You have siblings?

Rook: Yeah, two older brothers.

Lucanis: Why am I not surprised you're the baby?

Rook: Because I am baby.

-

Bellara: I don't understand. Why not get the Vallaslin?

Rook: My clan was informed of its true meaning. My keeper started offering everyone a choice.

Bellara: True meaning?

Rook: Slave markings, apparently. Makes sense now with what we know of the gods.

Bellara: That's horrible!

Rook: My brother decided to get his despite that. He said "Whatever they were, they are now how we find each other. How we take pride in who we are." I didn't feel ready. I don't know if I will ever feel ready.

Bellara: That...makes a lot of sense, actually. Thank you.

-

Davrin: You saw the Inquisitor, right?

Rook: Yeah. For someone who has been fighting for so long, she looked great.

Davrin: She's like you - Dalish but no Vallaslin.

Rook: There's a few of us out there.

Davrin: I wonder how she got rid of it.

Rook: Ah. Don't like Ghilan'nain's design upon you?

Davrin: Most days it doesn't bother me, but some days...it makes my skin crawl.

Rook: I'll try to ask her next time I see her.

-

Neve: Alright. You don't have Vallaslin because your clan found out information about them from ancient times. You showed an odd familiarity with the inquisitor. You said you are both Dalish and from a city. You hate the Venatori. You're from Wycome.

Rook: Huzzah! You discovered it!

Neve: You were there when the Venatori tried to take over.

Rook: They poisoned our wells. Blamed the elves in the alienage. They killed so many.

Neve: That means your mother was from clan Lavellan - the same clan the Inquisitor was from.

Rook: That would be my clan.

Neve: No wonder Varric gave you a code name and made it so hard to find anything out about you.

Rook: I was twelve when Miriel, I mean, the Inquisitor, left the clan. We were so proud of her, and so worried for her. When she came back...without her Vallaslin...there was a lot of heartbreak that day.

-

Solas: You knew the Inquisitor.

Rook: I did. And you broke her heart.

Solas: I didn't have a choice.

Rook: From what she's said - you did. You just chose wrong.

[mitraoki]

daze. (chuuya x reader)

note; @akutagawasbitch love u thank u for giving me inspo to write for bsd again TEEHEE🥺🤍 was obsessed with the idea of jealous chuuya so hopefully this fic did him justice AAAAAA-

cw; not really proofread, reader is a little more feminine (they wear a dress), reader is also not in any of the organizations, suggestive, drunk chuuya!!!

masterlist.

when they said it was supposed to be a party like always, chuuya definitely didn't expect to be met with hundreds of other faces he'd never seen.

he certainly did not expect for you to want to tag along, too. it wasn't like you haven't already - sometimes curiosity gets the best of you, and you couldn't resist your ravishing looking man in one of his best suits.

a suit that you'd picked out for him during one of your dates. wine red - just the way he likes it - traces amongst the silky black fabric. it was tough choosing between a bowtie or just a tie, but he preferred the tie; tucked underneath the vest that hugged his build perfectly. buttons glimmering gold under the chandeliers and a rose that he'd picked to match the one clipped on your hairdo.

you seemed to give chuuya motivation to go when he saw your outfit for the night. a dress that complimented his color palette, with the set of jewelry he'd bought for you one fine day. you felt really proud of how well you dressed (just for him, mostly.), so there you were, strutting down the steps of your shared home, an elegant twirl in the end to show him your completed look.

if you looked closely, you could've caught him drooling. he walked towards you, gloved hand loosely wrapped around your waist.

"i'm so in love with you."

"oh, you. i cannot take my eyes off of you either."

it felt so surreal that his boss decided to have a party out of nowhere, but you soon learnt the sole purpose being gaining new intel from a neighboring organization. this was just his way of thanking them. quite extravagant, but thrilling nonetheless.

"old man has so much time on his hands," chuuya grumbled, his arm entwined with yours. "or maybe it's because he wants us members to make up with 'em."

"hey," you slapped his shoulder playfully. "you gotta let it loose once in a while. i bet he even prepared your favorite drink tonight."

"for real?"

"mhm."

he sighed. "i'm only doing this because i love you. oh - and i also wanted you to see me wear this," he raised his head, adjusting his fedora triumphantly.

***

it didn't take long for chuuya to be dragged away by one of his colleagues. the so called ice-breaking session was currently underway and he promised to be back with you the moment he was done. you giggled as you heard him curse under his breath, followed by a toothy smile when he was greeted by a new face.

you found a seat nearby to wait when you met higuchi, a familiar face you've come across every time you tagged along for small matters (at this point he might as well recruit you here, but you'll leave that decision to him).

"higuchi, right? gorgeous as ever. where's um...," you wiggled your finger around, trying to remember the pale-skinned man you always saw her with.

"y/n! you look lovely yourself," you watched her rosy cheeks turn red within seconds as she fanned them off before continuing. "you mean akutagawa senpai? i was told to wait for him here. he seemed to be in an okay mood tonight, so i didn't want to be the first to ruin it," she concluded, straightening the fabric of her dress.

the two of you continued chatting. you followed her around, being introduced to other members of the port mafia. many of them were familiar faces, so it was nice to call them acquaintances now.

it wasn't until you noticed the back of the hall serving a variety of drinks. your ears picked up that it was first come first served, so why would you miss the chance?

though, there's always one thing you always forgot when you attended parties.

the watchful eyes around you.

you and higuchi lost each other in the slowly growing crowd in the drinks corner, so your first mistake was to assume she was the one snaking an arm around your waist.

your second mistake was thinking that it was chuuya trying to pull you away from the crowd.

chills ran down your spine as you peeled yourself away from the foreign arm around you, eyes glaring up at the bigger figure.

"do i know you?"

his words were only drowning along with the background noise, which only infuriated you more.

how long has it been since i last saw chuuya, by the way? you thought to yourself. he promised he would be back soon-

you watched as a gloved fist landed its first hit on the man's face.

did it all happen in a flash? was it in slow motion? you didn't know, you couldn't tell - he continued jabbing more punches around his face, adding a few more to his chin, his jaw.

you finally realized it was your boyfriend when a wine bottle flew past your face. it was gravity he was manipulating - it was nakahara chuuya.

"chuuya! stop it!"

he froze. his once droopy eyes darted towards the now broken wine bottle, back to you, and the man now laying on the floor.

he let out a frustrated grunt, tossing the bottle to the side.

"hear that? yeah. 's my name she's calling," he drawled, squatting to get a better look at the man. with the position he was in, it was like he wasn't ready to show himself till chuuya left his sight.

"touch her again and you would see your grave next."

restless, you grabbed a hold of his arm, hoisting him up only to end up stumbling from his weight.

he's either going to regret this, or brag about it to me, you thought, you inner self shaking their head in defeat.

"we'll get this mess cleaned up; he's drunk. why don't you bring him home, my dear?"

***

you walked in, with him abruptly freeing himself from your hold.

"honey, you're gonna fall. come on."

being drunk was no biggie for chuuya's strength. despite the different world he was in, he seemed to have heard you loud and clear.

it didn't even take five seconds and he had you pinned against the wall, arms slamming against each side of the hard surface.

"what are you-,"

"i'm sorry."

"wha-,"

"i'm sorry, baby," he finally looked into your eyes, the same droopy look you saw in the event earlier. only this time, it was mixed with rage, confusion and regret.

"okay," you whispered, placing a hand on his cheek. "chuuya, let's see if you're hurt anywhere, okay? then we'll talk-,"

he practically crash landed into your lips, causing his fedora to slip off of his hair, landing with a soft thud against the floorboard. you didn't realize until this very moment that it had been quite a while since you felt this sensation with him.

he forcefully pulled himself away from you, worried you might do so first.

"i.... i just... i need to kiss you."

his words were firm. his eyes flickered down to your lips before looking back into your eyes once more, and you could tell they were pleading, begging for you to say yes.

you wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling his figure in close to yours. doing the honors, you closed the final bit of gap between the two of you, earning a satisfied grunt from his throat.

he pushed you back further against the wall, keeping you trapped within his embrace. his hands now gripped each side of your waist, fingers digging themselves into your fabric like they were trying to find your skin. he tasted like wine - you figured he actually found his favorite on display. his teeth was sinking into your bottom lip. it didn't hurt, but you could tell he was tugging at them.

chuuya let go but left long, luscious pecks on your lips, allowing you to catch your breaths in every interval. his breath was now hot and heavy, his tongue successfully finding its way through, and exploring your mouth like he had been craving for it all night.

that's how he'd always kissed you. he craved for them. and if it were a meal, he would take his time with it, relish it even.

but he also does this when he's jealous. obviously you could tell what he was feeling right now.

you could feel him smirking through the kiss as he heard a soft moan escape you. with that, he moved you away from the wall, gracefully landing you with a plop! onto the sofa.

"you're drunk," you whined breathlessly, finally pulling away. all he did was silently chuckle in response, removing the first two layers of his clothing. the tie made a loud whip sound when he loosened it, as if reminding you to get a grip of what he was about to do to you.

rolling your eyes in amusement, you helped him remove each button of his shirt, sitting up a little to help him slide it off of his body.

he wasn't done with you though. he leaned in closer to you, causing you to lay back down. his lips continued their journey towards your exposed collarbones, reaching at one of the straps of your delicate dress as he pushed it further down your shoulder.

"....i'm sorry i wasn't there when he touched you."

"god, chuuya. i don't think he's gonna dream of it after this," you giggled, fingers tracing his exposed skin. he breathed in sharply as he held your wrist tenderly, kissing it.

"i'm sorry for being so rough with you."

"you did not hurt me at all, chuuya. i promise."

you reached for the back of your dress, but your action was soon cut off by his hands once again.

"let me take care of you, baby. please."

all created content belongs to mitraoki. reposts/remakes are not allowed.

[aishangotome]

Back to Reality (重返现实) - 2 | Beyond the World 世界之外

Back to Reality (重返现实) - 1

♡———♡

This morning, I had another required course scheduled, so I went to class as usual.

I diligently absorbed all the knowledge—now, any kind of knowledge could potentially play a crucial role for me at some point.

-

Today, the interview results were released, and I was hired.

Huanxin Technology had many departments, and this round of intern recruitment included several positions. Li Meimei applied to the President's Office, while I chose—

The primary work of the Product Development Department is to design and develop various mobile applications to meet people's daily needs.

That's the department I applied to.

However, the acceptance letter informed me that I was selected by the interviewers from the Marketing and Brand Department and was therefore hired into that department.

After some consideration, since my main goal was to gain internship experience, experiencing the promotional work in the Marketing and Brand Department seemed like a good opportunity, so I ultimately chose to accept the offer.

Li Meimei was also hired as she wished. We even had a small celebration after class at a restaurant outside the campus.

After getting the results, I even hesitated about whether or not to take the internship.

These days, I continued my normal life, like any other student, going to classes, taking exams, searching for internships, and going to interviews...

I tried to pretend that nothing had happened, trying to make my life return to normal.

But could everything really go back to normal?

What if I were never able to return after being pulled into the game again? What if I could no longer continue my life?

Should I spend my limited time with my family?

Or should I use this time to improve my martial arts and other abilities to increase my chances of survival in future game instances?

But I quickly dismissed the idea.

I didn't want anything to disrupt my life, didn't want to panic because of the sudden appearance of the instance games, and have my life thrown into chaos.

I would try to arrange everything well until one day, I could completely break free from that "instance game" and return to my normal life.

My formal internship would start next Monday. I decided to go home and spend the weekend with my family.

Over the weekend, I packed some things and left school, preparing to head home for a visit.

Having experienced life in those game instances, I could appreciate even more how precious it was to be able to spend time with family.

Everything at home was the same as before. My parents were a little surprised by my sudden return, but they immediately smiled with genuine joy.

My mother complained about me not giving them a heads-up while hurriedly preparing to go grocery shopping, and I quickly pulled my father along to join her.

During the trip, they asked me about my situation at school, and I told them about my upcoming internship at Huanxin Technology, having passed the interview.

My parents were even happier to hear that. They bought more expensive groceries than usual and brought them home. Our family spent two happy and relaxing days together.

Sunday night, I returned to school.

It was already late, and I was lying in bed, about to rest, when I suddenly heard a very familiar voice.

System: You can now freely choose to accept side quests.

I abruptly opened my eyes.

The room was pitch-black, but the system's voice remained clear.

System: These quests require you to return to the instance worlds you've completed. However, the time and location of your return are unknown.

Me: If I fail, are there any penalties?

System: There are no penalties for failing side quests. You can also receive corresponding rewards upon success. If you are interested, you can accept them in the "World Quest Station."

It seems I won't be able to escape this strange situation for a while...

I calmed myself and recalled what Zhao Qiu, a player I met in the last instance, had said—

In this situation, earning more rewards is absolutely beneficial.

I should give it a try.

While thinking, with a mental command, I returned to the Main God Space.

.

.

.

.

.

Yi Yu Personal Branch Part 1

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[violentvaleska]

𝑨𝒃𝒚𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔

ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ ʳᵉᵃˡⁱᵗʸ

ᴘᴀɪʀɪɴɢ: ʟᴇᴠɪ ᴀᴄᴋᴇʀᴍᴀɴ x ғᴇᴍ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

sᴜᴍᴍᴀʀʏ: ᴛʀᴀɪɴɪɴɢ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴀᴘᴛᴀɪɴ ɪs ɴᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ ʙᴜᴛ ᴘᴀɪɴ ᴀɴᴅ ʜᴜᴍɪʟɪᴀᴛɪᴏɴ. ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛᴏ ʟᴇᴀʀɴ ɪᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴀʀᴅ ᴡᴀʏ.

ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢ: ᴠɪᴏʟᴇɴᴄᴇ

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs: ↫ ᴘʀᴇᴠɪᴏᴜs ɴᴇxᴛ ↬

ғᴀɴғɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴍᴀsᴛᴇʀʟɪsᴛ

ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴏɴ ᴀᴏ3

ᴛᴀɢɢɪɴɢ: @xiernia @ajmiila02

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ɢᴜʏs ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏᴠᴇʟʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴛs, ᴋᴜᴅᴏs, ʟɪᴋᴇs ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢs ᴏɴ ᴀᴏ3 ᴀɴᴅ ᴛᴜᴍʙʟʀ! ɪ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏ ɪᴛ sᴏ ғᴀʀ, ʟᴇᴛ ᴍᴇ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs ᴀɴᴅ ɪᴅᴇᴀs <3

"Thank you for agreeing to this, Faye." Erwin Smith's voice has a sinister undertone to it, making you swallow as he and his Section Commander stare at you with intensity. You liked the name at first, thought it was pretty even, but somehow after a month you got tired of it. It doesn't really feel like it belongs to you, and the frustration of not remembering anything still haunts you. While your dreams continued with vivid images of your past, none of it was of any use to the Survey Corps.

After your recovery, still with no memories or anything else, Commander Smith decided it would be best to discuss your future plans. You knew it would come to this, they would never have let you just stay with them. You sit in his office, fingers fidgeting nervously as you give him a small smile, not in the mood to talk to him any further. You've felt shy and insecure around him lately, doubting yourself for most of your stay here. Of all the other soldiers you've met, Section Commander Mike has been the nicest to you. His weird habit of sniffing you hadn't stopped yet, but you got used to it and found it a bit funny. His subordinate Nanaba, on a good day, would show you around and tell you all about the Titans she knows. Hange Zoe, another Section Commander, was nothing but a little creepy lately. They wanted to examine you after hearing from the Captain that the Titans hadn't attacked you. You like their attitude towards the cold man, though. Speaking of which, Captain Levi avoids any form of contact with you, for which you are grateful.

"We have discussed your matter. Not only in the Survey Corps, but we also spoke to General Zackly." You have heard that name before, he surely must be in a leading position. "He thinks it would be a good idea to recruit you. We can't condemn you for something we're not even sure you've done. You have no home to return to, and so far you are in good shape." His words hit you hard, pulling you into a reality you wish you didn't have to face. You do not want to be a soldier, a puppet in the hands of these men. Erwin seems to connect the dots, furrowing his brow at your obviously desperate reaction.

"Of course we can't force you. But where are you going, Faye?" You bite your lower lip and let your eyes wander through the higher-ups. Mike gives you a thumbs up, probably to reassure you of your decision, while Hange seems giddy at the thought of you joining the regiment. Captain Levi doesn't spare you a glance, his eyes fixed on the window, a cup of tea in his hand. You notice the odd way he holds it, fingers around the rim instead of the handle. You shake your head and meet Erwin Smith's eyes again.

"I don't know." The silence is uncomfortable, you feel ashamed to be so clueless, but can they blame you? "You can always change your mind and leave the cadet corps. Your recruitment lasts three years, after which you choose a regiment". He explains casually, making you wonder what the other regiment might be like. You nod your head and straighten your posture to appear at least a little more confident. "I'm going to join the cadet corps." There is a certain edge to your voice, an uncertainty that makes Levi's gaze shoot daggers at you. The truth is, he still believes you left the safety of the walls of your own accord. How you managed to get past the guards and survive out there for so long is still a mystery to him. Sure, he can see why four-eyes is so infatuated with you, or why Mike likes to look at you for longer than necessary. You're an attractive young woman who seems to have outsmarted the titans. Having you as a soldier could be of immense benefit, which is why Erwin so desperately wants you to be his obedient subordinate. Levi observes you closely, the way you behave and carry yourself. He notices how your freshly washed hair makes you look healthier, your skin still pale from lack of sunlight. You are truly beautiful, and you draw your comrades under your mysterious spell. Male and female alike. Erwin's next words quickly snap him out of his thoughts, causing him to tear his eyes from your form.

"Levi and Mike will train you. It may take another week to clear things up with Commander Shadis. You have a lot to learn." While Section Commander Mike approves the idea with a quick smile, Levi slams his favourite china onto the table, almost breaking it in half. His tea spills over the edge and burns his fingers, but he could care less.

"There's no way I'll be in charge of her training! I've got enough to teach my own troops." The small Captain complains, anger burning in his belly. You look at him and scratch awkwardly at the back of your head. Sure, you don't want him to be your teacher either, but you wouldn't dare complain about it so openly.

"Levi, it's only for a few days. Why don't you let them train with your new cadet, Miss Hansen? I'm sure they'll get along fine." Erwin encourages, not noticing the black-haired, grumpy man rolling his eyes at him. You think it's the first time you've seen them interact like this. Captain Levi's lips form a thin line, obviously fighting with himself to control his next insults.

"Whatever." He spits, his teeth clenched as he crosses his arms in annoyance.

"Well, now that that's settled, we'll get you a place in the women's barracks and a uniform." He promises, a confident smile on his lips, while his deep eyes gaze at you with what looks like adoration for you. Shuddering at the thought, you look elsewhere, realising that this was probably all he wanted from the start; you to stay close. Your case is special after all.

━━━━━━━༺ - ༻━━━━━━━

A week later, you are bruised and beaten, your skin covered in blue marks from where the Captain struck you. You've spent most of your time training with his squad, and only had the chance to learn from Mike three times in the last few days. He is a busy man, always at the Commander's side. Captain Levi's squad is not too bad, they are good individuals and you get on best with a girl called Emma Hansen. She's seventeen, graduated from the cadet corps only a month ago, and has been under Levi's command ever since. The other members are Eld, his second in command, the twins Lars and Luca and a woman called Vanessa. She's not very talkative and stares at you like Levi. Training with them wasn't so bad if it wasn't for their Captain. He has been on your back for the past few days, putting you through a hard and unforgiving process.

You find the ODM manageable and learn that you seem to be good at it. Fighting, running and riding aren't for you. The faster your stallion, Sonne, gets, the more fear you feel. Sonne may be a sweetheart and seems to enjoy the way you stroke her head, but her speed is something you can't quite grasp yet. Running wasn't a problem at first but combined with countless rounds of parkour and chasing your new comrades, you'll soon be tired out. You hate combat. Wrestling with Emma isn't a bad thing, she's thoughtful and restrained, giving you tips on how to improve. Your other sparring partner, Luca, is a little harsher with his moves, but he would always help you up after your failures and motivate you to keep going. And then there is your Captain. It feels strange to call him that, to feel the pressure to show him respect. After being officially accepted into the military two days ago, thanks to Commander Erwin's connections, you've had to tone down your insults towards the dwarf. At first, you used to curse him whenever he tried to pin you down or make you run another lab. But now? You've heard that he likes to punish those who disobey and disrespect him, and you're certainly not going to play with his temper like that... or so you thought. Today is your last day of training with the scouts, something you've been looking forward to.

You need proper training, and while you've learned a lot from the Scouts, Captain Levi's way of teaching is simply unorthodox and mostly humiliating. In the cadet corps, you would at least be able to learn with other beginners. Erwin Smith made sure that you got a place in the southern trainee programme, exactly where Eren Yeager is supposed to be enlisted. The thought of meeting him makes you nervous, wondering if he might be the key to your lost memories. You have also seen him a few times in your dreams; a boy with brown hair and the greenest eyes you have ever seen. "Is this freedom?" He would ask no one in particular, spreading his arms with a broad smile on his innocent face. Perhaps Eren is your little brother? Or maybe a family friend. You'll find out sooner or later, you can be sure of that. While sparring with Emma, you notice someone appearing behind you, clutching your hips tightly. You instantly stop your movements, stiffening at the unfamiliar touch. Just as you're about to turn to find out who's burst your bubble, the man begins to speak, causing your cheeks to blush. Section Commander Mike towers over you, a small smile on his lips, and you look up at him in amazement.

"You're moving your hips too much. Keep them steady, it will give you an advantage." He explains, his hands guiding you into his preferred position. "Don't lean your body backwards, your opponent could easily take your balance away." With that, he moves his hands to push your back a little further forward, his touch never leaving you. This catches Levi's attention, a frown creasing his pale face.

"Oi. Stop touching her like a bitch in heat. Fucking disgusting." The captain complains and leaves Eld, his poor sparring partner, to come over to you, Mike and Emma. You glare at him, roll your eyes and mutter a "you're one to talk" under your breath. Unfortunately, the little man heard you and shoots daggers at you with his cold, stone-like orbs. Mike holds his hands up in defense, a look of annoyance on his usually calm face.

"I was just trying to teach her." He shrugs and crosses his gangly arms over his chest. "Besides, it's my duty to train her too, you know?" The Section Commander argues, but Levi is quicker to point out that he was "too busy" and had to do everything himself.

"Pf. Whatever." The blonde brushes the Captain off and turns his attention back to you. "Faye, I came to tell you that I will accompany you on your way to the southern division tomorrow." Your face instantly lights up, for you believed that the Captain would accompany you. That makes the journey seem a lot less torturous.

"Thank you, Section Commander, I really appreciate it." The way you smile warms his heart a little and he hums in appreciation. Levi scoffs at the sight, glaring at both of you before clearing his throat. "Mike, don't you have a section to lead, or something?" The taller one turns his attention back to Levi, raising his eyebrows at the man. "You want to get rid of me that fast, hugh?" He jokes, grinning at the Captain. "You interrupted our training. With all due respect, get lost." Rudely, Levi turns his attention from the Section Commander back to you and his subordinate, who has been watching their discussion with parted lips and rosy cheeks. Emma feels slightly out of place. "Of course, shorty." Mike insults, turning his attention to you and placing his big hand on your shoulder. "I'll catch up with you at dinner," he promises, leaving you alone with the Captain. Your eyes follow him for a while, confused by his kindness. Of all the people you have had to deal with, he, Nanaba and Emma have been nothing but subtle with you.

"Tch, silly girl. Stop drooling." Levi pulls you slightly out of your trance, cold eyes nagging at you, frustrating you. "I wasn't drooling. I was lost in thought." You bite back, imitating his sour expression. The way Levi treats his comrades is what you dislike most about him. Harsh, unforgiving and disciplinarian. Whenever you disrespect him, punishment follows. Cleaning, extra training or public humiliation is his way of "teaching" his subordinates. "Lost in thought? Got a death wish, idiot? If you daydream outside the walls, you are not only a danger to yourself, but to your squad as well". Feeling your hands clench at his words, your features darken. “Who said I was going outside the walls?” You ask in a provocative manner, noticing how his squad falls into silence at your question. "There are other divisions, and as a cadet I can choose my preferred division, can't I?" You feel Emma stiffen at your side as Levi approaches, stopping just in front of you. His heavy breath hits your skin and you can see that dangerous glint in his eyes, the one he has before he attacks. You know what's coming before it happens, but you're still not quick enough to move away from his outstretched hand. A yelp escapes you as he grabs your collar, pulling you closer to face him.

"Sometimes, Faye, we don't get to choose. Do you think the Commander would accept you joining the garrison, or better still the fucking MPs? You are here because you fucked up, now you have to make up for it." Spit hits your face as he hisses at you and you feel a rush of panic as he pushes you back, causing you to stumble and land on the ground, mud soaking your white trousers. "Not that you're good enough to join the military police anyway." He comments, looking down at you with disgust. Most of the other troops have stopped their training just to look at what has happened, and you are instantly ashamed. Hot, angry tears fill your eyes as you brush them away and stand up as quickly as you can. "Pathetic. Stop crying, soldier, and be a man." He turns and motions for his troops to follow him. You start to walk behind Emma when the Captain stops and looks over his shoulder, directly at you.

"Tch. Not you, brat. Get cleaned up, I can't stand looking at your filthy ass anymore."

Dinner is less strenuous. You've been starving for hours and are grateful for the steamed potatoes and fresh bread. Nothing special, but the food regulations make you feel lucky to get something at all. You decide to sit in your usual corner; away from the others and to yourself. You've been avoiding Levi since noon and don't feel like sitting with his troop. It would only lead to more humiliation for you, that's for sure. When Mike suddenly sits down on the bench opposite you, a shiver runs down your spine and you jump a little. You didn't expect him to be here so soon, he hasn't even eaten yet.

"Hey. I heard the Captain gave you a bit of a hard time. Don't take it personally, he's like that with literally everyone." He tries to reassure you, but you just cringe at the memory.

"He pushed me. Nothing big." You play it down, looking up from your plate to meet his eyes.

"So, about tomorrow. When and where should I meet you?" You ask, trying to change the subject so that Mike doesn't intrude any more. "Right. At the stables at 6 am. We should arrive around noon." He stops to take a sip from his cup of water and swallows a heavy gulp. "Make sure you pack all your things. Erwin also wants you to continue your dream journal. You should send him monthly reports." You groan and roll your eyes, not really understanding the whole dream journal thing.

"But they are useless." You remind him and cut into your potato, hoping to convince him that they are of no real help. "They are amusing, though. I can't believe you dreamt of Levi in a wheelchair. That's hilarious." He laughs a little and takes a bite of his bread, smiling at the thought of mankind's strongest being unable to walk. If that happens, they can forget about humanity. You, on the other hand, don't laugh as you swallow at the thought of this dream.

"It felt so real, though." You whisper, shaking your head in frustration, wondering what it could have meant.

"Don't worry your pretty head about it. Trust me." You smile a little, blushing as he winks at you. Mike is a flirt, attractive too. But somehow it feels like getting close to him would only bring you pain. And you were right.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

Have you noted how when it comes to Mai & Ty Lee, Azula has no qualms letting them know that in the long run, their voice doesn't matter. She think she knows what's better for them. However when it's Zuko, she also does think she knows what's better for him, that she knows what he wants deep inside, but it matters to her that this choice is not foisted upon him. She wants him to have freedom of choice, she wants the loyalty of the prince of the FN on its side/her brother on her side GENUINELY, not compulsorily. So like, does that mean Azula is classist towards her own friends because they're not royalty? Does she, in a way, have more respect for Zuko than she has for her friends?

While Zuko out-ranking both Mai and Ty Lee in Azula's mind because, instead of just being a noble like them, he is a royal like her, is indeed one of the reasons why she allowed him to choose, but it's not the only one (and even then we have moments like Azula not punishing Mai for explicitly disobeying her in The Drill, something very few people would get away with, nobility/royalty or not).

For starters, while at first Mai and Ty Lee didn't want to fully cut Azula out of their lives, they wanted to be able to decide how close she could get to them, how much influence she'd have over their lives - they wanted her as their friend, not as the princess they MUST obey. Mai and Ty Lee wanted to be able to leave, even if not permanently. Meanwhile, Zuko wanted to come back. Even after all the horrible things their family put him through, he still wanted to be part of it.

Of course Azula, the control-freak with severe abandonment issues, is going to offer a choice to the person that actively wants to return to their toxic cycle, not to the ones that are trying to break it. Of course she'll be more leanient with the person that is trying to be in her life and more hostile to the ones that are, in her eyes, pushing her away. And we see in the last few episodes that, when Zuko regreted his choice, any sympathy, compassion and respect she ever had for him was suppressed and she went for the "I'm going to celebrate becoming an only child" approach because Azula can't handle rejection.

There's also her loyalty to the Fire Nation, and more importantly to Ozai, to take into account as well. When she's reunited with Mai and Ty Lee in book 2, she's not demanding them to simply keep her company, she's recruiting them for a mission because she genuinely believes they're far more competent for the job than anyone else, and she's right. Ozai is canonically the person Azula loves the most in the whole world, and she takes her role as princess, and possible future Fire Lord, VERY seriously. She might care about her friends in her own way, but they're gonna have to understand that what they want is simply not as as important to her as what Ozai wants and what Azula believes is best for the Fire Nation - and if they want to turn their backs on her when she's doing right their country and Fire Lord, then they are forgetting their place and need to be reminded of it, and in fact should be thankful that is "allowing them to correct their behavior" instead of going labelling them as traitors right away.

And then there's Zuko. The banished prince that is likely never going to be allowed home again. The one that went against Azula for the Avatar - but not to help the Avatar. His intention is not to harm the Fire Nation, but to prove his loyalty to it. Sure, he's doing it by stealing a big opportunity from his sister and princess, but I think we all know Azula would do the same. By doing this he is also showing that he is no longer the "weak" child that cowered before a fight, because let's face it, Azula might understand what the pain of desperately trying to live up to impossible standards feels like, but she is yet to realize that Ozai is in the wrong for imposing said standards on them.

Zuko is not a disobedient ally/subordinate, he's an enemy that is showing he can be VERY useful, provided he is given what he wants. He also cannot and will not be intimidated - literally everytime Azula is posing any kind of threat to him during the entirity of book 2, Zuko ALWAYS goes straight into fight mode. That boy has, through sheer stubborness instead of cunning, put himself in a position in which Azula won't achieve anything by threatening him, and would actually have more to gain by working with him instead of against him.

Not to mention: making a mutually benefitial deal with an enemy and thus bringing them over to your side is a smart move and thus something to be proud of. Offering your enemy deal, having them reject it, and then you crush them like you would have done if the deal had never been offered is still pretty badass and means that, while you didn't win anything new, you didn't lose something you already had either. But failing to control your subordinates? That's humiliating because it proves you're not as scary/powerful as you thought.

And, at last, we have a fact that the lead writer, Aaron Ehasz, made explicit when he was talking about a possible Azula redemption if Avatar had gotten a fourth season: Zuko would have been the one guiding Azula through it because he's the person she loves the most after Ozai.

OF COURSE he gets perks Mai and Ty Lee didn't get. They matter to her, but not as much as Zuko. They're her friends, but he's her family. Considering the seeds for that redemption arc (that we unfortunatelly never got to see be even properly planned in detail), it makes sense that the people she had a more unequal relationship with would be the ones to turn away from her for their own sake, leading to her hitting rock bottom, while the one that was more on her level would eventually be the one that would have stood by her side after it all - giving her a second chance in book 4 in a direct parallel to second chance she gave him in book 2.

[elliot-ayy]

I was replaying DAO and Wynne suggested that Laiola become First Enchanter of the Ferelden Circle and I've been thinking about that a lot.

I think she probably would have if she didn't have obligations as a Warden.

I can't remember who's but some of the dialogue in the mage origin says that her Harrowing was the fastest they'd seen in a while. I feel like the implication there suggests that the Warden is a rather powerful mage and I always found it odd how involved Irving was with the Warden. Like there was a bundle of other people helping them get settled in the big boy mage quarters yet Irving called for them to talk to him personally. I know he just wanted to introduce them to Duncan but that's another thing. The Warden had literally just passed their Harrowing and Irving already had them in mind for Duncan?

All this to say, I think if the Warden hadn't gone off to join, well, the Wardens then Irving would be grooming them to be his successor. And I think Laiola would jump at the opportunity. She already talked to templars as if they were equals. To actually be considered equal to the templars and even get the chance to boss them around would be everything to her. And y'know, making the tower a better place for mages blah blah blah.

Anyway, enough rambling. Here's more rambling:

Laiola has always been interested in her Dalish heritage. Her mother took her from her clan once her powers started manifesting. She doesn't have much memory of the Dalish but her mom told her a lot of stories about them. She was always fascinated with the culture as an apprentice and deepened her study as a mage. She would study Dalish magic and eventually stumble onto Arcane Warriors which would become her main area of study.

As part of her study, with permission from Irving, she asked Greagoir if she could study combat with the templar recruits. Greagoir was apprehensive about this. Is it really a good idea to give a mage combat training? But Laiola came back with a 32 page essay that highlighted her current research and the merits of allowing her to train with the templars and the benefits it would have to her research. Her main argument against Greagoir's initial hesitation being that he allowed mages to study and practice combat magic and to admit he thought this was not dangerous was to admit that he did not see the mages as a threat which would negate the need of templars in the tower.

This made Greagoir very angry because he truly could not argue against it, so he begrudgingly allowed Laiola to participate in templar combat training. Though he claimed it was more so for her argument that Templars should have the opportunity to fight a real mage because that was something he could stomach better.

So on top of being a skilled mage and an excellent negotiator with thoughtfully argued ideals, she had a closer connection to the templars than any mage Irving had seen in his time. If he had any doubts about who he had decided to be his successor, he was certain now.

Her politics are that she believes the Circle should be strictly a place of learning. Once they are done with their training they should be free to leave the Circle if they so choose. They should also be allowed to see their families. Templars should remain but rather than protecting the world from the mages, they are there to make sure the mages are safe and only act in extreme cases. They should not get final say on if a mage should become tranquil and the practice is significantly diminished. In fact, mages would only be made tranquil upon request of that mage and with permission from their mentor. The Harrowing would be changed. I haven't exactly figured it out but I was thinking they would face a benevolent spirit that would pretend to be a demon and if they apprentice fell for it, the spirit would report back to Laiola and that student would have to stay an apprentice for longer and have increased possession prevention training. She would also encourage friendship between templars and mages.

These would be very difficult tasks and I don't think she would get them done in her time as First Enchanter but she would set the seeds. Particularly by training more Arcane Warriors with the templars which would encourage friendship between them and breaking down that wall a bit.

That's all I got. If you read all this here this is for you ->❤️

[burrowkit]

Random Writing Thoughts

Randomly trying to get this scene out of my head. In theory, this is chapter 1, where there's a prologue... nothing but what's in this post will be written, and likely nothing will ever be done with this.

It's kind of Elite / Supernatural Academy / ZA kind of themed I guess? But also sort-of related to the random dream (nightmare) I had the other week.

There are 2 mcs, and I hope I make it pretty obvious who the other mc (and the owner of the prologue chapter) belongs to.

Anyways, feel free to read or ignore :)

I watch as they parade the Potentials through the school's gates. There's about a dozen of them in total. A large amount for this current generation, but small compared to the previous generation.

Still, I hate them.

Generations ago, the number of supernaturals in the world were declining. Our rulers decided that we needed to bolster our numbers. So, they offered money up for any family that managed to help increase our numbers.

That resulted in those with 'contagious' supernatural natures to 'infect' humans.

It resulted in science experiments to see if new supernaturals could be created. Both from existing types, and unheard of ones.

Well, it worked.

Too well.

Arguably, having 1 school dedicated for training the young supernaturals, and having about 1 class worth of supernaturals per year is small.

But supernaturals have long lives. About 30 "young'uns" are each year is more than enough.

I narrow my eyes, watching as the blindfolds are torn off.

The Potentials... those humans left over from the experiments. From various accidents. From various origin stories.

I feel my fangs descend, the idea of sinking my fangs into their throats...

I shove the thought away. I don't need their blood. No, but most of them are just that, Potentials. They have the right genetic markers, and have shown an aptitude to a supernatural kind.

That's what has them kidnapped, brought here to learn how to harness their potential abilities.

Most won't survive it.

Some will survive and choose to return to their human lives.

Even less will make it through, graduate, and end up in the supernatural community.

We are a bunch of vicious creatures, best forgotten by the human world.

I drop from the top of the highest school tower, barely making a noise as I land. I march across the field, the one that many students play various sports between classes. A means to expel excess energy.

"Phe," their guide greets me, pronounced Fi, her eyes are narrowed at me. Although she's in a more human guise, I can see the horse-shaped ears that marks her unicorn status. "You aren't supposed to be here."

It's a warning.

My family is well-known for its interference with the Potentials. My family was one of the more successful at the New Supernaturals. They started by using their own genetic make-up. Using our own 'infectious' natures, and, unfortunately, procreation by more natural means. Consensually, surprisingly. Any human mothers were paid handsomely for carrying and raising a supernatural child. They were handed handbooks and resources. Those that didn't want to continue raising the child, happily handed the child off to my family.

Human fathers were handed some money, and were allowed in the child's life as much as they chose to, their options similar to that of the human mother's.

"Clover," I smile at her, baring my teeth, exposing no fangs. "I just wanted to meet the new recruits," I turn to face them.

"I know why you're here, Phe. You aren't welcome, here," she reminds me, grabbing my forearm, preventing me from moving further. From getting closer to the mostly humans.

I turn to face her, my smile widening.

My family's gotten a bit... touchy about the experiments. Mostly, in due to the fact that because the whole experimentation was so successful, my family grew to owning a large fortune. One that's passed around and earns more than we can spend. Then became the problem of training all these new supernaturals.

It was declared that my family, being the most successful, will pay for the tuition of each and every Potential.

Therefore, since that decision, it's been a passed on role in my family to chase off as many Potentials as we can. Never outright killing them, but... well... accidents happen. Who could predict that a heavily diluted werewolf would have the instincts on how to turn into a wolf, but not the ones that tell him he can't jump off a mountain?

"I can help identify which one is which," I offer, meeting Clover's eyes. An offer. My family, as a consequence of all the experiments, have a unique knack for identifying supernaturals.

Which, consequently, makes it that much easier to pair up any new Potentials with a proper mentor, helping to prevent further mishaps. And truly, no one really wants more deaths.

Deaths just cause more suspicions onto my family.

Clover hesitates, her hair is jet black and long. Her eyes are a beautiful shade of brown, not that far off from my own brown eyes.

If I hadn't seen her in her true form, I wouldn't understand why her name is Clover. There's this marking with her coat that makes a clover. Coincidentally, she also enjoys eating clovers, although it's hard to tell if that's a trained and learned behaviour, or one she was naturally born with.

"It won't take long, and you can follow me, even holding my arm. Although you probably want to mark down who is who, for the head of the school," I suggest, trying to ply her to my demands.

"Okay," Clover agrees. "But I'll be right by your side."

I grin, moving closer to the Potentials. "Welcome," I greet, waving at them with my free hand. "I'm Ophelia, but most people call me Phe," I look at Clover briefly, nodding at her, before turning back to the others. "I'm going to quickly identify which supernatural you've got tells for. Then I'll probably see you in class."

A few look around with concern on their face, but one of them continues to glare at me, as if I'm the reason for her being here.

Chances are, through a roundabout way, I am. Still, we'll see.

All of our are in our adult years, most about 20 years old. That's about when the genetics truly kick in, slowing down our aging bodies. And, when our various supernatural powers tend to begin to work. One by one, as we learn how to become stronger.

I approach the first Potential. I give him a quick sniff, frowning at him. I can see Clover smirking at me in the corner of my eye. "Siren," I sigh. I don't bother mentioning the little genetic marker, marking him as part of my family's experiments.

I move 3 more Potentials with the first, more sirens. 2 more are of my family's experiments.

I then turn around, finding a pair of twins. "A succubus and an incubus," I comment, a tad surprised to find such beings here. Although, twins are more likely to be paired in a supernatural bond of sorts. They don't have my family's tell tale sign, but I recognize the one for the top -cubus family. I do share that knowledge with Clover.

These two I can at least pawn off their financial responsibility to another family.

Three werewolves, two of them from my family's efforts.

And three vampires.

The last vampire, the 12th one, I stare at.

I move closer, breaking free of Clover's grip. I reach out, touching my right index finger just under her chin. I tap at it, moving her head to look slightly up.

"Cousin," I exhale in surprise.

"I'm not your cousin," the Potential pulls away, glaring at me.

Her eyes are a beautiful hazel green. Her hair though, is the same shade of mine. Where I keep my short, almost appearing constantly wind-swept, hers is longer. Mid back in length.

"I bet you've been left with a desire to bite things, hm?" I ask her, staring down her eyes. "I bet you love to run, but never bothered joining anything in high school."

I think it over, knowing exactly one way to prove she's of my family. I swipe one of my nails down my forearm. A risky move, especially considering the two other vampire Potentials are actually vampires.

Not to mention the werewolves, equally inclined to hunt. The sirens, too. Hm...

Still, I see her eyes flash red. I react, gripping her jaw with my right hand. She tries to pull away, but I don't need to open her mouth. She's still a mere Potential.

Still.

"Cousin, indeed," Clover comments, writing it down.

I turn the Potential's head back and forth, carefully examining her. She looks about ready to bite me. I almost wish she would.

"You might just make it," I smile at her, releasing my hold on her jaw.

She glares at me, crossing her arms over her chest.

I grin, giving her a wink. "See you when you wake up."

Then, I plunge a small knife into her heart.

She gasps, reaching for the wound, but I pull the knife out. She tries feebly to put pressure on the wound as she falls.

"You weren't supposed to do that!" Clover seethes at me.

I look at her, giving her a wink and a smile. "Tonight's big task is to try and unlock their Potential."

"No," Clover argues. "Tonight, we're supposed to give them a tour! Show them to their rooms! Match them with their mentors!" She yells at me.

I clench my jaw to not wince at her loud voice. "If that's what they told you, then whoops, someone left out a glaringly large hole. All that's supposed to happen, yes, but ideally, throwing a bunch of human Potentials with a bunch of supernaturals never works out well. They'll be dead by the end of the week."

"Because you'll kill them!" Clover shouts back.

"Psht," I scoff. "I wouldn't have to touch them. "Humans don't make it here. And if, by some miracle, they do, then they return home haunted after the torment they face here. I did her a favour."

Clover looks about ready to expose her true form and stab me in the heart with her horn.

I look around, noting that the vampires look especially horrified. Yes, everyone else is horrified about watching someone die. But the vampires... Oh yeah, they're so untrained, the blood spilling out is driving up their hunger.

"You may want to get the vamps food first," I offer up to Clover. "They look about ready to drain her dry."

"You just killed her!" Clover shouts at me, reiterating the events.

I shrug, taking a couple steps backwards. "Yes, but I can also smell the vampire blood in her. She'll be back, stronger than ever. Besides, she's not really dead. But, if these guys steal her blood, she will be."

"You're taking her to the infirmary!" Clover yells at me, placing her hands on her hips.

"Fine," I shrug, moving towards the cousin and easily picking her up in my arms. "Anything else, milady?" I ask her.

Clover just glares at me.

I grin, turning towards the infirmary. It doesn't take long, to drop her off.

I inform the doctors there what happened, hey, my blade is still covered in her blood. They'll ensure she has to proper nutrients to fully revive.

And I head for a quiet corner, pulling out my phone and calling my father's number.

"Four sirens, three are ours," I report, not bothering to exchange pleasantries. "A succubus and incubus, not ours. 3 werewolves, 2 are ours. 3 vampires, 1 is ours and one is a cousin..." I trail off on the last one, preparing for a loud shouting.

My brothers have all been tasked with this same task. None of us, since my grandfather's time here, have run into a cousin.

"A cousin? You're sure?" My father asks, his voice terrifying as it always is.

"Yeah, I'm sure," I answer quietly. "Her eyes turned red at the sight of blood."

Most vampires will just have their fangs drop. Usually, their eyes will change colour ever so slightly. A more vibrant or darker shade of their nature eye colour.

But my family? They bred us to turn red. It's something we can control once we get a hang of it, to change appear like others. Most, as we live among supernaturals, choose not to.

Besides, I'm the only child that turned vampire and not werewolf. Another little leftover trick from my family.

They weren't above experimenting on themselves before taking it to the humans, too.

"You'll have to be her mentor," my father informs me, already typing away to look up the school's information.

I don't bother answering.

Usually, the Potentials are handed out randomly to other supernaturals in the school. They do try to match supernatural types. But, without confirmation, it can be tricky.

"I'll call you before the night is up," he adds, hanging up on the line.

I sigh, lowering the phone and sliding it into my pocket.

To change who mentors who, is usually a steep cost.

That cousin, whoever she is, can't be left in the hands with anyone else.

I know what's expected of me. Ensure she survive. Ensure she makes it to the supernatural world. Ensure she knows where she belongs in society.

Still, a part of me is terrified. How am I supposed to train a Potential properly and figure out how to chase off the others?

It's a useless question.

The answer is I'll figure it out.

Immediately, the group chat chimes. I pull out my phone, surprised it's just the one between my brothers and myself.

Each of us are pretty much 4 years apart. A necessity to help safeguard new Potentials in the world.

Felix: Heard about the cousin. Dad's pissed. Need some help?

Kerrin: Phe's gonna handle this. She doesn't need our help.

William: We didn't need help with our Potentials, she doesn't need our help.

That about sums things up with my family.

There are more brothers than that, but the four of us are the closest in age, the 4 youngest.

William acts like the oldest brother, but he's also so ready to write us off.

Kerrin, oh, he loves to say I'm spoiled. The only daughter in the family. Loves to call me Daddy's Little Girl, even when our father's angry.

And Felix. The closest in age. He was forced to start school a year earlier, just so there wouldn't be a gap. He brought me into the school for multiple weekends. Just so I could become familiar with all the family trade secrets.

My first year here, and I'm already sure I'll fail. Not exactly the hopeful feeling I felt yesterday when I arrived.

Still, I know how to handle myself.

I know the families, the supernatural types. Felix always let me read his textbooks, allowing me to catch up to his grade level in knowledge.

Which really didn't help Kerrin's view, since I frequently came home with the highest test marks.

Only Felix knows that I spent every second of my free time learning everything I could.

I start to head towards the cafeteria, determined to get a hold of some food. Sure, just cause I need blood, doesn't mean I won't eat French Fries. Just means I'll drink blood when I do eat them.

Another chime on my phone indicates I received an email.

I read it.

Ophelia Martin, you have been assigned to Sarah Marvin.

I click it open, and opening the file on one Sarah Marvin.

There, I see the picture of the cousin.

I sigh with relief.

At least there's one less thing for me to worry about.

[g8dess]

alright 👁 the entire ask game for your ouran s/i? if you're feeling up to it hdshkgddhkh

Oh god for my Ouran S/I, I gotta choose which one then because I have too many S/I’s for that series xD

I think I’m just going to do my See Me S/I, Yani, who has known the twins for as long as she can remember, but only starting middle school is starting her path to befriending them.

F*ck that, have other self inserts too 🤜🤜

Also doing some asks for Yoshiko, my reinzu and me self insert, who finally requests a host after her best friend comes with her to the host club, and Kaiga, my blooming oc self-insert who's part of the host club as the dependent type.

⏰ - When/How would our S/Is meet? How were the first impressions?

Considering my self insert is very closed off and only has one close friend, we’d probably bump into each other in the hallways, and after some short apologies we’d be off on our own ways again. It’d take a third party to introduce us to each other later down the line, which in this case would be the host club members, considering he’s part of the host club himself.

First impressions are good on my part, Yani can see how protective he is of the host club and doesn’t immediately register his faux mean tone, so she admires him slightly. She adores his chiller attitude compared to the hyperactiveness of her best friend, so she sometimes goes to him if she wants to wind down for the day. 

While they probably see each other in the halls a lot, considering they are in the same year, officially they met in the host club during Yoshiko’s little host hopping period to get to know everyone a bit.

At the beginning, Yoshiko didn’t really like Ryomen, the mean guy facade rubbed her the wrong way, and Ryomen doesn’t really care about that. It's only after she asks if he can drop the facade with her, that the mean guy facade gets put aside for a bit, it is still there but less so, and Yoshiko really appreciates that but there is an underlying tension between the two.

Kaiga and Ryomen met when they were recruited by the host club. At first conversations were sparse and awkward, they didn't seem to have much in common. As time goes on though, Kaiga does seem to depend more on Ryomen than he does with the other hosts.

👥 - Would they be friends/enemies? How well do they trust each other? How do you think the dynamic would be?

I think they’d more be considered friendly acquaintances, bordering on friends. Yani doesn’t easily let others in, so she doesn’t want to use a label that Ryomen himself doesn’t use first. There’s a lot of uncertainty about whether they are friends or not, but they aren’t hostile towards each other.

Yani does trust him a lot, considering she knows he’s protective of what he loves and that means a lot to her. But she won’t share secrets with him just yet.

I think they’d be very silent when with each other, occasionally breaking it to ask the other a question, mostly about the food they might be eating or the activities for the day. But it’d be a comforting silence, no need to act around the other.

I don't think they’d get along that great, Ryomen being protective over the host club wouldn't fully trust Yoshiko. 

Ryomen would hear the tales of how me and a friend are with the twins and completely throw them off, and he would decide then and there that he can't leave us alone together in fear we'll ruin their routine again. Yoshiko would feel bad and avoid Ryomen most of the time.

They’d be considered friends, as all host club members are friends. Ryomen and Kaiga are both protective of their club, Ryomen a slight bit more so, so they'd do quite a lot for one another. 

I wanna believe they'd both trust each other quite a bit. I know Kaiga trusts Ryomen a lot, maybe a bit too much. Any secret he has, he'll share with him.

Ryomen has that protective big brother energy and Kaiga has that meek younger brother energy, so they work perfectly upon one another. XD. Ryomen is a reminder to Kaiga to stand up for himself and others, while Kaiga is a reminder to Ryomen to be a bit more honest and slow down.

🌼 - What does your S/I like about mine?

I said it before and I’ll say it again, the fact he’s protective of the host club and Haruhi. Yani is an only child so she only has her best friend being protective of her, but the feeling of having an older brother figure like Ryomen around puts her at ease a bit more. And she herself is protective of what she loves, so seeing somebody else have the same quality is nice to her.

She also likes their shared love for books, as for the rest this isn’t something she can discuss with anyone outside of her club activities.

His silly antics. Yoshiko loves that about everyone in the host club, how dramatic they can all get. It's entertaining to watch.

His “I don't care” attitude. Kaiga grew up caring too much about what other people think of him, so it's something he really likes and admires about Ryomen. 

🌹 - Your S/I and mine are double-dating with our F/Os! How do you think that would go?

Awkward if we do a group activity during high school, but only slightly. Kaoru and Yani would have secret touches and blushes on their faces, while I imagine Ryomen and Kyoya to have lasting gazes. But none of them would be willing to admit to anything romantic, and they are all no-nonsense people so we’d just focus on our activity most of the time.

After high school, when the relationships are established enough, it’d be quite a classy date.

I think it’d be quite tense as Ryomen doesn't fully trust her and would be too vigilant about whether or not she's a good match for Kaoru. So neither party can fully relax to enjoy their time together. 

I think everyone would dote a little on Kaiga, Haruhi and Ryomen are his biggest supporters, so they have difficulty letting go of the doting tendencies. Kyoya is just the mother of the group, looking out for everyone. Overall they’d have a good and chill time. 

👀 - What does your S/I think about my F/O? Does it affect the relationship between your S/I and mine?

How Yani thinks about Kyoya doesn’t affect her relationship with Ryomen at all. She doesn’t think much about Kyoya, just that he’s a decent person who knows what he’s doing. And I imagine Ryomen doesn't really care about her opinion regarding crushes anyway. XD

Yoshiko has a difficult time grasping Kyoya's character, so she's often scared of him. It also means she's scared of Ryomen whenever Kyoya becomes a topic of their conversation as she feels that her negative opinion is met with resistance. 

Kaiga has been in the same class as Kyoya for an eternity it seems to him, so he knows how cold he truly can be. It scares Kaiga a little bit, but Ryomen's opinion of Kyoya, and the fact they ended up in the host club together, drastically changed Kaiga's opinion. So nowadays he's chill with Kyoya.

Ryomen's opinion on Haruhi really affects Kaiga though, he's afraid to overstep boundaries or take initiative when it comes to his feelings as he doesn't want to trigger Ryomen's protective feelings over Haruhi.

😏 - Would your S/I tease mine about their F/O? Do you think it’d be easy for my S/I to tease your S/I about their F/O?

Yani wouldn’t tease so much as just simply ask about him. Anything Ryomen wants to share he can, but she won’t press the matter any further.

However it’d be very easy to tease Yani about her crush, even if she won’t show it much outwardly it does fluster her when she’s asked about her crush.

Yoshiko would try to tease him a little bit, but it takes only one glance from Ryomen to shut her up. Meanwhile Ryomen can tease her about her crush and she'll just stammer and fluster super hard, with no retaliation. 

Kaiga isn't the type to tease others, and in return doesn't like to be teased either. It's a bit difficult to fluster him since he's quite honest, but he will blush and avert his eyes, trying to divert the attention elsewhere. 

✈ - What would be an ideal hangout between the two S/Is? Any particular activities the two would enjoy together?

The two of them can be seen just enjoying each other's presence by reading and writing around one another. Enjoying some good tea and coffee and pastries. With Ryomen occasionally asking Yani to check over his work, or Yani commenting on something about the book she’s reading.

Yoshiko loves writing as well, so this is something they could bond over, if they were to open up about their writings. I can see them, mostly Yoshiko, very excitedly and passionately explaining all the lore of their characters.

🔍 - If the two were trapped somewhere/stuck in a dire situation, how would the two be able to resolve it?

Yani is a person that panics easily but keeps that panic under check, so not much is noticeable from it. I think the added presence of Ryomen would calm her down more easily too. So the two would probably put their heads together to get out of the situation, after some silence as neither wants to take the lead. Ryomen would take the lead a bit more than Yani, considering Yani is super bad at being the brains behind operations.

She would silently cry as they both figure out what's going on. Yoshiko explicitly asked him to ignore the tears, so they actually get some things done for their rescue.

Kaiga would freak out, it'd take Ryomen all his power to calm him down, so they wouldn't be able to do much more than wait until help arrives.

✏ - Share/Make up a shared favorite memory of the two!

When the host club got wind of Kaoru and her affection toward one another, they gave her trials to overcome to see if she was a worthy match. Each host hosted a trial, and the one Ryomen gave was by far one of the toughest of all. Mostly because he was one of the only hosts to take it seriously.

His intense stalking made her a bit paranoid, and she wanted to confront him about it. One way or another they both ended up soaked in the schoolyard pond, but talking it out they realized how silly they both looked.

📸 - Send a meme your S/I would send to my S/I!

🎁 - What’s your S/I most likely to give my S/I as a present?

Yani is most likely to gift yet another notebook to Ryomen, sometimes a book to spice things up a bit if she knows it’s one he would enjoy or have use for.

Yoshiko would probably just order a grand bouquet as a gift, not really knowing what else to give him.

Kaiga gets all kinds of small gifts, a book here, a new notepad there, some rocks and pebbles, a flower or some cute keychains. Anything that makes him think of Ryomen he will get for him.

‼ - Share anything else you think about our S/Is together !

Out of all the people she has asked to come visit her club, Ryomen is one of the few that actually came over to check it out. It became a small hiding spot for him.

Yoshiko and her friend were very quick to pick up that Kyoya was important to him, but couldn't pinpoint that it were romantic feelings, so for a while she encouraged her friend to persue him instead. After they noticed, aka were told, that Kyoya wasn't interested they were quick to change course and encourage Ryomen instead.

Kaiga has a soft spot for Ryomen, he crushed on him for a little while before and right after Haruhi joined.

[fantasyinvader]

I've seen people try to defend Tiffany Fox in the Telltale Batman games, saying that she's supposed to be a foil to John Doe/The Joker. That while the Joker can't really become a hero through Bruce's support, Tiffany can.

But, is that really the case?

A late game reveal is that Tiffany was the one who murdered the Riddler as revenge for her father. The Riddler was in custody, his threat had been dealt with, and Tiffany just kills him. But not only that, she does so while framing John Doe for it. Her actions set off the main conflict of the second season, which snowball. It's because of her that Bruce has to manipulate John to get close to the Pact, dealing with Waller, and as a result ultimately fighting John when he becomes the Joker whether Joker tries to go vigilante or become a villain. It's the events of the game that ultimately result in Alfred threatening to leave Bruce if he doesn't quit being Batman.

80% of players decide to take Tiffany as a sidekick when they confront her about this at the end of the game. But the thing is, Tiffany makes it clear she doesn't feel any regret. After all, Riddler killed her father. She only feels regret because she wants to be Batman's sidekick but now her actions have complicated that. She'll talk about how hard things were for her family, but if you choose to try and arrest her she'll instantly become a criminal because you treated her like one. She's ready to make that jump if she doesn't get what she wants.

Giving her what she wants is Batman saying that she'll work for him, keeping an eye on her but that just feels wrong. Part of the reason Batman doesn't kill is because it would mean he's being judge, jury and executioner. He'll hand criminals over to the police again and again, yet the courts will continue to throw them into institutions they can break out of like Arkham. People use this against Batman, but it's more the system is failing to properly deal with those individuals. But here, Batman is deciding to play judge and jury, he's the one deciding how she will serve her punishment, which involves her getting her way.

Meanwhile, the Vigilante Joker path is the result of Batman looking the other way when the evidence says that Joker didn't kill Waller's agents in purely self-defense including one being shot in the back. You definitely see that parallel, and there's also the falling out between Batman and Joker when Joker calls out the non-lethal violence Batman uses as ineffective.

Tiffany, if brought in, wants Bruce to carry a gun as Batman after she has already killed a criminal who, again, was dealt with and in custody.

The game has Batman fight the Joker in the Vigilante route, while he faces him as Bruce Wayne in the villain. The game does this to indicate which side you neglected. In the Vigilante, you neglected the mission as Batman by turning the other way, whereas in Villain you weren't enough of a friend as Bruce Wayne. If we're drawing parallels here, that would mean recruiting Tiffany means that Bruce sacrifices his mission as Batman whereas the Batman option makes her instantly jump to villainy. It's saying that Batman wouldn't let Tiffany be his Robin/Batgirl, meaning she becomes a bad guy.

Yet, I feel that doing the opposite wouldn't make things better. Tiffany doesn't have the same restraint when it comes to lethal force, again drawing a parallel to the Joker, and it's not just a matter of her becoming a villain if she doesn't get what she wants. If you treat her bad, she is rude in return.

If anything, it feels more like Tiffany becoming a villain is simply a matter of time. That she'll fight against Bruce whenever she doesn't get what she wants, most likely involving the use of lethal force, and eventually will break off from him. The fact that Bruce let her in on his secret and develop his tech is going to bite him in the ass, just like when she disables his tech when she does go villain. Even in her more neutral endings, it's still a possibility.

It's the same as John all over again, except John can actually be a friend to Bruce in the end. Go vigilante and then choose to say that you were friends in the end. Joker goes back to Arkham, but he's delighted when Bruce comes to visit because he's happy to see his friend. That friendship might be the one thing that keeps Joker in-line.

She's not a kid who needs a parent figure, she's an adult. She's sane, and was cognitive enough to cover her tracks while framing a mentally ill person for her actions. And she doesn't regret what she's done, she's just upset she might not get what she wants and if Bruce tries to bring her to justice she'll just go villain. That's not Robin material for so many reasons, and why she's possibly the worst possible member of the Batfam ever in my opinion.

[mxstball]

[Inflection Reflection] HQ

Heidi followed HQ through the hallways. Initially, the two were silent. Heidi was splitting her attention between the environment around her and the Pokémon that she was following. Looking at HQ, she didn't seem to be paying much attention to Heidi at all, choosing to focus only on her phone and where she was going rather than the guest.

That's when Heidi decided to speak up. "So, your name's HQ? Is that… short for something—"

"Headquarters."

"Oh. Guess that makes sense. Are you an agent too?"

"Supervisor and receptionist."

"Oh, so you handle dispatches and mission logistics."

"Mmm." HQ nodded. "I also evaluate performance."

"I see…." Heidi looked away from HQ for a little while. Her cold personality was not only off-putting but also gave her a weird sense of déjà vu. "So… my auntie never gave me much information about this place and how it works. What's the structure like?"

"Explain."

"Like, I heard mentions of A-ranks and S-ranks."

"Mmm. Every Agent is granted a rank based on their performance. This rank correlates to the mission difficulty that they are given. New recruits start at E rank and work their way up as they improve and perform. The ranks are E, D, C, B, and A. S rank is given to the top 25 agents in the agency."

"And Auntie Arty is S-rank."

"Rank #2. Yes. The Director is Rank #1."

"I see." It's crazy to think about the fact that her aunt was so strong in this sense. The more you know. "And where would you be?"

"Unranked."

"Huh?"

"I'm not an agent. As such, I don't have a ranking."

"Oh. Okay." Heidi continued to look around. She was trying to get a read on HQ's emotions from that statement, but there wasn't anything that she could get from it, as if it was being blocked by HQ directly.

"…" HQ put her phone away, but still didn't look at Heidi. Instead, she was looking straight ahead to where she was going. "Your interview will contain multiple parts: a written assessment, a combat assessment, an ability assessment, two interviews, a custom assessment based on your role and performance, and a final interview. Please do your best on each assessment, as it will not only determine whether or not you receive an offer at The Agency, but what role you will take within." HQ paused for a moment. "Now, before we begin with anything, are there any accommodations or stipulations that we should know of now that may affect your performance at the assessment?"

"Well…" Heidi gave it some thought.

"...Other than your species, of course. We will take into account of you being a Latias with Arceus abilities."

Heidi nodded. "Thank you, but there is something else. I'm watching over a world right now so I can't fully commit to being an Agent. My friends and family need me for support and protection just like I need them. Also, my combat and ability strength today may be a little weaker than usual. I… have a Shadow Sister, Lacey, that works with me to unlock our true strength, but we're not only in the middle of an investigation related to Team Rocket invading our world, but she's also gone missing. I was in the middle of looking for her when I was recruited to come here."

HQ took her phone back out and took notes of Heidi's comments. "Very well. And how much stronger would the two of you be together."

"Well, I don't want to toot my own horn, but…" Heidi blushed a little. "Back when I fought Friede, I struggled immensely in this Low-Powered form, but, with Lacey's help, we beat her handily. So, there's quite a big gap."

"I see." HQ continued typing on her phone. "I will consider that during your assessment. Now, follow me and we will begin your written assessment."

[s04pyblog]

Bleached and dyed my hair pink after our school festival so no one would remember who I was (lol)

What happened during the school festival:

2 months before it started, they had a tryout/audition phase to determine who would represent each department. Im in team Leo (College of Computer Science).

I tried out for badminton, but before that, I practiced with a friend(1), and she found out that I can also sing and recruited me to be in their band for the Battle of the bands.

During the tryouts, I really didn't gaf (i regret doing that lol) like i went there wearing my school schoes and a broken racket I haven't touched for years. Friend(2) and (3) also tried out but only friend(3) and I got in.

The point person found out that I was planning on also joining the battle of the bands, which wasn't allowed because you can only join one event. She made me sing in front of them to evaluate whether or not i would be better off with the band. She liked my voice i guess and said that it's up to me neow. AUGHJRJDHS THIS DILEMMA!!! Bc if I choose the band, I could give my badminton spot to friend(2), BUT I REALLY WANTED TO DO BOTH. I asked if I could have more time to choose and they said yes.

At 10 p.m., i decided to do both without telling anyone.

I also tried out for scrabble and found out a friend(4) was also there too. We decided to also audition for vocal duets and I ranted about there not being any auditions for vocal solo.

We submitted our audition and the tryouts for scrabble happened that night.

I GOT IN!! -but sadly, friend(4) didn't.

Because i was now officially in both the Scrabble and badminton team, i had to pick one, and i chose the latter, giving my spot to friend(4).

They finally opened the auditions for vocal solo after my week long back n forth with the organization asking why they won't hold auditions. They said they already chose 1, i asked how they determined that they were the best representative if they didn't hold any auditions, then they gave up and opened the auditions. I didn't have enough time to record a new one, so I sent a video of a cover I did 10 months ago of Top of my School.

A friend told me that the auditions were already closed bc she was also planning on auditioning for vocal duets with me. I didn't expect to be picked for vocal solo bc i thought they only opened the auditions to shut me up and then still choose the one they already had in mind. I asked where one can find out if they were picked and she said that they sent the letters through our school emails. I found out a day later that I AM THE VOCAL SOLO REP LIKE WTFF!?!?

I've been half-assing everything from showing up to the badminton tryouts with school shoes and a broken racket, to submitting a song cover I did 10 months ago. I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE I GOT IN EVERYTHING I AUDITIONED FOR.

(Except for the band because I wasn't in the video they submitted because I was added to the band last minute, and the vocal duets because i was already the vocal solo rep.)

It really started to sink in that I had to perform in front of people(I've never done this before). Luckily, an opportunity arose when the glee club had a karaoke booth and I had time to kill. While I was singing, friend(2) heard my voice and approached me. They wanted to duet with me and offered to pay. Unfortunately, the booth was stopped by the guards for being "too loud". Me and friend(2) chatted for a while and I was considering giving my badminton spot to her since I was already the vocal solo rep.

Gave friend(2) the spot after it was made clear to me that anyone who joined more than 1 event will be disqualified. (Once again, I wanted to participate in both events.)

Skip to the actual school festival, during my performance, friend(2) and (3) were there, and I was so grateful because none of my actual close friends were there. Friend(2) messaged me, congratulating me on my performance and invited me to sing I See the Light together in the Leo Booth. I missed the photo opp for the vocal competition but it was worth it, spending time and singing with a friend. Went home to change for BoTB and cheer on my friend who was in Team Scorpio.

I HAD FUN!!!