#slayer lost one of his horns to killer

[cittythekitten]

Doing this for fun. Definitely NONCANNON but meh. I just finished watching Fightsong MV by Eve (I will call this White Fang, Dark Fur)

Undertale by Toby Fox

Abyss & Killer!Abyss by @metakazkz

Art by me

[tothemeadow]

I haven't seen much people requesting for snake bby so obanai x demon reader pls?Reader is like a succubus type of demon and when sent on a mission to kill her he falls into her clutches and it ends with smut 👀

‘in my dreams’ / Iguro O. x Reader

PLEASE STOP SLEEPING ON THIS MAN

warnings: NSFW, Obanai is a boob man, dream fucking?

words: 2,793

(a/n): I might’ve gotten carried away a bit

-

He’s always heard that sharks can smell blood on the water.

He isn’t a stranger to blood himself, used to the sightly images of gore and the rancid odor. It’s simply another part of his hellish life, bearing witness to mutilated remains of bodies and hunting down their killer.

It’s all in a day’s work.

It’s strange, though, when there aren’t any bodies to be found. Rumors of disappearances plague the night, travel from lips to ears, slowly spreading throughout the small town.

Takahashi’s daughter disappeared last night.

The doctor’s oldest son? Haven’t you heard? He’s gone.

For such a large number of people to be suddenly up and vanishing, it’s no wonder concerns have risen. It’s why Obanai’s here in the first place, determined to sniff out the culprit and promptly execute them. He’s dealt with similar cases before – finding the missing persons, only to find their remains or couple of bones – but this time… Well, it’s weird, to say the least. Not one person in this town knows where anybody could be, no strange sightings or feelings, nothing.

And, if Obanai is going to be completely honest, it’s infuriating as hell.

He’s not a patient person in the slightest. Perhaps that’s his curse and the sole reason why this case isn’t going anywhere; still, with the lingering danger hanging over these poor people’s heads, he needs to end this quickly. And so, cooped up in a small room at the town’s inn, he pours over his scribbling of notes, wondering just what kind of force he’s dealing with.

A demon’s nature can vary, depending on what kind you encounter. Obanai’s had his fair share of strange interactions – whether it be demons with multiple arms, pygmies, the facial features of a fly - he's nearly seen at all. But to take victims without leaving a single trace? That's where things get complicated.

"Dammit," Obanai grumbles, dragging a hand over his face. Kaburamaru flicks his tongue in concern, sensing his owner's unease.

This isn't going anywhere. The amount of time or effort spent trying to figure out where everyone has vanished isn't amounting to anything. How could this be? Obanai isn't some low level slayer, for gods' sakes - he's a Pillar. It shouldn't be this hard to put two and two together, yet here he is, staring blankly at his collected information. The idea of sending his crow to summon for help crosses his mind, but he hastily throws away the thought. No, that's not how this is done. He isn't willing to give up so easily.

As the hours drag further into the night, Obanai grows restless, twitchy. His striped haori sits to the side, folded neatly along with the shirt and overcoat of his uniform. Kaburamaru is already fast asleep, coiled into a tight circle at the edge of the futon. The wooden hatches of the window hang open, the night breeze drifting into the room with the sound of a singular solemn cricket.

A long, ornate kiseru dangles between his spindly fingers; it’s a rare occasion whenever Obanai smokes, so much to the point that the ones closest to him don’t even know he possesses such a fine pipe. He takes a slow drag as his he stares up at the moonlit clouds, the chilled breeze whipping the choppy strands of his hair against his bared cheeks. He wonders, truly, just how the hell he’s supposed to get to the bottom of this case if he can’t find anything to work with.

Perhaps the gods heard his woes - or he’s finally lost his mind - for an intoxicatingly sweet scent fills his senses.

Jasmine.

As far as Obanai knows, he hasn’t seen any jasmine plants when he came into town. This had to mean something - it had to. Opting his kiseru for his blade instead, he easily slips out the window, feet hitting the ground without a sound. Taking off into the night, he races through the town’s streets, eyes darting back and forth for anything out of the usual.

He comes to an abrupt stop when the scent of jasmine grows even stronger. He’s sure now that whatever he’s been looking for is here. A slight shuffling catches his attention; whipping his head to the side, a wooden hatch to a window bangs against the side of a house, but there’s no one to be seen on the other side. 

“Found you,” Obanai breathes.

Rushing over to the house, he drops into a crouch as he creeps closer to the window. Jasmine floods his senses, the irresistible aroma gripping onto his consciousness and practically demanding for him to come closer. Swallowing thickly, he ignores the sudden wave of heat flushing over his body as he peeks into the darkened room. A family of five lays on the floor, their bodies moving gently with the deepened breathing of a heavy slumber. Even now, Obanai has to resist the urge to shut his eyes and succumb to the flowery scent.

Although the room is dark, he can make out a strange pillar of smoke; ah, so that’s where the origin of the smell is coming from. Is it some type of mist demon? Flower? He isn’t entirely sure, but he doesn’t have the time to care. He needs to get rid of it now.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he unsheathes his blade, not wanting to attract attention to him yet. It’s a wish in vain, though; as soon as his blade is hanging in the air, the pillar of smoke rushes towards him, slamming into him and sending him flying. Obanai grunts as his back hits the ground, the sharp edge of rocks biting into the skin.

“Don’t you know that it’s rude to sneak up on others?” a low, creamy voice drawls. Goosebumps break out across the surface of Obanai’s skin and a shiver races down his back. The smoke dissipates, then, revealing a feminine figure.

Obanai’s breath catches in his throat. This demon - you - are unlike any other he’s encountered. Immediately, his eyes latch onto the pair of horns protruding from your skull, pearly at the tip and then fading into ebony. You’re strikingly beautiful, facial features soft yet demanding. Embarrassment warms Obanai’s face as his eyes drift across the curves of your body; your breasts swell over the tight, strappy top while the entirety of your legs and hips frame the long loincloth-like garment between your legs. Both your arms and legs have the same pearly sheen towards the end, just like your horns.

By the gods, you’re ethereal, even if the claws on your fingers could easily tear Obanai’s throat out.

“So is breaking into other’s homes,” Obanai manages to croak. Bringing himself to a stand, he takes a defensive stance, his blade held out before him. He feels strangely heavy, almost like his body craves to stay flat on his back.

Much to his surprise, you pout at him, arms crossing beneath your chest and pushing your breasts further up. “But it gets so lonely at night, you know?” you say, that seductive lilt in your voice deepening. At that, you make a show of sweeping your eyes over Obanai’s bare torso, and a slight smile grows on your pretty lips.

Obanai clears his throat. He can’t let himself fall for your tricks, no matter how incredible you smell or alluring you look. If these are the methods you rely on, chances are you’re a weaker demon.

“What did you do with the missing persons?” he asks, eyes narrowing.

“Missing persons? Is that what they’re calling them?” you say, a giggle following your words.

Obanai growls at your nonchalant confession. If there’s one thing he can’t stand about demons, it’s their inability of basic human emotion, the inability of compassion. Yeah, he decides that your head is going to look even better once it’s separated from your body.

“You see, pretty boy,” you purr, pressing a hand to your throat and dragging it downwards, brushing over a luscious breast and tracing over your exposed tummy, “in return for making their dreams come true, I get to have a snack.”

“Enough,” Obanai grunts, switching to an offensive stance. “Maybe I’ll be gracious enough to meet you in hell someday.”

Before you even have a chance to react, Obanai springs into action, launching himself off the group in a great leap, lungs tightening as he releases a breath form.

It doesn’t hit.

It doesn’t fucking hit.

In fact, you’re nowhere in sight. Instead of the dusty, moonlit road, Obanai finds himself in an onsen; a great bamboo pavilion stands tall above the pool of water, blocking the golden rays of sunshine from hitting him. Thin trees are scattered about the area, riddled with stone lanterns and garden rocks covered in moss. With a chorus of birds singing overhead, it’s like he’s in an entire new world.

Muttering to himself, Obanai scans his surroundings, wracking his brain and trying to figure just what the hell happened. One moment, he’s about to slice your head clean off and put an end to your terror -  the next, he’s in broad daylight in some overt paradise.

“Your dreams are beautiful,” that wonderful, wonderful voice of yours speaks.

Whirling around, Obanai sends splashes of water flying. “What did you do to me?” he spits.

You flash him a sly smile. “Why, I merely put you to sleep, pretty boy. Can’t be much of a threat if you’re not wide awake, no?”

Obanai curses under his breath. Of course you’re a dream demon - no wonder why there hasn’t been any bodies turning up. If only he had acted faster, got here sooner, more lives could’ve been saved. With a huff, he slithers further away from you, sinking below the water until only his face can be seen. “So what now? You’re going to try to kill me in my sleep? That’s a low blow and you know it.”

Sucking air through your teeth, you shake your head. Now that the two of you are no longer shrouded by darkness, Obanai really gets a good look of how utterly stunning you are. Again, he curses himself out, calling himself a fool for thinking such things when he should be killing you instead.

“Your blade isn’t here, if that’s what you’re wondering,” you tell him, a look of mischief crossing your features. “Silly boy - this a time meant for the two of us, not for you to end my forsaken life. Allow me to help you... relax.”

As you step to the edge of the onsen, Obanai finally notices the feeling of water caressing his thighs, his bare buttocks. You just had to make him naked in his dream, huh? What are you trying to accomplish, anyway? His eyes widen incredulously as your hands find their place on your torso, slinking over the swell of your breasts and around your neck; with a simple tug, your top comes loose. You merely let the garment fall to the rocks below, a small ‘oops’ slipping from our mouth.

Heat immediately floods to Obanai’s face and his groin; his insides squeeze in on themselves and he swallows thickly, thankful for the hidden protection the water provides. The look on your face is simply irresistible. Hell, even your breasts are as pretty as he imagined-

Shit, he inwardly curses, I shouldn’t be thinking like that.

But oh, you’re just so tempting, your hands squeezing your breasts, fingers rolling your hardening nipples as you stare directly at his flushed face. “Pretty boy,” you purr, “what’s your name?”

“Obanai.”

It’s out before he even knows it. 

“Obanai...” 

He really likes the way it rolls off your tongue, the dark glint in your eyes as you say it. Perhaps you can tell by his reaction alone - or maybe you like saying it - but you repeat his name, once, twice, thrice, and fuck does it drive Obanai insane. And then you’re reaching down, unfastening your lower garment and dropping it unceremoniously to the ground. Obanai’s cock twitches at the sight of your glorious body, the soft curves and glowing skin.

“Naughty boy, my eyes are up here,” you say. Again, you squeeze those beautiful fucking tits, a soft groan spilling from your lips. Obanai nearly goes feral from the sound; without further thought, he wades over to where you are. Jasmine clings in his nostrils, clouds his mind in a delicious haze, and he loves it.

You’re all too willing to meet his touch, body slipping into the heated water as he wraps his arms around you possessively. His body kicks into autopilot, mind going blank as he presses his lips to your throat. He should rip your throat out with his teeth, but there’s something magical about the way you arch into his touch, breasts pushing lewdly against his chest.

“Fucking-”

“Yes.”

A breathy moan spills from your lips as Obanai kneads your pretty tits, long fingers gripping possessively, wantingly. It’s almost ridiculous how hard he already is, his cock sandwiched between your bodies. He jolts as your hands land on his face, thumbs brushing against the ragged scars lining either sides of his mouth. 

“Don’t,” he grits, but it goes ignored. The air is sucked from his lungs as you brush your lips over his scars, murmuring something about how pretty he is before stopping at his mouth. You kiss him fervently, clawed fingers scratching his shoulders as you tongue the inside of his mouth. You swallow the husky groan that spills from his mouth, hand dropping down from his shoulder and wrapping around his hardening cock. 

“Ah, shit,” Obanai murmurs into your mouth. 

“Tell me what you want, pretty boy,” you whisper, hand slowly jerking on his cock. His breathing picks up as you quicken your pace, the water rippling with the movements of your wrists. “Your wish is my command.”

“Gods, you’re such a fucking tease,” he pants, eyes practically glowing against the pink hue of his face. Ducking his head, he sucks a nipple into his mouth, the wet warmth enveloping your breast and eliciting a delicious moan from you. Obanai wastes no more time, opting to prop you in his lap and pressing your back against a smooth stone. “I shouldn’t... but fuck...”

“It doesn’t seem like you’re angry with me anymore,” you husk in that damned sexy voice. A moan bubbles from your throat as Obanai starts rocking against you, cock slipping against your folds. It’ll only take a little push for him to fill that pretty cunt of yours, to stuff you full of his cock and fuck you raw. It’s what he wants.

“Shut up,” he grunts, mouth latching onto your nipple, his hand beginning to play with the other. A low, drawn out curse gets muffled by your chest as he finally slips his cock into you; it shouldn’t be physically possible, but your velvety walls seemingly clench around him and suck him in, your arousal making the slide impossibly easy. He hiccups on a breath, his entire body twitching as he pants. 

“The thing about succubi,” you drawl, sharp nails tracing down his spine, over the muscles in his back, “is that we’re the demons of sex and dreams. Oh, pretty baby, how much I’ve lucked out. Everyone else seemed like an appetizer - and you...” You pause, suck air between your teeth. “You’re like the damn main course.”

A helpless little grunt graces your ear as you fuck yourself on Obanai’s cock. His hips match your movements, your sopping cunt eagerly sucking him back in and squeezing around him. You’re so damn wet that it’s infuriating; Obanai wants more, more of your touch, your voice, that sweet scent clogging his senses. He can’t bring himself to stop touching your breasts, whether if it’s his hands or mouth. They bounce with the erratic rhythm of your hips, way too beautiful and hypnotizing. 

A breathless whine breaks through your cute little pants whenever Obanai smacks a hand against the ample flesh of your ass. “Is that you meant when you said you make others’ wishes come true? Have them fuck that tight pussy of yours? Huh?”

“Obanai, don’t be mean,” you pout. 

“Says a fucking demon that eats people.”

You hiss as his cockhead hits against your g-spot. “I can eat you too, so don’t get cocky, pretty boy.”

Obanai clicks his tongue, his brows furrowing. “You better keep that promise,” he grunts, thumb grazing your bottom lip. “I won’t take no for an answer.” He growls as your walls clench around him. 

“If that’s your wish, Master,” you purr, a slight chuckle following your words, “then it is my command.”

[alexthegamingboy]

Toonami Weekly Recap 11/02/2019

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind EP#02 - Bucciarati Is Coming: In a flashback, it is revealed that Giorno, who was once abused by his step-father and bullied by other kids, began being treated with respect after saving an injured gangster, giving him a reason to live. Back in the present, faced with Bucciarati's Stand, Sticky Fingers, Giorno desperately uses Gold Experience to defend himself. Upon striking Bucciarati, the latter's senses to go berserk, giving Giorno the upper hand. Bucciarati creates a dimension-distorting zipper to try and escape inside another person, but Giorno tracks him down by turning one of Bucciarati's teeth into a fly, which attempts to return to his body. Given the chance to finish Bucciarati off, Giorno decides against it, instead asking to join his organization so he can defeat his boss and take over the city.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba EP#04 - Final Selection: Two years have passed since Nezuko's transformation, and Tanjiro leaves for the Final Selection. Before his departure, Urokodaki warns him that a demon's strength is equivalent to the number of humans it has eaten, gifting him a fox mask with a protection spell. Tanjiro reaches Mt. Fujikasane, where wisteria flowers bloom all year round, creating a prison for demons. The test administrators, a pair of twins, explain that only those who can survive here for 7 days will pass. Tanjiro is soon ambushed by two hungry demons on his very first night. Using a special "Nichirin Blade" that can kill demons without risk of them regenerating, Tanjiro remembers his training and utilises Total Concentration: Water Breathing swordsmanship style, to unleash an attack that kills them quickly. However, him and another applicant come face-to-face with a huge morphed demon made out of ghastly hands. This Hand Demon promises to kill him, recognising Tanjiro as Urokodaki's student from the fox mask, and gleefully admits to murdering 13 of Urokodaki's students since he was captured by the man himself, Sabito and Makomo included. Tanjiro attacks him, enraged. Back at the boulder, Sabito and Makomo's ghosts wonder if Tanjiro can defeat their killer, having failed themselves to slice its neck. Sabito recalls that Tanjiro sliced through the toughest boulder of all of them and chooses to believe. By unleashing an array of attacks, Tanjiro successfully decapitates the Hand Demon.

One-Punch Man 2 EP#04 (16) - The Metal Bat: It is revealed that when Garou was young, he always rooted for the bad guys to win due to the good guys being too popular. When he asked his father, his father replies that the good guys will always win. Garou find that unfair to the monsters because to him the monsters were always the ones trying their best to win, but will lose all the time because they were seen as "freaks." Unwilling to accept the status quo, Garou resolved to become the strongest monster and never lose, and to change the scenario. Garou wakes up from his defeat against Saitama, with no memory of what happened. Garou meets up with Tareo and sees Watchdog Man and Metal Bat, and plans to find them. Saitama signs up for the fighting tournament, and is looking over a list of the contestants of the tournament when Sour Face, a former disciple of Bang, shows up. Sour Face plans to win the tournament to be famous like Bang, and reveals that the year before a contestant named Wolfman won the tournament. However the authorities found the real Wolfman tied up, which is why there's a new rule that if there are any participants that are wearing disguises or is an imposter, then the participant will be disqualified and banned from the tournament forever, as well as paying a heavy fee. It is also revealed that 6 months ago Garou decided that he has nothing left to learn and rampaged through the dojo, disabling many of the students, including Sour Face. Garou then received a beating from Bang and was expelled from the dojo, which also caused Sour Face to quit the dojo. When Sour Face insults "Charanko", Saitama points out that at least Charanko was brave enough to fight against Garou one on one while Sour Face quit, and vows to win the tournament which angers Sour Face. Meanwhile, the Hero Association plans to protect its officials from monster attacks by assigning S Class Heroes. King manages to get away by lying that he's fighting against a secret boss when in reality he is playing a video game. Metal Bat is forced to babysit Narinki, a VIP sponsor of the Hero Association, and his son Waganma at a Mouse Sushi restaurant in S-City instead of watching his little sister play piano. When Metal Bat receives a call from his sister, two monsters named Junior Centipede and Venus Mantrap attack Nanrinki but Metal Bat easily kills them. Suddenly, another monster named Senior Centipede attacks Metal Bat. A monster named Raffleseidon appears and puts on sleeping gases which knocks out Narinki and Waganma. Metal Bat is forced to endure many hits before hitting himself in the head, which pumps adrenaline into his system, rendering the gas useless and enabling him to kill the two Demon Level monsters with one hit apiece. Two local heroes take Narinki and Waganma when a Dragon-level monster named Elder Centipede attacks Metal Bat. During the fight, Elder Centipede knocks Metal Bat near Garou. Thinking that Metal Bat is dead, Garou plans to find Watchdog Man when Metal Bat gets back up. Garou naturally wants to fight Metal Bat, but Metal Bat wants to go back after Elder Centipede. Garou initiates the fight by attacking Metal Bat, and Metal Bat barely manages to block the preemptive blow. In the post credit scene, a martial artist named Suiryu asks two girls to lead him to the Fight tournament.

Dr. Stone Kingdom of Science Arc EP#11 - Clear World: Senku uses quartz sand to produce glass, which he uses to create glasses for the short-sighted Suika. Lacking the skills needed to glassblow useable lab utensils, Chrome brings in a skilled craftsman named Kaseki, who is able to quickly adapt to the unfamiliar substance. To break in their new lab, Senku offers to make Ginro a silver spear as part of a dangerous mission.

Fire Force EP#14 - For Whom The Flame Burns: While chaos reigns in Asakusa with Infernals appearing and people's appearance being changed at random, Konro and Benimaru argue over who should take charge. Benimaru eventually defers and gains everyone's attention. He explains what's happening, then goes after the Infernals while Konro and Company 7 attend to the fires. Meanwhile, Shinra and Arthur face Haran who has become a horned Infernal after swallowing an Infernal Bug. However, Benimaru intervenes and attacks Haran with his Ignition ability. Benimaru launches Haran into the air with his matoi to spare the town, but Arrow fires a flaming arrow towards them. Shinra uses all of his speed to intercept and deflect the arrow, allowing Benimaru to take the opportunity to use his Crimson Moon (紅月 Akatsuki) avility to create a massive explosion which destroys Haran. Shinra catches Benimaru as he falls from the sky, completely spent from the confrontation. Later, Benimaru and Obi share some sake, sealing the friendship between Companies 7 and 8.

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma EP#17 - The Seductive Karaage: Arriving back home, Soma temporarily re-opens Yukihira Diner to serve his loyal customers, including his childhood friend, Mayu Kurase, who has a crush on him. He learns that the Sumire Shopping District has been doing poor business lately due to the arrival of a popular karaage chain shop, Mozuya. Wanting to help revive the shopping district, Soma decides to come up with a competing karaage recipe, calling in Ikumi as his meat expert while Mayu winds up as his taste tester. The three do some recon at Mozuya, where they find its CEO Kinu Nakamozu to be a spiteful woman, before beginning work on a karaage recipe of their own. As Soma takes Mayu's suggestion to use their shopping district location to their advantage, it is revealed that the figure behind Mozuya's success is one of the Elite Ten.

Lupin the 3rd Part 5 EP#20 - Zenigata, Gentleman Thief: Lupin, Jigen and Goemon take a trip to one of their old haunts in Russia to carry out some easy heists. To their surprise, they find another party of thieves already raiding the same targets with their old enemy Zenigata among their ranks. When Lupin talks with Zenigata, he finds that the latter has alcoholic amnesia from a massive drinking bout after another failure to catch Lupin. Zenigata has adopted the alias "Monety" and the modus operandi of his old nemesis Lupin while trying to uncover his lost identity. Unwilling to leave Zenigata in that condition, Lupin and company intercept Zenigata at the site of his next heist. When Lupin and Zenigata escape the crime scene together, the encounter finally snaps Zenigata's memory back into place, and to everyone's relief their relationship returns to its usual state.

Black Clover: Elf Tribe Reincarnation Arc EP#93 - Julius Novachrono: Marx, the Wizard King's advisor, sends word to every squad captain, ordering them to help the Wizard King. Licht's spells cause massive damage to the city, yet Julius holds back so as not to injure Vangeance's body. Julius reveals his Grimoire, which is so large with so many pages it has no cover, just an endless circle of pages around a central spine. Licht comes to believe that as he had planned to unbalance the world by eradicating humans, fate itself conspired to restore balance by creating Julius as the embodiment of order. Licht casts a spell powerful enough to completely wipe out the entire country. Julius recalls his youth as a magic knight, searching for his life's purpose, until he met Zara, Zora's father, who taught him that a true knight should serve the people. After Zara was murdered Julius grew disgusted at the way the class system kept both nobles and commoners from reaching their potential. He decided to become the Wizard King so he could help make the world a better place through the efforts of knights like Asta, Yuno and Noelle. Refusing to give in Julius uses all his accumulated time to reverse the entire country back a few seconds, saving everybody but leaving himself open to Licht who stabs him in the heart. Yami arrives too late to stop him and draws his sword in preparation to kill both Licht and Vangeance.

My Hero Academia Season 4 will air on Toonami November 9 at 11:00 pm EDT.

[thenightling]

The Dodged Bullet

Warning: This is deliberately bad!

The dodged bullet:  

The following is the horrific notion of what would have happened if The CW, Fox, or Syfy adapted Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman instead of Netflix.   This is going to poke fun of common tropes of Fox and CW shows.  See if you can spot them all.

I am going to deliberately write this very, very badly.

             The generically attractive young man in his early-twenties walked toward the crime scene.  He wore a long leather jacket, designer sneakers, expensive brand-name jeans, and a stylish and perfectly fitted black polo style shirt under the jacket. It was rumpled but just so as to hint at what a great body he had under it.  He had thick, dark brown hair.  Brown eyes, a smoldering gaze and a dazzling smile.  He’s Caucasian and generically attractive.  He’s thin but not rake thin, more like sexy male model thin.   He’s got muscle tone.  

           At the moment he looked stoic, hands resting in his pockets.  He crosses the yellow crime scene tape without anyone stopping him.  No one questions his presence but he is not invisible. This is “grounded” in reality, folks.  

           The Sandman solves crimes!  The Sandman is a private investigator with a secret. He is a real Sandman!  Hidden in his jacket is a leather pouch which will probably get used maybe once or twice an episode (budgetary reasons).   And he gets confused by certain social cues and pop culture references but otherwise he’s just a generic hot guy.

           He’s probably portrayed by a Tom Mison type. He might be American. There’s an English accent but it’s so slight (so hidden by Americanisms) that it’s almost undetectable.   He approaches the pretty, ninety-pound, college age female detective with perfect, blond hair.   She looks up at him.  

           “Hey, Murphy.” She says in a friendly tone.  Yes, Murphy is his alias. She thinks he’s just eccentric and thinks he’s The Sandman but he gets results!  

           “Detective Walker.” He smiled with obvious affection. He crushes on her, pines for her. But she mustn’t ever know the truth. It is forbidden for one of his kind to be with a mortal.  Even if she is a Vortex.  And her great power may one day destroy the world…  or save it!  That’s the real reason he was here, to watch her. He had never expected to fall in love with her…

The show has almost no scenes in The Dreaming and when there are it’s about 90% CG over green screen, like the Enchanted Forest sets of Once Upon a Time, or the under-whelming Hell of Lucifer.  There’s probably a throne room with a starry night sky behind it, and an under-whelming “vast” library on par with Belle’s library in Once Upon a Time that will be shown very rarely.

           “We’ve got another one.”  She said gravely.  “Eyes torn out.  Pretty girl. Whoever this creep is- this predator must be stopped!”   The implication here is the victims are all damsels who have been targeted by an evil man targeting them for misogynistic reasons.  But don’t worry!  The show is totally not sexist!   Detective Rose Walker kicks ass!   And in season four she’ll be raising her own long-lost little brother!  Even though it’ll take her at least five seasons to learn Murphy’s secret (if she ever does).  

           “I thought the ‘me too’ movement would have at least reduced some of this.” She said with a shake of her head in disappointment at the world.

           The line of dialogue doesn’t actually really make sense under easy scrutiny.  Why would “Me too” actually make a serial killer reconsider his life choices?  Oh, well, the audience doesn’t have enough time to question it.

           “Me too?”  The adorable, awkward, pretty “Murphy” questions.

           “Boy!  Where have you been?  In a cave?”            “Actually I was trapped inside a prison cell for a hundred and five years and before that I resided in another dimension.”

           She rolls her eyes.  “Not this again.   Tell me you can at least figure something out with your ‘Dream powers’” she said cynically.   He might have been insane and socially inept but he got results!

           Morpheus knelt down next to the body and placed his hands on the corpse. There isn’t even any SFX for this. He’s just sensing something.  He grunts in a sexy portrayal of sexy CW level pain.  

           “What? What is it?”

           “I think I know who did this…”

           “Who?”

           “Corinthian…”

             (Opening credits here.  Maybe the opening riff of Enter Sandman by Metallica.  No, wait, Fox and CW can’t afford that.   It’s Mr. Sandman by the Charlottes!  It kills the mood but everyone knows the song.  You’ll be sick of it by episode five if you weren’t already.  And it will get a LOT of use since the song is cheap / practically public domain.)

           The next scene is not present day.  It’s a flashback.  And by flashback I mean a hastily put together set in Vancouver Canada.  It’s probably someone’s private stables being passed off as a medieval village.  No, wait. Its eighteenth century.  There’s a sexy other character wearing slightly anachronistic style sunglasses hiding his eyes (No CG here, the production team figures the glasses are enough).  In fact his eyes might not even be weird at all. He just likes sunglasses!  There, that’s better, no wasted money here.   He’s wearing a badly fitted white wig over white hair.  

           “My king,” the sunglassed man says with a bow. We have to be blunt for our easily distracted audience, so there’s the reminder that this is the dream king. “Thank you for letting me accompany you to the waking world.  There are such delicious things here.”

           “Yes, the food is rather pleasant.” Morpheus replies. His costume is decently fitted but obviously borrowed from another show, possibly a left over from Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  Those props and some period costumes still get use.  Isn’t Morpheus adorably oblivious, though?

           Morpheus is wearing a dark blue frock coat and lace. His trousers are exceptionally tight to show off the actor’s perfect ass.

           The Corinthian’s costume is cream colored. There was a behind the scenes fight and as small victory for the one crew member who actually read Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman in getting the cream outfit.  Others working on the show wanted the costume to be black to make it more obvious he was the bad guy.        

           An attractive, tall, black man (probably American), under the age of thirty, is behind Morpheus.   This is his loyal manservant, Lucien.  But it’s totally not racist making the dreaming librarian / butler black when the show hasn’t had any black characters yet.  No, it’s inclusive!  

           The attractive black man speaks.  “My Lord, I think he intends to do harm to the mortals here.”

           “Nonsense, Lucien. I’m certain it’s fine.”

           The Corinthian wandered away from his master and he soon drags off attractive young female into an alley, hand over her mouth.   No, The Corinthian isn’t gay anymore in this version.   But it’s okay.  Hob Gadling, Morpheus’ immortal friend (who now runs a bar for some reason) is gay!  He’s very gay.  In fact that’s the extent of his entire personality.  But isn’t this diverse and inclusive?!   And there’s no more problematic gay nightmare, even though in the original comics The Corinthian gets uncreated and the second Corinthian is a relatively decent guy for a nightmare.  

           After some persuasion Morpheus finally listens to Lucien and walks down into the alley.   He stops in his tracks when he sees The Corinthian has killed the girl and his licking his fingers, having obviously already eaten her eyeballs (gotta keep that TV-14 rating!)   He lets out a gasp.  “Corinthian, what have you done?”

           We cut back to present day and “Murphy” is walking into the bar owned by his friend, Hob Gadling . Hob sees him and smiles. “Murph, oh, honey, you look like Hell! Come sit down and tell me all about it.   You know I love juicy gossip.” He says in a naisly, lisping voice.

Imagine this scene was written by some very straight guy whose only exposure to gay people were 1990s Will and Grace reruns.  

           Hob places a shot glass in front of Morpheus and Morpheus downs it quickly. “Have you seen Matthew?”

           Matthew was Morpheus’ straight human friend and roommate.  He had learned Morpheus’ secret in the pilot episode when Morpheus rescued him from a car accident using his dream magick.   Ha!  And you thought we’d have talking birds in this thing. Lol!  No!  Grounded, remember?

           “Matt?  Oh, sweetie, you can do better than him.  I keep telling you, he’s just not your type.”

           Morpheus raises an eyebrow but says nothing about the implication about his sexual identity.  There will be a LOT of queer baiting on this show without confirmation in regard to his sexuality.  

             “I need to talk to him.   One of my nightmares is loose in the city.”  You can tell this was written by a New Yorker because they take for granted “The City” to mean New York.  

           “One of your Nightmares?   Why couldn’t it be one of those sexy wet dreams?”  Get it?  Because if the character’s gay he has to always be horny!!!  Ha-freakin’ –ha.  

(Please know I don’t actually feel this way. I’m mocking bad TV writing.  This whole thing is a spoof.)    

           There’s an awkward pause intended for the viewers to laugh.

           “I don’t believe any water nymphs have escaped The Dream dimension.” Morpheus replied in confusion.

He calls it The Dream Dimension in the show because “The Dreaming” didn’t sound hip enough according to some executive.

“I’m afraid it’s The Corinthian.  So now I have two problems.”

Hob nodded sympathetically.  “The detective you might have to kill…”

“And now this.”   This is an idiot proofed recap for people turning on the show late or just watching it in passing while doing other things or playing on their phone.  CW does this sort of in-story forced, shoe-horned exposition all the time.

The episode plays out a little bit like an episode of Lucifer mashed into an episode of True Blood.

While they’re trying to find the killer, Detective Rose Walker meets Murphy’s roommate, Matthew, and the two hit it off while chatting about Murphy’s weirdness.  They decide to start to date.   As Morpheus has feelings for Rose that he won’t admit to this causes a strain between him and Matthew Raven (There’s that bird reference!  What?  That should be Lucien’s last name?  Naw!)  And between him and Rose Walker.  

Morpheus lashes out rather than admit to what he is truly angry at and he and Matthew argue over something petty and this leads to recovering alcoholic Matthew to start drinking again as sad music begins to play.  

Morpheus eventually finds The Corinthian and is forced to destroy him.  He had to kill his own creation so he is kneeling in angst crying prettily while the sand left over from the uncreation slides through his fingers.  Some new female cover of Queen’s Who Wants to live Forever? Is playing in the background.  The original version is “too old” and too expensive for use. So here’s a very generic sounding cover done in a style that makes it blend in with every other pop song played during the forty five minute mark of a CW show’s run time (including commercial breaks).  

           The song plays as we cut to Matthew drinking alone sexily in an alley.  He’s sweaty and wet, but he just looks like a wet fashion model.   Morpheus is sexy crying over the sand that was the Corinthian, and Rose going to sleep prettily in her bed, no bed head here.  Oh, and she sleeps in perfect makeup!  There’s no scene where she even remotely looks like she’s out of makeup.

 She’s having strange dreams but they look pretty mundane.  Like real-world mundane.  It’s her living room set that we probably saw a few minutes ago, just dimmer lighting and some haze to make it clear this is a dream.  Because even with a show about The Dream Lord, dreams have to have an old fashioned camera fringe haze.  Murphy is there with his back to her.  He looks sad.  He turns to look at her and she gasps.   She sees a star (lense flare) from Murphy’s eyes in the dream as he looks at her in surprise like he wasn’t expecting her to see him.  She wakes up with a gasp, and everyone in her apartment building also wakes up at the same time, signifying that their dreams were connected.

And so ends what was probably the third episode of CW (or Fox’s) The Sandman.  

And that is pretty much how CW or Fox would have done The Sandman.

[goldstonegolem64]

Book 1 Chapter 27  Out on the town

Jay starred at Isara his head still resting on his shoulder. “ Ok” He said going back to sleep

Isara looked at the sleeping man walked over to him and grabbed the collar of his armor “ Come on hero we have work to do”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FmKdjRhoy4 

Jay was tired as he was pulled out of his resting place. He stretched and hearing his joints popping. He looked toward the bed  where the brothers were sleeping with the covers half off of them . he walked over to them and pulled the blanket over them. Then he took his pain meds before leaving the room leaving his helmet behind on the bed. An walked with Isara out of the hospital he was staying at  into the early morning sunrise 

“  welcome to haven. How do you like it ?” Isara asked as she was walked toward her jeep opened the driver seat door and unlocked the rest of the car

“ Well it’s a pretty cool place and thanks for letting us in” Jay said following behind her entering the passenger seat

“ No problem kid. It’s was an easy choice to make . it’s my job to keep people safe from the queen and her court and thanks for bring those kids here we’ve trying to get then here for the past month. they kept running from my men any time they so them. i think it’s because my husbanded is a ten foot tall batman with a gruff voice an could rip a man in two or the fact that Me and most of my are galra” She said as she started up the engine 

“ yeah this is the first time scent I lifted home that I’ve meet a friendly galra “ Jay said as he looked at her and notice her ear was missing some parts and she had serval scars across her face  

“ So what your story kid “She asked

“Well I’m from a mining town call gale wind in the north east sector of the city of iron oath, Which is a mostly galra community so I spent most of my childhood getting into fights. My mom is human an she was a boxer which really helped me when I got into fight. My dad is Altean an is a florist .I’m the youngest of five.I have three and one sister. At the age of ten my mom die in a car crash .it lost my left arm in the same crash. I bought a cargo ship at twenty one. An about two weeks ago I found a giant metal dragon after I helped my friend Adam. Then I met Adam’s husband Shiro his little brother Keith, three random kids named Lance McClain, Hunk Garnet and Pidge holt. Found The missing niece to the crowed queen of atlea and a ancient super weapon .Fought a giant robeast .  Then we freed a balmare. Fought another robeast. I adopted a kid named Fitz. The castle I now called home tried to kill me. Then me and my crew had to save the Princess from Galra central commanded and now I’m here. An I think the meds are kicking in “ He said as he pulled out the bottle the nurse gave to him lasted night because in no other circumstance would he have told a random person his life story.

“ Can’t handle your pain killers kid” Isara said with a smile as she watched the young man tell hid tail

“ No I can’t. Pain meds tend to Enhance my already bad habit of rambling when I’m either stressed , excited  or tired”  He said as he tossed the bottle in to the back of the car” Please don’t tell anyone what I told you please”

“Don’t worry kid I won’t . So your a hybrid Altean huh. I thought the empire wiped your kind out ten thousand years ago” She said 

“ yeah they tried but failed So enough about me how about you what lead you down the path of queen slaying in the first place?” 

“  Well my story being on ravies nine my home world . I was about twelve to thirteen when the bugs showed up. My family left the planet before it got bad because my mom  was a fleet commander. But I hated that fact we left hundred of thousands of people to die.So when I was old enough me and my boyfriend now husband Boleslaw joined the Queen slayers and after fifty years of working my ass off and killing  some Red queens I was voted leader and now were here.”  She said as she parked next to another district door. She got out  an walked to a member of her team that was guarding the door control.

   Jay got out of the car an looked toward the man and saw him wearing  light Weight armor with a old tattered cloak with a color scheme of green and brown.  welding a heavy duty plasma rifle. Then he turned to see a women wear the same thing but instead of a cloak it was duster and was wielding what looked like a shot gun He would ask about that later. There was one thing that he notice between the two guards they were both Galra he tell by their height, eye color and their ears were similar to Sendak’s .But more specifically they were hybrids. The one Isara was taking to had some avian features like the crest on his head, His arms had  feathers going up to his shoulder and his eyes did that weird bird of prey thing where the iris shrank with it focused onto something.an the girl was Snake like .He could tell because her upper body was humanoid and her lower both was just a tail. She turned her head to look at him and she stuck out her fork tongue out a him and wave to him. He waved back  as the door to an airfield.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7TPvJjwhFI

 ”Ok Isara when we were being let in I saw that the snake girl was holding something that didn’t look like a blaster at all what is it?”

“ First the snake girl as a name it’s Helbrum and what she had was a slug thrower” She replied 

“ A slug thrower?” Jay took a few seconds before pulling out his revolver “ is it something like this?” he asked just hold in his hand

“Dose it shoot high speed metal projectiles caused by super heating a highly explosion black powder ?”   She asked he wanting to see his responds  

“Yes “ he replied

“Then you have yourself a slug thrower kid. “ She said walking towards a parked ship

Jay looked around the area. He saw people walking from hanger to hanger carrying box of supplies. others were Doing drills or shooting at target. Some were just sitting on the ground or on crates resting before a what he guessed was Isara’s plan . He also watched as troop transports  moving out of the airfield through the door he had entered  in from.

“  Hey Isara where are those troops going?” HE asked curiously as the door closed

“ They’re going out to find some of those bugs while there a sleeping so don’t have to worry about being invaded during the night.”  she said as she entered the build that was the current hq of the slayers. Jay followed behind her. the two walked in silence for a few minutes toward a room . the two enter a meeting room with several people already there sitting around a table.

“.  Sorry I’m late I had to find this guy” She said pointing towards jay

“Hi I’m Jay by the way” He stood there just waving extremely unnerved by the three of the four people sitting there. they all were wearing very similar armor as Isara but with different symbols on them. He guessed were their ranks and one of the was just were a lab coat.   Two of them he had seen their races before. The first ne was one of Ace’s people. But unlike Ace who was about the same size of a normal person and looked like a domestic breed of dog which breed Jay couldn’t tell because he had nothing but pet fish of lizards his whole life. But this guy was a straight up a wolf with the body structure of bane with bright yellow eyes and with half of his jaw made of metal. The other was a lanky ferret like man with a wield beck like mouth his hair color was olive and green. he had multiple arms .But some of his arms were gone and he was blinded in one eye. He had seen one of his people before when he had first joined Shiro and the others but that one was a bright orange. Another person was basically a huge turtle women. Her arms and face covered in scars She looked at him with the most cold dead eye Starr that sent chill up his spine

“    Hello kid my name is Grieve head of scouting  division .Good to see you made it here safely”  the wolf man said in a calm voice.

“ I’m Rippley. Nice to meet you kid  I’m the head of the air squad”   the ferret man said 

“I am Shell razor the bold head of the mech unit” the women said 

“ Really?’ Jay asked not wanting to sound rude but was just a little suspect of the name

“ Yes that is my really name. I worked really hard to gain the title of the bold.So please show some respect ”  She said 

“  Ok Shell razor the bold I’m sorry“ Jay said as he bowed to her .His marks glowing a bright red in embarrassment 

the room erupted in laughter 

“Come on Shell stop messing with the kid he looks like he’s going to explode from embarrassment”   Isara said laughing still “ come on Jay take a seat”

“Alright come Sit here kid” Shell said pointing to the chair between her and the last person in the room 

Jay sat down next to Shell and the last person who was not paying any attraction toward him or any thing that just accord rounded them.they were just writing down something onto their data pad. They had teal skin, with Green hair and weirdly yellow colored horns. they were wearing very thick goggles that covering their eyes and a jump suit being covered by the lab coat.Jay couldn't’ tell if this person was a guy or a girl . But that didn’t matter to him at the moment because he was reading what was on the data pad and saw plans for new cybernetic for Ripley an other crew mates and the biology of the bugs  .

“ If your trying to read my work please ask and don’t hover over my shoulder like you alway do please shell? “ They asked in a tone of voice that reminded him of Pidge as they turned towards him and raised their goggles to reveal  pitch black eyes with  bright orange irises. a look of surprise came across their face” Oh your not Shell” they said as a slight blush of embarrassment can across their face at the mistake 

Jay’s marks started to glow ever so slightly do to this persons beautiful eye and cute face.

“Welcome back to the real world kid” Ripley said

“ Yeah this is Jay” Shell said laughing a bit and sapping jay on the back

“Oh Your her pilot” they said as they grabbed his Face and turned it from side to looking at his marks.” What are you I’ve never seen a being like you before?” She asked as she opened Jay’s mouth and looked at his razor sharp teeth “  then they started to pull on his checks and stretched them to there limit.” What are you boy and how can your skin do this tell me your secrets. Tell me what do you eat you beautifully weird  piece of nature”  They asked as a look of wonder and excitement on their face. 

“Well first please ask next time you want to grab my face. Secondly my diet is made up of mostly made up of fish, crustaceans ,fruits and food goo . Seeing as cows , pigs and chicks are hard to raise on a planet with no nature organic life on it that isn’t trapped in a dome. Third off I’m human altean hybrid. Forth being Altean means I can  stretch and change my body to blend in with people of other races making us great spies, Assassins, explores and diplomats. Also  Came I please have your name “   He asked with his face marks were glowing a bright red

Isara an the others know what was going to happen next and they were all trying to hold back there laugher

“ Oh Sorry I’m Ezra. commander of the science division. Also aren’t Alteans supposed to be extinction. Wait are you the last of your kind is that why your a hybrid. I could start up that cloning project  I have been working. Wait do you already have a mate Because if you don’t I could help as I work on the cloning ” Ezra said as their face and body became more feminine as a blush creeped across her face. “or do you prefer a male partner” They asked as their body became more maculate

Jay’s skin changed from his normal light tan to a deep beat red as he starred at the person in front of him. it didn’t help that the others were laughing their asses off. As Ezra’ s face was a deep shad of blue . Also what didn’t help was the fact Ezra was clearly shorter then him and was a bit rounded in the stomach which made them more attractive the longer he starred at them. Lucky for him the door to the room opened and a ten foot tall man who looked like a mixture between  goliath from gargoyles and manbat from bat batman walked into the room  wear the same armor as everyone in here with something on his shoulder. 

“ Hello honey you just missed it” Isara said as she wiped a tear from her eyes 

The big man had a look of confusion appeared on his face as he looked to the two then he realized what he had missed an then laugher erupted from him”  Ha ha ha Ezra Scared this poor boy”  He said as he slammed the body on his shoulder onto the table. then he walked over to Jay and place a massive hand on his shoulder “ I am Boleslaw second in command of the slayers and the husband of the lovely Isara. It is nice to meet you pilot of giant metal dragon lady. an do not worry about what erza had done. the face grabbing ,the mouth opening and the question about your people’s life style is just their way of saying hello to ever new person and race they meet” he said in a very thick Russian accent    

“ Do they also ask them to mate ?” Jay asked as he starred at the monster of a man then to Isara who was about the same size as him and wonder how she was alive and he wonder how this to meet 

Boleslaw looked at Ezra then to jay then back Ezra who had their head down  on the table in an embarrassment. ”Ezra my friend you can do better then this boy”

“ I know but this one is altean an the pilot of Valkyrie and I want to see what he can do. An yes I might have jumped the gun on the whole lets have kids to save your race with out even asking if there were other  and then I brought up the cloning project.An he’s kinda cute.”  Ezra began to ramble 

Jay didn’t know if he should be insulted by Boleslaw or to be happy with the fact someone found him cute. But he was more interested in the body on the table. it was the bug that tried to kill him yesterday but it had a hole in it’s chest and it’s horns were missing “ I would hate to be that guy but why did you bring that thing here?” he asked

“ Yes love why did you bring a king here” Isara asked just starring at the body

“ Oh yes I found this one by the entrains that you gave to this one “ he point to jay “ And  found it along with dozen of dead bugs all of them had died of asphyxiation. My I ask boy did you do this “ Boleslaw asked as everyone looked toward him . Isara ,grieve, Ripley,Boleslaw and Shell were just looking at him like this was a normal day while Ezra was just looking a the bug on the table with a look of pure joy has they were just cutting into this bug.

Jay thought for a few seconds thinking about saying he was the one who had kill all the bug but that was a lie he couldn’t keep up.” No that wasn’t me .The one who kill all those bugs was one of the two boys I brought in with me. His name is Usamu he has extremely powerful psychic  abilities that almost killed me along with the big guy here” He said  a little unsure that anyone would believe him

“So a child killed hundreds of bug with just his mind .Why don’t we just use him to wipe out the hive” Grieve said a little sarcastically not entirely believing a kid was that powerful

“  Because a kid of his age and body weight would most likely die if they using his full power.”   Ezra said as they removed an eye from the king 

“Also I refuse to use a child as a weapon no matter how strong their powers may or may not be.besides We have a giant metal dragon, over six hundred well armed Slayers, Several dozen gunship, twenty mechs equipped with heavy plasma cannons and a purge bomb. So we do to need a super power kill to do are job anyway were the queen slayer.but when that kid is older and has been control of his power I might give him a job offer . For right now let the kid have a childhood for now ” Isara said as she was setting up a map of the city and pushed the body off the table .”Ripley you can start when you want”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7TPvJjwhFI

“ Ok boys, girl and Ezra. We have a three or four  days till the queen wake up and we have about eighty miles of bug between us and the hive.” ripley pointed to a massive mountain covered  in a red webbing and is surround by bugs standing guard on the south side of the city. “ an we have to find away to get the ion bomb “

“the purge bomb” Shell said cutting Ripley off

“THE ION BOMB!!! We need to get this to the hive before the queen wakes up fully And we need to get the civilians off world before we do it .But here’s the problem there are over two thousand and the hail Mary can only hold about a third of them  even if we leave all are equipment here. And with the master of none and the valiant war lord off handling other red queens on E.R -6 and Amon we need another ship to help evacuation . So jay that is where you and your friend val come in. since late night she as been using are long range comms trying to connoted your friend. Also we need you to carry the ION bomb to the hive see as we need to make it bigger to kill this queens see as it’s bigger then anyone we have face before.”  ripley said he then spent the next hour explaining to jay the mission and how they need to destroy the city to make sure none of the bugs escaped the blast

“ Ok but what was stopping you from making multiply trips to the close colonized system .what was your original plan before I got here and why didn’t you just bomb it from orbit?”  He asked

“First the hail Mary’s warp engines are down so it would take us six mouths to get anywhere . Two are original plan was to collapse it’s own hive on it then fire enough heavy plasma round into it till we feel like it’s enough which is still are best plan but it will level the colony. three it’s shell is made out of osmium which is one of the dentists metals in the universe and this planet has a high level of gases though not fatal to people it is highly explosive when exposed to high levels of ions” Grieve said 

“ Well with everything said and done and the plan is set .Jay Ezra will take you to Val if you want or you can go to the hospital it’s your choice “ Isara said 

“I want to see Val then I will head back to the hospital. So Ezra please lead the way.” He said as he walked toward the door

“ oh yeah later tonight the people here are has a festival to just keep up there morale. Bring those two kid with you they might like it  and there will be a feast while it’s going on ” Ripley said as he was leaving the room as well

“ok i’ll be there “ Jay said as they left the room 

“Hey while up “ Ezra said running after him. the door opened to reveal jay leaning against a wall. Ok now follow me”

The two walk out of the ship and toward the hangers .as they walked Jay notice that most of the people here as Isara said earlier were mostly galra.Some were pure blood others were hybrids and there were other races mixed in. it was nice to see there are other places in the universe like Mar out there. then he looked towards Ezra “  So are we going to take about what happened back there”

Ezra sighed deeply and turned back to their neutral form”  Sorry about jumping the gun back there. I just got real excited when I heard that your altean an then I asked if you were the last of your kind and before you could give me an answer I asked if you wanted to be cloned or if you wanted to mate with me. Then I pried into your sex life and made you really uncomfortable. An then” they started to ramble but jay cut them off

“It’s alright to be honest I found it to be funny mostly in embarrassing .But funny none the less.“ Jay said as his marks started to glow a faint red

 A faint smile appeared on their face“ So what do you when your not being a paladin any hoboes an inters then.?”

“ Well I’m into robotic an cybernetic . The hoboes are tinkering, Gardening mainly do to my dad owning a flower shop and I started to learn how to cook from my friend hunk . An I have a kid back on the castle that I’m taking care of and i’m thinking about take both Bastion and Usamu with me when this is all said an done but I don’t think princess Allura will approve. So what do you do as head of the science division? “He asked

“well beside making better weapons for the troops. I also work on ways to kill the bug fast while learning how different environments change the hive and the Queen and her court. as well as learning about ancient tech and races that’s why I got excited when I hear you were Altean and saw the Valkyrie. But to answer my question from before Are you the last of your kind. Do you have a mate and do you prefer guys or girl as a partner just in case you don’t have ammate?” ezra asked

”  Here are my answers No, No and I really don’t care about what my partner is gender wise because I just want some one to love.”  He replied as his mark started to glow a little brighter.

As they walked toward a hanger Val’s voice came out of it “ I though you had a thing for that Nyma girl or was I just seeing things?”. She asked

“Well She and rolo Are a couple now and I found that out before the recuse mission. they started date after the alfor incident.” Jay said as he walkng to the hanger 

“good for them. They deserve each other ” She said 

He saw Val with a couple of people on her removing mud and repairing her wings an buffering out dents. She also had cable plugged into her head leading towards  a computer set up. “So have you found the others yet my metal friend?” He asked as he walked toward the computer

“Sadly no but were are on the other end of the universe so it will take a little more time for me to find them. So go and explore this city and have fun you need it after everything that has appeared the passed two days” She said as her chest opened and Jay’s speeder 

“ Ok then just tell me when you find them” Jay said as he got on the speeder

“ I will my pilot.”

“Alright Hey Ezra do you want to tag along?”

“ Sorry I still have a lot of work to do. But I will see you at the festival tonight right ?” they asked as a blush appeared on their face.

“ Yeah I will but I will have two kids with me “ he replied

“ that’s ok I just want to keep taking to you about stuff I also want to take about cybernetics and Altean biology and this is the first time someone didn’t just run away when I jumped the gun so it’s new.” their said with a smile

“Ok it’s a date then see later to night “ He said as he drove the speeder out of the hanger

“ yeah it’s a date” Ezra said with a grim on their face.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aat2hwglybs

Jay had a smile on his face as he drove out of the airfield and towards the hospital.He had just got a date, A date with some he just met  But hey that how his parents met maybe it would work for him. He had rolled up to the  hospital which was actually  just a apartment build repurposed .As he walk through the front door one of the nurses stopped him     

“Oh mister Sorin  the two boy you brought in are doing well and the room you are staying in you can return to after tonights festival and any night you remain here as requested by Lady Isara. “ the nurse said

“ thank you for the info and have a nice day” He said as he walked to his room   and opened the door and found the brother just sit on the bed watching a movie he guess the nurses had put on to keep them happy “Hey you two how are you holding up?” He asked 

“ were fine it’s just boring here” Bastions said with his arm in a sling

“ Yeah where did you go Jay?’ Usamu asked with jay’s helmet on.

“ Well I was taking to Isara and the other who are in charge of this place and I found out there is a festival tonight along with other things. But do you two want to go to it?”  He asked

“ Yes “the two boys said in unisons

“ ok let’s go get some breakfast and some new clothes for all. Because we all look like hell “ He said looking at all three of them He had blueish yellow blue blood covering his armor . Bastion’s clothes was cover in dried blood and Usman’s clothes just looked dirty 

“ ok Mr. Jay come on Usamu” Bastion said pausing the movie and hoped of the bed 

“Ok Brother” Usamu follow his brother then he walked up to jay “ Uh Mr.Jay can I ride on your shoulder while we go shopping?” He asked 

“Alright hop on little bubby “ Jay said as he crotched down so Usamu could get on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5xjXxEsLxY

The three  walked out of the apartment hospital and into the busy streets of haven. Luckily for them The card He and beau Been using to steal Gac from the empire worked her and had tripled the funds they had after the balmera. they bought New clothes toys junk food and a Game console.They then walked from district to district each one being set up for the festival  that was in haven’s safe zone. one was another residential district full of people. Another was a farming district and the last was a entertainment district by a what Jay guessed was a huge salt water river full of Parks, play grounds, arcades and a indoor amusement park. The three spent the next few hours have fun. Jay wished the other were here to enjoy this with him. But there was no point in worrying about them now. Right now he need to worry about the two Boys he had save but He still worried about the other. 

Later the three had founded a belt restaurant 

“Hey Mr. jay what can we eat here ?” Usamu asked

“I don’t Care eat what you want I have the money so go wild” Jay replied

“Awesome thank”  Usamu said as he started grabbing random plates and eating

“ Hey Jay when this is all said and done what’s going to happen to us” Bastions asked. Worried that all this Happiness was going to disappear the moment the bugs were gone 

“Well I’m going to take both of you with me When this is all over” jay said as he grabbed a plate of fish and started eating it

Bastion’s eyes widened as he hear that and his eye started to water and he hugged Jay” Thank you” He said

“No problem kid” Jay said as he started to eat another piece of fish 

“Hey what’ s going on with you two?’ Usamu said

“ Nothing Kid your brother is just Hugging me “

“Yeah I’m Just thanking Jay for all the kind things he has done.” Bastion said

“ Ok “ Usamu said as he continued to stuff his face with food

After they were done eating they doubled back to their apartment to just watch movies and played the console jay also told the boys about Fitz . a few hour later the three boys started to get dress for the festival they were wearing a rode that looked like A monsuke. Each one was a different color. Jay’s was a light green, Bastion’s was a dark blue and Usamu’s was a violet 

“So Mr.Jay that are we going to do at the festival” Usamu’s said

“Well were just going to walk around play more games and enjoy life “ Jay said as a knocking on the door appeared. Jay walked over to the door” Oh yeah were going to have someone else with us their name is” Jay opened the door To See Ezra Wearing a dark orange kimono , A pair of glasses their hair was tied into a bun and with out all the grease and blood on their face he saw that Ezra had yellow freckles across their face.

“Hi Jay You look great “ Ezra said with a bright smile on their face

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o51oqNteWSo

Jay took a few more seconds to just look at the beautiful being in front of him then he spoke” Yeah you too” Jay said with a sharp tooth half smile

The two starred at each other for a few second before jay felt a weight climbing up his back and Usamu appeared piggy backing on Jay”  Hi i’m Usamu. Who are you”

“Oh I’m Ezra head of the science division of the slayers and I guess the other boy just standing there behind you two is bastion “  Ezra said waving to him

“Yeah i’m bastion are we going now” He asked

“Yes bastion lets go ” Jay said 

The four walked toward the festival. The street were alive with life there were lanterns in the air, people were Singing and dance throughout the streets. music was blasting and fireworks were exploding in the air Jay then notice that there was a particle barrier that cover the whole of Haven. As Jay was looking around he saw Slayers and civilians have the time of their live like nothing bad was about to happen. This was the one time in the passed two weeks he had felt a complete calmness it was nice.

Jay an Ezra talked about robotic as they watched  Bastion and Usamu were just running from stal to stall playing games and buying food. there was one stall jay saw that caught his eye. it was a shooting game with a giant stuffed  turtle as a prize he want that turtle. Ezra took notice of Jay starring at the turtle 

“Hey Jay do you want that stuffed animal?’ their asked smiling

“ Yeah but I don’t to ruin the date by carrying huge stuffed turtle “ He said a little sheepishly 

“ it won’ t” they said as they walked to the stall “ how much dose it costed to play” they asked the stall runner 

“Ten Gac” He said as Ezra slammed ten Gac on the table “the rules are simple shot ten targets and win a prize”  

“ Easy enough “ they said as they picked up one of the toy guns on the table 

“Yeah but this is a carnival game so it’ s not going to be-” Jay was cut off by the sounds of the stall winning chime went off a few second after it started. Jay starred at Ezra who was just hold the turtle in there hand 

“yeah but I’ve been doing these  games for the last mouth so I know what I’m doing” Ezra said handing Jay the stuffed animal 

Jay had the biggest smile on his face. As he hugged the stuffed turtle 

So time later Jay and Ezra were back in the airfield to watch a fireworks show. While Bastion ,Usamu and some other kid that were there. Jay turned to look at Ezra and notice that they were resting on his shoulder and holding on to his arm his heart shipped when he saw this. Jay wished that this moment could last for ever and he wished Fitz was here to enjoy this show

“Your starring” Ezra said as they were still watch the fireworks then they turned to face him

“Sorry Your just more interesting to watch right now “ He said 

“ that was cheese ”Ezra replied laughing a little

“ I know My dad said that when he met my mom so I wanted to see how it work. Did it work” He laughed as well

“ No but it was a cute line. But that line dose deserve a reward just for trying”  They leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek 

“ Jay marks explode with light illuminating the area the two were sitting in. Jay was going to lean down to return the favor. Only to be intruded By val calling him on his phone 

“ Yes Val “   Jay said annoy as he answered his phone  

“ Sorry to interrupted your date  but I have connotated the other they will be here soon  Val said 

“ oh that’s good to know just tell when they get here. I’m in the middle of something important “ He said as he hung up the phone before she could answer. He felt a little rude but he was on a date and his friend are alive ,”So where were we?” He asked Ezra with a sly smile on his face

“ You were about to kiss me before your partner called telling you your friend were on there way”Ezra said 

“ Ah yes let me get back to that “ Jay leaned down to finish what he start only to be interrupted again by a loud Alarm and by a even louder crashing sound the world shacking. Then a huge booming roar 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnDZeAYKXxo&t=164s

“What the hell is going on?” Jay asked as he watch as people were running into other districts as slayer were running in different directions and gun ships were taking to the sky   

“ the queen Is up “ Ezra said as they got up and started running toward the hail Mary

“I though we had a few day before that ?”   Jay yell as he ran toward the hanger that house as val ran out toward him

“ I guess we were wrong” Ezra yelled 

“ Great Just great Bastion Usamu stay with Ezra” 

“ Ok Mr. Jay “ Bastion yelled as he grabbed his little brothers hand and followed Ezra

Jay hopped in to Val’ s mouth and ran into the cock pit .He heard Isara’s voice over the comm “Alright boy and girl we were wrong on the time She was waking up So we need to hold out. Jay when are your friend getting here?” Isara asked

“A few minutes from now” Jay replied as The Valkyrie took to the sky and followed behind the gunships. the particle barrier dropped to let Her out and what he saw was terrifying When it came to height The Valkyrie was One hundred an fifty feet tall Voltron was Three hundred and seventy feet tall. This thing was About fifty feet taller then Valkyrie. The queen walked on four massive spider like legs it’ s tail was a mile long with a set of pincers at the end of it .It’s upper body was humanoid like most of it’s court it had six Thick arms covered in bright red shimmering stone like material just like the rest of it’s body it’s head remined him of a xenomorph with a huge crested on the back of it’s head with four horns in the front that curved upward to look just like a crown\

“ Alright hold this thing off until Jay’s friend get here Now GIVE IT HELL” Isara yell

[tiamat-zx]

Mending Bridges (Revisited)

Synopsis: Before departing for Whitestone to face the Briarwoods, Vax tries to make amends for angering Keyleth to the point where she refused to speak to him. Keyleth, in the meantime, starts thinking about what may lay ahead. This takes place during Episode 27, “The Path to Whitestone”.

Notes: “The Path to Whitestone” was and still is one of my least favorite episodes for several reasons. Still, I was wondering as to how Vax and Keyleth ended up being on speaking terms again due to his blunder in mentioning the child. So, despite my discomfort, I had to make myself rewatch at least enough to remember a few things. And also, I’d like to believe that Kiki’s Season 2 attire was actually the clothes she had bought in Vasselheim for their infiltration of the Velvet Cabaret.

This is my most recent revision. It’s about twice as long as it once was. I do hope you guys like this new version. Also, if you want to, please leave some feedback on ao3.

ao3 link can be found here.

Everything was going downhill very fast ever since their return from Vasselheim two weeks ago, and there was a very high chance that things would only continue to do so for them.

Vax could only mull over the events that transpired since their return to Greyskull Keep as he lay in his room. Everyone in Vox Machina were greeted with the news that a Lord Sylas Briarwood and a Lady Delilah Briarwood would be attending a feast at the royal palace of Emon. Hearing this news made Percy very nervous and agitated as he had vacated to his workshop to work on a “surprise” for the nobles. But when they inquired with him, they were greeted with a rather depressing story of the human’s upbringing and the fall of his family at the hands of the Briarwoods. Naturally, they all agreed to help him achieve revenge for those who died.

And then on the night of the feast, everything went to shit extremely fast when he tried to spy on the Briarwoods after the fact. Unfortunately, he had gotten caught by the two of them and even nearly died when he attempted to escape their clutches. Vox Machina managed to come to his aid with the help of a white tiefling named Lillith, who happened to be a cousin of Zahra Hydris, whom Vex’ahlia worked with during their Slayer’s Take trials. Despite their efforts, the couple escaped and vacated back to Whitestone, leaving Percy to vent out his anger and rage on not only their carriage driver, but also a group of bounty hunters hells-bent on capturing Lillith.

As if that were not enough, the party was removed from the Tal’Dorei Council for their actions that night despite their attempts at trying to plead their case. And now Percy wanted to take the fight to the Briarwoods themselves by returning home to Whitestone, far up in the Alabaster Sierras. They had a week to prepare themselves best they could, as they had no chance of proving their innocence just waiting in Emon.

It was the night before they decided to leave for Westruun to procure transportation for the mountainous hike. As he lay still on his bed, Vax’s gaze wandered towards the window and looked at the moon in the sky, rubbing the base of his neck where Sylas had bitten him the other night. So many things had happened, and he had been thrust into peril time and time again over the past month alone. He was surprised that he was still alive despite the odds. He worried so much about his life and that of his sister, especially after seeing her get struck by Delilah’s magic. He worried about Percival and the struggles he no doubt had faced five years ago haunting him once more, seeing his family’s killers in the flesh and only just barely keeping himself from shooting them during the proceedings. He worried about everyone in the group, knowing that they were about to go into danger with hardly any chance to rest, feeling as if they were fated to constantly be thrust into danger over and over and over again.

His thoughts then wavered towards what he had seen when he fell in the courtyard outside the palace. He had seen the others, and he had seen Vex’ahlia and how she had grown over the years into the strong, confident woman that she became. He couldn’t be more proud of his twin sister, who had handled the death of their mother and the scorning of their father much better than he thought. She had a strength that Vax wish he had, the strength to not be fazed by anything no matter how dire the circumstances and still come out on top as the exact same person. In fact, if it ever came to it, he would die for her so she could live on.

But in that instant, he also saw Keyleth. He saw her the way he had grown to always see her: beautiful, powerful, and full of grace despite her general awkwardness. His thoughts about her had changed greatly ever since the Underdark. At first he considered her as just another friend, not exactly as close as his sister was to him but close enough. But over time, ever since that one moment where he realized something was wrong with her, he found himself falling in love with her. He never even considered that particular outcome, but after the Underdark, he began to appreciate her much more such as when they were partnered up together for the Slayer’s Take hunt or during the trip to Pyrah for her Aramenté.

He was hoping to eventually find the courage to confess his feelings to her but not pressure her into making a choice right away. But after having angered her due to mentioning the child that she had accidentally killed, despite having good intentions, Vax began to wonder if it was even worth the trouble. It really made him feel depressed when she wouldn’t even talk to him after it happened. In fact, it broke his heart.

He sighed as he reached for the nightstand next to his bed and picked up the flower he plucked from her garden, still lost in his own musings as he stared at it. He was in love with a woman who didn’t even want to hear him out, even if it was for an apology; he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. In fact, there were many conflicting emotions within him, such as fear, anger, and shame. And yet, he knew that her anger was justified considering the hell she had gone through ever since destroying the Dread Emperor, the incident prompting her to leave for her sojourn to the Earth Ashari six months ago.

Vax continued to hold the flower in his hand, thinking things through. He wasn’t sure how he ended up falling in love, especially with someone like Keyleth, but regardless it had happened. He also wasn’t sure what to do since he hadn’t even told Gilmore yet about this. The sorcerer really took a liking to the rogue, and Vax often found Gilmore’s company quite pleasing. Not to mention that Vax trusted the man implicitly enough that he shared all the secret details regarding the Horn of Orcus. And yet, he knew that as much as he loved Gilmore, he couldn’t ignore his newfound feelings for that beautiful druid that started showing up in his dreams night after night.

At some point I should tell him about Kiki, to try to soften the blow. But I really don’t want to break his heart. Gods, why must this be so complicated?

And speaking of Keyleth, is she even interested in me? Hard to tell, especially considering she had a crush on that Kashaw fellow. Do I even matter to her at this point? Is it even worth going to talk to her right now?

Fuck it, I should at least try one more time. If she’s still angry, I suppose that means I have no chance whatsoever.

Sighing once again, Vax placed the flower back on the nightstand, got off his bed, and put on his boots. He then walked to the door and quietly slid past it, closing it silently. He had to at least try to apologize one more time.

Vax then quietly made his way to Keyleth’s door, and his nostrils could barely make out the scent of herbs and incense coming from that direction. He was surprised that she was still awake at this hour. In fact, the door was still slightly ajar, candlelight filtering out into the hall as he could hear her muttering to herself. Vax briefly debated in his head what to do at this point before deciding to just let himself in.

To hell with it, Vax told himself. I need to at least try. I need to not be a coward for once. I can’t just walk away like I always when things end up not going the way I would like.

Gods, this is complicated. Then again, what hasn’t been in my life?

Steeling himself best he could, Vax reached for the door handle to Keyleth’s room. He was ready to bolt at a moment’s notice, but he fought the urge to do so as he gently pushed it open.

He had at least try one more time.

Dressed in her Ashari nightgown, Keyleth was poring over her alchemy book in her room in Greyskull Keep, trying best she could to create potions that could aid the group. But due to her inexperience and only having learned how to be an alchemist recently, many of her efforts were a failure. And she was growing increasingly frustrated with each failed attempt on top of the events of the past two weeks.

In fact, everything was going wrong in so many ways. The Briarwoods had escaped, especially after nearly killing Vax, and they had gotten kicked off the council due to Uriel being charmed. Seeker Assum later told them all that Sylas was responsible due to the nobleman being vampiric in nature and having no problem in addling the sovereign’s and the seeker’s mental states. And she was getting very scared of not just Percy’s well-being but the rest of her companions, especially after seeing Tiberius brutally murder that old woman and showing no remorse for it.

And then there was Vax, who just had to open his damn mouth about the child and comparing that incident with the old woman. Keyleth was still feeling very sore about it, even making a point to outright ignore or brush off anything he had to say. The fucking idiot was so insensitive that he totally deserved a taste of his own medicine. The situation with the roc didn’t help matters, either, as some of the group wanted to kill it and its druid protector. Instead, she put her foot down and, with help from those who didn’t want to deceive or kill them, figured out a peaceful solution for both sides.

Keyleth’s thoughts went back to the confrontation with the Briarwoods. Sylas’s ferocity in combat was something to be feared, having seen him go toe-to-toe with Grog with that rather menacing blade and managing to handle the goliath on equal ground. Delilah was also frighteningly powerful as she was able to neutralize Tiberius and nearly kill Vex with her powerful magic. She had a feeling that their strength was far beyond what Vox Machina was capable of.

But what else are we supposed to do? And what can I do about Vox Machina themselves? Is it even worth it to try to make them understand what they are becoming?

Keyleth let out a long, deep sigh as she lay back in her chair, rubbing her tired eyes. She still couldn’t believe that she was still traveling with such a group of volatile people. Many times in the past she wanted to just leave them all, that they would be nothing but a negative influence. And yet, as the months passed by, she came to see them as being her dearest friends. She also knew that they would do anything for her, much like how she had for them. That fact only served to really confuse Keyleth even more, her desire to leave conflicting with her desire to stay.

And then a memory came to her. A memory of Vax comforting her during one of her more dire moments deep within the Underdark.

“Keyleth, I know you’ve had a hard time. We all have. I know we’re miles below the surface of the world. But we’re together. We are family. And everyone here is here for you as you have been for us. Now I say we camp for the night inside this schmuck’s tent. We stay here, we rest up, sleep on it, and see how we’re all feeling in the morning. We’re here for you, Keyleth. We’ll protect you as you have protected us. You got a family with us.”

“I only wish it were that simple...” Keyleth muttered to herself. And yet, she knew that Vax had a point. She truly considered Vox Machina to be her second family, especially since she had not seen her mother in twenty years. She recalled that Vax never really spoke about his and Vex’s family, other than meeting Syldor when they first arrived in Emon and met his elven wife and child. She then recalled that the interactions between the twins and their father were very stilted and frosty, contempt coming from both sides.

His childhood must have been rough. Not that he’s ever told us anything about it. I do really hope he tells us one day...

Keyleth couldn’t help but smile faintly when it came to thinking about Vax. Out of everyone in the group, despite her anger at him, a part of her still cared deeply about him in particular. They grew close in the past few weeks ever since she came back from Terrah, reaffirming the friendship they shared. He was very supportive of her during their Slayer’s Take trial and even during the journey to Pyrah and the Elemental Plane of Fire. Not to mention that even before then, she started to think about him more and more ever since their escape from Yug’Voril. She wasn’t sure how to process this feeling as it had never happened before. The closest equivalent to this sensation was her rather awkward infatuation with Kashaw.

No way. It can’t be like that... can it? Do I... love him? Maybe. And even if I did, it wouldn’t work out. After all, just the thought of falling in love scares me due to what still lies ahead for me.

Wait, why am I thinking about this?!

Keyleth tried to shake the thought out of her head as she resumed her work on another concoction. However, just like the rest, it was yet another failed creation.

“Gods dammit!” she yelled as she blindly threw the vial at the door, not even looking at or caring about where it was going to end up. But when she heard the shattering of glass against not wood but stone, she looked towards her door. It was standing open, and the vial’s contents were smeared against the stone wall.

What the—

It was then that she realized something else. Just as she had thrown the vial, she could’ve sworn she heard a gasp from the direction of the door and then a thud. Curious, she walked to the open door and began to look out into the hall. Other than Laina and Erwen and any of their guards, no one should really be awake at this time. Everyone needed their sleep before the big hike tomorrow, of course. And after the surprise visit from a couple of creatures after dealing with the roc, Keyleth was far more antsy about there being more of them.

She looked to her right and when she did, she almost wanted to laugh out loud at the unexpected timing. It was Vax’ildan, of course, leaning on the wall and looking down at his boots, avoiding eye contact. She wasn’t sure what exactly he was doing out of his room, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know. For all she knew, he would open his mouth and make yet another stupid comment that would make her even angrier.

And yet, she couldn’t help but notice his expression. He seemed rather distant and depressed. In fact, he looked as if he didn’t have a lot of sleep at all, almost matching the kind of expression Percy had been making lately ever since the news about the Briarwoods coming to town. And seeing that same expression on Vax’s face made Keyleth feel a pang of guilt for her own behavior earlier, though she made a conscious effort not to show it. After all, she was still a little pissed at him.

Keyleth straightened up and then said to Vax, “What do you want?”

Vax slowly looked up but didn’t look her in the eye, as if he was ashamed to do so. Keyleth had seen that look before, and that realization made her feel ill. After all, she had made it herself several times before, back home and while she had been traveling for the past year, most notably after she had accidentally killed the child.

She couldn’t bear to look Vox Machina nor the parents of the child in the eye, especially after the boy’s mother asked what had happened to him. And when she was told what had happened, the mother grew furious and lashed out at Keyleth, refusing to hear the druid’s side of the story and pleading to Pike for her son to be brought back over and over again. But it was when Pike sadly told her that she lacked the power to do so that the mother broke down and sobbed.

That particular sight caused Keyleth’s own heart to break, especially since she caused this to happen. She came to realize that the power she was gifted with would carry with it the burden of responsibility, especially if innocent lives were caught in the crossfire in battle, and therefore there would be consequences for her actions if people got hurt. For a time, she believed that she could manage, that she would be able to avoid doing such a thing. And yet at that moment, when the vine she conjured tugged against the Dread Emperor’s chained charge and she heard the sickening snap of that tiny neck, she knew. She knew that she had just taken an innocent life. It was all her fault.

She knew there was no way for her to easily atone for her actions. She was a killer, plain and simple. Despite Vox Machina being there to try to support her, they never truly understood what it felt like for her. So thus the next day before sunrise, she made the choice to just up and leave the group before anyone else woke up, leaving behind only a single written letter explaining where she had gone.

Keyleth knew that it was the cowardly choice, and even then it didn’t help at all considering the difficulties she experienced during her training under Pa’tice. The vision she experienced did not help matters either, which only further shook what feelings of conviction she still had. It made her greatly think about whether or not she was even worthy of becoming the Voice of the Tempest. It also made her wish that her mother had never vanished, since due to that the burden of the Aramenté was suddenly placed on Keyleth’s shoulders. She even silently hated the fact that her own people—even her own father—decided that she had to be the one even though she never wanted the responsibility. Once again, no one ever truly knew or understood her suffering. Not her people, nor Vox Machina, nor anyone else.

But at the same time, she knew that she could not survive out in the world alone. And she still had a kinship with her party, even with her misgivings about them. So when she had finally returned six months later, and the party welcomed her back with open arms, she was such a sobbing mess that Tiberius hugged her tight, the dragonborn relieved that she came back safe and sound.

Having thought all of those things, Keyleth felt that Vax was acting this way because of how she treated him. Another pang of guilt formed within her.

“I, um... I wanted to see how you were doing,” he started to say. And he then glanced at the residue on the wall and said, “Having a bad night yourself, I take it?”

Keyleth let out another deep sigh and replied, “Yeah. Not exactly making a lot of headway in being an alchemist, that’s for sure. I’ve also got a lot on my mind about what’s to come.”

Vax nodded, still not wanting to look her in the eye. And every time he averted his gaze, it only served to make her feel even worse. “Same. Um, I guess that answers my question. I don’t want to, um, keep you from working or trying to get some sleep. So... I’ll just be going now.”

With that, Vax removed himself from the wall and, while still not looking her in the eye, began to walk off with his shoulders slumped. Keyleth looked down at her feet, unsure as to what to do next. She knew that she had to say something, but she wasn’t sure if he’d even stay put due to how she treated him. Indecision was always a strong flaw of hers every time she was faced with a choice.

She still had to try, though.

“Vax, wait.”

She then heard the rogue’s footsteps slowing and then stopping entirely before he could get too far upon hearing her words. Looking up, she could see that his back was facing her, head still drooped down and shoulders still slumped. She got him to stop walking away, but what next?

“If you want to talk, then by all means. Please come inside,” she said as she moved away from the door and waited for Vax to step in. And to her surprise, he walked inside and stood there as she closed the door and, as if on impulse, locked it. Behind her, she could hear him sigh heavily.

Wait, why did I just lock the door? It’s not like I’m planning to do... “that”. This isn’t exactly the right time and place for that. I mean, I don’t even know how he feels about me, nor what I’m supposed to do about it. Sure, I’ve been having dreams about him, but why have I?

Am I... dreaming about him because I am in love? Or is it out of concern?

Why can’t I seem to figure these things out?! It’s not like I can ask Scanlan or Grog about it; they are less about love and more about lust! Maybe Vex? I doubt it. Who knows how she’d react, especially since it’s about her brother?

I mean, Vax and I are only friends... right?

Then again, I can’t help but feel as if he thinks of me as more than that... if that moment was any indication.

Keyleth, lost in her reverie, couldn’t help but think back to a certain moment from back when they were in Vasselheim, waiting for Vex’ahlia’s team to return.

It had been only a few moments after Kashaw had made his abrupt exit. As Thorbir groaned at the sudden and unexpected display of affection and walked off to get himself a drink at one of the many taverns in the cold streets of Vasselheim, the rest of them were brought to another room for lodging.

“This is where you can stay while you wait for your companions to return. I’m sure they will be back quickly,” Murtin Cyndrial had stated, his jovial personality ringing true.

But Vax wasn’t as jovial about it. Instead, he let himself in without a word, not looking anyone in the eye as he crashed onto the bed. Tiberius, grumbling and muttering and complaining as usual, entered the room as well. The overall trial had been rough for all of them, after all.

“T-Thank you, Murtin,” Keyleth replied. “Will you let us know when they come back? Because... Vax gets very agitated if he’s apart from his sister for a long time.”

“Oh, certainly!” the halfling said with a laugh. “Also, I gotta say, that Kash fellow sure knows how to make an impression. Don’t you think so, missy?”

Keyleth’s face turned a scarlet red color, being reminded once again of the grumpy cleric stealing her first kiss, and without warning too. “Y-Yeah, he does.”

“Well, I’ll let you get some sleep. You’ve earned it!” Murtin shouted with nothing but cheer in his voice. He then walked off with a spring in his step, still excited about the news of the successful hunt of the rakshasa .

Keyleth still stood there in the hall as she stared off into space, still dazed about the kiss as her heart raced. This was something completely new to her, something unknown. That Kashaw was certainly something else. She wasn’t sure why she felt such an attraction towards him, as they had only known each other for a few hours. Not to mention that he seemed either disinterested or outright rude about everything she had said and done.

She also couldn’t help but feel as if the kiss felt awkward and weird.

I mean, he’s technically a married man. And up until that point, he didn’t really seem the least bit interested in me. What the hell was that about?

Although... it did feel good, at least a little. I wonder if that’s what it feels like for other girls who receive their first kiss.

“Ah, young love. So fleeting, yet so palpable. It’s truly amazing to witness, especially if it’s you.”

Keyleth jumped a little at the unexpected voice. She turned to where it was coming from, and her nerves were settled immediately. It was Tiberius.

“Wait, what do you mean ‘love’? I-I only just met the guy,” she asked him.

“Oh, did I misunderstand? My sincerest apologies, milady,” Tiberius responded, scratching the back of his scaled head. “Then again, I’ve never really experienced such a thing myself, being a scholarly fellow. It was always reading and research up in Draconia for me.”

“I see... I mean, I can relate. Back home in Zephrah, I had the same kind of upbringing in my preparation for the Aramenté. No time for socializing, no time for fun, no time for... love. So... this is very new to me. Although...”

“’Although’? What’s wrong, Your Highness?” Tiberius asked.

Keyleth hesitated. “It... It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

Then out of the corner of her eye, Keyleth then noticed something. Namely, an empty bed where Vax once was.

“Hey, where did Vax go?”

Tiberius looked at where he was earlier and shrugged. “Poor boy. He must still be fretting about Vex. After all, he was very angry at the tiefling woman—”

“Vanessa,” Keyleth interrupted. “She has a name, Tiberius.”

“Sorry,” Tiberius said apologetically. “He was very angry at Vanessa for splitting us all up. And I’ll be frank, I’m just as worried about the others as you and Vax are.”

Keyleth nodded. “Still... I worry about him. I... have my reasons.”

What Keyleth didn’t elaborate on was that the root of her worry stemmed from having Vax on the forefront of her mind for the past two weeks or so ever since the Underdark. She wasn’t really sure if Tiberius would understand, based on his own admission.

“Um... I’m gonna go look for him,” Keyleth told the dragonborn. “Don’t wait for me to go to sleep. I’ll be back soon.”

Tiberius shrugged. “Very well, milady. I need some sleep anyway.”

Then, as soon as Tiberius closed the door behind him, Keyleth made her way through the hallways to the front doors that led out into the Quadroads. Making her way outside, she figured that she’d have a better chance of finding him from above. Focusing, she transformed into a raven and took to the sky. As she flew, she looked all over with her avian eyes. And after about an hour of searching, she could just barely catch the sight of a dark-haired half-elven man skulking in the alleyways.

Vax.

Keyleth flew in for a closer look and then carefully perched herself on his shoulder. Vax was only mildly started until he realized she was there. He then calmed himself down, his body becoming less tense.

“Hello, little birdie. What are you doing out here in the middle of this cold city?” Vax asked her, a faint smile forming on his face.

Keyleth cursed herself that she couldn’t respond with words. One of the many things she was upset about when it came to her shapeshifting abilities. Instead, she edged closer and did her best to brush her feathered body against Vax’s face. His skin felt chilled due to being outside this long.

Vax, you really should come back inside. You’ll freeze to death if you’re not careful.

“Aww, aren’t you really affectionate? Reminds me of Trinket whenever he nuzzles me or Vex. Or even the rest of the group...”

Vax trails off, the smile fading. He then looks up at the night sky, his breath visible due to the cold.

“My sister is out there, quite possibly fighting a dragon right now. I don’t even know if she’s alive or not. Sure, she has some of our companions with her, but that doesn’t exactly ease my worries. As if that wasn’t enough... someone I know had just met someone else. And... I don’t even know how I should react to that.”

Keyleth’s heart sank a little. She knew he was referring to her and Kashaw.

Wait, are you... jealous, Vax? I mean, why would you be jealous? We’re friends.

“I dunno, I’m not even sure how I feel about her,” Vax continued. “She’s an amazing person. She’s powerful and kind, and she may be an awkward and nervous wreck, but I like that about her. I... I don’t know how to process this feeling within me.”

Wait a minute... is he talking about...?

“Oh, who am I kidding?” Vax was still saying. “I’m probably just stressed from what’s been happening lately. Hmph, I never thought that a bird like you would make a great conversation partner.”

Vax took his finger and scratched Keyleth’s raven neck. She closed her eyes and felt a little more content. She wanted to just revert right then and there, but she wasn’t sure how Vax would react. He’d probably be so flustered that he would start avoiding her. Instead, she did her best to motion towards the direction of the guildhall, hoping that Vax would take the hint.

“Oh... Now that you mention it, I should be heading back. I’m only going to make the others worry. You should get going yourself. Don’t you have others to go back to?”

Keyleth did her best to nod in her bird form and then took to the sky once more. As she flew, her mind began to race.

Did... he basically just say he had feelings for me? He wasn’t exactly being direct with his words. Then again, maybe I’m overthinking it.

I still wonder, though.

Trying to focus, she managed to fly back to the guildhall and up through the window leading to their room. Seeing that she made it back before Vax, and that Tiberius was sound asleep (and snoring), Keyleth found herself crawling into bed herself. It was a long day, and it was seemingly going to be a much longer wait.

Three days. That is what the Huntmaster had stated in terms of the duration of the trial. They could easily wait three days.

But then three days became four, and it was not until midday on the fourth day that they finally came back. From there, they traveled to Pyrah and then finished some more business in Vasselheim before returning home... and then things quickly went to hell.

“Um, where do I even start?” Vax asked her, bringing Keyleth out of her reverie. She remembered that she merely asked him to come in for a talk.

Just a talk. Nothing more. At least, I think that is the case.

Sighing, Keyleth turned away from the door and found herself staring  at Vax’s back. Nervously, she reached out, grasped his arm, and pulled it with the intent to make him turn around. And without much restraint, he did so albeit his head was still dropped low.

“You can start by looking at me.”

When he didn’t, she took her hands and placed them on both sides of his face and made it so he could finally look her in the eye. And when he did, she could see something that she was expecting to see: tears falling down his face.

“Vax?”

Silence surrounded the two of them for quite a while. If anything, Vax was always the quiet sort when emotionally burdened, as well as when he was being distant. In fact, he was so quiet that she almost didn’t catch a whispered response from him. It was muttered too low for her to hear.

“Did you say something?” she asked in a quiet, gentle tone.

“I’m sorry.”

Keyleth frowned and tilted her head. “For what?”

Vax’s tears continued to flow down his cheeks, trailing down her hands and along her arms as he no doubt struggled to find the words to say to her. Every passing moment that he stayed silent only further served to depress Keyleth. And then, after a while, he finally said something.

“For making you angry. For being inconsiderate. For just being me.”

It was as if someone had lit a lantern in her head, as hearing those words made her want to cry herself. Deep down, she wanted to punch herself for not even taking into account Vax’s feelings at all. She was just as inconsiderate of them as he was of hers at the time. And that realization only served to make her feel worse. And little by little, her stoic expression started to crack.

“I... I didn’t mean to anger you so much. I didn’t even think of how you would react. I only wanted to tell Tiberius that he was in the wrong when he killed that woman and... out of everyone in our group, I didn’t want to make you angry at me. That’s... something I never want to do. Ever.”

“Vax... shut up,” Keyleth interrupted, not wanting to hear any more. She dropped the façade entirely and pulled Vax in for a tight, strong hug. And even then, she still tried to hold back her tears as she started to run her hand through his hair, trying to calm him down.

“Keyleth?” he asked, his voice quaking.

She shook her head as she couldn’t hold back any longer, the tears now falling down her face. It was her fault that he was acting like this. She caused yet another heart to be broken. Just like the mother of the child. Just like when she ended up reducing Lady Kima to tears when they had their argument in the Underdark.

Why am I cursed to make people cry?

Pulling herself together, she told Vax, “It’s all right. I should be the one to apologize. It’s true that I was angry at you, but I’m more angry at myself for allowing that past mistake to affect me so much.”

Vax nodded as he continued to cry and eventually embraced her just as tight. His embrace was warm and strong, much like how she remembered it when they mourned the loss of the flying carpet during the pursuit of the rakshasa. For that brief moment, all she wanted to do was to hug him and comfort him.

“I suppose we both have a lot to feel sorry for,” Keyleth told him as she still held him tight.

“I suppose we do,” Vax said to her. “I don’t want what happened to ruin our friendship. It means a lot to me. And... I don’t blame you for being angry at me. I was being quite a dumbass.”

Keyleth nodded. “I agree. I don’t want to lose our friendship, either. Not over a mistake like that. It’s rather childish of me to cut ties over such a thing, actually. It’s not something a future leader of the Ashari should do.” She pulled back and looked into Vax’s eyes and said with a surprisingly calm voice, “So... I forgive you.”

At that statement, he gave a faint smile. “Thank you, Kiki. I really appreciate that.”

Keyleth couldn’t help but return his smile with one of her own. Despite that brief feeling of anger and resentment towards Vax over the past week, she couldn’t help but feel grateful that even though she treated him that way, he didn’t hold it against her. Having thought that, something stirred within her, a rather pleasant feeling coursing through her body and warming her heart. It made her smile a little wider, and she didn’t even feel embarrassed about it.

So is it true? Do I... feel that way about him?

Breaking the embrace, and wanting to not dwell on such thoughts, Keyleth then said to Vax, “I know I’ll never get over that feeling of guilt. That’s not going to change. However, I do need to not go into a rage whenever it gets brought up. I know you had good intentions, and it was wrong of me. So... starting tomorrow, we can go back to how things were.”

Vax nodded slowly. “Agreed. It’ll feel good to do that.”

Keyleth nodded back. A thought then came to her as she asked Vax, “Well, since you’re still here, I was wondering if I could have your opinion on something.”

“Yes?” he replied.

Keyleth then walked to her closet and pulled out some familiar-looking clothes: a brown, sleeveless dress with gray leggings and a leather corset, with ruby-encrusted arm bangles and a matching choker. They were the clothes that she had bought in Vasselheim, recently mended and cleaned.

“I was thinking of wearing this tomorrow. I kinda need to break this outfit in some more. What do you think?” she asked as she showed him the dress.

Vax thought about it for a moment and then said, “I think it would look great on you once more. You should wear it.”

Keyleth blushed a little as she placed the bundle of clothes on the table after putting away all of her alchemical tools. “Thank you, Vax. That’s very sweet of you.”

Vax turned his head away, but not before Keyleth herself noticed a blush on his cheeks and the tips of his ears. “Well, I’ll see you in the morning, then. Good night, Kiki.”

“Good night, Vax,” she replied, choosing not to show that she noticed him blushing. The rogue then let himself out the door and back into the dark hallways, heading back to his room.

Keyleth closed the door and leaned back against it, feeling a little better after her talk with Vax. It gave her a chance to calm down after her failed alchemy attempts. And besides, she had to admit that seeing Vax blush like that was rather cute.

I still have to wonder. Does he have feelings for me? And do I for him?

Shaking her head, Keyleth made her way to her bed and crawled under the covers. She then allowed herself to fall asleep, and she ended up dreaming of their time in Vasselheim. Specifically, of the time before they infiltrated the Velvet Cabaret when they pretended to be married. It was rather amusing to tell Vex about that later on, but what Keyleth’s dream was focused on was how it felt to be in his presence.

She continued to sleep, oblivious to her door creaking open as Vax peeked through, watching her sleep as if she were the most amazing person in the world. And then, he closed the door and silently went back to his room, a smile forming on his lips.

The next morning, everyone began to gather together as Tiberius prepared his teleportation circle. Vax could notice that everyone was on edge due to the agreement they all made to go to Whitestone today. If they failed, they would no doubt all die. But it was still a risk that had to be taken, for Percy’s sake.

As Tiberius finished his preparations, he noticed Keyleth consciously standing close to him. The two half-elves looked at each other, a silent understanding between them of where they stood now, as Vax felt much more calm and serene after his conversation with her the other night. He truly felt as if he might have a chance to tell her one day, provided they survived their upcoming battle with the Briarwoods.

He heard a rather faint snarl from behind, a quick glance revealing the source to be Vex. He noticed Keyleth shrugging at the ranger when their eyes met, and Vax could only wonder what his twin was thinking. He hadn’t told her either, after all. But perhaps there would be a chance later on. And as Tiberius cast the spell, and the circle flared to life, Vax and Keyleth soon found themselves holding hands as they braced themselves for the inevitable confrontation to come and leaped into the portal together.

They didn’t realize it at the time, but their feelings for each other were quite strong even if they were unsure as to how the other felt. But by the end of their impending adventure in Whitestone, that would change.