#sp serilee

[planets-and-prose]

Find The Word

I was tagged on this by @k-v-briarwood, thank you for the tag!

My words are: Leak, Beam, Favor, Neglect.

I'll tag @chayscribbles, @n1ghtcrwler, @bones-and-rainbows, if y'all want to, and anyone else who does want to :) Your words are: Blue, Rip, Shine, Blanket.

Since Continuing Education really isn't...written, I'm doing Signature Powers so we'll see if that half-done, swiss cheese manuscript pulls some decent quotes. These are...entirely unedited, but I'll provide limited context when appropriate.

Leak (AKA the two local aromantic enbys learn about queer-platonic relationships)

“We…slept together,” Vandita murmured. "Overnight." “It…looks that way,” Hikari replied, trying for a chuckle. It came out oddly forced. “And it doesn’t feel wrong,” Vandi added. They also looked shocked at this turn of events, and that brought Hikari at least a little bit of comfort. Thank the gods that they weren’t the only one out of their element. “No, it doesn’t.” Silence stretched for a moment as the morning sun leaked through the window, spilling shadows across the room. “So, we…should we talk about this?” Vandi asked, sitting up in bed. “Maybe? Yes. I think we likely should. Maybe you have more experience in this than I do?” Gods, they hoped one of them had experience.

Beam (Exposition, and allusions to me being unable to NOT have a shapeshifting character)

"Niko, if we don't find anything, it'll be fine. You've been helping so the pain isn't as bad, and I haven't shifted in quite some time. I could live like this easily. If we find anything, it'll be amazing, but we don't have to." "But you SHOULDN'T have to live this way! You shouldn't! Your damn contractor…" "…is just one of many contractors. I don't have it the worst, trust me. It's just how things are in a lot of places. I should have known better. I asked for power, and I signed a contract stating that that power had a price. Yes, I didn't know about the bone issues, but…I should probably have known. That's just the way it is. Contractors have and will do much worse." "But it just…! Ugh!" Niko huffed out a frustrated sigh. "Still. If I can help you, I will, so we're going to try. Besides, travel might be nice. You're so used to running around in the woods, hopefully it'll be good for you too." Rose beamed. "I have missed the woods."

Favor (In which Vandi and Hikari come back, and Vandi's pronouns are inconsistent because they're she/they and honestly I did this whole thing in a month for NaNo lol)

Hikari nodded and gave a sympathetic grimace. “Overprotective father?” “You could say that.” Thinking of their father, how angry he’d be…how he probably had half the army out searching for his two errant children…it was definitely something. But it was liberating to not be associated with her father for once, to not have to be royal or perfect or even have to worry about it. The only person who might know about their royal background was Gil, and he hadn’t said anything so far. It was probably alright. “Well, I’d better go check on Seri. She’s…having a rough time.” “She does have a lot on her shoulders, it seems. She’s not really letting any of us in.” Vandita shook her head. “She doesn’t really trust that easily, and I’m trying to get her to loosen up. But it’s definitely not working.” “Well, time’ll do it. Go take care of your sister,” Hikari told them with a reassuring smile. Vandita nodded and left Hikari’s chambers in favor of Serilee’s.

Neglect

Apparently I haven't used this word? Ever? I checked like four manuscripts...so either Scrivener hates me or I'm not utilizing that particular brand of angst enough. So I'm throwing in a random excerpt from SP that I Just Felt Like.

Codell turned his attention to his quilt, examining the bright patterns and the intricate detail. Now that he couldn’t hear or speak, he learned that his eye for detail improved markedly, giving him an ability to sew intricate patterns, distinguish between colors and fade one seamlessly into another in a way that seemed almost impossible to achieve with blocks of fabric. Living in silence gave plenty of time to recreate beautiful mountain views in quilted fabric, bringing an art that was once thought to be simply “homey” into an art form of its own. And if people managed to get past the stony exterior and the strangely all-knowing stare, they would have the opportunity to buy a truly resplendent piece of artwork. Yet few did, so often Codell simply sat, beneath an awning so as not to burn his fair skin, sewing in…well, it was always silence for him. But few tried to talk to him. Today wasn’t an exception, aside from the vision.

Thank you again for the tag!!

[planets-and-prose]

When you fear losing control...even the most mundane moments are laced with fear.

Only trigger warning is that the very beginning is vaguely nsfw? Nothing super explicit but there is mention of sex and nudity.

Vandita gave Hikari one more grin as they slipped back into their clothes. “I have to say…this has been excellent,” Hikari said as they settled back onto the bed. Since they didn’t plan to go anywhere else, they were still naked, and Vandita ran another appreciative look over their body.

“I’ll have to agree,” Vandita replied with a wink. Honestly, Hikari was…incredible in bed, and incredible in general. They were a great friend, interesting for the little pillow talk that they indulged in, and casual enough where Vandita didn’t have to worry about a romance. Granted, they weren’t averse to the idea of romance, but right now, when their sister’s life was at stake, it was just one more thing, and they didn’t really feel like navigating it along with everything else. “Ideally, we’ll be able to do this again, in the near future.” Hikari nodded.

“Congratulations on being my most consistent partner,” they chuckled.

“Same to you. Though I doubt I’ve had as many as you. It was hard to get away from home.”

Hikari nodded and gave a sympathetic grimace. “Overprotective father?”

“You could say that.” Thinking of their father, how angry he’d be…how he probably had half the army out searching for his two errant children…it was definitely something. But it was liberating to not be associated with their father for once, to not have to be royal or perfect or even have to worry about either of the above. The only person who might know about their royal background was Gil, and he hadn’t said anything so far. It was probably alright. “Well, I’d better go check on Seri. She’s…having a rough time.”

“She does have a lot on her shoulders, it seems. She’s not really letting any of us in.” Vandita shook her head.

“She doesn’t really trust that easily, and I’m trying to get her to loosen up. But it’s definitely not working.”

“Well, time’ll do it. Go take care of your sister,” Hikari told them with a reassuring smile. Vandita nodded and left Hikari’s chambers in favor of Serilee’s. As they walked back, Vandita thanked the gods that she and Seri had a room on the far end of the hallway, nowhere near Hikari’s. They certainly weren’t having the loudest sex that had ever been had…but it was absolutely not quiet, and Vandita didn’t want to scar their sister.

The room was silent when Vandita made it there—maybe Seri was already asleep? But no, when they knocked, they could hear Seri moving to open the door. When she did, she looked tired, a little bit beaten down. It hurt Vandi to see their big sister looking this way. She’d never looked so lost, so dead inside. There had been a light in her before the contract, and now it was seemingly extinguished. “Hey, are you okay?” Vandi asked, knowing the answer but wanting to give her sister an opportunity to talk.

“Not really,” Seri said softly. “Just…worried. Thinking about a lot of things. Concerned about even sleeping, honestly. I don’t know how much control he has over me. I’m worried that I’ll end up hurting you in my sleep.”

“But Codell said that he wouldn’t be able to hurt you unless your powers were used. Or at least, that’s what he saw in your future, right?” Seri nodded.

“I know, I know, but…I’m still concerned. Like Codell said, the future is certainly not set in stone. And…I’m worried about Da, and the kingdom, and everything we left behind. I’m feeling as if I was too rash, perhaps I didn’t think this through enough, and we’re going to suffer the consequences of that soon. It…it isn’t good to think about. It’s been hard to sleep.” Vandi gave their sister a hug, and then moved to their bed. They patted the side of it, motioning for Seri to sit next to them.

“Hey, I know it isn’t easy. But let some of the people with us help you, okay? Trust them a little. They’re here to give us a better chance, and it’s gonna help a lot. Let them know some of your worries. Maybe it’ll help you to hear from a sensible person that it’ll be fine, instead of from a disaster like me.” Seri chuckled a little, but Vandi could still see tears welling in her eyes.

“But how do I know I can trust them? I’ve misplaced my trust enough, Vandi. I don’t like trusting people when I have to trust them. That’s what got us here.” Vandita held Seri close when she finally sat.

“Trust went bad one time. But that was someone you barely knew. And these people…they seem good. Honestly. You knew that contractor for two seconds, and…the decision wasn’t something that you really got to make. I mean, it wasn’t…a decision, to you I guess. These people offered to help you. Besides, like I said. If they hurt you, I’ll kick their asses. It’ll be fine.”

“You can’t do that if they kill you,” Seri murmured softly. “I thought I was going to lose you. I can’t do it again, Vandi. I can’t.”

“And you won’t. Trust me a little. I know what I did wrong last time. And your contract…well, it helped me realize that I’m not the only one who has to suffer for my dumb decisions. I don’t make those dumb decisions with just…me, you know? So I’m gonna do my best to not be as dumb, to think a little more for myself, and you’re gonna try to put trust in everyone else a little bit, alright?” Slowly, Seri nodded.

“Things won’t be easy. Remember how the contractor said before that lots of people targeted those with power? What if…what if that’s why the bandits attacked us? And what if worse things come from it?”

“We’ll figure out how to combat it. I know that’s not that reassuring or anything, but we’ll figure it out. Trust me. Trust yourself, trust us. Think about it, Amber’s pretty badass—”

“Language,” Seri chuckled, more as a joke than anything. Vandi elbowed her and laughed.

“—She’s pretty badass, and Hikari’s pretty good at what they do, and Rose! Rose could do some pretty amazing stuff too. And there’s me. So I think we’ll make it. Remember, Codell saw some futures where we made it, so it’s definitely possible. We’ve just got to make it happen, and from what he said, we’re doing all the right things. I think it’ll be alright.” Seri sighed and nodded, but the anxiety didn’t leave her countenance, so Vandita decided to try another tack.

“So, Rose is definitely pining after Amber,” Vandi proposed with a mischievous look. Seri smiled and sighed.

“You know I’m not as invested in gossip as you are. We’re not teenagers anymore,” she lightly chuckled.

“But am I wrong?”

“I’m more concerned about whether or not I’ll have a new sibling-in-law,” Seri teased with a wink. “How many nights have you spent with Hikari since you met them?”

“Technically no nights, we don’t sleep together or stay overnight. I don’t want romance, and neither do they. Nothing’s going to happen, honest.” Seri gave the type of teasing grin that only an older sibling can manage, and settled back onto the pillows.

“I don’t know, I’ve never heard you talk about your one night stands before like you talk about Hikari. Didn’t you say last night that they were one of the best partners you’ve ever had, how you hoped you’d get to be with them again?”

“Purely from a sexual standpoint,” Vandi objected, fighting back the little bit of anxiety that this discussion brought. If they did develop feelings for Hikari—and that was a GIANT “if”—there would be a lot of complications to deal with, not least of which was that Vandi was technically a princess. They’d never be able to go back to the palace if they decided to remain with Hikari. And granted, the palace was never their favorite place, but…it might be where Seri went, and Vandi wouldn’t abandon Seri. Seri always, always came first.

“Well, if it isn’t, and they do end up hurting you, I’ll do my best to avenge your feelings.” Vandita snorted.

“You? I’ve never seen you do so much as insult anyone, much less kick their a..butt,” they amended.

“I thoroughly object to that, I insult you all the time.”

“But that’s different. You’re my sister, that’s what sisters do.”

“Regardless. If you do end up being with them…maybe it’ll be more incentive for me to stay away from the palace.” Vandi raised an eyebrow.

“Would you want to?”

“Yes. No. I don’t know. It’s just…I don’t belong out here. It’s hard adjusting. I didn’t realize that I was as coddled as I am, and at first, I certainly hated it and was counting down the days until I could return to the palace. But freedom, the ability to do what I want, when I want to…I just…I feel like I can be someone who I want to be. I don’t feel like I have to be a princess, or like a princess is all I am anymore. I just…I don’t know. Right now, I don’t know what choice I would make.”

“Well, you have time. I really doubt we’re going to get everything fixed when we get to Betewsy, so there’ll probably be even more time than that.” Seri nodded.

“I…I’ll try not to worry about it too much yet.”

“Good,” Vandi said decisively. “Now. What other gossip do you want to hear?”

[planets-and-prose]

How do you make the future a reality when your destiny changes with every passing moment?

TW for mention of blood and a bit of very very mild body horror.

A woman.

She knelt before a man, his eyes shut and his chest ripped open with a bleeding wound. In a moment, she closed her eyes as well and her mouth moved. Her lips did not seem to be forming words, but silver magic wove its way around the man’s wounds, and the wounds began to seal. Flesh knit itself together, the bones that seemed to have been broken rose up to their former positions, bringing a sense of life back to the man. His eyes fluttered open, and he looked at the woman. Smiled.

Yet the woman was somewhere else entirely. Suddenly, there was a darkness engulfing her. A man with a milky white eye and a twisted grin stood behind her, having appeared out of nowhere, and with the darkness, he managed to phase into her. He saw through her eyes, heard through her ears, felt everything she felt. And, within a moment, he stood, and she stood with him. He forced her to take a dagger out of her pack, and stood over the still-stunned man. The man did his best to scramble away, but the woman moved with an unearthly strength that was not her own.

Suddenly, there was nothing but blood. ——— The woman again.

This time she stood above a body, holding a sword. The body of the man who had been controlling her. Wisps of power all exploded from the wound, seeming to fly out and attempt to find their owners. A very small light entered the woman, and she experimentally touched a cut on her arm. It healed, but instead of the darkness, a light rose up behind her. A person who looked similar to her, but still a little different, came up to her and gave her a hug, sweeping her off her feet.

Another person—Hikari—also came behind them, and turned the first person around, gave them a kiss. A few other people also seemed to be around, celebrating. There was a victory. ——— She screamed as the man began to take her over, fighting against every single movement. A small, feeble light within her seemed to rise up, and it did its best to combat the shadow. It kept being stifled, kept being stamped out, but each time, it rose up again and started to fight again. The person who looked like the woman from before was screaming something, something that couldn’t quite be made out. The woman was screaming too, but somehow there was a sense that the woman in particular was unable to make a single sound. Everything began to collapse in on itself, shadow and light warring, no one could reach a hand to the woman, she shook, her body convulsed, blood started to trickle from a corner of her mouth, and…

Codell gasped in a breath as the sensations of the world around him slowly began to seep into his consciousness. It was bright, midday, the sun high in the air, and he could feel his eyes vaguely aching. Had he zoned out looking in its direction? Probably. His left hand was curled around something soft—one of the quilts he’d been selling. He sent a silent thanks to the gods that he hadn’t been trapped in the visions for long, and that despite being out in the middle of the street, selling wares, that nothing seemed to have been taken. All his quilts were there, including the one that he had been working on before unconsciousness began to take him. As he took stock of everything, he mouthed a curse; the hand that had not been holding the quilt had been holding the needle, and though he’d managed to escape being stabbed, he’d bent the small thing at almost a ninety-degree angle.

As he attempted to bend it in the right position, Codell surveyed the street. He’d never blacked out like that before in public. Generally speaking, his visions came to him when he attempted to trigger them, and he generally only had them hit him unawares when he was somewhere that connected to what he saw; for example, he had asked Hikari about a certain town, and then had a vision in that town moments later. They so rarely just came about like that…maybe something here was connected, in an odd way.

Shaking off the sensation, Codell examined the needle. It wasn’t perfectly straight, but it’d do until he went home to get a new one. Lugging all his wares out to the market district wasn’t easy, and he attracted so few people as it was. Hikari had said something about being “more personable,” but it wasn’t the easiest thing for a deaf mute to be personable. He couldn’t really hold an interesting conversation unless the person in question could sign. And the only person he’d met that could do that was Hikari. Who, now that he thought about it, might be interested to hear that Codell had seen him kissing someone and not immediately taking them to bed.

Well, alternate futures. It wasn’t particularly likely.

Codell turned his attention to his quilt, examining the bright patterns and the intricate detail. Now that Codell couldn’t hear or speak,  his eye for detail improved markedly, giving him an ability to sew intricate patterns, distinguish between colors and fade one seamlessly into another in a way that seemed almost impossible to achieve with blocks of fabric. Living in silence gave plenty of time to recreate beautiful mountain views in quilted fabric, bringing an art that was once thought to be simply “homey” into an art form of its own. And if people managed to get past the stony exterior and the strangely all-knowing stare, they would have the opportunity to buy a truly resplendent piece of artwork.

Yet few did, so often Codell simply sat, beneath an awning so as not to burn his fair skin, sewing in…well, it was always silence for him. But few tried to talk to him. Today wasn’t an exception, aside from the vision.

That is, until a taller brown-skinned woman in a dress, slightly too nice for this area of Elion but dirtied from travel, walked through the street, looking a little bit lost.

He had seen her before.

This was what had triggered the vision. She had come to Elion. The girl who Codell had seen constantly, in all his visions, as being vital to the future of the world, and who would have the highest probability of succeeding with his help and knowledge. Not even considering what might happen, he ran into the crowd, jostling people left and right, until he managed to get to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She whipped around, and the person with her immediately put a hand on their sword. Shit, this did not look good. Codell would just explain, he’d just…

“I need to talk to you,” he signed, but the woman and her companion just looked confused. Motherfucker. Because he’d isolated himself so thoroughly after he signed his contract, he only had really interacted with Hikari, who could sign, or someone he could write a note to immediately. Human interaction was always premeditated, he’d always thought through how to communicate, and now, he’d acted rashly and was paying the price.

The woman and her companion seemed like they were about to leave, and Codell was turning bright red. He was utterly mortified, but for this woman’s sake, he had to explain to her what was going on. She could hate him now, as long as she’d let him help her later. Alright, she didn’t understand sign, so it’d have to be paper notes. Those were at his stand, which was across the road. It wasn’t a large distance, but for what he needed right now, it could have been an ocean away to Codell. He tried to gesture for them to come with him, but the woman’s companion just looked at him suspiciously. And the woman was starting to tug her companion along with her, seeming to say that they should just ignore Codell.

Desperate and unthinking, Codell grabbed the woman’s hand and started to try and guide her to his stall.

The moment his hand made contact with the woman’s, the woman’s companion drew their sword and looked like they were about ready to stab Codell. He dropped the woman’s hand, tried to frantically gesture for her to come with him, right then, but she wasn’t listening, she just looked afraid, passers-by were staring, and there was now a sword point at his chest. He had not had a vision of THIS interaction. Truth be told, he wasn’t quite fond of how it was going so far, but had little to no clue how to fix it. Codell tried to back away, but he just bumped into a couple other people, and the woman’s companion was yelling at him, and he could catch a little from reading their lips, but it wasn’t enough, it just wasn’t…

A stable hand on his shoulder broke him from his panic. Codell whipped around an saw…Hikari. Oh, thank the gods. He couldn’t quite see what Hikari was saying—his lip reading was poor at best and he wasn’t in a good position to see Hikari anyhow—but it seemed to calm the people down. He took a deep breath until Hikari tapped his shoulder.

“What the HELL were you doing?!” Hikari signed. Their signs were big, fast, frantic. “They’re saying you practically assaulted them!”

“This is the girl from my visions, I need to talk to her about what’s going on! If she’s around me she’ll have more of a chance of succeeding and we might be able to make this work! I needed her to come to my stand so that I could write something out and explain! What other alternative did I have?!”

“Quite literally anything besides grabbing a random girl! Anything would have made that interaction go more smoothly! Ugh. I can’t believe…fine, I’ll smooth this over. But you owe me one.” After a conversation that Codell only really caught bits and pieces of through the lip reading, the woman pointed to Codell’s stand. Codell nodded, and started to walk to the stand. “Her name is Serilee,” Hikari explained as they walked. “Her sibling’s name is Vandita, but they go by Vandi.”

“Okay. Thank you, thank you.”

“Now it’s your job not to drive them away more than you already have.”

“Oh, shut up.” Once Codell made it to the stand, he hurriedly rummaged through the quilts and found some paper and a pencil. He quickly scrawled, My name is Codell. Then, he stopped for a minute. Stared at the paper. Gods, was there a way to say “I’ve seen you in visions for months now and I need to come with you so that you can succeed in the things you’re doing” without sounding like a crazy person? After a few beginnings and crossed out words, he finally settled with “You looked a little lost, and I wanted to help. Are you looking for something in particular?”

Seri at first reached for the notepad, but then Hikari shook their head and started talking to Seri. As she spoke, Hikari signed, interpreting. “I’m trying to find out more about…contracts? And magic,” she said. “I need to know more. And we thought maybe a big city would have some resources for us?”

“I think I can help you,” Codell signed back. “I’m sorry I was…abrupt. I just…I think we should talk? I think I can help you,” he repeated. The woman and her sibling looked back and forth between each other for a moment, before both nodding. “Here, we should go somewhere a little more private? Maybe the inn down the road.” The woman cautiously nodded again, and her sibling seemed to tell her something reassuring. But that wasn’t Codell’s highest concern. At least they were coming with. At least Codell would be able to hopefully, hopefully, get something working.

[planets-and-prose]

Everything manages to happen, all at once. And there is nothing but fear.

Trigger warnings for: lightning strikes, possession, major injury, language.

Then the man grabbed at his head. Gil was standing, unaware of anything around him, eyes closed. Something was happening in the man’s mind, something painful, and Gil was causing it. Amber whipped around, finished with the man who could control fire, started to come after the lightning man…and then a bolt of lightning arced toward Gil. He wasn’t looking, he was trusting someone else to be a distraction. Niko couldn’t do anything in time, there wasn’t anyone close enough…and then Codell leapt toward Gil, shoving him out of the way. The lightning was a desperate attack, one that was a last-ditch, concentrated effort, and it threw Codell all the way into the river. He was too stunned to swim, and within a minute, he sank like a rock.

“Shit!” Hikari yelled, and immediately jumped back in the river. Amber took the opportunity to lift the man into the air and slam him into the ground. Niko didn’t bother to see what happened after that—he just ran to the river and plunged a hand in once he managed to get ahead of Codell and Hikari. Hikari shoved Codell at him, and Niko started to pull Codell out. In a moment, Hikari had managed to get out of the water and was helping pull Codell to shore, and Niko was checking vitals.

“He’s not breathing,” Niko reported, and put an ear to his chest. “Heartbeat’s there, but it’s not strong.” He pulled Codell’s shirt up and saw what almost looked like burn marks that would definitely scar, spiderwebbing across his chest.

“Can you do something? Anything?” Hikari demanded.

“Rose, grab my kit. I’ll see what I can do.” Niko heard Rose reaching into his pack, and he started to do chest compressions to attempt to regulate the heartbeat and get it going how it was supposed to. But he was stopped by a tap on his shoulder from Seri.

“Let me,” they murmured.

“But doesn’t your magic…” Niko began.

“I don’t think we have time to worry,” Seri insisted. And sure enough, as Niko looked at Codell, he knew she was right. He couldn’t survive without breathing much longer, and his heartbeat was slowly stopping. Once that happened, he was beyond anything Niko could do.

But he had no clue how powerful Seri’s magic was. It was Codell’s best chance.

Niko nodded and moved aside, and Seri knelt next to Codell. She closed her eyes, and in a moment, silver magic snaked from her fingertips around Codell’s torso, wrapping around him. He practically glowed, it went beneath his skin, and illuminated the lighting scars, turning them into a haunting art piece on his chest. It took a long, long moment, with the magic weaving in and out and through Codell’s whole body, but eventually, the passage of the magic from Seri to Codell ceased, and Codell’s chest slowly began to rise and fall again. Niko knelt next to him and put an ear back to his chest.

“His heartbeat’s back to normal,” he reported, voice shaking. This was…beyond what he could have even imagined. Codell had been, quite literally, on the verge of death, and this magic had ended up bringing him back. But as he was finishing up examining Codell, he heard a scuffle behind him.

“Amber!” Vandita gasped. When Niko turned, he found Seri, a knife in her hand, being pinned to the ground by Vandita and struggling. Her eyes were not their normal brown—they were almost milky white, haunting as she looked around, seeming to see everything.  And her struggles…Vandi was having trouble pinning her down, which didn’t make sense. Vandi was taller than their sister, more well-muscled, better trained, and had the advantage of their whole weight on their sister. And yet, it looked like Seri might manage to get Vandi off.

Amber jumped in and knelt down next to Vandi. “I’m gonna put her in a choke hold and hope that’ll get her to pass out.”

“What?! No!” Vandi gasped. But Seri managed to throw them off, and if Amber hadn’t jumped in at that second…the unearthly speed with which Seri had moved might have meant she could do serious damage. Immediately, Amber knelt on Seri’s hands, and pressed her throat. Seri gasped for breath, not finding it, and in a few moments, as her struggles weakened, her eyes faded back to brown for just a moment before she passed out entirely.

“Damn it,” Vandi murmured, their hands shaking. That single word seemed to sum up everyone’s sentiments, and Vandi aggressively rubbed at their eyes. They knelt next to their sister, feeling for a pulse. When they presumably found one, they held her hand tightly and worriedly bit their lip.

“Hey. It’s fine. She saved Codell. And if this happens again, I’ll just do the same thing. It’s fine,” Amber repeated. Vandi nodded, but it didn’t seem as if they really believed it. “Here. Town isn’t that far. I can carry her.”

“What about Codell?” Hikari began. But just as they said it, Codell gasped in another breath and coughed, eyes opening very slowly. Immediately, Niko turned back to Codell.

“How do you feel?” he asked, with Hikari translating. It took Codell a moment to sit up, but with weak, shaking hands, he seemed to sign back.

“I think he’s saying he feels dizzy, but okay. His signs are really shaky,” Hikari reported after a second.

“Okay. Codell, can I have your hand?” After Hikari translated, Codell nodded, and Niko felt for his pulse. It was definitely too fast, which would account for the shakiness, but that likely could be attributed to whatever his body had just gone through between the lightning strike and the healing. “Alright. This is doable. He’ll be fine,” Niko told Hikari, who was still looking Codell over with a look of concern. Then, Niko rummaged through his pack and found a small vial. It was intended for patients whose heartbeat was irregular, but it would work in this situation—it relaxed the heartbeat and steadied it a little. “Here, drink this. It should help with the sensation fairly quickly.” Codell nodded, and after Niko uncapped the vial, Codell drank.

It took a moment, but Codell’s shaking ceased just the smallest amount. “Thank you,” Codell signed to Niko—it was a sign that Niko had managed to remember.

“You’re welcome,” he replied, watching Hikari for the sign and mimicking it back.

“Okay, I’ll carry Seri. Let’s get the fuck into town,” Amber proposed.

“That’s a good idea,” Niko replied. He reached out an arm to Codell as he stood, and Codell took it to steady himself. With Hikari on his other side, he seemed as if he was stable enough to walk the rest of the way without too much worry. Amber had lifted Seri over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and Vandi hovered right next to her, watching their sister like a hawk. Worry was written all over their face. Rose just stayed next to Niko, taking his herbalism pack and carrying it gently. And Gil…Gil was watching Codell, with worry and guilt.

It was only a mile or so until the next town. But that mile was going to feel like a long time, Niko reflected, as everyone looked around, on edge for when the next attack would come.  

[planets-and-prose]

Have Ten’s contribution to the shitty WIP intro meme lol

If you’d like to be added to the taglist please let me know! (I’ll adore u forever). This month is gonna be a lot of character sheets etc and then next month is gonna be lil writing excerpts from my sprints (if they’re not too spoilery).

Actual more coherent WIP intro is here: https://planets-and-prose.tumblr.com/post/188112111793/wip-intro-signature-powers

[planets-and-prose]

Last Line Tag!

The lovely @ditzysworld tagged me in the last line tag! I’m going with the last line of my prologue, which I reworked. It still needs a lot of reworking, but still! This is from Signature Powers, my NaNo WIP.

“Beneath the concerned gaze of her sibling, the one who had been with her through everything, Seri felt her walls crumble. The childlike desire to sit with Vandita, braid each other's hair and discuss all the things that were wrong with the world, returned with a sudden force that Seri was utterly unprepared for. She needed something, anything, normal.

For Serilee had never imagined that a simple signature could shatter her world.”

Tagging @goose-books @the-real-rg @marlettwrites @jordanprose @ajaroflightningbugs and anyone else who wants to!

[planets-and-prose]

Signature Powers: Picrew Edition

Doing this under the cut bc this is gonna be heckin long

Have a Niko! (he doesn’t usually wear glasses, I put them on him and then got too lazy to redo the Picrew)

And a Hikari!

And an Amber!

And a (bean) Gil!

Also Codell!

And a (mess) Rose! (Her eyesight is absolutely fucked and she needs glasses but doesn’t have them because her eyesight fuckery fluctuates)

And a Serilee!

And a Vandita!