#sphinx writes

[riddle-of-sphinx]

There's an earthbound/mother3 concept that I have had rotating in my brain like a rotisserie chicken, and started writing a bit on Ao3, but due to being highly distractible, I don't know when i will (if ever) get it done, so I will put the idea here and link it back.

This idea started with me laughing at a bunch of bonkers 'ness is' theories and considering which one could be the most bonkers, and then I thought of something.

We get two notable facts about the Dragon in m3. 1) it's power is 'of the earth itself'. 2) it used to live among the people and was sealed under the nowhere islands when its power couldn't be contained. In earthbound, by visiting the sanctuaries, Ness absorbs the power of the earth into himself in order to prepare for the giygas fight, and the fact that bags of dragonite exist.

My crack concept? Ness is the Dragon. (disclaimer, no i do not believe this was intended by the devs of either game, but it is a fun concept to explore.)

I thought it would be fun to play with and so I had to think of 2 things. 1) why would he be a dragon and 2) what would make him go on such a rampage that he would need to be sealed underground.

the answer i decided for both of these things would work with *drumroll* unlawful and unethical experimentation! and thus i started project starfall. Unfortunately our boy has to have a bad time in order to turn him into a dragon.

(my interests come and go so we'll see when i end up coming back to this)

[yandere-sins]

Monstober - Day 7: Sphinx

Sphinx are my personal horror. Like, they actually manage to scare me. So... I tried to make them more likable for me, although it makes me add more fiction to an already existing concept :')

Prompt: Sphinx | Riddles // Sand // Giant Warnings: Yandere, Fem!Reader (Gets called "girl" only once but I should probably leave a note here), Violence (Sharp Teeth, Claws, Mention of Death, Mention of being buried alive, Being mauled to death (not the main character)), Monster and Monster Characteristics, Long Post

"Please... Please, you got to help me!"

Your sobs grew louder as you fell to your knees before the giant creature, your hands latching onto her paw, and for some reason, she didn't use it to crush you right then and there. Perhaps it was the desperation in your voice, or maybe the guardian of the ancient resting place of so many of your ancestors was weak to tears. Still, she didn't even growl despite you bursting into her sanctuary unannounced and, frankly, rudely.

Following the tales and warnings you had received since childhood, you should have acted properly and with dignity. But instead, you were inconsolable as you sobbed into her fur. Something about the image of the great sphinx and you, a mere human at her feet, had comical traits of one of the performances you made at the theater. However, what you once loved so much was now the furthest thing on your mind.

"Child of Man, do not sully my fur so," the sphinx finally spoke, and you rose from her paw, wiping the tears and snot from your face.

"I'm so sorry, Great Protector. But I just don't know what to do."

The sphinx shook her paw as if to get rid of the tears you had wetted it with before she sat down on her rear legs. Even though you knew she was alive, you couldn't help but feel like she was a golden monument. The statue of a god you were praying to—truly, as she was your last hope.

"Pray tell your worries then. I've been visited so little by your kind in the last years, it shall dissolve my boredom."

"They want to marry me off!" you explained bluntly, and her slitted pupils expanded upon hearing this before she closed her eyes altogether. Her whole body collapsed as she roared bellowing laughter at your misery. More tears—this time from frustration and disappointment—flooded your eyes. You couldn't even defend yourself with the sound of her laughter carrying far and wide through the cliffs all around the burial site, echoing and resounding, slapping you with her mockery.

"That's it?" she asked dismissively, making it clear your concerns weren't hers. "You come to me with a matter so trifling? Why should I care, Human, who you are to marry?"

"Because he's old!" you screamed against her roars, and though not disappearing completely, her laughter grew more subtle, turning into chuckles.

"So? Is that not desirable? Do you not wish to part ways with a man you don't want?"

It was nearly impossible to hold back your raging feelings of despair and anger and temper yourself. You should have expected her not to be indulgent to your whims, but you still had hoped as she was a protector. Leaning her head down to you, she twisted it from side to side, staring at you expectantly as she waited for your answer. Her lips parting to reveal her fangs should have made you quickly gather your bearings and leave, but you simply couldn't.

Death by being eaten, perhaps, was more merciful than what this marriage would be.

"They'll bury me with him."

Shoulders slumping, you looked down, staring at the sand softly clouding on the ground as the sphinx moved to stand before you properly again. This time, you didn't face her. Instead, you listened to the ruffling of her fur, wishing you could bury yourself in it instead. Of course, the great sphinx was no pet, but she resembled the cat you once called your own with her brown fur. It made you want to seek comfort.

"He won't make it very long anymore, and his last wish is to be married. My family couldn't refuse receiving most of his estate in exchange for my hand in marriage, but now they won't even reconsider, knowing the family plans to bury me with him—alive!"

The sphinx hummed, sitting back down again, which made more sand clouds rise, and you looked up, straight into her eyes watching you.

"It is the way of all things except mine. You would not wish for a life as long as I have. Why defy your fate?"

"Because it's too early!" you protested weakly, letting out a sigh.

"I studied to perform at the theater, to sing and dance. I worked my way up in society, and there was no one who aided me! They are all my accomplishments! And I barely had a chance to showcase what I can do and what I have studied so hard for! All I did cannot lead to me pitifully ending in the tomb of a man I didn't ask to marry!"

You sighed, shaking your head. Clasping your hands together in the motion of a prayer, you held them above your head, bowing to her as you made your final attempt at pleading with her. It almost seemed lost, but you couldn't sink deeper than you already had.

"They are coming for me soon. They always feared I'd run away, so they'll not stop their pursuit until they find me here, where I am asking, for once in my life, for help. Your help. Please, Great Sphinx, find it in you to aid me!"

"I see," she finally relented, and your pulse quickened while you tried not to get your hopes up. Her understanding meant little when she decided not to take action. "Then what do I gain?"

Your breath escaped you as you looked up at her, trying to wager her thoughts. What was there you could give? A monster's help never came cheap, but it was much easier to figure out what they wanted by letting them tell you, their instincts never betraying them, unlike how humans acted on greed and desire.

"What do you want?"

Her tail flicked in the air, smashing and rattling the ground she sat on. Briefly, she averted her eyes, rolling them unnaturally slowly in their sockets as she thought, but soon enough, her lips split into the uncanny grin that suited her well as she came to her conclusion.

"You'll solve my riddle. If you can't, you die here and now and feed me." Her grin widened, sharp teeth glistening between them as if she enjoyed the thought.

"If you solve it, I will ask the same riddle to your pursuers once they come here. If they answer it correctly, I will eat them, and you are free to go, but if not, you will stay here for as long as I wish, amusing me with your song and dance while I get to feed on those that come to get you. Is that a deal you want to make, Child of Man?"

"Yes," you replied, not thinking twice. In reality, you were nervous, your heart thumping out of your chest, ribs aching. But you had come prepared, and you knew that it was possible for the sphinx to give you a riddle, her favorite pastime. Getting to your feet, you braced yourself, noticing how the fur of the creature ruffled in excitement or perhaps the anticipation of a good meal. Regardless, you told yourself to not be discouraged by her confidence.

"Then tell me, what means more to you than it does to me?"

You knew there was no time limit on the question. And yet, you felt the pressure of the sphinx awaiting your answer with hunger in her stomach and desire in her eyes. Reckoning that she wasn't as malicious as the childhood stories made her out to be, didn't help you in the face of your demise. She may have enjoyed having her riddle solved, but to her, it didn't really matter as she came out as the winner. Only for you was it a matter of life and death, and...

"My life..." you whispered out loud, the thought escaping you before you could hold yourself back. Even with your hand clasping over your mouth could you not take back the involuntary answer you gave the sphinx, and she cackled maniacally at your mistake.

"Correct," she purred, settling down on all fours and bumping her enormous head against your body, just like a cat would. Curling your hands into fists, you resisted the urge to pet her, the sound of her purring rumbling through the ground.

"You may stand beside me, for they are coming. Their armor is such a bothering ringing in my ears, yet it will save them from nothing."

An enormous boulder fell off your shoulders, even bringing forth a small smile as you quickly moved forward, positioning yourself next to her paw again. Strangely enough, it was the safest place for you at that moment, and you held onto her fur as the rattling of armor and shouting reached you that she had long heard.

"It's not usually so lively here," the sphinx sighed, her tail flicking and whirling up more sand.

"But it is, always, someone's grave."

"So, what will it be?" the sphinx asked, impatiently waiting for the answer from the four men who had been debating over the riddle for way too long. They felt the pressure, too, you were sure.

Although they made their intentions clear that they were here for you, speaking reverently and dutifully to the sphinx, she told them they'd have to solve the riddle or die trying to tear you from her grasp. However, you didn't forget your own deal with her, and between checking if she was preoccupied, you had been gesturing to the men, trying to help them and yourself.

It felt terrible since you were trying to save yourself by sacrificing them, but it had to be done. At least, you wouldn't have to go back to your village either way, but staying with the sphinx and perhaps one day becoming her meal wasn't the consequence you wanted to have either.

So you pointed at yourself since they wanted you. Then you did the universal sign of chopping your head off to signal death. Death and life, the man should have understood it since they wanted you alive and well to marry the old man. And finally, you pointed towards them. Their life, that's all they had to say.

The sphinx had no reason to honor her promises, but at the same time, she didn't have a reason to save you either. Yet, here she was, doing it in a way that suited her, even if it was hard to believe that despite her monstrous appearance, giant size, and appetite for humans, she could be so benevolent.

"Have you decided yet?" she asked, changing up her question in hopes of making one of the men nervous enough to give an answer.

Surprisingly, one of them reacted, the youngest of the soldiers nervously stepping forward, wringing his hands and glancing back over his shoulder a few times to get confirmation.

"The... The girl," he answered, and you felt your body stiffen as he gave you a short smile, not knowing the verdict yet. However, the sphinx bristled in excitement, cackling like she had with your answer before she lowered her head, grinning at the young man.

"Wrong," she revealed, fangs snapping forward, and you yelped in horror and shock as you heard the crunching of bones and metal, one bite enough to break through the man's body. The sphinx got up on her four feet, and with an ease that shouldn't have been impossible for a body this big, she pounced on the others that screamed and readied their weapons, just not in time to fight her off.

Maybe you screamed as the men were ripped apart one by one, a fun hunt for the sphinx, but not so much for you who had to witness it.

Maybe you simply cowered in silence until their gurgles and crunching bones stopped resounding in the atrium of the ancient burial site.

"They are wrong, you know?" you heard the sphinx call out to you, and you slowly lifted your head, not wanting to see the carnage on the ground. But her face, smothered in blood and looking so much more horrific than it had before, wasn't easy to stomach either. The wind blew through the pillars surrounding the hall, dragging out the sand stained with the blood of innocent soldiers who had been sent to "rescue" you and the severity of the situation began to sink in.

You only felt the tears brimming at your eyelids, but you didn't spill them, not when you were almost worse off than these guys. The sphinx laid down next to you, separating you from the entrance and exit to her lair with her gigantic body. Letting you go was not her plan, and you had agreed to this arrangement without thinking twice.

"What about?" you asked dully, watching her very human face lick her blood-stained paws with the naturalness of any feline creature. You'd have to accept that about her if you were stuck here now. But the thought had yet to fully register.

"You mean a lot to me, even if they didn't think so. But at least I get to keep you now, and you'll be my little songbird."

Tears broke loose as you sacked to the floor, her tail flopping against the sand as you began sobbing miserably. And she let you, as she had from the very beginning. Was this an outcome she had anticipated? One she allowed to happen as the opportunity arose? You would have been dead had you not done anything, buried with the corpse of a man you didn't even know. But now that you were in this situation, you realized your death had always been predetermined.

You merely prolonged the fateful day that you'd be buried here.

[mxwhore]

Idk if you already got this request a while back but ever since I saw your sphinx Martin I would think what about a Harpy Jon to go with him

i hadnt actually! very fun to think about

[teecupangel]

Hi! I really enjoy your Desmond gets turned into random creatures, and I was wondering if you've done a sphinx? I have a sphinx Desmond, and a very loose plot idea. Instead of dying from the apple, it turns him into a sphinx, and now he's stuck in a lion's body, disoriented, in pain, probably a lot of dissociation because everything is just so wrong. And he isn't exactly small, so Shaun, Bill and Becks have to hide this giant creature and it's a struggle because he can't really move properly and he's heavy so they take way longer than they'd like to get him out of the temple before abstergo gets there.

I think the artifact also affected his mind in a way that, he has the sixth sense, knowledge I think? So he can access an insane amount of isu knowledge, but he can't quite control it, and it causes him massive migraines when he tries to dig for it.

On the other side, sometimes he'll just correct things people say randomly, without even thinking about it, then he just pauses and frowns like "how do i know this?"

you can do time travel with him and interactions with ancestors and such, i just wanna know your take on a sphinx Desmond :3

Oooohhh, I love your sphinx Desmond so much. I’m kinda imagining that he doesn’t really like riddles. Tried them more than once but he just gets a headache and wished people would stop being cryptic.

So he absolutely hate the curse inflicted upon him:

Whenever anyone asks him a question he himself does not know but he ‘knows�� via Isu bs, he’s forced to ask a riddle that must be answered correctly before he could access the answer.

He can try and force it, of course, but he’ll get a growing headache the more time he spent trying to understand it. So yeah, it’s honestly better if people just answer his riddle.

And Desmond’s ‘criteria’ for correct answers isn’t just one specific answer.

To be more exact, Desmond’s affinity to someone makes it ‘easier’ for them to give bullshit answer.

For example:

Rauf definitely needs to answer correctly the riddle given to him but Desmond would be able to give him a riddle that wasn’t that difficult.

Malik gets super difficult riddles because Desmond totally believe there is not a single riddle Malik cannot solve.

But someone like Altaïr?

Desmond could ask something like “what is better when broken?”

And Altaïr could answer with some shit like “a Templar’s neck”

They’d stare at each other for a moment before Desmond a cat-like shrug and go “Yeah, sounds about right.”

While Desmond is explaining the topic that caused his riddle trait to trigger, everybody else is just staring at Altaïr because the favoritism is so blatant it’s ridiculous.

Unorganized Notes:

It took a while before Desmond could get used to his new body. The first few days were the worst. His human experience did not mesh well with his sphinx instincts but it got better the more he realized that, yes, this is his new body now and he has to accept that.

Once he got used to his body, he liked to take naps where there’s warm sunlight or in freshly dried laundry.

When he stretches (like a cat), his wings flutter and shake slightly.

When someone annoys him but he doesn't feel the desire to maul them, he sits on them.

[yutxsgf]

Bakugou x reader, but the reader has a sphinx cat and Bakugou has no idea what to think of it.

Cw; light fluff, character POV, GN Reader, cats

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺

He swore it was the ugliest thing on the fucking planet. The way its naked skin was so.. so.. skin-like. The way its tail looked so freakishly long yet short. The way it'd have a full-on stare off with him whenever he'd come to your house to visit you.

He hated it with his whole being.

Fast forward about 2 years later, he now has to help clean up the damn cat's butt puckers. Yeah, you heard him right. Butt puckers. All because he accidentally lashed out on someone for swiping their thumb against your waist. Accidentally.

He had never been so disgusted. He would physically recoil whenever the damn cat would sit up and make a small suction noise. He didn't even know cats could make those noises with their ass.

God, why'd you have to be the prettiest person he'd ever seen with the freakiest cat to roam the earth.

"Baby, can you go and bathe the cat?"

Oh, GOD. He was literally gonna melt his own face off. He had never actually touched the cat other than when you forced him to pet the cat, which he never really truly did besides swiping the top of its head with his pinky finger.

There were so many steps to bathing this cat. Why? Because it has no fur! Of course it doesn't. He couldn't help the long exasperated groan that left his lips as he read over the steps for the umpteenth time.

Might as well get it over with.

To be fully honest. The cat was kinda chill, unlike Todoroki's new cat. His cat was a killer. He knew it.

But this cat was okay. He guesses.

But when he told you this, all you could do was laugh at him. He didn't know what was so funny. Which is why he felt heat immediately rush to the tip of his ears out of pure embarassment. And maybe a little 'cause your laugh was fucking heavenly.

But mainly because he was embarrassed. (He's in love)

Okay, okay, you got him. MAYBE, just maybe it was.. not cute at all, but the way it acted was cute. He guesses. The way it began licking his fingers for attention, which he semi-reluctantly gave. The way it'd.. yeah, he doesn't really know.

But yknow what? If you were gonna be the one he was gonna marry—which is obviously happening because he is never letting you go—he has to get used to your damn cat one way or another.

"You're lucky I fuckin' love your parent with my whole heart."

[sansmeanswithout]

i thought it might be interesting if my interpretation of the lamb had a cult mainly made of animals that have been used as sacrifice throughout history.

My thinking behind this is that lamb wants to reminded of their family and thus has decided to protect those that have been at higher risk of being sacrificed in the name of the old faith.

On the other hand my interpretation of the goat is more logical about who joins their cult though they still will take in people who need protection they are especially fond of horses I think

This list of animals comes the Wikipedia page for animal sacrifice, the Wikipedia page for rabbit test, an exhibit from the Smithsonian of a mummified cat, an article on the roots of easter, and articles about the history of the rabbit/hare in the moon

I ignored the many mentions of sheep and goats on the Wikipedia page.

Interestingly the most common ones mentioned after the sheep and goat are cows, pigs and birds

Below the cut is a list of animals a little about the history of them being sacrificed and wether or not we already have that follower form in cult of the lamb. I won't get very graphic with the history part though I will mention if they were specifically mummified. I will mainly be mentioning in what culture and religions they were used as sacrifice, what was thought to be gotten from the sacrifice and the deity the sacrifice was made to

Also domestic animals that people consider pets are in this list you have been warned

gazelle - not in cult of the lamb - only mentioned in the prehistory section of the wiki page and is found in ancient egypt specifically buried at the foot of a grave but it seems to have been rare

felines specifically domestic cats with fur - in cult of the lamb (also has a sphinx, lion, tiger) - while killing cats was considered a crime in ancient egypt there were many exceptions made as some specifically raised cats for sacrifice or people wished to be buried with their pets. Cats were mummified and given elaborate coffins

hippo - in cult of the lamb - once again in ancient egypt and only mentioned once in the wiki page most likely was in honor of powerful citizens or buried with an owner

baboon - not in cult of the lamb the closest we have is a monkey or gorilla - same thing as the hippo just with a baboon

cattle (includes cow, ox, bull, and buffalo) - in cult of the lamb as cow and bison though we don't have a bull, ox, buffalo though the bison follower is based on the American buffalo/bison maybe we could use a water buffalo - this one is mentioned to many times for me to go into much detail but here's how many times it's mentioned outside of the references on the wiki page Cattle 6 times, Cow 9 times, Bull 8 times, Buffalo 6 times, Ox 4 times, and heifer has 1

pig - in cult of the lamb - also to commonly used for me to go into detail though apparently Scythians would never sacrifice them and hated having swine on their land. Now for how often pig and swine are mentioned outside of the references and the Scythians section swine 2 times, pig 17 times

fowl includes geese, duck, pheasant and chicken but it's usually just listed as fowl so this will be a case by case thing so I'll only mention one of the bird if it's a livestock animal or is mentioned in the wiki page - in cult of the lamb as chicken and duck we don't have goose or pheasant - birds are used to much for me to go into detail so the times mentioned is happening again though the pheasant gets a bit of detail specifically it's a green pheasant that used to be sacrificed at Shinto festivals in Japan now for the times mentioned, bird 2 times, goose/geese 2 times, rooster/chicken 7 times, poultry 1 time, fowl 2 times, duck 1 time

horse (plus donkey) - in cult of the lamb as horse to be fair a donkey follower would look kinda the same in-game we also have a unicorn - horses and donkeys are mentioned as a possiblity in ancient greece but there doesn't seem to be much evidence for it, Scythians considered horses to be the most prestigious offering, large amounts of horses would be sacrificed in ancient china however this seems to be rare as the wiki page just has a picture in that section labeled Horse sacrifice to Duke Jing of Qi 5th century BCE China, horses have also been used in Japan as sacrifice in the same context as the pheasant

canines specifically domestic dogs and wild dogs - in cult of the lamb as dog, poppy (a schnauzer), Ralpherz and Frankerz we don't really have a wild dog but the wild canines we have are fox, fennec fox, and wolf - in ancient rome Robigo was specifically given red dogs (and red wine) for protection of crops from blight and red mildew, dogs and wild dogs were used in ancient china being sacrificed at different times of the year by nobles but these sacrifices would lessen if there were hard times the dogs were considered spirit guides, there's also the story of the church grim a black dog in church graveyards which comes from the belief that the first to be buried in a graveyard would have to guard it and help spirits but couldn't pass on so a dog was buried first

camel - not in cult of the lamb the closest we have is llama - used in Islam by those on pilgrimage to mecca during Eid al-Adha the wording of the wiki page implies that the camel is sacrificed by a group also mentions that the meat is shared amongst the community it's one of four species that are considered lawful for this sacrifice

bear - in cult of the lamb - sacrificed in Japan at some Shinto festivals as well as at lomante (イオマンテ) sometimes written as Iyomante (イヨマンテ) which is a ainu ceremony that uses a brown bear

deer - in cult of the lamb as deer, stag, moose and deer skull - sacrificed in Japan at some Shinto festivals

hare - not in cult of the lamb - Hares were buried with humans in neolithic age europe archaeologists interpret this as a religious ritual with hares representing rebirth this tradition continued for a long time, hares have also been used in rituals related to the beginning of spring which is likely the pagan origin of easter

rabbit - in cult of the lamb (there's also star bunny) - rabbits are less historically sacrificed but are still associated with it for example the story behind the rabbit in the moon is about self sacrifice though it's been interpreted as both hare and rabbit, there is also the rabbit test or friedman test an early pregnancy test rabbits were injected with the urine of a person who might be pregnant the rabbit is then dissected to look for changes in the ovaries other animals have been used for this but rabbits are the more well known one

[spotlightstudios]

Can't believe I almost forgot to post these idiots- Merry crisis y'all <3

[redcomet-stims]

Could I have an Ankha (Animal crossing: New Horizons) stimboard with Egyptian themes and glitter? Tyty!

Of course, you're welcome!

💙🏺💛 Ankha (ACNH) stimboard with Egyptian themes and glitter for anon :3

I have not played this game in ages. I should seriously check up on my (old-ish) island. I don't have her and I never have, but I WANT HER SO BADLY. SHE IS SO COOL. She's definitely a dream villager and I will try to see where I can find her...if I ever pick the game back up. I want to beat up Tom Nook very badly, and my island is a mess.

I would very much like it if the exact amount of bells I need one day magically showed up so I could buy a bigger house or whatever.

Sources:

x | x | x

x | x | x

x | x | x

[fumiku]

Marchil AUs I’m not sure when/if I’d get to so might as well share! Gonna present 3 I’ve jotted down:

pilot & researcher AU sphinx Marcille AU vampire & vampire hunter AU.

1~

Pilot & researcher AU, inspired by the ff13 or ff tactics artwork here with the flying machine by @aatom87

2~

Sphinx!Marcille AU, inspired by the sphinx Marcille art also here by @aatom87. Brainstormed with @dayundying hehe~

3~

Vampire x vampire hunter AU. The vampire Chil & hunter Marcille bit was thought of by @room-surprise ~

[bluvlet]

this morning i was sitting in a lecture on the Gothic listening to my lecturer discuss Freud’s uncanny when i was suddenly struck square in the face by the idea of a The Trolley Problem ‘Freudian analysis’

[mgrfp]

Monster Girl Romance Fiction Prompt #122

A monster affectionately bats your face with her paw to let you know she likes you. Unfortunately for you she's a big kitty and her paw breaks your nose. Fortunately for you she's a winged kitty and she flies you right to a hospital. Fortunately for her you're a look-on-the-bright-side type of guy.

[riddle-of-sphinx]

Something I have been thinking about, is that in FF7 Rebirth, Cloud doesn't have any visible scars, even where he definitely should (cough reactor shish kebab cough), and I know that the real world answers are probably something like "squeenix didn't want to animate them" or "no spoilers", but an interesting in universe explanation could be that, due to the high concentration of j-cells that he has in his body, his lack of memories and jenova's whole shapeshifting thing, cloud doesn't have scars *because he doesn't remember that he should*, and perhaps if he did remember, he would.

anyways, here's a little thing with this concept.

“You have a scar,” Tifa says suddenly, as they’re eating dinner in the hotel that Johnny somehow managed to get his hands on. Cloud grunts in response, mouth too full of food to respond, but tilting his head at her to indicate he’s listening.

“Of course he’s got scars,” Barret blusters, “He was in the military.”

“It’s right here, through your eyebrow,” she says, ignoring Barret and gesturing to her own face to indicate where.

He shrugs. “Got it in when I was still in the infantry. Monster elimination mission. A bunch of hedgehog pies from the slums managed to get into the sewers of the plate, or else Shinra wouldn’t have cared. One of them nicked me, after it knocked my helmet off.”

He’d been thinking more about his infantry days ever since they’d used the uniforms to blend into the parade in Junon. Really shook some old memories loose.

“Oh,” she says, her eyes narrowing slightly “I guess I just... never noticed it before.”

Aerith grabs his face and turns it towards her, how she knows he’ll let her get away with it, he’ll never know, “Ohhhh, I never noticed it either. It’s kinda cool though, in a rugged sort of way. I wonder why I’d never noticed that.”

He shrugs again, pulling his face out of Aerith’s hands, “It’s pretty small.”

“Yeah, but... I guess I just thought we’d been together again long enough for stuff like this to not surprise me anymore.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s small, my hair was prolly covering it. Plus we’ve been way too busy to worry about tiny things like this,” he assures her.

“Right...” she says, the tone of her voice indicating that she was still a little upset, but much less than she had been before, so Cloud gave himself a mental pat on the back for not making things worse. He wasn’t great at reassuring people.

---

Later that night, they’re given some photographs from the tourism people who said that ‘your group enjoyed yourselves so thoroughly that we had to take some pictures, and here they are!’ 

Which was unbelievably creepy if you asked Cloud, someone stalking them and taking pictures. Maybe this was something normal vacationers enjoyed, though? A surprise reminder of everything they did during the day?

The tourism people then demand thirty gil per photograph, so it all turns out to be a scam and Barret ends up attempting to haggle for the photographs (something about posterity?), but something catches Cloud’s attention. In one picture, one from before they’d gone to the beach, a picture of Cloud slotting an ice materia into Red XIII’s collar so he wouldn’t overheat. The photo is taken at an angle making both of their faces clear, and... Cloud knows he wouldn’t have noticed if not for the conversation at dinner, but... In the picture, the scar through his eyebrow isn’t there.

He removes his glove, and brings his hand up to his face. Sure enough, the scar is there. But then why..? 

It must just be a trick of the light, in the photo. His skin is pretty light, so it just must not be visible in the picture. 

Yeah. That must be it.

[snepril]

Step outside. Feel the grass under your paws, the breeze in your fur. Spread your wings and give them a few experimental twirls - big lazy circles through the air. Feel the resistance? The way even the slightest motion stirs up a gust of wind?

Now crouch, bunch your hind legs up beneath you. Feel the muscles in your haunches and up along your flanks contract, compressing your entire body into a single tight-wound spring. Raise your wings up high...

...and when the moment is just right...

...push! Down against the ground, against the air, push with all your might and up you go, shooting skyward like a rocket! Pull your wings close and, just as your momentum slows, snap them open once again, catching the air!

Again! Another heave, another wingbeat, another dozen feet higher. And again! And again! Feel the wind stirring your fur as the earth falls away below you, your inner eyelids sliding closed to shield your eyes against the breeze. And at last, rest - hold your wings steady and let yourself glide through the air, watch the world rush by below you as momentum and aerodynamics do the heavy lifting. Feel a thermal catch your wings and carry you higher still, up and up on a column of welcome warmth.

Fly.

[thosetrollkids]

The start of something new

commission info!

[sallertiafabrica]

Baked Treats Are Good for Morale

Ladybug is pretty sure she’d recognize Chat Noir right away, even without the glamour. And she bets on it.

In school, Marinette bumps into a kid with a prosthetic leg much like Chat Noir. What a coincidence! The coincidences continue as they both seem to get an interest in baking around the same time…

(Ao3 link)

This fic is my secret santa gift for @kronehaze!! Happy (belated) Holidays friend! <3

[qhazomb]

tfw you want to get attention for stuff you've made and have some ideas for new stuff but have just. abso fucking lutely zero energy to make anything right now.

man, this sucks.