#they also help w foragers

[queers4years]

Indigenous Hawaiians really had a good system going: wake up reaaally early and do most of the days work while it's cool and by the time the sun was up and it got hot the work was done and you're free to surf and socialize. I wish the white people realized they themselves could work smarter and not harder and get time to relax. Instead of calling Hawaiians lazy (and being genocidal about it)

[forestclan-clangen]

MOON 15 (Part 1)

<< FIRST | < PREVIOUS |

Morningspot goes on a long walk one morning, lost in thought. After weeks of seeking her - she stumbles into Bracken, foraging herbs on their territory alone. After begging and pleading, Bracken reluctantly follows Morningspot back to camp, wanting to reunite with her brother.

(Morningspot, warrior, female, 17 moons. Nervous.) (Bracken, loner, female, 13 moons. Grumpy.)

----

Guilt. That was the only thing Morningspot could feel. Guilt.

Guilt that she survived, when Talontooth didn't. Guilt that Perchpaw was hurt because of her. Guilt that Riftpaw was without his littermate - a cat that no one could promise was alive. Redstar made sure every cat had a smell of the leaf litter Branchpaw collected - Riftpaw had confirmed that it was Bracken. Morningspot's fur bristled when she also picked up Endless' scent in it. She glanced at Shiverstep nervously. Shiverstep met her stare from the corner of her eye with intensity. Neither cat said anything. Maybe it was for the best. Maybe it was good news - just to know that Endless survived her injury, and was perhaps looking after Bracken.

She tried to stay positive. She really did. When Windfur comforted her by telling her about StarClan, and about how her ancestors were watching over her, she tried to hold onto it with all of her heart.

It didn't chase away her nightmares. It was only enough to make Talontooth's eyes blue again in her memories. She didn't expect for them to make her sadder.

Maybe that's why she was here. Patrolling along the border, alone, in the young hours of the morning. She wasn't sure what she was trying to find. Her paws held no desire to run, or hunt, or fight. Just walk. Her amber eyes stared at the floor. The sound of the trickling river and the songbirds filled the early dawn.

Morningspot stopped. She sat down and stared at the floor, listening to the sounds of the woods.

It would be so beautiful, if she didn't feel like beasts were crawling beneath the earth, their lairs drenched in corpses.

She inhaled deeply. Exhale. Not helpful. Not helpful. She promised. She promised to try. Her throat tightened. But it was so, so hard.

She stared up into the cloudless sky. The endless blue held no answers for her. Her tail curled tightly around herself as she let out a pathetic mew.

"Please," she whined. "If you're really up there. Give me some kind of sign. Anything. I just…I feel like…"

She couldn't finish her sentence.

Morningspot tore her gaze away from the sky, staring back at the floor listlessly.

Morningspot didn't know how much time had passed when she defeatedly stood to her feet, and followed along the border again.

If only StarClan had a voice. If only she could tell Talontooth that she missed him, and she treasured his friendship. If only…

A black shadow appeared out of the corner of her eye.

Her gaze instinctively whipped towards it. Adrenaline shot through her, her claws unsheathed. She went from terrified to dazed as she realized what she was seeing.

The tail of a black cat swayed from behind a large oak tree on her side of the border.

Morningspot was rattled, emotions tumbling forth with the turbulence of a storm. Her paws found themselves padding towards the oak automatically. Her voice clung to one word uttered without thought. "Talontooth?"

The shadow behind the tree jolted and jumped into view, their brown eyes wide with shock. In their mouth was a clump of borage.

Morningspot equally jumped back in shock, back arching.

No. No, that wasn't Talontooth. Of course that wasn't Talontooth. It couldn't ever be him. He was…he…

Her eyes widened as the stranger's fear-scent invaded her nostrils.

The scent. The scent - the one on the leaf litter. This was Bracken. Riftpaw's sister - !

Bracken bolted.

"W-Wait!" Morningspot yowled, chasing her. "No, wait! Please wait!"

Bracken leapt across the stones by the river. Anxiety and panic surged through Morningspot. No, she couldn't fail again - not again, she couldn't lose another cat -

"PLEASE!" Morningspot's cry came out pathetically as she slipped on one of the stones, getting her hindquarters drenched in running water. "Please, stop, I'm begging you, your brother - "

Bracken nearly vanished into the brush before she skidded to a halt. The dark molly swerved around, her hindquarters crouched in preparation to leap at the warrior. Her eyes shifted wildly with feeling - hope, then terror, then anger. She spit aside the borage in her mouth, letting out a hiss.

"You don't have my brother, cult," she hissed.

Morningspot was practically drenched in water, yet her paws dragged themselves over the shallow riverbed. Morningspot's adrenaline was through the roof and she started sobbing as she hulled herself over the shore and limped towards her. The stress of the past few moons returned and broke her - Endless' rage and accusations, Talontooth's death, the Fake Cat, Perchpaw, Riftpaw, all of it - it all crashed as she desperately, just once, wanted someone to be okay. And yet she was just some cult member to her.

"Please, I'm sorry," she sobbed. Morningspot's paws lost their strength as she felt herself crouching to the floor, her ears folded back and her teeth bared in terror and pain. "I know I'm a cult member, I know, I know you hate me, I don't care, you don't have to come back with me, but please," Morningspot practically spat out, her eyes watering. "Please, see your brother. Riftpaw - "

"Riftpaw?" Bracken's eyes widened with dismay, eyeing Morningspot up and down.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Rift," Morningspot sputtered.

"What have you done to him?" Bracken asked, her voice leveled with apprehension.

"He was hurt," Morningspot blubbered. "His jaw was broken, we found him near our border unconscious, we didn't want him to die, we just…"

Bracken's tail flicked with apprehension. Morningspot felt the desperation seeping through her skin as she felt herself crawling on the floor in submission.

"Please, I'm begging you," Morningspot could barely see in front of her as she sobbed.

Bracken's stare slowly morphed. She carefully brought herself out of her crouch, still keeping her eyes on the very wet, very pathetic-looking Morningspot.

"Please," the warrior begged again.

Bracken winced. After a few moments of silence, she said crossly, "You helped my brother."

Morningspot just nodded, unable to mantle past her blubbering.

"Why?"

"H-His jaw - "

"No, not that," Bracken interjected. "Why help him? You feed those woods. That's what your cult does."

Morningspot lifted her head to stare at Bracken. She must've looked like the most pathetic cat to ever exist, because Bracken's gaze went from skeptical to pitying.

"Just - look, maybe you're different, but you can't just expect me to - "

"We don't want to," Morningspot objected. Shame and grief welled up in her. She felt like a small kit again. "We don't want to feed the woods. We don't send kits to their deaths. We changed. I promise you, we - "

"Oh great nature, seriously? Anyone can just say that. I'm not stupid." Bracken's tone softened when Morningspot gave her a teary-eyed look. "How do I know you're not just…lying to me, yannow?"

Morningspot shook her head as she slowly stumbled to her feet, her paws and stomach dragging fallen pine needles into her fur. "He has long, black fur. He has spots on his coat. His eyes are hazel. A pink nose," she hiccuped.

Bracken's eyes widened. Her tail fell limp. "...I never said the color of his nose. Or his eyes. You shouldn't know that." Bracken paused, then hissed under her breath. "Shit."

The two mollies sat in tense silence. Morningspot sniffled. Bracken stared off to the side, seemingly contemplating the borage leaves she tossed aside.

Finally, Bracken sighed. "...He's really alive?"

Morningspot nodded.

"And…you've been looking for me because of him."

She nodded again.

"How do I know you're not just keeping him trapped?"

She shrugged.

"You're expecting me to just waltz into your fortress, then? What's stopping me from just finding friends and breaking him out?"

"I can bring him to you instead," Morningspot said. Her voice was small. "He can walk. His jaw is getting better."

"And your leader is going to let you do that? I met one of your healers or whatever a few moons ago. What if your 'secret keeper' or whatever, is just using you to recruit me as fodder? Ever thought of that?"

Morningspot froze, but stared at Bracken firmly. The fear in her soul scrambled onto secure footing, finding brief clarity. Redstar was not Lakestar. She knew many cats would not believe that. But in this, Morningspot was sure. She knew Redstar loved them.

"Redstar is not a secret keeper. She is not recruiting cats to hurt them. She wants to protect them."

The surprising conviction in her eyes must've surprised Bracken, as she tilted her head at her. She blinked, before her eyes narrowed again.

"...That's the opposite of what I've heard from every cat I've ever met."

"...Before I was born, ForestClan used to be ruled by Lakestar. She...she threw her Clanmates at the woods. Redstar wanted change. When Lakestar died, she...she promised to protect her Clan. I've seen her stand on the walls of our camp, looking for monsters while we hide in her den. I've seen her attack a Living Tendril to try and retrieve a kit. I've seen her come back several mornings, exhausted, having spent the night trying to feed the woods her lives."

Silence fell like a heavy stone.

"...Lives?" Bracken breathed.

Morningspot nodded. "...Our leaders have nine lives. Gifted by…by our ancestors. In StarClan."

Bracken's eyes narrowed. "Uh-huh. If your leaders have multiple lives, why'd the last one toss everyone to the woods? Why didn't she just feed them herself?"

"Redstar asked that too."

Silence again. With every angle Bracken tried to find as a reason not to come with Morningspot, the brown and white warrior just answered with soft defeat. She knew Bracken wouldn't come with her. She may as well answer anything she asked. It was the least she could do. Maybe Bracken would give directions on where to find her later. Maybe she could give them to Riftpaw. All these quiet, defeated "maybes" that she assumed would never come true.

She lifted her head to ask just that before Bracken closed her eyes, then said with soft resignation, "Fine. Show me my littermate."

Morningspot's fur would've bristled if it wasn't completely soaked. "Really?"

"Yeah. Hurry up before I change my mind," Bracken sighed. "And shake the water out of your pelt. You look like a weird rat."

Morningspot sneezed as she shook herself out poorly, the mud and pines shuffling around under her pelt. "Sorry," she squeaked.

"Whatever, it's fine," Bracken grumbled as she stepped across the stepping stones. "Let's go."

---

Bracken was finally found and invited into the Clan, and takes on a more Clan-like name, Brackenfreckle - without prompting from others. Brackenfreckle is both shocked and relieved to see Riftpaw. The Clan is happy that they could reunite the two.

(Riftpaw, apprentice, male, 13 moons. Charismatic.) (Brackenfreckle, medicine cat, female, 13 moons. Grumpy.) (Perchpaw, apprentice, female, 10 moons. Adventurous.)

<PREVIOUS | NEXT >

[breelandwalker]

Buck Moon - July 20-21, 2024

Put on your flower crowns and your walking shoes - it’s time for the Buck Moon!

Buck Moon 🦌

The Buck Moon is the name given to the full moon in the month of July and is called this because at this time of year, the rack of antlers previously shed by male deer are beginning to regrow and harden in preparation for the fall rutting season. 

Other North American Indigenous names for this moon include Salmon Moon (Tlingit), Berry Moon (Anishinaabe), Month of the Ripe Corn Moon (Cherokee), and Raspberry Moon (Algonquin, Ojibwe). The West Abenaki also call this the Thunder Moon in reference to the often-stormy summer weather. (This one is my personal favorite and the name appears in lunar calendars just as often as the Buck Moon.)

European names for the July moon include Hay Moon and Wort Moon, and it should be noted that the name Stag Moon does appear in some European sources as well.

This year's Buck Moon will be at peak illumination at 6:17am EST on July 21st, so the moon will appear to be full on both the 20th and 21st. Also, it's a weekend, so plan your festivities accordingly!

What Does It Mean For Witches? 🦌

The July full moon continues June’s template of planning for the future, this time with a focus on your passions and ambitions. Reflect on what you’ve accomplished so far this year and plan your next step.

Dream big and plan big, but don’t give in to reckless urgency. Summer (and capitalist grind culture) gives us the urge to Go Go Go. Despite all this, it’s important to take time to rest and recharge, lest we find ourselves burning out and losing our motivation.

What Witchy Things Can We Do? 🦌

Celebrate your victories and revel in the abundance of the summer season. If you’re inclined to do so, take a page from the deer and do a bit of prancing around a bonfire or your favorite flower arbor with some festive flowery headgear.

Go exploring! Find a local park or garden and take a stroll among the greenery, or use TV and the internet to explore and learn about faraway places. This is another opportune time to go and check out pick-your-own farms and farmers markets as well. Sharpen your foraging and plant identification skills while you’re out and about!

If you’re tending a garden, harvest some herbs and investigate what you can make with them. Whether it’s seasoning for meals, homemade botanical products, or just helpful spell ingredients, many herbs and flowers have a plethora of uses. As an exercise, select three plants growing in your yard or garden, research their magical correspondences and botanical properties, and try to think of as many ways as possible to use each one for witchcraft and for practical purposes. For extra credit, pick something native to your area that doesn't appear in the western magical canon and use its' physical, folkloric, and historical associations to create something new!

(Safety Note: Always clean and prepare home-harvested herbs properly before using them for kitchen, bath, or medical preparations. Always be sure to properly identify any wildcrafted or foraged plants. Always consult a doctor before trying an herbal treatment and take all allergies, medications, and pre-existing conditions into account. Please also note that while herbal treatments can be helpful, it can have negative interactions and side effects just like any other medication, and it is not meant to be a replacement for modern medical care.)

Apart from the usual full-moon festivities, I’ve always found this is an excellent time for weather-witching. Summer weather is notoriously fickle, but it is also highly malleable - one recalls that old American Southern epithet of, “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes.”

If you’re hoping to bring some rain to water your garden or break the back of a heat wave, this may be the time to do it. My personal favorite folk magic ritual for rain-calling involves going outside with a broom and a bucket of water, using the broom to scatter drops of water over your yard, and shouting up to the clouds, “SEE? IT’S NOT HARD!”

Make sure you take local weather patterns into account and try to draw on existing fronts and nearby precipitation to get the desired result. And keep in mind that with weather magic, less is more and one casting is enough. Asking for too much or asking too often can produce undesirable results. And if you manage to make it rain, be sure to collect some for moon water!

If you’re interested in weather-witching, I highly recommend checking out this masterpost by @stormbornwitch for a number of excellent articles and suggestions.

Happy Buck Moon, witches! 🌕🦌

Sources and Further Reading:

Bree’s Lunar Calendar Series

Bree’s Secular Celebrations Series

Witchcraft Exercise - Creating Correspondences

Buck Moon: Full Moon in July 2024, The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Buck Moon Bonanza: Embrace July’s Massive Energy!, The Peculiar Brunette.

Everyday Moon Magic: Spells & Rituals for Abundant Living, Dorothy Morrison.

(If you’re enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊)

[compact-turtle]

How would all three yans react to having children? Good or bad?

This is actually such a fun prompt and ask! Thank you for sending it in. I'd actually love to write a full post sometime instead of a small little drabble about this! It'd be so much fun imaging one of their daily routines and lives with a family.

Atticus:

-Isn't really that interested in kids unless his darling wants them. At first, he'll try to talk his darling out of it. Gives lists of reasons on why he can't be a dad. Eventually, comes around to it if his darling really wants them.

-He's a strict and stoic father. Makes sure the kids go to bed at a certain time, finish their chores and do their homework. The kids have to be punctual.

-Not a fan of extreme harsh punishments at all. No taking away meals, locking in closets or any of the sorts. Especially, hitting if they don't listen. (His parents used to do it to him which has resulted in a traumatized farmer)

-More type of look at the consequences of your actions. You don't do your homework, then you fail your class. You don't collect eggs from the chicken coop, no eggs for breakfast. You don't feed the dogs, look at them go hungry. (The doggies don't actually go hungry since Atticus secretly feeds them, they're just always begging for food)

-Shows he loves them through his actions instead of words. He'll take them special getaway trips, go bird watching, catch bugs, make presents, etc. He wants his kids to know that he loves them despite his strict behavior. He's trying to break the cycle of generational abuse that came from his parents. It's hard ngl but he makes an effort every day to overcome it.

For readers who imagine pregnancy:

-kisses your belly when you're asleep. Reassures the baby that he'll always take care of them. He would never do it when you're awake since he's nervous you'll deem him as less than manly or "strong".

-Does not let you work on the farm at all!! He hires extra farmhands to replace your usual help. Lectures and scolds you when you try to do anything. Don't you know that an accident could happen any time especially somewhere dangerous like this farm??

-Your safety and the baby's safety are top priority at all times.

-Watches films and tv shows about pregnancy and families. He makes sure to remember all the details so he can be the best father just like on the tv!

-No sexy time at all when pregnant! He's afraid it'll injure the baby. Only complies when his darling coaxes him into it but even then, it took a while.

Orion:

-Hella yea. The only one who's willing to jump on board and be excited for them. Takes the kids out on daily foraging and exploration nearby the home. Teaches them how to jot down information.

-Shows them his notes on all different types of plants, creatures and landscapes. Tells them which things to avoid and how to survive if in contact with dangerous creatures.

-Kids grow an immunity to his terrible cooking. Actually, enjoy it and treat is as an odd delicacy to be savored.

-The children are taught both languages. Darling's for communicating with other members of the species but his in case they need to talk, and others are listening in.

-Reminds the kids how much he adores them and their mother every day. Tells them tales about his home world and adventures with their mother.

-However, his favorite story to tell is about how their mother heroically saved him from death and starvation. Sometimes he embellishes details like

"Oh, your mother also fell in love at first sight with me. They were just too shy to admit it, but I could tell."

-The real question though, are human species able to get darling's species pregnant???

For readers who imagine pregnancy:

-Does darling get pregnant like a human? Orion will have to find out. However, I imagine the way of getting pregnant to be similar, but they don't give birth. Instead, an egg like thing forms within their reproductive system and they push out something similar to an egg.

-The egg would hatch within two months after growing to full term.

-Orion has built a nest for the egg and watches it every night. Proudly tells the egg about all the adventures they'll go on as family.

-Darling insists that Orion doesn't need to baby the egg since the shell is quite strong. Still, he doesn't listen and frets over any small movement from it. Makes little hats and scarves and dresses the egg in it.

-Orion makes sure to take so many notes during this period. What color is the egg? How long before it hatches? How many times does it move in an hour?

-He takes notes in case darling and him decide to have another egg baby. He'll be more prepared second round.

-Enjoys setting the mood up for some sexy time. He feeds you the right food, sets up the small hut just right and everything. Ofc he'll makes sure to cover the baby egg with a blanket. He doesn't want your baby egg to see anything inapposite after all.

Ivar:

-He'd want to wait a few years into marriage. The idea of kids is daunting. He's seen the worse of man and how destructive the world can be. Really nervous about letting kids out into that type of environment. Still, he does desire a family that you'll raise together.

-He's a fun goofy dad. Takes all the stress of the kids when he arrives home. Plays with them, teases them and drains all their energy so you can relax. I'd imagine that Ivar insists that you be a stay-at-home mom while he goes to work.

-Listens to his kid's problems from boyfriend issues to " I can't believe they cancelled my show". Actively enjoys listening to his kids talk about anything and everything.

-Signs his kids up for self-defense classes. He's aware that there's so many dangers in the world and he can't always be there to help. They've got to be prepared for anything that could happen.

-Supports his kids in all their activities. Shows up to every single game, recital, spelling bee, etc. Whatever it maybe, he'll be there. Wants them to know he cares about them and their interests.

-Doesn't really enjoy mentioning stories from his time at war to them. He's afraid it'll corrupt their world view and he want them to live a peaceful life :(

For readers who imagine pregancy:

-Ivar reads up on all those mom-blogs and pregnancy books. Puts headphones on your belly so your baby can listen to Mozart. Does it actually do anything? Idk the mom blog says it stimulates baby growth or something like that.

-You have a strong craving at 1 in the morning? He's on the case to get it for you. If he can't find it any stores, then he'll drive over to the next few towns to get it. He's so determined to find it.

-loves decorating the baby's nursery. He'll put up decorations and different decals for the baby. Also enjoys building things for it such as dresser and the crib.

-Also doesn't let you by yourself. You want to talk a walk around the neighborhood by yourself? Nope. He's right there holding your hand or pushing you in a wheelchair.

-loves to initiate sexy time with you. During his mom blog reading, he read that it was a great past time while pregnant. Plus, he loves you no matter what you look like even if you're insecure about your changing body.

[tyriq-edits]

My favourite non-Disney Fairytale Movies

I will say right away that there is NOTHING wrong with loving Disney Fairytale movies. Heck some of my absolute favourite movies and fairy tale adaptations of all time are Disney movies like Sleeping Beauty and Tangled. But I feel like many other beautiful Fairytale movies often get overshadowed by Disney. Especially fairytale movies from Countries outside of the United States. So don't feel attacked by this list and rather let's view it as a shout out to non-American movies.

Three Wishes for Cinderella (1973) [here]. A Czechoslovak-East German movie. This one is a classic christmas movie in czechia, Germany, Sweden and many other regions of europe and it has been my absolute favourite version of Cinderella since I was a child. I could gush about it for HOURS but I will only say this to convince you to watch it: Cinderella knows how to use a crossbow in this.

2. Hungarian Folktales (Magyar népmesék) [here]: This is actually a TV series and not a movie but oh well. Each episode tells a fairytale or folktale from Hungary. The music and artstyle are also based on traditional hungarian folk music and folk art. They actually heavily lean into the flatness of 2D animation in a similar fashion to the Irish Movie the Book of Kells or the way Disney’s Sleeping Beauty did it.

3. Rübezahls Schatz (Rübezahl's Treasure) [here]: If anyone recalls, in a previous post I had mentioned that one of my favourite fairytales is the stories surrounding the Mountain Spirit Rübezahl. So obv I’d LOVE a movie about him. This movie is part of the so called “Märchenperlen”, a german movie series. Each movie in the series adapts a classical fairytale. In this movie Rübezahl is a Guardian Spirit of the Mountains and a bit of a trickster God. But one day he falls in love with a mortal girl named Rosa and he begins to neglect his duties as a guardian. All the while the local Marquise is starting to destroy the forests of the mountains and trying to steal Rübezahl’s legendary gold treasure. So now Rübezahl has to choose between his mortal love or his guardian duties.

4. Schneewittchen und der Zauber der Zwerger (Snow White and the Magic of the Dwarfs): More Märchenperlen movies! This is as the title suggests an adaptation of Snow White but as so many Märchenperlen movies it once again takes creative liberties with its plot. For example in this version, Snow White is a bit of a Tomboy who actually knows how weapons like swords etc are forged as she would often sneak out of the castle to help the local smith with his work. It’s also her weapon-related autism that made the dwarfs trust her and take her in later on. In this version her and the prince also know each other already pretty well before the infamous kiss. And as the title suggests, the dwarfs themselves possess magic. Overall the movie in my eyes does a better job at what Disney attempted to do with their live action version of Snow White. The movie is not without flaws, but it is a comfort watch to me. If you do not speak German, don’t worry! You can simply use Google Chrome + translator to add automatic subtitles to the movie. Here is a guide on how to do it.

5. Der Süße Brei (Sweet Porridge) [here]: Another part of the Märchenperlen series. This one is based on the fairytale of the “pot that makes sweet porridge". Now the actual fairytale is VERY short. So the movie takes a lot of liberties. It takes place in a kingdom that is currently facing a giant famine. As Jola, a young peasant girl, goes out into the forest to forage for food. Instead she finds the shard of a pot and she is lead to believe that this might be a shard of the legendary "Sweet Porridge Pot". A magical artefact that can create food on its own without any ingredients. She is soon joined by the local earl's half brother to look for the other two shards. And so the adventure begins.

6. 哪吒闹海 (Nezha conquers the Dragon King) [here]. As a Lego Monkie Kid Fan and Folklore Nerd I am one of those white people who can claim they loved Nezha and knew about him before the new Nezha movie blew up/j. In all seriousness though if you enjoyed the Nezha movie that came out this year I HIGHLY recommend you watch the 1979 movie. It is animated BEAUTIFULLY and sticks quite a bit closer to the actual tale of Nezha to say the least. An absolute gorgeous experience.

7. Ка́рлик Нос (Little Longnose) [here]: I have talked about this movie before in length in my Post for a Blurrbee AU based on it. So I will not spend too much time on a summary for it. All I am gonna say about this movie that its quality is very close to a Disney movie from the 2000s. It is genuinely that good. Greta is to this day also among my favourite non disney princesses and her and Jacob’s love story means the WORLD to me. So please if you have the time PLEASE give this movie a watch. But if you do please go with the OG russian dub or the german dub. The english dub ain’t it chief.

8. Василиса Прекрасная (Vasilisa Mikulishna) [here]: After her husband gets imprisoned by the Prince of Kiev, Vasilisa Mikulishna cuts off her long hair and disguises herself as a man to rescue her lover. This movie is barely 18 minutes long but animated beautifully and definitely worth a watch.

9. Peau d'Ane (Donkey Skin) I am gonna be honest this movie only made the list because of its ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS cinematography. The colours, the costume designs, the lightning, everything! The movie is aesthetically VERY pleasing. But the movie also includes some very icky (but for french fairytales unfortunately not uncommon) plot points that feature themes of incest. So give this movie a watch if you think you cab handle that.

10. Иван Царевич и Серы�� волк (Prince Ivan and the grey Wolf) [here]: This russian movie is a bit absurd in its humour but in a charming way. It is VERY VERY VERY losely based on my favourite fairytale of all time by the same name. In this movie Prince Ivan must find a way to conquer the heart of a certain princess. And he is assisted in his endavours by none other but a grey wolf.

[sparklearchive]

Leaked Scrapped Nightstars Character Reference Sheets (all designed by Gabe)

IMPORTANT: Gabe has full ownership of these characters and wishes for them to not be reclaimed because they’re planning to use them in their own project unrelated to Sparklecare.

Allotpuns:

Bowie “Bo” Dacious - Bodacious

Sugar E. Sweet - Sugary Sweet

Ty D. N. Neet - Tidy and Neat

Dande E. Treet - Dandy Treat

Carter W. Heelie - Cartwheel (?)

Justine Thyme - Just in Time

Ellis Dee - LSD

Character info:

Brody

“Brody was gonna be barry's friend. the joke was going to be that nobody knew what his actual name was and every time he showed up a new intro card would be shown with a different name. he was a huge nuisance and prankster and hated authority. he was strictly aro and was not up for shipping under any circumstances”

Sugar, Tye, Dande

Bo’s polyamorous parents who owned a bakery together

Carter

“Carter, they were going to be another friend of barry's. they were very energetic and silly. they also had type 1 diabetes and generalized anxiety disorder and loved things like skating, aerobics and yoga”

Justine

“Justine. she was going to be uni's friend and helped her make lps roleplay videos on youtube. she loved hippie culture so she dressed like one and was super chill and laidback. she spent her free time foraging for herbs and mushrooms to use in cooking”

Ellis

Her colors, name and outfit were chosen by emsody. All Gabe made was the final design as a slow loris (emsody originally designed her as a cat but sparklecare has way too many cats so they changed her). Her voice claim is Mort from Madagascar and she’s Justine’s girlfriend.

[the-s1lly-corner]

Spring gardening w/ various crps

may do a similar prompt with some other fandoms i write for. i love spring because my tree sprouts a bunch of new leaves n stuff. but i also hate spring because, at least where i am, the weather seems to be at its worst. idk when this will post but we got hail last night and we might get hail tonight and tomorrow. i fucking hate it here characters: splendorman, laughing jack, ticci toby, jeff the killer notes: reader is gn, slender mansion au for fun, short and sweet, jeff does not fuck with gardening, the others kind of do to different degrees, written on cws: none

SPLENDORMAN

I like to think he has a flower garden somewhere- and even if hes not the best at gardening or plant care he wants to give you a hand! be it in your own backyard or somewhere only you know!

matching gardening wear- hats, gloves, apron... though his apron is.... too short for him... its hard to find one in his size!

on days where youre not feeling well enough to care for them he steps right up to make sure everything is taken care of- feeding, watering, general pest maintenance and pruning, stuff like that! growth takes time and hes always going to be there as backup when you need to maintain yourself first!

flowers are a must, always brightens some place up!

LAUGHING JACK

he doesnt get it... it takes soooooo long- and sure hes not the most impatient, but he much rather prefers something with faster- or preferably, instant- gratification... but that doesnt mean hes going to blow off your interest

that being said... in regards to actual plant care you might not want jack to be the one to help... he has a mindset of "more means better" so the risks of putting too much fertilizer or water is very much present- not good for the plants!

sometimes forgets you have a garden too, hes mentally all over the place- theres so much going on that sometimes the garden fades into the background...

he does help repot if needed, and dig holes up for the plants, saves you a lot of work and his claws make quick work

JEFF THE KILLER

he also goesnt much care for gardening... too much physical work, it takes forever to get a reward for it, and he generally doesnt get any fulfillment from it... he might not really help you with it

at most he might drag your potted plants under the porch or inside if they cant handle the weather outside, but even thats pushing it. theyre YOUR plants, so its YOUR responsibility

do not ask him to prune your plants, intentionally or not hes going to cut off way too much and stress out the plant. AND he uses his dirty ass knife to do it instead of the clean pruners youve prepared for him. "blade is blade" mentality.

if its a plant that gives in return (ex. food) and hes helped in some way- watering, pruning, moving ect hes going to take some credit for the product

TICCI TOBY

he actually does have some level of interest in plant stuff- not enough to turn it into a proper gardening hobby but he knows a thing or two about it! and hes soooo eager to impress you so obviously when you show interest hes going to get back into trying to learn more about it... even if he learns through observation and experimenting... that takes time...

i like to think he forages when he can, if he finds something cool you might want to integrate into your yard hes going to pass it off to you! sometimes brings you beneficial critters (spiders, mostly, can be great for pest control)... if he can get his hands on other beneficials he'll bring them- so long as it doesnt disturb the bug too much

will put in the work to help you tend to the plants- digging, carrying heavy stuff, repotting, pruning, so on- it gives him something to do, too... he... might actually need this more than you do

he likes sitting outside with the garden for a little bit when hes got the time to sit down and do nothing

[bbeeew]

going to be in trouble for this ngl

STARDEW CHARACTERS AND WHAT I THINK THEIR (non-farmer) PARTNERS WOULD BE.

----------------------------------------------------------

• Harvey x Elliot

Like, c'mon. Your telling me the charismatic poet DOESN'T get with the anxious radio listener? And they don't have any interactions ever? None? Smh bros need to kiss at least once. Or maybe just have Harvey info dump about planes to Elliot and he makes cute little plane poems for him when he's upset or stressed or generally being himself.

• Sam x Sebastian

Lets be honest with ourselves. We knew this was going to be on here, so I'm not putting down anything else.

• Maru x Penny x Abigail

This one will be long, so buckle in.

Maru and Penny were already best friends for being real good at academics. Maru and Penny like Abigail cause she's adventurous and outgoing and low-key hot. And Abigail likes Penny and Maru cause at first it was help with homework (Penny is such an easy mark to cheat off of, and Maru was Sebastian's half sister so also easy access) and then all 3 of them have an identity crisis of "oh no, I like 2 people, and they're BOTH GIRLS" but then they all meet up and do that awkward confession where one person was going to but the others started as well and its really silly except Abigail was just louder so as Penny and Maru were like "no you can go first" girl was just like "Y'ALL HOT A.F."

• Emily x Sandy

Again, we knew this would be on here. Gemstone and star signs lesbian meets cocky road trip and pot lesbian and they hit each other's joints we know this.

• Alex x Haley

Not in the jock x cheerleader way, but in the "my past has probably lead me to be a masochist" x "my past has probably lead me to be a sadist"

• Leah

I don't think she has a town partner, but she definitely finds a cute chick while visiting zuzu city for a trip with sandy (cause they bros no homo) that's really into foraging and that girl moves in with her. Her name would be like Zoey or Cindy or something.

• Shane

for Shane I think he is somewhat aro/ace (willing but not needed or nessisarily wanted) so he just wouldn't, but if he did it'd be some sort of qpr with Emily (w/o kissing. Watching you people. Girl is still a lesbian homeboy just needs physical affection once in a while.)

[greenbubblefactory]

Matchup for @shytastemakerthing

Congratulations! You have a match with..

Silver !

★Silver isn’t the type of person to actively seek others out, but something about you naturally caught his attention. Maybe it was the way you seemed perfectly content in your own company or how you had this quiet confidence about you. He often noticed you tending to your garden or walking with a book in hand, lost in thought, and he couldn’t help but admire the peace you carried with you. For someone like him, that kind of tranquility was magnetic.

★He never forced his way into your space, but when the two of you began to spend time together, he found himself appreciating every moment. You had a love for nature that matched his own, though expressed in a different way. While you foraged for herbs and plants, he noticed how your eyes would light up whenever you found something useful or rare. Silver didn’t speak much during these trips, but he was always there to help, quietly pointing out an interesting flower or a hidden patch of mushrooms. He admired how knowledgeable you were and would occasionally ask questions, his deep voice carrying a hint of curiosity. “What’s this one for?” he’d ask, carefully holding up a sprig of something you’d picked.

★Gardening quickly became another shared activity. While you worked on planting or harvesting, Silver would often sit nearby, enjoying the atmosphere you created. He wasn’t naturally skilled at gardening, but he’d offer to help in small ways,carrying tools, digging holes, or watering the plants. Once, while he was carefully trying to untangle some vines under your direction, he said, “You make it look so easy. I don’t know how you do it.” His tone was calm, but you could hear the genuine admiration in his words.

★Your creative hobbies fascinated him, too. Silver loved sitting close by while you crocheted or worked on a drawing, quietly observing as your hands moved with practiced ease. He didn’t always say much, but the way he watched you,focused and intent spoke volumes. When you showed him something you’d finished, his compliments were simple but sincere. “It’s beautiful".

Silver also developed a soft spot for your tea-making. He didn’t know much about tea before meeting you, but now he found himself curious about the blends you created. He’d watch as you brewed a cup, noting how carefully you handled each step.And when he sipped the tea, he’d always give you thoughtful feedback, though his words were always kind.

★Beach days with Silver became some of your favorite memories together. While you collected shells or stones along the shore, he walked beside you, always keeping an eye out for anything interesting. Offering his jacket or finding a shady spot for you to rest when the heat became too much. He didn’t swim much, but he enjoyed the peacefulness of the waves and the sound of your laughter.

★One thing you quickly noticed about Silver was his tendency to doze off at the most unexpected times. He tried to stay alert when you were together,he really did but there were moments when his eyelids grew heavy, and you’d catch him nodding off mid-conversation or during a quiet moment in the garden. He was always apologetic when it happened, but you never minded. If anything, you found it endearing.

★Silver didn’t boast about his skills, but his dedication to his duty was evident in everything he did. He’d practice his swordsmanship regularly, often inviting you to watch when he was sparring or running drills.

★ Silver’s gallant side always showed through when you least expected it. Whether it was holding the door open for you, offering his jacket when you were cold, or simply making sure you had everything you needed, he had a quiet, chivalrous way of treating you that spoke volumes.

★Silver wasn’t one for loud declarations or elaborate romantic gestures. His love came through in the quiet ways he showed he cared. When you were tired from social interactions, he’d offer his arms without a word, holding you close and letting you rest against him. His steady presence and warm embrace were often all you needed to feel recharged. He didn’t need to say much,his actions always spoke louder than words.

★Over time, you realized how much Silver valued the simple moments you shared. Whether it was sitting together under the shade of a tree, walking through the forest, or enjoying a cup of tea, he made every moment feel meaningful. He might not always have the right words to express how much you meant to him, but in his quiet way, he made sure you felt it. From the way he looked at you to the small, thoughtful things he did, it was clear. You were his peace.

English is not my first language so I'm sorry if there are any spelling mistakes!

[ofbluesandyellows]

Iceblink Luck - TASM! Peter Parker / Fem! Reader

Summary: You can be a little clumsy, and you can have very bad sight with a sprinkle of bad luck but thanks to that you proved Peter Parker that he doesn't always have to be Spider-Man to save someone.

Word count: 5.1k

Warnings: mentions of blood, injury (nothing too bad) and bad sight.

a/n: Hi! Came with a new one, a bit of a long one, and this one is for my girlies with glasses, bad sight, girlies that are clumsy but also adorable. And here's a fun fact: the name of the one shot is from a Cocteau Twins' song, and I found something quite cool- and I quote "suggests a phenomenon that is both natural and mystical, possibly referring to the reflection of light off icebergs, which sailors would use to navigate, implying a sense of guidance or fortune." So that gives something away I guess. Hope you like this one :)

Thank heavens it was a Saturday, the embarrassment was less strong if you were not showing your face at work, but thinking about it you were going to have to explain to them what happened to your nose.

And it was a bit stupid, but stupid things like that happened to you way too often for them to be surprised. 

Yet you couldn’t help wanting to hide when this cute boy stared at you for a little too long as you both waited for your orders at the one bakery where they sell the tastiest poppy seed cakes.

You stared back at him with a lipped smile, trying to be as polite as possible, even if he was the one doing the rude staring.

“Oh sorry,” he scratched his cheek. Ears turning bright pink. “I was just- that looks bad, what happened to you?” he pointed at his own nose.

You had convinced yourself that it didn’t look so bad after applying two layers of concealer but now you weren’t so sure about it. 

On instinct you tried to cover it with your palm. “um, it’s really stupid. I was reading and the book fell on my face,” the boy winced, “yeah was a hard cover.”

The scratch kinda itching for the sudden acknowledgement.

“Is the book okay?” 

You laughed, an ugly kind of laugh, great. “It is, thanks for the concern.”

“Makes you look tough, though,” he smiled.

“Thanks, that’s exactly the look I was going for.”

“Achieved.”

Both exchanged little looks, he sighed when he got handed a paper bag.

“Well, hope your nose heals nicely.” 

“Thank you,” 

“Bye.”

“Bye.” 

You felt the fluttery sensation in your belly, oh god.

•••

You were so late, and you were never late, not when it came to your work, you could be late for dinner, late for a doctor’s appointment but for work? Never, that would be sacrilege. That until today. 

You woke up suddenly, eyes blinking to the ceiling, sunbeams illuminating the room and that was weird. Realization hit you, fumbling with sheets and bumping with your nightstand you whined as the clock on your phone screen shone a perfect 8:08 am.

“FUCK!” The shout felt so foraging to your own voice you stood frozen in front of your closet for a second and then as fast as you could you dressed.

Mismatched socks were no issue to you, you didn’t care one was pink and the other blue, you didn’t mind that they were showing from under your overalls; overalls felt like the easiest choice, that until you wanted to pee and you decided not to, would be a waste of time. Brushing your teeth as you ran to the kitchen, cold coffee in your go to mug, a protein bar you found abandoned in the counter was shoved in your bag. Calling that a breakfast.

“Agh,” you cried as you hit your knee on the chair. 

Glasses.

And fuck you didn’t have time to put on your contacts, frames had to be. But you know how that quote goes about ‘I need my glasses to find my glasses.’ Well that was exactly how you felt, you had to run to the bathroom to spit the toothpaste and rinse your mouth. Squinting you tried to catch the glimpse of light blue, the color of your frames all round the room, a very difficult task to do when you only saw blurriness, not to count how impossible it felt in the mess you had. So you did what you thought easiest. Grabbing the ends of your quilt you made it float upwards, creating a bubble of air underneath and there the soft thud let you know you were right.

Carefully you kneeled and tapped the carpet with your hands.

“Voilà!” putting them on your face a sigh escaped you, everything took shape. 

What now?

Standing up you went to put on some perfume and you even dared to add a few jewelry pieces. Shoving your glasses up your nose, you made a mental note to get the new prescription and change the frames to ones that sat on your nose nicely. At least they didn’t hurt your now healed nose anymore. That saved you some time, no concealer needed. Then all forgotten, as your eyes found it, a stain of toothpaste on your green shirt, there was no time for a change so you tried to put the overall strap over it, it didn’t stay so you shrugged and ran. Shoulder bumping on the door frame. 

There went another bruise, you still wondered how you managed to collect so many of them. There was your answer each time. 

Glasses pushed up your nose again.

A last little check before heading out, apartment keys, shoes, coffee, oh no, what about lunch? You'd have to buy something. Clothes; well yeah. Bag and laptop. Ready.

And you made your way out. 

It all passed in fast glimpses, the couple walking their dog, kids laughing as their parents took them to school. Old lady dressed in an all yellow outfit, and your reflection on a high end clothing store.

Ew. 

Readjusting your glasses on, just to check if it was real, the image you were met with.

It was embarrassing, you’ve walked two blocks surrounded by people with your hair looking like that! If you looked up what ‘pillow head’ was you were sure a picture of you would pop up on the page. Flattening it was doing nothing to the nest of hair, so you looked for a scrunchie, a clip, anything really that could help fix the atrocious hairstyle, but all this just as you walked because you were not going to lose any time, you were already too late to have the luxury to stop.

Aha! An old pen showed up at the bottom of your bag, a grin of triumph appeared on your face but just as fast it disappeared. Pushed from your back, your sight went blurry. Everything kind of mixed and you tried to push those damn glasses again automatically. Yet they weren’t there.

“No, no, no…” 

The person beside you mumbled a sorry and you gasped as you heard a crack, you weren’t sure where your glasses were, not that it mattered anyway, they must be shattered no use of them. 

Blinking you stood there. It felt like being stranded in open ocean what were you supposed to do now, you could see up close pretty well—if you put your phone or your book two centimeters away from your nose that was the sweet spot of perfect sight, not even worth to say how bad things were from afar, you couldn’t see shit, so things weren’t literally looking good for you. 

You needed them for work and to see what the lucky people were able to see without help like the street lights, or what if you fell on a sewer because you thought it was just an oil stain and you ended up in the Hudson River after you traveled all the way there from under the city. Yeah it was a longshot but you were in New York where everything was possible.

What to do was all you could think about, but you were afraid to move as if doing so was going to harm you. And it was so stupid yet so overwhelming, tears started forming in the rim of your eyes, your sight getting even worse.

And the contacts were left at home, why? Because you were in a rush, why didn’t you carry an extra pair? Because you were dumb like that. If only you had grabbed a scrunchie maybe you wouldn’t be in this situation.

Ouch.

“Don’t stand there!” a man pushed you with what you guessed was his shoulder. 

You moved to the side as best as you could. Grabbing your bag with too much force, as a lifeline. Maybe if you called Cam, your co-worker, she could understand and come help you? You scattered around inside your bag, heart pounding harder the more you looked inside.

“No way,” it seemed you were experiencing the so feared ‘worst day ever’ because your phone wasn’t there and you were too blind and too panicked to do anything other than cry.

Spots of color were all you saw from afar and unclose, your coffee had spilled a bit inside your bag, you hadn’t noticed a moment ago but the smell gave it away.

Sniffing you made your way to the bakery a bit ahead on the street, you could make out the teal sign, and the smell of baked goods served as guidance. The next few steps were so slow you had no idea if anyone was coming straight at you, as predicted you felt something hard hit your side.

“My bad, didn’t see you there-” It was the hand grab on your elbow and the kindness of the words. 

You felt tears stream down your face so easily you felt childish for it. His face was a shapeless thing but you noticed he was tall and his hair was brown. What you were certain of was that he was kind.

“It’s okay,” your voice watery and a bit choked up. 

“Are you all right?” 

“I- I’m a bit lost, but i guess I’m fine,” which was not a lie, you were okay if you ignored the little headache forming at the back of your eyes.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,"

You whipped your face with the back of your hand, how embarrasing this was, crying over something like this to a complete stranger.

This boy must have seen the struggle, gentle hand on your elbow still, dragged you closer to the wall of the bakery, out of people’s way.

“Um, you want to call someone?"

“No, I just lost my glasses so… er yeah I’ll go now, thanks though.” 

Turning, not even a full step ahead you hit your leg with the table outside of the place, mumbling horrible things to it. The boy barely hid his snort with a cough.

“Okay, now you need to let me help you.” He said and you could almost hear the smile on his voice.

“You don’t have to-“

“You didn’t see the table and it’s just a foot away from you, I’m not letting you go by yourself in New York.” 

“But I know my way around.” Stubborn you needed the help, yet you couldn’t handle the awkwardness.

You always felt very strong for being independent, now it seemed like you had lost even that.

“Bet you do, but if I watch on the news tonight that something horrible happened to this girl in mismatched sock… I wouldn’t be able to live with myself, so if you aren’t doing it for you, do it for my peace of mind.”

There was no way a random boy could be this nice and unintentionally funny to a girl with bad sight. 

“I guess you can walk me to my building,” you blinked repeatedly, making the tears disappear.

“No problem,” 

With a deep sigh you barely made the image of his arm going up, you grabbed it and he chuckled. The warmth was coming up your neck settling in your cheeks. 

“So right?” he asked.

“Yeah,”

The buzz of the city served nicely as background noise, no need to speak, yet it all felt too awkward, the boy moved you aside or said ‘step’ when needed. No matter how nice he smelled or how strong his arm felt it was impossible to not think of the possibilities of him being a murderer or a bank robber. What if he took you somewhere else to kill you, that would be the definite end of a perfectly ‘worst day ever in history’ so may as well…

“Why do you have a pen in your hand?” 

“Oh?” you felt it then, you were still holding on to it for dear life. Maybe this could be your weapon if something happened, better than nothing you supposed. “I was going to use it for my hair.” 

“Right,” he said deadpan.

Shit, you must look horrible if he said it like that. Yay.

“So you live nearby?” you asked, giving his arms a light squeeze as someone ran beside you.

“Um no, but I like the coffee and the croissants at the bakery. Work nearby though.” 

“Cool,”

“You?”

“Me? Me, what?”  blink, blink.

“You live nearby?”

“Yeah, kind of, we passed the bookstore, so we have another two blocks to go, so…” you shrugged.

“How do you know we passed the bookstore?” he sounded amused.

“I heard Lu’s laugh, she laughs at everything and makes the most awful jokes. An easy to clock kind of laugh, very unique.”

“Is that where you buy your books?” 

You frowned for a second. “Er yes? Best bookstore around here,”

A beat of silence, you could feel his muscles flexing yonder your palm.

“Can I ask you how you lost your glasses? They’re on your face so it’s kind of weird you lost them,”

“Right,” you cleared your voice, the wave of embarrassment creeping in your chest but oh well he was basically serving you as a guide dog. “They were kind of old glasses so they slipped down my nose a lot, and then someone pushed me from behind and they flew out or whatever and I heard a crack and what use was it if I tried to look for them,”

“And you don’t have like an extra pair,” 

Ugh stop with the questions.

“I do, but didn’t bring them… listen I know how this looks, I’m stupid and I had the most awful day ever so stop reminding me of my idiocy, please?”

“Wow, okay. “

Shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry, if I was rude, I feel pretty bad for everything and I don't even know you and you are helping me but I do feel very stupid and a little paranoid.”

“No, yeah I understand. Trust me, I was just saying because I know it can be a hassle,”

You blinked, “you wear glasses.”

“Used to,” 

“Must be nice, to see without any kind of thing in front of you,” 

“It is, but you can relax a little, I’m not going to rob you, I would've done it earlier if I wanted to,” he laughed, you tensed and he gulped. “Joking, I'm only joking.”

Both of you remained silent as a woosh of air hit your face. The boy beside you moved fast, suddenly you didn’t feel his arm in your palm but his hand on your other shoulder; a ball bounced off close enough to you.

“Hey, be careful.” he shouted and steps were heard, running and gigging. “You okay?”

Blinking you shrugged unsure as to why you wouldn’t be. “Yeah, what happened? I just saw colors moving"

“Just some kids playing soccer, almost hit you,” 

“Thanks I guess.” 

“Don’t worry about it, so… if it helps to make you feel less wary, let me introduce myself. I'm Peter, and I work at Stark industries.”

The image of a Peter that worked at such an important company kinda took shape in your head. You didn’t know why but you were sure he wasn’t the type to wear a suit, yet you could see a navy blue sweater on him, the fabric felt soft between your fingers.

“Are you a scientist?” 

“Yes, you could say so.”

“Are you or are you not?” you smiled.

“I am, yeah. Neurotech, and all that stuff,”

“Sounds boring,”

He laughed, feeling the rumble coming all the way to your hand. He had a nice laugh. “So what do you do Miss ‘my glasses ran away from my face’?”

You went rigid for a second as a street crossing appeared. His hand went to yours and it felt warm, way bigger than your own. Instinctively you squeezed while you waited for the light to change.

“Um,” the nervous chuckle made it a little less awkward. it was an unsettling feeling holding hands with a man you could barely see. “Editing, work at a kids book publishing company.” 

“Hmm I understand the outfit now,” 

Your mouth formed an ‘o’. If it was an insult he made it seem like a joke as he snorted, probably by seeing your face.

“That’s so rude, and for the record this was picked in a rush, had no time to even check in the mirror.” 

“No, yeah I like it, very I don’t give a fuck.”

“Ugh, please stop.” 

He let out a laugh that made you grin, turning to look at him, you knew he was staring back, you could only imagine how he looked.

“You are very easy to piss off, you know that?”

“I am not! If It wasn’t because I’m partially unable I would punch you on the gut.” 

He scoffed. “You wouldn’t stand a chance, blinks. And you wouldn't even be in this situation if you weren’t partially unable.”

“Touché,” 

A blink later you realized the nickname. Just as you were about to ask him, realization hit you, Peter had distracted you, you walked across the street without noticing and you were now able to recognize your street. One, two, third building to your right and there it was, the smell of roses lingering in your nostrils. 

“It’s here,” 

“Oh,” his hand dropped.

Feeling your fingers tingle you closed them in a fist. Fixing your bag’s strap across your chest, pen still gripped tightly. 

“Thank you, Peter.” you extended your hand to him, it took him a second to hold it, but when he did you felt comforted, maybe the walking and the little conversations had done something to create such sensation, that’s why you felt the need to do more than say the obvious.

“It’s fine, glad you got here safe.”

“Let me make it up to you!” your voice coming out a little too loud, you almost grimaced but there was this thing in your chest that told you to not let him go just yet, maybe it was curiosity about how he looked, to put a face on the kind human that helped you.

“No need, seriously.” He moved and you felt the first step on the back of your heel when you mirrored him.

“Please, just let me go get my phone and we can exchange numbers, I can buy you coffee or a bunch of croissants.” you were smiling, hoping.

“I- really? I mean I love the idea of free food, but there’s really no need-“

“Just stay here, yeah? Be right back, if I don’t come back in like five minutes or if you hear a loud crash, come look for me I probably fell down the stairs and broke my neck,”

You laughed as he grumbled.

“Okay, just be careful, don’t need that kind of burden over my shoulders. Can you imagine what the press would say,”

Snorting, you waved him off. “Be right back!”

And you practically ran, you knew this building better than your own palm, it was easy, almost funny to see how you navigated the place without hesitation.

Contact lenses on and a big smile on your face later you found your phone on the kitchen counter. Your bag plopped on the floor and you headed back down in a rush.

There were like five missed calls and a bunch of texts from your group chat at work. You only texted a ‘call you in five’.

At the bottom of the entry steps, a tall man was leaning on the brick wall railing. You came to a halt, almost losing your step on the way down. His eyes went up to you at the same time as his hands, serving as cushion if you fell yet you managed to save face. Yet the shock was obvious, you gulped and there was Peter looking at you with a soft frown.

Fuck me, it 's him!

Clearing your throat you tried to hide the surprise, he chuckled a bit not knowing what was happening, so you went down the stairs slower now, cheeks feeling hot and your belly making twists and turns when you were face to face with him. 

Oh god.

“How many fingers do you see?” he asked, holding a peace sign in front of you, like way too close you went cross-eyed.

Slapping his hand down, you held it for a little longer than a second, the tingles came back.

“Funny, but I see perfectly fine with my contacts, thanks very much.” your eyes landed on his t-shirt where you read: Zombies eat brains, don’t worry you are safe.

You snorted at it. “And you were making fun of my mismatched socks, hypocrite.”

His laugh and smile were like seeing a sunset, pretty and bright and it took your breath away. 

“Well, I wasn’t expecting you to see it,” he shrugged. 

“You didn’t tell me you were the guy that saw my embarrassing nose bruise!” 

He smiled sheepishly. “Wasn’t relevant,”

“Could've made me feel less stressed about you being a serial killer since minute one,”

“Will do next time, but I do hope there isn’t a next time, not in the same circumstances at least,”

Your eyes found his and the staring was intently, you had to take a big inhaler, you weren’t aware you were holding it in. Peter’s phone buzzed and he frowned, quickly adjusting he sent you a slipped smile.

“I gotta go, but I’ll hold you to your word on those croissants and coffee, okay blinks?”

“Um, okay.” 

Peter didn’t do much as wave at you and he walked fast and away. Blinking you realized you didn’t ask for his number nor why he called you that.

“Worst day ever,” you grumbled going up the stairs defeated.

•••

Unlucky, that’s what Cam said to you as she drove you to the hospital.

Maybe you were unlucky indeed, in the past month you had been at risk of losing your life due to the many little incidents, three you’ve counted so far. But keeping a positive mind was key to surviving them all, or so you tried to convince yourself of it. 

“Third time's a charm of whatever,” you mumbled, making pressure over your palm.

“Oh shut up,” Cam scowled.

You giggled but it cut off when she passed through a hole making your hand shake.

It’s been two weeks since you last saw Peter, and that played an important role in your performance at work. Daydreaming of his voice, how the faint scent of fabric softener still remained in your nose after so many days, and your lack of attention when you walked around the office. 

That’s why you were at the hospital now. 

It was a bump on the knee followed by a bad placement of the coffee cup on your desk that sent the warm liquid over your jeans, between a gasp a swift motion your chair fell back with you in it, hand barely grabbed the corner of the desk cutting through it, and you were unable to explain exactly how that had happened.

Cam took you to the ER the moment she saw blood coming out of your hand.

“You are not bleeding dry, not on my watch.” She said as if by speaking it you magically avoided such destiny.

Sitting in a room where blue curtains hung around, you got chatty with the nurse as she cleaned the wound, making you grimace and wince just a couple of times.

“Feeling alright? You didn’t hit anywhere else dear?” 

“Nope,” you fixed your new pair of glasses up your nose, even the new ones slipped a bit at times.

She smiled, as she wrapped a long strip of gauze around your left palm. “Is that too tight?”

“It’s fine, thank you,”

“It’s my job dear, so if you feel dizzy in the next few minutes let me know okay, I’ll go get the doctor so you can get going.”

“Ok,” 

You were feeling pretty normal, yeah you got a bit scared and it was obvious your hand was a bit sore but the pain killers were already minimizing the pain. 

The nurse with the kindest smile you’ve seen disappeared, the curtain remained open so you distracted yourself with the passing and going of the nurses soundtracked by a few pained moans and low chit chatting here and there. Moving your hand made you wince a bit, but it got choked down in a second.

“Blinks?” 

You blinked, looking behind you as if the person in front of you was addressing someone else. Stupid you felt when he chuckled.

“What are you doing here?” you asked Peter as he entered the little curtain parted cubicle. Fixing your glasses to try and ease the sudden nerves.

“My aunt works here,” his thumb pointed to your left just where he had come from. “Are you okay? What happened?” 

His frown made you feel a little bad, fingers twitching when you moved it around as to show him.

“Cut myself at work. No need for stitches, lucky. Right?”

Peter scoffed. “This is the third time I see you in need of assistance, what’s up with you and getting hurt huh?”

He stepped into the space a little further, you felt your stomach twist, oh the daydreaming was finally paying off. Maybe you should fall more often.

“My luck I guess.”

“Well lucky me that I find you every time.” he grinned.

“Peter! Thought you were gone,” the nurse that had patched you up appeared, sending you an apologetic smile. 

“May, sorry I just found a friend here.” 

“Oh,” the nurse's eyes went from Peter to you, a little smirk on her lips. “Well, you can wait for her outside, she needs to fill in a few forms before she can go.”

“Okay form police, I will, ” palms up defenseless, Peter sent you a quick glance. “Mind if I wait for you?”

Of fucking course not.

“No, it’s fine.”

“Cool,”

When May, the nurse handed you a thing to sign, she was looking at you in a funny way. You couldn’t dare to ask, so when you headed out of the ER, she squeezed your shoulder.

“Thank you.” you said and she nodded.

“Take care dear.”

Immediately after she walked away you texted Cam.

You:

Found the boy I told you about, he is waiting for me. Text you later

Cam:

Ugh,but are you okay? Don’t need a ride home?

You:

I’m fine, just go. See you tomorrow.

Cam:

Ungrateful girl, hope he is as hot as you made him sound.

With butterflies in your belly and the painkillers making their magic you saw Peter glow as he chatted with an old lady at the desk of the hospital. His smile only grew when he spotted you walking his way. He was literally glowing a halo of light all round him.

“All good?” he asked.

You nodded grinning like an idiot, your cheeks were probably cherry red but who cares. “Are you busy now?” 

Peter licked his lips. “I am not, why?”

“Want to go grab that coffee and a bunch of croissants?”

He chuckled, scratching his cheek, “Yeah, why not.”

“Nice,” 

You walked to the bakery since it was only a couple of blocks East.

“So you got new glasses?” 

You pushed them up the bridge of your nose. “Yup, they still slip but not as much as the others. Got extra contacts on my bag.”

“Better be prepared,”

“Exactly… Peter, can I ask you something?”

Peter nodded making his way to your right, where the cars were passing.

“Why you called me blinks?” 

Peter laughed. “Because you blink a lot,”

“I do not… besides how much does one has to blink to be blinking a lot,” 

Peter shrugged, you blinked up at him. “See? you just did it, it’s not like you blink like a normal person, you do it in a slow motion, don’t take it the wrong way, I mean it in a cute adorable way”

You pushed him from your shoulder, he didn’t even move at your attempt. “Now I’m going to be so aware of that ugh, thanks Peter.”

You were making him laugh so much and it was such a heartwarming feeling you didn’t want it to stop at all. 

“Please don’t, I like that, just forget I said anything.”

Cherry on top that day was tripping over a piece of sticking out sidewalk, that only made you extremely embarrassed–what was new anyway– as you held onto his arm for support, Peter didn’t miss a beat either, hands on the small of your back ready to save you.

“This is getting ridiculous blinks, if you want me to hold you just tell me, don’t trip over yourself."

“I swear this is me all the time, don’t need to impress you with my unskilled ways of moving.” you fixed yourself, not being able to look him in the eye, glasses slipping down the bridge of your nose.

“You have impressed me already, never met anyone as clumsy as you.” 

You glared now, a fake mean stare. “That makes me unique then,” you straightened as if proud of that.

“Very, but you’re in good capable hands,” 

The bakery appeared in your line of vision.

“Oh yeah?” 

“Definitely,” his smirk was so self-assured you believed him.

“So you don’t ever trip or hurt yourself?” The smell of recently baked goods hit you the moment Peter pushed the door open for you. 

His light chuckle made your spine tingle. “I wouldn’t say it never happened but it’s different.”

“There’s no difference you either do or don’t” the line moved, he hit your back, strong hands holding you in place. 

“Oh trust me it’s way different, but maybe with time you’ll find out.”

Turning in your spot you caught Peter already looking down at you, a knowing smile on his rosy lips, you were ready to take that as your reward after everything.

You blinked and his grin widened. 

“Ugh stop!” however you didn’t look away.

“Blinks…”

“Huh?”

You felt him lean in, slowly you were ready for whatever was coming. With your belly in a knot, Peter stopped just as your noses brushed just barely.

“It’s our turn,”

His eyes were so shiny in that brown hue, it was humbling to have been caught like that; agape, flustered waiting to be kissed. You could almost feel how bright your face was shining as you twirled to find the girl on the counter smiling at you.

“Can I have two coffees to go and as many croissants as possible, please?”

[stardropsaloongossiptrain]

Bachelor/ettes and Cooking

Gonna rank how I think the marriage candidates would do in the kitchen

----

Bachelors:

Elliott -- it takes a while, but once the man has a real kitchen at his disposal and some encouragement to try, I think he would really enjoy cooking and could be very good at it! I HC him as growing up in a wealthy home where he probably wasn't allowed to cook for himself, and then the cabin has nothing... but he remembers dishes he really enjoyed. I like to think he starts cooking just trying to help out once he moves to the farm, and there is DEF a learning curve... but there's a master chef hiding in there. I can feel it.

Alex -- you do not grow up with Grannie Evelyn and not learn how to cook. Impossible. Now, he's not a fancy chef by any means, but he can make a meal without issue. If you get this man a grill, he will 1000% become Grill Master, Kiss the Cook apron wearing Grill Dad. Also, though he rarely does it, he can bake up a storm. Generally only bakes for birthdays.

Harvey -- He can cook, but only cooks healthy meals. He will need to be taught that it's okay to season your food. Brown rice, steamed veggies, and plain tofu/ chicken breasts type guy. Otherwise, it's pre-packaged frozen food. Maybe he can get better w/ encouragement but he's always going to be checking portions and making sure you eat plenty of fruits and vegetables and watch your sodium intake. The most likely bachelor to be vegetarian/ be willing to go vegetarian. Gets nauseated if he's preparing meat.

Shane -- Mid-tier like Harvey, but even though he's had kitchen access he rarely feels like cooking. He knows what seasoning is-- his usual cooking style is the exact opposite of Harvey, mostly family recipes. All flavor, calorie count who?? Loves making food covered in cheese, sauce, or gravy. His chili would win awards, but he only makes it once a year.

Sam -- He could keep himself alive if the box has directions. Anything more complicated than boxed mac and cheese, though, and he gets a little lost. Can help YOU in the kitchen very well, but to be honest he would rather be doing something more exciting.

Sebastian -- The only one who is a worse cook than him is Abigail. He is NOT allowed in the kitchen even to watch. Could burn iced tea.

---

Bachelorettes

Emily -- Oldest sister + working at the Saloon added together means she's definitely going to be a decent cook, but she genuinely enjoys cooking. She loves to experiment with different cultural dishes. She only cooks vegetarian or vegan dishes.

Penny -- She's pretty self sufficient. I don't think she knows too many recipes, but she enjoys experimenting if she moves to the farmhouse. She's very adapt at stretching a budget, and I think she would enjoy making jams/ pickles. Not the big amount the farmer does, but small batches in special flavors.

Leah -- She's a simple cook. She prefers raw dishes, or things like buddha bowls. A lot of texture and flavor. Loves using herbs and edibles from foraging locally. Leans vegetarian but doesn't mind fish from time to time.

Maru -- Maru is proficient at cooking, but I think takes after her dad too much and is very nutrient focused vs what actually makes a good meal. Occasionally makes questionable decisions in the name of efficiency. Could go from making some sort of casserole if busy w/ a project to Extremely Experimental if she has the time. No in between.

Haley -- I considered putting her higher but no. She has rarely if ever had to cook for herself before, so if she's at the farmhouse she will be surprised if you expect her to do anything in the kitchen. Eventually I think she could be fine. It's not hard. She just hates doing dishes. Enjoys baking somewhat, especially w/ Alex.

Abigail -- She eats rocks as a snack and thinks if you just crank the oven to 600 for fifteen minutes it's better than 350 for an hour. Her stomach is alien to this world. Can and will eat anything without issue.

[rottenzombrainz]

Soggy Day (TKDB oc x Reader)

Begining notes:

This technically isn't an x Reader since Yichén is greyromantic, but "x reader" is simpler than " Yichén + Reader except they have a queerplatonic relationship"

No warnings for this one! Just fluff <3

Content: A little forest stroll with Yichén, Reader calls Yichén "Yiyi", Poor baby needs lots of hugs, Jiro cameo!!

You patiently waited by a tree in the dense forest that surrounds Mortkranken, waiting for your partner to show. It wasn't unlike him to be late- but it was unlike him to not let you know he's being held up. You couldn't help but worry that your plans with him were canceled. The life of a Mortkranken ghoul is a busy one, after all.

As you leave your thoughts and gaze back out at the world, you notice Yichén nervously standing a few feet in front of you, a pathetically cute look of concern painting his expression. His face glows with tears stains- a sight that worries you as you examine him closer from afar. He notices you noticing him and smiles, albeit weakly.

"Y/N! Sorry- you seemed deep in thought... I-I didn't want to bother you o-or anything...."

Yichén steps closer, hanging his head ever-so slightly as he stands still with his head turned away from you. He's done this often enough for you to know this is his way of silently asking for a hug. You wrap your arms around his thin body, squeezing him and holding him close as he rests his head on your shoulder. His calming aroma of lavender is harshly contrasted by the pungent smell of tobacco- something his housemates must have surely noticed as well.

"I-I'm sorry I'm late.... Captain Isami was lecturing me on the cons of smoking a-and.... mmh...."

He sighs, cutting himself off as he basks in your warmth. Even as you loosen your grip on him to step away, he stays hooked onto you as he closes his puffy eyes- sore from crying.

"Yuri can be harsh with his words, can't he?"

You coo before rubbing Yichén's head. The feeling of his soft purple hair comforts you just as much as it does him. He inhales sharply, giving you a tight squeeze before letting go.

"I um... I made you s-some tea before I left! "

He announces in his meek voice, producing a small thermos from the messenger bag at his side. You gingerly take it from him and unscrew the lid, wafting the tea before tasting it. It smells.... divine.

"It's bacha with a hint of- A-ah! Be careful! It's s-still hot!"

But it's too late. The boiling liquid hits your tongue, burning it. Yichén quickly removes his blue latex gloves before grabbing your face with a look of guilt. He whimpers at the situation, and you laugh, amused by how concerned he is; though it's also a little obsequious.

"A-a-are you alright? Should w-we go back inside and get you checked out?"

You shake your head with a chuckle.

"I'm fine, Yiyi. It's just a little burn. Let's walk it off, hm?"

Reassuring him, you're also reminded of why the two of you were meeting in the first place. It had recently rained on this side of the campus and Yichen wanted to forage mushrooms with you while he had some time available.

"R-right!"

He nods hesitantly and laces his fingers with yours as you begin walking. Yichén's eyes stayed glued to the wet leaf-littered ground, watching for any critters that might be around your feet. You let out a lighthearted sigh at his antics.

"Yichén- nothing's going to jump out at us. Use those eyes of yours to look for mushrooms! It's not like I know what we're looking for."

"I-I am looking for mushrooms! I'm just... m-more focused on making sure w-w-we don't step on anything..."

"You're about to walk into a spiderweb..."

"What?! Really?!"

His head shoots up and he sporadically looks around, jumping backwards as he finds the spiderweb you warned of. Yichén clings onto you tightly, scared for his life. You rub his head before shuffling around the low-hanging branch, the ghoul with you begrudgingly relaxing his muscles once far enough away from the large web.

"Oh hey, is that a mushroom?"

You point over at a grouping of fan-shaped mushrooms climbing a mossy tree. They're light brown- a little yellow. Most of the 'safe' mushrooms Yichén has shown you are the same color... are these ones safe too?

Walking to the log with your partner by your side, you crouch down in front of the cluster. Yichén mumbles to himself as he pulls out a pair of disposable gloves for himself and you. You poke and prod at the mushrooms while the brainiac beside you thoroughly examines them like the veteran forager he is.

"It looks like... tsukiyotake..."

"Is it safe?"

Yichén shakes his head with a frown as his beautiful green eyes look towards the forest floor.

"No... they're toxic to humans... a-and ghouls too, of course..."

"What about these guys? Are they poisonous to them?"

You question, pointing at a string of ants running up and down the log. Yichén jumps and falls back at the small bugs - lip quivering. His fear of just about anything with a pulse really makes you wonder how he ever forages alone.

You carefully pick the frightened Yichén up by the shoulders, standing him up and wiping the dirt and mud off his backside. He lets out a sigh and burrows his face back in your chest where he feels safest.

"I-I'm sorry...."

"What for?"

Yichén whimpers in response, the tip of his shoe drawing patterns in the soggy dirt.

"I wanted to show you the better sides of me. T-the kind of stuff I'm g-good at....I'm not as talented as you but-"

You interrupt him with a scoff.

"But what? You don't give yourself enough credit. You're just as talented as any of the other eggheads in Mortkranken."

The boy in your arms looks up at you with his big teary green eyes sparkling like jades. He stays silent, swallowing hard before letting go of you.

"Can... can we go back? I'd like to stay inside and watch a movie... i-if that's okay with you! We can watch whatever you'd like! A-as long as it's not super gorey.... b-but even then, if you really wanted to watch it- A-anyways.... I could make you some tea as well- if y-you want."

Yichén plans non-confidently while wiping away his tears with the sleeves of his uniform blazer, looking back at you as he walks forward to check if you're following behind.

"Are you sure? You've been so excited about doing this with me...."

"I-It's fine! Really! W-we could always go out some other time!"

You weren't entirely convinced by his words but you didn't want to push it further. It hurts your heart- seeing him give up so easily... but you swallowed your differences with a swig of tea as you jogged your way back towards your little Yichén. He patiently stood in a clearing, Sun shining on his skin like light through glass as those jade eyes looked back at you.

The sweet boy was at your side the moment you were in range. He walked by you, your feet hardly an inch apart as he stared solemnly at the forest floor. His lavender aroma mixed with the pines of the forest made serenity spread throughout your body like a painkiller. Or maybe it was the dopamine that came with just being by your dear partner?

Just as quickly as you came into the forest, you and Yichén were already out and strolling towards the Mortkranken building. A little disappointing to be honest- but at least you still got to spend some time with him.... even if what you two were doing before was already perfectly fine.

"I-I'm sorry..."

You sighed at his meaningless apology, stopping and holding his dainty gloved hands. You opened your mouth to reassure Yichén once more but a figure behind the petite student caught your attention.

"Yichén. Yuri sent me to come find you. He wants your help with something."

The figure coldly and plainly stated, hand resting on his neck as his tired eyes gave you little acknowledgement.

"A-ah! Vice-Captain Kirisaki!"

Yichén jumped like a frightened animal and squeezed your hand tightly as he met eyes with his Vice Captain. You gave him a soft squeeze back and placed a hand on your hip, ready to vouch for him if need be. Yichén already was a rather small thing- but he looked microscopic with the monsterously tall Jiro Kirisaki standing beside him. Or well, in front of him....

"I-I'm sorry- I- I was.. I wanted to.... me and Y/N where going t-to...."

Jiro crossed his arms, waiting for Yichén to finish in a manner that read as impatient to you.

"I-I was going to watch a m-movie in my room with my p-partn-Um.... f-friend....."

"Okay."

You waited for Jiro to continue, to have a rebuttal or some other, but he just... stood there for a few moments before turning around and walking away. Yichén looked towards you with eyes watery that gave the impression he was about to start crying again. You quickly put a hand to his soft cheek and rub it soothingly.

"Is.... is he always like that?"

You asked in reference to the Mortkranken Vice-Captain. Yichén silently shrugged with quivering lips, taking little steps closer towards you until his head was resting on your chest again.

"I think he's alright with us spending more time together? I'd assume he'd be a little more pushy if he wasn't...."

You console your partner- or at least attempt to despite the confusion in your voice and your head. Yichén simply nods into you before stepping back and wiping his tears with the sleeves of his blazer once again.

Gently, you heard the Mortkranken first-year into the dormitory building and to his room, shielding him from the view of others like a mother bird protecting a fragile egg.

"You said you wanted to watch a movie, right? Which one were you thinking? Maybe we could finish that one old one we were watching last time?"

You attempt to converse, but Yichén only mumbles in response as he continues to weakly cling to you.

"I-I'm sorry this all went so h-horribly...."

Yichén sobbed, fumbling with his doorknob.

"It's fine, Yiyi. There's plenty of other things we would do together. More days we could try and go out."

The boy parts his two-toned lips to speak, but nothing comes out as he slowly opens the door. Yichén beelines for his bed with shakey breaths and grabs one of his pillows like a loved companion. He squeezes it tightly as he takes deep breaths on and out- one of his usual grounding techniques.

"I'll make us some tea..."

You announce with a voice just as soft as your partner's. He nods in acknowledgement and you flash him a smile before strolling to a little desk where Yichén usually keeps all of his herbs and teas. You were nowhere near as good as good at making unique and flavorful blends as he was, but you could still make a good cup of oolong.

It takes you a few minutes to actually find the oolong tea. Not because it was unorganized or anything of the sort- in fact, all of the teas seemed to be separated into groups of flavor. All labeled..... in Mandarin.

"Yiyi, how much sugar do you want?"

You call out and turn around towards where the room's owner was sitting only to find him now laid down with his eyes closed and a gentle grip around his satin pillow.

With an amused smile you put away all the supplies you took out and sit beside your beloved friend, stroking his lavender hair as you usually do. No response - he's fast asleep. With an affectionate sigh, you reach towards the antique bookshelf by the bed and grab one of Yichén's random botony textbooks. Looks interesting... enough.

This isn't exactly how you planned on spending time together today, but maybe a little break is what the busy Mortkranken ghoul needed more.

[sharks-n-bones]

Y'all, I'd like to apologize in advance, this is the longest one yet

Without further adue

BRANCH WON THE POLL SO IT'S BRANCH TIME BABY LET'S GO

When the flood hit, Branch was the most prepared troll in all of Pop Village. He was a survivalist, he built an entire underground Bunker with a functional elevator by himself, of course he'd know what to do

When the rivers started overflowing, Branch was suspicious from the get go. It was late summer, the snow already melted from the mountains and flooded the rivers. There hasn't been any rain recently, so there's no reason the rivers would've flooded

Branch’s hunch was soon proved correct when the river just kept flooding over, the water reaching the village in no time, causing them all to have to relocate. They went for higher ground, and when the storms came they hunkered down where they could until they ended, and they began moving again

Once they were finally somewhere safe for the time being, they began building boats. King Peppy advised that families and friends should stick together and travel together, and Branch had to agree with him. There was safety in numbers, especially in cases such as this

Branch helped Poppy, the king and the snackpack (along with Prince D, who was visiting when the water started rising) to build a boat that would fit them all, with room to spare, of course. Branch was nothing if not prepared. He'd drawn up blueprints in his spare time on the journey to higher ground, and designed the boat big enough for them all to have their own rooms and bathrooms, a kitchen, multiple storage rooms, a common room and other such amenities. And of course, he built an area above the main deck for farming

Since Satin and Chenille were pros on working with fabrics, Branch asked them to make the sails. Smidge helped with the heavy lifting, since she was by far the strongest out of the Snackpack. Cooper, Prince D, DJ Suki and Biggie helped with gathering supplies and resources. Poppy and Guy Diamond helped with decorations, but pretty much everyone helped with the actual building of the ship

In no time, their ship was built and stocked with enough provisions to last a couple weeks at least. Branch was proud of the ship and the hard work everyone put into it. They sang and danced and hugged throughout the process, but it seemed to make the building go along quicker, if anything, and it boosted everyone's moods. Once the water has risen enough to be lapping against the bottom of the boat, they worked together to push it into the sea before hopping on and setting sail

Other than now having to work harder on surviving, things stayed much the same. They spent their days singing, dancing and hugging while they tended to their little farm, fished, and gathered resources and food from any island's they came across. Most of the group also enjoyed swimming when they had the chance, and Branch would even join them sometimes, but he was a bit more.. suspicious of the water that flooded the world

He'd been working on theories and gatherings clues as to what caused this great flood. Surely, it wasn't natural. There was no way! The world wouldn't just flood without something to cause it. But what could've been powerful enough to do such a thing..? When he wasn't busy foraging, tending to the garden and making sure the ship was still in peak condition, he was usually pouring over the clue board he'd made about the flood

He'd added some.. other changes he'd noticed to the clue board as well, such as how everyone on the ship was developing rashes on their necks, and how he noticed that their skin seemed to be drying out faster while their hair was all still picture perfect, if not looking better than ever. He added how the webbing between their fingers seemed to be inching up to their knuckles, ever so slowly. He'd thought he'd be the only one to notice that, but he saw some of the others glancing at their hands with odd expressions once in a while. A lot of other trolls they came across were having the same exact effects, so it couldn't just be a freak disease that had taken over the ship. Besides, if it was, they wouldn't have as much energy as they did. Other things would be noticed

He was pouring over his clue board again when a theory suddenly came to his mind. He laughed at himself at first, because there was no way, it would be impossible-

He started taking samples of the water that now covered most of the planet, trying to see if there was anything in it that could be causing these changes. He checked the rainwater they collected, ocean water, rivers and creeks if any islands still had them, but each and every time he came up empty. There were no weird chemicals or anything of the sort he could find

There was nothing he could physically see, but the water was the only thing he could think of that would cause these changes! He even checked the fish they caught and any food they grew or foraged, but there was nothing unusual. At this point, the only thing that could be causing these changes was magic! He chuckled at the thought, and pushed it aside… not before adding it to the clue board with a bunch of question marks, though

Occasionally, techno trolls would approach their ship and ask if they needed any help. The next time one breached the surface, Branch asked if they'd noticed anything in the water since the flood hit. The techno troll's eyes widened, and he winced before sighing and climbing onto the ship

He explained everything he knew. Told them about the legends of sirens, of their history with them, how they locked them away. How the sirens broke free right around the time the water began rising

Then, he explained how they filled the ocean that covered the planet with and ancient and powerful magic. He explained that it would slowly change their bodies to become more siren-like. As he explained, he pointed out the changes they were already experiencing. Explained the rashes on their necks would develop into gills, the webbing between their fingers would reach the last knuckle for better swimming, their bodies would grow scales and that their skin was drying faster because it was becoming dependant on the sea water

Everyone had gathered to listen, and everyone looked shocked. Poppy examined her hands, Satin and Chenille ran fingers through their hair. Biggie and Smidge brought hands to the rashes on their necks, Guy and Tiny looked at their glitter-coated skin, and Cooper and Prince D glanced at each other, seemingly have an entire conversation without words

The techno troll continued, explaining that they'd be able to change into the same forms as siren's could. The troll forms — how they looked now, the half forms — what they were going to look like once the changes were complete, and the siren forms — where their legs would fuse into a tail and they'd take on more characteristics of whatever sea creature the ocean decided to attach to them

He explained that the more time they spent in the water, the faster the changes would happen, but they wouldn't be able to stop it. He said not to fear it, it would only help them out in the long run

Branch asked why they would cause the flood to begin with only to help them survive in the end. The techno troll said that their war was with the technos, not with anyone else. Dubz didn't know what they had planned for techno’s, but said not to worry about it. It was the techno’s fight, not theirs

Branch felt bad for them, and could see the others felt the same. The techno troll bid them farewell after that and left, leaving the group in silence. He could see that familiar gleam in Poppy's eyes, one that meant she wanted to help them, she just didn't know how yet. Branch couldn't help but smile at that. She always wanted to help people, and he loved that about her

For the rest of the day, things were a bit more quiet than usual. Everyone thinking about what they'd just learned. Branch sighed and went to find Poppy, wanting to make sure she was alright

The next day, they reached an island and they all unanimously decided to take a day to completely relax. They deserved a day off, especially after all they'd learned yesterday. So they tossed the idea of work to the wind and spent the day relaxing at the beach

Everyone was having fun. Building sandcastles, playing in the waves, relaxing on the sand, floating around, just generally having a good time. Branch was even relaxing, just sitting in the sand and reading a book for once. He was so lost in the pages, he almost didn't hear Tiny scream

He looked up just in time to see a fish come out of the water and latch onto Tiny Diamond, dragging him under, and Guy Diamond frantically diving after him. Branch immediately tossed his book aside and ran into the water after them. Guy hadn't come up for air yet so Branch dove after him. Guy dove pretty far down, so he was slowing down and running out of air by the time Branch got to him and began dragging him up through the water

The moment they breached the surface, Guy coughed and gasped, taking in a large breath, before immediately elbowing Branch in the face and fighting against his hold

Branch understood why he was fighting so hard. Tiny was Guy's son, he loved Tiny more than anything in the world. But, as much as it hurt admit, Tiny and that fish were long gone by now. Branch held onto Guy tightly until he eventually stopped fighting and just went limp in his hold

Branch sighed sadly and began hauling him to shore while Cooper, Prince D and Smidge dove into the water to keep looking for Tiny, just in case

Guy wouldn't stop looking at the ocean once Branch brought him to shore. He just stood there, frozen like a statue, before he eventually crumpled to his knees. Then, to Branch’s utter horror, he slowly began turning grey. From the tips of his hair, moving downwards until he was completely dull, the glitter that made up his skin now matte and lifeless

Branch’s heart ached for him. He didn't know what it was like to lose a child, thank the stars above, but he knew what it was like to lose a family member and he knew what it was like to turn grey. He heard the others gasping in shock, but Branch only frowned and wrapped an arm around Guy, giving him all the comfort he could. The others soon joined in, all wrapping Guy in one giant hug. Guy never hugged back

They had stayed at the island for a week longer than they'd planned to, just in case Tiny somehow showed up, and Guy waited on the beach every day. Tiny never showed. Eventually, they brought Guy back to the ship and to his room. The others were all concerned for Guy, but Branch tried to tell them not to go overboard or push the poor guy too much. He remembered how much the toxic positivity bothered him when he went grey, and knew it could be smothering and overwhelming

Once in a while, Branch would check in on Guy and bring him some food if he noticed he hasn't been eating. Aside from occasionally checking up on him, he gave him some space

For the next 2-3 months, a melancholy air hung around the ship. They all would still sing and dance, but it wasn't the same now that two voices were missing. Guy didn't come out of his room that much. He usually would for meals or to sometimes help Branch when he was brainstorming safety precautions (presumably to make sure nothing like what happened to Tiny ever happens again, or at least that was Branch’s theory), but most days he stayed cooped up in his room

Branch felt bad for him. He wished he could do more to help, but he didn't know Guy like the others did. He could only think to do what he wished others would do when he turned grey — show he cared, but give him enough space to breathe

A few months passed uneventfully, just going from island to island, gathering resources and taking some time to try and relax before setting sail again. It was another normal day for them, they had just docked at an island when something different finally happened

A ship came up beside their own and set anchor. A lone figure wearing a pair of reflective goggles aboard the ship used their hair to board their own boat, landing with a loud thud on the deck. They pushed their goggles up to their forehead and Branch gasped

This couldn't be happening. 20 years of absolute silence, complete separation. 20 years since he left him behind, and suddenly he shows up right when a flood takes over the planet? Branch couldn't believe his eyes. The troll then spoke, stating he was searching for someone when they suddenly locked eyes, and the newcomer aboard their ship grinned and called him a name he hadn't heard in decades

“Baby Branch!!”

[randomnameless]

Continuation of this AU with Nabatean adjacent/related characters!

hc included

Cyril's didn't had time nor occasion to care for a pokemon while he was in Almyra, and during his time at the Gonerils he had, say, other priorities.

He helps the monastery's helpers feed the numerous pokemons there, let them be strays who just happen to be there, or sometimes, the ones who follow and are used by some knights. Alois receives an egg as a thank you gift from some members of the Eastern Church, but given how his Probopass is already looking after/bonding with other mons, he ultimately gives the egg to Cyril.

Cyril's at first very excited to get his first pokemon, but when Jangmo-o hatches, he's disappointed. Jangmo-o line is very popular in Almyra, there are stories of great Almyran heroes and warriors with their Kommo-o but he now he doesn't want to be associated to those stories anymore : sure they were great warriors who fought and won, but at the end of the day, those stories never mention what happens to those warrior's families when they lose, or to the people they leave behind when they fight.

He's even more pissed when Jangmo-o first rekts the Goomy who always follows him (Lady Rhea's Goomy ?), why is he fighting against other pokemons who never asked anything, does he only knows how to fight or what? He - sorts of - changes his mind when he catches his mon with one of Lady Rhea's pokepuffs (they're sickly sweet and always needlessly decorated), thinking he stole it from the Goomy but nope, somehow, he shares the pokepuff with the Goomy and the dumb-looking Woopers living in Rhea's pond. He still tries to challenge the pond's Clodsire, but always gets comically rekt'd.

"Maybe he doesn't know how to bond with others?"

Cyril thinks a bit on what Seteth told him, and tries to have Jangmo-o help him around in the monastery, like cutting wood and carrying the logs.

Shamir called them similar once because they keep on running around, but he denied : they're not! (Jangmo-o also tries to take on Shamir's Inteleon in a fight, but never wins).

Plot happens and whent the Western Church infiltrates the monastery, Cyril muses on his powerlessness and asks Jangmo-o if they can "train" together, because he wants to become stronger to be able to protect the ones he cares about. Jangmo-o actually kills (his first W!) one of Flamey's army's Watchog during the "rescue Flayn" map.

Then the Supreme War begins.

In CF, in the initial defend GM map, Jangmo-o evolves and Hakamo-o does his best to protect his home, to no avail. In the last map, Kommo-o kills Supreme Leader's Corviknight, but ultimately falls to Lysithea's Reuniclus.

In VW, Nader is impressed at "that lad" having a Kommo-o and wants to challenge him with his team, but both Cyril and Kommo-o do not give a fuck about his challenge, they have other priorities.

---

Young!Cassandra eagerly awaited her first pokemon, maybe it'd be a Bisharp or something cool like that.

To say she was disappointed when Count Charon gave her a Pawmi would have been a disappointment, she didn't really know what she didn't want, but damn if orange fat rodent isn't suddenly making it in the top spot on her list.

When she told her Mother Pawmi would have been a better fit for the young lady in the royal castle, Lady Charon nearly chocked and called her an idiot, is she really one who judges pokemons based on their appearances? As the future leader of House Charon, she has to be able to look beyond appearances, and learn to care and protect everyone.

Going to Garreg Mach, she's a bit pissed because she receives a lot of comments about how cute Pawmi is, Christophe and his Ambipom always laugh at her, but they still hang out together.

When Cassandra goes monster chasing and nearly dies, Rhea reveals Pawmi stayed by her side and was so worried he foraged and stored a lot of berries for her to eat, when she'd wake up. Cassandra is a bit surprised, she never really bonded with her pokemon, but he's still that devoted to her? She pats his head, he's sort of cool, in his own way. (Pawmi also agrees Rhea's the best, but not for the same reasons Cassandra has, just because they really enjoy her sickly sweet pokepuffs).

Cassandra gratduates with Pawmo and is proud to call him her pokemon partner.

Tragedy of Duscur happens, and Cassandra has to run away from Faerghus, she tries to convince Pawmo to stay with her siblings, he'll be safe this way and she'll feel better to know that at least, he can protect them in her stead given the turbulent times they're in. Pawmo dgaf, they will fight and live together, or fight and die together.

They end up in Garreg Mach, and when the Christophe incident happens, Pawmo is the one to defeat Ambipom - who clearly doesn't want to fight. Chris being too radicalised tells Ambipom to continue on fighting no matter what, so Pawmo ends the life of his former bestie.

Pawmo doesn't want to fight anymore after that, and Cat fights as a knight of Seiros alone, without her trusted partner pokemon. He and Shamir's Inteleon somehow get along, and little by little, people believe Pawmo is just one of the Monastery's pokemons, who hangs out with the Knights and looks after other, younger, mons (Pawmo rekt'd Cyril's Jangmo-o who foolishly challenged him to a fight). After the Western Church's attack on the monastery to steal the SoC, witnessing some students and mons die even if he tried to protect them Pawmo decides to battle again.

In CF, Pawmot in the one who one-shot'd Whodislava's Typhlosion, but he died to Linhardt's Golurk.

In the other routes, after the war, Pawmot returns to the Monastery with Cat and no one wants to believe Manu when she says this is Catherine's pokemon, because they expect a fiercer and "more badass looking" mon, but no one managed to beat him in a fight.

---

Manu, had an Oricorio, Flamenco style, during her Mittelfrank era days.

Oricorio was her best friend, and truth to be told, the only one she could confide in when, work in the Opera company involved everything but dancing and singing. When age started to catch up to her (aka getting closer and closer to 20 yo), she learnt she was soon going to be replaced by someone else.

Oricorio took a liking to Dorothea and they were often found dancing together at the end of Manu's performances, in the backstage. Still, when Manu realises she envisaged, even for a fraction of second, to sabotage one of Doro's performances to make sure she wouldn't replace her, she was so ashamed and tried to drank the guilt away - it didn't work. Let it be this or being "invited" to Imperial Prince Hans 1 birthday party, in the few weeks after her most legendary hangover, Oricorio really felt something was wrong and ultimately understood Manu's need to get away from this place, even if it means putting an end to her glory days.

She told her bird she'd like to go somewhere else to "think" and maybe find herself again, but on the very next day, Oricorio was nowhere to be found : Doro helped her look for the mon, and found her dead, thrown in a backalley.

Understanding this as a way to tell her to get the fuck away of the Opera Company - maybe by some people who still saw her as a rival - she left hurriedly, but not before making Doro promise that she would learn how to protect herself, and never let her Ladyba out of her sight, as long as they both are in the Opera Company. Doro didn't understand why at first, but reuniting in Garreg Mach, she thanks Manu for everything she did : if she and Ledian are alive and kicking in Garreg Mach, it's thanks to her.

Furfrou isn't really her pokemon in Garreg Mach, he's just one of the Monastery's Furfrous, but she finds him funny and enjoys seeing the look on Hanneman and Seteth's faces when she gives him a different style - also it makes some students laugh, so that's a plus. She still believes she cannot have or look after another pokemon after letting Oricorio down, but with time, Furfrou, while not "hers", becomes one of her main concerns, like, she cooks her own poffins for him, takes him out on walks, tries to teach him how to bark/sing in rythm, etc etc.

She often prays for Oricorio in the Cathedral, and after drinking a bit, reveals to Seteth how she is afraid of failing another mon, again. While Seteth's puzzled because, it's not like she had been the one to kill Oricorio or put her in danger, he understands the feeling well as one who lost some of his trusted partners back then during the WoH, or even, to old age.

Furfrou bit Jeritza and tried to attack him to prevent him from knocking Manu down, but his Absol ultimately defeated him.

War happens, and Manu heals both humans and pokemons : Furfrou follows her on the battlefield and carries some sort of first aid kit, but also, his very thick fur saved her life more than once by taking a blow meant for her.

CF wise, her Furfrou still hates Absol's guts and stops singing/barking anymore after the BESF kills Seteth'n'Flayn - and ignores her pleas to spare their pokemons. After the final battle in Firdhiad, Furfrou leaves Manu and she doesn't try to call him back, understanding it's his choice and laments about her inability to protect her trusted partner from the war.

---

Young!Yuri asked the old man if he has a pokemon, because he'd like to have one too, a real one not like the Dedenne who hangs out near them from times to times his Mom became fond of.

Aubin told him every pokemon is to be loved, and the Goddess favors each of them equally. After his death, somehow, a weird looking Zorua hangs around Yuri's house. Being a bit afraid at first, he opts to listen to the old man's sermon and wants to befriend this strange mon, who accepts to stay around (and to be pet).

Shenanigans happen, (Zorua helps Yuri escape from Varley's manor and used his ability to morph in a Dusknoir to scare away the Varley Gumshoos sent after Yuri) and Yuri's Zorua becomes a main topic of gossip at Count Rowe's estate, what kind of mon is it, it doesn't look like a Duscurian Vulpix but it's definitely no Vulpix from Fodlan, etc etc.

Wanting to avoid the same uneeded attention when he first enrols, Yuri asks Zorua to pretend to be a "regular" Vulpix, which is something he does a bit annoyed, but for some odd reason, a Goomy isn't fooled and gives Zorua a pokepuffs enjoyed by ghost!type mons.

Aelfie stuff happens (Zorua found him strange), Yuri is expelled and Zorua can finally stop pretending to be something he's not - except when he and his master are doing spy stuff. Or when he can use his ability to pretend to be someone else and receive more pokepuffs and yet he's a bit puzzled, he's sure Flayn knows who he is, and yet, she keeps on giving him pokepuffs.

CF and SB wise, Zoroark is always annoyed, but follows Yuri and uses his abilities to either help people run away from the Empire, warn other mons about upcoming attacks and what not.

Hubert suspects there's a mole in the BESF, but never managed to find out Zoroark's implications.

Zoroark refuses to fight during the final battle.

In GW, Zoroark fights against the Federation. Has Yuri asked him to stand by the Church or is it something he decided on his own, no one will ever know, but after this fight, rumors start around the Federation's camp about "an angry Duscurian Ninetales" tearing apart soldiers from the Federation and Kingdom alike whenever they come too close to the place Yuri's mom is living in.

---

HC wise

---

As a member of House Nuvelle, Constance received her first plant type pokemon at age 5.

She and Budew became fast friends, and Budew was very happy to help and assist - at least that's what Constance called it - her when it came to "play" with magic.

House Nuvelle members being known for having a lot of plant type mons, her siblings' pokemons (bellsprouts, oddish, hopips...) all got along, under the watchful eye of her Mother's Meowscarada. Budew befriended Emile's Klefki and somehow pranked the lad into gifting the most beautiful red flower to Constance, something that had ultimately been organised by Mercie's Tarsal.

Sadly, House Nuvelle fell to ruin and its members were put to death, Meowscarada somehow escaped and followed Constance, when they were sheltered by Duke Gerth. Budew became very depressed, mirroring his master and didn't follow her to Firdhiad to enrol in the Magic School, but Meowscarada did.

Budew evolved in Roselia after seeing Constance back on her feet again, and determined to restore the name of her House. Somehow ending up in the Abyss, Meowscarada is wary of Aelfie, while Roselia tries to avoid Hapi's Heracross for some reason.

Some weird merchant sells Constance an egg, telling her it will bring her great fortune for her house and is an omen of prosperity - she ends up with a golden Magikarp. Yuri laughs at her, even Balthus wouldn't have been scammed like that, but Constance shuts him up, as a member of House Nuvelle she will raise this Golden Magikarp in the most excellent and splendid mon the world has ever seen.

Meowscarada dies in the Supreme Invasion, she helped Constance and Roselia get out of the Abyss but was caught by Thales' Celesteela.

In CF, her Roserade fights side by side with Jeritza's Absol, but Gyarados is seemingly perpetually enraged and difficult to command on battles.

In VW, Gyarados destroys Zombie!Lamine - in AM, Roserade felt something was "off" with Volkhard and engaged him first, being the only one in this route to make the link between that man and the weird pokeball he wears on his belt.

---

Lycaon played a lot with a Litwick he found in Enbarr's church when he was a kid - but somehow, the Litwick didn't drain his life enough to endanger him, but rather prefered to play pranks on people. Of course, the pranks never worked on Wilhelm's Wooper, Lycaon believed his Pa's pokemon was too smart, but Litwick knew Wooper was too dumb to understand a thing.

After the important battle in Gronder in -41, Litwick evolves in Lampent.

Lampent still follows Lycaon on battlefields and as a ghost type pokemon, she sorts of get alongs with Macuil's Banette, together, they do scouting missions and help with reckon. The war goes on, Lycaon is sort of separated from the main army and ends up near Zanado - sure, he always wanted to go there because that's his mom's place but she and his uncles always forbade him from going there, even Cethleann told him he shouldn't go there.

Of course he goes there, finds a random trinket from the floor to give to his mom ("it will surely make her happy!" as he picks what was left from a water hose), completely misses how Zanado became a nest for "Blue Beasts" and ultimately has to run away. On the run, he somehow loses Lampent somewhere - the Immaculate One has to bust his ass out of this situation and rescuing poor Lampent who already fainted.

When Lampent wakes up, she evolves on spot in Chandelure - being exposed to all the resentment/tragedy/drama that happened in Zanado more or less acted as a Dark Stone - after freaking out a bit, she resumes her favorite activity, hovering over Lycaon and playing pranks on people - even if, on battlefields, she becomes especially ruthless to the Elites and their pokemons.

The War ends, and Lycaon is assassinated, Chandelure loses it and blazes a part of Enbarr. She refuses to leave the place where Lycaon died, aka the now ruins of an old aisle of the Imperial Palace and haunts this specific area - whenever someone goes near, they immediately die of "mysterious causes", but after a bit of convincing from Rhea, she merely confuses them (instead of cooking them) so they forget why they wanted to go to that place and turn away instead.

During the events of the game, more or less feeling Agarthan presence, she escapes being killed by one of Bias' Blacephalon, and settles in Zanado.

She will join Flayn in SS and live with Rhea if she lives in the post war.

In the every other route, she remains in Zanado.

[daisyjonesgf]

wanda wanda wanda. thinking abt sam claflin in leather & whimsy + billy again.

this is semi based on this but fantasy!au whimsy & billy with pirate billy & fortune teller/apothecary whimsy

she reads his palm and cards etc etc and it’s all like “you’ll meet someone soon. your relationship will be rocky at first but all will be well! also be careful bc you'll fall to your own hubris and be in danger and will have to rely on someone else to help you” and it’s all legit but he’s like “lmao what a scam” gives her her money and just leaves

and she’s like upset bc most people believe her like she’s well known in town for being a reliable diviner bc fantasy & magic and stuff so like who the fuck is this guy?

they keep running into each other bc whimsy probably keeps getting into situations when foraging herbs for her tinctures & stuff (she keeps disturbing these fuckass monsters in the woods and everyone’s like girl stop going into the fucking woods) and billy keeps having to save her prince charming style except he’s still this like drunk pirate jack sparrow wannabe

at one point HE’S the one that gets in trouble and she has to save him (fucked around w a bear or smth that whimsy is friends w bc in my head her DND class wld be druid)

they lowkey fall in love after this and when she’s nursing him back to health bc the bear got his ass she’s like “so much for the cards being phony huh?” all huffy but self assured that she was right and he just kisses her!

sorry i’m so obsessed w them whimsy is like my fav out of all ur sonas

your brain is a beautiful beautiful place and I love this so fucking much oh my god, them in a fantasy au is so perfect and oh my god that leather fit gets me every damn time fr

pirate billy who's stuck in this fuckass town because his boat wrecked (siren induced) into the rocks and billy narrowly escaped (side note ik there are a lot of mermaid!reader x finnick but how many of those versions of finnick are pirates...I need to know for research purposes...anyways) so he narrowly escapes with his brother and is trying to put together a new crew and get money for a ship (aka the band) billy is cocky and a drunk and just too serious and full of himself most of the time but also has this charisma to him.

and graham is the one the town gravitates more towards community wise because he's just sweeter and more willing to believe things, while billy (huge riot with the girls in town) is still a drunk and obsessed with feeling like a successful pirate again. so graham is like "if we want a crew and money until then, we need to get to know people, follow town customs" so they go to you. the town's fortune teller and you make little tinctures at your apothecary and talismans.

graham believes in it (especially since you can tell he likes the rush of pirating, enjoys it even, but wants to settle down eventually, have a family, fall in love) and you warn him to be careful and find someone who aligns with his dreams before he falls (he does not heed that advice because he still falls for karen). and then there's billy. he does not believe a single thing you're saying, things it's all psychological trickery and lies, plus he makes his opinions very known. you tell him how he'll get the things he wants eventually but only once he's opened his heart and mind to what's around him. but some sort of danger may befall him if he lets his hubris get in the way, and someone unexpected will save him. that love is coming into his life. he scoffs, brushes it off, and you're offended because who is this man to come into your village, into your shop, and act so superior?

you immediately cleanse when they leave (graham mouths apologies at you and tips you extra).

of course you always go looking out in the woods for crystals and plants or mushrooms, and you take some things that are supposed to protect you, but you have your own hubris. you don't expect anything will ever get you (you've always gotten yourself into trouble and habe a habit of barely escaping) but something usually does try and attack you. there are all sorts of goblins, and orcs, werewolves are always a huge danger when you go out during full moons to charge crystals and make moon water and get certain plants that only bloom during the full moon, trolls, and so many other things.

and there's billy...who has become convinced based off of old town folklore there's some sort of treasure buried in the woods somewhere so he is desperately trying to locate it. and so he starts suddenly playing your knight or prince charming, he always complains about it afterwards and how it's crazy that you're out here at all with no means to protect yourself (you point out that he is out here too and you have spiritual protection, so he points out he has a sword) although no one is making him do anything, he's choosing to rescue you. and he gets an adrenaline rush when he does it, not to mention afterwards when you walk back to your shop together just so he can "make sure you stay safe and don't get you're dumbass in trouble again" you both go between bickering that becomes more and more conversational (and more laughing and flirting) as time goes on.

one day you do accidentally slip that you know where the treasure is, but it's a little cove type area through the woods. he immediately starts planning going the next day and you warm him that nobody does because of kelpies. he scoffs because he couldn't possibly fall for that if he knows they're there, but you assure him that they can be very persuasive and aggressive, people from your town have died going out there even though they knew as well. whether that's by being in a horse like or a human like form. he scoffs, you argue, and he reminds you that it's absolutely none of your business. so you both huff and you storm into your shop/house and he storms back off to the inn (most times when he saves you, you invite him in for a meal to thank him).

anyways you can't sleep because of the pit of dread in your stomach that he is going to go. you're up all night, tossing and turning, and early morning sitting by your window and working out in your little garden until you seem him setting off. so you wait and then you follow him, he almost catches you a few times, but you've survived this long in the woods because you know how to be quiet and sneaky (and sing to animals that want to be sung too) (and to be honest subconsciously you had started being clumsier when you realized he would always be around to save you and you wanted to see more of him...it wasn't a conscious decision, but you had suddenly gotten in a lot more trouble than you had the years before). so you follow him through the woods and to the other side.

of course the kelpies are there although they don't appear until he's nearly dug the treasure up (he's so close that from afar you're sighing in relief because maybe you were wrong this time which is crazy because you hate being wrong, but he's safe and that's what matters) but then of course there's a kelpie. a kelpie who becomes a man, billy tries to dismiss it, but the kelpie is imitating his father, the father he barely remembers since he is still daddy issues central, making him more emotional, bringing him closer to the water, making it harder for him to think rationally. he's getting alarmingly close, the type of close that is going to get him dragged in. and you really are just in time when those seaweed like strands start trying to stretch themselves out, to pull him into the waters and take him far below.

there you are, grabbing him, pulling him backwards, out of reach and away from the water as much as you can. he's shocked as it turns back into a horse, mostly because of the emotions of it all. but you pull him back into the woods as he stumbles following where you guide. then you're safe in the woods and have half the mind to slap him for his stupidity and not heeding your warning when he suddenly starts crying. tearing up, thinking about his father, all the damage he did, and you stand there for a moment and then just hold him. let him cry until he's done, the rest of the walk back is silent. he's too upset and you're still furious inside mixed with the pity you feel.

when you arrive back at your little cottage of a shop you tell him, not ask, tell him to come inside and he does as much. comes in and instead of you starting a fire and making a soup like you usually do while bantering with him, you pry up one of the loose floorboards and stars lifting up sacks of coins, of money you've saved over the years.

"is that enough?"

and he's taken aback, no idea what you're asking, "what?"

"is that enough for you to buy yourself a boat and never do something that stupid and dangerous again?" and he just stares at you, dumbfounded in a way that screams yes so you get up off the floor and walk towards him still so stern. "then take it and go take whatever crew you've made and sail the seas to your hearts content without getting yourself killed. it's honestly ridiculous-"

and then he's kissing you and you cannot help the way you melt into it, the way your lips dance together, like it's meant to happen. kissing you until you're both out of breath when he says the unthinkable, "come with me?"

and you don't know why, but you do. tale as old at time, at least the pg version you tell your children in the future. you get to see the wonders of the world and share your spiritual abilities where you land and it's perfect (besides the fact you and billy definitely still stubbornly argue and you have to hear him and daisy fighting, and eddie arguing as well)

wow, I got really into this...send help 😭

[kieraelieson]

Mercy 4

Previous - Ao3

Virgil grinned, feeling quite proud of himself for making his human so happy. 

There were a handful of things he’d have to do before he could send Roman off, but they were fairly simple. 

With a snap, he summoned some clothes from his closet. Nothing fancy, just something that wasn’t torn to rags and stained with dirt and blood. 

He held out the outfit, hoping it would fit decently on Roman. Roman was a bit broader in the shoulder than Virgil, though not quite as tall. Fae clothes were meant to shift as the fae did, so the difference shouldn’t make the clothes fit too poorly. 

“Here. I can see about getting you something of your own later. I’ll write you a letter to deliver.” 

Roman practically skipped to the guest bedroom, changing clothes quickly. 

Virgil wrote a brief letter to Logan, explaining that Roman was his messenger and that the items could be delivered through him. He had just sealed it when Roman emerged again. 

Virgil grinned, a confusingly soft emotion floating through him that didn’t feel like it originated from Roman. Where was Patton, was he doing this? 

“So, the prince cleans up nice,” Virgil purred, looking Roman up and down. The purple definitely wasn’t his color, but seeing him in Virgil’s color was undeniably attractive. 

Roman was also standing a bit straighter, moving more smoothly and confidently without the pain of the many small cuts. Confidence was definitely a good look on him. 

Virgil put the letter into his hands, leaning in to kiss his forehead. A temporary mark of his claim was left behind, shining bright to those who could see the magic. Roman made a strangled, flustered sound, breathing faster just from the kiss. 

Maybe Virgil would keep him around the house more than intended. The red blush was quite becoming, and the lovely flavor of his flustered feelings was rather addicting. 

“Wha-what is my quest?” Roman asked breathlessly. 

Virgil tipped up his chin, watching as his cheeks darkened. “You, handsome, are going to travel north. Find the Wolves, and deliver this letter to one called Logic. Bring back with you safely what he will give you in return.” 

Roman nodded slightly, his eyes wide, staring deep into Virgil’s. Truly an unfairly cute human. 

Virgil released his chin, smirking as he swayed slightly. “Go on then.” 

Roman swallowed heavily. “I- yes. Yes, I’m off! I won’t disappoint you!” 

He nearly scrambled to get out the door. 

“Are you sure he can handle that?” Patton asked, appearing from wherever he’d been. 

Virgil raised an eyebrow. “Why not? It shouldn’t be more than, what, a day or two for a human to travel?” 

“You didn’t give him any food or a weapon or anything!” 

Virgil considered. “I don’t believe I have human food here anyway. Surely he will know to forage, won’t he? And I gave him my mark, he shouldn’t be interfered with.” 

Patton crossed his arms reproachfully. “Maybe not by magical beings, but what about other humans? What about animals?” 

Virgil huffed in annoyance. “A human needs so much care. Why don’t you go with him, help him if he needs. I’ll even consider it even for the healing potion.” 

Patton tweaked at Virgil’s ear. “You should take better care of him yourself. But yes, I’ll go.” 

Virgil rolled his eyes. There was a reason he usually avoided humans. He hoped he wouldn’t regret the deal with this one. 

••^*^••

Roman stumbled out the door, his cheeks burning. 

He was on a quest! A quest given to him by a stunningly gorgeous fae, who… he still didn’t have a name for. Or anything to call him really. Though the pixie had called him Vee once, hadn’t he?

Roman tucked the letter into his shirt, where it would be safe. His instructions were vague, but that only meant more room to prove himself. He looked up through the trees, trying to find the sun and orient himself northward. 

Why was it that he was so excited for this? It was a quest, of course. He’d always wanted to go on quests, always. And it had been given to him by someone he desperately wanted to impress. But why? He was, the fae was in control of him, he had Roman’s name. Shouldn’t Roman feel more like escaping than pleasing him?? Was it entirely his beauty? Roman was certainly very gay, and very affected by beautiful men, but still. Had he put a spell on Roman? Ensorcelled him into loving him? On the other hand, why shouldn’t Roman love him? He was going to be stuck with him for the rest of his life. And the fae didn’t seem a bad person, if a little rude for forcing Roman to drink the potion. But it was a healing potion! Wasn’t that a good thing then? But was anyone who could force him with a word safe to fall in love with? Might he not be setting himself up for abuse or heartbreak? 

A sparkling blue blur distracted Roman from his thoughts. The pixie flew up to him and landed on his shoulder. 

“Hello! I’m joining you on your quest! If you don’t mind, that is.” 

Roman smiled wide. “Why of course! I’d love to have a companion, especially one such as yourself.” 

The pixie giggled adorably. “Onward!” He said, pointing in the direction that Roman had been trying to determine. 

And so he was off. A quest, a companion, a fair fae to return to. What more could a prince want?