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rose-l-20 · 9 months ago

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GENERAL NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM HEADCANONS - Main 7 characters

SUMMARY: Just some headcanons I have always had based on the characters and the way the movie portrays them.

If you would like to request more characters, please refer to my NATM MASTERLIST for the characters, and send your request!

WARNINGS: Fluff, angst, romance, discussions of trauma, funny moments, flashbacks, mentions of loss, mentions of betrayal, mentions of homesickness, reader is mentioned a bit. My opinions! 😱

Any facts I wasn't sure of I used wiki fandom!

AHKMENRAH:

As many people have suggested, Ahk is a HUGE cat person. Before he was left in the sarcophagus for 4000 years, he had 100s and 1000s of cats. Different breads, both female and male, long royal names for each one. But his favourite will always be his childhood cat that started his love for the feline animal.

Out of all characters, Ahk experiences the most homesickness. This could be because he was barely 18 before he died, so he still has a touch of childhood in his soul.

Always ready and eager to learn something new, or info dump on the closest set of ears. When he gets with reader, he waits patiently for the “safe zone” to spill every fact about his time. Also things he read in books at Cambridge and the museum. You could call him a broken tap!

One way that calms him down is humming nursery rhymes, and songs his Mother used to sing to him. The main time it works impeccably is when he thinks of his brother’s betrayal.

Since the tablet was first created, his (along with his family) soul has always had a strong connection to night. So he goes to the roof top, or a window and star gazes anytime he can.

Ahkmenrah will defend the Kardashian and Jenner women until the end of time (if you know, you know 😂).

When he is introduced to chocolate, Garlic bread, sour gummy candies and Iced water. He felt like he met heaven.

Is very serious, yet still his usual gentle and kind self, when it comes to romantic relationships. He will take each step at a time, really wanting to get to know his potential partner. Consent Pharaoh, drinks his “I respect women” juice, will ask you to be his officially at the four month mark, and will not kiss your lips until you are official.

Absolutely dreads sunrise, as the wraps take as he would say “a whole millennium” to get them back on. At the beginning he would get Teddy and Larry to help him, but it becomes a special thing between him and reader.

Ahk most likely feels the most safe and comfortable around Larry, as he has moments where he needs advice or guidance from a father figure.

Ahkmenrah loves a good, lighthearted, non offensive prank. When he and Nick hang out, chaos will follow.

Both Sacagawea and Ahkmenrah supported each other when getting adjusted to not being trapped in their exhibits. This started their friendship.

When he became a DJ, he felt his death age the most. He found a passion that he could learn, perfect and show it off to the people he cares most about

OCTAVIUS:

Octavius talks about Rome so much that he definitely fits the stereotype of “you make your background your whole personality”. He will get defensive if the stereotype is mentioned.

If he and Jed were to be parents, they would 100% have adopted 2 Girls and 2 boys. Octavius would surprisingly be the fun Dad.

Before Larry, he had a massive hatred towards the night guards. He was fine with being locked up, he had his comrades. What angered him was the derogatory comments made by the guards. It took months upon months to wake up and not be filled with immediate dread.

He is a BIG chick flick fan! He also loves the whole concept of Christmas, so his favourite flick would be Love Actually.

He can read Dexter like an open book. he learns the signs of Dexter’s cheeky behavior to avoid another “Pompeii” situation.

Each time he hears any sword noises he smiles to himself and whispers to himself, “Ah Rome, you were a wonderful empire to be apart of”

He is also an avid info dumper, so there can be hours of time where he and Ahkmenrah bond over their “ancient times”. The 2 find so many similarities and differences that leave them fascinated to learn more.

The Cowboy hat rule, also applies for his helmet. And he will only take it off for extended periods of time if Jedediah is present. This is because he would kill for a head scratch.

Octavius will slip into Latin whenever he is feeling intense levels of emotion (positive). The amount of times it has happened, has resulted in everyone, including reader, being able to understand the language and somewhat communicate.

He uses the Latin version of pet names for Jed. He mainly uses “Amica mea” (my love), “Puer meus vacca” (my cowboy), “Solis radius” (sun ray) and “Mutum Asinum” (dumb ass).

Octavius is the type to bottle his emotions when something has deeply upset him. It takes a lot to get him to take the cap off and explain why he is feeling the way he is.

Octavius is super supportive of other religions and cultures. Which is super rare given Romans pride themselves on their religion and culture above everything.

When Octavius discovered the front desks computer, he immediately (with great struggle since the apparatus had not been made yet) he became so obsessed with it you could call him a teenager. He honestly gatekept it for ages before he found something that Jedediah would like and then it became their fun activity before sunrise.

JEDEDIAH:

Jedediah definitely has ADHD to a certain degree (This is coming from someone who is definitely has it but has yet to be officially diagnosed 😂), and has to be redirected to the main topic at least 3 times a day.

When he was trapped in the hourglass by Kahmunrah, he did everything in his power to cause havoc. Jedediah wasn't stuck with Kahmunrah, Kahmunrah was stuck with Jedediah!!

When Octavius showed him he computer, he consumed every piece of western media as he wanted to know how people perceived his time period.

He gets along with everyone, and only hates people if they have treated the people he cares about in a negative way. He is more then willing to take the blame or pain for others.

Jed will take a secret to his grave, but he will sometimes tell Octavius so technically they will be taking it to the grave. He will not tell him if the person who confided in him, was going through a difficult time. He understands boundaries...to a certain extent.

Jed is a HUGE foodie, and has a tendency to say "are you going to finish that?" even if the person eating is literally chewing their food. he would kill for anything that has an element of bread. Hence why he doesn't shut up about flapjacks.

His way of showing he is really angry or upset is going completely, utterly, eerily silent. It honestly makes people get the creeps, since they are so used to his upbeat usual self.

He can feel lost at times in regards to being a museum exhibit. He has organic thoughts of the future, but then he remembers he's a miniature figurine and feels this overwhelming sense of identity dysphoria. Reader (who is either another night guard or a child of a staff member) helps him feel more human, with a sense of purpose.

His favourite western movie is Tombstone, and quotes "I'm your Huckleberry" whenever people call for him. it brings him immense joy.

In his time, I see him having a female dog named Bonnie and a male cat named Blaize. He mentions this to Larry and he sends in a request at the sculpting department to make them for him. Larry makes sure no detail is left unadded. When Jedediah wakes up 2 nights later he is greeted with the familiar bark, and meow that he remembered so clearly.

Jed has an assigned swear jar and adds to it 20+ times a night.

ATTILA:

ATTILA IS INSANLY GOOD WITH KIDS! He has that scene at the end of the second movie, which backs me up here. But even before then I got this vibe that if you accidently left your child near his exhibit, he would be the Tony Stark of the museum and think "Get me the adoption papers now!".

When Attila and the Huns discovered Harry potter, they became obsessed as it fits their belief in magic. They have watched all seven movies a concerning amount of time each.

Attila was a huge help with getting Ahkmenrah adjusted to his new normal. When he first noticed Ahk's struggles he didn't think twice before he put a hand on his shoulder, asked him to go for a walk and got him to open up. He is like the uncle you go to when your parents "Just don't get it!".

Attila 100% has a RIWTKYF, "Resting I Want To Kill You Face". This has been one of many reasons why some of his friendships with the other exhibits took a while to come to fruition.

When Nick was still young, he politely asked Attila if he could try on his helmet. Larry tried to lecture him, stating "It is sacred Nick, that is not ok". Larry received a slap to the back of the head by Attila, with a "Shush". He placed the Helmet on Nicks head and told the Huns "He is the leader for the night!". Nick Had a blast to say the least.

Speaking of Attila's Helmet, he has heard a lot of drama sessions from Jed and Octavius. sometimes he joins in, sometimes he is happy to just listen.

Attila lowkey can't stand the Neaderthal's constant "FIRE FIRE FIRE" sometimes. He can hear it either next to him or down the hallway and it gives him a serious headache. Ahk will offer his exhibit for some relief.

Before Attila passed away he had just been married, so he often wonders what happened to his wife and misses her deeply. Larry and reader enjoy reading books to him, so he knows about her life. He left the room with a smile that didn't quite meet his eyes.

Teddy and Attila definitely have conversations/interactions that show they are stuck in their 40s/50s. I'm talking getting frustrated with technology, not understanding modern day slang, saying "Back in my day" and the "Dad grunt".

If Attila discovered music, he would LOVE the band The Village people, his favourite song is "In the navy". He asks Larry or reader to put the song on by pointing to the computer saying "Navy please".

Attila had the hardest time adjusting to waking up from the tablet. because he also needed to take care of his Huns. He pretended to be strong and that the whole situation wasn't affecting him at all, when in reality he was losing it inside.

SACAGAWEA:

Sacagawea was so relived when the glass on her exhibit wasn’t fixed. She was dreading going back to only hearing the Clark brothers yapping.

Sacagawea was low key checking Teddy out to, but the glass was stopping her from getting his attention.

When Sacagawea meets reader (for the sake of the point reader has ribcage length hair) she is so happy to meet another woman, that her way of bonding is offering to braid readers hair. As she braids they talk and get to know each other.

She may be a soft spoken and rational person but get her mad, and she her voice will ring in her ears for weeks.

Sacagawea got a photo of Teddy, and hid it in her clothes when the tablet wasn’t in the museum and in London.

Ahkmenrah, Sacagawea and Teddy create a “new exhibit adjustment program” for new or moved exhibits. They would’ve love that, so they started it for them to fill that void.

Sacagawea is always the logical voice of reason when there is a difficult situation happening. Let’s just say that the men of the museum would be done for without her 😂

When Sacagawea first sees a woman in pants she is so happy to know that women get to do the same things as men in modern day. Reader loves explaining the history of feminism.

Sacagawea’s love language with Teddy is acts of service, which we get a taste for when she helps connect his lower body back to his upper body. Teddy is still trying to give her the perfect thank you gift, but she kindly refuses them saying she is happy to just be with him.

She has the job of scolding Dexter when he’s being naughty because he is low key scared of her.

When she discovers music and movies she loves 70s soft pop and action romance.

Her way of knowing how fast time was going was watching Nick grow up. Each time she noticed even the smaller changes in his appearance, voice or personality Sacagawea would feel a huge shift in time.

TEDDY:

Teddy requests a newspaper that has the current state of the US’ politics. He has on many occasions thrown it in the air, walked towards the door screaming “I AM GOING TO TEACH THEM HOW TO RUN A CONTRY!”. Lucky Sacagawea has stopped him every time.

When he gives advice it’s either well thought out and considerate of one’s emotions, or he is straight to the point and cutthroat. Absolutely no in between.

Teddy and Ahk had a very awkward period of time because Teddy felt bad for shutting him up instead of helping him get out of his sarcophagus. Ahk being Ahk put it passed him and they got on like a house on fire.

When everyone dances and has fun, he is more happy to be watching on the side. He claims he’s “to old” to be dancing, reader disagrees and gets him to let loose on the dance floor!

He started the swear jar for Jed, as he got sick of “Fuck this” “shit” “asshole!” Every single sentence. Once the jar was full he took the money and put it towards the upkeep of the museum. His way of paying for something as it made him feel human again.

He definitely called MEMEs “Meh Mehs” for the first year of knowing about them.

He couldn’t find Sir Lancelot serious at all!! Every time he spoke Teddy covered his mouth to hide his smile or laugh. He was so close to calling him “The fool” “sir Erik” or “Jingle-elot”.

Teddy’s hat or pockets are Jedediah and Octavius’s backup travel option if Attila was unable to help with transportation.

His role in the NEAP is to show the new exhibit around and get them adjusted to the place they will temporarily/permanently call home for their time there.

When he first Jump scared Larry, he realised how evilly joyful it was and makes it his mission to scare him every night.

Teddy’s way of passing time before getting ready for sunrise is making sure Texas is looking sharp and clean. He enjoys having a quiet conversation while he listens to the brush run through Texas’ Maine.

After the “At their size, they’ll bake like tiny little scarabs in the Sinai…too dark?” Moment with Ahkmenrah. He can be a little scared of him at times 😂

He loves the 3 seconds of “warmth” the sun gives him before he goes to sleep. Thats when he feels most human.

LARRY:

Larry after a while had the realisation that the instructions were actually the ways the prior guards used to punish them, and burned it. From this he wrote a whole new instruction guide to help the newer guards after him.

He has created a schedule for the Easter island statue because there were some close calls near sunrise. But he won’t stop giving him his “Gum Gum” as it causes the worst earthquakes from his screams!

He may have a love-hate relationship with Dexter, but he is ready to defend the capuchin with his whole heart.

When Nick was young he set up a little “bedroom” for him so he could sleep there on school nights and not be affected the next day. Is incredibly lenient to letting him have a sleep in or skip school when there is a reasonable gap between each time.

When Mr McPhee has pissed him off a little too much, he has 100% planned ways to beat home up or kill him.

He has shown the civil war dudes what NASCAR is and they become obsessed. He feels really proud of himself for it.

Shit talks about Kahmunrah with Ahkmenrah. They have the an ungodly amount of glee from it.

He cannot hold a romantic relationship to save his life! But once he starts teaching he meets his forever partner at the front desk of the collage he works at 7 years into the job. Nick approved immediately.

He took inspiration from Star Wars for his flashlight tricks, and will on occasion make lightsaber noises.

It still trips Larry out that’s he met, made eye contact and spoke to Hugh Jackman, and sometimes he needs to sit down and process it.

He loves to put on Kahmunrah’s lisp from time to time to make jedediah laugh when he’s feeling down. Jed is always left in stitches after.

He has nightmares of the multi-headed snake at least once a month. This causes him to develop a deep fare of snakes in general.

I hope these Headcanons were good!

Have a lovely day/night!

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fandomrewrites · 3 months ago

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Legends Chapter 4: Presentation

Hello Riders! Before I get into this chapter I would like to share this picture of the Gauntlet. It's not my picture, I got it off the fandom Wiki page, credit goes to the artist. The picture helped me better understand how the obstacles were set up so I thought it would be helpful for all of you as well.

I love this chapter a lot, and I hope you guys love it as much as me. Remember to tell me your opinions on the story so far or ask me any questions you may have. I love hearing from you guys! And don't forget to let me know if you want to be added to the taglist.

Chapters 10-12 in Fourth Wing Pairings: Xaden x Younger Sister, Liam x Best Friend, Sawyer x Reader (mentioned) Warnings: Swearing, violence, character death, blood, spoilers from the book series Word Count: 11,785

Legends Masterlist

I talked about you during Presentation yesterday. There's a guy in my squad who asked about my childhood, and the first thing I thought of was how even when you were a kid you never took anyone's shit. Like that one time Xaden and I tried to keep the secret about the Venin from you. You said you were smarter than us and gods I believed you; I still do. -Recovered correspondence from Garrick Tavis to (Y/N) Riorson

The night before Gauntlet training starts, I stand with the other marked ones. This is our third meeting and we've only lost one other cadet since Parapet. "Let's make this meeting quick, the first years need rest since Gauntlet training starts tomorrow. How's hand-to-hand coming with you guys?" Xaden asks as he looks towards Carolyn, Dmitry, Julian, and Carina.

The four nod, sharing looks. "I've seen improvements." Garrick answers, "They've each won a few challenges and lost some, but no serious injuries."

"We're continuing the training multiple times a week, and we won't stop even with challenges pausing." Imogen adds.

Xaden nods, "Good. Any questions?"

"The Gauntlet has one of the biggest death counts in the quadrant, any tips on how to survive?" I ask.

Xaden holds my gaze, "Time doesn't matter. Even on presentation day. Just get through the obstacles safely, don't worry about being fast."

"Doesn't the time determine the order in which you walk presentation?" Ashton asks.

Garrick nods, "It does, but in the past there have been cadets that have walked last and bonded and cadets who have walked first haven't. So like Xaden said, your time doesn't matter."

"There are ropes every six feet, grab them if you need to." Bodhi starts, eyes sweeping over the first years, "Time will be added but they may save your life." His eyes lock onto mine. There's a flash of worry but I smile, reassuring him.

"Any more questions?" Xaden asks. When no one replies he continues, "Good. Head to bed. And good luck tomorrow." I turn to walk back with Liam but Xaden grabs my arm, "Let me walk you."

"Okay," I turn to Liam, "I'll see you tomorrow." He nods, running to catch up with Bodhi. I look back at Xaden, "What did you want to talk about?"

Xaden pauses, "Just be careful tomorrow, I know you'll probably do fine but…"

I smile, "I get it, Xade. I'll be careful."

He nods, "So, I've seen you hanging out with that Sawyer guy a lot."

I smirk, "Well, he is in my squad."

"That's it?"

"I mean…" I trail off before starting again, "Do you really want to talk about this?"

"I just want to make sure you're okay. He's treating you good?"

"I'm very satisfied." I try not to laugh at the look on Xaden's face.

"That's not what I meant." He rubs the bridge of his nose.

I giggle, "Sorry. Sawyer's great, I think you'd like him if you talked to him."

Xaden nods, "Good. That's good. I obviously don't know him well but," Xaden pauses, "You can do worse."

I smile, "That sounds like the Xaden stamp of approval. Wow, I never thought I'd see the day."

Xaden nudges my shoulder, "Listen, I know I'm protective of you and no one is going to be perfect for you in my eyes but I also know you're smart, strong, beautiful and you deserve to be happy. Plus, Sawyer is in your squad, so if you're going to have a relationship with anyone at least it's with someone who can't kill you."

I snort, "There it is. But Sawyer and I… We're not serious. We're friends, we get along. And sometimes we just need to… Let off steam."

Xaden chuckles, "Yeah, let off steam. Thank you for putting it that way." I laugh along with him, "I get it. I've been there, I just want you to pick your partners carefully and Sawyer is a safe option. A good option. I just don't want you doing anything in front of me."

I wrap my arm around Xaden's waist causing him to wrap his around my shoulder's, "Noted. I will try to be aware of my surroundings and not flirt or kiss or anything else around you. If you promise the same."

"Deal." Xaden smiles.

*_*_*_*_*

The next morning my squad stands in front of the Gauntlet waiting for Professor Emetterio. "Well, that's…" Rhiannon trails off. The obstacle course is carved into the side of the cliff that leads to the flight field, the Vale lays beyond that.

"Amazing," Aurelie sighs in awe.

Rhiannon, Violet, and I all turn to look at her, "You think that hellscape looks amazing?" Rhiannon asks, causing me to smile.

"I've been waiting years for this!" Aurelie grins, "My dad - he was a rider until he retired last year - used to set up obstacle courses like this all the time so we could practice, and Chase, my brother, said it's the best part of being here before Threshing. It's a real adrenaline rush."

"He's with the Southern Wing, right?" Violet questions. She turns back to the Gauntlet, studying the obstacle course.

"Yep. Pretty much desk duty for all the action they see near the Krovlan border." She shrugs then points about two thirds of the way up the course, "He said to watch out for those giant posts jutting from the side of the cliff. They spin, and you can get crushed between them if you're not fast enough."

"Oh good," Rhiannon states sarcastically, "I was wondering when it might get difficult."

"Thanks, Aurelie." Violet says. I remain silent, but nod in thanks.

"Still not sure why they call it the Gauntlet," Ridoc pipes up, cupping his hands and blowing air into them to try and keep warm.

"To ensure dragons keep coming to Threshing by weeding out the weaklings," Tynan sneers, folding his arms and casting a pointed look at Violet.

I cross my arms to stop myself from punching him, "Shut up, Tynan."

"Knock it the fuck off." Ridoc snaps at the same time. The whole squad turns in his direction. We've never seen him lose his temper, he's always so happy, cracking jokes and laughing.

"What's your problem?" Tynan pivots turning his full attention to Ridoc, who stands a half a foot taller.

"My problem?" Ridoc scoffs, "You think because you made friends with Barlowe and Siefert that you have the right to be a dick to your own squadmate?"

"Exactly. Squadmate." Tynan gestures towards the obstacle course, "Our times aren't just ranked individually, Ridoc. We're scored as a squad, too, which is how the order for Presentation is decided. Do you really think any dragon wants to bond a cadet who walks in after every other squad in processional?"

"Xaden told me the times don't matter." I say.

"And they're not timing us for Presentation today, asshole." Ridoc adds.

"Stop." Sawyer steps in between Ridoc and Tynan who are still chest to chest. "(Y/N)'s right. Or I guess Xaden. The order for Presentation doesn't matter. The last cadet to walk last year bonded just fine, and some of the cadets in the first squad onto the field were passed over."

"Little bitter about that, aren't you?" Tynan snarks.

Sawyer ignores the barb but I lunge, tired of hearing Tynan speak ill of my friends. Sawyer quickly grabs my waist, pulling me into his chest. "Easy." He whispers into my ear, I stay still but my glare doesn't leave Tynan, who is staring wide-eyed, shocked I almost attacked him. "Besides," Sawyer continues, like I almost didn't just punch Tynan, "It's not called the Gauntlet because it weeds out cadets."

"It's called the Gauntlet because this is the cliff that guards the Vale," Professor Emetterio says, walking up to the squad, "Plus, actual gauntlets - armored gloves made of metal - are slippery as hell, and the name stuck about twenty years ago." He cocks an eye at Tynan, Sawyer, and I. "Are you three done arguing? Because the ten of you have exactly an hour to get to the top before it's another squad's chance to practice, and from what I've seen of your agility on the mat, you're going to need every second."

There's a grumble from the group, Sawyer keeps an arm around my waist, pulling me slightly away from Tynan. He already knows me too well, because despite what Professor Emetterio just said, I still want to knock some sense into the dark haired boy.

"As you know, hand-to-hand challenges are on hold for the next two and a half weeks before Presentation so you can focus here." Emetterio flips a page in his notebook, "Sawyer, you're going to show them how it's done, since you already have the lay of the land. Then (Y/N), Pryor, Trina, Tynan, Rhiannon, Ridoc, Violet, Aurelie, and Luca." A smile curves on Emetterio's face, "You're the only squad to remain intact since Parapet. That's incredible. Your squad leader must be very proud. Wait here for a second." He walks past us, waving to someone high up on the cliff.

"Aetos is especially proud of Sorrengail." Tynan sneers.

Violet snaps, "Look, if you want to talk shit about me, that's one thing, but leave Dain out of it."

"Tynan," Sawyer warns, his grip on my waist tightens as I tense at Tynan's jeer.

"Like it doesn't bother any of you that our squad leader is fucking one of us?" Tynan asks, throwing his hands out.

I roll my eyes, "Not that it's any of your business, but they're not fucking. And so what if they are? Dain's hot. I say get it."

Everyone's eyes snap to me, "I thought you didn't like him?" Rhiannon asks.

"I don't, but I also have eyes." I shrug.

"It matters if it means that Violet gets preferential treatment!" Luca exclaims, "And of course you wouldn't care when you're fucking our section leader."

Before I can stop myself I laugh, "Me? Fucking Tavis?" My laughing slowly stops but a smile lingers on my face, "No sweetie, Garrick is my brother's best friend. I literally grew up with him, much like how Dain and Violet grew up together. Neither of us are fucking people in leadership."

Tynan's eyes widen, "Really?" He asks Violet.

She nods her head, "Really."

"Shit. I'm sorry. Barlowe said-"

Ridoc interjects, "And that's your first mistake. Listening to that sadistic ass is going to get you killed. And you're lucky Aetos or Tavis aren't here."

I quietly laugh, "Oh man, I can't wait to tell Garrick about that assumption of us." Luca's eyes widen but she doesn't say anything.

"Here we go!" Emetterio says walking back over towards us, "You'll get your time at the top of the course, if you make it, but remember, you'll still have nine practice sessions before we rank you for Presentation in two and a half weeks, which will determine if the dragons find you worthy for Threshing."

"Wouldn't it make more sense to let first years start practicing this thing right after Parapet?" Rhiannon asks. "You know, to give us a little more time so we don't die?"

"No," Emetterio replies, "The timing is part of the challenge. Any words or wisdom, Sawyer?"

Sawyer blows out a couple of slow breaths, his hand twitches on the small of my back, "There are ropes every six feet that run from the top of the sheer cliffside to the bottom, so if you start to fall, reach out and grab a rope. It'll cost you thirty seconds, but death costs you more."

"I mean," Ridoc points to a steep staircase set in the cliff, "There's a perfectly good set of steps over there."

"Stairs are for reaching the flight field on the top of the ridgeline after Presentation." Professor Emetterio says. He lifts his hands towards the obstacle course, flicking his writs, pointing at different obstacles. The fifteen-foot log at the start begins to spin, the other obstacles along the course begin to move as well.

"Every one of the five ascents on this course is designed to mimic the challenges you'll face in battle," Emetterio explains, "From the balance you must keep on the back of your dragon, to the strength you'll need to hold your seat during maneuvers, to-" he gestures upward, toward the last obstacle, "The stamina you'll need to fight on the ground, then still be able to mount your dragon at a second's notice."

"What if we don't make it up?" Luca asks the professor. She secures her hair in a loose braid. Mine is already up in a high bun, the same way I wore it when crossing the Parapet. "What's the alternate route?"

"There's no alternate route," Emetterio says. I could have told her that, "If you don't make it up, you can't get to Presentation, can you? Take your position, Sawyer."

Before Sawyer moves, he turns to me, "Are you going to behave?" He raises an eyebrow.

I smile, blinking innocently, "If they keep their mouths shut."

Sawyer sighs, he looks at Ridoc and gently pushes me into his side."Don't let her attack anyone." Ridoc nods.

"I don't need a babysitter, Sawyer!" I call after him

"Yes, you do!" He yells back, as he moves to the beginning of the course.

"After he makes it past the final obstacle, so everyone can learn from this cadet completing the course, the rest of you will start every sixty seconds. And… Go!" Emetterio says to the squad, ignoring mine and Sawyer's argument.

Sawyer takes off, he easily runs the fifteen feet across the spinning log but it takes him three rotations inside the wheel before he jumps out. Other than that I don't see a single misstep in the first ascent. He turns and rushes toward a series of giant hanging balls that makes up the second ascent, jumping and hugging one after another. With his feet back on the ground, he starts up the third ascent, which is divided into two sections. The first has giant metal rods hanging parallel to the cliff wall, Sawyer easily swings arm over arm to reach the bars. From the last bar, he jumps onto a series of shaking pillars before leaping back onto solid ground.

Sawyer makes it to the spinning logs Aurelie warned us about. He's making the course look easy as he runs across the logs. He pauses at the giant chimney formation that sits at about a twenty degree angle. "You got this!" Rhiannon yells.

As if he heard her, Sawyer runs toward the chimney and flings himself upwards, his body creating an X. He starts hopping up the obstacle until he reaches the end and drops down in front of the final obstacle, a massive ramp that's a nearly vertical climb.

Sawyer sprints towards the ramp, his speed and momentum take him two-thirds of the way up. Just before he starts to fall, he reaches up with one arm and grasps the lip of the ramp, hauling himself over the edge. Rhiannon, Violet, and I cheer for him.

"Perfect technique!" Professor Emetterio exclaims, "That's exactly what you should all be doing."

"Perfect, and yet he was still passed over at Threshing," Luca snarks, "Guess the dragons have some sense of taste."

Ridoc's hold on me tightens as I try to step towards Luca, "Give it a rest, Luca." Rhi snaps.

Professor Emetterio raises his eyebrows at me, "Are you ready, (Y/N)?"

I nod, turning to look at Ridoc, "You can let go."

He narrows his eyes, "You're to move right to the beginning of the course. No hurting Luca."

I nod. He slowly let's go of my waist, letting me move away. I turn to send a sickly sweet smile to Luca and Tynan, "I hope you both fall."

"Really, (Y/N)? Right in front of our Professor?" Ridoc scolds. He reminds me of Xaden for a second.

"I'm sure our wonderful Professor has heard worse." I turn to look at Emetterio once I reach the beginning of the course, "Ready when you are, sir!"

Emetterio looks exasperated but I can tell he's trying not to smile. He checks with the person at the top of the cliff then looks back at me, "And… go."

I take off, quickly running across the 15 foot long spinning log. Once I saw the course I knew this first part would be the easiest ascent. My balance is great, so I wasn't worried making it past this obstacle. Jumping off of the log, I quickly jump past all four of the pillars and enter the spinning wheel. The wheel goes through two rotations and on the third I jump through the opening, landing back on solid ground.

I take a quick breath, this first practice round I want to pause after each ascent. This practice session is all about testing the obstacles and knowing what I need to do to survive. My time can improve with the other practices. The second ascent is the 5 buoy balls. I jump up, grabbing the chain above the first ball. I swing the ball and launch myself onto the next one, doing this over and over until I reach the end of the ascent.

I take another breath, assessing the next ascent. I jump up grabbing the iron bar, a hand on each side. I swing hand over hand, moving from bar to bar. When I reach the last one, I swing my body, aiming to land on the first shaking pillar. I wobble, reaching out for the rope in front of me to regain my balance. "You got this!" I hear one of the girls yell. I quickly regain my footing, leaping across the rest of the pillars.

Before I run across the logs Aurelie warned us about, I check behind me. Pryor is doing alright but he's hesitating before trying the third ascent, I watch as he wobbles, but rights himself with the help of a rope. I turn back around and sprint across the rolling logs. I smile when I make it across. That part was easier than I expected.

I take another breath then run at the chimney, launching myself upwards and landing in an X like Sawyer did. I check my hand and feet placement then hop up the chimney. Reaching the top, I grab the lip and pull myself up. I eye the ramp in front of me, take a breath, then run. My hand skims the top, just missing, causing me to slide back down the ramp. I shake out my shoulders, take another breath, then run again. This time my momentum takes me higher, and when I feel gravity begin to pull at me, I throw my right hand up, catching the top of the cliff. I sigh in relief, reaching up with my left hand as well to pull myself over the top.

Sawyer meets me at the top, pulling me into a tight hug. "You did it! Good job!"

I giggle, "Thanks. Some parts weren't as bad as I thought they were going to be."

Sawyer playfully rolls his eyes, "You would think that. Come on, let's go watch the others." We hear a scream just as we approach the edge of the cliff. We share a look then quickly look down, finding Trina who just started the fourth ascent. "You can do it!" Sawyer encourages.

"They go in opposite directions!" Aurelie yells from the bottom. Trina makes it past, causing Sawyer and I to sigh in relief. Pryor and Trina both finish the course, and come to join us at the edge, watching the others. Tynan is stuck on the hanging balls.

"He can still do us all a favor and fall." I mumble.

Sawyer lightly shoves me, "Be nice, he's still our squadmate."

"Yeah and? You're supposed to be able to trust your squadmates, I don't trust him. And I highly doubt he'll ever earn that trust. Same with Luca."

"Swing to the next one!" Trina calls, trying to encourage Tynan.

"I can't!" Tynan screams back.

"Rhi!" Violet yells, "The rope is between the first and second!" Rhiannon jumps up onto the first ball, swinging her body around and grabbing the rope for Tynan. Once he has the rope in his hands, he climbs down.

I snort, "What a fucking baby." Sawyer sends me a look but I can tell he's amused, I hold out my hands, "I know, I know. Be nice."

Everyone is either on the course at this point or has had their chance to practice. I watch as Violet starts on the third ascent. Her right hand loses its grip and she swings face first into the mountain. I cringe, hearing Rhiannon yell for Violet. "The rope is next to you!" Aurelie shouts.

Violet grabs hold of the rope, using it to grab onto the iron swings and continue her way up the obstacle course. Violet pauses before the fourth ascent, Aurelie standing with her. They exchange a few words before Violet runs across, cheering when she succeeds. "Go, Violet! Here I come!" Aurelie calls. She starts moving across the posts, a roar is heard from a dragon flying above, then Aurelie cries out. Her foot slips on the fifth post, she careens forward, belly hitting the sixth post, Violet tries to move forward to help her, but she can't make it.

*_*_*_*_* Garrick

I'm sitting on the couch in Xaden's room, Imogen, and Bodhi next to me. Liam is sitting on the floor and Xaden and (Y/N) are sitting on Xaden's bed. (Y/N) lays with her head placed in Xaden's lap. The six of us don't get a lot of chances to spend time together so when we do have a chance, we take advantage of it.

"So how was Gauntlet training today?" Bodhi asks, looking between Liam and (Y/N).

Xaden lightly taps his sisters forehead, "I heard you lost a squadmate."

(Y/N) nods, "Yeah, Aurelie. She was a good person."

"You holding up okay?" I ask, looking at her with concern.

Her eyes flicker to me, "Yeah, just sucks. I knew I was going to lose a squadmate at some point, we were lucky to keep everyone for this long." She pauses, cracking a smile, "You'll never guess what Luca said."

Imogen raises an eyebrow, "She's the bitchy one right?"

"The one you fought on assessment day?" Xaden asks.

"Mhm." She hums, nodding in confirmation.

"What did she say?" Liam questions.

I reach down to grab my water, taking a sip just as (Y/N) answers, "She thought Garrick and I were fucking."

I quickly pull my canteen away from my lips, choking on my water. Bodhi reaches over, slapping my back, "What?" I choke out.

(Y/N) nods, smirk evident on her face, "Yeah, we got into a whole argument before Emetterio showed up because Tynan was accusing Violet of sleeping with Dain and I said if she wanted to she should 'cause he's hot." Xaden flicks her on the ear, cutting her off, "Ow!" She sits up, turning to look at him, "What the fuck, Xaden!"

"Never look at Aetos like that, that's disgusting." He scolds, glaring at her.

(Y/N) rolls her eyes, "I'm not lying, he is hot! That doesn't mean I like him but I'm not blind. Plus you had a thing with Cat so you can't judge me." Gods, this conversation is going down hill quickly.

"Cat was an arranged marriage!" Xaden defends.

"And yet you still slept with her when you weren't actually married. If I was in an arranged marriage with a she demon I would avoid her as much as possible. But no, you had to get your dick wet."

Oh shit. My eyes widen as Xaden lunges for his sister. (Y/N) yelps pushing herself away from him. Bodhi, Liam, and I move quick. I grab onto Xaden, pulling him away from (Y/N). Bodhi wraps his arms around his younger cousin, making sure he's in front of her and Liam steps in between the siblings, arms raised to ensure they stay separated. I look towards Imogen who is fighting back a laugh.

Honestly, I kinda want to laugh too. And stealing a glance at Liam and Bodhi I can tell they do as well. We don't want Xaden hurting (Y/N), but (Y/N) has a point. And only she would have the balls to say that to Xaden.

"If I let go of you do you promise not to kill your sister?" I ask Xaden.

"If I really wanted to kill her, I don't even need to touch her." Xaden grumbles, his glare staying on (Y/N).

(Y/N)'s jaw drops in shock at her brother's words, "Hey! You love me! As your little sister it's in the job description to be annoying!"

Liam shrugs, dropping his arms, "She's got a point. And honestly, I miss Sloane so much. I can't wait until she's here next year, annoying the fuck out of me."

Xaden rolls his eyes, shoving me away from him, "I'm not going to kill her."

Imogen finally lets her amusement show, chuckling lightly as she asks, "So why did you saying Dain's hot lead to Luca saying you and Garrick were sleeping together?"

"Right," (Y/N) nods, she moves to sit on Xaden's desk. The rest of settling back in our previous spots, except for Liam who moves to sit in the desk chair. "After I made that comment she said that of course I'd be fine with it since I'm fucking our section leader."

"How did you respond?" Bodhi asks, still keeping an eye on Xaden.

"I laughed. Like Garrick could ever get with me."

I cock my head, "What the fuck does that mean?"

Xaden narrows his eyes, "Why the fuck do you care?"

My head whips back to Xaden, "I- I don't." I stutter, "But like what the fuck? I'm great in bed!"

Xaden's eyes narrow further, his glare cold, "Never talk to my sister about your sex life."

"That's not- I didn't-"

"Okay!" (Y/N) interrupts, "No matter how entertaining this is, I'd rather not witness a murder. And Xaden, no need to worry, Garrick can brag about his skills all he wants, I'm still not planning on ever sleeping with him."

Before either Xaden or I can reply Imogen speaks up, changing the topic, "Was your first day on the Gauntlet as eventful, Liam?"

Liam chuckles, shaking his head, "Definitely not. We were lucky to not lose any of our squad and there were no arguments."

Xaden pipes up, calmer than before, "We lost Carolyn on the Gauntlet today." We're all silent for a moment, that's another marked one, dead.

"There's nothing we could have done." Bodhi says quietly. The rest of us nodding in agreement.

Xaden looks at the time then sighs, "It's late. We should head to bed." We slowly start to file out of the room. Everyone is gone except for me and (Y/N), Xaden grabs (Y/N)'s arm before she can exit, "I love you. Even though you piss me off sometimes."

She smiles, "I love you too, Xade." (Y/N) reaches up, kissing his cheek, "Goodnight."

"I'll walk her back to the barracks." I mumble to Xaden, his eyes narrow, "Would you rather she walks alone?" Xaden sighs but shakes his head. That's what I thought. "Night."

I quickly catch up to (Y/N) who turns to look at me once I'm next to her, "Really feeding those rumors of us sleeping together."

I laugh, lightly shoving her away from me, "Shut the fuck up." I pause, "But seriously, why wouldn't you sleep with me?"

"Do you want to die? Xaden would kill you and possibly me if he found out that we slept together."

I raise a brow, "Is that the only reason?"

(Y/N) tilts her head, "That's the only reason I need. I value my life."

"He wouldn't kill you, he's your brother." I argue.

(Y/N) stops in the middle of the hallway, right by the door leading to the woman's barracks. She turns to directly face me, "Do you want to sleep me with, Tavis?" She questions.

My eyes, widen. Deny, deny, deny. "Wha-no."

That was very convincing. I hear Chradh, my dragon, say through our bond. I can practically hear the eye roll in his tone.

"Uh huh," (Y/N) nods, "Then this conversation is irrelevant. Goodnight, section leader." She opens the door, walking away before I can reply.

Even she's not convinced. Chradh speaks once more, laughing.

Shut up. I answer him, scowling.

*_*_*_*_* (Y/N)

The next morning I wake up early, I've decided I want to start running before breakfast. My stamina is good, but it can be better, and after running the Gauntlet yesterday and watching Aurelie die, I know I need to be at my very best. I finish quietly tying my shoes, not wanting to disturb anyone. I leave the room, stretching my arms above my head. "What are you doing?" I jump, looking up to see Dain glaring at me.

"I'm going for a run?" I say, though it sounds more like a question.

"By yourself?" He asks, eyes narrowing.

"Yes, why?"

"Have you ever gone for runs before?"

I raise an eyebrow, "Not here…" There's a pause as we both asses each other. "Can I go now?" I finally ask, pointing around him. He pauses once more, before stiffly nodding and stepping to the side. I walk around him, then turn back to look, confused on why he was asking me about my run. I shake my head, then continue, heading to the courtyard to start running.

I've been running for 20 minutes and decide that I should start heading back so I can get breakfast. It should be starting any minute and I don't want to be too late. Just as I'm passing the Iakobos River a cadet steps out of the shadows. He's a first year like me, I think he's in second wing but I can't remember his name. I nod at him trying to move past, but he steps in my way. "I overheard you talking with Aetos, saying you were going on a run by yourself."

"Yeah, here I am." I say shrugging.

"Traitors shouldn't be here." I roll my eyes, of course he hates me.

"Listen, I don't have time for this. Can't you just wait for Threshing to try and kill me? Or challenge me when matches start back up?"

"Not when I have the perfect opportunity right now." He takes out his long sword. I sigh, not wanting to fight, I quickly slip out two of my daggers, the only two I brought with me on my run.

He lunges, since he's fighting with a sword he has a longer reach than my daggers. I block his strike, stepping in closer. I stick my foot out tripping him but he quickly rights himself. He spins, lunging once more in a series of quick strikes. I manage to block each one but I need to move off defense and end this quickly.

I take a step in his direction, feigning right and moving left. I nick the back of his sword hand. He hisses in pain but recovers quickly. My breath is heavier, my run from earlier tiring me quicker. When he lunges again, his sword catches my side. "Fuck." I take a chance, sending a quick prayer to Zihnal, I throw one of my daggers, aiming for his throat. The dagger lands where I intended. The tall cadet stumbles, a hand flying to his throat.

I walk over to him, sheathing my extra dagger, "I'm taking this, since you wanted to try and kill me with it." I grab his long sword from his limp hand. "And I'll be taking this back." I reach down, grabbing the hilt of my dagger that's buried in his throat. "Say hi to Malek for me." I pull the dagger out, blood spraying across my face. I must have hit the artery in his neck. I wipe the dagger on the boys tunic. Watching as he takes his last breath. I sigh, sheathing my dagger once more and heading back to the quadrant.

There are a few cadets walking around, either heading to breakfast, their morning duties, or back to their rooms. Some do double takes, seeing the hole in my tunic with blood seeping out and the blood on my face. One cadet even leaping out of my way. I pay them no mind. My eyes sharpened into a cold glare as I head towards the dining hall, searching for Dain.

Just as I move around the corner, closest to the dining hall, I bump into him. "Are you okay?" He asks, noticing the blood on my face.

I scoff, "Just the person I was looking for. You have a second to talk in private, squad leader?"

"Are you hurt? Do you need the healers?"

"What I need is to talk with you."

His eyes narrow in confusion, "Okay? How privately?"

I whisper through gritted teeth, making sure that none of the passing cadets can hear me, "That depends on if you want people to know that your attempt to get your squadmate killed failed."

"What?"

"Oh, so that's how you want to play it?"

"Hold on, I never-" He stops himself, "Come with me." He quickly ushers me away, leading me to his bedroom. "What are you talking about? What happened?"

I roll my eyes, "That first year from second squad you sent after me? He's dead by the Iakobos."

"Someone went after you?"

"You should consider acting, Aetos."

"(Y/N), I never sent anyone after you."

I scoff, "Oh, so just asking about where I was going and if I was going alone was just out of per curiosity and a random guy - who I don't even know the name of - who hates me, managed to overhear and then attempt to kill me."

"I asked you where you were going this morning because I never saw you up that early before. And I asked if you were going alone because with your last name a lot of people don't want you here and traveling in groups is safer."

"You really expect me to believe that?" I yell, taking a step towards Dain. My hand flies up to my side, the adrenaline wearing off causing the pain to be worse.

"You're hurt. Let me look." Dain steps forward.

I recoil, "Stay the fuck away from me!"

Dain sighs, "(Y/N), I swear to Amari I never told anyone about your run and I never sent someone to kill you. Now either let me bring you to the healers or let me check your wound."

"I'm fine! I don't need your help." I try to storm past him, but he grabs my arm.

"Let me help." My glare never leaves my face but Dain doesn't back away.

"Let. Me. Go."

"No. As your squad leader, I order you to let me check your wound."

I scoff, "Oh, as my squad leader? News flash, Dain, I don't give a fuck what you are. I can take care of myself."

"I'll tell Xaden."

"Really? Tell him what exactly?"

"That you're too stubborn for your own good. That you won't let someone help you when you're injured. That you were dumb enough to go on a run by yourself when half the quadrant wants you dead."

"Dumb? I'm still alive in case you haven't noticed."

"Yeah for now, but what if that cadet brought along some friends. That wound on your side probably would had been a lot worse. You would had probably been with Malek right now."

I shove Dain off of me, knowing that I'm not indestructible and he's right, but not wanting to admit that out loud. "Fine. Want to check my wound?" I drop the sword, then reach down to pull my tunic over my head, "Go on. Check it."

His jaw ticks, but he nods to his bed, "Sit. Let me get my first aid kit." I roll my eyes, but do as he says. I lean back on my hands so I don't put pressure on the wound. I look down at the cut, the cut is deep enough that I'm going to need stitches.

"I'm going to get blood on your sheets." I say, looking up to him as he approaches, scowl still on my face.

Dain shrugs, "Wouldn't be the first time someone got blood on them." He squats down in front of me, "This may sting a little." He pours alcohol onto a cloth, then gently rubs it over my wound. "What happened?" He quietly asks.

I nod to the long sword that I dropped on his floor, "He had the reach with his sword, I only had my daggers on me. I misjudged and he cut me. So I threw one of my daggers into his neck."

"Well at least you're okay. And now you know not to go on runs by yourself." I purse my lips, "You will go running with someone, right?" He raises an eyebrow. He puts the cloth down, "You need stitches."

"I wasn't planning on it. Do you have a needle and thread in the kit?"

Dain nods, asking, "Running again?"

I roll my eyes, "Going with someone." I reach for the needle and thread that Dain pulled out but he pulls it out of my reach. I narrow my eyes but let him prepare the needle, "It's nice to have some alone time, when you're surrounded by other cadets twenty-four seven."

"Do you have a death wish?" Dain scoffs, "Lay back." He instructs, once I do he reaches for the wound, starting to stitch it back together.

I hiss in pain, "I can handle myself." I say through gritted teeth, "And if you're telling the truth then I don't have to worry about people knowing I'm running alone."

He shakes his head, finishing the last stitch, "I'm not going to tell anyone, (Y/N). You and your brother may not be my favorite people but you're in my squad." He gets gauze out of his first aid kit to cover the stitched up wound, once finished, he checks the time. "Shit. We're going to be late to formation." He stands, moving to his closet and taking out a tunic, "It's going to be big on you but you don't have time to get a new one."

I sit up, taking his tunic from his out stretched hand, pulling it over my head. My senses fill with the smell of leather and soap. When I look at him again, he's holding out an apple. My brows knit together in confusion, "You didn't go to breakfast. At least this way you're not functioning on a completely empty stomach." He holds out a cloth for me as well, "You still have blood on your face."

I reach for the apple and cloth, "Thanks." I mumble. I turn towards his desk, there's a mirror above it and I quickly clean off my face. Then I pick up the discarded sword just as he moves to open his door, holding it for me to walk out first. I take a bite of the apple as we both head to morning formation.

Once at morning formation, we get a couple odd looks seeing that we're arriving together and I'm wearing a shirt that is clearly too big. The attention is quickly taken off of us as Captain Fitzgibbons reads off the death roll, "Calvin Atwater, Carolyn Bennett, Newland Jahvon, Aurelie Donans."

*_*_*_*_* Dain

The next morning I'm up early waiting outside the first year woman's barracks. I'm not sure if (Y/N) was planning on running today or not but I'd rather be here just in case. Sure enough (Y/N) steps out of the room, almost running right into me, "Great. Why are you here?" She scowls.

I resist the urge to roll my eyes, "Going on a run again?" I ask, instead of answering her question. (Y/N) nods, "By yourself?" She nods again. "I'm coming with you."

"I'm sorry. What?" She asks, crossing her arms.

"I'm. Coming. With. You." I look (Y/N) directly in her onyx eyes as I slowly repeat myself.

"Why?"

"Someone almost killed you yesterday."

(Y/N) laughs, "The cadet did not almost kill me, he threatened to kill me and all he left me with was a singular cut before I took his life."

"Do the details matter? Someone wanted to kill you yesterday, and they took advantage of the fact you were by yourself. And clearly you didn't tell any of your squad or your brother about this because if you did I bet at least one of them would be here with you."

(Y/N) takes a step closer to me, standing so we're chest to chest. Her arms brushing against me, "I don't need protection, Aetos. I'm not Violet. I'm perfectly capable of handling people trying to kill me."

I don't back down, eyes narrowing, "Either walk back into the barracks and wait for breakfast, cadet, or run with me. Those are your only two options."

(Y/N)'s eyes narrow in return, "Why do you care?"

"You're in my squad, you're under my protection. No one is killing you on my watch."

(Y/N) scoffs, reaching back to tie her hair into a loose ponytail, "You know what? Fine. Hope you can keep up." She runs fast, probably trying to make me fall behind, but I stay with her.

I stay silent for a while but I need to ask her if anyone said anything about the day before, "Did anyone say anything to you yesterday?" When she doesn't answer, I try again, "Imogen tried to ask why we showed up to formation together. Then she asked why your shirt was too big."

I wait for her response, glancing at her out of the the corner of my eye. When she still doesn't answer, I continue, "I told her it was just a coincidence that we showed up at the same time and I didn't know anything about your shirt." She still doesn't respond. Gods, she's stubborn. "She's really protective of you, you know?"

"Well the fuck aware. I'll deal with it if she asks me." (Y/N) finally replies.

"So did the squad ask?" I question, she nods but doesn't say anything else. As our run comes to an end, I'm breathing heavier than (Y/N), which is saying a lot considering I'm already bonded to a dragon.

You need to run more. Maybe it's a good thing the first year is refusing to tell anyone else. Cath says to me. I roll my eyes but don't respond to my dragon.

"Gods, how do you have such good stamina?" I ask as I wipe the sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. (Y/N) smirks, but doesn't answer. My mind flashes to (Y/N) naked in bed, I quickly shake the thought away, "Really?" I ask exasperated.

Cath chortles, And you claim to dislike her.

(Y/N) laughs, "I didn't say anything."

"It was written all of over your face." I scold. She's attractive, that doesn't mean I like her. I snap at Cath, my jaw ticking.

"You can interpret my facial expressions however you want, Aetos."

I shake my head, "Same time tomorrow?"

(Y/N) sighs, "You seriously don't need to come with me."

"Are you going to tell someone else about the murder attempt?"

"It's a typical day for me. I can handle myself."

"I have no doubt that you can." I step closer to her, she tilts her head to look me directly in the eyes, "But I'm still not letting you go by yourself."

The tip of her tongue darts out of her mouth, wetting her lips, my brown eyes following the movement, "I'll see you tomorrow morning then." She says, before walking away.

*_*_*_*_* (Y/N)

The next few practice runs on the Gauntlet have gone great for me, despite being in minor pain because of my wound. I make it up each time and my time improves as well. I haven't had to reach for a rope again either. Violet and Tynan are the only two left in the squad who haven't made it to the top. I feel bad for Violet but at least Tynan has stopped running his mouth. I'm still holding out hope that on presentation day he'll fall.

It's the day before presentation and the last practice, I lay on top of the cliff, Ridoc beside me. We were the first two to run. Sawyer. Rhiannon, and Violet are standing before the chimney trying to figure out how to help Violet get up. Ridoc and I both decided not to watch since we can't hear them anyways.

"You're going to end up with the fastest time tomorrow." Ridoc says.

"Maybe in our squad, but Liam told me his best time and I doubt I'll beat him." I reply.

"Do you both have to be good at everything?"

I smile, "Yes." Ridoc laughs, shaking his head. A red dragon flies overhead, "Pretty."

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that." Ridoc sighs.

"Sure you will. In a matter of days you're going to be a badass dragon rider. Seeing them fly above you is going to be nothing compared to flying on the back of one."

"Very true, Riorson." Ridoc and I smile at each other, "Gods, I can't wait."

*_*_*_*_*

"Doria Merrill," Captain Fitzgibbons says from the dais, during morning formation. Formation gets tighter every day as we lose more and more cadets. "Kamryn Dyre." It's presentation day, one of the deadliest in the quadrant. "Arvel Pelipa." Imogen and Quinn suck in a breath. First years aren't the only ones at risk, we're just the most likely to die. I send Imogen a sad smile, she nods in response. "Michael Iverem. We commend their souls to Malek."

Formation breaks, "Second and third years, unless you're on Gauntlet duty, head to class." Dain says to the squad, "First years, it's time to show us what you've got." He forces a smile, gaze stopping on Violet.

Imogen looks at Violet, she tucks a strand of pink hair behind her ear, "Good luck today. Hopefully you won't fall…short." She turns to look at me, pulling me into a tight hug, "You got this, (Y/N). Make me proud."

I smile, "Don't I always?" She smiles back, ruffling my hair causing me to slap her hand away. She walks off with Quinn and Cianna.

"Best of luck," Heaton one of two third years in our squad says to us. They tap their heart, right over two of their patches and offers us a genuine tight-lipped smile before heading to class. I've earned a patch for being undefeated in challenges but like Xaden I don't wear the extra patches. Just the ones that say my wing and year.

"I didn't realize Heaton actually knew how to speak." Two lines appear between Ridoc's brows.

"Maybe they figure they should at least say hi before we're potentially roasted today," Rhiannon says, causing me to snort.

"Back in formation," Dain orders.

"Are you coming with us?" Violet asks him. He nods, but doesn't look at her.

A few seconds pass before Ridoc speaks once more, "We're the biggest squad," He's looking around, assessing the other squads.

"What are we down to?" Tynan asks, "Hundred and eighty?"

"Hundred and seventy one," Dain answers.

"For a hundred dragons? But what will we..." Trina starts.

She's cut off by Luca, "Stop letting fear leach into your voice. If the dragons think you're a coward, you'll be nothing but a name tomorrow."

"I hope you're nothing but a name tomorrow." I mumble under my breath. I'm the closest to Dain so he hears my barb, he sends me a look and I innocently smile back.

"Stop it. You need to support your squad." Dain scolds quietly.

"I'll support my squadmates that I actually care about, I'm not a squad leader like you, I don't need to care for everyone in the squad." He rolls his eyes, "Still want to go on those morning runs with me?"

"You're insufferable." He states. "How's your wound?"

"Fine, just like I told you this morning." Dain nods, "You still never answered my question."

"Fourth Wing!" Xaden calls from ahead, "Move out!"

Dain glances at me out the corner of his eye, "I'll see you for our morning run tomorrow. And I still think it was stupid to go for one today." Then he falls back, moving to the back of our formation. Our section is first, Xaden falls behind, walking next to me and letting Garrick lead.

"Good luck, I know you'll do great on the Gauntlet." He says, reaching out to give my shoulder a squeeze.

"I said when I got here that the only way I plan on dying is if a dragon doesn't find me worthy. So let's hope they like me."

"They will. If Sgaeyl likes you - which she does, and she's one of the hardest to please - how can the ones at Presentation not?"

I smile, "Thanks. I love you."

Xaden smiles back, "I love you too." He leaves my side, moving back towards the front of the wing, towards Garrick.

Forty five minutes later, it's my turn on the Gauntlet. I fly over the spinning log and leap from pillar to pillar, quickly hopping into the wheel. I hop out at the second rotation, completing ascent one. I jump onto the first buoy ball, grabbing the chain and swinging from ball to ball.

I take a deep breath before jumping up to grab the iron rails on the third ascent, I climb hand over hand making it to the shaking pillars. I aim my landing perfectly, bending my knees to brace the impact. I jump to each pillar and don't hesitate to run up the fourth ascent. All these morning runs were for this, to keep my stamina up during the Gauntlet, and in future battles.

I make it to the last ascent, I run at the chimney, my body making an X before hopping up and climbing on to the edge before the ramp. I take one more breath then run as fast as I can, when gravity starts pulling me down, I throw my hand up catching the lip and pulling myself up the rest of the way.

Sawyer and Ridoc run at me, enveloping me in a tight hug. They went before me, I'm the third in the squad to go. "Badass!" Ridoc exclaims, "You flew through the course!"

"Seriously, you made it look easy, (Y/N)." Sawyer says.

I giggle, "Come on. Let's go watch the rest of our squad." I make eye contact with Xaden and Garrick who both send me proud smiles. Then I turn to watch the rest of the squad. Trina, Luca, Rhiannon, Pryor, and Tynan all make it up. Violet is the last on the course, she's just made it past ascent four, stopping before the chimney. This is it for her, she hasn't completed this obstacle yet, but I know she can.

"You can do it!" Rhiannon yells to Violet.

"Or you can do us all a favor and fall!" Jack calls out. My head snaps in his direction but before I can move both Sawyer and Ridoc grab onto my arms.

"Let go, I only want to talk with him." I mumble.

"Talk with your fists,maybe." Ridoc mumbles, refusing to let go.

I roll my eyes but look back down as I hear Rhiannon yell, "What are you doing?" Violet is grabbing one of the ropes. She drags it horizontally across the surface of the cliff. She gets the bottom portion onto the chimney, pulling the rope tight. She plants one foot on the side of the shaft and gives the rope a tug.

"Can she do that?" Someone snaps. I turn to see Amber Mavis, the wingleader for second wing. Violet climbs the chimney, using the rope for leverage.

Once she makes it to the top Ridoc shouts, "Hell yes! That's our girl!"

"You got this Violet! One more!" I cheer her on. Violet takes a breath, unsheathing one of her daggers. She's runs as fast as she can towards the ramp, when gravity begins to pull her back down she swings her arm up, slamming her dagger into the ramp, a guttural scream rips through her throat. She reaches up with her other hand, grabbing the lip of the ramp, pulling herself up, using the dagger to step on for extra leverage.

Once up, she lays on her stomach, reaching over the edge to retrieve her dagger. Ridoc, Sawyer, Rhiannon, and I rush over, nearly tackling Violet in a group hug. "She can't do that!" Amber screams.

"Yeah, well she just did!" Ridoc argues.

"You made it! You made it!" Rhiannon cheers.

"Luck," Violet draws in a shaky breath, "And. Adrenaline."

"Cheating!" Amber yells, once more, stomping over to us.

I snap, not caring that she's a wingleader, "Back the fuck up."

Her jaw drops in shock, but before she can reply to me, Garrick steps in between us. She clenches her jaw but stops, "Watch your tone with me, cadet." I roll my eyes. She turns to look between Garrick and Xaden, "The cheater clearly used foreign materials not once but twice! It's not to be tolerated! We live by the codex or we die by them!"

"Gods," I mumble to my squad, "Can I punch her?" Ridoc snorts.

"I don't take kindly to calling anyone in my section a cheater," Garrick says, "And my wingleader will handle any rule-breaking in his own wing."

"Sorrengail?" Xaden calls out.

"I expect the thirty second penalty for using the rope," Violet answers.

"And the knife?" Amber's eyes narrow, "She's disqualified." Xaden doesn't answer, still watching Violet, "Surely she's out! You can't tolerate lawlessness within your own wing, Riorson!"

But Xaden remains quiet, waiting for Violet. "A rider may only bring to the quadrant the items they can carry-" Violet begins.

She's cut off by Amber, "Are you quoting the codex to me?"

"- And they shall not be separated from those items no matter what they may be," She continues like she wasn't interrupted. "For once carried across the parapet, they are considered part of their person. Article Three, Section Six, Addendum B."

I smirk, waiting for Xaden's reply, but it's Amber who opens her mouth once more, "That Addendum was written to make thievery an executional offense."

"Correct," Violet nods in agreement, "But in doing so, it gave any item carried across the parapet the status of being a part of the rider." She unsheathes the dagger she used, "This isn't a challenge blade. It's one I carried across and therefore considered part of myself."

Amber's eyes flare but Violet speaks once more, this time looking at Xaden, "The right way isn't the only way."

Xaden holds her stare, "She has you, Amber."

"On a technicality!" She tries to argue.

"She still has you."

"You think like a scribe!"

"I know." Violet agrees. Amber marches off, clearly pissed.

"Sorrengail," Xaden says, causing Violet to turn to him once more, "You're leaking." He gestures to her hands, "Do something about it." Rhiannon helps Violet cut the sleeves off her tunic to bandage her hands, then we wait for the rest of the cadets to either make it up the cliff or die trying.

*_*_*_*_*

There are 169 first year cadets left by the time everyone finishes the Gauntlet. Even with Violet's penalty for using the rope, we ended up eleventh out of thirty six squads. Liam won the Gauntlet patch, being the fastest one up. I asked Xaden, where I placed individually and I was third, which I was happy about.

The box canyon that makes up the training field is a colorful array of reds, oranges, and golds. Autumn was always my favorite time of year. I love the crisp air and the colors littering the trees; everything looks serene.

The dragons line the valley, standing twenty-five feet tall. They're in a formation of their own, lined up several feet back, close enough to pass judgment as we walk past. "Let's go, Second Squad, you're up next." Garrick calls out. "Into formation." We all move, Rhiannon, Violet, and I ending up near the back.

There's a sound like rushing wind that stops quickly, one of the dragons wasn't happy with one of the cadets. Garrick's eyes skim over the group, stopping on me, "Hopefully Aetos has done his job, so you know that it's a straight walk down the meadow. I'd recommend staying at least seven feet apart-"

Ridoc interrupts, "In case one of us gets scorched."

"Correct, Ridoc." Garrick's gaze turns away from me, addressing the whole group, "Cluster if you want, just know if a dragon finds disfavor with one of you, it's likely to burn the whole lot to weed one out." He pauses, "Also, remember you're not here to approach them, and if you do, you won't be making it back to the dormitory tonight."

"Can I ask a question?" Luca says from the front. I roll my eyes, Garrick nods, but his jaw ticks. He's annoyed, he doesn't like Luca on my behalf plus he's always been impatient. "Third Squad, Tail Section of Fourth Wing already went through, and I talked to some of the cadets…"

"That's not a question," Garrick lifts his brows. I smirk at his tone. He's intimidating to everyone else, but to me he's just a big teddy bear.

"Right. It's just that they said there's two feathertails?"

"F-Feathertails?" Tynan sputters, he's in front of Violet. "Who the hell would ever want to bond a feathertail?"

I roll my eyes, I tend to do that a lot whenever Luca or Tynan open their mouths, they have that affect on people. "Professor Kaori never told us there would be feathertails." Sawyer says, "I know because I memorized every single dragon he showed us. All hundred of them."

"Well, guess there's a hundred and two now." Garrick replies, "Relax. Feathertails don't bond. I can't even remember the last time one has been seen outside the Vale. They're probably just curious. You're up. Stay on the path. You walk up, you wait for the entire squad, you walk back down. It really doesn't get much easier than this, kids, so if you can't follow those simple instructions, then you deserve whatever happens in there."

We follow the crowd of first years, stopping in front of Nyra, the senior wingleader. "They're all yours," Garrick says. He walks past me, squeezing my arm, "I'll see you later." He whispers before walking off.

"Single file." Nyra calls to the squad. I move so I'm the last person in line, Rhiannon and Violet right ahead of me. "Talk."

"Nice day for a Presentation," Ridoc jokes.

"Not to me," Nyra narrows her eyes, "Talk to your nearby squadmates while you're on the path, as it will help the dragons get a sense of who you are and how well you play with others. There's a correlation between bonded cadets and level of chatter."

She pauses, looking at each squad member, "Feel free to look at the dragons, especially if they're showing off their tails, but I would abstain from eye contact if you value your life. If you come across a scorch mark, just make sure nothing's currently on fire before continuing along. See you after your stroll."

She sweeps her hand, stepping to the side. The line starts to move, everyone giving the suggested seven feet before following. We pass a trio of reds first. "I can't even see their tails!" Tynan shouts from ahead of Violet, "How are we supposed to know what breed they are?"

I roll my eyes but keep my mouth shut, "We're not supposed to know what breed they are," Violet responds.

"Fuck that, I need to figure out which one I'm going to approach during Threshing."

"Pretty sure they're the ones to decide, Tynan. Or have you already forgot what Kaori taught us?" I say, I probably should have left that last part out but I might as well be authentically myself. The dragons need to know the real me and make their decisions based on that.

"Hopefully one of them will decide you don't get to make it to Threshing," Rhiannon says so quietly that I barely hear her.

I laugh, "Him and Luca." I reply just as quietly, causing her to laugh as well.

We are now approaching a set of browns. "They're a little bigger than I thought they would be…" Rhiannon trails off, "Not that I didn't see the ones at Parapet, but…"

"So do you know if you're having a niece or a nephew?" Violet asks, trying to distract Rhiannon.

We pass a handful of oranges as Rhiannon replies, "What?"

"I've heard some of the healers can make pretty good guesses once a woman is further along in her pregnancy."

"Oh. No. No clue. Though I'm kind of hoping she'll have a girl. I guess I'll find out once we finish the year and can write our families."

"Ugh," I groan, "I hate that rule. It's so dumb."

"Agreed." Violet pipes up, "It is a bullshit rule."

"You don't think it encourages loyalty to the wing?" Rhiannon asks us.

"Honestly, I just think it's about control." I shrug.

Violet answers next, "I think I'm just as loyal to my sister whether I've had a letter from her or not. There are bonds that can't be broken."

"I'd be loyal to your sister too," Tynan calls out. He turns around, facing Violet, "She's one hell of a rider, and that ass. I saw her right before Parapet and damn, Violet. She's hot."

"Turn around," Violet makes a spinning motion with her finger, "Mira would eat you for breakfast, Tynan."

"I'm just wondering how one of you got all the good traits and the other looks like she got the leftovers."

"Are you blind? Violet's so hot. I think it's just in the Sorrengail genes." I say. I think of Brennan, who is also very attractive.

Violet laughs, "Says you. The Riorson's clearly have some good genes too."

I laugh, "Are you saying me and my brother are hot, Violet?"

She doesn't answer but Tynan speaks up again, "All I'm saying is maybe I'll write a letter of my own to your sister once we get privileges."

"A nephew would be good," Rhiannon says, changing the topic. "Boys aren't too bad."

"My brother was awesome, but he and Dain are my only experience with growing up around little boys." Violet replies. "Though I think Dain was probably a little more rule-abiding than most kids." I snort, picturing little Dain always following the rules. "He likes order and pretty much detests anything that doesn't fit neatly into his plan." She pauses, "What about you, (Y/N)? What was it like growing up with Xaden and Bodhi?"

I quietly laugh, "They was the best. Xaden's always been there for me, even when we were separated. Bodhi too, though Xaden was always a bit more serious than Bodhi. Xaden never tried to stop me from hanging around him and Garrick even when I was being annoying. He's definitely my built in best friend."

"What about Garrick?" Rhiannon asks.

"Garrick too. He could had gotten annoyed so many times with me following them around but he never minded. I remember we used to play hide and seek in the halls of Riorson House, Gods that was so much fun. And Liam…" I trail off, "When Liam and I met we were attached at the hip. I was miserable whenever he was gone. I think Garrick, Bodhi, and Xaden let me hang around them so much because they hated seeing me upset."

"They sound great," Rhiannon replies.

"Yeah, they seem to really love you." Violet says.

I smile but don't answer, my head is filled with memories of growing up in Aretia. "You guys done bonding back there?" Tynan sneers, "Because we're almost to the end of the line, if you haven't noticed." He pauses, "And I still haven't figured out which one I'm going to choose."

"With arrogance like that, I'm sure any dragon would feel lucky to share your mind for the rest of your life." Violet replies.

The rest of the squad is gathered at the end of the path, facing our direction. Their focus is to the right, there's a brown dragon up ahead, though I can't see what's behind it. "What the hell?" Tynan stares.

"Keep walking," Violet orders. Her gaze is so focused she stumbles right into Tynan.

"Get off me, Sorrengail." He hisses, shoving her back, "Who the hell would bond those?"

That's when I see them, two feathertails sitting side-by-side. One gold, the other silver. "They're fucking yellow and gray." Luca's lip curls in disgust, "So not only are they obviously too small to carry a rider in battle, but they're not even powerful enough to be a real color."

I roll my eyes, "There's so much we don't know about dragons, how do you know that there aren't more silver and gold dragons in the Vale? I mean we learned about a white one, and there's no other like her."

"Maybe it's a mistake," Sawyer says quietly, "Maybe it's a baby orange and black."

"They're fully grown," Rhiannon argues, "There's no way the other dragons allow babies to bond. No human alive has ever seen a baby."

"It's a mistake all right," Tynan agrees with Sawyer. He scoffs, "You should bond one of them, Sorrengail. You're both freakishly weak. It's a match made in heaven."

"It looks powerful enough to burn you to death," Violet counters. I want to punch Tynan on her behalf but I can't stick up for her like that in front of the dragons, she needs to prove herself.

Sawyer lunges between Tynan and Violet, grabbing Tynan's collar. My jaw drops, that's unbelievably hot. Especially since he's held me back from punching Tynan so often. "Don't ever say that about a squadmate, especially not in front of unbonded dragons."

"Let him go - he's just saying what we're all thinking," Luca mutters.

"You two are the only ones thinking that." I snap.

Trina places a hand on Sawyer's shoulder, "Don't make a mistake in front of them. We don't know what they'll do." Sawyer drops Tynan's collar. We all step away from each other so we're not grouped together anymore.

"Someone should kill them before they bond," Tynan sputters, "They're just going to get their riders killed, and it's not like we get a choice if they want to bond."

"You're just picking up on that now, are you?" Ridoc shakes his head.

"Well, I think they're beautiful. Garrick's probably right anyways, they're just curious. They can't carry riders, it wouldn't make sense for them to bond. The rider and dragon would both be in danger."

"We should go back," Pryor says, his gaze darts around the group, "I mean… if you think we should. We don't have to, of course."

"For once in your life," Tynan snaps, pushing Pryor to start walking, "make a damn decision, Pryor."

Sawyer goes after Tynan, me following behind, then Trina behind me. "So, Sawyer. After all this time telling me to be nice…" I trail off, teasing the tall boy.

"Do as I say, not as I do." Sawyer replies, laughing.

"I mean, it was kinda hot, seeing you be protective like that."

He glances back at me, "Oh, really? Is that what does it for you, (Y/N)?"

Before I can answer Tynan inserts himself in the conversation, "Please, you can do so much better than someone who had to repeat a year, (Y/N)."

"Sawyer already knows I think he's brave for repeating."

"Brave?" Tynan, whips around.

"Keep walking," Sawyer scolds.

Tynan walks backwards looking around Sawyer to eye me, "Yes, brave. It's brave enough showing up expecting to do three years then live out your life as a dragon rider, but to add an extra year to the college where other cadets constantly try to kill you? It's brave."

"Thanks, (Y/N)." Sawyer says.

"Whether it's brave or not, you deserve someone who didn't have to repeat." Tynan replies.

"Oh yeah? Like who?"

"Well, I bet I'd be better than him."

I roll my eyes, "Only in your dreams, Tynan."

"Oh you've definitely been in my dreams."

"Ugh, Gods, that's disgusting."

"Turn back around, Tynan." Sawyer snaps. Tynan smirks but turns back around.

"You can move a little faster up there, Pryor." Rhiannon calls out.

"Maybe we should slow down and take our time?" Pryor replies, but it sounds like a question, "Or I guess we can go faster if we want to get out of here." A red dragon steps out of line, halting the squad. It opens it's mouth, exposing it's fangs. The fire erupts from along the sides of it's tongue, right at Pryor. The scent of sulfur and burned grass enters my nose.

We pause, waiting for the fire to stop, "Fire's out." Tynan calls, then continues to walk the path. I pass the pile of ash that used to be Pryor, trying to think of something else to talk about.

"Xaden approves of you, Sawyer."

He laughs, "What do you mean?"

"He knows we've gotten close, said I could do worse. That's approval from Xaden if I ever heard it."

"Well that's good to know. Your brother is intimidating as fuck."

"Yeah, maybe to others."

"To everyone, the only reason you're not intimidated by him is because he's your brother." Tynan says from up front.

"Nah, plenty of the marked ones aren't intimidated by him. We just know him better."

"He kinda scares me," Trina says from behind me, causing me to laugh, "Honestly, you're a lot like him from what I can see." We hear another whoosh of fire from behind us, I glance behind me just to make sure it wasn't Trina.

When I see she's still there I reply, "He was basically my hero growing up, so I'm not surprised we seem so similar." We walk past the last of the dragons. Everyone in the squad besides Pryor and Luca make it out.

Taglist: @desprrssooo-espresssooooo

#series rewrite #the empyrean #fourth wing #xaden x sister!riorson reader #xaden riorson #dain aetos #violet sorrengail #bodhi durran #garrick tavis #imogen cardulo #liam mairi #rhiannon matthias #ridoc gamlyn #sawyer henrick

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iamverynormalaboutsge · 6 months ago

Text

Those screenshots are for context as to why I decided to lay out my view on Aric and Japeth there and to also avoid repeating myself.

Now back to the grind! (I will put a 'read more' because this WILL be long, be warned)

Topics: Aric and Japeth's origins, the context of their surroundings, the perfect isolation and the communal influence

@liketwoswansinbalance take a cup of tea or an espresso shot, this is gonna be a while

I will lay out a few of my takes on these two characters before I move forth and talk about their relationship because I feel that if I don't some details will not be understood or they will lack, what I call, flavour!

First, let us start with Aric who I am more experienced with because, well what do you know? He's interesting to think about.

Of course, we have to begin with his origins. That means Lady Lesso and his unknown father who for whatever reason the fandom wiki assumes is deceased but we have no confirmation of that. Perhaps it's because after the 'We can't imagine anyone who would miss him' his father didn't appear yet again Nevers have a very different way of 'loving' their children. Aka it's practically medieval times royalty but without the money, make the baby 'pure' for the bloodline, and move on. In our case make a baby for your lineage(with a willing or unwilling participant or with a sacrificial goat to a demon to clone yourself like it happened in Hester's case) and then we see where the rest goes. Now there is no doubt in my mind Lady Lesso loved Aric and she still most certainly held motherly love for him when they reunited despite him wanting to murk at her and managing to do so in the end. She admitted she was never afraid of him and more so afraid of what he could do to the people she cared about. But she WAS afraid of him when she realised that he was not HER son anymore.

We know that Lady Lesso was afraid of Aric's father. Perhaps the whole 'let's make an heir for our bloodline' was mutual but something happened and Lesso wanted to keep her son and avoid her husband(?)/father of the child. It is funny to me how people assume Ares, the God of War, is his father and honestly? I could see it. Lady Lesso has this aura of power around her and I wouldn't exactly be shocked if the woman who deemed Sophie as truly evil despite all of her flaws would only be swooned off her feet by a literal God, similar to how Sophie was very eager with the prospect of a powerful lover and having therefore a power of position. However, Lady Lesso perhaps sought out more than just power. I believe Aric's dad simply wanted to take Aric for who knows what reasons and Lady Lesso, one of the most powerful sorceresses that we know of(because come on. She managed to make the powerful protecting shield Rafal did at his full strength. That takes something) was AFRAID to confront a 'simple' man.

Now how does this all play in Aric's story if he didn't even know his father? Well, genetics count. Dovey recognised Aric's father from her memories after meeting Aric who had a similar outlook on him. Therefore Aric being very eager for war, battle, and savage violence in general despite maintaining a certain level of discipline which IS needed to win a war regardless of how brutal, would justify the Ares theory.

We know Gods can be charming or persuasive, we saw the air of confidence and undoubtedly strength Lady Lesso carries herself, and we see it in Aric how he has no issue getting where he wants, how he wants it, and deceiving everyone along the way. Despite supposedly having no interactions with girls whatsoever, given that the timeline only mentions that Aric's interaction with a girl ever before ending in the Arbed House was with the daughter of the family that rescued him that he nearly killed(not to mention that I remember that he DID murk their family dog. Perhaps the fact that the family's daughter was 'so weak' paired with his recent trauma of being abandoned by his mother who he most likely loved the most led to his whole 'women are weak, frail and pathetic' beliefs).

Therefore, how does Aric go on to 'seduce' Sophie and Hester? Although he didn't exactly go somewhere with either of the plans he had in mind with Rafal punishing him for going near Sophie and Hester not faltering for the guy he got stabbed by(even if the stab was meant for Agatha), we still see he has some maddening skills in being a charming devil and effortlessly so. Let's not forget that he ended up captain of the boys against any better judgement from Tedros. Sure he broke through the magic shield and we see Tedros question it even if he never gets an answer from Aric on it. A completely strange boy showed up on his doorstep and he just- let him in despite the clear threat he possessed simply because he claimed to(and didn't lie) that he was there as well because like everyone else he had something in this 'game' to go after. We see Tedros acting aggressively to Aric when he loses his patience in regards to the whole 'start a war already' situation, being threatened to be kicked out, but THAT was after Aric already become Captain of the boys. Aric must have proved himself in a different way than just breaking the shield. I mean sure he managed to gather up some henchmen between the time he left the Albert House to the moment he got to the schools, and we know that Aric didn't exactly have any friends. He was persuasive enough to get some other aggressive individuals to follow him and potentially even make them obedient to him. We never know what happens to them after book 2 but most likely just like the other princes and boys they are thrown out/leave because they are no longer needed therefore Aric doesn't keep them around.

Where does this play in the whole Aric-Japeth relationship? It does. Sure, Aric is very conscious about what he does and what effect he has on people but he had to learn he could have such an influence on others, and who was his first 'victim'? I believe that to be Japeth. Now I doubt Aric was aware of what he was doing. He was just a boy, no older than six who had been abandoned and turned spiteful against the cold harsh world. We know NOBODY liked Aric. Rhian and Kei surely didn't yet Japeth did. And I think the reason Rhian and Kei didn't like Aric is for the same reason that Japeth did.

Aric's natural charm worked on Japeth as they grew up together and 'explored'. While Japeth's acts of violence until then were to terrify both his twin and mother to the point Evelyn Sader who was very determined to raise Rafal's children(and who she also carried willingly despite being abandoned) turned to leave them in the exact spot where hearts so evil that they would ruin the endless woods if they were to be properly trained in the School for Evil were hidden (another screenshot y'all).

Aric wasn't sent there by HIS blood nor guardian but rather by a family mortified by exactly this, a heart truly evil. He ended up there as an external factor who heavily influenced Japeth's perspective and views to the ones they were already being taught in the Albert House. That school's purpose is to redeem evil hearts like redeeming sinners in the Hazbin Hotel. However, the Arbes House had a far bigger success than we see happen with the demons from hell(weird parallel I know but you can't tell me it's entirely wrong given that Japan didn't do far more malicious war crimes than the characters we are presented in that indie animation). Anyway, as previously stated I believe that just as Aric's genetics made him charming, persuasive and manipulative, effortlessly with little to no struggle if I may, Japeth's genetics made him psychotic, prone to delusion as well as overly blinded sighted by his goal to account for all the details that may go wrong. These characteristics we seen in both Rafal and Evelyn.

We know that Evelyn was supposed to raise the boys and with the Mistral, sisters to help make them into what they are supposed to be. Japeth knew of his true nature while Rhian didn't and I don't think that it was Evelyn or Rafal to reveal that to him but rather the Mistral sisters AFTER Evelyn effectively abandoned the boys. I say abandoned because it wasn't until Evelyn saw how truly awful Japeth was that she was willing to truly drop this entire grand master plan despite carrying it so far. House Arbed specialises in hiding these evil souls from the schoolmaster himself therefore as far as Rafal was concerned in the context that he didn't exactly send monthly letters to his sisters, his sons were gone. Therefore even if Evelyn was still delusional enough to think he could be near Rafal, he rewarded her for helping bring him back or better said punished her for getting rid of his bloodline. It would make sense for Rafal to have noticed the impossibility of tracking down his sons the moment they stepped into the Arbed House which wouldn't exactly lead him to believe that there could be any magic more powerful than his to shorten his vision, because why would he? He never even considered that the students who loathed him could secretly work to overthrow him, or at least he didn't believe he'd get far so clearly while this is certainly a far stretch with the whole believing Japeth and Rhian are dead, it isn't entirely deniable. It would also make sense that after knowing of Aric, despite forcing the whole 'abandon your child or your career Lesso' he went off the radar when he got to the Arbed House just like it happened to Japeth and Rhian. Aric was evil just enough for Rafal to make him a DEAN on the SPOT despite having 0 experience whatsoever(outside the whole 'captain of boys)' and went as far as to give him the title of LORD.

I got a bit sidetracked but the point is Aric and Japeth were perfectly isolated and unbothered by any external factors in the Arbed House(perhaps the mistral sister keeping an eye on Japeth but not a lot more than that in the case of which Japeth and Rhian BOTH came in contact with the three only AFTER they left the Arbed House once they 'graduated' which could have been around the same time Rafal kicked the bucket, and Japeth was given more information than Rhian because the mistral sisters saw that unlike Japeth, Rhian's evil nature as little as it was ended up being stomped on and only Japeth was left with more authentic evil purity).

Japeth had violent tendencies but not out of any specific hatred or anger, but simply how he truly was we do not know whatsoever that Aric had such tendencies until after he was abandoned which would explain how compared to Evelyn who was mortified Japeth and willingly abandoned him and Rhian(perhaps Rhian too in the fear he could at any time turn like Japeth), Lesso had NO reason whatsoever to feel such genuine deep fear towards his son despite everything he did, despite the magic he inherited from her and the strength/mentality he might have taken from his father like Evelyn did. Lesso was afraid of Aric's father but loved Aric genuinely while Evelyn was supposedly madly in love with Rafal but FEARED Japeth. See the contrast?

Now that we have this cleared out we can finally begin the TRUE Aric-Japeth analysis as a WHOLE.

Japeth was corrupted by Aric. Yes, you heard me, Aric who undeniably is less evil than Japeth, is the one to have corrupted Aric and not the other way around. As I mentioned everyone saw it as troubling that Aric and Japeth interact with each other and given that it was Aric who ended up going to extreme lengths and being kicked out, rightfully so to think of it. Aric and Japeth only had each other as friends. Japeth was wicked by nature and birth, and Aric was wicked by his surroundings. While Japeth was relatively kept tame, that most likely changed the moment Aric came along. Aric who despite not being as horrible could NOT be contained(Just like Lady Lesso outright acted on betraying Rafal in the favour of the balance instead of just Evil).

Aric was also the first one to do an actual proper kill and not just torture or frighten as Japeth did to his brother and mother. Aric was the one to go the extra mile the moment he was pushed while Japeth despite all his wickedness never did such a thing or considered it even UNTIL Aric came into view and did as far as nearly killing Rhian. I mean a stab to the head-? Rhian had a hell of a skull not to die from it. A parallel to the False Rafal/OG Rhian on how HE had no issue with Hook eliminating competition but he wasn't able to do so himself until he was corrupted by external factors and did it himself at the end of the prequels by killing Rafal.

Likewise, Aric had an unconscious influence on Japeth. Aric had this natural attraction to get his way through. He got Tedros to place him as the Captain of the boys when Chaddick failed Tedros. He got Rafal to make him the new Dean/Lord of New Evil. He could have easily persuaded Sophie if Rafal didn't catch him in time and I dare say that even Hester was more than likely stunned enough by Aric's shenanigans for his action to still count as effective in playing with the victim's mind. However, while Aric was in conscious control of all of this, he never realised how he influenced Japeth. He was just growing, exploring who he was as a person and Japeth was the first-hand witness to that. Aric is more in the spotlight. He is in the shadows enough to not be noticed until it's too late but in the light enough for people to know to keep clear of him even when it is unclear the full extent of his power. Japeth is more of a shadow villain. He has no desire to step into the light, no need to put himself on display or hurt people just for the sake of it like Aric does, instead he does so by his simple nature, unconsciously.

And when growing up, a child takes from what they see around them including other children. Aric's naturally charming and suave behaviour put a spotlight on him from Japeth's perspective. One bright enough so that to him everything else becomes irrelevant as long as it's not related to Aric. If Aric didn't die I highly doubt Japeth would have helped Rhian with everything because he wouldn't have a reason to. Rhian wouldn't have what to bribe him with, even if Rhian didn't know he was beating Japeth out with the promise/idea of bringing back a person who most certainly everyone in the Arbed House despised. (Also the fact that Aric tried to kill Rhian and Japeth was dead serious on seeing Rhian choosing his safety over Japeth's happiness as a betrayal when he decided that Aric is to be kicked out. I mean I doubt it was Rhian's entire choice but that is the way Japeth saw it. Rhian chose himself over him so why should Japeth ever do otherwise for Rhian?).

Now that we established who wore the pants in the 'relationship' and as to HOW and WHY this is, let us define the status of it.

Japeth loved Aric. No doubt. I mean, having a magic space where you scribble your initials EVERYWHERE? I believe Japeth IS aware of how B+C scribbled on anything is usually a sign of romance or at least a very deep feeling. We see Rhian saying that Japeth considered Aric more of a brother than him, however, we then see Japeth ask decoy Aric for a kiss as a trap. Japeth was aware of his feelings towards Aric and so was Aric. However, Aric rejected that part of Japeth. In this regard, Japeth took after Evelyn's delusion that someone who didn't love him the way HE wanted it to, could ever, and also took after both Rafal and Evelyn, with Japeth believing that if he were to bring Aric back he could make him love him. (Rafal who thought he could make Sophie genuinely love him outside of desperation. Also, Evelyn who had thought that being of service to Rafal would gain her anything in her favour).

Japeth is the more powerful one in any aspect but mentally, whereas Aric in contrast naturally shines in through with his 'good' genetics. Japeth doesn't even think of stepping over Aric's authority over him, he lacks that rebellious spirit that Aric shines in. Aric dominates because he wants to. Japeth ended up dominating others because that was what was needed to get the one person he ever loved back. Japeth obeys Aric in his wishes, but during the scene where Tedros pretends to be Aric, we see that Japeth, from the demanding and cold snake, turns into a pleading puppy desperate for affection. He was right there and then ready to accept everything decoy Aric said if he didn't, to his credit and cunningness, test to see if this was even HIS Aric that he is so desperate about. Once he saw it wasn't his Aric, Japeth's delusion settled back in.

I highly doubt that the interaction would have gone any differently. Tedros didn't truly know Aric but he knew how he acted enough to realistically impersonate him for somebody who knew Aric on a far deeper level. Although he certainly must have had a flaw if Japeth decided to test out if this was Aric or not(outside of the fact that Aric was dead because we did later see Arthur talk to Tedros in the plane of dreams/magic so it's not wrong to think Japeth might have truly considered that decoy Aric was indeed Aric talking to him from the realm of the dead).

Now we established the relationship from Japeth's point of view + the view of everyone else but what about Aric? Now we know the romantic side of love was one-sided. We do know that Aric would send letters to Japeth, begging to come to him because he felt off without him, but I doubt that this was because of romantic feelings. Japeth states Aric was ashamed of their love, but this could be his perspective and rather Aric was ashamed of Japeth loving him like that or doing something to make him believe he could ever do that because loving someone also means hoping the feeling is mutual(unless you are that one sexuality where apparently to love people but you don't want them to love you back-??? Don't ask, I saw it once and that was enough for me to decide that the expertise of sexuality beyond bodily and mental psychology is no place for me to study). Aric was disgusted that Japeth who knew him best could ever think Aric could have such awful thoughts. Sure Aric hates women and he may have influenced Japeth in that aspect too because it's not like anybody else told him that women are pathetic creatures outside of Aric, which might result in a healthy young growing boy's hormones turning their attention to the same gender.(Reminder that places such as the military or conservative schools with only one of the gender present raises homosexuality because, in the age of teenhood where hormones flare up, they won't stop just because the opposite gender isn't present. Aric had contact with the opposite gender and saw examples of heterosexual couples, for example, the family who took him in, compared to Japeth who didn't exactly see Rafal around Evelyn I doubt that in the Arbed House, their biggest concern was making the boys good Christian boys and rather just oppress the evil as much as possible so that they can pass by as good. I mean Tedros is supposedly good and he deadpan chose the 'a villain will burn the world for you' route for Agatha so-).

I believe Aric missed Japeth because Japeth completed Aric. These two were the yin-yang of evil. The spiteful, fiery, rebellious part, and the calmer, colder, tamer part. Evil nonetheless but still, there is a very clear contrast between why these two are evil. It's a spectrum at this point.

Aric missed Japeth because Japeth was secure, Japeth was Aric's safe space. Japeth was the only other soul in this world Aric could share his dark thoughts and desires with, without being judged. Humans are still social animals even if some prefer solidarity, even our beloved introverts feel the need for a pet or some sort of emotional connection. Aric needed that connection. His status of power made it to be out of reach from others. His power build on terror and fear. He wouldn't trust those who loath him most to share his most intimate thoughts with.

Aric effectively isolated himself with his title, just as Rafal had. Aric needed someone wicked enough to understand him yet loyal enough to not choose their selfish reasons over his. Rafal had Sophie for that, however, he underestimated Sophie's external factors, the need for validation from a familiar person(Agatha/Tedros). For Aric though, this would have worked perfectly for Japeth. Japeth had no external factors to care for, not Rhian, not Evelyn, or anybody else. Japeth and Aric were only with each other. No other boys or girls between them. No other friendships or relationships. The only one who could have those was Aric and he effectively couldn't have them. Aric and Japeth wouldn't have been as deadly of a duo as people think. Yes if we take them from a standpoint of view in power and personality sure, but that's where they come and neutralise each other. While I believe that Aric most certainly expressed his feelings of wanting to kill Lady Lesso without hesitation and wanting to hurt Rhian for getting into his friendship with Japeth, he had no other specific targets. Sure Aric killed a dog, terrified a whole family and had an attempt on their lives, but you don't expect a rescue animal, abused, abandoned or traumatised to trust anyone right away. That unfortunate family wasn't the one Aric needed to cool down and recover from the essential meltdown he had for being abandoned and struggling severely in a highly dangerous forest with not just animals to worry about but magical/fantastic creatures who were ten times more deadly and could appear there as well. The Albert House was Aric's anchoring point back to reality and sanity but he had no one to coordinate his evil thoughts constructively like Lady Lesso does with her students because the Albert House works to OPPRESS these tendencies and that didn't sit with Aric's rebellious behaviour. If Aric wouldn't influence Japeth I believe his evilness could have been oppressed to an acceptable extent. Instead, we got the mastermind and his loyal henchmen. While Aric most certainly viewed Japeth as an equal and a person he desired to be around because he could feel human and natural around with, he didn't need him the way Japeth did because Aric experienced genuine unconditional love before Japeth, making him able to depict certain patterns and behaviours unconsciously.

Were Aric and Japeth friends? Yes. If these two weren't bothered would have half of the series happened? No. Were Aric and Japeth lovers? Not really. Did Aric love Japeth? Sure. Did Aric love Japeth? No. Did Japeth love Aric? Yes. Did Japeth love Aric? Yes. Did Aric see Japeth the way Japeth saw him? Not. Did Aric see him as an equal and or counterpart? Yes.

These two were most certainly each other's safe space, however, they viewed one another entirely differently.

Take this as you will.

#school for good and evil #sge #japeth mistral #rafal japeth sader mistral #japeth of foxwood #aric of bloodbrook #aric lesso

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gojoawayhoe · 2 months ago

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What even is JJK?

Hello JJK community!! I am an avid fanfic reader who was going through a crisis, accidentally stumbled across a JJK SMAU post, and triggered a hyperfixation (yayy)

I thought it might be fun to stumble my way through figuring out what is going on here with as little official information as possible. This post is my attempt to understand JJK from SMAU and fanfic alone! To be clear, I have NOT read or watched the anime/manga - this is just my interpretation for wtf is going on here.

A few things before we get into this -

Spoiler Warnings! This should be obvious, but since I've never watched/read the show I don't actually know what is considered a spoiler or not. Please read on with caution~

Newbie Warning! I am so new into this fandom, and it is a lot bigger than the ones I've been in before. This post is supposed to be fun, and I am coming from a place of good faith. If I accidentally commit a faux pas, please be kind!

Foul Language Warning! Most of this was written stream of conscious style over two weeks as I was struggling through some tough stuff IRL. My tone is tongue in cheek, and I did not pay much attention to grammar or minding my language. I don't say anything too crazy, but I am perhaps too liberal with certain four letter words.

With that said! Please enjoy my delirious ramblings as I make sense of this batshit crazy world. I had so much fun with this, and I hope you like it?

OKKKK SO (who is who, pt 1/?; i got some questions):

Did Shoko really cheat her way through medical school?

Toji is ?? An assassin with one?? two?? Dead wives?? Are we suspicious or nah

Also like, Toji? Sometimes he's written like an ass, sometimes like a strung out single dad?

yuuji is ..... chosos brother... somehow...?

Megumi is……. Tojis son? But also sometimes gojos adopted son?? Or at least mentee??

Speaking of Megs, here are some thoughts I had while figuring this effer out:

-Man, Megumi really likes dogs i guess, thats cool

-Oh huh, whats a shikigami?

-oh, that sounds pretty cool

*sees dogs mentioned again*

-cue: holy shit moment

-i straight up thought he was overly obsessed with dogs. Like as a character trait because its mentioned so much.

-ykw ig he still is

-can you pet them?

Shibuya:

At first, mentions of Shibuya went over my head. Then, three or four days in, I read an smau where nanami made plans with the reader to do something as soon as he returned from Shibuya. It was really so sweet! But… umm…. The comments did not agree?

So this is the first time i googled anything, and found myself on the wiki. And uh, yeah, fuck you guys /s

And i was like, I wonder who else has died then?? And guys, i gotta be honest, I did NOT like it !! 🥹

alright, I got distracted.

Trying to figure out who is affiliated with who from smau/fanfic alone is nearly impossible (who is who pt 2/?).

Eventually, you get here:

Most people - jj sorcerers/tokyo high

Toji + shiu - assassins

Kenjaku + mahito (mojito)? = freaky bitches (also is it just me or is mahitos design kinda.... 😏 no? just me?)

Choso - ???????? I genuinely cant tell?????? Sometimes yuuji is his brother and sometimes hes with the freaky bitches ??????? Is he a good girl gone bad ?? A bad girl gone good ?? Is he meaning yuuji like as a vessel of sakuna and sakuna is his half brother???? because apparently the whole main point of the goddamn show is that yuuji ate one of sakunas fingers and is his vessel or whatever??

And speaking of that, how did i not know yuuji and megumi (and… nobara…?) are the protagonists?? I went days without googling the premise of the show (yup.) and i was floored, lemme tell you! I really had no idea what was going on, yall 😌

So back to who is who again (pt 3/?, Geto edition) -

Ok. So..... OK. Geto, right? WTF is up here? here's what I've got

Geto + gojo (and Shoko!) = #besties

Geto has a crisis

Now hes racist

Aaaaaand slaughters a village (and his family??? is that right??)

Geto + gojo = #breakup

Gojo is real sad about it

10 years later geto comes back and gojo kills him

Geto is reanimated by the freakiest looking yeerk ive ever seen (does anyone even know animorphs anymore or is that series a fever dream I made up?)

#sadboi vibes only plz #trapped in the prison realm #justGojothings #honestly fuck the Shibuya arc

okay ANDDDD -

Gojo + Geto + KFC = ???!

y'all i see them referenced with KFC all the time. this is definitely a private joke that I am not in on lmao

moving on!

Sakuna v Gojo.

Yeah, fuck this arc too honestly. Gojo's my favorite. Sue me! I'm basic! I never said I wasn't!

back to CHOSO again (my beloathed <3) (who is who pt 4/?):

I have figured it out!! Choso was with the freaky bitches to avenge his brothers, then somehow figured out that Yuuji is his half brother and badda bing, bad girl turns good. love to see it.

But, is it cannon??

Some of these are characters are written so baby girl-ified that i think id be upset reading the source material. Like… is choso really that sweet and innocent? He is written as the sweetiest of baby gorls. But like isnt he an antagonist? I suspect he probably has one or two scenes in canon that are naïve and endearing, and the fanfic girlies ran with it. As they absolutely should. But im attached this version now and I dont want that ruined 😌 I've seen yall bitch about the white dog thing in SMAU, but you know what? I love it here in delulu land and im sticking with it.

Also, I have a feeling that Nanami is just a serious guy with a stick up his ass. Do I love how he is written? yes. Do I stan a romantic family man? idk, ask my husband (yes, I do). Do I think he is TOTALLY different in cannon? Absolutely

Do I think Geto is this tragic, heartbreaking villian in cannon? Yeah, I think that's probably right. but i mean, genocidal maniac is kindve hard to reconcile with how he is portrayed in the ficdom universe. Also, I love how many people just choose to simply ignore his betrayal arc and pretend it simply ✨didnt happen✨. i love it and im living for it.

There are about 10,000 different portrayals of Gojo in fic. Some common themes are:

fuckboy gojo

sadboy gojo

lovesick gojo

emotionally unavailable gojo

I think most right is probably #4? idk man, if my life was in danger all the time and I was viewed as (at best) nothing more than a weapon by society AND my best friend betrayed me like this? I probably would also float through life with minimal attachments and a laissez faire attitude. but then this is also challenged by his clear attachment to the protagonists (who are, apparently, the students and not the teachers)

Will I watch/read this anime/manga?

Honestly?? Idk yall. I kinda mentioned this earlier, but I have now gotten attached to these characters as they are in my head. in delulu land. Also, my real life still kinda sucks rn, and idk if I am currently built for the death and betrayal and ANGST in my fantasy world too, thank you very much.

That said, my brother in law is begging me to watch it since he heard im doing this. This world is genuinely so complex and interesting, and the magic system is fascinating. AND it would be interesting to go through it and see what ive actually gotten right and what ive gotten just so, so wrong.

Maybe if anyone actually reads this and it picks up traction ill consider it, and do a follow up post with the right and the wrong

N E Ways! I think that's about all the word vomit I am capable of right now. if anyone actually read all this, I hope you enjoyed my nonsensical ramblings! feel free to tell me what I got right, what I got wrong, or how good/bad my takes are.

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concussed-to-pieces · 8 months ago

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Arbiter's Solstice; Part One

Fandom: Resident Evil: Village

Pairing: Eventual Karl Heisenberg/AFAB!Reader

Rating: Holy shit M.

Summary: There was a soft, liquid sound that you had grown to recognize as him running his tongue over his teeth, but the former lord offered no true reply to your impudent question. Instead, he remarked, almost idly, “do you know what happened to Miranda?”

A/N: I yield, I yield. Had to chop this up into a few parts and start posting them, otherwise I never would have gotten it finished. Welcome to an AU of extreme proportions, featuring multiple of my most favorite tropes in media. Enjoy!

Tag List: @stargazerofgoldenwords @cookiethewriter @crookedmoonsaultpunk @colesterstrudel @spoopyredacted @velvet-paradox @kotall-ohh @katreneebug @missjasmine98 @sunflowers-and-swear-words @savage-rhi @nova-ivy541 @xyaswrlldd @the-videodame @luvley-shadow @akashiiiiii @nerdygirlgamer1972 @problemdawgz

[If you were tagged in error, please let me know and I’ll remove you!]

[DISCLAIMER: The last Resident Evil I played was Resident Evil 1. I have not played Resident Evil Village. I have, as ever, extensively dug into the wiki and other available resources, yet I know I am by no means an expert on the subject matter. I ask only for leniency and your charity in this endeavor, as well as forgiveness for any out of character moments or glaring mistakes. Thank you so much for your interest!]

[!TRIGGER WARNING!: This installment contains gore, mentions of death, canon-typical violence and extreme depictions of mental and physical duress. Stay safe!]

When the elderly Mother Miranda had passed due to an extremely harsh Winter, the Lords had fallen briefly to infighting before partially uniting under the bloody banner of Dimitrescu, much to the dismay of House Heisenberg. There upon the bleak fields of the Heisenberg estate two nightmarish armies had met in a final clash, and the Soldats of Lord Heisenberg succumbed.

For his crimes of attempted usurpery, treachery and deceit, Lord Heisenberg was stripped of his lands and title and confined to the dungeons of Castle Dimitrescu, where he was drained of his previous strength by blood wards and terrible magics. Every year on the solstice since then, a new servant was chosen to attend to him, both a great honor and a devastating burden.

It had always been this or that, and you found that you could endure this.

…

Into a life of servitude you had been pressed at a very young age. Cleaning the floors, setting the table, trimming candle wicks. Once you grew strong enough it turned to bringing buckets of water in from the well for the kitchen or slopping the pigs, oiling the tack and saddles and mucking out the stables.

It had always been either this or that, and while you had survived this long, you knew you hadn't the strength to endure much more of the mistreatment at the hands of Lady Alcina and her…lovely daughters.

Then, you were Chosen. A great honor, so they said, reserved for only a select few. You were, of course, not released from your usual tasks. This was just one more thing for you to manage.

A terrifying lord, a ferocious fighter, The Iron Horse.

You knew the prisoner had been all those things and more, for all that he was incapacitated now. Indeed, the former Lord Karl Heisenberg seemed to linger in a dreamlike half-conscious state, so devoid of the purported verve and brimstone of his past. All that remained of that man he had been (from what you had heard, anyway) was the way he bolted his food from the proffered tray like a hungry vârcolac, hardly pausing to breathe, his unkempt facial hair often matted with the gruel-ridden remains of his meals. Food was the only thing to rouse him from his doldrums, and so it was food that was brought to him.

Every week since you had been picked to become Heisenberg's handmaiden you made the slow, trembling descent to the cell he had been bound to, a flimsy wooden tray in your hands. But it was either this or that, and you could endure bringing gruel-slop to an incapacitated prisoner, the occasional attempts to clean food off his face or blood from his back. At the very least, it kept you out of sight of the other lords for a few extra moments. It was technically safer. Technically.

Until the day when Heisenberg raised his head to look at you.

…

You nearly leaped out of your skin, startled to the point where you dropped the tray. It hit the floor with a loud bang and you crouched for a moment, curling into yourself defensively.

There was a loud snort and you heard the creaking of the ropes that bound him, but you didn't dare to look up. You began fumbling to get the bowl back onto the tray, grateful that it hadn't spilled much. The Lady was more than content to give Heisenberg nothing but the dregs of the kitchen, and sometimes not even that–

You felt hot breath huff out over your head and your hands clenched on the tray. He must have lowered his head again, adjusted himself somehow. A sharp nose nudged the crown of your head and there was a rattling inhale.

“F-Forgive me, my lord.” You stared down at the tray, internally panicking as you watched the bowl begin to quiver due to your nervous shaking. “I did not mean to disturb you.” Truthfully, you had bumped his upper arm with the tray when you stumbled on the uneven, crumbling floor, but he had actually responded to the touch, his head snapping up with alarming speed. Normally the only thing that would get him to move was the bowl placed beneath his nose.

You raised the tray so that he could eat (operating mainly off of muscle memory), and you were horrified when you accidentally caught Lord Heisenberg's gaze through his hair. His eyes felt like they were burning you alive, the intensity of that half-lidded chartreuse stare making you want to flee. Blessedly it was only for the scantest of moments that he studied you, the former lord soon returning to his meal with the dispassionate attitude of a large predator ignoring prey not worth their time. You averted your own gaze, uncertain of the punishment that could be exacted for making eye contact with the Iron Horse.

Heisenberg slurped at the bowl, the meager contents of which began to trickle down his chin and into his wiry, unkempt beard. Once more operating out of habit, you reached forward with a corner of your apron. You often wiped his mouth after he was finished eating, otherwise whatever he ate would mat into the disarray of facial hair he sported. Today however, the former lord’s tongue made quick work of the dribbles before you could even reach them.

His nose grazed your outstretched hand. “Th--ank…you.”

You knew your sudden gasp was rude, but you had also never been thanked once in your life. Servitude was expected, anticipated, demanded of you, why would anyone ever…

It had sounded like it was difficult for him to speak. He had never spoken before, you didn’t even know he could! You needed to respond, you had to say something. You finally managed to whisper, “y-you're welcome, Lord Heisenberg,” your grip tightening on the tray handles.

“Everyone else…” Another long, eternally long pause. It was so long, you wondered whether he had gone back to sleep. “...fears me. Hates me.” Those green eyes met yours once more, and you could have sworn there was the faintest gleam of curiosity. “Not you?”

Your swallow was too loud. You cringed on reflex, frantically trying to think of a response. It was true, most of the other villagers spoke poorly of the former lord. Some would even go so far as to spit when they mentioned him, and the Lady certainly harbored no great love for him. Honesty, you decided, the Lady would want me to be honest.

“You are a prisoner and…and you have not been cruel to me.” Your voice trembled slightly. “I see no reason to be cruel to you.”

His eyes crinkled at the corners and your stomach lurched terribly when you noticed, for he was smiling. “Oh, but I can be. You have no idea the cruelty I'm capable of.” The rasp of his voice lent a horrendous sense of surety to his words; you did not doubt that someone who was a sort of sibling to the other lords could be extremely cruel.

There was another agonizingly long pause. Your breath came quick and sharp. He seemed to be waiting for something from you, much as you didn't want to continue the unnerving conversation. “W-Well, you haven't been,” you managed to repeat weakly, praying that you wouldn't be punished for your blunt observation.

Heisenberg grunted, shifting his weight slightly. After a moment you heard his breathing even out. He had drifted back to slumber, then, or whatever his kind considered as such. You allowed a sigh of relief to escape you, then scurried out of the cell.

…

It was a week later that you made your way back into the dungeons, the tray bearing the usual bowl with various refuse from the week's meals and, safely hidden in your apron pocket, a few precious pieces of venison from dinner's herb-studded pot roast. It had smelled delicious while it was cooking; even now, hours later, your empty stomach twinged with hunger at the memory of the scent.

Being a humble servant you were, of course, not permitted to eat at the Lady’s table, instead subsisting off of much of the same scraps that Lord Heisenberg did. However, you could at least take your items from plates left behind on the table, instead of the kitchen’s slop bucket for the pigs. While they didn't exactly eat, Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters often pantomimed at dining, which led to half-mangled leftovers that you could safely manage to survive off of. The Lady Beneviento and Lord Moreau were the only ones who truly ate at mealtimes, though Lady Beneviento would often painstakingly cut her dinner into tiny bites to feed her strange doll for most of the meal.

When you went to feed Lord Heisenberg, the Lady Dimitrescu would stand over you as you poured the slurry from the bucket into a bowl, watching like a hawk to ensure her ‘dear brother’ wasn't ‘getting more than his due’. It was the most nerve-wracking part of your chores. Too little and she would scold you, “do you want Heisenberg to perish?”, but too much led to you being pitched across the room while the tall woman raged wildly overhead. There was no consistency either; some days you were barely permitted to cover the bottom of the bowl, while others had the bowl overflowing with the foul mixture. You supposed it was all down to the whims of the Lady, nothing more complex than that.

You wiped the sweat from your brow, frowning when you touched a tender spot. For all his simpering, Lord Moreau bore the burden of an explosive temper, the Piscean lord having lashed out at you earlier over a soup that was ostensibly too thick. Perhaps the temper was a family trait? Regardless, you were lucky that you had survived his outburst with nothing but some bruising. You knew many villagers had been torn limb from limb by the troubled lord, so you did your best to avoid garnering his attention for good or ill.

The cell (which was more of an enclosure really, a holding pen made of some sturdy, nearly-black wood) was damp, cold year-round and rarely frequented by the odd stray rat or crow. It wasn't exactly a sealed or watertight environment; the stone walls and stairs were coated with slimy moss and tiny trickles of water from the reservoir. But something about the area seemed to make most ordinary creatures give it a wide berth. Perhaps it was a combination of the smell of blood and the wards carved into that strange wood? You tried not to dwell on the subject, finding that the longer you thought about it, the more your skin crawled.

“My lord?” You called your usual greeting, grateful when he stirred at the sound of your voice. Some days it was harder than others to rouse him to consciousness. “Your meal, Lord Heisenberg.”

Just as he always did, Heisenberg hungrily tucked into the slop. While he was thus preoccupied you cautiously took one of the pieces of venison you had procured from the table and slipped it into the bowl with a soft plop. Despite your attempt at stealth the former lord seemed to immediately take notice if his sudden pause was any indicator. Again that stare was leveled at you, drowsy eyes somehow still managing to pin you in place.

“Where–did you get that?”

You hadn't expected him to speak to you again. You took a moment to recover from your shock, eventually getting out, “th-the dinner table, sir.”

His only response was a wordless grunt, the man quickly digging his teeth into the bloody, herb-laden bit of meat. A soft groan escaped him as he swallowed and you couldn't help the flush that heated your face, fixing your attention pointedly on the tray in front of you.

“I have more for you. I've already eaten.” You lied rapidly before you could think better of it, fishing around in your apron pocket for a moment. Heisenberg's expression, what little of it you could see through the curtain of his hair, had gone wary. Yellow-green eyes drifted sluggishly from your outstretched palm to your face, then back to your hand. “If you don't eat it, it will go to waste.” You insisted, trying for a reassuring smile.

The ropes binding him creaked suddenly. He lowered his head and you felt cracked lips, sharp teeth and a warm tongue barely graze your palm, then he was withdrawing to devour in peace. You exhaled as subtly as you could, trying your hardest not to seem terrified. Why on earth had you offered it to him in your hand?! He wasn't some tame beast, he was Lord Heisenberg! You were incredibly blessed to still possess your fingers.

He had left one piece in your hand. You looked up, confused, but he had already buried his face in the bowl anew to finish off the last of the slop. Nervously you tucked the final bit of meat into your mouth, chewing it slowly to savor it as much as you could.

“Thank you.” The lord's voice sounded slightly stronger, much to your surprise.

“O-Of course, m-m-my lord.” You stammered, trying and failing to keep your tone from squeaking.

The ropes hummed slightly under the strain of Heisenberg's motions, the man adjusting his legs beneath him until he was nearly able to stand properly. He loomed over you, still hunched somewhat, grunting in what seemed to be effort. You pressed your back to the wood behind you, bracing yourself for whatever might come next.

His nose brushed the bruise on your forehead and you flinched. “Moreau.” The animosity in his tone made you want to crumple, for all that it didn't seem to be aimed at you. The man inhaled, the subsequent growl coming from his chest. “-and the colossal bitch.”

“My lord–” you attempted to protest, assuming he must mean the Lady Alcina.

“Dinner was exquisite.” Heisenberg said abruptly, his eyes looking more alert than they ever had to your memory. “I'd be honored if you'd join me again next week.” His voice still sounded ragged, but he no longer had to pause between words.

Your knees shook beneath you but you managed a nod. After all, you didn't have much choice. You had to bring him his meals, otherwise it was back to Alcina and her spawn. It was always either this or that, and you could handle this.

Probably.

…

Sneaking Lord Heisenberg bits of unspoiled food from the dinner table became normal over the following weeks as the spring-gray valley shifted into the forest green of summer. Discarded chunks of meat and gristle, bits of bread, fruits that were a touch too ripe to catch the fickle attentions of the ladies of the village…Lord Heisenberg accepted every meager offering you managed to provide with a rough sort of gratitude, always inclining his head even if he didn't manage to speak. Talking seemed to tax him greatly, though certain days found him nearly alert, and he was not so prone to drowsiness as he once was.

“Where are you when you aren't bringing me my dinner?” He queried unprompted one evening, glancing up at you.

“I…” you hesitated. The man obviously bore no fondness for Lady Dimitrescu, perhaps you ought to lie about your usual occupations? Nothing good ever came from being untruthful, though. “I tend to Lady Alcina and her daughters.”

He grumbled, “That explains the smell.” While you were trying to decide whether you ought to be offended, the former lord shook himself bodily. His arms, bound to the wall behind him by those strange ropes, made a few distressing cracking noises and he grunted, this time sounding pained. “Can you–my back is…” he trailed off, trying to straighten up.

“Oh, of course.” You placed the tray down, pausing uncertainly by his shoulder. He had evidently been whipped recently, his back covered in half-healed lash marks. The tattered remains of his shirt were stuck to a few of the wounds and so you gently peeled it free, assuming that was what he needed in order to make himself more comfortable.

“Thank you.” His mouth was right next to your ear when he spoke, causing you to flinch at his husky whisper.

“W-Whatever you need.” You mumbled, keeping your eyes on the floor while you retreated. You weren't certain what then possessed you to ask, “does it…does it hurt when she does that to you?”

Overhead, a crow that had been pecking at the bars cawed loudly, the sudden noise making you start. There was a soft, liquid sound that you had grown to recognize as him running his tongue over his teeth, but the former lord offered no true reply to your impudent question. Instead, he remarked, almost idly, “do you know what happened to Miranda?”

Miranda. Mother Miranda? “She…we lost her to the winter. It was a-” your brow furrowed as you tried to recall what Lady Alcina had called the illness. “-pneumonia?”

Heisenberg roared; it took you several terrified moments to realize that he was laughing hard enough to make him wheeze. The crow took flight in a frightened rush. “Pneumonia, that's a fucking riot.” He finally snorted, shaking his head. “As if that old hag could be taken out so easily.”

“Don't–!” You began to protest before your brain caught up with just who it was that you were speaking to. Those strange yellow-green eyes leveled at you, as if he was daring you to continue. “Don't speak about her like that.” You finished, your voice barely a whisper.

“Were you even born when all that happened?” Karl sounded incredulous, but not irritated. Heartened, you shook your head, only to be battered by his harsh tone a moment later, “so you know exactly fuck all.”

“I know what I've been taught,” you replied tartly, “just like everyone else. Lady Dimitrescu is very thorough with our histories.”

Heisenberg rolled his eyes, looking for all the world like a sulky teenager. “As I said. Fuck all.”

You jerked upright, seizing the tray and marching out of the cell with the sound of the former lord's half-crazed laughter ringing in your ears.

You wanted to be infuriated, you wanted to be upset at his insinuation. But…

What could he know about Mother Miranda's death? It was true, you hadn't even been born when Miranda had passed. All you knew was what you'd been told by the Lady, what you had read in the histories of the castle.

What did Karl know that you didn't know? Was there more to the story than what you had been led to believe?

…

As the summer solstice drew near, preparations began to get underway for the annual festival. With the extra work you were hard-pressed to bring Heisenberg his meals in a timely manner, often stumbling down the stairs exhausted well after the sun had set.

The former lord seemed to regress somewhat as the solstice approached, no longer raising his head when you visited and simply waiting for his food with a vacant expression. Not that you were looking at his face! Absolutely not, you knew better than that. You simply assumed, that was all.

One evening you tripped on your hem, taking a nasty fall at the bottom of the stairs that knocked the wind out of you. Tears welled up in your eyes while you laid there on the hard-packed dirt, your scraped elbow resting awkwardly against the wall. A quiet little hiccup made its way out and you heard Heisenberg stir in his cell, the ropes creaking much louder than you expected.

“You–alright?” He called, voice grating harshly. “Anything broken?”

“Fine, I'm fine.” You grumbled, mainly to yourself, wiping the tears that had managed to escape. “Just winded.” You rolled over, moving to try and collect the tray and its spilled contents. Luckily the bowl had sloshed over onto the tray itself instead of the floor, and the prize in your pocket was unharmed. You breathed a sigh of relief, getting to your feet.

A low, raspy chuckle issued from the imprisoned man. “That's the first time you've talked to me like I was a real person.” Terrified by your momentary lapse in propriety, you tried to stammer out an apology. “Nothing wrong with it, sweetheart. If anything…it's a comfort to know I'm human to you.”

Sweetheart. A casual endearment, a kind way of addressing you. You were flushed immediately, continuing to stutter as you tottered your way across the floor. “U-Um, with dinner, I…” you finally paused, pulling free the precious loaf of herb-infused bread. “I found this. F-For you.” You knew the lie was weak, you knew he knew exactly where you'd gotten the bread. You had taken it directly from the ovens, wrapped it in a napkin and snuck it out before setting the table for the evening meal. It was your first and only act of true thievery, and you just prayed that no one would notice its absence. You didn't think you would survive that beating.

The former lord's eyes met your own and your heart started to hammer in your chest the longer he stared. He had never made such prolonged eye contact with you. It was terrifying, but…you didn't want it to end, either. Confused, you attempted to ignore that desire and instead tore a small piece off the loaf, extending it to him in the palm of your hand. He had never expressed any annoyance with your odd behavior and so you had persisted, but today…

Heisenberg's eyes narrowed. For a moment he reminded you of the animal you had once seen him as, the man refusing to break eye contact as he leaned down to eat from your palm. You chose to avert your eyes, more than a little bewildered by how you felt. His teeth delicately latched down onto the bread and you immediately retreated to pull off a fresh piece, the herbs staining your fingertips green as you did so. You were startled when he licked your fingers next, instead of simply taking the bread as he had before. Without intending to, you let out a surprised little squeak.

The lord’s eyes shot back up to your own and, while you couldn't precisely tell through the thick, matted facial hair he sported, you were almost certain that he was smirking at you. “What's wrong? Afraid I'll snap them off?” He chuckled. Truthfully you had actually considered that and he must have noticed the shudder which ran through you, because he quickly continued, “I'd be an idiot to bite the hand that feeds me, sweetheart. Especially after you've been so…accommodating.”

“I don't-” you paused, debating on just how brave you wanted to be. “Why does she keep you down here?”

“Fear.” Heisenberg's teeth flashed while he chewed his next bite. “I'm strong, even like this. I'll tear her throat out and she knows it.”

You balked. “You would fight the Lady?”

Lord Heisenberg shrugged as best as he could manage. “Why not? Something to do, right? Maybe I'll have better luck this time.”

This time.

“How many–”

“Can I get some more of that bread?” Heisenberg interrupted before you could finish your question, his attention fixed pointedly on the remainder of the small loaf in your hand.

“Oh! Of course, I'm sorry.” You pulled off another piece and gave it to him, marveling slightly at the docile way he ate it out of your palm. It was thrilling in a way, like gaining the trust of a skittish creature. You doubted he would be fond of the comparison, though. He didn't strike you as the docile type despite his current state.

“Alcina and I were close once, you know.” Heisenberg continued to chew the bread almost meditatively after he spoke, leaving you to await his next sentence with baited breath. “I was loyal to her, if you can believe that.” The former lord's expression darkened. “A faithful little mongrel.”

Your heart sank. “What happened?”

He didn't deign to answer you for several minutes. You had all but given up hope for a response when he spoke next. “Ambition.” The word was sneered, derision dripping from every letter. “Alcina didn't want to kill sweet, helpless Mother Miranda herself, but she sure as hell could get someone else to do it.” Karl’s sigh echoed in the cell. “And get someone else to take the fall for it when the old witch turned up dead. Pneumonia,” he scoffed, “she's sanitizing. That bitch and I both know what happened that day, and we both know why she went after me so hard.”

“To keep you under her control?” you ventured timidly.

Heisenberg's grin was full of more teeth than you'd like, most of them stained a dull green from the herbs in the bread. “To keep me from ripping her apart for her betrayal.” He clarified, his tone an odd singsong. “You should have heard what she promised me, that Amazonian fuck. My own village out of the valley, my own dominion, freedom. And like a blind fool, I…” He trailed off, his burning gaze going vacant.

“You believed her.” Now this, you could sympathize with. The Lady Dimitrescu had always been cruel to you, but it was the occasional softening of her tone, the honeyed promises she would make and break to you and the rest of the servants… ”I'm sorry.”

The former lord bared his teeth again. “I won't make that mistake again,” he hissed. “Someday, someday–she'd better watch that enormous back of hers.”

“Why does she whip you, then? I feel like that's…er, not intelligent.” You tried to be delicate, the guilt from speaking poorly about the Lady pricking your conscience.

Heisenberg lolled his head in your direction. “Blood, sweetheart. She's in the wine business and I guess my affinity for my…gift makes me a pretty decent vintage. Almost as good as her sweet little virgins.” The former lord stared at you thoughtfully for a moment, then closed his eyes. He abruptly seemed exhausted, his body going slack in his binds.

You took that as your cue to leave, carefully retrieving the tray and rising to your feet. As you turned to depart, however, Karl spoke up once more.

“Keep coming back to me, will you?” He requested, his voice soft. “We don't have much longer.”

Your brow furrowed in concern, but you nodded obediently.

Upon reaching the top of the stairs, you were surprised to find Lady Beneviento's favorite doll, Angie, propped up in the corner of the landing. “Now how did you get there?” You mused aloud, wiping your hands clean on your apron before you carefully picked the doll up. Angie's eyes, as ever, seemed to follow your every move, and you couldn't help but marvel at the skilled craftsmanship that permitted such an illusion. “I'd better get you back to Lady Beneviento, little miss. No doubt she's missing you.”

Later that evening once you'd bedded down for the night, you found yourself tossing and turning despite your exhaustion.

‘We don't have much longer’. What could he mean by that?

…

Apparently what he meant was that you would be an integral part of the binding ritual on the solstice. You had always assumed (perhaps naively) that Lord Heisenberg's handmaidens were reassigned to serve in one of the lesser houses after their year of service, but now the whole horrible truth was being laid out neatly in front of you.

Sacrifice, human sacrifice. A handmaiden every solstice to keep Heisenberg bound, virgin blood spilled by the House Dimitrescu as was their want.

You had been dragged from your bedding in the lightless hours of predawn, barely aware of what was occurring before a burlap sack was thrown over your head and you were struck hard enough to lose consciousness.

You drifted in and out, the burlap difficult to breathe through. Someone was moving, shifting, carrying you for what seemed like hours until suddenly, freezing cold stone met the backs of your legs. You jolted to full awareness at the shocking chill, realizing as you did that your legs were bare to the knee and whatever you were wearing was not what you had worn to sleep.

The sack was torn from your head and you immediately darted your eyes around, fear and panic welling up as you realized you had never seen this room before. Some secret chamber in the bowels of Castle Dimitrescu, if you had to guess.

A marble altar beneath you piled high with dead branches, shallow channels etched into the marble flooring, and…

And the former Lord Heisenberg kneeling beside the altar, his head bowed and his hands bound in front of him.

You barely had the time to ponder that curiosity (why on earth would someone tie Heisenberg's hands in front of him?) before your attention was redirected to your own predicament. Your arms had been secured at the wrist and elbow, hands folded at the small of your back. From the ache of your muscles at the unnatural position, you could assume you'd been bound for a while. You were quickly realizing, to your dismay, that you were hardly clothed. Your normal garb had been replaced by a thin stained shift, only just long enough to brush your knees.

“Awake, awake, awake,” came the reedy voice of Lord Moreau, and his large, damp hand clumsily brushed your cheek. “Finally awake! Little morsel, l-l-little treat.”

You were unable to hide your revulsion, flinching back from his touch. The Piscean lord looked momentarily teary, but he quickly mastered himself and rewarded your lack of manners with a sharp blow to your face. The strike sent you tumbling off the altar, your shoulder meeting the marble with a hard thud. You bit your lip, willing yourself to stay quiet. It was always worse if you gave a reaction.

There was an infuriated-sounding gurgle and then Moreau was seizing your arm hard enough to make you cry out, the lord dragging you to your feet and tossing you back onto the altar as if you weighed nothing at all. “Be silent, be silent, Alcina trusted me with this.” He spoke half to himself, his webbed hands roiling over one another while he paced. “She's so busy, so busy, she trusted her favorite-”

“That super-sized bitch wouldn't trust you to wake up in the morning.” Heisenberg groaned. “This is sloppy work, Moreau. We've never done a pyre and the branches aren't even dry, you stupid fuck.”

“Don't call me that!” Moreau shrieked, his voice breaking. “Mother said-”

“Miranda's dead,” Karl interrupted him flatly. “She's dead and nothing that any of you do will bring her back. That old hag is rotting where she belongs.”

Moreau burbled wordlessly, clutching at his head before wailing, “stop saying those things about Mother!”

“Dead. Old. Bitch.” Heisenberg sneered, the former lord finally managing to kneel upright properly so he could glare at his ‘sibling’. Moreau quailed momentarily, watery eyes flicking in your direction.

“You…you have helped him!” He accused you, the piercing whine of his voice making you wince. “What have you done? Tell me what you've done!” Those webbed hands wrapped around your throat in an iron grip, the lord dissolving into gibbering hysterics while he began to choke the life out of you.

You knew full well that Lord Salvatore Moreau could easily have snapped your neck, but he seemed to have slipped into some kind of irrational madness. The knowledge did you little good, however. The reality was that you would die all the same whether he strangled you or broke your neck. As he shook you, you wondered whether anyone in the kitchens would even notice you were gone. Your hands clenched in their binds, more of a reflex than a true attempt to free yourself, but you managed to swing one feeble kick out at Moreau's side. Naturally, the aquatic lord entirely ignored it.

“Moreau!” Heisenberg's tone sounded strangely urgent when he barked the other lord's name. “If you kill them now, you'll fuck up Alcina's plan!”

Salvatore started, his grip easing minutely. “And you'll get free.” The naked fear in his voice cut through your rattled senses. Heisenberg's response was a low, guttural snarl. “I cannot fail.” Purpose and surety seemed to be breathed anew into Moreau's hideous form, the lord hurriedly lurching away to acquire a torch from a nearby sconce.

As soon as his back was turned, Heisenberg caught your eye. The man jerked his chin to the side, indicating the direction of the door to the chamber. Run, he seemed to mouth, but between your current disorientation and his tangled facial hair you were unsure. You shook your head all the same, confused and scared by the ferocity his face took on afterwards.

Karl leaned forward, bared his teeth and snapped them at you. Run, now!

You tried to stand and the uneven pile of damp branches beneath you gave way, toppling over and half-burying you in the process. Moreau made a noise of distress, shambling back towards you with a torch in hand. “What h-have you done, oh what has happened?” He asked in dismay. “All my hard work–and the solstice-! You keep ruining everything!” The lord raged, his temper seeming to flare once more. “I cannot allow-”

Clang!

The noise echoed sharply off the walls, making Moreau jump. All you could see from your awkward vantage point was that it looked like one of the sconces on the wall had given way, dumping a torch onto the chamber’s floor. The misshapen lord huffed out angrily, throwing down the torch he'd carried onto the pile of sticks by your leg.

You frantically tried to get away from the guttering flames, the dampness of the surrounding wood your only saving grace at the moment. Moreau giggled softly to himself, obviously enjoying your panicky struggle before he sauntered off towards the newly-downed torch.

Another metallic noise rang out further down the hall, but you were so intent on escaping the smoking nest around you you didn't bother looking up to see what had made the sound.

Moreau, on the other hand, released a frustrated bellow and shambled off faster.

You finally managed to roll away from the majority of the embers, the torch dying a slow death smothered by soggy, green wood. Sticks stabbed and poked into your stomach and back but you continued, doggedly kicking free of the limbs after several fitful moments.

Karl was abruptly over you, his hunched form blocking whatever meager light the torches provided. “Still.” He breathed, his voice barely a whisper. “Be still.”

You obeyed, halting on your side. The former lord bent even further, supporting his weight by planting his fists on the floor. Something whipped past your ear and then there was a bright, vibrant pain in your right upper arm. Heisenberg cursed under his breath when you gasped out, the man’s eyes darting to your own.

Your hands were suddenly loosed of their bonds, and you did your best to refrain from groaning as pins and needles surged down from your shoulders to your fingertips. Curling into yourself, you took note of the fact that a small cut now graced your upper arm.

Karl grimaced. “I missed.” After flexing your fingers experimentally, you reached forward and dug your nails into the thick, rust-stained rope that was wrapped around his wrists. Heisenberg jerked back, obviously spooked by your speed. “Won't matter.” He muttered, but he also didn't try to pull away again.

You struggled with the knots, wiping rusty-maroon flakes off your sweaty palms over and over again in an effort to secure a better grip. Finally, you managed to weasel your index into a tight loop, coaxing it into loosening.

You felt Karl exhale hard, his breath ghosting over the top of your head. However, with your bare knees pressed to the cold marble floor, you sensed her approach before you truly heard it. “The Lady.” You whispered, horror seizing your body in that familiar vise grip.

Heisenberg fell over himself in his effort to retreat, the man again indulging in a prolonged exhale of expletives. Lady Dimitrescu's voice echoed down the hall, “--you know I don't have much time Salvatore, and you promised me you could manage this…”

“I can! I can, o-of course I can.” Moreau sounded nauseatingly frantic, wet footsteps following in the wake of Lady Dimitrescu's stately heels. “I just needed a bit more…a little b-bit more time, that's all. They are not cooperating.”

“Dear, sweet Moreau, why would they? Humans are terrified of getting their heads cut off.” Alcina's words were said kindly, but you felt like you'd been punched in the stomach.

Karl hung his head from his spot on his knees, continuing to pepper the tepid air with his whispered bouts of inventive profanity.

You turned your gaze to the hallway, a shudder running down your spine as the Lady Dimitrescu and Lord Moreau entered the chamber. Dimitrescu began clicking her tongue, seeming disappointed. “Salvatore, what is all this debris?”

“A pyre!” You couldn't believe it when the lord pulled himself up and puffed his chest out proudly. “To burn the sacrifice.”

Alcina rubbed her temples.

There was a flash of movement and Moreau sailed through the air, crashing headfirst into the floor with a dull crunch. “Well, now that that's managed.” The giant woman remarked cheerily, stalking towards you. “Afraid I don't have the luxury of time on my side, so you'll be going to your grave with questions unanswered.”

You were wrenched upright, feet momentarily leaving the floor with the force of the motion. While you were grateful to be wholly free of the prickly limbs, you knew you were now even further from safety than you had been with Lord Moreau.

“Greet my dear brother, won't you?” Lady Dimitrescu cooed in your ear, her nails digging into your shoulders like talons.

You winced, trying to muster up the ability to speak. Your mouth was so dry. “Lord Heisenberg-” You managed to say, but you were cuffed across the head by Alcina without warning, the blow crumpling you to your knees once more.

While you attempted to stand again Lady Dimitrescu chided you, her tone that of a fondly exasperated parent. “Little one, you know my dear brother was stripped of his title. He is just Heisenberg, just my silly brother.”

“I apologize, my Lady.” You breathed, bracing your aching forehead momentarily on the freezing marble flooring. “Please forgive my mistake, I had no intention of offending. I simply did not know how to address the L–how to address him.”

“You should not be addressing him at all!” Alcina snapped, her wrathful eruption making you cringe. “You were to bring him his sustenance and leave. You were not supposed to make idle conversation and dawdle with this pathetic–miserable–!”

“Shut your fucking hole!” Heisenberg shouted abruptly. You dared to sneak a glance in his direction and he was glaring at Lady Dimitrescu, his expression so decidedly full of hatred that for a moment, you were unsure which of them scared you more. “Every damn year we go through this. Just get on with it already, you colossal-”

Alcina's pointed shoe buried itself in your ribs, the towering woman kicking you aside as if you weighed nothing at all. Your stomach ended up crashing into the top of the altar and you fought for breath, vision graying at the edges while your fingers clawed for a grip on the smooth stone. Through the remaining tangle of branches you felt an ornate handle, and you clutched down on instinct as you slid back off the altar to the floor. A blade met your eyes when you furtively glanced down, the sharp edge blackened with some sort of strange patina, but you didn't exactly have time to ponder the object for the Lady was speaking once more.

“I've heard tell, Heisenberg. The kitchen maids have mentioned spotting your little lamb sneaking food.” The Lady hissed. “Sneaking it to you, to poor, poor Heisenberg.”

“No.” The former lord retorted flatly. “Whatever they did with it, it wasn't for me. Maybe they were feeding a wild animal or-”

Lady Dimitrescu's fingers wound into your hair and she pulled you up onto your knees, the agony leaving you trembling. “Not a sound from your little pet, not a sound! So brave for you.” The woman crooned, tightening her grip until your scalp began to pound. “So brave and so, so foolish. Donna told me everything, little pet.”

“You titanic cunt, I already told you they didn't do anything for me!” Karl barked.

“You're so lively, Heisenberg! Normally you can barely even open your eyes. I wonder why that is.” The Lady hummed, almost to herself.

Heisenberg replied curtly, “because your moron wound me a little tight. Honestly I can't believe you trusted that idiot with something so important. You're clearly slipping.” He leaned back, shooting Alcina a look that somehow managed to be condescending. “Gettin’ fat and lazy, are we?”

Your only warning was feeling the Lady's fingers twitch. Driven by pure survival and an overwhelming desire to live, you stabbed the blade of whatever weapon you had grabbed backwards under your arm into Alcina's leg. She screamed, her hold on you slacking for a single moment, and you seized that moment to lunge for Karl.

A terrifying lord, a ferocious fighter, The Iron Horse.

“Please-!” You begged Heisenberg, frantically ripping at the knots still securing his hands. “Please, please please–” your mouth couldn't seem to utter any other words while the former lord stared dumbly down at you, then up at the Lady. You dissolved into panicked tears, hiccuping and dropping your forehead to rest on his chest in defeat.

The ancient, blood-drenched flax abruptly parted beneath your fingers like water. Karl's chest expanded as the former lord took a deep breath.

Alcina's talons drove through your shoulder and you were flung back into the side of the altar. The last thing you could recall was your temple splitting on the sharp marble corner. You could have sworn you heard Karl yell something hoarsely, and then…nothing.

…

Eternity.

Eternity spent under someone else's thumb, eternity serving another's ambitions, eternity waiting for his promised reward.

Brave, strong, loyal Heisenberg. Even the memory of their faux mother's words made him feel ill. It had always been some sort of test, a trial to overcome, just a bit further, until the resentment and Alcina's clever little jabs had burrowed deep enough for him to do something…regrettable.

Though, only regrettable in the sense that it allowed Dimitrescu to have her way. Karl would never regret what he did to Miranda. The old witch had used him long enough, and he made her end swift. The fight with Alcina was…much less simple. Frankly, he had underestimated her and as such, Heisenberg lost spectacularly.

Thus began the second eternity in his life, one where he faded dreamily in and out of consciousness for year after year. Eat the scraps, take his licks, go back to sleep. An interminable slog of time while he did his best to maintain the barest hold on his extremely-limited sanity, the yearly sacrifice-that-did-not-know pitching his food at him in disdain and laughing as the thin gruel dripped down his chin…

Worse were the lash days, where Dimitrescu took fiendish delight in wringing him dry for her decadent (in every sense of the word) vino. There, his consciousness had no recourse but to flare awake every time the whip snapped into his flesh, an ever-constant reminder of his pride, his failure. Not so much the physical pain, that he was no stranger to, but Alcina laughing uproariously at him made him want to rip himself apart from the inside out.

Silly little brother, did you really believe me?

It was always one thing or another in this damned place. Heisenberg existed in what felt like a tight, seamless loop of time. Over and over, over and over, insanity defined.

But then the most recent failure from Alcina's cadre of housekeepers began to bring him his meals. Another year had come and gone, another sacrifice-that-did-not-know, and Karl was exhausted to his very marrow. Maybe that was why he had spoken to you.

Or maybe he was just bored, and he had to admit your timid behavior was a little funny, especially after enduring the disrespect of countless others before you. You spoke to him like he was still a title-holding lord, like he still had his ill-fated army at his disposal and was still a tangible threat. It was entertaining, if nothing else.

You have not been cruel to me. I see no reason to be cruel to you.

He hadn't exactly meant to smile, but it had happened regardless. To think, after all the terrible things he had done, after all the blood he had spilled…that there would be anyone left who could claim he hadn't been cruel to them-! It was so unbelievable that he couldn't help his sardonic grin.

If only it had ended there. If he'd had any damn brains in his head, Karl knew he would have ended it there. That he hadn't spoke volumes to his mental state. Lowering himself to this level…there had been a time in his life where he would have taken as much notice of a human in his presence as he would have the wallpaper. Now, he found himself craving the albeit limited socialization and, while his pride wanted to mourn the loss of his beloved ‘superiority’, his flickering sanity simply appreciated the reliable interaction.

And you snuck him food. Real food, real food, iron-rich venison and herbed breads, real. The green herbs of the valley in particular had always been touted as a cure-all and Heisenberg had to concede that there may have been something to that claim. He could feel the old strength returning to his body with every meal, despite the blood wards knotted yearly into the ropes of his prison.

With that strength came the boundless possibility, the ludicrous hope for freedom that he had nearly given up on. He did his best not to alert his jailers, the former lord's bent pride still stinging every time he was put through his proverbial paces by Dimitrescu. Karl soothed himself with the reminder that if this worked, if this worked, it would all be worth it. The indignity…he was no stranger to it and it would not serve him to continue to be offended by it until he was able to decisively strike back at the bitch. Then, then, she would pay–

“Please!”

Begging, pleading, screaming–why were you looking at him like that?

Karl's head was spinning, he couldn't think straight, you were tearing at the eternal ropes around his wrists and then, Dimitrescu lashed out.

Victory for my master.

It had always been someone else in charge, someone else urging him on to bloodshed and war and trial. What could be the harm, then, in serving a master who had shown him kindness, true kindness? For their terrible sin they laid bleeding beside the altar before him, Alcina's cackling laughter echoing off the high ceiling of the chamber as the weak solstice sunbeam drew closer and closer. The enormous woman tore free the knife that they had shoved gracelessly into her leg, her eyes burning with rage. It was the knife she always used for the solstice, the knife that she would…

With a start that tore through the mental haze like lightning, Karl realized he knew that blade, knew that curved edge. It was a dagger that an ill-fated assassin had attempted to end Alcina with, once upon a time. What ego, for the towering Lady to continue to use such a weapon for the binding ritual!

Through his entire imprisonment Karl had felt as though he was pulling air through wet fabric. Suddenly his chest could expand fully once more, and the lord drank greedily of the essence he had been denied for so long.

His shoulders creaked like rusty gears, joints singing in reply, blessed pain bathing him with the joyous agony of life. It lives! Victor Frankenstein cried, it breathes! And as one monster to another, Karl lurched upright and took an unsteady step towards Alcina.

“Bitch.” One word, a full sentence, cutting his faux-sibling’s chortling short. “Let's see whether you can weasel your way outta’ this one, you albino sequoia.” Heisenberg slurred, relishing the way Dimitrescu sputtered in rage while he cracked his knuckles. The ropes continued to slough off his wrists, layer after layer peeling back. He was alive again, awake again.

He was still alive.

Part Two

#karl heisenberg #lord karl heisenberg #eventual romance #fix it fic #au #resident evil #re 8 #re 8 village #resident evil village #resident evil karl heisenberg #karl heisenberg x reader #karl heisenberg imagine #re 8 karl heisenberg #loyal mad dog trope #forgive me for not posting since january it's been a long year #enjoy!

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championofthefade · 6 months ago

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Warning!! This post may contain spoilers for those who haven't played Veilguard yet! This turned out a lot longer than I thought, but I'm discussing the theory that Rook is a spirit.

I know that there are issues with the writing and any theory is not created to make those issues get swept under the rug. This theory is meant to be fun, and I would like to talk about it.

I'm thinking about the "Rook is a spirit" theory I saw on twitter/x. This theory often rotates in my head often, and I think that it's so interesting.

Like, listen. I understand that narratively it would be complicated to insert into what we know is Dragon Age Veilguard. Someone brought up the fact that it would be a strange thing because wouldn't Emmrich know that Rook is a spirit the way that he knows Lucanis has Spite?

But the theory that cadhalash paints for us is the fact that Varric was for Rook what the Rook is for the companions.

"Help them with their personal problems and talk to them about their feelings, but never ask Rook how they're doing. Or if they need anything. In codex memos we learn the companions have potlucks and book clubs but Rook is not invited. We learn at the end that Varric wasn't really there... What if Rook wasn't either? There's tons of chat about this idea now with other examples of Rook being compared to a spirit in the game. Very interesting and fun!" -cadhalash

There could be the very huge chance that Emmrich would recognize Rook as a spirit, but what about a spirit made flesh?

Think about Cole's banter with Blackwall, for example:

Blackwall: How does a spirit become flesh anyway?

Cole: I don't know. How does a Warden become Grey?

It may seem like a reach, but to me, it makes sense. Cole chose to become human because that was the shape that would help, which he says in a banter with Varric.

Varric: So, Kid, why human?

Cole: It was the shape that would help.

Varric: Huh. Most people don't pick a shape. I guess I was hoping for something deeper with that question.

Cole: It had to be him. But harmless. The him he wanted that wouldn't hurt.

Varric: Well that's... deeper. I think.

You may be thinking, "Hey, Atlas. That might be a little reaching, don't you think?"

Well, yes. Applauding the people that caught onto Solas in the Dragon Age Fandom years and years ago now because you all were on the nose about him being a worm (spirit). But considering what we know from Dragon Age as a whole, it could be possible that Rook is too a spirit of a different kind.

We know that Emmrich can sense Spite. We know that Emmrich can talk directly to Spite. But what if Rook was more like Cole? Would Emmrich's ability to speak to spirits or sense them so close apply?

I would say, that depends on the type of Spirit that Rook would be, right? This has a lot of wiggle room for what you think your Rook would be as a spirit?

From the Wiki:

Spirits lack imagination and creativity; everything they make is based off something made by mortals. Whether benevolent or malevolent, most spirits cannot help but mine a Fade visitor's mind for their thoughts and memories. They then mimic the pieces of life they see by shaping the Fade into various realms that cater to the unconscious desires of the living, providing experiences to the sleeping that become their "dreams."

And the Spirits listed:

Command, Compassion (Cole), Courage, Curiosity (Manfred), Duty, Faith (Wynne), Honor, Hope, Justice(Anders), Learning, Love, Perseverance, Purpose, Valor, Wisdom (Solas).

(We know from Veilguard that Spite is referred to as a spirit of Determination/ mentioned in a data mine, Passion.)

For the sake of the theory, let's say that Emmrich would get an inkling. A prickling feeling even that he knows that there's a spirit near by and would chalk it up to being Manfred because he would know that, right? But then there's Spite. How big of an energy read does Emmrich get from Lucanis to immediately go, 'Yeah, you've got a tag along and I'm sorry it wasn't a willing possession'.

So, how would it get unnoticed by Emmrich, the resident Fade Expert?

Well... Reading further down said wiki page, we find this:

As Rhys puts it in a dialogue with Cole, "being important makes you real". (Asundered reference, I believe?)

Being important makes you real. Rook becomes the 'leader' when Varric gets hurt at the beginning of the game. For the entirety of the game, as Rook, you have to build a team to fight ancient elvhen gods. Rook has to be what Varric was, pulling people that Solas didn't know into trying to save the world from going to shit.

Rook was given a purpose. To save the world.

Regardless of how Rook is perceived, they are in charge. They are in a position that they didn't want, probably was expecting to go home after dealing with this Dread Wolf that they were recruited to stop, and now... They're given a role that would make them important. And as before being important makes you real.

Could Rook be something akin to Cole rather something like Spite or other spirits that we know in Veilguard?

Here's another thing: Solas.

Yes, we are talking about the egg. I'll try to keep this as coherent as possible. We know that Solas didn't want to come from the Fade to be a human (another discussion for another time). We learn that Solas was a spirit of Wisdom, whose Wisdom was twisted into a weapon and forced to do things that stripped Solas of what he wanted to keep for himself. To remain as Wisdom.

This makes it interesting if we add to the fact that Rook could choose to outsmart Solas. Because at that pivotal moment, Solas was Pride. On his pride, it was always the sword he would fall on.

Say what you will about the trick ending, but this is something that shouldn't be glossed over. Being outsmarted by Rook, Solas says, "I am a fool... Who has met his match."

Met his match. This also might be another case of reaching, but it's interesting phrasing from someone who tells clever half-truths and never quite lies. Being tricked by Rook out of pure wits alone. Something that he thought he succeeded in.

What does this have to do with spirits?

Solas, who was brought out of the Fade to take a body to join the elves in a fight against the Titans. Solas, who crafted the lyrium dagger to sunder the Titans from their dreams in hopes of stopping the war. Solas, who created the blight from the Titans' severed dreams. Solas, who started a rebellion against the ancient elvhen gods who abused their power.

Rook, who was brought onto a job to stop the Dread Wolf. Rook, who disrupted the ritual in hopes of stopping Solas. Rook, who started a double blight from freeing these ancient elvhen gods. Rook, who has to build a team to stop these ancient elven gods.

I would say, in spirit, Rook is a mirror of Solas. I'm not saying Rook is wise like Solas or anything like that. But there is something about Rook being Solas' mirror that could fold into Rook being a Spirit of Reflection.

This is just something that comes to mind. Rooks helps Taash discover their identity, helps Emmrich deal with his fear of mortality, helps Neve protect Dock Town, helps Bellara with Cyrian, helps Harding with the Titans, helps Davrin with the griffons, and helps Lucanis with Spite. (Generalized, all choice dependent.) These are reflections of the companions. These are reflections of the people that Rook had brought together to save the world.

It could easily be written off because we're not entirely sure how many spirits there are, but I digress.

Of course, that too would beg the question of how it would apply to all Rooks from all backgrounds?

Let's take a look at the ones that make me think.

Shadow Dragon Rook

The foundling Rook was adopted into a military family and joined the Shadow Dragons to fight from the shadows for change in Minrathous.

We learn in a dialogue with Tarquin that a Shadow Dragon Rook was found on a battlefield by the Mercar family.

Now with this little bit of dialogue, it makes me (personally) think back to what Solas says about him walking the Fade and seeing ancient battlefields where spirits reenact wars from the other side of the Veil. There could have been spirits that were there during this battle where SD Rook was found. (It also kinda reminds me of Loki being found by Odin and raised in Asgard. Don't come for me, I've only watched the movies.)

For the sake of theory, say that a spirit that would have looked over a SD Rook before they were found by the Mercars. Thinking about it, it reminds me of how Cole (the mage) was watched over by Compassion and then Compassion took a shape that would help.

A spirit (in Spite's case) can be drawn to a person, yes? As Determination, we know that Spite was drawn to Lucanis' determination to live or something of the like. (I will live to spite you, essentially.)

Mourn Watch Rook

Discovered by undead inside a Grand Necropolis tomb as an infant, Rook was raised by Mourn Watch necromancers, eventually joining the order.

Relating back to the Muttering Undead that is in a coffin on the path from Emmrich's recruitment:

Stumbling… The steps. Skeletons saw… Oh no choice. Had to be brave… Had to be brave… Too late to cry… Save the (girl, boy, baby) with the grave.

This is a little more open ended. We know nothing about Ingellvar beyond that. We don't know where they came from, only that they were found inside a tomb. It makes me scratch my head.

We know that it's a custom in Nevarra that a spirit could reanimate a skeleton, essentially, and bring some part of their consciousness from back across the Veil. We see that Manfred, when you choose to bring him back, is brought back from across the Veil and returns with magic.

Sure, it's not the same thing as building a body out of Titan's blood, but the idea that the spirits that became the Evanuris are the best of the physical and the Fade offers up to the idea that they were going to have magic anyway when they crossed the Veil. Only lyrium gave them more power than I think that they knew what to do with.

I make this point from the perspective that Mourn Watchers are typically necromancers. They are almost always close to places where the Veil is thin enough for a spirit to come across and possessing a body in a sense.

When it comes to the Muttering Undead, I don't know who that could have been or what they were doing in the Necropolis. But it's clear that they were determined to save Mourn Watch Rook, and they were the one that put Rook in the tomb.

This one makes me scratch my head because it's so broad and vague. For the theory that Rook is a spirit, this is the origin/background/faction that lends itself to the idea because in Nevarra they revere and respect their dead with the ability to raise the corpses to continue contributing to the Grand Necropolis. But we're talking about a wee baby Rook growing up in the Necropolis. Could it be possible that the saving of Rook is more spirit in a tomb?

The last things I would like to touch on.

Dialogue with Harding (her romance I believe?) :

Harding: I've seen spirits leave the Fade and become real people. (COLE!!!)

Rook: You think I could be a spirit in disguise?

Harding: It isn't malicous. They're just drawn to strong emotion. And then...one day, real people.

Rook: I think I'm really me, and I'm really here.

This is why I mentioned Cole earlier.

And the absence of Rook in the Veilguard mural is brought up in the theory as well. Rook's absence on the mural strikes me as odd. Because yes, the companions would be a main focus in the stories that would follow them. But what about Rook, the person who brought these vastly different people together and saved the world? Not there. Were they ever there?

Much to think about.

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snake-snacc · 9 months ago

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↪ Loving you, till death~

↪ Fandom — Diabolik Lovers | Kanato Sakamaki

↪ Words — 2.1k

↪ Warnings — DARK CONTENT (Where do I begin?) This is Kanato we're talking about, weird consent (aka he pulls his "you don't move" magic) , physical abuse, impling of his childehood trauma, reader got cut, character death, necrophilia (she is alive most of the time!), choking, smut, F! Reader

↪ Notes — Currently I have a very interesting relationship with this young beautiful man, it's called "Fuck my obsession is back" and a friend of mine and I tend to give the other weird or cursed promts to write for, and this was a promt I gave her but wasn't happy with the way she used it, so I wanted to make my own version and I found the perfect character for it~

Also, I love this man and even the fact that we got canonly told from him, that the thing that gets him exited and going while sucking Yuis blood, is that he imagines her dead. In general that he has such a horny obession with dead things and the qoute "He is mentioned to be something of a necrophile - although not necessarily a necrophiliac." from the wiki is just... yeah. "Not necessarily" I think it happend.. they were probably alive at the beginning!

This is dark content, okay?

English isn't my first language-

A soft touch on nearly porcelain skin. A soft whisper in your ear which sounds like a promise for forever. Hands trailing down your body, caressing every little curve, every little detail. Caressing every little cut that was placed like he was creating a masterpiece. Your blood is still quilling out of some of the deeper wounds but you don’t mind and neither does he. He thinks your blood is the best dress you can wear, the best accessory that could be put on your skin. He would never swipe it away. The closest to swiping it away would be guiding his finger through the thick liquid to lick it off his fingers, or directly using his tongue to clean you up. Savoring the taste till his head will spin.

He leans back, to get a full view on you. His eyes wander over your body, appreciating the view in front of him while his hands travel over your hips and your thighs until he grabs them with a little too much force. A gasp leaves your mouth, followed by a chuckle from him. With a low sigh he leans back down, coming closer to your ear before his soft voice is echoing in it.

“I bet you are dying right now, just to touch me~”, a little chuckle leaves his lips after it and he runs his tongue over the shell of your ear.

“Come on~ Take my hands, place them wherever you want them~ Warm my skin with your heat”, he whispers and a shiver runs down your spine. You want to. You want to touch his skin, feel the coldness slowly vanish under your touch. Feeling the soft strands of his hair gliding through your fingers as you brush through it. You want to.

“I forgot, you can’t. How sad”. he leans back, locking his purple eyes with yours but you can only look at his smile. This happy, lustful smile that's placed over his lips, while he watches your face. Much softer than the creepy one he likes to show you from time to time. But still as threatening.

“But I'm glad I didn't silence your voice. Even if it will annoy me, will make my ears bleed, without it”, he speaks leaning closer to your lips again just so you can feel the movement of his lips against yours.

“You wouldn’t be able to tell me how much you enjoy it, how much you love it”, a soft kiss is placed on your lips. A kiss you would love to return to him, but you know better. His kisses are always soft. Even if his fingers are digging into your wounds, even when he is stabbing you with something, even when he is cutting off your breath. His kisses will always be soft. Will always be a promise to treat you just how you deserve it.

With his hands he pulls your legs open, smiling over how willingly your body obeys him. Not that you had any other choice. One of his hands trails down the back of your thigh getting closer and closer to your heat. His fingertips tease around the spot where you want him so badly. Where your body is begging him to touch. And he knows. The way he avoids the spot just perfectly shows it.

Lips trail over your neck, fangs leaving thin red lines behind. But he doesn’t bite you. That’s not what he wants right now. He wants to listen to your voice, to the little whimpers that leave your lips in anticipation. He buries his face in the crock of your neck, breaths in your scent. A slightly annoyed sigh comes from him right before he pulls his hand away.

“I gave you the permission to use your voice and all you do with it is breath and whimper? There should be thousands of words coming from you right now. How about you start with some of them?”, he spoke and got back up.

“I’m sorry.. I was-”

“You were what? Don’t you dare say something that doesn’t belong here or is not relevant to my words. If you are really sorry, prove it”

“I.. I didn’t wanted my voice to annoy you.. But please, I need you to touch me”, you said, trying not to annoy him furthermore.

He just looks at you and the look makes you nervous. What was he going to do? Did you made him angry? Wasn’t begging what he wanted?

“You would never lie to me, right?”

You nod your head, agreeing with him directly after he finished his question.

“You would never withhold your voice from me, because you disliked something, right? The only case why you don’t speak is because you are so overwhelmed, right? You would never hate something I do to you, right?”

You answer every question with a nod and a “right”. You love him, You really do. There would be nothing he wouldn’t be allowed to do to you. You would never dare to speak back to him.

With a smile he tilts his head a little to the side.

“I’m glad. For a moment I thought you wouldn’t cherish all my efforts. But I guess it was just a misunderstanding~”

He places his hand back where he left off, letting his fingers get coated in your wetness. Pushing one of them inside you, curling it up a little and watching your face twitch in pleasure.

“Even if you would lie to me, your body would never do so. It will always tell me the truth~ So maybe your voice isn’t even that important in the first place”

While starting to move his finger inside of you, his lips start kissing your shoulders, over your collarbone, down to your chest and over your ribcage.

“I love you~”, he whispers against your skin. Repeating it over and over while silencing his voice in kisses pressed against your body. Another finger enters you, thrusting inside while he continues to shower your moveless body in kisses. His breath seems to get deeper, rougher with every body part he touches from you. Your voice, your moans are just a background music in his head, while he enjoys the feeling of your skin. The taste of your body. Despite loving the heat of your body and how it sometimes seems to warm his cold hands, he can’t put the thought aside that your skin and body would be much more lovely drained from all of your blood. Not able to move, not able to complain, not able to get away. And he would never deny the fact that this is what gets him excited.

Your vocal cords feel like bleeding. Raspy from moaning and screaming his name, while he pleasures you with his fingers. Your breath is heavy, not able to calm down. And you know, from the smile on his lips, the way he drags his fingers out of you, wiping them clean on your chest, that he isn’t finished with you. With teary eyes you watch him, as he slowly takes off his clothes, pulling your body closer to his by grabbing your hips. Giving you a kiss on your jaw, on your cheek and near your ear. He breaths into it while pushing himself inside of you. Your already overstimulated body trying his hardest to move, your eyes trying not to water even more and all that comes out of your mouth is a whine.

He chuckles before he places his lips against yours, kissing you ever so lovely and deeply.

“You will endure it for me, right?”, he asks with the first thrust, while one of his hands is wandering up your body.

“Because you are so good for me~”

With each thrust he pulls you against him, getting as deep as possible. His soft gasps get swallowed by your voice. By the loud, raspy begs that leave your lips. A sound he is all too familiar with. A sound he knows how much it must hurt your throat to produce it. He can almost feel his own vocal cords bleed from hearing you. And he hates it. He hates every second of it.

Why do you sound like this? Why is your voice making that sound from just moaning a little? You don’t have the right to sound like that! Don’t have the right to remind him of those endless nights where he ended up coughing blood into his tiny hands. You sound so disgusting.

For a short moment his movements stop and he just looks at you with dead eyes.

“Hey… Could you shut up? You’re ruining everything”, it comes out a lot quieter than what you would have expected from what he is saying. You open your mouth to answer him, to apologize to him, but he shuts you up immediately.

“I said shut up! You can’t even listen to one fucking thing I tell you to do?!”, his breath gets labored, his shoulders rise and fall with each breath he takes. You don’t dare to take a breath yourself. Afraid the sound would bring him over the edge. So you swallow your apologies, swallow every word that wants to leave your mouth. But apparently even your swallowing is too much of an annoyance for him.

First it was a slap with the back of his hand, hitting your cheekbone directly. The impact makes you whine out in pain for a short moment, which is automatically answered with the weight of his hands around your throat.

“How dare you, to even think you are allowed to make such disgusting noises in my presence!? How dare you treat me like that!?”

The grip around your throat gets tighter and tighter as he shakes your head around like he is trying to break your neck. Hitting it repeatedly against the bed while pushing down with all of his weight. And all you can do is look at him. You can’t move your body and your voice isn’t coming out of your mouth anymore. All you can do is watch as his expression turns from pure anger to a mix out of satisfaction and something sad. While his smile is making clear that he takes his liking to seeing you slowly losing your consciousness, his eyes seem to be somewhere else.

“You see?! It is that easy to be quiet! No need to rub it under my nose that your throat is hurting, don’t cry about a little pain like that!”

“What is it? Got nothing more to say? Oh come on! Don’t act like you can’t act responsible for your own actions! It is your fault for ending up here, no need to give me the cold shoulder now! Hey! Answer me!”, he screams, pulling your upper body up by your throat, bringing you close to his face. He even lets the grip loosen up a little.

“Why are you looking at me like that? You really think I will forgive you like that..? Just because you now do what I wanted? That doesn’t make up for your terrible actions!”, he looks into your eyes, which just stare back at him. With a click of his tongue he lets go, letting your body fall back into the mattress. For a few seconds, maybe minutes, he is quiet. Just looking down at your body.

“You finally shut up, huh? Your voice will never meet my ears again, right? Hey..”, slowly he puts his hands into yours, holding them for a little while before he intertwines your fingers, leaning down to your face, giving you a soft smile before he kisses you.

“You think you can escape me with that little act of yours?” Another kiss.

“I said I love you” His fingers tighten a little.

“I really do~” Is the whisper that is dragged along your skin.

“Even now. Even when you body will begin to turn cold. Even when your skin is going to fall off, but I will never let that happen right? You know that~ Is that why? You couldn’t wait to be put into a beautiful dress by me?~ You are so selfish.” He places another kiss on your chest, resting his head against it, before he gets up and looks at your face again.

“But I will forgive you this once. You look so beautiful~ That necklace around your throat, it fits your skin so well. In a few hours even better” One hand lets go of yours, caressing your cheek softly.

“You are still warm. Hahaha.. You don’t want me to get cold while I am still inside of you, or maybe you’re just not satisfied yet. That’s alright, we still have some hours~”

It’s a slow rhythm that he starts again. It could be considered romantic, intimate.

“Don’t worry~ I will love you even more. Not even death will do us part~”

“So endure it for me, like you always do my Love~”

#diabolik lovers #diabolik lovers x reader #diabolik lovers x you #kanato sakamaki #diabolik lovers kanato #kanato x reader #kanato sakamaki x reader #dialovers #fanfic #diabolik lovers fandom #anime x reader

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arizariia · 2 years ago

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Miguel O'Hara As Your Boyfriend Headcanons

This is just the first of my work from TikTok that I'm reposting here. I made a few changes, so it's not exactly the same.

Warnings: None Pairing: F/M Word Count: 691

Prepare to be treated like a princess. He's such a gentleman with you. The type to always show up 10 minutes before a date, hold open the door for you, have a bouquet ready, etc. He is the type of man who insists that you don't have to split the bill. He'll pay for you.

Miguel would prefer to sit down and plan dates with you. He wouldn't feel comfortable with surprise dates until he's known you for some time and is more in tune with your preferences. These planning sessions can result in him stressing out too much about it.

Since there's no way you wouldn't be smaller than him, he gets a kick out of picking you up. He also likes to place things on high shelves, so you'll have to stand on a chair or get him to help. He finds it adorable.

He will always be the big spoon. You'll fall asleep on your side of the bed and wake up in his arms. He's a cuddle monster, even though he doesn't want to admit it.

He wouldn't be against PDA, but the most he'll do is hold your hand and give you quick pecks on the cheek here and there. He's a bit of a prude in public.

If you have any hobbies, Miguel will do his best to get into them. At the very least, understand them better. If it's something nerdy, you'll definitely walk in on him looking at the Wiki page for whatever fandom you're in while wearing reading glasses.

Miguel is a provider, and his love language is gift-giving and acts of service.

His gift-giving can range from buying you that cute dress you said you wanted and tickets for a luxury cruise. He wants to spoil you. This results in him unintentionally becoming your sugar daddy. Since he's usually busy with work, he thinks giving you things can make up for his absence.

If he has the time, he loves to cook for you and prepare your meals. Grocery shopping is also quite enjoyable with him, and he always encourages you to come with him to the store. However, he will side-eye you if you gravitate towards junk food. Cooking is also therapeutic for him. Even if you can cook, you'll usually sit off to the side, watching Miguel work his magic.

When you start living together, he starts doing some of your chores. You'll have to tell him to divide them instead.

At first, Miguel would only call you by your first name when you started dating. It takes a few months for him to address you by a term of endearment. Usually, he would call you by a Spanish endearment, but occasionally, he'll use an English endearment.

Arguments with him aren't frequent. When they do happen, Miguel will shut down. He hates it when these scenarios, especially if he's the cause of the problem. Miguel tends to be the first to apologize in these cases. He will also cut up some fruit for you as a peace offering. However, if you need space, Miguel respects that and waits until you're ready to talk. He isolates himself when that happens.

If you're shy or are the type to withhold your opinions, he's actively encouraging you to express yourself more. He would also make jokes that you're too nice.

If you're not Mexican, he's gonna share his culture with you. If you don't know Spanish, he's gonna teach you. Don't worry. He's surprisingly patient with you. He also wants to learn more about your own culture.

He's a good singer, and he takes full advantage of it. Sometimes, it's to serenade you. Other times (AKA most times), he's just being goofy. He keeps doing it because he knows you like it. Don't mention it around his colleagues. He'll get embarrassed.

Telling you that he's Spider-Man wouldn't be something he'd reveal to you for a long time. When he finally decides to do the reveal, it's more of a spur-of-the-moment decision. But let's be honest, you figured it out months ago. There's only one man in Neuva York who's that double-cheeked up.

#miguel o'hara #atsv miguel #spiderman 2099 #miguel o'hara x reader

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kaythefloppa · 1 year ago

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The Current Timeline of Wild Kratts:

Remember 3 years ago during the hiatus when I made that detailed post explaining the chronological lore of Wild Kratts and analyzed its timeline of a decade's worth of episode with a dash of my own HC involved in it and posted it onto the Wild Kratts fandom subreddit?

Yeah, I promised updates to it when the new episodes arrived, and here I am years later where the season has already premiered. Not to mention there were people who messaged me about legitimate errors I made that I accepted humbly, but didn't actually fix. Not to mention the crossovers that I completely ignored.

Well, much like in 2021, I had wayy too much free time on my hands and decided to go back and finally update that timeline. Unfortunately, Reddit's character limit prevented me from getting the edited version posted so I grit my teeth and decided to bring this fucker to Tumblr via copy and paste. Yeah, I'm not even kidding. So if you've ALSO got enough free time on your hands or are someone who read the original post who was desperately searching for an update, you've got it.

Full post underneath the cut: Warning, shit gets crazy down there.

The PBS Kids original animated show “Wild Kratts” has turned a decade old in the 2020's. Within that time, an autobiography, a 200 episode milestone, and a theatrical film based on the series is confirmed to be in development.

With new episodes of the show coming out, I figured that I’d analyze the show by making an analysis for its timeline. Like many shows, it does have continuity, but Wild Kratts is one of those shows which apparently has an extremely open universe where events happen within that universe, but they don’t seem to have a coherent timeline or any serialization. Many episodes are aired out of order and it’s hard to find a passage of time in a show which doesn’t rely on over-serialization in order to tell its own story.

I partly blame this on production errors as well as strict scheduling as well as the network focusing on releasing episodes in order of when they were produced as opposed to the intended date.

I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt that it doesn’t just rehash its timeline over and over again (unlike some other shows I know cough cough Arthur & Family Guy cough cough). Continuity does exist. It’s just figuring out how it falls in line that is the hard part.

I’ll update this post every time a new episode comes out. My plan is to analyze every single episode until the series finale so that we can determine how much time passes in the show. The way I'll order the timeline is by chronological order first. If there exists an episode or a group of episodes that do not contradict the order, but is not stated to go within this order, I will place them by original air-date and not production order.

I had found a website that lists every Wild Kratts episode (minus the hour-long specials) in order by air-date, unlike the Wild Kratts wiki & Wikipedia. Now, I did find some errors, as it claims that the first 2 episode aired on December 31st and not January 3rd, however I can forgive that as that has been a misconception for years and it got only the date wrong and not the order of episodes. So I was able to use that as a reliable source, more so than the fandom wiki. I am also running off of vivid memory based on my viewing experience as a kid, since I grew up with the show and have come to realize how much info I've retained from the universe of my hyperfixation and how I can use that to this post's advantage. Let's get into it.

Activate Analysis Powers!

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SEASON 1:

Let’s start with the very first 2 episodes to be released: Mom of a Croc and Whale of a Squid.

In that episode, we see that the Kratt Brothers are already familiar with what’s around them. They’re familiar with the Minaturizer, their Creature Power Suits and Disks, and adventuring with the coolest creatures from oceans to trees (sorry, had to squeeze that reference in).

We see that some animals and inventions are introduced into this episode like the Hippo Sub, Crocodilla, and her daughters. However, let’s focus on things which aren’t introduced in this episode.

Most notably, the Gharial Power Disks and the Miniaturizer. Let’s focus on the disks first.

Near the climax of the episode, the Kratt Brothers use the Gharial Power Disks to substitute for Crocodile Powers since they did not have a disk. Gharials and Nile Crocodiles are both in the order Crocodillia, but were not in the same species nor family. That, along with different designs, makes gharials and crocodiles in general very different animals, which is why the activation didn’t hold up (I hope to god they actually make an episode around gharials in the next season).

Many people assume that this episode only takes place after Kerhonk since Chris uses Gharial Crocodile Power, but this is actually false. Listen closely to what Chris is saying.

“Ha! Crocodile. And a gharial is a type of crocodile!”

Now we’ve already established that a gharial is NOT a crocodile despite being a crocodillian, but let’s get to the important part. Chris is saying that as he pulls out his Crocodile Disk for the Creature Power Suit. Now here is the thing. He doesn’t pull out a Gharial Disk. He uses the Croc Disk to activate Gharial Power, but he doesn’t use a gharial disk to activate the corresponding power suit.

So if Aviva did invent Gharial Power by the events of Kerhonk, Chris would’ve used that instead of using the Crocodile Disk as a substitute. And assuming that episode predates Mom of a Croc, the Kratt Brothers would’ve obviously used the Crocodile Disk since they have used it before.

So that means there was some off-screen adventure where Aviva made Gharial Powers which took place before Kerhonk.

...But that would mean Chris would already have a Gharial Power Disk by the events of Kerhonk and Mom of a Croc. One of 2 things is likely the case. Either Chris didn’t have access to the disk and used Crocodile Power as a last resort (as we see, the disk holder doesn’t exist until Season 2, so he probably stuffs them in his pockets), or that episode exists in an alternate timeline, which we know isn’t the case since that episode’s continuity is brought up later (we will see soon).

So we’ve established that Kerhonk takes place after Mom of a Croc, which takes place after an unseen series of events that predate the series itself as we know it.

Now onto the Miniaturizer. We see it in this episode, but 4 episodes later in Mystery of the Squirmy Wormy, the miniaturizer is invented. That leads me to believe that the episode takes place before Mom of a Croc. However, if you look in the background, you can see that the Walrus Power Suit is in the background with a harness and strap over it. This debunks my original theory of this episode predating the invention of the Creature Power Disks.

With the Walrus Power Suit in mind, it has a harness and strap over it, which brings up the question of why?

My answer would be that the harness and strap was meant for the Walrus Suit after it was damaged in Polar Bears Don’t Dance.

So now we’re at the original pilot episode, the first piece of Wild Kratts media produced by PBS Kids (excluding the Flash games that came out a month prior and were removed 9 years later, *sobs*). Here, the operation of the suits is different. Here, Aviva modified the suits for arctic survival and all it takes is for them to touch the animals with the gloves and then press the button. In many episodes, the modification occurs with the existence of a Creature Power Disc, or the disk is seen off-screen.

But the more I see into it, the more it makes sense. Ever wonder why we don’t see some creature power disks of creature powers in the earlier episodes? Maybe it could be the same reason why we don’t see the Polar Bear and Walrus Disk for the Creature Power Suit.

Aviva pre-programs the Creature Power Suits into the animal that the user can activate into not because she prefers this over making discs, or because the discs are already inserted into the suit, but because this was before she began making Creature Power Discs. This explains why in many Season 1 episodes, we don’t see the disc itself because the power is preprogrammed into the suit.

So at what point does this end and Aviva starts making discs? Any could be. All we know is that this would soon become the norm over preprogramming the power into the suits.

Polar Bears Don’t Dance could possibly chronologically take place around the earliest in the Wild Kratts timeline.

In Mystery of the Weird Looking Walrus, Aviva talks about upgrading features into the Walrus Power Suit. Maybe she isn’t talking about inventing the suits, but modifying the suits, which is fitting considering the walrus suit somehow malfunctioned and got jammed (which was presumably due to the cold arctic ice).

In the same episode, Zach and Donita’s interactions appear to be as if they had met recently, with Donita referring to Zach as the one who “vomitted from clams under the table.” So already we’re forming a coherent timeline with these episodes and we’re not even half-way through Season 1.

There would be one inconsistency. In this episode, Aviva says Jimmy’s controller is waterproof (along with food-proof) but in Seasquatch, 16 episodes later, Jimmy’s controller is protected by a shrink-wrap, indicating that it isn’t safe from the environment. Well, here’s the thing.

That episode shows a second appearance of the Squid Power Suit and Bumper the Sperm Whale from the episode Whale of a Squid which aired alongside Mom of a Croc on the premiere date of the series.

There’s no reason not to believe that the whale episode takes place after Mom of a Croc, which we have already established, takes place long after Polar Bears Don’t Dance. With that, my only explanation is that Jimmy’s controller wasn’t 100% waterproof since salty water can actually be very damaging to technology.

In Octopus WildKratticus Koki lists down many Creature Powers shown. This includes Honey Badgers, Polar Bears, and Octopi. This indeed indicates that these episodes where these powers debut are placed before this episode (some say it’s a retcon, but I disagree since Martin could’ve activated Honey Badger Power after the events of Honey Seekers).

Now let’s address the continuity in the series.

In Season 1, the Kratt Brothers have 2 adventures in the Australian Outback: Ones with kangaroos and koalas. In the koala episode, Chris mentions Aviva inventing Thorny Devil Disks for the Creature Power Suits the last time they were there. Considering that the kangaroo episode was 2 episodes prior to this one, I’m making it count.

Mimic is a sequel to Cheetah Racer, which takes place after Falcon City. In Mimic, the Cheetah Power Disk is invented, which is later used in Caracal Minton.

A Huge Orange Problem takes place after Kerhonk since Schnozzle (I think that is his name appears and Chris and Martin refer to him by that name.) This means that Kerhonk is in the official timeline of WK, meaning the only explanation as to why the Kratt Brothers had little access to either the Gharial and Crocodile Power Disc is that they physically had no access to it due to misorganization.

The Food Chain Game introduces new Creature Powers treated as familiar powers, which indicates that they were already invented off-screen. No episodes introduce these Creature Powers so that means the episode can't be out of order.

In Masked Bandits, Chris and Martin originally intend to use Wolf Power as costumes for their Halloween party, but instead Raccoon Powers are activated and Wolf Power is instead invented in Little Howler.

Ok so let’s go over the established time-line so far. When listing down the time-line, I’ll first do the episodes that chronologically fit together, then I’ll list episodes through air-date if there’s no connection or contradiction between them, then I will go back to chronology if I need to.

And that’s the end of the S1 timeline

Season 2:

Now already, we can see that Season 2 is a continuation of Season 1. The Tortuga HQ has an upgraded design, most likely from Aviva, which foreshadows the events of “Tortuga Tune Up.”

For the sake of things, I will put Speaking Dolphinese and Blowfish Blowout at the start of the S2 timeline because we don’t see the Tortuga so there’s a high possibility of it retaining its original design from S1 (I’m not including Lost at Sea because that was a terrible special that did nothing but combine 2 unrelated episodes into a movie).

The Seahorse Rodeo takes place afterwards since in Tortuga Tune Up, we see Blimpy (who is now an adult) and Ocean Pony.

Next we have Tortuga Tune Up, which shows Aviva modifying the Tortuga for swimming mode. Obviously I like to think the Tortuga’s redesign was an attempt to fix it, until Aviva had realized something was amiss.

Rocket Jaw: Rescuer of the Reef is a part of the Coral Reef saga of episodes so I count it at the beginning of S2.

Then we have Bad Hair Day, Race for the Hippo Disc, Creature Power Challenge, and Termites Versus Tongues, all of which are the first 4 ep. of S2 and take place in Africa. I consider those 3 chronologically connected. Plus, Zach recalls stealing the Creature Power Disc in one episode.

Happy Turkey Day is a Thanksgiving-related episode but I can easily consider it to be in the timeline.

Bugs or Monkeys serves as the first installment of the Central American Rainforest/Coral Reef saga. Followed by Shadow: The Black Jaguar, Rainforest Stew, Secrets of the Spider's Web, and To Touch a Hummingbird.

Then we get a bunch of episodes taking place in the Sonoran Desert. First we have Rattlesnake Crystal, which introduces the Sonoran Desert. I include this directly after the hummingbird episode because here, Aviva modifies Eyelash Viper Power for Rattlesnake Powers.

In the episode “Roadrunner” Chris and Martin say they have only JUST arrived at the Sonoran Desert. That episode’s plot is focused around the Tortuga getting a resupply, which is fitting considering they just recently crashed.

I would put “Skunked” after Roadrunner since it appears that they have enough resources by now. Then we’d get “Gila Monster Under My House,” then “Desert Elves”

Aqua Frog would come next I assume, I see no reason not to.

Groundhog Wakeup Call and Journey to the Subnivian zone have little ties to other episodes so I can place them in order of air-date. Since Attack of the Tree Eating Aliens takes place in the spring, we can have them come after those episodes.

So the Season 2 timeline goes like this:

Speaking Dolphinese → Blowfish Blowout → Rocket Jaw: Rescuer of the Reef → Seahorse Rodeo → Tortuga Tune Up → Bad Hair Day → Race for the Hippo Disc → Creature Power Challenge → Termites V. Tongues → Neck and Neck → Happy Turkey Day → Bugs or Monkeys → Shadow: The Black Jaguar → Rainforest Stew → Secret of the Spider's Web → To Touch a Hummingbird → Rattlesnake Crystal → Roadrunner → Skunked → Gila Monster Under My House → Desert Elves → Unnamed Burrowing Owl Disc Creation Episode → Aqua Frog → Journey to the Subnivian Zone → Snow Runners! → Groundhog Wakeup Call → Attack of the Tree Eating Aliens

Season 3:

Now, a lot of misconceptions have been made around Season 3 in terms of both continuity and air-date. My stance? Don’t believe a goddamn word that Google, Wikipedia, or the Wild Kratts wiki says. They have been getting the episode air-dates wrong since the very beginning, which is the reason I have to organize them.

As a longtime fan of the show who has been there since the beginning, I pretty much know the air-dates of the episodes by heart and the order.

The first episode is Hermit Crab Shell Exchange, second is Where the Bison Roam, third is Bandito: The Black Footed Ferret, fourth is When Fish Fly, fifth is Osprey. All 7 of these episodes premiered from April 7th to April 11th, 2014 as a part of PBS Kids' Wild Kratts Week, celebrating the show returning for its 3rd season.

The episode to air after that is the double-length episode, Back in Creature Time, which despite popular belief is NOT the Season 3 finale. The last episodes of Season 3 were centered around Madagascar. But before that, we see some adventures in the cypress swamp and the prairie.

Now that we’ve cleared up the misconceptions that people have had about Season 3’s episode order for the past 7 years (yeah a BIG fuck you to Wikipedia for that shit) let’s address the order continuity wise.

The first 7 episodes aired from April 7-11th as part of PBS Kids’ Wild Kratts Week! Celebrating the show’s renewal of S3. All but one would likely remain at their place. All except for Where the Bison Roam and Bandito since it introduces the prairie arc.

Back in Creature Time was after a LONG hiatus. Just to give you a good idea as to how long it was, the first 7 episodes of S3 aired in April when I was still in school, then the Back in Creature Time special aired months later long after I had moved into a different house during summer vacation.

The first episode to air after Back in Creature Time was Mosquito Dragon and Crocogator Contest (they were aired together as part of a special called “Swamp Things” but that special sucked for the same reasons why Lost at Sea did).

Now, this is something I noticed. Mosquito Bots were already invented by the time of Back in Creature Time, meaning that episode takes place after Mosquito Dragon.

And if we’re to include the cypress swamp saga, that means that Back in Creature Time comes in around the middle of the S3 timeline chronologically. That’s not even including the prairie episodes.

There were also Madagascar episodes. I consider Lemur Legs is chronologically the first of the order since the Kratts enter Madagascar here, and the finale of this arc is Golden Bamboo Lemur, where they leave.

This will be hard to crack, but I might be able to do it.

A thing that I noticed was that the Dragonfly Power Suits got redesigns frequently in S3. In Osprey and Mosquito Dragon, it has basket legs, resembling its S1 counterpart, but in Florida Panther and Back in Creature Time, they look completely different. In-universe, this can be credited to Aviva redesigning the suit, so I tried to arrange the episodes in a way that would make the suit's metamorphosis (pun not intended) feel less jarring than if you were watching the episodes in production order or viewing order.

So the S3 timeline is

Hermit Crab Shell Exchange → When Fish Fly → Osprey → Crocogator Contest → Mosquito Dragon → The Search for the Florida Panther → Opossum in My Pocket → Slider: The Otter → Back in Creature Time → Where the Bison Roam → Bandito: The Black Footed Ferret → The Amazing Creature Race → Prairie Who → Mystery on the Prarie → Under Frozen Pond → Capture the Fishmobiles → Praying Mantis → Lemur Legs → Chameleons on Target → Aye-Aye → Lemur Stink Fight → Tenrec Treasure Hunt → Fossa Palooza → Mini Madagascar → Golden Bamboo Lemur

Season 4:

Once again, this season was distributed out of order and the years that have passed since its release, however, as someone who, once again, watched every episode the day they aired, I can correct the misconceptions.

Firstly, the first episode of S4 was The Last Largest Lobster, and the last episode was Musk Ox Mania. The 3rd episode was A Creature Christmas, followed by 5 additional episodes, one of which introduced Paisley Paver and Rex into the show.

Now the confusion is that A Creatire Christmas aired as the 3rd episode of S4, yet animals and Creature Powers in that episode wouldn’t be introduced until later. So I’ll list down all of the episodes that come before the Christmas special.

The Last Largest Lobster comes before Stars of the Tide (they literally aired back-to-back).

Panda Power Up comes first in the China-located episodes. Next up comes Golden Snub Nosed Monkey Man. Red Panda Rescue features both Giant Panda and Snub Nosed Monkey Power, so I imagine it comes next. At the end of that episode, Aviva alludes to Red Panda Power, which is present in “The Colors of China”

Pangolin Rescue follows that (remember, all of these take place before A Creature Christmas). Along with the Two-Tusked Narwhal Adventure, the Snowy Owl Invasion, the Puffin adventure, the Other Martins, and This Orca Likes Sharks.

At this point, we’ve covered all of the pre-Christmas episodes. Now let’s do the ones we have left.

Liturgusa Krattorum, Eel-lectric!, Sea Otter Swim, Box Turtled In!, Animals Who Live to be 100 years old, Archerfish School, and many others.

Something to note is that Aviva narrates how the villains have never before teamed-up. Ignoring the fact that it is not true, that episode would have to come before Krattorum.

Here’s the timeline of S4:

The Last Largest Lobster → Stars of the Tides → Box Turtled In → The Other Martins → Sea Otter Swim → Animals who Live to be 100 Years Old → Spirit Bear → Panda Power Up → Snowy Owl Invasion → Golden Snub Nosed Monkey Man → Red Panda Rescue → The Colors of China → Pangolin Rescue → Archerfish School → Baby Tooth & Kid Musky → Musk Ox Mania → Puffin Rescue→ Mystery of the Two Horned Narwhal → This Orca Likes Sharks → A Creature Christmas → Cheetah Adopted → Eel-lectric → Liturgusa Krattorum → Creatures of the Deep Sea

Season 5:

I’m gonna throw in my personal opinion… This is my least favorite season of the show. The premiere episode, Alaska: Hero’s Journey was pretty cool and in my opinion, jumped the shark for Wild Kratts as we know it. Not only did it establish continuity with previous adventures and use it as a key-factor for the episode’s story, but it introduced a Creature Power Suit for Koki and had a very mature theme and an awesome message.

And then it went downhill from there. A lot of episodes, whilst enjoyable, felt pretty weak. Some were forgettable, and it felt like it talked down to its audience more, and there were just a lot of things that I felt didn’t work. This is where I think the show began a heavy seasonal rot and I know I'm not alone in this.

Ok, opinions aside, the time-line of this season is a lot easier to decipher than the earlier ones because there were less episodes.

Even though Alaska: Hero’s Journey was the first episode of S5 to be aired, the Bald Eagle Power Suit was shown, yet it wouldn’t be invented until The Fourth Bald Eagle.

Many listings show Mystery of the North Pole Penguins as the S5 premiere. And given that there are no continuity errors in that episode, I can see it being the start of Season 5’s storyline.

In the next episode, Temple of the Tigers, Martin and Chris head to India to adventure with tigers. A majority of S5 takes place in India, including the episode where Paisley Paver and Rex return, so I view the tiger episode as the start of the “India” arc.

There are also several episodes centered in Europe, as part of what I like to call, the “Europe” arc.

Creepy Creatures would go near the end of this timeline, as we see many S5 Creature Powers and animals by then.

So here’s the timeline for S5

Mystery of the North Pole Penguins? → Temple of the Tigers → The Dhole Duplicator → The Cobra King → Sloth Bear Suction → Elephant Brains → Cheeks the Hamster → Fire Salamander → Komodo Dragon → Wild Ponies ---> City Hoppers! → Blue Heron → Choose your Swordfish → The Erminator → Hercules: The Giant Beetle → Creepy Creatures! → The Fourth Bald Eagle → Alaska: Hero’s Journey

Season 6:

This season in my opinion, was a slight step up from the 5th season, since we get to see more interesting animals, and the writing feels a lot more breathable. The color palette, I specifically would go without, because it just looks weird. What I do like is how they recasted Koki, a character of color, to be voiced by a woman of color, and I'm glad this change is permanent.

Instantly, we get an instance of a continuity error: Martin is shown to have a Jackrabbit Power Disc in the 2nd episode of S6, yet he doesn’t get it until the Easter special, In Search of the Easter Bunny. There’s actually a reason behind this. The original title for the episode focusing on bunnies was titled “Spring Bunnies” and was listed as the Season 6 premiere, however this was cut and the bunny episode was released almost a year later. My working theory is that because of tight schedules, “Spots in the Desert” was released before the introduction of the Jackrabbit Power Disc.

We return to the Amazon once again with the double-length episode, Amazin’ Amazon Adventure and we get some newer amazon episodes after that.

In a promotional video for Hero’s Journey, the Kratt Brothers said that Season 5 would have at least 23 episodes. My guess is that they had to cut down the last 5 episodes because of COVID or something.

There are two things that stand out the most to me in this season's timeline. For starters, in the Hammerheads episodes, we see that the brothers have an Antelope Disc for the Creature Power Suit despite there being no episode centered around those creatures or introducing a Power Disc. Much like the Burrowing Owl and Gharial Discs, we're to assume that there was an adventure focusing around that animal/an invention of that Creature Power Disc that was not televised, and thus is part of this season's lineup.

The second was how in one of the first episodes of Season 7, Chris expresses a desire to adventure with wolverines, despite that happening in the previous season. So in a rare case, this has to go in a different season's timeline to remain consistent.

Anyways, let’s go onto the timeline of the most recent season. I’ll be going off of habitat here just to be consistent.

In Search of the Easter Bunny → Mystery of the Flamingo’s Pink → Spots in the Desert → Wolf Hawks → Deer Buckaroo → Unnamed Antelope Adventure Episode → Hammerheads → The Vanishing Stingray → The Real Ant Farm → Mystery of the Mini Monkey Models → Amazin’ Amazon Adventure → The Great Froggyback Ride → Parrot Power → The Race to Goat Mountain → Iron Wolverine → Adapto the Coyote → Tartigrade Xtreme → Uh Oh-Ostrich! → The Great Creature Tail Fail → Cats and Dogs →

Season 7:

The long-awaited Season 7 has arrived as of 2023, marking the return of the show to PBS Kids after two years of a hiatus. With eight episodes having been released, 13 more confirmed on the way, and the 200th episode milestone airing in S7, fans have a lot to hope for. And thankfully it means new fodder for my timeline list.

As I've said before, The Race to Goat Mountain cannot be a part of Season 7's timeline since it has to take place before their actual wolverine adventure.

This in of itself is purely subjective but I like to imagine that Clever the Raven would be the first episode of S7. For a few reasons. One, it was the first episode of the season to be confirmed (in an interview with Jane Goodall). Secondly, compared to Outfoxed, it felt more like a season premiere. With the fanservice-callbacks, the villains returning, the simple-structure of the plot with no rising or falling action and the episode's overall writing, it basically marks off a check-list of everything in the show that you were missing out on for 2 years and everything that you're coming back to after such a long break. Plus it's my favorite out of all of the S7 premiere episodes. Call me biased, but this one's going first.

Our Blue and Green World was the first of the episode batch in 2024. Personally, I am putting it as the most recent spot in the S7 timeline, after the other 3 episodes. The reason being is because with Paisley Paver's redemption, this episode feels like a huge game-changer, one that the writers hint will affect the rest of the series. I think this special should've been the last to air in the batch just to get viewers hyped for what's next. It's basically like a mid-season finale of some sorts:

Three new episodes have aired in. November of 2024: Salamander Streaming, Bumblezzz, and Chimpanzee and Me. I will list them in the timeline in their release date order.

Kicking off the second half of Season 7 is the one-hour special "Activate Kid Power," released alongside two episodes, "Mini Heroes and Mighty Mouths" and "Moose Nibbles."

Instantly you can tell that some of the episodes were aired out of order. "Activate Kid Power" shows us the Humpback Whale Suit, even though that suit was not created until the following episode, "Mini Heroes and Mighty Mouths." I remember seeing Rotten Tomatoes list "Mini Heroes and Mighty Mouths" as a November 2024 release, so perhaps it originally was meant to be in the previous batch of episodes before being moved up. I can't confirm that, but I definitely can confirm that it would have to take place before "Activate Kid Power."

As for the special itself, I am convinced that it was intended to serve as the Season 7 finale. Each modern season of Wild Kratts post-Season 3 has two double-length episodes, the second of which are usually the season finales in terms of production code regardless of airing order (see: Back in Creature Time which was originally meant to be the Season 3 finale but was aired as the 6th episode of the season). Between that, and with how this special manages to [in my opinion] beautifully deliver a strong emotionally gripping message (that I think would constitute for a really great series finale overall). I want to place AKP at the end of the Season 7 timeline. However, I will wait until the final episode of the season airs, in case some episodes may have been aired out of order. Additionally, "Moose Nibbles" indicates that the brothers have taken a break from Creature Adventuring which I find tonally appropriate after the events of the big high-stakes one hour special.

Timeline of Season 7:

Clever the Raven → Outfoxed → Owl Odyssey → No Name Dream → Backpack the Camel → Fish Out of Water → Our Blue and Green World → Salamander Streaming → Bumblezzz → Chimpanzee and Me → Mini Heroes and Mighty Mouths → Activate Kid Power → "Moose Nibbles

CROSSOVERS:

There are three shows that Wild Kratts has crossed over with. One of which came out after I made this post, two of which before, but I decided to add them here just for the fun of it and to commit to the lore-dump of the timeline. Whether or not I'll extrapolate that into forming a huge novel about the expanded universe of PBS Kids, only time will tell.

Night Shift: (Odd Squad)

This was the first crossover the brothers had done with another show, Odd Squad, a live action math-based cartoon that is set to air its fourth season in 2024. The Kratt Brothers have their traditional live-action opening that is interrupted by Otis and Olympia solving their 'odd problem' a running gag with various different characters throughout the series as a 'cold opener.' The reason there is such a massive overlap between the two fandoms is because of that scene in the episode.

How to fit it into the canon? Well, since this is shot similarly to a Wild Kratts live action opener segment, then we can equate it with the "what if!?" element of the show. It should be noted that the Kratts are following a white-tail-deer, an animal they would later adventure with in Season 6. So you could have this episode take place directly before the "what-if?!" section of that episode that transitions into the animated story.

Wild Batts: (Nature Cat)

In 2015, PBS Kids launched a new nature based show known as "Nature Cat" featuring the titular cat and his gang of animals exploring nature. This special aired directly after Wild Kratts: A Creature Christmas, so PBS Kids often marketed both the WK Christmas special and the Nature Cat premiere, so much so that at the end of the Christmas episode, the Kratt Brothers themselves promoted the new Nature Cat special. It only made sense that these nature brothers from another mother teamed up! And thus we had Wild Batts! In this episode, Chris and Martin "Batt" have to find a new home, after their old one is destroyed, challening Nature Cat and Ronald's fear of bats in the process and learning more all about them. Several references to the Kratt's show are made, such as the classic "Living free and in the wild!"

How to fit it into the canon? In the episode's context they are literally bats, but in the context of the show itself, they would probably be in Creature Power Suits. And one thing interesting is that Chris and Martin are said to be Indiana bats, an endangered species of North American bats. We know that there is no singular Creature Power Suit for a generalized species as we've seen with the crocodillian, owl, and snake-based Power Suits. So it's possible that Aviva modified the Little Brown Bat/Vampire Bat programing with Indiana Bat Power. So this would probably take place post-Season 1. I have it take place in Season 6 since Wild Batts aired around the same time that Season 6 just started airing, ironic ain't it?

Oh, and the episode also makes bat references to other PBS Kids characters, such as Peg + Bat (Peg + Cat), George the Curious Bat (Curious George) Daniel Bat (Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood) and the Bat/Cat in the Hat. Now, the logical man within me says that these are easy puns to laugh at and not look into. However, the sick twisted fuck that is me says, connect that shit together. Since we've already established Odd Squad, we can probably say that there was an 'odd problem' turning these random PBS Kids characters into bats (probably including the Kratt Brothers if you don't buy the idea that they're in very convincing Creature Power Suits) and that the Odd Squad is able to save them with a reverse-bat-inator and they all go their separate ways, never to meet each other again until their grand return in PBS: Endgame (ok maybe I'm going too far into it but just a funny thought, also yes that is the one MCU reference I decided to cash in).

Cry Wolf: Molly of Denali

The 3rd of the Wild Kratts crossovers, airing in summer of 2022. This was a massive thing in the WK fandom, mainly because around that time, news had come out that the show would not air any new episodes until 2023, which was a massive low blow. This crossover between Wild Kratts and Molly of Denali, while not enough... at least damaged this blow and is an okay entry point to Molly of Denali, another pretty damn good PBS Kids show.

The Kratt Brothers help Molly and her dad track a missing pack of endangered wolves, learning more about them on the way. In the episode it's established that Molly is a huge fan of Wild Kratts, referencing their show a lot, implying that the Kratts we see here are 2D representations of their IRL selves rather than their 2D-in-universe selves. Still, I came here to overanalyze, and overanalyze I shall! Since the Kratts did their whole "what-if!?" skit in Odd Squad, then I could see the same happening here, just not being necessary for the episode's plot. I'll suspend my disbelief again because what the hell.

How to fit it into the canon? I'd have it come between Season 6 and 7. It aired around that time, and again, it was almost certainly done so as compensation for making fans wait 2 years for the new season to drop. Plus it lines up with my headcanon of Clever the Raven being the first in S7's timeline, since the brothers would still be in the mood to adventure with wolves.

So to conclude, all of these crossovers I see as very recent in the show, you could cut them out and lose nothing, but add them in and get more of something, which is what I'm doing. In terms of timeline to the crossovers specifically, here it goes.

Wild Batts → Night-Shift → Cry Wolf

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CONCLUSION: THE CURRENT TIMELINE OF WILD KRATTS

Polar Bears Don’t Dance → The Mystery of the Squirmy Wormy → The Mystery of the Weird Looking Walrus→ Unnamed Gharial Crocodile Adventure Episode → Mom of a Croc → Whale of a Squid → Aardvark Town → Flight of the Draco → Platypus Cafe → Bass Class → Build it Beaver → Voyage of the Butterflier XT → Honey Seekers → Fireflies → Tazzy Chris → Octopus Wildkratticus → Walk on the Wetside → Elephant in the Room → Let the Rhinos Roll → Kickin’ it with the Roos → Koala Balloon → The Blue and the Grey → Falcon City → Cheetah Racer → Mimic → Kerhonk → A Huge Orange Problem → Caracal Minton → Zig-Zagged → Seasquatch → The Food Chain Game → Masked Bandits → Little Howler → The Gecko Effect → Flight of the Pollinators → Birds of a Feather → Googly Eye: The Night Guru → Stuck on Sharks → A Bat in the Brownies → Raptor Roundup → Quillbur's Birthday Present → Speaking Dolphinese → Blowfish Blowout → Rocket Jaw: Rescuer of the Reef → Seahorse Rodeo → Tortuga Tune Up → Bad Hair Day → Race for the Hippo Disc → Creature Power Challenge → Termites V. Tongues → Neck and Neck → Happy Turkey Day → Bugs or Monkeys → Shadow: The Black Jaguar → Rainforest Stew → Secret of the Spider's Web → To Touch a Hummingbird → Rattlesnake Crystal → Roadrunner → Skunked → Gila Monster Under My House → Desert Elves → Unnamed Burrowing Owl Disc Creation Episode → Aqua Frog → Journey to the Subnivian Zone → Snow Runners! → Groundhog Wakeup Call → Attack of the Tree Eating Aliens → Hermit Crab Shell Exchange → When Fish Fly → Osprey → Crocogator Contest → Mosquito Dragon → The Search for the Florida Panther → Opossum in My Pocket → Slider: The Otter → Back in Creature Time → Where the Bison Roam → Bandito: The Black Footed Ferret → The Amazing Creature Race → Prairie Who → Mystery on the Prarie → Under Frozen Pond → Capture the Fishmobiles → Praying Mantis → Lemur Legs → Chameleons on Target → Aye-Aye → Lemur Stink Fight → Tenrec Treasure Hunt → Fossa Palooza → Mini Madagascar → Golden Bamboo Lemur → The Last Largest Lobster → Stars of the Tides → Box Turtled In → The Other Martins → Sea Otter Swim → Animals who Live to be 100 Years Old → Spirit Bear → Panda Power Up → Snowy Owl Invasion → Golden Snub Nosed Monkey Man → Red Panda Rescue → The Colors of China → Pangolin Rescue → Archerfish School → Baby Tooth & Kid Musky → Musk Ox Mania → Puffin Rescue→ Mystery of the Two Horned Narwhal → This Orca Likes Sharks → A Creature Christmas → Cheetah Adopted → Eel-lectric → Liturgusa Krattorum → Creatures of the Deep Sea → Mystery of the North Pole Penguins? → Temple of the Tigers → The Dhole Duplicator → The Cobra King → Sloth Bear Suction → Elephant Brains → Cheeks the Hamster → Fire Salamadner → Komodo Dragon → Wild Ponies -> City Hoppers! → Blue Heron → Choose your Swordfish → The Erminator → Hercules: The Giant Beetle → Creepy Creatures! → The Fourth Bald Eagle → Alaska: Hero’s Journey → In Search of the Easter Bunny → Mystery of the Flamingo’s Pink → Wild Batts → Spots in the Desert → Wolf Hawks → Night-Shift → Deer Buckaroo → Unnamed Antelope Adventure Episode → Hammerheads → The Vanishing Stingray → The Real Ant Farm → Mystery of the Mini Monkey Models → Amazin’ Amazon Adventure → The Great Froggyback Ride → Parrot Power → The Race to Goat Mountain → Iron Wolverine → Adapto the Coyote → Tartigrade Xtreme → Uh Oh-Ostrich! → The Great Creature Tail Fail → Cats and Dogs → Cry Wolf → Clever the Raven → Outfoxed → Owl Odyssey → No Name Dream → Backpack the Camel → Fish Out of Water → Our Blue and Green World → Salamander Streaming → Bumblezz → Chimpanzee and Me → "Mini Heroes and Mighty Mouths" → "Activate Kid Power" → "Moose Nibbles"

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And there you have it so far folks. Fourteen years, seven seasons, more than 160 televised episodes, plus four crossover episodes amounting to 166 canon episodes in the current Wild Kratts timeline. More are on their way and more of this grand Creature Adventure is beyond the horizon. Keep on Creature Adventuring, see ya on the Creature Trail!

Am I a genius, or am I a genius?

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