#watches the fire in his eyes flicker from yellow to red. fizzle down to smoke and night.

[figthefruitfaeth]

Hurt - Nine Inch Nails (Bardcore | Medieval Style Cover)

anyway the party’s tiefling bard, eddie, playing this on the eve of the battle against Vecna

[potato4321]

Hellhounds

Chapter One: Crawling

Seraphina gasped for air as she jolted up from her bed, her ragged breathing the only sound in the dark bedroom. As she stared around at the room, something in her bed caught her attention, and she reeled backwards off the bed with a screech at the sight of its bright red eyes, already burning themselves into her memory. It stalked closer and closer to her, until it hung its head over the bed. "Seraphina. . . " Her name dripped from its mouth horribly in a deep, garbled voice, which struck fear hard into her core. Where was Andrew? Was he okay? Had the thing eaten him? Seraphina's heartbeat was racing in her chest, and her stomach did flips as the dark animal started crawling off the bed and towards her in the gloom. She whimpered, frantically pushing herself backwards, until she slammed into the wall. The hound's muzzle twisted into what looked like a frown, and as soon as it reached her, it raised a paw up to her chest. It looked her in the eye, and its jaws opened slightly so she could see its long fangs. As its claws started digging into her skin, she, oddly, felt more and more grounded. The creature's face came closer to mine, but she started pushing it away with her hands, kicking at the ground underneath it. She thrashed around wildly, doing everything in her power to escape its hold on her, but the statue of a hound wouldn't move. Fear flickered in her chest like a broken lighter, until it completely overtook her body. "Stop! Get. . . off! Please!" Seraphina grunted with the effort of trying to dislodge the hound's paw, her voice hardly even reaching her ears. "Don't kill me!" She screeched, embedding her nails in its hide, desperate to get away from it. It wouldn't budge. No matter what she did, no matter what she said, and no matter how hard she pushed it, the hound stayed in place. Fear controlled her actions, and holes in the walls started billowing out black clouds of smoke, fire crackling from within them. Her eyes widened further as flames started licking out of the abyss and creeping across the walls, getting dangerously close to her and the hound. "Help!" Seraphina wailed the word until her throat was sore, and then kept going until her voice fizzled out, but it didn't help her in any way. A low growl hummed from the hellhound, and she started crying as it grew louder and louder. "Please. . . " Her faltering whisper rang out as darkness blotched over her vision.

Choking for air, Seraphina's eyes snapped open to reveal that she was still against the wall, a slight ache in her chest. Her breaths grew less and less ragged with every passing second, and she pulled herself into a normal sitting position, crossing her legs and shifting her gaze to look around the dim room. Faint traces of daylight filtered through the curtains of the window to her right, and Andrew was still in bed, hogging all the covers—and, as her breathing slowed to a normal pace, she could hear his soft snoring. She breathed deeply for a moment and leaned back against the wall, taking a moment to regroup her scattered thoughts. It was a dream, she thought, it was only a dream.

Seraphina stood up slowly and crossed the carpet, feeling dazed as she crawled back in bed beside Andrew. Minutes passed by, and as much as she'd tried, shs couldn't get back to sleep, so she stared up at the ceiling for around half an hour waiting for him to wake up naturally, thinking about the nightmare she'd had. She'd told Andrew the first two nights she'd had one, but after that, she'd stopped. It had been almost two weeks, and she still couldn't get that night with the hellhounds out of her mind. Normally, she wasn't fazed by the creatures they went after—not even the demons—but. . . their bright red eyes were ingrained in her mind, waiting for her to close my eyes to sleep so she could see them again in her dreams, and something about the way the things got inside her head so easily was unsettling. Seraphina put her hands over her chest and closed her eyes, and stayed like that for more than a few minutes.

She felt movement on the bed as Andrew shifted a couple of times, and her eyes flicked open as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Mornin', sunshine," she smiled at him, taking in his disgruntled appearance. He grumbled some nonesense at her for the mocking comment before slipping off the bed and shambling over to the bathroom. She heard the shower starting up and exited the bed herself to get dressed.

After she'd put on a pale yellow tank top and some skinny jeans made of some kind of soft fabric, she slipped into her sandals. She grabbed her phone from where it was charging on the nightstand and headed into the kitchen. Opening up the freezer, she grabbed out the blueberry waffles, then plugged in the toaster. She tossed the waffles in and leaned against the counter, waiting for Andrew to enter the room. She crossed her arms and tapped her fingers against them, smiling as the gentle patter of paw steps reached her ears. A small orange tabby cat—Georgia—looked up at her, before jumping up on the kitchen counter and brushing her head against the radio. Seraphina's smile grew wider as she ran her hand over her soft, striped fur. Thunder rumbled, and the sound of rain hitting the roof hard seemed to fit the song playing as she switched the radio on. A few minutes passed, and the waffles popped up from the toaster. She picked them up and took a plate from the cupboards to set Andrew's waffle on. She bit into the softened blueberry waffle, petting Georgia as she leaned against her on the counter. Thunder cracked from above once more, and Andrew finally walked in, hair still slightly wet from showering. Seraphina pushed his plate towards him, watching quietly as he tore into the waffle. A smile was stuck on her face as she enjoyed the peaceful rest of their morning. It only consisted of her and Andrew murmuring to each other about how adorable their cat was and talking about the drive ahead of them, but it was nice after the nightmare she'd had.

After they had finished up their light breakfast, fed Georgia, Andrew had grabbed his keys, and Seraphina had turned off the radio, they dawned hoodies and made their way to Andrew's car—a white KIA Sorrento, which was littered with various books on cryptids and other paranormal creatures. Seraphina climbed into the passenger seat as Andrew started the KIA up, pulling her earphones from the glovebox and plugging them into her phone, putting one earbud in and playing her current favorite song, Georgia by Vance Joy, on repeat. She started to space out, staring ahead of her at the moving road.

Seraphina leaned her head against the cold window, raindrops were scattered all over the outside of it, and she watched a few trickling down. The warm feeling of peacefullness in her chest hadn't really left since the beginning of the morning, and she was glad of it. Most mornings for the two were quiet, but usually they were a little chaotic and stressful as they prepared for the hunt of whatever thing they were going after at the time. Their next case, though, was a little different than the rest, considering that they were meeting up with two other people to go after a local cryptid. It was a pretty long drive—about two hours, she'd estimated—but she didn't mind, especially not with a storm, which was slowly gaining traction. Storms were probably her favorite weather. Seraphina turned her brain off, closed her eyes, and listened to her music.

Previous: https://cherry-chapstick-and-violets.tumblr.com/post/184532835316/i-was-in-a-particularly-bad-situation-no-not

Howdy!! :3 As y'all can probably tell, I swapped out the I's and me's for she's and her's. Not for any particular reason, but maybe because I just wanted to, and thought that it'd be fine if the prologue stayed in Seraphina's point of view instead of someone narrating her point of view. Sorry this took so long!! I was honestly just lazy XD

[jjongasarus]

embers

yellow embers rode upon smoke clouds drifting to the stars, each burning flicker fizzling out before it could pass the canopy of trees lazily cloaking their destination. the smoke, however, filtered through the maze of dewy leaves and chipped bark until the moonlight greeted its sparse body. neither the embers nor the smoke could ever make it to the distant stars, and yet with every crackle of wood the failed journey of their predecessors were forgotten and new embers would ride the smoke to their inevitable demise.

her knees were pulled tightly to her chest, feet angling inwards and toes curling as the heat from the fire warmed them. the forest during this time of night was deathly quiet; only the snapping wood of their fire dared to penetrate the thick silence. even the crickets were unusually quiet, which would normally raise red flags but her body was too exhausted to stay vigilant. her loyalty was like a curse; she’d walked miles through the downpour of a summer storm, the humidity paling in comparison to the force of the rain, though both equally managing to leave her sticky and uncomfortable. though he kept walking, and so did she. under the ruthless blaze of the summer sun she flew through the forest, branches vibrating and leaves swaying in wake of her movement, and under the cool evening moon she’d skinned fish and through the misplaced strands of pink hair, watched for the movement of her enemies. he didn’t complain, so neither did she. the duration of their travels constantly tested her endurance, but her loyalty was like a curse, and wherever he went, she followed. that is what brought her here, exhaustedly watching the helpless plight of fire embers.

she wondered if she was similar. the physical proximity of her star wasn’t as distant, but its light was worlds away. if she was a fire ember, and he was her star, she’d fade into the nighttime breeze that caressed the tree leaves before she’d ever be able to embrace his light. the thought made her knees press a little tighter to her chest, her head bury a little deeper into her knees, and her eyes shift focus from the flames licking the night to the man sitting nearby; one leg extended outwards, the other elevated so his elbow could rest on his knee. his eyes were closed but he wasn’t sleeping, sleep never came to him so early in the night. if there wasn’t a fire, he might even blend in with the darkness of their surroundings, so easily fading from her sight, camouflaging into a background that even the moonlight couldn’t fully illuminate.

she knew that if she was a fire ember, he’d be her star. but she didn’t know what his star was, or if he even had one. if he was a fire ember, perhaps his dim light would separate from the rest, float out of the body of the smoke, and burn a path of its own, a path where the end wasn’t marked by the discouraging distance of an unreachable light, but marked whenever the ember’s light ceased to exist. her smile was pressed against her right knee, blocked from sight. he’d never been one to stay on the path commonly traveled, it was idiotic of her to ever think otherwise. despite this, she still wondered that in the uncommon possibility that he did have a star, what would it be.

“sasuke?” sakura’s chin rose, the beginning of his name having been muffled by her knees. she saw one of his eyes open and look in her direction. he had a habit of keeping his eye that posessed the rinnegan closed, so often times she’d only catch the gaze of one eye. if she caught the gaze of both, she knew something was amiss.

“what is it?” his voice suggested that he was on gaurd. perhaps he thought that she was calling to him because she sensed an enemy. his fingers twitched slightly, the line of his shoulders straightened, his lips tensed into a firm line, and the eyebrow that wasn’t shrouded by a blanket of thick hair grew taut with caution.

sakura shook her head first, the edges of her hair brushing by the soft angles of her jawline. “it’s not an enemy or anything. it’s just a silly question..” her words trailed off as her eyes did the same, returning to capture the motion of the ascending embers. his observant eye followed the direction of her dreamy gaze and settled on the same sight, little yellow sparks dancing through the fog of smoke until both disappeared in the thicket of leaves above them.

“what’s the question?” his form relaxed in the slightest of ways, his mouth resumed its usual subtle frown, its corners always dipping downwards ever so carefully, and his shoulders eased up a bit, but their line was still broad and ready at a moment’s notice.

sakura had often admired his readiness; during the old days when her hair could tickle her elbows and she wandered within the shadows of her teammates, sasuke’s preparedness to battle at any given second was one of his most handsome characteristics. these days, however, she found it more unsettling the way he wasn’t able to relax. she wanted to be a source of comfort to him, the warm body he could lean against after a strenuous day of labor, a safe space he could retreat to when the sun was too hot or the moon was too cold or even if everything in the world was just how it ought to be, but he still wanted to be within the presence of her scent. in short, she wanted to be his star.

“well..” she began, musing over how to articulate her question without sounding too odd. she pursed her lips slightly, her legs stretching out in-front of her so the soles of her feet could fully embrace the warm of the fire, her hands pressing palm-down on the ground while her head leaned back so she could peer at the stars through the gaps in the trees. “if you had something you wanted to reach, what would it be?”

“something i want to reach?” he reiterated. he was puzzled by the question, and once again his perceptive eye followed her line of sight up through the twists and turns of branches and leaves until he focused on the sprinkles of stars printed across the evening sky.

“mhm. kind of like, a desire. something you want to keep pushing towards even if you know that you might not make it.” sakura wanted to know what it was that could illuminate his darkest of nights, what could shine so bright that he’d fly to it even if his flame would fade in the process.

a few moments passed between them where nothing was said, only the crackling of fire broke the silence that had settled. “i don’t know. i thought it would be atoning for the sins i’ve committed during the war, but even then..”

sakura had been watching him since he began speaking. her eyelids lowered sympathetically, her expression softened tenderly as her head leaned a little to the right, and her heart ached with the desire to give him the world. a hue of orange reflected in the green of her eyes as she shifted closer to the fire, closer to him. the shadows of the twisting flames created patterns against her skin as she crawled on her hands and knees for a few paces until she was at arm’s length from him. she sat leaning on her hip, one hand on the ground balancing her, the other resting on her thigh so her fingers could play with the hem of her shorts as she thought.

“you still haven’t found it, right?” she looked him in the eye, an action that would normally have her heart in her throat and mind in the clouds. but in this moment, the both of them so far secluded from the world that even the crickets couldn’t find them, where their secret conversations could only be carried by a faint breeze, where both their forms were so gloriously decorated by the warmth of the fire before them, and the scattered dots of moonlight above them, where her green could pour into his sea of darkness, she wanted to remain frozen.

“no, not yet.” he sighed, his eye closing for less than a second but within those precious frames of time, he seemed vulnerable, and sakura wanted to dive right in, wanted to peel open his scars and understand his pain. but instead, she continued to watch him from a closeness that still seemed so far away. when his eye opened again he prompted her, “and you?”

“i want to reach you, sasuke.”

the flames had simmered down by now, in need of some stoking to keep them alive. the once passionate glow was now an insecure flicker that could only manage to brighten the space between their bodies. the embers were few and far between, but the ones that did manage to slip through the pieces of burnt wood were brighter than before and drifted upwards with the help of minimal smoke, carrying more than just a glance-worth of light, but light that may be able to actually navigate the maze of trees above.

“you don’t need to. i shouldn’t be a concern of yours.” he closed his eye but his brow furrowed as if he was concerned over his choice of words. his fingers curled into his palm, before tightening enough for the veins around his knuckles to raise against the skin. she could see the tension in his jaw as her eyes traveled along the sharp path of his jawline, and just as her gaze was traveling along the band of his thick eyelashes she looked away. his expression had told her enough, it always had, that she was foolish to ever think that she could be his light.

she wanted to apologize and return to her old spot several feet away from him. she wanted to end their conversation so that they could both get some rest and prepare for whatever lie ahead of them the next day, she didn’t want to deal with rejection. for years she’d chased after him, and for years he’d made her bleed from a wound that never seemed to heal properly. but her loyalty was like a curse, and she couldn’t turn away.

“you’re right…you shouldn’t be, and it’s foolish of me to think any differently.” her eyes lowered and stared at the stitch pattern on her shorts as his eye opened and fixed itself upon her. “but, i won’t let you go until you find it.”

she stood up from the ground then and walked the few paces to where she sat before before lowering herself back down to the ground. she dusted her hands off before stretching her arms up above her head, stretching her sore muscles. she wouldn’t let sasuke’s light fade no matter how far he strayed, even if his star wasn’t her, even if his star was lightyears away, she’d burn with a light so bright that it would keep him going. the fire now was barely burning above the charred wood and the embers had all been trapped between the pile of smoking wood. she laid herself down on the dirt, using her traveling pack to cushion her head.

it didn’t take her very long to drift off into sleep, she had been worn out from their travels that day. her eyes were closed and the strands of hair that had fallen onto her face floated with every breath she took, fluttering back down to her skin when her breathing softened. sasuke’s eye had watched the gradual digression of the fire, and through his periphery, watched her fall asleep.

“sakura..” he murmured despite her not being able to hear, “thank you.”

and as the fire receded into nothingness and their forms blended seamlessly into the background of the cool summer evening, the ember, burning a determined red, wove its way through the thicket of branches, gliding past the edges of the leaves, and emerged from the top of the canopy into the vast new world of the unfiltered sky.

and then, moments too soon, it vanished.

[mattyrambles]

k e l s e y

Clouded eyes - heavy, red. Dilated pupils - blown out to the point where there’s only a glimmer of blue, ebbing beneath inky depths. Smudged eye makeup, dark. Waves - loose across her face, sparse tendrils of electric blue, dark brown. Glints of silver - her nose, center of her lower lip. And her lips are gorgeous, she is gorgeous. A wide smile - teeth, laughs. Everything is silent, an underwater buzz. Cold - her fingers, spanning along my cheek. A certain electricity. Everything slow - movements lagging, unfocused blurred vision. Slow motion, underwater. Electricity - radiating off her, surging through her veins, seeping out of her fingertips, soaking into my skin. Jagged breaths. Alive. Penelope Clarke.

Fingers - curling around her wrist, a sharp jerk. Slow. Underwater. Her face turns, curls spiraling, and electric blue strands seem to linger in the air, floating. Intoxicating, blue. And my eyes follow - trailing over the fingers wrapped around her, white knuckles, flannel shirt, his face. Vexation.

“Penelope, what the fuck did you give her?”

Too loud, a break in the underwater haze. Sharp, ringing. And it loops in my head - soundtracking the image from barely ten minutes ago. Penelope, pushing something pink between my lips, welcoming with no hesitation. Her mouth, my ear. A shiver - cold skin, warm breaths.

“Light it up, baby.”

Echoing, overlapping with his words.

Unfocused, features bouncing - a fleeting worrisome glance, him. Hazel - darkening behind the rims of his glasses. Silence - dull buzz, resuming, relief. And I slump further against the wall, limbs fuzzy, watching him. His eyes flickering from me to her, eventually settling, her. He’s annoyed. An expression I know all too well. Memorized how his eyebrows furrow and lift sardonically, how his lips curl around accusations and unmeant insults. But he’s beautiful, still. Matthew - Matty - Healy.

A sudden shift - her mouth on his. A heated engagement. His hands pull her closer, hers trail up his arms, shoulders, tangling through his hair. Sparks following their path, effervescent. They fit together, almost perfectly. Refocusing - highly defined, how their mouths mould faultlessly, how his teeth tug at metal, her lower lip. A flawless collison,one that should prove detrimental, thunderstorms- entirely different forces, warmth merging with cold.

Penelope was cold, Matty burned.

Albeit - everything’s burning now. Too fast, too bright. Lights, bodies, drugs. Blurring, bouncing. And the room spins and whirls, and the buzzing rings louder. There’s lights, a lot of lights, too many. Draped around the room, wall to wall, tones of blues, and reds, and greens, and yellows. Christmas. Yet, now they hover in the air, a push and pull. Glowing, glinting, breathing.  Rhythmic, slow. 

And it’s almost enrapturing, it’s almost Penelope. 

Penelope is fascinated with light, lights. Shadows candles throw. Captivated by colours, from the blue spiraling through her hair, to the tones of purple when tongues mesh over vodka slushies - blue, red. It’s an almost hypnotic infatuation. Sunlight, moonlight. She documents it all - her garage, from the pink skies of sunrise, the glowing oranges of sunset, the silver liquid of moonlight, to the eerie luminescence of stars. Paint splattered - walls, canvases, scraps of newspaper. It’s safe, it’s alive. An illusion of false security. All perception of time faded there, between walls that all the lux in the world seemed to pass through. 

Now - her voice breaks through the static, a scoff, something about how George is going to kill himself. George. A name that rings equally loud, almost equally as intrusive as hers. Lights - more erratic, the glowing turning to sparking, too bright, too fast. Intensifying when she speaks, and the more they grow - the more my lungs cave in, and breaths become shallow, catching. Vision blurring - and lights burn along with my lungs, and I need to leave. But - it’s a futile endeavour, frozen limbs. Hypnotic. Penelope. 

It’s a sudden warmth the saves me. Or maybe it’s cold. Something between. Seeping through my top, a borrowed one, Penelope. Wetness - my skin. Although it’s the shrill sound the resembles a jumbled expression of apology that finally tears me away from the lights, from her. A familiar face - blurred around the edges, doe eyes, green. A vaguely nervous expression - flickering over his shoulder. Matty. Penelope. Mine flicker to the now half empty beer bottle, his hand. Vision jumping. Adam Hann. 

A hand - my shoulder, faint, fuzzy - asking if everything’s alright. A question I try to nod to in reply, answer. But tongue heavy - mouth dry, cotton wool. A sigh - colours bounce, jitter, and he’s muttering something about fresh air. But I don’t want to leave, don’t want to breathe. 

Gone - a shout of Matty’s name, piercing through the fog. A bubble of sudden commotion, and there’s a click, shift somewhere in the back of mind. A pang of disquiet.  

“Touch her again, and I’ll fucking kill you.” 

Matty.  Nocuous. Focusing - bodies, giggles and provocations. Sparks emitting. Brash - a familiar voice telling him to go on then. Not an uncommon occurrence. Ross MacDonald. 

Eyes flickering - Penelope, a scowl, fingers tugging at Matty’s jumper, curses filtering through the air. Adam - pulling away Ross. A thud, heart thrumming, and her fingers grasp his jaw, forcing him to look at her, lips back on his. 

Blurring, lights.  

Dimmed lights - Penelope’s kitchen, empty. Deserted minutes ago, bodies piling out the back door, garden, and I can only assume that’s a sign midnight is approaching. Things are better - the fuzziness wearing off, clouds dispersing. But my heart still thrums, blood rushing in my ears, limbs trembling. 

Black marble, kitchen island - smooth, cool against skin, my cheek. Fingers - idly tracing patterns across the surface, black clouding. Cold - winter air, backdoor ajar. Clamorous sounds, boisterous noises drifting - fizzles, crackles, fireworks. 

Content - watching, listening. The background is nice, safe. And I about trying to find Matty, or Penelope, both - for a minute, but the idea drifts, another firework, laughs. 

Time lapses - clock on the wall echoing, echoing off walls, vibrating through the floors, soothing. Comfortable, despite the too tight top, too short skirt, the stink of spilled beer. For once - a moment, it feels right, it feels like I should be here. 

A break - serenity, a laugh resembling my name, one I’d pick out anywhere. Penelope. A blur - fingers lacing through mine as she passes, her other hand linked with Matty’s. Hurried sounds of, “Kelsey, c’mon.” 

Stumbling - endeavouring to keep up, Penelope’s back garden. Alive, bouncing with sounds, vibrant voices. Bodies. Night air - spiraling colors, reflecting in sapphire. Penelope. And everything seems to glow and glitter, explosions of blues, and pinks, and reds. Spiraling kaleidoscopes, Penelope - a hint of awe, entranced, fingers tightening around mine. 

A rush - a countdown beginning, tongue still refusing to curl around words. Penelope, arm draping across my shoulders, fingers remaining entangled. Numbers - echoing, my ear. Breath fogging, hers, mine, chasing patterns. 

And then there’s an explosion of sounds, screeches, colours, and ‘Happy New Year’s’ - the haze of the high parting, and everything’s suddenly too loud. Sound resurfacing. 

Eyes flickering - bodies entangled. Matty, Penelope - half entangled. Lights, colours - illuminating skin, chasing patterns. Lost. 

Until it’s sudden, warmth - my lips, Penelope’s mouth. Quick, a barely there kiss. But - there’s electricity surging, and a lingering taste of night air, tequlia, kaleidoscopes, and Penelope.  Lips - trailing the same taste, synergy, my ear. “Happy Birthday, Kels.” - ensuing a rush of shivers, my spine. Merging with fire. 

Colours, electricity - dying down, mirroring the dying buzz through my veins. Losing a few bodies, louder music, buzzing of dull conversations. Liquid silver - the moon, full. The wall - cold stone, bare skin. A lot colder now, a chill in the air. Matty’s coat, fur - wrapped tight around my shoulders. His smell lingering. Content.

A familiar sound, one that speeds everything up again, sets a thrumming against ribs. It’s a laugh, a cackle. Gaze drifting up - and he sits down, his thigh near touching mine, pulling a girl down alongside him, and for a second I almost think it’s Penelope, but then remembering Penelope’s not blonde anymore. He likes blondes. And I’m not sure if that subconsciously fueled the decision let Penelope spiral tones of blonde through my own hair. Although it hasn’t succeeded with catching his attention yet. 

A beer in one hand, half finished joint in the other - a habitual prop. And when his head shifts to glance over,  a smirk curving his lips, deep brown eyes seeming lighter, moonlight reflecting. Smoke curling through the air. 

An unforeseen action - an arm, my shoulder, pulling me in for a hug. Tired limbs - giving in, my face squished against his chest, and he smells of weed, and beer and there’s a hint of Matty. A rumbling, through his chest, throat - a rasped voice, said through a smile. “Happy New Year, Kelly.”

Kelly. I suppress an eyeroll. My tongue still not grappling words, so I don’t bother correcting him for the millionth time by now. Of course he still hasn’t grasped that my name is Kelsey, not fucking Kelly. And of course he is all too blissfully ignorant that it’s not only New Year’s, but my birthday. 

George Daniel.