#wovengold

[kipkoh]

He finally has a family to draw :)

Dadrius Week Day 4 - Separated

@sergeantsporks

[huntrixi]

they’re on the brain

[thousand-winters]

I feel like people sometimes underestimate what a hard position Darius was in after bonding with Hunter.

Because here's the thing: It's not that easy to help someone who's being abused when they don't understand they're being abused. Especially when it comes to a case like Hunter's, in which not only was the person abusing him his family and legal guardian, but also the only person he was somewhat close to, since he was effectively isolated.

This isn't even speculation, it's clear in Hollow Mind. There's a degree of denial that comes with someone who hasn't been able to digest the fact they're being hurt because not thinking about it has been a survival mechanism for them. Having someone trying to change that perception of the world can make you lash out and snap, anything to preserve the carefully balanced status quo there. Anything to keep the one thing that has worked for survival.

Darius' options at this point were straight up kidnapping Hunter and lose all of his trust because Hunter would then think even more that he truly couldn't trust anybody but Belos, or try his best to become someone Hunter could trust, so when the time came, Hunter would know he was a safe person who could get him out of there.

Darius couldn't say outright "hey, kid, you're being abused and that's fucked up, let me get you out of here". Not with the layers of denial and fear Hunter had built because of Belos. The only thing that would have earned him would have been Hunter recoiling and pushing him away. Darius would have pushed him away even further into Belos' clutches if he had done that.

Of course, it feels terrible because we're not talking about, say, providing a safe space for a friend until they are able to get out of an abusive relationship, this is a child, but it's such a complicated situation. You can hardly call Child Protection Services on the Emperor of the Isles, provided they even have that in the first place.

Honestly I think Darius did the best he could have done and people who think he didn't do enough really do not give him the credit he deserves, because it's clear Hunter DID trust him, for him to be able to believe in him and let Darius reach out after running out of the coven, despite the intense fear and paranoia he had toward everybody from the EC.

Plus it's not only this single aspect that was on the line here. Darius had to be mindful not to accidentally push Hunter away and lose all the chances he had to get him out of that situation while at the same time being very aware he was being reckless by having the Emperor's nephew close to him when he was one of the main leaders of the rebellion.

He was risking so much here and he really didn't have to. He gave Hunter something to communicate with the world outside of the walls of the castle, he could have said "this is all I can do for him" and washed his hands off of him, continue his rebel work and just tell himself Hunter would be fine once they took down Belos.

But he didn't, he chose to be there, he chose to build trust, he chose to help as much as such a hard situation allowed.

He does not get enough credit for that.

[pespillo]

funy lil wovengold

[pincushionx]

hello! out of curiosity, would it be possible for a witch with healing magic to let Hunter, i don’t know, bite a part of their hand off, and then just regenerate it with their magic? i’m not sure if that would defeat the plot of the au as Hunter would freely be able to chomp on someone, haha!

.

Actually they can! However it’s incredibly limiting. This method would only allow Hunter to get surface level meat. He also need organs, deep tissue, bone, ect. Also while healing magic can do all sorts of wonders and I’m sure could regenerate limbs and flesh depending on how talented the healer is. I doubt they would find someone genuine that’s would be willing to do such a thing and at a frequent rate, especially when he starts eating more and actually developing healthy eating habits. I’m sure one of his family members would be happy to do this but Hunter would never allow it. Id imagine it also be a much longer medical procedure than him simply being able to bite chunks out since that would literally him mutilating someone alive lol, even with the help of numbing or pain relief potions.

The amount of food shown would have been perfect for Hunter a few years ago but now with lots of love and healthy habits being put upon him, it’s no longer sustainable. But what healing witches can provide is blood!

Blood is a good alternative for when he’s unable to have meat so I’d imagine he’d be pretty stocked up on it. He gets frequent refills on blood, it’s also slightly more socially acceptable to have as I’d imagine blood being a regular part of some demons and those suffering from vampirism diets. I’d think most people would assume Hunter is a vampire if they don’t know about the grimwalker situation. So he takes blood bags with him on the go as food.

Of course he needs actual food and lots of it as he’s pretty malnourished and has lots of catching up to do. As well as developing healthy eating habits.

He eventually gets a pass that allows him to eat bits of bodies that aren’t being used, that where donated. So if a bunch of healer students are dissecting a cadaver, Hunter is cleanup. Or if organs are given for a transplant, Hunter could eat what wasn’t used. Obviously this disturbs Hunter but it’s better than going feral and attacking people. Of course it was a bit difficult to obtain pass but with the right strings pulled and some light threats, he was able to get it.

All these images are post canon in the Au. For the amount of pain and suffering inflected upon Hunter for the majority of this Au, I do want him to have a happy ending. While there are tragic alternatives, him having a happy ending was always my intention. While it be more difficult to reach than in canon, he gets there eventually :3

(Feel free to ask some questions but do note it may take a bit of time to answer, I already have some questions waiting rn lol)

[p0wderedmarbl3s]

they make me cry sometimes

[waywardsunlight]

Dadrius Week- Day One- Puppet Special thanks to @badgirlcoven-official for helping with Belos's dialogue!! For @sergeantsporks's dadrius week!!

Bonus…

[just-a-soft-kid]

Protective Dadrius my beloved,,,,

Close-up under the cut!!

[oakwolves]

The Dadrius Zine is out today! I’ve been given permission to post my piece!

@dadrius-zine

[lemongooose]

For wovengold: Darius, Hunter (and Eber if you want to draw him) going shopping for new (better) clothes 💀

woah

[newtknewit]

I want to write some Hunter-centric fanfics based on my own experiences with C-PTSD.

[kipkoh]

Darius deserves some patches too

Dadrius Week Day 2 - Sewing

@sergeantsporks

[huntrixi]

my meow meows

[thousand-winters]

Dadrius cookies. For morale

[possibly-a-table-or-just-gay]

I like to think that to everyone else in the emperor's coven, Hunter and Darius' relationship makes no sense.

Like in their eyes Darius is the Worst coven head to get attached to. He's dismissive at best and downright rude at worst, he seems to only care about his appearance and being right, he's even scathingly petty at times.

He's one of those authority figures who expects respect and obedience but also he hates blind compliancy and prioritises free will, and altogether he is very difficult to make like you.

The only reason his coworkers like him is

1, he's attractive,

2, he gets the job done, and done well,

And 3, he hates everyone there equally and it's very entertaining to watch him verbally destroy that one coven head you don't like.

And everyone in the castle just sees the Golden Guard as that one kid with an annoying voice who got a position he doesn't deserve. The concept of these two tolerating eachother, much less basically be family, is absolutely wild.

Anyway this wasn't meant to be this long of a rant, but whatever I had fun.

[nenuru]

Dadrius week, comfort

@sergeantsporks