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that-spider-witch · 3 years

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On the topic of Book!Edward Hyde

Or rather: The topic of his existence (or lack thereof).

Browsing through the J&H tag, I’ve seen a lot of book readers be spiteful of every single adaptation of the character and its pop culture version because it misses the moral of the book: That Hyde and Jekyll were just one and the same, and that Jekyll was the one doing all the bullshit that went down and that Hyde was just a mask to keep his reputation intact.

Most of these rants go on to imply or outright accuse of any author doing the split personality take on the plot to have never actually read the original book, or that Edward Hyde never existing is something that the book leaves loud and clear, something irrefutably canon.

Having read the book too, I’m here to say: Yes and no. You could read the book and still get a “two character, one body” impression from it. Allow me to explain...

While the plot of “Jekyll is Good, Hyde is Bad” is truly bullshit and the very thing that the original novel rips into pieces, whether Hyde could be considered to have a will of his own is a little more ambiguous and it can actually be interpreted either way.

Note that I’m using the word “will” and not “personality”: Hyde is still Jekyll, they both have the same personality, but while Jekyll is a rational human being, Hyde is Jekyll but without the strings of societal norms, morals and impulse control holding him down.

Book readers who go by the take that Hyde never existed also claim that the book is very clear that the changes brought by the formula are just external: Jekyll is completely himself the whole time and “Hyde” is just a mask.

And this is true... At first. Depending on how you interpret Jekyll’s unrealiable narration, “Hyde” actually slowly develops something of a will of his own as Jekyll’s evil nature, given a body of its own by his dumb experiment, continues to develop.

Here’s a fragment of how Jekyll describes the experiment and the very first transformation:

“That night I had come to the fatal cross-roads. Had I approached my discovery in a more noble spirit, had I risked the experiment while under the empire of generous or pious aspirations, all must have been otherwise, and from these agonies of death and birth, I had come forth an angel instead of a fiend. The drug had no discriminating action; it was neither diabolical nor divine; it but shook the doors of the prisonhouse of my disposition; and like the captives of Philippi, that which stood within ran forth. At that time my virtue slumbered; my evil, kept awake by ambition, was alert and swift to seize the occasion; and the thing that was projected was Edward Hyde. Hence, although I had now two characters as well as two appearances, one was wholly evil, and the other was still the old Henry Jekyll, that incongruous compound of whose reformation and improvement I had already learned to despair. The movement was thus wholly toward the worse.”

“Edward Hyde” (who at this point still doesn’t truly exist as his own being and it’s just a mask for Jekyll to use) is evil because Henry Jekyll himself is evil. But while Jekyll-as-Jekyll has good personality traits as well as bad, Jekyll-as-Hyde is just everything that Jeyll finds evil about himself and nothing else. This paragraph also states very clearly that Jekyll’s intentions were never good.

If this was the only instance in which anything along the lines of “two characters as well as two appearances” was mentioned, then yes, there would be no room for debate on the whole “Hyde is just a fake identity and nothing else” because there wouldn’t be evidence of the contrary. It would be clear text.

Except that Jekyll, unreliable narrator that he is or not, also gives us evidence to support the theory that Hyde, while still not being a completely separate split personality on his own right, does develop a certain awareness of himself and a will to act somewhat separate from Jekyll’s.

Of course, this all still falls on Jekyll’s own fault, and even if we consider Hyde as something of an alter, he’s still nothing but the scapegoat that Jekyll uses:

“The pleasures which I made haste to seek in my disguise were, as I have said, undignified; I would scarce use a harder term. But in the hands of Edward Hyde, they soon began to turn toward the monstrous. When I would come back from these excursions, I was often plunged into a kind of wonder at my vicarious depravity. This familiar that I called out of my own soul, and sent forth alone to do his good pleasure, was a being inherently malign and villainous; his every act and thought centered on self; drinking pleasure with bestial avidity from any degree of torture to another; relentless like a man of stone. Henry Jekyll stood at times aghast before the acts of Edward Hyde; but the situation was apart from ordinary laws, and insidiously relaxed the grasp of conscience. It was Hyde, after all, and Hyde alone, that was guilty. Jekyll was no worse; he woke again to his good qualities seemingly unimpaired; he would even make haste, where it was possible, to undo the evil done by Hyde. And thus his conscience slumbered.”

Something all book readers will be familiar with is that Jekyll’s narration uses “I” when writing about most of Hyde’s actions, while also mentioning both Henry Jekyll and Hyde on third person. Jekyll tries to dissociate himself from his crimes this way.

But... Whether also done by Jekyll to still reflect guilt from himself or not, the text also refers to Hyde as having a nature of his own, albeit one irreversably connected to Henry Jekyll’s own hidden desires.

“Between these two, I now felt I had to choose. My two natures had memory in common, but all other faculties were most unequally shared between them. Jekyll (who was composite) now with the most sensitive apprehensions, now with a greedy gusto, projected and shared in the pleasures and adventures of Hyde; but Hyde was indifferent to Jekyll, or but remembered him as the mountain bandit remembers the cavern in which he conceals himself from pursuit. Jekyll had more than a father’s interest; Hyde had more than a son’s indifference. To cast in my lot with Jekyll, was to die to those appetites which I had long secretly indulged and had of late begun to pamper. To cast it in with Hyde, was to die to a thousand interests and aspirations, and to become, at a blow and forever, despised and friendless. The bargain might appear unequal; but there was still another consideration in the scales; for while Jekyll would suffer smartingly in the fires of abstinence, Hyde would be not even conscious of all that he had lost. Strange as my circumstances were, the terms of this debate are as old and commonplace as man; much the same inducements and alarms cast the die for any tempted and trembling sinner; and it fell out with me, as it falls with so vast a majority of my fellows, that I chose the better part and was found wanting in the strength to keep to it.”

There’s a clear divide here, with Jekyll and Hyde having something of a different outlook on life, something that outright doesn’t make sense if we are to consider Edward Hyde as just Jekyll’s alias.

Something to note here is that the divide between the two personas is not of a moral nature, but something much more mundane and selfish: To Henry Jekyll, his social status is everything, and his main drive to keep transforming into Hyde again and again is to enjoy a life of sin without repercussions. To Hyde, said social status can go to hell for all he cares, but still keeps the ruse because his concealment is ultimately necessary for his continued existence, something that the narration will go back to later.

After this point of the book, which is when Jekyll goes to sleep and wakes up transformed on his other body the next morning, the doctor becomes scared and goes cold turkey for two months, having decided to stop being Hyde forever and return to a normal life. It doesn’t lastlonger than that: Hyde returns not because he takes control, but because Jekyll turns himself into Hyde on purpose once again, by his own free will.

“I do not suppose that, when a drunkard reasons with himself upon his vice, he is once out of five hundred times affected by the dangers that he runs through his brutish, physical insensibility; neither had I, long as I had considered my position, made enough allowance for the complete moral insensibility and insensate readiness to evil, which were the leading characters of Edward Hyde. Yet it was by these that I was punished. My devil had been long caged, he came out roaring. I was conscious, even when I took the draught, of a more unbridled, a more furious propensity to ill. It must have been this, I suppose, that stirred in my soul that tempest of impatience with which I listened to the civilities of my unhappy victim; I declare, at least, before God, no man morally sane could have been guilty of that crime upon so pitiful a provocation; and that I struck in no more reasonable spirit than that in which a sick child may break a plaything. But I had voluntarily stripped myself of all those balancing instincts by which even the worst of us continues to walk with some degree of steadiness among temptations; and in my case, to be tempted, however slightly, was to fall.“

Something fun to note here: Jekyll describes Hyde, and/or himself when he’s Hyde, as being comparable to a child. First by merely noting that Hyde’s body is younger than Jekyll’s, then by comparing him to a “son” and Jekyll as the “father”, and now comparing the murder of Danvers Carew to a child breaking a toy.

Speaking of the murder, Jekyll is 100% guilty of it: Even if Hyde was a completely different being with his own traits and goals, which he is not, Jekyll would still be responsable by virtue of willingly going through the transformation again like an idiot.

That being said, the text continues to give Hyde some semblance of personality:

“Hyde had a song upon his lips as he compounded the draught, and as he drank it, pledged the dead man. The pangs of transformation had not done tearing him, before Henry Jekyll, with streaming tears of gratitude and remorse, had fallen upon his knees and lifted his clasped hands to God. The veil of self-indulgence was rent from head to foot.“

From this point on, everything goes to hell: Henry Jekyll is relieved that now that Hyde is a wanted murderer, he now has no choice but to stay as Jekyll and leave that sinful double life of his finally behind (”Jekyll is the Good half” my ass!). But, surprise surprise! He starts to transform unwillingly, and now he needs to constantly drink the potion to stay as Jekyll.

Fun fact: Do you remember which thoughts are the ones that trigger the first unwilling transformation after the murder?

“I sat in the sun on a bench; the animal within me licking the chops of memory; the spiritual side a little drowsed, promising subsequent penitence, but not yet moved to begin. After all, I reflected, I was like my neighbours; and then I smiled, comparing myself with other men, comparing my active good-will with the lazy cruelty of their neglect. And at the very moment of that vainglorious thought, a qualm came over me, a horrid nausea and the most deadly shuddering. These passed away, and left me faint; and then as in its turn faintness subsided, I began to be aware of a change in the temper of my thoughts, a greater boldness, a contempt of danger, a solution of the bonds of obligation. I looked down; my clothes hung formlessly on my shrunken limbs; the hand that lay on my knee was corded and hairy. I was once more Edward Hyde.“

The thought that he, too, was just like any other man. Something that his Hyde half knows as a fact, but that Henry “I’m superior than all these lazy peasants around me because I’m rich... I mean, because I have active good-will” Jekyll considers undignified, and therefore, cruel or evil. O Sweet, sweet Victorian hypocresy.

And it is from here on out that the narration acknowledges Edward Hyde as being his own character somewhat, somehow, at least as part of Jekyll’s conciousness.

After the transformation and the visit to Lanyon:

“My reason wavered, but it did not fail me utterly. I have more than once observed that in my second character, my faculties seemed sharpened to a point and my spirits more tensely elastic; thus it came about that, where Jekyll perhaps might have succumbed, Hyde rose to the importance of the moment.”

“Then I remembered that of my original character, one part remained to me: I could write my own hand; and once I had conceived that kindling spark, the way that I must follow became lighted up from end to end.“

“He, I say—I cannot say, I. That child of Hell had nothing human; nothing lived in him but fear and hatred.“

“When I came to myself at Lanyon’s, the horror of my old friend perhaps affected me somewhat: I do not know; it was at least but a drop in the sea to the abhorrence with which I looked back upon these hours. A change had come over me. It was no longer the fear of the gallows, it was the horror of being Hyde that racked me.“

It’s curious how Jekyll’s narration uses “I” when looking back at Carew’s murder, and yet it is just from here on out that he’s oh so repulsed by Hyde than he uses He/Him pronouns for him.

And, most of all, when he has locked himself up:

“The powers of Hyde seemed to have grown with the sickliness of Jekyll. And certainly the hate that now divided them was equal on each side. With Jekyll, it was a thing of vital instinct. He had now seen the full deformity of that creature that shared with him some of the phenomena of consciousness, and was co-heir with him to death: and beyond these links of community, which in themselves made the most poignant part of his distress, he thought of Hyde, for all his energy of life, as of something not only hellish but inorganic. This was the shocking thing; that the slime of the pit seemed to utter cries and voices; that the amorphous dust gesticulated and sinned; that what was dead, and had no shape, should usurp the offices of life. And this again, that that insurgent horror was knit to him closer than a wife, closer than an eye; lay caged in his flesh, where he heard it mutter and felt it struggle to be born; and at every hour of weakness, and in the confidence of slumber, prevailed against him, and deposed him out of life. The hatred of Hyde for Jekyll was of a different order. His terror of the gallows drove him continually to commit temporary suicide, and return to his subordinate station of a part instead of a person; but he loathed the necessity, he loathed the despondency into which Jekyll was now fallen, and he resented the dislike with which he was himself regarded.”

And what immediately follows is my favorite part of the book:

“Hence the ape-like tricks that he would play me, scrawling in my own hand blasphemies on the pages of my books, burning the letters and destroying the portrait of my father; and indeed, had it not been for his fear of death, he would long ago have ruined himself in order to involve me in the ruin. But his love of life is wonderful; I go further: I, who sicken and freeze at the mere thought of him, when I recall the abjection and passion of this attachment, and when I know how he fears my power to cut him off by suicide, I find it in my heart to pity him.”

This petty behavior of supposedly destroying and vandalizing Jekyll’s stuff to spite him is mentioned yet again just a few sentences later,along with the following line:

“This, then, is the last time, short of a miracle, that Henry Jekyll can think his own thoughts or see his own face (now how sadly altered!) in the glass. Nor must I delay too long to bring my writing to an end; for if my narrative has hitherto escaped destruction, it has been by a combination of great prudence and great good luck. Should the throes of change take me in the act of writing it, Hyde will tear it in pieces; but if some time shall have elapsed after I have laid it by, his wonderful selfishness and circumscription to the moment will probably save it once again from the action of his ape-like spite.“

This assertion from Jekyll that, as far as he’s concerned, he will be already dead when he transforms for the last time, is what closes the book:

“And indeed the doom that is closing on us both has already changed and crushed him. Half an hour from now, when I shall again and forever reindue that hated personality, I know how I shall sit shuddering and weeping in my chair, or continue, with the most strained and fearstruck ecstasy of listening, to pace up and down this room (my last earthly refuge) and give ear to every sound of menace. Will Hyde die upon the scaffold? or will he find courage to release himself at the last moment? God knows; I am careless; this is my true hour of death, and what is to follow concerns another than myself. Here then, as I lay down the pen and proceed to seal up my confession, I bring the life of that unhappy Henry Jekyll to an end.“

If taken at face value, these lines actually paint Edward Hyde as being somewhat able to think his own thoughts and do his own actions, while still just being the childish, “ape-like” part of Henry Jekyll’s mind. Emphasis on childish, not evil, the evilness is all on Henry. Edward Hyde is still nothing but Henry Jekyll’s psychological scapegoat, and the one that Jekyll technically leaves behind to deal with the mess he himself created by “dying”.

I’m not trying to get more people to interpret the book this way nor am I saying that the ”Hyde is not real and Jekyll is a lying bitch” take is actually wrong, because it is not. I’m just pointing out the book could actually be interpreted differently by different readers, and they’d still have sentences in the book to back their interpretation on.

Now, if we could all stop hating and throwing shade on every content creator out there who “got the book wrong”, that’d be peachy.

#let people have fun. its not that hard.#the strange case of dr. jekyll and mr. hyde #edward hyde #henry jekyll #dr. jekyll and mr. hyde #literature #gothic lit #this came out longer than I thought it would be

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pillow-anime-talk · 3 years

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butler.

request ; @iloveuro-san-blog: can you do a bit where the f!reader bribes samatoki into wearing a butler outfit and servicing her. (nsfw if u want)

# tags: headcanon; current relationship; romance; smut; nsfw

warnings: mention of sex and sexual activities, role play, a slight reference to fem!dom, collar & leash

includes: female reader ft. samatoki aohitsugi {hypmic}

part two {click}

author’s note: *yummy* thank you once again!

↘ From ‘The fuck? I won’t do it’ to ‘What do you wish, ma’am?’.

↘ I’m already telling you why.

↘ In the beginning he was totally against your idea; Samatoki thought it would be very offensive to his own pride. being somebody’s servant completely didn’t fit the yakuza style he had so far and showed to everyone around him.

↘ But then you made those specific, big eyes... And you said that one day you can also dress up for him (for example, as a kitten or as schoolgirl), so a little, golden lamp shone in his head.

↘ He agreed, hoping that he would not regret this decision.

↘ You personally didn’t regret it, because as soon as you saw your boyfriend in a butler’s outfit, you felt that your thighs automatically clench, and a little more saliva appears in your mouth than normal. Probably if it wasn’t for your boyfriend asking if he looks good and if you like it, I’m pretty sure you would wet your chin, decolletage and the whole floor around you two.

↘ Of course, you praised your beloved boyfriend more than necessary and you even took a closer look at his figure; in perfectly tailored pants, a snow-white shirt, a black jacket, tie and boots that matched the rest of the outfit, he looked really, indescribably attractive.

↘ To be honest, it was a nice change to see him in clothes other than colorful shirts or jeans.

↘ “... Hey, I think you should unbutton this shirt.” However, at one point you spoke to him, pointing your finger towards the top of his outfit.

↘ Even though he looked really phenomenal...

↘ you just wanted him to fuck you.

↘ Therefore, you began to take your privilege of giving him orders, and as soon as his shirt was unbuttoned and his jacket was thrown over the chair in your bedroom, you smiled lightly, still feeling the warmth on your both cheeks and nose.

↘ A few seconds later you asked him to come closer and knelt down in front of you.

↘ You took a sweet, black and leather collar from behind your back and he looked at you with a frown. He wanted to refuse you, but you looked at him meaningfully (or rather, pleadingly) and he just sighed, letting you do what you want with him for the next hours.

↘ With a collar and a long stripe in your hand, Samatoki looked even hotter. You could even feel a lovely, tickling warmth in your stomach that made your lace panties slowly leak.

↘ So you moved restlessly, trying to hide what was happening inside your hungry pussy.

↘ Holding the leash and feeling full control over him, you started to give your first orders such as; ‘Kiss my calf’, ‘Touch my thighs’, ‘Take off my shorts’, ‘Be more delicate and slower’, ‘Say that I’m pretty’, ‘Smile at me’, ‘Take me on your thighs’.

↘ Samatoki followed all your orders as if he was serving you a gourmet dinner in a restaurant or pouring British tea into your porcelain cup. You might even be tempted to say that he had never been so gentle before and yet so thorough and calm.

↘ Incredibly pleasant feeling.

↘ “... What now, ma’am?” He asked in a raspy voice, and you literally melted on his thick lap. You pulled the leash gently towards you and thanks to it your faces were much closer to each other.

↘ “Kiss me.”

↘ “Of course, pretty.”

↘ It was nice to feel his lips on yours, so you rubbed against his hard crotch, moaning gently, and the blonde one immediately grabbed your hips tighter.

↘ “Can we get to the point where you fuck me in that shirt?” You asked shyly, and your boyfriend just laughed under his breath, shaking his head.

↘ “Princess, I think you forgot that I agreed to something more than sex, so let me take care of you and give you more pleasure. Don’t be impatient.” A low whisper tickled your left ear and you sighed a little louder.

↘ Shortly after, your body landed on the soft mattress and the yakuza ended up between your legs, smiling slightly.

↘ “If I were you, I’d make the best of tonight as much as possible, because I doubt I’ll agree to dress-up like that again.” He muttered as he removed the stray strands of fluffy hair from your pinkish face. “So do you prefer my fingers or rather tongue, princess?”

↘ Well, well, well. Your boyfriend was totally right.

↘ You had to take advantage of it, and he was supposed to serve you, please you and praise you until next morning.

↘ So you snapped your lips and then pulled the white-haired man by the leash, giggling cutely.

↘ “I think you talk too much, Mr. Butler. You know what to do with your lips, right?”

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fayeimara · 3 years

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Meant To Be || One For Every Billion

6. By My Side | Pt 2

Somehow, you're not surprised to see Toru walking up to you and Hana, with Iwaizumi and Maki trailing behind him. There's another boy with them that you haven't met before but you don't have time to pay him much attention because chocolate boy leaves them behind and makes it to your side faster than you thought possible.

"Happy Birthday, Oikawa."

"What a face you're making Y/n-chan! Aren't you happy to see me?"

"To see you stalk me all the way here? Honestly up in the air about it."

"But you indirectly invited me." He's pouting again.

"How's that, exactly?"

"When you said you couldn't celebrate with me because you had tickets for this park. Wasn't that your way of telling me that you wanted me to come to you instead?"

"I-" You manage to hold back a smile at his obvious attempt, "Don't you guys have practice?"

"Not for a couple days! So we're staying overnight to celebrate my birthday!"

"Yes, we've established it's your birthday, Oikawa." You remind him dryly, mostly to cover your close slip of mentioning that you'll also be staying here tonight.

"Call me- oof." He's cut off with a hit to the back of his head as Iwaizumi, Maki and their other friend finally make it to you. Two guesses who smacked his head.

"Hey Y/n."

"Hi Y/n!"

Both Iwaizumi and Maki greet you and you figure you should introduce Hana as well. She's been looking like the audience at a tennis match and probably has oncoming whiplash at this point.

"Hi, Iwaizumi, Maki! It's so nice to see you guys again! This is my friend Hana, by the way."

She blushes really lightly but confidently greets them at your introduction, "Hi! Nice to meet you."

"Hi Hana!"

"Hi.. Hana." You think Iwaizumi's hesitation is caused by the fact that you only gave her first name but you won't say for sure just yet. He clears his throat before adding, "And this is Matsukawa."

Toru cheerily adds in, "Just call him Mattsun!"

"Hey." He does the classic guy head nod without a change in expression. You're pretty sure you're destined to spend today with at least one expressionless companion by your side at all times but you're incredibly used to it thanks to most of your male family members and a couple best friends. Though Key would laugh and tell you that you're one to talk, but that's back at school where a lot of responsibility sits on your shoulders.

Here, you can be whoever you want to be, and that thought is freeing.

"Well... since you came all this way, I guess it won't hurt if we join your group for a little while. We do have to meet up with my cousins and Hana's siblings in about an hour though."

"Only an hour? Why not just have them meet us and we can all spend the day together!"

"Do you really want to spend your day with more strangers than friends?" You're starting to feel genuinely bad at this point instead of the amused exasperation you first felt.

Which all goes away when he shrugs at you with the sweetest smile and responds, "As long as I get to spend it with you, angel, it'll be another perfect birthday!"

"Right, well, apparently not with your friends who came with you."

Iwaizumi actually lets out a chuckle?! You're almost too stunned to hear his words, "Yeah, well he's shittykawa for a reason. But, hey, who'd turn down a day riding roller coasters? With or without trash tagging along."

"Iwaaa-chaaan!"

You barely had it so is it weird to say you missed this? The easy bonds of this group that feels as comfortable to slip into as your own back home?

"You like coasters too Iwaizumi?" You ask, deliberately ignoring Toru, "Hana and I both love them!"

"We were just about to go on this one, if you want to join?" She speaks up with a smile aimed at the guys, even Toru. Oh my, she's really too nice, you can't help but smile at her kind, fair attitude.

It's Iwaizumi that answers her though, blushing as well, "Uh.. sure, it's the new one this year, right?"

"Yeah.." Their voices drift off as they drift away to the end of the line up that's been pushing and pulling a little with the ebb and flow of the people around your group while you were all standing and talking.

The four of you remaining stare after them for a minute before looking at each other like, who knew. Then Toru actually goes and says, "Well, well... who knew?"

On principle, you have to divert, "What are you going on about? Let's join the line before we lose them."

You walk after them and Toru falls into step beside you, "Careful, angel, it's getting quite busy and you could easily get lost."

You scoff, "Right, like I couldn't just call or text someone to meet up with."

"What if you were put in danger?" He's not teasing or being silly even though he has a smirk on his face, he actually looks pretty serious.

"Would that be from the rides or the hyper children or the tired parents...?"

"There are all kinds of people here, Y/n-chan." The two of you step into line behind Hana and Iwaizumi, "But stay by my side, and I'll make sure to protect you."

"Who'll protect me from you?" You joke.

But instead of teasing back lightly, his expression turns smug and he aims a pretty tempting smile at you, "Why would you need protection from me? Worried you might fall for me?"

Yeah, you guess you walked into that one, "For the guy that stalked me here on his birthday?"

"You invited me!" It's almost surreal, how easily he slips in and out of his silly, cheerful personality to the deeper aspects you have yet to fully discover. As friends, you mean.. right?

"Okay, I guess that's the story we're going with."

You didn't realize completely but his friends have once again sectioned off to give the two of you room. Although in Iwaizumi's case, you don't think it was too intentional this time. He and Hana seem to be really hitting it off, her cheerful demeanor off setting his more serious tone in a pretty cute way.

Her head's thrown back laughing at something he's said, her eyes closed so she doesn't see that he's looking over at her through the corner of his eye with a small smile on his face. See? Cute.

So it's no surprise when your group reaches the front and he follows her over to the two-seater at the very front. You move towards the second pair of seats - you swear, the front is always the best - and you don't have to look behind you to know Toru is following.

"Hm? Where's Maki, I want to see if he laughs or screams?"

Toru smirks at you while gently pushing you forward so he can move in front of the other seat you're currently blocking, "He and Mattsun took the back, good luck getting them at the front of any ride."

"So I'm stuck with you?"

"Lucky me, huh? Now I get to see if you laugh or scream." Wow, okay. You don't think that's an innuendo, but he said it like he was flirting so it's pretty confusing.

You roll your eyes as they list the typical rules over the loudspeaker, talking low even though there's noise everywhere, "Depends on the ride."

You take a chance to glance at him, pulling an Iwaizumi and looking over the corner of your eye, but you're caught in that decadent pool of chocolate the moment you meet his gaze. He's looking directly at you, not even trying to pretend otherwise.

That's how you start to ascend, looking at each other without saying a word. People around you both are hollering and calling out as you near the precipice and you're the one to break eye contact first, pulling away to study the world at your feet.

As you finally do reach the summit, you meet his eyes again briefly but now you've got an anticipatory, exhilarated smile on your face and his eyes slightly widen in response. You love roller coasters. And this is your favourite part.

You're already laughing as you start to drop and you don't know if he ever looks away. All you know is that his hand finds yours and they stayed locked together whether your arms fly up in the air or drop back down to the bars.

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Masterlist

Behind The Scenes!

-The "what a face you're making" line is a direct reference to the previous birthday chapter, a year before in the story, in which Y/n thinks the exact same thing in reference to Toru <3

-Hana and Hanamaki.... didn't want to point out the obvious but I actually didn't even realize it myself until much later. But I guess the name still stood out to me for a reason when I had to decide what fit her character lol

A/N: I'll get to a rant about this at the end of this episode but... I really did revive my thoughts on Oikawa by writing him...

Taglist: @delusivist, @prettyinblack231, @kac-chowsballs, @sakusasimpbot, @hawkthekinnie

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cryptidofthekeys · 3 years

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Giant!Chase x Borrower!Reader (Gamer Edition)

(that title is the shittiest and cringiest one I’ve made but it made me laugh so we’re sticking with it okay?)

Trigger Warnings: Mentions of Alcohol and Weed but that’s about it really, this story is p much fluffy true and through

Gonna add a keep reading as well, doubt this’ll tag in the main tags as well but eh here we go!

You had been wandering through the city, sticking close to the edges of the buildings and alleyways mostly, most of the alleyways connected to other parts of the city, the amount of giants that occupied cities was near overwhelming to you, you had heard all the stories from your kind and your own family, giants, or, humans as they were more commonly referred to seemed like awful cruel creatures according to all those stories, usually, you wouldn’t even be here in the city with all the potential danger but these buildings that the humans called a house/home, it always had s u c h good food stocked in them, and plentiful amounts of water, it was so much easier to gather supplies from a home as well, sure, there was always a risk of getting caught but so far the human that occupied this building in particular was none the wiser… He usually seemed so distant, distracted by many things, or he was drinking some kind of strange substance that made him act strange and then you noticed he’d pass out shortly after a bit, honestly given how this human acted, you didn’t even think he’d notice if you stole something that might have been of significant importance which okay you’d never risk that but still…

You also took notice how he seemed sad a lot… With how many times you had came back here, or if you had stayed the night you’d hear sobs come from the human’s bed, he seemed to cry himself to sleep on a lot of nights, some nights you’d catch him staring at a picture so heartbrokenly, you couldn’t help but feel bad for the human even if you didn’t know him personally… Honestly, all those stories you had heard about these giants being cruel creatures who’d snatch you up and eat you or turn you into a little plaything, while you’d not deny the truth behind most of them, you didn’t know if he’d even wanna do anything to you even if he did spot you, but you wouldn’t press your luck either, you finally made it to the apartment in question, luckily for you, there was a route to the side with a window that was usually cracked a bit, you had torn the screen which he didn’t even seem to notice that, not that you were particularly complaining, you climbed up to the window in question and crept inside, you took notice that he was playing games on his computer, he wasn’t talking to himself like usual this time though, you noticed sometimes he would be talking to himself as he played games, you found that weird but hey, it wasn’t any of your business anyway, you were just here for food and water and items that’d benefit your survival.

You crept in through the window, there was a dresser by it luckily for you and it wasn’t too far of a drop that it’d injure you so you dropped down, quickly hiding behind one of the bottles that was on the dresser, you finally got a close look at it and the bottle read ‘Suntory Whisky Toki’ you thought for a moment, this drink didn’t ring a bell at all, you honestly didn’t know a lot about a lot of human things nor items, you wondered how the whisky would taste ...Then again, given how the human in question seemed to act while drinking this and how he seemed to pass out a bit easier, you decided against trying a taste and moved on, climbing down from the dresser and then hiding under it, just in case he were to turn around, you had to be careful… However he seemed completely distracted like usual by his game, honestly? Even though you didn’t like taking risks, you were curious… He seemed to like this sort of thing.

You were tempted to take a closer look, there was still plenty of time to grab the food and water you needed for later, and besides, you had planned to spend another night here, so might as well kill some time while you can, the monitor in question was plenty big enough for you to hide behind, and there were a few more items to hide behind as well if need be, some bottles of water here and there, it seems he was prepared for a long gaming session, you made your way over to his desk, being mindful of him potentially turning around or getting up, you definitely had no intentions of being stepped on, you slowly climbed up the desk, it was a bit harder to climb than the dresser given how the desk was made, but eventually you made it up there and quickly positioned yourself behind one of his water bottles since it was the closest, he you took a peek and glanced up at him, he looked as tired as usual but he did seem to be having fun at least, you panicked as he reached down to grab the water bottle almost grabbing you along with it, you quickly made a mad dash behind his monitor and took a deep breath, you weren’t particularly worried about him hearing you given those things he had over his ears, they surely had to block out the noise.

They must have also controlled the game volume as well given how you could hear faint bits of the music from the game he was playing here and there, you heard him set the water bottle down finally, it probably sounded like nothing to him but to you it sounded like something huge slamming down onto the ground, had you been any smaller than you were it could have definitely done some damage to your ears, you took a quick peek, looking up at the giant before you, he was completely entranced by the game he was playing it seemed, you were feeling a bit bolder than usually if you were being honest with yourself, you had seen how this giant acted multiple times and when he was playing a game, he was lost in it, you waved a hand from behind the monitor, if he were to look down he’d definitely see it sticking out however he wasn’t even intending on taking his eyes away from the screen it seemed, so you decided with a bit of bravery to step out from behind the monitor, you wanted to get a closer look at his game after all, you just needed to be mindful of getting too close to his keyboard or near things he’d be grabbing.

After stepping out and back a little bit, you could see the game he was playing… It was a blocky looking game to say the least (...y’all know what Chase be playing…) he had a few items in the little bar on his screen, you could see a sword, an axe, a pickaxe, and what you assumed were a few building blocks here and there, he seemed to be working on a house in the game, you watched as he went over and began placing the blocks, it was a stone house it seemed, you watched him for what felt like hours placing the blocks down until he was out of them, then he went inside the home, he turned toward two wolves in the house, one was named Greyson and the other was named Sam (unoriginal names? In MY story? ...Y e s.) And then he went through his chests, he seemed to be doing pretty good with the ‘Cobblestone’ materials as he grabbed two more stacks, and just as he was about to go out again and continue placing the blocks, he stopped altogether, he took off the things over his ears and set them down on the desk, for a moment you were worried he was going to see you sure enough then, but he didn’t, he pulled some item from his pocket and began looking at it instead, scrolling through some things, he took the water bottle and took another few sips, then he sat it down again, it was closer toward the middle of the desk.

Now you could maybe get a better look at this game, sure, you could see some things but the position you were in wasn’t too comfortable, and besides now you had a few places to duck behind if need be, his water bottles were almost lined up actually, you quickly made your way to the middle of the desk, looking over his keyboard now as well, the thing was MASSIVE compared to you, you noticed the keys were color changing as well it looked very pretty, the monitor alone was practically humongous, there wasn’t much going on since he looked away now, his character had been turned to face the windows and you could see various creatures walking by, cows, pigs, sheep, and then there were… Okay, you knew whatever these things were didn’t exist in the real world… Whatever these things were definitely looked like enemies as well, especially the big tall one that was teleporting around outside… You were honestly almost entranced by this as well, even if nothing much was going on, it looked like fun, you could see why the giant enjoyed it so much! You wished faintly that you could be a bit bigger in size in order to play this game since you really didn’t figure they had made things like this for people your size.

You were about to try and touch one of the keys just to judge the sheer size difference before… “...What the fuck…?” You heard the voice mumble as if trying to be quiet behind you and then you froze entirely, you had a bad feeling about turning around now… You had noted the shock in his tone when he spoke, you hoped it was just something on that device of his that caused the reaction, you sucked in a deep breath and turned around and your worst fears were realized, the giant was staring right at you, the both of you were frozen really for what felt like an eternity before he slowly reached a hand out, the hand shadowed your entire body and that’s when you ran for it, running behind his water bottle which he then quickly moved, you dashed for the other one, he moved that one as well and then the final water bottle was your last hiding spot, you’d never disappear behind the monitor in time, you then felt a gust of wind as he picked up the water bottle, it was enough to knock you over momentarily and before you could even manage to get up, finally his other hand lowered down on top of you to which you let out a scream at, your first instinct was to immediately curl into a ball, oh god, this was it, why did you have to be so stupid?! Sure, curiosity about things could definitely be a hard demon to fight but you could and probably were literally going to D I E in this situation! You mentally cursed yourself for being so careless, for being so risky, this is where risk and recklessness get you.

You could feel yourself being lifted despite being encased in his hand and you also had your eyes closed, just preparing for the worst to come, sure, you had seen how he acted usually but it could all change in an instance, he IS still one of those giants after all… ...You just hoped faintly that maybe just maybe he’d be a bit merciful if anything, you heard him set the other water bottle down and then the hand with you inside stopped, he slowly opened it and gasped, you immediately uncurled and just sat in his hand, backing up until your back hit against his fingers, you were cornered pretty much, and since you were so high up off the ground if you jumped it would kill you

...Then again, maybe jumping wouldn’t be such a bad idea, better than what this creature could have had planned for you, you watched as his other hand was coming toward you, even his finger alone was still bigger than your body, you stiffened as he pinned your arm between his thumb and index finger, you tried to pull your arm away quickly but it was no use, if he wanted to he could break your arm right now just like that, it’d be so simple and for a moment you were worried that was his plan as he gently moved it up and down, but then he carefully released it.

He watched as you grabbed at your arm and held it against your chest, you looked up at him with terror, tears pricking your eyes, however he didn’t seem to notice this just yet, it seemed he was still in shock “Wh...What are you? Am… Am I hallucinating? I… I don’t remember drinking any alcohol yet… I… I don’t think I’ve smoked any weed either…” He then paused and looked closer, finally seeming to take in that you were holding your arm and his eyes widened “O-Oh shit… Did… Did I hurt your arm by grabbin’ it lil dude? I’m so sorry… I… I didn’t break it, did I?” Despite still being terrified you carefully moved your arm around to show him it wasn’t broken and he seemed relieved at that “Oh thank fuck… I’m sorry for just… Grabbin’ at’cha like that, that wasn’t cool of me, but I was just, like, worried you’d run off, ya know? And I wanted to get a closer look at you” You listened as he spoke and looked around, there really was no way you were getting out of this unless you jumped and then the giant seemed to finally put two and two together “...Oh… Oh…! You uh, you’re probably fuckin’ terrified aren’t ya?” You nodded hesitantly, you were eyeing the human’s mouth every time he spoke, if he even dared lift you up there, you were bolting… And then you remembered, you DID have a pin on you!

“L-Look, I know it’s gonna be hard to believe me right now, but I promise… I DON’T wanna hurt you… Can… Can you speak?” There was a pause, you didn’t believe a word of that at all, he was right… You knew the stories, humans could be manipulative and say and do anything to lull you into a false sense of security “Y-Yes…?” You decided to speak anyway, if he tried anything, ANYTHING at all, you’d be grabbing that pin and pricking him… He didn’t take his gaze away from you and it was definitely starting to get uncomfortable “I wanna ask again, what are you…? How did you even get here…?” (no, we do not have 90 minutes) There was a pause before you finally spoke up “...U-Uh… Well for one, your window was open and two, I’m a borrower, ever heard of those?” The Giant took a few moments before shrugging, trying to keep his hand as steady as he could as well “Uhh, Oh yeah! I heard Marv say some shit bout that once? But I didn’t think he was actually, ya know, tellin’ the truth…” And then a pause before he seemed to realize something “...Wait, borrowers, like, borrow stuff right? Is that why some of my things have gone missing?” And then you tensed, it seemed he could feel that and he shook his head “I’m not mad or anything like that, just wanna know lil dude” You then nodded “Yeeahh… I… We try to only take what we need though” And the human nodded at that “I get that to be honest ...Oh! I haven’t even told ya my name…”

And then he smiled, extending a finger out to you instead of his hand given that… Well, there was no way you’d be able to a handshake, it was going to be tricky doing the same with his finger even… “Name’s Chase. Chase Brody! Do you have a name?”

You flinched at him bringing his finger closer to you and you were about to pull out the pin before he just introduced himself… You then took a hold of his finger “(Y/N)... That’s uh, th-that’s my name…” He let you shake the finger up and down before pulling it away, a grin on his face although it didn’t look to be malicious, just a friendly one but still… You couldn’t help but flinch upon seeing those teeth “(Y/N)’s a hella cool name…! Nice to meet’cha…!” And then he seemed to take notice of you staring, he figured it was because of the grin and he just simply smiled then, avoiding showing his teeth at all, he didn’t necessarily blame you though, hell, if HE were this small and he was in the hands of a literal giant and they were grinning at him? He’d be absolutely terrified! “Oh, since you’re here… You must want some food, yeah?” You were about to politely decline and explain to him the borrower’s rule/code but then your stomach growled and your face flushed red in embarrassment, he only seemed to chuckle at that though “C’mon lil dude, I’ll get ya some food” And with that he was standing up, he positioned his arm and hand against his chest, it was an extra precaution so you wouldn’t fall or feel uncomfortable as he walked.

The first sound you took note of was his footsteps, it wasn’t as overpowering as it would have been had you been on the ground, each step he took echoed out with a loud boom, the next sounds you heard were his heartbeat given that you were pressed close enough to his chest, the thunderous beating sounded… Comforting in a strange way… And then he reached the kitchen and he was lowering his hand toward the counter before stopping “Um… You’re not like, gonna run away once I put you down, are ya dude?” You pondered for a moment, this WOULD be a perfect opportunity to try and get away but here he was, a giant human, one of the most feared and renowned creatures amongst your kind, offering to feed you and give you something to drink, if he were going to eat you, kill you, or anything like that why would he be going through this trouble? Sure, Chase COULD want to keep you as a pet but for the moment, you didn’t really feel the need nor the want to run away, you shook your head at this and then he gently placed you on the counter “So, what would ya like bro?” You shrugged “M-Maybe just some bread… And uh, w-water if that’s fine?” Chase nodded and then walked over, grabbing a slice of bread and then grabbing some water out of the fridge, he tore a corner off for you and handed it over, setting the bread down by you and then opening up the water, he took the cap and placed it next to you, carefully filling it with some water.

You looked up at him “T-Thank you…” He only smiled “It’s no problem bro!” You winced at how loud he was that time, sure he was still loud in general but that was… MUCH louder than before “Sorry bout that, imma have to uh, get used to being quieter…” He seemed like he was genuinely trying his best, he tried not to stare at you while you were eating because that would have been weird and you honestly appreciated it, you then thought back as you took a bite out of the bread and then a sip of water “So w-wait… You said something about this… Marv person talking about, uh, my kind?” To that Chase nodded “Yep! Marvin’s his name, he’s a… Well, he usually just calls himself a Magician which to be fair, he does do magic tricks here and there, but the guy knows his shit bout like, mythical creatures, folklore, and all kinds of stuff, shit’s crazy… I uh, I really didn’t think he was tellin’ the truth bout em though… Heh…”

There was a pause before Chase sighed “Oh fuck… If he EVER sees you he’ll never let me live it down…”

You blinked in confusion “...H...He’s not dangerous is he? Like, if he finds me he won’t wanna test on me or anything?” Chase shook his head “Nah, Marv’s a chill guy… Uh he CAN be dangerous but not for no reason! Usually he’s only dangerous to those who hurt his friends n family, so you really don’t gotta worry ...Unless of course you were here to do damage that is” Not that Chase really thought you could do much of anything but he wasn’t going to be rude and say that aloud… You immediately shook your head “N-No no, I wasn’t here to do anything bad…? Er, unless you count me technically stealing your food and certain items… Even though we call it borrowing, it does… Sort of seems like stealing, well, it would to most anyways...” Chase only shrugged at that “Dude, you’re just doing what’cha need to in order to survive, it’s chill, if you need food you’re free to take any of it ya like, hell if ya wanna crash here you can” You looked up at him and sighed “...I… While it’s appreciated… Chase… There’s something I need to tell-” And just then his phone buzzed “Shit, hold on a sec and then you can tell me lil dude” You nodded, continuing to munch on the bread and sip the water until you were finally content, you then looked up, watching Chase’s eyes scan over something and then they widened.

He looked… Afraid and immediately you were concerned “Ch-Chase…? Is everything alright…?” The giant looked at you and smiled nervously “S-Sooo… U-uhhh… (Y/N) remember… How I was JUST talkin’ about Marv…?” You… You already didn’t like where this was going… Yet you nodded anyways and to that Chase laughed nervously “...Well… He’s on his way… He wants me to watch Robbie…” Your eyes widened “HE’S COMING HERE?!” Chase immediately reached down, you flinched as his hand grabbed you “Yep! And I mean… Like I said, he won’t hurt ya! But I’m worried Robbie might do so accidentally… And I know this is gonna sound real fuckin’ strange but uh, dude’s a zombie” Your eyes widened, now… You didn’t know much about certain things but you DEFINITELY knew what a zombie was, you had heard and seen what those things supposedly were “HE’S A FUCKING ZOMBIE?! CHASE! DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT ZOMBIES D O?!” You then paused and looked up at him quizzically, your eyes narrowed “And wait… Hold up… You have a literal zombie in your life and yet you didn’t believe Marvin on the Borrower thing…?” Chase rolled his eyes “L-Listen dude, just… I’ve SEEN Robbie before, I just haven’t EVER seen a Borrower until now, look that- That isn’t important! Just calm down please! Robbie is innocent! He’s almost like a kid, he won’t hurt you intentionally or ANYTHING like that, I just don’t want an accident to occur but I promise you, he’s not ACTUALLY dangerous!”

Chase quickly headed back to his room, looking for somewhere, ANYWHERE to hide you, he then got an idea, he set you down on the table where his monitor was “Stay there a second…!” You nodded and watched as he first grabbed his bottle of whiskey, opening a drawer and shoving it into there, he also grabbed one of his keys and locked the drawer, as he walked back over, gently scooping you up “I uh, Marvin personally ensured there would be no accidents where Robbie got the whiskey or god forbid one of my guns… I lock ‘em in there and then put the key up super high where he can’t get it” You nodded and then you looked at the shelf he had walked towards, you looked over all the various figures, games, etc-

There were plenty of places to hide, and that seemed to be his plan “Here… Hide behind anything ya want here…” And then there was the sound of knocking at the door and a loud voice echoed out “Chase~! We’re here!” Chase’s eyes widened “Hide NOW…!” He half whispered, you nodded and quickly sprinted behind something the moment he set you down and then he was running off back toward the kitchen… Chase had took notice of the bread left behind and he quickly grabbed it and the lid in the garbage out of panic, not wanting Marvin to catch on, he then took a deep breath, okay, act cool he thought to himself as he then walked over to the front door, opening it and he was quickly met with a tackle hug from Robbie “Papa..!” He giggled happily, nuzzling into Chase, and okay he couldn’t help but smile at that and gently pat Robbie’s head “Good to see ya too kiddo…” He looked up at Marvin who was chuckling lightly “He was so excited when I told him we were coming over… He’s been wanting to see you again for quite some time now” Chase nodded, Robbie giggled and finally crawled off of Chase, allowing him to stand up and dust himself off, meanwhile Marvin stepped closer to Chase “Ahem…” He began “You D I D hide the alcohol, yes…?” Chase rolled his eyes, Marvin could be… Very overprotective of Robbie but everyone was really.

Even he himself was protective of Robbie! But Marvin could be… TOO much sometimes, it annoyed Chase that Marv thought he was so careless “Yeah Marv, I hid it… I always do” Marvin nodded “Good, I just… I just wanted to make sure… It’s not that I don’t trust you, Chase, you are a wonderful father, I… I just get so worried about Robbie sometimes, he can really get into a lot of trouble even if it IS unintentional technically speaking, I mean one wrong move and…” And Chase could tell Marvin was spiraling a little bit, he placed a hand on Marvin’s shoulder “Bro, relax, I promise, I’ve got this… I’m not gonna let anything bad happen to ‘im, go do what’cha need to, we gonna chill n just have some fun, right Robbie?” The zombie giggled and slowly shambled over “Yeeaahh… Papa… take good care… Robbie…” He looked toward Marvin and gave a lopsided smile “Ittt ookaay… Marmarrr… We… be saafe…” He then gave the magician a big hug and that seemed to calm Marvin’s nerves, he sighed and put an arm around Robbie, gently patting his back, a small smile on his face “Alright… I’m going to be gone for awhile… So Chase, remember-” Before Marvin could speak Chase cut him off “Yeah yeah, I know the rules Marv” and then the Magician chuckled, giving Robbie a little kiss on the forehead and just like that, he was gone… He didn’t use the door, he pretty much just teleported away, Robbie giggling at the sparkly dust that got left behind, meanwhile Chase closed the front door and locked it, god forbid Robbie got out…

He then looked back at the zombie “Alllriiighty Robbie, what’cha wanna do first, buddy?” The zombie looked around the kitchen “H-Huunngrryyy…” He mumbled, looking around for any food “Huh, guess Marv didn’t feed ya yet then, alright, whaddya want?” The zombie blinked and he looked like he was in deep thought, Robbie… He wasn’t stupid, not at all, sure he could be naive and gullible on many things, but really he was just like any other kid, it just took him a lot longer than the others to think and speak even when it came to what he wanted, Robbie could get frustrated and irritated even when the words can’t come to him like it can for the others, sometimes he couldn’t even manage to figure it out, he’d have to slowly make his way over and grab at what he meant, or if its in actual view he’d just point to it…

Eventually he managed to figure it out “f-fuuit...g um…” ...Well… It wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t proper at all but Chase knew exactly what he meant, having kids of your own before could really pay off for these things, he was a bit surprised Robbie didn’t just ask for meat, but then again he was learning to try other foods, and he seemed to REALLY love the fruit snacks, Chase walked over and grabbed a packet, tearing it open for Robbie and then handing it to the young zombie “Here ya go bud, c’mon with me, let’s go to my room, I’ve still got your favorite toys waiting for ya…” The zombie’s eyes lit up as he grabbed the packet, he took a piece out and began munching on it, he then nodded at Chase’s words, lifting out another hand for Chase to take hold of, and then he was leading the zombie into the bedroom, Chase’s apartment wasn’t… Very big so he had to make due with the room he did have, so he got a toy chest and put one down for Robbie since that… Was really the only kid he got to actually see (Bc Marv isn’t a b i t c h like a certain someone… ...well he CAN be a bitch but not in any of THOSE regards anyways) and okay, that thought hurt him a little but at least he still got to see Robbie ...It was nice… The young zombie plopped down on the messy bed and continued to enjoy his fruit gummies while Chase sat in his gaming chair, he quickly glanced toward the shelf, he hadn’t forgotten you were there but Robbie shouldn’t be able to find you, it should be fine.

Chase then glanced back at Robbie who was munching away and making happy gurgling sounds, he seemed to love the fruit gummies and this made Chase smile, it was always nice having Robbie stay over with him for awhile… Eventually Robbie finished the snacks and crumpled up the paper very slowly and he squinted at something and before Chase could even ask what he was doing, he lined up his arm and threw the paper, it teetered on the edge of the bin next to Chase’s desk and then it finally went in and Chase stood up “OH! Ohhh! And a score for Robbie! Fu… Er, heck yeah!” Marvin would kill him if he taught Robbie any curse words… Robbie giggled and bounced up and down in his spot “Robbieee diid itt…!” He then stood up and walked over to hug Chase who simply smiled and ruffled the young zombie’s hair “Yep…! Good job kiddo!” Meanwhile you were listening in, peeking from the figure you were hiding behind, honestly that made you smile, Chase was right… Robbie really WAS just like a child, he didn’t seem to have a mean bone in his body, but still, you couldn’t take any chances, you didn’t know if he’d treat you like a toy, a snack, or what… So you weren’t going to take any risks, after all, risks got you caught earlier on anyways.

Then you watched as Robbie had grabbed some of his toys and began playing with them, you watched Chase play with him as well, making some of the stuffed animals do some silly things, you could tell Chase really cared a great deal for Robbie, he treated him just like his own kid it seemed, after a while of playing with the toys, Chase stood up “I’ll be right back Robbie, then we can play some more if ya want” The zombie smiled lopsidedly and nodded “Okiee…” And with that, Chase was gone… He figured by now Robbie wouldn’t ever find you, so it was fine if he left for just a bit to take care of something, meanwhile Robbie continued to play with the toys alone, he seemed to be able to entertain himself well enough and you sighed, slumping down against the figure, you heard a small huh come from the zombie and you carefully peeked out from behind the figure, one of his pointed ears twitched (yes, my vers of Robbie does have pointed ears, similar to Anti) and he looked around “Papaaa…? Thaatt youuu…?” And when there was no answer, the young zombie stood up, looking confused and even a little startled.

Robbie looked around for the source of the sound and when he looked up toward the shelf you immediately ducked back behind the figure, there was NO way he heard you…! There was no way possible he could have heard your sigh! ...Did… Did zombies have some kind of super hearing ability that you just didn’t know about, the zombie in question had walked toward the shelf and looked up at it “Mm…?” You heard him make a questioning noise as he stared, as if waiting for something to pop out, when nothing did… Robbie looked back to the doorway, Chase wasn’t back yet and the zombie DID know he could get in trouble for this, he didn’t want to make papa angry, he didn’t want to get in trouble but he KNOWS he heard SOMETHING… So he decided to investigate, whatever the noise was it wasn’t SUPER far up but Robbie would need something to stand on, he looked around and he found a little stool that would be perfect, Chase must’ve kept it to clean off some of the figures and shelves, he went over to grab it and then he dragged it over to the shelves, stepping up on it and looking around… Meanwhile your little heart was beating rapidly as you held a hand over your mouth, shit…! He was going to find you! And there wasn’t anywhere to run up here…!

Robbie didn’t know EXACTLY where the sound was so he moved some figures over, going rather… Slowly, maybe because of how slow he seemed to be you could dash behind another figure if he lifted your hiding spot up, because it was clear he was NOT stopping until he found whatever made the noise, you waited for him to get to yours and as he began lifting it up you quickly dashed behind the other figure next to it and you heard him make a startled noise so he must’ve seen you, well… Shit… You might just have to run around to avoid him however you heard a voice call out from the doorway “ROBBIE!” This startled the zombie and he had almost fell off the stool as he turned back around to face Chase, tears forming in his eyes “P-Papaaa…! Som...Something… up… there…” He pointed to the shelf you were on and Chase bit his lip as he walked into the room “Robbie… It’s… It’s just figures up there, I’d know if somethin’ was up there…” He tried to play it off as he grabbed Robbie and gently helped him down from the stool “Besides, haven’t I told you about this bud? You could fall and hurt yourself real bad…!”

The zombie looked down, sniffling slightly “I...Iiii… Robbieee sorryyy… but… R-Robbieee heearrr noise… see… something mooove… w-whyyy hiiide frrrom Robbiee…?” And then Chase felt a tinge of guilt, ah… While Robbie could be naive and even gullible he wasn’t stupid by any means and it was clear he had found you, he KNEW something was up there so Chase sighed “...Alright, Robbie… Just… Listen, if I show you what that noise was… Can you promise papa one thing?” The zombie nodded “You’ve got to be EXTREMELY careful and gentle around them, they are very fragile, okay…? Remember, they aren’t a toy either…!” The young zombie nodded at this “Ookaay... Noo tooyyy… Bee gentle… prrromise…” Chase smiled at that and walked up to the shelf, moving the figure and gently taking ahold of you, at first keeping you out of Robbie’s sight as he whispered to you “Alright (Y/N)... Look… We might as well cut the act… The kid knows… I promise, I’m not gonna let anything happen to ya… So just… Try and breathe…” You nodded at his words and began taking deep breaths, prepared to face the curious zombie, you just hoped he wouldn’t grab you and think your a toy, even though he seemed to listen to Chase well enough a moment ago… And then Chase was in front of Robbie who was waiting rather patiently, and then… Chase was opening his hands to show you to the other.

You locked eyes with the zombie and okay… He seemed much more terrifying up close, but you just needed to breathe, take a few deep breaths… This would be fine ...You hoped, you slowly and hesitantly gave him a wave “U-Umm… H-Hi there… Ro...Robbie…?” The zombie gasped softly, if it were possible his eyes would be sparkling right now, he seemed absolutely fascinated and curious, however he was keeping his hands to himself and surprisingly enough to both you and Chase he wasn’t reaching for you immediately, he raised a hand to wave back “H-Hiiii…” He gave you a lopsided smile and… His teeth were much more terrifying than Chase’s ever could be, his teeth were like a fucking bear trap…! That alone could have made your heart stop if Robbie had caught you on his own, and then he tilted his head “Naame…?” There was a pause before you spoke “(Y/N)...” And then the zombie gurgled happily, he seemed to try and keep his gurgles much quieter than earlier “Robbieee liiike naaamee…. Verrry niiice…” And okay you smiled at that, he was very polite… And then Robbie looked up at Chase and then down at you again “Caann… hoolldd… orr nooo…?” And then Chase tensed, looking down at you “Well (Y/N)...? Ya feel comfortable with Robbie holding you or ya not ready yet?” And this took you a bit to think about.

After a bit of thinking you sighed, you might as well… After all… Robbie looked as though he really was trying to be careful and gentle around you already, despite still having worries and fear “...A-Alright… He can h-hold me so long as he’s, uh, gentle…” Chase nodded and looked toward Robbie “Can ya do that kiddo? Remember now, they aren’t a toy, they can feel pain, discomfort, and all that just like we can…” Robbie nodded “Promise…! Be e x t r a gentle… No wan hurrrt…” And then there was a pause “...Can Robbieee sit down on bed firrst…?” It’s not that Robbie didn’t trust himself for this, he was aware of his strength, he was aware of a lot of things but this was more so to add to your comfort since he could kinda sense your fear and Chase nodded, letting Robbie go and hop up on the bed, sitting criss cross applesauce and waiting for Chase to hand you over, he had already cupped his hands even, meanwhile Chase came over and took a deep breath as he exchanged you very slowly for your comfort and sake into Robbie’s hands, surprisingly, despite being a zombie… Robbie’s hands weren’t freezing cold exactly however there was definitely still a coolness to them, but you tried not to think about it too much, you also took notice that he didn’t smell like a rotting corpse either.

Well not entirely anyways, there was still a little bit of a foul smell there but he more so smelled like VARIOUS kinds of flowers instead actually, he must have tried to mask his scent or maybe Chase or Marvin did, either way, it wasn’t enough to really bother you as you sat there in his hands, you took notice of his claws as well and okay… That was still a bit unnerving much like his teeth but he genuinely seemed to mean no harm, and he was keeping his hand cupped as well and honestly… Robbie seemed genuinely fascinated with this, he seemed fascinated and excited even to just be holding you “S-Soofftt… Warrrmm…” He mumbled, trying his best to be quiet, not that he was loud normally really, but he was trying to be extra quieter for you it seemed, honestly the more you thought about it, it warmed your heart… Robbie was REALLY trying his best to make sure you were comfortable and not afraid, he really was a sweet kid, he wasn’t treating you like an object, a toy, or anything… To Robbie you were just like Chase or Marvin, albeit a bit smaller of course, you were a living being with feelings, emotions, etc- So Robbie was going to treat you as such, he was going to treat you like a friend for sure.

Robbie just looked over you and seemed to be inspecting you “How… Sooo smaallll…?” Chase looked at Robbie “Uh, kiddo, you really shouldn’t just ask stuff like that” However you merely shrugged “Nah, it’s fine, well uh… Robbie… Do you know what Borrowers are?” The zombie had to take a few moments to think before tilting his head “Borrowerrrsss…?” “Yep, that’s the word buddy… Okay so-” Robbie interrupted with a giggle “B-Buhhdy…!” You smiled at that “Yes, also that… As I was saying, Borrowers are essentially just… Tiny folk who borrow things that people won’t usually miss, we uh, don’t take anything that’s crucial or someone will notice, we try to keep a low profile” Robbie blinked at this and it took him a moment but he nodded “Ohhh… ...Tiiinyy…” He brought you closer to his face and for a moment that worried you but he was just simply nuzzling you, seeing this you and Chase both sighed in relief, you smiled at the nuzzles as did Chase as he chimed in “Robbie seems to like ya a lot, don’t he?” You nodded at this “Yeah aha…” You still remembered the rule of the Borrowers, you needed to tell Chase sooner or later, you couldn’t just keep this from him and you weren’t just going to leave without saying a proper goodbye, not after the way Chase had treated you ...It actually made you feel a little sad.

Robbie seemed to pick up on the sudden change in your emotions and his ears fell slightly as he pulled you away from his face “Fuh… Frriieenndd… Ookaayyy…?” You were surprised by that honestly, this zombie was full of surprises though it seemed “Oh uh, I’m… Fine Robbie, don’t worry” The young zombie did surprisingly enough believe you as he nodded, perhaps he figured he made a mistake and sensed the wrong emotion or something? Either way you were thankful, not wanting him to worry too much… You sighed and walked around on his hand, walking over to one of his fingers and proceeding to hug it, it… Really was the only thing you could hug unless he had brought you closer to his face again or something but either way Robbie seemed happy with this, hence those happy gurgling sounds, it sounded like a mix between gurgling and giggling actually, you took notice that Chase also seemed content now, he seemed much more… Relaxed as he sat back in his gaming chair, this was good… The only thing was… “Oh uh, hey, Rob?” The zombie looked up toward Chase “Y-Yeeahh, paapaa…? Is… Is Robbieee still in trrrouble…?” He looked worried and then Chase quickly shook his head “Nah, you’re fine kiddo… I just, when Marv gets back… Can ya keep this secret from Marvin?” Robbie smiled and nodded, he didn’t really understand why Marvin couldn’t know about his new friend but if papa wanted… “Oookay, I no tell-” And before he could finish his sentence…

A voice chimed in from the doorway “Can you keep w h a t a secret from Marvin, h m?” This made Chase jump and fall backward in his chair, Robbie surprisingly quickly cupped his hands to keep you hidden… Shit, this isn’t good Chase thought to himself and you, you were more or less trying to stay in Robbie’s hands, out of the magician’s sight, you honestly didn’t even think it would matter if he saw you anyways. Marvin wasn’t bad like Chase had said anyways unless you really piss him off, you couldn’t help but giggle as you heard Chase scramble to get up, maybe it really was just a cover up, so he didn’t have to face Marvin telling him that he told him Borrowers were real. “M-Marvin! H-Hhiiii….” Chase spoke awkwardly, trying to keep his composure, you heard heels clacking against the floor as Marvin stepped into the room “Chase… I am going to count to five darling, and when I get to five… You better tell me what you’re hiding from me or e l s e…” Marvin had a harsh gaze until he looked over to Robbie.

He smiled at the young zombie who smiled back albeit more nervously “Heehee… Hiii Marrr…” And then the Magician waved “Hello dearie…” And now he turned back to Chase, the harsh glare immediately back on as he grabbed Chase by the shirt collar, of course nothing too rough, Marvin would NEVER actually hurt Chase! And lifted him toward himself, meanwhile Chase put his hands up in defense “N-Now Marv… Dude, w-wait… I can explain this time, I swear…!” You honestly had no idea what was going on out there but it definitely sounded like Chase was in trouble, oh well… The only thing you could really do right now was sit in Robbie’s hands until Chase or the zombie one mentioned you or showed you to Marvin, on the bright side you had time to prepare yourself to face the Magician! Marvin looked at Chase expectedly “Explain then…” Marvin began counting down and Chase quickly spoke “Uhh… I just gave Robbie an extra snack…” The Magician raised a brow “...Three…” There was a pause, Chase then adding “It was an extra piece of candy...!” This prompted Marvin to continue “...T w o…” Okay, it was obvious Marvin didn’t believe that, shit…! As Marvin was about to say one “ALRIGHT… ALRIGHT…! Robbie, kiddo, just… Show him…” Chase sighed, gearing himself up to never hear the end of this now.

Marvin turned back toward Robbie, his expression softening again as he came over and knelt down slightly “What is it, dear? What do you have in your hands…?” Robbie looked over at Chase and looked worried but when he saw him give the okay, he nodded and looked back to Marvin “R-Robbieee… Haave… Neeeww frrriend… Wan… Maarr to meet…” Robbie held his hands up and carefully revealed you to the mention, you had taken a deep breath beforehand and had stood up to face the Magician and okay… Yeah, you weren’t prepared to see a giant with a cat mask staring intently down at you, his eyes were piercing even behind the mask, no wonder Chase had told you he wasn’t exactly the type to be messed with... The confidence wasn’t as strong as it was a moment ago… “U-Uhmm… H-Hiii…?” You waved slightly up at him and there was a pause before he grinned and oh… He had cat-like fangs, jeez… What WAS this dude? Was he even human…? You watched as he looked back toward Chase “I told you they existed~! And you didn’t believe me…!” Chase groaned and put his head in his hands “Look, Marv, I just thought it was a fairytale story or something at first…! C’mon, just, let me be please?” The Magician shook his head “Oh no darling~ I’m never going to let you live this down now that there’s proof~” Chase only groaned again and muttered some things to which you and Robbie both giggled at.

Marvin then looked back at you “So… What’s your name darling?” (Marvin usually calls people darling, dear, etc stuff like that so yeye-) You looked back toward the Magician, taking in his appearance… A black and purple galaxy themed cape, a dark blue shirt underneath from what you could see, black skinny jeans, the cat mask obviously, and his hair was a mint green color tied up in a man bun, he wore some kind of necklace with a Black Obsidian heart shaped pendant (Jackie gave that to him after hearing Marvin talk about crystals/stones and their meanings and Marvin seemed to love Black Obsidian a lot soo yeah) and his high heels were black and glittery actually, they looked very pretty… You then realized, shit, he asked what your name was and you had just been staring at him “O-Oh…! Uh, (Y/N)...” You finally answered, and he smiled “What a wonderful name, it’s so interesting to finally see a Borrower up close…”

Marvin then held out a hand “May I?” Wow… A giant that asks before even trying to pick a borrower up, you figured if you could let a human and then a literal zombie hold you, the Magician would be no different so you nodded “Sure… You mind letting me go for a bit Robbie? You can uh, hold me another time if you want” Robbie nodded “Ookaayy…” He carefully exchanged you into Marvin’s hands so the Magician could get a better look at you, he also had sharp claws, you noticed the claws were black with a dark-ish red tint to them, they also looked pretty! “So fascinating to hold a being such as yourself in the palm of my hand… Now, tell me darling… How did Chase end up coming across you exactly? I mean… It serves him right, there had to have been proof come his way one way or another~” Chase merely rolled his eyes, watching as Robbie came over to him, it seemed the zombie wanted to continue playing with him for a bit while you and Marvin had a conversation. You looked over at him and shrugged “I uh… ...I got a little too careless and curious… And he spotted me” Marvin nodded “Hmm, well, you really should be more careful, while we are all relatively friendly… Others might not be, which I just do NOT understand that myself, why do people want to hurt you little beings? Why experiment? Why try dissections? That is BASICALLY murder... After all, You can feel things like the rest of us and another important factor... You can t a l k… Jeez, just have a conversation with them like you would any other being”

Marvin then looked at Robbie and Chase then back to you and smiled “...Luckily for you… Chase and Robbie seem to like you a lot… Any friend of theirs will be a friend of mine… So don’t worry little darling, you’ve got this Magician’s protection anytime you need, alright?” You smiled at this, your face had even turned a little red at that “O-Oh thank you… I… I appreciate that” Marvin then sighed, whispering a bit lower toward you “I do however have to ask… Have you told Chase yet? About the… Rule…?” You looked at the Magician, you wondered just how much he already knew of Borrowers. You looked toward Chase who was chuckling away at Robbie, he seemed… Much more happier than he was those nights, hell, the first moments he found you seemed to make him a little bit happier and already you could tell he cared a great deal for you… You then looked toward Marvin “I… I have to… It’s only fair, isn’t it? I...I mean… What other choice do I have?” The Magician merely shrugged “Mm… It’s a tough decision, you either choose to follow the rules that have been passed down ever since Borrowers first came to fruition or… You turn your back and go against everything you have been taught… I can’t dictate what you actually choose in the end my dear but, I can say this with confidence… I know what your heart has chosen already, deep down it has chosen to stay with Chase hasn’t it?”

Your expression was more or less one of shock, how could he tell that…? You hadn’t necessarily made it obvious, or you didn’t think so anyways! “...H-How do you know…?” Marvin only chuckled and gently patted your head with a finger, being VERY mindful of his nails “Now now dearie… A good Magician NEVER reveals their secrets~” He gave you a wink and then finally turned back toward Robbie “Alright sweetie, I think it’s time we head home, it’s getting rather late and we don’t want you staying up past your bedtime or anything like that, besides, Jackie’s making dinner tonight ...If he doesn’t burn the house down while I’m gone that is...” Robbie pouted slightly, he always disliked leaving Chase, that WAS his papa after all! ...Well one of them anyways… “Aww… Oookaay… ...Can see again soonnnn…?” Marvin nodded “But of course dear…” Marvin then walked over, carefully handing you to Chase “Thank you for watching over Robbie today Chase, it really does mean a lot to me and Jackie too” Chase smiled slightly and nodded “Ah, yeah, it’s no problem dude!”

He paused to set you down on the desk, finally giving you a break from being in giant hands which you were thankful for, you sat down and immediately took a breather, meanwhile Robbie came over and very gently gave you a pat on the head before going back and clinging onto Marvin who patted his head and gave him a gentle smooch on the forehead “Goodbye my darlings~! Oh and Chase?” The man looked up at the other and watched him snap his fingers “I’ve left you a little… Surprise of sorts to give (Y/N) on the kitchen table back there, so, get to that when you can, ta-ta~!” Robbie managing to wave and say “Byeee papaaa an… frrriend…!” And with the snap of his fingers once more, Marvin along with the young zombie was gone and this caused you and Chase to sigh in relief “Well… We got some time to ourselves now I guess…” You nodded “They are an... Interesting bunch ...But nice nonetheless” Chase then chuckled and nodded “Yeaah...” He then stood from his seat “I’ll be right back, Imma go get the present or whatever he left, knowin’ that smartass it’s probably another way of saying ‘I told you so’...” Chase put emphasis and tried imitating Marvin’s voice and the sheer silliness of the tone he used made you giggle, you sat there as he walked over toward the kitchen and now you were thinking…

...Did you really want to tell Chase in the first place…? It would probably break his heart if he knew you had to leave and couldn’t ever return, all because he spotted you… You bit your lip, whatever choice you were going to make, you had to make NOW before any further interruptions or anything more… It was now or never, you thought back to what Marvin had previously told you… And while Chase was in the kitchen you used this time to your advantage to think of what your decision would be… As Chase had wandered back into the room, a box that was your size essentially, maybe just a BIT bigger in his hands as he sat back down in his chair “Ya wanna open this now?” You sighed and took a deep breath, it was now or never… And you were… Pretty confident with the choice you had made “...Chase… C-Can I… Talk with you…?” Chase seemed to pick up on your tone and he nodded “Oh! S...Sure thing…!” He seemed… Nervous already about this… “Y-you DID have somethin’ ya wanted to say earlier after all, but we, ya know… Kept gettin’ interrupted by shit…” You looked up to Chase and you had paused, staring directly into his… You took another deep breath “Sooo… U-Um… Th...There’s something I haven’t been telling you… I-I… Do you know th-the Borrower’s Rule…?” Chase shook his head “No? What is it?”

You bit your lip and looked down, not able to look him in the eyes as you continued “W-Well… Chase… W-When a giant spots a Borrower… U-Uhhh… We kinda… Sorta have too…” And you froze up, meanwhile Chase was just confused “Whaddya gotta do…?” And a long pause of silence before speaking again “...Have to leave…” And Chase’s eyes widened before he looked down “O-Oh… I-I see…” He spoke, albeit you could tell he was trying to mask the sadness behind his tone, you spoke up again “And I’ve made my decision… I’ve been thinking about it all day…” Chase nodded “I… (Y/N), I get it if you want to-” And Chase trailed off as he looked back up at you and you were… Smiling…? He was about to question this before you quickly spoke up “I’ve decided I’m going to be staying here, with you… The rule can eat s h i t… I WANT to stay here with you Chase ...That is… If you’ll have me…” And that made Chase smile and suddenly pick you up after setting the box down “O-Of course… (Y/N)... I’d love to have ya… I promise, I’ll try my best to keep ya safe… H-Heh… You did scare the shit outta me though I won’t lie, I figured you’d wanna leave w-which don’t get me wrong! I’d respect your decision but- just... Ah... C’mere you...” He chuckled as did you, he then brought you close to his face and you hugged well… As best you could, you were mostly hugging at his nose really, but nonetheless…

“You’re just… Such a nice guy, especially nice for a giant… And I… Honestly, you’ve grown on me, at first I was scared of you but now… I feel genuinely safe with you, I feel safe in your hands…” and Chase smiled brightly at that “I’m honestly glad I can make ya feel that safe lil dude! You’ve grown on me as well to be honest…” And then you looked at the box Chase set down “So uh, what DID Marvin leave exactly…?” Chase almost forgot about the box! He looked toward it and sat you back down “Here… I think you should open it, er… If ya can…” You nodded, you walked toward the box and began lifting up the lid, given that it was only a SLIGHTLY bit larger than you, you could manage! Eventually you pried the lid open and off and jumped up to peer inside the box and you gasped along with Chase, okay… You couldn’t move what was inside so you allowed Chase to carefully scoop it out of the box and place it down on the desk… It was a bed! With your favorite colored bed sheets even! It was the PERFECT size for you, Marvin must have handmade it himself actually… “He… He really DID know I’d be staying here…” You were fascinated by that Magician, even though you knew he’d never reveal his secrets, it was… Interesting… You walked over and hopped into the bed, snuggling into the sheets, this bed was EXTRA comfy and you smiled, this was… So much nicer than what you would usually sleep on.

Chase chuckled at this “Ya know… It is pretty late… Maybe we should get some sleep… We can uh, do whatever ya want tomorrow” You nodded and yawned, getting comfortable in the bed and Chase picked it up and carried it over to the dresser by his bed, he placed the bed down as carefully as he could manage and then he kicked off his shoes and took his hat off and placed it to the side on the dresser, he could reach the dresser from the spot he was in if need be luckily, he crept into bed and got comfortable “Goodnight (Y/N)... I promise… I’ll try and give ya a good life here and protect ya from any… Any harm… ...Love ya lil dude...” You smiled at his words, you trusted that “...Thank you… So much Chase… Goodnight… ...Love you too...” And with that the two of you fell asleep, Chase actually winded up sleeping near the foot of his bed so he could put his hand gently over your bed to give you extra warmth and protection, it wasn’t uncomfortable apparently since he fell asleep quite fast and you did as well, this would be nice… This would be a good and fresh new start, sure, your kind had always talked ill of giants but this one? ...This one was different, and you couldn’t be anymore happier than where you were right now, you were more than happy with him, you felt safe and protected and that was all you wanted.

Meanwhile… Marvin was watching the two of you from his crystal ball, he then watched as you two fell asleep and he grinned to himself, a pleased expression gracing his features as he put the crystal ball away “...I knew you would choose to stay with him…” And then, his grin faded into an actual smile “...I’m glad Chase has someone who can keep him company now… ...Thank you, (Y/N)...”

(That’s pretty much it, that’s a bonus at the end right there, this was fun to write tbh, fluffy times with a giant Chase, now you’ve got him as a protector, a literal zombie, and a magician who’ll hex a n y o n e who tries to bring ya harm, what a wonderful bunch to meet n spend time with, its so rare I write fluff anymore, usually im the angst cryptid but eh fluffy times are upon me… So, yeah, have this fun story with a bigem Chase)

#Chase's Long Ass Stories #(me adding that tag to old stories? hah im lazy)#chase brody #bro average #jse community #jse egos #marvin the magnificent #robbie the zombie #reader insert #borrower reader #gt community #giants and tinies #tw alcohol mention #tw weed mention #nothing is actually consumed or smoked though #fluffy times

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spicycreativity · 3 years

Text

Soft-Shoe Shuffle - Ch 1

Chapter: 1/12 Rating: T (for language) Content Warnings: Canon-typical Remus content. This chapter only: alcohol use Characters: All Pairings: Moceit, background Prinxiety, background Intrulogical (yes I played a little game of "pair the spares") Additional Tags: Hey it's the fic I published on Anon because I was embarrassed of how utterly pretentious it is!, post-PoF, sickfic, dirty poetry, humor interspersed with philosophy and Janus-typical pontification, this is VERY speculative and will get Jossed in the future lmao Summary: After claiming his place in the Light and coming face-to-face with the consequences of his actions, Janus finds himself unwillingly re-calibrating his moral compass. For selfish reasons, of course. But one apology snowballs into several, and soon he's running around the Mindscape with a low-grade fever and a guilty conscience as he desperately tries to regain some sense of self. Oh, and he's definitely not falling in love with Patton, so don't even bring it up. One Last Note: I wrote this in an ADHD fugue state. It is HEAVILY influenced by Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment, but there are also references to poetry and various other works of literature. I also deliberately used symbols, themes, and motifs. Most of them are pretty in your face except for the recurring ouroboros, which is used as a symbol of rebirth. ...Told you it was pretentious.

When you wake up to the promise of your dream world comin' true With one less friend to call on, was it someone that I knew? Away you will go sailing in a race among the ruins If you plan to face tomorrow, do it soon

Janus appeared in the Dark side of the Mindscape, elation swelling in his chest. Even the ringing headache and bitter taste in his mouth couldn't hollow the unfamiliar triumph that warmed him to the core. Caught up in his own thoughts, it took a moment for him to register the sight before him: Remus, upside-down on the couch, his brow furrowed and face an alarming shade of purple.

For a moment, Janus stood stock-still as he tried to get his bearings. He must have been more flustered than he'd realized-- He'd been aiming for his bedroom.

But here he was, staring down at Remus, who was definitely going to burst a blood vessel (or several) if he didn't flip over soon.

"That's not horrifying at all," Janus said, thinking it would be rude to dismiss Remus, especially since he had probably been eavesdropping. He had likely heard everything. Everything. Even the ugly parts.

"Do you remember when Thomas read that post about Nutty Putty Cave?" Remus asked in a strained, strangled voice. "That spelunker who died because he got stuck upside-down?"

"No," Janus said, before realizing his mistake. "Yes." He definitely wanted Remus to remind him of the gory details.

"That's what I thought," Remus said with a wicked grin.

Janus sighed through his nose. Remus, though he thrived on attention, seemed content enough to continue his experiment by himself. On the other hand, if Janus didn't bring up a certain insult he'd levied at Roman, Remus most certainly would, and at a time where it would cause the most upset and turmoil. Better for Janus to deal with it now, even if he would have to fight the tension pulling his muscles taut. He wanted to dance. He wanted to scream.

Hesitation proved to be Janus' downfall, and by the time he'd opened his mouth to broach the subject at hand, Remus had beaten him to the blow. "You're not usually this quiet, Oralboros. Snake got your tongue?"

Janus, again, sighed. Rather than answer, he doffed his hat, set it on the coffee table, and clumsily arranged himself upside-down next to Remus. The change in position immediately made his head throb. He ignored it. "I definitely meant it when I called you 'evil'."

Remus' eyes widened in faux-shock. "You called me evil ?" he shrieked, voice ringing out high and clear. "Me? How dare you. I'm an angel!"

At least Remus was taking it well. "Sarcasm is my thing," Janus said, realizing that he might make it out of this without having to properly apologize.

For some reason, Patton's face flashed into his mind, and a subsequent twinge of guilt made his tongue go sour. Fine. If there was ever a time to start telling uncomfortable truths… "But I am sorry I said that."

"Wow!" Remus laughed. "You must be upset." A red stain began to spill across his left eye. "You don't apologize."

"It’s not like I care about your feelings or anything." Janus would have liked to have drawn himself up to his full height, but it was impossible to do while upside-down. "As much as I'm enjoying watching your blood vessels slowly burst, would you please turn over before you hurt yourself? I've suffered enough psychological trauma for today."

"Oh, fine." Remus kicked his legs and landed neatly on his toes like a gymnast.

Janus, by contrast, got his arms tangled in his capelet and nearly folded himself in half before he found his balance again. "I meant to do that," he said, turning to grab his hat so Remus wouldn't see the blush on his face.

The sudden sensation of blood draining from his head made the room whirl. He steadied himself against Remus' shoulder until it slowed somewhat, but nothing could dampen the horrible ringing in his ears.

"Well," he said, adjusting his shirt. The sudden appearance of his conscience had taken the wind out of his sails more than he cared to admit, and all thoughts of dancing bled out of him along with a good deal of energy. "I'm not going to go scream into my pillows until I tire myself out."

"Being an agent of chaos is hard work," Remus said with a sage nod, "but that doesn't sound very relaxing, Mr Self Care."

"It's a form of meditation, if you think about it," Janus said.

Remus made a face. "You know I don't do that."

"...Meditate?"

"No, think."

"Ah. Well." Janus made only a token attempt to hide his fond smile. "Good night, Remus. Please stay up late and injure yourself."

"Can do, Snakeypoo.”

Janus turned. It was close enough, he might as well walk to his bedroom, especially considering how well his last attempt at appearing in it had gone.

The reason why that had been so difficult became apparent in mere moments. Janus froze in the hall and dropped to his knees at the giddy wave of horror and delight that made him too light-headed to stand.

He knelt in front of the empty stretch of wall where his door had been previously. Heat flooded his face.

"Jay?" The rounded toes of Remus' boots appeared in his line of sight. Janus zeroed in on them, the mud splatters and stains on the soft leather. "You have an aneurysm or what?"

Janus, unable to speak, motioned for Remus to turn around. He couldn't deal with this right now.

"Ohhh," said Remus. "Well. Good luck with that ." He hauled Janus to his feet. "So you're a boner fide good guy now, huh?"

Janus stared over Remus' shoulder at the empty stretch of wall where his door used to be. "That depends entirely on who you ask."

Remus shrugged and rose up on his toes. "You can scream into my pillows instead, if you want."

"As tempting as that is…" Janus trailed off, his eyes still fixed on the wall. It was tempting, despite the constant chaos in Remus' room. But he'd have to face the Light side sooner or later. It wasn't like he could move his room back, not without psychologically damaging Thomas and undoing all the work he'd done. "I'm really looking forward to getting insulted some more."

"Alright," Remus said with a shrug. "Try not to throw me under the bus this time, alright? Unless it's a real bus…" His gaze became dreamy, unfocused. "And it's doing 50 in a school zone and there's a whole pack of screaming kids in the crosswalk--"

"Goodbye, Remus." Janus turned and left.

The barrier between the "dark" and the "light" sides of Thomas' brain had been a joint venture. It would have been there in some form no matter what, but it was Janus and Roman (with Patton's tacit blessing) who had worked to put up something more physical between them.

Janus ducked under the red curtain, trepidation percolating in his stomach, but what he found on the other side was anticlimactic to say the least: It was dead silent on this side of the barrier.

Janus wasn't sure what he'd been expecting. He knew by now that the so-called "Lights" had issues working out their interpersonal issues, and this most recent conflict wasn't the kind of thing you just got over. It did follow that they would all go off to lick their wounds for a time.

Hesitantly, toe-to-heel, Janus crept down the hall. It felt for all the world like he was sneaking around a vast hotel, right down to needlessly ornate design on the plush carpeting. That was probably Roman's doing.

Janus focused, trying to call the Mindscape to work for him. He wanted to go to his room.

The Mindscape listened. Janus turned a corner and found a row of doors stretching down yet another brightly-lit corridor. His eye was immediately drawn, not to the brilliant yellow of his own door, but to the figure huddled in front of it: Patton sat with his arms wrapped around his legs, forehead resting on his knees.

"Looking for someone?" Janus asked, slightly louder than necessary.

Patton jerked his head up. "Oh! Janus!" He plastered an unconvincing smile on his face. "You sure pop star-tled me."

Scaring Patton hadn't brought Janus nearly the level of schadenfreude he'd thought it would. He crossed his arms over his chest, extending a third to help Patton up. "Take your time getting to the point.”

"Oh." Patton accepted Janus' proffered hand and got to his feet. Warmth spilled from him, permeating the fabric of Janus' glove and gently heating his palm. "Well, it's just…" He took a deep breath. "I noticed your door and I thought-- Well, I wanted to make you feel welcome!"

A high-pitched tone resonated in Janus' skull. He bit down on the inside of his cheek to keep from wincing at the mounting pressure-pain-exhaustion in his temples. "Aren't you just a saint ." Patton's face fell. Janus fought the urge to swear aloud. He usually had a better handle on himself, and he knew better than to alienate potential allies. "I mean, thank you, Patton. Truly. I appreciate it." Patton had proven himself useful. Janus should at least cultivate that relationship, even if it meant a little discomfort.

"Have you eaten?" Patton asked. "It's a little late, but I could make something if you wanted." He paused. "Maybe we could play cards or something." Another pause. "O-only if you want to, I mean."

Janus let his face remain impassive even as he internally cringed at the idea of staying awake for even another second. It would be so easy to brush Patton off with a few honeyed words and disappear beyond the barrier of his door. But Patton had stood up for him today, or at least he'd tried to. Janus sighed. Quid pro quo. "That sounds like an utter waste of time."

"Are you… I'm sorry, sometimes I can't tell when you're…"

"Yes, Patton. That sounds lovely."

Patton actually hopped in place, an adorable little jig that absolutely didn't send a confusing little shockwave of fondness through Janus' ribcage. "Really?"

"Really," Janus lied.

He followed Patton down the hall into the living room, which opened into the dining room and the kitchen. Janus studied his surroundings, trying to take in as much as his exhausted faculties would allow. Even in the absence of other Sides, the living room felt warm and welcoming. All the lights were on, and they bathed everything in gentle golden light .

"You're awfully quiet," Patton said.

Janus shook himself. "I was just getting my bearings."

"I guess you've never really been over here, huh?" Pattton opened the refrigerator. Was he actually going to cook , instead of just manifesting something? How quaint. "Do you like grilled cheese?"

It had been a long, confusing day. Doublespeak came to Janus as naturally as breathing, but he was obviously running circles around Patton even when he wasn't trying to. "Yes," he said, hoping to telegraph his sincerity by not emoting at all.

It seemed to work. Patton studied him for a moment before turning back to the fridge. "Then that's what I'll make."

Janus took advantage of this temporary distraction to clamber onto one of the barstools. The slick velvet of his capelet tended to disagree with surfaces like wood and vinyl, and he needed a moment to arrange things so he didn't look as unbalanced as he felt.

He watched Patton work in the kitchen, a detached coolness washing out the scene. Quid pro quo, he reminded himself when he felt his facade begin to slip. He owed Patton this.

He certainly didn't feel the slightest twinge of guilt, that he had been the one to orchestrate this breakdown. Yes, the Light Sides had loaded the gun, but in the end it was Janus who had pulled the trigger.

He shook his head and thought about playing cards, good Bicycle playing cards with holes punched through them like they'd come from a casino. "What should we play?" he asked, pulling the deck from his breast pocket.

Patton looked up from the stovetop, his eyes flicking to the cards in Janus' hand. "Do you know Kings in the Corners?"

"Not personally, no."

Patton laughed, but there was something cold about it. "It's really simple," he said. "I'll show you how to play and you can tell me if you like it."

It was nearly impossible to cheat at Kings in the Corners. Janus doubted this had been a calculated measure on Patton's part, doubted he had the capacity for that kind of foresight, but he respected it just the same.

They played in funereal silence, staring each other down across the light wood of the dining room table. Janus, ill-inclined to take off his gloves, utilized a napkin to keep from staining them with melted butter from the grilled cheese Patton had made. Neither one of them smiled. Neither one of them spoke.

Janus pulled a card from the deck to indicate the end of his turn and glanced up at Patton. His face was somber, almost sorrowful, and it clashed against the gentle domesticity of the dining room, with its floral table runner and mismatched placemats.

Janus started to laugh.

"What is it?" Patton asked, cheeks darkening. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

Janus swallowed down another peal of laughter and cleared his throat, unable to wholly restrain the smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "You look like I’m holding you here at gunpoint." It was somewhat ironic, considering Janus was the one who felt like he couldn't leave.

"What?" Patton smiled, but it was more akin to an offering than an expression of joy.

"It’s not really funny. " Janus wasn’t quite sure how to make Patton understand.

Patton sat back with a sigh, placing his cards facedown on the table. "But I guess it is pretty funny, huh? In a really sad way."

Janus almost asked what was sad about it before realizing that Patton probably missed his friends. Instead he said, "Yes" and stifled a yawn behind his free hand.

"I'll make coffee!" Patton leapt to his feet and was off to the kitchen before Janus could so much as blink.

The newfound solitude made it that much harder for Janus to ignore his headache, which had only worsened in the hour or so he'd been playing cards with Patton. Despite the nonchalant facade he'd tried so hard to project, he'd been holding himself tense.

Maybe the night (or morning, at this point) would be easier to tolerate if he had, say, a bit of gold rum.

The corner of a flask dug into Janus' hip. He smiled.

"Just how late are you planning on staying up?" he asked Patton when the latter returned holding two mismatched mugs.

"Oh, I don't know," Patton said. Lied. He set a mug down in front of Janus and then resumed his seat, the cards forgotten by his elbow. "I'm… A little scared of what tomorrow will be like."

Janus eased the flask out of his pocket. "Rum?"

"Oh, um," Patton said, staring at the flask. "I don't know…"

Janus raised an eyebrow, working something out. He landed on it a millisecond later: Patton wanted to be convinced. Easy enough. Janus opened the flask and poured what he hoped was a shot into his own mug. It was black, he noticed, except for the yellow snake that wrapped around it, its tail firmly in its own mouth. Ouroboros. "Surely you don't intend to make me drink alone?"

As Janus had expected, Patton buckled the second he was pushed. "I guess not."

It was funny, Janus mused as he carefully tipped rum into Patton's coffee, how lying was only off-limits when Janus suggested it. Hilarious.

But now wasn't the time for bitterness, now was the time to repay the debt he owed Patton. "Cheers," he said, pocketing the flask once more.

"Cheers."

Janus sipped his coffee. "You put milk in this," he observed.

Patton's smile was surprisingly sly. "I know you want me to think you take it black. Virgil did too, at first. I know you ‘Dark Sides’ have an image you like to uphold."

"And how does Virgil take his coffee now?" Janus asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"With Snickers-flavored creamer."

"Well, I do take my coffee black," Janus lied.

Patton's smile never faltered. "We'll see, kid-- Uh, Janus."

"Patton," Janus said, before he could start thinking about the implications of Patton wanting to call him 'kiddo,' "you are planning on sleeping tonight, aren't you?"

"Maybe eventually," Patton said, suddenly unable to look Janus in the eye. "At some point."

"Tomorrow will come whether or not you sleep. It's definitely better to pull an all-nighter and feel like garbage instead of facing everything with a clear head."

"I know." Patton leaned forward so he could rest his head on his hand.

For a moment, Janus was tempted to mirror him. Sitting up straight was becoming quite the chore. "I know how the others love a calm, rational discussion."

"Oh, I wish." Patton's expression turned wistful.

Janus stifled a yawn behind his hand. He had half-expected the coffee to counteract the depressant effect of the alcohol, but all he had to show for the combination was a racing heart.

"I'll be fine out here if you want to go to bed," Patton said. Without seeming to realize he was doing it, he brought his hand to his mouth and bit down on his thumbnail.

It was a tempting offer. A day ago, Janus would have taken it. After all, it wasn't like he cared about Patton outside of professional courtesy. They weren't friends. But guilt nagged at him and wouldn't let him entertain the idea of abandoning Patton for longer than a second.

"That's a remarkable impression of a window," Janus said, waiting for Patton to look confused before elaborating, "I can see right through you."

"You got me." Patton smiled sadly. "That's something I've always admired about you, Janus."

Now it was Janus' turn to be confused. "What?"

"You're so… clever."

Janus narrowed his eyes. "Please do keep trying to change the subject."

"It's just… I don't want to have to lie there and, and think about today and everything I did wrong. I hurt Thomas. I hurt my friends." Patton's eyes were shiny behind his glasses; the unshed tears sparkled in the light when he locked eyes with Janus. "Aren't you going to think about the same thing?"

Anger flared, perhaps prematurely, in Janus' chest. "About what you did wrong today?"

"About what you did wrong," Patton said timidly.

"I," Janus said icily, "didn't do anything wrong." He stared Patton down across the table, jaw set, daring him to push back. Let him lecture and nag, let him prove that he hadn't changed no matter what he said.

But Patton only nodded, his face lined with misery. "Okay," he softly. "I think you're right, Janus. We should go to bed."

Janus thought about how much faster he could get to bed if the table was cleared, and all the dishes and cards vanished in a blink.

"Um, Janus?" Patton said.

"Yes?"

"I don't regret everything that happened today."

"Oh?"

Patton only nodded and sank out.

Janus made a beeline for his own room; better to find his way there on foot rather than risk appearing in the wrong spot.

Once inside, he looked around to ensure nothing was amiss, eyes roving over the dark wood of his bookshelves and desk, his mirrored closet doors, the leather armchairs across from his bed.

Everything was exactly as Janus had left it. He nodded, satisfied, set his hat on the nightstand, and sprawled out of top of the covers without bothering to further undress.

One hazy thought crawled to the surface of his mind before he fell asleep: At least he wouldn't be one of the regrets haunting Patton tonight.

#sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #janus sanders #moceit #spicywrites soft-shoe shuffle #song featured is: race among the ruins - gordon lightfoot #pics are free to use from unsplash and wikimedia commons

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florencecastlewritings · 4 years

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Writing Dialogue

Below the read more is a lesson on writing effective dialogue in fiction. As with everything in art, rules are there to be broken, so please do treat the below lesson as a guideline rather than a legal document, and remember that it is based on what works for me as well as advice I have received from other writers. It might not match your style, and that’s all right. It’s also a very lengthy blog post, but I have used headings to try and break it up and there’s a little contents of sorts at the start, so feel free to skim/skip where needed.

If you do find it useful, however, please consider helping me through a tricky time by sending a few pennies my way via ko-fi.

Dialogue is the written speech of your characters in your story. For some people, writing effective dialogue comes naturally, for others it feels almost impossible to master. It is worth considering, as well, the differences in dialogue for different kinds of media - in screenwriting, for example, a writer will be able to rely more heavily on actors’ expression, comic timing, body language and other effects such as music. However they will also be constrained by shorter time, more need for unnatural exposition, and lack of internal thoughts. The following lesson will focus on dialogue in fiction - for short stories or novels - although some rules will be applicable to dialogue in other mediums too, so they’re worth keeping in mind.

The Purpose of Dialogue

Dialogue should:

Progress the story

Deepen character and relationship

Have realism

Be embellished/supported with suitable dialogue tags and appropriate narration.

Easier said than done. Let’s take them one at a time.

Progress the story

As with most writing, the writer needs to be constantly asking herself ‘what is the point?’ Why am I having my characters say/do/notice this? It may be to deepen character and relationship (and we’ll get onto that), but for longer stories we must acknowledge that the dialogue needs to move the plot along as well, as much as we might want to indulge in a bit of pointless fluff now and then.

Dialogue can drive the plot in a more engaging and exciting way than plain narration. Narration on its own can be effective at building tension, but usually only in small doses, and having many pages of narration without dialogue or internal thought will feel more like a summary of events or a witness statement than the author would perhaps like. Consider the below:

Breakfast was tense that morning. They ate silently as they pondered what to do. Michael buttering his toast so aggressively that it was surprising that the knife didn’t go through it. Susan asked him to stop, but that only started the arguing again. He accused her of expecting him to get over the affair so quickly. She threw back that there was nothing left to say if he refused to get therapy, and she had warned him for years that things had to change, and that it had been one foolish night in twenty years of unhappy marriage. She, Susan insisted, had excused plenty of foolish mistakes on his part.

Compared to:

‘Will you stop that?’ she said sharply. Michael did not pause in the furious buttering of his toast. ‘I said I was sorry.’

‘What, you say the magic word and I’m meant to shrug it off?’ he replied. ‘Pretend it never happened? Pretend you didn’t-’

‘You’ve made your anger perfectly clear, and I understand, but you don’t need to be so aggressive with everything, I get it.’

‘Oh, here we go. Buttering toast is aggressive now.’

‘Well, yes, like that - I’ve tried to talk to you like a grown up, but-’

‘It really bloody winds me up when you just say insane stuff patiently and without emotion and think that makes it acceptable, d’you know that? I’m allowed to be angry, you cheated.’

I could continue. The first example can pack a lot more information in, but using dialogue to drive the plot makes for more interesting and deeper meaning. It turns it into a story, rather than an account of events that occurred. It allows the writer to layer the plot with character work and unlock the story a little at a time.

In this regard, it is good to have your characters talking. To each other, to themselves, to the reader - whatever your particular style demands. Having that personable voice is engaging.

There are a few “rules” to keep in mind in order to ensure you remain plot-focused with your dialogue:

Avoid small talk. Enter late, leave early. Naturally there are exceptions (if you want to emphasise the awkwardness of a relationship between two characters you might want to include some failed attempts at small talk), but the usual chit-chat and extended greetings that we are used to saying in every day life can normally be skipped or avoided. You don’t need to have lots of ‘hi, how are you?’ ‘I’m fine thanks, you?’ ‘Fine, cheers. Have you seen the rain?’ Your characters are allowed to just get to the point and your reader will thank you for it.

Have characters on their own thought trajectories. This is a great way of driving the plot, and though it can be tricky to master it can really help in making your characters believable individuals as well as creating some conflict. If characters know each other, or both know the topic, they will likely jump ahead, make assumptions, fail to answer each other directly - this can be a great way of showing that they’re on the same wavelength, but can also be a vehicle for miscommunications and misunderstandings, or deliberately misleading one another. In that vein, don’t have the characters telling each other things they already know, unless made to sound believable.

Similarly, don’t have characters say things solely for the benefit of the reader. This is called exposition, and while exposition is necessary, it can be clumsily handled in dialogue. It’s made fun of frequently in films where they have such limited time to get background information across. You definitely don’t want dialogue like ‘So, Michael, it’s been three years since your divorce, have you thought about dating again?’ Michael knows this, his insensitive friend knows this, the reader is not stupid and knows that it’s not natural sounding. If it must be said in dialogue, weave it into a more natural conversation - ‘I haven’t been to Ibiza in three years, and I don’t plan on going back any time soon. Don’t want to run the risk of bumping into Susan and Jorge.’

We’ll get onto weaving it in with narration and dialogue tags later, which makes that a lot easier, but, in short, use dialogue to drive your story.

Deepen character and relationship

This is my favourite thing to do, and why I often prefer to write shorter stories than longer ones. A writer can find great joy in bringing a character to life through dialogue, dragging them away from plot vehicles and making them people of their own.

Firstly, it’s important to remember that your character’s background and personality will affect the way that they speak. If all your characters sound the same, they probably sound like you! A well educated character will obviously have a different way of talking than a common street urchin, but everyone has quirks and patterns to their speech that you can use to say a lot. You might use long meandering sentences with lots of rhetorical questions for a character known to be boring, for example. You might use short, sharp sentences for a character that’s grumpy or distracted with some deeper internal struggle. You can use the way two characters talk to each other to say a lot about their relationship and power dynamic, especially if you remember that good dialogue should have subtext (what isn’t being said being important).

A good example of this is from the short story Hills Like White Elephants, by Ernest Hemmingway (CW; indirect discussion of abortion). Consider the short passage below.

‘It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig,’ the man said. ‘It’s not really an operation at all.

The girl looked at the ground the table legs rested on.

‘I know you wouldn’t mind it, Jig. It’s not really anything. It’s just to let the air in.’

The girl did not say anything.

‘I’ll go with you and I’ll stay with you all the time. They just let the air in and then it’s all perfectly natural.’

‘Then what will we do afterward?’

‘We’ll be fine afterward. Just like we were before.’

‘What makes you think so?’

‘That’s the only thing that bothers us. It’s the only thing that’s made us unhappy.’

The girl looked at the bead curtain, put her hand out and took hold of two of the strings of beads. ‘And you think then we’ll be all right and be happy.’

It’s a really interesting story that is almost entirely dialogue, so it’s well worth reading to get a good sense of using subtext. I wasn’t aware of the abortion connotations when I first read it because I hadn’t heard of the very dated term ‘letting the air in’, but really the story is great at demonstrating the uneven power dynamic between the two even without knowledge of what the operation is. Without much description (though ‘man’ and ‘girl’ says it all really, doesn’t it?), you get a sense that a much older man is persuading this reluctant girl into this act by leveraging how hopelessly in love she is with him, though he does not seem to feel the same way. He speaks most when he is trying to persuade her - the rest of the time he is snappish and short with her childish and ignorant questions about the world around them. The above passage is the only time in the story where he refers to her by a name, and we can gather that it’s a pet one. The girl’s silence says as much as her dialogue, and when she does speak it is questioning - looking to him for authority.

Understanding character motivations and background is what makes this masterful use of dialogue. It would be tempting, for a novice writer, to have the girl argue. For her to say something like ‘what if we could be happy without it?’ But where that should be, there is silence, or repeating his thoughts back to him - because Hemmingway is not only driving the story but emphasising the imbalance of their relationship and her own naive nature. She would not argue with him, she can only wish that he will change his mind. This is all through dialogue and a tiny bit of narration, barely any dialogue tags, and really says so much without saying it at all. Show vs tell is about more than description after all.

That kind of depth when it comes to writing dialogue is... really hard. I haven’t picked Hemmingway to suggest that this is the quality all writing should be at, and I certainly don’t mean to intimidate anyone. But it really is a golden example of thinking about your dialogue within the context of the character, and how their background, situation, and goals will affect how they respond and react to those around them. Your character may not always be able to say what is convenient for you, the author, to tell the reader, because it may not be in their nature or sound authentic. But there are clever ways around that and it can make for more powerful writing, between the lines of what is said.

Have realism

If you skipped down to this bit, I understand. It’s the area that people most often struggle with. I find that people tend to fall into two traps here - either their characters sound like robots because they are over formal and have too much emphasis on being grammatically correct or over eloquent at the expense of natural dialogue, OR they swing in the other direction and try to replicate perfectly how people speak in day to day life.

If you do have a problem with stilted dialogue, it is a good idea to listen to how people naturally speak and try typing it out to get yourself out of the habit. But on the whole, the way people normally speak actually doesn’t sound that great in written format. In real life, we use lots of filler words, we get muddled, we go off on tangents, we trail off, we stutter and stammer and phrase things badly, we um and ah and say far more with our body language and expression than we realise. If you ever read transcripts, from interviews or courts, you’ll see how much of it actually doesn’t make a lot of sense. Our brains make sense of it when we listen to others, based on other parts of communication. Yes, sometimes adding in a ‘er...’ is beneficial and good, and you might have a really nice character moment of someone anxious trailing off when they realise no one is listening to them. Sprinkling those moments in can absolutely make your dialogue sound more authentic, especially when carefully used with character knowledge, but be careful not to over use it. In written dialogue, our characters can and should be more articulate and quicker to formulate their thoughts than in real life for the sake of the story. Striking that balance between overly structured and too real and easy can be really hard, but it only comes with practice - reading dialogue out loud can be a big help, as can writing the dialogue first with no narration or speech tags (more on that later).

Some common mistakes when it comes to dialogue:

Having one character speak too long without a break. Monologues are tough to get through as a reader and don’t come up often in real life in any meaningful way. They can end up cheesy or exposition heavy. Occasionally you can get away with it with very particular characters, but in general, avoid.

Over use of names. It’s really distracting as a reader if dialogue is constantly like, ‘what do you think, Harry?’ ‘Charlie, I just don’t know.’ ‘Really, Harry, you need to decide if you’re going to marry her or not.’ ‘I know, you’re right, Charlie.’ Use names to get someone’s attention and then don’t use them again unless you need to make it clear to the reader who the character is talking to.

Not using contractions. Even very formal people use contractions such as don’t and won’t, it is part of natural rapid speech. Save the ‘do not’ and ‘will not’s for when the emphasis is really needed.

Having characters speak in unison. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes this can be used to hilarious effect and can always be used for a bit of comedy. But on the whole people don’t do this, including twins.

Misuse of slang or dialects. If you’re going to use it, make sure you do your research. It’s also worth bearing in mind that if you over use it, it will be hard for the reader to understand and may break immersion.

Over explain for the reader. I mentioned this before but it’s worth repeating. If you went outside right now and saw a UFO, you would probably shout something along the lines of ‘wtf is that?’, and you would perhaps point or scramble for your potato to take a shaky video. You would probably not shout, ‘look at flying saucer! I’ve never seen anything like it!’ Think carefully about realistic reactions, even if they are not particularly convenient to you as a writer.

Over use of exclamation marks/caps lock. People aren’t that vibrant and it’s tiring to read. The less you use it, the more punch it packs.

Using narration and dialogue tags

First, a quick grammar lesson. Sorry.

‘This is some speech.’

‘This is also some speech,’ said the character.

‘Is this also speech?’ asked another.

‘Well,’ said the first, ‘yes.’

‘Brilliant,’ said the other. ‘Thanks for letting me know.’

I use single quotation marks because I’m British and annoying, the conventional double quote marks the Americans use (”like this!”) is also correct. The only important thing is that you pick one and stick to it. Quotation marks always surround the words that are being spoken aloud, and must be opened and closed. Where the sentence ends, you must use a full stop (period), or another piece of punctuation like a question or exclamation mark before closing the speech with the marks.

Where there is a dialogue tag (he said/said/replied, etc), the sentence is continuing, so a comma is more appropriate (but you can also use a question/exclamation mark and the sentence still continues), and again this must go before the speech marks close the dialogue. If you want to continue the sentence with the dialogue tag in the middle, you can continue by using another comma, or you can end the sentence with a full stop and continue the dialogue as a new sentence.

Use a new line for a new character speaking.

Phew, that’s over so you can pay attention again. But unfortunately I still have more to say.

Here is a fun little exercise. Take the below dialogue between two characters, A and B.

‘Do you love me?’

‘You’re drunk.’

‘Why won’t you answer the question?’

‘Sit down. I’ll make you a tea.’

‘I don’t want tea, I want an answer! Tell me!’

The dialogue alone already tells us a bit of a story - a picture is probably already forming in your head, perhaps of the characters, perhaps of the setting. As it stands it’s ok, and if you struggle with dialogue it can be effective to write only the dialogue out in this way (this tip from my writing teacher also helped me cut down on purple prose!). But now look at the scene:

It was not the first time, nor would it be the last, that Alex was woken at 3am by repeated bangs on the floor and shouts through the letterbox. Nothing else would have made her rise from bed. If she had suspected even for a moment that it was anyone else, she would have called the police.

But as usual, it was Sam. Blonde, tousled hair a mess, eye make up smudged, pouting lips trembling as she swayed.

‘Do you love me?’

‘You’re drunk,’ said Alex, wincing as Sam’s grey eyes shone with tears. ‘You’d better come in.’

‘Why won’t you answer the question?’

Alex ignored her, pulled her in by her slender arm. ‘Sit down. I’ll make you a tea.’

‘I don’t want tea. I want an answer. Tell me!’ Sam’s voice was loud and high, and it pierced her.

So, we haven’t actually added that much narration or dialogue tags (t’s best, if you can, to avoid using them too much), but we’re able to give a clearer picture of these two characters. You may even now be reading the dialogue in a different tone to the one you originally did - picturing the scene with a different feel. Not convinced? How about now?

Yet again, as had happened dozens of bloody times before, Alex was woken at 3am by incoherent, slurred shouting through the letterbox.

‘Do you love me?’ was Sam’s immediate demand as Alex wearily opened the door.

Alex rubbed her hand over her bleary eyes and sighed. ‘You’re drunk. You’d better come in.’

Sam turned on the tears at once, mascara running in thick, spidery lines down her blotchy cheeks. ‘Why won’t you answer the question?’

‘Sit down,’ Alex muttered. ‘I’ll make you a tea.’ She stood aside and jerked her head towards the living room.

‘I don’t want tea, I want an answer! Tell me!’

Wincing once more at her piercing shriek, Alex closed her eyes.

The very same dialogue can be shaped by carefully worded narration and dialogue tags. It’s a fun exercise to do with writing buddies - all use the same dialogue and see how different the stories come out. It can also be a pretty nifty way to challenge writers block or shake up a scene you’re struggling with.

Some extra tips from my writing teacher - I fully confess that I am not always the best at following these ones, because my writing has been heavily influenced by JK Rowling who also doesn’t seem to set much store by them. But they are good, and since I’ve kept them in mind my writing has improved.

Avoid overuse of adverbs (’she said nervously’). Use action or dialogue alone to convey this information instead.

Avoid overuse of verbs besides ‘said’. The reader will skim over said and barely notice it, if every character is whispering and muttering and shouting all the time it stilts the flow of the scene - use sparingly.

Use tags when necessary to ensure clarity as to who is speaking, otherwise let the dialogue stand for itself.

Use internal thoughts in place of speech tags sometimes.

Use action beats (’he turned to stare coldly out of the window’) in place of speech tags sometimes to help set the pace of the scene.

I hope this very lengthy post has helped! Please do get in touch if you have any further questions or would like any elaborations on anything I’ve mentioned here, or if you have suggestions for future lessons!

Lastly, I hate to do this but times must - if you have even just a couple of quid to send my way it would be a massive help to me. If you did find this useful, please consider donating to my kofi.

#Writing advice #writing lessons #writing dialogue

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keelywolfe · 4 years

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FIC: The Royal We ch.1 (baon)

Summary: Family helps family. Sometimes right into the path of an oncoming car.

Tags: Spicyhoney, Kustard, Established Relationships, Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Part of the ‘by any other name’ series.

~~*~~

Read it on AO3

Read it here!

~~*~~

When they first came to this universe, it hadn’t taken long for Edge to realize that things were very different here than back home in Underfell, (no, not home, not for a long time now). The changes took some time to absorb and some might never fully integrate, as his freezer filled with stocked up meals would attest. But there were a few universal constants and while all of them grew up with their brother as their only relative, they all knew that family helped family. Even when that family was a pack of alternates who appeared later in life.

Which was how Edge found himself on his day off sitting on the floor of what was currently Papyrus and Blue’s house, making party favors for Undyne’s baby shower.

The living room was strewn with decorations waiting to be placed, streamers and banners in an eclectic rainbow of colors, uninflated balloons spilling out of a bag like the leftover skins of a particularly garish fruit. The party itself wasn’t until tomorrow, but that left little time to waste, considering the plans Papyrus had drawn up.

Plan was perhaps an overstatement, but Edge could never fault Papyrus for his enthusiasm. His color scheme, on the other hand—well. He’d never approved of the way some Humans were so obsessed with gender that they actually assigned colors at birth but there was a great distance between that and a design that might cause any guests with fleshier eyes to scramble for sunglasses.

Papyrus was bustling around setting things up while the rest of them were sitting on the floor in a circle around a coffee table that was cluttered with craft supplies. He’d paired each of them off to work on separate projects and for all that the occasion was a joyous one, the mood was decidedly not.

“how many of these things do we need, anyway?” Stretch grumbled. His and Jeff’s assigned duty was to pour a mixture of toffee-coated popcorn into small plastic bags, tie it closed with a ribbon, and then affix a sticker on the front that declared in cheery letters ‘Ready to Pop’!

Edge was morbidly curious as to how Undyne felt about that particular sentiment this close to the end of her pregnancy.

A glance at the finished bags confirmed that Stretch’s ribbons were less a bow and more a tangle of colorful knots, Jeff’s only a slight improvement. The bags were sealed at least, and Papyrus was more than content with the effort, which was all that really mattered.

Besides, Edge was busy with his own task; planting tiny succulents into miniature pots, each with a painstakingly attached tag reading, ‘Watch Me Grow!’. Privately, he thought the small cacti were a far better representation of Undyne than any snack, but then, he wasn’t the one actually throwing the shower.

“How many do we need,” Papyrus repeated thoughtfully. Edge pointedly did not ask about the garland in his hand which seemed to be made of dangling fish ornaments and…was that tomatoes? Edge decided it would be best not to know, lest he end up lying awake tonight with the answer still haunting him. “Well, there is Undyne’s co-workers in Security and Alphys’s at the lab, plus their neighbors and friends, and of course us!”

“i don’t need no damn cactus,” Red muttered sullenly. How Papyrus even got Red here was another burning question, though the answer was likely Sans sitting placidly right next to him. His collar was visible over the neckline of his t-shirt, the buckle glinting in the light. Occasionally he reached up absently to touch it as if to verify it hadn’t wandered off when he wasn’t looking. Their entire duty seemed to be putting cans of sparkling water into drink koozies emblazoned with such witticisms as ‘nacho average baby’ over a cartoon of a tortilla chip. It was anyone’s guess as to if that task was actually assigned to them or simple the one they’d decided on doing, but between them, there were four cans done after a half an hour of work.

Sans managed to slide another can into a koozie, bringing their grand total to five. “paps, that didn’t really answer the question.”

“That would be because I am not finished counting!” Papyrus scolded. “There’s also Undyne’s ‘Cooking with Krav Maga’ class and naturally all the Dreemurr family will be coming.”

“great, ass-gore will be here,” Stretch muttered, fumbling to tie another ribbon with varying success. “i’ll be sure to bring my headphones.”

Edge sighed inwardly. Stretch was in a prickly mood and had been all day, and it didn’t take a scientist-level IQ to know it had something to do with the baby shower. They’d known about this for days; when Papyrus asked if they would help, Edge hadn’t hesitated to agree. Now he was wondering if he shouldn’t have asked Stretch in advance. He hadn’t refused to come, but he’d been twitchy and snappish since getting up that morning, only getting worse when they came over. If the party were for anyone but Undyne, Edge would have suggested they go home.

Adding to the irritation was Red in a poor mood of his own and he hadn’t a single qualm about casting sparks around a gasoline spill. “good, no one wants to hear you flappin’ your yap, anyway. save your 280 characters for your twitter freaks.”

“aww, jealous?” Stretch cooed, “‘cause, you talk so much crap, i dunno whether to you need toilet paper or a breath mint.”

Edge exchanged a weary look with Blue, who returned it with equal exasperation. Those two had been sniping at each other all morning and it was Blue’s turn to attempt a least a little fire prevention.

“Really, Papy, that’s enough,” Blue said reprovingly. That might stop them briefly, but they all knew from past experience it wouldn’t last. Red and Stretch were alike in a number of dissatisfying ways, past the darkened circles of exhaustion that were currently visible beneath both their sockets. For one, most of them weren’t above returning a good insult with a better one, but Red and Stretch could be particularly vicious about it. Usually it was better to let them simply work it out between themselves; trying to intercede past a little mild scolding usually ended up getting you mixed up in the spat.

This time Edge was tempted, if only because Jeff looked supremely uncomfortable. He fumbled with his latest little bag of popcorn and ended up with a good portion bouncing into his lap rather than the treat bag.

For the time being, Sans seemed content to allow them to try to rein in their brothers, and that would likely last until their petty squabbling might upset Papyrus. Who thus far either hadn’t noticed or was content to allow the others to handle it. Edge hoped it was the latter. The crack in Papyrus’s skull was still starkly visible, although his balance seemed much improved, if the way he all but leapt from the ladder was any indication, digging furiously through an overflowing box of even more decorations.

“sure, bro,” Stretch said to his brother’s scold, and then promptly added a mumble of, “don’t see why he has to be here, anyway.”

“’cause it ain’t your party, it’s hers, and she’d want ‘im,” Red grumbled. Then, in a smirking sotto voce, “’sides, i figure he’s the baby daddy so be kinda rude not to at least give ‘im a party favor.”

“There is no baby daddy, since neither Undyne nor Alphys want to be called daddy, and it’s much ruder to speculate,” Papyrus called primly, confirming that he was indeed listening to the ongoing bickering. He stood with his hands on his hips, eyeing the growing balloon sculpture critically. Edge joined him in looking, biting the tip of his tongue to hold back any questions, especially on whether the design was supposed to be Undyne or an eggplant. Never ask when you didn’t want to know the answer and Papyrus wove in another long, purple balloon as he went on, “and also Asgore can’t be the donor because I am.”

A hush of silence fell, along with a number of wide sockets and eyes turning to Papyrus’s direction. No one’s were wider than Sans’s at what was obviously unexpected news to him as he blurted, "seriously, bro? you're the one who handed over the baby batter for undyne?”

Papyrus frowned at them all reprovingly. “That is rude AND crude, I'll thank you not to refer to it that way.”

"sorry, bro, but fuck,” Sans sputtered, “you didn’t say anything!”

"Is there a reason I would need to?” Papyrus asked, brow bones raised, “Undyne is my best friend and wanted a child, so of course I would help provide the necessary material in her time of need!"

“necessary material,” Stretch muttered, his face scrunching up, and in that Edge could only agree, “right.” He nudged Jeff with an elbow, who yelped aloud and jumped, sending up another miniature shower of popcorn, “uh, andy, i know we're best buds and all, but if you ever need--"

“Nope, I’m good,” Jeff said, a touch too loudly.

“happy to hear it.” Stretch gave him a grin that slowly faded. “see? so if asgore didn’t donate his, uh, time and effort, he can stay home."

“Honestly, Papy you can’t—" Blue began reprovingly, only to be drowned out by Red’s loud snort.

“what the fuck is your problem with asgore, anyway,” Red grumbled. He picked at his gold tooth, a tell that sent tension winding up Edge’s spine even as his brother added with lazy viciousness, “get over it already, you act like he’s your ex who fucked you over.”

The day seemed to be one for unexpected silences. Only this time the stares were directed at Stretch, who said nothing. He only sat white-faced, cellophane crinkling loudly as his hands fisted around the bag in his lap, his skull draining of color as he managed to look at anything but those stares.

Red let out a harsh chortle of laughter, “seriously? all this time you’ve been holier than thou about his lv and it’s actually ‘cause you used to give him the bone over in your ‘verse? fuck, now there is a mental picture,” Red moaned out gleefully, “oooh, fuzzy ass, stick it to me good! ram me with your furry wand of wonder and i’ll get your goat!”

A chorus of protests rose up, with Edge’s snarl of, “That’s enough!” rising to the top.

But Stretch was already standing, a litter of colorful ribbons shedding from his lap as he walked swiftly to the door.

“Rus—" Edge stood to chase after him, cursing his damned leg as it threatened to buckle under him. It was an exercise in futility from the start, as he’d known it would be. Stretch shortcutted the moment he was out the door, heading off Angel knew where to lose himself in the stew of his own thoughts. The temptation to look up where he’d reappeared on the phone app was strong, but Edge resisted it. Stretch had the right to be alone if that was what he wanted, particularly after that dig.

He sighed and went back into the house. Only to pause as he saw the various looks had transferred to him, all of them guarded, particularly Blue; his starry eye lights seemed to be anticipating anger at Stretch. As if this made any damned difference between them. Even Jeff looked near tears, like he expected Edge to already have Antwan on the phone demanding him to draw up divorce papers. It was damn well insulting, and he glared back at them all until those gazes dropped, Blue’s reluctantly last.

All except for his own brother. Red was grinning, savagely pleased, and if they wanted anger, the simmering urge to shout at his brother was rising to a roiling boil in him, his LV waking in his soul to twinge eagerly at the heat of it. Only that was likely exactly what his brother wanted, to be punished for his casual cruelties. Whatever was troubling Red, Edge wasn’t about to reward his masochism.

His own anger fell swiftly into disappointment; lately Red had been bordering on kind with Stretch, if it could be called that, treating him as a brother, or better, if Edge were honest with himself. A brother that needed his protection as Edge decidedly did not. It’d been some time since he’d deliberately needled Stretch and Edge couldn’t even understand why he’d chosen to do so today. Whatever his petty reasons, they weren’t sufficient enough to excuse that.

Edge kept his voice low and even as he said, “That was cruel.”

That satisfied smirk faltered and Red shifted to lean forward. “yeah? well, it's about time he starts getting’ over it. it ain’t the same guy and he’s married to you.”

“Affection for someone else is not any kind of betrayal and considering that all of you calculated our worlds have ceased to exist, there isn’t much opportunity for closure, is there,” Edge said, acid creeping in. "The state of my marriage is no concern of yours."

Red’s sockets fell half-closed as he said, dangerously soft, "you think so, boss?"

Then he flinched suddenly, yelping as Sans slapped him upside the head. "you’re so eager for stretch to get over shit, how about you practice what you preach.” He shoved a can of sparkling water into Red’s lap. “shut up and put on a fucking koozie.”

Red scowled hard and Edge did not miss his crimson gaze flicking to the collar around Sans's throat. Grudgingly, he did what he was told.

“Do not interfere with my marriage,” Edge said coolly. Not that such a statement would stop his brother, but at least it was said between them. Then to Papyrus. “I am sorry, but."

Papyrus only flapped his hands at him, shooing him away, “No, no, go, talk to Stretchy Me! I’m sure Cherry here would like to think about how much he hurt Stretch’s feelings and yours, his own brother, who has recently suffered an injury. And there are my own injuries to consider as well, sticks, stones, and words do hurt!"

Edge let him ramble and started for the door, then hesitated. The others were accustomed to a certain amount of internal friction, some of it formerly his and Stretch’s, from the moment they woke up in this universe. Their Human companion was not so inured to it and Edge crouched to set a ginger hand on Jeff’s shoulder, “Jeff, I’m sorry.”

“Nah,” Jeff waved it off, offering up a lopsided grin. “That was nothing. You should’ve seen Thanksgiving at my grandparent’s place. Don’t think my grandma ever got the gravy stains off the ceiling.”

“can’t just drop a hint like that and not give the story, andy,” Sans said, lightly. The others murmured agreement, eager to latch onto another topic.

Edge could hear as he went out the door, “Well, uh, see, my grandpa was originally from Norway, and—”

There were any number of places Stretch might go to nurse his internal wounds, but Edge had a fairly good guess as to the likeliest one. He drove home, parked his car in the driveway, but instead of heading up to the front porch, he went around the side of the house towards their fenced backyard. Before he was even close, he could hear Stretch talking and he went quietly through the gate to see him sitting outside the coop with Noodle settled into his lap, the laces of his untied sneakers trailing into the grass for Dumpling to peck at.

His skull was resting against one of the support posts, still too pale, his sockets closed and his vape drooping loosely from his long fingers. Vaping instead of smoking cropped up sometimes when Stretch was truly irritated, as if he subconsciously wanted control over something and settled for his nicotine addiction. Or perhaps it was to protect his feathered companions from secondhand smoke.

Noodle didn’t seem bothered either way, chirring softly as Stretch stroked his free hand down her back.

“—not like i don’t know i’m being a dick. that guy just pisses me off sometimes. asgore, not red. actually, they both piss me off, now that you mention it.”

Noodle made an inquisitive sound and Stretch sighed out a cloud of vapor. “yeah, yeah, i was in a mood before we even went over. i dunno, all that baby shit gets on my nerves for some reason.” He scratched lightly under Noodle’s chin and she cooed contentedly. “you’re right, it’s no excuse for being shitty. especially to papyrus, he’s all excited about throwing this party. even if the balloon thing was creepy, you should’ve seen it, like cthulhu’s second cousin after failed plastic surgery.”

“You weren’t being a dick.” Edge said, quietly. Stretch tensed and his sockets slid open, but he didn’t look up, his pale eye lights straying down on his poultry pal. Edge walked over and sat next to them, keeping a careful distance away, easily breached if Stretch wished, or a comforting barrier if he didn’t. “Perhaps a little rude.” Edge held up his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “A little. My brother, on the other hand, was embracing his dickish nature.”

Stretch made a faint, amused sound, “red embracing his dick was not a chat i was expecting today.”

Then he leaned to the side, crossing the distance between them to rest his skull on Edge’s shoulder. He took the unsubtle hint and slid an arm around his husband’s slim shoulders, holding him in close, closing his sockets against the faint tremble in Stretch’s voice as softly spoke.

“he wasn’t my boyfriend. fuck, i never saw him get out of the ruins. i…might’ve given it a shot if he had,” his voice dropped to a bare whisper and Edge hummed encouragingly, already anticipating what was coming, “but i was fucking everyone back then. i was maybe a little infatuated, okay? that’s it.”

“All right,” Edge said, calmly, even as he tightened his arm around Stretch, holding him closer still. He was not jealous of Stretch’s yesterdays; his only commitments were his tomorrows, and despite what his brother might think, Edge was certainly not about to allow anything so trivial as a former crush on a dead man come between them.

Stretch heaved a watery little sigh. “but that isn’t it, not really. he was my friend and i promised him i’d take care of the kid. instead i—"

“Did what you had to do,” Edge interrupted firmly. He understood impossible situations better than most, his own LV-tainted soul aching to think of Stretch enduring what he had for so long, an impossible choice to make between his world and the intent of a murderous child.

Yet, even now, Stretch couldn’t be convinced that was true. He only sighed out a quiet, “sure.” Then, louder, “anyway. he was my friend. he would have hated to see what he was in this world. it’s just…it’s hard sometimes.”

“I know.” Hard to see alternates of people they’d known, a lifetime of memories to be set aside while learning a new person with an old face. Undyne was his own personal struggle and Edge could call her friend, but it wasn’t the same, it couldn’t be.

Next to him, Stretch snuggled in closer even as Noodle let out a querulous protest over the lack of petting. “i’ve been thinking. my hp is on the rise, right?”

“It’s 5 and a quarter, love,” Edge said dryly, reaching over to offer the chicken a gentle pat, Noodle’s dismay quickly turning to a rapturous croon, “and as happy as I am for it, I’d prefer if you didn’t decide to take up hang gliding or street fighting.”

"you're hilarious, babe." Another long, slow breath, before Stretch blurted, "i know i kinda railroaded you when we talked about this before. if you really want kids--" he faltered, his voice breaking as Edge listened in dismayed confusion, "i mean, if that's…we could…"

Suddenly Edge knew precisely what Rus was going to offer and he didn’t want to hear it. Didn’t want him to think in even the tiniest way that he’d lost some measure of Edge’s love by preferring not to have children and and he didn’t know how to stop him from strangling out the words.

So Edge cupped his face in a hand and turned Stretch’s head towards him to kiss that stammering mouth lingeringly, until he stopped trying and simply melted into the gentle touch. By the time he drew away, Stretch was the one making thin, dismayed sounds, trying to chase after that kiss for more, his eye lights hazy soft. Instead, Edge pressed a light, teasing kiss to the slight nodule of his nasal cavity.

"No, I don’t think so,” Edge told him, slow and carefully. Watching that much-loved face to make sure Stretch was hearing him. “I’ve considered it and I’ve decided I’m entirely too busy to add parenthood to my schedule. I’m going back to the Y this week, I think I’m better off trying to secure a place in this world for the children already in it.”

Poorly hidden relief flickered over Stretch’s face and Edge leaned in to kiss him again, silently hoping that he was truly believed this time. There was no doubt in his mind that Stretch would force himself to endure the stresses of having a child if he thought Edge wished it, but making Stretch bear the weight of unwanted parenthood was a nightmare not to be considered. He’d love the child, surely, but at what cost? Far higher than Edge would ever consider paying.

A sudden cackle came from inside the coop and Stretch jerked away, sitting bolt upright.

“the egg!” Stretch gasped, scrambling to his feet, “i never did get a chance to research her adopted egg. you think maybe it actually—” hatched, he did not say, almost superstitiously hopeful.

“It’s possible,” Edge hedged, doubtfully. They both started into the coop, only for a voice calling over the fence to stop them.

“Hello? Hello, is anyone home?” The words were couched with near panic and the voice was a familiar one. Stretch beat him to the fence, opening the gate as he limped as quickly as he could over.

“Janice?” Edge said, surprised and concerned. The fur on her face was matted and wet with tears and she wrung her hands, shaking as she tried to speak. It brought back unpleasant memories of the attack at the Embassy, when one of the protesters threw a brick at her. Even then her pain and fear were tempered under practicality as she asked Antwan to bring her children to the hospital, her thoughts on keeping her boys from fearing Humans more than they already might. To see her bereft of her usual firm control was concerning.

“Calm down,” Edge soothed, pulling her into his arms without a thought, even as he cast a wary glance around the neighborhood. Nothing seemed out of order, not yet, “What’s happened?”

She leaned against him heavily and he nearly staggered back a step. Tall as he was, they were of nearly an equal weight. “It’s Jude, he didn’t come home for lunch and I can’t find him anywhere!” She hitched out a sob. “None of the other children have seen him, my family has been looking but we can’t find him, I can’t—”

Her voice dissolved and Edge gave her a last pat before firmly pushing her into his husband’s startled arms.

“Stretch, stay with her,” Edge commanded, reaching for his phone, “I’m going to make some calls.”

“yeah, sure,” Stretch agreed hastily. He rubbed a soothing hand down her back as Janice struggled against her tears. “hey, we’ll find him. little guy couldn’t have gotten too far.”

Edge was already pulling up his contact list and couldn’t help the darkly sour thought that if this didn’t pull his brother out of his bad mood, nothing would.

~~*~~

tbc

#spicyhoney #papcest #kustard #keelywolfe #underfell #underswap #underfell papyrus #underswap papyrus #by any other name

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akshara16 · 3 years

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Safe Haven(Ian x MC)

A/n:A lot of angst and feelings,it is a piece I wrote when I was full of feelings and emotions about Ian and also felt kind of a mess.So,other than angst and emotions there is also a teensy meensy bit of NSFW stuff and also fluff I think but either ways,ENJOY!!!

PS:If anyone wants to be added to my tag list please do let me know.

Prologue:The conversation which Ian wanted to have after their little rendezvous in the library’s study room.This is totally something I have made up taking reference both from the chapter and also a little bit from my own life,except for Akshara all other characters are owned by PB.

Akshara is in her dorm room,thinking about what to tell Ian,after Poppy’s threat to destroy Ian’s career.Now she needs to make a choice whether to take the risk and let him know what’s going on or to stay quiet about it and destroy the leverage Poppy has.

Akshara:

I need to give Ian an explanation,how long can I hold him off.I care about him too much to not tell him about all that has happened and that his job is at stake,he will distance himself from me if I tell him,I can’t lose him now.But he is the one person who can see right through me and the one person I don’t ever wanna lie to. I think I have got to quit sulking and actually go and meet him.

Akshara grabs her coat in a hurry and leaves her dorm and makes a beeline to Ian’s office.

Ian:

Did I say something wrong,or is something wrong that she is not telling me about,either ways when I see her next I am going to get some answers from her,it’s hard enough to see Akshara in my class with all those guys around her and not being able to tell the entire university that she is mine and now on top off that she has put walls around her,and here I was thinking that maybe this will be a new start for us.This scotch isn’t doing me any good and I am supposed to be grading the papers,what am I doing!!!!!?????

He grabbed the scotch glass and flung it across the room and it shattered against the door with a loud noise.Just then he heard the knocking at the door and he answered after running a frustrated hand through his jet black tousled hair,”Come in.”

Ian started concentrating back on grading his papers,not wanting to make any eye contact with whomsoever walked into his office and that’s when he heard her voice.

“Professor, is this not a good time, I can come back later if you want?”

Ian pushed his chair back and stood up placing his muscular arms on the table and spoke in a grim voice,”Now is a good time as any.” He walked from behind his desk to Akshara and backed her against the door,bent his face down against her ear and spoke with anger and sadness evident in his voice,”We need to talk.” and that’s exactly when Akshara heard the click of the door to Ian’s office.

Akshara:

I can smell the scotch in his breath,which means he has been drinking since God knows when.It looks like he hasn’t slept in the last 2 days,his hair is out of place.I don’t like seeing him like this I would be helping both of us by talking to him ,I don’t intend on keeping such an important and problematic situation to myself.

Akshara looked into his brown chestnuts that were looking into hers with hurt and adoration hidden beneath them,she slowly raised her hand and caressed his cheek and traced her thumb across his cheekbone,Ian leaned into her touch,the touch that makes him want to think only about his feelings for her,minus all the thoughts about their relationship being unethical,something that will be frowned upon by others.Ian closed his eyes relishing the feeling of her soft fingers against his face,as she let her hand wander into his hair ,and rubbing soothing circles on his scalp and then she finally broke the silence and spoke in a very soft voice,”Professor,I believe I have some explanation to do,but you standing this close to me isn’t-”,and with that she took in a sharp breath,and trying her best to regain her composure.Seeing her so flustered,Ian could do nothing but smile looking at her,and thinking about the effect he has on her . Akshara finally managed to look into his eyes again,and this time she looked less flustered and more sure of what she wants to say and finally said,”Professor,I think you should sit down.”

On hearing the seriousness in her tone,Ian’s brow creased with worry and he slowly backed away from her and sat back on the chair opposite to his usual place.Ian slumped down on his chair,and the site of him distressed made her more emotionally vulnerable ,she then walked towards him and squatted down in front of him placing her hands on his thighs to hold on to him as the anchor holding her from falling apart.She knew deep down,that there were high chances that Ian will put distance between them again,but she was willing to take these chances,if it meant being being able to go back to how they were and finally be able to start from square one and they can have a shot at being a normal couple though they won’t have a shot at normalcy unless she graduates and leaves Belvoire. Akshara cast her eyes down and finally managed to speak in a very low voice that was enough to let Ian know that she is on the verge of falling apart,”Professor,what I-.....what I am going to tell you now might change everything and you....”she took in a sharp breath before speaking again,”You might think twice about anything and ever-...everything...and I totally understand that...and....I just want to tell you that I will...wait for you....as long as it takes.”

This time around,Ian took Akshara’s hand and interlaced their fingers and looked into her eyes,those same eyes which crinkles at the corners every time she smiles and in turn brightens his day,but at this moment he could see the same brown eyes filled with tears threatening to fall,a storm of emotions in them,and all he could do was pull her up on to his lap.And she immediately buried her nose into the crook of his neck,taking as much warmth and comfort from his cologne,the same cologne that would have driven her crazy under different circumstances.

Ian placed a comforting hand on her waist and spoke in a soft voice,”Akshara,whatever it is,I am here for you no matter what,I will be your safe haven, whenever you need me and I know I haven’t done right by you in the past,but hell, now keeping away from you not being able to see you,touch you has been the hardest thing I have had to do,please talk to me,tell me what’s wrong?”

Akshara took a shaky breath and spoke in a low voice,”Ian-....I....the thing is something has.....come up,so you.....umm....do you remember the talk we had at Martha’s vineyard near the pool,....”She looked into his eyes with pain and fear visible clearly in them and before she could continue Ian placed a finger on her lips and spoke in a soft voice,”Hey,look at me-” he tipped her chin up using his index finger and thumb so he can look into her eyes and continued speaking,”Do you remember what I told you when we were at Martha’s vineyard?”To this question she nodded her head,and spoke in a trembling voice,answering his question,”That I am special to you and-” and then Ian continued from there, on seeing her struggle to speak from the the sharp breaths she was taking to stop the tears that were threatening to fall,”And that I am done pretending that you aren’t and I was ready to stop hurting us both.And when I said that it also meant that whatever’s bothering you is as good as it’s bothering me.”And that’s when Ian saw her eyes,the tears streaming down her cheeks.This site made Ian’s heart twist from the pain of seeing the woman he cares so much about and in tears,that’s when Akshara wrapped her arms around his neck,he ran a soothing hand along her back and then whispered in her ear,”Hey,it’s alright I am right here,calm down,whatever it is we will tackle it to together because Akshara Hughes,I care about-” Akshara placed a finger on Ian’s lips and spoke in a trembling voice,”No,don’t say that,don’t finish that sentence,because I know that if you knew what I was going to tell you,you-...” and she was shattered completely from the fear and pain of losing him.She again took a shaky breath and continued to speak,”You may not feel the same....about.......me.”

Ian then lifted her with ease from his lap and made her sit on his desk,and wiped her tears using the pad of his thumb.Ian felt like someone was twisting a dagger in his heart in this situation.Before he could speak any more reassurances in her ear,Akshara spoke out in a very low voice,”Poppy knows...she has pictures of us holding hands and............”She looked into his eyes to assess his reaction,but he just nodded in encouragement for her to continue,so she took a shaky breath to stop her body which was quaking from her sobs and continued,”She is using that as leverage to get.......revenge....I am sorry....that....you are in this position because of me....now if you want me to lea-”Her sentence is cut short when Ian presses his lips against,he could taste the salt from her tears on her lips,he poured in all the feelings that he felt for her in the kiss,to ease her and to make her feel safe.Ian leaned back to look Akshara in the eyes,on seeing that she was still tearing up,he leaned in to kiss her eyes and touched her forehead with his own and closed his eyes.Ian finally opened his eyes and spoke in a tender voice,”I know that I haven’t exactly been as forthcoming about what I want,or how much I want you,or how much you mean to me,but you, Akshara Hughes have managed to enter my heart,and no Poppys or Lexis are going to stop me or keep me away from you.”Ian cleared his throat before continuing further,”Now,I am not saying that I am not alarmed or that I would leave my job for you as tempting as it sounds and though it would make the situation much easier,I have a duty to the students here and also to further my career,and you came here to study and achieve your dreams,to make something of yourself,all I am saying is that we need to be careful,with whatever this is that we have,because I swear to God,Akshara I haven’t felt this way about anyone before,let alone a student-”Before he could even finish he heard the sound was music to his ears ,her giggling and that beautiful sound that made his stomach flip and making his heart somersault,and most important of all brought a smile to his face.Once both of them were out of breath from all the laughing,a comfortable silence settled between them,although a lot of things were exchanged just by looking into each other’s eyes.That’s when Akshara licked her lips and caught her lip between her teeth,seeing this Ian’s black irises darkened by another shade and an audible groan left his throat before he could realize what had happened.So he leaned in,and his lips now just a breath away from hers,he saw her eyes closed and used the opportunity to release her now red lips from the sensuous torture done on them by her teeth,and spoke in a deep voice desire evident in it,”Don’t bite ‘em,I can’t think straight if you do that.”On finishing his sentence,he covered her lips with his own and gently tugging on her lip,that caused a moan to leave her lips,he deepened the kiss by sliding his tongue in her mouth that were now dancing to a seductive rhythm,he now moved to kiss her jaw,his stubble sending a pleasant shiver down her spine.She tilted her head to one side to give him access to her neck,where he nipped at her neck with his teeth and soothing the spot with his tongue and fully aware of the mark he has left,marking her as his own.His hands moved to the hem of her tank top,slipping his fingers in.Her breathing getting more erratic and sharper with his every touch,he ran his nose close to her outer ear and spoke in a voice dripping with desire,”Seeing you coming undone right in front of me is definitely an erotic sight for me,but do you know what I would love way more than this?” To prove his point he moved in between her legs that were spread apart with enough space for him to stand,on getting adjusted to her legs around him,he moved his now erect member against her aching core that was getting wet by the minute.The feeling of his growing erection,coaxed a moan out of her,”Ian-”

As they were locked in their passionate embrace,a knock outside of Ian’s office startled the both of them apart,both flustered,hair a complete mess and out of place and clothes half undone.At that exact moment,Ian slid his hand inside her tank to pinch her brown and yet erect nipple,Akshara’s eyes widened on seeing his boldness,and after taking in her reaction he whispered close to her lips,"Maybe you should ask who is it out there?"

There was a mischievous glint in his eye and Akshara barely got a word out of her mouth,”Yes?” The answer came in soon after,”Miss Hughes,it’s Dean Steinhelm.”

Both of them panicked on hearing the person behind the door is none other than the dean and as if on cue Ian slid under Akshara’s desk and asked Akshara to sit right down so that the Dean doesn’t see his current state. And once they were sure they won’t raise any suspicions,Akshara called out to the Dean to come in.

The Dean was a woman in her late 50s,so when she spoke her voice came out very brittle,”Miss Hughes,I was looking for your Professor,I had an urgent matter to discuss with him,do pass my message on to him and ask him to come see me in my office.”

Akshara lost track of what the Dean was speaking when she felt a finger poke at her wet and aching center through the thin fabric of her panties,the single touch had her squirming on her seat,she took in sharp breath to regain composure,on noticing the smallest of change on her face,the Dean raised her eyebrows and asked,”Are you alright,Miss Hughes?You look really pale.”

At the exact moment,Ian moved the thin fabric that was the only layer between him and her dripping core,he slid one digit inside,causing the woman on the receiving end of this sweet torture to jerk at the sudden feeling of him inside her.Ian knowing fully what he was going to do next, brought his face close to her core,and blew on her wet core. Akshara’s breath hitched when she felt the warm blow of air at her core. Ian lifted her leg and draped it over his shoulder and came really close and gave a long and lazy lick to her wet core,and sucking her bundle of nerves,as he kept lapping her without stopping ,he inserted one digit and subsequently a second one bringing her to the edge,he stopped only after he felt her walls contract around his fingers that was now dripping with her arousal .After feeling what she had felt at that moment,she pushed herself further inside the desk to feel his touch again,feel him again.The Dean stood up to leave the young TA to her work,oblivious to what was happening.As soon as the Dean left,Ian pushed Akshara’s chair back so to have a clear view of her face,and sucked his fingers with a satisfied hum.

He then spoke in a lust filled voice,”That was a good save there,but I have to go and meet the Dean in a few minutes,we will pick where we left off later,when I get off of work.” She was in a haze,it was only when Ian,got up from under her desk.On finally getting out of the haze,Akshara caught hold of Ian’s wrist,and looked through her lust hooded eyes and spoke breathlessly,”Where do you think you are going,I am sure the Dean won’t miss you for another 20 min,finish what you started or you are not leaving here.”Ian chuckled lightly at her remark,and pulled her close by the waist,and placed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear,and said,”I love it when you take the lead.”Akshara then pecked his lips and spoke against his lips,”That’s because I can and you are mine.”He just smiled on hearing the word 'mine'.

Taglist:@whimsicallywayward15 @caseyvalentineramsey @drariellevalentine @nikki-2406 @tsrookie @starrystarrytrouble @perriewinklenerdie @the-pale-goddess @sushiharrington

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bitchin-beskar · 4 years

Text

I Just Want to Kill You (Except That I Don’t)

Fandom: The Old Guard

Rating: T (Mentions of blood, war, religious themes, and kissing) (also there are approximately (2) uses of the word f*ck)

Word Count: 2k

A/N: Ever wonder about what it was like for the other crusaders watching Joe and Nicky kill each other over and over? Well I did, and this is what happened! This story is from Ferrando’s perspective, watching as his fellow soldier figures out that maybe, just maybe, he doesn’t hate the enemy (or more specifically, one singular enemy) all that much.

Warning: I am not religious, but there are mentions of Christianity and the Crusades, along with potentially racist connotations when referring to Yusuf and his people. This story is not historically accurate, and any mistakes that I make are my own. This story does not personally reflect my own views on Christians or Muslims.

Tags: @theocatkov, @cosmicbug379, @marydjarin @perropascal

Let me know if you’d like to be tagged in any of my works!

Please consider liking and reblogging, I love the feedback!

It had been three weeks since the Saracen had killed Nicolo, and by the grace of God, Nicolo had been brought back. Their commander had declared Nicolo’s resurrection a holy sign, that their cause was just in the eyes of God, and that their siege of Jerusalem was the will of God.

Ferrando had believed their commander, he’d had no reason not to, until the very next day when Nicolo faced off against the same Saracen as before. Ferrando thought that Nicolo had killed the Muslim soldier, just as the soldier had killed Nicolo, but now, here they were, fighting ferociously.

Ferrando watched, stunned, as Nicolo and the Muslim struck each other at the same time, burying their weapons in the other’s chest, falling on the battlefield once more. Surely Nicolo was only entitled to one miracle, and now that he had struck down his foe for good, God would be gracious, and Nicolo would be allowed admittance into Heaven.

But, as Ferrando fought his way over to his fallen brethren, he was shocked to see Nicolo’s eyes open once more, a shuddering breath escaping his fellow soldier as Nicolo grasped the Saracen’s scimitar, removing it from his chest in one swift movement. On the ground, across from Nicolo, the Saracen jerked awake as well, removing Nicolo’s sword from where it was buried in between his ribs.

Both men sat up, and Ferrando watched as their wounds closed, miraculously. The Saracen stood up, and Ferrando raised his sword, ready to defend his shield-brother, but the Saracen merely held out Nicolo’s sword, hilt first.

Nicolo stood slowly, eyeing the Saracen warily. He slowly held out the scimitar, trading weapons with the enemy. An understanding seemed to pass between the two men, and the Saracen turned away, heading back to his campsite. Nicolo watched him walk away, a funny look on his face. Ferrando tried to get Nicolo’s attention, but Nicolo just waved him off, heading back towards their camps.

And so the pattern continued day after day. Every morning, Nicolo would charge onto the battlefield, but he always seemed… distracted. That is, until he managed to cross paths with the Saracen. Ferrando didn’t always see them fight, but he heard stories from the other men. Over the course of three weeks, Nicolo and the Saracen had killed each other in practically every single way imaginable.

At some point, Nicolo learned the Saracen’s name was Yusuf–when on earth did Nicolo find the time to lean the Muslim’s name in the middle of fighting to the death–and there wasn’t a night that went by that Ferrando didn’t hear at least one complaint about their enemy, and more specifically, Yusuf.

“Why must God torment me so?” Nicolo lamented one night, sitting beside Ferrando in one of the tents. “How can it be God’s will that I strike Yusuf down when he rises the same as I each and every time?” Nicolo sounds so despondent, and Ferrando might feel bad for him if this wasn’t the third or fourth time he’d heard this complaint.

“Surely this is the work of the Devil, tempting me so that I may stray from my holy path,” Nicolo mutters, and Ferrando looks over at his shield-brother in shock. But Nicolo doesn’t seem to realize that he’d spoken aloud, and Ferrando is left to wonder just what it is that Nicolo meant.

Ferrando gets his answer two days later, when he once again witnesses Nicolo facing off against Yusuf. The men are evenly matched, and Ferrando notices much of the fighting seems to cease near them, as though the others, Christians and Muslims alike, are waiting to see the outcome of this fight.

The battle seems to last for ages, the clash of metal ringing out, the dusty ground stirring up around the two men, creating the illusion of two otherworldly beings. Finally, Yusuf managed to gain the upper hand, trapping Nicolo between his chest and his blade. None of the other soldiers move, they all remember Nicolo’s anger when a fellow warrior of Christ had struck Yusuf down. Nicolo had raged at poor Benetto, nearly causing the young soldier to faint from fright, yelling about how only he was allowed to kill Yusuf. Ferrando had raised an eyebrow at that, but Nicolo had been too angry to realize what he’d said. Ferrando watched as Nicolo gathered Yusuf’s body into his arms, and to his surprise, he saw fear on Nicolo’s face.

Perhaps their divine blessings only kept them alive if they were the reasons behind each other’s demise. But surely Nicolo should be pleased? His enemy might finally perish? But as Ferrando watched Nicolo press his hand against Yusuf’s wound, pleading with the Saracen to come back, he wondered if perhaps there was something more than just anger tying the two men together.

Now, with Yusuf pressing his blade against Nicolo’s throat, the only thing the Nicolo could do was press back against Yusuf’s chest. Ferrando watched with no small amount of interest as Yusuf leaned forward, his lips a hair’s breadth from Nicolo’s ear, whispering something. Ferrando can’t hear his words over the sounds of the battle raging around them, but he watches as a blush spreads across Nicolo’s cheeks, right before the scimitar slices across his throat, spilling his blood on the dirt. Nicolo manages to stab Yusuf in the side as he goes down, taking Yusuf down with him. Somehow, Ferrando doesn’t think that blush is the result of threats, and he can’t help but wonder what Yusuf said to Nicolo to make his cheeks turn as pink as they did.

***

Ever since that day, Ferrando noticed that Yusuf was getting bolder and bolder in his attacks. He seemed to find ways to ensure that he was in contact with Nicolo in some way each time they fought: pining Nicolo to the ground, against a wall, against his chest. Yusuf seemed to prefer grappling with Nicolo instead of fighting with swords and scimitars. Every time, without fail, Nicolo would flush, which delighted Yusuf to no end. He seemed to enjoy making Nicolo feel embarrassed, delighting in every blush, stutter, and gasp that he could wring from him.

And every single night, Ferrando had to listen to Nicolo complain, moan and whine about Yusuf. He listened, with the patience of a saint, while Nicolo begged for someone to tell him why Yusuf tempted him so. Nicolo was not normally a very talkative man, but in his frustration with Yusuf, he’d spoken more in a month than Ferrando had heard him speak in a year.

By the thirtieth time the two men have killed each other, most of the soldiers in their regiment and the enemy’s camp know of the two opposing soldiers, touched by God, fighting to the death every day. Ferrando is quite proud of the fact that he was the first to notice when their little dance stopped being so angry and hateful and something… other.

He’d run out of fingers if he had to count on his hands the number of times other soldiers had come up to him to ask if the Saracen was Nicolo’s bedmate. Their tension on the battlefield had transformed, and all the men could see it. Except for Nicolo. He refused to. Ferrando would hear Yusuf speaking in Arabic to Nicolo while they fought, and despite not understanding the words, the tone in which Yusuf spoke made Nicolo flush a brilliant red. Nicolo was quite vicious in his kills whenever Yusuf would taunt him, although Ferrando thought it might be less out of hatred and more embarrassment. Nicolo was a priest, after all, at his core. Not a soldier.

But even priests can be tempted, and according to Nicolo’s rants when he thought the others were asleep, Yusuf was the most tempting of all. Cosimo and Giacomo had started a betting pool on when Nicolo would finally snap, and either outright rejecting the Saracen or finally fucking him. Ferrando really should shut it down before it came to the attention of their commander, but he couldn’t bring himself to. There was so little entertainment in the camps, let the men have their fun.

***

Two months from the day that Nicolo and Yusuf rose from the dead for the first time, everything changed. Ferrando wasn’t entirely sure why things changed, today of all days, but he certainly wasn’t going to complain. It had started out normally, just like every other day on the battlefield. The two armies clashed, men fighting and dying like they had every day for the past two months. Once more, Nicolo and Yusuf met on the battlefield, to fight to the death, like they had every day for the past few months. Yusuf had gained the upper hand for the past week or so, and Ferrando knew that it angered Nicolo to no end.

Today, Nicolo gained the upper hand–and fought ferociously to maintain it–rather quickly in the fight, and he managed to force Yusuf to his knees, the tip of his sword pressing into the hollow of Yusuf’s throat. Ferrando was still shocked at the fact that Yusuf never once looked afraid, before any of his many, many deaths at the hands of Nicolo. Somehow, the Muslim managed to look smug, even when on his knees, with a deadly blade at his throat.

Nicolo was red in the face, panting from exertion, his white-knuckled grip on the longsword betraying his nervousness. Both men were dirty, covered in dust and blood from wounds already healed. Ferrando could hear as Nicolo began to yell at the man before him, the one who’d been tormenting Nicolo for two months. He couldn’t hear everything Nicolo was yelling, but he was yelling in Genoese, so Ferrando doubted Yusuf even understood him. Yusuf had shown no indication that he understood Genoese, so Ferrando wasn’t sure how effective Nicolo’s scolding was going to be.

“Why? Why must you torment me? Surely you’ve been sent by the devil, for there can be no explanation for why God would choose you to rise by my side!” Nicolo was frantic, begging for answers, answers no one had, least of all Yusuf.

Ferrando watched as Yusuf looked up at Nicolo, and for a moment, Ferrando thought he was going to speak. Instead, he winked.

Nicolo stared at Yusuf, a blush spreading across his cheeks as the Muslim stared up at him, smirking lasciviously. Ferrando thought Nicolo was about to run him through, but to his and the other soldiers’ shock, Nicolo dropped his sword, yanking Yusuf up by his tunic and pulling him into a kiss.

Ferrando felt his jaw drop, but he made no move to close it. He never could have imagined that Nicolo would actually act on his feelings, but the evidence to the contrary was clear in front of him.

Nicolo pulled back suddenly, his grip on Yusuf’s tunic weakening. He blinked, looking stunned, as though he couldn’t believe what he’d just done. Yusuf slowly opened his eyes, a dazed look on his face. Nicolo started to apologize, stuttering and stammering over his words, but Yusuf was having none of it. Gripping his cheeks, Yusuf smashed his lips against Nicolo’s.

Ferrando and the other soldiers watched as Yusuf kissed Nicolo more passionately than any of them had ever seen, let alone experienced. Many of the men looked away, cheeks red. Even their enemies had stopped fighting, choosing instead to stare at the two men kissing like they would die if their lips stopped touching.

Nicolo buried his hands in Yusuf’s hair, holding the other man as close as possible, and Yusuf’s arm wound around Nicolo’s waist, clutching tightly at the fabric of Nicolo’s shirt. It was as though they’d forgotten they were supposed to be fighting.

Ferrando was startled when he felt a tapping on his shoulder. There stood Cosimo, a smug grin on his face. “You should’ve joined the betting pool, I just won twenty bezants!” Ferrando smacked him across the back of the head, but that didn’t deter the grinning soldier.

“Come on, let’s get out of here. I don’t want to be here when the armor starts coming off.”

#The Old Guard #origin story #the beginning #of nicky x joe #nicolo and yusuf #kaysanova #crusades #historical inaccuracies #Im sorry #canon queer relationship #the beginning of the immortal husbands #the life of a background crusader #ferrando is DONE #joe x nicky #yusuf x nicolo #first kiss #enemies to lovers #fics

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paper-chain-queen · 4 years

Text

Cherry Lip Gloss

Hatsuharu Sohma X Reader

Rating: Teen with slightly suggestive themes

Word Count : 1600+

Summary: Reader is a beauty vlogger and has been tagged in a challenge.

This is my first time writing a one-shot, XReader thing and got a little inspiration while watching YouTube. Even though Hatsuharu and Isuzu are one of my favortite manga ships, I just felt he would be fun for this little one-shot.

You rushed around the room getting ready, which included setting up the camera on a tripod, checking the shot to make sure Haru was in focus, and that nothing odd was in the frame.

Soft brown eyes looked around the bedroom, taking in all the different decor as you set everything up. You even made the bed properly, flattening out the sheets and organizing the pillows as it was in the shot and Haru assumed you didn't want people thinking you were messy or anything.

The bed had been made when he had gotten there. Granted, that had been a few hours ago, and few 'activities' had happened since then.

"You've got dirty in your eyes." You teased as you fluffed a pillow and placed it neatly on the bed, moving to the squishy cow plushie that had fallen on the floor and putting it back on the bed.

" Can't help it, I'm a healthy teenage boy with hormones." He simply stated, and you were tempted to throw a pillow at him but resisted.

You could feel Haru's eyes burning holes in you as you adjusted the camera and lighting, checking everything for a second time to make sure it looked good. You usually wouldn't be filming to late in the day, but Haru had come over unannounced, so there was a change in plans.

Well, you had mentioned to him that your parents were out of town for the weekend, and Haru had possibly seen a rare opportunity to be alone with you. Not that you were complaining.

You took a breath and fluffed out your hair a bit as you sat down next to Haru, who was already fidgeting with a tube of mascara on the low-table.

"Hello my lovelies, welcome back to my channel, today we have a super special guest, Haru-Kun." You smiled at the camera and then presented the handsome boy who only gave the nod to the camera, greeting your audience with a simple and polite, 'hello and thank you for having me.'

You were already sure that you were going to get a hundred comments just about how hot Haru was. Not that you could blame them in the slightest.

Hastuharu had a 'bad boy' look, but despite his tattoos and piercings that could make him look a little intimidating, he was the sweetest boy you knew. Well... he was sweet and polite for the majority of the time. His dark side was a whole other story. But you found yourself loving both because whether he was light or dark, he was still Haru, and you loved him.

"Thank you for tagging me to do this challenge, I am so excited, alas... I am single, BUT Haru-Kun offered to help me out anyway." You explained to your audience, it was a lie, but you and Haru simply couldn't be public about your romantic relationship due to his family.

You looked to your white and black haired boyfriend, asking for what had to be the 7th time if he was really okay with doing this. Hatsuharu was so kind, and you didn't want to pressure him into doing anything he wasn't comfortable doing.

"Do you not trust me?" He asked, slightly lifting an eyebrow but still maintaining his somewhat placid face.

"Of course I do." You did trust him with your life... you, however, didn't fully trust him to be able to do your make-up, but it would be fun.

"I've laid out all of my daily make-up along with a few other fun stuff." As you spoke, Haru started to stretch as if he were getting ready for a fight, and you had to stop yourself from laughing from his dead-pan face as he did so.

"Are you going to tell me what to do?" Haru asked, already looking a little overwhelmed just by picking up your eyelash curler as if it were some device from outer space.

"Nope!" You chirped, popping the 'P.' He pouted, and you had to stop yourself from leaning over and placing a kiss on his lips. He was just way too cute for his own good.

The boy looked over all the products, picking up one and then placing it down before picking up another.

"What's this?" He asked

"Moisturizer." At that, he pumped the bottle and squirted a bit of creme into his hands, then proceeding to gently massage it into your face. Haru was very gentle with you, which didn't surprise you one bit.

"And this?" Now he was just being ridiculous.

"... lip gloss." You gave him a look that said 'seriously' as you tried to fight off a smile.

"Ah.. I like this one." He smirked as he stared blatantly at your lips.

"Haru!" You whined as your face blew up red, and he only laughed softly, clearly enjoying tormenting you. Haru really needed to be more discrete if we wanted to keep you guys a secret.

"I'll save this for last..." He mentions as he places the cherry lip gloss down and picks up a bottle of your foundation.

He was surprisingly confident as he just squirted the bottle onto your face multiple times, you finally had to stop him after the 4th pump, asking him not to waste anything.

No words could describe the way you cringed when he picked up a blush brush and started to spread your foundation all over your face.

"What? Am I doing it right?" He asked as he pulled away the brush that had already worked its 'magic' on half of your face.

"You do whatever you feel is right." You told him, even though you really wanted to turn his attention towards your regular foundation brush.

While he looked for the next thing to do, you tapped on the table, trying to gesture to the blending sponge without being completely obvious.

"That is cheating, miss." He playfully scolded as he 'booped' you the nose with your now slightly ruined blush brush.

"Sir, I do not know what you are referring to... now pick up the sponge and blend out my face, please," you begged as you forced him to take the sponge into his hand, and he only smiled as he then just started hitting you in the face with the sponge, gently bouncing it on your face.

"This works a lot better...." He muttered as he continued to blend out your foundation, making it look a lot less streaky.

"Yeah, good call." You teased, unable to hide your smirk, and at that comment, you earned a pinch to your thigh, making you squeal.

You made a mental note to edit that out later.

"Next is... oh this, this goes right here." Homeboy picked out the brightest blush he could find in your collection and went in hard.

"Oh..."

You bit the inside of your cheek as you caught your reflection in the mirror on the table.

"Haruuuu." You whined and started laughing as Haru went back to hit you in the face with the make-up sponge, trying to fix his mistake, making the bright blush a little less atrocious.

It was fun watching him concentrate so hard on the task, his face completely serious as he applied your make-up. As he worked, you just simply enjoyed his handsome features.

When it came time to do your eyes, you were thankful for the comically bright blush because Haru cradled your face to do your eyeliner, your heart was beating a million miles a minute.

"Okay, look up," Haru instructed, getting a little more confident the more he worked, you followed his orders and let him apply your mascara.

Haru backed away, holding your chin in his hands, admiring his handiwork. Last but not least, he reached for the cherry lip gloss he had picked up earlier and then instead of putting it on you, applied it to his own lips.

"What are-" Haru didn't let you finish your sentence as he leaned towards you and gave you a deep kiss, the cherry lip gloss transferring from his lips to yours.

"Haru! We're filming!" You squealed as he continued to give you small, delicate kisses along your jawline and down your neck.

"You -can edit -it out later." He said in between kisses.

"You love creating extra work for me!" You tried to get mad at him, but Haru was making it impossible for you to think straight.

"Well, since you're already going to have to cut it out anyway.... might as well take advantage." The handsome boy smirked, his darker side coming out to play as he placed kisses from your collarbone, sucking softly on your neck and then bringing you in for a long, heated kiss on your lips. Haru's fingers trailed up your waist to your chest, gently feeling you up, causing a moan to erupt from your mouth as his hand slid under your sweatshirt.

"No bra.. naughty girl... let's give them something worth watching," Haru smirked as he carefully pushed you onto the ground as he hovered over you, ravishing you as much as his curse would allow.

Later, when you posted the challenge video, only a few people commented on how Haru's clothes were slightly dishevelled compared to the beginning of the video. You were just glad no one noticed the bite mark the boy left on your neck.

Haru had also been begging for the full unedited video, but you were holding it hostage in case you needed him for another video challenge.

Maybe next time he would let you do his make-up.

#fanfiction #fruits basket fanfiction #hatsuharu sohma #haru x reader #fruits basket #hatsuharu x reader #fruits basket x reader

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unto-myself-together · 4 years

Text

From Dusk to Dawn, ch 2 (ESO fanfic)

Content warnings for this specific chapter: references to sex. Brief descriptions of violence. Occasional light cursing (i.e. damn, ass. It’s very infrequent though)

Author notes (a lot of notes, sorry!!):

Previous chapters: Chapter 1

Author notes (skip to the squiggly lines--> ~~~~~~ if you want to jump straight into the story)

You can also read the story on my Archive of Our Own Account here:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23343163/chapters/64680022#workskin

Lots of notes here (and I apologize for that. But this chapter had a lot of stuff going on. There are a couple of explanations for anyone who is interested/confused by something that went on in this chapter.):

Hey everyone. I really really hope you all have been doing much better during these troubled times than I have. I have an anxiety disorder (as well as a couple of other things and chronic medical conditions) and let’s just say that this does not exactly mix well with a worldwide pandemic. Let me just say that if it wasn’t for ESO and my ESO guildies, I don’t know where I’d be.

I love your comments. All of them. I have been coming back just to read them again and again, and when I get the chance I want to respond to each and every one of them. You all are so beautiful; thank you… And thank you to the person who left that extremely lovely message in my ask box on Tumblr! I’m not sure how to let you know, how to respond in a way that you will see (are you still around?), but if you can see this: I love you and I loved, loved, loved your message!

I missed writing. A lot. But I have so tired lately that I was having difficulties writing this next chapter. I finally got it out and I wanted to share it with all of you. This one is a bit more lighthearted than the last (we’re going to go on a rollercoaster here, with lighthearted chapters intermixed with not-so lighthearted chapters). I also changed the tags a bit.

Ravenwatch and sexuality: It’s actually canon that House Ravenwatch has “naked parties”. I kid you not. Gwendis has dialogue during the quest where you crown the new King/Queen of Rivenspire; if you meet her upstairs in Shornhelm’s castle, she’ll say something like:“If this were a Ravenwatch party, none of these people would be wearing clothes”. Please note that this is a “missable conversation”;if you do not catch Gwendis before completing the crowning quest, you will never get to see her say it again.

Even if ZOS later decides to erase these lines, they can’t erase them from history because I have recordings of it :D In all honesty? I actually appreciated this little side note;I think it adds more complexity to their characters. Given their rules about consent regarding blood giving, their parties are probably fully consensual too.And there really isn’t anything wrong about adults having consensual parties. Besides, vampires have always been a little associated with sex and sexuality, so I don’t think it’s really that surprising.

Kalin’s comment is a reference to their parties. But he purposely worded it in a way that he knew Elyssa wouldn’t understand: with a reference to a Dunmer tavern-brothel. No, Ophelia doesn’t actually participate in their parties (having grown up in this place, I think it would be awkward for all people involved); instead she usually goes to visit relatives and comes back to help with the clean-up. That’s not gonna stop Kalin from teasing her anyways. Speaking of Kalin, I really think he didn’t need to be half-naked and lounging on their dining room table during their mealtime. Just saying: I feel like we were interrupting a little more than just “mealtime”.

Now, whether or not Verandis and his "children" have relations with each other when they keep referring to each other by familial names ("father", "sister") is a different story; the idea makes me uncomfortable. But I'm fairly certain Kalin (who is not "a family member") and mortal guests can get some action with the vampires.

In regards to the mortal servants: I’m sorry, ZOS. I don’t care how much magic is pumping through Tamriel’s veins; you will never convince me that two servants (Kalin and Estelle) can feed a household of five vampires once a night every night (even more than five vampires if you save the two people during the Rivenspire quests). Even with magical “produce more blood” potions, I felt the need to add at least two more mortals to the household…I hope readers don’t mind…

It did get me thinking: how does Verandis find these people? I doubt he just puts up an ad onto the Shornhelm bulletin board. Can you imagine? “Help wanted. Must have lots of blood and no aversion to pointy objects in your neck” (I’m kidding). Melina Cassel’s comments in her hireling mails implies that Verandis doesn’t force the servants to give blood as a part of their contract (she makes mention that Estelle giving blood goes “beyond the call of duty”). But there probably is a preference for those who aren’t averse to parting with a bit of their life force every now and then. In Kalin’s case, I’m like 99% convinced his half naked Dunmer self does it because he thinks it’s hot.

I actually had a mock up done of the Castle Ravenwatch basement/lower floor on the PTS using Daggerfall Overlook. I’m not sure if anyone would be interested enough in it for me to post a pic of it though. (yes, I know. I saw the Ravenwatch Prologue and I don’t care)

I really hope ZOS comes up with a house crest for House Ravenwatch soon; otherwise I will have to make my own…

I know it may not seem like it from this chapter, but I actually have fallen madly in love with Fennorian. But it doesn’t technically appear during the Rivenspire questline, and I actually want Elyssa’s first time meeting him to be during her visit to Western Skyrim and doing something like the Bound in Blood quest.

The goat: It’s more of an inside joke I have with myself. When I was going through the Rivenspire questline for the first time, I noticed that there’s a goat that appears behind Ravenwatch Castle. At first, I thought it coincided the appearance and disappearance of Kalin. So I made a joke to myself that Kalin IS the goat. (Later I found out the goat’s appearance has nothing to do with whether or not Kalin the NPC is around. Still, I thought it would be funny to poke at that idea in the fic).

I have a problem with the Stormhaven storyline and this idea that you have to have this specific potion made with the Dream Shard just to avoid dreams. For the purposes of this story, I’m going to re-write that part so that the Dream Shard created potion is only to prevent Vaermina’s magic from interfering with your dreams specifically, and that there are likely plenty of other alchemy potions (sleep potions) that could prevent dreams (but not necessarily prevent Vaermina or her followers from affecting your sleep or giving you nightmares anyways). I just wanted to make that distinction.

While I wouldn’t doubt Vaermina might torment the Vestige in their sleep as a payback, I doubt the Daedric Prince would care enough to do it constantly (just the feeling that I got when I finished the Stormhaven questline was that Vaermina wasn’t too perturbed by being thwarted. Her “imprisoning” the Vestige in her realm was half-hearted as well; you could easily leave. Like she had much bigger fish to fry than you).

In regards to House Ravenwatch and sexuality again: I wanted to state more bluntly that No, I do not think the vampiric family members have sex with each other because they keep referring to each other as "brother" and "sister" (and to Verandis as "father") in canon. Yes, I know they're probably not ACTUALLY related to each other, but still. Instead, I think they have rampant naked parties with fully willing fully adult mortal participants. Let's be honest: there's got to be at least as many mortals in Tamriel who think vampires are hot as there are people in our world that think vampires are hot...Also. You know. Kalin. Half naked. On the table. Just saying.

PLEASE NOTE: Elyssa Arboretum is NOT the actual name of my character. I changed her last name for this story because...well....I'm a little shy. If you ever meet someone in game that has a name similar but not exact, it MIGHT be me. I usually like being on my own, as social situations can cause me great stress (especially if they're strangers). I am so sorry, and I greatly appreciate your understanding...

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She was staring at a wall.

….

…….

To be fair, it was a very nice wall.

…

….

….Although it did take her more than a moment’s time to realize she was staring at it sideways.

…

…And even longer to realize that she was staring at it sideways because she was lying down.

Groaning out of partial frustration, Elyssa heaved herself into a sitting position.

A soft bed and warm blankets were there to greet her, and they were inviting enough that she was sorely tempted to just go back to sleep.

But the longer she sat there, the faster the memories of the previous days nagged at her:

High Rock.

Blood fiends.

A plot to conquer the entirety of Rivenspire by a grieving and spiteful Breton noble.

The usual.

….

……She had to know what time it was.

Covers flung wide, she jumped out of bed. Or tripped, rather; a creak in her back found her eagerness a bit disagreeable. And it took a bit rubbing out her muscles to get her poor back to stand up straight.

But she hurried to make her way downstairs, whether her sore back liked it or not, when she heard the echoes of a conversation.

Gwendis and Melina were both there in the main hall. Gwendis was literally lounging on top of her coffin, her arm lazily hanging over her eyes as if she meant to sleep like that.

Melina was at the table, toying with an array of colorful runestones.

“Good morning, Elyssa,” Melina cheerfully greeted her as she approached.

“Morning, Melina. Morning Gwendis.”

Gwendis only gave a grunt in response.

Elyssa took a spot next to Melina, watching her as she carefully examined one rune at a time before placing them into different, colorful piles.

“Did you sleep well?” Melina asked, frowning and squinting closer to her own hand when she noticed the rune she held had its surface defaced.

“Better than well. I think this was the best sleep I’ve had since…it’s got to have been weeks...I feel fantastic…”

Melina chuckled a little. “Well if you get such wonderful sleep in our home, perhaps you should stay with us then! At least, for a while. We get so few guests; I find it a little exciting to have someone new with us. And, provided you’re still interested, I’d love the opportunity to show you a few basic enchanting techniques. You know…when all this…ah, bloodfiend business is over.”

Elyssa perked up with a grin. “I think I’d really like that. And maybe you could take a look at that book I got, the one I told you about? It really doesn’t make a lick of sense to me, and it would be great if someone could translate it into something more ‘beginner level’.”

“Oh of course, dear. I’ll certainly give it a try when we’re all a little less pre-occupied…”

“Wake me up when the world’s ending,” Gwendis moaned, still lounging on her perch.

“Is she all right?” Elyssa asked, leaning towards Melina.

“Oh she’s fine. Just cranky after scouting out half of Rivenspire for Adusa. She’ll be better after she gets some rest….”

Melina’s eyes narrowed at Gwendis. “She’d feel even better if she actually bothered to go inside her coffin instead of sleeping on the hard stone lid...”

“That requires getting up…” Gwendis complained.

Melina gave a sigh, then went back to her rune sorting.

But Elyssa continued to stare at Gwendis, lost in thought.

“Do vampires dream?” She asked, absentmindedly.

“Of course we do,” Melina replied. “My favorite dreams involve handsome men, coming to sweep me off my feet and take me far away to their extravagant and elaborate castle where we watch the stars and raise our nineteen adopted children together…”

“Which, for Melina, is nineteen too many,” Gwendis chimed in with a chuckle.

“Oh hush you. If you’re too tired to lift a coffin lid than you’re too tired to make fun of my fantasies.”

“Do you really want nineteen children?” Elyssa asked.

“Well…” She started with a bit of a grimace, “Maybe not quite THAT many….But I do want at least a child or two. I adore children, they can be so sweet sometimes…”

She stared with melancholy as she traced the face of a beautiful rune.

“Never making assumptions….never judging you…” She continued, solemnly.

“Breaking all the furniture in the house,” Gwendis remarked with a more lighthearted air.

“I suppose they can also be quite destructive too,” Melina gave out a little laugh. “But what about you, Elyssa? Have you ever thought about children?”

Elyssa made a face. “I think my horse is enough of a handful…”

She straightened up in a panic when she remembered her horse.

“Wait, my horse! I put her around back in that shed place like Ophelia told me to, but I forgot to ask: was that really okay? What if the bloodfiends got to her? Should I go check on her?”

Melina patted her hand reassuringly just as she stood.

“Don’t fret there, dear. The bloodfiends tend to lean away from anything that doesn’t smell like food, and our scent is all over these grounds. It wards the little monsters away from our beautiful castle.”

Elyssa sat back down out of relief.

“Besides,” Melina added, “Our beloved little goat would have been eaten a long time ago if it were otherwise.”

“That goat!” Elyssa groaned. “I mean, speaking of kids and destruction: your goat wouldn’t stop headbutting me as I was trying to take off my horse’s tack, and I was very nearly tempted to kick him straight into your lake. How do you get him to stop?”

“Elyssa!” Melina chastised with a cluck. “That’s no way to treat Kalin.”

“Yes but—“ Elyssa cut off as those words wormed their way into her head. “Wha….”

She turned to Melina, face contorted in a mixture of utter confusion with a touch of horror. “What? But I thought Kalin was the name of your…”

“Our resident Weregoat, yes.”

“Your resident… what?”

“Were. Goat.” Melina said with precise articulation.

Elyssa stared at her as if she’d grown an extra head. “You’re pulling my leg.”

“Me?” Melina asked, offended and with her hand firmly at her heart. “Why I’d never!”

That did nothing to convince Elyssa.

“Gwendis…” Elyssa sighed, turning to the lounging vampire. “Is there such thing as Weregoats?“

Gwendis lazily lifted her arm to give her a side eye. “I mean, I think you should really focus on apologizing to Kalin for thinking about throwing him into the lake…Ya got some priorities you need to sort here…”

Elyssa flushed in embarrassment. She’d never heard of a weregoat before. But then, she’d never heard of friendly vampires until just yesterday. And someone did tell her once that werebears were an actual thing…

“All…All right…” Elyssa said, slowly. Not quite fully prepared to believe. “Then when do weregoats transform?”

“Why, none other than the evening of every second Morndas of the month. Which, I believe, was yesterday. Is that not correct, Gwendis?”

“Yeee-ep.” Gwendis replied, lazily letting the word hang in the air.

“Okay,” Elyssa said, a little less confident in herself. “But why a goat, of all things?”

“Please,” Melina said, “Do I look like Hircine? For all we know, the Daedric Prince of the Hunt punishes those who scorn him with this…awful curse. Such poor people might be used as fodder in the Prince’s hunting games. All the more reason why he needs to stay, safe and sound, with us.”

Elyssa gave Melina a critical eye. The vampire had been a bit overdramatic in the way she’d said “awful curse”, but otherwise it seemed she was serious.

Gwendis, likewise, seemed fairly serious too, even as she kept lounging on her coffin lid.

Elyssa sighed, defeated.

“I guess I really should apologize to Kalin for getting irritated with him…”

“If you still don’t believe us, you can check out his tail,” Gwendis chipped in, “Ask if he’ll drop his pants and show you his hindquarters.”

Elyssa flushed red, and was about to reply that she would not, under any circumstances, ask to see the Dunmer’s posterior.

But a strangled noise brought her attention back to Melina, and her eyes narrowed in as the lady vampire struggled to keep a straight face.

“You…” Elyssa accused. “You both are pulling my leg after all!”

Melina released the laughter she had apparently been holding in, and Gwendis was happy to chuckle alongside her.

“Come on, Mel,” Gwendis accused, “We had something here.”

The other’s laughter died down to a grin.

“Oh but Gwendis, I think you went a little too far with that one. If she honestly asked Kalin to bare himself…you know how he gets…He’d probably acquiesce.”

“But that was the best part about it.” Gwendis grinned back.

“Well I don’t think it’s very nice,” Elyssa grumbled.

“Come on.” Gwendis said “We’re just teasing ya a bit. A little hazing just to check if you’re good with our House and all.”

“Besides,” Melina added. “It was positively adorable that you were willing to believe in weregoats.”

“Yeah. I’m just so gullible aren’t I?” Elyssa replied bitterly, remembering what the Count had told her last night about being a little too trusting of people.

“Come now, dear.” Melina said, patting her hand. “We’re sorry. Truly. And how about I put my money where my mouth is and give you extra runestones for your next shipment as a little apology gift?”

“I guess…” She replied, trying to refrain from any signs that free stuff had indeed perked up her mood just slightly.

She found out she didn’t need to put much effort into that; the Count himself emerged from his study to interrupt.

“Good morning, Elyssa. May I have a word with you?” The statement was short, sweet, and a bit curt. Although that could have just been his High Elven accent.

“Do something naughty while we were gone, did ya?” Gwendis grinned at her just as Elyssa got up to join him.

“Wha—No! Of course not!”

Gwendis’ chuckle seemed to almost follow her as she joined Verandis by the bookshelves. This time, he forewent a book in favor of leaning against the shelves, his arms crossed while he regarded her carefully.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Like a rock.” She stretched out her back a little with a wince. “I even woke up feeling a little like a rock.”

“Probably because you spent the better part of the night sleeping on my floor. If I hadn’t decided to venture upstairs to dabble with a little more alchemy, you’d have woken up there too. Why didn’t you drink the potion while you were in bed?”

“I did!” Elyssa cheerfully replied, holding a finger up, “But then I thought it would be a good idea to fetch a little more wine to wash it down.”

His eyebrows rose as he gave her a pointed look

“I mean,” Elyssa continued, her hands dropping to her side again, “At the time it seemed like a good idea. Obviously it’s not such a good idea after the fact.”

The Count stared at her critically for a good while before he closed his eyes with a sigh. When he re-opened them, he was back to contemplative again.

“You’re lucky you suffered no serious injuries; you could have easily gained yourself a concussion. It seems the Divines do more than simply gift you powerful light magic: it appears they’re also the only things that are keeping you alive.”

“Hey!”

“Which brings me to the reason I called you here. I took the liberty of making a full batch of sleeping draught for you. The bottles are on a tray upstairs labeled with their purpose and your name.”

“Really?” Elyssa’s face lit up; the potential to actually get decent sleep was literally being handed to her. “Thank you so much! I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. This stuff is fantastic; I didn’t dream at all after drinking it.”

“Which is something I need to warn you of. As you’ve discovered for yourself, the draught places you in a very deep sleep. Too deep to dream…and most certainly too deep to be easily roused. If someone were to grab you or hurt you, you will likely not awaken. Make sure to never take a dose unless you are absolutely certain of your safety.”

She was much less enthusiastic about this caveat; inn rooms were expensive, and camping was often inevitable for a lot of places.

“So…I probably shouldn’t drink any if it’s just me and my sleeping roll out in the open...”

“I would severely recommend against that. Instead, if you absolutely cannot sleep and cannot find a safe haven, take a quarter dosage. It will not rid you of your dreams, but it will help keep you from a restless night without sacrificing your ability to respond to potential threats.”

She gave him a wry smile. “Aaaaand let me guess; I’ll have to come back to you every time I run out, won’t I? Should I start looking for a house in Rivenspire?”

He waved the questions away. “No need. I’ve written down the recipe for you. Even if you do not feel comfortable brewing it yourself, you need only take the instructions to any community’s resident alchemist. It’s straightforward enough that any one of them should be able to provide it for you.”

She nodded and mimicked his stance to recline against the bookshelves, albeit from the opposite end. Silence hung in the air, and he was still regarding her carefully.

“…That’s not all you called me here for. Is it?” Elyssa finally spoke up.

“No, it’s not.” Verandis sighed. She could tell from his very tone he was contemplating his words carefully. “Elyssa…have you considered spending time in Wayrest for a while? There’s a flower festival that happens every year around this time, I believe. I can only vouch for what I’ve seen from afar, but it’s does seem a rather popular event…”

She stared at him incredulously. “We’re in the middle of a situation where bloodfiends and vampires are trying to take over the entire province…”

“Indeed. And we have more than enough people here to handle it.”

She winced back as if he had struck her. ‘We don’t need you’ was the unspoken implication.

“Oh? Am I a burden to you now?” She spat back bitterly.

“Child—“

“So what that I’m young? That I have nightmares, and that you found out about them. Now I’m suddenly too pathetic to be of any use to you, is that right?”

“Listen to me—“

“No, you listen to me! What was all that stuff you told me last night? How it was okay to have weaknesses? I’m grateful you gave me potions to help with my sleep, but I’m not worthless just because I need them! And you!”

She pointed an accusing finger at him.

“You have no right to order me out of Rivenspire like this! You aren’t my parent. You aren’t my Emperor. You’re not even the King of Rivenspire.”

She could tell, from the way his face perceptively changed, that the last statement hit a mark. But she was too angry to care.

“No. I’m going to stay right here. I’m going to help defeat Baron Montclair. I’m gonna fight a whole bunch of bloodfiends to reach him…” She stared him down, fists clenched at her side, “And there’s not a damn thing you can do to stop me.”

He stared back at her, calmly watching for an indication that she was finished.

“Elyssa…” When he finally spoke, it was soft, slow, and soothing. “I do not believe I ever said you were worthless or pathetic.”

“And yet you’re ordering me to go off prancing at a flower festival.”

“I’m not ordering you to do anything, child. I’m merely making a suggestion. A suggestion based on what I’ve seen and what you’ve told me…You need a moment to relax and recover. One cannot keep shouldering so many burdens without cracking underneath their pressures.”

“But I’m also needed here. Back at Shornhelm, you said I had powerful light magic. Better than most.” She reminded him. “And that I could be a great help in all this, since we’re fighting people whose very skin cracks under the light…”

“And, to an extent, I stand by those words. Light magic is notoriously tricky to learn compared to the other elements, and yet it seems to come to you as easily as breathing does. This is unheard of, particularly for someone at your age. There are those who would even go so far as to call you a prodigy, myself included.”

The unexpected praise took a little of the edge off her rage.

“But you’re still inexperienced, and it’s painfully obvious you have not had any formal training in combat; your footwork is sloppy and you leave far too many openings for your opponent to take advantage of. This might not be particularly risky when dealing with mindl0ess bloodfiends, creatures which have very little ability to strategize. But the full-fledged vampires in Montclair’s army won’t hesitate to use that against you. Furthermore, why aren’t you using a staff?”

She straightened up with pride. “Swords are cool.”

He paused as if this was not the answer he was expecting.

“A staff would make a tremendous improvement on your magicka flow.” He continued on with the same tone of voice. He had, apparently, elected to ignore her statement. “You might even see an additional threefold improvement in the manifestation of your abilities.”

“But it would leave me wide open. Greatswords help me guard against blows…”

“And so can staves…”

He walked over to retrieve his own firestaff that had been waiting in the corner for him. Holding it out for her to look at, he gestured to its components.

“A typical battlestaff is made with combat in mind, and part of that involves the possibility that you will need to block a blow if your opponent finds a way to come within reach. You can see here how my own weapon has its wood reinforced with a layer of metal. Furthermore, are the multiple runes embedded into its spine…”

His finger traced over the weapon. As if in response to its owner’s command, several symbols glowed across the length of it, brightly shining for a brief moment before settling back to normal.

“These, too, are designed with its protection in mind. And with the mind of maintaining consistent magicka flow. A staff that can no longer provide a steady resonation with its owner’s power is not only useless, but dangerous. Such a weapon risks a catastrophic explosion if the user was not careful; thus, the important of the runes. And as for its bladed tip…”

He gestured to the very top of the staff, in which the blade has been sharpened to fine edge.

“It is not unusual for many staff artisans to include a bladed tip in their work. It does nothing to impair the staff’s traditional function and offers the advantage to utilize it as a make-shift spear, should the need require it.”

He set the staff aside back in its designated corner.

“Staves may not be as….” He gave her an indulgent smile “…flashy as some other weapons, but they are nonetheless perfectly viable, and adaptable to changing situations on the battlefield.”

Elyssa grumbled, unimpressed. “First you order me out of the region, now you’re ordering me to change my weapon—“

“Just another suggestion, Elyssa. A suggestion,” The Count interrupted with wry smile. He went to return to his books once again.

“As you say, Father.” She mockingly shot back. She waited for a moment to see if he’d react to that, if only just a little bit. But her frustration grew a tad when it was clear he was utterly unfazed by the title, continuing on in his books without so much as a raised eyebrow.

She grumbled again, and turned to leave the library.

“And please do not forget to eat before you leave, my daughter.” He called after her.

She froze in the doorway, and took a moment to glance back at him; her face full of surprise.

His reading was as focused as it always was, but he did pause to look up when he noticed her watching.

“Something wrong?” He asked, and the very end of his mouth seemed to twist ever so slightly in a smile that almost looked….devious.

“N-no…” She replied shakily, the surprise lining her face beginning to tinge just slightly with mortification.

She thought the damned vampire elf would be too serious to give much of a reaction, let alone throw her comment back in her face.

“Then by all means: do try to make me proud out there.” He turned the page and returned to his books, still with that damnable little smile.

“I---“ Elyssa closed her mouth almost as soon as she’d opened it, before she said anything she might later come to regret, and decided it was far better to just turn around and walk away.

She could hear Gwendis’ muffled, gentle laughter beside her as she passed the coffins, and it only made her more determined to try and keep the red from her face from showing; it was likely most of the vampiric members of the household had overheard.

Melina, too, seemed to struggle with her own smile as Elyssa passed her.

“Oh,” Melina said. “I believe Ophelia made some honey bread this morning, if that pleases you, dear sister.”

“Shut up.” Elyssa muttered back, and made haste for the guest room before either of them could comment further.

She ignored the tray of alchemy bottles that had been set aside for her on the table, deciding she could figure out the logistics of safely storing them in her pack later. Once safely within the walls of her temporary bedroom, she made a beeline for her gear.

She was quickly getting used to putting it on; the intricacies that went into the chainmail underside and the straps that accompanied the plate outer layer did not seem to trouble her as much as it did weeks ago.

Her feet brought her to stand in front of the mirror, admiring her work. She looked almost like a real soldier.

Honorary member of the Lion Guard, Elyssa Arboretum.

The memory of the guard announcing this while offering the suit of tailored armor played in her head. It was to be expected: in spite of all the things she had (somehow) managed to accomplish, she wasn’t actually a soldier. She had no training in their regiment…nor was she even technically a citizen of High Rock.

‘You’re footwork is sloppy and you leave too many openings’

‘It seems the Divines do more than simply gift you powerful light magic: it appears they’re also the only things that are keeping you alive’

These new words began to rotate in her head, churning into doubts.

Most of her opponents, thus far, had either been werewolves overcome by their animalistic desires, nature corrupting spirits, mindless zombies, or clumsy bandits and disorganized cultist members…None of them had combat styles that could be comparable to word “finesse”. So her usual method of brute forcing her way with powerful spears of light magic before swinging her greatsword around in a haphazard manner had always worked out. Tactics, strategy, and footwork were never things she ever thought about on a regular basis.

Even with Angof the Gravesinger...he almost seemed like the more she fought with him, the more he just…gave up. As if his motivation to defeat her was shriveling away like the very vines he failed to grow. Most of his necromantic abilities didn’t stand a chance against the element of light; she barely even needed to concentrate to sweep the floor clear of his zombies. They faded to dust almost as soon as she touched them with even the dimmest glow of her power. And that wasn’t even mentioning the fact that she had plenty of help at her side at the time…

….

...What if she’d just been lucky so far in her opponents?

That all of her “deeds” were nothing more than the culmination of her brute forcing her own “prodigy-like” magic and having the “Gods’ luck” on her side?

…..

….Was she actually making a difference?

She struck a pose in the mirror, hoping to look impressive decked out in her armor…but her rounded cheeks and short stature did nothing to wipe away the traditional, youthful appearance of a Breton.

Why couldn’t she have inherited at least a little of her Imperial father’s more chiseled features?

She stuck her tongue out at herself, and was greeted with an even more childish sight as a result. Fully frustrated, she grabbed her pack and stuck a few of her things in it.

She frowned at the alchemy bottles; it was times like these that she wished she had a bigger protective bottle case in her pack. She was grateful that he made her so much, but there was just a few too many to fit.

And she was hungry.

…She huffed, and decided she’d have to figure out the problem of the bottles later.

As she made her way downstairs, she caught sight of Gwendis and Melina chatting at the dining table; Gwendis finally appeared to have made it off her coffin. Elyssa was almost tempted to throw a teasing comment at her for that.

Further downstairs was the basement level.

She’d been told it was always kept locked, mostly so that the household (both vampire and servant) could have a place of privacy away from any visiting guests. The main kitchen was down there, however, and so she found herself knocking at the basement door.

“Why good morning to you, Elyssa!” The cheerful face of an older, gray haired Imperial woman greeted her.

“Good morning, Ophelia. Melina told me you have some honey bread all made up?”

“I do. I do indeed; my lady must have smelled it from the hall. Come in, sweetie, and I’ll cut you a few slices.”

The basement of Ravenwatch castle was, perhaps, even more homely than its main hall. Reminiscent of the guest suite, there were no gargoyle statues or eclectic furnishings (save for the two coffins in the center of the room, one of which had to be Melina’s). A roaring fireplace lit up the place brighter than the other rooms, perhaps for the benefit of the servants as they had their own separate room nearby.

Workstations filled with alchemy ingredients and enchanting components lined the walls. A mysterious door to an even deeper cellar was in the far corner (she was told it was strictly forbidden to anyone not of the House; and that only made her slightly more curious about it). Finally, there was a full kitchen to the side; much nicer than the kitchenette of the upstairs guest suite.

Ophelia wasn’t the only servant awake; the others were out and about as well.

The Breton, Estelle, was by the fire, working on some sort of sewing. She was the only one Elyssa hadn’t formally met; they told her she was of a skittish disposition, particularly around strangers. From what was mentioned, the Count had found and rescued her from bandits who had badly abused her. Until she got used to a new person, it was advised for that individual to leave her alone unless absolutely necessary.

Anise, a Bosmer, was at the nearby dining table, a table that was a much smaller twin to the grander one of the main hall. She….definitely looked like she was still asleep, her small head propped up by her arms at the table. Narcolepsy was something Ophelia had mentioned; apparently Anise had trouble finding someone to hire her in a ‘traditional’ job because of her condition. But the household wasn’t perturbed by the idea of narcolepsy, and had hired her practically on the spot the moment she revealed she was perfectly comfortable with the idea of serving vampires.

Ophelia herself was busy cutting an impressively large portion of an equally impressively large loaf of sweet smelling bread. Elyssa recalled that when she had previously asked what the Imperial thought about living here, the older woman had merely scoffed. For Ophelia, it was just tradition; her family had served House Ravenwatch for a handful of generations. She had literally grown up in the castle. So, naturally, she was quite fine with it all.

Kalin, one of the ones Elyssa had spoken to the most (but ironically knew the least about), was lounging about at the wall near the kitchen, eyeing her carefully. The only information she had on the Dunmer was that he was the oldest and longest serving of all the mortals who stayed there.

“So our guest yet lives…” He said, that slow sardonic drawl of his hanging in the air. “Do tell; how does it feel knowing you survived a night in a vampire’s stronghold?”

“Got better sleep here than in most inn rooms.” She responded, grinning. “You all seem to get along really well with each other.”

He laughed. “Indeed….we’re quite….close with each other…”

“Kalin,” Ophelia warned.

“Some of us ….closer…than others.”

“Kalin.”

“You might even say it’s a regular Ebony Flask around here--”

Ophelia banged her knife down flat with a loud clunk, staring him down with a none-too pleased grimace.

“What’s an Ebony Flask?” Elyssa asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.

“Now you see? She’s only going to start asking more questions…” Ophelia said.

“What…Is it something bad?”

“Not at all…” Kalin continued, an exceptionally wolfish grin lining his face. “Ophelia is only upset because sometimes even she—“

“That’s it!” Ophelia pointed her knife at him from afar. “You. Out of my kitchen!”

“My work here is done…” Kalin stated in monotone, impish grin still on his lips as he strolled out the basement doors.

He held it open for Gwendis, who had found her way downstairs.

“Gwendis!” Elyssa approached her “Kalin said it’s like a regular Ebony Flask around here; what does that mean?”

Whatever emotion Gwendis’ face had before vanished as she stared off into the distance with pursed lips. She took a deep breath through her nose…

….Then turned and walked right back through the basement doors again.

“Wha-Gwendis?!”

“Never you mind that, sweetie.” Ophelia interjected with an almost strangled voice. “Why don’t you come and have some breakfast? I made you some eggs and bacon too; I think you could use the protein, going out to fight as you do. Might even put a little meat on those bones.”

Melina was next to come through the doors, clutching her satchel of runes and yawning all the while. And Elyssa immediately abandoned her breakfast plate to jump on the opportunity.

“Melina! Kalin talked about an ‘Ebony Flask’. What does he mean by that?”

Melina paused mid yawn, a curious expression forming on her face.

“Oh Elyssa…” She sighed. “I’m afraid I’m much too tired to have this conversation. We can have this talk after I’ve taken my rest…”

“My lady, I must protest!” Ophelia exclaimed.

Melina gained a rather mischievous smile at Ophelia’s outburst. “Very well. We can have this talk after I’ve taken my rest AND after Ophelia has gone to bed.”

“My lady, please.”

Elyssa grinned as Melina gave her a little wink. Seeing that, Ophelia’s protestations started to die down into more of a sputter.

“Herding cats around here…” Elyssa could hear Ophelia mutter under her breath as the older woman re-doubled her cleaning efforts. “Some days, I swear…”

But Elyssa was far more interested in what Melina was doing: heading towards one of the stone coffins in the main area of the room.

Melina caught sight of her following close behind.

“Curious, are we?” She asked with a slightly amused smile.

“I just want to see what’s in it.” Elyssa beamed back at her.

“What might you think is in it?” Melina cocked her head slightly.

“I…” Elyssa tried to think of all the vampire stories she knew. Which wasn’t very helpful. She knew they supposedly slept in coffins, but she never really heard any stories about what they slept with. “…Jewels?”

The lady vampire laughed. “I’m not a dragon!”

The coffin lid scraped across its base as she moved it, revealing a cushioned lining, a small horde of pillows and a patterned blanket. Though the outside was drab stone, the inside looked…rather homey. For a coffin.

“Not quite what you were hoping for?” Melina asked, as it seemed she noticed her dismay.

“I don’t know.” Elyssa frowned. “Why not just sleep in a bed then?”

The vampire bit at her lower lip in contemplation.

“Well…I can’t speak for the others…But in my case…” She shifted uncomfortably. “I--the first days of my new life were spent constantly under threat from the sun, even when I tried to sleep….especially when I tried to sleep. I developed a bit of a phobia for it. And after a while, I just started to feel…more at ease in places that were dark and enclosed.”

She fondly traced the edges of the lid. “Sleeping in a box of some sort is the easiest way to accomplish that. But they don’t usually make human shaped cargo boxes...And asking for one would likely raise too many questions…But coffins…”

The vampire waved towards her open resting place.

“...Coffins are requested all the time. Even coffins ordered to your exact specifications; no one ever bats an eye over measurements…It’s a convenience, really.”

“So…you could sleep in a bed if you wanted to?”

“The bed itself certainly wouldn��t kill us. But….our reactions aren’t always fast when we’re groggy and it’s the middle of the day, so if someone were to open the drapes on any of us while we lay exposed and slumbering…”

“But all of the windows here are glazed over; I could open all the drapes in the castle and the sun still wouldn’t touch you…And I mean…there can’t be that many people who would do something that horrible to you in the first place…”

“That’s very sweet of you to say, Elyssa.” Melina smiled kindly. “It isn’t true, and I think you know that, but it’s very sweet of you to say nonetheless. There are plenty of people out there who wouldn’t hesitate…so…Just…think of the coffin in the same way you’d think of a stuffed toy that a child would cling to; it brings me comfort and assurance to know the sun can’t touch me so long as I’m inside.”

“I’m guessing you’re going to sleep now?” Elyssa watched as Melina kicked off her shoes and settled down among the bright interior of her coffin.

“Mmmm…Indeed. I just simply can’t keep my eyes open any longer…” She sighed happily as she nuzzled one of her pillows. “Won’t you be a dear and close my lid for me?”

“Wait…” Elyssa gestured to the coffin opposite of hers. “Before I do, I wanted to ask: there’s five coffins total, but I thought there was only four of you…”

“Oh…that one would belong to my dear, sweet brother…” Melina lazily said, already with half lidded eyes. “You won’t likely meet him; he’s gone and locked himself in the cellar. Out of abundance of caution, mostly. He’s been having difficulties these days, and…oh, well, he’s such a sweetheart; he’d do anything to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone…”

“I see….” Elyssa said, suddenly solemn as she stared out towards the cellar hatch. “I hope he feels better.”

“Indeed, as do I. I so hate to think of him stuck down there, but it was his choice and my Lord approved…”

She let out another yawn. “Ah…oh, excuse me. I’m so sorry, Elyssa. But I must really bid you a good day; I cannot possibly stay awake a moment longer. Please promise you’ll stay safe. I’ve already become a bit fond of you, and I would hate it terribly if you were injured….”

“I’ll promise I’ll try not to die. Have a good night…erm…I mean day. Have a good day, Melina.”

Melina gave her one last, sweet smile as Elyssa pushed close the lid.

…It was a lot heavier than anticipated.

She had to shove her shoulder against it just to get it shut. The clunk of the stone finding the indentation on its base was louder than she’d thought it would be and caused her to jump.

Giving one last look towards the cellar hatch, as if expecting another vampire to appear any moment, Elyssa went back to the table. Eggs, bacon, and honey bread were shoveled down as fast as she could manage.

~~~

She walked out of the basement a little too full; Ophelia had insisted on giving her a second helping of eggs and bacon, and had even tried for a third. Given the sort of conversations that had accompanied breakfast, Elyssa had a nagging feeling that the older woman had been desperately trying to distract her from Ebony Flasks. And, of course, that did nothing but make her more curious.

Chances were, Ophelia would manage to talk Melina out of explaining it later.

So instead of heading towards the front door with her pack, she made a quick beeline for Gwendis, who had gone back to lounging atop her coffin.

“Psst….Gwendis? Gwendis, what’s an Ebony Flask?” She gave the vampire a few pokes in the arm that was covering her eyes. The skin was oddly cold compared to a mortal’s.

…And the vampire didn’t budge.

“I know you know. You had that look on your face when I asked about it before, so don’t think you can pretend otherwise.”

And the vampire still didn’t budge.

“Aww come on. You can’t be asleep already. And even if you were, there’s a tasty mortal inches from your face nudging you with her fingers. If that doesn’t wake up a vampire, I don’t know what would. So what’s an Ebony Flask? Is it a type of skooma? Do you all get together to use skooma? I won’t judge; I promise.”

She could see Gwendis’ lips twitching against her pale face, but otherwise she continued to remain still.

Elyssa huffed. “Fine. Be that way. I give up. Have a good nigh—day. Day! Ugh. Whatever.”

She passed by Verandis’ study on her way out. He was still in there, working away at his books, as usual. Elyssa was partly tempted to go in and ask him about Ebony Flasks and what that had to do with House Ravenwatch.

But she was still too irritated at him to even make the attempt, and that pushed all other thoughts away; so much so that she simply headed outside without so much as a ‘goodbye’ to him.

The bright sun greeted her as soon as she pushed open the heavy oak doors. She stopped to stretch out as she basked in the warmth.

“Hey don’t forget…” Gwendis’ voice came echoing through the halls behind her, proving that she hadn’t been asleep after all, “…Watch out for the weregoats out there.”

Elyssa’s irritation was matched only by the intensity of how hard she slammed their front door shut.

“I hate you all.” She muttered under her breath. Not that she completely meant it.

But her irritation only grew further as she noticed a bloodfiend at the edge of town, happily gorging itself on a dead citizen.

…

……It was like breathing; such an apt description that Verandis had given her earlier that it became hard for her to think of it otherwise.

Warmth filled the tips of her fingers, a growing sensation that shifted through her palm like a liquid.

Coalescing. Expanding. An extension of her arm, of her will. She often found she only needed to hold the image of a spear in her mind for it to form. And with two steps taken, her momentum helped to send the whole thing forward, hurling through the air.

What was only mere moments resulted in a motionless bloodfiend, a bright spear of solid-like light skewered into its chest.

Unfortunately, it seemed she attracted some attention; another figure lurking in the shadows manifested itself right next to the dead bloodfiend. She readied herself another spear….

…Only to then dissipate the light in her hands when she realized the second figure had cat ears.

And she winced when a rather irate Adusa-daro came towards her.

“H-Hi…Adusa….” She nervously greeted.

“Adusa would appreciate…” The Khajiit began with a glower. “…If the young one would please stop throwing such powerful holy magic so close to this one’s fur…”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just didn’t see you there when you’re dressed in all black like that!”

“Yes yes; this is exactly the sort of thing Adusa is worried about…” Adusa grumbled, but she didn’t actually seem too upset at her.

Then again, it was difficult to tell; the Khajiit’s black and flowing cloak was surely thick enough to ensure no sunlight ever peaked through, and most definitely dark enough to obscure any body language. It looked to be made of the same fine material as the one she’d seen Verandis wear the other day, and she was sure that, like Verandis’, it held a dark grey outline of their house crest on the back as well.

…Although Verandis’ cloak didn’t exactly have cat ear protrusions on the hood; that would have been a definite improvement. (She made a mental note to herself to tell him to get some cat ears on his cloak. Since he was so eager to give her ‘suggestions’ before, he surely wouldn’t mind receiving ‘suggestions’ in return.).

Elyssa frowned as she attempted to figure out where among the bloodfiends the vampire had been lurking. She only found more bloodfiends.

Which only made her frown more because…well….bloodfiends.

“How can you stand all this going on right outside your doorstep? With these poor people like….like this…?”

She vigorously gestured towards a few of the creatures shambling close by.

“Patience, young one. Tell this one; what is the most important thing we must focus on?”

“Killing Montclair?”

“Yes, good. And what else?”

Elyssa strained herself to think: what else was there besides killing Montclair and dispatching bloodfiends?

“….Er…Killing Montclair…a second time…?”

Adusa groaned. “The living, Elyssa. Living people are important, yes? We must kill Montclair and make sure any living survivors are safe. These are the two most important of all things that we must do.”

She could hear the khajiit grunt in disgust as she waved towards the bloodfiends.

“These….creatures. They can wait until later…The dead will always be here later…The living? Not so much.”

“Sorry; I guess I just took it for granted that we’d help the survivors. I mean…why wouldn’t we? But these bloodfiends here…they do still bother you…right?” Elyssa asked in a quiet voice.

Adusa was in the process of taking down fabric around the face area, which suggested that the cloak, like typical Breton hoods, had a built in face mask.

“We may not have always spoken much to the people here…” Adusa said. Pain on her face as cat-like eyes scanned over the town. “But the ones of Crestshade…they were good people. They do not deserve such a fate. It is….very, very difficult to watch. These townsfolk deserve to be put to rest, and not wander like filthy beasts.”

“Is there a chance that Montclair would use these ones for his army?”

The khajiit shook her head.

“Look at them, young one. They are baking in the sun, and they do not even realize it hurts…Montclair would not win this war on the backs of freshly burnt carcasses falling to pieces. No, the bloodfiends sent here were clearly only meant to coax the people out of their homes and scattered on the winds. To turn to the curse any of those who could not make it out…less people he would have to cow to his would-be rule…”

Adusa’s fangs protruded as she softly snarled, her ears hunched back. “…This one also thinks he may have been trying to mock us a little as well…Send bloodfiends to attack the town while we all were away as an insult to all of our efforts…”

Elyssa remained silent.

She didn’t know how to respond except to look out again amongst the bloodfiends stumbling across the ground…

Their bodies did seem like they were coming apart at the seams; many of them had sun wounds that burrowed straight through their skin, creating gaping holes that only hindered their movements more.

“We must rest and work and focus on the two most important things, Elyssa. Never forget the priorities. And speaking of which: Adusa is glad to have caught you before you left. She has need of you. You will help, yes?”

“What needs to be done?”

“Adusa has been scouting to see how far Montclair’s army has taken its curse, how far it has spread. They have taken over a small town called Moira’s Hope in the south. This one could smell the blood of the living there...but there are also many, many bloodfiends as well. She will need help to cut a path through…and perhaps help with the survivors as well; they are more likely to trust a fellow mortal than Adusa, and there may be need to get them out quickly…”

“Right! I’m with you; I just need to go and get Justice ready…”

“Justice?” Adusa followed Elyssa around back to their stables.

“My horse.”

“…Is that not…How does one say? ‘A little on the nose’?”

“Oh I didn’t name her that. That was the name she came with. If you can believe it, I got her for free from this cranky old Imperial man.” Elyssa’s face screwed up as she recalled the memory. “All eight of his horses were white Imperial thoroughbreds, and ALL of them were named Justice….”

Adusa looked at her with incredulity. “…Did he not have trouble telling them apart?”

“He was so angry; I was afraid to ask too many questions.” She flashed Adusa a nervous smile.

“Very generous, a whole horse….”

“I don’t think he could afford to take care of them all after he’d been displaced from the war. And I think he was also looking to help other citizens of Cyrodiil, because he only offered her to me when he found out I was a fellow refugee…”

Her comment cut short and her muscles tensed up when she came face to face…with him.

He was hanging out, casually, by the awning of the stables, right next to Justice.

He lifted his head to watch her as she approached.

Her arch-nemesis.

The bane of her existence.

The damned goat.

Her blue eyes narrowed in on him; her stance braced for impact.

He stared back, creepy little sideways pupils watching her as if to size her up.

She took a few sidesteps to the right, maintaining eye contact.

He mirrored her maneuver, his soft bleating filled with obvious faux innocence.

She stopped.

He stopped.

The irritating fiend was playing hardball.

Slowly, she inched her way towards her horse, eyes dead center on her foe in anticipation of the slightest mo—

“What...” Adusa’s voice intervened, “…In the name of the blessed moons are you doing?”

“Your goat is pure ev—“

Only a moment; Elyssa had only looked away from her dreaded foe for a moment, and the beast, sensing weakness, lowered its horned head to charge. Just barely was she able to escape the horror of it all by scrambling up the stable post with a yelp.

Adusa stood where she was, her arms crossed, and surveyed the scene with eyes aglow with amusement.

“Hibiscus must like you. She does not usually react in such a manner with anyone else…”

“You call this liking?” Elyssa grimaced as she clung to the stable post and tried to shoo the goat away by waving one foot while trying to balance on the other. “Look at the eyes, Adusa! Those are the eyes of a bloodthirsty creature who has killed before…and will kill again!”

“Speaking as one who knows bloodthirsty creatures, Adusa can assure that Hibby is both safe and does not consume blood,” Adusa began to make her way back around the castle. “This one will see you at Moira’s Hope, then.”

“Wha-you’re leaving me??!” Hibiscus the goat was already making the attempt to scale up the stable walls just to get to her enemy.

“Adusa has every confidence you can handle little Hibby. If not, Hibby’s treat bag is at the right of yourself. Feed her no more than three whole apples; a fat Hibby would make Anise very concerned.”

And with a wave over her shoulder, the hooded Adusa was gone.

Elyssa turned to her adversary.

“So….You’re a girl goat, huh? That’s quite a coincidence. I happen to be a girl human. We have so much in common; please stop trying to kill me.”

The horizontal goat pupils didn’t seem to falter, and she idly wondered if goats were carnivorous.

Her fingers strained as she tried to reach the treat bag, but she only ended up in an awkward, stretched out position with her torso still at the post and the weight of her upper half held up by her reaching fingers. She looked at her horse, who was calmly grazing at a pile of hay.

“A little help?” She asked, not actually expecting her horse to respond.

Sure enough, the horse stared back at her, unfazed and ignorant of her situation, before dipping its head to take in another mouthful of hay.

“First Adusa, now you; the double betrayal hurts just a little bit.” She said, purposefully overdramatic. If only to make herself feel better about the whole situation.

The goat seemed to be getting impatient, as it begun to ram its horned head against the sides of the stable. As if to try and knock her down.

“I have to wonder if you really are trying to kill me…” Elyssa winced as she made a solid lunge for an apple peeking out of the leather bag. Another effortful motion and an apple was tossed as far away as she could manage.

It was a gift from the Gods that Hibby’s priorities involved eating first and everything else second; Elyssa was finally free to drop down. Not necessarily in an elegant way, given her strained position; she ended up with a face full of hay, with her horse making the move to try and lick it off her face.

Straightened up with hay brushed off, she moved to get her horse’s tack on as quick as she possibly could before the demonic goat got back. Part of which required giving a jealous Justice an apple of her own to get her to cooperate.

Her weapons and pack at the ready, she hoisted herself up atop her steed; just in time to watch a distraught Hibby cower from Justice’s mightier hooves. Up high on a horse, she felt a bit more like a knight, regardless of whatever her image in the mirror had shown her before.

Ready to take on the world itself.

A click of the tongue and a flick of the reins, and she was well on her way.

Racing past the bloodfiends as the sun shone in the sky.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Final Author note: Bold of you to assume Verandis wouldn’t adopt your rebellious mortal ass, Elyssa.

#verandis ravenwatch #the elder scrolls online #eso #gwendis #adusa #my fanfiction

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falseroar · 4 years

Text

Is This Your Card? Part 2: Trusted Friends

((Part 2 of this monster hunter/werewolf AU version of WKM. Abe arrives at the party and is surprised to see more than one familiar face. But not as surprised as when he discovers the first sign this group of friends isn’t being entirely honest with each other.

Only warning for this chapter is that there are references to drinking.

Link to Part 1: The Invitation))

Abe was one of the first guests to arrive. He was always one to arrive early, the better to get a lay of the land, but when the butler showed him into the main area, he found someone else had beaten him to the punch.

Standing in the middle of the room, between the low glass table and a couch that looked more for decoration than comfort, and staring at the piano in the corner as though tempted to get a closer inspection, stood a man in a well-tailored black suit, leaning slightly on a matching cane as he ran a hand through his hair before turning at the sound of their approach.

If Abe looked surprised to see the mayor of the city here, Damien seemed no less taken aback at the sight of the hunter.

“If you gentlemen will excuse me,” the butler said, his eyes shifting between the two of them as though realizing they might want a moment to talk. “There’s still so much to do before we begin.”

The mayor recovered quickly, Abe had to give him that, and managed a professional smile as he stretched out a hand. “It’s Abe, isn’t it?”

“Got it in one, Mayor,” Abe said as he shook the hand, noting that it was a practiced handshake, like one given time after time with no hint of the person behind it.

“Please, I think you can call me Damien here,” he said, that last word leaving Abe to suspect such a courtesy wouldn’t extend past these walls. “I can’t say that I expected to see you here. I wasn’t even aware that you were back in the city, much less acquainted with Mark.”

“Known him for years,” Abe answered, his eyes looking Damien up and down just as much as the mayor was studying him, taking in the coat Abe just couldn’t leave behind anywhere along with the gentle bulge of the single firearm he had restricted himself to, and even that had been a monumental effort on his part. “Guess I shouldn’t be surprised the mayor would be chummy with the local celebrities.”

He could only imagine what Mark’s reaction to being referred to as only a local celebrity might be, and even Damien gave a chuckle at that.

“Actually, I’ve known him for some time myself. When I was a child, my sister and I—” just as Damien seemed ready to launch into a story, they both heard the butler’s voice at the door.

“Good luck at the table tonight. I shall fetch you a drink forthwith.”

Both men looked at the person who walked in, another figure not far behind, and out of the corner of his eye Abe could see the mayor’s face spread into the first real, genuine smile of the night while his own remained blank as he met the eyes of the District Attorney.

Y/N.

Zero warning, no time to prepare or even think of what to say after the last time they met, after their one and only case together that Abe had silently hoped would lead to more.

After he found out their secret.

He was saved from speaking when the mayor stepped forward, drawing their attention with a cry of, “Oh! There you are, old friend. I was starting to wonder if you could drag yourself away from the office.”

The District Attorney smiled, and Abe realized they were wearing the same kind of clothes he had seen them in before, apparently not having bothered with changing after work before coming here.

“I had it on good authority that if I didn’t come, I would never hear the end of it.”

Abe managed to drag his attention away from the mayor and his attorney to focus on the second person to enter the room. He was a smaller but well-built man, his stature suggesting military while his outfit absolutely screamed it, and there was a suggestion of a smile underneath that large and bushy black mustache as he introduced himself as “the Colonel.”

“I’ll admit, I’m not much of one for parties, at least not the kind you’d normally see around here,” the Colonel said once the introductions were complete, and Abe found himself nodding in agreement. He had heard of the legendary parties Mark had thrown in the past, outrageous, overcrowded and elaborate affairs that gave the reporters who weren’t nursing hangovers more than enough stories to share, and probably would have walked straight out of the place if it looked like this was going to turn out the same.

However, there were just the four of them in the room, although Abe could hear the raised voice of the chef somewhere behind him before the butler cut him off and returned with a tray of drinks.

“Dinner will soon be ready,” he said, smiling as though that hadn’t just happened. “Until then, may I offer some champagne?”

Abe took a glass and gave it a sniff without actually drinking any of it, although he saw the District Attorney and the Colonel down theirs without any hesitation, as though both were in desperate need of a drink.

“So where is Mark?” he asked the room at large.

As though waiting for his cue, the man himself appeared on the stairs in a satin red robe and little else except for a cry of “Welcome, welcome, one and all! My name is Markiplier. Thank you for joining me on this auspicious evening—”

He paused briefly, although Abe wasn’t sure if it was the sound he made into his full glass or the scoff from the Colonel that distracted the actor from the clearly prepared speech.

“It’s so good to be surrounded by such close and trusted friends,” Mark continued, and Abe noticed he met Y/N’s eyes at the word ‘trusted.’ Interesting, and not for the first time he wondered what exactly the connection between the two of them was while the actor went on, only tuning back in when Mark laughed and said, “But enough about that. Why don’t we all eat, so that this game can really get started?”

There were small white cards waiting on the set table in the dining room, assigning each person to their seat, all clustered at one end of the long table. It’s the only reason Abe found himself sitting next to the mayor with the Colonel opposite him, while Mark of course took the head of the table with Damien on his left and the attorney on his right.

“A little awkward, but the smaller table has already been set up for poker,” Mark explained as they all took a seat. “And apparently, eating at that table is out of the question.”

“It would be highly inappropriate to mix the two activities, yes,” the butler agreed, seeming to miss Mark’s expression as he set everyone’s plates in front of them. “Is everything to your liking, sir?”

“Sure, sure,” Mark said, waving a hand. “I’ve told you before, Benjamin, you can take it easy tonight. Loosen the tie a little.”

“As you wish, sir.” The butler bowed and walked back into the kitchen, where the unseen Chef was chopping something that apparently required a lot of effort and the occasional swearing.

“Ah, I’m sure he’ll get into the spirit of things soon,” Mark said with a shrug before giving his guests an inviting gesture to start eating.

Abe wasn’t the only one who happily picked up his fork and knife, but a sidelong glance at the place diagonal to his own caused him to pause. The District Attorney had yet to start eating, and when the Colonel made an offhand remark about the war, they seemed eager to turn toward him and begin asking questions which he was more than ready to answer.

It took Abe a second for it to register, and then he looked down at the silverware in his hands. Actual, sterling silver, silverware. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the mayor also watching the attorney with thinly veiled concern while Mark continued eating, blissfully unaware of anything wrong. With a start, he realized that not only did Damien know, but neither had informed Mark that one of his “close” and “trusted” friends was a werewolf.

For their part, the attorney played it off well, seeming so engrossed in the Colonel’s tales that it was only natural they just picked up a piece of food here and there from their plate with their fingers rather than giving the meal their full attention.

Looking back, he suspected the little food they had probably explained how the alcohol affected them so much, and wished he had a similar excuse for himself. Then again, anyone in the house would have admitted they all drank way too much that night.

Anything to take their minds off what happened next.

((End of Part 2, and I just realized how short these first couple of chapters are compared to later on.

Link to Part 3.

Tagging: @silver-owl413 @skyewardlight @withjust-a-bite @blackaquokat @catgirlwarrior @neverisadork @luna1350 @oh-so-creepy @weirdfoxalley @95fangirl @lilalovesinternet-l @thepoolofthedead @a-bit-dapper @randomartdudette @geekymushroom @cactipresident @hotcocoachia @purple-anxiety-blog @shyinspiredartist @avispate @missksketch ))

#markiplier #fanfiction #wkm au #werewolf au #monster hunter au #wkm detective #wkm district attorney #wkm mayor #wkm colonel #wkm actor mark #da x detective #just going to say it now #if there's a love triangle going on here #then the da is the last to know

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darkestwolfx · 4 years

Text

Lost Kingdom - Re-Review #34

“Lesson over.”

And once again, Kayo is seemingly perfect... @tsarinatorment and @psychoseal is it time for some more rants? I think so. I’m sure Tin-Tin would have been quite capable at holding her own in TOS, and I also think Gordon would be a little better at physical combat. But hey, this is only like forty seconds of the episode, so I will move on.

“I wonder if Kayo’s finally met her match.”

“Guess not.”

Just to say, I was so voting for MAX - seriously, I have faith in this robot. Does no one remember him in ‘Legacy’? I’d have MAX for a guard dog any day.

“I’m detecting structures down there. They seem to be man made.”

“Want me to get Virgil?”

Why, Alan? So he can go in and do some heavy lifting? In fairness, there had to be some kind of reference to him because um... where is he? Anyone want to hazard a guess?

“The World Council Emergency conference just ended, and the archaeologists agree, it is the lost city of Atlantis.”

“Imagine that. A city reappearing after thousand and thousands of years.”

“If it’s been buried under water for that long... there won’t be much left that’s worth seeing.”

Oh my gosh, I love the story of Atlantis! Literally, other than animal conservation, Ancient/Classical History was one of my favourite topics.

Anyone else love this film? Apparently it’s one of the most loved Disney films, but also most forgotten. Bit of trivia for you as well - it was the only Disney film to have ten proposed DVD covers, all of which were released as promotional posters, but of course only one made it onto the DVD. However, the German and Chinese distributors for the DVD chose to use different posters for the DVD cover (both of which only saw distribution in these countries) whilst the rest of the world copied the British/American choice. Personally, I preferred every other poster to the one they used the DVD, but hey, they didn’t give me a vote.

And, okay, yes, I won’t admit to knowing everything, but I do know a lot about what other people might class as pointless.

Anyhow, back to Thunderbirds;

“I’ve got a feed coming in. You need to see this.”

“This is Francios Lemaire, bringing you lucky viewers, yet another chance to watch me make history! And here we are, on the bridge-”

“Control room.”

“Control room- of my luxury sub, the Jules Verne, from where I’ll be bringing you footage, of the very first human - that’s me - to explore the legendary, lost city of Atlantis!”

Oh look, here we go!

As soon as that music started I just who it was going to be.

Madeline is perfectly describing my feelings on Francois for this episode in this picture. I think - by the look of the faces we got from Tracy Island - that she describes what the Tracy boys feel as well.

“I order you to leave the area.”

Yeah, Lady Penelope, you tell him.

“Alright, alright, I was only trying to bring a bit of culture to the masses.”

Probably not the right way to do it.

“Your submarine’s in a live sea quake zone, Mr Lemaire, I strongly advise you to leave as fast as you can.”

“What is this? The International Rescue Babysitting Service!”

Um... considering your past record... yes?

Anyone remember the birthday party in the Mariana trench?

“I’m well aware of my location, thank you.”

Um, was he drinking whilst driving? Yeah, that’s a great thing to teach the masses.

“Francois, that’s re... uh.”

“Oh dear. Silly goose. Why didn’t you tell me I was in the wrong gear?”

Probably why you got the wrong gear, mate... Time to call the International Rescue Babysitting Service, d’you think, Lemaire?

So, anyhow, thanks to Lemaire’s stupidity - we have a rescue! And it’s one for Gordon - the water kind of gave that away - and oh look, Virgil (wordlessly) runs across the scene and gets ready to go. Really, where was he?

Still, I think I would have lost my patience with Lemaire by now - and damn ethics, I might have been tempted to ignore him.

“Hello, how much longer do I have to wait?”

“It’s only been half an hour.”

“I’m bored.”

“Patching you through to Thunderbird Two for an update.”

Ha-ha, way to pass Lemaire away from you John!

“We’re coming too!”

I can hardly believe it! It’s Brains, willingly going on a rescue, in person!

“I’ll tell you what’s crazy, Brains. Us chasing Lemaire through an active sea quake zone!”

Why is that man such an idiot? He really didn’t even need IR. Next time definitely just leave him, I vote.

“It’s breathable air.”

“It better be, look!”

And Lemaire’s idiotic streak increases...

So, here we are - apparently. There are many proposed locations for Atlantis (the first map below is Europe, the second is a wider view of the world), with many still in dispute. For a long time, it was believed that Atlantis being near Santorini made sense. In fairness, when I stayed in Crete, I had a lovely tour with some locals who tried to show me all the reasons why Atlantis had been near them. Actually, their argument (especially in their native language without the typical English mis-translations) is quite convincing. Crete does have massively similar architecture to that suggested in the Ancient Greek depictions of Altantis. It was argued that these could have been built at a much later stage, but the stone dates back far enough to suggest not. Whether or not Atlantis did sit near Crete, it is fair to say (especially as both were inhabited by the Greeks) that maybe the Atlantians did have a part of their Empire there.

Later, theories rose that Atlantis had previously filled a gap in the Straits of Gibraltar, and Island separating Spain and Africa, and potentially offering connections between continents. This was initially met with much annoyance by Greeks, who believed that Atlantis (an ancient Greek Empire) couldn’t have sat so far away from their own homelands. But, at the time, it was really only Greek and Italy who had big plays across Europe, and the Atlantians were rumoured to have waged war or conquered a considerable amount of the country in Greek’s name. The Straits also make a lot of sense scientifically and geographically. Although the Greeks believed (at the time and still now) Poseidon to be responsible for the sinking of Atlantis, we know that it had to have been a combination of earthquakes and/or tsunami’s which brought down this great empire, and the Straits of Gibraltar sit directly on a tectonic fault line which has led to a subduction zone (so sea quakes would be of great possibility - so I’m assuming TAG have gone with Gibraltar as a setting here) which has now been active (that we know of) from the 1700s - seems likely to be it was active before too.

You can read more about that here if it is of interest to you: https://www.livescience.com/19656-gibraltar-subduction-zone.html

Of course, many take the belief that Atlantis was a fictional story of Plato’s, whilst other’s take the belief that it was the end of the ‘last great ice age’ which caused the disappearance of Atlantis (due to flooding, sounding familiar?), but Plato’s descriptions, whether believed or not does suggest that Atlantis built connections between Africa and Europe (later working into the Pangea theories) and that the sea delves further than we know;

“In the Atlantic there was an island, larger than Libya and Asia put together, and was the way to other islands, and from these you might pass to the whole of the opposite continent which surrounded the true ocean; for this sea which is within the Straits of Heracles is only a harbour, and the surrounding land may be most truly called a boundless continent. Now in this island of Atlantis there was a great and wonderful empire which had rule over the whole island and several others, and over parts of the continent. She was pre-eminent in courage and military skill, and was the leader of the Hellenes. And when the rest fell off from her, being compelled to stand alone, after having undergone the very extremity of danger, she defeated and triumphed over the invaders, and preserved from slavery those who were not yet subjugated, and generously liberated all the rest of us who dwell within the pillars. But afterwards there occurred violent earthquakes and floods; and in a single day and night of misfortune all your warlike men in a body sank into the earth, and the island of Atlantis in like manner disappeared in the depths of the sea. For which reason the sea in those parts is impassable and impenetrable; and this was caused by the subsidence of the island. ”

Plato’s final passage on Atlantis, as it sits translated from direct Greek (thus ignore any tense errors - they are intended).

Plato’s impenetrable and impassable ocean theory would fit with the territory of high seismic activity too - which does suggest Gibraltar as a decent proposal, especially as Plato seems to know the Straits by another name, but the same land mass.

Okay, I’ve now ranted on about Ancient history enough, I think (although it is another reason why I love this episode), and I honestly do still have such a soft spot for the history of Atlantis. Maybe one day I’ll change careers and become a historian, but for now I’m happy with my mission of trying to limit extinction and global disasters. If anyone wants any more knowledge on Atlantis, just ask and I’ll put it in a separate post - this one is going to be too long otherwise, and is meant to be about something else.

You can definitely see where they took their inspiration from. I seriously adored all the behind the scenes footage for this episode. Go and look at it for yourself, the detail they put into it all makes it worth it.

“Look at those shapes. This was definitely built by Mer-people! Start rolling. I’ll do a piece to camera.”

“You grabbed me, we ran. I don’t have the camera with me. And we shouldn’t be in here!”

“Mr Lemaire, you’re putting yourself and your wife in danger!”

Yeah, I don’t think he really cares Gordon, she’s just his glamorous assistant and biographer after all - wife is actually quite far down the list.

“Would you order MAX to assist Mr Lemaire from the area?”

“That won’t be necessary!”

Scared of a robot, are we now, Lemaire?

See, just saying MAX could have totally taken Kayo. In my opinion.

“We’re trapped and Thunderbird Four is on the other side. Is it still in one piece?”

“I’m picking up full readings.”

Hell, it better be! You only just rebuilt it in the last episode! Goodness, imagine that all over again.

“Hello Gordon.”

“Lady Penelope!”

“Aren’t you lucky that I was around to come and dig you out of trouble.”

“I’m even happy to be rescued by a Lady in a pink submarine if it gets me away from Lemaire.”

So don’t go knocking it Gordon! She could easily turn around, you know. And just say you’re happy to see her, Gordon! Goodness these two could have been together long ago if they weren’t both so stubborn (and Gordon a little silly).

“He is one royal pain in the-”

Language! You’re talking to a Lady (and an audience group consisting of children), Gordon! I think we can all agree with the proposed end of that sentence though. Lemaire is.

“Do not fire a missile at my submarine!”

Yeah... point proven, again, I think.

“Final proof that Mer-people exist!”

Did anyone mention yet that meeting a mermaid is Gordon’s dream? Just because, he doesn’t seem too excited about that prospect here. Brains on the other hand, he can die a happy man now.

“We’re going to rebuild it in the assembly hanger, full scale!”

Nice reference to the selfie-stick in this episode, which was at the time, brand new, of course. I am still bitter that said word has made it into the Oxford Dictionary - seriously, they dropped the level of the game by letting that in.

“Parker loves playing pinball, don’t you Parker?”

“Not when hI’m the ball, M’Lady.”

We’re really learning a lot about Parker’s free time lately - pinball and complaining about the weather... hmm, interesting.

It was a nice way to end - showing everyone going out to the pool - good to see them making use of that thing!

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