#I would spend on that name more than one minute 👍 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

violettduchess · 10 months

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Heya Violet! I'm going to request an ikevamp fic for the first time, so how about either of the Day 4 prompts for Leonardo? I'm excited to see what you come up with 👍

A/N: Hi @scorchieart 💜 Thank you for your request! This is for the Different Universe Same Love CCC hosted by @xxsycamore and @queengiuliettafirstlady

This combines scorchie's request with an anon request for Soulmates AU with Leonardo 💜

Leonardo x f reader

WC: 5254

"There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people." -Vincent Van Gogh

“I hate this,” you grumble as you check your phone for the hundredth time. Where the hell is this place? It feels like it's been hours of California coastline rolling past your window. Beautiful, yes. But also so inconvenient. You lean forward towards the front of the town car.

“Abel, how much longer?”

Your driver glances at you in the rear-view mirror, smiling good-naturedly.

“Another 15 minutes, chérie.”

You flop back into the cushioned leather, sighing. If you had known this would be a part of it, you would not have taken the role.

Maybe.

Ok, fine. You probably would have taken it anyway.

The story of a woman who breaks all tradition to become a famous 19th century painter? You can practically hear Theo’s words in your ear all over again: “You want to be stuck in rom-coms forever or do you want to be taken seriously? Make art that matters?” The Dutchman is a tough agent, too direct for most actors’ fragile egos to handle but that’s why you like him. He is always honest with you.

Outside the town car window, the ocean continues to roll by, a blur of slate-gray and white. Picking up your phone for the hundredth time, you type in the name of the artist you’re on your way to see.

Just like every time you’ve done it before, all you get is his Instagram page which is entirely too sparse and full of only half-finished paintings, close ups of brushes, a few small, charcoal sketches. Nothing about the man himself.

You swipe Instagram away and tap on Spotify, closing your eyes and allowing a podcast about the Golden Age of Hollywood to help pass the remaining time.

“Love the vibe,” you murmur as you step out of the Mercedes, pushing up your tortoise-shell sunglasses in order to better take in the picturesque brown and white wooden house. It really does seem like something out of a Kinkade painting. It's perched on the edge of a plateau, facing a slope of green hillside that disappears into a smattering of gray rock. The rocks give way to a stretch of dark brown sand which leads you right to the blue-gray beauty of the Pacific Ocean. It's here the warm vibes end though. This beach is nothing like the sandy beaches of Southern California. This is something wilder, something sharper. There is no manicured, processed beach feeling here. This is nature allowing you into her world, the crashing of the waves onto the shore not an invitation but a reminder. You’re here with her permission.

Abel comes around, carrying your luggage and pauses, taking in the house. “It’s lovely,” he murmurs.

You shoot him a Look. “It’s miles from just about anything. I hope Vlad knows what he’s doing.”

Vlad is the director of the film you are going to star in. The one who said you needed to spend some time with a real-life artist in order to understand the lifestyle, the thought process, the way of viewing the world. And he knew just the person. A friend of a friend, an artist of some small renown, who made money on the side by working as a consultant for various productions. He had invited you to stay with him for a few days, to teach you basic painting and drawing techniques so it would look realistic on film, and to answer any questions you had. Vlad vouched for him, claiming he was a good man, one he would trust his star with.

You turn to Abel. “Only leave if I give you the sign.”

He smiles indulgently, placing a hand on your shoulder. “You’ll be fine. But I will wait until I see it.”

Steeling yourself, you gather your bags and make your way down the short driveway and up the dark wooden steps. There’s no doorbell so you knock loudly.

You aren’t sure what you expected. A man named Leonardo made you think he would be older with flowing white locks and a long wizard-like beard. What you did not expect was the door to be opened by a golden-eyed Adonis with ombre hair and one of the friendliest, most open smiles you’ve ever seen.

“Benvenuta, cara mia. Welcome.”

That voice. Your heart is doing tiny backflips inside your chest as a horde of butterflies excitedly flutter their wings inside your stomach. It takes you a moment before you figure out the way words work again.

“Thank you.”

Behind your back, you wiggle two fingers at Abel furiously.

The driver covers his grin with the back of his hand, nodding once to Leonardo in greeting before sliding back into the vehicle. He watches through the car window as Leo takes your bags and you follow him inside, the white wooden door closing behind you.

“Good luck, chérie,” he chuckles softly. Somehow, he is certain you will be just fine.

You are utterly charmed. The main house is small, and the guest house just behind it even smaller, but they are both unique, beautiful in their own ways. Everything is simple, clean. Wide windows keep the ocean in view at all times. In every room there is something to look at. A miniature painting of sunset over the water on the living room table. An antique nautical map hanging on the wall of the dining room. An oversized forest green couch that looks like it's just waiting for you to snuggle into it.

Leonardo has just brought your bags to the guest house, a one room structure with a brass bed, rustic homemade dresser, a small desk and a tiny en-suite bathroom.

“I know you are probably used to more luxurious accommodations.”

“No, this is lovely. Really.” You glance down at your phone, considering whether to post a picture to your socials and hear him laugh softly at the expression on your face. The sound settles itself into your bones, warm and welcoming.

“Reception is a bit shoddy out here. You have the best chance when you go to the living room.”

Tucking your phone into the back pocket of your jeans, you flash him a smile. “Thanks for the tip.”

He holds your gaze a moment and you feel like sand, being pulled towards an irresistible ocean.

“You must be starving. Let’s eat before I show you my studio.”

With a pleasantly full stomach and a glass of red wine in hand, you step inside the studio and gasp. Gone are the clean lines, the simplistic beauty of the rest of the house. Here is a world of color and chaos, paint and pandemonium, art and anarchy. Canvases are everywhere, paint pots and brushes, charcoal and sketchbooks. And while it may look like mayhem, there is a truth about it that stirs something inside you. This is the man behind the easy-going smile. This is his heart and soul made tangible, made material.

He notices the way you’re looking around, sees the look in your bright eyes and he knows that you see it, the love he has for his craft. You're not some Hollywood actress looking down her nose at a mess. You're one artist taking in another artist’s medium and appreciating it. His heart unexpectedly shifts, sliding closer to some unseen edge.

“This is…incredible.” You walk slowly through the space, stopping in front of whatever catches your eye. A half-finished sketch of a whale breaching the surface of the water. An anatomically correct drawing of the underside of a starfish. A canvas of yellows and oranges and reds, a practice in blending.

“How come I’ve never seen you post a finished painting on your social media?” You stop when you come to a whole row of them, leaning casually against the back wall of his studio. Crouching down, you inspect a painting of a man from behind, his arms spread out wide towards a turbulent, white-capped ocean, daring it maybe. Or welcoming it.

He shrugs, running his hand through his hair, a tick you’ll come to recognize as something he does when he is uncomfortable.

“I sell a few here and there. Not enough to earn a living but that’s what jobs like this are for, yeah?”

You rise slowly back to full height, taking a sip of the rich wine.

“Have you ever showcased your work?”

He scoffs as he lifts a paint-stained rag from one corner of his supply table and toys with it before tossing it right back.

“To what end? I paint for me. That is enough.”

That sounds like someone who is too scared to try. But you keep the words locked in your mind, aware enough to know that might be reaching a bit too deeply into his psyche for comfort.

“So….when do we begin?”

He smiles slowly and it burns through your body, warming you more than the alcohol.

“Tomorrow. Sunrise.”

All those hours you could still be sleeping. Instead of being warm and snug in your very cozy guesthouse, you are shivering on a beach, sitting on a blanket next to Leonardo as he flips open the sketchbook in front of you. He’s in an oversized brown knit sweater and jeans, looking like a model for some outdoor clothing company whereas you, trying to pull your fitted sweater down over your exposed lower back, look like some Hollywood wanna-be who wasn’t prepared for the cold California morning.

He places several small gray pebbles in front of you on the blanket.

“Sketch these.”

You tilt your head. “They’re rocks.”

“There is challenge in even the simplest of forms. Please try.”

You’re skeptical as you yank down once more on your sweater, sitting cross-legged and staring down at the pebbles. It can’t be that hard. Picking up the pencil, you begin trying to capture their form.

It proves to be much harder than it looks.

Your brow furrows as you look from your sketch, which is doing a fantastic job of being horrible, to the smooth stones in front of you.

“You must relax,” he murmurs as he scoots closer. “You’re gripping that poor pencil like you wish to strangle it.” He reaches over, covering your hand with his. You’re immediately hit with the faint smell of tobacco. Does he smoke? And something else….something earthy and rich and entirely too appealing for this early in the morning. His fingers, graceful and strong, carefully manipulate yours, sliding over your skin and leaving small ripples of heat in their wake. He touches your wrist, over the place where your heart is beating so quickly, tilting it just so.

He holds you there, moving your hand like a puppeteer might the wooden cross of marionette. You watch as the pebbles slowly come to life, flowing from the tip of your pencil.

“Let go,” his voice, gentle as the morning breeze, deep as the sea, whispers in your ear. “You must let go and allow the pencil to do its job.”

Slowly he removes his hand and the sudden lack of contact spurs a tiny whimper from your throat. Luckily, he mistakes it for dismay at his lack of coaching and chuckles.

“You continue on your own, cara mia.”

You’ve been called many things: The Girl Next Door, America’s Sweetheart but somehow, that nickname rolling so casually off his tongue suddenly means more than any of that. You’re smiling despite the cold, despite the wind, despite your stupid, impractical sweater.

Inhaling, you try again, the pencil less a tool in your hand as an extension of it. And while your pebbles don’t look amazing, they do look much closer to what you are trying to accomplish.

“Well done,” he says, looking over your shoulder. “You're a quick learner.”

You smile at him, his words washing over you, warm as sunshine.

“Can I try something else? Maybe try the sand and the ocean?”

He nods, reaching for the hem of his sweater. The next thing you know he’s removed it and wrapped it around your shoulders, leaving you surrounded by soft wool that smells like Leonardo. Your heart stumbles.

“Si. Let’s try.”

My life has never been this disconnected from work and yet, so full, you think as you wrap the beige blanket tighter around your body, watching Leonardo paint. You’re sitting outside on the large porch, the breathtaking view of the sand dunes, the boulders, the sand and the endless sea stretched out before you like a slice of paradise.

You’ve been here almost a week and the world has changed. The bright lights of Hollywood seem so far away. Now you’re concerned with daylight and sunrises, the way light falls across an object or a person, how to capture its essence with charcoal and acrylics, watercolor and wax. You haven't even touched your phone other than to reassure Theo you are fine, doing well and learning a lot, soaking in the experience of being an artist so that you can find it again when the cameras are on you. You’ve abandoned your socials, only leaving a message saying something about the life of an actor and secret prep work that you can’t talk about. It’s technically not a lie.

You watch as Leonardo dips his brush into a red that looks far too bright and finds a way to make it exactly the right shade of sunset, adding an element to his painted sky that you didn’t even know was missing until he put it there. He’s relaxed, his body loose, movements like flowing water as he almost lovingly drags the brush along the canvas. He showed you how, a few mornings ago. You’ve been haunted ever since by the feel of his larger body behind you, the way he reached around, gently taking hold of your wrist, and showed you how to hold yourself, teaching your body the dance of a painter. He is patient, always answering any question of yours the best he can. And so intelligent. The other night you curled up on his overstuffed green couch to look through several of his notebooks, filled with sketches and half-finished designs for contraptions that looked more sci-fi than present day. One entire page was devoted entirely to drawing various animal wings. The next was an excruciatingly detailed drawing of his own hand.

He talks about art the way you talk about acting: a way to conduct emotion, to spark a connection between people. You feel like he understands when you explain how acting is a form of devotion to humanity, an expression of love. Most people roll their eyes when an actor begins talking about their craft. His smile tells you all you need to know about how well he truly does understand.

He shakes you from your reverie when he joins you on the bench, wiping his hands on a towel and reaching for his glass of wine.

“And? What do you think?”

You tilt your head, pretending to study the easel with its beautiful interpretation of the actual sunset that is happening behind it. He has not replicated it exactly, but captured the symphony of colors, the dramatic brass of the oranges and romantic woodwinds of the pinks, the clouds with their warmly colored underbellies and of course, the ever present sea, gilded in gold.

“It’s beautiful, Leo.”

“You like it, which means I’m pleased.” He takes another sip. “Consider it a gift, yeah?. It is, after all, our last weekend together.”

Those words carve themself into the moment, slicing away the peace you’ve been feeling. Dismay bleeds from your heart. You were going to have to face it, the fact that your time with him, magical as it has been, is coming to an end. But you had hoped, irrationally, that maybe if no one said it, you could just stay here, in this beautiful house with this beautiful man as long as you wanted.

Your face, the tool of your trade that you can usually control so well, betrays your thoughts.

“Cara mia.” He reaches out, his fingers curling inwards for a moment, hesitant. The man who never has a problem touching you when correcting your hand or positioning your arm now needs a moment of courage. Because this isn’t a teaching moment. Maybe none of them ever really were. He only knows that from the second he opened the front door and you were there, with your smile like sunshine and eyes bright with intelligence and excitement, he felt drawn to you like he's never been toward anyone before.

You turn your face into his touch, reaching up to cup your hand over his. You press a kiss into his palm. The lull of the waves is drowned out by the roaring of your heartbeat. And then he leans towards you, taking your face in his beautiful hands, and he kisses you.

Your heart cracks open and oceans of desire and want and something else, something nameless underneath those wild waves of emotion flood you. He feels so good. This feels so right.

You kiss with the exhilaration of new lovers, wildly and without a care for anything else in the world. The sunset and her majestic colors be damned. There is nothing as beautiful as the wildfire of gold in his eyes, the melody of his breathing. You’re on his lap, arms wrapped tightly around his neck, pressed as closely as you can be and it isn’t enough. He slides his hands under your blouse, pressing the palms of his hands to your bare back. It isn’t enough.

You manage to tear your mouth away from him long enough to get out one word: “Inside.”

He stands up and you wrap your legs around him, his strong arms supporting your weight as he carries you inside the wooden house on the plateau, impatiently stealing every kiss he can before laying you down on the oversized green couch, covering your body with his. He softly growls your name in a way that sends fire cascading through your veins.

The sky outside darkens as the last rays of sunset disappear. Her show is over. You both belong now to the night.

Heart, say good-bye because you are no longer mine. You lay on your side, facing the open window of Leonardo’s bedroom. The ocean breeze, cool with night’s kiss, waves the pale curtains and skims over your skin, raising goosebumps along your bare arm and shoulder.

You close your eyes, reveling in the heavy feeling of your body, tempest-tossed and satisfied, peppered with the light marks of your lovemaking. You're a goner. You’ve fallen overboard, heading further and further down into the churning depths of your feelings for Leonardo. And you’re not sinking. Not at all. You’re kicking your legs and diving, excited to explore the deep and all its mysteries.

He stirs in his sleep and you roll back to face him, watching as he slowly surfaces from whatever dream he was lost in. His warm eyes, framed by such dark lashes, flutter open. When he sees you, laying on your side, facing him, he smiles slowly and reaches out a hand.

“Come here, cara mia.”

The thought of resisting doesn’t even cross your mind. You slide over into his arms, marveling at the feel of his body against yours, strong muscles, long legs. He presses a kiss to your temple, then nuzzles your neck affectionately.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

You smile, tipping your head up to meet his gaze. Now may not be the right time to tell him everything you’re thinking. You don’t want to scare him away.

“No thoughts. Just....” You slide your hand over his chest, over the lean muscles of his abdomen, and then lower. His golden eyes flare bright with immediate hunger. His lips part as he exhales.

With a groan he pulls you to him and you close your eyes, letting his greedy mouth and wandering hands take you away.

This is only the beginning after all. You have plenty of time to figure out what's next.

A Year Later

“Now that’s just one review! The rest are all like it!”

You listen to Theo’s exuberant voice as he names all the various publications that are writing rave reviews about the film. Funny, everything you thought you ever wanted is coming true. You made a movie that is earning positive reviews across the board, with your performance hailed as a stand out, a tour de force unlike anything you’ve ever done. There’s already talk about awards and other dramatic parts and are you interested in endorsements?

And yet, you’re miserable.

Leaning back into the plush seat of the town car, you stop Theo’s voice message and tap on Instagram and, like a lemming drawn to a cliff, go to his page.

All comments are turned off and there is only one picture posted: a short message thanking people for their interest but he is on hiatus.

The post is six months old.

How did it all go so wrong? You had been so happy.

Your eyes fall closed and memories play themselves out in front of you, like a flickering movie reel from yesteryear.

You and Leonardo on his porch, cuddled together under a blanket as you watch the sunrise. He can’t stop touching you and you him.

Driving with him back to Southern California, his eyes widening when you pull into the driveway of your home, modest by Hollywood standards, a palace compared to his small wooden dwelling.

Your pool. Cold water. Hot mouths. His hand pressed against your lips, stifling your sounds even as he continues moving.

The paparazzi finding you after a few days of blissful privacy, snapping a shot of you two leaving Starbucks, his hand casually resting on your hip, thumb stroking the stripe of bare skin between your jeans and the hem of your shirt.

Your names splashed across gossip sites and social media. He gains thousands of followers in a matter of hours, people hoping he’ll post an image of the two of you together. An older picture of him from several years ago at an art gallery opening in SoHo is all they have and it is everywhere. And it is not enough. They want more.

They follow you home. They follow you to work. They follow you when you go out to eat. They follow you to appointments, to meetings, across town and back. They yell your name, they ask about him. They are relentless.

And then they start to follow him. To your home. To the restaurant where you’re meeting. To his home. They wait by the wooden house on the plateau, hoping to catch a glimpse of you and him. They yell your name, they ask about rumors, they demand to know when the wedding is.

They swarm you both like locusts blocking out the sun, sucking up all your air.

And then his paintings begin to sell. Never has there been such a demand. He can’t keep up. And he isn’t happy.

Because he says he did nothing to deserve it aside from being with you. No one cared before. He has not earned this success. It’s the side-effect of loving you. Side-effect, you repeat one night, staring at him across your marble kitchen island, that makes it sound like loving me is some kind of disease.

He cures himself by leaving. You wake up one morning and all his things are gone. He is a ghost who has vanished back into the nether of sea-spray and morning fog from whence he came.

All he leaves you with is a note, the paper torn from one of his notepads, in his messy, slanted writing: “I’m sorry.”

A note, and all the splinters of your broken heart.

And now you’re almost at your destination. The tiny bed-and-breakfast tucked away in a remote corner of the California coast. Your refuge from the rest of the world. The place you come to heal.

You’ve been here a few times since he left. The owners, Wolf and Jean, are like family. They took care of you before you became successful, when you were a starving artist looking for your big break, and have continued to do so even now, when you could easily stay at any five-star hotel across the globe but always come back here, to warmth and comfort.

The first time you came here after he left, they filled your room with macaroons, your favorite dessert. They must have heard the news from some entertainment program or maybe some celebrity news ticker. You could have killed the Starbucks barista who spoke to the press, saying how you suddenly were coming alone to pick up your coffee and how pale you were, your eyes red from crying.

Another time they subtly laid a newspaper on your bed. At first you weren’t sure why but then you saw the tiny article about Leonardo having a small but successful showing in Denmark, worlds away from the bright lights of Hollywood. Like a 1950’s schoolgirl, you had cut out the small black and white picture of him and folded it, hiding it in your wallet. Doing so felt both pathetic and comforting at the same time.

Another winding road, dipping between tree and rocky coast and then one final turn. The familiar blue and white building comes into sight and you can feel yourself breathing easier already. The car slows to a stop and a moment later, Abel opens the door for you.

“We’re here, chérie.” His champagne-colored eyes have a twinkle to them which leaves you wondering if he knows something you don't.

Forever ago, this place used to scare you with its pointed roof and close proximity to the edge of a very steep cliff. But it’s become your home away from home and you’re soothed by the sight of it.

“I’ll just get my—” Your weekend bag is already on the ground next to you and the town car is halfway down the drive. You frown slightly before hoisting up your bag. Well, he was sure in a hurry.

You bound up the familiar steps, opening the friendly blue door and step into the foyer.

“Jean? Wolf?”

Odd, they would normally be here to meet you, food and drink in hand.

You glance around, taking out your phone to make sure that you had sent them the correct date and time when you spot something hanging on the wall. Your fingers go numb and your phone falls, landing with a harmless thud on the thick carpeting.

Hanging on the wall is a new painting. It’s a woman, sitting on a beach at sunrise, wrapped up in an oversized, cozy brown sweater. Her head is tipped back, eyes closed, a serene expression on her face. It’s soft and romantic. Not a brushstroke wasted nor a color excessive.

The sea is a deep gray-blue.

The sky is a garden of pinks and lavenders and orange.

The woman is you.

You open your mouth to say something but nothing comes out.

How....

“Cara mia.”

Like an apparition he is suddenly standing there, in the doorway. Not some memory or picture or dream, but Leonardo, flesh and blood, right there in the same room as you. The sight of him hits you like the full force of a typhoon, draining all the color from your face and sending you back a step.

As you recover from your shock, you notice now how nervous he is. His hands, normally so strong and steady, whether creating art or touching you, are shaking. He has dark circles under his golden eyes, shadows of what has been haunting him.

“Leonardo.” His name is twisted upon itself, hollow and aching when it passes your lips.

“May I speak? I have something to say to you. Please."

You nod, your breath held prisoner in your lungs, your wounded heart limps in circles in your chest, aching at the sight of him.

He draws a deep breath.

“I was a fool. I pushed you away because I was afraid. Your world is so much bigger than mine and instead of joining you, proud to be by your side, learning how to navigate new waters, I ran.” He pushes a hand through his hair, an inhale needed to steady his nerves. “That was wrong. I hurt you. I’m so sorry, cara mia. So deeply sorry for how stupid I was. I…I regretted it immediately but it was too late...Dio, sono un idiota.”

He shakes his head, defeated. The failure of words in the face of what he did is stark and he finds himself unable to go on. Nothing can begin to explain the festering regret he's lived with from the moment he walked out your door. He isn't good enough with words to explain how the minute he was heading away from you all he wanted to do was to turn back. How without you the world was drained of its vivacity, its color. He trapped himself in a gray existence of his own making and now his escape lies solely in your hands.

You breathe in and out, taking a moment before you respond.

"You did hurt me. Badly. But…." You take a second, searching for the right words. "I could have helped prepare you for what it means to be with someone like me. It was so much to ask of you to just be ok with your life suddenly being turned upside down. For that, I'm sorry."

Silence grows between you, thick as brambles and just as thorny. Neither of you can meet the other's gaze. It hurts, every second that ticks by without a word. Neither of you knows what to say, neither wants to leave. It is Leonardo who finally clears his throat, a throat where so many words are bottlenecking in their fury to get out.

"I'll leave you in peace then."

The words are clipped, his accent thick as emotion chokes him. The final, tenuous connection between you is close to crumbling. He's about to turn away when one word shoots straight from your heart like a rocket.

"Wait!!"

He freezes, his sunrise gaze locking with yours. Dare he have hope…..

The minute you start towards him he rushes to meet you.

And then you're in his arms and your cheeks are wet and he's holding you so tightly your ribs feel crushed but it doesn't matter because he's turning and turning, the world is spinning, your heart is rising light as a feather, and then your feet touch the ground again and he's showering your face with kisses, painting you in his love, holding the back of your head, whispering your name breathlessly over and over and over, a song, a declaration, a prayer.

You hold on to his neck, your laughter as bright as sunlight across the waves, returning his kisses with ones of your own, all over his beautiful face, kisses pulsing with hope, with desire, with promise.

He leans back, lowering his mouth to your ear and whispers. His words engrave themselves onto your heart and you pull away to answer him the only way you can answer something like that: with a kiss deep as the sea, tender as the night.

You've found each other again. And you'll never again be parted.

(What did he whisper? This fic is acrostic so check out the first bold word of every section) 💜

Tagging: @aquagirl1978 @alixennial @alexxavicry @queengiuliettafirstlady @rhodolitesrose @ikemen-writer @bellerose-arcana @thewitchofbooks @redheadkittys @dear-mrs-otome @firestar-otomeobsessed @curious-skybunny @kpop-and-otome @writingwhimsey @mxrmaid-poet @silver-dahlia @wendolrea @otomefoxystar @tele86 @nightfoxqueen @myonlyjknight

#ikemen series #ikemen vampire #ikevamp #ikevamp leonardo #ikemen leonardo #leonardo da vinci #celebrity au #hollywood au #soulmate au #artist au #different universe same love ccc #ikemen fanfic #ikemen fanfiction #otome fanfic #violettwrites

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rose-riot-johnson · 5 months

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Hello my Tumblr Peeps😃I will be writing another Choso fanfic, however this time it be a "nightmare comfort"😃👍 It's really an idea for me to write about recently💡🤷‍♀️😃👍

*This fanfic contains one or more long paragraphs

🌌🩸Is It Safe Now?🩸🌌(Choso x Any Gender Reader)

Genres: Nightmare Comfort (Warning⚠️: Possible Trigger Warning(s), Mentions of Murder (includes choking) and Language)

Both you and Choso have been in a relationship together for a couple years. The both of you also have been living together about a year and six months. The both of you seemed very happy in the relationship together. However there are some issues you have had, even if it didn't pertain him...

Choso does enjoy you working hard, you hanging out with your friends, and you spending time with your family, it's just that he has been growing concerned that you have been coming home drained possibly from accomodating for co-workers or boss (or clients and/or customers) from work, your friends (and/or other people you hangout with), and family without giving yourself a break or doing anything for yourself. It's seems like whenever you try to take care of yourself or do something on your free time, when something always comes up even extra hours from work or favors asked by friends or family wanting to talk your ear off, you always drop what you want or need to do to makesure you go by their wishes, even if it meant draining you or giving your brain more burn out than it already has.

Choso has been noticing that every day your mind has been burnt out and/or you have been feeling drained, so due to this happening to you, despite of his clinginess, he tries to let you have as much space to yourself as possible, unless you ask him to spend time with you or if he notices you're in a deep sleep. Unfortunately, one night you came home more overworked and/or burnt out than you were before and you even had alot of brain fog. It's even to the point that he insists that you to try resting until he knows you're not burnt out and no longer feeling drained, because of the fact he cares more about your well-being than anything else.

While Choso is cooking up some supper for you to eat in bed, you feel asleep. Unfortunately you ended up having a nightmare about a cursed spirit trying to kill you which the cursed spirit snuck up behind you, so you weren't sure which cursed spirit it was. Before the cursed spirit would be able to kill you, Choso managed to wake you up in time, as he then said, "Are you alright, my angel? I was bringing supper, so you could have your supper in bed, then I noticed your body was all shaky... I assume you were having a bad dream, (beautiful or handsome)?", while he shows more concern for you, then cups the right side of your facial cheeks.

It took you atleast a couple minutes to think about the nightmare you had, while trying to remember it, however when you finally remembered the nightmare you had, you hugged Choso tightly, as he cooed, "It's alright, (Any Gender Reader Name)... Take as much time, as you need to tell me... You're safe in my arms now...", proceeding to hug you more tightly than you hugged him, while trying to pet your head. You then explained, "Well, Choso... It's complicated... However, I remember seeing my family in the dream... And you ofcourse, because your cute face is in the dream... Anyways the scary part was that I was in a bedroom and this cursed spirit must have snuck up on me, somehow... It wasn't invisible by any means... I couldn't see him despite of him not being invisible... I just felt him, however he tried to kill me... I was trying to pray for my life not to end and for the cursed spirit to rot in hell, then the cursed spirit laughed and chuckled in the most evil way, as possible... It was like there wasn't any hope for him to die nor for anyone to save me... The next thing I remember was that the cursed spirit somehow madesure I was pinned on the bed, while trying to choke me without me seeing him... I believe he was also covering my mouth... I guess he wants to makesure no one hears me or something like that... Before he was able to kill me, you woke me up from that nightmare... I really thought I was going to die in that dream, Choso...", before tears rolled down your face, then started to sob on his chest.

After what you told Choso, he somehow knew it must be a cursed spirit that has an ability to control it's victim's dreams and to kill it's victim's with nightmares whenever it decides to make it's kill. "Hey (Any Gender Reader Name)... I need to tell you something... That nightmare you had earlier... If I'm right, I think there's a cursed spirit who can manipulate people's dreams and kills them whenever it feels like it... My brother, Yuji Itadori and I have heard about the cursed that cursed spirit who kills people in their dreams and it decides how they die in the dream, which is why you couldn't see it, despite of it not being invisible, somehow... This cursed spirit who tried to take you away from me, like this must be the same one that Itadori and I were warned about...", he explained on how he had a feeling who that particular cursed spirit is. You then stopped sobbing to look up at him, worrying about what you did to deserve what happened to you in that nightmare you had.

"It's not your fault this happened to you, (Any Gender Reader)... It's just that it probably targeted you, because it knows you've overworked yourself, burnt your self out more, and you choosing to do what makes everyone else happy over your well-being... I letted you have some space unless you wanted me to spend time with you or when I know you're in a deep sleep, because you never made time for yourself... I guess it's just wasn't enough to help you... I thought letting you rest also wasn't enough, considering I woke you up just in time inorder to save you...", Choso said. He then cupped your face as he continued, "Before I call Itadori and let him know what's going on, so we can kill this bastard, so he will never hurt you ever again nor hurt anymore people this thing could kill next, I made some food for you to eat for supper to eat in bed, just incase you're hungry... So, when Itadori and I kill that cursed spirit and when I come back from it, I will continue to take care of you and makesure you get plenty of rest... And here... Have some water...", as he handed you bottle of water. Before Choso left the house you share with him to make a call to Itadori about the situation, you said, "I love you, Choso", then he replied, "I love you too, (Any Gender Reader Name).", before the both of you peck kiss eachother on the lips. (Up to the reader's imagination on how both Choso and Itadori killed the cursed spirit who the reader had a nightmare about in this fanfic)

After both Choso and Itadori defeated the cursed spirit who caused you to have a nightmare, he came back home and he noticed that you've finished eating your supper he cooked for you, as you then asked, "I take it that it's safe to fall asleep now, babe?", realizing that he has returned home safe. He then walked up to you, proceeding to pet your head and answered, "Yes... Everything's okay now, (Any Gender Reader Name)... Itadori and I were unharmed... This cursed spirit is gone, so you may rest and sleep, now... No one and nothing will lay harm on you anymore... I will makesure of it... That's a promise...". He then went on the bed, so he can hold you in his arms, while you're on his lap.

Choso held you and kept an eye on you, even after you fell asleep. However, after you fell asleep he held you, as tightly as possible without waking you up. It's not just about keeping you safe. He just figured all you (both) need is (for you) to be in his arms, so you can rest and sleep better and he enjoys holding you in his arms.

🩸🌌The End🌌🩸

I hope you enjoyed reading this nightmare comfort fanfic my Tumblr Peeps🩸🌌😃👍I have my reasons I wanted to write a nightmare comfort fanfic about Choso and I figured I'd try my best to write it to try to fit it in the nightmare comfort fanfic, as I could possibly could think of🩸🌌😃👍I'm really passionate about writing about Choso, honestly🙂👍I just am😃👍 And I figured this nightmare comfort fanfic about Choso would be fun for me to write😃👍I hope this fanfic makes your day and/or night🩸🌌🌕🌞😃👍

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aonoexpat · 8 months

Text

15-09-2023

The rest of the road to Ōtepoti was pretty, it was lovely to see the sun and drive along the coast with some background music. When I got to the city I tried to get some help with my gas cooker, but everybody I asked said they had no clue what was wrong with it, and sent me along to the next person. Finally somebody determined that the pressure in my gas bottle was too high, and let some of it out, which we both hoped would help. Spoiler alert: it did not ☹️ Luckily I wasn't going to need it for a while, because I had some leftovers to eat, and I was going to spend ten days house and puppy sitting for somebody a little ways North of Ōtepoti, where I'd have access to a proper stove. I was really excited about this!

I spent a day exploring Ōtepoti, and felt oddly at home there. People, again, are super kind there. The city was founded by the Scottish apparently (hence the English name Dunedin), which might explain why it felt familiar.

It has a slightly more European layout, which, legend has it, was designed with English (flat) landscapes in mind. This has resulted in Ōtepoti holding the record for the world's steepest street, because the landscape here is, in fact, not flat. It's called Baldwin street, and is a real challenge to walk up. I wasn't going to subject Elrond to that kind of an incline, there's even a sign at the bottom stating 'not suitable for campervans'. I met some other tourists there and we all marveled at Baldwin street together, and took photos for each other, which was a very wholesome experience :)

My mom and I did a quick deep dive into this street's wiki, and here's some fun facts:

At its maximum, the slope is about 1:2.86 (19° or 35%);

An 11-year-old boy pogo-stick-ed up the street in 10 minutes to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House, and got a plaque for it at the top;

When Lime rental scooters were introduced to the city, the mayor said he thought he could trust people not to ride them down Baldwin street, and within a week somebody had done it;

Less fun fact: a student tried to ride down the street inside a wheelie bin and didn't survive the ordeal 😬

Part of the street is paved with concrete, because at this slope asphalt, when heated by the sun for too long, would just droop down the street;

They installed a water fountain at the top, and had to include a little stepping stone for a young boy that couldn't reach it:

In the evening I went to the local observatory, where some really kind people had set up telescopes for the public to freely use to see the blue supermoon! It was inspiring to see how many parents with children came out to have a look, and enjoy the fun facts the staff were sharing. I'm pretty proud of the pictures I managed to take through the eyepiece:

After exploring the city, I went to meet the person whose house and dog I would be looking after for the next little while. He has a small plot of land up in the hills with 17 chickens and a tiny house, that he is still very much working on. It was a bit less finished than I had expected it to be, though. The "power" that he had said would be there was a little black box, its power cord coming in through a (thereby perpetually impossible to close) window, only putting out 12V. The "shower" he had said he would install was a loose shower head that I had to fish out of the mud, and couldn't reach the controls for from the actual shower cabin itself, that used LPG to heat up water from a 20L tank (not enough for nice comfy showers for TEN DAYS), and in the process of hooking that up he had created a gas leak that I didn't discover for another day and a half (super safe situation 👍 /s). The dog required a lot more attention than the owner had let on, didn't behave like he had said he would (as in actively squeezed himself through that one open window and knocked over everything in his path when I tried to go to the shops), and there was nothing to clean the (non-level, btw) floor with when the dog knocked over his entire water bowl. The drinking water felt unsafe to me due to algae growing inside the tanks, there was mould on the curtains, the unfinished chicken wire was painful to maneuver around, and there was little to no light at night which resulted in me burning my hand when trying to make a hot water bottle. This all coincided with me getting uterus-punished for days on end and I can tell you, only having access to ✨bushes✨ or a compost toilet in a broken shed outside and no running water is not ideal when going through that. I thought I was going to have a great time, a comfortable little vacation from my vacation, but it ended up being one of the most stressful times on this whole trip so far, and the owner was completely unreachable throughout all of it. The only upside was that the place was isolated enough for nobody to hear my frustrated screams 🥲 That, and the Wi-Fi, which was pretty fast and finally allowed me to have some video calls with home again. And when the place wasn't covered in clouds, the views could be pretty nice!

When it was time to leave, I was overjoyed to be back on my own. I had to give up on my broken little gas cooker, and found a second hand one online that I went to pick up in town. It works like a charm, and cooking has become a fun activity once again! I've spent the last few days trying to make up for lost relaxation time, chilling in the botanic garden and on the beach:

I've also found out that reddit is quite a good place to get in touch with locals, and I've been meeting up with some of them to get a drink and finally have a real-life conversation with another human being again. I had really missed that! Chatting about my adventures helped me see them for what they were again: adventures, memories and stories that I am still actively living.

I'll likely be hanging around the city for another week or so, because I have some appointments with tattoo artists to see if I can get something done 🙂

After that my path is still a bit unclear. I found that after I'd passed the 6-month mark, my mind has been pretty fixated on how I'm going to get back home, and it made me lose track of how much time I actually still have left here. It's made me realise that going back to work for a little bit might not be such a waste, so there's a solid chance I'll be spending two months working in a vineyard soon. It's also made me wonder if I really want to milk my visa to its maximum and stay until the end of January 2024, or if I would like to just go home a bit sooner. On the one hand I'm really quite eager to return to the familiarity of Europe, and all my loved ones there. I'm tired of being on the move, of being alone, of living in a car. But then, on the other hand, I can have one good day here and realise how extremely lucky I am to have this chance, and I'm not ready to leave it all behind just yet. Yesterday I went for a lovely walk on the beach and climbed a rock, and really felt like I was in a good flow again. I dearly miss all the wonderful people back home, but I think I'll end up sticking around as long as I can, while I still can ❤️

My last few days have felt much more upbeat again, I think partly because the sun is coming out more and more and I can really feel spring itching to break through. Though at the moment I'm writing this, I'm trapped in the car by strong winds and cold rain! Luckily there aren't a lot of people around, so I'm playing these three songs on repeat and singing along at the top of my lungs to keep my spirits up 🎧

#aotearoa #backpacking #van life

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another-dra-anew · 1 year

Note

see if he'll reach out today? :O???

//We leave the classroom, which has been empty for a good ten, fifteen minutes now, and head to…

Sub-Event: Haruhiko heads home?

//Hopes Peak Main Course Dorms, Floor 2, Class 79-B: Kobashikawa’s dorm.

~*~

//Kobashikawa lays on his bed, still in his uniform, slowly kicking his legs as he scrolls on his phone.

Kobashikawa - …

Kobashikawa - No ones posted anything new…

Kobashikawa - Tsurugi will probably update with a picture when he’s back to his dorm after looking at the market…

Kobashikawa - But it’s only been a short while since class got out.

Kobashikawa - …

Kobashikawa - …Mmm…

//He pauses for a moment, before swiping out of Instagram, and clicking on his phones texting service. It’s still selected on the last contact he was messaging; his mom.

Kobashikawa - …

//He scrolls up, re-reading their conversation for the millionth time.

~*~

Description: A text conversation between Kobashikawa Yuriko, and Kobashikawa Haruhiko. Given names used for clarity.

Monday, December 9th

6:37 AM

Yuriko: Have you texted Miki today?

Yuriko: Today’s her birthday; she isn’t up yet, don’t worry.

7:46 AM

Haruhiko: i remembered, so i stayed up until midnight to text her

Haruhiko: is she out of school yet?

Haruhiko: I know none of her classes required her meeting with them this quarter, so itd be fine for her to sleep in even if she’s not, I’m just curious

Yuriko: Good job, honey!

Yuriko: No, she’s not out until the 13th.

Yuriko: Which should be the same as you get out…?

Haruhiko: they aren’t letting kids go until the 22nd, I believe. We have to stay on campus until then

Yuriko: You could always tell them you want to work the break, and head home when you’re off…

Yuriko: I’m not saying you have to go earn money, I just know you usually get to fly a lot more than you’ve been able to.

Yuriko: And I wouldn’t want you to spend all your time with us up in the air…

8:22 AM

Yuriko: You’re free to do whatever, but I don’t want you to be off in a different country when you could be sleeping at home.

Yuriko: You don’t have to leave your room, I’d just be happy knowing you’re in there ❤️

8:31 AM

Haruhiko: sorry, I was taking a bath

Haruhiko: I can try to apply for an early leave, I’d need to get it approved by administration, and get a work schedule cleared

Yuriko: Do you need me to call anywhere for you?

Haruhiko: I have people I can text to coordinate with airports for me

Yuriko: Okay!

9:16 AM

Haruhiko: Love you, mom

Yuriko: I love you too!!! ❤️❤️❤️

Tuesday, December 10th

2:32 PM

Yuriko: Do you think Miki would like this? //Attatched is a picture of a torn up black shirt, taken at a bit of an odd angle.

Haruhiko: yea

Haruhiko: get it for her!

Yuriko: Got it ❤️

4:52 PM

Yuriko: Have you asked for early leave, Haru?

Haruhiko: not yet, no

Yuriko: Okay, be sure you get that handled!

Yuriko: I still have a copy of your schedule, do you think it’d help for me to text you when class is out? As a reminder?

Haruhiko: it’s okay, i’ll ask today

Yuriko: Thank you, honey!

5:07 PM

Haruhiko: :( //Attached is a picture of a paper sheet taped to a window. It reads: OFFICE HOURS (Dec 8-14) M-F 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM SAT-SUN 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Yuriko: Oh no!

Yuriko: Think you can go before class? Or send them an e-mail?

Haruhiko: i’ll try to get there tomorrow morning

Yuriko: Sounds like a plan!

Wednesday, December 11th

8:03 AM

Yuriko: Don’t forget to ask the office about leaving early!

Haruhiko: 👍

5:30 PM

Yuriko: How did it go?

Haruhiko: they said i can go early if i can get four hours flight time per day i leave early.

Haruhiko: I’d have until I come back to get those complete though, so they could be dispersed over the week between christmas and new years

Yuriko: Hm… what do you think?

Haruhiko: idk

Yuriko: Well, do you want to come home early?

6:16 PM

Haruhiko: i don’t know

Yuriko: Honey, I just don’t want you to feel like you need to escape during the time you have with us.

Yuriko: If you don’t want to come home early, that’s okay!

Yuriko: You can stay at the school, you can come home and take some flights, it’s whatever you want.

Yuriko: I just worry about you…

Yuriko: Do you think you’ll be able to spend time outside of your room this season?

8:37 PM

Yuriko: It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it, or can’t. I don’t you to feel like you’re being pressured.

Yuriko: I love you, Haru.

9:29 PM

Haruhiko: ♥️

Yuriko: ❤️❤️❤️

10:16 PM

Haruhiko: it’s hard right now.

Haruhiko: i love you all, i just get really really anxious when i think about coming home

Haruhiko: i don’t want to waste my chance to see you all, but im having a hard time this season

Thursday, December 12th

7:32 AM

Yuriko: I hear you, honey, I’m sorry.

Yuriko: And it is okay if you don’t feel up to leaving your room when you’re here! No one would be upset, we understand.

Yuriko: We love you ❤️

12:51 PM

Yuriko: Miki needs to learn to not cause trouble… //Attached is a short video of a young woman throwing snowballs at a teenager a few years older than Haruhiko. The young woman has long, honey brown hair, and is wearing a light green winter coat. The video is filmed from a small distance away, but she seems to be very pretty in a conventional way, and very upset, in a “attack the cause of anger with snowballs” way. The teenager has jet black hair pulled back into two buns, and wears a black coat. The video starts about a second before she falls to the ground, screaming as the onslaught of snow continues even after she falls. The person behind the camera can’t be seen, but after filming for a bit, says “…They’ll work it out just fine…” and ends the video.

4:08 PM

Yuriko: Have you tried talking with your classmates? They seem nice, I’m sure they could help with your anxiety…

Yuriko: Also, isn’t there counselors at the school?

Yuriko: Or I could reach out to your therapist for an online appointment, those are pretty common now!

7:14 PM

Yuriko: Shira should be sending you gift ideas for your grandparents; no promises on how they’ll behave, but I’m fully planning to make a quick escape this year!

10:01 PM

Yuriko: Sleep well, honey ❤️

Friday, December 13th

2:37 AM

Haruhiko: tell shira im proud of her and am looking forward to her amazing snowball throwing skills when miki inevitably decides to bully and torment me

3:13 AM

Haruhiko: love you ❤️

6:58 AM

Yuriko: I love you too!

Yuriko: And Miki also loves you~

7:56 AM

Haruhiko: Miki bit me last time I was home

Yuriko: She’s teething.

Haruhiko: SHE IS SEVENTEEN AND RUDE

Yuriko: And she loves you!

Yuriko: Love bites. Like a puppy.

1:17 PM

Haruhiko: I’m not really doing well.

Haruhiko: I have an hour and a half to focus on my talent, i might try to get a quick flight in.

Haruhiko: But idk, i just wanted to say something? Keep you updated, u know

2:14 PM

Yuriko: Sorry honey, I was in a meeting!

Yuriko: Do you maybe want to call? We can video chat, if you don’t want to talk, or we can talk, if you think this is one of those episodes.

Yuriko: Whenever you want though, I know you’re up in the skies now!

Yuriko: I’m here for you ❤️

Yuriko: Stay safe!

~*~

//It’s around a quarter past five now.

Kobashikawa - …

//He slides his shoes off, and nudges them off the bed before grabbing one of the many blankets tossed onto his bed, and cocooning himself inside it.

Kobashikawa - Aaaaa…

//He continues to stare at his phone, watching the cursor blink on the empty text box…

Kobashikawa - …I miss my mom…

//Then clicks on his mom’s contact, now hovering his finger over the “Call” button.

Kobashikawa - …

Kobashikawa - ……….

//Kerosene and copper and a sting in your nose and pain in your ears and tears in your eyes and blood on his face and waking up and sirens and sobs.

Kobashikawa - No no no no no no no nooo… let’s… let’s not, let’s not do that.

Kobashikawa - That’s… a bad idea.

//He turns off his phone, and throws it to the carpeted floor. Then, he frees himself from his blanket, trading it for a pillow which he uses to cover his face, and-

Kobashikawa, muffled - Aaaaaaaa…

Kobashikawa - AAAAAAAGH

//Finished with his attempt at ruining his vocal chords by screaming without opening his mouth, he stays still for a moment, before rolling off his bed, joining his shoes and phone on the floor.

//Once again, he takes a moment to… ? Before blindly grabbing for a blanket from his bed, with a surprising amount of success.

Kobashikawa, muffled - Mmmmm…

Kobashikawa, signing - Fuck… fuck fuck fuck.

//He lays still on the floor for a solid five minutes, before abruptly standing, and cleaning his things from the floor.

//Blanket and pillow back on the bed, shoes in the closet, and phone plugged in to charge.

Kobashikawa - …

Kobashikawa - I feel sick…

Kobashikawa - M’kay… uh oh, uh oh, let’s just…

Kobashikawa - I’m gonna take a bath, that’ll help, yeah?

Kobashikawa - That’ll help…

~*~

//Kobashikawa emerges from his bathroom, carefully drying his hair via microfiber towel, focusing on caring for the slight curl in his hair instead of addressing any of the actual issues in his life at the moment.

Kobashikawa - Keep this calm energy, keep this calm energy…

//He stands still, closing his eyes, and breathing deeply.

Kobashikawa - …Okay.

Kobashikawa - What do I need to get done…

Kobashikawa - Kisaragi and I are doing homework tomorrow, so I’m not concerned about that…

Kobashikawa - …I really want to fly.

Kobashikawa - What time is it?

//Kobashikawa grabs his phone- no new texts.

Kobashikawa - Oh… Ōtori’s shift isn’t over yet.

Kobashikawa - …Yeah, I’ll go get coffee, why not.

Kobashikawa - Maybe he’ll want to go fly with me when his shifts over…

//Kobashikawa pauses, thinking over his options for clothing; he puts on a undershirt, then a loose-fitting sweatshirt, and stares uncomfortably at his reflection.

Kobashikawa - …I got dressed sometime after 8, plus four hours makes sometime after 12…

Kobashikawa - But I went to my room to calm down, and can’t fly with it on, so… another hour to get to 1, making 5 hours,

Kobashikawa - Then I’d put it back on before class, making…

Kobashikawa - I mean, that is a bit over 6 hours, but not consecutively, and I just had it off, and I’ll take it back off if I go to fly…

Kobashikawa - …

//He removes his sweater and his shirt, grabbing a black binder from his laundry pile, and adding that to his outfit. The undershirt is tucked into his jeans, and the front hem of the sweater follows it, better helping to hide Kobashikawa’s figure.

Kobashikawa - …Ugh…

Kobashikawa - Good energy, good energy, good energy.

Kobashikawa - It’s cold out, this sweater is thin enough… I can add a overcoat, yeah.

//True to plan, he grabs an overcoat from his closet and pulls it on, fixing his collar, but not checking his reflection again.

Kobashikawa - …Mkay, I need to grab my phone…

Kobashikawa - …I’ll call later, not now.

Kobashikawa - Maybe I’ll ask for some flights out of HND…

//Kobashikawa takes a moment, fidgeting with his hands, and taking deep breaths before signing and placing his phone in his jacket pocket. He grabs a pair of gloves, and tugs them on as he opens the door to leave his dorm.

~*~

//Kobashikawa stands last in line behind three people- a duo, and one sole person in front of him. His eyes visibly widen, and he stills, before slowly grabbing his phone from his pocket. He rapidly types as the person in front of him orders.

Ōtori - Here you go… enjoy your drink.

??? - Thank you! Have a nice break.

Ōtori - You as well!

Ōtori - …Kobashikawa, I need to cut you off, this isn’t okay.

Kobashikawa - …

//He gives Ōtori a awkward smile, and holds his phone out at him.

Ōtori - …

Kobashikawa, via phone - TOP TEN REASONS YOU SHOULD COVER MY DRINK

1)I forgot my wallet back at the dorms and don’t want to walk back

2) We live in the same class area, and you’re always in my room anyways, you can literally steal my money anytime you want, so it’s not even on me to get the money to you, you can just grab it

3) I’ll tip you really really well for the amazing customer service

4) Please

5) I’ll tell Tsurugi and make it sound like you did something wrong

6) Please don’t make me walk back that would be so mean

7) Pretty privilege. Really I shouldn’t even have to pay. I’m amazing and so attractive and the sight of me is enough payment

8) I’m literally so cold I neeed a warm drink or I’ll die

9) And then you will be a murderer

Ōtori - …That’s nine reasons.

//Kobashikawa types again

Kobashikawa - 10) Please

Ōtori - You already said that!

Kobashikawa - And?

Ōtori - You’re so spoiled, and I hate you.

Kobashikawa - It’s okay Ōtori, I still love you, even when you talk to me like this.

Ōtori - Vanilla latte?

Kobashikawa - Yes please.

Ōtori - Fucking hell…

//Ōtori starts to make Kobashikawas drink.

Ōtori - Did you just bathe?

//He turns to watch Kobashikawa.

Kobashikawa - Mhm!

Ōtori - If you go out in the cold with wet hair, you could get sick.

Kobashikawa - I don’t want to blow dry it and kill it…

Ōtori - Hmm… one sec.

//Ōtori turns back to finish Kobashikawas drink, and passes it to him.

Kobashikawa - Thank youuu, I love youuu…

Ōtori - Yeah, yeah… what have you done since class got out?

Kobashikawa - Nothing much, I pretty much just took a bath and stressed over what to wear to seduce the cute guy working at the student store.

Ōtori, dryly - Yeah, checks out.

Kobashikawa - Mhm… such a shame you were here instead…

Ōtori - That’s it, I’m charging interest on your coffee.

Kobashikawa - Ah. Fair.

~*~

//We’ll return to Kobashikawa won’t communicate later, for now…

{Follow Maeda and the others to the market}

{Make sure she’s on time}

#dra #au #haruhiko kobashikawa #teruya ōtori #sdra2 #<- TERUYA SHOWS UP so i can tag that <3 #holiday event 2022

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which-star · 2 years

Note

WHL anon is fine! And my asks are triggered because of everyone's posts and tags 🙇 I'm glad you enjoyed!

*also, thank you for the wiki link! Always up for learning more 👍👍

I'm currently thought-less right now, other than these, which aren't too funny:

- Cindy as a beloved neighborhood hero, the kind where kids keep recruiting her to play street hockey and little old ladies keep trying to feed her.

- the group chat thinks there's another admirer of Cindy's that they don't know because Cindy's been swinging around with packages/lunchboxes lately, but it turns it's the little old ladies above.

- Everyone one-upping each other in the chat somehow, subtly sharing/bragging whenever they get to spend time w/ Cindy

- Cindy's un/conscious refusal to become too familiar with social media because she'd rather be in the real world after being stuck in the bunker so long.

WHL anon I always enjoy your asks! And I'm glad you liked my random tangent, it was just on the mind that day^^ now to your amazing hcs I very much enjoy!!

- Cindy WOULD play street hockey with little kids she just would!! It's gotten to the point where she just stashes her old hockey stuck somewhere nearby so she can just grab it. You just know the kids LOVE her, that one panel from Totally Awesome Hulk proves it!!

Case! In! Point!

and then the old ladies constantly feeding her, pushing Tupperware containers into her hands, and her having to return them as soon as she and Albert are done with their food! Perf! She has little sticky notes to keep track of which is which!

- hehe heh YES jealous Silk fanclub! Jo and I were talking and now in my head it's called Fuck Cindy Moon bc of that one textpost that goes: A- "thanks for joining the Fuck [character name] club where we hate on [character]" and B raises their hand - "I may have misunderstood". CACKLING

- Seol Hee constantly sends selfies whenever she and Cindy hangs out bc they're actually FRIENDS, meanwhile Saya and Felicia grit their teeth in anger xxxxxx Felicia like oh yeah Silk tackled me the other day 🥰🥰 Saya like Silk texted me to stop tagging her on Twitter five minutes ago 😊😊😊 Ami like SHUT UP

- also to your last point, exactly!! She just wants to be in the moment! Also she likes annoying Albert with her inability to Tech but we move 😌 that's why she seizes the time to play hockey with those kids and only knows the basics of computers that her job requires and knows every old lady that tries to feed her by NAME etc etc

Simply having a ball up in here as we should!

#whl anon #ask

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dndfuckhouse · 3 years

Text

Session 30 - Things are Looking Up (Fuck You Rickert)

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> 🎵 Bridge to London / Vampyr OST.

We pick up again with the party separated into their two groups, exploring the underground for signs of Cole and Ezra. Han and Finn make their way back to the group’s assigned meeting place at Renny’s having lost their pursuers while Keva waits ahead of them anxiously. The three think over the roving hooded group they spotted, wondering why they seem to be guarding the Western Scaffolds in the meantime.

While the three were searching about, the other team find their way to a bar by the name of the Cracked Skull, with some directions from Nickel. After making up a reason to drag Henrick away for a chat the group find themselves taking part in a card game with Rickert in exchange for information, 350 gold if they lose or for free if they win.

The group shuffle themselves off to the other end of the bar to discuss cheating tactics, Ghester making another guest appearance to the others. At the same time so he’s not left awkwardly standing at the table with Rickert, Rokka shuffles off to awkwardly get the drinks he promised.

Chip: the cost for the ales is 32 copper, 4 copper per mug Rokka: he shuffles through his coins and see that he's short on copper "darn..." he pulls out 2 gold pieces instead "HERE TAKE THIS INSTEAD! THANK YOU BYE!" he grabs all the drink and Very Slowly walks back to Rickerts table Chip: you dont get too good a grip on all of them and end up dropping one full mug on the floor Rokka: He freezes in his steps and yells with his head tilted upwards "AHHHH NOOOOOOOOOOOoooooo.... 😩 there goes my drink......." he sulks his way back to the table and hands everyone their drinks "here you go...." Rickert: in front of you he gives a hoot “well henrick this friend a yours is more hospitable than I thought” Henrick: he responds with a cough “ah-yup, always been a….good guy that one” Rokka: gives a thumbs up at henrick and rickert 😬👍

As Rokka attempts some sort of distraction the other three confer over their cheating plan, Psalm using Ghester to spy on Henrick’s cards while invisible Plum will tell Cimmorro what Rickert’s cards are by tracing the number into his hand.

Psalm: what if i said smn like "psalm repeats the plan" Cimmorro: [40 minutes later of psalm repeating the plan] Plum: "we should probably make sure that they're not watching us" Han: everyone turns around at the same time to look at rickert Psalm: you know when you're like "don't look now but" and then the person looks

Enacting their plan they hide Plum in the corner as they become invisible with Psalm’s help. Soon after the group meander their way back to rickert’s table with their plan set, as they do he gives them all a lazy once over.

Rickert: “oh back already, thought you’d run off with your tail between your legs?” he snorts Cimmorro: taking a seat cimm snorts back, "and miss the opportunity to spend time with a handsome guy like you? not a chance. let's play" Plum: are you sure marriage isnt the end goal here? Chip: jez if i was drinking something i would have spit take

Rickert: he lets out a cackle “right right, sit your asses down then” he quickly pulls out a deck of cards and begins shuffling it "you and tall boy here are playing issat it?" Psalm: in his head like... am i tall???? when han exists?? "Yes, tall boy here is playing." psalm says as he sits down Rickert: he eyes you “hmmm righto, just in case your brains are both full’a cotton I’ll go over the rules again for you big man” Plum: rickert seems to be invested in psalm's physical size Chip: why do u phrase things like this Plum: WHY ELSE CHIP

Plum: you should have named ghester remy Psalm: SHOULD I? SHOULD I HAVE? Cimmorro: you know it works since u keep saying psalm is french, hence he’s linguini Plum: you know how ghester is like a cloud of smoke, just start having him be like the nebulous shape of a rat

Rickert soon spouts off the rules for King’s Gambit for a few minutes until he’s satisfied the party understand. Pleased, he leans back in the booth taking a sip of his newly gifted ale before continuing.

Rickert: “and if I catch any of ya’s tryin’ anything funny the bets off, only one thing I hate more than being lied to that’s gettin' cheated, and I’m sure from experience you know how serious I am bout’ these things” he lets out a cackle Henrick: next to him you see henrick sigh “guess I’ll be the second player for us then” Rickert: he snorts “yeah you’re shit at cards, but not like either of these two chumps are any better” he says while elbowing one of the other two goonies, he squints around at your group gain before speaking "where'd your fourth skitter off to boys?" Plum: he remembers us 😳 Cimmorro: living in his head rent free

Psalm: just shrugs, "Seems they've disappeared somewhere. Our group is split at the moment so we'd need someone to tell the others we'll be running late." Plum: plum like ‘?’ right now and then like ‘oh’ Rickert: he idly taps the table for a moment before snorting "right. well lets get started shall we" and he hands the deck to one of his goonies "start dealing" they quickly get to work

The group begin playing the game in earnest, starting on the first round of cards, calling and raising the bet in turn.

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> 🎵 Marked for Death / Assassin’s Creed IV OST

Cimmorro: ok ill raise it to 10... Rickert: he raises a brow at you but says nothing Cimmorro: i wink at him Rickert: he rolls his eye Han: cimm flirting with rickert like its gonna give him any kinda edge is making my whole week rn Cimmorro: THIS IS HOW HE COPES SSKLJF

Chip: rickert is across from cimm, henrick across from psalm Cimmorro: damn kyaa double date Plum: i hate that this is a double date

The round continues, Plum manages to get glances at Rickert’s hand successfully the whole time, feeding the information to Cimmorro, while Ghester gets a good look into Henrick’s. The party end up winning the first round with Psalm on top, taking in 250 chips.

Rickert: he clicks his tongue angrily Psalm: psalm just smiles at him Cimmorro: cimm breathes out a really long sigh of relief Rokka: rokka looking like [pog] Plum: ryuji_losers!_mp3

Plum: what is this jojo part 4 right now Psalm: set the bar on fire Plum: YO IF HE FINDS OUT WERE CHEATING THE BAR ON FIRE FR ENUH

The group continue into the second round, calling and raising in turn while they attempt to prolong their cheating efforts with Plum and Ghester.

Plum: 23 natural 20 oh my god Cimmorro: LETS FUCKING GOOO PLUM SUCK HIS DICK WHILE YOURE AT IT Chip: HE'LL NEVER KNOW IT WAS YOU

After a few turns of raising (and an increasingly confused cimmorro) Plum attempts another peek at Rickert’s hand. Though as they get close to him this time they see him twitch and an eye rove towards their general direction.

Immediately after the party see, in a split second, a dagger come careening down into the table (right in front of plum’s face) stabbing into the wood with a crack. His hand keeping a firm grip on it hilt while Henrick jolts next to him, they see Rickert turn his head slowly around the booth as if looking for something before giving a glare at the two across from him.

Rickert: “now boys im gonna be nice an amicable and say im just feeling a little antsy, but ya' wouldn't happen to be pulling something over me right now?” slowly he gives you a sharp grin Psalm: "You really think we'd do that after seeing firsthand what you do to people that try to cheat you?" Rickert: he tilts his head holding the grin "believe me, there have been plenty of people stupid enough to try buddy" he pulls the dagger out of the table, flipping it round and back onto his belt “let’s keep it moving then shall we gents? better hope i dont feel nothing funny again” he turns his attention back to the game Henrick: he sighs next to him relieved Psalm: he just shrugs "Maybe, but I'd like to think I'm not thaaat stupid." Ghester: you hear him laugh in your head at that Cimmorro: cimm takes another chug at his drink and goes "okay soo, can we play now?" CIMM WANTING TO SIGNAL TO PLUM TO STOP BUT DOESNT KNOW HOW Plum: PLUM WONDERING HOW TO TELL CIMM SOMETHING SIMILAR

Plum: imagine if cimm attempted to cast guidance on plum for the stealth roll you just see shit lighting up outta nowhere Han: ;KH;LKHAKHLSDLFAWREFD Cimmorro: just havin a little giggle here mate

The group continue playing until the end of the second round, revealing their hands Rickert takes the pot for his team this time, a total of 520 chips, putting them ahead of the party heading into the last round.

Cimmorro: cimm is just " 😥 " at psalm rn Psalm: just pats his shoulder like "eh you were close" Cimmorro: [inaudible grumbling] "i expect at least a dinner date after you take my money from me when this is all over" at this point his mug is empty Rickert: he snorts "maybe if you ask nicely" Cimmorro: cimm snorts back

The group continue on into the third and final round, despite the previous mess-up Plum decides to peek once again at Rickert’s hand, though it ends up backfiring on them. As they move closer to get a look at his cards again Rickert twitches his eye back in their direction and grins, in a second he whips his hand out in Plum’s direction and grabs their invisible head by the hair.

Chip:

Cimmorro: it's ok plum u die with dick huge honor Celebrity Guest Aqua: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBmjUoB5OPo Psalm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoFSfas_tco

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> 🎵 Take What Is Ours! / Assassin’s Creed IV OST

Rickert: “ahhh-! now what’s this? tangible air?” he turns his head back in the direction of you two in front of him “you’ve got 10 seconds to explain boys” Psalm: just stares at what RIckert is looking at like "Oh Plum, you're back already?" Plum: "Yeah, the others said to hurry it up." i wonder if rickert can feel plum withering away Psalm: "Oh, alright, I trust you made it around the place without running into any guards?" Cimmorro: "the crowd wasn't that hard for you to get past, was it?" Plum: "well yeah, it was fine. duh" Rokka: rokka rn

Psalm lying through his teeth against all odds somehow manages to convince Rickert, glaring at them all for a long while before releasing Plum from his grasp. He stares at the group for a few moments before speaking up again

Rickert: "id prefer it if all the friends 'round the table here made themselves visible before sidling up into my personal space" he turns his back at the rest of you smiling Psalm: "We'll keep that in mind if ever we do this again” Rickert: “real smartass aren't you” Cimmorro: "still skeptical? i don't know why you think we're cheating on you when you just won... what? 520 chips? ....if anything i'm wondering if you're the one cheating" sighing "i like to think we have a good connection here" Rickert: he turns to you and barks a long laugh "if you've got any proof feel free big boy, im a man of principles here, wouldn't do good if i went 'gainst my own rules" Plum: "how about i just sit next to them so you know im here, i kinda like being invisible..." Rickert: he clicks his tongue at Plum "i aint playing if i cant see 'ya" Plum: ">:(" Psalm: "Boss' orders, sorry."

Psalm drops the invisibility spell, causing Plum to apperate before everyone once more in full view.

Rickert: he smirks seeing plum appear "appreciate it, now-" and he elbows henrick "pay attention dumbass" Henrick: he jumps slightly in response "yeah yeah..." Cimmorro: "my apologies then. [snickers] i clearly don't know that much about you. but i'm sure that dinner would serve well for getting to know each other. now, let's play?" Rickert: he raises a brow at you "really going on about that dinner thing huh?"

Celebrity Guest Aqua: cimm incapable of not hitting on anyone Keva: flirting to cope, yknow like how people laugh when they're nervous, that but flirting Han: yes exactly jasdf Psalm: it's actually fucking killing me jez like WHAT ABOUT THIS SITUATION Cimmorro: JUST LITTLE CIMMORRO THINGS

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> 🎵 Marked for Death / Assassin’s Creed IV OST

Rickert shuttles them off into the final round, calling and raising one by one. Cimmorro folds early clearly dissatisfied, Rickert also folds soon after, making it a battle between Henrick and Psalm for the rest of the round. The two stay engrossed in the game for the next few minutes while the nervous energy around them builds. Though in the end when the cards are revealed Psalm ends up winning 650 chips for the party’s team, as well as the entire game.

Chip:

Henrick: he sighs and sags his head over the table while rickert punches him in the shoulder disgruntled Rickert: "are ya useful for anything you deadbeat" Plum: "good job" plum says and looks genuinely surprised at you two Rokka: "Great work guys!!!!" Psalm: "Well it was close, honestly had me worried there." Henrick: henrick rubs at his face "...think thats the best i've ever played frankly" Rickert: next to him rickert rolls his eye and leans back in the booth chugging his drink

Cimmorro: [has been shaking psalm back and forth rn] "i could kiss you right now!!" turns to rickert "so... anything we want to know you'll tell? yes??? Psalm: "Er...Uh.......? You're welcome?" Chip: psalm like [touches chest] what is this feeling...

Rickert: rickert replies "yeah yeah... unless it's about my mother's maiden name or some shit like that" Cimmorro: [stops shaking psalm and clasps his hands together] "no longer interested!” Plum: this is the funnies tmessage in the world Psalm: rickert has a mother? i thought he just crawled out from under a rock fully grown and horrible

Cimmorro: “so, about the bounty hunter and the blue tiefling, where did you last see them?" Rickert: he leans back, one of his arms snaking behind the booth seating and responds “...ran into yer associates about a day ago now or something, they were wandering around an area near this inn down to the west, like they had nothing better to do” he tilts his head away to look over the rest of the bar and turns back stretching “a small group of strangers approached me and my fine crew here, asked us to nab em, tie em up, throw em into a building and keep watch over em, nice easy job” he takes a swig of his drink again Henrick: he chokes on his own drink out of nowhere, coughing he turns to him with a withering glance "..T-THAT'S what you've been complaining about..?" Rickert: he smacks his shoulder again "since when did you give a rat's ass about who we manhandle" Psalm: deadass, really, really rickert, really rickert you're responsible for this rickert really

Cimmorro: wincing, "strangers... can you describe what they looked like at least? and where is this building then?" Psalm: just pinches his nose bridge like r u kidding me rn Rickert: he lets out a cackle “hah figured you wouldn’t like hearing that! soon as I realised it was that swordsman freak I was happy to oblige, don’t know nothing ‘bout that eccentric tiefling though” he scratches his chin continuing to talk “some skinny drow, and some obvious looking hired hands, didn’t pay up front but I was gonna let it be. grabbed the two with them and kept em nice and happy, best service ive ever provided frankly” then he frowns “but the prick who hired us suddenly ran off, probably got spooked and hey I’d be thankful to lose the company frankly BUT-!” at this he slams his drink hard down on the table “-THEY DIDN’T LEAVE ANY PAY! fuckers…. next time I see em’ im gutting them” Han: SKINNY LITTTLE DROW.. Celebrity Guest Aqua: game theorizing, i know nickel would pay the first date i know it

Rickert starts idling flicking a knife in his other hand clearly annoyed discussing this while the two other goonies start grumbling next to him in agreement, next to him Henrick holds half his face in his hand.

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> 🎵 Bridge to London / Vampyr OST.

Plum: "so that means we can just go grab em no problem right" Cimmorro: "i... i see... did the drow happen to wear red robes? you didn't answer me where the building was now.” Rickert: he grumbles "nah wore all black like every other prick down here, didn’t recognise em’ so they definitely weren’t from round here which means they probably have no issue cutting and running. haven’t heard sign of em’ round here or up in the city since and believe me I’ve been keeping a damn ear out" he continues complaining into his drink Henrick: he continues somewhat awkwardly after him “it’s a uh- probably a little building in the north, think the boss here took ‘em to a basement there.” he sighs “didn’t realise uh… well, It’s a building with a green painted door, sticks out like a sore thumb” Finn: rickert: yes i will answer your questions no i wont Cimmorro: i want to beat him senseless

Psalm: he sighs "No other defining features at all? Gender or name even?" Rickert: he leans into his hand and groans "not much, didnt exchange names, they liked to complain alot, though think it was a gal but eh ive been to preoccupied...." at this he seems to remember something and whacks henrick on the arm who jumps again “oi- jackass did you actually get the shit from bren like I asked?” Henrick: after rubbing his arm for a second he responds “n-no? wait. yeah. yeah I did that” Rickert: he pulls him over and angrily grumbles something at him before kicking him out of the booth onto his feet “-hop to it then” Henrick: he makes a surprised sound and wobbles onto his feet quickly “yeah yeah don’t need to say it twice…” rubbing his head grumpily walking off Plum: can we hire henrick Psalm: psalm is just : thonk : he's busy thinking Rokka: "bye henrick!!" he waves Henrick: he turns and stops and kind of lazily waves behind himself as he goes

The group watch Henrick walk off quickly through the crowd of the bar and out the front door after being shooed away by Rickert on some sort of errand. He then turns back to face the group addressing them again.

Rickert: “anything else eating at ya?” he idly starts shuffling the deck of cards looking annoyed Cimmorro: "speaking of the north here, we were given directions to head there as well. i was wondering what goes on up at that parts? yknow, just to be safe... hehe.." after a beat cimm goes "ah! right. i wanted to ask you about our previous meeting. you know with the crates? refresh me again what i was wearing at the time and the exact locations of where i assigned you to move those crates" Plum: plum trying not to laugh at those questions Rickert: he raises a brow with distaste "ya running round down here without knowin' that much? surprised you aren't dead" he sighs and leans forward "couple big gangs keep things running down here, guys who look over the east dive and places up north are called the Iron Mantles. Probably the most easy going frankly and the best to work 'round, long as you dont step on the toes of anyone wearin' a spiked pin anyway" at the second request he tilts his head and squints "....what ya' goin senile already bud? i've only ever seen you in.." he gestures with his hand lazily with distaste "whatever the hell all that is" Chip: rickert: your shoes? whack

Cimmorro: "aht, aht, aht. i'm the one asking questions right now. speak up" Rickert: he frowns and starts tapping his hand on the table "some dumb ass questions, told us to smuggle them into the cave network after u rolled up on the damn boat, dropped 'em out in some inconspicuous cove... YOU were there? what, grumpy you messed up the location or some shit" Plum: "do you know what was in the crates?" Rickert: he turns towards you and points at cimm exaggeratedly "big boy here said no peeking" Cimmorro: "surprised you listened... didn't take you for a good boy" cimm begins thinking "cove huh... is it far from here?" Plum: i was going to say something like that but i dont want to go down that route and you went and said it Cimmorro: LOL Han: (becomes homophobic)

Rickert: he makes this face at your comment 🤨 "bout as far as any other smugglers drop point" Cimmorro: "well, your group just takes jobs from anyone that pays? what exactly do you guys even do? aside from like. [hand gesturing to all this]" Chip: cimm calling him a whore rn Han: rightfully so Plum: FIX HIS LIFE

Rickert: "what pays, what keeps the food coming in, what lets me get myself something nice every other month. cutthroats for hire in every sense of the word buddy" he downs the rest of his drink and continues in a mock sing song voice "such is the way of the foxbloods that tread underfoot" he then makes a gagging motion Cimmorro: nodding slowly, "right, right... what's the name for your little boy band here then? you and your gangs like names right? i must've missed it last time we've met." Rickert: he moves to rest his hand on his chin "just said it pal" Cimmorro: "foxbloods?" Rickert: he nods his head Rokka: ANNYEONGHASEYO FOX BLOOD IMNDA Keva: THIS MAD EM ELAGHGUH

Satisfied with their questioning the group finally make their tactical retreat from Rickert and his goons, bidding them a forced adieu. He waves the party off grumpily with little fanfare as the other two goonies near him slide back into the booth. As the gang step back out into the cool air of the cove they spot Henrick a ways down the road with all the bars outside, squinting at something in the distance. Following his eyesight it appears he’s staring towards the far west end of the cavern into the darkness.

They turn to squint in the same direction, on the very far end of the cove wall they notice it seems to be more lit up than before. They notice what looks like a network of scaffolds laid into the wall, spidering up to the ceiling and around it.

Cimmorro: i lightly tap henrick's shoulder and be like "so uh, what's that about" Henrick: he quickly turns his head towards you “huh? oh hey just…” he turns his head back “think they lit the lights on the western scaffold up…” Rokka: "is that supposed to mean something? o_O" Henrick: he raises his eyebrows genuinely surprised “you do work down here but ya don’t know…?” Cimmorro: "just think of me as stupid okay and answer my questions" Plum: “you and your group are so nosy” Henrick: he tilts his head confused at Plum "...us?"

Rokka: michelle literally begging to adopt henrick rn Cimmorro: MAYBE IF WE ALL GIVE HIM OUR PLATINUM Finn: its ok we can just house him in vinnys shop, he gets a new job that way too Rokka: HENRICK UR NEW BOSS IS NOW VINNY Cimmorro: wait thats perfect thats our new major goal now fack antessa Han: FUCK VORDE AND ALL THAT WERE GETTING THE ADOPTION PAPERS FOR HENRICK BABYYY

Henrick: “well uh…one of the big gangs has their offices high up on the western scaffolds. call themselves the ‘Enforcers of Harmony’ don’t involve themselves in anything outside their boss’ interest I hear, but they run a lot of stuff on that side of the cove. If the lanterns along the wall are all lit up usually means their guards are all out and about… makes life annoying” he sighs and folds his arms “…guess im gonna have to wait a bit for that to die down” Cimmorro: i look over to the others "... you don't think those rascals might've... you know..." Rokka: "i would like to have faith in them" Psalm: "Feel like that faith might be a bit misplaced given our record." Plum: “i mean they were what? checking out the roofs? not the least suspicious thing ever if you ask me” Cimmorro: “🙂 i really have to get away from you guys...” Rokka: he looks at psalm "it is not misplaced!" turning to henrick "hey henrick what's rickert got you doing out here anyways?" Henrick: "uhh... dont know if i should say, im just moving something" he folds his arms Rokka: "but we're OLD BUDDIES ! whatcha moving bro?" Ghester: you hear ghester in all your heads speak up "hmm never a dull moment" Psalm: *shrugs* Cimmorro: cimm just whips his head around again on reflex when he hears ghester, still not used to it Rokka: rokka also looking around Henrick: he gives you a weak stare "ah....i dont know if i'd call us that exactly" hes like ?? at everyone turning their heads and turns his too to look for anything suspicious Cimmorro: wait thats so funny and cute pleass

Psalm: "Well, be seeing you I guess, in any case we should actually get moving, I'm sure were over our designated time at this point." Rokka: "Sorry for assuming...:(" Henrick: he makes a 😰 face "....okay okay fine look were friends i still probably shouldn't tell you....." he nods at you psalm Rokka: he perks up "yay! okay I will respect ur privacy bro! I guess we will take our leave then!! SEE YA LATER BRO" Cimmorro: "yeah thanks for the info, get yourself a new job though" cimm begins to walk away Plum: “yeah for real, get a different job. your boss is an ass” Henrick: he gives you a lazy wave as you walk off "... yeah yeah no need to start the lectures now" he turns back to staring out over to the scaffolds Psalm: That's such a like idk video game npc thing to do, Just going back to staring Chip: dont disturb his pathing

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> 🎵 Lost Lanterns / Below OST.

The group of four make their way back to the rendezvous point to meet up with the rest of the group, after a bit of a walk they manage to reach Renny’s inn successfully. Looking around they don’t see sign of the others until they spot Keva shuffling on the roof of the building, after a few more minutes Han and Finn also make their appearances from the rafters, joining the group below.

Plum: “we made it here first?” Rokka: "i thought we were late! haha"

Keva: she turns to look at han and finn "what the hell happened?” Finn: finn stares at you for a moment before looking at han, not wanting to admit that they did an awful job back there. hoping that han will silently agree. Psalm: watching like that scaffolding shit was definitely them

Han: as han shares no such sentiment and wears her heart on her sleeve. she looks shamed and mad. "we climbed the wall and didnt notice guards. alerted them and attacked. got away once realized what were dealing with." Keva: "wait, they attacked you or you attacked them?" Han: shamefully looks away "i attacked them" Rokka: "my faith......................." Psalm: "I shouldve made a bet with you.” Rokka: "good thing you didn't" Plum: “guess you were right cimm” Cimmorro:

Keva: her face is kinda scrunched up for a while and wants to lay into them more, but eases off seeing han showing remorse and also knowing she's had a lot on her mind following the cult business. she turns to the rest of you, irritated. "what now?" Psalm: "Well we managed to get Ezra and Cole's location after an uncomfortably high stakes game of cards." Cimmorro: “and some other things that i can tell you on the way to them"

Cimmorro: "right. do you know if they could recognize you if we were to scuttle around? we are heading north, however” Han: “i dont. one guy maybe got a look at me, better than Finn. if i can sit out to avoid unnecessary risk." Finn: "he might recognize me too, i climbed up higher than you, didnt i?" he grits out quickly, looking like a child who doesn't want to be in the presence of their parent after fucking up Han: "you also did not shoot him in the face." (editors note: it was not his face) Finn: “true that” (editors note: is it?) Cimmorro: "can we avoid shooting people in the face for now please" cimm looks pointedly at han like 😳 but without the blush

Rokka: "perhaps you can turn to a bat and hang onto me or someone else?" Han: han lets out a small sarcastic HA at this Rokka: he tilts his head at this like ? Han: han doesnt respond to rokka, and doesnt make eye contact with finn Rokka: [confused dog head tilt]

Finn: "that thought crossed my mind as well." finn brings a hand up to his face. "psalm can hide me away under his cloak too, for less suspicion as to why you are carrying a bat around." Plum: “actually why’d you climb? why didn’t you just fly around in the first place?” Finn: finn looks at you for a good moment plum. "i... i did not think to do it in the moment. my head...my thoughts... they are elsewhere, i suppose.” Plum: “oh, gotcha. lot going on right now yeah.” Finn: he nods, appreciating the briefness of their exchange and seemingly plums understanding

Cimmorro: [helping to disguise han slightly] okay cimm just rummages and hands the set of clothes to han "here, try to make do with this" Han: han looks over the clothes, seems like shes about to complain about size but attempts to try them on anyway

Han slaps on the clothes given to her by Cimmorro, the pants wont fit her but, the shirt might though as its pretty roomy, as well as the cloak which she whaps over her other one. Wardrobe change complete, the party head out to the northern parts of the withered bone, making discussion and sharing information along the way. and searching around.

Han: "i wanted to ask renny who the west scaffolding belongs to, unless you guys know?” Plum: “they have some dumb name like enforcers of harmony, which doesn’t sound too good” Keva: "sound like cops" Finn: "how awfully tasteless..." finn sneers Plum: “it’s just too wordy if you ask me 🤔” Han: "... i think that sounds kinda badass, maybe they're nice?" Psalm: "If they're nice whyd you shoot them?" Han: "didnt know they had such a cool name" Psalm: "Well, can't argue with that logic." Keva: rolls her eyes at this

Soon enough they come upon the building, Henrick was right, once they were there it was easy enough to find knowing what to look for. Soon enough the find themselves before a rickety looking building, the green door sticking out against all the brown wood of its walls and roof. The building itself is about 2 stories or so high, its windows boarded up, like the others around it, nothing else about it seems to stick out. The group check the building out a bit, with Finn tucked in Psalm’s cloak.

Though suddenly as he’s searching around with the party, Cimmorro sees a spark of magic apperate before his eyes, in the air shines a faint blue light before an envelope appears in the air followed by a bell sound. Perfectly crisp and black, and stamped with some sort of wax seal on its back, it drops into his hands before the magic in the air disappears entirely. The party each note it but continue searching, Han and Rokka nearby taking particular interest (and caution) at its sudden appearance. However after a few seconds of observation Cimmorro immediately registers the stationary as familiar, the same kind of stuff Willow uses, the wax seal having a jasidan symbol embossed into it.

Cimmorro: [OPENS IT LIKE A WILD ANIMAL] Rokka: "woah, cimm" Han: han peaks over cimms head at it Cimmorro: he is too busy to notice you

Sent to Cimmorro from Coralwash in Krenic

Dear Cimmorro I felt it would be prudent for me to send you back a quick response as soon as I was able. Seems you’ve gotten up to more recently in the past week than you have in the past few years, a cult of all things..? I shall be making the journey over to Shorewater as soon as I can along with a few others, feel free to let the king know that some of the Krenic churches will provide some aid in these endeavours. Do your best to keep out of trouble until then, is what I would say, but I feel that would be asking for a little too much of you. Looking forward to speaking to you in person again after all this time, I’ve let Ulle know about your package, they seems quite excited about it. I will see what I can do about Jasper and the sweets. By the Goddess’ Grace, Willow

Cimmorro: cimm looks like this 😖😖😖😖😖 thinking "finally something nice today!!!" Han: han reads the letter over cimms head and goes "your girlfriend? willow is a nice name. strong" Rokka: "GIRLFRIEND?!" Cimmorro: “i’ll leave that to your imaginations. didn't you know it's rude to read other people's mail??" Rokka: 😳😳😳 Han: "dunno, never got any." han shrugs and begins walking Cimmorro: "oh....sorry" > actually feels bad

As he neatly tucks away the letter the others share information amongst one another about their previous escapades, and the current doppelganger information they garnered from Rickert.

Keva: "how'd you get him to talk? don't know anyone like him that would give away that info for free" Plum: “we cheated at a card game and he forked over the info, almost got stabbed, i think?” Psalm: "Yeah, that was cutting it pretty close." Plum: “IT REALLY WAS” Psalm: "Cant imagine being morally bankrupt everywhere except for where cheating is concerned, but at least it worked out.” Keva: stares at you both like 🤨 "do none of you know how to pick your fights? thought we didn't want to die" Plum: “well we didn’t!” Psalm: "You wanna give that guy 350g be my guest." Keva: "you'd still have left over for the trip even if you paid, especially if you pooled" Psalm: "But the airship..."

Psalm: "Oh, I never thanked you for the assistance Plum. You too as well Ghester.” Plum: “all part of the job :j” Ghester: you all hear in your heads "appreciate it" Han: “i heard this one before” Rokka: "OKAY WHO IS PLAYING THESE MIND GAMES" >rokka begins to think he is being haunted fr Finn: :| Psalm: not registering anyone's reactions to ghester

Psalm: "And paying that guy would leave a bad taste in my mouth." Plum: “true, he has tried to kill me before” Keva: makes a >:-\ and sighs, a more somber look coming over her. "look, all i'm saying you need to be more careful messing with people like that." Psalm: "Yes mother 🤨 /s" Plum: plum about to be like well duh to keva, but can’t bother. they look like that’s what they’d say though. Keva: she gives you a very flat look at you both, and then her thoughts seem to drift off elsewhere.

The group make their way slowly into the building, checking for traps and keeping an eye out as they press into the first floor. Looking around they enter what appears to be a large room, pretty empty and deserted, dusty old furniture sitting around what looks like a living area of sorts. A few of the chairs look like they were moved recently into watch positions next to the walls.

They spy a door leading out of the room to the left and right, as they make their way around they feel the floor creak under them slightly. From the leftside door they spot some rickety stairs leading up to a second floor, whereas the right one seems to open into some sort of closet. Peering inside Keva checks it, seems this is where whoever lived here threw all their old rotted furniture, pretty dusty, nothing of real note.

Psalm: sammy's summer home Cimmorro: PELASE

The group begin searching around the first floor while Han moves to go investigate the second one. Upstairs she doesn't find much of note, but comes across what seems to be an old bedroom. In the corner she spies a bed that doesn’t appear as dusty as everything else, seems whoever holed up here changed the sheets and used the room as a base for a couple of days, strangely particular. Judging by the dust on the ground they took everything they kept in here with them when they left in a hurry.

Turning over the room Han finds nothing else of note, finding that it's been left pretty bare. Squinting at the bed though she does find a few long strands of white hair, about a torso’s length long. Poking around the main room Cimmorro finds its so dusty in here in certain parts that he ends up sneezing for about 10 seconds straight. Next to him Plum finds what looks like a trapdoor peeking out under one of the old rotten cabinets in the corner.

Cimmorro: [barely audible sneezing like a cat's] Plum: “do wee jas followers say something after sneezing?” Cimmorro: "ugh huh, wha-" [rubbing his nose] "bless you is common for most of us but more formal would be "by her grace"" still rubbing his nose while looking over what you're nitpicking there with keva Plum: “oh okay, kinda more normal than i expected. by her grace, then.” plum says Cimmorro: cimm pats your head Plum: plum just laughs

Psalm: oh yeah you're free to not be a bat anymore since we're inside right Finn: i want to be a bat... Chip: ALL YOU EVER THINK ABOUT IS YOURSELF

The group watch as Keva and Plum push the cabinet out of the way together, freeing the trapdoor. Keva makes to cracking open the lock on it soon after and flipping it open while Han makes her way back downstairs to reveal her findings, as she does Rokka listens in to see if he can hear anything coming from the passage below.

Plum: [makes voila pose] “beholde” Cimmorro: cimm goes "ooooo" at keva and plum Rokka: "oooh" 👏👏👏👏👏 Plum: [bows]

Chip: picturing psalm just standing in the middle of the room holding finn Han: hes busy Psalm: BEHOLD: CREACHER Han: psalm is moral support Finn: meanwhile all i can think about is finn pulling his hair like remy Psalm: remy is real and in our campaign Finn: wait if keva has amos that means, cook off

Rokka: "I hear something down there....shuffling noises?" Cimmorro: "must be cole shuffling.... i hope" Rokka: "gosh i hope so 🥺 "

Han: breasts boobily downstairs "upstairs empty. found some white hair in a bed though, that is interesting." Plum: "i wonder if its that drow he mentioned, dont they usually have white hair?” do they Chip: yes Plum: AHA! Chip: HERLOCK SHOLMES Plum: LOCALISE THIS

Rokka: "are you keeping that hair" Han: “no? should i?” Rokka: “should u? 🤔” Han: han narrows her eyes at this, "you are right, better save than sorry" and runs back upstairs to get a sample Rokka: “good work han!” Han: distant "HELL YEA!" han comes back with some hair tied in a neat coil

One by one the group hop down the trapdoor and make their way down the ladder connected to what looks like a rock wall in the dark. After a few seconds of climbing they drop down into a room with wood floors and cobbled walls, no doubt carved out of the cavern walls.

The room down here appears much more like it was occupied, dead lamps and candled having been snuffed out, as well as a number of chairs and tables placed around haphazardly. On the table it appears there are a few scrawled pieces of parchment. They dont spy anything else though, or any other exits.

Thinking of a way to light the room for his not darkvision having friends, Cimmorro uses his sacred flames on one of the dead lamps on the table. With a THWOOSH one of the lanterns kind of explodes in the dark and falls over, seems to stay lit as it lays upon the ground however.

Cimmorro: "let there be light?" Plum: wants to clap but snickers instead

As the group snoop about, Rokka and Finn crane their animal ears, and suddenly find themselves hearing sounds coming from the rightmost wall of the room.

Rokka: GUYS WAIT I HEAR SOMETHING FROM THE RIGHTMOST WALL

Plum: AHHHAUUGHHHAUWEH Finn: finn tugs lightly at psalm’s hair, on the right, to emphasize as rokka speaks

In the meantime Cimmorro picks up the parchment from the floor to examine it, looking at it, it appears to have the scratchings of someone keeping track of the things that occurred each hour, most of it appears irrelevant. Though judging by the descriptions of the two captives he ascertains Ezra and Cole were definitely brought down here, there is one other note but it appears to be written in something he cant read, seemingly some sort of code.

As Keva moves over to the right wall to inspect it she holds out a hand for Cimmorro to hand her the parchment, assuming it to be written in thieves cant. Though as she does, her other arm feeling around the wall suddenly goes through it, she pushes through curiously disappearing behind it. Cimmorro and Rokka quickly make to follow after her while the others continue investigating the initial room, quirking a brow at them walking through the wall.

The three come out into what looks like a short hallway with a door at the end, a small window inlaid into it. As they walk closer they hear grunts of what sounds like effort coming from the door.

Cimmorro: at the noise cimm blurts "working hard or hardly working" in a low voice and laughs to himself

Back in the initial room the others search around but don't find much else of interest. Bat Finn in hand, Psalm squints at the wall the others walked through and right above it he sees some faintly scratched arcane runes, though he cant read them (knew you should have payed attention in arcana class...)

Psalm: really missing comprehend languages right about now Chip: ghester voice like if only you had comprehend languages Han: "whoever was here cleaned up real good. left nothing." Finn: finn stares at you Psalm: not now finn i'm focusing * brain fizzling out *

Han and Plum join the others through the illusion wall while they fuss over the strange metal door with the window in it. Psalm and Finn keeping watch in the entry room while Psalm’s brain melts over arcane rune interpretation.

Craning her head up Keva peers through the small window in the door into the room beyond, there she sees Ezra unconscious on the ground with his arms bound, and Cole next to him, hers also bound. The two are behind a set of metal bars that divide the room in half with a metal door set into it, seemingly locked shut with them behind it. A lone lantern appears to have been left on a desk on the half of the room they aren’t behind.

Looking back at Cole it looks like she’s grunting with effort reaching her leg through the bars, very close to reaching a set of keys comically placed on the floor in front of her.

Cole: “rrrrgh…..so….c-close…..come ooooooon” she eventually falls back drained “okay cole….take a break…5 minutes then give it another shot” she says while flopping back on the floor again.

Ezra appears motionless next to her, his eyes closed. The group go about examining the door, though strangely they cant even see a lock on it. As Keva fusses with it and smacks the window to get her attention, Cole jumps and sits up suddenly.

Cole: “huh wha- ohhh I bet you guys thought it was real funny-“ she stops her spiel mid-sentence once she recognises your face peering halfway through the window keva “….oh my gods you really came, and you’re okay!” she quickly shuffles towards the bars, sitting on her knees “im dying over here seriously-!” Cimmorro: "might have something to do with that parchment i gave you?" Psalm: wow i like that cole basically admits some jackass left the keys like that, probs rickert honestly

Keva nods at Cimmorro to hand over the parchment to see if they can garner any clues from it at all, interpreting the thieves cant to the others, it appears to be a hastily written terms of agreement.

“capture and guard of three individuals, elf, tiefling, and human. one is fine but its preferable for all three to be detained for best chance of success. we will be fighting whoever comes to get them, free to kill if it comes to it though heavy preferences for keeping them alive. Only need one of them for my purposes specifically, do as you’d like with the rest. payment will be given once the fight has ended, from there we go our separate ways”

Keva: "the human was probably vinny. must have been theyord." Cimmorro: "what in the.... well that won't solve the door”

While they think over the contents of the parchment, Rokka attempts to bust the door down with a huff, though he ends up bouncing right back off of it.

Rokka: "OGH! MY NOGGIN!" Han: han catches rokka if he like, bounces off Rokka: he looks up at han "oh thanks han 🥺 " Han: "ye course, just be careful bro" 🥺

Unsuccessful at breaking it down, Keva goes back to yelling to Cole while trying to figure out a way to help her and Ezra escape their bindings.

Keva: i call thru the door to cole "do you know how we can get in?" Cole: she leans forward on the bars to hear you "uhh...not really. that thing looked real sturdy the whole time we were here..." and unmovable door... you take a moment to peer about the room she's in again through the window...

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> 🎵 Stage 03 Spook Mansion / Tiny Toon Adventures - Buster Breaks Loose! OST.

The room looks Dishevelled and Ransacked… someone clearly left it without much care on how it looked. Looking around you see various bits of Furniture stacked precariously on top each other, Rope and Planks, a Chair and a Broom, A Lit Lantern and Sacks and a Chest, as well as a Hanging Bucket amongst other things….

The Metal Door appears locked, no doubt by the key just out of Cole’s reach. The Metal Bars seem sturdy… You think you can also see something carved into the top of the door. You wonder how you will go about helping her when you can’t even get into the room yourselves… at least she can see you through the Window....

Psalm: i played all this 999 for this moment Chip: SEEK A WAY OUT

The group begin scrutinizing the room, first eyeballing the runes and writing above the metal door as well as the glass window in the door. Deciding that they can probably help some more if they can get Keva’s mouse Amos inside the room, they also decide to try and break the glass window in the door.

Keva: she blinks..... and takes out a dagger. Cimmorro: he reels back thinking you were gonna stab him for a moment Keva: she laughs a bit at that

Keva tries breaking it with her dagger but is unsuccessful, though she gets the sense that it can, in fact, be broken. In the meantime through the others’ collective eyes read the runes on the bar door as some kind of enchantment, barring access (haha). They also spot some elvish writing under them, Cimmorro and Rokka both translate it to the rest of the group.

“Erzattan Dungeon Co. For all your Macabre Needs – And Always Remember: To walk forwards, one must first learn to shuffle from side to side”

Cimmorro: "this door asking us to dance.......? side to side" Rokka: "thats what i'm also getting..." rokka starts shuffling side to side while moving towards the door Keva: keva looks at the camera

Rokka dances towards the door, walking right into it, his dancing not appearing to have convinced it to open for him.

Cimmorro: “:D” Rokka: “ah.” rokka stops shuffling and just walks away Keva: i gesture at the window “your turn” Rokka: silently Keva: "No where are you--" Rokka: "im embarrassed" Keva: "just hit the window" Rokka: "ok....😳" Cimmorro: <about to lose it> Han: han is trying to contain her laughter

Han: takes out her handy dandy hammer "you want try with this?" Cimmorro: "why do you have something like that" Plum: "you had that on you?” Han: "what? why? i always have it on me" Rokka: "oh how nice of you han thank you!" Plum: [big sigh] Cimmorro: "... for???- you know what nevermind it became useful anyway"

Han hands Rokka her hammer, it actually looks different than most regular hammers. Its one solid piece of metal and looks very primitive, a small ram sigil carved into it. Rokka takes it gratefully before smashing the window open, he celebrates briefly before handing it back to Han who carefully tucks it away again.

Cimmorro: "redeemed yourself" Rokka: he blushes....................

Keva: i take out amos and hold him up to the window "see those keys? can you take them to her?" Amos: amos squeaks with determination" Cimmorro: imagining keva talking to amos like kronk with the squirrels Keva: no but she does speak in a higher gentler voice, as you do with pets

Keva gently drop him down through the window, he scuttles over to the keys and picks them up, slowly dragging them into Cole's cell, she takes them with her tied hands and whoops to rejoice.

She stands up, keys in hand, flips around and unlocks the metal bar door, it swings open before her ! But as she attempts to walk through she walks straight into what appears to be an invisible wall, shocked she stumbles back, nearly tripping over Ezra on the ground

Cole: “w-what….huh…..” she begins leaning forward slowly attempting to push through the air unsuccessfully. Cimmorro: ....... Rokka: . Psalm: when we get dispel magic it's over

The group quickly tell her to try shuffling from side to side out the door instead. She stops attempting to push through and nods at the guidance

Cole: "uh...shuffle to the side" you slowly watch her shuffle sideways through the door...successfully passing the invisible blockade

The group then begin instructing her on things to inspect around the room, attempting to get her out from the other side. She checks out the chest in the room as well as the door, informing the group that it needs some sort of specific key to open. She moves over to also inspect the hanging bucket, though she cant reach it so she instead bonks the bottom of it with the top of her head.

Cole: the bucket comes down but it appears to have been filled with water, splashing over cole's head, she shouts "ahhhh! thats cold..." you hear a clink clink of something hitting the floor with the bucket Keva: "you okay...?" Cole: she shakes her head like a dog "a-ok!"

She picks up what seems to have dropped with the bucket, another smaller key strangely enough. Back in the cell Amos seems to be idly sniffing around Ezra’s sleeping face and body. The group wonder if they could get him to chew through their ropes before realising they can probably just hand Cole a dagger instead.

Han: all of us cheering cole on while she struggles Chip: like ur watching her twitch stream Cimmorro: OH YM GOFDJA egirl cole

Cimmorro: EAT HIM AMOS Han: AMOS DOING WHAT U WISH TO DO Cimmorro: 😳 yeah im a rat

Cimmorro: ezra blink twice if u need help Chip: ezra sleep Rokka: whats ezra dreaming about Chip: not being in here Cimmorro: he’s in a better place...

Cole manages to cut herself out of her ropes thanks to Cimmorro’s carefully thrown over dagger, she also moves to cut Ezra out of his, noting that the people who nabbed em knocked him out with something.

Finn: he tugs at psalm’s hair again, wanting him to go into the room Psalm: "If I'm understanding you correctly then... I can't say we'll be of much help but sure." Finn: he squeaks at that, not like psalm can make any sense of it but surely its not because finn is nosy and wants to see whats going on even if theyre both useless. he tugs at your hair again. chop chop Psalm: "Yeah, yeah I'm going." --> psalm looks around one more time and then walks off and enters the hallway Finn: psalm earns himself pleased chirping

Chip: like how u ask him to take u when u can just fly over Cimmorro: nobles.. Plum: what a chad Finn: when i have a gundam? you fool Psalm: AHEUF

Keva directs Cole to knock over some of the sacks high up on the shelf, revealing a couple of green yellow potions, she shuffles over the stepladder and grabs the two of them. Handing them through the broken window to the group, Plum sets about to identifying them as the others continue manoeuvring her around the room. Cimmorro takes the other one, seeing if he can glean anything with his medicinal knowledge. From what he can ascertain from its colour and contents it doesn't seem to be anything like poison, if anything it smells faintly like nuts. He assumes that it has restorative effects but he’s unsure.

Han in the meantime looks about the hallway, spying the incoming Psalm and Finn, but more importantly she finds what looks to be piece of what looks like some sort of mechanism. Deeming it important the group decide to hand it to Cole.

After handing it over, Keva instructs Cole to look in the bin near the metal bars, inside it she finds a locked box. She uses the previously found key on it, unlocking it successfully, peering about she tells the group there's a few gold coins and empty bottles inside, as well as what looks like another half of the mechanism they just handed her.

Staring at them it appears they slot together, once she does the item now appears to be a doorknob. Keva calls her over to slot it into her side of the door, as she does it clicks in perfectly, finally swinging the door open.

Psalm: YOU FOUND IT Chip:

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> 🎵 Lost Lanterns / Below OST.

Cimmorro: “👏👏👏👏” Rokka: rokka hoots Keva: keva smiles, satisfied. "okay, let's get ezra out" Cole: "thank you so mu--ch!" she pulls you into a big killer hug Keva: keva stiffens up in surprise, full hover hands. she laughs a bit, not sure how to react "alright alright okay. have you all had anything to eat?" Cole: she grumbles "not for like a day now...and oh uhggh one of them knocked ezra out with some magic because he wouldn’t stop making fun of them so I haven’t even had anyone to talk to for like….also an entire day!” she shouts out Keva: i pull out some of the bread and cheese i saved for her, saving the other portion for ezra when we get him up Cole: she wolfs it down bark bark

Han moves to pick Ezra up bridal style, as the group discuss what to do Plum also brings up the idea that should trash the place while concentrating on their identification, just in case.

Cimmorro: holds plum by the shoulders and helps them manoeuvre Plum: "Well here's what I'm thinking......[concentrating]........if we trash the place they can't use it again. But if we trash the place they'll relocate and we can't find them again. but i suppose if we already came here they probably won't come here again." Celebrity Guest Aqua: can i be patron on vengaboys pateron. tier 1 is deciding when to do arson once an ingame month

The group discuss trashing the place, wondering if it was a letterheads base but assume they wont be coming back in any case. In the meantime Psalm slides into the room and snags the gold from the locked box.

Finn: finn climbs down to your shoulder and stares at you Psalm: He...pockets the gp and stare at him...? Finn: finns shocked but does respect the power move to not share. its what he'd do too. Psalm: jeez he can share it out later it's not like he's trying to skimp anyone 🥺 "How about I split it and buy your silence then jeez..." Finn: the bat is pleased. you feel as though it has a smug aura. Psalm: psalm rolls his eyes and continues investigating

Cimmorro decides to give Ezra and Cole a full medical to be sure nothing funny has happened to them in their absence. Cole sits patiently at attention the whole time, they both seem to be okay, a few scrapes here and there, Cimmorro supposes Rickert wasn't lying when he said he wasn't allowed to rough either of them up. He doesn't notice any marks or blemishes that stick out either, the only real thing of note being Ezra's temporary coma.

in the meantime Psalm and Han go about properly combing the jail room for anything else useful (Ezra safely laid back on the ground for easy examining). Through their incredible teamwork they manage to find Ezra's sword and Cole's gloves shoved underneath the sacks in the chest, plus a few other things of note. About 20gp, another potion, this one black in colour and goopy, as well as a copper ring with the image of a ram carved into it, though distinctly different from Han’s. He hands the latter two items to Plum for identification.

Finishing with his examination Cimmorro also searches around the room a little while telling Cole they’ll probably have to wait on Plum’s identification. He doesnt find much else that the others dont but he does find two small shiny bells wrapped in a bag tucked away in the room.

Psalm: “These belong to you?” Cole: she turns excitedly and crowds you "ohhh so they kept them in here ohhh i was so worried i lost em!" she takes ezra's katana from you to carry for him and shakes your hands wildly "cute bat by the way! i didnt know you had a pet..." Psalm: * accepts the jostling* "Guess you lucked out." * psalm genuinely doesn't remember if Cole knows about Fin''s vampirism * "I uh..Thanks." Finn: finn kinda sweating bullets but appreciates psalm not ratting him out. although...well...cole and ezra are going to find out about him sooner or later wont they?

Keva: "what happened anyway?" Cole: she folds her arms with a sigh "some no good cutthroats jumped us while we were out looking for vinny...tied us up and tossed us in here, i cant tell ya how worried i've been about him this whole time..." she snaps back to attention as if remembering something "speaking of-where have you guys been, whats going on, have ya seen him??" Keva: “oh-- vinny's fine by the way, he's the one who gave us an idea of where you were." Cole: "the only people locked up were me and ol' ezra and- wh-oh really so you found him then? how's he doing?" she leans forward anxiously Keva: "he's alright. that lady jeane has him working pretty hard at the palace right now." Cole: her whole face goes like <:OOO "he's back at the palace? wait no did they capture him...."2 Keva: "capture?" Cole: "...yeah. the... you know! whole on the run thing...!" Keva: "oh no, we're all in the clear. think the royals just wanted his help with figuring out the mess the letterheads left." keva shrugs "don't really know anything about magic so." Cole: she stares at you, looking like shes thinking really hard "...i see i've missed alot" Keva: keva (and michelle) is now realizing cole does not know about the letterheads lmoa

In the meanwhile Plum finally identifies the green yellow potions, handing one over to Cimmorro to use on their sleeping beauty Ezra with Han’s help. They then get to work on identifying the one that is black and goopy.

Potion of Early Rising Common, 200gp - When this potion is drunk any effects rendering a creature unconscious are nullified, so long as the creature has at least one hit point.

Cimmorro: "you have to administer it via cpr han" Han: "no i dont" Cimmorro: "he's going to be sleeping beauty forever" i start preparing it anyways as i snicker at han Han: han drops his head "then leave him" Keva: keva watches all this with concern Cimmorro: "so so cold..." Han: "hes not my really my type" i bring ezras head back up Cimmorro: "you'll let him die just because of that?!?" Psalm: "Is that important when he's dying?" Plum: [laughing] Han: "no i just know i dont need to do that" han goes to flick cimms head Cimmorro: [head is flicked] >:( Han: >:) Cimmorro: "just say you wanna fuck me it is that easy you know” Rokka: 😳 Han: "every night cimmorro. watch yourself when you sleep tonight" Cimmorro: “😏: Han: han giggles to herself (mostly)

Cimmorro: "okay han i need to know, do you find me hot. because i need to know if i'll be okay in a life and death situation with you. which, i might add, i've been in quite far too many times" Psalm: "I think if we were in a life and death situation and Cimmoro was the one that needed help the assumption is that we're all already dead." Cimmorro: cimm grumbles "you say that like i'd easily let any of you die on my watch..." Plum: "you know, can we hurry up and get outta here? before we have to fight someone?" Psalm: cant wait to find out who's long grey hair that is in the next 50 secs Plum: right Celebrity Guest Aqua: this is embarrassing that's mine

Eventually Cimmorro pops the potion open, successfully getting Ezra to drink it. After a few moments he seems to cough and groggily come back to consciousness. He grunts slightly before blinking wildly and tensing up, recognising Han and Cimmorro however he untenses. slightly.

Ezra: “…uh” Han: "sup" Cimmorro: "good morning" Keva: we're all standing around staring at him Psalm: EZRA WAKE UP YOU FUCKED UP BIG TIME

Ezra: he rubs his face and sits up "...good morning...?" he looks around wearily Cole: she smiles Keva: she holds out the rest of the food she saved to him "was it worth it" re:getting knocked out for making fun of whoever lmao Plum: "your favourite person brought you here actually, ezra" Ezra: he takes the food and starts eating it quietly "yes." before turning to plum through his chewing saying "i am well aware but thanks anyway" Keva: keva snorts Plum: [plum nods in acknowledgement while focused on the bottle] Cimmorro: "once ezra regains some footing i say we best head out already" Plum: “agreed” Cimmorro: [goes back to piloting plum from behind] Rokka: "just carry him" Ezra: he bristles at the suggestion and immediately stands "no need for that"

The party begin to make their way out of the basement and building and back into the cove proper, smelling the cool salty air again. Plum finds themselves successfully identifying the goopy potion along the way.

Potion of Hide from Undead Rare, 520gp - When you drink this potion, you become difficult to locate for undead creatures. An undead creature must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be unable to detect or locate you with sight, hearing or smell.

Even extraordinary senses such as blindsight and tremorsense are not effective. The effects automatically end if you take an action which uses radiant energy, attempt to turn undead, or attack an undead creature. Otherwise, the effects of the potion last for one hour.

Reaching the cove again and beginning to back topside to the city, the group give Cole and Ezra a run down of the past few days events along the way. As they go on the two’s faces change from various shades of shocked to flabbergasted, though they both appear relieved that Vinny seems to be doing well enough currently.

Cole: she mopes and places both her hands under her chin “figures we’d get grabbed by some nobodies while you guys are off saving the city… man I couldn’t even look out for the boss…” she kicks a stray rock Ezra: he sighs next to her “makes sense now why they just ditched, not worth the effort anymore if royal guards and corpses are being rumoured about” he stretches his arms “… hate this damn cove sometimes, never worth travelling on your own” he begins rifling through his coat and his pockets, though he starts to become more frantic over time as if searching for something “…bastards stole my damn-“ he sighs and rubs a hand across his face, fuming silently to himself Plum: [plum wondering if what he's looking for is the ring] can i identify this now, actually i ask if its what ezra’s looking for first Psalm: aw thats no fun Plum: IM NOT A THIEF Han: unlike some Psalm: unrelatable

Ezra: as you ask him he huffs "...my sending stone" Han: "oh, hmm... we scoped the place but didn't find it. actually, was there someone with long white hair with you guys?" Ezra: he just goes 🤬 internally but all you can see is him furrowing his brow and rubbing his temple Cole: she pipes up to respond "hmm? oh yeah i think....maybe one of them did? think it was a drow, they always had this hood up whenever i saw em" Psalm: "Is that all you know?" Cole: she shrugs her shoulders "...yeah... they didnt say why they grabbed us, the way one of them was talking though... i think he had a bone to pick with ezra" she leans over and whispers this conspiratorially to you Psalm: "Did you get a good look at that one? Although I feel like I know who it might be." Cole: "uhhhh messy red hair, scar on his face, weird smile" Psalm: "Thought so." Rokka: "thats rickert alright" Cimmorro: well here's the tea sis

Keva: "what was the drow wearing? like what color" Cole: she thinks "uhhh dark black clothes, dark hood..." Ezra: he nods to agre Psalm: "Did they have really dark skin? Like black almost?" Cole: she nods "yeah, that's pretty typical though isn't it?" Psalm: "I mean..? Not always..? Nickel's skin is pretty light in comparison I'd think." Cole: she cocks her head questioning "comparison? ohhhh have you seen this mystery merc?" Psalm: “Who knows? that’s what im trying to find out” Cole: “🤔”

Psalm: * racking his brain * "About their clothes was it full black or did it have any weird patterns on it?" Cole: "full black, though they seemed to be wearing alot of layers" Keva: "must not be used to the weather here” Psalm: "Carry any weapons or no?" Cole: she thinks "i didnt seem any on them... but they didnt really fight when they grabbed us...." she snaps her fingers "like a manager" Han: "for what it's worth, i have the piece of hair. if i remember correctly, it can help with the spell that looks at a person from any location.” Psalm: "Alright well that's all I've got. han if you want to locate them be my guest, but I'm not sure what good that'll do us now anyways." Han: ".. i dont think i like loose ends." Psalm: "I agree with you there."

The party continue making their way back aboveground from the cove while pondering these new questions, their two associates successfully rescued.

---

Notes

- 🔮Psalm pocketed 34gp

- 🍺Plum gained a 「 Potion of Early Rising ✨」「 Potion of Hide from Undead ✨」 and is currently identifying a 「 Ring ✨」 with a ram’s head carved into it

- 💎Cimmorro found a bag with「 Two Shiny Bells ✨」 inside

- 🧰Cole and 👤Ezra have been safely rescued

- 🏹Han has a「 Strand of White Hair✨」 safely stashed away

- 🦇Finn is still currently in his bat form (20 or so minutes remaining)

#recaps #201122 #this one is pretty fakin long

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