#and I have slowly been adding more and more axolotls to it

[deserteye]

EPILOGUE || Unfinished Business

Waking up with a headache was new, having never experienced pain outside of inhabiting a human body.  His eyes slowly started to adjust to the bright surroundings.  Pink and blue?  Those were hues he not used to—and clouds and stars- Oh no.

Although he prayed, he did not expect an answer.  He turned around, and there it was—The Axolotl, lying over a parting in its clouds.

“Axolotl!  Buddy!  How are you-” Bill started his sentence before he was suddenly grabbed by an invisible force, and dragged to float by The Axolotl as it was staring down from the clouds, watching human children playing at a park.  “Ugh..” the dream demon groaned in his mind.

“Precious, aren’t they?  So innocent and fragile.”  The Axolotl commented.

“Disgusting..” Bill had responded.  The Axolotl laughed.

“Still haven’t learned to appreciate them?”  The Axolotl asked.

“Why would I appreciate something so.. Weak?” Bill asked in response, The Axolotl hummed, before closing the clouds and floating over to the middle of the Axolotl’s space between time and space.  The Axolotl had summoned a small, vintage white metal table with floral patterns, and matching chairs, and then a small tea set, with a matching floral tea kettle, tea cups, plates, sugar cubes, cream, and even tea biscuits.

“Sit with me, Cipher.”  The Axolotl asked.

“Do I have a choice..?” Bill asked in a sarcastic tone.

“You always have a choice in my space between time and space, Cipher.  Although, I don’t think you’d like your second option.”  The Axolotl laughed, floating over the chair in a sat position, one leg propped over the other as it was hunched over.  Bill sat in the other chair, picking up the teacup and plate, sipping it from his eye.  Delectable as always, the Axolotl was good at that.

Before it hit him.  His memories.  The Pines Family.  Six Fingers, Shriner’s, Shooting Star... Pinetree.  They had been able to defeat him by trapping him in Shriner’s head.  He was too excited to get into Six Finger’s head he didn’t even realize they pulled a simple switch on him while he was distracted.  His body turned red with anger.

“So, like I said, I didn’t think you’d like your second option.”  The Axolotl laughed.  Bill looked insulted at the Axolotl.

“Why are you laughing at the fact I nearly died!  And by the hands of- humans.” Bill shouted at The Axolotl in anger, wanting to lunge at the Axolotl, but knowing better, he didn’t.

“Because of how much you talk badly about them, you call them weak and idiotic, yet two sets of twins, two nearly at the end of their age and the other two barely starting, defeated you.”  The Axolotl giggled again.  “The others found it hilarious.” Oh great.  Others know.  The dream demon blushed angrily.

“Whatever!  I wasn’t thinking clearly!”  He defended himself.

“Like how humans do?”  The Axolotl teased him further.  Bill was fuming at this point, enough to boil another pot of tea.  “I apologize Cipher, let's get to business.”  He added, and Bill’s anger melted into curiosity.

“Business?”  The dream demon asked.

“Yes Cipher, for why I resurrected you.”  The Axolotl repeated.

“I thought it was because I asked.”  Bill pondered.

“Asked?  It was more like a begging plea.  But no.  I resurrected you because of your unfinished business with a certain Sphynx?”  The Axolotl asked with a smile but it simply made Bill fume once more.

“No.  I don’t.  All of the Sphynx’s are dead.  I made sure of it.”  Bill responded, confused, and angered.

The Axolotl tilted its head to the floor, as the clouds split, and it showed a small clearing in a pine forest.  Bill was confused, and The Axolotl laughed once more, impressed by the Sphynx’s.  The Axolotl cleared the magic dome the Sphynxs made to hide themselves from Bill.  Bill’s eyes widened.

“Once (Mother’s Name) and (Father’s Name) Sphynx saw their family was being hunted, they worked to build a barrier so you couldn’t find their family.  Especially since Mrs. Sphynx was pregnant…”  The Axolotl explained.  Bill’s body ignited into blue flames, and he threw the metal table over, The Axolotl’s magic catching everything before it made a mess.

“Does the child, have the crest.” Bill more demanded than asked, facing away from the Axolotl.

“They do.”  The Axolotl confirmed.  Bill turned around, looking up at the Axolotl.

“What do you want?”  Bill asked, he knew this had to be a trade.  Something in exchange for a second chance.  That’s how The Axolotl has always worked.

“You already know the answer.”  The Axolotl answered.  Bill scoffed.

“It's never gonna happen, Axolotl.”  Bill denied the exchange, and the Axolotl sighed.

“Cipher, you know why I ask you of this.  We’ve been warned, and yet you ignore this warning because you don’t want to change how you act.  How you rule your dimension.  And how you want to rule this one, even though you know you can’t.”  The Axolotl explained.

“We’re not even sure if those stupid rules are true!  We haven’t proven that that happens because of how we behave and work.”  Bill retorted.

“Do you want to risk it Cipher?  After how many have died?  Those who changed have lived, those who haven’t, turned to ash.  Just like they predicted.  Just like they warned.”  The Axolotl explained further.

“Here is my deal, Cipher.  I will return you to Gravity Fall, Oregon.  Your birthplace.  For you to finish your unfinished business.  Preferably the way we’re supposed to.”  The Axolotl held its hand out to Bill.  Bill looked at the hand, before up to The Axolotl.

“And what if I don’t do it the “proper” way?”  Bill asked back, almost the same way a teenager would ask his parent “Or what?”, but he was seriously asking, for his safety.  Being a king of deals, he knew to get every detail.

“Please, do you think this is the first time we’ve had this conversation?”  The Axolotl asked with a smile and a laugh.  Bill felt a shiver up his none existent spine, and he sighed, before rolling his eyes.  He took Axolotl’s hand, no blue flames ignited unlike normal.

“Deal.”

“Wonderful!  I’ll send you down immediately.”  The Axolotl smiled, before clapping his hands once.  As all the tea stuff disappeared.  The Axolotl floated to the clouds, opening up a clearing.

“How are you going too-”  Bill started to ask before he was teleported in front of the opening, his face inches from the Axolotl. “Good luck!”  The Axolotl smiled, before flicking Bill like a bug down to earth. “Boop~”  The Axolotl giggled.

· · ─────── 𓁹 ─────── · · Next Chapter | To Be Continued...

#gravity falls #dipper pines #mabel pines #ford pines #stanley pines #stanford pines #pines #bill cipher #bill #x reader #reader #y/n #y/n sphinx #bill x reader #bill cipher x reader #dipper x reader #dipper pines x reader #mason pines #maeve pines #trans dipper #trans dipper pines #gender neutral reader #gender neutral y/n #non binary y/n #nb y/n #enby y/n #nb reader #enby reader #bill x gender neutral reader #bill x non binary reader

[trollkarubypx]

STARDEW VALLEY: THE CAVE FARM

A homework for a game designer class, we were supposed to plan a new level into our favorite game!

Walkthrough and notes:

ENTRANCE

This is inside of the little cave on your farm. There are three hollow places in wall, shaped for Ruby, Emerald and Aquamarine. Find those and place them in to open secret passage...

INNER CAVE

Its very dark here, but you can see eerie green glow of slowly rippening Glowberries in bushes. To the west, path is blocked by violet crystals, north path is blocked as well. To the east stands a strange statue of a dwarf. "His hands hold shrunk, rotten fruit".

While the Glowberries in here arent ripe yet, a glowing waterfall reveals a fully bush with a berry ready for harvest.

Once you place the glowing fruit into the statues hands, it comes to life.

This dwarf has been cursed by the pesky witch! He says he needs to find his wife, and runs to the west, revealing path in crystals and also clearing way to the east.

CAVE FARM

This is a place where you can grow mushroom crops, cave carrots and moss for fiber. The pink crystal house is not build yet.

DWARF HOME

In this area full of large crystals, you find another dwarf statue. Using another Glowberry, you bring to life dwarf lady.

The reunited dwarf pair stay here witjin their crystalline home. They introduce themselves as crystalsmiths - the husband works as an undeground "carpenter", may build you an underground geode house and even a ladder leading to your farm house.

The wife is a trader and may trade you mushroom spores, used as seeds. They will grow only underground.

You absolutely can tell the pair about Stardew mine dwarf - turns out they are his long lost parents! While the witch cursed them, she also saved them from attack of shadow people.

The dwarves mention also there is a benevolent dragon somewhere underground.

STAIRCASE AND DUNGEONS

The newly opened room on north shows shallow hole in the middle, and three currently dry paths for water, leading into three hallways.

Each hallway leads into a string of ten dungeon rooms. Red, green and blue dungeons have specific color pallette themes, stone, ores and gem themed enemies. They are darkened, lit by many Glowberry bushes. At the end of each dungeon lies tiny room with strange bush like stone in it - activate it with Glowberry to reveal its true form as a large red/ green/blue blossom, which also opens a water spring. You can hop into the water to activate WHEEEE animation while going down a waterslide, spitting you back in Staircase room and adding some water into the shallow hole.

Once all three dungeons are beaten, the hole fills with water coming from the three streams, screen shakes and floor reveals a staircase!

AXOLOTL CAVE

The staircase leads to underground lake, out of which opens a large grey mouth. Throw a nearby growing final Glowbery to revive a large axolotl - he is the kind king of the cave system, and dwarves confuse him for dragon.

As a reward for saving his kingdom, he rewards you with crystal seedlings - you can later trade for more at Dwarf home.

The crystal trees work like fruit trees, but they frow gems! They are the only plant from the caves that you can plant on surface, but there they bear "fruit" only during winter.

---

Thank you for reading, I might work more on visuals if you guys like it :D

#stardew valley #game design #mod #stardew cave #cave farm #long text

[chirimichi]

Pirate Joey has heard many stories, tales, legends, what have you. It’s hard not to when the only source of entertainment he and his crew had were some shanties and stories. Someone could tell a story about how they fought a barracuda to save a dog that somehow fell into the water and they wouldn’t care if it was true or not. Someone could tell a story about their daughter back home and how they’re learning how to walk and they will all coo and aww as they share sentiments about their homes. Someone could just tell any made up stories and they will listen, because what else are you going to do?

One story that Joey completely adores though, is the tale of the Ocean Queen and her Empire. 

One of his crewmates told the story once, when they settled in a cove for the night and they all gathered in a circle in the middle of the ship. They pulled out a worn leather bound book from their bag that they said they found in a sunken ship. The book’s cover has been so damaged that the title isn’t readable, the pages were fragile and some are torn, unsalvageable, having been soaked in seawater for so long. But there are some new pages added; they tried to salvage as much as they can. Now the crew is more excited than before.

They told them about a girl who wanted to make a name for herself, so she decided to build an empire in the ocean. She built islands and brought life to them, with land animals and farms and even people. Slowly but surely, her empire grew and grew into a beautiful but strong one. She married the Mezalean King, but just as they were about to live their happily ever after, a demon named Xornoth ran rampant around their world, causing chaos and mischief wherever they went. So the other rulers have made a plan to defeat the demon once and for all and they were successful!

The Ocean Queen then found that the ruler from the Cod Empire is her long lost brother and they were reunited. But tragedy struck once more in the form of a Rapture. It tore the lands apart and all hell broke loose. Lives were lost and empires were destroyed and that caused most of the rulers to run and abandon their empires. When the Ocean Queen went to check on her empire, the ocean had dried out. 

“I don’t know what happened after that.” The crewmate said mournfully. “The final pages were so damaged that I couldn’t make out anything.” The crew voiced their disappointments but still said that the story was intriguing and they all talked amongst themselves about their own theories. It was a very interesting story, Joey must admit, and it has been his favorite story since then.

“Hey Cap! Do you think the Ocean Empire is true?” One crewmate asked him then, the morning they were preparing to leave the cove they stayed in. 

“I like to believe that it existed at some point.” He answered truthfully, the crewmate beside him excitedly nodded and they kept talking about it until more joined in. It was a fun day just full of theories about the existence of a long forgotten empire. There were even plans to try and find remains of said empire, and though they were said jokingly, Joey can’t help but think that maybe they should do that at some point.

Joey sighs, pulling out the book from his bag. Somehow he managed to save the book when the ship sank. Small mercies, he supposed. The book was even more worn down than before: pages torn and lost and some now unreadable from the water damage. Curse those fucking skeletrons.

He groans, dragging a hand across his face, tiredness digging deep into his bones. He looks down at the book again and then to the waters, and then back at the book. 

Didn’t Pixlriffs say he was a historian? Hm, maybe he should pay him a visit. Maybe they could even look for ruins together in the future. And, oh! Maybe Shelby can find a way to restore the book? That’d be fantastic.

Joey stashed the book carefully in one of his chests and plopped himself on his bed, dreaming of axolotls and a palace made of quartz and corals and a tall faceless woman with blue skin.

#aughhhh people unearthing stuff from the past is one of my favorite trope and u bet ur ass im gonna be absuing that /j #empires smp #empires smp s2 #empires season 2 #joey graceffa #ldshadowlady #chiri writes #didn't bother to check any errors because my brain is currently going beep bop skidebop rn #brain always goes to fnf mode when i have hw it's so weird #anyway bye lmao

[quagmatastic]

Built a new tank the other day. Full of tannins.

I love you axolotl who I haven't named yet bc I'm incredibly indecisive and also bad at naming!

This little guy, in the short time I've had em, has already grown back the missing stump to almost the same size as the other one!

I had a TON of fun building this tank. I used some rock tiles I found for super cheap at the home depot that I really liked, gonna go back for more, simply bc it's so good. I built this tank out of loose stuff and plants that I had hanging around. Fun thrifted pillowcase turned table cloth, clear vinyl, atop of cinderblocks atop some old leftover wooden flooring planks and scrap wood on top of the blocks. Had to use a couple of shims to level it, but I got it there in the end! Rocks are the last of a bag of rocks I had for a different project, as well as the last of my 50lb bag of silica sand. Wood, decor, plants, lights, filter, all are either leftover scraps or clippings from other tanks. The tank itself I got off the classifieds, simply bc it was such a unique color! Not painted plastic, that color is straight from the manufacturer! No idea who makes them, though. Used filter media from their old tank to help kickstart that nitrate cycle.

I had to put this fella in there after my other one, Fermi, confirmed himself to be male and began trying to sex up this one, who is half his size. I only have the two axolotls, and the small one was a rescue I got at an auction (long story). Had em both in there (after a two week quarantine), to observe their interactions and learn more about em, but I don't want a million babies, so it's seperate tanks now. I had to nuke their old tank due to excessive black hair algae, and they shared the new one. Wanna see what it looks like?

This is Fermi, in there, and you can see where the freshly added nerite snail has been! I've been slowly growing out the plants in there. Fun axolotl tip: they love hides! My favorite hide method, and one I've always wanted to try, is terracotta pots that I've smashed in half. Available in a variety of sizes, they make for great naturalistic feeling, easy to decorate, cute, and durable, hides! They're great temperature sinks, leopard geckos, bearded dragons, skinks, it makes for great basking or hiding or cooling off, great moist hide, or dry if you need that.

Unnamed (already growing back their gill stubs) (left), and Fermi (glowing green eyes and vacant mind)

Unnamed (left). Fermi (right). Both are side eying the camera. Neither knows what taxes are.

Unnamed, showing off their regrown arm (the one on the viewers right), with fully functional fingers and all! The little missing bites from their tail have filled in. You can even see where the gills have started growing back (the sharply tapered, thin, and narrow part of the tips). The whole time that arm was growing back, they swam lopsided. Unnamed is a wild type morph, no GFP (green florescent protein) and adorable as all get out!

#cute #nature #aww #reptiblr #adorable #animals #nature photography #reptile #amphibian #axolotlblr #axolotl #axolotes mexicanos #fish tank #tank build #aquarium #full tank shots #pets #my beloved #petblr #not a cat #not a dog #aquascape #aquarium build

[ocmakerofcanada]

The Rewritten Story of Alejandra the Chimera Axolotl ( part 1 )

I’ve rewritten her backstory a little bit, and I have been adding some new things that I would love to show you the first three chapters. I don’t know how many parts I’m going to make of this, but I hope you will all like this tho.

~Chapter 1~

Within Lake Xochimilco in southern Mexico City, There was a secret Aztec water temple hidden in Xochimilco's own little jungle where the skeleton of a great Aztec warrior ( or yaotlakatl as they were called back then ) named Mahuizoh sat there upon a stone throne with his all powerful Macuahuitl in hand. Not only was this temple his home, but it was also the home of Axolotls who lived within the deep waters of the temple. One of these Axolotls was a baby Chimera who would visit the skeleton every day. Looking up to him like he was part of her family. One day, the baby Chimera was just relaxing with Mahuizoh when there was suddenly a light coming from the water before a mystical whirlpool had been created from it. Flushing away the baby Chimera and her family of Axolotls.

That glowing light was actually a portal leading to The Hidden City, and the baby Chimera would be separated from her family before being brought to the lab of Baron Draxum. Where he was planning on turning animals into war machines against mankind along with the DNA of Lou Jitsu ( aka Splinter/Hamato Yoshi ). This plan ( of course ) does not end well, and Lou Jitsu saves all of the animals, as well as 4 mutated baby turtles after battling Draxum and gets mutated into a Rat man. As for the baby Chimera, she was very frightened as many animals ran past her. She tried to hide, but couldn't when the building was about to crumble and be completely destroyed, and she would even get herself mutated as well. Thankfully she managed to escape the lab, but finded herself lost within The Hidden City as a small child now with no home or family...

~Chapter 2~

Within the past 13 years, the baby Chimera Axolotl has grown into her teens and has been a bit of a troublemaker around the streets. She doesn't really mean it in a bad way though, but it's meant for her survival instincts since she was not as strong as any Yokai in The Hidden City. Not only that, but she always felt like she didn't belong here, yet she never knew why since she had forgotten about her past overtime.

One day, She discovered some random box, and took it with her to her little hide away. When she opened the box, she founded a bunch of human things and dvds ( I feel like they would mostly be anime or telenovelas ). The more she interacted with these things, the more she slowly grew an obsession for humans. They had lives that were more interesting then what the Chimera Axolotl has had her whole life down in The Hidden City. She wanted to live amongst these humans, but she didn't knew how or when that would ever happen.

As the months go by, the Chimera Axolotl was doing what she usually does when she spotted something unusual in the distance. When she arrived at the scene, she could've sworn she saw something or someone going through a portal of some sort. While investigating the portal, there was a explosion followed by a large swarm of bugs ( which are the later named Oozesquitos ), and the Chimera Axolotl would find herself getting scooped away by the swarm as they flew into the portal to who knows where. Before she knew it, she would find herself in the air of a whole new world she was in before falling and landing onto the roof of a tall building. When she got a hold of her barrings, the Chimera would find herself in the city of New York where many humans live. This was the start of the Chimera Axolotl's new life outside of The Hidden City...

~Chapter 3~ ( this one is quite long, just a heads up )

The Chimera Axolotl couldn't belive that she was actually in the human world, but she couldn't even befriend them because she didn't looked anything like a human being. So she was forced into hiding, but she had to look all around the city for what her new home should be. After a while, the Chimera Axolotl would take shelter in an underwater cave which seemed to be an abandoned hideout. She didn't come out too often, but the Chimera would sneak her way into the city to gather up food and entertainment. As much as she was enjoying her new life a bit, she realized that she was just as lonely as her old life back in the Hidden City. The poor thing wants to show humans that she is more then just a walking salamander, but she wasn't sure how.

A few months pass, and the Chimera Axolotl would gain enough confidence to actually visit the city without being caught by humans. One night, she was up on the roof eating some pizza ( her favorite being Seafood Pizza ) when she heard something going on down the streets. Curiously, she would sneak herself away to see what was happening. When she got down to the scene, she saw four turtles around her age fighting an evil mutant. Not only that, but they also had powerful mystical weapons. This amazes the Chimera so much, that she gets an idea; If she starts fighting evil mutants too, maybe she could be respected by all of the humans of NYC.

And so, she would gather everything she could find from the internet ( like fighting videos or Lou Jitsu movie clips ) and would begin to train herself. It would take her months, but she would manage to get stronger, and would test out her natural abilities during her training. She would even make herself her own hero outfit based on all of the human anime she had been watching. The Chimera Axolotl, now with new upgrades, would test out her fighting skills on her first evil mutant. It almost went well, until her enemy got the upper hand since she was smaller. Just then, the turtles showed up and the Chimera escaped. She watched from the shadows as they would then take the credit for taking down the evil mutant before a human friend of theirs showed up. The group of 5 then left to go celebrate over pizza and the chimera couldn't help but listen to them. The last thing she heared from the turtles was how proud their father was going to be ( or something like that ).

Later that night, the Chimera Axolotl sat around in jealousy. She was so envious of those turtles. Not only were they such better fighters, but they even had a human friend who was not afraid of them, and they've got a parent of their own. This was the breaking point, because she was so sick and tired of being lonely. She needed to become the better hero so that she could have friends and family of her very own. She then had an idea. That same night, she snuck away into Montes Auction House while it was closed. Looking for a badass weapon. And that's when she found it. In her hands, was an ancient Macuahuitl with wood carved designs and sharp Obsidian blades. ( The same exact Macuahuitl used by the Aztec warrior, Mahuizoh ) She was so amazed by the weapon in her hands that she knew she found the right one. Just then, she heard something outside, and quickly fled the building without a trace. The Chimera Axolotl would then fight against her first evil mutant yet again, this time, actually kicking its butt. It was at this point where she thought that the final step would be to give herself an actual name since she never had one, and decided to rename herself as Alejandra: The Defender of Mankind...

#oc #tmnt oc #tmnt #rottmnt #rottmnt oc #rottmnt retold #rottmnt retold au #retold au #retold #au #rewrite #rewritten backstory #aleja #alejandra the chimera axolotl

[cotlfanficspromptsblog]

COTL(ROTOF) Fanfic

Pt 7 : "A Lamb Between a Rock & Hard Places"

8-23-23

It was another Nice Day in The Midsummer's Cult, Everyone was Enjoying their Day as Usual with The Cult Growing very Successfully from The Farmers Busy Farming with it's resources in Crops becoming very Natural to Have mostly Beetroots, Camilla Flowers & Califlowers in the Seed Boxes. To Many New Members Joining with Just Recently 2 New Members Volvy & Webber from DST(Don't Starve Together Realm aka The Realm of Not Starving) while Volvy is an all powerful evil entity disguised as a Deformed Rat with a Large Hand but Lambert Easily Added them both as New Members as apart of the Growing Family of Cultists.

But Aside from That, There were a Few Big Noticeable Changes specifically with Lamb's 3 Beloved Wives whom were Lady Dimstru The Axolotl & M3gan The Pink Physic Wolf with him feeling it's time let them Ascend Peacefully into The Afterlife with Lambert only cherishing Samantha as his True Beloved Wife than Dimmi & M3gan with him thinking about Sammi's Confession from a few Months ago about her telling him to Kill the 2 girls and only care and spare her life for all eternity next to Narinder but she agreed to bring both her "sisters" back to life whenever he feels like it.

Lambert then was standing around seeing his Wife Samantha working her Bat Wings off at the Farm and Cooking aswell being the most Helpful & Naturally Obedient in the cult since she's been pretty kind and thoughtful with her Requests for her Beloved Leader/Husband from Adding New Members to Cleaning Up things like The Gross Outhouses to even asking to be The Loyalty Enforcer while they were out crusading.

Lambert and Samantha were inseperable always doing the most fun together even on crusades and just with the young lamb always pampering the purple bat demoness the most gifts even more than his "Other Spouses" even Narinder was somewhat Jealous next to his Siblings Leshy, Heket, Kallamar & Shamura(Sammi's Rival) were Surprised too.

As Many Days went by Lambert kept Thinking about his Wife's Deadly Request in that Confession Booth which once it was Nighttime he proceeded with his Plan to Complete the deed by Killing/Murdering Dimmi & M3gan.

*Nighttime, Day 90*

"It was Nighttime, Everyone was Sleeping in their Beds(Regular or Shared Beds) while Lambert was still up but feeling scared as hell to do the deed to slain his 2 Wives. he was pretty steady and quiet doing it and kept turning his head to see if he didn't wake up his victims nor his spared beloved bat demoness or his beloved three eyed death cat Narinder.

The Young Lamb then tip toed and tapped on Lady Dimmi's head she then yawned tiredly as she opened her eyes to see her Husband holding a Dagger in his other hand with the White Axolotl looking shocked and horrified at what she was seeing before she starting screaming for help, lambert immediately covered her mouth with a pillow from her bed.

Lambert : I'm So Sorry Dimmi, Just remember Samantha wanted this.. I will always love you & thank you for being my 2nd wife.. *sniffs* Goodbye my darling axolotl *sobs*

*Stabs Dimmi*

*Lady Dimistru Dies*

Lambert than Stabbed Lady Dimmi in her Chest through her Robe with Blood Immediately spilling out of her chest soon enough the young axolotl started to pass out and fall to her death until Lambert grabbed her and held her Tightly as she slowly died in his arms that whole night.

He then looked at his watch and saw the night was almost over with it being morning right in a few secs with him quickly wrapping her dead body in a body bag and burying Dimmi's dead body in a crypt in the morgue's location. soon enough morning already started just in time and thankfully nobody noticed that Lady Dimistru was dead with no witnesses. all the while Lambert was crying tears still but quickly saw everyone heading to the shrine for their daily worshipping along with Samantha & M3gan whom he knew was his next Murder Victim but as a Sacrifice Instead..

"All is Fair in Love & War"

To Be Continued...

#COTL' #cotl followers #cotl rotof #cotl x dst update #volvy

[ceruleanmage]

mage i need your honest opinion on these lil guys

because they're one of my favorite animals ever (on half of my social media i've had an axolotl profile picture since primary school)

AXOLOTLS MY BELOVED

I LOVE THESE LIL GUYS SO MUCH

10/10, cute lil smiles, adorable eyes, fren shaped

babey

#my brother and I have been playing Minecraft recently again #because an update came out #and they added axolotls in the update #so I have a pond in one of my bases #and I have slowly been adding more and more axolotls to it #soon I will have an army #asks #ask #leneyyo #axolotl #axolotls my beloved #axolotls are up there with frogs #mage’s answered asks

[literaphobe]

I really appreciate the idea of George a college student slowly realizing that his very best friend lives a whole ocean away and is also some kid he met on a minecraft sever. Plus added bonus of George meeting Sapnap and deciding he's gonna have beef with a high schooler before realizing that shit these high schoolers are my friends now. And then slowly but surely his sleep schedule is getting fucked up, his career path has altered greatly, he's a millionaire, he wants to move to America.... and he's never seen his best friends face.

It's just wild to me and honestly I can see how friends could get it easily confused for dating. I love my best friends dearly and maybe if I'd never met them in person + our careers were entangled I'd spend all day on phone calls with them but idk I can't see myself in that situation lol.

george be like. i’m a compsci major. i’m a gamer with a foul mouth. i’m asking a teen to pay me to code for him. i’m working on the same server with the teen who asked me to code for him. i’m friends with the teen who asked me to code for him. i’m laughing at his pyramid code. i’m best friends with him. he’s a high schooler. i’m friends with a high schooler. i’m best friends with a high schooler. holy shit i’m friends with another high schooler. i’m obsessed with nutella. why does my best friend keep telling me i look like shawn mendes. why is my other best friend annoying and argues with me. i am a uni graduate. my best friend is a youtuber. my best friend wants me to be a youtuber. i am now a youtuber. my best friend just gave me $5000 for being a youtuber. i am going to learn helplessness. i refuse to tell my best friend i love him on screen. he desperately snitches whenever i tell him off screen. no one believes him. he gives me more money. he saves me in minecraft. i learn even more helplessness. i am ruining my sleep schedule to hang out with my best friends. i have never met my best friends. everyone thinks i am in love with my best friend. i’m a millionaire. my sleep schedule is even worse now. i have so much pretty privilege. i am going to abuse my pretty privilege. i am a brat. i am a menace. my best friend gives me anything i want. i am going to brag about this and use it to my heart’s content. i am going to make everyone that i interact with give me things for free. i am even more of a millionaire now. i am a millionaire whose job is filming and editing videos. i refuse to edit my videos. my best friend who is richer and busier than me is editing my video for me. i am going to let this go to my head. i am making him edit my next video. he won’t edit my next video. i don’t need him. i have always been independent. the axolotl wasn’t green? i need a haircut. my best friend needs to tell me how to cut my hair or i won’t get a haircut. every time i run into the tiniest inconvenience i will whine to my best friend to help me. he lives five thousand miles away. that is irrelevant. he should be finding some way to help me regardless. i have allegedly never seen his face. i am moving to america. i am filming vlogs with tommy before i move to america. wilbur soot thinks i am dating my best friend. this is entirely his fault for not knowing the memes. several of our friends have no idea what is going on between me and my best friend. i do nothing about these rumors. i make them worse

#ask #WHYS THIS SO LONG MICHELLE STFU #georgenotfound #dreamwastaken #sapnap #mcyt #dnf #i guess? #askplus #onekplus

[illyaana]

credits to the artists who made the fanarts I used!

Dorm Life - Shoto Todoroki

Thanks to @missuga for this collab! Sorry I gave to you late TwT Do check out their collab over here!

Tags: Shoto Todoroki x Reader, Binaural, Fluff, Cursing, Minor Angst, Kissing (escandalo)

Synopsis: A compilation of drabbles of your life during the pandemic, quarantined in the UA dorms.

Word Count: 2734

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Like my writing? Do you want a drabble specifically made for you about your love life with a character of your choosing? Check out my 50 followers event over here!

CLASSES

The Sun let its light brush against your skin, giving you a warm hug in the morning. You awoke to the pale blue skies that were painted so elegantly it made you stare. The cumulus clouds softly danced on its stage, etching a smile on your face. You looked around the room, checking for the clock to see what time it was currently.

10:00 a.m. - You were supposed to wake up at 8:00.

Worry rushed through you. The fear of you being late for class thrummed as you tried to get out of your bed.

Hint: tried.

You turned to your side and looked at the male beside you. His hands had found their way around your waist, pulling you in. His head was pressed against your shoulder. His twin-colored hair was disheveled thanks to him turning himself all through the night, His long eyelashes framed his closed lids, his lips slightly parted. Small snores came out in intervals as he snuggled into you, his vice grip around your body tightening even more.

You could help but trace his lips with your finger - it was so soft, you had to.

You pressed a kiss to his forehead, then laid your forehead against his.

“Get up, Sho - class starts in 10 minutes,” you said, rubbing his shoulder.

“I don’t want to, this is too comfortable,” he mumbled, rubbing his head on your shoulder.

“What are you, a cat?” You joked, placing your hands on his cheek, “Let me at least get my laptop on - I can tell Aizawa we’re sharing my laptop and we can just join the class here.”

“Getting the laptop means that you move - and you are not moving,” he said, tightening his grip on you.

“You know we’re going to be in trouble if we don’t join the class, right? Oh yeah, it starts in 5 minutes,” you said, slightly annoyed at him.

Shoto sighs in defeat, “Fine - but, hurry up,”

You pry his arms off of you and rush to your table to get the laptop on. Thankfully, you managed to join the class 3 minutes before it began.

“Aren’t you coming back in here?” Todoroki whined, patting the space beside him.

“Are you finally awake?” You question him.

“Kind of?”

“ ‘Kind of?’ “

“Yes, I am awake - I no longer need to sleep,” he groans.

You take your laptop and place it in the space between the two of you as you sit back on the bed. You pressed another kiss on his forehead, making him smile.

“Good morning, snowflake,” he says as he returns your kiss with one on your forehead.

“Good morning, Sho.”

“Now that you both have shown a great deal of affection, Y/N and Shoto,” Eraserhead says from your Zoom call, “Can my class finally begin?”

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LUNCH BREAK

“I got the money from Aizawa for our meals! Can you all go through the menu and tell me what you want on the class group chat?” Momo shouted from the living room.

“Imagine eating great food for free?” Uraraka smiled, enjoying how our meals were paid for by the school itself, “The pandemic is amazing yet so annoying at the same time.”

You chuckle at the brown-haired girl, seeing her awe-filled expression.

“What are you getting?” You ask her.

“Hmm… maybe Udon? It’s been a long time since I ate it, and since it’s not coming from my pocket…” she eyed the menu, “I’m getting the most expensive one.”

“You know he gave a set amount for the whole class right?” You look at her mischievous expression.

“I’m pretty sure we can stay within the budget. Our class generally doesn’t spend much money on food, right?”

You looked across the room to see Kaminari and Kirishima going through the menu.

“You think those two will be reasonable with their spending? Knowing them, they’re most probably buying the whole menu plus snacks,” you say, looking at their joy-filled grins.

You saw Shoto walk beside Iida, heading towards the two males. Intrigued, you and Uraraka walked towards the group of four.

“Hey,” you say as you hug Shoto from the back, “Everything okay?”

“These two,” Iida said, anger laced in his words, “Ordered everything on the menu.”

You held back your laughter, unlike Uraraka.

“Your skills in predicting the future astound me, Y/N L/N,” she says, covering her mouth.

“Hush,” you say, smiling.

“The two of you…” Iida began, looking at the two wrongdoers, “I don’t know how your closer friends handle you two.”

You look at the scene unfolding in front of you, smiling.

Iida was full-on lecturing the two males, his hands moving in all ten directions. Kaminari and Kirishima just stood there, dumbfounded. You could see the two of them slowly spacing out from the ‘conversation’, but Iida kept going on.

“Hey,” Shoto whispered, “Wanna have a mini-date tonight? I’ll order a few things and get them sent here, and we can watch a movie together?”

“Don’t use the money Aizawa gave though - we don’t need a third victim of Iida’s lectures,” you whisper, earning a smile from the stoic male.

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MINI-DATES

You opened the door to Shoto’s room, comfortably dressed in your Axolotl onesie. In your hands, you brought a hard drive filled with movies that you felt that you both would enjoy. Seeing that Shoto wasn’t in the room, you laid on his bed, waiting for the arrival of the owner of the room. Your eyes went straight to his mirror. He had slid multiple polaroid pictures of you and your friends in the corners of the mirror. Each one of the photos had a small remark, reminding you of all the memories you’ve made throughout your years in UA.

Your hands grazed on the photo he kept on the bedside table.

It was a picture of him and his mother smiling.

Your chest panged when you saw it. He had told you the story behind his scar and his life within the Todoroki household. His hatred for his father grew every day, yet he could never hate his mother - the very person who gave him the scar on his face.

“I love that picture, but not as much as I love this one,” Shoto said, pointing at a photo in the top-left corner of his mirror.

It was a picture of both of you visiting his mother with Fuyumi and Natsuo.

“I’ll admit Natsuo was not the most welcoming to the idea of me dating you, but he slowly loved you as a sibling. I did talk about you to Fuyumi a bunch of times, but she had her suspicions - that all changed when she met you, though. Mom…”

He hesitated, “...she didn’t like the idea of me dating anyone. Yet, you managed to make her like you so much, now she only asks about you whenever I call her,” he chuckled.

“My family loves you - except Endeavor, of course,” he groaned.

“He’ll come around, eventually. You, however,” you walk up to him and cup his face, “Need to talk to him properly - no filter, just say everything.”

You lie back down on the bed, patting the space beside you, “Hurry up - the snacks you bought are calling me.”

After multiple small banters, you both finally decided on Shrek and began to watch the movie.

After a while, you found yourself lying on Shoto’s chest, playing with his fingers as you focused on the movie. Shoto, however, stared at your cute expressions, taking mental notes of all the small things you did when a scene disgusted you, made you laugh or made you feel sad.

“Y/N,” he whispered in your ear once the movie ended, “Thanks for loving me.”

You turned to face the fire user, cupping his face in your hands. His fingers found their way in your hair, enjoying the feeling of your soft locks against his calloused skin. Your thumb began to move in circular motions, eager to feel his soft skin against yours. You stared into his dual-coloured eyes, enjoying the brown and icy blue flecks within each eye. He relaxed against your touch, warmth radiating from him to you.

“I love you so much, Sho - and I will no matter what happens later on.”

You shared a kiss under the glow of the pale moonlight, but all you cared about was how perfect the man you were kissing was.

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TRAINING

“Hey Sho,” you say, nudging the male beside you, “You wanna train after this?”

“I can’t,” he said, looking down, “I asked Midoriya to help me with some things. The only time he’s free is after this, so…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll ask Uraraka!” you say, kissing him on the cheek, “Good luck with whatever you’re doing with Mido.”

Soon, both you and Uraraka headed to Ground Beta to train your hand-to-hand combat.

“Luckily all of us are vaccinated, or the training grounds wouldn’t be open,” you say, thinking.

“Okay, okay - you wanted to work on hand-to-hand combat, right?” You nodded.

Both you and Uraraka got into your positions, mentally preparing yourselves. You were ready to move towards her until you heard sounds coming from the entrance.

“Well, well, well - isn’t that two students from Class 3-A?” Monoma snickered.

You groaned before turning to face him.

“Hello, Monoma? Where’s Kendo?” you ask, hoping that the ginger would come and stop him.

“Kendo’s eating right now - don’t want to disturb her. I don’t mind messing with the two of you, though.”

“What’s the difference, Monoma?” Uraraka added, “We usually keep quiet, but Y/N and I would like to train, so it would be greatly appreciated if you either kept quiet or left.”

“Why would you want to train with them, though?” He said, looking at Uraraka, “They’re the weakest bitch in your whole class, aren’t they?”

“The fuck, Monoma?!” you shouted, “That’s going a bit too far, don’t you think?”

“What? I’m just stating facts; you entered the class later than everyone else, you’re quirkless since you depend on your weapons, you need to train with others so that you can win 10% of the time - don’t the facts say it all?”

“Monoma, you might want to - ”

“Stop? Why should I?” he laughed, “It’s about time someone told you the truth; you’re useless, unneeded, a waste of space, and never going to be a hero - not even a sidekick.”

“So, the student who single-handedly served you your own ass in a fight doesn’t deserve to stay, but your weak fucking self can stay?” Shoto chuckled darkly, his hand slowly freezing Monoma’s shoulder, “That’s a lot of self-confidence for someone who hasn’t fought well for 3 years straight.”

“Next time you talk shit about Y/N, don’t expect to leave without losing any limbs,” he shouted, scaring Monoma.

“Shoto,” you begin, “Let me fight my own battles.”

He stares at you and sighs. His vice grip on Monoma loosens as you walk towards him.

You run your sword against his hands, small cuts forming.

“Talk shit about me again and you won’t be standing. Get the fuck out, dumbass.”

Monoma runs out of Ground Beta, making you chuckle.

“Damn, Y/N,” Uraraka says from afar.

“That’s my lover,” Shoto says, smiling.

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NIGHTMARES

You woke up to the sounds of Shoto whimpering in his sleep.

His clothes were soaked by his sweat, trails of tears strung down his face.

He was shaking - shivering.

Small screams of Natsuo, Fuyumi and Rei’s names escaped his lips along with soft sobs.

“Shoto!” You shouted, shaking him, “Wake up, it’s only a dream - they’re okay, they’re alive.”

You heard your name.

You heard his voice become louder, screaming your name in pain.

“I’m here, I’m fine,” you whisper in his ear.

“I’m right here, Shoto - I haven’t left you. I am here, hugging you. Wake up, okay?’

You heard his whimpers stop as he wrapped his arms around you. He nuzzled his face into your chest as you patted his head.

“Y/N…” you heard him mumble, “Y/N… you’re fine, right?”

“I’m fine, Sho. I’m here hugging you, aren’t I?”

He nodded, pressing his head against your chest.

“You want to talk about it?”

“No…” he trailed off.

“Okay, don’t worry,” you say, kissing him on his head.

“You want me to get you something? Milk, water…?” you ask him, slowly prying yourself off of him.

“Don’t go anywhere.”

“Ok then, koala - I’m not going anywhere,” you say, chuckling.

You hummed a song as you rubbed Shoto’s back, giving him warmth. You wiped the trail of tears and pressed kisses on his cheek.

If he needs you to be his haven, you’ll be an oasis from all the bad.

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CLASS FUN

“Ok, so - everyone is here, right?” Mina said as she stood in the middle of the living room.

You looked at everyone in the living room. Everyone was excited - after all, it’s been a long time since you all did something together as a class.

“I think everyone’s here, Mina,” Shouji said, passing you your drink.

Shoto placed his head on your shoulder, groaning.

“What’s wrong with you?” you ask, worried.

“I wanted to just sleep in today…” he said, sulking.

“Come on, it’s been a long time since we did something as a class - who knows? This might be our last little thing as a class,” you retort.

He hummed in agreement, “Fine.”

“Great! Let’s bring back an old classic, shall we? The game that made all the couples in this classroom, the game that made the impossible possible,” she looked at Bakugou and Izuku, “Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare!”

“This fucking game?” Bakugo cussed.

“Relax, Kacchan~,” Kaminari said, teasing the other blonde.

“Shut up, dunce face,” Bakugo said with anger.

“Keep quiet, you two. Mina’s getting angry,” Kirishima said, eyeing the pink-haired female.

“So what if-”

“Kacchan, shush,” Izuku said, glaring at his partner.

“Thank you, my green-haired savior,” Mina said, smiling at Izuku.

“Let me re-explain how the game works; Person A will spin the bottle in the middle of the circle until it stops on Person B. Person A will play truth or dare with Person B. Clear?” Mina said, smiling.

The game soon spiraled out of control, just like everyone expected.

Kaminari danced in a maid dress, Shinsou was forced to call Aizawa and Present Mic ‘dads’ in a call on speaker, Kirishima was forced to scream “I’m hard!” out loud, and Mina sang Baby Shark to her lover - something we never thought Kirishima would enjoy.

In the last round, the bottle landed on Shoto.

The person who spun the bottle was Sero.

You knew he had something planned - you could see it in his eyes.

“Shoto Todoroki, truth or dare?” He said, smirking.

You looked at him, begging him to not choose dare.

“Truth, I guess?” he said, looking at you.

Phew.

“What do you and Y/N do when you’re alone?”

Shit.

“Take dare, take the dare, take the dare…” you mumbled under your breath, hoping he’d listen.

“Can I take the dare?” Shoto said, questioning your actions.

Phew.

“Make out with Y/N right here.”

Shit.

“Give them some privacy, Sero!” Uraraka shouted on your behalf.

“He already evaded the truth question, I’m not modifying the dare,” Sero said, huffing.

“Y/N,” Shoto said, looking at you, “Is it okay?”

You sigh in frustration, “I put us in this situation, Sho. Let’s just get it over with.”

Shoto smiled, looking at your pissed expression.

“Look at me,” he whispered in your ear, raising small goosebumps on your skin.

His hands slowly went to your cheeks, eyeing the flecks in your eyes - how they sparkled just for him and him alone. His thumb reached your lips and parted it - enjoying how you were putty in his hands. His hand slowly went from your cheek to your chin, raising it to make your forehead meet his.

“Geez, Y/N,” he said, lust filling his eyes, “You’re so perfect.”

He softly pressed his lips against yours. He sucked on your lips, enjoying the strawberry lip balm you put just before you entered the living room. Your hands gripped on his dual-colored hair, fingers entangled.

The soft kiss soon turned desperate, needy.

In, out, in, out - the synchronization of your lips.

The need for breath soon came and your lips parted from his.

“Well, that was something,” you said, laughing.

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#angelwalker’s virtues #mha todoroki #todoroki x you #todoroki shoto x reader #shoto todoroki #shoto todoroki x reader #todoroki shouto #bnha todoroki #todoroki shoto #todoroki #todoroki fluff #todoroki shouto x reader #todoroki x reader #shouto #bnha shoto x reader #bnha shoto todoroki #shoto x reader #mha shoto #shoto torodoki #bnha shoto

[dragonherder2030]

Cockatiel part 3

S

Atlas fiddled with her webbed fingers as she awaited the rest to arrive. She was sweating her scales off. This is her first time confronting the reptilians, she needed the negotiating chip, she needed to escape the waters.

Pacing around the wetroom Atlas counted the second, checking her hourglass every 15th. The room was filled with about a foot of water, and in the center of it was a large desk, sitting a few feet above the waterline. On it sat a array of non-lethal weaponry like nets and mud slings. Walls made up of thick coral surrounded Atlas, at the top a collection of glass that falls into the ocean, providing little light. None of the weapons were meant for attack, since we weren’t doing that, the only weapon that could actually kill was the one that she possessed, a dagger make of driftwood and whale bone. That also had some special abilities…

Before Atlas could finish her thought the coral door opened, and came in her burly associates, right on time.

Ethan came in first, he’s an fringehead, and known for his ability’s of capture using his large mouth as a slingshot for nets.

Everette was the second, she’s an anglerfish, and was the strongest of the group, she was going to be carrying the victim.

Oz, they were going to be the most important part of the operation. They were going to keep us from being caught, with Xandra’s magical abilities she will be the most dangerous of the group.

Atlas walks to the center of the room, spreading her arms in the traditional welcome.

“Hello! Ethan Everette and Oz. I, so glad you made it on time,” She said, holding her arms up for another 3 seconds.

The others all did as well, moving around to the table.

“Quite with the formal introductions, we all know each other,” Everette says with a smirk, sitting on the ground and plopping her hands onto the table.

“Yeah Atlas, its getting a bit annoying,” Ethan added on, sitting next to Everette and grabbing at one of the nets, examining it.

Oz gave me a toothy grin, their eyes glowing in amusement. Atlas laughs and sighs.

“You all should be more formal, my mother wouldn’t like me hanging out with a bunch of unschooled buff fish,” I say, failing to stop the smile from forming on my face. She takes a seat at the front of the table, sitting on the ground like the rest of her friends.

“Luckily your mommy dearest isn’t here right now, and gave you permission to hang out with us then,” Ethan says with a very laid back demeanor.

Atlas scoffs, “Permission is a umbrella term for her. But we aren’t talking about that right now,” she gives everyone in the room s teasing glare,”We are discussing the upcoming kidnapping.”

“Does it have to be called a kidnapping? I don’t want to need to explain to my brother that I went to a ‘kidnapping’ when I explain why I was gone late today,” Everette says, cutting me off. I scrunch my face up in annoyance at her interruption.

“Tell him it was a party or something, we don’t have time for interruptions! This is a happening tonight and this is serious! You all are just messing around, this society is to good for everyone here to just get eaten!!” I say, slamming my fist on the table. They were always like this.

Oz looks down, looking guilty even though they didn’t do anything. Ethan and Everette also avoid eye-contact with me. They all knew how important this operation was.

“Sorry… this is just, it can mean so much for our society and mom is letting me try this out. We need to take this chance. I shouldn’t have snapped at you, I’m sorry,” I say, folding my hands in my lap. Ethan looked up at me.

“We know how important this is, we just, aren’t used to this level of intensity. But, continue with the plan…” He says, maintaining her gaze. I nod, now isn’t the time for feelings.

“As I’ve said before I’ve planted the flowering dragons in the location I showed you all last week, in the human world. Knowing Xandra and her cult, they will have found it and be after them. When they get there, presumably tonight since I checked yesterday and the dragons are still there, we capture one of them. If it’s a group or just one person, but if Xandra is there which she usually is for strange accuracies like this, leave her to Oz,” I give Oz a glance. They nod, shifting their tail to curl around them.

“Ev, you will carry the victim, and if Ethan can’t either bag them or tie them up. I’ll make sure no one can follow you,” The knife in my hands feels heavy, but I grip it tighter, “I’ll do whatever it takes.”

————————

The operation is underway, I had spotted them arrive on some earth animal and a drake. Xandra was distracted, if we execute it right, there would be no need for Oz to step in. My night vision gave me an advantage as well, I didn’t know if she had it as well, but I assumed she did. The rest didn’t though, no reptile I’ve come across has. Looking to my left, Everette held a large, wet sack. I wait for Xandra to hand the flowering dragons to the blue belly, and lift her head back up. I nod at Everette and she slowly creeps up to the lizard closet to the water, an iguana. I clutch my knife close to my chest, and walk out of the water, the atmosphere was wet enough to go on land, as well as the mud. I slam my feet into the ground, making my footsteps echo. A light shines onto me, I stare past it to Ethan, who has crawled up behind the drake and holding a blob of mud. I stare back, seeing the blue belly back up to its growling drake, she says something, then I hear Everette bagging the iguana. I run onto land, seeing Ethan pounce behind the blue belly and fill her face with mud. I ran at the Axolotl, pouncing on them, getting on top of them and lifting my knife threateningly. They cover their face in fear. I look to the left and see Everette swim away as the iguana thrashes around in the bag. A pain jabs me in the gut and I see that the Axo has decided to fight back. I lift my body back and slam it into the Axo, swiveling my knife in my hand and punching them with the handle end. Their eyes roll back in their head and I feel them go limp under me. I look to the side and see the blue belly putting up quite the fight with Ethan, and had somehow gotten onto her drake, it and Ethan were having a hissing fit at the moment. The mud under my feet felt familiar, and I ran across it and grabbed onto the hips of the drake, swiveling my legs under my arms and landing a kick onto the blue belly. Falling off the drake, I rolled out. Ethan could take care of her, did Everette escape?

I looked up to see Xandra tending to the Axo, this was the perfect time to escape, Xandra wouldn’t leave her comrades. Quickly getting up I whistled at Ethan, it echoing to hopefully Oz. I run to the edge of the water and jump in, diving under, trying to get to the bottom. I hear Ethan jump in after me and join me at the bottom. We swim along it together, in the path we had chosen, holding our breath.

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Woo! Part 3/4 I have finally decided the next one is the last one. This has been fun so far, we meet our villain. Sorry for the weird 3rd person to 1st person change, I’m just to lazy to edit it XD. Alsooo sorry for the more explainy dialogue and stuff, I just wanted to make sure I got the ideas I wanted across.

Part 1 - Here

Part 2 - Here

Part 4: Here

#writing #smaugust #smaugust 2021

[punkpal]

Get To Know Me Better! (tag game)

@tidal-wav3s thanks for tagging me dude!!

Fav color: Lots of people get surprised when i say this but pink has and always will be my favourite colour.

Last song I listened to: Four Walls - While She Sleeps

Fav musicians/bands: God i have so many but the first few that come to mind are Parkway Drive, My Chemical Romance, Five Finger Death Punch, Green Day, Architects, All Time Low, A Day to Remember, Hellions, Slipknot, Secrets, Ocean Grove, Korn, In Hearts Wake, Awaken I Am, Whilst She Sleeps, Slowly Slowly, Young Lions, Trophy Eyes, The Plot In You, Queen, The Maine, Linkin Park, Hands Like House, AD/DC, Evanescence, Dream On Dreamer, Asking Alexandria, Crown The Empire, Camp Cope, Bring Me the Horizon, System of a Down, Disturbed, The Used, Brand New, Blink-182, Bad Omens, Tonight Alive, Stick To Your Guns and lots lots more. When i was putting together this list i was gonna make it a max of 10 bands but then i kept thinking of more and more and eventually i just had to stop otherwise this list would become novel length. Basically the consensus is i like lots of music and any of the band i reblog shit from are favs.

Last film I watched: Sicario and it was shit so take my word and don’t fucking bother.

Last tv show I watched: I just finished rewatching The Umbrella Academy season 1 to get myself psyched for season 2. I also just finished watching the netflix mini series documentary ‘Unabomber: In his own words’ which was pretty good. And I am also currently binging The Office (US) and am just starting season 8. 

Fav original character: So i am writing (admittedly mostly just in my head although a little less then a quarter has been written as a rough draft on a word doc) a rather length fantasy/vampire novel. Its part romance, part drama, part revenge fantasy, part anarchist vigilante revolution au and tbh part me just self projecting my trauma and dysfunctional life onto my characters... And whilst it likely will never see the light of day because of my lack of motivation to write the entire thing down and instead just reference it when i am day dreaming. I really vibe with the alternative universe as an escape from the real one i am living in and i have a vested interest in the characters i have created in it. And whilst there are numerous ocs from this that i have put an alarmingly long amount of time (literally years) into developing all of which i love and adore i do have two favourites. One named Taylor who is a gay 2946 year old idiot/himbo (vampire obviously). He is hot, sweet, kind, caring, funny, understanding, stubborn, the mum™️  friend, a romantic fool with a a hint of mummy issues and anger problems and a complete fucking allergy to guilt. And the other is his prodigy/person he turned vampire named Meredith. She is 354 year old hot mess and is kinda the opposite of him in that she is homicidal, manipulative, cunning, devious, fearless (almost to a fault), strong willed women. Who is very smart, has a strong/forward and somewhat off putting personality, low key a bit of a bitch but is very protective of those she loves and has good morals and the desire to right all wrongs even if through violent revenge if she sees fit. She is the leader of a criminal underworld revolution seeking to bring revenge and justice to the powerful and untouchable evils of the world. And he is her loyal side kick that lets her run the show as she is a natural born leader, but also works as a the voice of reason and logic to her. All the while having his own sub plot of being torn between chasing his love interest despite the danger it possesses. Or sacrificing his own desire for connection and love for fear of the consequences despite it meaning living a sad and eternally lonely life. Thats just a very brief summery of those two. They have a very close but complicated relationship with each other, like annoying siblings but imagine if you had to live with your siblings for centuries. And they all have there flaws (some more obvious then others) as well as dark, morbid and tragic histories but it makes them what the are today both the good, the bad and the downright problematic. And yeah i’d like to think one day i will write this out properly and others will read it and connect to or relate to these characters. Maybe love them, maybe hate them, maybe initially hate them, like is designed with Meredith, but come to truly love her once they begin to understand her and see her potential thats hidden under layers of ‘don’t fuck with me’. But until then they are my characters to play around with and build upon and thats exactly what i intend to do.

Sweet, spicy, or savory: Sweet!

Sparkling water, tea, or coffee: Can i say hot chocolate or juice?

Pets: Living with me is my son and best friend Gideon (he is a adult black male cat i adopted a year ago and he is the best thing that has ever happened to me.) Living with my sister is my family cat i grew up with named Maisey (she is a snobby fat cat with a beautiful coat and i love her although i don’t think she loves me/or anyone.) And then at my mums is her puppy Newfoundland Bentley (basically god combined a dumbass and a dog and made him) as well as my brothers turtle Pedro and my axolotl Voldemort (can’t fit his huge tank in my apartment so he stays with mum.)

I’m tagging: @bilvy @revradio @cxmeterydrxve @angryqueercrypted @prettyyy-boyyy @disenchanted-mona-lisa @burymeinpink @thotfrnk @r1ghtbackatitaga1n @solelll @gothbtchz @highhighhopless @re-imagine @x-give-em-hell-kid-x @greendayer @dramaticallydepressed @lyricsinmyblood-bloodinmylyrics & @imsopunkrxck obviously this isn’t a obligation, do this tag game only if you want. And if you weren’t tagged but wanna take part then do tag me in your own and i will read and like it as i love learning about my followers passions and interests!

#also this is the first time i have talked online about my alternate universe story and original characters #if you like what you hear and wanna know more as what i wrote was only the tip of the iceberg in regards to what there is to know about them #then hmu and ask any questions you have because i'd love to talk more about them because obviously they are both old as fuck #and therefor have a lot of back story and theres so many different aliments to the plot with a whole lot of side/sub plots #and other characters and i have done a load of research so as to have all of the stuff that i wrote based in the past to be historically #accurate and just yeah i know no one cares but if you do then please ask me about it because i have so much more to say! #also don't judge me even though i deserve it lol

[clownsgobeepbeep]

Stick Together

@grodygabe

How long did this take me? I don’t know and I don’t want to think about it X3 But uuuuh, finally the fic fgor Damian and Flora meeting! I hope it’s good ^^’

There weren’t exactly too many people, but it was still difficult to not find the situation somewhat overwhelming.

Nine adults.

Six kids, not including him and his two siblings.

Damian mostly watched everybody, observed how they interacted with each other. It was still a rather curious thing that all three siblings had been quickly accepted into the family that clearly did not just stop here. It was a big family from what they had been told, only those that were directly related to their adopter had come, those being her parents, siblings, their spouses and their own children. Even then, it was still fifteen people as well as Damian and his siblings.

Funny enough, these weren’t even all of the new cousins they would be meeting. The youngest of them all had been sent off to the homes of their other grandparents, adding another five kids into this mere mix.

Damian sighed to himself as he stood in place, actually leaning against a wall as he saw the adults chatting with each other. Of course, his brother was amongst this crowd, eager to meet and learn everything about this new family.

In front of Felix were two rather tall and well built men, Atlas and Schrader were their names. They were apparently married to each other, but also married to his adopter’s elder sister who was much shorter compared to the two.

Felix was clearly already fascinated by the two men, one being a musician and carnival owner while the other was a book-shop owner, quite the scholar type.

That was another thing Damian learned about this family, business careers really coursed through their veins.

A few feet away was his younger sister, clinging onto Cordelia who was introducing her as best as possible to a couple: Cordelia’s brother and his wife. Next to them was a young boy, a smaller version of “Davey”, and the boy was clearly of the shy type like Margaux.

“Damian, honey?”

A woman’s voice was heard behind Damian, prompting him to turn around after removing himself from the wall to face the woman that had approached him.

“You don’t mind me calling you any names like that, right?” said the woman introduced as Coraline, Cordelia’s mother who also went by Coral or even...Jelly. Apparently, she really loved jellyfish.

“I guess not.” Damian slightly shrugged as he looked at Jelly, seeing that she gave him a warm smile.

“Would you care for some cheeseburgers or hot dogs? Or is there anything else you might want?”

“I’m okay for now.” Damian slightly waved his hand. 

“Do you at least want to take a seat?” she offered, motioning her hand to a lone table in the dining room beside the kitchen, this being apart from all the tables that had been set up for all of the guests. “I know how overwhelming meeting so many new people can be. Even though I’m a business-woman and a socialite, I understand the feeling. It’s nice to be alone sometimes.”

Damian eyed the table before looking back at Jelly for a bit.

“I can bring over some snacks for you, maybe a laptop or something so you can be entertained.”

He continued to look at her for just a bit, then giving a slight nod.

“I...I appreciate that.” he spoke up, Jelly nodding in response before Damian walked into the kitchen and took a seat. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” she gestured before making her way out, leaving Damian to sit alone in the kitchen.

He examined his surroundings, noticing the slight mess of dishes that were most likely left for after the family get-together. Besides the things meant for the cheeseburgers and hot dogs, there were some seafood leftovers. Clam chowder specifically, he had heard that chowder was one of the possible foods being served today.

Damian was then startled when he heard some scuttling, nails scraping against the floor before a flash of blue came into his sight. This blue figure nearly crashed into the doorway as it came into the kitchen, actually bumping into a chair after it practically ping-ponged around.

“Mana! Slow down!”

The boy stood up from his chair in an instant before he finally saw the blue creature near him: a rather...he actually didn’t know what it was he was looking at.

“Mana!” 

Damian brought his arms up in a sort of defensive manner as he felt something be placed on his lap, something that was wiggling in pure excitement.

“Oh Damian, I’m sorry. He just got too excited.” 

In front of Damian was the strange creature he had briefly seen earlier, wagging its tail as it gave him a wide smile with a tongue that lolled out in pure glee. On the creature were now the hands that belonged to Cordelia’s sister.

“What...what is that?” Damian blinked at Mana who wiggled with excitement, jumping around in Ula’s arms as he was eager to properly meet the new family member. 

“This is Mana, he is an al-, ahem. He’s an axolotl. A much larger one.” Ula explained as she settled Mana down, petting his head as he sat in a calmer manner.

“Why does he look like that?” Damian pointed at Mana who could only smile.

“What do you mean?” Ula gave a chuckle as she kneeled down to Mana’s height, holding him to make sure he wouldn’t jump up on Damian again. 

“Just...I don’t know.” Damian shrugged as he examined more of Mana. “I saw him earlier. He acts like a dog but...isn’t.”

“Because he’s an axolotl. Part of the salamander species.”

“I’ve never seen an axolotl that big.”

“He’s a big axolotl. From a totally different part of the world.”

“What part?”

“I see you’ve finally met Mana!” Jelly’s voice was heard from the doorway as the clicking of her high heels followed, Ula sighing in relief as she knew there would be more questions she needed improvised answers for. “How is the goodest of boys treating you?”

“Um...good?” Damian’s eyes remained on Mana who wiggled even more at the sound of Jelly’s words, clearly proud of himself for achieving such a title.

“Mana is a long time family-member, always been there for your Auntie Ula and now her own kids.” Jelly pet Mana’s head. “Ula, how about you take him outside? Your dad prepared some squid for him.”

“Sounds good.” Ula nodded before standing up, still making sure that she had a hold on Mana so that he wouldn’t jump Damian again. “I’ll talk to you later Damian, I hope you’re enjoying yourself.”

“Thanks.” he replied as Ula made her way out, leaving Damian alone with Jelly who was setting down a few things she had brought over. He noticed that it was a few plates that she had perfectly balanced over her arms, but she also had been carrying a box that aided her in bringing everything to the table.

“I brought some of the food from the grill as well as desserts. There’s a cheeseburger, hot dogs, some cake and cookies. Before you eat those, eat the other things, there’s also fries that I made earlier so they should still be at a decent warmth. You’re not vegetarian or anything, right? No allergies? I know I should have asked earlier.” Jelly stopped herself before Damian shook his head. “Oh, that’s perfect. However, Damian, if there’s anything you don’t like, you can just leave it here and I’ll come back later to pick it up.”

“Okay.”

“Also, I didn’t know what you wanted to drink. Is there anything in particular you’d like? We have extra soda cans stored in the fridge as well as lemonade.”

“Some soda would be alright.”

“Got it.” Jelly nodded before opening the fridge and taking out at least three cans of soda. “You can have more than one if you want. I’m not sure if you’re like your brother who has had quite the few already.”

“Felix tends to go a bit overboard with food.”

“I noticed, he’s just like your cousin Rowan. Those two immediately clicked.” Jelly gave a chuckle before giving a sigh, excitement having gotten to her just at the sight of Damian. “If I’m being too overwhelming, or anyone is, you just make sure to tell us, okay?”

Damian stared at her for a moment before softly shaking his head, his gaze remaining down before his eyes trailed on over to the box Jelly brought with her. This was when he realized that it was perfectly wrapped in a paper that had teal waves on it. To finish it all off was a shiny, golden ribbon and bow that almost glistened under the kitchen light.

“I didn’t want to give it to you with everyone all over you, it does get uncomfortable when all eyes are on you.” Jelly ran her fingernails over the gift, eventually scooting it closer towards Damian who now looked up at her. “You open it when you’re ready, it’s just one of the welcoming gifts I got for you and your siblings. They have their own now, Felix just couldn’t help but rip the box to shreds.”

“I can imagine.” Damian breathed out, carefully reaching out to grab a hold of the box that was slightly heavy, and he gave it a slight shake as he wondered what was inside. “Um, thank you, again.”

“No need to thank me.” Jelly reassured him with one last soft smile before she made her way out of the kitchen again, making sure to close the pet-proof fence Damian just noticed in the doorway. That was something that was clearly needed often after Damian and his siblings learned that this home also happened to be an animal sanctuary of sorts.`

After making sure that he was completely alone, Damian once again shook the gift box before setting it down in front of him. He slowly began to peel back at the wrapping to then see a cardboard box he began to open once finding the appropriate spot.

The box was a bit heavy indeed, and Damian could now see why. There were a plethora of gifts inside the box, each one individually wrapped up as well. He decided to go for the biggest one first, tearing away at the shiny paper before his eyes widened.

On the box Damian read the words “NINTENDO SWITCH”, the boy not being able to resist a slowly forming smile as he realized this really was being given to him. He had to stare at it for a good while, almost not believing that he was actually holding this device in front of him. This couldn’t be a joke.\

Damian carefully peeled off the tape to then open the device’s box, realizing that it indeed was there along with everything that came with it.

He remembered that there were other gifts yet to unwrap, so he began to do just that.

“Protective case, backpack, game case, stand, rubber grips, earbuds...this is insane.” Damian looked over everything before coming to the last of the gifts, a rather thin and rectangular box that was very light. Once the wrapping had been ripped off, he blinked a few times as he read the title of what he knew was a game in his hand. “Animal Crossing?”

A game where he could create almost anything he wanted...he could grow all the flowers he ever wanted and not a single one would die on him. Oh god...this was perfect.

“I see that smile.~”

Damian slightly jumped at the sound of a voice, gaze now on the doorway as the little door opened up to reveal a girl not much taller than it. She looked a lot like that one man he’d met before, Schrader. 

She had long, black hair as well as hazel eyes that sparkled under the kitchen light. Skin slightly darker than her fathers that was tinted by rosy blush on her cheeks, no doubt something she always had.

“Hee hee, sorry if I spooked you.” she giggled to herself before giving a curtsy that took Damian by surprise. “You might have seen me earlier but I was busy with my sister. She’s the one with dark brown hair and blonde streaks. She can be shy at times so I try to help her out with people.”

“I noticed.” Damian blinked at her, finally snapping out of it before the corners of his lips ever so slightly curled up as he recognized the sweet gesture.

“You’re Damian, right?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s a nice name, I like it a lot.” Flora continued to smile as she made her way into the kitchen, Damian now taking notice of the two baskets she had with her. “I have something for you Damian!”

“Is that so?” Damian looked over the baskets as he saw that one was smaller than the other.

“Yeah!” 

“Oh.” Damian blinked once, somewhat expecting this to be some joke. “R-Really?”

“Uh huh.” she nodded before making her way to Damian, standing beside his chair to present him with the larger basket that he eyed. “I brought lots of cookies! My mommy likes to make toooons of different types of cookies. And we made some candy apples, some are chocolate-covered, some have actual caramel and stuff. Also, my mommy runs two cafes, though one is more of a tea shop, so she also let me put in some of the drink stuff she makes; you can make your own tea! And then, and then...oh...I’m rambling. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay.” Damian soothed the back of his neck as he felt himself flustered,it was a surprise to get gifts...especially this many thoughtful ones. The large basket was placed on the table beside all of Damian’s gifts as he tried to ignore his flustered state.

“No, no. I need to calm down, I don’t want to get as hyper as my brother Rowan. He can be a bit much at times.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh yeah, I live with him.” Flora playfully rolled her eyes before giggling to herself. “Hey, you wanna know a fun fact?”

“Uh, sure.”

“Rowan and Basil are twins. Just like Willow is my twin!”

“That’s cool.” Damian nodded. “Not identical ones of course.”

“Nope!” Flora laughed as Damian continued to nod, slowly coming to a stop as he realized...these girls and boys had different fathers. Both married to the same woman who was their mother but...they were twins...how was such a thing possible. “It might sound weird, but we’re twins for sure. It’s a thingy called superfecundation I think? It’s real, I swear.”

Damian had to process everything for a moment, eventually wagging his head before paying attention back to Flora who continued to smile up at him.

“Hey Damian?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you mind if I sit next to you?” Flora pointed to the chair beside Damian with a hand he realized was gloved. “It’s okay if you don’t want me to.”

“I…” Damian straightened up in his chair, packing up all the gifts back into the box they had been placed in. “Go ahead, I don’t mind.”

Flora’s smile widened at his response before she placed her smaller basket on the table, pulling out the chair before her short frame climbed onto it. She adjusted the poofy dress she wore until she was comfortable, smoothing out the fabric on her lap before she went back to grabbing the basket she had set down, grinning as she stared at Damian.

“I also wanted to introduce you to my friend.”

“Friend?”

“Uh huh.” Flora nodded before scooting the basket towards Damian, allowing him to peek inside as he saw a bundle of vines and plant tendrils. “This is my friend Twoey. They never leave my side.”

“Twoey? Like, from Little Shop of Horrors?” Damian brought a hand up, motioning with his finger to the plant as Flora nodded in excitement.

“Yes! I’m so glad you caught onto that.” she softly caressed one of the tendrils that was draped over the basket. “I love that movie a lot, I like both of the endings. How about you?”

“I enjoy them both.” he tilted his head in thought. “The happy ending is pretty nice, though the cycle will no doubt start again because of the baby plant. The bad one seems a bit more realistic honestly, capitalism causing all that disaster.”

“Oooh definitely!” Flora continued to stroke the plant. “But yeah, this is Twoey. Twoey, say hi to Damian.”

Damian looked down at the plant, not expecting any sort of movement from it, so he wasn’t surprised when he saw no kind of motion as tendrils merely hung loose around the basket’s edges.

“Hi Twoey.” he actually smiled, carefully grabbing the tip of a tendril to shake it like he would a hand. “My name’s Damian. You look very lovely and green.”

Flora watched the interaction, having to stifle a giggle before she spoke up.

“They appreciate the compliments.” she gently pet another one of the tendrils. “So...do you have a favorite song from the movie?”

“Hm?”

“From Little Shop of Horrors. Is there any particular song you might really like?”

“Oh...there’s the dentist one...and the one that Twoey sings before eating Mr. Mushnik.”

“Suppertime is a good one, and Dentist is very funny.”

“Do you have any you like?” now Damian asked, catching Flora off-guard, smiling nonetheless.

“I like Mean, Green Mother From Outer Space. Also Somewhere That’s Green.”

“Is that when Audrey sings about her and Seymour?”

“Yes, I think it’s very sweet.” Flora shrugged as she set her basket aside, noticing the food that Jelly had left earlier. “Have you eaten yet?”

“Not really. I was focused on opening these gifts.”

“Ooooh! Did you also get Animal Crossing?” Flora peeked up at Damian’s gift box as he nodded, taking out the gamebox of said game.

“I’m excited to play this.”

“I’m excited to add your friend code! I can give you so many flowers if you want! I have so, so many on my island, even the hybrid ones.”

“I would actually like that.” Damian smiled a bit more. “Do you like to garden?”

“Of course! It’s probably all I do. Okay, well, maybe not. Maybe yes.” Flora shrugged. “I really, really love plants. How about you?”

“I love them, I also like to garden.” 

“Do you happen to have a favorite plant?”

“I like...white egrets…”

“Those are so lovely!” Flora quietly clapped her hands so as to not create a ruckus. “Maybe we could grow some of those together one day, I know my mommy has plenty of supplies for those. If you’re okay with that stuff.”

There was a new silence between the pair as Flora smiled up at Damian, grinning before she brought a finger up to her chin to tap it.

“Do you happen to have any favorite movies Damian?” she questioned. “Is Little Shop of Horrors one of them?”

“Yeah, I guess it is.” Damian replied as he pondered at the question. “I guess Halloween is another one. And...well, nevermind.”

“No, no. It’s okay, you don’t have to be shy.” Flora reassured him. “I’m not here to judge.”

“Well, I also do like the movie Anastasia.”

“That’s a very nice one.”

“Yeah...do you have a favorite movie?”

“Besides Little Shop of Horrors…” Flora tapped a finger on her chin, then shrugging. “I don’t really know!”

“Okay, I can understand. Picking out movies can be a little hard.” Damian nodded as he shifted in his seat, already feeling a bit more comfortable as he thought to himself. “Do you have a favorite animal?”

“Elephants! I love elephants!” Flora practically slammed her fists on the table before realizing how hyped she was getting, then clearing her throat before she smoothed out any possible wrinkles from her puffy skirt. “I really like elephants, they’re so cute. How about you? Do you have a favorite?”

“Raccoons.”

“Raccoons are so cute too! We have a pet raccoon.”

Damian made a bit of a surprised face at the sound of this, blinking for a moment as Flora giggled to herself. 

“Well, we don’t. But my great-great grandpa does, it was my great-great grandma’s raccoon. His name is Nikolai.”

“Wait, wait…” Damian held a hand up as he processed the addition to Flora’s words. “Great...great grandpa? Is he alive?”

“Yeah!”

“How...how old is he?”

“Ooooh...I’m not really sure.” Flora shrugged with a smile. “But my mama Jelly told me that it’s rude to ask about someone’s age, so I never try to find out. She does get upset if somebody asks her that.”

“She does look pretty young for being a grandma to this many kids.”

“Oh yeah, mama Jelly is so beautiful. She’s like the queen of the sea.” Flora fawned at the thought of Jelly, clearly an idol of hers. “But anyways! What’s your favorite color? Do you have a least favorite?”

“Oh. I like green. I’m not big on navy blue specifically.”

“Green is so lovely, it’s also my favorite...our family really loves green, my daddies like to wear it often while my mommy loves wearing teal. Do you have any favorite desserts?”

“Hm, dulce de leche ice cream is one. I enjoy crepes and funnel cake too.” Damian answered before making a bit of a face. “I’m not a fan of yogurt though.”

“That’s understandable.” Flora nodded before a grin came across her face. “But hey! Speaking of crepes and funnel cakes, do you like carnivals?”

“I love carnivals.” Damian gave a soft nod. “I don’t mean to brag, but I haven’t lost a carnival game since I was 8.”

“Whoa, really?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s so cool! You should come to my daddy’s carnival!”

“Your dad owns a carnival?”

“Yeah! It’s horror themed, so many people are pretty scared of it.”

“That’s pretty cool. I’d totally go if there were no actors touching me.”

“Hee hee, well…” Flora glanced to the side for a moment. “There is a section where the actors can interact with you more...but for some reason, every time I go, they never scare me too much. I don’t understand why.”

“That’s...scary.”

“It’s especially scarier with all the music they put, my daddy writes most of it. He’s very musical.”

“What’s he play?”

“Almost any instrument you can name.” Flora stated in a proud manner. “In fact, my mommy is also musical. They two used to be in a band together, she was the lead singer.”

“What?”

“Yeah, yeah! It was called Cin-O-Surre. It consisted of them and three of my uncles. They were sooo cool, I wish they were still a band.”

“Like, a band-band?”

“Yup.”

“Wow...did they ever make it big? What’d they play? Wait, were they big enough to go on tours?”

“They could have been more famous but they all agreed that they never wanted to do that sort of stuff. They preferred to play in small places, do small performances, only do big events if it was to help someone out.” Flora now held a cell-phone in her hand, no doubt hers with how cute-sy it was accessorized. “They would play emo stuff, rock I think? I heard my mommy also developed a ‘heavy-metal- voice after a while and they tried that out, but that’s a legend hehe.”

“My kind of music.” Damian peered down at the phone that Flora now handed to him, having found old pictures in old posts, no doubt from years before even Damian was born. “Is this them?”

“Uh huh!” Flora let Damian scroll through the pictures of Flora’s parents at a much younger age, so different yet so...the same. They looked exactly as they did now. Just less adolescent. Flora’s no doubt had a big change in style, looking like a goth in some pictures or the typical teenage girl to...dressing in a much more sophisticated style. Minus the facial piercings, but those weren’t anything bad of course.

“Wow. This is interesting.” Damian handed the phone back to Flora. “So...why’d they disband?”

“I actually don’t know...I’d have to ask my parents. My deer dad might know too, he was never really part of the band but he was always there.” Flora put her phone away as she thought to herself for a moment, then pushing those thoughts away. “Now my daddy owns a carnival, my deer dad owns a bookshop, and my mommy owns a cafe but also does painting in her free time. I have seen her post singing videos every now and then though, people do definitely miss her.”

“She paints?”

“Yes! If you ever see a really cool and pretty painting somewhere around here, it was most likely her who did it. She and my mama Jelly really love to paint. I’ve been learning. How about you?”

“Me?”

“Yes, do you like painting?”

“I do actually. Just like gardening, and I like to play video games.”

“I think you’d get along with Basil, those are basically some of his favorite hobbies too.” Flora clasped her hands together as she hoped for another friend for her brother. It wasn’t until she realized that Damian’s eyes avoided hers that she realized that maybe this wasn’t one of those cases after all. In fact, not even that was necessary to know how Damian was feeling about her brother, he wouldn’t be the first to react in such a way.

“Damian?” she called his attention before he looked back at her, offering a soft smile in an attempt to comfort him. “What do you think of our family so far?”

“Your parents are nice...I like them all.” Damian shared as he clasped his hands together on the table, fiddling a bit with his thumbs. “Your mom’s really sweet, she makes me feel very calm. So does Atlas...why do you call him deer dad?”

“Because he really likes deer.”

“Ah, I see. But yeah, I guess they’re cool.”

“What do you think of my daddy?”

“He seems awesome. Especially with what I’ve heard about him. He looks cool, acts cool. I like talking to him...that’s somebody I’d look up to.”

“He really is awesome.” Flora agreed, thinking of very many things Schrader had done that perhaps Damian would learn of some day. “What about Uncle Davey and Aunt Ally?”

“I like Davey, he seems cool too. Is he...a pirate? He seems to really like pirates?”

“If only you knew about his pirate ship.~”

“So he is.”

“I guess so.”

“He makes me a bit anxious...he looks very…”

“Grumpy?”

“Yes?”

“Uncle Davey isn’t grumpy, but he kinda is. He was such a grumpy baby and then child from what mommy has told me. He usually looked so grumpy that they called him the Scrunched Creature.”

“Oh gosh.” Damian quietly laughed at that. “I hope there’s some picture of that.”

“I could always ask my mommy, she has so many pictures of her siblings. She still calls my uncle her baby brother hee hee.” Flora snickered at the thought of it, even the times when her mother managed to carry her uncle like a child. Golly how embarrassing that must feel like. “How do you feel about Aunt Ally? I know you haven’t properly met Finnian and Celeste, but that can always wait.”

“She’s clearly very sweet. I like her macaroons, they look so detailed.”

“She hopes to sell some one day, she has done it and lots of people have purchased them! She’s just not too confident she could make a business boom. I think she could though.”

“They are tasty treats.” Damian nodded in agreement before letting Flora continue.

“How do you feel about my brothers and my sister Willow?”

“Willow is...so sweet and kind...I don’t think I’ve ever met such a good child besides my sister.”  Damian commented as he remembered the shy twin of the two. “She’s almost so...fragile. She’s Atlas’ daughter, right?”

“Yes. Just like Rowan and baby Dahlia are, but you haven’t met her yet.” Flora used her fingers to count, having lifted three fingers for now before more lifted as she counted more names. “Meanwhile, Basil, me and Frankie are Schrader’s, but we all share the same mommy.”

“Okay…”

“Anyways, how do you feel about Rowan?”

“He’s...um, not my type exactly, he’s more suited for someone like Felix. Heck, they’re perfect for each other.” Damian widened his eyes for a moment. “It’s nice seeing someone closer to Felix’s age bonding with him, they just immediately clicked.”

“I can see them having so much fun.” Flora gave a nod before her smile slightly faltered. “And...how do you feel about Basil?”

“Basil?” Damian turned to her, releasing a sigh after a moment of silence. “Well...he’s, uh...he’s...he’s family…?”

“Good try.”

“Thanks.”

“But really, how do you feel about him?” Flora questioned, hoping that she wasn’t prying. “I know some people tend to be scared of him upon first meeting. He’s actually a nice person...I know it doesn’t seem that way, but he is nice. You would never expect him to hang out with someone like Rowan, but they’re twins! They’re always together. He can be nice after a while.”

“Basil...does scare me a little.” Damian’s voice quieted down before he leaned in closer towards Flora, feeling the need to whisper. “Is it true he carries around a knife?”

“...yes.” Flora also leaned in to whisper, making sure to wave her hand a bit. “But it’s only for like...self-defense. He’s not allowed to use it unless it’s necessary. My mommy doesn’t allow it.”

“That’s...ha...got it.” Damian nervously chuckled to himself, ready to lean back before Flora motioned for him to stay close.

“You wanna know something funny about Basil?”

“Sure…”

“He’s a mama’s boy. Ever since he was born.”

“Really?” Damian breathed out before Flora nodded with a smile, this in turn making him give a slight chuckle.

“Yup! You can ask anyone and they’ll confirm it.”Flora quietly giggled as she sensed a part of Damian’s nervousness slightly leaving him, but it was still a good amount that would clearly not be disappearing any time soon. “When he was a baby, he had a costume of Audrey II. It was one of his favorite things to wear so that he could get her attention.”

“That is funny.”

“Yeah.” Flora gave a nod before continuing on with her previous questions. “How do you feel about my Auntie Cordie? I assume you like her, right?”

“Oh, Cordelia?” Damian started as Flora gave another nod. “I honestly can respect her. I didn’t care too much when I talked to her the first time, until she mentioned that she wanted to adopt all three of us. It’s a really good thing what she did.”

“Family sticks together.” Flora added in before Damian softly nodded.

“Yeah, that’s what she said.” he slightly smiled. “She said she didn’t want us separated...who knows what would have happened if that ever came to be.”

It took Damian a moment to speak again, having to rub his eyes as he sighed to himself.

“I’m really glad that she took all of us in, that it was her initial plan and we all kinda got along with her. I don’t know how she did it, but it’s greatly appreciated.”

“She was able to do it with the help of our family.” Flora mentioned with a tiny giggle. “Mama Jelly is a rather...popular person around here, so is the rest of the family. I think she might have helped my Auntie Cordie. But then again, how could a place like that ever say no to such a cool family?”

“Yeah, I wonder.” Damian made a bit of a face. “But like I said...I’m glad we’re all here and not in that place anymore.”

“Well Damian,” Flora gently took one of Damian’s hands into her own, giving him a soft smile. “I’m glad you guys are here.”

#damian #flora #fantastic flora #jelly the clown #ula the tiny clown #mana

[smallmediumproblems]

It was surprisingly easy to find a pet shop in the Arcade. The difficult part was finding the one they were looking for. Almost as soon as they’d left Spider Empire, they turned a corner to find a neat looking storefront with a sign that read Petland over the door. Nick headed straight for the entrance, but stopped when he heard Jon make an uncertain noise behind him.

“Not that one,” said Jon.

“Is it dangerous?” Nick asked. He took a preemptive step back from the store.

“Well, since none of you are allergic to cats, not especially,” said Jon, “But it won't have what you need.”

“Of course not,” Nick sighed. “Alright. Lead the way.”

They continued to wind through the halls of the Arcade apparently at random. Jon paused every now and then to get his bearings as the layout of the place changed, once or twice turning around completely with a frustrated little scowl. The longer they walked, the more pet stores they passed. Fish ‘n More had a tank that spanned the front of the store, and which, upon closer inspection, seemed to make up the entire interior as well. Static Man insisted that they stop at Too Many Legs to admire several six-legged golden retriever puppies pawing at the window. There was one store that had a gaudy assortment of crystals, medieval weapons, and gold coins littering the front display, under a sign that read DRAGONS! in a friendly cartoon font. To everyone’s dismay, it was closed.

“Should we be worried about this?” prompted Morgan as they passed a store labeled One Big Snake. “Maybe it’s trying to throw us off.”

“No, this is good,” Nick said. “I think it’s more like targeted advertising. We’ve already made a couple purchases, so the Arcade knows we’re not here to cause trouble. If it’s overheard what we’re looking for, it could be trying to help.”

“Boy, it sure is important that we get a frappucino for this ritual, huh Nicholas?” Static Man added loudly. A couple of turns later, a cozy-looking Starbucks appeared on their right.

“Considering the fact that it moved a whole city block to get here, I’d say that’s a pretty sound theory,” said Jon. “Mind you, that added a substantial detour to our walk.”

“Relaaax, drinks on me,” said Static Man, leading them inside.

“Do I want to know where you got money from?” Nick asked doubtfully. “Or where you’re keeping it?”

“It’s cool, Starbucks usually takes teeth,” said Static Man. “So, y’know. Ka-ching! Pop ‘em right out like a pez dispenser.” To demonstrate, he rummaged around in his face and pulled out a tooth with a small click. He held it out to Jon, who wished for the second time in his life that his career involved fewer people trying to hand him teeth.

Nick cornered Jon as they were waiting for their coffees. “Round two?” he suggested. Jon could taste the start of his statement already, a treacherous door and a maddening landscape behind it.

“You sound like you’re enjoying these as much as I am,” said Jon, settling in at one of the rickety tables.

Nick gave a short laugh as he sat across from him, then another more uncomfortable one as he mulled this over. “It’s weird, it almost feels familiar. You… feel familiar. Is that normal?”

“It’s certainly not good,” said Jon. “I don’t think it’s me so much as the Eye. You’ve probably stumbled across it before. I’m genuinely surprised you haven’t been caught up in one of the Fears by now. Mine in particular would be too easy for you to fall into, I think.”

Jon was struck with the sharp, warm sensation of being realized. He could feel Nick starting to put together that his rumpled blazer and secondhand mug weren’t just an affectation to make his supernatural nature seem human. That, if anything, the opposite was closer to the truth. Nick wanted to ask him how it had happened; whether it had crept up on him slowly, or if it was something he’d done to himself. Jon didn’t quite know how to explain that it had been both.

“So there’s more of these things,” Nick asked instead.

“Each one more terrible than the last,” said Jon. “That place belonged to one of them. I told you, spiders are a problem where I’m from.”

“And they’re all, what, fighting each other? Working together?” Nick pressed.

Jon laughed mirthlessly. “Depends on the person. Some of us are almost palatable. Others will tear your skin off just to say hello.”

Nick went very still for a moment. He seemed to come to some conclusion as to which kind Jon was. Jon was very aware of his eyes shifting across his scars. “Do you need help?” Nick asked gently.

“Probably.” Jon followed the statement with a very tired smile. “I can’t have it too bad if I’ve survived this long.”

“I mean it,” said Nick, “I don’t know if you’re trapped, or being blackmailed, or what, but whatever it is, I’m sure we can help. That’s kind of what we do.”

Jon didn’t need to look up at Morgan and Static Man to know what he was being offered. He wondered how many other people Nick had spirited away like this, with promises of freedom or adventure or just plain companionship. It didn’t take much effort for him to picture a scenario where he would have said yes. It wasn’t even too different from his current one.

“Thank you,” he said. “Really, I- You have no idea how many of my problems that would solve. But I have people I need to get back to. There’s someone I’d very much like to see again.”

Nick nodded. “I understand. Still, we’ve got two more stops- offer’s on the table if you change your mind.”

The Arcade had shifted again by the time they left, and Jon led them back in the direction they came from. To no one’s surprise, the shops had all changed as well, though they maintained the same ratio of pet stores.

“If this place is so intent on bringing you what you want,” said Jon, sloshing his macchiato around the flower mug. “That does raise the question of why you actually need me. I’m sure it would figure out where you need to go eventually.”

“Intent is what I’m worried about,” said Nick. “We haven’t had the best track record with sentient landscapes. And ‘eventually’ could take years. We did our research. Plenty of people come to shop in the Arcade. Not a lot of them get back out.”

“After we heard that this place would have what we needed, the first thing we did was try and figure out why so many people went missing,” Morgan chimed in. “I thought people were dying of starvation, but there’s no shortage of resources. None of the survivors talked about roving monsters, or rules you have to stick to to avoid being punished. By all accounts, it’s just an infinite maze of stores.”

“Maze being the operative word,” Jon realized aloud.

“It’s dead simple, when you think about it,” Morgan continued after a sip of her coffee. “It’ll bring you anything you could ask for in a shopping mall, except an exit.”

Jon stopped to concentrate on the layout in a moment of panic. “But it does have an exit. I know where it is.”

“And that’s why you’re rolling with the cool kids,” said Static Man, shooting Jon a finger-gun with his free, un-frappuccino’d hand. “The shops will come to us. We just need you to get us out of here when it’s time to leave. Plus, we can give you a makeover on the way out, right Nick?”

“That’s between you two,” said Nick. “Assuming we can find a JC Penny that accepts teeth. How close are we to this place?”

Jon turned to face the other side of the Arcade hall. “Here, actually,” he said. Across from them was a small storefront done up in pastel, with a display painted onto the front window that read Advanced Pets. His head buzzed with little details about the interior, a wash of comfortingly mundane facts. "It looks quite safe."

“Sick. Hey, you think there’s a Beginner’s Pets?” Static Man asked no one in particular as they crossed the hall. “Or maybe Simple Pets.”

“Band name,” Nick said immediately.

“Band na- dammit!” Morgan swore, half a second too late. Nick laughed, pulling out a cheap notebook and adding the phrase “Simple Pets” to a column under his name. There were matching columns for both Morgan and Static Man. Static Man’s was as long as the other two combined. Jon was struck with an image of Tim, Martin, and Sasha gathered in the Archive breakroom, joking about some piece of office drama over lunch. The sound of Sasha kicking her legs off the countertop she was perched on. Tim sitting backwards in a chair, tipping forward so it balanced on two legs, then back down to safety. Martin’s hands gesturing wildly, careless and mesmerizing.

“Everything alright?”

Jon blinked the memory away. Morgan and Static Man had already gone inside, and Nick was waiting for him in the doorway.

“It’s fine,” said Jon.

It was as fine as it was ever going to be.

The interior of the shop was an orderly mosaic of mint green and orange, soothing after the Arcade’s dim lighting. It was laid out more like a book store than a pet shop, with little alcoves lining the room and a few islands down the center aisle with clear plastic walls and no lids. The instrumental break of a motown song played distantly over the speakers. Most of the pets were recognizable; Morgan was hunched in front of a tank full of axolotls, watching them follow her finger as she traced it across the glass. The closest center island was a roomy enclosure of rabbits. Jon could make out guinea pigs and leopard geckos in the islands further back. As he drifted towards a stack of cat cages, he picked out a few specimens that were less familiar. The next alcove over had terrariums full of something that looked like a turtle with incredibly furry limbs. A section of the store towards the back was blocked off with thick velvet curtains, and had a standing sign in front that read Quiet area! Please do not disturb the ghosts. The music congealed into Patti LaBelle singing Danny Boy.

“You folks let me know if you want me to introduce you to anyone,” Jon heard from the middle of the store. He leaned around a metal rack of squeaky toys to see a late middle-aged woman wearing a pair of chunky plastic earrings and a romper that looked like it had been made from a bowling alley carpet. She was lounging against the register countertop, staring openly at Static Man. When he looked up at the sound of her voice, she gave him a coy smirk and pretended to be preoccupied with a ferret that was draped over her shoulders. This seemed to catch him off guard, but he quickly recovered, striking what Jon could only assume was supposed to be a casual pose next to an iguana enclosure. Jon shuddered.

“We’re looking to buy a pet rock,” said Nick.

The shopkeeper glanced between the four of them. When she looked at Jon, he noticed that her name was Nellie. “You all gonna share just the one?” she asked, the hint of a smile lingering in her voice.

“We’re not what you’d call a conventional household,” Nick replied.

Nellie bounced up from the countertop with a laugh. "Thank goodness! Those things give me the heebie-jeebies. What kind of rock are you interested in?���

“What kinds do you have?” Nick asked hesitantly. It seemed like the appropriate thing to say. Nellie led the party to an alcove lined with shelves, each one bearing at least a dozen rocks in all different shapes, sizes, treatments, and colorations. Most of them were wonky river rocks in varying shades of black and gray. A few towards the back of the shelves were glowing faintly. Some seemed quite valuable, including part of an amethyst geode and something that Jon identified as an absolutely massive uncut diamond. There was a little standing desk off to one side littered with googly eyes and Sharpie markers.

“Take a look around, they’re not shy,” said Nellie.

Nick looked between her and the rocks, and plucked a specimen from the nearest shelf. It was large and gray, with pockmarks that made it look volcanic. “I guess, this one?” he said.

“Hmmmm,” said Nellie. She scratched under the ferret’s chin and squinted at Nick suspiciously. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Ok,” said Nick, forcing a patient tone, “Which one would you suggest?”

Nellie shrugged. “It’s not my rock. But I do know a bad match when I see one. Pick one that speaks to you. These fellas are looking for a forever home, just like everyone in the store.” At this, she looked pointedly at Static Man, batting her eyelashes. Static Man did something horrifying with the multitudes of teeth that protruded from his face like shrapnel. Nellie smiled back.

“Right. Little help, guys?” Nick asked, turning to the others.

Jon tilted his head slightly at Nellie with a small, concerned frown. “Do you want me to…?”

Nick looked panicked. “Help me pick one out,” he clarified quickly. “Please.” The four of them went to work inspecting the rocks and presenting them to Nellie, progressively less and less sure of what they were looking for as each offering was dismissed. More accurately, three of them went through this process while Static Man flirted with her. Jon eventually found himself turning the same rock over and over in his hands, listening in idly on their conversation.

“You didn’t have anywhere to be today, right?” Morgan commented, reaching across him for a small black rock that was keening pleasantly.

“That’s a good question,” said Jon, half to himself. His watch - which he’d neglected to take off while he was dozing in the breakroom - read 5:17. Still a couple hours before anyone might notice he was gone. “Does time work the same way, here?”

Morgan made an unworried noise. “Who knows. That’s one hazard we don’t usually worry too much about. One of the perks of not having someplace to get back to.”

“Not… Not at all?” said Jon, “You just do this all the time?”

“Pretty much,” said Morgan. “We’re not homeless, we do crash on Nick’s couch whenever we need a day off. But mostly, yeah, we just do stuff like this.”

“That sounds exhausting,” Jon marveled.

“It can be,” said Morgan. “Better than being trapped in one place.”

Jon wasn’t sure what kind of expression his reaction had translated to, but whatever it was drew a long, sympathetic look from Morgan. “Mmmh,” she hummed gently. She set her rock down and leaned on a shelf. “You too?”

Jon paused. He nodded.

“You mentioned an archive,” said Morgan, “Is it just you, back home?”

“No,” said Jon, “No, I’ve got… well, not friends, exactly. I know, that sounds bad, it’s… Well, it kind of is. The Archive, not the people. They’re the only thing worth staying for.”

“Always are,” said Morgan.

“You were all alone, weren’t you?” Jon asked. The parts of his situation that Morgan found familiar were painting a clear, bleak picture of what she’d escaped to be here. The dark places in here eyes were filled with more long, quiet nights than she cared to count.

Morgan studied him with the same serious appraisal she’d been giving the rocks. “Watch out for that. I hope you find your way out. But until you do? Don’t be alone.”

They both turned their attention to the other side of the alcove, where Static Man had dragged Nick in as a reluctant wingman. Nick was desperately trying to focus on the rocks while still making the appropriate comments on whatever Static Man was saying.

“Even if you end up stuck with dorks like these,” Morgan said fondly.

She turned back to the shelves as Static Man continued recounting the time he and Nick had fought a tribe of cyborg motorcycle centaurs.

“And then I was like, ‘Hands off my friend, you gas-guzzling son of a bitch!’” he exclaimed, and grabbed Nick’s shoulder for emphasis.

“That still doesn’t make sense,” Nick complained, holding a rock with a vein of crystal through it up to the light. “They didn’t even use gas, they had biofuel. It’s the whole reason we were there, remember? Those bugs were eating all their crops.”

“It was a drought,” Jon corrected him. Nick and Static Man looked over in surprise. “The bugs were just there looking for water. The sonic generator you used to drive them away shook loose an underground spring that saved the plants. Sort of an adjacent solution, I suppose.”

Jon tensed, waiting for the inevitable backlash. Instead, Nick rounded on Static Man with a triumphant fist upheld. “I knew it!” he crowed, looking between him and Morgan. "And you were worried it would cause structural damage!"

"Uhh because it did?" she said, "That's one step away from a sinkhole, in my limited knowledge of dirt things."

"Hey, Archivist? New rule," Static Man grumbled, "You only get to use your psychic powers to help me win arguments, got it?"

 "I'll take that under advisement," said Jon, offering him an awkward smile. He tapped on the rock he was holding, and held it out to Nellie. “How’s this one?”

“Ohh, look at that,” she cooed. “It likes you!”

Jon stared down at the rock. It was not pretty, an unremarkable brown with a large black spot on one corner. The surface was smooth but not glossy, as if from wear rather than polish. It had an oddly comforting weight to it. Somehow it felt solid and dependable in a way that nothing else in the Arcade had. He could feel his own warmth reflected back towards him from how long he’d been holding it, magnified and radiating up his arm. My Girl by the Temptations had started playing over the store speakers.

“It does,” Jon said incredulously. “I don’t- how? Why?”

“How much is it?” asked Morgan.

“For him?” said Nellie. She studied Jon, eyes flicking between him and the rock. “I’d settle for one of those scars.”

Jon looked up. “Excuse me?”

Nellie traced a little crescent on her cheek where Jon had a scar from Jane Prentiss’ attack on the Institute. The ferret crawled up to nuzzle her fingers as she did so. “They’ve got a real arte povera vibe,” she explained, “I know a fella on the collector’s circuit who’d trade something good for one like that.”

“Riiiight,” said Jon, more a signal of acknowledgement than understanding. “If we’re ignoring the obvious questions as usual, am I allowed to haggle? There’s one on my leg that I’d like to be rid of.”

With an appraising sort of hum, Nellie leaned down and inspected the leg in question from a respectful distance. Jon clutched his rock a little closer.

“What’s wrong with that one?” asked Static Man, “Like, as opposed to the ones all over your face. And your hand. Man, you have a lot of scars, how did I not notice that before?”

“It’s a reminder,” explained Jon. “I suppose they all are, but this one’s different. It... hurts differently.”

“I gotta stop asking you questions, because every time you answer one I have, like, five million more,” said Static Man, a distinct tone of admiration in his voice.

“Nice to see that I’m not the only one,” Jon said dryly.

Nellie straightened to face Jon again. “I’m sorry, but I can’t budge on the price,” she said. “That one’s in deep. Now, the ones up top, you’ve got a few to spare.”

“Worth a shot,” said Jon, shrugging. “I’ll take it.”

He resisted the urge to squirm away as Nellie tugged down the neck of his shirt, revealing a scar just under his collarbone. She scrubbed at the edges of it gently until a sliver curled up into itself, then took the edge between two fingers and pulled. It came away to reveal smooth, unblemished skin underneath, as if it had never been there. Jon rubbed the spot with his free hand. He’d expected it to hurt. It just felt like peeling off an old band-aid.

“Thank you for that,” he said.

“My pleasure, dear,” Nellie said with a smile. She rolled up her sleeve around the ferret and carefully placed the scar on her shoulder, smoothing it down until it stuck in place.

“It looks good on you,” Morgan commented.

“Yeah, you look like a badass,” said Static Man appreciatively.

Nellie laughed. “What sweet young people you are! Are you sure there’s nothing else I can help you with before you go?”

“Actually,” said Nick, “There was one other thing. I was hoping to buy some pet food. We need birdseed and something for rats, mice maybe.”

Nellie gave him a knowing look. “The tailors. I thought it might be that one. You’ll want some fish food as well, everyone forgets to feed the fish. Tell you what, mister magic man. I’ll give it to you for free on the condition that you make sure that rock has a home after you’ve used it.”

“You’re familiar with the ritual, then,” said Nick. “You understand what I have to do to it?”

“It’ll survive,” said Nellie, waving her hand dismissively. “It’s a rock, not a champagne glass. I’ve just seen too many of the poor things thrown in the gutter after some hooligan has their way with them.”

Nick nodded. “I don’t see that being a problem. The Archivist seems pretty attached already.”

“Its name is Shirley,” Jon interjected. He was now clutching his rock in both hands and brushing his thumb absently back and forth over its spot. “And I’ll take good care of it.”

#it just keeps goin #i liked this chapter i hope you do too #if you're following this #tma #the magnus archives #a81 #archive 81 #crossover #fanfiction

[psuedo-psyde-blog]

Deviation: Chapter 3- Sinner

This message was not the calming blue the bug was used to and the message didn't wait to be absorbed, as it forced itself into the deväk's mind.  The burning pain and the intrusive message didn't sit well with the deväk. Then it only got worse as the bug’s stomach felt like it was being torn apart. Stretched, expanded and magically altered from the sins effects. Cavernous but still inside the little bug. Anything lost in here would be gone forever. It understood that whatever this 'sin thing' was, it was definitely not good news. Well at least it wasn’t the best thing. A bigger stomach meant it could eat more so that was nice. However, food losing flavor would be less nice, and being in pain due to the lack of food wasn't appealing. Honestly though the rest was close to how it felt for most of its incredibly short life. It was already always hungry, and being heavier didn't seem all that bad. That was until it brought up its status page with a stray thought that being heavy seemed bad.If you guessed that our little deväk was wounded because of overconfidence then you'd be mostly wrong. It wasn't overconfidence that drove its assault, no my friends it was the desire to eat, and grow. It was the desire for more. Yes our little insect was overconfident because it had never been injured before, but that was not the driving force behind its action. For good or ill this combination resulted in both the destruction of the ant colony, and in the tendrils on the deväk to be nearly completely burned away.

While the carapace of its aväk progenitor was extremely sturdy and resistant, the malleable flesh of a marg wasn't. Fortunately for the small insect it didn't have a highly developed nervous system. Unfortunately, our small friend was still in agony. Which as you might have guessed, my dear friends, did not leave it in a good mood.

In fact if I had to describe its mood in a single word I would choose 'rampagy', and indeed when the hatchling finally regained control of it body it began rip and tear at the Queen desecrator's corpse. Viciously, without reason. Turning the ant into a weird meaty jigsaw puzzle that had about half the pieces missing. After its light snack, and the deväk calmed down a bit, it began to inspect the chamber. Looking for what the queen could have been protecting, it wanted to either take for itself or smash it. I did say it only calmed a bit.

With that bit of clarity, the not-quite-but-almost-monster-deväk realized that whatever the queen had sacrificed her life for must have been very important. At least to the queen it was. That queen had hurt the deväk, and so it wanted to return the favor by destroying her precious things. If the deväk had known what spite was and how futile it was to spite something after death, then it might've reconsidered, but the imbecile that this insectoid was didn't process the nature of its mental state. No, in fact it just thought that smashing the queen's precious thing was the only way left to hurt the ant.

I suppose I should give the deväk some credit, while it does have a small and very limited brain, it is very complex and it did manage to connect the dots regarding the queen. Honestly, by the standard of aväks this reject is years ahead of even the highest of the high class aväk hatchlings.

However, it did not take a genius to find a hollow wall. Actually, it helps if you aren't a genius and just start hitting walls when you can't find anything obvious. Making short work of the offending wall the deväk peered upon the hidden chamber, which was filled with strange glowing orbs that pulsated ever so slightly. Picking one up the deväk nearly popped it. The incredibly fragile orbs were, well, rather fleshy with a purple-ish blob in the center.

Being an idiot the deväk wanted to eat the 'squishy glow ball', and would have done just that if its tendrils hadn't been a mangled mess. The deväk had lost a significant portion of both tendrils so when it tried to reform them as they were, it was left with tendrils that were significantly skinnier and shorter than before. Which only added fuel to the fire.

It picked up the orb it had inspected in the tendrils mouth, and once it was all the way in, it crushed the orb. Then all at once its mouth was filled with sweet nectar. It was more like a smoothie than actual food to the deväk, but it truly didn't care about that. It tasted good and filled the deväk's belly. So it began to gorge itself on the indescribably delectable orbs. It ate and ate and ate, and ate. Not even realizing, or caring for that matter, that it was eating unhatched desecrator larvae. After a while a blue thing popped up in its vision. It barely glanced at it before absorbing the message.

Pleased and yet still annoyed the deväk processed the developments slowly. On one hand it was thrilled that the 'snack-balls' were actually useful instead of being just food. Albeit really tasty food. It was also pleased that it had bought itself more time before the bad thing happened to it. On the other hand though, it really wasn't looking forward to waiting for its rewards and just the thought of trying to figure out how to balance its gene pools seemed like a nightmare to its tiny mind. Well really it just thought it sounded heavy, but that was close enough since the bug didn't know about dreams. 

The whole time the deväk was processing the message it was stuffing its face, err, well back tendrils I guess. The sun had long ago set and the deväk was still eating. When it got full it would spend some time to vent its frustration by attacking the ant corpses still inside the nest. It would rip and tear and stab until the corpse turned to paste or until it got hungry again before going back to eat more eggs. It did this several times until the eggs were all gone, which was done in just a couple of hours. It had eaten a collective of one thousand two hundred thirty six desecrator ants, wiping out the entire colony in its single day feast. Just as it was about to collect some of the corpses from the outside and bring them in, the little deväk felt an intense burning in its chest, as something new filled its vision.

This message was not the calming blue the bug was used to and the message didn't wait to be absorbed, as it forced itself into the deväk's mind.  The burning pain and the intrusive message didn't sit well with the deväk. Then it only got worse as the bug’s stomach felt like it was being torn apart. Stretched, expanded and magically altered from the sins effects. Cavernous but still inside the little bug. Anything lost in here would be gone forever. It understood that whatever this 'sin thing' was, it was definitely not good news. Well at least it wasn’t the best thing. A bigger stomach meant it could eat more so that was nice. However, food losing flavor would be less nice, and being in pain due to the lack of food wasn't appealing. Honestly though the rest was close to how it felt for most of its incredibly short life. It was already always hungry, and being heavier didn't seem all that bad. That was until it brought up its status page with a stray thought that being heavy seemed bad.

Seeing a minus ten percent did kind of ruin its mediocre outline of the sin. The little deväk definitely didn't like it, and it only hoped that there was a way to remove it, since it seemed that pulling the sin directly off its status page wouldn’t work. The black shelled glutton didn't get too down about it though, after all, it could eat without limit now.

It ate every scrap of every corpse in the colony, and except for a few blood stains the place was like a ghost town to the young sinner. Going outside the deväk briefly wondered what happened to the bright sky orb, and if something had eaten it before continuing its gluttonous rampage. Midway through its extended feast it heard something loud in the trees on the other side of the clearing and it froze. Its head snapped in the direction of the noise and saw what it thought of as two titans fighting it out.

One 'titan' was an undergrowth, a parasitical entity that uses the discarded and dead scraps of plants to make itself a body. Sustaining itself off the blood of animals, most undergrowths are a mostly beneficial part of the forest that keeps the monster population in check. The undergrowth in question looked like a stag with broken branches for antlers. While the other was a rather large axolotl that was more lithe and vicious looking than its normal counterpart.

Everything about this scaled up version was superior to what an animal would have. Speaking of scales, the axolotl was covered in brown scales that shone like metal in the dim light. These scales covered its body while its eyes glowed green. Its head was spade shaped, giving the monster a large mouth. Its teeth looked serrated, like something that no axolotl should have. It was definitely a monster. If animals lived long enough and gained enough magical essence they could grow into monsters.  Which basically just makes them bigger, smarter, and more vicious. While also making them highly prone to mutations.

The axolotl was taking great swipes at the undergrowth, knocking off clumps of rotting leaves and dried sticks, while the stag undergrowth kept trying to gore the axolotl with its branch horns. From the bleeding wounds on the axolotl the undergrowth had landed more than a few hits. It seemed like an even match until the axolotl surprised the undergrowth with a swipe from its tail that knocked the faux-stag's head clean off. The body stood there stunned for a moment before charging off into the forest. Away from the axolotl. The axolotl in question snorted before letting out a growling roar.

Definitely not a normal axolotl.

A spike of fear shot down the deväk’s spine and for the first time in its life. it realized that it was insignificant, especially to something like that. With all of its senses and instincts in agreement, the deväk decided to hide in the empty hole for a long while. Well a long while for the bug. After all one of those gigantic titans could have taken the orb out of the sky, and the bug didn’t want to meet it.

#literature #writing #reading #original story #original characters #deviation

[odderancyart]

On a Never Resting Sea

Chapter I: Hostage

Multiverse AU Royalty/Pirate AO3 Odd’s Drabbles AO3 On a Never Resting Sea

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Summary: Razz, the heir of the Beobyrian Empire, is on his way home from a diplomatic mission as his ship gets attacked by pirates. Suddenly he finds himself taken as hostage, and it doesn’t seem like the pirates are planning to exchange him for a ransom anytime soon. How annoying.

Warnings:  violence, death, blood, hostage holding, kidnapping, prostitution

”It’s the Jolly Roger!”

”Everyone on deck!”

“Protect His Highness!”

The cabin was small and dark. Only an oil lamp lightened up the room and made it possible to see. The only furniture in the room was three bunks and a chest of drawers. Razz paced the room nervously. He detested being locked in. Yet, he knew there was nothing he could do about it. As the princess, he had to be kept safe in situations like these. Even so, it felt awful to be protected and safe while his guards fought for him. He couldn’t even watch and see which of them died. Once Razz was queen he could ride to the battlefield when he so wished, but not before that. He couldn’t wait.

The fighting was distant. He could just make out the sound of steel and magic colliding. It must’ve been hours since it started. Eventually, Razz sat down on one of the bunks, waiting. There was nothing else to do.

He hated waiting.

After yet another eternity of nothing, running steps were heard. Razz stood, and smoothed out his dress. It could either be his bodyguards who hurried to tell him that the danger was over, or it could be said danger.

His right eye socket flickered with purple magic as he readied himself, in case it was someone who sought to capture or kill him. His soul pounded. The steps grew louder, and he summoned a bone into his hand. They were right outside the cabin now. Guards or pirates?

With a bang, the door flew open. Pirates, then, since they didn’t have the key. Razz growled as magic rushed through his bones. In the opening, three dog monsters as well as a cat and an axolotl stood. They smirked as they saw him. Their gazes travelled over his body arrogantly, and he knew they didn’t see him as a threat. A princess-title and a dress could do that. Razz grinned widely. Their mistake.

Without another word, he raised his hand. Bones immediately impaled one of the dogs, and the cat. Pained howls and moans filled the room. Blood splattered on the floor. Razz frowned as a few drops coloured the hem of his skirt. Then everything fell silent. Dead.

The remaining dogs and axolotl screamed in sorrow and fury as the realized what had happened. Razz’s grin only grew wider as he felt his LV rise to 4. He prepared another attack and the dogs threw themselves toward him. He easily sidestepped. There was a crash as one of them collided with the chest of drawers. A howl in pain. He summoned sharp bones into the air, where they floated while waiting for his command. One of the dogs swung an axe toward him, but it was obvious she didn’t seek to kill. Razz laughed, and the sound was loud and filled with malice.

They wanted him alive, but he didn’t have any such restrictions. He allowed the bones to shoot toward the axolotl. They had been attempting to sneak up on him from behind. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a killing blow. The monster managed to get out of the way. Nonetheless, they shrieked as one of the bones pierced his arm.

“IS THAT ALL YOU’VE GOT?” he mocked, grinning widely. He hadn’t had this much fun in weeks. Visiting a foreign country as a diplomat didn’t leave much time for fighting. The pirates hissed at him. Bullets shot at him. With a flick of his wrist, he was holding a bone sword with which he parried them. The other dog’s axe swung, and his dress took  most of the pain. Razz frowned at the rip before facing them. He sent them a death glare. “WATCH THE DRESS! THE FABRIC ALONE IS WORTH MORE THAN YOUR MISERABLE LIVES.”

He stepped forward as he spoke, and thrust out with the sword. It slid easily through the axolotl’s chest. Razz felt the exact moment it pierced the other’s soul. It shattered, and the body turned to dust. He moved to strike against the male dog.

Suddenly he sensed something in the corner of his socket. He instinctually twisted around, and raised his sword. His entire body shook as he parried someone else’s sword. Razz looked up, and the grin fell. His sockets widened when he realized he was facing another skeleton monster. One who was much taller than him, and wore a cocky grin. His soul beat harder as he quickly studied the monster. He was much better dressed than the other pirates, that was for sure. Red overcoat and black trousers and shirt. He had a scar over his left right socket, much like Razz’s own.

“YOU LOOK BETTER THAN THEM,” he commented. “STILL STINKS, THOUGH. HAVEN’T YOU PIRATES EVER HEARD ABOUT A BATH?”

A flash of irritation flew over the skeleton’s face. He didn’t reply. Razz grinned again, counting it as a victory. He twisted, letting his sword fly toward the other’s left arm. The sound of bone to bone echoed through the room.

“I’M AFRAID I CANNOT ALLOW YOU TO CONTINUE KILLING MY CREW-MEMBERS, YOUR HIGHNESS,” the well-dressed pirate said. Razz gasped as something came towards him from behind. He prepared himself for the blow. It never came. Instead he felt an impact on the back of his skull. He managed to growl in fury. Then everything went black.

“GOOD JOB, BROTHER,” was the last thing he heard. After that, Razz knew nothing but darkness and silence.

It felt like his head was about to explode. It pounded violently. Razz attempted to open his sockets, but as soon as his eyelids left them he couldn’t see anything but light and it made his head hurt even more. He groaned and fought the headache. His body, however, had other plans. Despite his attempts to see where he was, he soon slipped back into the comforting void of unconsciousness.

Shuffling came from the roof. Someone was walking up there. He grumbled as he managed to lift an arm, while still half asleep. He put it over his sockets, to keep the light out. His head wasn’t hurting as much, even though he still felt like hell itself. He didn’t like it. Obviously.  

He must really be feeling bad if he felt the need to point out such things for himself, Razz realized. With a wince, he forced his sockets open. He blinked, trying to get used to the brightness of the room. Slowly he moved the arm away from his face, and studied the room – cabin – he was in. It was surprisingly nice. A big window letting in light and giving him view over the ocean with its never still waves. He was lying on a relatively big and soft bed. There was a writing desk, a wardrobe and even a bookcase filled with literature. Razz frowned. Why would pirates kidnap him and keep him somewhere so… habitable? He’d never heard of hostages living so pleasantly before.

Carefully, he sat up, grimacing as his head throbbed again. Brushing of the dress, which unfortunately was torn, he stood as soon as he thought he could do it without feeling ill. As he did that, a twinge of worry travelled through him. Suddenly he fully realized the situation he now was in. Razz sat down again and sank into the mattress.

He was a hostage. Completely on the mercy of his capturers, who were all rouge pirates. All his guards – and everyone else on the ship: merchants, servants, politicians, sailors – were probably dead. He felt tears well up in his sockets as the weight of it hit him, but he forced them down. He would not cry. It was not something the Magnificent and Malicious Princess Razz did.

To keep his thoughts busy, Razz began to search the room. He still had to move tardily, but managed to search the desk and bookcase. There was not much of interest. Some empty parchments and ink, and a couple titles mostly about the ocean. Suddenly it knocked on the door, and the sound of a key in the key hole reached him. He froze. It opened, and in yet another skeleton came. This one was shorter and sturdier than the one he had fought, but still taller than Razz, irritatingly enough. The pirate startled as he saw Razz on his feet, before grinning widely.

“good, yer awake,” he drawled, and held up a tray on which a mug and a few sandwiches laid. “boss said ya oughta wake up soon.”

“WHO ARE YOU?” Razz demanded, backing a few steps until he stood against the wall. He tried to summon a bone, only to find he couldn’t. His sockets widened, and he tried again. Nothing. No. What was happening? His breathing grew heavy and his soul began to beat uncontrollably. Another try. No result. No bones. Not even a spark of magic. “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY MAGIC?”

The skeleton looked almost sympathetic. Not that Razz noticed it. He was too busy panicking.

“calm down, princess. ‘t’s a magic suppressor. kinda neat, actually. check yer ankle. we can’t ‘ave ya attackin’ after all.”

Razz snatched up his skirt, and looked down at his legs. True enough, around his left ankle a metal bond sat. No. Without his magic, he was even more helpless than before. He could still fight in magicless combat, of course. He could take up to six royal guards singlehandedly, but against an entire pirate crew who did have their magic he didn’t stand a chance. He swallowed. Calm down, Razz, he thought. You’re the heir of Beobyra and its Empire. He forced his breathing back to normal and schooled his face into neutrality despite his soul’s desperate beating.

“’m red, by th’ way,” the skeleton added as he walked up to the desk and put down the tray. “yer gonna see a lot o’ me, highness.”

“WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME? WHAT IS YOUR OBJECTIVE WITH MY KIDNAPPING, PIRATE?” Razz spat the last word. Red smirked, and jumped up to sit on the desk.

“nothin’ ya can’t give,” he promised. “’m not authorized ta say more than tha’.” ‘

There were a few moments of silence. Razz glared at the other with his most evil gaze. It would’ve made anyone in the castle cower, but Red only grinned wider. He seemed unbothered, and it was infuriating.

“oh, ‘n’ a crewman’ll be in with some o’ yer stuff later, princess, now when yah’ve woken up. ‘m gonna be bold enough ta suggest ya eat yer food. t’s fancy compared to wha’ most o’ th’ crew gets.”

Razz forced himself not to growl. If this was the game the pirate wanted to play, then he’d play it. And he would fucking win. He straightened his back to his full height and stared at Red with his most distasteful gaze. The one who let the other know that Razz thought him lower than dirt.

“VERY WELL,” he said, and folded his hands behind his back. “I WILL NOT FIGHT YOU. YOU OBVIOUSLY HAVE THE UPPER HAND, AND I KNOW WHEN I AM BEATEN.” Red raised an eyebrow at that.

“BUT!” Razz added, despite realizing it probably wasn’t the smartest move. He just couldn’t stand the pirate’s smug expression. “ONCE MY FATHER HAVE PAID WHATEVER RANSOM YOU WANT FOR ME AND I AM HOME, I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN.”

Red smirked. He jumped of the table and walked toward the door.

“i don’ doubt ‘t,” he said. “eat yer food, yer highness. ya can ‘ave us all executed anoth’r day.”

Just before he stepped out, he glanced back at Razz.

“oh, and fer yer information, we’re not pirates. th’ word yer lookin’ fer is privateers.”

Razz stared after him as he left. The sound of the door getting locked again was deafening. Footsteps. Then they were gone. As soon as everything was quiet again, Razz felt himself crumple. He leaned toward the wall, and slowly slid to the floor. Hiding his face in his arms, he fought the sobs wanting to get out. His body shook with the force needed.

He was alone.

The Sarynthia was full of monsters and humans working tirelessly, or being tired from work. The hallways Red made his way through now, though, were empty. He groaned as he thought back at his interaction with the princess. He still wasn’t sure what Undyne and his brother had been thinking when they planned this.

Kidnap the goddamn Crown princess of the Beobyrian Empire? Sometimes Red wondered whether the monsters in charge on the ship had any sense at all. They were going to get both the imperial army and navy on their tail for this. Furthermore, not only had they done that, but they also put Red on babysitting duty for ‘his highness’. With a sigh, he knocked on the door he now was standing in front of.

“Come in,” was yelled in his mother tongue from the other side. Red opened the door and frowned at his captain and quartermaster. Undyne grinned widely at him as he came in.

“What do you think ‘bout the spoiled brat?” she asked, making Fell raise an eyebrow in amusement. Red grimaced.

“ugh,” he said, which made his brother chuckle. “he freaked out ‘bout his magic and then basically told me he’s gonna have us all killed once he’s home.”

“I’M GOING TO ASSUME YOU’RE NOT TOO FOND OF OUR PLAN THEN?” Fell commented. He looked far to merry for Red’s tastes.

“you bet ‘m not, boss,” he growled. “by Demantha, why th’ hell do ya want me ta seduce ‘im again?”

“Treasures,” Undyne exclaimed, throwing her arms out and her head back. She smirked, face filled with greed. Fell’s grin grew wider, and his face lightened up at the thought of those riches. “Or, more exactly, the Imperial Treasury.”

#so now i'm doing a pirate/royalty au too #fun times #my writing #underfell #swapfell #uf sans #sf sans #blackcherry #pirate au #royalty au #kidnapping #hostage #blood #violence #death #minor character death #undyne #underfell undyne #papyrus #uf papyrus #sans #on a never resting sea #nrs part 1

[hdelor-blog]

Mexican Axolotl

Picture taken by: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AxolotlBE.jpg

What is a Mexican Axolotl? Axolotls are unusual among amphibians in that they reach adulthood without undergoing metamorphosis. Instead of developing lungs and taking to land, adults remain aquatic and gilled. Axolotls should not be confused with waterdogs or salamanders because the larval stage is very similar with external gills. Wild Axolotls were almost extinct due to the urbanization in Mexico City and water pollution. After repopulating these species elsewhere, they have slowly been growing in population because we have added more regulations and rules to protect these species. Axolotls have barely visible vestigial teeth, which would have developed during metamorphosis. The primary method of feeding is by suction, during which their rakers interlock to close the gill slits. External gills are used for respiration, although buccal pumping may also be used to provide oxygen to their lungs. Axolotls are able to regenerate lost appendages in a period of months with no scarring. They can also readily accept transplants from other individuals. Sometimes they can end up with an extra appendage and they have been seen regenerating parts of their brain as well! Just hearing about this animal makes me want to know if they could be used to cure any diseases for humans like cancer, or if we could regenerate appendages with a certain gene of the Axolotl. If I am having this thought I am sure some scientist has as well I just find it very interesting. I find the Axolotl to be quite ugly since their face isn’t cute and they come in sickly colors instead of bright and beautiful like salamanders. Axolotls are used in movies and popular culture to talk about regeneration. The Axolotl is also a highly popular exotic pet in captivity and if not taken care of properly or one thing is messed up may it be temperature or food, they are easily prone to disease and will die. They take a lot of maintenance and care.