#drew this with a mouse under a bridge

[latenightdislyte]

The Dragons Pet (NSFW) Long Mian x Reader

Minors Do Not Interact!! 18+ only!! I got out of hand and made this graphic, I apologize! More warnings below cut!

Warnings: Uhhh... there’s... a lot of plot... sorry. Graphic, rough smut, dubcon, swearing, Long Mian calling the reader ‘pet’ and ‘mouse’, kidnapping I guess, loss of virginity, breeding, claiming, marking/bitting, Long Mian himself should be a warning.

Note: There is quite a bit of plot before the smut and it might be a little eh, so I’ll mark where it actually starts if anyone just wants to get right into it. Also! This was a prompt/scenario/ask thing? I sent into @dislifeismid a quite a while back and I wanted to see what we’d both do with it now that I decided to start writing here and there for Dislyte. I’ll link their version as soon as it’s up!

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Man, what a day. Nine hours of almost nonstop work in the back rooms of the Esper Union HQ. Checking in and inspecting shipments, filling out and organizing paper work and trying to keep some of the new hires in line for our supervisors. Somedays it wasn’t so bad, but today it just really kicked my ass and I was ready to go home.

 Choosing to have walked to work instead of driving seemed like a good idea this morning while the weather was nice and my legs weren’t sore, but now they are sore and dark clouds began gathering overhead, flashes of lightning flickering between them accompanied by a distant sound of thunder. I apparently need to keep a better eye on the weather. The walk home was only 20 minutes without delays maybe if I walk faster I could beat the storm.

Sadly, luck wasn’t on my side and within 5 minutes it was pouring. I quickly ran to the nearest shelter and took cover. It was part of a destroyed bridge. That’s right, the Miramon attacked this place a couple weeks ago. They must not have gotten around to fixing it. Or... am I remembering wrong? Something else was going on here. Wasn’t it? Was this the place...

The sound of the cascading rain and the rumbling thunder drew me from my troubling thoughts. It was pleasant, calming, refreshing after such a tiring day. I sat with my legs tucked under me, relaxed, eyes drifting shut. I wish I was at home for this, it would have been a lot more pleasant.

My eyes snapped open suddenly, the sound of something quickly swinging through the air alerting me, and a sharp object was pressed to the back of my neck. “Well, what do we have here? A little Union mouse stranded in a storm.” That’s right. They haven’t gotten to fixing this place because the Shadow Decree had been prowling around here. “Does this mouse know how to obey commands? Stand.”

A part of my brain wanted me to do as he said, maybe I could get out of this situation unharmed if I did as he said, but fear froze me in place, mind going blank, unable to think properly as it overwhelmed me. The stranger seemed to sense my hesitation and he huffed, pressing the object harder against my neck. “Apparently not. What? Does the Union not train their pets?”

The sharp object was removed and I was roughly grabbed by my arm and yanked up. Getting a good view of the stranger, I instantly recognized who it was. He was indeed Shadow Guard, it was Long Mian. I had had an encounter with him before awhile back. A supply truck of ours was attacked and they took me out there with a couple Union Ops Chiefs to make sure nothing was taken and basically check and inspect the shipment. Long Mian and another Shadow Guard ambushed us and, being just a normal human, I was ordered to hide. The ordeal ended in our favor thankfully.

This time, I was alone, no Ops Chiefs to aid me. “Hey, l-look. I just wanna wait out the storm and get home. There’s no need for trouble, I won’t even say I saw you here.” I wrenched my arm from his grip and took a couple steps back. His look morphed into a glare and he scoffed. “Get home? No, I don’t think so. The Union doesn’t seem too keen on training their pets to obey commands, I guess I’ll have to do it for them.” He reached his hand out to grab me, but I moved out of his range.

I turned to run, but got only a couple of steps before something stopped me, almost making me hit the ground. I looked down and saw ice had formed around my leg, holding it in place. A hand ran through my hair before gripping and jerking my head back harshly, pulling me flush against the Shadow Guard as he stood directly behind me. He pressed his mouth to my ear and spoke in a hushed tone. “Usually I don’t mind watching mice like you scurrying around in fear, in fact I found it quite amusing last time I saw you, but today, I have other plans.” I shuddered as his warm breath traveled across my ear and down my neck.

Looking ahead of me, I could see the rain begin to let up, mocking me that within a few minutes of taking shelter I would have been able to leave. If only Long Mian hadn’t shown up. He broke the ice from my leg with his weapon, turned me around, tossed me over his shoulder and left the shelter of the bridge. He placed his hand on the backside of my thigh right under my ass and gripped painfully, undoubtedly leaving a bruise there. 

He traveled for quite sometime, with me struggling and messing with him the whole way, kicking my legs, trying to push off him and even attempting to stun him by trying to land a hard blow to his chest with my knee. My efforts halted for a moment though, as a door creaked open quite loudly. Were we at the Shadow Decree Headquarters? Must be, the halls were massive and there were doors and corridors branching off here and there. 

Long Mian stopped in front of one of the doors and I could hear it unlock and open. The true weight of the situation suddenly struck me like a ton of bricks. My stomach became upset, my blood ran cold and I started to panic. Stuttering a bunch of gibberish, trying to futilely reason with him.

~~~~~Smut start!!~~~~~

I bounced a little as I was tossed on his bed and immediately sat up and crawled away from him. Standing and running to a corner of the room as he went and locked the door, I took on a defensive stance, ready to dart away the moment he approached. Long Mian just turned to look at me with a deadpan expression for a moment before shifting to a smug smirk, a fang peaking out from between his lips. “Oh? Is the little mouse finally understanding its situation? How about this, behave and obey my commands and I’ll let you go, act up or disobey and I’ll break you, painfully, over and over.” He growled out the last bit, smirk dropping into a sneer.

“Back onto the bed, now.” I jumped a bit at the command, Long Mian’s voice dropped to a serious and authoritative tone. I glanced to the bed momentarily, weighing my options. I could do as he said and hopefully live to see another day or I could try to find something to fight him with and risk meeting a slow and painful demise. There’s also a very high chance that he could be lying about letting me go.

I gasped as I was grabbed and roughly pinned onto the edge of the bed face down. “Do not make me repeat myself, pet. You will truly regret making me mad if you do so.” Long Mian held my sides in an iron grip, squeezing painfully, as I struggled to catch my breath from being shoved. He pressed his hips firmly to my ass and rutted against me, making his excitement very prominent.

“Sit up and remove your top.” He released me, allowing me to move and do as he said. I lifted myself and breathed, reaching for the bottom of my shirt and slowly lifting it up and off. Long Mian ran his hands up my sides the moment it left me and slipped them under my bra. Groping and massaging while occasionally pinching the buds and rolling them between his fingers.

He began rolling his hips against me, erection rubbing against my lower back as it strained against his pants. Leaning over, he whispered in my ear. “See? I can make this feel good for you too if you cooperate with me. Now, take off your pants, face me and give me a show.” With trembling hands, I unfastened my jeans and pushed them down.

At this point my breathing was unsteady and came out in huffs as my vision became blurry, tears threatening to form. I tried to collect myself before turning around, but this seemed to try Mian’s patience and he sighed in irritation. “I’ve given you a chance. You seemed to be doing so well at first too. Oh well, what a shame for you. Now I get to have my fun.” 

He removed his hands from my chest, ripped off my bra and snapped the sides of my underwear. I grabbed his hands at my sides. “Stop! Please! I’m sorry! I-I I’ll do as you say! I Promise!” Mian twisted his hands out of my grasp and pinned mine behind my back, binding them with ice.

He moved me further on the bed. “It’s too late for that, pet. Scream and beg all you want, I’m going to break you.” The rustling of fabric reached my ears and something hot and long pressed against me from behind. A whimper forced it’s way out of my throat as he dragged his cock along my ass, pressed it between my cheeks and against my rear hole. I tremor shook me and a chill ran up my spine as he threatened to push in.

“W-wait! Not there! Please! I’ll do anything!” Mian let out a dark chuckle and hummed as if in thought. “I guess I could save claiming your ass for next time, but this is the only thing I’ll do for you. No more favors.” “N-next time?!” He slipped his dick between my thighs, ignoring my question, and began thrusting against my folds. A cry escaped me as his tip brushed over my clit. 

Long Mian wrapped his arms around me and laid over me, chest pressing to my back, and took a mating press position from behind. I’ve watched porn, I know what a mating press is, but I’m still a virgin and have never been intimate with someone before. The new sensations left me trembling and squeaking out small whines with each thrust. He was teasing my body, trying to make it submit to him and defy my mind. And it was working. “I love hearing you squeak like this, like the little mouse you are. Just prey for me to play with.”

He moved and slipped between my folds, coating his member in the slick that had gathered there and was now hitting the sensitive bundle of nerves with his tip, making me moan loudly and jolt in bliss. Mian chuckled again, the vibrations sending jolts through my body, and he nuzzled his face into my neck. I could feel his smirk against me before he licked up my neck, along my jugular, blowing cold air along the strip. Suddenly the temperature began to drop and a chill wracked my body as goosebumps formed across my skin. “How about we make the room a little colder? Wouldn’t want you overheating, now would we. After all, you’ve got to last a long time, I don’t need you passing out before I’m done with you.” 

He pulled his hips back ‘til the tip of his dick was lined up with my opening, prodding at it, and pressed forward. His engorged head slipped in and I stifled a moan, the glands catching on my walls as he pushed in a bit more. My mouth hung open in a silent moan as he was met with resistance. “Oh? A virgin? This little mouse hasn’t been mated yet? Bred? Well, I’ll make your first time one hell of a ride and fill you up ‘til you can’t handle any more. I’ll thoroughly breed you and make you mine.” 

He pulled out till just the tip remained inside and roughly thrust back in, tearing through my virginity and making me scream out in pain. “Someone at the Union should have claimed you before me. Maybe you would have been more obedient and listened to me before and I wouldn’t be having to do this for them.” Mian began pounding over and over, hitting deeper and deeper with each thrust.

He was thick, uncomfortably stretching my walls and carving out a space within me, and he was long, the tip hitting my cervix before he was even all the way in. But that didn’t stop him, he wanted it all the way in, so, once again, he pulled out ‘til only the tip was left and thrust back in harshly. My vision went white and my senses stopped working as he pushed past my cervix and into my womb, now balls deep in me.

He bit into my neck, fangs piercing through skin, and groaned loudly, stilling his movements. Mian was ridged against me, trying hard not to come just at the feeling of being hilted so deeply. 

I began to whimper and let out little noises again as my senses came back and I was overwhelmed with the feeling of being stuffed and filled entirely, shifting at the discomfort in my womb and accidentally dislodging him from it. 

This seemed to snap Long Mian out of his ecstasy induced daze and he released his hold on my neck, relaxing from his tense state. He began thrusting once again, this time reaching as deep as he could with each thrust, forcing his dick in and out of my womb with each pump.

My mind finally succumbed to him as my body adjusted to his size and depth, eyes rolling back, toes curling and drool escaping from my mouth as I gave in. “Fuck, that’s it! Give in to me. Beg for it. Beg to be filled. To be bred. You want that, don’t you? You want to give me an heir, to bare my child. Well?” “Fuck, yes. Please. Ah~ please, fill me. Cum inside me. I want it, I want it all. Ngah~ I want your cum in my womb, I want to bare your child. Give me your semen, breed me, please! Ahh~! Fuck!” 

He quickened his pace, and was now making fast, shallow, powerful thrusts. pushing me over the edge with the most intense orgasm ever. “I-I I’m cumming~! Fuck, I’m cumming! Please! Ahh~ AHHH~!” My first release washed over me and made me tremble. Walls clenching tightly around him as I tensed all over from the intense feeling.

Our breaths were visible as the temp continued to drop while he let himself go, still pounding me relentlessly. Building my climax back up quickly with overstimulation and releasing almost painfully, vision going white while I moaned as loud as possible. He continued fucking me through each climax, not showing any signs of slowing down and making a mess as my own juices slipped from me and coated his balls and thighs, a wet slapping sound now more prominent with each thrust as they smacked against my folds.

I came over and over again, becoming more sensitive with each climax. Slick covered the insides of my thighs and dripped down onto the bed, creating a wet spot. I was painfully overstimulated and I whined and tried to move away from Long Mian’s unrelenting cock. begging for hi to stop. “Ah~, too much! L-Long Mian. Please. It’s too much. I can’t-” “Too Much? Come on, I know you have one more in you. Be a good pet and cum on my cock one last time.” He moved his hand down and began playing with my clit, becoming covered in my slick like everything else. 

Within seconds I climaxed again and this time Long Mian made one final thrust, pressing as deep in my womb as he could, and came. Filling me up as he said he would. Groaning in my ear before turning my head and kissing me for the first time since we started. He was still cumming as we kissed, thrusting shallowly to pump his load further in, still becoming to much for me to hold and slipping out past him, dripping down my leg and joining my own slick.

He pulled out with a wet, suctioned noise that made me blush and sat up. Watching as my hole clenched around nothing, gaped from his large member drilling me, more of his cum slipping out. He broke the ice around my wrist and let me turn around to face him. I was a mess and exhausted as I relaxed onto the comfortable bed. Finally getting a look at his bare body. 

He was stunning, lean yet still well built, his member was as monstrously large as it had felt and the area was well trimmed. Damn, why did he have to be a Shadow Guard. This created a lot of conflict in my mind, thankfully he didn’t seem to notice. He just stared at my abdomen with a content and adoring look on his face while rubbing my thigh, smearing around the semen that slipped out.

He collected some of it on his thumb and began rubbing it on my lower abdomen, over were my womb was, massaging the area as he did so. It had a strange sheen to it and almost seemed... iridescent. His eyes finally met my own for a moment, turning cold and calculating. He finally moved to lay down on his side beside me and pulled the covers up, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me to him. With my back pressed to his chest yet again, this time I could tell that his skin seemed cool to the touch and felt nice against my own overheated skin, lulling me to sleep as he rubbed my side and pressed his face into my hair, cool breath reaching the back of my neck.

#long mian #dislyte x reader #dislyte smut #long mian x reader #long mian smut #long mian dislyte #minors dni #18+ only

[rapsgoddess]

Washing Machine Heart Part 1. (Erik Killmonger x OC)

This is unedited so please have mercy on me in the notes 😭

Nahla knew she didn’t mean a thing to him. Next to being a mercenary, Erik was a player. He came and went as he pleased, spent his nights with more than one woman, and didn’t feel a single shred of regret whenever his girls would pour out their hearts to him. 

Nahla knew she didn’t mean a single thing to him, yet she still somehow fell in love. 

It was a painful realization. One that she came to during one of Erik’s many long term absences. It was another sleepless night for her and she was sitting in bed with her laptop open to her right and her keyboard directly in front of her. For the past week, the same melody had been on loop inside her head. A broken tune that conveyed so much sorrow that it nearly brought her to tears whenever she hummed it. Each day after she got home from work, she would add onto the melody bit by bit, putting in different instruments and sounds to create a beautiful symphony. 

When it came time to write lyrics for the song, all she could envision was a tune about unrequited love. The same unrequited love that she had been feeling for a while. 

It wasn’t until she put a name to that feeling when she finally realized how she truly felt about Erik. 

She decided to try and keep things suppressed for a while, hoping that her childish feelings of romance would disappear after a few days. 

They didn’t. 

When Erik returned a few weeks later, she didn’t, know how to act. The man made it known that he was not committed to anybody, and Nahla was no exception. On the rare occasion Nahla would catch a glimpse of him on social media, she would see him surrounded by women who looked as if they could be models. Women who were leagues ahead of her. The photos never failed to resurrect her insecurities. They made her question why Erik even bothered to give her the time of day. Yet those insecurities melted away whenever he came to visit her. 

Flash forward to the present, and Nahla found herself laying next to Erik’s naked frame in her bed. The faint sound of her washing machine echoed throughout the house, giving a sort of rhythmic banging as her shoes tussled around inside. The night was still fairly young, having only been a few minutes past seven, but all of the plans that Nahla had for that evening were discarded the moment Erik showed up on her doorstep. 

It didn’t take much for his words to lull her into bed and for his lips on hers to enrapture her. His low, smooth voice was like music to her ears, and her moans being music to his. Each praise that left his lips was like a toxic lullaby. Nahla knew that he had repeated the same words to dozens of women in the past, yet in the moment, they made her feel as if she were the only woman in the world. 

“You feel so good around me baby…”

“You don’t know how much I missed this pussy.”

“Say my name so everybody know who’s fuckin’ you right.” 

Thinking back to his words sent shivers down her spine. She was wide awake, restless and too excited to fall asleep. It was rare for Erik to stay after having sex, let alone fall asleep before her, but her inner turmoil prevented her from falling asleep. 

She turned back to look over at Erik, taking in every aspect of his being as if it were the last time she would see him again. No matter how many times she laid eyes on him, she would never be able to find the words to describe how beautiful he was. He had a smile that could light up a room and warm eyes that made her heart flutter each time she looked into them. It often left her wondering why exactly he even entertained the thought of her when he was way out of her league. 

A heavy sigh left Nahla’s lips and she threw the covers off the lower half of her body. She looked back at Erik one last time while putting on her robe, making sure that he stayed asleep. Slowly and quietly, she crept out of the room and down the hall to her makeshift studio, closing the door behind her and turning on the lights. She used her studio as an escape from both the real world and her own mind, and right then she needed an escape from both. Turning on her equipment and opening up her laptop, she opened up the file that held her latest project. The one that helped her come to her realization in the first place. She made sure the speakers were low as to not wake Erik up and pressed play, listening to her voice blend with the gentle melody. 

She had only written a few lines so far and could feel the next verse just on the tip of her tongue, but lyricism had never really been her strong suit. Muttering random words under her breath, she opened up the notes section on GarageBand and began writing down whatever sounded nice, replacing and adding words where she deemed fit. 

“Might as well give it a go,” she sighed, getting up from her chair and walking over to the small corner where her mic and the rest of her recording equipment was set up. She pressed record on an empty track and began singing the second verse, her voice coming out soft and almost broken in contrast to her usual strong, belty tone. She was tired, both physically and emotionally, but she couldn’t walk back to that room. Not with him still laying asleep in her bed as if the two of them were a couple. 

After a few more takes, she had finally gotten her voice warmed up enough to where it didn’t sound completely like shit and she walked over to her work station to edit the track on top the music. 

With her mind now completely engulfed in her music, she didn’t noticed the sound of her toilet flushing or her bathroom sink running down the hall. She didn’t notice the sound of footsteps leading to her studio and her door opening slightly. 

It wasn’t until the feeling of a hand snaking its way around her neck drew her from her work as she jumped in her seat while clutching her chest in panic.

“Whatchu scared for? It’s just me,” Erik muttered, his voice still laced with drowsiness. “What are you doing up? Any other day you’d be knocked out.” His fingers gently squeezed at her neck and he leaned down to plant a kiss on the top of her head. It was weirdly intimate of him.

“I couldn’t sleep so I decided to work on something.” Nahla spun her seat around to face him. He had on a pair of low hanging shorts. She recognized them as being one of the pairs she bought for him whenever he decided to stay over. She mentally scoffed at the thought; buying clothes for a man who she wasn’t even in a relationship with. 

“You’re not leaving?” She asked. It had just dawned on her that, miraculously, Erik was still there. 

“Nah. I haven’t seen you in a while so I figured I’d stay for a little bit.” 

The sentiment made her heart flutter but she quickly grounded herself back to reality. She couldn’t afford to get her hopes up. 

“So, what are you working on?” He asked, his arms folded across his chest as he looked past her and at the open editing software on her computer. 

“Oh. Well I had a melody that was stuck in my head for a while so I put it down and write lyrics. I lowkey wanna find a mini orchestra to record it though.” 

“Well can I hear it?” He suggested. 

Nahla’s eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat. Despite knowing each other for the better part of two years now, this was the most he had ever expressed genuine interest in her music. 

“U-Uhh, I’m not sure… I get really sensitive about my stuff. Plus it’s not what you’d expect it to be,” she said, swirling her chair back around to face her work station as she hesitantly placed her hand on the mouse  and moved the cursor over the “play” button. After taking a deep breath, she played the song and closed her eyes as she waited for it to be over. Throughout the entirety of what little she had to play, Erik was silent, giving no response, comment, or critiques. When it was over, she reluctantly turned around to face him. 

“So? What do you think?”

“Yeah, I can definitely hear an orchestra going behind that. Maybe start off with piano first, then bring in strings or some shit during the hook,” he suggested, walking over to the other chair in the corner of her studio and sitting down. 

“Okay. Thanks.”

For about an hour or two, the two of them stayed up in her studio talking about random things while sharing a blunt together. They eventually migrated back to the bedroom and made their way beneath the covers together, Nahla’s body molding perfectly into Erik’s as they cuddled. 

“Nah, I’m deadass. I thought I had locked his cage, but he always finds a way to get out,” Nahla giggled, referring to her pet chameleon who always managed to get out of his cage. “I remember a few day ago I had just woken up and went into the kitchen to get some juice and I see him inside the sink just sitting there. Then he have the nerve to look up at me like ‘what are you doing here?’ No sir, what are you doing here.” 

Erik laughed softly while shaking his head. “Nah, I don’t think I could handle an animal just freely roaming my shit like that.”

“You get used to it after a while. I was low-key thinking about getting a snake too, but I gotta figure out where to put the tank.”

“Oh hell nah. If you get a snake, I’m not coming by anymore.”

“What?! You used to be a whole Navy Seal and you’re scared of snakes, E?” She asked, a bit surprised that he even shared that information with her. 

“Girl, I don’t know how you can even stand them things,” he mumbled, “slithering around and shit. What if it gets out when you’re sleep and starts choking you?”

“Then we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” she giggled, earning an eye roll from Erik. 

Though it didn’t seem possible, she pressed herself against Erik even harder, somehow managing to get even closer to him. Resting her head in the crook of his neck, she had a perfect view of the many scars and keloids that littered his body. She could tell some of them are new. Whether or not they were accidental or self inflicted, she didn’t want to know. 

It was times like these where Nahla wished that her outlandish fantasies of romance weren’t fantasies at all. Having never been in a real relationship before, she constantly longed to be loved by someone in a romantic sense. Though she knew that Erik probably never thought of her as more than a fuck buddy, it was nice to feel his warmth underneath her. Even if it was an illusion, it was nice to imagine him as her lover while he was holding her close. 

“What’s on your mind?” He pried, letting out a deep sigh before closing his eyes and relaxing his muscles. 

“Where do you go when you disappear?” She partially lied. Even though that wasn’t what truly was on her mind, it was still a question that lingered over her head for a while. 

“That, I can’t tell you ma. At least not right now.” 

She wasn’t satisfied with how curt his reply was. Sitting up, she supported her head with her hand, her elbow buried into the pillow beside his head as she peered down at him. 

“You can tell me,” she pried. A childish grin spread across her face. “If it’s something illegal I promise I won’t tell.”

Erik peaked one up up at her, a smile of his own taking over his featured. He pushed his hands behind his head and stared up at the ceiling. “Mm… Maybe I could tell you a little bit. I don’t even know where to begin though without you thinkin’ I’m crazy.”

“I won’t think you’re crazy.”

“You say that now.” There was a pregnant pause, and then, in the most serious tone ever, he said, “I’m apart of African royalty.”

“So there’s this country in Africa called Wakanda. At first glance, it seems like a small lil third world country, but in reality, they’re the most advanced civilization on the planet. They got this metal called Vibranium that allows them to all sorts of things, but they keep it hidden from the rest of the world.”

“How? And if they kept it hidden from the world, then how do you know about it?”

“They have a dome that surrounds the entire country. It’s practically impenetrable. And the only reason I know is because my father was the prince. He was sent here on an undercover mission in America but quickly saw how shitty thing were here, so he wanted to change it. “

“Wait, your father is the prince of an African country?” Nahla couldn’t believe her ears. Despite being secretive and mysterious, she knew that Erik wasn’t one to lie. After all, what could he possibly gain from lying about something as far fetched as this?  

“Was. He was killed before he could enact any change; by his own brother no less.”

She could hear a pain and vulnerability in his voice that she’d never heard before. Now she definitely knew that he wasn’t lying. 

Erik’s face had turned to the side in a fruitless attempt to hide the tears that welled up in his eyes. He’d never brought up his family or much of his life before he met her in a conversation, and now she could see why. 

Hesitantly, Nahla reached up to wipe away the tears that left his eyes. “So you plan on going back and getting revenge?” She pondered. It would make sense why he’d want to stay under the radar,  having no social media accounts, no permanent phone number, and constantly disappearing for months at a time. If he wanted to infiltrate an entire hidden country, then he’d have to be the closest thing to a ghost a person could be. 

“It’s on the list,” he replied, sitting up in bed while resting back against the headboard. “But, my main goal is to change the world. Wakanda has technology and weapons that people can’t even begin fathom. If our people were able to get their hands on that kind of fire power, we wouldn’t have to worry about the White man oppressing us any longer.” 

The sadness that was once present in his eyes had long disappeared, instead being replaced with a burning passion. It filled her with joy to see him get passionate about something, but it also put her on edge. Nahla knew what his plan implied, and she didn’t put it past him to sacrifice countless lives in order to see his vision come to life.

Staying silent, she simply nodded, too afraid that she’d say the wrong thing if she opened her mouth. Tearing her gaze away from the man, she began contemplating on everything she had been thinking about prior to his arrival. Her feelings for him were still unwavering, but now she was starting to ponder on whether or not being with him was a wise decision. It didn’t take being a genius to know that Erik’s path was a set one. He was a determined, goal-driven man, and when his mind was made up, there was no convincing him to go back on his decision. 

If she followed him down that path, she wouldn’t be able to turn back. 

“Do I scare you?” 

Nahla looked back up only to be met with obsidian eyes boring straight into her deep brown ones. His question threw her for a loop, no doubt, considering how Erik was never one to be considerate of other people’s feelings. 

“H-Huh? What do you mean?” She knew exactly what he meant. 

“That look in your eyes… You’re scared of something. What is it?” He demanded in an eerily calm manner. 

Attempting to spare his feelings would be a futile decision; Erik read people like his favorite novel. Yet, for some reason, Nahla had no control over the words that left her mouth. 

She almost never did when she was around him. 

“Nothing. I just get a bit spooked in the dark,” she chuckled. 

Erik simply blinked at her, a look of uncertainty and doubt dancing around in his eye before he shrugged it off and laid back down in the bed, facing her completely. 

“You should get some rest. Goodnight,” he said softly, his eyes never leaving her. 

Upon hearing his words, Nahla felt an immense tiredness wash over her as if he casted a sleeping spell over her. She glanced over at the clock and noticed how it was nearly 4 AM. She had only three hours before she needed to get up and get ready for work. 

She was tired, but fear kept plaguing her mind. A fear that he wouldn’t be there when she woke up. Or, even worse, a fear that she had dreamt the entire night. 

“Don’t worry. I’ll be here when you wake up,” he whispered. 

Nahla wanted to believe him, so she did, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep. 

#erik killmonger #erik killmonger x reader #erik killmonger x oc #black panther #mcu fanfiction

[cupidsintern]

the death of hyacinthus - pt. i

this is my old renaissance au with artist!billy and model!steve so enjoy lol

The light spills out onto the floor before the window, making the worn wood of the floor look bright again, like new. The light doesn't reach Steve though. Billy set up the scene like that on purpose, closer to the center of his studio. No direct light. He wants this to be lit like it's the beginning of twilight. In his head, Hyacinth dies at sunset.

The room is silent, has been for a while, other than birds outside the window, a breeze that made the window tap against itself lightly, and fabric shifting if Steve stirs from where he is at all, draped across this haphazard construction of pillows, blankets, and a bench.

That's the word Billy used; “drape”. When Steve got to the studio Billy was kicking pillows around on his little model platform, trying to get everything set up right, hardly even greeting Steve at all before launching into his explanation of how he wanted Steve to look.

“-and he’s dying, but he’s not dead yet,” Billy walked half a circle around the platform, hands out. “So Apollo would- damn-” A pillow fell over, he pushed it back up. “Would be here. So if you can just sort of drape yourself across right here-”

Steve was stripping off the last of his garments when Billy turned back around.

“Here?” Steve finished kicking his stockings off, crossed to step up onto the platform.

Billy swallowed, looking Steve in the eyes because at least it meant he wouldn't look down, slack jawed. “Yeah, that's- that’s perfect.” Steve was already settling in to sitting down, letting his head fall back against the seat of the bench, throat exposed.

The way he was sitting shifted his weight in his hips more; Billy tried to look critically. Not appreciatively. He shouldn’t be appreciating the son of the nobleman that had decided to be his patron. Not that Steve was even supposed to be modeling for him beyond the two portraits he’d already had done.

“Tip your knee down more,” Billy stepps back, takes in the composition.

Steve drops his knee.

“Turn your head towards me.”

Steve obliges. The line of his nose looks perfect at three quarters.

Billy stepps up to the platform again, pulls some of the fabric forward, lets it fall over Steve's legs more, over his groin- good. Less distracting. More poetic or something- and the line of his thighs beneath the fabric has just the heaviness Billy is looking for. He steps back again.

“What’s the myth again?” Steve’s jaw gains definition when he speaks with his head at this angle.

“The Death of Hyacinthus.”

“I know that part.” Steve rolls his hand a little. “The part before that. How does he die?”

“He- hang on.” Billy steps close again to push things around, make the lines right. “The wind- Zephyr- gets jealous of his beauty. Apollo throws a discus, and Zephyr pushes it off course, so it knocks Hyacinth in the head. Apollo holds him while he dies.” Billy says it all matter-of-factly. He's trying not to get distracted. He picks up Steve's arm to tilt back towards him a little. His skin is warm like the sunlight staining the floor.

“That's sad.” Steve says. His arm feels relaxed in Billy’s grip. “Weren't they close? Apollo and Hyacinth.”

Billy feels a familiar warmth at his neck of this topic. This thing that always comes up when he and Steve are alone. “They were lovers.”

Steve doesn't say anything back to that.

Billy gets the composition mostly how he wants it- and he’ll probably try Steve in a couple different poses, this is only for sketching. He takes ages deciding where to set up to actually draw it- Steve makes fun of him. Billy says he’s not the one naked on a pile of old curtains. That makes Steve laugh. His stomach flexes a little when he laughs.

Billy's glad Steve can be part of his process now.

He gets some general gestures down on paper. He really nails the angle of Steve’s throat- which he's proud of. He needs the arch of the thing to be perfect. And he gets the general idea of Steve's features down quick- he’s drawn Steve's face maybe a thousand times by now. The way his arm falls is tricky- he’ll come back to that in a bit.

“Billy.”

Billy looks up at Steve’s voice. He’s sat up a little, something short of coy in his eyes. “I’m cold.” “You’re cold.” Billy says back to him. Because he never does what Steve implies. Only what Steve says.

“Yeah, like you said- I’m bare ass naked on a pile of curtains.”

“Your calling.”

Steve laughs again. “Do you think we could close the door?”

“We?”

“You. Can you close the door.”

“Who’s the revered artist here?”

“Who’s the patron?”

Billy rolls his eyes, but he drops his chalk into the lip of his easel anyway, walks to pull the door to his studio shut, separating them from the rest of the house. Steve left it open in the first place.

“You’re not my patron.” Billy says when he gets back, picks up to start drawing again.

“I’m close.” Steve only sounds a little superior.

He’s right. He is close to being Billy's patron. He recommended Billy to his family, he talked up Billy’s version of the pieta, he introduced Billy to the Influentials of Florence, got him this nice new studio, set up in one of the family houses. He was only a little superior about it.

Mostly he was nice.

Nice to Billy. Excited about the things he drew, always asking him what he was working on.

Asked to sit for him once, twice, how many more times, he was part of the process now.

This might be what having a muse was, if Billy believed in things like having muses.

Steve scratches the back of his calf with a foot, then sets his legs back down.

“I’m surprised you don’t get bored doing this.” Billy cracks two of the knuckles on his drawing hand, shakes out his wrist. He’s only prying a little.

“I like watching you work,” comes Steve's easy reply.

“Still.” Billy smudges at a stray line with his thumb. “You’re always fidgety at dinners and shit. Not here.”

“Dinners are boring.” Steve sighs.

He had expressed that sentiment before. That he found Billy much more interesting than anything his family ever did. That he’d trade his infinite wealth for the virve Billy so possessed. Only he didn't say it like that. He said “I’d trade all of this shit for whatever makes your art so beautiful.”

And Billy said “You wouldn't want to. Trust me.”

Billy, having seared the image of Steve into his brain by now, was adding more definition in places, really letting his focus slide out of his head.

And it’s quiet for a bit. Billy doesn't notice when the silence breaks- the sound of shifting fabric, bare feet on wood floor-

“Shit, that’s really good.” Steve's voice startles Billy a little, but he doesn’t let it show. Just turns a little abruptly to find Steve leaning over his shoulder.

“Looks just like me.” Steve continued, hovering his fingertips over Billy's rendition of his nose.

“You don’t have to sound so impressed every time.” Billy rolled his eyes, pushing Steve’s hand away.

“Oh, excuse me for showing some enthusiasm.” Steve hummed another laugh, still looking at the paper. He traced a finger absentmindedly down his own flesh-and-blood nose, marveling at the likeness.

Billy couldn't focus enough to continue with Steve so close. Not like he’d never seen Steve in next to nothing before. But this was really and truly nothing. And even naked as the day he was born Steve exuded wealth in just the way he stood. Like clothes were nothing but decoration on something already… beautiful.

“Can you go back to your spot, please?” Billy got out, looking away like he was annoyed.

Steve just smiled at him before padding back to his platform, throwing the fabric back over his legs.

But now the composition was wrong-

“So,” Steve’s voice carried across the sun-soaked chambers. “Why Hyacinth?”

“What do you mean.” Billy was trying desperately to collect his thoughts.

“I mean, he’s dating a god, right? Why him? What's so special about him.”

“He’s beautiful.”

“And?”

“Well, I mean, he’s a Spartan prince, he’s legendary. Apollo doesn't even really pick him. Hyacinth has, like, a bunch of people to choose from. He picks Apollo.”

Billy can’t draw like this, especially since Steve fucked up the composition- probably on purpose.

Billy gets up with an unintentional little huff and gets close to Steve again, has to adjust his legs again, avoid staring at the pinks that dust Steve’s everywhere-

“You draw me a lot.” Steve interrupts Billy’s train of thought.

Billy looks up, holding Steve’s wrist like it was his own. “You sit for me a lot-”

“What's your favorite part to draw?”

Billy’s breathing feels thicker, like his throat is coated in honey, sweet but hard to breathe. “Of you?” “Yeah.”

“Your nose.” Billy says easily, because it's safe to say.

Steve smiles. “You've said that before.”

“It's true.” Billy prepares to turn away again, to tell Steve they should get more done while there's still daylight.

Steve’s fingers hook against the palm of Billy's hand. This is playing with fire.

Steve lifts Billy's hand up, touches it to the bridge of his nose.

He can feel the sharp bone under his forefinger.

“Where else?”

Billy inhales. It's a feat. “Your jaw.”

Steve pulls Billy's hand down his cheek to touch his jawline. They’ve been avoiding this forever,

“And?” Cliche game of cat and mouse. Right now, Billy’s the mouse.

“Your shoulders.” Billy watches Steve drag his hand down his perfect neck to the slope of his perfect shoulders. “Steve.”

“Billy.” Steve mocks Billy’s warning tone just a little. “Come on, what else?”

Billy swallows again. He doesn't respond he just lets his hand wander lower, lower, down his chest, to his stomach-

Billy stops his hand, pushes back against Steve’s. “I’ve never drawn you nude, if that's what you’re implying.”

“Maybe you should.” Steve’s finger’s slide up Billy's forearm to hook under the edge of his rolled up sleeve.

“I’d need a couple different references...” Billy trails off. He knows Steve is about to kiss him.

It’s still delicious when he does. No number of days, weeks, waiting for one of them to make a move, of thinking what that move would be, what it would feel like, would have prepared Billy for the spit-sweet taste of a first kiss in the late afternoon.

-

i might do a part ii or just leave it like this lol

#harringrove #steve harrington #billy hargrove #steve x billy #billy x steve #harringrove fanfic #harringrove fic #my fic #my writing #its the renaissance au

[paging-possum]

I did a collab with the incredible @whotaughtyougrammar to draw EVERYONE’S favorite guys, the Close boys!! Or, I guess you could say they drew the Close boys and I drew the background lmao. It was super fun, and turned out epic! :D I threw some progress pics from my end below, and you should go check out hers on her blog!

[a digital drawing of nick and glenn close smiling into phone camera, standing in front of a disneyland castle. Glenn is an asian man with light skin, curly black hair, and a scar on one eyebrow. He is wearing a black leather jacket, a necklace with a round jade pendant on a red cord, silver ear piercings, and mouse ears with a red bow with white polka dots. He has an arm around Nick, a teen with brown skin and curly black hair, wearing a red and white striped shirt under a dark vest with gay and trans flag pins on it. Nick is holding up a peace sign with one hand, and has the other around glenn. The castle in the background is made of grey stone walls, with pink and blue turrets. In the corner of the drawing, which is set up to look like a phone camera screen, there’s a messy drawing of Nick smiling.]

[three process shots of the previously described drawing. The first is a messy sketch in blue of the castle, where the bridge leading to the entrance- an arch with a portcullis- is visible. The second is a lined version of the castle, and the third has a colored background while nick and glenn are a flat grey.]

#this was super fun!! sorry i took a while on some of my parts lol #but id love to do it again! perhaps even a morgan next time…. #my art #dndads #collab #glenn close #nick close

[bts-trash-blog]

My protector: Min Yoongi

Summary: People don’t know how to keep their months shut, thought you know how to shut them up.

Paring: PantherHybrid!Yoongi X RabbitHybrid! Reader

Warning: Fluff, slight angst and some hints at some insecurities on Yoongi side

Quarantine request! I hope you like it!! 

The soft feeling of fur, of a thin like tail made you hum softly as you slowly stretched your arms out in front of you. Making the body behind you tighten their tight hold around your waist, slowly sitting up your look over to see a sleeping Yoongi. Watching his slightly pointy fluff balck ears flicker as his eyes slowly open, the yellow brown color of his eyes peeking through his partially open eyes as his fingers slightly kneaded into your waist. Your hand moved to cup his well defined jaw, as his sharp canine teeth peek through his  lower lips as he yawned your way his legs stretching as you felt his the tip of his tail flick slightly as his eyes open all the way.

“Morning bun.” He mumbled making you smile as you lean in and press your lips to his for a quick peck making him let out a purr like sound and you trail your lips down his chin to his jaw, slightly nibbling as you felt his hands rub your back. As you lick at his neck, and nibble slightly at his skin he couldn’t help but shiver and then giggle as he slightly pluss you away making you pout. “Feeling cuddly bun?” You couldn’t help but nod as one of your hands moved to slide under his neck  and around his shoulder as the other wraps around his waist.  “Any reason for these cuddles?” His question made you look down as his hand was trailing against your arm that was resting against his waist, watching his fingers trace shapes into your skin made heat spread around your neck to the tops of your cheeks.

“Love you, that's all.” Your words made him chuckle as his nose nudge against the top of your head affectionately, making your heart thump rapidly against your chest.

“Love you too bun...so much.” Pulling away from you, made a whine pass your lips as he rolled out of your bed, sitting up you watched him stretch as you huff and slightly thump your hand against the bed making him freeze. “Don’t you thump at me, it’s time to get ready for the day.” huffing you slam your hand against the bed again making him slightly glare at you as you watch his black tail swish behind him. His ears flick as you slam your hand against the bed again, making him slightly growl and roll his eyes. “Don’t be a brat bun, it's not cute.” Thump. “Bun we need to get ready, I have work and you have school.” Thump. “Out of bed.” Thump.” “Stop being a brat.” Thump. “Y/n, I said stop.” Letting out a huff you stand from the bed and stomp off to the bathroom making Yoongi let out a small sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as his tail flicks behind him. “Don’t fall for it..don’t fall for it..” Thump. “Fuck it.” He rushed to the bathroom to see you standing next to the shower as you let the water warm up. Your black fluffy tails slightly twitched made him smile as he moved forwards and grabbed at it making you squeal out a surprised moan. Turning around you slap his chest making him let out a belly laugh.

“Leave my tail alone you cat! Go and get dressed, since cuddling me for ten more minutes is so hard.” He lets out a small huff as his fingers move to play with your floppy ears, your hand pushing his arm away as you back away. His eyes close, as if he was in slight pain only to shoot back open as you begin to push him out of the bathroom.

“I need a shower.”

“You showered last night, go get ready.” You grumbled slamming the door in his face, the sound of the lock clicking made him growl as he slammed his fist against the wooden door. “You don’t scare me you big stupid kitty!”

“You’re such a brat!” He growled and walked away, leaving you smirking as you crawl into the shower. This is gonna be fun.

Walking out of the bedroom after getting dressed, you walked out to the kitchen your damp hair was pulled up in a ponytail, shorts and a large sweater of yours. As you do your greeted by a suit and tie Yoongi, his white dress shirt tucked into some bacl slacks as he finished tightening his tie, you wanted to melt and give him a kiss right then and there, but you fought your need, and grabbed your book back and a bottle of water from the fridge.

“Bun.” Yoongi mumbled, making you turn away as you go to slip on your vans, his body slipping behind you as you nudge his hand, that he placed onto your shoulder, off of you. “Oh really this is the game you're playing. Fine. Enjoy your day.”  He mumbled kissing the back of your head, as you rolled your eyes and left your shared apartment, you heard him whine, thinking that you’d turn around and give him a kiss, that you'd break that easily. How wrong he was.

__________________________________________________________________

When lunch time rolled around, you and a few of your classmates were sitting in the courtyards of your college campus books in laps as you talked about your shared morning lessons. With the twitch of your nose you smelt the familiar cologne, and then you heard him huffing as you watched your friends slightly tense as he stopped about a foot or two behind you. Though hybrids and humans were almost equals, there was now the issue of predator and prey breeds and their natural instinct that fought against each other. Prey feared the predator. Feared that they would become feral at any time. Especially the big cats. The hunters.

So your relationship was unique.

He poked your shoulder making you shrug it off as you heard and felt him bend down behind you. Poke. Making you hunch forward as your friends watched, some with fear, some with disgust and some with slight want. As from what you could tell from the sound of his lips pratting, he went to speak, but one person spoke up, cutting him off with disgust laced in every single one of his words.

“What is the panther doing here?” They were newer in your friend group, not really knowing about your relationship, only knowing that you had a boyfriend that you lived with, and that he didn’t enjoy selfies.  They were a mouse hybrid, small, and plae, but from  before this point they seemed sweet.“You’re not wanted here.” he followed, making you and your friend Soojin scoff, as you glare at them, even though you wanted to continue your silent treatment till you were home and he was pouting at you on the couch. Your relationship, and the pride you take in it, comes first.

“He is wanted here, he is the love of my life, come here baby.” You mumbled turning around, arms open, making the frozen panthers blink slowly as he cleared his throat shaking his head as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to your cheek.

“I actually got to get back to work, just wanted to drop off some of your favorite veggie stir fry from that one pace..um I love you bun.” He mumbled as he handed you a bag, the smell of your favorite meal made your nose twitch as you cup his cheek leaning forward as you push your lips against his.

“Love you, have a good day at work.” He nodded sadly, standing up he pats your head as he softly waves at the group of you and walks away. You watch him till you not he can’t hear the conversation you knew was coming.

“You’re dating a thing like him?” Yana spat out, her already big sugar gliders eyes widened even more as the mouse hybrid, Minho nodded in agreement. “He could go feral on you at any moment,he could really hurt you just because you surprise him or something. Also he calls you bun isn’t that like degratting or something.” She continues not noticing the anger fuming from the tips of your ears, your bent knees giving you an advantage to actually thump your foot hard against the ground.

“Yeah and it's just wrong, he’s a predator he should be with a predator like how you should be with a prey.” You thump again, making it more noticeable as Soojin joined in. Dangers being glared at the two.

“My Yoongi is the kindest, most gentle creature I know. Those feral rumors aren't true, they only do that when they have been hurt or abused. Just like how we could go feral. Also isn’t that like saying you and your human boyfriend is wrong?” Her lips parted as you started to shove your books into our book bag, standing Soojin followed.

“No it’s not wrong, humans and hybrids have been dating since we were bred as pets three hundraed years ago.”

“Most weren't in relationship with the humans they were forced to sleep with. My relationship with Yoongi is just a imortrant, and should be just as respected as your own. Now go kindaly fuck yourselves with a catus and delete my number.” You said with a smile as you and Soonjin walked off, but not before Soojin turned her head and smiled brightly at them with her middle fingers up at them.

“Suck our fluffy cute tails bitches!” Her words made you laugh as she turned back around and wrapped her arm over your shoulder as you moved away from the two. “Are you gonna share that stir fry?”

___________________________________________________________

As you walked through your apartment door, you saw your boyfriend spread out on the couch, sweat pants, and a loose tank top his hair fluffed out from a shower. Smiling, you dropped your book back and launched yourself onto his chest making the air leave his lungs as he chuckled softly at you, his arms wrapping around your shoulders as you pressed your forehead against his, making him shut his eyes as he relaxed.

“Why are you apologizing?” His question made your heart speed up, loving that he knew your small animal traits. Your hand rubbed against his chest as you open your eyes to stare at him, making you giggle as you straddle his stomach and sit up, his hands falling to the tops of your thighs.

“For being bratty...and for what those two asshats said to you.” He rolled his eyes slightly as his thumbs drew circles into your bare thighs.

“Isn’t anything we hadn’t heard before.” You sigh at him as he looks at you and closes his eyes, a painful sigh leaving his lips as he opens them back up. Sadness and insecurities swimming in his iries making you frown down at him, your hand moving to his forearms as you rub at the skin. “Don’t say it.”

“I’m gonna say it.”

“You don’t need to.”

“Yes I do.”

“No you don’t, I know my thoughts are stupid.”

“Stupid yes, but they’re real and I don’t like you thinking them.” You said, as you lean down to rest your head against his neck making his hands move to the swell of your butt up to your back as you kiss his neck. “I love you, and I could give two shits what people think, you are my protector not some predator to me. Do you understand, my kitty?”

“Yes I do bun..I love you.”

I love you too.”

#bts #bts fluff #bts angst #bts smut #bts suga #bts min yoongi #bts min yoongi smut #bts min yoongi fluff #bts min yoongi angst #bts x reader #bts hybrid #bts hybrid au #bts request #bts senarios #hybrid yoongi #bts yoongi x reader #yoongi x reader #yoongi x y/n #yoongi fluff #yoongi angst #hybrid reader #kpop x reader #kpop hybrid #kpop fluff #kpop angst

[signs-of-the-moon]

Moon Rise: Chapter 51

Sunhigh the following day was fast approaching. Warriors were gathered in the clearing, feasting upon freshly caught prey. Hardly a whisper was passed among them; tension heavy in the air. Swiftcloud sat between her mates Shadowfang and Mistyleaf, sharing a rabbit. To say she was nervous was an understatement. Today would be the deciding factor on who would keep the rights to the Forest Patch. A prime hunting area, especially in Leafbare, at least for Grassclan. If they were to lose today, the clan would suffer greatly. And if they were to win? Though they would gain more territory, it could potentially cost more lives. Every cat would be giving their all today, as evident of the sheer amount of cats joining the patrol. Every capable warrior was going to fight; queens, and apprentices included. How many of these cats would Swiftcloud be seeing for the last time? How many more would come home bloodied and broken over a petty feud?

She glanced over at Shadowfang. His expression was serious, gaze distance as he chewed a piece from their shared prey. Swiftcloud wondered what he might be thinking about.

Her attention shifted to her left to focus on Mistyleaf. She was pressed completely against Swiftcloud, tail-tip twitching nervously. She seemed to be mumbling herbs names and their uses under her breath. She'd barely touched any of the rabbit. Swiftcloud felt bad for her. Normally Mistyleaf would stay behind in camp during raids with Goldensong. Today though, Whitestar had ordered her to assist Snowfrost on the front lines. Swiftcloud worried most for them. Though it was against clan law to harm or kill a medicine cat, it would be easy to mistake an idle healer as an enemy warrior. In the heat of battle, a warrior doesn't usually waste time considering who's who among their opponents. They attack first, ask questions later. If Treeclan's warriors were careless, they could easily slay Mistyleaf or Snowfrost. That frightened Swiftcloud to her core. Silently she swore to herself that she would be keeping an eye on her medicine cat mate as she fought with all her might against cats who might dare threaten her life. And with Shadowfang at her side, Swiftcloud could be sure her other mate would be protected.

Whitestar called out from atop the Tall stone. At once, every cat turned their attention onto her. "Sunhigh approaches. Our greatest battle begins now. Stand strong, my warriors. Stay close to your partners, and look out for one another. We are strong. Together, we shall defeat Treeclan and claim our victory!"

"Grassclan!" Chicorynose caterwauled loudly, encouraging her clan.

"Grassclan! Grassclan! Grassclan!" Everyone cheered along, standing as one unit and walking to the bramble tunnel. One by one Grassclan's warriors and apprentices slipped out into the meadow, bounding over many hills and across the Twoleg bridge. Not a whisper passed among them, not even a whimper or a growl. Every cat remained poised and ready for a fight. Their muscles were tight, strengthened by the previous day's training. Everyone looked confident in their collective mission. Even Swiftcloud felt assured, though her usual anxiousness still hung at the back of her mind. It's an honor to serve my clan. Even if I die today, I know I'll do so aiding in our victory. Swiftcloud glanced at her clanmates surrounding her, feeling a smile pull at her lips. Despite the looming danger they were about to face, she felt safe here among the clan. Like this was where she was meant to be.

As they came upon the Forest Patch, Grassclan's movements began to slow. Cats drew closer to one another; partner finding partner. Eventually, they formed a line, standing perfectly along the border as they waited for their enemy to arrive. Most turned their sights towards the treetops. Swiftcloud, however, kept her line of sight forward. A few tense heartbeats passed before she began to hear the thudding pawsteps of many cats approaching.

"Look," she breathed, gaining the clan's attention. All eyes fell back upon the border as a row of bulky warriors approached. Swiftcloud felt herself tense in Treeclan's presence, her legs beginning to tremble from anticipation. The moment they'd all been waiting for had finally dawned upon them. The war would end today. Right here. Right now.

This is what being a warriors is about. We can do this. Grassclan is the greatest clan among the Land's Star. Today, we will prove that.

"Whitestar," Blazestar called out as he made his way out in front of his clan. "This is your last chance to surrender the Forest Patch peacefully. Admit your defeat; apologize for your clan's wrongdoings, and go home quietly. There is no need for battle this day."

Whitestar stepped up, standing face to face with her fellow leader. Their noses were only a mouse-length apart, eyes locked upon one another. There was an air of seriousness surrounding Whitestar this day; an anger the likes of which Swiftcloud had never seen the she-cat possess before.

"Normally, I would agree with you, Blazestar. But that is not the way of a warrior. Too many of my clan have died at the paws of yours unnecessarily. We've come not only for the forest, but to avenge our fallen. And to restore our honor. Grassclan is a nobel clan. We've not done the things you have accused of us for so many moons. Today, we prove that. Not with words, but with tooth and claw. After all, it seems that's all Treeclan understands anymore."

Blazestar's ears drew back, his teeth baring with a snarl. "Then suffer for your choice....Treeclan, attack!"

Treeclan's warriors launched themselves forward at the leader's call, pelts bristling, fury lighting their eyes.

"Grassclan!" Whitestar cried, flicking her tail. At once the clan surged from behind her, countering the enemy across the border. Battle cries and caterwauls rang out like thunder as claws met fur and teeth met skin.

Swiftcloud and Shadowfang joined their clanmates in the brawl, each taking on a warrior double their size. Shadowfang had himself latched to the shoulders of Galestorm, a large gray she-cat with a bad attitude. While Swiftcloud found herself coming to blows with Smokecloud. She tried her best not to harm the tom too severely--they were friends after all--but she still needed to wound him enough to send him fleeing. She threw front paw blows left and right at his face, scratching at his nose and eyes in order to make him flinch. Smokecloud yowled, raising his own paws to blindly flail at the smaller she-cat. One good smack in the jaw sent Swiftcloud reeling backwards. A metallic taste caught on her tongue as she swiped it along her lips. Smokecloud had managed to cut her good. Swiftcloud growled, throwing herself onto the bulky tom to bite at his scruff. She sunk her teeth into his thick pelt, holding until she felt them meet delicate flesh.

"Let go!" Smokecloud coughed as she pulled on him.

Swiftcloud growled at the smokey tom in response, shaking herself violently to rough him up some more until she heard him begin to whimper. Smokecloud backed away as soon as he was let go, turning tail to flee.

"Don't let him get away that easy!" Shadowfang told her. Swiftcloud gave an agreeing nod, pursuing the fluffy smoke tom through the forest. As they ran, Swiftcloud could see more and more of her clanmates driving the enemy towards the Thunder Path, where Grassclan hoped to set the new border. If we can drive Treeclan out from that point, we can solidify our claim on the Forest Patch.

Swiftcloud let out a yowl, slamming her flank into Smokecloud's to push him closer to the black stone river. Smokecloud collapsed just by the edge, his sides heaving with effort. Swiftcloud let out one last snarl before the tom rushed across to the other side, finally safe from the Grassclan warrior's wrath deep in the forest beyond the battlefield. Swiftcloud watched in his direction for a moment more before turning tail, rejoining Shadowfang as he too chased his opponent across the Thunder Path.

"How's Mistyleaf?" Swiftcloud asked as she stood beside him, taking this brief moment to catch her breath.

"She's doing good. Last I saw, she was by our border still. Frostfeather was with her," Shadowfang replied, tearing some fur out from his front claws.

"Not Snowfrost?"

"I think she might be out somewhere on the battlefield, healing wounds. I'm sure she's alright though. Don't worry. Let's get back out there, yeah?"

Swiftcloud wasn't worried about Snowfrost being hurt. What she was more concerned about was the medicine cat using this battle as an opportunity to kill again. The thought was overwhelming. But Swiftcloud forced herself to push the fear aside for the time being.

"Yeah," she agreed as she flanked her mate. The two pelted away from the Thunder Path, seeking new opponents to prey on. Around them, the battle raged on. Tensions were high and every cat was giving their all.

Slugsnout and Snailear were fighting against Treeclan senior warriors, Robinspots and Flamepath. The brothers passed their opponents off to each other, tearing their pelts before switching enemies again. Pansypaw fended off Scarletpaw, while Tulippaw cleaned a wound on her flank that had gotten dirty. The brown and white she-cat turned a heartbeat later, knocking the Treeclan apprentice onto her side to relieve Pansypaw from her fight.

A bear-length off, Tigerfang was crouched beneath Wolfheart, pressed down by the larger warrior's weight. With a hard kick of his back leg, the dark brown tabby managed to knock the Treeclan deputy off of him. Wolfheart staggered backwards, catching himself just before Tigerfang turned, lunging for his enemy. Wolfheart rose up on his hind paws to meet him, catching the Grassclan warrior as he came crashing into his body.

Swiftcloud turned her head, spotting Whitestar just a short way off. She was wrestling Blazestar on the ground, trying to get the upper paw against him. The two leaders rolled over one another, shredding fur and drawing blood. Out of the corner of her eye, Swiftcloud saw Blazestar raise a paw with claws outstretched. They glinted white in the light of the setting sun just as they swung back down, straight across Whitestar's throat.

"No!" Swiftcloud cried, wrenching herself in the direction of her leader.

Shadowfang held her back by her scruff. "Whitestar will be fine! This is what Starclan has given her nine lives for. We need to keep ourselves focused," he reasoned.

Swiftcloud trembled in place, watching her leader's still form for a heartbeat until she saw her start to breathe and move once more. Blazestar was waiting for Whitestar to revive from losing a life, but made no move to attack until he was sure she had recovered. Swiftcloud relaxed slightly, if only because she knew now that Treeclan's leader would fight fairly. She turned to Shadowfang and gave him a nod, following him once again into the throng of cats around them.

Swiftcloud spotted Sunflower in the crowd closer to the Grassclan border, thrashing the inexperienced apprentice, Lightpaw, against a tree. Though she was large for an apprentice, inheriting her size from Whitestar, it was clear she barely knew what she was doing. Lightpaw should be facing another apprentice, not a seasoned warrior. Anger surged through Swiftcloud, forcing her to pull away from Shadowfang once again. She launched herself at Sunflower blindly, swiping at his muzzle to knock him off her clanmate. Lightpaw stared at Swiftcloud in awe.

"Take her to see Mistyleaf!" Swiftcloud commanded her mate as she fended off the enemy tom. Shadowfang gave a nod, helping Lightpaw limp across the border in search of the medicine cat.

Sunflower snarled at Swiftcloud, fangs bared as he tried biting her limbs. Swiftcloud maneuvered away from the tom, arching her back, challenging him to come face a real warrior. Sunflower did not move. He merely stared, eyes dark. A smirk pulled up the corners of his mouth, leaving Swiftcloud confused.

"Watch out!" A cat yowled from behind her. Swiftcloud whipped around, ears flattening against her head as she saw the large body of Tigerlily leaping down at her from above. Rabbitstorm jumped out to intercept her midair, knocking Tigerlily onto her flank with a loud and painful thud. The large tabby and white she-cat yowled up at him wildly as Rabbitstorm reeled back a paw to strike her.

"Fox-dung!" Sunflower cursed. Swiftcloud whipped back around to face him once more. The tom hissed at her, throwing himself at her in an attempt to knock the white and black patched she-cat off her paws. Swiftcloud stumbled, finding her footing. She shook her head then stood up onto her hind paws, falling back down onto Sunflower. Sunflower squirmed beneath her weight, clawing at her flanks as he rolled beneath her belly. Swiftcloud grabbed him by the scruff, pulling him from beneath her. She threw him, slamming the ginger and white tom into the trunk of a nearby tree. Sunflower rose back onto shaky paws, his eyes wide as Swiftcloud approached again. He let out a whimper as he weakly turned, scampering off into the woods. Swiftcloud gave chase, wanting to ensure he was gone for good.

The pair quickly approached the slope which led to the Thunder Path. Sunflower turned once more, giving a last ditch effort of attack before he would surrender to his enemy. He charged at Swiftcloud, pushing her onto her back. The tom's sharp claws scraped against her delicate belly and chest, drawing blood from the wounds he made. Swiftcloud cried out in pain, but refused to admit defeat. With all her might she pulled herself upwards, locking her teeth around Sunflower's throat. She bit down, keeping a strong grip. But Swiftcloud made sure she was careful; she didn't want to kill her enemy.

Sunflower let out a strangled noise, wiggling in the Grassclan warrior's grasp. Swiftcloud whipped around, throwing the ginger tom away towards the Thunder Path. Sunflower rose to his paws, scrambling across the black stone path in a flurry of ripped fur and scarlet droplets. Swiftcloud let out a pant, licking her lips clean of the tom's blood. She nearly gagged at the amount; she wasn't at all fond of cat blood. But spilling some was necessary in battle, especially in the biggest battle of her life.

Around her, the land began to slim of cats as more were sent fleeing across the Thunder Path for good. Grassclan had the upper paw now, and as the moments passed, it became easier to spot her clanmates.

Across the way Swiftcloud caught a glimpse of a familiar fawn pelt laying on the ground unmoving. Green eyes caught onto her blues, making the young warrior's blood run cold.

"Chicorynose!" Swiftcloud scrambled to her paws, rushing to her former mentor's side; praying to Starclan that she was not too late. She came to a screeching halt by the deputy's flank, focus locking onto her face and neck.

Chicorynose had her jaws parted as she panted weakly, looking up at her former apprentice with tears. A sick gurgle came with every breath, blood dripping from the molly's mouth. Her beautiful fluffy neck fur was saturated, stained dark red. Beneath her a lake of blood had formed. Chicorynose's throat had been slit, and she was fading fast. A bubble of sadness burst in the pit of Swiftcloud stomach, forcing sobs from her throat and a tremble in her legs. No, Starclan no! Not Chicorynose. Please!

"Sw-Swift.." Chicorynose gasped out. Swiftcloud moved herself closer to the molly's face.

"I'm here, Chicorynose, I'm here! Pl-please don't die..! Please! I'll get some help. You..you're going to be just fine!"

Chicorynose forced a weak smirk to tug up the corner of her lip. Her voice was incredibly weak and raspy as she began to speak, coming out more as a gulp than a whisper. "I'm..I'm so..proud..of you. You know that...right?"

Swiftcloud nodded, tears streaming down her face. She dipped her head, pressing her nose into Chicorynose's cheek. The deputy's scent flooded her nostrils, filling Swiftcloud with warmth and comfort even in such a terrible moment.

"You are a great..cat...I am so happy to have..trained you..to have known you. To have loved you as..as if you were..my own...." Chicorynose's eyes began to dull, like a fire simmering down into embers.

Swiftcloud hiccuped, "I love you, mom...." She buried her nose that much deeper into Chicorynose's fur. "Please don't die..."

"It's my..time...Starclan calls. The Twilight Passage.. awaits me.. for judgement."

"It shouldn't have to be your time!" The wail came unexpectedly, but Swiftcloud could not help it. A fresh wave of grief crashed over her like the ocean against the shore, rough and salty. Her head shot up suddenly, taking in the bloodied sight of the cat she'd come to know as deputy, mentor, friend, and mother. "Who could have done this to you?!"

"Snow..." Chicorynose's voice was hardly above a whisper now.

"W-who..?" Swiftcloud strained to hear, breath held in anxious anticipation.

"Snow...frost."

Swiftcloud's blood turned ice cold. She stared down at Chicorynose, stiff like stone, as a new sensation came over her. Realisation. Swiftcloud had been right all along.

"Swiftcloud." Chicorynose coughed, grabbing the young cat's attention instantly. "Be good. Take..care of..the clan."

Swiftcloud whimpered, nuzzling her face against the fawn molly's muzzle.

"I will," she promised. Gradually the rise and fall of Chicorynose's chest slowed, and with one last shaky breath, the deputy was still. Swiftcloud shook violently the moment she felt her mentor slip away, her face pressing that much harder against the deputy's. She needed to take in every last flea trace of her scent before it was gone forever. Like Chicorynose was. Luckily, Swiftcloud knew exactly who to blame now. She would have justice for Chicorynose, even if it was the last she'd do.

A twig snapped a foxlength away, making Swiftcloud raise her head. The sweet and nauseating smell of lavender wafted around her as she stared ahead. Snowfrost was standing before her, head elevated, eyes narrowed to bitter icy slits. Her right paw, once silver and striped, was now stained red with blood. Her claws which were unsheathed revealing them to be painted the same.

At once, white hot fury took over Swiftcloud's vision, sending her into a frenzy. She let out a fierce cry, a wretched mix of a wail and a yowl and threw herself at Snowfrost.

"Murderer!" She caterwauled so loud her voice echoed through the trees. Snowfrost managed to dodge her, slipping from beneath the younger she-cat just as she was about to land. She let out a grotesque hiss, arching her back as Swiftcloud turned tail to face her once more. Swiftcloud rushed towards the medicine cat again, being met by claws swiping for her face. Blood welled around Swiftcloud's left eye, forcing it shut as the liquid trickled down. Pain seared her flesh, but the sensation felt dull compared to her heartbreak. She would not allow such a small wound to stop her, not now, not while Chicorynose's killer was still right here in front of her. A quick shake of her head brought Swiftcloud's senses back. "I knew you were no good," She snarled. "I'm going to make the whole clan see what a monster you are!"

At once, Snowfrost let out a viscous yowl, throwing herself at Swiftcloud, bowling her over. The mollies tussled around on the ground, biting and scratching, each trying to one up the other. Snowfrost aimed for Swiftcloud's injured eye and shoulder, trying to disable her, leave her weak. But Swiftcloud had moons of training under her pelt, giving her the strength to withstand the attack despite the pain.

"You should have died when I fed you that mouse! You should be dead just like Chicorynose, just like all the others!" Snowfrost sneeded, creating a new rush of ferocity within the warrior. Swiftcloud put all of her weight into rolling them over, forcing Snowfrost onto her back. She pinned the medicine cat down, one paw against a shoulder, another against her throat. Her back paws pressed down into Snowfrost's lower half; a paw against her exposed belly, the fourth stopping her back legs. The medicine cat was completely immobile, but Swiftcloud wasn't satisfied. Her ears drew back as she stared down at the medicine cat, teeth bared in a snarl. One of her paws lifted slowly, claws unsheathing.

"Swiftcloud!"

#warrior cats #wcs #warrior cats ocs #wcs ocs #Signs of the Moon: Moon Rise #Signs of the Moon #Moon Rise #Chapter 51

[aion-rsa]

Ranking Cinderella Adaptations

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A dream is a wish your heart makes, and if your wish is to see countless takes on the beloved fairy tale of Cinderella, then consider your dreams having come true many times over—including this year, with a new Cinderella by way of Amazon Studios. This latest adaptation seems to have combined qualities of many of its predecessors: it’s playfully anachronistic and eschews the traditional Disney or Rodgers & Hammerstein songs in favor of a tracklist of modern pop covers; it also engages with Cinderella’s career aspirations beyond fitting her foot into a glass slipper.

But this Cinderella owes everything to the other soot-stained girls, animated and otherwise, who wished with all their hearts for decades before her. How does the new adaptation compare to the modern fairy tales, animated classics, and another fairy tale riff with an outstanding Stephen Sondheim tune? Check out our ranking of Cinderella adaptations, from worst to best.

10. A Cinderella Story (2004)

This cult classic is a clever retelling, with peak early-aughts casting of Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray as the star-crossed, Cyrano de Bergerac-inspired lovers: Sam toils away at her late father’s Southern California diner, under the heel of a delightful Jennifer Coolidge as her vain stepmother, while Austin is the closest thing to high school royalty as the quarterback with a sensitive side. Regina King as the longtime diner employee-turned-metaphorical fairy godmother who gets Sam to the homecoming masquerade dance is the other key bit of casting, but you’d have to really be a fan of the “fairy tales in high school” subgenre to get on board. Plus, the stable of derivative direct-to-video sequels makes the sparkle wear off with each new, formulaic installment released.

9. Cinderella (2021)

Kay Cannon’s (Pitch Perfect) progressive plot urging entrepreneurial dressmaker Ella (Camilla Cabello), her bitterly materialistic stepmother (Idina Menzel), and other original female characters to choose themselves over the supposed security of marriage is not quite enough to balance the cringey modern soundtrack and anachronistic witticisms. It’s too bad, because this Cinderella puts forth ambitious ideas, and any production with Billy Porter as the fairy godmother should be nothing but fabulous. Compared to most of her predecessors, this Cinderella is a distinctively fresh role model for the next generation of kids, but adults won’t find much magic in her story.

8. Ella Enchanted (2004)

This is a tough one, because the source material—that is, Gail Carson Levine’s 1997 middle grade novel—is unquestionably one of the very best Cinderella adaptations: Ella’s curse of obedience is an apt commentary on manipulating young girls into giving up their agency under the guise of people-pleasing. But the film—despite its adorable, baby-faced stars Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy—overcomplicates an already daring plot with a throne-stealing subplot (that Cary Elwes, as the unnecessary evil uncle, can’t save) and an unforgivably cheesy cover of Queen’s “Somebody to Love.” Hathaway’s voice is sweeter than Nicholas Galitzine’s rendition in the new Cinderella, but the giants dressed in early-aughts miniskirts strain even the most loose definitions of fantasy. Despite all that, it (mostly) sells Ella struggling against abuses of her obedience in a way that’s still more revelatory than many straight adaptations. Still, you’ve got plenty of better movie choices; forget this adaptation and just read the book.

7. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1965)

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II originally wrote their classic musical for television broadcast instead of the stage, though it has found its way to the latter. CBS’ second TV production (following the original 1957 version starring Julie Andrews) introduced a bright-eyed Lesley Ann Warren (a.k.a. Miss Scarlet from Clue) as Cinderella, and unlike its predecessor was able to be recorded in color. Between the vivid hues, Warren’s expressive acting, and the array of sets, it all contributed to the feeling of watching a taped performance—an incredibly charming one, at that. But the effect does come off as overwrought at times, making it the lowest of the three specifically Rodgers & Hammerstein adaptations on the list.

6. Cinderella (2015)

While visually Kenneth Branagh’s live-action adaptation of the animated Disney classic hews so closely to its source material that it feels like a lost opportunity to be more original, there are some sly plot tweaks. Lily James’ Ella is not hopelessly naïve about her abusive home situation, yet manages to keep up the mantra of “have courage and be kind” through even the worst mistreatment. Streamlining the classic songs to score strengthens the plot, with Ella’s rare occasion of singing being what ultimately saves her. Fans of the blue dress and romantic vibe will have much to swoon over, even if they’re not surprised.

5. Into the Woods (2014)

Or, then, what if I am? / What a Prince would envision? / But then how can you know / Who you are til you know / What you want? Which I don’t… Anna Kendrick brings us a relatably existential Cinderella in this movie adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s musical about various fairy tale characters who wind up with questionably happy ever afters—including Cinderella, who decides “not to decide,” then ends up with a philandering Prince. It’s not a complete Cinderella story, but it’s a more memorable performance in a handful of scenes than entire movies have attempted.

4. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1957)

Despite only surviving in black-and-white form, CBS’ original TV broadcast shines thanks to its star: Julie Andrews, then performing My Fair Lady on Broadway, who makes this Cinderella both an amalgamation of her then-current and future roles and a performance all its own. You can see glimmers of her comic talents as Maria in The Sound of Music—this Cinderella also has more wit than other versions—but it’s her voice that elevates Rodgers & Hammerstein’s adaptation of Charles Perrault’s fairy tale into something timeless.

3. Cinderella (1950)

Few Cinderella adaptations have achieved the same sweeping sense of sheer romance in the Disney animated classic: the painted backgrounds, the dreamy sequences reflected in soap bubbles and sparkling through the palace gardens, the surprisingly high emotional stakes that make the resolution all the sweeter. And while it’s become a common Disney trope, the requisite scene in which the stepsisters cruelly rip apart Cinderella’s dress adds a layer of wickedness not present in the Rodgers & Hammerstein adaptations, nor successfully recreated in any of the live-action versions. The same goes for the goofy mice singing “Cinderelly, Cinderelly”—every subsequent CGI mouse lacks the warmth that goes into a believable animal companion. That said, the animated movie’s legacy is somewhat marred by its direct-to-video sequels of diminishing returns, though you also have to give them props for pulling an Avengers: Endgame 12 years earlier with Cinderella 3: A Twist in Time.

2. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1997)

For many of us, Disney’s animated Cinderella was a childhood classic, but The Wonderful World of Disney’s ‘90s production was the first time the story truly felt magical. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s songs were updated with contemporary beats, bridging the forty years between the first broadcast and this version: “Impossible” is one of the best songs from the show, but it hasn’t been truly sung until Whitney Houston is belting it out to a starry-eyed Brandy. The production’s effortlessly diverse casting—Whoopi Goldberg as the queen, Paolo Montalban as the prince, Bernadette Peters as the stepmother—only amplifies the universal nature of the story. Almost twenty-five years later, this adaptation still feels like the television event it was when it premiered.

1. Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998)

A truly successful adaptation is one that doesn’t have to feel beholden to its source material. By opening with the Brothers Grimm explaining the inspiration behind their own interpretation of Cinderella, Ever After rewrites all of the familiar themes into a historical fiction—specifically, Renaissance-era France—context. Danielle’s (Drew Barrymore) misfortune as an orphan servant girl is so believable thanks to the cruelty of her stepmother’s (Anjelica Huston, a legend) abuse, but so is her determination and ingenuity to rise above her station. While Disney’s animated Cinderella is romantic, Ever After is a romance: Danielle disguises herself as a comtesse in order to spend time with Prince Henry (Dougray Scott), and they develop an actual relationship, complete with rejection once her subterfuge is revealed. Plus, Leonardo da Vinci is there for comic relief and an unintentional fairy godmother assist! If you want your Cinderella story with a compelling feminist arc but you’re also burnt out on the songs, this is your happily ever after.

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Cinderella will begin streaming on Amazon Video on September 3rd.

The post Ranking Cinderella Adaptations appeared first on Den of Geek.

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#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

[b-else-writes]

the tiger shark and the sun

New chapter posted for my Star Wars/Avatar the Last Airbender  RebelCaptain fusion AU! Eadu time! Dagobah time! Shit absolutely hitting the fan time!

Read on AO3 | Read from the start

Pairings: Jyn/Cassian, minor Han/Leia and Baze/Chirrut, random minor background pairings

Rating: T

Summary: Star Wars/Avatar the Last Airbender fusion AU. When exiled firebender  Jyn Erso lands on his doorstep the day Cassian, last southern  waterbender, meets the Avatar, she seems just another obstacle in ending  the War against the Fire Nation. An obstacle he would willingly remove.  But as their paths keep crossing, and the twins discover that destiny  and balance are more than they expect, Jyn and Cassian find that they are more alike than they ever thought possible.

Snippet under the cut!

Far away, the twins clambered over the rocks and roots of Dagobah. The entire island, in the green-blue waters of the Southeastern archipelago, was covered in mangrove forests, trailing upwards into high cliffs. He could hear apes and monkeys swinging in the trees, mouse-deer trekking through trails, snakes and crabs scuttling between the roots and sand. Before them was tiniest old man Luke had ever seen. He was covered in wrinkles, with wisps of white hair on his head and sprouting from his large ears. His skin was mottled with a green fungus, but his eyes were bright and luminous. “Found someone, you have,” he chortled, clutching his cane, made from a gnarled branch. “Help you, I can.”

“Well...whoever you are, we’re looking for a great warrior,” Luke said, stepping closer to the strange little man.

The old man chucked to himself. “*War? Wars not make one great*.”

The twins looked at each other. Luke didn’t need to touch his twin’s mind to read what she was broadcasting. In the midst of their silent conversation, the little man began poking and prodding Artoo and Threepio. Snickering, he pulled open their packs, enthusiastically chewing on some of their food. “Hey, put that down!” Leia cried, as he dug out her poncho.

Artoo, growling, grabbed one end with his mouth. Leia gasped, seeing the cloth and fur starting to pull. “Artoo, let him have it!” Luke yelled.

The old man whacked Artoo over the head. “Bad dog! Mine! Or I will help you not!”

Finally, Luke managed to get Artoo to relinquish his hold. With a firm glare from Luke, the old man handed over the poncho to Leia, not even concealing his huff. Artoo looked over at Luke, asking, can I eat him? Please?

“No, Artoo,” Luke said, though he was sorely tempted. Artoo sighed.

“Now leave us alone, we're here to find Yoda,” Leia snapped.

“Yoda?” The old man hopped onto a root to look at them in the face. “Hmm, know him, I do! But first, a snack.”

From his dirty robes, the old man pulled out two coconut shells tied together with twine. He opened them. A putrid smell emerged. “Banana and frog soup – eat, eat! Or I will help you not.”

"We don't -"

"Yes, yes, know him I do. Great Sage, of the Jedi..."

Luke pursed his lips, throwing his sister a beseeching look. Patience. With extreme reluctance, Luke accepted a shell and swallowed a mouthful. Instantly, he began to gag. “Oh, this is not worth it at all,” Leia murmured.

“Ugh, we’re wasting our time!” Luke snapped. “You’re just an old hermit trying to trick us!”

The old man’s head slumped. His ears drooped as he looked out distantly, speaking to someone. “Teach them, I cannot. Too angry, too impatient.”

“Ben?” he asked. Luke could not see or hear, and yet… Something, older than him, carried on from his past lives, knew. "You're Yoda..." Rapidly, “No, no, we can learn!”

“Hmph,” Yoda said with a shake of his head, “Bridge between the Spirit World and ours, the Avatar is. Yet see Spirits in the physical world, you cannot. And worse, this one -” He rapped Leia on the head with his cane, “Sense it not! Spirituality of a rock!”

“We can learn to be more spiritual, to open ourselves,” Leia insisted, rubbing her head. Leia’s voice was tense. She flexed her hands, trying to leash the anger simmering under the surface. “And then we can open the Avatar State and beat -”

The old man shook his head in dismay, wandering away. “Beat? Beat?”

They chased after him. Yoda had found a wide sinkhole. It plunged deep into the island, so massive that trees were growing all over its sides. “But you brought us here to learn how to enter the Avatar State at will! You believe in the Jedi religion, you’re a powerful bender, you should know -”

“Bender? Bender, I am not, Skywalker,” Yoda said.

They drew back, startled. The air seemed to shift, grow thinner. “*Always looking to the horizon, Skywalker… Adventure, pah! Excitement, pah! Avatar crave them not,*” he said. “Organa, always looking inwards. Know nothing of the deep ocean, does the frog in the well. Avatar to all Four, bender and non-bender, you must be.”

The twins scowled. Leia snapped, “That's easy for you to say, living in your swamp!”

Yoda shook his cane emphatically. “Four Nations – think too much of it, you do. Transcend these rigged boundaries, the Jedi tried to be.”

Tried… the word echoed in the charged atmosphere of this strange, breathing swamp. It was darker, sadder than Yavin. “Feel it, do you?” Yoda murmured, closing his rheumy eyes. “Old Air Nomad sky burial ground, this is. Studied with the great sages of the Air Nomads, eight-hundred years before I did. A spiritual place.”

Luke could see her biting back a retort. “Judge me, do you? Great Sage, this cannot be,” Yoda tutted.

Leia’s cheeks were flushed, eyes narrowed. Luke could feel his own ears burning. Patience. Patience. We need to let him teach us. They exhaled slowly. As one, they bowed, and if Leia's was a little shallower, Yoda did not comment on it. “Please, teach us, Master Yoda.”

The old Sage cocked his head. At last, he spoke, eyes closed. “Teach you, I will. But unlearn what you have learned, you must.”

After drinking more of Yoda’s disgusting banana-and-frog soup – “essential to the Spiritual journey!” he cackled – Yoda directed them to the sinkhole. “In there, we must go,” Yoda said, “No weapons. Leave them with the animals.”

They shrugged off their water-skins, securing them alongside their Air Nomad staffs to Artoo’s saddle. Luke stroked his stalwart companion, assuring him and Threepio they'd be back soon. Yoda perched himself on Luke’s shoulder. The old man's claw-like hands dug into his skin. “What’s down there?”

“Only what you take with you.”

There’s no such thing as ghosts, Luke reminded himself. Linking with Leia, they began to bend. From deep within the sinkhole, water from hidden pools inside spiralled skyward. A shimmering water-spout crested up in front of them. “How do you get in there, if you can’t bend?” Luke asked, as the water curled around their feet, slowly lowering them into the cave.

Yoda laughed to himself, but did not answer. They dropped further and further down, clearing the vast greenery of the sinkhole. Stone swallowed them as they entered a further crack in the earth. His breath caught in his throat, almost dropping them.

The crack opened up into a great cave. This chamber alone must have been at least two-hundred feet high. The black walls were slick with water and lichen. They landed on a rock. The cave dropped further and further down into the underground water, its surface black and glass-like. Huge boulders, moss-covered, rolled all around them, a series of hills concealed underground, disappearing into further passageways. Stalagmites the size of towers rose up in the distance.

“Know nothing of the deep ocean, the frog does,” Yoda repeated, his luminous eyes lamp-like in the darkness.

He indicated for them to assume poses for meditation. They sat facing each other, legs folded in Lotus Pose, hands pressed together. “Magic power-up, Avatar State is not. Memory of a thousand lifetimes, it is. Live inside you, all past Avatars do. Mace, T’ra, Revan, Nomi…”

“It’s the beauty of the human experience,” Luke said, open his eyes with a start.

Yoda thumped his cane meaningfully. “Good, good. Now, listen. Feel. Beyond what you see and know, stretch out. See beyond the thick stone of the cave.”

Luke breathed slowly. His mind cleared. The sun passed through the sky above, shadows lengthening. Wind stirred the trees. The underground water bubbled, the ocean hummed, cutting through the stone. Bird song. He and Leia, their energies intermingling, rising from the ground like two stone statues. And…something. Half-memory, half-dream, whispering… The Spirits of Enfys’ people, Enfys, who was gone…

He gasped, opening his eyes. Yoda’s disappointed gaze fell upon them. “Hear you nothing that I say?”

“Meditating, reaching enlightenment – you can’t expect results at once!”

Yoda wagged his cane. “No. There is no difference. What is the role of the Avatar?”

“To keep the world in balance, and act as the bridge between the Spirits and humans,” Leia repeated, resting her chin on her hand.

“Great conceit we have. Are we not part of nature? You, girl, understand this.”

“Well, I, yes,” Leia said, “Because the Water Tribes live in such a difficult place, we understand that our fortunes are part of theirs, and they us. Our hunting keeps the populations in check to flourish in the next cycle.”

Yoda nodded. “Yes, yes. Listen: life, beating around us. Growing, dying, over and over. Energy surrounds us. Binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter,” he said, pinching Luke’s exposed shoulder, “You must feel it around you. Between you, me, the tree, the rock. Even between us, and the Spirits.”

Luke winced, rubbing the skin. Leia made a small grin. “That’s what you get for wearing shirts without sleeves.”

He very subtly earthbent to shift her out of her Lotus Pose. Leia squawked, flailing before she got her balance. Yoda sighed, handing them more banana-and-frog soup. “Truly, their father’s children they are, Obi Wan,” he said, though he sounded almost amused, watching them choke down the drink with revulsion. “Now, listen.”

It was almost night. His stomach rolled. His skin was hot and sticky and uncomfortable. But the twins returned to their stances, breathing in time together.

Reach out. Just as Luminara had said – every breathing thing, every animal and sapling and great old swamp tree… He heard the soft musical voices of the Air Nomads in the air, allowed them to wash over him. Time, time was illusion, Luminara had said… They were gone and yet they were here, a story that was already over and yet was happening right now…

Something blue shone beyond his vision. Slowly, forming and re-shaping itself. Obi Wan Kenobi. A Fire Nation man, here in an Air Nomad site, in the Earth Kingdom, shaped by Water Tribe philosophy. Yoda raised his wizened head and nodded. Obi Wan smiled. “I don’t believe it,” they whispered.

“That is why you fail,” Yoda told them.

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#star wars #rogue one #rebelcaptain #dailyrebelcaptain #jyn x cassian #jyn erso #cassian andor #luke skywalker #leia organa #my fic #writing #au: atla

[sonicringbond]

Sonic Ring Bond: The Journey - Scene 47

Well, I’m going to keep this intro short today. There isn’t really a lot of ways I can set up leading into today’s scene. So, please jump straight into...

    “Hee-hee! It’s really you!” Rosy giggled and could not keep herself still. She fidgeted all about and her tail was wagging with more energy than usual. Then, in an explosion of joy she flung herself at who she was speaking with. “TAILS!”

    “Ha-ha!” Tails laughed and struggled to keep himself balanced as Rosy embraced him in a huge diving hug. “It’s good to see you too Rosy! Woah!”

    Spun about by the force of Rosy’s embrace, Tails put his namesake twin tails to use and flew up with Rosy joyously hanging on to him. The sight was almost too much for Draw and Blister.

    “My, he’s an interesting one, isn’t he?”

    “Is he… I mean… how exactly…,” Draw stammered in comparison to Blister’s smooth handling of her surprise. Though that could have been partly due to her being a pirate and a merchant, or just the deliberate and sleepy sounding way she spoke.

    To calm Draw down, Sonic gently rapped his knuckles against his head. Clutching his head, the koala angrily turned onto Sonic. “What was that for!”

    “Just lending a hand,” Sonic laughed as he really did mean Draw no harm. As Draw was blunter than Blister and was not familiar with Tails like Mighty and Gill, Sonic did have to take a moment to be a little more serious. “And you can help him out by not making a fuss about them. Until you’re used to them enough to consider them normal, and by then you shouldn’t have a reason to.”

    “I get it, just don’t hit me!” Draw complained, even though he knew Sonic meant him no harm. Still, he had to get the last word in. And Sonic let him, though his smug smile told Draw it was not his victory. There was no time to keep at it though as everyone fully disembarked from Blister’s airship and moved to greet Tails.

    ~I’m so happy to have caught up with Tails, and of course he’s being as amazing as ever!

    ~Picking up his Ring Radio was a total surprise as Blister was simply trying to make sure hers was properly integrated with her ship. It’s something we can ask Tails to double check on later, but he’s been pretty busy. Being amazing of course~♥

    ~The last we knew, Tails was looking for another pit of radio signal boosting crystals like the ones at Radio Point. What he found instead was a whole medieval castle town, and not a normal one! This one was built entirely upside down on the underside of a giant land bridge. Maybe…~

    “It’s pretty wild Sonic,” Tails happily explained to Sonic as he gave the whole group a tour of where he had been researching. Despite having been separated for so long, it was impossible to tell with how naturally he talked about his findings. “It looks like the city was built upside down, but what purpose would that serve. If my research is right, then it was actually put here by a Ring Shift.”

    “So, what about the people who lived here?”

    Looking around as Tails led the group across the underside of a bridge, Sonic was not wrong to ask. The castle town itself looked like it could have easily supported quite a large population, however, there was no sign of anyone. Tails was more than glad to share his latest hypothesis though.

    “That’s the thing Sonic, there’s no way they should have tried living here, but it looks like they did and probably moved out on their own when it got to be too much.”

    “How is that possible Tails?” Rosy asked, genuinely curious.

    “You want to find out?”

    “Yeah!”

    “You two aren’t about to cause us a lot of trouble, are you?” Sonic asked, scratching inside his ear.

    “It’ll be fun, I’m sure!” Rosy threw all her faith into Tails. “Tails wouldn’t tease it if it wasn’t.”

    “Why do I have a bad feeling about this?” Draw asked and received a comforting hand on his shoulder from Mighty.

    “I would say it’s because it’s what those two do. Keeping them out of trouble is as hard as keeping the wind out of a storm.”

    “That’s impossible,” Draw stared at Mighty disbelieving as he replied.

    Mighty’s smile and lone bead of sweat down his cheek did nothing to alleviate his concern, and Gill spoke up to make matters worse.

    “That should give you an idea lad. Last time I accompanied them things just kept getting worse. And I still don’t see how they’ve gotten better.”

    “If you’re so worried about being in danger, you could always leave,” Blister suggested and earned a scowl from Gill.

    Rosy was too distracted to keep the mouse and frog off each other as she took Tails’ offered hand as the fox took off. Flying up towards the deserted city street above, Rosy suddenly felt gravity shift and would have fallen into Tails if he were unprepared.

    “W-O-W~!” Rosy squealed with delight. “This is amazing Tails! But what’s going on?”

    Looking up past the now gravitationally righted Tails, Rosy saw Sonic and the other’s standing on the underside of the bridge above her, and the cloudy sky beyond.

    “It’s some type of anomalous gravity field,” Tails explained. “But it doesn’t affect the entire city equally. And you can tell people tried living here for a while after the shift due to the various twisting roads and bridges throughout the city.”

    “If they were building things–”

    “Then they must have lived here for a while,” Tails finished Rosy’s thought. “But that isn’t the only thing that could have driven them out. Do you remember where the others are standing?”

    “Yeah,” Rosy answered confused and looked back towards Sonic and the others. She missed Tails’ smile and thus was shocked when she turned back forward to see Tails flying straight for a brick wall. “Kya~! Tails watch out! We’re going to crash!”

    ~The crash never came. Ooh~! I’m so mad at Tails for giving me such a scare, even if it turned out to be fun as we flew at the wall but almost crashed into Sonic and the others.

    ~According to Tails, the whole city is full of these weird little ‘dimensional disturbances’. He figures its part of what has been interfering with Ring Radio signals in the lands under Yolk since they transmit across dimensions. It isn’t what he was looking for when he headed out from Radio Point, but it was a great find for him.

    ~I’m so happy for Tails, and I know that he could study this stuff forever, but now that we’ve met back up… Well, it means we have to find Zooey and Fang and get back to working on going home. Though we may need to figure out the Gear Star Ring in my eye first. Hee-hee! It hasn’t replaced my left iris at all since finding Tails, so I nearly forgot about it. Really, seeing Tails again after so long, I nearly forgot about everything.

    ~Reality is such a bully though!~

    “So, that’s your ship Ms. Blister?” Tails asked as they made their way back around the undersides of bridges and roof eaves to where the half avocado shaped airship was effectively moored.

    “It is,” Blister nodded proudly. “It’s my pride and joy! The Avocado Green I call it!”

    “That name is certainly… flavorful,” Tails nervously attempted to be kind about the strange name. Not having the courage to look the mouse who captained it in the eye, Tails looked at the ship and found a topic of conversation to switch to.

    “And it looks like you have quite the crew. I can hardly believe your ship can hold them all.”

    “What are you talking about?” Blister asked and turned her eyes onto her ship. “Oh dear, it looks like I’m being raided actually.”

    “Raided!”

    Tails shout drew everyone’s attention and in no time, they were all aware of the variety of autogolems crawling all over Blister’s vessel.

   It was not Draw’s first time seeing autogolems that looked like they were crafted to resemble the armor of medieval knights, and he knew there was troubling waiting for them and reached for his bow. “Those aren’t yours, right?”

    “No, but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t wreck my ship. Ms. Rosy has told me about your penchant for explosives.”

    “I guess that’s your cue, Sonic,” Mighty offered Sonic a smile and received a confident smirk in return.

    “Why not. Bashing bots is kind of my thing.”

    “Can I join you!” Rosy clasped her hands together and asked with excited eyes and wagging trail.

    “Sorry kid,” Sonic denied her request and ruffled her bangs. “In this terrain we can only risk Tails having to catch one of us.”

    “Ooh~! Well, you better put on a show then!”

    “Heh,” Sonic laughed and pointed a thumb at himself. “You know you don’t have to worry about that. Just who do you think I am?”

    “Sonic the Hedgehog of course!” Rosy cheered and thrust her balled up hands into the air. Opening her eyes and bringing her arms down, she cheered Sonic on. “Go get them!”

    “No problem!”

    With an instinct that bordered on supernatural, Sonic took off for the airship at a pace none could match. And not because they didn’t have his speed, but no one could use it like Sonic. Surely the auto golems would soon be helpless scrap before the coming streak of blue. Except…

    “Ho!”

    It was the first time any of them were seeing Claymore the Purple in person, and the towering purple autogolem at his full three meters did not disappoint as he stopped Sonic in mid-air.

    “What in the–?” Sonic questioned as a force pressed him tighter into his curled form and kept him rotating.

    “Impressive to see a Ring Mage choose to enter a melee,” Claymore remarked, as his outstretched hand kept Sonic held in a slowly shrinking ring of purple light. “But no matter. I’ve come for the medium. Well, having interrupted your Ring Radio transmission. Ho! How fortuitous I am this day!”

    With a flick of his wrist, Claymore launched Sonic deep into the castle town and turned his glowing purple eyes on Rosy.

    “Ho! Forgive my rudeness Lady Medium. I am Claymore the Purple, Knight of the Order of the Swords. Now be so kind as to come along peacefully.”

Scene 47 · CLEARED Reunion Knight, to be continued

----

I find myself wanting to laugh just like Rosy did at the start of this. Obviously by the end it wasn’t too cheerful anymore, not with Sonic being yeeted off to who knows where. But, Tails is finally here again. It’s actually kind of wild writing with him involved as he really feels like the glue of the AU. His smarts and enthusiasm for his research; it’s just amazing to write really. Hopefully in the future it will be just as easy and he’ll help tie everything together nicely with that Sonic feel I sometimes feel like I’m missing.

Thank for reading everyone! I hope you’ll be back for the next scene!

-----

Special Thanks to Cutegirlmayra Story by @JoshTarwater/SonicFanJ Inspiring Song – Blue Skies – Tsutomu Narita – Granblue Fantasy Story Music Tracks

Fair Use Disclaimer

Sonic the Hedgehog and all affiliated characters and logos are the express property and Copyright© of SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS used without permission under Title 17 U.S.C Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 in which allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. “Fair use” is use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be considered copyright infringement. The Sonic Ring Bond: The Journey alternate universe (AU) consumer written work of fiction is a non-profit transformative work primarily for personal use and can and will be taken down without warning or prior notice at the request of the copyright holder(s) should it not be recognized under “fair use”.

*Sonic Ring Bond logo created by DEE Art – twitter.com/daryliscute.

Sonic Ring Bond AU and Sonic Ring Bond: The Journey are the creation of Joshua David Tarwater/ynymbus/sonicfanj/@Joshtarwater and is to be, including all contents herein considered for all legal purposes the property of the Sonic the Hedgehog intellectual property (IP) and copyright owners, SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS. All story contributors via prompt, suggestion, written scene, art, and all and every other contribution acknowledge that all contributed material is forfeit for legal purposes to SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS upon official request from SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic fan fiction #sonic au #sonic au series #sonic ring bond #the journey #classic amy #amy rose #rosy the rascal #au amy #amy redesign #miles tails prower #mighty the armadillo #sonic oc #mach frog gill bradley #patch #draw the koala #mote the fairy #blister the mouse #claymore the purple

[popculturebuffet]

House of Mouse review: “The Three Caballeros” or State of Your Outfit Donald

The Ride of the Three Caballeros continues, and with reviewed paid for up until legend, we’re fueled up and ready to ride on for some time now. This admittedly has taken a bit longer than I like to get back on the ride, due to a  number of reasons, but i’m back on the ride and these next two were both a pleasure to get to and cover a show that was LONG overdue to show up here: It’s the House of Mouse! For those of you who haven’t heard of it House of Mouse was a Disney show in 2000 that ran on it’s one Saturday morning block, the follow up to the Disney afternoon. It also holds a close place in my heart as these are the versions of Mickey and Co I grew up with, as I had Disney Channel as a kid and they reaired it a LOT, so the show is sorta soaked into my DNA, and is likely the reason why I like Donald and Goofy so much, as their shorts here and their personalities outside them really drew me in. I’ll still be objective mind, but the show means a lot to me and i’m not going to hide that. 

The show has a really amazing setup: Mickey and Co run a club for Disney characters. While no tv characters showed up, anyone who had been in the movies was fair game, and everyone from Hades to both forms of Simba somehow to the horned freaking king showed up. The only exceptions were as I said Tv characters, though Pepper Ann makes a cameo in the pilot, and the Pixar characters.. which is more fair than you think. Keep in mind at the time of this series, there were only three Pixar Movies: Toy Story, a Bug’s LIfe and Toy Story 2, which came out the same year as house of mouse. Not only that Pixar wasn’t owned by Disney at the time, so there was likely a fear they could loose the rights to use the characters at some point and thus didn’t want to chance it.  But yeah this setting is used for great jokes, it’s the source of the “No one does X like gaston!” meme and it’s funny every time they do that gag. Though the main stars of the show are still mickey and co with each having a fitting position in the club’s hierachy: MIckey and Donald, being equal stars, co-own the club, though Donald sometimes feels overshadowed. Mickey, with his people skills and cheer is the MC and host. Donald, given his jack of all trades nature and butt monkey status, is guest services, in charge of taking care of the club’s featured guests and naturally having it backfire, as well as sometimes envying Mickey’s spot and trying to take it over. Minnie, being level headed, keeps things running, planning the show and managing finaces as well as calming Mickey when he gets panicky. Daisy runs guest services while trying to break out on her own and is somewhat of a ditz in this series, though not overly dumb or incompetent, just a bit of an air head is all, and her sweet bubbly nature makes her very likeable. That and outside the shorts at least, she’s very nice to Donald here and their realtionship is very sweet, hence it being one of the four versions of it I like.  Goofy is head waiter, which fits him because.. I dunno they needed one. But he does the job well even if he naturally screws up a bunch because Goofy. Pluto is also around as a personal assitant because eh why not.  But what really stood out abotu the show to me, even more so as an adult, was  the supporting cast. As a kid, I was introduced to a lot of the disney side characters i’d never heard of before, all of whom get a decent amount of screen time over the series, while as an adult, I find it heartwarming they brought these characters back and fleshed them out after not being used on screen for so long, with one big exception that was still nice of them to use and helps bridge the generation gap. 

The rest of the HOM crew consisted of Hoarce, Mickey’s friend who was used a lot early on and who works as the club’s engineer and handyman, Clarabelle, also often forgotten but thoroughly defined here as a loveable gossip and acted wonderfully by the incomparable April Winchell. I credit this show for making me love both characters especially Clarabelle and wanting to see them more. 

We also have Gus, a far more obscure on screen character. Gus is Donald’s Cousin, and as of this writing is the ONLY one of Donald’s three majorly used Cousins to have not shown up in the Ducktales reboot. Gus is also the only one whose not a comics original, to my shock, instead showing up in the short “Donald’s Cousin Gus”, communicating only through honks and eating all of Donald’s food. He was naturally adapted for the comics, where while still having a huge appetite became more bossed with being a lazy while working with Grandma Duck, his and Donald’s Grandma. He’s so different between mediums I genuinely forgot he was in this show and didn’t realize he and the chef from this show were the same person. Still it’s nice to see him and hopefully he’ll make the reboot before it ends.  Finally rounding out the supporitng cast we have Huey Dewey and Louie, who mostly show up as the quackstreet boys to dance and are kind of inbetween their classic designs and their quack pack versions: They have the hair from quack pack, but seem more like their 12-13, a bit older than standard, but sitll not as old as they are in Quack Pack. They also don’t talk which is a vast improvement over Quack Pack. And finally, and more prominently, we have Max, who as I said bridges the gap between generations and I think was an amazing inclusion. He not only gave younger viewers like me a character they knew better, but allowed the character’s story to continue a bit, clearly taking place after xtreme but having him actually go on a date with Roxanne. Thank you House of Mouse Writers. your doing Golb’s work.  Antagonist wise we have Pete, as usual trying to muck things up and presumibly flush with post divorce cash. He’s the club landlord, and wants Mickey out for reasons that are never explained, but as long as the show goes on and Mickey pays rent on time, the show goes on. Being Pete, he naturally tries to sabotage things. It’s a good device. The other is Mortimer, probably the series deepest cut alongside Gus as he only shwoed up in one short but the series easily made him one of my faviorites: A Sleazy asshole who tries to pick up on Minnie (who thankfully this go round is not at all receiptve), tries to get on the card, and constnatly says Ha-Cha-Cha. Maurice LaMarche, this show had a REALLY talented voice cast can you tell?, really owned the character and has been his voice since and really took him from a one dimensional douche to a LOVEABLE asshole. 

Granted most of this.. really isn’t relevant as only the main cast show up, but it’s an aspect of the show I like so I went into it anyway. Plus i’ll defintely be coverng the show again so this saves me time for later.  Back on point though, the show’s format was a problem of the week, ranging from guest troubles to pete shenigans to internal strife in the club to just general sitcom shenanigans, going on at the club, with shorts inserted in from a previous Mickey Show, Mickey MouseWorks. MouseWorks was a short lived, pun intended, show that didn’t do so good, so they had a bunch of these shorts sitting around including some that never aired on the show, and thus inserted them as cartoons being played for the club patrons. It was a great device and the shorts, while varying in quality , are mostly pretty good and were the first Disney Shorts I saw. It was a good format, allowing the main stories to have plenty of time, but not have to overpad them or anything and with so many shorts on hand they could simply write the story to be as long as they needed and then insert however many shorts were needed. It worked well. 

So yeah as you can tell I truly love this show and it introduced a lot of stuff to me. And naturally.. that includes the Three Caballeros here, with their song here being stuck in my head for years and this being the first time they’d shown up in decades... which is ironically how long it took for me to see their movie but regardless. The boys were back, and you can see how the show did with them, under the cut. 

Something to note, No Disney Plus this time.. because BAFFLINGNLY the show is not on there, despite no rights issues holding it up I’m aware of, and the show having every other mouse and duck related animated series on there. I know, I’ve talked about this before, even in this very retrospective.. but I keep bringing it up because it’s something you easily forget about. Something that may slip away. But don’t let it. Let them know, and get our shows on there already. Christ.  Anyways, due to the show’s format of sliding the shorts in, and to make thing easier on me for house of mouse reviews i’m simply going to do the shorts first, then the main plot. Good? Good. 

This one only had two, though it varied on how many they used, and some were just super short shorts anyway, so it all balances out and as I said, i’ts better they just told as much story as was there than tried to rush it. So without further adue...

Donald’s Fish Fry: Poor Poor Humphrey  Yeah I didn’t like this one. The premise is using the old character Humphrey the Bear.. only here instead of being the antagonist the ranger present basically bullies the poor bear, while the other bears constnatly get more fish than him when it’s their registered time to fish. It’s just agrvating.. and when the poor boy finally GETS a fish, Donald snatches it.  Donald isn’t unsympathetic here, he found the fish fairly.. but it’s hard to tell who we’re supposed to root for here. Humphrey, who just wants what’s his, or Donald whose oblivious but technically in the wrong. This kind of slapstick just.. dosen’t work as well with both sides being sympathetic. It can work with say bugs and daffy, because both are equal, but there’s clearly an antagonistc force in elmer fudd. But this type of shenanigan just dosen’t work when neither side deserves the punishment, and Humphrey did nothing wrong. I felt like this for supporting him the whole time. 

And it ends with the ranger getting the fish. Because he wasn’t unlikeable enough clearly. Though Humphrey does get some beans so yay? Also the house segment after has Ranger Dickhead stealing Humphrey’s dinner, which given he’s at the club he CLEARLY paid for because it’s too fatty. Fuck you dude. I hope Goofy threw you out for that one. Just not a fun sit. I’ve seen this kind of shenanigan done better, in disney classic shorts even. I’ve seen Don as the villian better, See Trick or Treat for a good example> There’s just.. nothing here and it goes on forever. This is a good chunk of the episode! Lordy! Just a genuinely bad short. Thankfully the next one while not as word inducing is also not as headache inducing How to Be Smart: Now THESE were my faviorites as a kid. I loved goofy, so shorts about him were no brainer but even now.. these are still funny. Basically a narrator would follow Goofy around while he tries to learn how to do something, in this case how to get smarter after loosing on a gameshow .. and owing the show three milion dollars. There’s not much ot go into, it’s basically a series of jokes about Goofy going to school from elementary to college and learning his way up while Dealing with Ludvig’s bratty nephew and his own stupidity. It’s a funny short and really well done and these are easily some of the show’s best shorts and this is no exception. Unlike  the Humphrey short, where this essentially happened. 

My soul and I gladly enjoyed How to Be Smart. Dare to NOT be stupid and check this short out. 

The Wraparound: And I”m Donald Duck! As for the main segment it’s pretty good. We open with Mickey hyping up tonight’s act, which is naturally the Three Caballeros! But trouble sets in as Donald, while proud at first, is rightfully annoyed that a man on the street segment shows NO ONE remembers he was in the group. Including his best friend goofy. Only Pumba does, somehow. I dunno maybe he dated Panchito once before meating timon. Point is Donald dosen’t take this well, even if we get a nice moment of Daisy swooning over the fact.. even if being  HOM Daisy, she can’t get the name right. But given i’ve had trouble spelling it right, I’m one to talk. 

So being Donald he overreacts, which I like as.. well it’s Donald. Of course when given a very resonable reason to get upset he takes it a step too far. In this case he’s gotten an army of lawers, refuses to speak to mickey and has put ... THIS on. I showed it at the top of the page but.. well it bears repeating. 

It’s like every bad thing about the early 2000′s, from the douchey shades, to the rings, to the golden knuckles, to the hat that looks like a penis, to the no donald logo. There should be all the donalds, ALL OF THEM. He also has an army of lawyers, and naturally resorts to hot doggin and grandstanding: Signing autographs during the show, putting a giant poster of himself up. It works okay, as it makes him unsympathetic for the next part to work and is really funny which is the point. Even if again he looks like the feces that’s produced when shame eats too much stupidity. 

Instead of just getting Dale Gribble in there, Mickey is at a loss for a solution till the boys show up and.. it’s a mixed bag. Carlos  Alazraqui is excellent as Panchito, slipping into the roll well. Unlike last time the character showed up, they did NOT get a mexican actor, but Carols is still Latino, so it’s still better than what they did for Jose, and still big of them to actually bother to get a Latino actor to play a latino role.  Jose on the other hand.. is played, and not very good, by Rob Paulson. And before anyone throws stuff at me, I love Rob. I will  be gushing about him when I get around to reviewing the animaniacs reboot. He’s a god among voice actors and I love him. But his voice, at least in this ep dosen’t really .. FIT Jose, and he dosen’t really match the characters energy which is VERY weird given Animaniacs was right before this. The guy can DO energy and it’s one of his best talents. He STILL can as evidenced by both TMNT 2012 and the Animaniacs revival. It’s just not one of his better performances. I love the guy but even gods have off days.  And of course there’s the bigger issue of the very white Rob shouldn’t be playing the very Brazilian Jose. Not matching nationatlies is one thing, it sucks, but The Three Cablleros had a much bigger budget than HOM likely did. HOWEVER, it couldn’t of been that hard to find two latino voice actors in 2000, especially when you found at least one. I get this wasn’t as big a thing but when the 1940′s did better than you, you know you screwed up. 

But it probably dosen’t help the two.. barely do anything. Despite the episode being named after them, they only show up towards the end and just sorta say hi to mickey, get cool entrances, and then seeing Donald being a dick and Mickeya sking for their help, humble him with their musical number.  And the Musical Number IS really good, it’s been in my head for years and is just as catchy as the classic “Three Cabllero’s Song”.. why they didn’t sing that I don’t know, but this original one, a light knockoff of la bamba is still really fun and bouncy and the gags are good. It’s a really good climax and Donald deserves his punishment.  The only really issue is the ending, as.. no one leaned anything. No one acknowledges how forgotten Donald felt, Mickey dosen’t seem to get the issue as his “promoting Donald” at the end to make sure he’s not forgotten.. just has a bunch of jabs at his expense, and Donald dosen’t apologize..t hougH daisy is really sweet to him so we got some Donsy at least. It’s just a weak ending to an otherwise excellent wraparound.  Final Thoughts: This one was.. okay. Shorts aside, i’ve said my peace about them, the wraparound is a lot of fun, as is the musical number, even if the “artist formerly known as” joke was played out even in 2000. I mean yeas Prince changing his name to a symbol was insane, I get that.. but by then everyone had clowned on that decision and given he did so in a bizarre act of defiance towards his label, at a time where we now know how scummy record labels can be, it hasn’t aged well. It’s just the weak climax, song not included, really drags things down. The Cabs are just.. a cameo in their own damn episode, even with the full musical number and could’ve been around more. They don’t get to show off personalities or really do anything but teach Donald a lesson and are basically one indivdiual here. It sticks out even more because Rosa had both be utterly distinct and showed the utmost care while here.. their just sorta tossed in so they could have Donald be a primadona.. which itself is funny but on the whole this episode was just.. disappointing to revisit. It was disheartening to learn one of my favorite episodes as a kid wasn’t that good. It is worth checking out if you like Donald or the cabs, provided you skip the first short. Trust me, trust me, but is far from the best the house of mouse has to offer and hopefully the next one will show that.  Next time when the Ride continues, my gig at the house of mouse gets held over another night as Jose teaches Goofy manners and Panchito helps deprogram him from that. Before that I hope to get to the next chapter of life and times and some other stuff i’ve had hanging, including the next loud house and the next part of the tomtropsective, as well as some new things that have come up like said review of the animaniacs reboot and a review of Adventure Time: Distant Lands, Obsidan. Until then if you liked this review, please check out my other pages for more, follow me to see them, and if you’d like to comission your own, just hit me up in my ask box for my discord or personal message me here on tumblr. Until then, ther’es always another rainbow. I’m out. 

#The Three Caballeros #the ride of the three caballeros #house of mouse #donald duck #Jose Carioca #panchito pistoles #mickey mouse #minnie mouse #goofy goof #gus goose #daisy duck #the 2000s

[roses-shadow]

Underworld part 3

PG13 of Nero’s adventure in DMC Undertale

***

They were travelling along the bridge for awhile, Griffon flying up above him, and everything was going perfectly fine. Then out of nowhere he was hit with a gust of cold wind.

“Shit it’s cold!” Nero exclaimed, wrapping his arms around himself to cover his bared skin. His mutant arm thankfully wasn’t affected but the rest of him sure was.

Griffon, flying in circles above him, decided to start up his commentary. “Hey what’s the hold up? You chickening out already?”

“What? No!” Nero retorted instantly, then immediately backtracked. “Well, I mean...can you fly back and grab me a jacket or something?”

“What?” Griffon stopped mid air, his wings spread wide. “I don’t mean to burst your bubble but V’s gonna lock that door up tight now that you’re out and about so the only way for you to go is forwards from here.”

Ah crap. So this wasn’t a great way for him to prove that he could survive on his own the instant he left V’s care. And he didn’t even have the option to walk back with his tail between his legs either. “Well, I didn’t think I needed to be dressed for crazy weather when I left and it’s not like V warned me about this!” he said obstinately.

“Oi, yeesh aren’t you a whiner.”

“Are you going to help or not?” Nero retorted.

“Alright, alright. Tell you what. I’ll go on ahead and see what I can find for ya. Hold tight and try not to freeze your buns off. And don’t run into any trouble along the way!”Griffon flew off ahead, quickly turning into a spec in the distance.

Nero watched him go. He waffled about waiting around here so Griffon could easily find him. But what was the point of doing that? He was on a bridge; it wasn’t like he was going to get lost when he was the only thing around for miles.

He kept marching forward, rubbing his arms as much as he could to keep himself warm as air got progressively colder. He hoped he could find shelter or something soon.

He eventually made it to the end of the bridge and figured out the reason the air was so cold: he was staring at a frozen wasteland. There were towering jagged walls of ice reaching up to the sky creating a rudimentary path of some sort past the bridge. The ground was covered with a light dusting of snow, doable in his shoes so that was one less thing to worry about.

Griffon hadn’t come back yet and he was still here freezing his ass off. And it didn’t seem like he was going to have a fun time going forward either.

He sighed out a puff of condensed air.

Well, he was probably going to freeze to death. But damn if he wasn’t going to try his best to make it as far as he could.

He walked past the towering posts of the bridge, his footsteps crunching along the snow. He kept looking around, hoping he’d find somewhere he could stop and warm up. The trees frozen into place were a bust and everywhere he looked was ice, ice and more ice.

He contemplated the snowy ground. Igloos were a thing. Maybe if he used his mutant hand to scoop up the snow he could pile up enough of it to make a fort to huddle under for awhile. He looked up, assessing his options only to stop in shock.

Or he could hide under a desk.

He made a face. Of all the things he could have come across, why was there a desk sitting in the middle of a snowfield? It even had a chair tucked in.

“Hey,” whispered a voice in his ear.

Nero shrieked in fright. He jumped around and nearly flailed his arms in a panic, only to stop as it just exposed him to the cold more. There was another guy, a human, behind him. Another human with hair as white as his and V’s and blue eyes, dressed in a long red coat, black chaps and cowboy boots. And belts; so many belts. There were belts where they didn’t need to be belts. Why was he wearing so many belts?

The belt enthusiast put his hands on his hips and smirked at Nero. “Heh heh heh. That never gets old.”

“What the hell,” Nero wheezed out, trying to calm his racing heart.

“What’s the matter kid, not used to being snuck up on? Say,” he drew out, leaning forward into Nero’s face with his hand on his chin. Nero leaned back as far as he could without giving the other guy any ground. “You don’t happen to be a human, do you?”

“Yeah...?” Nero said, apprehensive.

“Well, well, well...” Nero raised his eyebrow in return as the guy took a lengthy pause, staring intently into Nero’s eyes and making him very uncomfortable. “You know, human blood is a prime delicacy down here,” he whispered menacingly.

Nero felt a chill down his spine.

“A-aren’t you a human, too?” Nero stuttered, trying to subtly lean backwards even more. He was silently despairing over not being able to seek shelter under the desk as it seemed like he was going to have to make a run for it.

“Ehh.” The guy in red finally leaned back. “Well, you’re half right. But, I’ve earned my keep down here. Got a respectable job and everything.” He put his hands behind his back and took a few steps to Nero’s right. Nero stepped back so he could keep up with him. “I’m supposed to be keeping a look out for strange things. You know,” he paused deliberately, leaning into Nero’s face again, “Demons, humans, socks –”

‘Socks? What?’ Nero made a face.

“ –those kinds of stuff. Got to capture anything suspicious and deal with them, if you know what I mean.” He raised his eyebrows meaningfully, flicking his eyes up and down Nero’s body. Nero shivered, both from being creeped out and the never-ending cold.

He backed off suddenly and gave an exaggerated shrug with both hands in the air. “Buuut, I don’t really care about dealing with all that right now. Too much work, you know?” He wandered over to the desk and took a slouching seat in the chair, stomping his boots one by one onto the desk and picking up a magazine from somewhere to flip through it. “So why don’t you just run along back to where you came from if you want to keep breathing.” He waved Nero off dismissively.

If only he could. “I-I can’t just leave! I need to get out of this place and get back home.”

The guy was still flipping though his magazine. “Kid, there’s only one guaranteed way out and that’s a no go,” he said distractedly. He stopped, squinting up at Nero skeptically. “But hey, how did you get down here, anyway?”

Nero threw his head back in frustration. “I-I don’t know. I just woke up here, and there was this murder hell plant and this skinny guy who really likes poems. He said if I just follow the path I’d find my way out of here.”

The man lifted his eyebrows. “You don’t say?” he muttered. “Well, he’s not wrong, but it’s a little more complicated than that. Buy hey, who am I to stand in the way of your progress. Be my guest.” He waved a hand to the path forward, giving his blessing for Nero to continue on unhindered.

Nero looked between him and the wide open way forward. “Seriously? Ok then.”

He bid a mental goodbye to the desk and started to walk forward, hoping he could find something better, before he stopped again. In the distance, the sound of deep, clanging thumps were approaching.

He furrowed his brow. What was that noise?

The guy at the desk started to laugh, still focused on his magazine. “Oh, kiddo, it’s your unlucky day. I may not feel up to reaping you but that right there,” he pointed casually, “Is the sound of an unstoppable, merciless killing machine programmed to seek out human blood and drain it for every. Last Drop.” Nero felt his eyes widen in dread. “And it`s coming our way.” He looked up and gave Nero a dark smile. “I’d hide if I were you.”

“What?” Hide? Hide where? That was his whole problem in the first place! He turned to appeal to his fellow human. “Then why aren’t you trying to hide, aren’t you human too?”

“Ahh, don’t worry about me kid. He won’t bother me. I’ve got immunity.” He gave Nero a dark smile, hair falling over his face and looking up at him with a single uncovered eye beneath his eyelashes. “But you don’t.”

Oh, wasn’t that just wonderful to hear. Nero panicked, looking around himself in a circle to check his options. But, of course, the best place was hiding underneath the guy’s desk, assuming if he’d be willing not to rat him out in the process. His other choices were between making a run for it across the bridge and most likely freezing to death if Griffon never came back with anything, or speed up his demise by getting his blood drained. Oh goodie.

The man was watching him panic with a grin, Nero unable to decide which way he wanted to die and just standing in place and alternating back and forth between each of his legs to stand on.

The stomping was getting closer.

“Running out of time kid. Come on, quick, I’ll let you hide under the desk. Pretty convenient, huh?” He knocked on his desk.

Despite the amazing offer Nero was very desperate to take just to warm up at least, Nero couldn’t help but think it was a trap. The guy was a guard of sorts and he couldn’t help but think he was edging him on like a cat against a mouse with minimal effort required. He’d corner the poor defenceless human in the dumbest place ever and laugh at his pitiful screams as he gets pulled back out. Like, it’d be the most obvious place to look.

The guy seemed to know what he was thinking. “Don’t worry, he won’t bother checking out my desk.  Unless you’d rather I stand back up so you can hide behind my fabulous self instead?” He gestured to his entire body.

Nero gave him a look. Yeah, sure. Like hiding in that guy’s literal shadow was an improvement. All he had to do was step to the side without warning and there’d be Nero.

He waved him over. “Just get over here already will ya?”

Nero looked back toward the approaching stomping one last time before he ran over and crawled his way under the desk. There was plenty of room to fit, thankfully. He huddled into a ball and shivered for warmth, blowing on his exposed left hand that he was forced to touch the snow with as he crawled inside to try and warm it up.

Then the guy dropped a heavy piece of cloth on his head, making Nero let out a little cry of surprise. It smelled, of all things, like pizza.

“Here, kid you’re making me feel cold just lookin’ at ya. Wrap yourself up in this, k?”

Wow, maybe he wasn’t so bad after all. He dug himself out of the cloth, revealing that it was a long red leather coat. He looked up at the guy to check but he was still wearing his own red coat. He just apparently had another one conveniently laying around for some reason, not that Nero was complaining. He let out a little gasp of joy, looking up at the other man gratefully. “Thanks,” he breathed out, quickly putting it on and snuggling into it. It was large enough that the sleeves draped over his hands and the tail end could cover up his legs and he couldn’t be any more happier about that.

The stomping had finally come close enough, stopping right by the desk. Nero peeked up at his saviour’s smiling face, trying to gauge how the situation was going to go down based on his expressions.

“Sup bro.”

Wait, what?

Nero jerked his head up in surprise, giving the man an incredulous look. What the hell did he mean by brother? He thought he was hiding from a death machine, not another person. Was it just a false alarm?

His minor jostling was apparently too much and the man pre-emptively put a hand over his head and shoved him back down.

Or maybe not.

“Hey, I’m working,” the man continued on nonchalantly, despite the significant lack of response from the mysterious brother. “I just patrolled, can’t you see my footsteps in the snow over there?”

Footsteps? Wait –but those were Nero’s. And the other guy’s. Plus, there were two sets leading over to the desk. There was no way his brother didn’t know he was here.

“And now I just thought I’d chill at my desk for a bit. It’s pretty nice, huh?” He knocked on the surface of the desk. “Hey, you wanna switch places with me? Take a load off?”

Nero looked up at him with wide eyes, wondering if he was serious. Was this all just an elaborate trap after all? He was getting whiplash trying to figure him out. Just in case, he tensed up, preparing himself to run.

The mysterious brother let out a loud huff and stomped his foot, the armor clanging loudly. He followed that up with a heavy slam onto the surface of the desk, scaring the shit out of Nero. He stopped himself from crying out in surprise and put his hands over his mouth.

“Yeah yeah, I hear ya. But...I’m just saying.” He knocked on the desk again. “Don’t knock it ‘til ya try it.”

He looked right down at Nero with a secretive smile as he said it, who returned his look with an angry one, silently expressing how he didn’t appreciate the guy’s way of courting danger.

“Ok suit yourself,” he carried on. “Don’t let your joints freeze up in the snow, bro!”

There was a huff in response.

The guy held up his hands placatingly. “I kid, I kid,” he laughed.

The resounding footsteps began stomping away from them. The man waited patiently as they left, then leaned forward and held out a pleading hand to try and stop his brother from leaving. “Wait, wait, wait, I’ve got another one!” he called out.

All he got in return was an exasperated roaring groan.

They waited for a moment, the footsteps echoing away into the distance before the guy looked down at Nero with a big grin. “Ok, all clear.

Nero crawled out, standing up to swipe off the snow from the coat before he felt he could speak. “What the hell was that?” he said calmly.

“What was what?” the man responded back, just as calmly.

Oh that troll. “That,” Nero stated, gesturing down the path he had marched off into. “Your brother? I thought you said that was a mindless killing machine coming after me!”

“Well, he is.” He paused to rub his chin. “When he needs to be anyway.” He reached out to drag Nero down with an arm over his shoulder. “Here’s the thing kid,” he whispered conspiratorially. “Something’s got him all riled up lately. It’s why he’s been riding my ass about patrolling. Apparently something important is coming around and things have gotta be just right or he loses his shit.” He gave Nero a significant look. “And you...you look pretty important to me. Seeing you might just make his day.”

“Welp.” He let go of Nero abruptly, causing Nero to stumble and try to regain his balance. He stretched his arms up over his head. “Better get back to work before he gets on my ass again. You should get going, too. Don’t worry, it’s just a frozen wasteland filled with horrible monsters.” He waved in the air dismissively.

‘What?’ Nero felt stunned, doing a double take.

“Just the usual. There’s nothing to be afraid of.” He finally got up from his chair, tucking his magazine away. “Besides, if you stay here he might come back. And if he does...” he trailed of meaningfully, tilting his head back to have his hair fall over his face, looking at Nero with a single eye.

He suddenly smiled, patting Nero hard on the back. “Welp. Ciao, kid.”

Nero frowned at the unfamiliar goodbye but shrugged it off.

The guy started to walk off toward the bridge Nero had come from. Nero watched him gradually disappear, tucking the coat up around him absentmindedly before it occurred to him that the guy didn’t ask for it back.

Huh. He felt a little bad about just walking off with it but he really did need it to stay warm in this place. If he ever did see him again he’d try and thank him properly for letting him borrow it for so long.

 ***

 Nero was trudging along in the snow until he came across a patch of deeper fog off to his left. He wouldn’t have paid it any mind until he heard giggling coming from that direction. He squinted into the fog, seeing multiple red and blue glowing somethings floating around. He wondered if whatever was hiding in there was something for him to worry about.

He didn’t have to wait that long to figure it out when suddenly the some of the glows came out of the fog to reveal themselves.

And what a reveal it was. A pair of blue creatures were dancing on the ice. Their hair was made up of a long mess of tentacle like tresses that floated in the air and they were beckoning him to come closer, giggling all the while they caressed their...unclothed feminine forms.

Nero froze up, blushing hard.

The creatures kept giggling, dancing even more provocatively to him.

Nero awkwardly rubbed his nose and hunched his shoulders, speed walking away.

Yeah....reeling that in would be a bad idea. He was just going to pass right on by and keep going.

 ***

 Eventually, finally, Griffon returned.

He circled above him excitedly, rambling all the while. “Hey hey, there you are! And it looks like you’ve already found something warm to snuggle in. Good for you, Superstar! But guess what? Your day’s about to get even better! Surprise!”

Griffon dive bombed down toward him and dropped something at his face as he flew on by. That something, Nero discovered as he yelped and flailed to protect said face, was a glove. A fingerless leather glove with a clean slice on the palm.

“What? What am I supposed to do with this?” he retorted. He sent Griffon out to find something warm to huddle in, not a ripped tiny glove that would only fit his left hand.

“Well, I looked, but everywhere was fresh out of baby blankies or stylish coats for you to walk down the runway in. But look how tough you look! Now you can scare off any of the nasties who wanna take you on!”

Yes, he could now angrily shake his fist at anyone. Like the useless bird who definitely wouldn’t have saved him from freezing to death.

He stormed off, not wanting to be around Griffon despite him hovering around his face.

Now he really had to thank the man in red for saving him with his coat, no matter how much of a troll he was.

Then he stopped dead once he realized he could see said man in red standing next to a giant armored monstrosity that Nero was thinking was probably the aforementioned mindless killer brother. But holy shit was he huge. He thought the man in red was pretty tall, but like normal tall. But this guy easily dwarfed him. The smaller brother reached up to somewhere at chest height at most from what Nero could tell from standing that far away. The big guy was turned away and a heavy cape prevented Nero from getting a good look at him but he was able to make out knee-high black boots with some wicked looking knee guard spikes and the back of his helmet adorned with front facing dual horns.

But...the guy in red. Just how did he get over there? Nero watched him go in the complete opposite direction? Was there a shortcut or something Nero missed in his rush after he got off the bridge?

Either way, it looked like they didn’t notice him yet. Maybe if he was quiet enough he could sneak back and hide somewhere until he got out of sight of the bigger brother.

He took a step back.

And of course, that was when he just had to trip over a rock.

Nero flailed, trying to stop himself from failing, quickly realizing that no, he wasn’t going to be able to save himself, and reached out to Griffon as a last resort to rebalance himself.

Griffon let out a loud squawk. “Hey watch the tail feathers!” he cried, as Nero’s momentum brought him down to the ground with him by the aforementioned tail feathers.

It was the calm before the storm.

Nero waited with baited breath, instinct freezing him up. Some part of him was hoping if he didn’t move then they wouldn’t notice him. He waited to see what would happen next.

The brothers noticed him, obviously. The armored one whirled to face Nero, showing off his blank armored face and bulky body with glowing yellow eyes that lit up even brighter at his shock. He started to look back and forth between Nero and his brother as if to say: Bro is this real? I am seeing this, right?

To complement his brother’s disbelief, the man in red slowly raised his eyebrows and widened his eyes, nodding and humming exaggeratingly to convey his absolute surprise.

The armored guy finally pointed to Nero while looking at his brother.

The man in red rocked back on his heels, placing his hands in his pockets. “Yeah, sure is neat seeing a talking chicken.”

Griffon who had blissfully stayed silent this whole time to groom his poor, tortured tail feathers with his neck bent fully backwards, quickly swiveled his head around and squawked in outrage. “Who’re you calling a chicken!”

Everyone ignored him.

The armored brother threw his head back and let out a loud huff. He jabbed his finger at Nero again while looking at his brother.

“Ohhh, you mean that other thing.” The man paused for a second to process. “Yeah, it’s probably nothing,” he said dismissively, shrugging.

The armored guy lunged to his brother with a grunt, grabbing onto his coat and giving it a few shakes as he pointed, yet again, at Nero.

The man in red looked down at his chest then at Nero still sitting frozen on the ice in his borrowed coat. His face lit up in slow surprise again. “Oh, would you look at that! He’s got a coat just like mine.” He leaned in close to his brother and nudged him with his shoulder. “See, toldya red is cooler. You owe me five halos,” he grinned, poking his brother’s armored chest.

His brother let out a frustrated huff, swiping away his smaller brother’s finger. He then erupted into more wild gestures and heavily pointed at Nero with emphatic jabs.

“Oh, right, right. I gotcha bro,” he said with a wink.

The man in red stepped forward purposefully, clapping twice on each side of his body like a showman. “Ladies and gentleman! Hear ye, hear ye! May I introduce to you the most popular figure in the entire Underworld.” He walked around in a wide circle with his arms spread out. “The one deserving of such respect and recognition while having the guts and honor of upholding law and order.” He held up his hands one at a time and alternately clenched them into fists as he spoke. “The one who is so admired as a role model that people flock from all around just for the chance to be his friend and shower him with such affection that he could practically bathe in it!” He spread his fingers out in front of his face and moved them as if he were fanning himself.

As he was caught up in his speech, his brother was progressively standing up straighter, puffing out his chest and holding his head up high as the praise went on and on.

“May I present,” and here he paused, turning behind him with an arm splayed out toward his brother –

–only to continue to spin back around to face Nero, bringing his hands up to his lapels and quickly drawing them down to brush back his coattails.

“Me! Dante!”

With that he threw his arms up in the air in a dramatic pose then twirled his hands with a flourish as he bowed.

There was a moment of silence.

“And that’s my brother Nelo Angelo,” he added absentmindedly, jerking a thumb over his shoulder while he was still in a bow.

Nelo Angelo, who appeared to be stunned into silence after being trolled by his brother, threw up his hands in the air and let out what seemed to be a healthy, stress relieving wail.

‘Well, he’s got a great set up lungs,’ Nero thought, cringing as he covered his ears.

His next move was to summon a giant black sword out of literal thin air and plunge it angrily down into the ice, just because he could, and spreading his arms out in supplication. He made to stomp past Dante toward Nero, who tensed up in fear at having a literal giant eager to kill him and drain his blood tower over him, especially when he was still lying on the ground and so appeared even bigger to him. But Dante stuck his hand out to block him. Nelo Angelo did stop, but he glared at Dante questioningly.

“Aw, don’t be like that bro. Where’d the fun be if you just capture him right off the bat? How ‘bout you let him run around here and figure things out. Let him test himself.” He side eyed Nero, leaning in to speak quietly, even though his brother’s head was way above him and Nero could still hear him clearly. “You can let him try out your puzzles?” he said enticingly.

Nelo Angelo stopped to consider that, hand on his chin, then nodded with an emphatic grunt of approval. He turned back and plucked his sword out, then gestured to Nero with a challenging tilt of his chin, taunting him with a one-handed ‘come on’. That done, he dissipated his giant magic sword and swept his cape to the side dramatically, storming off with his clanking footsteps.

And Nero was left with Dante.

“Well, that went well. Don’t sweat it kid, I’ll keep an eye out for you.” Dante gave him a wink and a salute, sauntering off after his brother.

Nero was...confused. And alive. Definitely still alive. At least for now.

But man did Dante like playing with his food, dangling him in front of his brother like that while simultaneously lulling him into a false sense of security all just so he could serve him up on a platter later.

Maybe he could just sneak past them if he found them again. Properly this time.

 ***

A/N

Also known as how many UT characters or specific traits can I fit in the least amount of DMC characters?

1) Well well, welly well well. Here we introduce Mettaton-Sans in Dante form. Always with a smile on his face. Winking at you in his own secret mood detector way if you know his tells. Probably going to kill you where you stand at some point while simultaneously trolling you throughout the underground. You can just never tell with him. At least he’s fabulous. I chose the DMC4 outfit cause it’s my favorite.

2) Also introducing Mettaton-Papyrus-Undyne in Nelo Angelo form. Yes, I know Nelly can technically talk but I thought it’d be funnier to keep him like this and just have him flail his arms around to try and get his point across. Like, you know, a constantly screaming Papyrus but nonverbally. Also very convenient about the size diff btw the bros when they’re like this -it matches up with actual Sans and Pap’s heights perfectly.

3) What a convenient desk.

4) Nero has been given a coat that makes him look and smell like the pizza loving Dante. Remember this.

5) Just another FYI. The twins grew up with an...’americanized-italian’ background.I’ve exchanged Dante’s cowboyish adios with ciao.

6) Fishing for phone numbers. You decide not to call.

7) New weapon introduction: one tough glove. I thought about just keeping it as a regular thing and not pink or anything but then I thought....should I use the left glove? Eh, yeah sure why not.

#devil may cry #nero #dante #nelo angelo #griffon #mettaton #sans #papyrus #undertale

[eclipsing-dreams]

Lab Results

FF.net | AO3.org

Boredom, truly the most dangerous thing of all.

Drakken was bored. Desperately bored and uninspired to be specific, his agitation only growing worse at the knowledge that he shouldn't be. True, Shego had joined him in going "good", but she had also agreed to be his... Well, his... He wasn't sure. He didn't think she was his girlfriend officially, but they were dating. It was all very new and exciting, and embarrassingly fun while still just doing mostly what they had done for years.

The problem lay in his ever-restless mind. Insomnia refused to leave him as he worried over the future. What would he build now? Would he have to stop building altogether and look for a new source of funds? Would he be able to come up with non-death ray ideas? Because right now, his fingers tingled in want to build a death ray.

He sighed, putting down the scraps of wire and metal in front of him as he grabbed for his mug of cocoa-moo. When his hand met with nothing, his mind finally paused as his focus shifted to the missing drink. Turning his head he saw the mug still on his desk, seemingly in the same place. Realizing he still had his magnifying goggles on, he shifted them to the top of his head to see the mug was instead dangerously teetering on the edge. Quickly reaching for the surprisingly still warm mug he hurriedly moved it to a safer location. His persistent frown deepened as he glared at the offending drink. He knew he had placed it down safely. Hadn't he?

He felt the sigh leave his chest as his exasperation with himself only grew.  Pinching the bridge of his nose he closed his eyes and wondered if he should just go back to bed to stare at the ceiling some more. Muttering to himself, he knew it would do no good until he had a new idea. Reaching again for his drink his hand once again touched nothing. Removing his hand from his face he saw the mug once again sitting precariously near the edge of the desk. He blinked hard, twice, just to make sure he was seeing it sit where it had before he'd moved it. Had he fallen asleep and dreamed of fixing it? He wasn't that sleep-deprived yet, was he?

Growing tired of wondering how much of his sanity remained he once again reached for the mug and finished its contents. Carefully he placed the mug inside the top drawer in his desk, not wanting to deal with broken ceramic as well. With his drink gone and his mug safe, his mind shifted back to the project in front of him. Honestly, it was nothing more than spare parts and junk not capable of becoming anything of use. The whole point in tinkering was to get his ideas flowing and even if his sanity was leaving him, his mind was still very much awake.

Moving his goggles back to their proper position, he started sifting through junk pieces to see if any could be repaired. His hand paused as the center of his vision blurred to black, the new sense of panic seeping through him stealing all traces of fatigue. He swallowed thickly focusing on the light he could still see as he moved his hand to remove the goggles, instead he was met with a thick vine in front of his face.

"Great, just great. Exactly what I needed. Move you worthless thing you're in the way!" He grabbed hold of it, only to realize too late it was very much not a vine.

"Excuse me?" Shego sharp tone cut through threw him like a knife, effectively stopping his heart as he realized he held a firm grip on her.

"Shego, I--" He stuttered, having no idea what he'd gotten himself into. Quickly letting go of her, he grabbed for his goggles yanking them off his face to take in the scene before him. There, lounging above his desk was Shego. Laying lazily on her stomach with her head resting on her folded arms, one leg draped over the makeshift hammock made of his own vines. Re-evaluating the events in his head he realized he had mistaken her calf for one of his vines. But why was she in the lab, especially at this hour? And how long had she been here? What...

His trail of thought was suddenly broken, and he was caught off guard as he watched the tip of her foot move until it found one of the pieces of scrap and promptly started nudging it towards the edge of his desk. He frowned realizing she had been the one threatening his mug's safety. The sound of the metal clinking against the floor drew his attention quickly back to her.

"Must you?"

Her grin, which had been casual, quickly changed to mischievous. At this, Drakken quickly remembered there were far worse things than his own boredom. Namely, a bored Shego was pure chaos. This week alone she had caught him off guard in the shower, water gun in hand laughing maniacally as she shot him with pure ice water. Admittedly it was better than her flushing the toilet and burning him, but the shock at seven in the morning was enough to sour his mood the rest of the day.

*clink* *clink* *clink*

He blinked, the sound drawing his attention to the floor where another piece of scrap had joined their fallen companion. Make that companions, as he realized he had zoned out and a small pile had collected on the floor. Returning his annoyed glare to Shego, he noticed her expression now matched his.

"Finally back with me Doc?"

For all the world, all he saw as he looked at her was an annoyed cat. He could practically see the tail twitching and her ears pulled back, her posture an impressive mix of power and relaxation, the panther high in her tree ready for the newest game of cat and mouse.

Shego's heavy sigh snapped him out of his thoughts to see that she was now sitting up, both legs hanging in front of him. She leaned her head on one hand as she extended the other.

"Well, Bud? You gonna help me down or what?"

He felt more than saw the vine extend from his back, betraying his willingness to do whatever she asked of him. She smiled at the vine's quick response knowing he still had trouble when it came to his unconscious behaviors. Using the extended vine as a balance he doubted she needed, she removed herself from the hammock and moved to sit in the section she had cleared off his desk.

"At least one of you is still a gentleman," she teased as she settled herself.

Now comfortably seated to take over his entire workspace, she easily reached forward and pulled him closer. She ran her gloved claws teasingly up the back of his neck as she began to undo his ponytail. Any retort he might have had died in this throat as he felt her claws run lightly from the base of his skull toward his ears. Realizing this, his mind quickly returned to thoughts of her as a cat, all considering how she was easily taking over the situation to put his focus on her. He changed his mind from a panther to a minx. Yes, a minx but deadlier. What was more dangerous than a minx...

Her emerald eyes drew closer as she closed the space between them, attempting to draw him out of his own mind with a kiss. It was obvious she was getting frustrated with his mind wandering away from her. He felt her sigh through her nose as she turned the quick peck into a full kiss. And then after placing one more quick peck on his lips, she moved to his jawline, nipping lightly along the way to his neck.

Drakken was having a difficult time focusing on anything as he felt her teeth tease the skin below his ear. Quite frankly, he had a difficult time understanding her moods most of the time, always speaking in riddles and never giving him a straight answer. His mind caught on to the thought faster than he could try to stop it. She was always consuming literature and spoke mostly in riddles, she was a sphinx!

"Ah!" yelping he pulled away from her, quickly being greeted by a familiar deadly glare.

"You bit my ear!"

"You were ignoring me for your own thoughts."

"..." He rubbed his sore ear and pouted. "Fair..."

Smiling now that she had finally gotten her point across, she resumed kissing him. Leaning back and pulling him onto the desk, she vaguely registered the sound of metal and glass hitting the floor. She felt somewhat bad knowing he would need to fix his goggles after this. Drakken however, didn't seem to notice as he cupped her face and tilted his head to get a better angle.

Running his thumbs across her cheekbones he deepened the kiss, exploring her mouth while inviting her to do the same. She readily accepted and grinned, confirming her earlier suspicion that he had been drinking hot chocolate and not coffee. Her claws gently ran across his scalp until they reach the base of his skull and down his back.

As much as he enjoyed the feeling of her gloves he realized he would feel much safer if it was her nails instead. Moving his right hand from her face down her shoulder he slowly made his way to her elbow. He slid his other hand down the side of her jaw to guide her to move her head as he switched tactics and moved to kiss her neck.

Shego felt her cheeks heat up as he slowly ran his thumb along her forearm. Once he felt her glove he slid his thumb under the fabric and continued tracing the center of her forearm until he met her wrist. At the same time, he was definitely going to leave a hickey from the place he had anchored himself right where her jaw met her neck. She felt heat flood over her and wondered if she would catch on fire. Heck, if she tried hard enough she could image smoke. Wait... Her eyes shot open and took in the scene behind him. The noise from early hadn't been the rest of the scraps; the vines had knocked over whatever chemicals he had stored on the shelf and had set fire to a good portion of the wall.

"Drakken!" She felt him smirk against her skin, not catching on it that he was not the reason for her excitement. "Fire!" she tried again.

"Yeah, we are on fire today."

She rolled her eyes and promptly shoved him away, a finger pointing behind him to the vines dramatically trying to flee the fire they had started while also trying to put it out. She saw one had managed to roll the fire extinguisher towards the flames but was too afraid to pick it and give it to them.

"Fire!" Drakken roared as he turned around making his way towards the fire extinguisher. The flowers shrank back at his rage until another chemical became too hot and burst to encompass the wall in flames. The heat now flooded the room, frightening the flowers into pulling themselves from the wall and moving to hide behind Drakken in a strange arch, causing his shadow to look like menacing wings. The flames burned so brightly now that it was hard to focus on anything else. Drakken's rageful shouting could barely be heard over the sound of the now roaring fire. His silhouette was now the only thing she could see of him with the flames illuminating the room. His hands held high above his head looked liked claws, and the illusion of wings created by his vines gave her the vision of a dragon. The fires only added to the image, looking like he had burned his enemies to a crisp and his rage had yet to be quelled.

Shego had taken to leaning back on her elbows, taking in the sight before her. She knew she should have been annoyed or even scolding him for not securing the chemicals as he should have, but watching him rage and forget to lose actual words just had her smiling in affection. He had been far too demure since they had started dating. It felt like he was constantly walking on eggshells around her and she had been trying her best to get back to the comfort level they had been at before the invasion. Pulling pranks, purposefully annoying him, anything to get a reaction out of him. Seeing him here, looking as dangerous as she knew he had the potential to be, really felt like they would finally be able to move on from the awkward faze they had entered. It didn't help

The heat from the fire had already encompassed the lab, but she wasn't too concerned. She had made sure he hadn't skipped out on a high-level extinguisher system, although they should have activated by now. Just then, as the flames began to tickle the ceiling the system activated. Foam sprayed and covered the lab, making it look like a snowstorm had blown through. With the fires successfully put out, she turned her gaze back towards Drakken.

He looked just as put out as the fires as he turned around, shoulders slumped, and started to make his way back towards her. Just as he had taken two steps she felt water drip onto her nose. The sprinklers started and water started to cascade down from the ceiling. At this, she raised one brow at him questioning why the system was malfunctioning. It was only meant to release the foam, adding water to the mix could have started a class D fire.

"You had the henchmen install it to save money, didn't you?"

"Always with the questions you already have the answers to. You really are such a sphinx."

She laughed, a cheshire grin spreading across her face.

"If I'm a sphinx, you're a dragon."

He huffed knowing the moment had been ruined. But Shego wasn't going to let things go that easily.

"And I'm a lady and in great distress," she teased.

He snorted, "A lady you are, a damsel in distress you are not." Shego frowned, hoping he would be willing to play along. Picking up that the mood might not be completely gone, he tried again, "So instead if I'm a dragon, that would make you my greatest treasure."

Surprised at the sweet sentiment, she felt herself blush, but quickly recovered. "Then hoard me."

His mind quickly left to try to visualize such a thing. "That doesn't even make any sense..."

She shut him off by kissing him, quickly trying to pick up where they had left off. Pulling his lower lip into her mouth, she playfully began to nip on it. Relaxing into his hold she felt the sprinklers continuing to go off. A part of her mind she refused to acknowledge made her think of how romantic kissing in the rain felt.

He hummed happily against her, grateful that the mood hadn't been entirely killed. Moving his hands to cradle her neck, he made to deepen the kiss. She happily accepted and matched his intensity. Taking a break for air, he moved down her jaw as he peppered kisses on the way down to her neck. She ran her hands down his back, pressing her still gloved claws against his lab coat. She lazily ran her hands around his shoulders to begin removing the heavy lab coat, claws teasing the sensitive skin of his neck along the way.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

The shrill sound of the fire alarm finally going off caused them both to jump. He sighed and moved his head the rest on her shoulder, already feeling her shaking with laughter. Her laughter turned contagious, and soon he couldn't help it as he started to join in with her. He pulled away to see her biting her lip to try to stop it, but it was no use.

*Pop*

Suddenly as if nothing else could ruin the mood, he felt his yellow ring of petals had returned to frame his face. Shego couldn't help it; she burst out laughing. He quickly lost his composure and joined her, laughing to the point he was grabbing his gut in pain. She reached up to him and cradled his face still trying desperately to stifle her giggles and kissed him poorly as her lips were smiling too much to do any better. She wanted him to understand she wasn't laughing at him, but with him. He tried to kiss her back to let her know that understood, but his own smile and stifled laughter didn't let really him do much more than press his lips to hers. Little did he know, that she was also trying to convey that she loved him.

Laying wet on the desk amidst the chaos the two could hardly breathe as their laughter quelled. Ok, so maybe he couldn't build a death ray anymore, or maybe he could and just sell it off. Regardless, he should have known better than to think his life could ever be boring with Shego in it. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. He hadn't been lying earlier when he said she was his greatest treasure, the only one to have laughed with him at not just at him. Even when she had laughed at him, it had never felt as cruel as the others. So perhaps he would hoard her, there in his lab and in his heart.

Meanwhile, Shego knew she had failed yet another attempt at seducing him in the lab. Admittedly it had ended up better than previous attempts as she enjoyed the feel of him wrapped around her. She noticed that his vines had moved to cover them from the sparklers, probably to apologize for the fire in the first place. Or more likely to be nosey like they had earlier. Regardless, it didn't matter. Shego was a stubborn soul, and one day she would get to successfully seduce him in the lab. Tomorrow was another day after all.

Inspired by the lovely works of @cocoa-at-night: 

A kitty and a dragon

Wet babies

Day 67 after the lowardian invasion, dear diary

#drakken #shego #dr. drakken #shego x drakken #drakken x shego #kim possible #fanfic #inspired

[mwolf0epsilon]

Maybe. A story where Sammy and Norman get out of the studio right before hell brakes? They need a good ending ;-:

Summary: Sammy's sudden decline in health saves both him and Norman from something much more sinister than they could ever imagine.

---

     In another world, Norman Polk makes the mistake of ignoring the glaring signs that something is terribly wrong with Joey Drew Studios. In this one... He gets luckier. The butterfly effect could be attributed to this somewhat fortunate turn of events, as the split second decision to look for something he misplaced is what leads him to witness Sammy throwing up just outside of the men's bathroom nearest to the music department. Had he let it be for another night, he'd be none the wiser to the severity of Sammy's condition. Norman wasn't sure then how the cranky music director ingested the ink. Assumed, even, that it had been another near death experience that involved burst pipes and flooding. So he'd acted purely on instinct and taken the poor kid to the hospital.   "He's lucky to be alive. The amount of ink in his system would have been enough to kill at least three men." The doctor told him, equal parts fascinated and horrified with the case he'd been presented with. "I'm not sure how none of his organs have shut down from the toxicity levels, but I've got to say Mr. Lawrence is a resilient man."   "A pain in ta neck too... Had he called for help he likely wouldn't be in this state..." Norman had assumed it was Sammy's pride that kept him from calling out from what he was sure was just another ink flood in his department. How wrong he was. "I is gonna have ta call my brother ta see if his poor sister is at his. Can't imagine she ain't worried sick 'bout what's takin' him so long ta get home."   "You may use the reception phone to call his family, yes. I'll have a nurse get you if he wakes up." Sammy didn't wake up. Not that night at least... That would only happen the next night, and by then Norman would be busy with something else that would definitely boggle his mind.

-

  "Yous is sure Drew ain't said a hush o' a whisper 'bout what's goin' on?" Norman frowned as he talked on the phone with Wally. He'd gotten up that morning barely having slept after returning home from the hospital, only to discover the studio was closed down and under police investigation.   "Nothin'! Whatever happened he's keeping it real quiet... But get this: Several people in the studio up and vanished!" Wally exclaimed. "Into thin air, like it was a magic show!"   "Vanished...?" Norman frowned, sounding incredulous at the vague statement. "What does that mean exactly Wally?"   "What ya think it means pal. Gone. No clue how or why, just the when." The janitor sighed. "Bunch a good folks too... Miss Campbell, Shawn, Grant, that Piedmont fellow and Mrs. Benton..." Wally paused for a second, as if to figure out who else had apparently gone from under everyone's nose.   "Oh! Couple a' band members gone... Jack and Mel too, which Joey sounded real sad 'bout cuzz ya know... Mel gives the Butcher Gang that real voice magic o' his..." Wally dragged on before coming to stop at the two people Norman most dreaded hearing about. "Buddy and Dot, and like half 'a the art department..."   "That's 36 people gone. How in the hell did a group o' folks just up an' go without none seein'?!"   "I don't know Norman!" Wally sounded honestly freaked out. "I'm pissing my briefs just thinking something awful's gone and happened to them! But Joey insists everything is gonna be ok and... I donno, that just don't sit well with me..."   "Sure don't... Sounds mighty awful suspicious that he'd be so calm considerin' a ton of his employees went and pulled a Houdini act..." Norman hissed into the phone as he looked out the window. Something about this situation was getting him real paranoid all of a sudden.   "Eh... Wait, didn't that there Houdini fellow die during his own act...?"   "As a matter o' fact, yes. He did." Norman swore he saw someone retreating down his street. Something fishy was going on. And Joey Drew obviously knew more than he let on.   "Gosh... I think it's finally time t'a really get outta the studio."   "I'd say so kid." He pulled the curtains closed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had to think. "I'll call ya later Wally. I'm gonna go and check on Sammy at the hospital. You gimme the low down if ya find out anymore o' this scam."   "Got it Norms. Good luck with Sammy, he's probably gonna be real grumpy 'bout nearly dying again!"

-

     Grumpy did not described the state of mania Sammy seemed to wake up in. Later that night the blond music director had suddenly jolted up and awake and the absolute nonsense he was spouting was worrying to say the least. If Norman wasn't already so bamboozled by what was going on with the studio, he might look mortified at the scene the other was making. In fact, Norman was too busy shielding Sammy's sister from the absolutely insane tirade he was going on to really care...   "YOU DONT UNDERSTAND! HE NEEDS ME! I NEED TO GO BACK! LET ME GO BACK!" Sammy Lawrence was a tall man, but he wasn't particularly strong. A beanpole that was sharp bony angles and unconventionally handsome looks. The man currently fighting off three doctors trying to jab him with syringes full of sedatives was not even flinching when he was shoved. Norman had never seen such insanity in one person's eyes, and frankly he could barely recognize his coworker as he was. The way his curly long hair framed his face almost made his eyes look darker than they should be. Like inky pools. He could only guess what Abigail must be feeling, even as he tried his best to keep her from witnessing what was likely her brother having some sort of long overdue psychotic break.   "WOULD SOMEONE SEDATE HIM ALREADY BEFORE HE GOES AN' HURTS SOMEONE?!" The projectionist hollered over the screams, just surprising Sammy enough that one needle could find its mark. A minute or so later, the blond flopped back down into the bed he'd been laying on. Quiet as a sleeping mouse. Norman held the poor weeping Abigail Lawrence even as they were pushed out of the room.

-

     15 years later, Norman Polk found himself reviewing the last couple of years of his life. He'd abandoned a previous career path to help fix whatever horrors Drew's brand of ink had done to Sammy. The blond had been treated for all sorts of things, none of the treatments seeming to work whatsoever in his time playing the role of a sickly lab rat. Only time seemed to have some kind of positive effect, and even still the damage was noticeable. Abby had gone to live with Norman's brother and his niece and nephew, with the ex-projectionist himself popping in every so often to help where he could. His brother was short on money so he did odd-jobs here and there to help. Norman's own kids were well off as it were so he didn't need to worry too much about how much he spent looking after the others. In the time that the investigation had come and gone, Joey Drew Studios had closed for good. None of the missing folk ever returning. In fact, Norman knew for sure more people were going missing...      As of today things were... Quiet. Too quiet really, considering how turbulent it had been. Sammy was out under his younger sister's custody, labelled some sort of invalid because his head wasn't working too good (a lie, as Norman caught him in his more lucid moments and knew how frustrated and trapped the once-music director felt about his situation that he couldn't even explain). He wasn't nearly as outspoken and ornery as he used to be. All sense of pride vanishing and being replaced with this deep dark shame over something out of his control. Less wordy and more tired looks and vague gestures. His eloquence and motor skills had also suffered greatly from having consumed a toxic liquid that inexplicably caused enough damage to ruin his independence, but not enough to damage many major organs or bodily functions. Norman visited and played chess of all things, to keep him company. The blond seemed to appreciate it, but his interest was on what Norman did nowadays. He was a private investigator. His main case? Joey Drew Studios. And tomorrow he was getting answers from none other than Joey Drew himself, as the man had reached out to him in quite the compelling letter... It was about the right time to go back to the old studio and find out what had happened the night he and Sammy left.

#Eps Writes: #Bendy and the Ink Machine #BATIM #Norman Polk #Sammy Lawrence

[felassanis]

The Hunter - an Oblivion short.

Lucien Lachance fic I made, not really done as I sort of flicked through it editing it and trying to modify my rather wordy writing but also trying to figure out how to elaborate character’s feelings in scenes. 

Comments and likes would be appreciated

What was meant to be a quiet night lead the Hero of Kvatch to reminisce about something that has haunted her, something she has tried to quell deep within her mind. When the murderer seeps into her room like a bad omen, she is offered an opportunity...

My horse surrendered to a slow pace as we crossed the bridge, letting its sleepy head sink as it trudged against the ground with weighted hooves scraping against cobblestone. “Tired are we?” I mumbled leaning down and stroking his brown coat with my fingers. He snuffed snottily in what I took as validation. Somewhere up ahead, beckoning me through the leering orange hue of the late afternoon was a signpost standing slanted, riding closer my eyes pined for the carving of a tankard brimming with mead. Indeed, my eyes glinted and my ears perked with pricked interest. “We’ll reach Cloud Ruler Temple come tomorrow, I think you...and I, deserve some rest,” I spoke and steered my reigns in the direction the wooden sign lured me to.

About a half an hour later night had descended upon Cyrodil, blankets of shadows coveted the forested region like a black veil. The cool breeze fanned across my face reaching out to my heart, which pleaded for the warmth only a tavern fire could bring. At last, we reached a tavern that sat alone on the side of the dirt road. Lighting up as a beacon to weary travellers by the positioned lanterns that dotted the building’s outskirts, it worked on this weary traveller.

Securing my horse to a fence, I removed my hood and ventured inside. The door creaked open with a loud howl eliciting the attention of every patron dwelling inside. As Cyrodillic customs dictated each head tilted in curiosity; the type of curiosity that went hand in hand with scrutiny and light malice that seeped into squinted eyes filled with a lack of surety. And a suspiciousness weaved into their frowns and smouldering grimaces. Eyes lurched to my face, a clear peaked interest in the men but the flame of desire quickly dissipated with the dubious revelation of my sharp ears which suddenly burned the more they stared. Eventually, they went about their business once more. I knew that if I were to knock one of them it would surely result in a brawl like poking a slumbering bear.

Bearing this in mind, I avoided the patrons and went around the seating area straight to the bar. A small Imperial woman stood behind, cleaning out a glass. “Yes?” Said the patron, with a tone that assured me I had to be snappy with this interaction as she barely looked up from her chore to even acknowledge me. “Just a room please,” I responded to which she nodded and handed me a silver key in exchange for some coin.

Heading upstairs I was greeted by a long hallway, oddly encased in darkness. The hallway seemed to go on and on till the end was but a black spot. I was filled with a sudden sense of dread, my eyes getting lost down that dark and when I scanned my surroundings; I saw little but saw no presence, despite the poking feeling of one watching me. I scanned again doubting my senses, but alas all it appeared to be was a dark hall, still and unmoving with silvery wisps of cobwebs littering the corner of the ceiling. Of course, I had seen enough to know this wasn’t the case.

My feet carried me into my allotted room with haste, but the dreary feeling did not subside once I locked my door. I reached out slowly towards a candle hung on the wall by rusted metal, letting small trickles of fire crackle under my nails as I lit it. The room was now dimly lit in a charming way, making my room come alive in the light. Still, with each beat of my heart sounding off in my ears I didn’t feel comforted. More so like the warming light was false, trying to lure me into false security.

As the night drew on I eventually found myself under the bed covers, with eyes wide and ears pricked by each creak of the tavern, every gust of wind that swept across my window. I had sprung from my bed a few times, hand itching for my blade tucked under my pillow. Alas, nothing confirmed why I felt a watchful gaze course over my body. I considered getting on my horse and suffering through the night to return to Martin, to Cloud Ruler. And just as I was about to collect my cloak I saw a shimmer in the room, a wisp of colours moulding together someone had thrown dye into the waters. It moved slowly, stopped...then I saw it inch closer.

My hand flew to my dagger and in an instant, I threw it quickly in the direction of the wisp with a hearty growl. I heard a magical grumble pierce the still air before a tall man draped in black appeared before me, born from whisks of magical embers. His own hand is as quick as my own; for he had his pale fingers wrapped tightly around my blade before it struck his skull. His precision amazed me, his eyes stayed unto me as if he hadn’t even blinked at the assault. And he seemed to acknowledge my awe; under his hood was a long grin brimming with pride.

“Why does sleep evade you so, young one?” He speaks in a fruity voice, deep and low. It’s a numbing voice that makes me tremble as if tremors filtered out his mouth, flowing with an impeccable air of strength. His words slipped through that mischievous smile stemming from deep within his throat. A clarity so crystal clear it was as if he’d rehearsed the lines a thousand times. He speaks with purpose and with conviction, and I’m almost envious he can sound so strong and calm while holding the knife I pined for his eye. Again, I reach for a second dagger but he’s already evaded it by the time I’ve let it slip through my fingers, a slight lean and my aim proves worthless to him. The knife consequently, barrages against the wall of my room in a dull thud.

“Perhaps slumber fails you...because you’re riddled in guilt hmm? Plagued by nightmares of hands soaked in the blood of innocents?...your innocents?” He tries one again, each word is slow as he traces every inch of my face with his dark gaze. I feel it, like fingers caressing my skin. He walks towards me slowly and carefully and I feel small, caught out somehow like a mouse spotted among the cheese. He makes me want to confess, but with what I am not sure. The air is quiet, not a sound save for his edging steps and my unsteady breaths. I can feel the tension between us brewing, like a finger flicking a thin string that threatens to snap. Each twang is his footsteps poking and prodding further and further and I stand there anticipating the string to just snap, to break and release...something. I don’t know what...that unknowing, that petrifying and foreign anonymity exacts more unease. I expect him to surge at me, lunge with a quelled ferocity and yet he appears peaceful. I studied him, from what little I could see under his hood there was no trace of wrinkles; no lines against his pale features like cobwebs, not a slither of grey in his hair. He was clean-shaven, said hair whisked back neatly without a strand out of place, connoting he was particular like a young man might’ve been. Yet I sensed a great life in him. Perhaps not a long life, but one worth hundreds of them all the same.

I raise my hands, sure enough, he won’t speak slowly and with such immense patience were I to try again. I could feel he had somewhat of an unpredictable nature. I was sure he meant no harm, but I wanted to be careful still. “I felt eyes on me as soon I reached that hallway, didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s rude to stare? Especially when one is trying to sleep?” I respond just as slowly, to try and mock him. He chuckles darkly and tosses my first knife into my vacant hand. The act surprises me, and I fondle with the knife almost shamefully, daunted by his composure. “Ah, but you have not slept. Fair game no? Especially for one so guilty,” “No guilt plagues me, just the strange man who followed me into my room,” I add nonchalantly looking up. “Observant, and...dare I say...neglectful? Do you brush past takings of life so easily? Good, you’ll need a clear conscience for what I’m about to propose,” He counters. “Hold on there; strange man invading my room in the dead of night. Before you ‘propose’ anything, just who are you?”

He stares at me once more and then he begins to pace about the room. His long black robes made of the night itself trails behind him and he folds his arms behind him in a polite manner. I have not seen many dress as such, cloaked in long assortments such as he. I have seen elongated robes similar indeed, but they had always been etched in something identifiable, something that marked them as one small thing in something much bigger. Like the sun of the Mythic Dawn. He bore none, perhaps his group did not approve of grand statements? Whatever it was, whatever organisation claimed him as their own I couldn’t make out. It had to be something cult-like, and therefore something I wanted no part in.

“I am Lucien Lachance.” He greets, now coming to a stop. “A speaker for The Dark Brotherhood. And you, you are a killer,”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say with threats dripping from my tone. He senses this, as seen by his quirked brow. But it isn’t a vigilant caution that fuels his next words...it is intrigue. “Oh, how easily you have forgotten?” He purrs. I haven’t forgotten, could never forget. “Forgotten what? Speak quickly!” I quip defensively. “I feel it in the void, your work has pleased the Night Mother. And so, I come to you with an offering. An opportunity to join our rather...unique family,” He demurs and I feel my anger prick, feel it bubble like lava in my veins. “Your offering is likely something I won’t take kindly to, Mr Lachance,” I cautioned but he just nods.

“Listen close, On the Green Road north of Bravil lies the Inn of Ill Omen. There you will find a man named Rufio, kill him. Only then, will your initiation to the Dark Brotherhood be complete,” Lucien explains the offer, says it smoothly as if he asks little of me. His disregard of the life he wishes to be slain infuriates me, reveals the fury I had tried to quell like a boulder into the water before this obvious murderer. I unsheathe the knife, it leaves my belt in a slick metallic hiss piercing the air. “You think yourself bold? Claiming to be of the Dark Brotherhood? Think yourself clever? Careless is what I call it, messy most of all. Do you think I will throw myself at your feet? Kiss your boots in worship for your offer?! You sicken me,” I rattle and with each sharp and swift hit of my words that ring as loud as thunder I inch closer, I inch with fire in my feet and in my veins. “I won’t kill for you, Assassin,” I declare hotly, spit it like it’s a curse and I point the end of my weapon at him. The space between his chin and my tip is near non-existent. The lack of room I hoped would secure the message, drill into him and more importantly; myself a solid no.

To add fuel to my offence Lucien still fails to show a lick of surprise, shock or insult. As if possible, his smile grows wider, as if my refusal sparks excitement in him. For a moment I fear he sees that spark of interest I so desperately wish to hide, sees something in me I thought I had locked away. “I see, you have yet to face who you are,” He begins. “Not ready to satisfy that hidden thrill you feel when you see the life of your victims ebb away by your hands,” my frown intensifies and I can feel my wrist begin to shake. “You do feel it, I know you do,” He insists.

“You know nothing! Leave now! My next blade won’t miss!” I seeth.

“Indeed, you seem to have an endless supply,” Lucien bemuses huskily, eyes lingering down towards my belt. Lucien reaches into his cloak, I flinch ready to assault but he holds a hand up at me like I did before and he pulls out a knife. It’s dark and weaved from ebony, the blade is crooked and bends like a bolt of black lightning. It is oddly beautiful and soon I find it at my feet, it’s dark material like penumbral swirls drawing me in.

“Accept this token from the Dark Brotherhood. It is a virgin blade, and thirsts for blood. Should you find yourself lost of a family...of a purpose. May the blade serve you well in your endeavour. If you decide to take me up on it,” He says with a honeyed voice. He takes a step back and unlocks the door to my room without effort, and I realise he’s already picked the lock.

“And I know, one day...you will,” Is the last thing Lucien says before he vanishes before my intense gaze, a flash of purple unravels right then and I see a hint of the wisp trail behind him before it too has dissipated. I am left astonished, my heart palpitates wildly and I feel dizzy. The knife in my hand falls and I think of the Grey Champion; his sad eyes looking at me with so much appeal before he drives my own sword into his chest. I think of my horror, my hand on his bloody chest. The way regret seeped into my heart that felt black, how I wished I just burned that letter written by his father…

If I hadn’t wished weakness upon the Orc, hadn’t handed him the letter will full knowledge of what it would entail for him. If I had fought him bravely as an equal instead of stripping him down of his confidence and will to exist. Maybe being referred to as the Champion would not sound so bitter. No one saw his death as undeserving, while it wasn’t much in the way of a spectacular show everyone in Cyrodil accepted it. Only this shadowy group of killers saw it as an innocent life being stripped away...what did that say?

I slink into my bed from the weight of my budding sins. The weight of the blade Lucien gifted is evident, I hold it in my palms with immense effort and the weight pokes at me, ‘you lied’ a murderous voice in my head whispers. My consideration of his offer sickened me. I knew my righteous facade was thinning, that the way Martin saw me wasn’t real; just a veil I had enveloped myself in. But I was adamant, I chewed whatever inklings of ambition I had and swallowed it like a knife. The blade somehow ended up in my trunk back at Cloud Ruler, once I had returned. I wanted it gone and so I stowed it away. But I think, deep down I know I kept it for other purposes. Lucien inspired a spark, some kind of desire; a need I didn’t know I had. His smile, all-knowing...He was right, I did feel it. But for the time being, none at Cloud Ruler need to know, and I never told anyone...

#Oblivion #TES4 #TES #TES: Oblivion #Lucien Lachance #Hero of Kvatch #HOK #Bosmer #Wood Elf