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iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia · 1 year

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The Arcana HCs: M6 when MC calls them their husband/wife/spouse

My silly little sequel is here:

M6 planning their wedding with MC

You know, because there was that trend for a bit and they're all down bad for MC/you

Julian

It took you a while to work up to doing it

Not because you were nervous about him having a bad reaction, everybody who has met him knows how much he loves you

No it's because you know his reaction will be so dramatic and you need time to mentally prepare

You know he loves when you take the lead on things, so you let it slip at the Rowdy Raven while you're ordering drinks at the bar

"Yes I'd like that please, and my husband will have a salty bitters. Put it on my tab."

His shrieking puts Malak to shame

"Husband? I'm your HUSBAND?? Did you mean it??? YES!!!"

He's expressing himself in every way at once: laughing, shouting, dancing, "singing", punching the air, spinning you around

All the regular patrons are wondering what secret concoction he ordered, he walked in the door ten minutes ago and he's already on the tables

When did he find the guitar

Give the guitar back to the nice musician, Julian

You're able to herd him back to your regular table and calm him down a bit but you've never seen him giggle constantly like this

After you've had your drinks and left the tavern the walk back home takes twice as long as usual because he needs to tell everyone that he's properly taken now

*bumps into neighborhood acquaintance* "Hey, how are you, I'm their husband!"

Rumors of the beloved Dr Devorak's clandestine wedding are circulating now and he is living for it

He did sit you down and talk about getting married in the future after this

If it's something you were interested in, there are only two reasons he hasn't proposed already:

One, he keeps overthinking and self sabotaging

Two, he's waffling between letting you sweep him off his feet with a proposal or him proposing and getting to make it as grand as he wants to

Asra

Let's be honest here, if any mortal person ever embodied unconditional love, it's him

They gave up half their heart just to have you back in the land of the living, no strings attached, and if you ended up choosing someone else over them, they would support you as long as you were happy

If you're with him though that means you chose him, and he is so so happy

They also love mischief of any kind

You didn't hesitate to try it out once it occurred to you

He walked in from his busy day out as you were closing up the shop, taking off his coat and scarf

"How's your day been, MC?"

"Better now that my spouse is home!"

They stumbled on their way to the tea pot and you could see the blush spreading across the back of their neck

"O-oh, you don't say?"

The dimples are out in full force when he returns with your tea

"Tell me then, MC, how exactly does this spouse of yours make your day better?"

They are going to act on every response they tease out of you

"Is it the way he brings you things to make you smile?" *lays out trinkets he picked up for you while he was out*

"How about the way your spouse kisses you good evening?" *slides an arm around you with a flirtatious smirk*

He's playing it off so smoothly but the blush takes several hours to fade

It'll stay on their mind for a while though, until they circle back and ask you if marriage is something you'd want in the future

If the answer is yes he's getting things in place so he can propose as soon as you're ready to be asked

Nadia

She already introduced you to her family as the person she wanted to marry someday, it's in her plans

She's letting you set the pace for that though, and she's not in a big rush as long as you two belong to each other

Which is why it falls off your lips so casually while you're having afternoon tea on the veranda before she has to host a reception that evening

"I don't know Nadia, if what you say about my reputation is true then those nobles should know better than to give my wife a difficult time tonight."

At least you think you sound pretty casual, you had to rehearse that sentence a few times in your head and your palms are sweating under the tablecloth

She freezes and her eyebrows shoot straight up

"Oh my, MC, how bold of you."

Then she's blushing and laughing and pulling you closer

"Pray tell, when did you begin thinking of me as your wife?"

She's flirting with you but she's also trying to figure out if this is a sign that you're ready to get married yet without putting you under too much pressure

If the answer is no, you're not ready yet, she'll tell you to take all the time you need

But she'll also ask you to call her your wife just one more time, to help her wait

If the answer is yes, you feel ready to marry her, she is gearing up to announce your engagement that evening and reaching for the ring she's been carrying around just in case

This Countess knows a good thing when she has it and she's not wasting any time to make you hers in every way possible

Muriel

Have mercy on his poor heart, he's still getting used to being in love in general

Once you've been in an established relationship for a while though, you start to notice what a wonderful partner he is

He's always happy to help with any heavy lifting or out of reach objects, he makes breakfast for the two of you most mornings, and his favorite moments are when you're curled up next to him

Once your brain assigns the words "husband material" to him you can't unsee it

So when he sees you getting ready to scale the shelves for a bigger wooden bowl and he lifts it down for you, you just can't help yourself

You kiss him on the cheek and thank him kindly

"You're such a wonderful husband, Muriel."

He walks right outside and faceplants into the nearest patch of moss he can find to cool off the blush

The chickens are a little startled

Inanna is laughing at both of you in wolf

You'll have to go after him to make sure he didn't short circuit and apologize for catching him off guard like that

He will want you to explain what you meant right away

If your answer is just that you noticed what a good partner he is and that it just slipped out he'll be bright red and very happy to know that he's successfully treating you well

If you end up admitting that getting married has crossed your mind a few times and you could see that happening with him he's going to need a minute (read: 24 hours minimum)

He's going to ask Asra about it

Somehow he's surprised when Asra's response is an offer to officiate the wedding

Muriel will come back after a bit and quietly let you know that yeah, he's thinking about it too, and it doesn't sound like the worst idea

Portia

In her mind you two are basically married, I mean, you have her back, she has yours, you saved the world together and confessed your undying love to each other, there's not much more to do

You even travel the world and negotiate alliances with other nations together

So you don't think it'll be a big deal if you try it out

You love her "out and about" pirate-esque outfit, and she loves it too

But ever since she wore it to that banquet with Aunt Tasya and Vesuvia's ex-council, the belittling comments she got about it come back to bother her every now and then

You notice she's fidgeting a little before you head out the door for an evening on the town and decide to hype her up

"Damn, you look good! Give me a spin! Look at her Pepi, is my wife the best-looking woman in Vesuvia or what?"

Neither of you expected for it to affect her as much as it did

Her eyes and mouth are wide open in shock, because to be honest?

Getting married hadn't even crossed her mind

But it was starting to sound really appealing, really fast because it meant you got to call her your wife every day

She's giggling and squealing and confused at her own new obsession but very very happy

She won't bring it up right away because you two are about to have the best date EVER and she's about to burst with pride

But she'll bring it up eventually

If your response is that you just felt like calling her that, she's happy. She will request it be a new nickname for her though

If you say that it had crossed your mind a few times, she'll be nervous and excited and very open to heading in that direction

Lucio

He's been married before, it was meh

(A/N: forgive me please, Nadia is not meh, Nadia is a goddess amongst us mere mortals, Lucio recalls their marriage as being meh because there wasn't any love between them)

ANYWAYS (pls don't kill me for real, Nadia fans are top tier and I am but a poor panicking pansexual)

He prefers to leave things in the past, and you're still helping him take the future into consideration, so long-term commitments like marriage aren't even on his radar

Really you just decided to call him that to mess with him a little

You chose the wrong moment for it though, you really did

You were stopping by the palace between gigs to check in on everyone and Nadia invited you to stay for luncheon

Lucio can't say no to a potentially fancy meal and you're happy to chill with a dear friend for a bit

Nadia forgot to mention that she invited Asra over as well, since they're in town and she knows they'll want to see how you're doing

Lucio is reminiscing about some fantastic party trick he pulled in the banquet hall you passed by on your way in and you decide to mess with him a bit

"Yeah, that sounds like something my husband would come up with."

Just as Asra is walking into the room

They're okay with your relationship, they really are, but it's going to take quite a while for Lucio to prove himself worthy of your full commitment

They still worry that he'll regress and it's important to them that you have a way out in case that happens

"WHAT-"

They're not angry, they're freaked, and to be fair Nadia is too

You hurriedly explain to everyone present that you were just messing with them, you didn't know Asra was there, you're sorry, etc

Lucio's not helping. He hadn't thought of marrying you before, but think of the party! Think of the bragging rights! Now everybody knows you chose him!

"Yeah, you heard MC! I'm gonna be the best husband EVER!"

The palace staff collectively refers to the fallout as The Incident

#the arcana headcanons #the arcana hc #the arcana #asra the arcana #julian the arcana #nadia the arcana #portia the arcana #muriel the arcana #lucio the arcana #the arcana shitpost #the arcana game #asra alnazar #julian devorak #nadia satrinava #portia devorak #muriel of the kokhuri #lucio morgasson

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dandydanthelion · 11 months

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muriel and julian should hang out more

so that these two could hang out

in the wild wolves and ravens actually form a symbiotic relationship

ravens will lead the wolves into carcasses and they will share the meal

also ravens often play with the pups, like they play tug of war and the ravens fly over their head with sticks to tease the pups

so I NEED MALAK AND INANNA TO INTERACT NOW

#dandelion's rambling #the arcana #the arcana game #julian devorak #julian the arcana #muriel the arcana #muriel of the kokhuri

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vesuviaweekly · 5 months

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Vesuvia Weekly: Prompt for Jan 17th - 31st

You voted, so here it is!

How Things Went Wrong (feat. the Arcana familiars)

The masterlist for this prompt will go under next week's prompt poll. Tags are the usual #vesuvia weekly, and for this specific prompt, #familiars screwed up ^.^

MASTERLIST

The Marketplace Incident by @iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia

That Time When Bip and Faust Got In Trouble by @hewwo-its-floof

Animal Shenanigans by @mermaidchan05

Charles and Oliver comic by @samtheplatypus

How it all went wrong with the familiars by @themushroomgoesyeet

When Things Go Wrong (feat. Inanna) by @paperstarwriters

After the Storm by @slightlyirritable

Julian, Malak, and the Letter by @blu-raes

The Fire Fountain by @jacithenonbinary

How It All Went Wrong by @arcanarubinaito

#vesuvia weekly #familiars screwed up #the arcana #the arcana game #the arcana fanart #the arcana fanfic #the arcana hc

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stariisoda · 6 months

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Arcana Themed Kandi Bracelets (PART 1)

The Main Six! (Left: Asra, Julian and Nadia/Right: Muriel, Portia and Lucio

Guess who got into Kandi making? Me. Wanted to make some Arcana inspired singles (cause that's all I can make lol)

So I went with the most obvious characters:the ones you can date in game.... Duhhh....

(I'm gonna make more, maybe the courtiers next???)

(Read for more photos and explanation)

Asra: I chose a heart charm that has a smaller heart inside of it for... Obvious plot reasons. Then the teal and purple because I think teal is their favorite color? I think? And purple because that's what I see when I think about him. Star beads because magic. Also, the little white tri-beads kinda look like bones from the side, so take that as you will.

Nadia: I picked an owl charm for her because it could either represent Chandra or The High Priestess. Her colors are mainly her color palette, and most of the beads are pearlesent.

Julian: There wasn't a raven, but this bird that kinda looks like a hummingbird? Whoops, I just couldn't find anything else that reminded me of him. So the bird is supposed to represent either Malak, The Hanged Man or a plague doctor mask (the beak is long lol) This one is pretty plain, having black beads in the back and two ab finish black beads in the front. And the red.

Muriel: You can't really see it in this angle, but I picked a house charm, because it reminds me of his little hut in the woods. Also Muriel's a home body. Used the tri-beads again for the same purpose as Asra. Chose big blocky letters because it better suits his vibe. And then more earthy tones, with the black ab beads for his cloak.

Portia: A cat charm to represent either Pepi or The Star. Star beads because The Star. Then the rest of it is just her color palette. (Don't know a whole lot about her, sorry)

Lucio: I picked a crown charm because... Because he's the count. Also it's so ugly, I honestly dislike his bracelet, despite him being my favorite character. I chose those awful gold beads because, let's be honest, Lucio would love that. Picked them because they were kinda over the top. (Originally was going to use the same letter beads as Asra and Nadia.) Uses small red beads and two faceted yellow beads at the front (looks like gems). The rest is his color palette, although it's mainly ab, pearl and glitter colors other than the red, which is solid. I made his bracelet ugly on purpose because he would probably have something like that. (Oh, he has his necklace haha)

Them all laid out together

Then all of them on my arm

Anyways, that's it for now! If you stayed to read all of that, thank you! I liked trying to come up with meanings behind them and designing each one.

I'm aiming to do the courtiers next 👀

#the arcana #the arcana game #crafts #kandi #kandi bracelet #count lucio #nadia satrinava #asra alnazar #julian devorak #portia devorak #muriel of the kokhuri

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arcanarubinaito · 4 months

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How It All Went Wrong

Inspired by the “Who Broke It” meme from Parks and Recreation.

This week I’ve decided to do a reader insert fic! I was originally planning to do a special Incorrect Quotes post, but I ran out of time to even start editing it together. I’ll probably do what I planned eventually, but to meet the deadline I switched over to a mini-fic.

(I’m still figuring out how to format my mini-fic/creative writing posts so please forgive the inconsistencies.)

Summary:

It’s the start of a new day and the familiars have all gathered in the Palace to play and run around the mostly empty halls while you and the M6 share drinks and relax on the Veranda. Unfortunately, while they were romping about and having fun, you discovered one of the familiars broke a very expensive vase Nadia was planning to auction off for charity…

Tags:

SFW (<18), 1k Words, GN Reader, Reader Insert, No Established Relationship, Asra Alnazar, Nadia Satrinava (Mentioned), Faust, Chandra, Malak, Inanna, Pepi, Mercedes & Melchior, Camio, Reader's Familiar, Whodunnit, Parks and Recreation, Who Broke It?

“So. Who broke it?”

The pack of animals in front of you all exchanged guilty glances. You’d caught them running through the halls in a panic, a mess of feathers and fur as they frantically tried to get your attention; and they had led you back to the scattered shards of what once was a very expensive, very delicate vase. Nadia had planned to auction it off, raising money to instate a proper orphanage; she wasn’t going to be happy about this. You sighed and crouched down, so you weren’t towering over the frenzied herd. “I’m not mad.” You said soothingly, reaching your hand out. Pepi was the first to rush forward, pressing into your hand with an apologetic purr. “I just want to know.”

They were all quiet for a long, long moment before your own familiar tentatively broke the silence. “I did it,” They said, but you knew it wasn’t them. They didn’t know who it was, either; the creature was attempting to take the fall for their friends. You huffed out a slight, gentle laugh.

“No, no you didn’t.” Your other hand found the top of your familiar’s head, and you gently scratched at it soothingly. Glancing up at the rest, you swept your gaze over the sea of guilty faces and focused on Malak. The raven looked a little more disheveled than usual, his beady black eyes darting around and his head cocking back and forth anxiously. “Malak?” You prompted. You regretted it almost instantly when you saw the look in his eyes.

“Don’t look at me!” Malak shot back, and his wings flared out. His talons clicked against the marble floor as he began to pace, eyeing the other familiars with a paranoid and scrutinizing glare. “Look at Chandra.” He swept one wing towards her, and the other animals turned to focus on the owl. Her eyes widened further, both surprised and indignant at the accusation.

“I beg your pardon?” Chandra brought herself up to her full height, glaring down at Malak with cold, dark eyes. “I certainly didn’t break it. Unlike yourself I watch where I’m flying.”

“That’s weird, how’d you even know it was broken?” Malak said, almost smugly. As though he thought he’d caught Chandra in the act somehow. You glance at the scattered pieces of sharp ceramic in front of you all, and then back up at the two bickering birds.

The owl extended her wing, feathers flaring as she gestured towards the broken vase. “You imbecile, it is right there in front of us and it is clearly broken.”

“Suspicious.”

“No, it is not–”

“If it matters.” Another voice interjected quickly, and you all turned to look at the two Borzoi standing just off to the side. Melchior had spoken up, Mercedes pressed up against his side and eyeing Pepi. “Probably not… but Pepi was closest to it when we ran past.” Mercedes nodded in agreement.

You saw Pepi’s tail slowly puff up, her pale blue eyes widening in disbelief. “Liar!” She yowled at them, and her ears flattened against her skull. The fur on her back spiked up. “I don’t—push things off of tables, that is a stereotype!”

Mercedes looked amused now, baring her teeth in a grin. “Oh really? Then what were you doing up on the table earlier then?”

“Cats like to be high up to watch things, everybody knows that Mercedes—”

You sighed and held up your hands. “Alright, let’s not fight…”

“Well…” Camio bobbed his head thoughtfully. “Inanna’s been awfully quiet–”

“Really?” Inanna snarled, whipping her head in the cockatiel’s direction. The bird only cackled as the rest of the familiars broke into frenzied arguments, pointing claws and feathers. You could hardly hear yourself think over the uproar, the squabbling animals making so much racket it was a wonder the others couldn’t hear them from the veranda. With a long, suffering sigh you rubbed your hands over your face.

“Okay, that’s enough!” You called out, loudly and clearly enough that your voice rang through the entire hall and shut the bickering animals up. The guilty expressions returned tenfold this time as everyone quieted down, paws and talons shuffling. Your thumb and finger ran up the bridge of your nose, pinching together while you took advantage of the quiet to think. There were a lot of fingers being pointed—so to speak—but none of them were admitting it; and you were inclined to believe they were all speaking the truth as well. You opened one eye to survey the small crowd again, doing a brief headcount. Your own familiar, Malak, Chandra, Camio, Melchior, Mercedes, Inanna, Pepi… no sign of Faust.

“Found help!” Ah, there she was. You turned your head to see Faust slung over Asra’s shoulders as he walked down the hall, the periwinkle serpent waving her tail cheerfully at everyone.

“Faust told me what happened.” Asra crouched beside you and skimmed their fingers over the shattered pottery. “Why don’t we get this fixed up before Nadia sees, hm?” They threw a wink at the other familiars, all of them relaxing just a little bit now. Asra held their hands over the shards, and you watched alongside the familiars as the pieces began to glow softly and draw back together. Glowing golden lines formed where the cracks were as the pieces fit together, melting away to reveal a perfectly uncracked and unbroken surface. They picked up the object carefully and set it back where it belonged. “There we go, good as new. Nobody has to know.” They flashed a toothy smile towards you.

“I suppose it doesn’t matter who broke it then.” The familiars relaxed completely. The only reason you wanted to know was so that whoever broke the vase could properly apologize to Nadia; now there wasn’t any reason for that. You took a moment to give everyone some pets and ear scritches before standing up. “But let’s try to not break any more valuable objects, okay?” You chided them all gently and they murmured their agreements. As you turned back to Asra, you gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

“If they’re all together like this, it’s hardly surprising that something broke.” Asra chuckled, guiding Faust off their shoulders so she could rejoin the other familiars. “I was waiting for it to happen. Murphy’s law,” They held their finger up as you both began to walk. “Anything that can go wrong, will. It’s just a matter of how, isn’t it?”

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mermaidchan05 · 3 months

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Vesuvia Weekly: "Not How That's Supposed to Work"

It's fluff time let's goooo!

In which Julian tries to be helpful and ends up causing a bit of a mess, but it all works out okay in the end. Featuring Julian, Malak, my apprentice Damian, and a cameo by his familiar Oswald the bat. And once again partially inspired by another amazing headcanon from @iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia

About 2650 words. No warnings, just a whole lot of fluff and Julian being the amazing drama king he is.

___________

If that night proved one thing, it was that Julian should never be trusted with cleaning up the magic shop.

Particularly not with sweeping. Sweeping things only ever led to disaster.

True, Malak was partially responsible for the latest disaster. But Julian would never blame him. Not when it was his own move that caused the current catastrophe.

All Julian had wanted to do was attempt to be helpful. His work had—blessedly – ended earlier than expected. But, as was the way of the universe, he had wound up stopping by Damian’s shop at almost the exact moment that Damian was on his way out. So while Damian was off getting more stock for the shop, his trusty bat Oswald along for the ride, Julian took it upon himself to do the one thing he truly could do to make Damian’s job a little bit easier. Cleaning up a bit, he thought, would be a simple but important gesture.

And something that he couldn’t possibly mess up.

He was right. For a little while. Julian was able to sweep up the actual shop floor without too much trouble. It helped that Damian always kept the storefront clean. But their shared living quarters upstairs were an entirely different matter.

In their shared quarters, Damian had a shelf full of little treasures that he had collected over the years. Some were Damian’s own finds or creations. Others were gifts: Asra’s finds from his travels, gifts from Nadia, little abandoned things that Portia had found around the palace… things of that nature. Julian always had to be careful when dusting these shelves. One false move would lead to something crashing to the floor, shattering into a million pieces.

Which was exactly what happened.

One of the trinkets was from a young woman who Damian had once sold a good-luck charm to. Julian had been rather perplexed and incredulous at the idea. Luck couldn’t possibly be altered by magic. It was too great and powerful of a force.

Julian had expected Damian to argue with him. But he’d actually agreed. Good-luck charms, Damian had explained, were far more often protection charms. They simply worked better if the person wearing the charm believed they would be lucky.

That hadn’t exactly clarified anything for Julian, but he was starting to learn to roll with it. Mostly.

Either way, the charm had apparently done what the young woman had wanted it to do, since she had thanked Damian with a handmade little porcelain animal: a striped orange cat playing a guitar. How she had found out that Damian liked cats in the first place was simply one of the universe’s great mysteries. Knowing that Damian played guitar was far less confusing, since he and Julian had done a few impromptu performances together, particularly in places like the Rowdy Raven. Whatever the case, Damian was certainly enamored with the trinket. Julian couldn’t help but agree. He loved the silly little cat guy.

Of course, that was exactly what the broom handle knocked into.

Malak had chosen the exact wrong moment to try to steal something shiny. Admittedly, that was a near-constant hazard when doing much of anything upstairs. Though by now Malak had learned which things his chosen human would be actively angry or upset about him stealing, he still tried to scoop up a few other things. And Julian’s retaliation was instinctive by now. He whirled around and started shooing Malak away. And that was when the broom handle officially got out of Julian’s control.

Julian dropped the broom the moment he heard the crash. And he swore when he saw the mess that he had made. The poor little orange cat was headless now. And the arm or paw or whatever-it-was was nearly halfway across the room. The guitar had snapped so convincingly that Julian was almost surprised he hadn’t heard the twang of broken strings. The poor cat’s tail was in four different pieces.

“No, no, no, no, no…” Julian blurted out. “Oh, Damian’s going to be heartbroken…”

Glad he was still wearing his leather gloves, he scooped all the pieces up as best as he could. Then he stood, carrying the shattered remains of Guitar Cat, and looked helplessly around the room.

“I have to do something about this…” he said to no one in particular. “He can’t see this mess, he can’t… aha!”

The first thing his desperate search found him was the wardrobe. It was a rather small wardrobe, and felt even smaller with all of Julian’s coats taking up more than half of it. So cluttered that it would be very hard to find some pieces of shattered porcelain.

He quickly stuck the broken pieces into a pocket of one of his coats. He practically slammed the wardrobe door behind him. And he leaned against it, letting out a long sigh.

Now what?

Guilt was starting to creep in before Malak cawed reproachfully. Julian was still getting used to listening to the weird magical voice in his head that was apparently Malak just talking to him and not imitating words like corvids could do. But the message was clear enough this time.

“Gah, you’re right, that was a stupid, stupid plan…”

Still in pure panic, Julian tossed the wardrobe door open and fished the remnants of Guitar Cat right back out of his pocket. Then he returned to frantically pacing around the room in hopes of finding a solution. Perhaps by some sort of divine intervention. That seemed the only way to solve this at the moment.

Especially with Damian bound to be home any minute.

“Maybe… maybe we can fix it,” he rambled at last. “Damian has thousands of magical things down there, one of them has to put things back together…”

Malak cawed again. Another very clear message.

“Right… right, glue of course…” Julian mumbled. “But, gah, there will still be cracks everywhere won’t there? It won’t look nearly as wonderful, and Damian will find out that I made a mess of things, and—”

Another caw from Malak. Julian stopped in his tracks.

“Uh, yes, right, of course,” he blurted. “Fix first, worry later.”

Without further ado, he sped back down the stairs and started looking for some way to piece Guitar Cat back together.

He didn’t find much. Not much that he actually knew the function of, anyway. He’d had one too many instances of accidentally causing large problems by touching Damian’s alchemy stuff to risk doing it again. Particularly in the midst of an entirely unrelated crisis.

So Julian resorted to trying to stick everything together like a puzzle. Maybe that would buy him some time, at least.

He was so focused on fitting all the tiny pieces together in any way that he could, that he didn’t even register the fact that said pieces were actually staying put. He didn’t notice the little sparks of magic trailing from his fingers. He didn’t see the way the cracks and shattered edges all sealed up. He was that lost to his own guilt-stricken panic.

Malak, on the other hand, saw it all very clearly. And if Julian had been paying attention, he might have seen the decidedly smug pose Malak had taken up.

After a few more minutes of frantically sticking Guitar Cat back together, Julian was abruptly brought back to reality by a now-familiar hum. Damian was using his magic to open the shop door. Julian’s usual teasing about simply using a key without all the other fuss was far from his mind. He whirled around, paler than usual with guilt, instinctively attempting to hide Guitar Cat behind his own form.

The door clicked open. Julian’s heart seemed to shoot to his throat. There was a familiar little squeak as Oswald flew in first, immediately dangling from his favorite rafter. Malak fluttered up to perch right above him. Julian was sure they were engaged in some silent conversation between familiars. Probably laughing about how stupid Julian had just been. But he couldn’t afford to focus on that.

Not with Damian walking through the door.

“I’m home,” Damian called.

The adorable habit would have made Julian smile on an ordinary, non-disastrous day. And he would have responded with a “welcome back,” and then an increasingly elaborate story about his day. But this time, entirely different words flooded out of him.

“Oh, Damian, my love, my light, please forgive me.”

Damian paused halfway through the door. He raised an eyebrow at Julian.

“Okay...” he said slowly. “Forgive you for what?”

A dagger in the gut would have been less terrifying. And more deserved.

And of course, Julian immediately proceeded to do an absolutely terrible job of explaining the situation.

“I was only trying to sweep the floor,” he rambled, “and Malak swooped after something shiny-- but no, no I can’t blame Malak, and please don’t be mad at him, this is my fault entirely...”

“What’s your fault?” Damian asked. He was starting to look a little alarmed. “Julian, whatever you did, it can’t be worse than the glittering slime incident, can it?”

Julian flushed. “Ah... well... the mess caused by the glittering slime was at least fixable...”

“You broke something?” said Damian, more trying to solve the puzzle than accusing Julian of anything.

Julian let out a sigh. He stepped aside, head bowed.

“I’m sorry, my darling,” he said soberly. “My foolishness led Guitar Cat to a terrible fate.”

Damian walked right up to the shop counter. His shoulder brushed against Julian’s. Julian had to fight the urge to hurry away. Or to cry out that he was undeserving of Damian’s touch. Neither would be helpful, but both felt appropriate in the moment.

Damian hummed thoughtfully. “He looks fine to me.”

Julian’s chin dropped. “Uh... what?”

Damian picked up Guitar Cat. Julian’s heart skipped a beat. He instinctively reached out to catch the pieces that were absolutely not attached to each other in any way and were sure to plop right back to the counter. But somehow, like a miracle, Guitar Cat stayed whole. Damian even twisted Guitar Cat around to give it a full inspection.

“He looks fine,” Damian repeated. He looked up at Julian, confused and slightly skeptical. “Did you drop him on the carpet? Does he have a chipped ear or something?”

It took Julian a full three seconds to form words. And even then they were far from coherent.

“I... wait, wait, no, this is not... this isn’t possible,” he stumbled. “It shattered. I saw it. I was sweeping upstairs, and I hit it with the broom cabinet, and... I decapitated Guitar Cat!”

Damian’s eyebrow crept higher. “Sounds a little extreme, doesn’t it?”

“Damian, I swear to you, with Malak as my witness, that Guitar Cat was headless before you walked in,” said Julian. “I almost hid his remains in the wardrobe! Malak talked me out of it, and then I tried to fix it, but I didn’t know if there was anything like glue around here, so I started piecing it back together in some vain hope of--”

“Love, you’re rambling,” Damian said gently.

Julian instantly snapped his mouth shut. A blush crept all the way to his ears.

“Uh, sorry...”

“It’s alright.” A hint of a smile tugged at Damian’s lips. “This is a mystery, though... let me test something.”

He must have been testing something with magic, since Guitar Cat was covered with a faint glow. When the glow vanished, Damian gave a rather firm nod, as though the entire mystery was solved already.

“I thought so.”

“You, er, you thought what?” Julian asked.

“You fixed it,” said Damian.

Julian could only blink at him. “I...?”

“You used your magic,” said Damian. “I’d know your handiwork anywhere, Julian. I’d guess your doctor instincts kicked in. You were so determined to save your porcelain patient that you used magic without thinking about it.”

“I... that’s... but, uh... that isn’t...” Once again, Julian’s words utterly failed him. He shook his head and made another attempt. “But that’s not how this works. That’s not how magic is supposed to work!”

“Actually, that’s exactly how this is supposed to work,” said Damian.

“But... but there wasn’t any spell circle, or incantation, or fancy hand gesture, or magical regents, or... or anything!”

Damian slowly put Guitar Cat back on the counter. He turned to face Julian, looking him directly in the eye. Julian started blushing again.

“Julian.”

“Y-yes, love?” Julian stuttered.

“What am I always telling you about magic?” said Damian.

Oh no. He was using his Teacher Voice. Julian had absolutely zero defenses against his Teacher Voice. The only thing he could do was attempt an answer, even if he had no real idea what that answer was.

“That... you have to be careful what you wish for, because of what it will cost to get it?” Julian said hesitantly.

Damian’s smile crept higher. “No. Good job remembering the first rule of magic, though. What’s the other thing I keep telling you?”

Julian was absolutely certain his face had actually caught fire at that point. But he tried again.

“That... magic comes in many different styles and it’s alright that I don’t master every single one of them?”

Damian laughed fondly. Julian adored that sound. He found himself smiling, his expression equally fond.

“Closer, but no,” said Damian. “At its core, magic is all about intent, remember? You must have really wanted to fix Guitar Cat. I’ll bet that was the only thing you were focusing on. And your drive led you to using your magic. Even if you didn’t notice it.”

“I assure you, I did not,” said Julian.

Malak cawed from the rafter, startling Oswald. The poor little bat nearly lost his grip. Damian made sure that Oswald was happily dangling again before speaking up once more.

“Malak clearly noticed,” said Damian. “And I noticed.”

Julian couldn’t help it. He tried to protest. “But I can’t...”

“You can,” said Damian. “And you did. Look at it this way. Fixing things is similar to healing, isn’t it? And your healing magic has grown in leaps and bounds since our first lesson. It’s even better than mine by now.”

Julian ran his hand through his hair. “I’m, uh, not so sure about that...”

“I am,” said Damian. He caught Julian’s hand. “Julian, for as long as I’ve known you, you’ve wanted nothing more than to fix things in any way you could. No matter what that meant you needed to do. And it looks like that meant doing magic you’ve never really done before.”

Julian tried to argue with that. He couldn’t. So he sighed instead. “You always did see the best in me, Damian.”

“That’s because there’s a lot to see,” said Damian. He kissed Julian’s cheek. “Come on. Help me put all this stuff away, and then we can have another magic lesson. I want to see if you can fix that old pot we keep meaning to replace.”

Julian grinned like a little kid. He playfully saluted Damian. “Yes, sir!”

Oswald, watching the proceedings, shook his head at this familiar banter. Malak still managed to look very smug, almost as if he were about to launch into a very long I told you so to Julian.

But Julian was thoroughly distracted by other things. He did actually help put Damian’s things away. And then they both tackled that ‘fixing magic’ again. Julian struggled at first. He couldn’t stop getting in his own head, and trying to recreate the panic that led to the resurrection of Guitar Cat didn’t work.

Then Damian tried motivating him with cheek kisses. That turned out to be the best teaching method yet.

By the end of the night, they had a perfectly pristine pot, a very smug looking raven, and a thoroughly embarrassed little bat.

And Julian was thoroughly looking forward to his next magic lesson.

#vesuvia weekly #not how that works #the arcana #the arcana game #fanfic #my stuff #my writing #julian devorak #apprentice damian #julian devorak x oc #julian devorak x mc #juilan does magic #i just realized i did two stories about one of the LIs breaking something in a row whoops

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emeraldtart · 9 months

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Gold Watcher! Yuu

The third level of the Nightmare Realm, Deadly Decadence. It is a level tailored specifically for those who values wealth above all. Those died in greed are coated in the gold and wealth they loved so much. Yuu is no different. They are one of the youngest Gold Watchers, but they are still lethal nonetheless.

Lord Malak had ordered them and their family to chase after the mortal going after their ring piece. As Yuu raise their axe, preparing to deal the killing blow as their siblings cornered the mortal, a neighing sound pierced the eternal night.

`There aren't supposed to be horses here,' was the last thing they thought before getting hit by a horse-pulled carriage.

They heard their siblings cried out to them in their telepathic bond, and heard the thud of the mortal's body and the smell of copper as their blood was spilt by a spike trap.

At least Lord Malak will be pleased.

He blinks a couple of time, and before he knew it the statue was gone.

Arrival

Grim opened the coffin and almost got flattened by a golden statue wearing the ceremonial robe.

Yuu ran all over the school, trying to find out where in the Nightmare Realms are they.

They ended up in the library, and when Grim arrived they immediately stop moving.

Crowley came to a cat monster trying to tear the ceremonial robe off a statue.

When he diverts his gaze to Grim, he heard a heavy step and saw that the statue had moved from a salute to a wave.

"A-Are you alive!?"

When there's no response, Crowley did his signature thinking pose and close his eyes, thinking what the hell just happen.

"Myah! It moved again!"

The statue moved from a wave to handing a piece of paper to Crowley.

It says, "I can't move if you look at me. Close your eyes or divert your gaze. Then we'll talk,"

So Crowley did. He even grabs Grim (in his Rope of Love) and turns around, their backs facing the statue.

And they hear a voice.

They tell them their name is Yuu, and asks Crowley where they are.

Crowley tells them they're in Night Raven College, and urges them to follow him and also to watch for their familiar.

To which Yuu replies that they can't, because if someone sees them they'll freeze in place. It's not an option, it's an unfortunate curse that traitorous witch (Bierce) had put to make things 'fair' between the monsters and the mortals that came to their realm.

Crowley can't remove the curse, but he can modify it. He changes the condition for Yuu standing still from 'being within line of sight' to 'making direct eye contact'.

So Yuu, who tries their best to just look at the floor, go to the hall with Grim and Crowley.

When the time comes for the Dark Mirror to sort them, it says something very concerning.

"A soul full of greed, coated in the gold that was loved so much. Your time had passed, your body had long perished, and yet you still remains here in front of us all. A soul filled with greed for all things, there are no dorms that can fit such huge desires, so this soul belongs to no dorm,"

So that was concerning. Wait, does that mean this student is technically dead!?

Grim, upon hearing this demands that Yuu gives the robe to him.

Chaos ensues and when Crowley asks someone to stop Grim, Yuu threw their axes.

Yes, axes. They take it from somewhere and they didn't stop. It wasn't until Grim was completely surrounded by golden axes that they finally stop.

Azul is looking at the axes with an incomprehensible face. Are those axes made of real gold?

Crowley can't send Yuu back because their home isn't in this world, so they have to stay at Ramshackle for a while.

It was a total downgrade from the manor they used to live in, and it's also made off wood. Yuu is a bit scared to climb the stairs, they fear the floorboards might not be able to support their weight.

Luckily, it did. But the creaking increases their anxiety, so they might need to find some wooden planks and replace it first chance they got.

Grim comes in and they battle the ghosts. Yuu is technically a 'ghost', having already died and the current form is just what they gain after arriving to Deadly Decadance. So their axes can do damage to the ghosts.

After Crowley checks in, they got promoted from guest to janitor.

Crowley expected some complaints since they're dressed like an aristocrat, but they didn't.

Most monsters spend their time cleaning their respective Realm and made some adjustment to their it. I mean, how often is it for an average human to get past the monkeys, Agatha and Lord Malak?

Dwarf's Mine

Yuu doesn't sleep. They spend their night cleaning what they can. They don't know how to deal with the plumbing and electricity. The ones in the manor never had such problems, weirdly enough.

Their first task is to clean the Statue of The Seven and the area surrounding it.

Yuu half expected the statues to move and talk, like they did. They didn't.

As they wondered who the statue was made in the image of, Ace appears and explains who they all are.

The moment Ace made fun of them, they decided to make fun of him in return.

All it takes was one. Single. Blink.

They moved behind Ace and taps his shoulder. When he turns around.

He came face-to-face with a wide, open mouth and an axe raised above.

Yuu started to laugh like mad after Ace fell over from shock. Ace asks them for a fight to which they refuse. So Grim takes over because Ace called him a raccoon.

Their fight ends with them charring the Queen of Hearts statue.

The trio ends up having to clean every single window in school.

Yuu obviously can't climb a ladder and clean the upper windows, because, you know, their weight.

They realise that Ace is gone and tracks him down using telepathy. Where they find out that he is leaving them and Grim to do all the cleaning. They also heard Ace's mind dissing them, so they grab Grim to find and drag that card soldier.

They ran into Deuce, and after a chase Deuce ended up throwing Yuu (which takes a lot more effort because gold) towards the chandelier.

So now they need to get that magic stone or its expulsion.

Yuu sees Ace, Deuce and Grim arguing which almost leads to them getting killed and decided that they need to intervene.

They went back to the dwarf's house for a strategy meeting.

They told them to work together.

Grim: Don't tell me what to do, henchman!

Yuu:... What did you call me?

Grim: You're my henchman, obviously.

So Yuu briefly turned into their nightmare mode and destroys the table and the floor in one swing.

After a few seconds of horrified silence, Yuu turns back into their regular form and acts like nothing happened.

Let's just say that the three's braincells are permanently shared from that point on.

Since Yuu is the fastest, they'll get the magic stone. The other three needs to work together to distract the miner.

It works, but when Yuu gets back the miner notices what Yuu has in their hand and went to get it, pickaxe in hand.

Only for it to get chopped clean in half by a golden axe.

Ace: Wait, you can defeat that miner in one swing? Why didn't you do it before!?

Yuu: I forgot.

They definitely didn't.

They get the stone back to Crowley, and now Yuu and Grim's position is promoted to students (prefect for Yuu) of NRC.

That night, Yuu wonders how the other Gold Watchers are faring.

Bonus: The other Gold Watchers are planning to raid Bierce's dimension because they think she's responsible for taking one of them. Malak and Mama Bear are scared by their determination.

#Dark deception #Twst #Twisted wonderland #Imagines #gold watcher #Yuu #Grim #ace trappola #deuce spade #Dire crowley #Malak #Bierce #mama bear

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msn-04iinightingale · 15 days

Text

KINSHIP 3

Guardian Angels

Kinship FOB, Helios 2 hours until Jericho Superheavy Drone Arrives on site.

The guardian angels came cloaked in black, and howling like beasts. The two Leopard Class dropships came in low over the battlefield, lasers and LRMs lashing out at Blakist elements engaging the beleaguered mining effort. As they circled, their hatches opened, and out dropped six mechs.

—

Two lights, a Jenner IIC and a Raven landed lightly on their feet, immediately sprinting into the battle and opening fire with lasers and SRMs. They danced between incoming fire with a deftness that spoke of extreme dedication to their machines, the Angel ECM suite of the Raven providing an extra challenge for the Blakist mechs to surpass as they tried to target it and the others around it.

Inside the cockpit, Flora felt alive. Not in the sense that she didn’t outside the cockpit, but here, going full tilt, through enemy fire, ducking and dodging and slewing around corners on nimble avian legs, the raptor lady felt truly alive.

“Hey Zippy, tango on your two o-clock!” called her running mate, Amaryllis. “Want me to get all up in there, girl?”

“Yes please that would be nice also he’s probably not gonna like that also he’s gonna shoot you so watch out.” She replied, rushing the words out through the comms as she does everything in her life. Fast.

The Jenner IIC pivoted on a dime, using the momentum of its speed to spin the machine around on one leg and bringing its SRMs to bear on the Malak that had been tailing the Raven since they dropped in. The volley detonated across the other light mech’s armor, blowing chunks away and staggering the other machine. Amaryllis punched his machine into a run again, weaving through buildings as the enemy mech’s pilot targeted him instead of the Raven, lancing laser and light PPC fire his way.

"That's right, sugar, eyes on me! I'm way more fun to play with than she is!" he teased over the open comms.

If the Word pilot had a reply, they kept it to themselves. They did indeed give chase, in turn being hounded by Flora in the maze of suburban homes and businesses, as the two lights worked in concert to take on the Word machine.

The dance ended when the Word mech was cornered in a cul-de-sac, and was hit by a volley of SRMs from both Amaryllis and Flora’s mechs, ripping its armor open and damaging the reactor enough that the machine shut down.

“Mech kill confirmed are there any more we should take out or was that it and should we link up with the other friendlies here?” Flora asked over comms.

—

Three mediums, a lethal looking Kontio, a Mad Cat Mk III, and a Skinwalker dropped next, moving to engage the enemy medium mechs.

The first anyone on the ground was really aware of the Kontio was it skidding to stop between a Preta, about to burn a mortar crew it had found, and taking the laser hit on its armored shoulder. She pivoted the mech gracefully, the six ER medium lasers stabbing out and scoring the Preta badly enough it forced the enemy mech to pull back, no doubt the prospect of closing with the claw armed Kontio giving the Word pilot pause as well.

“I’ll tail it.” Sin says to his lance mate over the comms, pushing the Mad Cat MK III into pursuit.

“Are you all alright down there?” Carrie asked, her cool slightly husky voice coming over external comms to the mortar crew.

“Affirmative, Barghest. We’re wrapping up now, FASCAM ammunition at 10%” came the reply.

“Good. I’ll keep them off your back.” she replied, staying on station as the squad hurried to pack their equipment and fall back.

Sin pulled the trigger and launched a volley of 20 LRMs out into the snowy air, they arced, and rained down on the enemy Preta, causing it to duck behind a building.

“It’s ok, we’ve got you covered.” he says, intended for the damaged Silver Wing mech he’s stepped in front of. The mini Mad Cat had taken a light PPC hit for the other machine, but remained operational.

“Captain Veil, one medium coming your way.”

“Understood Pvt. Moving to engage.” the captain’s cold voice come over the comms.

The Skinwalker stalked through the streets, trading fire with the Preta with cool, almost mechanical precision. Weiss wasn’t one to get over emotional, in fact, Nero teased her about her coldness nearly constantly. Pulse laser fire danced this way and that as she chased the Word mech.

The Word mech missed, she did not.

The kill was a clean one, a twin large pulse laser hit to the cockpit.

Quick, clean, surgical.

“This is Captain Weiss Veil, reporting mech kill. Linking back up with Barghest, CFRI and Silver Wing forces.”

—

The last mech was also the biggest, and the most striking. The 100 ton Berserker touched down with an earthshaking impact, before standing to its full height. Charcoal black with a red right shoulder, the mech barely resembled a normal Berserker, standing on digitigrade legs, and sporting a horned, saurian skull of metal over its cockpit, and finally, the hatchet had been fashioned to resemble a giant cleaver.

With a blast of a warhorn over the external speakers, and a giggle from its pilot over the coms, the machine lumbered into the fray, belching fire and lasers at whatever targets it came across.

It found a damaged Grigori first, a Comminus variant with ECM, which explained why it had registered as a medium mech, lancing lasers and ER PPC blasting into the mech’s legs with practiced ease, tanking the retaliatory MLM fire across the torso armor before cleaving the smaller mech’s cockpit in half with a blow from the monstrous hatchet it carried.

Clara laughed over the comms. She was having fun. She always had fun when she got to chop things. It was her favorite thing to do in the whole world!

Evidently, the Grigori pilot had called for aid, as a Malak came up behind her and started to stab at her with lasers, PPC, and, worryingly, two Inferno SRM rounds, bathing her mech in fire.

At least, she should have been worried, but Clara was past such early concerns as “heat” and “on fire”. She just wanted to cut things apart.

The big mech spun around, still wreathed in flame, and stitched large pulse laser fire across the smaller mech before it could withdraw. She evidently hit something important, as the SRM ammo touched off, blasting out of the blow off CASE II panels in a billowing fireball, and pushing the small mech forward with the force of the blast. The other mech stood back up, in time to meet the downward swing of Clara’s hatchet, the blow carving down deep into the mech’s torso, completely shearing off one side of the machine. The two halves crumpled to the sides in the snowy street.

The last thing the pilot of the other mech saw was the rapidly descending clawed foot of Clara’s mech.

“Ok Clara, that’s enough. Come on back.” the voice of Lt. John Smith, her “Piglet”, coming over her comms.

“Awwww…ok…” she replied, dejectedly. She was only just getting started.

“There will be more later.” the calm voice of the man she loved said.

Almost sulkily, and with one last burst of flame at the downed light mech, Clara lumbered her way back to join the retreating forces.

—

Back at Kinship FOB, the remainder of Barghest Company touches down, the Union class dropship and two Leopards landing on the landing strip and beginning to unload their cargo and mechs.

The assault mechs trundled around the FOB building, careful to avoid crushing anyone by mistake. The three heavies, the Marauder, Warhammer, and Warwolf followed. Last to join them was the superheavy T-Rex, the ground shaking more than usual with each step.

At the same time, the five Celestials made their way out of the union class dropship.

“This is Godkiller 1 to Garm 1, headed out, over.” Anya said, shocking herself with how, well, confident she sounded.

“Garm 1 to Godkiller 1, good luck and good hunting.” came Owen’s reply. “I’ll send your IFF tags to all friendly units, and if anyone shoots you, I’ll shoot them myself. Over”

“10 4, Godkiller 1 over and out.” Anya said, switching to her squad level comms. “Ok...lets move out.”

“Roger.”

“Ok!”

“Still think this is a dumb idea…”

“Understood…” The five Celestial mechs moved at good speed out of the FOB, attracting confused looks, but no fire at least from the defenders. Veering North, they took a route that brought them out of sensory range of most of the mechs present, before swinging west to the river, and then, back south…towards their objective.

@is-the-battlemech-cool-or-not @lt-chari @combined-arms-merc-groups @navcommrelay

#operation touchdown #story event #mechwarrior #battletech

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garf-lover96 · 1 month

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i wrote a thing based off of @/iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia's headcanons for the same concept!! this is my second fic ever.. i really enjoyed writing it but i had to try so hard to make the facts add up😭😭i actually had a bad flu not that long ago so i pulled from that a little. word count is almost 2,5k. writing time was over 6 hours.... i kind of feel like the flow is a little choppy but when i was rereading it it wasn't that bad?? tbh for now i'll try to focus on actually writing down the ideas in my head and then attempting to make them more flowery, i just need to get the hang of it first. i might start writing some stuff for vesuvia weekly too

here you have the summary (i wrote it before finishing the fic, some things might've changed i guess)

cw for a panic attack and just sickness i suppose. it's not that explicit though, i didn't want to torture him or anything. there's angst and hurt/comfort, like in the last one

———

A few lazy days have passed in the magic shop since defeating the devil and saving the world. Since Asra went to live with his parents at the palace, Rowan insisted that Julian stayed with him immediately after they got all the long overdue conflicts resolved. And so they rested, finally sleeping for more than just a couple hours every night.

Julian was already getting used to living a life where he isn't wanted for murder and he was so full of ideas of what he wants to do, now that he has the chance. Open a clinic, travel, spend as much time as possible with the love of his life... He should probably consider putting bonding with Malak on his list too, since the raven insisted on moving in with them. They're like a small family now, and the idea makes Julian giddy with joy. Now it's just him, Rowan, Malak and Rowan's familiar, Bluebell who—unfortunately for him—still seems hung up on the fact that Julian is living in the shop now. Objectively, she had a fairly valid reason for it, in the beginning at least, but he thought she would've gotten over it by now. Thankfully, now she seems to ignore him more than just attacking him all the time.

Today, after having a late breakfast with Rowan, Julian—bringing Malak along—went out to run some errands and meet up with his sister. Rowan still seemed somehow drowsy after being pulled out of bed to eat with Julian so they both decided he's going to stay and maybe get some dinner ready for later. If anyone's deserving of sleeping in and taking it easy for even months from now, it's Rowan.

Julian steps into the shop, the bell above the door chiming gently as it closes behind him. He lets the raven fly off to his designated spot on a high shelf and leaves his coat on a hanger.

"Rowan, love, I'm home!" he calls out with a smile on his face, listening for an answer.

There's only silence. So he tries again.

"Dearest?"

Nothing again. Now that he's looking around, he can't seem to spot Bluebell anywhere nearby either. Did they go somewhere while he wasn't here? That can't be right, the door was unlocked. His heart drops a little and he swallows nervously. Rowan's surely fine. He has to be. How he wishes his lover would jump out of his hiding spot already and tell him it was all a silly joke...

He takes a few steps towards the back room. He lets out a breath he didn't realize he was holding when he notices Rowan curled up on a makeshift bedding of pillows in the corner. He's wrapped in a blanket, seemingly napping without a care in the world. He approaches slowly, not wanting to startle him. Only when he comes closer, he realizes that Bluebell is pressed firmly into the crook of his neck. Her eyes are closed too. They're napping together, how cute...

He gets down on his knees and kisses Rowan's temple gently, only to notice that he's unusually warm. His brows knit together slightly as he pulls off his gloves to check his temperature more easily. The subtle sound of leather makes Bluebell stir and scramble to the top of Rowan's head, ruffling her feathers and taking a protective stance, trying to shield him with her wings. Julian's sure she would be screeching at the top of her lungs if it weren't for the sleeping Rowan right beneath her. They stare at each other for a longer moment. Julian reaches out his hand slowly, trying to touch Rowan's forehead, when the magpie snaps her beak at him, just barely missing his thumb. Julian withdraws it quickly and sighs.

"Bluebell, sweetie, I just want to take his temperature." he states quietly in a strained tone.

Bluebell seems to consider it for a moment. She backs off just enough so Julian's palm can reach Rowan's forehead.

"A fever..." he mutters to himself before gently shaking Rowan's shoulder.

Rowan groans and covers his eyes, trying to squirm away from Julian nudging him.

"Rowan, can you look at me?" he asks and tries to pull Rowan's hands away from his face.

Rowan manages to open his slightly bloodshot eyes to which Julian's gentle expression falls completely. He swallows and almost stumbles back with a horrified expression. He manages to get himself together after a few breathless seconds and he leans down to pick Rowan up, along with his blanket, to which Bluebell starts chattering in distress loudly. She jumps forward and tries to bat her wings at him to scare him away again but Julian doesn't care anymore.

Damn it, he should've known. He should've known that Rowan wasn't feeling well since morning.

He gets tunnel vision. He just needs to get Rowan into the bed. He'll get him into bed and take care of him and he'll be fine again. It's just a fever, just a small fever.

He reaches the bedroom and sets Rowan down gently. The sick man seems barely conscious when he curls up under the sheets. Bluebell squeezes herself next to him again while Julian bolts out of the room just to return barely a few minutes after. He methodically sets some medicine and a glass of water on the bedside table, then a cool cloth on Rowan's forehead.

"Rowan..." he starts in a shaky tone "Rowan, please, j-just say something. I-I need to know you're okay..."

Julian reaches out to grab one of Rowan's hands and squeezes it gently. He stirs again and lets out a shallow sigh.

"...What's happening?" Rowan manages to mutter out in a slightly hoarse voice.

"You're just a l-little sick, I'll take care of everything, I promise. Are you feeling cold? Are you hungry? Do you want me to make you something? I-I could get some soup started..." Julian stumbles over his words while his free hand instinctively travels up to caress his hair gently.

The more he looks into Rowan's tired, reddend eyes, the more he feels like he's losing his grip on reality. He starts hyperventilating and...

Suddenly he's back in the dungeons again. He sees his old patients in agony, the bodies piling up, everyone counting on him to find the cure for the plague. He sees Lazaret. He remembers finding out that Rowan died there.

Then he feels something warm and feathery on his shoulder. Then something lightly pinches his earlobe. He blinks his teary eyes and looks down, only to see that Bluebell has hopped onto his shoulder. She's squirming around, nudging him and making quiet chattering sounds, trying to get his attention.

He inhales sharply, as if he's just stopped drowning. He isn't proud of it but his hand shoots up and he grabs the magpie quite firmly, but for the first time, she doesn't seem to mind. Julian can't help to wonder for a second if she had to do a similar thing for Rowan before.

When he looks down at Rowan again, his eyes are focused on him, a worried expression on his face. Rowan hand squeezes Julian's weakly.

"Rowan, you're alive- God, of course you are, I'm so sorry-" Julian sobs out and practically yanks him up into a firm hug.

"What are we apologizing for...?" Rowan asks as he attempts to reciprocate the hug. He seems just the slightest bit more aware of his surroundings at least. His stomach growls quietly and Julian notices.

"Don't worry about it, I just- I'll get you something to eat, y-you haven't eaten anything since breakfast, have you?" he sniffs as he lets Rowan lay back down.

When he's halfway down the hallway to the kitchen, he notices that Bluebell is still firmly pressed against his neck.

"I, er, thought you'd prefer to stay with Rowan." he remarks in a confused tone.

The magpie chatters quietly, reaching out to preen the messy curls on the side of his head.

Julian shivers a little at the feeling. He's seen her do a similar thing to Rowan before. Is she trying to comfort him...? He lets her do her thing while he continues his pursue for the kitchen. Once he gets there, he seems determined to make some soup, before Bluebell stops him by pecking his neck lightly.

"...Is there a problem?" he asks while taking out a pot from one of the cupboards.

The bird chatters and lands on the counter, next to a half eaten loaf of bread.

"I can't give him that, he needs something nutritious-" he gets cut off by a screech. Apparently, it's not up for discussion. But who's he to argue with a bird that's known Rowan since probably like forever...

He sighs and obeys, cutting a few slices of the bread. He continues by spreading some butter on it, then looking at Bluebell again.

"I imagine you won't let me put anything else on it?" he asks with another small sniff, finally having calmed down from his initial panic.

Bluebell chatters approvingly and hops back onto his shoulder, resuming the gentle preening.

Julian takes the humble bread plate back into the bedroom when Rowan opens his eyes again just as he enters. He attempts to sit up when he sees the plate in Julian's hands.

"Wait, let me help!" Julian exclaims quickly, leaving the plate on the bedside table.

He accidentally nudges a container with medicine which is already on there but he manages to catch it before it topples to the floor. Then he embraces Rowan gently, helping him to sit up properly. He looks over his face frantically, feeling his warm cheeks and searching for any other concerning symptoms.

"Bluebell was with you..." Rowan mutters, leaning against Julian's hand a bit.

"Er, yes, she was... It caught me a little off guard too." he looks to the side and grabs the plate to show it to Rowan.

"Ah, bread and butter... I don't think I could've managed to stomach anything else, thank you..." he takes a slice with a slightly trembling hand.

That makes Julian smile gently. Of course Bluebell would know something like that. He pulls off his boots, crawls into the bed and wraps his arms around his partner while he munches on the bread slowly.

"...You were having flashbacks earlier." Rowan brings up quietly after swallowing a bite.

"I... Yes... Bluebell pulled me out of it though." he looks down to the bird still preening his hair, "She really can be a lovely little thing when she feels like it..." he adds with a soft sigh.

Rowan slowly gets through one slice of the bread before putting the plate away and speaking up again.

"I'm sorry for making you worry so much. I should've let you know I wasn't feeling well since morning..." Rowan starts, but gets cut off.

"No, don't apologize. I'm a doctor, for god's sake, I should've known better. And with what you've already been through- H-how could I be so neglectful?" he buries his nose in the crook of Rowan's neck, like he's ashamed.

Bluebell's preening picks up in pace, taking note of Julian's distress. Rowan turns a bit and takes his face into his hands, seeing that his eyes have gotten teary again. As he observes him, he notices the fact that he's still all sweaty and trembling from that moment of panic.

"I was so worried..." Julian mumbles out while caressing Rowan's hands, desperate to stay grounded by the fact that he's right in front of him.

Rowan looks to the side in thought. It doesn't take too long for him to pull Julian down into a laying position again. He fumbles with the covers a bit to get under them, which is a little harder with his body still being so shaky. He finally wraps his arms around Rowan's body, tangling his own legs with his partner's. He rests his head against Rowan's chest with a small sigh, wanting to feel his heart beating. This time, Bluebell stays tucked into Julian's neck.

"So you like each other now...?" Rowan whispers and kisses the top of his head lightly.

"You know it's not like I didn't like her before... She was just a little... Stubborn..." he whispers just that last word, as if to prevent the magpie from hearing it.

"Lucky for you, she has a soft spot for people with anxiety..."

Julian smiles a little in embarrassment, nuzzling into Rowan's chest.

"Do you need anything right now? If not the medicine, you should at least drink some water... Or I could go grab a fresh cloth for your forehead. Should I call Malak to come here too, maybe...?" he starts rambling quietly. It really seems like the exhaustion is finally setting in for him.

"No, I... Don't leave again. Just stay with me."

"Of course, yes, I will." he adjusts his grip a little, holding onto the back of Rowan's shirt, "I love you. I'll make sure you have everything you need all throughout the night."

"I know, Julian."

"...Could I just check your pulse real quick?"

Rowan indulges him with a soft sigh and reaches his wrist out to him. Julian grabs it and presses down on it lightly, savoring the feeling of Rowan's blood flowing freely, him being alive.

"Are you satisfied, doctor?"

"...Please don't call me that right now."

"Right, my bad..."

Julian kisses Rowan's wrist gently, then presses his palm to his own face. Rowan squeezes his cheek affectionately. Soon enough, Rowan gives into the exhaustion induced by the fever. But even though Julian is tired as well, he stays up, watching Rowan, making sure he's truly alright and doesn't need any urgent care.

When the morning comes, Rowan's fever has already broken, which makes Julian allow himself to doze off for at least a few minutes.

Then he gets woken up by a gentle whisper.

"Julian, love..." Rowan's voice sounds significantly less hoarse which makes Julian wake up immediately. It makes Rowan jump a little.

Julian takes a breath and props himself up on his elbow, sending Bluebell falling onto a nearby pillow. She seems to stay asleep regardless... He puts a hand to Rowan's forehead again and looks him over.

"Morning... How are you feeling?"

"How are you feeling? I don't remember your eyebags being that prominent yesterday."

"I, uh... I'm just fine, really. Just glad that you're okay. Are you sure nothing hurts?"

"My head feels a little heavy. If I tried to get up, I'd probably fall over."

"Then... Then I propose we stay in bed for the day. To prevent you from getting worse again." he states methodically, "Doctor's orders." he adds with a slightly wobbly tone.

"That might just be your best idea yet." Rowan agrees with a smile.

———

once again i ask for feedback, comments, anything..

i'm SO tired

#the arcana #julian devorak #julian devorak x mc #the arcana familiars #garf lover96 creation

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