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xetswan · 9 months

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Youngest Shadow- Chapter One, Two Sisters, Dad

One | two | three | four | five | six |

I was never a people person, not wanting to rely on someone.

Especially family, I didn’t need help.

I am not vulnerable, I couldn’t be. I saw how it affected people on a daily. High schoolers in relationships getting dumped, cheated on, having to many dramas in between them.

It was unnecessary.

I had my small circle and most of them were blood related to me.

My mom, my sister, Bella, and my father who lived across the country.

Oh, and my best friend. But practically family.

I’m content in my lifestyle too. I didn’t need pity from anyone. Either way that’s what I get from everyone. Even my older sister who tried to act like she understands.

My life was consistent. Making sure my mom was happy, helping my sister from losing her mind because of mom needing so much adventure. Other than doing that I played sports, practicing everyday.

Trying my best, not to be the best but to keep up my adrenaline. Running helps the most.

Adrenaline kept me alive, if I could jump off an airplane I would. I would do every crazy thing imaginable just because of the adrenaline that came with it.

Even little things can entice me. My piercings, having to make them a secret from coaches to play sports. Riding my motorcycle anytime was the best feeling after getting it.

I snuck out a few times, not even to do crazy things but to just say I did it.

You would think living in Arizona helped me with keeping my adrenaline up but you’d be wrong. It’s the same thing everyday now. I know what’s around.

And the heat, don’t get me started.

As much as I love my mom, I wanted to be in a forest hiking, see a fucking wild animal that could attack me. Jump off cliffs for the hell of it. Ride my motorcycle on different roads.

Seeing my dad, maybe join him in action. Hunt with him even.

Speaking of which, I stood beside Bella, my older sister by 10 months. She had just said goodbye to some “friends” who seemed like they could care less that she was leaving.

I turn to see our mom walking out of the house, so much energy balled into one person. She had hints of sadness and anxiety pulled on her face, trying to hide it with being happy for us.

She thrusts a phone into the hands of my sister, “It won’t work again, baby.” She frowned, her face always looked like it moved with every feeling she had. Never being able to hide how she felt. “You put it on hold.” Bella points out, the tiniest bit amused.

“I did?”

I smirk, trying to stop myself from laughing.

As much as it is funny it is worrisome, how will we reach her if she doesn’t even know how to work a phone.

“Look, you also called Mexico.” Renée pushes Bella, nudging me as well as the three of us laugh.

“I’ll figure it out. You gotta be able to reach me and Phil on the road.” She exclaims right before she gets excited. “I love saying that,” she grins, “On the road.”

“Very romantic,”

“Very.”

Bella and I both say, silently glancing at each other.

Phil comes up behind our mom, “If you call crappy motels, back water towns and ballpark hot dogs romantic.” He jokes, well partially since he was serious.

He places a Phoenix Desert Dogs baseball hat on Renées head, along with kisses her.

Looking at them partly soothes my nerves about leaving mom. I’m sure Bella feels the same since we practically took care of her for so long. Even though it should’ve been the other way around.

Phil walks away, to finish packing the car with our things. Renée grabs a hold of both of our arms, clinging to us as we walk to the vehicles.

I’m driving my motorcycle, mom wanted to get a trailer for it since it’s a really long drive but I convinced her not to. I couldn’t sit in a car with them for that long.

Plus I have a feeling Charlie is going to force me to anyway.

“Now you know if you two change your minds, I’ll race back here from wherever the game is.” Her face strained trying to hide how even though it would be a sacrifice she would still do it for us.

“You don’t have to worry.” I force a smile, Bella doing the same.

“We won’t change our minds mom.”

“You might, Bella. You’ve always hated Forks.” That’s true, I usually visited more than her. I had a closer relationship to dad, due to my interest of hunting like him.

“It’s not about Forks, it’s about dad. I mean unlike [Name], I went two weeks a year. We barely know each other.” She explains but I think it just worsened our moms worried expression. “Mom, I’m fine. I want to go. I got [Name] there with me.” She looked between us, hugging her eldest, whose face drops once she knew her mom couldn’t see it. It was full of dread and doubt. I also noticed the regret but kept quiet when she wants to bring it up she will.

They let go and Bella climbs into the car, moms attention going to me.

“I want you behind us at all times, you do not pass this vehicle. And no swerving.” She furrows her eyebrows, staring at me. “And don’t be stupid.” I add with a smirk, she rolls her eyes in a humorous way.

“I just want my baby girl safe.” She pouts, pulling me into a tight hug. “You don’t have to worry with me.” I miss her cheek, pushing out of the hug as I knew it would’ve been longer if I didn’t.

“Alright helmet and jacket and let’s go!” She pats my butt, reaching over and getting my helmet to give it to me. She gets into the van and I adjust my wired earbuds so one goes into my ear, stuffing the rest into my jacket and zipping it up.

I pull my helmet on and I press play on my iPod.

Getting to Washington State was a breath of fresh air, not only for my tired hand but the change of view and weather. My sister called it gloomy, never paying attention to the beauty of it all.

Dad surprisingly let me continue driving my bike, it was bittersweet for me. Really it was because he forgot the trailer. I kind of wish he did bring it because slouching like this for hours is not exactly fun. My back will be aching for weeks.

I’m just glad I didn’t have to sit in the awkward atmosphere of them two in that cruiser.

We passed a sign that said “The City Of Forms Welcomes You. Population 3246.”

I smile to myself.

Passing all of the familiar buildings I was missing felt amazing.

We pulled into Charlie’s driveway, I take my helmet off, sitting up straight for the first time in a few hours. Charlie comes over and messes with my hair as I climbed to his torso like a little kid. We laugh and he hugs me back.

I was the first to get into the house, putting my things right in my room. Really throwing them on the ground and rushing back out to see if Bella needs any help. My room was the only one downstairs. Dad had to make add it onto the house when they found out they were having me surprisingly.

I was truly the accident out of the two. Only three months after Bella was born was when I came around.

“I put Grandpas desk in your room. And I cleaned some shelves in the bathroom for you two.” He was mainly speaking to Bella. I watched her grimace. “That’s right, one bathroom.”

I followed her eyes around the house, going straight to a picture of our parents when they were younger and in love. “I’ll put these up in your room.” Charlie motions to her bags.

“I can’t do it.”

I silently stand there as they both reach for the bags, awkwardly bumping into each other causing me to cringe at the scene.

She backs off, letting him do it anyway. Which she should’ve done in the beginning. And I wouldn’t have seen that go down.

After that… experience, I followed my dad to the living room. “That was, nice.” He pauses for a minute before sighing. I place a hand on his shoulder. “It’ll get better. This is just new for both of you.” I smile sweetly and he nods, swinging an arm around my shoulders. But internally I’m just hoping I’m right. It’s going to be a long two years if I’m wrong. “What would I do without you?” He nudges me.

He lets go of me, telling me about how Billy and Jacob should be here soon to drop off surprises they’ve been working on. The one for Bella I knew about.

And right after it was spoken into the air we heard a honk outside.

I stand up straighter and run outside. A boy my age hops out of the red truck, rushing to give me a hug. “Jacob!” I laugh, this was the best friend I was talking about. My absolute best friend.

“Bella, you remember Billy Black.” Charlie speaks up, obviously Bella came outside after hearing the honk as well.

I let go of Jacob, “Glad you two are finally here. Charlie hasn’t shut up about it since you two told him y’all were coming.” He teases our dad, both Jacob and I snicker at the two who have always acted like this.

“Keep exaggerating, I’ll wheel you down the hill.” He tells the man who’s in a wheelchair.

“Right after I ram you in the ankles.” Billy goes after Charlie who dodges. Jacob shakes his head, I take him up to Bella. Poking him to say something.

“I’m Jacob, we made mud pies together when we were little kids.” He exclaims, she squints almost unnoticeably. “Yeah I think I remember.”

“Are they always like this?” She points to the two dads. “It’s getting worse with age.” He jokes.

Jacob always had a crush on Bella, so it was cute watching him finally be able to interact with her and not be a nervous little kid.

Cutting us out of our small silence Charlie pats the hood of the truck. We didn’t even notice they stopped messing around. “So what do you think of your homecoming gift?” He grins proudly. I watched my sisters face contort to confusion to happiness. “No way. The truck is for me?” Turning my focus to my dad who was soaking in her excitement. “Just bought it off Billy here.”

“I rebuilt the engine.” Jacob adds in.

“It’s perfect.” Her smile grew bigger, and more genuine. It was great to see her eager and happy about something. Her and Jacob rush to the truck so he could explain everything to her.

My dad snuck up to me, handing a small box. I look up at him confused. “Open it.” He motions. I stare at it for a minute, glancing over to Billy who puts his hands up as to say he knew as much as I did.

I bit my lip, opening the box carefully.

It had a locket inside, the same locket I would stare at in the window of an abandoned antique store that no one would clean out. The place I begged my dad to go into just to get me that necklace.

“The place finally got cleaned out and I just happened to be on patrol before they got rid of it.” He tells me.

“It doesn’t have a picture in it yet but I thought you could pick one you’d like.” I threw my arms around him, “it’s beautiful.” I pulled away to look at it in my hands again as it was a delicate flower.

#bella swan #carlisle cullen #jacob black #jasper whitlock #twilight #alice cullen #alice cullen x reader #jasper hale #jasper hale x reader #twilight x reader #esme cullen #rosalie hale #rosalie cullen #emmett cullen #twilight imagine

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mhaikkun · 9 months

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CRIME CITY

definitely gonna clean this post up once I have all my character profiles confirmed and make a more formal story introduction, but I thought I'd do a fun little update on all the characters we've met already as well as a general overview of the plot!

crime city follows winter, florist by day and ruthless murderer by night, in a city ruled by criminals each time the sun sets. the mayor? law enforcement? decorative. useless.

in order to achieve his own goals, child prodigy-turned-crime lord winter lies, steals, and kills — and, when the occasion calls for it, enlists the help of the many outlaws on his list of acquaintances.

but winter, too, is being hunted.

here are the current cast:

WINTER (THE RAVEN)

there are only three things anyone can ever claim to know about him: one, he always smiles; two, he is always dangerous; and three, he always wears black. is he mourning someone?

revered as "the king of hell," this strange ghostly man hates rain, doesn't drink, and used to be a detective.

BRENDOLINE BARBARA (THE LADY)

the mayor's daughter. frustrated by her own powerlessness and the facade of her father's position, she became a vigilante. winter must be destroyed, and, as the saying goes, if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.

how hard can it be when you find yourself falling in love with the man you want to kill, and who wants to kill you?

GIOVANNI MERCURO (THE SNITCH)

a croupier who runs the "snake eyes" gambling house, giovanni will glady offer you valuable information — that is, of course, if you can win against him. if he likes you enough, maybe his sleight of hand will come in handy for your pickpocketing needs.

believing it to be the height of carelessness to be complacent and predictable in a city crawling with vermin, he refuses to be consistent. he never wears the same hairstyle twice, never plays the same game twice, and never sleeps with the same person twice.

ASHCROFT (THE SNIPER)

a hitman for hire with the air of someone who used to be noble. rarely getting jobs due to his exorbitant prices, when he's out of money and out of work, he plays the saxophone on street corners and in bars for loose change.

as far as assassins go, he's pretty resourceful. after all, his sax doubles as a sniper rifle.

FALK (THE BLOODHOUND)

hates tardiness and thinks dogs are annoying and difficult. he does not appreciate the irony of his criminal title.

once a military man, an inflicted injury forced him to develop his already keen sense of smell into the formidable skill he has today of hunting people down using only their scent to compensate for his impaired vision.

#crime city #original character #oc #mhai art #mhai oc #I am Begging you to ask me questions abt them HSDJKSDFHJKSDFS #they're on my mind literally all the time

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dia-souls · 4 months

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Diabolik lovers Bloody Roses Novel [ prologue ]

‌‌ Prologue

A sad legend was told in a small village called Roseland. This legend tells the memories of a girl in love who fell from a high cliff. The young girl survived but could never remember her memories. She forgot her lover and started a new life. Legends say that the girl's lover looked at her every day and picked a rose in his memory and put it in the window of his room.

These roses represented his sweet memories with his beautiful and kind lover. But the girl forgot him and could never remember her old and bright love. With the passing of time, her lover died, but the roses that he had planted in his memory remained on the windowsill of his room. No one may remember the name of the dried roses, but his love for that girl became a legend. A legend that named this small village in memory of the roses picked on the way to an unrequited love in the village of Roseland.

Centuries passed, but this legend was always told in the village of Roseland so that people remember that in the way of kindness and love, even if you don't reach your lover, always with a bit of love like a rose, your memories will be eternal forever.

Outside this village was a big castle where six royal heirs lived. King Karlheinz had driven his sons out of the capital to make them independent and teach them a great lesson.

The castle of the crown princes was outside the village and none of the people of the village had the courage to approach it. The villagers had heard that the crown princes were very dangerous. They consider themselves to be aristocrats and do anything and never feel guilty. Every girl who came near that castle disappeared and has never been found.

The castle of the crown princes was very infamous in the city and all the villagers were afraid of it. The church believed that demons resided in that castle. For this reason, it was forbidden to approach that fort, and no one was allowed to approach that fort, otherwise they would be charged with a great sin and they would be known as criminals and sinners in the village.

The people of the village lived a peaceful life and worked hard in their fields so that they could live a hard life with the heavy taxes of the king. Everything in the village was peaceful and fine until one day a sad day came. The same day the rose fell into the trap and withered.

A 15-year-old and very beautiful girl lived in this village, whom the people nicknamed her White Rose. She was a pure and beautiful girl who was amazed by her beauty. This girl's name was Yui and she lived with her father Seiji in a very small hut. Seiji was a hunter and used to hunt animals to support himself and his daughter. He was often out hunting and Yui didn't spend much time with him.

The city library was a safe and relaxing haven for Yui. Where she would imprison her watch and travel to her imaginary world by reading. This work of Yui often made the village girls dislike her because they considered Yui to be a naive and simple girl who lives in her own dreams.

On one of the most beautiful autumn days, while the wind was blowing very strongly, Yui threw the warm scarf that the kind old woman of the village had woven for her on her shoulders.

The old woman of the village was the oldest person in this village and she had known her since Yui was born. The old woman remembers very well that Yui was a weak and abandoned girl in the forest whom Seiji rescued and took her in, and from that day on, he introduced Yui as his own daughter. That old woman loved Yui with all her heart and visited her every day.

While throwing the scarf over her shoulders, Yui put on her leather boots and took her leather bag and came out of the hut. As usual, when she is alone, she goes to the library to immerse herself in her fantasy world.

Before walking away from the hut, Yui went to the back of the hut to pet her father's guard dog. She had a strong interest in animals and talked to farm animals more than she talked to girls in her own age.

*woof woof*

Hearing the voice of the guard dog, Yui moved closer to him and reached out to pet him. While caressing him with her delicate hands, she smiled softly and the guard dog was drowned in her kindness.

*woof woof*

Yui: Fufu.... good morning Piku.... how are you? Did you sleep good last night?

*woof woof*

Yui: Hmmm... I think you are hungry. Wait, I'll give you a delicious meal.

Yui opened her leather bag and took out a small sandwich. She made this sandwich for herself to eat in the village library when she is studying and not be hungry. She cut the sandwich in half and held one half close to the dog's mouth to encourage him to eat it.

Yui: Be quick Piku.... Fufu.... Come eat it.

While sniffing Yui's hand, Piku approached her slowly and took the sandwich from her and started eating. While eating the sandwich Yui was staring at him with a soft smile and Piku licked Yui's hand and Yui giggled. Piku usually does this to thank her.

Yui, who was sure that Piku was no longer hungry, got up and picked up her bag to go to the library.

Yui walks slowly on the dirt roads of the village on the way to the library. The autumn wind was blowing and the leaves were coming off the trees. A few leaves fell on Yui's golden hair and Yui smiled brightly while looking at the sky.

Yui continued on her way until she saw the village girls gathered together as usual, talking about colorful clothes and braiding each other's hair. Yui never wanted to join them because the village girls teased her for her interest in books. And she always ignored them.

When she passed by the girls of the village, she hugged her bag tightly, fearing that they would steal her bag like the previous days and harass her. Yui could feel their serious look and grin while passing and that they started to chatter when they saw Yui. Yui was sure that they were making fun of het, but without paying attention to them, she walked away from them and continued on her way to the library.

Yui continued on her way until a soft voice caught her attention. She knew this voice well. The voice that always brought a smile to her face.

???: Yui my dear girl.... is that you?

Hearing the sweet voice of the old lady of the village, Yui smiled softly and looked behind her and saw the most lovely person in the village. An old woman with braided white hair stood a few steps behind her, walking with the help of a wooden cane, and always had a soft smile on her face. This smile always gave Yui energy and made her happy.

Yui: Good morning Hina-san.

Yui slowly walked up to the old woman and hugged her. This was a habit that Yui always did after seeing her. The love that this old woman had for Yui was unparalleled.

Hina: Yui my dear. I am very happy to see you. Where were you going?

Yui: I was going to the library.

Hina: Hehehe.... Just like always, you are going to your dream haven.

Yui blushed hearing Hina's words. Old Hina knew her well and knew that the library was a place where Yui would hide from the world to be in her own fantasy world and she always admired this quality of Yui.

Hina: Yui, my dear, didn't anyone bother you today?

Hina knew about the cruelty of the village girls towards Yui and she never wanted anyone to hurt her.

Yui: Don't worry, Hina-san. I am fine. Today, after I finish my work in the library, I will go to the forest to collect some firewood. Since autumn has arrived, the weather has become very cold and we need to collect and store more firewood as soon as possible.

Hina gave Yui a sweet smile. She caressed her cheek with her old hands and kissed her forehead. Yui's cheeks were cold and reddened from the cold when the old woman transferred the warmth of her heart to her by caressing her.

Hina: Yui, my beautiful flower... Be careful not to go near the castle of the crown princes. It is very dangerous there and no one knows what will happen to the girls who go near there. I can never see my beautiful and pure flower wither, so take care of yourself.

Yui smiled warmly and took the old woman's hand in hers and gently caressed and kissed it.

Yui: Hina-san, don't worry at all. I will take care of myself, I promise you.

Saying this, Yui placed a kiss on Hina's forehead and said goodbye to her and went to the library. The library was usually empty because none of the villagers were as interested in reading as Yui was, except for a young man named Peter who worked in the library.

Yui opened the library door and caused the bell hanging above the door to ring and Peter noticed Yui's presence in the library.

*ding ding*

Yui: Good morning, Peter-san.

Peter, who was cleaning the books at the top of the ladder, smiled when he heard Yui's voice and went down the ladder and went to Yui.

Peter: Hello Yui. As usual, I knew it was you. No one comes to this library except you.

Yui: I'm sorry, Peter-san. If I could, I would definitely do something so that more people would come to your library and read books.

Peter: It's okay Yui. As long as you are here, I don't need anyone else. You are the only one who keeps the light and warmth of my little library alive.

Yui smiled at Peter and opened her bag and took out a very old book with almost torn cover and presented it to Peter.

Yui: Thank you very much, Peter-san, for lending me this book. I really enjoyed reading it, it was really amazing.

Peter took the book from Yui and put it on one of the shelves while Yui looked around to find a new book.

Peter: What are you doing?

Yui: Ummm... I wanted to read a new book, but...

Peter: Hahaha... let me guess. But you have read all the books here and there is no book left that you want to read.

Hearing Peter's words, she blushed. She tried to look more and more carefully to maybe find a new book but apparently to no avail. Yui had already read all the books and there was no book left that Yui had not read.

Yui: What should I do now?

Peter: Don't worry Yui. I will go to the city next week. I promise to bring you new books. Until next week, I will give you something very special to read. Follow me.

Peter took Yui's hand and led her behind the shelves. A place that was almost hidden from others. There was a secret shelf, which Peter opened with a key he took out of his pocket and took out a very old book, the cover of which was covered with dirt. Peter brushed away the dirt on the book causing Yui to cough.

Yui: *Cough* *cough*.... Peter-san...what kind of book is this?

Peter: This is an exclusive book with a true story behind it. You must have heard the legend of bloody roses that is told in the village. This book is the diary of the man who narrated the legend of bloody roses to him.

Yui: .....! Does this mean that this legend is true?

Peter: Of course it was real. This diary shows how much that man suffered in the way of his love. This book is one of my most valuable possessions. Yui, I know that I can trust you and entrust this book to you. Take good care of it and remember that every legend can represent a story in the future.

With trembling hands, Yui took the book from Peter and glanced at it. Seeing the old cover and the pages smelling of dried roses, her eyes sparkled. Yui, who until now thought that the story of bloody roses was just a myth, finds it hard to believe that there was a man who suffered so much in the way of his love.

Yui delicately and slowly put the book in her bag. As if she wanted to protect a valuable treasure, she did it very carefully so that the book would not be damaged. She looked at Peter with a soft smile to thank him.

Yui: Peter-san, thank you for trusting me and letting me read this book. I promise you that I will take care of it with all my heart.

Peter gave a big smile and put his hand on Yui's head and patted her with all his might, making Yui's hair completely messed up.

Peter: Hahaha... I'm sure you'll take care of that book. And I promise you that I will bring you a lot of new books by next week.

Yui: Thank you, Peter-san.

Yui thanked Peter and left the library, and after walking a few steps away from the library, she waved goodbye to Peter. Peter could see the smile on Yui's face. He was sure that Yui was very excited to read this new book.

Yui decided to read a few pages of this book before going into the forest. She couldn't control herself but she was very excited to read this book. That's why she went to the center of the village. Where there is a big fountain and Yui sometimes sits by that fountain to read a book. This fountain and the apple tree are Yui's favorite places to read a book.

Yui sat by the fountain and took out the book from her leather bag, opened it and started reading. She could feel the scent of roses in the pages, tickling her nose. Without pausing, Yui opened the first page and started reading.

People may call me crazy.

But the feeling in my heart was not a lie.

If I had wings like birds, I would fly with you.

To go to a place far away from here where we can be free together.

Yui hadn't read a few more lines but she felt tears welling up in her eyes. It was very strange. Yui didn't even know that man, but she could feel the pain hidden in these words. As if she knew the great sadness that the man had hidden in his heart for years.

If they called me crazy, it was because of you.

Because I was crazy about the beauty and purity of your heart.

If I could wish, my only wish would be you.

I wished for the world to be with you and see your smile.

But my wish had a heavy price that this world would not give me.

Even if I am crazy, I will make this world for you.

A world where you can smile and live happily.

???: Hey crazy girl, what you are doing?

Yui, who was engrossed in reading, did not notice when the village girls approached her. Whenever Yui saw them, her heart beat faster and her hands and feet trembled. She was always afraid of these girls because they were never nice to her.

Seeing that the girls were approaching her, Yui quickly put the book in her bag and stood up. She shook off the dirt on her skirt and decided to ignore those girls as usual and walk away from them.

She had not gone a few steps when she felt her hair being pulled by someone and she fell to the ground and her bag fell from her hand. The girls pulled Yui's ponytail, causing her to fall to the ground, and started laughing and teasing her.

Nina: Clumsy girl... you are so stupid.

Tina: Fufu... Yes, you are really stupid. With this situation you have, I am sure that no man will fall in love with you and you will never be able to get married. Of course, this is better for you and you deserve to be alone for the rest of your life.

Nina: But I think someone is willing to marry you.

Tina: Who will marry her?

Nina: Maybe her books are ready to marry her... hahahahaha.....

Saying this, Yui blushed and had tears in her eyes. This was not the first time that the village girls made fun of her for being different and simple and shy. But this time they went too far.

The girls, who were laughing at Yui, noticed that Yui's bag fell on the floor and an old book was taken out. Without any hesitation, they all passed over that book and soiled it under their shoes. And with cruel grins on their faces, they left Yui alone.

As the girls left, Yui stood up and shook the dirt off her skirt. She went to her bag and took the book that got dirty under the shoes of the village girls. She was holding the book with her delicate and trembling hands, and while tears were gathering in her eyes and slowly flowing down her red cheek, she cleaned the book with the corner of her clothes and put it back in her bag.

Although she was not feeling well at all, she went to the forest to collect firewood with a trembling body and dirt clothes. Maybe at least this will make her free from thinking about the cruel words of those girls.

Yui went to the forest to collect firewood with a great sadness in her chest and her hands shaking from anger and sadness.

#diabolik lovers #dialovers #yui komori #komori yui #subaru sakamaki #sakamaki subaru #subaru x yui #yui x subaru #subayui #bloody roses novel #bloody roses prologue

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i-am-a-lost-girl16 · 7 months

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Eris and his Hounds

I'm not going to lie.. I'm slightly obsessed with Eris and his hounds. @erisweek2023

Eris was given his hounds by his father, though I firmly believe the intent isn’t for comradery or compassion. Beron’s intent in initially giving Eris his hounds as pups is to teach him a lesson in responsibility

Eris, as a young boy initially, is worried about raising the pups. He’s seen his father’s other hunting hounds and how ferocious they could be. The last thing he wants is to be responsible for a number of them. But Beron has made it clear: Either Eris takes care of them or they starve.

The first day in the kennel with them is all about Eris letting the hounds get familiar with him, he starts by just letting his hand hang into the kennel giving each hound the opportunity to sniff him. Once they’ve been exposed to his scent, he takes a small step inside. He braces himself as they swarm him, but his tension quickly drops as various snouts sniff and tickle him.

That’s how his first few weeks with them go, Eris lets himself get used to each one and lets each dog get used to him. Once he has a feel for their personalities he begins assigning them all their own names (In order: Four females and three males): Roux, Bronwyn, Aster, Gaia, Flint, Jora, and Bruno

Every day he has time set aside to go out and train them, starting with the basic commands of Sit, Stay, Down. Before he advances each of them into more complicated commands.

Eris takes full care of his hounds, he’s up in the morning to take them outside and give them breakfast, he’s back by mid day to run through training with them, and in his free time he will often find himself at their sides. Whether it’s more training or taking them out for longer breaks into the woods. In the evening, before he retires, he makes sure that each dog is alright and in its proper place before he goes to his own room.

Now I think bath time with seven hounds and Eris is a hilarious feat. The exasperated boy will absolutely chase each of them around the bathroom he commandeered for his task, yellow at them and using whatever distraction he possibly can. I think that bath time is the one space that hasn’t changed since the hounds were pups, it has and always will be chaos and Eris loves every single second of it.

By the end of their first year together, he and his hounds had already formed an unbreakable bond. Nobody takes care of Eris’ hounds but him and his hounds are the first thing he allows himself to love fully without fear of hiding it. His hounds answer to nobody but him truly.

Eris often goes to his hounds for solace, they’re some of the few living creatures that get to see him for who he truly is and each hound has their own special bond with Eris. There are plenty of late nights where he’s snuck to the kennels for comfort and fell asleep alongside them, only to wake up the next morning and have to threaten the nearest servant into silence about it.

He would never be able to choose a favorite, each hound has their own special spot in his heart and he knows each of their habits.

Roux won’t sleep without burrowing into her blanket several times until it’s up to her standard, Flint and Gaia have been inseparable since birth the only two actual siblings of his hounds and as such they can constantly be found side by side. Brownyn will not share her food and her bowl needs to be several feet from the others at meal times. Bruno hides his treats, Eris once found a stash of several bones hidden in a hole in the wall of his kennel. If it’s raining, Jora will howl and whine in his kennel until he’s given the chance to go out into it (On days like these Eris makes sure Jora gets a few extra minutes outside), and Aster is the kindest heart of them all and absolutely knows she has Eris wrapped around her paw with one sad dog look he can't help but give her an extra treat.

Eris isn’t often found without at least one of the hounds by his side when he’s wandering the Forest House or even other areas of the Autumn Court. There’s no need for a leash amongst them usually, they listen well enough to his commands to stay glued to his side unless otherwise told.

I truly believe that Eris’ hounds are his babies and he spoils them endlessly whenever he can. Wherever Eris goes, his hounds are sure to follow him.

If one of his female hounds got pregnant (or Beron demand that Eris find a stud to breed her with) Eris is the epitome of a mother hen. He’s beside his hound every step of the way threatening every animal physician he can into making sure it goes smoothly. When her pups are set to come, Eris is right by her side helping to deliver them. In the end she has a litter of about four healthy puppies with limited complications but Eris swears that he’s aged another hundred years because of the worry that he went through for his beloved hound and her pups.

I could probably ramble on and on about Eris and his pups but at the end of the day, they are some of the most important things in Eris’ life in my mind.

#eris vanserra #eris vanserra hounds #eris acotar #erisweek2023 #eris vanserra imagine #eris vanserra headcanons #acotar headcanons

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just-another-linguist · 4 months

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House of feanor pet headcanons

Maedhros: Dogs, preferably golden retrievers and labradors. Therapy-, family- and service dogs in general (family dogs in Valinor, he needed a service- and a therapy dog post Angband). He had a owl in middle earth too. She brought his brothers and Fingon letters, but then she died in the Nirnaeth (together with Fingon. Funny, how you always seem to lose anyone too close to you. Do you think Maglor will one day vanish as well?Maybe you truly are a terrible older brother. You can't even take care of your own pets! Pathetic...) After the Nirnaeth he had a falcon, who later Elros inherited (She died together with him).

Maglor: Songbirds, but only in Valinor (Later in middle-earth he understood the feeling of being trapped as best as he could because of his big brother and set them free, if they were still able to survive outside. The birds who were too domesticated for that he kept). Canaries, cockatiels, budgerigars, etc. Celegorm and Curufin made jokes about the nightingales because Tinuviel *cough*.

Celegorm: Dogs. From. Orome. Do I have to say more? He had at least ten dogs alone for prey hunting. And Huan of course. HUAN.

Caranthir: Not a pet person or animal person. Had sea monkeys and a hamster as a kid, but somehow they died after two weeks. Well, the sea monkeys died after two weeks, the hamster lived three months. Feanor and Nerdanel didn't let him keep any other pets after that. In middle earth, he got fond of cats because they could be kept as pets underground because they have night vision (keyword dwarves). The cats he especially liked were the naked (egyptian?) ones, I don't know their names; they didn't shed and he is allergic to animal fur.

Curufin: Cats. Cat person. 100% cats. Cats are just made for him. They're like him. They're clever, cunning, daring, will do whatever you tell them not to do, territorial, THEY HISS, I mean how amazing is that and they're just so fucking bitchy and picky. Also, in the Tevildo Canon cats were considered evil by elves (Yavanna: I made these guys and they are perfectly fine and you're all just bigoted) and dogs hated them so I think it's kind of fitting for Curufin to like cats so much because they're so misunderstood and wronged by elven society. He had three cats in Valinor who he later took with him to middle earth (all of them made it, luckily). He had a black shorthair, a white longhair and a calico (all female and girls) and they all had cool badass Quenya names that I will not elaborate on due to personal reasons (*innocent cough*)

Amras: He had a tarantula in Valinor who was later left behind during the flight of the Noldoli. This was quite unusual due to spiders being disliked in elven society and being seen as unholy and disgusting (like Curufin and his cats). He loved her dearly and cried alot when he couldn't take her with him. Nerdanel promised him to take care of her while he was gone. When he got reembodied, his tarantula greeted him home. He was so grateful that Nerdanel took care of her the whole time (which was, to be fair, a long time) and thanked her alot. Their whole relationship got better because of this. Also, in middle earth he didn't keep any pets due to him still griefing his tarantula and him not wanting to replace her. He sometimes took care of his brother Celegorm's dogs, but only for a while and he held no love for them.

Amrod: reptiles. Lizards, snakes and amphibians. In Valinor, he had a chameleon, a bearded dragon and a iguana. He only got to get the chameleon in time, the others were left behind and Nerdanel took care of them. However, the chameleon got burned to death together with him at Losgar. Later, the chameleon got reembodied together with him.

Bonus Celebrimbor:

He liked to play with his uncle's dog (Huan) and he loved his father's cats. Curufin wanted to buy him a cat, but little Celebrimbor refused because he loved his father's calico cat so much that she was basically his pet as well and buying him a new cat would feel like replacing her. Later on, Finrod asked him again if he wants any pets and Celebrimbor refused again because he was happy with the calico cat. When Finrod left and he de-fathered Curufin (I am no longer your child etc. I forgot the verb for it. Listen im german okay i sometimes forget words), Curufin and Celegorm left together with Curufin's cats (including the calico cat) and Huan, Celebrimbor grieved the calico cat more than he grieved his father because it was easier to grieve somebody who hadn't hurt him. Finrod, his friend, as the absolute sunshine he is, left him a small poodle puppy behind knowing Curufin will take the cat with him. The poodle grew to be one of his closest companions in his life.

#silmarillion #tolkien #silm #the silmarillion #maedhros #maglor #celegorm #caranthir #curufin #amrod #amras #feanorians #sons of feanor #the sons of feanor #house of feanor #celebrimbor #my headcanons

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junikicker · 10 months

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Under Her Spell Part 2 - Lady Bellaston x fem!reader

Under Her Spell - Lady Bellaston x fem!reader

warnings: mention of scars, abuse, surgery, soft and caring Lady B (?), smut

word count: 3.4k

note: you wanted part two, I give you part two

You weren’t sure if it had been the right decision to meet up with Lady Bellaston, but now that you had given her the note and were walking back towards your London home, you found yourself smiling at the thought of seeing her again.

“I take it your meeting with Miss Western went well?” Your father asked as you came into his office, announcing your return. He was a tall, thin man of forty years. Pale skin, bright eyes and dark hair that matched the color of his beard.

“Quite the opposite. I fear, father.” You replied, standing straight. “As it turns out, lovely Lady Bellaston does not see me marrying her niece.” You spoke, only revealing part the truth. “I see. Well, so shall be it. But perhaps I could pay her a visit. We are old friends after all.” He spoke, getting back to writing a letter.

“I doubt that will be of any significance on the case. She seemed quite passionate about her decision.” You said calmly, trying to hold back a smile that was threatening to make its way to your face.

“Maybe look forward to the masquerade ball then. Half of England’s most significant women will be there. You shall try talk to someone suitable there then. “Your father spoke, eyes trained on the parchment in front of him.

“Why not marry out of love? Why shall I marry for status?” You asked him and his eyes shot up from the paper as he dropped the quill in his left hand.

“Marry out of love?” He asked you, looking at you as if you were hallucinating. “Marriage for love is not something we do in this family. It might come as a lovely by-product, but it sure is not necessary for marriage. I did love your mother. Very deeply. But we, too, were set up by my father. As were him and my mother and so on.” He explained, getting up, and smoothing out his clothes. “I do understand that you want to marry for love. All the young people do today. But, and I hate to tell you this, given our status among our people, we simply cannot risk losing our influence. I am Viscount after all. Someday, you will take my place, son. And shall produce an heir.” These words cut deep. They always did. When he called you son.

“Father, you and I both know that is-” You started but he cut you off. “Impossible? You could not be further from the truth. I have been in contact with your uncle and discussed the matter with him. Your cousin would be thrilled to help out. His mother is your mother’s sister after all.” He proposed, stroking his beard.

Right. Aaron. Always in the right place at the right time. He sure was loyal to the family. Three years younger than you and yet to be wed. It occurred to you that it had been only a matter of time for your father to reach out to him. “We do look quite alike, do we not?” I suppose this is the best we can do.” You agreed, knowing that you would not be able to change his mind, even if you tried to.

You stood in front of the mirror in your room. Shirtless, as you looked at your scars. Your whole torso was covered in them. So many that sometimes you liked to think that the ones on your chest from four years ago would go unnoticed if you didn’t know what they had come from.

When it came to hiding your gender, your father hadn’t spared no expanse or effort. He had a doctor from France come to your home and perform surgery on you in an attempt to make your chest appear smaller.

The rest of the scars had mostly been from prior to that surgery. Scars from your childhood when you went hunting or horseback riding. A large number of scars remained from a day when you were playing in the forest with your cousin and fell into a bush of roses, the thorns cutting deep wounds into your flesh. Another one had come from the attack of a dog that you got involved in after unlawfully setting foot on another person's property. And lastly, there was a scar that went from your right shoulder to your left hip bone. However, this was one of the scars that you remembered fondly.

You had been playing with a friend of yours when you were fifteen. You had nicked swords from your father and started fighting each other for fun. One thing led to another and he accidentally hit you harder than you intended to.

You sighed and grabbed your shirt from your bed. It was almost time for you to leave. You would need a good forty minutes to your destination if you wanted to go unnoticed by people.

You had decided it would be best to go unnoticed in simple colors, black and dark blue were the colors of your family, so you deemed them appropriate. These were colors that were used among people all over the city, you would blend in with them nicely.

“Father, I am leaving. I will spend the night at Charles’.” You said upon your departure as you stopped by at your father’s office. “Alright then. I shall see you tomorrow afternoon.” He replied, not bothering to look up from his desk to look at you.

And with that, you went. You made sure to grab a hat on your way out, a way of disguising yourself a bit more. You walked until you were somewhat close to St. James’s Park, deeming it safe enough to enter a carriage without much fuss.

“Champagne Lane.” You said, getting in and the coachman nodded. Within twenty minutes you had reached Champagne Lane. You paid the coachman and then left for your destination.

You hid in an alley and watched the coaches, watching who stepped out of them. After a few minutes, you were unsure if she would even come. You looked at your pocket watch and time seemed to only go by slower. One minute more. And as if perfectly planned. As the clock stroke eight, a carriage appeared. Lady Bellaston stepped out and paid the coachman just as you had about fifteen minutes before.

The carriage left and she looked around, looking for something, probably you. You stepped out from the shadows of the alley, walking towards her. She seemed to notice and flashed you a small smile.

“Lady Bellaston. A pleasure to see you again.” You said as you reached her, you bowed down a bit in front of her. “The pleasure is all mine, Huntington.” She replied and you held out your hand for her to take. “Shall we?” You asked, she nodded. “I hope you are not here to abduct me.” She joked with a smile. “I shall never. But maybe you decide to stay yourself after all.” You joked back as you walked up the stairs of a house.

It wasn’t a big place. It was a small, cozy getaway that you had managed to buy yourself without your father noticing. It was nice to have your own place after all.

“After you.” You said, opening the door, stepping aside to let her enter first.

“Let me take that for you.” You offered, taking her jacket off for her. “This is not what I imagined your place to be like. I’ve known your father’s residence after all.” She said, looking around. “My father does not know about this place. This is my personal getaway. My quiet place.” You replied, leaving your own jacket on the rack at the door that you had made yourself.

“Shall I make us some tea?” You asked her as you lead her into the living area that technically was the same room the kitchen was in. “I doubt we will be able to finish it. Such a waste.” She said, hinting at the true reason you both were there.

“I do agree.” You said, sitting down next to her. “Shall I show you the bedroom?” You asked her and she nodded. You stood back up and held out a hand.

You lead her upstairs to the bedroom. You liked how the place was divided into living and sleeping areas. The bedroom was big, arguably one of the biggest rooms in the place. “Welcome, please, do enter.” You smiled, opening the door.

“I’ve heard Tom Jones is in the city. Has he paid visit yet?” You asked, trying to fill the silence that made the room seem a bit empty.

“I doubt that is any of your interest.” She said, turning to face you and stepping toward you. “Seeing as you are here...” She places a finger on your chest. “With me...” She undid the first button of your coat. “Doing things...” The coat went to the floor. “That we both know we shouldn’t.” She finished and placed her lips on yours. Her touch was sending chills down your spine.

As her tongue invaded your mouth, you felt her perfume fill your nostrils. The world seemed to disappear around the two of you, the only thing existing were your bodies.

“I shall free you of your restraints.” You breathed against her neck, hands on her hips as you spun her around. You gently undid the strings on her back and the dress pooled down to the floor. She seemed to have gone for a simpler choice of clothes, as did you. Her hair wasn’t up in the way it had been when you last saw her and there were no feathers gracing her head. Never the less, she hadn’t skipped on the corset underneath the dress.

Just as you went to undo them, she spun back around and crashed her lips to yours in a heated kiss. Her hands were fumbling with your waistcoat as she tried to undo them during the kiss. Shortly after, she got frustrated and instead harshly pulled it open, sending some of the buttons flying across the room. Her hands immediately grabbed onto the fabric of your linen shirt, tearing at it, wanting it to come off as soon as possible.

Lips still attached, you lead the two of you towards your bed, showing her down onto the mattress, a parallel to your first meet. As you now towered over her, you decided that it was time to discard your shirt. In one swift movement, you lifted the piece of fabric over your head and sent it to the floor.

Lady Bellaston’s face seemed to get a bit pale at the sight of your torso. For a second you had forgotten about your scars.

She sat up and carefully placed a hand on your stomach, letting it travel over your skin, circling every other scar. “Who did this?” She asked you, looking at you, never seeming to break the eye contact.

“Mostly, I did. I tend to be an unhandy person.” You said. “This was your work too then?” She asked, tracing the biggest scar. “Partially my fault.” You admitted, growing nervous as she was close to the scars on your chest that you hoped she wouldn’t ask about.

Instead of asking more questions, something you did think she would, she leaned forward and placed a kiss on the scar. “I must say, I find these quite arousing.” She admitted and you smiled, leaning down and pressing another kiss to her lips. “Oh, do you now, my lady?” You asked teasingly, relieved that she was more than okay with your scars.

You freed her of her corset, not breaking the kiss. Just as you expected, she relaxed into the comfort of the loss of restriction when you lifted the corset over her head. It was only now that you noticed the heart-shaped mark on the top of her left breast, so drunk on her body you hadn’t noticed it at first. You gently traced a finger over it. “As much as I appreciate you worshiping me, I am longing for you to work that witchcraft on me again.” She breathed as you climbed on top of her on the bed.

“Ah, yes. Witchcraft. How could I forget.” You apologized in a teasing manner, before wrapping your lips around her nipple, having her back arch into you only a second later and a loud moan escaping her lips. You hummed around her nipple, drawing life elixir from her moans, making goosebumps appear on her skin. “Is it that sort of witchcraft you were thinking about?” You asked her teasingly and she nodded quickly.

Her sighs of pleasure make your stomach flip and you switch to her other breast, to give it the same attention before you continue your journey down her body. You kissed down her sternum, leaving a love bite right between her breasts for her to remember tonight by.

You kissed down the center of her stomach slowly, feeling her skin soft as silk on your lips. Her grip on your hair tightened and she let out a small sigh of realization when realized what you were heading for. You smiled against her skin. Somehow you were doing new things to her all the time.

You hooked your fingers into her underwear and seductively slid them down her legs, letting her kick them off as you shifted up to kiss her again. You slowly cupped her center, pulling away to see her reaction. Lady Bellaston gasped softly and her hips twitched to add pleasure. “If you were a witcher, it would be just reasonable.” She breathed, smirking at you. You kissed her cheek before whispering “Let me know if you want me to stop, my lady.” And she nodded, biting her bottom lip.

You rubbed her center up and down slowly, taking notice of how drenched she was already as you watched her sigh and gasp before you started rubbing tight circles onto her bundle of nerves. A low moan escaped her mouth and you smirked again, kissing down her body, settling yourself between her legs. You grabbed her thighs and she momentarily grunted in protest at the loss of pressure, snapping her head up to glare at you. You quirked an eyebrow and threw her legs over your shoulders and her eyes rolled back at the sight, her fingers finding their way back into your hair. You weren’t sure if she was alright with you going down on her, but based on her reaction, you judged that she was more than alright with it.

You kissed up the inside of her thigh, skipping over where she wanted you most, fighting slightly against her grip on your hair, to kiss down her other thigh. You made your way back to her center after leaving another love bite on the inside of her thigh before placing a kiss against her core. Her hips twitched, so you grabbed them to keep them in place. One of her hands shot up to cover her eyes, lip between her teeth in pleasure as you slowly flattened your tongue against her. You had spread your fingers out across her stomach in an attempt to keep her in place and moved the other hand to tease her entrance while taking her bundle of nerves into your mouth, softly sucking.

Lady Bellaston moaned out a “Dear Lord” as you sunk one finger into her heat, loving the lewd noises coming out of her mouth. You established a slow rhythm with one finger before adding another, her mouth releasing a raspy moan as she adjusted. You lightly bit at her clit, soft curses leaving the woman’s mouth as a result. You quickened your pace before she could ask and her gasps sent wetness to your center. You curled your fingers and sucked harshly on her clit simultaneously and her grip on your hair tightened almost painfully but you could not have cared less about pleasuring the beautiful woman beneath you.

You moved your fingers in a come hither motion and felt her heels dig into your back, the pleasure overtaking her body. Her free hand grabbed at the sheets, her head pressed back into one of the pillows on the bed, her back arching and you momentarily took a mental image of her body opening up so beautifully for you. She was absolutely gorgeous.

With a few more quick curls of your fingers and twirls of your tongue on her clit, she unraveled before you, a long, loud moan leaving her lips along with the name of the Lord and a string of curses. You slowly continued your movements with your fingers, letting her ride out her ecstasy before cleaning her up with your mouth and kissing back up her body. You took your time trying to kiss every inch of her body you could find, feeling her breathing calm down.

You slowly made your way up her neck and to her lips, slowly connecting them in a passionate kiss, her arms wrapping delicately around your head and neck. You felt her hips shift on your thigh now that it was between her legs.

“Are you alright, my lady?” You asked, searching her eyes. “Ecstatic.” She replied, still searching her breath, eyes only half open. “My turn now.” She said and easily flipped you over.

“Wait.” You said, fear rushing through your body. “I need to tell you something.” You said, holding onto her hand on your chest, close to the scars from your surgery. She tried to find your eyes but needed to lift your chin in order to do so. “You may leave after I tell you, but this is central if you want to continue.” You said, looking down again.

You gently took both her hands into yours as you sat up in bed, placing each thumb onto one surgery scar. “I might be an unhandy person, but for these… it takes precision.” You started and a confused frown appeared on her face. “My father wanted a male heir. Then, when I was born, my mother died...” You explained and her expression softened. “And then there was this little girl. So confused in this new world, no mother. And then my father decided...” You took in a deep breath. “That he shall raise this little girl as his son and make her his heir?” She finished your sentence and wiped a tear off your cheek.

You just met her eyes, hoping it would be enough of a response for her. “After all this time?” She asked, a sad expression on her face. “Always.” You breathed. She gently got a hold of your neck and pulled you forward so your head could rest on her nude shoulder.

“What is your name?” She asked you once you had straightened up again. Your lips quivered. No one had ever asked you that question. “Y/n.” You replied, another tear rolling down your cheek. “After-” You started but she cut you off. “Your mother.” Lady Bellaston finished your sentence.

“Do you want to leave?” You asked her, wanting to give her the chance to escape if she wanted. “Do you need me to?” She asked in return, looking at you lovingly. “I suppose not.” You replied and she smiled.

“Did I ruin the mood?” You asked, feeling a bit guilty. “Somewhat.” She chuckled as she laid down on the bed, showing off her gorgeous body. “But it does not matter.” She patted the space next to her and you laid down, facing her. There was a comfortable silence for a few moments as you just looked at each other. There truly was something about the art of eye-contact.

“Stay the night.” You said. “I told Father that I won’t be home until tomorrow afternoon. Just the two of us. Maybe I shall teach you some of that witchcraft.” You smirked at the last part and she smiled. “That sounds delightful.” Lady Bellaston agreed and leaned in for a kiss. This one was soft. Not like the passionate, lustful, heated ones you had shared with her before but more loving and caring.

As she was lying on your chest that night, arms draped over your body, you couldn’t help but feel some sense of irony. When you held her, you were the one who felt safe. Who would have though that Lady Bellaston actually had a soft side to her.

#gxg #wlw #fem!reader #sapphic #rebecca welton #rebecca welton x reader #hannah waddingham #lady bellaston #lady bellaston x reader #tom jones pbs #ted lasso

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sofoulandfairaday · 9 months

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Do you have any patronus headcanons (if they were able to cast them) for the Black family + in laws?

Ohhhh this anon sparks joy!

These are all soft headcanons by the way, I am very much open to debate on the matter (especially since with the exception of Sirius, who hated the Dark Arts, these people wouldn’t actually be able to cast Patronus Charms which is really fucking stupid imo but whatever, it’s the canon)

Sirius: we know this already, it’s a black dog

Reggie: I am a sucker for those headcanons where Sirius inadvertently finds out that Reggie’s Patronus is a black dog, so definitely that. But on the other hand, I also love black cat Patronus headcanons for Regulus: sleek, quiet, intelligent, extremely magical creatures. So wrapped up in magic as an animal that it would be befitting of a pureblood heir. And it fits his personality perfectly. This art of the Black brothers on this very topic by @likeprongstostars made me emotional, now all of you have to see it. You're welcome.

Walburga: no clue. I want to say something like a big cat, like a panther or something of the sort, but maybe also a manta ray. They’re absolutely huge, imposing creatures, but so beautiful and territorial as fuck. This is my main requirement for Walburga’s Patronus: seeing her reaction to the filth infesting 12 Grimmauld Place makes me think of an animal marking their territory.

Orion: again, no clue. But if I had to pick one probably a crow. Intelligent creatures, loyal, vicious when needed (they can quite literally take your eye out, I can see Orion doing that Kaz Brekker style to someone), but also an omen of death. And to me, the man is a glum sort. I’m sorry but I cannot help but see him a bit like the spectre of the feast (in Italian, literally ‘uccellaccio del malaugurio’, if you know, you know).

Bellatrix: Now. I am convinced that her Patronus is a black swan. This is admittedly not my theory, credit goes to a YT channel called Harry Potter Folklore, but to me, it fits perfectly. First of all, it's a nudge to her father's name, Cygnus (literally ‘swan’), and her loyalty to her family. Secondly, they are elegant, beautiful creatures, extremely faithful and who mate for life, which fits her extreme devotion to the Dark Lord. Black swans specifically are also rare in nature and can symbolize death in some cultures. It's Bella.

Based on this, I'll say that Andromeda and Narcissa's original Patroni were also swans (of the white kind - not that it matters for an actual Patronus since it's made of light, but the distinction is important to me). Both of theirs changed with their respective partners. Andromeda's became a Jack Rabbit (which I headcanon was Ted's: it was also Nymphadora's first Patronus). Narcissa's became the same as her husbands'. Bella was always the most loyal to her family and her sisters and hers stays the same until she dies, fucking fight me.

Lucius: I know you all expect me to say a peacock (and I can see it: territorial, the literal embodiment of vanity, elaborate mating ritual... and you just know Lucius did all of that with Cissy - huge sparkling diamond necklaces and whatnot) but I can also see it being a greyhound - elegant, dogs associated with the nobility, who also represent resilience, and most of all hunting dogs.

Rodolphus: a wolf. My man is wolf-coded, no I will not elaborate. But it's a wolf 100%, just trust me. Also, Rabastan's is a red fox. Non-negotiable.

I would love to hear what you guys think.

#asks #answered #the noble and most ancient house of black #sirius black #regulus black #orion black #walburga black #the black sisters #the black brothers #rodolphus lestrange #lucius malfoy #bellatrix lestrange #narcissa malfoy #andromeda tonks

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randomnameless · 9 days

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To continue the woobified view of the Elites and my comparison of them to the Black Eagles :

Same for me regarding the BE, especially because they also literally fought Edelgard's troops in WC when you choose their house, and even if you don't, they definitely still would know that Edelgard dus nasty shits in WC.

The idea that media literacy is dead is quite fitting, because the idea that even rotten persons have loved ones/that having loved ones doesn't mean you're not rotten is a known thing, yet the Eagles and elites get a pass solely because "they genuinely believe in the cause" and "they love and care for each other"

Probably Fraldarius was as devoted to Nemesis as Ingrid to Dimitri, Lamine very well may have been as sassy as Dorothea, perhaps Goneril was as brave and endearing as Caspar, or Maurice was as loyal to his clan's interests as Petra to Brigid's happiness (through a strong bond to the Empire) but like the BE, they are butchers, who relished in the destruction of everything those against them hold dear, lap dogs and rabid curs of someone they definitely know have crushed innocents and scorn the very idea of peace except under their domination.

The only meaningful difference between Edelgard-following BE and the elites is that we can know more about the BE and we are forced to dislike cutting them down even as they refuse to let northern Fódlan alone.

Honestly I need a fanfiction where the BE are called out for that bullshit.

Yep!

That's the tone deaf feeling I got from Nopes, the Deers are hunting someone bcs their leader wants her dead for no reason, but Raph only comments on how hungry he is.

Uh, sure Raph, you're not the most thoughtful character in there, but come on? Some commentary or exposition on what you're doing? Hello KT? Can we have characters be challenged or even react to the events of screen instead of wondering what's for dinner/teatime?

No??

I wouldn't say it's an issue of media litteracy being dead, but more something in the lines of people being more and more "all or nothing" nowadays, without any nuance and conflating liking a character with the idea/image that might project on you : if I like ASOIAF's Cersei, I don't think everything she does is "justified", but modern fandom, I feel like some people would categorize you as a "good" or "bad" person based on the characters you like, and it's just... not what fandom is or was supposed to be imo, I'm here to nerd and gush about favourite characters, not write litteral essays about the Geneva Convention.

Corollary is what, imo, made the Fodlan fandom hell : some people really take "criticism" against a character personally - sure the way FE16 was written invites projection, but at the end of the day, making a Berning Fire Joke is, just, making a joke about a bunch of pixels, nothing more.

Back to the BEs, they can have a sense of camaraderie and genuinely support each other... as they tear apart "people because Supreme Leader told me to" and fight side by side with Bob the Carpented who was turned into Waldi the demonic beast.

Ferdie can skewer Flayn on her father's lance because she is "a creature that has plagued humanity for ages" even if they reached a C support before shit hit the fan - and still protect Mercedes and Bernie from their abusing Fathers. Does that make him a great guy? A nuanced guy?

I think the trope is called "even evil people have loved ones" or something like that?

I don't think so, but he is no random one note villain sycophant either - now, what is the more annoying with the Fodlan games is how this dichotomy is never called upon : everything is just a giant blob or Hresvelg Grey ("morally grey" but only applied to Supreme Leader) where no one really is angry at her, and all the "sacrifices" she's making are off-screen while the characters on-screen always moan about her "ReFoRmS" and "IdEaLs" without talking about the cost bar some milquetoast "but war bad". And no one, in the game, will ever throw this hypocrisy to their face - Gallant Ferdinand will dream about the Opera as he wipes off the blood of a young woman who just wanted to return to the only home she had.

Yay.

FWIW, some mutuals and I have nothing but pure lols about Doro's line in the non-CF routes being "we killed Ferdie professor :'(" because, hey, why should I care more about Ferdie than about random loldier 55 ? Rhea? Felix? Claude? Ignatz?

Maybe the Elites were really friends and became """"nice""" persons with time, to their families and loved ones ?

Does this magically erase what they did before? Will that "good" they did erase all the "wrongs" they have previously done? Will theyr forever escape the consequences of their actions?

In a game that depicts Flamey as a terrorist for 11 chapters only to drop that plot point by the window to moan, again, about her "IdEaLs", "consequences" are maybe something you can eat as a snack, or throw in a trashcan.

So following the rules of this verse, given how Supreme Leader never receives flak for her Flamey stunts, why should the Elites receive any for what they did? Look, Maurice calls Daphnel his friend, surely he is not that bad of a man? Well yeah, he might have seduced women and planted a lot of wild oats here'n'there, but he cares about his friends!

Jeritza likes ice creams and cats! Surely it's more important to paint him as a cat lover than to deal with all the consequences of his stunt as the Death Knight, kidnapping and implied rekting young woman while he was in GM, under Flamey's orders, right?

Calling it now, after eviscerating Seteth's older brother, Goneril might have melted in front of one of Rhea's kittens, and adopted the cat asap. Surely that makes Goneril a "good" character right? And forget the entire "genocided a bunch of hippies living isolated in their village" stuff?

I don't have fanfics recs where the BEs are called hypocrites, but I confess I don't read a lot of fanfics in the FE16 fandom because of all of the aforementioned issues.

#maelor321 #replies #i don't even know if i replied to your ask lol #i disgressed and ranted #fandom woes #FE16 was designed as a game where you'd feel bad for fighting against 'your loved ones' aka precious students #the writing and execution is so artificial that they couldn't even make it believable for a second #so instead we are hit with giant signposts that read 'plz be sad now'#like Doro's we killed Ferdie sad uwus #or even Billy's choice in SS/VW of i don't want to kill Supreme Leader/I want to walk with her uwu #she is revealed to be Flamey she has been warring for 5 long years she caught Rhea #she had so many randoms peons killed #and yet the game has the nerve to give us this?#evening salt #SW!Anakin loves his fiancee so much uwu #sure he murders a bunch of babies and toddlers but don't you want to walk with him to create a galactic empire and kill #people who don't agree with him? including his beloved wife?#people conflate nuance and 'grey' with 'my fave did nothing wrong'

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clockwards · 1 year

Text

i watched all 15 seasons of criminal minds in 29 days. these were my thoughts

----------

Garcia being normal Garcia: 🤪

Hotch, quietly: remind me to have her drug tested

Reid: Kevin and Penelope sitting in a tree? JJ, that's just dangerous, do you know the statistics on-

"yeah I'm fine, he wrote me a letter explaining why he left, just like my father did when he left my mother and I" REID LMAO

Gideon and Hotch giggling happily over charlie chaplin films <3<3 work dads

man with multiple personalities: do I *look* like personality no.2??

Reid [staring directly into the camera]: 👁️👁️

Reid making mini rockets and Hotch being a grumpy proud dad about it fhevfhhevdhsgdvsh THEM

"If I weren't a lesbian, I would absolutely jump your bones" [aimed at Gideon]

psychopath who only wants to talk to Reid: 😚

Reid: why don't i ever get any normal fans :(

Random detective [about Reid]: where did you find this kid?

Rossi, whispering: He was left in a basket on the steps of the FBI

Hotch: we do not have jurisdiction over this very personal set of cases

The Team: 🥺🥺🥺🥺

Hotch: ......okay just be quIET ABOUT IT

Rossi: My wife always said I had a flair for the dramatic

Hotch: Which one?

Rossi: ...all of them 😀

Morgan, Reid, Emily, Garcia [staring Hotch down]: we love and care for you

Hotch: im gonna kms

Rossi, interrogating a suspect: I fucked your wife (real not fake)

Hotch: Son, you're taking over the business

Morgan: Oh! A promotion!?

Hotch [dumping paperwork in front of him]

Morgan: Oh no! A promotion!!

[during Hotch's review after The Reaper incident]

Strauss, to the team: 😡😡 Hotch 😡😡

Strauss, to Hotch: 😔😔 Hotch 😔😔

Hotch: any word on Prentiss?

JJ: she's arguing with the doctors

Hotch, nodding: Good

Hotch: There are lots of ways sons defeat their fathers

Reid, cheerfully: I just keep getting PhD's!

[about budget cuts]

Rossi: Let's just hope they don't take the coffee

Reid, very seriously: I'd quit

Rossi: well yeah, that'd save them about 50 bucks a week

[looking at a machine gun]

Reid: I don't think I have the qualifications to use that

Hotch & Morgan, in unison: You don't.

[the most suspicious man alive, saying something extremely suspicious]

Emily Prentiss: yes sir I will follow you to this dark secluded secondary location

Every member of the BAU: ily

Prentiss, with an arsenal of guns: BACK! BACK, STRANGE CREATURES!

Strauss holding back the entire BAU by the scruffs of their necks like feral cats: I Wish I Had Dogs

Morgan, sending all the press to Reid: 😀

Reid: No more FBI I'm becoming a criminal just to kill you

Strauss: Please hire someone normal

Hotch: Here's Doctor Reid, a child who has never passed a field test

Strauss: I'm literally begging you

Victim: what are you doing????

Unsub: well this is a *gun*, and inside of it are what we call *bullets*

"a member of the team is in jeopardy"

me: is it Reid? I really hope it's Reid.

Garcia: altruism is sexy

Hotch, very seriously: yes it is

The BAU team's nosiness

Reid's secrecy over a girl

- FIGHT -

Random teen: Get fucked old man

Rossi: Gamer on gamer violence. This is so sad.

Blake: I don't have any children...except Reid

Reid: I'm not your child though?

Blake: EXCEPT REID

Anyone: I love you

Reid, just not like other girls: ....Thomas Merton?

Blake: People just need to say what they mean

Reid: Life would be so much easier without chit-chat

[A Tale as Old as Time - Autism Bros™]

Reid: I don't like technology

Garcia: Technology doesn't like you, genius

Rossi: All of my marriages have failed, I'm not exactly what you would call a family man

Hotch: We literally have 5 kids together

[on first meeting]

Hotch: I'm offering you a job hunting psychopaths

Garcia, caught trying to stop animal testing: I *am* a psychopath

Rossi, joining the BAU: I have gotten a first husband, fourth wife, and multiple children just by entering this office. I'm the real family speedrunner

Reid: My dad leaves and suddenly I've got new contenders lining up like it's the bachelor

Hotch: You're not even that great a son

Reid: You were literally first in line

Bomb Squad: You called??

Morgan: Early bird gets the explosive worm, bitch

Hotch: How long do you need to do this impossibly long task that no one else could complete?

Reid: Like 30 minutes

Hotch: Awesome. Do it faster

Reid: I'm arresting you for murder

Cat: ...are we about to kiss?

Cat: You have mommy issues

Reid: L + Ratio. You have daddy issues *worse*

Morgan: It's my turn to be kidnapped and tortured

Reid and JJ: nnOOO MY BRAAAANDD

Alvez: Why won't you be nice to me

Garcia: I'm always nice. Look, this is my nice face 😒

Prentiss: This guy is probably a loner, definitely has commitment issues...

Alvez, just made a full-course meal for his dog: 😤

UnSub: I NEED A DOCTOR

Tara, cocking a gun: I'm not taking appointments

Reid: I need to take some time off to look after my mom

[is arrested for drug posession and murder in Mexico]

Reid: ........so how's my mom?

The Team: We're so worried about Spencer in prison

Reid: I made friend :]

Prentiss: Luke is snarky. You are snarky. Please just try to get along

Garcia: You don't understand. We cancel each other out

Reid, entering prison: I am going to make So Many enemies

Mr Scratch, doing anything: 😏

The Team: It's a trap. Let's go!

Alvez: I can tell, you're a cat person

Prentiss: Got the nine lives to go with it, bitch

Cat: I'm pregnant. It's yours

Reid, shocked: You mean you're not a virgin?!

Cat:

Cat: I wish I killed you the first time round coME HERE-

Prentiss: I need a person I love and trust to relax with

Reid: ....are you gaslighting me into resting?

Prentiss: Yes. And it'll fuckin work.

Barnes: Don't you want to be unit chief? Don't you have....ambitions?

JJ: I'm ambitious about killing you. Wanna see?

Garcia: I hate newbie. He's terrible and stupid and has a dumb face and dumb thoughts-

Alvez: We literally just took a selfie together

Alvez:

Tara: ur mom

Alvez: I DIDN'T EVEN FUCKING SAY ANYTHING?

JJ, married with 2 kids: I'm a little bit in love with you

Reid, who took her on one date 15 years ago: 😯

Rossi: You can't ground me! I'm your dad!!

Prentiss: AND I'M YOUR FUCKING BOSS. GROUNDED!

[Luke and Matt go missing]

Prentiss: The boys! They took our boys!!

Reid: I'm.....right here?

#criminal minds #spencer reid #criminal minds incorrect quotes

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jackoshadows · 1 year

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@nogoodsheepstealing-greatgrandma

I didn’t want to derail or hijack your Dany post, so decided to make a separate post to what I think is an interesting discussion.

As I have mentioned in some of my earlier posts, I find Sansa to be a confusing mess mainly because the character herself does not introspect, does not think, does not connect dots, does not proactively try to figure things out.

Which is why it’s doubly frustrating that the same hypocrites who are critiquing Daenerys and Jon for their leadership will write praises of Sansa’s intelligence and political acumen when she is the least political of her peers and hardly ever engages in critical thinking.

And honestly, there’s only so much that age can be used as an excuse considering these are characters in a fantasy world where a 10 year old has been elected Lord Commander, teenagers rule as Kings and Queens and marry young. Dany and Jon have decided that they want to be leaders and so I judge them based on their actions and, despite their age, they have done a far better job than the likes of Cersei, Jaime, Robert, Ned, Cat etc. IMO.

One of the opinions I very much disagree with is the notion that Ned’s warning to Sansa or what Maester Coleman tells Sansa is vague and not understandable when, for me as reader, they come across as pretty succinct and clear in their intention. There’s also the fact that these warnings do not happen in a vacuum, there is always context for a character to put 2 and 2 together to come up with 4.

Here's Ned telling Sansa that it's dangerous for the Starks in KL

Father’s mouth twitched strangely. “Sansa, I’m not sending you away for fighting, though the gods know I’m sick of you two squabbling. I want you back in Winterfell for your own safety. Three of my men were cut down like dogs not a league from where we sit, and what does Robert do? He goes hunting.”

“Sweet one,” her father said gently, “listen to me. When you’re old enough, I will make you a match with a high lord who’s worthy of you, someone brave and gentle and strong. This match with Joffrey was a terrible mistake. That boy is no Prince Aemon, you must believe me.”

“I am looking for a fast trading galley to take you home. These days, the sea is safer than the kingsroad. You will sail as soon as I can find a proper ship, with Septa Mordane and a complement of guards … and yes, with Syrio Forel, if he agrees to enter my service. But say nothing of this. It’s better if no one knows of our plans. We’ll talk again tomorrow.” - Eddard, AGoT

To then add context to everything Ned tells her, Sansa herself is witness to Cersei ordering her beloved pet wolf dead, Joffrey's sadistic mauling of Mycah and knowing what Jaime did to Stark men. It's clear to me that it's not that Sansa did not understand Ned's warning about the Lannisters, it’s that she preferred to ignore it in favor of wanting to stay in KL, marry Joffrey and become queen because she imagined herself to be in love with him. It's ignorant self interest, where she deliberately refuses to see the bigger picture of what is happening around her despite knowing all the facts.

Let us take the SweetRobin situation in book 5. Keep in mind that the Maester here is Westeros' version of a physician. So this is a doctor - an expert in someone’s health - talking to Sansa. Surely Sansa should start with the presumption that this man knows more about a person’s health than either she or Littlefinger does, right? When I go to a doctor, I don’t have to be a medical expert in order to take the doctor’s advice right? And we don’t get any of Sansa’s thoughts on Coleman’s competence as a doctor.

When Jon Snow as Lord Commander implements Jeor Mormont’s defense strategy for rebuilding the Wall it’s because he trusts in Mormont’s experience and knowledge. As much as Jon was opposed to Bowen Marsh’s bigotry, he appreciated Marsh’s skillsets as a steward.

And while Maester Coleman is indeed incompetent and too scared of authority he does care about helping his patients. It’s a sad parallel that Coleman tried to save Jon Arryn in KL (from LF and Lysa’s poisoning ) and failed and now he will fail to save the son as well. Recall that Pycelle was of the opinion that Coleman could have saved Jon Arryn and that’s why he kicked him out of KL

Tyrion tsked at him. “I saw the tears of Lys among your potions. And you sent away Lord Arryn’s own maester and tended him yourself, so you could make certain that he died.”

“A falsehood! Yes,” he whimpered, “yes, Colemon was purging, so I sent him away. The queen needed Lord Arryn dead, she did not say so, could not, Varys was listening, always listening, but when I looked at her I knew. It was not me who gave him the poison, though, I swear it.”

The old man wept. “Varys will tell you, it was the boy, his squire, Hugh he was called, he must surely have done it, ask your sister, ask her” - Tyrion, ACoK

Coming back to Coleman and Sansa, from their conversation it's clear that Sansa ignores the doctor's warnings about SweetRobin's health because she trusts Littlefinger to know better that the politics of their situation is more important than SR's health. It’s a case of Sansa putting LF’s guidance and advice above the Maester’s.

Maester Colemon cares only for the boy, though. Father and I have larger concerns” - Alayne, AFfC

Now there can be an entire separate discussion on why Sansa is doing this given everything she knows about Petyr Baelish so far - Lysa’s confession about Jon Arryn’s death, LF being the last person she knows had Jeyne Poole, his role in the murder of Joffrey and framing Tyrion etc. Given that Sansa never introspects on all this we have to assume she is once again deliberately ignoring the truths right in front of her for whatever reason.

This is also why it’s mind boggling when this fandom takes away Arya’s critical thinking skills to prop Sansa up as the smart Stark. At 9, Arya is able to rightly guess that Cersei would harm Nymeria for what she did to Joffrey and drives her away.

Only she kept following, and finally we had to throw rocks. I hit her twice. She whined and looked at me and I felt so ’shamed, but it was right, wasn’t it? The queen would have killed her.” - Arya, AGoT

When Jaqen has Weese mauled by his dog, Arya is able to connect the dots and deduct that the supernatural is involved. Again, remember she is only 9/10 here.

She had been avoiding the Lorathi since Weese’s death. Chiswyck had been easy, anyone could push a man off the wallwalk, but Weese had raised that ugly spotted dog from a pup, and only some dark magic could have turned the animal against him. Yoren found Jaqen in a black cell, the same as Rorge and Biter, she remembered. Jaqen did something horrible and Yoren knew, that’s why he kept him in chains. If the Lorathi was a wizard, Rorge and Biter could be demons he called up from some hell, not men at all - Arya, ACoK

So is Sansa gleefully and maliciously having SR poisoned? No. Does Sansa care for SR's wellbeing here? Also no.

I write about how SR is most probably suffering from epileptic seizures in this post and the Maester's solution for this is to keep him as calm as possible. Excitement leads to shaking and seizures, which requires the Maester to dose the child with more SweetSleep, dangerous in the long term. For Sansa however, it is important that SweetRobin show up in front of the lords looking normal - even though the boy has a disabling condition.

So the doctor tells Sansa that to keep SR calm, he would dose him with the less dangerous milk of poppy. Sansa refuses because appearances are more important.

“Good. That is good.” His chain clinked softly as he bobbed his head, atop a ridiculously long and skinny neck. “This descent… my lady, it might be safest if I mixed his lordship some milk of the poppy. Mya Stone could lash him over the back of her most surefooted mule whilst he slumbered.” “The Lord of the Eyrie cannot descend from his mountain tied up like a sack of barleycorn.” Of that Alayne was certain. They dare not let the full extent of Robert’s frailty and cowardice become too widely known, her father had warned her. I wish he were here. He would know what to do. - Alayne, AFfC

No doubt the Maester is scared of LF (And is most probably going to be framed for SR's death by LF), and yet he perseveres to make Sansa understand that it's these feasts/events that's making SR have seizures requiring the sweetsleep.

“Give his lordship a cup of sweetmilk,” she told the maester. “That will stop him from shaking on the journey down.”

“He had a cup not three days past,” Colemon objected.

“And wanted another last night, which you refused him.”

“It was too soon. My lady, you do not understand. As I’ve told the Lord Protector, a pinch of sweetsleep will prevent the shaking, but it does not leave the flesh, and in time . . .”

“Time will not matter if his lordship has a shaking fit and falls off the mountain. If my father were here, I know he would tell you to keep Lord Robert calm at all costs.”

I try, my lady, yet his fits grow ever more violent, and his blood is so thin I dare not leech him any more. Sweetsleep… you are certain he was not bleeding from the nose? I must speak to the Lord Protector. This feast… is that wise, I wonder, after the strain of the descent? Lord Robert mislikes strangers, you know that, and there will be drinking, noise… music. Music frightens him”

“Lord Nestor will have no singers at the feast, only flutes and fiddles for the dancing.” What would she do when the music began to play? It was a vexing question, to which her heart and head gave different answers. Sansa loved to dance, but Alayne… “Just give him a cup of the sweetmilk before we go, and another at the feast, and there should be no trouble.” - Alayne, AFfC

Does the Maester explain the science behind how the drug works to Sansa? No. However, I think he makes it clear enough that the drug stays in the flesh and is dangerous to a person’s health.

And again, we know that Sansa understands what the Maester is telling her regarding the SweetSleep -

“Very well.” They paused at the foot of the stairs. “But this must be the last. For half a year, or longer.”

“You had best take that up with the Lord Protector.” Maester Colemon cares only for the boy, though. Father and I have larger concerns” - Alayne, AFfC

Then at the end of this same chapter, Littlefinger has a monologue where he tells her why they are doing what they are doing.

He turned her hand over and lightly kissed her wrist. “So tell me, sweetling—why is Harry the Heir?”

Her eyes widened. “He is not Lady Waynwood’s heir. He’s Robert’s heir. If Robert were to die . . .”

Petyr arched an eyebrow. “When Robert dies. Our poor brave Sweetrobin is such a sickly boy, it is only a matter of time. When Robert dies, Harry the Heir becomes Lord Harrold, Defender of the Vale and Lord of the Eyrie. Jon Arryn’s bannermen will never love me, nor our silly, shaking Robert, but they will love their Young Falcon . . . and when they come together for his wedding, and you come out with your long auburn hair, clad in a maiden’s cloak of white and grey with a direwolf emblazoned on the back . . . why, every knight in the Vale will pledge his sword to win you back your birthright. So those are your gifts from me, my sweet Sansa . . . Harry, the Eyrie, and Winterfell. - Alayne, AFfC

This then leads to the sample TWoW chapter where Sansa as Alayne flirts with Harry the Heir so that they can get married.

So if Sansa expects SweetRobin to live long enough to marry, then why is she seducing Harry for him to offer to marry her when that depends on SweetRobin’s death?!

Which is why the conversation between Robert and Sansa is all sorts of ridiculous because even a sickly little 8 year old SR knows that Harry’s importance in all this depends on his death, Littlefinger has explained to her very clearly that SweetRobin will die and yet Sansa is talking about how his future wife will like his hair?!

If SR is going to live long enough to marry, than why is Sansa trying to marry Harry?

“I hate that Harry,” Sweetrobin said when she was gone. “He calls me cousin, but he’s just waiting for me to die so he can take the Eyrie. He thinks I don’t know, but I do.”

“Your lordship should not believe such nonsense,” Alayne said. “I’m sure Ser Harrold loves you well.” And if the gods are good, he will love me too. Her tummy gave a little flutter.

“He doesn’t,” Lord Robert insisted. “He wants my father’s castle, that’s all, so he pretends.”

He does have pretty hair. If the gods are good and he lives long enough to wed, his wife will admire his hair, surely. That much she will love about him.- Alayne, TWoW

This is why context is important and the Maester’s conversation does not exist in a vacuum. LF has told Sansa that SR needs to die for their plan to work and WILL die, SweetRobin has told her that Harry is waiting for him to die to get the Vale and the Maester has warned her that giving SR high doses of the drug is dangerous. After all this, how is Sansa going to be surprised by his death? That would be like being surprised when told that 2+2=4.

Six books in and Sansa remains a character who continues to ignore the truths in front of her for selfish reasons. That’s been a consistent character trait for her, from book one to her first chapter in book 6.

So is Sansa actively colluding with LF’s gradual medical poisoning of her little cousin in order for Harry to become the Lord of the Vale? Surely, in the back of her mind she must be aware of what is happening? However, it’s an unpleasant truth, one she does not want to acknowledge and chooses to ignore because it’s more important for her that LF’s plans to get Winterfell for her succeeds.

Does she care for her little cousin’s well being? No. Despite the Maester repeatedly telling her that the drug is dangerous to his health, she thinks the politics are more important.

Remember in Sansa’s very first POV chapter with Arya and Mycah playing at the Trident and Joffrey showcases himself to be a sadistic ass?

Sansa was shrieking, “No, no, stop it, stop it, both of you, you’re spoiling it,” - Sansa I, AGoT

That’s her primary character trait. She is written as a character who does not want the unpleasant truths to spoil her personal narratives of Joffrey being a good person or Arya being responsible for Lady’s death or Cersei knowing better than her father or that SweetRobin is going to live long enough to marry a wife who will love his hair.

So we can either read Sansa as someone who is incredibly dense, who despite being presented with all the facts before her, still does not understand SweetRobin’s fate - when even 8 year old SweetRobin knows that Harry is just waiting for him to die. Or we can read her as someone who selfishly ignores the truth in front of her because it’s so unsavory and ‘spoils’ her idea of what she thinks is good and right and moral. In that, she knows that SR has to die and will die and yet keeps pretending that he’s going to be fine.

And both of these interpretations are in stark contrast with how Sansa is generally viewed in this fandom as being the smartest, most intelligent, most compassionate, idealistic ‘embodiment of hope’. She’s none of these things.

#Sansa Stark discussion

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icey--stars · 7 months

Text

Ghost Hounds (Headcanons)

Headcanons, names, personalities and histories of Eris's ghost hounds and loyal companions.

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

Day 4 of @erisweek2023 (Hounds / Autumn Equinox)

a/n: okay. so. i have some very interesting headcanons for eris’s hounds, so here you go. I got bored one day (while preparing Born for Tragedy) and decided “hey! let’s write some history for Eris’s dogs!” also i apologize, i was a bit scatterbrained in this lol

WARNINGS: lightly mentioned domestic abuse (beron. again.) Down towards the bottom, it mentions the loss of a pet. If you wish to skip this, stop reading after Rue (dog name)

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

Okay, so we all know Eris has 12 ghost hounds. I literally have HCs for all of them. Some more than others so let's go through them, shall we?

Eris’s first ghost hound was a birthday gift from his mother. A little puppy appeared at his door miraculously that day and his mother was extremely happy when the boy came in cuddling it in his arms asking if he could keep it. (She told him she got it for him after saying yes)

The puppy was named Percy (recommendation from LOA) and Eris fucking loved that dog. Spoiled the little shit. Percy is BY FAR one of his most loyal dogs.

Percy’s training wasn’t as straightforward as the others’ were, but Percy is also extremely, extremely intelligent and loved Eris to death so he did his best :)

When Percy first witnessed Beron yelling at Eris, he snarled and leaped in front of the boy. The hound got a whipping for it (and still has those scars…) but since then, Eris has loved the dog like none other just as the dog has done for him.

Eris also began hating his father after he hit his doggo because who wouldn’t?? Don’t hit my puppy sir. You will pay for it. Dearly.

Now, when Eris gets a new puppy, Percy is always the one to train them in the basics of being a good puppy. Like potty training, no biting, and KISSES because Percy knows his owner loves them :)

Eris of course takes on the brunt of the training for them all and likes to train them in hunting, tracking and sometimes, for the stronger ones, attacking. Naturally, however, they all learned to defend him (ex. standing in front of him or distracting someone attacking him).

Now, Eris is pretty… well, not liked in the ACOTAR world. We can agree on that. So, when Eris is out and about in the Autumn Court, he often has his doggos with him. If he’s away- the pups get so nervous for him. They just love him so much!

Now, Eris’s next dogs are two females in a litter that he bought himself: Vixen (named for her personality) and Selena (named after a female Eris liked for a while).

Vixen is the equivalent of “I will only listen to one person” and Selena is just happy to be there. Vixen was the first to be trained in “attacking” (also known as Schutzhund for my dog nerds out there) and she was really good at it. She could take down a full-grown fae easily.

A little HC I have about the ghost hounds is that because of their fae blood, some of them can winnow. Vixen is one of the ones who can winnow- but she can’t go very far. (maybe like 15 feet)

Eris was still terrified and overjoyed when he learned of this power though and instantly was trying to strengthen it so that she could use it for every advantage it held.

Selena is a good girl and is very happy. If Eris is sad, she’s coming over there with a big goofy grin and then licking his face and pinning him down like a puppy that won’t sit still while being cleaned. In her mind, Eris is both her owner and her puppy she has to take care of.

The next dog Eris gets is once again bought for himself, but instead of a litter, it was an adult male. Now, this male has already been through a lot. His name was Cadoc and he used to have a mate. The reason his owner was selling him was because his mate died of an incurable sickness.

In my mind, ghost hounds are very like fae. They can winnow, and they are extremely intelligent, just like doggos in real life! But, they also have lovers in the same way. Mates.

So, when Eris did get Cadoc, he was a very sad pupper. He wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t get up, wouldn’t even drink. Eris took to taking care of him very gently. Bringing him his food (more on this in a minute) and water and even hand-feeding him when Cadoc wouldn’t even raise his head. And yes, sometimes it did get down to force feeding, but Eris would not give up on Cadoc. He knew the hound had more to him. He was more than just a breeding stud- he could be amazing!

Briefly, let’s also just mention that Eris feeds his dogs very well. Raw diet with a variety of meat, and other healthy things. (so, envision that really expensive raw dog feedings that we see on social media named the BARF diet for doggos)

Cadoc was still suffering however. Eris did his best, but after a year, there seemed to be no hope.

Unknown to Eris, however, Vixen, his spunky little female who listened to nobody, seemed to take pity on the sad male. She growled and forced him to his feet when Eris arrived and then practically dragged him outside to come on a walk.

Eris found it very endearing, to be honest. Vixen wouldn’t give up on Cadoc either.

Cadoc eventually began to stand on his own in greeting, if even just to avoid a nip from Vixen when she urged him to his feet. He began to trot outside and smell things.

Eris began to train him as well and he took to schutzhund training very easily. The male was bulkier than Percy and was perfect for taking down either fae or deer. Cadoc’s condition began to look up steadily.

His personality began to come out. He was very protective and obedient. He liked to please and he was kind of like the equivalent of a big, gentle giant.

Vixen and Cadoc also grew a lot closer. Because they were trained in similar things, they hung out a lot.

Now- I want you all to imagine a tragic, romantic scene between Vixen and Cadoc and then- yeah. Basically, they become mates. Spunky female and gentle giant.

Cadoc is one of Eris’s most loyal doggos (right behind Percy).

The next puppers aren’t bought by Eris, however. Mama Vanserra has been keeping an eye on Eris and his pups and has the perfect gift in store.

It’s three littermates. Three ghost hound puppies. Nimbus (male), Sorrel (female) and Soot (male). Eris could barely contain his excitement at the gift tho. Like literally, he was close to squealing. He for SURE was catering to his mother’s every need for at least a month. Checking up on her, offering her tea, getting her lunch personally from the kitchens- all little ways to show his appreciation.

Now. Sorrel and Soot are the troublemakers, first off. Nimbus is a little quieter, but he’s one of the strongest ones.

Sorrel is by far one of the fastest ghost hounds Eris owns. Absolutely blazing speed. If only there were enough ghost hounds to race them, huh? Eris tries to find one and manages to get one little competition, but literally, it's just three dogs and obviously, Sorrel wins. The ghost hounds are much too fast to race against like greyhounds or something. And not many have them in the Autumn Court- most have hunting dogs for their good noses.

Nimbus is Eris’s sweet little boy who’s one of the best at cuddling. (though, Selena does come close). The pup just sneaks into his bed in the middle of the night, undetected, and Eris wakes up with an armful of ghost hound. (he loves it)

Soot is forever the troublemaker (equal with Rue, who we will talk about later)

He gets into the food, the chicken coops, the farms, the sheets, the kitchens– all of it. He is a chaotic pup and while Eris can try to tame that troublemaker spirit, he will never break it. Soot is one of his worst in obedience for that reason. But, Eris still loves him of course. How can he not with those adorable almond-colored eyes?!

The next pup actually, is not bought, nor gifted. Vixen was found with a more swollen-than-usual belly and exhausted in her kennel one day (when she didn’t arrive to greet Eris like usual) and Cadoc right beside her, licking her ears.

Eris at first panicked, of course, and thought that Vixen was sick and dying of some horrible thing. A vet reassured him that she was in fact not sick, just tired, needed more food and rest, and that she was pregnant.

After that, he’s honestly even more panicked. He knew this was a possibility, but he’d expected it later! When he’d done his research already!

As soon as possible, he reads every book ever on ghost hounds, pregnancies with dogs and everything related. He even managed to request some books from Day Court’s libraries temporarily.

After he’d done his research, he was still anxious, but less so. He knew what was going on now and what would happen once the pup(s) were born. And what he needed to do to support his pupper.

The pup is born without any issues at all. And Cadoc and Vixen turn out as wonderful parents.

The one pup is a male that Eris names Ash.

Ash has adorable quirks to him. He always barks when Eris comes in and rolls over onto his back once Eris does start petting him and is especially playful with the other dogs. (after all, they were like aunts and uncles to him!)

The next two dogs aren’t related, but I’m grouping them together because I don’t have too many headcanons for them actually:

The next pup is Taunya (female), bought by Eris. She kind of has that “mother” personality. As a pup, she always was licking the other dogs and when she grew up, she often was found urging them toward their food, or resting with them when they were tired.

Nimbus takes a fascination to Taunya specifically (and let’s not get on about some age gap thing. Just look at feysand or nessian, alright?). And yes, they do become mates. Nimbus is extremely protective over Taunya and Eris always laughs when he seems to panic as she goes to cuddle with some other dog as if he’s thinking “you are so darn hard to protect woman! goodness! quit cuddling with the threats! gods!”

Taunya doesn’t change though, of course. She’s always gonna be the sweet one.

The next pup is a male called Pyro, also bought as a pup by Eris who is just loving the fact his ghost hound obsession is growing and Beron doesn’t seem to mind. I mean, honestly, they’re quite helpful. They come with him to the military and are perfectly behaved, they help him win hunting competitions… all of it.

Pyro is named for his more amber-colored eyes.

This pup has the farthest ability to winnow out of any of the ghost hounds. He’s quite powerful, to be honest. When Eris fully tests it, Pyro is able to winnow from the Winter Court border to the Forest House with ease. Even from the Summer Court border!

Eris doesn’t dare take his dog outside of the Autumn Court except for missions though. He doesn’t want to risk any rumors or threats or harm to his pups.

The next dog has a bit of story. This dog’s name is Rue. A chaotic, insane little pup.

Rue was gifted to Eris by Hue, his brother. Hue actually wanted Rue’s name to be “Hue,” but Eris was not going to allow it and simply settled for something that rhymed. It’s not like it was that bad of a name either. Just confusing when both his brother and dog responded to his call.

Rue is a troublemaker like Soot. However, he’s a bit better at paying attention than Soot and better at sitting and staying. Soot has no self control compared to him.

Rue loves to hunt. Whenever Eris pulls up on his horse with a bow around his shoulders, Rue is up and at ‘em and ready to sprint through the forests to his heart’s content. Even if he’s not as big and strong as Cadoc or as fast as Sorrel, he’s perfectly happy just being there. He’s so enthused when he gets the order to track an animal or catch a rabbit- just so happy.

But, to be completely honest: Rue is the most lazy of the dogs. He groans as he gets up to greet Eris and then proceeds to lay right back down to take a nap. Absolutely loves to nap in the sun.

Eris did have another dog between Jack (later) and Rue. He used to have a dog named Adria. A female who was the best tracking dog that he ever did have.

She was the pup to grow up with Lucien.

However, on that fateful day that Lucien had to run to the Spring Court, Adria followed. Unluckily, she caught an arrow to her chest and died.

She loved to chase deer out of anything, just bounding through the forests.

Eris still misses her (as does Lucien. He didn’t expect the pup to follow him)

The last dog is another pup of Vixen and Cadoc. Eris’s last ghost hound. Jack.

Jack is like Cadoc but not ever having been sad. He’s a happy pup who’s always wagging his tail and barking excitedly at anything and everything. Almost similar to Percy as well.

He was raised before Adria died.

Adria was actually still quite young when Jack was born so they were the best playmates. Even after the female’s death, he was still happy as can be. Eris does see him staring off into the woods she ran off into every once in a while though.

Eris never got another dog after Adria’s death. It hit him so hard. Like a blow to the chest, he just couldn’t do it anymore. So, afterwards, he took to putting most of his energy into the dogs that he already had. He spoiled them rotten after he found Adria’s body on the border that day. He’d care for any future pups that arrive but never buy another dog.

Adria’s grave sits outside of the heated cabin that houses the dog’s kennels. (anyway, im sobbing now, im sorry for that)

List of the Hounds in Order: Percy, Vixen & Selena, Cadoc, Nimbus & Sorrel & Soot, Ash (V+C), Taunya, Pyro, Rue, Adria 💀, Jack (V+C)

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

Btw, feel free to ask more questions about the headcanons <3

TAGLIST HERE! - see post for specifics <3

Tagged in all ACOTAR Stories: @bunnymallowo, @officiallyunofficialperson, @margssstuff, @rebloggiest-reblogger, @inpraizeof, @graciereads, @eos-princess, @bubybubsters, @thegirlintheshadows101

(please let me know if you'd rather not be tagged in Eris Week or would like to!!)

#erisweek2023 #eris vanserra #acotar #headcanons #acotar fanfiction #acotar fanfic #ghost hounds #pro eris vanserra #mywriting

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xblackreader · 1 year

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My Attoye’s Kids Headcanons!

💗 They have two twins (16 a boy and girl) three triplet daughters (10) and one last son (4) 🧞

• Names:

‘Rhino and the Eel’ Twins: Tadeas and Xyanza (16)

Piranha Triplets: Yolotli, Kuhle, and Nobomi (10)

Youngest son: N’kani (2)

• info:

The triplets and Xyanza can all breathe water and air. Xyanza also has siren song.

Tadeas can not. His bones are dense and his blood can withstand deep water pressures but he cannot breathe water. So when he visits Talokan he has to only wear a mask. Tadeas wants to be just like his Father and trained hard to be able to hold his breathe for a long time and swim like his sisters but he still is jealous.

His sister has always been very sweet but a great protector of her brother and often of others. She hates bullies and does not like it when people are harmed or picked on without reason. The twins used to be attached at the hip until they started training.

Tadeas showed no mercy and Xyanza was disgusted by his indifference to innocent lives. Now they fight often (verbally and physically).

Their oldest son had the same kinda relationship with rhinos as his dad does with sharks. He loved the rhinos since he was very small.

He’s very large like his father and has long dread locs and wears rhino horns and armor like his fathers, he uses an axe that’s wider and flatter than his fathers battle axe.

But when he’s really young he witnesses a bunch of poachers kill one of his favorite rhinos. He tells his dad. And Attuma absolutely slaughters them for trespassing and just bc

and since then Tadeas kinda has always had a distaste of people from colonizing countries. In his mind, they are good for nothing but stealing and murdering. He has no empathy for most colonizers or even just surface countries at all.

He has no problem killing many even if they’re innocent but his twin sister who is a training Dora/midnight angel always stops him. She’s the voice of reason.

His sister is a tall muscular but pretty lean woman who is more of stealth person rather than a mercenary like her brother. They call her the eel bc on her missions she is able to slip on and out of licked down high security easily. She doesn’t like to kill but she’s very quick and her blade is untraceable so if she must take a life, it won’t be torturous even if they’re a monster. She’s the little assassin.

Xyanza was trained to be a part of her mother’s Army, but she decided instead, she wants to be a war dog like Nakia. She hasn’t told her mother though. She’s a bit rebellious bc she doesn’t really listen, where as her twin brother absolutely worships the ground their parents walk on with some exceptions .

She and Nashuri’s daughters are a war dog team but keep it secret from their parents.

Then there are the three triplet 9 year olds, Yolotli, Kuhle, and Nobomi. the village calls them ‘the pirahnas’. they all have sharp teeth and speak very little, people don’t usually listen to them so they keep their opinions to themselves, but they be plotting

though they are sweet young girls,, they’re just… feral. They like going on hunts with their brother and they’re just ‘cute little piranhas’. If a diver looking for vibranium is seen by them, they will try their best to tear the diver apart.

The youngest son is just a baby and doesn’t have any nicknames or anything but does have the cutest little baby hands and is very chubby.

Okoye is still a war general, but strays away from the battle field these days. She could still kick ass but she chooses to step back from the physical field unless absolutely necessary.

Attuma is still a general as well but he has continued to serve under Namor and chooses not to retire. not much WAR going on lately though so he is a very present and loving father. Okoye’s more of the busy one, though she tries her very best to be active and it works for everyone.

• Scenario:

I’m imagining maybe while Xyanza and (Nashuris daughter) were trying to free some Prisoners of war from a British battle ship on the Indian Ocean, she gets found and cornered but her brother is there to not only save her, but bust her. Saying he’s going to tell their parents what she’s been doing. He’s a snitch fr but he has her back.

She tells him how they can’t just let this ship leave and he says it wasn’t for no reason - he found some vibranium that had obviously been smuggled from Wakandan borders. They had figured out the export was being sold by black market traders disguised as tourists. So Tadeas says he’ll help them take the ship down and then take all the credit when they’re back home 🙄🤣. Nashuris daughter is like fine idc

Then he is stabbed through the shoulder with a vibranium whale gun by a surviving ship captain, they’re both captured and Xyanza is knocked out.

They wake up to find themselves in a vibranium cell on another ship heading to an undisclosed location to be tested on. They’re all trapped there as their weapons have been confiscated.

Then they hear a bunch of screams, gunshots and commotion and who bursts into the door.

Shuri. The Queen of Wakanda. The Black Panther.

Her mask falls and she is relieved to see all the kids but also furious that they not only left but engaged without authority.

They can only imagine what their other parents are feeling.

So the parents are all there, Namor is getting rid of crew members who turn out to be American Marines and Other Goverment Allies. Shuri is hacking into the system and releasing the kids. Okoye is observing the ship and interrogating the captain. Attuma is in a rage he is absolutely wrecking the ship, it’s sinking.

The kids are soon faced with their parents, being scolded mainly by Okoye and Namor, Shuri is jumping in sometimes but Attuma is deathly silent.

Nashuri! Kid and Tadeas are facing most blame. They will all be punished however.

“Baba! Please I was trying to help Talokan and Wakanda. You must believe me!” Tadeas pleaded.

Attuma stepped forward and looked down at his son, who he left in charge of all of the kids.

“I have given you far too much responsibility. This has proven to me you are not ready to handle that.”

Attuma takes his sons axe, which he gave to him on his 11th birthday. And His son is devasted, shocked into silence.

All the children are ordered to return to Wakanda and told they are forbidden to leave until further notice. They’ve all been benched from their training and anything except school.

Nashuri kid is taken from public schooling and absolutely grounded.

TBC 👀 for more info click here

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hopefulatrocity · 9 months

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From The Ashes- Chapter 10

Note: Sorry for the wait. This is probably the longest chapter I've written so far. And the next chapter is a bit bigger. More Daryl, Kismet, and Pheonyx interactions. Thank you to @garlic-the-gnome and @loganlostitall for reading my drafts and giving me advice and corrections. I'm super grateful for it. Also, don't be like Daryl. If you think someone is trans and want to ask, don't. If you have to, ask their pronouns. If a trans person wants to reveal themself as trans to you, they will. By asking, you're putting them in a shitty spot. Not only does it imply they don't pass if you have to ask, but some people just don't want to talk about it. Daryl isn't verse in this stuff though. Pheonyx can forgive him for that.

Banners by: @liminal-creations

Dividers by: @firefly-graphics & @omiyours

Chapter CW/TW: talk of drug-addict/abusive/neglectful parents, shitty childhoods in general, denial of sexuality, anxiety, PTSD, hate crime mentions

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The damn mutt wasn’t as stupid as he looked earlier. As soon as Pheonyx had him sniff Sophia’s shirt and gave him the command, the dog shot off after the little girl’s trail. Originally, Daryl had been skeptical of the pup’s skill. The only word that he could think of to describe Kismet was goofy. His muscled body was all limbs and he crashed through the underbrush and bushes with no regard for noise or tact. It was hard to believe that this dog would be trained to do more than drool and sniff his own butt. The hunting dogs that lived in his trailer park growing up were more refined. They could be noisy, especially once they treed a coon or squirrel, but when they were working in the woods, they were damn near soundless. Still dubious about the dog, he had stopped them a few hundred yards behind the area where he and Rick had first started tracking Sophia. He wanted to see if Kismet would follow the same path they had when she first got lost. And he did. The dog held his nose to the ground and started following the area they had walked through 2 days ago. Pheonyx watched the dog with a proud look on his face before turning to Daryl and motioning towards the direction Kismet was going.

“After you, Apollo.”

An abrupt snort left his nose. Apollo. The Greek god of archery. Of all the nicknames he’d ever been called that was probably the nicest by far. It was much preferred to Merle’s nickname for him, “Darlena.” Merle mostly did it to annoy him. But it was also a jab at his manhood. Mostly due to the fact that he didn’t pant after women like some kind of sex fiend but partially because he had a streak of kindness in him that Merle always lacked. Most people didn’t know, it wasn’t something the brothers talked about much, that Merle was Daryl’s half brother. His momma was one of the many junkies that their father went on benders with. Merle spent the first 5 years of his life being shuffled by social workers back and forth between his momma and their Pa. Each of them going through cycles of getting clean and then relapsing shortly after. They didn’t get clean for their son though. It was simply for the welfare check and food stamps that came along with having custody of a child. Right before his 6th birthday, Merle watched his momma OD. He was locked in the tiny apartment with her body for 2 days before the neighbors were able to get the cops to investigate the constant screaming of a child. From there, his brother lived solely with his father. Their Pa got better at playing a sober, loving father and Merle got better at hiding the bruises and lashes. Eventually, social services left them alone. It was just the two of them until Will Dixon married Daryl’s momma in one of his brief moments of sobriety. While she treated Merle like he was her own, the damage to his emotional well-being was already done. His brother spent years all alone. He never had anyone who truly cared for him and the only love he ever received was a facade for social workers and cops that always seemed to be snooping around. Daryl suspected that neglect was why his brother had such a hard time maintaining any sort of relationship. And his obsession with being manly, therefore not weak, was entirely due to the brainwashing their father had instilled in him. So, Daryl couldn’t entirely blame his brother for his constant bullying and name-calling. He would happily take “Apollo” over any of the ones his brother had come up with. Especially if Pheonyx was the one calling him it. The name sounded so sweet coming from his lips, and honestly it made Daryl feel wanted. Aside from his brother, he never had friends growing up. And friends gave each other meaningful nicknames. Was that what this was? Was Pheonyx trying to be friends with him? Or was there something else? He did wink at him earlier. Didn’t he? No. He couldn’t have. He must have had something in his eye. That’s all. There is no possible way that a guy like Pheonyx would be trying to flirt with a guy like Daryl. For one, Daryl was older than him by at least a decade, if not more. Second, Pheonyx was incredibly attractive. Obviously, Daryl wasn’t gay but he could objectively say that the other man was beautiful. Even with the world the way it was, he was attractive enough that he could have anyone he wanted. There was no way he could possibly want someone like Daryl. An old redneck who spent the majority of his life chasing after his older brother. The idea that Pheonyx might, though, made his cheeks and ears turn red. Swamped with embarrassment, he gripped his crossbow tightly, reassuring himself of its comforting presence.

Daryl ducked his head, hiding the heat of his face from Pheonyx’s eyes, and began to follow after Kismet. Despite the fact that he was out of sight, the dog was easy to trail. He left a path of destruction in his wake that was akin to Godzilla destroying a city. Broken branches, trampled bushes, and large paw prints smushed into the mud were like a line of breadcrumbs that led straight to the fumbling beast. If that wasn’t enough, Kismet sniffed out the trail like he was a pig at the state fair. Each inhale was a long snort and exhaled out with a loud wheeze. The sound was like a homing beacon to the dog’s location. Daryl hoped that the everpresent sound of windchimes around them would confuse walkers enough to keep them from following after the dog, and subsequently the two humans on his trail.

He followed Kismet’s path for a minute before he realized that Pheonyx wasn’t next to him. Looking over his shoulder, he called out,

“Ya comin’, Firebird?”

Daryl wasn’t entirely sure where the name had come from. The word slid off his tongue like it was something he had been saying for years. It could be just a play on the other man’s namesake. Maybe it was the fire he had seen in Pheonyx’s eyes when he was standing up to Shane earlier. Either way, the name fit him well. Since Pheonyx had given Daryl his own nickname, it seemed only fitting to have chosen one for him too.

They spent almost two hours following after Kismet. The speckled dog was very intent on the trail, only breaking his trance to jog back and smell the shirt hanging off of Pheonyx’s belt. After he reminded himself of the scent he was supposed to be tracking, he would trot back to the area he stopped and correct his direction to follow the scent. Pheonyx knew he was on the right track though, occasionally he would catch glimpses of small footprints in the moist forest floor and broken branches at a height that was equivalent to a 12 year old girl. Daryl must have noticed those things too because he didn’t voice any objections to their pathing.

The afternoon sun was high in the sky, and even the shade from the forest canopy wasn’t enough to mute the heat from the blazing rays. Sweat was dripping down Pheonyx’s face and creating dark spots on his gray tank top. Daryl didn’t seem to be immune to the heat either, his face was glistening with perspiration, making the dirt on his skin darker and more pronounced. Kismet was also panting heavily. He didn’t break from his job though. In past training sessions, they didn’t usually stop until the dog found the scent he was tracking. This was very different than making Jimmy run around the yard with a squirrel skin dragging behind him though. As much as Pheonyx wanted to find Sophia right away, he needed to advocate for Kismet. The pup needed a breather.

“We need to take a break,” he said, wiping his hand across his forehead to sop up some of the sweat that was tickling his skin.

Daryl didn’t pause though. He looked back at the younger man with a frown and a slight glare. “Nah we gotta keep movin’. Wastin’ daylight just standin’ around. Sophia could be jus up ahead.”

“If she is, we’ll find her. 10 minutes. That’s all I ask. Kismet needs water and to relax for a minute. We’re no good to Sophia if we pass out from heat stroke and dehydration,” Pheonyx said, standing his ground.

The archer was silent for a moment, but he realized the truth in Pheonyx’s words. “Fine,” he muttered in defeat. Once he glanced around the surrounding area and concluded there were no walkers or other dangers lurking, he leaned against the nearest tree and began to bite on the skin around his thumbnail. It was a habit of his from childhood he’d never seemed to break, no matter how much Merle told him it made him look like he was sucking his thumb.

Pheonyx smiled at him in thanks before whistling to recall Kismet. It only took a few seconds for the Tasmanian Devil to burst through the brush, his tongue hanging out in an attempt to cool his overheated body. Pulling off his backpack, Pheonyx knelt next to him and began to scrub the dog’s neck, whispering to him, “You’re doing so good, handsome. Gotta take a break though. You thirsty?”

Daryl tried to ignore the way his body shivered at the softness in Pheonyx’s tone. He tried not to watch the small beads of sweat slide down his toned arms, making the images on his skin glisten and come to life. He tried not to notice how the neckline of his gray tank top gaped a bit from the angle the other man was kneeling and he was able to get a glimpse of raven wings across his chest. Instead, he focused on his movements. Pheonyx pulled out three water bottles and a dog bowl from his bag. The younger man opened one up, emptied the bottle into the bowl, and placed the vessel on the ground for Kismet to drink.

Half a smile overtook Pheonyx’s face as he watched Kismet go to town on the water. Lapping loudly, more water ended up on his muzzle and the surrounding ground than in his mouth. It was still enough to cool him down a bit though because his panting was less heavy as he sprawled on the ground afterward. Shaking his head at the ditzy dog, Pheonyx stood up and handed one of the water bottles over to Daryl, who took it gratefully. He also pulled out one of the bags of jerky from his pocket and held it out to him.

Daryl felt a wave of reluctance. It wasn’t that he wasn’t hungry. He was. The group’s food supply had dwindled over the past few days, and he hadn’t been able to properly hunt since he was busy looking for Sophia. He’d only managed to swallow down a small stale granola bar before they’d made the short drive to the Greene farm. The idea of being indebted to anyone though, didn’t sit right with him. Nothing in life was free. Especially not for him and Merle. That had been a lesson he’d learned early on. Parents were supposed to provide for their children. Food, clothes, love. But Will Dixon was only a parent in the biological sense. Nothing he ever gave the boys had been from the kindness of his heart. At first, his Ma did her best to put food on the table and clothe them. Once her depression took hold though, she couldn’t work and barely managed to get out of bed everyday. He and Merle took care of themselves the majority of the time. Food was swiped from the local grocery store, picked out of the dumpsters behind restaurants, or stolen from the local food bank donation bins around Thanksgiving time. Clothes were appropriated from lost and found bins around town, or purchased from a thrift store using the meager amounts of money the boys were able to make doing chores for the older folks in the trailer park. Despite the world falling, things hadn’t changed so much for Daryl. He still did his part to earn his food and clothing within the group. If he took the food from Pheonyx, he would owe him. Or at least, he felt like he would. The water bottle he had taken without hesitation but that was different. Water was a bit more common to find, especially on a farm that likely had a well. Food was more of a scarcity and therefore more valuable. So, no matter how much his chest was telling him that Pheonyx wasn’t like that, that he wouldn’t hold some jerky over Daryl’s head, his brain was winning the fight.

Pheonyx could see the apprehension on Daryl’s face.

“I swear I didn’t poison it,” he said, still holding the bag out.

“Ain’t that,” Daryl mumbled, ducking his eyes in embarrassment, still trying to win the inner battle with his mind to just accept the damn food. “Don’t want any charity is all.”

Understanding dawned on Pheonyx and he nodded his head. During the first 8 years of his life, his mom had been an insurance agent and the bread-winner of the family. She was traveling 3 weeks out of every month and, even when she was home, her attention was mentally in the office. His biological father was a “stay-at-home dad”. Which meant he stayed home drinking most of the day while Pheonyx did his best to avoid his wrath. Despite this, the family had been middle class in their finances. So, he hadn’t gone without material-wise. While love had been lacking during that time, he always had a full stomach and always had fairly decent clothing. Moving with his mother and brother to live with Hershel, hadn’t changed that. His step-father was more well-to-do than they had been previously. A lot of the money was generational but most was from Hershel’s veterinary practice. Being one of two practices that specialized in large animals, in a farming community like Senoia, brought in quite a bit of money. They lived humbly despite the financial padding. Pheonyx could understand Daryl’s reluctance though. He knew it was hard to accept help, it created a sense of weakness, a feeling of helplessness. After he left Georgia, Pheonyx struggled immensely. Most of it was mental, but the physical results of that night also plagued him. At the time, he didn’t want to ask for help. He didn’t want to be a burden. He didn’t want to owe anyone. By asking for help, his body wouldn’t be his own. It would belong to someone else. Because people didn’t typically do things without expectation of payment. He had already lost ownership of his body that night. He didn’t want to give anyone else the opportunity to take it again. Aaron had been there to help him when his problems became too much but he had been at his breaking point then. There hadn’t been any other option.

“I promise it’s not charity. And I’m not looking for anything in return. Mom raised me to be a gentleman. And that means sharing when I have the means to. Maggie packed enough for all three of us,” Pheonyx shook the bag a little and raised his eyebrows.

Again, Daryl hesitated but after a moment he tentatively took the plastic bag of jerky. He waited for Pheonyx to take a bite of his own portion before he popped a small piece of the dehydrated meat into his mouth. Now, Daryl Dixon was no stranger to jerky. Growing up in a house where hunting was as natural as breathing, meant that smoked and dehydrated meat were a staple of his diet. His parent’s money issues meant that fresh, healthy foods weren’t always available. There were days when all Merle and he had to eat was jerky and wild mulberries that grew rampant on the outskirts of the trailer park. The jerky he was currently chewing though, was nothing like the overly salty, yet still bland, meat he was used to making and eating. That meat was a means of survival. This felt like an indulgence. Despite the lack of moisture, the jerky was still tender and almost melted on his tongue, releasing a myriad of flavors. It was sweet and peppery with a hint of smokiness that rounded out the blend of spices. A small bit of gaminess let him know it was rabbit meat, which wasn’t his favorite overall, but if it was prepared anything like what he was chewing on, his opinion was likely to change.

Apparently he made some sort of face because Pheonyx looked at him questioningly. Daryl averted his eyes, ears turning a flaming red, embarrassed about letting his emotions show.

“It’s good,” he mumbled.

The brightness of the forest seemed to increase tenfold with the proud smile Pheonyx gave him and those damn moths fluttered in his gut again.

“Thanks! I make it myself. When people evacuated they took all their canned goods. But no one thinks to bring the spice cabinet. So, I’ve got an abundance of stuff to create different flavor profiles. My personal motto is that just because the world ended doesn’t mean you can’t have good food. Just have to know how to use what’s at your disposal.”

At Zombie Ink(an ironic name considering their current circumstances), Pheonyx’s boss held a bi-weekly potluck for the staff, which consisted of many ethnicities and cultures. Every meeting was a blend of new flavors and cooking techniques to be learned. It was one of the few times that Pheonyx felt like he could interact with people, even if it just meant sharing recipes or learning about different cultural nuances, and had helped him make some friends. He had been trying to recreate those flavors and dishes with the monotonous food supplies they had.

Silence lapsed as the two made quick work of the food. Pheonyx alternated between eating his own and tossing pieces of the unseasoned jerky to Kismet, who ate it enthusiastically. Daryl tried to keep his gaze averted but he kept getting drawn back to the man a few feet from him. His mind was playing through the events of the day up until that point. And he knew he had to ask Pheonyx something. He was pretty sure he already knew the answer, but he had to make sure.

Popping the last piece of meat into his mouth, Daryl broached the subject bluntly, “Ya a guy, right?”

Pheonyx dropped the piece of jerky that he had been about to place in his mouth, a choking noise of shock leaving his lips. Kismet dove and caught the meat before it could hit the dirt near his owner’s knees. Fear and anxiety was flitting through Pheonyx’s veins, or else he would have been worried about how the spices would affect Kismet’s stomach. He knew where the conversation was going. It was probably inevitable but the fact he was alone in the woods with the man upped the terror of the situation. While he felt comfortable around Daryl, he couldn’t help the images of the past that floated through his mind.

“Uh yeah- I mean yes. I am.”

Daryl felt the fear in Pheonyx’s eyes like a knife to the gut. His hands twitched with the need to reach out and soothe his worries. But he didn’t. Something told him that any movements towards the other man would make things worse. So he kept his face blank, and averted his gaze to the surrounding woods. He was starting to think he shouldn’t have started this conversation, based on the other man’s fearful reactions. But there was no going back now.

“Ya were born a girl, though?” he asked calmly, trying to make his deep voice as un-intimidating as possible.

Pheonyx considered lying. It would be the safest option. He’d grown up around guys like Daryl. Rough conservative types. And they were usually the ones who reacted violently to anything in the realm of ‘other’. But the archer was so calm. The question had been asked so nonchalantly. As if he were discussing the weather. His words weren’t laced with accusation or scrutinizing countenance. He was just gazing calmly into the woods and fiddling with the now-empty bag that once held their afternoon snack.

“Yes,” the whispered word slipped through Pheonyx’s mouth before he could stop it. He hoped that he hadn’t heard him, but the archer’s ears had been honed after years of hunting.

Daryl’s eyes locked with Pheonyx’s and he knew the other man had heard him. Pheonyx flinched, eyes slamming shut, bracing himself for the pain. His heart was slamming against his chest, like the shadows did on the barn door when he walked past. Sweat coated his palms and soaked into his shirt. His breathing picked up a bit and Kismet crawled over to him, whining. The big dog pushed his nose into Pheonyx’s hand and sidled his bulky body up next to his masters.

Pheonyx waited, barely even noticing Kismet’s attempts at calming him. 1 second, 10 seconds, a minute. He waited for the pain, whether it be vile words or physical hits. But they never came. Instead, there was a crumple of plastic and a deep, “Okay.”

A part of Daryl wanted to offer more words, to say that Pheonyx didn’t have to worry. That he wouldn’t hurt him. Because he knew that was why Pheonyx had reacted that way: sweating, flinching, practically hyperventilating. Someone had hurt him. Badly. Anger filled his body and he wanted to turn around and punch the tree he had been leaning against. That would just cement Pheonyx’s fears though. He tried not to think about why he had such a fierce reaction to the idea of someone hurting the younger man, someone he had only known for a few hours. Instead, he crumpled up the empty bag he had been holding and shoved it in his pocket.

Pheonyx’s eyes shot open and he gaped at the other man in shock. “Okay? That’s it? Just okay?”

“Ain’t my business what ya got goin’ on in ya pants. Just didn’ wanna make assumptions,” the older man said simply. Like he was giving the answer to 2+2.

It took a moment for his words to soak in. Daryl wasn’t going to hurt him. Daryl wasn’t going to yell. Daryl wasn’t going to break him. Daryl wasn’t going to try to “fix” him. Daryl wasn’t like the demons from the alley. Daryl was different.

And Pheonyx wasn’t sure how to feel about that. He wasn’t used to people just accepting him for who he was. Maggie and Aaron had been the only ones who accepted him whole-heartedly, no questions asked. There was always some kind of push back. People asked him if he was sure, or if it was just a phase. Or telling him that god didn’t make mistakes. Or saying they accepted him but continually messing up his pronouns. So, he just cleared his throat, patted Kismet’s head, and stood up. He adjusted the cutlass on his hip, making sure all his other weapons were attached and in place.

“Are we ready to go?”

The old Miller house had been abandoned for almost 50 years. Originally, it had belonged to Hershel’s great great aunt. She lived there with her husband and two kids. When her kids died from a severe illness, haunting memories caused the married couple to move out of Georgia. After that, the house had occasionally been offered up to farmhands and their families but nothing permanent in going on four decades. For years it stood, withering and decaying, on the far edges of the Greene property.

The white house had two stories and faded red shutters. Paint was falling off the sides of the structure and the front awning was one wind gust away from caving in. The front door was closed with a red x spray painted across the front. At one point, it was beautiful. Now, it was just an embodiment of memories.

Pheonyx’s hand gripped onto Kismet’s leather collar tightly. The dog whined and tried to pull them towards the house, indicating that the scent trail led there.

“Stay, Kismet,” Pheonyx murmured to the pup. A grumble came from Kismet’s barrel chest, indicating his displeasure at being called off the search. To appease him, Pheonyx pulled some unseasoned jerky from his pocket and gave it to the dog. Wet slobber coated his palm as Kismet gobbled it down before flopping onto the ground, much akin to a dead fish. Grimacing, Pheonyx wiped his hand on his pants and looked over at Daryl, who was checking the strings on his crossbow.

“That yer doin'?” Daryl asked, pointing at the red X on the door.

“Yeah. I mark all the houses I search and clear. I can tell you right now that someone’s been here. Even without Kismet chomping to follow the scent.”

“How’s tha’?”

“The side door’s open. I always make sure to shut the doors when I’m done with a house. Don’t want any shadows finding their way in there and surprising the next people who make their way through,” Pheonyx explained, shrugging. He unsheathed his cutlass, the sharp edge making a slight zing as it rubbed against the metal supports of the casing. The light weight of the weapon felt comfortable in his hand, and he felt its aura of safety engulf him.

Daryl led the way towards the house, readying his crossbow when they stepped up onto the porch. He turned his head towards Pheonyx, nodding his head at him, gauging to see if he was ready or not. Pheonyx lifted his cutlass up, slightly above his midline, and jerked his head once back at him. Daryl used that as his cue to kick the front door open. Dust flew up as the rotting wood hit the wall with a resounding bang.

“The door was unlocked. You could have just opened it, Apollo.” Pheonyx whispered to him, in a slightly scolding tone.

Daryl rolled his eyes but kept his attention on the house in front of him. That was probably true, but he wouldn’t admit that to the younger man. The place had obviously been abandoned a long time ago, but some furniture and knick knacks still remained. A thick layer of dust coated everything, but he was able to make out small footprints on the weathered wood floors. He wanted to call out for Sophia, his heart pounding at knowing she was, or had been, there. But they hadn’t checked the place for walkers yet. Even though there was no scent of decay, there was still a possibility of one of those geeks popping up.

“Let’s split up,” he murmured back.

“Let me guess. It’s not you, it’s me, right?”, Pheonyx joked, still keeping his eye on the quiet house.

If it was anyone else, Daryl would have snapped at them for fooling around while doing something so serious, but he found himself enjoying the playful side of Pheonyx. Compared to the terrified man he’d seen only a short while ago, he would gladly take the playful one. Daryl wasn’t sure how it was possible, but even more blood rushed to his already overheated face as he thought about the syntax of the joke. Of being in a relationship with Pheonyx.

“Stop,” he said weakly.

A light chuckle sounded next to him. “Sorry. Couldn’t help it. The second floor is unstable so I don’t recommend going up there,” Pheonyx motioned with the short sword to the broken wooden stairs.

Daryl nodded, glancing at the rotted steps across from them. “Ain’t seein’ any tracks up there anyways. She prolly stuck ta the first floor.”

Pheonyx nodded at him. “I’ll check right.”

With that, they both began to search on their respective sides of the house. Daryl slowly aimed his crossbow right and left as he checked each room, glancing down slightly to track the small shoe prints imprinted on the dusty floor. Light creaking from across the house let him know that Pheonyx was also taking steady steps as he walked through his section of the first floor. Daryl was impressed at how quiet the younger man was. Both in the woods and in the house. Daryl pulled his mind from thoughts of Pheonyx and made his way through what used to be a living room. The only furniture in it was a torn couch, that something had obviously made its home evidenced by the slightly rustling cushions. Next was what he assumed was a dining room, as the only thing left in it was an overturned wooden chair and a broken bar cart. From there, he entered the kitchen area. This had more furniture left than the other parts of the house. Old cupboards lined the wall opposite a wide window, a thin door to the right indicating some sort of pantry. A rickety table was askew in the middle of the space, dirty cutlery scattered on the surface. On the wall across from the door was an old wooden hutch with dirty mason jars and random kitchen utensils. Adjacent to it was an overflowing metal trash can. A heavy fish scent led him over to the bin. Sitting on top of old crumpled newspapers and empty glass bottles, was a can of anchovies that was open and empty. It was newer than the trash it resided on, and the juices in the can hadn’t dried. Holding it towards his nose, he tried to smell any scent of spoiling. There was a slight sourness to it that meant it was just beginning to go bad. It was probably about a day old. The soured fish scent would be heavier if it were any older, especially with the high temperature in the days past.

Glancing around at the floor, Daryl noted the plethora of tiny shoe prints that stippled the worn panels. Most of them congregated around the pantry so he stepped slowly towards the door. Keeping his crossbow raised, just in case of surprises, he pulled the door open quickly. There wasn’t anybody inside but in the small area, beneath the main shelves, was a tiny nest of blankets. The area was tight and only someone shorter than 5ft would be able to cram themselves in there comfortably. A sense of relief filled Daryl. He was upset that Sophia wasn’t there, but they were on the right track. She had been there. And if the can was any indication, she was there recently.

A squeak of the floorboards had Daryl whirling around, aiming his crossbow directly at the source of the noise. Instead of a walker’s milky white eyes, he was met with fern green irises. Pheonyx, in the middle of sheathing his cutlass, raised his eyebrows at the other man.

“Calm down, Apollo. Just me. The rest of the house is clear. You find anything?”

Daryl lowered his weapon. He grunted in affirmation and inclined his head towards the nest of blankets at the bottom of the pantry, “We’re ‘bout a day behind her. Found a fresh can in the trash.”

A look of deep concentration came over Pheonyx’s face and he turned to one of the built-in cupboards next to the pantry door. He opened the door to the bottom-most cabinet. It was empty.

Daryl was curious about what the man was looking for but his mind went blank as he watched Pheonyx bend over. His mouth went dry and his grip tightened on the weapon in his hand. He’d never been much of an ass man(hell, he didn’t think he was any type of man before this) but the way Pheonyx’s backside filled out those jeans had him thinking thoughts that were confusing for someone who obviously wasn’t gay.

A large smile overtook Pheonyx’s face and Daryl pushed away the troubling fantasies he was having.

“Your girl’s chance of survival just went up.”, there was a slight squeak of excitement in the younger man’s voice that he couldn’t help.

Daryl narrowed his eyes at the other man in confusion, so Pheonyx explained. “A month ago, I set up twelve supply drops with bug-out bags. Just in case something were to happen at the farm. One of those was here. Each bag has enough supplies to help survive a week, or more if rationed right. MRE’s, pop-up tents, water bottles, water purification tablets, survival blankets, firestarters, maps, compasses. There’s even a hunting knife in each bag. We may not have found her today but her mom should feel a little better knowing she's got some supplies."

The relief that Daryl felt was palpable and Pheonyx was glad he could at least offer him something.

“I’d say let’s keep going but we need to start heading back now if we want to be at the farm before it gets dark,” Pheonyx said. He noted the flash of anger in Daryl’s eyes and continued softly, “Kismet and I will head out at first light tomorrow.”

The older man grunted in frustration and brought his thumb to his mouth to chew on his nail. His train of thought stopped and focused on the phrasing of the other man’s words. Thinking back he remembered Pheonyx saying they would only work together for the day. While it would probably be better to have more people spread out looking for Sophia, his stomach clenched at the idea of splitting up from Pheonyx. Obviously, because it was safer to work in pairs. Not because he was attracted to the younger man. That would be weird because he obviously wasn’t gay. “Ya ain’t going out alone, Firebird. Me, you, n’ the mutt can search together. Might need ta talk ta Rick ‘bout his ideas fer tomorrow though.”

Running his fingers through his sweat soaked hair, Pheonyx nodded. “Yeah, I don’t know how Kismet will do if we have a bunch of other people in the woods searching too. He did good today, but with a bunch of other smells he might get confused. I also worry about other people getting lost. Shadows aren’t the only things in these woods that can hurt you. No offense but the others in your group didn’t look like they had much experience with the outdoors.”

Daryl snorted, “Yer tellin’ me. Buncha city-slickers.”

They both headed out the back door of the house and Pheonyx whistled his three note recall to Kismet. While they waited on the dog, Daryl called out to Sophia. It was a long shot, he knew that. But he had to try. There was no response though. The only sounds he heard were the warbling melody of frogs and the distant burbling of the creek. And the chaotic sounds of a huge dog barreling his way towards them. Both men watched as Kismet, unable to stop his momentum once he reached them, slid into a boxwood bush with a loud crash.

“For fuck’s sake,” Pheonyx grimaced, “You okay, Kismet?” he called out.

The leaves and branches shook for a moment before Kismet’s speckled face popped out from the green foliage. His tongue was hanging out, panting happily. He shook himself off before trotting over to them. A quick glance over told Pheonyx that, aside from some dirt on his sides, the dog was unscathed. He turned his head to ask Daryl if he was ready to head out, but the words died on his lips as he watched the man pluck a Cherokee Rose from the thorny plant neighboring the boxwood that Kismet had just slid into. The story of the flower was something he was very familiar with, having learned about the Georgia state flower in elementary school.

“You getting that for her mom?,” he asked the archer softly, taking a step to run his fingers over one of the roses still on the bush.

Daryl nodded, “Sophia’s all she’s got left. Lost ‘er husband a week ago. Weren’t no real loss there. Guy was a prick,” he was silent for a moment, “Them girls ain’t deserve none a this shit.”

While that was a true enough statement, he couldn’t tell the truth, the real reason he was so determined to find this little girl. He couldn’t even admit it to himself. He couldn’t admit that when he saw Carol, he saw a reflection of his own mama. That first day in camp, Merle had taken to calling her “Mouse” because of how skittish and meek she was. Her husband had such a tight hold on her, every move she made was followed by a look over her shoulder to make sure Ed wasn’t there to beat her down. He’d seen the same look in his own mama’s eyes many times. By the end, the fear had torn her down so much that she was only a shell. A walker before walkers existed.

And he certainly couldn’t admit that he saw a bit of his childhood self in Sophia. Sophia was merely a ghost. People would see flashes of her blonde hair out of the corner of their eyes, but she’d be gone by the time they’d turn their head. While Carl was a chatterbox, Sophia was damn near voiceless. Daryl had probably only heard her speak two or three times that he could remember. Just like her mom, looking at Sophia had him staring back into the past. The little boy, he used to be, lived a life of invisibility. The less he was noticed, the less pain he had to endure under his father’s belt. He spent more time hiding in the kitchen cupboards than in his own bed. But unlike him, Sophia’s abuser died. She had a chance at a normal life–as normal as one can be with the dead walking around. He needed to find her. For Carol. For his mama. For that little boy that he used to be.

Pheonyx wanted to reach out to the man, maybe place a hand on his shoulder, but he stopped himself. Instead he gave him words. “We’ll find her. I don’t like to make promises but I will now. You and me. We’ll find her,” a grumble came from his side and he rolled his eyes, “ Kismet will help too.”

Plucking a rose from the bush, he handed it to Daryl, a physical contract of his words. Calloused hands brushed against his own and blue eyes locked with his green ones. Blood rose on both of their faces and they both looked away at the same time. Nothing more was said.

The two men walked side by side, with a speckled hound between them, one holding a Cherokee Rose and a promise.

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