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aaanggang · 7 months

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What is a favorite fact that you like but feel like you never have a chance to share? More than one favorite is also totally acceptable.

Oooohhh I’ll give my favorite avatar fact and then my favorite non avatar fact.

In ATLA I love the fact that Aang’s friends from his early years were from all over the world. Air nomads are travellers obviously, but showing how aang made friends everywhere with almost anyone is so him and I love the inclusion of their little stories and how even though they’re not around anymore he still thinking about them and is inspired by them.

My favorite non ATLA fact is the story of the Mary Celeste, widely considered the first popularized ghost ship. Sir Arthur Con Doyle wrote a short horror story about her, popularizing her with the public. Her story has been dramatized and stretched, but the real facts are even more interesting. She was discovered floating some 300 miles away where she should be, with not a soul on board, 3 feet of standing water below deck, her sails torn, but otherwise in perfect sailing condition. She had a small crew transporting goods from America including coal and ALCOHOL. There’s hundreds of theories about where her crew of about seven men disappeared to, but the one I believe is that since it was storming for a full week previous to the abandonment (as noted in the ships logs) the fumes of the alcohol built up into toxic levels— the captain of the ship had brought aboard his wife and his infant daughter. While the fumes may not have been enough to take out an adult, he was worried about the baby. So in order to air out the ship, they took a dingy and tied it to the ship, boarded the crew on it, and planned to wait out the fumes a safe distance from the ship and tow themselves in once it was safe. They would have left up the sails and left all their belongings there, as they planned to return.

But the rope snapped, and the Mary Celeste wasn’t anchored. The ship slipped away from the dingy while they tried to catch up, but they failed, and the ghost ship was born.

THANK YOU FOR ASKING ABOUT MY FAVORITE FACT THIS HAS BEEN A MESSY RETELLING OF THE MARY CELESTE

#i didn’t look up any of the details I just went on my memory so I’d the crew count is wrong that’s why #this was fun great ask I love it #mary celeste

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egophiliac · 2 months

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What do you like about the Diasomnia boys if I may ask?

I always love hearing about the different reasons people enjoy characters.

I mean, c'mon. he has split custody over Sebek okay

also, Lilia in particular has maybe the best timeskip character development of all time

#art #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland spoilers #twisted wonderland episode 7 spoilers #twisted wonderland book 7 spoilers #twisted wonderland episode 7 chapter 4 spoilers #twisted wonderland book 7 chapter 4 spoilers #stage in playful land #i hope this is legible whoops #anon i am sorry but you made the fatal mistake of asking me to talk about diasomnia #insert 'i just think they're neat' jpg #i do like the other characters a lot but they are definitely my favorites #they just hit a lot of my favorite things in characters i guess!#yes even you sebek even though you keep shrieking NINGEN at me #(it's okay he gets Character Development™ later)#and their dynamic! it's great! these guys frikking love each other SO much and they WILL have terrible terrible angst about it #ohoho delicious #give me all your emotional hangups baybeeeee #also somewhere in there i went from 'i like them all equally (but lilia is the most fun to draw)'#to 'lilia is absolutely my favorite (and still the most fun to draw) (EVEN MORE fun now thank you swishy ponytail!)'#(it was probably when his candy coating got a little scratched and whoops all the tragedy fell out)#(where's that 'get loved loser' post because i need to staple it to lilia's forehead)#i am extremely bad at putting things into words so please don't ask me to explain it any further #just know that the diafam is everything to me and if we don't get more episode 7 soon i'm going to crumble into dust and blow away #we'll be getting the crowleytimes on monday and maybe there will be. idk. some foreshadowing or something in his groovy #probably not but LOOK i'm desperate

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chloesimaginationthings · 5 months

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OMG SCOOPED MICHAEL AHHHHH I LOVE HIM SM IM SO HAPPY YOUR FINALLY DRAWING THE LIL GUY

THE GUY EVER is finally here!!

#ask reply #literally I’m so happy y’all loved his design #I really didn’t want to disappoint but the reaction/feedback has been great #I’m gonna have sooo much fun drawing him #there’s too many ideas to do but I’ll try and do em all 💜

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poorly-drawn-mdzs · 1 month

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I started reading Dungeon Meshi last week, became instantly charmed and captivated, and blitzed through the entire manga in 4 days (and changed my profile picture about it). With that in mind, I would just like to say...

I love your dungeon meshi art so so much

CHILCHUCK!!!!!!!!

Thank you kindly! I love Dungeon Meshi a lot, so I'm happy to see so many people get into it for the first time.

CHILCHUCK!!!

#ask #dungeon meshi #chilchuck tims #I feel like chilchuck was overlooked in the pre-anime fandom a lot (which sucked as an OG chilchuck fan).#So I am thrilled by how much love he has been getting. He is a great character and so much fun to draw.#Great comedic straight man while also having some really hard hitting emotional moments.#I think he needs a union mandated vacation after this dungeon expedition -and a drink with an umbrella in it.#Veering off topic for a moment:#I started drawing this at the same time as the Dragon comic (I had chilchuck brainrot)#and since then two of my dungeon meshi comics have hit over 10k notes. Which is bonkers!#A year ago I was getting hyped over a post reaching past 100 notes...I never thought I'd be here. Thank you for all the love and support.#I may have started as a MDZS blog but drawing for Dungeon Meshi has had a huge impact on me *and* my art.#This Chilled Chuck is thus a mini celebration for a incredible milestone B*)#I'll keep my weekly dungeon meshi posts going until the season ends so please keep looking forwards to it!

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thresholdbb · 25 days

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In the spirit of First Contact Day (and in the aftermath of boop-stravaganza), please interact with this if you post about Star Trek and/or we should be mutuals. LLAP I love you all

#Star Trek #first contact day #or if I follow your Star Trek blog but can't figure out your main #booping was fun but I am sometimes not great at following back #and I really liked more interactivity #you can send me asks whenever about whatever also #I love you in advance #and my follower page won't load all the way #yes I want more nerdy mutuals #I also contain multitudes my less active personal blog is @suboficialflores but this is my main #I lean heavily towards voyager but I am making my way through them all

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ba1laur · 1 year

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we are just normal men

#is that how you hold a gun. i dont fuckinbg Know dont ask me #i was rewatching the 98 dub n remembered the bit where ww just keeps vashs gun wit him for like two years mhm.*scream* *fade to black*#i missed this style i htink. very freeing and fun to draw but much more limited than the dot pen style one. soryy guys #if none of my drawings look like they were made by the same person. get used to it #can i confess something real quick.i think im dogshit at drawing ppl im sorry i drew critters all my life but something changed in me #trgn has been pushing me to step out of my comfort zone and its great. awesome even #rejoice #trimax #trigun maximum #vash the stampede #wolfwood #wolfwood d nicholas #lovee aaaand penis.#fanart tag #trigun #art tag

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mothwingwritings · 1 month

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Your Yujiro x reader has been on my mind recently, and an interesting idea came into my head - what would happen if the reader somehow stumbled upon Yuichiro? What would he think of the whole situation, particularly because he is of a *very* different temperament than his son? Would he develop some sort of feelings for (reader)? I'm pretty sure Yujiro would be pissed to see his father meddling in things 😭

You're one of my fav writers on here!! Keep it up ❤︎ and make sure to take care of yourself ☺️

… I can’t believe I didn’t think of writing anything for Yuichiro before this ask lol. How could I write so much about the Hanma family’s favorite girl (you) and never mention Yuichiro??? Shame on me tbh, let’s change that now!

(And thank you for your kind words!!! You are very sweet! <3)

WARNINGS: Mentions of sex, noncon, past abuse, and stepcest.

If by some miracle act Yuichiro was able to obtain a corporeal form and once more walk amongst the living, he would be very intrigued by how far his lineage had come and what the Hanma’s were able to accomplish. Being the start of it all, he had a vague idea of how things most likely have progressed. There is no doubt that his unruly son has grown massively strong, and he’s sure that strength has caused countless problems for people near and far.

He was aware that Yujiro had children at this point, taking quite an interest himself in Baki and Jack’s development. Children weren’t always guaranteed to take after their parents, so it was always a delight when at least one of your offspring was able to carry on the family line with the strength and power you and your ancestors worked so tirelessly to cultivate. When Yuichiro found out that of all the children Yujiro had fathered, not just one, but two showed such immense potential? He was as pleased as he was proud, even more so to discover Baki and Jack lacked the level of belligerent arrogance that made their father an unbearably volatile presence to be around.

While he was taking note of his family line he happened upon a surprising outlier- you. He was at first puzzled by the fact that the Ogre, with all his rampant testosterone, was even able to produce a daughter. When he dug a little deeper and realized you were adopted into the family, while that in and of itself made sense, it left him with even more questions. Why would someone like Yujiro go out of his way to adopt someone else’s child, let alone a female, when he barely cared about the children he himself had brought into this world? Based on the limited knowledge he had of you, you didn’t have any kind of superior strength or secret, hidden abilities that may have spurred his son to take you under his wing. So how exactly did you become awarded with the name of Hanma?

The mystery became too intriguing to ignore, thus he sought you out.

The moment he saw you, he instantly began to understand your appeal. He kept his distance at first, not wanting to overwhelm you with his presence as he made his initial observations. From what he could gather, you were a thoughtful girl, kind and affable to your friends and strangers alike. He noted that you seemed a little jumpy, on edge in scenarios you should feel more at ease, and he worried that maybe he wasn’t concealing himself enough and you were catching on to his surveillance. You may not have Hanma blood in your veins, but you’ve been around them enough to recognize the specific aura they exude. He would need to be more careful, maybe conducting his research on you was best done through other means.

Hence, he decided to look into your relationships with his son and grandsons, hoping to get a better picture of who you were as a person and unravel the secret of how you became intertwined in their lives.

However, what he ended up finding out was not anything he ever expected.

As soon as he learned the horrific truth of how his family had handled you, the revolting nature in which not just his son, but his grandchildren, showed their ‘affection’ for you, he was at a loss for words. Yuichiro was beyond disgusted by their actions, particularly due to the fact that their aggressions were against an innocent woman who had no means of defending herself against the brutes that were incessantly at her heels.

Your jittery nature made complete sense now. You weren’t constantly on edge because you were a naturally excitable person- you were on edge as a defense mechanism. You had to be cautious around everyone for your own self-preservation, frightened that you may unwittingly be subjugating yourself and the people around you to extreme danger by being in a public space. The man who was supposed to be your father figure had assaulted you, hurting and scarring you in irreparable ways. The brothers that you loved and looked to for protection ended up having the same perversions as the man who had created them, betraying your trust in their attempts to force themselves upon you.

Disgusted wasn’t a strong enough word for what he had felt upon learning these revelations. His disappointment in his kin was immeasurable.

When he finally introduces himself to you, it’s apprehension that greets him in return. He can see the fear reflected in your eyes as you were faced with the instant realization of his strength the absolute power he held over not just you, but anyone who may step to him. Yuichiro was a complete stranger to you, in fact you probably hadn’t even seen a picture of him to make any sort of connection. But he could tell that within moments of making your acquaintance, you understood who he was. He was a Hanma, and therefore, he was a threat.

Seeing you cower before him, your whole body vibrating in a state of alarm, eyes darting around the vicinity as you tried to map an escape route should this meeting go south… it broke his heart. It wasn’t that he was immune to your charms, Yuichiro could definitely see the appeal of wanting to be close to you in an intimate manner, but to take you by force? To treat you so horribly, handle you so violently? It took all his power not to make his rage over the injustices you had faced show on his features, lest he frighten you further.

It took a while for you to warm up to him, but the relationship that blossomed was well worth the effort. You were a lovely person all around, beautiful in every sense of the word. The more he got to know you, the more he saw your true personality shine through, and the longer he spent with you, the more his affection for you grew.

Yuichiro had made his decision. You would be safe with him-completely and undeniably cared for under his watchful eye. He would be the father Yujiro never could be, the protector your brothers failed to be. He would become your family, a true family, and insure that you will never have to spend another day living in fear ever again.

In short, Yuichiro’s arrival would probably be the ONLY thing that would ultimately protect you from Yujiro and the rest of the Hanma family. This is great for you because he’s a man of his word, the moment you come under his care Yujiro’s entire existence is like a distant nightmare, and that is something you are exceedingly grateful for. However, you feel the absence of Jack and Baki much more profoundly, as you considered them to be your true family and still love them very deeply. Even though you know ultimately this arrangement is for the best, and you feel much safer and happier in Yuichiro’s care than you have ever felt with anyone else in your life, you still find yourself missing Jack and Baki greatly. Even with their betrayal shattering the last of your innocence, causing you deep and lasting scars, life without them still hurt, and you don’t think you’ll ever heal enough to ignore the pain.

… All this being said, it wouldn’t be on brand for me to answer this without fucking it up a little bit, right?

After some time living with Yuichiro, growing dependent on him for basic care and protection, his fondness for you begins to manifest in ways that are… shocking, even to Yuichiro himself.

Maybe it was the long absence of a lover that began to steer his desires, or perhaps it was the sweet and selfless nature in which you offered your love to him? Who knew it would warm his heart so much to see you standing in the kitchen, sweet little apron tied around your waist as you hummed a little tune, hard at work preparing a new recipe you had picked out specifically to please him? All the little things you did without a second thought made is body and soul ache for you.

You were always cute, but when exactly did you become so irresistible to him?

It caught him off guard to feel a flutter in his stomach when he saw your smile or heard your laugh. At his age he figured he was far past feelings like this, especially with someone so much younger than himself, especially with you.

He didn’t expect the blush that dusted your cheeks when he entered the bath you were currently occupying to excite him as much as it did. He took great pride in the control he had over his body, keeping his emotions and desire in check was one of his strong suits. But seeing you there, bare and bashful, trying desperately to cover yourself while your eyes refused to linger on any part of his exposed body for too long… you were definitely testing his limits here, sweetheart.

Did you know how effortlessly beautiful you were? Did you realize just how tantalizing even the most innocent of your actions were? Would it upset you if he told you how pretty he found your body, as his eyes drank in every inch of skin you were working so hard to hide? Would it scare you if he helped you to understand just how much sway you had over not just his heart, but all of his wants and desires?

He had chided and scorned his family for their mistreatment of you, the sick, twisted feelings they pummeled you with not only threatened your existence, but were also a stain on the illustrious Hanma name. Yuichiro wanted nothing more than your happiness and your security, both were things he took great honor in providing to you, and he found his own joy in knowing you felt contentment with him after so much suffering. But he was starting to get an itch that was growing harder and harder to scratch. An itch he felt his kin was all too familiar with.

Maybe he’s not so different from his son and grandsons after all?

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supersecretnerd · 2 years

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Siobhan's friends, Sweetie and Sloane, were absolutely adorable. I wish they had more lines in the movie :(

#wendell & wild spoilers #wendell and wild #wendell & wild #also i think it's kinda funny they showed up to protest what their besties' parents were doing-#that or Siobhan went and told them about her parents plans and asked for their help- that would be pretty awesome then #loved how energetic Sweetie was- she seems like a fun kid- give her a candy and boom shes jumping up and down the place #both their voice actors did great with this charactersN

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echosong971 · 6 months

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I DONT KNOW WHAT LIES OF P IS BUT KEEP DRAWING THAT BOY PLEASE I BEG

OKAY o7

#when you are rly good at killing but are also just a little guy sometimes <3 #tangentially related #i need more P and Gemini fancontent AUGHH #their dynamic is everything to me <3 #i love all of gemini’s lines through the game he’s so great #also #!#here’s just a short explanation for ya of the game:#Lies of P is a Soulslike video game based around the story of Pinocchio #you play as the puppet Pinocchio (colloquially referred to as “P” by most of the fanbase including myself)#and you have to go through the City of Krat and lie to protect yourself #while you deal with the current Puppet Frenzy by striking down whatever gets in your way #It’s a REALLY fun snd amazingly written game 11/10 would highly recommend <3 #echosong971 #echo asks #echo answers #art #digital art #fanart #lies of p art #lies of p #p #pinocchio #lies of p pinocchio #gemini #lies of p gemini

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forecast0ctopus · 24 days

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idk if you still draw merlin art that much BUT ,

i always headcanon arthur with long hair for historical accuracy . what do u think of it? what long hair would you give hin?

i’m bad at focusing on multiple things at once which is why i tend to only post art of one thing for a few months straight but trust me i think about merlin and all my other interests All The Time…. i am always up to talk about them!!!

anyways i know this probably isn’t the answer anyone wants but. historical accuracy be damned i like his hair short…… if i Had to have it longer id want it like that scruffy haircut they almost gave him in s4ish? if i remember? i love a disheveled looking man <3 im sure thats not at all what you meant by long hair though haha

consolation arthur sketch for me not being a long hair person:

#hope to get to my other asks soon ive just been. very tired lately haha i appreciate them very much though #anotherchaoticidiot #i still have so so so many merlin wips #ask #anyways im biased to giving characters short hair idk i #i really like s3/4 merlin’s really short hair i dont think he gets enough appreciation :(#i see people make fun of arthurs haircut a lot but truly i love a boring man short haircut im so sorry shfkg #there are so many other characters i see drawn with long hair all the time and its great however im so. i lovw short hair…………..#merlin

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comraderoscoes · 1 year

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lewis talking about valtteri last weekend (and being scandalised by his tan lines)

#lewis hamilton #valtteri bottas #valewis #australian gp 2023 #he said that's great...for you!#also not to get too deep but i love how whenever lewis is asked about things like this he's always 100% supportive on whatever fun quirky #things these men are doing even if it baffles him #lydia.post

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cacaocheri · 1 month

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your self-shipping art with the dca feeds my own dca self-shipping needs, thank you so much for sharing it with us 💛🥹💛 like seriously, it makes me so happy to see it all the time on my dash and I wish I could like it 10x over every time!!! hopefully someday I'll start drawing and post my own dca self-shipping 💛

AUGHH<333 IM SO GLAD GRRGRRRR sorry im so full of gratitude right now words are hard to formulate but just know it makes me SO HAPPY to hear that my self-shipping can inspire others

PLEASE draw dca self-ship!!!! i highly encourage it!!! i love self-shipping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

#ask #i love self-shipping its so much fun to indulge #if you're reading this and want to try self-shipping but are too scared bc youre worried its cringe #it is NOT cringe #it is the best form of indulgence #purest form of happiness #i want to spread this happiness with the world its so great #so YES you internet user #self-ship #be free

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gothic-mothic · 9 months

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Whiteboard doodles yay !

Sillies

#tsp #the stanley parable #the stanley parable ultra deluxe #tspud #I love drawing tiny Stanley getting bullied #bullied or smothered no in between #actually it’s all probably a weird in between to him #just a small break from asks #I’m glad you guys like them sm!! it’s a great writing opportunity for me too #you guys make fun of Narrator for being a housewife and I get to write dialogue #it’s great #post parable au #.png

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ktskibkg0 · 2 months

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Fuckin drama king

#ngl tape mf is fun to draw #he has scary expressions and i love it #bnha #mha #bakugou katsuki #boku no hero academia #great explosion murder god dynamight #ask blog #my hero academia #did system #mha fictive #hanta sero fanart #hanta sero #sero hanta #cellophane

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dipplinduo · 4 months

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DipplinDuo like 3 weeks ago: Omg hi guys!! Welcome to my blog, I love and appreciate all of you so much!! Here's my fanfiction I'm working on - I hope you enjoy it!! Please don't be sad I'm here for you!! DipplinDuo now: I will actively plot how to emotionally devastate you all in a 1000 ways right in front of your face and I will laugh maniacally about it. Get gaslit, girlbossed, and gatekept.

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL I mean...it ain't a lie.

#I got called out #the sadism #maybe me liking drayton so much isnt a coincidence #you are such a fun group I love you all #but also #I WILL toy with your feelings for funsies #all is fair in the fic writing world #YOU ASKED FOR IT DONT GIMMIE THAT LOOK #dipplinshipping #kieran pokemon #kieran x juliana pokemon #juliana pokemon #kieran x juliana #juliana x kieran pokemon #juliana x kieran #my fics #with great power comes great devestation #fave

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imaginethebeautifulworld · 3 months

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So I was reading Phantom of the Opera and some of Erik's descriptions made me think so much of Gil! I remembered how amazing your Hades and Persephone fic was, and I was hoping you could do something with the Phantom too? Thanks so much!!!!

Hello, Anon! I absolutely adored Erik in the book, and now that I read your ask, I can easily see the similarities, too~ I grew up on a weird blend of the book, musical, and both the 2004 and Lon Chaney films; I tried to honor that blend in this a bit, but a majority was pulled from memories of the book. I hope you enjoy, and thank you for your patience~

The theatre was filled to bursting, the audience awed, riveted, mesmerized, your voice weaving an enchantment over hundreds of unsuspecting admirers.

He was proud of you.

Your voice reached him even in the highest and most of isolated rafters, a platform forgotten- abandoned- by the stagehands stationed several stories below. Your voice was full, carrying all of the strength and conviction and passion as the character you were playing.

Gone was the timid spirit he had stumbled upon all those years ago, broken and shattered from loss, left with only the protections of a then-aloof guardian and a firm, dispassionate teacher.

He was drawn to you from that first day, a twist of compassion, of understanding; in spite of your upbringing and (even then) impressive talent, you were still an outsider, your peers and the other students keeping their distance, leery of your background, and some envious even then.

Yes, the companionship and camaraderie would come in time, but in those first few months, he saw the same loneliness and sadness in you he'd once carried so heavily himself, and his heart ached to comfort you.

The first time he spoke to you was purely accidental, a slip of a whisper he prayed you would dismiss as a ghost, or mere imagination. He had grown too comfortable in answering you when you were alone, his voice always near silent as you spoke to your mother, your father, and sometimes the angels themselves.

It was the latter with which you had caught him, crying out with a broken heart after discovering another student had sabotaged your satin slippers, intent on seeing your failure, your embarrassment, and (as likely was the case with that particular little shrew) your dismissal from the school.

But you persevered, successfully completed your performance, never once showing your distress until you were away from the others. It was only then, hidden away in a forgotten practice room that you showed your anger, your sadness, your hopelessness. The mask had fallen, and he was once again struck by the beauty of the fractured soul he admired so deeply.

"Please," you whispered, and it broke his heart to hear it, "I feel so alone."

It ached, being unable to comfort you, seeing your progress and healing of the past few months tested so needlessly. He ached for you; he was angry for you.

"You are not alone."

It was a fleeting, foolish slip, his temper and his longing both getting the better of him. Your sudden silence choked his own breath, his entire body freezing in terror.

For a moment, for an eternity, there was naught but silence.

He didn't dare move, fearful of how even the slightest shift of fabric could give him away, could startle you, could-

"I was half-afraid I had gone mad, speaking with shadows and expecting them to finally reply."

You were... teasing him, only a little, though at the time he was still petrified that you would demand he reveal himself. You had moved closer to the false panel, studying it closely, seeking out any faults that might give away its secrets. For a moment, your eyes were perfectly level with his own, and he feared you could hear his heart racing in his chest.

But soon enough you had drawn away, crestfallen. "Perhaps I have gone mad," you murmured, sighing in defeat. "Perhaps the rumors are true, and you are nothing but a ghost."

Memories of his time spent serving in the court of a distant empire flickered to memory, a rueful sound resembling laughter slipped past his defenses. "Of the many things they may wish and claim me to be, dead is not yet among them."

Your focus once more returned to the panel, and he instinctively took a step back. "Please-" he began, quickly cutting himself off.

Where others would have pressed forward, you paused, then took several steps away from the wall, granting him his distance, a warm sense of appreciation, and another he couldn't name at the time, sparkling to the surface at the warm breath of relieved laughter you released soon after. "You- You're really there."

That moment, one he could still so clearly remember as the peripeteia, the decided, unexpected change to a familiar script, one which would set the trajectory of both of your lives for the next ten years. It would lead to many late nights spent in practice, in conversation, in debates about the literary characters you loved so dearly. "I am always here."

Your aria had drawn to a close, the spell broken by the deafening roar of the audience's applause, and Gilbert was pulled from his memories, unable to conceal his smile.

Brava, Schatz. Bravissima.

He stood to his full height and began to make his way towards the nearby ladder.

For your role, another scene yet remained- a joyful reunion between your character and the valiant hero following the defeat of the jealous villain, a happy end to a romance so riddled with tragedy.

Gilbert needn't see the ending; it was a tale as old as time.

His footsteps were silent and certain, following a path he could traverse in his sleep; he had already paced it many times in his dreams.

Of all the false doors he had constructed in his opera house, there was one he had yet to pass through, one which now loomed before him. The room beyond was bathed in the ethereal golden glow of candlelight, a world outside of the darkness, fueling even more of the torment already plaguing his mind.

He was haunted by his doubts, by his need to... His need to properly introduce himself.

You had risen so high, could fly even higher, could rise above anything the fools in this theatre could ever hope to imagine. With your voice, your grace, your elegance, and your perspicacity, he had no doubts you could soar to a realm where only angels once dare tread. Perhaps it was wrong to want to burden you, to-

Movement on the other side of the glass brought his thoughts once more to a standstill. You were laughing, carefree, glowing with happiness and a brilliant light which followed everyone through the corridors after a triumphant performance. His heart fluttered to see you so beautifully framed, a living portrait he yearned to touch.

He frowned at the thought.

These feelings...

He had cared for you when you first arrived, a deep friendship slowly growing, even as he never allowed you to glance upon him. Slowly, then almost in an erupting whirlwind, those feelings had adapted, deepened, solidified. He was left hoping, wishing...

You were an Angel, in the most benevolent, compassionate of ways, but even an Angel would surely shun a Devil's Child.

For that was what his eyes and his appearance had always been: that of a devil. And surely-

Another figure was entering the room, and you were quick to abandon the comfort of your velvet settee, rushing to embrace-

No.

You were laughing, falling into conversation with an ease that only came-

You were familiar with this... this boy.

Perhaps even intimate, his traitorous thoughts interfered, the herald to the invasive darkness which followed.

It was a cold, bitter thing, rising from the depths, twisting and corrupting his every breath.

He had been careless, allowing you your freedom, allowing you to slip away to the gilded sanctuary of your guardian's maison de ville.

This boy dared to presume he could even look upon you, let alone embrace you, speak with you so candidly, even addressing you by your given name-

Gilbert felt his rage, his envy, grow stronger, even as that bedamned Raoul finally departed for the evening, leaving your bright smile in his wake.

You often called Gilbert your "Angel of Music," a bringer of light to your once dreary and dark days. You used it affectionately, a term of endearment for one you saw as a companion, a compatriot in curiosity.

But much like his namesake, Gilbert was Fallen, cursed, a creature of shadows and Night.

It took so little to pull him back into the Darkness, and now, with the sting of envy plaguing his every thought, Avarice and Doubt whispering in his ear, his ambitions had changed.

You were his.

He would ensure no one else could dare claim you, would have the slightest chance at your heart.

With skill honed from years of practice, Gilbert silently slid open the trap door, his voice carrying over to you in a tone he himself barely recognized. "Insolent boy. The impertinence of him, sharing in our triumph."

You startled at his voice, turning to him instinctively, your eyes widening in disbelief, before you graced him with your brightest smile yet.

Your joy glittered with more radiance than any star in the heavens, but its glimmer eclipsed your awareness, obscuring the darkness in the figure stealing ever closer.

"Hello, Engel."

Thanks for reading!

Special shout-out to @the-scribe-and-her-scribbles for unwittingly inspiring me today to finally sit down and write. She's an amazing writer, and if you haven't checked it out already, I highly recommend her ongoing series It Will Come Back.

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