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anxiety-elemental-kay · 10 months

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The Red Dragon’s Hoard

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category:Multi

Fandoms: Trigun Stampede (Anime 2023), Trigun (Anime & Manga 1995-2008)

Relationship: Meryl Stryfe/Vash the Stampede/Nicholas D. Wolfwood

Characters: Meryl Stryfe, Nicholas D. Wolfwood, Vash the Stampede (Trigun), Milly Thompson

Additional Tags: fairy tale AU, I get to put a dragon in my current hyper fixation this is the literal best, Mashwood Week 2023, Prompt: Fairy Tale

Language: English

Words: 1,839 Summary: The story goes like this: there is a princess, a dragon, and a knight. Everyone knows this story. Note: Another fic for @mashwoodweek 2023, this time based on the day 4 prompt Fairy Tale AU. Ao3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48448891

The story goes like this: there is a princess, a dragon, and a knight.

Everyone knows this story.

—

Princess Meryl let out a frustrated yell as yet another bramble tore at her clothes.

She’d changed into a set of light leather armor she used during weapons training, the most practical clothes she owned. At least she thought they were, but her armor was still decorated with fine fabric trimming, until every little thorn and branch began to tear them all out. Ruined clothing or not, she couldn’t go back, couldn’t give up, because a dragon was terrorizing her kingdom, and no one had been able to stop it.

Everyone knew the stories, even Meryl, sequestered in the royal castle. The sight of it on the horizon was so terrible it sent both humans and animals fleeing before it. When its wings beat it brought down howling winds and vicious rains. Its flaming breath, bright as two suns, scorched everything beneath it.

It had taken months for her to steal enough intelligence and rumors from around the castle, to pinpoint a possible location for the dragon’s lair. No one else had been able to stop the dragon, and she wasn’t going to lay back and do nothing, not ever again.

Meryl grumbled, and looked up at the mountain before her, her guide on her journey. Her thoughts wandered back to her handmaid, who had promised to tell everyone she was sick with something horrifically contagious and deeply embarrassing. The princess needed to be quarantined, and would only allow Milly to visit her, to preserve her pride. Brave Milly Thompson, Meryl hoped she was okay.

An hour and many more torn frills later, she arrived at the mountain’s base, and the mouth of a large cave. Its sole inhabitant was waiting for her there

The dragon towered above her, red scales glittered like rubies in the afternoon sun, and it looked down at her with slitted blue eyes. Bright gold spikes lined its head and down the back of its neck. It was missing its left front leg, the stump scarred. Its hide was pockmarked with broken scales and scar tissue, this was a creature that had survived many deadly battles.

The dragon tilted its head to one side and blinked at her slowly.

The gesture reminded her so much of a cat she could only stare, stunned at the allegedly vicious creature. This couldn’t be the dragon that had been terrorizing the kingdom!

“Hi there?” said the dragon, like a politely confused guest at a party.

“Um…” Meryl boggled. Dragons could talk?

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t try to slay me,” the dragon said, shuffling its feet. “Swords and spears hurt, you know!”

“Oh!” Meryl snapped back to reality, reminding herself that she was at her destination, the end of her quest. “No, I’m not here to slay you!” She tried to puff herself up, so she looked less like the petite princess and more like someone deserving of respect. “My name is Meryl Stryfe,” she lied with confidence. “And I want to talk to you!”

—

There is a princess, a dragon, and a knight.

They each have a role to play.

—

Nicholas was a knight.

He wasn’t given a choice.

“Sir Wolfwood of Hopeland,” said King Bernardelli from his throne, “My daughter has disappeared, possibly taken by some foul man or beast!”

A long time ago, he’d been plucked from the orphanage because a knight needed a squire, but couldn’t find a willing apprentice. That was enough to make him a knight now, because that’s all it took. You had to be chosen by the right person.

Kneeling before the king, Nicholas responded, “I will find her and bring her home, Your Majesty.”

It didn’t matter if he’d been trained by the knight with the worst reputation, once Wolfwood ended his training and passed all the royal trials, he became a knight of the realm. He became a part of the upper crust, was invited to fancy parties and grand tournaments. Wolfwood was the kingdom’s shield, the king’s sword, forged in flames to be a weapon of war.

“Go now, loyal knight,” the king commanded. “Do whatever it takes to bring Princess Meryl Bernardelli home!”

Nicholas he rose to his feet, and bowed. “By your will.”

He had a job. It kept him fed, and protected the orphanage he was stolen from. He had nothing else. Believed he needed nothing else.

—

There is a princess, a dragon, and a knight.

Everyone knows how this story ends.

—

Their lovely conversation was ruined when a knight appeared at Vash’s den.

“Hey, you!” said the knight, lifting a massive claymore in two hands. “By the authority of King Bernardelli, I have been commanded to…” he trailed off. Though his face was obscured by a black metal helmet, Vash could still see the knight lean forward to examine the spread between him and Meryl. “Are those… pastries?”

“Yeah!” Vash said, with a delighted wag of his spiked tail. “Meryl found a great bakery in a nearby village! Want one?”

The knight only gaped, the point of his sword landing in the soft dirt. Vash took the opportunity to use his long tongue to take another donut from his plate. Meryl had been the one to introduce him to this particular human invention, sweet on his tongue. Humans were so clever!

“I don’t care what the king says,” Meryl said still sitting comfortably on Vash’s collection of mismatched fabrics. She lifted her chin as she addressed the knight, used to others obeying her authority. “You can leave, you will not lay a hand on this dragon.”

“I’m here to rescue Princess Bernardelli from whatever wicked creature captured her!” the knight said, in a tone that was less ‘confident rescuer’ and more ‘walked into the wrong room and has no idea what’s happening’.

“Wait, princess…?” Vash turned to Meryl, who was dressed in nicely made if plain looking leather armor. Sure it had some frills that were torn as she’d gone through the woods, but she looked no different from the average adventurer. “You’re the princess?” Vash said with a startled flutter of his wings.

Princess Meryl groaned, and put her head in her hands. “People act weird if they know I’m a princess, and I wanted to know who you really were!”

“By lying to me?” Vash said, giving her what he hoped she understood to be a playful grin. Humans sometimes had trouble reading his face. Meryl picked up a scone, and tossed it at him. “Hey!” Vash protested as it bounced off his scales. “Don’t waste good treats like that!”

“Don’t ignore me!”

Both turned their attention back to the knight, still standing at the mouth of Vash’s den. Even clad in full armor, his presence was more flustered than menacing. Vash gave a smoky laugh.

Delicately, using the tips of his claws, Vash picked up a plate with chocolate chip cookies, and held it out to the knight. “Would you like one?”

—

There is a princess, a dragon, and a knight.

They don’t care about the rest.

—

“Oh my!” Milly stared in amazement and wonder. “I can’t believe my eyes! I knew you were serious ma’am, but this?”

She had been so worried for her friend, with no word from her months after helping the princess escape the castle. Milly knew her princess was strong and clever, and trusted in her plan to investigate the dragon plaguing the kingdom.

Secretly, Milly had been afraid she’d never see her best friend again. Then, weeks later, a very strange letter arrived.

She followed the directions carefully, until she wound up somewhere she’d never expected to see and live to tell the tale! She’d gone through the forest to the foot a a mountain, and a natural cave dug into its side. It was a dragon’s den, with Meryl waiting for her inside. Nearby, the dragon himself sat like a cat, legs tucked in neatly, with a man in knight’s armor, minus the helmet, tucked in against his side. The knight frowned down at his whittling, it looked like he was carving a bird.

“This is Vash,” Meryl said, indicating the dragon, who gave Milly a wave with a large paw. She waved back, enchanted. “And this is Wolfwood,” Meryl indicated the knight, who didn’t acknowledge her presence.

“It’s nice to meet you Mr. Vash, and Mr. Wolfwood!” Milly chirped.

“Sir Wolfwood!” he corrected. “I’m still a knight!”

The dragon responded to this assertion with a playful whack with his wing. Wolfwood answered Vash’s vicious attack by sitting his woodworking down to grab the limb and give it a tug. Vash whined, his struggles playful, careful not to genuinely hurt the human who was so much smaller than him. It was the last way Milly had ever expected to see a dragon and a knight fighting.

She took in the sights of the den around her: It was decorated with human knick-knacks, from incomplete paintings to scrap fabrics to broken farm tools, the detritus of humanity collected in curiosity and reverence. What she assumed was new were two spaces near the back that looked as if they’d been recently carved out from the stone. One was sparsely filled, containing only a leather pack and a helmet laying on a pile of blankets, the other filled with metal trinkets and books, her own makeshift bed twice as large as the knight’s was.

“I didn’t think a dragon’s home could be so nice!” Milly said in earnest admiration.

“…Thank you?” said Vash, with a cute draconic frown.

Meryl put a hand on her friend’s arm. “You understand why I can’t go back.”

“I do,” Milly said, taking her friend’s hand. “What should I tell everyone?”

Meryl bit her lip, and Milly ached for her. If Milly told the kingdom their princess was staying with a dragon, the king would raze the whole forest to rescue her from her ‘ensorcellment’. If Milly told the kingdom their princess was dead, the king would raze the whole forest in his search for revenge on the dragon. If she told the kingdom nothing about their princess, the king might raze the whole forest anyway in his desperation to find his daughter.

There were a lot of ways the king might raze the forest searching for Meryl. She didn’t think anyone actually wanted that.

“We’re still figuring things out,” Meryl admitted, squeezing Milly’s hand. “Please, trust me. We need time. There’s still another dragon out there, the one that’s really attacking people.”

Milly looked back at Vash and Wolfwood, who’d made some kind of truce. Wolfwood returned to his whittling, though now he was sitting directly on Vash’s long snout. “That sounds scary, but… I’m happy for you too. He’s very handsome.” Milly shrugged, and added with a grin. “And I guess the knight is okay looking too.”

“Shut up!” Wolfwood snapped without any real heat. Beneath him, Vash giggled.

Dragons could giggle! Milly thought she couldn’t smile any wider.

#trigun #mashwood #kay writes things

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beneaththetangles · 4 years

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10 Year Retrospective, Month #2: Throwback to February 2011

As we celebrate our tenth anniversary on Beneath the Tangles, we want to take some time each month to look into the past, not only to commemorate our ten years, but also to see where we were and how far we’ve come as a site and collectively as anime fans. For most months this year, we’ll do that by looking back at a particular year and at the month corresponding to that year. For instance, last month we started this off by looking at January 2010. Today we throw back to February 2011.

TOP OF THE CHARTS: FEBRUARY 27, 2011

We’ll dive into anime a bit, but I want to us to look at what else was happening at this time in 2011. Here are the most popular songs, movies, and series on this very day nine years ago:

Top Selling Album: NOW 37, Various artists [Amazon]

Number One Song: “Born this Way,” Lady Gaga [Amazon]

Top Movie: Hall Pass ($13.5 mil) [Amazon]

Most Watched TV Show: 83rd Academy Awards

CURRENT EVENTS: JANUARY 2011

Here’s what was happening in the world nine years ago this month…

There is significant unrest in countries around the world, continuing massive governmental shifts in the Middle East and North Africa, as Bahrain begins to experience instability and Libya moves closer to Civil War.

President Obama determined that the Defense of Marriage Act, which prevents federal recognition of same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional.

The most powerful solar flare in four years erupted, disrupting communications in China.

In the most-watched television show in history, the Green Bay Packers defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV, 31-25.

Inception, The Social Network, and The King’s Speech are the big winners at the 83rd Academy Awards, with the latter winning best motion picture. Colin Firth takes home best actor for the same film and Natalie Portman wins best actress for Perfect Blue Black Swan.

POPULAR ANIME in 2011

It’s hard to believe that Steins;gate is now nine years old. It burst onto the scene in April of 2011, gathering steam (and admirers) each week and eventually hurtling toward a celebrated conclusion. But it wasn’t the only would-be classic released in 2011. We also saw Puella Magi Madoka Magica come out that year, along with Nichijou and Fate/zero. It truly was the year of Gen Urobuchi, as he slayed our emotions as the writer of two of those works: PMMM and Fate/zero. Those franchises, of course, remain strongly integrated in the anime fandom, with Fate/Grand Order series coming out each season recently and Madoka getting a side story anime this year.

art by 白祈QSR (reprinted w/permission)

Other critical darlings of 2011 included Usagi Drop, Level E, Mawaru Penguindrum, and Hourou Musuko. We also joke about how long it took this show to get a third season (and unexpected delight for sure), but to give you a frame of reference, it was in 2011 that Chihayafuru originally premiered. A number of series that have retained popularity since then also made their debuts: Anohana, Blue Exorcist, Deadman Wonderland, No. 6, and the reboot of Hunter x Hunter.

Dozens of anime movies were released in Japanese theaters, including Shinkai’s most obviously Ghibli-influenced work, Children Who Chase Lost Voices, and Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos. And tons and tons of other anime series were released—see any favorites of yours among this smattering of shows?

Hanasaku Iroha

Infinite Stratos

Kamisama Dolls

Last Exile: Fam, the Silver Sing

SKET DANCE

Tiger & Bunny

WHAT WE WERE BLOGGING

2011 was probably singularly most important year for Beneath the Tangles. Up until around that time, I had always characterized myself as a “quitter.” When things got tough, I got going. I always just assumed it would be the same with blogging—that I even made it from the site’s launch in summer 2010 into the near year was a surprise, but that we were still going through 2011, the first full year of the blog, was astounding to me. It was truly the grace of God, him wanting to use this blog for something and to change me for his purposes. And as he accomplished his work, four key things fell into place in 2011:

I was joined by our first staff writers. R86, who is still blogging away, was the first to join. His initial article as a staff writer wasn’t about his favorite baseball anime, Oofuri, but about another classic one: Major. He was joined later that year on staff by Goldy and then Lynna. It was a wonderful team, and one that expanded our reach and put out terrific content, helping me grow so much as a writer as they challenged me with their excellent thoughts on a variety of shows, as well as by their friendship.

A number of foundational posts went up, those that consistently drew readers into our blog and continued to do so for years. Article like my review of Endo’s Silence, the Finding the Invisible God series, and my elementary (and now, I’ve concluded, wrong) analysis of Gilles de Rais boosted our readership, bringing in devoted subscribers and providing a source of encouragement.

If my first few months of blogging was primarily about building relationships with other anibloggers, 2011 was about cultivating those new ties. I did this through conventional means, but also through the Aniblogger Testimony series, where I invited other anibloggers to talk about their own spiritual journeys. It was a vital component to our blog and a building block of our mission to create bridges in the otaku community. It all started with a survey I sent out to every aniblogger I could find, one that was helped along by Lauren Orsini, who was kind enough to create graphical representations for me. A lot of bloggers stood up and took notice of what we were doing as something unique and maybe helpful; a couple went the opposite direction and angrily denounced me (publicly). It was a wild time.

We started doing what we do best for the first time. In 2011, I started covering currently airing series, particularly shows like Hourou Musuko, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Usagi Drop, and Mawaru Penguindrum. Now, most of our anime coverage is about what’s airing right now. We also started featuring article types that are now consistently part of our coverage: interviews (here’s one with singer Cait Plage and another with academic Jolyon Thomas), reviews, first impression posts, and our first Rez Week posts, where we focus on one topic all week long (the first was one Nicholas D. Wolfwood). I also started developing relationships with anime and manga production companies, and actually got in over my head, such as when I told one company I would do episodic posts for Angel Beats: I soon found my fervor for the series was completely gone and I couldn’t deliver as promised.

I was working it so hard, and so excited about the relationships I was building (most of which have, unfortunately, withered away) that I spent way too many of my work hours doing my hobby. My bosses noticed. But God works even (and especially) through our weaknesses, and I found better balance in future years and, strangely enough, work with some of those same managers today in different capacities, with some now serving under me!

I hope enjoyed this look into the recent past, both on a bigger, societal level and at Beneath the Tangles. We’ll keep up this throughout 2020. Come join us again next month, as we tackle March 2012.

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Featured art by つーはん (reprinted w/permission)

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