#also also i hate drawing the horns on his helmet. i did not try very hard this time. simply do not look at them. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

buglife · 3 years

Note

Ghost and Tiso? Maybe about how they became friends?

Depictions of injuries and some sad stuff ahead, but this the longest request to date! Apologies my eyes are bad lol.

Tiso didn’t know what to think when he first laid eyes on the little knight, sitting alone on the sole bench in Dirtmouth. They were one of the strangest beings he had ever saw, with their big white helmet-like head, their weird little nubby body, and the fact they had a nail. How could something this tiny hold a nail? It had to be someone’s lost grub, he was sure of it. There was no way this little squib wasn’t about to be ambushed by some angry parent, furious that they were carrying an actual nail. He waited a moment and looked around, but nobody came.

He supposed someone would come sooner or later, he had a mission after all. He had wandered the wastes since he came of age with just himself and his shield searching for some sort of purpose in life. Sure, he had over time, became a rather competent warrior, but he failed to find challenges that would actually test his mettle. Then, he heard tales of a lost Kingdom where many bugs have gone and never returned. Said Kingdom was rumored to have an arena where one could compete for glory. Tiso had already bested many arenas and moved on, ever searching. If there wasn’t an arena than he could at least look around and recount what he saw.

Maybe here, he’ll find himself, and find a measure of happiness.

His shield felt heavy as he sighed and looked at the well. The Elderbug, kind as could be, had warned him of the dangers below. Bugs sometimes lost their minds, trapped in a dreaming world where they couldn’t remember anything but a bright, burning light. Bugs died from the claws of the infected, most no more than empty husks driven by a malevolent will. The thought horrified Tiso, he had never heard of such a thing. The dead walking? Still, the old bug was serious as he let his old gaze drift around the nearly empty town.

Tiso was inclined to believe him.

So there he was, ready to take the plunge down below and took one last look at the grub sitting on the bench. He happened to catch their eyes, and the little grub straitened up a little. He was surprised to see them leap off and stride toward him quickly, waving their arms.

“What do you want, Squib.” Tiso had no mood to deal with any little kids.

He watched them move their hands out from under their cloak, their tiny paws and equally tiny claws making a flurry of movements. They then stared at him expectantly.

“Uhhh...the fuck was that?” He had no clue what the little grub was doing with their hands. They deflated a little and then brightened, reaching into themselves with a hand and suddenly, they had a little book and a pen.

“...what...did you, did you just reach inside yourself!?” Tiso boggled, the hell was this? What the hell was this kid?

He watched in stunned silence as the little being ignored him to start scribbling quickly, turning over the book once done to display their writing.

“Hello, please be careful down there. It’s dangerous.”

“Ppfft. Nothing dangerous for the likes of me.” Tiso couldn’t help but grin. Aw, how precious, they were worried about him. “I’m a seasoned warrior, I faced a lot and I am sure I can handle myself.”

The being frowned, at least, Tiso thought they did. They tilted their mask in a way to convey some measure of unhappiness and then started writing again. They turned over the book with a flourish once done, the ink smeared a bit in their haste to write it.

“I am also a warrior and there are things down there that can kill you without hesitation. I’ve seen corpses of better armed and armored warriors scattered below. All thought the same that you did. Please be careful.”

Of course Tiso ignored most of the writing to focus on the first part. “Oh, a warrior you say, you know how to use that nail you have there?”

They nodded, shoulders tense as they again, pointed to the part about the dead bodies. Then tapped it.

“Obviously they weren’t as good as me then.”, he huffed. “Say, if you do fancy yourself a warrior, I hear there’s a place for us, an arena of sorts. Maybe we’ll meet up there, and you can show me what you know.” He held up his shield, the metal glinting in the lights of the lumafly lanterns. “That is, if your parents let you, Squib.”

The grub sighed with their whole body, and wrote back to reply.

“I am not a kid. I’m probably older than you.”

Tiso couldn’t help but bark out a laugh. “Okay, okay, whatever you say. You got a name, little Squib?”

The being rubbed their face for a moment and wrote back. “My name is Ghost. You?”

“Heh, you’re speaking to Tiso! Remember that name, it’ll probably be famous.” He preened a little, slightly disappointing to find that the little Ghost was just staring at him. Once again they presented their scribbles.

“Or I’ll remember it to put on your grave marker.”

Bummer, kid. Tiso at first thought the squib was mocking him. He opened his mouth to call them a little shit, but he took a second look at them. They looked tired and weary. They looked like someone used to hearing bad news. Inside, he felt a little guilty at this. Clearly this thing...Ghost...was genuinely worried about his safety and he went and spit it back in their faces. It seems that foot-in-mouth disease is a reoccurring issue with him.

He sighed. “Look, I know you don’t believe me, but I promise that I know what I’m doing. If things are too bad, I know when to cut my losses and run, alright?”

Ghost brightened up at that and nodded. Tiso snickered to lighten the mood, reaching down to pat them between the horns (something they radiated a scowl at, but said nothing about).

“No worries, if anything, I do wanna see what you can do sometime!”

And with that, Tiso jumped down the well.

---

Well, Tiso should have listened to the little Ghost. Because he had to fight every inch of the way to reach this one stag station. He had learned the name of this wretched section, ‘the Forgotten Crossroads’, and he wished it could be forgotten. He had barely landed on the stonework below when an infected bug lunged out of the darkness, hissing. He had swiftly decapitated it, getting some orange gunk all over his shield. He had wanted to clean it off then and there, but the buzzing sound of vengeflies made him rethink his plan. The feral Tiktiks and Crawlids didn’t give him much trouble, except the time he stepped on one by accident and their spikes hurt like hell. The vengeflies were bastards like usual, screeching as they tried to dive bomb him.

And oh, the aspids. The fucking aspids. How he hated them. He felt so much satisfaction every-time he threw his shield and popped their horrible little glowing abdomens. The only problem was the orange that splashed out burned any exposed bit of chitin he had. Never before, had he been glad to own his armor. He would be extremely happy if he drove those little bastards to extinction. The husks though, were very horrible. Not in a fighting way, in there they were stupid in that they only knew how to run straight at him. He could take their heads off at a distance, shield returning to him with a flash of soul. In the end, he pitied them. They were once bugs, like him, but something had changed, and they became infected. He had been happy to find a hot spring that he could scrub himself and his equipment clean. He didn’t know if he even could be infected, but he decided to err on the side of caution. The orange...goo...he couldn’t call it proper hemolymph, didn’t seem to cause him trouble for now. But still, better safe than sorry. He made camp there for the night, but not only because he didn’t want to get out of the water.

He had braved the crossroads again the next day, ducking under aspids and slaughtering husks until he found the relative safety of the stag station. He sighed and sat on the bench, leaning backwards to rest a spell.

Then came the sound of rumbling. He was instantly alert, shield at the ready and his eyes trained to the tunnel. He expected many things to come out of that tunnel, but he didn’t expect to see little Ghost so soon. The stag they are riding slid to a stop, bending down to let the little warrior off. The stag spoke to him, Tiso didn’t catch what exactly, and watched the warrior wave goodbye as the stag took off down the tunnel again.

They turned and saw him and seemed just as surprised. They bounced a bit in delight and rushed over, waving.

“Hello to you too, little warrior. See? I’m perfectly fine.” Tiso gestured to himself with a grin. “Though I will admit, those aspids suck.”

Ghost nodded rapidly in agreement, going as far as to draw their nail and stomp a little. Tiso laughed.

“No worry, If you’re going up I have thinned their numbers a bit. Seems like having a big gross abdomen makes it easy for someone to cut you down. It’s the perfect target! You can’t miss!”

Again Ghost nodded in agreement. Remembering that he couldn’t understand those weird hand sign things, they took out their journal and pen once more. It was once of those fancy ones that held the ink on the insides but still needed refilling from time to time. They hopped up on the bench to join him, there was plenty of room after all.

“So,” Tiso began, “What have you been up to?”

“I’m trying to figure out a way past the fungal wastes.” They wrote. Tiso could easily look over their shoulder so they didn’t have to keep turning their book around.

“Fungal wastes?”

Ghost chirped, which absolutely did not make Tiso jump a little. They were just, so quiet. They were obviously mute but he didn’t expect them to make sounds. Tiso hid his reaction and watched as they fucking reached inside themselves again and pulled out a map. They opened it up, showing an incomplete map, each section in a different colored ink. Tiso whistled, impressed.

“You did that all on your own?”

They shook their head and wrote out. “Cornifer sells basic maps. I find all the hidden stuff.” They gestured to the various lines on the paper. Some of the ink was newer than others, which meant they back tracked and found new places. They even did little doodles of interesting things they saw. The sheer amount of drawn spikes and thorns make him question just how much fun he’s going to have traversing some of this kingdom.

“That’s still hella impressive for such a little grub.” He teased. He was arrogant, but he could recognize talent. “Maybe if being a warrior doesn’t work out, you could be a map maker in the future.”

Ghost just held their map for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. It looked like they wanted to write something, but passed it up to put on a more cheerful demeanor. “It’s nice you think I’m that good.” They wrote.

“Heh, I can recognize talent. By the way, since you’ve been all over the place, have you figured out where this arena is?”

“I hear that it’s called the ‘Colosseum of Fool’s. It’s somewhere near the City of Tears, I think.” They make sure Tiso read what they wrote before drawing a line with a claw from the stag station where they sit to somewhere east. They had a place marked ‘Crystal Peak’ and ‘Resting Grounds’, so it was probably near those places.

“Thanks, Squib. You probably saved me a lot of walking.”

Ghost innocently pointed to the stag station’s bell.

Tiso shook his head. “Oh no no no, true warriors don’t convenience themselves like that! True warriors make it to where they go on their own efforts alone.”

He was so full of shit and he could tell that Ghost knew. He honestly didn’t’ want to be in any dark, tight spaces. He couldn’t help thinking of the colony he grew up in. How dark and how crowded it was. You couldn’t find a moments peace to yourself and cave ins could happen at any time. How close the walls were to each other. How you never knew when the ground would rumble and stones would start to fall. No sir, he won’t take the stag way.

Ghost gave them the ‘whatever you say’ look before they rolled their map back up and tucked it away again.

“Where the fuck are you putting all that?” Tiso exclaimed as Ghost also put away their book and pen. They only shrugged in response and then gleefully bounced away with a wave goodbye. He heard the patter of little feet, and then the shriek of a vengefly, only to hear the sharp slice of a nail and the silence after.

Hrm...perhaps this was a warrior after all?

Tiso leaned back, determined to rest a little more before continuing his journey. With how big this place is, he wasn’t sure he’d see the little warrior again, and something about that statement saddened him.

---

Tiso had no idea there’d be an entire lake this big in Hallownest. Sure, water in caves was common, it’s how the caves were made after all, but this was something else. He sat on the sand, a campfire crackling softly as a tiktik roasted on a stick. All around him were fossils of shells, creatures long since gone and lost to time. One made for a nice seat and he wondered a bit to whom it may have belonged to. Some water snail, maybe. The water was clean and clear enough that he could take a dip to rinse off the grim of travel and found it most refreshing.

It had taken him a couple days to make his way here. Some paths were blocked off, either to cave ins or rusted closed, so he had to improvise. Moving through the Resting Grounds was eerie. It was full of graves, yeah, but once you fight empty husks for a while, tombstones start loosing their spookiness. There he had run into another stag station and swiftly turned back around. He took another pathway he didn’t try and ended up here, at this lake.

He thought of all the empty houses along the way. He poked inside to take a look here and there and only took things that he needed. The dead weren’t going to use them, he was sure no spirit would begrudge him for taking a few spices or a blanket. It did make for useful places to rest, as he could just shut the doors and windows to keep out husks. But still, he couldn’t help but feel like a trespasser in this dead kingdom.

He mused on this as he poked at the roasting tiktik. It’ll be done soon and then he can eat and continue his journey. A warrior needs their energy after all.

He poked up his antenna as he heard a distant noise over the crackling of the fire. He turned and looked over the lake, watching a white dot in the distance grow steadily closer. Water kicked up around bent air currents as the figure flew just above the surface. When close enough, he spotted the horns.

Oh, it was them. Small world, huh?

Little Ghost seemed to spot him as well. As soon as they reached the beach, they cut off whatever power they were using to run straight at him. They were all waves and ‘smiles’, tilting their head up to look at him in obvious glee.

“Hello, Squib!” Tiso grinned, he wouldn’t admit it but he was glad to see the little bug. “Still in one piece I see?”

They nodded and gestured to himself.

“Yeah, told you I’d be fine!” He took a moment to poke at the tiktik again and caught a flash of light on metal. Little Ghost had drawn their nail and was holding it out for Tiso to see. Oh, it seems like they got a new one, or they fixed up their old one. The other was dull, and this one had a soft pale light to it. Nothing fancy so far, but he could tell it was sharper.

“Nice.” He was impressed. “But I’m a shield guy. I don’t know much about nails other than that you shouldn’t get stabbed by them.”

The little bug ‘laughed’, huffing air in amusement as the reached over and pointed at his shield. They looked at it, and then back at him, titling their head.

“Sure, you can look, but be careful, because it can do this.” He attached his shield to his arm and squeezed his hand just so. There was a click, and the sides of the shield unfolded into blades, a perfect circle of pain. Ghost vibrated in response, the dark eyes within their mask shining brightly in the light of the fire. Tiso grinned and flexed again, withdrawing the blades to make a normal shield again. “And that, is how I deal with aspids. It can also come back when I throw it.”

He wasn’t sure why he was telling this to Ghost. Weren’t they going to fight sooner or later? If so it would be best to hold his cards close to his chest and keep his surprises as surprises. But there was just...something about this bug that made him want to talk about the things he knows. They were paying rapt attention, eyes scanning all the details made in the shield. Bugs that only wielded shields were not very common, he had found, so maybe they just never seen something like the one he has before. Maybe he wanted to be the one to cause the air of wonder and awe in someone else.

Maybe he just wanted a bit of attention that didn’t result in getting bruises.

Ghost touched the shield gently with a paw, feeling the metal a little before they withdrew, satisfied. They nodded their approval and sat down, looking up at him expectantly.

“Oh? What’s this? Do you want tales of how I used this shield?” A giddy happy feeling welled up in his chest as Ghost nodded rapidly. They moved their hands, signing a word he didn’t’ know how to understand. He could figure it either meant ‘thank you’ or ‘please’, either way they were polite. They shuffled and got comfortable and watched Tiso as he began to talk.

Tiso talked for so long that he forgot all about his tiktik.

–

Tiso sat on the bench, the roar of the crowd above him shaking loose the dust on the ceiling. It fell around him in motes of light reflected from the fires in the pit. There were other warriors there too, waiting their turn to engage in the carnage above. So this was the Colosseum of Fools. A crowded arena where a corpse sat as the seat of honor, empty gaze watching as the combatants did their damndest to kill each other. Geo was rapidly exchanged between hands as fighters either won, yielded, or died. Most died, but so it was in the way of the arena. He had taken time to watch to get a scope of what he was dealing with and concluded that the bugs in this kingdom were fucking insane. He was not used to this style of games, but he supposed he’d have to learn. He met the little fool chained up and dangling from the ceiling. He paid his fee and waited for his turn in the pit. There was a shriek above, and something big slamming into the ground. He imagined that he could expect to fight more beasts than warriors.

What he was not expecting, was little Ghost to jump down into the pit.

“Hey, you made it!” Tiso couldn’t help but exclaim as Ghost ran over to climb on the bench as well. “This is the place for us, I can feel it. There’s finally a challenge for me here.”

Ghost nodded, and in a flash held their journal and pen. “Are you doing the trials?”

He snorted, “Of course I am, and you?”

“Not yet, just exploring.”

“Hey what, are you afraid of being paired against me?” Tiso tugged his hood a little, smoothing down his antenna to try and stifle the intense smell of infected hemolymph. For a moment, he felt a flash of relief at Ghost’s prior statement. He didn’t quite believe that this bug was an adult, but they seemed to be a good sort. Did they really need to do this, taint their soul with battle just for the glory of it? For a bug like Tiso, he was okay with it. He was okay with it ever since he found himself alone with only a shield to protect him and bad memories to keep him company. He had to get tough, but did this little being who asked him for stories really need to get tough?

They shook their head as their shoulders shook with mirth. “No, I have things I have to do. I’ll fight you later and I’ll make you the one scared.” Their shoulders kept shaking, so Tiso assumed this was all said in jest.

“Bold words from a little shit.” Tiso was interested in seeing just what they can do, but later in a spar. Away from a place like this. This wasn’t a place for them.

They nearly rolled over, chirping in laughter and getting strange looks from the other waiting combatants.

Tiso rounded on them. “Mind your fucking business.” He snarled, and the combatants averted their gaze to go back to polishing their weapons. Good.

Ghost took a few deep breaths to calm themselves down. “You don’t have to be mean.”

“Sometimes you gottah be mean.” Tiso countered. “If they tried to throw you out or something, I would have cut off any limb that touched you.”

Woah, where did that thought come from?

Ghost looked at Tiso for a moment, really looking at him. Tiso felt like those eyes could see into his very soul and he suppressed a shudder. Ghost looked back to their book and wrote again.

“Why?”

Tiso gulped, time to bullshit and fast. “Well, because we were practically destined to battle each other. Hell, we keep running into each other in this dead fucking kingdom. What are the odds of that? What are the odds of both of us, meeting multiple times, and then meeting up here? It’s destiny!”

They tilted their head.

“If we are going to have a proper spar, none of us can get hurt before then. We have to be at 100%, right? So I won’t let anyone lay a claw on you until then.” There, nailed it.

They nodded and tapped their pen against the bottom of their mask in thought. They took a while to write, in which Tiso glanced around to make sure the other combatants weren’t about to get bored and try to pick a fight. Finally, they tapped his arm and showed him what they wrote.

“I understand. That means you have to promise to be okay until then.” They gestured above as more dust shook loose and rained down in a shower of gray. The crowd roared again, along with the sounds of something big screaming.

“Sure, I can do that. If I break my promise I’ll give you five thousand geo.” This was a prop bet for sure. He didn’t have that kinda money yet, he’d have to earn it in the arena. But he was confident in his abilities, he would be fine and he’d be able to take off time to have a proper spar with his little companion friend buddy fellow warrior.

They nodded and held out their hand, which he took and shook. Gods, they had such little paws. “Good doing business with ya, Squib.”

They did their odd version of ‘smiling’ again. “I got to go, gonna try and go up more.”

“Good luck with that.” Tiso watched them put away their book, and with a hop, skip, and a jump, vanished up the pit. He had time now, to sit and sort out his feelings. He had that weird ‘big brother’ urge, and it wasn’t because they were so small. Nah, this person listened to him and liked him. He figured he can try and do the same.

---

Tiso was in a world of hurt, agony seeped into the broken crack in his chest. Hemolymph kept flooding his lungs and dripping out the corners of his mandibles. There was a fog around him in his mind, his barely open eyes blurry and seeing only smudges of green and blue. Flecks of white occasionally crossed his eyes before vanishing again. He had long since given up on trying to move, each pull of muscle only made the hemolymph flow faster. He struggled to recall what was happening as the pain moved in and out, like it was happening to someone else.

Breathe in. Breath out. Breathe in. Breath out.

The only thing he can do was just lay there and breathe wetly. Each breath he had to mentally will and it took up all other functions for now. He had no mental power to spare on anything else, so when a bigger fleck of white took up his vision and didn’t leave, he had no clue what to make of it. What the hell? He took a breath, momentary forgetting too when he pondered the white. A cough tore into his chest and he could feel the broken edges of chitin rubbing together. Something was touching him. Something was trying to get his attention, but he couldn’t spare the thought.

Breathe in. Breath out. Breathe in. Breath out.

The white vanished suddenly and Tiso found himself unable to bring himself to care or wonder about it. He had to keep breathing. Something deep and hot within himself had refused to give up. He had something to do that was very important and he couldn’t miss it. He wouldn’t. The weight of his shield was his only current comfort. Just as suddenly, the white appeared again, with a flash of red and gray. He peered at the smudges as distant sounds tickled his antenna. Was he underwater? Why couldn’t he understand them? A flash of pain and suddenly his world twisted. Colors spun around and around and it made it hard to concentrate on breathing. More sounds. More pain.

Breathe in. Breath out.

Breathe in. Brea-

It seemed like only a second and he was consumed in fire. A burning ache spread over himself as he saw only darkness. The darkness and a shriek as round orange pustules throbbed and vibrated. The sickening sound of hot fluids spilling and the nasty pop as pustules burst in a shower of gore. He was there. He had his shield, as a giant thing of teeth and screams jumped into the arena. He could barely raise his shield and then there was so much pain.

Trapped. Trapped like the fallen tunnels as the air got stale and lungs burned. Instead of the cries of the dying there was the roar of a crowd.

Take my breath, his sister had said. A little tiny thing with a tiny heart. A stone had hit her. The cave was too crowded and there wasn’t enough air. She was dying. Tiso couldn’t move the stone or she’d die faster.

Take my breath, she said. Then she breathed no more.

She always wanted to be a warrior.

She wanted to help people.

She never got to grow up.

You wasted her breath, the mawlurk shrieked as it fell toward him. You wasted it. You wasted it to die like a Fool!

Then was falling and falling and falling and falling an-

He felt cool hand in his, so tiny and small. They held on tight and Tiso stopped falling.

---

Tiso cracked his eyes open, still blurry and still in pain. He felt odd. The pain was there, but a large portion seemed locked away, just barely felt on the surface. He felt a hand in his, and with a colossal effort he managed to tilt his head to the side.

He was in some hut, on a bed, and holding his hand was the little Ghost. They must have felt the movement, because their head snapped around and looked on his eyes. A rapid flash of emotions, anger, grief, relief, joy, and others he didn’t have the ability to process, cycled through their very being. His hand was gripped with both paws now and a dribble of black welled up in their eyes to drip down their mask. Tiso wanted to say something, but it was taking a bit to remember how to do so. A large shadow fell over him, and he instinctively turned his head up to look.

Standing over him was an enormous beetle with a nail the size of Tiso himself. They looked down disappointingly at him.

“You must be Tiso, eh?”

He could only nod in response.

“You have to be the luckiest bastard in this whole dead kingdom.” The beetle moved over to a table, clinking glasses together and pouring some liquid. “You landed in just the right spot for Ghost to find you and close enough for me to come get you.”

He returned and handed a glass of water to Tiso, waiting for him to grip it before letting go. “I am Nailmaster Oro and you are here because my pupil insisted. You are going to be bed ridden for a while. Be glad I am more patient than my brothers, because after a whole week of putting you back together, I’m going to be glad when you leave.”

Tiso gratefully took the water and sucked it down, letting the liquid cool his dry throat. Once hydrated, he looked down to the ocean of bandages covering his front and one of his arms. His shield lay tilted against the bed, in arms reach. A whole week was gone, just like that. Oro must have felt the questions in his mind, because be continued to talk.

“You nearly got crushed to death, you goddamn idiot.” Oro tutted, looking over the bandages with the bedside manor of a primal aspid. “The Colosseum of Fools is just that, a collection of fools looking to die for no good reason.”

Tiso opened his mandibles to retort but only managed a wheeze. His lungs felt particularly awful and Ghost patted their hand in sympathy. Ghost let go just long enough to run over to Oro, tugging on his cloak. Once Oro bent down, Ghost gently embraced as much as he could, which wasn’t a lot. He saw Oro sigh with the tiniest glimpse of affection, before roughly patting them on the head. He glanced back to Tiso, and scowled when he realized that the ant saw the whole thing. Ghost stepped back to return to Tiso, taking his hand again.

“You’ll be okay after a bit of healing and time in the hot springs.” Oro went to squat by the fire, stirring something that smelled wonderful in a pot. “But I hope you found what was so damn important up in the coliseum.

Yes, Tiso thought to himself, I did find something. He looked at Ghost in a new light, and smiled as best as he could. They couldn’t replace her, but maybe, he could learn to not be a colossal fuck up. Maybe in that way, he can be okay with himself.

Ghost patted Tiso again for a bit and then reached in their ‘whatever’ space to pull out a pre-written piece of paper. Seeing what was written on it made Tiso almost want to take back everything he had just thought.

“You owe me 5000 geo.”

#hollow knight #fanfiction #tiso #ghost #nailmaster oro #tw: injury #tw: suffocation #found family #the knight #big brother tiso #tiso doing tiso things #ghost adopts yet another random bug #tiso is a dudebro #Anonymous #my writing

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enbeemagical · 3 years

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The Snake and the Star cover art coloring process!

You still remember my process post about my TSATS cover art sketching from yesterday, right? Okay, good. Time for the colored version then!!

Tagging everyone who liked/reblogged the sketch process! @lehuka123 @the-phantom-author @oliveofthenight @destinyrainevans @aaravos-is-hot @myamoonseeker @sunstone-citrine @otakumultimuse-hiddlewhore @mozart-the-meerkitten @kaguya-inuyasha @king-bito @perlelas thank you all so much for the support!!! *sparkles*

After I copied the art out, I did a little coloring right then, then put it aside and... basically didn’t touch it for about a week. Here’s what I did at first:

I might not have taken a picture at this point if I hadn’t wanted to show @alls-fair-in-pride-and-prejudice how much Aaravos looked like a Frost Giant. See, last time I colored Aaravos, for a TAATM drawing for Hope, I started with gray as his base skin color. This time, I’d looked at more pictures of him, and realized that his face and hands were a lot darker than his torso. And his skin tone in the TAATM art didn’t look quite right to me, so I wanted to try something different.

So here, I started by lightly shading a purplish blue all over his face, and black on his torso and arms. I also added a bit of my darkest red to his ears, because O////O he’s looking at Loki after all~

Next, I think I put on gray on his face, then purple all over. I forgot to color his hands at first, then ended up coloring them almost the same way as his face. His arms are only partially colored because where the color ends is where I decided his sleeves start. (yes, I forgot to put in clothing details before I copied it.)

I got back to coloring only the day before posting Chapter Two, actually. I did a couple more layers on Aaravos’s face, torso, and arms, then pulled out my pink and brown pencils for Loki.

Gray, pink (extra on his cheeks o//.//o), and two shades of brown blended well for his skin tone and shading, and I just went with black for his hair instead of trying to combine browns.

Clothing next!! I checked a few pictures of both of them before deciding on Loki’s specific outfit. Pretty basic, green long sleeved shirt under gold-edged black vest. Aaravos, of course, is wearing his pretty black-and-gold robe. I did a couple quick graphite pencil lines to figure out exactly where I wanted the lines for sleeves and patterns and whatnot to go, then erased those and started coloring.

I also started shading Aaravos’s hair in gray and lavender, and added a bit more pink to Loki’s face. o////o blushy boi

For Aaravos’s robe, I started shading gray at the bottom of the sleeve, then went to black around his shoulder. I darkened the black as I went down, then added purple all over. Loki’s vest is just black, but his shirt is two shades of green blended.

Oh, and I also went over everything multiple times over the course of the coloring with either my blending pencil or a basic white pencil (which works almost as well, really). I think I used the blender on their faces and the white on their clothes.

The absolute hardest part of this drawing? This step. Specifically, Loki’s helmet.

I shaded Aaravos’s horns first. Lightly gray near the ends, darkening to black at the bases, then I went over that with lavender and purple. Pretty easy, actually, and smoothing them out with white pencil was even fun.

But that helmet...

Okay, so, tips for shading gold? A nice light brown works very well. I used an orange, a goldish-brown, a light brown, and a little black here. The black may have been a mistake.

My best reference picture was actually Loki’s helmet from the other side. Still, I’m pretty good at mentally flipping images (I think), and I managed. I left a white space for a glint of light, and did my best to darken the helmet in the right places.

Then I realized I hadn’t colored their eyes yet. So I did that-- orange, goldish-brown, and brown for Aaravos; two shades of green for Loki. Also black, for both of them.

Then I started on the background.

Before doing anything with the background, I consulted two people very important to this process. First, I asked Hope which side should be purple and which green, and what color the snake’s eyes should be. Then, I asked my sister whether it should be darker at the top or the bottom. Those questions answered, I began coloring.

First it was lots of gray. I started with barely noticeable color near the bottom, getting darker and darker until I was shading with black near the top. Then I pulled out lavender and light green and thoroughly covered the gray and black.

Oh, also blending. I did some more blending.

Then shading again! I got out my dark purple and my dark (slightly bluish) green, and started from the top.

Oooh, but there’s something missing~~

I had to take a moment to think about what I wanted for the little snake and star. I wanted them to contrast with the background, the same way the dots do in the original yin-yang symbol. And I didn’t want them to be just flat color, no, there was too much else I could do with them!

First, Aaravos’s star. Very lightly, I drew a lavender line around where I wanted the border to be, where I wanted the purple to shade into white. Then I colored that in, shading darker as I got closer to the middle. I did the same with dark purple, and added a tiny bit of black. Before I blended it, I went to work on Loki’s snake.

I started with light green there, covering it diagonally both ways before shading the edges in dark green. The eyes are (my purpliest) blue, which Hope suggested as a reference to the “are Loki’s eyes green or blue” debate (I’d not previously heard of this. poor sweet mind-controlled stabby bean!).

Blending!! I got out that white pencil and blended blended blended until that snake and that star were as smooth and soft-looking as I could get them, to contrast with the totally un-smoothed background.

It looks done, right? But it’s not.

I wanted to go over the lines in black pencil, to help everything pop, and to keep each part distinct from the rest. Aaravos’s horn blends into his star in the above picture, and I like my art to have a little more clarity than that.

Plus, I needed something to make Aaravos’s freckles, and do the little light glints in their eyes. I’d planned to use my white gel pen, but it hates me and wouldn’t work well enough. Since I’m staying at my grandparents, and they just might have such a thing lying around, I asked my grandfather if there was a white pen or marker I could use.

I went to town with this.

It wasn’t enough to stop at the freckles and eyes. Nah. I was having too much fun. So everything got shiny!! See the white on their sleeves? Loki’s helmet?The swirlies on Aaravos’s horns? The stars on his arms? WHEEE!! I LOVE white markers!!!!! Need to get myself a couple.

Plus, my new signature for art I’ll post on Tumblr, written with one of my new charcoal pencils. I use several different online names, and I’ll sign my art with whichever is most appropriate. ^_^ I don’t care if it’s cliche or childish, I like doing little hearts over the i’s.

I’ve started work on another piece of TSATS art, a snapshot of a scene because I wanted to try my hand at Lady Loki..... (let me know if I should post the sketch or wait until I’ve finished coloring!)

#the snake and the star #cover art #full color!#alls-fair-in-pride-and-prejudice #loki #aaravos #romance novel cover XD #my art #my art process #my coloring process #i'd love to know what you think!!#yin-yang symbol #in purple and green #look idk what took over my hands #but those stick figures turned into THIS #i'm feeling pretty proud of myself actually!#the snake and the star art #drake draws

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thegalacticmoth · 5 years

Text

Sanders Sides: Tangled AU (LAMP/CALM)

Chapter 8 part 1

-Back to the present with Virgil, Roman, Logan, and Patton-

The four of them, and Remy, quickly bolted in the opposite direction of the horse, weaving through the trees, ducking under branches, and leaping through and over bushes, Patton quickly grabbing Ann's wrist to help him keep up with them.

"Who is that?" Ann asked as he ran alongside them, trying not to let the loud pounding of the horse's strong terrifying hooves behind them freak him out.

"Its the horse we mentioned earlier." Patton said, his grip on Ann's wrist tightening."I guess it still wants to get us." He said with an weak smile and a small shrug.

"We need somewhere to hide." Roman said as he looked around while running, quickly ducking under a tree branch that he almost didn't see.

"There's a sign up ahead, maybe there's a safe place there?" Ann said, looking ahead of them, stumbling slightly as he tripped on a root, but quickly regained his footing with the help of Patton.

Logan focused of the sign ahead of them and cursed softly as he read the name.

"As much as I hate to say it, that is probably the best option in our current situation." He said."We need to lose this horse first." He added.

"I'll distract it," Roman said."Ann, give me the bag, it probably thinks the thing we stole is in there." He said."I'll keep running and loop around and join you guys in a few minutes." He said as he accepted the bag from Ann's slightly shaking hands.

"Are you sure?" Ann asked worriedly.

"I'm positive." Roman said with a smile.

"Only fools are positive." Ann responded, making Roman scoff and stick his tongue out."that was a horrible joke."

"Stay safe." Patton said, chewing on his lip a little.

"Will do Pat." Roman said reassuringly, before turning and running off to the side as the others continued on forwards.

As planned the horse followed Roman, leaving the other three to quickly run towards the sign that Ann could read now as they drew closer to it.

"The Snuggly Duckling?" He said questioningly.

"Yes," Logan said."and while it is not the best place for us to go to try and hide ourselves, it is currently our only 'good' option at the moment." Logan said as he gestured for them to slow down, not wanting to make a big scene by bursting inside and drawing a lot of attention to themselves.

The three of them quickly slowed down to a walk as they drew close to the building, each of them doing their best to calm down their breathing and act natural.

Both Patton and Logan took their glasses off, stuffing them into their pockets and trying to subtly change how they looked as they walked.

"What are you doing?" Ann asked as Remy landed on his shoulder.

"Well, you remember the wanted poster you saw of us?" Patton asked.

Ann nodded, still confused.

"Lets just say a lot of the people in there would gladly take Logan, Roman, and I to the guards in return for the reward." He said.

Logan nodded in agreement."We want to attract as little attention as possible while we are here." He added."so we are doing at least a little something to try and hide who we are, despite it leaving the two of us with less than desired vision."

Ann chewed on his lip nervously and nodded again."Okay," he said."What kind of people are in there?" He asked.

"Oh, um...thugs? Other criminals, people like that." Patton said with an apologetic smile.

Ann nodded, looking even more worried, and if the other two noticed him walking closer to them, neither mentioned it.

"We'll go in, find some place in the back to lay low while we wait for Roman, and then wait another few minutes before leaving, try to be as unnoticeable as possible." Logan said, earning twin nods from both Ann and Patton.

Patton slowly and gently grabbed Ann's hand as they continued walk, making Ann jump slightly.

"Hey Ann, everything will be fine." He said with a reassuring smile."you just need to calm down a little." He added as he gently squeezed his hand.

Logan nodded in agreement."Patton is right, the people in there will notice if you are nervous or scared and may try to prey on that, use it to their advantage." He said."they'll see you as an easy target for harassment and possible thievery or other things." Logan explained, hesitating for a second or two before carefully putting a hand on the nervous teen's back reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Me and Logan will protect you, and Roman will as well when he comes back." Patton said with a bright smile.

"It would be Logan and I, Patton," Logan corrected."but Patton is correct, the two of us -and I'm sure Roman when he returns- will make sure nothing happens to you." He added as he gave him a small but comforting smile.

Anna blushed a tiny bit, before taking a small deep breath and nodding slowly.

"Yeah, okay." He said."Thank you." He added shyly.

Patton beamed at him and squeezed his hand one last time before reluctantly pulling away as they walked up to the door, Logan also slowly pulling his hand away from his back, the loss of contact making Ann feel slightly colder, but he didn't know why.

Logan opened the door, not and the three walked in, Patton first, Ann second, and Logan following up as third. They got a couple of looks, mainly because they weren't as large and intimidating as the majority of other people in the room, or because they weren't armed to the teeth or covered in pelts or leather armor and other similar things, but they were mostly ignored by the majority of the people inhabiting the place.

They made their way to an miraculously open table tucked away in the back corner, and each took a seat, sitting quietly.

Ann was doing his best to not look nervous or anything, but it was difficult -especially since it felt like they were being watched, which sent chills down his spine.

He chewed on his lip, and his leg began to bounce as a nervous jitter as he glanced around them.

He didn't notice Patton and Logan glance at each other, but he did notice when Patton discreetly put a hand on his knee in a comforting manner. Which surprising helped, not a whole lot, but it helped.

Ann gave him a small smile and forced himself to stop bouncing his leg, pulling his slightly swollen lip out from between his teeth as well.

"Ro'll be back in a bit, then we can get out'a here." Patton mumbled reassuringly.

"With a few minutes of gap time of course," Logan added quietly,"but yes, we shouldn't be here for much longer." He said.

Ann nodded slightly, and looked down to fiddle with the hem of his shirt to distract himself. Remy gently butted his head against his cheek reassuringly, which made him smile again.

Fiddling worked pretty well to distract himself. He began to calm down as he continued to focus on his fiddling, while still taking in comfort from Patton's hand still being on his knee and the weight of Remy on his shoulder.

It must have worked a little too well, because a few minutes must have passed -with him not noticing, being to focused on unraveling a loose string- and another person suddenly sat down in front of him, startling him slightly.

He looked up and saw Roman sitting there. He'd taken off his bright red vest -the article of clothing probably inside the bag that was looked over his shoulder- and had unbuttoned his shirt slightly at the top. His sleeves were rolled up, and his hair was parted differently as well, covering his face a bit more.

"Why hello," He said with a smile as he propped his chin on the palm of his hand, his elbow pressed against the table wood.

"Oh good," Patton said softly."you okay? Nothing hurt?" He asked.

Romans smile grew."not even a scratch." He said.

"You'll have to tell us how you got away when we're back on the road." Logan said with a small smile.

"I will indeed tell you." He said."how long we here for." He asked in a much quieter voice.

"At least five more minutes." Logan said, much to Ann's disappointment. He didn't really want to be there any longer, but he also didn't want to get chased around by a horse again, so he didn't have very many options.

"Here's your bag back." Roman said as he passed the bag over the table to Virgil , who took it with a small smile.

"Thanks." He said softly.

The four of them continued to chat quietly amongst themselves, ignoring everyone else for the most part, yet Ann was pretty sure that Logan was subtly keeping an eye on everyone else in the Snugly Duckling.

"Now should be a good time to leave," Logan said softly, which made Ann relax slightly and smile, happy to finally be leaving. They hadn't run into any trouble, but he'd still rather be away from everyone in the tavern, especially when he thought about all that father had told him about ruffians and thugs.

The other three nodded to Logan and each stood up, still doing their best to not draw any attention to themselves.

They then began to quietly make there way out of the tavern, Roman and Logan in the front, with Patton in the back behind Ann.

They were almost out when they were stopped by a large man covered in pelts with a helmet with two giant horns on it.

The man looked down at Roman with a calculating gaze, before lifting up his hand off the door, revealing a piece of paper on it where his large hand had been.

Suddenly it felt like every single pair of eyes in the tavern were on the four of them, which made chills creep up Ann's spine.

The three of them looked at the poster that was nailed to the door, an almost exact replica of the one Ann had found in their bag earlier. The poster had the words WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE printed on it in large bold letters, with a hand sketched drawing of three men under the words, with a few other details written down beneath the drawing. They weren't exact drawings, and did have some differences from Roman, Logan, and Patton, but it was obviously the three of them.

Ann gulped nervously and glanced back at Parton, who had paled and was looking worriedly between the man, the poster, and Roman and Logan.

"Oh it's them alright," another large male with a bald head and a hook for one of his hands said as he walked over to them.

"Gretto, go find some guards." The same made said as he walked forward and took the front of Romans shirt in his fist.

"That rewards going to buy me a new hook." He said with a sinister smirk as he held his hook dangerously close to Romans neck.

"Hey! I could use the money!" Another man who wore a large metal helmet said as he grabbed ahold of Logan, and wrapped his arms around his arms and throat, making Ann squeaking.

"What about me! I'm broke!!" Another said as he snatched Patton away from Ann.

Roman was quickly snatched away by another thug, and then it suddenly felt like the whole tavern was trying to get ahold of one of the three, piling them this way and that as they each tried to get away.

Ann was shoved aside and pushed to the ground in the sudden mass of people trying to get them.

"Hey, Wait!" He said, but it didn't look like anybody had heard him, or wanted to listen to him if they had heard. Remy flew up and started to peck at peoples faces and ears, but he was either swatted at or ignored for the most part.

He quickly looked around and tried to get to the closet of the trio -Logan- but was roughly shoved away again, his back slamming into the trunk of a tree that the tavern had been built around, some of its branches even inside near the rafters.

He looked around and saw a a row of large coat hooks on the wall.

It'll have to due He though to himself as he ran to the wall and began to try and pry one of the giant hooks off.

It took a while, longer than he'd like, but he quickly got it off and tied his rope around it.

He then carefully aimed and threw the hook/rope up and at one of the branches, managing to securely hook the branch while also getting the rope ver one of the rafters that was above the branch.

He puked the rope, and watched as the large Branch began to bend upwards.

He waited a few seconds, before quickly letting go of the rope, letting the branch wring down and hit the bald ma with the hook directly on the head, right as he was about to punch Roman in most likely the face or stomach.

"PUT THEM DOWN!!" Ann yelled, which was probably the loudest he'd ever been in his entire life.

Everyone seemed to freeze and turn to stare of the pale, skinny teenager that had just hit a guy over he head with a stick.

"Look,"Ann began with a shaky voice."I have no clue where I am, and if I ever want to even dream of either getting home or continuing this trip, I need the three of them." He said."they are the only ticket I have to getting my dream..." he added.

The bald man he'd hit continued to glare at him for a few seconds before pulling his axe off of his back and steadily marching forward towards him, which prompted Roman and Logan to try even harder at getting out of the hold of their captors, while Patton called out to Ann and the thug, telling him to leave him alone and such while also trying to break free.

Ann paled and backed away as the man came closer and closer, until his back hit the counter a yard or so behind him, and even then he continued to lean back as the intimidating man looked over him with a blank yet angry expression.

Suddenly, his expression changed to one more reminiscent than angry.

"I had a dream once..." he said, before pulling Ann's rope and hook down, hading it to the still slightly shaking teen, before turning and throwing his axe at a man sitting in a stool with an accordion in his lap. The axe hit just above the mans head, where a deep gouge was in the wood -which probably meant this wasn't the first time the man had been scared out of his life.

He jumped and immediately began to play a tune of is accordion, hunched over and as far away from the axe as he could get.

Then, the man began to sing, much to Ann's surprise.

"I'm malicious, mean and scary,

My sneer could curdle dairy,

And violence-wise my hands are not the cleanest" he sang, stepping back and looking down at the outline of a body on a the floor, which made Ann pale and take a few steps back.

"But despite my evil look and my temper and my hook" he continued to sing as he stepped back and onto a small stage Ann hadn't even noticed before.

"I've always yearned to be a concert pianist" the man sang as he began to play on the piano, actually sounding really good despite having a hook for one hand.

"Can't you see me on the stage performing Mozart, tickling the ivories till they gleam" he sang, accidentally sending a few of the keys flying as he did, which Ann quickly blocked with his bag.

"Yep, I'd rather be called deadly for my killer show-tune medley, 'cause way down deep inside I've got a dream." He sang, and suddenly everyone else -except for the men still holding Roman, Logan, and Patton joined in on the song, leaving the four teens to watch in surprise.

"He's got a dream,

He's got a dream" the other thugs sang in unison.

"See, I ain't as cruel and vicious as I seem

Though I do like breaking femurs, you can count me with the dreamers

Like everybody else, I've got a dream" he sang, and everyone else began to sing cheerful La La La's for a few beats.

-outside-

Deceit had left the tower, his snakes hiding underneath his cloak as he walked.

He eventually came upon the Snuggly Duckling, where cheerful singing could be heard inside, which was surprising for a place like this, so Deceit decided to check it out.

He walked up and peaked through the window, looking at all the singing men, before his eyes caught sight of a very familiar head of hair.

His eyes locked onto Virgil as he saw his precious flower inside.

-back inside-

A new man had come up, and after being accidentally smacked by the first, was now taking a turn singing.

"I've got scars and lumps and bruises

Plus something here that oozes," he sang, showing Virgil each spot as he sang.

"And let's not even mention my complexion,

But despite my extra toes, and my goiter, and my nose,

I really want to make a love connection" he said, his slightly disgusted and semi-disappointed expression turning love struck as he got up.

"Can't you see me with a special little lady, Rowing in a rowboat down a stream" he sang as he sat in a barrel that had been cut in half with a small drunk looking old man with a heart patterned parasol, pushing them along with a large stick as if he was actually rowing a row boat.

"Though I'm one disgusting blighter, I'm a lover, not a fighter" he said as he tied the little old man to a rope, giving him a bone and arrow before swinging him around the room, though the man didn't seem to care.

"'Cause way down deep inside I've got a dream."

The other men all joined in again, singing the joyful tune in almost perfect unison.

"I've got a dream,

He's got a dream,

I've got a dream,

He's got a dream"

"And I know one day romance will reign supreme," He continued, earning a cheer from the crowd.

"Though my face leaves people screaming, There's a child behind it dreaming. Like everybody else, I've got a dream!" He finished with a large smile.

The other men began taking turns singing about each other.

"Toll would like to quit and be a florist," someone sang as a thin man began to rearrange a bouquet on a table with beautiful while Lillie's, skulls -which Ann hoped weren't real- and even a rat, much to Remus disgust.

"Gunter does interior design" another sang as a very stylish looking man adjusted a painting on a very well decorated corner of the room.

"Urf is into mime" Another sang as said man mime showed Ann a few of his skills, not saying a word.

"Attila's cupcakes are sublime" Another sang as the large man earlier with the helmet that covered his face held out a batch of perfect looking cupcakes.

"Bruiser knits

Killer sews" the group sang, showing a buff guy who was knitting while having a cut in his arm stitched shut by another man.

"Ven does little puppet shows," they continued as Ven showed a couple of his hand puppets to Ann.

"And Vladimir collects ceramic unicorns" the bald man with the hook sang as Vladimir -the man who had shut the door on them- made two small little delicate ceramic unicorns kiss.

"What about you?" The man who had sung about love asked as he stared at Logan."What's your dream?"

"I don't sing," Logan said with a blank stare.

"Oh oh! I like to sing!" Patton said with an excited smile. He had been really happy seeing the people not hurting Ann and actually being pretty nice to him.

A couple of the men shrugged, deciding that it was fine. They let Patton go, who quickly went up onto the stage, smiling brightly as he put his glasses back on, seeing no need to not wear them anymore.

"I have dreams like you, no really

And mine are kinda touchy/feely -not in 'that' way- They mainly happen somewhere warm and sunny

In a small house that we own,

That's built of wood or brick or stone,

Surrounded by each other as a family!". He sang cheerfully, getting another cheer from the crowd.

Ann, who had gotten less scared, and was actually smiling a little bit, felt himself being pulled forward, and up onto one of the tables.

Patton yelled for him to sing over the rest of the crowd.

And while he was nervous, he decided to do it, not wanting to make any of the thugs around them mad.

"I've got a dream

he's got a dream

I've got a dream

he's got a dream" he sang as he looked around at everyone from where he stood on the table.

"I just want to see the floating lanterns gleam," he continued, earning a cheer just like Patton that made him blush.

"And with every passing hour,

I'm so glad I left my tower.

Like all you lovely folks, I've got a dream" he finished singing, quickly getting off of the table, only to be quickly pulled into an excited hug by patton.

"he's got a dream

he's got a dream

They got a dream

We've got a dream

So our differences ain't really that extreme" the man with the accordion was pulled onto his feet, and placed in front of Vladimir, who smirked and took a stance, much to the small mans terror.

"We're one big team!!" Vladimir stomped down on a plank, which I then lifted the other side up like a see-saw, sending the poor musician flying towards Vladimir, dropping his accordion mid air before he miraculously landed in a handstand on Vladimir's head.

He was quickly thrown to the side, where he landed on a barrel, which was quickly sent forward, resulting in him scrambling to stay up on the barrel as it moved.

"Call us brutal, sick, sadistic, and grotesquely optimistic!" everyone continued to sing as the poor man had to stumble his way through people juggling sticks with fire and a fire breather even.

" 'Cause way down deep inside we've got a dream" Logan and Roman has been let go at some point as everyone began dancing, the two do them quickly regrouping with Ann and Patton in the middle of the room.

"I've got a dream," people were dancing.

"I've got a dream," they were swinging around on the chandelier and in the rafters.

"I've got a dream," they were doing flips and other gymnastic moves.

"I've got a dream,

I've got a dream,

I've got a dream!" Everyone continued, getting louder and louder.

"Yes, way down deep inside, I've got a dreeeaaam!

Yeah!" The song was finished with a loud cheer, but before anyone could do anything, the door burst open and the man they had sent out to get the guards was there.

To be continued....

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imagine-loki · 5 years

Text

What I See

TITLE: What I see

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 7?

AUTHOR: simplegirl42 -> tumblr

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine, the reason why Loki doesn’t often use his magic to read peoples’ thoughts and memories is that when he does this to someone, they get a glimpse inside his head at the same time..

RATING: Teen

PREVIOUS CHAPTERS: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6

NOTES/WARNINGS: sexual content mentioned

He had left her alone for three weeks and had switched the guards on numerous occasions when he found out she had been too chatty with them. How was he going to get her to break if she had constant and consistent companionship? He thought the guard shift would sway her and rattle her, but he found it only helped liven up her conversations.

It didn’t matter, if he ordered the guards not to talk to the prisoners, Angelica sat and talked anyway, because she knew she had a captive audience. He wasn’t even quite sure what she was talking to them about. Her topics differed greatly and most of his guards learned to tune her out.

He was grateful for that, because sometimes she spewed on about him and how there was signs that Odin wasn’t himself. He did not like that one bit, but he noticed whenever she talked about him she did not speak ill of him. She held her tongue and insults back. She didn’t rant about him like most people would.

He also noticed she never once talked about herself or her upbringing.

He had hopes that silence would make her cave, but at the end of the third week, he found out that was not the case. He had not once visited her in those three weeks and he wanted to see for himself how she was fairing. He conjured himself up inside her cell at night as she lay sleeping on her tiny mattress.

His clone was dressed in all his glory with his two-horn helmet on his head. He made sure his spell was only for Angelica to see. The guards posted around would not hear or see him, but they would be able to see her for the crazy wench he had made her out to be.

He took a moment looking at her through the haze of his spell while his real person was up in his royal chambers. She was sleeping softly but her amber eyes fluttered open as soon as she felt a chill in her cell. She looked startled for a split second before she gathered her senses.

“Loki,” she breathed. Her momentary fear draining out of her as she exhaled.

“Hello Darling.” Loki’s mirage greeted her with a wicked smile.

“I knew you were alive,” she affirmed as she sat up on her bed.

Loki raised an eyebrow. Maybe she was about to crack before he showed up. “I wouldn’t want to disappoint you after that spectacle you made of yourself.”

“What are you doing here?” She asked curtly. Her expression blank.

“I was expecting a warmer welcome,” he dodged her question. Honestly, he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head lately. He had kingdom to rule and subjects that obeyed him, but he wanted her submission out of all.

“I could call the guards and they’ll see that your alive. I’m certain they can give you a toasty welcome.” She warned without a hint of malice.

“Go ahead, my dear.” He smiled knowingly.

That gave her reason to pause. She skeptically assessed Loki’s confident expression.

“You’re not fully present, are you?” She discerned quickly surprising Loki that she still had her wits about her.

“There’s a few ways you could find out,” he hinted mischievously, stalking closer to her.

Resigned, Angelica stood up facing him. “I’m not afraid of you.”

She marched right through his being. His illusion fading and reappearing.

He turned, following her form. He was bemused by her statement as he plopped himself down on her mattress. Their positions completely reversed.

“Of course, how could I forget. You’re not easily frightened of me. You only have but love for me,” his tone was patronizing as he whisked a hand over his chest. His smile was gleaming hiding his contempt behind his words.

She didn’t blink at his tone. She knew he only wanted to get under her skin like all the previous times before and if she gave in, it would only draw the guards to her empty cell. They would definitely think she was crazy then. Angelica was sure that was what Loki wanted. She wasn’t going to give it to him.

“What do you want, Loki?” She kept her voice low and empty.

He cocked his head at her. He stretched his hands on the bed, supporting his weight while casually leaning back. “It’s not about what I want. You made that perfectly clear, little mouse.”

“You want the throne. You have it. You threw me in a cell. You got it. You won’t have my fealty whatever the price, unless you earn it.”

“How shall I earn it then?”

“You can start by coming cleaning about Odin.”

He chuckled. “But then I am out a throne, a home, and subjects to rule. Your fealty would be a worthless in trade.”

“Then you have your answer. You’ll have none of my fealty.”

“You have a brave tongue for a bastard born from a handmaiden and a royal guard.”

Her back stiffen at the mention of her parents.

“You’re fortunate that the Allfather smiled favorably on your poor mother. Offering her a home and shelter here in the palace. He naught have in my opinion, considering how fond he was of bastards and those not of pure blood. Not to mention, your father…”

“Enough. My father died in battle as a sworn solider. The past is behind us so that we may move on from it.”

“You love to preach your interpretation on to me, yet you shy from your own past.”

She did not respond but looked coolly away.

His lips twitched in dismay. He was hoping he could rattle her further about the secrets of her past and her family, but he could tell she was only going to shut herself down. Instead he back tracked to get her to talk more.

“Are you sure there isn’t anything else that you could want from me to get you to drop to your knees? If I recall correctly, isn’t this where you had wanted me to be before? On your bed?” Loki patted the bed with a cat-like grin.

“I think you’re mistaken.” She responded coldly with a steely gaze.

“Have you no more love for me then?” Loki teased with a lick of his lips and his eyebrows raised.

“Currently you make it hard to believe that I even loved you,” she responded dryly with a short sigh.

“Hm, there’s nothing quite as bitter as a woman scorned.” Loki mentioned, pleased with himself.

“When will you learn that not everyone is against you!” she snapped, annoyed with his attitude.

“Says the very wench trying to uproot my throne,” he countered with disdain.

“You took it fraudulently. I never said you don’t have the right to rule! The only one who has, was Odin, yet you treat everyone the same. You don’t trust those around you and when you let them trust in you, you betray them for your own cause. I’ve seen you, Loki. You’re not the little monster Odin brought home to be a trophy. You’re not undeserving of that throne the way Odin treated you. Frigga saw you as her son. Thor saw you as a brother. Your teachers saw you as gifted. Yet all you seem to cling to is the idea that you are forsaken. You do not see yourself truly.”

“Then what am I truly?” Loki scoffed, finding this conversation absurd.

“A good son at heart. You cared for Asgard. You cared for your mother. Your brother. That’s why you pretended to hate everyone and everything on Asgard so much, because you cared. You are Odin’s son and second heir to Asgard.”

“And that’s what you see?” he mocked, unimpressed.

His tone gave her a moment to pause. Her expression softened and her tone gentler.

“It was, the first time you tried to steal my thoughts from me. The second time… I don’t know. The good man at heart got lost somewhere. I saw what happened to you. I saw it wasn’t your plan to attack New York. You were coerced to planning the attack. I saw how you had suffered. The beatings you took. I saw how you were treated like scum again and how you had to prove your worth…” She paused taking a deep breath, before her amber eyes met his.

“I’m glad your alive Loki, but I’m not sure if all of you came back home.”

His expression did not waver, and she made it clear she was no longer in the mood to converse as she walked through him again onto the bed. She turned over on her side, facing the glass prison.

He stood with ease. He had no biting remark to add as her words shook the foundation of his being. He disappeared in a soft dust as he ended his spell with a clasp of his fist. He didn’t get to hear her last words.

“I’m still hoping for you,” she whispered with a tear falling down her cheek.

#Loki #Lover #Angst #Submitted fic #submission #what I see #chapter 7 #simplegirl42

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quietpagan · 6 years

Text

TH What Falls and What Grows ch. 14

What falls and what grows,

What reaps and what sows,

Cares nothing for beauty or bane;

In changing field,

The flower must yield,

And the weed will grow in again.

The three of them just stared at each other for a few moments, Draal’s shoulders tensing as Blinky ogled at the felines.

“They, erm…like me,” he muttered, scratching the back of his neck.

“Oh my God…”

He looked bad, but better than when she’d kicked him out. The arm and eye she’d turned to stone during their duel were almost completely healed, to the point where he only had a few stiff fingertips. His torn nose hadn’t finished, but that hadn’t stopped him from putting a bent piece of rebar through the damaged tissue anyway. When he stood he stood tall, without any stoop or limp, and Alex was actually relieved to see him well. Filthy, but well.

He’d made efforts to keep himself clean, but he was in the human underground, not the troll tunnels, and sometimes mere effort just wasn’t enough.

“You realize where you’ve been living,” she asked. A bit of damp grime unattached itself from the ceiling and splattered on her shoulder. “I do have a sense of smell, Trollhunter.” “Yes, and so do we. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up. We can’t stay here long.”

Draal followed behind her and a bemused, somewhat unhappy Blinky with little complaint. Honestly, he just looked happy to see someone who wasn’t a cat.

“I doubt I would receive a hearty welcome home, Trollhunter,” Draal murmured as they walked, his strays trailing behind him like a parade. “Take care to remember that I was banished.”

“It was more like unofficially ostracized. There was no actual banishment or casting-out,” Alex said. She took point, looking around each corner before going forward as Draal pointed out which tunnels to take. “It is tradition.” “It was implied. You can come back at any time.” “They will not be happy about this,” Draal murmured mournfully.

“I have a big sword,” Alexandra replied. Blinky, at her side, looked mildly worried.

“He does have a point, Master Alexandra,” he said quietly, turning to her to try and block Draal out.

“No matter his state, he was dishonored, and thus is unable to return without having earned it.” Alexandra snarled at him in demonstration.

“I also have pointy teeth.”

“And they are very menacing, yes, but you can’t just start swinging fist and foot at all who disagree with you! You are a part of our Heartstone now, a member of our collective tribes, which means that you have to follow the rules that our society dictates! Just because you are the Trollhunter does not give you the right to go gallivanting about, doing whatever you want!” His tirade stopped when he noticed her grinning. “And what, precisely, has you so amused!” Alex laughed, the sound echoing in the damp tunnels.

“I was wondering when you would start yelling at me again,” she said, to his astonishment. Up ahead of them, the tunnel brightened. “You’ve been tiptoeing ever since the whole ‘Changeling’ misunderstanding. I forgave you for that a while ago – I was just waiting for you to accept it.”

Blinky sputtered and blushed, as she knew he would, when they stepped through the torn grate and out of the tunnel.

Alexandra went first, watching the underside of the bridge for any unpleasant visitors. She hated this place now.

Mid-afternoon was raging above them, the noise of cars and their radios echoing inside the canal. Traversing the canal in broad daylight was a fantastically bad idea, given the likelihood of being seen by the humans on the bridge, but they were running out of options. Sunset was hours away, and the sewers were completely unsafe.

Several of the cats that trailed behind Draal spread out, wandering around the edges of the canal.

“Hold on,” said Draal to Blinky, behind her. “You knew she was a Changeling too?” “I was grossly mistaken,” whispered Blinky morosely. “I accused her of such in front of the entire market, to my eternal embarrassment and shame. She proved me both a liar and a fool and wait just one blasted minute, what do you mean ‘too’?! You thought she was a Changeling?” Alexandra’s hair stood up, but she couldn’t tell if it was from the conversation or if she felt someone watching them. The underside of the bridge looked empty, but she knew Bular to be adept at keeping himself unseen. There were also goblins and other Changelings to worry about. She didn’t like the feel of this.

I hate this fucking bridge.

“Is she not?” “Of course not!” Blinky fervently hissed. “I made a humiliating miscalculation, and she proved it with a gaggletack, even! But if you suspected the same thing, why did you not come forward?” Alexandra didn’t hear an answer, meaning that Draal must have merely gestured. She wanted to focus on the conversation but couldn’t, and she turned around with a last, suspicious glance.

“I’ve got a bad feeling,” she said, interrupting the two. “Do you want to risk it, or head back?”

“I would like to get out of this blasted tunnel sometime today,” said Blinky. “This is an…uneasy place, however.” “I cannot go back,” said Draal, gesturing to the other end of the bridge. Alexandra smacked him on the arm, and then wiped her hand on her vest.

“You can stay by the staircase until I can sneak you in,” she said, “But I’m not just going to leave you here.” Draal looked mildly stunned, but Blinky was smiling.

“I can take care of myself, Trollhunter,” said the larger troll.

“But my being Trollhunter means that you don’t have to,” she replied quietly. Draal shifted uncomfortably.

Softy, from the darker end of the tunnel, the faintest, slowest “Waka chaka…” echoed from the gloom.

All three of them stiffened. Alexandra grabbed their arms with her four, and gently pushed them out of the grate.

The goblin down the tunnel looked to be alone, so far, and was watching her curiously. She kept eye contact with it as she backed through the bent bars, not looking away until the others caught her, preventing her from walking backwards into a ray of sunlight.

The shadow of the bridge bowed somewhat from the movement of the sun, and they walked completely silently along the darkened line. Perhaps, if they could get to the other side without triggering the goblins’ ire, they might make it without a fight. They just needed to stay quiet and slow.

All of the cats scattered suddenly, every one of them bolting away from the group and out of the canal, and Alexandra knew…

…’By the pricking of my thumbs’…

…that they were about to get their asses beat.

“RUN!”

Draal caught the horngazel as she pushed it into his hands.

“You’re the fastest, get that portal open NOW!”

He loped away, leaving her and Blinky to trail after him with their stupidly short legs.

Above them, laughter rang.

“Do you just hang around there all day, waiting for someone to come out?”

Bular landed on the concrete with a resounding CRACK, the ground sending up little shards. Alex summoned her sword and chipped off a piece of his arm before he could draw his own weapon, and then booked it as fast as she could away from him, teleporting just a few feet ahead.

Better prepared as she was, she still didn’t want to risk Blinky and Draal’s lives by engaging and possibly dying in a fight.

Bular easily caught up with her, however fast she ran, and he slammed his head into her side, chucking her a good fifteen feet across the shadow. Glow from the armor trailed after her but she could feel the puncture from his horns, and it bled alarmingly across the concrete. Her bottom left shoulder wrenched as she landed badly, and only Draal’s alarmed bellow saved her from getting her head caved in when Bular tried to jump her. She twisted her sword up at the last second and he fell heavily upon it, the blade piercing his hip.

It was odd, how sunstaining smelled. It was slow, like burning dust in an old heater, but although it lacked the decay of flesh it still smelled dead.

The leathers Bular wore protected him from being sliced in half, but his scream of anguish echoed across the canal, and as he fell to the ground his right leg and half his hip and tail turned to stone. Alexandra was too busy trying to stop her own bleeding to celebrate the hit. The adrenalin and pain were making things too fast and too shaky. She smelled blood and it made her heart race sickeningly.

“Trollhunter! Here,” Draal yelled, a bright blue light behind him indicating the opening of the portal. Flashes of green and rough, deep shrieks told her more than she needed to know about how many goblins there really were, and all of them were trying to get through the door.

Bular twisted and grabbed her foot as she tried to run, pulling her over his jagged body to slam against the ground on his other side. She pushed her foot against his face and got a foot full of screaming teeth for her effort, even if she was able to push herself away. Bular levered himself to standing, using one of his swords as a cane, the other no less deadly for the shaking hand that held it.

Alexandra scrambled to her feet and watched his eyes.

At the end of the canal, a flash of blue caught her gaze and she pulled off her helmet, throwing it as hard as she could at Draal, who was coming to help her. It caught him on the collarbone and she held out a hand.

“Don’t,” she said quietly, knowing that Draal would hear her.

“You’re still injured and I need you to go home,” she hissed. “Please keep the portal open, and don’t let anything else in!”

Out of her periphery, the blue mass that was Draal backed up and kicked an invading goblin into the wall, leaving a smear of green. He and Blinky settled firmly against the open portal, slapping away goblins, and she turned all three eyes back on Bular.

The shadow of the bridge had lengthened with the late sun to where she could not dart around Bular without him reaching her, even with his injury.

Six feet to the left, sunlight shimmered with heat.

If I tackle him, I can get him into the sun, she thought, shifting her feet uneasily as Bular carefully watched her movements. He was being curiously and disturbingly silent.

Blinky know I’ve got the Leoht Stone, it’ll be fine, it’ll be fine, it’ll be fine! Maximum effort!

Alexandra ground her feet into the concrete and launched herself at the son of Gunmar, slashing at his face so that he was forced to lean backward and unbalance himself. She tackled him around the middle and the weight of her threw him across the shadow. She thought that she was succeeding, until his arms grabbed her around the middle and suddenly they weren’t so much being pushed by her tackle as falling, directly down onto the concrete. He used her momentum to fling her over his head, and she desperately dug her sword into the ground to keep from rolling backward. She skid to a jolting stop just inside of the shadow.

Bular flipped onto his stomach and pushed himself up with a snarl. He began to lever himself up again, and then stopped, his eyes focused on her right leg. She glanced back at it with a single eye.

The heel was in the sun. And Bular didn’t know about the stone!

With a panicked yell Alexandra summoned her sword and threw it at Bular’s face, rolling toward him in time to catch the hilt as he knocked it away with a shake of his horned head. He grabbed her by her own horns and slammed her face into the concrete. The smells of cement and aggregate and flood residue mixed with stinging blood in her nose and the sudden welling of tears, the sense curiously heightened as the ground eight inches in front of her face blurred dizzingly.

Bular leaned down, using the side of her head to balance himself, and the acrid smell of old blood and digested flesh spread over her face in a warm, close gust.

“I. Saw,” he whispered in her ear.

Utterly immobilized beneath his immense weight, her helmet shivered and screeched as Bular’s claws dug into it.

“I’m half tempted to let you go, just to watch you die by those you’re sworn to protect.”

“How chivalrous,” Alex muttered, the words muffled with half her mouth ground into the dirty concrete. Out of the corner of one eye, Blinky and Draal were occupied with the invading horde of goblins.

Hell with it.

She half-transformed her head and body. Bular was thrown off balance by the sudden lack of horns beneath his hand and he fell for half a second, and that was all she needed. Body made smaller for a critical instant, she pulled her legs over her stomach and shoved them into his abdomen, turning back fully and levering his body off of her.

But even half stone-turned and slower he was massive, and he lashed out with one foot as she tried to scramble away from him.

The heel connected with her injured side, and in a panic Alexandra teleported.

She landed ten feet in the wrong direction, and sunlight blinded her.

Whoops-a-fucking-daisy was the only thought that crossed through her mind.

The sunlight beat down on her troll skin for the first time in years. Her body was warring with her, it knew that despite its immunity it shouldn’t be in the sun, and she fought the instinctive urge to turn to her human form, but –

- Blinky and Draal were just in the shadows, staring at her with open mouths, and never had the heat of the sun felt so cold. She was well aware that Blinky knew about the Leoht Stone, but…still. She knew the stone was a lie, even if he didn’t, and never had she intended him or anyone to see her like this.

Back in the shadow, Bular chuckled. Alexandra trembled as he murmured the word she had always hated; the word she trained herself not to flinch at; that motherfucking word that she had not been called by anyone still alive in over fifty years:

“Impure.”

She almost threw up with the beating of her heart so hard in her throat, but as Bular laughed she drew herself up, brushed off her armor, shouldered her sword, and walked calmly in the sunlight away from his stricken form. He made no effort to follow her; the sound of his laughter was enough to dog her footsteps. But where she walked he could not follow, and his eyes burned as they watched her. She’d injured him the worse, but he’d won this fight.

Blinky and Draal both drew away from her when she re-entered the shadow, as if they were expecting her to turn to stone then and there. Alexandra winked at Blinky and stepped through the portal, and was shut back into safety.

Her skin was still warm from the sun. Blood and pain were still pulsing from the wounds on her side and face and bitten foot, and she slid down the wall with a groan.

“I love Sigrid the Shadowless,” she murmured to her knees. “Good work with the goblins, gentlemen.”

“A most fortuitous choice of gem,” said Blinky faintly. When Alex looked she saw that he was actually a bit pale, on the bits that weren’t smeared with green gore.

Alex laughed and nodded.

“I’m not quite ready to spend eternity with those ghostly assholes,” she said, clutching at her side as she banished the armor. Draal knelt beside her and poked at her abdomen.

“We need to take you to Vendel,” he said. “Although…does he know?” Alexandra, who suddenly found herself having difficulty staying awake, forced herself to rouse.

“Hmm? Know ‘bout what?” “That you are a Changeling, Trollhunter. Are we really not talking about this?” Alex pushed herself up with a groan.

“Draal, I’m not a Changeling,” she said firmly, banishing the armor and unlocking the back of the amulet. Her fingers fumbled as she pried the Leoht Stone out of the casing but she managed to shove it underneath Draal’s ridiculous rebar hoop.

“This stone belonged to the Trollhunter Sigrid the Shadowless, and it grants the user the ability to walk in daylight. I’d say it was pretty useful. Help me up.”

Alex pushed her arm against Draal’s chest, forcing him to grab it and pull her to her feet, where she actually swayed.

Blinky swooped into action, activating the crystal staircase and hopping down them as quickly as he could.

“Draal is correct that you need medical attention, Master Alexandra. Wait right there, please, I shall fetch AAARRRGGHH…”

Alex ignored him and started down the stairs, leaving smears of blood on the glowing crystals.

A trickle of blood tickled the back of her throat and she coughed. Damn, her nose was broken again.

The loud echo seemed to loosen Draal’s tongue, at least. Alex had wondered vaguely how long he could stay quiet.

“Why did you lie to Blinky,” Draal said as he helped her over the wider gaps in the stairs. She hopped a little on her unbitten foot and glared at him.

“I didn’t lie,” she said calmly. “I’m not a Changeling.”

“I once had an understanding with an Impure,” he returned. “I recognized your scent, eventually, and your habits.”

Alexandra stopped, and so did he, and he backed up when she turned to him with glowing eyes.

She wanted to throw Draal against the wall and threaten to remove a limb, for calling her that – but it would do no good. Her heart wasn’t into threatening someone she finally would admit to considering a friend, and she knew that being as monstrous and violent as possible, although it was significantly easier, was not a better alternative to actually being open and honest for once.

Her fists clenched, but she did not draw her sword.

“Don’t call us that again,” she said quietly. “I honestly don’t care what you think of Changelings, personally or in general, but don’t call us that again. There is nothing about me that is impure.”

She grabbed Draal’s filthy arm again to see what he would do, and when he didn’t flinch or back away further she leaned on him again.

“Why didn’t you tell Blinky,” she whispered.

“I…I spent many long days pondering what to do, when I realized what you are. You were chosen by the same amulet that chose my father, and which had refused me. You spared my life, and saved it again today. Whatever you may be I believe you have earned your right to be here, and to have your secrets.”

Alex nearly wanted to cry.

“Damn straight I have,” she murmured furiously. “I guess this means I won’t have to threaten you with decapitation?” The giant blue idiot’s laughter shook the crystal stairs, just as AAARRRGGHH and Blinky reached the bottom and began to climb.

“If it would make you feel better, Trollhunter,” he said. Alex let go of his arm and allowed AAARRRGGHH to pick her up like some blood-smeared, eight-foot baby.

What an asshole.

Vendel was not amused to have a bleeding Trollhunter brought inside the Heartstone, and even less amused to hear about the Bridge. Blinky filled him and AAARRRGGHH in on what had happened as AAARRRGGHH placed Alexandra down on a stone table.

Vendel moved aside a few odd-looking bits of his work and held an old eyeglass up to Alexandra’s side, peeling back the edges of her blood-sodden vest to see the puncture. After a brief glance he set his staff against the table and moved forward for a closer look.

“Were you even wearing your armor,” he mumbled grumpily. Alexandra hissed as he poked at the hole.

“As a matter of fact I was, but Bular decided that my stomach was a good spot to smash his face into.”

“Hmph. I am waiting for the day I hear that you have gone the same way as poor Unkar the Unfortunate. You certainly seem to encounter Bular enough to make it a distinct possibility. Disrobe.”

“What can I say,” Alexandra croaked, sitting up with difficulty and trying to get her wrenched arm out of her vest. “I’ve always had a thing for tall, dark, and murderous.”

Vendel put a massive hand to her back to balance her, and rolled his eyes.

“Deya save us from a Trollhunter with a sense of humor,” he said. Alex dropped her vest on the floor and he lay her back down.

He worked in silence from that point, save for the occasional mumble, and Alexandra did not dare relax. Finally laying down was tricking her brain into thinking that it was time to actually sleep for once, and she needed to be alert for the right moment to make her escape. Getting medical attention from someone who knew what he was doing, instead of buying a poultice or a healing crystal at a stall and hoping that it would be enough, was great, but not when Vendel was suddenly perfectly in place to see how quickly troll medicines worked on her Changed physiology. She couldn’t relax, not now. Draal was still waiting at the portal entrance, and she needed to get out before Vendel wondered why her skin was healing so much faster than it was supposed to.

He made sure that her shoulder wasn’t dislocated and set her nose back to its usual crooked place, but otherwise paid closest attention to the puncture on her side. After an agonizingly long time, Vendel declared the wound too shallow to have missed anything more than muscle and fatty tissue, and he slathered something tingly over it.

“How long have I got. Be honest.”

The old troll snorted as he wiped his hands.

“With any luck, several centuries more,” he said, surprisingly softly. “With each battle you make you seem to strike a crippling blow. Perhaps next time you’ll actually kill the vicious brute.” “’Thought you didn’t ask me to kill Bular,” Alex murmured. Vendel shook his head and walked over to the side of the cavern.

“It seems that I do not need to, Trollhunter,” he said. “By yourself you’ve come closer to it than most of your predecessors.”

He put a hand to the wall of the Heartstone and bent his head. After a moment of silence, a tiny chuck of yellow crystal broke off of the wall to his left, and he deftly caught it.

Alexandra stared with wide eyes as he walked back to her and pressed the crystal shard, as wide as her hand was long, against her side.

“What did you just do,” she asked. Vendel used his staff to pick her filthy vest off of the floor.

“The Heartstone shares its essence with us,” he said, “and on occasion will also share pieces of itself to hasten a troll’s recovery from sickness or injury. Keep that on your side, and hopefully I will not have to see you in here anytime soon.”

Alex was just glad that she was allowed to leave so soon, but he stopped her with a sharp tap on the shin.

“Don’t move,” he said grumpily. “There are a few medicines I have to give you, and I’ll have AAARRRGGHH take you back to your chambers. The less you move, the better.”

Alexandra innocently languished on the stone table while he slowly stomped away, and when he was finished packing her a medicine bag she swung her legs over the table and hopped off, failing to bite back an anguished yelp but managing to snatch the bag from Vendel’s hand and book it to the exit.

“Trollhunter, get back here!” Alex gimped away as fast as she could.

“Thanks, I feel great!”

She heard Vendel mutter something angrily, his staff thunking against the floor, but he did not pursue her.

“Then I will heavily advise you to not walk until tomorrow morning, at the earliest, for all that I expect you will listen to me.”

“Of course, but I’ve still got to go fetch Draal,” she said, the door closing behind her just as she heard a startled yelp.

“What?!”

Alexandra could have said a lot about the troll equivalent of twiddling their thumbs, when she laboriously climbed up the stairs to find Draal balancing bits of rocks and crystals into little stacks, but for the lost look on his face she said nothing except an order to carry her back down.

The market wasn’t as empty as she would have liked when they entered, and enough trolls were out and about to notice Draal the Destroyer’s homecoming. She’d made Draal put her down, not wanting to be carried in plain sight for the second time that night, and her slow, painful pace hampered their progress.

“What is he doing here,” said a one-eyed troll. Alexandra shooed Draal past him and elbowed aside another who was in their way.

“He’s here because I asked him to come back, and you don’t actually need to be assholes about it,” she said firmly, making a few members of the crowd tut disapprovingly.

“Everybody have a good evening,” Alexandra yelled, glaring at the trolls in their way until they backed down. She slowly led Draal through the marketplace and into the residential quarters, where he picked her up again without her needing to ask.

Her rooms smelled better, at least, since she’d gotten the gnome to start taking out the mess that the cats made. He still lived in a hole in the wall of her bathroom, but enjoyed the wrappings of whatever foods she’d bought over the day, and the cats had learned not to try any play with him lest they get a tiny, painful bite on whatever offending foot tried to bat at him. She saw him skitter back into his hole as Draal set her down and closed the door.

“Just stay here,” she said, gently shooing two cats away with her foot. The felines clearly recognized Draal as the person who had brought them to Alexandra, and they crowded around him. “Your old place was taken over, I already asked. Unless you’d like to stay in your father’s rooms?” Draal, knuckling a happy cat on the head, murmured a negative.

“I have not visited those rooms in years,” he said quietly. “It would not feel right, even now that he is gone.”

Your father sucked as a dad, Alex thought, resolving to bring some of her cats over to Kanjigar’s place just so that they could shit on his floor.

“I’ll take his room,” she said instead. “Everyone will be expecting you to stay there, not here. I’m still picking through his library, anyway.”

“You are bleeding on my floor, then, Trollhunter,” said Draal with a faint smile. Alex picked up her bitten foot, examining the tiny smear of blood that came from the toes.

“It adds to the décor,” she said. Draal snorted and lightly shoved her; the strength of the blow sent her tumbling roughly onto the nest. She kicked Draal in the leg when he sat next to her and grabbed her coddled-together medical kit from the floor. The brief, vaguely fond exchange was almost too friendly for Alexandra’s comfort, too close, too familiar – but in all honesty she didn’t have the energy or the heart to keep more of a distance.

Bloodied vest and pants were added to the pile of leathers on the nest, and he dabbed a sweet-smelling tincture over the ragged puncture in her side. The fragment of Heartstone that Vendel had given her was applied to the wound.

“Hold it there.”

Alexandra patiently held still as he tended to her wounds, feeling the aches in her body slowly build up as she allowed her muscles to finally relax. The tension that seemed to hold her upright fled, and every hit and bruise made itself known.

Alex almost fell asleep while Draal was wrapping up her foot; she awoke to find herself slathered in poultices and ointments, with a fluffy black cat curling up between her left horn and her cheek and Draal settling in behind her.

“Should call yourself ‘Draal the Cuddlebug’,” she mumbled sleepily. A crystal-laden arm slid under her back and pulled her onto her side, just as the other one crawled over her torso and pushed her back against his chest.

“No. No. You have your own bed now, let me go.”

Something that felt like a face pushed into the back of her head, and she summoned her helmet just to spite him, moving her head so that her back horns poked him in the cheek.

“Get your goddamn rebar out of my fucking hair, you jackass.”

“You are welcome to leave, Trollhunter,” Draal murmured. His arms loosened enough that she could wiggle out without difficulty.

“I don’t want to exacerbate my injuries,” Alex said. She was seriously enjoying the warmth that he gave off, especially since she was still undressed and chilly from the poultices.

“Good excuse.” “Shut up and go to sleep.”

A/N: Bitch you thought. I thought. We all thought. I’ve got the original chapter where she really did admit to being a Changeling stored and I’ll post it after a bit as a ‘what-if’ chapter, but after much deliberation it would have complicated the story too much at this time of the telling. Usurna and the Tribunal would have been alerted and Alex doesn’t have enough support within Trollmarket for that kind of reveal yet. Also, making her trust Blinky and Draal with something so close to the chest after she’s only just started to open up didn’t really rub me right for her character. She’s been secretive and reticent about getting that close to people for decades and she’s not going to change that in just a month or so without some serious character development and friend-making.

AHHAH HAH YAASS I LOVE fight scenes and I’ve been hoarding this scene for months.

What Blinky doesn’t know, and wasn’t around to witness first-hand, was that the stone of Sigrid the Shadowless doesn’t make a troll immune to sunlight, but turns them human temporarily (in my headcanon). Vendel knows this, at least, but fortunately he wasn’t around for this fight.

I don’t think that the Gumm-Gumms in the actual armies had much to do with the Changeling spies, so after so many centuries I doubt that AAARRRGGHH would have recognized her scent. But Draal damn dated a Changeling, so he’d recognize her scent after a while, especially since he was living with her after their fight. I’ll also make mention that she doesn’t smell exactly like a Changeling anymore, and you’ll see why in the next chapters. She’s funky smelling if you really concentrate, mostly troll but with a little Changeling mixed in.

For Deya’s origins I looked up the Welsh legends of Changelings and edited a little bit. It’s actually quite fascinating. And did you know that there’s a place in Cornwall called Mên-an-Tol that has a circular rock and a legend of getting your real baby back if you passed the Changeling kid through the hole? I’m not kidding.

And we’re back to grumpy cuddles. This will not be an Alex/Draal fic, I think, it’s just platonic cuddles. Alex would probably jump him if he asked, but she’s got enough on her plate without worrying about a whole relationship on top of everything else. Both of these assholes are a bit starved for physical affection at the moment and will get a little cuddly and close, but I’m not really feeling a whole relationship here. I’m not making nudity a bit problem for Alex; she’s never been shy about her body and I don’t think she connects completely with her troll form yet.

#trollhunters #drabble #what falls and what grows #draal #blinky #aaarrrgghh #vendel #bular

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street-saint · 4 years

Text

Giant Diaries, pt. 8

After another few hours on the road, we finally make it to Alister’s shop. At first glance, it appears to be a large shed in the middle of the desert, but I know that behind it lies acres of land filled with scrap parts and various salvage. Alister is all about appearances, and despite the very old construction of the shed, it has a very polished and pristine exterior.

“Where are we?” asks Belladonna when we arrive.

“This is Alister’s place.”

“Friend of yours?”

“You could say that…” I twist around to face Belladonna directly. “Look, Alister is kind of a strange character, so it’s probably better if you just stay with the hummingbird.”

“Oh. Okay.” She seems understanding of the situation, so I don’t press it further.

I dismount and swing around to the flatbed. I nearly forgot I still had the dead hummingbird in tow. It’s going to be a pain in the ass to bring in, but I want to get it done quick, before Alister sees that I have a Sprite with me.

And yet, as if summoned by my very thoughts, I hear the door of the shed slam shut. I don’t even need to turn around. I already know Alister is pressing forward with arms outstretched, wearing something loud no doubt. A long jacket that scrapes the desert floor, patched up with varying faded colors. A helmet with the horns of a ram, and a long walking stick.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite scavenger!” calls Alister.

I can just barely see Belladonna duck behind the wheel of my vehicle, trying to stay out of sight. I appreciate her effort; although, I fear Alister is too sharp to miss her.

Although, to my surprise, Alister does not acknowledge her as she approaches. “What have you got for me today, sister?” She steps up to the truck, and begins to survey the wreckage on the flatbed. “My goodness! Is this a hummingbird?”

“Yeah,” I say as I start to loosen the straps holding it in place.

Alister passes her hands over the frame of the totaled vehicle, as if to divine its history. “It can’t be more than five years old either. Where did you find it?”

“In the desert.”

She gives me a playful slap on the back. “You are some kinda hawk! That’s why you’re my favorite.” She turns her attention back to the vehicle. “How’s the exhaust?”

“It looks great.” I point to the already detached pipe next to the rest of the vehicle.

“You really need to let me borrow some of that good fortune of yours!”

“Can you help me with it?”

“Is water wet? Bring it inside and we’ll do a good look over everything.”

I nod and begin shifting the dead hummingbird down off the truck. Alister, who has not made any move to assist me, continues talking excitedly. “Once we’re done we can get your tank filled, and get you something to eat.”

I just nod again absentmindedly.

“Oh, and speaking of…” Alister leans in and speaks in a hushed tone, “Is your friend joining us, or is she shy?”

I close my eyes and curse under my breath. I don’t even bother explaining. I’m sure Alister knows I was trying to hide Belladonna from her. It’s the only reason she would be so coy.

“Honestly, I never thought you would ever find yourself a Sprite. No offence.” She nudges me with her shoulder and I wince. “So, are you going to introduce us or what?”

“Belladonna, this is Alister. Alister, Belladonna,” I mumble.

Belladonna, realizing her cover is blown, peeks out from behind the hummingbird. “Uh, hi.”

“Lovely to meet you, sweetheart. Are you hungry at all? Could I get you something to eat?”

Belladonna turns to me expectantly. I give a nod in her direction. “That would be lovely, thank you.”

“Excellent! Come with me then, sweetheart.” Alister reaches out a hand, gesturing for Belladonna to take it. The Sprite hesitantly steps around me to the other side of the hummingbird. Alister then drags her off towards the shop.

“Come join us once you’re done,” Alister calls out to me as she skips away with Belladonna.

I passive-aggressively let the dead hummingbird noisily clang to the ground in response as I slide it off of the flatbed by myself. Alister does not so much as turn around.

Alister is a pain in my ass, but she’s also the most well connected and reliable contact I have. She’s also the closest thing I have to a friend these days. For that, I’m willing to deal with her more frustrating qualities.

Once the hummingbird is unloaded and my two “friends” are out of sight, I swing around to the front of the truck where there is a compartment under Belladonna’s seat. I open it up and pull out the case I got from Shiryn earlier. I flick the tiny latch up and lift the lid to reveal a row of glass vials. I carefully pull one out and inspect it. If not for the faint blue glow emitted by the vial, it might look completely empty.

Also inside the case is a small syringe. I rest the case down on the seat of the hummingbird and pick the syringe out of it. I deliberately insert the syringe into the vial in my hand and draw the plug back, emptying the contents of one into the other. With my other hand, I fish out the inhaler in my pocket. With a flick of my thumb, the tube inside the device pops out, and the mouthpiece flies into the case on the hummingbird. I remove the syringe from the now empty vial and insert it into the tube. With that, the transfer is complete.

I pull out the syringe and toss it back into the case. I then attach the tube back into the rest of the inhaler, and place the empty vial upside-down back into the case. I snap the case shut and stash it back into the seat compartment.

I take a quick glance toward Alister’s shed, but don’t see anyone around. I allow myself to slump down to a seat behind the hummingbird, resting my back against one of the rear tires. I empty my lungs in a deep sigh and then place the inhaler to my lips. I take a deep draw, keeping my eyes closed.

As I feel the familiar warmth rush through my body, I can’t help but picture Belladonna again. Sprites tend to be cheerful and energetic, but Belladonna seems different to me. She sometimes comes off as ignorant, but then surprises me with moments of deep wisdom. She’s certainly not like any Sprite I’ve ever come across before, and I feel as though we could get along pretty nicely if I didn’t push her away so much. I wonder if she honestly does trust me. You can never really tell with Sprites.

But if there is a chance that the two of us could get along, or that we could create some kind of partnership, I would be a fool not to seize that opportunity. It’s simply a question of how I could establish such a relationship without seeming like I’m taking advantage of her. In my experience, it just isn’t possible.

I sigh again, and tilt my head up to the sky. The sun is beginning to set. I hate to burden Alister, but I’ll have to ask to spend the night. I’m sure she won’t mind, but I’ll still try to be out as early as possible tomorrow.

I stash my inhaler back into my pocket. I feel a bit lighter; more relaxed. As I get back to my feet, I think again of how I might talk to Belladonna. But then an image of Wick propositioning her in Owariella flashes through my mind, and I quickly decide to drop the issue.

That’s not who I am. I work better on my own anyway.

TO BE CONTINUED…

#The Giant Diaries #writing #post-apocalyptic #science fiction #fiction #coronaquarantine

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elyvorg · 7 years

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Persona 4-style Shadows of Knightley and Simon! (Because they have a lot of issues, and therefore this was a lot of fun to do. =D)

Some background for people not familiar with this concept from the Persona games: a Shadow is the physical manifestation of a person's suppressed self, the thoughts and feelings that they hate to acknowledge and try to hide from everyone including themselves. They're initially humanoid and look like a yellow-eyed doppelganger of their host, but if the host denies that the Shadow is a part of them, the Shadow grows in strength and transforms into a monstrous berserk form with an appearance that represents its host's issues in a symbolic, abstract way.

(You should totally play Persona 4 if you haven't, by the way. It's great.)

While I adore the concept of Shadows and often think about hypothetical Shadows for non-P4 characters that I like, I don't usually consider berserk forms that much because I'm not very well-versed in the symbolism necessary for it. However, Knightley and Simon just so happen to already have so much rich imagery going on with their designs for me to work with - the horse, chess and knight motifs for Knightley, and the monkey and clown motifs for Simon - that I was actually able to come up with some plausible berserk Shadow forms for them! So here they are, for the small handful of people who care about Simon and Knightley's issues enough to be able to appreciate this.

More detailed commentary on exactly what I had in mind for each of the designs under the cut.

Shadow Knightley

Knightley's suppressed self would revolve around the ideas of failure and inadequacy. He's a failure as a bodyguard compared to Rooke, but more importantly and centrally to everything about who Knightley is as a person, he's a failure as a friend to Simon after having kidnapped him eighteen years ago in the snow, and nothing he does will ever make up for that fact. So, take a wild guess who the king chess piece inside Shadow Knightley is, why he's facing away and why he's in chains. (The king is the most important piece on the board. The entire goal of the game is to protect him.)

The knight's sword and shield are broken, useless for protecting the king, because Knightley couldn't ever really protect Simon at all.

The structure the king is trapped inside is supposed to evoke the sorts of towers that knights have to rescue people from in fairy tales, except how is Knightley supposed to save his king from a prison he himself trapped him in?

This tower also conveniently happens to look like a rook chess piece, linking Knightley's inadequacy compared to Rooke to his inadequacy at helping Simon.

The king's chains are connected to a shackle around Knightley's neck which I based off his neck brace (a symbol of his failure against de Killer) because the fact that he did this to Simon is always holding him back.

The king can sometimes tug on the chains to give a similar effect to pulling on a horse's reins. Simon essentially has control over Knightley, who would do anything Simon wanted him to to try and make up for the past.

The horse helmet with an exaggeration of Knightley's ridiculous hairstyle and his gun for a horn is a representation of Knightley's over-inflated ego - except that this is a mask and not his real face.

Knightley himself and his king are white, but the parts symbolising the things that work against him - the tower, the chains and the helmet - are black, like opposite sides of a chess game.

His shield bears a broken version of his father's insignia - broken and missing the letters because he can't properly remember his father, but still there because he still wore that ring and so he must have still cared about his father in some way.

While I don't usually draw Knightley with his neck brace because unless it's explicitly the three or so days in which he wore that there's no reason to draw him with it, Shadow Knightley's humanoid form has the brace because, again, it's a symbol of his failure.

Getting into hypothetical battle mechanics for a moment, Shadow Knightley would probably use some ice-elemented skills, given what he did to Simon. He'd be vulnerable to piercing attacks, since such attacks can easily hit the king, which is his weak spot.

Shadow Simon

Simon's Shadow would embody the fact that beneath all the manipulation and murderous revenge plots, Simon's basically still just a terrified kid who thinks everybody in the world is out to get him. So he's a small, childlike monkey with three pairs of arms to hide his face from all the evil that he thinks is out there.

The bandages all over him are also for the idea that he believes everything is trying to hurt him, as well as how hurt he was by Knightley's betrayal. The knife in the back may have been a bit unsubtle of me, but, shh.

The horse-shaped sweet he's clutching in his tail represents the fact that despite everything he misses his father (who made the best desserts in the world), and he misses having a best friend that he doesn’t hate and want to murder.

Those tears on his face are reminiscent of the ones on his clown make-up, except these are actual tears.

His colour scheme is a sort of sepia-tinted monochrome to reflect the fact that he's stuck in the past and can't move on from what happened to him.

The jester's hat (with bonus Dogen's bells on) symbolises the jester-like mastermind persona he puts on and is in full colour because that part of him is so jarringly separate from the real him beneath it.

His humanoid form doesn't have the silly ponytails which were only ever a part of his facade, but he also doesn't have dyed hair, since that would have been something he did while on the run partly to try and distance himself from the kid he used to be.

Battle mechanics-wise, I imagine he'd be weak to ice for obvious reasons. Not entirely sure what element he'd use himself, though. I can't really picture him fighting much at all, actually - more just cowering in the corner and desperately trying to avoid all attacks that come his way.

#ace attorney #ace attorney investigations 2 #aai2 spoilers #horace knightley #simon keyes #shadows #crossover #ace attorney au #persona 4 au #ramble

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