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flowercrowngods · 11 months

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day 07: free space a happy ending

Wakefulness embraces him so slowly and gently that Steve’s not entirely sure he isn’t dreaming when he sees Eddie lying next to him, watching him with an easy smile as his fingers tap out a slow beat on his pillow. Steve looks at him, blinking away the remnants of sleep, not quite daring to do anything more than that for fear of it being a dream after all, scared that Eddie would disappear if Steve reached out to touch.

But then Eddie’s smile widens. “Good morning, sunshine.”

Steve gasps a little and moves his hand to Eddie’s cheek, tucking a few strands of hair behind his ear, his breath hitching when Eddie leans into the touch.

“You’re here,” he whispers, his gaze wandering over Eddie’s features, taking it all in and looking for any indication that this is a dream.

Eddie hums. “And you’re pretty.”

It hits him out of nowhere, the open sincerity in Eddie’s voice, the fondness in his eyes, the honesty in everything about him. The love, open and free now — or getting there, at least. It’s still so raw, though, so new, that Steve doesn’t know how to handle it yet.

“Shut up,” he huffs once he’s caught his breath, rolling over to hide his face and the way his cheeks are heating up. He rolls right into Eddie's chest, though, and he's so warm, so close, smells so good that Steve wants nothing more than to bury his face in his neck and stay there for the rest of the morning. Or maybe the rest of his life.

The reflex to pull away is there. The urge to run and hide, to laugh it off, to freeze up and find something else to do, something to occupy his hands and stop them from reaching for Eddie. Years and years of muscle memory telling Steve to leave.

But Eddie's arms come around him, holding him close and pulling him even closer. And Steve breathes him in, remembering that it can be okay. Remembering that they get a chance now.

Remembering the words.

What are you doing?

Changing the world.

So he tries that, too. Changing the world. He tries by winding his arms around Eddie, too, and breathing in again and again, learning that Eddie won't disappear if he does.

Slowly, he dares to move his arms, stroking along Eddie's back in slow, gentle patterns, lulling himself into a safety he hasn't felt in a while. Maybe ever. At some point Eddie begins to hum, and Steve thinks that it's just another one of his audible smiles, inviting Steve and the rest of the world to join in if they're so inclined. But then he detects a familiar melody in the vibrations of Eddie's neck against his skin, and he holds his breath to find out what it is.

His heart jumps when he recognises the song as one he used to listen to on repeat like a lovesick fool around the time his feelings for Eddie turned into something more, something better, something infinitely worse.

It skips and he forgets how to breathe as he lets his hands travel over Eddie's back, slowly and tentatively daring to slip underneath his shirt and touch his skin.

Eddie begins to sing, then, and Steve wonders if he's even been in love with him before, because nothing of what he's ever felt compares to Eddie's gentle, hoarse, sleep-rough voice as he sings Somebody to Steve, to their little bubble, or to the world outside.

"I want somebody to share, share the rest of my lifeShare my innermost thoughts, know my intimate details."

He closes his eyes as he listens, focusing on the vibrations, on the warmth, on the closeness, on how this moment is everything he's never even dared to want. Everything so perfect that he couldn't even dream it up.

Everything. You're everything.

He needs to be closer still, so be buries his nose in Eddie's neck and breathes him in, tangling their legs, filled with a breathless kind of joyful bliss when Eddie's breath hitches, too, and he stumbles over the words of the second verse as Steve tries to climb into his skin.

"I want somebody who cares for me passionatelyWith every thought and with every breath."

You have me, Steve thinks, pressing his lips to Eddie's pulse point. It's not a kiss, not quite. It's something deeper. It's a promise.

Eddie's hands come up to hold him there even as his voice carries through the drumbeat of Steve's heart in his throat, running fingers through his hair, lightly scratching at his scalp, making him purr along to the melody.

"But when I'm asleep I want somebodyWho will put their arms around me and kiss me tenderlyThough things like this make me sickIn a case like this, I'll get away with it."

When the song ends, Eddie's words faded out, replaced once again by the gentlest silence, Steve feels raw. Vulnerable. Open and exposed. But he also feels safe, and loved, buried in Eddie's skin and held there, as though Eddie is just as scared of fading away as Steve is.

He lifts his head just slightly, enough to meet Eddie's eyes – only to find that they're closed, an expression so serene like Steve has never seen before. Mesmerised and overflowing with affection, he reaches out to trace the line of his brows, down to his cheeks and all the way to his lips, where his eyes are glued for a second.

The thought of kissing Eddie is right there. The opportunity is, too. But he doesn't. He barely dares to move as it is. But he does roll them over the rest of the way until he lies comfortably on top of Eddie, and tucks his head underneath his chin, finding one of his hands and lacing their fingers.

"You've got him," he breathes eventually. "That somebody. If you—“

"Yes," Eddie says, his other hand finding its way to the nape of Steve's neck to play with his hair again. "I want."

"Good." It's lame; far from what he wants to say. From what he has already said last night. It feels like they're doing this backwards, starting with the I love you and catching up with the slow build-up afterwards. "Good. Me, too."

"Good," Eddie hums, and there's that smile again that Steve can't help but mirror.

They fall asleep again like that even though it’s already late in the morning; cuddling and holding and cradling each other, still trembling slightly. Maybe that's what changing the world will do to you. Maybe that's the bravery more than the love.

Or maybe it's just Steve and Eddie. Steve and Eddie. SteveandEddie.

I love you.

~*~

It takes a bit for Steve to relearn loving Eddie. To not associate it with tragedy and sadness and a bone-deep loneliness that'll leave him breathless even on the best of days.

It takes a while for Steve to learn a whole new kind of breathlessness, a whole new kind of aching when it comes to Eddie.

And Eddie's not much better than Steve, pulling away when Steve wants him closer, swallowing his words and needing a second, third, fourth try until he learns that he gets to love Steve now.

Years of unrequited love, or feelings unreturned, of words put out into the universe with no one to receive them, are not easily or quickly unwritten. But every time Steve's breath gets lodged in his throat and he wants to run away, Eddie is right there to remind him of what they can have now. Every time Steve tries to be a little less of who he really is, Eddie is right there to coax him out of his head with gentle touch and a lot of hugs.

Every time Eddie starts to doubt himself and all the ways he makes Steve the happiest person on the planet, Steve is right there with the words he only has for Eddie. Words that don't get stuck anymore. Words that finally get a recipient.

~*~

Their first kiss, the first real kiss, doesn't happen that first morning. They spend the first week only holding each other, barely wanting to let go, hiding their vulnerabilities within each other.

Steve is worried about it at first, seeing Eddie so quiet, so reverent, lacking his usual cheer, his energy and snarky comments. He asks about it one night, ready to prove right that he isn't and can never be enough for him, that all he will do is steal the things that make him Eddie.

Eddie stops then, lifting Steve's chin with a finger when he's too scared, too ashamed, too vulnerable to meet his eyes on his own accord.

"Stevie," Eddie says, his voice so gentle that Steve immediately feels stupid for doubting. "I have loved you for ten years. I've had you for three days. Let me bask in it. Let me be unable to be myself with how absolutely and utterly overcome I am with the knowledge that I have you now. That I get to hold you. That I get to kiss you and keep you and... God. I'm not unhappy. I'm so much the opposite of that that I'm not sure there's a word for it. Other than devoted. Smitten. Bewitched, body and soul."

Steve wants to kiss him then. Almost does, with the way they're just staring at each other, breathing the same air —air that smells like Eddie now. In the end, Eddie just holds him, brushing a kiss to his cheek, his forehead, his temple, and whispers, "Let me bask in it."

And so they do.

Wayne called Eddie not long after with the words, "Chrissy just told me the wedding's off. Please tell me that means what I think it means."

Eddie just blushed, reaching for Steve, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. "Yeah, I, uh. I finally talked to Steve."

There was a very loud cheer on the other end that made Steve laugh, falling into Eddie's side, holding him tight, a weight falling off his shoulders knowing that Wayne was okay with them.

You know, I always figured it would be you.

No matter what happens, you'll always be a son to me.

It made his eyes sting again, but he basked in the moment and in the knowledge that Wayne was on their side. Always has been, always will be.

"You better come here on Sunday, and bring Robin and Chrissy, too."

"Robs and Chrissy?" Eddie asked.

"Oh, you're in for a treat. I'll see your asses on Sunday, boys."

And with that, he hung up. Steve immediately went to call Robin, hopeful and giddy with Wayne's implication, knowing that Chrissy was Robin's person just like Eddie was his.

"She loves me," Robin said, on the verge of tears, and Steve joined here right then and there. "She's– Steve. She's so– She... God!"

"Yeah," Steve laughed at the ceiling above his bed, grinning because Robin sounded so happy, not even caring that she didn't have the right words for it, because he could hear Chrissy laughing in the background, too. Laughing and saying hi to him and interrupting Robin's ramblings and groans and giggles with kisses that always left her dumbstruck for a good two seconds each time.

When the call ended, he went right back to the living room, where he and Eddie started watching Pride and Prejudice before, and fell right on top of him with a happy, happy smile.

~*~

It happens at Wayne's, exactly one week after Eddie showed up at Steve's in the middle of the night. One week after the phone call. One week after I love you.

It happens in the soft glow of the fairy lights Steve and Eddie helped him put up years ago. I happens after Wayne hugged him tight once more, after he pulled Chrissy to the side and promised her that she's still his kid, that he still loves her, and that he's happy to see her smile like that. After he promised the same to Robin.

It happens when Wayne's inside to refill their drinks and Chrissy and Robin are caught up in each other that they're blind and deaf to the rest of the world. When Steve turns to find Eddie looking at him with the softest, gentlest expression.

"Eddie," he whispers, leaning in to rest their heads together, lacing their fingers and stroking his thumb along Eddie's palm.

"Yeah, baby?"

Baby. It fills him with butterflies, with the urge to scream, to shout from all the rooftops that he loves Eddie, and more importantly, that Eddie loves him back! Baby. Baby.

"I love you."

"Hmm. I love you more."

No, you don't. Just longer. "Can I kiss you?"

He can feel Eddie's little gasp before he leans in even closer, rubbing their noses together, cradling Steve's face with his free hand. "Please," he whispers.

And Steve does. He captures Eddie's lips, pouring into it everything he feels and more. Sealing the promises he's made and all the ones he's yet to make. The promises to love and cherish Eddie. To be brave. To be there. To stay and keep and bask.

It's nothing like their first kiss all those years ago. There is no question behind it this time. Only declarations, only promises, only the beginning of a shared future.

And there are many, many more after this one.

🌷🤍🌷 THE END 🌷🤍🌷

tagging: @sexymothmanincarnate @mcneen @livsters @eddiemunchondeeznuts @abstractnaturaldisaster @steddie-as-they-go @hyperfixationgoddess @goodolefashionedloverboi @stxrcrossed186 @eddiemunsonswife @bidisastersworld @ghost-ly-s @romanticdestruction @walkingaftermidnight07 @anaibis @rainydays35 @mightbeasleep @sunfloweringstories @korixae @tuesdaycats @totoroinatardis @ilovebookshowboutyou @musical-theatre-gay @theluckyalien @copingmechanizm @srra @changelingbaby @sassygoop @obsessivelyme @r0binscript @hardboiledleggs @estrellami-1 @bisexualdisastersworld @space-invading-pigeon @swimmingbirdrunningrock @y0urnewstepp4r3nt @oxidantdreamboat @spilled-jar @phirex22 @littlemsterious @captaingigglyguinea @animecookie95 @sharingisntkaren @haluton @littlemsterious @animecookie95 @suddenlyinlove @bisexual-bilingual-biped @jinx-nanami @makewavesandwar @scheodingers-muppet @morcantinon @hexdbog @homosexualhomocide13

god i can't believe it's over. i thank you, every one of you, who cheered for me, cried with me, screamed and yelled at me, and stayed with me throughout this past week. i have no words right now other than thank you 🤍🌷 and i hope this is okay

#steddie #steddie fic #steddieweek2023 #steddie week fic #i feel like this one's a bit disjointed but i kinda like that about it?? little snippets that make a happy ending you know??#idk i hope you like it too (i always get anxious about endings tbh catch me vibrating out of my skin)#dio words #i cannot believe it is done. i cannot believe what a ride it's been. i'll find the words for it later i think. first we read. and we bask 🤍#morcantinon i am ENDLESSLY sorry i forgot to tag you even after you sent that wonderful ask please forgive me 😭🤍#i also forget a bunch of people who asked in the reblogs but dear god i hope you find this anyway i am all over the place #i will edit this and work in more chrissy/robin when i post it to ao3. but this is steddie week. and these are 15k words of an au #that happened spontaneously and within 2h each night of me flying by the seat of my pants. xD

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poorly-drawn-mdzs · 1 year

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Horse Yaoi trotted so Horsegirl Yuri could fly.

#poorly drawn mdzs #mdzs #equineswap au #wei wuxian #lan wangji #little apple #xiao pingguo #lan wunian #This is the first and second kiss I've ever drawn. And its horse yaoi and horsegirl yuri. Wouldn't want it any other way tbh.#And with that...Horse week has come to a close #Not the end of this AU mind you; I'll still throw some doodles in here & there and reblog any fanart #The concept behind this was to make something with the vibes of that one picture with the guys holding girls up on their shoulders #so the girls can kiss. And the guys are kissing too. I hope someone knows what I'm talking about.#Maybe one day I'll draw the unswapped version. Ill flip a coin to decide whether or not wangxian are carrying their equines or riding them #Thank you all so much for the extremely enthusiastic reception to my equineswap AU #The love for both sides of the swap has blow me away. These designs have been sitting around for a while and I wasn't sure I'd post them.#In the end it became a way to celebrate a follower milestone *and* this blog's 3 month anniversary #also...It has been a hard few weeks and I needed something light and fun. I really mean it when I say “you guys helped me pull through”#Love you all B'*)

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multicolour-ink · 10 months

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Never emotionally over the fact that Mario and Luigi are ride or die brothers.

Wherever one goes, even if it's into danger, the other will follow.

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absenthearted · 1 year

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LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD || HACKEARNEY + ALTERNATE UNIVERSES [1/?]

A girl walks into the woods, and a wolf walks out.

The village has a tradition: a girl is chosen as a sacrifice to the Wolf. The Huntsman leads the Chosen into the woods and keeps vigil at the entrance.

The girl does not come back. The Wolf stays away.

This is how it has always been—until now.

#hackearney #travis hackett #laura kearney #the quarry #travis x laura #hackearney AU gifseries #a concept series for AUs i may never write lmao #idk how many i'll actually make since i'm fairly limited with what i can use for travis lol #but i have a very tentative idea for a historical one at least #at some point #anyway you can interpret the gifs and the caption however you wish but it was inspired partly by for the wolf by hannah whitten #and obviously diverges quite a bit from the original fairytale but i think you can spin it multiple ways #i've always loved the idea of red as both the girl and the wolf; and wanted to keep laura's wolf transformation in #(which she does! in that music video! but the makeup was a lil too cheesy lol but i actually loved that video lmao)#this started out as a ~no plot just vibes~ thing but then i went on a little mini worldbuilding spiral for this #maybe i'll make a post about it. maybe i'll write it at some point?? who knows #which. these tags are already too long so i won't get into it lmao but! sources!#1&2: mariah scary and the ghoulish cauldrons 'werewolf valentine' MV #4: red riding hood (2011)#sorry the quality is not great on these gifs i did my best #sometimes i make things #wait sorry 3: the trailer for red light bc i couldn’t think of another gif to use for him lol

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ikiprian · 2 months

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what's ride or die au in yuour wips pinned post? owo

Ride or Die AU is my baby! I'm working on and off, trying to get the first three chapters down and edited before I post 'em.

It's a canon-divergent AU where some months before the Batmobile parks in Crime Alley, Jason steals the tires off the Drake family car. Mid-theft, a nine-year-old Tim pops his head up from the backseat! What should be an adorable first meeting between unlikely friends turns for the worse-- the Drakes had been in the Alley for a reason. The reason catches up to them.

Now it's Tiny Tim and Baby Jay, two against the world! Or against Batman, CPS, the GCPD, and whatever happened to the Drakes, more accurately. Thrown together, their relationship goes from complete strangers to blood brothers quick as a flash, thus: Ride or Die!

I love to overshare but I'd hate to spoil the whole thing so I'll stop here, haha. But I can post WIP snippets if anyone is interested!

#kipanswer #anon #ride or die au #thanks for the ask friend!!#owo #are you. like is the owo at the end your anon tag or are you just owo-ing? i'll tag owo anyway you can be owo if you want #tim drake #jason todd

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romans-art · 2 years

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I love your art soooo much! Would you mind possibly doing some more Moiraine as the Sun Queen, please? That AU gives me so much life, I love it so much. ❤️❤️

Moiraine defeating Lord Galldrian of House Riatin in a battle for the Sun Throne

#moiraine damodred #wheel of time #sun queen au #roman does art #dunno if I'll ever do this in colour #I say looking at my other b/w sketch of Moiraine and Siuan riding a horse as Novices #sure would like to feel inspiration for....anything atm #moiraine sedai

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llitchilitchi · 1 year

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a casual feeding session

#dreamnap #dreamwastaken #dream fanart #should have some sapnap content to them maybe tomorrow #sapnap fanart #vampire menace au #listen I know were all still riding out the hype of the lore but I promised to post this tonight so #if this flops I'll repost it later or smth

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sassenach082 · 3 months

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I'm back and I feel the need to warn everyone that the next chapter is going to be ✨spicy✨ you have been warned

#sorry i vanished for months whoops #rl is a bitch!!! she is just THE WORST!#but hey life is better so there's that #next chapter is frisky let's just saw mav will be feelin it #i'll ride au #sassy speaks

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rocksanddeadflowers · 6 months

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Somebody please ask me about my TMA fantasy AU with the s1 assistants as rebellious nomadic dragon riders and fae Jon who abandoned his court and a (sea)side-plot with Micheal and Gerry PLEASE I will literally never write it and I can't draw but I NEED to talk about it I want to infodump so bad

#dumb post but i was listen to my fantasy/gremlincore sorta playlist #and i forgot how many of those songs inspired this AU and i am thinking about it so hard now #my hyperfixation power isn't strong enough for TMA fanfiction rn #it's possible I'll write one specific scene i really really like but i doubt it #it's more fun imagining it #tma #the magnus archives #jmart #it's VERY jmart lmao #what's more romantic than dragon riding and leading a rebellion come on #fantasy au

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my-gf-is-kazuichi-soda · 9 months

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Trans girl Kazuichi x trans boy Gundham

and then Gundham had to get Kazuichi to pull over (I mean they weren't driving that fast and it was the middle of nowhere but you get the idea).

the car is a Datsun 510.

#soudam #kazuichi x gundham #kazuichi soda #kazuichi souda #gundham tanaka #my art #kazuichi is still unlearning traditional gender roles and comp masculinity but she's working on it!#like. she could have just offered to take Gundham on a ride without this idea of ''that's what boyfriends do right?'' she figures it out th #she doesn't think of gundham as ''a girl'' btw she just defaulted herself to ''guy'' by accident.#also the ''I'm around a guy so I have to act masculine" kind of thing creeps up for her and gundham's learning not to feed into that #might make a comic where they have more communication issues but this one was a smoother situation #also I'll work on writing gundham dialogue bc I am always so embarrassed about it. I always feel like he's ooc when I write him :/#but I was tired and the prompt was cars so this was mostly kazuichi-based. I'll work on gundham next time #this is a different au from my selfship and sondham not a polyship btw #I can tell you right now gundham's earring and the lightning bolt on his face might disappear/reappear bc I keep forgetting them

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multicolour-ink · 11 months

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So @kuramirocket got me thinking of a Vampire AU for the Mario Bros (while discussing in this post) so I figured I would share some thoughts of how I personally would want it to go:

please note that I am not really a big vampire enthusiast, nor do I know that much about vampire lore. I never got into Twilight, nor have I read Dracula (yet). So I'll only be referring to the basic stuff I know about vampires. For those interested: do with this au as you please :)

- Luigi gets turned into a vampire (whether by dark magic, an item, or another vampire). And it's not long after that effects start to take place (his skin burning in the sun, a taste for blood, the urgent need to wander about in the night). His skin also gets a more pale tinge and his eye colour turns purple.

- Luig tries to keep this hidden as long as possible, but Mario finds out and is devasted. He blames himself for not being able to protect his brother from this. He promises to fix this and help Luigi find a cure.

- After many months of travelling (and trying to keep Luigi's new vampire instincts in check in the meantime), they soon come to learn the truth that there is no cure. Luigi is stuck like this forever.

- Mario, without a shred of doubt, asks Luigi to bite him, so he can become a vampire and live with him in immortality.

- Luigi is of course furiously against this. Why should Mario suffer because of him? His brother deserves much better than this, and he should just forget him.

- Mario gets upset at this and firmly tells him that he wants this. Luigi has done nothing wrong, and if fate is deciding that there is no way out of this, Mario would rather shoulder that with him. They're a team, always together, and he can't bare the idea of one having to watch the other age...

- Luigi finally agrees. They hold each other tight, and Luigi (after some hesitation) bites down on Mario's neck.

- It's so painful. And Mario can feel the venom swarming around inside his body. But he knows it's not Luigi's fault. He holds him closer, trying to communicate via his touch that this is fine, everything is ok, this is what he wants.

- After some time Luigi stops and Mario steps back. He's lightheaded, his skin already turning pale, and his eyes becoming a shade of purple. He also has two bite marks on his neck (which he forever carries around as scars). But he's ok. Mario smiles at Luigi reassuringly, knowing it worked.

- They move far away and live in immortality together, deciding to become dark shadow hunters (to protect innocents) and only live on a diet of animal blood and plant sap.

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whirling-fangs · 4 months

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The Dog, the Cat and the Boar

As long as humankind could remember, the wild lands of Japan had always been inhabited with Yōkai. Some large, some small, some dangerous, some inoffensive. Some evil, some benevolent.

The Dog, the Cat and the Boar cared little for such labels. They could not remember how long they had known each other. Their differences only cemented their bond, one's qualities complimenting the others' flaws. They were a team.

They were a family.

The Dog, the Cat and the Boar roamed the lands together. They were all the ruler of their own domain, and they would sometimes part to attend personal matters – but at the end of each quest, they would always meet up for a celebratory banquet.

Together, they were unbeatable. There was no enemy fearsome enough, no army large enough to take them down when they combined their strength.

Their downfall could only come from inside.

The humans and the yōkai were always bound by a precarious balance, begging to be shattered. It only took one spark, one death too many, to light the fire.

The Dog believed that humans were fundamentally good, and worth protecting against those that evil had irremediably tainted. The Cat believed that humans were the root of all problems, and that a peaceful coexistence was nothing but a pipe dream.

The Boar could not pick a side. He watched helplessly as his comrades grew further and further from each other, too set in their own ideals to see what they were losing.

Decades worth of memories. Of shared meals, shared laughter, shared smiles. Three similar trinkets, carved out of their own fangs. How odd for the Cat to be the most sentimental of them all – the Dog and the Boar had laughed, as they happily donned their friend's gift.

The Boar fled the bloodshed. He refused to let his memories be tainted by what had become of his comrades. He departed to the lands he had long left behind, to the mountain that had been the command center of his turf.

He was never to part from it again.

The years passed. Leaves grew anew on the trees, only to turn yellow, orange, red, lying a thick carpet across the lower slopes. Snow covered the mountains and melted away, turning lazy brooks into mighty rivers. The Boar listened to the wind, to the distant news its howls carried all the way to his mountain.

When he learnt of his old friends' untimely demise, he was not surprised. A single tear rolled down his cheek, before he brought his axe down the large log at his feet. Timber for the winter to come.

A simple life. Away from the rest of the world, away from the wars, the famines, the plagues. The Boar stopped listening to the wind's cries.

Until the old world came crashing into his old cabin, in the shape of a disheveled woman.

She was but skin and bones. Her face deformed from being bashed in, clothes torn over her bruised body. Tears had frozen over her mangled visage, her feet and hands turned blue from hypothermia.

The Boar ought to have chased her off. Had she not felt the demonic aura that surrounded his mountain, warding off any creature that bore even the slightest hint of ill intent?

The barrier only let the animals through. Only their hearts were pure enough to cross the sheer manifestation of the Boar's will.

As the Boar opened the door, and the woman collapsed into his arms, he was struck with a realization. This one's heart was not tainted. He had never seen such a pristine soul, gleaming with such force despite the abuse she must have endured.

The swelling of her face subdued with intense care. Her traits angelic, one eye gone blind from the repeated hits. Eyes that shared the same vibrant green as the young leaves of early spring.

The Boar's favorite color.

The weeks turned into months. The months turned into years. The woman's pursuers never came looking for her. The Boar's heart opened again, day after day, letting the radiance of the woman's soul seep into his old wounds. Cure aches that had festered for decades on end.

The Boar thought he couldn't be happier.

He was soon proven wrong.

The little one had his mother's eyes, and his father's ears. Every time he laid eyes upon that small form, allowed those minuscule fingers to wrap around his thumb, the Boar could feel his heart grow another size.

What a fleeting, fragile little life that was. There was nothing he wouldn't give in order to protect it from harm.

Dark clouds gathered above the mountain. They announced a storm unlike any other, one mighty enough to rip the trees apart and turn the rivers into devastating streams. The Boar led his family away from the cabin, into the deeper, higher caves, where they would be safe from the landslides and the floods.

Lightning parted the skies. The Boar felt the barrier, or rather, what remained of it, shatter all around him. For every wound that healed inside his heart, the barrier had grown weaker.

The Spider had not missed that chance. He knew all about the Boar, about his former comrades, about the past that the Boar had for so long tried to run away from. Like an old nightmare resurfacing, fate had caught up with him.

How ironic, for the Boar to finally take a side. A spit in the face of his dead comrades, was it not?

Rage festered inside the Boar's chest. The Spider needed nothing more to seep inside his soul, and seize a heart that had lost all its defenses.

When the Boar opened his eyes again, the scent of blood mixed with petrichor assaulted his senses. A terrible chill ran across his spine, from the warmth that coated his fingers to the rain that soaked his clothes. As his eyes fell to the ground, he felt the remnants of his soul shatter to pieces.

The woman lay sprawled across the ground, her arms outstretched towards the cliff upon which they stood. There was no light surrounding her. No pure glow, not even the smallest spark.

Her soul was gone.

The Boar collapsed to his knees. He brought her body to rest on its back, hands crossed above her chest. A final kiss placed on her forehead.

Before the Boar plunged his own claws into his chest.

The Spider would return to reap the rewards of his plot. As low as the mighty Boar might have fallen, the body of a Daiyōkai was always worth devouring.

The little one was washed away by the streams, until his wails caught the attention of a sorrowful boar mother. The sow brought the child over to her burrow, and nursed him to good health.

The Hanyō never worried about the past, neither did he think about the future. He survived day after day, discovering his own strength as he fought off the many demons that crawled over the mountain, looking for a master that had long departed these lands. The Hanyō's existence in itself was nothing but a rumor for the humans to fear.

Perhaps, someday, he would depart on a quest. Perhaps he would seek more power, better status, and a way to show the world just how strong he really was.

And perhaps, someday, he would figure out the meaning behind the odd little trinket that never left his wrist.

#drabble #[[BEHOLD..... another long ass drabble as a verse introduction :)#i'm done making descriptive blurbs they always turn out dull #but this? emotional ride guaranteed. have fun #i spent 2 hours on it ;w;#and soon i'll start following inuyasha verse blogs hehehehehe]]#mentions #arrachnes #passing the torch / Inuyasha AU

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