#its branches will spread like a new temple
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'Prière (Prayer)' from Baudelaire's Les Litanies de Satan (The Litanies of Satan), trans. W. Aggeler (1954) & insert for the month of August with the illustration of a Black Mass from Manuel Orazi's Calendrier Magique (Magic Calendar)
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Safe Haven
Series Part Listing Found Here
Neteyam x Original Na'vi Female Character
Summery: Seeking refuge, Xilä and her father venture to the lands of the Omatikaya clan, in the hopes that the Toruk Makto would be generous in allowing them to stay. This is her story about not only finding her strength, but finding love.
I feel like the above image needed to make a comeback for this part. Tehehe. Special thanks of course to @cinetrix
Warning: This story contains smut, violence & abuse (please don't read if these topics will affect you)
PART WARNING: Contains mentions of childbirth
Some characters have been aged up. Neteyam in particular is 23.
Xilä is my own creation.
~
Part 12 - The One After Iknimaya
Niwan Loreyu was just as beautiful as Xilä remembered.
The moment they stepped through the vined wall she felt the calming waves of that familiar feeling of being hugged lovingly.
Eywa.
Scanning the scenery before her, Xi squinted when she noticed a few new and somewhat out of place items littered around the small area.
“What’s-” she started, but Neteyam simply pulled her along until they drew nearer to the far right corner where there sat the base of a massive, thick tree trunk- its branches not visible since it grew out of the hideaway.
“Is that my satchel?” she asked, confused, noting it along with a couple others hanging from the trunk.
Stepping away from him, she surveyed the area properly, lighting up as she did.
Connected to the trunk and the side of a wall of strange vegetation, was a lush canopy of beautiful flowers. A large soft pelt was spread underneath it, creating a romantic and intimate looking bed. Xi even spotted a few stolen blankets from her own bed back home, rolled neatly at the edge of the pelt.
Turning around, she saw a basket filled with a few little pots and washcloths which was placed on a rock by the pool of rippling water.
A small wood crafted folding table sat nearby with two patched cushions as seats- one on either side of the table. And in addition to the glimmers of the bioluminescent plants and the on and off blinking of flying glowbugs, there were tiny lit lamps scattered across the space.
“Neteyam?” she asked, turning to him with a sweet but curious smile.
He scratched his temple sheepishly. “I was um, hoping we could maybe stay a few days? Just the two of us, spending time together? I don’t think one night alone with you is enough for me honestly,” he admitted quietly. “But only if you want to of course,” he added quickly.
She stared at him. He was shy right now and it was honestly the cutest thing ever.
“What about food?” she asked in faux seriousness, enjoying the way he was all squirmy at the moment- a far cry from his usual self assured disposition.
He pointed to one of the hanging satchels. “Enough for hopefully a week,” he said. “And we’ve got drinking water,” he continued, gesturing to the small trickling waterfall.
“Bath,” he said, walking over to the pool, showing her the soap balms and washcloths. “Bed,” he added, jerking his head to the pelt under the canopy.
“And if we get bored, which I highly doubt we will, I packed a few games as well. I even borrowed a deck of UNO from one of the lab guys,” he finished with a tiny smile, tail wagging behind him, seeming eager to know what she was thinking.
“Wow,” Xi said, impressed. “What about clothes?” she asked, trying to prolong her teasing.
His brows narrowed as if he realized what she was doing, so he turned the tables on her instead. “They’re in your satchel, but I don’t think you need them since I’m planning on keeping you naked the entire time,” he said matter of factually.
“Right,” she replied with burning cheeks. “Um, one last question. Did you ah- tell our families? Sal and Jxo aren’t going to show up thinking you kidnapped me are they?” she joked.
“No.” He laughed and shook his head. “There’s a big trip planned for tomorrow, you know the one Lo’ak was boasting about last week?”
She nodded, remembering how excited her friend was about finally getting a vacation.
“They’re leaving tonight, maybe after the party- spending a week away near an old RDA base. It’s um, kind of a secret tradition to take the new recruits out to bond a bit, but it’s really just an excuse for the warrior’s to get drunk and let loose for once.”
Xi shot him an amused look.
“Anyway….uh, our families may be under the impression that I’m surprising you and taking you along on the trip with the others. So we’re free to stay here…none the wiser. Lo’ak. Um, he'll cover for us.”
“Sounds like you have it all figured out….” She bit her lip, feeling herself practically swoon at the sweetness of the man in front of her. “Teyam this is all incredibly sweet. I love it…Thank you,” she whispered. “When did you even plan all of this?”
Having enough of their distance he moved towards her, eyes gleaming with intention. Titling her chin up, he leaned forward to trace his lips over hers. “Since the moment you agreed to be mine, Xilä.”
And then he was kissing her, feverishly, demandingly, soul sucking, breathtakingly.
Xilä gasped when he bent her backwards, taking from her what he wanted. He pulled away too quickly for her liking, but then he was suddenly scooping her up from under the thighs and his lips were back on hers again.
Xi squeezed her legs into his sides while her arms twisted behind his neck as they kissed with abandon, tongues and teeth clashing unceremoniously.
Neteyam blindly walked towards their canopy, his footsteps illuminated with every step against the soft mossy flooring, until he reached the pelt.
Keeping her enclosed in his arms he kneeled, then sat back, settling her into the cradle of his folded legs. He broke their kiss and nuzzled her cheek, lovingly caressing down the column of her neck with his nose and lips as she sighed against him.
“I love you,” he said into her skin, so quietly she thought she imagined it.
“I love you too.”
Sitting straight, he reached behind and grabbed his queue, bringing it between them. Xi followed and did the same, watching, entranced as the pinkish tendrils revealed themselves.
Neteyam’s eyes darted between hers for a fleeting moment, quickly checking for that final sign of confirmation and Xilä’s free palm soothed down his chest in response.
Eyes locked on the ends of their queues, they made Tsaheylu. Tendrils entwining, they glowed in unison, joining as one.
Pupils blown wide, they inhaled simultaneously, consumed by the rush of emotions filling them- both in awe by the intensity of each other's feelings.
They remained still for a moment, enthralled by the connection.
Xilä smiled up at him. Then, pulling him towards her by the nape, she kissed him, slowly. She tried to look into his eyes when they broke apart but he averted his, choosing instead to lick a path down the soft of her skin, tasting and savoring the feeling of her in his arms.
Laying her onto her back, Neteyam followed, continuing his feast as he lapped and kissed his way down her clavicle.
Xi purred, absorbed by his affections.
She let him undress her, smiling when he nipped her ankle after he’d removed her extravagant anklets. Her hips jumped when he playfully tested the pool of liquid between the valley of her thighs after removing her skirt and undercloth. And when her top was gently pried away, he tasted each of her dark blue hardened nipples, just because.
When she was completely bare, he sat back and stared unabashedly. He took his time, gazing appreciatively at her soft but toned lines- her months of training, hard work and proper nutrition was clear as day.
A heated flare of raw deep rooted possession filled him and Xilä gasped almost inaudibly when she felt it through their bond.
The longer he stared the deeper her blush turned. Her dark spiced coloured hair looked almost as black as his tonight, and her once overly pale dusty blue skin, now had a healthy and darker hue to it from all her days in the sun.
She was breathtaking.
Sitting up on an arm, Xi tugged on his loincloth and he complied, quickly undoing the tie to fling the cloth away, along with his belt and knife holder.
Now it was her turn to stare. Almost impossibly, Xi’s blush ran even deeper. Biting down on her bottom lip she peered up at him with an innocence mingled with a wanton neediness.
“Um, this might be a really stupid question,” she whispered, sending another somewhat nervous glance down to the hardened appendage currently sweeping along his lower abdomen. “I’ve been wondering for a while, but we’re here now so…I kind of need to ask…um, will it…fit?”
Pushing her completely onto her back once more, he hovered over her and grinned against her lips. “Yes,” he assured as he slipped a hand between her legs to cup her. “If I do it right.”
She gasped into his mouth when two of his fingers instantly slid into her, curving with a pleasurable pressure.
Neteyam used his tail to nudge her thighs further apart, allowing more room for his working hand and throaty noise filled the air when he sped up his pace.
Xilä’s moans were like music to his ears as she rocked her hips against his fingers.
“Neteya- mmm, shit.”
In quick succession and with a single circle of his thumb to her clit, she was clenching around his fingers and coming with a breathy sigh.
“Good?” he asked, withdrawing his hand to suck his fingers clean.
“Good,” she echoed, feeling her body tingle and relax from the orgasm he’d given her.
His fingers were back now, dipping between her folds, pressing against her entrance. All three, thick digits were sheathed inside her this time, slowly stretching her with every stroke and curl.
“More,” she begged. “More. Please Teyam.”
Greedy for more, Xi took matters into her own hands. She reached between them and gripped him causing him to gasp in shock and bite down hard on the breast he had just sucked into his mouth.
“AH!” she yelled, arching in pain, making her accidentally tighten her hold on his length.
“FUCK!” he grunted, in not only surprise but mostly from the sudden pressure on his poor dick.
Groaning out loud, he sucked in a breath of air, screwing his eyes shut when she began to stroke him.
Fingers barely meeting her thumb, Xilä began to move her hand up and down the way she often saw him do. She peered down between them, loving the feeling of him all hot and hard and heavy. She glanced up at him with a grin, the same time he glared down at her with flaring nostrils.
But then he was quickly averting his eyes from hers and her fun was halted when his sticky coated fingers suddenly tugged her bandaged wrist away.
“Fuck,” he muttered again with closed eyes and a clenched jaw- straining to gain control of himself as he breathed heavily.
“Are you okay,” she asked, trying to push him back to see his face. He looked pained and a pang of guilt clouded her when she figured she must have done something wrong.
“Mm. Yeah just give me a minute, baby.”
“Alright,” she hushed, palming his biceps in comfort.
Xilä could feel the push and pull of his raging emotions…but then, eyes narrowed on the man between her thighs, something else occurred to her. Lips parting to say something, a little noise escaped her when three fingers entered her once more without a word.
“Neteyam,” she called, but he ignored her, choosing to focus on the squishing mess between her legs.
Doing her best to stay immune to the delicious pleasures quickly consuming her, she pushed at his chest. “Neteyam, look at me,” she said.
He glanced at her for a fraction of a second before finding her breasts far more interesting, leaning down to sooth his tongue over the deep indents he’d made on the right one.
“Nete-yam,” she tried again, voice breathy and strained and pleading.
“Hmm?” he hummed in faux interest as he curled his fingers deeper.
“Why won’t you- f-fuck!” she stuttered out when he found that one particular spot inside of her, but she stayed strong. “Why won’t you look at me?”
“Leave it, Xi.”
She didn’t like his response, so she tried a different tactic.
“Eyes, Neteyam,” she ordered, causing him to freeze. A frustrated mewl left her when his fingers stilled too, she was so close to coming.
“I can’t,” he said, almost as if he were mad at himself.
“Why not?” she asked, biting her cheek to stop from laughing at his stubbornness. “Tell me why you can’t look at me in the eyes, handsome.”
“Stop,” he warned.
“Unless…they're bothering you?” she teased in a sing-song voice. “Are my eyes too mu- AH SHIT!”
He had effectively shut her up by grinding the heel of his palm on her clit while rubbing right against that one particular spongy spot again.
“Come for me, Xilä,” he ordered.
Her breath hitched and Neteyam smirked against her collarbone when he felt her tensing up.
Fire licked her inside out as a coil tightened low in her abdomen. Xilä’s thighs quaked and her back bowed, then a sharp cry ripped from her lips as she gushed all over his hand.
More than pleased with himself, he helped her through the waves, whispering words of praise into her pointed ear.
“Good?” he eventually asked once again, checking in on her as the pads of his fingertips rubbed her along her swollen folds.
“Good,” she replied with a happy hum.
Feeling his movement, Xi looked down to see him slathering his shaft with her slick- the arousing sight alone brought back that flickering coil in her lower abdomen to life once more.
“I’ll go slow, alright?” he assured, when he caught her staring. “Tell me if you need me to stop, okay?”
She nodded.
“Baby.”
“Yes. Yes, okay,” she said quickly, giving him the verbal confirmation he was seeking.
She inhaled deeply when she felt him plunge his fingers into her one last time for good measure before pulling out to guide his tip to her entrance.
“Relax, sweetheart,” he soothed, feeling her nerves through the bond. “Don’t tense up.” It was a hypocritical thing to say he knew since he was nothing but tense.
Xilä forced her muscles to relax. She winced when he gave that first push forward, he was much thicker than all three of his fingers combined so it was a bit of a squeeze.
“Fuuuck,” Neteyam breathed.
Xi squirmed uncomfortably at the foreign sensation, holding in a whimper at the slight twinge of pain. While Neteyam, although extremely tense and raging to keep control of himself, took his time to ease his way in- slowly stretching her, molding her around him to perfection.
Dragging, in, out, in, out, in, out, in, out.
He’d only pull out just enough so that his tip still kept her entrance open, before delving back in- each time, deeper than the last.
Xilä’s jaw fell open when he was finally fully seated inside of her.
“Oh Eywa. You’re so deep,” she said in awe, struggling to control her breathing. Fingers creeping downward to rest on her lower abdomen, she gasped. “I can feel you. Right here,” she said, showing him the slight bulge.
It took a few moments for her to adjust to having him inside of her, but once the slight pain turned into a dull tingle, Xilä couldn’t help but marvel at the feeling of their connection.
It was incredible.
“Fuck, fuck. Xilä I can’t. I need to move. Please. I need-”
“Take me,” she said, giving him the okay. “Make me yours.”
Xilä grunted from the first slam of his hips. She gasped with the second and moaned loudly at the third.
And then Neteyam was wild and relentless. Her breasts shook with each roll, each rut as he growled into the skin of her neck.
Palms flat against his back, her nails dug deep into his flesh.
It didn’t take very long for her to feel the familiar spring inside of her come to life again, twisting and turning, coiling tighter each time as it prepared to snap- to break, to explode.
“Shit. I’m going to come,” he cried hoarsely, feeling her clenched firmly around him, locking him in a sweet but tortuous grip. “Are you close?”
“A-Almost,” she panted.
Sneaking a hand between them, Neteyam worked his fingers against her swollen clit, quickly drawing her closer to her impending rapture.
Eyes rolling, toes curling and body quivering, Xilä screamed his name. What felt like an eruption of molten fire, began to spread through her body like never before, sending rippling shockwave after shockwave.
Breath erratic and wild, Neteyam chased after her, cursing when his entire body turned taut. He twitched inside of her as hot spurts of come filled her, groaning when her walls continued to pulse, practically milking him of everything he had.
“Oh fucking hell, Xilä,” he rasped, collapsing completely on top of her with an awed laugh.
“Oof! ‘Teyam! I can’t breathe!” Xilä exclaimed with a breathy laugh that instantly turned into a wince when he shifted, his pelvis dragging along her already throbbing clit.
“Sorry,” he apologized, gently easing up onto his forearms as he caught his breath.
“No, I didn’t mean go away,” she protested, locking her propped up thighs to his hips and capturing his cheek in her palm.
Xilä smiled. “You’re looking at me now,” she teased, loving the intimacy of him still fully sheathed inside of her as his eyes bore into her soul.
“How do you feel?” Neteyam asked, gaze soft on her as he drew a palm down to caress the skin of her thigh.
There were remnants of a dull twinging ache between her thighs but the bliss Xi was feeling at the moment countered it all.
“Like I want to do that again soon,” she answered with a purred hum, eyes closed as if in pure ecstasy.
His eyes darkened at the sound of her voice and he felt himself begin to harden again. “I think I can make that happen,” he said, surging down to steal a kiss.
~
Later that night, after a few more rounds of intense lovemaking, Xilä was exhausted.
She had had a long day after all.
After Iknimaya, there was the ceremony and feast. Then there was the pairings festivity where she danced to heart’s content followed by a slew of the most brain numbing orgasms she’d ever experienced.
So suffice to say she was completely beat and extremely sore.
“Hey, no sleep just yet sweetheart,” Neteyam called softly, rousing her from her doze.
“Teyam,” she whined unhappily, when he pulled her to sit in front of him, jelly thighs draped over his as their still connected queues draped beside them.
Neteyam stretched to the side, producing a little pouch he had stashed away, and Xilä, too tired to even be curious at what he was up to, slumped into his chest, cheek finding a comfortable spot to rest.
“How do you feel, Xi?” he asked, lifting her hand to unwrap her compression bandage.
“Sore,” she rasped, voice scratchy since she’d done a lot of screaming that night. “But not bad,” she answered with a yawn as she cuddled further into his warmth.
Moving quickly and with precision, he treated her bruised wrist with the balm his grandmother had given him, clenching his jaw to contain his bubbling anger at the sight of the ugly marks still there.
When he finished, he rewrapped her wrist with a new bandage.
“Back up, baby,” he said gently, pushing her off his chest. “Drink,” he ordered, handing her a vial of pain tonic before stretching over for a water skin and making her drink half of it in one go too.
“I love it when you do this. It makes me feel all fluttery inside,” she admitted through squinty eyes after a gulp of water.
“Do what?” he asked, unable to keep the grin off his face at the sight of her sex mused hair, kiss swollen lips and soft sleepy expression.
“Take care of me.”
“Oh yeah?” he hushed out, feeling himself melt at her confession. “Well I’m all yours now, Xi. You’ve locked me down. So I’m going to be taking care of you for the rest of your life.”
“Sounds terrible,” she sassed in mock sarcasm while simultaneously swooning on the inside.
Neteyam laughed.
“What’s so funny?” she mumbled with a grumpy frown.
“Nothing. You’re just really cute when you’re half asleep,” he said, taking the water pouch from her hands and guiding her to lay down.
Hydrated and unable to keep up any longer, Xilä was asleep within seconds.
Quite tired himself, Neteyam stretched out alongside his wife and pulled her into his arms.
His wife.
Shit.
How’d he get so lucky?
He peered down at her, eyes tracing over her relaxed features. He could feel her calm through their still connected bond. It washed over him, subduing him into a lulled trance, until he too drifted off.
~
“You’re kidding!” Xilä snapped with an angry scoff. “But they were the assholes that started it in the first place! They were picking on Kiri! Why did you guys have to apologize?”
Neteyam smirked up at his gorgeous mate. She was seated on top of one of the nearby boulders, removing the tangles from her clean damp hair with a whittled comb while he continued to relax in the warm rippling water after their shared bath.
“Dad’s orders,” he shrugged. “We were the ones visiting their clan, so it was our responsibility. Dad had warned us beforehand that we had to be on our best behaviours and in his eyes since Lo’ak struck the first punch, it was on us.”
“Well that’s just stupid. You were their guests. They should have been more welcoming and not judgmental little assholes,” she said defiantly.
“It’s in the past anyway,” he said, more for her comfort, seeing the flicker of her protectiveness begin to spark and enjoying it way too much. “We were just all idiot teenagers back then,” he smiled.
“Well,” she sniffed, “if I ever come across this Ao’nung and his skxawng friends, I’ll be sure to give him a piece of my mind,” she said, combing the strands a bit harder than before.
“Oh yeah?” Neteyam teased, getting to his feet to close the short distance between them.
With her seated on the high boulder, they were at eye level now. “Don’t talk too soon sweetheart, you might just get your chance,” he said, spreading her thighs so he could slot between them.
“W-what do you mean?” Xi asked, slightly distracted, swallowing hard at the sight of water droplets rippling down her husband’s delicious build. Eyes swooping lower, she sucked in her bottom lip with a deep inhale.
“Dad’s got a few talks in the works. Majority of the well connected clan leaders are looking to get together for a meeting sometime early next year. They want to create a network- more trading, better and easier communication methods, cross training and sharing of knowledge, just an all round discussion of change for the future ahead.”
“Wow,” Xilä said awed. “But wait, how will that give me a chance to speak to Ao’nung?”
“Tonowari, the Metkayina’s olo'eyktan, offered to host the meeting at his clan...I'm going to be in attendance, and I’d love it if my wife were at my side,” he said, tucking a strand behind her ear.
“She would be honored,” Xilä whispered, smoothing her hands down his chest to palm at the panes of his abdomen.
Dragging her forward until she was seated at the edge of the rock, Neteyam kissed her. Pulling his queue over his shoulder, he broke their kiss and jerked his head, gesturing for her to do the same.
Tsaheylu made, Neteyam fucked her right there. He made her come twice before allowing himself to follow, filling her full of his seed, fingers reaching down to make sure she was stuffed with every last drop.
It was already their fourth day of marital bliss and every single moment had been incredible so far.
Xilä was a fucking dream and Neteyam was addicted.
He had stayed true to his promise and kept her naked the entire time.
Sex to her, he soon realized, was just like their training lessons. She was a quick learner- eager to please, eager to explore...and eager to kill him, he thought.
The moment her stare pierced him the first time she wrapped those pretty pouty lips around his swollen mushroom tip, he exploded. He had come in an instant, as if he were once again a fucking horny teenager.
And when he thought that was already bad enough, his little mate continued her torture by sucking him dry- eyes watering as her mouth swallowed him as far as her throat would allow before hollowing her cheeks as she released him with an audible POP.
Then while his poor soul was gasping for air, wondering what the fuck had just happened, she had the audacity to smile up at him and ask if she’d “done it right?”
Suffice to say he had her on her back within seconds. Her voice turned hoarse that night from all the screaming she’d done as his head stayed buried between her thighs. Tongue and fingers relentless as they teased, denied, edged and then finally gave her orgasm after orgasm.
Sex with Xilä was a whole new world for Neteyam. Her body was his map to explore and their bond, their connection- Tsaheylu, only made things intensely better.
Her pleasure was important to him, he was addicted to learning what did it for her.
Like how she loved her tail tugged on while she bounced on his lap, or how she’d mewl and moan and pant and beg whenever he edged her with his tongue and fingers, even how she’d clench around him in a vice like grip if he whispered words of praise in her ear.
There weren’t many things that she disliked, but he learned that lesson quite quickly after he made the mistake of wrapping his hand around the front of her throat. She had completely freaked out, gasping for air even though he hadn’t even given the slightest squeeze.
Feeling terrible, Neteyam had apologized profusely even after she assured him it was fine.
The turn out after that wasn’t bad though. Because that day he learned another thing about her…he could make her come by sucking on her tits alone if he gave them attention long enough.
And it was a fucking glorious sight to see.
On their fifth day, they agreed it would be their last. With all their lovemaking, they burned through their calories and so too their food. Neteyam had mentally berated himself for not packing more to last the entire week.
“How do you think our tent’s coming along?” Xi wondered as they sat across each other at the folding table. “Oh, UNO!” she yelled quickly, placing a red number three card in the pile with a happy tail wag.
“Sorry sweetheart, draw four,” Neteyam smirked with a “ha! Got you,” raise of his eyebrows, grinning at her pout and little nose scrunch. “I hope it’s finished,” he replied to her question. “Our families are going to go crazy when they find out we came back mated. We’ll need a place to hide,” he joked.
“I can’t wait to decorate it. One of Sal’s friends makes these amazing tapestries. I think I’ll ask her to make one for us if she’s got free time- one with all the colours, I like those the most. Oh and I was thinking we could maybe reuse your hammock- if that’s okay? I think I actually prefer it to my bed, and it’ll be big enough for the both of us anyway,” she rambled with an excited expression as she rearranged her new drawn cards. “Also where do we get the hanging chimes from? You know the ones that jingles to let you know you have compan- What?” Xi asked, flushing when she caught him staring.
“Nothing,” Neteyam said with a soft smile. “I just can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you, is all.”
Xilä melted. “I can’t wait either.”
After he won that round, they continued discussing their plans for their home. He loved that she was so opinionated on what she wanted for it. He knew it would be her first official home- one that she created and he was more than happy to make sure she got everything she wanted.
Midway conversation, he noticed her squirm a little, glancing down at her lap a bit uncomfortably.
“C’mere baby,” he said, trying to quash his knowing grin. “Are you dripping?” he asked, as she settled against his chest.
“Mm,” she hummed in acknowledgment. “So, is this a thing that’s usually done?” she asked curiously. She noticed over their stay so far, he developed a habit.
She felt him shrug as he slipped a hand between her parted thighs, thick digits stuffing back his leaking seed into her.
“Never done this with another girl before, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“You seem to like doing it,” she noted in amusement, jerking in his hold when he accidentally grazed her still over her sensitive clit.
“I like everything with you,” he answered, in complete honesty, pressing a tender kiss to her pointed ear.
But it was the truth. There was just something about having her full of his come that he loved. It was intoxicating was all he could explain it as.
Xilä released a leisured sigh, relaxing into his arms as she took in the beauty of their hideaway. “I’m going to miss this place,” she said. “I’m also not looking forward to our journey home,” she grumbled somewhat, squeezing at her aching thighs knowing fully well the ride back wouldn’t be any help.
“Want a massage?” Neteyam offered, fingers still playing between her folds.
Xi snorted. “No thank you. I know well by now what your massages lead to. I’ve learnt my lesson after you offered last night. You’re the reason they ache in the first place,” she sassed.
“I’m offering a serious one this time. I don’t want you hurting on the ride back,” he said with a concerned frown.
“Alright,” she agreed. “After lunch though. I’m getting peckish,” she said, halting his wrist when his playing became a bit too deliberate. She was still recovering from being pounded on her hands and knees not even an hour ago.
Tilting her head up along his shoulder to meet his gaze, she brought his fingers to her lips, sucking each one clean.
Neteyam groaned at the sight. “Oh you are such a spicy little minx you, know that?”
Xilä laughed. “So you’ve said a few times,” she teased, twisting up onto her knees to plonk herself in his lap. She hugged him around the waist, face snuggled into the crook of his neck- just wanting to be close to him.
“I thought you were hungry,” he smiled, pulling her in closer. Ever since their very first hug, he always marveled over just how perfect she fit in his arms.
“Mmm yeah, but this is better,” she sighed in content. “Just a little longer please.”
A comforting silence passed between them as they stayed wrapped up in each other. Only the sounds of the trickling waterfall, the dull roar of the wind and distant cries of creatures could be heard. It was peaceful and all was calm.
“Sometimes I think I’ll wake up and realize it was all a dream,” Xi murmured against his skin.
“What was all a dream?”
“You. Sal, Jxo. Everything that’s happened since I arrived here…Teyam, I never thought I’d be blessed like this…I don’t know what I did to deserve it. I get these feelings sometimes that I’d wake up back in Li’ona and realize it wasn’t all real, and you were gone, and you weren’t really mine.”
“Xi,” he frowned, trying to tilt back to see her face, but she didn’t budge.
“I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s stupid I know-”
“It’s not stupid,” he said firmly. “It’s not. Xilä, please look at me.”
“Let’s forget it, I don’t mean to be a downer during our time together,” she said, sitting to face him with a forced smile.
“No, we are not dropping this. Xi, babe, I want you to tell me these things- I need you too, okay? So that not only do you get it out of your system, but so I can talk you out of thinking you're not worth any of it. To tell you that those tiny whispers in your head are wrong.”
Looking down, he shifted her on his lap so that he could tear off a string of beads from the front of his loincloth.
Taking a section of her hair, he began braiding the strands, weaving in the beads as he did.
“I carved these myself years ago,” he said quietly as he worked. “Here.” He gently guided her fingers to the coloured pieces. “Do you feel that? Look. Do you see them? Do they feel and look real to you?” he asked, peering down at her, pointed ears twitching earnestly.
Xilä nodded, brows pinched together in confusion.
“If I’m not around whenever you get those feelings again. Use this. Look at them, feel them. They’re real Xilä Sully. I am real. And I am happy to remind you of it whenever you need me too,” he said seriously.
At a loss for words, Xilä simply smiled- a real one this time, then said, “I love you Neteyam Sully.”
~
After their lunch, a massage that led to one last round of lovemaking and bath, they began to pack up their things- loading up his direhorse who had spent the few days roaming free around the area just outside niwan loreyu.
The moment they crossed the border, reaching the first cluster of communities, Neteyam could tell something was off.
Hearing his name yelled, Neteyam spotted Spider chasing wildly after them and instantly pulled on Antoyle’s reins.
“Seriously man, why the hell is your comm off?” Spider spat as he ran to close the distance. “Look never mind, just go! It’s D’avi. She’s in labor and asking for Xi.”
“Oh Eywa!” Xilä exclaimed from her seat in front of him.
Charging off, Neteyam got them there in record speed.
Without a glance at the gathered friends and family members, Xilä flung herself off the direhorse and headed straight into her sister’s tent.
The interior had been rearranged somewhat- the usual way the healers normally did in order to prepare for a birth.
Mo’at was stooped between a panting D’avi’s spread legs, chanting quietly. Yalnïk sat behind his wife, keeping her propped up- dabbing at her forehead with a cloth while Sal and Yalnïk’s mother were on either side of her, holding her hands, fussing over her as they spoke soothing words of encouragement. And then there was Kiri, who shuffled around, assisting her grandmother from the side lines.
“Oh D’av, I’m here, I’m here,” Xilä cooed, moving to crouch on the same side as Sal, who let her hold D’avi’s hand instead. The mother kissed her adoptive daughter on the temple, more than happy to have her back home.
“Well you sure took your time,” her sister sassed between labored breaths, accepting the kiss on the cheek Xilä gave her in greeting. “You are lucky my children decided to wait for their aunt to arrive.”
“They love me already,” Xi teased easily, brushing away a sweat soaked strand of hair from D'avi's forehead. “You alright there Yalnïk?” she asked, noticing her brother-in-law’s greenish hue.
Before he could respond however, his wife snapped.
“Why do people keep asking him if he is okay? I AM the one birthing not one but two of his massive babies! Have you seen his head? Two of those are about to be pushed out of me right now! Do I look okay? Ask me! Not him! Ask me! Because I am not okay, alright? It has been HOURS and they refuse to come out! He is the reason I am here! The idiot put two of his massive headed babies in me and I am not okay! It’s all his fault! Him and his stupid big fat dick- OH EYWA!” she cried out as a wave of pain hit her.
Xilä was biting down hard on her cheek as her sister ranted hysterically. Glancing around she could tell the two mothers and even Kiri were also highly amused, and like her were trying their best to school their features. Her brother-in-law on the other hand, turned crimson.
“Breathe D’av, breathe. Hey, look at me,” she whispered, while D’avi panted. “You’re going to do great, okay? You’re one of the strongest women I know. You’ve got this.”
Tears welling in her eyes, D’avi tightened her grip on her hand. “I'm so happy you are here with me, Xi. I don’t think I could do this without you,” she admitted softly. “You’ll help me right?” she pleaded, showing off a rare side of being vulnerable.
“Every step of the way,” Xilä assured, kissing the back of her clammy hand.
“It is time,” Tsahìk declared.
~
When Neteyam returned to the outskirts of D’avi and Yalnïk’s tent after unloading Antoyle of their packed belongings, he was surprised to see the man standing outside- staring at the closed flap where D’avi’s cries could be heard.
“Yalnïk?” he said as he drew near. “Why are you out here?” Neteyam asked quietly, sending a hesitant nod in greeting to a pissed off looking Jxo who stood nearby with Yalnïk’s father and twin brother.
Yalnïk, who seemed a bit queasy, side-eyed him guiltily. “I got kicked out,” he whispered reluctantly.
“What? Why?”
Rubbing the back of his neck, the soon to be father released an embarrassed sigh. “I looked…..then I fainted. So the women kicked me out,” he admitted, frowning helplessly at the closed flap when D’avi cried out again.
“Ah….Right,” Neteyam said, nodding in sympathy before giving him a pat on the back in comfort.
“Is he still glaring?” the fisherman asked under his breath, lips barely moving.
Catching his meaning, Neteyam found Jxo’s cold hard stare before quickly averting his eyes with a fake cough. “Yep.”
“Fuck. He’s never going to let me live this down…Hey can you piss him off again like last time, so I can get off the hook?” he joked half seriously.
They both chuckled then instantly sobered up when their father-in-law made his way over to them.
“How was the trip?” the elder asked, gruffly, glare cutting into the side of poor Yalnïk’s head once more.
“Um, good. I’d say it was good,” Neteyam said awkwardly, avoiding the man’s obvious appraisal, hoping he couldn’t suddenly read minds and see the flashes of what exactly happened between him and Xilä on said trip.
There was no way in hell he was mentioning that he’d taken the man’s daughter as his mate while he was in this pissed a mood.
Neteyam was saved from Jxo’s further questions however, when the cry of a baby’s voice rang out, startling them all.
~
A girl and a boy.
D’avi birthed two healthy, gorgeous babies, and Xilä was already in love.
She was not the only one it seemed. Sal, Jxo and both of Yalnïk’s parents were completely smitten with their grandbabies.
When the okay was given for them to come in, Xilä stood on the sidelines as she witnessed their joys of pure unconditional love.
Big, gruff Jxo was soft and tender as he greeted his daughter first. Kissing a still sobbing D’avi on the forehead, telling her how proud he was of her. Sal was also a slew of tears as she held out baby L’eo to meet his grandfather for the first time.
Meanwhile tiny baby L’eya who was nestled in the arms of her tearful father was being cooed and awed over by her other grandparents. Yalnïk’s brother grinned widely as he welcomed his twin to fatherhood, teasing him that his own twins now each had their own little playmate.
These two babies had not even been in the world a full hour, and yet they already had so many people who loved them.
It was a beautiful sight and Xilä’s heart felt full.
An arm wrapped around her shoulder, pulling her in for a comforting side hug. It was Tsahìk. Kiri had left not too long ago, carrying their supplies back to the healer’s tent.
“Congratulations to you too my dear,” Mo’at murmured, causing Xi’s head to flick to hers in surprise. “Oh come now child, don’t look at me like that. Did you honestly think I could not sense your bond to my grandson the minute you stepped into this tent?”
Xilä flushed, pointed ears tingling with embarrassment that it had been so obvious to the elder.
“Don’t worry, I won’t say a word until you two are ready,” the grandmother continued, turning back to survey the sweet affair before them. “But this means I can begin to advance your training even further now.”
“My training?”
“Mm yes...It won’t be for years of course, but you will make a fine Tsahìk when the time comes,” Mo’at said frankly.
Xilä’s jaw dropped.
~
“Xi darling,” Sal called softly when she re-entered the tent much later that night. “Neteyam is outside for you,” she said, reaching out to take the drowsy baby girl from her arms.
The tent was quiet, save for the suckling sounds of L’eo feasting on an exhausted D’avi’s breast and the low snores of Yalnïk at her side. The poor man had been up with his wife since the night before when her contractions first began.
“Alright thanks, I’ll be right back,” Xi whispered in response, easing the tiny baby into her grandmother’s arms.
Heading outside, Xilä flung herself at Neteyam the moment she was within reach and he caught her around the waist with ease.
Feet dangling off the ground, Neteyam took advantage of the position to walk them into the shadows between two tents.
“Hi sweetheart,” he murmured, hiking her higher to steal a kiss.
“Hi handsome,” she smiled, titling her jaw to grant him further access when his lips began to make a path across her skin.
“How’s D’avi and the twins?” he asked, settling her back down on the low grass, keeping her locked in his arms.
“They’re great. D’av is resting and the twins- gosh Teyam, they’re the sweetest little things. I can’t wait for you to meet them,” she whispered with gleaming eyes.
“That’s amazing,” murmured, pecking her on the lips again, like the addicted man he was. “Did you have dinner? I can go get you something- and for D’avi too of course,” he offered, ears twitching in concern as he peered down at her.
She shook her head, heart fluttering at his sweetness. “Sal’s cook mates brought us a really nice spread a couple hours ago. I had two entire bowls of hot stew.”
“Okay good. Are you staying here tonight? To help out?” he asked.
Xi bit her lip and nodded in response. It was on the tip of her tongue to apologize for choosing to stay the night here, instead of with him, but the knowing look he shot her had her swallowing the apology. She knew he didn’t mind, but she still couldn’t help feeling a small pang of guilt.
“Listen,” she started a bit apprehensively. “I was thinking…so this is a really big moment for D’avi right now…and I don’t-” her mouth twisted, unsure how to word what she was trying to say.
“Baby, it’s fine,” Neteyam assured, reading her worry all too well. “I don’t mind waiting to tell our families about us. It’ll be a good thing- Hey I’m serious,” he emphasized, seeing her uncertainty. “I honestly don’t mind stalling all the impending fuss and lectures waiting for us,” he joked. “But you’re right. This is your sister’s moment.”
She mentally sighed in relief, sending a quiet thank you to Eywa for blessing her with the most thoughtful mate in the universe. “Thank you…Um, also, Teyam, it's your birthday’s next week. What’s the council going to say?” she frowned, worrying her bottom lip.
“That’s for me to handle Xi. Don��t worry about them, alright? How about we go see our tent later tomorrow?” he asked instead, steering the conversation to a lighter topic.
It seemed to work because Xi lit up the way he loved to see. “Okay,” she agreed quickly. “Oh and maybe after we can go for a quick fly around? I want to see my Journey again.”
“Whatever you want, baby,” he sang, bending at the waist to lift her by the thighs, just because he could. “Now, listen here wife. I’m going to be sleeping all alone tonight. So I’m going to need something to remember you by,” he said in mock seriousness, nudging her nose with his expectantly.
Xilä laughed at his dramatics, but eagerly leaned in anyway to kiss her husband goodbye.
~
Before Neteyam knew it, three fast weeks flew by.
His days were filled with the tedious works of reinforcing their borders, upping their security from roaming palulukans and heading numerous planning and development strategy meetings.
Whereas Xilä’s days were split between helping D’avi settle into motherhood and continuing her studies with his grandmother.
On those few nights when Xi wasn’t at her sister’s, or he wasn’t on watch, Neteyam would sneak into her room at Sal and Jxo’s, where they were back to being as silent as possible.
Jxo however, seemed to have developed a sixth sense overtime and would often drop smartass remarks to him.
“You dragged your feet last night. I thought you were a highly skilled warrior?” or “Why don’t you just save yourself the trouble and wake the whole village with all that racket you make sneaking in. You’re not fooling anybody.”
Suffice to say and much to Xilä’s displeasure, Neyetam refused to touch her in any sexual capacity while under Sal and Jxo’s roof. And so they had become creative when it came to their lovemaking.
Then there was Neteyam’s birthday.
Twenty-four years of life.
It had been a quiet affair after much begging on his part. He really didn’t want any grand celebrations or masses of attention.
His family held an intimate gathering at their home tent where halfway through, he and Xi snuck out and made their escape from Camp. They spent the remainder of the day, flying, relaxing and enjoying gratuitous amounts of extremely loud sex- niwan loreyu had been a most welcomed hideaway once more.
When he revealed he was officially a taken man to the entire Council the day after, almost all of the members congratulated him- most looking relieved he was finally in a secure match- others not as pleased with who he had chosen.
Fe’ska, Leati’s mother had turned sour. He knew even after admitting his betrothal to Xi, the woman still held out the hope that he’d end up with her daughter.
Jake, who was seated at the head of the table however, simply smirked and sent his son a “good on you,” nod as his eyes shined proudly.
The Council however were against Neteyam putting off the announcement of his pairing with Xilä, but his father had finally put his foot down and overruled them all, citing that his son would do that on his own terms and that now they were all being “fucking ridiculous” with their demands.
Neteyam appreciated it when Jake then held them all to an oath of secrecy.
But that was two weeks ago…
Now, however.
The jig was up.
The moment Neteyam walked into D’avi and Yalnïk’s tent that morning to check in on Xi, he stopped dead in his tracks.
‘Shit. Here we go,’ he thought with an accepting sigh of defeat, feeling the sting of the stares from the women seated around the table before him.
They knew….
~
Oh my goodness. This took way too long to write and edit and I lost some of it- just DRAMA with this part.
But enough about that....you guysssss. They're mated! Gah I could cry because it's been such a journey.
I hope I did the love scenes justice. I just really wanted fluff Fluff FLUFFY throughout this part.
Also, I did that thing again when the part was getting way too long. So I had to cut and put it in the next one.
Anywhoo...I hope you guys enjoyed it.
Please let me know your thoughts, you already know I love hearing from you all :)
Ps. I have no full knowledge about the Na’vi and their body anatomy and how everything works. So I used my imagination for the first time sex and baby birthing scene.
Ps. Ps. So it ended on a bit of a cliff hanger which I absolutely hate doing. But I figured you guys could get involved and share how you think the women in Neteyam and Xi's life may react to them hiding the fact that they're already mates.
Tags: @jakesullyfatjuicypeen @granddearduck @riatesullironalite @strawberri-blonde @earthling55 @innercreationflower @duckworthbean @gyuventure @btsiguess-kpop @blkmystery @neteswife
If you'd like to be tagged or I forgot you by accident, please let me know.
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How many Buddhist characters are there in Touhou, and which branch of Buddhism do they represent?
Putting aside the explicitly Buddhist Byakuren and the other Myouren-adjacent characters, who are presumably either Shingon or Tendai (I'm fairly sure I've seen both claims made regarding the semi-historical Myouren; I cannot check this right now, I'm sorry), the characters at the very least based on something Buddhism-related include:
Yuyuko: her name is an allusion to Saigyo, who was a Buddhist monk, based on his reverence for Kukai’s teachings belonging to the Shingon school.
Keine: hakutaku is hardly Buddhist, but her school is a terakoya, which is ultimately a (derivative of a) Buddhist institution, hence the frequent use of “temple school” in translations. I do not think ZUN ever addressed if there is a Buddhist temple in the village though, let alone what Keine has to do with it.
Akyuu: while we know nothing about the personal beliefs of the semi-historical Hieda no Are, the term referring to Akyuu’s ability in Touhou, gumonji, is actually a real Buddhist ceremony belonging to the Shingon tradition. Ashiyama’s “officially unofficial” Gensokyo of Humans went all out with this.
Eiki: while not exclusively Buddhist, the concept of kings of hell and related imagery did enter Japan in a Buddhist context. And her backstory is pretty explicitly based on the Buddhist notion of equivalence between Enma (Yama) and Jizou. Neither of these is exclusive to a specific school.
Tengu, collectively: while the matter of tengu origin is complex, the notion of tengu living in an organized society, publishing own literature, etc. is rooted in so-called tengu scrolls from the Kamakura period, which are best understood as Buddhist political cartoons of the “I drew myself as the Chad and you as the tengu” sort. Arose due to rivalry between old establishment schools, Tendai and Shingon, with new ones like Nichiren in the Kamakura period.
Tojiko: while nothing in the game really points at Tojiko herself being a Buddhist, I feel like it’s worth mentioning the Soga clan was the most firmly pro-Buddhist in the period when this was still a novelty not yet firmly rooted in Japan. The first schools established in Japan by Korean and Chinse missionaries are known collectively as Nanto Rokoshu.
Miko: as we learn from the game itself, the semi-historical crown prince Shotoku was very much invested in spreading Buddhism, Miko's professed Taoist beliefs notwithstanding. I’m pretty sure ZUN’s idea is partially based on the Honchou Shinsenden, where Shotoku is presented as the Buddhist version of a Taoist immortal.
Narumi: while Narumi’s in-universe status is sort of its own unique thing, Jizou is a firmly Buddhist figure as already discussed above, and she keeps the distinct iconography. Once again, not really tied to a specific school.
Mai and Satono: directly based on Matarajin’s attendant deities, Chōreita Dōji and Nishita Dōji. Exclusively Tendai, and limited to genshi kimyodan rites at that, basically one of the deepest cuts in ZUN’s repertoire so far.
Okina: based on Matarajin, probably the single most Buddhist character in Touhou in that her inclusion opened many doors (heh) for adapting irl materials for Touhou wholesale. Pretty firmly Tendai.
Eika: the Ebisu theme is certainly there, and I do wish more was done with it, but her whole gimmick is largely based on Sai no Kawara, which is pretty explicitly Buddhist and ties into the Jizou and ten kings-related beliefs. Not really connected to a specific denomination though.
Megumu: at the very least named after Iizuna Gongen, who is a Buddhist deity - not exclusively, but still. Ultimately associated with Shugendo more closely than any Buddhist school. Tsukasa is based on a youkai associated with practicioners of shugendo too.
Bitten: sarugami are associated with multiple strictly Tendai deities like Sekizan Myojin and Sanno.
Zanmu: based on legendary Zen monk Zanmu Nichihaku who according to a legend was actually a different, earlier Tendai monk, Kaison Hitachibo. Zun seems to focus on the Zen connection.
PC-98 only has the dubiously Buddhist example of Konngara, who is clearly named after Kongara-douji, but I frankly do not see much of a reason to assume the name isn’t used randomly in this context.
All around, Touhou pretty heavily skews towards Heian and Kamakura Buddhism, ie. more towards a time period rather than a specific school. I do think it is notable Zanmu is pretty clear Zen though. We'll see if that will lead to introduction of Nichiren and Pure Land characters eventually.
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The Treasures of Satan
Talon Abraxas
Glory and praise to you, O Satan, in the heights
Of Heaven where you reigned and in the depths
Of Hell where vanquished you dream in silence!
Grant that my soul may someday repose near to you
Under the Tree of Knowledge, when, over your brow,
Its branches will spread like a new Temple!
–Les Litanies de Satan (The Litanies of Satan) by Charles Baudelaire
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Ultraviolence
Natalie Scatorccio x Fem!Reader
—-
a/n: sigh i love this chapter. i hope you all enjoy!!
warnings: weed, mentions of death, mentions of neglect, underage drug use, swearing, mentions of guns, mentions of blood, animal death, tell me if i missed anything!!
Chapter Ten - She Looks at My Lips
Chapter Ten - She Looks at My Lips
—-
2019-
“Why did you never dye your hair back?”
Natalie leans back on the couch, crossing her legs, spreading her arms out wide. She shrugs.
“Just never did.”
“Well, I liked the blonde,” you say, placing your glass of wine right on the table- ignoring the coasters set out by the motel staff. You reach out to twirl a strand of her shoulder-length black hair. “I like the black too, though.”
She turns her head to you, and the pizza in your stomach suddenly wants to rise up again. You let your hand drop, bringing in back to your lap.
“What’s wrong?” you whisper, the apathetic look on her face, the bored eyes.
“Nothing,” she says after a moment. “I- just, do you ever think it would be nice to stay still?”
You frown and inch forward, the lord hum of the TV fading to the background.
“What’d you mean?”
“I’m just tired of always moving, going someplace new. It would be nice to have… roots, you know?”
You swallow. “Well, I don’t know where you got so philosophical.”
She rests her head against the back of the couch, turning to you. She smiles lightly, fondly, like she’s watching her favorite show for the hundredth time.
“You’re drunk,” she says softly.
You smile and lean your head against her shoulder, staring at the Family Guy rerun playing on the static motel TV.
And after a moment, she tilts her head against yours, and places the softest kiss over your hair.
—-
1996-
“Travis! Wait up!” Natalie shouts, sick of catching up to him only for him to disappear behind a tree. She’s tired, you’re tired, and Travis cares about no one but himself.
“Travis!” you shout, dragging behind Natalie, your legs aching from practically running to catch up to him.
“Coach said that we should be looking for tracks and scratches on the trees, like antler marks or whatever.” He doesn’t stop. “Travis!”
“Look, you can follow me or not, just don’t slow me down.
She stops for a moment, and watches as he continues on. An annoyed look winding its way onto her face.
“Come on,” she mutters, letting him crawl under her skin, wrapping her hand around your arm to keep you in pace. And the two of you keep following after him.
You imagine a lion hunting it’s prey, staying a few feet behind, waiting for a soft spot.
—-
The two of you round the corner, pushing branches out of the way, Natalie’s hand now in yours, coming upon an open clearing. Travis stands a few feet ahead of you, staring at the plane.
“Are you fucking serious?” Natalie hisses. “You brought us here?”
“Looks that way.”
“Oh, my God,” you mumble, reaching your hands up to rub your temples when Nat’s hand falls from yours.
“Why?” she asks.
“Doesn’t concern you.”
“Jesus Christ,” she mumbles, and you can’t help but stare at a patch of blood smeared along a stray piece of metal, wondering who’s it is. “I know that you’re messed up right now, but it doesn’t give you a free pass to be a dick all the time! We’re supposed to be a team.”
She puts the gun down near a fallen engine, sliding her backpack off of her shoulders. And after a moment, you place your back against it and let yourself slide down to the ground, your arm over your eyes.
“Yeah, right, a team, hm?” Travis spits. Natalie sits in the dead engine, not answering. Travis mumbles something under his breath. “Do you even know why people call me Flex?” he asks suddenly.
You can’t bear to look around the site of the crash, this plot of land permanently scarred by what happened here, by who and what died here.
“In seventh grade, I had surgery on my back.” You can hear metal digging through the dirt. “Spinal fusion, or something. I-I-I don’t know. It sucked. When I got back to school, Bobby Farleigh, he saw my scar in the locker room.” The digging becomes more frantic, and his voice changes. “He told everybody that I had to get one of my ribs removed, so that I could be flexible enough to you know…”
And for a few seconds, the forest is silent. He stops digging.
“…suck my own dick.”
He starts digging again, harder this time, until you realize roughly where the sound is coming from.
“Oh, My God,” Natalie whispers. “Are you fucking psycho?” she shouts, and you finally get the courage to take your arm off of your eyes to watch her push him to the ground.
He’s digging over a grave. His father’s grave.
You gasp, and he only lies on the ground, breathing heavily.
“There’s ring!” he shouts, just as it looks she she’s gonna tackle him, rip the piece of metal he’s using as a shovel from his hands. She stops for just a moment, and you shuffle to your feet, trying to look only at them, not at the plane or the blood. “Okay?” he breathes. “I didn’t think about before, when we, you know, buried him, but it was my great-grandfather’s!”
Natalie stands up, and Travis does too, grabbing his makeshift shovel and digging again. Her breaths are short and quick. You have to stare at her and not the graves, focus on the sound of her breathing and not the sound of dirt hitting the metal gravestone.
You don’t say anything. You just stand next to her, looking at the ground, trying to pretend you don’t know what’s he’s doing.
Finally, after what seems like forever, and you and Nat have long since sat down- he stops digging. You can hear him throw up.
“God,” he mumbles out between coughs. “Oh, God. I can’t. Fuck.” He starts breathing shakily. “I can’t. I can’t do it.” He shuffles back from the open grave.
“So don’t.”
“I can’t do it,” he says again.
“Jesus. It’s just a ring. Let it go,” Natalie breathes.
“I can’t,” he repeats, louder, firmer this time.
“For Javi,” she realizes aloud.
Lately, the makeshift bandages wrapped around your face have seemed to melt into you. You barely recognize that they’re there. You don’t look in the mirror. You don’t think about the scar, or the aching, throbbing pain.
Natalie stands up, wiping the dirt off of her hands.
“Which hand?” she asks, and you have to try and take a deep breath in, your bandages, the stench of the dead bodies all too much. This place is too much.
“Um… uh, right,” he says, his voice rough with tears caught in his throat. Natalie starts gagging, shifting through the dirt, until she lets out a small sigh, his hand revealed from the dirt.
But she keeps panting, trying to rip the finger off of his bloated, dead hand. Finally, you hear the sound of a pocket knife click open. The sounds of bones breaking, crackling slightly, soft and decomposing- like stepping on red and yellow leaves, crunching against concrete.
—-
Travis heads back into the plane, the ring safely in his hands, and Natalie hesitates.
“Y/N?” she breathes, and you try to will the tears away, but you can’t.
“I-I just hate this goddamn place,” you mutter after a moment. She lets out a long breath. You turn to her, where she still crouches next to the grave, and her face is soft and sympathetic. She can see the tears falling down your face, tracking through the dirt that’s collected on your face since the lake, the bandages around your face.
“I- I think we’ll go back soon.” But there is two places she could mean.
“Where?”
She doesn’t answer.
You don’t even try to speak again, your voice choked up on sobs, tears falling out of your face full force- you’ve been pushing down everything about that day, this place, refusing to think about it. And now it’s all come back for you, rearing it’s ugly head, hissing and snarling- and maybe you’re just weak, but you wanna feed yourself into it’s jaws, and get this all over with.
You take in a sharp, shaky breath, before you start slipping the bandages off of your face, untying them, ripping them off when it takes too long.
“Y/N, stop,” she says, shuffling over to you, grabbing your wrists. “It’ll get infected.”
And it’s a simple, easy explanation. She’s right. But there’s some wall in your mind, and all you can think about how is these bandages are melting into your face, and you can feel it- you can feel yourself growing used to this place.
There’s an entire world out there for you to return too. There’s college, and jobs and money, life and love. You need to be there. You can’t be here- not any longer.
“Natalie,” you whisper, not thinking straight, your mind hazy and clouded by storms.
“It’ll get infected,” she replies, grabbing one of your hands, tugging you up to stand. And you do, if only because whatever you feel for her makes you. “It’s alright,” she says, looking into your eyes.
And you’re stupid and young, so you believe her.
Is this all your life is gonna be? The wilderness?
“Come inside,” she says. The corner of her lips tick upward. “I know what’ll make you feel better.”
So, you pretend it’s not the plane you almost died in, and you follow her. And it’s easy with her there.
Travis sits on the floor, leaning against what used to be a cabinet in the front of the plane, fiddling with the ring. Natalie sits down beside you, on the wall opposite of Travis, takes out a lighter and a small piece of rolled up paper from her pocket.
She smiles up at you in a way that you can only describe as wicked.
She places what you know realize to be a joint into her mouth, taking a lighter and lighting the end of it. She breathes in deep, taking it out of her mouth, then breathing out smoke.
“Ever done it before?” she asks, her voice low.
“Once, years ago,” you murmur.
“Alright, here,” she says, and your mouth falls open, and she places the end right on your bottom lip. “Close, and breathe in.”
She looks into your eyes, and you stare back, before finally you close your lips around the end of the blunt, and her eyes drift down to the movement, watching you as you breath in deep, the taste of it filling your mouth- and she pulls it away.
You cough, blowing out wisps of smoke, and she laughs lightly, before taking her own deep breath of the stuff. You’re only an inch away from her.
“You good?” she asks, smiling at you like she’s watching her favorite TV show.
The taste is horrible, but there’s this powertrip you get, this feeling of something in your lungs, the smell of smoke in the air- and it makes you forget that you’re in this plane, it makes you forget that you’re wasting away in the wilderness.
Instead, you’re just wasting away your lungs, your youth, and for some reason- that feels better.
“Mhm,” you nod, coughing, and she can only smile and stare at you, at your lips and your eyes, your nose, the loose and falling t-shirt bandages on your face.
Her eyes flick to Travis.
“So, can you suck your own dick?”
He doesn’t say anything for a moment, and you think back to when he pointed the gun at her.
“I wish,” he finally says, a small laugh seeping out of him. And slowly, you laugh too. “He was such a shit dad,” Travis sighs suddenly, leaning his head back against the plastic wall. “He didn’t even like me.”
After a moment, she passes the joint to him.
“It doesn’t matter how shitty they are. It still fucks you up when they’re gone,” she says.
“My mom can’t even look at me anymore,” you blurt out. Travis laughs lightly.
“What? Did you total her car or something?”
“No,” a smile finds it was onto your face. “I-I look at lot like my dad, you know. Then he died, so.”
“Parents are assholes,” Natalie says.
—-
The walk back through the wilderness is easier now that you’re not chasing Travis, and you’re happier now- weed in your lungs, your brain.
Something cuts through the trees- a flash of movement, not a branch swaying in the wind- but something white, ivory bone.
A deer stands in a small clearing, bending down to eat, it’s antler’s barely visible through the brush.
Natalie stops and lets the gun slide down from her shoulder. She holds it up, points it towards the beast. And you know that’s it’s a living, breathing thing- but you’re hungry.
Natalie shakes far too much. She clicks off the safety.
“Natalie,” you whisper, hunger in your stomach mixing with worry. Tears well in her eyes and she shakes, and it scares you.
She takes in a deep breath.
“Breathe,” you whisper. “Like Coach said.” She looks over at you, and you stare back, let her look into your eyes, hope she can see the worry and not the hunger.
You’re hungry, but you care about her more than that.
She turns back to the deer, and a single tear rolls down her cheek.
She pulls the trigger, and you can hear the body fall, but you don’t look at it, not until she looks at you, a light smile on her face. She’s done so much for you and Travis today. So you smile.
The walk to the dead deer is silent, the forest not moving, whether out of respect for the dead, or your own delusion, you don’t know.
She leans down and traces her fingers across the tan fur. Blood pools out of an open wound, a black hole sort of thing, right at the deer’s heart.
—-
The walk back is quiet, besides for the crunching of sticks under your feet, soft footsteps, but this smile is etched on Nat’s face, and it looks so natural and perfect there you can’t imagine her ever doing anything else.
The girls all gasp and clap as soon as you break through the treeline, the deer hung on a stick the three of you carry. And even though you didn’t do much, you still feel some pride for helping to carry it back.
“Nice work, you three,” Coach says, and everyone stares at the deer, hungry and wanting.
“It was all Nat,” you smile, placing your hand on her arm, and before you really know what’s happening- she’s wrapped her arms around you, laughing breathlessly over your shoulder. You sway in the air, and maybe if you weren’t where you were, if you weren’t like this- it would be a beautiful moment.
But even then, if you twist your head to the side and stare at her neck, and all you can see is her skin, and a few wisps of blonde hair, it’s all you can see. She’s all you can see.
She pulls back and stares into your eyes, and you do too, your smiles falling.
“So, what do we do with it now?” Travis asks, and you look away first.
“Well, first you have to bleed it out,” Coach says. He holds out a knife- the knife, the one you found resting on the dinner plate in the cabin. “Who wants to try? Right across the throat.”
No one moves for a moment.
“I’ll give it a try,” Shauna suddenly says, staring at the deer. She takes the knife from Coach, who smiles, and leans down over the dead body. Nat steps back, and her shoulder bumps against yours- but neither of you move.
Shauna barely hesitates. She curls her lip, the knife sinking into flesh and veins and tendons, until blood spills out over the tan fur, dripping out onto the dirt.
—-
“Here,” Nat says, handing you a skewer of meat. “The fruits of our labors.”
You smile and take it eagerly, not caring about how you look, only about food in your stomach, and you eat it messily, your face soon covered in the juices, your hands and fingers smothered in it.
One of the other girls groans as soon as the meat hits her lips.
You watch as Travis hands the ring to Javi, muttering something about how he forget he had it. You look over to Natalie next to you, and she smiles lightly, licking her fingers.
The sound of a body hitting the ground makes you jump.
You think of the deer- but it’s already fallen, already dead and cut up.
“Are you okay?” Misty gasps, the closest to Coach Ben, who was now on the ground. “Whoa. Hey… you need to be more careful,” she says, her tone sugary sweet.
Coach turns around and looks at all of the girls gathered around him with wide eyes.
He looks scared.
—-
taglist:
@sweetdayme4427 @dreaming-for-an-escape @peachydoki
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Febuwhump Day Twenty-Seven: Left for dead
Featuring Hyrule and Warriors. Heads up for violence and major injury in this one.
I'm planning to make these last three days a three-parter, so this will be continued.
AO3
First part | <- Previous part | Next part ->
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Hyrule slammed into the ground with a thud, crushing fallen leaves beneath him. He groaned, head spinning as he struggled to push himself up on his elbows.
“Alright, Traveler?” Warriors grunted from beside him, leaves crunching as the captain got up.
Hyrule groaned again in response. He attempted to convince his eyelids to open, carefully drawing his legs up underneath him and sitting back on his knees. The vertigo from the abrupt shift steadily wore off, the world’s tumbling slowing down. He rubbed his temples and cautiously opened his eyes. A sea of oranges and yellows greeted him, fallen leaves covering the ground like a blanket. Brown tree trunks broke through the ocean every so often, bare branches spreading like cracks across the cloudy sky.
“A little warning would be nice next time,” Warriors grumbled. Hyrule looked over to see him standing up and brushing himself off, picking stray leaves out of his scarf. He offered a hand to Hyrule which the traveler took, pulling him to his feet. Hyrule pinched the fold of his tunic just above his belt and gave it a jerk, dislodging most of the leaves and sending them fluttering to the ground. Warriors sighed, planting his hands on his hips and turning in a circle.
“We’d better find where the others ended up,” he said as he finished turning, looking to Hyrule again. “Hopefully they’re not too far.”
Hyrule nodded before they set off through the forest back in the direction camp had been in the other era. They had been patrolling when a gate opened beneath their feet, dropping them into a new era before they’d even had time to realize what was happening. Leaves crunched under their boots as they walked. Hyrule impulsively scuffed the toe of his boot along the ground, kicking several leaves into the air. A grin tugged at his lips as he watched them scatter in a flurry of orange and red. He lifted his head to glance at the sun’s position, make sure they were still going in the right direction, when a smudge of gray between the trees caught his eye. He slowed, trying to get a better look at it. He could just make out symmetrical grooves between the gray stones and gasped. Warriors whipped around at the sound, hand flying to the hilt of his sword, but Hyrule beamed, pointing at the stone wall.
“Ruins!” he exclaimed, already taking off toward them before Warriors could stop him.
Warriors might have called after him to wait, but Hyrule barely heard him. He jogged through the woods, sending leaves scattering, the ruined stone wall becoming clearer. Ivy crawled across the stone in brilliant oranges and maroons, weaving around the stone and mortar. Hyrule reached the wall and eagerly followed along it, searching for an opening. He came upon an archway soon enough, poking his head around the edge and peering through. He couldn’t help but let out another excited gasp. The ruins of a courtyard stood within the confines of the four walls, worn stone walkways half-buried under fallen leaves. A weathered fountain stood in the center, long since dried up, the foundation cracked and crumbling in some spots. A statue of a woman sat in the middle on a short pedestal where the water likely used to flow from. Stone wings extended from her back, one with a large crack down it, the other completely split down the middle and missing its other half. Ivy grew across her legs and up the side of her dress, wrapping around her arm.
“Traveler,” Warriors called, jogging up behind him. “Hold on a minute, will you?”
“Captain,” Hyrule said in a tone hushed with excitement. He turned to address Warriors as the captain caught up to him, a wrinkle settled between his eyebrows. Hyrule gestured toward the statue. “This could be a fairy fountain!” Hyrule honestly couldn’t care less if it really was a fairy fountain or not, but he knew he’d need some semblance of practicality if he was to convince the captain to let him explore.
Warriors’ eyes flicked over Hyrule’s shoulder to the statue. He pursed his lips. “We should be finding the others, not wasting daylight.”
“It’s not a waste!” Hyrule argued. “If there are fairies here, we could stock up. You guys are always saying how we can never have too many fairies.”
The wrinkle in Warriors’ brow deepened as he considered Hyrule’s words. He looked between the traveler and the fountain a few times before sighing, shoulders dropping. “Fine. But just a quick look.”
Hyrule beamed and hurried into the courtyard before Warriors could change his mind. The tapping of his and Warriors’ boots against the stone walkway broke the silence in the ruins, the sound bouncing off the crumbling walls. Hyrule went straight to the fountain, planting his hands on the raised sides, leaning forward, and peering in. Brown grass grew at the bottom in patches, dried leaves scattered about. He ran a hand over the cracks in the stonework before looking around the rest of the courtyard. A stubborn tree grew right up next to a wall, huddled in a corner and casting it into shadow. Hyrule wandered over to it just as Warriors caught up to him, leaving the captain to trail after him again. Hyrule reached the tree and ducked around it, eyes widening. A staircase hidden behind the tree led down beneath the courtyard, the bottom cloaked in darkness.
“Captain,” Hyrule called, turning. “There’s a staircase!” Warriors appeared less than enthused. Without waiting for a response, Hyrule moved toward the stairs. Just as he prepared to head down, a hand closed around his wrist, pulling him to a stop.
“Hold on,”Warriors said. “We should really find the others first.” At Hyrule’s pout, he added, “You can come back later if you really want to.”
“But if there are fairies-“
“It can wait,” Warriors insisted. “We’re not that short on fairies right now. I have one and the others have a few.”
“But-“
“Traveler,” Warriors snapped, impatience creeping into his tone. Hyrule frowned and Warriors took a deep breath. He released his hold on Hyrule’s wrist to rub his brow. “Listen, I’m sorry, I get that you want to explore, but it-“
He stiffened. He slowly lowered his hand from his forehead and turned. The hair on the back of Hyrule’s neck stood as he strained his ears. Nothing but silence met them. He glanced around carefully, opening his mouth to ask Warriors what was wrong.
Something moved overhead. Hyrule snapped his gaze up to see what looked like a lizalfos with wings standing atop the ruined wall beside them. As soon as it realized it had been spotted, it screeched and flapped its wings, rising into the air. Warriors spun about at the sound as the monster lifted its sword and dove. Hyrule scrambled to get out his sword and shield as Warriors did the same. The captain tried to hit the creature as it came down but it zipped right around his sword and careened into Hyrule. The impact threw him flat on his back, knocking the air from his lungs. He swung his sword above him, trying to give himself room to get back on his feet. The winged lizalfos flew out of reach then landed back on top of him. Claws dug into his shoulders and the creature dragged him backwards.
“Traveler-!” Warriors’ shout cut off with a grunt, followed by clanging metal.
Hyrule lifted his head and caught a glimpse of two stalfos bearing down on Warriors, forcing him back into the corner by the stairs. Then the winged lizalfos slammed his head into the side of the fountain and his vision went black.
His sight returned barely a moment later, just in time for him to roll out of the way of the monster’s sword. It clanged against stone and the winged lizalfos made a frustrated-sounding caw. Hyrule used the momentum of his roll to carry him to his feet, springing up and ignoring the stabbing pain at the back of his skull. The monster screeched and lunged, flapping its wings to gain extra speed. He ducked to the side as it streaked past him, blade missing him by a hair’s breadth. He darted forward, thrusting his sword. The winged lizalfos blocked the attack with a round shield, returning it with a swing of its own that he blocked. They traded blows, leaves crunching under boot and claw as they danced around each other.
The monster leapt back, jumping into the air as it dodged one of Hyrule’s attacks. Hyrule paused, hovering on the balls of his feet as he carefully watched for its next move. It shrieked and dove like a hawk, sword extended. He gripped his sword in both hands, held it above his head, and lunged forward into a kneel, skidding on his knees. The monster couldn’t react fast enough, flying into Hyrule’s sword, the blade carving a deep gash along its abdomen. It screeched and flailed, falling to the ground behind Hyrule and tumbling. He scrambled to his feet and turned to face it, holding his sword at the ready, black blood dripping from the blade. The lizalfos tried and failed to get to its feet, stumbling and collapsing again with a weak growl. It went still and Hyrule let out a breath.
He steeled himself and turned to go help Warriors. Three stalfos and two more winged lizalfos greeted him instead. His eyes widened and he skipped backwards as the nearest stalfos slashed. The flying monster took to the air, moving to flank him. He started to reach for Thunder before remembering Warriors and thinking better of it. He reached for Fire instead. Flames wreathed his sword and he swung, launching a fireball at one of the winged lizalfos. It cried out as the flames hit it, knocking it from the air. He attacked the second one in the same way, missing the first two strikes but hitting it with the third. It fell just as a stalfos got close enough to attack. It struck twice, Hyrule struggling to catch both on his shield and not his body. The other two stalfos crept around his sides and he skipped backwards again, breathing hard. He launched a fireball at the stalfos directly before him. The flames licked at the bones harmlessly, the monster unfazed.
The two stalfos on the sides rushed in simultaneously. Hyrule blocked the one on his right and ducked, the other’s blade sweeping over his head. He sent a sharp kick into the leg of the monster to his right, swinging his sword at the one on his left at the same time. The one on the left dodged backwards, giving him the space to spin around and slam his sword against the fallen stalfos’ skull, smashing a hole into it. He whipped back around, shield raised to catch the first stalfos’ blade. He responded with a quick thrust, cracking a vertebra in the monster’s spine. He struck again before it could recover, hitting the same spot and shattering the bone. The stalfos yelped as it collapsed to the ground in two halves. He turned to face the last one, letting out a slow breath.
A sharp whistle pierced the air. He chanced a look, spotting Warriors in the archway of the ruins, frantically waving him over. He nodded, snapping back around to face the stalfos as it attacked. He dodged the swing and sent a slash at its ribs to force it to dodge. The moment it jumped back, he shoved off of one foot and sprinted for Warriors. A broken screech to his right preluded a smoldering winged lizalfos diving at him. He lunged forward, dodging its clumsy attack. It floundered and hit the ground in a crumpled heap, smoke curling upwards from it. He kept running even as he heard boots and claws pounding on the stone behind him. He burst through the archway and continued on, Warriors running ahead. Warriors wove randomly through the trees and Hyrule followed, occasionally glancing back. The monsters barely even tried to follow them. Hyrule slowed, brow furrowing.
Warriors snatched his arm and yanked him forward, forcing him to run again. Hyrule whipped his head around to give him a wide-eyed look. He opened his mouth to protest – if the monsters were too weak to follow, surely they could defeat them all. Then Warriors’ expression twisted in pain, a hand lifting to clutch at his ribs. He staggered once but didn’t slow, quickly regaining his footing and continuing on.
“Are you… you hurt?” Hyrule huffed, breath growing ragged the longer they ran. Warriors didn’t respond, only releasing Hyrule’s arm and turning his face away to hide his expression.
“Captain-“ Hyrule threw a glance behind them. The ruins were out of sight with no sign of the monsters giving chase. He turned back and grabbed Warriors’ arm, gently tugging to slow him down. “Captain, stop, if… you’re hurt… let me look.”
Warriors wrenched his arm out of Hyrule’s grip and kept going. He pushed himself faster, pulling a few paces ahead of Hyrule.
“Hey!” Hyrule called, trying to match the new pace. The trees whipped past them in a blur, leaves scattering out from under their feet. Warriors staggered again, nearly falling over.
“Captain, stop!” Hyrule yelled. “They’re… not even… following!”
At that, Warriors finally looked over his shoulder. He frowned, slowing to a jog then a walk before stopping altogether. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he caught his breath. Hyrule stopped beside him, quickly glancing him over. He couldn’t see any blood. Something internal, then? As he watched, Warriors’ face screwed up in pain and he doubled over, wrapping an arm around his ribs.
“Captain!” Hyrule darted forward to catch him. “Where are you hurt?”
Warriors shook his head, taking shallow breaths through his mouth. Hyrule let out an aggravated sigh and shifted his hold on Warriors to examine him more closely, determined to find the injury no matter how stubborn the captain decided to be.
Warriors twisted in the hold and plunged a knife into Hyrule’s gut.
Hyrule froze. Pain seared through his stomach so severe and abrupt that his brain couldn’t process it. Then Warriors pushed the knife in deeper and Hyrule choked on a scream, knees buckling. Warriors followed him down, landing on top of him, continuing to press the knife farther in. Hyrule clawed at his hands, breath stuttering in his throat, mind reeling as it desperately tried to process what was happening. He blinked rapidly as something warm bubbled in his throat, looking into Warriors’ face as the captain loomed over him. Any semblance of pain had completely vanished, replaced by a near expressionless look. Black specks swirled in the whites of his eyes.
“N-not-“ Hyrule gagged as realization hit him. Something wet dribbled past his lips, painting red lines on his cheek. “Wh-where’s th- c-cap…tain?”
A smile slowly crawled across Warriors’ features. The black specks in his eyes grew to splotches, overtaking the white. He parted his lips and spoke in a broken mimicry of the captain’s voice, another deep and otherworldly voice layered beneath it. “Right where you left him.”
Hyrule’s eyes widened. The corner. The monsters. All of them closing in on the real Warriors. While Hyrule ran and left him unknowingly.
The shadow ripped the knife out of Hyrule’s stomach. Hyrule lurched, the blood in his throat turning his scream into a gurgle. The shadow swung the knife again and Hyrule threw an arm up. The knife sank into his forearm instead of his throat. Shadow Warriors frowned, moving to yank the knife out again, but Hyrule wrenched his arm back with strength that surprised them both. The motion tore the knife from the shadow’s grip. Hyrule grabbed the handle with his other hand, acting before the pain could stop him. He jerked the knife out of his arm and stabbed it into the shadow’s throat.
Shadow Warriors’ eyes blew open wide, a hand flying to the fatal wound. Black blood flowed from it, running down the knife and dripping on Hyrule. A grin twisted across his mouth and he laughed around the knife, the sound harsh and sickening, more blood pouring forth at the action. Then his entire body, clothes, knife, and all, turned the color of soot and melted.
The viscous substance flooded over Hyrule. He spluttered but it faded within seconds. He lay there for a moment before the pain slammed into him. A whine left his throat as he pressed his hands to his stomach. Blood pooled between his fingers, soaking his tunic and pouring down his sides. His throat tickled and he coughed reflexively, spraying blood from his mouth. The coughing sent boiling hot waves through his stomach and he gargled a cry, darkness encroaching on the edges of his vision. Frantically, belatedly, he grasped at his healing magic, weaving it into the wound. He could feel the flesh knitting closed but slowly, too slowly. His vision dimmed and blurred. Feeling faded from his extremities, replaced with cold numbness. He dragged in a shuddering breath, nearly choked on blood, and forced more magic into the wound. The magic exhaustion pulled at the backs of his eyes, sending his head into a spiral of vertigo. It sputtered beneath his hands, petering out. He tried to force more out but it dug its heels in. He let out a choke of a sob, abdomen clenching as another wave of pain crashed through. The wound was still too deep. He needed to heal it more. He needed to be able to get back to Warriors.
He pressed his hands harder against his stomach but the magic recoiled from his reach. He turned onto his side and retched, hardly anything except blood coming out. A hoarse sob escaped past his lips and he tried to push himself up. He’d gone past his magic limit before, so why wouldn’t it cooperate now? Mortally wounded, his mind supplied. It didn’t make him feel any better. He reached cold fingers into his pouch, digging around for something, anything, as his vision dimmed further. He blinked hard, struggling to force back the faintness. No, no, he had to go back for Warriors. They wouldn’t be in this mess if Hyrule had just listened and kept going past the ruins like the captain wanted.
His vision flickered dangerously. His breath came in shallow gasps, each one driving fiery knives into his stomach. Somewhere, distantly, he registered pain in his arm, but it felt inconsequential next to the still-gaping wound in his middle. His limbs felt leaden, hand slipping from his pouch. A sea of oranges and yellows stretched out before him, blobs of color that swam before his eyes. He gave one last desperate try to heal himself. The attempt cost him his consciousness and he slipped into blissful nothingness.
#linked universe#linked universe fic#linked universe fanfic#ruby writes#febuwhump#febuwhump2024#lu hyrule#lu warriors#I am a big fan of ruins and am absolutely projecting this fascination onto hyrule lol
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This Time Around (Chapter 10 rewrite)
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, (here) (ongoing)
Relationships: Third Doctor x reader
Summary: The Doctor and you talk in the infirmary. There are a lot of feelings on both sides, not all of them pleasant. He stands with you through the storm.
Warnings: Mentions of injuries and physical violence, but nothing graphic.
Author's notes: What can l even say. This took so much from me, and l'm immensely proud of it. I'm going to carry this project through, l just don't know in what timeframe. I hope you enjoy:))
(The concepts of bond-mates and visible personal timelines belong to @inthisformiambadwolf.)
~
The Doctor held you. It was a world where nothing could hurt you, nothing could reach you. A world of open peace and gentle comfort. There was time to stay still.
He held you. Everything that was were the two of you. You could breathe, you could find your feet again. You knew where you stood, and you didn't stand alone.
He held you. You saw him, you'd let him come closer than you had ever allowed anyone to be. The trust you had in him was bigger than you, and you were safe.
The awe of this place never left you. You felt the Doctor like cool raindrops on your skin, the mountain wind in your lungs. Something wild, rebellious, rushing, velvet to the touch. You were allowed to hold him.
You could have sung from the joy of looking at this person who meant the world to you.
He was different. Ten was a colossal storm, a swirling galaxy, so vast compared to you. Three was a giant too, but smaller. You could just see the beginnings, which branches of his personality would grow and what he would grow into. His underlying edge would sharpen, temper shorten, ego grow; kindness would spread out into a world of its own, permeating his every part...
You wanted to know him now. You needed to know him now. God, you could just glimpse where his thoughts wove themselves in the distance, where his memories compiled, where his dreams hid far, far away...
But you couldn't look that deeply. You didn't have his permission and there wasn't time for that. You had too much to do, too much to find out, too much you didn't know about the place you'd found yourself in.
A breath. Gentle and careful, you started to pull back, untangling your thoughts from his.
He loosened his hold on you in turn.
You had dropped your shields when you'd clung to him in your panic. Now was the time to put them back up, so you brought the firm layers forward one by one, shutting the Doctor out with a stab of regret.
You hoped you would come back to this place. You hoped you would be allowed to hold him like this again.
When you opened your eyes, you had a moment to appreciate just how beautiful this version of him was, in private and up close. (He wasn't Ten and you'd deal with that train of thought later. But.)
Another wave of awe crashed over you. He was the Doctor, new, teasing, breathtaking and you wanted to look forever. Inside and out. Trace the lines on his face, cup his cheeks, how did his lips feel? Was his white hair as soft as it looked? Just how deep was that blue in his eyes?
There was so much to discover it made you greedy. Your hands itched to reach out, hold, explore. You thought about the rest of his body for two seconds max and there was that familiar heat already. Just looking at him made your nerves spark.
It's you, it's you, it's you... How could you resist this?
Then his eyes opened too and he smiled softly.
It snapped you back into your body. Reminded you that you were exhausted like a wrung out cloth, dirty along with greasy hair, aching all over besides your throbbing temple, and a stranger to him.
Alive, you were alive.
You couldn't help but smile back.
When he pulled away, the Doctor let go of your cheek and your hand, leaving the cold behind. You felt a pang in your chest at the loss.
Still, what he'd given you was enough to go on.
"Thank you," you murmured from your beating human heart.
He shook his head with gentle eyes. "There's nothing to thank me for." His eyebrows pinched together just a little, but you didn't notice it when you looked down at your lap.
His new face was distracting and you had to get a hold of yourself if you wanted to carry a coherent conversation.
"I think there is," you quietly countered.
For a moment, you saw your stinging wrists wrapped in gauze. Tired, aching hands. Blood and dirt under your broken nails. They reminded you of what you were capable of, and your sore shoulders relaxed.
You raised your eyes again and began with a tentative smile, shrugging. "Where do we start?" Your hands leaned on the edge of the bed so your scabs smarted, but you were glad and brave and open.
You saw stubble, a glint in his eyes and his lapel had a muted red edge. You'd missed looking at him. There was so much you wanted.
The Doctor loved the sound of we when it meant the two of you. Cocking his head, he gave you a warm smile. "Well, perhaps you could tell me your name?"
Oh, that hurt.
But it was kind of ironic too.
When you told him, he repeated it to taste it in his mouth. There were so many questions left there. When did we meet? Where? How much sugar do you take in your tea? Do you even like tea? Where did you grow up? What date is your birthday? Who the hell caused those bruises? May l hold you?
You let the way he said your name reverberate through your bones. You loved how it sounded in his voice.
Wait, does he know...? It wasn't like your marriage bond was a blinking ad sign, you had to be completely sure. "You-- You do know who l am to you, right?"
The Doctor grinned so wide it reached his dazzling eyes, and nodded. "I do."
That made you smile truly, you let out a relieved breath with a soft, "Okay."
Your curiousity woke. "How did you find out?"
"Ah..." His forefinger came to rub his jaw when he pressed his lips together, sheepish. "I accidentally brushed your hand when l came to see you. With that activation energy, our marriage bond was strong enough to circumvent all the temporal interference that stood in the way, and l knew," he shrugged.
Marriage bond. Our marriage bond. His awestruck joy lit him up like a sun. He wanted to cup your cheek again, but only his eyes stayed on you.
"Good," you nodded, certain. "I don't know what l would've done if l'd woken up in this..." Remembering you were in a room, you looked around despite your pulsing temple.
Curtain dividers on both your sides, around the edge you could just see neat beds parallel to yours, a writing desk with a chair by the wall... Was this a hospital?
"Where even are we?" You looked up at the Doctor again, eyebrows raised. "When are we?"
Your choice of words made him shake his head with a quirk of a smile. "These are UNIT headquarters, 1982, and--"
"UNIT." You grinned, incredulous. "I landed at UNIT of all places in the universe. Seriously, UNIT?!"
The room you saw was much more interesting now. You'd gone from a level 8 industrial planet to the 80's take on UNIT.
With all that looking around, you didn't notice the Doctor hadn't glanced away from you from the moment he'd pulled back. He knew this very much counted as staring and he didn't want to be found out.
It was just...
There was an expanse in your eyes, a vastness deeper than any sea and freer than any sky he'd ever seen. He didn't want to stop looking. He considered how to tell you, he thought of what he would give only to have the freedom to look at you. Just look at you for however long he wished.
Cocking his head, he managed a kind, "I'm as surprised as you are, my dear."
Your heart skipped a beat at the pet name. You knew this regeneration of him had spent most of his time in the 70's and 80's, mostly involuntarily, and you could see how their way of speaking had rubbed off on him. Proper British accent and everything. You couldn't wait to hear more.
"I mean..." You tried to focus back on the topic and amended with a slight smile, "It's as good a place as any, l'm just..."
A sigh escaped you as the situation fully sank in.
UNIT.
1982.
Paradox.
"I don't know how l got here." Eyes closed, you rubbed your face with your palm while careful of your scabs. "Didn't mean to," you mumbled and dragged your hand down your face, drained.
The Doctor frowned as he cocked his head, imploring you to go on.
Your hands swung out in an 'l don't know' gesture. "l was locked on the TARDIS, the future one, but l was so tired."
Looking down at your lap, you remembered the stitches on your smarting temple and laughed. "And bleeding. And, like, the command centre was on fire, so," you shrugged, shoulders protesting, "I probably didn't check the landing fix again, l just jumped."
The refinery switch boards had flamed so hot you'd feared your face would be burned.
"But after that..." Your brows furrowed when you tried to look at the hazy past.
A cracked helmet. Monstrous fire. Noise.
That's it.
"l don't even remember leaving, or materializing..."
"No?" The Doctor looked you over, inquisitive.
Your gaze was back on him when you shook your head. "No."
A corner of his mouth pulled up as he tucked his hand in his pocket. "That's odd, since you landed in my laboratory, recognized me, and only then passed out."
A smile overtook your face at that, wide and warm as your cheeks heated up. Well, of course l did.
"Makes sense to me," you shrugged. "l'd know you anywhere."
You didn't need a bond to recognize him. You'd spent weeks, months, years drawing closer to him and bringing him close to you. Years in which the two of you had made a home in each other, secret by secret, shame by shame. Your bond was just its door.
And that was the crux of it. He was your Doctor, but younger than you'd ever seen him, new and tantalizing, there for you to come to know him all over again. You wanted to look at him forever, to ask him a million questions, laugh with him, run with him, fight him, hold him, you wanted time.
You wanted to kiss every wrinkle on his face.
The Doctor felt how your look reached for him, open, content and impossibly soft. It made him falter because everything he was turned forward to run to you.
There was something he'd been starving for. It made him feel the air around him, inside him, it enveloped him like the walls of a home and he was understood.
More. Only more of this. Please. He'd just discovered that he could breathe.
Oh god, you were staring--You're a stranger, a familiar stranger, even if he knows about your bond!
You snapped out of the reverie, grasping for straws, "And-- And, my manipulator was broken too! So..."
You went on with an awkward smile, "It's not all my fault..."
The Doctor blinked a bit dazedly, nodding with a frown, "Right," but you realized that your salvation wasn't on your wrist.
"Wait... Um, where is it?" You looked yourself over, then focused on him, "Do you know...?"
You had subconsciously reached for your neck.
Empty neck.
"Key-- !" Your ears rang. Horror rose like bile in your throat.
"Doctor, they TOOK MY KEY!" Your eyes stung with tears, you'd lost it, you'd lost it no matter how hard you'd tried to hold onto it, your thread leading home was gone because you'd been careless--
"No, no-no-no, l have it!"
He hurriedly pulled your glinting key from his pocket to show it in his palm. "I have it, look!"
You snatched it from his hand, lightning-fast, and gripped it as tightly as you could because you needed the pain from the cut in your palm to believe it was really there.
Your eyes shut against the swell of tears. You clutched your necklace like a lifeline in a seastorm, taking measured breaths.
It had been a mess of an uprising, and you'd kept your key hidden. From that market place to the stale shafts, the cells, the bright and sterile meeting room and the command centre of hell, you had guarded it. Never spoken of it, but had checked again and again if it was still there, as if it would have vanished like a wonderful dream. Your key was home and promise and love and the mere thought of losing it made you sick.
He'd kept it safe.
Your stinging eyes opened. "Thank you." Your murmur was more fervent than you'd meant it to be. You were so thankful it almost hurt.
The Doctor shook his head with a crease in his brow, lost. His answer was a soft murmur, "Again, there's nothing to thank me for."
He couldn't understand why you'd be grateful for so little. Worry was born like a cobweb in the corner of his mind at your repeated thanks for his care.
You pressed your lips together, attention still on your clasped hands. "I'd beg to differ." A quiet opposition.
Your eyes were watery but you raised them to his. Strained, fierce, your voice betrayed your pain, "If they'd taken it, or if l'd left it there, l'd never forgi-- !"
"Where is 'there'?" the Doctor demanded as he stepped towards you. The sight of tears in your eyes had snapped something in him. "Where did you run from?"
He wanted to hold you in his arms, make sure that you were with him, safe and whole.
Your mouth opened, but you faltered.
Your blurry gaze dropped down to your aching hands again and you rubbed your eyes. "No. No, it's not important," you shook your head with vigor, "I'm not--"
You wouldn't drag that burning wreck into this blue day. Not now. Not yet.
It wasn't that you were sorry for it. It had hurt, sure. Volonel IV had pounded you with its fists and its loneliness. But when you turned your feelings over like cards on the table and looked at them before you, you just couldn't find regret there.
You knew you would've done it again. Differently, perhaps, but...
Those people had needed help, and anything was worth the way Sava's mechanical pupils had widened when she'd realized that there was hope.
You just knew him. The Doctor always took responsibility for what he did and often also for things that weren't his fault. He put his needs aside to help others and he always thought he should have done better. You didn't want to explain what had gone wrong, the complexity of it all, if he'd just blame himself on principle.
And his resentment of his other regenerations would come up one way or another. He'd met himself, just once since you'd started travelling with him, and it had taken the two of them exactly three minutes and a half to start verbally tearing each other to bits. You'd managed to stop them; but now your body weighed you down, your head throbbed and you thought you'd just cry if you had to counter him.
You would have to remember everything for that.
You couldn't do it now, not when the two of you were still at the start (and why did he leave me, why the hell did he have to wander off and leave me-- running, can't breathe, cold, the cuffs slice your wrists, they are BEATING you, please, l can't, please NO, stop, STOP, STOP-- rushing, smoke sears your throat, your eyes burn, get out, run NOW, you're going to die-- )
"Please," the Doctor pulled you out of it. Of course he did.
How rare it was for him to say that word.
When you looked up at his face again, his wrinkled frown and his sky-blue eyes made your chest tight. You'd managed to stop your tears from falling but your nose was full now.
It was all you could do to look back. Not budging, but not unmoved either.
He tapped his thigh with his knuckles. Something rolled in his face, stepped back but magnified.
He spoke in a murmur. "I-- l won't insist that you tell me," he nodded, "but l'd very much like to know who did this to you."
Who did this to you. You heard a familiar anger in his words, like magma under thin ground that was writhing for the surface to crack.
It was so much like him, it soothed you. You were tied to this place with that mooring line.
Looking down at the key in your hand, you turned it in your grip as you swallowed. "I got out of there, there's no point getting into it now." Ask me again later, and you'll have it. Soon.
His shoulders gave in. He sighed, then nodded. "Alright."
You didn't know how to read him yet, you tried to look for signs that he'd heard what you'd implied. You opened your mouth--
A throat clearing behind you, "l hate to interrupt--"
Your whole body flinched and your head whipped around to stare at the stranger. In the same half-second, the Doctor turned so he was in front of you, partially hiding you behind him.
Neither of you noticed.
Dr Richards did.
#doctor who#dw#dw fanfiction#the doctor#the doctor x reader#doctor who originals#doctor who original series#classic doctor who#classic who#doctor who x reader#dw x reader#third doctor x reader#3rd doctor x reader#three x reader#3 x reader#third doctor#3rd doctor#three#doctor who fanfiction#classic who fanfiction#reader insert#dw reader insert
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The Traitor and the Trap
Laval sprinted toward the Croc Swamp, crashing through prickly underbrush and pushing past low-hanging branches. The sun glinted off the Lion Prince's armor as he skidded to a halt.
"I know he's here, Cragger!" Laval cried out in a loud voice. "What have you done with him?"
Laval's words echoed out over the swamp. A moment later, several Croc heads rose above the surface of the dark water. They swam menacingly toward the Lion Prince. Cragger, the Crocodile King, led them.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Laval,"
Cragger said in a smooth voice as he came onto the shore. "I haven't done anything with anyone."
"You're a liar," Laval said. "I know it was you mud-lovers who kidnapped Longtooth. Where is he? If you've hurt him, I swear by Chima-"
“Kidnapped?" Cragger interrupted. A toothy grin spread across his face, "Laval, Crocodiles don't kidnap anyone. We do, however, welcome new allies."
Several Crocs chuckled as Cragger gestured behind him. Laval followed Cragger's gaze and his jaw dropped.
There was Longtooth, walking toward them, safe and sound.
"Longtooth!" Laval called out in relief. "Are you Okay? I was so..." But his voice trailed off.
Something about Longtooth’s manner didn't seem right. The way he was sauntering over seemed quite comfortable, almost smug. He didn't look at all like he was in need of rescuing.
"Longtooth?" Laval asked.
The old Lion Warrior smiled. "I’m fine, Laval. My new friends wouldn't hurt me."
“Your new ... friends?" Laval repeated. "I don't understand. I saw your guard post. It was a wreck, like there was a struggle. We thought-"
"That I'd been kidnapped?" Longtooth shook his head. "No, I was just in a rush to pack up and head to the Croc Swamp." He smiled. "I'm on their side now, Laval."
"What?" Laval gasped. He couldn't believe his ears.
Had his father's most trusted guard really abandoned his own tribe?
Cragger, for his part, was enjoying this show immensely. Having one Lion walk into his swamp under a flag of truce was highly unusual. Having two Lions wander into camp on the same day was incredibly entertaining.
"I guess no one needs rescuing after all, Laval," Cragger sneered. "Why don't you head back to your Lion Camp. We'll be seeing you soon enough."
A Croc named Crug laughed from beside Cragger.
"Yeah, that's right, Lion. With our new CHI-magnet weapon, your tribe doesn't stand a-“
"Shhh!" Cragger hissed at Crug. But it was too late. Laval had heard him.
"A new weapon?" Laval looked at Longtooth. "What's he talking about?"
Longtooth smiled. "Let's just say, I choose my allies wisely," he replied. "I heard rumors in the forest that the Crocs were about to become more powerful than ever. And I'll tell you this much. The new weapon on Cragger's Command Ship is quite . . . convincing." Longtooth and Cragger exchanged a knowing grin. "But I don't want to give away all the surprises."
Laval's eyes were wide with shock. "Longtooth, I don't understand," he pleaded. "You've been one of my dad's best guards for years. From before I was even born. We've fought side by side against the Crocs. For Chima, to protect the CHI! How could you do this?"
"Oh, that reminds me," Longtooth said. He reached deep into his satchel and handed Cragger a rolled up piece of parchment.
“King Cragger, I meant to give this to you. It's a map of the Lion Temple, its secret passages, its guard posts," Longtooth glanced at Laval and snickered, "and everything you need to know in order to steal its CHI."
With those words, Laval snapped. He growled and clenched his fists. "You're a traitor!" he cried at Longtooth. "I won't let you get away with this!" Laval charged, almost knocking over Cragger in his rush to get at the Lion Warrior.
Snarling and yowling, the two Lions grappled with one another and fell into the mud. They tumbled over again and again in the best Lion fight Cragger had seen in a long time. Crug and Crawley rushed up to pull them apart, but Cragger stopped them.
“Let them go. It's about time someone put Laval in his place, and our new friend Longtooth is just the Lion to do it."
Over and over, Laval and Longtooth rolled, tearing through branches, knocking over plots of swamp grass, and crashing through racks of armor. Crocodiles scattered to avoid the flashing claws as the Lion Prince and old warrior battled.
Hearing the commotion, Crooler walked over to where Cragger, Crug, and Crawley were standing. "Brother, what's going on?" she asked.
Cragger chuckled. “Laval just found out that Longtooth is on our side now.” he said. "And he was especially angry when Longtooth gave me this." Cragger held out the rolled up plans of the Lion Temple.
"Let me se that," Croler said, taking the parchmen away from Cragger. She unrolled it and studied the digram. A second later, her eyes went wide. "Have you read these notes?" she snapped.
Cragger, his eyes still riveted by the fight, replied, "I was about to when Laval attacked Longtooth."
"It's all a trick!" Crooled cried. "Look at this parchment! This note says, 'Here's the spot where the Crocs get stomped.' And this one says, 'If you can read this, a big thanks from Laval.'"
"What?" Cragger exploded, ripping the parchment from her claws. He snarled. "What does this mean?"
"It means you let two Lions into our camp and they're wrecking the place!" yelled Crooler. "And they're headed for -oh, no!"
Oh, yes the battle between the two Lions had cared them to where Cragger's Command Ship was docked. Longtooth grabbed Laval and flung him onto the deck of the vessel, right near where the CHI magnet was mounted. Then he leapt after the Lion Prince.
They smashed into the magnet, snapping the base in half. A few more slams and the whole structure fell apart, collapsing into the swamp.
Laval grabbed Longtooth's hand and pulled him to his feet. "Had enough?" he asked.
“I could keep this up all day," Longtooth replied, a knowing smile crossing his face. "But that weapon is finished . .. and it looks like we might be too unless we get out of here, fast."
Led by Cragger, the Crocodiles were charging the Command Ship. Laval gave a laugh and waved. "We heard a rumor you had a new weapon, but we couldn't figure out what it was and how to get close enough to wreck it. So thanks for inviting Longtooth in, Cragger, old buddy!"
With that, the two Lions sprang from the ship and ran as fast as they could through the jungle to where they had stowed two Speedorz. Behind them, they could hear the echoes of very, very angry Crocodiles. It was only when they had zipped well out of reach and back to the edge of the Lion Camp that Laval and Longtooth finally stopped, laughing uncontrollably.
"'Next time, you get to be the traitor," Longtooth said, out of breath.
Laval shook himself, sending clumps of dirt flying in every direction. "Next time, try not to be so convincing. For a second there, you almost had me going. And I knew it was all a trick."
Longtooth chuckled. "Hey, you don't get to be my age without learning a few acting skills along the way."
"They came in handy," Laval agreed. "Now we know what the Crocs were up to. Let's go tell the Eagles about the CHI magnet. They'll know how to build a counter weapon, in case the Crocs try this again."
Then, Laval looked Longtooth up and down and scrunched up his nose. "Next time, let's also fight someplace less mud. You smell of swamp."
"You smell worse," Longtooth said.
"You hit like a baby Croc."
"You would know. Didn't you lose a fight to one once?"
Together, the two friends raced each other back to camp.
#legends of chima#chima#lego chima#lego legends of chima#cragger the crocodile#for chima#laval the lion#longtooth the lion
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Treasure Trove of Satan
Prayer
Glory and praise to you, O Satan, in the heights
Of Heaven where you reigned and in the depths
Of Hell where vanquished you dream in silence!
Grant that my soul may someday repose near to you
Under the Tree of Knowledge, when, over your brow,
Its branches will spread like a new Temple!
Translated by William Aggeler, The Flowers of Evil,
Charles Baudelaire
Who is Satan?
Satan, Satan, the Great Dragon or the Serpent was the leader of the rebellious angels who fought in Heaven opposing the power of God. He was said to be the most beautiful, intelligent and powerful of the angels.
In Homage to:
Jean Delville the Belgian symbolist.
Who painted his masterpiece “Treasures of Satan” back in 1894 depicting Satan in a sensuous under sea world with the devil as a ballet dancer like man curiously with wings transformed into tentacles which perhaps have ensnared the souls.
Art: Treasure Trove of Satan by Mahaboka
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I don't know why, but for some reason I think the thing that'll snap Blix out of Self Defense Mode would be Cub hugging him or smth.
Maybe or maybe not! Been thinking more regarding how New Games would function here. Considering he's connected to the Artifact and the Artifact is PISSED at the moment, his whole self defense gig is like a protocol incase the Corruption happens (Artifact going haywire) and his main goal is to get the Artifact back.
Tho that doesn't mean he's aware of his task or his surroundings, he has completely snapped at that phase and has zero sense of what and who is around him. If you get in his way, then get the hell out NOW.
This also gives me the excuse to talk about how the corrupted knights did what they did to "gain the Artifact's power". The prophecy they were given described an Artifact with the power to give life, it surrounds itself with the branching essence of life while keeping itself protected by forming mountains to surround its perimeters.
Essentially, the Artifact here is more floral based in means of powers with its whole garden theme but that's only because it's residents/shapes who originally lived here had started migrating, only then when the temple was left completely unattended that the Artifact started to transform its surroundings to protect its home and giving life to new residents which are the flowers (Lycan and the minions)
The prophecy goes something like this:
> From morning to night, extending across sea and land, there resides the heart of all life.
> Branching out like roots of an old tree, it has the power to give life... and death.
> Causes of floods, causes of plagues, an infection shall spread across the land the same way a flower blooms at the peak of summer.
> What has the ability to sustain good has the ability to sustain evil. The fate of the world lies under a single item with no thoughts or morals.
> With great strength and mind, spirituality and bravery, only four shall make the risk of taming the heart of all.
The Artifact was both giver of life and bringer of death, it was also the reasons plagues had happened across certain areas, producing sickness and poison. It's glorified as an item that seals away such power and thus shapes have chased after it in hopes to gain it, no matter what intentions they have. The Artifact surrounds itself with the style of peace and chaos, that both go with each other hand-to-hand. There's a proverb that has circulated around the temple throughout centuries and its still said even within the minions.
"For the land to flourish, the volcano must erupt."
It's why the area is surrounded by mountains-- sorry, no, volcanoes actually but they're not as active as before (due to the Artifact making them during terraforming).
Anyways, besides the Artifact being a symbol of peace and chaos, the corrupted knights were the "chosen four" to find the artifact and gain its powers.
Shamrock being the one to hold it still with his strength, Flax being the one to electrocute it to weaken its defenses, Cider having to pacify it so it doesn't retaliate, and Cyan giving the final blow.
What they're doing is breaking its seal, again, the Artifact is described to be an item that contains such power. To do that, they have to break its shell to get there.
And that's where the misconception started, the Artifact is described as just an item when its actually a living thing. It is a living thing connected to other living things, just in a way that's almost god-like in means of abilities.
What they did was harm the Artifact and piss it off so badly that it went HAM and, of course, like a cornered animal, fought back. It was life or death at that matter and the Artifact really said:
"Augh! Call an ambulance!" [Pulls out gun] "But not for me."
The way the Artifact is portrayed here is like an animal and the prophecy is just the concept of a spectacle towards said animal. (If you've watched the movie Nope, it's basically akin to the message).
And that instinct of fight or flight ended up extending towards Blixer when he's in his New Games form, a form where he snapped and he was fighting for his life. The same thing the Artifact is doing.
I actually have thought out how the Artifact and its subjects have essentially evolved and how they're portrayed in this swap au because, like, wouldn't it be cool if the Artifact was just a powerful living thing that has animal-like instincts and studying behaviors (pattern association n whatnot) with Blixer, the guardian, being born as a sign of evolution from said living thing!
Also, it might be worth noting, this au is not really mine as it's based off of Afrothunder's designs of Guardian Blixer and Corrupted Cube (swapped roles), the corrupted knights and their TIO form (the Nameless One). Take all of what i said as just fan headcanons and I'm diving deep into the rabbit hole ^_^;;;
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CHAPTER 4: THE SONIC YOUTH
PREVIOUS CHAPTER
“Okay! From the top, Chance!” Shout taps the screen of her phone and some zen music drones. “Picture a place where you and Benkei can fight freely. If you like, you may also picture a weather condition, structure, or other outside factor that shapes the area to your advantage.”
Steam pours out of Chance’s ears as he sits in a meditative squat. His brows furrow like caterpillars dancing on a hot skillet. A place where he’s to his advantage? That’s everywhere! He’s Chance, the invader! The Ultimate Godhand Middle-Schooler!
Shout places her palms on Chance’s temples, like squeezing open an otamatone. He opens his mouth and exhales, like a pressure release valve. Looks like they’ve done this before.
“Okay, maybe… hmm. Let’s try this at a different angle,” Shout dotes.
“Different angle? What angles are even left? I’ve read all those magazines, watched all those weird European movies, listened to those soundscape audios,” Chance counts off on his fingers, “I dunno what angle is left to explore. It’s been two weeks already, and we have like two weeks left!”
Chance sulks, becoming a yellow and orange puddle.
“It’s not like it’s your fault, either! It’s just not my thing, I think. Maybe I don’t need an Atmosphere,” he rolls backwards, limbs up like a turtle on its back, and continues, “It’s just like an entry exam, right? Who else would even have an ability like that?”
“Well, Mr. Otsuka.” Oh great, she drags out the Mr. Otsuka card. “I truly doubt you will come across an amateur or apprentice who would have one other than me, as a special exception. But that’s not the point! Leo assigned me to teach you this so you would have a leg up on the competition. You need to learn this eventually, and both Leo and myself truly believe it well within your ability.”
“Okay, but—”
“No buts! You will eventually have to face pros, like Rei. You need to be at the level of a pro if you ever want a chance at being on our team — or beating Leo, for that matter. Sorry if this is coming off as harsh, but if you don’t pass the pro exam…”
Chance watches her twiddle her fingers, not wanting to say the rest.
“Fine. You’re right. What’s the new angle?”
“What if I guide your meditation? You tell me what you want to envision and I could describe it to you! I do this often for my younger siblings to help them go to sleep by bedtime.”
He picks at the grooves in his shoes for a bit, still in turtle position.
“Yeah. We can do that.”
Chance peeks out the window of the band practice room they’ve been training in. It would be weird to do this at the Menko Association, and the band practice room is quiet enough. Helps that it’s soundproofed, too. They can be a loud pair.
The zen music continues to drift around the room. Shout flips the light switch and the room goes dark except for a ray shining in the door’s thin window. She sits down on a music chair in the corner.
“Okay Chance, put your limbs down. Unless that’s how you relax.”
He complies, dropping his arms and legs down on the ground. With his limbs spread like this, he looks like a starfish.
“Good. Close your eyes. Good. Where would you like to go today? Where would Benkei like?”
"A bridge. In a forest. Over a stream.”
A clock ticks outside of the room. Click. Click. Click. Yeah, that’ll do for white noise.
“Alright,” Shout’s voice takes on the foggy nature of a lullaby. “Your foot crunches on a branch you hadn’t noticed. Some woodland creature skitters away, but you don’t catch what it is. All around you is green, roof and floor, separated by brown pillars wrapped in moss.
“You wander around this place, shuffling around fallen leaves and grass with your feet. Shuff, shuff. Shuff, shuff. Flowers and tall grasses occasionally decorate the trail you’re on. They all seem to be pointing you forward to a place where the ground splits apart into a trench. You stop at the ledge. It’s steep, and you see a creek cut through at the bottom. The water is clear as glass, and burbles over pretty red and yellow and orange rocks. Bubl, bubl.
“The sound is nice, so you follow the edge, until you come across a small, arched bridge. The wood it is made out of is darkened with time, and has specks of green. It’s well-loved. You take one step on it. Creeeeeak. You think that is how it says hello. There’s someone else on the bridge, crossing it at the same time as you. Who is it?”
Chance snores in response.
“Chance!” Shout hisses in a whisper. She quietly scrambles and kneels at Chance’s side. His belly moves up and down slowly. “Oh my. Well. I can’t just wake him up. That’d be rude.”
And as such, Shout waits for the next half hour for Chance to wake up from his nap before a trumpet player boots them both out.
***
Two weeks have passed without much fanfare. Plan “Get Chance An Atmosphere Go!!” has long since been abandoned in favor of focusing on getting the rest of his skills up to snuff. If he can’t develop an advanced skill to blow the competition out of the water, Shout figured, he could at least develop his baseline skills to an advanced level. It was a compromise they had to make. Shout wasn’t about to waste two weeks on an unachievable goal when she could do something tangible in that time. She wouldn’t let her student down like that.
Chance had done well to keep up with his prescribed lesson plan. Hopefully it’ll pay off. Shout returns from a desk with a cheery receptionist with a bob cut. She has a stack of papers; some she hands to Chance, and some she keeps for himself. The events hall is sprinkled with clusters of competitors and some coaches and guardians, but Chance and Shout find seats away from the noise.
“They have to have this information already right? The Menko Association paperwork was like the same stuff,” Chance groans, “And even if they couldn’t share our info with the venue, surely we could do it digitally.”
“Oh hush you!” Shout gently chides back, “You will be just fine. What if the power goes out and you get hurt? What if the systems glitch out? How will they get your emergency contact then.”
“If it means filling out more forms, I’d rather they let me bleed out.”
“Chance! Don’t be so macabre!”
The two continue to playfully bicker while on the opposite side of the building, a girl stamps her last form as complete.
“I don’t see why we couldn’t do this digitally before the event,” Rei gripes under her breath as she hands off the paper to some dopey adult who carries it away.
Another girl leaning back in her chair, almost looking like she’s in a dead sleep after a big meal, kicks the wall and spins around. The wheels on the chair creak as she does.
“Tell me about it!” She somehow heard Rei’s whisper, responding snappily as if she was waiting for her moment to strike.
“Yeah…?” Rei turns to address the girl, not expecting an answer to her question.
Her hair is green, the green that happens when you don’t wash the chlorine out of your hair after going to a cheap public pool. It doesn’t look like a dye job. When she spoke, the Japanese came out awkwardly and kinda rude, but it was all correct; the grammar wasn’t stilted at all and the accent was there.
Ms. Green Hair opens one eye to check if Rei is talking in her direction and then clears her throat. “Yeah! Back in Canada, we do everything on our phones ‘n’ stuff. Dunno what’s up with the Menko guys, amirite?”
“Uh, yeah. I guess. Yeah!” Rei puts on the peppy voice she uses to talk to the girls at school — her people-person voice. It’s distinctly more feminine than her usual tone. She lightly bows in Ms. Green Hair’s direction. “You must be Ms. Persie 4-Dan from Canada! It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”
Persie gets up and her black leather duster audibly flaps. She bows back, but a bit too low and a bit too stiff. “And you’re Rei, yeah? I’ve watched a couple matches of yours. You’re somethin’ else, y’know that?”
“Aw, thanks!” Rei says with the sickly sweetness of a girl who has been doing networking since she was the age of 10.
Persie smirks, but only in a cool way and not a lame way. Never ever. “Didn’t you just get 3-Dan in your rank-up match against, um,” she thinks, “Daisuke 5-Dan, wasn’t it?”
“Uh, wow, yeah!” Rei tilts her head to her left the way kids do when dumbfounded, “You really did your homework huh?”
With the smugness of a house cat, Persie folds her arms, lifting a forearm to tap her temple with two fingers. “Of course, man. Thought it would be good to know for commentating the matches. Y’know, we can bounce off of each other and stuff. Since I know your matches and playstyle generally. Don’t want to bore the audience.”
“Right.”
The girls stand there in silence for a few seconds. Persie says nothing while looking at Rei expectancy. Rei waits for anything to happen or at least any excuse to say anything at all to change the topic.
“Hey, do you have a copy of the match schedule? I forgot to grab one like a dummy, and you know how the Menko Association is about everything being paper,” Rei smiles, swallowing daggers.
“So true!” Persie yips like a dog wagging it's tail.
Silence.
“Well, do you have one? Persie?”
“Oh, uh, yeah!”
She shuffles some papers on her greenroom desk around and hands one to Rei, who flips through the packet.
“Okay, registration, doors open for audience, opening ceremonies, and match one is… oh no…”
“What is it? Is there a misprint?”
“No… but I wish it was. This isn’t good.”
“How bad could it be?” Persie asks in the cool tone of an uninvolved third party who's so, so very cool.
Once again, on the other side of the building, Chance and Shout hand in their paperwork. The receptionist passes back a rules pamphlet and a schedule with their match times highlighted. They both look at the first match they have. The black text in the neon yellow marker ran as dark as a trench that cut to the core of the earth.
11:00 - MATCH 1 (A-RING): KLEIN, SHOUT | OTSUKA, CHANCE
NEXT CHAPTER
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Carolina's Journal Log 13:
We'd stayed at the Soul Riders' campsite last night after leaving Guardian's Dale. They were planning to head to Linda's apartment in Jarlaheim today, so I bid them goodbye and Rosedawn and I set out toward New Hillcrest.
A beacon of light was slicing through the otherwise nearly cloudless and unbroken sky, giving us our next destination. Following the beam of light took us up to the old paddock belonging to the Dews. Spread out around the paddock were various livestock animals, including sheep, cows, and donkeys. And of course, Mary. When will she put a fence up? Mary, I swear, please put up a fence. It'll save so much time.
After playing around with the animals for a while, we headed towards the Mirror Marshes. The willow trees were powdered with snow, and the leaves draped on the branches were coated in frost, sending out small sounds whenever the wind would cause them to collide with one another. All of the surrounding plants, stones, and bridges were covered in snow, something that was definitely an odd sight, given the usually green, slightly murky looking of the Mirror Marshes.
We passed through some frozen curtains of willow leaves, the ice brushing against us. For a moment, we stopped to look out around us. The slight wisps of clouds in the sky, the snow-covered marsh, crystal clear water, plants and ferns frosted over, and the water plants frozen, resembling icy stalagmites.
Leaving the last section of the Mirror Marshes, we jumped over a fallen log in the middle of the path, finally making our way up the hill to the town of New Hillcrest. We also happened to nearly crash into some tall grasses in the process.
We stopped to grab some snacks at Jamie Olivetree's café before continuing on our way. Our original destination was the Fort Maria library to do some research, but we veered off course. Instead, we opted to head for the Twilight Temple. Haven't been up there since that Vala, who might have been Sive, chased us after Mrs. Holdsworth lost her research. And Jay. Can't forget Jay.
After we reached the Twilight Temple, we looked out toward the Fort. The tops of the towers were dusted with shimmering white snow, as was the ground on the hilltop surrounding the Fort. The Twilight Temple and its own surroundings looked straight out of a fantasy novel. Could this place be tied to the Vala?
We carefully headed back down the hill before heading toward Fort Maria. Slipping between the pair of boulders that disguised the hidden path into the Fort, Rosedawn and I calmly headed up to the entrance of the tunnel. I dismounted, leading Rosedawn beneath the cover of the tunnel. I gave her some water and a couple of carrots before heading into the library.
After about an hour of sifting through books on Jorvegian myths and legends in the entrance-like area of the library, I headed down into the main section of the library. I wonder how long it would take to read everything here. Nevertheless, I took the staircases down to the lowest level and began looking through the bookcases. I was able to track down a couple more books on myths and legends, settled down in a chair, and started reading.
Putting back the two books I'd been poring over for the last few hours, I headed down into the secret tunnel that had previously been hidden behind a couple of gargantuan bookshelves. The dark, mystical tunnel had an air of magic and mystery about it, the overgrown vines hanging down from the ceiling only adding to the effect. I rounded the corner and gazed down into the main room, straight into the aquamarine-blue portal hovering in the center.
I stepped down the staircase slowly as I entered the temple-like structure hidden within the ancient library. The glowing lotus-like flowers floated in the shallow water as I strode across the stones forming a pathway to the portal. The portal itself looked like it was being held up by a pair of tree limbs. Where could it lead?
#long post#star stable spoilers#sso spoilers#just in case#ssoblr#star stable#star stable online#horse: rosedawn#arrow's typewriter
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The Treasures of Satan
Talon Abraxas
Glory and praise to you, O Satan, in the heights
Of Heaven where you reigned and in the depths
Of Hell where vanquished you dream in silence!
Grant that my soul may someday repose near to you
Under the Tree of Knowledge, when, over your brow,
Its branches will spread like a new Temple!
--Les Litanies de Satan (The Litanies of Satan) by Charles Baudelaire
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Cults
Cult is the term commonly used for a new religion devoted to a living leader and committed to a fixed set of teachings and practices. Such groups range in size from a few followers to worldwide organizations directed by a complex chain of command. Members of these groups generally consider them to be legitimate religions and rarely call them cults. Most historians of religion use the more neutral term new religious movement instead of cult. Because there is no one definition of cults, their number and membership today cannot be accurately measured.
Kinds of cults. Traditionally, the term cult referred to any form of worship or ritual observance, or even to a group of people pursuing common goals. Many groups accepted as religions today were once classified as cults. Christianity began as a cult within Judaism and developed into an established religion. Other groups that began as cults and developed into organized churches include the Quakers, Mormons, Swedenborgians, Christian Scientists, Methodists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Seventh-day Adventists. For a discussion of cults in the ancient world, see Mysteries .
During the 1960's, new religious movements spread and flourished in the United States. Since that time, negative publicity about cults has altered the meaning of the term cult. Today, the term is applied to groups that follow a living leader who promotes new and unorthodox doctrines and practices. Some leaders demand that members live apart from everyday society in communities called communes. Leaders claim that they possess exclusive religious truth, and they command absolute obedience and allegiance from their followers. Some cults require that members contribute all their possessions to the group. None of these characteristics are unusual in the history of religions. But they tend to create suspicion among outsiders, especially those whose family members join such groups.
Modern cults. Probably the most notorious new religious movement of the late 1900's was the People's Temple, a group led by the Protestant clergyman Jim Jones. Hundreds of his followers moved into a rural commune called Jonestown in the South American country of Guyana. They lived under Jones's absolute rule. In 1978, members of the People's Temple killed a U.S. congressman and three journalists. Jones then ordered his followers to commit suicide, resulting in the deaths of more than 900 people, including Jones. See Guyana (History) .
Another controversial group was the Branch Davidians, led by the self-proclaimed prophet David Koresh. In 1993, a 51-day confrontation between the Branch Davidians and federal forces near Waco, Texas, ended with a tragic fire in the group's compound. More than 80 Branch Davidians died, including Koresh.
Some movements regarded as cults did not begin as religious groups. A movement called Synanon was originally organized in California to rehabilitate drug addicts. It changed into a commune that won legal recognition as a religion.
Two of the largest groups regarded as cults in the United States had origins in Asia. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly called the Hare Krishna movement, was established in 1966. Its leader, the Hindu teacher A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, had come from India to the United States in 1965. During the 1960's and 1970's, he established many centers in the United States and other countries. Many members of ISKCON wear orange robes similar to those worn by Indian holy men.
The Unification Church, founded by the evangelist Sun Myung Moon, is an adaptation of Christianity. Its members, commonly called "Moonies," believe in a cosmic struggle between the forces of good and evil. The Unification Church has been aggressive in seeking conversions. Like many other cults popular in the 1970's, however, it began to adopt a more moderate tone in the 1980's.
Less aggressive and more loosely organized cults tend to stress such personal spiritual practices as meditation. Transcendental meditation, for example, offers forms of meditation practice to participants but does not require adherence to specific religious creeds. See Transcendental meditation.
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We are not a Cult
Okay maybe we are.
The People's Temple has been a long standing fixture, or at least it's congregation is. A popular place of worship for decades the little Catholic church burned down in an accidental fire eight years ago, leaving its Sunset district neighborhood and congregation without a place of worship. As times became more trying they'd all began to branch off to other churches, though this hole in their lives and in the community was never quite filled. Five years later and several failed attempts to fund-raise by an old tired minister and a secret investor would wipe their deficit and then some, clean. A new temple was built a block from the old, re-branded, renamed, and within its walls its people and their faith in a new youthful minister, grew.
Listen carefully to their words, What they ask, and preach and maybe you'll hear their warnings. Listen to what they ask, and know that your soul won't come out at the end of it.
Find the wanted ad here
Minister Morgan / TAKEN
The Minister: of the order Morgan is the most trusted, and also the face of everything, a puppet who's strings are pulled and yanked by Matthias himself. They've been together for centuries now and are, for people who are just bound by Hellish ties, carefully and wholly wrapped 'round each other. Their trust in one another is never questioned, nor is their seeming obsession with the other. They're no longer lovers but there's no doubt that where one goes, the other is likely looming nearby. Morgan's duties within the order are fairly simple, though also broad; he is quite literally their minister and thus he spreads the word of "God", while peppering prophetic doomsday narrative (that'll be escalated over time.) His flock are his own and he should be protective over them, while also caring little over their actual fate. What's his, is his, a point of fact he learned from his sire.
Sister Minerva / Caitriona Balfe
the social advocate; she's the face the people reach out for help, the one that they meet before they're allowed time with the busy minister. she runs their soup kitchen and schedules all their community outreach programs, as well as manages the other sisters. She is aware of what Matthias is, though she's the only of the sisters that do. Minerva, lovingly known as 'Minny', is the head of the sisters that help the temple. not true nuns, these women aren't sworn to God and they're not required to live chaste and holy lives. they're simply women dedicated to a cause. Minerva herself is the one who coined them as 'sisters' and that people have assumed them nuns, is their own business and one which Minny isn't so quick to correct or mind. Her loyalty is dictated by a sworn promise to make her one of Matthias' own, when the end dawns.
Sister Luci / Anya Taylor-Joy
The Sunday School Teacher; Lucinda (Luci) is an intense-eyed young woman who's as sweet and demure as people think her opposite. Often misunderstood she joined the clergy as their first Sunday school teacher and has thrived in the position to become director of education. She's as close to an actual nun as the sisters have but even she isn't wholly sworn to God, her faith has been wavering as of late and beneath the teachings of Morgan. Luci is not aware of Matthias is or what the order is, she's simply a pure soul looking to fit in and belong somewhere. Matthias himself, tends to dote on her for this and spends more time with her than he does some of the others. There's tension between Luci & Daphne due to this.
Sister Daphne / Samara Weaving
The Wild Child; A secondary Sunday school teacher, Daphne is also head of the choir and the ministry's own loose cannon. She's proven to be someone who easily ensnares those of her own age (wonder why) and easily convinces them to join rank. Daphne also heads a lot of the youth/teen activities within the community and has hosted several silent dances. Whether she was the one who spiked the punch or not, no one will ever know~
Daphne is not aware of what Matthias is, nor the order. She was sent to the church under her mother's demands and stayed after learning it was nothing like a church at all. Matthias and Daphne have a playful relationship in which he supports and encourages her wild, and she looks up to him as a father figure (of sorts). There's some tension between Daphne & Luci because of this.
Deacon Blaise / TAKEN
The Community Governor; a secondary minister, though not as widely accepted, Blaise is mostly and mainly known as the muscle of the group. The one who keeps an eye on the flock and keeps them in line when panic sets in. He's not the best at soothing said panic, but if people overstep, he's sure to be there. There's some playful rivalry between Blaise and Minerva, the sort that picks at one another endlessly, but is largely non-toxic. Blaise does know what and who Matthias is and is trusted among the inner circle, though he tends not to take anything serious enough to be on-par with Morgan. Respected nonetheless.
Director Natasha
The Holy Ghost; not actually dead, this director is more a secretarial go-between for Matthias and Morgan. Their duty is primarily to watch over the church as a whole and report to Matthias, where Morgan generally only reports what needs to be, this ghost reports everything. A well rounded members of the ministry, they can fill any of the roles as needed, though most often they're back up for the deacon and silent support for the sisters. Respected within the ministry as a figurehead, they can optionally manage the books and the others (or take a more hands-off approach in this field), as well as the other cogs. They're not afraid to slap down or enforce rules, anymore than they are to support their fellow members. Their loyalty lies with Matthias, and can branch out to his other endeavors as well, as they do know who and what he is. His quiet and looming right hand that oils the wheels and makes sure they're all running smoothly for the others.
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THE OMEN. @scarletryst
Neatly in a row, they sat. Sleek ink black wings fluttering over the barren branches. The sun shone in the middle of the sky, but its light somehow felt cold brushing against his skin.
What do you see? A voice whispered the question, but he had no opportunity to answer as everything rapidly faded away.
The dreams come and go, always as they pleased. He tried to hold onto the details, but they kept on slipping through his grasp like a breeze. By the time Chatri stepped out of the door, he'd forgotten about the crows, the dead forest, and the sun of ice. All that remained was a headache, and the lingering sense of dread.
"I should not drink," he winced, bringing a hand to his throbbing temple. "It makes the dreams worse." He was speaking with Muwon, who drank significantly more last night but looked absolutely, infuriatingly fine. As for their relationship, let's just say they arrived at House Klahan on the same day and took their first breaths not far from each other. Chatri decided early on that he could consider this one close, and the fact that Muwon tended to the horses should not diminish their friendship but instead, enhance it.
Of course, there were some that did not understand their bond and began to spread a rather salacious rumour featuring - supposedly - nights of endless passion between a lord and his bewitching (?) servant. To that, Chatri could only say this - he would rather crawl in bed with the dancing drunkard they encountered yesterday. The one with a massive beard who started raving nonsense after his third ale and swayed his body in the most peculiar pattern as if he was attempt to summon a demon. Because there was such a thing called knowing someone too well and a part of him would never be able to see Muwon past a screeching toddler.
"Why are you unaffected by alcohol?" Chatri narrowed his eyes. "I am beginning to suspect that you pretend to drink more than you actually do." The new mare nuzzled his hand, urging him to halt this silly bickering and carry on with the more important task of feeding her. "Has Carrot II been getting along with the others?" They disagreed over the name and to be fair, the mare indeed looked nothing like Carrot the First. Chatri still felt like appearances didn't matter, though, after diligently serving the House for many years, Carrot the First deserved to be honoured upon passing.
#VERSE: 𝓼𝓴𝔂 𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓰#I have an idea of where this thread could go owo#do you want me to tell you or do you want me to just...lead you down the general direction and keep the details a surprise LOL#scarletryst
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