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#on the front lines to put capes back in style
rarecollectibles · 1 year
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Really rude of Star Wars to not have any scenes of the very canon Jedi temple gala… guess I’ll do it myself…
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msfcatlover · 4 months
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Shadow Tim (Reverse Robins)
So, a few very important things to keep in mind for Tim's iteration of the Shadow design:
Tim is taking it up as a tribute to Steph after her death.
Tim does not have a Moonbeam as his partner. (He was supposed to be the next Moonbeam, apprenticed under Cass, until shit went down.)
Tim lacks the fully context & perspective on Being Shadow that Steph & Damian had about it (but he's trying his best.)
To start with, Tim brings Shadow back to Damian's greyscale & gold color scheme, but with one critical difference: where Damian had pops of red, Tim uses very light touches of purple.
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(Tim also keeps Steph's bat symbol, so here's a quickly thrown together contrast. Tim has no Moonbeam, so he gets no light/metallic accent on his bat symbol.)
The second major tribute is that Tim adds a cloak, specifically taken from Steph's original Spoiler design. Tim's version is black with a purple lining, and gold trim around the edge of the hood, calling back to both Steph's dual-tone hood & her hair. The cloak itself is ankle-length; not practical, but evocative & stylish.
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(So this style cape, and massive thanks to the Stephanie Brown Costume History page, y'all are lifesavers.)
Tim relies on the cloak to disguise his form, with the costume itself being much closer-fitted than previous iterations. The top is a black bulletproof vest with short sleeves added not dissimilar to his traditional Robin costume, but the weird stripes are actually places for him to tuck gadgets he expects to grab in a hurry.
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(Basically this, but all one piece, with the Robin sleeves, and obviously lighter on detail to keep from being visually cluttered. No one wants to draw or look at all those lines & straps, or that little wheel-velcro-thing.)
Tim wears a dull grey chainmail body suit between his black undersuit & outer costume. It shows mainly on his arms, between the top sleeves & his gloves, but if his pants tore it'd be visible there too. The gloves themselves are his spiky gauntlets from more modern costumes, in black but with a gold hem at the very top to reflect the band on his hood (paying tribute to Steph's thick hems & blonde hair, while also bringing back Damian's color scheme.)
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(These bad boys.)
Tim sticks with the neck gaiter Steph switched to, but does not keep the greasepaint. Instead, Tim has a headset styled after ski-goggles. He was originally designing it for becoming Moonbeam, hoping an AI scan of his opponents' moves would help him predict what they were going to do (allowing him to better mimic Duke & Cass's skillsets.) It's still a pretty rough prototype by the time Steph dies, but Tim's put a hell of a lot of work into it, he's not not going to field-test the thing, now is he?
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(You meet the new Shadow, and this stares back at you from under the hood [lightly edited for appropriate drama])
Below the utility belt (grey with gold snaps/buckles,) Tim wears black heavy-duty cargo pants tucked into knee-high armored boots. The extra pockets even further emphasize that Tim is a character with a diverse set of skills and especially gadgets, and the slight puff caused by tucking not-entirely-fitted pants in at the knee calls back to Damian's "Infinite Frontier" outfit that inspired my original Shadow design.
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(Not quite that puffy, but that would probably be down to the artist.)
For the boots, I do really like the ones Tim's been recently wearing in comics... mostly, at least. The ones on-panel have a little tabi toe-stripe most of the time, which either appears to be decorative (just a notch in front of the toe, which I don't like the look of) or does weird things to the depth (making his feet look flat.) Also, as someone who cannot even wear flip-flops without getting bloody blisters, it just looks uncomfortable to me. I really like the version Tim wore on that cover with Damian—the shape looks more comfortable, it looks like it has better grip & heavier armor, and looks like a shoe it'd really suck to get kicked by—but the stripes are nearly invisible, and the weird spike of armor above the knee is a bit much.
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Combine the foot from the cover-boots with the shape & highlights from the panel-boots. Make the stripes & knee-pad border gold, and add a gold trim along the top edge of the green sole; the sole itself should be dark grey.
And that's Shadow Tim!
A little higher-tech to foreshadow his ascendance to Oracle, while also reflecting Tim's canonical love of weird gadgets through the ages.
Pays heavy tribute to Steph, but not in any way that'd be super-obvious if you weren't in-the-know, without directly ripping off her designs or looking so much like her that the other Bats could mistake Tim for Steph out of the corner of their eyes.
Pays light tribute to Damian, but aside from being a Shadow costume, Duke & Cass have about as much influence on the changes Tim makes (see: chainmail, glove style, face covering) as Damian does.
Misses a few important details of Shadow's design (see: no longer visible eyes, no more grease paint, dramatically changed silhouette) showing Tim wasn't prepared to step into this role but is doing his best anyway.
Extra armor & pockets shows that Tim's got even more protection than previous Shadows, hinting through design alone about the impact Steph's death had on the family.
Sticks to Tim's fashion tastes without going overboard.
Adds a cape for him to go swish.
I'm pretty happy with it!
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dkniade · 1 year
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Contrast in Values: A Look At Kaeya’s Outfit and Why It Lacks Visual Dominance
The dark and light values are constantly fighting for visual dominance, thus making the overall focus points weaker.
He may have contradictions and an attention-diverting nature in his very personality, but carrying all this onto his visual image makes it hard to focus, thus distracting the viewer’s attention from his face.
.
Genshin Impact has no problem making detailed designs, but when the whole character is cluttered with detail, nothing is brought into focus. Everyone have different tastes in style and design, but I believe a good character design should be easily read from up-close and from afar.
Kaeya’s design (specifically the front of his outfit), from a character design perspective, is unclear in terms of values and contrast, in my opinion.
Now, his skin is a warm tone which contrasts his very cool-toned outfit thus making us drawn to his face, especially when he’s against a dark, cool-toned background (as shown in these visuals of the manga). That’s not a problem.
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But his upper body? I’m sure artists (myself included) who have drawn his full outfit find it very complicated with all the layers. And are all the details even necessary? Aside from the warm colours of his face (and chest), and the large light-coloured shape of his feather boa, where am I supposed to be looking at?
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Kaeya has a lot of dark colours in his design, especially around his torso where his strand of hair falls. His hair, the lapel colour, and the purple banner-looking thing (what is that? Is that necessary?) draping down from his shoulder…
From afar, they all blur together despite having slightly different hues. It just looks like something is interrupting the lapel’s gold lining (which actually does a good job on emphasizing the lapel’s shape). Looking at these thumbnails at this size, it’s hard to pick out the aforementioned layers on his clothing.
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What’s curious, however, is that as though the character designers know there are too many dark-blues and blacks on his front side, they put a white gradient at the ends of his lapel for sake of contrast. Now this stands out against the blur of navy-blues, but it’s even brighter than his skin tone, thus drawing the eye to his waist instead of his own face, and for what reason? I don’t know.
His backside is actually much more simple and clear in comparison, which I like. The cape and feather boa have the lightest values, then the mid tones at his vest and banner/piece of fabric, and finally the darkest tones in his corset (?) and pants, with his dark hair colour contrasting the white/pale blue of the feather boa. (Of course it also helps that his cool tones stand out against the warm tones in the environment, and the gold metal pushes even more contrast against the rest of the blue-dominant outfit.)
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I learned in a graphic design course that when it comes to typography and font choice, less is more. By using, say—
Four or
more
different
fonts
(four or more different fonts)
—at a similar size in a single text poster, you draw attention to all their differences, and thus nothing is emphasized.
To me, there are constantly areas of visual contrast at the front of Kaeya’s outfit, thus making it hard for the eyes to rest on a certain spot. E.g. hair vs face, black vs gold on lapels vs inner lavender vest, black sleeve cuffs vs skin tone vs gold edge vs white.
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Every time my eyes want to look at a low-contrast area to rest, the bright band of gold pops out, upping the contrast again. The dark and light values are constantly fighting for visual dominance, thus making the overall focus points weaker.
He may have contradictions and an attention-diverting nature in his very personality, but carrying all this onto his visual image makes it hard to focus, thus distracting the viewer’s attention from his face.
This is why I’m never quite sure where to put his strand of hair. Back in this exercise, I tried to use very minimal values (pure white / light grey / dark grey) to block out shapes in Kaeya but there’s still too much contrast in the lapels and stars. Diluc, meanwhile, is clearly divided with the black coat and the white shirt/inner vest, so much that I only need to use two values to distinguish the shapes (even if the grey should be similar to Kaeya’s dark grey here).
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Don’t get me wrong. I love Kaeya, and his outfit makes him look cool and powerful, but the design choices made about his outfit in terms of contrast in values (and the lack thereof) is really rather questionable.
Ah, I’ve been wanting to address this ever since I noticed this visual conflict but never quite articulated it properly until now. I hope this analysis makes sense even if you don’t agree with me. Thank you for reading!
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When It Rains It Pours
It was the middle of June 2023. Me and prospect Cam were gearing up for an 800+km day of riding in our beautiful province of Nova Scotia. The weather was cloudy, warm, and humid but we knew by the time we got home (which would be late into the night) that it would be raining. So, we packed all the appropriate riding gear. I was riding my 2012 Victory Highball, Cam on his 2022 El Diablo.
I met up with Cam, and a handful of the brothers from the Dartmouth charter at the Mt. Uniacke Pub just outside of the city. Freedom RC was putting on their Ride for Fred, a memorial run for one of its member’s fathers, who had passed away a few years back. It was a smaller group ride with about 35 bikes. Freedom RC led the way, and we all headed down towards Hubbard’s; snaking along the road that follows the Atlantic coastline of Nova Scotia. From there we headed back up Highway 14 towards Windsor. We made a few stops along the way for gas, snacks, smokes, and to just hangout. On the last stretch of the ride, confidence levels were high, everyone was feeling great on their bikes carving some nice twisty’s along Highway 1. Just in front of me, Eric of Freedom RC, was on his cholo style bike. These style bikes have very little lean angle, they do not corner well. He was using the whole road to make the tight corners at these speeds. Suddenly, on one tight corner, he high sided on his fishtail pipes, sliding across the road until the bike met the shoulder. When the bike hit the shoulder, it dug into the gravel and started to violently roll. Eric was thrown off the bike down into the ditch. A few others and I went into the other lane to avoid the flipping motorcycle and parts flying everywhere. Luckily there were no vehicles coming. By the time I got my bike parked, Cam and the others were already down in the ditch with Eric. He was alert and responding. A group of us picked his bike up and moved it off the road. The ambulance and first responders showed up quickly so most decided to continue the ride to a Freedom RC members house. There, family and friends who didn’t ride had the BBQ fired up and lots of food ready for us when we arrived. Eric also had his snack truck set up as well. We all grabbed a bite to eat. While we were eating, we received the bad news that Eric had to be air lifted from the crash site to the QE2 hospital in Halifax.
After eating, Cam and I decided to push on and hit the road. We were traveling to the Highlanders Antigonish annual bike draw in Havre Boucher. We grabbed a few snacks from Erics truck and off we went. After a quick stop for fuel in New Glasgow we got off the highway in Sutherlands River and headed up a beautiful section of the sunrise trail (Route 245) towards Cape George, pushing the limits, riding hard, and having a blast. We decided to stop at the Cape George lighthouse for a little snack, and to take in the scenery. While sitting at the picnic table we opened our phones and read the tragic news about Eric. He had not made it. He passed away on the way to the hospital. With a lot of riding left to do ourselves before we made it home that night, it was a difficult thing to process right then and there. It takes time for this kind of news to sink in. We hopped back on our bikes with heavy hearts and lighter hands for the last stretch of the run to Highlanders. When we arrived, we found that the news had beat us there. News travels fast. We stayed for a while, chatting with some friends as they drew numbers for the bike draw. We enjoyed some more BBQ and cold beverages. Bikers love BBQ (Good Thing).
The sun went down, slowly sinking behind the tree line. The rain still had not started. I checked the radar and seen that it was indeed coming, but we could get to our first fuel stop outside New Glasgow before we had to suit up in rain gear.
The ride back was all highway. The newly twinned section had just been completed a few weeks before between Antigonish and New Glasgow. The fresh pavement was smooth, obscuring the sense of speed as we rode. We arrived at a 24-hour Irving outside New Glasgow just before midnight. The guy inside working was resting his eyes, so we had to wake him up to turn on the fuel pump. Before we left, we suited up in our rain gear. As we rode down the highway towards Truro, we crested Mt. Thom. As the whole sky came into view again, we got an amazing sight and surprise. Lightning was lighting up the sky ahead. As we rode closer to Truro the lightning was getting closer and brighter. What an amazing experience. I looked to the left across the town of Truro towards highway 102 and all I could see was a wall of water. We rode straight into it. The rain was torrential, coming down so hard you could not see. The road turns into a lake, your helmet fogs up, and the rain starts to find its way into your suit. All you can do is try to stay loose and have a laugh. Most people hate riding in the rain, especially that kind of rain. I love it, it’s a hell of a thrill. We pushed on, passing a cop car that was going about 50km/hr with the 4 ways on. They couldn’t have caught up to us if they wanted to, bikes are much better in the rain then vehicles.
The torrential rain pounded down for 30 minutes before it lightened to a steady rain just as I pulled off my exit, and into my driveway. Happy to be home, I parked the bike and stripped off my rain gear. I headed inside, physically, and mentally exhausted after a full day on the road.
In Memory of Eric Alexander – Freedom RC – Gone But Not Forgotten
-Travis Darksiders Dartmouth
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l0vegl0wsinthedark · 1 year
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I posted 3,601 times in 2022
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I tagged 3,533 of my posts in 2022
Only 2% of my posts had no tags
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My Top Posts in 2022:
#5
A drarry comic
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154 notes - Posted June 20, 2022
#4
My first attempt at Captive Prince fic!
*
Promise
The journey from Marches to Arles hadn't been nearly as long or exhausting as one from Ios might have been. Damen had been, to put it delicately, reluctant, to sail to Marches; the last time he'd sailed to Vere, he'd been in shackles.
But sailing meant he'd see Laurent sooner. And so they'd sailed. From Marches, they rode two days to Arles.
Damen could see the palace now, the turrets and towers visible over the treetops. The urge to break from his party again, to ride hard until he got to Laurent, was unrelenting. But he resisted. He would give Laurent the satisfaction of greeting him officially, this time.
The Veretian style of architecture, so unnecessarily intricate and detailed, sparked recollection. He hadn't been here since he'd ridden out with Laurent: back then, he'd still been Laurent's slave, Kastor had ruled Akielos, and the Regent had loomed over everything like an unpleasant, fetid disease.
Veretians thronged the streets to watch the procession go by. Most of them had only heard of King Damianos, and now longed for a glimpse of the ruler who had formed an alliance with their own king.
There was also the fact that these two kings were lovers, promised to one another, that further fuelled the desire to assess this foreign ruler.
The horses hooves clomped loudly on the cobbled streets and the wagon wheels groaned and clicked quietly. The Akielon royal guards had been joined by a Veretian troop at Marches, and together, they marched. The gathered crowds clapped, some yelling out praise for the alliance. Children ran along with the procession until it turned onto the main palace roads.
From there, Damen could see the palace gates. His pulse racing, he took in, with a surge of pride and admiration, Laurent's starburst flag flapping in the wind. There wasn't a speck of the Regent's red visible and even now, it brought Damen satisfaction.
The gates swung open. Guards in blue and gold lined the path to the palace. Unable to help himself, Damen dug his heels in gently, and his horse broke into a speedy trot.
The palace with its front gardens and fountains came into view and Damen saw the official welcome party gathered on the wide, sweeping front steps. A bright gold head glinted in the sunlight and Damen felt as though he might fall apart with happiness.
His Council behind him, Laurent stood on the second last step, dressed in pale blue and gold, tightly laced up to the wrist and neck. He wore a lighter crown than the one he'd been crowned with at his Ascension, and the addition of the golden cape, flowing and dancing behind him in the wind, only elevated his astonishingly sharp regality.
Posture and form as impeccable as ever, Laurent stood with his hands loosely clasped before him. His expression was careful and polite, but his eyes never left Damen.
Laurent didn't need to smile for Damen to be able to spot the joy in him. He saw it in the way Laurent's chest rose and fell a tad quicker, in the way his long throat danced as he swallowed, in the way the corners of his mouth twitched as he held back a beam.
Ha had watched the road for Damen's arrival at Lentos. Veretian protocol, Laurent had called it. Damen had said he could kiss him in front of everyone later. They never had gotten around to that.
The thought of Laurent kissing him now, here, in front of every important member of their respective royal courts, was almost unthinkable. Kings were not meant to indulge in public displays of affection with anyone; not even in Vere, with its odd laws of public consummation.
That didn't stop Damen from imagining, vividly, what it might be like to kiss Laurent right there on the palace front steps. Everyone knew they were lovers, he told himself. There was no need to claim his rightful place in Laurent's life - he already had it. They'd be sharing the royal bedchambers in the palace, for god's sake.
Damen drew to a halt and swung off his horse, his sandals hitting the ground soundlessly, his crimson cape flowing down with him. Guards clicked their heels together. The Council bowed low and gestured the traditional Veretian salutation.
Laurent smiled, eyes shining.
As Damen approached, Laurent descended the final two steps and stood looking up at him with honest, undisguised exultation.
Damen's own smile held nothing back. It was the first time since they'd met that he and Laurent had spent so much time apart; four months, in Damen's opinion, was much, much too long to be away from Laurent. His elation, his relief, his undisguised longing, not to mention his rapidly gathering desire, was all right there in his eyes, in his smile.
Laurent, for once, seemed to be fighting to find the right words.
Damen simply said, "My King."
Laurent stood there, speechless, for another beat.
Then he stepped forward, rose onto tiptoe, and kissed Damen on the mouth.
The explosion inside Damen was shocking in its intensity; his every nerve reacted to Laurent, to the kiss, to what it meant for this to happen in front of an audience.
Before he could gather himself enough to react, to kiss Laurent as hard and deep as his brain and body ordered him to, Laurent was pulling back. His cheeks were flushed deep pink and his eyes were dancing with promise.
"Exalted," he said.
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234 notes - Posted January 12, 2022
#3
Soup.
The first thing Draco noticed was that Harry hadn't shaved that morning. Harry shaved every morning. It was only on vacation that he would let his stubble grow out a bit - his own way of relaxing, Draco supposed.
But then Draco saw the way Harry rubbed his eyes, bloodshot and heavy, and pinched the bridge of his nose, glasses pushed up to his forehead.
When, ten minutes later, Harry still hadn't touched his breakfast, instead just sitting hunched while steadily sipping hot tea, Draco lowered the month's copy of Up Your Sleeve with a small frown.
"All right?" he asked.
Harry looked up, eyes wide, steam from the tea fogging his glasses. "Yeah," he said, and Draco decided that he was simply imagining the slight hoarseness in his voice.
"Not hungry?"
"Not really. Tummy feels weird."
"Weird, how?"
"Just queasy." Harry drained his mug and got to his feet, swinging on his maroon cloak. "Must be the takeout last night."
"I did advise you not to get overzealous with the chilly sauce," Draco turned the page, looking back down at the article about how talking brooches were back in fashion now, "You need to listen to me sometimes."
"Whatever, Malfoy," Harry said, and simply marched out of the kitchen.
Draco listened to the Floo flare and then go out, his gaze on Harry's plate, breakfast cold and untouched. Ten minutes later as he left for work, Harry and his reddened eyes had slipped out of his mind.
He should have known when, four and a half hours later, Harry didn't show up for lunch at the boutique. Draco ordered Greek from Melina's and the tzatziki looked incredible and smelled delicately of garlic and Draco ended up eating all of it along with warm pita. He had robes to finish hemming and ironing and so he left the rest of the food under a Stasis and went back to his sewing machine. Maybe Harry wouldn't mind some Greek at dinner.
But by five o'clock that evening, when Draco finally had a moment to sit down with a cup of tea, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. It wasn't like Harry to just not show up to lunch. He missed lunch all the time, but never without owling Draco about it.
Leaving his assistant to lock up after their last customer (who was trying on robes in increasingly dark shades of green and getting more and more flustered and confused) Draco Floo'ed home.
"Harry?" he called out, even before he was completely out of the Floo, even though Harry never got home before him.
There was a grunt from the sofa. Draco went and looked over the backrest to find Harry, still in full Auror uniform, curled up tightly with his head on two cushions.
"What are you-- What's happened to you?" Draco demanded, a tad bit louder than he'd intended, but then he was suddenly worried and Draco could never handle being worried.
Harry didn't answer and so Draco strode around the sofa, thumped the lunch leftovers on the coffee table next to Harry's glasses, and shook Harry lightly by the shoulder.
"Potter!"
Harry just sighed and blinked open tired, very, very red eyes. "Don't feel good," he said in a hoarse whisper, and then shut his eyes again.
Draco pushed thick, unruly black hair off Harry's forehead and pressed his palm to it.
"You're burning up," he said shortly. "When did you get home?"
"Dunno." A pause, then, "They sent me home at the eleven o'clock meeting."
"You've been home all day, feeling sick, and you didn't bother owling?"
"Couldn't find Hera."
"Have you forgotten you're a wizard? Why didn't you send me a patronus?"
"Nnngblr," replied Harry.
"Have you eaten something?"
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486 notes - Posted August 2, 2022
#2
I don't know what it is about Harry Potter just not giving a fuck after the War that I love so much. Like not because he's disrespectful but just because...........he has no fucks left to give. He ran out of them somewhere around the time he literally died for mankind.
600 notes - Posted January 19, 2022
My #1 post of 2022
When cats lie on their backs and look at you upside down with their little vampire tooth sticking out reblog if you agree
19,155 notes - Posted May 13, 2022
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slxthxrxn-sxmp · 2 years
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Strawberry Sugar Teaser
Mild Warning this is an a/b/o au and there is use of strong language
otherwise please enjoy !
(Gif is not mine )
˚ · • . ° .˚ · • . ° .˚ · • . ° .
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Something was wrong. 
The scene was too clean and yet too chaotic. Nothing like what you would expect from Gotham. Bleach had been used on the scene, so much so that it made everyone's nose hairs burn. And yet files were scattered around the room, blood spatter over the walls and floor like a scene from a horror movie. 
The victim ? It was the mayor's Beta mistress. She had her cheeks torn to shreds, the flesh lying on the floor around her body, and she had a purple mark on her untouched arm like a needle entry site. On the outside it looked like an overdose but now here, in the room, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that this was foul play. 
“Agent,” Gordons voice was shaky and low, bordering on a whisper. I walk to the bathroom where I was beckoned. 
“You ever seen anything like this ?” Gordon indicated to the mirror standing in front of. The reflective surface took up one whole wall making the bathroom look mismatched to the rest of the apartment. But more importantly there was a big sloppy ‘J’ written in dark blood that looks to have congealed already. Out of instinct my gloved hand reaches out to the mirror hovering over the evidence by a few inches. 
“Personally ? No, but I’ve seen-” there was a new presence in the house that had everyone's emotions shifting so I turn to find this person standing in the doorway, “Commissioner, you have a cosplayer on your crime scene.” 
Gordon whips his head around to see the large alpha completely dressed in a black superhero suit topped with a cape. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the Commissioner's reaction, “Everyone clear out give us a minute!” 
Then there was shuffling of every officer that was on scene, except for Gordon and I. 
“Agent, this is-”  
“Batman ? Don’t worry Gordon, my agency has dealt with its fair share of… masked heroes.” And with a nod to the masked person in question that is the end of the conversation. In turn he nimbly made his way through the house possibly to investigate the body.  
The commissioner cleared his throat, it is a nervous tic of his. “You were saying ?” 
“Hmmm,” my attention was back to the mirror, “this doesn’t fit the textbook profile of a victim quickly jotting down a clue for the next person to find. I would wager it's more of a signature.” 
“How about a trading card ?” Electricity. Every nerve within my body decided then to make itself known. I didn’t need to shift my line of sight in the reflective metal to know it was the vigilante but I did it anyway. In his hand was a small white business card with a cartoon style green question mark. 
“No, well I mean yes.” Ripping my eyes away from the man in a bat suit to then look at Gordon, “Might I request any files that include keywords starting or involving a capital J ranging from petty theft to- god- lets say homicide of any degree.” All the poor man could do was nod thoroughly confused. “And you,” I spun on my feet to face the Batman standing in the doorway once more, “bag that up we will figure out how that works into this mess.” After receiving a nod of acknowledgement, I made my way back to where the body was. Snatching a device from my pocket. The device was made by some other agents I worked with that scans for bugs and or secret cameras. Soon enough the other two still in the apartment filed into the room as well, looking concerned as to what I was doing.
“What did you say your agency was ?” His voice definitely was being put through a modifier. There was no possible way he could naturally have a voice like that. 
“I didn’t, Mr. Bat.” Apparently the humor wasn't well timed as all I got was blank stares (despite Gordon already knowing my agency). “I work for the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division otherwise known as Shield. Where we investigate and keep tabs on enhanced beings or otherworldly bodies.” The scan was now analyzing so I had the opportunity to give my attention to both men, slowly moving my shirt out of the way to flash them the badge around my waist. 
“You’re in the wrong city, agent. Metropolis is a state over.” He was monotone. Almost testing the waters to see where he stood. 
“I wasn’t assigned to otherworldly bodies, Batman.” Just like that his guard was back up and jokes ceased to exist. 
The device in my hand pierced the air with a horrific screech. Just like that I scrambled through the scan looking for just what exactly it had picked up. All the while the noise continued.
“Can you turn that goddamn thing off, Agent ?” It was Gordon whose fingers were currently in his ears blocking out the noise. 
Then after spinning around in a slow circle I found it. A seemingly innocent stuffed brown bear with a red nose. Happy with my discovery the device turned off taking the noise with it. 
“Ladies and gentlemen, I believe we are being watched .” To get a better look I got on my knees in front of the toy, “Say hi to the camera.” My wave to the camera was abruptly stopped by Batman squatting next to me and grabbing the bear.
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violetrose-art · 1 year
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Last Line Tag
Thanks for the tag, @oceangirl24
I tag: @ibrithir-was-here, @princesspuresarahk, and anyone who wants to play
I got myself into a bit of a writing mood and this is what I have so far for the newest chapter of CinderAmity.
Lord Belos, Boscha, and Bria were finally ready. Belos wore a black button-up shirt, a golden yellow cravat, a dark gray jacket with golden buttons and accents, matching gray pants, a white leather belt with a gold buckle, and a pair of brand new dress shoes that seemed to be made from black snake skin. Boscha wore what appeared to be a red and black Asian styled outfit with long sleeves and poofy knee-length pants while Bria wore an outfit that resembled pirate garb with a brown vest, black gloves, and a bandana wrapped around her head. The trio made their way downstairs towards the front door.
“Oooh, it’s finally happening!” Boscha exclaimed as she grabbed her crab palisman.
“I know, I can’t wait!” Bria added, picking up her rhinoceros palisman.
“Girls, please.” Belos said as he draped a white and gold cape over his shoulders. He picked up three personalized masks from a nearby drawer and handed one to each girl; he kept the third. “This is meant to be a formal occasion. I understand your excitement, but you must remember to—”
“Hey, wait! Wait for me!” CinderAmity’s voice called out.
They all turned their heads to see CinderAmity running towards them with a big grin on her face. She was now wearing a medium-length magenta dress with long sleeves, lacey accents, a white vest, matching white gloves, pale pink leggings, and a pair of orchid colored shoes. She had used the clothes in the chest to create something new. Ghost was watching from behind the staircase. Boscha, Bria, and Belos stared unblinking at CinderAmity’s outfit before Boscha broke the silence with an appreciative whistle.
“Whoa.” Bria commented with wide eyes.
CinderAmity blushed and shyly smiled.
“Where did you…?” Belos started.
“It didn’t cost you anything, sire.” CinderAmity said, stepping forward. “This is just something I… put together last minute.”
He furrowed his brow and scoffed. “I can see that.” He walked closer to his stepdaughter, which made her quite nervous. “…I’m sorry to have to tell you this, my dear… but this is a rather questionable choice, even for you.” He stopped a few inches from her and looked her in the eye. “I mean, this thing is so old fashioned… it’s practically falling to pieces.”
“W-what do you mea—?” CinderAmity started before Belos suddenly ripped the left sleeve of her dress. She gasped in shock.
“Oh dear, the shoulder’s fraying.” He said before violently tearing the vest open, causing the buttons to fall. “What did I tell you? It’s falling to bits.”
“What?! No! No, Belos! Stop, don’t!” CinderAmity cried as Belos proceeded to rip more and more parts of her outfit.
Boscha and Bria eventually joined in, but all they did was spill things on her like a flower vase of old water and even some abomination goo and pretended it was an accident. When they were through, CinderAmity looked at her ruined outfit in shock. She glanced back up at Belos with tears welling up in her eyes.
“How could you?” She asked.
He sneered as his eyes flashed blue. “…How could I otherwise? I refuse to associate myself with a ragged little thing like you.”
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memynissanandi · 10 months
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Current Nissan Almera Range Reviewed
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If you’re a car buyer on a budget, the market is just getting better and better for you. Car makers are responding to the massive growth of the B-segment and your choice of vehicles under R200 000 seems to grow daily.
Enter the latest Nissan Almera, a nameplate South Africans will remember from the early 2000s. Based on the Micra, the Almera can be thought of crudely as a Micra with a boot, but some clever engineering means it offers a lot more than its hatchback sibling.
Space, space and more space
It’s difficult to describe how much interior space is available, particularly in the back and in the boot. Two 6-footers could easily sit behind each other (one in the driver’s seat, one behind). If you’re a freakishly tall family on a budget, this is the car for you. I’ve driven very large German saloons that don’t offer half the rear legroom of the Almera.
The boot space is equally cavernous, at 490 litres, and much emphasis has been placed on smoothing out the edges of the boot to create as much usable space as possible. I’m not sure how else to describe how big 490 litres really is - I can comfortably climb in there if that helps.
As a family vehicle, I would argue this is about as practical as it’s going to get at this price point.
Comfort, Interior design and features
The Almera is offered in only one trim level - Acenta. This means pretty much everything you could want in a budget ride is standard, which makes things nice and easy - no sifting through a long options list. More on that at the end of the article.
Most of the interior bits and pieces have been lifted from the Micra, which is not a bad thing overall. The climate switchgear still feels too plasticky, but otherwise, the interior feels durable and well put-together. At this price point, it’s about as good as it’s going to get.
I did like the addition of an independent rear fan. This will certainly be welcome in summer. It hasn’t really been warm enough to test it in Cape Town, but it has two speeds and works by sucking in air-conditioned air from the front area and pushing it through to the rear.
Where Nissan has excelled is drive refinement. The engine is incredibly quiet at idle, and cabin noise is very decent while on the move. In fact, with the radio on the sort of sensible volume my Gran would appreciate, there’s barely any road noise at all at urban speeds.
I still think the seats could offer more lateral support, but besides that, they are comfortable and the driver’s seat adjusts for height.
The pedals, gear shift and steering are all successfully engineered to be incredibly light and undemanding - it’s not a taxing drive at all. A decade or two ago, a car in this price bracket would have been a bit of a pig to drive. Not anymore.
If you’re looking for the kind of drive that gets your senses tingling, you’re not looking at an Almera anyway, and Nissan knows that.
New Nissan Almera Styling
I’m not mad about the styling, mostly because it looks like I designed it. And the height of my car design career was in the back of Maths in Standard 3. In this segment, I don’t think car makers can afford to ignore styling especially with the Koreans and French making some striking yet affordable cars at the moment.
That said, it’s not offensive and will appeal to a very wide audience. I could live with it, and my Gran loves it. Chalk that up to success then.
Engine and drive
The Almera will only be available with one engine, the 1.5 litre inline-4 petrol, which has been tried and tested in the Micra. It’s a decent little workhorse; it has enough power to make it feel useful when nipping through traffic, and cruising at motorway speeds is no problem.
It doesn’t like revving near the red line, but most of these small displacement engines don’t. Again, if you’re a redline junky, you’re probably not looking at an Almera anyway. Below 4000rpm, the engine offers everything you need in a package like this.
Claimed consumption is fair, at 6.3 litres/100km. My test unit is averaging 7.2, but that has been exclusively short trips in town. With some highway driving, I’m sure that figure will drop. Claimed consumption for the auto box is higher at 7.2 litres/100km; bear that in mind when making up your mind about the transmission. If you sit in traffic, an auto does make life less stressful.
Safety features
Driver and passenger airbags are standard, as well as a suite of braking assist functions, ABS, EBD and BAS. The passenger cell features high-strength construction, ISOFIX anchor points are standard as well as an immobiliser.
Standard features on the New Nissan Almera
The Almera is available in 6 colours with full-colour coding (bumpers and wing mirrors).
Standard features include:
– 15-inch alloy wheels, – electric door mirrors, – Manual air conditioning with dedicated rear vents and independent fan speed – control, – a radio/CD/MP3 audio system with an aux input port, – steering wheel audio controls, – a height-adjustable driver’s seat, – tilt adjustment for the steering wheel, – remote central locking with speed-sensitive auto-locking doors and – a comprehensive trip computer with two trip meters, instant and average fuel economy readouts, tank range and service information.
Summary
Nissan has gone for a value package here and succeeded in offering something that South Africans certainly appreciate: space. It’s a car that is about the size of vehicles in the segment above, at a B-segment price. It’s not the most exciting car in the world but practicality and budget are not exciting concepts to begin with.
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Review compiled by https://www.cars.co.za/
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yaboi-julien · 2 years
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(Based on this post by @questbedhead)
Full image description below cut!
Image Description: A long form comic including three pages, all set in a dingy necromancy store and illustrated in a cartoony, fully-colored and shaded style.
In the first panel, a hooded figure sits behind a desk with his back to us.
In the second panel, we see part of his face which has a big sly smile on it as he looks over his shoulder. Behind him, a door opens with the ring of a small silver bell.
In the next panel he spins around in his chair and says: “Welcome to Blood-Bath and beyond, your home for necromantic wares! Anything I can help you find--”
Next: “...Today?” he finishes, seemingly dumbfounded. In the middle of the frame are three new people. Barry Bluejeans is in the middle, he is a white middle aged chubby man with brown and grey hair, stubble, and wearing a white shirt, brown coat and glasses. To the left is Taako, a dark skinned elf with straight choppy dark brown hair died lavender at the bottom, wearing a large purple wizards hat, a purple cape with gold stars, a frilled shirt and high-wasted pants. To the right is Lup, a dark skin elven woman with a face identical to Taako’s but with longer curly dark brown hair died red at the tips, and wearing a wine red wide-brimmed hat and wine red dress. The twins each are resting an arm on one of Barry’s shoulders, framing him.
In the next frame, Barry has a finger resting on his chin as he says “Uh... yes, I’m looking for a spell book with level 12 or higher spells.”
Next is a close-up of the shopkeeper’s eye, squinting forwards with a thought bubble that says: “Level 12?”
Next is the same close-up of the shopkeeper’s eye, only this time it is wide and looking up past Barry.
Next is a frame of just Taako and Lup, with Barry just slightly out of frame. Taako covers his hand as if to whisper something to Lup as they both look judgmentally in the direction of the shopkeeper. A speech bubble comes from offscreen as the shopkeeper says “Right away, sir.”
Starting the second page is a frame of the shopkeeper dropping a large book onto the table in front of him. The book looks to be stitched together from skin, with a large green eye-shaped jewel on the front cover and small fangs on the spine.
Next, Barry has picked up the book and is looking at it with a smile of curiosity as he says “Oh, neat!” The twins both peer over his shoulder as the shopkeeper looks at the three startled.
Next is a close up of Barry’s hand sliding a collection of very different looking coins across the table, including some golden hoops, a silver perforated coin with a dragon emblem, a pale blue coin, a canadian loonie, and a thin gold bar with line markings on it (it’s not a loss easter egg don’t worry about it)
The next panel is shot from over the shopkeeper’s shoulder. Barry excitedly shows an interested but calm Lup something in the book as Taako rolls a bunch of teeth around in one hand, bored. The shopkeeper thinks: “Who is this guy?!”
Next is a panel showing half of the shopkeeper’s face, the border of the panel cutting him off vertically as he stares forwards intently.
The next panel is exactly the same, except he has narrowed his eye, the pupil now glowing, as the words “true sight” are spelled above him
In the next panel, Barry is shot from the neck up, looking excitedly at something offscreen.
Next is the form of Barry’s red robe litch form, shot from the exact same position as the previous panel. He glows a faint red, the inside of his hood empty and black save for two glowing white eyes.
Starting the next page the shopkeeper recoils in surprise, his thought bubble reading: “A litch!” In the foreground, Barry and the twins are starting to leave, Taako dropping the coins Barry had paid for the book with into a small bag.
Next the shopkeeper lunges forwards with urgency, shouting “WAIT!”
Next, “Who are you?!” he shouts at the trio. Barry is looking over his shoulder at the shopkeeper, and Lup had put her arm over his shoulder.
Next is a very close shot of the bottom of Barry’s face, his mouth in a null position.
Next is the same close up shot of the bottom of Barry’s face, only this time he has a large sly smile on his face.
Next is a medium shot of Barry, he has a big gentle smile on his face, his eyes closed and one hand up in a polite wave as he says “Name’s Barry Bluejeans!”
In the final panel, the shopkeeper lays passed out over his desk, a small cartoon of a round ghost floating away from his body as the door in the back of the room closes. A small creature sits on his desk, eating the chocolate gelt which had been swapped out for the real coins.
End Image Description.
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elles-writing · 3 years
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Little Secret
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Request: Wonderful! Could please write an escenario in which y/n (half elf and half human) was part of the company cause Gandalf hired her. She and Kili fell for each other and secretly started courting. Once Erebor was reclaimed everything was going back to normal. Thorin asked her to stay for as long as she liked. When Fili & Kili's mom got there, she had lots of meetings with Thorin so y/n was not able to properly meet her. The day that they are actually introduced, Thorin announces Kili's and Fili's arranged marriages which took everyone by surprise. Y/n and Kili try to figure and fix things out in order to convince Thorin to put off the arrange marriage but it does not work. Therefore, y/n decides to leave Erebor and ends up leaving to Dale; befriending/ helping Bard and his kids.  During her time there she finds out that she was pregnant with Kili's child. However, she never notifies Kili nor goes to Erebor to announce it thinking that he had his duty as a prince and it would be harmful for him/ his arranged marriage. So, she makes the decision to raise the baby on her own. Time goes by and on a normal day (when she was 9 months pregnant) that she's walking around Dale  while feeling contractions she bumps into Kili. Thank you so much!❤️ Sorry for the long message 😅 - @just-a-dreamer23
A/N: I know, I know, this is soo long. But, I enjoyed writing this story!! I've been trying to overcome my lack of motivation to write, so maybe it isn't as good in some parts, as my other stories, but I wanted to keep it that way, so I hope you enjoy anyways.
Tags: @guardianofrivendell @just-a-dreamer23 @anjhope1 @lathalea
The afternoon was hot. The best thing to do, was to take a nap. At least, in your opinion.
Nothing would attack in this heat, you thought, as you rested under a tree. A while after, you noticed pointy hat and grey cloak of the same colour. You lazily waved.
"Gandalf, long time no see!" Gandalf smiled at you.
"Good afternoon, Y/N." You stood up and looked at him, waiting. Gandalf never came just...for no reason.
"How are you doing?" Gandalf asked, and you shrugged.
"I'm just wandering around, as usual. You know me. I never stay in one place for too long." You said. Gandalf knew that, obviously. Being a child of an elf and a human, you felt like you never belong anywhere.
Elves felt really tense and quiet, and humans were quite loud for you, because of your hearing. And you aged lot slower than them, so making friends was also quite...not it.
"I've been looking for you, to join an adventure," You curiously gave him a look.
"An adventure? What kind of adventure?"
"Well," he looked at you.
"You know about Erebor and the line of Durin, right?" You frowned at him, and quickly shook your head.
"Gandalf, I can't-I can't join the dwarves! They will hate me! Everyone knows they hate the elves, and I'm half elf!" You said.
"Well, who said they will know? You owe me help," he reminded you. You thought back to when he healed you after orcs attacked you, and you sighed. He was right. This was the least you could do.
"And, who knows. Maybe they will like you," he gave you a look, and you folded your hands on your chest, and let out a sigh.
"Alright then. Where and when am I supposed to be?" He gave you all the information you needed. And you started your way to the Shire, looking at the first evening stars, as the starlight is what the Elves of Mirkwood love so much.
You got to the Shire around late afternoon after three days of traveling, and smiled. The hobbits and their houses were tiny, so you couldn't help, but smile. Maybe it won't be that bad, having perhaps a hobbit friend, after all...
-
You remembered the moment when you first met Kili. You thought Gandalf was there at Bilbo's house, but when you opened the door...
"Are you Master Boggins?" You frowned at the brunette dwarf.
"Do I look like a hobbit to you?" He looked at the other dwarf, then back at you, but there was Bilbo already.
Later on the journey, he found you without your cape on. It was your turn for bathing, but him and Fili forgot some their things at the river.
You just put off your cloak, and put your hair down from your headband. You heard steps, so you quickly turned around.
"You are..." Fili started.
"...an elf?" Kili finished. You huffed.
"Half elf. My mother was...human." you whispered. Painful memories of your early life came up, and you blinked to stop the tears.
"Don't tell anyone, please..." you looked at them. Both Fili and Kili must've seen something in your expression, that made them realize the importance. They nodded. Kili was, however, curious. Lot more than before, and asking you about elves. You talked about it when Thorin was far enought to not hear what was your conversations about, but it wouldn't matter much. Gandalf told them you spent part of your life living with the elves, which was true.
In fact, Kili became fascinated by you. He liked you before, and had a feeling, which he wasn't sure about. Interest, curiousity, the need to protect you, adoration...
In the moment he saw you, he realized you were his One, his love for life. And when you got closer, he asked you to court him. You said yes. From then on, you shared many quiet and stolen kisses and moments together, in the shadows of forests or your bedrooms in pubs.
The moment everyone else (except for Bilbo and the Durin brothers) found out, was when you came into Mirkwood. Thranduil ordered his guards to take your cloak and headband off, and now, everyone could see your pointy ears.
There was a moment of silence.
"What made an elf, to travel with group of dwarves?" You gulped and looked down.
"I'm a-a half elf," you whispered.
"My father was from here." You explained, and the king shot you a glare. He was not stupid. He knew you tried to pull his attention away.
"Take them to the dungeons, except for Oakenshield," he said.
When you made yourself as comfortable as you could on the cold floor, you overheard the dwarves trying to find out who you actually were and what you wanted.
To your surprise, they didn't talk about you in a bad way. Just curiousity. Thankfully.
-
"Do you think she will like me?" You said to Kili. He was writing a letter to his and Fili's mother, Dis, the happy news - Erebor was reclaimed, and they all survived. It's been a week since, and Thorin decided it was the right thing to let his sister know as soon as possible. She was surely worried.
Kili turned to you.
"Like you? Like you? She is going to love you," Kili grinned at you, and you had to smile a little too.
"Yeah, but...you know, I'm not a dwarf," you said your worry aloud. It was true. Being a half-elf, you and Kili started courting in secret. Thorin was not really kind to you, at least the first half of the journey. However, the rest of the Company liked you lot more. Especially Kili. After a while of knowing of what did you feel, you decided to tell him. To your surprise, but happiness, Kili shared those feelings. And since then, you had a tiny braid, hidden in your hair, and Kili as well.
And stole many, many secret kisses.
"I don't think mum is going to have issue with this," Kili stood up, and gently placed your hair behind your ear.
"You're my One, and you make me incredibly happy. I'm sure she won't have problem with you being half elf," You cupped his cheek, and softly smiled, as you looked deep in his kind brown eyes.
"I love you too, my short Prince," He stood on his toes and kissed you, getting a giggle from you. He pouted, when he heard you called him short, but you knew he didn't mind it.
You kissed him, and felt his smile on your lips. You were leaning down, when suddenly you lost balance, and both you and Kili ended up lying on the floor. Kili and you let out a yelp, but then broke into giggles.
"I love you," Kili said, when you finally stopped laughing. You cuddled into his chest and breathed in his scent. Kili smelled like smoke, food and fresh air.
"I love you too," Kili gently stroke your hair, and you got up.
"Where are you going?"
"You have to finish the letter, and I promised Tilda I will take a walk with her before the dinner." You helped Kili to get up.
"Alright my beloved, have a good time," he gently kissed you, and sat back to his desk. You smiled, and ruffled his hair.
"You too, my dearest." You smiled, and left the room.
-
It's been a few months, and you were finally, finally going to meet Kili and Fili's mother, Dis. She has been there for around two weeks by now, but, you haven't got the chance to meet her and be introduced to her yet.
You were officially going to meet her during upcoming celebration. Needless to say, you were freaking out.
Your stomach was tight from anxiety for a few days already, and that afternoon, it felt absolutely horrible. You haven't eaten whole day, just because all you thought about was the evening.
You spent around an hour of putting on and off different dresses from your wardrobe, trying to figure out which one to wear.
"Y/N?" Kili knocked on the door of your chambers.
"C'me in," you said. He came in, and his eyes widened, when he seen you sitting in front of the mirror, your eyes red and the mess everywhere.
"What am I supposed to wear? I have nothing to wear!" You started crying. All the stress and anxiety in past three months got the best of you. Random moments of crying, because of tiny things, were happening on daily basis.
"Dear, what is happening?" He pulled your hair back behind your ears.
"I-I just want-want your mum to like me," you muttered.
"And...it stresses me out." Kili nodded, and shortly hugged you.
"She is going to love you no matter which dress you wear, I promise." He whispered to your ear.
"Now, I think..." Kili looked around.
"I think the...the dark green dress will be perfect."
When you changed into the dress Kili picked you, Kili brushed and styled your hair. He pulled the top section into a clip, and you pulled a few strands, to frame your face. You smiled at yourself in the mirror.
"You ready?" Kili asked. You just silently nodded.
As you walked down the hall, Kili was trying to figure out where his uncle, brother and mother went to. He couldn't see them anywhere, and he was sure he was once in a while not late.
When you entered the huge throne room, you could see Fili, and let out a breath of relief.
"Fili, have you seen-"
"Kili, there you are," A woman came from behind Fili, and looked over her younger son.
"Have you brushed your hair?" Kili huffed.
"Of course I did." He said quietly, so nobody could hear him. He was visibly embarrassed, and you let out laugh. She suddenly turned to you. Her deep blue eyes reminded you Thorin, but they had the same twinkle as Kili and, occasionally, Fili.
"I don't remember I seen you here before," she said.
"Well, I usually spend my time outside of Erebor, so I think that might be it," You nervously smiled. She hummed.
"I-I'm not a part of the royal family," you said, and almost groaned. Now that was embarrassing for sure.
"Y/N, this is my and Kili's mum, Dis. Mum, this is Y/N," Fili said, and you felt your cheeks heat up.
"I-um-" You tried to say something, but she pulled you in short hug.
"Nice to meet you, Y/N," she gave you a smile, and then went back between the guests with Fili.
You let out a breath.
"That was embarrassing," you groaned. Kili chuckled.
"No, not at all. She likes you." It suddenly felt like it was much easier to breathe.
"She-she does?" Your eyes widened, and Kili nodded.
"Of course! And you can bet she will steal you to me during the evening,"
"How do you know that?" You turned to him with surprise written all over your face.
"She is my mother. I know her for a long time." He just said.
"She seems to be...different from Thorin," you said, hoping it wouldn't come out as offensive. Kili chuckled.
"Mum and Uncle really aren't that different. Uncle just focuses more on the kingdom and mum, on family," Kili said in low voice, so that only you could hear it.
When you sat down to the table, where the royal family and the Company was, you looked around. You and Kili did secretly hold hands under the table, and you talked to Dis, who was sitting across the table.
"Good evening, everyone," Thorin said, and the people got more quiet.
"It's my pleasure to meet all of you here today. I have some things to say, before the celebration starts." Thorin paused, and Kili leaned near you with a grin.
"It's just a few formalities, don't worry, love." You smiled at him back with tight smile. You felt something was not right. Thorin talked about the kingdom a little at first. The next news was, however, what you were afraid of.
"I'm very happy to say, my nephew Fili is going to marry-" you let out a breath. Kili turned to you with worry.
"Do you feel okay?" He asked, when suddenly...
"And my nephew Kili, who also has already arranged marriage, with-"
Kili stared at Thorin, and you as well.
"Kili-Kili, please-" you tried to stop Kili from going to Thorin. Kili was visibly angry, his jaw was tight, and body tense.
"Kili? What is happening?" Thorin came and let through his teeth. You suddenly felt everyone's eyes on you.
"I need some fresh air," you whispered and walked away, as quickly as you could. When you left, you came in your chambers, kneeled to your bed, and started crying.
You knew it. You should've known before.
Thorin would do this. Even when Fili and Kili were children, he would make sure they had wives already. They were princes. They needed to have a wife.
And Thorin...Thorin would never allow Kili to court you or marry you.
The next day, Kili came into your room. He had dark circles under his eyes, and gave you weak smile.
"I promise we will work this out," he muttered, and pulled you close to his chest.
Kili was asleep - and you let him - but, you thought about your situation, and tried to come up with possible solutions.
However, it was as if there weren't any.
It's been a few days, and you cuddled into your blanket. You fell asleep, and when you woke up, you looked around the room.
This place isn't for me anymore, you thought, and started packing your clothes into your bag. You changed into tunic and trousers, and wrote a letter to Kili, that you were sorry, but it was probably better to have a wife his Uncle would like, that you were leaving and never coming back, so he shouldn't be looking for you.
You quietly left the palace, and walked out in the morning. The air was fresh and nice, and for a moment, you forgot your sadness.
You walked to Dale, and decided to meet Bard. You had nowhere to go, and maybe staying there would be good, before you'd go...somewhere else.
The guards let you in, and as you thought of going to Rivendell, you noticed Bard.
"Bard?" He turned to you, and nodded at you.
"Hi Y/N. What brings you here?" You sighed.
"I'm leaving Erebor, Bard...but the problem is, I need to think about of where-" you suddenly felt dizzy, and Bard catched you. He called for a healer, that's what your hazy mind could catch.
You basically woke up, in a room. On a bed. Comfortable bed.
"Lie still, lady Y/N," the healer said. You frowned a little, when she placed her ear to your stomach.
"I can hear the heartbeat clearly. The baby is most likely around three months old," she said.
"What baby?" You asked, confused. You looked from the healer to Bard and Bard to healer. She took your hands in hers.
"You don't know, my lady? You are pregnant. I can clearly hear the heartbeat of your child," she softly smiled at you. You shook your head, and felt a few tears escaping your eyes.
"I'm...I'm with child," you whispered. You could not believe it. So perhaps, it wasn't just stress...
"Who is the father?" The healer asked, when she helped you to sit up. You nervously looked in your lap.
"Kili. Prince...Kili. Kili Durin." You said, and Bard and the healer shared a look.
"He...he doesn't know. Can we keep it a secret? Please?" You looked at them.
They said yes. Bard was like a father to you, and let you stay. He showed you chambers, that would be your home for next few months at least.
You never went back to Erebor. You thought Kili had to marry the princess, so you just tried to think of the baby you were carrying.
It wasn't that hard, honestly. The baby was often restless, though.
As if it missed Kili as much as you did...
Even if the baby would have to grow up without it's biological dad, you were sure you'd be able to take care of them well.
Some days, you were happy, and didn't think of Kili too much. It pained you, yes, and you knew you had to be strong for the baby, so you often asked someone to teach you something, such as how to prepare different meals, how to knit or how to play piano, to name a few.
Other days, you felt sad. It could be because of the weather, or hormones, some days you just woke up sad, and sometimes it was when something reminded you of Kili. Those days, the baby was the most restless, and the maids told you it was because the baby missed it's father.
You sat down to the armchair next to the window in your bedroom, and looked out on the street. Nobody could see you from here, so it made you feel safe. You looked up and seen Erebor.
"There's your daddy, over there," you whispered to the baby.
The answer you got, was soft kick.
-
"Does it hurt?" Sigrid asked you, looking at your belly. You smiled at her.
"No, it doesn't." You stroke your stomach. You've been pregnant for past almost nine months. Bard was so kind and let you stay, and even offered you bigger chambers, which you gladly agreeded to. The chambers were perfect size, and the baby could have their own small room, overtime.
You let out shaky breath. You wanted Kili to know about all of this. To be there with you, talk to you and to the baby.
But, it was not possible. It would hurt his reputation, and perhaps even his marriage.
You dried your tears, and carefully stood up. Even as pregnant, you were able to stand up yourself, luckily quite easily. You felt very thankful for some of your genes being from the elves, because, as Bard explained to you, humans had it harder.
When you slowly got yourself out of the castle, you breathed in. The air smelled nicely - you smelled fresh bread, old leaves, fresh air from the lake. Mix of summer and autumn. You felt it was one of the last few warm days, before the typical autumn comes.
You looked around, and your cravings were begging you for some freshly baked, soft warm bread with fresh butter, melting on top of it. You thought of the crispiness of the bread's crust, and your mouth started watering. You groaned, when you felt how your stomach let you know some snack would come handy.
You slid your hand to your pocket, and made sure you have enough money.
You started walking, to find some bakery, and as you looked around, you noticed one on the other end of the street.
You let out a breath, and started walking towards the small store.
You were almost there, when you overheard a gasps, escaping a few young girls. You slowed down and listened to their conversation.
"Did you see him?"
"Yes, I did. Do you think it really is the Prince?"
"Of course he is! I mean, look at him. I'd recognize the hair clip everywhere." You frowned a little, when you suddenly realized it. You stopped walking, and felt hot wave running down your back, and liquid running down your leg.
You carefully looked down. It was clear.
You turned around, and - damn it! - your eyes locked with Kili's in the exact moment.
He started walking towards you. You clearly recognized happiness in his eyes, and relief.
"Y/N, where have you been those past months? I was worried about you," He said, and when he was near you, you recognized even the wet shine in his chocolate eyes. You felt sudden rush of guilt.
He must have notice the guilt on your face. Kili frowned a little, when he took a notice of your belly, under the dress.
"I-you..." You noticed it. He was holding back tears. You shook your head, as you tried to hold your own.
"Kili, it isn't like this...please trust me!" You felt another wave of heat running down your back, and stepped forward, but sudden dizzines made you take wrong step. Kili quickly catched you.
"Kili, I-this is, uh..."
"You moved on," he said. You shook your head.
"No, it's...you are the father," you said, but didn't notice what was his reaction, because suddenly, you realized what was going on, as you were holding your belly.
"I need to get back, and find a healer and midwife," you let out through your gritted teeth.
"We will get there quickly," Kili let out, and you had a feeling.
"Don't you dare to faint!" You let out.
Kili helped you to get back. You noticed Sigrid, and told her to quickly find healer. She didn't ask anything, and quickly runned away. You let out a groan and gripped Kili's arm.
"Lady Y/N, we need to get you to the room prepared for labour," the healer said, and checked on your belly.
When you got there, and changed into simple gown, you laid down as the healer told you.
Kili stayed there, and you were gripping his arm and hand.
"I'm not fucking letting you to sleep with me ever again," you said through gritted teeth. Kili took a shaky breath, and you shot him a glare.
"Don't you dare to faint, Kili Durin! You did put this baby inside me nine months ago, so now-"
"This is just the pain speaking from Lady Y/N, Prince Kili. Don't take it personally," Kili gulped and nodded.
"You're doing great, love," he said carefully. You let out a huff.
"I didn't finish! Now you will deal with me breaking your arm, because it hurts!" You almost yelled at him.
"I can see the head, my Lady!" The healer smiled.
"With this next contraction, you will push as much as you can!" The healer said.
"Okay, one, two, three-push!"
"You're doing great, dear. The baby is almost there," Kili tried to cheer you up.
"You have no idea how painful it is!" You screamed.
"My lady, this is going to be your last push, are you ready?" The healer looked up at you, and you nodded.
"One, two, three, push!" The healer let out. You gripped Kili's hand, and suddenly...
You heard a baby scream.
"It's a girl!" The healer said happily. You smiled, and let out some happy tears.
"You-you did it!" Kili said, and you wiped off your eyes.
"No, we did it," you muttered, and he kissed your cheek.
"How do you feel, Y/N?"
"I'm okay," you smiled. The midwife checked on you, and handed you your baby.
"Everything seems to be in order," she said and smiled. You smiled at her back. She was there for you for all those months, and you got close.
"Thank you so much," She nodded.
"I'll leave you alone," she said, and left.
You stroke the baby's cheek.
"How are we going to name her?" Kili whispered, and stroke the baby's chubby cheek. You shrugged.
"Well...I'm not sure. I was thinking of Arina," you said.
"It's...it's beautiful name," Kili said, and you realized he was crying.
"Kili...I'm so sorry for...for hiding it from you," you whispered. Kili shook his head.
"Love...it isn't your fault. Can I...can I hug you?" You nodded, and he slid his arm around your shoulders.
"If anything, it's my fault." He muttered.
"I should've known where did you go, and-"
"Shh," you said.
"We can talk about that later. Arina's asleep now."
You were quietly watching the baby. The midwife came back soon, to check on you and the baby, and when she left, Kili spoken up.
"We talked Uncle the marriges out." You nodded.
"You left Erebor by then already. I was looking everywhere for you, only if I knew-" you subtly interrupted him.
"I didn't know either. I wanted to go to Rivendell, but...then, I found out. It would be risky, so Bard let me stay here," You shrugged.
"Do you still want to leave, though?" Kili looked at you with sad eyes, when he looked away from your daughter. You shook your head.
"No." Kili grinned, and gently brushed his hand over your cheek.
"Just for your information...mum was going nuts when she found out about the arranged marriges. She likes you a lot." You smiled, and took Kili's hand in yours.
"Well...let's hope she likes her too," You looked at Arina's sleeping face.
You came back the next day. Kili had to go to Erebor that evening, but in the morning, he came back.
When you entered, you overheard a strong female voice. You quickly realized who was the woman.
"I don't care my brother has a meeting. Go tell him he has to come here. It's a family emergency," she said, and turned to you and Kili.
"Y/N, where have you-oh, who is this?" Dis turned to you, and noticed the baby. You shared a look with Kili.
"This is your granddaughter," You said carefully. Dis looked between you and Kili, and it seemed like most things clicked to her. She smiled.
"Well..."
"Dis, what does that means?" Thorin's voice came from different hall, and you noticed Fili giving you a knowing smile.
"Thorin..." you said, and he turned to you. He seemed to be confused, but then he looked at Arina.
"What does this-"
"Uncle, let's get some privacy first," Fili said.
When you came to library, Thorin turned to you. Dis stood up, as if she would want to protect you.
"Uncle...Y/N and I started courting on the quest in secret. We planned to get married, but when you announced the arranged marriges for me and Fili, we-"
"I left Erebor, because I thought you would never accept me as partner for your nephew, Thorin. I found out I was pregnant, however, I didn't want to hurt Kili's reputation or his marrige, so I never came back to announce it. He met me in Dale yesterday, and I, um...I went to labour." Thorin has been looking at you and Kili. Your body was tense, and Fili, Kili and Dis were ready to protect you any moment.
Thorin slowly closed this eyes, and placed his face into his palms. When he looked up again, he let out a sigh.
"Fili, Kili, sister, leave us alone."
"But Uncle-" Fili said, but Thorin shook his head.
"I said, leave us alone. It won't be long." They three left, and you were a bit afraid.
"Kili is a prince, yes. But, he is also a dwarf, who needs to have someone who he is happy with." Thorin said, looking away from you.
"I noticed, of course. You make him happy, Y/N. I thought it was just childish love, that you would leave, and it would break Kili's heart. I owe you honest apology, Y/N. For thinking you wouldn't take his love seriously." He looked at you, and you let out a small smile. You nodded.
"Apology accepted, Thorin. Courting Kili makes me incredibly happy, and I am honored to say he is my lover," you said, and Thorin looked at you.
"Well, and when it comes to, um...you staying, you can stay here. If you would like to."
"I'd be very thankful."
A few years later
"Fi, look!" Kili said, as Arina walked towards Kili, again. She was giggling, as her father was dancing with her. You laughed.
"Kili, be careful!"
"Daddy, look!" The little girl pointed to a butterfly, who sat on her dress.
"Yeah, it's beautiful," Kili said, and she pouted.
"Don't move, or it will fly away!" Arina let out, and let the butterfly gently walk on her palm.
"Uncle, look, I got a butterfly!" Arina showed it to Fili, who nodded with nervous face.
"Oh, it's beautiful, Ari. Would you put it, um, a bit away from me, please?" She put the butterfly on a flower, and Fili let out a breath.
"I'm sleepy, mommy." She came to you, and lean her head on your shoulder.
"Ari?" A little boy came, and the girl jumped up with grin.
"Vili!" She squealed, and started tickling her cousin.
"Granny!" Arina gasped, when she noticed Dis.
"You are growing up so fast, Ari!" She said proudly, and you two shared a look.
"Aye, that's what she does," Kili let out a chuckle, and gently kissed your cheek.
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esperanzagalaxy · 2 years
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 surprise! i drew @evieebun125 ′s hamid together with mine!! frankly because i decided we deserved it, and because whenever they post new art i go Hogwild about their GENIUS outfit design skills. look at these two. they’d be unbeareable together, but at least they would have a blast. i think. 
 anyway, i had been genuinely itching to draw eviee’s hamid because i was dying to try and follow in her design and style, and seeing both designs side by side is the coolest shit. reminds me why i love art and why i love podcast fanart specifically. hope you like our distinguished little rascals! i think these came out really nice ♥
 and again, eviee, thank you so much for all the love you put into the rqg space ♥♥♥
 IDs under the cut!
[ID: two digital illustrations featuring hamid from rqg as designed by evie and galaxy. the first illustration is made with clean black lineart and bright, clean coloring. it shows both hamids in full body, strolling arm in arm, chatting and smiling. both have brown skin and brown hair, pointy ears, clawed hands, elegant clothes, scales, makeup, long purple capes and each has a single dragon wing out. eviee's hamid, who's on the left side, has his face turned to the other hamid and is smiling widely, with his left arm around his and bringing his right hand to his chest. he's slender and is walking in a dainty manner. he's got green eyeshadow and green lipstick, short and smooth hair slicked back with a few strands poking out, and multiple yellow and orange colored scales dotted around his face. he's wearing a cream colored button-up with two ruffly trails along the button line, a single dark green armband around each bicep, and dark green cuff sleeves with swirling yellow patterns. on his collar is tied a matching green ribbon with an ornate purple jewel at the center. on his shoulders is a high-collared purple robe, with a golden chain keeping it in place and two short layers, the longer side falling behing him. it has a pattern of concentric circles and lines, almost like constellations. the rest of his suit is a dark green half-corset half-waistcoat tight around his middle, with golden borders and two trails of diamond-shaped buttons; its front is cut like a W and on the back it has two longer tails that reach just above his knees. the matching green trousers have a yellow line of swirling and flowery patterns on the sides. his shoes are brown and high-heeled, with golden accents. there are more scales visible on his neck, hands and ankles. his wing is a mustard yellow with smooth dark orange membranes and claw-like spikes at the ends. galaxy's hamid, on the right, is stepping casually forward with a smug-looking smile, right arm around his double as he looks back at him, and has his left hand on his pocket. he's dressed in a black suit, with a green vest that has a shining pattern on scales all over it, and black shoes with white spats. his sleeves of many garments are a shiny mauve color and have yellow diamond-shaped cufflinks. he's fatter, with full cheeks and slightly shorter legs. his skin is dark brown, his hair darker, curly and slicked back. there are two short curls loose on either side of his forehead. his eyeshadow and lipstick are gold, and has less scales on his face but they've got more volume to them. he has dark freckles, short sideburns and stubble on his chin. his mauve button-up is has a red cravat tied around the collar, with a green gem keeping it in place. his cape is a reddish-purple, with spiky and curling gold patterns around the edges, the long fall fluttering at the end behind him. the upper section reaches down to his chest and has a vertical parting towards the shoulders, leaving a second layer visible. it is held together by two slim golden chains below his collar. his wind is slimmer and dark-orange, with shining scales on the yellow membranes. the second image, which is a little more sketchy and drawn and colored with a rougher texture, shows the same hamids making a heart with their hands. galaxy's hamid is to the left and eviee's to the right, cheek to cheek and smiling. this time, galaxy's has a more wide-eyed, joyful smile, and eviee's sports a lopsided grin and a wink. his chain and dangling pink heart earrings are visible now. their hands are joined at the middle, just below their smiles. the hand to the left has gold-painted claws and the one in the right has them painted green. there is a purple heart drawn there between their hands, and the background is a blurry pattern of yellow and orange scales. end ID]
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karls-writing-space · 3 years
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Yo! If it's not too much trouble, can I have Coffee and/or roseship tea from that lil' tea thingie you had reposted a bit ago with C!Tommy and C!Technoblade? They're my favorites and kinda comfort characters so I'd love to see you write for em 👉👈 [-DreamerAnon 👀]
Ayyyy! Hey, DreamerAnon!
Ofc you can have C!Tommy and C!Techno for that tea thing! (We share two comfort characters!)
Coming right up, mate!
— ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆—
Tea Asks -
Coffee and Rosehip Tea for C!Tommy and C!Technoblade
— ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆ — ☆—
Tommy
Coffee - Do they get jealous easily? How do they show it?
Tommy does tend to get jealous quite easily, to be honest.
He tries not to let it show, though. Big Man over here doesn't want others - especially his S/O - to know that he gets jealous.
Honestly, he masks his jealousy pretty well. Tommy over here is pretty good at acting like he's not jealous in front of others.
He wouldn't really get jealous if you hung out with his friends every now and then. He trusts them, and he trusts you. So, it's kind of a win-win situation.
If you were hanging out with his friends more than him, or if you're hanging out with people he doesn't like, Tommy begins to get jealous.
He tries his best not to let others around him see him get jealous, but sometimes he can't help it.
When he has enough, he walks over to where his partner is and wraps an arm around their shoulders or torso. He would press a few kisses onto their face. He does show his partner random acts of affection in both public and private, so it wouldn't be all that noticeable if he was jealous.
The time his S/O would find out Tommy was jealous was when he tells them, which would be in the privacy of their homes,
Cue his S/O teasing Tommy and him getting all flustered and telling them to shut up [with no ill intent].
Rosehip Tea - How romantic are they? How do they show affection?
I view C!Tommy as a bit of a romantic guy. He definitely has had thoughts of meeting someone, going on dates, and the two showing affection toward one another.
He would be a physically affectionate person. He loves holding his S/O's hand out in public. He can be seen with an arm around his S/O's shoulders when he's sitting with them and their group of friends.
Tommy can be a little clingy when it comes to his lover, and he really hopes that they don't mind that.
Early-Morning cuddles are very much a thing. Tommy will tangle his arms and legs with his S/O's when they cuddle. Sleepy "Good morning, love"s and "I love you"s also occur during this time.
He and his S/O aren't going to be getting out of bed for a while.
That is unless they needed to get up for something.
If he's out somewhere in the morning, he writes little notes telling his S/O where he's at and then tells them that he loves them.
He likes playing/messing around with his significant other. Expect him to playfully roughhouse with his S/O at random times. He will be careful not to hurt them, and if he does, he will apologize.
Tommy tries all sorts of pick-up lines on his S/O. They're either rather cheesy, or really sweet.
"___, do you have a map?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Because I just got lost in your eyes."
He loves to go on little adventures with his S/O. The two of you could be searching around caves and cliffs for a while, and then end the day sitting on a mountain stargazing and enjoying each other's company.
This guy tries to have candlelit dinners with his S/O whenever he can, but it either ends up with him almost burning the food or he forgets about the dinner date he had in mind.
When a dinner date does go as planned and doesn't get messed up, he plays Melohi in the background.
"It's for romance." He says as he leads his S/O to his dining room to eat.
He knows how to make basic meals - like Steak with vegetables at the side. He isn't a master-chef, but hey, at least he knows how to cook.
These dinner dates include him and his S/O joking around, complimenting one another, and of course, telling each other how much they love the other. He has this soft little loving smile on his face.
"I love you to the moon and back, ___. You're the best thing that's happened to me. Y'know that?"
"You... You complete me."
Hearing his S/O say that he loves him back, or compliments him makes Tommy smile grow as he blushes.
He loves having these moments with his S/O. It reminds him that he has someone who will love him unconditionally.
Technoblade
Coffee - Do they get jealous easily? How do they show it?
Like Tommy, it entirely depends on who his S/O hanging around.
If they're hanging out with Philza or Ranboo, he wouldn't feel jealous at all. He's quite happy that they're having fun with his friends. He'd also be quite relieved that they weren't hanging around people he thinks could hurt them, or that are his enemies.
On the other hand, if his lover is hanging around with other people that isn't Ranboo or Philza, he does get quite jealous.
When he's jealous, Techno won't say anything and will be a little annoyed. As time goes on, and they continue to hang around those other people, he will become more clingy and will want them to be around him more.
Technoblade will make up excuses to pull his lover away from those other people, and have them hang out with him for the remainder of the day. (with possible company from Phil and Ranboo.)
Would he admit that he was jealous?
Haha... no.
No, this will go to the grave with him.
Or, at least until his S/O figures out he was jealous and call him out for it. If they do point out he was jealous, he would deny it the first few times before giving in and admitting that he was indeed jealous. Piglin man would be blushing quite a bit as he admits it.
Rosehip Tea - How romantic are they? How do they show affection?
THE BLADEEEE
Techno isn't the most romantic person, to be honest.
He never really got time to settle down or really think about having a S/O.
That was until he met his S/O.
Then he tried to think of more romantic things to do with them that wasn't sparring.
He likes to cuddle his S/O while they read, or when he reads to them. The feeling of them in his arms is comforting to him.
He would read them stories about Greek mythology, or maybe would even read them The Art Of War. Probably would even leave his own comments on certain parts of the books he reads to his S/O - opinions, facts - anything he feels like adding.
Techno isn't very fond of PDA. He doesn't want his enemies to see him act as "weak", or to be an open spot for them to attack him or his S/O. He prefers to show affection in the privacy and safety of his or his lover's homes.
Very careful when cuddling his S/O. He doesn't want to accidentally crush them in his arms. His hugs are rather loose, but he still holds his lover close to his body.
His S/O is probably going to have to try and tell him that it's alright to give them tighter hugs.
Once he gets more comfortable with hugging his S/O, Technoblade will love having his lover in his arms. he thinks that they fit perfectly in them.
That and this guy is touch-starved as hell.
If he and his S/O share a bed, he would hold them while they sleep. He's really warm, and it feels nice to sleep close to him at night. He also holds them at night to convince himself that they're safe in his arms.
Hey, S/O! PLEASE play with his hair. Run your hands through it, ruffle it, style it - anything!
Techno will turn into a pile of mush because of this and will lean into his partner's touch. He loves the feeling of their fingers in his hair. It's very calming to him.
He won't take out the hairstyle they put in his hair until the end of the day. He loves any and all styles his S/O makes and will wear them with pride.
He tells his lover that he loves them as much as he can, and will complement and/or praise them when they do something that impresses him, or what he loves about them.
"Your smile is precious. Please smile some more."
"You brought home that many potatoes? That's... wow. I'm proud of you, ___"
"I love you, ___. I.... I can't believe that you're mine."
He will let his S/O wear his cape and crown! He thinks that they look great in his clothes, in general.
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nastybuckybarnes · 3 years
Text
Of Kings and Beasts  -  Ten
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Pairing: King!Bucky X Princess!Reader X King!Steve
Summary: Born a bastard of the King of Orlen, you’re thrust to the West to marry the Kings. However, the greeting you get is anything but warm, and your life with the King is far from enjoyable. He knows it isn’t your fault his husband is gone, but that fact alone won’t prevent him from taking it out on you.
Warnings: Angst, Injuries, Fluff, Language, Violence, 
Word Count: 2K
A/n: Okay y’all THANK YOU AGAIN SO MUCH FOR 10K FOLLOWERS IT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MCUH OMG Anyway ahem here is part 10 and I hope you enjoy! We’re gonna have a more intense part coming next but until then, enjoy!
THIS SERIES CONTAINS SMUT AND DARK THEMES THAT MAY BE TRIGGERING TO SOME AUDIENCES!!! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
Series Masterlist
“We make for Asgard.”
~*~
“You look lovely. The colours of Asgard suit you well,” Thor says, his eyes raking over your figure from behind.
Adorning your body is a soft linen gown, the colour of cream. It is cut low in the front, a style Thor assured you is common in his kingdom, and has many different folds and layers to it, making it flow with every step you take.
The fabric itself is lightweight, and the straps lie thinly on your shoulders. The waistline is decorated with gleaming golden gems and is cinched rather tightly.
Over your shoulders is a dark red cape, the same colour as Thor’s.
Your hair is tied up away from your face intricately and elegantly, and a dainty diamond necklace rests around your neck.
You turn to face him, a deep feeling of unease settling in your stomach.
“What is to happen now?” You wonder aloud, eyes fluttering past his face and around the chambers that he’s deemed to be yours for the time being.
“Now we wait. The kings should be here soon, and then we will inform them of the letter you received. I promise you’ll be safe here, Petal.” He cups your cheeks and you swallow hard, nervous about the change in his attitude towards you.
“Thor?” You ask softly, taking a half-step backward in an attempt at removing yourself from his grip.
He surges forward, one hand dropping from your face to wrap around your waist as his lips crash against yours in a fierce and dominating kiss.
Your heart races in your chest and you shove against his face, trying to force him away from you.
Helplessness fills you as you realize that you’ll never be able to overpower him, and dread settles in your gut as he pushes you back until you’re pressed against the wall.
Your muffled cries for help, for him to stop, fall on deaf ears as his lips continue their assault against yours, prying yours open to give his tongue access to your mouth.
Thinking quick, you grip his bottom lip and bite down as hard as you can, drawing blood and successfully making him pull away from you.
He jumps back, one hand coming up to his mouth while you scramble back and away from him, chest heaving and eyes full of betrayal.
His jaw clenches and he takes a step towards you, only to stop when the doors to your chambers burst open.
“(Y/n)!” A familiar voice calls, two men rushing into the room and searching for you.
The tension in the room is palpable and the two Kings pick up on it instantly, their guards raising as they see the way you’re cowering from the blond King before you.
“Are we interrupting something?” Steve asks, his voice ringing with authority.
“No,” you say quickly, regaining your composure and squaring your shoulders as the words of the Valkyrie ring in your ears.
“Thor was just taking his leave,” you say pointedly, staring the King down for a long moment until he nods, bows then spins on his heel and leaves without a word.
You take a deep breath, power and fear chasing each other through your veins while your heart races in your chest.
“(Y/n), are you alright?” Steve asks softly, taking a step towards you and reaching for your hand. You yank it back towards your body, levelling him with a glare.
“If my purpose was solely to bear children, then why are you here if I failed?” The blond glances over at his husband, unsure of how he should address this.
“It is obviously not a secret. I have been threatened even since my departure, and the truth has been brought to my attention. So I ask again, why are you here?” James takes a careful step towards you, and then another, and another until he is standing just directly in front of you.
You keep your shoulders squared and your head held high, refusing to back down.
“(Y/n), there are things we must tell you... things we have not been completely honest about... things that involve our union, and our actions towards you. Will you allow us time to be honest with you?” You swallow hard but nod, wanting nothing more than the truth after all this time in the dark.
James takes your hand delicately in both of his and ushers you to the bed, sitting down beside you while Steve sits on your other side.
The brunet speaks first.
“We were told... by our council that we needed to find a wife. When they heard of our plans to join the two kingdoms of the North and wed each other... they tried to find any way to stop it. But upon seeing our power they relented until they realized that our reign would end if we did not have a queen.
“They gave us a timeframe to find a queen. One that could give us heirs and continue the lineage of both of us. We were presented with many women but you... you stood out from the many faces we saw.”
You frown, brows drawn together tightly as you ponder this.
“My purpose... right from the beginning was nothing more than what you had told me. What you said was true. What I was told is nothing but the truth,” you whisper to James, fighting back the tears that prick at your eyes.
Steve shakes his head, leaning closer to engage in the conversation. “No. Your purpose was... is to be our wife. A queen to our people and the mother of our children. You are meant to rule alongside us, not be behind or beneath us. You are our equal, although we have not treated you as such.”
You sniffle, shaking your head as if trying to shake your feelings away.
“Why have you treated me the way that you have? Why? What have I done to deserve such hostility?”
The two exchange long glances before James sighs and takes your hand, leading it to the thin scar at the base of his skull.
“Someone has operated on me. Altered me in a way that makes me hostile towards you and Steven. We do not know who, but we know that they are close enough to be near me without raising suspicion. I will never be able to apologize enough for my actions. I have hurt you far more than I ever could have imagined myself capable of. But with the help of doctor Banner, we were hoping to have more clues as to who is responsible for this. However, he is still in quite an unstable condition.”
You swallow hard, this new information having you beyond overwhelmed.
“Who would conspire against you in such a way? Who would have such hatred in their heart for the two of you that they would take it out on me?” The two kings sigh, their hearts heavy and their eyes filled with sadness.
“We do not know. But one thing is certain: we will not rest until we figure out who it is and until they are brought to justice.”
~*~
The two Kings settle in the guest chambers for the night, having insisted that you get your own space and that you are welcome to join them if you feel so inclined.
Your mind is still in shambles, thoughts scattered and emotions all over the continent as you prepare for bed.
A knock on your door pulls you from your thoughts and you softly call for them to enter, your guard raising in an instant.
“How may I help you, Your Majesty?” You ask, jaw clenched tightly.
Thor takes a deep breath then lets it out, pacing slowly around your chambers.
“I stepped very far out of line, (Y/n). I let my emotions get the better of me and I was foolish. I apologize sincerely for my actions.” You watch him with furrowed brows, not sure if you should trust him.
“You have... entranced me. Bewitched me. Your husbands have not treated you fairly and, even in the short time that I've known you, I can tell that you are a woman deserving of the world. And if the world cannot be given to you then you deserve everything in it. And yet here you are, cowering from your own kingdom because they failed to protect you.” You want to interrupt. To tell him that he is not aware of the extent of the trauma that the Kings themselves have faced, but you hold your tongue instead.
“I can only hope that one day you will be able to forgive what has transpired today. For I value your company and your companionship and I would be devastated to lose it in any way. However, I will not blame you if you were to push me away. I was out of line and I allowed myself to be weak in a moment when I should have been strong. You needn’t give me an answer tonight, but I am offering my sincerest apologies. While you are here the Palace is yours. Anything you require will be brought to you promptly.”
He’s quiet for a moment before clearing his throat, his eyes on the ground.
“I bid thee goodnight, and I hope pleasant dreams find you tonight.” He turns to leave and you sigh, shaking your head.
“Thor, wait.” He does, turning back to look at you with those soft blue eyes of his.
“I appreciate and accept your apology. I do not look at you any differently because of what transpired, and I am grateful that you came to explain it. I appreciate your friendship and I am glad to have found solace in you, and it would be a shame to squander it over something so trivial.” He smiles, relief and happiness plain as day on his face.
“Good. Thank you for your understanding, (Y/n). Goodnight.” He leaves without another word and you put your head in your hands, beyond confused and frustrated with the feelings stirring inside of you.
You would be lying if you said that the Asgardian King wasn’t attractive. And he has been a friend in times when you’ve otherwise had none.
Shaking the intrusive thoughts out of your head, you exit your chambers and pad softly down the hall, stopping in front of the chambers that have been set aside for your husbands.
You knock twice, butterflies finding a home in your belly as you wait for one of them to allow you entrance.
The door gets pulled open and James stands in front of you, the formal look on his face dropping to give way to a soft smile.
“May I join the two of you tonight?” You ask quietly, looking between him and Steve. The blond looks on eagerly from his spot on the bed, nodding his head quickly.
“Of course, My love.” You bow your head in thanks and enter the room, oblivious to the eyes following your every move from a dark corner of the hallway.
The door shuts behind you but you continue to the bed, crawling on next to Steve while James extinguishes the lanterns lighting the room.
Steve makes room for you in the centre of the bed, pushing the blankets aside to allow you to get comfortable. James climbs on behind you, waiting until you’re settled to get comfortable himself.
Neither of the Kings touch you. No, they stay a respectable distance away.
“I am not so angry that I will not allow my husbands to embrace me,” you say softly, eyes closed as the events of the day catch up to you.
You’re then being held on either side by strong arms and right then and there, in that very moment, you feel the safest you have ever felt in your life.
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atlafan · 3 years
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a/n: hola!! So, I’m posting the first 7K here since this is just one long one-shot. I hope y’all will join patreon to continue reading the rest of the story. I worked really hard on this one, and for whatever reason I feel like this is some of my best writing. Enjoy!
Words in total: 38K
Warnings: 
TW - mentions of abortion/planned parenthood
Some angst, mostly just two people being idiots
Smut - slight daddy!kink, slight soft dom
Being the new kid in school is never easy. When you’re in elementary school, it’s exciting. Everyone wants to know you and be your friend, but in middle school…the kids judged you on day one. Orla Murphy and her family moved to Boston halfway through fifth grade. It would have been one thing if it was summer, she’d be able to slide in undetected. She could just pretend she was from a different elementary school and be done with it. But no, her father got offered a new job in the big city that he couldn’t turn down. Orla’s an only child, so it wasn’t even like she could mope and complain with a sibling. It was just her and her parents, and even though her mother was a bit more sympathetic to her daughter’s misery, it didn’t make Orla feel better. 
So, here she is, on her first day of school on February 1st standing in front of a classroom of kids she doesn’t know, being forced to introduce herself and where she’s from.
“Go on, Orla, tell us a little about yourself.” The teacher says with a warm smile.
“Um…I’m Orla Murphy, I just moved here from Vermont. I’m from a small town where the whole school is the size of this classroom.” She looks down at her snow boots before looking up at the teacher.
“Wow, this’ll be quite the adjustment. What do you like to do for fun?”
“I draw and listen to music. I play Barbies, um…that’s all I can think of right now.”
“That’s fine, thank you, Orla. You can have a seat now.”
Orla goes back to where she was sitting before she got called up to introduce herself to her home room. She slumps down into her seat and listens to the morning announcements. The bell rings and it’s off to math. The class goes across the hall to the other teacher.
By the time lunch rolls around, Orla isn’t feeling much better about her new school. She had brought lunch, and wasn’t sure who to sit with. Her class has two assigned tables, but she doesn’t want to take anyone’s usual seat. She contemplates going to eat in the bathroom until someone taps her on the shoulder.
“You can sit with me and my friends, if you want.”
She turns around to look at a boy with a mess of chocolate brown curls on his head, a pair of round glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, and braces gracing his smile.
“Oh, um, thanks.” Orla blushes and follows him to one of the tables.
“I’m one of the few people that brings lunch too, everyone should be over soon. I’m Harry by the way.”
“Hi.” She says shyly.
“What kind of a name is Orla?” He asks, biting into his apple after they sit down.
“It’s Irish…”
“Cool! Does it mean anything.”
“Golden princess, or something like that, I don’t really know. My dad’s Irish and I guess his grandmother’s name was Orla so they named me after her.”
“That’s really cool. My mom just liked the name Harry, and now that’s my name.” He shrugs. “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“No.” She says, and pulls her sandwich out of her lunchbox. “Do you?”
“Mhm, I’ve got three older brothers, I’m the youngest. My oldest brother is a senior in high school, isn’t that cool? He’s going to college next year.”
“Does he drive you places?”
“Yeah! And sometimes he lets me sit in the front seat without my mom knowing. He’s the best.”
Orla felt like she was finally starting to open up, but Harry’s friends joined their table and took over the conversation. They acknowledged her, but didn’t make any effort to pull her back into the conversation. Harry noticed this and didn’t like it. She excuses herself a few minutes before the bell rings to go use the bathroom. There’s a study block after lunch where all of the kids in class could get a jump on homework, or read.
“Okay, everyone!” Mrs. Sampson, the teacher, cheers. “We’ve got a very special treat today. It’s Harry’s birthday, and his mom sent him in with cupcakes for the whole class!” Harry stands up and smiles as Mrs. Sampson places a birthday crown on his head. “Harry, would you like to pick someone to help you pass out the cupcakes?”
“Sure.” He nods and looks around the room. Many kids raise their hands with excitement. He spots Orla looking out the window with her chin resting on her fist. “I pick…Orla!”
Her attention snaps over to Harry while everyone looks at her. She stands up and walks over to him and takes a tray of cupcakes to help pass them out. Once everyone has their cupcakes, and a carton of milk supplied by Mrs. Sampson, the kids are allowed to sit with their friends and chat. Soon, some of the girls start talking with Orla, and it helps her feel more welcome.
By the end of the day, all of the kids are dismissed to go to their lockers and grab their backpacks before getting into their bus lines or go wait for their parents to pick them up. Orla sees Harry at his locker and she works up the courage to go talk to him.
“Hey, um, why’d you pick me earlier?” She asks him.
“Huh? Oh…I don’t know, I didn’t like that my friends were ignoring you at lunch. So, I just thought if you passed out the cupcakes with me more people would talk to you.” He rubs the back of his neck and grabs a card out of his locker. “Listen, I’m having a birthday party this weekend at Roller World, you should come.” He hands her the invitation. “The whole class is coming, it’ll be fun.”
“I’ll, um, I’ll ask my parents…thanks, Harry.”
“Don’t mention it.” He smiles. “Are you taking the bus home?”
“Yeah.”
“What number?”
“Eleven.”
“That’s my bus! You weren’t on it this morning.” He closes his locker and they start making their way to the auditorium where the bus lines are.
“Yeah, my mom wanted to drop me off this morning to walk me into the office so I could get my schedule and stuff.”
“Cool, where do you live?”
“I’m the second to last house on the left of Langston Ave…number twenty-four.”
“You can’t be serious. That’s literally right across the street from where I live! I was wondering who moved into that house. I’m number twenty-seven.”
“Whoa, that’s freaky.” Orla blinks.
“Well, at least you know you have a friend close by. We can wait at the bus stop in the mornings together if you want.” The two go into their line and wait as the teacher on duty keeps them at bay. “Do you wanna sit together?”
“That’s okay, I’m sure you have other friends you usually sit with.”
“Yeah, but none of them are new and exciting.” He scoffs. “Unless…uh, if you don’t wanna sit with me that’s totally fine.”
“No, I do! I just didn’t want you to think you had to offer.” She blushes.
“You’re funny, you know that?” He gives her shoulder a nudge with his hand, and the teacher lets the kids know they can go to their bus.
Orla follows Harry outside and onto bus eleven. He grabs a seat in the middle of the bus and sits down. Orla sits down next to him and smiles. The two talk the whole way home. Harry listens as Orla explains what her dad does for work and why they had to move.
“You’re gonna like living closer to the city, I think. It’s really fun to ride the trains and stuff.” Harry tells her.
They get to their stop and make their way off the bus. Orla’s mom is waiting outside on their front steps for her with a smile on her face.
“Um, thanks for being so nice to me today.” Orla says to Harry.
“You don’t have to thank me. Don’t forget to ask your parents about coming to my party on Saturday, okay?”
“Okay, bye.”
“See you tomorrow.” Harry smiles before crossing the street to his house.
“There she is! How was your day? Was that a new friend?” Orla’s mom gives her a big hug and kiss.
“Mum, stop!” She pushes her mother off of her and they both go into the house. “I got invited to a party on Saturday, can I go?” She hands her mother the invitation Harry had given her.
“Sure! I think I can make this work. I knew you’d make friends right away.”
“I didn’t make friends, I just made one. His name is Harry.” Orla sits down at the kitchen island while her mom makes up an after school snack for her.
“One is still good, Honey. I know this move hasn’t been easy for you, but I’m so proud of you for making it through your first day.” Mrs. Murphy sets down some peanut butter covered celery sticks in front of Orla. “Were your teachers nice?”
“Mhm, Mrs. Simmons is my homeroom teacher, and she’s my English and Social Studies teacher. Mrs. Rayburn is my math and science teacher from across the hall. We had a study block after lunch and we had cupcakes cause it’s Harry’s birthday. Tomorrow we have art after lunch.”
“That’ll be fun.” Mrs. Murphy smiles. “Wait until Dad gets home, he’ll be so happy to hear how your first day went.”
//
On Saturday, Orla takes a deep breath as she walks into the roller rink. Her mother is right behind her making sure she gets in safely. Orla grips the gift bag with Harry’s present in it as they walk further in.
“There they are.” Orla says to her mom, and they make their way over to the other kids and their parents.
“Orla, you made it!” Harry beams and gives her a high five. “Put that down, we can go get your skates.” He tugs her along to the counter while Mrs. Murphy says hello to Mr. and Mrs. Styles.
“Hi, Monique Murphy, I’m Orla’s mum.” She shakes both of their hands.
“You just moved in across the street, right?” Mrs. Styles says. “We’ve been meaning to come over to introduce ourselves.”
“No worries, I’m sure you’ve been busy putting all of this together. Your son has been so sweet to Orla these past few days.”
“We’ve always taught him to treat others with kindness. Um, is your husband at home, or is it just you two in that darling cape house?” Mrs. Styles asks.
“Oh, Shawn’s doing some unpacking for me. I work from home, and I needed him to put my desk back together and all that.”
While Mrs. Murphy gets acquainted with the other adults, Harry helps Orla lace up her skates. Many of the other kids say hello to her, but mostly keep to their established friend groups.
“Have you ever roller skated before?” Harry asks her as he helps her stand up.
“No.” She wobbles and latches onto his shoulders. “Maybe I should just sit this out. I don’t wanna slow anyone down.”
Harry rolls his eyes and takes Orla’s hand to help her get to the rink entrance.
“Come on, Harry! We’re gonna race!” One of the boys says.
“In a minute, I’m hanging with Orla right now.” He looks back at Orla as they both get onto the rink. “Okay, so you’re gonna glide right and left.” He spins around to take her hands, and starts slowly skating backwards. Orla looks at him with wide eyes. “I play ice hockey.”
“Oh, cool.” She swallows, and grips his hands as she follows his movements.
“There you go, you’re doing it!” Harry cheers her on. The DJ announces that cosmic skating is about to begin, and the rink goes pitch black. Neon lights turn on around the rink and everyone starts cheering. “Think you’ve got the hang of it so I can skate beside you?”
“Yeah, but you can go with your other friends. I don’t want you to think you have to babysit me.”
“I don’t think that.” He moves beside her and takes one of her hands. “It’ll just be easier to guide you like this.”
Orla ends up having a fun time with Harry, and she even warms up to some of the other kids. She learns that Logan, Owen, and Matt are Harry’s three best friends. Logan takes Orla’s other hand at one point and helps her skate a little faster with them. She laughs with all of them and gets the hang of skating on her own. Eventually it’s time for pizza, cake, and presents. Orla sits next to Sammy and Frida, two of the girls she was getting friendlier with in class. Harry starts opening his gifts. He gets some action figures, a new Bruins jersey, skate laces, and then he gets to Orla’s gift. From the few days Orla had spent getting to know Harry, she had learned that science was one of his favorite subjects. So, she got him a make your own volcano kit.
“Wow!” He exclaims as he pulls the kit out of the bag. “This is so cool! Thanks, Orla!” He smiles at her.
“You’re welcome.” She says back quietly.
After they eat, the kids go back for a few more rounds on the rink. Others go off to play in the arcade area. Kids start getting picked up by their parents, and Mrs. Murphy lets Orla know it’s time to go.
“I’m really glad you came.” Harry tells her.
“Me too, thanks for inviting me. Um, see you on Monday?”
“Yeah.” Harry pulls something out of his pocket. “I won these at the arcade, they’re just rubber bracelets, but I don’t need two of them. Do you want one?” He holds up the red rubber bracelet that has Roller World imprinted into it.
“Sure, thanks.” Orla takes the bracelet and slides it onto her wrist. She watches as Harry puts his own on.
From that day on, Harry and Orla were the best of friends. They did everything together. She’d go to his hockey games, and he’d invite her over to do homework after school. In the summer time they’d go swimming in his pool, and Mr. Murphy would grill them up some burgers. By the time eighth grade hit, the teasing started. Their friends told them to just kiss already, and they’d ask why they’re not boyfriend and girlfriend. Orla didn’t like Harry like that, as cute as he was. He was just her friend, and she liked it that way. Did they go to the eighth grade dance together and have a conjoined end of middle school party? Sure, but that’s what friends do.
High school is an entirely different ball game. They lived closer to the high school, so they didn’t need to take the bus. Harry and Orla would walk together every morning. They were put into different homerooms because of their last names, but they had many classes together. They were able to choose their seats so they made sure to sit together whenever they could. They had the same lunch period with their friends, so it was easy enough to get through the day. Orla tried out for the girls’ volleyball team, and she got on, so Harry would make sure to go to her matches. He made it onto the varsity hockey team, so Orla continued to go to his games as well. Again, people continued to ask if they were dating. This was mostly because Harry got more handsome by the day and girls were starting to express their crushes. Orla was pretty in her own right, but she was too shy to even look to see if anyone was looking back at her.
They went to school dances as a group, but they always danced to slow songs together. The summer between freshman and sophomore year of high school, the duo got jobs working at a retirement community restaurant that only hired high school students as servers. This meant new friends, and new people to hang out with after work. Most nights someone would host a fire in their backyard, and most nights this led to making stupid decisions. Orla and Harry didn’t drink, but they did smoke weed every once in a while.
“I don’t wanna smell like it, my parents would freak out.” Orla says to her friend who’s about to pass the joint to her.
“We could shotgun it.” He says.
“What do you mean?”
“I can inhale it and pass it to your mouth.” He smirks.
“Oh…” She furrows her brows. Harry isn’t paying attention to the interaction between Orla and Trevor, the sixteen-year-old boy who Orla secretly had a crush on. “Wouldn’t that be like kissing?” She giggles.
“Maybe, would that be a bad thing? If I kissed you?”
“You wanna kiss me?” Orla asks, but before she can get an answer, Harry’s hand finds her shoulder.
“My dad’s here, we need to go.” He says into her ear.
“Oh, um, okay.” Orla stands up.
“If you wanna stay longer, I can drive you home.” Trevor says.
“You’ve been smoking.” Harry says, stepping in front of Orla. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” He takes Orla’s hand and tugs her along.
“Harry, where’s your dad’s car?” Orla asks when they get to the front of the house.
“He’s not here, I just said that so Trevor would leave you alone. We’re only a block away from home, let’s just walk.”
“Trevor wasn’t bothering me though.” Orla says to him as they start walking.
“Well, he was bothering me.”
“Why?”
“He was pressuring you into taking a hit off his joint.”
“No he wasn’t. And since when do you care if I want to smoke? It’s not like it would have been my first time.”
“I have some edibles in my room, we can have those.”
“Harry, you ruined something that could have been really special.”
“Yeah? Like what?” He huffs, walking slightly ahead of her.
“Trevor was going to kiss me, and I really like him.” Harry stops short and turns around to look at her. “And you know that would have been my first kiss, so…it would have been special.”
“You wanted your first kiss to be with a guy you would taste like weed in front of a ton of our friends?”
“No one was watching us.” She looks down.
“Why do you like him?”
“Because he’s cute and funny, and he always helps me buss my tables at work.”
“Is that all it takes?” Harry scoffs.
“What’s your problem? You flirt with girls all the time, you know.”
“Girls flirt with me, and news flash, I haven’t kissed anyone either. It’s not like I’m being hypocritical.” He rolls his eyes and starts walking again. Orla crosses her arms over her chest and follows behind him in silence. They don’t say another word to each other until they get to their street, and Orla starts to walk away from him towards her house. “Where are you going? I thought you were sleeping over.”
“Think I’d rather just be alone right now. I’m too annoyed to spend another second around you tonight.”
“You’re being a baby.” He follows her across the street and they both stop at the front of her walkway.
“And you’re being a jerk.”
“Why would you want your first kiss to be with someone who’s just trying to get into your pants?”
“He’s not like that.”
“Yes he is! I heard him, okay? I heard Trevor talking to Eric at the dish drop off. He…he has some bet with him that by before summer is over you two will have gone all the way.”
“You’re lying.” Orla’s eyes start to water.
“I’m not, why would I lie to you?”
“I don’t know!” Orla sprints off into her house. Harry sighs heavily and goes to his own house.
Mr. and Mrs. Murphy have already gone to bed, so Orla’s quiet as she makes her way up to her room. She washes her face and brushes her teeth before getting into her pajamas. She sits on her bed with her laptop so she can watch TV to calm down. About twenty minutes later, Harry’s climbing in through her window. She looks over at him with a pout and puffy eyes. He doesn’t say anything to her, all he does is cup her jaw and press his lips to her. Her eyes nearly pop out of her head. Before she can even do anything Harry steps back from her.
“Now we’ve both had our first kiss.” He mutters, cheeks a deep shade of red. “I care about you, and you care about me…so it’s special.”
“Oh…well…thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He goes back over to her window, ready to climb back down. “Date whoever you want…just trust me about Trevor, okay?” With that he leaves.
She touches her fingertips to her lips and flops back into her pillows. Her first kiss was just with her very best friend, what could be better?
//
“Logan asked you to junior prom!?” Harry shrieks when Orla tells him after school.
“Shh, yes. I told him I had to talk with you first.”
“Well, do you want to go with him?”
“Not if it’s going to put you in a pissy mood.” She smirks.
“Do you…like Logan? Do you think he’d be a more fun date?”
“It’s not that I think he’d be more fun, but…you know he and I make out sometimes, it’d be nice to go with someone that I could be a little more intimate with. Besides, you have a crush on Josie, why don’t you ask her?”
“Because we go to every dance together.” Harry takes a deep breath. “Go with Logan, it’s fine. As long as you and I still take separate pictures together.”
“Of course! Oh, thank you, Harry!” She wraps her arms around his neck and kisses his cheek. She’s about to walk away from him to go tell Logan, but he wraps his hand around her wrist. She furrows her brows as she look at him.
“But for senior prom, let it be known now, no matter what, you’re mine.” He’s as serious as a heart attack. For some reason, Orla’s mouth feels incredibly dry. She nods in understanding and Harry lets her go. “Go on, go tell your lover boy.”
Orla runs off to go find Logan, and Harry rolls his eyes. He ends up going to junior prom with Josie, who was overjoyed when Harry asked her to go with him. They all have a good time, and they end up having a big sleepover party in Owen’s basement. The lights are dim, and the air is a little smokey. People are drinking, others are staying sober, no one is pressuring anyone to do anything they don’t want to do. Harry can’t help but glance over at Orla every once in a while. She’s sitting on Logan’s lap in a hoodie and joggers, but her hair and makeup are still all done up. They’re kissing and giggling, and Harry feels like he’s going to be sick.
“Let’s play truth or dare!” Frida shouts. Everyone gets into a circle on the floor, and they use a glass soda bottle to spin. Owen spins first, and it lands on Harry.
“Truth or dare?” Owne smirks at his friend.
“Dare.” Harry says confidently. Frida whispers something into Owen’s ear and he nods.
“I dare you to go into the closet with Orla for eleven minutes in heaven.”
Everyone falls silent. Harry and Orla look at each other, and then they both look at Logan and Josie.
“It’s not like they’re going to do anything. I say go for it.” Logan shrugs.
“This is so stupid.” Harry huffs and stands up. Orla follows behind him and goes into the closet.
“Timer starts now! We’ll let you out when it goes off!” Owen yells to them as he turns the music up.
Harry and Orla both cross their arms over their chests as they stand face to face in the cramped closet. They don’t say anything at first, but Harry breaks the silence.
“I think this is, like, the gazillionth time someone has dared us to do this.” He shakes his head.
“Sounds about right.” She sighs. “I’m so glad no one knows we were each other’s first kisses, they’d die if they found out.”
“Yeah.” Harry runs a hand through his hair. “Did you have fun with Logan tonight?”
“Mhm.” She smiles. “What about you and Josie?”
“She’s nice enough, I’m not really sure why I was crushing on her so hard for. She’s not really my type.”
“That’s too bad, I’m sorry.” Orla frowns. “I didn’t think you really had a type.”
“Well, I do.” He snaps. “Doesn’t everyone?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugs. “I don’t think I do.”
“Why do you like Logan?”
“He’s always been sweet to me. I think he’s cute, he helps me with my history homework. And he’s a good kisser.” She grins.
“Is that all you’ve done together? Just kiss?”
“Yeah, I would have told you if something more happened.”
“So…no second base?”
“Has he groped my boobs? No, I’m not ready for something like that yet.” She laughs.
“I thought second was, uh, blow jobs.”
“I thought that was third.”
“No, third is fucking.”
“Then what’s home plate?”
“Being in a relationship.” Harry laughs, and so does Orla.
“That’s fucked up.” She shakes her head.
“Do you think you’ll get to any of that with Logan?”
“I don’t know to be honest. I’m not really worried about it. I’m just going with the flow with him. Why do you care so much? I know he’s one of your oldest friends, but-“
“That’s not why I care. I just…” He steps a little closer to her and tucks some loose curls behind her ear. “I know how sentimental you get about things, and I’d kill him if he ever did something to hurt you.”
She looks up at him. She can feel his minty breath fanning over her skin.
“You can’t be my first for everything, Harry.” She says quietly.
“Why not?” He whispers. He’s just about to lean in when the door swings open.
“So? Did anything happen?” Frida asks excitedly.
“Nope, sorry to disappoint you all yet again.” Orla says, and brushes by all of them to go grab some water.
Harry walks out of the closet, and they all continue their game. When they finish, they all go back to just hanging out. Orla takes her place back in Logan’s lap.
“Do you wanna go somewhere private?” He whispers to her.
“To do what?” She whispers back.
“You know.” He wiggles his eyebrows at her.
“Logan, I’m really only into kissing right now. I don’t want to do anything else.”
“Wouldn’t it be nice to kiss in private, though?”
“We do that in your car all the time.” She laughs. “I’m having fun with everyone right now.”
“You just don’t wanna sneak off because Harry’s here.”
“That’s not true.” She frowns. “I just know what I’m personally not ready for. I…I don’t have to explain myself to you.” Orla stands up and grabs her sleeping bag and pillow.
“What, you’re not going to sleep next to me now?”
“I never was.” She throws her things down next to Harry, and buries her face into her pillow.
“You okay?” He asks, rubbing her back.
“Why is every guy a jerk? Like, why is sex the only thing on your pea sized brains.”
“Because our brains are pea sized.” Harry smirks. “We don’t have room to think about anything else. Did Logan try to pull a move?”
“Sort of. He asked if I wanted to go somewhere more private, and I said no, and he said I was only saying no because you’re here, but that’s not the case at all. I just don’t wanna go further than kissing, and he couldn’t comprehend that.”
“Do you want me to talk to him?”
“No, I think that’ll just make it worse. It’s not like we were dating, it doesn’t matter. I just…do you think Josie will care if I sleep next to you?”
“Oh, her mom picked her up.”
“When?”
“Like an hour ago…after I politely declined a hand job from her.”
The two burst out laughing and get into their respective sleeping bags. Orla cuddles up to Harry’s side and he throws an arm around her. For the first time in a while, Harry’s able to fall asleep with ease.
//
The pair ended up going to the same college for undergrad, of course. No one expected them to go to different schools. However, their majors were vastly different. Orla wanted to be a Physical Education teacher, and Harry wanted to be a pediatric surgeon. So, while Orla was in her education courses, Harry was balls deep in biology, anatomy, chemistry, and calculus. Harry was assigned a roommate at random, another pre-med student; his name is Neil. And Orla ended up rooming with another girl from their high school who she didn’t know that well, but she figured it would be better than rooming with a stranger; her name is Katie.
During their freshman move-in, Harry got his shit settled and then went to help Orla. Their families all went out for lunch, and then it was just the two of them. Luckily, they were put in the same dorm, Harry would just be down the hall from her. Katie was an education major too, but her concentration was in social studies. Her and Orla would have a few basic education courses together before breaking off into their respective concentrations. She made it onto the women’s volleyball team, and Harry decided he’d just play intramural hockey when the season rolled around so he could focus on his classes.
Harry would go to all of his Orla’s home matches. As things got busier during the semester, they weren’t able to see each other as much during the day. They made up for it at night in the library or in their dorm rooms. The two had grown comfortable with one another over the years, so Orla had no problem just hanging out in a sports bra and spandex shorts around Harry, and he had no problem just wearing his boxers around her. One night, Harry was hanging out in Orla’s room while Katie was at work. They were laying in bed watching a movie. Orla was wearing one of Harry’s old Bruins shirts and a pair of cotton panties. Her phone keeps buzzing, and Harry’s just about had enough. He pauses the movie and sits up to grab her phone.
“Harry!”
“I’m muting your fucking volleyball group chat. I’m getting sensory overload from all of the buzzing…” He furrows his brows at the screen. “Why are they all asking you if you asked me something yet?” He looks up at her. “What do you have to ask me?”
“Nothing, it’s stupid.” She snatches her phone from him. “They’re stupid.”
“If it’s stupid then just tell me what it is.”
“Can we just watch the movie?”
“Give me your phone, I need to know.”
“No.” She hugs her phone close to her chest.
“Orla, just tell me what it is!”
“No!”
“Give me your phone!”
“No!”
Harry and Orla start wrestling on her bed. She’s not wearing a bra so sticking the phone down her shirt won’t work. She does the next best thing and shoved it down the front of her underwear. Harry pins her down by holding down her wrists.
“That’s not fair.” He says.
“It’s my phone.” She tries to wriggle out from underneath him, but he’s stronger than her. The phone buzzes again, and she grunts. “Harry, just let it go.”
“I’m literally not going to be able to sleep unless you tell me.” The phone buzzes three times in a row. Harry watches as Orla bites down on her bottom lip and looks away from him. “Oh my god, is that buzzing against your clit?” He laughs.
“Harry!”
“You did this to yourself.” He presses down against her to keep the phone even closer to where it’s effecting her. “Just ask me whatever it is and I’ll let you go.”
“You’re such an asshole!” She wraps her legs around his waist to try to flip them over, but her legs just aren’t strong enough. The phone buzzes again and she groans. “What are you gonna do, make me come you sick fuck?” She starts laughing from how absurd this whole thing is.
“I’m not the one who shoved my phone down my underpants.” He laughs. “Just tell me.”
“No.” Three more buzzes. “Fuck.” Harry’s eyes widen as he looks down at her, and she gasps. “Are you hard?!”
“No! I…my dick twitched!”
“Why?!”
“Because you’re moaning!”
“Harry, I swear to god if-“
The door opens and Kate comes in. She stops short when she sees Harry on top of Orla.
“Oh shit, I’m sorry.” Her cheeks heat up.
“It’s not what it looks like!” Orla shouts as Harry scrambles to get off of her. She takes her phone out of her underwear and takes a deep breath. “He was trying to read my texts and we started wrestling.”
“Right…” Katie puts her things down and grabs her shower caddie. “I’m gonna go take a shower. I should be back in about thirty minutes.”
“We weren’t doing anything.” Harry says.
“Mhm.” Katie scoffs and leaves the room.
“Will you go to my volleyball formal with me next weekend?” Orla says to Harry.
“What? Is that what you had to ask me?”
“Yes.”
“Orla, why were you making such a big deal about this?”
“Because the girls were making it seem like the formal is a big deal and…I know you have a lot on your plate right now. I didn’t want you to feel pressured.”
“You’re ridiculous, you know that? Of course I’ll go with you to your formal. It’s just one night, it’s not a big deal. I’m doing well in my classes, I’m not worried.”
“You got so stressed your cried two weeks ago.”
“I was overwhelmed during midterms, you know I have test anxiety.” He hops off her bed. “Don’t sweat it, okay? Just text me the details.” He yawns. “I’m headed up to bed.”
“Gonna go rub one out?” She smirks.
“No.” He blushes. “I’m gonna go play video games with Neil. Have fun masturbating with your phone.”
“Don’t need it. I have stronger devices.” She grins.
“Yeah? Need help using them?” He teases.
“Get out!” She laughs and throws a pillow at him.
Harry blows her a kiss before he leaves and she blows one back. When Katie comes back in after her shower, Orla’s put herself to sleep. Well, actually she’s watching TV on her phone with her earbuds in because she doesn’t want to listen to Katie give her shit about Harry.
The night of the formal, Orla wears a simple little black dress that’s also strapless. She slips on a pair of black flats as well. Katie helps her get her hair up into a cute messy bun on the top of her head while Orla does her makeup. (Orla had Katie help her flatiron her hair to tame it a bit. She usually loves her curls, but she’s been experimenting with different looks.) Around 10PM there’s a knock on their door.
“Come in!” Orla shouts.
“Ready to go?” Harry asks and nearly chokes on his tongue when he sees Orla. “Wow, you look really nice.”
“Don’t act so surprised.” Orla rolls her eyes.
“Want me to take your pic in front of the tapestry?” Katie asks.
“Yes, please.” Orla smiles and hands her the phone. She poses with Harry for a few pictures, and then they head out.
“Aren’t you going to be cold?” Harry asks her on their way to the volleyball house.
“Nah, we won’t be out for long.”
They make their way into the house about ten minutes later. There’s a table set up like a bar for everyone to make their own drinks at. Harry sticks with beer while Orla goes for a rum and coke.
“Hey, O.” Ben smiles at her. Ben was a junior on the men’s volleyball team, and he’s very cute. “Saw you on defense at your last match, you looked great out there.”
“Thanks.” Her cheeks heat up, and she takes a sip from her cup.
“You come here with anyone?”
“Just my friend Harry.”
“Friend, huh?” He grins.
“Mhm.” She nods and takes a step closer. “He’s off talking to Chloe and Heather.”
“Not very nice to leave his date unattended.” He steps a little closer to her. “Especially when she looks so gorgeous.”
“Ben.” She giggles and gives him a playful push.
“You guys had one hell of a season. Aren’t you only one of, like, three freshmen to start this year?”
“Yeah, something like that.” She smiles.
“Gotta look out for the short ones I guess.”
“We’re pretty sneaky.”
An hour or so passes, and Harry can’t find Orla anywhere. He’s starting to get worried so he ventures through the house to see if maybe she went to the bathroom. She’s not in the one in the main hallway, so he goes upstairs.
“Where the fuck did she go?” He says to himself. He had been in the volleyball house plenty of times for various parties, so he had a good lay of the land. He goes to the larger bathroom, and opens the door.
“Ah, oh my god, B-Ben.” Orla’s head rolls back, allowing Ben to kiss on her neck. There she was, sitting up on the bathroom counter with Ben’s fingers knuckle deep inside of her.
“Orla?” Harry says.
“Dude, get out of here!” Ben shouts.
“Oh my god, Harry!”
Harry’s face flushes and he shuts the door immediately. He quickly goes down the stairs and weaves through the crazy amount of people in the house. He had been buzzed, but what he just saw totally sobered him up.
“Harry!” Orla shouts after him, but he doesn’t stop, he needs fresh air. “Harry, wait!” He pushes the front door open and sucks in a deep breath. “Harry! Oof!” She rams into his back and stumbles backwards.
“Get someone to walk you home, I can’t even look at you.”
“I thought he locked the door! And to be fair you didn’t knock.”
“I couldn’t find you for over an hour, excuse me for worrying about you.” He scoffs and turns to look at her.
“I was dancing with Ben and then we went upstairs, I’m sorry. I should have texted you.”
“Since when do you let random guys finger fuck you in bathrooms?”
“Um, Ben’s not a random guy. I’ve known since school started, what the fuck? I…I’ve been fingered before.”
“What? By who?” He shakes his head. “You know what? It doesn’t matter.” He chews on his bottom lip for a moment. “Why wouldn’t you tell me?”
“I told Frida.” She rubs her arms up and down. “It’s as far as I’ve gone, and I’ve never taken my clothes off to have it happen…”
“Did you do anything to him?”
“I gave him a hand job.”
“Was that your first time doing that?”
“No.”
“Oh my god!” Harry runs a hand through his hair. “I don’t even know you anymore.”
“Are you going to tell me you haven’t done things? I’ve heard rumors, you know?”
“I’ve dry humped, that’s about it. No one’s ever seen my dick.”
“No one’s ever seen my vagina, not that that’s any of your business. There are certain things I don’t want to talk about with you, can’t you understand that?”
“I understand, I understand perfectly fine.” He goes to say something else, but he just shakes his head. “Come on, you look like you’re freezing.”
“That’s because I am.”
After that night, Harry let out his inner manwhore. During the spring semester, he fucked so many girls he lost track of their names. He didn’t tell Orla a single thing. He fucked all summer long without saying a word to her about it. When Orla first had sex the following school year, she slept with the same guy for the entire fall semester. It didn’t end well, though, which led to her crying into Harry’s chest for over an hour. That night they both opened up about everything, and agreed that keeping things to themselves wasn’t a good idea.
//
Undergrad flew by. Orla passed all of her certifications, and even found a job teaching phys ed at the high school level. She’d have all summer to work her ass off to save up some money and build her savings before starting fresh at her new school in the fall. Harry got accepted into all of the med schools he applied to, and was having trouble deciding.
“NYU is offering me the most amount of money…” He tells Orla one night.
“If…if you go there then you’ll probably end up working at a New York hospital.”
“Yeah.”
“Have you heard back from Harvard Medical yet?”
“No, and at this rate I bet I’m not getting in. Besides, they’re known for offering shit grants. My parents can’t afford to help. All of their money went to their lawyers.” Harry rolls his eyes.
After Harry’s freshman year, his parents told him they were getting divorced. His three older brothers had long since moved out, and with Harry gone his parents realized they just weren’t right for each other anymore. He didn’t take it well. This may have led to him fucking a lot that summer, and the absurd amount of tattoos he got.
“Then I guess…I guess you’re going to NYU.” Orla swallows. “You should do it, it makes the most sense, and you’ll get a great education.”
“Harry!” Mrs. Styles shouts from downstairs. “You got a large letter from BUSM!”
“Holy shit, I forgot I applied there.” Harry says, and the two race downstairs. Harry rips open the large envelope and gasps. “Oh my god! I was accepted in to BUSM’s MD program. Holy fuck, they partner with Boston Medical Center for their surgical residencies.” He looks at his mom, then Orla.
“Are they offering you any money?” Orla asks.
“Orla, um…do you mind if Harry and I go over this together? I’m going to need to FaceTime his father to discuss everything.”
“Oh, sure! Yeah, this is a big family moment. Come by later if you want, H.” She smiles and leaves.
“They’re offering me a decent amount of aid, Mum.” Harry says as he reads over the letter.
“Honey…don’t you want to get out of Boston? NYU could be a great experience for you.”
“Mum, BUSM is a prestigious medical school. Why would you want me so far away?”
“I don’t want you far away, I just want you to have some life experience, meet new people.” She chews on her bottom lip. “I don’t want you to stay here just because you don’t want to leave Orla.”
“That’s not why I want to stay.” Her mother gives him a look. “Okay, maybe I want to stay closer so I don’t have to be far away from her. Can you blame me? We’ve been best friends since the fifth grade. I couldn’t imagine only seeing her once every few months, and then I’d probably have to move out there full time, and she’s only certified to teach in Mass.”
“Honey, you’ve never had a stable girlfriend. Maybe being away from Orla could help you do that.”
“I just haven’t met anyone, it’s not her fault.”
“You’ve liked her since the day you met.” She laughs, astonished at his ignorance.
“No, I’m not one of those guys that’s only friends with a girl because he wants to date her.” Harry rolls his eyes.
“I didn’t say that’s why you were friends. I just think if something was going to happen between you two it would have happened already. So, stop wasting your time waiting for her.”
“I’m not waiting for her to do anything. She’s my best friend, and she’s always going to be my best friend. BUSM makes more cost-effective sense. Think of how expensive the hole in the wall apartment I’d be living in in New York would be. I could definitely find a better priced place here, or I could commute for a bit to save money.”
“If you’d rather go to BUSM, then go. But make sure you’re doing it for yourself and not just to stay close to Orla.”
“I’d say it’s about 80/20.” He smirks, earning him a swat to the arm from his mother. “I’m kidding! It’s more like 60/40.”
“Jesus Christ, go call your father and let him know the good news.” She sighs.
//
Flash forward to present day – eight years later. The pair are twenty-eight; Harry is an attending pediatric surgeon at Boston Medical Center, making absolute bank, and Orla is at her third high school in six years because budgets keep cutting funding, which means P.E. teachers aren’t exactly in high demand. She lives in a small one-bedroom apartment, she’s constantly exhausted, and she wishes she had chosen any other profession. She coaches the girls’ volleyball team for extra money, and works at a bar on weekends and in the summer.
Harry and Orla are still the best of friends. They’ve made it through a lot of ups and downs. Through it all they’ve always had each other. He’s currently seeing a girl named Bailey that he met at a bar near work. Orla is going through a dry spell, but she’s not dwelling on it.
The school year had just ended, thank god, and she has Sunday through Tuesday off from the bar. Orla takes some time to go through her wardrobe and get rid of any dingy leggings or tee shirts. She has a strict budget for clothes because she’s constantly having to replace her athletic wear. She’s chilling on the couch Tuesday evening watching Property Brothers: Forever Home when she hears the jingle of keys on the other side of her door.
[READ THE REST ON PATREON]
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l0vegl0wsinthedark · 2 years
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My first attempt at Captive Prince fic!
*
Promise
The journey from Marches to Arles hadn't been nearly as long or exhausting as one from Ios might have been. Damen had been, to put it delicately, reluctant, to sail to Marches; the last time he'd sailed to Vere, he'd been in shackles.
But sailing meant he'd see Laurent sooner. And so they'd sailed. From Marches, they rode two days to Arles.
Damen could see the palace now, the turrets and towers visible over the treetops. The urge to break from his party again, to ride hard until he got to Laurent, was unrelenting. But he resisted. He would give Laurent the satisfaction of greeting him officially, this time.
The Veretian style of architecture, so unnecessarily intricate and detailed, sparked recollection. He hadn't been here since he'd ridden out with Laurent: back then, he'd still been Laurent's slave, Kastor had ruled Akielos, and the Regent had loomed over everything like an unpleasant, fetid disease.
Veretians thronged the streets to watch the procession go by. Most of them had only heard of King Damianos, and now longed for a glimpse of the ruler who had formed an alliance with their own king.
There was also the fact that these two kings were lovers, promised to one another, that further fuelled the desire to assess this foreign ruler.
The horses hooves clomped loudly on the cobbled streets and the wagon wheels groaned and clicked quietly. The Akielon royal guards had been joined by a Veretian troop at Marches, and together, they marched. The gathered crowds clapped, some yelling out praise for the alliance. Children ran along with the procession until it turned onto the main palace roads.
From there, Damen could see the palace gates. His pulse racing, he took in, with a surge of pride and admiration, Laurent's starburst flag flapping in the wind. There wasn't a speck of the Regent's red visible and even now, it brought Damen satisfaction.
The gates swung open. Guards in blue and gold lined the path to the palace. Unable to help himself, Damen dug his heels in gently, and his horse broke into a speedy trot.
The palace with its front gardens and fountains came into view and Damen saw the official welcome party gathered on the wide, sweeping front steps. A bright gold head glinted in the sunlight and Damen felt as though he might fall apart with happiness.
His Council behind him, Laurent stood on the second last step, dressed in pale blue and gold, tightly laced up to the wrist and neck. He wore a lighter crown than the one he'd been crowned with at his Ascension, and the addition of the golden cape, flowing and dancing behind him in the wind, only elevated his astonishingly sharp regality.
Posture and form as impeccable as ever, Laurent stood with his hands loosely clasped before him. His expression was careful and polite, but his eyes never left Damen.
Laurent didn't need to smile for Damen to be able to spot the joy in him. He saw it in the way Laurent's chest rose and fell a tad quicker, in the way his long throat danced as he swallowed, in the way the corners of his mouth twitched as he held back a beam.
Ha had watched the road for Damen's arrival at Lentos. Veretian protocol, Laurent had called it. Damen had said he could kiss him in front of everyone later. They never had gotten around to that.
The thought of Laurent kissing him now, here, in front of every important member of their respective royal courts, was almost unthinkable. Kings were not meant to indulge in public displays of affection with anyone; not even in Vere, with its odd laws of public consummation.
That didn't stop Damen from imagining, vividly, what it might be like to kiss Laurent right there on the palace front steps. Everyone knew they were lovers, he told himself. There was no need to claim his rightful place in Laurent's life - he already had it. They'd be sharing the royal bedchambers in the palace, for god's sake.
Damen drew to a halt and swung off his horse, his sandals hitting the ground soundlessly, his crimson cape flowing down with him. Guards clicked their heels together. The Council bowed low and gestured the traditional Veretian salutation.
Laurent smiled, eyes shining.
As Damen approached, Laurent descended the final two steps and stood looking up at him with honest, undisguised exultation.
Damen's own smile held nothing back. It was the first time since they'd met that he and Laurent had spent so much time apart; four months, in Damen's opinion, was much, much too long to be away from Laurent. His elation, his relief, his undisguised longing, not to mention his rapidly gathering desire, was all right there in his eyes, in his smile.
Laurent, for once, seemed to be fighting to find the right words.
Damen simply said, "My King."
Laurent stood there, speechless, for another beat.
Then he stepped forward, rose onto tiptoe, and kissed Damen on the mouth.
The explosion inside Damen was shocking in its intensity; his every nerve reacted to Laurent, to the kiss, to what it meant for this to happen in front of an audience.
Before he could gather himself enough to react, to kiss Laurent as hard and deep as his brain and body ordered him to, Laurent was pulling back. His cheeks were flushed deep pink and his eyes were dancing with promise.
"Exalted," he said.
There would be time for more.
*
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bosmermage · 3 years
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A progression of fashion worn by the Princesses Zelda pre timeline split, design choice descriptions under the cut. Very headcanon heavy as I have so many thoughts about the Hyrulean royal family... 
The Era of the Skies royal dress is based off this post I made about post surface fashion! Basically, things that had been a necessity in the sky became unfashionable on the surface, whereas things that were impractical before are now both possible and also fashionable on the surface. The sash seen before has evolved into an over-garment that displays family colours/heraldry. The sailcloths that were nessecity a few years before are more and more fashionable and more cape-like. The Wars of the Triforce happened soon after the founding of the kingdom. I’ve put the pictured stand in royal lady as being the age of Zelda’s great granddaughter. However, I think it’s highly unlikely that the royal family of Hyrule has remained the same from sksw all the way to botw so this is where I place the first dynasty shift. The garments are simple and easy to wear under the available armor. Capes fall out of fashion with cloaks only being worn for convenience, fashionable capes will not be seen again until Minish Cap generations later. 
This royal lady is not at all related to the Zelda from sksw and instead won the crown by bringing peace to the land after years and years of war. This would beg the question: how is the princess with the blood of the goddess born to a royal family that isn’t related to her? The answer that I like is that she isn’t, Sksw Zelda never intended her descendants to rule by blood at all as, like Link - Zelda reincarnates to different families each time. But, it turns out, royal families tend to need a justification to exist so keeping up the myth of being descended from a goddess while quietly adopting the reincarnation of Zelda into the royal family every time she appears suits them just fine 
This headcanon is important to me because it helps get the narrative away from the frankly pretty creepy ‘divine right of kings’ schtick the actual games have going on, while also giving me drama fodder for potential writing. I just think this is better.  Princess Zelda I - yes that one. I changed her placement in the timeline with the idea that, since another war over the triforce happens later in the downfall timeline between the hero of worlds and the hero of hyrule that it would be easy for that dynasty to simply claim her as a founding myth while also explaining why all the princesses in the other timelines are also all named Zelda despite her supposedly being “the first”. She is Princess Zelda the first of the second dynasty of hyrule (explaining why sksw Zelda isn’t “the first”) 
I chose a modified bilaut both to appeal to the more modern conception of medieval fashion but also to show a progression in the style - the long wide sleeves will go out and come back into fashion in different forms over time. The garments are very loose and billowy to show off the new stability and prosperity of the kingdom in garments while now, instead of an overgarment, the entire outfit is done up in heraldic colors. Hair is now unrealistically long (lengthened with horsehair as was done in real life) but done in simple braids. 
The Interim Period or The Era of the Hero of Man further elaborates on this idea of heraldic dress. While the loose billowing fashion abruptly ended with the tragedy of Zelda the first, the very simple plain style that followed in the immediate years after has been thrown out leaving only the slim shilouette. This kind of heraldic dress will see a heyday before being thrown back out in favour of much more humble styles of dress in the coming years 
The Minish Cap Era sees a tentative return to looser and more flowing styles although the favor is still on the simpler and cleaner lines of the earlier decades. heraldic dress and heraldic over garments are now replaced with the recognizable apron front seen for centuries to come. While the ones worn in this era are still only family colours they will soon get decorated with family crests again and worn as common formal wear. 
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