𝐩𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧 & 𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐅𝐎 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐍𝐆𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃 from the fate series, slightly canon-divergent, heavily inspired by and lovingly spun from mythology, poetry, & legends.      𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐧.

♡ starter for @flodeuyns​  ♡

                                    𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚 𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐰𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭: the paladin’s arrival is an orchestra, a magician’s colorful trick, all boisterous exuberance and luminous glissandos. they feel caught up in a current of merriment, swept up and carried away on sumptuous gentle waves for long have they yearned for a conversation with the illustrious mage. like a perfumer’s garden abound with the loveliest blossoming trees, chaldea’s full with such distractingly enchanting figures! they have not had the occasion to meet up too often with the elegant caster and it is downright lamentable! but they are on the cusp of mending that wrong! besides, the other, from what astolfo has glimpsed every now and then, seems to be in possession of a wealth of knowledge and poise, both of which they are ever eager to pick up on and attain whenever the chance presents itself. not only that, but the caster has never rebuffed their mindless aimless conversations or their supposedly volatile bursts of energy. like a wayward feather blown by precipitous wind, they float over to them, radiant and beaming, a little shy, but their shoulders squared with soft plucky determination. the mage of flowers has invariably conveyed a fragrance of kinship as sweet as honeysuckle and summer afternoons and the enthralling beauty of humanity itself. with eyes as bright as polished coins, the paladin study the other, their glossy lips pursed in thoughtful consideration that is perhaps only slightly unusual. however, when they speak, their voice is a high lilt embellished with a musical note. 

                                    ❝   caster! you’ve dealt with lots and lots of kings and rulers and matriarchs and others in high positions of power, right? so, you must have plenty of experience, especially when it comes to guiding and counseling, but you know, those are all assumptions so if i’m wrong, please feel free to correct me on any of those accounts! i promise i shall take it to heart and i won’t ever make the same error again!   ❞   they pause after such an exclamation, a dusting of a blush climbing up their cheeks, a giggle spilling past their lips.   ❝   although, i might forget so don’t hold me to that promise as you might with anyone else. i shall try to the best of my abilities! but oh, look at me, running my mouth off without getting to the point!   ❞   they grin toothily, good-naturedly, taken over by crisp bashfulness, which they bravely and expertly push against.   ❝   in your informed opinion, what makes a great king? and how would one strive to be so? i’m sorry to burden you with such a loaded question, but i suppose that is part and parcel of life, wouldn’t you say?       ❞

@flodeuyns​ asked:  ❛  this  might  be  a  shitshow ,  but  it’s  OUR  shitshow .  ❜ i just think chaos :Dc

                                    𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐲’𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠-𝐝𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰. metaphorical starry lights wheel and glimmer in their amethyst jewel-vivid eyes. long have they yearned for wondrous adventures, for an opportunity to laugh joyously, care-free, heart as light as a feather as the after-party confetti settles everywhere like freshly fallen prismatic snowflakes. sometimes, astolfo feels that underneath the softness of their dawny dreamy core, there is a secret ache that can only be ameliorated by harmless violent chaos. caster’s enchanting flowery magic and merry disposition lure them in hook, line, and sinker. the other paladins often invoked prayers against magic, muttering underneath their breaths as they raised sharpened steel blades and rode into battle. however, astolfo’s thick lashes fluttered with a different kind of prayer: there is nothing holier than magic; an ever deepening abyss wherein the miraculous and the marvelous powers reside. it is the personification of mischief, of curious hearts turned towards the endless possibilities of imagination. 

                                    it is a shame that the paladin is not a wielder of magic! they wonder what they might have created; their mind like a cup runneth over! regardless, caster feels like a fragment of their soul that has gone adrift (might they be shattered? a paladin that is splintered, incomplete, parts of them coming undone?) and caster’s proclamation lights them up from the inside! it has been too still in chaldea—the quiet is grating, it has its own special sound, and astolfo thrives on the joy of wild cacophony. they have always been known as the fae of festivals and post-battle celebrations! they vigorously nod their head, their cape of creams and eggshells moving along with them, their heart swelling like a balloon. 

                                    ❝   wahwahwah! shitshows are the best kind of shows! they’re like the most memorable! and, oh, what a beautiful memory this is already turning out to be. we should definitely do this again whenever you’re free! i feel like we’re the most powerful and silliest duo here and we could be unstoppable. just think of the endless possibilities! my whole heart’s fluttering right now! hehe~  ❞  

@oldestking asked: ❛  is  this  your  thing ?  cute  but  annoying ?  ❜

                                    𝐚 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐥𝐞𝐞, 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭-𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐬𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦! they might be easily overtaken by the simplest of joys, flattered by the most measly and maudlin scant offerings of praise, reduced to a giggly overwrought mess of a paladin by the hint of recognition, so easily dizzied and dazzled, so easily elated. sometimes, they think they might be made of fissures of star-dust or perhaps gilded fragments of fond yearning: no fate-weaving could coronote them with measured and grandiose level-headedness. they have seen knights of such composed dispositions whose tempers would have flared like volcanoes erupting or who would have unsheathed their swords or arrows or lances as though their honors have been slighted, their brows so furrowed and their foreheads so marked with grooves that it merely hurt their soul to glance at them! but, who cares for such seriousness? what is mightiness and temperance when honeyed liquid thoughts and sunlight and sparrowsong and depthless tender dreams try so hard to catch one’s attention? why dwell so severely on shadows and dissatisfaction, why choose to conceive ill of others when the alternative promises dancing dawns and diaphanous delights? this is why astolfo holds life so dearly, so fiercely: the celestial miracles of encounters and conversations and the little green meadows of absolute, overwhelming adoration which spring up from the very core of their being. 

                                    glee flickers, nestles against their stuttering heart, their proverbial wings sprouting from their back as they effortlessly twirl, their lips upturned in the loveliest smile, their unchecked ebullience like the fragrance of decadence. when they laugh, the sound is airy and musical and full of crystallized frilly radiance.   ❝   you are right on the money, king of kings! both are kind of like my speciality! annoyingly loud and excitable and chattery, but with a cute on the side! oh gosh,     here, they bring their palms up to their own face, cupping their cheeks as they titter.   ❝   i get all embarrassed calling myself cute! it’s a little vain, isn’t it? it probably is, but i’m very familiar with my strengths and weaknesses! like, for example, you, king of kings, must certainly know that you shine so brightly that anyone’s vision burns when they behold you and you are not ashamed to admit it! which is so cool!   ❞   much like a daring rash knight, they step closer to him, tilting their pretty head, their braid swishing with the movement.   ❝   hehe, i shall cherish your praise with its double-edged nature! you’re wonderfully generous, you know!   ❞