dream catcher

as an aroace person!! :D

Filler chapter

Note/Warning: This is mainly Player x Reader, but there's brief Griefer/Brad x Reader in the beginning and one-sided Shedletsky x Reader, low self-esteem Reader lowkey, a bit of lack of communication between Player and Reader but it got resolved, self harm (?), and some sort of odd attachment by Ice Dagger.

Timeline: After done defeating Bubonic Plant

Player just stays rooted in his stance, watching how you try your best to help the helpless father. They glance down at the Venomshank that's lying on the ground and carelessly take it and store it in her backpack, ignoring the voices that are rotting in their mind.

"Please, let me help you too Mayor... You know how to reverse the Venomshank poison right? I'll help you for that." You kneel beside the crying old man, trying your best to calm down the Mayor. He said that he know how to reverse the poison from Venomshank but don't know if there's still available for his own son, your heart breaking at the crying Mayor before glancing up at the Bubonic plant as you can still see the glimpse of Brad's bright green jacket. The vine weakly wraps on your hand.

The plant let out a sound, almost painful, and you force yourself to not blame yourself for not preventing this from happening. "Don't worry, we'll meet again, and that next time will be in different circumstances." You gently push off the weak vines and turn back to Mayor Thaniyel. "Mayor, I'll go ask K.W. for an antidote for the Venomshank. I'll make sure to get it for your son."

Thaniyel just nods, a small smile of gratitude appear on his worn face. "You're such a kind person; it's truly a blessing for us to meet you." Those words made you pursed your lips thin quietly; you don't consider to be a kind person, not that you would thought of... You just nod as you walk back to the player who just stands silently, waiting for you to come back to them.

"... We need to report back to Mr. Shedletsky, and then we take a break." You suggest that to those who just nod silently; you feel strained, and lack of communication with Player doesn't help it either. Those gurgled whines from the bubonic plant made you flinch, but you keep walking; Player doesn't address it.

The path turns into nature; you focus on your phone as you send K.W. an apology for disturbing his work and want to request some antidote of Venomshank for Mayor Thaniyel's son. Player keeps glancing at you at every hour. Now that you notice it, you look up and give a wavering smile. "I'm fine, just a bit shaken after all of that..." you assure them softly, and for a moment you hope for her to give sign language, but you get another mechanical nod again.

⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹

You and Player arrived at the Roblox HQ to report about retrieving the Venomshank; both you and Player are feeling tired after all of the fighting in Turitopulis.

Both of you walk into the Roblox HQ basement; you find the admin is using a cane now—you are glad that Shedletsky is recovering pretty well. "Hello, Mr. Shedletsky, we're back from Turitopulis..." You greet the admin politely with an exhausted smile. Player stays silent, not moving his mouth or hand.

Shedletsky, who seems to be waiting, perks up at your voice; his eyes brighten significantly before he composes himself back. "Ah, welcome! How's it? Any trouble?" He asks, mainly to you. That attention immediately makes you uncomfortable with the sudden direction; you then watch Player show their frustration while talking in sign language to the admin.

"Ah, my apologies... Let's calm down first, Player." Shedletsky reluctantly diverted his attention to them, calming down the frustrated Player. "Ah, so it seems like Brad is also experiencing some kind of vision... Like the Blackrock King said." You nod at that statement, eager to know more of the reason behind it.

The admin noticed your reaction and held back his chuckling before he spoke again, "Then, I'll use some of my spare time to investigate the cause of all this." You sigh in relief that it wouldn't be made worse to anyone who tries to wield the SFOTH swords. The player seems to be unaffected, but you'll keep a close eye on them.

"Mr. Shedletsky, can we take a break after this? We're tired, and I doubt I can function after all of that..." You made a request to the admin, hoping your wish came true. It's true that you're exhausted and doubt your stamina will be working if you keep pushing yourself. Shedletsky perks up once again as the small wings behind his ears flutter with giddiness. "Of course! I'll book one room for you two at the nearest hotel!"

"Thank you so much, Mr. Shedletsky! I am grateful for that, but please don't make the room too luxurious; we just want a rest for a day or two before going back. "You bow down in gratitude but are immediately pulled into a hug; you freeze as the admin rambles while still holding you against his body.

'How cute of you, how you get such barely an affection and didn't even know how to reciprocate it...' Shedletsky thought to himself as he watched you struggling to comprehend what's happening before just letting him hold you; he's a bit disappointed, but it's progress. He then lets you go and pats your shoulder. "Well then! Go rest and go back here whenever you two are ready, alright? Alright!"

You're a bit disoriented but slowly compose yourself and give the admin a small yet awkward smile. "Yeah, we'll be back here when we're ready..." you murmur before following Player who's already walking out from the building. You wish that Player would pull you out from that awkward situation, but you brush it off quickly. 'Don't think like that; don't act immature now, [Name].'

⊱ ─── ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ ─── ⊰

The hotel is luckily a regular one with a twin bed; last time you both were given a luxurious one and got overwhelmed in a flash.

You crash into the bed after the player claims their own, your bag carefully placed beside your bed. You turn your face to the side and see Player hastily walking into the bedroom; you get up slowly, your body still sore after all of the straining movement. You look into your messenger bag and pull out the Ice Dagger.

"... Hey, can you really talk or just on occasion?" You murmur to the cold dagger; you tilt the dagger as it flashes your face on the blade before it flickers to the familiar face. "Oh, didn't think you would talk to me willingly. What is it now, dear?" Those words feel mocking to you. "Why... Have you chosen me? I'm not... that strong or quick-minded; there are plenty of people that would be the perfect one..."

Those questions ring oddly loud for you as you keep staring at the dagger. Ice was silent for a moment before they chuckled, yet those voices seem to soften. "Ah, my dear, don't be low-spirited now. I chose you for a reason, and that reason will be answered in the future~" They cooed to you, and your breath hitched, how odd for a sentient dagger talk to you like that... You shook it off and put the dagger carefully next to her messenger bag.

'What...? Why me?? What reason? Why does it need to be kept silent!? I... I need to calm down; this is getting ridiculous.' You calm down your breathing, and you grip your chest tightly and slowly and forcefully, calming your heart down. The Ice Dagger was an odd sentient sword; his act looks and sounds eerie, too cheerful yet hollow of emotion.

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You're scared...

One, the Blackrock king stabs you directly in your chest and one inch away from your heart; your ribcage is almost shattered and fractured heavily. You still remembered how you trembled violently as the king clung onto you and yelled for a healer; you searched for Player that just standing a bit far away with a shocked and stunned face, it's the last thing you see before black out.

Two, the sword—or rather a dagger—is talking to you in your mind. You thought you already lost your mind after the near-death situation, just to get surprised by a silhouette of a person hovering above you. You were afraid that you couldn't join Player's journey and would be tossed into a mental hospital; Ice was just laughing at your pathetic self before calming down a bit.

They introduce themselves as Ice Dagger, the one that's the dagger itself. They said that they chose you to be his vessel so you and Ice are in one body. You were distraught, but Ice assures you that nothing bad will happen when you have her at your side.

Safe to say, you're afraid and almost sobbing hard from fear and distress. Ice doesn't expect you to act like that and slowly tone himself down, act more formal and calmer side, and don't do mischievous things that can rust your trust in her. If Ice wants to feel full power, they need most of your trust and willingness to contact them.

You then notice it's been 2 hours and Player doesn't come out from the bathroom; you start to get worried now. You get up from the bed despite the weariness settled deep in your bones, and you slowly walk up to the bathroom.

Your hand knocks on the door. "Player? Are you alright in there? It's been 2 hours now..." you ask in a hushed tone, not wanting to startle Player from whatever they're doing inside the bathroom. You didn't get any answer or sound; it started to get concerning for you.

You then try the knob, and it wasn't locked surprisingly. "I'll come in, Player," you announce softly before pushing the door open. You freeze at the sight of blood on the marble floors and the smear on the sink. The amount is concerning as you see the player gripping behind their ear and other wounds on their arm; you slowly approach them like a wounded animal.

"Hey... What happened?" you ask them, who just stay silent, and you notice their breathing is laboured. You take a small towel on the sink and clean up the blood and some smears; you walk out of the bathroom for a moment.

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Player just stay at the corner of the bathroom, their backs pressed against the cold bathtub. They just ripped out the small wings behind their ears; he hates those wings. He despises how those wings are always associated with the admin that repeatedly tortures him with the time loop.

They're in disbelief that they were able to get a rest for the first time after you requested it from the admin; he didn't expect that fucking admin to soften to you. Venomshank's words keep repeating in her head: how useless they are, how they're clinging on you just to feel normal, how they're fucking pathetic to cry like a failure as they've always been—

Their head snaps up when they hear the door unlocked; he remembers that he locked the door... This hotel door fucking sucks. They watch how you approach them with concern, the same one as how you look at anyone. You didn't look at him with pity or revulsion; you looked with care that feel gentle and grounding.

They didn't even realize their dull and grown nails were digging into their skin so hard that it bruised and wounded their arms; her eye watches you clean up the blood before walking out of the bathroom. Player assumed that you would just act like nothing happened but perk up again when you walk back into the bathroom while bringing gauze and other things.

"Hey, we need to clean the cuts first. Would you allow me? Or do you want to wait for a minute to process everything first?" You softly speak to them, giving Player a place to choose if they want you to touch them or not. You didn't want to pressure them to do anything while they're in a distress situation like this. Player is silent for a moment before they shake their head.

You didn't sigh in disappointment or frustration; you learned to take one step at a time. Jerry said that to you. You then put the items between you and them as you give some space for Player; the silence doesn't feel suffocating as you and Player would have thought.

You stare at the dull-colored ceiling; the corner shows peeling paint. Something mundane that you would find in every hotel room... "Well, you know. I was scared too, about this journey if I'm being honest, Player..." You admit to them, who snap their head to you, confused about why the sudden confession. "At first, I was ecstatic that I'm able to have a journey with someone for the first time."

"And then, I start to see how you defended me as a journey partner, not just a burden. I improved to fit to be your side, I... Really wish to understand you." Your words came out sincere and almost raw. How you look up at their bravery, his confidence, and her capability to speak up when in need.

Player is stunned at your confession and realize why you're really eager to prove yourself to them and how you get a bit try-hard to help her in a fight and even in a puzzle. That oddly warms his heart in a way...

They thought you're one that Shedletsky sent to make his route burdensome; she's not blind with how much favor you get after the first Sword from SFOTH, achieved from Blackrock King. He envies how you get the easy way, but it seems like his envy darkens his view of your feelings too.

"But that's not my job to vent to you, I'm here in wish to help you. I hope I'm able to help you even though you seen to hate me..." You quickly clarify it to them and whisper to yourself in the end, not wanting to worry anyone with your problem, that's the least you want right now. You glance at the start to dried cuts. "Hey, I suggest cleaning the cuts. Do you want to clean it by yourself or do you want me to help you clean it up?"

Player looks at his scarred and wounded arms before offering them to you. You are surprised that they allow you to clean them but immediately jump into action. You carefully clean the cuts; the dried blood washes off with a gentle rub. You also make sure the water is not too cold for them. The atmosphere is calming for both of you, enjoying each other's company for the first time without feeling awkward or just one-sided.

Player just watches you clean their cuts, applying the sterile saline to the cuts before applying the gauze. You wrap it tight but still make sure their arms are still able to breathe. They can't lie; the wrap is pretty neat. You lift your both hand to their head, pausing the gesture for their permission. A nod is enough as your hand hover behind her ear.

The wound wasn't severe but you realize that the wound wasn't inflicted by scratching or blunt object, it's a wings base on their head. Your wings momentarily flutter in concern as you focus on healing him first, knit back the wound and leave a faint scar. You want to say something, anything but your lips zipped shut, for your own good.

"Thank you..." You jumped at the hushed and almost inaudible voice from Player, and here you thought he was really mute at the start. "Oh jeez, you scared me there..." You muttered under your breath, and Player snickers at your jumpy self. They can talk, but it made their throat sore pretty fast and made them cough like crazy. They didn't know why that happened, it start to get bad in every loop she gone through.

"Sorry, didn't think it would startle you that much." Player changes into sign language before they pause to see your reaction; she never uses it with you and afraid that you won't be able to understand them. You shake your head. "Don't worry about it; I can understand sign language, so don't worry about it!"

Player nods at that, their lips curving into a smile for the first time. You were delighted as a soft blush coated your face. "You have a good smile!" You cover your mouth immediately in embarrassment and yelp out an apology for the sudden words.

'How cute...' Player thought to themselves as they watch you walk out from the bathroom to give her some space; they look at the mirror and see the green accent silhouette beside them. Their lips tug into a frown again. 'What do you want?' Their words a sharp and unapologetic tone in their own mind.

A sharp cackle rips into their mind, "Don't you see that, Player? So trusting... So naive... A little trick would be funny, watching their confusion and fear would be entertaining!~" Their voice is like poison in their mind, rotting and embedded into the core of someone's soul until it's dead. 'No... They're my companion. Besides, Ice Dagger would hate that you try to kill them.'

Player is aware that the dagger that you wield has some sort of connection; they see how the dagger will continuously heal both you and Player whenever you hold it without break. The silhouette hums at that before disappearing into thin air, leaving Player alone in silence.

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Player found themselves not asleep in their bed; he looked to the side and found you already passed out cold with your face smothered by the pillow. Their minds wander for a moment before deciding to get up; the wound behind her ear is already healed thanks to your healing.

They're surprised that you didn't get nosy with his privacy yet; curiosity would lead into that. She's ready and bracing herself from the question after question you would like to ask like to Terry or even the Blackrock King. They see your chattier side occasionally but seem hesitant when you want to talk with them, maybe because they keep pushing you away?

Their eyes drift down to the dagger that lies against your messenger bag. He narrows his gaze; he remembers how you sometimes say something out of the ordinary when in a fight. Like:

"Oh, it's been a while I've been fighting something like this..."

"Let me heal you; it would be hard if we were both injured like this."

"Fucking moron..."

"I'll rip your spine out and beat you to death with it!!"

^ [Context: Your health almost reach zero.]

Your voice sounds... clinical, too calm, and lacking emotion except when the damage too severe then you start to get angry. As if someone speaks from your mouth and doesn't give a damn to pretend as you, it feels different from what you are, full of emotion and rarely get riled up.

They sigh and slowly get up from the bed, their feet touching the cold wooden floor before dragging them to your bedside. They were hesitant at first but finally gave in and shook your shoulder; you groan before looking up at Player, who's now standing beside your bed.

"Yeah? Is there something wrong? Did Mr. Shedletsky call us in the middle of the night again?" You muttered sleepily, and Player paused for a moment before he shook his head. "Can we sleep together? Just only this time..." She whispers to you quietly, not wanting to sore his throat entirely.

You took a moment to process their words first before you opened your arms under the blanket, "Come here before I pass out again..." Player doesn't waste any second and slips under the blanket, feeling their head press against your chest lightly. For a moment, Player can feel the silence no longer feels oppressive, a sense of normalcy that they would crave every day if possible.

The steady heartbeat was more audible than they thought, a rhythm that he would often find odd but slowly lean into your chest to hear more of it. Their arms wrapped on your torso lightly before freezing when you moved slightly and put your leg above his hips, feeling you start to curl into fetal position while still holding her close to you.

Your consistent breathing brushes into their hair; such a sensation brings an odd comfort for Player. 'Maybe... I am touch-starved, and I haven't found the right person... Maybe you could change that, [Name].' Player will figure it out as time goes by; they can feel their eyes begin to get heavy. Before they realize it, they fall asleep soundly in each other's embrace.

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Venomshank just watches the scene with an unamused face; he then looks to the side and finds Ice Dagger chilling while humming an off-key tune. "So, why did you choose this weak halfling as your vessel?" She gives a snarky question to Ice; the one being questioned just smiles. "Oh, don't underestimate who I've chosen now, Venom. You don't see how much they're being favored by our creator?"

"I fucking see that! Your reason doesn't match your trait to even choose this halfling!! Do you even know that they bring bad luck to us?!" Venom snaps back at Ice, who just looks amused at the sudden outburst; it's rare that mischievous Venom gets this riled up. "Just you see when being wielded by them, you'll feel the tasty power coursing in your body." Ice admits to Venom, who just looks at her like he just said something absurd.

"Did your guardian chip you that badly to make you act like this?" Venom backed away slightly, feeling outright ridiculous at Ice's behavior. That ticks Ice off a bit. "We can't get chipped or break Venom; they just feel... right. Like when we are still in our creator's grasp, like an angel..." Their voices slowly die down. Ice really didn't know what compelled her to make you to be their vessel.

Was it the warmth when feeling your core at the time you got stabbed in the chest with the Ice Dagger? Was it an attachment of your feelings? Or was it familiarity that they craved deeply? It feels wrong yet also right at the same time. She hears you hesitant to congratulate his effort to help you and Player; that's irritating, but slowly get a bit addictive as they hear you get more confident with your words to flatter and praise her contribution.

It feels confusing for them to feel like this; he doesn't like the feeling, yet her mind keeps begging for more of it. 'Fucking hell, what did you do to me, [Name]?' He sighs harshly and watches Venom wandering off, maybe others would see their vision too of why she chose you as the vessel...

Venom wasn't that worried seeing Ice going quiet, as he's the quietest among others, but they can't help but be curious. Ever since you wielded the Ice Dagger, the sentient dagger started to get odd and get more willing and easy with you. That's one thing that every Swords doesn't willingly give: their compliance, especially to some mere wielder.

Maybe the next time they're being wielded by you, they'll test your endurance and probably try to corrupt your soul with poison too. It's not rare for Venomshank to corrupt and poison their guardian when they get bored or by pure malice. The SFOTH Swords are never kind towards mortals except for the tolerance to their guardian.

They remembered how Ice Dagger purposefully used more power than necessary and made the effect impact the Blackrock king heavily; ice immediately sprouts from his body as voices that Ice made start to haunt the king's mind. Ice doesn't talk the rest of the story, oddly enough.

Honestly I don't have anything to say, I just really wanted to make something for player, also mess around with my artstyle a bit.

Sooo... here's an alt version.

♡ Alt : w/o the pink filter & white border ˋ°•*⁀➷

‧₊ ♪˚⊹ 𝙸'𝚖 𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙱𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚛, 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚌𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝...

₊˚⊹♡ 𝙎𝙔𝙉𝙊𝙋𝙎𝙄𝙎 : Ah...ToonTown, a place filled with wonders and ink. Lots of ink. Not to mention, it's a "fun" town filled with wacky characters and toons who seem to have "eccentric" personalities? They're great and all but why are you attracting this attention of these strange characters when you're just a bakery owner who's just trying to make a living...?

₊˚⊹♡ 𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙳 𝙲𝙾𝚄𝙽𝚃 : 4.9k words.

₊˚⊹♡ 𝚆𝙰𝚁𝙽𝙸𝙽𝙶 — mention of death, scare tactics and minor dive into implications of depression.

⋆.𐙚 ̊— MOTM!MODERN x FemaleBaker!Reader

₊˚⊹ ᰔ MINNIE'S POV.

When did our lives fell apart.....?

Was it the time my songs started getting noticed?

Was it after Ortensia's death?

Was it because we became too busy?

...Where did we go wrong, Mickey?

Prologue【 0 】

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Player use She/He/They | no specific gender/Genderfluid/agender

Reader use You/Your or They/Them | no specific gender/ Genderfluid/Agender

BT!Reader have a relative medium wing behind ear.

Heavily on of Looping!Player.

╚═════ஓ๑♡๑ஓ═════╝

[Name] wasn't really that popular other than being a host of the swords, different from Player, who's more popular to everyone as the hero, and you as the side piece. Player doesn't treat you any different until now, she accepts what you are despite the title.

After all, you're their first light after all of the loops they've been suffering and finally ended. You helped her without seeing any difference; they can see how eager of you to help him in any way; it made their heart flutter softly tenderly. It made them want to be with you; the new feeling made his body lighter because of you.

They can see your being as a halfling and being named "The False Angel" and that made everyone believe that every hafling like yours would bear such 'cruel' and 'deceitful' nature. But she knows... They know that it's not true; you're anything but cruel and deceitful.

He can still remember how panicked you were when she grabbed the Ghostwalker rashly, how caring you were when they were hurt, how... Your gentle touch that capable melt his heart and forget every pain they've been enduring...

But now, after collecting the swords. They get a bit agitated because he knows every pain he's been enduring came crashing down on them as she watched you being offered by Shedletsky to stay with him or stay with Player. She's very sure that you'll choose the first rather than the latter, but their minds stop at your hands clinging onto them. They were shocked that you would rather choose a broken soul like her rather than be taken under the wing of one powerful deity... Yes, he knows.

He knows that Shedletsky or rather Telamon pretend to be a mortal, they already seen him multiple time reveal himself as Telamon or Shedletsky to her directly.

Now they know you also see her as your light too, clinging onto each other until death do you two part. Their gaze lifts to see the bristled admin, eyes flashing gold in a moment. With that, he promised to himself to stay and never let go again, not in this timeline.

You, on the other hand, are glad that the admin forcefully agreed to let you stay with Player. She's your light that wouldn't flicker with doubt about your nature or rumors; with that, you offered everything you have to them. They're your hero after all. Shedletsky calls you over to his building again and offers you his feather, the gold and sharp tip of brown color mixed together well. You hesitantly accept it after a hard stare being given by the admin.

That feather allowed him to monitor you, a part of him that would never let go of his angel. He's deliberate when giving you a piece of his feather, he chose the prettiest one for the radiant Angel that once smile to him when he's pretending on the lowest.

Builderman is back to the building; he's grateful to be back and to Player too for saving him. Player wasn't that thrilled with how flat their face is that you need to check if she's still conscious or not; luckily, he responded to your call. Your call card is available to Player, and they intend to keep it that way; you didn't mind, as you're their helper after all.

Even though the swords deemed you as a host, Player is still able to use the swords' card and make the same abilities they always see in every loop, but it seems like the swords are a bit eager when you use them when attacking a foe. That tends to overwhelm your body and chip away quarter of your health instead your energy, making you mostly stay as support and attack when necessary since your health bar not that tough compare with Player.

You sometimes visit Griefer after the Venomshank incident; he surely is a bit different from when you first met him. He surprisingly can make a boquet of flowers and give them to you. Kyoko is also with you when you visit Turitopulis. Players tag along with you too, not wanting to lose sight of you; they still want you alive and not getting reckless, but she knows well that Swords are protective of you with how many times it's had saved you from danger.

One day, you're just sitting on a beach with Player and Griefer since he's stubborn enough to convince both you and Player to tag along, not like he wants to spend time with you too. You look to the side and catch Griefer looking at you before he jolts and turns away fast; you can just chuckle and ruffle his hair — or rather, his green leaves — and you can hear him grumbling under his breath but doesn't push your hand away.

Player looks to your side, finding you messing with the griefer again. They smile subtly and lean their heads against your shoulder; it's been a while since the three of them have gone out together, even though at first he was the ones who objected for Griefer to tag along. The player feels safe in your presence; you're her helper — the hero's helper.

You notice that Player leans into your shoulder, and you let him scoot closer to you. 'Oh damn, you really got both of them in your grasp, don't you~' Venomshank tease in your head as his translucent body hovers behind you; you just chuckles silently but Venom keeps bothering you which start to get annoying. Ice Dagger form morphs beside Venom and drag her away, Venom just laughing at something he just said like the funniest joke they ever said.

Out of all of them, you trust Ice Dagger the most since they're the first one you got and proved to be a trusted one. Not that you didn't trust others; they just get a bit too much for you, especially when you're their 'perfect' and 'good' host for them. Because of that, they tend to be... Overdone it with their capability, not something you need to overthink for now though.

Three of you just watch the sunset together in peace... A scream makes three of you jolt back into reality and quickly get up from the sands; you look around where the scream supposedly occurred and walk there quickly. You don't know what you expect to find, but there's a thief robbing a street person; you can feel your feet taking you to chase the thief.

Griefer and Player seem to catch on to what you want to do and run first; both of them have greater stamina than you. Both of them caught the thief as you slightly panted, wings quivering from exertion. "Shit... I never..." You try to get your breathing in control again; a mage that has greater energy than stamina—that's what you are.

Griefer, take control of holding the thief from running away again while Player checks up on you; their hands make some gesture—sign language. "Are you okay? Need assistance or a rest?" They're worried since you've never been this out of breath before; despite the low stamina, you just nod and give a shaky thumbs-up.

"I'm... I'm fine; probably need more exercise." You straighten up your body and see Griefer already gave back the purse to the stolen person; you can't help but smile at that, and Player chuckles silently at the sight too. The thief seems to reach something in his pocket, and you caught on to that; you quickly try to reach out to Griefer, but it seems like the thief aims it at you.

A loud shot ringing in your ear as pain shot up from your side, you can hear Griefer shout either to you or the thief. Player, on the other hand, froze before frantically try to reach out to grab you, but both of you seemed to fall into some portal, a broken portal.

⊱ ─── ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ ─── ⊰

Player shot up from unconsciousness—feeling a headache immediately—as they held their head in her hand; he blinked rapidly as their vision cleared up and looked around. The surroundings are unfamiliar; he looks down to his side and finds you still unconscious, and the wound fortunately gets healed by the Ice Dagger.

Player reaches out to touch your face, finger under your nose, feeling the faint breathing. They sigh in relief but freeze when she feel something move behind him. They look behind and see a tail—a red tail. He furrowed their eyebrows at that and touched under her hat, feeling a small horn protrude from their head.

'Why do I have a horn? I thought... Did hatred come back again?' They thought to themselves before snapping out when he heard you groan in pain; you slowly get up from the concrete floor. "Damn, never thought I would get shot like that. At least bring me to dinner first." You mumble to yourself as you look around and find Player staring hard at you.

"Um, Hero? Are you alright there? Or did that face planted make my face unrecognizable?" You scratch your cheek in confusion with a hint of joke at Player's sudden silence—you know he wasn't mute but preferred to use sign language, but this is a different type of silence. He then takes off his hat and puts it on you instead; you were utterly confused at that.

"Hero—" Your words cut off when they push you behind them and pull out her sword; you look over his shoulder and find... A person? With dual-color horns, your wings flutter subconsciously. Both Player and the new person just stare at each other before Player pulls a move, swinging it to the person — which startled you, but both of you are surprised when the sword does a little damage only and just leave a small scratch on the skin.

"Wha!? First of all, don't attack people like that, Hero!!" You sputter out and pull back Player from that confused and startled person; you didn't expect Player to attack without any bit of provocation. Player looks at you before signing something to you, and that something made you gasp in mock surprise and anger, "Don't give me attitude after all of that!"

While you two are bickering, the horned person is stunned since what he hears is not the language he can understand—too ancient—and you two have such mutations like hair? What he notices more is that both have weird tint on skin color and one has... Are those wings? He doesn't want to get himself in elbow-deep trouble and turn around and run away.

You notice that the horned person is gone by now; your voice slowly died down, and Player also did the same because he has a headache after arguing with you. You then notice that all people when you look around have horns; you touch your head and find none. The player notices your movement but doesn't say anything—what can she even say? He doesn't even know where they are right now.

"Hm... Their language is... different. I can't recognize it anywhere." You pull Player with you as you two walk out from the alley; everyone looks entirely different, which made you two like a sore thumb. Player looks around too, taking note that it would be valuable for them to get back.

You pull out your mage book from your messenger bag, flipping through pages after pages, and find a translation spell. "Let's... find a place so I can do this spell; we can't walk around and speak like a crazy person." You glance at Player who's staring at the gears shop; you assume they're eyeing the swords display.

"Let's find out this world currency first; then we can go to shop, Hero." You tug his hand with an exasperated smile, and she looks back to you with a slow nod; both of you found a bench to sit for a moment. You then started to do the spell with, fortunately, more than enough energy inside you; it was made into a necklace and Player was made to wear it first.

"Start speaking; I need to make sure." You urge them before you realize something. "Shit, I mean, sign something for me. It also affects your sign language too, so don't worry." Player can't help but snicker at your forgetful charm; they then start to sign something to you, and you confirm that you can't decipher what she's saying to you.

"Well, that means it works?" You're not sure, and Player just shrugs; you just sigh and make one for yourself. It's like matching necklaces now that you realize it. "Hey, we're matching now. Not that we did it often, though." You sweat drop as you remember how persistent you were in the past to match each other but end up not doing it until now.

Player was silent for a moment before he smiled and nodded; the necklace itself is more of a gemstone [ Lua gemstone, it's not like you and Player know it yet, The Swords are aware of it ] mainly with a thin silver chain. You then remember something and pull up your clothes slightly, finding the gun wound is mostly healed but the blue tint still lingers on your skin. Player momentarily frowns at the sight, their hands clenching tightly at the memory.

"One thing I didn't expect from the thief was that he would pull up the gun and shoot me instead; random aim, I must say." You sigh and pull down your clothes, straightening them from more wrinkles. "I hope Brad doesn't blame himself too much now..." You murmur and lean against the bench. Player notices your change of feeling, and his tail wraps on your ankle loosely.

You notice it but don't say anything; you don't want to break the comfortable silence between each other. "... One thing I'm curious about now, can we exchange gold for their currency?" Your wings flap noticeably at that thought before looking at Player, who is already looking at you with a smile. He purposefully didn't say about the currency being used when he take a look at the price display, they want you to talk more with her even just a bit.

"Well, should we search or ask? We look... odd compare with others; they seem to have horns, and some even have animal features. We also have hair, which is a... major one since they seem hairless by far in my observation except the ones that have animal features—" Your words caught in your throat when a face inches close to your face; you jump in surprise at that. Illumina hums, which seems like confirmation; their translucent body is more solid, which is surprising for you.

Player seems to see Illumina too. Illumina smiles lightly before speak again, "It seems like... The Swords presence here are stronger than ever; Illumina's body is even more solid and manages to scare The Swords dear host." You are just holding your chest in an attempt to calm yourself down; Illumina tends to speak in the third person—they pick up from Telamon, who often speaks in the third person.

"Summon Illumina, dear host, please?" Illumina requests that of you, a curiosity that is almost palpable. You pray that this sword won't do anything hazard or dangerous. You touch your abdomen, a small glow appears under your palm before a hilt of a sword appears; you grab it and pull it out from your body. Illumina seems giddy as they don't float anymore, their feet solid on the ground, and walks closer to you.

You cough a bit; summoning a sword can be a bit extreme, but you can manage it; it still makes you disoriented and a bit unwell. Illumina hugs you unexpectedly, their wings wrap around you, "Finally, Illumina is able to hug The Swords dearest host. Such warmth is a delicate thing to have, especially from [Name]." They purr as their height towers you easily.

"Oh... You're welcome?" You try to look up but fail since Illumina keeps your head under their chin. Player, on the other hand, froze at the sight of Illumina; they always thought you had already gone crazy when you said the swords talked to you like sentient things. She got proven wrong once again.

To Be Continue...

Part 2.

OOOH CUTE!!

lore wise, GardenView is very closed from the public. But oc wise, Why not! Dyle likes (or.. liked) to bring treats for all of his co-workers from outside!