#abidethetempest

made you a birthday doodle of the goober!! 👉👈

...with the intent to harm // read on ao3

The court is in an uproar. It wouldn’t be so apparent to an outside viewer, but Sathona’s heart beats in tune with the ebb and flow of local politics. She can clearly see unrest in the rush and swirl of the crowd of ministers, the stiff gait of knights changing guard and hushed conversation behind columns. There is something going on, clearly, though she can’t quite put her claw on what exactly. Taox isn’t much help either, only looking at her sternly as she turns her and Xi Ro away at the door.

“We want to wait for Aurash in the harbour,” Xi Ro protests.

Taox doesn’t budge, ushering them further into the hallway with a gesture. “It’s not safe to head out now. Go to the upper floor and wait in the storage room, she will join you there.”

This is a very peculiar request, though Sathona has never been one to outright question Taox’s commands. It’s more of an Aurash thing to do. But now Aurash isn’t here, and Xi Ro is already distracted by her anger, so it falls to Sathona to ask, “Why?”

Taox let her eyes linger on her for a moment too long before speaking. It’s unnerving.

“Because I say so.” She never answers their questions like this. She is their teacher, and a teacher never passes up an opportunity for an explanation. “Now go, and stay there until I come and get you.”

They retreat upstairs obediently (though with considerable offence on Xi Ro’s part), and lock themselves up in the storage. Aurash arrives halfway through their third game of shellpox, sea-wethered and just as confused as the rest of them.

They don’t even finish the round before all hell breaks loose.

It’s only later, when they are fleeing to the harbour, that Sathona realises she couldn’t hear the Helium knights searching other rooms before they barged into theirs. As if they knew exactly which door led to the storage three royal heirs would be hiding in. As if they knew what they were looking for.

mean 2 me in this house

11. What scene are you most hyped for this chapter/fic?

the same scene I'm most afraid to write, which is the wound care scene (I've been doing longform RP for so long the rule of 'only play your characters in your responses' is all but hardwired into my brain).

7. Softest/most comforting fic you wrote this year

Baby Lion hasn't been uploaded yet, so I'm gonna cheat a little because my favorite bit of what has been written is a mix of narration and dialogue (you menace).

--

“I'm sorry. I should have told you earlier. I just… I'm scared.”

There was a long moment of silence as Leo regarded Talwyn, her bright optic seeming to sift through him layer by layer until he was forced to look away.

Gunning For You [Noyze Jinx Remix] by QUIX, Nevve, & Noyze Jinx & Talwyn - I'm pretty sure this is on Skipper's playlist and if not, I meant to put it on there at some point adlksflkj Heads up, this turned out a lot more angsty than I meant it to (and a lot longer. Whoops). --

"I don't do commitment, Leo."

"I know." The ghost's voice was gentle as she spun into her Lightbearer's line of sight and got him to look up at her. "But it's been centuries. I think it's worth giving it another try."

Talwyn opened their apartment door in silence, leaning to the side to let Leo in before following after her and carefully shutting the door behind them. A myriad of feelings swirled in his chest and tangled in his throat. They tightened when his eyes caught the sight of the Sunbreaker mark that was carefully folded up and displayed on the hallway bookshelf as he moved towards the bathroom. He forced himself to keep moving, to push past the memory and process it before it became too hard to breathe.

He turned the sink on and picked up his toothbrush, leaving the light off and ignoring the mirror as he mindlessly went through the motions of getting ready for bed.

"He deserves better than what I can offer him." Talwyn's shoulders were hunched when he finally spoke. "I'm…" he swallowed heavily. The word 'broken' had dug its claws in his chest, refusing to come out even as it sliced through him. "I—"

"Isn't that his decision to make?" Leo asked him softly, cutting into his thoughts before he could spiral further.

Talwyn wiped an arm across his face and turned on the tap before his sniffling could become audible. He quickly ducked his face under the water in an attempt to drown the tears before they could fall more thickly than they already were, and took his time rinsing the toothpaste out of his mouth before he had to stand up and dry off his face with a towel.

He ached with want. Traveler above, he wanted this more than he could remember wanting almost anything else.

And he'd been slipping. He'd been having to quell the urge to reach for Sigil's hand whenever they were in the same room, forcefully covering it over with flippant remarks to hide the way his heart pounded in his chest. He'd been catching himself looking at the exo while his attention was somewhere else, and had to repeatedly force himself to look away. Worst of all he kept finding himself lingering after their goodbyes, letting the silence stretch out in order to put off walking back to his own apartment alone just for a little longer.

Like tonight.

Only this time, he'd blown a kiss after Sigil before he could stop himself.

Traveler, he was so stupid.

Face still hidden in the towel, Talwyn stood frozen under the weight of his own shame as he relived the moment in his mind. Thankfully the door had already been shut, leaving Leo as the only witness to his heartsick longing. Loyal, patient Leo who was the forced audience to his endless internal self-destruction.

He didn't deserve her either.

His shoulders began to shake with silent sobs as something load bearing crumpled in his chest.

"Oh, Lion Cub."

Leo dipped down and landed on his shoulder, settling her shell against his neck. Talwyn didn't have the heart to push her away. --

"reblog the ask game," they said. "I'll send you a question later," they said... (they immediately begin to hunt me for sport. Mean To Me In This House).

1. list 3 positive things about your current fandom(s)

the ADG (HI GUYYSSSS!)

gambit (I am. Extremely Normal about gambit).

the decidedly unique fanfic culture (where ELSE are you gonna find a more OC-centric fandom? Nowhere).

8. you hope more people will come to appreciate _ (a ship, a trope, an episode, etc)

Gambit, my beloved...

10. a blog (mutual or one you follow) that has made your fandom experience brighter

18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

This brood, the brood of dissidents and refugees, of Sky-bound and Deep-refuted, will be the Lucent Brood, for it serves not the machinations of the Worm but the reckless blessing of the Light.