#puzzle!anon

I think Julien comforting Occtis is a lot like we saw from him in episodes 30 and 31. He's very physical, a hand on a back, an arm around the shoulders, etc. Julien knows a lot about grounding soldiers with PTSD from his time at castle torch, so in addition to the physical touch just being a part of who he is, he also knows that it helps ground someone in the present, and Occtis in particular seems like someone who disassociates and/or gets really in his own head about things and who could use help like that. He also seems like the type who would be good at prattling on about some nonsense if Occtis just needs sounds and words to fill the void and keep his brain too distracted to come up with thoughts of its own. I think just in general Julien is good at getting Occtis to use his senses and reconnect with the world around him, even, and maybe especially, when Occtis is insisting he can't feel those senses anymore.

He's also not above being a little shit if that means it'll force Occtis out of whatever weird headspace he's currently in. Its surprisingly effective, the sheer brute force of the annoyance (or other emotions depending on what type of little shit Julien is being) pulls him back into the present so quickly. Maybe not the most conventional way of offering comfort lol, but he's found it to be very effective. (I read a fic recently where Julien grounded Occtis while he was panicking by flirting with him and getting him all flustered lol - it was by WeaverOfTheNight, it's pre-slash but definitely a good study on what them learning to comfort and care for each other might look like)

Hope you feel better!!

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Comfort via annoyance is the most Julien thing ever.

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If we're thinking of the same scene, Raimond raises a hand to strike Julien, decides to take off the gauntlet before hitting him, and "by the time it's off" had cooled down enough that he keeps getting his hands to himself.

So that could be read a few different ways but I tend read it as there was some level of past physical abuse based on Julien's reaction of "being quiet, sweaty, nauseous, eyes down". Which is not how we see him react to... Anything else.

feeling very inspired today, apparently.

I HOPE THIS HELPS YOU FEEL BETTER 🧩!!!

Occtis and Wicander sit, pressed together from knee to shoulder, on their side of Hal’s gigantic Boy’s Time bed. More and more frequently the five of them have been sleeping all together in the Davinos-approved silk sheets, and at times like these Occtis is very thankful. 

Across from he and Wick are three of the strongest and most resilient men he has ever met clutching each other and shaking. Julien is laying atop Azune, who is leaned up against Hal’s bare chest. Julien’s grip around Azune’s middle and what parts of Hal’s legs he can reach is so tense the veins on his arms are standing out intensely. Azune has both of Hal’s hands threaded through his, and all four clasped together on Julien’s lower back. Azune and Julien’s eyes have been closed for a while, and Hal is starring off somewhere far back in time. Each clap of thunder sends a wave of involuntary shakes through the three men strong enough for he and Wick to feel. 

Occtis had awoken, moments ago, to Julien’s hair creeping down his throat. He does not need to breathe, yet he certainly feels when things are in places they should in fact not be. After sputtering like a cat he realized Julien had him entirely surrounded. The knight’s arms were clasped behind Occtis’s back, and long pale legs extended along either side of more olive-grey toned ones, pinning them together. It had taken Hal a few minutes after he came to to realize that one of his boys was missing. 

After prying Julien off of Occtis and getting the man to sit at the foot of the bed while Hal woke Azune up, Occtis crawled up and over toward his newly realized twin. Wicander, a hopeful fool and trusting to a fault, had wormed his way into the space that used to be Occtis’s heart. (Hal and the other two had as well. Julien was the first man he ever said he loved who said it back. Azune understands Occtis’s wants and needs better than anyone he’s ever met. And Hal . . . Hal keeps them all together and takes such good care of them.) So there he sat, feeling powerless to help the soldiers in his life escape an enemy they cannot attack or charm into submission. 

“I think I have an idea.” Wick whispers in his ear as he rests his chin on Occtis’s shoulder and loops long arms around his middle, and the gentle whisper of breath warms Occtis’s chilled skin. 

Occtis turns his head and pecks Wicander on the cheek, “What do you have in mind, angel?” 

“Oh, you’ve already figured it out!” Wick smiles and Occtis silently mourns as the man’s warmth slides from behind him. Soft footfalls on the shag rug signal that Wick is walking to the foot of the bed. 

He clears his throat, “Hal, Julien, Az? I have an idea that I think could help. Would you be willing to try?” 

Julien nods his head vigorously against Azune’s chest, shifting the hair that began to stick to the Arcane Marshal’s chest from tears. Azune begins to sit up and help Julien sit up against his chest, rather than responding. Hal just breathes out a quiet, “Yes, dear boy.” 

Occtis watches as Wicander arranges the soldiers on the enormous bed; Hal is still behind Julien and Azune, arms around the boys’ shoulders, while Azune and Julien sit criss-cross next to each other. A giggle he can’t stop sneaks out as Wick turns to take his shirt off and all three of the terrified men’s eyes grow wide for a different reason. 

“None of that now. And these are still pretty new, so you guys have to be gentle. Okay?” Wick calls, pulling the sleep shirt over his head. 

“What do you mean, boy?” Julien asks, voice only lightly quivering. 

The room grows brighter for a moment, just a moment, as wings burst from Wicander’s back. Luminous, fluffy, warm, and delicate feathers curling around him. Wick walks backwards until the familiar feeling of his calves hitting a bed signals the taught response to sit, wings spread out and available for Julien and Azune. One wing each. 

Occtis comes to sit on Wicks lap, straddling his thighs, and throws his arms over his shoulders, crossing right between the giant wings. “Jules . . .‘Zune, focus on the feathers. Be gentle and ground yourself. Hal, wanna do the same with your boys’ hair?” Occtis looks at Hal through his lashes, something he knows makes Hal want to do anything he asks. 

“Brilliant, boys.” Hal says, hands immediately in Julien and Azune’s hair. 

Occtis hums and smiles, one hand coming to the back of Wick’s head to play with teal waves. It always makes his day when Hal acknowledges his intelligence. He isn’t as strong as Azune and Julien, and he isn’t as kind as Wick. But he knows he is smart. 

The morning finds him coming out of his trance, still in Wick’s lap and sprawled on his chest. With wings away, Occtis notices the five of them fell like dominos in the night. Wick has one of Azune and Julien’s legs trapped under him, and Julien and Azune and laying in the divots of each of Hal’s hips. 

Occtis holds Wick’s face and kisses him awake; congratulates for successfully distracting the soldiers to sleep.

Alright, I am having so much fun and am probably done for today but no promises. Is this annoying anyone yet?

<3 Lichqueen

Today is a good day for hal's harem!

I love Occtis finding his place and people respecting how his brain works. Also I love that we had azune and the Einfasens xover with hals harem and now a hals harem with Wick With Wings one.

(Also random fun fact if you try to swipe-type headcanons sometimes you get Jeanine instead. That was a perplexing typo to see when reading back what I'd written lol)

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Oh man, let's see what I've got and encourage other people to toss in too.

Hal sleeping in and coming down stairs to see all his boys playing nicely, Azune happily cooking breakfast and so patiently trying to teach Wick how not burn sunny-side up eggs. Julien oddly still and focused because Occtis insisted that the knives needed sharpening. This was mostly so he could finish setting the table without the risk of getting groped and dropping things.

The first time Thaisha sees Vaelus without the veil takes her breath away, she ends up staring for a full minute and Vaelus had to lean in and kiss her to bring her back. It took months for her to learn about where each scar came from.

Bolaire bringing flowers over every Sunday morning before walking Hal down to the Round to see the rehearsals. He'd watched Hal's smile as he breathed each different bouquet in and over time has narrowed down to the ones that orc likes the smell of best without ever exchanging a word.

Kattigan stealing Murray away one weekend. She doesn't normally appreciate camping, but Kat had been scouting for a while and found a beautiful clearing near a clear pond, and several trips later had brought up a soft matt and sheets and set up a small cooking pit. They fuck in the waterfall and fall asleep looking up at the stars and it's the best sleep Murray has gotten in a year.

Occtis collecting feathers from Wick's wings and the tiny glittler like scales that sometimes fall when Azune is brushing his hair and working with Kattigan to make little charms for the members of the party that have to leave the city. Each one has a little bit of pixie dust spread over it before it's given out.

Azune traveling with Julien to un-curse Alba. Julien as Azune's shadow as they search for Mayali. Alba and Mayali becoming best friends and looking out for those brothers of theirs.

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Okay so take this with like a LARGE grain of salt because I do NOT have EDS (nor am I a medical professional) but here are my vibes about why I associate EDS with Occtis.

It's not even exactly the 'body doesn't work quite right' but it's that in a way of 'my body does things that it's not supposed to do'. And it does them in a way that's not immediately obvious but if someone Perceives Me too much it's just enough to seem... just a little odd and off-putting to people even when they can't quite put their finger on why?

And the way he tries hard to hide it? Like yeah he CAN do some things that Normal Bodies can do but he'll pay for it later. And how he turns away from others to try and tend to his body in private, while in public he kinda will dead-pan jokes about it? It reminds me of the whole 'hey look at this party trick I can do' thing.

Plus (AND AGAIN I AM NOT A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL THIS IS VIBES FROM PEOPLE I KNOW AND THE OCCASIONAL UNCONTROLABLE URGE TO READ MEDICAL JOURNALS) you know what tends to go hand in hand with EDS? oh I don't know,

anxiety (which admittedly was more of a problem for Occtis before)

NEUROPATHY for the boy who doesn't feel sensations as strongly

chronic fatigue / sleep disorders for the boy who no longer sleeps and gave us the gut punching line of "I just have't been tired. Or I'm always tired. I don't know which one."

POTS, also very applicable to his general being

Being ND. I will just gesture to all of him here.

Trans. Unsure if that's just the ND pulling that in or not.

I'm sure someone who wanted to take more than like 30 seconds could come up with a more concrete list of examples but it's hot as fuck today and I don't have AC and I can't be bothered to think.

But yeah, I think it's a really cool juxtaposition to have actually because it shows that autism (and other neurodivergences too!) isn't a monolith and that it doesn't have to present in just one stereotypical way.

Anyways I love all my neurodivergent kings. And as an AuDHDer, it absolutely tracks that two of my favorite ships are that ADHD x autistic couple lmao

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Fist bump of AuDHD solidarity my friend.

- puzzle

Yes, this, AND I just realized we can add another... Can you tell if someone is kissing you vs Azune using alter self.

Bonus points if these are self-inflicted games.

Julien refuses to believe his shadow can control him that much even when Thjazi is yanking him around by the hair, recruiting both [insert your favorite Julien pairing] and Aranessa for blind tasting kissing to verify.

Azune is practicing for undercover work and needs pointers from people who can kiss someone and then kiss him to tell him what the diffences are and how he can mimic them better.

(maybe he'll trade out the thigh high boots for regular shoes and Julien will get a glimpse of his ankles next - honestly though I am kind of obsessed with canonical whore (affectionate) Julien Davinos being made weak by just barely an inch of exposed skin like it's victorian times idk why but it feels appropriate somehow)

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Julien crushing on... everyone.

I'm not sure if this entire scenario is funnier if Occits is 100% aware of the reaction he's causing.... or completely unware.