Trash Panda

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Nice xD That post ended up being longer than I expected. The dialogue went a much different direction than I'd originally planned, but I like how it turned out

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“Crow, is that you?” Evelyn stared at him with squinted eyes as she took in the sight of his uniform. He shifted his weight awkwardly. Now was the moment when he would find out if one of the few people he respected in the world would approve or be disappointed in the decision he’d made to become Albin’s viceroy.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” he smiled at her sheepishly.

“Considering your usual patterns, it doesn’t surprise me,” a glimmer of amusement entered the tavern keeper’s eyes as she looked him over. “I have to ask, though. What on earth are you wearing?”

He swallowed. “That’s, err, sort of why I’m here,” he started slowly. “A lot’s changed since the last time I was in Silverpool…” And he filled her in on everything that had happened over the last few months. First, he told her about Jaxon and how he had allied himself with the knights to stop the murderous thief from handing the war to Younis; he explained that during the last fight, he’d been almost fatally wounded and had to recover in the battalion’s camp; then he relayed how a knight from the inner kingdom had sought him out to bring him back to the castle, where he met with the king of Brerra and was offered the position of viceroy. By the end, he confessed that he’d taken the deal and fell quiet as he studied the old woman’s face in wait to hear her thoughts on it all.

At first Evelyn said nothing while she processed the heap of news he’d just dropped on her. Then, she shook her head slowly. “Who would have thought our resident thief would be taken in by the king himself?” she mused with an incredulous chuckle. “You really do know how to get everything you want, don’t you, you rascal?”

“I wouldn’t say this is something I’ve always dreamed of having,” he smiled back at her, relieved that she didn’t seem disgusted with him for choosing noble life. “The offer came out of nowhere too.”

“Did it really?” Evelyn’s expression turned into a knowing one.

He furrowed his brows, “What do you mean?”

“Last year, when that courier gave me a letter to hold onto for you, I may have snooped,” the tavern keeper revealed with a sly wink.

“Evelyn!” Crow gawked at her, shocked that she’d invaded his privacy. “How much did you know?”

“Enough to realize that I’ve been giving free drinks to royalty for years without getting anything in return,” she huffed with mock irritableness and then rested a hand on his shoulder when he rolled his eyes at her. “I didn’t know the exact terms of the offer the king was planning to give you, but I’m glad it all worked out for the best, Crow.”

“If you knew all along, then why didn’t you say anything?” he asked with a frown.

“It wasn’t my place,” Evelyn answered simply. “Whether or not you opened that letter was your decision. Confronting your father was your choice to make as well. I didn’t want to influence you one way or the other.”

“So… you’re not disappointed that I chose to take the title?”

“Not at all. I’m sure you’re going to make a great viceroy. I must admit that I’m a little confused as to why you took the title if you didn’t want it though.”

“Penelope,” Crow summed the answer up in one word. “Do you remember her? The woman I was with a little over two years ago… She’s actually a knight, and now that I’m a nobleman, we’re finally going to be married.”

“Ah, of course,” she smirked amusedly. “I’d almost forgotten what a romantic you’ve turned into.”

“Shut up,” he snorted, turning slightly red.

The tavern keeper chuckled again, “I’m happy for you. It’s about time you got that girl you’ve been after for so long. I assume I won’t be able to make it to the wedding if it’s set to happen in the inner kingdom, but I wish the two of you a long and happy marriage.”

“Thank you,” he said appreciatively, warmed by her support.

“Now then,” a cunning look took over Evelyn’s aging features as she looked past his shoulder. “Why don’t you have a seat with those knights you brought with you and I’ll fetch you all something to drink? Noble travelers always bring in lots of money.”

--

Hazel shrugged when Penelope turned down her offer to share their stew, “Suit yourself.” They did have enough to feed an extra person, but she didn’t want to pressure the knight to stay if she was trying to get back to her battalion. Besides, she was right that they would need to leave quickly after they ate in order to make sure they had as much time with Crow as possible before he crossed the border. She was sure they were going to have plenty of catching up to do.

“It’s hard to imagine Crow with a baron,” Alistair mused with a shudder. “I’ll have to make sure he hasn’t changed too much when we see him later!”

“He’s probably surrounded with barons now, dumbass,” Hazel rolled her eyes. Secretly, though, she was a little curious to find out if the thief they all knew and loved had changed since he’d moved into the castle. Power had a way of corrupting people, so it would give her some peace of mind to see that he was the same man he’d been when he’d left. Turning back to Penelope, she returned the lieutenant’s smile, “It was good to see you too. Be safe on your way back. The war isn’t over yet.”

“And tell Olivia I miss her when you get back,” Alistair chimed in.

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

Okay, just checking! I'm still down for that too. It would be super interesting. We'll just have to figure out the best timing to throw it in

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

“I’ll do my best,” Alex promised grandly, lifting her glass to down another swig of her cocktail. Feeling the effects of the liquor already, she knew she needed to slow down, but it was difficult to remember that little detail when she was trying to flirt with a stranger at the same time. If he offered to buy her any more drinks later, she would just have to hope she would be responsible enough to turn them down. Overindulging was safer at the abandoned law firm, where she was surrounded only by people she knew and trusted.

When Daniel complimented her, she was a little surprised by the butterflies she felt in her stomach. It was hard to tell if the alcohol she’d been drinking had anything to do with the reaction, but either way, she liked hearing that he thought she was beautiful. His wandering eyes had already told her the same thing, but there was something different about listening to the words be spoken aloud. The debonair businessman with the Rolex watch was ditching a party because he wanted to talk to her at the counter. She couldn’t help but feel like she’d won the wealthy bachelor lottery. And who wouldn’t be excited to win a lottery?

Her olive eyes dropped briefly to his shoulder as she noticed that he was getting a little bolder. He was so close now that the sleeve of his shirt almost brushed against the bare, dusky skin of her arm. She wondered if the fabric was as soft as the high thread count made it look. “I’ll go with ‘or not,’” she mused, looking back up to meet his gaze without moving from her spot. His proximity didn’t make her cringe like Chad’s had. “I find it hard to believe that a guy like you isn’t invited to parties every weekend. Your kind is the reason why girls show up to any parties in the first place… I bet they fucking fight over you when you’re not looking.”

As Daniel went on to talk about fate, her smile wavered ever so slightly. She knew he was just bantering with her, but it was impossible for her to totally hide her flinch when the word was spoken. She had a particularly hateful relationship with “fate” after everything that had happened three years ago, and she preferred not to entertain the idea that it could exist. She had to be in control of her own life, because if there was something else out there pulling the strings, there was every chance that she was going to have a short and miserable existence.

“Yeah… fate and I don’t really get along,” she shook her head, staring down at her drink with a smile still painted on her face to minimize the cryptic aura of the statement. “If you really have to give this encounter a cheesy name, let’s just call it a meet-cute.” Attempting to lighten the mood before he could ask about her odd response to his joke, she looked up at him again and sipped her cocktail. “Handsome man leaves engagement party to save beautiful woman from a raging dickhead. All we need is a cliché romantic tragedy and we have ourselves the plot of the next hit Hallmark special.”

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Finally got a post up too!

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Caspian nodded appreciatively when Iris said he could talk to her too. He knew he could, but he was still getting used to the idea of relying on anyone else in general—in an emotional sense, specifically. Even though he’d lived his whole life with servants who would wait on him hand and foot, he’d never had a confidante to whom he could go if he was ever struggling with something. He was supposed to be able to handle his own personal problems by himself, since he was supposed to be the next king. His father had made it very clear that it was expected of him. Because of that, he’d subconsciously gotten used to keeping quiet when something was bothering him. He truly did want to take Iris up on her offer, but he was still figuring out how to do it.

When she assured him that they would probably find a place to take shelter before dusk, he was relieved. “I can handle an hour,” he said as he stepped over a lengthy root that protruded from the ground beneath his feet. After the ridiculously long day they’d had, he would have preferred to stop sooner, but he wasn’t going to give up on sleeping inside a building just because he was a little sore. When they got to the next district, he could rest for as long as he wanted anyway. Now that they were no longer in any rush to get to the capital, they didn’t have to leave at the crack of dawn to keep going. He could actually sleep in for once. The thought was enticing enough to propel him forward as they followed the road at the edge of the woods.

Her following suggestion brought a smile to his lips. In retrospect, it was kind of funny that they didn’t know any of the minor but obvious details about each other. He didn’t usually talk about things like his favorite color though. The media in the capital already published information about his tastes in absurd articles like “Are You Compatible Enough to be a Princess?” or “Going to a Ball? Wear THIS to Get the Prince to Notice You!” By now, he was sure that practically every high born in Aspiria knew all the answers to the questions people generally asked each other on a first date.

“It’s red, if you were wondering,” he chuckled, casting her an amused look. “What’s yours?” Although it was new to him, he found it kind of fun to talk to her about his likes and dislikes. For a moment, he wasn’t the crown prince of the country; he was just a man getting to know a woman. Her next suggestion caught him by surprise though, and he blinked as she requested to hear some embarrassing stories.

“What if you don’t remember any?” he objected, letting go of her hand to poke her teasingly in the side. “It won’t be fair if you hear about all the stupid things I’ve done and don’t give me anything in return. Why should I make an ass of myself when you might get off scot-free?”

Meyers Briggs

I'm not sure if anyone is still checking this thread based on the date of the last reply, but I'm very into psychology and talk about this sort of stuff all the time with my friends in real life, so I thought I'd hop on.

I have to echo what Zyshi said about people "typing" as the personality they most admire or wish they were. Additionally, I agree that categorizing human personalities is difficult because there are so many factors that can change the way we behave. For example, I type as an ENTP (Debater) when I take the Myers Briggs test, but I don't always behave that way depending on what's going on in my life. What I don't like about the Myers Briggs is that it gives you no wiggle room to account for the fluidity of human nature. Instead, it puts you into one of 16 boxes and assumes you'll always behave the same way. People are simply too complex for that.

As an alternative, I highly prefer the enneagram. It's a personality diagram that was created about 1600 years ago and has proven accurate for every single person I know who's taken it. What's great about it is that instead of listing the behaviors of the 9 personality types it includes, it pegs each type's greatest motivations and fears, to which every person will respond differently because we're all different people. It also accounts for behavioral fluidity by describing the way each type may act when they're feeling emotionally stressed or secure or if they're immature or mature people. There's plenty of wiggle room for "context" because it was created as a tool to help people grow. I also use it as a reference when I make characters for roleplays because it helps me make them more realistic and unlike myself :)

It could be interesting if your friends who all typed as INTJs on the Myers Briggs turned out to be different types on the enneagram. After all, two people can act the same way but have very different motivations for doing the things they do. You could just be right about the fact that people tend to be drawn to others who are like them.

Anyway, I know it was slightly off topic, but that's my two cents on the Myers Briggs' reliability.

@Thrash Panda

~Bonsoir~

When Victoria suggested hopefully that the Saints in question may have survived the attack, Vail averted his gaze as if the bookcase in the room was suddenly interesting. He didn’t share in her optimism. When they’d fled from the Crest manor, the Wynters had been furious that their blood source had been taken away from them. He had no doubt that the vampire clan would take out their wrath on anyone who was misfortunate enough to have been left behind. If Gerald or Ray had survived, it would have been a miracle, but since no one had heard from them in a week, he suspected they hadn’t been so lucky.

So, as Diana changed the subject, he was grateful. He also agreed with her sentiment that Victoria looked stunning as a vampire. She had already been striking as a human, but now her beautiful features had been enhanced by the immortal blood that flowed through her veins. Her porcelain skin was flawless, her hair more thick and silky, and the amethyst color that had taken over her irises made her stand out in a room. Unlike her mother, he even liked the way her fledgling fangs looked against the curve of her ruby lips. With her newfound features, she was mesmerizing by both human and vampire standards alike.

Once Diana had left the room, Vail stepped back over to Victoria’s bedside and sat down in his chair, taking her outstretched hand in his. In response to her query, he sighed and gently stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. He had wanted to wait until she recovered a bit more before he told her about all the events she’d missed while she had been turning, but if she wanted to know now, there was no point in hiding it. She was bound to find out about the fate of his family anyway.

“Your family’s estate wasn’t the only one that was attacked last week,” he revealed, studying her bright eyes as a way to detach emotionally while he relayed the news. “While we were luring the Wynters to the Crest manor, one of them—the man with the long, white hair—separated from the pack and murdered more than half of my clan. The attack caught them by surprise, so they were unprepared to defend themselves and many were killed. According to my mother, my father eventually managed to run the Wynter off, and those who survived fled London together. By the time I found them the next day, they were taking refuge on a farm outside the city.”

Adjusting his weight on his seat, he leaned forward to rest his arms on the edge of the mattress without letting go of her hand. “I brought them here, and they’re currently residing in the summer house. Physically, most of them are faring alright. My father was the one who came off the worst. The Wynter severed his left leg, so he’s been permanently crippled, and he seems to have lost the will to fight back… or even take care of himself for that matter.” He frowned as he thought on it. Since they had arrived in Scotland, Peter had yet to hunt to replenish his strength. He was living off solid food and water along with rabbit blood that was brought to him by his nephews about every other day. Without any nourishment from human beings in over a week, he had become lethargic and spent most of his time sleeping. None of the servants that worked at the estate could go near the summer house either because the mere scent of them would send the starving vampire into a rabid frenzy. He was equally as dangerous as he was sickly.

“My mother and I are still sorting out what to do from here, since it isn’t safe for any of us to return to England,” he finished, absentmindedly brushing a stray lock of hair behind Victoria’s ear.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Thanks xD It would be stressful if I always doubled, but I don't mind doing it every once in a while. It's fun to write for Hazel again

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“Did you actually want to visit this place because of the drinks?” Nadia asked as she, Crow and Rayner approached the Black Dagger.

“In part,” the viceroy replied vaguely. He didn’t want to tell her about Evelyn before they got inside the building. Knowing his half-sister, she would just pester him for more information, wanting to learn more about the tavern keeper he was going out of his way to visit near the border. Although he didn’t think she would be rude to the older woman, he was already out of his comfort zone by showing up to Silverpool in a full nobleman ensemble. He preferred to be the one to tell Evelyn about everything that had happened in his life recently without any input or questions from the princess. It would be easier to slip away from her if she didn’t know about his old acquaintance in advance.

Stepping inside the tavern, he was greeted by the hum of voices and the scent of musty wood and liquor. Almost immediately after, he felt a twinge of discomfort. The peasant patrons in the room were already beginning to glance his way and whisper as they took notice. Most of the people in Silverpool knew him to some degree, so he would have been more shocked if they hadn’t recognized him. Their baffled stares made him draw a steeling breath, acclimating to the fact that word of his appearance would spread through the outer villages like wildfire. He just tried not to dwell on the rumors that he knew would travel along with the news that he was passing through in the company of decorated knights. Hopefully the things he planned to say to the keeper would help to offset the worst of the gossip at least a little.

Catching sight of the very person he was looking for across the tavern, he turned back to Naida and Rayner, “You two should go and get a table for us. I’ll join you in a moment.”

“What are you going to do?” Naida frowned.

“I just need to talk to someone alone,” he answered.

“Why?” the princess pressed.

“Don’t be nosy,” he rolled his eyes, prodding her in the side. “It doesn’t have anything to do with you if that’s what you’re concerned about. I’ll meet you both at a table when I’m done.”

Naida was quiet for a moment as she seemed to contemplate pushing her luck again, but ultimately decided against it. “Okay,” she sighed exaggeratedly. “Just don’t keep us waiting too long or else Otto might come looking for us, and I don’t think he’ll leave you to talk to your friend alone.”

“I’ll make it as quick as I can,” he assured her.

While the knights took a seat at a nearby table, the former thief made his way through the center of the room towards Evelyn, who didn’t seem to have noticed him as she gave directions to one of the serving wenches. His heart raced with a mixture of eagerness and apprehension, and he reached up to tap her on the shoulder, bracing himself for whatever her reaction might be as she turned around.

--

Penelope’s reply that Crow was in Silverpool cleared up nothing for Hazel. She took on a puzzled expression as Alistair questioned the knight about it, equally confused by the revelation. However, as she went on, the herbalist gathered that quite a lot had happened since the last time they’d received word from the new viceroy. All of it was good news too. Like the rest of the villagers, she and the two thieves had been longing to see the war finally end, so if it was really happening soon, she was relieved. She could see that Rikki was focusing on a different part of the message though.

Glancing her way, Hazel noticed the female thief’s shoulder fall slightly when Penelope relayed that Crow was on his way to Younis. She could guess that she was disappointed that he hadn’t stopped by to see them in person rather than sending the lieutenant in his place. Subtly, she reached out to give Rikki’s hand a squeeze in silent reassurance. She hoped the heartbroken woman would move on soon, since it was apparent that she could never have the man her heart pined for.

Turning back to Penelope, she was about to thank her for sharing the news with them when the lieutenant added that Crow had sent her to give them the location of a meeting point to see them. That brightened both of the thieves up considerably. “Fallen tree?” she echoed curiously.

“He has to mean that big one in the middle of the woods to the west,” Alistair’s eyes widened. “You know the one I’m talking about, right, Rikki?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, seeming dazed. “It’s impossible to miss it.”

Hazel’s eyes danced between the two of them. She wasn’t sure what they were referring to, but as long as they knew where the meeting point was, that was all that mattered. “Well, thank you for coming all this way to tell us,” she said to Penelope. “We’ve all been hoping for a chance to see him again.” In the next moment, another thought crossed her mind, and she added: “Are you hungry? I just made stew for everyone, and we should have enough to feed one extra mouth if you need something to eat after coming all the way here.”