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posts done, will get to PMs tomorrow!
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𝐃𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐭

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Feeling nothing but grass and branches under his palm, the mounting ire of withdrawal eventually shook Duncan from his stupor. With a groan and much more effort than it should've taken, he opened his eyes to a mess of slanted branch and bush. Realization didn't hit him, it seeped into his blurry mind like water to a rag. So it... hadn't been a dream? Everything hurt, worse than a dozen instances of post-practice soreness and hangover combined, so probably not. He'd probably actually fought a bear.

Duncan's eyes trailed from the makeshift ceiling, still unable to focus, and he startled the second he realized he wasn't alone.

"... Babe?!" he asked once her features registered, voice rife with surprise and relief. He hadn't seen her during that entire fight, and hadn't known if that meant she was safe, or dead. Looking at her now, she almost seemed to be in pain for a moment - but then she pulled out his cigs, and Duncan forgot all about everything else. His throat burned from the need of them. He knew they'd help with the headache, too. They always did. Reflexively, Duncan reached for the box, only for her to pull it away; he sight of a lifesaver yanked from someone about to drown. Why?! Screw food and drink! Brows furrowed, he slurred: "Babe, I... need t-"

It took so long for him to form a sentence, that by the time he remembered what letter came next, he'd already gotten company. Maki. Daisuke. They joined Haruko by his side, and gradually, his mind anchored into the moment. He was poked with a foot and grabbed by the shoulders, and though every touch against sore muscles made him ache even worse, he was glad. Glad to be able to feel pain at all; glad Maki and Daisuke were alive to cause it. The last he'd seen of Maki among the chaos, she'd looked rough. And Daisuke... well, Duncan was less worried about him. No way the dude'd die before he'd beaten him at least once.

"Bro, what?" Duncan tried to laugh, but it came out a cough. Talking was already easier, though. "'Course I can chew, I'm... just tired, not like... teethless and old, or somethin'." He reached for the plate, not having realized how hungry he was before he could smell the meat. He didn't even think to question where it came from. In between laboured bites - and a glance at Haruko; look, he was eating now, okay! - he looked around as if in search for something.

"Hey... where's Yuki?" he chewed. It only hurt a little. "And, uh," he almost didn't want to ask - they did hang out in completely different circles for a reason - but he had to, weird as it might sound. "Where's Asahi?" Feeling clearer with each bite swallowed, Duncan's eyes trailed back down to his own body. By the time he saw his own torso, he remembered. "Where the fuck are my guts?!"

What he meant to ask was "what happened to them, weren't they literally hanging out of my goddamn chest," but in his current state, more-so than usual, eloquence was neither his strong suit nor his priority.
<Snipped quote by Vertigo>
Hmm. Considering all those options could be accomplished veer the Shadow Magic move, I'm going to assume 'no'.

Oh shit, I forgot about the Shadow Magic move. Makes sense then.

Magic hat for items it is! Will see if I go with that or the upgrade to Studying Someone, that seems like it'd be narratively cool too. Gonna settle on one before my next post at least.
Oh Epyllion.

And alright! Was mostly thinking in terms like... okay I don't actually have a good example thought up, but like if someone was all "I need help flying over there" would the Darkness grant temporary flight for a price? Or if someone went "I need them to leave me alone" would the Darkness hurt the drake being talked about to keep them away? Or "I need a friend" = bam the Darkness just turned someone into a friend via shadow corruption stuff!

These are not Fellwing examples, ha, just my tired 2AM brain ones.
Thinking of grabbing Wyrmtongue for the advancement (definitely grabbing a move regardless).

WYRMTONGUE: Return a Gem and ask the Darkness for something you need. The DM will tell you what it costs. If you pay the price, the Darkness will deliver it.

Question though, does the "something you need" and "deliver it" mean like... a physical thing, like an object, or also more abstract things?
𝐹𝑒𝓁𝓁𝓌𝒾𝓃𝑔

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Fellwing did have to admit that at least this once, teamwork truly did help their cause. Much faster than she'd expected, the ground under them turned solid the way it had in her vision, with familiar vines looming wherever they looked. They made her feel uneasy. Who was to say they weren't going to end up entangled like the very dragons they were here to save?

"Be careful," she whispered, more out of habit than necessity. No one was going to go near the thorns on purpose, she wagered.

Just then, she heard something. Wings still glued to her sides, Fellwing craned her neck towards the sound, eyes wide from disbelief. She hadn't heard old Endora's voice in what felt like ages, but there was no mistaking it. She'd spent countless hours listening to her, and even now, in this moon-forsaken place, her voice filled the young drake with relief.

No. She quickly shook away that thought. Any relief she felt was misplaced. Endora could not be here, and as far as Fellwing was aware, the old dragon didn't have the magic to communicate from far away. Surely, if that was something the Moons - or indeed, the Darkness - could grant her, she would've told her years ago.

But then, how...? Eyes narrow, Fellwing walked a few steps past Stargaze, who'd been leading the way, and surveyed the area. Were they no longer alone? Had someone - something - spotted them? Or could it really be...

Just in case, she leaned closer to the others and asked, hesitant: "Did... did you hear that?"

𝕷𝖊𝖔𝖓𝖎𝖉 𝕾𝖞𝖑𝖒𝖆𝖗𝖊
mentions:@Serei2477, @Click This, @ambra, @zombehs
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Leon wasn't sure what sort of reaction he'd expected from the girl. Perhaps a passing, hungry look, or a glint in the corner of her eye at the thought of such a delicacy existing within reach. Leon had known hunger; he knew the spark the mere mention of food could ignite, and this girl looked, frankly, famished. Was she?

... The jury was still out on that one, but she certainly had dealt with nobles before. Leon was taken aback by her answer, smooth yet sharp, and it took him a few seconds too many to conceal it.

"First dibs?" he laughed, first genuinely nervous, then somewhat-less-genuinely amused. The way he'd been taught. "Come now, I'm not-- suggesting we eat it raw," he managed to wrinkle his nose as if the thought alone was preposterous, and gave the girl a look that bordered on pity - the kind a noble ought to give someone like her.

Someone like us.

"I was merely... making an observation, in case you'd never seen one before, and weren't in the know. Nothing mor-" He'd just found his rhythm and tone when Alphonse cut in with a dose of convenient curiosity, and made Leon scramble for a proper face to pull again. What was he even supposed to say to that, except-- "For Yhirel's sake, no one's eating it, petals or no! I wasn't--"

He was cut off again, though this time the timing couldn't have been more perfect. Yhirel bless, he could have kissed whoever it was that strode over to them - except it was the Galbian princess.

Startled by the sudden proximity of someone important enough for him to remember, Leon stepped away like she stank. His gaze trailed to what she was cooing at, and quickly realized it was the baby wyvern. His brow quirked. Really? Yeah, sure, the baby lizard was cute and all, but to go this crazy over it? Wasn't she-- wasn't she concerned about how she came across? Then again, royalty probably didn't need to be. All they had to do was be born, and the world would cater to them regardless.

Speaking of people used to being catered to - Leon raised his gaze from Sherry's antics only to startle out of his wits. A yet another soul dead-set on making him suffer had joined the fray. Leonid didn't recognize her, but she was the quintessential noble; prim, proper - insufferable. Oh, and definitely dangerous. Leon could see the glint in her eye, like a feline toying with a prey before the kill. All of a sudden, their silly little flower debate felt like a matter of life and death.

Leon decided then and there that if he didn't want someone finding out his ruse, it was definitely her.

"Well now, wasn't aware the fine folks of house Ciran had such bleeding hearts! Wish I could say the same about myself, truly, but regretfully I care more about my health than a potential insult towards a lowborn. I mean, have you any idea the amount of diseases they may carry?" Leon shook his head to accentuate his point, even as his own skin prickled from the insults. He didn't even dare look towards the blue-haired girl. She'd really gotten the short end of the stick here, huh. "The girl will live. I'm sure she's been through worse than a refused gift."

Like, you know, his whole spiel just now.

Stubbornly, and hopefully more casually than it felt, Leon held eye contact with the Ciran girl for as long as she did - only to practically heave a sigh of relief when she looked away. That was definitely his cue. "Well, I enjoyed all this floral discourse immensely, but we are holding up the tour. So if you'll excuse me--" With a quick bow, Leon whirled around on his heels, quitting their impromptu floral club before it attracted any more members.

Please, Yhirel, let the other half of the house be normal.
Garrock just wants some semblance of empathy at this point. He's tired, feels the group want rid of him and just wants to feel that someone in the group doesn't hate or want rid of him.


Oh noooo, Garrock ),:

Probably makes sense for me to go again for the other group, will do it tonight when I get a chance to write again. Also err, failed a Survey the Area roll, rip. But so, just to check, does the 4 I rolled for the mystery roll count as a miss? Cause if so, that's 5 exp and an advancement at least, so I'll pick something tonight. If not, disregard this!
Here we go!

𝐃𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐭

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Something reeked.

Duncan groaned, eyes opening to the flickering of a light bulb on its last legs. Recognition struck him; right, he should've replaced the damn thing ages ago. But he'd needed to spend the money on other shit, or else people would start to suspect something. Now, lying on the floor on his back, he couldn't remembered what he'd bought - or why he was home.

The room was stuffy, overlaid with a grey veil. Smoke. Not the kind that meant there was a fire, though the way teachers kept jumping on his case over a single cigarette made it seem like this smoke was even worse. Something rolled on the floor, bumping against the side of Duncan's head. Annoyed, he sat up and swiped the empty bottle from the floor. "That fucking geezer..."

He stood, and found another bottle. Then another, and another a little ways away. Somewhere along the way, he'd gotten a bag in his hand. The bottles clanged as they fell in. There was some money in them, at least; maybe he could finally replace that light bulb.

"Dad!" Duncan shouted, annoyed, voice higher than he expected. He wandered deeper into the house that seemed to grow larger with every step. His vision was dark at the edges, obscuring all the details that didn't matter - and even those that did. His father, as he appeared in the doorway, was nothing more than a dark outline. At the sight of him, Duncan stopped. He couldn't remember why he'd tried to find him so badly. Usually he avoided the old man when he smelled like this.

He took a quick step back, and with a blink, everything went black - then grey. He didn't smell the alcohol anymore, just the smoke. And this time, somewhere in the pit of his stomach, he felt fire.

-

Wherever Duncan's unconscious body lay, he stirred. His fingers moved even before his eyelids did, fumbling around as if in search for something. He had no idea how much time had passed, where he was, or with who. He'd barely realized he was still alive.

But he did know he needed a drag, and bad.
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