PHANTOM STARS

[lightholdcr]

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𝟶𝟷. 𝚒𝚗𝚍. 𝙑𝙀𝙍𝙎𝙊 𝚘𝚏 𝘾𝙇𝘼𝙄𝙍 𝙊𝘽𝙎𝘾𝙐𝙍: 𝙀𝙓𝙋𝙀𝘿𝙄𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 33. 𝚙𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚔𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝟶𝟸. 𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍, 𝚊𝚙𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚒𝚎𝚜! 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚌𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚗-𝚍𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚝. 𝟶𝟹. 𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚗𝚘 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚜 / 𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎. 𝚌𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 / 𝚘𝚌 / 𝚍𝚞𝚙𝚕𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚕𝚢! 𝟶𝟺. 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚍 / 𝚙𝚜𝚍 𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚝 / 𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝 / 𝚒𝚌 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚝𝚜 / 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚜

[lightholdcr]

taking just a lil breather from verso rn to ponder some horror characters and ocs bc Weirdly that is my comfort shit

[lightholdcr]

verso's always in trouble with people (deserved) and i love that for us

[hauntedcartridges]

EXPEDITION 33 CHARM PREORDERS

💫 SHOP + DETAILS

running from 07/05 - 07/19

💫 clear acrylic 2.5 inch double-sided charms

💫 available: sophie, verso, maelle, sciel, gustave, lune, monoco & esquie

💫 made to order + ships internationally

[lightholdcr]

lil sneak peaks at the charms below the cut!

the monoco and esquie ones need some polishing but yea :’) will think about doing the dessendre fam after i get this set out the door

[tristese]

@lightholdcr asked : ❝ you can be mad at me, i can take it. i'd rather you be angry than shut me out. ❞ / if i had a wife i'd let her hit me in the head with a pot etc

“you lied to me.”

fool. she’s a fool. how did she not see what was right in front of her? was she really that blinded by his charm, by the comfort and care that he gave her? is she mad at him, or is she mad at herself for falling for him?

angry tears threaten to spill, and she quickly wipes them away with the heels of her palms. she’s still trying to wrap her mind around everything; the paintress is gone, she and everyone else in lumiere died, and now, thanks to maelle - alicia? - she and lune are back.

and everything is fake, all a wonderland created by verso as a child and distorted by his mother’s grief. was everything a lie, then? every kiss, every secret shared between them, all leading to feelings that sciel might have called love. there had been hopes for them, for a future together; she’d imagined verso staying with her in lumiere, the two of them finding happiness that had been eluding them for so long.

she thought that was what verso wanted too.

“you hid everything from me, from maelle and lune. you knew we were wrong about the paintress. you knew every expedition before us was wrong, but you lied.” her voice cracks, and she has to take a step back to ground herself. she won’t let herself cry over this. she’s shed enough tears already. “were your feelings a lie too? was any of it ever real?”

[lightholdcr]

❝ i lied to you, ❞ verso echoes, quietly, holding her gaze with a stony acceptance. acceptance — like a man resigned to weather the storm head-on. something, anything. some kind of retribution he's had coming for a long time, now. but that's not what this is. this is not just rage. not hellfire raining down. not even true anger she levels at him. all of which would be easier to take. this hurt? it’s real, scalding. betrayal bleeding into her expression, from a heart once held out to him openly.

was it so unbelievable that she had really cared for you, too?

he knows — this hurt. he'd caused it. not just to sciel, but to all of them. it hardly mattered that death wasn’t really death. that they were all doomed in some way, from the start. — what could you possibly say? that you expected to lose them much earlier than this? that you had never intended to care for them, as much as you do?

❝ no — ❞ verso reacts a little too sharply, a hard flinch formed between his brow. a sting of regret. hand coming up between them, and reaching for her without thinking. but he catches himself quickly, reigns the raw feeling in. the ice under him is thin, the moment between them impossibly fragile. his expression folds into something softer, sorrier. ❝ … sciel. please. ❞

she steps back from him, and he lowers his hand, a little helplessly. ❝ everything — was real. i just — ❞ words that normally spin themselves for him so easily, now fall apart under the weight of trying to speak with some sort of honesty. her eyes, sharp with tears, pierce into him. catch him under the ribs — like the moments slipped between them under the starlight. like — there she was again, in the middle of it all — eye of his hurricane.

❝ … i couldn’t see another way, to save her. ❞ he sounds tired, even as he makes the excuse. because he cannot bring himself to regret pushing his mother from the canvas, or everything — everything, for the past several decades, falls apart. there was no other way. what he had to do was necessary. but he was cruel. allowing himself to get close to them — to her — was an act of selfishness.

he tries again, voice coming away rough, threadbare; ❝ i should have told you the truth. i... wanted to. ❞ but you couldn't. coward. she deserves better. and the truth? you fell without meaning to. effortless, and unintentionally, you fell on the feeling like a sword. that's how easy it was, with sciel. and the longer it went, the harder it became to conceptualize telling her the truth. the more insidious — the more monstrous he became, leading her by the hand through his lie. they had spoken about a future he had no intention of seeing.

part of him, sick to his stomach, wants to run. part of him wants to push her further away — say something worse. something cruel. like he has many times, to many people, before. and — he cannot bring himself to do that. he does not try to cross the distance to her. does not press for space. instead, he speaks honestly, with a painful gentleness; ❝ after all these years… after — everything, i’ve faced, alone. i… never saw you coming. that… is the truth. ❞ could never imagine it, or deserve it. when he looks up, finally, he’s searching for her eyes, searching for some place to meet in the middle. ❝ … i don't expect your forgiveness. but i would like to make it right — if you will allow me to. i’m sorry. ❞

[lightholdcr]

made me think of that one post like “guy who is touch starved and repressed goading u into punching him for completely normal reasons” etc

[lightholdcr]

i think about angel imagery verso the normal amount

[lightholdcr]

sorry i didn’t write this weekend my art braincell locked in. anyway some progress on the charms, hope to start on the other characters soon

[ohisms]

✱˚｡⋆ ↪ 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐒 . ( a collection of dialogue prompts based on varying types of demands &. requests . adjust phrasing as necessary . this prompt WILL likely be updated in the future . )

don't say a word .

don't leave me here .

meet me at our spot tonight .

follow me and stay close .

don't beg , it's pathetic .

can you ( tie / zip ) this for me ?

stop lying to me . tell me what you did .

put that down , you don't know what it ( is / does ) .

get out of my sight .

stop pretending you know what's going on .

find a first-aid kit . quickly !

don't get yourself killed .

leave them to me , just go .

just admit that you love me .

just admit that you hate me .

come here , let me look at you .

( name ) , don't make me do this .

drop your ( weapon ) .

stay here and wait for my signal .

don't just sit there , move .

take this and run , don't let anyone have it .

pretend you're my ( partner / girlfriend / boyfriend ) .

don't look , you'll give us away .

don't say another word .

stop pretending like you care .

go make sure the coast is clear .

take this with you . it's a good luck charm .

don't tell anyone about this .

if anybody asks about today , lie .

stop looking at me like that .

tell me you love me .

just kiss me , already .

keep your eyes on the road .

stop crying and calm down .

come with me . there's so much we could do .

wear the ( dress / tie / item ) i gave you tonight .

show me how you like to be touched .

hold my hand .

kiss me , make it look real .

look at me . how many fingers am i holding up ?

will you marry me ?

just slow down for a minute . what's going on ?

take a deep breath , you need to calm down .

get out of here , ( name ) !

draw your weapon .

go rest . i'm not asking .

take a step back .

give me a straight answer .

be polite to our guests .

look me in the eye and say that again .

put your feelings aside for a moment .

keep close to me .

here , let me see that .

look up at the sky .

get out of here , i don't want to see you right now .

stand up , this isn't over yet .

close your eyes and count to ten .

smile for the camera !

keep your head down .

( name ) , let me past .

listen carefully to what i'm about to say .

don't just stare , come in .

stop laughing , this isn't funny .

take this and hide it .

don't make a sound .

put your hands up .

quit causing problems everywhere you go .

just admit that you don't know what you're doing .

stop right there , i mean it .

don't say that name aloud .

just trust me , okay ?

stop acting so childish .

call the police . now .

tell me you love me , even if it's not real .

take a good hard look .

stop the car , ( name ) .

don't make eye contact .

stay out of trouble .

just do it already , we've waited long enough .

hold me tight , and never let me go .

finish what you started .

tell me what you know .

just stay away from me .

turn around . slowly .

don't be scared .

put it down before somebody gets hurt .

stop pretending , i'm tired of the pretending .

grab me my ( item ) , will you ?

don't make assumptions .

put this over it to stop the bleeding .

get to safety !

wipe that look off your face .

secure the area .

keep an eye on them .

look at yourself in the mirror .

run . run and don't stop .

eat . you haven't touched your food in days .

[lightholdcr]

guys don't worry i've finally created extremely basic tags,

[sweatermuppet]

men i would hold by the scruff of the neck & wash with dawn dish soap in the kitchen sink

[lightholdcr]

big fan of how clea dropped into the canvas three times. tried to kill verso the first time then tried to recruit him the second time and then just was like can you just watch the baby sister

[lightholdcr]

whenever someone's talking about verso and canvas verso is just standing in the background feeling weird because he's not the one they're talking about, not really. like im gonna throw up. bro standing there haunting the narrative. by existing.

[uneautrevies-a]

it is a difficult conversation , one sophie does not know how to approach or even begin. but she can not leave it to fester like an open wound , the need for truth gnawing at her when moments of silence settle upon them. she has to believe in him , that deceit is finished and only the truth remains. they've grown close over time after everything , she could consider verso a friend. but all of that hangs on his answer , and it's one sophie is afraid of. ❛ everyone seems to be in high spirits. ❜ she approaches , offering warm smile. ❛ it's good , to see maelle smile like that again. ❜ it does not ease the ache of loss , does not make her grief any less. but it does warm her , and maybe even lessens her worry for the younger. verso was not a replacement for gustave , he could never fill that space. but he had his place amongst the group , part of this family they had formed.

her next words to @lightholdcr are hesitant, lingering there on the tip of her tongue. she considers not asking , to let things rest as they are. but she can't. the desire to know outweighs everything else. ❛ verso , how long were you following us? ❜ tone a mixture of curiosity , but something underneath and between her words. ❛ could things have been different? could you have saved him? ❜ her next question is straight to the point , tumbling out before she can stop them. blue hues are unwavering in their gaze , arms cross chest to hold her own frame. she hopes for the truth , he owes her that , doesn't he ?

[lightholdcr]

he more-so feels the breeze move around her, than hears her approach. and verso hums an acknowledgement, offering her a subdued smile in return. welcoming her company. he follows sophie’s gaze over his shoulder — toward the others; their friends. faces warmed by the glow of the fire, laughing, joking. in this momentary lapse between the unrelenting dark — always hovering just on the edge of vision. like something painfully real slipping through the cold framework. bright and stinging.

you didn’t expect to feel this way again — foolish, and tangled in your own strings, wondering when it was you'd slipped, this time. heart threatening to hemorrhage out of your chest, for how much you care for them.

right now, sophie’s eyes bore into him with a soft-spoken grief. he can feel her hesitation, and her resolution. and still, there is that trust. still, she does not drive the question like a weapon. but oh, she could, couldn't she? and he would deserve it. but she only watches him — with that same pain she has carried in closed hands, from the moment he met her. suddenly he knows. he knows what she's going to ask.

arms fold across chest, and he turns his head just so. studies her quietly. she deserves to know.

❝ … since the beach. ❞ he begins, low, — honest; an implication of its own. his fingers tap an agitated rhythm against his arm. ❝ i... was there for maelle. i was the one who brought her to the curator. i kept my distance, until. ❞ verso pauses on a vaguely choking feeling. roughly clears his throat. ❝ — until the cliffs. ❞ until a moment so intentional in his callousness. a moment he cannot take back. a means he had felt, once, justified an end.

he’s heard so much about gustave, since then, from the others — so much that there’s this cloying feeling that he knows them, somehow. he didn't know gustave. but there’s a sort of mythos, verso knows — that comes from the act of loving someone, and losing them. how they're kept alive in the stories you tell, the needles of themselves they leave in your life.

gustave had people that loved them.

to verso, they had just been collateral damage. driving force. a trade for their trust.

now the quiet sits between them. and now she asks him what she really means to ask.

verso stares somewhere past the skyline. this guilt — creeping, and pressing, and consistent as his heartbeat. this gnarled thing unfurling out of its shallow grave — the way it always does. with the knowledge that things could have been different — if his choices had been different. something he shouldn’t be allowed to forget. not ever. with no resistance, verso lets the feeling take root. constricting, squeezing. the cool night air slips into him in a sharp breath. the dusk sky above them pulls him to clarity. for once, it feels like there is something solid as bedrock beneath his feet.

no more running, right?

quietly, his eyes lower, steeled for whatever comes after this.

❝ yes. ❞ he says, finally. his voice comes out like it’s coated in rust, scratched up. forced to move, forced to surface. ❝ i could have saved them. ❞ verso thought he was steady, until he wasn't. ❝ i’m sorry. ❞

[lightholdcr]

asking google some truly deranged questions for science: [adds 'writing reference' so my government assigned fbi agent doesn't get too concerned]

[lightholdcr]

@erasedstar said: flopped dramatically on verso's floor, legs kicked up in the air while she scribbles furiously in her little notepad, alicia frowns. "do you think her being able to slay dragons without the help of knights is ridiculous?" she glances up from her story notes, curious and eager for her brother's reaction. "they're there, too... but she's stronger!"

verso turns his eyes from his piano with a breath of a laugh. good-natured and indulgent. the sheet music he's been scribbling into all but forgotten, collected in one hand, resting atop a crossed leg. he tilts back slightly on his stool and regards her over his shoulder. fond and amused; it's good to see her so passionate about something.

❝ ... it sounds like you already know the answer to your question. what do you need me for? ❞ the upturn of his smile is gentle, infinite in his patience for his sister's dramatics. of which clea would surely blame his influence, anyway.

but she’s here asking his opinion — as she has many times before. ever since he read her her first story. and then, ever since she first picked up the pen for herself. verso can see the gears working behind her fiercely pensive look. so he gives a thoughtful hum, matching her serious look and tapping his pen against his jaw.

❝ well — why wouldn't she be able to? ❞ he queries, instead, earnest and un-pointed. brows arching in light question. ❝ does she have any experience in dragon-slaying? or does she seek to prove herself to her comrades? ❞ his true aim, of course, is allowing alicia the space to explore these prompts for herself. he had every faith she would come to a conclusion that suited her.

verso shifts himself around to face her now, to announce his full attentiveness to her conundrum. pen now turned idly between his fingers as he ponders alicia's story for himself. then, he poses it a different way; ❝ how about... start from the end, and work backwards. will she be fighting the dragon at the very end — or will she fight an even greater foe? ❞