CrashingPetals

A place to post my thoughts and fun little extras for my various writing projects <3

[lovecrashingpetals]

Orvar the Poison Arrow

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More Stormbrand snippets to lure you to my story ;D

“Good morning, Lady Svana,” Bolli greets in passing as they approach the new guild headquarters.  “A fine day, is it not?”

Svana pauses, sounding a bit surprised when she responds, “Yes.  Good morning, Bolli.”

As Bolli cheerfully continues on his way, Mallus rolls his eyes and prods her shoulder to remind her to keep walking.  She makes a sound in the back of her throat and mutters, “Mallus, that sounded almost friendly to you, didn’t it?”

She turns to catch his eye and he lifts an eyebrow at her, sarcastically replying, “Your fine-tuned ability to pick up on subtle intonations in verbiage and speech amazes me.”

Her surprise turns a bit irritated.  “I only meant that no one in this damned city has greeted me so nicely since I arrived,” she mutters at him, then sniffs and adds, “I was beginning to think that everyone in Riften lacked common manners.”

He shakes his head and quips, “No, you just aren’t that popular around here.”

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Stormbrand snippet:

“…You…didn’t mention this earlier,” she stumbles, meeting his eyes.  The table seems too large all of the sudden.  He seems so far away.  And it’s a jarring, confusing thought – so swift and sudden in its coming – but she finds herself wishing that he was closer.

Mallus traces a finger along the edge of his goblet and murmurs, “You didn’t ask.”

She falls silent once more, his words ringing through her head.

You didn’t ask.

What other things have been going on in Riften that she hadn’t bothered asking about?  What other things has she willfully blinded herself to – other things within Mallus’s own life that she had blatantly ignored? 

She stares at him.  His eyes are such a dark shade of blue, haunting almost, like shadows creeping across a darkened courtyard…there are flecks of light within them that she’s never seen before.  Never bothered to take notice of.

She breaks their stare.  His eyes are too consuming.  They might swallow her whole.

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Stormbrand Snippet

“…You…I don’t…understand,” he splutters, utterly speechless.

Svana smirks at him and pats his chest as she pulls away. 

“Don’t you?” she wonders, catching his eye with a simmering look.  His eyebrows jerk up a smidgen before furrowing.  The reaction would have been comical in any other circumstance, but as it is…

“Maven Black-Briar doesn’t own you,” she tells him.  “You are a Thane of Riften, not her puppet.”

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Mallus Maccius as vanilla Skyrim NPC vs Evolved!Mallus in Stormbrand

He's hot now and just look at that broody glare

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“I shouldn’t have thrown you into a dirty cesspool of water that’s likely riddled with disease and infection,” she mutters beneath her breath, testing out the words.

Nah.  Too direct.

“I’m sorry about that incident this morning when you ended up in the canal,” she tries, tapping the side of her face thoughtfully.

It definitely sounds too much like an apology.  Scratch that.

“Mmm…I regret shoving you into the canal without first warning you that I was going to do it,” she attempts, then adds, “Even though you deserved it.”

That sounds much better.  It’s a fine middle ground between a halfhearted apology and an additional insult.  Perfect for a snake like Mallus Maccius.

If only he agreed.

“I liked your second option better,” Mallus drawls at her from the doorway of the room.  He watches as she jumps in surprise, crossing his arms over his chest as he peers at her with sharp eyes.  He definitely doesn’t look very happy to see her.  With a lifted brow, he mutters, “At least you managed to add ‘I’m sorry’ in that one.”

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He inhales deeply against her lips, as if he’s breaking through the still surface of a great lake, coming alive after an age of slumbering. 

“You don’t…you’re not…”  He swallows again, then says more clearly, “How can you stand to be this close to me and not be disgusted by what I am?”

Ah.  Here is the core of it.  A decades-long contempt for himself.  For everything he’s done, all those awful things he’s mentioned, those selfish decisions he’s made. 

“I don’t know what Maven made you do when she plucked you off the street, but she is no longer here.  You don’t answer to her anymore,” she says, studying him closely.  His face is tight, strained almost, as if her words harp upon some unhealed wound deep inside him. 

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Stormbrand

Mallus x Svana snippet

Mallus lifts an eyebrow at her and drawls, “Nothing to say?  Not even a ‘thank you, Mallus, for saving me from being swindled’?”

She opens her mouth, then shuts it.  He smirks.

“While I do enjoy seeing you speechless, a thank you would be nice,” he wryly says, sniffing haughtily for good measure.

Svana purses her mouth and mutters, “Oh shut up.  The only reason you realized I was about to be swindled is because you’re also well-versed in extortion.”

[books-read-in-nooks]

Writer: “Hmm what can I do to shake things up in my next book?”

Writer:

[darklesmylove]

my characters: yay we’re so happy right now!!

me: >:)

my characters: