ROMAN AINSLEY @roman-ainsley - Tumblr Blog

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Walk right in, all you sinners and saints, Tonight's the night we're gonna take off these chains. (Some wounds will never mend) It came with a warning. Now we're all out of time. This romance with ignorance has left us behind.

It's too early for surrender, too late for a prayer. We can't go to hell if we're already there. They say the end is coming and I need to prepare. We can't go to hell if we're already there.

#inspiration #can't go to hell #sin shake sin

roman-ainsley

The Early Bird | Roman & Phae

roman-ainsley

healer-phaedra‌:

There wasn’t a particular reason for her melancholy of late. Which was to say, there wasn’t a new reason. Things were as they’d always been—most of the pack accepted her, but she always managed to worry about the ones who didn’t. She knew there was still a contingent who didn’t want her here, didn’t trust her, thought she was an interloper. It might be easier to ignore it if it was just a few people on the fringes, but it wasn’t. She knew the Alpha had never liked her, and as much as she was told it wasn’t personal, it was her worrying about the pack and having her own issues with witches, it was hard to remember that.

Though it probably did impact the other thing that was bothering her as of late. It wasn’t something she’d talked to anyone about. Mostly because she didn’t even want to admit that it was happening. The nightmares and the weird thoughts sometimes were one thing, but it was becoming harder to deny that her powers went beyond just healing, no matter how much she didn’t want them to. She hadn’t been using them, exactly, but more and more they started slipping out. And she didn’t know what to do about it.

Healing was useful, and it was good in a way that other freaky mind powers weren’t. She was so desperate to prove that the pack hadn’t made a mistake in taking her in, that she wasn’t bad or dangerous like other witches were, that she hadn’t even admitted what was going on, not to anyone. She knew she could tell her father, and he’d try to help her, but… well. What could he do? He had years of life experience, but he didn’t understand her magic any better than she did. He’d just worry about her, and she didn’t want to put anything more on his plate.

But Roman had noticed how down she was, though she didn’t think he’d quite guessed the cause. Maybe it would be good, to get out of the compound for a bit. Being around humans always made her anxiety spike, but it was easier knowing that Romy was with her. She knew he’d never let anything happen to her. He was perhaps a tad overprotective, but she appreciated it, especially as she knew that it came from a place of love.

The knock on the door wasn’t unexpected. She hadn’t been sleeping that great lately, so she’d been getting up earlier and earlier. She was already dressed, even. “Just let me grab my bag,” she said. scooping up her purse and sliding her phone inside. It would be good to get out, she reminded herself. And Roman was there. Nothing bad could happen if Romy was with her.

Witches were a sore subject with most members of the Pontchartrain Pack. They’d been in the middle of a bloody struggle, and there’s no denying coven’s unprecedented surrender had been the final nail in their coffin. It effectively forced the wolves’ own surrender, leaving them little choice but to gather up the remaining population (regardless of past pack affiliation) and cut a hasty retreat. Roman had heard how the coven witches justified it, saying it was a necessary measure to stop the carnage, return peace to the city, and even salvage the pack. He’d also listened to some of the older wolves, who bitterly complained that they’d have rather died back then than live the way they do today.

It wasn’t often that he made his own opinion known, but he was somewhere in the middle. The loss of his own pack, beginning with his parents, made him realize just how outgunned the wolves were from the start. Of course, they were stronger, but the hunters fought dirty. They used ambushes and arson and any other tactic that left the packs scrambling, scattered, and vulnerable. As Phae well knew, they hardly waited till children were out of the line of fire. In fact, on more than one occasion, they were specifically targeted, exploited, kidnapped, and even used as bait. How could anybody have anticipated that? How could they have fought against it? To this day, Roman still didn’t know.

He tried not to let himself dwell on those kinds of questions. Though he’d had many a fantasy of sinking to the hunters’ level and giving the witches just a taste of the wolves’ loss by burning the whole damn Garden District down, it wasn’t realistic and it wasn’t constructive. Training with Nico was ostensibly healthier. Phae, as the one that got to patch Roman up after such sessions, might disagree, but it was still worlds better than blaming the little witch for the pack’s woes. How anyone could mistrust her (much less deem her some kind of threat) was lost on him. Unfortunately, some would always be prejudiced against her, simply for being what she was.

Maybe it was true that she didn’t belong here with them. She probably would’ve had a better life apart from them, but she’d had the chance to go back to the witches and she’d refused. That told Roman all he needed to know - except, perhaps, what had been troubling her lately. Simply asking while on pack grounds was out of the question, but maybe in town there’d be a chance to bring it up. Maybe. He wasn’t sure she’d really wanted to come along with him today till she all but met him at the door. Blinking as he was informed that she was seconds away from being ready to depart, he rocked back a step and mumbled something to the effect of, “Take your time…”

#The Early Bird #Phaedra Salveggio #Roman Ainsley

20. Their favorite relative/person

"... that’s kind of a weird question, isn’t it? Do most people have a favorite person? Or relative- that’s even weirder.”

“My pack is my family. I don’t think about who I like the most. But if I had to say who I owed the most to... Nico’s dealt with me for longer than I’ve known how to deal with myself. I wouldn’t be here if not for him. Mostly because anyone else would’ve killed me by now.”

#ask #meme #answered #finally #Anonymous

sinners-throw-punches

Taped Knuckles || Nico & Romy

roman-ainsley

sinners-throw-punches‌:

Nico loved to push Roman’s buttons. The young man made it so easy, but more than that, he made it fun. Eventually, as time went on, Roman would wise up. His temper would cool or he’d learn to better control it, but until that time, Nico had the perfect advantage over his trainee. It was something that, in its fun, he was also working on teaching Roman how to control. Outside of the gym, raising to the bait so obviously dangled in front of him could be life or death. Nico didn’t want to see that happen to the young wolf.

The pack had lost so much when the hunters came along. Their numbers had dwindled so much that it was imperative to their survival that those left learn how to survive. It wasn’t like they could skate through on the safety of the pack or the pack numbers anymore. The hunters were still out there, looking for them. They might have been warded against the hunters, but that didn’t mean they were safe. Nico had taken it upon himself to work with as many young wolves as he could to make sure their line of defense was properly trained. Their alpha, while having Nico’s full and unwavering support, was less about training soldiers and more about hiding.

He understood the sentiment, he really did. She had lost a lot in the war a decade and a half ago, so he understood where she was coming from. She wasn’t supposed to be alpha yet, not the way it had come about, but Nico didn’t share her thoughts on how best to protect the pack. Roman had lost his entire pack, parents included. It hadn’t forced his head in the sand. It anything it made him want to fight harder. Nico could work with that. He had worked with that. Through his teachings, Roman was one of the strongest fighters they had. He would, one day, make a great alpha, not unlike his parents.

Nico laughed at Roman when he glared. Icey blue-green eyes narrowed and the look was also feral. All it did was elicit the biggest grin Nico was capable of giving. He dodged the first punch, having anticipated the movement simply because he had been the one to teach him. The left hook came quicker than he had expected, but he had been expecting it. He was already moving out of the way of it when Roman landed the glancing blow. “Why would I stand still to let you hit me? That’s not the point of this. Phae’s my daughter, where do you think she learned to dance? What was that? A love tap? Get it together Ainsley. I was looking for a fight.”

Nico through his own right jab followed quickly by a left and another right, looking to spur Roman into more action. He was tired of the dance. He didn’t want to stand around and chit-chat. He wanted to fight and get out a bit of the aggression that had settled in his shoulders in the last decade. Roman was always the best to help that. The kid was good and had the stamina to keep up with the war-hound.

Nico’s second right jab missed when Roman’s body shifted into a kick, leaning him back a bit and taking his center of balance off a little. The kick was true to its target, getting Nico in the thigh and pushing him back a step with a grunt. He was quicker than the young wolf, though, bracing himself with his back foot to prevent himself from moving farther. His right arm came down, sweeping Roman’s retreating leg up in his grip and wrenching the limb up. The hope was to see him on the ground, but there were a few ways Ro could get out of this and Nico wanted to see if he had the ability.

Not everyone was been so amused by Roman’s aggression or his tendency to run his mouth, but he’d at least learned over the years that there was a time and a place for it. As a child, he hadn’t been so scrupulous, starting fight after fight for the fun of it - and, unfortunately for his already insufferable ego, usually winning, too. His intensely competitive nature had been a challenge for his parents, and once they were gone, the chore of reining the boy in had fallen to Nico. It was a task nearly anyone else would’ve found impossible. Luckily the war wolf had several hundreds of years’ worth of experience to draw on, and, somehow, an even deeper well of patience than that.

All that effort was starting to pay off, though. Roman had taken Nico’s teachings to heart, perhaps more than any of his young students. He trained so much it worried Phae and irked Maya, even if the Alpha was yet to make any formal remarks regarding Nico’s activities. The rift between the two was just something Roman had grown up with. He didn’t worry about it or think about it - not as Phae did. Then again, he wasn’t the one rumored to be at the center of their falling out. Maybe that wasn’t fair, but it wasn’t his business. Much like his teacher, he preferred preparing for the future over dwelling on the past. Roman fully believed that someday the pack would retake the city, and when the time came, he wouldn’t shy away from putting up the fight of his life.

Just like his father.

So, he practiced. He fought hard and he didn’t hold back, because against Nico, he couldn’t afford to. It was already nearly impossible to land anything more than a glancing blow on the older wolf, and as much as that frustrated and enraged him, he still needed to balance offense with defense. Too many times to count, Roman had ended up flat on his back, sucking wind, faster than he could even blink, because he was too focused on landing a punch to duck one. Even a well-placed jab from the ancient and powerful wolf could spell the beginning of the end of a match, so he never took his eyes off even the half-hearted fist flying his way, deflecting and dodging till he saw an opportunity to strike.

He smirked as he landed a kick that actually staggered his teacher, but his smug expression didn’t last long. Nico had caught his leg, which meant he had less than a second to counter or he’d be reminded just how threadbare and thin the mats on the floor really were. Gritting his teeth, his reflex was to pull away, but adhering to his training, he did exactly the opposite, and brought the fight in. Powering forward to avoid being flipped backwards, Roman took advantage of the fleeting opening in Nico’s defense to throw a bevy of hooks aimed for the head whilst simultaneously wrenching his captured leg down and back. Getting his feet back under him was the priority, but till he actually managed to break free, he’d keep on swinging.

#Taped Knuckles #Nico Salveggio #roman ainsley #finallyyyyyyy

memeasaurus-promptus

Childhood Memories

Send in a number and my muse will talk about:

An old childhood friend

A time when they got lost

A fear they used to have (or perhaps, still have)

Their favorite food

Food they used to avoid but like now

An old enemy/bully

Their family

Their earliest memory

An adventure they had

An object they kept

Their favorite toy/past time

A time they got hurt

A happy time

A sad time

Things they used to believe in but perhaps not anymore

A dream of the future they used to have

A vivid dream/nightmare

Something that scared them

Something that made them laugh

Their favorite relative/person

Their childhood hero

Something they used to collect

Their favorite animal

Free question. Ask something not listed!

crescentcityroleplay

October ask memes! As always, participation is optional and if you don’t like these suggestions, feel free to post your own. :)

#meme monday #asks

I'm a champion of the people who don't believe in champions. I got nothing but dreams inside, I got nothing but dreams.

I'm just young enough to still believe, But young enough not to know what to believe in.

If I can live through this, I can do anything.

#inspiration #fall out boy #champion

👻 tell a fear they have

“That one of my younger packmates is gonna slip up and do something stupid. They forget so fast that it’s still a war zone out there.”

#ask #meme #answered #Anonymous

👪 speak about their thoughts and feelings about someone they know

“Abbi Eeva... She’s a trusted source of information, and obviously I’m a big fan of her work. She’s pretty, too...”

#ask #meme #answered #Anonymous

memeasaurus-promptus

Send my muse an icon, and they will…

🎨 tell you a skill or talent few know of that they have

👻 tell a fear they have

🔆 say one of their dreams/aspirations

🎁 show off something they have

🚿 mention one of their shower thoughts.

🎭 say how they are really feeling

📅 speak of a past experience

🐱 talk about their favorite animal/pet

🌙 tell about one of their recent dreams/nightmares

🍀 regale a time when luck was on their side

👪 speak about their thoughts and feelings about someone they know

🔪 talk about a time when they were hurt physically, mentally, or emotionally

👄 whisper a secret no one else knows

🎓 say one thing they are proud of

😳 say one thing they are ashamed of

👀+ a question of your own!

crescentcityroleplay

Sorry this is late! Due to circumstances IRL I totally forgot to post this on Monday. Hopefully we can still have some fun. :)

#meme monday #asks

Can they take care of a plant? What about a pet? What about a child?

“I could keep a plant alive if I had to, but I don’t really have any interest in doing so... A pet would be fine. I actually really want a dog, but no way am I ready for a kid. Maybe someday but not right now. No way.”

#meme monday #ask #answered #Anonymous

yvesdot

oc asks that reveal more than you think

Do they sleep with a stuffed animal? If they have multiple, who’s the favorite?

Can they take care of a plant? What about a pet? What about a child?

Ask them to describe their love interest.

Do they look good in red?

Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Will they give one, and what about?

Who will they take advice from, no matter what it is? Who won’t they take advice from, no matter what it is?

Describe them in three words. Now let them describe themself in three words.

Do complex puzzles intrigue or frustrate them?

Do they empathize with non-sentient things (dolls, plants, books…)?

What age do they most want to be right now?

They’ve won the lottery. Spend, or save?

Do they like romance in the books they read (or in the book they’re in)?

Name one thing their parents taught them.

Would they agree with the term ‘guilty pleasure’? Do they have any?

What would they consider a waste of time– other than school or work?

If money wasn’t a limit, what would they wear?

Do they like children?

Kissing: tongue or no tongue?

Do they study before tests? Practice before job interviews?

What do they like that nobody else does?

What would it take for them to break up with someone? What would be the last straw?

Do they like being called pet names? Do they call other people pet names? What’s their go-to?

Stability or novelty?

Honesty or charity?

Safety or possibility?

Talent or effort?

Forgiveness or vengeance (or…)?

Would they date a fixer-upper?

What recurring dreams do they have?

What would they do if they knew it would be forgiven?

#meme monday #asks

The Early Bird | Roman & Phae

Roman kept strange hours. Usually the last one to bed and one of the first to rise, others often wondered when it was he actually slept. His answer to that question, when it was posed, was simply ‘Sunday.’ But today wasn’t Sunday, and he had things to do. If he’d ever gone to bed last night, he was already back in the server room before the first light of dawn, monitoring a security situation to ensure an especially determined hacker didn’t bypass the firewall. Troublingly, Roman was almost certain he’d locked out this particular threat before. Apparently they’d decided to give it another shot. Whether that persistence was morbid curiosity or something more sinister the wolf couldn’t say, but a deep frown had furrowed his brow by the time he finally deemed it safe to shut the lid of his own laptop.

Leaning back in his chair as the overclocked fans powered down, he exhaled a deep sigh and wiped the sheen of sweat from his brow. This room was always so hot, even before the summer sun started beating down properly - and now, in addition to being too warm, Roman was hungry. It was time to get some food, finalize his to-do list, and go into town. Half standing, half rolling from his seat, he stretched, then hit the lightswitch on his way out the door. Mercifully the hall was a full ten degrees cooler and his mood was fast improving. He padded down the hall on bare feet, navigating around the known squeaky boards to avoid waking anyone that might still be sleeping. However, it was nearly eight o’clock and from the kitchen, he could smell food and hear signs of life.

Roman wasn’t a big talker in the mornings. In fact, he wasn’t a big talker in general, but he acknowledged those that happened to make eye contact with a nod as he went about getting coffee, piling food on his plate, and ultimately taking his whole breakfast with him back to his room. He needed to get cleaned up and only had about half an hour left to do it, hence the need to eat on the go. He told himself he’d take the dirty dishes back to the kitchen later as he added them to the collection on the corner of his desk, pulled on his shoes and left the house. Squinting against the bright morning sun as he headed to the eastern edge of the compound, he approached the tiny cottage Nico and Phaedra called home. He know the beta would be at the gym already, so after knocking he announced himself, “Hey Phae, you still up to comin’ with me today? I’m gonna be leaving soon…”

A couple days ago he’d spotted the girl sitting by herself. That in and of itself wasn’t unusual, but she’d seemed lonely and at the time he hadn’t known what to say. Truthfully, he didn’t have any better idea now, but he’d invited her to help him run errands (even when they both knew it was just an excuse to get her out of the bayou for a while). It was unfortunate that even after all this time some of the older wolves refused to accept her as pack, particularly since they were merely following the Alpha’s example. But thanks to Nico, practically half the pack had grown up alongside Phae. Roman, like most the other young wolves, was well aware she was a witch yet saw her as the exception to the rule. It was a sentiment he found difficult to put into words. At the end of the day, he just hoped his efforts to include her said it for him and were somehow enough.

@healer-phaedra

#The Early Bird #Phaedra Salveggio #Roman Ainsley

sinners-throw-punches

Taped Knuckles || Nico & Romy

roman-ainsley

sinners-throw-punches‌:

The music in the gym crackled over the heavily worn speakers. They were a few decades old, at least. It fit with the gym itself, though. That too was in disarray. The bags were more duct tape than fabric. Abused by too strong wolves dealing with anger issues. None of this was particularly new to Nico, but the state of which they were expected to live thanks to the hunters around New Orleans, was nothing short of atrocious. Which was saying something considering the hulking man was just slightly over five centuries old and had lived through truly atrocious times.

He couldn’t even tell what the speakers were playing, not that he really cared. Most of it was just noise to him anyway. Not in the way most would expect, he didn’t dislike modern music, on the contrary, he rather enjoyed some of it. When Nico was in the zone, working out or training another wolf, all his focus was directed on the task at hand. Anything else just didn’t register. Few students required more focus than the Ainsley boy. Roman had entered into Nico’s life when he was on the cusp of teenagehood. To say it was a trying time would be an understatement. Not only was he dealing with all the changes in the community, Roman was suffering the loss of his entire back, his parents included. He gave new meaning to the term difficult child.

Nico, to his credit, never once gave up on the kid, though. It was in his overly patient nature to accept people as they were but to push them to be better. One of these days, all the time he put into Roman would pay off… He hoped.

“Are you trying to swat a fly or hit me?” He asked, goading the heavily inked wolf into more action. “Phaedra could hit me harder,” he was lying. The adoptive pack witch was the sweetest thing in the world. Even if she didn’t look like she would snap in half if she hit Nico, he knew she would never, ever actually try to hit him. He grinned, knowing his antagonizing would infuriate the young wolf. “Are you sure you’re trying? I was looking for a workout.”

@roman-ainsley

The world had definitely changed since it had stopped revolving around Roman Ainsley. Once the only child of an alpha pair, he was loathe to admit he’d been spoiled but he’d certainly been a bit of a brat. Some members of his adoptive pack would allege things weren’t all that different now - but then there were others, like Nico, who took the time to understand the young wolf’s standoffishness (and occasionally unbearable attitude). The beta had been his mentor for well over half his life, even when Roman hadn’t wanted or appreciated his guidance. Their bond now was decisively stronger, though it might not seem it for the way Nico routinely put his lights out.

Sadly, Roman suffered from the persistent delusion that he would one day best his teacher. The bayou gym may have left much to be desired in terms of both function and aesthetics, but he never missed a training session or the chance to apply what he’d learned. His sparring technique, by now, was excellent. He was a more skilled combatant than some wolves ten times his age. But with age came speed, strength, and the wisdom to not fall for dumb taunts. An older wolf would’ve ignored such a blatant attempt to push their buttons but Roman didn’t, not because he didn’t recognize what Nico was doing but because he wanted to rise to the bait. Anger issues were only the beginning where he was concerned.

To his credit, he kept his actual rage in check. It was the benefit of having been born as he was, but when Nico purported that tiny Phaedra could land a harder hit, a look that would’ve frightened most anyone else flashed across his face.

Roman threw a right punch, then a left, missing the first time and landing little more than a glancing blow the second. He sucked in a frustrated breath as he pulled his hands back to his face, grumbling, “Yeah, well, Phae’s a better dancer than you. Or was dancing not what you’re doing right now? Fuckin’ hold still-” Rather than throw another easily deflected punch, he feigned right, then tried his luck with a quick, low left kick. Last time he’d made a move like that, they’d both gone down, but just like Nico had taught him, he wasn’t afraid of taking the fight to the floor.

#taped knuckled #nico salveggio #roman ainsley

wtf - a trait they have too much of

“Others tell me I have too much pride. I don’t believe there is such a thing.”