#hearthtales

[ki-pulse]

Monstrous Energy

-- a sequel (read bottom to top) with @hearthtales

WARNING! Side effects may include headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, dry mouth, drowsiness, difficulty breathing, muscle pain, telepathy, irritability, levitation, elemental transmission, lethargy, spontaneous extremity growth, confusion, unceasing rage, seizures, cardiac arrest, ego death, and life everlasting.

                                                        ∞

    Who needs GPS when your soul is tied to a fairy?

    William wishes more of America was like this. The riverside town is not too big or small in terms of size and population. Downtown looks perfectly preserved from the 1950s, flags hanging from storefront awnings. It's a quiet pride, reflected in humble people going about their business, spending idle time on their phones. No one will remember he was ever here, even those who look up when the motorcycle rumbles into the gas station.

    He pulls up to a pump, turns the bike off, lets it lean on its kickstand and takes off his helmet. Since no one is screaming, Saoirse's presence has gone undetected. As he fixes his ponytail, he gives the merrow a smile. Beat me again, he thinks, Where'd you get your license to fly?

    His mood dips as he starts to get up. Not only because he's stiff from riding for several hours, but because she somehow hasn't fallen off in all that time.

    What was her name again?

    "Please dismount, speedbump," Saoirse says, "The wheels must be fed."

[archaeval]

@hearthtales liked x for Ada ;

THERE IS SOMETHING ALIVE IN FAERIE MAGIC. Something thinking and fickle. Ruby had heard the Ada's question, and she'd lifted her veil to reveal gleaming moon-bright eyes. She had named the price. That's the way things go. It's not her concern if the cost was unable to be paid.

"My dear girl, I do not barter over my answers. This is no bargain to be haggled through cleverness." Many had tried before, and many will try still. But just because her world was fairyside did not mean her laws must match that of every other land it touched. "If you wish to know the answer, it must be posed to me by the duchess herself.”

it was not on the surface an Impossible Task. She had challenged other visitors to serve her the moon in a teacup, to solve riddles without answers, to find the heart of a heartless man. But Ruby doubted the duchess would deign to leave the court for something so small as having her fortune told.

[reedraws]

A commission for @hearthtales featuring Ada my beloved! A rabbit-hearted girl who deserves the world!!

❀ Comissions / Ko-Fi / Store / Bsky

[thesundowncrew]

+ @hearthtales

Samhain had just settled a case in Wales when he heard a peculiar rumor floating around; whispers about people disappearing after checking into a mysterious inn. Now in their line of work, these things were commonplace and were usually nothing too out of the ordinary. Inns were the beacons or oases of crossroads and long journeys; it wasn't unusual when travelers went 'missing' after a stay especially if they didn't want to be found.

However the rumor and inn in question caught Samhain's attention since they were known to both humans and magickals, which was unusual in itself. And since he was already in the area, he thought it wouldn't hurt to check and see what all the commotion was about. "Oh! Ah think ah see it."

After walking what felt like ages through a misty, remote forest clearing, Samhain spotted the giant oak tree first before his eyes trailed downward and found the quaint inn sheltered beneath it. The informants were right when they told him you couldn't miss it - the Oak Haven Inn.

"Ah don't know how long ah'll be, Nightie, so ah'll leave Sundown in yer care," said the ghoul, peering into his pocket scrying mirror. On the other side was his partner and apprentice, Nightshade. "You don't gotta worry about me, just.." There was a hint of worry knitted in her brow. "Take care, Sammy. An' don't do anything stupid! Or else Imma fly there an' kick your butt myself!"

"All right, all right," the ghoul chuckled back. "See you when ah see you, Nightie." He shut the pocket mirror and put it away. Nearing the unassuming inn, Samhain picked up on the intense energy surging from the protective wards surrounding the area. It was obvious the owner was a learned witch. In case there were humans about though, Samhain wore special gloves over his skeletal arms and kept them draped under his cloak most of the time. He took a deep breath. Exhaled.

And he stepped inside...

[dryadologist]

@hearthtales continued from 🌿

"Ah." He hadn't expected to be turned down so severely. He may be unused to rejection (seeing as it is exceptionally rare in his case), though the fact that he'd been offering his help makes it sting ever the more. Wendell takes a deep breath, letting his hands fall to his lap. He knows he must remain calm or else those damn wards of hers may start malfunctioning.

"I was not intending to use Bran for research, Maude. I am sincerely offering to help the boy. I feel I'm uniquely suited to be able to."

[soulsache]

continued ; for @hearthtales

he eyes the girl curiously, as he always does. what a strange little creature she is. so afraid, even if she doesn't realize it. or at least, realize how obvious it is. "you're frowning," audenin explains softly, "and your shoulders are slumped. that usually means someone is upset." he realizes, now, that some of the smudges on her face are not bruises like he'd thought, but ink or charcoal or something.

but certainly not all of them. "who took it from you?" audenin says with his own frown. she would be an easy target, wouldn't she? he taps the skin under his own eye, knowing better than to touch the girl. "was it the same person who did this to you?"

[soulmissed]

@hearthtales: “you disappeared. i couldn’t find you.” (from bran <3)

memes, accepting

august, rucksack upon hooded pullover, stumbles and staggers. he’s lost his leather boots. (boots purchased with his own coin. worked numerous woodcutting and washing jobs to afford them.)

what a peculiar thing shock was. shock punts his focus toward tiny, trivial details rather than the primary concern. there are many rippings, many tearings in his socks. blood saturates the filthy fabric.

he ambles outside of inn. grass stabs and scrunches. his head rows. fireflies twinkle, float. were it a different night, the younger boy would have begged bran to watch the beetles go yellow, yellow, yellow.

“ how long was i gone, bran? ” voice muted, blank.

[leondxs]

@hearthtales liked for a starter (x)

Claws bit into bark. The fae slowly scaled down a large tree, eyes shining in the darkness, honed in on a sleeping figure on the forest floor. A young boy, unaware that he was currently being stalked. The creature watched his frame rise and fall with each breath, listening hungrily to his pulse. Music to his ears.

An unwise place to rest for the mortal, opportune for the faerie. He almost questioned his luck at finding such an easy meal. Perching on the nearest branch big enough to hold him, he surveyed his target.

As he did, a crow would flutter and land on his shoulder. He quirked a brow. He must have woken it on his way down. He regarded it with a soft smile before returning his attention, but was stopped when the bird cawed at him.

His breath halted. Leondas cast an incredulous look at the crow. It was communicating with him, he was aware. But why? Why would a crow have any qualms with his choice of dinner?

Gritting his teeth, he turned back to check if the boy had been woken.