#muriel route

[oaksgrove]

The Forest’s Lullaby

pairing: Muriel x Apprentice!Reader

synopsis: On a rainy night deep in the woods, you and Muriel find peace in the small, steady life you've built together.

warnings: Muriel being an unbearably sleepy (and husband-coded) bear; extreme softness; no actual plot, just vibes.

word count: 519

The night was heavy with the scent of rain, earthy and clean, mingling with the lingering traces of myrrh from the incense you had burned earlier. The hut, nestled deep in the heart of the forest, hummed with quiet life, the gentle creak of wood shifting, the steady rhythm of raindrops pattering against the canopy above, their soft drumming melting into the hushed whispers of wind weaving through the trees, the soft rustling of leaves against the roof. It was a song only the forest could sing, cradling you in its embrace.

Inside, warmth cocooned you, wrapping you in a peace that felt as old as the earth itself. The low fire in the hearth crackled softly, its embers pulsing like a heartbeat, filling the space with a golden glow that flickered against the wooden walls. Muriel lay beside you, his warmth anchoring you to the present. His arm was draped loosely over your waist, his hand resting against your stomach. His breath was steady, slow, the kind that came when he felt safe, when his guard had slipped away entirely.

Inanna sprawled at your feet, her fur soft against your toes, her body a comforting weight as she snored softly every so often, her ears twitched, as if she were listening to the rain in her dreams. You smiled, tilting your head just enough to watch Muriel’s face in the dim light. His expression was peaceful, more at ease than you had ever seen in the early days of knowing him.Back then, he had kept his distance, shoulders always drawn tight with the habit of expecting solitude. But now? Now he held you close, unafraid of touch, of closeness, of the life you had built together.

Smiling softly, you reached up, fingers threading over the strands of his dark hair, tracing the line of his jaw, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath your fingertips. He hummed in response, not quite awake, but aware of your presence. His hold on you tightened, pulling you just a little closer, as if even in sleep, he wanted to keep you near.

The forest outside breathed with you, the gentle patter of rain against the leaves soothing, rhythmic, steady. It smelled of damp earth, of life, of renewal. You sighed into it, letting it fill your lungs, letting it ground you.  There was something ancient about this feeling, this quiet, this warmth, this moment of existing so completely in the presence of someone you loved.

Muriel shifted, his nose brushing against your temple. His voice, thick with sleep, rumbled softly against your skin. “You’re still awake.”

You smiled. “So are you.”

A slow exhale. He buried his nose against your hair, his warmth sinking into you, his presence steady, immovable. “Mm,” was all he offered in response, but the way he held you said everything.

There were no grand words between you, no declarations needed. This quiet, this warmth, the sound of the rain and the forest’s lullaby, was love.

taglist: @justlilpeaches21

[kamon-nagisa]

Sketch Muriel side profile

[kiwidescent]

Mermaid!Muriel who can't stop himself from coming to the surface everyday just to catch a glimpse of you! He's too anxious and shy to actually talk to you, so he darts underwater anytime you even glance in his general direction.

You're convinced he's a figment of your imagination. Until one day you stumble upon him sprawled out on shore. His breathing rapid and uneven, not to mention the concerningly large cut on his abdomen . . . How could you not stay around to take care of him?

[t-toxic-waste]

Its been almost two years and I still cannot get over this

[paperstarwriters]

god I'm listening to Placing The Blame by Self (Link to soundcloud) and the song just itches in my brain thinking about a character exploraiton of Lucio—specifically the version of him from Muriel's route (since I know that version best lmao) just being a coward who wants to be loved, who wants to be cared for and going for the most fucked up way to get what he thinks he needs.

"No one will love me as a hideous monster; I have to get my body back NOW"

"My mother is here! she hates me! she'll kill me!! I have to be stronger to protect myself!!"

"My mother is working with someone else? My mother is teaching someone else? She cares for my gladiator more than me?? Is it because he's powerful because he's strong? I need to be stronger then!"

"I've come back, bow at my feet Vesuvia? why look to me with horror? why run to them?? Do they think that gladiator and magician are so much more powerful? I need to get even stronger!"

Its an earnest misguided misunderstood scramble for love and attention, and all that it gets him in the end is a loathing so deep he literally becomes the devil in Muriel's route.

there's just something so fun and angsty in the gender parallels between Muriel and Lucio, how they both bear the burden and weight of the gendered expectation for men to be powerful and terrifying. Warriors, leaders, weapons. Muriel is explicitly forced into the role and grows to resent it, fights his way free from it, even if it paints him a coward on the other side of it. And then he gets the opportunity to grow from the wounds of it, to accept himself, to explore the softer sides of himself.

But Lucio never really knew he was trapped, he never knew because he was good at fitting in. Good at living up to those standards. Not perfect (His mother saw to that) but good enough to pass. Good enough to find success elsewhere, good enough to become a count in a foreign land to have wealth and power and a princess as his wife.

He lives that gendered dream doesn't he?

So why do people still hate him?

(Are you man enough, Are you man enough, Are you man enough to take the blame for this?)

is he still not powerful enough? Is he still not the big strong man his mother wanted him to be?

Is he not a man?

(Are you man enough, Are you man enough, Are you man enough to take the blame for this? Are you man enough to take the blame for this?)

I can also 1000% see an angsty version of this with Muriel considering an alternate implication of the song's chorus (why is it manly to take the blame? Why is it manly to blame yourself? to sacrifice yourself like that?) but the crunchy fucked up background melody just really inspires a visual of the rest of the M6, faces shaded as their eyes glare daggers into Lucio, to the melody of that chorus, resenting him for his shortcomings, blaming him (deservedly) for their sufferings.

It's a fucked up skewed perspective of the events, a skewed perspective of the M5 from Lucio's eyes, and honestly I love that.

[leapin-b]

[jhasnolife]

“Maybe I was a terrible person three years ago but that never stopped me from being better”

My MC for Muriel’s route!! Nawn<3

Nawn is from Versuvia, born and raised but even since birth she had not known her parents and was solely raised by her aunt. It is still unsure if she was ever blood related to her aunt. She had a talent for dancing and her aunt would remark that she would one day work for the palace. She had a normal childhood up until she met her boyfriend. A relationship that seemed normal slowly became abusive and she would drink to cope. Asra would remark later on when she find out about her past that “they were simply the wrong person at the right time”. During the game she still dances but she hasn’t touched a single drink. Once again Asra would remark to Muriel “shes the same person just without the burdens, the part I fell in love with and knew I can never have”.

Her favorite magic is illusions and she never reconnected with her familiar. Asra never knew she had a familiar.

[neuship-zone]

Playing Lucio's route after playing Muriel's is giving me so much whiplash

Fym these two are the same person?*

*Well I mean I can't say for sure that the Lucio on the left is still Lucio but whatever