A follow-up for an older drawing I made in 2024! I was supposed to do this ages ago but I never got around to it. This is an AU that I've been brainstorming for a while, and I'm excited to share more for it!
Like I said, this got suuuuuper long. Also, I have no idea if I can even live up to the potential chaos I’ve set up XD
All the species belong to @vex-bittys
Previous | Next(?)
Nikolai had been rather thorough in his consideration for the troublemaker of the night. It sounded like the entire gimmick was to be around pygmy’s natural playfulness, so might as well play it up. Their games might have had some darker tones and general swearing, but they could tone it down for one night; a child would be best. But not too young. They needed to at least be old enough to comprehend that they were playing a game of make believe and hadn’t actually become a dragon or whatever silliness was going to happen.
So Piper was perfect. One of the older children, but still very much a child by both human and lamia standards. Really there were many candidates, Piper just caught his eye first, possibly because he was easy to pick out. He’d developed a mostly harmless condition where he had patches of scales on some of his bones, most notable on the forehead and back of his skull. It tended to itch a bit, but a little bit of extra hygiene and some topical creams fixed that right up. The little one wasn’t quite old enough to start looking for a home yet – socialization with other younglings was important for development after all – but he would be fine spending a few hours away from the others.
Piper was curled around Nikolai’s left forearm, little hands clinging to the fabric and tail coiled tight as he stubbornly hung upside down, giggling and chirping as the world went by. He was still small enough that falling wouldn’t actually hurt him even if he hit the floor.
Nikolai stopped in front of the door, looking down at Piper, “Remember how the game goes?”
Piper nodded, “I the boss!”
Keith had decided that Piper would be a sort of Co-DM. It was going to be an interesting session…
“Keith – the Chain – is also the boss. And remember, it’s all pretend, but pretend how you want.”
“I knoooowwsss! Not a hatchling!” Piper huffed, pouting and glaring at Nikolai.
Nikolai chuckled, “No, no you’re not.” He mentally added, but you’re not much older. “Tell me if it gets to be too much, okay?” He’d be keeping an eye out anyways – overstimulating a pygmy was harder than it might be with other breeds, but not impossible.
“It won’t!” Piper chirped. “Go in now!” He was pawing at the underside of Nikolai’s arm, wiggling restlessly.
“Alright, alright,” Nikolai said, opening the door to the break room. Everyone else had already taken their seats, snacks and drinks at the ready. It looked like someone had already set out a cup of Chai tea for him. “Why thank you,” he said has he settled into his spot, setting Piper down to wander the table.
Piper immediately went for Nikolai’s mug, curling around it and peaking inside. Before Nikolai could stop him, Piper stuck his tongue into it and hissed, darting away.
“BIT ME!” Piper cried, glaring at the offending mug from behind his hiding place… which was ironically Alex’s cup of tea – green and hibiscus instead of chai.
Nikolai sighed, reaching out to give Piper a few little pets, “It’s chai tea. I could’ve told you you might not like it. It’s spicy, bitter, and still hot.”
“Why?” Piper said.
“Um… because it has spices?” Nikolai said.
“Why drink?”
“Because I like it,” Nikolai said.
“No,” Piper said, crossing his arms. He was now holding Alex’s drink hostage instead, but had the good sense to not dunk his tongue in immediately. “Lady’s smarter. Smells good!”
“Aaaaw, thanks. That’d be the hibiscus. Gives it kinda a fruity flavor. Not sure if you’d want this either though. I don’t put sugar in it… And you might be a little young for caffeine at all, honestly?” Alex said. “Geez… and I though Trousle was small! You’re so little!”
“Mm hmm. I’m cute,” Piper said, rolling over to show the softer scales of his underbelly. Alex squeaked at the cuteness, gently stroking the softer tissue as Piper purred.
Oozy huffed and leaned over, gently headbutting Alex’s other hand. Alex chuckled and started petting him too… And then Trousle looked over, and Keith was trying to pretend he wasn’t, but Nikolai could see his tail trying to sneakily capture Alex in a snuggle.
“… I don’t have enough hands for all these lamia,” Alex said. “Who designed humans? I have some questions for them.”
“Me too! You need more hands! For more cuddles! But you’re very warm, I like it!” Trousle said, slithering over to lay beside her arm.
“You guys are so desperate,” Hux said with a deadpan expression. “It’s fu…” He looked over at Nikolai, who was giving him a death glare, hood fully spread and tail coiled, “…uuuuuuppernuttering embarrassing.”
Piper laughed and, as children do, immediately chirped, “Fuppernutter!”
“Fuppernutter,” Alex echoed.
“What is a fuppernutter?” Trousle said, head tilted in honest confusion.
Oozy said, “Is it related to peanut butter?”
“Maybe it’s cousins with flutters or shutters,” Keith said.
“Does it give nuts to fuppers?” Alex said.
“I think I’m having a stroke,” Hux said, looking desperately to Nikolai.
Nikolai smirked, leaning with his elbows against the table. “You brought this on yourself, now deal with it, you fuppernutter.”
Hux let out a loud grown. “Whyyyyy… Ugh. Aren’t we here to, like, game? Let’s do that. Please.”
Keith nodded, “Yeah, guess we are. Alright, let’s see the insanity! And remember, keep it clean.” He gestured to the kid. “Let’s start with… hmm… Nikolai?”
Nikolai straightened up and pulled out the character sheet, “A level 10 sorcerer who believes magic isn’t real. I’ve named him… Steve.”
“Steve?” Keith said, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. “Oh boy- heh… Why the heck is that funny? Oh my gosh.” He snickered into his hand as Nikolai rolled his eyes. It wasn’t that funny.
“Alright. So we’ve got Steve. Hux?”
“Eh… I figured I’d go rogue and go Rogue this time. Level 20 changeling thief!”
“Branching out a little, eh? Sounds like fun!” Keith said, apparently not caring about the lack of name or any background info.
Hux was going to steal absolutely everything from everyone, wasn’t he?
“Alright, Trousle?”
Trousle grinned and quickly sent something to Keith, notified by a little ring. Keith’s eyes scanned it, nodding along, then grew wider, then he started laughing, “Dude. I know it’s dungeons and dragons, but… Oh man. I love it.”
“What?” Hux said. “C’mon, tell us!”
Trousle had a proud grin as he typed, “I’m a level 14 half dragon, dragonborn weredragon monk taking path of the ascendant dragon.”
“That is so much dragon,” Alex said. “I think he wins. He’s the dragon in Dungeons and Dragons. It’s him. He’s all the dragons.”
“I don’t know if that’s legal, but I kind of hope it is,” Nikolai said.
“The monk subclass is in playtesting still, and weredragons are from 2e. So very much no, but it’s a one shot and I do not care.” Trousle had his little arms on his hips as the voice app finished speaking for him.
“Oh man. This is, oh boy,” Keith said.
Piper was looking at Trousle in awe, “You’re dragon?!”
Trousle shook his head, typing, “Not really. But my character is!”
Piper nodded. “I pretend dragon too! RAAAAWR!!!!” He slithered over to Trousle and play-tackled him, chirping and giggling as Trousle snaked around the table in a little game of chase.
While that was going on, Keith continued, “Alex? What about you?”
“I’ve been meaning to try cleric, but, well… Personal issues, I guess. But hey, tricksters are awesome, so I’mma trickster cleric! Sounds like some fun little bit of chaos chaos,” she said. “Maybe I should’ve gone higher level… I’m only level 10.”
“Nooooob,” Hux said, tail end twitching.
“Nooooooooom!!!” Piper said. He’d managed to capture Trousle, getting a sort of impromptu piggy back ride on the other lamia. Trousle seemed more confused than distressed about this occurrence.
“And… Oh boy. Do I even wanna know, Oozy?” Keith said.
Oozy got a shit-eating grin as he passed a paper forward. “Memelord.”
“A what?”
“Found it online.”
“… Oh thor have mercy…” Keith said.
“Level 20.”
“Why did I let you just make whatever.”
“Because it’s hilarious.”
“You’re never playing this again.”
“That’s fine.”
“You can pickpocket Anubis mid-combat.”
“Yeeeep,” Oozy said. “It’s great, ain’t it?
“You’re proficient in all the saving throws.”
“You should know better than to tell me to go nuts.”
“Whyyyyyy” Keith hissed, rubbing away an anatomically impossible headache.
“Because it’s hiss-terical.” Oozy laughed out loud, and Kieth was trying to hide it, but he was joining in.
“I’m never doing this again,” Keith said, blatantly lying as he did every single time he more or less told them to be as ridiculous as possible for a noncanon oneshot.
“Yeah you are,” Hux said. “’cause you looooove us or something. Ya dork.”
“Heh, could say the same about you.”
“Nope. My soul’s just ice.”
“Ice soul?” Piper said, looking up from the captive Trousle. “Doctor’s here! Tha’s bad! Gotta get you warmed! Get the fire!”
“No. No fire,” Nikolai said. “He’s just being himself.”
“Hmm… okay! We play now? I’m the highest! Level 40!” Piper chirped. “I win all the things! ‘Cause I’m the dragon! Or the dungeon!” He was lightly bouncing in place, hands outstretched.
“Heh, there’s not really a win to this game… It’s just about having fun and playing pretend,” Keith said. “C’mon, I’ll let you on my side of the screen.” He gently scooped up Piper and draped him around his neck.
“I have the tall!” Piper yelled. “FEAR ME!”
“Oh nooooo!”
“Alright here we go…”
Memelord is a joke class I found online.
I’m actually using Path of the Ascendant Dragon in a campaign! Or I’m planning to, haven’t started yet.
I got an idea so I was like, hey, let’s do it! It’ll be short and WELP TURNS OUT NO. I think I’ll split this into parts if only ‘cause it’s too long. Not sure when this would happen, but assume they’ve been hanging out for a while???
As usual, the bitty species belong to @vex-bittys
Next
Oozy was listening to someone sarcastically give bad writing advice on YouTube when he heard the little fart noise ringtone he’d set up for the D&D Groupchat. Not all of them had phones, but those that did were here.
Mister Mom (Nikolai): Liam can’t make it this week. He’s got someone coming in to look at his skull.
Orange Soda (Keith): This next session kiiiiinda needs him…
pAlex (Alex): Yeah. We’ve kinda got a thing…
Oozy: welp sounds like one off time
One offs could be the best. They were noncanon, goofy, and just a great time. A grin split across his fangs, tail tip twitching in anticipation. This should be good…
pAlex: Soooooo… What if we get a pygmy and allow them to Co-DM, or just let them run rampant on the table. Anything that they happens.
Mister Mom: That sounds like absolute chaos.
Oozy: lets do it
Orange Soda: I’m game! >:D
Mister Mom: I’ll pick out a Pygmy then.
pAlex: YES I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO DO THIS KINDA BS
Orange Soda: This is gonna be a wonderful disaster
Mister Mom: I’m sure I can find far too many who’d want to join. This should be interesting.
Lil Dude: YOU LOVE THE IDEA. ADMIT IT!!!!
Mister Mom: Well I’m going along with it, aren’t I?
pAlex: Lil snek’s gonna go zooooooooom.
pAlex: Wait can I say snek? That’s not weird, right?
Mister Mom: It’s not weird. Or at least not particularly bothersome.
Oozy: oh yeah. we’ll get a zoomy. bitty, right?
pAlex: I’d hope so. Having a full sized pygmy with zoomies on the table would be, uh… something alright XD
Oozy: Pffft. Nice.
Lil Dude: OH! SOMEONE ME SIZED!
Oozy: Why are you in all caps?
Lil Dude: THE SCREEN GOT CRACKED ON THE BUTTON AND I CAN’T TURN IT BACK. PLEASE HELP.
pAlex: He is cursed with Scream.
Lil Dude: I WISH
Mister Mom: Are we using our usual characters?
Orange Soda: If ya want. This is almost definitely non canon and already a mess, so bring whatever. I’ll probably curse myself later if I ain’t laughing my tail off, but here it is: Go Nuts.
Oozy: imam have twenty million pets
Orange Soda: Please go slightly less nuts. That’s too many rolls dude ^^’’’
Oozy: theyre all squirrels
Orange Soda: Oooooh boy.
pAlex: Good luck Keith! I’ll see ya’ll there, I gotta get back to work. ttyl
Lil Dude: FARE WELL FRIEND!!! :D
Orange Soda: Seeya
Mister Mom: Take care <3
Oozy was grinning as he turned it back to YouTube, though his mind was elsewhere, trying to think of what shenanigans he should do… Level 20? That seems almost cliché though, and getting the stats, feats, and/or spells for all that seems like a pain in the neck. Level 1? That’d get a few people to ask what was wrong with him, but that might be a one off joke. Should he try to make good on having an army of squirrels? He’s not sure if there’s a ruling to allow that kind of insanity, but if anyone was going to find it… It’d probably be someone else, honestly. Maybe Liam. Still, it was an intentionally chaotic session, maybe he could just say he has a lot of squirrels? What would a person even do with that many squirrels? That’s probably more squirrels than exist, maybe. He’s not exactly an expert on squirrel statistics… Damn, tomfoolery could be effort sometimes, but it’s not like he had anything better to do. Phone in hand, he started scrolling for things that would actually get a no out of Keith in a regular game…
One way or another, this was going to be a glorious disaster.
WELL THAT GOT LONGER THAN I INTENDED. But I guess that’s what happens when you have a majority of the people in one place XD
I hope this chapter went well... It felt kinda rambly, but it was fun seeing people play off each other. It was hard to get the same level of depth with characters as previous chapters with so many, but hey, interactions are fun too! Hope you guys enjoy.
As always, the species of lamia in this fic belong to @vex-bittys
< PREV | BEGINNING | NEXT >
Keith and the rest found Alex pretty easily. And a few other lamia that were either allowed free roam or had just slipped out. She didn’t seem to notice the onlookers, more caught up in petting Oozy… who wasn’t technically in his hammock. Maybe it’s best he didn’t make that bet with Hux earlier. Sure, Oozy’s close to the hammock, but Hux would absolutely rules lawyer him and demand snacks because he’s not in the hammock. Hux was a rule stickler… when and only when it helped him in some way. Eh, Keith could roll with it though (even if his dice sometimes couldn’t, but that’s what a DM screen is for).
Keith was hesitant to break up the cute moment between the two – Oozy was apparently having the time of his life, and Alex seemed pretty wrapped up in it herself, humming some tune or another while stroking him. Keith listened, trying to place it, but…
She was repeating it, huh? Was that the only part of the song she knew? Then again, it seemed like the good part, whatever it was. Easy enough to pick up too. Keith started humming along.
Hux rolled his eyes, mumbling something that sounded suspiciously like “great, two of them” and slithered over, “Yo. Girl person. Ya coming or what?”
Alex looked up, “I mean, yeah, I think? Coming where?”
“nooooooooo…” Oozy said, taking her hand and putting it back on his head. “Sorry guys. I’m stealing her. She’s my personal petter now. That’s the rules.”
“Since when?!” Hux said.
Oozy looked a moment, then licked her hand. “I licked her, she’s mine.”
Keith stared at him in shock, not sure whether to laugh or slap him. “Dude.”
Nikolai gave a heavy sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose, “Don’t lick party members. Or people in general.”
“How does that work anyways? You’re a skeleton,” Alex said.
“Maaaagic,” Keith said, wiggling his fingers in emphasis. “In other words, uh… Monster biology is weird. Or half monster biology. Whatever the fuck we are.”
Nikolai nodded, “More or less, yes. I can explain it in more detail later, if you’d prefer.” He started coming forward and Alex inched away. Keith hissed before he could catch himself, but Nikolai didn’t seem offended. Instead, he lowered himself in a bow, “And I’d like to apologize for how I acted earlier… I’ll admit I, erm… Overreacted. But we’ve had issues in the past of people coming in to steal babies or eggs, one of the fools tried to snag a mamba egg and got himself killed. I just get a bit jumpy about strangers around them.”
Alex nodded, relaxing a little, but still staring off at a clock instead of Nikolai. Her hand continued to run across Oozy as she said, “I get it. They’re just little dudes, too freaking small. And some are venomous. Not like you knew me.”
“Still, I should’ve given you more of a chance or at least asked you politely to leave before turning to threat displays,” Nikolai said.
“Eh… It was my fault,” Keith said. “I should’ve warned ya I was bringing someone in. Anyways, let’s try this again. Alex, this is Nikolai. He could probably fuck you up, but he’s everyone’s mom.”
Nikolai made no move to deny it.
“Hux here is the grumpy snake. He’ll warm up to ya.”
“No I won’t.”
Keith rolled his eyes, “He’s just a grump.”
Hux mumbled to himself.
“I think you’ve met Oozy pretty well by now.”
“Sup,” Oozy said, making absolutely zero movement.
“And, erm… Nikolai, you’ve got Trousle, right.”
“Hello human! I’m Trousle! Please let me say hi.” Said Trousle’s little speaker. He was poking out from Nikolai’s sleeve, apparently wrapped around his arm.
“He’s mute, but he’s pretty fast at typing. Got his own phone and everything,” Keith said, watching this girl intently. Apparent soulmate or not, if she was dick about Trousle, she was out of here. She might’ve earned Oozy’s enthusiastic (well… enthusiastic by his standards, dude looked like a kid in a candy store, but the world’s laziest kid) approval, but he wasn’t going to let an asshole mess with the little dude. Hux would warm up, that was more him being a bit of an ass than her, but he’d get over it… probably.
“Oh that’s cool! Do you have a phone number? Honestly I think my fingers work better than my mouth sometimes, but I guess talking out loud doesn’t really have a backspace key? But yeah! C’mere… Wait, I can hold him, right? Snakes are just, like, noodle puppies.” She paused, looking at everyone in the room. “I’d offer to hold you guys, but I am literally the second smallest person in here. I mean, guess we can try, but I don’t think it’ll go well?”
Keith snorted. Gosh, she was something, huh? A little awkward, but who wouldn’t be super awkward in this situation?
Nikolai brought Trousle over and she draped him around her neck. He nuzzled her cheek, giving her little scratches behind the ear.
… should someone tell him that she’s not a dog?
…
Naaaaaaaaaah. She didn’t seem to mind anyways,
Hux made a fake-gagging gesture at the two and Keith rolled his eyes, whispering at them, “Oh let’em have this. It’s cute.”
“I’m getting diabetes. Like, right now. They’re just beaming diabetes across the room.”
“Be nice,” Nikolai said, “It’s not going to kill you to have to actually smile at a human once in a while.”
“Yes it will. It’s, like, a terminal thing. If I smile at a human, I will instantly turn to dust.”
No such condition had ever existed and likely never would.
Keith’s first instinct was to back up Nikolai, but it was almost an in-joke that he’d at least try to defend Hux no matter how clearly in the wrong the guy was. Admittedly, it was as often as not either due to boredom or just feeling bad for the guy…
It’s not like Hux didn’t have a point – a point that he had iterated in frustrated, sometimes tear-filled tirades at least a few dozen times. He didn’t want to be treated like a pet, he’s allowed to not want to be a pet. Sure, not every adopter is like that. Some might’ve been looking for pets, yeah, but just as many want a kid or a friend, especially with full sized lamia. It could be more or less just like adopting any other monster, save for needing a good deal more raw meat. But Hux didn’t see it that way… Not that Keith ever blamed him. There wasn’t a huge market for full-sized Corals, their reputation as being stubborn, a bit lazy, and tsundere as hell was cute in something you could pick up and snuggle as it chirped indignantly and secretly enjoyed it – like an extra intelligent, reptilian cat – but less so when it was just as big as you and probably stronger. Everyone wanted a housecat, no one wanted a mountain lion. Or those that did need something to growl and hiss would probably pick Kings or Mambas.
Nikolai gave a long-suffering sigh, “You will not turn to dust if you’re forced to be nice every now and then.”
“Yeah I will. It’ll, like, strangle my soul or some shit. Keith, back me up here. Tell ‘im.”
Nikolai had the distinct impression of a haggard mom trying to reason with an unruly kid. He just looked so done. Dude could handle customers, angry mamba moms, being a jungle gym for babies, and training employees who may or may not have believed he knew he what he was doing, but Hux was his breaking point.
Keith stifled a chuckle, stuffing his hands in his pockets as his mind worked over what to do… He didn’t want to just abandon Hux – Nikolai would know it was just him being a loyal bro – but Alex wouldn’t. She might not’ve been looking at them, but he caught the way she kept glancing over…
“Welp, ya heard him. He’s sick. I prescribe ten CC’s of coffee with extra sugar and bribery with shiny objects.”
Hux’s head popped up, body at attention. “I’m listening… How many shiny objects are we talking.”
“… we’re not bribing him.”
“I’ve got extra dice?” Alex said hesitantly. Trousle was looking at her in concern, patting her face. She said, “I mean, I kinda like having all my dice, but I guess I don’t need seven sets… I’m keeping the black ones though, they’re good for fight scenes. And the orange ones, they were my first set ever and are not for sale. Also, the green and purple ones are just a fae vibe, I’m keeping them. They’re just average, but I like them.” Pause. “And the lesbian dice are mine. They won’t like you anyways, you’re a boy.”
All of them nodded understandingly. You could only play DnD so long and not get irrationally attached to the colorful little click clack rocks of fate.
“That counts as one shiny object,” Hux said.
“There are seven in each set!” Pause. “Well, more or less. I’ve lost some over the years.”
“You’ve got a point… More dice for the dice dragon! Mwahahahah!” Hux said, hamming it up.
Keith’s mouth twitched into a grin as he shook his head at the goof. How was he this cute? Just… goober. His friend is a total goof sometimes.
“Can I try the lesbian dice?” Trousle asked, holding himself at an awkward position to type.
“I… I guess? Just give them back after…” Alex said. She ran a finger across Trousle’s head, smiling as he let out little breathy attempts to “Nyeh.”
“Why are they lesbians anyways? Do they only work for girls?” Nikolai said.
“Here, lemme show you.” She unzipped one of the pouches on her bag and brought out a baggy full of dice that were lesbian flag colored. “My friend got them for me for Christmas.”
“That’s amazing. I want twelve,” Keith said.
“You’re not a lesbian… or a girl! I think… I mean, if there’s something you want to tell us, that’s fine, but I was under the impression you weren’t even interested in relationships,” Nikolai said.
“Maybe I could get, like… Dice that are for people who are just no.”
“Ace and aro. Probably,” Alex said.
“Oh cool. Words for it. Nice!”
“Give me words for friends with everyone! I want a flag too!”
“I… I don’t know if there’s a flag for that? Maybe we could put a dog on a flag? It’d be hard to make dice with dogs on them though,” Alex said.
“Ya could put a little dog face on every side and interpret the roll based on how much they’re a Good Boy,” Keith said.
“That would only roll Nat 20’s,” Alex said, deadpan.
“… good point. It could be the luckiest dice,” Keith said, grinning.
“I AM THE GOODEST BOY. Give me dog dice.” Trousle said, tucking the phone away to throw his little fists in the air, a gleam in his eye as he sat on Alex’s head.
Keith laughed. “Oh my gosh. I mean, that sounds adorable, but, uh… I think that miiiiight be a little too game breaking, even for me.”
“Give me dog dice.” He slithered back down to around Alex’s neck, holding himself out towards Keith the best he could and giving some mix between a glare and a pout.
“Trousle no.”
“Trousle YES,” Alex said.
Troulse nodded enthusiastically, bouncing in place so hard that he fell off and Alex yelped as she caught him.
“Are you alright?!”
Trousle gave a thumbs up, coiling around her arm.
Oozy had apparently fallen asleep on the floor, so Hux poked him with a stick, making Oozy whine. “Soooooo… Are we gonna get Glitterass, or are we just shadow banning him from this? I mean, I wouldn’t say no if we are…”
“We should probably go get him, yeah,” Keith said. “Ya ready Alex? Liam’s a mamba, and one of his eyes don’t work. Try to stay on his good side, literally. Metaphorically too if you want, but he doesn’t like having people where he can’t see or hear them well.” Not that anyone would like that, just courtesy really, but maybe not something you’d think of immediately.
Heyooo. Guess who’s back... kinda. ^^;;; Not my favorite chapter by a long shot, but the idea got stuck in my head just enough to type out.
I hope tumblr doesn’t mess up the double-space formatting between texting and Liam’s thoughts, but I think it’s still distinguishable regardless.
A little bit of context for those who don’t play much DnD: Hexblade warlocks get their power from a patron who gives them a magic weapon. Fighters get a fighting style that allows them perks based on what kind of weapon they use. Sorcerers have inborn magic, and wild magic can make weird things happen sometimes.
Also, I know that it’s spelled y’all, but for some reason my fingers insist that it’s ya’ll??? Idek.
Aaaaaaanyways, these lamia species come from @vex-bittys ! Enjoy!
<PREV | BEGINNING | NEXT>
Liam sighed happily as he stretched himself out in his enclosure. His skull-cap had been removed for the night. In theory he could, and probably should, leave it on, but the tacky substance that held it in place irritated his bones and itched horribly. Plus it just felt like something was sitting on his head all the time. It’s not like he had any nerves in the fake-bone, so it just felt like a dead weight. Bandage and cloth wraps were far more comfortable and did just as good of a job at keeping things out of his head. But in the safety of his own habitat with daylight hours away? There wouldn’t be much harm in letting it air out a little. Air swirled into his skull as he moved, tickling the inside, as he slid on top of the silky, plush pillows and under a warmed up heating blanket.
Normally he wouldn’t put on heat for the night unless it was freezing, it was easier to sleep in cool air, at least for him, but his eyes kept darting to his phone on its charger. Normally he’d have put it away by now, but they’d gotten Alex’s number and added her to the DnD group chat, Snarls and Snakes, so everyone with a phone was still chatting (save for Nikolai).
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): i demand you guys pronounce it G’nome. yeah i wear the pointy hat. m a G’arden G’nome
Devising Machinations (Keith): Your character still needs a NAME.
Pledged Companion (Trousle): YES, LAZYBONES!
Proxy Child (Alex): Names are hard, I get it m’dude.
Problematic Changeling (Liam): Still, that’s just lazy.
Devising Machinations (Keith): Oh hey, ya got your phone back. Nice :)
Problematic Changeling (Liam): They couldn’t keep it from me~
Pledged Companion (Trousle): THAT ISN’T EVEN YOURS!
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): dude caps
Pledged Companion (Trousle): I AM SMALL, YOU WILL NOT HEAR ME IF I DON’T SHOUT
Proxy Child (Alex): That… That isn’t how text works???
Pledged Companion (Trousle): ALSO THE SHIFT KEY IS STARTING TO ACT BUGGY. I DON’T WANT TO ASK FOR A PHONE OR KEYBOARD UNTIL THIS IS DEAD THOUGH
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): p sure that liam got it for good behavior
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): suck up
Problematic Changeling (Liam): IT IS A VALID HUNTING STRATEGY!!! Deception is JUST as valuable as being able to bite things. Sometimes. I’m more fond of biting deer than trying to play mind games with them.
Or he assumed he would be, if he got to see a deer. He was old enough to be rented out to handle overpopulated areas, but he wasn’t very popular… People saw the eye and all other thought seemed to go out the window. Nevermind that deer and rabbits pound at the ground like they were trying to break the earth, no one cared about that. They only cared that he was down an eye. Fuck them.
Devising Machinations (Keith): Everyone happy with their characters before I get started with anything in depth? I’ve talked to Hux, dude’s fine ^u^
Proxy Child (Alex): I think so??? I’m still trying to figure out whether or not to main in Hexblade or just go straight fighter. I mean, getting the fighting style is well worth dipping into it regardless, but, like, would my character *want* help from another fae, or is this something she felt she needed to do herself? Like, making pacts and stuff would make her seem more fey-y, but does she WANT to be fey-y? Or would I rather have her intentionally shun all of it?
Devising Machinations (Keith): Not a call I can make, but can’t wait to hear about it.
Problematic Changeling (Liam): I’ve had similar questions… I do think I’m going sorcerer one way or another, wild magic of course, since they’re inherently magic, but would they have been trying to learn other things as well?
There was something he couldn’t quite put his finger on with their characters. They seemed so juicy already, enough angst and plot potential for them both to sink their teeth into, but something felt slightly off…
Proxy Child (Alex): I guess it comes down to whether my character (who I will give a name to, eventually) would want the “crutch” of a more powerful fae helping them out, or if they’d rather prove their own worth.
Liam’s fingers were typing before he’d even thought it through.
Problematic Changeling (Liam): Prove your own worth. You don’t need someone hand-holding you through life.
Pledged Companion (Trousle): I DON’T SEE WHY NOT. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH NEEDING ASSISTANCE, BOTH IN GENERAL AND *ESPECIALLY* WHEN EVERYONE AROUND YOU CAN DO THINGS YOU CANNOT.
Proxy Child (Alex): Ya’ll both have points, just ain’t sure. I might have to try writing or RP’ing her a little to figure out what kind of person she is. Have to get a feel for her first, y’know?
Devising Machinations (Keith): That’s fine by me. No pressure ^^
Pledged Companion (Trousle): YES, NO REASON TO STRESS ABOUT IT, YOU’VE GOT AT LEAST A WEEK! YOU’LL COME UP WITH SOMETHING GREAT!
Proxy Child (Alex): Thanks dudes.
Proxy Child (Alex): I really like your character btw, Liam. Kinda wish I’d come up with that first XD It’s relatable, y’know? Though maybe a little too close to home anyways, ya’ll ain’t my therapists. Can’t wait to see how you play them out.
Problematic Changeling (Liam): It’s going to be awesome, naturally. Are you sure you can keep up with me?
Proxy Child (Alex): Honey, I don’t think you know what kind of angst machine you’re dealing with here >:3c
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): oh boy thisll be fun
Pledged Companion (Trousle): GUYS I’M PUTTING YOU ON MUTE. I’M KEEPING EVERYONE UP. GOODNIGHT! <3 <3 <3 <3 <3
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): night trus
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): also you should just play every single class at once
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): itd be HISSterical
Devising Machinations (Keith): XD Dude. No. Just no. Also, you’re ripping that off from Puffing Forest
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): lies and slander
Problematic Changeling (Liam): You watch it *while we game* sometimes. I’m half deaf and I can still hear it!
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): it aint my fault you take 5ever on turns sometimes
Problematic Changeling (Liam): Well SOME of us know how to strategize.
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): yeah, trus
Proxy Child (Alex): PFFFFFT. Oozy omg. XD But I oughta go to bed. I’ve got work tomorrow. Sleep tight ya’ll!
Devious Machinations (Keith): Niiiight!
Problematic Changeling (Liam): I’ll get you back for that Oozy. But really, I’m looking forward to this. It’s been a while since we got fresh blood in.
The last time they had was Trousle. Being the only bitty and the youngest of the group, they hadn’t been friends with him nearly as long as with each other, but he was still quite fun to have around. He was starting to grow on Liam, honestly. Liam had to respect his relentless optimism, at least to a degree. Albeit, Papython in general tended to be unwaveringly positive, but it seemed deeper than the surface-level sugar of some of his breed.
Pointy Combatant (Oozy): sleep sounds good actually. Night
Devising Machinations (Keith): Saaaame. Night everyone
Problematic Changeling (Liam): Goodnight.
Liam put the phone back and turned the heat off on the blanket, putting it over his head and settling in for the night. He was grateful that his wing tended to be pretty quiet; he never could sleep well with noise, lights, or too much movement, though the pillows muffled the vibrations in the ground nicely. No one was going to come anyways, not this late. Even if they did, he was a light enough sleeper to wake up and bite before the other even knew what hit them. He drifted to sleep alternating between contemplating his DnD character, and imagining hunting a deer.