Prompt 1: A Special Person [ results pg 8 ]

[dreamyEnding]

Heiwa paused for a second before continuing, "I never knew the model Opia... but the Opia that works that hard is my best friend, and she's definitely not an idiot!"
Opia + Heiwa

[roelian]

|| tiago || liam ||

you're the song I play in my heart

It had been a rather slow night at the bar. Saturdays were always busiest; you never really saw anything exciting on a Thursday night. Tiago would wander in, play the piano for a bit, and leave with a free beer and a handful of cashews. It was always the same. But he didn't mind; he didn't do it for money or anything. He did it for company, as it's rather lonely working a farm by yourself. Or, well, it was.

Tiago knew the sheriff in the same way everyone else knew the sheriff. He was just Liam, nothing more or less. A closed off kind of fellow that didn't have much to say to anyone. Until that Thursday night, anyway. Tiago wasn't sure how the conversation started, really. Something about cashews being gross, probably. But he'd slid right next to Liam at the bar and ordered a round for the sad-looking man. One sentence turned to 2, and 2 turned into 6 and the hours flew by with little smiles and flirtaceous glances.

Tiago walked Liam home too, on the excuse that it was on the way, and he wanted to make sure he got home safe. (Even if Liam was definitely strong and fast enough to defend himself) It was another excuse to not be lonely, when he was invited to stay the night. His farm was a long ride in the night, and a storm had begun to pick up. It wasn't unusual for Tiago to spend the night in stranger's homes before riding back, but this time felt a little different. There was friendship blossoming there. Not just another stranger inviting him in just to be nice before he rode back.

Tiago was back in the bar the next night, grinning and carrying on like always. And, surprisingly, Liam showed up too. Found a comfortable spot next to the piano, and they just joked and talked all night. They developed a soft type of love that neither was really aware was there until they stopped to think about what kind of relationship they shared.

Tiago smiles as he watches the fire, thinking about everything that had happened between them. The ups, the downs, and everything in between. Liam was the most special person he knew, and he wasn't sure that would ever change.

(392/500)

[apprentice_]

milo ft farien
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make a spark, break the dark / find a light with me
embers.

a kid stares into a campfire’s flames, controlled, warm. safe. he’s young,
fifteen or sixteen, and still you’d swear those eyes aren’t seeing the
campfire but maybe something bigger. something old and wild, a memory
he’d rather not remember.

he was asked if there was someone he’d give everything for— die for,
maybe. wasn’t really a question you’d expect from a stranger, but it was
just as much something you wouldn’t expect to put such a forlorn look
over a teenager’s face.

he blinks. looks up at his campside companion and pulls at his curls. “yea,”
he starts, “i guess so.” there’s silence between the two, and they listen
to chatter surrounding them for awhile before he stops to think that maybe
he could say a little more than that.

milo. his biography is made up of two words repeated a million times:
woefully awkward.

so he laughs to wave the tension that he created, and continues. thinks a
little too much about each word before he says it. “i’m, uh, kind of
impressionable. that’s what i’m told a lot. and i had a pretty lame guardian
as a kid, so. . .” he doesn’t want to overshare. “well, yea, i got thrown
into a jail cell and one of the castle’s mages bailed me out." blunt. just to
get it over with.

“i was a brat too. she tried to help me and i told her to go away. i guess i
was just a kid— or, i’m still a kid, but— i mean, it was a few years ago. i—i
don’t know. i’m just glad she didn’t give up on me. i would have.”

the breath he takes in is shaky. “um, her name is farien and she cares for a
lot of kids— apprentices. she’s skilled in magic, so she mentors people, i
guess? she took me in more as a brother, though. my magic is. . . not. . .
very good.” the tone lightens, and finally there’s ease in his voice. “i think
i’m the way i am now because of her. she would lecture me any time i was
rude, and i think if it’d been anyone but her, i’d have just lashed out worse.

“maybe it’s because she was the first person to really believe in me.”

he pauses, and looks proud of the thought. catches a glimpse of a loose
ember. the fire is warm, and it’s safe.
he flusters. “i don’t— i don’t mean to ramble, i hate to really talk about
that sort of thing but i guess i’d never gotten it all out before— uh, what
about you? you said there’s someone like that for you too, right?

“who would you give everything for?”

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[epilogue]

"Well if we're being honest here, I never thought I would love again until I metFumiki."

Fedya's awkward chuckle trailed off into a sigh. He stared off, his eyes blank as he mentally worked up the courage to speak.

"When I was uh... thirteen I think? Yeah, yeah, I was thirteen. Last year of middle school. It was Christmas, we had just opened up gifts. I took my brothers outside and they were playing in the yard. I-I really don't know how it happened but- I-uh- my youngest brother died that day."

Fedya sniffled, and wiped a stray tear from his eye, and shook his head. The young adult took a deep breath and began his story.

"That really messed me up, man. I became a terrible kid, I got into fights, I was angry all the time, I was a jerk."

He chucked as he insulted himself.

"I-uh I became a cop, a cop in the K-9 unit, and I got my partner, Damien. That stupid mutt, I don't know what I'd do without him, he's a riot. I made a routine of goin' into this cute little bakery. I'd bring Damien in with me, I love spoiling the little guy. Then I-I met her."

The young man smiled, his eyes glittering as the thought of his girlfriend came to his mind. He shifted slightly, and folded his hands together before continuing his story.

"On God, she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew I was in love. I visited her bakery every single day. We... we began to talk and- God, every time I heard her speak, I thought I was going to melt into a puddle. Fumiki made me feel love again."

Fedya smiled.

"Well uh, I'll get going now, my apologies for wastin' your time."

[Stormowalf]

__________________________________

He would die each and every night to let his true love breathe, for it would put an end to all his misery.

__________________________________

Iacio laughed heartily at the young girl's peculiar request.
"It's not often I get asked about my love life.." He chuckled, "It was such a long time ago." Iacio's eyes softened as he began to drown in the countless memories that had flooded his mind.
"I like to imagine our meeting as a ship ride. My ship stopped at many docks and it had countless passengers in its prime. Many came, many went but there was only one that had been willing to stay with me to my last voyage." His voice
"It was a complete coincidence that I even got to meet him. He was a great bard once you know, one of the best. He'd come to my town to help chase away some rogue spirits that had been terrorizing the locals. I was the mayor's son, sure but I wasn't much to look at. It was by some God's miracle that he'd noticed me but he did, he saw me and I'll never forget how my heart skipped a beat when I saw his eyes light up the first time he saw me."
"Even after he'd finished helping our town, he would find as much time to come and spend time with me. He was a sweetheart, and we were so happy together. Until I... uh.. until I'd-" The dark furred kalon's voice had begun to crack. Tears pooled at the corner of his eyes. He sniffled and tried to finish his story, "I- It was my fault you know. I had made a fatal mistake which not only cost him his life but also all of my memory of him. It was only until recently that I was able to reclaim my memory of the one I truly loved. That fatal mistake was also how I wound up in all of this spirit guide mess y'know..." He sniffled again as he looked up into the clear night sky.
"His name was Raven... And how I loved him so. It was just a shame I couldn't remember him sooner."

[365/500]

[lemm]

’ooh, who would’ve thought i’d get you’

[shishou]

"thank you for showing me compassion," - jack

"and thank you for teaching me patience." - annaiise

[Foxglove.]

Love is blind in the best ways. We don't abandon those we truly love.

Featuring Mocha

and Alaska

[Zailune]

Darius and Katrina
Brand or Blessing

"Life is never a constant. True feelings are."
_________________________________________

Fire, fire, flames… They wanted to burn me.

I had been formally accused of being a Far-Lost. A wretched creature of the night. A demon, of sorts.
Those I assumed were my friends, those I’d hunted among and grew up with, turned on me in the blink of an eye. My faith was the core of my being, and without it – I became hollow.

It seemed there was nowhere to run… so I hid. A small, long-forgotten storage building would become my new residence. Without food or water, trapped in this cold, I would surely die in time – but anything felt better than the punishment that awaited back “home”.

I didn’t have the will within me to search for a new home. What did it matter? These markings on my body were damning. I was unfortunate enough to be born with my sin seeping from my skin. Where could I possibly go in this country where I wouldn’t be persecuted for this form?

I sat alone for hours upon hours until days had passed by.
The light slipped from my vision. It seemed to be a peaceful end.

…

“Here.”

A dream?
“Please, drink some water. I’ll have food for you in a moment.”

Wearily, I accepted. What is this soft surface… a bed?

…

Apparently, a small canine guided a young villager to me. A Kalon about my age, named Katrina.
She hasn’t seen the signs. She doesn’t know. She can’t know.

... ...

No, she does know, doesn’t she? Who hasn’t seen the Village Board, with my face plastered all over it.
Why is she helping me?

... ... ...

Looking back, this whole near-death thing? Being turned on and chased, all the way to another country? It was a blessing in disguise. I wouldn’t give my family up for the world. Katrina, I still don’t understand why you’ve followed me all this time…

…but, I love you.

| word count: 328 |

[Mnemosyne]

"The giving of love is an education in itself." - Eleanor Roosevelt

Eilian looked a bit embarrassed at the question from the Kalon, but they shook their head and smiled. "I have a very special someone, someone very close to my heart...Merope, the light of my life." Blushing a bit at their own words, Eilian rubbed their reddening cheeks. "Before I met her I was happy with my life, but didn't have too many close friends. I was always the quiet one, hiding behind a book and avoiding leaving the places I felt the most safe, but meeting her let me understand that these moments can be shared with someone else. She's pushed me outside of my comfort zone, in a valuable way, showing me that there is beauty to be found even outside of the library and books."

The discussion is interrupted by the sounds of kits playing nearby, Eilian letting out a sigh as they heard one of them squealing. "Come now, kids, please behave," they called out, shaking their head as the sounds faded into the distance. Despite the interruption, Eilian still had a fond look on their face as they looked out into the distance. "We've been blessed with some beautiful kits as well, me and Merope, and I certainly can't complain about that either. My life has been truly enriched by her being here." Eilian stood and dusted themselves off, smiling kindly towards the other Kalon. "I don't know if any of that helped you out, at all, but I would say that more than anything - love, no matter what kind, has helped me to grow and become an even better...me." [ 275 / 500 ]