Meme Requests: Original Edition

[breakfastofchampions]

Writing requests from over on foxysquid! These are just the stories about my own characters.

Title: Shiny Black Hair
Universe: Wind & Foxes
Character(s): Reian, Imbri
Requested by: luckykitty


It was the worst thing anyone had ever done to him.

He'd wondered about his friend, who sometimes seemed a little cruel, a trace inhuman. Still, he had never expected Imbri would do something like that.

To awaken surrounded by loose strands of his own hair, which had been heartlessly cut from his head--it was an unimaginable horror. He gathered the hair into a single bundle and held it to his chest, his eyes full of tears. "How could you do this to me, Imbri?"

Imbri was so callous. He actually smirked. As if it were a joke, and not an unthinkable defacement.

"What woman will want me now? A man with short hair!"

"Don't be so emotional, Reian. It's only hair. It'll grow back."

"You don't understand! It honors the gods."

"I understand perfectly well."

His poor hair. It was soft and helpless in his hands. It hadn't deserved this. He stroked it slowly, regretfully. "No, you don't. Or you wouldn't have done such a terrible thing."

By midday, Imbri's smirk had faded, replaced by a weary scowl. "Yes yes, I know how deeply your loss has pained you. It was a prank."

"I always took such good care of it. Everyone used to say so. 'Your hair's so lovely, Reian,' they'd say. 'So thick and lustrous.' Now look at me--hair cropped like a child! I feel unmanned!"

"Do I have to listen to this all day?"

"If you didn't want to 'listen to this', you shouldn't have disfigured me."

Imbri twitched.

"I'll have to stay away from the Tribes until it grows back. I'm an exile now. I can't show my face in Teres. I'd be a laughingstock!"

Imbri looked a bit sick.

The next day, Reian felt a familiar presence at the back of his neck and around his shoulders. He reached up quickly to touch it, to make sure it was real. It was. It had all grown back. His beautiful, shining, masculine hair. His relief was so great, it was all he could do not to hug his hair with the sheer joy of it--actually, he did hug it, if only for a moment, since no one was looking and he wouldn't be made fun of for it later.

Imbri's face was drawn that morning, his eyes lusterless, as though he had run a race all night instead of sleeping. Reian didn't mention it. He smiled to himself. However cruel and inhuman Imbri might be, he was no match for Reian Lijen.


Title: Silence Falls
Universe: Wind & Foxes
Character(s): Kivran, Reian
Requested by: armistice_day


"Look at that," Kivran said, with a sweeping gesture of his hand, "You see, Saraak's range is limitless." What could look more immense than that broad canyon stretching to the horizon, white with snow at the bottom, its walls rimed with ice?

"I could give you all this," Kivran said. No one owned this land, or could, but in a way, Kivran felt it was his. He had brought Reian here to see this, one of the wonders of his world, but not the greatest wonder. No, the greatest wonder was his country boy's gray eyes, so thoughtful now as Reian gazed out at the great gulf before him, the palace the cold river had built for itself below.

They were alone here. No one came here. No people had built cities or roads anywhere near the canyon, and sometimes Kivran imagined that he was the only one who had seen this place, this beauty, this wild silence. Belonging only to him.

Reian said nothing.

Kivran took his hand. He laughed, though his laughter sounded more mad than amused in his ears. "I would give you all my tribe, all our routes and horses, all our wealth."

As Reian's silence stretched, Kivran held his hand more tightly, and his insides twisted themselves into knots. If this had been a story, one of those old stories with lovers who loved more far passionately than wisely, he would have let go of Reian's hand and cast himself into the canyon without hesitation.

Reian shivered, as if he sensed the thought.

"Ah, you're cold," said Kivran, and here was something he could do, something that made sense. He stripped himself of his outer robe and slipped it over Reian's head. "There. That's better, no?"

"Thank you, Kivran." Reian turned to smile at him gratefully.

Kivran would have given all his robes to see that smile.


Title: Feels Like Sand
Universe: Wind & Foxes
Character(s): Kai, Neri
Requested by: hello_scorpling


"It's so fine and loose," said Kai, marveling as she ran her hand through the soil by the water. There was so much water here! So much green. Flowers and vines and moss and ferns, and most impressive of all, the things Reian said were called "trees"--they were giants, like Reian himself. There were grasses, too, but they were small and frail compared to the great grasses of the Mering.

Even the soil here was so different and varied. "What is this called?" she asked.

"Sand," said Reian, pronouncing the word carefully in his own language.

"Sand," she repeated after him, the strange word an awkward taste in her mouth. "Neri, come here and see!"

Neri came at once, quick and curious, and Kai showed her the sand. Reian, with a bow, left to gather food for them to eat. Kai and Neri played with the sand for a time, drawing pictures. Kai felt her god-gift stir, and the sand moved beneath her fingers, forming patterns. "Look," she said. "There's Ari the Gold in the magic cavern. And her mate Larli the Red, who made her tears into a river and filled the cavern so Ari could swim home."

Neri laughed in delight and leaned in to kiss Kai's cheek. "I've never seen anything like that before. There's nothing you can't do!"

"The soil at home is too hard to do this." Usually thoughts of home saddened her, but she was too taken with the sand to feel sorrow now, and Neri was beside her. "This sand is very soft."

"You're soft," said Neri, kissing her again. "We should make a word for sand in our language." Neri was much better at saying the strange words Reian tried to teach them. New sounds excited her. It made Kai smile to hear the enthusiasm in her tone. "I think I'll name it after you," she said.

Neri put an arm around her, and Kai leaned in close to her. There was no better feeling than this, Neri's body against hers, safer than any nest. Neri's breath was warm against her ear. "Me?" asked Kai. "And why is that?"

"Because you're the one who discovered it. And like I said, you're soft." Neri stroked her throat. Kai could feel the sand on Neri's fingers. Against her neck, it felt slightly rough, but she didn't mind it. Kai turned her head to kiss Neri's mouth. She would show her something soft.


Title: Wink
Universe: Greatheart
Character(s): Damien, Bertrand
Requested by: kittyjimjams


"It's agonizing, Bertrand," Damien sighed. "You have no idea."

"I suppose I don't."

"I thought my field of vision would be the greatest loss. And that does pain me, make no mistake. I'm still not used to it. I keep getting smacked in the head during practice bouts."

"I'd noticed that you've looked a bit more bruised than usual lately," said Bertrand evenly.

"Make no mistake," Damien hastened to assure him, "if I had it to do over again, I'd do the same thing, no second thoughts."

Bertrand nodded, as if this had never been in any doubt. It was true; saving Bertrand's life had been worth an eye. It would have been worth two eyes, if it had come to that, though he was glad it hadn't.

"It's only that I keep feeling this urge, this terrible craving, and I know I'll never again be able to satisfy it. When a pretty woman walks by, or when she laughs at one of my jokes, or if I'm teasing her a little, I try to do it, but of course, it's a no go. I get nothing but frustration out of it. It's torture, plain and simple."

Bertrand had fallen silent, and when Damien stopped talking, the silence stretched. Damien realized he might have gone on a bit too much. He had to turn his head a little more than he used to to look at Bertrand directly. Bertrand's eyes were downcast, his gaze distant, fixed on some far-off point well outside this small room with its comfortable chairs and its warm hearth.

Damien began to feel sorry. He knew Bertrand blamed himself for his injury. He shouldn't joke about it so much. "Are you--"

Before he could finish his question, Bertrand glanced up quickly and winked at him.

Damien started, his good eye widening, then narrowing in a smile. "You're a terrible man, Goldenhour." Still, he couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so hard, or for so long.


Title: Hugs
Universe: Greatheart
Character(s): Damien, Alex
Requested by: redvelvetaddict


Damien drew back, stifling a cry of pain. Alex stood in a battle stance, his two swords drawn and wickedly sharp.

"Try that again," said Alex. It wasn't a dare. It was a simple statement of the fate awaiting him.

Damien touched his face. He felt blood, if only a few drops' worth. There was a single, precise cut on his cheek, just below his good eye. A warning. He smiled at the bristling young man. He'd never seen anyone look so stern and immovable. At times like this, Alex was more an outcropping of rock than a human being.

Damien was sure Alex was bluffing, but he had no intention of putting that certainty to the test. He bowed low. "Your pardon, Sir Sable."

He had only himself to blame, he knew. He'd forgotten how much Alex hated hugs.


Title: Fraternization
Universe: Greatheart
Character(s): Aloysius, Bertrand
Requested by: ambrmerlinus


"Your Majesty."

Aloysius started at the sound of that voice, jerking his head back sharply, though it was difficult to escape the fact that his legs were wrapped around the footman's waist. "What is it?" he asked, trying to sound icy and imperious, but afraid that what he sounded was petulant, young.

Bertrand stood in the doorway. He addressed the footman flatly. "Please report to your superior and tell him the king's sentinel said you're in need of more work to do."

Aloysius pulled his tunic down over his thighs as the man climbed out of bed. He didn't countermand Bertrand's order. Technically, as the crown prince, he outranked Bertrand, but from a practical standpoint, the king's sentinel served as the king's voice in the king's absence.

Aloysius's cheeks burned, and his ears felt hot. The footman avoided his gaze, keeping his head down as he pulled on his clothes and left the room as quickly as he could.

Bertrand did not speak again until the man was gone. "This is highly inappropriate, Your Majesty."

"I don't care."

"I won't allow this to continue."

"And why not?" Aloysius demanded, sitting up, anger making him almost forget his embarrassment. "Why shouldn't I do what I want? Father does whatever he wishes, and I'll do the same."

"Your father's actions aren't quite the same."

"Yes, I know that. You know what I meant." Aloysius drew his legs up towards his chest, pulling his tunic down over his knees, but it wasn't quite long enough for his comfort. His flash of anger had faded, and all the embarrassment was rushing back. He hated for Bertrand to see him like this. Bertrand must think he was shameful, behaving like an animal.

Bertrand sighed. "I understand that this is difficult for you. Power demands compromise."

He wasn't angry. Aloysius would have smiled, but he was bothered by Bertrand's words. "I don't want power."

Bertrand nodded, seated himself on the edge of the bed. "I understand that, Your Majesty."

Aloysius wished things could be like they'd been when he'd been little. When he'd gotten upset, Bertrand had simply picked him up and carried him on his shoulders. Everything had seemed better from up there, so high and far away from the world. Now he was too big for that, and too horrible. He wondered what Bertrand thought of him now.

He crawled across the bed towards the man, careful to keep his tunic from riding up. Bertrand turned towards him.

"We're still friends, aren't we?"

Bertrand started slightly, then smiled. "Of course. I only want to help you, Your Majesty."

"Louis." He couldn't bear it when Bertrand addressed him so formally, especially when they were alone.

"Yes, Louis."

Aloysius leaned in and kissed his cheek, his lips lightly brushing the skin to the right of Bertrand's scar. Bertrand did not seem to react, remaining motionless, so Aloysius drew back almost at once, to study the man's face. He found himself being studied in turn. Not only his face, but all of him. Bertrand's scrutiny was so intent and protracted that Aloysius looked away.

Bertrand rose to his feet. "I'll consider what to do about this." He bowed low before the prince. "In the meantime, Louis, would you please refrain from fraternizing with the servants? I ask you as your friend. It's not that I don't sympathize, but it does present me with some problems."

Aloysius wondered what he meant by what to do about this, but he nodded.

"Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty." He bowed low. "I'll let you know when I have decided on a substitute."

"But--"

"Good day, Your Majesty."

"Bertrand, come back here! What do you mean? Tell me!"

As large as the man was, he was quick, and he was gone before Aloysius could catch him. Aloysius bit back a cry of annoyance as the door closed in his face. He couldn't very well run out into the hall dressed in nothing but a tunic. He punched the door in frustration, then regretted it. It hurt.

"I don't want anyone but you," he whispered fiercely, brave enough to say it when no one was there to hear him.

Comments

[redvelvetaddict.livejournal.com]

All the best stories, right here! Fraternizing with the help, hugs, etc <3
And I hadn't read the Kai/Neri story, it was adorable and I loooove them <3<3<3

[pekoe-dreams.livejournal.com]

Aww, thank you so much! You're the best.

Haha, yes, there were a few meme stories that took me longer to get around to--I still haven't finished them all. The Kai/Neri one was a late addition. I'm so glad you liked that one, too! <3