cointosser: ([075])
Jaskier "old-timey fuckboy" Alfred Pankratz ([personal profile] cointosser) wrote in [community profile] middaeg2021-03-07 02:29 pm

March Catch-All [Open, Mostly]

Who: Jaskier and you!
When: All through Mareuer (March)
Where: Aefenglom, mainly the shopping/entertainment districts
What: Livin' life as an ex-Cwyld kidnappee who has never had a bad thing happen to him in his life, singing sad songs about his lost love, learning how to dance again the way he danced with Lightning.....
Warnings: Body horror in the third prompt for Yen, mentions of last month's plot.



I. CELION DION IN THE CAR ALONE WHILE CRYING; Aefenglom; early Mareuer in the Shopping District

[After the time between his current moment and his last second in that cage lengthens, Jaskier becomes more... not quite himself, but certainly more than a shade of the bright bard he previously was. It seems fair that as things become a little brighter, he must be brought down by even more bad news.

It's one of his rare decisions to leave his, Geralt and Yennefer's home and take a walk around the city. As much as he wishes he could simply go for a walk on his own, he asks Geralt to come with him, throwing his lute onto his back. Not, he imagines, he'll find much use for it. It's simply something constantly by his side. A bit like Geralt as of late. Geralt shifts before they leave, and honestly, Jaskier doesn't question it. He understands the implicit desire behind it.

Once in the depths of the city, he doesn't really mean to go looking for her. He thinks seeing a familiar face -- perhaps one that managed to escape all of the Evergreen Circle's machinations -- will help cheer him up. Even if Lightning is possibly the last person, next to Geralt, to seek for cheerfulness. He ducks into Karen's patisserie (who at least gives him a warm welcome) only to come to find Lightning is not there, in her usual pink, frilly apron. The one that matches her hair so well.

Karen twists a towel between her hands as she shakes her head, glancing over his shoulder to peer at the wolf waiting for him outside. Sorry to say she isn't here anymore. Didn't come into work one day and I checked with the Coven. Back home, they say.

Jaskier stands quietly in the middle of the patisserie, feeling awkward.]


Oh. I see. [While some faces he's met before he's not seen again, this is the first time the loss is so visceral and in his face. Before the Circle's intervention, he had been working on a very special song, just for her, something to play on a quiet moment as they drank coffee or tea. Jaskier could say he had set aside a piece of his heart for her. And he, of course, had imagined their relationship evolving --]

Well, thank you for letting me know. I'll come by for a few more of those croissants later. They're a favorite in the house.

[Jaskier gives her a polite smile after buying a nice, fresh loaf for Geralt. He steps outside to meet his Bonded. The weather is warming finally, and the sun is out. A nice day.] I was thinking I might play a bit.

[Geralt nods and follows him. They find a nice little spot in the sun near the patisserie with a patch of grass and well-cultivated flowers. The giant white wolf curls up in the sun and Jaskier sits against him, cradling his lute in his lap. Perhaps not a waste he'd brought it with him, then.

Occasionally he leaves Geralt when the wolf begins to sleep (and only fair, for his sleep has been so terrible as of late) to walk as he strums. He plays a song (minus the Office reference) off and on, and another for Lightning as he experiments with a word that would rhyme with lightning ("Bitening my heart," he sings, then wrinkles his nose, crossing the words out the notebook laid across his leg as he mutters, "Fuck, I'm terrible, aren't I?"), his booted foot tapping to the rhythm. If one has heard Jaskier perform before, these songs are opposite of his normal jovial, upbeat tunes, and not quite performed with the sort of energy he's had before.]


((ooc: Geralt will be in the background snoozing, so mention if you want to directly interact with him or both of them!))



II. SHADOWS LINGER EVEN IN DAY; Aefenglom; closer to mid-Mareuer somewhere in the Entertainment District

[Nearly a month later, Jaskier is able to, at least occasionally, go out on his own. He no longer flinches at the sound of his own name, which is quite reassuring. Still, his sleep is often interrupted, even though the physical scars on his body left by the growing Cwyld mushrooms have nearly gone completely. Mostly it's only the original scar they sprouted from, his skin split by Geralt's teeth, that still remains.

With the weather warmer, Jaskier has rolled his sleeves up a little. Enough that some of the scars may peek through.

He's felt good. For a week, even more. And yet when he steps deeper into the bright lights and loud noises of the Entertainment District, Jaskier begins to feel he's made a mistake. As fucking frustrating as it is -- this was a place he flourishes. Now people sometimes brush too close and he backs away, or there's a laugh quite too loud, or he passes by a few squirrels or cats tucked into cages, curled up with a tail around them --

That does it. Bile rises in his throat and he rushes past a music hall with the distant sound of strings, but when he catches the smell of what is, undeniably, cooking mushrooms nearby, he loses it. A chill rushes through him, his body shaking, and he ducks into an alley with the urge to vomit. He can feel it all over again, the heated pain in his right arm from the cutting. The cultivating. Even if the voice does not echo in his ears anymore, Jaskier distinctly remembers what it sounded like.

What the Cywld itself sounds like, as it urges its host to spread it.]


It's gone. I'm rid of it. This is all -- [He shakes his head to himself.] A terrible memory.

[Boy, it's good no one can see him having a breakdown in this darkened alley.]



III. SHADOWS EXPAND BY NIGHT; Aefenglom; the Witcher household; closed to Yennefer

[Truthfully, it was miraculous since that time in Yennefer's head they've managed to keep themselves separate, especially when Jaskier spent, at least for a week, more often then not his nights shivering to himself, having woken up with a choked scream in his throat. It's done shit for his ability to sing, which is simply the cherry on top.

The fluctuation between intense sadness and righteous anger has done shit good for his heart, too.

And feeling Geralt withdrawing further away from the two of them, whether he means to or not. (Which, of course, he bloody does.) Oftentimes now Geralt simply is absent at night, or in the early morning, and Jaskier hasn't had the balls to ask him why. What it is, specifically, he's doing.

Because it is, of course, something to do with him.

It's another night where Geralt is missing. He's either too tired to keep trying to keep his mind closed or he's let his guard down, and in the end, it doesn't matter. The nightmare doesn't so much creep in as catch him by the ankle and drag him into it. His body is tied down to the ground, the dark Cwyld forests closing in around him. At least, he's sure he's tied -- until he lifts his head to find the mushrooms have spread down his arm so much that they blend in to the ground. Or his hand itself is now part of the ground, melted into the soil as the Cwyld takes over his body.

Enough black he can't see the tone of his skin anymore.

He screams. A light flashes through the forest, bringing a wave of heat. Fire. It's flicking at the tree edges, catching leaves, snapping up the Cwyld mushrooms along the forest floor. Coming for him. They'll burn you when they're done, I suspect. Once they've taken all those lovelies off of your skin. His harpy nurse, lover of the Evergreen Circle, coming along with her feather-tips as sharp as needles. Just a guess. They don't tell me everything around here, but it's been a delight to watch.

The cold of the cage bars plays with the heat of the fire, and just behind the flickering flames, bright gold eyes are waiting to finish the job. Somehow, even over the fire, he can hear the growls from the monsters.

Much more patient than the ones that waited for him in the Circle's basements.]



((Feel free to add a wildcard prompt if it tickles your fancy! Jaskier will be wandering Aef as always, sometimes with a white wolf Turnskin (i.e., Geralt) following behind him or watching from the distance. You can also ping me at [plurk.com profile] scathefire if you have any starters you'd like!))
twilightskey: (No one knows me better than me)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-17 08:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh... I'm sorry to hear that.

[Roxas's ears lower a little at that. But he lifts his hand up to rest over his heart.]

It's always hard, having friends go home. But just because they're not on the same world as you, doesn't mean you're not still connected to them. The bonds you share don't just fade away like that. So, even if my friends are back home, I know I'll still see them again someday. And if I don't, they'll always be in my heart. I think it's the same with your friend, too.

[He's seen the power of hearts and the bonds of friendship with his own two eyes; how it can even define and make whole individuals who were never meant to exist in the first place. So as corny as it sounds, be believes it with his whole heart.]

Ice cream is different. It's like a frozen food that's salty and sweet...

[He perks up a little, getting an idea.]

Do you want to try some?

[He had already mentioned wanting to go to have some ice cream sometime, why not now?]
twilightskey: (What are friends for?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-22 04:10 am (UTC)(link)
[Roxas looks up at Jaskier's praise, and he just lets out a sheepish-sounding chuckle, reaching up to scratch at the back of his head.]

I dunno if I'd call myself wise... I'm just speaking from experience. Where I'm from, those kinds of connections are powerful.

[He knows different worlds have different rules, so he has no idea how things are like back on Jaskier's world. But he's glad that he can at least offer Jaskier a little bit of reassurance in the matter.]

[But Jaskier's enthusiasm is infectious, and Roxas perks up as well, ears standing upright and tail wagging behind him.]


Okay, yeah! It's down this way. As for ice cream, it's actually this frozen treat that's creamy and cool; sometimes it's a solid bar, and other times it's soft enough to eat in a bowl with a spoon. And, well, I guess not all ice cream is salty; the shop I go to has different flavours, but the one I've tried that's my favourite is salted caramel. It reminds me of my favourite ice cream from back home. Vanilla's good too, and strawberry... chocolate's real good, but I can't have it anymore since I finished my transformations. Makes me sick.

[Chocolate's no good for dogs or dog turnskins, at least in his experience.]
twilightskey: (That's right!)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-22 07:54 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah... you're right. They are, even in this world.

[The connections between friends, between people, between Bondmates... it really is like the connections he's used to from back home. A part of him wonders how this world hasn't been targeted by Heartless before, but maybe it's that potent magic that's kept the Darkness at bay. He wouldn't doubt it.]

[Despite Jaskier's mild sorrow, Roxas waves it off with a shake of his head.]


Well, I didn't expect it either. I don't know if it's that way with all Turnskins, but it was that way for me and my friend Ven, while he was here. But it's not so bad. I sometimes still have chocolate; if I have it in small amounts, all I get is an upset stomach. I can handle that. And caramel is really good! It's... well, it's kind of hard to describe, but it's kind of sweet and buttery? And salted caramel has a bit of salt in it, so it's salty but sweet. It's not the same as sea salt ice cream from back home, but it's pretty close.

[He's a little biased towards sea salt ice cream, but he's willing to try new things!]

Blackberries? I've never farmed before either, but I've had blackberries before. [The Bistro opening up in Twilight Town really opened up his world of foods and flavours, as did coming here.] I didn't know they can grow near mountains, though. Are there a lot of mountains in your world?
twilightskey: (What are friends for?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-25 09:24 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, is he a Turnskin too? Well, maybe he's able to handle different things than me. If he's a wolf, maybe wolves can handle different things than dogs?

[Roxas doesn't know much about biology, so he's kind of guessing here. Though now he's kind of curious about Jaskier's Bondmate.]

He doesn't bury things in the dirt or chew on things, does he?

[But these small, harmless conversations feel nice. Normal. A change from the constant anxiety or being stuck in his own thoughts like he's been doing.]

Is your world really dangerous? [It sure sounds like it, if Jaskier's words are to be believed. And he might be imagining a world full of mountains; he's seen weirder worlds, after all!]

When I traveled to different worlds, it always felt like there was Heartless wherever you went. You really had to be careful if you didn't want to be ambushed.
twilightskey: (Got it memorized?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-26 09:11 pm (UTC)(link)
[Jaskier's laugh makes Roxas chuckle as well, a small smile forming on his face.]

Well, you never know. My friend Ven, when he was here, used to chew on things all the time. And I like digging and burying things when I'm fully shifted. I try to keep it under control, but when you're shifted, it just... I dunno, feels fun.

[That, and he might have buried Riku's shoes in the backyard once when the silver-haired teen was here. Just to bug him. He didn't actively hate Riku as much as he did back in the day, but he still had a little rivalry going with the young Keyblade Master.]

[Though at the mention of all the monsters, Roxas's face turns a little serious. It sounds like a dangerous place indeed. He hums in thought]


Well... sort of. I mean, I'm used to fighting monsters called Heartless, and they can take on a lot of different forms. Some take the form of soldiers, humanoids, dogs, giant suits of armour... I've fought a few that looked like dragons, too.

[He says it all rather calmly, like a hunter describing the animals they've hunted or a fisherman describing how many fish he's caught.]

But you must be pretty strong, if you live in a world full of so many monsters.
twilightskey: (What are friends for?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-30 03:19 am (UTC)(link)
[He likes hearing Jaskier laugh. It's a jolly thing, and it's something that lets Roxas know that Jaskier is recovering. That's enough for him, honestly.]

I don't think it's rude. I'll try to show you sometime! It's easier to shift around the full moon.

There's magic that lets you do that? I had no idea. What can you turn into?

[He wonders what kind of troubles his Turnskin friend had, but he doesn't know if he should pry.]

Yeah, until you meet one. Even the goofy-looking ones are pretty dangerous. And they can only be defeated by certain weapons and magic, which makes them a big problem if they come to a world.

[Roxas is a fighter, but he doesn't consider himself too young. But he's also not the best person to ask about appropriate ages and what a normal life really could be. Technically he's not even human.]

Well, I think so. Anyone who's able to face monsters and live has to be pretty strong in their own way. Even with scary-looking friends beside you.
twilightskey: (I'll treasure this)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-03-30 07:25 pm (UTC)(link)
A fox? That's pretty neat! Maybe sometime we can show each other?

[Roxas has no idea if it's inappropriate to ask or not, but he doesn't see a problem with it if Jaskier is okay with it. Maybe he can even bring his Bonded along. Turnskin friendship bonding??]

Well, I dunno about that. You may just be a bard, but I think you've got a strong light in your heart.

[He may not have the same relationship with Light as Sora or the other Guardians of Light do, but wielding the element himself, Roxas understands how powerful light can be. And he knows just how strong the strength of one's heart can be, even if they're not combat-hardened. Jaskier seems like a good source of light and happiness, even if he claims to not be a fighter.]

[But those thoughts get put on hold when they near the shop. Roxas's countenance brightens, and his youth really shows forth as his tail wags a bit harder.]


Yeah, this is it! It's got the best ice cream, trust me. Come on, let's go in!
twilightskey: (What are friends for?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-04-01 10:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[Perhaps one day Roxas will be able to show Jaskier what he means. The strength of the light in one's heart can be a powerful thing, no matter if the wielder is a fighter or not. But, that's a talk for another day.]

[For now, his tail wags harder as he sees Jaskier's wonder. See, ice cream really does make things better! He turns to the case himself and looks over the flavours.]


Are you sure? I don't mind treating! I brought you here, after all.

[If Jaskier insists, he won't fight it. But he grins and spends some time pointing out the different flavours and explaining them to him. Though, he does chuckle when Jaskier asks about the free samples.]

Well, you could, but I think the servers might cut you off after a while.

[Though, he does point at one that is a light beige with streaks of caramel in it.]

Oh, see that? That's the salted caramel. That's my favourite here.
twilightskey: (Got it memorized?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-04-04 04:25 am (UTC)(link)
[Ice cream is definitely enough to lighten one's mood. Ice cream solves many problems, in Roxas's mind.]

[He chuckles as Jaskier picks out a few flavours, glad that the other man was so taken by the frozen treat. It's much smaller than Jaskier's haul, mostly because he doesn't want to take advantage of Jaskier's kind offer, but he does decide to add a scoop of vanilla to his own cup.]


Hey, that's okay. You can never be too ambitious with ice cream. Why not try different things while you can?

[He says it while moving away from the counter to a nearby table. Something tells him they should eat this sitting down.]

Let me know what you think! You've got enough flavours there to pick a favourite, I think.
twilightskey: (What are friends for?)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-04-05 11:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[Roxas doesn't mean it in a dim or negative way, but Roxas's whole life has been defined by time limits in the past. How much time he has between one mission and the next. How long until the end of summer vacation. How long he has until he was forced to reunite with Sora. Time can be a precious commodity. So for Roxas, he tries to make use of the small moments where he can, before he's forced.]

[Especially now, where he has the opportunity to exist how he wants.]


Well, I won't stop you! Dig in!

[He watches eagerly as Jaskier takes his first bite, and he chuckles as he sees the shift in Jaskier's face. His tail wags behind him, and his grin widens.]

See? I told you it was good. You probably look like I did when I first had ice cream.

[He does perk up when Jaskier begins talking of his own experiences.]

Really? You don't have freezers or ice magic to keep things cool in your world?
twilightskey: (That's right!)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-04-08 06:21 pm (UTC)(link)
Huh. So magic's just used for fighting in your world?

[It's interesting, learning about other worlds and how they function. It was one of the things he liked about going on missions for the Organization; seeing how one world could be a temperate town, and another a heated desert, and a third a tropical island... so many worlds with their own rules. Even this world. It's just interesting to see.]

Well, freezers are just machines that can keep things cold. Like food, and ice cream. Though if your world doesn't have that kind of technology, I don't blame you for not knowing about them.
twilightskey: (You make a good other)

[personal profile] twilightskey 2021-04-12 03:59 am (UTC)(link)
Huh... Well, I guess if you have a lot of monsters, it makes sense you'd have more magic-users who can fight them.

[He's basing his assumptions on what Jaskier has said before. Monsters sometimes needed to be fought, right?]

A little bit. But then again, I come from a different world than you, so it makes sense we would be used to different things. I've seen some pretty weird worlds, after all. And to be fair, there's a lot of things I don't know about either. That just means we have a lot to learn, right?

[He says it with a smile. Now that he has the chance to, he wants to learn so many new things.]

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