A/N: Read this note, would you kindly?
Sorry for the weird update. Long story short, I had a battery of tests and appointments; so much so that didn't get back until just now.
And then I saw this request from Angelo47 sitting in my inbox. What request, you ask?
Read and see.
I'll say this plain, this chapter/shard is a TEST, a preview as it t'were, to see if this should become true blue story.
As ever we're still sticking to the "Embers" rule here, folks. If folks don't like this...well, I won't continue. Every review, every comment, no matter how large or small, keeps me writing in spite of my busy work schedule. I don't get days off anymore, so I try to respond when I can, but lately it feels like this has become a job in and of itself; albeit one I don't get paid for, one that it is often thankless...
No reviews? No inspiration. No inspiration? Sad writer. So speak up! Your words matter! That's no joke!As ever, I own no quotes, references, themes or memes.
As ever, I own no references, quotes, memes or themes. Not a wit or a one.
They're merely tributes to legends and myths far greater than I...
Title is a work in progress...and probably a little cringe.
Mercy!
"Runt of the litter, eh? Funny you should say that...
In my eyes, the runts are often the ones you need to watch out for.
They fight the hardest. Bark the loudest. Yes, the "runt" you speak of has much to prove...
~?
Runt of the Litter
"You disgrace us all, Godrick."
As far as insults went, Marika knew it was a scathing one; just the sort a child should never hear. It was meant to break him. Shatter his spirit. Reduce him to a quivering wreck at her feet. Her hammer should have done that already; her words would certainly be the finishing blow.
It did none of these things.
The boy took the insult with good grace, just as he always did. He did not flinch. He did not cry. He only smiled at her and healed his wounds. Set his broken bones. In that at least, he had Godwyn's blood. He was a failure in every other aspect, but he never cried. Never complained. Never once raised his voice. He always healed...eventually.
"I'm sorry." he still sounded like he meant it, even after nine years. "I'll do better next time."
"No, you won't." she snapped.
"Yes," his smile didn't waver, not once. "I will."
Her hand cracked across his face, snapping his head to the side.
Still he smiled. Marika hated that smile. It reminded her of Godfrey; of Godwyn, freshly lost to the Night of Black Knives. The runt before her was barely even a demigod by blood; his silver hair reflected such. Silver. Not the gold of her fallen firstborn nor the white of her husband, but some mad blend between the two. It made her loathe him all the more. She hated him, hated that the Two Fingers had chosen him, named him Empyrean i the wake of Godwyn's death.
...he pitied her.
"Begone from my sight."
Godrick's smile yet remained.
He couldn't even do that; not with his broken legs. In the end it was she who departed, leaving him to suffer in the dark.
Godrick lay there. Watching. Waiting.
.
..
...
Kurama sighed in his head once he was certain she'd gone. "You sure about this?"
Naruto blew out a sigh. "I am."
"They all hate you. Why bother?"
"Most," he grunted, setting his legs, "But not all."
...they really do."his old friend remained steadfast. "Malenia and Miquella, even Rykard would rather not be seen with you...or what you carry. I'm not sure if they fear us more, or Destined Death. To say nothing of Radagon and Marika...
He held up a hand, smiling still as his wrist snapped back into place with a horrible crack. "Radahn and Ranni are alright."
"One good apple does not an orchard make! You know what happened to Ranni. She died."
He chortled a little. "Did she though?"
"You know something?"
"I suspect." he propped himself up with a rusty laugh. "Blaidd and Iiji were awfully quick to vanish after her "death". Its almost as if they were ready for it-
Her heard the faint sound of onrushing footsteps and paused. Well, at least he had one true ally in this place.
She rounded the corner in a swirl of dark silk. Saw him. Gasped. "My lord!"
He waved his servant aside as she knelt before him.
"M'fine, Maria...
"You most assuredly are not!" bright eyes glared back at him, framed by ashen hair. "You're covered in cuts and bruises!" when he didn't protest, her face grew thunderous. "I see. Marika did this to you, didn't she? What a wretched queen she is. You are her descendant, however distant. That she would hurt you so...
He laughed and let her tend to him.
"Better she take her anger out on me than you...ow!" His laughter piqued when she pinched his cheek. "Alright, alright. I'm sorry. I won't speak up like that again...
Marika and the rest could beat him down all they liked.
He would always, always, always smile in the face of their cruelty.
It would make the day he finally overthrew his new "family" all the sweeter.
A/N: Aaaand scene.
Kudos if you got the "Maria" reference."
Somehow, this story feels more realistic to me.
Well, what say you? Should this be a story or not? It'll likely be rated M with Mature themes, lemons, character death, and the like.
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this particular story, and others.
If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? POOF! Gone. Completely. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Aaaand there we go. As ever, reviews keep me alive. Without them, I cannot write. So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly? And have some previews -potential blot bin things- that I'm working on.
Things that may or may not become stories in the far flung future.
(Previews)
Guess who?
The army prepared to march.
"Lord Godrick!" A servant swept the tent flap aside. "Lady Malenia has made contact! She wishes you to meet her on the field of battle alone! Failure to comply will see the city put to the torch!"
"A challenge?" the giant stood slowly in the shadows, sun glinting off his bare, broad chest. "Alright. Fetch my ax."
His servant paused, not quite comprehending. "My lord? Surely you don't intend to meet her demands?
"Of course I do." Bright eyes burned bright in the gloom, one sapphire, the other scarlet. "Don't you know its rude to keep family waiting?"
"What is this?!
Not so fun when the shoe's on the other foot now, is it?
You once told me to lick your boots. I'll take a page out of your book. I command thee...KNEEL."
"Long live the Age of Reunion!"
...stop throwing concubines at me, Gostoc!"
"A lord must have heirs, sire. You are no exception."
"I understand that, but seven is way too many! I'd be happy with three!"
"You're weak, boy. Though thou art a descendant of Godwyn and Godfrey. You'll never measure up to them."
Young Godrick -Naruto!- swept a hand through his silver hair. "I do so love being underestimated."
That smile worried her.
"What's wrong?
Morgott grunted as a boot stomped down on his throat, pinning him in place.
"You were talking a good game a second ago." A golden ax swept down, shimmering in the light of the sun. "Then I blew your legs off." The giant reached down. Squeezed. "What was that you called me, old man...? THE ERDTREE IS MINE."
R&R~!
