Bill Skarsgård In BOY KILLS WORLD (2024) Dir. Moritz Mohr

circe sentence starters

by madeline miller. i altered some quotes so they fit better  ♡

❝  my father has never been able to imagine the world without himself in it.  ❞ ❝  there is a twisting feeling in my chest, like cloth being wrung dry.  ❞ ❝  the grudges of the gods are as deathless as their flesh.  ❞ ❝  it was my first lesson. beneath the smooth, familiar face of things is another that waits to tear the world in two.  ❞ ❝  you think just because you are a daughter of the sun, you may uproot the world to please yourself.  ❞ ❝  even the best iron grows brittle with too much beating.  ❞ ❝  fear of failure is the worst thing for any spell.  ❞ ❝  those who fight against prophecy only draw it more tightly around their throats.  ❞ ❝  did you smile a little? perhaps i only flatter myself.  ❞ ❝  i have a better idea. i will do as i please.  ❞ ❝  what can i say? the world is an ugly place. we must live in it.  ❞ ❝  how many of us would be granted pardon if our true hearts were known?  ❞ ❝  you threw me to the crows, but it turns out i prefer them to you.  ❞ ❝  give me the blade. some things are worth spilling blood for.  ❞ ❝  it is very close. a perfect sleeping spot to ease your weary bones.  ❞ ❝  all my life had been murk and depths, but i was not a part of that dark water. i was a creature within it.  ❞ ❝  most men do not know me for what i am.  ❞ ❝  i suppose i could weep and rub my eyes to please you, but i choose not to live so falsely.  ❞ ❝  there is no wound that you can give me that i have not already given myself.  ❞ ❝  i will not be a bird bred in a cage, too dull to fly even when the door stands open.  ❞ ❝  i stood there for a long time fearing such things, and waiting, as if someone would come and reassure me.  ❞ ❝  this is how zeus felt when he first lifted the thunderbolt.  ❞ ❝  i had a little pride, and that was good. more would have been fatal.  ❞ ❝  will you not come to bed, my love?  ❞ ❝  if my childhood has given me anything, it’s endurance.  ❞ ❝  if you had asked me, i would have said i was happy.  ❞ ❝  that is another thing about you. you make me want to spill my secrets.  ❞ ❝  they do not care if you are good. they barely care if you are wicked. the only thing that makes them listen is power.  ❞ ❝  as for that safety, i do not want it. it is only more chains.  ❞ ❝  all those years i had spent with them were like a stone tossed in a pool. already, the ripples were gone.  ❞ ❝  war always seemed to me a foolish choice from men. whatever they win from it, they will only have a handful of years to enjoy before they die. more likely they will perish trying.  ❞ ❝  are you always so suspicious?  ❞ ❝   in a solitary life, there are rare moments when another soul dips near yours, as stars once a year brush the earth.  ❞ ❝  i can bend the world to my will, as a bow bent for an arrow.  ❞ ❝  will you do me the honor of dining with me?  ❞ ❝  i know what we owe you. what i owe.  ❞ ❝  i’m afraid i might have floated on, believing those dull memories were all there was, until the end of days.  ❞ ❝  do not be too happy. it will bring down fire on your head.  ❞ ❝  you are a poison snake, and i am another, and on such terms we please ourselves.  ❞ ❝  your words are like a secret. a thing that looks like stone, but inside is a seed.  ❞ ❝  you cannot know how frightened gods are of pain. there is nothing more foreign to them.  ❞ ❝  bold action and bold manner are not the same.  ❞ ❝  a golden cage is still a cage.  ❞ ❝  i am surprised to see you so plain after such boasting.  ❞ ❝  your voice is like balm upon my raw skin.  ❞ ❝  does no one have the courage? will no one dare to face me?  ❞ ❝  those who love me a little do not care to say.  ❞ ❝  it is easily to speak so open with you. your face is like a quiet pool that will hold everything safe in its depths.  ❞ ❝  humbling women seems to me a chief pastime of poets. as if there can be no story unless we crawl and weep.  ❞ ❝  you are weak and blind, and it is worse because you choose it.  ❞ ❝  you can teach a viper to eat from your hands, but you cannot take away how much it likes to bite.  ❞ ❝  i should have known you would be good for nothing to me.  ❞ ❝  gold does not give back a life.  ❞ ❝  it is funny, that even after all this time, you believe you will be rewarded, just because you have been obedient.  ❞ ❝  i have done your work for you, and all you give me is mockery and contempt.  ❞ ❝  where would you go, if you might escape?  ❞ ❝  you are right. this world is a wild and terrible place, and worth shouting at.  ❞ ❝  i cannot bear this world a moment longer.  ❞ ❝  i owe you nothing. you will have of me only what i want to give.  ❞ ❝  however gold you shine, do not forget your fire.  ❞ ❝  that is what you desire most of all: to drive others into doubt, keep them wondering and fretting, stumbling behind your dancing feet.  ❞ ❝  sorry that you thought i was weak, but you were wrong.  ❞ ❝  trickery is for cowards, men not bull-necked enough to show true courage.  ❞ ❝  i have a little pride. if they do not weep, i will not either.  ❞ ❝  you have as many coils as a snake, and an eye always to your advantage.  ❞ ❝  i want the sun to burn me. i want it to scorch me to the bone.  ❞ ❝  what of me? shall i rot?  ❞ ❝  how long would i cling to that handful of minutes, trying to cover myself as if with some threadbare blanket?  ❞ ❝  i have been old and stern for so long, carved with regrets and years like a monolith. but that is only a shape i’ve been poured into. i do not have to keep it.  ❞ ❝  i am not weak. and i will never be sorry not to be like you.  ❞ ❝  you draw me in as if you are winding up a thread.  ❞ ❝  the fragility of mortals breeds kindness and good grace.  ❞ ❝ come, there are blankets here, laid for you upon the soft grass. ❞ ❝ there will be no songs made for you. no stories. you will live a life of obscurity. you will be without a name in history. you will be no one. ❞ ❝ those heroes. you should see the look on their faces when i run straight for them. ❞ ❝ those who fight against prophecy only draw it more tightly around their throats. ❞ ❝ see? we do not need anyone. ❞ ❝ have you not always insisted on being difficult in everything you do? ❞ ❝ you cannot think of it. it will only torment you. ❞ ❝ and that is the least of my powers. ❞ ❝ you are lucky i do not kill you where you stand. ❞ ❝ you do not understand the dangers that wait for you in the world. ❞ ❝ your threats are crude. i had hoped we might discuss this reasonably. ❞ ❝ you showed me your scars, and in return you let me pretend that i had none. ❞ ❝ my whole life, i have waited for tragedy to find me. ❞ ❝ it is not for such as you to question my purpose. ❞ ❝ i felt a weariness in me so great i thought i would sink into the earth. ❞ ❝ have patience, your strength will come in time. ❞ ❝ you have never understood how strong i am. ❞ ❝ you do not know what i can do. ❞ ❝ i have said all i will say. do not ask me again. ❞ ❝ perhaps no parent can truly see their child. when we look we see only the mirror of our own faults. ❞ ❝ i cannot bear this world a moment longer. ❞ ❝ there is no profit in chasing riddles of the fates. ❞ ❝ why can you not be more peaceful? why must it be so hard? ❞ ❝ come. let’s do something fun. i will show you magic. ❞ ❝ at last. i have met the thing the gods can use against me. ❞ ❝ clever. you were testing me, weren’t you? ❞ ❝ i must tell you, all my past is like today; monsters and horrors no one wants to hear. ❞ ❝ you cannot come. it is not safe for mortals. ❞ ❝ come forth, and speak to my face. or do you only do your murdering from the shadows? ❞ ❝ you are safe. we may be happy at last. ❞ ❝ what else have you kept from me? ❞ ❝ all heroes are fools. all heroes but me. ❞ ❝ i know what i was in those days: unsteady, inconstant. ❞ ❝ i will be fine, i promise you. ❞ ❝ i have a better idea. i will do as i please. ❞ ❝ will there never be an end to it? ❞ ❝ i will wear that shame all my life. i cannot undo it, but i will spend my days wishing i could. ❞ ❝ if you want to join me, i will not stop you. ❞ ❝ if i do this thing, it will be the last i will ever do for you. ❞ ❝ i am sorry i put you in such danger. ❞

THE WALL AND WHAT'S BEYOND IT.

there are a lot of beliefs as to what the nature of the wall, and the war that resulted in the construction of it. some believing that it stood as a warning from the old gods, a blockade to make sure no one would ever come to their world, which is somewhere beyond it. while others see it as their way of giving them protection from the dangers of the unknown.

but the one that feranthor believes in, and what they have kept in their records is this: before the new dawn and the establishment of the kingdoms, a bigger and more ferocious war swept through the land that would be their foundation. a war of the supernatural beings that would shape the new world ... against monsters from the unknown lands. a war that spanned for centuries.

but during the heaviest and most difficult time in this war, the greatest of the high priests, sorcerers, giants, and other magical creatures banded together not to form an attack-- but to build the strongest defense line that they could conjure to save what remains of the land. this effort resulted in the building of the wall: 2000 km high, built with the strongest rock that they could dig under the earth, building it in just three summers.

once the wall was built, it made a significant move in changing the tides of the war for them. not for them to win instantly, but it gave them a chance to fight back. and watching their creation stand tall and strong against the strongest of forces gave them inspiration to fight harder, more defiant. when the war was won, the wall has became a pilgrimage site for a time.

it was the most important structure in all the lands, as it stood for the most important moment in their history ... where everyone worked together for the same cause. a sentiment the brotherhood on feranthor also shares. working together for the same cause: to protect the new kingdoms from whatever danger the unknown might bring them again.

song of achilles rp starters

by madeline miller. i altered some quotes so they fit better  ♡

❝  i saw then how i had changed.  ❞ ❝  name one hero who was happy — you can’t.  ❞ ❝  i feel like i could eat the world raw.  ❞ ❝  you are half my soul, as the poets say.  ❞ ❝  i have no need to forgive you. you cannot offend me.  ❞ ❝  i do not fear ridicule. i never have.  ❞ ❝  you have always trusted so easily; you have had so little in your life to fear or suspect.  ❞ ❝  do you hear me? please, say something.  ❞ ❝  your face is like quicksilver, always racing to something new. you unsettle me.  ❞ ❝  you do not give things up so easily now as you once did.  ❞ ❝  now i know how to make you follow me everywhere.  ❞ ❝  i would know your face in dark or disguise. i would know it even in madness.  ❞ ❝  there is no law that gods must be fair.  ❞ ❝  i have never seen anyone fight the way you do.  ❞ ❝  our dead come for their vengeance regardless of witnesses.  ❞ ❝  the sorrow was so large it threatened to tear through my skin.  ❞ ❝  when you die, all things soft and beautiful and bright would be buried with you.  ❞ ❝  you were always better with words than i.  ❞ ❝  i will never leave you. it will be this, always, for as long as you will let me.  ❞ ❝  you smile, and your face is like the sun.  ❞ ❝  i thought you were — something. you do not — you do not move like a human.  ❞ ❝  do you want to walk up to the woods?  ❞ ❝  you can’t be very wounded if you can stand for so long.  ❞ ❝  there are no bargains between lion and men. i will kill you and eat you raw.  ❞ ❝  we are like gods at the dawning of the world.  ❞ ❝  nothing could eclipse the stain of this dirty, mortal mediocrity.  ❞ ❝  i yearn for the darkness and silence of the underworld, where i can rest.  ❞ ❝  those seconds, half seconds, that the line of our gaze connected, were the only moment in my day that i felt anything at all.  ❞ ❝  you seem utterly unaware of your effect on the people around you.  ❞ ❝  it was almost like fear, in the way it filled me, rising in my chest. it was almost like tears, in how swiftly it came.  ❞ ❝  you are a weapon, a killer. do not forget it.  ❞ ❝  i have heard that men who live by a waterfall cease to hear it — in such a way did i learn to live beside the rushing torrent of my doom.  ❞ ❝  if you have to go, you know i will go with you.  ❞ ❝  there is no one like you.  ❞ ❝  we have given each other wounds, but they are not mortal.  ❞ ❝  and perhaps it is the greater grief, after all, to be left on earth when another is gone.  ❞ ❝  who can be ashamed to lose to such beauty? it is enough to watch you win.  ❞ ❝  do not let what you have gained this day be so easily lost.  ❞ ❝  you have killed them and taken your vengeance. it is enough.  ❞ ❝  no man is worth more than another, wherever he is from.  ❞ ❝  strange that such a small kindness feels like grace.  ❞ ❝  you can use a spear as a walking stick, but that will not change its nature.  ❞ ❝  i cannot bear to see you grieving.  ❞ ❝  i remember little more than scattered images from my life then.  ❞ ❝  i would recognize you by touch alone, by smell; i would know you blind, by the way your breaths came and your feet struck the earth. i would know you in death, at the end of the world.  ❞ ❝  i see a dozen men here ready to leap on each other’s throats.  ❞ ❝  in my land a bow is marked as the weapon of cowards.  ❞ ❝  you may still make a good person.  ❞ ❝  you don’t bother to threaten me, yet. i should be worth threatening.  ❞ ❝  the memories well up like springwater, faster than i can hold them back.  ❞ ❝  i hoped that you would come.  ❞ ❝  the voices of the dead were said to have the power to make the living mad.  ❞ ❝  i have weathered the anger of gods before.  ❞ ❝  i thought of how many nights i had lain awake in this room, loving you in silence.  ❞ ❝  there is nothing in the world i want more than to know what you had not said.  ❞ ❝  you will never gain fame from your fighting. does this surprise you?  ❞ ❝  my mind is filled with cataclysm and apocalypse: i wish for earthquakes, eruptions, flood. only that seems large enough to hold all of my rage and grief.  ❞ ❝  i will not cry in front of you.  ❞ ❝  listen to me. you go too far in this. i will not be able to protect you.  ❞ ❝  there is no honor in betraying your friends.  ❞ ❝  i’m afraid I have been prompted by a rare stirring of guilt.  ❞ ❝  i promised myself that if i ever saw you again, i would keep my thoughts behind my eyes.  ❞ ❝  i did not want you to see my fear, though normally we kept nothing from each other.  ❞ ❝  gods and mortals never mix happily in our stories.  ❞ ❝  you will be dead soon enough.  ❞ ❝  you are destroying yourself. you will not be loved for this, you will be hated, and cursed.  ❞ ❝  you left yourself today. and now you are returned.  ❞ ❝  you are a better person than i.  ❞ ❝  whatever you do, i shall stand with you, as i always have.  ❞ ❝  you have looked at me a thousand thousand times, but there is something different in this gaze, an intensity i do not know.  ❞ ❝  my life is my reputation. it is all i have.  ❞ ❝  may i give you some advice? if you are truly his friend, you will help him leave this soft heart behind.  ❞ ❝  what are you thinking about?  ❞ ❝  even the boldest of people would whisper a prayer if they brushed against me.  ❞ ❝  the keen edge of my envy was like flint, a spark away from fire.  ❞ ❝  do you think we fight hopeless wars?  ❞ ❝  it is strange, that you would speak against betrayal.  ❞ ❝  if every soldier killed only those who’d personally offended him, we’d have no wars at all.  ❞ ❝  no one has ever tried to take something from me.  ❞ ❝  stay behind me.  ❞ ❝  will you help me put the rest of my armor on?  ❞ ❝  your face is blank and barren, like another language, impenetrable.  ❞ ❝  i am here because i believe that we will win. i am staying until the end.  ❞ ❝  your presence is like a stone in my shoe, impossible to ignore.  ❞ ❝  he is not worthy of you. he never has been.  ❞ ❝  will you tell me who hurt you?  ❞ ❝  it is like a nightmare; i expect, each moment, to wake to relief. but there is no waking.  ❞ ❝  i do not need to prove myself to you. to any of you.  ❞ ❝  you have always thought too much of yourself.  ❞ ❝  some men gain glory after they die, while others fade.  ❞ ❝  even here, behind the darkness of my eyelids, i cannot name the thing i hope for.  ❞ ❝  our joy is so bright we can see nothing else but the other.  ❞ ❝  you have a tender heart. an admirable quality, surely.  ❞ ❝  you are spring, golden and bright. envious death would drink your blood, and grow young again.  ❞ ❝  i will not be the raven on your shoulder all the time, predicting gloom.  ❞ ❝  you look different in sleep, beautiful but cold as moonlight.  ❞ ❝  when there is greed, there is hope.  ❞ ❝  i could have told you more, of the dreams that leave me bleary and bloodshot, the almost-screams that scrape my throat as i swallow them down.  ❞ ❝  you are angry, and not without reason.  ❞ ❝  you feel mislead; you were promised victory.  ❞ ❝  you know, it’s funny; i keep thinking i’ve seen you before.  ❞

EXT. MARKETPLACE. DAY           LIKE A CHILD WHO HAS TASTED FREEDOM FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE YOUNG MAN WALKS THROUGH THE BUSTLING CROWD. ON THE STALLS ARE ROASTING MEATS AND ENTICING PRODUCTS. AND IN HIS HAND, A SMALL POUCH OF MONEY GIVEN TO HIM BY THE PACK. HE WAS ABOUT TO APPROACH ONE OF THE STALLS WHEN HE HEARD THE FAMILIAR, INDIGNANT SQUAWK ...

"   gunna! ... no, you terrible girl.   "            ansegar says, as he weaved through the crowd, arms outstretched for his friend to perch on. perhaps it was the sound of the crowd that prevented her from hearing him, because she only faced him when he was already an arm's reach. he clicks his tongue in disappointment as she finally takes her place on his forearm ... quiet now, as if she wasn't just attacking someone a while ago.

ansegar couldn't even make an excuse for her, only letting out an apologetic chuckle ... and an equally apologetic smile.    "   i'm truly sorry about her.   "    he says, stroking the eagle's feathers to let her know he is here. and he is safe.    "   it's rare for me to go out into places like this. she was just being protective ... even if she doesn't need to be.   "

when gunna was finally silent, he puts his full attention to them.    "   anyway, i apologize again for that. are you alright?   "

open starter ... @colosseumbred

"   oh, no. protective is just the way she is since i saved her.           and i'm afraid i can't really shake that off. so, i guess in a way, that is my fault.   "    ansegar says, which received a proud squawk from gunna, making him smile wider. looking back at the wide assortment of jewelry around him, ansegar took the shiniest one he could find-- a simple chain made of metal he is not familiar with, light in weight but sturdy to the touch, twinkling like diamonds even at the smallest hint of light. after paying for the item, he then began trying it to one of gunna's feet.    "   though, i should say ... the soot and the dirt are really doing your face a huge disservice.   "

once the jewelry is secured, he raised the arm where gunna was perched on ... and with a click of his tongue, the eagle was airborne. up and up, to the summit of the wall. gunna returning with the jewelry was simple but effective message to his brothers: the fact that she returned means that he's still alive, and the craftsmanship of the jewelry means he's in chasque ... not too far from home. satisfied, he faces the other man again.    "   that you are. i'm sorry again. now, i feel like i should make up to you somehow.   "

and at his question, ansergar simply nodded before pointing at the peak of the wall in the distance, and the small community of his brothers that can be seen on it.    "   oh. i'm from there.   "    he says.    "   it's my first time to be out here ... or at least, the first time i'm by myself. and you? do you live here?   "

🔨           *           ﹕ㅤㅤ     thank the gods, old and new, for how the eagle's talons kept on missing him by a hair's breadth, though it did not stop arkelos from flailing like a man swarmed with bees⸻ as if he could just swat the sheer nerve of the creature away.        ❝         away ! get off me, you winged devil !          ❞        he barked between startled huffs, voice cracking somewhere between outrage and desperation, the crowd jostling around him with their laughter and gasps. the blacksmith faced roaring fires, sparking steel, and the sharp hiss of molten metal every day, foolishly had very little fear, but this ? this was humiliating. fortunately, arkelos found his footing again once the bird's owner appeared, settling on the other man's forearm, a gleam in its eyes that he could only describe as smug satisfaction, like it knew it had won this round. and arkelos had never been as hungry for roasted eagle as he was now. he could only stare at the bird for a few moments, breath ragged, his hands planted on his knees as if holding himself upright took an incredible amount of will.        ❝         protective ? do i really look that much of a brigand today ?          ❞        arkelos chuckled as he turned his attention toward the other man, skin smeared with soot from his day at the forge, understood see how a stupid bird could mistake him as some bandit from the badlands of old varlinnis. maybe he should have taken a bath before venturing out into the market for something to sate his appetite. and perhaps, arkelos had always been a forgiving creature, utterly incapable of letting his frustrations be more than fleeting.        ❝         but i'm fine. still in one piece, aren't i ?          ❞        said with a small smile, standing a little straighter, hands smoothing the fabric of his smoke-scented shirt.        ❝         though, i gotta ask ... you're not from around here, are you ? it's just quite rare for chasquans to have pet birds.          ❞        especially when the expanse of their colonies were beneath the ground.

𝐍𝐒𝐅𝐖 𝐀𝐥𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐭 - Redone

Send a letter and I will respond with a headcanon about the ns/fw topic that corresponds to it!

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex) B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s) C = Cum (where does your muse prefer to cum/have someone cum) D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs) E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?) F = Favorite position (this goes without saying) G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.) H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.) I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect) J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon) K = Kink (one or more of their kinks) L = Location (favorite places to do the do) M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going) N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs) O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.) P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.) Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.) R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.) S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?) T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?) U = Unfair (how much they like to tease) V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.) W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character) X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes) Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?) Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

ansegar can only reply to that with a smile,           seeing the other man's face be painted with a look he is already familiar with every time he, or anyone else from the brotherhood would see their emblem or would know who they are. it was not a look of judgement, really ... his brothers take great offense in that and rarely are the people foolish enough to say it to their face. but it was the look of awe that often get him, and how people could not believe that people like him exists-- those who chose to leave their kingdoms and their faiths, to live with other bastards and the banished atop a cliff-face. and he would always have an answer for it that should be enough to let the subject rest.

"   i mean, i wouldn't say it's madness. when the kingdom that you have followed your entire life, or when the faith you have worship and is expected to worship until you die, turn their backs against you ... well, even the cold will become a comfort for you up there.   "    ansegar says, his voice was leveled without any sign of malice, anger, or annoyance. what can be found there, though, was love and pride. for the only family he's ever known his whole life.    "   it's a sanctuary for them. but i can tell my brothers of your admiration.   "

at the mention of a tavern, ansegar's eyes lit up as his head follows the direction they were pointing at.    "   oh, please. i insist. it's the least i can do after my pet attacked you.   "    before the arkelos could even say more, he already have his hand on their arm, and was weaving though the crowd.    "   hmmm. your best? are you telling me there's more to this kingdom than just stones and crystals?   "    he continued, chuckling at himself for that.

when they stopped walking, they finally found themselves at the entrance of the tavern. from the outside, he could already hear chatter coming from inside.    "   my story ... is a long and complicated one. but unlike my brothers, i am not sworn to the oath yet. technically, i am still a free man ... free to go anywhere i wanna go.   "    he explains, clearing his throat right after before gesturing to the door.    "   my very first tavern. since this is your home, after you?   "

🔨           *           ﹕ㅤㅤ     arkelos tracked the other man's gesture to the summit of the wall, gaze lingering there for a moment, caught somewhere between awe and curiosity. he'd heard all the stories— well, who hadn't ?— the men of the night's watch were bastards and the poor, removed from the lords and their banners, from games of politics and ambition. he heard many of them didn't believe in the gods of the continent. they didn't take oaths to kings but to their duty, guarding the realm against whatever nightmares might claw their way in from the unknown. and needless to say, seeing one of their stewards here left arkelos slightly unmoored with interest.        ❝         i've always admired anyone who decides to live in feranthor. it must take a certain kind of madness to live there, y'know ? i could barely survive the peaks of vissai, can't imagine the type of cold you're used to there.          ❞        there was a warmth to arkelos' voice as he spoke, a reverence carried by someone who wasn't quite sure how to put admiration into words without sounding foolish. he looked at the man and smiled, though for the most part he was also just glad to see that eagle fly away. good riddance.        ❝         but i promise there's no need to make it up to me,          ❞        arkelos laughed, giving the man a measured look. slightly taller than he was, though human as far he could tell.        ❝         but if you insist, there's a tavern a bit further down the square. they've got the best kidney pie this side of the continent⸻ and i feel like it's my chasquan duty to show a man of the watch the best our land has to offer.        ❞        head tilted toward the path ahead,        ❝         it'll give us time to sit down and talk. i've got so many question, like, what brings you down here ? cause i really thought your lot didn't stray from the wall, unless it was something urgent ... or dangerous ...          ❞        voice lowered slightly with a speculative tone, though his grin remained, crooked and easy.

         BOOK STARTERS VOL.21     THE PLAGUE     ALBERT CAMUS

❛ I have no idea what’s awaiting me. ❜

❛ What will happen when this all ends? ❜

❛ I know that you are capable of great deeds. ❜

❛ A loveless world is a dead world, and always there comes an hour when one is weary of prisons, of one’s work, and of devotion to duty, and all one craves for is a loved face, the warmth and wonder of a loving heart. ❜

❛ The truth is that everyone is bored. ❜

❛ I feel more fellowship with the defeated than with saints. Heroism and sanctity don’t really appeal to me, I imagine. ❜

❛ If there is one thing one can always yearn for, and sometimes attain, it is human love. ❜

❛ Who would dare to assert that eternal happiness can compensate for even a single moment’s suffering? ❜

❛ It’s not easy. I’ve been thinking it over for years. ❜

❛ While we loved each other we didn’t need words to make ourselves understood. ❜

❛ People are more often bad than good. ❜

❛ I don’t believe in heroism; I know it’s easy and I’ve learned that it can be murderous. ❜

❛ What interests me is living and dying for what one loves. ❜

❛ In fact, nobody is capable of really thinking about anyone, even in the worst calamity. ❜

❛ Nothing in the world is worth turning one’s back on what one loves. ❜

❛ Again and again there comes a time in history when the man who dares to say that two and two make four is punished with death. ❜

❛ There are more things to admire in men then to despise. ❜

❛ It is in the thick of calamity that one gets hardened to the truth - in other words, to silence. ❜

❛ What on earth prompted you to take a hand in this? ❜

❛ Your code of morals? What code, if I may ask? ❜

❛ I’m fumbling in the dark, struggling to make something out. But I’ve long ceased finding anything. ❜

❛ No doubt our love is still there, but quite simply it is unusable, heavy to carry, inert inside of us, sterile as crime or condemnation. ❜

❛ I’m not happy to go, but one needn’t be happy to make another start. ❜

❛ I am incapable of suffering for a long time, or being happy for a long time. Which means that I am incapable of anything really worth while. ❜

❛ I should have found the words to keep her with me. ❜

❛ We can’t stir a finger in this world without the risk of bringing death to somebody. ❜

❛ The evil that is in the world comes out of ignorance, and good intentions may do as much harm as malevolence, if they lack understanding. ❜

❛ There are always flies and itches. That’s why life is difficult to live. ❜

❛ The best protection against anything is a good bottle of wine. ❜

❛ There is no peace without hope. ❜

INT.    A TAVERN JUST OUTSIDE THE KINGDOM.    AFTERNOON.

ansegar listened intently as the bar keep explained to him the drink that he was holding in his hand.           because since the moment he came down from the wall, he has received all the different kind of looks, greetings, and treatment from all the different people. he was either asked questions, or was openly criticized. given stares that ranged from wonder to fear. some disdain. but never was given a drink ... for simply being a wolf from the wall.

so, after finding out who did it, ansegar simply thanked the bar keep and stood up ... only to make a bee line to where the other man was sitting, and occupying the nearest seat he could find. he gave them a smile. he still has not touched the drink.    "   i would say thank you. but a hard lesson in grained in me since i was a child is to never accept anything from a stranger ... especially a man who's trying to hide their colors in the dark.   "    he says, pointing at the unmistakable silk robes under his dark cloak.    "   should i know who you are, stranger?   "

closed starter for @powergrabbed.