Darktober 10

Darktober 10

"... I was running. It was dark. So dark. The moon was hidden behind thick clouds. It was cold - SO cold.

I was running through a forest, branches and leaves tearing at my hair and clothes, my feet slipping on rough, rocky earth.

I was running from some...thing? One? I don't know. I was absolutely terrified. I was running for my life.

Suddenly, I was out of the woods. I was running up a hill -

No, a cliff.

Wait. No.

Widow's Hill.

I was on top of Widow's Hill.

I stopped at the edge, looking down at the ocean below, beating mercilessly against the craggy cliffside.

I was trapped.

A voice screamed behind me - a male voice, enraged, desperate, utterly raw. I turned to look -

And slipped.

I could still hear the screaming as I fell, plunging into the ice-cold ocean.

And then I woke up."

YOU CANNOT SELF-FLAGELLATE YOUR WAY INTO EXCELLENCE

Perryn Rannock, Cleric of Ilmater.

Hello once again, Tumblr! It's been a while! I, like many, am making the exodus from Twitter and Instagram and returning to my ol' stompin' grounds here now that my drawings won't get got by Ye Algorythme. Hopefully.

Anyway, this is (one of) my D&D characters, a very tired but dedicated high elf cleric serving a human God. Love this boy. Hope he lives!

Darktober 7

"... Mz. Collins (she rather coolly corrected me when I called her Mrs. Stoddard-Collins) told me I'd be living up on the third floor, in the "attic room". "I hope that's acceptable," she said, "the name is a bit ominous, I know, but I promise it's comfortable."

"I don't mind! It sounds lovely." I said, very sincerely. After all the shared bedrooms, rundown houses and sketchy, cheap studio apartments I've lived in (and also shared), a spooky attic sounded rather wholesome.

Right then, we all heard the sound of old hinges creaking as the double doors were cracked open.

"Oh, there you are! I was just about to mention you." Mz. Collins said. She was smiling, but there was concern furrowing her brow. "Victoria, this is David. David, this is Victoria Winters, your new tutor. She'll start teaching you on Monday."

I turned, ready to greet the wide-eyed little boy I'd been told I was going to teach (and nanny, but I noticed that Mz. Collins had left that part out). Instead, I met a pair of large, glinting brown eyes that stared at me unblinkingly - not filled with nervousness at meeting a stranger, but genuine, decidedly violent hostility. His wild blonde hair was tangled and full of leaves and twigs, his clothes covered in dust and dirt, torn in a few places. Clearly, he'd been running wild in the woods all day. How appropriate, given how much he reminded me of trickster fairies from European mythology - the ones who are just as likely to stab you as help you.

"Hi, David." I said, pasting a well-trained friendly smile on my face. "It's nice to meet you."

He stayed silent. If anything, his expression became even more hostile.

"David." Mz. Collins spoke quietly behind me. "Say hello, at least."

David's mouth twisted slightly, and he looked down at his shoes. He clearly wasn't happy to meet me, but he wasn't going to say no to his aunt. "Hi." he muttered, word barely perceptible. And with that, he disappeared, running up the stairs in the foyer.

Mz. Collins sighed. "David is a good boy." she said. "I promise."

Darktober 2

"... I took this job against everyone's advice, and my own better judgment. I need money for my last semester, sure, but I've been in far worse places financially without having to resort to taking live-in nanny jobs in sketchy, remote towns I've never heard of.

This is not out of necessity, though.

Well. Not financial necessity, anyway."

Darktober 9

"September 12, 2019

My name is Victoria Winters.

I don't usually remember any of my dreams. But I can't forget this one."