alrighty then

bomp

if i need to make it more detailed i can go back and develop him more

right

Name: Persephone Andromeda
Nickname(s): Percy, May, Anda, Great Leader Andromeda, Sister Andromeda
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Pronouns: She/Her
Sexuality: Straight
Parent(s): Her father was a god and her mother was a demon
Species: Some demon humanoid person lol
Appearance(s): She has two: Human and a more... demonic appearance. She never uses her demonic apperance, though, so we won't worry about that (aka it's still being designed). Her "human" appearance is a young lady who is 5'9 in height with an hourglass build. She has blonde hair with cool-toned, slightly tanned skin. Her eyes are a blue colour, slightly tired looking. She wears white, flowy dresses designed after ancient Greek dresses. She wears some kind of rosery that has a silver eye design.
Personality: She is soft-spoken, talkative, and very sweet. She is so very sweet that it's off. But, she is a bit charismatic. She loves to play organ. She is a bit childish in a way, rambling mindlessly about small things and details, liking to spin around in circles. She dismisses any idea of violence anyone suggests, liking to be peaceful and gentle. She, at times, can be a bit forceful, but she swears that she means well. When given the slightest opportunity, she will talk about "The Great Pure Eye" and her church. I wonder what that is about?
Weapons: She has a sacrifical knife hidden in one of the secret pockets of her dress
Powers: WIP, but she can use telekinesis very well. As well, she is an expert when it comes to medicines and poisons. She has the ability to manipulate other's emotions, and she is a great actor
Backstory: What I'm going to say now, as it's obvious, is that she is an occult leader. She was raised in the occult and she now is the leader of said occult. The occult seems to focus on one deity, which is refered to as "The Great Pure Eye", "The Pure One", or "Bringer of Pure Salvation".
*Crush: she does not have time for romance
Other: hmmMMMM specter lol my mind is so tired at the moment

Last edited by Echo (February 15, 2021 00:37:30)

Bop

Okay so @Echo
I guess normally I'd ask for some more "detail" for a longer form, but tbh you put enough basic detail into what you submitted that I can say you're accepted. So, yes, accepted.

Name: Aurae/Auræ (it’s written like that literally for just the æsthetic)
Nicknames: Aura
Age: ???
Gender: Female
Pronouns: She/her
Sexuality: Straight
Deity they worked for: N/a
Species: Forest Spirit
Appearance: Even though she was a mature woman, Aurae had a very youthful appearance, looking like a young lady in her early twenties at most. Her face contributed to these looks, being rather smooth (uwu cheeks) and proportioned in a way more similar to a teenager’s face than a young woman’s. Still, Aurae’s general build was slender down to her fingers and she herself was not short. It could be said that there was a natural grace surrounding her figure and movements.
Her skin was dark, with a color similar to cocoa powder, and darker freckles specked her cheeks. Aurae’s lips were pretty thin, surprisingly. Her eyes’ irises were the natural shade of bright green found in her family. They became a less saturated shade of color while not near nature, though they kept a lively quality. The eyes’ shape was more or less rounded, with long black lashes highlighting their borders. They were also large (but not in an unnatural way) for Aurae’s age.
She had wavy black hair. Although plentiful, it reached just to around her waist and tended to clump into thick strands. Maybe it was a sort of “trademark” hairstyle, but Aurae always kept a piece of her hair braided to the back left side. The rest of the hair was left loose yet carefully combed.
A pink flower could almost always be found pinned to the side of her braid as a decoration. It never wilted. Actually, flower petals and leaves had a tendency to get stuck to her hair very easily and not fall off. It wasn’t strange to find Aurae’s hair covered in petals, but she generally pulled them off when she had the chance.
The most remarkable thing about Aurae’s looks was a pair of deerlike antlers on her head. These were large and branched, with pointy tips. Aurae was used to having them naturally, but anyways they were not heavy at all and would instead have broken easily if subject to strong impact. If that had been the case, they would have grown back in time. They were a creamy bone color.
Because she possessed a small shapeshifting power, Aurae could make herself look more human without needing to use illusions.
Personality: She was said to be sweet and gentle, and those that knew her could have said this was true. Aurae’s attitude was like that, though of course, those traits were not everything to her personality. She tended to act according to what the situation required and for the benefit of those around her. She also teared up easily, not really ashamed of crying except for certain situations. However, Aurae didn’t want to influence others negatively with her own feelings. Her emotional personality made this hard at times, but she knew how to control herself just as well. She could be level-headed if the situation needed it.
While her disposition towards work was rather strong, Aurae also acknowledged that a time for rest was necessary. She could be said to be balanced in this aspect. But on a very noticeable flipside… it just happened that her vocation led her to heartbreak over failure. Even if silently, she carried a burden of what she had not been able to accomplish. Perhaps, she thought, she really wasn’t suited for what she tried and desired to do for others. And because of this, she could never let herself “relax” properly if there was “work” to be done.
Still, that was fine for her. Aurae learned to live with it. She continued to want to help people after all. A good thing was that her demeanor naturally radiated cheerfulness, a useful trait that kept her going throughout her lifetime. She always hoped for the best and tried to make it happen.
“Whatever is best for the others” was her life’s belief. She held to it tightly and let the phrase lead most of her actions. She allowed herself a little selfishness now and then, as happiness is important for everyone, including her.
Aurae prayed a lot, yet few to none of her wishes ever appeared to come true. Perhaps she had her trust set in the wrong deities or maybe they simply did not care for the likes of her. In the later part of her life, she came to resent some gods for this. But she accepted destiny as it came. She tried to change it as much as she could, with everything she could. Nonetheless, whenever an undesired result happened, Aurae simply let herself go along with it, keeping her thoughts isolated inside her heart. Fate was fate, and at that point she couldn’t change it if she had already failed in the effort.
She cared very deeply for her loved ones. She’d rather have something happen to her than to them—something very noticeable about her attitude concerning close people and friends. Complete trust was the key in her relationships, at least coming from Aurae’s well-intentioned side.
Theme song(s): “Spinning Song” by DATEKEN (Lizz Robinett cover ver.)
Weapons: While her main weapon was an enchanted recurve bow, Aurae rarely used it for offensive purposes. However, she was said to be skilled in its use…
She had great aim and at some point learned how to use firearms, yet she always preferred her special bow. In any case, she would avoid using these as much as possible. This means she would use those types of weapons even less than her bow. Very little.
Powers: Though not a naturally skilled mage (unlike the rest of her family), Aurae’s forte laid in healing and similar areas. She never fully explored her abilities with nature and the like. These would have actually been quite powerful, since her status as a Forest Spirit was “purer” than her siblings’. In any case, she remained at the average level of having a connection with nature and basic manipulation. An important thing to mention here is that this granted her a good knowledge of how to use plants in medicine. That was a helpful skill to complement her career as a healer.
Another interesting thing related to the nature aspect is that Aurae’s presence had some sort of revitalizing influence on her surroundings. She radiated life. This obviously applied very strongly to plants (she was a good gardener), but it had a very subtle effect on other living things as well. It’s possible that Aurae never noticed the effects of this on anything other than on flora.
Her healing abilities were somewhat peculiar. They were by far very different from what one would expect of a magic-using healer. Perhaps the best way to describe them would be more as medical instead of directly magical. It’s somewhat hard to go into detail because these were quite varied, but let’s say that the good thing was that this meant Aurae didn’t have a major need for medical equipment. Now, she could use the regular kind of healing. The downside was that it required too much energy from Aurae, burning her out rather easily and leaving her unable to care for more than one or maybe two people at the time. She preferred to spread out her energy in order to be more efficient at her job.
There was an aspect that derived from her healing to become more mind-related. She was able to (temporarily) “heal”/clear the mind of worries and even emotions. This was mostly used as a sort of relaxation technique to help others be at ease and peace. In all honesty, it could even extend to the point of mentally numbing pain. For certain people, this could leave their minds quite susceptible to external influence, but thankfully Aurae never used this skill in a negative way. It must be mentioned that Aurae could place the effects on herself easily as well, and she did make use of them in certain situations.
Of course, Aurae could do more things with her magic (such as purification, for example), but they’re not written here because they’re not as major or important as others.
She, much like the rest of her family, was acquainted with the use of energy for destructive/offensive purposes. However, this wasn’t polished until the later part of Aurae’s life. It’s not something she felt she should use often. A problem with this was that Aurae wasn’t able to correctly manage her magical energy supplies (of which she didn’t have much to begin with) and it was a bit of a setback in all areas related to magic. She could have done so much more if she had only possessed a steady source.
Aurae’s magic had a pinkish-magenta hue to it.
Backstory: Aurae valued life and tried to make the most of her own. In fact, this led her to distance herself a bit from her family to pursue her own goals. It doesn’t mean she didn’t love them. She just had other priorities in mind.
Aurae took an official job as a nurse/healer and traveled around to try to help people. Her efforts were never enough, for no matter how hard she tried, she just was not able to help everyone. But far from being discouraged by this, it just caused her to try harder. It was around this time that she fell in love and got married. Aurae made her best attempts to be a good wife while keeping her duties as a healer (which was a cause her husband supported, thankfully) and trying to raise her children the best way she could.
But a couple years into their happy marriage, “certain events” happened, and both of them got involved in a “conflict”. Aurae’s husband died there, and her turn would come not long after that.
It eventually happened that she died as well. She passed away in her sister’s arms. Aurae didn’t regret her choices, and although she knew her death was somewhat premature, she quietly accepted it as the rightful end of her life. That was surely destiny.
 
She never wished for a second chance or anything, because when life ends, there isn’t a way to come back.
Right?
 
Crush: The love of her life is dead, and Aurae never planned to give her heart to anyone else.
Other: Hermes. She’s ambidextrous. She was also a good dancer and singer, although she never learned how to play an instrument.

Okay, thanks!
Hmmm, what a question... xD.

(I apologize ahead of time for anyone reading this bc 1) it's long and 2) it might potentially be cringy)

Backstory: For as far as they could remember, they’ve been a deity. For as long as they remembered, they had no childhood, just decades of guiding the dead and fulfilling last wishes to pay their respects. To them the tales of the dead were like a comforting bedtime story, filling the lonely air and the death of mortals never bothered them, not until it happened to someone they cared about. 
The first death that mattered was their mother, who taught them to be human. Not their biological mother of course, Marsh has long forgotten their biological parents (if they even had those), no, the woman who they considered their mother was a mortal.
Marsh didn’t even know the graveyard had a groundskeeper, I mean they always assumed there was one but they’ve never seen anyone actually.. keep the grounds? Anyways we’re getting a bit off track; for Marsh it was a normal day at the cemetery, there was a new death you see, and so they arrived a bit early to meet the spirit, perhaps that’s why the two’s paths had crossed that day. As they listened to the spirit’s story, their regrets and last wishes, a voice cut through the quiet of the graveyard. “Hey, sir are you ok? You’ve been talking to yourself for an awfully long time and um I’ve gotta close this place up soon so uh…” The woman’s voice was soft and trailed off uncertainly. Marsh turned to face her, she looked to be in her twenties, maybe thirties. The woman stood there about 10 yards away, looking at Marsh warily. Yes, Marsh was certain they would not have met the groundskeeper if they had come a bit later, they didn’t even know the cemetery had a specific visiting hour, though in hindsight it made sense. At this point Marsh has just been staring at the woman, unsure of what to do. It’s been a while since they’ve talked to a living person, and never before has one addressed them directly. An uncomfortably awkward amount of time has passed before the groundskeeper broke the ice. “Ahem, I-I know how it feels to lose someone you loved and how you might want to sit here and keep talking to the grave but um, sir I really have to gate this place up so if you’d kindly leave that would be nice..” Another pause. Marsh lets out a small chuckle, finding it quite amusing how far this mortal has missed the mark, they weren’t here to reminisce about some dead love or to grieve over an important person in their life, heck they don’t even know the person who died, they’re just here to do their job. “Sir, I don’t know what you find so amusing here. This is a cemetery, please have more respect!” The groundskeeper exclaimed, seemingly angry. Marsh was surprised by this sudden outburst, they had assumed the groundskeeper was the pushover type yet… humans are intriguing aren’t they?
“Ah, I’m sorry if I came off as rude, I’ll be more careful next time” they replied, standing up and moving towards the exit. The groundskeeper just watched them leave, slightly confused, slightly relieved, and slightly curious. Shaking her head, she went over to the gate and locked it up, leaving for the night.
Intrigued by this human, Marsh would occasionally visit the cemetery in hopes of meeting the groundskeeper again. They’d meet a few times, exchange greetings and that’d be it. Marsh would proceed to do their usual necromancy stuff and the groundskeeper would watch in curiosity. One day, curiosity got the best of her and she asked the question she’s had for months “Who are you really?” She figured out Marsh wasn’t human from their first meeting, the black sclera was an obvious giveaway, yet she never thought much about it, after all magical creatures weren’t super uncommon anyways, but as time went on, her curiosity only grew. Marsh replied, seeing no reason as to hide it, they said “I’m a god.”
“A god? Really?”
“Mhm, you can choose to believe me, or you can choose to to think I’m a liar, all I will say is I’m a god.”
“...ok.. say I do believe you, why do you frequent this place then?”
“To talk to the dead.”
“Why?”
“Well they’re often nicer than the living, and also it’s my job.”
“Oh...what do you want with me then?”
“You intrigue me, you’re nicer than most mortals I’ve met and I think I enjoy your company…”
“..so you wanna be friends with me?”
“Friends…?” They repeated, the word foreign on their tongue. They’ve heard of friendship before from all the stories they’ve heard. Some were betrayed by the one they called ‘friend’ other’s regret never saying goodbye to their ‘friend’ yet none has told them just what exactly a friend is. Mortals are complicated creatures.
“Yeah a friend. It’s like a really really good companion, just another person you can share memories with. Another person who’s got your back you know. I can be your friend if you want, you always seem so lonely.”
“...I suppose, why not.” They figured they’d give it a shot, what could go wrong right?
“Great! Let’s start with names...now that I think about it, I actually don’t know your name..”
They froze, unsure how to answer. They did not have a name yet. After yet another awkward pause “..I suppose..Marsh would work?”
“That’s an interesting name for a god...it’s unique. Mine’s a bit boring, just simply M̷̩͓̯͚͇͐̌͜a̶̵̸̧̜̞̔́̍̔̓͝r̸̸̷̼̥̥͖̗͕͑͌̂̕͝ȋ̶̴̸̛̛͔͙̲̝̞́̂̄̐͠á̶̝̺̪͖͕͇ͅm̷̶̱̊͆̾̅͗ “ wait no, no wh-what was her name, Marsh can’t seem to remember, why- why can’t i remember, it starts with an M right? Is it..no wait wh- what was it what was-
“It’s getting late, wanna go grab a bite to eat?”
“I’ve never had mortal food before-”
“Wait really? Oh my god you’re gonna love this place it’s my favorite!!” 
Friendship is finicky, it’s strange and weird and it often comes from the most unexpected places lasting for years and years. This was one of those friendships that lasted forever. The groundskeeper eventually became a mother to Marsh, teaching the deity all about mortality and humanity, manners and compassion, about what life is like on their side and what it feels like to know you won’t live forever. The time they spent with her was the happiest they’ve been...yet all things must come to an end. They’re immortal and she’s not, so there’s only one way this could end.
-----------
A white room, blank, cold, empty. A white bed, white sheets, white pillows and in that bed is a person. deathly pale, hair white from old age. beep. beep. beep. The sound of the machinery is the only thing grounding Marsh in this world of empty white. Dread, overwhelming dread filled their mind as the familiar sense of death loomed ever closer. Each beep of the machinery is just another tick closer to the inevitable parting, promising an end soon, promising to relieve her from the burdens of living. From her deathbed, the groundskeeper raised a shaky wrinkled hand to lightly brush their cheeks. Tears, they realized, she was brushing their tears away, so this is what it’s like to cry… it feels odd. I don’t like it. Without thinking Marsh grabbed the old woman’s hand almost desperately, a silent plea to death. But death has never shown mercy before, and it certainly won’t start now. beep.  beep.  beep.  beeeeeeeee- the long dragged out note ringed in their head as her hand slipped away, now a dead weight. A flatline. Throughout their life, Marsh has only heard a flatline a handful of times and never thought much of it yet this time… this time they felt sick, absolutely sick as the implications of the note dawned on them.
“Don’t stop looking for that spark ok? Come visit me in the underworld sometime… and thank you” A whisper, a request and a promise, her final message passed by Marsh like a breeze  leaving one final memory. No wish, no demand, for she was content with the life she lived.  Eventually Marsh left the hospital, forced out due to visiting hours coming to an end. How Ironic.
--------------- 
The second death that mattered was the girl who taught them love. It’s been decades since their mother’s death, and as the pain subsides Marsh carried out her last request. Don’t stop looking for that spark. Love was a subject their mother has told them about yet they still don’t quite understand it. She said it was like a spark, an electric shock that would set your heart on fire once you realize it. “You won’t be able to look away from them, you’ll want to be close to them all the time. You’d wanna give them the world. You’ll be truly happy… everyone should feel love at least once in their life, we all deserve it.” Marsh never understood it, they were fine with the life they had right now, they didn’t need that “other half” or someone else to care about, but since their mother wanted them to find that spark they suppose they could give it a try.
This time Marsh was prepared, they weren’t going to make the same mistake they did with their mother. See, Marsh did some research this time and discovered a thing called “ambrosia flowers” which can grant mortals immortality and godhood. This time they were determined, if they did find that “spark” they’d be sure to keep this person alive. Marsh wasn’t sure what they’d do if a repeat of what happened to their mother happened to whomever their “other half” is.
As they wandered through a village on the outskirts of the medieval sect, dwelling on old memories, a familiar twinge of sadness and regret pierced their heart. Marsh’s eyes were watering now and everything was just a bit too much. Frantically looking around, they found a small alleyway where they could have a proper breakdown instead of just… bursting into tears in the middle of the street. Quietly they darted into the alley, letting out a stifled sob as they leaned back against the wall, slowly slipping down until they’re sitting on the ground. It hurt, even after all this time it still hurt. This is what they get for bottling everything up, a random breakdown just from some stupid reminiscing.
They weren't sure how long they sat there, crying in an alleyway like a pathetic piece of trash until a voice startled them. “Ahem, a-are you ok? Actually no that’s a dumb question, of course you’re not ok, you’re crying in an alleyway. Um uh, is there anyway I can help? You wanna go eat something? Usually when I’m sad I go eat the spiciest food I can find and I feel better afterwards. Unless spicy stuff isn’t your taste? We can go get anything you wan-”
“How long have you been there?” they asked without looking up, their voice shaky and cracked from all the stifled sobs.“
Um...a couple of minutes? Well I saw you here a few minutes ago and I was gonna ask how you were but then I realized it was probably none of my business and I didn’t know if I was intruding so I walked away but after a few steps I got worried and I came back and um...here we are.”
During the girl’s ramble, Marsh had looked up, curious, and the first thought that crossed their mind was holy [censored], she’s an actual angel. The way the light hit her hair, in contrast to the deep shadows of the alleyway, made a sort of halo around the girl and Marsh watched in daze. She was tall, almost a whole head taller than Marsh themselves, and she seems to be in her early twenties. She’s pretty… 
“Um… hey uh earth to… uh wait what’s your name?” The girl asked, squatting down to be at eye level with Marsh.
This snaps them out of their thoughts and they replied “Oh uh, Marsh.”
“Well, hello Marsh! I’m Aria! It’s nice to meet you!!” The girl held her hand out. Marsh stared at it for a second before hesitantly grabbing it and shaking her hand. They moved to let go but Aria surprised Marsh by gripping their hand tighter and dragging them to their feet. Losing their balance they bumped into Aria from the momentum and she just chuckles. “Come on, let’s go get you something to drink, you must be dehydrated from all that crying.” Still holding their hand, she dragged them back out onto the streets, smiling.It really was that simple to get swept away by someone.
“I hope I’m not intruding but um...why were you uh.. crying in an alleyway?” She asked, taking a sip of her water.
Marsh just shifts their cup of water around as one would when playing with their food. “I just...missed my mother.”
“Oh…  I- I'm really sorry about that, I'm sure she was a wonderful person and I know-"
Marsh interrupts her from what seems to be the start of a ramble, "Hey Aria. How… How do you forget someone? I- I want to forget her, I really really want to forget… it hurts."
"..is it really that bad?"
Marsh just nods sadly, taking another drink “and it’s not really fading with time either. I- I don’t know what to do. I’ve never… had to cope with this.. This… feeling.”
“I see… um well if you really do insist on forgetting her, we can.. Do something distracting? Something to keep your thoughts away from...whatever happened y’know. Usually I’d redecorate my house, say we can try that! Where do you live?”
“...I don’t have a house.”
Aria stared at Marsh for one full second before “what.”M
arsh looks away, suddenly self-conscious, “I um...don’t have a house.”
“Where do you sleep then?? Oh my, oh my, uh you can stay at my place if you’d like. Um I should have enough food to last you a week or two-”
“I don’t need a place to stay.” Marsh interjected. Aria responded with just a look of confusion and a slight tilt of her head, cute...wait what
Deciding to ignore that thought, they cleared their throat “I’m a god… I don't need to sleep or stay in one place or anything” they explained as simply as possible.
“Oh. Ah well it wouldn’t hurt to have a place to call home right? Stay at my place for a bit, we can go build a house or something for you! You need the distraction right?”
Marsh thought about it for a bit, “I...suppose it wouldn’t hurt.” 
It’s been a few weeks since they met, and they were sitting comfortably on the patio in front of their new cottage. After Marsh told Aria about their thing with wishes, she just immediately did a big brain move and wished for a cottage. The two had picked the location a while ago and so it was as simple as that. Aria said that was overpowered and Marsh said it really wasn’t since they can’t do anything without another person wishing for it. The two started a lighthearted debate over how unfair their abilities are, ending in them calling a truce and laughing it off.
Now they talked almost daily and today the topic of what Marsh does was brought up.
“Sooooo you’re like a grim reaper?” Aria asked, moving her hand out to touch Marsh’s scythe.  The girl had asked to see it as soon as they mentioned it.
“I suppose you could say that. Also don’t touch it, it’s sharp.” They quickly jerked the scythe away from her hands.
Aria reached for the weapon again, before her eyes lit up. She had an idea “Oh Oh, I know what you need!! A robe, like a pretty black robe! Every good grim reaper has a robe right?”
“..hmmm yes I suppose. Are you gonna wish for one?”
“Hmmmmm nah, I wanna make it myself, I am a tailor after all” She grinned at Marsh and they smiled back.
“If you say so...but if you mess it up it’s not my problem.” they teased, earning them a jab in the ribs. 
“Are you doubting my skills?” She said seeming overdramatically offended. Marsh laughs at this reaction and Aria giggles. Ba-thump.  
Two days later, she returns with a bundle of black fabric in her hands.
“Oh you’re back.” Marsh said, stating the obvious. They tried to ignore how their heart skipped a beat at the sight of her. It was probably just a totally platonic reaction due to how much they missed her.“
Yep, I’m back. And look what I made!!” She exclaimed, unfurling the fabric to reveal a long black robe with gold embroidery on it. A thin gold clasp was holding the thing together. “Hehe, it’s simple but there’s beauty in simplicity right?”
“It’s really pretty.”
“Ah so you like it? Here let me put it on for you!” She bounded over to Marsh excitedly, wrapping them up in the fabric and clasping the whole thing together.They were close, Marsh noticed, probably closer than they needed to be. Ba-thump. Was she always this pretty? I think I wanna kiss her. Wait no wh-
Marsh looked away and gently pushed her away “p-personal space.”
“Ah oop, sorry ‘bout that!” She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.
“Um, thank you for making this for me.” Marsh still wouldn’t look at her, they’d probably be blushing furiously if they had enough blood but right now there was only a small dusting of pink on their cheeks.The day continued as usual, the two talked about whatever came to mind. She’d laugh, they’d giggle and try to convince themselves these feelings are purely platonic.
Ba-thump. 
The day Marsh figured their feelings out was the day Aria told them she got engaged. It’s been years since they first met, and they’re practically inseparable at this point. There was this guy she started dating a year and a half ago. He’s a good person, really he’s never done anything wrong, treated her right, he was always there, he’s good for her yet there’s this strange feeling they felt. Every time they saw him there was a bitter feeling telling them to get Aria away from this man.
Soon they’d realize it was jealousy. They thought they were just jealous because they weren’t number one for Aria anymore but as they sat there, listening to her ramble about this guy, about how excited she was and how lucky she was that she found “the one” already. They realized, at that moment, they realized they were jealous of him, not of their relationship, they wanted to be in his place, they wanted to be the one to make her smile like this, to make her so happy. The one to put the ring on her hand and the one to kiss her at the altar, the one to love her and spend eternity with her-ba-thump
Electric, that spark their mother talked about, so that’s what it feels like.
Ba-thump
Fire, flames engulfed their heart, warming them up from the inside out
Ba-thump
This was… love
ba-thump
“I LIKE YOU!” they blurted out without thinking. Crap, what did I just do, no, no way I just..I just confessed didn’t I? Fork I’m such an idiot-
“Ah sorry I gotta go I um,” Marsh apologize panicking, they quickly moved to leave “Sorry, sorry”
Aria didn’t bother to stop them, too shocked by their confession. “Hey Marsh? Are you there?” Aria called out, after knocking on the cabin door.
No answer.
She stayed there for a few minutes, waiting.
Still nothing.
“I um… look this might be a little insensitive but um, well you’re still my best friend so if you’re willing, I’d really like it if you could come to my wedding...I’ll leave the invitation at the door then.”
Nothing.
Dejected she left the invite along with a bouquet and an apology note at their steps.
After completely making sure she’s gone, Marsh stepped out. Surprised by the bouquet of flowers, she picked it up immediately. Forget-me-nots...ha she really is an idiot
Mayhaps that’s why forget-me-nots are their favorite flowers now. They go to the wedding, of course they go to the wedding. They’re a pathetic loser who wants to see her one last time, who’s desperate for some form of closure.
As they stand there in the back, wondering why they’re even there, the procession starts. One thing that never changed was the way Marsh immediately scans every single face until they find her. It’s a habit at this point, they’re always scanning the faces in a crowd in hopes they see her. And as always their face lit up as soon as they spotted her. Yet unlike other times, the dark bitterness of jealousy spread too. She’s still as pretty as always.
They left quietly as the bride and groom kissed, this was closure enough. They’re immortal and she is not, their paths were bound to cross one last time. 
It’s been almost a decade now. Marsh didn’t know how she died, nor did they want to know. All they knew was her grave there right in front of them, her name carefully engraved into the stone, and her spirit is just sitting there, waiting.
“Finally! Marsh, it’s been so long!” She grinned. They say a person’s spirit takes the form of their happiest moment in life, and she’s sitting there, in that same dress she wore a decade ago. She’s still as pretty as ever.
“Look, I’m not here to talk about what happened ok, so just tell me why you’re still here. You haven’t moved on to the underworld yet so what’s keeping you back.”
She paused. This...this wasn’t the Marsh she knew, this person was.. Colder, distant. She feels like she screwed up somehow. “...I um… I wanted to eat with you one last time I suppose…”
“Ok then, let’s go” Marsh turned around and walked away, leaving Aria to follow.
“...you’ve changed.”
“Yeah people do that sometimes.” They snapped, which they immediately regretted “I- I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s gotten into me today.”
The rest of the walk is quiet. It wasn’t awkward, just cold, very very cold.
They don’t quite remember how it all went. Marsh went to the restaurant they always go to and ordered their favorites. Then they make it back to the cottage, per her request, and sit on the patio. The sun’s setting by the time they’re done and it’s so, so easy to fall back into the warmth and safety of the past. Before they realized, they’d let their guard down again. It’s so easy to fall back in love. And as the day ends, so does their meal. It’s time, for this all to finally end.
“Thanks for the meal, though I couldn’t eat anything so um sorry for wasting your money.” She chuckled.
Marsh just waved her off “ah it was nothing.”
Her grin faded into a soft smile “It’s nice to have you back.”
Ba-thump Marsh froze. No, no not again, when did I fall back in love when did I-
“Ah… I suppose it’s time to leave. Thanks again and...I’m sorry for everything. You’ll find someone better ok? That’s a promise!” Her words fade and Marsh is left just sitting there. Two meals, one finish and one gone cold. So, so lonely.That night they cried themselves to sleep, if only I’d realized sooner maybe…
----------- 
The third death that mattered told them the harsh reality of love and emotions.
Why were they still doing this…
Walking through the city this time, they’re hoping to somehow stumble upon love a second time. Why were they still doing this...
Maybe they got addicted to that feeling, the warmth and the safety, the unbelievable joy. Maybe that’s why they’re still here, hoping for that spark.
By all means they should go back to doing what they were always doing before they met any mortal in general.  They should go back to that comfortable, reliable, safe life. Back to the time when their only companion was simply themselves and the haunting ghosts of the cemetery. Yet they’re not doing that, they’re still wandering and wandering, looking aimlessly for cod knows what.
Currently Marsh’s sitting in the back of a cafe quietly sipping their cup of coffee. Recently they’ve rented a small apartment in one of the cities of the modern sect, just for a change of pace, and have been frequenting this coffee shop due to the nice cozy atmosphere. Usually they just chill in the back, away from the prying eyes of those who look at them like they're some sort of alien, sketching whatever they see. It’s a habit picked up overtime, just sketching everything they wish to remember. Today though, there’s a new customer in the shop who’s caught their eye. She’s pretty, objectively, and has nice taste in clothing. Marsh keeps stealing glances, they can’t help it.
Eventually the girl notices, walking over she casually leans on Marsh’s table. Marsh stares at her, surprised and confused as to what’s going on “uh...is there anything you want?”
The girl smiled, letting out a small huff almost as if she was laughing “Shouldn’t I be asking you that? You’ve been staring at me non stop”
Marsh felt their cheeks heating up. Looking away they answered, flustered “oh um uh sorry if that made you uncomfortable, I just uh really like your outfit. It’s nice”
She laughs this time, just a small chuckle. “You’re cute. Wanna go on a date?
What.
What.
“What.”
a date? Huh? Why? She’d just met me, what?? I’ve never even went on a date before huh-
“Tomorrow, 4pm, meet me here and I’ll pick you up. If you don’t show I’ll take that as a no.” With that said she just got up and left.
Marsh is left sitting there dumbfounded and confused. 
They show up the next day, right on time. The two talked, she took them out to a neat little restaurant for dinner. They exchanged phone numbers and she drove them to their apartment. Her name was one Marsh is still unable to forget today, Farrah Evelin Russell. From that day onwards the two were dating. Farrah was...kind, they supposed, she always took them places and drove them home, gave them presents and looked out for them. Maybe that’s why Marsh never saw the red flags, they were blinded by all the “love.”
The first red flag was the costume change. Marsh definitely stood out in a big city, their long medieval looking cloak as well as their eyes often drew people’s attention. They don’t mind it too much, though it gets annoying sometimes, but Farrah seems to dislike it a lot more. Not the attention of course, she loves attention, but it’s the way some people stare at Marsh and at her that made her uncomfortable, like they were some kind of outcast.
A few weeks after they'd been going out, Farrah bought Marsh contact lenses to hide their black sclera. “That way people won’t stare at you so much” she explained, “I noticed you tend to stay away from crowded areas and always sit in the back of restaurants so I thought you might like to blend in more.” At the time Marsh thought she was just being considerate. Yet slowly, she’d begun commenting more and more on their clothing choices or telling them to not eat so much or they’ll gain weight. Marsh just took all the “advice” convincing themselves that she’s just worried about them, even if her way of showing it did hurt a bit.
The second red flag was the excitement she showed the moment Marsh told her about their thing with wishes. She was curious and asked if they were magical since the whole...black sclera thing. Marsh answered truthfully the way they always do. “God of what?” She asked.
“Death, memories and wishes” They’re truthful, a bit too truthful, sometimes they wonder if it’s their fault they got taken advantage of.
Her eyes immediately lit up at the word ‘wishes’ bombarding Marsh with questions about how it works and the limits it has. “Wait wait ok ok so, I wish for...a million dollars!”
“Wh- I can't do that, that’ll ruin the economy or something!”
“Ugh fine, just...a hundred buck?”
Marsh hesitates.
“You love me don’t you? Please baby? Just this small favor for me?”
“...I suppose it wouldn’t hurt…”
“OMG Yesssssss, Thank you! You’re the best!!”
From then on everytime she wanted something she’d just wish for it and Marsh would begrudgingly grant the wishes to prove they truly loved her.
The third red flag was how she never seemed to remember anything about Marsh. They’ve been dating for six months when Marsh realized this. It was valentine's day and they both got each other gifts. Marsh bought chocolate truffles because they knew it was Farrah’s favorite. Farrah had simply bought a teddy bear and a bouquet of roses, generic gifts.
On the way home, they asked the question they’ve had for a while now. “Hey Farrah… why do you get me roses when you know I hate them.”
“Oh? Ah sorry babe, I seemed to have forgotten you don’t like them. Next time I’ll get another flower ok?”
“Forget me nots.”
“Hm?”
“I think I told you my favorite flowers were forget me nots…”
“Oh have you? Ah well next time I’ll get that.”
She didn’t. She still got Marsh roses.
The more Marsh looks at what Farrah was doing, the more their rose colored glasses started to slip away the more they noticed. Farrah never remembered their favorite ice cream flavor, even though they’ve gone on ten ice cream dates by now, nor did she ever seem to remember what their favorite color is even though they know her favorite color is Mikado yellow. It almost seems like she didn’t..really care about Marsh or what they liked. Maybe they’re just forgetful.
Marsh should’ve noticed these signs. They should’ve listened to their gut telling them something is wrong every time they looked in the mirror and didn’t recognize themselves. They should’ve seen the guilt tripping happening every time she made a wish. They should’ve noticed how much Farrah just didn’t care about them. They should’ve figured out how she ended up controlling their entire life while they had little to no control over hers. A relationship is a mutual thing, yet this...what they have… is not mutually beneficial.
But Marsh was dense and didn’t see it until their rose colored glasses were shattered. It definitely wasn’t a call they were supposed to hear but they still heard it nonetheless.
“...She can be so annoying sometimes. Yea I only use her for the wishes lol. Oh, don't worry babe, I’d never catch actual feelings for her, you’re the only one for me you know. Ah she should be here soon, bye babe, cya later!”
“...What. The. *beep*”
Farrah turned to see Marsh standing there, dumbfounded.
“Oh”
“...Farrah who was that.”
“How much did you hear?”
“This is...it’s a joke right? A prank or something??” Marsh asked, almost desperate.
Farrah didn’t say a word, just stared at Marsh with pity in her eyes.
“You really are that naive aren’t you. I thought you’d know better for a god.”
“Wh- what’s that supposed to mean?”
“Look, you don’t seriously expect people to… not take advantage of the fact that you can do pretty much anything right?”
“I- I” Marsh seemed shocked. I mean they’ve heard of things like this before, from both the dead and the live, yet they never thought this kind of thing would happen to themselves.“
"...Holy *beep* was I the first person you dated? Oh my gods, I’m so sorry darling, but I suppose it’s better for you to learn this sooner than later. Look Marsh, you have an amazing gift, and you know what happens to people who have things that could benefit others? They get used. The world is competitive for us mortals, you must understand that, so for those of us who aren’t naive, we know how to use our resources and I wasn’t going to pass up an opportunity as great as you my dear. You’re gonna get taken advantage of if you keep trusting people like this, that’s just life. You must understand that Marsh, I just wanna live my best life-”
“You wanna live your best life huh?? Then what about me? I wanna live a happy life too, I want to be in a relationship where I didn’t have to hide myself all the time, where I’m constantly being guilt tripped into doing whatever you want me to do!”
“Then maybe you should’ve left. I never forced you to stay y’know, don’t act like you’re a victim. Since the cat’s out of the bag now, I suppose I’ll leave. And for the record I hope we both have a good life, you’re a nice person Marsh, just a little too nice.”
With those words, she left, and Marsh just stood there, her words replaying in their mind. Don’t act like you’re the victim was that...was that really what they were doing? Was all of this really their fault? They could’ve walked away… they should’ve walked away… this was a mistake, giving this love thing a second chance was definitely a mistake. They’re immortal and she’s not, so of course there had to be one final wish.

“Please, please I- I don’t want to be forgotten please. I’m sorry, I’m sorry for what I did I shouldn’t have- I should’ve treated you better, I-” She’s pleading with Marsh, oh how the roles have reversed. When people die...they assume the form of the happiest time in their life, at least to Marsh that’s how it is. Quite sad that Farrah’s ghost looks like a teen, maybe 16 or 17, she seemed to have peaked in highschool. She died quite young too, it’s only been a few years since their breakup. Apparently she went to a party with a lot of the big shots and there was some kind of shooting or something, Marsh doesn’t quite remember the details.
“Please Marsh please, promise I won’t be forgotten.”
Marsh stares at her, emotions unreadable. “...Is that your final wish…”
“Yes, yes it is, please, please marsh please”
She seemed terrified at the prospect of being forgotten, which is quite understandable now that Marsh has seen her entire life. This girl… lived a very, very sad life.
“Ok, I won’t forget then.”
It was a promise, one they wish they never made yet still couldn’t bring themself to not fulfill.
“Thank you, oh my gods thank you so much..” Her voice trailed away as she disappeared into the underworld.
Marsh felt nothing as they left. Marsh didn’t care about her anymore, nor did they bother to meet and stay in touch with people anymore, preferring to naturally drift apart.
---------------
(Tw: suicide)
(Pls don’t read if you’re sensitive to stuff like this, stay safe my friends) 

The last death reminded Marsh just exactly why a mortal and an immortal can’t work out. Fate is never on their side it seems.
This last story begins on the rooftop of the same hospital Marsh’s mother had died at. The night is dark with only the light of the moon illuminating the buildings and streets. A boy, no more than twenty stood on the edge of the building, today was the day, he was sick and tired of everything. As he was about to take the final step a voice cut through the silence.
“WAIT, Wait d-don’t jump ok.”
He stops, this was unexpected to say the least. “Why shouldn’t I?”
“Look, I know I don’t know you and I know saying stuff like ‘there’s so much to live for’ won’t work so um… I’d uh… like to get to know you.”
“What.”
“I um, I’d uhh uh like to get your story.” The voice stutters, trying to make up a lie on the spot “I- uh I’m a uh reporter for the local press so um I’d like to..get your story?” They wince at their own badly made lie.
“What in the world is wrong with you?” The boy asks turning around “I’m ready to jump and you wanna what? Write my story for the local press?? It’s a *beep* lie but still, what the actual..” his words died on his tongue as he realized something “how did you get up here?”
Marsh avoided the question “I think my lie worked pretty well, you’re still here right.”
That seemed to have reminded the boy that he had, in fact, not jumped. He moves to do just that but something grabs his wrist.
“Please don’t.”
The boy tries to pry their hand off his wrist “let me go.”
“I- uh um, d-don’t you uh wanna know how I got up here?”
“I couldn’t care less about that right now.” He growls, trying to pry their hands off again and almost succeeding.
“Wait, wait ok ok I’ll tell you. I’m a god so I just kinda...floated my way up here.”
This seemed to have caught his attention as he paused for a second, then a laugh “Ha, god’s not real you ain’t fooling anyone.”
“Look, can we just...move away first, this feels so risky.” Marsh said, pulling him towards them and away from the edge.
“Why ask me if you’re not gonna give me a choice.”
“Sorry.” Marsh spun them around so now their back is facing the edge and he’s as far away from the side as possible.
“Let me go. You don’t even know me, you have no rig-”
“You don’t want to die, you just don't want to be stuck in this hospital waiting for death for the last year you have left.” Marsh states matter-of-factly.
“Wh- how did you know”
“Didn’t I tell you I’m a god? Memories, yours I- I read them.”
He looks like he was going to punch them
“I didn’t mean to, I swear, just uh… I panicked…”
“Why are you even here.”
“....in truth, your boyfriend asked me to take care of you… that was his last wish.”
He blinked, caught off guard by that response “..right yes like I’ll believe that. Next thing you know, you’re gonna answer my wishes too huh?”
“Actually yes…. I know you don’t wanna be here so I can take us anywhere you’d like, just make a wish.”
Deciding why not, he does make a wish, fully believing nothing would happen “fine I wish we ended up literally anywhere but here...what the actual *beep*”
Upon his wish, the two had suddenly teleported to..a cottage seemingly in the middle of a marsh…
“Uh...we’re um at my place, it was the first thing I could think of lol.”
“...no but what the actual *beep*, how did you do that?? What the- is this some kind of weird technology from the future sect??? How did you…”
Marsh shrugged, “I just...granted your wish.”
“No, but- that’s now how life works???? You don’t just...get things because you wish for it, that’s way too easy.”
“Maybe for you this seems too good to be true but it is what I just did. I can grant anyone’s wish, I’m a god I told you.”
He looked at them warily, tugging his arm again, attempting to get out of their death grip.
Marsh immediately let go “Ah, sorry I didn’t notice that I was.. Still uh holding your wrist.” they silently punched themselves internally, why are you so bad at social interactions, you’re a centuries old god for goodness sakes.
“OH *beep* ughhh I left my raven at home hnnnnn. How far away from the city are we?? I should go back and get him, *beep* i wish he was here right now-”
Almost instantaneously a raven appeared from out of nowhere, it flitted around startled and confused.
“This bird?”
“HOLY *BEEP* YOU GOTTA STOP DOING THAT!” He yelled jumping back “Seriously how are you doing this-”
“You wished and I granted it.”
He paused, facepalming “I did, didn’t I… you know that whole wish thing you have is way too overpowered right? You better keep it in check or people will take advantage.”
Marsh stops and stares at him, then softly “...will you take advantage?”
He turned to face them, “hm… no probably not, that’d be quite a jerk move and I’d rather not live my last year Forengard as a complete and total douchebag.”
“Oh…”
The raven seemed to have finally calmed down, landing on his head which startled him “Nevermore! I told you to stop doing that didn’t I?” he asked, reaching up to pet the bird.
“...nevermore? Is there an origin for his name?”
“Oh, uh he’s named after one of my favorite poems. The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe, it’s quite nice you should read it one day.”
“Noted… oh uh right I should be taking care of you. Um, are you hungry? Thirsty?? I know you like chocolate vanilla ice cream, would you like some of that? Ah I should show you my cottage first shouldn’t i-”
“It’s midnight geez, I'm not hungry, just a bit.. tired I suppose.” He strolled up to the cottage, yawning, then he turned around after reaching the door expecting marsh to follow him. “You got a bed I can crash in for the night?”
“Hm? Oh yea, I should have a bed you can use.” Marsh replied, quickly making their way to the front door and just...pushed the door open. They left their house...unlock.
“...WH- WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE YOUR FRONT DOOR UNLOCKED??????? WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!?!? WHY???” He screams, confused.
Maths flitches, “uh...I don’t….need to lock it? No one ever comes out here so I just sorta...forgot to lock it… also I might’ve lost the key in uh… a graveyard somewhere.”
“...wh- you know what, I’m way too tired for this right now.” He shuffled inside, then realizing he had no idea what the layout of the house was, he just stood there in the hallway.
It took a moment for Marsh to register why he stopped moving “Ah sorry, follow me, I’ll show you to your room. Sorry, I haven’t had anyone over in a really long time.”
He followed them closely, it was a bit hard to see with moonlight being the only light source out here. Marsh twisted the knob and opened one of the rooms, inside was a single bed with a neat little desk with a closet pushed up against one of the walls. The wall paper mimicked a blue sky, with clouds at the bottom. The ceiling was a deep bluish purple like the galaxy, decorated with lots of glittering stars. He looked at the room, wide eyed, it seemed so personalized. “...Are you sure this is a spare room? It feels like… someone lives here?”
“Oh, uh it was a friend of mine’s, but she’s gone now so… I supposed I just never bothered to repaint the walls…”
He nods in acknowledgement and plopped face first onto the bed, still in his clothes from the hospital.
Marsh fidgets uneasily, feeling like they should maybe… i donno talk a bit more or something “...you’re just gonna sleep?”
“Yea, what else do you want me to do? It’s midnight and I basically got kidnapped by a random stranger, I’m tired and I wanna rest.”
Stranger… “Uh Marsh… that’s my name? You said we’re strangers but well if I’m gonna be taking care of you, I feel like we should at least be on a first name basis?”
He stares at them, trying to figure Marsh out. He sighs, wrapping the blanket around himself and turning away from them, back facing the door.
After a moment, when Marsh almost thinks he’s asleep and is ready to leave, “Rayden…it was not a pleasure meeting you Marsh.”
Marsh lets out a huff, almost laughing “Good night Rayden. Sweet dreams.” 
They were not supposed to get attached, they were definitely not supposed to get attached. But it was so hard not to, there was this charm he possessed that made it difficult for them to feel indifferent. The two practically operated on the same wavelength and had become close friends after just a month or two, but Rayden’s mortality was like a ticking time bomb and Marsh knew that, Marsh knew this boy isn’t supposed to live till the end of the year yet… they didn’t even notice when they got attached. Hnnnnnn ok, ok this is fine, I just need to make him immortal, then I can’t lose him. It’s fine, I just need to bring him to an ambrosia flower..“Hey Ray, I wanna show you something today.”
The boy looked up from, where he was sitting at the kitchen table. He’s wearing brand new clothes that Marsh had bought for him and he tilted his head curiously “sure, what is it?”
“I’ll explain it on the way there, it should be nearby if I remember correctly.”
“Oh? So mysterious today. What, you gonna take me deep in the forest and off me so you don't have to deal with me anymore?” He joked, standing up and putting on his shoes, waiting at the front door for them to leave.They let out a small huff, opening the door and began walking, rayden followed.
“I would never, I’d miss you too much.”
The truth behind that statement was like a punch to the gut, when did I get this attached.
“Mhm, sure you will.”
“Hey, that was the truth and you know it. I really would miss you if you died. I’d miss you, like, a lot a lot.”
“Then you can just go visit me in the underworld, you’re a god after all.”
“Yeah but… I can’t, like, go there everyday and you’ll end up forgetting me faster as a spirit… uh anyways, I wanna propose a little solution to your impending death date.”
“Oh?” He sounds uninterested now, which confused Marsh. Weren’t mortals supposed to jump onto every opportunity of survival?
It doesn’t matter, as long as he agrees to the ambrosia flower thing then they’re set. “Ahem, so there’s this flower. That can grant mortals immortality and godhood, and recently I finally managed to find one. It’s pretty close by too, so um if you’d like to that can-”
“I don’t wanna.” He’s stopped walking now.
“What.” Marsh turned to look at him, wh- this isn’t how it’s supposed to go, “why?”
He shrugs looking away, “Immortality seems like a pain.”
Marsh blinks, they can’t argue against that. Wait that means I’m going to- fudge I’m gonna lose him, no. no no this- this wasn’t what’s supposed to happen- they start to panic
“A-are you sure? I mean immortality is kinda cool too don’t you think? Plus you’ll uh get some kind of powers too I think, it’ll be fun-”
“Marsh, I appreciate the effort but you’re really offering immortality to me, the guy who basically embraced my death date.”
Marsh blinks again speechless, why are humans so complicated
He stretches, then starts walking back home “I’m really craving some chocolate vanilla ice cream right now so can we go get that?”
Marsh walked after him, not sure what to think of this situation “yeah sure, we can go get some ice cream.” 
As each day passes, Rayden’s condition grows worse and Marsh panics even more because they cannot figure out how to stop being attached to him, which means it’s going to hurt, so, so much. “Why don’t you just...wish for me to fix your lungs? Actually you never wish.. Anything, why?”
“It feels too easy I suppose.” He replied.
“Sure but at least you won’t have to suffer like this.”
“I don’t mind.”
“You don’t..mind? You’re literally coughing up blood nowadays, and you tell me you don’t mind?”
He shrugged “I don’t.”
They huff, confused “I don’t understand you mortals.”
“I don’t get us either.”This caused them to chuckle which made him smile. They liked it when he smiled, it’s nice.
“You should smile more, y'know.”
“I know, I know, you’ve told me a million times how much better I look when I smile. Honestly if I didn’t know better I’d think you’re flirting with me. Sadly I know you are emotionally incompetent and has absolutely no idea how romance works.”
“Hey!” Marsh shouted playfully nudging him in the ribs “I am not emotionally incompetent.”
He laughs which was a mistake because he’s coughing again. Marsh immediately wraps an arm around him, pulling him close and keeping him upright so he doesn’t fall
“Fudge, I’m so sorry.” They kept apologizing, yet unsure of what to do.
He waves his hand like he was dismissing them, and once the coughs died down “It’s fine. Not your fault.” His voice was raspy and they felt so guilty.
“A-are you sure you're fine? Is there any you need right now? Water? Or mayb-”
“I’m fine Marsh.” He cracked a small smile, trying to reassure them.They searched his face, looking for any sign of discomfort. “I’m just worried.”
“I told you I’m fine-”
“I love you.”
He’s stunned for a split second, they’ve only said this to each other a handful of times. “Love you too.”
Because that’s what this feeling is. It’s love, not the romantic kind nor the platonic kind but it's its own thing somewhere in between. This was the type of love where simply being in each other’s presence is enough to warm their hearts. The love without the yearning or the wanting to date. Where romance felt like a forest fire which consumed their every thought, this was more like a warm fireplace, nice and cozy and calm. They were a fool for loving someone they can never have. 

“Stop treating me like I’m a fragile piece of glass that’s going to crack any second!” He snapped.
This was their first and last fight. Ever since that day where Marsh triggered his condition, they’ve avoided touching him like it’s the plague and he was sick of it. They were so careful around him all the time and it was annoying. He wasn’t broken, he didn’t need them to go out of the way for him, he’s not that weak.
Marsh blinked, shocked. Rayden had never snapped at them, and quite frankly it hurt. “I’m not doing that.”
“Yes you are!” He took a step forward and Marsh stepped back “SEE! You literally just did it.”
“Well I’m sorry for trying to keep you safe! I don’t get what you’re so worked up over!!” They snapped back, sarcasm laced in every word.
“I don’t want you to treat me like I’m some kind of baby you need to be careful around. I can take care of myself Marsh!! I’m a grown adult for goodness sake!!!!”
“I know that, but I just wanna keep you safe. What if I accidental-”
“Once again I know how to take care of myself. The way you treat me, it’s really insulting sometimes you know that?”
“Humans are more fragile than you think ok!”
“Stop underestimating me, it’s really getting on my nerves you know. Sometimes I wished I had just- ugh, I should go before I say anything I’m gonna regret.” He pushed past them, heading for the door.
“Ray-”
“Don’t follow me. I need some alone time for once.” Rayden leaves, slamming the door loudly which made Marsh flinch. What had they just done, and why did they feel like absolute garbage right now. 
When Rayden gets back it's already dark out and he’s immediately tackled by Marsh who wraps their arms around him and holds him tight. “Thank gods you’re fine,” they whispered, squeezing him even tighter.
He wrapped a hand around them, “I told you I can take care of- Hey are you crying? Uh, um, I didn’t mean to worry you-”
“You- you jerk, if you didn’t wanna see me you could’ve just stayed here, I could’ve gone out and left, you- stupid, stupid boy, I- I was so worried-“
“Hey, I’m fine now, see I’m right here.” He ran a hand through their hair.
“I’m sorry, I- I should’ve listened to you and trusted you more, I..” They were sobbing now and he seemed stunned, Marsh had never cried in front of him before.
After a few moments of them standing there, them sobbing into his shoulder and him unsure of how to comfort them he whispers “I’m sorry too, I shouldn’t have let my emotions get the better of me.”
“Can we… never fight again. That felt so, so bad.” 
“Yeah, no more fights.”
“Ever?”
“No more fights, ever.”
They smiled up at him, practically beaming “Promise?”
He sighed, a smile tugging at his lips “promise. Istg you’re like a child sometimes.”
“HEY! I’ll have you know I’m centuries old, you fetus.”
“Ok bommer.”
“What’s a bommer?”
He bursts out laughing “you- you don’t- hahaha Marsh istg you-”
Marsh attempts to look offended for 2 seconds before they start laughing along. Maybe everything will be fine, with him by their side maybe everything will turn out alright. 
Nothing is alright, of course it’s not. How could they forget, how could they be so stupid to think an immortal and a mortal could ever work out in the end.

Their current position gave Marsh a sense of deja vu. Back on the edge, again.
“Let me go.” He said those exact words almost ten months ago, in the same situation. The universe sure had a sick sense of humor.
Marsh shook their head, “please, please Ray. Don’t do this.”
He just smiled sadly, “let me go Marsh.”
“No, no please. I- Make a wish, anything, you can wish for anything you want Ray, I can give you the world if you want it, please, please just don’t leave. You can wish for me to rid you fo this stupid disease, you can wish for happiness and I’ll give it to you, please Ray, anything I’ll do anything just- just let me help you Ray.” They didn’t even try to keep the desperation out of their voice, tears streaming down their face not again.
“If you want to help me...then let me go, let me die Marsh. There’s nothing left for me here anymore, Nevermore is gone now, you- you can visit me in the underworld, plus you know I miss him, haven’t seen him in ages. I’d rather take my own life than keep rotting in my own body. So Marsh as my final request, not wish, just.. Let me go. I’ll be fine, we’ll be fine, promise.” He smiles softly, trying to reassure them but a hint of fear shows through. Death is still scary after all.
“I can’t- I can’t do that Rayden I-”
“Then just close your eyes and loosen your grip… I’ll do the rest.”
“I don’t.. I don’t wanna, Ray there has to be another way, please you don’t have to do this-”
“I want to Marsh… so please, let me be selfish this time ok? This isn’t the end of us, I promise.”
“No, you- you’ll forget, after you die you’ll forget, just like everyone else you’ll forget me and- I- Ray please.”
“I won’t, I won’t forget you, I promise I won’t.” He said it with such certainty that Marsh believed him, even for a split second they believed him, he promised after all.
It was that second which cost his life, because all it took was one slip up from Marsh’s side for him to break free and fall. It all happened too fast, Marsh had barely registered what happened, staring at the spot where Ray was just a second ago, shocked.
“Thank you.” Was the only thing he said before moving on.
Marsh was left there, alone again, always alone.
Why was it so hard to save someone, why was it so hard to keep someone.
But most importantly, why did it take them four tries to finally figure this out, oh how naive they were to think forever was a reality. Nothing lasts, that was a fact of life, nothing ever lasts and to wish it did was the most naive thing one could do.
It was a mistake, everything was a stupid mistake, letting themselves fall again, to hold onto something and depend on someone, it was all just a stupid mistake. And now they’re yet again facing the consequence of their naive thinking, having no one to blame but their own stupidity, they laugh. Sad and melancholic, “I’m an idiot.” 
It was a week and a half later when his first message arrived. Nevermore flew in through the window and Marsh did a double take. There was a red ribbon tied around his neck with a simple message on it, “Hey, I promised, didn't I? -R”
Marsh laughs, of course he’d find such a clever way to communicate with them. They start sending letters back and forth from that day on, chatting almost everyday. The highlight of Marsh’s day were always his replies. It was so easy to forget how nothing lasts forever, and they were truly an idiot for forgetting that.
Promises aren’t magic, promises aren’t guarantees, promises are simply words. One tends to forget without a physical form to hold their thoughts together, and he forgot, just like everyone else he forgot, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Perhaps fate just simply wasn’t on their side. 
It’s been a while since they last touched their cottage, they had no use for it anymore. It's not like it feels like home, not now at least. They’re back to what they’ve always done, what they should’ve always done. Spending their days at graves with only the dead as company. It’s familiar, it’s easy, they can just go through the motions. This was their fate, it’s the life they were meant to live, they never should’ve strayed from the path.

(part 2/2 of Marsh's form)

(Once again sorry for making it so long... my hand kinda slipped and uh....oops? Lmao)

Not gonna lie, I was expecting you to edit your own posts there, but since it's been 2 hours and I don't see the editing happening, I've taken the liberty of editing them to my interpretations. Please try not to edit now because it will probably result in edits being lost on at least one end

-Galaxian-

Yeah, same with Spec. I really do look forward to interactions with Marsh in the future! Nice backstory too, I can see why now you wanted to get it all out at once.

(here's Frances, Elaine's sidekick basically)

Name: Frances Payne
*Nickname(s): Fran… that’s the only one I can think of lmao
*Age: 19
Gender: cismale
Pronouns: he/him
Sexuality: pansexual panromantic
Species: vampire
*Deity They Work For: Elaine Valentine
Appearance: He has straight long dusty blonde hair that’s tied into a low ponytail. He’s long and lanky, around 5’10 almost 5’11. His skin is pale, paler than that of a normal human’s and he has heterochromatic eyes, left one brown and right one green. His skin is usually smooth, and though the myth of vampires burning in the sun is just well… a myth, the sun does irritate his skin quite a lot so sometimes he’d have really bad sun burns. His fangs also only stay hidden until he’s ready to feed in which they sort of.. Extend out? Kinda like a cat’s claws. He’s rarely seen in casual clothing, always with a tie of some sort and a vest, as well as a pin of Elaine’s symbol. His clothing is often picked out by the queen herself, often made to match with what she’s wearing that day.
Personality: He’s as loyal as a golden retriever when it comes to Elaine, always trailing her like a lost puppy. Growing up, he never had many friends so he’s not the most sociable person and can often come off as awkward. Frances is very, very protective of her majesty and is willing to die for her. Otherwise, he’s quite the mellow person, opting to watch things go down from a distance but will involve himself if her majesty wishes him to. There’s, of course, always the underlying bloodlust he had to deal with since he was turned, which might cause him to be unnecessarily snappy and maybe even violent in some cases. 
*Theme Song(s):
Weapons: A sword, the most typical fairytale knight weapon
Powers: Just basic vampire stuff I suppose, y’know super speed, super strength, insane re generation, night vision..oh uhhh heightened senses too I think… He is flammable though, and pure silver does sting like hell, oh and a stake through the heart will definitely kill him. Vampire things I suppose… though for the sake of the rp and me not wanting him to die in like the first ten seconds of existence, the sun doesn’t kill him, he’s just really irritated by it. Half of those aren’t really powers are they? More like weaknesses… oh well. 
Backstory: tw/ domestic violence

He didn’t have an interesting childhood, at least not until the incident. He’s never gotten in trouble, nor did he ever do anything outstanding. Average, always average. Living in a small town in Tyval, his family was small consisting of only him, his mother and his father. His mom was kind and caring, his dad was strict and more conservative but Frances knew he still cared about him deep down, or he used to at least.
The massacre happened when he was only five. There was a group of vampires who decided to attack his elementary school. There was blood, so much blood and sometimes he can still see them in his nightmares, dead children bleeding out, screaming and crying, helpless and hopeless but the worst thing of that day was the waiting. One of the teachers tried to hide him along with a few other kids in a closet towards the back of the classroom, told them not to make a sound and left them there. He could hear it, the screaming, the crying, he could hear it all and he was terrified. He had no idea what was happening, he was just a terrified kid. That day he died, they found them huddled in the closet, they drained them all. The last thing he remembered was dizziness and then nothing.
When he woke up, he was back in his room. His throat was unusually dry and no amount of water seemed to solve that issue. He was shocked, stunned, part of him thought it was a dream. Frances wasn’t sure what happened or what any of this meant, the blood thirst or his fathers sudden distaste towards him, he felt like he did something wrong, why was he always thirsty? Eventually he understood what it was, his vampirism and why mom always gave him “cranberry juice”.
His father’s anger got worse and worse as the years passed by, he blamed Fran’s mom for “keeping a monster in their home” and that he was certain “one day, this thing will destroy us all!” A thing, that’s all Frances had become in his father’s eyes, perhaps he’s right, Frances isn’t even alive anyways. His fathers anger turns into an alcohol addiction, meaning their house always reeked of booze. His mom would often hide him in the woods to keep him from his father’s rage.
This was basically a formula for domestic violence. Some days, well most days, his father would come home drunk and get mad, really really mad. There was a lot of fighting and arguing and screaming as he watched through a crack in the closet, his mom always made sure to hide him before his dad got home. Things got really out of hand one day, he heard the sound of shattering glass and the thump of a body falling to the ground, then he smelled it, the blood. There was so much blood and he was terrified, it felt like that day again, the massacre. He could hear his dad stomp around outside, furniture crashing into the ground, even more glass shattering, his dad was tearing the place apart and he hadn’t heard his mom’s voice in an awfully long time.
When his father teared the closet door open Frances screamed, it was just like the massacre and now he’s going to die, this time he’s really going to die, his dad was going to kill him, he was going to set Fran on fire and watch him die, no, not again, not-Instinct took over, the need to survive, to live. Fueled by blind panic he killed his father, bit him in the artery and killed him, he killed- It was just like his dad said, Frances was a monster, a danger, he was a murderer, oh cod he was a murderer. He- he didn’t mean to do it, he swear he didn’t mean to. His dad was right, he destroyed them, he’s a monster.
Eventually people showed up. Marsh was there for well obvious reasons, dead people and stuff, and nine year old Elaine was also there for… for cod knows what. Apparently she’d just “followed her gut” and it led her to this house. “Geez, what’s that smell.” She pinched her nose with a look of disgust.
“Blood. Why are you even here? You should go home, I don’t think this is a place for children.”
“You said you gave me a best friend right? And you said I’ll find them if I just followed my guts and my guts tell me they’re here somewhere.”
Marsh sighed, “You’re gut is very off because I do not think there’s a single person here who’s alive.”
“I’m never wrong.”
Marsh just sighed again, side stepping a bunch of broken furniture. They were not about to argue with a nine year old.
Looking over the wreckage Marsh wondered what happened here. The first body they find is in the kitchen, the second is in what looks to be a children’s bedroom. Elaine is surprisingly calm about the two dead bodies and the pools of blood, shouldn’t children be.. Freaked out about this? Marsh was too lazy to ask. The princess however made a beeline for the closet which was wide open.
Frances flinched and drew back further into the closet attempting to get away from Elli who’s looking at him with curiosity. Marsh joined Elaine’s side and upon seeing an adult he began stuttering, trying to explain himself  “I- I didn- I didn’t- didn’t- I-” He was shaking in fear, I didn’t kill him, I didn’t- please don’t arrest me, please I didn’t-Marsh knelt down to be eye level with the kid. “Hey, hey, we’re here to help ok? You’ll be ok, I’m a..uhhh official from the palace and we’re here to um help you.” They tripped over their words, trying to make up a believable lie. They reached out and Frances flinched away, growling, then he covered his mouth surprised by his own actions “I- I’m s- sorry I-” Marsh pulled away, “hey no, it’s fine, you did nothing wrong…” they’re voice trailed off, not knowing what to do because now he’s sobbing and Marsh did not know how to deal with kids.
“Move over, you’re scaring him” Elaine demanded, trying to shove Marsh which doesn’t really work because she’s a nine year old trying to shove a grown adult. Marsh just stood up and walked away on their own, there’s no point arguing with a kid.
Elaine waited for his sobs to calm down a bit before talking “Hello.”
Frances stared at her through his tears, eventually he replied “H-hi.”
“I’m Elaine, what’s your name?”
“F-Frances.”
She smiled, offering her hand to him “Nice to meet you Frances, we’re gonna be best friends.” She said it with such certainty that Fran just… accepted it.
He hesitated, eyes darting between her hand and Marsh who’s quietly watching from the corner, “a-am I in trouble.”
“Pffft, nah, Marshy told me you’re not and they’re always right. Come on let’s go, this place stinks.”
He hesitantly took her hand, and she just pulled him out the closet, excitedly dragging him away, saying something about how she had a new best friend. He was a little too stunned to really register what had just happened. He vaguely remembered being dragged into an expensive looking carriage. During the ride he finally noticed the girl was wearing some expensive looking clothing and wondered what a noble was doing all the way out here. Wait did I just get kidnapped? He stared at her, wondering just exactly what had happened. “Why are you staring at me?” She asked, which startled him. “I uh- I um… d-did you just kidnap me?” He blurted out. She sat there thinking about it “...Did I? Ah well, even then I couldn’t just leave you there y’know, you’re supposed to be my best friend, I wished for you.” He blinks, confused, not quite sure what she was saying. She chuckles, “Don’t worry though, I’ll treat you well, that’s what best friends do right?”
“Who are you?”
“Oh? You didn’t know? I thought everyone knew me… I’m your princess and future queen, Elaine Valentine of Tyval.” She said it like it’s rehearsed.
Princess..she’s the princess… wh- “why me?? If you’re a princess then everyone must want to be friends with you right?” She shrugged and didn’t answer the question, she didn’t have an answer.
The first few weeks were rough, the palace was big and unfamiliar and once the shock of what happened resided Frances started having breakdowns and panic attacks. Even the smallest things could trigger an unwanted memory. Elli was always there though, through every panic attack and breakdown, mostly unsure of what to do and trying to get him to calm down but she still had good intentions in the end and Frances appreciated that.
Slowly he got used to the palace life, time may not heal all wounds but it makes them less burdensome and eventually he got to a point where he wakes up and doesn’t feel like completely crying himself back to sleep. There were many things he started to notice. Like how the princess was constantly showered in gifts yet her side of the palace was always so empty, she had an entire wing to herself yet it seemed only him and her lived there with perhaps a few guards roaming around now and then. He knows she’ll never admit it but Elaine was quite the lonely child, her mother rarely ever checked up on her and though she had daily lessons with Lord Campbell, he had rarely ever seen the Lord show genuine care or concern for her.
That day, he didn’t think when he took the blow for her. It just made sense in his mind, she couldn’t die and there wasn’t anyone around when the assassin showed up so obviously he had to do something. They were both just kids at the time, yet even then he was willing to give up everything for her.
Afterwards she kept apologizing to him even though it wasn’t her fault. He told her it was fine and she said it wasn’t, it really wasn’t fine. Was it not fine? He got hurt, yeah, but she’s still ok and that makes it all fine right? But Elli said it wasn’t fine…At fifteen he met Adrian Anderson for the first time, frankly he did not like him. He was jealous, Andy took up all of Elli’s time and it annoyed him to no end. He was supposed to be her best friend, he was supposed to be the one she hung out with, not Andy, not some outsider like him.
“Perhaps you like her.” Marsh had suggested after finding him taking his anger out on a bunch of innocent dummies.
He scoffed “Ha, funny joke Marsh.”
“No I’m serious, maybe you like her. Are you jealous of how much time he spends with her or are you jealous of his position as her fiance?”
Oh.
He was fifteen when he realized he liked his best friend... his best friend who was engaged to someone else. Perhaps if he ignored these slowly blooming feelings, then they would leave?
The feelings didn’t leave, always quietly haunting him in the back of his mind. They never left.
At Seventeen he realized he had become just another supporting character in Elaine’s life. He has become simply the princess’ sidekick, her shadow, her unwavering pillar. Though she called him her best friend, he doubted it, they were best friends in name only, that’s what he had thought. “This isn’t healthy you know… you should at least tell her something.” Marsh had told him. He knew, he knew their relationship was slowly turning one-sided. “You’re hurting, and that’s not ok Frances.”
“...as long as she’s fine, I’ll be fine.”
“That’s a lie and you know it.”
“Does it matter?” Marsh had sighed, exasperated “You need to learn to take better care of yourself.”
“Says you.”
“Touche.”
At nineteen he watched his best friend leave. Driven out by the very people she ruled. Weeks before the rebels stormed the palace Elaine had warned him. She said she knew that there was a rebellion brewing and told him to stay in the palace no matter what, that she’ll be back and he just needed to pretend to side with the rebels and stay safe. He realized that day that she did care about him, because she was crying, tears running down her face because she was scared for him. She had really really bad ways of showing her affection and care but she still cared nevertheless and that made Frances strangely happy.
He waited, for weeks he waited for her return, getting more and more anxious by the day and when she came back he tackled her in a hug. “Welcome home my queen.”
“Hah, it’s good to see you too Fran.” 
*Crush: Elaine… though it’s going to be unrequited because I like to bully my ocs like that
Other: hestia 

(I need to learn how to tone down backstories lmao)

Elaine and Frances accepted! I'm 👀 towards Elaine,,, theme song, hm? XD Will be excited to see her around.
I'll point out that there's an active character named Francis, so there might be a bit of confusion with him and Frances. Or maybe not, Ig, if we're careful enough while reading.

Now all I can think of is Francis and Frances doing the pointing spiderman meme, which is even funnier because my Francis goes by "Fren" and Marsh's Frances goes by "Fran"