Oneshots(?) bcoz I'm bored

= {Chateau Amilotte}

hahaha english assignment go brrr

this got an A, although i don't think it's very good... the pacing and worldbuilding is pretty fucked ngl

this is supposed to read like an excerpt from a novel, but it could be standalone too!!

anyways wrote this a while ago, just waited until after the assignment was graded so the similarity check wouldn't find this book lmao (it found similarities between stuff on ao3 (i think it was a 400k word lotr fanfic) when i submitted help). hopefully you enjoy :)

Fandom: OC/general fiction

===

I'm sprinting. The Gorge (which actually isn't a gorge, but rather a pure gypsum cave network) is about the last place I want to be. The gas is stifling at best and toxic at worst, and although my body is built to resist said toxins, they still smell like rotting lies. Oh, and not to mention the orange blur of cat ears and canary wings behind me, which are other Maomins keeping chase! We're one and the same, with our stocky cat bodies and elegant canary wings, yet they're as emotionally distant as the aquamarine grass above. They're after me with a rage that only comes after intense betrayal. One so shameful that I- I... nevermind. One of them hurls a large hunk of gypsum at me. It grazes my ear before thudding to a stop 6 metres to my left. I can't stop to think about it. The only thing I can do is run. Run for my life. Run for my dignity.
I spot the exit to this godforsaken place, a blue skylight in the foul dark. Legs burning and lungs dying from running, I muster the last of my energy to leap towards it. Unfurling my canary wings, I push them down as hard and fast as I can.
Instantly, I get launched toward the light, signalling a successful double jump. I don't have time to relax my intense nerves, though. Just barely, I manage to snag the side of the skylight with one of my claws, watching the other Maomins circle below me, weapons in hand. They're shaking their furry paws at me, attempting to fly up to my position and lobbing random bits of gypsum in my direction, but I've won this skirmish. No one but me can get up here. None of their wings are powerful enough to provide the lift necessary to double jump.
Carefully, I grip the sides of the skylight, securing a nice foothold before desperately clawing my way out into the magic forest above.
===
I snake through the trees, exploding through syrupy brambles and grazing my purple clothing on the rough, bluish-purple bark of warped spruce trees. Pure adrenaline is fuelling me, coursing through every vein in my body and making me move forward despite my aching muscles.
Even though the Maomins are no longer on my tail, the above-ground isn't safe. They're patrolling every inch of the West Borealis Forest (approximately 400 square miles, but the Gorge is located in the center of it). I have to make it to at least the edge of the spruces to guarantee that I won't be spotted by one of them. I find the land there to be much prettier anyway; it's full of fruit trees, berry bushes and whimsy sugar maples.
I duck under a fallen branch, somersaulting and crashing to the ground before agilely righting myself on my feet again. Bursting through the stalks of unbloomed wildflowers, I find myself face to face with... a stone wall? More specifically, a retaining stone wall about the height of a bouldering wall?? My mind goes blank for a second as I try to figure out exactly what this is before I facepalm myself. Of course. It's the famous Chateau Amilotte walls. Wait, it's the Chateau Amilotte walls! IT'S THE CHATEAU AMILOTTE WALLS!!!
Immediately, I begin to path a chart up the crumbled stones of the wall. Safety, safety, safety, at least temporarily, I tell myself, gritting my teeth as each paw on the wall serves to burn my exhausted.. everything even more. This castle of mismatched creatures is the perfect place to hide from the blasted Maomins that want my blood.
After an eternity of scaling the wall, I finally sling a paw over the topmost brick. Hauling the rest of my body over the edge, I immediately flop over, gulping in some much-needed oxygen. I know I need to head inside the Chateau to become relatively safe, but making myself get up is a whole other situation. I attempt to push myself up using my left arm, but it's fruitless. A jolt of unbearable pain wracks my entire body as my arm folds underneath me. The best I can do is roll onto my back.
The open twilight sky closes in on me. Slowly, I begin to swim in the dark, and soon enough, I melt into the floor.
I swear, this has to be worse than carbon monoxide poisoning.
=
"Hey, when are you going to wake up? It's been 16 hours."
I'm startled out of the dark by this voice, though I can't bring myself to open my eyes just yet. I can feel soft fabrics surrounding my body. Other quiet conversations and the sound of a Chick Corea vinyl begin to materialise.
I realise that I am in a bed. The person that spoke to me appears to be attending to me..?
Drowsily, I open my eyes to... a piece of rose-embroidered fabric. Looking up, I see it's a floor-to-ceiling curtain. A hospital wing..?
Turning to where the sound of the voice came from, I see some human-rose hybrid creature on the opposite side of the room. They're holding a tray of food and water in between their gloved hands. One of their eyes is a blood-red rose.
"Ah! Good morning, sleepyhead," they smile.
I shake my head awake and prop myself up in bed. Before I even make a move, though, a wave of soreness washes over me. Immediately, I recall the chase between the Maomins and blacking out on the Chateau Amilotte grounds.
"Mornin'... I'm guessing this is Chateau Amilotte? Who brought me in?" I remark sleepily.
They narrow their eyes. "I did. Listen up, us Osains here at Chateau Amilotte take care of anyone in need of support, but I have one condition. So long as I'm taking care of you, you have to drink a glass of water daily." Walking over to my bedside, the person hands me the glass of water from the tray. "Go on, and while you're at it, explain why you're here," they push, dragging over a wooden chair to sit in.
I hesitate. I- I don't want- though I don't think this person will give me much of an option. So be it, the illusion of free will! I take a deep breath to steady myself before I say, "Thanks... whoever you are- ah, I can ask questions about you later. Well, this really started years ago. I'm a Maomin, so I live in the Gorge- er, the Depths of Alabaster. Well, used to," I append, motioning to the lightly furnished room. Only now I notice that the left wall has a massive window that opens to a courtyard. Although they're tiny from the view of the room, it's full of snaking rose vines with delicate ivory and bold red petals. It's mesmerisingly beautiful. I'll have to pay a visit later.
Continuing my story, I say, "They had me work the deep mines as the canary half of me is much better developed than theirs. I have a huge advantage in handling the dangers there-I'm much more sensitive to carbon monoxide, one of the only toxins we don't fully resist, and I can also reach higher areas in the caves. I despised mining, though.
One day, I figured that, rather than actually do the mining, I would find ways to cancel work instead. I messed with the ore elevators, purposefully selected areas with little ore, you name it. Pretty quickly they noticed I was causing trouble. One by one, they began to smack-talk me behind my back, ostracise me from activities and generally act disdainfully toward me. I held out for years before the mines and the cold-shouldering just got too much to handle.
I figured the best way to get rid of all that was to shut the mines down entirely... my plans were long-winded and not that important anyway. What matters is that it failed, so I had to resort to running. That's where I am now."
I sigh. Definitely worse than carbon monoxide poisoning.
The person nodded, gently resting their delicate yellow-green chin in their hands. After mulling over my words for a brief moment, they said, "Weeell, the only thing I'm confused about is why you didn't try to explain to the rest of 'em why you hated mining. Like, ever. You didn't even explain to me, and I'm never going to see you again after you leave."
I frown slightly. What they said has merit, but there's no way in hell that the Maomins would ever give me the chance to explain even the first infraction I committed. "But-" I begin to protest.
"Save it," they cut me off, flicking their fingers in disdain. "I've heard this story one too many times before, just with a different set of characters. I always say that it's OK to run sometimes; after all, Chateau Amilotte is always open to hear your problems and provide comfort when needed. That being said, attempting to escape the people you've grown up with, lived your entire life with, when you haven't even given them a shred of context to explain your misbehaviour? That's seriously not cool."
"I- It's not like-" I stammer, but the person shuts me up before I get another word in. "Run all you want, but that'll never solve the root issue that you have. Rest awhile here, that's fine, but you better head back and make peace with your friends, family, coworkers, neighbours, all the Maomins."
I fall into some sort of stupid silence. I know this was something I needed to hear at one point or another, but...
"...It's so difficult. To say sorry when you messed up big-time."
Their face softens with a look of... regret for the past? "Sorry, I got a bit harsh there. I understand that feeling," they murmur. "It was excruciatingly hard for me, too. The story is even longer than yours, unfortunately. It took a while, but the best thing for me and them was apologising."
"Uh... did it work out alright?" I question, more for my own sake than theirs.
"Well... They don't fully forgive me, but I can at least move on without crying about it at night so much."
"Ah."
We both have nothing to say after that. I'm stunned into total silence by the massive bombshell they just dropped.
A solid minute goes on like this. Even the Chick Corea record finished playing.
Seems fitting given how much more stuck our conversation made me feel.
I might count the roses in the courtyard if this continues for much longer.
1 rose...
2 roses...
3... oh, that just got clipped...
4... that one might've lost a petal?
5...
6...
7...
8... that one is really pretty..
They break the silence first, meekly saying, "Hey... if you'd like, I can help with finding courage... and stuff? And... you're watching the roses..? I suppose I can ask Lord Amilotte if you can tend the garden while you're here."
I can feel my eyes lighting up at both suggestions, tension instantly evaporating from the air. "You mean I can spend all day with the roses?! Yahoo!! About the courage thing, any help I can get I'll gladly take!" I grin at them.
The corners of their mouth tick up into a smile as they say, "Woah, that's the first time my offer for help gets taken!!" In a more gentle manner, they finish, "If nothing else, though, I hope you'll enjoy the rose gardens at Chateau Amilotte."

shit endings strike for uhhh the 3rd time?? wahoo

anyways this is bad and i am not adding these two to my oc roster!!!

be like mc and have that daily glass of water :)
- owl

word count: 2070