Kinda thinking about writing a fic where the Pluto characters call in to that radio show from Blank. All of them have such juicy stories, it's perfect. Pim, Pang, Ai-Oon, May, it all works.

Day15: Charcoal

Laudna writes her name in charcoal on the table before they leave the cabin behind — six letters scrawled into the wood.  Next to it, she makes a little doodle of Pâté, a stick-figure rat with skull helmet holding his arms out for a hug.  Perhaps the next people to stay in this abandoned cabin will appreciate her art.

But when she passes through one last time to check that they haven’t forgotten anything, she sees Imogen has added her own name under Laudna’s, a plus symbol in between them.  And that makes Laudna so much happier without her knowing why.

Day14: Crawl

“All clear,” Laudna calls from the other side of the wall.

It’s a moonless night, but Laudna can see in the dark. Imogen gets low and crawls through the shallow dug passage.  Her clothes are ruined, but that’s the least of her concerns.  They’re inside the courtyard now.  And for tonight at least, they’ll have free run of the library.

Laudna brushes some dust off Imogen’s shoulder as she stands, pulls some twigs out of her hair.  “How do you feel about breaking and entering?”

Imogen smiles, takes Laudna’s hand and pulls her along.  “As long as I’m with you.”

Day13: Mud

Imogen finds Laudna near the shore one morning, crouched down in the muck.  She’s on all fours, face near the ground, and even the tip of her nose is dabbed with mud.

“What are you doing there, Laudna?”

She looks up then, and points as she sees Imogen.  “Look, mudskippers!”

And sure enough, as Imogen approaches, she can make out dozens of the small fish-like creatures flopping around, digging little holes and burrowing in the mud.  Laudna is smiling in awe at the display, full of wonder and joy, and Imogen thinks it’s the most beautiful thing in the world.

Day12: Power

Imogen hears the music falter, and her heart seizes. She rockets through the air, hair billowing out as purple lightning arcs from her fingertips. She sees Laudna crumpled on the floor, Orym beside her, trying to fend off four Reiloran Juggernauts at once. He flits between them, striking fast and then withdrawing to keep them away from Laudna’s prone form.

Laudna! Imogen’s scream is silent, mental, pure agony blasted down from above along with fire and lightning.

All this power inside her, but no healing. All this power, and she can’t use it for the thing she wants the most.

Day11: Tear

Sometimes, when they're alone, Imogen runs her fingers along the scar on Laudna's chest, the place where Otohan's blade had torn through muscle and bone — the spot where Laudna tears at herself when she summons her hound.

Laudna lets her do it, of course. Laudna will wait until Imogen shakes her head, lets out a ragged breath, and Laudna will say “I love you.”

“Don't ever leave me.”

“I won’t.”

And Imogen will lay her head on Laudna's chest, listen to the slow sound of her heartbeat, and they will both blink back tears.

“I love you so much, Laudna.”

May has to know, right? She went from "Hi Oom" full on kiss in the first episode, to basically resetting their relationship and starting over. Especially this last episode, with the water bottle, and holding onto Ai-Oon on the bike, and the ✨ice cream✨.

And Ai-Oon is leaning into it too. She's so smitten. She puts on her best (gayest) outfit, and shows up at May's unannounced with a rose in her jacket.

Day10: Cold

Laudna tells herself it's a trick of physics and senses. It's because her skin is colder than everyone else, and it comes down to temperature gradients. Because even if Imogen's hands feel hot when they touch, there’s no deeper meaning. Not when fingers burn against her wrist to drag her through the market. Not when Imogen brushes some hair out of Laudna's eyes and leaves searing trails on her forehead. And especially not when Imogen lays her head on Laudna's shoulder at night and Laudna feels like she's burning up inside.

See, Laudna is supposed to be the cold one.