this is Salem, a land filled with magic and maladies. It is a place where witches and their elemental familiars gather, a home to legend and
lore that predates time itself. Yet of all the wicked and wonderful stories the past can tell us of, the most magical are the ones yet to happen.
This is Salem - this is the start of your very own journey. Welcome to starfall
Starfall is an animaga witch roleplay set in mostly modern times. Members play as witches in a world plagued by monsters, where the only safe spots are walled cities. Starfall strives to be a character-driven roleplay with expansive lore and a highly interactive plotline. We want to allow members to
create and look back on a magical journey, and mold the site and its plot as their characters grow.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
The brunette sat down on the bench before Aiden. He sighed as his back ached while sitting down. They should ice it later but he could always just use a healing spell now. It’d be much faster to do it now after all. “Yeah yeah. We can’t all be strong muscle guys now can we.”
When aiden emerson sat next to him the boy lifted his overshirt up and over his head. It wasn’t nearly as fast as at the boys house taking visibly more effort thanks to the pain in his lower back. “Hold this please and thank you.” He said as the semi damp cloth was moved towards the redhead. With his free hand mana was beginning to charge and glow. His lower back looked scrapped up from the wood and purple bruises had already started to form.
“Not exactly how I planned on cooling off. I was thinking more sharing an ice cream cone or something cute like that.” He said puffing up his cheeks again. He was clearly annoyed with the fall. It was kind of embarrassing to fall on a date no less. Plus now he had to use his mana to heal himself which was cutting into their date time. How annoying.
He tensed up a bit as his glowing hand went to his lower back. It was harder to do this since he couldn’t exactly see what he was doing but it was better than nothing. He could feel his mana washing over the bruises with the pain slowly lessening. Thank good for Episkey. “You sure you don’t want me to look at it?”
Sure that sounds like a good idea. Have yiur essentially shirtless date look at your naked torso to check for bruises. Then most likely touch you in that same regard without a shirt to heal you. That totally wouldn’t cause bad thoughts again. Ahaha. Yup totally pure.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
“I’d say it’s less strength and more luck. Doubt it would’ve hurt as much if you’d been on top.” Aiden said idly before almost getting slapped in the face with a half-wet shirt. He grabbed it carefully before folding wet cloth over itself and absentmindedly packing it into his bag. The redhead let out a snicker as he dried his hands on his shirt this time. “We can still drink a milkshake with two straws if you really want to.” He said, though as the thought of that fully sank in it seemed far more daunting a task. Sharing he same drink, like a cheesy teen movie, staring at each other. Did you just drink the milkshake in silence? Did you eat something else? Was it just a staring contest? [break][break]
He eventually forced himself to focus on Charani, who was busy fixing the immediate bruising on his lower back. They’d set in pretty quick. Faster than him at least. He looked over his forearms that were still a bright pink from impact and see could see the purple beginning to spread. Definitely icing that later. Looking back, he found himself staring in silence as Charani worked, occasionally leading the boy to a spot that he may have missed or not been able to reach. “Uh, ye-” Aiden stopped himself short. He had been staring. He had totally been staring again. The problem with that was, this was public area, not his house. [break][break]
“I-I’m good. Here, put this on, it’ll keep you warm.” Aiden deflected snapping his head down to his lap as he retrieved his hoodie and practically shoved it into Charani’s chest. It was well worn, and dark colored, but if one looked closely, they could still catch hints of dark broad stains and signs of holes the witch had stitched back up again. Condemning the free flow of fixation he may have offered to their mind link, Aiden got up and gestured at the path. “Wanna see some wall flowers or eat that ice cream?” he sputtered out a little too quickly.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“Youre right. But now the surprise is gone so it’s not fun.” He didn’t really care for milkshakes it was more just a reason to get their faces close together. Plus he was certain, had it been spring on him with little warning, that aiden emerson would turn as red as his hair and this pleased the brunette. It pleased him quite a lot.
He appreciated that Aiden was gently guiding his arm at times to help him since he couldn’t exactly see what he was healing. He was feeling much better within the handful of minutes it took to heal the bruising. His healing magic was still surprisingly good even without his memory of his hospital life. One of the few bonuses. A worn sweater was tossed into his lap... or well shoved there. “Oh thank you.” He said as the glow in his hand faded to nothingness. The boy grabbed the top and made sure to put it on slowly, exposing as much skin as possible while doing so before it covered him up. It was surprisingly warm. It also smelled like Aiden. Stained and patches but sort of like cinnamon.
“You’re right this is really warm.” He said before shooting closer to Aiden on the bench. He sighed as he attempted to worm his way back into the boys space again. Maybe even try to grab his arm or hand again. Contact if any kind was a win for him.
“It doesn’t matter to me. You decide.” Sure thing boss. Anything sounded good when he knew he would be spending the majority of the time either way forcing himself into the red heads personal space. Pure evil.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
“I think you’ve given me enough surprises today.” Aiden sighed as he covered his eyes for a moment. The day had been full of Charani purposefully flustering him and upping the ante every time. He hadn’t gotten him back once today either, though it was hard when he was so easily bothered while the other boy seemed to delight in any kind of attention he could give, negative or otherwise. It was a losing battle on his end. [break][break]
This was especially evident in the amount of times Aiden thought it safe to look back at the diviner only to quickly turn his head away as he caught sight of exposed midriff or just out there chest. Every time there would be an uptick in mental curses and the image of a specific type of flower or a sheep at Aiden tried to keep Charani from knowing, that he was totally staring at him, practically shirtless, in public like the little savage that he was. It was the sheer ok. It was definitely the sheer that made it a little weird. And Charani. That witch had taken numerous chances to make this sort of thing weird for him. [break][break]
“Mmm, yeah. I stitched something special into it. It should ease off once you’re comfortable.” He explained one hand at his temple at he stared at his feet, his back to the other boy. Eventually he felt Charani cling to him, easily slipping his fingers between Aiden’s own. He almost pulled away, anxious that his hands might feel clammy, but the other boy was determined. He began leading him down the path towards the hanging plants. Or wall plants? Something like that. They crept up walls and hung out on cool fencing. “Let’s look a bit longer. Feels like we just got here.” That or he just felt like time was passing faster with Charani because every few minutes there was something new to worry about with him.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“Probably. I need to save some surprises for the second date after all hmmm.” He had used a lot of cliche ideas he had from romance books that were left lying around. He couldn’t use all his material on the first date though or he’d run out of things to do. Besides he needed to see that red tomato blush for as many days in a row as he could.
He was squirmy and persistent when it came to contact with Aiden. The redhead had superior physical strength so if he truly wanted it to stop he could easily restrain him as evidenced by earlier on the bridge. He hadn’t though and Charani was hoping it’s because all the poking and prodding was getting him somewhere. He did get the redhead to admit that he thought he was cute. That’s a good start. “Thats nest. Like some kind of warming magic? Or something like that?” He hummed as Aiden explained a little bit about the sweater. He didn’t know much about weaving magic or most forms of magic aside from utility spells and what he could dig up about his own magic. Which isn’t much.
“Okay. To the hanging wall of plant thingies or something.” He was of course being pretty much lead there. It was true that Aiden was at a disadvantage here. After all he got easily embarrassed by any affection given to him. The other side of the coin was the brunette. So starved for individual and undivided attention he was pretty much throwing himself at Aiden like they were actually dating. Products of very different upbringings.
“So what other kinds of things do you like? Or like what else do you do? Um or something.” He was trying to make small talk? Or he was trying to get personal information about him. Probably that. He would gently squeeze on Aidens hand and let his eyes glaze over as they walk. Enjoying his smell and warmth. That lady was there again by the hanging plants. Literally the only other living soul in this place. On the plus side she hadn’t seen them fall... probably.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
Like before, he allowed Charani to linger. The warmth of his hand was soft and less overwhelming than Aiden’s own anxiety produced heat. If anything, the actual act of hand holding was almost a little relaxing more so than simply contemplating doing it. Still, there was nothing calming about basically getting a confirmed second date. I mean, he hadn’t been sure he was going to even ask? Charani knew where he lived and if he really felt like coming back, he could probably find him again. He wouldn’t have held it against him though if the guy tried to find someone else to bother though. After all, their first impressions hadn’t been the best. As nice as this was, he had made it sound like he’d been one of the first kids his age he’d met since leaving the swamp. He just needed to meet more before the disparity of how terrible he was compared to more decent kids his age would set in. Not that, he felt bad about it or anything. It was just a kind of realistic thought to have. [break][break]
In any case, it kind of made this date more memorable if he wasn’t going to get another one. He nodded along as archways of hanging plants and little signs started showing up. He noted the older woman from earlier, and lowered his voice not wanting to disturb her. They’d probably done enough of that earlier. “Yeah, it’s a kind of thread I can make. There’s a few different ones in that thing to regulate the temperature, to a degree.” He explained. Rosario had done most of it as the project had been one of his first, but with all the different kind of threads he’d experimented with, the sweatshirt was nearly indestructible for a daily use. He kind of over wore the thing. “It can get pretty chilly in Sundial, so most of the time I just wear this and take it off if I get too hot.” [break][break]
“Oh- uh I-” He stopped himself from saying pick pocketing rich neighborhoods or breaking into abandoned buildings. That wasn’t…appropriate for this kind of company. “I… guess I really like reading? Or like, listening to stories. Uh, gardening and I guess baking?” He paused before correcting himself. “The baking is mainly Gran, but I do the cleanup. With my mouth.” Even at his age he was still Spoonlicker Supreme of the Cunningham household. “If I’m really bored I…” Aiden paused for a moment not wanting to admit this out loud. ‘I sometimes make myself a picnic and just go into the woods for the afternoon to…bird watch. Feed ‘em and stuff.’ He explained. And occasionally mug the stray idiot that scared them away. But that was a rare situation. “What about you? What do swamp people do for fun?” the redhead asked as the wandered about propped up lattices with different kinds of flowers and small fruits growing out of them. “Don’t say chores, that’s not fun.” He added as he bumped Charani’s shoulder playfully.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“That’s neat. It sounds very useful.” He always liked utilizing magic for everyday things. To be honest it was the only magic they were taught but he didn’t mind much. It was practical, helpful even. He liked being helpful. People praised those who were helpful after all and who wouldn’t want that.
He was payed no mind to the woman roaming around the garden. His objective was the spend as much time and grab as much attention as he could from Aiden. He just wanted the boys undivided attention. It was odd wasn’t it? Probably. “What kind of books do you read?” He asked as the red head listed things he did. He giggled a bit at the baking idea. He was a kitchen assistant at best with that grandmother of his. “The forest is peaceful. I can see why you’d like it.” Well the forest around here was pretty peaceful at least. Compared to where he lived at least. It was a nice idea though hang with birds and eat a picnic.
“Chores can be fun too. Or at least cathartic.” He wasnt allowed that much freedom in the commune. Nobody was really. That’s why he had run out to have some semblance of freedom even if it was fleeting. Just for a moment he could be a teenage boy going on a date and having fun.
“My sisters and I used to play games in the forest. Hide and seek. But there are some... undesirable folks on the other side of the swamp so we aren’t allowed to do that anymore. I have been reading a bit more lately though. My when she comes to town gets me these amazing books.” He was talking about romance novels. Some were good. Most were trashy romance books for old ladies. He didn’t know any better though. How could he? Maybe that warped idea was partially why he became glued to Aidens side so quickly. Charani seemed so interested in everything Aiden said or did. A dork.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
He nodded back at his date. “I’ve spent a lot of time finding ways for all of my magic to be useful to me in some way or another.” He said. Nothing like dusting off old notes and coming up with a good way to use a spell. Or, as it more often happened, committing some type of robbery and panicking as he went through his rolodex of spells to find something to get him out of it. He led Charani gently, giving him time to read over signs if he wanted and taking a moment to enjoy the flowers and the smells too. It was weird how easy it was to be alone with Charani, but then again, a lot of the feelings around Charani for him were weird. Despite it all it didn’t keep him from once again, leaning into that comfort. Almost like he would submit to it whether he was awake or asleep. [break][break]
“History, sometimes. And like, wildlife encyclopedia books.” He explained. He liked doing research, and in Sundial there were a lot old families and old covens he could look into. There were a couple of places with locked up information of course, but maybe one day he’d get his dirty hands on those secret tomes. “I go there to think a lot.” He admitted. Aiden let out a small laugh. “I guess I can agree with cathartic.” Just not his first choice when it came to having fun. [break][break]
“Lizard people?” he asked carefully. There had been some rumblings about those types within the city recently. He didn’t do business anywhere near the swamp, but after hearing about a couple of attacks on witches Aiden had decided to completely avoid the place. “Then d’you think you’d want to go to a bookstore? I can lend you some things, but my selection is pretty limited.” Not to mention boring, probably. “I know a decent place around here.” It’d probably be a bit more crowded, which was perfect for his line of work. Besides, he could make time to spoil a boy from a religious commune for a bit longer before they headed home. Where his grandparents would proceed in continuing the spoiling. So really it was just monopolizing who was spoiling Charani.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“Yup. Lizard people.” He and the rest of the world we’re not fans of the lizard people. They appeared to worship Jahr instead of one of the true gods. The great three. They were also violent without reasons just like their false god. No more than a dragon corrupted by trying to become a god.
He smiled as Aiden spoke and went on about his reading habits. He interjected small mmhmm and other such sentiments to show he was listening but otherwise was just watching him speak and move. Sometimes squeeze closer to him when he could. Affection was all he needed from the boy. Probably. “Okay. We can do that. I’ve never been to a bookstore before.” He wondered how many different kinds of books they had? He was sure there had to be so many colors and pages that he had never seen before. Especially given his small amount of reading background. “Everything here is so pretty. Thank you for taking me here.” Well at least he was appreciating how Aiden was taking all this time to be around him. He definitely deserved a thank you kiss later. Or several.
Now where would they go? The woman around the flowers would probably be happy if they left. Less to disturb her with their flirting and public displays of affection when she just wanted to see flowers. Or maybe she thought it was cute. Young love and all that. If it was his grandmother she would after all. But that was for many other reasons.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
“That’s pretty bad…” The bits and piece he knew was the kidnappings and disappearances, and yet the council hadn’t moved to do anything about it. It made sense they’d target a commune next to them. He became distracted as they chatted, easily making space and adjusting for the other boy. He said goodbye to the flowers as they began moving into what appeared to be another area. Right, the carnivorous plants. He felt the humidity tick up a few notches. [break][break] “I think you’d like it. They can waterproof your books for you if you take any home.” The atmosphere was pretty laid back after all, and there was a lot of windows to let sunlight in. He veered them towards an exit as they slipped by carnivorous plants. Luckily none were big enough to eat witches, though he was pretty sure those types existed somewhere in the isles. “Oh- sure, no problem.” Aiden returned shyly. “It’s a date so…” he trailed off not wanting to have to finish his thought. Of course, he’d take him somewhere pretty on a date. “If you want to see more of this place, maybe we’ll come back on that second date you mentioned.” The redhead added, trying to tease the diviner but falling short. His heart wasn’t super in it. If only because he actually had been a little happy at the thought of another date, even if the likelihood of it happening were incredibly slim. But he was happy for now if Charani was happy with him. [break][break]
He glanced at the sky, the sun no longer up high in the horizon but slowly setting and turning the sky’s pale blue to orange and pink. Most dates would end with the couple watching the sunset and kis- no. The couple watching the sunset. Aiden instead tugged Charani closer to him as they left through a normal entrance this time and stepped out onto the street. He headed up away from the Hovel. ‘Should be pretty close. It’s got this café area in the top of it and you can just sit and read if you want sometimes.’ The building was also three stories tall with the café seating all the way at the top so people could enjoy a view with their books and coffee. ‘There.’ He gestured as they approached, his grip on Charani’s hand loosening as he allowed the brunette to take the lead into.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“Yup. Theyre bad news. Thankfully a few of the adults were from one of the covers so we have some protection.” He wasn’t sure how many or how strong they actually were. Strong enough that the cult hadn’t outright tried to attack them at least. Plus they were not a large area so they were easy to lose track of. Bigger fish to fry and all that.
He used his free hand to put a finger up to shush Aiden when he brought up the second date thing. “Ah ah you said it too so it’s a promise now. Tomorrow.” So um... he was already a second date when they were still on the first. Bold. You have to give him that. The eating plants were creepy and he was glad they left that area quick. Reminds him of the vegetation in the swamp a little to much. “A cafe? Oh how cool. Are they as romantic as they are in books? Ahaha...” He said quickly turning red as he realized he seemed like such a country bumpkin saying that. Stupid. Well at least Aiden would probably get a chuckle out of it:
When Aiden squeezed them closer it pleased the brunette. He let that feeling slip out a bit into their telepathic connection. Happiness mixed with a bit of something a little more... not appropriate to say it mildly. Soon enough they were at their destination though. It was much bigger than he could even have imagined. “Wow!”
Good job Aiden. He seemed genuinely pleased to be here. Excited even. It radiated off him in waves like little pops of warmth and energy. It was so much bigger than anything he could have imagined. Books everywhere and people too.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
He felt McKenna make a mental note for him to look into witches from covens that may have mysteriously disappeared. A cult was a cult and while Charani seemed pretty harmless, he hardly felt the need to extend that sort of the trust to his guardians. He felt a bit of the hair on his neck stand up, goosebumps flaring up on exposed skin as the other boy confirmed another date. It kind of floated him through the rest of the conversation really. He felt that mix of anxiety at going on another one of these soaked in weird giddy excitement at a job well done. It got fuzzier as he felt their connection bring in more from Charani, wordless but the sentiments mixed in with his own almost infecting him. It wasn’t that strange of an entanglement, though at some point he felt himself averting his gaze in modesty as a wave of something else unspeakable hit and he refused to address it once more. [break][break]
Eager to deflect that boldness Charani gave off he quickly blurted out, “I dunno! I’ve, uh, never been to a café with someone else like that?” He typically went alone to stalk the desert displays not drink coffee. As they entered, the ginger reached for a shopping basket with his empty hand. He got the feeling he’d end up carrying a lot as he followed along the swamp witch. The place wasn’t too crowded with it being a bit later in the afternoon. If he looked up, he could see witches still sitting in window seats and around small wooden tables. The smell coffee brewing wafted down from the top floor. [break][break]
He would follow along, idly looking over colorfully bound book and occasionally pulling one out to skin the inside or look at the cover art. He seemed intent of finding a short recommendation he could give. Most of his reading material was pretty boring but he’d borrowed things here and there from others. Maybe a book of forest myths? History of the ruins warded inside the forest near here? Something like that. He found himself reaching over Charani’s head to pull out a dark green and golden decorated book, which he then rested on Charani’s back as he flipped through pages. “I think inside this one there was a rendition of an imp that kind of looks like you.” He joked, as he skimmed through familiar passages.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“That’s perfect. Then it’s something we can share together! So exciting.” He said with excitement as the other boy admitted that he hadn’t been on a date here before... or anything like that or of that category. Perfect. This was a fun thing they could experience together.
There were quite a few people scattered around the area with books and drinks abound. It was full of smells and warmth like a library mixed with a Starbucks. Witchbucks? fall what are we going with here? Something. “Look at all these books and colors. Oh and the shelves are so tall.” So they were kind of y’all but mostly the two twinks were just short. That was just a fact.
The witch cling to his date as the red head grabbed a basket and wandered around looking/picking up books with a keen eye. There was so many romance books though that they were passing by. How rude. “Oh? You mean super cute and kissable? That’s it right.” He said quickly squeezing the young mans hand with a smirk on his face. He turned his eyes towards his face turning on the sad eyes looking like he was going to cry if he told the boy otherwise. Manipulative. He was learning. He was also kidding. He did seem otherwise happy and pleasant not letting go of the other boy even with so many eyes on them. Familiar eyes.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break]
i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe
[break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
Aiden nodded along easily as they squeezed by a couple of people while roaming what felt like hallways of bookshelves. Every inch of space was perfectly optimized to hold or display books, if only to constantly entice bookworms to add to their never-ending collections of tomes. Aiden liked reading but never to that extent. Not to mention, he really didn’t have that much space to hoard that much reading material. “Yeah, they got some stools here and there.” Or they could just ask an employee, but really why would they? Aiden hated talking to employees, but that was because he also often stole from any and every business he came into contact with. [break][break]
He stopped flipping pages, landing on the illustration he needed. A small imp with dark brown hair and emerald eyes, kind of chubby, but with a shit eating grin all the same. He flipped the book triumphantly. “No I-” the redhead trailed off not expecting the boy to take it that seriously. He faltered for a moment, theurge to run from those puppy dog eyes bubbling up inside. It was cute, and it was also incredibly dangerous to his health. The redhead then frowned, letting out a huff and turning his head to pretend he wasn’t affected at all. “Yeah, sure, whatever you say, Charani. Put those away already.” He said as he snapped the book shut before dumping it into their mutual basket. [break][break]
He would soldier along, thoughts slipping back to earlier before freaking out a little pulling out random books to help distract him. Even if he had been the one to kiss Charani first, it didn’t mean he didn’t feel any less embarrassed about it. He didn’t remember a single thought going through his head when it happened either like the moment had seemed just right- That realization was far worse. “You know, maybe I should get us some drinks? You want anything?” He said after replaying their kiss in his mind for the fourth time.
"I just cam here to the party for the drugs Not here to make a friend or fall in love"
“Awww okay. Only because you asked nicely.” He said putting away the puppy dog eyes. He would never admit that the troll he was compared to annoyed him. His rude, his eye even twitched a bit at the comparison. Dummy. That’s mean.
There were quite a few places to sit and read. Which also meant places to sit where they could be more or less alone right? Maybe cuddle up on a small bench or stools and make out? That sounded nice. Unrealistic but nice. “Okay. Nah I’m fine. You go get something. I’m going to wonder over that way.”
The witch would take some seconds to let go of the others arm. He would be really mean and try to give the redhead a kiss on the cheek before shooting him off to go get something for himself. He was on a mission. The mission of good romance books. “See you in a minute.” He said as the books around him started to change and warp. He didn’t remember when he had moved this way but he did. Romance books. Yes. Thanks for the help mysterious flash forward of time.
On the other side of things Aiden would feel eyes on him as he went to get something from the cafe area. Not the fun flirty eyes that had been trained on him all day either. He wasn’t the only one who could be bad.
