Caged heart

[asoftermeme]

THE CAGED BIRD shipping meme

From the moment you first set eyes on them, you've been drawn - but this is no meet-cute. Thy are beautiful, interesting...and so, so sad or angry, like a bird with clipped wings in a cage. They're a prisoner: mentally, physically, or both. Again, caged. You? You could be anyone, from an innocent bystander who happened to catch a glance in a faraway window, just a cog in the machine that keeps them trapped, to a fellow entombed creature. Even if you've never felt a thing like "compassion" before (or thought yourself incapable), you are sympathetic towards them now and your feelings only begin to grow, a fixation forming. At a certain point, you realize that you have but one option. You have to free them by any means necessary. You want to see them safe and content, more than anything in this world. ...even if they're free and don't want to be with you, that's enough. Right? HOW TO PLAY Comment with your character, preferences, role, and any other information to make you more taggable. Reply to others. RNG if desired. WHO Caged: You're the victim here, kept locked away. Passerby: Here you are, minding your own business, when - who's that? Why are they there? Rescuer: Whether you're a knight in shining armor type or someone simply paid or commanded to do this job, you never thought you'd fall for the one you had to rescue. Conflict of Interest: You're a guard, but you can't very well do your duty if you want the person you're guarding let go. Unknowing Villain: You had no idea your allies were keeping someone and you don't agree with their methods. Enemies: They did wrong by you in the past; even they don't deserve this, though. Should Be Reviled: Your people and theirs have never gotten along. You should hate them, yet you don't. You want to save them. Who's the Monster?: They're being locked away because they're a monster. No one could be further from a beast in your eyes, however. Never Felt Before: Usually, you're stone cold, but their plight has gotten under your skin. In this Together: Both of you are prisoners, so you can't easily save them, can you? Not All Bad: They're been told that they're being protected. You want to show them the outside world isn't so bad. The Better Devil: To be honest, you're not much better than their captor. Still, you're something new. HOW Plot and Plan: You know busting them out won't be easy, so you'll put your mind to it. Sneak: It's an old-fashion escape with all the subtleties and espionage to get out undetected. Fight Anyone: Maybe you're more brawn than brains, or maybe you're just in a tight spot. Bargain: Their freedom for yours. Seems like a fair trade. Guilt: You can't really free them, can you? This fact tears you up inside. Give You Hope: You might not be able to get them out of here now, but you'll keep them looking towards the future. Keep You Happy: You'd do anything to see them smile again. Be Healthy: They're being mistreated or ill-fed. You can at least try to remedy that. Saved Themselves: They only needed an extra push. At the end, they pulled themself out of the pit. Selfish: No denying it, you freed them for selfish reasons. Selfless: What you want doesn't matter. Their safety and peace are paramount. Sacrifice: If need be, you'll put your life on the line. Used You: They didn't really love you. But they did know you'd be useful. Failure: Your attempt failed and now both of you are looking death in the eyes. I'll Steal You: They didn't want to leave their "home." You stole them away. Indebted Friends: So they weren't romantically attracted to you. They, however, did platonically bond with you. Finally "Together": You've wanted to touch them, hold them, kiss them, and be with them in every way possible, even if it's only for a moment. The smut option. Happy Endings: You're both safe, far from danger, and together.

Comments

Rey | SW: TFA | OTA

[thesefirststeps]

Grace Ford | OC | m/f

[barre_none]

Oscar | Lupin The Third | OTA

[riveres]

Isolde, Lilith, Rosalie | OC | OTA

[puppet_mistressofhell]

[Will most likely spring all pretty birds out cages because she surely isn't one.]

Kei Tsukishima - Haikyuu!! - ota

[itsjustanaccount]

[I'm good for either role, and totally willing to RNG it for funsies.]

Ghanima Atreides | Children of Dune (Film) | OTA

[ghani]

Can work with either role

Ashley Raventon | Lost Souls | M/M

[raventonbeauty]

The caged bird. He has a canon interest in the wicked and inhuman, so "better devil" is a particularly good option for him.

[prince_of_vere]

[Caged, and already working on a scheme to rescue himself. Will probably be not particularly grateful to be "rescued".]

[princeofgold]

[This is technically a Laurent account, but what if I make an Auguste or Damen? (This is markofthegods btw :3) or just two Laurents for shenanigans]

NONA1 | OC |OTA

[nowingsyet]

Sombra | Overwatch

[pullsstrings]

[pullsstrings]

[There isn't an immediate answer. Sombra had to pull a lot of strings to get the opportunity break in here, she wasn't about to let th this opportunity go to waste. She was busy clicking away at a terminal not to far from Sofia's cell. Disarming any alarms and sealing the doors to the prison so she could have a private moment with her latest target.

Once that task was done she strode over toward Sofia's cell and let her head poke into view.]

Oh just little old me. Thought I'd go for a walk.

[Her eyes focused on Sofia, looking her over from head to toe.]

Bet you wish you could do the same.

[pullsstrings]

[That glare doesn't cause the slightest shift in Sombra's demeanor. She was well aware that all Sofia could do was act tough for now.

Instead she just smiles sweetly as she starts to work at the terminal to open up Sofia's cell.]

Please, Chica. I didn't kill anyone on my side. We worked together just a little to get you under control, but now I'm here to claim my prize.

[And just like that the door opens up.]

mc (eun) ; mystic messenger ; ota

[chatapp]

[ AHAHAHAH. ]

Weiss Schnee | RWBY | ota

[whiteas]

[ either role is fine. if weiss is the 'caged' one, well, 8'D scenario's not exactly hard. otherwise can put her at an earlier canon point for a more huntressy rescue-role or whatever i'm open to discussion.
bonus: she literally sings. ]

V | Mystic Messenger | OTA

[sacrifeyes]

[Almost definitely the caged bird. Can work within canon (V route, anybody?) or dive into an AU, I love AUs.]

Margaery Tyrell | (For swingthesword)

[thekittenqueen]

The tedium of court routines often surprised Margaery. For all of her desire to be queen, she had little interest in the small visitors that would come to court and petition the council for more resources or money. While she was one who often gave charity, and delighted in such things, giving men from the prisons to the Night's Watch was far from her interest. Prison or the Night's Watch, it seemed one and the same to her.

Yet Margaery's ladies had drawn her attention to the Lord Commander's arrival at court, pointing him out in the halls. Their faces flushed and excited, whispering about the handsome man that was wasted on the Night's Watch. While Margaery had ignored such talk and dismissed it as silly, the continual chatter raised her curiosity.

Despite the dangers and the eyes around her, Margaery invited the Lord Commander to her rooms, wishing to meet him and to hear his plea as well. While Cersei might believe she had control, Margaery at least knew how to persuade Tommen to her line of thinking.

She waited for Jon Snow, seated at her table on her balcony, listening to the sweet sound of the birds and the rustle of the breeze through the branches. She hadn't heard his approach, suddenly stirred from her daze by the figure of a man just out of her peripheral. She turned to look at him, regarding him with a measure of interest, appraising the face that was whispered to be so handsome.

"Lord Commander?"

[swingthesword]

Jon had done many things since he'd first been taken from Winterfell to Castle Black by his uncle Benjen, many things that he'd needed to find strength from within himself to do by telling himself that it was for the best, for the good of his family, the Night's Watch, for the race of Man itself. But none of those things-- none of them-- compared to having to stand before Lannisters and plead for their assistance.

And yet, he'd done it. For near on two weeks, he had been summoned to meetings and audiences with this functionary or that administrator, always repeating the same need for men to guard the Wall. And each response had been just as icy as the Wall itself.

So when the summons from Queen Margaery had arrived at the small inn he lodged in (no room available at the Red Keep for the Lord Commander, strangely enough), he feared it was to be another silent refusal. But still he went, in no small part because he was curious about Margaery Tyrell, the young woman reported to be as kind-hearted as she was beautiful.

Arriving at the Queen's chambers, Jon could at least attest to the latter. Indeed, she was so lovely it made his heart ache. But he shook it off and bowed.

"Your Grace. You asked to see me?"

[thekittenqueen]

She had heard his heavy accent in passing when he would plead his case to Tommen's council. There had been brief glimpses of him in the hall and in the keep, but never so close or privately as this. For the first time, she was able to truly look at him and analyze his features.

He was handsome, as her maids had said, but there was another quality to him that she could not quite define. He was almost haunted and solitary, reminding her of the wolves that acted as sigils for his house. There was always a mythical quality to the stories of the Night's Watch (when in reality it was filled with prisoners and thieves), he lived up to those myths, resembling what the ancient heroes must have looked like.

She smiled at him, offering him the seat across from her. She hadn't prepared some reason or excuse to summon him. Such actions would raise Cersei's attention and place herself under the Queen Mother's gaze. She was already at risk enough without asking a handsome man to pay her a private visit.

"I had heard your request for more men for the Wall," she said, hoping that she didn't appear ridiculous. "What has been the response to that?"

[swingthesword]

The Queen would have coaxed one of Jon's rare laughs if she would have compared him to the heroes of those stories out loud. He was dark of hair and long of face and not especially tall, not to mention a bastard. And yet, he'd faced the monsters out of those legends and lived to tell the tale, which helped make him sure that if the Night's Watch only had some support from the crown, then they might have a chance at surviving.

He nodded and sat, feeling awkward and ill at ease in the lush, bright surroundings. Day by day in King's Landing, Jon had shed another piece or layer of his accustomed dress, either because he came off as intimidating or was simply too warm. The fine dress that Queen Margaery wore only underlined this difference, and its low neckline was... distracting.

Jon pursed his lips, considering a reply. "It has been... cautious. I find that this far South, most people believe the Watch is doing well enough as it is."

[thekittenqueen]

There were some things that she had learned to keep to herself, one of them being her true feelings and thoughts. To survive in King's Landing, she had made certain to conceal herself behind a courtly mask, intent on staying an enigma to her enemies and allies. Better that she alone knew herself than for others to predict her moves and block her path.

It was refreshing, however, to sit across from someone that didn't seem to employ that sort of strategy. Though she could not say that Jon was easy to read. He seemed dour and weary, matching the cold of the Wall. She imagined such things left their mark on a man.

She rested her chin against her hand, regarding him with a soft expression. "And it isn't doing well?" She wanted to hear his plea before agreeing to provide him with men from High Garden. If only to know exactly what was happening in a realm so few ever thought of.

[swingthesword]

His father had insisted that all of his children be educated in the way of things among the nobility of Westeros, even Jon, despite Catelyn Stark's misgivings. As such, Jon knew his Houses and his styles and how to address each, and knew enough to be cautious and careful, particularly this close to the Iron Throne. But when it came to playing the game, he had no head nor time for such machinations.

Jon shook his head. "Only a handful of our forts are in defensible repair, and fewer still of those manned at all. Only Castle Black itself commands a garrison of any note." He pursed his lips. "The forces beyond the Wall are growing stronger by the day. And Winter is coming."