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Sentinels and Guides;

Sentinels and Guides Shipping Meme
A Sentinel!AU Meme

There are special people in the world: Sentinels--whose five senses are incredibly enhanced, sometimes to the point of overwhelming and who can easily lose themselves in fugue states--and Guides, the empaths with the ability to ground a Sentinel and focus them. Meant to be the protectors of the Guides, for every Sentinel there exists a guide that is their perfect match. In some universes, when matches are made, a Sentinel and Guide form a soulbond to fill the feeling of emptiness.

How easy was it for you to find yours? How are Sentinels and Guides treated in your universe? Or maybe you're one of the normal, unremarkable people. Do you fear Sentinels and Guides? Despise them?

Rules
1) Post with your character/canon in the subject header.
2a) Choose whether your character is a Sentinel or a Guide
or
2b) If you don't know or don't care, just leave it blank!
3) Information about Sentinels and Guides can be found here and here. Information on 'The Sentinel' which this meme comes from can be found here.

4) All the tagging! Have fun 8D

Prompts
oo1. The Meeting:
How did you meet? Was it at an event organized specifically for finding your other half? By accident? Did you follow a mystical calling to them? Some other way?

oo2. The Bonding:
Do Sentinels and Guides in your universe soulbond? How does it go down? Is there a ceremony or do you just retreat to the bedroom?

oo3. Rejection:
Sometimes Sentinels or Guides propose a match but it's just not perfect. You don't feel the pull or maybe you think there is someone better or maybe you're already claimed. Maybe you were claimed and someone better came along?

oo4. Protection:
Sentinels are meant to protect Guides, any Guides, but it's even worse when they feel their Guide is in danger. They go feral; blind to anything but stopping and killing whoever threatened their Guide or the bond. Maybe someone attacked your Guide or you haven't bonded yet and you feel threatened or maybe you're the one doing the threatening. Whatever the reason, Sentinels in a feral state are dangerous and only their Guides can stop them.

oo5. Lost:
Sentinels often lose themselves in their senses. Either you're a Sentinel who has lost themselves or a Guide that has stumbled on one or a friend trying to draw them out. Unbonded Sentinels will find it hard to escape without a Guide. Or maybe you're bonded already which means you just need yours to come home.

006. Persecution:
Sometimes normal people or the government fear the power of Guides and Sentinels. Guides are empaths, feeling the emotions and sometimes passing thoughts of others and it can make people feel violated. Sentinels often have enhanced strength, which can make them dangerous. So they scorn them, hurt them or in the case of governments, regulate them.

oo7. Death:
Unbonded Sentinels and Guides eventually lose themselves to the empty cavern inside them. Torn apart from the inside by the feeling of something missing. Breaking the soulbond of a Sentinel and Guide is agonizing and horrifying, leading quickly to death for the remaining partner.

oo8. Old-School:
Guides used to be treated on the same level as slaves. Unable to work unless their Sentinel said. Not allowed out on their own. They used to wear collars and couldn't own land or inherit money. Maybe the old ways haven't completely fallen out of style.

oo9. Unbonded:
Nothing is worse than being an unbonded Guide or Sentinel. Always looking for your other half to fill that empty feeling but you probably have friends that aren't your match or who are trying to set you up with someone. Maybe you're skeptical about the whole love at first sight thing and haven't been looking.

o10. Wildcard: Some mish-mash of the above or anything else you can come up with!

Image from weheartit / original meme by

imadeamistake

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Lady Lunafreya had been a pretty girl when John had first laid eyes on her some five years ago. That's she's blossomed into a gorgeous woman isn't all that surprising. He does momentarily find himself looking his fellow Guide up and down speculatively and wondering if Noctis regretted, in any way, that he'd found Prompto. But the answer's almost assuredly no. The young men seem close, suited to each other.

John bows his head respectfully when he's addressed. "Yes, m'am. Thank you for allowing me to join the audience with you on such short notice." Should he say something more? He's not sure if he should mention that they've met before. Well, it can't hurt. "And thank you, as well, for your assistance with the war efforts in Afghanistan. I'm recently returned from the front. Our men and women wouldn't have half the fighting chance they do without the help of you and your family. I'm sorry this matter with the potions has come up. They're vital out there."

Perhaps he shouldn't get straight to business, but he can't help it. He doesn't know that he has anything to say that Luna might be interested in that isn't to do with the matter at hand.

John would be right. There's no regret in any way from Noctis that Fate had given him Prompto. It was a part of him he hadn't even known was missing and he had become complete the day he'd held Prompto in his arms and breathed in his scent, even if that had been an incredibly awkward moment for all around and a long story. As it is now, he likes having Luna as his friend, for all the distance that tends between them. They understand each other and their situations.

Lunafreya's head tilts, studying him more closely, almost like looking right down into John's soul. Then, the smile only seems to grow as she nods like she's found something. "It is only a small part that we offer. It's the brave men and women who take to the front lines that truly deserve our gratitude. Thank you for your service, and now, for your work with Gladio." There's a crinkle around her eyes and amusement threading into her voice. "Maybe you can civilize him?"

"H-Hey!" Gladio's eyes go wide as he breaks his solid stance of respect tucked behind Noctis, looking to his friend then back to Lunafreya. "It was the one time...!" Clearly there's something that's happened in the past that the lot of them know, though not Prompto from the confusion on the young man's face, because Noctis starts grinning, too.

*You accidentally come into the wrong room a total mess and stinking from training at the wrong time and some people never forget it...*

"Um..."

John finds himself flushing slightly at the suggestion that he can civilize Gladio... well, that and the young woman's attention on him. He can't help it. Guide or not, she's beautiful. He glances over at Prompto and sees confusion there, while there's only the faintest smirk on Ignis' lips. It seems like Lunafreya's trying to lighten the mood and general tone of the conversation, though.

"We'll see what I can do in the next few days, m'am. I'm sure I can work something out with a bit of help. Maybe make sure he keeps his shirt on, at least." God. This feels so strange to be joking with her. Gladio will be getting a mixture of emotions off his Guide, but one of the ones that's coming through most clearly over the Bond is that the doctor is entirely charmed.

John clears his throat and tries to regain his more military bearing. "In the meanwhile, I don't wish to disrupt from any planned discussions. Please, if you have limited time, I think Prince Noctis and the others have more claim to it than I do."

John's joke does get a soft, but real, laugh out of Lunafreya and Gladio grumbling about betraying Guides, but in fact it's basically impossible not to be charmed by Lunafreya. Gladio does keep an eye on John, wanting to make sure his Guide will be okay with all of this, and some unconscious tension in his chest loosens up when he sees just how John can react in this kind of situation. It'll work. All of this. Them.

Luna graces John with another bright smile before she gestures for them to follow her. "It's amazing how long it's been since we last saw each other. I've been waiting to meet Prompto for so long now. I never did get to thank you for saving my loved Pryna."

Prompto, not unexpectedly, immediately flushes. "It was my privilege. I-I'm just glad she was okay!"

"All thanks to you. And now you're taking care of Noctis for me. I couldn't have asked for someone better."

Prompto is evidently devolving into a tomato. He rubs the back of his head, still smiling. "I'm just lucky to have met him, but I'll do you proud! Him proud! Uh, everyone proud!"

When we were all kids, Luna's dog had gotten out of the Citadel and got lost in the city. In some kinda crazy coincidence, Prompto was the one that found her and took care of her until the pup got back to Luna. We had no idea who he was and had no idea about their connection until Prompto came to live in the Citadel, funny enough. Gladio finally informs John about what that's all about, looking amused.

John follows along, listening as Gladio explains the situation. He smirks at Prompto, more than a little amused. He keeps his voice low for Gladio.

"Strange coincidence, but maybe not. There're threads of fate binding Guides and Sentinels together, if you believe all the romantic nonsense about it. Maybe what happened was just one strand of that thread, reaching out." John shrugs. "Could be that's why I met Lady Lunafreya before I met you, as well. Six degrees of separation, yeah?" One degree, really, even if Luna doesn't remember him. He can't blame her. He'd just been one among several stoic-faced soldiers that day, and they hadn't chatted. And meeting Lady Lunafreya is a far more momentous event in a person's life than meeting John Watson.

While John talks to Gladio, Ignis sets a hand on Prompto's shoulder. "You've already done a great deal to be proud of, Prompto." Quiet encouragement to keep the younger man from keeling over with embarrassment or whatever else he's feeling. "Everyone here knows that."

Could that really be true? Could the threads of Fate be so strong as to link Prompto and Noctis, him and John, together even through the distance and the years? Gladio's thoughts circle around that, the idea that Fate alone had brought him to ending up in John's clinic. That he went off on his own to get a drink alone. That someone picked a fight with him. That he got stabbed in a way he never would have expected. That he ended up at that specific place...

Perhaps John's right. It does seem like a level of coincidence that might be near impossible. Six degrees of separation indeed.

Prompto, meanwhile, looks up to Ignis at the simple touch and blinks before a little smile touches his lips, then he ducks his head. "T-Thanks."

Lunafreya smiles, her expression speaking volumes on her feelings towards Noctis' friend and Guide. "Why don't we take a seat? I want to hear everything that's been happening... then we can discuss what we need to handle." She's well aware they need to handle the corrupted potions, but it has been years since she's seen Noctis and she has never gotten to meet his Guide! And now Gladio has his Guide as well, an Englishman nonetheless!

Like the gentleman that he is, Ignis pulls out a chair for Luna when they step over to a sun-lit table beneath a glass dome roof. It really is gorgeous here and there's an excellent view of the park nearby. John seats himself next to Gladio on the outside, letting Ignis take the seat closer to Luna at the head of the table. The Guide is quiet for the moment, just observing the proceedings.

"What news of your brother, then?" Ignis asks. "I've not seen much about him in the papers of late." But perhaps that's for the best, really.

A soft 'thank you' to Ignis for his kind gesture as everyone takes their seats. Any look to Prompto would show that the youngest of them was most certainly feels out of place in this grandeur or the situation or both, eyes darting around and his hands gripping to his seats as his foot bounces unconsciously. He takes a breath and tries to focus on everyone else's emotions instead of his own nerves. John looks like he's okay with this and he's new!

Luna's lips briefly thin at the question, a sure sign that something has been less than well when it comes to this brother in question. "He is ever as Ravus is, but recently he has been digging deeply into the question of these black market potions. The idea of it has consumed him, knowing that each time one is found, it not only hurts our people, but would taint our name."

John has a good poker face. He's used to sitting or standing and just listening while others speak in formal settings. One of the benefits of being a mid-ranking military officer, he supposes. It prepares you to play part of the set dressing. He keeps his expression neutral and his attention on each of the others as they speak up. His eyes do flick briefly to Prompto, but he doesn't exactly have the lad's powers. And with Gladio so close, any attempt at soothing (even if he could for another Guide) would sideswipe the Sentinel.

"He is a man of great passions," Ignis says, diplomatic, as ever. "And these tainted potions are a grave danger. I'm sorry they're the reason we've been brought here. I should have hoped for happier times." He falls quiet and looks to Noct to say something to lift Lunafreya's spirits.

Noctis is... terrible at this kind of thing, Ignis, why are you looking at him like that? Still, after a moment of pause, he gives it a shot. "We're going to figure out what's going on and stop the source of it." Flat out, like that's that. That it's going to happen and they're going to make that happen. Then, another hesitation, before he adds almost slightly weakly, "then after that we'll actually get to visit, I guess." No, he's terrible at this but he does mean all of it as he looks to her eyes.

Lunafreya smiles; she knows. She understands. "I'd like that. In the mean time, whatever you can do to help... I want no more of our people to be hurt." Her smile fades, an honest concern in her voice.

And in that? She and Noctis seem to agree. He nods, firm, eyes serious. "They won't, if I have a choice."

He might be terrible, but these are things a leader is looked to for. Practice makes perfect, particularly when it's Lunafreya they're speaking to. She'll be more forgiving and understanding than others. And Ignis offers a small nod to Noct when he's spoken. That was very good, as far as these things go. It's calm and firm reassurance to someone who needs it. The add-on is a bit awkward, but they can live with that, and Luna takes it well.

"They won't if any of us have a choice," Ignis agrees.

"On that point," John says, speaking up at last. "May I ask if there's any new intel you could provide to us, Lady Lunafreya? I've offered to assist with the mission Prince Noctis--Noct--is undertaking. I have some... less common abilities as a Guide that might be useful." He glances over at Prompto, and the other Guide will sense some anxiety now. John doesn't really talk about his abilities much to strangers for good reason. Prompto likely knows the feeling. And John's fully aware that they may not be particularly welcome to a Guide like Lunafreya who fits more of the traditional Guide mold of helping others rather than hurting them.

"But having the most up-to-date information will help, regardless, m'am."

Lunafreya turns her gaze briefly on John, not used to that sort of forwardness in the direction of the conversation unless it's from Ignis, at least when it's this particular group, but she does nod. "There isn't much, I'm afraid," she admits quietly, the tone of someone disappointed that they can't provide more. "There have been three new cases of men and women being infected - which is the term our experts have chosen to use - with the false potions. Unfortunately, they are all in our shores. This time, we have managed to get a hold of one of the bodies after she was... dispatched."

It isn't disgust or distaste that hesitates that last word, but a quiet, genuine sort of sorrow. Prompto's gaze drops to the table, his lips thinning. No, he doesn't like discussing his abilities and he generally doesn't, so only the people currently in the room - and Noctis' father and his Shield, back home - know about them at all.

"We are currently attempting to work in an agent into the black market here-" Lunafreya begins, but Noctis lets out a small sigh as he quickly cuts in to explain.

"Except we haven't had much luck in that area, either, not even with someone who's the best at this sort of thing. These people making these potions... they're tight."

"I'd like to examine the body, if possible." John realizes how that sounds a moment after he says it. "I'm... a doctor, m'am. Sorry." He looks down. "It would help me to know what I'm dealing with. I don't mean to impose, though. I apologize."

Ignis takes pity on the Guide and steps in to address Lunafreya. "I'm certain we can obtain any necessary data we need from your experts, if there's additional information to be had there. Understanding the threat is the first step to overcoming it."

Edited 2017-12-23 16:24 (UTC)

"It... could be arranged, I believe," Lunafreya says after a moment of thought. "I will speak to our doctors and find a time you could witness the body for yourself." Her shoulders shift, steeling herself against the memory. "I will warn you the sight is... less than pretty." There's something in her eyes that says it is awful.

"If it's anything like the pictures sent to us before, we've seen a little of it." Gladio's voice is flat, a hardening in his eyes, and John will be able to feel the brief wave of anger-frustration-rage that comes and goes as the Sentinel remembers them. It looked like a horrific way for someone to die, and no one knows if they remember anything once they've turn into a zombie or not.

John pushes back on that with calm determination across the Bond. "Thank you, Lady Lunafreya. I've had the terrible privilege of witnessing a great many less than pretty things. But with your reconnaissance and Noct's team, you'll forgive me saying as an outsider here... I feel confident that we can resolve this."

A voice in the back of his head tells him this isn't Captain Watson's mission and he needs to quiet down. With a brief nod, John falls silent again, watching Gladio out of the corner of his eye for any signs of disapproval from the Sentinel. John's still feeling out his dynamic in this group and with all of them being younger, he can't help the inclination to take some sort of lead.

Ignis picks up once more. "We have plans for an intercept mission in the near future. Do you know if this group running the potions is making use of Sentinels and Guides?" Because one John can influence. If it's just normal people, then Prompto is going to have to be their best bet.

As it was, generally Ignis or Gladio take the lead among them, for all that they're following a prince. Noctis is prone to letting whoever knows more than him lead the way, which might not be the best sign of a King, but they've all been around Noctis enough to know why he tends towards it. So while it doesn't bother him so much, Gladio and Ignis do, briefly, share a look. The dynamics are changing among them and now they have to find the new middle ground. So John might catch that look, but it's not disapproval. Just an uncertainty that's going to lead to Gladio and Ignis having a talk, Gladio already knows.

Lunafreya shakes her head. "Thus far, we have no knowledge if they are. The attacks seem random, and so far no Sentinel or Guide has been afflicted. We are uncertain if they're doing this on purpose or if it has been purely circumstance, but given that Guides and Sentinels are such a small percentage of the population, this is to be expected. We fear for what will happen if one or the other becomes infected, for it will, without a doubt, infect the other as well - even if only in the reaction." She brings her chin up, determination in her eyes.

"...something... that'd be able to infect the other," Gladio mutters, frowning hard. "If a Sentinel gets messed up by this stuff, we don't know if a Guide would be able to calm them down or just make the whole damn situation worse." It could lead to both needing to be put down, but it would be so much more damage in the process.

John's eyes widen at the implication. He hadn't really been thinking about it in terms of the partnership between a Guide/Sentinel pairing. He'd been more concerned about whether or not his abilities would be relevant. Perhaps if there were a way for him and Prompto to combine their abilities. That would be the ideal. With a relatively short window to undertake a mission, that would be easier than trying to teach Prompto how to do what he does or vice versa. John's not even sure he can do what Prompto does. Affecting everyone, not just Sentinels, that seems truly unique. Troubling on a personal level and unique.

John focuses on the conversation, though. The strategy is probably going to be born here.

Ignis places a hand to his chin, looking thoughtful.

"Opportunity, I'd wager. They're testing out their product before sending it to market." He shakes his head in disgust. And what a market there would be in manufacturing potions that don't heal, but kill the enemy when they're left behind. No one would think twice about using a potion, really. Not for now, and when they do? It would only sow more chaos, result in more deaths that might have been prevented for the fear that they were going to use something tainted. "They'll want to have a large-scale demonstration, though, something that will get their potential buyers interested. That is what we need to be on the look-out for."

"How's it possible for someone to even tell if someone's a Guide or a Sentinel just by lookin' at them, though?" Gladio points out to Ignis, giving a little gesture. There's an anger in his eyes about the whole situation, the idea that these assholes out there are putting everyone at risk with something that's supposed to be safe.

"Large-scale demonstration," Gladio says slowly that sickening thought, "means there's going to be a body count, and not just the ones infected."

"There's something important to consider." Gladio looks over as Noctis speaks up. The Prince's eyes are dark, thoughtful, and to his credit, angry as well in a quieter way. "There's very few people who are capable of making potions like that, no more than a half dozen in the world. We know them." Luna, himself, and his father are three of them. "...Is someone hijacking potions? Stealing them? or... creating them?"

John can't help glancing over at Prompto and tugging his collar up a little higher to hide his Bond mark. It's nothing to be particularly ashamed of, really, but it is something that can immediately identify a Bonded Guide. Keeping an eye on them long enough would lead you to their Sentinel. Ignis is more vocal.

"Unbonded Guides might be difficult to spot, but the Bonded ones certainly aren't. Not unless they're making an effort to hide." There's a side-eye in John's direction. "Find one half of the pair and you'll find the other easily enough. Those with access to the government registers could also target them. Something to consider if these potions do end up affecting a wider audience."

That's a troubling thought, and John unconsciously reaches for Gladio under the table, just to touch him. John's not registered; though, he suspects that's something he's going to need to do now, unless he wants to deal with make-up for his mark and constantly washing off Gladio's scent. That might well upset the Sentinel, and John doesn't particularly look forward to the level of effort involved in that.

"I think we have to assume whomever is doing this is hijacking or stealing the potions and injecting them with something to taint them," Ignis says. He looks from Noctis to Luna and back after a moment. "Unless either of you are aware of others who might be able to make use of the magic of the Crystal. Perhaps..." And his gaze turns to John again. "Lunafreya, you do grant some measure of your abilities to others, as Noctis grants us his. Is there any way a soldier with some access to your magic could do something like this?"

Gladio will get a spike of anger across the Bond before John speaks up again. "There is no soldier in the medical corps who would do this."

Ignis raises a hand slightly. "I mean no insult, doctor, but it is something that we must consider."

Prompto's Guide mark isn't even seen in his current outfit, and with John's shirt buttoned up, it wouldn't be seen, either. Most people don't bother with makeup when a basic tee shirt is capable of hiding the mark depending on the placement, though Gladio had marked, unthinkingly, a bit on the higher side. Sorry, John.

"I don't think it's nearly as obvious as you think," Gladio protests, shaking his head. "Yeah, other Sentinels and Guides might be able to pick it out easier, but the general population can't tell unless there's a giveaway. Otherwise it's not something that can't be explained by guessing they're a couple." A shrug, thinking honestly that John sounds kind of paranoid in some aspects. Not that the situation as a whole isn't insane and dangerous, but he doesn't want them leaping off into the crazy distance, either.

However, he isn't beyond slipping his hand down and touching John's, briefly. They've changed this ball game by ending up together, for better or worse.

Lunafreya shakes her head, glancing to Noctis. "So far as I know, even with some of my gift, no soldier has been able to create a potion."

Noctis quickly nods. "Same. The three of you can't, either. I can call my Dad and double-check, but I've never heard of it happening."

"We know of only one or two others in the world who can create a potion with some sort of.. natural connection to the world," Lunafreya points out, a sadness in her eyes. "It isn't beyond concept that another has emerged, an unknown."

Unfortunately for John, it's a truth. It could be a soldier, it could be anybody at this point.

In Gladio's defense, John had been wearing a collared shirt at the time and they hadn't exactly stopped to undress in the heat of the moment. It was bound to go higher than the doctor really wanted. "A natural connection?" John raises a brow. "Sorry, what do you mean, Lady Lunafreya? People with connections to the gods, you mean?"

John's not the most religious man, but he is aware of them. You'd have to be living under several rocks not to.

There's still a bit of guilt. Gladio's never lost utter control like that against someone who wasn't an enemy and it still settles poorly in the depths of his heart that he attacked John. While he's not sorry they're a bonded pair now, he's sorry about how it happened. He isn't sure, still, that he hasn't just... ruined John's life by walking into it.

John gets a small nod for his question. "It's exceedingly rare, but sometimes, it does happen," Lunafreya says quietly, folding her hands together. "However, the notion that the Gods would not know what their power is being crafted into seems impossible to me, so all of this would make even less sense."

"So they're stealing potions somehow, then," Noctis cuts in, leaning back.

Ruined might be relative. John can walk without a cane, which is a marked improvement over his life experience two days ago. His sex life is also looking up. Not to mention his general level of companionship. Whether he wanted it or not, he's been thrust into more of a life than what he's been living since he was brought home from the front.

He listens carefully to Luna's comments and a part of him wonders if, even though it makes no sense, it still might not be possible.

"Then we need to find where they're stealing them from, right? I know the Army keeps a very close eye on stocks of potions moving around. Is there any sort of accounting method they have for civilians?"

Perhaps it is all relative. Gladio wants his Guide to be happy, but for the first time in his life, it feels like there's something dividing his attention from what has always been his focus, Noctis. Something else, someone else has become of a major importance, something on a level that he has yet to fully understand or place into his life. But at least he understands that if he can make John happier, it's in the right direction.

"Yes, of course," Lunafreya says immediately, nodding. "There's a relatively few given out to civilians and they are all done through hospitals and no other resource." Which makes sense, given how precious each potion is. "They are reserved for emergency rooms, usually. I will make sure that each reserve is double checked for any inconsistencies."

"A robbery would be pretty big news," Gladio points out, "so if they're going out like this, it's in ones and twos at best, keeping suspensions down."

John nods his agreement. "You'll want them to manually check records against stores. It's too easy for things to get misrecorded in hospital. Especially when it's hectic." He likes to have more faith in the health care system than that but... he's had recent experiences with it that while not awful, point to some definite flaws. Overworked staff with too many patients to attend to on top of the emergencies is one of them. "Noctis, you might want to have your father do the same for any supplies he's provided."

Ignis seems on board with that plan. "And if we do find any discrepancies, it might well lead us to a clue we can use to track down our thieves."

This is sounding very promising, as far as John can tell. His hackles have settled back down, though he's still mildly irritated at the implication that someone in the military who was granted Lunafreya's powers might be the one doing this. The Army might have dismissed him as broken and just sent him away, but the soldier in him is still fiercely and desperately loyal to the ideals and his brothers and sisters-in-arms.

Sentinels and Guides;

Sorry for the delay! I've been running a big event in one of my games.

Don't worry! ^_^ What game are you playing in, anyway??

The recent event was for We the Lost, a CRAU game I'm the main story mod at.

Oh hey I didn't know that! I hope it's going well! ^_^

We've been going for 4 years and got a recent influx of players. It's small but good! :3

That's awesome though!!

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makes sad noise at the account name

Ignis is my prince, tbh

D'awww <3

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