#Operation: Vampire Rescue

[heliza24]

Armand and Unbreakable Cycles

So (perhaps unsurprisingly at this point) I have a TON of Armand thoughts after yesterday’s episode. Specifically I want to talk about the function of the 1790s section, and how it perfectly illuminates the cycle of maladaptive behavior that Armand is caught up in and the difference between his stated wants and his actual needs. I think the setup we saw in this episode will also be crucial to understanding how Dubai plays out, so I want to talk about that too.

I know a lot of people love the show and TVC because of Lestat, and there’s some frustration that Lestat was presented in a way that was untrue or filtered. But I really think you have to view this episode as a lens into Armand, which we in turn need in order to understand Louis. Everyone has someone similar to Lestat’s role in Armand’s life; an ex or a situationship or a former friend who takes up so much real estate in your brain because of their outsized impact  on you, who probably never thinks of you in return. We give these people a role in the story we craft of how we became who we are. That narrativizing is kind of the only way to understand yourself and survive (especially if you’re going to live forever). So I don’t doubt that there are things that Armand says that are untrue, or exaggerated, or twisted in his favor. But I do think the important part is the emotional impact his encounter with Lestat had on him, and I do think he’s being honest about those emotions.

(That being said I am of course very excited to see these events play out again in season 3 from Lestat’s POV. Don’t fuck it up AMC!!!)

The main thing that the flashback does is set up the cycle that Armand finds himself in over and over again. He consistently finds himself clinging to control in an institution he is starting to lose faith in, and is then shaken out of his complacency by a new love that seems– falsely– to rescue him.

Depending on how they adapt his very early backstory, I think we can probably assume that this pattern started in childhood for him. Marius rescued him from being forced into sex work, and seemed to offer a much better life. But in reality he was just grooming Armand. (Thanks @toriangeli for correcting a piece of my Marius lore here!)

In Paris he continues maintaining a strictly enforced life of misery for the coven long after he stops believing in it himself, and (by his telling at least) he was grateful to Lestat for having the strength to end it when he could not. It’s so clear why Armand falls for Lestat. Lestat’s refusal to live in shame, his love of the arts, his ability to exist amongst humanity (at least when he is on stage). Lestat is of the world, while Armand and the coven hide from it. 

The reason I think it is so important that we got to see this play out in Paris is the way it illuminates the sometimes tricky relationship between Louis and Armand. Once again, Armand is the head of an institution that operates on strict and oppressive rules. Once again, we can feel Armand’s enthusiasm for this system waning (and see it reflected physically in the lack of ticket sales and general shabbiness of the theatre). And once again, Armand is swept off his feet by this new vampire who refuses to join, who loves humanity, and who has a passion for art. Louis is very much of the world. He refuses to be pinned down into coven life. Armand can’t resist taking what looks like the opportunity for escape in Louis’s love. 

What I think is so fascinating about this cycle is that it allows Armand to remain passive. He never has to be the one to make the hard call to walk away from a kind of life that is no longer serving him. He just has to wait for the next gorgeous man to arrive to deliver him.  As he says to Louis, “those with the most power are often the weakest”. His status and power in the coven prevents him from changing his own life. Or at least that’s what he believes. 

Thinking about this helped me understand the dynamic of what goes down in the sewers, when Armand threatens Louis’s life. Assad says in the behind the scenes clips that Armand goes into that encounter very set on killing Louis, and I believe him.  So I rewatched it a couple of times trying to understand when, and why, Armand changes his mind. The shift occurs when they start talking about Claudia, and Armand says that her mind will break apart soon because she was made too young. Louis says “you don’t know her,” and Armand responds, “I don’t have to. I’ve seen it before. I’ve seen too much.” That admission– I’ve lived through this cycle multiple times before, it is painful, and I don’t want to do it again– is what shifts Armand from being ready to kill Louis to letting him go. 

There is of course an irony here; mentally ill and child vampires do not necessarily need to go mad. Generally they go mad at least partially because of Armand’s actions. And as we’ve already discussed, Armand going to sleep with Louis instead of killing him is really just a repeat of his actions with Lestat. He isn’t really breaking a cycle at all. But I think in that moment he believes that he is. Maybe he even believes that by being with a man who enacted great violence on Lestat, he can drown out the love and anguish he still feels about Lestat. At the very least, Louis has also loved Lestat and can therefore understand Armand’s narration of his own life in a way that not many other people can. 

Ok, so now we are caught up on the past. Let’s talk about Dubai, and how once again Armand is engaged in the exact same cycle of behavior.

The penthouse is Armand’s new coven. He maintains perfect order by controlling the physical environment and shaping Louis’s moods and memories. But just like before, this way of life is no longer serving Armand (or Louis for that matter). You can see that the spark between them has died, only rekindled as a kind of performance when they are in front of Daniel. When Armand is telling Daniel about Lestat destroying the coven, and Daniel accuses Armand of leading Lestat to the coven intentionally… he might as well be talking about himself. Armand has let Daniel into his fortress, and there is at least a part of him that wants whatever destruction Daniel is about to bring into his life.

Daniel fits Armand’s type completely. Daniel is of course more human than Lestat or Louis could ever be. He knows about telenovelas and Bollywood and all other types of art. He’s whipsmart and inquisitive and is not going to let Armand get away with passively maintaining his old order. He’s of the world in a way that Armand finds irresistible. 

I specifically found it interesting how many of the “Great Laws” Armand would be breaking by being with Daniel. Granted, Armand isn’t in the coven anymore when he meets Daniel. But I imagine old habits are hard to break, and being with Daniel would break almost all of them. Daniel is a mortal Armand has revealed his true nature to and allowed to live, Daniel has written about and exposed vampire secrets, and (if we’re looking at book canon) Daniel begs for the dark gift himself, a thing only the maitre is supposed to be able to approve. 

Assuming that a chunk of Devil’s Minion did happen in the 1970s, something interrupted that love affair, before it could settle back down into a new but still oppressive status quo. Something prompted Armand to actively break his pattern of behavior and erase Daniel’s memories. I think it’s impossible not to think about Nicki’s example here, especially after seeing the 1790s flashback. I’m going to assume that 1970s Daniel was struggling with addiction and mental health issues in a way that may have been reminiscent of Nicki. How intentional was Armand in withdrawing because he saw what vampire involvement- his involvement- did to Nicki? How much was his treatment of Daniel a reparation for past mistakes he made?

These last couple of paragraphs are speculation, really, because we won’t know exactly what Armandaniel looked like until Ep 5. But I think it was crucial that we saw this part of Armand’s story before we see San Francisco, because his actions with Daniel will make more sense if we can compare them with the love affairs of Armand’s past.

Regardless, I do think the disparity between what Armand claims to want (maintaining the status quo) vs what he actually wants (to be liberated by a romantic partner) vs what I think he actually needs (to take action himself, instead of waiting for someone to do it for him) is going to play a role in the way Dubai unfolds. I don’t know that Armand will ever get to the point where he’s actively able to break out of the cycle he’s in, because this is Interview with the Vampire, the show of fucked up gothic romances. Vampire life is a series of bad decisions! It’s a weird arrested development you never quite get out of despite living for forever! So it would make total sense if the ending of Dubai mimics the ending of the Children of Satan and the Paris Coven in an unhealthy way. But regardless, it’s gonna be a fun ride, and I can’t wait to see it.

[icanhearcolors]

I really love the idea of Tav drawing Astarion to show him what he looks like, could you maybe write something about that? ^-^

Hiiiiii! I can indeed thank you for the request :b

Welcome back to another episode of Abby tries to write something short and can't make it less than two thousand words.

EVERYBODY LOOK AT THIS GIF CUZ KJNKBJHGFRRETFO

Sorry I think I got possessed for a second there

Word count: 2.1k

The night sky had never been this gorgeous in the city. In Baldur’s Gate, the upper city was illuminated by mage lights that adorned the cobblestone paths. The light was bright enough that the citizens split into two factions, the night life and the day. Even those without dark vision could operate solely at night in total comfort if they chose to. In the lower city, fires were always burning, sending plumes of rich smelling smoke into the air constantly, obscuring the night sky.

But out here, under the blue light of a full moon, you can see every star and constellation in vivid detail. A soft purr-like snore hums against your back, and you brush a hand over the downy feathers of the owlbear cub you rescued from the goblins. He was getting so big. If he gets half as big as his mother was it is going to become a challenge to travel with him. It’s a sacrifice you’re more than willing to make. Besides, you could always cast the reduction spell on him in a pinch if any problem arose. He sleeps curled around your back, alongside his friend Scratch the dog, whose fluffy white head is resting in your lap.

The campfire crackles a few yards ahead as Wyll adds a few logs, humming a Baldurian tune you recognize but can’t quite recall the name of.

For the first time since the nautiloid crash you feel peaceful. Safe.

You turn your gaze to Astarion’s tent, probably for the thousandth time tonight, and stare at his profile as he flips through the pages of the seemingly sentient necromancy tomb you had discovered a few tendays prior. A faint green light curls from the pages like mist, illuminating half his face and casting the rest in shadow. You’d never really understood the saying “so beautiful it hurts'' until you met Astarion. An unknown emotion compresses your chest in a way that makes it hard to breathe sometimes when you look at him. You think it started out as empathy. Every detail of Astarion’s story he revealed to either warn you about vampires or shock you for his own amusement painted a picture of a horrific life full of trauma and misery that you found hard to reconcile with your enigmatic companion. He was always the first to crack a joke. He laughed loudly and on a constant basis. From an outsider’s view he’d appear almost carefree. Happy even. You wondered now how much of that laughter was real, and how much of it was the armor he’d donned a couple hundred years ago when he breached the surface of his own grave. You recall a conversation you had with him a while back about vanity. In his two hundred and forty years, give or take, he’d only been able to see his reflection for thirty nine. An incredibly young age to die for a high elf, and a small fraction of his life-span. Even if any fuzzy memory remained of that past life, it was no longer accurate anyway. 

He was something different now. 

Your eyes slide to your pack. You had found something yesterday- something rare indeed. A merchant selling art supplies outside of the city. You had everything you needed to give Astarion something you took for granted every day. His reflection.

Slowly, both as to not disturb your sleeping friends and not alert the elf in question to your actions, you slip a hand inside the bag. Your fingers find a pencil easily, the paper next, and you begin to draw. At first you draw him as he is, using his current unmoving form as a model, but you had been quite the artist in your time in Baldur’s gate, and you finished that drawing almost too quickly. So, you draw him again from memory, this time with his head thrown back, face scrunched with laughter. Then you draw his frown, his smirk, the condescending expression he so often gives Gale, the softer one you don’t quite understand that he reserves for you. You don’t hide or downplay his vampiric traits. You draw him exactly as he is, blending colored chalk to capture every shade of red in his eyes. Time falls away as you lose focus on everything but your work. Eventually, some time much later, the cramps in your muscles wake you from your trance. You stretch, and your knees, shoulders, and spine crack loudly. Scratch wakes up, stands, shakes himself off, and trots into the bushes. Your owlbear notices, and trills a soft sound before standing too, following him into the woods. You smile as you watch them amble off, happy they get along so well. You turn back to your drawings and examine them with new eyes. You expected to feel excitement, pride maybe, but instead a cold feeling ties your insides in knots as you realize you can never give these to Astarion. The drawings are some of your best work, but they’re also… reverential. A glimpse of Astarion through your eyes. Anyone who saw them would think you had drawn your lover, not your less-than-trusting involuntary traveling companion. He would take one look and realize exactly what you’ve been hiding from him since- well since you met him. You were infatuated with the vampire, and somehow, miraculously, despite the fact that you’d slept with him once already,  he seemed to be unaware.

He was going to find out.

You eye the campfire, half tempted to toss the whole pad of paper into it.

In your panic you turn your gaze toward Astarion’s tent.

He’s not there. 

His tent is open, and no one is inside it. You can see that from here. 

Somehow- maybe it’s the tadpole, or maybe it’s because you’ve spent so much time with the rogue, you realize you know exactly where he is.

Slowly, as if to avoid instigating an attack from a stalking predator, you turn your head to find Astarion standing behind you, peering over your shoulder.

Even though you were expecting it, you still startle out of your skin. Astarion drops to his knees on the ground in front of you and claps his hand over your mouth just in time to muffle your screech. You both look at eachother with wide eyes before turning slowly and in unison towards a sleeping Lae’zel. She’s frowning in her sleep, which isn’t unusual for her. She twitches, and then rolls over to her other side, sound asleep. You sigh in relief, through your nose because your mouth is still covered by Astarion’s hand. You swat it away and throw him a withering glare.

“What the in the hells is wrong with you?” You whisper-shout.

Astarion presses his lips together and turns his head away from you for a moment, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

“Oh yeah, laugh it up. If she’d woken up we’d be dead right now.”

“Look it’s not my fault you weren’t paying attention. You haven’t moved in almost four hours, I wanted to know what you could possibly be writing.”

You clutch the drawing pad to your chest and swallow nervously, eyes darting around for any glimpse of something you can use to distract him.

Unfortunately as you’ve come to realize, regardless of what they used to be, once turned vampires become lethal predators. Astarion sees your darting eyes, catches the scent of your fear, and you see the shift in his demeanor. 

His movements become slower, more fluid, as he tilts his head in malicious curiosity.

He reminds you sometimes of the big cats that roam the mountains of Faerûn. Once something captures his attention, there’s little use in trying to pull him off the hunt.

Still, you’re going to try.

“I’m not writing.”

His eyes flick to your hands, dusted in red powder, then back up. He hums.

“Drawing then. What have you been drawing Tav?” 

His voice is darker now. Persuasive. 

“It’s- uh… personal.”

Astarion lowers himself fully to the ground and stretches his legs out in front of him, leaning back on his arms. 

“A personal drawing?” He purrs, “Well now I have to see it.”

“No-” You cover your face with your hand, “That’s not what I meant and you know that Astarion.”

A moment of silence passes, so you lift your hand away from your face.

Astarion is gazing at you with that unknown expression again. His eyes look earnest, a soft smile on his lips, when he speaks the words that are your undoing.

“You can trust me, Tav. I already know how talented you are, you don’t have anything to worry about. Just show me.”

You sigh, and his smile grows. He knows he’s won.

Bastard.

“Fine you can see my drawings, but I need to tell you-”

The drawing pad is already out of your hands, your permission apparently all that was keeping Astarion from snatching it away from you.

Your heart stops at his first look at the paper. He stills, flipping through the drawings slowly, his eyes tracing every detail with excruciating slowness.

Finally, he puts you out of your misery.

“I-” He clears his throat, not meeting your eyes. “These are...”

He grips the paper tightly when you attempt to take the drawing pad back from him. You’re confused, and a little… well actually very hurt for a reason beyond your understanding.

Does he hate it? Did you overstep?

“What are you thinking?”

Astarion finally looks at you, his expression guarded. He points to the drawings.

“Who is this?”

Oh.

You’re shocked silent. You should have anticipated this. Of course Astarion wouldn’t recognize himself in your drawings. That was the entire reason you drew him in the first place.

“He’s um-” You fall silent again.

Astarion looks both terrified and heartbreakingly hopeful. You’re sure he already knows the answer. You’ve spoken to him at length about what he is. You know that he knows he’s the only vampire spawn you’ve ever met, and you’ve been traveling together without much separation ever since.

He still needs to hear you say it.

You stare at your wringing hands in your lap and take a deep breath.

“I remembered that conversation we had about how you don’t know what you look like, you just have to go off of what other people tell you, and I bought these art supplies earlier and I haven’t drawn in so long, I used to all the time but with everything that’s going on- and I meant to just draw you once but I wanted you to know what you looked like when you smiled too and then I got a little carried away I’m so-”

You don’t hear him move. Your rambling speech stutters to a stop at the sensation of a hand on your cheek. Astarion hooks his thumb under your chin and lifts your head just enough to press his lips to yours.

Your eyes widen in surprise and then flutter closed. All thoughts cease, replaced by a languid warmth that melts you into a puddle on the ground.

You tilt your head and kiss him back, a tingling sensation racing down your spine. His hand slides from your cheek into your hair, and he gently pulls your head back, deepening the kiss in a way that steals the air from your lungs.

All too soon he pulls back, just a few inches, and smiles.

A real, genuine smile that shows his teeth and lights his eyes. You think you would do terrible terrible things to see that smile more often.

He brings his other hand up to frame your face, holding you in place as if he’s afraid you’ll pull away.

“Thank you.” He says simply, his voice hoarse.

“This is a gift. I won’t forget it.”

He repeats the words he said to you what feels like centuries ago, the night you found out he was a vampire and agreed to feed him. 

“You’re welcome.” Is all you can think to say.

With absolutely no warning at all Astarion drops his hands to your shoulders and yanks you toward him just in time. A pillow, rather violent in its velocity, grazes the back of your head in its catapult into the forest. Somewhere in the dark woods, Scratch yelps.

“Next time it will be my sword Isticks”

Growls Lae’zel from her bed roll on the other side of the campfire.

You turn back to Astarion with an amused but also terrified expression, and he smiles knowingly, rolling his eyes.

He picks the drawings up off the ground from where they’d been scattered at some point and gathers them in one hand. He stands, hoisting you up with his free hand, and practically drags you across the camp to his tent.

You’ll have to draw him more often.

[meli-writes]

Writing Masterpost (updated: 08/05/25)

bio & expectations (for me) here.

welcome to my index of writing where i love vulnerable, intimate writing about kink, violence, and lesbians. stories sorted into categories and listed in recommended reading order, with word count so you can figure out reading time (avg 250/minute).

stories with sexual content marked with (18+), in bold if hardcore, stories with CWs marked with (CW), in bold if they're more serious (i.e explicit violence or sexual assault). unmarked stories may still be mature and contain violent or erotic material, but it should be light and non-intense.

all these works can also be found on ao3 <3

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Kayspace

sci-fi setting (inc. for my VN, dekaton date knight). weird technology and literal seas between the stars, with themes about bodily autonomy/consent (esp trans & disabled bodies), anarchist/statist conflict, decaying imperialism, and anti-colonialism.

Mistakes - 2.5K (18+)(CW) prologue. precarity and emotional labour of a space-station escort, the pirate who's got her on retainer, and the mistakes she can't help but keep making.

Bitch Devourer - 3.3K remnant cavalier gets caught by a rebel with a very misinformative callsign. Ch. 01 - 0.45K (18+) Ch. 02 - 0.9K (18+)(CW) Ch. 03 - 2.0K (18+)(CW)

Blood Sugar - 1.1K runaway sugar baby wakes up in a mech pilot medbay, with none of their own blood. Ch. 01 - 1.1K (18+)(CW) Ch. 02 - ???

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Monsters

usually urban fantasy w/ vampires, werewolves, and witches too. has my own rules for curses & magic to make things cuter and gayer. mostly setting for hunter's mark.

Long Time, No Shear - 5K a sheep-girl is desperate for someone to shear her for summer, and to not be weird about it. Ch. 01 - 3.2K Ch. 02 - 1.8K (CW)

Bitch-Princess of Toronto - 1.2K (18+) ezra caught a runaway vampire last week, and now she's sitting in her fellow werewolf's lap.

Blood Pressure - 1.5K (CW) defeated, closeted huntress gets enthralled & mommy'd by an ancient vampiress.

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Magical Girls

anything where girls get magic powers from space rocks and then get into various superhero/supervillain-based stories. might crossover with criminal stuff.

Little Miss Laser - 11.5K clueless biker-girl villain tries kidnapping the trans magical girl she's smitten with and it goes awkwardly wrong, finding out there's more to her than she thought. Ch. 01 - 4.7K (18+)(CW) Ch. 02 - 6.8K (18+)(CW) Ch. 03 - ???

House Bound - 1.5K ruby's stuck on house arrest duty for a villain, its ex, who won't stop trying to seduce it.

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Criminals

little girls in a big underworld w/ spies, thieves, smugglers, and more. sometimes magic, sometimes mundane.

Prescription - 2.0K (18+)(CW) thief who has to steal to get her meds, caught & punished by mommy mob boss.

Coffee? Vodka. - 1.4K a thief goes to their fence for something different than the usual toys. Ch. 01 - 1.1K Ch. 02 - 0.75K

Slipping Away - 1.5K exposed spy is waiting for her rival to come and kill her, but doesn't want to go. Ch. 01 - 0.35K (CW) Ch. 02 - 0.65K Ch. 03 - 0.55K (CW)

L'État, C'est Mecanisée - 0.95K the royal palace burns and its empress is chained to a clockwork operating table.

Le Loup Des Mers - 1.0K a pirate wakes up with an unexpected guest bound in her bed.

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Fantasy

usually lots of princesses and adventurers getting into trouble. maybe some angel/demon things, some monsters and others, cos it's a looser category.

Boar and the Lamb - 6.2K a hunter finds a chained-up girl in the snow, who is far from happy to be rescued. Ch. 01 - 1.5K Ch. 02 - 2.2K Ch. 03 - 1.1K Ch. 04 - 1.3K

Truth to be Dared - 7.1K whoever catches the faun gets the princess, so what if the princess does? Ch. 01 - 0.65K (18+)(CW) Ch. 02 - 1.4K (18+)(CW) Ch. 03 - 1.0K Ch. 04 - 1.6K (18+) Ch. 05 - 2.4K (18+)(CW) Ch. 06 - ???

Short Rest - 1.1K the barbarian cursed to forget and the cleric who is definitely just her roommate.

Consort - 1.1K a demon queen breaks her promise to a princess, and wreathes her neck in silver roses. Ch. 01 - 0.4K (18+)(CW) Ch. 02 - 0.7K (18+)(CW)

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Modern

professors and students, doctors and nurses, maids and anything else a little more down to earth.

Cupcakes - 5.5K waitress closing up has to deal with the asshole customer who came back to apologise. Ch. 01 - 1.2K (18+) Ch. 02 - 1.9K (18+) Ch. 03 - 2.3K (18+)

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Science Fiction

mech pilots, starship pilots, and other space opera drama that doesn't fit into kayspace.

Mechismo - 7.9K sweet, smutty, and sometimes dark vignettes on the masculinity and machismo of lesbian mech pilots. No. 01 - 0.85K /// Shore-Girl No. 02 - 0.75K /// Declassified No. 03 - 1.0K (18+) /// Speak No. 04 - 0.75K /// Hit List No. 05 - 0.95K (CW) /// Abdication No. 06 - 0.65K (18+) /// Tungsten Carbide No. 07 - 1.9K (18+)(CW) /// Payload No. 08 - 1.1K (CW) /// Mothball

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Fanfic

writing based on other's stories, works from tumblr or elsewhere. done for learning & self-indulgent fun.

Thirty-Six - 2.7K (18+)(CW)��/ +2.8K Original [1][2][3] by Caffeinated Otter a fixer teaches her captive thief a lesson, but which one will break first?

Leap Year - 0.55K (18+)(CW) epilogue to Thirty-Six. a cut-loose thief stills keeps in touch.

Roxanne - 3.9K / +0.55K Original by Caffeinated Otte a regrettable career in bounty hunting, a blahaj, and a fugitive tucked under a blanket Ch. 01 - 1.9K Ch. 02 - 2.0K

Sex Pollen - 0.95K (18+) / +0.7K Original by Caffeinated Otte yvrette's cheating ex has the most embarrassing alien illness, can she forgive her?

[badguyjohn]

Gallery Card S1 'At Your Service' - Fantastic Four

Welcome to the Baxter Building! I am a Humanoid Experimental Robot, B- Type, Integrated Electronics. But you may call me H.E.R.B.I.E.

I understand that you must have an urgent matter that requires immediate attention if you were willing to brave the streets of New York to seek out the Fantastic Four's assistance. Unfortunately, all our personnel are momentarily occupied dealing with other crises. Dr. Reed Richards [Designate: Mister Fantastic] is in his laboratory working on the prototype of a Timestream Reintegration Device with the help of Tony Stark [Designate: Iron Man]. If the device functions as planned, it could theoretically undo the damage caused to the Multiverse by the Timestream Entanglement. There is even hope it will break the curse that has locked New York City in a state of perpetual night. However, despite his ability to elongate his physical form, I fear Dr. Richards may finally be stretching himself too thin of late… Susan Richards [Designate: Invisible Woman] is currently on a reconnaissance mission in Central Park, seeking out information on the organizational structure of the vampire army that has invaded the island of Manhattan during this period of prolonged darkness. Her unparalleled stealth abilities have allowed her to gather critical intel on our new foes, putting her directly in the face of grave danger far more frequently than the rest of her family would like. Her brother, Jonathan Storm [Designate: Human Torch] is on patrol with Spider-Man [Identity: Classified], rescuing civilians who have fallen into peril and recruiting other heroes who have yet to join our cause. Now that the sun no longer rises, Johnny's flames have made him the center of attention wherever he goes, exactly as he had always hoped to be. He has become a beacon of hope to many in these dark times — and a constant warning to any creatures of the night who might dare to oppose him. Benjamin Grimm [Designate: The Thing] is on a supply run in lower Manhattan. His expert piloting skills have recently proven nearly as useful as his super strength and rock-hard skin. He has managed to single-handedly save hundreds of lives while retrieving vital equipment and valuable samples — including rare Chronovium crystals - for Dr. Richards to analyze. With all members of the Fantastic Four indisposed, that leaves me to run daily operations here at the Baxter Building. While I wish I could offer to support you in the field, I am afraid that the few times I have ventured beyond these walls have not gone as smoothly as hoped. Unless Dr. Richards upgrades my offensive capabilities or identifies a mission with objectives that only I can complete, I do believe it would be best for us both to remain within the safety of these walls until a qualified individual becomes available to assist you. Thank you for your patience. Please take a seat in our lobby with the other civilians who have come to seek our aid. You are currently number 1,961 on the wait list…

[darkshrimpemotions]

Dark Greetings!

Behold, FX’s What We Do in the Shadows fandom fangbangers, friends, and familiars alike have united to support Justice for Palestine in the name of our beloved fictional vampire, Nandor the Relentless.

To support this mission, girl-wives, guy-wives and Steves from six countries have selected a Go Fund Me through Operation Olive Branch with a goal of targeted donations to help families fleeing Palestine. This inaugural fan-run campaign will be active May 17th-20th.

In order to participate, make a donation to the Go Fund Me linked below. Then, post your favorite of your own WWDITS fanworks, your receipt from the donation, and use the #berelentless tag in addition to the other supportive tags for awareness (i.e. #operation olive branch, #free palestine, #ceasefire now, etc.).

The number one priority is to make donations to help Saja Saqallah and her family. If you cannot participate financially, please still share the Go Fund Me link.

If Saja's family meets their goal, we have another family we'd also like to help, so follow @be-relentless for updates!

[starlessea2]

Wild-flower [Astarion]

Chapter 3 - Cut And Run

Summary: The first time Astarion saw her, she'd been drunk and starry-eyed. The next, sober enough not to trust him. A/N We finally see Astarion's POV, and boy is it fun to write... Masterlist

Astarion unfurls his bedroll furthest away from the fire. He doesn’t trust those people. Not yet—probably not ever.

But he understands they are bound by whatever unfortunate circumstances they’ve found themselves in, and Astarion’s not foolish enough to think he’s better off without allies. So he plays his part perfectly; he’s charming, witty, co-operative, even.

But on the inside, he’s shaken. 

When he first came to, on that patch of grass near the beach, he was sure he would burst into flames at any given moment. But he didn’t. Oddly enough, the sun didn’t scorch his skin. Neither did the tide sting him; it only made shoes soggy. 

Two hundred years of vampirism reduced to naught thanks to the houseguest swimming about in his brain. He’s almost thankful. 

That is, until a bunch of misfits decide to sneak up on him. 

Before he knows it, he’s got one pinned to the ground, and her voice is ringing in his head. All at once, he’s seeing into the deepest corners of her mind; he hears her fear, surprise, and then, her relief. And of course, it’s the bloody wood elf. 

She looks as flushed as she did in Fraygo’s Flophouse—even with his knife at her throat—and for the first time since opening his eyes, Astarion is reminded that he cannot escape the past.

It’s an awkward reunion. He barely recalls her name before she reminds him. But they’re a united front for the time being, and Astarion knows he can use that to his advantage.

So he sticks close. They rescue the gith without bloodshed, much to his dismay, and their rag-tag group of weirdos becomes weirder still. It’s not until the sun starts to set that the realisation sinks in: this is his life now. 

By the time they make camp, Astarion is tired, hungry and irritable. None of which he shows. Instead he sits quietly and observes his surroundings.

He makes note of Shadowheart, tinkering away at that strange artefact. He watches Lae’zel sharpen her sword (probably to take the cleric’s head with it later), and even spares a glance for Gale, who is thumbing through the tome he ransacked from a dead man’s crypt. 

Then there’s Jessamine. 

He catches her trying to look busy—trying to avoid his eye. It’s almost sad how out of place she appears as she smoothes out her bedroll. He’s certain she’s never used one in her life. But still, she puts on a show of fiddling with it, and once she’s done, she finally lets herself saunter over.

Astarion’s grins. “What a surprise,” he remarks, “if I didn’t know better, my dear, I’d say I had a stalker.” 

Her expression is blank. “May I sit?” she asks. 

He gestures to the empty spot beside him. She’s a different person from the Flophouse, he thinks. Far less giddy; far less wine.

Jessamine perches on a nearby log, allowing plenty of space between them. At closer inspection, Astarion sees that her wheat-coloured hair has been braided with an array of decorative charms. A wood elf tradition, perhaps. It’s delicate—intricate even. But her skin and clothes are both caked with filth, and if it wasn’t for that face of hers, no one would question her status as a beggar.

“So, did you have something to say or did you just come to admire me?” he asks her.

A small laugh follows. “And which would you prefer?”

The lightness of her voices catches Astarion off guard. It’s the first hint of personality she’d shown him all day (not that he’d been waiting for it). 

Around the others, she’d acted so well-adjusted. Nothing but smiles and well-timed quips. But only Astarion had noticed how she’d skulked off into the woods at the first opportunity. And he certainly didn’t miss her red-ringed eyes and snotty nose when she returned to camp. It was equally pitiful as it was disgusting.

“Astarion,” Jessamine says, and for a second he worries his thoughts have leaked out. “I came to apologise. I’m afraid we got off on the wrong foot today.” 

Astarion’s about to applaud her sarcasm when he realises she’s being serious. He looks at her incredulously. Surely she remembers that he was the one to nearly slit her throat?

“Before, at the Flophouse… I admit I’m not much of a drinker.” She pauses. Astarion tries to act as though that’s some sort of revelation. It’s not, obviously; he’d heard her slurring long before he made his move. “I’m embarrassed you saw me like that, but I shouldn’t have treated you coldly because of it. I’m glad you’re here.” 

Astarion bites back a scowl; her sincerity irks him. He’s about to respond when Jessamine’s eyes suddenly grow wide, and words pour out of her mouth faster than she can think them. “Not that I’m glad you were abducted by mindflayers and have a parasite swimming around in your skull—gods no, of course I didn’t mean it like that—”

Watching her is painful, Astarion thinks. He's sure he’s aged a decade. She carries herself with such elegance, but it’s all for naught when she opens her mouth.

“—I’m just relieved to see a familiar face. No matter how new.”

And by the gods, she’s finally finished.

Satisfied with her answer, Jessamine nods to herself before turning to face him. There’s a smile on her lips. It’s young—pure.

That stupid girl.

“The feeling’s mutual, my dear. And I must say, a face as sweet as yours is truly something.”

Jessamine either doesn’t hear him, or pretends she doesn’t. “Tell me,” she says, “how does a magistrate come to end up in Farygo’s Flophouse, anyway? From what I could tell, it’s hardly a den for polite society.”

Astarion hums. A million different answers run through his mind—each as well-prepared as the next. But for some reason, he chooses a new one. “It’s a secret.”

“I’m good with secrets.”

She's giving Astarion an opportunity, but he senses no expectation in her voice. So he offers her a small smile but does not speak more.

In the space between them, the campfire he’d lit for himself is about to die out. Jessamine notices, and reignites it with an ignis. As it flickers back to life, Astarion is reminded of their earlier escapades at the crypt. 

She’d used fire then too. A few half-hearted spells cast at their undead foe, but nothing compared to the flashy ones the wizard of Waterdeep used. 

Still, she’d be valuable elsewhere, Astarion was sure. She was a pretty little thing (a faculty she ought to make use of before she spouts tentacles), and the way she’d bartered for the gith showed the persuasiveness of a bard. 

Even now, Astarion isn’t fully convinced that magic is her calling.

Jessamine stands. After stoking the fire once more, she mutters something about turning in for the night. She was exhausted; it doesn't take having a tadpole to notice. When Lae’zel declared she’d take first watch, Jessamine didn’t fight it (none of them did).

If he had to guess, she’s just dying to trance. 

“I just remembered something,” Astarion says, before she can return to her bedroll. “A certain show I was invited to but never did get to attend.”

Jessamine stills. Recognition crosses her face.

“You know, I really do hate missing out.”

A blush tints her cheeks, but she doesn't humour it. “Goodnight, Astarion,” she says.

He tutts. Her words are decisive as she walks away, chilly in comparisson to the firelight. But there's hesitation in her step—like she doesn't really want to leave.

As Astarion watches her retreat to the other side of camp, he is greeted by a sense of satisfaction.

He is going to win her so, so easily.

─────

Astarion can read people like a book.

From a glance, he could tell what they wanted from him: his words, his body, his heart. And he always let them have it, or think they had it, at least.

It’s how he’d gotten Shadowheart to tolerate him, despite their first meeting, and Gale to loan him some interesting reading material. Jessamine he already had wrapped around his finger, and Lae’zel—well, she was in a category of her own. The point being, Astarion was strategic, and he’d spent the last day and a half moving his pieces to the best possible spots… 

And where had it gotten him?

Staring down a bloody goblin horde. 

Across their mental connection, his companions decide whether to intervene in the scuffle. The gith is eager for bloodshed, whilst Gale has a penchant for heroics. Shadowheart can be swayed either way, but it seems Jessamine has already made her mind up.

In the corner of his eye, Astarion catches sight of her. She shifts her weight between her feet, eyes darting, blood pumping so strong he can see it swell beneath her skin. She’s bracing herself, he realises. Like she even has a chance.

The thought irritates him.

As they stand before the gates to the grove, the goblins, and the flailing dimwits who led them there, Astarion can see it now: all his efforts to seduce this so-called-sorceress about to implode spectacularly as she decides to play hero.

Mentally, he weighs up his options. How much value does he put on their alliance—on her aptitude at persuasion? It’s a millisecond later that he comes to the conclusion.

She’s not worth the trouble. 

So Astarion prepares some words of encouragement. If he’s lucky, her valiant sacrifice might buy him enough time to skulk away unnoticed.

But when he turns to her, she’s gone.

“Shadowheart—” she calls out from below, right in the midst of it all, “do it now!”

Astarion has no clue what’s happening. But it seems the cleric does. She reacts immediately, and not a moment later, the ground is soaked with rain.

“Perurē,” Jessamine chants. Lightning sparks at her feet and half the goblins go down. In an instant she loots a dagger from one on the ground before slicing at another, unfortunate-enough to still be standing.

Lae’zel joins her in the fray. Their movements are on opposite ends of a spectrum. The gith is a force, and Jessamine, a dance. She’s nimble; there’s hardly any power to her slashes but they’re left-field enough to catch her enemies off guard. Astarion has to give it to her, whilst goblins aren't known for their intelligence, not many would expect a magic-user to come so close.

He certainly wouldn't.

And the way she fights... Astarion doesn’t know how to describe it. There's no hesitation in her movements. No intent, either. He watches as she careens to the side to avoid an attack, before sending the offender flying with a thunderwave. It's decisive—like part of a sequence she already knows.

“Astarion,” Shadowheart seethes.

Hearing his name, Astarion realises he hasn’t moved a muscle since it all began. In his defence, he hadn’t planned on staying this long.

Feeling the cleric's gaze bear into him, he steels himself. Since most of the heavy lifting had already been done, he might as well deal the finishing blow. He nocks his first arrow.

Between them, it's light work. Astarion is diligent in picking goblins off with his bow. They don't notice him, and that's how he prefers it. Lae’zel’s brutish strength is admirable, Jessamine’s gall, laughable, and Gale contributes. Somehow.

Behind them, Shadowheart stands by to tend to any bruises and scratches.

He dares say, it's almost easy.

What Astarion doesn’t foresee is the Blade of Frontiers making gallant, last-minute appearance to soak up the glory. Nor that his parasite would recognises another within him.  

Astarion isn't given time to comprehend what, exactly, that means. Everything happens so fast. In the wake of their victory, a tiefling stationed above the gate waves his arms at them. “Don't just stand there,” he yells, “get inside before any more can show up!”

They listen to him for the time being.

Ushered through the gate, Astarion rejoins his companions. Jessamine's got a few scrapes, but nothing a low-level spell can't fix. Lae'zel is decorated with guts, and the scent clinging to her is dizzying. To his disgust, Astarion finds himself salivating over a mixture of goblin and idiot blood.

He needs to feed soon.

That boar has scarcely satiated him, and being around death so often definitely wasn't ideal for his sanguine hunger. He'll leave camp tonight, he decides. There ought to be something out there for him to sink his teeth into.

That is, if those within the camp don't temp him first.

He puts the thought away from him.

Once safely behind the grove's gates, the Blade of Frontiers wastes no time coming to greet them. Closer now, Astarion feels it instantly; that incessant squirming behind his eye.

Keep quiet for now, the Blade's tadpole speaks to theirs. Then he follows up with a knowing look that could be easily misconstrued as a warning.

“I have to say, those were some moves out there,” praises the Blade—or Wyll, as he prefers.

Gale sputters. “Yes, and for the sake of our wellbeing, they're ones we're not looking to repeat anytime soon.”

Beside him, the gith shakes her head. When she picks at his robe, it's pristine compared to her bloodied armour. “Chk. You did far too little to take credit, wizard.”

Gale falls silent. There's no disputing it; he had been on the backburner during that fight.

Astarion's about to contribute to the verbal thrashing when Wyll intervenes. “My friends, let's save our slights for our foes beyond the gate.”

No one responds to the chiding, but Wyll shucks out another batch of compliments nonetheless. Astarion's not naive enough to think they're for him; anyone can see they're being spoken for the wood elf's benefit.

He’s giving her a look all men know how to give, and Jessamine's either oblivious to it or desensitised enough not to care. “I'm looking for Halsin,” she says, her voice intentionally reaching beyond their conversation.

It's a name she's never uttered before now, but one many in the crowd respond to. A man they'd rescued from the horde shifts in place, before being pulled aside for questioning by the same teifling who brought them here.

Astarion makes no effort to eavesdrop. Whatever politics existed in this overgrown hovel, he couldn't care less. He instead directs his attentions to this new place: the people, their valuables (or lack thereof). Aside from the druid, he doubts there's anything worthwhile here.

He makes that clear, of course. But Jessamine’s already got her sights set on all those wretched refugees. The next thing he knows, they’re being showboated around on a pity tour of their piss-poor grove. 

And Astarion wishes he had just cut and run. 

-

< previous chapter / next chapter >

[nostalgicatsea]

Steve/Tony MTH 2024 pod bid master list

Are you trying to keep track of all the Steve/Tony pod bids and feeling like this because there are a bunch and new ones are springing up?

Then this is the post for you! This is a master list of ALL the Steve/Tony pod bids you can join this year—the ones announced publicly, anyway. If new ones are created in the next two days, they'll be added to @marveltrumpshate's pod bid website page, and I'm happy to update this post too.

Not sure what pod bids are? They're group bids where people come together to bid as one collective. You can donate as little or as much as you'd like. Every dollar counts and if money's tight for you, this is a great way to potentially win an auction with what you're able to spare.

ART

1017 - HT

Pod bid: Beautiful Steve/Tony art from HT! We'll give them a list of prompts to choose from

Organizer: @nostalgicatsea

Organizer contact info: Discord, Tumblr, & Twitter: nostalgicatsea

1050 - Lai (laidraws)

Pod bid: NSFW art of Vampire!Tony feeding on Steve, biting into his butt or femoral artery

Organizer: @fohatic

Organizer contact info: Tumblr: fohatic | email: moon.language333@gmail.com

FIC

1013 - KandiSheek

Pod bid: Fake royal marriage AU - As children, prince Tony insisted on marrying Steve, because he was moving away and Tony wanted them to be together forever. Years later, Howard insists on marrying him off for business reasons, and Tony panics, telling him that he's already promised to someone. Howard says he'd love to meet his son's husband, and he'll arrange a vow renewal next week. There's no chance in hell Steve'll agree to marry Tony on a technicality. Right?

Organizer: @starksnack

Organizer contact info: Discord & Tumblr: starksnack

1032 - FrankTheSnek

Pod bid: Steve is gifted an iPad and uses it to draw original pieces and Avengers fanart and posts it with his actual name. No one's figured out it's him actually him and not a fan boy. Tony stumbles across the art one day and anonymously commissions him, but his asks get increasingly spicy...

Organizer: Sayah (@sayahs-corner)

Organizer contact info: Discord: selip | Tumblr: sayahs-corner

1107 - Sev

Pod bid: Modern world with legalized slavery. Tony buys Bucky as an unknown rescued slave. Steve is unfrozen as property of government and ends up in Tony's household.

Organizer: kabe

Organizer contact info: Discord: .kabe | Email: oper.1895@gmail.com

1132 - Areiton

Pod bid: Gladiator AU - Steve is the brave gladiator. Tony a nobleman who is tied up with the emperor. And is very respectfully ogling Steve while also falling for him. (Original prompt from Arei: "I'm just saying like--steve as a gladiator and Tony as the pretty conflicted lover who is also tied up with the emperor is a lot of delicious angst, ok.")

Organizer: @ruquas

Organizer contact info: Discord & Tumblr: Ruquas

2012 - iam93percentstardust

Pod bid: Fake relationship - Tony (or Steve) loses a bet (or is persuaded/blackmailed into doing this) and has to ask out Steve (or Tony) except they end up falling in love for real. His guilt builds, but he can't bring himself to come clean—and it all comes out in the messiest way possible

Organizer: @nostalgicatsea

Organizer contact info: nostalgicatsea on Discord, Tumblr, and Twitter

OTHER

Pod bid: Secret pod for a physical item to gift someone in the Steve/Tony fandom. If you guys are game for doing something nice because who doesn't love surprises, please DM me! 😊

Organizer: @nostalgicatsea

Organizer contact info: nostalgicatsea on Discord, Tumblr, and Twitter

There are also talks of pods for Steve/Tony auctions that are looking for an organizer to coordinate the pod bid. Being an organizer is VERY easy and anyone can do it. Here's a separate post about it!

[kazzlemilowho]

Doctor Who AU that the Tenth Doctor and Crowley make a mafia together but its not really a mafia but more found family.

I posted this on my other acc but deleted it so I can write the idea better here.

So set after Dooms Day, and the tenth doctor is really in his feels, he just lost Rose (he hasn't met Donna yet) but he meets Crowley.

Doctor really can't describe what's wrong with him than other that he doesn't like him. Not that he's unwell he just doesn't feel like The Doctor, the man with many rules and morals. When he tells Crowley this, he understands that completely with having to create a new identity after Falling.

So he tells The Doctor to recreate himself, that if this regeneration of him wasn't happy being The Doctor, then there was no point trying to be someone he wasn't. Crowley then suggests the name 'Decimum' meaning Tenth.

The Doctor isn't sure about the name thing until he and Crowley are off on a foreign planet trying to escape from a group of bandits that the name finally start to feel right. And its because he picks up a pair of guns and shoots at the bandits to escape.

The Doctor would never have done that. Outwardly, he has said he hates guns with a passion but he isn't really the Doctor now. The guns felt far too comfortable in his hands and shooting them was far easy than trying to talk sense into the bandits.

So The Doctor fades away and Decimum takes over, becoming the sharpshooter.

Crowely isn't happy about the idea of killing, but the bandits made their choice to attack them first. Either way, he's a demon. He's meant to be evil, isn't he?

So the two keep travelling with the hope to help people but also stop any criminals they find aswell. But the two do quickly realise that sometimes people would rather have a home than justice.

Fawn and Aizen both are the realisation for them. The twins were rescued by Decimum after falling into a witches kidnapping. Fawn, who was a cleric, was cursed with something unknown, and Aizen was bitten and turned into a vampire. But the two become quick friends with Crowley and Decimum.

They later find a werewolf called Peter, who was trying to track a creature but gave up and joined the crew because he thought Aizen was hot.

The dynamic is that Crowley is the grandpa of the group, acting like a mother hen to them all (he would never admit this) but has a strong sibling relationship with Decimum and Fawn while Aizen and Peter act more like their kids.

The TARDIS has strong opinions on the change in the Doctor but continues to operate, although far quieter than normal.

[stars-and-darkness]

Nothing inspires me to write more than your fic, Who put Bella down the Wych Elm? I have read it now twice, and I keeping thinking about it! And I guess part of me is asking permission to write a Murder Mystery Klaroline fic in Boston with an assemble OC cast of lovable but confused characters who just don't understand Caroline. Ofc I'd veer into a different direction than you did, because I don't want to copy you, but I just love the concept so much, but I want permission first! I just also adored it so much! Like so much! I loved how confused they were by Caroline, and how confused she was by the realization that her supernatural experience was so utterly far from normal. I just!!!! AHHHHHH!!! I love it so much! I loved Sean so much, and his allergy to bags, and I love how you wrote Oscar, and Courtney, and Adrianna, and Ryan and Jess. And Bella ofc! And how you created the Klaroline? Chef's kiss! It's so good *cries*! Part of me is so curious about the myriad of theories the group had about Caroline before slotting it together? And like Oscar? What was going through that poor man's head from learning about the cure for werewolf bites to meeting Klaus to realizing Caroline and Klaus are clearly together. Thank god vampires can not get heart attacks lol.

ah, thank you so much! bella in the wych elm is possibly my most unhinged fic title yet, and one whose acronym is a literal crime (wpbdtwe? ??? really???) but it was also a very fun story to write, despite the fact that my laptop decided to take a break from operating halfway through my writing the final chapter, meaning i finished writing it in a daze and frantically because i was afraid i wouldn't complete it in time.

the OCs in that story kinda grew with it, and they grew on me as the time went on, oscar really most of all. when i begun, he really was just an insufferable asshole and mostly there just for comedic relief. i liked the idea of someone that the society would have considered their authority on all things supernatural before caroline came along, and i do think that a lot of his initial hostility towards her comes from the fact that she's supplanted him in a way.

but also, the thing i had the most fun with in this fic is playing with how the things that are so commonplace to us and the mystic falls gang are very much not to people outside of it (because tvd's worldbuilding is haphazard mess held together by tape and spit). and i don't even mean like ... originals. i meant werewolves, that stefan and damon didn't think were a real thing at the beginning of s2.

i guess that's why oscar was so much fun for me. he's heard of the originals, and of katherine, and of stefan. and in the final chapter, he comes face to face with klaus, who he wasn't even sure was a real person, and his brain just kind of short circuits? (mf gang's first instinct on meeting scary supernatural creatures who can kill them is to fight them, bless their souls. oscar's got more self-preservation. caroline, who mostly subsribes to mf gang's school of dealing with supernatural threats--girl's got a lot of pent-up frustrations and what better way to exorcise them than to get into fights with people bigger than her?--thinks it's hilarious). i like to think he visits nola sometime in the future. i think a meeting between him and elijah would be hilarious, and by the end of it, caroline has to step in and rescue him from pledging his service to elijah until the end of time. (elijah pouts at her for the next week because of it)

all that's a very roundabout way of saying please, go for it, and have fun with it! shoot me a link when it's posted if you feel so inclined!

[thedemonofcat]

Modern with Magic Au:

After his boyfriend dumped him and failed to renew the lease on their apartment, Jaskier finds himself on the brink of homelessness just weeks later.

Desperate for money, Jaskier agrees to donate blood, thinking it's for a charity. He’s shocked to discover it's a vampire operation. Strapped down by a vampire who seems intrigued by his "special" blood, Jaskier is rescued by Geralt, marking his first encounter with him and his introduction to the reality of magic and the supernatural.

[minyard-05]

i'm telling you the potential for an aftg buffy the vampire slayer au where katelyn is the vampire slayer is UNPARALLELED

why does aaron keep disappearing in tkm? because he's getting kidnapped by demons and she has to go save him. none of the foxes pay enough attention to notice

the vixens all have stakes in their cheer bags because theyre The Squad™ (season 7 style)

the foxhole court could feasibly be on the hellmouth

literally nothing would have to change narratively. katelyn could kill a demon in front of him and neil wouldn't blink. just start talking about burning flesh reminding him of his mother or smth

but you Could expand it into the Whole squad if all the foxes are in on it. naturally aaron is the (vampire) trophy wife* that keeps needing to be rescued, the vixens will be the Inner Circle but idk the military bit in season 4(?) could be interesting. wymack secretly running a demon-killing operation under the guise of a dysfunctional exy team? kind of shit he'd pull tbh

*aaron

[book--brackets]

The Chronicles of Faerie by O. R. Melling (1993-2003)

American Gwen and her Irish cousin, Findabhair, have long planned a summer of backpacking around Ireland, visiting sites out of the old legends of fairy folk. Little do they know that it is the summer of the Hunter's Moon, a dangerous time for mortals who meddle with the kingdom of Faerie. One night, camping out on old ruins, Finn is kidnapped by the Faerie king, who wants her for a bride and possible sacrifice. It is up to Gwen, the more indecisive of the two, to rescue her cousin.

The Farsala Trilogy by Hilari Bell (2003-2006)

Stories are told of a hero who will come to Farsala's aid when the need is greatest. But for thousands of years the prosperous land of Farsala has felt no such need, as it has enjoyed the peace that comes from being both feared and respected.

Now a new enemy approaches Farsala's borders, one that neither fears nor respects its name and legend. But the rulers of Farsala still believe that they can beat any opponent.

Three young people are less sure of Farsala's invincibility. Jiaan, Soraya, and Kavi see Time's Wheel turning, with Farsala headed toward the Flames of Destruction. What they cannot see is how inextricably their lives are linked to Farsala's fate -- until it's too late.

Everworld by K. A. Applegate (1999-2001)

David’s life was pretty normal. School. Friends. Girlfriend. Actually, Senna was probably the oddest aspect of his life. She was beautiful. Smart. But there was something very different about her. Something strange.

And on the day it began, everything happened so quickly. One moment, Senna was with him. The next, she was swallowed up by the earth, her screams echoing from far, far away. David couldn’t just let her go. Neither could the others. His friends—and hers. So, they followed. And found themselves in a world they could have never imagined. 

Now they have to find Senna and get home without losing their lives. Or their minds. Or both…

The Wizard Knight by Gene Wolfe (2004)

A young man in his teens is transported from our world to a magical realm that contains seven levels of reality. Very quickly transformed by magic into a grown man of heroic proportions, he takes the name Able and sets out on a quest to find the sword that has been promised to him, a sword he will get from a dragon, the one very special blade that will help him fulfill his life ambition to become a knight and a true hero.

Inside, however, Able remains a boy, and he must grow in every sense to survive the dangers and delights that lie ahead in encounters with giants, elves, wizards, and dragons.

Star Wars: Jedi Apprentice by Dave Wolverton and Jude Watson (1999-2002)

Twelve-year-old Obi-Wan Kenobi desperately wants to be a Jedi Knight. After years at the Jedi Temple, he knows the power of the lightsaber and the Force. But he cannot control his own anger and fear. Because of this, the Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn will not take him on as a Padawan apprentice.

Now Obi-Wan is about to have his first encounter with true evil. He must face off against unexpected enemies--and face up to his own dark wishes.

Only then can his education as a Jedi truly begin.

Skylark by Meagan Spooner (2012-2014)

For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley waited for the day when her Resource would be harvested and she would finally be an adult. After the harvest she expected a small role in the regular, orderly operation of the City within the Wall. She expected to do her part to maintain the refuge for the last survivors of the Wars. She expected to be a tiny cog in the larger clockwork of the city.     Lark did not expect to become the City's power supply.     For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley believed in a lie. Now she must escape the only world she's ever known...or face a fate more unimaginable than death.

Westmark by Lloyd Alexander (1981-1984)

When Theo agrees to print a traveling showman's pamphlet, he only thinks of the money it will bring in. Instead, it sets off a chain reaction that results in the smashing of the press and the murder of his master. Caught on the wrong side of the law, Theo must flee the city. Soon, he has teamed up with the traveling showman Count Las Bombas (who is actually a con artist) and his servant. The trio is soon joined by Mickle, a clever, strong-willed girl with a mysterious past. Performing feats that astound and amaze, the motley crew falls into a trap set by Chief Minister Cabbarus, who is determined to wrest power from the grief-stricken king. Now they must not only save themselves-they must save the kingdom...

The Goblin Wood by Hilari Bell (2003-2011)

One terrible day, Makenna, a young hedgewitch, witnesses her mother's murder at the hands of their own neighbors. Stricken with grief and rage, Makenna flees the village that has been her home. In the wilds of the forest, she forms an unexpected alliance. Leading an army of clever goblins, Makenna skillfully attacks the humans, now their shared enemy.

What she doesn't realize is that the ruling Hierarchy is determined to rid the land of all magical creatures, and they believe Makenna is their ultimate threat - so they have sent a young knight named Tobin into the Goblin Wood to entrap her.

In this captivating fantasy adventure, the difference between Bright and Dark magic is as deceptive as our memories, hopes, and fears -- and the light of loyalty and friendship has a magic all of its own.

A young hedgewitch, an idealistic knight, and an army of clever goblins fight against the ruling hierarchy that is trying to rid the land of all magical creatures.

Hexwood by Diana Wynne Jones (1993)

When Controller Borasus receives a strange letter from Earth he is both curious and alarmed. Someone has activated an ancient machine and is using it for most trivial purposes. Surely no one would dare to tamper with Reigner seals in this way? Yet the effects of such interference resonate throughout the universe, so he decides to go to Hexwood Farm to investigate…

On Hexwood Estate, Ann watches the mysterious comings and goings with interest. She knows something deadly is going on – or is Hexwood simply altering her too?

Guides for Dating Vampires by D. N. Bryn (2022-present)

Vincent Barnes has suffered four years as a vampire, and they’ve been the most miserable years of his pathetic life. Too poor for black market blood, he feeds from sleeping humans to survive. He tries to never intrude on the same prey twice, but after a single delicious taste of a long-lost childhood neighbor, he can’t help returning for seconds.

Wesley Garcia has been waking up with fang marks. Lucky for him, he needs a vampire—to use as bait. He’s certain Vitalis-Barron Pharmaceutical killed his mother, but to gain access to their covert research labs, he has to bring them a bloodsucker for their experiments. 

Step one, a dramatic offer: Stay, and you can bite me. 

Vincent leaps at the chance to gobble Wesley up.

Wes’s plan is perfect. He’ll befriend the vampire, then trick him into coming to the lab. No fighting, no fuss. But Vincent is more than Wesley has bargained for: sweet and shy, with intoxicating fangs that awaken new desires in Wes. As the two bond, Vincent believes he might have finally found someone worth putting his trust in... and Wes fears neither of them will survive the betrayal he has planned.

[paintedgrilledcheese]

Cheese's 100 follower special part 1

(Thank you all for following me and sticking around to see what contents I post!!! For hitting triple digits I'm doing special posts. This one is all about the cut and unused content ideas/plans for RPs.)

(For the people who wanted to be tagged: @ilovefukuchi @myluckymoon @caffeiiine )

Each unplanned idea will be in character order of when I first created them.

Levi

There's a lot with Levi when I first made him. At first there wasn't a proper backstory for him other than that he was a traumatized guy.

Levi was already arrested in his backstory before, so my whole goal with him was to get him arrested again and sent back to prison.

This would have triggered a rescue mission, or a prison escape (in my head I made Sayaka and Oscar go save him)

On the same topic of rescuing Levi, I have this old idea I played in my head where Levi was supposed to be kidnapped by this ability user that had the power to trap people in this video game. Bro Levi would have been in a little cage like Princess Peach.

If Levi was ever brought back to prison I would have created a little headspace segment for him (kinda like omori)

Ross

At first, Ross wasn't supposed to be a military captain. Instead, he was going to be some doctor to kidnap Levi back for experiments. This was changed to fit the backstory more.

Ross and Levi were supposed to have this big fight at one point.

And Ross was supposed to die by Levi finally killing him but in a bitter sweet goodbye.

Dr. Ikari

He was supposed to be the more cold doctor, but instead, he gave a more "I don't give a crap attitude."

He was going to help capture Levi, only to calm him down.

Nothing much about him other than a potential death.

Cooper

Oh boy, there is so much for Cooper.

At first, Cooper wasn't going to be brought back entirely. All because the og Cooper was dead and it would have ruined some of Levi's character development. So instead, I made this Cooper from a different universe.

At first, I was going to have him wander around and ask multiple people, "Are you my master?" But on the first one with Shibusawa, I had him settle with him for a long time.

He was almost gay or bi, but I gave him a female love interest. (Also his "love" for Shibusawa was more so a obsession than actual love.)

Big one‼️ Cooper at one point before he killed X, was going to go back to X. Either through by getting fired or just plain manipulation.

There were going to be multiple times in which he got kidnapped but those never happened.

At one point, he was going to snap, but that never happened as well.

Richard Connell

He was going to be more of an evil, bad guy with a god complex. Now he silly.

Fiona Delgado

She was created to flirt with an older version of Shibusawa. That never happened.

She was supposed to work at a normal boring job but I changed it to be the Port Mafia.

Hunter

Was going to die, never happened.

He was going to be a cool priest, but now he works for the Special Operations Division.

Dr. Paul

Was supposed to hunt down every vampire and try to kill then all.

Perhaps give him a potential love interest in which the irony of it is that the love interest is a vampire.

Felix

He was supposed to be more angry and charming, but he's just some goofy guy who yells at his rival and is actually a lot more friendly.

He was supposed to be ability-less but him having a cool sword as his ability sounded cool.

At one point, Lance (from Prime Softwares) was going to change Felix's "programming" and make him go on a murder rampage. Possibly a really intense boss fight with X.

Prime Softwares

Lance was supposed to die (he's barely alive but he's alive)

Lance and Grian were supposed to have this discussion and Lance would have threaten to deactivate Grian.

At one point, Grian would have completed a mission, but Lance would deactivate him anyways for a more new and improved model.

So Grian was almost a box of scraps for anyone to take.

The whole thing with the androids was to learn how to fuse ability user's blood into androids so androids could have said ability from the user. Basically weapons.

Because Lance wanted to take over the world with these androids.

At one point Grian was going to turn on Lance and attack Lance instead.

[goodboyaudios]

Unwritten Characters #3: Rax Livell

There are actually 2 versions of Rax.

The first is the undercover agent Rax who willingly lets himself get captured by vampires during the war between the Landstar and Gypsia. During his time as a slave, he learns all about Gypsia's history and culture, even managing to get fortunate enough to be placed next to one of the elites as a personal human escort.

During that time, he actually manages to convince the vampire he serves to turn him by confessing his love for them, but then he quickly betrays and kills his vampire lover the second he gets the vampiric power. He planned is to use his newfound power to get revenge and sow chaos into Gypsian society. He is also responsible for helping to start Operation Firesign, a plan to paint a flaming symbol across the planet in order for the Landstar to locate Gypsia and end the vampires.

Unfortunately, when the plan worked and the Landstar found Gypsia, instead of sending troops down to the planet to rescue their people, the entire planet was bathed in unquenchable untempic fire and Rax along with it.

The planet still burns as a reminder to Hoag's Object of what humans can do if you make them mad.

The second version of Rax is very different. The only version of Rax who existed pre-tectonic war.

This version of Rax was the first person to be exposed to the Heracles Project, an experiment where humans were given a chunk of a meteor fragment that, supposedly, wiped out the dinosaurs. This meteor fragment gave Rax powers equivalent to that of a Huma-Alter (or a space pirate).

The ability Rax was given, was the power to alter the timeline he existed in. This caught the attention of the Time Walker's Guild, but rather than bring Rax into the fold, they actually wanted Rax to stop using his powers.

The guild follows the belief that forcing timelines to change is something that damages all of time, thus possibly ending all of reality. (Keep in mind that the guild practices traveling BETWEEN timelines as opposed to altering them.)

Regardless, they cannot seem to stop Rax who goes on to alter his timeline so much in order to create his perfect utopia ideology that he actually creates a world that never should have existed. And while he feels he can still fix it, it's too little too late.

He blames the Time Walker's Guild for unleashing this fate on him rather than taking any responsibility and decides to instead swear vengeance upon them. He begins traveling to other timelines to change them and gain followers to his cause, getting them to also uncover the secrets of time travel and making them alter timelines too under the guise that "now everyone can have their perfect ending!"

The Time Walker's Guild, not actually being responsible for what happened to Rax's timeline are forced to form a war party and take down Rax. The fighting goes on for centuries across multiple timelines, but what's crazy is that for some timelines, the fighting only existed for a couple seconds at most.

Rax is eventually defeated by 3 familiar faces (who I won't name just yet) and sent back to his own time, forcing him to realize that the only person he has to blame is himself.

He does eventually escape, but after all he's been through, he just wants to be left alone.

[lizzardwitch]

Made my younger sister name and then rate PR characters on a scale of 1-10 (Part 1/??)

(Note: Not going to do any neo-Saban season because she actually remembers those apart from Samurai and Ninja Steel so I’d be busted, if I could Dino Charge would be the first season up here)

RPM:

Scott: Benjamin (3/10, “He just looks ugly”)

Flynn: Matt (0/10, it’s worth noting she immediately said “Ew” after looking at him)

Summer: Rosalie (7/10, “She looks cool but I’m not gay”)

Ziggy: Steward (0/10, “He looks ugly and gay”)

Dillon: Fred (5/10, “He’s alright”)

Gem & Gemma: Mya and Steve (6/10, “Idk”)

Doctor K: Vicky (8/10, “She looks like a Purple Power Ranger from the dinosaur show”)

Jungle Fury:

Casey: Matthew (1.15/10, “He looks ugly and white”)

Lily: Samantha (7.5/10, “She’s pretty but she’s white so it drags her down”)

Theo: Kai Cenat (0.5/10, “He looks ugly”)

RJ: Samuel/Chris (3/10, “He looks like an ugly viking”)

Dom: Drew (0/10, “How does a white man get even uglier”)

Fran: Megan (8/10, “She looks cool, she should be a purple Power Ranger”)

Wild Force:

Cole: Greg (9/10, “He’s really cute”)

Taylor: Jessie (6/10, “She’s alright”)

Max: Troy (7/10, “He’s alright, he looks like Donald Glover”)

Danny: Chase, her original guess was ‘Character #1’ (8/10, “He’s alright”)

Alyssa: Victoria (9/10, “She looks cute and nice”)

Merrick: Hans (0.5/10, Her immediate reaction upon seeing him was “Oh HELL NO” and then “He looks like the bad guy from Frozen”)

Princess Shayla: Lana (7/10, “She’s alright, she looks like Lana Del Rey”)

SPD:

Jack: Lamar (7/10, “He’s not ugly but he’s not really cute, he gets extra points for being black”)

Sky: Keith (-1/10, “He looks like he snuck onto Earth he’s ugly as hell”)

Z: Vanessa (1/10, “She looks mean”)

Bridge: Roberto (8/10, “He looks nice and he’s cute”)

Syd: Quinn (5/10, “She looks off-putting like she’d call me the n-word”)

Cruger: Brian (0/10, “He looks ugly as hell why am I rating him, every dog should be named Brian”)

Kat: May (10/10, “She looks like a furry”)

Boom: Scarf/Stephen (5/10, “He looks nice but he’s not cute”)

Lightspeed Rescue:

Carter: Thomas (6/10, “He looks alright”)

Chad: Ryan (8/10, “He looks cool”)

Kelsey: April (8.5/10 “She looks cool I guess”)

Joel: Shaquille O’ Neal/Aaron (9.5/10, “He’s black”)

Dana: Kia (9/10, “She’s nice”)

Ryan: Peter (10/10, “He’s a cutie, automatic 10”)

Ms. Fairweather: Margaret (10/10, “She’s so pretty”)

Captain Mitchell: Bob (7/10, “He looks nice too”)

Mystic Force:

Nick: Ford (6/10 “He looks like a vampire but not in a bad way”)

Madison: Mia (6-7/10, “She looks nice”)

Vida: Mei (8/10, “She looks cool she looks like a spy”)

Chip: Leonard, pronounced like “Lennard” (1-2/10, “He’s not only white but ginger? Pick a struggle he’s ugly”

Xander: Matthew (9/10 “Above average cuteness for a white guy”)

Udonna: Ariel (8/10 “She has red hair and she looks like a mom”)

Daggeron: Elijah (9/10 “He looks cool”)

Leanbow: Gertrude (0/10 “He looks ugly ew”)

Phineas: Skibidi (10/10 “He looks skibidi”)

Toby: Mateo (0/10 “He also looks like he snuck onto Earth why does he have sideburns”)

Clare: Rachel (9.3/10, “She looks nice I like her”)

Leelee: Scarlett (7/10, “She looks like Scarlett Johansen”)

Operation Overdrive:

Mack: Ryan (3/10 “He looks chopped”)

Rose: Emily (7/10 “Cuz I said so, she’s alright”)

Dax: Ryan, “He looks like more of a Ryan” (5/10, “He’s in the middle”)

Ronny: Abigail (3/10, “She’s not cute she also looks chopped”)

Will: Cameron (8.3572/10, “He looks like an 8.3572”)

Tyzonn: Alpha (3/10, “He looks like an alpha male”)

Andrew Hartford: Wyatt (3/10, “He looks like he has 5 kids and is about to get kicked out”)

Spencer: Bill (10/10 “He’s old”)

Dino Thunder:

Conner: Stoke (3/10, “He’s alright but below average”)

Kira: Rebecca (7/10 “Is that a girl??”)

Ethan: Anthony (6/10 “He would be higher but he needs to grow out his hair”)

Tommy: Matt (6/10, “He’s ugly but it’s okay”)

Trent: Felix/Fabio (7/10, “He looks like a Mexican dad”)

Hayley: Karissa (3/10, “She’s a ginger and she looks mean”)

Unfortunately I had to end it there since she wanted to go to bed after :(

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

If dazai ends up transferring to the PM, how would you feel? 😭

Idk the ADA panels are making me anxious..

Hey hey!

Honestly, I think Mori trying to bring Dazai back in this way wouldn't be a good play on his part at all, and I think he knows this. Dazai has to choose to return himself, otherwise Mori won't end up with an asset at all, just a hindrance. I really can't see that kind of transfer going any way other than Dazai just... up and leaving again first chance he gets. Hahaha

Besides, it'd be a weird move on Fukuzawa's part, and I do believe both Ranpo and Kunikida (as well as Atsushi and Kyouka) would strongly protest - Fukuzawa is shown taking Dazai's advice when meeting with Mori during the Guild arc quite seriously, and even if you think that he somehow doesn't consider him part of the group (I seriously doubt it), Dazai is still an incredible boon to the Agency, especially in dealings with the Mafia or against powerful opponents like Fyodor. It would be a really poor decision to try and transfer him.

While I poked fun at the panels with a couple of memes, I really think Dazai not being there has a lot to do with Fukuzawa's ability - remember that he knows the status of each member of his Agency; of course, with the exception of Dazai.

Also, I seriously don't know if the transfer is going to go through at all at this point. While the Mafia did rescue the Agency members from the Hunting Dogs, it was a traitor in their midst that assured their later capture, and the vampire infection completely ravaged the Mafia's ranks. As far as everyone knows now, it was Fukuzawa and the Agency that "saved the day". Do they still owe Mori? It seems unlike either of them to back out of a deal, but I'm honestly not sure.

If it does still go through, let's think hypothetically on who Mori might take based on what he'd be looking for in a potential transfer member.

Yosano: Obviously he wants Yosano back. But he can't get to her because Fukuzawa guaranteed it.

Dazai: Obviously he wants Dazai back. But I think due to the reasons above, Dazai is safe.

Kyouka: She just left. Also I think Kouyou understands that she's happier here and would not let this happen. Atsushi and Dazai would also not let this happen.

Kenji: Very strong, and recognized as such by Chuuya. However, I don't think his attitude is something that Mori would be looking for. He doesn't exactly scream "operating under cover of night" hahaha

Ranpo: I doubt it, but there could be some advantages. Mori would have another genius tactician for one. However, Ranpo's methods are far removed from Dazai's and Mori's own, and I think he'd have a hard time convincing Ranpo to do anything he doesn't want to... Ranpo is a detective. Case closed. Maybe if Mori had found him instead of Fukuzawa when he was young, but now? No.

Kunikida: This could be interesting. Kunikida is a very moral man; however, he is far from bound to the law (fully willing to break it if he disagrees or thinks it's necessary for the sake of his ideals) and has recently had his ideals and spirit damaged almost to the point of suicide. Transferring him would be devastating. I don't know that I see what Mori would get out of taking Kunikida though, other than weakening the Agency (remember that he's next in line to lead after Fukuzawa). I just don't think there's enough in it for Mori to bother. I also think taking Kunikida would piss Dazai off royally.

Tanizaki: The fan-popular choice. He does, admittedly, make the most sense. Multiple Mafia characters have seen and commented on his talent for assassination. His skills are very useful and his morals basically hinge on Naomi's safety. If Asagiri wanted to elaborate on Tanizaki's character, this would certainly be an interesting way to do it. If Mori can assure Naomi's safety, then he will have Tanizaki's loyalty and a powerful new assassin, and that is what Mori would ultimately be looking for.

Atsushi: Okay, hear me out. Mori has to be well aware of Dazai's creation of a new double black in Atsushi and Akutagawa. He knows full well how powerful the tiger is. Might it be useful to have a double black purely under his command once again? Now, I honestly believe that Mori understands the value of balance in these things and wouldn't take Atsushi so as to have their duo be part-Agency, part-Mafia in accordance with Natsume's tactics. We've also already seen mafia Atsushi in the Beast universe. However, this could be a really interesting way to have reader focus shift to exploring more of the Port Mafia by having our main character literally end up mired in that world. Mori has already worked with Atsushi before (against Lucy), and let's think of what he knows - Fitzgerald set a bounty on him, Dazai recruited him and partnered him with his former mentee, and he's able to work well with Akutagawa (who pretty notoriously isn't a team player). Mori may just find himself intrigued enough to see what the big deal is...