#Spark replies

[elbdot]

Just a random question but I noticed that you like a lot of underrated Pokémon like Swanna, Karrablast and especially Lumineon (people hate on that precious, beautiful fish WAY too much!) and you also sparked my love of Aegislash through your art so thank you for that

But sense you seem to love a lot of underrated Pokémon, I was wondering if tot had any guilty pleasure favs, like a Pokémon you know is overrated but you just can’t help but love them?

Mine has always been Lucario. I can’t help but love the sharp puppy 😭

Ps sorry if this is long I have a tendency to rant lol 😅

I DID like Lucario very much as a kid and I still think it's a great design but I do find myself not caring as much about it anymore as I used to as a child 😅 I was SUPER hyped when I saw it for the first time in "Lucario and the mystery of Mew", I still remember watching the TV premiere of it

Otherwise I don't know if GARCHOMP counts as overrated but I found myself REALLY loving the big shark dragon when I raised an alpha specimen in Legends Arceus - before that I was actually pretty neutral on the dragon. I named him Archie and he became my ace and I love him very very much

He's the Garchomp from that ONE Legends Arceus Comic I posted a while ago 😂

[hedwig221b]

sterek historical au no royalty maybe werewolves are known? the hales are well off, not royal, just rich still. laura owns the school house, is the principle, cora owns the bakery, papa hale is the black smith, talia is the judge, peter the doctor, derek the sheriff, and the only reason why they get business and respect is because everyone NEEDS them, otherwise the common knowledge of them being werewolves would have the entire town shun and ignore them. stiles on the other hand is the scary (scary bc of how sexy he is, derek would say) witch that lives in the woods that every human is terrified of but every supernatural creature that lives in town goes to for help, he's a very old witch, thousands of years old. even the hales are frightened of him because there was one day the hales came up to him to ask for a favor, maybe there was a enemy pack sniffing around their land, but they did something to greatly offend stiles and he was so angry that he created a storm over the hale house for entire month. just the hale house, the winds got up to 25 mph, a small tornado tore through and wrecked their garden. but one day stiles appears in town and he's different, sick, mentally ill. and the hales remembered that even though stiles DID wreck their garden, he also got rid of the enemy pack. so now they take him in to care for him but usually with things like this they'd go TO stiles, but they can't because stiles is talking gibberish. randomly complimenting people, speaking to the dead as if they're in front of him, speaking in riddles that make no sense, hallucinating. refusing to let derek out of his sight. derek has always been obsessed with the witch, he thought that the storm was hilarious and powerful and sexy, so he's happy to have the task of taking care of him, but with stiles' mental health declining so does his physical and they need to hurry up and figure out what's going on with him. maybe it's the same sickness his human mother died of all those thousands of years ago. so now, how in the hell are the hales supposed to beat a human illness??? (sorry for the long ask, you asked for thoughts and well, here's a thought 😅)

Haha thanks for the ideas! 🌸🎀💖 Stiles being a scary powerful witch is always up my alley

[windydrawallday]

SNUGGLES

"Windy, who do you ship more with Lockdown?"

YES

Tbh I don't have context: use your imagination 🌈🌟

[aroaceleovaldez]

Something something Jason feeling like he doesn't quite fit as "Greek" or "Roman" as a metaphor for bisexuality, particularly the semi-canonical bi-coding in his half of experiences during the Cupid scene and how Favonius and Cupid speak to him in parallel to the scenes confirming Nico is gay.

Something something the camps as metaphors for traditionally acceptable forms of relationships and Nico living as a rogue outside of them, rejecting expectation (ergo in himself representing a metaphor of queer identity and living outside of boxes and defined/usually hetero-allonormative/binary ideas of what love/relationships should look like) versus Jason struggling with the expectation to conform to a label and even discussing with Nico both of them remaining at CHB together.

Something something the inverse of Jason shifting away from the camps after he breaks up with Piper, feeling lost and unable to find a place between the camps as he begins to explore his queer identity properly for the first time versus Nico only remaining at CHB because he has entered a relationship. In this essay I will-

[ingravinoveritas]

At the Spark reading yesterday Michael did voices, all in different accents, for all the characters in the book. Because of course he did. There’s a character called Beaver which he performed in a Scottish accent, in honour of Daddy Beaver, I’m sure 😉

Hah. Oh, Anon. I did see a clip of Michael at the Spark reading and clocked him doing a Scottish accent for the character called Beaver, but I somehow did not even slightly make the connection to David being Daddy Beaver on Peppa Pig, and bless you for mentioning it...

So many questions coming up now, of course. I'm not sure the character itself had anything to do with David playing Daddy Beaver (although it would certainly be interesting to know when Michael wrote the book and if it lines up at all with when David got offered the job), but to use a Scottish accent for that character specifically does not at all feel like an accident, somehow.

It's also quite delightful to think that Michael picked that accent with David in mind when you consider that we're talking about Michael and how talented he is at doing an endless number of voices and accents. I'd love to hear from any folks who attended the reading as to whether Michael talked about the process of coming up with voices for the characters--because David aside, it's fascinating to hear him make each character so distinct, and I'd be so intrigued to learn more about his process in that regard. But he could have picked so many other voices/accents to do for Beaver...and yet he chose a Scottish one. What are the odds...

Also, can we just take a moment to imagine the conversations that must have ensued between them when David told Michael he got cast as Daddy Beaver? There was a whole lot of innuendo happening with Alex Hassell in that clip above, which was glorious...but with David and Michael that exchange would be anything but subtle. Their chaotic/filthy text messages alone on the subject probably would never make it on TV before the watershed, but oh, for the fleeting chance to catch even a glimpse of them. Bless...

This was lovely to think about, Anon, and I appreciate you bringing it to my attention. Thanks for writing in! x

[nrc-asteryn-crew]

A notification flashes across phone screens everywhere throughout NRC. The radio podcast, NRTea has gone live once more!

"Hello, hello, dearest listeners! And welcome to another episode of NRTea, the hottest tea party on sages island! I'm your host, Chamomile-"

"and I am Earl Grey"

"And oh boy do we have a story for you today! Take it away, Earl!"

"...alright.

As of late, there have been brambles spiralling up and encasing parts of the Ramshackle dorm. The brambles themselves seem generally harmless, as do the roses that fall from them, but if you prick yourself on the thorns, it would be quite an unpleasant sensation, so I'd suggest exercising some extra caution when visiting for now."

"Yup, yup! If you've got a friend or two living in the dorm out there, go check on em and make sure they're doing okay!"

"I know I myself must check in on my dearest companions soon..."

"Well that's it for now! We've been your hosts, Chamomile-"

"And Earl Grey,"

"And this has been NRTea. Stay thirsty, dear listeners!"

The stream continues on for a bit before cutting off, though.

"Hey... James?"

"Yes?"

"Y'know how Yuna has been locking up lately and stuff? Says she's been super sick recently."

"Mhm... It's quite concerning, if I am being honest. I haven't seen her for a while..."

"...I wonder if Yuna is alright. I hope she doesn't get hurt with all those brambles."

"...Me too, Lewis. Me too."

(✨YUNA OVERBLOT STUFF YAHOO!!!

-✨mod, @night-raven-miscellany. Technically James and Lewis, too, but I haven't been adding them fhdjfj)

Kiyuu stared down at her phone with a frown as the podcast ended. She didn't say anything, prompting Aros to speak up from behind her.

"...Lucky you haven't been over there for a while, isn't it?"

He spoke, giving Kiyuu a faint smile, leaning in just a little closer while dabbing a makeup brush into the eyeshadow pallette in his hand, before applying it, making slightly quicker movements than previously, already being able to tell what Kiyuu was thinking.

They both knew the signs by now from even just a glance. With the context the podcast had accidentlly given... Something bad was about to happen. That much they could tell.

His expression morphed back into a frown as he watched how Kiyuu's face seemed to go through a cycle of conflicting emotions, confirming what he'd thought.

"...Yuuto's close by, though. And he definitely won't hesitate to head straight for Ramshackle once he suspects something's happening..."

There was more silence, only disturbed by the quiet sounds of rummaging through makeup and supplies from Aros. They'd been in the middle of testing out some makeup samples Aros had been sent for a promotion when they'd decided to tune into NRTea's podcast in the background.

"...Would you like me to quickly finish applying your makeup before we go?"

Aros offered, picking up an eyelash curler, and tilting Kiyuu's head up gently with his pointer finger.

"But-"

"Ah- Let me finish now. If you're worried about time, I'll change up our plan, do something quick, yet effective, instead. Don't stress out more than you need to. It won't do you any good."

"Mmh... Okay then. I'd- really like that. Thank you..."

Kiyuu conceeded softly, a silent exchange of gratitude from Kiyuu between them, Aros nodding in response, expression neutral as he continued.

"...Heh. I bet he's real excited right now. I worry a lot for him when he does this sort of thing, y'know. Just doing whatever he wants with no consideration to anyone else's feelings..."

Kiyuu mumbled, an underlying bitterness that she never quite felt wholeheartedly in her voice.

"That's just how he is. The only thing for us to do now is help them both out, hm?"

"Ah- right..! Yuna, I heard their name was, I think... I hope they're alright..."

"As do I."

Aro's commented as he stood, reaching instinctively for his hand mirror, handing it to Kiyuu as he hastily, yet still neatly, tidied up his supplies.

"Satisfactory?"

He asked, turning his head around to gauge Kiyuu's opinion.

"Yeah! More than, for sure."

Kiyuu agreed, handing back the mirror. She felt a little better now, the familiar feeling of her makeup calming her nerves ever so slightly.

After a few short moments she stood, hastily reaching to fix up her hair into a more practical fashion.

"Okay! Okay. Let's go! We shouldn't waste anymore time."

She announced, projecting bounds more confidence than she actually felt.

"Yes, let's. Perhaps we'll even arrive before anything too disastrous occurs on either party's end..."

Aros responded. Though somehow, they both doubted that much of a miricle would happen for them today...

[dragongirlfangs]

[humming-fly]

Re: Greed’s Ultimate Shield and electricity. There are people who do dangerous stunts with chainmail and tesla coils. They don’t get hurt because the electricity runs through the chainmail onto the ground rather than their body. So that means Greed’s Ultimate Shield might actually protect him from electrical attacks! Now full on lightning is debatable but might reduce the damage at least.

ayy that's something! I do wonder how much direct contact with the ground is needed, does the chainmail have to go that far down? Assuming greed's shoe soles are rubber that could help? or make it worse idk tbh I know rubber is an insulator but that's about it lol - clearly the only way to know for sure it to throw lightning at greed

[total-drama-brainrot]

In regards to José trying and failing to sway Noah away from Alejandro, which is funny as hell, I just picture him getting absolutely ripped apart when Noah talks about his middle child syndrome and how he's clearly just trying to look down on Alejandro for being the little brother. When Noah, himself, is the youngest of like eight.

José older child supremacy mentality means nothing to Noah

José, on his way to try and ruin yet another one of Alejandro's friendships/relationships: To think that someone as intelligent as you would ever debase himself by befriending the inferior brother. Such a shame, really. I make much better company.

Noah, who's dealt with more than enough Middle Child Syndrome™ to know exactly what's going on here:

[nazrigar]

This for your transformers story. How did Optimus Prime’s face end up half shredded?

Simply put? An accidental Fusion Cannon from his own dad. Orion almost talked Megatron down from executing not just Sentinel, but the Cybertronian Council on the spot... but alas, tunnel vision, and the sight of some members seeing Orion's speech to crawl and find an escape (including Sentinel... though Sentinel here is nowhere near as bad (in personality) to TFONE Sentinel) meant that Megatron's rage won... and the rest is history.

It's the one wound that couldn't heal completely when Orion Pax became Optimus Prime proper.

[snarkspawn]

For that ask you got about being self-taught or taking classes, I’m really glad I read it. I’ve just started art (25) and I’m STRUGGLING!!! So hard. But for me, art classes aren’t an option rn so to see that you’re self taught and THAT good, kinda gave me motive to keep going. I might be terrible, I might not know wtf I’m doing but going to keep going so thanks for the motivation! I’m sure it will take me years to get to your level but it’s a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel ❤️

Oh man 💜 you're doing well I promise. Everyone who has ever done art has been where you are! It can be a struggle and very frustrating at times but if you stick with it (if you enjoy it) it'll be worth it to keep going! It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. No, it's a journey. And it's not about getting to anyone else's level but about finding your own path.

Trust the process, and even more importantly, have fun with it!

[novella-november]

Not to harsh your joy regarding your personal project, (which does sound awesome!) the fact that you keep answering the "can I do fanfic?" questions with "technically yes, but have you considered not doing that?" does not actually *feel* very fanfic friendly. (Especially for anyone who enjoys fanfic as a hobby and isn't also an ofic writer. For example, I personally write almost exclusively character studies that are an explicit reaction to canon; there is no real way to write that sort of thing except as fanfic.)

Which is just a long-winded way of requesting that you maybe consider less of a caveat with the FAQ if you make one, please.

oh that was definitely not my intention, thanks for the ask! I think it was mostly just because I got that same question a few times in a row from various anons within the same time span (including some that were not published publicly), it just happened that I was thinking of my own project(s, plural now) in the last day when I answered those two, for those who want an extra creative challenge.

There's a reason my own original thing has been in my head for the last ten years without me actually writing it while I've written and posted tons of fanfiction, and even now some of my original works are going to be based on Arsene Lupin, so they'd technically be considered fanfiction since they're based on and use an established work for the characters and settings --

--writing completely original fic *is* harder, and that's exactly why I'm *suggesting* (not requiring!) that people consider taking 1 out of short story 4 challenges to look at their work in a new light.

90% of what I read and (until I actually start and finish my original works) 100% of what I've written in my life is fanfic. I have nothing against fanfic, otherwise I woudn't even be interested in creative writing.

But its also not a diss to say "Would you consider looking at your [fanfic] writing from a new angle and try to figure out different ways of going about it?"

Honestly, being able to even consider this option *as a fun extra challenge* is meant to help improve your writing and creative skills; it's not meant as a cheap shot at people who choose to write fanfiction because I my self write and read tons of it,

it's me saying "if you want even more practice at creative writing during these monthly challenges, try branching out a little bit from your comfort zone, you may be pleasantly surprised."

People who write and read fanfiction already have tons of creative experience, and if people like me and many other fanfic writers who one day dream of being published authors, want to broaden our horizons and seek new experiences, one of the easiest exercises is to take something we're planning on writing or already wrote, and see what we would change to make it brand new and standalone--

-- something that not only helps you come up with new ideas, but also will help when it comes time to *edit*, which can be, depending on the length and complexity of your story, can be a complicated process:

whether that means having to delete scenes entirely,

changing what a character says,

altering an aspect of the worldbuilding to fix plot holes

, re-writing your character so they're not overpowered because it was ruining the stakes and tension,

changing the POV of chapters because it was ruining the flow of the story,

etc etc etc.

I love fan fiction.

I love reading it and I love writing it, and for many people who take on monthly writing challenges, it is a way to test ourselves and gear ourselves up and prove to ourselves that not only can we write x amount of words, but it proves to ourselves that we are *capable of creating*, and for many creatives, that ultimately leads to crafting our own unique stories;

if you're already taking place in a monthly writing challenge, why not push the bounds a little bit *if you're so inclined* and test the waters? Especially when you're surrounded by a community who is cheering you on, every step of the way?

Every Nanowrimo I ever won was fanfiction. Heck, even not during November I once did 40k words in two weeks for a fic.

I always stalled out when I tried to write original works;

it is much easier to start small with a single short story than it is to try to write an entirely original novel, and my encouraging people to try baby steps by *experimenting* with one short story out of four in a month is not meant to be a diss against fanfiction,

but an *encouragement to those like me* who were so eager to write original works but floundered when I tried to jump into the deep end and felt disheartened.

Many fanfic authors aspire to write original fics, and thats who that challenge is for, for the people who want to write original works but are too afraid to fully commit; I'll still be writing and posting fanfiction even if I become a published author, even If I just have to come up with a few new pen-names to post them under.

There's absolutely no judgement on anyone who wants to write fanfiction for these challenges, my "caveat" as you say, is only there as encouragement to those like me who are afraid to take the first step, or uncertain of how to even *begin* that first step, not any kind of condemnation.

TL;DR:

I did not mean for my responses on the "can I write fanfiction" to come off as rude or looking down on fanfiction, its meant to be an encouragment to all the people like me who love fanfic and started out writing fanfiction, and dream of writing original works to take the first step, with a community of like-minded people all taking the same challenge.

Like every other challenge aspect of these events, taking a fanfic idea and turning it into an original short story is completely optional and meant as inspiration, just like following prompts for events is not mandatory, and even completing the 30k word goal is not mandatory; the goal for this month is to create, get in the habit of creating, and having fun with it!

[fated2bydesign]

Chapters: 16/? Fandom: Five Nights at Freddy's Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Major Character Death Series: Part 1 of Missing Gears AU Summary:

One morning, FazCo Sent you an offer that you couldn't refuse. However, upon taking the job, you quickly discover that you may have bitten off more than you can chew with this one. With an understanding of AI's and Robotics, you thought you had expected the worst, but that sadly was only the best-case scenario, as you are quick to find out from the "beloved" daycare attendant.

Something horrible is happening, and it is up to you and a few helpless animatronics to figure out how to stop it before things get any worse.

[cokoweee]

my dude, you have so many aus, will you be able to finish em all? Love your art btw

Pfft never. Purple delusions maybe but so far it’s looking pretty bleak.

The vibes aren’t funky fresh sadly

[the-starry-traveller]

Why? What happened, Ms Twi?

Bad things happened to good folks.

"Flurry Heart and Cadence are visiting soon—thank the stars for that. I need to bring Sunburst home before they arrive. I have to." Twilight’s voice tightens, rage simmering beneath her calm facade. "My little colt… he hasn’t stopped crying."

@drakowulf

Tragedy did.

[catboyaventurine]

before i say all this keep in mind. im a system im a headmate in a system, i am a fictive, and our host is a fictive so we've both been confused about this for some time ;

What, in your opinion, is the difference between fictionkin + fictive?

i used to think it was fictives had source memories and fictionkin dont but ive seen fictionkins talk abt those too in an almost identical way as fictives do, which gets me curious to ask other fictives and fictionkin; what would you classify the difference as?