#honestly if I never get around to completing the rest of the free verse series this is what I'm posting. unedited. no context

[bromcommie]

ok so: first thing I did with the laptop restored to its (mostly) full function is I got LibreOffice finally—and it's already better than Microsoft! And using less RAM! AND it's not scraping my writing for AI! Why did it take me this long! (I swear this isn't a paid ad, I'm just very excited!). I also picked up on, amongst other fun tools, this word counter extension it uses that allows you to see all the words in a document listed by frequency of use. And because of an ask I received recently (which I'll get to in a bit, very sorry @booksandabeer <3 I just got distracted by and then unreasonably unhinged about this for a moment there) I got curious about what that would look like. So I ran my longest, mostly Bucky-centered WIP through it, and...

I mean, listen. It's not like I was necessarily expecting a coherent result that would be super helpful with my writing. I just also didn't expect this program to spit out some kind of Tarzan-esque, conjuctionless proto-blackout slam poetry. I also very much did not expect my brain to feast on its offerings like a vulture picking meagre scraps from a wreckage after a hungry winter.

And yet! Here's a bizarre, dubiously sensical (to anyone other than yours truly) collage that still wouldn't leave me alone:

Current scale of brainrot: none of this is anything at all and yet I've been sitting staring at a wall for literally half an hour now. I feel like a Beatnik that was ordered off of Ali Express and came in all crushed up and crumpled and looking nothing like the packaging. But fuck me if that's gonna stop me from using all of this as a prompt

[nefoe-dd]

SO SMT AU AM I RIGHT GAMERS

I mentioned this in the tags of another post and joked about it in Discord but my brain went brrrr during my last class of the day and now I lowkey have a full plot starting to form lol.

Keep in mind the only Shin Megami Tensei game I’ve played myself is the Nocturne remake, plus I only really remember bits of the plot of 4 and whatever we’ve been given so far of 5 so I’m not super well versed in the series.

Also I’ll add this to the tags too but DSMP Spoilers specifically for the contents of Techno’s Will exist in this post, because that is where the idea for this came from. A lot of other JRPGs have similar plotlines but I specifically thought of SMT because its kind of a meme specifically for that at this point how the plot always seems to have the same type ending bosses. 

Also some spoilers for Shin Megami Tensei IV

ANYWAYS

Now Presenting: An AU where Techno’s Limbo is an SMT Game lol

(Under a ‘Read More’ because it got way ahead of me)

An Introduction to Relevant SMT terminology:

Demons: Makes up a large majority of the characters in the game. They are the enemies that you face in combat, and its possible to recruit them to your team through various means. Some demons exist in the overworld though, and can be talked to normally, they’re chill most of the time, unless you do something to tick them off. ‘Demon’ is not taken literally by the Christian definition, they are based off of various figures in folklore and religion around the world, some are even based on Gods and Angels.

Law vs Chaos: Many SMT games have multiple endings based on these two alignments, along with the neutral alignment. It is usually decided by some important decisions the player makes throughout the game. I’m most aware of the SMT 4 ending, in which the route you are on decides the final dungeon, the character you team with for the ending, and the final boss (its either Satan or the in-game version of God). It’s based off of the traditional interpretation of these two, where Law represents the importance of authority, and Chaos represents the importance of freedom. 

Another note is that a lot of SMT games take place in a post-apocalyptic world of some kind, which, spoiler, is the case here.

General Plot Details and Worldbuilding:

- Techno dies in the prison. The stasis chamber fails and Quackity succeeds in killing him. Permanently. 

- Despite dying, he wakes up again in the main prison cell, but things are different. The lava isn’t blocking the entrance anymore, (in fact there isn’t any lava at all), and he’s alone. Upon peering outside the main cell, he notices a bit of sky peeking through the prison ceiling, like it had been broken into. 

- The drop down to the bottom floor is long, but he’s dead, so he just shrugs and jumps down so he can see what’s going on. Turns out there are several holes in this part of the prison, in fact there are multiple on the ground, likely where the lava had escaped from. (Obviously Minecraft lava specifically doesn’t work like that, I’m pretty sure in the DreamSMP the bottom is all source blocks, but just ignore that bit). 

- He exits from the back wall of the prison, and everything there so far looks normal, except for the fact that there appears to be less trees than normal. Of the trees that are still there, many of them were cut down and never collected, and some appear to have fallen over due to some damage.

- Techno goes around the prison to the front, and that’s when he notices some things that are very wrong. Various parts of the prison, not just the main cell, are also sitting destroyed. Many cracks, scuff marks and full-on chunks are missing on the walls. The usual entrance which houses the nether portal is hardly still standing, and he can see straight into the main lobby where the portal would lead into once you were let through. 

- The surrounding areas are not much better. Tommy’s outpost is toppled over in the distance, only the base and bottom floor are left standing. The tents near the beach are collapsed and destroyed, the only remnants of one of them is a small piece of fabric ripped from the main bit and laying on the ground. Skeppy and Badboyhalo’s mansion is crumbling where it stands, half of the back wall and ceiling are gone. And that’s only what’s visible from here. 

- The rest of the server is also in various states of destruction, the spawn walls are hardly left standing, the main nether portal area is covered in potholes, none of the portals are active. The prime path is rotted and broken in most areas, the buildings along it are not faring much better than the ones he’d seen before. And the further he gets away from the prison, the more the plants themselves appear to be dead or dying. 

- L’manburg’s crater looks much the same as it once did right after its destruction, albeit with more debris at the bottom which had fallen from the sides as they slowly eroded. The flag at the bottom is torn up and discoloured, honestly its hardly recognizable. The nature that had finally begun to reclaim the land has slowly been dying instead over time, and the bridge overtop has completely collapsed. The only thing still standing, is the ever present obsidian grid that looms over it in the sky. He supposes that whatever disaster had caused this wasn’t able to reach that high up, or that it was at least in part done by someone that liked the way it looked. Not that there seems to be a need for the reminder anymore. 

- Something something, he finds out DreamXD is here, and that he might have had something to do with how this world looks. And as much as it shouldn’t matter in the afterlife, he did promise Phil he would be killing God sooooo he goes on a mission to do just that. He can do pretty much anything now that he really doesn’t have to worry about dying, so why not. He has no reason to care about some God, especially when they’re the only ones left.

- Some DSMP people hang around the world and are represented by certain demons, the mostly chill ones that kinda just hang around in the apocalyptic scenery. They don’t recognize him, it isn’t really the people he knows after all, but they are willing to talk to him since they can tell he isn’t human either. He learns little bits of what happened through them, and learns where DreamXD resides, that being one of the strongholds that’s a bit further out. 

- Unfortunately, due to the portals being inactive, and his inability to break anything efficiently, or even at all, he has to travel using the overworld. Along the way he manages to speak to some others, this allows him to better locate where the God is, although it doesn’t seem to be hiding out. He even sees it sometimes flying around, which he uses to follow where its hiding. 

- Some of the random demons he runs into recognize that he’s not supposed to be here (according to them at least), so he has to fight his way through them. Luckily, many of the friendly demons that he talks to end up tagging along in order to help, thus making up a team he can use to get through them instead.

 - There’s probably a demon that seems to resemble Phil somewhere, living alone (alone for so so long) away from everyone in an arctic house perhaps. If I wanted to really up the angst, the demon takes a liking to Techno right away, which is partly how Techno is able to tell its him so quickly. The more they talk, the more Techno realizes how lonely the Phil he knows must be without him there, how upset he’d be once he reads the will and finds out what happened to him. Thus he’s more motivated to, you know, fight God, in an attempt to figure out what the hell happened. (DXD is the only entity existing here that also exists where he’s from, he can guess pretty easily that maybe, just maybe, they are one and the same). Thus, he is given a choice that he knows he will have to make in the future. 

- Eventually he manages to find the stronghold and comes face to face with DreamXD himself. DreamXD is just kinda chillin there, they fight, through DreamXD doesn’t seem to be putting in too much effort, almost like it does not want to win. 

- Techno wins (duh), and he is left with a choice, a choice to finish the job, or spare the god and allow it to go free. And, well, he feels that he doesn’t really have the right to decide whether it lives or dies, and while its possible that DreamXD caused whatever disaster created the current state of the world, but he doesn’t know that for sure. DreamXD has done nothing this whole time he’s been here, and its done nothing to him or his companions.

- He chooses to leave it alone, and DreamXD seems to know that it was always going to end that way. 

- DreamXD disappears, and Techno wakes up in the cell again post-revival, the prison and the world around it is the same as he remembers

(I don’t remember the exact real-world to limbo time difference but I imagine that it felt like, a day, maybe half that, while irl it was only a few minutes to an hour.)

Some other notes/details:

- The other possible ending would have resulted in Techno killing DreamXD and being given ANOTHER choice to take its power over the world, or just leave and stay there forever. Basically DreamXD’s existence is vital to the power of the revival book, and it’s death would have resulted in Dream not being successful in his revival attempts. Obviously we have no idea how the powers actually work yet, but I just came up with an explanation because I thought it would be interesting. You can decide on your own which of these endings fall into Law, Chaos or Neutral because uh, its complicated given the scenario. You can also decide if letting DreamXD live even fits into his character! Idk! But its not like DreamXD’s being oppressive by any means, not that there’s anyone to oppress here anyways. That’s my logic anyways.

- I don’t know what demons would represent specific people, I’d like to use one of the Angels for Phil but the Demons based on Angels usually have an important role in the plot that is in line with the Law alignment and like, protecting god or whatever, so no. There are a couple bird ones but idk if they fit the vibe, idk it could work, I’d have to look at a list if I want to go into this further.

- I kinda want Eret to be an Inugami because it’s body does that thing that ferret’s do when they’re all stretched out :) The only reason I’m hesitant is because Inugami is a dog, and Goose deserves representation.

- The reason I imagined for why Techno can’t break anything is because the mining fatigue lasted throughout this because he died with it, it’d get in the way of fighting too but at least it isn’t weakness, and he’s not alone either.

Uhhhhh that’s it for now I think!

(will potentially add to this if I figure something else out in the future)

[shadowen]

On your series “All Stories Have Monsters”, you have an interesting, unique take on Joe and Nicky and their dynamic, with you exploring a Nicky free to stray and do as he whishes and a Joe who conveniently only has eyes for Nicky. And it hurts my heart to imagine Joe in such a seemingly unbalanced, unequal relationship. In this ‘verse Joe comes across as this almost otherworldly man, locked in the role of the perfect partner, endlessly selfless, willing to share Nicky with anyone Nicky may desire / love while Joe remains faithfully devoted, his world revolving around Nicky (and Nicky only), “incapable” (???) of falling in love with anyone else, not having other lovers to turn to like Nicky does. It’s such an advantageous / favorable situation for Nicky, with Joe making all the concessions without clear reciprocity and only Nicky reaping the benefits / rewards of their open arrangement, besides never having to guess at Joe’s loyalty, never having to share whatever there is of Joe’s affection / desire / thoughts and feelings, never having to face any man / woman who would challenge him for Joe’s love.

Ok, so, I understand where you’re coming from, and part of this critique is completely valid. You’re right to call out that I’ve centered Nicky a lot in that series, at the expense of exploring Joe’s perspective. That’s something I’ve been thinking about, recently, and something I will try to do better about in my fic in general.

As for the rest of this... I think you meant this comment as a good-faith expression of your thoughts about this series, and I appreciate that. I’m going to try and respond as clearly and as kindly as I can, so please don’t think I’m attacking you or calling you ignorant or anything like that.

The conclusions you’ve come to are based on a lot of assumptions about what healthy relationships look like, and those assumptions are almost completely wrong. Now, I don’t know anything about you or your life, so I’m not going to make any guesses about your experience with relationships or polyamory, but, if you grew up in generally the same culture I did, I know that you’ve been fed a lot of ideas about compulsory monogamy and How Relationships Work, and internalised those ideas as fact. As someone who is in a loving, committed, open marriage, I can tell you most of those ideas are, at best, bullshit.

The thing is, people experience romantic and sexual attraction in different ways. You’re on Tumblr and you follow me, so I’m going to assume that’s not a new concept for you. In practice, what this means is that people who are in a relationship also experience love and desire diferently. Even if you have two people who are monogamous, allosexual, and alloromantic, their individual needs and appetites are going to be different by virtue of the fact that they are different people. This doesn’t mean one of them loves the other more or one of them enjoys sex more; it just means that some of the things they need and want in a relationship are going to be different, because that’s how people work.

The other thing that I really want to emphasize is that relationships don’t come with scoreboards, and keeping score in a relationship isn’t helpful or healthy. That doesn’t mean there doesn’t need to be balance and equity, but the sort of one-for-one reciprocity you’re talking about isn’t balance. For instance, I’ve been sick for the past few days, and my wife has been taking care of me. Does that mean that she gets to take time off from her responsibilities to let me take care of her so we’re even? Of course not. We take care of each other when we’re sick because we made a commitment to do exactly that. For added fun, my wife and I have different health problems and different temperaments, so we tend to get sick in different ways and need different things. Which means that me taking care of her looks different than her taking care of me. Does that mean our relationship is unbalanced? Nope. It means we’re different people with different needs, and part of being married means meeting each other’s needs.

So you’re probably sitting there thinking that being sick and having sex are two totally different things. Except that... they’re not, not really. Sex is one possible aspect of a relationship, just like dealing with illness, doing the dishes, going out, sharing finances, et cetera, ad nauseum. Sex isn’t a special, magic thing that has it’s own set of rules; it’s a thing people do together, sometimes there are emotions involved, sometimes not. The real point, here, is that different people have different needs and wants when it comes to sex, just like everything else, and every sexual relationship is unique, just like every friendship or romantic relationship is unique.

So what does that mean for an open relationship? Among other things, it means that one person sleeping with someone else doesn’t mean their partner needs to sleep with someone else to make things even. It means that how a person feels about having sex with their partner is not necessarily how they feel about having sex with people who aren’t their partner. It means that reciprocity and keeping score are just as bullshit when it comes to sex as they are in other parts of a relationship.

Now, let’s talk about Joe and Nicky and polyamory in All Stories Have Monsters.

Again, you’re right: I haven’t given as much time to Joe as a character as he deserves, and I’m working on that. But if you’ve read all 89,000 words of that series, to date, and you came away with the impression that Nicky doesn’t absolutely and utterly adore Joe with his entire being, then I need to re-assess my abilities as a writer. 

The subtext of The House in Sicily is that Nicky built a mansion out of love for Joe. The final punch of Joe’s speech in New Orleans, 1868 is “that he is just as devoted to me as I to him, that my comfort and pleasure are of greater importance to him than his own”. You sent me this ask right after I posted a story all about Nicky carefully and tenderly fucking Joe to a spectacular orgasm. Then there’s all the little moments of care and comfort, the casual touches, the easy companionship. I don’t really know what else you want with regard to expressions of love and devotion.

You refered to Joe making concession and Nicky reaping all the benefits, but it’s stated more than once that Joe enoys the fact that Nicky sometimes sleeps with other people, and even gets off on it. Likewise, Nicky makes it clear, both that he wouldn’t do it if Joe didn’t want him to, and that any other partners are a distant second to Joe. In Goddess of Victory, he tells Booker,  “Another man may touch me for a moment, but it is only a moment. I will never belong to anyone but Joe” and  “If he did not like it, I would not do it, but he does like it, so I do what I want”.

Ok, you’re probably thinking, but why does Nicky get to fuck around and Joe doesn’t? The simple answer is that Nicky wants to and Joe doesn’t, not because one of them is more faithful than the other, but because they are different people who experience attraction differently. 

It’s first implied and then plainly stated that Joe in this series is demisexual, which doesn’t AT ALL mean that he’s not capable of falling in love with or being attracted to anyone other than Nicky; it just means, in this case, that he needs to have a strong romantic connection with someone before he might want a sexual relationship. You can imagine a lot of reasons that might be tricky to navigate with the complexities of immortal life, and since he already has a passionate, satisfying relationship with the love of his life, there’s not much reason for him to look for anyone else.

Then there’s Nicky, who pursued sexual relationships with other men despite believing it was a sin, and who, like Joe, had never been in love before. For Joe, romantic love and sex are necessarily linked, but for Nicky they’re not. Sex is something Nicky enjoys doing; he definitely PREFERS doing it with Joe, but that doesnt mean it’s not fun with other people. Add to this the fact that Nicky having sex with someone else turns Joe on, and Nicky has at least one very compelling reason to seek out casual partners and few complications in doing so.

The thing with Booker... Honestly, that’s another entire novel of analysis, so I’m not going to get into it here.

The point is: having a committed, balanced relationship doesn’t mean having all the same needs and desires as your partner. It means, among other things, recognizing that you and your partner(s) have different needs and desires and making sure that everyone is fulfilled and satisfied as individuals. In a case where there is a primary couple with an open arrangement, it also means trusting that you and your partner are each other’s top priority when it comes to love and sex. Joe and Nicky have different sexualities, but they’re absolutely, unequivocally devoted to each other. Whether or not they have sex with other people doesn’t change that.

Does that make sense? I hope that makes sense.

[sun-sakura]

I POISON KISS I A Vampire x Dust story

IChapter 1.I

Dust sighed heavily, crawling on the pile of unmade sheets that were supposed to represent what was left of his bed. The skeleton looked around, noting that the room was completely destroyed. Of all the places he could have chosen to vent his anger, he had wisely decided to take refuge in his room. He looked up to the sky, feeling a vague sense of irritation towards himself, another disaster to add to the mess he felt in his head at that moment. Speaking of mess, the excessively loud voice of his deceased brother kept buzzing in his head, shuffling through the walls, mixing and blending in with his boss's earlier words. "Papyrus shut up!" he exclaimed exasperatedly, closing his eyes, trying to make pass with the sole will of thought what foretold an immense headache.

Incredibly, once in a while Papyrus had decided to take pity on him, because he immediately stopped talking, dissolving and disappearing from his sight. Dust puffed, honestly at that moment he didn't even care so much that perhaps he had offended his brother's spirit. All he wanted to do at that moment was sleep, but of course it was a luxury he could not afford. The most significant words in the brief conversation he had with Nightmare seemed to appear and disappear in front his eyes, haunting him like the ghosts of his past. "Dust this doesn't work, you're too weak. You're starting to become a dead weight for the team" "what?! Boss, what are you saying?! I have the same level of LOVE as the others, in fact, i'd rather say that i'm even better than all of them put together!" "That may have been true until a few months ago, but now? Come on, stop avoiding the truth, you know it too. The others are making progress and getting better and stronger every day, but you? I can't remember the last time i saw you take training seriously" Dust gritted his teeth remembering those words, part of him knew that Nightmare was right, but that didn't take away the fact that it pissed him off, not even a little bit. "I want to give you a chance Dust, since you have always been one of my best fighters. You have one week to increase your power by at least 5 levels, if you don't succeed and you show me that you are no longer useful to the team, i will make sure that the word dust is not the only thing that represents your name. Did i made myself clear?" God, the need to hit him, to wipe that constant air of superiority from his face had never been so strong. Dust could still feel the slight tremor in his hands, a sign that he needed to kill someone, to gain more exp, now. He got up, opening the door of the room with the simple use of his magic, his hands still had a slight tremor. Surprisingly, however, he was not the only one present in the corridor. "Damn, what's wrong? Bad day D?" The two-eyed skeleton took an annoyed look at what was theoretically close enough to be called his friend. As close as a colleague of killing and destruction could be called a friend. The other could honestly consider himself lucky enough to tolerate his presence enough not to kill him right there on the spot. Killer's almost permanent smile did nothing more than expand to the discontent of the other. Ignoring the clear death threats that the other had thrown at him with that simple glance, the skeleton with black tears broke away from the wall where he had previously rested, hastening his step, walking alongside the other. "So, judging by your bad mood i assume that the boss has spoken to you" Dust couldn't help but raise his eyes to the sky, a verse of mockery came out of his tightened mouth. Obviously Killer already knew everything. After all, he was literally Nightmare's little dog. Dust had repeatedly wondered whether there was anything more behind the scene of the boss and his loyal subordinate. He had seen them, the signs and marks on the body of the other. He would not know whether to interpret them as positive or negative signs, considering that each time it seemed that Killer had fought against some kind of beast. However, judging by the usual slightly less cold smile with which the other one returned to his room each time, Dust had ventured the hypothesis that the encounters between the two were more than consensual on both sides. Not that he gave a damn, if one fuck was enough to keep Nightmare's bad temper at bay, then as far as he was concerned they could spend whole days locked in their rooms. The hooded skeleton shook his head slightly, it would have been better if certain thoughts had never taken shape in his head. Regardless of the lack of cooperation in making conversation, Killer continued to talk to him. "you know, i wouldn't worry too much, i mean, if you start to do something right away, maybe you might have a chance to survive" sometimes Dust wondered why he allowed such idiots to consume his precious time. That conversation was getting him nowhere, as far as he was concerned, Killer at that moment was more than useless to him. In fact, all he was doing was increasing his boiling irritation. Dust fasted his pace, in the hope that the other one would understand the antiphon and decide to give him a break, at least for once. Killer chuckled at this, but understood the message, stopping in his footsteps, continuing to observe how the other one hastened to increase, one step after the other, the distance that separated them. "I know a way that will make you become stronger" Dust stopped immediately on the spot, his gaze, although the other could not see him, still seemed impassive; nevertheless, a spark of interest had begun to shine in the luminous irises. Slowly, he turned, half of his face was hidden by the blood coloured scarf slightly worn by time and monster dust. "Speak" Killer smiled, knowing he had him wrapped right around his finger. The skeleton took his time, reducing the distance that Dust had created a few moments earlier into slow, relaxed steps. He stopped right in front of him. The two of them stared into each other's eyes for very long moments, as if threatening the other one to give in first. In the end, Killer shrugged his shoulders. One of the hands constantly hidden in the pockets of his sweatshirt came out, revealing together the contents he was hiding. Dust looked skeptically at the small piece of paper the other was handing him. He looked up, staring at the other with a blatant irritation, mixed with a hidden temptation to murder. "what the hell am i supposed to do with a piece of paper?" "heh, go to the address on it, once there, tell him what you came for" despite the seed of doubt still clearly present in his gaze, Dust finally decided to take it. The letters that were written on it made his mouth twitch in a bitter and annoyed grimace. "They say that the guy who lives there is able to give you everything you want, but like everything else, this also has a price" Killer's voice was reduced to nothing more than a whisper. They danced temptingly to the side of his head, his warm breath almost sensually caressing the area where his ear should have been. "I advise you to be careful Dust, they say his words are particularly...sharp" Killer's laughter continued for several moments along the walls of the dark corridor, even when the skeleton was no longer present. Dust continued to stare at the slightly crumpled piece of paper in his hand. The words "AU: Vampiretale" followed by a series of coordinates apparently indecipherable to him swayed slightly in front his eyes. Dust clenched his fist, watching as the paper crumpled on itself with a slight protest sound. There was no way such a universe like that really existed, let alone a guy who could give you everything you want. Killer had simply mocked him, it was certainly not the first time. Yet why had his soul started beating at a slightly faster pace? Like some part of him really believed a bullshit like that? Doubt seemed to continue to prevail in his mind, stifling his other emotions, yet he could not deny that a part of him was curious. Dust hurriedly slipped the piece of paper into his pocket, starting to walk again as if nothing had happened. His mind seemed like a tornado in a storm, more violent than usual. There was only one way to find out whether or not Killer had lied to him, and as much as he wasn't so excited about it, he realized that his options were not that wide..

To be continued...

-------------------------------------------------------

|So...I decided to write a story about one of my favourite ships. Honestly, these two should deserve a lot more attention and love, so i hope i can get other people to appreciate this magnificent ship!^^|

| CREDITS:

Dust!Sans belongs to: ask-dusttale

Vampire!Sans belongs to: vampireprinceloki

Killer!Sans belongs to: rahafwabas

Nightmare!Sans belongs to: jokublog |

|Comments, likes and reblogs are really appreciated! Always feel free to tell me what you think about my stories. I DON'T own any of the characters used in the story, credits go to the respective authors listed above. Do not repost on any other platform. Nothing in the story represents canon facts, this is a work of fiction, please respect the creators of the characters. See you in the next chapter~♡|

[bladekindeyewear]

Freed up some time, actually!  Gonna blog the new pages of HS^2.  Liveblogging resume...

FYI, the post I glimpsed that alerted me to the fact that new pages exist had a translucent screenshot of Brain Ghost Dirk on it, so I know that at least is in store for me.  Makes sense; a way to involve Dirk’s voice obnoxiously heavily even when he’s too far away to narrate.  And ties into this... chapter(?) name, of course.  Chapters, huh?

> CHAPTER 1. Ghostflusters

God. Damnit.

Could we NOT???  No?

Fuck you, Dirk.  I blame you for this.

So we have greenery, a can-city and Sburb-legal human house mix... some sorta cow-looking thing from far away in the front yard...

The void resounds. Space seizes and warps as the bounds of relevance erode away to nothing but the wishful nostalgia of times passed. There is a hole in the middle of the universe, and it is hungry.

All very literally true.

But the denizens of this particular iteration of Earth C don’t know it. All of this is just business as fucking usual for a planet plagued by war, continuous inclement ghost weather, and the general malaise of being absolutely severed from canon.

--oh, FUCK.  This isn’t the new planet, this is Candy timeline Earth.  I didn’t wanna come back here!  :C

I guess that explains most of the content warnings.  Except fucking ALCOHOLISM.  Gee, thanks for adding THAT to the Candy timeline, as if it wasn’t fucked over enough!!!  Bluh.

I thought the closing lines of the Epilogue were that after RoboDave, Aradia and alt!Callie dove out of the Candyverse inside the singularity, the black-hole timelines and Dirk’s presumably-still-”relevant” nonsense weren’t going to collide with each other again?  So... why are we seeing this?  Is there going to be MORE influence like that, and the ending line was just fancy-talk?  Is it just an irrelevant little follow-up to Candy to show things turning out okay or pseudo-okay, like an epilogue to the epilogue?  Or is some of this Dirk nonsense presumably within the bounds of some sort of canon going to still have some last bit of influence on this so-called non-canon timeline?

That last one would make sense, given that it echoes how Homestuck^2′s dubious canonicity would still have definite influence on fanworks outside of canon.  Right?

Let me pull that last line from the epilogues again--

...where’s the Epilogues’ log, this is getting kind of hard to find with all their reorganization... fuck, I had to guess at the URL even.  Here we go, the last page of Meat...

The hole leaves behind an absence in the sky so calm that continuing to call it a sky wouldn’t seem to do it justice. It’s a perfectly neutral expanse into which anything one can imagine might be summoned. And for a while, anything was. But not anymore. Where the hole gaped just moments ago, there now exists an imaginary line.

Above this line resides all that matters. Below exists all else. Never again the twain shall meet.

...Right.  This implies that Canon and Non-Canon shall never meet again.  BOTH ways.  Doesn’t quite gel with the fact that we’re cutting back here--

Oh.

This is about Jake and Brain Ghost Dirk isn’t it.  I noticed his name down further on the page.  THAT’S why we’re cutting back here.

So, Canon and Non-Canon aren’t exactly meeting... not for anything relevant, anyway.  But we’re using Candy Jake’s visibility of Brain Ghost Dirk to get a better idea of Dirk’s broader self and plans through a splinter of him?  While getting another glimpse into how the post-epilogue Candy timeline is going for our, er... “curiosity”?  Is that it?

Hm.  I guess that doesn’t count as the twain “meeting”... I’ll just keep reading now.

They spend their days absorbed in the petty and pointless pursuits of “having jobs” and “raising families” and “falling in love”.

Is this Dirk’s narrator voice?  This sounds like something the current megalomaniacal Dirk would say.

I’m not going to quote the rest of the text’s further reminders of how Jane has been made into an absolutely fucked-over asshole in every timeline except the one where she grew old to open a Joke shop, adopt Dad, die, get prototyped and timeline-doubled, then mysteriously disappear from any mention in the Epilogues as if the Sprites were just forgotten about completely eventually.

> (==>)

Oooh, using the less-relevance-surrounding-parens that were used on retconned ghost!Vriska back in Homestuck proper to denote our presence in the non-canon Candy timeline? How handy!

Not a far-away cow, then.

John has been an incredible pal, opening up his home to Jake and his son on such short notice, and even offering him a pair of pants, as well as a shirt that he has so far neglected to put on.

Alright, that got a chuckle from me.

John’s house doesn’t have air conditioning.

What the flying fuck.

...Ah, John’s been away patching things up with Roxy some more, I presume.

It, like the rest of his assets, is in her name. She’d seen to that as soon as they were married.

Life players and assets, huh?  Always gotta be hoggin’ em.

He hasn’t seen much of Tavros today either, but that’s not unusual. He’s probably out with his kismesis, the one he thinks Jake doesn’t know about.

Huh.  Maybe Candy’s young Vriska?  Couldn’t get the real Tavros with your main self, so your alternate nigh-clone self settled with a human by the same name?  Or one of the other kids we heard of from this ‘verse..?

> (==>)

Jake’s hot man-bod cropped out of this image to avoid titillating my readers too much.

(Tumblr keeps jumping back to the top of my post after I add images and I keep thinking the title reads “Ghostfuckers”.)

Jake washes the dirt out from under his fingernails, and his eyes fall on the bottle still sitting on the counter. John had opened it, but together they’d barely touched the stuff. Jake had promised him and Tavvy he’d dry up his act and all, but... well.

God damnit.  If this is still Dirk-voiced narration -- I’m not sure it can be, now I think about it, as he’s supposed to be “out of range” or something, unless non-canon is just malleable like that, which wouldnt be surprising (or Dirk’s splinter’s presence allows it) -- he could literally be inducing or writing in Jake’s drinking problem just to hurt him more.  You can’t really put an overstep that assholish past Prince Dirk the way he’s gotten to be.

There was another ask in my inbox insisting that Dirk wasn’t going to stay the true villain here, if only as some sort of karmic revenge for declaring his self-importance... but I still don’t think that’s the case.  For one, Dirk HASN’T declared himself the villain... he still can’t see how fucked-up and unjustified his trampling over of everyone’s wills IS.  Shadows of recognition... but not really.  He really honestly believes he has the fucking RIGHT to do what he’s doing.

(Which is, incidentally -- to answer another ask -- why there’s basically NO chance that Rose has some sort of control or recognition of her situation under the surface, and is playing Dirk, as another person hopefully surmised.  No.  She really IS being unknowingly steered away from personal growth and recognition of the thought-control she’s under... because nothing less could feel as horrible to us.)

Part of the entire POINT of Homestuck and its Riddle was to show that these crazy kids, if they put their wills to it, always had the potential to be the literal Gods of the world around them.  That when ordinary people grasp the will and drive to shape the world around them, they can turn everything back from the brink of destruction... or vice versa.  Thus, it’s only appropriate that a player from this game could become a villain more disgusting than any we’d imagined in the series so far.  What he’s been doing -- writing twisted sorrow directly into the lives and experiences of those around him, nurturing their worst, most power-hungry tendencies (Rose) and deceiving them more directly than Doc Scratch (who was PART Dirk) ever did, making a JOKE of their free will in a more terribly direct way than ANY have been shown onscreen to do?? It IS, and is MEANT to be, the worst we have EVER seen in Homestuck.  Not as clumsy and from-the-outside as Lord English, but just as blatantly direct.  Not as easy to ignore or mistake as Doc Scratch’s horrible, intentional Prince-of-Hearty worsening of the players, instead just as impossible to gloss-over as it is to bear witness to.  That very TITLE, “Prince of Heart”, can embody the very ANTITHESIS of the Ultimate Riddle itself, robbing EVERYONE of their ability to shape not just the world around them, but even so much as themselves or their very thoughts.  When used the way Dirk is using it RIGHT NOW, anyway.  And his ambition is to impose this on all of Paradox Space.

There COULD be another villain, later.  But I can’t imagine a single one more appropriate.  And Andrew’s just the type to use one of the Striders, both practically self-inserts of parts of his personality and presence, as that ultimate villain to be overcome in a story about escaping Canon, too.

Turning his ex into an alcoholic just for his own self-satisfaction?  In a side timeline where Jake didn’t even try a relationship with him again and finally had a chance to grow up happy in SOME universe?  I wouldn’t put it past him, and you shouldn’t either.

Moving on.

> (==>)

Eugh.  I just... don’t want to think about him being an alcoholic on TOP of everything else.  As if there wasn’t enough to deal with in Candy already.

> (==>)

Hm?

> (==>)

The jungle air is heavy, humid, and familiar. Twenty years on and the thick drag into his lungs settles on him in a blanket of nostalgia, reassuring in its discomfort.

Hm.  Is this his fantasy, or a view of him in another timeline?

He is deeper in the jungle than he’d ever venture in his waking hours. There were places on his island that not even his Gran would tread, and she’d been the bravest person he’d ever known.

Hmm.  So he even knows it’s a dream, but is still in control...

Jake doesn’t recognize anything. The jungle of his dreams is wild and unknown, and there are things moving in the dense undergrowth.

...Hhhuh.  Still not sure what to think of this yet.

A sudden wind thrashes the canopy. There are pine needles in his mouth. There aren’t any pine needles in the jungle.

Very Dream, then.

> (==>)

--Yup.

> (==>)

Yoink--

> (==>)

JAKE: Yes you are i know that much. I saw your body! I carried your coffin chock full of all those stupid fucking swords! DIRK: Nope. JAKE: Dont nope me mister!

They would pile all those shitty swords into his coffin, yeah.

Anyway, now to see how much Prince Dirk is in this Dirk.  And if he’s in one mind with himself or has the slightest chance of feeling rebellious.

JAKE: I know a dead dirk when i see one! DIRK: Sure you do. But that wasn’t me. Are you really surprised to find out I got a couple of spares? JAKE: So what youre saying is you arent my dirk. DIRK: ...That is a whole ‘nother conversation that we really don’t have time for, pertaining to exactly who or what ‘your dirk’ actually constitutes. DIRK: Do you mean the Dirk from your timeline? DIRK: Then yes, that Dirk is dead. DIRK: If you mean the Dirk that you fucked and then ghosted, no, I’m not your Dirk. DIRK: If you mean the Dirk that you felt closest to, that you really knew--

...well, this Dirk still knows how to be a presumptuous, pushy creep.  :(

JAKE: Ahhh! Brain ghost dirk! DIRK: In the ghosty flesh. JAKE: Crumbs bro where have you been? JAKE: I could have used someone on my side! JAKE: You just disappeared one day without even the odd toodaloo to mark your passing! DIRK: That isn’t strictly true. I did disappear, but it was in a catastrophic blaze of hope-drenched pathos. I even threw out a couple one-liners. DIRK: But you wouldn’t remember that. JAKE: Because...it was a different dirk? DIRK: No, a different Jake.

Hhhuh.  So in the claymation-reproduced Lord English stagefight -- or, maybe more likely, the pre-retcon Aranea-induced Game Over timeline -- he was too washed out by hopesplosions to manifest properly?

DIRK: Until recently there’s been a shortage of ambient narrative relevance for Dirks, since one particular motherfucker has been sucking it all up like a thirsty little twink at his first interspecies rave.

Hm!  So Prince Dirk has been making it so other splinters of himself have really limited ability to influence, huh?  Guess that’s a sort of price for the narrative-hijacking power he’s attained.  Wonder how this Dirk really feels about that.

> (==>)

--Pff.  He’s certainly not shy about letting Jake know he shouldn’t trust him, though!  That’s a good sign.

I’ll split the post here for a bit.  Seems we’re about halfway through this upd8 from the look of the log.

[powerovernothing]

Okay so ive been devouring you TKTEATA au and let me tell you its aborable, but as i understand it korbin went through the oblivion crisis , and i have this little hurt/comfort scene that i put all my characters through and it goes as follows " a little child comes up to the HOK and innocently asked them if they were a black smith, when asked why they would think that they get the answer of "because you smell like fire and brimstone it clings to your clothes"

Considering that both of these scenarios are actually rather similar with both of them dealing with instances where Korbin interacts with small and curious children, and I have been putting off the latter for quite some time – mostly because things in real life got in the way, and I honestly really want to apologize to my Mistress Sis for the incredibly long wait for those delicious feelings! – I thought that it wouldn’t hurt to actually combine these both together, and answer at the very same time!

Starting with, of course, taking a moment and personally thanking you for all the wonderful and fantastic support and attention that you’ve been giving my Oblivion Verse lately! I saw the massive amount of notifications through my phone, and I honestly turned completely blood red with happiness at the fact that you enjoyed it so much that you went on a supportive spamming fest!

It means so much, and I am so glad that you enjoy the things I write, and that you enjoy Korbin’s story and his interactions with his brothers. It means so much, and I just want to wrap you in the biggest hug possible! So, thank you, for not only enjoying my things, but also leaving me a wonderful message to get my creative juices flowing!

Now, with that out of the way, let’s get into both of these scenarios dealing with Korbin and the subject of interacting with children, shall we?

(*~*4K Words Split Between Two Scenarios Involving Korbin And Children Underneath The Cut! Tons Of Fluff, Angst, And Other Emotions Abound!*~*)

Throughout the course of my story, especially in the Revised Timeline where things are considerably better – for the most part, at least, Sheogorath’s influence in His Little Raven’s head aside – and Korbin has a chance to live his life with his older adoptive siblings at his side, he actually does interact with children quite regularly. Mostly, and with it referencing the question that Jonathan Crane’s Mistress of Fear sent me, through his time spent with the homeless and those forgotten and abandoned upon the streets of the Waterfront District of the Imperial City.

You see, considering that Korbin spent several of his young childhood yearsalso growing up on those streets, alone and abandoned just as well, he knowshow it feels, and he never wants to see those who are in a similar place sufferwhen there is actually something he can do to help improve and better theirsituation.

So, any of the money that he earns through Dark Brotherhood contracts – early on in the Revised Timeline, and directly after Bellamont’s death – or the work he does assisting the new recruits and everything else at both Lucien and Vicente’s side – seven months after Bellamont’s death, and everything that comes later in the aftermath of the Oblivion Crisis – he takes and uses to help support those on the streets.

He spends it on fresh food, warm blankets, simple weapons so that they might protect themselves, and anything else that might help keep them save throughout the long and difficult nights. Everything that he didn’t have when he was a child. He never minds doing it, always happy to present his packages to those in need, and always smiles and wishes them well whenever he does.

Sometimes he does it in secret, sometimes he interacts with those he helps, itjust all depends… however, in one instance where he was assisting those inthe Waterfront District, and he was in the process of dropping out somepackages, he suddenly felt a weight press against his back.

Instinctively he reached for the dagger that he keeps near his person, unknowing whether or not this was someone who could actually do him harm, but upon turning his head towards the direction of his attacker to cast them a darkened glare as warning, he found emerald eyes staring back into his own golden gaze.

Realizing then what he was mere seconds from doing, his hand quickly fell away from his blade, and his breathing hitched in his throat.

It was a child. A small Argonian girl; barely more than a handful of years in age, clutching onto his armor in a white knuckled grip, as she attempted to bury herself within the folds of the leather with a muffled whimper. She looked frail, disheveled, and absolutely terrified.

Shifting around, he pulled the girl back to arm’s length, and questioned with a gentle chuckle as to why she thought it wise to latch onto the first armor clad stranger upon the streets, and how if he had been anyone else, she would not have been even half as lucky.

He had meant it as a way to quell her frantic emotions, and focus her attention solely upon him, instead of her own feelings and the world around her… but it seemed when he finished speaking, she became even more afraid, and trembled like a leaf underneath his oversized hands upon her shoulders.

It was the direct opposite of what he wanted.

Shutting his eyes briefly, he sighed under his breath because of his misstep, and then reached to carefully cup the side of her face. As the girl reacted to his touch, he slowly raised her chin until their eyes met once again, and then began a very different set of questions in a far softer tone.

What exactly had frightened her in such a way, what he could do to take away the source of her fear, and most important…what would allow her smile to return.

It turned out, what had frightened her so incredibly was the fact that she was hungry, and she wasn’t thinking properly. She was hungry, and she had taken a chance to nab something fresh and warm to eat… however, in the process, she wound up getting caught by the owner of the meal – a very angry, very cruel, very frightening Imperial man – and he processed to describe in detail the things he would to her, before turning her over to the guards so that they might proceed to do the rest to worthless and pitiful thieves.

This alone caused Korbin’s heart to twist in anger, rage, and… familiarity. Because this is exactly the type of thing that he did when he was growing up – in fact, this is the very thing that landed him in the Imperial Prisons in the Original Timeline to begin with, which led to him meeting Uriel and everything that followed – and because of that, when the young girl was able to get free, and then start running in her own tears, and huddle herself against the nearest person she thought could protect her, Korbin proceeded to do that very thing.

He stood his ground against the cruel man, awarding him a swift punch in the face that caused him to fall to his knees, but he merely chuckled as the blood ran down the corner of his lips.

He reached for the dagger at his belt once again, but before he chose to act on every feeling he had, and how he had chosen to take it out on this man alone, he told the young girl to run and hide behind the nearest corner and cover her ears. And, when it was all said and done, he would come and find her, and make certain she was protected more properly from anything and everything that tried to hurt her from thereon.

In the aftermath of the man’s death, and once Korbin hastily cleaned himself of the blood of his victim and went and found the girl just as he promised… she latched herself onto him and saw him as a helpful giant that would keep her safe from the world around her. In a sense, think of it as the relationship between the Little Sister’s, and the Big Daddy’s of the Bioshock series.

She looks up at him, and she sees someone who is larger than life itself. Someone who is basically a hero, a Knight in Shining Armor, and someone that she cares about and knows will protect her.

Contrary to what you may think, he doesn’t instantly snatch her up and take her back to the warm comforts of Cloud Ruler Temple to introduce her to his adoptive brothers. Even though there is a part of him that truly wants to do that, and make certain she is cared for, he knows it would be too much of a shock. So, instead, he allows her to grab his hand, and take him to where she stays within the Waterfront District.

The young girl doesn’t speak much, she is hardly three years old in the human equivalent to her Argonian age, and mostly just mutters or whispers, thus she takes his hand with a small whisper of ‘Home’ and drags him to her special place. To the outside eye, it’s nothing special. A makeshift blanket fort that a normal child would have, but Korbin?

He is patient, he is understanding, and is absolutely telling her in many words how wonderful it is, and how pretty she made it, and asks politely if he can snuggle under the blankets as well just to be playful and make her laugh.

He always goes out of his way to leave her extra gifts, and small packages to keep her warm and protected, and in one instance where he does visit her the next time around… and the young girl has somehow managed to fall very sick because of the exposure to the elements around her, that is when he scoops her up and takes her back to the warmth of Cloud Ruler Temple.

She remains underneath his and his brother’s care for a short while, and they eventually end up finding her a proper family to adopt and raise her when it is time for her and her protectors to go their separate ways. However, if you’re wanting to know more about this young Argonian girl in more detail than what I mentioned in the above, allow me!

Her name is Me’elni, although her translated name would actually be Whispered-Melodies. She is four years old in Argonian, although that would translate into three years old when you do the math in terms of human years.

(I have an entire life span chart that I made for the different races of theElder Scrolls world when I was in the process of creating side characters forKorbin’s story, so if you ever want to see it for reference or just out ofcuriosity, just ask and I’ll post it up!) 

She was born in Midyear 430 of the Third Era, thus making her Birthsign be The Steed in the Elder Scrolls world, and Gemini in the real-life Zodiac equivalent. She is incredibly short, around 3′8″, and barely comes up to Korbin’s thigh. As mentioned above, she hardly talks – as she is very young, and the world around her is terrifying, and no one was here to teach her how to speak properly – but when she is under the care of Korbin and his brothers, she is able to start speaking in single phrases and gives the boys special nicknames because of her time spent within their care.

Korbin’s chosen nicknames are either‘Tall’, from when she first met him, ‘Safe’ when she started being in his care, or ‘Da’ when she started becoming incredibly attached to him. Martin’s nicknames are ‘Glowy’, from his magic and the times where he entertained her through various light shows, as well as ‘Warm’, because of the way his magic feels to her touch. And for Lucien? ‘Pointy’, because one of the first things she noticed about him was his dagger, and then ‘Dark’ because of the way he tends to dress in his black robing.

Her design is based off of a red bearded dragon, and because of this, she tends to ‘poof out’ and hiss whenever she is overly angry, or whenever she is trying to look threatening to those that seem to be scary – yes, she hissed at Lucien, and he found it overly adorable as he has a weakness for young Argonians being a father of two in the past – and whenever she is incredibly happy or excited, she tends to stomp around or wave her arms back and forth. She also has an intense weakness for the tastes of blueberries and cannot get enough of sweets that are made from them.

She also has quite an ear for music, and in her adult life she becomes a lute player that travels with a band of bards. She never gets to the point where she is able to speak easily, or clearly, but she is able to weave music so nicely that she says everything she needs to through her songs. However, another thing I feel as though I should speak about in relation to Me’elni is that she… is actually the daughter of Runs-In-Circles in my Oblivion Verse.

I’m still currently in the process of working out every single detail relating to her mother’s history – as well as giving her a proper name one of these days – but I know for a fact that she had ties to the Thieves Guild at some point in her early life, and when she gave birth to her daughter, and tried to do whatever was needed to provide for her and keep her safe, she somehow managed to make her way to the Shivering Isles, and is unable to make her way out of the hold that he has on her.

But some part of her, is still very much aware of her past life, as even in her Mania addled mind, she still calls out to the daughter she wishes to go back to – whenever she runs around and screams ‘Nini’ over and over again.

Nini is Me’elni’s affectionate nickname.

Is that sad? Is that just a little too far over the edge in terms of angst? Perhaps so, but welcome to my Oblivion Verse, here are your free package of tissues, and please feel free to leave your heart at the door! In any case, I believe that about covers one of those scenarios, based around what would happen if Korbin befriended and temporarily adopted a young homeless girl… now to tackle the over scenario that you left for me, my dear and wonderful Lady La Luna!

Now, this one really made me start thinking about things in a more creative sense, I have to say! It‘s so very interesting, so very unique, and I honestly just wanted to try and give you a more in depth answer than what you were probably expecting!

Well, I mean, as you can see, I tend to go above and beyond in terms of details… but as for your scenario, how about I answer it with what Korbin would do in both the Original Timeline – the one in which the events of Oblivion take place without any massive change, and thus Korbin loses his brothers in the end – as well as how he would react in the Revised Timeline – where Korbin makes a deal with Sheogorath to reverse the timeline and rewrite the story so that he can save his brothers from their fates – at the same time?

After all, in both timelines Korbin is a very different person, and would have different reactions if a child suddenly came up to him and asked him this question and gave that reasoning behind it. So, let’s start with the Original Timeline answer, shall we?

In the Original Timeline there was a bit of a gap between the ending of the Oblivion Crisis, Martin’s death, and Korbin choosing to head to the Shivering Isles.

In the aftermath of Martin’s death, and when Chancellor Ocato came to Korbin’s – basically comatose – side as he knelt in front of the nearly formed Akatosh statue, and the remains of the shattered Amulet of Kings, and asked where Martin had gone, and why he was no longer present… Korbin reacted by suddenly standing to his feet, rushing out into the falling rain, and getting as much distance as he could before he collapsed down to his knees and screamed out in agony of everything that had happened.

And when he was done, and his screaming was finished, and his throat was raw? Then he simply started walking.

He got on the road, he headed southwards, to which would eventually lead him to Bravil, and numbly continued on until he hoped the road would finally give out at some point. So, in this scenario, let us say that Korbin actually went into and stayed at Bravil for a while before heading towards the Strange Door that would take him to the Shivering Isles. He is numb, he is broken, he is hardly feeling a single thing, and hardly allowing himself to react in any possible way that isn’t in bitter sadness.

And if a child came up to him? If a child tugged on the leg of his Shrouded Armor and innocently asked him if he was a blacksmith? I think that strange question would be enough to knock Korbin out of his daze for a time.

He doesn’t want to be rude, he doesn’t want to ignore the child, after all… for some reason this child wished to come up to him – the stranger who had, unknowingly to this child, lost everything and everyone he had ever loved – and ask him a question. So, who would he be if he didn’t take the time to answer? Thus, Korbin would kneel down, put on his best fake smile, and wonder why this young boy – let’s say boy in this scenario, as in the other it was a girl – is asking him something like that.

Does he look that messy? Does he look as though he’s been working with steel all day that he is sweating? Or is this child simply confused? And when the young boy answers him, and telling him that he asked because he smelt like fire and brimstone, and the scent has managed to cling itself to his clothing…

…Well, that would be enough for Korbin to make his choice to leave Cyrodiil behind him. If the fact that the scent, the memory, and the regret of what he had done within those damnable Gates of Oblivion still linger even after a week of traveling from the Imperial City to Bravil… then he needs to move on somehow.

His smile would falter, he would pet the boy’s head, and tell him that no, he’s not a blacksmith. He’s just a very dirty, very messy man, who has made so many bad choices that it’s about time that he did something to clean himself up.

And at first, his thoughts lead down a much more darkened road, to where he wishes he could simply find the nearest cliffside and end up reuniting with his brothers one way or another, but when he leaves Bravil and he sees a glowing door in the distance, that is when his choice is made for him, and the pieces start to fall into place.

But in the Revised Timeline? When everything is a touch better, and his brothers are alive and well, and he does not have the guilt he carries from his mistakes of the Original Timeline? He would be in considerable better spirits.

He would laugh with the young boy, asking if he truly looks that messy, and if he should consider leaping into the nearest lake to bathe himself properly! Is this why his brothers seemed to sneer at him lately? Because of the way he smelt? Dear sweet Sithis, he should do something about this, and stat!

He would shake his hair, playfully state that – oh no, now the young boy is just as messy as he is whatever shall we both do! – and then pick the boy up and spin him around for a moment. Saying that perhaps the two of them should head home to their families and get themselves a nice bath before they are scolded from their lack of personal hygiene!

And when the young child walks off with a large smile on his face, and hopefully a giggle to match that smile, he would return to what he was doing with a smile as well.

But for a more secret reason.

After all, he knows that the scent of Oblivion still lingers on his clothing, and possibly even on his own body, and perhaps that scent will never actually leave – no matter how many times he bathes himself or tries to wipe it clean. But Korbin doesn’t mind too much. Even though it is a reminder of everything he had tried to forget, every horror, every Daedra, every flame, or burn, or injury from the depth of those Gates, he takes it all in stride.

Because he survived those Gates. He survived the Crisis. He is alive, even when he thought he would lose his life so many times before, and his brothers are alive just as well.

All three of them are alive… and if the scent of Oblivion has to remain on him for the rest of his life somehow, then he will simply accept it, and look at it as a reminder of something better. A better outcome, a better life, a happier existence, and one where he will share with his family at his side. And honestly, all things considered,Korbin truly doesn’t think that’s all too bad of a trade~

…Oh, my goodness, that wound up turning out way longer than I first planned for it to be! Looking at my word count at the moment, it’s nearly four thousand words, and I am still in the process of going! I’m so sorry that this ended up being quite the ramble, and thus quite the read for you to sit through, but I loved both yours and my dear Mistress Sis’ question and scenarios so much, that I would have honestly felt so bad if I didn’t take the time to try and give you the answer that you both so rightfully deserved!

If you both managed to get through this massive read, then I mostly certainly want to applaud your devotion and desire to learn a little bit more about Korbin and his interactions with children!

My dear Sis, I’m so sorry that I took forever to get around to replying to your question properly, and I’m sorry that I kind of had to end up combining things together in the end, but I hope that you don’t mind! I hope that you like the young Argonian girl that Korbin partially adopted, as well as the scenario and information that I posted above about her and his interactions, and that it somehow managed to put a smile on your face!

I know that you aren’t that big of a fan of Elder Scrolls, but truly – and I’ve probably stated this so many times over in the last little while – your support and care for Korbin always warms my heart. I’m so glad that you like my boy, his story, and the things that he creates. I always cherish and adore your questions, and I look forward to answering the rest of them soon! Thank you again, darling!

And, dear Lady La Luna! Let me just say that it truly means a lot that you enjoyed my work so much! Seeing the wave of activity in my feed just made my entire night, and your support, your curiosity, and your questions means more than you will know, and I hope that my given answer for your scenario will be something that you will end up enjoying by the time you’re finished reading it over!

And not only that, but I hope the upcoming things that I have planned for Korbin and his tale with his adoptive siblings will be something that you will enjoy the further it goes on!

In any case, I know that this is long, and has been filled with tons of emotions on both sides, but I just wanted to say thank you again. You guys’ support, and desire to hear, learn, and know more about Korbin and his story is what keeps me going even when my creativity decides to take a break at times!

So, I appreciate, love, and adore each and every single one of you! And Korbin does just as well, I promise you that! Thanks again for the great questions, and the wonderful support, and until the next time I decide to ramble on about a silver haired boy and his silly siblings! Hugs and kisses all around! ♥

[janiedean]

Mood lightener ask, I am intrigued by book recs from you since you mentioned something about a dinosaur series a bit ago? Color me intrigued so top five books you'd recommend for people who enjoy ASoIaF?

OH GOD THANK YOU XDDD

okay so, I’m taking the dinosaurs out first because... well. hahah.

the dinosaur lords is ABSOLUTELY a thing you might wanna try out if you like asoiaf for reasons, BUT I’m warning you, the author died before finishing it (unless he wrote the last three but didn’t have publishing contract for the second part of the six-books plan but no one quite knows and no idea) so most likely you’ll never get a conclusion, warning you beforehand so that’s why I’m putting it outside the top five. BUT IF YOU LIKE ASOIAF YOU SHOULD STILL TRY IT because:

the author was a friend of grrm’s and it shows;

it’s literally asoiaf except people go around on dinosaurs;

NO, REALLY;

there’s at least a couple characters who are totally asoiaf homages (there’s a dude named jaume who’s basically jaime and loras’s lovechild I SWEAR HE IS HE’S EVEN THE HEAD OF THE LOCAL KINGSGUARD) but not in a way that makes it look like plagiarism;

admittedly it takes a bit to find its rhythm, but when it does it’s really good because the worldbuilding is amazing and like... it’s basically fictional medieval europe with dinosaurs but to a really good degree and the representation is a+++, in the sense that idk one of the main four is obv. irish romani (or what irish romani are in that universe), a few are def. catalan, the french guy is really so french you wanna die, the italian dude actually comes from the oldest university in the realm, there’s people from russia/greece and the protagonist is basically some three eastern europeans countries thrown in one character but not stereotypically, like the guy is obv. a mix of russian/polish/mongol and he’s really a good character in that sense, there’s germans too, spanish ofc, like it’s really good in that sense

DINOSAURS FIGHTING DINOSAURS WHILE THEIR KNIGHTS RIDE THEM

there’s an entire supernatural angle with ARCHANGELS WHO MIGHT BE ROBOTS which is honestly intriguing and a+ and I just wish the books hadn’t finished just before going deep into it

if you also want lgbt+ rep............. well, two out of the three supposedly straight characters are irish romani dude and the protagonist and I can 100% assure you that everyone I dragged into reading those books agreed with me that in each single scene they have together (ie: most of them) they’re gayer than Actual Gay People in these books, but other than them half of the cast is bi, the gay sex is better written than the straight sex (forreal there’s one of the few actually.... sexy m/m oral sex scenes I read in published fiction???), their sexuality is not the whole of their personality but it’s fairly stated that most of them are Really Not Straight and it’s really done well;

actually THE ENTIRE KINGSGUARD IS GUYS WHO FIGHT VERY WELL BUT LOVE ARTS AS WELL AND THEY ALL SLEEP WITH EACH OTHER EXCEPT THE TOKEN STRAIGHT FRENCH CHARACTER THAT THE JAIME AND LORAS LOVECHILD HAS A CRUSH ON and ngl I thought they would end up fucking at some point if the books went on so... XDDD anyway a+++ kingsguard >>> the one in asoiaf;

ngl at some points there’s some badly written sex scenes (the straight ones lmao I’m 99,9% sure milàn was not that straight himself) and it’s not half as complex as asoiaf and doesn’t have as many characters but it has the same scheme except with dinosaurs, archangels being robots and three people are straight and two of them are in love anyway;

so tldr I greatly recommend the dinosaur lords if you want something similar to asoiaf, don’t expect an ending, enjoy dinosaurs and a lot of nice rep for everyone. also Y’ALL HAVE TO SHIP ROB AND KARYL WITH ME BECAUSE THEY’RE RIDICULOUS.

.... wow, and you asked me the top five. lmaaaaao. anyway, given that the dinosaur lords will not be in the top five, I’ll go and advise you to read:

IAN TREGILLIS’S ALCHEMY WARS, which is not like **fantasy** but it’s alternate history where the netherlands win the colonial wars in the 16th century because they figure out how to make brass androids and they use it to basically destroy the british and drive the french to canada while they conquer the US instead of the british. it’s a trilogy, it’s completed, it’s flawless and features: FRENCH CATHOLICS VS DUTCH CALVINISTS WITH THE FRENCH WANTING TO TAKE BACK PARIS, PREDESTINATION VS FREE WILL IN THE ANDROIDS DISCOURSE, REHASH OF 16TH/17TH CENTURY PHILOSOPHY DONE GREATLY, the greatest female character of genre literature since grrm (berenice GUYS BERENICE IS THE BEST GOD I LOVE HER SFM), the evil antagonist who’s a gal cersei wishes she was (like she’s terrible but she’s competent), the davos-like french general who knits in his spare time and the protagonist is the cinnamon roll-est android ever I love him sfm OH and the one time I cried because of a catholic fictional priest. guys tregillis is an a+++ top notch writer who has no time to waste with fillers and knows how to write a story even if HE HATES ME AND HE WANTS ME TO SUFFER and like... alchemy wars is really really good give it a go k?1,5. tregillis also wrote another alternate history trilogy, the milkweed tryptich, which is basically ‘the nazis create the x-men to win the war and so the british counteract by evoking ctuhulu and it goes exactly as it promises’. now: I have a love-hate rship with that one because the last book is narratively working but I hate everything it chose to be for reasons also i wanna punch the protagonist in the face, but thesuperevilgirl is totes the cersei of the situation and her brother has.... some srs jaime moments lmao he’s also my favorite ofc god klaus ily so much, and it has... some... well... ENGAGING choices lol I mean i loved book one and two and the third I did reluctantly but it could be an option? anyway ian tregillis is amazing and y’all should read him bye

the curse of chalion by lois mcmaster bujold has, as the amazing soul who recommended it to me pointed out, a protagonist that manages to be jaime and theon and partially sandor put into one. IT AMAZINGLY WORKS. the plot is kiiiinda more straightforward if you know spanish history bc the moment you figure out it’s the fantasy version of how castille and aragona united you know where it heads, but it has a lot of nice twists, also some a+ lgbt+ rep tho not as much as the dinosaur lords and the protagonist is.... really great I love him XD also ngl the fact that it ends fairly nicely is a balm so I’d try it, there’s other books in the same verse but I haven’t gotten around to read them yet

... guys stephen king’s dark tower is my fantasy favorite series EVER like ever, I love asoiaf and brienne is in my heart and she’s my true rep but nothing will top TDT for me ever for reasons and while it’s a completely different thing I still recommend it. caveat: I hate the last book with a vengeance and I think king fucked up the last two thirds real bad, but..... hey, it’s finished and the rest is 100% worth it. also jaime is totally the lovechild of the male protagonist and the other male-coprotagonist who are also my #1 ship ever in history so I’d give it a go ;) ;) ;) also while eddie’s my fave roland deschain is honestly the kind of character that you can only bow in front of like if I ever made an oc one hundredth as good as roland is in conception and execution and everything I’d feel like I accomplished everything I need in life. IT’S WORTH IT. TRY IT.

terry pratchett’s discworld: yes, it’s 41 books. yes it’s a lot. but you can read them by cycle which makes it a lot easier, they’re fun (the first three are a bit meh but the rest is all top notch I swear), they’re sarcastic and witty and delightful and it’s a++++ fantasy and I’ve been wanting to do the asoiaf au for ages sigh but anyway if you don’t want dark and grim but also want a+++ narrative, good satire about how our world sucks and a lot of fun at the expense of our pop culture (guys the book about their version of australia is a hoot and there’s a leonardo da vinci!!) GO FOR IT. IT’S AMAZING. also your life isn’t complete until you read about sam vimes and the local version of death speaking in capslock and being a cat person. also charles dance plays one of the mains in one of the tv adaptations and he was delightful xD

this is going to gain me rotten tomatoes, but....... grrm’s shared series wild cards. that he has going on with fifteen other writers including the aforementioned tregillis and milàn.yes, it’s like 28 books by now. no, it’s not perfect by all means and certain arcs are a total wtf and you don’t even have to read all of it, but especially grrm’s characters in it are obvious templates for asoiaf people (the powerful and amazing turtle is dark sam tarly and jay ackroyd is basically jaime without the incest and the extra good looks while lohengrin is brienne’s spiritual twin except for the looks), the shared worldbuilding is great, the alternate history story where buddy holly didn’t die and some of the protagonists organized a concert for him bc he was poor as hell was genius, and while a lot of the older stuff is dated and most likely was progressive for the eighties and would read a bit wonky now they always were super-inclusive, it has a bunch of nonwhite/nonstraight characters (esp. in the last books but there were also in the old ones, and the longest-standing gay dude since the eighties got a husband in the last trilogy!!! it was so ;_;), the alternate history is really good imvho and if you enjoy asoiaf you probably would like most of wild cards. if you want a reading order I made one here. xD

here you go sorry it took me one hour to answer it but IT GOT LONG XDD

[victorluvsalice]

Forgotten Vows Friday: Favorite Moments, Part IV

It's my BIRTHDAY! :D And much like the 13th was the perfect day to talk about the darkest moments I love in this series, I think today is the perfect day to talk about the brightest moments -- aka, my absolute favorite favorites. I don't think any of you are going to be surprised by this list:

1. Forgetting You, Chapter 9: Splatter Gets What He's Owed -- Victor punching Jack Splatter and rescuing Alice from the burning Mangled Mermaid -- Okay, first of all, I like this chapter in general because it was one of the first I did after getting some solid writing tips from reading the first book of the Riverworld series (namely, "I do not want to write like this"), and I feel it represents a big jump in quality in my storytelling. And this particular moment -- oh, it was satisfying to finally give Splatter exactly what he deserved for hitting Alice! (Which is, uh, kind of why I kept doing it. XD) Not to mention I threw myself into properly describing the burning Mermaid and Victor's rescue of Alice, and I feel it turned out beautifully. (I still like "If the exterior of the Mangled Mermaid was a glimpse at Pastor Galswells's favorite vision of Hell, the interior was the full Time-Of-Judgment-Featuring-Dante-And-Virgil experience.") Not to mention I liked letting Victor play the hero for Alice, as she was going to be playing the hero for him for much of the rest of the verse!

2. Forgetting You, Chapter 24: Confrontation At Moorgate Station -- Victor punching Bumby during the brief moment he broke free of his control -- Speaking of satisfying moments where someone gets what they deserve. . .ooh, this felt good to write after Chapter 22! Bumby obviously deserves worse, but that moment where it becomes clear he never truly broke Victor -- well, Alice wasn't the only one bouncing up and down in delight. XD

3. Forgetting You, Chapter 25: Into Londerland -- Alice shoving Bumby in front of the train -- Obviously I have to include what is also one of my favorite moments in Alice: Madness Returns itself. I was so worried that he was going to get away scott-free, and then Alice took matters into her own hands, and it was great. And I think I did a good job in translating the moment into text, particularly Bumby's shock as Alice turns to face him as her Wonderland self. (Which he definitely saw her as, thanks to my Alice having a natural talent for a certain disguise spell. . .) Not to mention the exchange right before she shoves him:

"Could you kill a fly?" echoed in her head, the Dollmaker trying to get in one last shot from beyond the grave.

I can kill a lot more than that, she replied, and used her free hand to give Bumby one good, hard shove.

Eeee~ So good.

4. Remembering You, Chapter 13: Taking Back The Crown -- Victor defeating the Bumby Heart within the Wall, and regaining his memories -- Again, more satisfying moments against Bumby -- or, at least the remnant of him still left in Victor's head. The whole fight against the Wall, with Victor wielding Alice's weapons against the Ruin, was great to write, but the final battle? Victor clawing his way back from the edge of oblivion thanks to remembering Alice's eyes? The memory of getting the fork from Ms. Plum becoming the initial form of the Vorpal Fork? Victor staring the Heart down as it starts panicking? The "MY! NAME! IS! VICTOR!" line right before he stabs it?! *chef's kiss* That was so good, both to write and to read afterward. :D And then afterward, designing the first form of his Otherland -- the sweet little forest where his memories come back? That was a great way to destress after the fight. Just what Victor and I needed.

5. Remembering You, Chapter 14: So Kiss Me – Victor and Alice's first kiss -- It's their first kiss I'm not supposed to pick this? XD More seriously, this was a sweet and wonderful moment to finally write. And it probably helps that I took some inspiration from one of my favorite Disney movies, Enchanted -- you know how Victor picks up Alice and spins her around a bit? I had in mind Giselle getting spun around by Prince Edward when they reunite in Robert's apartment. (Yeah, I know, wrong couple, but I still thought it was a cute moment!) After so much time spent with them either pining but shoving down their feelings, or being utterly oblivious, or being in love but struggling past lingering mental issues. . .damn, it just felt good to have them finally smooch.

6. Fixing You, Chapter 7: Heck Though Ain't It Grand – Alice's reunion with Lizzie in the Land of the Dead -- I know this was one of the two "big moments" everyone wanted to see in the series, and I was more than happy to deliver. Mostly because it was a moment I wanted to see myself. Setting up the surprise of Lizzie being Burtonsville, not in Oxford, was a lot of fun in-universe, and the actual moment when the two sisters saw each other again – even I "awwwed" internally when they flung themselves into each other's arms. :) It was just so heartfelt. . . The follow-up hug between Alice and her parents when they finally reach the Ball & Socket is great too. Just – I know this is the thing Alice has wanted most ever since the series began, and I was thrilled to give it to her. (And this leading to the final defeat of that damned Jabberwock was a great bonus! Call that an "honorable mention" on this list.)

7. Fixing You, Chapter 10: The Grand Wonderland Tour – Victor and Alice's tour of Wonderland – Yes, the entire chapter. This is the other big thing everyone wanted, and, again, more than happy to deliver. This whole chapter is probably my favorite in the whole series, just because I had so much fun coming up with stuff for Victor and Alice to do in all the various domains! It was like a "greatest hits" of every fun "Victor and Alice in Wonderland" scenario I've ever thought of! :D Personal favorites within the chapter itself are the mine cart ride in the Village of the Doomed (it was fun going back to AMA, coming up with a special suit and dress for the mains for the "domain," and it was very interesting to look up stuff on early roller coasters!), Victor and Alice building a sand castle in the Music Fish's "Choral Coral" spot (that's my personal favorite bit in the Deluded Depths when it comes to the scenery, and it brought back fond memories of being on the beach and watching Mom make sand sculptures), the battle against the Army Ants (more fun with AMA stuff, and a good opportunity to show the pair's battle skills – not to mention, I love the way they got the Ants to back off in the end), and Victor and Alice's race through Cardbridge (again, my favorite level in A:MR, and them just getting to play like kids in this beautiful world was -- I swear, I was smiling and squeeing so much writing that bit. . .). But the whole thing was fantastic, and I think well-worth the wait!

8. Fixing You Chapter 16: Round Three: The Conglomeration. . .and Thirteen – Victor redeeming Thirteen, and the full creation of his Otherland afterward -- I like the whole sequence in Silent Burtonsville (Victor going Hysteria to kill the Colossal Nell when she threatens Alice is definitely an “honorable mention” moment), but the final confrontation definitely makes favorite. Victor and Alice finally recognizing just what it is he's struggling with, and Alice convincing Victor that the only one who sees himself as a monster is him, leading to him forgiving himself. . .ooooof. It just hits you right in the feels, doesn't it? The moment of him hugging his corrupted self, whispering that he doesn't hate him? How could you not sniffle, seriously? And then, after Thirteen's redemption back into Desire, the whole bit where Victor starts getting into what he actually wants his Otherland to look like. . .once again, had so much fun doing the descriptions! I was as enthusiastic as Victor about the whole thing! And Victor's joy at seeing the Living Dead Forest come to life outside the window? So much squee, seriously. Love it.

9. Fixing You, Chapter 18: A Day For A Glorious Wedding – Victor and Alice's wedding – Again, this is their wedding, I wasn't supposed to pick it?! XD I'm pretty sure we were all VERY READY for this to finally go down by the time it happened, and I was just thrilled to finally put it to paper. I mean, I'd had Victor's reaction to Alice's dress stored away in a "notes" file for ages, but to actually get them in front of that registrar, do the vows, go back to Houndsditch and have that cake. . .it did my heart good, seriously. Especially that moment when Victor hears Alice say her vows back to him, and all he can think is that he didn't want to cry. . . Even if it wasn't necessarily the most "romantic" way to get married, I still just wanted to sweep them up in a big hug and weep for a while. XD And then the reception afterwards in the Land of the Dead, with Victor and Alice getting a surprise party from their dead loved ones, Victoria finally getting a chance to see the place, June reuniting with her mother and meeting her brother, and the kids giving Victor his pictures back? I don't think I could have ended that story any more perfectly.

10. A Wedding, A Wedding, We're Going To Have A Wedding, Chapter 7: In A World Of Our Own – Victor and Alice's Wonderland reception – Honestly, the whole fic is a win for me (as probably evidenced by the way it kept growing chapters), but the last bit, which was a complete last-minute "oh hey, if I did a Land of the Dead reception for Victor and Alice, I should do a Wonderland one too!" is just – so full of fluff, I swear. I wasn't expecting it to be so squee-inducing and squishy when I first came up with the idea, but. . .Alice's Wonderland and Victor's Otherland merging like they do, with the inhabitants of both their minds teaming up to give them a party? Showing once and for all they've stopped beating themselves up about stuff for the most part? Awwwwww. . .the bit that really gets me, though, is the very last part:

[. . .] Victor turned to offer Alice his arm as the various citizenry hurried off through the combined woods –

Then paused. A playful grin crossed his face. "What?" Alice asked, raising an eyebrow. "What are – Oh!"

Alice automatically grabbed for his neck as he suddenly scooped her up into his arms. "Oh," she repeated, trying to get her bearings. "Er – any particular reason for giving me a lift?"

"Well, you're my new wife," Victor told her, adjusting his grip. He nodded at the join between their two worlds, the Vale of Tears and the Living Dead Forest mingling in perfect harmony. "Aren't I supposed to carry you over the threshold?"

Oh, he was such a sap – and she loved him for it. "You are," she confirmed, snuggling into him. "If you would, Mr. Liddell?"

"My pleasure, Mrs. Van Dort."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH – no I DON'T know why that affects me so much but it FREAKING DOES. It just – ooof. *flops* Best way to end anything about their wedding, I swear.

And that covers it! All my favorite moments in the Forgotten Vows Verse! :D Hopefully you guys saw a few of your favorites in here as well. . . I'll see you all in the New Year! With any luck, we'll get some more content for this world, and maybe even a few more favorite moments. :)

[rueitae]

2018 Fic Roundup

I did this last year and it was nice to do some self reflection and make some goals for 2019. I encourage all my writer friends to do this! No tagging necessary, just tell each other to do it. <3

It’s long, so putting the rest of the fic and reflection questions under the cut.

Stats:

Fics Posted (Gen): 6

Space Birthday (9,595 words): Hunk can feel it in his bones; it’s his birthday. He wants to have a nice one... and does... after accidentally raiding a Galra outpost with Lance and Pidge.

Pilot (4,340): Shiro finds himself in a different reality post s2. Here, the mechs are called Gundams. (Shiro in the Gundam Wing universe/reality)

Code (7,321): Pidge and the others keep fond memories of Earth through oldies musical trivia. It comes in handy on a mission.

Self Insert (6,357): Lance reads a story to his niece and nephew on the eve he leaves for school at the Galaxy Garrison. The kids have Opinions on how it should go.(i totally still need to change their names to the canon ones)

Too Soon and Not Soon Enough (1,796): Keith is 13 and is supposed to go to the Galaxy Garrison next year at Shiro’s encouragement. Until the Galra invade and plans change.

Welcome to the Neighborhood (2,237): Allura gets used to being not dead and that includes meeting her cosmic neighbors.

Fics Posted (Plance): 17

Wrong Diamond (2,384): Gentlemen thief AU. “At midnight, I will steal the heart of Voltron,” the note says. Pidge has a thief to catch.

Diamond in the Rough (8,045): prequel to Wrong Diamond. How they meet!

Road Trip (4,710): Lance and Pidge are back on Earth. Zarkon has the others and the two are on the run from a bureaucratic Galaxy Garrison that doesn’t want the world to know about aliens yet. Oh, and Lotor is with them.

Exsanguination (16,255): Pidge is a vampire hunter captured by Haggar. She finds some unlikely help in the vampire’s similarly undead servant.

Power Up! (3,500): Pidge is on the cusp of finding out where Zarkon is holding her father using less than legal methods. She’s caught in the act by her lab partner (Lance, a superhero in training).

Plance on Ice (2,300): A figure skating AU! Pidge and Lance are former competitive partners having a date free time on the ice

Being Plance (3,900): Pidge and Lance pull a personality switch prank over on the rest of the team. Canon verse.

Keeping Cool (3,098): Mermaid AU! Pidge is in trouble with pirates and gets some unexpected help from the sea.

The Cake (839): Canon verse, Lance gets a cake for his birthday and assumes it’s from Hunk.

Frostbite (6,109): Pidge is a renowned super villain. Lance is a hero in training with something to prove. Lance over uses his powers one day and Pidge has some soul searching to do.

Crystal Clear (5,516): Another superhero AU. Lance is captured by his arch nemesis. They have a heart-to-heart, taunt, and flirt.

The Secrets of Beasts (2,007): AU canon verse. Years down the road, Green keeps Pidge from going on a mission with the others. It takes Kosmo to find out why.

See You Yesterday (8,132): Lance works nervously as a bartender for a 1920s mafia when all he wanted to do was leave the farming life. One night he gets a strange patron who changes his life - and his perspective of the world. Time travel AU

Shot Through the Heart (1,087): post canon AU. Lance and Pidge keep Nadia and Sylvio entertained.

Seasons of Magic (11,744): Pidge is a mage. Lance is her dragon familiar. Series of domestic-ish one shots. Not in sequential order.

Between Rocks and A Hard Place (8,144): Canon verse. Pidge and Lance are trapped due to a caved-in mine, with pirates waiting for them on the other side. And Pidge is hurt.

Cow-parent Trapped (1,099): s8 canon continuation. Pidge visits Lance at the farm and does not expect Kaltenecker to make them talk to each other.

Lotura 1

Birthday Prompt #5 (5,500): Oh gosh I never named it. Fantasy AU in which Lotor is essentially Rapunzel and Allura is Aurora with a better (depending on who you ask) birth-prophesy. Tiny hint of Shallura in this as well.

Collaborations: 3

First Encounters for the (Altean Plance AU): Pidge is an independent noblewoman and Lance is her bodyguard. Writing done with @hushman and @pidge-suggestions

To Sail, To Break, To Earn (Plance - 10,268): Lance is a pirate and Pidge is a mermaid. There’s also a curse involved. With @sp4c3-0ddity

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like A Christmas Carol (Plance- 14,384): post s8 canon verse with @hailqiqi and @sp4c3-0ddity. Exactly as the title says. Lance is the subject of a ghostly intervention. Crack treated seriously.

Fey AU (Plance): with @vivalachocolate this was @sp4c3-0ddity ‘s prompt to Viva but I was nosy and added a chapter and I’m so glad she wasn’t mad at me for it. 😅

Ship/Character breakdown:

Ship breakdown:

I guess the 17 Plance fics speak for themselves. I did write one Lotura fic as a special birthday prompt because @ritsykitty is such a good friend.

Character breakdown:

I have a gen fic for each Paladin, but then the Plance fics outnumber those, so Lance and Pidge would be my go to.

Characters that had the main focus:

So for character POV, each Paladin has one, then within Plance, Pidge has 12 and Lance has 7. Interesting, I thought it was more even. Hunk had a POV in a Plance fic too briefly!

Specifics:

Best/worst title?

Best title: Urgh I liked a lot of them. Too Soon and Not Soon Enough probably. I like how it summarizes the story without telling you how, but by the end you know.

Worst title: Seasons of Magic aka I tried to come up with a clever title when I realized I wasn’t done with it. It’s so bland to me. I’m also basically trying to rebrand from mage/familiar AU. I don’t think it’s working 😅 (not that I care I’m trying to make it easier to reference but I’m too late)

Best/worst last line?

Best: “I love you too, Pidge,” he [Lance] says, nestling her head to his chest and not bothering to correct her. “You’re the best nemesis a hero could ask for.” - I love that line so much, from Crystal Clear. Enemies to lovers is such a good trope.

Worst: Pidge groans. At this rate her double life is definitely doomed to unravel. - for how much I love Frostbite, I really hate how lame it ends. Like I totally could have said that better or continued the scene a bit but I am LAZY.

General questions:

Looking back, did you write more fics than you thought you would this year, less than you thought, or about what you predicted?

I wrote waaaaaaay more than expected. I figured I’d write something every few months. Now I can write a 2k fic in a setting if I’m on game.

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted last year?

I was just doing gen fic last year, never would I have expected to be so taken by Plance that it became my main muse.

What’s your favorite story this year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you the happiest.

Honestly? Probably Pilot. It was one of my earliest VLD fic ideas to do a Gundam Wing crossover and to actually finish a one shot early in the year (when I was still dipping my feet into fandom again) just made me so so happy. I still smile thinking about the continuation possibilities. One of my favorite parts of Shiro’s character is that he is the ace pilot. Because of Keith’s role that sometimes gets overshadowed. I was so pleased to get to highlight that.

Okay, NOW your most popular story.

On Ao3, that would be Exsanguination. No surprise there, it was my first posted Plance fic and I continued it.

On Tumblr it’s First Encounters, the first of the Altean Plance AU based on the art and headcanons. I was just struck with a clear opening image one afternoon and wrote it all right then and there. I had no idea it would be so well received.

Story most underappreciated by the universe?

Space Birthday. It may have been a bit of a mess since it was my very first VLD fic, but it has everything I love. Hunk bonding with an ‘enemy’ over cooking, Team Punk, Plance in distress, Hunk saves the day thanks to mechanics. Also heartfelt stuff with Keith. And he’s the only Paladin besides Lance to get an actual birthday themed fic from me.

Story that could have been better?

I really hate to say Wrong Diamond, but I totally could have done much better with it. It feels skimpy. Probably why I am still writing in the AU.

Sexiest story?

Ha. That would be a tie between Crystal Clear and Exsanguination. The first I actually tried and the second completely by accident. I’m not sure it worked though.

Saddest story?

All my sad fics have a bit of crack to them. Pilot is pretty melancholy. Crystal Clear has a good Plance argument that gets heated. Road Trip in general though might take the cake. It’s full of angst amid some humor due to the premise.

Most fun?

Shot Through the Heart in terms of tone.

Story with single sweetest moment? Space Birthday

"Uh, Keith, hold up a tic."

Confused, Keith turned back around. "What?"

Hunk rubbed the back of his neck. "So uh, you know we're friends right? Like, I meant what I said we're like brothers. We're tight. I mean, we share a mind inside of a giant robot."

Keith blinked, clearly surprised. "Yeah, I kinda got that from the hug you gave me back then. It was nice," he said with a smile. "And we work well together."

"Yeah so - wait what? No, I'm supposed to be giving you the pep talk here."

"It's fine, Hunk. I'm doing important work and so are you. I already had this talk with Allura."

"Oh. Well, what I'm trying to say is that we're friends. I care a lot about you and your feelings. So if I say something that's weird or you don't like, you gotta tell me. I'm a terrible and nosy person and I'm sorry."

Keith stood silent, processing the words, and then smiling. "I've accepted the side of me that's Galra," he said simply. "It's still a little weird, but I've always had this feeling that something didn't add up." He smiled a bit. "I don't mind a question or two, but I'm still learning myself."

"Deal, no Galra questions for a while then. Just as long as you come visit more often, okay? We all miss you.

"...hug it out?"

Keith snorted and obliged into Hunk's waiting arms. "Always."

Hardest story to write?

I struggled with the ending to Exsanguination. It took forever to come to me.

Easiest/most fun story to write?

I wrote The Secrets of Beasts in one setting and I still can’t believe how easily it came out. I blame the Plance discord folks for putting everyone on a baby craze.

Did any stories shift your perceptions of the characters?

Not particularly? I write based on my existing understanding of the characters and nothing really surprised to that note.

Most overdue story?

Welcome to the Neighborhood. I wanted to write that Allura gen fic all year (as I wanted one for all the Paladins) and I hoped s8 would give me the motivation. It was not worth the cost.

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?

Collaborations! And participating in a zine! And signing up for events (exchanges and bangs)! I learned that it’s not that scary. People are chill and so easy to get along with. Also the task isn’t as daunting as I think of it’s an idea I love.

What are your fic writing goals for next year?

This is hard because I’m already doing above and beyond what I ever expected to be doing writing wise. I suppose it will be to finish my gen fic since I’ve been writing a lot of plance lately.

[thunder-birb]

The 5 times Tamaki accidentally confessed to Mirio and the one time he didn’t have to

Mini Series Part III

3.

I clutch the white envelope tightly in my hands, trying to think of anything else, but the red UA wax seal beckoning me to rip the thing open and see what it says. Mirio and I promised we would open it together, but Mirio also told his dad he would wait until he comes home from work. So, here I am pacing back and forth in my room, trying to hold on to the part of me that is refusing to freak out.

But let’s be honest, I’m never really good at that and after countless of hours practicing in my room, Mirio’s room, Mirio’s living room, the park, Mirio dad’s room, the gym after school and even at the Ramen stall- you get my point, the pressure just builds up that even my regular breathing exercises aren’t working anymore. So, I throw the envelope on the floor and crash face first on my bed. I stay there not trying to think of anything at all, but okay maybe just one thing--memory of my parents taking my oneechan, Mirio and I to a butterfly sanctuary.

My sister was actually the one who loved them to death--well that was until I saw them, as they fluttered about and chased the patches of sunlight that reflected from the diamond shaped glass of the translucent ceiling above us. It was spellbinding to watch how they lifted off a flower’s petals and spread their wings for take off. Their wings looked unreal and moved with a grace of elegance that I wished I had an ounce of.

It was unlike any time I visited conservatories or zoos with my family and the best part was when one of them even stopped to rest on my shoulder. It was black and purple and had yellow dots aligned at the edge of its wings. I only realized it was  sitting on me because Mirio happily snapped a picture on his phone and saved it as my profile photo.

The little one stayed with me for half of our journey around the glass house until it decided to plop for a minute on Mirio’s hair probably thought it was some variation of the sunlight like a couple of the butterflies did and then, it went on its merry way up the various flowers that encircled the stone pathways.

I also took a couple of shots on my phone and one of favorites was when a bunch of the butterflies hovered around Mirio and my sister as they merrily spun around them. It was blurry and out of focus, but that smile was there and I wish we were there now, so--

The affable sound of a seasoned guitarist plucking note after note to announce the arrival of the sun resonates in my room and my phone lights up from my computer desk. I let the first verse play out somehow finding solace in the soothing familiarity of the song and then, slowly make my way over there.

It’s crazy because just a minute ago, I was dying to know what the letter would say, but now that I am actually about to open it, I can’t imagine reading what it says inside. The unbearable wait has turned on me and now I don’t want to know at all. Yet, I pick up the call anyway because Mirio’s smiling face with the amiable butterflies is on my phone screen and I really need to talk to someone before I drive myself insane, favorably him.

“Oh good you answered! I was starting to worry and thought all the waiting around was gonna drive you mad…no offense” he adds careful and I almost laugh because he totally guessed that right.

“Too late, but now that you’re calling I actually don’t want to know and have decided to just live in my room until I die” l lean back on my black desk chair and tilt my head up to stare off at my glow in the dark solar system set plastered across my ceiling. Mirio thinks it will help distract me when I can’t sleep at night.

“Tamaki~” Mirio has this teasing way of calling my name, which I have no idea where it comes from or why he suddenly uses it, but it disarms me right away and I groan at him because I can never properly speak afterwards. “We made a promise and I would never let you rot in your room when you could be going to hero class with me” Mirio replies in such a way that I can picture him winking at me, all cool and sanguine because he’s just never been a downbeat kind of guy.

“Do I have to?” I cringe at how small my voice comes out, but even after all these years of knowing me, Mirio never sees it as a weakness. He thinks I’m brave for always speaking my mind when I’m with him, disregarding the fact that he’s really the valiant one for doing so in front of everyone.

“Well technically no. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. And I can wait. I don’t think I could cross this milestone without you” he replies back and honestly what do you even say to that? It’s not that he is intentionally manipulating me to open the letter because Mirio is not an unscrupulous sort. Far from it actually because he genuinely means every nice damn word he says and it’s absolutely maddening. But is also why everyone likes him.

“No, you’re right. I would never even have the guts to go after my goal of becoming a hero if you weren’t there believing in me every step of the way, so yeah. I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be” I say with my right hand clutching my shirt right above my heart, feeling it beat wild with resolution.

“And there you go proving just how fearless you truly are! Tamaki you’re courageous in your own way and let’s get to ripping this envelope up before you change your mind!” he laughs and I chuckle along with him because he’s right again. My bravery definitely has a time limit.

“Alright. Countdown?” I prepare myself and grab the envelope on the floor, shaking a little as I bend to retrieve it. I stand up, but then plop back down on the floor, deciding no matter what the letter says, it’s best to be on the floor already, then fall on my face from shock.

“You know it!” Mirio replies and I can picture him punching the air for emphasis.

“3-   2-   1-   GO!!!” We sort of scream and so does every cell in my body. I rest my phone in between my cheek and shoulder, while I tear the envelope open and nervously take out a gray circular device inside.

The thing lights up as soon as I place it on the floor and a holographic screen appears in front of me. Principal Nezu pops up with a friendly wave, paws moving left to right. My eyes travel to his projection and the green blackboard in the background.

“Hello Amajiki, Tamaki-san. As I am aware of your anxiety, I wanted to get straight to the point and congratulate you on being accepted into UA. If you look behind me we have listed your points during the Practical Exam as well as the Written Exam. You have demonstrated--” he continues to say more and even starts playing a video of my performance, but I could not hear anything past: You have been accepted into UA.

                                                        I GOT IN

                                                 I GOT IN TO UA

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHH” Mirio joyously yells on the phone and I readily scream with him. “TAMAKI YOU DID IT! Man I’m so proud of you! Principal Nezu is still showing me videos, so I started listening to what he was saying to you instead, but wait-- he’s about to---Ohmygod. OHMYGOD WE’RE GOING TO UA TOGETHER TAMAKI WE’RE GONNA BE HEROES!” he rambles even louder as I hear Principal Nezu congratulate him on the other end of the line.

Then, I hear his dad yelling with us and a loud smack, followed by more screaming and an “Oh crap Dad! My phone!” I want to laugh because I’m sure Mirio’s dad has tried picking him up again, forgetting how big Mirio has gotten and they’re probably sprawled out on the floor while his phone takes a fall. But I’m so overwhelmed with my own feelings that the wet tears continuously slide across my face and goes all the way down to my hoodie. All the tension living like a parasite in my heart spills out, leaving me bare and finally free.

           I actually made it! Me. Nervous energy Tamaki... This is crazy!

It does not take long before my sister comes into my room and sees me on the floor with my face wet from tears and the phone still pressed against my cheeks. Mirio and his dad are blasting party music on the other line and I can’t find it in me to separate from their buzzing energy just yet. She hurries by my side, probably worried, but she spots the letter from UA and the holograph of Principal Nezu.

So, she grabs the circular device knowing I won’t be able to speak no matter what the result and presses the middle button for it to play all over again. It starts with Principal Nezu greeting me  and then he segways into congratulating me for my admission to UA high school. She freezes upon hearing the news, turns her head at me, eyes wide with realization and soon enough she too, is screaming and hugging me so tight it is the only thing stopping me from floating away in a happy daze.

“TAMAKI!! YOU GOT IN!!” she screams into my ear and the phone that’s keeping me connected to Mirio and his dad, eyes welling up with tears. We all continue to yell because I don’t think we know any other way to react to such good news. They’ve seen us, day after day; with me eating and manifesting as many features as I can at the same time and Mirio with all his bruises from getting his face, arms, fingers, legs, chest and various body parts stuck in walls, doors, and windows of every kind. Every failure is another push to work harder and finally we have earned our first step.

“This calls for a celebration! I am calling your parents!” Mirio’s dad yells into the phone and my sister replies for me because yeah I still can’t form proper words.

                                                        🐙🐙🐙

After more frantic screaming and tight hugging, my mother calls all of my close living relatives and proceeds to plan a party with Mirio’s dad. It’s supposed to be a “small impromptu gathering” with my family and Mirio’s family, but that doesn’t stop it from being completely embarrassing and usually I would want no part of it. Yet, having the validation that my dream is an actually possibility even with someone as anxious and meticulous as me, just feels too good that I could hardly care.

My sister hands me a flower crown she’s made for me as a surprise with a purple paper butterfly in the middle. I start crying all over again because she’s really too nice sometimes, even though I just fidget and worry all the time. I hug her in gratitude and she messes up my hair in return, while calling me a crybaby. I hug her even tighter in retaliation and help my parents prepare the table, while she pushes me away to order a bunch of food.

In exactly 45 minutes, my obachan and ojichan come over to the house, followed by my aunts, uncles and cousins. The house is so full of people, I can’t imagine Mirio’s family fitting in somehow. But that is where I am wrong because Mirio’s dad and uncles come through the door with a large cake filled with sparkling candles, bottles of sake and all accompanied by their exuberant and excessively loud singing voices making the whole place light up like the Christmas markets in the city.

The Togata’s are like the happiest people you’ll ever meet. Just picture a bunch of Mirio’s entering a room each with a big smile on their faces and a skip in their step. They give off this brightness unlike I’ve ever seen before and each room is now booming with Mirio’s rich laughter and that captivating gleam in their button eyes.

It’s almost too much for me, so I keep my hoodie on and try not to be in a room with more than one of them, despite how they all approach me and trap me in the Togata’s infamous bear hugs.

I just want to be stuck with the actual Mirio Togata, but he’s being congratulated, picked up (without much success) and kissed by his family and mine. So, it’s been really hard to talk to him alone.

My sister also hands him a flower crown with a cut out paper Sun on it and he envelopes her in a bear hug shocker to show his gratitude. She laughs, looking so tiny in Mirio’s arms and now my little cousins hovering around them want to be picked up too. Mirio chuckles at the small hands tugging at his pant leg and proceeds to pick every single one of them up. I swear my family members are suckers for the Togata’s. There’s just something about them that’s hard not to like.

Then, things get more loud as the food finally arrives. Mirio’s dad keeps handing Mirio and I shots of sake to celebrate, which is only happening in the first place because my mom is not in the room and it’s really hard to say no to Mirio’s dad. I’m also sure it has something to do with the shots he has been sliding my otosaan’s way and how it’s making him forego his trademark austere nature and start singing a song to my mom, who is actually my uncle next to him.

“To our boys! After all their hard work and endless training sessions, they’ve finally made it one step closer to their dreams! Let this be an inspiration to all of us to never give up and go beyond! Say it with me now- PLUS” Mirio’s dad raises his glass, beaming like he did when Mirio could fully phase through a wall; so proud and like nothing could be greater than watching his son live out his dreams.

“ULTRA!” we all scream and I realize then that this is just as much about our family as it is about us. So, I take the shots less suspiciously, even though by the 3rd one, I feel a sudden rush of heat on my face, my back and my ears. It’s a weird sensation, especially since it’s not caused by my overthinking. It’s also making me slightly drowsy and lighter? I don’t know, I just feel like I could probably handle another shot or two and woah does takoyaki always look so-- round???

One of my cousins call out my name and I get up before my limbs are ready, so I stumble a little bit and then a lot. But, I somehow get up the third time, the second time was a mistake, give my uncles a couple of hi-fives because one is nearly not enough and all without tripping over myself, which is a feat that feels so great, I just have to go tell my mom in the kitchen.

However, the way to the kitchen seems a lot further than I remember, but if I can make it this far in life, then I sure as hell can walk to the kitchen; is what I thought at first, but man the way there feels like I’m on a suspension bridge with my mischievous cousins jumping at the far end. I also don’t quite remember why I’m walking this way anymore, so I take a quick detour to my room, which is so much closer.

I open the door to my room, take in the darkness, except for the stars glowing above and smile, realizing this must be what I wanted all along. I make long strides to reach my bed, bumping into a couple of things along the way and just as I am about to get there, I slip on my blanket, which is somehow on my bedroom floor.

The crash is loud and I have to shake my head a couple of times to stop the dizzying waves messing with my inner ear. I press my right hand on my forehead, slowly regaining the rational part of my brain back and use my left hand to push hard against the floor, hoping to pull myself up. But, the ground feels odd and warmer than it usually is, so I open my eyes and realize that there’s actually a person there, covered in my blanket.

I blink my eyes open and close a couple of times to make sure I’m not making any of this up and surely enough, I’m right. There is a human huddled under my blanket on my bedroom floor. I slowly drag the blanket down, curious to know who could it be when I see a familiar face covered in messy blonde hair, completely dead to the conscious world.

“Mi--” He turns over to my side before I could finish and grabs a handful of my blanket. Once he finishes fully covering his chest, he stays completely still and then, begins to snore lightly. His face is flushed in a deep red, all the way down to his neck and even his ears. I can feel the heat he is radiating and somehow that brings the color back to my face, too. I crouch lower, moving my face closer to his and watch his long hair fall into place, concealing most of his left cheek and eyes.

It takes all of my control not to poke him and ask why he’s on my floor when there’s a bed right next to us or move his hair out of his face. But, he looks so peaceful and settled in, and it just seems wrong to steal the bits of sleep he can finally have after our rigorous training. Not only did we have physical exercises, but also long study sessions, which he finds hard to concentrate on.

“So...Whatcha doing over there?” I spin my head towards the door and there stands my sister with a vexatious smirk growing bigger by the second that screams evil intent and could probably cause my demise.

My face reddens and I hurriedly jerk away from Mirio, scared that my sister will comment on how close I was to his face. “Not---nothing” I muster staring hard at my fingers and pray that she will be nice and not make any ridiculous observations.

“Maji? Because it looks like you’re about to eat a snack the way you’re eyeing Togata down there. I mean who can resist those muscles, amiright? It’s like they grew overnight!” she giggles, winking at me and I crumble.

“What-- NO I-- SHUT UP! Mirio’s my friend and--” I struggle to say something cohesive and not air out the panic ensuing in my mind, but it’s evident that I’m freaking the hell out.

“Okay, okay-- Easy there. Just teasing” she comes forward, looking a little concerned- “You might wanna wipe off that drool on your face if you’re gonna convince me otherwise” she sits on my desk chair, turning it around to face me and breaks into another laughing fit, as I reflexively move my hand up.

She’s snickering louder now and I fake like I am reaching for my hoodie, so I can cover my face. Judging by the way she is still laughing at me, she clearly doesn’t buy it and I sit there feeling so stupid and small in my own room running away from a party that is actually for me. I should’ve just went to the kitchen like I initially planned. Why did I come here?!

Then, to make matters worse, the door burst open and I’m beginning to question how I could possibly hear this and not my sister come in. Mirio’s dad walks through, footsteps loud and determined and I immediately see the obvious difference between them. She’s evil and up to no good, while he’s concerned and--

“Oh heyyyyy, there they are! And woah Mirio’s passed out isn’t he?” his dad approaches us, crouches down on the floor and ruffles his son’s hair out of his face with a fond smile. “I shouldn’t have sneaked him a few drinks before getting here, but I’m just so happy for him you know?” he continues to pat Mirio’s head, settling in the spot I was in earlier before my sister decided to kill me with her words.

“He’s like- the best thing I have going for me and---oh god! Here comes the dad tears” he laughs sounding just like Mirio.

“Sorry I’m such a sap” he apologizes as his eyes well up even more and the tears start falling on his cheeks. He sniffles loud and unconcerned, then he pulls the blanket up to Mirio’s chin. “Wake him up in 10 mins okay? I think we should start heading out before I get properly hammered too” he looks at Mirio one last time before he turns and gives me a hug, too.

“So proud of you both” his eyes are still watery and he ruffles my hair, before getting up, smiling at my sister and then closing the door.

I make a move to stand up, but my sister has other plans and directs the desk chair even closer towards me. She smirks again and I know she’s going to ruin that sweet moment just by the glint in her eyes. “Yeah Tamaki, wake him up in 10 minutes after you finish tracing his muscles with your fingertips” she teases and that’s it. I cannot be blamed for this. I manifest my arms into tentacles from the takoyaki I ate earlier and lift my sister off the chair.

She screams in terror, swinging her arms and legs around that I start to lose my anger a little bit and kind of second guess this. They’re going to hear us and come in here. Then, they’re going to think she did something to me, which is why I’m torturing her. After that, they’ll start asking us questions and I really don’t want to have to explain why.

In the midst of her yelling to be free and my consciousness spiraling into a black hole of terrorizing confusing emotions, I feel the blanket hover over my feet.

“Hey guys---” Mirio slurs as he slowly opens his eyes and looks at my sister up in the air and then at me. “Am I dreaming or is your sister floating in the air? I didn’t know she had two quirks” Mirio scratches his head and tries getting up, but his knees wobble and he falls.

Without even thinking about it, my left arm-tentacles reflexively lets go of my sister and tries to catch Mirio before he hits the floor. I have a strong hold on both, but Mirio weighs nothing like my sister, so I put her down near my bed and swing my right arm-tentacles over to Mirio to keep him up.

I move my foot back to get some space between us, but trip on the freaking blanket I forgot is still there and we go down. My sister tries to save us, but it’s too late and I plummet on the floor butt first. I groan, turning on my side, so my butt isn’t pressed against the floor and curse this descend to hell. Why does something bad always happens?

I open my eyes to glare hard at my sister, finding it easy to blame her for my pain, but then big warm arms are quick to wrap around the small of my back and pull me to an even wider and cozier chest.

I freeze, mind blank and heart pounding so hard against Miro’s. I slowly look up and Mirio has the most confused look on his face like he doesn’t understand how I even got there when he is the one who pulled me in. Wrinkles are forming on his forehead; a look he only has when he’s thinking really hard, which is rare and I want to make it go away, but my body is too busy buzzing with electricity to function.

“Tamaki--” his eyes widen and I gulp forgetting my sister is still in the room and now has more ammunition to torture me with for the rest of my life. “Did you know your eyes are purple-- like a really deep purple?” he smiles like he just discovered something monumental and not a fact everyone already knows. Great. He’s still being victimized by alcohol then--what with the number of drinks his dad probably gave him before the party and then after I wouldn’t be-

“Wooooshhhh~~~ woooooshhhh~~~~” He starts playing with my hair while making those sound effects as he goes. He’s getting really carried away and my hair’s becoming more tangled up like it isn’t a mess to begin with and I groan in perpetual suffering.

“Haha! Dude your hair is so messy! You should use a comb more often” he laughs like it’s not his fault it’s in this state and my sister giggles in the background. Mirio doesn’t seem to hear her and lifts my head up, so we’re at eye level. He inspects his work further, turning my head to the left and then to the right.

“Yup, it's definitely like the bird’s nest we found at the school yard that one time” he adds and then tucks my head against the crevice of his neck, while chirping like a freaking bird. Drunk Mirio is a mess.

“Mi--Mirio please let me go” I struggle against his arms, fighting for escape. “Mirio I can’t breathe like this” I try again since his hold is only tightening, the more I try to break free.

Mirio finally loosens his embrace and I make the mistake of looking at him because now his eyes are blown wide and lips pouting into a very dejected “kicked-puppy” look. “Do you not like me anymore Tamaki? Am I too lame to be your friend, now that you got in to UA?” he asks, frown creasing deeper, which makes no sense at all since he got in too, but KOs all my ability to breathe anyway.

“Yeah Tamaki, are we not cool enough for you?” my sister chimes in and I just want to jump over there and kick her in the shin, but I can kick her any time. Mirio’s fears though have to be addressed now, even in his drunken state.

“Mirio, no that’s not--”

“It’s okay if you don’t want to hang out with me. I wouldn’t want to hinder your progress. You’re doing so well with manifesting and handling your nerves these days that I couldn’t be prouder! Meanwhile, I can’t even phase through things for long and I take so much time too! Anyone can just strike at me and bam, I’d be done for!” he laughs, but it sounds so sad and resolute that I want to kick my own shin for making him say those things or think any of that stuff is close to the truth.

“Mirio listen to me-” I grab his face and dammit his eyes are so despondent, but I gulp down my nerves and forge on.

“You’re amazing! No one I know works harder than you do and deserves to be a hero! You don’t just help others out, but you also inspire them to keep fighting! You’re the brightest star of all Mirio, that’s why you got in to UA, or why everyone likes to hang around you or why I--- why I-- um-- you’re my--- I mean you’re the sun! You light up the world” I barely make it out and panic as soon as I finish because I know Mirio is probably too drunk to notice my slip up, but my sister surely will. And she’s definitely going to make my life miserable, especially since I lifted her off the chair.

I shut my eyes, shaking from embarrassment and slowly ease myself away from him. So, I can run away and hide in the bathroom forever.

“Tamaki, you’re way too nice to me I swear! But thank you man! You’re such a good friend” Mirio hugs me tighter before I can evade him, rubbing the tip of his nose against mine and my sister is now rolling on the floor laughing like a mad woman. Man, I should’ve kicked her when I could’ve. I try to manifest my leg to retaliate, but nothing happens and the door bursts open again. Doesn’t anyone know how to knock anymore?!

“Tamaki, is Mirio awake? His dad-” my aunt pauses as she comes in, and then my mom hurries past her, leaving the door wide open.

“It’s fine now.” Mirio yells, voice suddenly very deep, which turns all of the attention towards us not that it already isn’t.

“Why you ask? Because I. AM. HEREEE!” Mirio declares as he rises from the floor, raising me up like a freaking sacrificial offering with a big smile on his goofy face. And that’s all it takes for my mom, aunt and sister to howl with laughter.

                                                      Mirio, why

This eventually catches everyone’s attention, mostly because my door is wide open and the fact that my sister and aunt are smacking the floor from laughing too hard. So naturally, everybody else starts peaking in and soon they, too double up with laughter at how drunk Mirio is.

Then, my cousin has the brilliant idea of taking out his phone and starts taking pictures of us with me still up in the air completely mortified because; for one Mirio is drunk and we might fall afreakinggain and also this may be the worst moment of my entire existence. And now there is evidence for the whole family to bring up at any inconvenient time. Awesome.

Mirio’s dad joins in too. Both in taking photos and being in the photos, as he raises his arms next to Mirio screaming “Plus Ultra.” I bury my head deep into my hoodie and slip down from Mirio’s arms when the fatigue has finally caught up to him. I quickly descend to the floor and make a mad dash to the bathroom, locking myself in and refusing to come out. Small gathering they said. It will be a nice time they said. This is the absolute worst.

Part 1 2 of 5

Part 3 is uppp! Pardon the monstrosity that is this chapter hence the read more break off, especially compared to the humble beginnings that is the first chappie. I honestly don’t know what happened. This could even be a stand alone one shot... and I have a feeling the rest might be more or less long like this one, so yay us? Also, there might be errors here and there, but I was starting to get impatient and will scrupulously edit it again later. Thanks once again and I hope you hold out for the other 3 chapters coming up soon~

[happywitch416]

Dragon Age Questions

I was tagged by @joufancyhuh thank you! This was fun! I’m gonna tag @kaleidoscopegirl @thesecondseal @rhetoricalrogue @lechatrouge673 @bugsieplusone @sasabelle-a and anyone else! Everyone else!

01) favorite game of the series?

DA2, hands down. I played DAI first and don’t get me wrong it’s a pretty game and a good game, but I love Hawke’s story. Someone who tries so hard and it’s never enough. I relate.

02) how did you discover Dragon Age?

I got a free copy of Inquisition with a new xbox, and honestly, hubs is the one who was oh it has dragons, Erin will like that! I wonder if he ever regrets that decision.

03) how many times you’ve played the games?

Origins- completely through 3 times? My dalish Elf who i didn’t even name her own name. Oops. Then my Arwen Tabris who smooches Zev and I actually have sorta fleshed out. I also have a Cousland and a dwarf that I never finished. I suffer from The Joining is Stupid syndrome.

DA2- I replay this constantly. I love Rose whether I am playing her as a mage or a rogue. I have played through with Selene twice maybe? I like all the choices! And how the choices change things! And well, Varric.

DAI- I’ve played through each race, as female, probably half a dozen times a piece. I really like being a Qunari lady, me and Sera swoon together. And it’s very different from other fantasy races I’ve played. And I love Val Cadash with her giant warhammer. The Iron Bull loves her too. Lol

04) favorite race to play as?

In all honesty? Elf. Elf me. Unless I’m playing Rose. Rose could never be an elf. So. But playing as a dwarf IS SO FUN and honestly far more relatable than playing a human.

05) favorite class?

For Origins and DA2, I prefer rogue. That being said, I hate playing rogue in DAI, so I mage it all the way.

06) do you play through the games differently or do you make the same decisions each time.

Depends on why I’m playing. For fun? I don’t care. For story plots? I keep it consistent unless I want to know how an action changes things (Hawke in the Fade :c). I do have playthroughs specifically for certain world sets too. Like World Asshole is basically thumbing the line of are my heroes even heroes anymore? Or just shiny monsters.

07) go-to adventuring group?

Origins- Zevran, Morrigan, Shale/Oghren.

Awakening- Valenna, Anders, Oghren.

DA2- Anders/Merrill, Isabella, Varric always. Rogues can tank if they try hard enough.

DAI- Varric, The Iron Bull, Viv or Dorian.

08) which of your characters did you put the most thought into?

Rose Hawke. Her past, present, and future is planned and mostly written. I adore her. She is how and why I discovered the how and why people write fanfic. And make headcanons. And Pinterest boards.

09) favorite romance?

VARRIC TETHRAS YOU COWARDS.

But in Origins, it’s Zevran. All day every day. I love me a character of questionable morals with a heart of gold. So complex, so murdery, so cute.

10) have you read any of the comics/books?

I think maybe I own them all? The books are a bit dry. But I love the comics. Superb art work, pretty good story telling. I read them mostly for lore reasons but they stay because they are good.

11) if you read them, which was your favorite book?

Until We Sleep

12) favorite DLCs?

Mark of the Assassin is just pure madness and Tallis makes me heart eye emoji. But The Descent and Jaws of Hakkon are my favorites. The music! The scenery! The stories!

13) things that annoy you?

I cannot romance Varric ever.

DAI’s gender and race locked romances. Some I get, Dorian and Sera because hi, representation matters. . But why can Cullen only romance elf/human ladies? Why on earth is Cass straight? The Iron Bull is only one who isn’t locked out of one thing or another and I love that. I love Bull. But like I feel we went meh good enough or something with the others. Especially after the everybody bangs everybody of DA2. Which was that trying to do a good or lazy writing? Dunno.

Fandom ruins a lot of things for me. I don’t want to take part in convos beyond my circle. Yikes.

Alistair. I get it, it’s tragic but ugh. I’m just too old for him. Same actually for Cullen, and for the above reason, Fandom. Yikes.

The Samson/Cullen thing they tried to replicate with Leliana and Calpurnia. It only worked for the boyos cause they are two sides of a coin. Unless Leliana is secretly a mage? Maybe she IS the ravens.

Consistent Canon doesn’t go here. They don’t even know who that is.

Why do you whitewash your own characters?

THE GODS DAMNED HINTERLANDS

I don’t want to kill the dragons. Let me recruit them.

Where the fuck is my Mabari: Inquisition Addition

14) Orlais or Ferelden?

KIRKWALL. Ferelden is quaint and Orlais is just gross. But has lots of shiny so it does rank higher than Ferelden.

15) Templars or Mages?

Mages, mostly because I want to dismantle the Chantry and continue the tradition of blowing it up. It’s bad. Templars just don’t have enough walking explosives for that.

16) if you have multiple characters, are they in different/parallel universes or in the same one?

I slap them all in the same verse if they are fleshed out in anyway. Rose Hawke and Val Cadash are best buds, business partners, and occasional bed warmers. Arwen Tabris is hiding from them at this point, she took that Warden Commander title and noped the fuck off around the world with Zev. She doesn’t want their drama too.

17) what did you name your pets? (mabari, summoned animals, mounts, etc)

I name the Mabari Hero. Let’s be honest, that mabari is the true hero of the first two games.

18) have you installed any mods?

I only started modding a few months ago and haven’t modded any of these yet.

19) did your Warden want to become a Grey Warden?

Arwen- Nope. But she really wanted to live, with that much blood on her hands it was join or hang.

20) Hawke’s personality?

She’ll help but she’s tired.

21) did you make matching armor for your companions in Inquisition?

If by matching you mean I dyed everything but the plaid weave of shame black then yes. Plaidweave is for liars.

22) if your character(s) could go back in time to change one thing, what would they change?

Arwen Tabris would kill Vaughan and his ilk at the wedding, not letting them take Shianni or the others.

23) do you have any headcanons about your character(s) that go against canon?

Rose Hawke is a rogue and a mage. Arwen Tabris is not getting married at the start of Origins. Val Cadash is still a respected member of the Carta while also being Inquisitor. Rose and Varric live happily ever after.

24) are any of your character(s) based on someone?

Rose is the one that has the most of me in her. The rest are just who they are.

26) favorite mount?

Dracolisks. Because the cowards make me kill dragons. Cowards!

[jeonbase]

andrea! what are your favorite chaptered/series sugakookie fanfics??

there is a lot:

☆ = contains explicit sexual content 

(chaptered / completed) breathless by bluemixtape ☆

The distance between Prince Yoongi and his only comfort Jungkook is more than earth and sky: the weight of the crown, the unspoken apology, the endless regret. When the fate forces them back together again, all version of universes are jumbled in messy emotions and lingering memories. Min Yoongi, carrying a heart that never rests, desperately trying to reach his air: a splendid soul with thousand years worth of pain, Jeon Jungkook.

(canon verse, reincarnation, angst, hurt/comfort, prince!yoongi, servant!jeongguk, explicit sexual content, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk, implied prostitution, cross-dressing)

[i loved this fic so much, ah im a sucker for reincarnation AUs]

(series / ongoing) run this town by dreamingdaegu ☆

“Wanna give you a private dance,” Jungkook murmurs, tugging him in the direction of one of the secluded rooms. 

“Doesn’t that cost a lot more?” 

“You can afford it,” Jungkook tells him. 

It’s true, Yoongi can. But it’s the principle; the feeling of being taken for a fool, who’ll pay anything just because he can. He’s about to argue his point before Jungkook adds- 

“Anyway, this one’s for free.” 

[alternatively: Yoonkook fuck in a strip club] 

(AU, stripper!jeongguk, businessman!yoongi, fluff, light angst, explicit sexual content, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk, side taehyung/jimin, side namjoon/seokjin)

[um i talk about this series a lot, honestly one of my fav series and one of my fav characterizations] 

(chaptered / completed) how to omega by yeoubi

“Can’t we just change it?” Jimin asked. They were huddled around their manager’s laptop looking at Jungkook’s public profile. Underneath his birth date was his wolf status, Alpha, in glowing red. “Then the company will end up looking like a liar,” their manager moaned piteously. 

(Or, the one where Jungkook wasn’t as alpha as everyone expected him to be.) 

(canon verse, abo au, werewolf au, no smut, alpha!yoongi, omega!jeongguk)

(series / completed) christmas special by xiajin

yoongi was pretty sure that this was the moment he knew he was in love. 

(AU, baker!jeongguk, songwriter!yoongi, fluff, mentions of minor character death, side namjoon/seokjin, side hoseok/jimin)

[a classic, can never get tired of this]

(series / completed) peaches and cream by serindipia (meloncomia) ☆

Yoongi knows Jungkook is trouble since the first time they met, all soft colors and candy flavor. He also knows he shouldn’t be feeling this way about someone almost six years younger than him, that he’s supposed to be the responsible one; the adult. Jungkook, however, knows Yoongi has never been able to say ‘no’ to his pretty eyes and strawberry flavored lips.

(Or: Modern AU in wich Yoongi has the hots for Pastel!Jungkook, and Jungkook just wants to be babied and spoiled 24/7)

(AU, college student!yoongi, pastel!jeongguk, fluff, light angst, explicit sexual content, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk, daddy kink, hyung kink, age difference)

(series / uncompleted) once upon a time by theorgasmicseke

A strictly Yoongi/Jungkook series following some well known fairy tales. 

(AU, angst with a happy ending, mild blood, light angst, fluff, mention of murder)

(chaptered / completed) i know i’ll fall in love with you, baby by witheredleaf (micooled)

The soulmate/soulbond au where Yoongi is part of a famous rap duo and Jungkook is his diligent fanboy, they meet at a fansign and things escalate from there (alt. Yoongi didn’t sign up for this)

 (AU, soulmates, fanboy!jeongguk, rapper!yoongi, fluff, angst)

[one of my fav soulmate au fics, also fanboy!jeongguk wow a concept]

(ongoing / chaptered) color me blue by xiajin

yoongi wonders exactly what in the world went through his head when he decided that he wanted kids. like, what. what. 

(AU, domestic au)

(chaptered / uncompleted) riding the wavelength by siderum

“i was asking jungkookie about how yoongi hyung and he could read each other’s minds, and yoongi hyung was completely out of earshot, but when i said, ‘is it dark in there?’ hyung told me to shut up from the other side of the room. he wasn’t even looking up from his phone” - park jimin 

alt. title: hey girl do you want to make a fragile human connection in the vast and unfeeling infinity of a chaotic universe 

(canon verse, telepathy, mental link, ambiguous relationships, light angst)

(chaptered / completed) the sound of winter by officialmaknae ☆

Yoongi has a lot on his plate, but when his pack discovers a small pup in their territory, he finds that he’s about to have a lot more. 

(AU, abo au, werewolf au, pack dynamics, slow burn, heat, explicit sexual content, alpha!yoongi, omega!jeongguk, minor character death, underage drinking, blood and gore, violence, mentions of rape/non-con, dubious consent)

(chaptered / completed) telescoping series by siderum

five eyewitness accounts of the interaction between min yoongi and jeon jungkook. – 

(blossoms and cherry-sweet affection as seen through the eyes of bts members) 

(canon verse, ambiguous relationships)

(chaptered / completed) one song glory by wortmalerei

When Yoongi gets a drunken call from Jimin’s friend Jeongguk in the middle of the night, he’s ready to blow him off and go back to sleep. He never expected to end up doling out life advice and driving the kid home across half of Seoul. 

(AU, slow burn)

(chaptered / ongoing) semantics by bellamees

semantics is the study of meaning; it focuses on the relationship between words, phrases, signs, and symbols and what they stand for. 

(canon verse, fluff, light angst)

(chaptered / completed) a fever you can’t sweat out by wicked_lovely ☆

Jungkook doesn’t know what he wants. All he knows is that Yoongi’s responses to his bratty behaviour makes his blood run hot like it’s on fire. His feelings run deeper than just lust, but he doesn’t know how to make his bandmate look at him in any other way. So he continues his childish assault, slowly chipping away at Yoongi’s cool exterior, waiting for the tension to break.

(canon verse, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk, jeongguk is a brat, explicit sexual content, spanking, rough sex, humiliation, dom/sub undertones, light bondage)

[another classic]

(chaptered/ ongoing) do it like me by xiajin

min yoongi the cop… gets feelings for local housekeeper aka neighbor who’s cute af (or: a darker heart to heart au/spin off.) 

(AU, cop!yoongi, housekeeper!jeongguk, fluff, side hoseok/jimin, side namjoon/seokjin, social anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, ptsd, implied/referenced incest, child abuse)

(chaptered / completed) sun child by xiajin

so jungkook lives like this. curiosity may take him from time to time, but it always disappears with something new to do. he doesn’t mind his existence in the tower, nor does he question why he’s always left inside there, nor does he wish to leave. there’s maybe, only like, one time he wants to leave. jungkook never asks, because he knows his mother will say no; yet still he keeps it in mind, records the dates for that day to come, and paints where his mother won’t see. other than that, jungkook is fine. he is. 

(AU, tangled au, temporary charactered death, implied/referenced child abuse, (not with yk; emotional manipulation, stockholm syndrome, unhealthy relationships)

(chaptered / ongoing) fall down lightly by darling

“…we always had a thing or two between the way we are, so wake up wake up wake up; won’t you fall down lightly, lightly?” - vhsorbeta 

(AU, vampire!yoongi, past child abuse, some violence, magic torture, side namjoon/seokjin)

[i love vampire yoons]

(chaptered / uncompleted) impulse to talk by numajiri

“you weren’t kidding,” yoongi repeats, slower this time. “your roommate actually blew up your fucking apartment.” 

(AU, magic au, roommates, photographer!yoongi)

(chaptered / completed) witches petals by pursuit

“is there anything i can help you with?” 

(or: yoongi has an affinity for cute (witch) florists) 

(AU, fluff, witchflortist!jeongguk)

(chaptered / completed) a song for the demon by bluemixtape

Between colorful dust and tinkling laugh in the world of fairy, there’s few black wings hidden; those who are tainted by demon blood. That kind lives in a constant war against themselves and Yoongi, being one of them, is not an exception. As the one who has to carry the endless darkness, Yoongi can recognize even the smallest light. So when the blinding light called Jungkook comes, Yoongi has no chance against him. 

(AU, fairy au, abo au, semi-dystopia au, angst, hurt/comfort, alpha!yoongi, omega!jeongguk, half demon!yoongi, half angel!jeongguk, minor character death, mpreg, onesided jimin/jeongguk, side namjoon/seokjin)

(chaptered / completed) the garden of eden by xiajin

the truth of it all is that yoongi is inexplicably lonely.

(AU, florist!jeongguk, music teacher!yoongi, fluff)

[i think this was one of the first fics i’ve read, along with the christmas special. holds a special place in my heart, and florist!jeongguk!!!]

(chaptered / completed) unfinished by fruitily

“what am i supposed to do about this,” yoongi said blankly, “call the ghostbusters?”

“you don’t have to do anything,” jungkook said, “except maybe stop walking the bedroom-bathroom distance naked, because i’m like, seeing everything, y’know, and i just told you we should take it slow, right?” –

in which it takes yoongi a month to realize his place is haunted, jungkook is bad at being a ghost, and namjoon and jimin are probably the only contacts in yoongi’s phone. 

(AU, ghost au, ghost!jeongguk, angst, domestic fluff, mentions of death, side namjoon/seokjin, implied/past taehyung/jimin)

[i also rlly love ghost AUs]

(chaptered / completed) contractual by baekhyun (baruna) ☆

“I,” Yoongi says, “would rather die than act in another movie with Jeon Jeongguk.” “Then die.” Jimin says flatly. “Because you’re doing it anyway.”

 (AU, actors au, angst, explicit sexual content, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk)

(chaptered / ongoing) tea house special by baekhyun (baruna)

Earthbending prodigy Jungkook lives a relatively peaceful life in Ba Sing Se. That is, until a mysterious, wealthy stranger begins frequenting his and Seokjin’s tea house. (Or, the atla!AU where Jungkook tries desperately to figure out just who this guy is and in the process gets himself a boyfriend.) 

(AU, avatar & benders au, fluff, angst, figerbender!yoongi, earthbender!jeongguk, slightly sugar daddy yoongi, implied/referenced character death, explicit sexual content, blood, violence)

(chaptered / completed) dark cartography by diamondust ☆

sunset is bleeding into the sky in a thousand shades of red and yellow when min yoongi pushes jeon jungkook against the door to his room in the shittiest inn in the city, pistol firmly pressed against his lower back. jungkook doesn’t struggle — just screws his eyes shut and tries to hold in his breath as if he’s been waiting for that, been counting the days before someone finally put a bullet through him. yoongi is interested. 

(AU, enemies to lovers, explicit sexual content, top!yoongi, bottom!jeongguk, choking, praise kink, side hoseok/taehyung)

(chaptered / completed) one sheep, two sheep by gbyesummer (shouldshy)

Jungkook has recently moved to Seoul for school and lives with his brother and his brother’s best friends. It’s all great, if you don’t count the insomnia. (5 times Yoongi helped Jungkook fall asleep + one time Jungkook helped him.)

 (AU, roommates, fluff, pre-relationship)

[aramat-mayhem-hub]

Default Verse

Since obviously I should do this... So let’s talk about all the default versions of the characters on this blog. Since that’s important. So yeah.

I’ll do them in order of their sort of Priority I guess... Or something, I don’t know. Anyway.

Halfa Mechanic: The default verse is relatively obvious, Arthur has been a half-ghost for just over three months. Things have settled down fairly well, but Arthur is still learning how to really be a ghost. He tends to travel through the ghost-zone fairly freely, and is still rather childish since he hasn’t stabilized on the emotional side of things.

His default response to any alternates of himself is just to kind of roll with it. His responses to any Vivis and Lewises will depend heavily on how he meets them. For the most part though, he will always be excited to see Vivi, and depending on if Lewis is more human appearing or not, he’ll either be very puppyish and eager to share some new “trick” he’s learnt or a bit more wary and nervous.

Officer Paranormal: The Default for Officer John is as a recognized Officer of whichever local police that the thread needs him to be. And on the other side of things, he’s relatively well known by the Paranormal, since he’s able to interact with and see it. He can either be pretty casual, or much more anxious about things depending on why he is where he is. If he’s off the clock, he’ll typically be more willing to roll with things though.

Depending on the muse, I don’t mind characters from a more paranormal setting recognizing him as “that one officer”... whether from a previous case of their own design, or just from his paranoid reputation from the station. While he is generally respected, he is recognized as the Officer who’s something of a conspiracy theorist after all.

Childish Crown: Cheraphian’s default verse is them as a ghost. They have been dead for years, they wouldn’t even be able to give an accurate time-frame because a good chunk of it was stuck in a time-loop under the control of an eldritch creature calling itself a God of Time. They spend most of their time wandering around looking for their brother, and most of their interactions will default to they don’t know who you are, and aren’t really interested in finding out either...

Pteranadon Punk & Stego Star: Both of their verses are by default set either just after the events of the series, or during the events of the series. And honestly there isn’t much more that I can really say. Their default is pretty vanilla.

Official Cloneboy: Oh joy! Time for my funnest default! First of all, I generally default all of my DP style muses as being pretty post-canon with Phantom Planet being treated as a dream that Danny might have had once, and so if anything from the episode were to be mentioned, Dennis would be very much confused. But also, Dennis is an outsider, but he was hidden by default for the rest of the series, although he might have peeked out during D-Stabilized... but ymmv.

Defaultly, he is jealous of Danielle, and conflicted over Danny. Although, it’s up to the various muns whether their muses would actually know Dennis. I default as “by reputation only”. Dennis knows that Dani is the clone before him, the only other surviving clone, and he is also aware that she escaped. He is really sore about this, and wishes that he were in her position, seeing the world and free. Whether she knows him or not, he would likely be known as the one after, and the “perfect son”.

As for Danny... That’s a bit more tricky. As a whole he is incredibly conflicted. Part of him, really deeply resents the other boy, the original, another part of him, is desperate for validation and some small feelings of being siblings and family, and wants to be accepted by the other. Which side is stronger, is very dependent on the day and his overall mood. As it is though, he has never officially met Phantom. Also, he’s not entirely aware of Danny’s status as a half-ghost despite the logic that he should be if he is. He doesn’t really view Fenton and Phantom as the same person. Fenton is just... some kid in his mind. This distinction, is something that could cause conflict, but as a result, the default interaction is generally dismissal towards Danny as Fenton, and very conflicted feelings towards him as Phantom.

Again, it’s mostly as reputation only, and has never really met him... so his default interactions with any Danny would be the first official meeting between them. Expect at least some aggression if Danny is in Phantom form.

Button Mechanic, Pepper Princess & Magenta Buttons: Considering that all these guys are in the same verse, I decided to group them all together as well. Since welp, better than splitting them apart and explaining the same thing. They’re all post a story I’m semi-working on, a Coraline/MSA crossover that I have under the working title of Buttons. And the events of that have left them all in a bit of a mess. To various degrees they’re all traumatized. And there is some level of self-blame from them all. Interactions with counterparts would vary, because the one time they have so far met a “double” of someone close to them, it ended really, really badly.

Paprika is the most defensive really. Lewis somewhere in the middle, and Aothur generally rolls with things for the most part.

Rat Brat: Again, default is post series. But also, for Snitch, their default is somewhat a mirror of Danny’s situation at the start of the series as they have been a halfa for approximately a whole month by this point. They still don’t know how to really human that well. As for interactions with other Danny Phantom blogs, my general wish, is for ghosts to be familiar with them in the sense of “Oh great this pest again!” because they are the pest of the ghost zone... Spectra non-withstanding and people can decide whether they accept the connection in Snitch’s backstory or not...

As for Phantom... he might recognize them as a ghost he may have dealt with a time or two before should one wish to go with that... or just by their reputation as that ghost who brings rats with them... But I do have one thing... in human form they would be completely unknown to him, and, they personally would never recognize Fenton.

Mana of Time: Mana’s default is pretty vague really. He’s a child who just kind of shows up at random, and is usually knowing of people, but not sure if they know him... since he exists out of time, he treats all meetings like they are the first one. And event references can be confusing.

ROOT Rodent: Default is out of place. They just roll with what’s going on, whether they are in a crossover situation, in the future, or whatever. They do not change age, and I will keep them as they are, as stated in their profile.

But defaultly(in Naruto roleplays), they will react to certain situations and people the same way; Obito is their little brother figure, Minato shares their birthday, and Danzo is their commanding officer.

Pharaoh Skelepapa: His default is typically before the events of the film, but I am willing to play him a little bit after the film since things mostly won’t change. Usually I would hope for a thread with curses in play, but I am willing to have threads where Hector is the one who’s being dragged into whatever situation... In such cases he’ll be a bit like a ghost, and probably low-key freaking out the whole time, because what kind of weird curse is this?

Okay but seriously, primarily I will try to keep his threads to the Land of the Dead. Where your muse has gotten cursed in some form or another. Whether it’s through breaking into where his body is stored and getting cursed that way, or stealing something from a grave and getting cursed that way with Hector being called in as the “expert” on curses and how to deal with them. You will also likely get to see members of his support system in these threads, whether it’s from his Guardian Lydia, friends from Shantytown or a few of the Officers and Agents he’s gotten to know at the department.

But... that said, I am willing to do threads that yank him out of his comfort zone and pull him into the Land of the Living or, into a whole other world entirely. Again, he’ll mostly be operating under “ghost” or “monster” rules. Although I lean more towards monster/fae being on the spectrum, because he doesn’t have any ghostly abilities aside some followers... who mostly hang around his mummified body otherwise.

But almost always, threads will be based more before the film, although exceptions apply, and I am willing to explore him dealing with the curse continuing even after he’s finally made it home.

Wilde Dogg: Honestly, the verse for Buziba is kind of vague... but in general what you really need to know is that Buziba is a very hurt and scared boy. He’s also not too likely to take too kindly to people approaching him from nowhere. He’s out in the wilds on his own, and he prefers it that way... or at least that’s what he tells himself. But by default, you’ll find him in an undisclosed and unknown woods, deep hidden in the bush. And he won’t be eager to interact with anyone...

Although he can also be on the streets or just wandering near the roads and curious. But will always be wary, and he’s been on his own for little over a year... trust is not exactly something he’s good at.

[ivyfics]

The First One

It’s not the first time he’s been in a relationship with someone on his birthday, but last year he was with this one guy Kei would rather forget about so it doesn’t really count. His whole thing with Kuroo is new and weird in the way it’s nothing like he expected it to be.

Read on AO3!

Pairing: KuroTsukki  Series: Being Gross Verse Rating: T

It’s not the first time he’s been in a relationship with someone on his birthday, but last year he was with this one guy Kei would rather forget about so it doesn’t really count. His whole thing with Kuroo is new and weird in the way it’s nothing like he expected it to be.

Kuroo is annoying, and loud, and loves riling people up all the damn time. That’s what he expected from whatever kind of interactions–romantic or not– they would have together.

Plot twist:

Kuroo is not that with him.

Kuroo is a complete and total loser. He’s a dork.

Before, when he was just figuring this whole thing out, it baffled Kei. Sometimes he’d get in this weird introspective mood that was silly and existential crisis inducing. Really serious when dealing with his academic life and maintaining his scholarship. He’d brag about his little sister and never, no matter what, skip a video call with Kenma.

But then he’d start being extra clingy in text, doing shit to get a rise out of Kei, he’d show up more, push to hang out more, but without making it seem like he wanted to, and it took Kei a while to see through it.

Then he had his Aha moment.

Not that Kei was a shrink or anything, but he realised Kuroo got annoying as hell when he was alone and wanted company. Kei gave him more attention to get back those glimpses of enjoyable human he knew Kuroo could be.

When Kuroo realised he didn’t have to vy for Kei’s attention, he just sort of stopped being annoying and started being fun to talk to. Nice to have pointless arguments with. He’d humor Kei when he was in a mood and just talk shit about everything, like the great Jurassic Park debacle.

(No, Jurassic Park might not be scientifically accurate but it still is a great franchise, fuck you Kuroo.)

Falling for him wasn’t hard.

(He’s not thinking it, he’s not, that’s Kuro’s deal he’s not– Ha, hard. God damn it.)

Then the whole “ I love you ” slip up happened and here they are, Kei’s dating his first high school crush. Life’s weird like that.

So, no, it’s not the first time he’s been in a relationship with someone on his birthday, but it’s his first birthday while in a relationship with Kuroo and that’s a little terrifying.

Honestly, he’s scared.

There’s no saying what Kuroo, sap master and lord reigning of all things loud and cheesy, is going to do. His moms have been talking to him all week, he’s expecting a package from his maman, Saeko-nee called and she’s probably going to again. Akiteru has been fishing for gift tips, and Yamaguchi and the group chat have already set the time for the group skype session.

It’s nice.

Kuroo hasn’t said a thing.

Bokuto has been silent.

He hasn’t had a chance to talk to Akaashi yet, but he hasn’t made any comment other than asking when the date is.

Terrifying.

That gives them away more than if they were talking about it, because why would you actively avoid the subject when they all know?

He’s asked Kenma for his infinite wisdom. His answer?

haven’t heard anything. prepare for the worst

Kei knows Kuroo’s planning something, so what’s the point in hiding it until it’s all Kei can think about? He spaced out twice in his lecture this morning imagining all the possible scenarios.

He sinks in his seat, his arms crossed in front of him and glares at his coffee on the table. The small café with the wrought iron chairs has become his spot to wait in between classes after changing buildings, the barista behind the counter having already memorized his order. That he’s started asking if he’s going to get Kuroo a drink every time he comes in now has finally stopped making him blush.

Here’s the facts:

Kuroo is a sap.

Kuroo is the ultimate sap.

Seriously, he’s going to need to stop it with the cheese because Kei is lactose intolerant.

Kuroo seemed like a complete and utter asshole.

Kuroo turned out to be completely different than Kei thought he’d be.

Kuroo knows big things make him a little iffy when he’s the center of attention and has to no be an asshole to people but so far he’s done nothing but try to do things that make him comfortable.

Ultimately, Kuroo’s need to do stupid things override all the above; i.e The Prank Week Incident.

Followed by: The Prank Week Incident pt.2 Addendum: The Prank Week Incident pt.2 –photos.

Odds are fifty-fifty at this point. Kei sighs, picking up his cup from where it sits next to Kuroo’s on the table.

Wait and see, he guesses.

Somehow, through the will of the universe, his birthday falls on a sunday.

One would think that means they’ll leave him alone.

Sunday.

The day of the Lord.

A day of rest.

Hallelujah, pour les siècles des siècles amen.

(See grandma, all your catholic sunday school lessons that one summer when we vacationed in France didn’t completely fall on deaf ears. Except great-uncle Jean’s. Because he’s deaf. )

Wrong.

It just means celebrations can take up the whole day and get spread around easier.

When he goes into practice on Friday, the lights are off and the court is quiet for all about five seconds before it’s suddenly lit and people are jumping out at him.  

How, pray tell, did they know about it in the first place when he’s been keeping quiet?

Bokuto’s big mouth.

The worst part? He can’t even be mad about it. Bokuto looks so happy and if there is one thing you can’t, absolutely cannot, do is take a genuinely happy Bokuto and make him sad. That’s wrong and uncalled for.  

Also, free cake.

So he powers through the awkward congratulations from the team, the claps on the back and all the things. Kuroo gives him an apologetic look before chasing Bokuto around the court with a handful of whipped cream starting to drip down his fingers.

They both, Bokuto and Kuroo, end up covered in it, hair clumped and droopy on both ends when Kei "accidentally” pushes a mat in the way of their wild goose chase. Bokuto manages to stop in time but Kuroo does not and they slam down onto the mattress, whip cream flying everywhere, tangled.

Kuroo shoots him a betrayed look but Bokuto laughs and laughs, the whip cream in his hand splattering against Kuroo’s back where his hands slap home.

It turns out to be not so bad after all.

(He secretly took a picture of their dumb faces. It was pretty great and he actually had a lot of fun, but he’d never tell them that. Bokuto would throw him a birthday party every day until Sunday if he did.)

Akiteru steals most of Saturday from him. Saeko-nee can’t come along but she trash talks Akiteru in their texts all through their outing, Kei snickering the whole time they’re together, Akiteru trailing behind him pouting. It’s fun.

He gets home to a couple of messages from Kuroo, asking how it went before settling in against the back of his bed, blanket draped over his lap, opening skype.

The first thing to show up is a wall and nothing else. He’s about to type in the chat to see what’s going on when there’s a screech and a figure is jumping, followed by loud poppers, Kei jolting back at the sound coming from his headphones.

“Happy Birthday!”

Hinata is there, along with Yamaguchi and Yachi, all wearing party hats and opening popper after popper. Kageyama will sign in later, schedule and all.

Kei lets out a huff. “Thanks assholes, maybe someday I’ll hear again.”

They don't care. Hinata is yelling about the poppers along with Yachi, both of them pulling a banner from outside the frame with Happy Birthday in big yellow print and trying to tack it against the wall.

There’s a smile on his face, although Kei will deny it in a court of law.

It’s about to be one in the morning and everyone’s finished saying their goodbyes when a frantic pounding starts against his door.

When he gets to the door to open it–without looking at the peephole because he knows– his expression has already changed into a softer one. The second the door is slightly open, it flies and he’s crushed into a strong embrace, hair tickling the side of his face.

“Moonshine! Happy Birthday!”

The door is ajar, Kei’s arms coming up to wrap against his boyfriend’s so that they don’t topple over to the wall. “Tetsu. It’s the middle of the night.”

Kuroo holds him tighter, face buring itself into the crook of his neck. “Yeah, but you were born at one in the morning. Technically it wasn’t your birthday until right now so I wanted to be the first one to say it.”

Kei snorts, closing his eyes. Of course. He didn’t expect any less. Waves of fondness wash over him and he sinks his head in Kuroo’s hair, pulling him up from where it’s still against his neck.

He’s about to bring Kuroo in for a kiss when he’s interrupted by, “Hey, hey, hey. Let’s get this party started!”

Kei is frozen for a second, before he cranes his head to look behind Kuroo, who is still blocking the way.

There is Bokuto, beanie over his head, hair fluffed on his forehead. Behind him is Akaashi, holding a tray of to-go cups and holding out his hand to grab the paper bag Bokuto is handing of to him. All the warning he gets is a sigh. 

“Bokuto-san, at least wait until they move away from the door.”

Bokuto does not wait until they move away from the door.

Instead he adds on to the hug, arms coming around both of their middles and squeezing. “Happy actual birthday Tsukki!”

A puff of breath hits his neck before Kuroo talks, voice strangled. “Bo, I need to breathe.”

“If you can breathe through a hug you’re not hugging right.”

Bokuto manouvers them away from the door further in so that Akaashi can walk in, gives one last squeeze that pulls a ridiculous squeek out of Kuroo and releases them from his loving death grip.

Once they’ve all established normal breathing functions again, Kei walks to where Akaashi set everything down. “What’s all of this?”

Akaashi raises the cup in his hand. “Chocolate.”

“You brought food?”

Kuroo looms in, giddy. “We already had cake, right?”

Bokuto answers in the background. “Right!”

“So we brought French toast,” Kuroo says and giggles, giggles, looking at him expectantly.

Kei takes the bait, hand coming up to cradle his face. “Because I’m French?”

“Yes!” Kuroo nods vigorously, smacks a wet kiss on his cheek and pulls to the kitchen, bag in tow. Bokuto is trying to figure out how to get some music going. Akaashi’s pulling out his laptop and fiddling with it.

Kei follows, watching as Kuroo starts to stack everything out. Coming up behind him, he leans his chin on Kuroo’s shoulder. “Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me yet, wait ‘till you try it. I was debating between French toast and French fries, but it seems right to have desert instead of a side, “ Kuroo pauses, head tilting, “or is it breakfast?”

“I love you.”

It breathes out of him, at one in the morning in his dimly lit kitchen. That first time seemed to set up the way it’s going to go with Kuroo always, spilling from him before he has a chance to catch up.

Kuroo turns so that they’re face to face, back leaning against the kitchen counter and pulls him in. They kiss, softly, Kei’s hands tangling behind Kuroo’s head while Kuroo circles his waist. The pull and go back in until Kuroo is giggly enough that they break apart.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. All of it. I love you, too,” Kuroo mumbles into Kei’s lips and kisses him again and again until Kei’s the one pulling away to huff a laugh in Kuroo’s neck.

Once they stop Kei tries to help in the kitchen but is shooed away.

He comes back out to stare right at Kenma, face scrunching on a screen. It’s jarring at first but then Kei is narrowing his eyes and pulling out his phone.

U sneaky little shit

He can see Kenma typing back.  

Sike. happy birthday loser

The smell of cinnamon is wafting out from the kitchen. Bokuto figured out the music and put something on with a nice beat, slow but not mellow and is moving things around in the living room to make space for everyone. Akaashi taps his shoulder and gives him a to-go cup filled with hot chocolate before settling down in front of the laptop and talking to Kenma in a low voice.

When Kei hasn’t moved Akaashi turns back to look at him and pats the cushion next to his.

Dropping on the floor, he checks back.

Here’s the facts:

Kuroo lives up to his sap expectations.

Fuck the guy from his previous birthday, honestly.

He needs to get the name of the place Akaashi got this hot chocolate from immediately.

Kei loves Kuroo. A lot. Like, waaay a lot. It’s kind of scary.

He might be a little tired and head rambling.

The days leading up to his birthday have been draining but apparently that’s what happens when you have people who care about you, for some reason.

Happy Birthday indeed.

[thedevildinosaur]

Harriscofest2017: Here to Help

Part Three of the Summer Hiatus Series; Established Cynco, pre-Harrisco

Cynthia wanders. Cisco thinks a part of him expected this, but it still hurts a little, at first. She can’t stay longer than a few weeks in any one place, there’s a restlessness to her that will always, inevitably, draw her away. In a way, Cisco admires this. He’d like to roam as freely, cut his ties to any particular time or place and be free to drift. But if he did that, he’d miss home. A guy like him needs a steady landing point.

“It’s a demand of my job,” Cynthia says. “I have to be on the move.”

Cisco freezes. This whole bonded thing is freaky--cool, but frea-ky. He keeps forgetting that they’re in tune, as impossible as that sounds. Wait, was he brooding just now? Is that going to be a thing, is he going to start brooding like Harry-resting-bitchface-Wells? “Can you read my mind?”

“I always get those sad and tense vibes right before I leave--”

“You said vibes,” Cisco interjects.

“--damn it, not everything is a pun.” She elbows him and breaks into that helpless grin that he adores. But she sobers quickly to finish her point. “It’s not hard to guess what you’re thinking, Cisco.”

“You’re so sure none of that’s you?” Cisco means to tease her, pull the conversation back to lighter fare, but the question is a little too blunt. He knows, with a rock-hard certainty that he’s never felt about another living person before, that Cynthia is affected when she leaves, that she does miss him while she’s gone. He feels that echo and it reassures him. There shouldn’t be any room for doubt, which means this particular doubt is extra bad, an extra betrayal of how much Cynthia invests in him.

She doesn’t get angry with him, which he half-expected she would. “Of course it is. But I know what parts are me and what parts are you. Don't you?”

Honestly? No, he doesn't. On any other subject, Cisco knows his own mind, but with her everything is tangled. But he openly scoffs. “What? Of course I do. It's obvious, right?” He desperately needs a change of subject before she leaves. “I guess going to your earth is out of the question?”

“Absolutely,” Cynthia says firmly. “The leaders of my earth will consider any interdimensional visitor an invader first and foremost. We won’t let that happen again.”

The invasion, that she only ever mentions in cryptic half-references. “Hello, red-verse,” Cisco mutters. She gives him a blank look, and he groans. “Please tell me you have Fringe on your earth.”

“My earth has five seasons of Firefly.”

“Touché.” Because he can’t resist, he adds, “Bring those with you the next time you visit. You sure I can’t go with you? I’ve been to your earth before.”

She steps away from him, hugs herself. There’s a slant in her mouth that makes her look impatient, but all he’s sensing from her is a sweet, sad fondness. “That can’t happen again. What if you get caught?”

“I’m very good at blending in. Master of disguise, right here.” Cisco grins and taps his chest. He’s watched enough spy movies to know exactly what to do.

Cynthia just gives him a skeptical look, complete with stern, skeptically raised eyebrow. Her foot even taps a few beats. “Really. Because Harry told me you went to Earth-2 and ran around taking selfies and panicking at strangers.”

Oh god. Cynthia and Harry are the last team-up he needs. He cannot think of a worse combination of belligerent, scary-competent, and evil genius, except for maybe adding Lisa Snart to the mix.

...he’s gonna need a lot of comfort food and Star Trek binging to get over that terrifying thought. “Since when do you hang out with Harry?”

“Since he and I tried to shovel talk each other.”

Cisco immediately decides he doesn’t need to know why they both felt the need to do that. “That sounds like fun.”

“It was almost the most fun I’ve had on this earth.” Cynthia flashes her special coy grin, and Cisco knows that means that he is the most fun she gets on this earth. That’s reassuring.

Even so. “What do you think of him?” Cisco can’t what’s more nerve-wracking: Cynthia and Harry talking about him behind his back, or Cynthia and Harry getting along.

“I think he’s here to help. He said so himself.” She’s eyeing Cisco, like she’s taking his measure but Cisco doesn’t know what she’s looking for. “If you need help while I’m away, you can turn to him. I wouldn’t be opposed.”

“Thanks?” Harry is the first of his friends to get this weird stamp of approval from Cynthia, and Cisco wishes he could actually read her mind to understand what it means. She hugs him then, tight but quick, and seals his lips with a series of increasingly deep kisses. Now, Cisco thinks, that’s the kind of help I want.

She steps back, leaving one hand on his face, thumb stroking over his cheekbone. “Take care of yourself. Try not to pick any fights I wouldn’t.”

“I wouldn’t pick half the fights you would.”

She leaves him with one last piece of advice: “Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.”

[kpopsession]

March kpop review

OKAY DAY6. Taking me back to my high school emo/punk/pop days with their March release How Can I Say. I was not expecting them to put out a song that goes so hard. If I were 16 and full of angst I would be blasting this song to get over my boyfriend who dumped me for my best friend. TMI. The POINT IS they keep surprising with every monthly release which is fabulous because it keeps the audience from getting bored of them, especially since they still have NINE months to go with this Every Day6 concept. Also, YAS that they got to promote this a little!! If only Brian would get rid of this hairstyle he’s got going on lmao. 

Ehhhh I’ll talk about Lovelyz even though this vid was released in Feb., which I didn’t know bc I don’t check for them as much anymore. The most interesting thing about Lovelyz is still the Jisoo scandal and they continue proving it with every release. A lackluster debut followed by lackluster comebacks. Their peak so far has been Destiny, as it had the most interesting dance and the most ear-catching vocals and melody. I always watch their stages hoping they’ll put something out that really shows what they’re capable of, but Woollim is not bringing it with them so far. Wow is another cute forgettable boring song just like Candy Jelly Love, Hi, and Ah Choo. 

I’m not a huge Gfriend stan but I do enjoy most of their songs. Fingertip is fun even though I haven’t bothered to look up the lyrics so idk what the song is about... The choreo is great as always. They have such interesting dance moves and can I just note how fucking good umji looks this comeback?? I can do without the MV tho. I’ll take dance practice version all day

I love Eric Nam and I love JYP so I wanted to like his and Somi’s song You, Who? And like, the song is good but it would have been better if the two leads of the song were closer to the same age. Plus Eric’s vocals completely outshine Somi’s because they are more mature and refined, which, duh, he’s older and has been doing this longer. Somi is cute but her voice doesn’t suit his and that threw me off. The other thing I was wary of was whether the MV would have them in a love line, because, again, age difference. Luckily it didn’t.

BTOB has great vocals which is fortunate bc they have 0 visuals except for Minhyuk. Peniel.... is... not a good rapper.... His part in Movie doesn’t sound great to me. The rest of it is really good and fun. I can definitely jam to it. The MV is great, and their stages have been great as well. 

Ahh what do I even say about Got7?? Yall know I live and breathe for them. In terms of the Flight Log series, I definitely think Never Ever is better than hard Carry... I haven’t quite decided if it beats Fly. Yugyeom’s opening verse is phenomenal but Mark’s and Bambam’s voices are grating at first listen. This one is definitely a grower. I’ve given up on trying to understand how these music videos fit into a narrative together. Dancing on point. 

Highlight, the artists formerly known as Beast, come out with their “debut” song Plz Don’t Be Sad, and it’s fantastic. Everyone at Cube probably really pissed off about it. The song is catchy without being annoying, and interesting enough to not be predictable, while still being public friendly, as evidenced by all their music show wins. I’ve never paid attention to Beast, to be honest, so I really only checked this song out because of the big scandal/drama, and I’m pleasantly surprised. Excited to see what else they bring now that they are free of the big label and able to manage themselves. 

I miss the old CNBLUE. The I’m a Loner, I’m Sorry, Intution etc sound that they did so well has been missing ever since they came out with Can’t Stop and started chasing a more mature(?), mellow sound. Can’t Stop was great, but they followed up with Cinderella, which was lackluster, and You’re So Fine, which was better but still missing the old rock sound that I got into them for. Between Us brings that back, a little bit. The lyrics are really good and relatable and as usual, Yonghwa’s and Jonghyun’s vocals kill. 

Girl’s Day always brings the fun girl jams. Their vocals keep improving, which is amazing for a group that’s been around for quite awhile like they have. I’ll Be Yours is an upgrade from Ring My Bell, which I do love also, but honestly they will never top Something and everyone should just accept that. Not a huge fan of the choreography or the outfits in the dance scenes in the MV. I like sexy concepts bc girl power but it feels too male gazey. 

Who did I miss? See y’all in April.