#so many cool characters and lots of good taste here ^^

[synthbug]

Anyone can join in if they want to ^_^

tagged by @hyenagirlbulge smile

Challenge: make a poll with five of your all time favorite characters, and then tag five people to do the same. See which character is everyone's favorite!

i tag ummmm . @calabrithedragon @chihirolovebot @nexfarious @enby-berries do it if you want : )

[obbystars]

Drown in the Deep

Synopsis: Drown your sorrows away into the deep dark ocean where it can’t be found. Feel its cold embrace and let the water in. Maybe then, you’ll see him again when you no longer feel anything.

CONTENT WARNING: The reader very much intends to die/get themself killed, detailing how they’d love to drown in the abyss.

Notes: Sebastian Solace x GN!Reader / Spoilers for Sebastian’s backstory / Possibly OOC / Established relationship, can be interpreted as either married or not but they are living together / Angst (Hurt w/ eventual comfort) / Death + blood (not the reader despite the synopsis and content warning) / Not really a happy ending honestly

(This is VERY self-indulgent I love hate Sebastian. Also a bit of experimentation and playing around with his character. I’m not so good on romance stuff, so I hope what’s here is to your liking. Also rewrote some parts A LOT due to idea change/read up on lore and realized things didn’t add up here. I think I’ve got most of it covered though. Anyway I love how a few runs of playing Pressure for the first time, I died to A-60 HAHAAAAA kill me.)

Credits: Dividers by @cafekitsune

A chance to be freed from your criminal record, and a reward worth to last for a very, very long time. As they always say, “High risk, high reward,” and the risks were certainly high. You could very much die. It was a chance anyone crazy enough would take.

But you didn’t sign up for this for the reward. You didn’t care about it in the slightest. To you, this would be an easy way out. An escape from this dreadful life fate had decided for you. So here you are, sitting in a submarine with three others in silence. There’s no telling on how deep you’re going, they never bothered to tell you how exactly far it was nor the possible dangers you’ll be facing. You’ll welcome anything if it means you won’t wake up again.

Still, you wondered why things went the way it did. Everything was fine until your partner was framed for a murder he didn’t commit. Nine murders, to be exact. You were there for the trial. You saw and heard everything. You kept your cool throughout all of it. You were hoping, praying to whatever god is out there to show them he was innocent. None of it mattered in the end.

After the trial, you went straight home, not even bothering to listen to your family who was also there. By the time you entered your shared home and locked the door behind you, you stood in silence for a while. You didn’t know what you were feeling at that very moment. You felt hot tears beginning to swell up, and your vision beginning to blur. Your legs eventually give out and you fell to your knees. You muffled your sobs with your hand as you curled up on the floor.

You couldn’t get yourself to calm down for a while. You don’t even know how long you were laying there once you feel your tears dry up and the sound of your heart beating rapidly leaves your ears. You don’t know what to do.

He was imprisoned and sentenced for execution for the nine murders you know he didn’t cause, but that didn’t matter. You weren’t there when it supposedly happened. You couldn’t prove anything. You were powerless to do anything.

Many early mornings were spent struggling to even leave the house, let alone the bed itself if you even managed to drag yourself to bed. You were too exhausted to even try for most. When you did manage to begin your day, you quickly became aware that everything is so much more irritating. People talking to you, certain noises you hear, how your food tastes… You just wanted to go back home and waste away.

As for majority of your nights, they have been spent just curled up in bed and crying until you eventually exhausted yourself. Gripping anything that resembled or had traces left of him and holding it close, hoping just the mere fleeting scent of him lulls you to sleep. Feeling the cold and empty space beside you and being reminded he’s gone, as if the reminders from your family weren’t already enough.

You know your family has been trying to contact you, sometimes even coming to the house, but you’ve ignored them every time. You don’t want to see them. You don’t want to talk, to hear, or to even think about them. You just wanted to be left alone.

A few years had gone by since then but you didn’t feel any better than before. You weren’t sure if you felt worse. Maybe it was because you felt numb nowadays.

Before you knew it, you soon find yourself behind bars. What you did, you don’t know. If you really did it, you didn’t care. You don’t know how long your sentence is, but you don’t care. You don’t know if whatever you did caused any deaths, but you don’t care. You don’t care anymore. You just wanted to drown in your despair, and this… “job offer” seemed promising. Retrieve a crystal deep inside a facility hidden in the deepest parts of the ocean.

To be so deep underwater to where the sun does not shine, to drift endlessly as water fills your lungs and it becomes so unbearably cold. To where you can’t feel anything anymore, not your body nor your emotions. To just feel the cold water and see nothing but darkness as the water pulls your body to wherever it so desires. Perhaps your remains could become the next meal for whatever lurks in the ocean’s abyss. Your body would never be found. You’d be gone without a trace.

So you signed up, knowing they don’t expect you to return. You don’t either. You don’t plan on getting that crystal, and you don’t plan on returning alive.

The shotgun shell directed at your neck on the diving gear given to you seemed promising as well.

If there is an afterlife, maybe you can see him again there. That sounded nice. You just wish you weren’t sent down with three other people. You never thought it’d be so hard to die in a place where risks of death were incredibly high. Perhaps it was because they wanted to use each other to get the reward for themselves, so they kept each other alive as long as possible. Covering each other’s eyes when the shark was outside the window, turning off another’s flashlight when an odd black figure appeared in the dark, saving each other from the creature inside the lockers… They weren’t going to let such easy bait be killed so easily, not this early.

Still, you strayed close behind as they often checked if you were still there. You kept your head low, until you heard another pair of footsteps from behind you.

Strange… The other three are already in front of you… And they’re just looking through drawers for anything useful.

The footsteps are getting louder and faster. You turned around just in time to see a strangely humanoid, armless figure running at you. It yelped the moment you locked eyes on it, immediately turning tail and running away.

“What the hell was that?!” One of the other expendables exclaimed.

Both of you walked back into the previous room to see where it possibly came from. There was a hole in the wall, shaped exactly like the creature they just saw.

“So they’re really in the walls, huh…” they then lightly punch your shoulder, “Hey, good job. I didn’t even hear it until it made that weird sound before it ran off,”

You say nothing.

“Come on, let’s keep going,”

You looked at them as they rejoined the others then back at the hole. You wished you didn’t turn around.

After a few more doors, the lights suddenly flickered. The one closest to you grabbed you and had you hide in a locker. Maybe they picked up on what you’ve been trying to do. You did willingly look into the eyes of the shark just outside the window, and they had to cover your eyes and drag you along with them. You also opened a locker that was already occupied by a strange creature coated in black and, what you assumed were, purple eyes. You hoped they’d leave you behind to be devoured by it, but you were pulled out and was patched up as best as they could do it. The damage wasn’t too severe, but still. There just had to be a spare medical kit in the room.

Maybe you weren’t being so discreet about it.

There were only three lockers in the room you were currently in and none in the room prior. They pressed on to the next door ahead. You were about to open your locker to step out into the path of the oncoming creature, but it zipped by you in an instant. It was much faster than what you’ve been dealing with.

You hear the others leave their locker followed with a quick flash of the flash beacon. You slowly step out of your locker and follow them into the next room to meet up with the other person. The one in front of you pulled out their flashlight, but ended up tripping over something. You stopped walking as they shine their light over what made them trip.

It was the one who ran ahead to find a spare locker. There was no blood or any signs of injury, but they weren’t moving and their eyes were still wide open. The other two tried to get them to respond, even shaking them, but they remained unresponsive. It was almost like they were just left an empty shell.

You restrain yourself from speaking as you would’ve called them an idiot for giving up a hiding spot in favor to make sure their bait stayed alive for a little longer, only to get killed in the process. Only 27 doors have been opened. Surely not all of you can survive much longer.

By the 35th door, one of them had used a code breacher to open a door without the keycard. Once the door slid open, a large creature with a smiling grey mask was seen on the other side of the door. Before they could react, it lunged towards them and instantly killed them on the spot before retracting their hand as it gets caught in the door while it was sliding shut. The blood splattered all over the floor and even reached you and the other expendable beside you.

By the 47th door, the lights flickered as you searched through a room off to the side. You can hear what you can describe as a distorted chorus faintly echoing down the hall, and soon a loud scream followed with multiple banging against a locker. The noise stopped as you walked to the door leading back to the path you’re supposed to take and you only see the aftermath. A fresh pool of blood and a destroyed locker. There was no body. The creature responsible is no where to be found.

You were alone now. Finally.

You kept your head low as you continued on, not bothering to search through the drawers for anything. Your body is starting to ache at this point. You opened the 50th door leading into a dimly lit corridor.

“Need to stock up?”

You looked up as you see the vent’s cover fall over. You turned around, then back towards the vent. You can see the next door ahead that requires a keycard, but you can’t find it from out here. You didn’t have a code breacher either as the others you were previously with had used them up.

“Come on, I won’t bite,” the strangely familiar voice beckons.

Had he not spoken twice, you would’ve thought you were hallucinating. Or maybe you are right now. A sort of “false hope,” so to speak. Not to mention how you can just barely recognize the voice. You’re having a hard time processing it after everything.

With no where else to turn, you walk to the vent and slowly crawl through. The room was dark, but lit up as you made it to the other side. You managed to get a good look at him, not exactly expecting some sort of fish-human hybrid.

“Ah, there you-” you see how his smile quickly disappears and his eyes widened once he sees you.

You only stare at him, tilting your head slightly to the side. He looked like he had just seen a ghost which wouldn’t be so far off considering what you had to witness for the past 49 doors, but why was he looking at you like that? He cautiously lowered himself down, close enough to your height but still far enough for some space.

You instinctively, though slightly, moved away as his hand moved closer to your face. That was until he finally spoke.

“[Name]..?”

You stepped back upon hearing your name leave his mouth. You narrow your eyes at him, “How do you…?”

Then it finally registered in your head. You’re not just hearing things, that voice was his.

Your eyes widened, now feeling his cold hand against your cheek, “S-Sebastian?“

“Yes…! Yes!” He nods, smiling widely, “It’s me!”

You couldn’t hold back your tears at all. The moment he confirmed it was really him was what finally broke down your walls. The last time you had cried this much was when he was to be executed. You had to hold onto his hand to keep yourself standing. He seemed to sense that as his third limb pulled you closer to him and held you in a tight embrace. You buried your face into his shoulder and sobbed until his grip on you got a bit too tight.

“W-Wait, Sebastian-!” You cried, “Let go!”

He gasps, immediately pulling away. You winced as you gently rubbed your arm. You looked up at Sebastian again and smiled.

“You have no idea how happy I am to see you’re still alive. I have so many questions. Can I-?”

Sebastian stops you there, “Hang on. Before I get to answering your questions, I have one tiny question for you,” he suddenly towers over you as he yells, “How the hell did you get here?! And why the hell did you sign up for this?! Didn’t they tell you the risks? That you could very much die?”

You jumped at his sudden change in tone and almost fell back. His tail had went to cover the opening of the vent in case you ultimately decided to make a run for it. What do you even tell him? That you signed up just to die? No other reason. How could you tell him that?

“I-I… Well, yes, they did. I just- It’s because…” you don’t know what to say.

“Tell me the truth,” he demands. You swear you heard a hiss in his voice, “Of all people, why did you have to end up here?”

“I signed up for this because…” you paused, “Specifically because I wanted to die. I knew what I was getting myself into, Sebastian. They didn’t tell me anything specific,”

“Of course those idiots didn’t…” He scoffed, “They don’t expect you or the others to return,”

“I never planned to. I couldn’t care less about this so called crystal they told me I was supposed to retrieve,” you looked away, “Honestly, I don’t even remember what I did to end up here… Maybe I did something that killed a few people, or maybe I was framed like you,”

Sebastian calmed down a little and had moved back as you spoke. He repositions himself so that his back was against the wall and his tail would nudge you towards him.

“You said you signed up with the intention to die here,” he then says, “Why?”

You sit beside him as his tail slightly curls around you, “You were sent for execution and confirmed to be dead. I just couldn’t live with the fact that I couldn’t see you,”

His looks at your bloodied clothes and noticed bandages through some of the holes in your uniform. He points to it, “Are those..?”

“It’s from this weird black tentacle creature in a locker. It’s nothing too serious, if that’s what you’re wondering,”

He muttered a name you didn’t quite catch and he quickly moves on, “And the blood?”

You shake your head, “It’s not mine,”

He lets out a sigh of relief at that. It was finally your turn to ask questions.

“Sebastian, how did you survive?”

“Was picked up by Urbanshade before I was supposed executed. Guess they decided it’d be better if I was officially declared dead,”

“And you became this during that time?”

“You could say that. It’s, uh… It’s a long story,”

He doesn’t want to discuss it and you knew that was the case. So, you didn’t question it further. You have a good feeling you may have an idea now that you noticed a document on the table. Whatever was in there might have the answers to most of your questions, but you’re not sure if you even want to read it if he lets you. The mere thought of what could be mentioned in there makes you sick.

There’s still one other that you desperately want an answer for.

“We’re… not leaving this place, are we?” You questioned, not looking at him, “At least, I’m probably not thanks to this diving gear… One shotgun shell pointed directly at my neck, and if I even try to take it off, tamper with it, or leave this place,”

You stopped there. Both of you knew. Sebastian didn’t say anything for a moment, “I can get both of us out of here. I just need more time,”

More time. How much more time before your body can no longer keep going? You want to believe him, you really do, but you really might actually die here.

How ironic. You came here because you wanted to die. You watched the others die before your very eyes without much of a reaction. All of a sudden, you feel your stomach drop.

You’re afraid to die.

[mechncheese]

Do you have any tips for drawing transformers/simplifying transformer designs :0?? Your art retains their 3-dimensionality without sacrificing their posability and all this while using 'simple' looking shapes, it's genuinely very satisfying to look at

Thank you ! One of the biggest challenges for me when I first got into drawing transformers was trying to keep their movement from being too stiff while keeping their design robot-like so I'm glad that it reads as fluid to people !

I'm used to drawing organic characters, working with simpler designs, and emphasizing movement and flow so this was definitely new territory for me !

I'll talk about my simplification process below !

The easiest way to go about simplifying transformer designs is reducing them to their basic shapes and then building them back up. You can see it a lot in G1. Since G1 characters are designed to be animated (and also look like toys) they can't make their designs too complex so it makes a good starting point when breaking bots down.

The comic designs are a different story. Because it's a different medium, artists can go ham with details.

IDW Thundercracker has a lot going on ! You can see all his mechanics and joints, he looks a bit overwhelming to draw !

G1 Thundercracker is more blocky and simplified, definitely less intimidating to draw, he's mostly just cubes

When I simplify transformers, I break them down and then gradually add details. I think about it like carving out a statue, you have your block of marble and you carve out details until you're happy. You definitely do NOT need to draw every detail, I always leave out a bunch of detailed parts in favor of simplicity.

Let's simplify IDW Thundercracker, if you break him down into shapes, he is also just cubes. The red underneath is my initial sketch and the blue outline is just there to show the shapes.

It also helps to have an understanding of perspective and the way 3D shapes work.

I'd say this is the base for him ! He follows almost the same base as g1, we're keeping it blocky but I do take liberty to taper parts of the body like towards the knees and or along the arms to give my pose some fluidity. Then we shove on his details bit by bit

A lot of it is just picking and choosing design elements you like about a character and finding ways to make it fit onto the design. Thundercracker's IDW design has these cool ribs that go along his torso and I tried to include that while simplifying it.

Something I try to avoid is shoving as Many details as possible onto a design. It can make the design look cluttered and busy and that might be good if that's what you're going for but it's just not for me. I find that more details make it harder to pose my robots so I keep it minimal.

Applying color also gives you a good look at how much room your design has. Here's TC colored !

I could stop here and call him done but I think he looks a bit too spacious so I'm going to add some more details. Here's where I get a bit wild and kind of just do what I want. For me, the references are a base and as I get further along down the design I add seasoning to taste. More plating, different hues and colors, bits and baubles, and artistic flare. Here's where I wind up !

I'm happy with this ! I think Anymore detail and he would be a bit too cluttered (his wings are already reaching the Clutter Point for me)

As you draw more and more designs you'll develop an eye for what you like ! The world is your oyster and you can always go back and redesign/adjust !

[somepsychopomp]

Tips for Writing a Good Fic Summary:

I firmly believe that no writer should ever have to say "I suck at summaries", "my summary is bad but my story is good", "idk what to put in my summary" etc.

Why?

It makes you seem unconfident or disinterested in your own writing, which therefore puts off a lot of potential readers

It can come off like you didn't try

When tons of people say "I suck at summaries", it lowkey lumps you in with all the other writers who also don't know how to write summaries, and can make the premise of your fic seem less interesting or unique as a result

And quite frankly, I think every person who's ever slapped this kind of disclaimer on their fic absolutely can write a good summary if only they had some guidance and practice!

So, here are my go-to strategies for how to write a summary that functionally conveys the premise of your fic while also making it sound fun and interesting:

(Disclaimer, a lot of fellow fic writers out there have already internalized at least a good portion of what I've written below. This guide is designed for fanfic newcomers who may or may not still be learning how to write, largely because I most often see them posting the dreaded "I suck at summaries" as a shield, excuse, or preemptive defense of their works. I also want to say- no shame. We all have to start somewhere, and I just want to help out as much as I can.)

1) The In-Universe & Out Strategy:

I'm explaining this one first because if you've ever spared even a passing glance at Ao3, you've definitely come across this summary archetype before. And I'm super guilty of using it, too. But hey, if it works, it works!

This strategy is actually two summaries in one, the first being a blurb explaining the plot in a way similar to those you'd find printed in published books, with the goal of highlighting the drama or central conflict in the story and/or main character(s).

But it's also combined with an "out of character", typically much shorter summary that explains the premise by referencing its tropes or general format. The example below is one of my own fic summaries:

Let's start with the easier "out of character" component of this two-parter, that being the very last line of the example summary. This portion is technically optional in any summary, but has its many uses. The most important of which is that it offers clarity and guidance for your readers, and informs them of what exactly they're getting into if they were to click on your fic.

Also, it always comes second because the technical, "out of character" component is not you as a fandom participant trying to sell your story in an engaging way, it's you as the author explaining what it is you've made using familiar terms like "pre-canon"/"AU", etc.

And to be clear, I personally believe it's always better that your potential readers' first taste of your story (that being your summary) is immersive and enticing rather than plain and technical. So this smaller blurb should always go after your actual summary. Think of it as the cherry on top.

And you can make this portion of your summary very easily. Just state if your fic is an AU, if it's a "5 times X happened and the 1 time Y happened" fic, etc. All you have to do is tell your audience plainly what the main draw of the fic is, and all that takes is 1 sentence.

Aside from that, why does this format work and why is it so common in fandom spaces?

Well I referenced it before, but it offers something that most summaries in published books do not: clarity.

Yes, a good fic summary should tell you who the central character(s) are and a general idea of what happens in it. But summaries are also often used to build intrigue. You want your audience's curiosity to be piqued, so if you make your summary (and by extension your story) sound cool and mysterious, or full of adventure, or intensely cerebral and thought-provoking, readers will be inclined to click on your fic to find out how it ends.

But also, mystique offers uncertainty. And some readers might not like a fic if they can't quite parse out what exactly it'll be about. So, having an additional line or two after your "real" summary to explain the premise the way you might quickly explain it to a friend, gives that balance of intrigue and clarity.

But how do you write that first part? The actual summary?

2) The Cheater's Strategy:

It sounds a little dramatic, but honestly I consider this my "cheat sheet" way of making a summary because it's very much a shortcut that works.

And that strategy is: you sum up the first chapter of your fic. Nothing more. You do not allude to what the overarching plot is, you act as if chapter 1 is all you've got. But why would you do that?

Here's the thing about fanfics, based heavily on my experience in both writing and reading them. When you've got a fic that's more than 5-8 chapters long, or it stretches beyond 10-15k, oftentimes the first few chapters are all set up for your premise and the real meat of the story (the solving of the mystery, the big battles, the winding adventure, the burning portion of the slowburn) will come after.

When it comes to the cheater's strategy, you're going to ignore all the best portions of your story just so you can explain the boring set-up period where you position all your characters in the right places so they're ready to go on their (mis)adventure.

If you think that sounds like a bad idea, let me ask you this: When you pick up a mystery novel at the bookshop, does the summary give away who did it?

No! And you're not going to, either.

Also, it's implied and expected that the longer your story is, the more it will develop, change, and grow. So if you can sell your initial concept idea enough for a reader to click and read the first chapter, you very well could hook them and keep them seated for the rest of your story.

And remember what I said about building intrigue? This strategy is designed to build intrigue by suggesting there's more than what meets the eye.

Here's another example:

That might sound dense. And it's long. And it sounds like maybe a lot of stuff goes on in chapter one, but literally all I've done is explain the initial premise of my fic. (Note- this summary is for an Epic the Musical fic, which is a musical based of the Odyssey. Would highly recommend but that's beside the point)

The point is, this is an AU. But I didn't employ the Out of Universe strategy this time around and say it's an AU because it's obvious to anyone in the Epic fandom and it does not need to be further clarified.

What mattered to me in this scenario is that my potential reader sees my summary and knows that Odysseus the main character is a man who is married to the goddess Calypso, and is currently living in paradise. But in canon (both in Epic and in the actual Odyssey), Odysseus rebuked Calypso's advances because he wished to remain faithful to his actual wife Penelope.

The suggestion or implied understanding here is that something bad happened that caused Odysseus to discard Penelope in favor of Calypso. (Spoiler alert: the bad thing was him being brainwashed by a woman who would eventually become his abuser.)

And in this case, it's the suggestion of something gone wrong that builds the intrigue and curiosity for me without me having to add anything extra.

In the bulk of King of Ogygia, Odysseus goes on a strenuous mental journey to rediscover his true self with the help of various Greek gods, while also physically fighting back against his abuser. That all sounds pretty important to the story, right?

And it is! But I didn't want to include any of that and risk spoiling the overarching story. Anyone who'll be interested in chapter 1 will probably willingly continue reading to see how the story develops because that's just what you do when you find a story you like.

But let's say you're not writing an AU or a complicated, multi-chapter story spanning tens or hundreds of thousands of words.

If your fic is short and sweet, your summary should be as well. Next up,

3) Keep it Simple Strategies

(Yes, plural. This section is more like two different ideas lumped into one sum, but it made the most sense to put them together so please bear with me.)

Maybe you've got a neat little one-shot or a short fic (like 10k words or less) and you're not sure how to write it's summary precisely because it's so short. Or maybe you just prefer simple, direct summaries as opposed to the lengthy, dramatic kind.

Here's my next example from a 3k one shot I once wrote:

To be clear, this is a NOT an ideal summary. Far from it. But it's from a fic I wrote 6 years ago and I've definitely grown and changed as a writer since then. Let's dissect and rewrite this summary together.

Firstly, it does the bare minimum of telling you who the main character is (Kirishima), who he's being shipped with (Izuku), and the setting (a gym). And from a technical standpoint, that's almost all you have to write in order to reach the textbook definition of a summary.

But I didn't even really explain what the conflict or actual plot is, only suggested that that plot would be Kirishima trying to get together with another character who, in this setting, is a personal trainer.

It's succinct, I can at least give it that. But it's so short and plain that it doesn't really spark much imagination, does it? In all honesty, if I saw this exact summary posted at the top of Ao3, I'd skip right past it because it's so unimaginative and bland 😭

But the fic itself is only 3k, how do you build intrigue for a story that most readers can digest in about 30 minutes or less?

Let's start by identifying the main character and make a short list of their most important emotions or characteristics. Here, I would characterize Kirishima as being hopeful (that he can score a date), in love, and active (in a physical sense).

So I should try to channel these primary components into my summary. I could say something to the effect of:

Kirishima has been hitting the gym a lot more often, but it's not to improve his strength. There's a new personal trainer and he's got Kirishima's heart rate spiking better than cardio day. But can he work up the nerve to actually ask Izuku out?

Obviously, he'll ask out the cute trainer and they'll go on a date, but that's not what's important to a ship fic. It's the journey to the inevitable getting together that we want.

What makes this summary a little more engaging is that it's a lot more playful than the original. The gym pun and usage of "strength", "heart rate", and "cardio" really emphasizes the setting and premise. It helps sell the idea that this fic is a lighthearted romp while also hitting all the basics of who we're supposed to care about and where they are.

Here's a marginally better example summary:

Same fandom, different ship, similar premise. One character has a crush on the other, their crush is unaware of their affection at first, and the name of the game is winning them over.

But what makes this summary better than the previous example?

Well, it explains itself quite well by hitting all the minimum details. With four short sentences, it introduces who the two most important characters are and what their deal is. One of them is a god, the other is a mortal. It's a fantasy setting. The romance is one-sided.

But those minimum details coalesce into something greater than the sum of its parts. You also get the sense that Katsuki is dangerous and hot headed because he's the god of war, and you know that the object of his affections is more bookish and not quite interested in the brutish type.

How will they ever get along?

You thereby implicitly understand that the conflict of the story is figuring out how the ship will inevitably become a ship despite their initial differences. We could call this the Opposites Attract strategy, where the summary focuses on the juxtaposition between the two characters in the central ship, and makes that the central defining feature of the story. Got all that?

Good!

But making lists or divvying up character traits might seem confusing or tedious for some. (IMO if you're a new fanfic writer just starting out, it's worth a try to treat these simple strategies as writing exercises for your stories/summaries, even if you end up not using/posting them.)

If you as a writer want a more direct approach, try:

4) The Excerpt Strategy

All that stuff I said earlier about generating intrigue and hiding the meat of your story?

Well, you're still sort of doing that with this strategy, but not really. Instead, you're going to let the fic do the talking for you.

And by that, I mean your summary isn't really a summary at all, and is instead a brief excerpt from the fic itself. Here's some examples from various fandoms I've written for, including some where I've let the fic speak entirely for itself and others that I've combined with Strategy 1:

But how do you choose the right excerpt to represent your entire story?

In my opinion, a good excerpt needs to fulfill a few key requirements:

It has to convey who the main character is or what the plot is, so it will probably be from early in your fic.

Likewise, it can't give away the ending/big reveal because it looks careless. (And does not build intrigue!)

It can't be too long or else it'll seem bloated and readers might skip over it.

It also can't be so short that it ends up being confusing.

And most of all, it can't be so out of context that it ends up being baffling. Like if my fic's summary was just the line "And then all the kangaroos got wet" sure that could convey that my fic might be wacky and/or crack, but it's also distracting, uninformative, and doesn't really convey anything about your characters or plot.

Yes, oftentimes all of the above can be a hard checklist to fulfill, I know from experience. Hence why a lot of writers, myself included, combine it with a brief out-of-character explanation of the fic to cover all our bases.

The third and shortest example is arguably too brief for a proper summary, but it does one thing I really like by establishing the tone. It's sensual and a little sarcastic, offering a hint of danger, and is cushioned from failing by not fulfilling requirement #4 b/c of its supplementary summary.

So, why choose this strategy over any other?

Well, it advertises your writing style and unique voice more than a typical summary would. Sure, a regular summary kind of reflects who you are as a writer already, but I've definitely noticed in my own experience that the way I write a summary might be more formal, less formal, more dramatic, less dramatic, or just plain different from the voice/tone/perspective used in my actual fic.

And remember- that's because a summary is designed to GRAB attention. A fic is designed to MAINTAIN attention. They aren't quite the same and each has its own needs & goals.

And last but not at all least:

5) No man is an island

You really want to learn how to write good summaries?

Read more fics. Read more books. Read their summaries.

Go to your local bookstore or library, or visit your own book shelf, and study how others have written their summaries. What's important to each story in order to make a publishable summary? Is it the character's powers, the world they live in, the time period, the setting, their relationships, their enemies, their conflicts? Or something else? Or is it a combination of the factors above? And how do you make each factor as enticing as possible?

Does a sci fi novel have the same summary structure as a Jane Austin novel? Probably not! So if you have a sci fi fic in mind, it might do you some good to see how sci fi authors characterize their works. (Or maybe think outside the box and do take inspiration from an Austin blurb? Anything is possible in the world of fiction.)

Alternatively, go to Ao3 (or your preferred platform) and read how others in your community portray their fics. Comb through the fics you've bookmarked and study their summaries. Did they entice you? If so, try to figure out how and why. If not, what compelled you to click on the fic regardless?

And don't be afraid to draft out your summaries and revise them the same way you'd do so with your actual fics. Granted, I know there's lots of people out there that post fanfics without editing them, and that's fine. This should all be for fun, after all.

But if you want to put your best foot forward and give your story a strong advertisement, experimenting with the wording and structure of your summaries might do you some good!

Ultimately, when I say no man is an island, I mean it in the sense that artists study other artists all the time, and have been doing so for thousands of years. Crafting an effective and compelling summary is arguably an art itself. So, learn from those around you. Take advantage of your predecessors and the fellow writers in your community.

And that's that!

But we're not quite done here. My parting gift to you all is one last strategy, one that can be readily combined with nearly all others. It's called the Try & Try Again Strategy:

Start with a shitty first draft of your summary. It can be as bad and uninformative and bland as you want because it's just for you and no one else will ever see it. In fact, it should intentionally be as simple and plain as possible. Something like "Percy Jackson goes to the store"

Then tack on an extra detail, something to make it a little more exciting or elaborate. Maybe you've identified that your summary needs to convey what the initial premise or inciting incident is, as opposed to something like a romantic pairing or the setting. So you write a newly revised summary: "Percy Jackson goes to a store and a bomb goes off inside."

But you want to add a few more details to make it just a little more exciting and informative: "Percy Jackson thought he was about to have an ordinary day when he's framed for a pipe bomb explosion inside a deli market." (Now we have the central conflict- Percy is being framed for a crime! But how can we make it even better? How do we build even more intrigue?)

Keep trying: "Percy Jackson's day went from mediocre to horrible as he's framed for an explosion inside a New York bodega. Follow his misadventure as he runs from the local cops, finds the perpetrator, and most important of all- gets his groceries home by dinner time."

But wait, you might say. That's not a strategy. That's just doing the same thing over and over again to varying degrees of success.

To that I say yes, it most certainly is. And that's basically all writing is. It's trying to bring your idea to life, identifying what's not working along the way, and fixing it.

But starting with a seed is how you get a flower.

And if you've made it this far, I just wanted to say thanks for stopping by! Have fun writing! ♥️

[flowerandblood]

The Last Drop (1/?)

[ modern • vampire • Aemond x female ]

[ warnings: description of blood drinking and bleeding in general, sexual tension, angst, memories of murders of both humans and animals, descriptions of violence + a lot of sadness ]

[ description: Encouraged by the information that the town he has landed in is not known for having the most vigilant police in the world, he decides to go on a little hunting trip to finally quench his burning thirst. However, not everything goes according to plan. (A lot of sexual tension, grumpy, gloomy Aemond). ]

Yes, Ewan's recent photoshoot inspired me to return to the vampire theme, this time in a modern version. I liked my idea for the character and their dynamic so much that it won't be a oneshot, but a mini-series! The general idea is that vampires in my world no longer produce their own blood, so they must drink the blood of others: however, once it enters their veins, the blood they drink takes on their own taste and smell, which attracts victims like a lure.

* English is not my first language. Please, do not repost. Enjoy! *

Next chapters: Masterlist

_____

The night was cool and crisp, the sharp air pleasantly filled his lungs. Even though he didn't actually need to, he breathed: it allowed him to remember that he was alive.

The centuries he had spent in perpetual, primitive thirst, starving himself, only to finally succumb again, wove together in his mind into chaos. He wasn't sure how much time had passed since his body had gone cold and no blood flowed through his veins.

Nor was it flowing through his heart, although he needed it.

That was why he had to eat.

He made frequent use of the blood that was stored in hospitals, as did others of his kind; nevertheless, to his disappointment and dismay, this was not enough for him.

No matter how many litres of blood he would drink from a plastic bag, he still felt a hunger that only passed when he sank his fangs into someone's neck.

He didn't understand why he couldn't stop himself – why, despite doing what he was supposed to do, he couldn't fool his nature.

At some point he just stopped trying.

He didn't kill, or at least he tried not to, however, his victims didn't show gratitude for his generosity – for fear that someone would recognise him, he kept changing his location, having several flats across the country.

Alys had told him about this town – she assured him that the police did not act too quickly here, and that it was easy and pleasant to eat in peace in the large, badly lit park. Indeed, when he arrived he found, walking the quiet streets at night, that the place had enough inhabitants to remain anonymous.

This was his chance.

Although he usually watched and followed his prey for long days, that night, as she passed him, he felt a hot, strange shiver and his heart, half-living, half-dead thumped harder in his chest. He turned behind her immediately and stopped, feeling a drop of cold sweat run down his back.

She was young.

Too young for his taste.

If he overreacted and lost control, she might not survive.

But she smelled so incredibly good.

He felt his fangs lengthen involuntarily, his jaw tense as he took a slow, heavy step behind her, into the depths of the park lit dimly by only a few night lanterns.

She was probably coming back from work from a night shift at some club or bar, because she had a rucksack slung over her shoulder – even though it was the beginning of winter, she was wearing only a jumper, scarf and trousers, her hair loose, their scent reaching his nostrils even though she was far ahead of him.

Fuck, I'm not going to make it, he thought, desperate, feeling his desire intensify for some reason – his senses sharpened and his hands clenched into fists as she turned into a dark side street, between the trees.

Now.

He found himself there within moments and froze, ready to attack, seeing the void in front of him – her scent was clear, but somehow she had vanished into thin air. He swallowed hard, biting his lower lip with some kind of feeling of regret and disappointment, looking around.

"Are you thirsty?" He heard a soft, calm voice behind himself and turned suddenly, feeling his heart leap to his throat with fear.

How could she be standing far behind him when she had just been in front of him?

What was that question supposed to mean?

He wanted to lunge at her, but hesitated as he saw her cock her head, pointing her hand back at her rucksack.

"I have a few bags full of blood in my backpack. I can give them to you if you need them. I have more at home." She continued, undaunted.

He felt his lips part involuntarily in disbelief when he noticed that, indeed, her face was pale, her hair unnaturally shiny and thick, her eyes sparkling with some disturbing gleam.

He was so thirsty that he did not notice that she resembled him.

She lowered her hand and blinked, seeing that he was still silent, looking at him with some kind of worry, as if he were a stray, hungry dog.

"What do you need?" She asked at last, and his gaze fled to her neck, to the blood of others that her heart had just pumped.

Blood that would have her own unique taste.

"Not here." She said, moving suddenly ahead, as if she had changed her mind. "Come with me."

He didn't know why, but he did as she said.

Usually it was the others who obeyed his orders, but now he didn't have the strength to stand up.

Perhaps he didn't even want to.

He was so terrified, intrigued and excited that he was breathing through his mouth.

It had been a long time since he had felt his own heartbeat so clearly.

He didn't know where she had got so much courage to let a stranger, much less a man like him, into her flat. To his surprise, it was cosy and colourful, full of flowers and plants, prints and posters, soft blankets and cushions in fancy patterns.

He stood in the middle of the corridor, not knowing what to do with himself, unable and unwilling now to just throw himself at her.

She pulled off her shoes and backpack, entering the living room without turning on the light, just as he seeing clearly in the dark – she sat down on the couch and held out her hand to him, a warm smile on her face that had a hint of comfort in it.

"Come here. It's okay. You've been brave." She said softly, as if praising a small child, her tone of voice filled with serenity and melacholy, as if she had known him for years.

He didn't know why he pulled off his shoes and coat, looking straight into her eyes, why, drawn by some unknown, mystical force, some strange warmth that filled his chest, he approached her.

He watched, breathing heavier and louder, as she lay on her back, still holding her hand outstretched towards him – he grasped her fingers uncertainly in his, thinking with some kind of tenderness that they were as cold as his own.

And yet, for some strange reason, though he was dead, it seemed as if life was still pulsing within her.

He was ashamed to admit to himself that he felt not only desire at the thought, but arousal as he lay down beside her, smelling her scent more and more clearly with every movement.

There was something intimate about the way she looked straight into his eyes without fear, the way her fingers combed slowly through his short hair, the way they were both silent for a moment, just breathing.

"– it's okay –" She repeated in a whisper, running her knuckles over his cheek, making him feel a squeeze in his throat for some reason.

He was moved.

When was the last time he'd been close to someone in this way?

He moved closer to her, feeling a wonderful shiver of excitement and anticipation run along his back as he leaned over her neck – his lips, swollen with desire, ran tentatively over her soft skin.

He heard her quiet sigh, her hands clenched on his body as he slid his slick tongue out, trailing the tip of it over the crook of her neck. He felt his erection pulsate, pushing against her thigh as he opened his mouth wider and his fangs slowly sank into the delicate structure of her flesh.

The fact that she was a stranger to him, unlike Alys, whom he had known for years, made him, for some reason, not dare to be aggressive – even though he could certainly hurt her if he wanted to, he decided to show his gratitude for her understanding and be polite.

There was something pleasurable about being able to focus only on the taste of her blood as it spilled over his palate – because of the way it circulated inside her body, it was warm, though not like that of a normal human being. He didn't mind, because it was a strangely refreshing taste, while at the same time providing him with a feeling of comfort – he thought the last time he felt like this was probably when he was an infant, drinking his mother's milk.

Safety.

He took one sip, then a second, and a third, one hand holding under her back, the other trailing slowly over the skin of her neck and jaw, for some reason wanting to feel her this way – her flesh grew warmer from the gentle rubbing of his fingers.

There was something in her blood that gave him the conviction of her kindness, and he was surprised by this discovery – he felt his heart begin to beat more slowly again, and his muscles, all sore a moment before, relaxed.

He wondered if she felt that he was completely hard.

When he pulled away from her, he closed his eyes and just nestled his face against her chest, tucking his head under her chin. He swallowed hard as she placed a soft, warm kiss on his hair, stroking reassuringly his cheek and back with her hand – he knew their closeness was just an imitation of what they both desired and needed, but he was too desperate to deny himself that.

He would never have asked for it out loud, but for some reason he craved what she offered him.

He wanted to hide.

He didn't need to sleep to survive, but he liked to rest that way, even more so when he was tired and relaxed. That girl, whoever she was, didn't try to escape his embrace, which gave him the feeling that she wouldn't do anything they both might regret.

When he woke up, he could see through the thick, bright curtains that the sun was already high in the sky – he murmured, snuggled with his face into her cheek, not having the strength or desire to move.

Now, in the light, he could look at her clearly.

She had been transformed when she was no more than twenty years old – of that he was certain. Her behaviour and appearance, in his mind, indicated that this sudden, frightening change in her life was recent: fifteen years ago at most, maybe less.

He swallowed quietly and stood up, deciding there was no point in prolonging it – the girl turned towards him and rubbed her eyelids, sleepily.

"Are you leaving already? Wait until sunset." She muttered.

He froze and cursed in his spirit, glancing at the window.

If it had been cloudy he would have survived somehow, but in full sun the burns was the least he could hope for.

She stood up, apparently seeing what he was thinking about, and moved lazily towards the kitchen, massaging the back of her neck.

There were no more marks from his bite, but her neck was all dirty with blood.

She reached for a plastic cup with a straw that looked like an old Coca-Cola packet and began to drink from it, slurping loudly. She raised an eyebrow when she saw that he was staring at her without saying a word.

"What? You made me thirsty." She explained, however, without a hint of resentment or regret, looking into her fridge, filled from top to bottom with plastic bags filled with blood.

"If you want, I can make blood tart or jelly. Or soup. So you won't be hungry again." She said, still continuing the activity of drinking through a straw from a plastic cup.

"What?" It popped out of his mouth, probably because he didn't understand what he had just heard.

"You know, food. I miss it sometimes. Mixing it with blood makes it nourishing, tasty and more interesting than blood itself. It's good with ice as a drink. I once put it in a soda maker to make bubbles inside, but the experiment failed." She said with a sincere sadness that made him just hide his face in his hands.

Was she serious?

"Sit down. I'll make us some jellies. Blood and raspberry. Yummy." She decided on her own, apparently completely not needing his opinion on the matter.

Indeed, he decided that he couldn't leave as long as the sun was shining so hard, so he sat down, watching in disbelief as she pulled out the gelatine, bowl, blood, raspberries and a few other things she apparently needed to create whatever she had in mind.

Looking at her with pity, he stated with a kind of melancholy that it had been a long time since he had watched a woman cook – the last time was when he had seen his mother as she was baking a cake, his favourite one: yeast with plums.

He felt a sting in his heart at the thought that he could still recreate the taste of it in his head.

"Do you live here? In this town, I mean." Her curious voice snapped him out of his reverie.

He looked at her, or rather at her back, watching as she stirred the steaming liquid in a small saucepan.

His thumb began to pick at the cuticles around his fingernails as his whole body screamed for him to do what was better for him, which was to lie.

"Yes. Since recently." He replied.

"Oh, I see – I've been living here for four years now. I'll probably have to move out soon. For now, they think my unchanging appearance is due to good genes." She said softly, pouring the contents of the saucepan into two ice cream goblets.

God, she really does make fucking blood jelly.

He blinked and looked at her, hearing the silence around them, recognising that he should answer something after all.

"Thank you. For yesterday. For your understanding." He said finally, his thumb digging into his skin too hard, creating a small, red wound along his fingernail.

Blood.

He saw her flinch and look over her shoulder – her eyes were big, as if she was surprised by something, her lips parted slightly, as if she felt arousal.

"– oh – do you want a plaster? –" She muttered, turning back – he noticed that her hands were shaking as she set the cups down in the fridge.

He lifted his finger to his lips and licked the bright red, sticky liquid from it.

"– no need –"

He saw her reach for her plastic cup, her eyes closed as she drew a few deep, greedy sips from the straw.

His manhood twitched in his trousers with delight at the thought that she craved his blood.

He swallowed hard when she came to him close enough that he could smell her clearly again – the psychological advantage he thought he had gained over her dissolved into thin air when he realised he wasn't driven by desperation then.

She smelled so good.

She tasted so good.

Maybe he could stay with her longer?

"Maybe we could be friends?" She asked.

He looked at her, feeling that his eyes were wide open in disbelief. Seeing that he had opened his mouth to answer something, she continued quickly, as if she feared she knew what he would answer.

"I have no one here. I don't trust myself enough to spend time alone with other people. I'm afraid of hurting them. But with you, I don't have to be afraid. You're new here too, so... I want you to know that you can count on me in times of need." She said quickly, stammering a few times, as if she was ashamed of her own words.

Was that why she had brought him to her home?

Because she was lonely?

"I don't know." He muttered, this time answering honestly.

"Okay. I just wanted you to know that the door to my house would be open for you."

After all, you don't know me completely, he thought.

You don't know if I didn't kill someone yesterday, if I won't hurt you, rob you, destroy your life out of boredom, for fun.

"How can you be so naive?"

He wasn't sure if he'd really said the question or if he'd only heard it in his head, but her expression told him that the words had left his mouth after all.

"You think so?" She muttered, heartbroken, as if his opinion meant something to her.

Why?

"I was thirsty and you allowed me to satisfy my hunger. You invited a strange man into your home. I could have raped you, I could have killed you. I still can." He snorted with a wide grin, looking at her in disbelief.

He saw her swallow hard, something moist shining in the corners of her big eyes.

"Maybe that's what I wanted. Maybe that's what I hoped for."

He felt a twinge in his stomach at her words, serious and filled with regret.

What were they really talking about now?

Was she hoping he would kill her?

"What do you mean?" He asked, running his fingers over the soft material that covered the armchair he was sitting on.

I can end your torment if you want me to and drink your blood to the last drop.

"I am alone. I can't talk to my parents or the friends I had before I…" She mumbled and drew in air loudly, apparently trying not to cry.

He was wrong.

It probably hadn't even been ten years since she'd been transformed.

How was it possible that she was doing so well?

Young vampires were usually feral and hungry, seeking pleasure in orgies full of blood. She, meanwhile, lived in her small flat like some kind of hermitage and worked as if nothing had happened.

That's why she cooked food, that's why she dressed the way she did, that's why she decorated her flat according to contemporary fashion.

She didn't want to let go of her old life.

"I'm sorry." He said and once again, he was honest. "In truth, I admire your self-control."

"I killed my dog. My best friend. A labrador with big, brown eyes." She mumbled out, fiddling with her fingers, whooping with the tears that began to run down her face one by one.

She had no one to tell about this, so she treated meeting him like a confession.

"I see. Then you ran away from home?" He asked calmly, for some reason feeling towards her words nothing but understanding.

His father's numb body lying on the floor beneath him, his loud panting when he finally regained his composure – he could see perfectly his lifeless eyes open in horror, his mouth spread wide, his throat ripped apart as if it had been torn by an animal.

He loved him, but he never noticed him.

He showed him no support when his eye was taken away, instead comforting his daughter from his first marriage.

Why was it always her and never him?

"Yes." She muttered wearily, her breathing deep and laboured, full of suffering.

"Do they know what happened to you? Where are you now?" He asked further, and she shook her head.

"Good. You did the right thing." He stated.

He raised his hands slightly in the air, surprised, as she sat on his lap and snuggled into him, embracing him around the waist.

She was sobbing like a little child, and in a way she probably was one – torn away from her family and what was familiar to her, she was wandering around the world alone and aimless, filled only with longing and grief.

He struggled to accept the thought that he understood her all too well.

He shuddered when he felt her warm, heavy breath on his neck – his hand ran over her back reassuringly, giving her wordless permission to take what she needed.

Comfort.

He'd only let Alys drink his blood so far, but for some reason he couldn't and didn't want to refuse her – he closed his eyes and sighed, tilting his head back as he felt her fangs slowly dig into his skin with surprising gentleness.

He heard something that sounded to him like a grunt of pleasure when she swallowed a loud gulp of his blood – his lips parted as her hips rolled forward, brushing it against his half-hard erection.

His fingers clenched on her flesh as he involuntarily reciprocated the movement, reaching out to meet her – they both began to breathe louder, as if surprised that they were taking pleasure in two forms of intimacy at the same time.

Their bodies rubbed against each other in calm, gentle harmony, his nose sunk into her soft hair, which he combed with his fingers, the sound of her swallowing arousing him more and more with each passing second.

She needed him.

He wanted to be needed.

He always had.

When she finally pulled away from his neck she pressed her cheek against his chest, exactly as he did then, and took a deep breath, as if she had accomplished some great achievement by not drinking his blood to the last drop.

"…shall we eat our jellies?"

[zephrunsimperium]

Ford is a jerk to Fiddleford McGucket in Journal 3. Let's talk about that.

First I want to preface this post by saying that I adore Ford. He is a wonderful character who has influenced my life in countless ways for the better. All of the things he does in this list a) stem from his own insecurities that he's projecting b) are symptoms of Ford's narcissistic defense mechanisms c) or come from Bill's influence on him. However, just because there are reasons for his actions doesn't excuse them, especially considering just how many there are.

Here's the list of things he does, I'll analyze at the end of the post.

Let's get the petty things out of the way first.

The cubic's cube: I think it is just straight up an absolute jerk move to scramble this thing that's clearly a comfort to him and think it's funny.

Being in shape: It's obvious his comments here are from his own insecurity but on a deeper level it just speaks to how Ford sees him, I think.

Not telling Fidds about Bill: Obviously Bill was feeding him a lot of paranoia but it's the reasoning that he writes down that gets me. It's so condescending.

The Gremloblin & The Shapeshifter

Something I think that's worth taking note of is the way Ford illustrates both of these instances. He brushes off Fiddleford's concerns multiple times and then Fiddleford pays the price and Ford sees himself as some kind of hero and Fiddleford this helpless victim. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

And then afterwards the way he handles not just Fiddleford's anxiety but the genuine trauma he went through. I know he's an old man, I know that's how he was treated, but Fiddleford is supposed to be his friend.

The Portal Test

Specifically their interaction at the diner and Ford's reaction to Fiddleford quitting the project. Fiddleford SELFLESSLY spends untold hours on this thesis for Ford because he cares about him and sees him burning out, even though Ford hasn't been great to him and Fidds has been going through his own hard things - not just with the gremloblin and the Shapeshifter, but things with his family as well. Ford does not match that selfless devotion at all. In fact, he sees it as an insult.

Analysis

The reason I've been thinking about this is because of Book of Bill and how that's influenced the shipping atmosphere. There's this weird notion that FiddAuthor is a less toxic ship but I think that's absurd. Besides their hug at Weirdmageddon, these journal entries are pretty much all we see of Ford's relationship with Fiddleford and it doesn't paint a pretty picture. Yes Ford is excited to have Fiddleford come to see him, yes Ford has that sweet conversation with him under the stars, but I don't think it's a stretch to say that all the above evidence outweighs hat. At the very least it shouldn't be ignored.

That doesn't mean Ford is a terrible person and we should hate him. I believe strongly in nuance and Ford is a character that requires nuance. I don't think he's an evil person, but I also don't think he should be babied as this perfect wittle guy who can do no wrong either. Both readings do a disservice to him.

Ford clearly had a hard childhood. He's isolated himself his whole life and he's been severely traumatized by Bill. But that doesn't mean that he deserves Fiddleford's forgiveness - Ford wasn't really that kind to him and his actions inadvertently led to the memory gun/Fidds' exposure to Bill. Ultimately it's Fiddleford's choice to make; I wouldn't fault him if he didn't want to ever see Ford again, but I think it's a testament to his goodness that he still cares for Ford as much as he does.

So what do I personally think? Man. I'm just sad we don't know more about Fiddleford McGucket than we do. He's so essential to Bill's defeat and to Ford's past and he's such a cool character but we know so little about him. I want to know what his childhood was like, I want to know how he ended up in Backupsmore, I want to know why he cares about Ford as much as he does, I want to know why things ended so poorly with EmmaMay. But we may never know those things for certain. So with the things we're left... Yeah, I think FiddAuthor is a compelling reading, one that I certainly enjoy. I just worry about the fandom babying Ford.

[mads-hemmo]

It’s Nice to Have A Friend - Jschlatt

Part 1

Reader has been lonely their whole life. They have never been in a relationship. They don’t understand why no one will love them but their best friend, Schlatt has always been in love with them.

Masterlist

From a young age, you have always been a hopeless romantic. Your favorite content always revolves around romance of some sort. You even have had your wedding planned since you went to your first wedding at merely six years old. Your plans are forever cemented on a Pinterest board that you continue to add to about monthly. I mean your taste has changed since 2015, but some things still remain true.

The only problem is that you haven’t got to experience romance yourself. At the ripe old age of 25, you have never been in a relationship. You have had your first kiss, but it wasn’t magical. You only did it because you hated being the college kid who had never kissed anyone. You slightly regret it, but at least it was out of the way.

The only good thing is that at least you have a best friend who you made a marriage pact with. You and your best friend Schlatt, met in middle school. When you were both sad and single in high school, you made a pact that if neither of you were married by 40, you would get married. It was just a silly thing that you both constantly laugh about.

When you met Schlatt in middle school, the two of you immediately hit it off. You saw Schlatt sitting by himself one day and decided to sit by him. You had a few classes with him and thought he seemed like a cool dude. At first he acted like he wanted to be alone, but you learned soon after that he really didn't have many friends. The two of you learned you had a lot in common. You both loved Nintendo, especially Mario Kart as well as computer games.

The one difference is you loved all things romance whereas Schlatt only cared about gaming and baseball. The really fucked up thing about the universe is that Schlatt has had multiple relationships while you remain single. His relationships usually never lasted, but it was still strange. The universe also made you bisexual and you still somehow manage to be lonely. But at least you had your best friend, Schlatt and that stupid marriage pact.

The hardest moment for you was when Schlatt decided to move to Austin, Texas. It was the longest and farthest apart you have ever been from each other. You knew it was good for career and would help him grow his channel, but it sucked being apart for so long. Thankfully, Schlatt made the decision to come back home to New York. When he came back, it was like nothing changed. You had your best friend back and nothing could make you happier.

Most of your nights lately have been spent hanging out at Schlatt’s apartment playing Mario Kart like you did as kids. Tonight was no different. Schlatt was playing as a Villager and you were playing as Cat Peach. “I tried downloading Tinder again,” you say, randomly.

“Why?” Schlatt asked, his eyes located on the screen.

“Maybe there’s someone new. We live in New York. Who knows who might have moved here? Maybe my soulmates!”

“Toots, how many times do I have to tell you? One, your soulmate is not going to be on tinder and two, you’re better off with a true New Yorker than some new kid that wants to make it on broadway or some shit.”

You sigh. “Oh my god, but imagine they are on broadway! You know my love for musical theatre! Maybe we need to go watch a show. The lead being so into their part locks eyes with me and we realize we are truly in love like the characters on the stage.”

Schlatt lets out a small laugh while rolling his eyes. “You are ridiculous, (Y/N),” he says, looking at you.

“You’re just mad that I’m kicking your ass right now.”

“You wish, Fucker,” he says, his competitive spirit coming back.

The two of you continue playing until you both decide you're hungry, so Schlatt orders pizza from your favorite place. “You staying the night?” Schlatt asks, grabbing the Bénédictine bottle and a few solo cups.

“Might as well. It’s the weekend after all,” you say, pouring the liquor into your cup.

“The guest room is always open for you. However, the cats have made it their own, so they might sleep with you.”

“It would be nice to have someone or something laying beside me even if it is just cats. I did always say I was going to be the crazy cat person, but the tables have seemed to turn,” you joke.

“I’m a very proud cat dad. They make great content and the ladies love them,” Schlatt says, moving his eyebrows.

You laugh at him. You miss the way his smiles grow with each laugh that leaves your mouth. “Did I tell you I started a new hobby?” You ask him.

“No? How do you have the time to have another hobby? What happened to crocheting or reading or shipping random men together?”

“I’m still doing all those things and I ship people of all genders. Anyways, I started coloring.”

“Coloring? Like with crayons?” He asks, not in a malicious way, but with genuine curiosity.

“No, with alcohol markers and white gel pens to add highlights. I saw it on TikTok of course and it’s been really fun. It’s also very stress relieving.”

“Can I see some of your finished work?” He asks, his eyes not breaking contact with yours.

“Oh yeah, sure,” you say, pulling your phone out. Sometimes you find it strange how Schlatt actually cares about your hobbies and various interests. He never makes you feel bad about it. He just lightly teases you, but you know that’s just how he is.

Schlatt looks at the pictures you took of the pages you have colored. “Awe I love the little kitty. They are cute! This is really impressive, Toots. It looks like you printed these out. Maybe next time you come over, you should bring your markers and we can color together. Mine won’t be near as good as yours, but I bet it would be fun,” Schlatt says.

You hold your pinky out and Schlatt wraps his around yours. “I’m holding you to that, Big Guy.”

“You know I’d never break a pinky promise. You bring the markers and I’ll bring the Bénédictine.” The marriage pact was formed on a pinky promise and that makes your heart feel warm.

You hear the doorbell ring and realize that your pinkies are still connected. You quickly get up to go answer the door. You see a very handsome man holding the pizza boxes. “Here’s your pizza,” he says. “It’s not everyday that I deliver to someone so pretty.” He winks at you.

“You’re too nice. Hold on, let me grab your tip,” you smile, turning around. You see Schlatt and he hands you a ten dollar bill. “Thank you.”

“Sorry I didn’t realize you had a boyfriend. I couldn’t have flirted with you if I knew,” the guy apologizes.

“He’s not-“ you start.

“Don’t worry about it, dude,” Schlatt says, grabbing the pizza and handing him the money. “Have a good night.” Schlatt closes the door. He goes to the kitchen to grab plates before coming back to the living room.

“What was that?” You ask him.

“What? I just finished what you were going to say. That guy also was probably a high schooler.”

You just decide to not push it any further, knowing that Schlatt is probably right. “What movie do you want to watch?” You ask.

“As long as it’s not a musical, I don’t care what we watch. I recommend Tokyo Drift, but you’re the guest,” Schlatt says, with a piece of pizza in his mouth.

“We can watch Tokyo Drift. It’s been awhile since you picked the movie.”

Schlatt smiles at you. “Thanks Bub.” He puts the movie on.

It doesn’t take long for you to pass out. Schlatt knew it was inevitable. You usually fall asleep during a film and with liquor and pizza on your belly, it’s no surprise when he hears your soft snores. Your head makes its way on Schlatt’s shoulders. He smiles at you and he feels his heart start to race. He wishes you weren’t so hard on yourself and saw how amazing you were.

After about twenty minutes, he realized that you were pretty much out. Instead of having you sleep on the couch, he gently picks you up, bridal style and carries you to the guest bedroom. He carefully lays you down and places the blanket over you. He watches in awe as jambo cuddles beside you. When he knows you’re definitely asleep, he kisses your forehead. “I love you. Sleep tight, Toots,” he says, cleaning up the living room before going to his bed. Schlatt wishes you were laying beside him. He would hold you tight and never let you ever think you were incapable of being loved. He falls asleep, happy with the fact that you are asleep in his house and not with someone who doesn’t deserve you.

A/N: yay!! New fic!! Thank you to 🍓 anon, and everyone else who suggested this req!! Hope you enjoy the first part. Sorry I’m posting this in the middle of the night! Let me know what you know!!

[urinarythreatinfection]

Masterlist

Prompts/Request Rules

Requests: Closed. You can also just talk to me!

💋 Smut ❤️ Fluff 💔 Angst 🔥 Joke 💘 Suggestive 👍 Platonic 👨 Male 👩 Female 👤 Gender Neutral 👶 Child Reader ✏️ Drabble 📃 One Shot 💭 Headcanons 🪧 Scenario 💕 Family 🩸 Violence ✅️ Finished

Shanks

The Cute and Obsessive You 💋🩸👨📃

Your boyfriend is a yandere, but it comes in handy when you're kidnapped (also it's sexy).

Charm You to Jealousy 💋👨📃

Shanks is popular, especially when he's cool, so you may or may not get a bit jealous.

Big spoilers for episode 1112.

Compliments ❤️👨👤✏️

Shanks loves compliments and you give them often.

Lust/Love 🔥👨👤✏️

A few drinks makes you loose-mouthed but you're a quick thinker.

Tomboy Girlfriend ❤️👩����

Shanks likes drinking and partying, especially with his lover.

A Romantic Date ❤️👤💭

Shanks has many sides, but romance with you always comes naturally.

An Awkward Child 🔥💕👶🪧

Shanks tries his best to get you to socialize.

A Good Liar 🔥👍👤📃

You and Shanks are caught on a day out, thankfully you're good at improvising.

Pretty When You're Mine 💋❤️👨📃

You're a little mean and want to try something new, thankfully your boyfriend is incredibly receptive.

RUFF! ❤️🔥👤🪧

Your boyfriend turns into a dogboy but he's still very cute.

How to Breed Your Captain 💋👨📃

Your captain sudddenly leaves in the middle of drinking, so you gotta find out what happened.

Omegaverse, Shanks has a pussy.

Shoulders 🔥❤️👨🪧

Shanks is tall but not tall enough for a view.

Scent 💋👨✏️

Shanks likes it when you smell like eachother.

Omegaverse, Shanks has a pussy.

Narcissistic Romance ❤️🔥👩✏️💭

You and your new boyfriend happen to look similar.

Scruff ❤️🔥👩👤🪧

Naughty Captains get the puppy treatment.

Birthday Boy ❤️👤📃

Poor Shanks is the only one who remembered his birthday (according to him)

Two Cats ❤️👩✏️

You're a picky and bratty drinker, fortunately Shanks is there to "protect" you.

Eyes. 🩸💔❤️👤📃

You visit your parent in their prison with Shanks.

Wider View 💘👧✏️

An adult store owner has a small encounter with you and Shanks.

Hair ❤️👤✏️

After losing his arm and hat, Shanks thinks about his hair and how it looks to you.

Surprise ❤️💋📃

After a failed date you give your husband a little surprise.

Male Vers, Fem Vers

Luffy

Kindness Isn't Spineless: Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3, Part 4 💔❤️👤✅️

Luffy thinks you're too "kind", unknowing of your past traumas with an abusive ex.

A Romantic Date ❤️👤💭

Luffy isn't much of a romantic but he loves to love you.

RUFF! ❤️🔥👤🪧

Being a dogboy only makes Luffy more excited and he's going to make it everyone else's problem.

Thunk 👍🔥👤🪧

Luffy spilled something like a stupidhead.

Shoulders 🔥❤️👨🪧

Luffy reallllyyy wants to see Frankys WIP

Scruff ❤️🔥👩👤🪧

Luffy whines like a puppy so you treat him like one.

Is This Love?: Part one, Part two, Part three, Part four, Part five, Part six 💔 ❤️ 👨

Confessing to Luffy isn't as sunshine and rainbows as both of you wish it was.

Post Jinbe, Small allusion to Whole Cake, Fishman Island spoilers.

Will You Still Love Me? ❤️🔥👤🪧

You turn into a worm.

You're Here! ❤️🔥👤🪧

You both miss eachother, you're also both on the same wavelength in doing whatever it takes to see eachother sooner.

As You Do So Will I ❤️👍🔥👤📃

Luffy annoys you so much you give him a taste of his own medicine.

Unexpected Hormones ❤️🔥👤🪧

Luffy's pregnant love craves fish but the fish they have is too high in mercury.

Zoro

Roots of Suffering 💔❤️🩸👩📃

Pain from severe migraines makes you to be rash, causing more damage than your mind could on its own.

Tomboy Girlfriend ❤️👩💭

You're completely unruly but okay yes he loves you.

RUFF! ❤️🔥👤🪧

He's a little dumb as a dogboy but he's got the spirit.

Thunk 👍🔥👤🪧

Clean your equipment after use, guys.

Why are you two friendly 👍📃

Zoro and Sanji are a lot more tame when they're alone

No reader, just characters.

It's YOURS 👍🔥👤📃

You find Zoro's small mossy lookalikes in a forest and decide to have some fun.

Will You Still Love Me? ❤️🔥👤🪧

You turn into a worm.

You're Here! ❤️🔥👤🪧

He's strong enough to catch you from a cliff, probably.

Unexpected Hormones ❤️🔥👤🪧

You really want to touch Zoro's new sword but it's too dangerous for a pregnant you.

Sanji

Tomboy Girlfriend ❤️👩💭

Sanji likes to be a gentleman but with you he's more of a gentle man.

Your Love is My Warmth ❤️👤📃

It's a cold night, but together with you he's never felt warmer.

Fun(ny) Halloween 🔥👍👤📃

You don't know what to go as for Halloween, but get inspiration from a certain cook.

Insecure Love 💔❤️👩📃

Misunderstandings from trauma cause pain for you and Sanji as your relationship goes on.

Major spoilers for episode 1053

Thunk 👍🔥👤🪧

Rest is important, idiot.

Shoulders 🔥❤️👨🪧

How'd he get the groceries up there?

OH MY GOD ❤️👍🩸👨📃

Don't walk backwards while hiking on a mountain.

Why are you two friendly 👍📃

Zoro and Sanji are a lot more tame when they're alone

No reader, just characters.

Confusion in my Love, Part 2, Part 3 ❤️💔💋👨✅️

Sanji struggles with the fact he's fallen in love with a man.

Medium Fishman Island spoilers.

You're Here! ❤️🔥👤🪧

Being your knight in shining armor didn't prepare him for you jumping off a cliff.

Unexpected Hormones ❤️🔥👤🪧

You're pregnant craving icecream.. but there's no milk.

Robin

Thunk 👍🔥👤🪧

Small mistake isn't everything.

Brook

Thunk 👍🔥👤🪧

God, just stop making that joke.

Me...? 💘👨🪧

Brook finds out his charm hasn't quite disappeared yet.

Nami

You're Here! ❤️🔥👤🪧

There's no way you would jump off a cliff just to see her sooner, right?

I'm Better 💋❤️👨📃

Nami tells you to use a toy to curb your libido, but it becomes her enemy.

Usopp

Shoulders 🔥❤️👨🪧

No he doesn't need help but maybe if you gave it he wouldn't decline it.

Jinbe

Me...? 💘👨🪧

You have tea with Jinbe and reveal less than innocent thoughts.

Crocodile

Reptile Break for the Reptile Broken 🔥✏️

Crocodile is tired, so he visits the bananagators.

Post Crossguild.

Crocodile the Lovestruck (Reptile) Fool ❤️👩💭

You've been with him since Alabasta, and he's starting to think of you as more than a loyal employee.

Post Cross Guild.

Its Good to See the New You 💕💔👨💭

You joined the Strawhats after your father was defeated in alabasta, when you meet again his daughter is now his son.

Small Marineford and Alabasta spoilers.

Mihawk

Boredom and Jokes 🔥 👤✏️

Mihawk's older than you and Buggy thought.

Post Cross Guild.

Mimi Mihawk ❤️👤✏️

Mihawk reads the paper while you give him affection.

Pre-Cross Guild but Post Timeskip

An Awkward Child 🔥💕👶🪧

You aren't really the best at getting along with people, Mihawk doesn't mind.

Pre and Post Cross Guild

Think About It ❤️👩👤📃

He's more oblivious than you thought, by a LOT.

Romantic(?) ❤️👨👤✏️

You're a romantic pervert.

Skating on Thin Ice 🔥👍👤✏️

You tell a dirty joke at Mihawk's expense.

Buggy

Boredom and Jokes 🔥 👤✏️

Mihawk's older than you and Buggy thought.

Post Cross Guild.

Smoker

An Awkward Child 🔥💕👶🪧

Tashigi and you cause a small accident when she tries to teach you something new.

Fujitora

Me...? 💘👨🪧

Fujitora finds something out about a new marine (you).

Ace

Love Makes You Crazy 💋❤️👩📃

Ace has convinced you to be bold in more ways than one.

Sabo

You're Here! ❤️🔥👤🪧

If he misses you he should catch you.

[honeyrotsoul]

Paring: Melissa x Fem Reader (side nat x reader) (very brief mentions of taivan, shaunahat, jackieshauna, and lottielee - like very brief)

Word Count: Roughly 6000

Warnings: light smut (fingering), cheating (also an insane amount of swearing) (and a background character who is aware that she’s a background character)

I was trying to channel that little gray area between Melissa being a background character and Melissa being bold enough to cause harm on her own, but idk if I succeeded.

“I got a girl crush. Hate to admit it, but I got a heart rush. Ain’t slowing down. I got it real bad. Want everything she has. That smile and that midnight life she’s giving you now. I wanna taste her lips, yeah, cause they taste like you. I wanna drown myself in a bottle of her perfume. I want her long blonde hair. I want her magic touch. Yeah, cause maybe then, you’d want me just as much.”

–Girl Crush, Little Big Town

MELISSA WAS HOPELESSLY IN LOVE WITH YOU. She had been ever since kindergarten when you were the only kid who sat next to her. The only kid who thought she was worth talking to. Melissa was, unfortunately, used to being the background character in everyone else’s story. Honestly, that was kind of okay with her. She didn’t want or even like the attention that came with being a main character. Too much work, and a hell of a lot of trauma, it seemed. No, it was better this way. As long as you continued to shine your light down upon her, for you were like the sun to Melissa. And she was just lucky enough to orbit around you.

But you never noticed how Melissa felt, because you were dating Natalie Scatorccio. Freakin’ Natalie who wasn’t even a real blonde! So, what did Natalie have that she didn’t? Was it the bleach blonde hair that made her look like a rockstar when she did her eyeliner in that messy-on-purpose way? Perhaps it was the ridiculously expensive cologne that Mel wasn’t even sure Natalie could afford. (Did you buy it for her? Did Lottie help her shoplift it? Did she save up every few months for a single bottle? So many questions!) Or maybe it was her cool clothes and the faint scent of leather that followed her everywhere she went. Because Natalie Scatorccio was the epicenter of cool.

And Melissa was not.

So what, Melissa was a dork. What was wrong with that? She liked comic books and Star Wars and sports and quiet nights in. But maybe that wasn’t what you were into. Maybe you liked parties and music so loud that the beat thumped in your chest. Maybe you liked chaotic energy and a leader, not a follower. It was one of the things that Melissa always hated about herself. She wasn’t a leader. She was a follower, a loyal subject that was constantly looking for approval.

And that was how she ended up here.

She was standing in front of her mirror, studying herself. Maybe she should try a regular bra instead of a sports bra for a change? …Nah, she doesn’t want to make her boobs sit up that much. (Plus, her mom might suddenly get the urge to put her in a dress again, and the thought alone makes her shiver in disgust.) Would you even notice if she changed her look for the day? Probably not, but it was worth a shot, right? What would a girl like Natalie even like to wear?

God, this is so stupid. Melissa groaned internally. She pulled out a black t-shirt with cutoff sleeves. When did she even get this? She scrunched her nose, brows furrowed as she thought. Ah, now she remembers. It was that summer she spent with your family at the beach house. A seagull stole her shirt - for what, she doesn’t know - so you’d stolen one from your brother. Maybe that was why she’d latched onto you. You always took such good care of her. She liked that. She liked being seen by you, just a little. It was different from being seen by everyone else.

She’d brought cologne for the first time. She usually didn’t bother with things like that. She was always a little too embarrassed to buy it in front of her mom, anyway. Her mother already judged her enough. Or perhaps judged was the wrong word. She didn’t exactly judge her. Melissa knew that her mother loved her, she still showed it as best as he could. She just wasn’t exactly happy when Melissa traded dresses and ribbons for cleats and scruffed knees. In a way, Melissa got it. Maybe it was a little bit jarring for a person to think of their daughter as a princess only to find out that she’d rather be the prince. And now, every time Melissa came downstairs in cargo shorts and a snapback or rushed to open the door for a pretty girl, she was met with that indignant little sniff from her mother. At least she stopped telling her that it was just a phase. She was slowly coming around. Melissa just hoped that she would fully accept her before it was too late. Because, deep down, she was still just a girl. She wanted her parents at her wedding. She wanted to be walked down the aisle, just not in a big, poofy dress.

She didn’t want to look like a fucking cupcake.

Melissa puffed out a sigh and lifted the heavy bottle. Her mother had given her the cash to buy it, but only because she’d told her she was buying perfume instead. Which, honestly, wouldn’t have been so bad. Just because she was masc didn’t mean she couldn’t also wear perfume and do girly shit when she wanted to. She could be butch and still smell like a flower! But this was for your benefit. While she was studying the bottle, she accidentally spritzed herself in the face, which caused her to cough and gag. And then she ended up spraying too much in general, which fucking sucked. This was not going well.

Shit, she forgot to change her pants. She can’t go in cargo shorts again. She always goes in cargo shorts.

She pulled on a pair of jeans, which honestly weren’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but they would do. Melissa usually dressed for comfort over style, which wouldn’t do today. Today was about you and finally telling you how she felt, consequences be damned. She picked up her brush and was about to run it through her long, blonde locks but then thought against it. She placed the brush back down and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to get that messy, fluffy look without turning her waves into a frizzy mess. Maybe she should get bangs? No, she’d look fucking stupid with bangs. She doesn’t have the forehead for that. She reached for her favorite pink snapback, remembered that she’d never seen Natalie wear a hat a day in her life, and reluctantly put it back.

Was this obsessive? Did changing herself to get a girl to like her make her some kind of freak? But wasn’t that what love was? Or wasn’t that at least what surviving on this floating space rock was? Learning to adapt, to fit in where you could? And Melissa so desperately wanted to fit in with you however she could. She knew that she should want someone who would love her as she was, but that had never worked out for her before. People only seemed to want her for who she could become, and not who she already was.

So, she would change. She would learn to be a chameleon, always changing.

She caught up to you in the courtyard, practically ran to catch you before you headed off to English class. And there you were, standing directly in the sun, looking as radiant as ever. You were laughing, standing there with all your friends. It felt like everyone loved you. And Melissa hated how she always felt like she was on the outside looking in. She didn’t exist until one of you spoke to her. Until you spoke to her.

There’s no way that Taissa Turner is that funny, but you’re still laughing. Maybe she would have believed it if it were Mari that you were laughing at. How many years had she been on this team, just for none of those girls to even know her name? And if they did know her name, they certainly couldn’t say anything beyond that.

But you knew her. You did. Because the moment you saw her, you smiled that big, beautiful smile at her and said goodbye to your friends before making your way over to her. “Hey”, you greeted, adjusting your bag on your shoulder.

Melissa feels her heart flutter. “Hey”, she greets in return.

You playfully nudge her with your elbow. “Why are you standing over here like a stalker? Come say hi to everyone.”

Melissa rolled her big blue eyes, shook her head. “No, thank you. Those girls will just keep asking my name over and over when I have literally always been here.”

“Hm”, you hummed in response. “Okay, well, there’s a party tonight. You should come by”, you said, looping your arm through hers.

Melissa groaned, looked up to the heavens that so brilliantly matched her eyes. “You know I don’t like parties. I always feel awkward and left out.” She glanced down at the chipped nail polish on your fingers. Pale blue. Maybe, subconsciously, she had an effect on you too. “I’ll think about it, okay?”

“That’s all I ask”, you said cheerfully, smiling. “Hey, do you hear dripping?”

Melissa furrowed her brows in confusion. “Dripping?”, she repeated in confusion. “What-? No”, she said quickly.

“Huh, weird”, you said, equally as confused. You smiled a little, took a step closer. “You’re wearing the shirt I gave you.”

“What? Oh, yeah, I’m trying out something different today”, Melissa said. She had gotten a little dazed, if she were being honest.

You tilted your head, eyes drifting up and down her figure, before shaking your head. “Well, all of this looks really nice, but I like regular Melissa.”

This caught her off guard. “You do?’

“Yeah”, you nodded. “Like, where’s your funky little hat?”

She rolled her eyes in response. “I’ll wear it for you tomorrow, I promise.”

A teasing smile crept up onto your face. “Does the hat stay on during sex?”

Melissa’s pale cheeks heated up immediately. There was still a faint tan to her skin, making her look sunkissed. You always felt that if it weren’t soccer and you lived in a different state, Melissa would have been a surfer. She shoved you a little. “Shut up”, she murmured as you laughed loudly.

Melissa did end up going to the party. Not because she exactly wanted to, but because you asked and how could she say no to that pretty face? You were dancing to some TLC Song when she arrived - Baby-Baby-Baby, maybe? She didn’t really know the logistics or many of their songs, just that they were your favorite group. And you always looked the happiest, the most free, when you were dancing to their music, because you didn’t care what anyone thought of you.

You smiled just as brightly when you saw her. Somehow, it made Melissa feel all warm and tingly that you were always so excited to see her. Nobody else was ever really excited to see her. Except maybe Gen. Gen, aside from you, was the only friend she had in the world, or at least that was how it felt. Gen didn’t think she was boring. You didn’t either, to be fair. She couldn’t say the same for the rest of the team. “Hey, you. Get over here”, you called out to her.

Melissa didn’t know what came over her.

One minute, the two of you were dancing, spinning, laughing.The next, she had bit the bullet, She leaned in and kissed you. Your lips were soft, and you tasted like pure sugar and chocolate because you were always loading up on sweets whenever you could. Was this what heaven felt like? The little soft breaths that escaped you, the softness of your skin, the flowery scent of your perfume?

But it was all over far too quickly, because, suddenly, she was ripped away from you and Nat’s voice was ringing in her ears. “What the fuck, Melissa?!”, she shouted. Shouted so loudly, in fact, that the rest of the Yellowjackets heard and came rushing over. Great, now you had an audience.

Melissa let out an almost bitter sounding laugh. It was very rare that she had anything biting to say, very rare that she was anything but kind. But, sometimes, there was a spark within her. A tenacity that couldn’t be tamed. “Oh, so now you know my name?”

Silence. Nat let out a sound, somewhere between a laugh and a scoff. “You think you’re funny?”, she asked bitterly. “You kissed my girlfriend, and you think you’re fuckin’ funny?”

You just barely caught Natalie around her middle before she could lunge at Melissa. It wasn’t like Nat particularly liked to fight, but she certainly wasn’t above doing it. Especially when it came to you. “Stop it”, you hissed. “You’re making a scene.”

“You’re damn right I’m making a scene!”, Natalie exclaimed. “This bitch-”

Melissa bristled. She took a step closer, fists clenched by her sides. They were pretty evenly matched in height. Nat was 5’6, roughly. Melissa was 5’5, probably. But muscle mass made a difference, and Melissa certainly had more of it. Not that you’d noticed, or anything… “Oh, I’ll give you a fucking scene, Scatorccio!” Would she really? It was always hard to tell with Melissa. Sometimes, she’d stand her ground. Other times, she would get so close just to miss the mark and falter in the end. It was a real toss up.

“Hey!”, you interrupted. “That’s enough, both of you! You’re embarrassing me, and yourselves. I’m sure it was just a misunderstanding. Melissa and I got caught up in the moment and she-”

“Stop fucking defending her!”, Nat groaned. “She knows what she did. And the only misunderstanding is going to be my foot up her fucking ass!”

“Oh, by all means, shrimpy, come at me!”, Melissa scoffed. She wasn’t scared of Nat. She could take her in a fight… couldn’t she?

Natalie laughed, bitter and hollow. “Don’t piss me off, Mel. We both know that if I actually did come at you, you’d piss your pants like you did in the second grade.” Somewhere behind you, Shauna Shipman snorts into her red solo cup. And when she can’t contain her laughter, she buries her face in Jackie Taylor’s shoulder as if the wide eyed girl alone is enough to stifle her little giggles. And, of course, when she starts giggling, Tai almost laughs as well. Van had to nudge her with her elbow. She might have been the only other Yellowjacket who sympathized with Melissa. When Melissa came out, Van was the one who helped her learn how to dress, how to feel comfortable now that she was no longer on the super feminine side of the spectrum. Sarcastic as she could be, Van actually liked Melissa.

It was ironic.

Melissa’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment. She would rather not relive one of the top ten most embarrassing moments of her life if she could help it. “Fuck you. You don’t scare me. None of you fucking scare me! You act like pretending that the rest of us don’t exist makes you a bunch of god damned kings, but it doesn’t! We’re still real people too! I’m still real, and I’m not going to keep taking shit off of you!”

Silence followed for a long moment. Nat snickered, then smirked. “Maybe you should be scared of me, Pissy Pants. Cause you aren’t taking my girl.” Natalie was usually so kind, so understanding, that this wasn’t like her. Sure, she was a little rough around the edges, but you couldn’t remember a single time where Nat was unnecessarily mean. This meant that Melissa had clearly stricken a nerve, which you guessed was fair. What happened next, though, was decidedly not fair.

Melissa had had enough. She’d had enough of fading into the background, enough of being made a fool of. She didn’t want to be a main character in this fucked up story, not really. But she didn’t want to keep quietly existing either. She had feelings. She was real. She existed! With a growl that would put even a tiger to shame, she rushed and launched herself at Nat. The thud that followed them both hitting the ground was so brutal that even you cringed. You were just barely able to get out of the way before the two girls began thrashing and rolling around, cussing each other to hell and back.

“Stop it!”, you shouted at the top of your lungs. “Stop it, both of you!” But your pleas went overhead, even though the music was significantly lower than it had been before. All eyes were on you. “Guys, can you please just knock it off?” You tried to break them apart until you caught an elbow to the face. You don’t know whose, but it decked you so hard that you staggered back and everything got quiet again. Even Melissa and Natalie were looking at you, wide eyed and shocked. Your nose felt all warm and tingly, so you reached up and gently touched your nose. Blood. You stared at the crimson liquid for a moment before shaking your head. “Oh, fuck this!”, you exclaimed bitterly before storming off.

Nat winced and detangled herself from Melissa. “Babe, wait, please-!”

Misty quickly grabbed Nat by the elbow, giving her a nervous smile. Misty Quigley, though a weird little loner, was one of the few people in the world that Nat actually liked and trusted. Although, she did love and care for all her teammates in some way. Misty was just different. Good different. “Just let her go, Nat. It’s Lottie’s house. What was the worst that could happen, right?”

So, you stormed off to the main house to get yourself together. You were in one of the Matthews’ many bathrooms with the sink running while you tried to clean yourself up. There was a knock at the door and then Melissa stuck her head in with an awkward, goofy smile. “Hey. I brought you some ice”, she awkwardly, nervously, holding up a small ziploc bag with ice in it. “I’m really sorry about-”

“Melissa, what the fuck was that?!”, you interrupted in pure astonishment. “You’re picking fights with Nat now?”

“I would say she picked a fight with me first”, Melissa murmured as she stepped fully into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. “She provoked me.”

“After you kissed me”, you muttered. It wasn’t accusatory. It was just a simple statement, the fact of the matter if you will. “Why did you kiss me?”

“Because I wanted to”, Melissa said, as if that was obvious. “I’ve always wanted to.”

“‘Because I wanted to’ is not a good enough explanation on randomly kissing your best friend at a party in front of her girlfriend”, you said flatly. This night had already caused you far more trouble than it was worth. Why couldn’t your life just be boring?

“It was the only way I could think of to get you to notice how I felt”, Melissa said quietly. “You see me, but you don’t always really see me. And I think… I think part of me likes having someone to revolve around. Like it makes me feel better about myself somehow. But I still… I still wanted you to notice. And you never did, because I’m not one of them.”

“One of who?”, you asked in confusion. “Melissa, you’re a Yellowjacket too!”

“But not in the way that you are!”, Melissa shouted, her frustration boiling over. “Not in the way that they are. You’re all, like, this tight knit little group that the rest of us can never reach. And you never even notice the rest of us, because you all date inside that group like an incestuous little family.”

“We do not-”

“Jackie and Shauna. Tai and Van. Lottie and Laura Lee”, Melissa listed off. “Hell, Crystal barely even existed until Misty started dating her. We don’t exist to you guys until one of you speaks to us. And the only reason you know that I exist is because we were friends before all this!”

“That’s not true.” Your face heats in indignation and a touch of embarassment. Was Melissa right? Were you and your friends all selfish, self centered assholes who didn’t acknowledge your fellow teammates until you had a reason to? No, surely not. Allie wasn’t part of the friend group, and- You inwardly cringed. And none of you tried to talk Tai out of her plan to freeze Allie out, which ended with the jv girl getting seriously hurt. Sure, some of you didn’t want to participate in Tai’s friends, but you didn’t try to stop her, did you? God, maybe you really are self centered assholes. “Don’t bring Laura Lee into this. She and Lottie deserve to be happy, really happy. You know their parents tried to convert them, and-”

“Did you know that Crystal’s real name isn’t even Crystal?”, Melissa interrupts. “It’s Kristen. You all got it wrong, and she never corrected you after she got nicknamed ‘Crystal the Pistol’, because she wanted to fit in. Or did you know that Robin cries so much because she wants to cry for her mom, except there is no mom to cry out for because her mom died. Or hell, did you even know that Gen is allergic to peanuts?”

It felt like way too much information all at once. “Crystal - Kristen - why would she - what?”, you stammered out. Because, unfortunately for you, you just couldn’t wrap your head around the fact that one of your teammates would lie about who she was. Weren’t you a safe enough space for a girl to at least correct you all on her name? “Robin’s mom… I didn’t…” And then, you think about Gen, which might be totally random, but what the fuck? “Why didn’t Gen say anything yesterday when I brought peanut butter cookies for everyone?” And then you were pouting, which only further proved Melissa’s point on how easily the main group got sidetracked when it came to your less interesting teammates. “I worked really hard on those cookies, man. I would’ve made something she could actually eat.”

“I dunno. She probably just didn’t want to hurt your feelings”, Melissa huffed.

You were silent for a moment. “...Did she eat the cookie?”

Melissa threw her hands up in exasperation. “It doesn’t matter whether or not she ate the god damned cookie!”

“I mean, it kinda does. She could’ve gotten really sick”, you mumbled. “I don’t want to be the reason she’s sick.”

“She probably gave it away. I get that you all think we’re dumb, but she wasn’t going to poison herself to make you happy”, Melissa scoffed bitterly. “You know what, never mind. Fuck this.”

“That’s not what I-” Your eyes widened a little as Melissa opened the door to leave. For what it was worth, you weren’t actually implying that Gen would have eaten that cookie just to spare you. You were only wondering what became of it, because you felt bad for giving it to her in the first place. You didn’t even think to check with Coach Martinez to see if any of your teammates were allergic to anything. You only knew that your friends weren’t, and fuck everyone else, huh? You groaned. You might have actually been a jerk. “Melissa, wait!”

You rushed after her, but the crowd had already swallowed you both whole and you couldn’t even see the top of her head. Panic swelled within your chest. You searched desperately for Melissa, but then a calloused hand caught your wrist. Nat. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

You looked for Melissa once more, but still didn’t see anything. You practically deflated. “Nothing, I was just…” You weren’t sure what else to say. “My nose hurts. I couldn’t find my way to the kitchen for more ice.”

Nat’s gaze softened. “C’mere, princess. Let me look at you”, she said, guiding you away. You looked over your shoulder, but Melissa was still nowhere to be seen.

Later that night, you and Nat were making out in the backseat of your car. Typical Friday night, really. You were straddling her lap, her hands finding purchase on the small sliver of skin between your shirt and the band of your bottoms. It was all so familiar - the pressure of her hands, the squeak of the leather seats beneath your knees, the smearing of the fog on the window as your hand slipped down it. Nat knew all the right ways to touch you. She knew every place to caress in a way that would make you sing. She loved you. It was perfect. Normal. The usual thing that you expected.

So, why did it all feel so wrong?

You were thinking of Melissa, and that fact was driving you crazy. You weren’t even sure why. But you couldn’t help but to wonder if she was right. Were you only dating Nat because she was in the inner circle and you had never even thought of looking outside that? You loved Nat, but were you in love with her?

“Hey, um, actually, I don’t think I’m in the mood tonight”, you said softly, a little breathless.

Nat furrowed her brows in confusion. She hated to admit it, but she associated love with the physical aspect. She had reduced herself only to what her body was worth. So, when you wanted to stop, it felt like she had just been shot. But finally, finally, she nodded. “Yeah, okay, we don’t have to do this. We can just… talk.”

You gave Nat a sad smile. You didn’t want to just ditch her. That would be a little heartless. “Yeah, okay. We can just talk”, you agreed.

Natalie sat for a second, drumming her fingers against her thigh as she tried to think of something to say. “Did you know that Travis is dating Akilah?”, she blurted out.

You blinked before snorting. “Somehow, that makes no sense and perfect sense all at the same time.”

You and Nat sat in your car for hours, and then you dropped her off at Lottie’s, because she was still haunted by the idea of being at home. After that, you drove to Melissa’s house. You didn’t know why you did it. She probably didn’t want to see you. You drummed your fingers against your steering wheel, watched as she turned out every light in her room except for one single lamp. Definitely didn’t want to see you. But you wanted to see her. You needed to talk about… whatever the hell was going on between you tonight.

So, you scaled the siding of her house and climbed in through her window anyway. Melissa groaned the moment you landed with a thud on the carpet of her room. She was standing there in just a sports bra and boxers. Any other person seeing her like this would have made her embarrassed, but this wasn’t anything you hadn’t seen a thousand times before. “I knew I should have locked that stupid window.”

“You know, you’ve been doing a lot of talking today”, you said, crossing your arms and leaning against the wall. You’d seen these same forest green walls a million-and-one times. Forest green with large, pink leaves. “And you’ve been extra sassy.”

Melissa shrugged. “Maybe I’m just ready to be one of you now after all. Isn’t that what you do? Bitch at each other and then forgive each other?” You parted your lips to speak, but then quickly closed them. That was kind of what it was like. “You know, I thought I was ready to live my whole life in the shadows. I thought I could do it. But I don’t know if that’s really what I want anymore. I don’t like being seen. I want a quiet, boring life without a bunch of parties, or secrets, or lies, or drama. I want to meet a girl, and fall in love, and watch her walk down the aisle to me and know that she’s not thinking of someone else or wishing I was someone else. But I also don’t want to live my life being forgotten or an afterthought, or…”

Your gaze softened. “Melissa, you could never be an afterthought. And I would never forget you. It would be impossible to forget you.”

“But you never even considered me”, Melissa said quietly. “You just chose a girl who was, I don’t know, adjacent to me, but, I dunno, better? What does she have that I don’t?”

“It’s not about you lacking something or her having something”, you explained quickly. “It’s about feelings and - and - you’re my best friend.”

“Because I’m your best friend, you can’t ever fall in love with me?”, Melissa questioned. “Not even a little?”

“That’s not what I said”, you said quietly.

“I know you better than anyone else”, Melissa pointed out. “I know what your favorite color is. I know what time you take your meds everyday. I know - I know that you stopped needing an inhaler ages ago, but I still carry one on me just in case. I know what foods you love, and which ones you hate. Your favorite movies, what you sound like when you’re really laughing. So, why… Why was it never me?” She looked like she was on the verge of tears. You didn’t know what to say or do. But you knew that you hated watching the ocean in her eyes turn stormy. “Why was it never me?”

“It is you!”, you finally shouted, your head in your hands. “It was always you, okay? But it can’t - we can’t - it would change everything. It might ruin our friendship, and I-”

You didn’t get to finish your sentence. Before you could even think of saying anything else, Melissa had crossed the floor and kissed you again. Except this kiss lacked the innocence, the shyness, of your first kiss. It was passionate and hot and heavy and you couldn’t quite keep up. Was this really Melissa? Your Melissa, who was usually so sweet and brilliant and shy, kissing you like you were seconds away from filming a god damned porno? Where the fuck had she learned this? Who taught her this? Was it Shauna? You know she’d had a thing with Shauna. A very, very brief fling with Shauna that was really only an attempt to make Jackie jealous. (It worked.)

Melissa pulled back from you, just barely, as she began backing you towards her bed. She was a little breathless, her lips swollen from the kiss. “Whatever you’re thinking about, I need you to stop thinking about it. Think about me, please.”

You try. You try to put Natalie out of your mind. You try to stop wondering who taught your best friend to fuck like a god. But the little nagging voice in your head reminded you that this was wrong. That you had a girlfriend waiting for you. A wonderful, loving girlfriend. “But Natalie-”

“No”, Melissa said in frustration as she pushed you down onto the bed. Her voice was stern, lips pressed into a thin line. “Just… think of me for once, okay? Just think of me”, she whispered. You didn’t protest again. Would it really be so bad for you to have this? Just once? Melissa trailed open mouthed kisses along your jaw, down your neck, occasionally biting at the soft skin. At the same time, one of her hands trailed into the band of your pants. She didn’t move into your panties just yet. Instead, her fingers trailed downward, knuckles brushing over the dampness in the lace. “Is this for her or for me?” She looked directly in your eyes as she asked the question, her knuckles moving in slow circles.

You didn’t want to admit it. The word felt acrid on your lips. But you couldn’t manage to lie. “You”, you admitted quietly.

It seemed that that was all Melissa needed to hear. She finally slipped her hand into the band of your underwear, her fingers toying with your swollen clit until your breath catches in your throat and you’re whining, begging, for her to do something. Anything. You should have expected this. Even in friendly situations, Melissa always liked to tease you. She watched you squirm beneath her, listened to you plead for her, before finally gliding her fingers through your soft folds. Her fingers traced soft circles, teasing along the edge as if she had nothing better to do, before finally pushing a finger into your wetness. She’d never admit it out loud, but Melissa was still getting used to the intimacy part of being with girls. That meant she was also getting used to the way every girl felt a little different inside. Barely noticeable, maybe, but different all the same. You were tight, and warm, and so wet that it felt like extra slippery silk and Melissa might lose her mind over it.

She groaned, pushed in another finger. She watched your face - every twitch of your brow, the way your teeth sank into your bottom lip. That was encouragement, right? She pushed her fingers as deep as she could possibly get them, buried within you to the second knuckle. She moved slowly still, her eyes still watching your face. She wanted to learn your every response, every movement that made your breath hitch or your eyes flutter.

Your back arched the moment Melissa’s fingers started their slow, pleasurable torment against the damp heat of your skin. Every movement was tender and slow, but deliberate. Each stroke of your sensitive nerves like a question rather than a command. The words ‘do you like this?’ seemed to hang in the air without actually being said out loud. A strangled moan clawed its way up Melissa’s throat. She was enjoying this more than she ever thought possible. It was like she felt everything and nothing all at once. How wet you were, how her fingers were slick with the evidence of your neediness. The heat between the two of you pulsed like a heartbeat, almost palpable. Each stroke dragged a moan from you, each curl of her fingers against that particularly squishy, sensitive spot inside of you dragging you closer and closer to the edge.

You weren’t even sure what to focus on now - the intense look on her face? The flex of the muscles in her arm, the one that’s right next to your head, propping her up while she focuses so intently on pleasuring you. She wanted - needed - to make you feel good. Needed to take full advantage of this one, beautiful moment. She curled her fingers just right, right against the spot that made your legs tremble, over and over again. Your eyes met and, for a brief second, the air between you buzzed with something that ran far deeper than lust. Love. Affection. It was like trust made tangible. You pressed your hips forward, answering a silent question. Melissa’s thin lips curved up into a smile, a small one, before her fingers started moving again - deliberate and slow, like she already knew exactly how to unmake you.

It wasn’t just the way her fingers moved inside you, it was the way she whispered your name like it meant something sacred. This was more than just touch for her.

Melissa’s fingers picked up speed, just enough to bring you closer to the edge. Your breath stuttered, lips parted in a silent moan as Melissa’s fingers worked you deeper. It was like she was intent on torturing you, alternating between slow and deep and fast and hard. You both hated it and loved it at the same time. Every thrust was drawing you closer and closer to crescendo and you felt like you might burst. You blinked as your vision blurred around the edges. You reached up blindly with both hands, finding Melissa’s face, and pulling her into a kiss that was more like a cry - raw, desperate, real. Your mouths collided, hungry and uneven - teeth grazing, breaths mingling. You kissed her like you were trying to hold her together and unravel her all at the same time. It was that kiss, full of fire and passion and something dangerously close to love - that sent you spiraling over the edge. You cried out, the sound of her name muffled by the kiss. But you sobbed, too.

Because you knew that there was no going back from what you had just done.

[twst-hottest-takes]

How about Overblot *design* ranking now?

*Gasps!* Well, since you asked. . .

RANKING TWISTED WONDERLAND'S OVERBLOT CHARACTER DESIGNS BASED ON MY PERSONAL TASTES!

WARNING: As the title suggests this is completely subjective and there's no real criteria across the board. You will see my biases shine through almost immediately and as such, no one is required to agree with this ranking.

MOVING FORWARD GOING FROM "WORST" TO "BEST"

7. AZUL--While really fun in concept and a novelty when you first see it, the "WOW" factor of this one completely disappears when it turns out that this is just Azul's normal mer-form with a few extra barnacles glued onto it. It doesn't emulate Ursula any more than his standard mer-form and it's just disappointing. (If the circumstance were different he'd be at least three spots higher.)

6. JAMIL--I love the design of his head--snake hair for the win! The rest is trash. After that there are too many layers though. This just isn't a good look for Jamil with the various degrees of coverage on the upper body and arms, and none of it reads as Jafar from the shoulders down. It's definitely a dress as opposed to a robe, and it's not one he can pull off. They should have given him an inky snake body to go along with his name instead of whatever disaster they decided on for his main outfit. It would have contrasted well with the genie Phantom behind him. The gold on the top half ov his body and the legs as a whole are atrocious and overall the design is barely coherent. It's only not lower than Azul because I'll take a disaster design over a lazy one any day. Visually, my least favorite of the bunch. (Sad because Jamil's Phantom is one of my favorites.)

5. VIL--We could go for the Evil Queen from Snow White, or we could just do Mother Miranda from Resident Evil 8. Only above Jamil because how busy and ugly it is reflects on Vil's character. Like what the actual hellsing is going on here? It's gaudy, and the halo is WAY TOO MUCH. In its defense, it's supposed to be because "trying too hard" is the name of the game. In that sense this design accomplishes what it sets out to do, it's just awful to look at, and is again lacking in "Evil Queen" elements. The spikes at the waist actively make me say "Eeewwwwww."

4. MALLEUS--Wish I could place him higher because I actually really like the design but I don't think it incorporates the green well enough. The look harkens back to Maleficent very well, but the need to make things in TWST more complicated than their original inspiration leaves a lot to be desired. A lot of the cool details are lost in all the black accessories, and even though I think the green on the horns and tail is pretty nifty, it just doesn't do justice to the design. I do like what it does for Malleus as one of the first looks at the scales on his forehead but Yana seems to have a thing for this "barely covered chest and corset" look because it bears a lot of resemblance to Vil and as such loses more points.

3. RIDDLE--A bold move by me because I just really like the color scheme. Playing card/casino aesthetic is one of my weaknesses so my bias begins to really show through here. Under enough scrutiny it reads well enough as the Queen of Hearts and overall I think even someone unfamiliar with Twisted Wonderland would be able to establish at least a connection to Alice in Wonderland at a glance. It's a great modification/corruption of his existing Housewarden uniform and overall I think it should have been used to set more of a standard for how the Overblot designs should have stayed.

2. LEONA--THEY MADE HIM LOOK MORE LIKE A LION! WIN! WIN! WIN! *Clears throat* So, yeah, they couldn't really turn Leona into Scar without dabbling into furry territory, but I really like what they came up with. The black ruff to look like a mane, the necklace looks like fangs, and I think Leona should have sharp nails all the time in all honesty. I maintain that Leona will always look best with an eyepatch and the marking on his face resembles one greatly. The only bit I have an issue with is whatever legging armor thing he's got going on. It blends in with that piece on his body and kind of gives off the impression of it being a jumpsuit from the chest down which is very strange to me--that piece on his torso is just strange to me as well. The wild hair is great and this one follows well in Riddle's footsteps in maintaining a lot of the elements of Leona's dorm uniform while also being "corrupted." (Also, no, him being barefoot is not weird.)

1. IDIA--Technopunk Hades. 10/10 No notes. It's just literally Disney Hades in a different fictional genre. I love it. Looks really cool, I don't care how impractical it is in reality. Just the right amount of detail and keeps up with the established Ignihyde look. Extra points for the chibi model having a connecting point between him and Phantom Ortho. Wish the rest of them were this on point, because Idia is slaying here. I 100% believe he designed this one himself. Great job, my guy.

And there you have it. My personal opinion on how the main Overblot designs stack up against each other. Yes, Grim has been left out because he's a bit of a different case and honestly I just didn't want to put him in here (though he's got a pretty good design all things considered). Don't agree? That's fine, I was asked to give my two cents and here they are. I can only hope that my logic in these pretty short summaries shines through to some extent.

Thank you for asking.

[districtunrest]

ONGOMGOMGOMG. (share thoughts. any n all. you know i need to know. PLEASE!)

HAHA sorry. anyway:

I didn’t really like it and I’m sad about it. ☹️ even though there were some interesting ideas and cool new characters, I was taken out of the story too much to fully enjoy them. it read to me like the laziest (most rushed? least edited?) yet most forced storytelling of the series, which sucks bc it’s supposedly the REAL backstory of my favorite character. but I just couldn’t shake my doubt while reading that this was what we and Katniss were missing all along. too many details (that I memorized by heart as a tween and have made everyone’s problem since) didn't match up, even with the card-stacking*. so I just don't believe this was always the intended ‘real’ story when it’s so hidden from the trilogy... imo, SC went back to it with a mission statement in mind after recent current events (and, more tellingly, after Ballad) and did her thing. which is fine, that's her right - it's just, when this whole book seems more like a writing workshop thought experiment than the intended backstory, I will treat it as such. bc as it stands, all the callbacks & connections & Everlark parallels in the world cannot replace Katniss & Peeta watching the highlight tape of his Games, Haymitch telling them what he did was “almost but not quite” as bad as them with the berries, Katniss finally understanding who he is in that moment, and Haymitch later admitting the loss of his loved ones were because of "that stunt [he] pulled with the forcefield" (which is. simply not true anymore with all of his stunts in and out of the arena). like say no more, that’s good enough for me! it’s what I prefer and what I find more compelling than what’s revealed/subverted in Sunrise. and tbh that discrepancy makes Sunrise unfaithful, at least in my eyes, for all it relies on references to the rest of the series. 

now, obviously I had mixed feelings about this prequel in the first place, and my concerns/reservations mounted with each excerpt, only to be confirmed now... but I did try, okay!?? haha I’d told you and several others privately that I really wanted to like this book and I was willing to set aside my gripes if it was good - but it had to actually be good! instead, the book was exactly what I was afraid it was going to be *and* suffered a drop in quality. I found the narration underwhelming, dumbed down and repetitive, and not evocative of Haymitch's voice. even things I thought there was NO WAY would actually happen and I was just being paranoid - but then they did, lmao. like, it was a letdown for me personally *and* it didn’t even do it well enough where I could at least respect it and oblige, lol

overall, it was just too off for me. by answering and explaining so much, it ended up taking away a lot of the trilogy's charm and intrigue - and did so in a way that left a bad taste in my mouth. it made me view Ballad in a more negative light, too, tbh. so I think going forward I’ll just consider it a weird spinoff that is secondary to the main/trilogy canon. 🤷🏻‍♀️

(some more Haybitching under the cut)

tbh, what guts me the most is what SC chose to do with Haymitch’s voice & character, where she watered him down to what he needed to be for this lesson & this plot. it’s frustrating that the dangerous, cunning, arrogant boy that Katniss sees in the highlight reel and can easily recognize in adult Haymitch is all an act. the character we thought we knew is not present here, sacrificed to make yet another point about propaganda, and that’s a crying shame. and his deterioration in the final chapters is so underwhelming (as are the death scenes 🫣) - I've read that same story countless times but told better by people who love the character as is and weren't on a time crunch for a movie deal, I guess.

Sunrise!Haymitch skews shockingly immature and moralistic and hates the idea of being a sarcastic, selfish “rascal." but since when are we calling surviving and fighting to get home in an unthinkable situation selfish? that’s now assumed in Sunrise’s logic, where instead having a ginormous alliance against the Careers with no exit plan (big ‘WHAT IF ALL THE TRIBUTES BANDED TOGETHER AND DIDN’T FIGHT?’ energy) is much smarter and nobler than going it alone and heading in one direction to get to the edge for no reason other than bc nobody had tried it before and trilogy!Haymitch, we know, is an out-of-box thinker & strategist. I know he & Ambert were operating under the notion that they were going to lose no matter what and had their own plans (which. hmm) but it was just so oddly accepted by the Newcomers, too, who had no such threat from Snow. they were so willing to be selfless martyrs and band together when they all know at the end of the day there can only be one survivor - which was heartening in a way, sure, but it almost seemed trite? and again, needlessly moralistic in an established world like Panem, where these things happen every year...? not even self-righteous (Katniss' words but with Haymitch's backing!) Peeta 'not a piece in their games' Mellark thought so narrowly. Idk. I might have to mull that one over more. but anyway, then Haymitch trying to rescue Maysilee is turned into a mini redemption arc in post, when all it was in the first place was a glimpse into his protective & caring nature underneath all the bravado, which was surely part of Katniss’ deepening understanding of him. but Sunrise wasn’t interested in exploring that, either, or even honoring it. okay

and I can’t get over how SC had to kind of retcon the final pages of Mockingjay to fit Haymitch’s epilogue into it, which didn’t help how it already rang so hollow for me, I hate to say. it’s not even done well, containing the most rushed, wrap-up-everything-before-the-deadline writing I’ve ever seen from SC (and it STILL doesn’t read like Haymitch’s voice to me :/). some things can just be; they don’t need some big, loaded, tragic explanation. Haymitch can glibly call Katniss ‘sweetheart’ once, bc she’s been sullen & hostile to him and he is in fact sarcastic (the horror!), only for it to go on to become an actual term of endearment by the end - like, that’s lovely in and of itself. why weigh it down further? who asked for that? I know I didn’t. 

most insignificantly & pettily of all: geese do mate for life - as in monogamously, meaning they stay together until one of them dies. then, they mourn and find another mate. just putting that out there, lmao

*how tf was Haymitch able to kiss his token and set up a bomb and throw it over the edge and put his token back when we know he was convulsing from shock by the end? to where Silka was able to start staunching her wound as she waited for him to die? if him going into shock was taken from footage anytime after, the arena would've been quaking/on fire around him?? Idk fam. it just feels off.

[cerebralisis]

One more post before the show? Okay fine. I’ve been thinking a lot about You’re on Your Own Kid now that this is wrapping up. What do you wanna bet she plays it tonight?

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes = This has been the fight of my career. From the beginning, I should have said no. And now we’ve got bad blood.

Summer went away. Still the yearning stays. I play it cool with the best of them = Summer 2019 came and went. The plan failed. I pretend I’m fine, but I’m not. I still want to be free.

I wait patiently. He’s gonna notice me. It’s okay we’re the best of friends. Anyway. = I’ve dropped so many hints for my fans. They say they love me, and they’re really good at picking up on Easter eggs so surely they’ll notice the real me… right?

I hear it in your voice. You’re smoking with your boys. I touch my phone as if it’s your face = There she goes again - the pop star is out in public hiding behind smokescreens with another of her masquerading men.

I see the great escape. So long Daisy May. I picked the petals, he loved me not = My fans never figured it out, so it’s time to go. I’ve found a way to leave behind this phony trademark character.

Something different bloomed writing in my room. I play my songs in the parking lots. I’ll run away. = While writing folklore and evermore, I realized that I don’t need the industry or the pop star at all. I’ll re-record everything, I’ll cut out the middle man, I’ll ditch my brand and do it on my own.

I search the party of better bodies just to learn that my dreams aren’t rare = My dreams are to be free. As I walk through these industry parties, I see that I’m not the only one. There are a lot of us trapped in here.

I gave my blood sweat and tears for this. I hosted parties and starved my body like I’d be saved by a perfect kiss = I’ve given all I have and turned into the unhealthiest version of myself to make everyone else happy and be who they want me to be

The jokes weren’t funny, I took the money, my friends from home don’t know what to say = This whole process has been so humiliating. I’ve sold out my authenticity for money and success.

I looked around in a blood-soaked gown and I saw something they can’t take away = No matter what the public or the industry does to me, I know who I am, and there are people close to me who know the real me and love me.

Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned - It’s time for the next chapter. Even if I burn bridges with my fans and the industry, and I burn down the bridges of my songs, there’s more beyond that.

So make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it. You’ve got not reason to be afraid = I’ll make new friends in the process. I have to do this. It’ll be okay.

You’re on your own kid. Yeah you can face this.

[gatorbites-imagines]

Astarion Ancunín x Bard Tiefling Male reader

Headcanons

I’ve been playing Baldurs Gate 3 little by little, and I’ve fallen for this vamps’ charms. I blame Twilight. Reader is a Tiefling Bard cuz that’s what my player character is. I also have only played DnD like twice, so I know nothing about races or canon. If you guys have any cool dnd facts, let me know, id love to hear them.

Heres just some light and overall headcanons, there’s no specific theme.

In the beginning like any relationship started with Astarion, it wouldn’t be romantic from his part in the start. You, being a bard, have met and experienced a lot of people, so you can read between the lines in his actions though.

You aren’t cruel when it comes to helping others, not one to fit the stereotype some people seem to have for Tieflings and bards. You are just perspective, and you’ll need a reason to do something, having been burned so many times in the past by trying to be good.

Early on, before you knew he was a vampire, the two of you could regularly be found sitting a bit away from the fire at night as the others slept. You would play your instrument at a low volume, as the sound helped your allies sleep, and Astarion would stay nearby since you guys were allies.

Overtime it would develop into something more, you two would flirt, and feelings would actually bloom. It even reaches a point where you might start writing poems or songs about Astarion and your feelings for him, though you’d never show them to anyone, especially not Astarion, his ego is already big enough.

Astarion would struggle with the feelings he is developing for you, as we all know he would. In the beginning he would deny it, and try to convince himself that it was just something going hand in hand with lust, or something about being free and in the sun.

As the story goes on though, we all know that Astarion becomes softer and finally accepts his feelings for you. The two of you being shunned in ways from society, him being a vampire, and you being a Tiefling, probably helps build some solidarity too.

After you guys officially get together, hed start making jokes about you writing ballads about him and his excellence, and you’d joke there’s no need for that. In the end he would figure out the songs you wrote about him before you guys even got together, and of course he preens like a peacock.

I don’t know if Tiefling blood tastes different or has different properties, but to Astarion, the first time you let him feed on you, he would never be able to feed on anyone else. You are perfect to him, from the top of your horns to the tip of your tail.

When you guys cuddle your tail curls around him, and it even seems to do it without you realizing during the day. It becomes a joke amongst your friends, much to your embarrassment.

You being a Bard and Tiefling also means higher charisma, you two are probably lethal when it comes to persuasion or anything involving your charms and lies, especially when you work together.

I don’t know if Astarion plays any instruments, since he wouldn’t have been able to do so for all the years, he’s been under Cazador, or I assume so. But even if he did, I could imagine him asking you to teach him how to play your instrument.

You being a Tiefling also means you are warmer to the touch, and Astarion being a vampire means he doesn’t have any body heat. So, he’s like a big lizard or cat when you guys’ cuddle, just curling up in your arms or melting against your chest.

[seilnakyle]

Idk if this has been asked before, but what do you think of Anne Hathaway's Catwoman?

It had been awhile since I’d seen tdkr so I did a rewatch and took some notes, I remember even back in 2012 being extremely impressed with the way Anne performed that first transition from innocent girl to sly badass,

“Whoops…nobody told me it was uncrackable” 😏

she’s just truly a phenomenal actress who really TAKES ON a character in a role, she pays attention to her facial expressions, acting not just with with her eyes and lips but even her breathing and voice. She switches between personas easily and gets herself into and out of trouble with brilliant manipulation, slinking in and out. You can definitely tell she worked on her Selina voice, and changes it up to more high-pitched innocent sound when she’s putting on an act, and then lowers it when she’s in the mask. It reminds me of Bruce’s description of her voice in Dark Victory #5

I love the aesthetic of Anne’s Selina, it’s a shame we only had her for one movie bc her Selina would be perfect for a “When in Rome” Catwoman film, they were clearly leaning into the Audrey inspiration with her civilian wardrobe

Anne put in a lot of hard work and physical training in for her role, and did as many of her own stunts as possible. We do get to see her in action, even fighting side by with Batman, which is AWESOME but I definitely prefer the way Selina’s fighting style is portrayed in The Batman 2022, with the emphasis on her kickboxing and grappling moves, (PLUS Zoë actually get’s to use a whip and claws) I think the problem also comes from Nolan’s insistence in making the action sequences “grounded”, so Anne’s Selina unfortunately isn’t really doing any acrobatics aside from that scene where she backflips out a window and that one where she does a cartwheel and breaks a dude’s wrist. But that’s a problem I have w Batman 2022 as well! I’m no choreographer but NEED more acrobatics in her fighting style, I think Michelle’s Catwoman wins in that area

Also, while the Knife heels undoubtedly serve cunt, could she not have just…had claws? THAT was too comic-y for them???

The costume is disappointing in general, especially since this version of Selina is supposed to have been doing this for a couple years when we first see her. I see that it’s supposed to be a modern and trendy, high-tech take on the 60s tv costume, but it’s like it’s afraid of being recognizably cat-themed at all…the goggles looking like ears from certain angles isn’t enough! JUST COMMIT!!

I fear the costume department just did not understand Catwoman:

DUUDE “why would a man who is sort of modern and trendy and cool go around wearing Bat-ears?” If you can accept a 40 year old in bat themed armor and a flowing cape then you should be able to accept a 29 year old woman in a cat themed stealth suit. Don’t pmo…Selina is silly and enjoys humbling men and stealing shit in her unashamedly cat themed costume!!!

They were cooking w the test footage, all they had to do was put together a high tech head band/head set/open cowl with cat ears and we would have been gold!

Personality and characterization wise, I think they did pretty good for the time that they had to flesh her out. Anne actually read a few Catwoman comics to prepare for the role, and apparently really enjoyed Catwoman Annual #2 (TASTE!!)

We don’t have much at all on this version of Selina’s backstory besides that she escaped from Women’s Correctional when she was 16, and has a record she’s trying to clean. But we get little hints from her dialogue here and there “I started out doing what I had to. Once you do what you had to they never let you do what you want to.”

And they gave her a Holly Robinson/Arizona type character in “Jen” which is nice. I also love the scene where she saves a young thief and calls it HER neighborhood!

And I like the way Bruce is shown to see the good in her, and remind her about it when she’s trying to ignore it. The way she tries to protect him by telling him he doesn’t owe anyone anything, he’s given the world enough, but in the end she still goes out of her way to help Bruce.

Anne and Christian seemed to have great chemistry, though not quite as electric as Rob & Zoë or as…spicy as Keaton & Pfeiffer, but that’s not on Anne, and I still think the ballroom scene is 🔥

And of course! That ending 💞 As much as I don’t think Catwoman’s ending should involve leaving Gotham, this is an exception, I love a happy ending :’) they deserved it, just wish we had more of this version of Selina.

In all, I’d say her Catwoman portrayal ranks second for me with Zoë’s in first. Mostly taking in to account the actual characterization of Selina Kyle, since Anne was never referred to as Catwoman, and Zoë is still in the “year one” era of her role. I would put Michelle first in the costume category, but third for Selina characterization.

[lillified]

Can I ask what inspos you've had when making your transformers stuff? You mentioned is rather on the space horror esc side of things and Im curious what media you took inspiration from when creating your stuff !

good question! it’s honestly a big hodgepodge of stuff—I’ve been pretty immersed in the weird and kind of nonsensical lore of transformers since I was a kid, and even though my tastes have kind of graduated to other places (if im being real I haven’t REALLY enjoyed a piece of new TF media in a long time, though I really think that’s mostly just me leaving the target audience) I still find the concept engaging! and honestly at this point it’s like. a compulsive obsession lol, a fixation if you will

as far as other inspirations—on the obvious side there’s stuff like evangelion and alien, but a lot of the techno/organic biology workdbuilding is inspired by Ghost in the Shell! the movies + show have some of my favorite cyborg/mech worldbuilding, and also are just some of my favorite things in general. oh, there’s also the movie Possessor, which has a super cool and mindfuck-y take on memory and digital identity!

the space element has evolved over the years, with some stuff like Magnetic Rose and Event Horizon heavily influencing the atmosphere and tech, but I think the thing that inspired me to focus on space itself as an element of horror was the movie High Life. I wouldn’t put it on my top 20 films or anything but without any monsters or physical threats that movie will give you a fear of space like nothing else. as this project develops you’ll (hopefully) see what I mean about space as a bit of a character, lol

anyway, there’s so many other things I could cite here but those are the basics! I promise it won’t be as dense and complicated as any of those things (I don’t think I’m good enough of a writer to come even close lol) but those are some of my big creative interests :)

[marzipanandminutiae]

Do you know much about historical cuisine? Saw yet another anime with friends and they went the whole 'modern food always tastes better' bit. I feel tired of the trope and am wondering how different historical cuisine would taste compared to modern times. So anything you happen to know as a historian would be cool to know!

That varies MASSIVELY based on time and location. Like. Much more than fashion does, even, I'd imagine (in a given sub-region- I can talk about Mainstream European and Euro-American Fashion of the 19th CenturyTM but the food was so different in different countries that were dressing the same, if that makes sense? just as an example).

Food is often more globalized in a lot of places nowadays, so the characters might have more diversity of flavors from the regional norm than they're used to. But this could be a good or a bad thing- a woman from 17th-century Japan might love pizza and much sweeter Western pastries, or she might absolutely hate them. Which is not to say regional cuisines haven't evolved, too- a museum here in Boston used to have tastings of 18th-century-style hot chocolate, and it was very different from the modern sort. But that's the largest blanket difference across the globe that I can think of, food-wise.

Not sure what anime this was, so it could have been Japan-specific, but I feel like this gets applied the most to the 19th-mid 20th century UK and United States. The whole Captain America line about "food's better; we used to boil everything," for example, and the general belief that everything was bland mush in those areas until the 1950s and then it was incomprehensible Jell-O mold horrors until approximately the 1980s. And of course, none of that's true- there were plenty of dishes that used spices and different cooking methods, many of which are still popular today. See also: Jonathan Harker, a Normal 1890s Englishman, getting so rhapsodical about paprikahendl that he simply must have the recipe for his fiancee to make. There also WERE bland mushes and fluorescent nightmares, but there's less than ideal food today, as well.

(Note that I'm much less confident talking about the whole English StodgeTM thing as we get into the 20th century. That is outside my history wheelhouse and there's a lot of different stuff embroiled in it relating to class and such that I don't want to talk out my ass about. All I know is that I've seen plenty of recipes from as late as the end of the 19th century, from England and some from urban Scotland if I recall correctly, that made ample use of spices. Nutmeg, mustard, black pepper, rosemary, caraway, and cayenne pepper were especially popular (not all together obviously). There was a belief among the middle and upper classes that strong flavors of garlic and onion were distasteful to ladies, but the fact that cookbooks and such feel the need to mention it implies that those elements WERE being used in cooking generally, in the UK, at that time. So wherever the idea that All British Food Is Beige And Tasteless came from, it wasn't mainstream late Victorian cooking for adults as far as I can tell)

(They gave kids a fair amount of the beige and tasteless because they believed their digestive systems couldn't handle strongly-flavored- okay now I'm getting off topic. Read Ruth Goodman's "How To Be A Victorian." Anyway!)

tl;dr- The answer to "is modern food better?" is "that's literally impossible to answer as a blanket statement, since it's massively dependent on the character's original time, place, social status, and personal taste- and where they end up in the present, of course."

Now, I do agree that the trope is annoying the same way every single princess being totally shocked and appalled when her marriage is arranged gets annoying- not because it can't be true based on history and human behavior, but because fiction treats it as some kind of universal precept. Mix it up a little sometimes! Have a Regency character who comes to the present, finds out that her favorite local cheese isn't being made anymore, and loses her entire mind!