#<- even longer post haha

[onesnoopyaday]

I AM AT MY LIMIT

Snoopy #90

30/12/2024

description under the cut

[description: a cartoon-style drawing of Snoopy's head. Snoopy is a white dog with black ears. His eyes are shut and his mouth is a horizontal line. There are two large blue teardrops, one under each eye. The text "I am at my limit" is handwritten across the top of the image.]

[old-skyguy]

Look.

Ace Attorney fandom.

I know why people don't like Turnabout Bigtop. I am among the people who dislike Turnabout Bigtop.

But I GET why people like the case. I'm not going to be one of those annoying people who just blindly dump on it because I hate those mfs too.

Thing about Bigtop isn't that it sucks. Thing isn't the weird grooming stuff (though that is a huge part of it). It's not that it could've been good.

It's that - in my personal OPINION - it could have been *great*.

I think it had the potential to be one of the best third cases in the trilogy. It had everything; a fun and goofy setting fit for a pretty dang goofy lawyer game - where the environment itself had jokes and quips and one-liners and mishaps and tomfoolery written all over it, it had the previous case introducing a very interesting and important plotline that gave background for one of the more well-loved characters while also introducing an equally fucked up and lovable new one who was a child forced into a shit childhood of naivete in a CIRCUS with another character who was very naive and childish - whose interactions could have been funny and cute and reflective of said shit from the previous case (seriously she becomes such an important character in the 4th case, WHY would they not include her in this one for some character development? How did they fuck up letting a CHILD explore a CIRCUS?? That would have made the interactions flow MUCH better).

They had a pretty good, sympathetic killer imo, a morally dubious victim, an asshole of a client (who was pretty flat admittedly in-game, but I like his weird, topsy-turvy reasoning for it in the anime. Also, I think Max being kinda a dick would have bode well for the themes of Farewell since most of his clients up to this point have been like...nice? Not nice, but sympathetic, but him having to defend someone who's innocent but a prick would have shown him that just because someone is an asshole, doesn't mean they deserve to suffer for it and that they have the potential to grow as people, which is almost a complete foil to what Matt was. Ultimately, I would have loved the contrast of them as clients and I think it would have also served as character development for Phoenix, especially with his low-empathy tendencies).

They just didn't think that far ahead. They just didn't execute it well enough. They just decided to make three of the adult characters fight for the hand in marriage of a teenage girl. (Bat's part of the story was actually kinda good if he was just YOUNGER, I think him doing that for Regina would have been a stupid thing someone in the circus would do to impress their crush. Damn you Ace Attorney and your weird treatment of underage girls!!)

It just flopped and that's ok.

Even though it kinda sucked, it can still mean something to me.

Also I'm a Moe Curls apologist. I liked him, shut up.

[spotaus]

something something i'm now hyperfixated on new age dust and reading flesh anon's asks made it worse because i am HISTORICALLY insane about cannibalism or whatever

the short of it is i need more human eating and more people reacting about that PLEASE (/nf)

-anon anon (bc i couldn't think of a better name lol :T)

Haha! Glad to hear you're enjoying NA Dust, anon anon! He's one of my special little blorbos (Ancha knows I go feral at the mere mention of him)

But yes! More about the eating and also the reactions! :D (Putting this under the cut for convenience)

So, I'll assume you know the general just of Whistling if you've read Flesh Anon's asks! Jic the short version: Monsters who are SO infused with magic that they have to rely on human meat + physical make-up to fuel their bodies. Thanks to this weird form, they can shape-shift. People didn't like that in the early days, scared them off, now they live in a kingdom everyone thinks is terrifying. Dust is friends with them!

Okay, now, I'm gonna do a little bit of free-writing about my ideas for the first times Dust encountered the Whistlers abd their weird traditions. (This is subject to change as Ancha and I will probably discuss and/or I see cool tags and eat them lmao-)

But. Dust I'd like. A grown man. His 30s or so by the main story. That means much of his older teen/young adult years were spent climbing the ranks in Orchard's black market scene. During his work, there was a boss he had who wanted him to be a diplomat for their new "business partners" since he talked so little and seemingly had a will of steel. He agreed (was promised higher pay if he could do it) and was told to meet these people in a certain house at a border city.

These people greeted him coldly, weary, but they were monsters and Dust was respectful and unbothered. Even though their decor was a little strange (a lot of... bones.) And they sometimes spoke a language from another kingdom. They made smalltalk about this new trade agreement and sounded hesitant about Dust's boss. He agreed his boss was shady, but people really did need these imports.

Then the ultimatum came along when dinner was ready. They didn't try to hide it very well, the shape was obvious. A human limb being served.

They said that he'd eat. Then they could really talk business. And Dust, of course, suddenly knew why his boss didn't come himself. Dust was fodder. A guinea pig. A buffer for him. He hesitated, of course. That's like... human. For real.

But, he saw the others start eating. The same thing. Watching him curiously. Wearily. And the thing was? It looked well-cooked. The kitchen had smelled great. It had herbs and nice presentation. And. Y'know what? He was working peanuts for wages up until now. He had to do something to fix that. So, he just gave it a nibble. And. Frankly. It did not taste bad. It was actually *really* seasoned. The spice made his sockets water a bit, but he just wiped them and took another bite. Then another.

Only after he was almost finished, smalltalk having continued after his third bite, one of the whistlers asked how he liked it. He said it was good. Spicy, but good. And then one of them nodded to another and they scurried off. Immediately after, they started talking real business. They accepted him and his offer he brought because he just went with the flow. They were impressed. He gets out of there with a successful trade agreement and gets his raise. On the caveat that he is the one who always meets the Whistlers about trade and changes. He agrees.

There are several occasions between the first meeting and the next where Dust runs into a whistler in the wild. During the first meeting he'd been gifted a little charm of human bones, and he just keeps it on his belt. Who's gonna steal bones? But, it makes him a little beacon for traveling Whistlers, who would greet him and sometimes even give him a little gift if they ran into him twice. He was always cordial with them.

The second amd third meetings are progressively further into Orchard, and Dust has experiences both levels of meat consumption. The ultra-spicy options, or the practically raw ones. The raw meal did take him a moment to come to teems with. He's not a fan of any raw meats, but he made the effort to look past it. It was bland, a little tough, but the texture wasn't awful and he didn't mind the change away from the spice. The Whistlers at this dinner were excited to see Dust finish his full plate (his mother taught him that it's rude to not eat your fill when being hosted). The third meeting they gift a bone necklace.

Now, the best moment in my mind is Dust's ascension to Crine Lord. He'd been managing the Whistlers pretty much all on his own fir this whole time. His boss was pretty openly perturbed by them and called them awful terms. Dust never listened much to him and had been slowly learning more about the culture and past. He found it interesting, and he realized a lot more than he thought sought refuge or new prey (and customers) in Orchard. He has quite a few Whistler Friends.

The whistlers insist they meet Dust's boss when he off-handedly mentions during a quick meet-up that he only gets a little fraction of money that he sends to his family (the Whistlers also start delivering that money for him. Safer than his boss' goons). They want to have dinner with him. He (tentatively) agrees when Dust relays the message. And yet when they arrive with the intention of sharing their culture, like they have with Dust who has been so welcoming, this guy? This guy can't stomach even a single bite. Which already possess off the Whistling Ambassadors. But then he insults them. They're used to it, but insulted. Then when Dust moves to defend them, "You're the one who agreed to a dinner, boss. You knew the menu." The boss turns on him and starts calling *him* a freak for eating human meat.

And let's just say. Well. The whistlers don't take kindly to the insults being hurled at Dust. They threaten to retract their deal, then when he's uncooperative they. Well. Let's just say the dust is scattered thoroughly. It leaves Dust in an awkward position. His food is half-finished, his guests just killed his source of income, and now whole towns will be out of supplies w/o the boss. He was an asshole, but Dust *kinda* needed him to get paid.

He relays that information to the whistlers, still picking at his meal, and they all unanimously suggest he should fill the seat. He seems informed enough.

And. The boss was stupid enough to write all his information + contacts down. So after he finishes the meal he genuinely like. Decides to become the new boss of this branch.

Initially the human meat was something he kinda worried over, the ethics and stresses of magical technicalities, but in the end it didn't hurt him in any way and it was always prepared with good intention. So, it became a regular item on his menu (only when meeting with his Whistler Allies though). And those meals got a lot more frequent when he became known as a safe space within Orchard for Whistlers. He'd defend then any day, and they know it. In turn, they provide amazing supplies he can distribute. (The connections to Whistling and other Good Contacts are why he burns his documents before getting captured by Killer. Doesn't want them getting caught too.)

Now reactions! So, I haven't looked back, but I briefly recall mentioning Killer's reaction (Drunk off their asses and slipping up) but I feel like it also happened once when talking with Cross and Lust. Maybe not directly about the human eating initially, but they're out and about and Dust is suddenly approached fearlessly by a stranger and handed a little basket. Dust is unphased but Lust and Cross are a little worried like 'what.. what is that?' And Dust just says 'care package'. Tries to leave it at that, but the other two are young and curious, and so Dust unpacks it for them to see when they get to Lust's shop. There's a few cool bone charms, a little bandana with white embroidery like lightning cracking across its surface, and then a very beautifully seasoned, delicious-smelling, hunk of cooked meat. Cross is worried it's got something wrong with it (Night's worried Poison Talk still gets him sometimes) and Lust insists he's jealous and would kill for something that smells/looks that tasty. Dust says they wouldn't like it. Lust disagrees. (Note: Dust, as eldest Knight/Sibling has SUCH a habit of letting the other mooch off any treats or goodies he has on hand.) He has to sigh and drop the lore that it's most certainly cooked human meat. They assume he's joking, he reassures them he's absolutely not kidding and that they really shouldn't eat any. He ends up then having to casually spill that it's "Rude to not eat home-made meals." When Cross asks if he's actually going to eat it. Lust looks a little queasy and Cross is just flabbergasted. Dust says he should probably get it back to the castle freezer before it spoils. Cross and Lust are left trying to puzzle out when exactly Dust just casually ate humans in the past. Cross mentions it to Killer who recounts his drunken conversation and then Cross has to know that BOTH of them had tries it before.

In the same breath, I think Dust telling Nightmare is a funny one too. Like, mentioned briefly, but I imagine Nightmare was worried when news got back to him of Whistlers being spotted near the castle grounds, but they always leave harmlessly and it's Dust who vouched for them during discussions. He has to, at some point, answer Nightmare's questions after connecting the dots. Night's a *little* concerned at first, Dust having such a strange diet seems unhealthy, especially with his weakened magic, but he says there's usually decent intent and it tastes fine even when it's not cooked. They've never served him anything rotten. Ultimately, Night just comes to terms under the umbrella of diplomacy. It's simply their culture, and Dust was being welcoming to it.

Night double-checks that with Reaper and Geno's records of Whistling, but Geno mentions how a friend from university (Outer) ended up confessing he was half-whistler after graduation so he got a little information on the situation. It matched Nightmare's and justified the reasoning even more. As long as it doesn't bother Dust, he won't question it or ask him to stop.

[daily-xisuma]

[025] I memorized the enochian characters for use as a cipher :-)

[wackywatchdotcom]

hiii !!! love ur art lots, so i've been wondering, what program/app and brushes you use? i love the paper effect you give to your drawings, makes me want to eat em /pos

thank you so much!!!! i appreciate that a lot :D!!!!

(accidentally rambled a lot abt this HAHA)

i use medibang!! ive been using it forrrr maybe like 7ish years now... ive been meaning to one day get clip studio or something but i havent had the chance to buy it and im also a little intimidated at the idea of having to readjust to a new program HAHA

i use a few different brushes!! it depends on what im drawing and what i feel like using at the time (i should probably plan them out more often, actually)

oil paint, g pen, fluffy watercolor, and round brush (wet) are all brushes that come with medibang!!! i know i made Another Marker myself, and im pretttttty sure i made the first marker one too? my favorites are round brush and g pen though!!! i tend to use fluffy watercolor more for colors rather than lineart

(i also keep correction at around 12, i would use it more since my hands arent the steadiest but i find high correction to be kinda confusing so i just keep it low)

the paper effect is smth i learned liiiike maybe two years ago ish? and i have simply KEPT doing it ever since HAHA i do wanna mess around with more textures cus i dont want to be too reliant on just one texture for my art but it IS very fun and i like it...

medibang has a feature that makes it REALLY easy to do!!

custom noise is my BEST friend. the sand, watercolor paper (specifically 2), and marker paper (specifically 2) are the ones i use most often!!!

i also will copy n paste color layers and lineart layer, add gaussian blur and do like 200 layer effects (i most often do this to lineart, then set it to hard light and somewhere between 30-60% opacity to mimic bleeding from ink!!). i DO often experiment w messing w colors wo layer effects cus its fun but sometimes its just more fun to use layer effects instead!!

medibang also has materials!!

i dont use them as often but i like this one :D ive used it on a handful of things

and just for fun!!! things look suuuper different without this stuff. like the thing i just posted used a LOT of this (to be honest its cus i really really didnt wanna do shading for it LOL but it still felt too flat and i feel like these effects are a nice middle ground- but i will still often use this stuff when i AM shading things)

sometimes i will also use similar custom noise textures but for different parts of the image!!! like in this one i had a waatercolor texture for the bg but a seperate one for the foreground

i DIIID a while back post a pic of kinger (its an older post on this acc- not old by most standards but it was during the first little while after i made this blog while i was still finding my footing w the characters) that used a bunch of different textures which i got from freestocktextures.com!! but i havent used them since. i keep thinking i should again

ANYWAY thats basically it!!!! i looove medibang theres a bunch of little things ive figured out abt using it over the yrs that im so fond of it. and THANK U again!!!!!! :']

[dragonplated]

.

[pynkhues]

https://www.tumblr.com/nalyra-dreaming/762934616351031296/theres-something-ive-struggled-to-understand

I always wondered about what the anon asked as well. Care to share your reading?

I more or less agree with the OP's answer that it's about Louis not wanting to be connected to Madeleine, but I think the motivation is probably different?

My read is that episode is really about Louis trying to let Claudia go, and that he's acknowledging the complete dissolution of the family unit. After all, if Lestat and Louis' turning was a wedding, and Lestat turning Claudia was Lestat giving Louis a daughter, Louis knowing that Madeleine and Claudia are a love match in a lot of ways turns him into the father giving his daughter away on her wedding day. Turning Madeleine isn't about love for him, nor about having a child, it's about seeing his daughter as a grown woman ready to start her own family without him.

The acknowledgement of Claudia as an adult is not one he's ever genuinely made before - something s2 makes very clear with Claudia having to pose as his daughter again in wartorn Europe, Baby Lulu being the female diminutive of Louis, and then, even more tellingly, with Dreamstat explicitly referring to her as such - and while she's been pulling away all season and trying to force Louis into independence, it's been something he's pretty clearly very resentful of.

Madeleine though forces his hand, because Claudia finally choosing a companion splinters the last leg of their family unit for good. Madeleine is a stranger to him in the way many children's spouses are strangers to their in-laws, and Louis doesn't have Lestat to share the weight of that with anymore (and he doesn't have Lestat because of Claudia, which deepens the resentment). All he knows - which he discovers through turning her - is that she loves his daughter, and I take Louis trying to get the blood out of himself as a bitter and wounded sort of wedding gift.

He wants to give them their freedom, but at the same time the depression he experienced as an empty nester in New Orleans has already set in, he has to live with the fact that his attempt at a family has ended, and Armand's never been as satisfying to take things out on as Lestat was, to say nothing of the fact that he - as Assad put it - doesn't give a fuck about Claudia. At least Lestat gave a fuck, even if he usually gave the wrong sort of fucks, haha.

So yeah, I think it's a sort of attempt at a resentful wedding present, in a lot of ways, to try and give her this thing without being a part of it, and a real attempt to let Claudia go as his daughter.

Little does Louis know though, Claudia's the gothic heroine of this story, and she's not ever going to get out of her father's (or step-father's) house.

[mrkida-art]

Half dwarves

(Headcanon) Children born of couplings between men and dwarves are ostracized from dwarvish society and are forbidden from partaking in dwarvish culture. Their lives are usually not easy.

[mortellanarts]

Anyone willing to help me buy a switch if Legends ZA is still playable on one instead of the switch two 🥺

[whentheleahvesfall]

Hero & Partner Week - Day 4 - All Prompts

Well I’m like very behind XD At least today is day 7, so that means previous prompts time! And hoo boy… there’s like a lot to go through. So I’ll try try my best at least from this year’s prompts!

Anyway, for day 4, I’m gonna do all of the four prompts. Yes, you read that correctly, I’m here writing for all four prompts because not only do I want to do so, but I wanted to put myself in the shoes of all four of my protagonists haha. Whilst I still try to get my day 3 sorted (and then my day 5 prompt done too ahahshdhsbdhsb), I at least wanted to tackle day 4, so without further ado, I hope you enjoy reading what my scuffed behind brain has to write :)

Great Canyon

Passing over ragged rocks, broken cliff-drops that fell into a fallen abyss and surviving the harsh arid temperatures that blew through the winds of change, a plodding of two comrades making their way to a prophecy-calling psychic type was afoot. Going for a few hours without much in ways of a proper break, a brazen but hyperactive Totodile collapsed in a gap between two beaming pillars of stone, gazing upon them with fears of them potentially toppling over without much realisation.

“How much further do we need to go before we manage to see this um… Xatu…? My legs are practically… hah… killing me over here Scrald…”

Staring back at the Totodile was the human-turned-Pokémon, a Torchic who would often leap into more situations than one without much in the way of thinking. Scrald was desperate to learn anything about why he had come to this world, which for whatever reason made his eagerness to jump into the deep end more annoying for his partner. Ruffling his feathers, the now fire type flung his Totodile friend into a frenzy.

“Yeesh Planker, how many more times do I need to keep pulling these claws of yours? Get moving already, we’ve got no time for a break! I really need to-“

“Yeah yeah, I know, I know. You gotta know why you came here, but am I not allowed as much of a dignified break as this? Like I said, I can’t even think straight too much because of all of this walking…”

The Torchic finally stopped and took a moment to finally sink in the words of Planker, his partner. Sighing and waning his beak ever so slightly, he stopped to sigh and finally rested on an adjacent rock to get to grips with what he wanted to talk about.

“Fine, alright. I get it too, you need to wait. But I just… I can’t get out of my head something that’s been bothering me.”

“The fact that you jump into danger without so much as a precursor of thinking properly?”

“What?! I’m just an outgoing person, okay?! I hate seeing other Pokémon in trouble, and this is no different-!”

“Scrald, will you shut up for a moment and think for a second?”

Planker frowned at his friend, not gnashing his jaw to scare him but covered his scarf over his face in a form of worry. The green fabric providing some form of comfort much like his straw-bed that he would sleep in nearby to Scrald’s own house, he fidgeted his claws before opening his mouth after taking a deep breath.

“Look, I… I’m sorry. But I’m just as worried about what Xatu might say about you just as much as you may be worried about what it means to be human. You’re worried that…”

“I’m causing the natural disasters?”

“Uh yes, that. You… said that more openly than I expected you to.”

Scrald shivered but slowly nodded. “I-I know. I get that you’re able to also predict what I say so easily as it feels like I’m much more of an open book than I thought. But… but yeah, I’m scared. To know what it means to carry an unknown burden that the reason the natural disasters are occurring and my appearance is…”

The water type widened his eyes and shook his head vehemently, immediately gripping one of the side-feathers of the Torchic before wrapping one arm around his torso.

“No. No no no don’t even go there Scrald. Before we even see Xatu, and even if you feel there may be a bad thing he might say to you… you’re not the reason these disasters are happening. I just… I can’t in my mind, I just can’t… picture you of all of the Pokémon I met be the one who’s responsible for all of this. It’s just not possible.”

“But how would you even know that? One day I suddenly wake up in the middle of a forest, I formed the Blazing Water rescue team with you, and now I… now I need to do why I’m even here. And if that means I have to find out the hard way, I… I guess I should’ve known that maybe my role here was much bigger than I expected.”

Forming a mixture of contemplation and seriousness, Planker looked at Scrald straight into his black-toned eyes.

“My gut feeling tells me you’re innocent in all of this. Not anybody else, or some all-seeing prophecy… just my faith in you.”

“A gut… feeling? That’s not… that’s not anything, is it? How would you know that I’d be a person who wasn’t responsible for the earthquakes, the forest fires, the many, many other things we keep seeing from the Pelliper news-“

“Scrald, please. Just… just stop thinking about what everyone else thinks of you and focus on me. Me - your… your friend. I trust you. And forget about Gengar, forget about Team A.C.T., forget about the disasters and your own pre-conceived concerns, and put faith in yourself as a person. I… I wouldn’t have gotten this far if it wasn’t for you. And even if we’re not perfect, that’s okay. Because… if we’re here together, then we can find out why it’s all happening. Xatu’s a psychic type right?”

Scald slowly began to nod in an attempt to agree, but whether he knew for certain was something he couldn’t foresee. How could he know for certain he wasn’t responsible and still needed to place his faith in someone he hadn’t even met before?

Perhaps the psychic type with the ability to see what he couldn’t could give him the reassurance he thought he desperately needed?

“Then he’d know more about it than anyone. Look, I… I can get why you have a bad feeling about this Scrald. And I know you’re in a hurry and are scared… but I believe in you. So please, even if it’s just for the remainder of this dungeon… believe in me as much as I do for you. Even if it’s just one step at a time. I can take the small steps, just not up this darn canyon…”

The Torchic human would sigh but give the ever-so-slightest hints of a smile across his beak.

Maybe if he continued, he would get his answers. Maybe if he believed in himself, he would be able to prove his own doubts wrong. For whatever reason it was, whether it was deep inside of him or not, one thing was for certain in his brain. He would have to keep going, no matter what.

“O-okay. I’ll do it. A-and I’ll try, with you.”

A smile from his partner after he pulled his scarf down was all he needed to move forward together to get the answers he seemed. He would make sure that the both of them would know exactly what was the cause of everything that could be occurring.

And he would do it with his friend… together.

Hidden Land

It had been several hours passing over the Sea of Time that Harmony had finally managed to close his eyes to sense the aura around him, feeling scared about the imminent collapse of time if they didn’t hurry to climb Temporal Tower and save the world for permanent, pending paralysis.

It was the future he came from that he went back in time for so he could fix the mistakes his former self had made, and with it, his own amnesia meant he could only try and thaw in the blanks of what it meant to still live in the past he was in right now.

“…Harmony? Hey. Are you okay?”

A shake and tussle from a concerned female Eevee shook him from his partial concentration, her eyes filled with concern as she sat down next to the Riolu to share some insight as to his sudden actions.

“I-I’m fine. Just… just thinking about stuff.”

“Like what? Did you want to talk about it?”

“Flurr, I… I can’t. Not whilst the world’s own future is at stake. We need to keep moving, or otherwise we’ll run out of time.”

He grimaced and flexed his right forepaw, fidgeting at his side before slowly slumping below. Harmony couldn’t bring himself to talk to her about all of the troubled emotions he had hidden underneath his mind.

Dusknoir’s betrayal and the kidnapping of the both of them so they could fight through the future just so they could return to the past and hope to even have a chance of collecting the Time Gears.

Realising that not only did he have the partner by his side, he also was none other than the same human Grovyle trusted with his life before his amnesia overcame him. Not even being aware of both of their true identities, they both fought when encountering him at one of the three Time Gears’ lakes, before the pain of realisation meant they could all be manipulated by pure coincidence.

Right now, Grovyle too was in front of them scouting the area to ensure they knew where they were headed before moving forward.

Standing in an old set of ruins beset by murals of ancient depictions of legendary Pokémon battles and the events of a previous falling asteroid, the Riolu did not want any part of becoming legend. He was scared and terrified. Not just of losing his own life if he failed, but by harming the two partner Pokémon he relied on so much that he couldn’t bring himself to tell them.

In his mind at least, that’s what he thought. That there was no way that they could ever understand the feelings he encompassed after forgetting his previous life for the one he lived now, and the consequences he had to deal with in tow just to get a basic understanding of everything.

As he sat, he shivered. Inside his mind, or at least the very depths of it, there was a tinge of regret that something may happen. What might happen to him when he prevented the future of darkness from ever occurring? Would it mean… would it mean that he himself would become a time paradox? That he would never exist?

Harmony couldn’t bring himself to finish that thought, before he felt a comforting hug come from his Eevee partner. She could only look on in an attempt to get through to his mind.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking Harmony, but this isn’t just a burden you have to think is just only on your shoulders. It’s on our shoulders together, is it not?”

The Riolu human stared back incredulously, unsure of what she was trying to say.

“How is it not Flurr? I’m… I’m trying my best to deal with the consequences of every second we lose. Your relic fragment may have guided us here but it’s not guiding my lost heart right now. I can’t… I can’t deal with losing you too. I just can’t. You mean too much to me.”

“That’s… thank you, but I… I know you’re not the only one who’s thinking about this all deep inside.”

Flurr flickered a small smile at him, which made his already overwhelmed brain suddenly contemplate a whole slither of conundrums. What was she even talking about? Did he do something to upset her? Did he go and screw up again, like everything he touched triggered his Dimensional Screams? Did he waste the time of other Pokémon again? Did he-

“I’m thinking about it too, even now.”

…

“Y-you are? But why?”

“Because I know that underneath it all, I’m scared, I-I’m afraid, but… I know if I don’t move forward, we won’t be able to save anyone. Me and Grovyle… we’re just as nervous about what might happen if we move forward as much as anyone else is. Including you. So please, even if it is the hardest thing in the world for you… please, just try. For me. For us. We’re Team Harmonia after all, and it was named after you. So… even if I get my strength from you too, I just… please?”

“That’s… that’s impossible.”

The female Eevee pulled her partner into a sudden hug.

“It may feel that way… but if you have someone to confide your worries in, doesn’t that mean you can at least try? We’ll save this world Harmony, I’m sure of it.”

Harmony looked at her, before eventually realising he couldn’t keep it in anymore. A few sniffles came, before a tear fell, then another and then another. He couldn’t keep it up.

He had to cry.

And as the Eevee cuddled him… she knew that with him, her strength and at least her worries can help make him feel better. Even if it was just in this moment. As the both of them didn’t know what to expect, they knew they needed to try. Just try.

They would go and place the Time Gears so they could save the world together.

If the both of them could just try… they could do it together.

Glacier Palace

The air was becoming hard to breathe for everyone around him. Soon without realising, his allies would begin collapsing from exhaustion one after another.

First came the collapse of his friend Dunsparce, followed by Virizion, then Umbreon and Espeon. They all fell from the protruding force of an unknown assailant, making the air thin as ice… much like the place they had become trapped from traversing via the Entercards.

Eventually, before he even realised, a lone Tepig stood still near the fallen and near unconscious body of his partner, an Axew whom he had grown to care about since he first woke up in this world from falling down from the sky.

“Huck! Huck, buddy, wake up-!”

“Ungh… Cormos… I…”

“Please, I can’t be the only one left up here, stay with me, even if it’s just…!”

The Axew’s tenacity was waning away, fading into background obscurity as he felt his consciousness slowly slipping into the depths of unawakened darkness. Cormos refused to have this happen. He… he couldn’t let this happen. Why? Why were his friends - and his precious best friend - all starting to find it difficult to even breathe?

With a sudden deep breath and a flurry of panic wash over him, sweat began to cover the fire type-human’s face. He was the only one left still standing.

How? How was this even happening? Why was it even happening for him?

He didn’t know. He just didn’t know.

“…Cormos…” Huck coughed, feeling his strength all but surely break away.

“Huck, I’m scared, what do I-? What do I do?”

“Just… stay by my side. Your presence… it’s… it’s the thing that… cough… provides me with the ability to even talk to you… gah… right now.”

“That’s…”

“I’m still here Cormos… even if I’m…”

Silence fell by the end of his partner’s date statement, and in a frantic effort to try and wake him up, the Tepig rushed to his side, shaking him like a ragdoll in a desperate attempt to wake him.

“Huck! Huck! C’mon, don’t… don’t leave me now.”

“WHO DARES TRESPASS ON MY DOMAIN?!”

A sudden, ice-pierced cry echoed throughout the chamber as a looming silhouette appeared over the human. There staring back at him was an expression lost with no soul, empty and desolate. With two ice-fractured wings flung from the back of its body, whatever this creature was instantly made the flame in Cormos’ body flicker further in a reflex arc.

“I-I… I come in peace. P-please… my buddy… please what’s happening to him?”

“You. You who can somehow survive the thick air up here. Just who are you?”

“…Cormos. Now tell me, how do I save my friend?!”

“Silence!”

The ice dragon roared and shook the confines of the Glacier Palace with the ferocity of what felt like an avalanche.

“I asked a question, I would like an answer. How could you possibly still breathe when…?”

Upon closer inspection, the towering giant loomed over the fire type with piqued interest. Moving down, they stared back at Cormos before making a slow growl.

“Your smell… it’s foreign. One that I feel accustomed to from the many times I’ve seen your kind. But you… I see you only pay heed to your allies and the Pokémon beside you. Why are you here… Cormos?”

“I… I came here because our team wanted to perform an investigation of the Glacier Palace. We didn’t mean to i-intrude or steal anything from you Mr…”

“Your kind can call me Kyurem. I’m content with your so-called investigation, but any moves further past this point is forbidden. Should you even dare try to defy me… a swift death would be nothing more short than certain.”

“I-I have no intention of doing that Kyurem.” The Tepig fearfully curled up into a ball, scared of what the towering ice dragon would inflict upon him if he tested his patience.

Luckily for him though, whatever the beast was approached Huck slowly before roaring and clearing some of the air temporarily so that he could breathe.

Before he realised it, the Axew slowly began to wake up again and turned to see the intensively worried face of his Tepig partner.

“Cormos… thank you.”

“I suggest to the both of you that whatever business you have further in this place is wrapped up now. I do not want to warn you a second time.”

“W-we will. We’re extremely sorry to trespass.”

“But I will say this. This Axew can keep the Frism he wanted to obtain. It is a special… object that can help with transferring messages if provided with the warmth of key. This will be your way of remembering your time here.”

Huck’s face immediately lit up with a gleaming smile, before finding his arms straight around the neck of the Tepig.

“Cormos… you were incredibly brave… thank you, thank you, thank you…”

The only thing on the former human’s mind though was the fact that his partner was safe. They would be okay. Team Whirlsprint would be alright.

And him and the rest of his friends… could go home together.

Revelation Mountain

Through the continuous rocky path to the peak of the mountain, a lone and angst-filled water type darted his eyes around in several different directions. Somewhere deep inside of him, he couldn’t help but feel worried.

The true culprit responsible for turning the world’s Pokémon to stone… he would slowly but surely meet them face-to-face.

With this knowledge, he knew he’d have to fight whatever it was that was standing in his way. Whether he knew for certain or not how it would turn out was anyone’s guess, at least to him.

All he know though was he wanted to find comfort in himself. No matter how far he’d go just to know what he could do at the core of the dilemma.

“We’ve got to not be far from the peak now you two. Stay sharp.”

Archen - one of the water type Pokémon’s allies from the Expedition Society - looked back at the both of the main team members of the Kipsaurs with a face filled with protection and confidence.

Sprout - a hyperactive Bulbasaur - nodded in tow. Cormac - the Mudkip with a lot to contemplate even if his former foster parent was also with them - was snapped back out of his thoughts. His terrified, over-encompassed worries and concerns.

As both Archen and Nuzleaf - the grass-type who took the human in where he had no where else to go - both wandered ahead not too far from where they would ascend to take down Krookodile, eventually the Bulbasaur looked and widened his eyes at the weakness of his friend. Walking alongside Cormac, he turned to look at him straight in the eyes.

“Hey, is… is everything alright? You look like the Mareep got stacked all over you.”

“Ah… I… it’s nothing Sprout, you don’t need to concern yourself over me. We have to stop Krookodile from hurting whatever is at the top of this mountain. I’m sure your Pops would say the same thing.”

“My Pops huh…? Well… I-I know most of all he’d be especially worried about me. Considering we haven’t seen each other in so long, he’d come back and scoop me up and give me the longest hug ever. But… but that’s not who I’m worried about right now. It’s you. You look so shuttered Cormac. W-why?”

With a heavy sigh, the former but amnesiac human stopped and began to shiver. His fin stood on end and his thoughts throttling any form of concentration, he shook himself into a shrunken corner.

Something… something felt horribly, horribly wrong in his mind. Why? Why could he not bring himself to move? How could he not have any strength left in him to continue moving forward? How was it that it was always him…? Right here, right now, why was he so worthless-?

“Cormac! Cormac! Cormac! Listen to me Cormac, I’m here! Please, please come back!”

A voice blotted out the echoed darkness that ploughed from the recesses of his mind to the forefront of reality, and through fuzzied eyes he stared at the concerned partner that shone into his line of sight.

Sprout looking no more worried than any other time he had seen him with his own self-doubts, he stared at Cormac with a look of lingering confusion and fear he would lose his friend to whatever he may have been going through.

“Cormac… come back to me.”

…

A breath of air from his lungs… and out again. Breathing in… and breathing out. Rinse and repeat until… until he would feel better.

“S-Sprout… I’m sorry.”

“I’m here Cormac, please… just tell me what’s worrying you.”

Silence filled the air as the Mudkip managed to regain his footing, before he slumped onto one of Sprout’s back vines for support as he used them to help him feel comfortable.

“I’m… just worried. About… about confronting the person who could be causing all these problems we’re having at the Expedition Society. I’m worried we could be turned to stone… or something might happen to you or Archen or my… own Pappy, but I… I’m worried most of all of seeing you get hurt. I can’t… no I won’t let that happen. I just can’t.”

With a flickered tear rolling down his cheek and dampening the cloth of the harmony scarf he wore, Sprout raised a leg to wipe it away and slowly but surely gave him a hug.

Maybe it wouldn’t last forever… but in this moment Cormac felt he needed it the most, especially when feeling at his most vulnerable right now.

“I-I know how it feels. Cormac, I’m scared of a lot of things. Losing my Pops, losing my place in the society, but now… hearing you say that, and how much you care about me… it makes me scared of losing you too. More than anything than you may know. But… but we have each other. I’m not going to let anything happen to you Cormac, no matter what.”

Sprout looked at his best friend with all the care he had for him up until this point in their journey, clinging onto him so he could feel at ease. He wouldn’t let go… not until he knew for certain that the Mudkip human would know how to ease his panic away from his mind.

Breathing slowly but surely, Cormac nodded and reciprocated the hug. He hugged him tightly, and began to sniffle more.

“I-I can’t… no I won’t… I refuse to let Krookodile, or whoever else I fear may touch you lay their hands on you Sprout… I never, ever want to have you harmed.”

“…I’m glad, so so glad to hear that Cormac. C’mon, let’s go… Archen and Mr Nuzleaf are up ahead.”

“…Right.”

With two cautious steps, the both of them walked forward to catch up to the other two in their searching party. Archen noticed Cormac’s worried eyes and gave him a reassuring nod.

And his surrogate father he left behind… whether it was his face or not, the human couldn’t tell.

But he swear… he saw the pained tear and worry his own face move forward.

“C’mon young’uns… yer gonna be fine. And Cormac… I’ll make sure you’ll be raising yer spirits like-a freshly brewed Oran Berry soufflé.”

The grass-type guardian gave his child a hug as well as a form of consolation for him, as the four of them had managed to get through to a clearing at the top.

The Expedition Society’s members all were there to support him, he realised. Even his own guardian.

But whatever this feeling that was inside him that he couldn’t shake away for something being wrong… he knew one thing he could do.

He would confront it with his allies together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for reading all four prompts I had to write. Whilst I know my other submissions are waaaayyy overdue (I’m sorry DX), thank you for a great hero/partner week! I’ve loved seeing all of you guys’ submissions and it proves that not only are all of you talented, but you’re all amazing in your own right as we all move forward to the future. We can all be here… as we each move forward… together.

@heropartnerweek

[gaylightisminetocommand]

also the fact that by the end of the series Loki has known these people for literal centuries. i'm totally normal about that.

[deoidesign]

please take as much time as you need to rest and recover. burn out is so hard and takes so much to heal from. your art and your supporters will still be here when you get back :) take care <3

Thank you very much

Unfortunately, my situation doesn't really allow me to take the time I need. I've got a ~two month hiatus scheduled for my midseason, but much like my first hiatus I'll most likely be working double time during it...

It's unfortunate because I could really really use a bigger break!

Having the time and flexibility to work on other projects really fires me up and keeps me going, and being able to take a guilt free day off for family and friends is necessary to my mental health, and I've been having to turn people down lately...

This is a very kind message, and I'm sorry to vent in response! But I just feel transparency about the pressure I'm under is necessary and important. I'd love to take the time I really need, but due to deadlines and that pesky "needing money to live" I can't.

But, once the series is over I intend to take a pretty big break before I start whatever I'm doing next! I've got so many short stories and projects planned that I want so badly to get to, I can't wait to really get to truly dive in to them!

[karinyosa]

listen i can’t prove that asp bloggers by and large seem to know brinker was based on gore vidal now because of me but brother i will say it was not like that back when there were like 4 asp blogs and all the fanart was anime

[vwritesaus]

I'm glad you are writing again! Can you pls share a snippet of that chapter?

thank you anon!! ♡ i am too... it's like i've come home after being away for so long

and share a snippet?? you needn't ask twice, i'd love to. here you go, something small:

      [Alastair's] main excuse is to escape the unfortunate reality of his sister and James being glued to each other’s sides, and engaging in what he refers to as an “unhealthy amount of canoodling”.       ‘This is what happens when the Herondales are the hosts, I suppose,’ Alastair stated in dire tones late one night, completed with a fabulous scowl. ‘They allow for inappropriate acts to be performed under their noses.’       ‘And what of the noses of my parents?’ Thomas rebutted. ‘Imagine their faces upon discovering the polite and charming Alastair Carstairs sneaking about in the night and taking residence in their son’s bedroom. I daresay Cordelia is not the only Carstairs performing inappropriate acts.’       He had gotten a swat on his arm for the comment, and they needed to stifle their laughs in fear of waking everyone up. They have yet to be caught, though Thomas imagines there is a very low chance of it happening, least of all by Sophie and Gideon Lightwood. Not when their attention is elsewhere, for obvious reasons.

the full chapter will be posted this weekend because guess what? i actually finished it!?

~

Snippet #1

[true-blue-sonic]

I honestly kinda get but kinda don't get Lanolins angle.

Like Silver knows Duo is Mimic as he was potentially almost killed by him but he when he tells Lanolin, he doesn't actually provide any proof. Same goes for Whisper, she just says that Duo is Mimic and THEN trys to prove it which seems to mean putting Duo in danger or atleast risk of injury. From Lanolins POV, it probably looks like these 2 well respected team members are bullying the newbie with a weak excuse and are progressively getting more aggressive, escalating name calling to physical harm.

She didn't really know Silver personally before this Duo problem and probably thinks he's just a vindictive person who still hasn't gotten over Duo 'running off to get help'. With Whisper, I presume she just thinks she's being paranoid which when you have a nemesis like Mimic it something that could happen. Plus I don't think Whisper had actually properly told Lanolin just how dangerous Mimic can be so Mimic might not register that high of a threat since he isn't exactly destroying citys like Eggman or the Zeti.

However, I don't understand why she's taking the direction she is. She's incredibly disrespectful of Silver which I can only presume is because she now thinks he's a bully (otherwise I can't think of a reason) and she's incredibly disrespectful of Whisper, I could see her annoyance for Silver maybe bleeding over to Whisper now she's on his side but it feels very meh.

I feel like if Lanolin just had a page to explain her train of thought then alot of this could be sorted and I hope she actually starts giving Duo the side eye since now 2 people are saying he's Mimic.

I think you nicely describe the issues I see with this current plot, yes.

I mentioned it in my ask to Beevean as well, but this entire plot is fully dependent on not letting characters do or say entirely reasonable things we can expect of them, as to not fall apart. In issue 63 alone, Silver should have provided proof, namely that he got kicked, and Whisper should have backed him up, because she literally says later that she saw it herself as well. Silver also should have said that Duo's face changed to something super ominous, because in that same scene with Whisper later he says he saw so! And Lanolin, Whisper and Tangle should have noticed that Duo says to them he couldn't do anything to help Silver, but that Silver says Duo just ran away without saying anything while Duo himself protests he was 'getting help'. This isn't a small thing, this is Silver literally nearly dying because of Duo's (in)actions, and there could not be a greater discrepancy between what Duo first tells the girls ("I couldn't do anything") and then later says to defend himself against Silver ("I was getting help"). There is so many should have's, but all of these will make the dramatic irony plot fall apart, so the characters cannot say them! And thus we get the highly unfair scene of Lanolin immediately picking Duo's side and tearing into the literal saviour of the world as if she's his boss (no, Silver is not part of the Diamond Cutters, he's just training with them) and knows far more about heroing and psychic powers than he does (ma'am, in your first mission in the field ever Whisper, you, and Sonic got captured and Tangle almost got shot right through her head). Silver meanwhile is mischaracterised as immediately folding under that scolding, Whisper suddenly becomes a coward who does not back Silver up until all is said and done, and Tangle does not point out Lanolin is being overly bossy again. So basically in that scene, everyone is written terribly, but it is a necessity to keep the plot going. In that way, I can accept it is not fully Lanolin's fault that she doesn't know what is going on, because she's stuck in a badly-written plot with all the above should have's ensuring that she'll nicely not find out the truth until it is too late... but her terrible personality and constant immediate defending of Duo do not help in her figuring anything out, either.

And besides, Lanolin does, or at least should, know Silver's feats. She was there for the Metal Virus Arc where Super Sonic and Super Silver saved the entire world! Duo literally confirms people not allied with the Restoration at that time know of Angel Island! Silver was part of the Resistance for six months! He's got tons of credibility and a presence during prior events where he absolutely necessary to stop things from going to shit to back him up, where he was a team player and overall a very helpful person. We are never shown where her sudden disdain for him comes from, meaning we can only fill it with theorising that link right back to the should have's (e.g. "She thinks Silver is irresponsible because he nearly dropped those rocks on her!" -> Silver should have pointed out he dropped them because Duo kicked him). As for Whisper, from what I can tell Lanolin does indeed not know that Mimic specifically is the one who betrayed Whisper's old team... but instead of doing something more sensible like asking "Why do you think that?" or "Why would he do that?" when Whisper accuses Duo of being Mimic, she instead becomes defensive immediately. No surprise, no shock, no concern, just immediate defensive anger with her usual pissed off I Can't Stand You Actually facial expression. Why does she trust Whisper so little that she can't even hear her out normally? Why does she immediately assume Whisper is lying when she is presented with such an outlandish claim (too outlandish to come up with out of nowhere, imo) that still indicates they could all be in terrible danger? I can accept the idea that she thinks Silver is still mad about nearly being eaten by a Giant Chopper, but why did she react in the way she did to Whisper, who by that point had done nothing to indicate she should not be listened to?

And like, adding to that... why would Lanolin assume that Silver and Whisper suddenly are bullying Duo anyway, when neither has shown him any badwill beforehand? Whisper was totally down with him joining the team since they needed volunteers, no issues there. Silver was friendly to him until the Chopper incident, with not a hint of bad blood or envy or whatever negative emotion you might ascribe to it. And you are right: we are never shown why Lanolin is so protective of Duo, just that she values the newbie far more than a teammate she's been on a mission with before and the actual saviour of the past and future. Lanolin is written like an altogether terrible leader (cannot de-escalate situations and only makes them worse, clearly favouring one member over the others for no reason, cannot hear all parties out first before immediately jumping onto the defense) and to me as just a rude, unpleasant character on top, and we simply don't know 1. why, and 2. if this is intentional in a 'meta' sense. Nobody calls her out on her behaviours, but we do see that characters like Tangle are quite disheartened by her words and actions, and she herself admits she's bossy. So she's a character aware of her flaws who does nothing to become better: how nice. But overall, there's a lot of questions around why Lanolin acts the way she does, and why she can easily be taken as altogether hating her teammates (if her facial expressions around them are anything to go by) or at least not trusting them. And the comic is doing very little to answer such questions or indicate if we should root for Lanolin because she's 'doing her best' or dislike her for her nasty personality instead, unfortunate as that is.

So yeah... I don't know what is going to happen. All I know is that I do not care for it much: Silver's got quite the happy ending with someone who actually respects him and listens to him, and that is all I can ask for, haha. At most, I would love it if Mimic gave Lanolin the callout of a lifetime for trusting his random ass over the two far more experienced people around her, and allowing him an easy escape with her constant interrupting, distrusting, and scolding of her teammates so that he didn't have to keep scrambling for excuses. And if Lanolin admits she's been a terrible leader who only escalated things further with her actions and who clearly does not respect her team members for no reason, that would be nice too. We'll see what happens: I am going to predict there'll be absolutely zero consequences for Lanolin and her behaviours and actions, then it can only become better, haha.

[buterflysoup]

just chilling in the lobby of the eye doctors thinking about how im so embarrassing i probably deserve to be shot