#* (&. self boost) time to show the world what i'm made of !

[descendant-of-truth]

This was presented with a very whimsical tone and I enjoyed it for that but also. it's such a specific side effect that I can't not analyze it

Like, on principle it makes perfect sense. Give an already fast and energetic character who talks to himself all the time a boost to his abilities, and he becomes twice as chatty to compensate.

But his external monologue has never taken the form of a conversation between two people before, and in a show that's all about having alternate versions of the same character, that's worth taking note of. Especially since this started after he was given energy from the Paradox Prism, the thing that presumably made all of those alternate versions to begin with.

(And even more especially since the show already played around with the idea of there being two Sonics only a few episodes ago with the existence of Chaos Sonic)

So, the other oddity regarding this whole thing is how one side is consistently just. uncharacteristically mean and deadpan towards the other?? I showed one example earlier, but there's two more, and that accounts for almost every instance of Sonic talking to himself in this form

Sonic's never really talked to anyone like this before, not even himself. It almost comes across like an emulation of Shadow more than anything else, which is just. so bizarre?? Especially when Shadow's literally right next to him in the last scene, and thus he has no need to substitute his presence.

In fact, he seems to catch himself and stops doing the self-banter thing entirely as soon as Shadow acknowledges him doing it

And he looks surprised when Shadow speaks, too, like he already forgot that other people can hear him. It really comes off like he's in his own little world, and again, this is a show about multiple worlds, so it's pretty fitting.

I'm not letting Shadow's phrasing off the hook, either - "a Sonic," hm? As if there's more than one?

Even Sonic gets confused about how many of him there are, which has quite the loaded implication for how short of a moment it is; something that could describe everything about this form, honestly.

It all gives me this impression that we're not quite done with this concept of there being multiple Sonics, or at least not done with this form being used in general. There's a lot of potential in what they've already set up for it, and I'd love to see it explored further.

Plus, this one frame of Sonic after he first gets it still gives me the impression that there's something... off about it

And I want to know what that something is

[sardonic-the-writer]

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐬 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞

↳ includes: scout, engineer, heavy, medic, sniper, and spy (i forgot demo i'm so sorry)

↳ warnings: bad translations, slight mentions of world war two and malpractice

↳ song: with a little help from my friends—joe cocker

masterlist | commissions | carrd

𝐒𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐭

• He would be so smug about it

• Puffing his chest out and everything

• His friends in the past- and even family members -have teased him for mispronouncing words or speaking too fast, and it’s made him a bit self conscious about the way he talks. But after hearing that you find it endearing, its a giant ego boost for him

• “Yeah dat’s right! Who’s awesome? I’m awesome!” Scout smiles as he flexes his arms in your face, subjecting you to what he likes to call a surprise gun show. You pretend to hate it as you shove his arm away, but chuckle all the same

• He’s already gloated before that he already knew his accent was the best. Boston is the greatest place in the world after all! But hearing it from you really just sent him over the moon

• Makes a point to talk to you a lot more now; as if he didn’t already

• “Yo! Hey did you see that kill out there? I totally messed dat Spy up! One wrong step and pow! He’s dead meat!”

• “I saw Scout. I was covering your flank while you did it, remember?”

• “Yeah yeah, but I just thought you’d like ta hear about it again.”

𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫

• Didn’t consider himself to have an accent until you pointed him out

• Sure, he says the occasional y’all and ain’t, but not enough to qualify as a whole different way of speaking

• It wasn’t until he dropped a hammer on his foot and cursed that he understood what you’d meant

• “What in the sam hill! Sweet hell!” He’d exclaimed, startled. Once the throbbing in his leg had subsided, Engineer replayed his words in his head, making a slight o with his mouth as he realized you were probably right. To some extent at least

• He was a born and raised Texas boy, so it makes sense that the culture rubbed off

• Doesn’t understand at first that you find it nice. Maybe he thought you pointed it out just because you could? He’s a bit distracted when it comes to anything but machinery, so he misses context sometimes

𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐲

• Surprised that someone like you who can speak English fluently finds his mannerisms attractive

• Gets frustrated sometimes when he can’t remember certain words in English. Heavy is a very smart man, so it aggravates him when he looks illiterate in front of his team

• That’s why hearing that you like his mother tongue caught him by surprise

• “But you don’t know any Russian?” He’d rumbled out as a question. When you shook your head no, still sporting a smile, his eyebrows furrowed further

• “Nah. But I like hearing it when it comes from you. It sounds more natural. Like you’re more comfortable than normal, you know?”

• You’re technically right. When Heavy slips into Russian, often whilst talking to Sasha or simply forgetting that not everyone on the team know how to speak it, he is more comfortable in his words. They flow better, and he’s flattered that you’ve noticed

• One hundred percent offers to teach you Russian in his spare time. He finds it slightly adorable how you stumble over words in your broken translations, but always manages to softly correct you

• He’s a really good teacher

𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜

• Positively thrilled that you like his voice

• When you tell him for the first time, he goes into shock for a moment before breaking out into the biggest smile you’ve seen. Somehow its a perfect balance between excited and malicious

• “Do you hear zhat Archemedies? Mein freund here enjoys my accent!” He cooes at his bird, chuckling in a way that would make anyone’s insides squirm

• Once you look past Medic’s initially devious reaction, it’s very clear he enjoys knowing this

• If anything, the ex-doctor would have thought that you’d enjoy the more stereotypically romantic sounding languages. Spanish, Latin, etc

• German has always been considered harsh or scary sounding, and it turned a lot of people away from hiring him after the events of World War Two, which he understood. Still, Medic finds himself absolutely tickled that you are drawn to his accent

• Finds himself slipping more and more into German while doing checkups on you now. When he catches himself, he translates most of what’s he’s said back to you. But sometimes he’ll simply forget, and it leaves you wondering if he’s offered you a glass of water or the opportunity to swap your bladder out

• You sincerely hoped it was the former

𝐒𝐧𝐢𝐩𝐞𝐫

• Oh my god you killed him

• Sniper is very reserved. Living in his camper, hunting his own game for dinner instead of joining the others, literally pissing in jars, etc etc

• Being a man of few words comes part and parcel with that; which normally works out just find because Scout talks enough for ten people

• Hasn’t said much to you before. He mostly communicates in head nods or slight tilts of his coffee mug in your direction. Maybe a few ‘good mornin’s’ tossed around, but nothing more than that

• “You know, you should talk more.” You’d said to him one day while pouring a fresh pot of tea you had just boiled into your own mug. He preferred black coffee himself, but whatever floats your boat

• “You voice.” You elaborated after a sip. You must have noticed his confused look as you carried on. “It’s nice. Can’t imagine that you don’t have gals throwing themselves at you all the time because of it.”

• Suddenly very grateful he wasn’t drinking any of his brew at the time, because what you said surely would have made him choked

• He, in fact, had had a few ladies approach him in town before saying something along the same lines. Even a few fellas. But nothing made him blanch this strongly like you had

• Excuses himself as he walks out of the room suddenly, tilting his hat down to cover his face no one can see the furious red tint forming

• Sniper leaves you in the communal kitchen. Holding a steaming cup of liquid and looking very confused

𝐒𝐩𝐲

• Already knew before you told him

• To anyone else, it would have been passible as just curiosity. But Spy’s job is to know things, and it is an undeniable fact that you found his voice attractive

• Doesn’t utilize this weapon often. You are not a weak willed person swayed by just a few words, so when he needs something he pulls out all the stops

• Of course, that doesn’t stop him from being impressed when you eventually admit your little not-so-secret-secret to him. And of your own free will. He didn’t have to pry it out of you, which was a feat on its own

• Much like Heavy, he extends the offer of teaching you how to learn his language. Now that he no longer has this knowledge as a bargaining chip, he might as well seize the opportunity to teach you a proper language

• Considers using electroshock therapy to condition you faster, but nixes it pretty quick

• Again, like Heavy, he finds it cute how horrible you are at French. More amused than anything, but he can appreciate the way you practice verbs in your free time even when he isn’t leaning over your shoulder

• That you know of, that is

• Praises you often in french, letting excited phrases slip when you nail a particularly hard set of words

• “Merveilleux ! Tu t’améliores beaucoup, ma petite. Encore une fois.”

• While you don’t understand the full extent to his words, you smile and continue on, eventually realizing what he had said later in a fit of embarrassment

[antimatterz]

Hello! Can i request Blade x gn!reader? (i like your self-aware au)

What if on the first day of his banner, when you got him, he is already leveled up to 80, his signature cone too, his traces maxed out, have some decent relics on him and put as an icon on account very very quickly.

And while the other characters are not even fully maxed out. Only him. (Cause i will do the same with my Bladie, hehe)

How would he react?

(Can i be Anon K?🤪)

i'm your priority?

blade x gn!reader

summary: it's barely been a minute since he came come and you're excitedly maxing out all his stats – how does blade react?

cw: humor, self-aware au, blade being smug about it

enyo's note: aa this was such a fun request and i'm glad my self-aware au posts are appreciated lol. and yes of course! welcome to the anon gang!

content under the cut | masterlist

oh, he would be so amused at first.

he only just joined you, it hasn't even been a minute, and you're eagerly throwing ascension materials and character xp materials at him, instantly raising him to the maximum level.

"oh? someone prefarmed for me, hm?"

his smirk.

but his amusement turns into amazement when you slap a near-perfect set of relics on him, complete with planar ornaments. and no, not just any relics, but ones with godly (sub)stats, on-stat.

barely five minutes after coming home to you, he's fully leveled, with fully enhanced relics that boost all the right stats.

blade is taken-aback but tries to keep his cool.

"looks like someone is into me," he remarks.

"don't get me started," your previous main sighs. "they made us farm for you for weeks." just wait until your prev main finds out that blade also replaced them as your profile icon.

he glances at your other characters, noticing that none of them are fully leveled, only brought to the minimum that was necessary to get through battles on your world level.

oh, he's so smug about it.

tosses a loose smirk in their direction because it's so clear who you like the most.

but you're not done yet... by far not.

that's when you equip his signature light cone, already leveled to the max, maybe even superimposed a couple of times.

now he finally takes a moment to observe you, watching how you're utterly focused on improving him. his stats grow and he feels himself getting stronger.

he's very appreciative but doesn't show it.

"y/n..." he begins, but for once blade is at a loss for words.

then you open his traces, spending all your prefarmed resources to bring all his traces to the max level.

blade watches in awe how your credit count goes down, how your inventory shrinks, now void of all the expensive materials you've gathered in the weeks prior.

for once his smirk vanishes as he makes a promise to himself; he would prove himself worthy of all your effort, resources, time and trailblaze power you've spent on him. he'll be strong for you, carry you through the toughest battles the game has to offer.

his gaze is on you as you sit back, seemingly done with everything. but then you crack your knuckles and say...

"now it's time to get your eidolons, bladie."

[lanaevyssmoved]

so i saw this fun post with "otp" questions and i really wanted to answer them for afhiri/gale and instead of asking people to send me asks.. i thought i would answer them all myself in a post :) lots of text under cut!!!!!!

What, specifically, was the catalyst for their physical attraction (if applicable) to the other character? In other words, what in particular had them like “Oh, they’re...hot...”

afhiri likes how confident and charming gale is, they really enjoy (and fall for) the bravado entirely. but it's the magic that afhiri really likes, how controlled it is, how powerful he is (while i'm aware he's nerfed beyond belief, afhiri has never seen stuff like this and it's very cool!), and is completely mesmerised when he casts magic- which is a massive ego boost for the wizard.... oh and he's pretty. obviously

for gale, he likes how afhiri navigates situations. they're very good at talking to people, easy to make friends, can shift into being a manipulative liar when the situation demands it, and then turns to look at him with a wide "i did it!" smile. but when someone needs help, when afhiri knows they can do something to help someone who isn't capable of helping themselves, they'll step in and do the right thing. this is attractive to gale!

Does this change over time? What things do they find “hot” about their partner after they’ve been together for some time, and have had more time to, well, notice and appreciate?

for afhiri it honestly doesn't really change. he just gets more and more powerful as they spend more time together, constantly growing in skill, and it never loses its charm. they just get more fascinated. admittedly afhiri doesn't need to see more to stay interested, but gale likes to provide more because seeing them get even more impressed by him is constantly stroking the ego

the loyalty afhiri showcases, the fact they are entirely, 100%, ride of die, they will do anything for him, if he were to say jump she would say how high. while he's aware of how self destructive this can be and he encourages afhiri to think for herself even in terms of her friends and loved ones, he can't help but be enamoured by this display of devotion and trust, because it's for everyone who shows her even the smallest of kindnesses

By contrast, what was the moment that first made their ~heart~ Soft for the other person? Not necessarily a conscious realization of “I love this person,” but a moment that had them like “Oh...I adore them...”

afhiri was slow on this, which requires some context for her as a character. they are incredibly naive in the ways of the heart, they never had friends growing up, they never experienced a first crush, they never had a doomed teenage relationship. they didn't understand love, romance, sexuality. it wasn't until the events of the game that they started to have these feelings, and needed help understanding them. afhiri's various love affairs (because she doesn't just get involved with gale!) help her understand. so it took afhiri a long time to even understand what 'i love you' is outside of a family dynamic. if you were to ask afhiri, she would say she adored gale from the moment she met him. but since you're asking me, it would be the act 3 boat scene, when she takes his hands in their own, and he looks at her with bright, gentle eyes. that was the moment afhiri realised she would burn the world for him if he asked

gales moment was during act 2, his romance scene. not the confession, but when he had conjured the illusion of his tower at waterdeep, afhiri looked around in wonder. she asked questions about various things, she pet his statues and asked if they had names, she could tell which were his favourite books from the state of them, something that surprised gale greatly. they cared so much, about all the little things, about all the things that make him who he is. they got especially excited about the piano, wanting to learn how to play, wanting to play alongside it for him. she asked desperately if she could perform for him while he read, but he had to encourage her along with a gentle hand in hers to come to the balcony. when they sat together and he looked at her, that was the moment. he was so in love

Does this change over time? What will always reliably make them melt with how much they adore the other character?

with afhiri it's just his gentle kindness. while her attraction comes from his displays of confidence and power and skill, who he is when all that is put aside and there's just gale in his goofy pjs with a soft smile on his face. the way he encourages her, reassures her, the way he makes her feel like a complete person. he's like a guide for her in many ways, a mentor even. while i understand that they do have a natural power imbalance, gale is aware of it too, but never once infantilises her, and reminds her of all the things she does and says that tell the word she is more than a naive, stupid girl who never got to be a person until tragedy struck. that will always make her melt. that he touches her, and is gentle

admittedly it's almost the same. but afhiri is loud, her voice booms and her hands grip so tight her claws dig into him, her sharp teeth shine as she yells to him with furrowed brows how much he is worth. that despite his folly, he is an incredible person who deserves everything. that she will provide everything if he asked. that mystra is stupid bitch who didn't know what she had, and that afhiri knows, afhiri knows what she has and won't ever let him forget that. he is all that's beautiful in this world. afhiri is a lovebomber btw but it never stops, every ounce of mortal love gale has been neglecting in his life poured into him and he's drowning and gasping for air but he doesn't let go. he wants to drown

How do they consciously realize that they like the other character? Does it take them a while?

afhiri kinda needs to be beaten over the head with it. it isn't until gale's silliness in act 2 about near death experiences and how he's horny to get afhiri to go "oh....... so they were right!" because afhiri was already involved with karlach and wyll at this point, and they'd sit up at night holding hands in a circle and they'd tell afhiri "gale likes you. and you like gale." and afhiri would ":)? does he? he is funny. he's my favourite clown." they're just a little silly. and of course they did like gale! he's very pretty

for gale it's quite literally when afhiri hits on him in the act 1 weave scene. afhiri is completely overcome by the intensity of the weave the feeling between them and pictures kissing gale. it just feels right, it just makes sense. that doesn't necessarily mean afhiri was thinking that before, or even after, they were entirely swept away. but that was the moment gale noticed afhiri in that light, and continued to think about it. nonstop

How do they react to the realization that they like the other character? Is it an “oh my god I’m never going to think about this again” thing, or are they pretty comfortable with it?

afhiri is chill. first and foremost. this is a chill clown. the realisation is.. chill, if nothing happens with it? also chill. this is a free spirit who goes with the flow no matter what. karlach and wyll come easy because they are more forward, open characters who make it happen and it flows naturally and easily. gale takes time because gale takes time. afhiri won't make something happen between themselves and another because platonic love is just as good and fulfilling. so, "oh this is nice" and that's about it UNLESS*

gale obsesses. if anything it's a nice distraction from the absolute doom cloud over him, never letting him a moments peace. but thinking about affection? about love? about sex? that's a distraction, and one hell of a distraction. can't do anything about it because everything they have to do is so much more important. i don't think gale would have ever acted on it over the course of the game (except maybe the immediate end) without the acceptance that he is about to die, and needs to do something now or it will never happen. the what if

Do they (or would they) pursue the other character’s affection, and if so, how? Do they tell the other character how they feel? Try to earn their admiration? Woo them with romantic gestures? Flirt with them, skillfully or otherwise?

*afhiri wouldn't unless it naturally came up, if the moment was correct and it just.... happened. much like the weave scene, if the weave didn't dissipate they probably would have tried to kiss gale. they don't change their behaviour with gale consciously, but the others do notice it, paying more attention to him, talking to him first, looking at him for affirmation and reassurance, using him as a moral compass more than she used to, asking him questions over and over an over abundance of curiousity in him, however this can also be attributed to hearing about his condition and relationship with mystra and feeling empathy for him and wanting him to feel wanted

while gale is a gesture man, and would absolutely seek to woo, he doesn't because of the distraction of all that's going on, until as mentioned before, he believes he is going to die. however he absolutely does flirt with afhiri by using a needless amount of magic when she's watching. casting spells just to impress her, upcasting for no reason beyond watching her eyes widen and that toothy grin appear in wonder, an expression he grows addicted to

What do they think about romantic love? Do they have baggage surrounding it? Do they idealize it? Is it an object of longing and wanting, or were they really not thinking about it until they started falling for the other character? What are their expectations like?

i keep lowkey answering stuff before i get to the question huh!

afhiri doesn't think about it at all, it isn't on their mind, and they have no concept of romantic love at all prior to experiencing it for the first time and being told why it's different. it is something they need explained

gale... hhahahah dkjsfdskfhsdkf do i even NEED TO. gale doesn't long for romantic love, but he certainly misses being loved. and it's worth afhiri that he feels true, mortal romantic love for the first time in his life, because i like to think before mystra he only had teen romance, childhood crushes, and then all was mystra, who gave him a love based on power and religious devotion, he worshipped and she gave him tastes of power beyond comprehension. it's with afhiri that he learns what romantic love really is. i think it's safe to say he didn't expect it to feel as good or taste as sweet as it does

What do they think about commitment? Is a long-term partnership the goal? Are they thinking about building a life with their partner, or are they focused on the present?

haha :) ok we're talking about my post-game 3 years later fic for a second bare with me and do not cancel me for enjoying toxic dynamics for a second ok. also this lowkey rewrites canon i know :) i dont care anyway

afhiri and gale are so long term they never want their relationship to end. ever. afhiri is going to outlive gale, and while this is something they are comfortably aware of to start, the more they love, the more they go through, it becomes daunting, especially for gale. he doesn't want afhiri to live without him, to experience life on her own again, to be without someone who will guide and teach her, who will be there to protect her from herself. gale tells them all of this, he holds their hands tight, stares right into their eyes with such intensely it feels like the sun. and afhiri who hadn't had these thoughts at all is suddenly overcome with grief, because gale is sad. they cannot truly comprehend this future, but they can see how much it means to gale. and that's all it takes. gale brings up immortality, talks her into it, which isn't hard because afhiri would say yes to anything gale says. and on his pursuit for immortality, comes divinity, comes ascension. what better way to live together, forever

What scares them about entering a relationship?

afhiri has absolutely zero fear whatsoever. what is there to fear? happiness? huh. don't get it!!!!!!!

i don't think gale fears entering a relationship so much as he fears everything around him, the tadpoles, the orb, the dead three, the elder brain like, there's so much going on and he thinks he's going to die, when he doesn't he still knows he could, same for afhiri, but that fear shouldn't stop anyone from being happy and in love

What fears, past traumas, etc. would be hardest for them to talk about with their partner?

afhiri got nothing. there is no trauma in this clown. there is no fear. there is nothing terrible and bad. one could say their childhood was traumatic in general and another character could be deeply changed by it, afhiri isn't traumatised. this is just a sweet clown who's ready to adore you. i can imagine afhiri like infodumps/loredumps about their own life in an autadhd tangent in the middle of a discussion . where did that come from. anyway and gales like ??? that sounds like a really tough childhood and afhiris like ?????????????? anyway

its actually so easy for gale to open up about the biggest things that have ever happened in his life, which is so funny because he says he's not told another living soul this stuff other than tara, but that goes to show how much he's neglecting his friendships and bonds because it takes you being generally nice and good for him to be like "ok time to trust them with everything!" i don't even think the depths of his relationship with mystra, like Actual Details would be hard to tell either. and afhiri is so open and honest i think it would be encouraging

How much independence do they prefer in a relationship—do they want to share their lives as much as possible with their partner, or do they prefer to mostly do their own thing and let their partner do their own thing?

afhiri is very independent which may be surprising. when gale proposes at the end of the game, afhiri says no, but does go to waterdeep with him because it sounds fun. even when there, afhiri is very slow to officially move in, spending a lot of time there but not quite settling in and making it her own in any way. afhiri also still travels a lot, and disappears for weeks at a time, very rarely months, because adventuring is fun!

this encourages gale to be the same way, going on his own little adventures. seeking hidden artefacts, tomes and magics he reads about, getting tara to sniff out hints of new adventures he could have. sometimes they go together, but more often than not they go on their own, then reunite back at waterdeep with tales to tell.

in my post-game 3 years later fic, afhiri actually proposes to gale, and is still not quite moved in. having never had independence in her life before the events of the game, it is hard to let go of. and gale would never force her to

but also they do miss each other when they're apart.. so its good for their relationship, when they come back together its fresh and exciting and theyre overflowing with love to share

What is their go-to for making a partner feel loved?

gale does acts of clownery for afhiri. dump jokes, crass comments, potty humour, putting on the clown outfit afhiri got for him and doing a little bit where no one could ever possibly walk in on them, afhiri sitting on the groud cross legged clapping away for him like he's a clown at a kids birthday party. literally just lowering himself to her level of comedy and buffoonery dfgl;dkgd

afhiri realises pretty quickly that gale responds best to being validated, having his wants accepted, being encouraged to seek his desires. having his ambitions affirmed and being told that wanting more isn't a bad thing and she will help him get more. that wanting to use his magic to show her beauty is a good thing and he shouldn't have to change. that everything that makes him who he is.. is good. there is nothing wrong with a wizard who uses his skills and his talents, and ever seeks more. if afhiri didn't like these things, why would she have fallen for him in the first place!!!!

What makes them feel loved? Would they build up the courage to ask for it?

since i'm answering for two characters the first part doesn't really make sense so i will only answer the second......

afhiri has no inhibition, if afhiri wants affection they would straight up bluntly ask for it

for gale...... i think he would learn that afhiri responds positively to being asked for love and would get comfortable doing it. it wouldn't come so naturally but seeing afhiri do it to him, gives him the confidence to do it to them, and their eager willingness to provide helps massively

Are they okay with public displays of affection? Do they like them?

i wouldn't say either of them are PDA people

afhiri doesn't act differently with any of their partners when they're adventuring/in public, they're always affection to even their friends so it doesn't feel any different for anyone. they're not going to hold hands, hug, say i love you, in front of anyone, nothing like that. just general attentiveness and soft words when they feel right

i think gale would find it immensely inappropriate to do anything PDA in public, and this is because of my own personal headcanons of his upbringing

When would they say “I love you?” Do they say it first? Do they say it often, or is it reserved for special moments?

gale says it first and they both say it very often, and it multiple ways. it is a well used phrase but it never loses it spark

If sex is something that would be part of a relationship for them, do both or either of them have prior experiences? If not, how do they feel about it?

afhiri's only experience is with karlach prior to gale dlfkgjdfgd i think it's pretty obvious afhiri had no sexual experience based on what i've said prior. and gale had a teen romance, and then mystra, so it's been quite a while for him. two inexperienced at bodily sex dummies

What does sex mean for them? Socially, religiously, what attitudes are they bringing with them? Do they want sexual experiences to occur within a certain “level” of relationship, or does that not really matter so much to them?

now headcanon time, gale is transmasc. gale doesn't have a penis, and has had top surgery. gale uses magic to create a penis when he wants to. afhiri is transfem nonbinary, and has a t-dick. gale also helps afhiri in dick related ways too. WOOHOO *EDIT: AFHIRI IS ALSO INTERSEX

sex for them is extremely trans in experience. the magic sex scene actually encouraged this headcanon for gale in me immensely, the lack of penis in the scene, the desire to experience non-bodily sex and show afhiri what it is like, i think they have more sex this way than bodily.

nothing about their sex life fits into a comfortable 'norm' for people. a lot of body worship is involved, a lot of affirmations, a lot of focusing on trans features and devoting to them. the love of the spirit and the love of the trans experience and the trans body. the love of what magic could do for trans people.

sex for them is acceptance in the purest of forms

in terms of of 'level', afhiri's level is probably 'friend' which is just about anyone whose nice to them so. yeah, but i think gale reserves such a thing as a declaration of love

How comfortable are they talking about, and openly communicating during, sex?

yes for both of them! neither of them are coy individuals and both are comfortable. afhiri might make a crass, immature joke though... when talking about sex and having sex

What would their partner do that would really turn them on, perhaps unintentionally?

uh feel like i made it clear with afhiri that Magic Do Be Doing This.

and gale.. well he kind of tells us in canon that you killing people is hot as hell so. make of that what you will

They accidentally hurt or upset their partner. What happened? How do they respond? What do they do to make their partner feel better?

afhiri upsets gale with her sheer stupidity all the time if i'm honest. he is very patient but they do be doing completely illogical things that are reckless and dangerous, they put themselves in harms way sometimes as a joke with no real understanding of the danger or the risk, afhiri gets scolded a lot and apologies extremely quickly. they don't mean to do things that upset gale, they just..... act. they don't think. there is no plan they just DO and then the consequences of their actions hit like a brick (gale is yelling and crossing his arms)

gale upsets afhiri with his lack of self worth. whenever gale talks in a way that sounds like he doesn't believe he deserves good and that he is good, this upsets afhiri immensely, to the point of tears sometimes. from the moment they met afhiri thought he was the most incredible and amazing person, and this person doesn't think highly of themselves? that's awful. beyond awful. gale pats their head and apologies for talking about himself poorly and it pretty much fixes everything immediately

They have an argument with their partner—what is it about? Do things stay respectful, or is there some shouting and accusing going on?

these two don't fight, they just don't. they don't have arguments, they talk things out. afhiri isn't someone who screams and yells and argues, they helped raise 5 of their 6 siblings, they know how to calmly talk things out and communicate. and without retaliation, gale quickly calms down from angry and frustrated to calmly talking with afhiri too. you cannot get a rise out of this clown

They have to apologize to their partner. Is this difficult for them? How do they approach it?

neither of them find accepting fault and needing to apologise difficult. afhiri is poor at wording apologies and giving detailed apologies, making point of what they did wrong, how they'll change, that stuff, but afhiri is very good at giving sincere "i'm sorry" apologies. gale is extremely good at those like 5 paragraph apologies with a whole ass graph and shit like this man is writing up an entirely new lifeplan around not making this mistake again kind of thing....... but again i don't really see them ever experiencing a situation where this would occur and need to happen. especially when they forgive each other so quickly and easily

How do they feel about the prospect of parenthood? Do they plan on it? How would they react if they suddenly found out they were going to be a parent?

they adopt shovel :)

(afhiri adopted shovel and gale was forced to be father)

What compromises are they making in their relationship?

gale is compromising having a normal, domestic life with someone who loves to read and is intelligent and studies magic and would join in with his experiments and his research.. he's compromising an equal.

afhiri isn't making any compromises, but genuinely recognises gale is. she's not sad about this or thinking gale might want someone else because afhiri would tell him to find another person to have that with and she would be cool with it, this baby can fit so many people in the polycule! but gale has never once implied he wants this and is just happy with her. it's enough, it works

What completely petty topic (music taste, favorite food) do they find themselves completely at odds with their partner about?

afhiri eats utter shit trash and has all her life, gale has a delicate palette of exquisite tastes. afhiri can't eat his food because it's too difficult and weird and gale would never even try eating what afhiri eats. the compromise is he makes two meals and she steals pieces of his to slowly build up her palette :)

How do their friends react to finding out they’re a couple? Do they have lots of mutual friends? Did their friends know, perhaps before they themselves did?

lmao the Squad is very "FINALLY!!!", and tara and gale's mother are very "FINALLY HE'S NOT DYING ALONE!!!!!" everyone is happy

and i did kind of already state that their friends did, in fact, know before they did fsdgfsdfs

Under what circumstances would they feel jealous?

afhiri might feel a speck of jealousy over gales good childhood and upbringing and love he's experienced but. it wouldn't last long and it would be like a twinge of jealousy. nothing important

gale would feel jealous over afhiri's affections for others and the easiness with which it comes, but it would go away with affirmations and reassurance from afhiri

Under what circumstances would they feel protective?

such a funny question like every situation they're in over the course of game? this is a couple who focus on protecting one another over themselves in the heat of combat! (stupid)

Would they get a pet? What kind? Who brings up the idea, and who takes a little longer to convince?

they literally have scratch :) and gale uses magic to make scratch immortal :) it wasn't either of their ideas they both thought of it :)

[fandomohana]

Mental Storms {A 1986 WBTY Fic}

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Plus Size Reader, Eddie Munson x Plus Size Henderson Sister Reader

Rating: Mature for mild nudity, and talk of mental health.

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 1.5K

Summary: Reader is in a dark place mentally, and calls on Eddie for comfort.

Author’s Note: So my mental health is in the toilet, and last night I wrote what I needed.

This fic is a oneshot based in the 1986 Will Be Their Year, universe. It’s set after graduation, but can be read as a stand alone. Reader is 18. This is incredibly self indulgent, as the whole series is, if I’m being honest. I think that’s all. I’m tagging my series list, cause it’s all in the same world. Interact if you’d like, my mental health could use the boost, but I doubt this will go very far. Onto the oneshot.

Second Author's Note: The shows and movies are actually some of my favorites, I'm an '89 baby, and the fries part is exactly what was going on last night, while I wrote this.

Eddie Munson Masterlist

The sound of bells rattled through the trailer, penetrating the sleeping form sprawled across the mattress. Bleary brown eyes began to blink open, registering the sound of the phone sitting on the table by the bed. Reaching over, a ringed hand shuffles across the top of the table, pushing off notebooks, and a few empty beer cans, before finding purchase on the phone, a quick, “Shit.” coming from the prone form.

Eddie pulled the receiver off the cradle, bringing the phone to his ear, letting out a groggy, “Hello?” He glanced at the clock, he had been asleep an hour, dressed in the baggy sweat pants he had thrown on after his shower.

“Eds?” It was a quiet voice, a voice he knew like his own, and she sounded broken, on the verge of tears.

All sleep was forgotten as he bolted up in bed, panic making his heart drum against his chest. “Y/N? Baby, what’s wrong?”

“It’s getting dark again, Eddie...” Came her soft reply, voice starting to crack.

Eddie knew immediately what was happening, and what she needed. He was up in a shot, phone wedged between his shoulder, and head, as he began dressing.

“Your place or mine?” Came his calm response, they had been through this a few times by now.

“Yours, I don’t want to have to explain to my mom.” She sounded so small, scared, his heart was breaking for her.

Eddie was already pulling his jacket on, and cramming his feet into his Reeboks, not bothering to untie them, “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” He responded, grabbing his keys before launching out the door.

The van roared to life, dirt and small bits of gravel flying out from beneath the tires, as Eddie peeled out of the trailer park. Cramming her mix tape into the player, he raced toward the Henderson house, toward his Princess.

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

At least once a week, Eddie and Y/N’s schedules led to what they called, heavy days. These days were marked with long hours at work for the pair, and extra schoolwork for Y/N. They were days that the couple had decided to not see one another, long hours, hectic schedules, it was easier to simply take the night off.

But Eddie knew what she meant when she told him it was getting dark, his Princess struggled with depression, and anxiety. When the darkness rolled in, if they were apart, she would call Eddie, and the two would either stay in her room, or go to the trailer; somewhere safe for her, where he could take care of her.

As the van wound its way up the driveway, headlights illuminated a figure on the porch, perched on the edge of the patio couch. Throwing the van into park, and racing out the door, Eddie made his way up to the porch, walking over to Y/N, who looked up at his approach.

She looked so tired, her beautiful eyes were full of pain, and unshed tears. Eddie squatted down in front of her, taking her soft hands in his, and looking into her eyes as he asks calmly, “Did you tell Dustin?”

Her mother wasn’t home, he knew that, she had gone out for a night with some neighborhood friends, but they still needed Dustin to cover for her absence. No sooner had the question left his lips, before Dustin appeared in the doorway, “I’ve got her covered, I’ll tell Mom she went to stay with Robin.”

“Thanks, man.” Turning back to Y/N, Eddie asked if she was ready, and when she nodded, he took her hands again, and helped her to her feet.

Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, Eddie pulled Y/N closer to his side, running his fingers up and down her arm, trying to soothe her loud mind. He opened her door, helping her into the seat as Somebody to Love drifted from the speakers, before closing the door again.

Once he was situated behind the wheel, he gently asked, “Did anything happen?” He knew that sometimes the depression would simply come from the ether, like a sudden summer storm. When she shook her head no, he continued again, “The usual?” She nodded slowly. “Okay baby, I got you.” Reaching across, he took her hand once more, running his thumb slowly over her knuckles.

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

One trip through the drive through of Burger King, an obscene amount of fries, and a large classic Coke later, the van made its way back through the trailer park, before parking in his usual spot.

Jumping out of the van once again, Eddie jogged to Y/N’s door, helping her out before he wrapped her into his side once more, despite the short trip to the door. When the pair reached the trailer, refusing to let her go, Eddie gripped the bag between his teeth, using his newly free hand to open the door, and guide her inside.

Y/N toed off her shoes, while Eddie sloughed off his jacket, placing the food on the small kitchen counter. He walked over to his princess, running his hands up and down her arms, “Living room, or bedroom?” He always kept questions short during these episodes.

“Bedroom.” Y/N croaks out.

Without another word, his hands slip from her arms, one hand taking hers, as he guided her through the short hall, into his bedroom. Eddie begins making her a small nest of blankets, and pillows. He had invested in more blankets and pillows shortly after they had started dating, learning quickly that she loved to nest, especially during these mental storms.

With the bed prepared, he helps her into the nest, giving her a reassuring squeeze, before leaving to fetch their food. When Eddie came back, he had his arms full, several video tapes, the food, and drinks for the pair.  

He made sure Y/N was situated first, setting her drink down, and placing the bag of food in front of her. “What’re we watching, beautiful? I’ve got...” He tosses the pile of tapes onto the bed, and began rattling off titles, “Halloween, Rosemary’s Baby, Carrie, Night of the Living Dead...I’ve got some recorded episodes of The Golden Girls, Alf, oh, and some episodes of Unsolved Mysteries.”

Eddie had begun this collection after her first storm, he would gather her favorite movies, and record her favorite tv shows, as part of a kit of sorts, that he had put together for these situations.

“Halloween?” Her voice is soft, barely above a whisper.

“Anything you want.” He places a soft kiss to her forehead, before moving to the small tv and VCR they had both invested in, for his bedroom.

Turning back after setting up the movie, he noticed her jeans, and the blouse she had worn to work. He crossed the room again, digging in the drawer he kept her “boyfriend clothes” as she called them. Clothes that Eddie wore, and kept for her, that would fit her plush frame. Finding a worn Hellfire t-shirt, and pair of sweat pants, he returns to her side, placing the clothes on the bed.

“Do you want to change?” She nodded silently. “Arms up, pretty girl.”

He gathered the hem of her shirt in his hands, slowly dragging the fabric up, and over her head. Tossing her shirt to the floor, making a note to fold it later. Reaching behind her, he unhooks her bra, and brings the straps down her shoulders. His hands worked quickly, bringing the soft t-shirt over her head, and down her torso before the cool air of the trailer could make her shiver.

Eddie helps her stand, pulling her jeans down her legs, and placing her hands on his shoulders for stability, while he removed each foot from the pant legs. He reaches behind him, grabbing the sweat pants, and began guiding her feet into the holes, before pulling them up around her waist, and helping her back into her nest.

He changed back into his own discarded sweat pants, folded her clothes, and set them on the desk before climbing into bed. He hits play, and the opening credits for Halloween begin to scroll across the screen. Eddie doled out the food between the two of them, before leaning back, and wrapping her into his side, her head resting on his chest as she begins to eat slowly.

Eddie feeds himself with one hand, while the other runs up and down her arm, and brushing a kiss against her temple, speaking softly, “I love you, Y/N. I’m glad you felt safe calling me. I know you probably hesitated cause it’s one of our heavy days, but I’m proud of you. You can always call me, I’ll always be there to get you, no matter what your brain tells you. You’re my badass warrior, baby.”

“I love you too, Eds.” Comes the soft reply from under his chin.

He couldn’t help the smile that pulled at his lips. No matter how often she told him she loved him, it felt like the first time, and his heart would skip a beat.

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

Tag List:

@dean-winchester-is-a-warrior

@bohemianrhapsody86

@a-time-for-wolvess

@ghosttownwherenoonegoes​

@friendly-neighborhood-ghoul

@sweetpeapod

@emotionaldreamer

@crazyjenny8675309

@rydellakurancarson

Header credit goes to the fabulous, @sweetpeapod 💙

[beautifulsnake2162020]

Beautiful Anomaly (Part 1): Morpheus x FReader

Morpheus x FemReader (present day, its a little hard to explain)

A couple of disclaimers:

1.) This is all based on the Netflix show and I have 0 background on the graphic novel it is based on (so don't expect it to be faithful);

2.) This is a fan work, the only benefit I derive from this is sharing it with the community.

You have no memory of your early days. A common theme with many beings really. But even then, the earliest memory you have is when you were already a complex being made of smaller particles that somehow work together. Death, your best friend would share with you stories of the history that you couldn't remember. The days when you were still a strange cell that started being "alive". This was the day that she was born, and you were her first client.

An odd thing for a being who represents life.

She says that you were born from Destiny, or at least Destiny has helped you emerge from the then inanimate universe. And even then you somehow found a way to split your being. Somehow the other parts of yourself have found their way to separate worlds that now serve the same function as you do for this one.

To be in the cycle of life, until no life can exist anymore on the world.

"You are technically not mortal, but the way you exist and the way you fulfill your duties is within the mortal context." says Destiny when you wondered if you should consider yourself a part of the endless family. You were definitely not a deity; humans don't need to believe in you to know that they are alive and they have life. And yet whether or not you are a force of nature is still up for debate.

"You are simply you." Death says reassuringly as she pays a social visit to you as you are in the form of an intersex Babaylan in training in the Tagalog territory of what would one day be the Philippines. On her wrist she wears a beaded bracelet with semi-precious stones. She would wear one or more depending on her mood, and sometimes she would wear bracelets on both wrists if she knows there was a celebration going on. It' is how you know that her visit is a social one rather than a visit to escort you to the resting area before you were born into your next lifetime. "With all that we've been through, I'm just happy to be with someone who could understand the beauty of humanity."

"Easy for you to say, you're the one that gives me meaning." You rebut. While technically your end will be when no life can no longer thrive, you've seen first hand how people act when they forget that everything will change and therefore everything has an end. The ones who have made the most out of their lives know how to make the most out of it.

"You get to do all the fun things. I'm only there briefly when its time for mortals to depart and at most get a few glimpses of what people have done."

"Yes, but you're also spared from all the hardship and complicated things that people like to be in. Sometimes unnecessarily so."

"But that's part of life isn't it." She retorts with a grin. Of all the arguments you could have used, you internally groaned. Being complicated was part of being alive, some lifetimes were more simple than others, but dualities and ironies was part of being alive.

And your function was to live them out. To experience life, because life was meant to be lived out.

"If you're searching for an ego boost, I'll remind you that you are responsible for the births of my younger siblings. The moment you became capable of thought, Dream was born out of your unconscious thoughts."

"Desire and Despair, self-explanatory. Sometimes I feel like apologizing to Morpheus for their existence."

"There is nothing to apologize for, Destiny predicted their existence. You were simply living life, and that is something Morpheus would never dare to disturb beyond dreams."

Of all the Endless that you've encountered (aside from Death that is), your relationship with Dream is one with many ironies. Having lived in the mortal context, you could understand the dangers of Desire and Despair being out of control. And because of that, you could understand why Morpheus is strict about his rules of making sure that everything in the Dreaming did not go into the waking world. But sometimes his rigidness doesn't allow him the understanding Death has about humans. He is the collective unconscious of all humanity, has thought every thought that ever has (and probably ever will be). But this too only gave him fragments of what humanity is like from the realm of the Dreaming. It was almost like reading myths or seeing what's left of a now lost society and what people know of them are mere guesses based on what's left behind. Some are right, some are wrong, and some are missed by the moral standards of the time.

Still over time, it was slowly that you realized your romantic feelings for Dream. But knowing of his own romantic history and the traumas that gave him; you doubted if he would even consider it.

"Those were different." Death says as she pours you wine from a carafe, Lapis Lazuli beads hang in her wrist. This time you were a male scholar in the Eastern Roman Empire, you've just started service with the new Emperor Justinian after your friend Theodora introduced you to him.

"Nada ended up in Hell."

"And you're going to base his entire history on that?"

"Last time we spoke it was very clear that he still loved her."

"Coming from someone who has both male and female lovers in this lifetime."

"Its mainly carnal."

"And so, just because you have people you love now, doesn't mean you don't love the ones in your previous lifetimes."

"Those people are dead. The ones who are still alive have probably moved on."

"Does love have to serve something just for you to feel it?" She gives you a pointed look as she takes a large gulp.

"You're starting to sound a lot like Desire."

"Desire may be extreme sometimes but Desire also gets things right. I was expecting this from you as the being who actually lives out a human lifetime."

"That's the point, sometimes I can be very overemotional. I know first hand how horrible I can become when Desire and Despair are the only things you feel. Sometimes I feel too much. And the whispers around me degrade me for having a female tendency."

"From strangers. And you have been female. How is this supposed to be a deterrent from romancing Morpheus? You're not mortal, Destiny has already said that. You living out the cycle of life, death, and rebirth are part of your functions as life."

"I don't think he'll like me that much. Among all the Endless, you're the closest who understands the humanity within me." She sighs and pays for the lunch that you two have finished. She needs to leave to pick up the soul of one of the priests who is about to have his last meal from a nearby Christian Church.

"I can't believe I'm the one saying this to you, but have a leap of faith. Maybe Morpheus wouldn't mind and even appreciate your humanity."

"If it was other things, it seems possible. But with Morpheus, I doubt it."

"Which is part of thinking, and thinking is a part of being alive. Goodbye." She left you with some food for thought. It wasn't long after your talk that you found yourself within the realm of the dreaming. Taking respite amidst the stress of your waking life. You dine in a private dining area that has a cozy feel and is near the library. You ate your favorite meals that you miss from some of your past lifetimes that was impossible to acquire or really expensive in your current one. You sense him as he finishes speaking with Mervyn the Pumpkinhead about a construction or a renovation in the castle.

"Taking a break?" you ask as you take a bite out of a rice cake.

"Simply savoring the moment. I have finished all the tasks, and while I know there is more to come, it doesn't hurt to rest every once in awhile."

"I know the feeling. That's why I can't wait when this project that Justinian has for me to be finished. That way I can rest and moderate my visits here." You hide a smile as you take a drink and gesture for him to sit across you in the vacant chair.

"You are welcome to come here as frequently as you like. Dreams after all affect your waking life." He was about to leave but you called out to him making him glance back.

"Would you mind keeping me company, there's something that I've been wondering about."

"Of course." He then takes the seat across you, face still unreadable to you but you could feel he was more relaxed and open now of all times.

"I've always been curious, how do you and the other Endless know who I am in each lifetime? I don't see any pattern in my looks or my preferences. Even the genitals I am born with are highly random. And it still surprises me how you're all so certain its me when I haven't recovered all of my memories in my previous lifetimes." At this you see a hint of a grin before he spoke.

"Simple really, your being is highly unique." You find yourself raising an eyebrow.

"Unique how?" You see him close his eyes as briefly contemplate how best to explain. He then opens them and starts to take five brown cookies from the serving plate of 10.

"Let's say this represents the aura of an average mortal." The cookie's color turns from brown into yellow.

"From our senses, its very distinctive, their need to feed both their physical needs and their non-physical needs makes them crave for what can satisfy them. Once Death comes for them..." the cookie's color turns back into brown.

"They are then brought to their respective after lives depending on what they believe in. Now let's say this-" he holds up the second brown cookie, turning it into red.

"This represents the various deities and spiritual beings that mortals worship. They need mortals to believe in them in order to keep on existing. They may be subject to change depending on what needs the mortals have. But what is important is that there must still be belief, otherwise..." the cookie turns back into brown. You nod at him to show that he can move on to the next one.

"Just to clarify, do any demonic or malicious entities or anything not belonging to either...do they have the same energy as deities?"

"In a way, they are a mix of both mortals and deities depending on the belief system. Some malicious entities don't need belief but just prey on the fear of mortals or at the very least drain them of their energy. Possibly worse if mortals are not careful." The third cookie he holds then turns into black.

"But even these will cease existing if mortals stopped fearing them or feeding them their energy in one way or the other." The black color fades and the cookie is returned to brown. He then picks up the fourth cookie and starts turning it into blue.

"We the Endless have a distinct aura from all three that I've showed you before. We are beings that personifies the forces of nature that serves humanity. Unlike with deities or malicious entities, we do not need to be worshipped just for us to exist." The cookie remains blue before he puts it down and picks up the fifth cookie. The one representing you.

"You are unique in this sense. Like the Endless you are a force of nature personified, life. You don't need any worship, for by each breath any living being takes, they know they are alive." He turns the fifth cookie blue.

"But life by its very nature belongs among mortals. You are well aware that life can only exist within the cycle of life, death and rebirth."

"Yes" you replied as you watch as he turns the cookie yellow, but this time it was made to look like the color blue was still visible underneath the yellow layer.

"To a certain degree, you may be the most mysterious being of all. For without you, none of us-not even Destiny-would be here."

"How can that be? Destiny brought me to existence and probably the closest thing I have to a parent." He placed down the fifth cookie temporarily as he leaned forward towards you.

"Destiny may have brought you to existence, yes, but even Destiny knows that if you had not developed into the being you are now...if your existence would disappear along with all other life in the universe, then the Endless would no longer have a function and we would all simply wait and see what happens at the end of time." At this he holds up the fifth cookie now having a green glow. It was only then that you notice his reassuring expression and a ghost of a smile on his lips.

"You are a wonderful and mysterious anomaly that makes everything possible for all of us. Even this representation isn't enough to show how your energy...your aura...is easy to find. In a way it nourishes us because you continue to live." You find yourself smiling and touched by how he explained it you. You were already aware that your being was strange in itself for being both a force of nature and yet very mortal. And yet with the way he said it so calmly and reassuringly...it almost feels like he is the one courting you, even when you know that was not the case.

You weren't able to make an attempt at expressing your infatuation towards him then. You both felt yourself being awakened in the waking world.

For awhile you did contemplate of confessing it outright to him, but then you had an epiphany in your grief. Death allowed you to have one last embrace with Theodora before she entered her chambers to escort her to her afterlife. Justinian was not the same ruler as he was when Theodora was still alive. He was a mess, which led to less prosperous years for the Byzantine Empire.

"Justinian, she's gone and there's plenty at stake for the empire."

"Thank you" he looks up at you from his tear stained cheeks. Tonight was the one year anniversary of her passing.

"But without her, who am I? Without her who shall support me?" You knew better by now than to suggest yourself. He was still caught up in his grief even now. And you've seen first hand as you walked incognito among the people that if nothing is done, too many would suffer.

Too many who would die if you didn't do anything but your job. Perhaps even more since Justinian was not finished grieving for Theodora.

You weren't unmoved. You too had lost loved ones in your previous lifetimes. You know what's it like to have lost a spouse. Sometimes you moved on only for them to leave you too. Or perhaps you left them as Death escorted you out of that current lifetime.

But it was Justinian's grief and the people's suffering that made you realize that the world would end sooner if nothing was done.

If this was hard now, you cannot imagine what it is like for Morpheus who had rigid standards of how he created dreams and nightmares, controlled them, and managed other responsibilities he had in the Dreaming. Unlike Justinian who was mortal and who could just wait some years before joining Theodora in Death, Morpheus was an Endless being. His responsibilities did not stop for anything. To keep everything under control, he must hold the Dreaming together.

You have lived enough lifetimes to know that romantic love must give way to duty. Morpheus hasn't really learnt how to balance time for himself and for his duties. As Dream personified, he is his duty.

Even if he did return your feelings after you confessed them, there were simply more important things to do, to worry about, to hold together. He cannot be bothered by some of the mundane things that were beyond his concerns.

These things that you too had to endure as you cycle through lifetimes. Little things that gave you a nuanced perspective on humanity. They were just as complicated as you are (although you would argue that it is you who has the more complicated mind). Over time you've noticed that its these little moments that made you bond the most with humanity (apart from Death that is, but you two were two sides of the same coin). And the absence of such made Morpheus more detached from humanity and he viewed it through the lens of an observer.

This attitude lead Death to drag Morpheus into an inn wherein they decided to conduct an experiment over someone named Hob Gadling. Death would grant him his wish to be immortal, and he and Morpheus would meet every hundred years in the same spot for Morpheus to learn about humanity.

Unbeknownst to all parties at that time, this experiment had an effect on you.

The first lifetime you were born after the Hob Gadling experiment was made, you didn't bat an eye when you were born a female. It made sense at that time, its been awhile since you were female. And like always, you lived your life as vivaciously as you can. You may not be able to love Morpheus, but that didn't' mean you cannot live out life. Even for a being like yourself, every breath is different, every experience while often similar is also often different. You allowed yourself to grieve for what you thought was an impossible love.

So you poured that love into having a lust for life within the means and within your abilities.

The second time you were reborn female after the Hob Gadling experiment, you still didn't sense anything wrong. It wasn't uncommon for you to have two lifetimes in a row being in the same sex. In this one, you confided in your diaries that you were still infatuated with Morpheus and still held feelings for him. You were now reluctant to call it love. You thought it was admiration, and maybe at most it was infatuation. But you're no longer sure if it was love. Desire one time came to you in the form of a woman to sneak into the Harem where no fertile man may enter.

"If you like, I can make him desire you. Which wouldn't be too hard, you're the most beautiful woman here. It would be a shame if the best one went to the Sultan instead of the King of Dreams." You gave Desire a sad smile. Your relationship with Desire was better after you finally acknowledged that you still had feelings for Morpheus and you probably will still have them now. You still don't trust Desire completely but you were at least on speaking terms with them.

"Thank you for the offer, but if he is going to want me, I want it to come from him, not out of mere force. Maybe its what humans call a conscience, but based on my previous lifetimes, I would much rather end up alone or with someone else than forcing anyone to love me."

"And yet you still have feelings for him." They said in a tone that was attractive yet dangerous.

"I do, but those feelings haven't hindered me from also loving other people, making love to them and having children with them. Besides, the chances of him willingly returning my feelings are low."

"Well if you change your mind, you know how to find me." And with that they disappeared.

You never took up that offer, but a part of you suspects that Desire was scheming to do something anyway. You just hoped that it wasn't too dire on Morpheus. You offered a prayer to the Almighty God whom you called Allah on his behalf, even though he probably wouldn't need it.

But just in case.

And afterwards you went on to live your life, while it was a life of luxury, you were glad its a short one. Before she escorted you to the waiting space, Death helped you give birth to a daughter and allowed you to name her before you said your goodbye.

It was in your third lifetime since the Hob Gadling experiment that you began to suspect something, and so inquired about the possibilities of it with Morpheus.

"Hmm that is odd. Lucienne, where is her current book?"

"It is here, and yes it seems to have confirmed that she was indeed meant to be born female again."

"How can that be? That's three times in a row! It has never happened before." You start browsing your previous two books for anything that could have indicated why now it seems you were only reborn female.

"When was she born the first time as a female recently?"

"My lord it's on the year 1391." You see an epiphany slowly show on his eyes. He takes a look at the three books currently on the table, and then at you.

"I owe you an explanation."

"What is it? Is it bad news."

"That depends on you." Although he has a calm façade, you can sense a bit of nervousness from him.

"In 1389 Death and I decided to conduct an ongoing experiment."

"Is this the Hob Gabling experiment?"

"Yes, how much do you know?"

"He's essentially immortal until he wants to die and you two meet every hundred years." You see him nod slightly confirming what Death has told you.

"I believe the reason why you have been reborn only as female is because of this experiment." Suddenly it clicks in your mind.

Since now there was a male immortal doing the same thing that you were doing (without dying and being reborn), the universe probably wanted to balance this experiment. By ensuring that there was also a female perspective.

"I don't mind it. I was just startled why I was only female that's all. But now that I know, its refreshing to have a companion in this journey." You suddenly hear your words and begin laughing.

"I'm sorry Morpheus, I didn't mean to imply that none of you are with me-"

"None taken."

"Are you planning to tell him about me or is this more for yourself?"

"I did not even inform him of who or what I am. Just a being he will meet in the same place every hundred years." He places the books in a stack before he turns to face you.

"Well, if ever you or Death plan to tell him about me, please inform me before doing so. Unlike him, I actually will die...and have already multiple times." You give him a last smile before you find yourself waking up from your Dreams.

You didn't know how to feel and you were still processing that Death had granted someone immortality and to become a lab experiment for Morpheus to gain insight into humanity. You began to wonder if there was something wrong with you or if Morpheus didn't see how highly connected you are with humanity (probably even a little bit more than Death since you actually live through the good and the bad). Why did he felt the need to ask someone else?

When all this time you have been here living multiple human lifetimes and are more than aware of both the good and the bad and the grey in between.

Did he not feel like he could trust you or rely upon your own lived out experience?

A part of you felt a bit hurt that Death didn't think of suggesting you first for Morpheus to find out more about humanity. After all she was your best friend among the Endless. Your bond existed long before you've become infatuated with Morpheus.

Before you knew it, you felt tears fall from your eyes. And you were weeping.

At least Despair would be feeding off your misery for awhile.

So you weep.

And then you breathe.

And sought solitude where you can freely think and reflect without having to worry too much about the influence of the Endless for awhile.

Feelings may change. Death would eventually know of your pain as she would escort you to the brief waiting space. Perhaps in this way, Morpheus wouldn't have any biases he has with you and could satisfy his curiosity with the best chance to be closer to humanity. You knew her well enough that she wouldn't mind it if you and Morpheus became something more. You also knew she wouldn't do things if she didn't think that it may be what is best for Morpheus.

Whatever happened has happened. There's nothing short of turning back time to undo the currently immortal Hob Gadling from taking whatever deal the siblings may have offered him.

The best thing to do was to ask. Morpheus would eventually discover it anyway as someone who has already thought every thought there was to exist and who needed strict discipline to even handle that burden. There was no point in hiding this question for long.

The next time he was free and he was present in your dreams, you would bring it up. You manage to meet with him privately in your part of the Dreaming realm that was accessible to the castle but was far enough from it to afford some amount of privacy. Both of you were in the living room, this time the table was filled with Chinese and Japanese sweets such as the Zunda-Mochis heavily associated with Date Masamune, and your favorite lotus flavored moon cakes that you wished were available beyond the autumn season. Both products from your previous lifetimes that was inaccessible to you currently.

"I would like to know why you needed to go to someone else to ask about humanity when you could have came to me." He remained silent for awhile. You're not sure what to make of it. He either just realized it just now, or he was trying to think of the best way to tell you.

"It was an impulsive decision that was made. I thought Death had told you this already?"

"I know about how it happened, but not the why. And please don't make me go to the Fates about this one because I prefer not to be the one to approach them." He took a breath. Probably to prepare himself for he did not need to breathe.

"He was bragging to his friends that dying was simply done because everything else was doing it. A part of me was hoping that once he has lived through the harrowing lows of life, he would voluntarily choose to die and end it all." His face was unreadable but your intuition tells you that he wasn't lying, but perhaps he wasn't telling the entire truth either.

"Why did you want him to choose death? Was this experiment about how long would it take before people would choose to die? Did you even learn anything about humanity that you couldn't have asked me about?" You do your best to keep your voice calm and as non-judgmental as you can be.

"Because I couldn't help but think that if I was in his place, I would instead wish for all of it to end and regret the choice to accept that agreement. True, I only have an inkling of what humans actually experience, but if I as a personification of their Dreams could make the choice to pass it on to someone else, I would take that chance."

"Well, you never liked to take a rest when it wasn't necessary even if it actually helps you."

"It's more than rest. Perhaps it is because of the nature of dreams to explore and imagine beyond what is always possible. Even though I don't hate my duties and responsibilities, I can't deny that a part of me does wonder what I am capable of beyond what I can currently do."

"And so you projected your own wants onto Hob. Who has proven you wrong time and time again." You see the corner of his lip move up slightly proving that you were right.

"Hob is his own person Morpheus. His own being. I don't want to preach to you because I feel it would be useless on you - but by declaring that he will not die already should give you an idea that he won't be anything like you." You keep your voice level, even though you instinctively want to raise it. But that would get you nowhere and would only lead to Morpheus closing off to you.

"I recognize that."

"You recognize that now."

"How insightful of you." He shakes his head as he takes a breath before looking back at you.

"He still manages to see the beauty of life even when he has experienced tragedy first hand. He has changed over time. I doubt he has noticed it."

"I can tell you from experience that a lot of changes are rarely noticed by the being changing from it. Unless the change is so drastic that there is no other choice but to change."

"Time does that. And I am learning so much more than I once expected." You take a sip of your chosen beverage for this dream, white tea, before once again asking.

"And what have you learned from him that makes his now immortal experience different from mine?" No answer, you feel the air become tense.

"I'm not angry or upset that you consulted someone else. I'm confused about why I wasn't asked about my own experiences before you went and asked someone else. I already know that I am unique in my perspective with the cycle of life and death. I already know that although I am life personified, I'm still incapable of truly representing the experiences of all humans, much more all living beings." You place down your teacup and saucer on the table before looking up and meeting his eyes unflinchingly.

"Why didn't you ask me Morpheus? That's all I want to know." Silence. His body and face become even more unreadable which makes you infer plenty of things.

He forgot about your experiences.

He forgot that you were the very being that created consciousness and the subconscious domain he rules over is a reaction to it.

He has forgotten that you were there all along.

You may at most be only a friend to him and nothing more.

"I don't want to delve into what your silence mean. Some assumptions are worse than the actual answer. And I respect you too much to rob you of what you might actually mean." You stand up and dust have a brief stretch before turning back to face him.

"If you're ready to give me an answer. Even if that answer is simply that you've forgotten my own functions as life personified. Then come back to me. Until then, please respect my wishes of not wanting to interact directly with you until then." You leave the room just as you hear him command that the dream is over.

You wake up

You grieve a little for the heartbreak you brought to yourself.

But it was necessary.

Change was the only thing constant.

Maybe things were better this way than to have false hope.

After this point he respected your wishes. You still had dreams here and there but none of them featured him or any workers that works closely with him. You miss them, but you were still angry and upset at Morpheus.

For awhile this rage and anger fueled your energy into being more present in the life that you had and to turn your lust for dreams into a lust for living.

To savor being alive.

And it resulted into some of the best experiences you've had. Maybe desire was right in telling you that it didn't matter what you looked like. Without most constraints, you find yourself naturally drawing people in. Almost a little to effortlessly but their energy fed yours as you lived both the victories and tragedies of the time.

It was at this time that you've explored yourself more and have slowly harnessed your power into life giving and healing. You feel the energy from all beings who are alive, and how it differs from beings who simply survive. Neither one is superior to the other, but the energy from those who truly live is much more preferrable to your tastes.

You soon subtly use your powers to help those who don't have access to medical aid. And you lived out your life. Your feelings toward dream didn't remain for long and you couldn't find it in yourself to stay angry with him. But this was perhaps the first time that you didn't feel like waiting around for Morpheus and truly just savor being alive.

He still respected your wishes when you were reborn. For which you were thankful for. By now you also no longer have any hard feelings towards Death's involvement. She forgives you and even said that your feelings were valid. You know how sometimes she can be impulsive. Like you it was to savor life, but she's doing so in appreciation of it from the perspective of the one who ends it.

You on the other hand are in the present and in the moment.

But it all changed when Jessamy, his raven appears to you one night. Using your powers you were able to translate her thoughts in human speech.

"Ma'am, please you need to help. Lord Morpheus has been captured." You feel your jaw drop and you felt shocked.

How can he be captured? He's one of the Endless one of the most powerful beings that ever existed.

"Ma'am I know you do not want to see him right now. And you have good reasons for not helping him. But I'm begging you to help."

"Jessamy why are you telling this to me instead of Lucienne? She's his second in command."

"True ma'am. But she was also right in saying that Lord Morpheus as well as other Dreams and Nightmares are not as powerful in the waking world."

"She could inform the other Endless."

"You know who Lucienne is ma'am. She would manage the Dreaming but she wouldn't go against the wishes of Lord Morpheus. He prefers that the other Endless not interfere." You hate how right she is as you take a large gulp of your Green tea.

"Besides ma'am, I think you are one of the few beings in the waking world that he still trusts and respect. I know he hurt you and your feelings. But isn't he the first one who called you a beautiful anomaly?" Your eyes widen. He told her that?

"How do you know that?"

"That's what he calls you sometimes when mentioning you. Of course he would call you by the name you were born with in each of your lifetime. But whenever I would ask how sure he was that it was you, he would reply 'The energy in this being is a beautiful anomaly, it could only be life personified, the creator of the conscious thoughts.'." Jessamy could tell that this was all news to you. And she too was surprised.

"I always thought you knew about the moniker. He told me that he has been calling you that since you asked how he and the other Endless know its you in each lifetime."

"He did, but he never called me that to my face." Once again you learn something that challenges what you have known about Morpheus.

But you have those thoughts some other time. And despite your recent history, you can't deny that without Morpheus, the waking world would suffer from his capture. Lucienne and the other dreams and nightmares could only do so much from where they are.

The least you could do is to help out.

"Where is he being held?"

"London, in the basement of a mage called Roderick Burgess. Before I left to get you, I saw that they have robbed him of his tools of power. They have enclosed him in an ritual circle." You nearly dropped your teacup.

"How did you get here in Quebec all the way from London?"

"I briefly went back to the Dreaming realm and used it to cut my travel time." You take a breath in relief. At least she didn't exhaust herself by flying across the ocean. That wouldn't be efficient if the two of you were going to formulate a way to break Morpheus out. You take a breath and lean towards Jessamy.

"Jessamy, if we are going to do this, you'll have to be my eyes and ears. I don't know anything about the layout of his prison. This could be dangerous." She was silent, but her eyes still followed you.

"You might be killed. You might even be tortured. I'll do my best to prevent that, but please be careful."

"I will ma'am. But even if it happens, then at least I died saving a dear friend." You hold out your hands open palmed as you feel her jump into them.

"Do I have your permission to be a presence in your mind Jessamy?"

"You do ma'am, but why ask?"

"Consent is very important to me Jessamy. It is the difference between a loving act and assault."

After placing a connection between the two of you, you send her on her way with strict instructions to prioritize safety. As much as you want to just break in and free him, it would mean nothing if either you or Jessamy would just die in vain and he was recaptured again. No matter how powerful of an Endless he is, you and Jessamy knew he can't do much without someone asleep in his presence. And based from your past lives as both soldier and a commander, a lot of times it was information that made the difference between victory and defeat.

[morimakesfanart]

Sindria's Prophet #38

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[AO3] [wattpad]

*CW -cults+ mentioned; child abuse mentioned; suicide attempts implied

~POV Mori~

While I was sick, the magicians developing alchemy magic were able to make a wider range of materials by doing something closer to assisted chemistry; they started transmuting rubber from the milky saps of some plants -like the rubber gloves from my medical scrolls. It was inspiring! With the power of success and dopamine I finalized my printing press schematics in only 2 days.

These accomplishments were later brought up at the morning Assembly, not by the people making them, but by Ja'far and the accountants of the White Capricorn Tower. "Even before becoming the official Prophet of Sindria, Mori has help our magicians, engineers and doctors make leaps and bounds of progress in their fields. Many countries of the Alliance have agreed to help fund these projects and have already preordered scrolls of the information. *However,*" he held up a document, "due to all of the extra people and resources needed we are already over budget for the year! And so we request that the Prophet not invent anything new for the rest of this quarter and the next. This way we will have time to start finalizing what we already have for production and can start receiving a return on these investments."

Yamuraiha jumped to my defense. "The work Mori has been doing in the Black Libra Tower has been revolutionary! How can you say you don't have a budget for life changing-"

"I am not denying their contributions! We simply can't afford this rate of advancements!"

I raised a hand to get their attention. "If there's no budget, then there's no budget. However, I can't just sit around and do nothing for 5 months."

There was a bit of a back and forth, and eventually it was agreed that I would continue helping in the Black Libra Tower, but any future schematics would be placed on hold and judged for priority by the researchers and accountants. And so I went to working as an encyclopedia in the mornings, and would work on Fate scrolls after lunch.

---

The Great Bell rang, and thanks to the power of hyperfixation, none of us could tell what time it was. Not long after, I noticed a familiar shift in the waves that gave me the answer. Knowing who was coming gave me another boost to get a little more done.

Menachem greeted him when he arrived. "Ah- good morning, your Majesty."

Sinbad's laugh made my heart race. "Yes. Good morning." For the past week, King Sinbad had came in person every other day for updates even though it would be covered in the next morning's Assembly. The violet haired man walked over to where I was sitting, while showing me the world's most charming smile. "Mori. How are you doing?"

'Excited. Happy. Nervous. Embarrassed. Confused. Self-conscious.' He hadn't said anything directly flirty since I was sick. And yet, it was noticeably harder to refute the Magicians' claims. Sinbad had said at the Announcement that he didn't want to play at flirting with me, and wanted to become someone I could trust. He certainly didn't trigger my lactose intolerance anymore. 'He said he wanted to move me to the Purple Leo Tower.'

I fought back the urge to hide. "I'm fine." The room definitely felt hotter than it did a minute ago. I re-explained what I had gone over with the magicians. Sinbad nodded along and asked questions at all the right times. He also remembered the things I had said previous days. He made me feel validated and respected every time he stopped by. It was becoming increasingly bad for my heart.

There was a suspicious amount of people meandering nearby. Most were watching us out of the corners of their eyes. At least the magicians didn't comment as much as the first time they saw the pink Rukh around us. Although, it was getting easier to judge when they were looking at the Rukh even without those comments.

The King smiled, and I cursed his ability to charm me without flirting. He used a hand to point at the scroll from over my shoulder. He was much closer than I realized; I would only need to lean over a little to make contact. Just like how he had stopped overtly flirting, he hadn't touched me either. He knew I needed space, and I was grateful for that, but it also illustrated for me just how used to his skinship I had become.

I couldn't do this anymore. It hurt too much. I was projecting my past onto someone who might actually reciprocate my feelings. What I was feeling might not have anything to do with the present or him as a person. I could just be recognizing my past in him and repeating those patterns while hoping for a different ending. But the patterns include the endings, and if I wasn't self-aware enough I'd force those endings out of fear of being caught unaware. Even if Sinbad actually liked me now, the attention he showed me would dry up eventually, right? I require closed relationships so eventually he'll come to resent me for limiting his options. We aren't compatible. The waves rose slightly and I couldn't ignore the thought that this was fanfiction, so anything was possible.

"Excuse me, Mx. Prophet?" A voice called for me from the entrance to the library.

'OH THANK GOD' I was saved! "Yes??" I looked in the direction of the voice and called back. "Do you need something?" My face was finally starting to cool down. At least now I could stop thinking about how easy it would be to touch Sinbad. 'Remember who he is in 5 years.'

The worker appeared from around a line of bookshelves. He froze at the site of the man next to me for a moment before giving the message. "There's a- There's a blacksmith looking for you."

'A blacksmith?' "THE SCISSORS!" I was out of my seat in a flash. My brain shifted gears quickly after passing through the doorway into the hall.

The blacksmith that made the scissors during my first week in Sindria understood how important of a development this was and came to talk to the designer, me, shortly after seeing who I was at the Announcement. If he was here to see me again, he must have finished some prototypes for different types of scissors! The thing that made the evolution from shears to scissors so important was the addition of the hinge to the tool. There was no time to worry about Sinbad right now! There was history happening!

---

~POV Sinbad~

Sinbad had figured out that Mori wasn't the type to leave in the middle of work, even when she was putty in his hands. So, what was so important that she was willing to leave while in the middle of talking with her King about said work? They wouldn't have been interrupted if Mori had her own office. Sinbad crossed his arms as he watched them leave. At least she looked excited for whatever this was about.

Menachem came back over, as if he hadn't just been enjoying the show from behind a potted plant. "You know, your Majesty, I didn't think it was the case at first, but now I'd be willing to bet money that the Lady Prophet has blue Rukh." He stroked his beard as he talked. "You're going to have to be more direct if you want her attention." The old man laughed.

Sinbad sighed a laugh back and shook his head, but didn't answer.

There was a superstition that you could tell a lot about a person's personality from what type of Rukh they had. People with Type 2-Blue Rukh were said to get lost in their personal interests, and struggle to recognize romantic advances. That first part definitely sounded like his Beautiful Prophet, but Sinbad wasn't sure about the second. Mori was ignoring his signals on purpose. It would take a while to convince them he was worth the risk.

((In one of the Magi extras Yunan describes these Rukh based personality types with canon characters as examples. It's not stated as common knowledge. I wanted to add it because it reminded me of the way people talk about astrology signs sometimes :3 Btw, according to the manga's personality quiz, I normally get Rukh type 7 -the same a Sin. Sometimes I get Type-2, 8, or. 4))

When Sinbad turned the corner, Mori was already out of sight. Not a problem; the waves would lead him. The King found them on the first floor talking with a burly old man that was a known blacksmith.

Mori had two fingers in rings with blades attached. "This pair is really close to the ones I first commissioned. Thanks again for those. I've been able to cut my bangs without worrying about accidently shaving my eyebrows with a knife."

Sinbad walked up to them. "How would someone even do that?"

Mori turned to him with a knowing smile. Her cheeks turned a little pink when they made eye contact. "I didn't think it was possible until I saw it happen in one of my visions. He had to go without sleep for several days, and often cuts the left side of his bangs too short." Sinbad unconsciously brushed his bangs at the mention of a habit he knew he had. "He was lucky that he knew a magician that was able to regrow it." She wasn't talking about him, right?

"Hello, your Majesty," the blacksmith greeted King Sinbad before explaining: he had originally wanted to make a deal with the designer to make and sell scissors, but after finding out that person was the Prophet he wasn't sure if that was acceptable -the information from the Prophet's visions were the property of the King. The two had been working on a pitch together which Mori immediately got into since Sinbad was clearly available.

The King examined one of the pairs of scissors during the explanation. He could see how this allowed a higher level of finesse then shears or a knife for certain tasks. This would be a profitable and widespread product even if Mori's visions weren't right. Still, those eyes full of expectations just made him want to tease her. "You know Mori, I remember you agreeing to withhold on inventing things for the time being."

"Ah- Well..." Her surprise was cute. "I actually reinvented scissors before I made that agreement!"

He smiled down at her. "I'm not sure if that will be enough to convince Ja'far and the others."

Mori froze as she calculated her next strategy. The waves did not give Sinbad enough warning before she made her way over to him and placed her hands on his forearm. "You'll help me then," her fingers made his skin tingle, "right? My King?" Sinbad couldn't look away from the eyes glittering up at him.

How long had he been holding back only for Mori to touch him first? He'd relent even if she hadn't invented them beforehand; the production wasn't coming from the Palace budget anyway. "Of course." Sinbad smiled down at his Beautiful Prophet. He sheathed the scissors he was holding and turned to the blacksmith. "I brought Mori to Sindria so they could help all of my citizens thrive."

The conversation wrapped up quickly after that. And through the whole thing, the King couldn't stop thinking about the hands holding onto him so affectionately. Without looking, Sinbad put his free hand over one of Mori's to keep it on his arm a little longer. But it didn't stop her from pulling away after the blacksmith left.

The person pulling at his heart started to head back towards the stairs to return to the library. He wasn't ready to part ways yet, but there was also no reason he could think of to follow them back. "Mori. Would you tell me more over lunch?" He had been trying to keep their time together to a minimum for Mori's benefit, but if they were reaching out to him then it should be fine to take the next step, right?

The waves moved between them, and Mori looked back his way. "Oh. Um..."

"These inventions from your visions are so interesting. And we could discuss some potential future inventions."

Their smile was nervous but not forced. "Yeah. Okay."

Sinbad offered his arm to them like he did in the past when they walked together, but Mori declined even though she had just been clinging onto him so sweetly. They walked side by side, but the distance between them felt larger than before. She made his heart race and then dropped it when she got her way. It made him think of their first dinner together. She claimed she was seducing him just like he seduced others to get his way. He really had no idea how it felt to be on the receiving end until now.

---

~POV Mori~

Multiple scrolls laid out on the table in my room drying. I had reached the slave arc in copying down Fate. After drawing the first pic of Sinbad fighting little Masrur in the Coliseum, I couldn't bring myself to draw again until I reached Ja'far punching Sinbad when he was freed. I laid on the floor between the pools of light from the windows to cool down my ruminating.

Seeing Sinbad go through it and directly acknowledge how horrible it is and eventually go numb... There was an eerie beauty in it -like a memento mori. 'I'm disgusting.'

((CW until marked))

The Slave Arc is my favorite arc in the Adventures manga -not because of what happens, but because of how it affected me. When my mom was hospitalized, and then died, she could no longer stop me from seeking therapy. When I explained my home life and childhood to my personal therapist, I was told that it sounded like the stories of children raised in cults and manipulated to become slaves for the leaders. Even though it was a comparison I made when I was young, I thought it had to be inflated hyperbole until I read how Maader indoctrinated Sinbad and the slave children. I was never put in a collar, but I related way too much. It got me to look up actual cults and victim stories. The abuse I grew up in was the same level of high control.

My mom almost died having my sibling and it changed her. By the time I turned 10 I couldn't deny there was something wrong with how my parents treated us. The one thing saving us from complete brain washing was that they couldn't afford to home school us. I tried to ask outside adults for help, but my mom was too well known in the community and I didn't emote properly. So when I read the scene where Sinbad convinces the children to rebel, I cried. I didn't care that he was manipulating them from his perspective; he validated the pain they were hiding, and gave them agency long before I got it. Yes, many of the slave children died in the rebellion, but many also lived to finally be free. When the cruel refuse to stop nothing can change until someone dies. Many have risked their lives for that reason.

Just like them, I knew nothing would change in my life unless someone died. The conversation Sinbad has with himself after he remembers his life's purpose was very similar to the one I had with myself from 12-14 years old -especially after how my parents normalized suicide. I realized it wasn't worth the risk to fight back , but also I chose to stay living anyway at the last second so I could continue to protect Lyly from our parents; and when they were a little older, Lyly chose to live to support me too. 'You can't protect anyone if you're dead.' No one was coming to save us so we had to learn to survive and protect ourselves. ((Yes, the thing Mori said to Alibaba in ch6 was this mantra I made for myself))

Our mother was already working herself to an early grave when I was child. She was rapidly aging from stress. I knew we had a strong chance of outliving her as long as we were able to hold on. Still, I wish she would have changed before she was on her deathbed. Her last words were an apology to Lyly. Things greatly improved after our mom died in 2016. Knowing how things were going for the other me, gave me peace of mind. Both versions were healing. I didn't feel as guilty for wanting to stay in this world anymore.

((End of CW))

I needed breaks because, just like being reminded of my own past, Sinbad wasn't just a character to me anymore. It felt wrong to draw any scene where he was shackled. Even if I never showed him this scroll, I didn't want to immortalize it. There were a few panels I had always wanted to redraw because they helped me process my own experience, but now that I was in this world I couldn't do it. If I ever drew them for the catharsis, I'd have to burn them afterwards. Each time I reached the plot points for one of those panels I had to step away and go through the same cycle of thoughts before I returned to the table and continued writing without drawing again.

"Ugh~" Who would have guessed that writing would help me process and get the ruminating out of my system? Me, actually, because this is always how I process things. I had separate scrolls for my ruminations so they wouldn't get in the way of the Fate scrolls, and because I kept writing in a circle. At least each time the rants got shorter. I'd already written this or that, and continuing to write the same thing gets frustrating to the point that I am forced to move forward. Like all types of mourning, it will always be there, but it can't hold me down forever unless I let it.

I couldn't stop the waves of disgust I had for myself. When I had originally read this arc, it carved Sinbad into my heart. It made me think, 'This person would understand me.' But I wasn't projecting my experience onto a character anymore; I was projecting it onto a real person who went through far worse than I ever did. I pressed my palms into my eyes. Ruminating was far easier than addressing this. I had to strip away all of my projections so I could see him clearly. And not just the Sinbad I read about, but the one who talked to me regularly and called me '(his) Beautiful Prophet.' Sinbad said he wanted to find a new path, but what would it even look like? What would it take for me to recognize it?

((I forgot to draw the curtains again...I really don't want to fix it though, so please pretend there are curtains framing the window.))

The sound of fluttering drew my attention. I had left my windows open on purpose in case Sinbird decided to stop by, but I also didn't think I would cycle this hard. I removed my hands from my eyes and looked up to see the possessed bird in one of the windows watching me.

"Hi, Sin. I'm okay. Just doing a big think, and that's easier from the floor."

The bird flew from the window to perch on one of the chairs at the table.

"I've been working on Fate scrolls. I want to get a few more done before I pass them off to you. I know this room probably isn't the most secure-"

'The vent scroll!' I sat up with a jolt and stumbled my way to the table after getting up too quickly. Sinbird flapped his wings in surprise when I yanked the vent scroll off the table. "This one is personal." I started rolling it up. "I don't mind talking about my past or feelings if you ask, but I'd rather you didn't read my unfiltered thoughts."

The bird watched me. I wished I knew what he was thinking.

I walked across the room, and put the tied scroll within the growing pile filling one of my bedside dressers. "It would be nice if I had somewhere to store these. This room isn't exactly designed for me to be using it as an office."

Wings flapped behind me and the bird landed on my shoulder as I turned to see what he was up to. He gave a small trill and I had the feeling he was proud of himself for something.

"We're both lucky that bird doesn't have talons, you know?" I was definitely going to need perches for him, and to start wearing a shoulder cloth that I wouldn't have to worry about getting pulls. As the bird watched me innocently another thought struck me, 'I probably shouldn't ask for a cat if I'm going to be visited by a bird frequently.'

((Hey, so you know how I said I was all better when I posted the last chapter? Apparently I was in the incubation period of COVID. It's out of my system now, but brain fog from long covid is kicking my ass. I had a bad fall last month because of it and got scraped up a bunch (including a little road rash). It's been 3 weeks and there's just the faintest remains of a scab left :D Just in time for my birthday (today) too! Here's hoping that my bad luck era is over!

Also, I am in a Magi server on discord. https://discord.gg/R5yzce4e I'm there all the time (and an admin). We talk about Magi, OCs, and fanfiction a lot))

[vaguewrites]

Tell me more about that anti hero squad

I'm so glad you asked

So they're part of a comic I'm working on where the basic premise is a group of villains are introduced to a rehabilitation program to help them process their traumas and get the help they need, both to help them on their path to redemption and to boost up the number of heroes in the world because there's very few now. I'm still working on the details and worldbuilding, but that's the basic premise. It's a character study about heavily traumatized people finding community and love within each other, building a found family and helping to save a world they once saw as hopeless and shitty. It also takes place over the course of several years, I'm thinking 5, so their ages listed are what they start as.

The starting main characters are;

Raze (Kaito Shimoda):

Raze is 21, Japanese, and is the leader of the group, mainly because he recognises everyone's strengths and weaknesses and gets them to work together as a team. He was the son of a yakuza gang member who had the "brilliant" idea of trying to overthrow the boss so he could get power for himself. Only his plan was discovered and both he and his family were made an example of. Raze only survived because earlier that evening he had a massive fight with his parents over the fact that they didn't like the crowd he was hanging out with or that his test scores were extremely poor, so he snuck out and didn't come back until early the next morning. When he saw police cars and ambulances outside their house. And then he saw what the yakuza had done to his little kid sister Haruhi, who he'd shoved aside when she tried to comfort him after the fight and told her to get lost.

It's her little phone charms that he keeps tied around the handle of his sword so he can never forget her or the state the yakuza left her in, because he wants to do worse to them. He was 15 at the time of the murders and spent the next few years honing his skills as a martial artist and swordsman (both skills he was already developing beforehand he just didn't take them as seriously at the time) so he could hunt down each and every last member who hurt his family.

He's primarily motivated by shame, guilt and self loathing, he wants to make up for the fact that he wasn't there to protect his family, that his last words to them were "I hate you" and that he'd told his little sister that he didn't care about her, for her to get lost and stop bothering him. His character arc revolves around learning to let go of the guilt and to allow himself to heal and move on. He's been punishing himself for years by isolating himself and wallowing in self pity and thats not healthy.

Mama Croc (Bella Roth):

I'm still working on her design.

She's the black 37 year old former wrestling champion from New Orleans, who fell dangerously ill to a strange disease no one could identify or find a cure for. She spent all her money on doctors and when she became too sick to fight anymore, her company dropped her. So she was forced to seek experimental treatment which led to her horrific mutations as the crocodile woman.

She's the rock keeping everyone else together, able to keep a cool, calm head even in the midst of chaos. She's used to being regarded as a dumb bulk of muscle, but she's actually got a razor sharp wit. After she had to give up her own daughter to foster care when she became too sick to properly take care of her, she develops a mother/daughter bond with Plague Witch and shows her compassion, empathy and love. She and Raze also used to work together from time to time and he was the first criminal who didn't treat her like dumb muscle so she's fond of him too and she uses pet names for everyone. If she calls you doll, babe or gorgeous, you know you're in her good graces. Her character arc focuses on her learning to love herself again and reuniting with her long lost daughter, and even finding true love in the one place she never expected it.

Mainly the one superhero who never gave up on her and who always believed she was incredible and deserved better than to just be some cowardly villain's bodyguard.

The Fool (Frank Grey)

The Fool is of Romani/Irish heritage but was born in America and he's 19. His family owned their own circus but when they refused to pay protection money to a mob boss, their circus was burned to the ground and The Fool was the only survivor of the massacre. He was thrown into foster care and bounced around between families where he suffered terrible abuse. I won't go into detail here but it was bad and left him with a distorted view on love and relationships, to the point where when he ended up in an incredibly abusive relationship with a girl who exploited his trauma to keep him in line, who physically and mentally abused him and made him dependant on her, even if it meant sticking with the clown gimmick he hated because of the memories it dragged up (and she insisted they keep it because it was "cute".) His character arc focuses on him breaking the bonds of abuse, learning what genuine love, compassion and empathy is like and with the support of his friends he's finally able to break up with his toxic girlfriend and start on the path to recovery. He even ditches the clown gimmicks over time but keeps the Fool because his girlfriend used it as a dig to mock him but he's reclaimed it and made a mockery of her instead. He primarily uses explosives and a hammer when he fights.

He and Raze have similar backstories but whereas Raze was more seeking to atone for not being there to save his family, the Fool is angry and wants to make the mob boss bleed for what he did. They're both revenge stories but different sides to it, if that makes sense, and because of their shared trauma they grow closer and help each other cope with the nightmares and the triggers, and over time they fall in love but its a slow, slow burn. Because the Fool has trauma from men and they have to love each other as friends first before they can fall in love with each other.

Plague Witch (Eva Kirkland):

Plague Witch is the 16 year old Native American with an alien parasite living inside her that attached itself to her when she was only a little girl. After her shape-shifting powers were discovered she was abducted from her home and experimented on for years to the point she suffers with amnesia and can't remember a time where she wasn't stuck in a cell and tortured every day.

She's the most powerful member of the group with her shape-shifting powers allowing her to morph her arms into swords or massive, deadly claws. The biggest drawback though is that she's still only 16 and her powers require concentration to manifest, and when she loses that concentration the form breaks down, or when she becomes moody or loses control of her temper, her form fluctuates and loses its efficiency. So that's why she's kept with Mama Croc, who teaches her patience and how to keep a cool head even in tense situations. She also develops a brother/sister bond with Raze because she reminds him of his sister Haruhi.

Her character arc is about her finding a family again and developing from a social outcast with severe anger issues and anxiety, to a level headed and outgoing young lady who winds up becoming the next leader after Raze decides to pass the mantle onto her.

This was very long I'm very sorry but I'm so glad you asked because I love talking about these guys :)

[itsclydebitches]

Adding to the Semblance discussion. It was REALLY uncomfortable when they said what Semblances meant and I realized what Adam’s represented especially when Blake talked about her own Semblance.

it did not leave a good taste in my mouth at all when Blake just said ‘his Semblance is like yours’. Not even touching on the implication of Jaune’s own Semblance manifesting as his literal desire to be useful to the point he is sacrificing his soul(they specified he’s boosting their Aura, not just healing.).

like…I fully expected an intervention or something but no.

On a less…upsetting note. Do you think in Volume 5 when Ruby said she unlocked her Semblance training, it was that moment in Yang’s trailer? One where Ruby bolted and tripped. Which made me go ‘Oh, so this is the moment she talked about!’. Always found it weird how no one mentioned it in discussions.

I think it helps a smidgen that Ren's lecture (from what I recall, anyway) makes it clear that not everyone agrees with the theory that semblances = innate aspects of who you are... but the problem is the show then went to treat it as a given, rather than just a dubious, perhaps self-fulfilling idea. However, if RWBY is going to commit to that 1:1 connection, then yeah, the writing needs to consider what semblances reveal about a person that perhaps needs to be addressed. The closest they've gotten is with Blake and I think that's a staggering failure because 1. Her clones are not solely used for running away (they fight back, provide distractions, combine with dust, etc.) 2. Other characters with similar semblances (like Sun) apparently don't have this same flaw despite the metaphor suggesting as much and 3. Running away isn't inherently a bad thing. I keep thinking about how Blake's biased perspective of her own semblance might have led to a more nuanced version of Volume 8. What happens when you take a character who originally thought that running was a horrific, cowardly act, only for her to realize over time that it's just another kind of combat strategy, one that's often necessary in a long-term war (something she's in a unique position to understand given her generational fight for equality) and then you set her up in contrast to her overly optimistic "We can do it!" leader when they're both faced with a no-win scenario? As the cynical, hardened, activist, "You have to know how to fight to survive outside the kingdoms" team member, I'd have loved to see Blake help Ruby grow as they face more and more complicated situations... not clasp her hands and gush about how she's always looked up to her (not actually). Semblances could have been a key part of all that, especially when you take into account that speed is also a useful tool for getting out of a tough situation. How often has Ruby used her semblance to get away from a fighter she knows she can't take on alone? Roman, Mercury, and the like? But that Ruby belongs to a former version of the story that wasn't upholding certain messages to the point of narrative nonsense.

I'm drawing a blank on where Ruby "bolted and tripped." Was that another short? I never saw Yang's trailer as the moment she unlocked her semblance though, if only because Yang has no reaction to it. She laughs a little and says, "Nice one, sis" which is not the kind of excited response we'd expect from a younger Yang when Ruby hits such an important milestone. I've always assumed we've never seen the exact moment Ruby unlocked it on screen, just heard about it in passing.

Although, in re-watching that moment I spotted this:

Far from being a generalized character flaw, the context of this is Ruby running from hand-to-hand practice when we've already established that she doesn't want to do this. That's another flaw the show introduced without considering how it fits into the larger World Building. Why is Ruby the only one who has the "problem" of not being able to fight without her weapon? I would have bought this if the show had simply framed it as an issue all Huntsmen face, but Ruby is in a unique position to circumvent it given her family's personalities and fighting styles: Yang is a brawler, Tai might have been similar, and we see that Qrow has no problem shrugging and throwing a punch when his own weapon is lost (Tyrian fight). Instead, RWBY acts like Ruby is the only one with this issue (Ozpin calling her out), she's apparently overcome this with a single hit (Haven battle)... and then it never comes up again. Despite the fact that Volume 9 has her lose her weapon and then be too traumatized to pick it back up for all of 30 seconds the hand-to-hand never returns as a satisfying, "Ah, good thing Ruby had that development and came from this family, otherwise she might be in serious trouble here!"

Hmm. You know, now I'm just thinking about an AU where teeny-tiny Ruby with the speed semblance is originally trained in close combat because do you realize the advantage you have with Petal Burst and your small stature? Besides, playing dirty in the name of survival is a Rose-Xiao-Long tradition! It's not until late in Signal that Ruby is deciding on her weapon and it's a damn struggle for her to wield such a massive scythe, but she's stubborn and is determined to follow through on her choice. So one day she looses Crescent Rose in battle and Roman thinks that's it, this kid only had "one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed" going for her and those stuffy Huntsmen are notorious for putting all their eggs in one basket, learning their fancy moves with their fancy, dust-powered weaponry and then it alllll falls apart the second they're forced to get their own hands dirty. Piece of cake.

...only for Ruby to kick his ass with arms like steal from wielding a weapon that weighs as much as she does, the ability to slink her way under any guard, a speed semblance that can take her behind her opponent in an instant (trailing petals as a distraction to boot), and years of training under Tai, Yang, and Qrow—all of whom really like punching things.

Ruby: What? Did you think I needed Crescent Rose? That's stupid...

Yang: 👏👏 😎 👏👏

Blake, who also harbored those assumptions about Signal-trained Huntsmen because like many of their enemies she comes from a culture where you fight with whatever the hell you've got on hand: 😍

Weiss who DOES need her weapon to enact any kind of damage because she's been taught that any fighting that could so much as muss her hair is a big, cultural no-no and she's just beginning to realize that maybe that ignorance/aversion is a bit of a liability:

[kyuohki]

I have an idea, but it won't work with how Sea of Stars set up the Guardian Gods. I'm tempted to just ignore it so I can write this fluffy/angsty thing.

Soooo....some worldbuilding/headcanon-y things I'm trying to figure out....and all this effort to write fluff/angst with Solstice Warrior family OCs. *headdesk*

First, on the kids born on the Solstice:

Solstice Warriors are taken from their families by Resh’an, if not born in Mooncradle.

Who are these families? What are their lives like? Were they proud of the fact that a Solstice Warrior came from them? Or did they mourn the loss of their child?

Resh’an must have only shown up to these families as the Great Eagle, right? Did he show up early into the pregnancy, as a warning that they would have to give up their child, and to make peace with it? Or did he show up at the birth on the day of the Solstice, like an anti-stork and silently demand the child? (Oh, that’s a shitty way to do it. Why, brain??)

Are the parents allowed to name their kids? Or does Resh’an name them?

Has there ever been an instance where Solstice Warriors have met their families after leaving Mooncradle? Have they ever deliberately searched for them? Are they forbidden to?

As for the Solstice Warriors born in Mooncradle, the village is community based, with everyone helping out in the town, so I assume this goes for child rearing, too (they all sleep in a dorm, for crying out loud.) It must be a little easier on the parents, as they can see and interact with the kids in their childhood. Do the parents end up spoiling the kids before they go into the Academy, even unintentionally? Or, even if the kids know who their parents are, are all familial ties cut the moment they’re born? (Is it like that for all the kids in Mooncradle, Solstice Warrior or not?) Do the Solstice Warriors give them one last goodbye when they leave for their missions?

(…Resh’an you made a cult for child soldiers, even with the best intentions, and I think it sucks for everyone involved.)

Secondly, on the Guardian Gods:

This is pretty self explanatory in game, that there are no actual deities, just an idea for the Solstice Warriors to aspire to become (and one that they're at least is a bit apprehensive on becoming immortal). But this fic, it doesn't want Valere or Zale to become the Guardian Gods or leave their friends/found family, which then would fuck over Seraï's world, and other worlds threatened by World Eaters.

Idea is to have a severe miscommunication between Resh'an and "our" timeline Mooncradle on who exactly the Guardian Gods are. In this AU, Solen and Luana *are* actual deities, and the Solstice Warriors most in tune with their abilities in all dimensions are either briefly possessed by these Gods to fight the World Eater (boosting their already strong abilities?); or the Warriors are kind of like power plants, and the "ascending" end up sending their energies off to the Gods so they can go through the timelines/dimensions to fight World Eaters (this might be triggered by the Solstice Warriors attempt at fighting a World Eater, and the Gods get their powers as a distress signal and power boost? Would this mean the "ascending" lose their abilities?) Either of these possibilities (can't decide which I like better) was either lost in translation by Mooncradle, or their stories got warped as time went on despite their best efforts.

[the-sinful-voice-witch]

TIME TO LOVE AMY ROSE part 2 :

The Boom Amy Rose effect

Ok well after how much i complained in my first post about how terribly portrayed our girl was in early games, shows and comics let's talk about how that is changing little by little since the most radical change of all! Oh dear... I'm going to speak specifically about her and not the show itself because that deserves it's own full post about it, you know what I'm talking about right?

You bet when the time comes I'm going to complain A LOT about those two really wronged characters 😢😢😢 but that will be later, is our pinky baby girl time:

So technically sonic lost world came before Sonic boom and Amy didn't behave like her obnoxious self but she had TOO little participation so I'm not counting it and then here comes the big change:

Ok before anything... Lest talk about the design... I have... Very mixed feelings... I genuinely like the change from red to fucsia but... The dress is weird: this freaking show and it's obsession with bandages everywhere! They are supposed to represent a combative sporty look? 🤦🤦 White Bandages used as a belt? So tacky, purple bandages over her white gloves with the ring bracelets? Tacky, tacky... That weird dress that resembles the design of a raincoat without hoodie and sleeves... Eeeee is just.. I'm not convinced about the buttons... And that style doesn't quite fit with the outfit in general and uffffff the shoes... In general they are ugly and the shocks that are exactly like the purple bandages? Like if you go with bandages why not all the way? Why put long shocks that resembles the arms purple bandages instead? I don't get it! Well Amy Rose is supposed to be a girly fighter but even though she is using femenine colors and shape she still looks pretty tomboyish in my opinion so the looks were -10 points 🙅 buuuuuuut her personality is another thing: her crush on Sonic is not showed anywhere in the game, only in the show and is put as a secret she completely denies but is obvious for the viewers (i mean here sonamy is totally canon lol lol lol) , another thing is that is absolutely impossible to accept she is 12, is just absurd! Also she is bossy, sarcastic, second most intelligent character after tails (though emotionally she is smarter) a cute things lover, artist, likes healthy food, she is so caring, has still her bad temper and she is actually the most mature and responsible character in a mother hen sense...

I could say yeap she is Amy but not quite Amy Amy... She lacked of something and at the same time had too much of other something? You know what I mean, cause I really don't know how to explain it... 😂😂 But the point is she had a good reception: an independent Amy with her own thing who is part of the team, is there for a reason beyond "I'm here cause I love sonic and I was following him" or "help sonic I've been kidnapped" blah blah she shows up her playable skills being an acrobatic character with a fair power ability with her hammer (actually in Sonic adventure she was already like that but sonic boom made a reminder) so I'm going to assume after this, SEGA decided to finally change her stupid Sonic stalker joke and give her the update we all wanted! What Amy was supposed to be always and then we got Sonic Forces Amy, we didn't get to see as much as we wished but we could already see a change! Taking an important role alongside Knuckles and she didn't jump straight to sonic like she would in other games! And we'll see how she'll be portrayed in the next games but I'm being positive!! As for other representations let's talk now about who is in my opinion the supreme Amy Rose we deserved!

IDW COMICS AMY!!!! Who is a mix of our original Amy + boom Amy!!!

Long life the PINK QUEEN!! Goddess!! She could break in half a piece of mountain with her hammer!!! Expert in giving a boost physically and mentally to everyone!!

This girl still had an unapologetical crush on Sonic she doesn't hide (unlike in Sonic boom) and Sonic knows but still she gives him space and had her own thing! Which makes him be more comfortable around her and wanting her company! (Like in Sonic boom) She is a capable fighter, an amazing caring friend! And you know she got a long way in the comics, i hated so much how she was 8 and used a magic ring to look 12? WTF WAS THAT? So cringe! But joder I'm so glad we are past this: 👇👇

Seriously, in the end no matter what Sally haters said Amy and her were friends and never got in the way of each other but this?👆👆 Is absolutely pathetic and I hated cause my girl isn't pathetic 😤😤😤 and that joke was unnecessary! Come on ! She canonically respects their relationship but they make her do this shit? Fufff well everything got better after the reboot, she improved so much i fondly remember her story helping knuckles and being an absolutely sweet supporting sister with him.

I insanely loved THIS.👆

Still to me the best comics with the absolutely best characters are IDW comics with little little exceptions and IDW Amy is undoubtedly the Amy i love the most and I want to see everywhere... And the Amy the movie writers should be inspired by to make Amy Rose movie version!😍😍😍

Cause ladies and Gentlemen i want to see the main four together in Movie version! I can't wait!!!No matter how independent Amy is and also has her own team Rose she will always be the strong lady of this group!!♀️💓💓

Also I want to see her make a spin dash! Why Tails that is a fox can and we never see her "a hedgehog" curling into a ball??

[klutzyroses]

Hi, congratulations on 300 followers. I recently shaved my head te help boost my self confidence, it’s working but I was wondering if you could do a head cannon sort of thing where the princes + rio with an s/o who has a shaved head. A bit insecure at times but is willing to stand up for themself.

Yasss, well done dear, I'm sure you look gorgeous!💖

IkePri HCs: SO with a Shaved Head

How do they react to an s/o with a shaved head?

Suitors: Leon, Chevalier, Yves, Rio

Leon

Wow...

He wasn't going to pretend he's ever seen someone like her but isn't that what makes her so interesting?

He wouldn't actually address it directly. He would just treat her normally, but he has noticed, no doubts about that.

He never really thought about it, but a woman with a shaved head is rather...appealing. Most people, in theory, would be put off, sure but...

She was beautiful. Very beautiful. And he let's her know it.

Nobody is allowed to deny it, lest they face the full wrath of a certain black Lion.

But he doesn't need to intervene too often, he finds, as she seems able to hold her own quite well. Would you look at that?

If she does ever feel insecure, he will be right there to remind her that she is beautiful no matter what.

She is much to perfect to feel like anything less.

Chevalier

He wouldn't treat her any differently than anybody else really. He wouldn't even bring it up.

Yes, he has noticed she has a shaved head. What of it?

He will admit, to nobody but himself that he is just the slightest bit intrigued, as that is quite the bold move for a woman around Rhodolite. He will admit that she looked quite...comely. Surprisingly enough.

He still wouldn't show it until she became his lover. Only then would he possibly hint at his admiration...very slightly.

If she felt insecure about it at any point, he would likely call her a fool for thinking such silly things and reminding her that he doesn't fall for just any woman on the street.

This is further reinforced when she may just catch a glimpse of a proud smirk on his visage when she is faced with any backlash from others, very easily putting them in her place without his help.

Yes, she may prove to be a very intriguing and worthy partner indeed.

Yves

That's quite the bold look. He approves.

He would never admit it right away, but he found it suited her rather well. And coming from the Fifth Prince that meant something.

If he said something suited her, it meant it suited her without a doubt.

He probably wouldn't really bring it up often, except if he was being rude, like the first time they met, he had made an insensitive comment about her shaved head. But trust and believe he will feel absolutely awful about it for the next six months.

Licht once caught him hitting his head on a pillar muttering "Stupid, stupid Yves!" over and over...

If she should feel insecure about it, he would stop at nothing to make her feel better, spending potentially hours helping her accessorize and doing her up until she is easily to most enviably beautiful woman in Rhodolite.

He can't help but swoon just a bit when he sees how strong she is and how capable she is of standing her ground in the face of any heckling and teasing about her appearance.

She really is one of a kind...

Rio

Girl please, he'd be bent over backwards for her whether she was Rapunzel or had no hair at all.

He would always gush about how beautiful and special she is, and would easily come up with the kindest, most flattering words to make her feel on top of the world.

That's what a good attendant does, isn't it? To build up his mistress and make her feel good about herself?

He actually finds it so cool and it makes her all the more unique, doesn't it? The most beautiful woman in Rhodolite...

And in Benitoite. And Jade...And Obsidian!

In the whole world!

Anyone who dares make her feel like she is anything less...well...hm. Let's hope they lived a full life.

She won't have any time to feel insecure because he makes it his mission to at least compliment her once on her appearance a day...maybe more.

Seeing she is able to stand up for herself when others try to put her down is like seeing a rare flower blooming, an opportunity he feels all too fortunate to experience.

His mistress is much too amazing!

🌸

[amarguerite]

Fic authors self-rec! ✨ When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you’ve written, then pass on to at least five other writers (if you would like to)!

oooh interesting ask

hm, i'd say right now, my top ones are:

Five Times Frederick Wentworth Had the Breath Knocked Out of Him On the Ice (and one time he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding) -- I managed to write this really fast after struggling for a long time trying to write something else, and after having a real shitty time with my first skating AU-- so not only was the experience of writing it a wonderful one, it gave me a huge confidence boost. I also think it has some of my best writing in it, tbh, and is my best work in writing from a very, very close third person (which is my favorite POV) and in leaning into dramatic irony. I still feel a little nervous about it sometimes because it is a more... daring, I guess, fic for me? It's more explicit than most, it's modern, it's about winter sports, I made a lot of what felt like very risky choices at the time of writing in choosing how and what to update and though I am occasionally overcome with anxiety that I fucked it all up and am the worst writer in the history of the world, as I am with like... literally everything I write at one point or other... I do think it's one of the best things I've written so far in terms of characterization, overall complexity, and craft-work.

2. A Monstrous Regiment -- really proud of the worldbuilding I did in this one, plus it's something I've always wanted to write. I love action-adventure Napoleonic Wars stuff, and it was such fun to get to do it with a female protagonist at the center of it all. I sometimes still re-read this one and the sequel for fun. This fic is the most "write what you want to read" of everything I've written.

3. The Nymph’s Reply -- I love, love, love 18th/ early 19th century theatre history. Such a delight to get to dive into it, and I think this fic honestly has the best ending/ ending line of all the fics I've written... and I'm someone who always puts great store by what the last line/ word of a piece of writing is, as I think it ideally ought to show the arc of the piece or the character and the central thesis of the whole piece of writing.

4. And Now the Storm-Blast Came -- I know it's unfinished and I have mumbled vaguely for literal years about finishing it without doing so, but it combines some of my favorite historical things (history of science, Romantic poetry, classical music) with my OTP and I think it has some of my most evocative and pretty passages in it.

5. An Ever-Fixed Mark -- putting this one at the bottom because like... I wrote it so many years ago now, there's a few major points I wouldn't write now, and some stuff I'd change. But still, I put a lot of thought and effort into the worldbuilding around soulmarks, and I think that hangs together really well. There's still some turns of phrase and scenes I'm really pleased with. And it is the fic of mine that has been read the most and has been recommended the most. Makes me feel very accomplished, to have written it!