#But like I said that's a whole different post I've been struggling to write for almost two weeks now lmao

[moongothic]

In reference to this post; I was gonna reply in the comments but once again, it got too long, and I figured I might as well make a brief post about this because shit's interesting but the OG post was getting so long I didn't want to extend it any further. So. New post.

But I'm also going to make this a lowkey follow-up to this post, where I briefly talked about whether or not Crocodile is worthy of a redemption. Because I did have multiple people reply to it, mentioning they don't think Crocodile needs a redemption, which isn't wrong. Villian redemptions come down to personal preference (some people like them more than others generally speaking), and the specific circumstances of a character and the story they go through. (Personally, I am a fucking sucker for a good redemption story, and One Piece? Has how many redeemed villians? Kuma, Hatchan and Bon-chan? Perona too? Buggy and Mr 3 if we're generous??? I'm sure I'm forgetting someone, but the ratio is quite low is my point) The reason I want to bring that up again, is that depending on what Crocodile's trauma really boils down to (**since we don't know for sure what it is**), it could go against the very core messages of One Piece if he just dies without that trauma being resolved. And at the same time, if his trauma is what I think it is, then he can not heal from it without being redeemed. And the opposite is true as well, if his trauma isn't what I think it is, then he doesn't need to heal from it, and he doesn't need to be redeemed. I do have a whole separate post slow cooking in my drafts right now so I don't want to go too deep into that subject here and now. But the point is. If we want Crocodile to open up and be vunerable and heal from his shit, it means he's either getting a redemption arc or redemption in death. The latter is way fucking sadder, but again, a whole separate post.

BTW quick apology but I figured since there's a bunch of shit in this post that I've written about separately before, I might as well link to those posts for like context, so people can get where I'm coming from with my nonsense while keeping this post brief-ish

BUT ONTO THE ACTUAL SUBJECT As I have kind of mentioned before, I do think Crocodile probably has multiple layers of trauma going for him

We know losing to Whitebeard Did Things to his psyche for certain

I think it's very plausible he might've been betrayed by his former crew if he ever had one

I think it's likely Dragon didn't take too well to him transitioning

And between that and Crocodile already having tried to kill Luffy multiple times, he probably believes his son would never accept him as his other dad, especially since he already hates him.

(And I do think it's likely he might have some additional early childhood trauma based on how Oda writes these things normally but whatever that could be is an absolute mystery)

And if I'm right and those are (some of) the different layers of his trauma, then for Crocodile to open up and heal from it you'd need to do it step-by-step, layer by layer

I think Luffy accepting Crocodile would be the most important thing, above all else. Because if Crocodile loving and caring about his son is the only shred of humanity left in him, if Luffy is the only thing Crocodile cares about anymore while believing no one else will ever do so for him, then having that feeling returned is the key to getting Crocodile to just start to heal. If his son can't accept and forgive him then what would it matter what anyone else thinks? In my mind, Luffy is The Sledgehammer that can break Crocodile's walls.

But that's the first layer, the first step to getting Crocodile to become vunerable

If he does have that betrayal-based trauma, then I think finding people who would actually follow him and be loyal to him would help him heal on that front. And... This probably sounds strange, but I think Mihawk is the best candidate for it. Not just because he could be to Croc what Zoro is to Luffy (in many ways), and not just because of the Romancing SaGa 2 comparisons, but because Crocodile does already seem to respect Mihawk on some level. Like he specifically invited Mihawk to start Cross Guild with. IDK if they have like shared history before or if it's just because they're Fellow Former Warlords or simply because he knows Mihawk is strong and in a vunerable position (after losing his Shichibukai Rights) or what, but despite Crocodile saying he doesn't trust people, he seems to trust Mihawk enough to invite him. And he seems to respect Mihawk's opinions on things, like he might view themselves as equals. So if Mihawk, The Greatest Swordsman In The World of all people, genuinely expressed faith and loyalty to Crocodile... Yeah, I think that would do a lot for Croc. Especially if Mihawk found out about Crocodile's baggage and chose to follow him despite/because of it.

But if we want Crocodile to Heal ALL THE WAY. He and Dragon need to have a talk.

Which will not be easy, considdering like.

Look at that fucking expression on the panel on the right. Dragon is more than likely beyond furious with Crocodile over what he did in Alabasta. And for good reason. And frankly, I can't tell if they can ever come back from that.

(Sidenote, but this page these panels are from (from Chapter 1058) follows immidiately after the page where Buggy introduces Crocodile and Mihawk to Cross Guild, Dragon's placement on the bottom right of this page matching perfectly where Crocodile was placed in the previous page. So considdering what Dragon says and the expression he makes... Man, if there ever was a way for Oda to tell us what Dragon thinks of Crocodile without explicitly having him say it, yeah, this would be it)

And I'm sure that even if Crocodile got over whatever heartbreak might've happened between him and Dragon and just moved on... The fact that Dragon never called Crocodile and warned him about their son being a pirate, with a bounty, who might be on his way to the Grand Line, where he could stumble his way to Alabasta, where Crocodile was famous for his Pirate Crushing Heroics mind you... Yeah. Crocodile would have a perfectly understandable reason to be furious at Dragon too. He almost killed their son without knowing because Dragon never warned him, never told their son's name to him, never told his OWN full name to Crocodile.

So needless to say.

They have a lot of differences to overcome. Things they've done that they'd both need to look past, forgive and forget. Somehow. And I'd be lying if I didn't admit I'd find it damn near impossible to happen.

But can you imagine, if despite everything, Dragon still loved him? And was sorry about whatever the fuck happened 19 years ago? And didn't want to lose him again?

I think that would be the thing that would help Crocodile heal all the way in the end.

If Luffy is the first step, then Dragon is the last.

[v3nusxsky]

Hey, do you write for wandanat? If not that's totally fine but if you do I was wondering if maybe I could request one?

Maybe where Wanda and nat are already together and one night at an avengers party they spot reader and Wanda falls for them and so convinces Natasha to seduce and take reader home with them?

Hopefully with smut, and maybe with daddy nat and soft mommy Wanda?

Love your work soooo much, feel no pressure to write this❤️

One of a Kind 18+

*Authors note~ a) I wrote this exhausted so mistakes are mine sorry y’all. B) I know you guys are all excited for different things so I was struggling to choose what I should post, shamefully having an anxiety attack over not choosing the right fic. So to save the day my lovely girlfriend choose wandnat for tonight*

To requester, I'm sorry I took some artistic liberties here but I honestly couldn't help but write them as g!p I hope that's okay!!!

Trigger warnings~threesome smut seduction daddy and mommy kink g!p Wanda Nat fingering r receiving praise and degrading kinks choking semi public sex??

Prompt~ see ask^^^^

Wanda and Tasha really didn't want to come to this party. No. But as per normal Tony wanted to throw a party and showed off his wealth and success. Wanda opting for a stunning emerald dress and Nat going for a form fitting suit. Wanda hid her cock so well that Nat often found herself being jealous. But she couldn't deny that her girlfriend is absolutely stunning in everything and nothing.

You'd been invited by Fury as a way to introduce you to the Avengers. You'd be set to join the team soon, but no one but Fury or Tony knew. Nat spotted you first, a simple Maroon skirt tucked into a beautiful black pencil skirt. Your legs on full display and a few buttons undone to give a tasteful view of your cleavage to the public. Alone at the bar is how the story starts, a rather cliche but important fact. That was where under an agreement between her and her wife Natasha swooped in on you.

You'd be lying if you said she wasn't sexy and very alluring but you still don't quite understand why she's here wasting time trying to get you in her bed. No one ever does that. It made you skeptical of her advances and actively ignoring the way her voice alone caused your cunt to become slick. The way her voice deepened as her eyes drank you in almost got you. Almost. But your past caught you first, you ended up lashing out at the woman.

"No one's ever really shown an interest in me. I'm not the prettiest or the smartest or the funniest girl around, I'm just average." You almost whispered but the woman could hear the sadness dripping through every word. "So this cruel joke of yours. Just stop it! Because I know no one would ever want me especially when they look like you do. So just stop" your voice broke on the last few words before you fled the scene. Really how could she do this to you? You thought she was a nice person, but to suggest this and not mean it was obviously going to hurt. After all who in their right mind would want an inexperienced virgin when they can have anyone in the whole world?

"Hey, you're beautiful, and I'd gladly take you home for my wife and me to enjoy for the night, you just have to trust we want you in the way we say" she murmured to you a gentle handed rubbing at your back in an attempt to soothe the confusing outburst. Yet both women were no strangers to being used and abused by other people. "You mean it?" You were really speaking more to yourself but when she replied with a Russian pet name that slipped off her tongue, you were a goner, "детка, we've been watching you all evening, no one in this room has caught our interest because we've been focused on you."

A simple nod had Nat leading you to the table to introduce you to her wife. By no surprise, her wife was just as beautiful as the red head. You immediately felt like you were unworthy of their attention. "I um should say I've never, um" you stumbled over your own admission but you could see you had both women's attention. "It's okay детка we will take this slow and at your pace, we truly want to get to know you дорогой" she whispered to you over the loud noise of the party. The other woman who you learned was the Scarlett Witch offered you to come sit closer to the women as you all conversed over small things really, but you were now completely at ease with them, exactly how they wanted you.

Your head warm and fuzzy, you felt an electric pulse of a slender hand trailing your thighs. It appeared you were more sensitive with the alcohol but soon enough you were spreading your legs for the brunette woman with a little help from her magic. From there you exposed your panty covered core to her curious fingers. The woman seemingly unaffected by her actions and holding a conversation with her wife about how much of an asset you'd be to the team. You almost got away with it, almost, but a little whimper escaped you as she accidentally bumped your aching clit.

"Wans" Nat warned, "you best not be playing with the хорошенькая шлюха without me" she growled the last two words. Truly how rude of you both not to wait for her, especially after her work to bring you to them. "I'm sorry Natty, I just couldn't wait anymore" the woman replied and removed her fingers from your core causing you to release a very disappointed whine. "сейчас, котенок, о тебе хорошо позаботятся" Nat purred before gracing you with a kiss to your neck before taking your hand to lead you away from the party, knowing that her wife will follow behind you.

As soon as you rounded the corner the Russian woman immediately slammed your back against the wall and attached her lips to yours with ease. The need was pouring into the kiss as the brunette woman watched in jealousy. She wanted to be the one kissing you, dragging all the pretty nosies she possibly could, but then again watching her wife touch you was doing unspeakable things to her nether region. "Tashsa" Wanda whimpered feeling the tent begin to show through her dress. "Come котенок, mommy is getting impatient and daddy can't wait to ruin your pretty untouched pussy" Natasha purred leading you to the bedroom once again. Only this time she never got side tracked.

Perhaps you'd had too much, but from there it's hazy, how did you end up absolutely bare for two of the most wanted and famous women in the world? And most importantly why the hell did they have throbbing cocks just desperate for you to take them. The women wanted to do this right, they showered you in love and praises. The made sure to touch and caress every inch of skin they could. And only when your ready did they introduce you to more. "котенок, sort out mommy's problem you caused" Nat demanded, encouraging you to bring your head to her shaft, with another quick check in and some guidance you were now choking on her cock as she forced it down your throat. "Oh fuck natty, this throat is perfect, fuck a good cock whore for me oh!"

With a few strokes to own dick she enjoyed the show, you are a fast learner by the looks of it and she was now struggling to contain herself and refrain from doing all the filthy things she desired to you. Wands sensing her wife's impatience slipped from your throat allowing you to breath as Natasha guided you into a new position. With you now on your hands and knees you were able to suck off wanda and give Nat access to your untouched cunt.

She took it slow, letting you adjust to her size, Wanda telepathically sharing the image of you with teary eyes, choking on her cock as you let Nat deflower you. But soon enough you began to rock backwards in a need for something, yet you didn't know what. "Oh there she is, our flight little girl, a dirty slut for us to use. Oh you've made mommy feel so good котенок she's ready to treat you for all your work, you'd love that huh? Mommy to fill your petty throat with cum?" Nat teased keeping her thrusts slow, "and fuck you're so fucking tight котенок, if mommy doesn't hurry up daddy will paint your pretty pussy white instead."

At the pure threat, Wanda was thrown over the edge into her own pools of bliss, breath heaving as all she could do is mewl yours and her wife's name. You greedily sucked every last drop from her shaft, surprising both women with the fact it was your first time. Only when she was sure she'd finished cumming did she slip from your front and encourage you to slip onto your back so Natasha could see your face. The new position only seemed to encourage the red head, especially with Wanda dropping her head to your breast and skilfully sucking and licking the hardened peaks. She even managed to roughly tweak her wife's right bud causing you both to cry out together.

The gasp you let out when Nat brought one hand from the bed to your throat was something both women wanted on a loop, experimenting with a bit of pressure they discovered a kink for you. "Oh Natty she liked your hand as her necklace. Oh darling is your head all fuzzy?" A broken confirmation left you as Natasha picked up an almost animalistic pace of pounding into you. And when your cries became to loud Wanda guided you to her breast, allowing you to suckle and nip her sensitive skin and effectively soothe you at the same time.

When Natasha came in long spurts of sticky white cum you honestly had no thoughts other than both the women. You lost count of how many times you'd been forced over the edge and just how long you'd been here, but now you didn't care. What a first experience to have. Oh but you weren't done, they immediately started to clean up and look after you, offering food water and cuddles. You wanted to talk, what could this mean? You'd slept with married women? Was it a fling? You hoped not. And Wanda heard all those thoughts and settled you into bed between the women with promises of talking about everything when your brain wasn't still in sub space. You'd be needing a clear mind to decide if you would join the relationship as a third party. But for now, you all slept.

Word count ~ 1839

[ashes-escapism]

Overcoming

Word Count: ~7,400 words of tickle fluff (SFW)

Pairings: Loki x reader, brief Peter Parker x reader (both platonic)

Pronouns: she/her

Summary: Noticing that the reader struggles with overthinking, Loki wants to help.

CW: Self-doubt, overthinking, anxiety. Brief description of fearful reaction to a horror movie, though the scene of the movie is not described.

There are some heavier moments written from a more metaphorical perspective, but lots of fluff and (silly attempts at) humor as well!

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

Note: Hi! I'm Ash, I've been lurking on here for yearssss reading other's fics, and decided to write one of my own!

I had full intentions of finishing this before Halloween (as you will see, it has some Halloween themes), but... that did not happen LOL. I didn't want to wait until next October to post it, so I hope someone is still able to enjoy it :)

Scrolling through the different movie options in the Halloween section, you abruptly stopped when you heard Peter dramatically gasp. 

“STOP! We have to see this one! Please tell me you’ve seen this before- it’s a classic!”

You chuckled at Peter’s enthusiasm, then answered, “Peter, I told you I don’t like horror movies. Honestly, I don’t even think I’ve heard of, like, any of these movies.”

“Okay, well, we have to see it then! I promise it isn’t that scary!” Peter assured.

“Yeah, yeah. That’s what they all say,” you countered. “Until I have enough adrenaline rushing through my body to singlehandedly power the electricity in this whole compound-“

“That isn’t even possib-“

“-and then I’m not able to sleep for the next month- not to mention the horrific images scarred to my brain, and-”

“Pleaseee,” Peter cut you off and looked over to you with wide, glistening eyes. “You said you would get in the Halloween spirit with me…”

“Oh… alright. But if you’re lying, we’re changing it to Hocus Pocus. All I’m saying is that I happen to value my sleep and peace of mind.”

“YES!” Peter exclaimed. “Wait, before you start it, I’ll grab us some blankets! A-and some snacks!” Scrambling out of the common room, he wasted no time before returning with some snacks, setting them down on the glass coffee table in front of you. He tossed you a cozy white throw blanket, then threw himself down on the opposite end of the couch, with a blanket of his own.

“Thanks,” you smiled softly at Peter, grabbing a bag of popcorn mix from the table, then wrapping yourself in the blanket and snuggling into the cushions.

While most of the Avengers were out today on different missions and errands, you had remained in the compound to work in the lab earlier. As one of Bruce’s lab assistants, you were thankful that your line of work didn’t require you to go into the field all that often; your strengths were more so in your research and analytical skills, rather than through physical combat or espionage. 

When you moved into the compound earlier this year, you and Peter had become friends fairly quickly, given that you were the second-youngest member of the team, you both shared a love for science, and you saw each other quite often. You had a tendency to be shy around new people, so you appreciated how Peter immediately made you feel welcome on the team, and how he always had a kind and optimistic presence. Sure, the kid could be a handful at times, but his youthful energy was a refreshing change in pace to your day at work, so you were thankful to spend time with him. 

You tossed a handful of salted caramel and cheddar popcorn in your mouth, a burst of sweetness and saltiness deluging your taste buds. After swallowing, you turned to Peter.

“You know, when you asked me to get in the Halloween spirit with you, I was thinking of something more along the lines of carving pumpkins or jumping into a pile of leaves. I didn’t really picture you as someone who enjoys scary movies.”

“Oh, those are next on the list! I already got us some pumpkins,” Peter responded with a big smile on his face. “And, well, I like to say that I enjoy watching scary movies, but sometimes I get too scared watching them, especially by myself. L-like this one time, which may or may not have been yesterday, I tried watching one of the Insidious movies, and I had to turn it off because I got too scared. Kind of embarrassing,” He chuckled awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck. “But anyways, it’s still fun! I think it’s better to watch them with friends because, in the end, it brings you closer.”

“That’s totally fair.” It meant a lot to you that Peter wanted to grow closer to you, so you supposed you could sacrifice your dignity and watch the movie. Or, start it, at least. You’d see how it goes.

You pressed play on the movie. From the opening scene, the energy of the room shifted to a caliginous and eerie ambiance. Your eyebrows instinctively raised and drew together, and you absentmindedly bit your fingernails in fearful anticipation.

Peter glanced over to you, then shifted towards you on the couch. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m right here. If you get scared, you can grab on to me, or whatever you need, okay? My Spidey senses can detect a jump scare from a mile away, so I can let you know when one’s about to happen, i-if that makes you feel better.”

You couldn’t help but feel a little sheepish, somewhat childish for having such a strong fear of horror. But, you met his eyes and smiled softly. “Thanks, Pete.”

“Hey, I’ll always make sure you are safe.”

Taking a deep breath, you lowered your tense shoulders as you returned your attention to the movie and continued snacking on the popcorn. Twenty minutes passed, and honestly, you were lasting longer than you’d expected.

A few minutes later, the suspense began to climb. Your breath hitched. Your heart pounded. The excellent acting and thrilling music entranced you, cast a spell on you to believe that you were experiencing everything directly through the lens of the characters themselves. As he leaned forward on the edge of the couch and rested his elbows on his knees, Peter, too, held his breath as his unwavering wide eyes glued to the screen. You instinctively sat up next to and leaned into Peter, wrapping your arms tightly around him as if your life depended on it. Peter returned his arm around you and rested it on your waist. 

Peter’s embrace lulled you into a sense of security, and the suspenseful music diminished as the characters escaped to a safe haven. You let your guard down, relaxing into him and releasing the breath you’d been holding. 

“AHH!” 

Peter screamed. You also screamed.

He yelled right next to your ear, jumping at the jump scare that suddenly occurred and squeezing his fingers into your waist. 

A millisecond after Peter began screaming, you screamed with him. A reaction not only to the jump scare, but also to Peter’s scream and his fingers digging into your skin. With your senses heightened from the movie, feeling Peter squeeze into your waist tickled way more than it should have. Adrenaline shot through your body and you launched away from Peter. The popcorn flew off of your lap, some pieces spilling onto the floor as you accidentally rolled off the couch with a thud. Rolling over onto your back, you clutched your hands over your chest as you caught your breath, and began to laugh in both amusement and mild embarrassment.

“Oh my gosh, are you okay??” Peter asked with a concerned look on his face as he knelt beside you, before noticing that you were laughing. “You scared me!”

“Oh, I scared you?? You were the one who scared me first, after you screamed at the jump scare!” you chastised, albeit with a slight smile as you came down from your adrenaline rush.

“Ok, I guess that’s a fair point,” he shrugged. “I guess my Spidey senses were a little off because I did not see that jump scare coming. I totally forgot about that one.”

“Yeah, no kidding! So much for keeping me safe!” you joked. You sat up, started picking up the popcorn off the floor, and threw a piece at Peter.

“Sorry! But hey, in my defense, I really did not expect you to fall from a jump scare.” He finished helping you pick up the remainder of the popcorn. “A-are you sure you’re okay? I’m so sorry for scaring you. I wasn’t trying to, I promise. You’re okay, right?? I feel so bad, I really didn’t mean to scare you-” 

“Hey, it’s alright, Peter, I know you didn’t mean to scare me, I’m completely fine,” you reassured him, looking him dead in the eyes to show you were telling the truth. 

“O-Oh, thank goodness you’re okay,” Peter exhaled, though you could see he still felt guilty.  

“I didn’t fall just because I was scared,” you elaborated, and he tilted his head thoughtfully. “When you jumped, you squeezed your hand on my waist and it tickled me. Which, really, you should know better to be careful!” You poked him on his stomach.

“H-hey!” He flinched. “I didn’t mean to! But you’re right, I should’ve known better. How could I forget how ticklish you are?” He smirked and quickly squeezed his hands on your sides, before standing up and offering you his hand.

You playfully rolled your eyes, then took his hand. Peter had found out you were ticklish a few months into your friendship as you were working in the lab. While trying to write a report, you had zoned out and hadn't heard him trying to get your attention, so he decided to poke you on your side to draw you out of your trance-like state. You jolted dramatically, giving a bigger reaction than he was expecting. Truthfully, you were just as surprised because you hadn't been tickled since you were a child and had forgotten what it felt like. You both laughed in amusement before you apologized to Peter for not hearing him.

Since his discovery, Peter never hesitated to poke you on your sides or ribs, or scribble his fingers briefly on your stomach when he could sense you were too stressed, or could use a little help getting out of your head. He observed that you had a tendency to overthink, and how you would often get lost in thought, especially when working. He also noticed that you weren’t truly bothered by his playful distraction.

“How are you feeling? Should we keep watching the movie?” Peter asked.

“How about we take a break? Maybe we could carve pumpkins now? That jump scare sent me overboard, metaphorically and literally speaking. I think I need some time to recover,” you laughed.

“Absolutely! A break sounds great. Carving pumpkins sounds amazing. Let’s do it, I think we need something fun after that jump scare.” He took the remote and paused the movie. “I’ll go grab the pumpkins from outside, I’ll meet you in the kitchen!”

Heading into the kitchen, you cleared off the table, covered it with newspaper, and set out some utensils for carving. A few minutes later, Peter returned, holding two large and two smaller pumpkins in his arms. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted a small pumpkin or a really big pumpkin, so I brought both!” He exclaimed, placing them on the table.

“Wow, I’m impressed you were able to carry all of those,” you chuckled. “I’ll take a big one first, I feel like it might be easier to carve.”

“Alrighty, here you go!” He set a big pumpkin in front of you, then grabbed a big one for himself and set it down next to yours. “This is going to be so much fun, we are going to carve the best pumpkins ever!”

“I agree! I haven’t done this in so long.” You each picked up a knife and started carving a hole in the top of your pumpkins. Removing the top and reaching inside the pumpkin, you pantomimed gagging as your hand became swallowed by the slimy innards. “This is so gross!”

He glanced over at you and laughed. “Eww! Yes I forgot how nasty pumpkins are before you carve them.” Now digging out the guts of his own pumpkin, a look of disgust emerged on his face as he gripped the slippery orange goop and slapped it onto the newspaper. “It won’t be so bad once we get past this part.” 

As you and Peter continued working, you looked up as you heard footsteps enter into the room, belonging to Tony, Thor, and Loki. The three of them were recently in Iceland on their latest attempt at searching for a dangerous fugitive. While they were on the quinjet on the way home, Tony had sent everyone an update letting you know that the fugitive managed to elude them, but they gathered more intel on their identity and potential next moves.

“Hello, there, young ones!” Thor greeted you and Peter as he made his way past you to the fridge. After heating up some leftovers, he found a seat at the table away from where you and Peter were stationed. Loki had crept over to the stove, turning on the burner beneath the kettle.

“Ooh, carving pumpkins?” Tony set down his briefcase and walked in between you and Peter, crossing his arms and observing your work as you finished removing the pumpkin guts. “I haven’t done that in ages. I’d join in on your little Halloween party, but right now I’ve gotta finish up this paperwork. Pepper will be upset with me again if I don’t do it right away,” Tony said. “Speaking of Halloween parties, I’ll see you all Saturday, right? I’d wish you all good luck in the costume contest, but Pepper and I are definitely winning this year.” He confidently pointed towards everyone around the table before picking up his briefcase and exiting towards his office.

“Nuh-uh! My costume is gonna be way cooler than yours, Mr. Stark!” Peter exclaimed loud enough for Tony to hear as he walked down the hall. You listened on as Peter continued to tell stories about the “epic” Halloween costumes he’d had over the years and further emphasized how serious he was about winning the costume contest this year.

Glancing across the table to Thor, your mind wandered as you were curious as to whether or not he, or Loki, would be in attendance. You wondered, had they ever participated in celebrating Halloween or attended a costume party here on Midgard? You could see Thor good-naturedly joining in on the annual festivities, but Loki would probably take some convincing to participate. Although, perhaps he would enjoy a Halloween party, given the mischievous and chaotic activity it might entail. 

You looked over at Peter’s pumpkin and back to yours. Your face dropped as you sighed at the realization that while his was nearly complete, yours remained a blank canvas. You’d been staring at your pumpkin for the last few minutes, hesitant to take action out of fear of messing it up.

Up until this point, you were doing perfectly fine. After all, it didn’t matter how the inside of your pumpkin looked. But now that you were done removing the guts, your overthinking suddenly kicked in as you came the part that truly mattered: carving the actual design.

Your brow furrowed as you tried visualizing and calculating the best distance and angle to carve the eyes, nose, and mouth. A barrage of thoughts swirled through your mind. Yes, you came to realize that only you would overthink even when it came to carving a pumpkin, but you couldn’t help yourself from wanting it to be perfect. That’s just the way you lived; everything you did had to be done to be best of your ability, or you wouldn’t do it at all.

Lost in concentration and indecision, you bit the corner of your lower lip and narrowed your eyes to map out the best course of action. Maybe you could start it here? No, that would be too-

“Hey!” You jumped at the sensation of someone poking your side, pulling you out of your thoughts by ticklish shock waves travelling up your spine. You accusingly looked over to Peter, who wore a guilty half-grin. Heat rose to your cheeks at the realization that the three of them had been looking at you, in an almost expectant manner.

“Ah, the young maiden is ticklish!” Thor chuckled heartily.

“Yes, the spider child does seem to provide some valuable intel about her,” Loki stated flatly, pretending as if he wasn’t interested. Though, it didn’t escape him that your face appeared to slightly relax, and your demeanor seemed to shift from one of melancholy to liveliness after Peter had tickled you.

“Peter! What was that for?!” you exclaimed indignantly, but you smiled despite yourself.

“Oh, Thor asked you a question, a-and we tried getting your attention, but you were really zoned out again, so I wanted to show them the best way I learned how to get your attention whenever you do that,” Peter explained.

You swiftly covered your face, your voice slightly muffled by your hands. “Oh my gosh, that’s so embarrassing.”

“I really don’t think she minds it as much as she lets on,” Peter whispered loudly to the Asgardians. 

Your face flushed traitorously. (Though, Peter was arguably the bigger traitor, since he was the one to sell you out in the first place.)

But, he wasn’t wrong; Peter’s playfulness did help you relax a bit. Playfully engaging with someone wasn't all that common for you, so it felt kind of nice to let loose sometimes. Not that you really wanted that information casually spoken aloud, especially in the presence of the boisterous God of Thunder and the tall, dark, and handsome God of Mischief. You couldn’t say that it would truly bother you if either of the gods exploited this piece of knowledge, but you weren’t expecting Peter to just call you out like that. You planned on keeping at least some of your self-dignity intact today. 

Desperate for a diversion, you asked, “Anyways, what did you ask me, Thor?”

 “Ah, yes! As I was saying, what costume might you be wearing to the Halloween party?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure yet! What will you be going as? And have you celebrated Halloween before, or is it not really a thing on Asgard?”

“This will be my first time, actually! This mortal holiday is quite intriguing to me, I’m looking forward to seeing how you humans celebrate the evening. I went shopping just yesterday for a cool costume to wear. I’m a bit excited, I’ve never done this before!” Thor beamed as he stood up from the table and made his way to the sink, rinsing off his empty plate. “I picked out a vampire costume for myself, and I even bought a werewolf costume for Loki!”

Pfft. You and Peter let snickers escape you as you fought hard to not laugh at the thought of Loki in a werewolf costume.

“Now, hang on a second! I have agreed to no such thing!” Loki retorted. “I have not seen this costume in my life, but I can guarantee you I will most certainly not be caught dead wearing such poor quality, cheaply manufactured pieces of fabric.”

“Come now, brother! Have some fun!”

“You are a fool to think I would ever partake in that. If I truly wanted some fun, I could simply shape-shift myself into an authentic werewolf and scare all of the mortals in the area. Not to mention, that is the most basic, unoriginal idea you could think of. Honestly, brother, you have such poverty of imagination.”  

“Really? I thought I was onto something there,” Thor admitted sheepishly. 

Peter added, "Yeah, come on, Mr. Loki! It would be fun! Are you sure you don't-"

"No." Loki deadpanned as you bit your lip to hold back a smile.

The conversation was diverted by the kettle as it began to whistle, its tune fading into a soft hiss as Loki turned off the burner, then searched through the cabinets for a mug.

Peter turned to the Asgardians, looking up from his pumpkin for a moment and pausing from shaping the final details into his jack-o-lantern. “Do either of you guys want carve pumpkins with us? There’s a couple small ones here, and we have some more outside, too!” 

Loki declined, while Thor said, “I’d love to join you! It sounds like a good way to de-stress after a long mission. How about we grab some more from outside?”

“Sure! More pumpkins will help us with decorating for Tony’s party, too!” Peter set down his carving knife on the table. “We’ll be right back, ok?” 

You gave Peter a small smile. Peter and Thor left through the backdoor of the compound, the door shutting behind them with an enthusiastic thump. Unenthusiastically, you turned back to your pumpkin, your face falling once again as you were slightly upset with yourself for having yet to carve anything.

Unbeknownst to you, Loki observed your demeanor shift back again to one of frustration. “Would you like some tea, Agent?"

Absentmindedly and politely, you declined his offer, maintaining your hyper-focus and concentration on thinking through the best possible strategy for your task at hand. Loki shrugged, finding it a little unusual that you would turn down tea, then poured some steaming water into a mug for himself.

“You know, Agent, I can’t say that I have any experience carving pumpkins, because I’d never touch my hands to pumpkin guts. That would be disgusting, and I am a god, after all.” He placed a tea bag in his mug, letting it steep. “However, from what I’ve gathered from you mortals, I’m fairly certain it’s supposed to be fun. It appears to me that this is not the case for you.”

“What do you mean? I am having fun,” you said. It would be silly of you, you thought, to get upset over something as simple as a pumpkin. Plus, it wasn’t entirely a lie; despite your frustrations with yourself, you were enjoying the company of your teammates. 

“Do you plan to carve your jack-o-lantern, then? Or are you going to keep staring at it, with hopes it will carve itself?” Loki asked gently with an equally teasing and amicable tone. 

“Well…” You looked down sheepishly at your pumpkin, fidgeting your thumb on the handle of your carving knife, then placing it on the table. “I would like to do it, but I’m afraid I’ll mess it up.” 

He lifted the porcelain mug to his lips, taking a sip of his steaming tea. “I must admit, fear has gotten the best of me many times, as well. But once you start, you’ll fall into a nice rhythm. I understand your concerns, but pumpkins are plentiful and if you ‘mess up’, then that simply means you have room to grow and learn how to avoid any errors next time.”

“Thanks, Loki. I hear you,” you sighed. “But what if it’s ugly?”

“That’s impossible, darling. Nothing that you touch could ever be ugly. I’m sure whatever you create will be lovely.”

Heat crept to your cheeks at his compliment. “But-“

“Ah-ah. No more of that,” Loki cut you off. “It seems to me that you are in need of some confidence. I do not think there is any shame in not being instantly or perfectly good at something.”

“Yeah…” Your shoulders slumped. “I know, I just… don’t know how to change it,” you said to your pumpkin.

“I can understand that. Perhaps there is something I could do to convince you to at least begin carving the pumpkin? To convince how little risk there is?”

“I don’t know… I know it’s silly, but I’m so nervous about messing up. I just want it to be perfect.” You were thankful that Loki was trying to help you. Truly, you knew how ridiculous you were being and wished you could just carve the damned pumpkin. You hated your anxiety for turning something you should find fun into something that you feared.

Loki thought that you were too hard on yourself; you had a kind, calming and gentle presence to everyone around you, so why couldn’t you give yourself the same grace you give to others? Over the past year, he had noticed your proclivity for self-doubt on several occasions as you lived and worked at the compound. It was odd to him that you would doubt yourself and your abilities, given that you were an incredibly competent scientist, which you had proven time and time again.

He wished there was a way for him to help you not hold yourself to such unrealistic standards. You had just admitted to him that your fears were stopping you from doing something that you wanted to engage in; he believed there must be something he could do to provide encouragement in overcoming your insecurities, even with something as harmless as carving a pumpkin. Clearly, offering words of wisdom alone wasn’t enough, so he racked his brain for another strategy.

One idea came to his mind, though he wasn’t entirely certain it would work. Based on Peter’s playful engagement with you earlier, you appeared more relaxed, as though a weight was lifted off of your shoulders when he tickled you. Loki couldn’t say that his observation was a fact, after all, it was only a single, brief interaction that he saw. And who was to say you would be equally comfortable with him as you were with Peter? He had no intentions of making you uncomfortable in the slightest.

But, perhaps he could test his theory. There was no harm in testing the waters to see if you’d take his bait. And who knew? Maybe it could be a win-win situation. He could potentially assist you in overcoming your self-doubt, while proving himself to be right at the same time. He’d never pass up that opportunity.

“Well, Agent…” He set his mug on the countertop and clapped his hands. “I can’t stand seeing you in that little melancholic state any longer. So, I’m going to propose an offer.” He raised his eyebrows subtly, making sure to lace his demeanor with mischief to see how you’d react. “Since you’ve told me that you want to do it, either you can willingly at least begin to carve the pumpkin, or… I will be forced to provide you a little motivation. Some coercion, if you will.”

You perked up a bit at the glint of playfulness in his voice, then tried to hide your inquisitiveness just as quickly as it appeared.

“Coercion, hm?” you hummed flatly, though Loki saw right through your attempt to masquerade the sudden glimmer of curiosity in your eyes.

The corner of his lip pulled upwards as he gained some assurance in his speculation. “Oh, most certainly. As the God of Mischief, I must say I’ve gathered some rather effective strategies over the years. I am well versed at using a person’s fear as leverage to manipulate them to do what I want,” he said in a low drawl.

“Ih-is that a threat?” you stammered. Loki carefully studied your body language to check for any signs of unease, but he failed to notice any. If anything, he might’ve said you were intrigued.

“Perhaps it is,” he offered casually. He crossed his arms, flaunting a little intimidation and a little more confidence.

“I’m not afraid of you, Loki. I know you’d never do anything to hurt me,” you taunted, a cheeky smile tugging at your lips. 

Your response further confirmed his suspicions; if you were going to be playful with him, Loki presumed you wouldn’t mind if he dished it right back. Maybe Peter was onto something; perhaps you needed some playfulness to provide a little distraction. To help alleviate the voices in your mind from telling you nothing you did could fall short of being perfect.

He tilted his head. “Mm, perhaps you should be afraid. Especially after your spider friend recently provided me with such valuable information of you.” He exuded a calm, yet slightly unnerving confidence as he stepped towards you.

“What are you-“ Oh. Oh. (As if you didn’t know what you were getting yourself into.)

The wheels in your brain abruptly screeched to a halt as you froze. Your legs glued to the ground as if they were anchored in place. Your heartbeat quickened, and nervous, (who were you kidding?) excited giggles spluttered from your lips. Weakly, you held up your hands, pretending as though you wanted to maintain distance between you. Though absolutely everything else in you was provoking him, your final brain cell seemed to have a sense of self-preservation as it fought for you. “Waihait-“ 

Before you had any time to react, he grasped his fingers around your wrists, quickly spinning you around, pressing your back flush against his chest. A crimson haze seeped over your cheeks at the realization of how trapped you were in his strong arms. He gathered your wrists, pinning them against your chest with one hand, then used his other hand to lightly scribble his fingers on the side of your stomach just above your waist. Instantly, giggles left your mouth and you squirmed at his delicate touch.

 “I’ll show you mercy if you promise me one thing,” he said, casting chills down your spine. He paused his fingers, resting them on your sides as if waiting for definite permission.  

“W-What?” you squeaked.

He gently turned you to the side and gazed at you softly. Bringing your eyes up to his, you could see that the glimmers of mischief had been replaced with genuine care. “Promise you’ll attempt to carve the pumpkin, and give it your all.” 

Being well and fully aware that you were digging your own grave, you flashed back a defiant grin and responded: 

“I can’t promise that.”

“A shame,” he sighed as if it pained him, but secretly took delight in being right. “The offer was genuine, too.” He released your wrists and latched his hands onto both sides of your ribcage, expertly digging into the crevices of your lower ribs. You squeaked and squealed and fell into laughter, doubling over as you tried to evade his ticklish touch.   

“AHAH Loki wa-HAIT- NO“  You shrieked and writhed uselessly against him as his nimble fingers relentlessly clawed up and down your ribcage. Electricity rapidly trickled through you in every direction, down to your feet and up your spine to the base of your neck. Zapped of your power, your legs lost their strength as you quickly fell weak in his arms. Gently, he laid you down on the kitchen floor, throwing one of his legs across your body and straddling your upper legs.

“I’m afraid it’s too late now, Agent. I did offer you an out; you simply chose not to take it,” he hummed. “My offer does still stand, however. Though, perhaps you don’t truly want this to stop.” He winked, continuing his ticklish onslaught and scribbling his fingertips into your belly, equidistant between your bellybutton and sides. 

Fireworks exploded across your cheeks and laughter flowed from your lips. He chuckled endearingly, amused as his deft fingertips made quick work of sending you into hysterics. Alternating between well-placed pokes and clawing around your stomach, and pulsing his hands up your sides and ribcage, he dodged your hands with ease as you attempted to push his away, never letting you get used to one sensation.

Loki paused as he noticed your eyes widen and blush deepen when he found a particularly sensitive spot on the middle of your ribcage.

“Oh, my,” Loki drawled, his eyes lighting up as though he’d discovered a valuable treasure on a deserted island. “You should really be thankful you don’t work out on the field, with how little control you have of your face.”

 “UGH I kno-OHO-w,” you whipped your hands up to your cheeks to conceal your impossibly increasing flushing face. You were sure that in any second the heat radiating off of your face would burst into flames, emitting smoke signals to any potential rescuers to help you off of said island.

Speaking of rescuers, how long does it take for someone to simply go outside and grab some pumpkins?!

(On second thought, maybe you were thankful they were taking so long.) 

“There’s a r-EAHA-soHON I work behind the sc-EHENES AHAHA NO” you managed to say in between your laughter. You all but screamed as Loki unexpectedly latched his fingers onto your hips, drilling into the soft skin next to the bone. Throwing your head back, your eyes squeezed shut, you lightly snorted, and then fell into silent laughter. Your entire body became inundated with ticklish shock waves as his thumbs rhythmically and steadily pulsed into the dip of your hips, his fingers simultaneously digging into the back of your sides. Persistent, unrelenting, unyielding, he targeted your hips, eventually slowing down to lightly scribble at the sides as he noticed tears forming in your eyes.

He stared down at you with an amused grin, allowing you a moment to catch your breath. “Ready to yield, yet, Agent?”

“Lokihihi,” you said as your giggles audibly returned. You had to admit, the sensation was entirely overwhelming, but at the same time, it was kind of fun. Only Peter had really tickled you before, but it was never more than a couple seconds; the extent of his playfulness seemed completely mild compared to how Loki was taking you apart with his hands. You couldn’t remember the last time you truly laughed and let loose like this. You would never admit to enjoying yourself out loud, but you had a feeling didn’t need to; your traitorous face spoke for itself.

“Yes, darling?” Smirking, he exuded mischief and amusement as his fingertips ghosted around the soft skin on the inside of your hipbones. He wondered how much of his playful tormenting you were willing to subject yourself to.

“I cahahn’t-” You batted weakly at his hands. Loki had been observing you closely, and even through your disheveled state, he noticed a genuine smile still remained behind your eyes. Reaching behind him with his left hand, he lightly scratched the skin on the back of your thigh, just above the back of your knee. Frantically, you kicked your legs and your shoulders shook as he simultaneously engaged his right hand, continuing to squeeze your hip. “I caHAHn’t take iHIit AHA-“

He grinned, “You know how to make this stop.” Picking up the pace of his tickling fingers, he elicited more of your melodic laughter as you became nearly powerless under his playful touch.

In a half-hearted attempt to protect yourself, you somehow managed to slip one of your hands in between your left hip and Loki’s hand, to which he quickly grabbed both of your wrists and pinned them above your head. Using his free hand, he rapidly pinched up and down one of your exposed and vulnerable sides, from your hip bone to the top of your ribcage. You jolted and laughed underneath him, your laughter interlaced with squeaks and squeals as Loki found especially sensitive spots.

Curiously, he wiggled his index finger deep into the center of your underarm. Much to Loki’s delight, your eyes glittered with liveliness as you shrieked and squirmed under his touch. He couldn’t help but find it adorable that you were enjoying yourself so much, and how much it was seeming to help you relax.

“OK, okahAHy,” you uttered. He relented, though he remained seated on your legs and maintained his grip on your wrists, in case you changed your mind. Euphoric giggles continued to spill from your lips; you were feeling almost giddy from the endorphin rush. Impatient, he pinched your side once, then glared at you expectantly. Taking a moment to collect yourself, you took a deep breath and said, “I-hi promise to carve the pumpkin…” You giggled, hesitantly adding,” … if you do one thing.”

“What is it?” He raised an eyebrow with fake indignance, but he couldn’t help but be a little amused. “Need I remind you, Agent, you really aren’t in any position to be making ultimatums.”

“I’ll carve the pumpkin… if you wear Thor’s werewolf costume to the Halloween party,” you jokingly proposed. You knew that Loki would never wear it, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t tease him about it. And honestly, you weren’t quite ready for your playful interaction to end just yet.

He looked at you with a blank, emotionless expression, letting the taut silence linger between you for a few seconds. Your giggles slipped out again, partially from nerves, partly from delirium. Loki found himself both charmed that you were provoking him to continue and amazed at your resilience.

“You’ve got some nerve,” he growled and glared at you, though with lightheartedness in his pale emerald eyes. “Too much nerve for someone as ticklish as you.”

With that, he let go of your wrists and found your triggering middle rib, drilling his middle fingers deep into the bone on each side. You strongly jolted, laughing uncontrollably as you kicked your legs helplessly from underneath him. Eventually giving up on your halfhearted attempts to protect yourself, you relaxed as you succumbed to your torment. Loki continued his relentless, playful attack on your sensitive spot, digging in ruthlessly as you once again fell into bright laughter. In this moment, you felt the weakest and most flustered you had ever felt in your life, your entire body dissolving like Jell-O on the floor. At the same time, you somehow felt entirely carefree, unable to think about anything else except for how bad it tickled, as the endorphins flitted around your brain.

His heart glowed with endearment as he heard the bubbly giggles pour from your lips and saw a big grin across on your face. He felt quite satisfied with himself on his newfound effective strategy to help you let loose and relieve some stress.

Your face was now an overripe tomato, your laughter soon becoming breathless, so Loki stopped, sensing that you’d had enough. Catching your breath, you sputtered out a surrender through your laughter. 

He climbed off of you, and the two of you sat in comfortable silence, aside from your occasional residual giggles as you recovered from your delirious state.

After a few moments, Loki turned towards you. “Darling, I would never force you to do something that makes you uncomfortable. But I truly think it would be good for you to at least try.” He paused, gazing at you gently. “I understand that you don’t want to mess up, that you want to do things perfectly, and I can respect that. Perfection is a noble goal, though it is unachievable. It pains me to see that your pursuit of perfection sometimes paralyzes you in beginning something, for fear of messing up.”

You met his eyes softly, listening intently.

“You are incredibly competent and gifted with a brilliant mind, but even the most brilliant minds in the world will continue to fall short of perfection. Even Odin himself has flaws. But he is one of the most powerful and wisest gods out there. Thor isn’t perfect, even as a mighty warrior. His ego is massive. Yet he is still a powerful warrior, a noble brother.

I only want to give you some confidence and reassurance that it is entirely okay to mess up. It is a natural part of our life’s journey, that we are capable of growing from our mistakes.”

Feeling slightly taken aback by his compassionate and understanding words, and at a loss of words to match his kind sentiment, you gently smiled and said, “Thanks, Loki.”

He offered you a sincere, tight-lipped smile in return. “I only wish you could see the value in yourself that everyone else does. You would do well to give yourself a little grace.”

“That’s very kind of you to say,” you breathed. 

“It is all the truth, Agent.” 

You had never realized how attentive he was towards you, or how much he cared about you. You were so used to fighting your battles on your own, the thought of receiving help was almost foreign to you, especially from Loki.

Perhaps your fear of appearing incompetent was keeping you from letting anyone in, and you’d blinded yourself to the reality that others might want to be there for you. But now, here you were, seated side-by-side in a vulnerable moment with the God of Mischief, his kindness coming as a welcome surprise, comforting you like a warm embrace when you needed it the most. 

Your heart swelled at the thought that Loki cared so much about you, feeling honored that he was comfortable enough opening up to you in a way he really hadn't with others. It meant so much to you that he was willing to risk being vulnerable himself in order to help you, to show that it is okay to allow people to see behind your mask of perfection. He reminded you that you were more than competent, and even when you did make a mistake, you were still loved.

Learning to be more forgiving of yourself and your mistakes would be a process; that much, you knew. It wasn't something that would completely change overnight, but you decided it was something worth working towards. Especially now that you knew you had your teammates to support you.

"Shall I let you get back to your pumpkin now?" he asked.

Nodding genuinely, you gave him a soft smile.

Loki beamed with an uncharacteristic warmth, recognizing that the traces of downheartedness in your disposition had faded, replaced with a glow of hope and promise.

“Excellent! I’m proud of you, Agent. Perhaps this is what you need to overcome your fears. A victory, even if it’s simply over a pumpkin.” He stood up, offering you his hand.

“So… does this mean you’ll wear the werewolf costume? If not, I totally get it- I think the vampire costume would suit you better anyway,” you deadpanned, giving him a wink as you took his hand.

Feigning menace, he held your hand firmly and stared down at you before helping you up. “Ask about the costume one more time, and I will pin you to the ground and tickle you until you are on your last breath. And next time, I won’t show any mercy.” He winked right back and gave you a sly grin.

You squeaked and blushed furiously at his threat, causing Loki to smirk at your flustered reaction. Although, now that he was aware you truly didn’t mind his playful antics, he knew he would follow up with that one day, anyways. Perhaps on a day when you were extra hard on yourself, if only to make you smile.

“We’re back! Sorry it took longer than-“ Peter, pumpkins in hand, stopped in his tracks as he saw Loki helping you up. “You fell again? Wow, and I thought that I was a klutz,” Peter remarked with a smile.

You lightheartedly laughed at the coincidence, while Loki looked a little bemused and returned to his tea. You decided you’d be fine with keeping both of them in the blue about your embarrassing moments you’d had with the other. 

As you began working on your pumpkin again, in the company of your teammates, you couldn’t help but be thankful for them.

Perhaps you could be a little less hard on yourself. You made a promise to yourself that one day you would learn to be more forgiving of yourself and your mistakes. To believe that you were good enough, and that you were worthy of the same love and grace you gave so freely to everyone else.

[randomarttalent]

Pie's family redesigns + Family tree

Original posts, info and links down below

Maud "Slate" Pie + Mudbriar "Walnut"

Maud "Slate" Pie I've kept Maud mostly the same all over, her pallet and color scheme are already good in my taste. She now has spots to match Pinkie but also as a hint to her special talent, as I wanted it to look like an opened geode. I didn't like that her cutie mark was only just a rock, it didn't say a single thing about her special talent. Now it says a bit more, showing off that she can find true beauty under what others might just see as a rock.

She wears her normal dress, as I didn't see a reason to change it. I've however added a small bracelet, which has different beads, to represent her sisters. As she might not show or say it much but she loves them all dearly.

Mudbriar "Walnut" I've darkened his pallet a little, more so his overall design didn't end up too light or dark. I've given him cloven hooves and a long tail, as I see him from a family of mixed unicorn and earth ponies. His markings are like branches/roots of trees, showing his connection to the trees. Same story for his cutie mark as Maud's, it was too simple for what his special talent is. So I've added a book but it's standing by its opening, as a small hint to tents, as he travels to examine trees, learning about as many as he can and writing it down for others to read.

Mudbriar now wears a travel backpack, which is for his travels. He doesn't wear much else, as he doesn't see the need to.

Gilda "Glory" + "Shady" Limestone Pie

Gilda"Glory" I've darkened her whole pallet and added some markings. As she's a mountain lion + tiger in this AU. Her design hasn't been changed much, I've added some jewelry but not much else.

"Shady"Limestone Pie Limestone's pallet is mostly the same, its his patterns that darken his look. Lime is trans in my AU, as his anger issues were caused by him not feeling whole/as he should be. His cutie mark has been changed to a broken opened geode, with lime-green stone, which resembles a lime.

He has a few pricings and wears a his band's t-shirt, which says ROAD KILL, Gilda also has one but she mostly wears it to his concerts, showing her support.

 Trouble Shoes + Marble "Droplet" Pie

Trouble Shoes I've made Trouble Shoes slightly darker and added a few lighter strips to his mane and tail. He also now has a beard, which to those who don't know him, makes him look even more scary than before. For his cutie mark I wanted something more than just "bad luck". He of course still struggled to find out what he was meant to do, as he thought the clown nose and wig was some cruel joke the world did to him.

As for his clothing, I went with a nice jacket, kept his hat and his weeding ring.

Marble"Droplet"Pie Marble's pallet has mostly stayed the same, only receiving slight changes and the usual markings that come along with my redesigns. Her cutie mark now shows off how well she makes jewelry with the beautiful gems they find in Appleloosa. To me, her cutie mark never told a single thing about what she was to do, it said marble but what else? So now, she's a crystal collector and seller.

The clothing she wears is a simple shawl, her weeding ring, a few earrings, a few flowers from her middle oldest son, a sun anklet to represent her oldest son and a small bat wing hair tie to represent her youngest son. 

[ninja-knox-ur-sox-off]

Wobbly Hearts AU

Summary: Kai doesn’t like soulmates. He doesn’t want them and he certainly doesn’t need them. High school is hard enough without all the extra stress of soulmarks and finding your soulmates. He decided at a young age he didn’t have time for soulmates and he plans to stick to that decision. Unfortunately, as always, the universe seems to take a lot of joy in messing with him. or Kai struggles with reading and it’s everybody’s problem.

Hi there! Yes it's the very fic I've been yelling about in vague posts and tags the last 6+ months! It's been so long since I've posted anything to ao3 I've forgotten how it works but I'm doing my best! This fic is an AU set in an alternate universe of the LEGO Ninjago Movie (2017) combined with a lot of the characterization and aspects from the original LEGO Ninjago show. It's over 100k so buckle up and prepare for some shenanigans!

the first chapter is UP

sample under cut

Kai got his first soulmarks when he tried to eat a marker.

Tiny, with fumbling fingers, freckles and barely two years old he didn’t remember that day in the slightest. But his parents told the story to him and Nya all the time when they were little. 

It was the little red marker they said that he went for. His mom didn’t notice until he’d pried off the cap and stuck it into his mouth after several unsuccessful attempts that ended in red marker all over his face. She’d gotten it out of his mouth before he could really try to eat it like he’d been meaning to. He'd started crying at the abruptness of his marker being taken away, but those tears dried up fairly quickly after his mom scooped him up. 

His mom laughed that maybe his soulmates wanted him to feel less alone because a blue marker appeared not long after they started to wash off the red.

His first soulmark.

Kai grew up with their scribbled colorful lines on his skin. At first it was the hazardous meaningless lines of a toddler and then, as time progressed, they became more purposeful doodles. They were just another part of life he didn’t fully understand but accepted as fact because his parents simply smiled and spoke over his head of soulmates. He didn’t think he really grasped much of the concept of exactly what a soulmate was until he turned five.

They were someone (or several someones) that could be his favorite person (or people) in the whole wide world if he let them. After Nya was born he argued she was his soulmate because she was his most favorite person in the whole wide world. His dad said it was a different kind of favorite. But Nya was family and that was just as important. 

It wasn’t until he was seven and struggling to learn the alphabet that he realized there was more than one soulmate out there for him.

Words started appearing as they learned how to write, the letters slanted and wobbly and hazardous. He watched their writing change and improve and watched them start to talk to each other. There were two of them. Two soulmates all for him. They talked in the simple words that they could manage. One excitedly scribbled I <3 U when they learned how. Kai had to ask his mom what the lines meant and she explained it with a patient smile. It means I love you.

He was ten and still just drawing doodles while his soulmates spoke of their favorite cartoons and what they had eaten that day. Letters seemed to float around his head and laugh at him as he tried to read what they were saying, frustrated tears biting his eyes and blurring the letters. Seeing him struggle, his mom would let him sit on her lap and read him the words out loud while he rested his head on her shoulder.

Pens and markers felt awkward in his hands. The little doodles he managed never looked as good as the doodles one of his soulmates was always making. Their doodles were of cool stuff, like ninja and dragons and mechs. The doodles were so cool and Kai doodled little hearts and flames around them as best he could to show how much he liked them. But half the time he couldn’t tell the hearts from the fire and explosions, everything so wobbly and awful. He tried to write his name once and it was almost worse than the hearts.

Keep Reading

[figs-and-cigs]

Saw a post recently that said if you're not a good communicator you shouldn't be in a poly relationship. My first thought was, "right communication is an absolute MUST!" But thinking about it some more, I think there needs to be more nuance to the idea. What makes good communication? And who's to say who should and shouldn't do polyamory?

I'm an easily overwhelmed, agoraphobic, introvert - and at times communication IS hard. I often seek alone time with very little interaction with the outside world.

I had a girlfriend who HATED texting and wanted lots of in person face to face time. That relationship slowly unravelled and disappeared - without communication. I'm a texter and couldn't fit my schedule or find the spoons to spend more time with her - and she never texted.

I had to explain to a new person I'm dating that I'm not good at asking a lot of questions - which can look like a lack of interest and a failure in gathering information for a good match. The reality is I figure others will tell me what they want me to know over time as they get comfortable, and if it's important it'll come up. Meanwhile, I'm an open book. I communicate with lengthy paragraphs and stories to paint a picture of my world. Which often gets others to share similarly - through text, and more importantly get to know me on a deep level. In person I'm spastic mess, I get emotional about everything and excitement or frustration can jumble words into an incoherent rant.

When I'm upset, I cry... And trying to help someone see my point of view doesn't work well between frustrated sobs I can't control. With my husband we make an effort to take a pause with intense discussions and let me write/text it out. And while he can be a stoic type during emotional discussions - giving him time to process is important. But my anxious attachment will precieve it as if I'm doing all the communication and he's got nothing!

I also unintentionally go into circles and rants as I process which can be overwhelming to the other party. I've been in relationships where we'd talk and talk and talk and talk until we'd exhaust each other and that talking might turn into yelling or unhealthy silent treatments. Neither of us could understand each other or find common ground.

To prevent this with my husband we set timers. 5/5/10. We each get 5 minutes to share our thoughts, and then we'll have 10 minutes to collaborate on a solution - or to bond or support each other.

I have a FWB who I rarely hear from. Maybe every few months when he's in town and able to set a date to meet. He's not the talkative type unless we're alone in a room together - and I realized I'm ok with this. I don't need constant contact to enjoy my time with him.

I think a huge part of healthy relationships is meeting people where they're at and accepting each other exactly as we are. The good, the bad, the messy, and perfectly whole. And it's beautiful and wonderful! But it's also complicated and hard. Not every relationship is going to last. But the experiences together are valuable nonetheless.

When our communication styles and skills are different, what do we do!? Ironically, we communicate about it, and even a "bad communicator" can find work arounds. I think it comes down to boundaries and trying to understand each other. And if it doesn't work out between both of you - it doesn't mean we can't find someone else who it can't work with.

And while we can find total acceptance of each other one would hope each of us is working on personal progress and improvements in areas that we struggle.

Just like there's no one right perfect way to be poly, I don't think there's only one right perfect way to communicate. We each need to find what works best for us and our individual relationships. And it's going to vary and be different almost every single time.

The end.

[beanghostprincess]

Sanji has helped me in so many ways. I will forever be grateful for the creation of this character. He quite literally means the world to me right now.

(TW: ED/Depression/Suicide attempt mention)

I've always struggled with food. Well, not always. But at the end of middle school (more or less. Give or take. Age 12/13) I became obsessed with what I ate. I still don't know exactly how it started, but I think it has always been a mix of my need to control my life when it's crumbling down and the necessity to look skinny (both things are my mother's fault, mostly. And also lots of things going on at the moment). So I started skipping meals constantly and throwing away food and throwing up. Not gonna get into details, but it ruined my life without anybody knowing until a huge depressive episode came and then I tried to off myself, yadda yadda yadda. Then I just stopped eating food and my meals every day were basically a monster and gum and maybe a piece of fruit. I couldn't even drink milk without crying. Then it got a bit better. Then a bit worse. It wasn't very consistent. And then I started doing exercise but that only made me even more obsessed with calorie intake and healthy food and I still can't drink milk or bread without at least feeling awful about it.

And then I watched One Piece.

I know it sounds extremely silly and dumb, but it has helped me in so many ways. I'm not gonna get into all the things it has done for me, because then I'd have to talk about Robin, Nami, Luffy, Pudding and Buggy which are, like, the characters that have helped me the most next to Sanji, and I would not finish this post.

But Sanji is just so, so important to me.

He speaks about food with such passion. His whole thing about not wasting food literally comes from an experience of starvation and because of the sacrifice his father made for him. He keeps saying he refuses to let people go hungry, no matter what. That we all deserve to eat. He relates food to love and cooking is his whole life. It kind of started as a joke when my brother said "nooo, now you can't waste food because Sanji would be sad" and I- That day I literally ate wayyy more than usual with that thought in mind. And I didn't feel bad afterward for once. And he's just- He just makes me feel so comfortable around food. Which is the normal amount of comfort somebody should have and sometimes it's not even that, but it helps. It helps so much.

Then his whole thing with Germa and the Vinsmokes. It killed me. My relationship with my mother is, uh, you can call it complicated but I fucking hate her so. Yeah. And Sanji's story about rejecting his blood relatives and finding better people who will love him hit so close to home. Him being different. Weak. More emotional. A good person. Sanji refusing to use the name Vinsmoke. It's my whole life. Sanji self-sabotaging himself all the time and constantly sacrificing himself, too? I just can't do it, man, he means the world to me. And then Wano happens and he turns out to have the same body as his siblings but he's still himself. He's still Sanji no matter how much in common he has with the Vinsmokes. And as somebody who's constantly dealing with people telling them that they look like their mom? I fucking love it. I know I look like her and I even act like her sometimes but that doesn't mean I am her. And it doesn't mean she deserves to be part of my family, because she isn't and I can't wait to get rid of her in my life.

It's not only food and family, though. Sanji has helped me accept myself in so many ways too. In the way I perceive others and in the way I act. He has helped me eat. He has helped me realize you don't have to consider your blood relatives family if you don't love them. He has helped me see that my kindness is a strength and not a weak spot.

Not to mention that his whole thing with gender and sexuality, how the fandom portrays him, and how I personally write him has been of so much help in understanding myself. I recently discovered I was a lesbian, and also being genderfluid I just- I just love Sanji so much I be projecting my gender issues and internalized stuff with comphet on him. And let me tell you, it helps.

This whole thing is just something short and sweet I wanted to say because media affects people. In the best of ways. One Piece in general has saved my life in many ways, but Sanji in particular is still helping me every day.

[queerxqueen]

Could you maybe write a post (short or long) to prove that Mike likes Will? Because my friend says that they're just friends...

Hell. Yes. This is gonna be another long one. I think most of this has been said before, but I think it helps to see it all together in a structured argument!

The Mike Has Feelings for Will Breakdown

1. Will and Mike have a closer and different relationship from the others in the party.

From the very opening scene, we are meant to see that Mike and Will have a closer relationship than the others, when Will tells Mike about the bad roll after Lucas told him not to. Will lingers back after the other leaves and tells Mike the truth.

(x)

Beyond just foreshadowing Will being taken, it shows two things: first, Will is honest and has integrity; second, that Will trusts mike more than the others.

Mike is the most worried about Will out of any of the party in season 1--exclaiming that he is "the only one who cares about Will," and putting finding Will above everything else, even Eleven. He keeps and looks through dozens of Will's drawings. When the bullies torment him and his friends, he mostly accepts it, but almost always fights back when Will is brought up.

He's also shown to be the most impacted by Will's disappearance and his "death" when they find the fake body. In addition to seeing Mike crying to his mom--one of the rare scenes where he finds comfort in his parents--they also filmed a scene of Mike crying while biking home that Finn apparently loved.

(x)

These shots are intentional, and they are meant to show us how deeply Mike cares for Will, and how that love is stronger and different from the love between the other party members.

In season 2, we see Mike caring for Will differently from the rest of the party in an even more overt way. He sticks with Will for almost the whole season and is shown being the one to notice and got to Will when he isn't doing good.

In the movie theater in 3x01, he immediately notices when Will has some Upside-Down-spidey-senses. He asks if he's okay, insists, are you sure? and looks him over.

(x)

In case that wasn't obvious enough to show Mike caring deeply for Will and being there for him in a way the others aren't, they show us not one but two more scenes of Mike being the one to help Will. (Two of which are just in the first freaking episode of season 2, aka the first season we are really getting to see their dynamic together.)

Outside the arcade, Mike is the one to notice he's gone and come out looking for him, and he guides him inside with a protective arm around the shoulder.

Then, while Trick or Treating, once Will has his episode, Mike is again the one to notice something is wrong with Will, he goes to him, and again tucks him protectively under his arm to take him home.

Why would we be shown not once, not twice, but three times, just in season 2's first act, Mike being protective over Will, the one to notice when things are wrong, the one to comfort, if we're not meant to notice that pattern? Notice how they are there for each other in a way the others aren't?

Throughout season 2, we see Mike being there for Will while he's struggling with the Mind Flayer. We see Mike stick with him for the majority of the season for support. We get the "crazy together" scene. We get Mike touching Will's hand to still the shaking. We see Mike sleeping in a chair next to Will's hospital bed, not moving from his side.

We also see him as the only person who isn't family speaking to Will in the cabin when trying to reach him through the Mind Flayer's possession. The iconic scene:

(x)

He tells him the story of their first meeting with a tear running down his cheek--"It was the best thing I've ever done" and Will, even through his possession, looks a bit like that's everything he's ever wanted to hear.

We don't get this kind of backstory for any of the other's friendships or first meetings, and I truly think it's because the writers are emphasizing the significance of Mike and Will specifically. More importantly though, we see how this memory, and his friendship with Will overall, is so important to Mike.

In season 4, we even get the difference in their relationship more explicitly: Mike tells Will how Hawkins isn't the same without him, saying the other's names as if to imply they're not you. The message is that their relationships are different, and the others don't fill the void of Will's leaving.

2. Will and Mike have a closer and different relationship from Mike and Eleven.

Beyond just the differences between Mike and Will's relationships and their relationships with the rest of the party, their relationship is also shown to be very different from Mike's relationship with Eleven. They are very obviously contrasted in season 3 with the Mileven breakup and the Byler fight. This has probably been analyzed to death so I'll keep it to the main points.

The Mileven breakup is such a different vibe than the Byler fight. The argument itself is played off for laughs ("I dump your ass") and their reactions are humorous. Mike's face, Max's face, Max and Eleven laughing in the bus afterward. Even Mike seems more annoyed than hurt afterward, saying the girls are "conspiring" against him.

(X)

Compare this to the stark seriousness of the Byler fight, which is just dramatically different. All grey and dull, in the pouring rain, different lighting. And afterward, instead of laughter and vibrant colors, we get Will destroying Castle Byers, showing the deep impact this has on the characters versus the shallow impact of the Mileven breakup.

(x)

Even ignoring the Eyewitness parallel, this scene is huge for Mike and Will's relationship, and specifically for how Mike views Will. It is treated with such seriousness compared to the Mileven breakup.

Afterward, Mike bikes through the rain to go to Will's house to apologize, and when he doesn't find him there, continues through the rain to Castle Byers. He immediately wants to fix things and apologize, whereas with El, he didn't even see those things as options. He can handle Eleven being mad at him, but he can't stand to leave things in a bad place with Will.

We are shown these two fights in the same episode but in drastically different treatments for a reason, and that is to show how Mike prioritizes his relationships, valuing his friendship with Will more than his relationship with Eleven.

Then there's the end of season 3. The iconic eyes-wide-open kiss where Mike is framed in front of an open closet. Where Eleven walks away and Mike looks completely confused and conflicted in a way that makes no sense if he really loves her.

Again, comparing this scene to Byler's goodbye scene, where Mike is engaged and open. Where Mike wonders if Will would join another party and he says "not possible" and Mike looks at him so softly.

(x)

I personally believe this is the moment he starts to realize his feelings for Will, and that's why he acts strangely with Eleven's confession and kiss. Even if you don't believe that, these scenes are important because they show how Mike is responding to saying goodbye to two of the most important people in his life.

And of course, in season 4, we see Mike being unable to tell El he loves her, but being able to express to Will that he's missed him.

I don't think the difference in how he treats them is accidental--they are intentionally showing his value of Will's friendship and comparing it to his conflicting feelings around his relationship with El. They've compared the relationships too many times and too directly for it to be coincidence: they want us to see the difference in these two relationships.

3. Mike has feelings for Will by season 4.

Mike's actions truly don't make sense unless we assume he's queer and repressing himself, pulling away from Will and focusing on El to avoid acknowledging the truth of his sexuality.

After we are shown so consistently how he prioritizes Will, we're meant to notice the stark difference of how Mike treats Will at the airport. First, he rebuffs his hug for an awkward shoulder pat, then, with a carefully blank expression, asks about the painting and dismisses it. We're talking about the kid who used to tuck Will under his arm whenever he was scared in season 2, the kid who kept all of Will's drawings and looked through them when he missed him in season 1.

Then, there's the roller skating rink scenes. Mike is allegedly ignoring Will all night, yet when they fight, he lists off Will's behavior as if he has actually been paying close attention: Will was "moping around, rolling eyes," etc. Meaning that, while Mike wasn't acting on it, he is still noticing Will's signs of not being okay, just like he consistently did in season 2. He can't help but pay close attention to his best friend and notice the signs of him being off, even if he wants to focus on his girlfriend.

Yet again, we see Mike putting his relationship with Will first by immediately apologizing and admitting fault in a way that he doesn't do often. Where he typically deflects blame (Max "conspiring" in season 3, the "who said I didn't?" in his fight with El in season 4), with Will he realizes he's done wrong and apologizes. His priority is making sure his relationship with Will is okay.

This is another stark change considering how he acted toward Will in the beginning of the season, and it is marked by the absence of El--the departure of the expectations of being a perfect, straight boyfriend. Suddenly, we see Mike able to open up and express himself again. We see him soft and gentle in the way he really only is with Will.

(x)

Then there's this scene which is just. So sweet. So much Byler.

But there's a specific section of it that I can't find gif'd that I love, and I want to break it down. It's surrounding the line "I have no idea what's going to happen next." You can watch the clip here but I will break down the microexpressions:

Mike looks down, mouth open like he wants to say something, but he hesitates, blinks a few times, thinking, and seems to get up the courage to say it. "I have no idea what's going to happen next." Looks away. Swallows hard. Looks back. Cut to Will, who swallows hard too. "But whatever it is, I think it'll be easier if we work together. If we're a team."

He's so nervous when he says he has no idea what's next. He means it. He's scared. He doesn't know what's next, not just with Eleven and the Upside Down, but with his relationships, with both Eleven and with Will. Yet through that fear and that not knowing, the one thing he puts ahead of everything else is making sure that he and Will are good, that they are a team, friends, best friends.

Welp, I made myself emotional about Byler again.

Anyway, hope this helps change some folks minds including anon's friends :)

[Send me Byler asks?]

**edited for wrong episode numbers

[pippin-katz]

I realized that I really don't care about any comments made on the boys' (especially Taylor’s) acting; I am not going to let them get to me at all anymore. You know why?

It occurred to me that the character that Alex has the most screen time with, excluding Henry for obvious reasons, is his mother. And you know who plays Alex's mother right? Uma fucking Thurman.

If Uma had a problem with Taylor's acting, I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have agreed to the film, or been much harsher with criticism to make him improve. Taylor has only ever said how amazing she was to work with and let me list the things he has said about working her for this:

that she was lovely and giving

that she also wanted to forge a personal connection with him

that despite having a very short amount of time to build their relationship for the screen they developed that connection through hugs, touches, little conversations

that they went to lunch together

that she was a professional who made him feel safe

that she didn't treat him like "that younger actor"

that she would improv at him and they tried different things throughout the filming

that she's a very skilled and competent actor

Here's the link to the video interview I pulled this from. Taylor talks about Uma from 3:06 to 4:28 if you don't feel like searching for it, or watching the whole thing. I'm sure he's also talked about her in written interviews, but I'm not going hunting for it because this post is already longer than I meant for it to be, and I'm writing it on an Wacom art tablet at my school's lab while taking what was supposed to only be a few minute-long break from my digital sculptures that I've been struggling and behind on for over a week. 🥲

Everything about the way Taylor talks about her and working with her gives me the impression that she would not hold back criticism. She's been in the industry for a long time, and knows the ins and outs of it. She sounds like a person who would not be afraid to say something if they saw an area that needed improvement, and that she would be respectful and nice about it while doing so.

It occurred to me that if Uma fucking Thurman did not see him as a bad actor, then the opinions of random strangers, most of whom have never set foot on a stage/set, don't matter at all.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

I relate to that anon who misses your Jimin posts. I always wondered why you wrote more about non-rapline members than the rapline who you biased. Esp JM, JK, V, and sometimes Jin. But now that Jimin is your bias I notice you posting more about Taekook than Jimin so now we’re Jimin deprived 😭

It sucks cos I like how you write about him. I’ve been going back to your posts about Face and even your posts from before his releases Face. You were one of the first bloggers who said Jimin’s music was the one you were most looking forward to. When other people doubted him you shut that shit down with “he’s Park Jimin for goodness sake”. Is there anything you can add about his music making process though BPP? Anything at all? Maybe some screenshots like you just did for Minimoni? Thank you.

***

Sigh. Y'all...

Okay, I'm going to use a lifeline and 'phone a friend'. We'll call her N.

She's the friend I've talked about before. Below is the result of a conversation I had with N before BTS's chapter 2 began. Consider it an abridged summary of why we were looking forward to Jimin's solo work the most, as well as what we think about his creative process. I'll tie it back to FACE at the end...

--

Jimin writes the dopest melodies.

Dis-ease bridge (I still can’t believe he came up with this in less than 5 minutes)

Blood, Sweat and Tears

Friends

Christmas Love

Promise

The first time I heard Dis-ease, before I even knew Hobi wrote most of it, I just knew it was a Hoseok song from the disk-scratches and very retro old-school hiphop vibe. And so I expected it to flow a certain way, and it did. Until it got to the bridge. Dis-ease could have been a very different song and you really see this if you listen to the version with JK’s bridge which keeps a somewhat faster tempo and lower notes.

Jimin’s bridge, quite literally, elevates the whole song - it starts in a completely different octave. If you’re actually singing this song, like singing out loud, when you get to the bridge you’re forced to belt out “SICK AND TIRREEEDDDD” and “THROUGH THE FIREEEEE”, up high, real loud, with heart and feeling. The melody Jimin composed in 5 minutes is simultaneously soulful and energetic.

This is the same with other melodies he has composed such as Friends and Blood, Sweat and Tears, and others.

Jimin writes some pretty dope melodies that make me want to sing out loud.

He seems to write plain but beautiful and honest lyrics

Jimin has said writing lyrics doesn’t come easy for him and I think this is because he writes the way he speaks.

Even Namjoon who we all know writes incredibly beautiful lyrics has said this too, but I think Jimin might want or aim to write more artistically like Namjoon, but (I think) he writes lyrics the way he speaks, which is plainly and directly but carefully and very honestly. He sparingly uses metaphors unlike Tae and RM who can wonder about snow and flowers individually or uses colors like Blue and Grey to convey struggling with burn out or how the world pauses at 0 O’clock.

When people write songs the hope is to convey certain ideas or emotions. If those things are very personal, heavy or dark, songwriters often use metaphors or analogies in their lyrics to communicate them. This way, the songwriter’s personal feelings are somewhat obscured and protected by artistic interpretations. If you write literally however, there’s nowhere to hide. Everyone knows exactly what you’re thinking and I think this is why Jimin struggles with lyrics.

Jimin writes very literally and this personally appeals to me a lot. Take for instance, how Jimin wrote Lie:

“순결했던 날 찾아줘 Please find me who was innocent

이 거짓 속에 헤어날 수 없어 I can’t free myself from these lies

내 웃음을 돌려놔줘 Please bring back my smile

Caught in a lie

이 지옥에서 날 꺼내줘 Please take me out of this hell

이 고통에서 헤어날 수 없어 I can’t free myself from this pain”

(translation credit: Doolset)

There’s nothing metaphorical about this. He’s literally going through hell and he tells you that very plainly as much. The only way to maintain some ambiguity in the whole song is to never mention what the Lie actually is. And so he never does.

*

Jimin seems to write more songs than we think. For example, when talking about how Friends came to be, he mentioned he was working on 3 songs which he casually showed to Bang PD just for kicks while they were touring three years ago. Two of those songs were mostly finished and the most incomplete song was the third one which PD liked most and worked with Jimin to complete, and that song became Friends - track 15 on the Map of The Soul 7 album.

For their BE album Jimin mentioned how he wrote three new songs for the title track but they weren’t selected. So, Jimin has likely just got these songs sitting somewhere, much like how Yoongi was sitting on Telepathy for years before releasing it with BE.

Whether we’ll ever hear these songs is another story, but if he ever does release them I’m sure I’ll be singing my heart out alongside him.

--

Of course, since Jimin released FACE, you can judge for yourself how many of these points hold up. It's especially striking for me how Jimin wrote the lyrics in Alone, Set Me Free Pt 2, and Face-off mostly literally. For anyone who hasn't read it yet, here's some selected posts on FACE.

[yooniesim]

So, I got this pretty gross anon last night, right. And me being me, on reflex I start answering it, I go through each part, etc. And then all of a sudden I look up and realize, it's late, I'm tired, and I spent almost an hour writing this reply. I said to myself, dude, what in the fuck are you doing? Why are you wasting your time again? Are you really going to post this vitriol, knowing this person likely doesn't give a flying fuck what you have to say anyway, and their bigoted words could hurt your followers that see it? You know better than this. I just reblogged something yesterday about not dignifying bullshit with a response, and there I was doing just that. The anon was already blocked, so I deleted my post I started. And it felt damn good.

Instead, I think I'm gonna say some of the more important things I was thinking about in a more general way. Cos there are a few things I wanna lay down so there's no misunderstanding or any hope that I will do anything different in the future.

First and foremost. From this point on, I won't be accepting or answering any opinions on who or what I am, identity wise. the fact of the matter is, you don't define who or what someone is. you don't tell me what I am, I tell you, and you either accept it as the truth or you leave. your opinion doesn't determine my reality and never will. I'm at the stage of my life where I'm simply not entertaining any bullshit from observers any longer. I will call myself whatever I please and speak on whatever I feel I should as the person I am & the life I've lived, and you will either deal with that or you just won't be around me. period. the block button is my friend now, and I've taken on the mentality that if I block you, you just don't exist to me anymore. you live your life, I live mine, I just never look at your blog or acknowledge you again. any mature person would do the same.

Secondly, I recently mentioned my features (lips, nose, etc) because I wanted to emphasize I am proud of them despite being mocked my whole life for having them. I've even been mocked for them on here in a bigoted manner because like I said before, my pics have been posted plenty. and there was just a debacle recently with a simblr mocking thick lips, because anti-blackness is a constant undercurrent in simblr. that's why I mentioned them. I emphasized that because I want everyone to know that I'm not ashamed of who I am and never will be, despite the fact that some on here fight tooth and nail to try to make me feel I'm somehow less worthy. they will never succeed with me, but I don't want anyone else to feel ashamed of themselves for how they look either. these features are beautiful and worth being proud of and uplifted.

Finally, I'm going to say again: to all my poc followers, mixed or not, you're worthy, and you should be proud of yourselves too. don't let opinions from terminally online people with no actual life experience cause you any shame about who you are. who your parents are, your genetics, your percentages, it don't matter I couldn't give any less of a fuck. you tell me who you are and your struggles and your pain, and I believe and support you. I'm in your corner, and I can only hope I can give back half the love I've been given during this time. You're valid and your voices are important. That's the most important thing I wanted to say, and if this subject comes up again, that's what I will emphasize repeatedly.

[elisaintime]

The post-episode 3 shift

FRESH POST!

So we were talking about how AMC's Interview with the Vampire Season 1 handles their choice of making Louis a black man in the early 1900s. This is a really cool change the show made in its AU version of IWTV, and it brought in a whole lot of subjects to explore that didn't exist in the books, making the TV show a very different work of art. But all the initial ideas for this show came from a cishet white man, and while he down the line had assistance from poc collaborators, I still think the show had areas where it could have done better with regards to some of the story beats, character arcs, and plot progression. The other thread got unwieldy with multiple reblog trees, but it's here for reference: https://www.tumblr.com/elisaintime/748738811357462528/woah-i-must-have-missed-something-why-are-people You can see everyone else's discussion in the notes.

I love discussions like this! Please talk to me about vampire chronicles! I live for it! I'm posting this now because I am disappointed that a few people seem to not be understanding several things I said. Maybe I said it unclearly, or maybe they're projecting and jumping to conclusions.

Kind of like how this poster does:

I deleted/banned every single comment on my videos that talked negatively about the show making Louis and Claudia black or deriding it for trying to be woke (and there were a bunch!). I delete block and ban all forms of hate speech. My channel is absolutely not a safe space for racists or bigots of any kind.

As you can see in the screencap, there is nothing in these comments that is about the race changes. These comments are talking about other changes the show made from the books and don't touch on race at all. The poster who screencapped them is jumping to the conclusion that these commenters liking the books better than the show automatically makes them racist, and that these are racist comments. And this screencap is specifically what I was referencing at the beginning of the other thread. Several people have said this now, that my YT comments section makes a safe space for racists. But these are not racist comments, and there is no evidence that the commenters are racist. This is projection and assumption. If you DO ever notice a racist comment on any of my videos, that I somehow missed, please bring it to my attention so that I can immediately delete and ban the user from ever commenting on my channel again.

But back to the show itself and my critique of it. I'm always here for talking about vampire-related writing! Let's go!

I still stand by what I said in my videos about the few issues I had with the show's scripts. If you watched my videos or follow all I've said about the show here on tumblr or elsewhere, you'll know how excited about this show I've been from the very beginning, how obsessively into it I am, following every aspect of production and behind the scenes news. You may even be in one of the multiple discord servers with me where we talk about the show constantly. There was much I really enjoyed about season 1, which I was outspoken about in my videos, and people keep seeming to forget. My videos had a greater percentage of positivity in them than negativity. But yes, I did have critiques as well, just like I do with every single piece of vampire media I discuss on my channel--it's the entire point of my channel!--and those mostly had to do with inconsistency in the writing.

What I've said is that the DRIVING FORCE of the plot wasn’t about Louis's struggles with chafing against society as a black man after episode 3, not that there was no more racism. I said he was obviously still immersed in systemic racism all around him, which the show showed us with visual details in the background, despite no one talking about them. This is fine, we don't need it spelled out for us. TV is a visual medium, and that's what the images are there for. But my discussion is about his character MOTIVATIONS on a writing level. His want vs need. His goal vs obstacle. If you're unversed on the techniques of story writing and plot structure, I recommend Blake Snyder's book Save the Cat as a crash course. In ep 1-3, for Louis, it was about being respected as a man equal to others among his society, the citizens of New Orleans, his colleagues and business rivals. Fighting for social opportunities that were limited to him because he is black. That story ends with episode 3 and a new story begins. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. I just said I NOTICED it.

After it all burns down, Louis stops focusing on society respecting him as a human being (which was ironic to begin with, because he’s not human anymore) and his driving plot becomes about making and keeping a family and such. Obviously race is still an element of that in a mixed marriage, but it’s not about his business or social standing anymore, these parts of his life that were SO IMPORTANT to him in the first three episodes. In the books, vampires stop caring about that kind of stuff the second they are made, but the show changed it to take Louis a few years to get there instead of it happening instantly.

Obviously racism doesn't magically disappear or stop mattering once he accepts his vampire nature (which Lestat kind of promises him it will), but it does shift to being a background element for what we see on screen. He is not focused on it anymore, when it used to be the primary driving force of his plot. We hardly even get to see Louis interact with (racist) society again til the finale (and I made this observation on episode 5, which the end-of-episode credits told us was written by a white person). For example, the police that come to their door are bigoted to him and Lestat because they’re gay, but meanwhile, they act completely colorblind. At this point, Louis’s character motivations are about fear of them being caught for murder, and his emotions regarding how Claudia is struggling with her eternal child body and lashing out--about keeping his family together. Not about his racial struggles as a businessman and citizen in outward society.

Yes, we all know there were non-white people in the writer’s room (thank god! Can you imagine?? If there weren’t any, we’d all have been raging from the very beginning! Did you read RJ’s episode 1 script draft before it got revised with the input of black/queer/female editors? OOF), but the choice to completely shift Louis’s driving character motivations away from his impassioned societal race struggle to something different after 3 episodes was part of the original season outline made by white people before any poc were brought on to the team. 

And again, I didn’t say it was a bad thing, it was just something I NOTICED, and the way the show executed it felt very abrupt and clunky. Did I want the cops to not be colorblind and get in some racial digs and microaggressions while they were at Louis’s house? Ew no. But I did NOTICE that they didn’t do that, and how it was so different from the way Louis was spoken to by white people in the first 3 episodes. Did the white writer of this episode perhaps feel uncomfortable going there?

The season told two different stories for Louis, with an abrupt turn in the arc after episode 3. It didn’t feel like an arc at all, but a sharp angle. Starting with Claudia, Louis’s primary drives and character motivations completely change. He no longer wants to be an important businessman respected in society, he becomes “the housewife,” and never once seems to miss his desperately-fought-for social status at all. This comes back to what I said about the show being weakened by trying to shove in too much book stuff. Ep1-3 were all these cool new original ideas from the show with Louis having entirely new character motivations based on the show's changes to his background. They were naturally driven by what him being black in 1910 now meant. But after that story was done, it abruptly shifts back to more of how he in in the books, and trying to suddenly pull him back to his book personality/motivations/goals after giving us this whole new organically-evolved self in 1-3 was notable. I noticed it.

All in all, I think it probably would have worked much better on a writing level if it was treated as two separate mini seasons instead of presenting itself as an attempt at one coherent whole.  

[idontwanttospoiltheparty]

Re: your post about JohnandPaul. If you do wish to share them, I'd love to know your headcanons about John and Paul's feelings for each other. ( I do get your discomfort about sharing though and yeah, I also miss the long discussions and metas from back when Get Back came out. It feels like, except you and some others, most of my favorite blogs have moved on from the fandom)

I've been sitting on this ask for several days now.

First of all I hear you, re:blogs moving on. It's understandable, but it's also sad when my brain does not want to give this stuff up any time soon lol.

In my post I talked about having specific headcanons about their feelings for each other, but the truth is, it's more like I imagine hundreds of very specific somewhat plausible scenarios, while not actually fully buying into any of them.

I always struggle with how sure people are of some definite timeline of McLennon because I just don't see how it's in any way clear: the most compelling evidence that at least John had Those Feelings™ for Paul is stuff he said after the fact (compiled with the stronger case for John being attracted to men in general) – so, if I choose to interpret his words in that way, I'm still not very close to knowing when he developed this attraction. Let alone concluding anything substantial about Paul's feelings.

(And no, I really don't find the two of them saying the other looked good when they met particularly compelling. Appearance plays a huge role in first impressions, regardless of attraction.)

So I guess, it's more that I have open questions I return to again and again, for which I try to construct hypothetical answers that make sense to me. Aside from that bigger timeline question, here's a few more specific ones:

From what I've gathered researching the topic, listening to psychonauts speak about their trips, the acid mindset very much romanticizes all forms of human connection (among other things). I think that's probably what was going on during those "I know."–"I know." sessions John and Paul had on LSD. With that in mind, how might that have mixed in with John trying to understand how he felt about Paul? Could it have confused him? Opened him up to the idea? "Appeased" him for a while? (and again, the answer here would depend on the timeline of feelings in the end)

I still lean towards "Paul is not meaningfully attracted to men" (or at least "Paul valued other aspects of his relationship with John much more than physical attraction") – with that in mind I do kind of ask myself what Paul thought his relationship with John was exactly. Like, I don't pretend it was a standard, run-of-the-mill friendship, so I wonder a lot what his end-goal was, how he saw both of them continuing into later stages of life. The way he talks about the breakup, equating John choosing Yoko with John leaving Paul, speaks to something somewhat true about most couples that marry – but why did he not anticipate that before? What was different? Also, for $20 don't copout with "hurr hurr cause Cyn didn't matter"

Paul's various takes on The John Question continue to puzzle me. On the one hand, it sort of seems to me like Paul would have had enough context clues at the time to get that John was attracted to men, because some of our evidence for it is evidence he would have had access to – he also indicated at least once that John was in fact kind of openly bicurious??? (note: that rant keeps me up at night. Could write a whole thesis on it and also it's so fucking funny) On the other, Paul is pretty insistent that the rumours are Not True and he's not actually the only person to shoot them down like that. (May Pang, Julia Baird, Tony Bramwell, Hunter Davies off the top of my head) It shouldn't be a stretch of the imagination that a man born in the 1940s might have trouble rearranging the image he's made of his dead best friend so drastically (or in a way that might feel drastic to him). So what is it? Is Paul obfuscating the question to protect John's reputation/because he thinks the curiosity is in poor taste or does he genuinely not buy into it? I'm not actually sure whether he's weighed in on this since Yoko's "John Was BI!!!!" reveal. Has this stance developed over the years? And if I assume Paul does know about John's sexuality: does he in fact think John had feelings for him? I do think this is a thing he would never talk about if he did so it feels like there would be no way of knowing either way. But it also makes me wonder about the barriers he might have set up in his head to avoid that very question – because the truth is that if John had Those Feelings™ for Paul and Paul never knew, that's sort of the second-worst case scenario from Paul's perspective, right after John having never liked him in the first place.

AND THEN THERE'S JOHN. Because just because Paul may not have picked up on it, doesn't mean John wasn't putting anything down. But he could also very much have been sending mixed signals from his own end, right? And again, acid mindset + mid 60s Free Love shit: in that culture, how much could John making advances be perhaps taken as Flowery Friendship? Did he justify it to himself that way? Or was John actually violently shoving all of that down? Was he truly capable of that?

It really never ends – I'm not certain of ANYTHING, but give me a proposal (ie. "In My Life is about Paul") and I'll talk myself into circles exploring the ins and outs of that hypothetical.

[ac-liveblogs]

Greetings! Can I share my woes with you, fellow stranger? I... honestly cannot believe that a game like genshin could possibly exist. I'm almost done with the Fountain AQ and lemme just say that... This dumbfuck journey through the nations made me fear for my own sanity. There is almost NEVER any logical progression between the stages of the quests and literally only 2,5 people in the whole fandom ever talk about this! Half the time you cannot tell why the characters are doing what they are doing and even when you can see the logic behind their actions the actions themselves are usually stupid af. And then there are world quests that are written as if they exist in some entirely different worlds! Like how the Meropide from the AQ and from the Unfinished Comedy are two completely different prisons, because NO WAY are they run by the same Duke guy. So, I've been very troubled by this. Have I lost my last braincells and this is why I can't comprehend the very good writing of the very good hoyo? Is everyone else just playing a different genshin that ACTUALLY makes sense?? Am I insane or is it the world around me that has gone mad???

Salutations, kind stranger, please take a seat!

To risk sounding very unkind, my general impression behind a lot of the discussion surrounding Genshin's story and character writing boils roughly down to this post;

Because I do get the general sense that what sticks with most people are the big dramatic moments and the general SHAPE of what you expect this all to mean or look like, not what it actually is or says. Which is FINE, praise fanon because god knows this game needs it, but my eye will start aggressively twitching when I see people praising Scaramouche's deep emotionally charged writing (HYV avoided writing as much of his story as possible though) or how meaningful a character Neuvillette is (confusing role in the narrative at best, actively detrimental to the world-building at worst).

And maybe if you're willing to accept lore dumps, explanations that character arcs happened off-screen, character bios, flashback sequences, telling not showing and animated trailers as substitutes for actual writing... then maybe it does seem like a lot is accomplished, even if you do have to bridge the gap with fanon. Like, there's so much lore! And they wrote so many words! It must be smart!!

I did chat to a colleague at work (anime fan; writing a book) who played Genshin and dropped it very early on. I asked "so what did you think of the writing" and without missing a beat he said "embarrassingly bad". So I'm going to say that most of the people that recognise it just dropped it immediately and the majority of the remainders are people that are willing to accept this. And suckers like us who sit open mouthed watching the trainwreck unfold.

Or, there's a secret version of this game I failed to download twice, and you clearly didn't get it, in which case I think we need to find the correct person to complain to about it.

Though speaking of the Fortress of Meropide, I was really amused when 'this is a DARK PRISON' collided with 'this is a GREAT prison and Wrio's so cool' in Wriothesely's quest, where the writers struggled with giving him a dramatic storyline tied to his own location so much they made him accidentally endorse a torture cult without realising how much that clashed with Wrio's previous characterisation of 'I know everything in the Fortress, including that you three are Fatui agents, to the point that I can quiz the Traveller on weird conspiracy theories about this place'.

Or like, "oh I'm really observant, I did notice this weird and suspicious/worrying thing, I just haven't done anything about it" x2 because he can't look ignorant, he's gotta know what's up, but like, think about that a second more and that's worse. Wrio. That's worse, you have to investigate those things. There is a torture cult in the basement and the entire prison almost flooded with people dissolving water, Wrio, we could have avoided these problems!

My current conspiracy theory is this place sucks like the AQ implies, but everyone just lies to Wrio and pretends everything is great and he's doing such a good job running the joint and he just believes them. The bubble almost pops in his character quest, but not quite.

Although, I hate the Fortress in it's entirety and all, but the thing that's sticking with me despite everything that Fontaine did is still.... "these people used to be oceanids but just forgot". Who forgot? Hoyoverse, apparently. Furina's quest sure didn't engage with 90% of the writing surrounding both that and her trial, huh. What a stupid meaningless twist that meant nothing and had no impact whatsoever. Why even do it.

this game is punishment for something and i'm not sure what

[necrophcge]

NAME:

Lee

PRONOUNS:

he/him

MOST ACTIVE MUSE(S)?

// Meddles here is technically my most active, but I'm doing stuff behind the scenes for my lads Brom ( @of-forossa ), and Samuel Whist ( @fishermcn ) so I'll add them here too lmao.

RP PET PEEVES?

// Ah hell man, probably a lack of progression when it comes to replies? When I'm writing a thread with someone, I do what I can to make sure they have enough from my own to continue the story we're telling together. So getting a reply in return that doesn't move things forward puts me in kind of a bind y'know? Matching or similar length comes with that as well, though I don't expect folks to match me word for word so much as giving as good as they've gotten!

Communication is also key! I know that it can be uncomfortable or a bit daunting to try to chat with folks you haven't gotten to know all that well, but with threads being something we create together we really should be on the same page. Even just a little update or the like is preferable to total radio silence rofl.

EXPERIENCE / HOW MANY YEARS?

// Shoot, it's probably been about twelve, maybe thirteen years now? Been on here the whole time and have bounced around to a few different fandoms before more or less settling down into the soulsborne community.

FLUFF, ANGST, OR SMUT?

// I'm definitely an angst kinda guy, though usually in the sense that things are going down or conflict is brewing rather than interpersonal drama. I live for fight-writing and the tension that comes with lives being on the line. Fluff is usually reserved for one and done replies rather than threads because I feel it's more impactful thst way, while smut is... well. I'm getting better at it, but it's definitely my weakest writing of the bunch. That, and I admittedly can get a bit nervous posting it out here in the wild for everyone to see (////-\\\\)

PLOTS OR MEMES?

// Both! Plots and plotting are my preferred go-to for our muses to get to know each other and establish what their relationship will be like going ahead, while with memes I'll usually go ham on a single reply with the intent of further fleshing out what we've pieced together for our muses.

LONG OR SHORT REPLIES?

// If you've known me on my other blogs you already know I tend to get long winded XD. Short replies never feel like I've said enough honestly, and by taking the time to get in depth with them I reckon it opens the door wider for potential interactions (memes) or it gives the other person more room to reply with (threads). Least amount I'll do is around two to three paragraphs.

TIME TO WRITE?

// I'd love to tell you folks that I'm a responsible, orderly guy who keeps a good sleep schedule and has a set time for writing. Unfortunately I'm little more than an animal who's as likely to bump out an ask or reply at 4:00 in the morning as I am to post something mid-afternoon. Ideally though... I prefer the evenings for it. More privacy, more time to gather my thoughts and less demands for me personally to have to address.

ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S)?

// I'm a firm believer in the notion that muns typically have something either in common with or identify strongly with their muses in some form or another, and I'm no exception. Meddles might be a conqueror, cruel and malicious, but struggling against a seemingly impossible task and not wanting to be alone in this world... yeah. Yeah, I can relate to that. It helps me put myself in their shoes and understand them better if there's something about them I identify with.

tagged by: @ferinehuntress (much obliged panda :D)

tagging: @yellowfingcr, @hexenjagd, @bcwblade, @rotten-pest, @izar-tarazed, and you!

[misc-obeyme]

CC, I desperately need to know. When commenting on or reblogging your fics, are suoer simple feedback comments still really nice to get? Like "This was beautiful" or something?

I'm struggling with feeling guilty because I am having a hard time getting energy to give longer comments and stuff. I usually write a few things about the story or related to the story but right now even just writing "I really like this!" has been taking a lot of energy.

Also, do you have an Solomon🤍 anon? If not...

~ Solomon🤍

Hey there anon! I don't have a Solomon🤍 anon, so I will be sure to add that to the anon list!

Now, as it happens, I have thoughts about this specific thing. I can't speak for all writers/artists, but I think my sentiments are somewhat universal since we're all creating and sharing on the same platform. I've also been on Tumblr since the very beginning, so that might have an impact on my personal perspective.

To begin, let me give you the short and easy answer: It is always nice to get any kind of feedback, even short and sweet comments like the ones you've given as examples. Please don't feel guilty about not leaving massively long, in depth commentary on things. Most people understand that not everybody has the spoons for that kind of thing all the time. It's honestly just nice to know that someone liked it at all.

That being said, I feel the need to give you a little bit more nuance about this particular issue, as someone who gets a lot of notifs nowadays.

Quite honestly, the fact that you reblogged it at all is really nice, even if all you do is tag it as "obey me" or something along those lines.

I get hundreds of notifications every day. And most of those are likes. I would say perhaps like 90%? It's a lot. And when one post is getting a lot of attention, my notifs just group them together. So it'll be like "username, username, and 12 other people" and then it'll indicate the post and that it was liked by all those people.

That means that if you reblog it, even without tags, it pops up as a separate notification. And to me, that's always nice to see. I'm always like OH! That person liked it enough to reblog! Thank you, friend!

I'm not kidding, that's my internal monologue lol.

I know there's a lot of discourse about reblogging vs liking, but I'm not really talking about any of that (I'm willing to share my thoughts if people ask though). I'm just telling you what it's like from my perspective.

Things that always catch my attention are reblogs with or without tags, a direct comment on a post, and asks.

Specifically about reblogs, there are different things that are more noticeable.

Like, yes, I'm going to notice if someone leaves a lot of tags gushing about how much they liked the story. I have screenshotted tags and comments that have made me happy just so I can go back and read them.

I often reread the reblogged tags on posts. It's writer-fuel.

And when I'm looking at the reblogs of a post all at once, I'm scrolling through and seeing one that's really in depth and one that's just "AAAAHHH" and i love them both equally.

Is it always going to be more meaningful and impactful if someone reblogs with a dissertation in the tags or even a whole analysis added to the post? Of course. But that is a rare occurrence and not something I ever expect to see. Nor would I personally want someone to force themselves to give more feedback than they can manage.

I just like to know that reading it meant something to you. Likes tell me you liked it, tagless reblogs let me know that you liked it enough to share it, but they don't really tell me much beyond that. A reblog that says "I really loved this!" lets me know that this piece of writing touched you enough for you to actually write a little response to me. You might even say something like, "I love *character*" or perhaps "that last line oof" or even just "a;lksdfkljasdfklj" - all of that conveys so much more to me than a like or tagless reblog. It doesn't have to be a lot. And when like five people do this on one post, it really adds up, too, you know? So I'm like Oh, the people like this one!! LOL!

So I guess what I'm trying to say is, the more interaction you can give is always appreciated, but nobody wants you to force yourself to have elaborate comments. Just a reblog is also appreciated.

That being said, if you want to get elaborate in the tags PLEASE DO. You don't need to push yourself, but you don't need to hold back, either!

I appreciate every bit of interaction I receive, of course. And I'm thankful for everyone that has followed me and enjoyed my writing!

I hope that answered the question, I'm sorry for rambling a bit lol. I just figured I could take the opportunity to talk a little bit about what it's like from my side of things! Thank you for asking, honestly, I appreciate that you're worried about making fic writers feel the love on their works! But you don't need to feel guilty, you're already doing more than most by reblogging and leaving any tags at all. 💕💕