#I'll probably do a little post about what everyone would play in the actual full band

[homeofwyrm]

1.) First time doing any comic style post here, so apologies if it's not very optimal lol

2.) Also mostly exploring what style i wanna do, so this is a little test. I forgor how hard this is

3.) Everyone was so nice on the band au poster here we are.

This is pre-band coming together (part 1)

[bigfatbimbo]

saw ur post ab the vees and i wasn't sure if u wanted nsfw rambles or sfw rambles so like... i'll send the sfw rambles in a separate ask 😭

anywaysss im thinking ab putting them all in their place.... maybe they're all arguing over you or being pissy to eachother in general so you punish them all- seperately ofc, u cant have them getting off in eachothers pleasure bc ik damn well they'd be into watching you fuck someone else especially another one of the vees

i am always willing to rant about the vees🙏🙏🙏

summary — The Vees being humbled by the reader in the form of loose, unprofessional headcanons and vague thoughts.

warnings — dom reader, sub… everyone else, very messy, not proofread, read at the risk of incoherence

a/n — I HATE THEM SO MUCH!! THEY’RE THE WORST!! Let’s as a society fuck them to tears.

So, unpopular opinion, I’ve see a few ideas of being the vees collective lay or ‘plaything’ fucktoy, and the idea is so much more fun with a dom reader.

And i’m saying that objectively too, like not just as a dom reader blog. Because these are three people who make up the worst aspects of society, and lowkey are basically just manipulation tactics personified. Propaganda the trio!

Looking at these cocky assholes, who are the embodiment of what is considered terrible people, and who all have unmatched mathematically impossibly high egos, would it just be so fun to fuck the pride out of them?

Especially, for example, let’s say you’re around a lot and you’ve become a trusted person a good fuck for the Vees. They all have terrible attention seeking tendencies, so it would be safe to assume they’d be all over you.

Vox would be trying to talk to you about whatever particular subject he thinks is most interesting (about himself) to capture your attention, while Velvette would be close to you as well, flicking her phone your direction to show you something she finds funny or hot, but mainly as a subtle power-play to get your attention off Vox and onto her.

Valentino would be much less subtle, of course, by nature. He’d be all up around you, touching you, running his hands along your shoulder blades as he walks past, and probably the type to ‘drop something’ and bend over to flash you his fishnets and panties.

Needless to say, they’re all pissing each other off immensely. Obviously, being short tempered people, this leads to an argument because Velvette was ‘talking to you first’ but Vox had ‘actually important things to say’ and according to Valentino ‘the two of you were boring them out of their minds’ and he had to ‘spice your day up.’

Unfortunately for the Vees, you don’t do your one ‘job.’ Your attention isn’t given to any one of them. Yet. You just simply sit on the couch, scrolling through your phone and flicking through channels. Maybe you even actually leave the tower and go eat out or something.

Of course, until later when you pick them off one by one. And no matter who you decide to fuck senseless first, they will be so obviously loud just to be petty because, after all, you did choose them first. Like they would be being obnoxiously vocal about how ‘full they are’ or how ‘you’re going so fast!’ or some other fake shit like that. It’s honestly a whole show. Now, I feel like fucking all of them at the same time is kind of inevitable, because they’re all deprived horny freaks on the lowkey. (Except for Val it’s very highkey.) But I think there would be little mannerisms that appear on one on one sessions that they would NEVER show during a foursome. For example, Vox’s certain… titles he uses. mommy kink mommy kink mommy kink. Because he would literally die before calling you mommy or daddy in front of Velvette or Val. It’s okay when it’s just you because it’d be easier to be vulnerable around someone he trusts to set his dominance fully aside for.

And like, yeah, the other Vees know he gets fucked just like the rest of them, but it’s simpler for him to keep his illusion of dominance and respect out side of the bedroom, if the more shamefully submissive aspects of himself stayed hidden.

Also, I think Valentinos would have an easier time actually giving into to subbing during one on one sessions. Like yes, he does sub when it’s with you all the time. That’s the point of the fic.

But he’s less of a power bottom, and his flirtatious, incredibly disgusting remarks subside much faster into whimpers and whining.

Because, although less professional than Vox, he does still have an image. And when it’s just you fucking him, his vile horny comments disappear into whines for your attention in no time. Well actually a lot of time, but the point is that they actually do. And similar to Valentinos, Velvette’s confidence when bottoming alone with you is increasingly less apparent. Yea, she’s still bossy and definitely a power bottom, but there’s more of a recognition that she isn’t in charge. Honestly, she’s such a princess I think she’d actually have a very hard time going into subspace, even when alone. Because degradation just pisses her off. Why aren’t you worshipping her like you should be? But then it’s, what the fuck, why aren’t you worshiping her like you should be?? It makes her brat out even harder, which she does show in front of the other Vees, until she’s actually just needy to be pleased and given pleasure, making her twice as whiny. That aspect she does not show in front of the vees. But let’s talk about group sex with the Vees. Probably only used as a severe punishment, or a surprisingly giving reward. I have a very particular scene for the severe punishment aspect, however. So they’ve all been bad, but let’s say, for the sake of specifics to set the scene, Val has been worse. It is still a punishment for Vox and Velvette, but punishing them all to the same extent when Val has misbehaved clearly more would be wrong, would it not? They’re all greedy, selfish assholes, so you’ve concocted the perfect form of torture for your useless brats; they don’t receive anything until they’re good. Especially Val. Velvette has a strap on, so she can’t even feel anything but minor friction when you slide your worked open ass onto the plastic dick and open your legs, exposing your empty pussy to none other than Vox. He eats you out reluctantly, while rutting into the mattress as fast as he could, all while you cockwarm (and sometimes roll your hips to press the strap against her pussy uncomfortably) Velvette. Oh, and where’s Valentino? Tied up in a chair in front of the bed, getting a perfect shot while being totally naked and hard. You have a gag in his mouth too, because otherwise he’d be complaining the whole time. Because that’s just not fair, is it? He does this all day for a living. Seriously, he watches people fuck all day. It was his turn to feel something! And you would only have punished him more if he’d done something about this at work today. (Yikes..) I mean, this sounds like complete and utter bullshit. A lose-lose situation! But, it actually is completely fair. And as you’re receiving all the pleasure, from Velvettes feelingless, fake dick, Vox’s tongue while he humps the bed pathetically, and Val’s whines in complaint, you know the punishment is working. You’ve bothered them behind belief, you’ve hit a spot you knew would leave a message. Because none of the attention is on our poor little trio at all. These naturally selfish, greedy people, have to finally give. And god, they’re becoming more desperate for your attention and praise by the second.

a/n — We all know I love sub Vox. But this opened by eyes to how much I love sub Velvette and Valentino. REQUEST THEM ALL MORE.

Also, Rose, I CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON YOU FOR A FIRE ASF PROMPT.

if this flops im throwing myself out of a window btw

[miccimocha]

It's only been like 2 hrs but I'll post the unfinished fic. I also uploaded it in ao3, so you guys can also read it there whenever.

If I ever get the motivation to write the rest, I'll post it here first.

MY GOODBYE

John Dory Centric

...

John Dory felt tired. That was the main feeling he was currently experiencing. He doesn't know from what exactly, he just knows he is.

He was currently sitting on one of the chairs inside Rhonda, staring off through tbe window. He saw a bunch of little trolls playing and running around without a care in the world.

This made him think about his brothers. JD remembers how they used to play hide and seek in the house, hiding in the most peculiar places. There was this one time where Clay hid inside the washing machine and it took hourse for them to find him. He felt the sense of nostalgia.

John Dory turned his gaze away from the window and walked towards the clue board that Branch made. It was filled with pictures back in their Brozone days. He used to look at this very fondly, but now he just felt bittersweet about the whole thing. Sure it was fun, it was thing that he did with his brothers, but it was also the very reason why all of them broke up.

He's the reason why they all fell apart.

The eldest could never forgive himself for what happened. He won't even be suprised if his brothers' still hated him, they probably just didn't want to say to his face.

John Dory took a photo from the wall. It was a group photo of him and his brothers, the day of their very first performance with Branch. He couldn't help but smile a little at the memory.

He put the photo down and went to open a chest full of things he had gathered over the years for his brothers. There were birthday gifts, christmas gifts, and even letters he wrote for each and everyone of them.

John had been thinking about giving his brothers all of it, but he never found the right time to actually do it. Or maybe he's just a coward.

He sighed and walked away from the box. There was pause, the silence was loud. Then, he went back and carried the chest to the front.

"Come on, girl. I gotta deliver some packages." John Dory started the engine and sped into the direction of Branch's Bunker.

The old troll knew that neither the youngest or the rest of his brothers were at home. They were all currently out, visiting Bruce's family at Vacay Island. It was also an excuse for a family vacation and bonding time. Altough John was tempted to go, he declined Bruce's offer when it came up. His brothers looked disappointed, he felt guilty about that, but he didn't change his mind.

He knew that if he came he would just bum everybody out and the mood will just go down. He didn't want to risk it, as much as he would love to hang out with his brothers.

John Dory begins to think on what could have been if they- if he hadn't left. If he wasn't a selfish prick who pushed around his brothers. If he hadn't put on all those pressure about being perfect onto his brothers. Maybe they could've been happy. Branch wouldn't have been alone. None of his brothers would have the insecurities they had now. It was his fault, it always has been and it'll always will be.

And John Dory knew the truth about it all. He knew that it wasn't his brothers who weren't perfect. No. It was JD, himself. He was too full of pride to actually admit it back then, but it was true. He pushed his own defects onto his brothers, and because of that, they all fell apart.

So, now, he's going to get rid of the problem. Himself.

<__>

Once John Dory arrived in front of Branch's Bunker, he got out of Rhonda with the chest. He stopped right at the "Go Away!" mat and hesitated a little bit. Eventually, he put down the chest on the ground, beside the entrance. He pulls out a pen and paper from inside his hair and began to write.

|

|

"Dear Bros,

I know this seems strange, but this chest is full of presents I had for you all, from the day I left until the day we reunited. Please open it, I swear this isn't a joke.

I also just want to say sorry for all the things I had done. I know it isn't much, and it wouldn't give back the lost time that passed, but I just want you guys to know how much I love you.

All those years I've spent in the wild, there wasn't a day I didn't think of any of you, even if I tried not to...

Love, your eldest brother:

John Dory"

|

|

The penmanship was not the best, but it was still readable. His brothers would understand it. He hopes.

He sticks the letter on top of the chest. Once done, he walked over to Rhonda, his face turning into one of guilt. "Hey, Rhonda, girl. I-..." He took a breath and tried to steady his breathing. " I'm...going to be away for awhile. Or- Well, not really 'awhile', but you know...away."

Rhonda makes a sound of confusion and fear, not understanding what he was doing, but was clearly worried about him. Being with him for all those years, she learned to pick up on his moods and emotions. Right now, Rhonda felt concerned for JD with the amount of sadness he was giving off.

John Dory smiled sadly. "Yeah, I know you're concerned girl, but I promise it's ok." He hugged the critter. "Just stay here, bud. I promise, I'm coming back. I just need some time for myself right now."

Here he was again, breaking promises.

Once JD let go of her, he patted her for the last time and walked away. As much as Rhonda had wanted to follow, she couldn't disobey him. Besides, he promised her that he'll come back. He'll never lie to her. She trusted him.

..............

Yeah, that's basically it. But, again, I'll post the next part here first before ao3 when I get to it.

[sheep-on-leash]

Everyone! Everyone! Listen! I! Have something to show you all!

I would like to apply! For the role of lead architect for the OuppyLabs Research Institute (a name that totally wasn't just made up by me on the spot), better known just as something along the lines of puppy playtime.. Okay, let me explain. There is this concept planted in my mind (and many others!) due to exchanges between @/your-subby-creature, @/softmumblings, @/smolltguy, and many more, where a bunch of pet-people, subs and doms alike, are kept in an enclosure and experimented on for sexual purposes. Since this concept has the capacity to include just about every last one of my top kinks, it has been rotating around in my mind very, very frequently. And what has this culminated in? Well...

My obsessive ass has created an entire lab-type building designed with the sole purpose of fulfilling this fantasy.. In Minecraft. It's gonna be hard to show everything properly, and a few details of the build might be left out, but I'll do my best!

Allow me to give you a totally professionally-made rundown of the layout!

We start in a reception area, where people can make reservations, drop-off or pick up subjec- I mean pets, ect. And a secondary area I intended as sort of a vetting area for the workers to vet whether or not a pet is fit for the enclosure. The display is all for show, though- chances are they'll take any subjects they can get.

Fun fact! The conversation pit is actually inspired from a very early post from Creature, where he imagined the whole puppy playtime thing taking place in such! Same thing with the one in the actual enclosure.

So! Pets get accepted, there's a little hallway, and then they're let into the enclosure! Decorated with plants, natural tones, and plenty of pet-accommodating furniture littered about, the design of the enclosure is intended to be as welcoming as possible.

Included here is a complex of kennels. Modular technology allows for each compartment to be highly customizable to a pet's individual needs.. Minus the ability to stand. The size allows for even taller subjects to be able to lay down fully straight, but only be able to navigate it on their hands and knees or sitting down.

And for the more outdoorsy, there's an outdoor portion of the enclosure thats just as large as the indoor portion. Just cut through the mudroom (wouldn't want too much mud being tracked around!), and you have a rolling expanse of nature at your disposal for zoomies, primal-play, and all your other outdoor needs! Rest assured, pets get walks outside the enclosure alongside this based on their individual needs.

And for the researchers? They have a full view of the enclosure at all time (and probably cameras for the outdoor portion) through a one-way window. From this location, they have a series of control panels to have complete control of the interior environment- light levels, temperature, humidity.. And even options for more interesting experiments, like pumping pheremones or playing hypnotic audio in the enclosure.. The possibilities are endless :3

The facility is also fitted with a series of vital amenities needed to keep the subjects within the enclosure happy. There's a kitchen for supplying food, a medical room for examinations and treatment of the minimal injuries that occur, private rooms for one-on-one training/conditioning, and even a proper laboratory for developing new technologies based on the research conducted here (no peeking, though! development is top secret ;3)

I, um, I'm not quite sure how to end this post off. Thank you for listening to my contribution for my latest obsession. And go check out @/your-subby-creature if you haven't already! I wouldn't have had this idea if not for him and the asks people have sent him ^w^

[laylabahiti]

HSHQTASK059: FAREWELL SEE YOU LATER!

when did you join ? what made you join ? what do you remember from the plotlines that were current at the time ? where were you in life when you joined and where are you now ?

i joined september 2016 when this was vikrp! i was a junior in college and had been writing indie rp for a minute before that kinda died down, so i took a peek at the tags. vikrp/haisociety/highsociety had the pairs aspect to it back then, so i fulfilled someone's jade thirlwall wc but they went inactive like right after i was accepted asjdfka. i believe the revamp to haisociety happened in december/january, truly a time to be alive. i started as a junior back then and i'm ending as a junior in my second bachelor's degree💀, a homeowner, and within the next couple years, i'll be married and have a kid*. *tbd when we're both done with school and onto other careers

which characters have you written over the years ?

layla, cameron (early days), tobias (early days), katalina, gabriel, mikolas, alaina, dmitri, juliana, ettore, emerson, tamiko, kaira

what is your favourite plotline that you've been part of ?

too many to choose from! tbh the aslan/layla/olivier triangle was fun just because of the silly ic drama it caused. i'm pretty sure it was during haisociety when i messaged e about layla/olivier, because layla has the "he helped me, i love him" mentality and we just went with it askdfa, not really planning anything or knowing what would come of it. also love the egypt plotline and anytime those siblings interacted. and the early days of barbie and layla's friendship, how barbie pretty much took layla under her wing and got her out of her shell.

what about other people's plotlines ?

definitely the chaos of england and the murder mystery event. if i remember any more i'll edit this jaksdf

who is your favourite character from the ones you've played ? why ? what made you love them ? what made them so fun to write ?

no surprise here but layla. in the early days, layla was meek to the point she hardly spoke, took everything literally, and asked too many questions. she developed her voice and learned to be a little selfish in the later years, but she's still a crier.

if you could relive a plotline, which would it be ?

the greek invasion. it might have been one of the most well-constructed events i have been a part of. i remember traveling during it and writing replies on my phone just so i didn't miss out. every character was affected one way or another, and that event was a turning point in layla's personality.

is there a plotline that you'd edit now if you could ?

i wouldn't necessarily say edit, but it'd be interesting to see how things would've panned out if layla kissed olivier back and still felt guilty enough to tell aslan.

what's a plotline you wish you would have been able to finish before closing or just write more of ?

egypt<3 getting to see amon's coronation and both of them trying to rectify the family's image. life got way too chaotic over the past year, but i love mine and lina's headcanons

what is your favourite ooc memory ?

late 2018, someone kept sending rude/hateful anons to muns and the main, and everyone banded together to keep hshq alive and well. i submitted a whole essay to the main with my comments not thinking the admins would actually post it and they DID, 2018 was an interesting time here. also in the early days when we started listing how all characters were connected and making full circles of connections, simpler times.

where can others find you if they want to get in touch ?

you can always reach me on discord! i'm in the hshq server so feel free to add me or message anytime. i have a few socials if you want those as well - if this is farewell, you've earned my real name ajkdlfj. tbh this is probably my tumblr exit, i don't have much time or mental capacity to write full threads and join something new, but this blog will remain.

what else would you like to say ?

hshq is truly the only reason i've stuck around tumblr this long. almost 8 years of my life has been spent communicating with you all! in some of my worst moments, i was able to turn to hshq and escape reality for a bit. i feel like i'm missing a lot but trying to dig up memories from 8 years ago is difficult lol.

[bakerstmel]

Fall Favorite Fic Festival, Entry 5

Remember, winter doesn't officially begin until December 21, she said pedantically.

I've delayed writing this entry because I was trying to define the reason (or reasons) why I love this fic so damn much. I read this fic at least twice a year, usually sometime in February and then again in the fall. It's a sports fic, and while I am not in general a sports person, I do love me some baseball. But the sport isn't the reason I love this fic, and I think I may have figured it out. Stick with me.

I started the link at Chapter 2, because Chapter 1 is a guide to baseball for the uninitiated. Some of it is out of date now, because MLB in its STUPIDITY has messed around with the rules this year because GOD FORBID people have to wait longer than a minute for anything to fucking happen on a sports field, and of course only HITS matter, but it is still fun to read. You don't need it to appreciate the fic, though.

Whilst I was processing this fic, I spent some time thinking about sports fics in general, and that led me to reread a couple of other favorites. One was A Study in Winning, by Jupiter_Ash. I really like that fic as well, even though I know next to nothing about tennis. I like the drama of the story, I like Sherlock faking his nationality just because, and I enjoy John being a petty little bitch to Moriarty there at the end. I feel like there for a while everyone had read or was reading that fic. Another one I went back to was Of Ice and Men, by SinceWhenDoYouCallMe_John, which is an OT3 set during the Winter Olympics. That one has John in the Paralympics, which gives the relationships an entirely new dimension. There are other good sports fics - throw your favorite in the comments, if you like. I'm mostly limiting my scope in these musings to Sherlock, as I've said before, but I'll read anything if it's good. Links to these two fics are below.

One of the ways in which sports fics have an advantage is that they have a built in structure. There's a match, or a tournament, or a season, and the relationship drama plays out against that backdrop. Writing classes always talk about the "ticking clock" approach to narrative tension, and almost every sport has some type of literal ticking clock. The Bang and the Clatter plays out over a full baseball season, including Spring Training and the postseason. That's basically a year minus the main American holidays, and EarlGreyTea does a really good job of letting the story play out at an appropriate pace. That's very impressive considering that she was posting this as a WIP over the course of an actual season.

(I need to take a minute to talk about my issues with EGT, and by "issues" I mean "soul churning jealousy." EGT is ridiculously prolific. If you go back into the fandom annals and look at the timing of some of her biggest fics, she was posting what became major reference points for the fandom in tandem, writing multiple fics at the same damn time, while, you know, teaching law or moving cross country. She is the best example I know of the importance of writing regularly. Of course, she's incredibly gifted, highly skilled at plotting, characterization, pacing, and just words. She has a fabulous imagination. Her dialogue rings true, and it's fun. But she can turn really good stuff out relatively quickly because she's limber AF. She writes. Anyone who comes to Word Sprints on Sundays or just hangs with me writing knows I'm not fast. I'm lucky to break 100 words in 15 minutes. Part of that is that I edit as I go, but it's also that I don't write as often as I would like to, so it takes me some time to warm up. I would like to be more like EGT, which probably sounds kind of creepy. I hope she doesn't see this. Anyway, she's written many of my top 20, and she actually finishes her stuff. So, yeah. Issues.)

So here is where I ended up: this is a good AU that takes advantage of the time crunch of the sport in which it is set, but that is not why I read it 2+ times per year. I read it because this is one of my favorite John and Sherlock relationships ever. It feels so in character for the way we see them in the show (at least through S2; this was written in 2013). We see them meet, we feel their attraction, we feel Sherlock's very authentic confusion. We feel their fear at being caught out, at first by each other and then by the world. They earn their angst. The way to my heart is good characterization, and this has that. Alongside the battery, the OCs (especially Sherlock and John's families) are complex and have issues of their own. Moriarty doesn't show up until the All Star Workout, which is halfway through the season for those of you who don't know, but it works because by that point, John and Sherlock have things to lose. Lestrade is the best effing choice for a beleaguered, exasperated baseball manager there ever was. Mycroft saves the day AND fucks it up, which I wish we'd seen more of in those days.

Also, John and Sherlock never get too far away from each other, and when they're separated, it's usually for narrative reasons. I like that in a fic, I've come to realize. I like to watch the characters' interplay. It's hard for Sherlock to keep secrets from John when they work together, commute together, and live together, and John is no fool. Their office isn't 221b Baker Street, it's a stadium in Austin, TX, where shit plays out in front of 30k people. John loves baseball. Sherlock loves John. They fight, they fall in love, they eat Chinese food, and they play baseball. And best of all, they are themselves together.

If you read the parts that EGT wrote after the big story, there's a mention of Sherlock pulling together a pick up game in London made of American ex-pats for John's sake, and I'll tell you what. That really pulls this fic together for me. This Sherlock would do that for this John, and we end up a little on the outside looking in, and it's just charming as fuck.

In conclusion, read this even if you don't know baseball, if you want great characterization, a chance to be reminded of how beautiful John and Sherlock were together back in the golden age. Pay attention to the ticking clocks in your favorite fics; intentional or not, there's almost always some time pressure ginning up the conflict. If you're a writer, the best way to get better is to write more. Feels like bullshit, but it's true. And finally, fuck MLB forever for going the completely wrong way on the DH. Pitchers in both leagues should have to/get to hit, and more to the point, DHs should have to fucking do something when their teams are out in the field. I will die on this mound.

(Also, if I'm being honest, Bull Durham is probably my favorite movie, so maybe I'm more of a baseball fan than I'm letting on. I do generally love baseball in popular media. But I still think it's the characterization.)

[coupleoffanfics]

I'm thinking of having batsis y/n be borderline Yandere for Jeremiah. Not full-on or anything. Just loves him to a degree that it could arguably be called obsessive and unhealthy. She doesn't have many people in her social circle, but the few she does have (Barbara, Norah, and Jeremiah) she holds onto for dear life. She just holds on to Jeremiah a little tighter because they're in a romantic relationship.

She's into the idea of true love and there being someone fated for everyone, but doesn't believe it. Just likes the idea of it. Has thought of what their wedding would be like and thought of baby names after a few months of dating. Living a nice house far, far away from Gotham. Won't admit it though because she knows how its a bit weird.

(Pre-Spray) Any trouble in their relationship y/n is determined to fix it, but it's not like it ever happens often. She's so afraid of him leaving her because she did something wrong. Although her biggest fear is him leaving her for another woman. That he finally realized that there are infinitely better options than her. If that were to happen, I mean it wouldn't but still, y/n wouldn't do anything about it. Cry alone and reinforce the idea that everyone is better than her. 'He's moved on and he deserves happiness just like everyone else.' y/n thinks to herself eating a tub of ice alone in her apartment.

When Echo comes around y/n is internally screaming and also has bi/pan thoughts. y/n gets the reason for Echo and whatnot, but she can't help feeling insecure. Echo is smarter than her and probably doesn't have undiagnosed dyslexia like her. Echo is an excellent fighter who brings up an old insecurity she has when around the Batfamily. Echo is also just so much cooler as well while y/n freaks out about everything. Don't even bring up how hot Echo is. y/n lets out a frustrated sigh, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Echo is hot as fuck and I'd call her mommy if I wasn't with Miah." "I was just asking how your day was."

(Post-Spray) This is when the tables turn actually no. This is when the tables are flipped. y/n wants to still love Jeremiah so badly. She wants to be okay with what he's doing, but just can't. The cult, the death, the destruction is too much. She feels like she failed him. If only she went to the family sooner rather than later. If only she was stronger.

Now for the first time, she has to let go of someone. Not slowly, but rip them out of her heart and never let them back it. No matter how much she tries to stop loving him, she always seems to fall back. He burrowed himself into her heart a long time ago. She'll never stop loving him deep down, but she'll sure as hell try to hide that from the family. Can't handle the judgmental looks she'd get especially with Jeremiah looking a lot like the Joker.

BONUS

y/n snuggles into Jeremiah's side while sitting on the couch. A documentary is playing on the TV. She doesn't even know what it's about because she's thinking of the reasons why Echo is so much better than her in every conceivable. Her blond hair was neat while y/n's was a [hair color] mess. Everything about her was perfect, maybe even down to her blood type.

Bottling up isn't helping and y/n knew she'd have to talk about it with Jeremiah. As soon as the thought popped into her mind she opened her mouth. Knowing that she wouldn't have this impulsive courage later and end up bottling everything once more.

"Hey, honey. Darling, sugar, Miah, Jem, Jim, sweetheart, dreamboat, hot stuff, McSteamy-" Anytime she wants Jeremiah's attention she'll start calling him pet names off the top of her head. Every time it makes his ears turn red. "Did you just call me McSteamy?" y/n shrugs her shoulders, "Did you like it?" Without thinking about it he says no with a flat tone making her smile and lightly laugh.

"Okay, no McSteamy. I'll keep that in the bedroom."

"y/n!" She slightly tilts her head back to laugh at his reaction. He rolls his eyes trying to suppress a smirk. She isn't sure if she's laughing because she's nervous or finds his reaction that funny. Probably a mix of both. After her laughter dies down he asks, "What is it."

The smile on her face disappears. Her pointer finger starts twirling some of her hair and her cheeks are turning pink. It felt so embarrassing to say it out loud. Yet she took a breath and said, "I'm jealous of Echo." Jeremiah can not get a word in because y/n is listing off a hundred things now. Half of things aren't even related to Echo it's just y/n's insecurities. Once she's done she looks at him like her life is in his hands.

Jeremiah needs a moment because he has whiplash from the sudden mood shift. Collecting his thoughts he tells that there isn't anything to worry about. This doesn't ease y/n in the slightest as he watches her [eye color] eyes shift away from him. He can feel his face burning before he even says the sappiest thing in his life.

"Look, y/n, I...I really care about what we have. The whole time we've been together you've...you've made me really happy. Happier than I've been in a long time, maybe ever. Echo and I are strictly professional and I have no interest in her because you know why?" y/n looks at him to continue. "Because she isn't you." A big goofy smile appeared on her face. She bit down on her tongue to spot herself from giggling.

"Aw, thank you. I really needed to hear that and you make me unbelievably happy as well." Jeremiah isn't sure if y/n is being her expressive self or if he actually needs to express his feelings more. He kind assumed that she knew how he felt about their relationship. "Honestly, Echo has been making me have some gay thoughts, but glad that I have nothing to worry about it. I need to use the bathroom, I'll be right back."

Leaving Jeremiah with another case of whiplash.

[alittledizzy]

I want to hear everything about your trip! Where you went in London, your thoughts about London, what you thought of Dan's show, highlights, emotional moments, food, shopping, everything!

This feels overwhelming to answer but I'm gonna anyway before I forget things.

The highlight of my whole trip was just getting to meet people. I loved London so much, and I love Dan so much, but there's such an emotional high of connecting with people that you've known online and never thought you'd get to actually meet. The day of Dan's show we did a meetup in Hyde Park and the turnout was so great!! We gave everyone black and orange landyards (@ahappydnp's brilliant idea) and plied people with snacks and @calvinahobbes made phannie bingo that we all had to talk to each other to play and it was perfect for getting people mingling. If I listed all of the people that I was excited to meet here then this post would be way too long and the links would probably start to break but trust me, if you were there, then I was so delighted to see you. There are a couple people I wanted to have conversations with that I didn't end up talking that much too but I really tried to at least have a few minutes with everyone. (And some of them even let me talk them into hanging out with us more the next day :D @heartsopenminds.)

The meet and greet with Dan was... it was? I don’t know words. It just was. (In the best way possible.) I had a nice little moment with him and took an instant photo and then he also offered to do one on my phone. Oh, and he got a bag of American goodies to take back home too and the first words out of his mouth were, “Phil is going to eat this.” so I’m just gonna enjoy that in my roughly hundred and twenty seconds of dedicated Dan time I invoked a Phil mention. 

Dan's show: amazing. More emotional than I expected. I don't want to post any spoilers so I guess I'll leave it at that, but truly great. I liked the preshow best though. Just Dan sitting there absolutely chill answering question after question? It was like the least anxiety inducing version of a liveshow ever. He talked about Phil freely in it, too. I mean he didn't say anything super exciting or groundbreaking but the casual mentions were plentiful.

On Saturday we did a whole day of recreating the Day in the Life tour (bit of the original London one, but of the Festive DITL) and the process went through such cool parts of London so it was the perfect blend of phannie-specific sight seeing and actual sight seeing. We got boba in Chinatown, we went by the Astrology Shop, we saw Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park. We shopped in Forbidden Planet. There's more I'm forgetting. It was literally a seven hour tour, it was fucking brilliant. So many props to Emma for guiding us through it all.

(I even got to take a picture with @spaceisviolent in front of the Capital Radio studios. I mean, Jimmy wasn't there, but it still felt right.)

I got chips and got to try halloumi (which isn't something you find where I'm from in the US) and then later that night a smaller group of us (airbnb roomies plus @europeansoul and @kavat, and let it be known I did not want to allow either of them to leave) ordered a bunch of Indian to make our own little tasting menu and the whole night was just hours and hours of sitting around talking about Dan and Phil and fandom stuff and other fandoms and I could live in moments like that forever, really.

Sunday was more chill and very full of delicious food. Me, @ahappydnp, @irrationalqueer, and @blackbearddan had reservations for afternoon tea. We killed some time beforehand walking along the river and drinking coffee and it was such a nice, chill time. The food was fucking amazing during the tea and I finally got to try clotted cream and the desserts were good and our view was good and the entire experience was 10/10 even if I felt disgustingly full afterward.

I also got to see some dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, which was brief but I thoroughly enjoyed, and after that I got to experience one of the most random and amazing moments of the trip. I met Amy in Glee fandom in 2012 and we used to email back and forth for literal years and have still kept in touch in a way that's pretty special to me, even if we don't talk regularly. She's not from England but she somehow happened to be in London at the same time I was and we got to hang out for not nearly enough time but it was still just SO fucking cool. It was the icing on a very magical feeling cake of a weekend. And then we had vegan asian food which was just fucking delicious and I slept in Judy Garland's actual bed.

I'm gonna be honest and say I'm not great at telling people (even in fandom, even my friends) that I care about them, and I won't pretend that Dan and Phil's fandom has always been a pleasant experience for me. But there are good people here and a good community, even if you sometimes have to fight your way to it, and getting this kind of connection just meant a lot to me. People like missemma and @europeansoul that I've known basically since I came into this fandom, and some people I've just started talking to this past year or so. Thank you especially to @ahappydnp but also just to everyone because this was my first time out of the US, much less to England, and it really couldn't have felt any more special and that's down to what I was there to do and who I was there to see.

Anyway. I wanna do it again, when can I do it again.

[cold-neon-ocean]

Do you still have some headcannons for your proxima midnight family? I absoloutely adore Proxima's family art you made and the mom is just *chefs kiss*

Aw sure omg!! I'm happy to talk about my Prox headcanons! I still had so much of her I never got around to sharing! I can't remember if I ever said her family's names here because the original post I hadn't decided on names for them yet. But her father is Antares, her mother is Helya, and her brother is Craster!

So to kinda give a general sweep of the ideas I had for her species, they aren't super advanced in the technology area, in fact they never leave their home planet so they're an incredibly rare sight anywhere else! They live in big nomadic family units similarly with a lead mated pair (in this case Proxima's parents, Antares and Helya), and extensions of the family as well. I never shared her aunt and cousins, but Helya has a sister named Miev, and Miev has 3 daughters, Estraza, Rhea, and Miran.

Proxima is actually the second youngest of the family (but outgrows everyone except Estraza who is just massive). In order from oldest to youngest of all the kids it would go: Estraza, Rhea, Craster (Proxima's older brother), Proxima, then Miran.

Here are Miev and her girls!! (this art is very old lmao, from 2020)

Proxima only ever got along tentatively with her cousins, minus Estraza who was kind of the second mom of the family unit. But Proxima and Miran especially did not ever really like each other.

Estraza has a husband and they are expecting their first child. She's got those new mom anxieties as well as looking after her sisters because they cannot be trusted to look after themselves (she would really like it if they could get their acts together). Rhea is a grown woman having her rebellious teen phase, she's superficial and a bit full of herself, she just wants to vibe and not be asked to do anything I love her. Miran is complicated, she's like a little 3D printed copy of her mom and is desperate for her approval.

This got a tad long so I put the rest under the cut XD

Miev's husband was killed not long after Miran was born and she never really recovered from it. She lost a lot of weight and just shut down for a while, and Estraza had to step up to take care of her and her sisters. They also rejoined with Prox and her family after that as well. Now Miev is just kind of spiteful and angry at everything (she loves her kids though) but her and her sister have always butted heads so everyone living together again has been a trial for sure lol

Sorry I mostly talked about her aunt and cousins alskjdf I never got to talk about these 4 but I'm flattered you like Helya! She was one of my favorites from back then ;; For a bit about her, she's kind of a tough mom, she's stern but she's also where Proxima gets a lot of who she is from. Proxima was a challenging daughter for sure, but Helya did love her very much and only ever did what she thought was best. Proxima was actually always a daddy's girl, she and her father were very close, meanwhile her brother was the biggest mama's boy lol! And Prox and Cras were good siblings to each other as well, Craster has ENDLESS patience and Proxima REQUIRED endless patience.

There was SO MUCH I had going on in Proxima's story involving her family~ I'd planned out a lot leading up to eventually joining the Black Order. So much DRAMAAA. ESPECIALLY with her aunt, especially with Miran. It would probably be more suited to to a post specifically about the backstory I had for her if anyone would be interested in that, it's been a while since I talked about anything Marvel related XD I don't wanna make this post too long akjkfdgj There's a lot more I could say, I had a lot of headcanons about her species and their culture and all that stuff that ties into story things as well~ I'll bullet a couple points re: her family though!

Prox and Craster loved to wrestle and play fight and she would always lay his ass out lol

Rhea loves doing her sisters' hair and just general family grooming, it's very relaxing for her and she actually does like spending time with her family despite how tired of everyone she acts. Miran was her main victim for the longest time because she was the youngest. On the RAREST occasions Proxima would join and they'd have a proper Girls Night.

Estraza always made a point to include Proxima in things because Proxima would otherwise not include herself. Prox had a lot of respect for Estraza so she'd always kinda just do what she said lol. It annoyed her mom a little bit because she really didn't listen to Helya all that much.

Estraza lost her eye in the same event that killed her father.

Rhea is considered rather unnaturally beautiful so she's very popular with guys but lord help her because she 100% doesn't know what to do when being courted lmao it's all fun and games for her until someone tries to flirt and then she's all "mom come pick me up I'm scared".

Rhea actually did like Proxima and wanted to connect with her, but the two are so fundamentally different and Rhea takes things VERY personally so Proxima's general disinterest would hurt her pride lol

Helya pretty much regards her nieces as other daughters. Miev cannot say the same about Craster and Prox though.

ldksjdf I'll pause here, I'd be happy to talk about them more for sure! I really liked what I had going with Proxima's story and family, I'd love to revive it somehow ;; There was so much omg like she was all I thought about for a long time, I miss her so much ;A;

Thank you for asking about her and her fam!!! It meant a lot knowing someone was interested in hearing more about them after all this time <333

[hazzybat]

hi!! Omg I love your fic and the last chapter was so good, all of these dynamics between the characters are so interesting! I also love when you give us extra lil snippets or ficlets here, and I was wondering if you could satisfy my curiosity about something (if you feel like it and it won't cause spoilers? )

I'd love to read a little scene of what went down between the others when Bojan and Jan were fucking during practice haha. Like how/when did they realise they weren't gonna be joining them anytime soon and why, could they hear them, is this normal behaviour or were they like wtf. I'm especially interested in how Nace and Kris felt, I'd love to hear Kris' POV of him realising and hearing that his not-boyfriend was indeed getting fed by someone else and how Kris felt about that.

Way shorter and not an actual scene but id also love to know what Jure whispered in Naces ear to make him even hornier watching bojan and Jan make out haha!

No pressure at all but if you did want to write something short I'd love to read it :)))

Aww thank you so much! I'm very glad you liked it!

I do really like that idea and probably will write something for how the others felt while the fucking was happening. Probably won't be a full chapter or anything and I'll post it here maybe. Might write it after I've written a few more chapters of the fic just so I don't spoil feelings and stuff. (I dunno if there would be spoilers but I wanna be safe)

I can do the other idea though! Have a little ficlet of Nace's POV during the Bo(Jan) dance floor flashback. Very quick thing.

"You wanna play with Joker Out you gotta party with Joker out" Jure slurred in Nace's ear, half kissing at the shell of it. The bassist had wondered how much of the rock and roll lifestyle the band would indulge in when he joined and it seemed he was getting his answer at their celebratory party to honour his first gig with them.

There was much less drugs and girls and much more bad karaoke and getting closer to each other than Nace realised. He knew what Bojan was and had been ready for him to be a flirt and a tease. It seemed the other three were just as bad though.

Jure had spent much of the night running his fingers down Nace's spine, sending shivers over his body as Kris giggled and told him about the last time Bojan had gone down on him.

Nace blushed hard as Kris keep repeating variations on "Dude you have to let him feed on you at least once. It's so worth it," Jure mumbling in agreement of how hot it was the few times they'd let him watch as payment for using his bed at the studio.

He breathed a sigh of relief as Kris got up to buy them all another round. The relief was short lived however as he looked to the dance floor. There were bodies everywhere but there were only two he cared about. Jan had pulled Bojan close, his hands in the demon's back pockets and lips hungrily devouring his.

Bojan moved his hips against Jan's, practically dry humping him as his hands grabbed at Jan's hair and neck. The lights danced over them as the music pounded, making them look almost ethereal.

Nace felt his cock harden even more, already worked up from Kris’s stories and Jure's lewd comments. He tried to stifle his moan behind the glass he brought to his lips. Jan looked hot, his lips easy and relaxed as they worked against Bojan's, his mesh shirt showing off his body wonderfully and his hair falling in his face. He wanted to be in Bojan's place, have Jan's hands against his ass and his body pressed close as they showed off for everyone watching. They broke the kiss and Nace's eyes met Bojan's, dark with lust and alcohol. The demon grinned at him, Jan's mouth on his jaw. Nace then glanced to meet Jan's gaze. The werewolf looked at him through his eyelashes and really that wasn't fair with how seductive he looked.

"He has a big cock I bet, maybe he'll show it to you," Jure hissed in his ear, grinning as Nace turned an even darker shade of red. The image of Jan fucking him right here and now appeared in his mind and he bit his tongue hard. The image of Jan sitting casually in the booth while Nace rode his dick, lost in ecstacy, everyone watching them and enjoying the show, sent a wave of need over him.

He couldn't be here anymore, excusing himself quickly and taking in lungfuls of fresh air outside as his head swam. He was never going to get that image out if his head. Those beautiful eyes looking at him after he made out with Bojan, practically begging him to come take the demon's place. Or maybe that's just what Nace hoped they said. This wasn't some cute little crush anymore, this was a heavy need for the werewolf to be his. Nace would have to learn to enjoy the ride if he was going to survive being in the band.

[empty-pizza]

thoughts on gideon the ninth chapter twenty-five, and predictions for the ending

now that's a locked room murder! And if you read to the end of this post, I'll actually have a complete guess for who I think is behind it.

first of all, i do not believe that the monster is something that was there all along. no, someone is taking advantage of the monster story that teacher told, i'm sure of it. there was no monster sighting for magnus and abigail's deaths, but after that, teacher told the story, and now someone behind this is enjoying the effect of showing everyone the monster. but in reality, this isn't some insane, crazy thing — it's just a big bone construct any sufficiently cracked necromancer could make. especially one in a facility that's been teaching them how to improve their necromancy. also, the messages in blood — let's flip the chessboard. why would a random monster want to show them that? i can think of a few possibilities, but i think it's more likely that the person behind this is trying to give off an effect that will scare gideon.

rip isaac. he was a good kid, in the end.

now, the proper locked room mystery is what happened to jeannemary. i don't think i know the full details — we might get some more next chapter as we investigate the scene — but we can still start thinking. Speculation incoming:

Option 1: Jeannemary let someone in while Gideon was asleep. For her to do that, it has to be someone Jeannemary has reason to trust, even without waking Gideon up (I can believe that she distrusts Gideon enough to not wake her up, though). There are only three people this could be; Isaac, Magnus, or Abigail. If one of them is secretly alive, then it's probably Abigail, because we did just see Isaac die, and I dunno, Magnus was very nice while we never actually saw a ton of Abigail. Alternatively, someone could have reanimated and been controlling one of their bodies. It could also be someone Jeannemary didn't trust, but did consider not a threat, like Dulcinea.

Option 2: There are more keys. The fact that there was only one key for each room was a guess, not a fact. Any of the people actively working on stuff could be the one who has it.

Option 3: Someone made a duplicate key. Who was in possession of the key before Gideon? Harrow.

Option 4. There is another way into the room. This would be in violation of Knox's commandments, which you totally can do (Zero Escape), or you can specifically avoid doing for the sake of it (Umineko). I'd lean toward the latter for this story but I can't say for sure.

Option 5: Someone shot the spears of bone that killed Jeannemary from underneath or above the room. It was not described in so much detail so honestly this is possible. How would they know Jeannemary's position, though?

That's all I have for now. Unless someone fed Jeannemary small bombs that exploded into bone spikes inside her body. The chef was the culprit all along :)

Now, let's look at this from a different angle and consider suspects:

It has to be a necromancer involved, due to how Jeannemary died. The funny thing about this whole Locked Room situation is that it typically might make Gideon a suspect, but Gideon literally couldn't kill Jeannemary in this way. Or could she? I mean, I know she didn't, but from the perspective of the others, she could have just prepared preexisting bone spikes. Anyway, that's a tangent.

Judith: Even with them having sucked shit, her team just feels too irrelevant. I don't believe they had it in them to pull this off, I don't believe they would have secretly had a key, and I don't believe Jeannemary would have let her in.

Coronabeth: She would have to have been a big time actor to play this whole act of being inferior to Ianthe only to have been planning all of this on her own all along.

Ianthe: Definitely possible, she's one of the biggest unknowns and potential schemers. The problem with her being the culprit is honestly that she's done so little that there aren't really enough clues to go off of.

Isaac: That would be a pretty hard death to fake, imo, and he'd also have to have faked his bestie's death, since I don't think he'd have killed her. Not hi.

Abigail: A very real possibility, assuming that the magic is so strong that she actually could pretend to be dead. That would feel a little cheap, but it's possible to make it work. Like what if she did one of the challenges and learned to resurrect herself? I don't think it's likely but it's possible.

Palamedes: Kind of a similar option to Coronabeth. He has such a strong existing personality that it's hard to imagine him actually having been faking all along. But that doesn't mean he couldn't have been. I mean, that's kind the point of a secret culprit: That they were faking their personality. I trust people too much, so it's very hard for me to consider possibilities where someone was faking how they act. That said, he's also a dweeb.

Dulcinea: Honestly, very possible. There are clues to pick up and tie together. I don't know what shape they'd form, but they're definitely out there. Maybe sending Protesilaus out is part of some plan. I can definitely believe she's pulling some shit.

Silas: Kind of like Ianthe — possible, but he's done so little that I'm not sure what clues are there.

The fact that I haven't noticed enough clues does not necessarily imply that they aren't there. It could very well be revealed to be Ianthe, Silas, or Palamedes, and turn out to have been foreshadowed in ways that I simply missed. But I can only go off of the information I'm aware of.

There's one other thing we have to keep note of, though, before we get to our final suspect. Other alibis. Many, like Ianthe and Silas, have no alibi. But there are some we know were together while Gideon and the teens were busy. Palamedes, Camilla, Dulcinea, and Harrow.

I think that honestly rules out Palamedes. I don't know how he'll get around it. Short of next chapter saying "oh yeah he left for a bit" I don't think he has a way around it. Dulcinea, probably not as well, unless she had a really clever plan, with some remote controlled skeletons, and whatever Protesilaus has been instructed to do.

But Harrow.

Let's talk about Harrow.

Palamedes says something in particular. He doesn't trust Ianthe, and he doesn't trust Silas, but he does trust Harrow. Mysteries are about subversion. When you say something like that, in a mystery, there's a good chance you're gonna get completely clowned for it. I personally consider narrative framing as important as hard evidence, but you do need hard evidence alongside it.

One possibility is that Harrow made a duplicate key out of bone. But to use it, she would have had to have left the group she was with. So it's likely impossible for Harrow to have entered the room Gideon and Jeannemary were in.

BUT WHAT IF-

SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO ENTER IT!

What are two of the skills we explicitly saw Harrow learn? We saw her learn to create crazy, regenerating skele-constructs, and we saw her learn to remotely watch Gideon. Who else could have created the creature that attacked Gideon and the others? If it's not Harrow, we'd have to answer that with someone else having developed or already had the skill. It's more narratively elegant if it was simply done by the character we already know learned it — a chekhov's gun that seemingly hasn't gone off yet! That would also explain why it didn't chase down Gideon, despite her carrying a lanky teenager — Harrow would have wanted to kill the Fourth, but leave Gideon, and had to improvise after Gideon took Jeannemary away.

Secondly, how do you kill Jeannemary while Gideon is in the room? And how do you facilitate this entire thing while Gideon is there? Simple. You watch through Gideon. Again, Harrow learning this power is a chekhov's gun that hasn't been fired yet!

There are lot of ways this could have gone. Harrow could have left a trap in the room and activated it with the knowledge she got through Gideon's eyes. Harrow could have simply used her knowledge of what happened inside of the room to tell a skeleton to go, with a copy of the key, and stab Jeannemary, while Gideon slept. Of course, a big assumption in this is that making a copy of the key is actually something that you can do with bone — it seems simple enough, but the powersets are vague in this story and it might just not be on the table.

Of course, there's a big difference between watching and controlling. Did Harrow even know she could pull this off? Well, it's more likely than you think. She probably didn't plan on doing it this way, because she didn't realize Gideon would have saved Jeannemary. She might have only realized it worked when Gideon fell asleep. Or, there were several prior times Gideon was asleep in the story — Harrow could have secretly practiced it during then.

But there's an even simpler way. If Harrow didn't just look through Gideon's eyes, but controlled Gideon. Why did Gideon fall asleep so suddenly? It could have been induced by Harrow's powers. Even if it was natural, it could have been taken advantage of by Harrow. I have to go check and see if Harrow watching through Gideon was actually something Gideon could perceive, or if only Harrow felt the brunt of it. Honestly, once Harrow mastered that power, why wouldn't she constantly surveil through Gideon's eyes?

Edit: Alternatively, Harrow could have used the other power she learned, soul siphoning, specifically to drain Gideon's energy and make her fall asleep.

How, then, could Harrow have actually killed Jeannemary? It could be something she left behind in the room in case. It might be a stretch that Harrow could actually use her powers through Gideon's body. But she also could have just opened the door with Gideon and let a skeleton in.

Now, there's the question of why. And here's the thing: I could completely believe Harrow would do this. We've seen some development between Harrow and Gideon, as they've gotten closer and more trusting. But that's been personal between them. It hasn't been making Harrow a better person. And the overall stakes of this — what being a Lyctor even means — are not something the book has really made clear. That means it's open to reveal the details are something that would believably make Harrow sacrifice others for her own success.

Harrow is one of the most pragmatic and smart players in the game, from the very start. As the game developed, we saw the choice established, between working communally to win and working solo. There are no rules. You can try to win as a group or individually. Harrow worked with others, but every situation in which she did is a situation where it would have been disadvantageous to not, or where it would have made her look bad and untrustworthy. None of that means she doesn't WANT to win solo, or that she isn't willing to kill for her success. Just that she is smart enough to be careful and secretive about it.

And Gideon is still alive.

If anybody else was trying to kill off their rivals to win at the game, why would they leave Gideon alive? Unless their way of killing Jeannemary was absurdly indirect, or they have a very specific plan that goes beyond just rival-killing, why would they leave Gideon? Simple. Because Harrow cares about Gideon — and knows she doesn't have to try to kill her loyal ally.

And the thing is, we already have a guess at what a specific plan might be. Death to the Fourth House, the words in blood said. Whoever did this wants people to think that this was done out of a specific grudge. But as far as I've noticed, we haven't seen any hints of another group having a grudge against the Fourth House, so far. Rather, I think this is a cover. This is Harrow's attempt to explain why the killings would leave Gideon out, while still removing her rivals.

Harrow, I just noticed, was even the one who suggested that Gideon and the teens go downstairs, while she waits upstairs with Palamedes and Camilla. She knows to pick on the targets she can handle.

Most of all, I think the answer should be whatever causes Gideon the most pain. It's one thing if it's a really hot girl. But it's something else if she has to face the person she doesn't realize she cares about so much, but is slowly starting to trust, is actually the killer.

If I could say it in blue right now, I would (I don't know how to do that on tumblr). Harrow killed Isaac and Jeannemary, and possibly others, in an attempt to remove her rivals, using the skills she learned to create great hulking skeletal constructs and to watch through or even control Gideon.

I am not 100% sure. This theory has many holes, some of which can easily be filled in simple ways, but won't necessarily be. There are valid alternate explanations that could be extremely interesting. But out of everything I've got, this is by far the most interesting and believable option I can see.

If I'm wrong, laugh at me later. If I'm right, send me money in the mail and don't spoil me.

[captain-astors]

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for the tg head canons

Thank you! Why did I get so many 1's you all know my favorite critter is Furuta and I know most of you hate him (fairly) but I'll take it.

1. His whole thing is kind of just layering himself in caricatures full of the hypocrisy he finds so evident in those surrounding him while simultaneously mocking and irritating them despite how arguably he's exactly within the lines set for whatever position he's placed in. Hence the swing from compliant yet cowardly subordinate, to annoying, overconfident and toxically masculine V agent, and so on and so forth. That's a lot of words, allow me to summarize: Nimura's functionally intentionally ticking off everyone at once, but technically he's always the ideal person for whatever role it is. The Washuu King Kichimura is much the same because arguably he's the culmination of everything they wanted in a Bureau Director. He's commanding, intimidating, he's charismatic, he's terrifyingly efficient and if it was actually his intention I have no doubt he could've wiped ghouls off the face of Tokyo but it's not, and no one actually likes him because they're not supposed to. He plays the perfect role not because it's what he wants, but because that's how he shows how truly disgusting those people are. He's efficient but he completely lacks morals and boundaries, he's very masculine and commanding but effeminate and ridiculous in a conflict, he's intimidating but he's so evidently taking none of this seriously, dressing up in a ridiculous costume and calling it a party because really that's what the CCG does, it dresses up the atrocities so that no one has to feel uncomfortable about it. Kichimura dresses up the atrocities so that you feel uncomfortable about the present ones, and have to start thinking about the ones of the past- though it's kind of a thing that works only in retrospect because I imagine all the investigators were a little too focused on "Oh my god what is this guy doing" to realize it was exactly what they've been doing from the start cranked up to 100. All this to say it would be entirely in character of post-clown siege arc Nimura to wear heels and the added height would make a good distinction from the meek persona of Rank 1 Furuta. I REST MY CASE!

Also this is less of a headcanon and more of a thought which is why I'm sticking it here, but I find it hilarious that he's not actually that much taller than I. Can't even joke about biting his shins because I know multiple 14 year olds taller than this man. 2. You didn't specify a character so random person it is! Uta and Itori made use of Uta's kagune disguising ability to pretend to be a pair of famous food critics they ate once upon a time, and it started as a joke but they're in way too deep to back out now. They give the wildest reviews you've ever heard, but as long as they dodge around describing actual flavors and just talk about the feeling people eat their stupid fabrications up, and they find it hysterical. They've singlehandedly demolished the reputation of 3 perfectly respectable restaurants out of boredom and they don't even know what steak actually tastes like, they're beasts unleashed having the time of their lives. 4. Ship unspecified... Mutsukanae? Mutsukanae. Sometimes the two just collapse upon each other after a long day and wrap each other in a spiky, tangled mix of Bikaku and Rinkaku and pass out for an hour. They will not be moving, do not disturb them. 9. Probably just rampant projection but Seidou feel very ADHD ish to me. I have more thoughts on this but I'm too tired to explain it and I don't want to seem like I'm just slapping it on so ambiguous reasoning it is! 12. Kagune cloning and facial copying exists as a byproduct of extremely advanced aggressive mimicry (when a predator acts like the prey animal, or the prey animal's food source so as to catch them off guard) only certain ghouls are capable of the process by nature and they're considered powerful to a fault, however a large number of the already very small portion of ghoul capable of this will go their entire lives without knowing, because their parents were killed before they could be taught how to do so, and/or they simply don't have access to the RC needed to make a branching puppet and then separate it from their main body. If you manage to get yourself to that point in the first place however, (such as Uta) you're pretty much never going to have an issue reaching it again because one ghoul with that many RC cells in their system is formidable enough, but if you're your own hunting party have pity to the poor souls deemed dinner. But such a ghoul comes around so scarcely and leaves so few survivors that it's not even acknowledged by the CCG. Ghouls without this evolutionary advantage occasionally still practice a rudimentary form of it, so people are often cautioned against chasing after a child's silhouette in an alleyway if it looks a little awkward, as there's always a chance it's really a bikaku's tail or something.

[eddsworld-the-masquerade]

Info post!

Thank you everyone for your feedback on the demos! I am very happy you all came to like it. Don't feel discouraged from sending any new feedback though, since it's gonna be awhile until I get back to work (I'm in exam hell 'till mid May), might as well use the time to advantage.

Most of you seem more interested in game/visual novel format, therefore in this post I'll talk about features I mean to implement, or think of implementing. I'll also talk about possible updating schemes (chapter basis vs. all-at-once), let me know what you think about those. For those who won't get intimidated by text, I'll leave some WIPs for artwork at the very end :3

Discussing game features!

Random events Now this is something you've already experienced in the demo, albeit in its rough form. Since I'm planning a kinetic/linear story (aka there won't be a choice system) because writing a branching story is going to kill me, this serves as a sort of replacement. Due to random chance being involved, random events will happen only during "moments of respite", so to speak, when there is no danger and no consequences for the main plot. Random events are mostly "character flavor", additional moments that, if you miss, won't hinder the major story, but they do add fun little details to characterization. This should mitigate possible unfairness while still bringing some replay value to the table. I plan on implementing a scene list, where you can view names of all encountered/unlocked scenes, sort of like achievement list.

Turn based battles This one is more ambitious but not entirely impossible. There are tons of tutorials on battle system in Renpy and even codes already written and running. Battles could be another way to make up for lack of choice system and thus lack of gameplay. Plus, the script outline already features numerous fighting scenes, and given it's VtM, I feel battles could be implemented organically. I'm mostly thinking of watered down Darkest Dungeon, or, if you're hip, Honkai Star Rail. The amount of "water" is yet to be decided, but it should be relatively simple both for me to implement and for you to play through. Don't know if I'll add anything that could be called "leveling up characters" but I am thinking of making battles skippable in options. This is still mostly an idea, and I'll need to make some tests first to see if I'll be able to implement this in actual game.

Updating schemes!

First things first, I'll need to write the entire script. The reason why I don't want to make it chapter basis is, based on my past experience, there's a high chance I'll figure out some changes needed in previous chapters as I work on next ones, so I go back and edit them accordingly. And this works best if I'm writing the full thing back to back, without publishing. Release when it's ready. This should take me a year, give or take, again based on past experience (it's almost the same amount of writing I had to do back then). I understand it's quite long but I don't feel comfortable changing this workflow of mine :(

Now, for actual game development, there are two options:

All-at-once Basically the same as with the script. I develop the entire game and then publish it in one piece. Personally I feel this would work best for me, but it would increase the already big enough wait time to around two years, best case scenario. Probably two and a half, or even three. I understand it's hard to wait that long, which is why there is a second option.

Chapter basis I develop a chapter (insert all the text, art, animation, music, etc.), publish it, then proceed to work on the next one and release it when it gets done and so on. Sort of like game patches. Bendy and the Ink Machine style if you remember that thing. You redownload the project and continue from your last save. This gives me a bit less control but also makes you wait significantly less for main story content.

Please let me know which option you would prefer.

As a thank you for reading this huge wall of text, here are some WIPs as promised :D

Part of the short comic on your regular Tord and Edd shenanigans

Something tarot themed! Missing Cat (The Star) for now. I'll probably change the composition for most of these.

Rough concepts for Tord's wAcKy family. Also him pre-embrace

Some Matilda animation. Girlboss

[burinazar]

(Umineko spoilers maybe idk)

i forget if i've posted it here but I've been reading Umineko for a really long time

I've just finished episode 5, the first "answer" arc, believing it would finally reveal what "really" happened in some of the earlier episodes (actually for some reason I thought it would be a retelling of episode 1 from a different POV, but it became clear it wasn't lol), and...it was really confusing and the whole ending was a huge slog and I still feel like I'm waiting for it to 'pay off'. I'm very willing to be patient with fiction but at this point the amount of time invested versus amount of enjoyment/portions where I actively felt like reading onwards instead of a sunk cost thing is getting ridiculously unbalanced. I've never spent this much time working through a single a piece of entertainment in my entire life, I think, not counting things that I dropped or put on hold.

The thing is, I watched the episode one stage play recently and relly enjoyed it. That I feel capable to theorize about, et cetera. Having full visuals of everything happening, even if we couldn't take the visuals as exact reality, really helped. f the whole thing was available as plays I wouldn't be having this problem, both the format and the length are far more appealing to me. I know there's a manga, but I've never heard anyone say to read that instead of the VNs or a suggestion that's the way to do it, and it's probably late to switch. I feel really frustrated. If I keep reading, it's throwing more time at somethingI've already spent so much time on with little reward, but if I don't keep reading, I'll never know what is really happening and unfortunately I do want to know.

And...I just...don't get why it isn't working for me. It's obviously true not every person will click with every piece of entertainment -- but everyone says this is good fiction for people who like to get meta, who like to interrogate the narrative, who like to form their own theories. If you've followed me for any length of time you know I love overanalyzing shit, I love reading much farther into things than the author intended, I'm enamored with 'stories about stories' and the idea of pulling out characters in the middle to talk to them and see what they think of their fate and whether they might fight against it and against the conventions of narrative is all catnip to me.

I just don't get why none of that is happening with this story for me. Could it be because I don't feel a strong enough connection to the characters and story to analyze it THAT much? It's true I'm not fixated, and that's usually what leads to me super-analyzing a series --but obviously that's not a requirement for me to watch/read/enjoy something, and I don't *dislike* the characters. Surely a lot of people were just reading this VN the way one reads a mystery novel normally, with a "normal" amount of interest in what's going on and thinking about it... I really like sherlock holmes and agatha christie (at least i used to a lot growing up), and the fact of 'i'm not that obsessed with whoever holmes is helping this time because why would i be' was not at all a barrier to following along with the mystery or applying reasoning to it...that really can't be it...

It feels impossible to theorize because I understand the format so little, and having it explained to me doesn't help -- it's just way too hard for me to tell what narration is from the point of view of a character (who may be unreliable) and what is from the point of view of a story and 'actually happening' and thus can be used as a clue to deduce off of, and the red and blue truths are supposedly to help with this but like, I'm trying to look at the story and theorize off *that* and those aren't meant to be the entire story on their own (one can use them to falsify theories but to come up with theories you're supposed to use the story itself as told in the white text...and I don't know what in the white text can "really be used", and also there's so MUCH of it and I forget half of what happened by the end of an arc).

......I've been trying to finish this VN for over a year and a half at this point. The entire experience has been so defeating to be honest. If I heard someone tell me this about LOGH when they were seventy episodes in I'd tell them they shouldn't force themselves to keep watching and that it's very likely the series just isn't their thing, but the difference is in Umineko I feel like all the time I've spent so far will be hugely wasted if I never get to find out what happened, and i DO WANT to know, it's not just a sunk cost fallacy, I don't want to miss out on knowing -- whereas someone who watched 70 episodes of LOGH would at least fucking know what happened in those episodes and quit with some comprehension of the portion of the narrative that they've covered already...

I guess I'm particularly dejected right now because I thought the ending of the fifth arc was going to have, uh, answers. Since it's an "answer" arc. But unless we're meant to believe that the culprit named at the end is the real one (it seems like no? Unless we can't even rely on her internal monologue about not being guilty. After all, her internal monologue isn't in red, so It can't be relied upon to be her real thoughts...or something...?!) I would have called myself a fan of mystery, but none of this makes me want to "think" at all because it's so confusing and so long and there's so much. I've finally hit the "answer" arcs and there are still no answers.

[scrapyardboyfriends]

If they won this year it would have been soo obvious that they won only based on popularity or bias, rather than the actual quality of the show. Like, I don't necessarily think Eastenders really deserved the awards, like Coronation Street and Hollyoaks are the shows with the best critical reception, but at least Emmerdale didn't win it. Because Emmerdale is quite frankly, awful, and ALL of those soaps deserve an award over Emmerdale lmao. Eastenders seemed to bring themselves back by bringing old, fan-fave characters back. If Emmerdale decided to do this for the revamp, what would your ideal scenarios be?

Since I wrote my other essay, I'll finally answer this one too because I did think about it back when I got this ask.

So let's see, aside from obviously somehow convincing Danny and Ryan to come back and getting the post prison ptsd story and reunion of my dreams....

Haha.

I still think if I were going to bring back old characters that I feel like would be more plausible than Danny and Ryan, I would bring in a recast Joe Tate and Jean Tate. I just really think Kim needs proper people up at Home Farm to interact with. Gabby is not cutting it. Will is pathetic. And Dawn and Billy just feel at odds with the place. I feel like Joe and Jean could really liven the place up a bit and make it feel like a return of the Tate dynasty again. Plus without Debbie to drag him down, Joe could be fun again. Jean could be a good adversary for Gabby because I'm tired of her fighting with Dawn. Like who cares. I also feel like Jean and Joe could bring Caleb back into the mix because they really dropped the ball on that reveal too since they just let Kim win too easily. I for one would like to see Kim struggle for once or at least have a challenge on her hands. It's boring just letting her win all the time. I'd like to see her at least have to compromise. Suffer them all working up there.

I'd also get rid of the HOP and put in a more practical business where we could actually see people work, not just one random person cleaning tables at the HIDE. It's so ridiculous to have an outdoor pursuits center at this point. They should have let it die with Ben and the whole Meena fiasco. That's clearly what it was meant for. Now it's just silly.

Speaking of building up families, I would also really try and coax Rik Makarem back to play Nikhil. I miss the dynamic between him and Jai and I think throwing Suni into that mix would be fun. And I would get Georgia back full time. I'd also actually bring in Amit. Make killing off Rishi actually worth while. I mean Priya could come back too but I doubt she would.

I'd also definitely use David leaving to bring in a new family at the shop. The show has been desperate for a big new family unconnected to anyone else for so long. Hasn't happened since the Bartons. Because they've tried with the Andersons but they've been so bogged down by so many convoluted nonsense connections and plots that everyone just hates them. They need to bring in a fresh family and just let them integrate into the village first. Let them exist without some major secret hanging over their heads that connects them to another villager. Let them build up to their bigger plots. Just let them clash with the village because their prices are too high or they stop carrying a brand of cereal people like or something dumb and low key like that. Haha.

If I was going to bring a character back from the dead, I still think it would be Val. Now she'd be less good now than she might have been a few years ago when Diane was still around and Faith, but I still feel like Val would be a breath of fresh air with Brenda and Eric and the older crowd. Also they could actually do something with her connection to Amy and Kyle. She could plan the wedding of the year for Matt and Amy. She could just be a lot of fun in general, which the show certainly needs.

I'd also probably try and get Adam Thomas to come back. He'd be a little lost without Aaron there but I think he would breathe some life back into the Bartons and I'd like to see him interact with Matty and Mack and maybe he could make Vic an actual character again instead of just everyone's plot friend.

I'd also definitely axe several characters: Wendy, Nate, Will, Chloe, Kerry, Suzy, Claudette, honestly Charles and Ethan at this point too, Amelia, Ryan, Gail...

Maybe I would cast a third Ellis to give Billy some purpose again too. Haha

I think it would be hard to bring back other older characters at this point because they have to be people that would really make an impact on the village and have actual purpose. I feel like most of the other people from the classic days who aren't already dead just wouldn't have any good connections to work with.

Who would you bring back anon? (assuming you're still checking for me to post this because it's been weeks)

[fangirl-of-way-too-many-fandoms]

Alright. So.

My today's agenda is:

bring some justice to Wen's actions.

I'm talking about the speculations abt him cheating on Alan that I see on my timeline/dashboard.

Let's goooooo.

Almost every post I see abt this topic mentions that Wen is actually-basically-as-it-turns-out cheating on Alan. And I'm here, at your service, to argue with that. I even have a few facts that will (hopefully) prove my point. Some are more solid, some are not so much, but anyhow.

Fact #1:

the overall feel of the condo/apartment when Wen comes back.

What I mean is that it feels empty, lonely and cold. Of course the colour palette chosen for this scene plays a huge, dare I say gigantic, role in our perception of this place and the vibe of Wen's "home". It highlights calm and cold tones of blue that are generally associated w/ loneliness and sadness.

Look at the tones and colors of that scene. They are pale, dark, kinda hostile and unwelcoming. It doesn't feel like "home", it doesn't have that signature warmth to it that every "Home" has.

And to highlight that feeling of emptiness, we're shown a few shots of a previous night. Which, despite all the 'no complications and deeper connections' thing, still feels warm and full of emotions and feelings. The contrast is literally palpable.

AND. If we can see it and feel it - all of those hints at the atmosphere at Wen's 'home' - than it was probably the intention of the creators. They purposefully created such an atmosphere so that we can get the gist of the state in which Wen's private life is at the moment. And this gist would be that he is lonely. His loneliness is actually appears to be so intense, like you can almost feel it yourself.

Side note: the more I think abt it, the more it seems like he didn't even want to come back. Like he was really reluctant to leave Jim and this little corner of comfort he unintentionally found

This leads us up to fact #2:

the feel of Wen's relationship with Alan.

It seem cold. Again. It seems to be void of affection that is usually more or less palpable in romantic relationships. The main tell-tale of that fact would be the note Alan left. It looked really office-ish. Like the note that you usually leave for your co-worker whom you're not really close with. It's 'strictly business', straight and plain.

When you leave a note for someone close to you, you usually draw some little cute doodles on it or maybe a smiley face or use a pet name/nickname of a person or write some small 'addition' to it like: "The leftovers from dinner are in the fridge. Microwave them and eat"/"I'll be back by 7. Lets have chinese takeout today"/etc. You get the idea. You do it to make the note more personal, to make a person smile, to give the note a warm feel and fill it with emotion. There was none of it.

So. Summarizing these two thoughts leads us to the conclusion that the relationship between Wen and Alan is at the VERY LEAST became cold and devoid of affection and any romantic feels. OR, maybe it even ended for good. And they live with each other for God knows for what reason, the main point of said reason being the lack of another/better option at the moment.

Now. With the speculations and ambiguous vibes of that scene - which everyone may interpret however they want - out of the way we can move on to more solid fact #3:

TAGS at MyDramaList

I'm talking about "Ex-boyfriend comes back" one specifically. Now, I know that we can't trust everything that's written and that we see on the Internet.. BUT mdl so far has been pretty accurate (at least in my experience of using it) with the info it provides. So I don't see why we can't trust this tag.

And by using some logic we can deduct that this mysterious 'ex-boyfriend' will probably be Wen's. And as such, it'll probably be Alan. Since it's mini-series that tend to be not really complicated, so we probably won't be getting any new characters who theoretically speaking can turn out to be someone's ex.

Summing this monstrosity of a post (which was supposed to be a short 3-point list of facts) up I'd like to justify my precious boy Wen's actions and state that he is not cheating per say. Like, personally I'm convinced that he and Alan broke up, so there is no cheating when there is no relationship. But if they haven't like 'officially' broke up - like haven't said it out loud that they are no longer in a relationship - but still there are no more feelings between them anymore, then I still don't really consider it cheating. 'Cus, like, you have no feelings anymore towards this person. Should you talk and break up? Yes. Are you a dummy for not addressing this issue first and jumping into some strangers' bed? Also yes. Can you be blamed and called 'cheater' if you have no feelings anymore? No. And I stand by it.

This turned out to be way longer than I anticipated lol. Sorry not sorry.

If someone will make it through all my ramblings and find them somewhat coherent - thank you. If you also have some thoughts on this, quite controversial, topic - I'm open to a discussion.