#Make your characters easier to write my golly..

[sunsetsandsunshine]

~ Dewdrops & Decisions ~

·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*𝙻𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚂𝚙𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚢 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚕𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚢 𝙺𝙽𝙾𝚆 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗 ✨*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙

𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: 𝙷𝚞𝚛𝚝/𝙲𝚘𝚖𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝

𝚆𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜: 𝟺,𝟷𝟺𝟼

𝙻𝚎𝚎: 𝚂𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚘𝚠 🏍️🖤 

𝙻𝚎𝚛: 𝚂𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚌 🌭💙

𝚂𝚞𝚖𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚢: 𝚂𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚘𝚠 𝚐𝚘𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚜. 𝙰𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝? 𝚆𝚑𝚘 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚜.

(𝙰/𝙽: 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚒𝚌 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚌 𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚋𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚊𝚜 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚌—𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚛 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎. 𝙹𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚠𝚘 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜: 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚐𝚞𝚢! 𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚔/𝙽𝚂𝙵𝚆 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚜 𝙳𝙽𝙸!!!).

𝚆𝚊𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜: 𝙲𝚞𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐, 𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚔𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚜 (𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚊 𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚌 𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚜).

𝙳𝙸𝚂𝙲𝙻𝙰𝙸𝙼𝙴𝚁: 𝙿𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚐𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚊𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝—𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚗. 𝚆𝚎𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚕𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍, 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚔 𝚢𝚘𝚞 <𝟹!

·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*𝙽𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚏𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚍𝚘…𝚕𝚎𝚝’𝚜 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚒𝚝 💃🏾‼️˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙

The afternoon sun had dipped low long before Shadow had decided to come outside; the big star casting gloomy and strangely shaped shadows as a soft breeze rustled through the grass, the trees and his black and red quills. 

The black and red quilled teenager in question closed his eyes as he sat slightly in front of a tree not far from the Wackowski home, feeling the wind brush against his entire body. 

And just for a small moment, all the buzzing chaos and never ending uncertainty in his mind slowed and came to a stop.

The steady whisper of the wind felt like a gentle hand, wiping away the fear that coiled inside of his chest, booming and projecting like a loud bongo drum. 

The hand felt soothing, grounding, and comforting. 

It didn’t feel like the hedgehog was being enclosed with the same air that filled his lungs, rather, a warm and steady hug with a breeze that seemed to carry the heavy weight that was his memories. 

The small gust of wind felt like familiarity. 

The small gust of wind felt like home. 

The small gust of wind felt like…her. 

Shadow hugged his knees to his chest at the thought, not looking at anything entirely specific as he stared off into the distance that was The Wackowski residance. 

It’s funny in a way; really. 

A months days ago…he was wondering if he’d even survive to see another sunset.

Now, he was staying at his rival's home…experiencing one... 

…Guess life was funny like that. 

“‘Thought I’d find you out here.” A blue hedgehog said way too casually as he walked up to the teen underneath the tree, a bag of jellybeans in his hand as he smacked on them like they were going to disappear at any moment. 

Speaking of the devil... 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Shadow glared defensively almost like clockwork. 

“My first couple months on Earth I sat in that exact spot your brooding in right now…only makes sense you’d give it a try.” Sonic smirked as he shrugged his shoulders, his smirk widening a tad bit as he saw the older hedgehog’s eyebrows pinch together in annoyance.

The slightly taller mammal broke eye contact, looking down at the small greenery that was their lawn. “I don’t ‘brood’.” He grumbled. 

The blue devil chuckled to himself, leaning his back on the tree as he crossed his arms casually, intaking the normal yet comforting scenery, “What do you call that big frown on your face then, hm? ‘Looks like brooding to me, man.”

The older teen’s eye twitched, ignoring the snarky comment as he picked at the grass below him, “Why are you here, Sonic?” He deadpanned, hugging his knees to his chest tightly, “Because if your here to tell me about those useless Christmas color coded plumber people again—”

“—The Mario Brothers.” The emerald eyed mammal corrected.  

“—I don’t want to hear it.” The black and red quilled hedgehog finished. “Their names don’t even make sense.” He scoffed like the two video game characters' existence was a personal offence, “Only one of them is named Mario! So does that mean he is named ‘Mario Mario’ while the other one is named Luigi Mario or is there an actual last name the creators aren’t letting us know so we pay more attention to Mario instead of Luigi?” 

“…Huh.” The slightly shorter teenager hummed, “…I…never thought about it like that.” He mumbled as he scratched the back of his neck, confused but also kind of endeared at the other hedgehog’s random revelation. 

And now that he thought about it…it would be kinda interesting to see Shadow and Tails debate on that topic…

Shadow scoffed whilst rolling his eyes, “That’s your problem. You don’t think.” He said as he uselessly picked at the grass underneath his air shoes again before letting the small strands blow away.

“Yeesh…okay, honesty train coming in hot. Aaaaaall abroad.” The emerald eyed mammal mumbled as he tapped his fingers along his arm in a timely fashion, still eating his mismatched colored candies. 

Tom and Maddie had always reminded Sonic to be honest no matter what; ‘Honesty is the best Policy’ if you will. 

But Shadow…took that saying to a whoooooole other level. 

And it showed. 

“You honestly and truly think I came all the way out here just for you to find me and converse?” The antihero humorlessly snorted, (and if the situation was more light, Sonic would’ve made a comment on it…but the Chilli dog loving teen did not). 

“I came out here to be alone.” The older teenager voiced in annoyance. 

The speed incarnate stiffened slightly at the other’s grumbled statement, putting his crossed arms and jellybean bag in his hoodie pockets as he kicked a small portion of the dirt below him, “…Sorry.” He muttered, “You just…I-I dunno. You looked…lonely.” 

Shadow sighed heavily at the other hedgehog’s sudden changed demeanor, dragging his palm along his face as he rested the back of his head on the tree bark, “I’m The Ultimate Lifeform. I don’t get…‘lonely’.” 

“That’s what I used to think.” The unruly wind giggled quietly, a small smirk forming on his face due to how similar yet how different they were, “I was never ‘The Ultimate Lifeform’ like you but I did title myself as ‘The Fastest Creature’ alive…or ‘The Blue Blur’ for short.” The green eyed mammal winked as he did finger guns at the other, holding back a small snort as the antihero’s ears drooped down in disgust.

Whether the disgusted feeling was directed towards Sonic’s persona name, his finger guns or both, the blue hedgehog wasn’t really bothered to ask. 

“I am not calling you that.” The older one out of the two of them said whilst rolling his eyes. 

“Was worth a shot.” Sonic snickered as he and Shadow both jumped slightly as parts of the sky whitened for a second, displaying a loud crackling sound as light rain started to fall. 

Sonic smiled gently, walking out from under the tree and not looking at anything in particular as he gazed into the darkened cotton candy looking fluff that was the clouds; feeling the rain cascade down his ears and onto his back quills. 

And Shadow did not question it…

…Much, anyway. 

“But…I do admit, as time went on, I realized that I kiiiiiinda gave that name to myself out of loneliness.” The blue quilled hedgehog admitted, “I-If that makes sense.” He laughed softly, “Like…naming myself that would give my existence a sense of purpose o-or meaning…like I had a destiny…even if I made up.” He said as he walked back under the tree, sitting next to his ‘dark rival’.

‘And just in time, too’, they both thought as the rain began to get more and more heavier. 

But thankfully, the two stayed dry due to the tree’s leaves shielding them from the downpour. 

“You felt…invisible and powerless; giving yourself a name such as that paved a way for you to take control and create an idea that only you could command—something strong…and heroic, unlike how you might have felt back then.” Shadow concluded. 

“Exactly!”

“Well, sucks to be you then, I guess.” The slightly taller hedgehog hummed, “Unlike you, I was given my name and purpose by my creator.” 

“…Good for you, Shadow.” Sonic grumbled at the older’s…gloating? Bragging? Sonic wasn’t sure what this conversation was anymore.

“Great for me.” The Ultimate Lifeform corrected. 

“Great for you.” The other lifeform grumbled begrudgingly, “Look Shads, I’m just trying to give you advice and trying to help you—”

“Yeah? Well, maybe don’t.” The lone operative interrupted harshly; a bit too harshly. Suffocating silence soon followed after his uncalled for statement, the two awkwardly looking away; not knowing how to start up the conversation again as it seemed to die out almost instantly. 

The silence was thick…and awkward…

Ohoooooo so awkward…

Shadow kept his eyes locked on the ground, his fingers intertwined with each other on top of his knees. 

That…sharp edge in his voice still lingered in the air, curling around the tree leaves like everlasting smoke.

The wind then suddenly picked up…not loud or violent—but just enough to stir the trees in the distance and tug at Sonic’s hoodie.

The air sent a chill across Shadow’s spine; like a nudge that wouldn’t go away.

The blue quilled teen had shifted his weight, switching to sit criss-cross on the grass; clearly slightly hurt by the other’s words but not saying a word. The young teen’s hands moved slower than usual inside of his hoodie pockets; quieter. 

No humming whatsoever. 

No side-eyes or playful looks…just…silence.

Which honestly made Shadow feel even worse.

The black and red quilled teenager opened his mouth but…the words stalled in his throat completely. 

The wind blew again, sharp and steady this time—blowing some of Shadow’s quills in each and every direction.

“Alright…alright,” The antihero muttered to no one in particular, “I get it…” 

“I’m sorry. I was being a jerk.” The older hedgehog said to the blue hedgehog, his tone softer than the blue hedgehog in question had probably ever heard it, “I just…find it weird when others show that they…genuinely care about me. I don’t know how to react.” He sighed, “But you didn’t deserve that.” 

The wind picked up again—gentler this time, brushing Shadow’s shoulder almost like trying to mimic a reassuring pat.

Sonic met Shadow’s eyes, morphing his face to a small yet amused smirk as the usually stoic brooder blushed in slight embarrassment, looking down again. 

“Anyways…I suck. You're cool. I’m sorry.” The crimson eyed hedgehog said, trying to be casual but failing very very miserably. 

“Yeah…you do really really suck.” Sonic agreed wholeheartedly, “But it's okay. I forgive you...” He giggled as the red and black quilled mammal rolled his eyes for the millionth time today, bumping shoulders with him, “…For your rude words and how much you suck.” He said more sincerely. 

The world seemed to have gone still for a moment, the kind of still that made every sound feel louder than it should—the rain pitter pattering on the tree leaves, the wind rustling in absolutely anything and everything; Shadow’s own breathing. 

Sonic didn’t say anything; just pulling out his jellybeans and eating them once more. 

Finally, the crimson eyed teenager exhaled—shaky and barely audible, “…May I admit something?” He quietly asked. 

“Sure!” The blue quilled hedgehog closed his jellybean bag to the side, giving the other his full and undivided attention. 

“Although I was given my name, what I am and what I’m supposed to do…I don’t…” Shadow exhaled through his nostrils, “As ironic as it is: I-I don’t know how to execute any of those things correctly.” He locked eyes with the younger hedgehog, “You barely knew who you were when being here on Earth…and yet you still found your purpose here.”

“Ihi wouldn’t say all that...” Sonic giggled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, “…The path to certainty is never a straight line, Shads. Purpose isn’t always a push in the right direction, y'know.” He smiled as he watched the rain fall sporadically. “Sometimes…it's an unsure but steady pull towards something that feels worth the effort—even when it seems hard or challenging.” 

“I’ve known since I stepped foot onto Earth I just…wanted to help people.” The Chili Dog loving hedgehog concluded, looking at his emo counterpart, “My pull…was my family and Green Hill…what’s yours?” 

The older teen’s jaw clenched slightly at the question—was this dumbass listening to anything he’d been saying for the past hour they’ve been out here?

“I just told you: I don’t know.” The crimson eyed teenager frowned. 

“Then figure it out then!” Sonic smiled, practically shooting up from where he was sitting, not being able to contain himself. “Life isn’t gonna wait for you, Shads!”

The antihero pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to hide his inevitable smile at his strange counterpart’s contagious excitement, “What does that even mean?” He sighed. 

“Live life! Be free! Roam! You're not gonna find your quote unquote ‘purpose’ by just lounging around looking at the grass all day. You have time…use it.” The emerald eyed hedgehog said, “Even I don’t know everything. I’m learning too…but that's what makes it all worthwhile! Don’t rush the process, man. Life is a highway afterall.” He grinned reassuringly. 

“Besides…no one said you gotta figure all of that out right now.” The speedy devil said, “I know it doesn’t feel like it sometimes, but, while you're trying to survive the chore known as life…don’t forget to live through it too, yeah?” 

“You are…strangely good at giving advice.” Shadow said. 

“Heh…I get that a lot.” Sonic giggled, his laugh emitting in amused volumes.

The rain seemed to calm now as it gently pattered against the leaves from above; having no particular rhythm other than softness and steadiness like a snowflake dancing in a snowglobe.

The breeze once again returned, swaying the rain droplets gently down the tree bark and onto the soil.

Then, out of nowhere, a tiny ant, barely bigger than a baby's thumb, crawled up the toe of Sonic’s shoes. 

It seemed to hesitate slighlty but then ducked itself beneath the shoe straps, curling its little body as if to shield itself from the outside world. 

The blue devil didn’t make a sound, smiling down at the little inscent as he gently cooed the small thing, adjusting his posture so they both had absolutely no chance of getting wet. 

Despite that fact, the blue quilled hedgehog carefully hovered his hand over the ant, shielding it from an imaginary droplet that simply seeped through the leaves. 

Shadow watched the ant as well, a rare smile forming on his face as well as he watched the two interact. 

The older hedgehog couldn’t help but feel a small sense of…deja vu? Familiarity? 

…He…wasn’t quite sure. He just knew that the situation seemed so…melancholic in a way. 

“…You…okay?” Sonic asked quietly, noticing the solemn yet sad look on the others' face.

Shadow’s face remained the same, his chest feeling tight but not in a claustrophobic sense as he exhaled, nodding his head as if a chained weight had been lifted off of and freed from his shoulders. “Y-Yes…” He stammered, watching as the ant happily danced on Sonic’s shoes as the wind danced around the three of them, “…Just…remembering something.” 

Sonic nodded, deciding not to push any further as he saw the sky clear up slightly, inhaling the fresh scent of petrichor as the small ant hopped down from his shoe, planting a spot right next to him. 

The blue hedgehog got up, stretching his arms as a loud yawn escaped his mouth, “Ready to head back inside?”

“…No.” Shadow quietly admitted, cringing at the thought of being caught in the crossfire between Knuckles and Tails’ reenactment of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Maul’s fight from Star Wars.  

“C’moooon…I don’t want you catching a cold out here, man! We can go to the porch or something but I think my butt fell asleep!” The emerald eyed teen moaned and groaned dramatically as the small ant hopped down from the shoe to frolic around the two. 

The tension in the lone operative’s face seemed to ease up, being replaced with something more playful, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, “I say again: sucks to be you.” 

“You’re mean.” The shorter mammal pouted. 

“And you're annoying; guess we both have flaws.” 

“But that’s what makes us super awesome.” Sonic reasoned, attempting to pull Shadow up on his feet but the other hedgehog stayed stubbornly where he was seated. “Nohow. gehet. uhuuuuup!” Sonic tried lifting up Shadow but the older one just stared at him blankly. 

Sonic huffed like the other teen sitting there was a personal offence, crossing his arms as he looked away begrudgingly “You're ruining Sonic JR’s sunbathing time!”

“Sunbathing…wihith noho sun?” Shadow retorted. 

“Stohop beeheeing sohoh judgemental!” The Chilli Dog loving teen laughed, grabbing the other teenager’s arms but was pulled to the ground by him almost instantly. 

“Gehet yohohour dihirty mihihitts off ohof me!” Shadow grunted, half laughing whilst Sonic tried to drag him upright. The two tumbled on the grass, laughing more now. 

Sonic straddled the other hedgehog’s hips and pinned his wrists to the grass with a wide grin, “Oho…nuh uh! You’ve been rude to me this entire time we’ve been out here! Isn’t that right, Sonic JR?” Sonic said, looking at, well, Sonic JR. the ant before looking back at Shadow, nodding in confirmation. “Sonic JR. agrees.”

“You two look absolutely nothing alike.” The red and black quilled hedgehog huffed. 

“How dare! The resemblance is uncanny! You're just too blind to see it, faker.” Sonic dramatically said, lightly pinching the other’s right side. 

Shadow squeezed his eyes tight against the action, shaking his head back and forth as he tried to break out of Sonic’s hold but to the antihero’s surprise…the younger was actually surprisingly strong,“Ihihi’m nohot the faker heeheehere! Yohou are!” He giggly grumbled through gritted teeth. 

“Says the one giggling like a Teletubby...” The blue quilled hedgehog taunted while sticking his tongue out at the other in a silly manner, poking his stomach sporadically which caused the older to squirm in every which way. 

“I-I pffteheh dohoh nohot gihihiggle!” Shadow denied, not even attempting to ask what in the hell a ‘Teletubby’ was. 

He could honestly just look it up later on Mr. Wackowski’s computer and hope for the best that it wasn’t some dumb video game character like The Mario Brothers. 

“Oho yeah, tough guy? What’s this then? Hm? Hmmmmm~?” Sonic teased, wiggling his fingers in Shadow’s underarm. 

The older teen let out a loud squeal despite his lips being completely pursed, kicking his legs from behind Sonic, “Ihihi’m gohOHONNA freeheeHEEaking kihill yOHOou!!!” The crimson eyed hedgehog shouted. 

“Pff…with what army, man? Your squeals and shrieks?” The younger snorted at his own comeback, letting go of the other’s wrist and he stuffed both of his hands inside of his underarms, moving his fingers at an agonizingly slow pace. “God, I’m soOoOoOo scared…what ever shall I do~?”

Shadow threw his head back in complete and utter hysteria, arching his back quills into the grass as Sonic’s stupidly unbearable fingers scratched underneath his arms…

…That smug bastard. 

“PfftAHAHAH—squeal! IHIHI H-HATE YOHOHOU!” The antihero yelled in an embarrassed high-pitched shriek, much to his dismay. 

“D’aww…your laugh is so stinking cute!” Sonic teased, a big, cocky smile plastered on his face as he tickled his enemy turned rival turned emo brother into pieces. 

“SHUHUHUT. UHUHUP!!!” Shadow cried, his face fur slowly turning the same shade as his irises. 

“Shuut uppp~!” Sonic mocked without letting a single beat pass. 

“IHI hic DOHOHON’T hic SOHOUND LIHIHIHIKE EHEH THAHAT!” The other teen squealed louder than the sound barrier could obtain. 

“I don’t sound like that~!” Sonic continued. 

“SOHOHONIC!!!” Shadow yelled through his laughs as the speedy devil mercilessly squeezed at his hip area. Shadow pounded his fists on the floor as his other arm wrapped around his torso, trying to bat Sonic’s hands away.

Sonic snickered in amusement; it's not everyday you could see his brooding buddy completely belly laughing, y’know! “Shadow~!” 

“NAHAHAH—hic! STOHOP MAHAKING FUHUHUN OHOF ME!!!”

“I’m not~!” Sonic protested. 

Shadow growled lowly through his giggles, kicking the air as he let out a bone quivering squeal, “YEHES YOOHOU F-FUHUCKING AHARE!” He shouted. 

Sonic, completely unfazed by the others screechy shouts, released his hands from Shadow’s arms, letting the older one breathe for a second as he dramatically cracked his knuckles and neck as he tickled Shadow once more. “Okay…that’s enough back talk from you, Mr. Ultimate Ticklish Lifeform.” 

“DOOHOO YOHOHOU hic EHEVEHER hic hic SHUHUHUT UHUP???” The black and red quilled teen howled. 

The speed incarnate hummed in fake thought, peering up to the iridescent thing that was the night sky, “Never tried; and don’t eeeeeever plan to.” He said as he tickled Shadow’s ribs and hips with SuperSonic Speed™, catching the older so off guard he snorted loudly before submitting into a new fresh wave of desperate cackles. 

“Geez…I gotta do this more often.” Sonic beamed, “Your laugh is pure serotonin, man.”

“O-OKAHAHAY SQUEAL OHOHOKAY!!!” The slightly taller mammal cried a breathy squeal, happy tears of mirth forming in his eyes as he banged his fists on the ground and the other’s arms for one final measure, “STOHOP! STOHOHOP hic STOHOHOP IHIHIT NOHOW!!!”

“Alright, alright…I’m stopping, I’m stopping.” Sonic ceased his torturous tickling fingers almost immediately, letting the older catch his breath as he got off of him. 

“You okay…?” The emerald eyed teen asked a couple seconds after, “I didn’t overstep any boundaries, right?” 

“I-I’m ohokahahay.” Shadow grumbled despite the wobbly, silly little grin he was trying to wipe off his face. 

Jesus…this family really made him soft as hell. 

And he will admit…he kinda loves them for it. Go figure. 

“Good.” Sonic nodded, putting a hand on his hip, “Now can we pleeeease go back inside?” 

“Suhure, Sohonic.” The older one chuckled lightly, getting off from the ground as he dusted himself off, shaking his head fondly as the blue quilled hedgehog smiled down at the ant and scooped it up in his palm.  

Shadow rubbed his arm anxiously, his eyes still on the other, “Sonic?”

“Hm?” 

“…Thanks.” Shadow admitted quietly, “For the talk. And well, you know…”

Sonic smiled at the small flustered words of appreciation, “‘Course, twin. Always happy to help.” He giggled as he bumped elbows with the others, squeaking when the other in question sneakily jabbed him in the side, “AHACK! H-Hehey! Hehey!” Sonic absolutely squealed, “Yohohou're attahacking ahan uhunaharmed mahan!” He playfully scolded, “Wihith a chihihild ihin thehe vicinity!” 

“You attacked me first.” Shadow deadpanned. 

“Yeheah! Buhut you deserved it!” The speed incarnate huffed as he crossed his arms in a dramatic fashion before putting Sonic JR. down carefully and picking up his jelly beans, eating them directly in Shadow’s face, much much to the others dismay and disgust. 

“SONIC! SONIC #2!” Knuckles’ voice came distant and sharp from the porch to the two hedgehogs. The two paused their bickering, turning towards the red echidna, “MOTHER REQUESTS YOU COME INSIDE BEFORE YOU CATCH A SICKNESS KNOWN AS THE COLD!” 

“Aww man…” Sonic pouted before clutching his chest as if he’d been shot, “Hey…wAIT A SECOND…‘SONIC #2’?!” 

Shadow took offense to the nickname as well, clutching his chest as he glared at the other, “I was born before you! If anything you should be Sonic #2!”

“But my name is Sonic! That makes no sense!” The shorter teen  shouted in obvious disapproval. 

“You don’t make any sense!” The red and black quilled hedgehog retorted. 

“Your face doesn’t make any sense!” 

Knuckles blinked as he watched the two hedgehog’s back and forth from a distance, “I wonder what they are bickering about…” He stood outside for one second longer, completely baffled before heading back inside, letting the screen door swing shut behind him. “…Oh well; not my problem.”

“Whatever…we can discuss that later.” Sonic huffed before pointing to the house with his thumb. “You ready to head in?” 

“…Yes.” Shadow agreed, “Lets…Let's go.” 

“It's: ‘Gotta go fast™’…but you'll get the hang of it.” The emerald eyed teenager smirked at the other. “Bye bye, Sonic JR!” Sonic smiled sweetly as he blew kisses to the insect, “Seeya later!” He waved as he dashed to the house with his usual speediness. 

Shadow chuckled fondly, crossing his arms as he walked to the Wackowski residence. And as he did so, he looked up to the blue dusky gray/grey sky; no rain in sight. 

Shadow's chest tightened—not from the cold or uneasiness, but from that too familiar feeling that crept into his heart without warning. 

That…certain heaviness that felt like it was stuck to you like molasses. 

Sonic came back outside after realizing Shadow didn’t quite follow after him. 

But Sonic didn’t rush him, just quietly stepping towards him as he held out his hand, “C’mon, Shads…Dad popped popcorn to watch the rest of Tails and Knux’s weeb fight thinga mabobber.” 

The taller mammal looked at the smaller’s hand and then took it without a word, the both of them walking towards the house now.

The wind stirred—soft and low, almost like a satisfied sigh. It brushed through Shadow’s quills, curling around his torso like a ghost of a hug. 

Shadow blinked…and for the first time in years…his breath came a little—no…a lot easier. 

Shadow looked back at the tree and squinted, looking at the tiny ant that was still where the two hedgehogs were sitting earlier. 

“What?” Sonic asked, trying to look in the direction Shadow was. 

“…Nothing.” Shadow murmured, eyes still on the ant, “It’s just…still there.” 

“Guess Sonic JR. just really likes the wind.” Sonic giggled, slipping inside the house with Shadow. 

Outside, the wind tapped once against the window panes, stirring at the tree leaves and making them rustle gently.

But despite all of that?

The ant kept going. 

·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚𝙵𝙸𝙽˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙ 

(𝙿.𝚂.: 𝙸𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚎𝚗𝚓𝚘𝚢𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚒𝚌, 𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐!!!)

©𝚂𝚞𝚗𝚜𝚎𝚝𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜𝚞𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚎, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟻. 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚊𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚒𝚜 𝚖𝚢 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚢 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚎. 𝙿𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚍𝚘 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚝, 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎, 𝚙𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝙰𝙸, 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚐𝚒𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚣𝚎 𝚘𝚛 𝚌𝚘𝚙𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚠𝚊𝚢. 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚔 𝚢𝚘𝚞.

[fountainpenguin]

Riddle watches New Wish - Post #12

Stanky Danky

Me: Huh, Mark's extended family must have stopped dropping by to eat the pollution. Mr. Guzman: There's even trash in space! Me: oh no

I like how Hazel consistently wears her hair covering at night. The first time I heard this show would have a black girl for a protagonist (like a year+ ago), I was really nervous about whether it would be handled well- I'd braced myself for "trying too hard to score diversity points."

I have to say, I've liked the hair style variety within her own family, and I feel like there have been more black background characters than I remember from the OG show (though I didn't go practically frame by frame in the OG like I'm doing for this liveblog).

I didn't say it in "Trial or Hair-or," but I enjoyed how Hazel formed a stronger bond with and love for her hair, as I feel like that would be important to her personal identity. I like how she always wears this hair covering to bed. Little details like that make me feel so much more at ease about something I was really nervous about for what feels like 15 months.

SLKDJFSLDKJF Cosmo and Wanda are still sleeping in separate beds. I mean, that's standard Fairy culture in my 'fics, so it works for me.

Trash monster is nice! Didn't see that coming.

Hazel: I wish he could speak at least a few words? /wish granted and he can speak only a few words

I knew it, Kennueth IS on a cliff in that poster. I'm surprised Hazel had to wish for him to breathe air last episode.

Uh-oh, it's Dimmadome time- WHAT DO YOU MEAN "one-time use helicopter??" Sir, you can't bring that to an event about polluting less and saving the earth! ... Is Dale in there? I have to assume so. I've been missing him.

Me: Aww, Dale looks just like his old self! Awesome, and easier to recognize when he's not panning across the- OH MY GOSH!!! Dale: When I was your age, I spent my Saturdays working in a factory underneath a lemonade stand >:/ (Pulls out photo of him from "Nectar of the Odds"

Sir. SIR!! Do not repeat the abuse cycle with your son!

-> I hate that he just carries this around. Dale, you need to let it go. And maybe sue Vicky, idk.

I'm CRYING, I love how they gave him false teeth. That's hilarious.

The boots... That's a Dimmadome, all right.

Like, on some level I'm glad Doug spoiled him after he was rescued from Vicky's lemonade horror show, but I'm gettin' a bad feeling...

I can only assume this family tells horror stories about Vicky. This is the funniest anti-hero backstory ever. I was also going to treat Dale's torment 100% seriously in 'fic, but this is way more fun.

They are not cutting any corners. They didn't even change his backstory; he literally got tormented underneath a lemonade stand for 7 years. That's the one piece of canon he was given in the OG show and by golly, are they sticking to it.

Did Vicky take over the lemon torture pit from someone else?? Did she start this gig when she was 9? Is she gettin' retconned? Hm.

They definitely do not drink lemonade in the Dimmadome house. Please let me see Hazel offering Dev his first taste. If we don't get that as an episode someday, I'm writing a 'fic.

Dev trying to get out of pollution clean-up day: But... is our company even earth-conscious?

Too funny.

Okay, I've been thinking about it ever since Episode 1, but why didn't Dale get a fairy? I was waving it off under the assumption he'd only been underground for a couple days max, but... with 7 years, now I have questions.

-> Did Vicky move her lemonade kids around? The stand wasn't always on Timmy's front lawn, but... Surely Cosmo or Wanda would've detected him if he WAS under Timmy's lawn for 7 years.

WELP, trash monster's upset there's not gonna be more trash to eat if they clean it all up. I can see the problem. Uh-oh...

Why do I get the feeling that Dale has said "Come to Daddy," to the trash monster more than he's said it to his own son?

Hazel's parents didn't come to the trash clean-up?

sldkfjsdklfj he's still got the boots... I hate him /affectionate.

There is something severely funny to me about how they've made it clear they took inspiration from Dale's canon design, but his adult design lost his fluff and cowlick and has sleeker, professional hair. Something about this feels very correct for this art style because I feel like a lot of the adults have shiny hair without little tufts and decorations. I might redo my adult designs.

Oh, Hazel doesn't even know that's Dev's dad because she didn't see his mental pictures in Episode 1. This keeps getting better. I love how she also said "That guy with the ridiculous boots" after I pointed out the boots. Yes, Hazel, we've been over this... He's a Dimmadome.

Cosmo and Wanda in their apartment again! Just chillin'.

I don't know why I didn't expect Dev's drones to be called Dimmadrones.

Dale to the trash monster: You're like a son to me! Dev in the background:

The moon is still a waxing crescent when you're in space? ... I mean, I guess.

Peace of Pizza

Ya know, I'm surprised we haven't seen the Ya Boix drinks come up more than the fact that Kev sponsors them (mentioned in 2 episodes). I guess it's nice that they were depth for a side character, but that surprises me since they're the first thing you see in the theme song.

Ooh, Dev's in the title card! Where's this going?

I like how Hazel was using Cosmo pencil to stab Wanda eraser. She may have fairies, but she's still a bored schoolkid.

I... I was going to cheer that we had a list of names for classmates, but uh...

The Kindness Chart isn't in alphabetical order. I feel like putting Dev at the bottom was a targeted move.

Or it's reverse alphabetical since she's Hazel Wells and he's Dev Dimmadome.

It's still a waning crescent?

Maybe I'm old-school, but "pea pod aliens" is setting off all my alarm bells.

... Aliens are insisting everyone loves pizza, but what if someone's lactose intolerant?

Okay, since we're just coming off the episode where Dale reminded Dev he was locked underground making lemonade for 7 years, I feel like I don't blame Dev for not trusting anyone?

Like, I get the feeling his dad is emotionally absent, but this might not entirely be his dad's doing. I'm not sure I'd trust people either if my dad got yoinked for 7 years when he was my age.

Especially since Vicky's whole thing is that she's nice until she starts bullying. Yeah... don't trust.

sdfklj, Dev slam-dunking his stuff in the trash can and backflipping away. That's so unnecessarily extra.

Does the news never have anything important to report? ... I'm glad Winn brought up the thought of getting their own pizza, since I was wondering about that myself.

SLKDFJSDF...

Hazel: Dev, I have someone here who wants to talk to you! Dev: What's she doing? The Closer: She's trying to use someone close to you to appeal to your emotions. Dev: ... ?? No one's close to me. wtf. /scene change where Cosmo is dressed as Dev's dad.

Oh, this is gonna go great.

Dev, instantly switching gears after hearing "his father"'s voice through the door: ... Dad? You took off work for this?

Ruh-roh.

-> Wanda can read him like a dog-eared book.

So... She- she's gonna report this to Jorgen, right? I feel like she's supposed to do that. She's gonna tell him this kid is ticking multiple misery boxes, right? She's not just gonna ignore this... Wanda, please.

Not sure how I feel about the running gag that so many adults look like Timmy's adult self from "The Big Problem." Throws me off every time and I wasn't a fan of that design anyway, so it feels weird.

HE'S LACTOSE INTOLERANT, I KNEW IT! ... Well, not really him specifically, but I was on the right track.

Oh, this is terrible. Am I mistaken, or aren't lactose intolerant pills like, $10? Does he know? Does he know.

Dev: I thought lactose-free pizza was just a myth?

Dale, you're a terrible father.

Also, I like how a lot of effort was put into converting their designs to 2D, right down to Dev's yellow zipper stripe:

Okay, that's enough for this post... On to "A New Dev-elopment"!

[danses-with-dogmeat]

Y is for -- Yes Man

Yay! Golly, who doesn't love Yes Man? He's just such a sarcastic little sweetheart and I'm not immune to his adorable, securitron charms. So, here's this!

I hope you all enjoy!

And with this, that's it!!

Thank you all so much for being a part of my lil 2k celebration! It was so amazing seeing everyone's reactions to these prompts, and literally SUCH a treat to write for some of these more "unfamiliar" characters! Love you all, and thank you so much for celebrating with me!

Next event updates will be coming... very soon 👀 So stay tuned for that! ❤️😊

And here is the 2k event masterlist, for your browsing pleasure!

--

Pair: Yes Man & Reader

Dialogue: “Promise me you’ll still be here when I wake up.”

Word: Yours

Rating: SFW

Category: Hurt/Comfort

Word Count: 1.7k

You paced back and forth around the hotel room, the only sound the scuffling of your slippered feet and the scrawl of your pen over the legal pad in your hands. 

“Is it enough, though? Did we even cover the–” Your eyes narrowed as you looked over your scribbled notes, trying (and failing) to blink the sleep from them as you attempted to decipher the chicken scratch upon the page. “The Boomers? What’re we doing about them when we take power, I mean, I haven’t even met with them yet, what if I get–” 

“Yep, we sure did talk about them, Six! Remember? In the first meeting we had today! The one at 4 in the morning that you insisted on! You remember now?” 

“The one… oh yeah, I do now.” You chuckled, flipping through the papers on your pad to the notes you’d taken-- what was it now, ten hours ago? 

My handwriting was much easier to read this morning, that’s for sure…

“‘Send a securitron with a note…' oh yeah, that was a decent idea.” 

“Sure was!” Yes Man agreed with that same dopey, optimistic smile permanently etched upon his face. 

After so long a day, the smile became much harder to believe. 

“Definitely get your best ideas after having slept a full night, don’tcha boss?” 

“Maybe…” You bit your bottom lip at that, catching his meaning through the words easily. 

Time for bed, boss. 

He’d never give you a command outright, you knew he couldn’t. It’s not what… what Benny designed Yes Man for, after all. Still though, suggestions he gave rather often. And this suggestion, most often of all. 

How many days has it been since I let myself sleep? And here? Probably never…

Well, not since that first night, anyway.

“Six? Still thinking of some wonderful ideas, or do you want me to go and get your pajamas for you?” 

“Still thinking right now, Yes Man.” 

Though, you allowed yourself the small reprieve of sitting on the edge of the bed. The mattress gave generously as you sat upon it, the plushness of it overwhelming you after so many nights spent down in Freeside at the Wrangler. 

“Might head out pretty soon, here.” You told the bot, with the knowledge that he could easily guess where you meant to go. “You can stay here tonight though, if you want to. I’ll be back early enough, I’m sure.” 

“Sure boss, sounds like a swell idea!” Yes Man paused, but you could tell he wanted to say more, you didn’t quite know how you knew that, but something about his tone, or maybe even his expression–

I really am starting to lose it, huh? 

Yes Man’s expression doesn’t change.

Guess this is what happens when you get 3 hours of sleep a–

“Yes. I think it makes total and utter sense for you to walk to the Atomic Wrangler through the strip and Freeside– which is known to be quite dangerous– at two in the morning without me by your side to help you! And then to come back here in the morning, likely as early as four a.m. to chat with me some more! I’m so glad we’re going to have someone as dedicated, dependable and quick-witted as you leading all of New Vegas real soon! You seem completely equipped for the stresses that’ll bring!” 

You pursed your lips as he spoke, your tired gaze resting on the dull, pulsing glow of his screen lighting up with each word, casting a green-tinged gleam over the carpeted floor of the Tops' hotel suite. 

“I don’t know what to do, Yes Man.” You admitted with a small voice, and heard the turn of his wheel as he scooted closer to you to better hear your words. “I… I can’t stay here, can’t sleep in this room, after Benny…” 

With a sigh, you laid back on the bed, your body aching and pleading for a rest, even as your mind cast the sensation of a thousand ants crawling over your skin at the feel of the familiar sheets. The smell of the room, the décor, even the sounds; the dull conversations and jazz music that were all blaring far down stairs, the squeaky whine of the elevator moving along its vertical track, footsteps pattering through the halls… Anytime there was quiet, any time you weren’t moving, thinking, that Yes Man wasn’t talking, you were sucked back into your memories of this place. Your first time here, with him. 

That wretched man who tried to kill you. The asshole, who talked his way into your heart through the span of one night, who made you feel… singular. Like you could conquer the world, and run the whole thing, with him at your side. 

Just give him the chip… Just stay the night… 

Do what he said, and he would give you the world, and his heart, all at once. 

You kicked yourself every night at the thought that you ever believed him. 

But what could you say now? At the time, you were scared, you were alone and angry, and then… Then you were in love. Quickly, yes, but still, you were.

And for what?

You raked your nails down your face painfully, and a deep groan escaped you as you were caged by your own memories in this wretched room. 

“Well, Benny… Well, that guy’s gone!" Yes Man piped up, "It’s just you and me now, Six! You don’t have to worry at all–”

“I know he’s gone, Yes Man! That’s the fucking problem!” You sat up suddenly as you shouted at him, and the bot backed away from where he’d started to approach you. “He and I were supposed to do this together! Not just me and– and– fucking you.”

You were on your feet now, and Yes Man was caged in against the opposite wall as you stalked towards him, with nostrils flared and teeth in a snarl, you continued.

“You were the enemy. You told him how to follow me, knew the best place for him to fucking shoot me and leave me buried in the dirt, you were meant to plot with him from the start, and now? Now... why? Why the hell do you care what happens to me? Why are you planning all this without him? Benny was the one who made you, programmed you, what… What the hell are you doing with me, when… When you’re his.”  

There was no malice in the end, it had all escaped you in the first bouts of shouting. Now, all that was left was a somber sort of curiosity. Honest, but dejected all at once. 

Even now, I’m still holding onto a part of Benny…

“Because, Six, well… I’m not his anymore. I’m yours! I like planning this hostile takeover with you, and I like the meetings and the way you ask my opinion!” 

You looked up from where your gaze had rested on the dull, red carpet, your eyes now meeting Yes Man’s optimistic screen, and lighting up with the glow of it.   

“Benny may have asked for me to be made, and programmed the way I am, but then… Well, he left both of us, didn’t he?”   

Was that… a bit of anger and, even, a touch of sadness in his upbeat voice?

Maybe I am just losing it…     

“He was my boss, but now you are! And even more than that, you’re my friend!” 

You blinked at him, feeling your throat swell up with emotion at the word he used. 

Friend. 

“Y-you really mean that, Yes Man?”

“Sure do, pal! We’re closer than two buildings snugly adjacent to one another! And I mean it!” 

A laugh couldn’t help but pry itself from you, and you nearly fell over from the force of it. Until you felt one gentle, metal hand brace on your shoulder. 

“Don’t know why you found that so funny, friend, but I sure am glad you did! I like to see your smile! And I’m not just saying that to be nice! I know it can be hard to tell when I mean something because of the way Benny programmed my voice, but I really do mean everything that I said! And what I said right now!” 

“Okay, okay!” You were still falling over, holding your stomach as you laughed until your eyes watered. “Thank you, Yes Man, I believe you, I do.” 

Somehow, you were back on the bed, sitting with Yes Man’s hand still on your shoulder as you fought to catch your breath. 

“A-alright…” You spoke, once you’d calmed down. “I… might be able to sleep here tonight. Maybe.” 

You bit your lip again, knowing damn well you were one bite shy of making it bleed with all the nerves coursing through you. 

“Just… Can you promise me something?” 

“Sure can, once you tell me what it is!” 

“Can you just… promise me you’ll still be here when I wake up? I know it seems silly, but–”

“Yes, Six. I promise I’ll still be here when you wake up!” 

A smile touched your lips at his words, and even with that feeling of foolishness at the forefront of your mind, you felt… reassured; like the sustained, comforting pressure of his hand on your shoulder. 

“Thanks… Friend.” 

“Sure thing, Six! And, I want you to know, I’m not just promising that because I have to agree with everything you say! I would promise it either way!” 

You laid back, finally feeling the fatigue in your body and mind take hold of you and force your eyelids to close and your muscles to relax into the mattress below. Still though, even in your exhaustion, you found it in you to broaden your grin at Yes Man’s words.

“Glad to hear it.” You told him, “And… goodnight, Yes Man.” 

“Goodnight, Six!” His voice was quieter, as he wheeled himself back into his corner of the room and dimmed the lights down, “I’ll see you in the morning!” 

It was almost a whisper, but still, the comforting words rang through you as you finally felt sleep take you into it’s comforting arms and lull you into a pleasant dreamland.

[staceymcgillicuddy]

annual writing self-evaluation

Thanks to @astorytotellyourfriends for the tag - I didn't do this last year!

1. List of works published this year (in the order that they were posted):

If She Lived in Space, Man, I'd Build A Plane crimson & clover pulling overtime model citizen; zero discipline what you give just serves me right two jack trippers and a chrissy perception check all my kinktober fills a hollow tree

2. Work you are most proud of (and why):

Gosh, that's hard. I'm proud of all of them for different reasons, and I have issues with all of them for different reasons. I guess I would say "what you give just serves me right" makes me happy, and was something I had to push myself to do, but I was pleased with how it turned out in the end.

3. Work you are least proud of (and why):

I hate that I have two fics out that I haven't updated in ages! I am not proud of that! And there are a few things in all of them that I'd tweak.

4. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

Oh golly. Alright, from a hollow tree, which was my Halloween fic featuring Lilith!succubus!Chrissy:

Fog slips into the van when he opens the door. A mist so thick it’s disorienting as he drops to the ground, and the shape of a girl forms itself out of the gloom.

5. Share or describe a favorite comment you received:

Almost every single regular commenter on Soul makes my heart sing and my panties drop, and I'm so sorry my brain is being stupid right now.

6. A time when writing was really, really hard:

Right goddamn now. It's like squeezing blood from a fucking stone, and I have no idea why, but everything comes out strained and blechy and I hate it, and I refuse to inflict it on anyone else so I'll just sit like a lump, churning out crap and never showing it to anyone.

7. A scene or character that you wrote that surprised you:

Genuinely did not think that I would get so into the Hopper/Chrissy/Eddie dynamic as I did when I wrote it as a crackship as part of kinktober. But, like, I could get DOWN with that shit.

Also, Hellcheerington surprised me. Oh, and writing Eddie's dad for Soul was weirdly cathartic? I was determined to make him a person and not a collection of cliches, which was easier said than done. I think I got there, in the end. Hope so, anyway!

8. How did you grow as a writer this year:

I didn't, I fucking regressed. Or, no, not really. I pushed myself a bit, tried to get sharper and cleaner with some prose. Read some theory books, worked on my rhetorical devices, forced myself to kill a couple darlings along the way (but not all the darlings, god damn it).

I also published a book, so yay?

9. How do you hope to grow next year:

I'd like to get back to writing original fiction. I've been in a slump with that, too, because it doesn't have the instantaneous feedback that fanfic does. I want to split my time between fic and pro writing stuff, and I want to be very realistic about how much mental energy my real job takes up. When I used to write like a madwoman, I didn't have the role I currently do, which is a senior project manager leading a team, working mostly with executive-level staff. Don't get me wrong, my job pisses me off a lot, and stresses me out, too, but it pays well and we live in a shithole of a society where money matters in the grand scheme of things.

So, like, I guess I hope to grow as a writer in writing even when my brain doesn't want me to, or it doesn't feel great to do so.

10. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

Freaking Shirley Jackson, man. That bitch can write.

11. Anything in your real life show up in your writing this year:

I'm always putting kinky shit I see or experience at the bdsm club into my fic. I am as God made me.

12. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

Everything is made up and the points don't matter. Stop comparing yourself to other authors. Turn off stats on your AO3. Write what you fucking want and quit worrying if other people are going to like it.

13. Any new projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

I'm going to be so, so glad when Soul is done because I love it so much but it is also the millstone around my neck.

14. Tag three writers/artists whose answers you’d like to read:

@binickandros, @pipergirl17 and @phoenixwrites please!

[angeart]

ask game 12 &13!

yayy more questions! okay i'll start with 13 because it's simpler:

13.Any segment of your work that made you cry while writing it? (because it moved you deeply)

so. i cry easily. but i don't tend to cry while writing, i think? i don't have the greatest memory, so i can't be sure. i remember one time i cried while writing hmtb, but it wasn't because i was moved deeply jcnbjk (it was actually a mellow scene and i just. unexpectedly triggered an unpleasant memory, oops.)

in a way, i think it's easier to get emotional while working on RPs, actually. i might've cried at those in the past, mmh.

now, if you asked me when did i get anxious while writing. that's a whole another thing. i do deal with a lot of heavy emotions in writing, and, yeah. anyway, the answer is yesterday. (hmtb grian is doing perfectly well wdym-) (i had to stop writing after 8 sentences and take a break everything's fine-)

12.Funniest comment you've ever gotten in a piece of work?

this is a fun one! i don't think i have a favourite, i'm not the best with putting things on a scale and deciding that's the most this or that. add my bad memory into the mix, and about a year of writing a multichapter fic, and- well. but! i dug through and made a small collection of comments that amuse me! (there were many more, but i'm trying not to swarm you completely.)

i cannot tell you how much i appreciate and value the comments i get. i read every single one, and they matter a lot! they help me immensely and i am insanely grateful for them. <33

anyway, the collection of comments that make me giggle is under the line!

♥ please, consider this a love letter to all the commenters. ♥

Chocolate_Cake_Enthusiast on Chapter 3 of Elegy: ANGE UOU ARE THE SINGULAR SOURCE OF MY ANGST AND DEPRESSION (…) POOR GRIAN HE BETTER BE ALRIGHT OTHERWISE I WILL CHUCK A TENNIS BALL AT MY TOE

-

ghostpi on Chapter 7 of hmtb: TIS BUT A FLESH WOUND.

-

Eucalypta on Chapter 18 of hmtb: I forgot this had a ship tag so I was reading all previous chapters like: "what deep soulmates they are! Wait … Thats a bit gay. Well sometimes platonic love goes very dee- No thats definitely gay… What were the tags again?"

-

Tiand on Chapter 21 of hmtb: So- uh- Where can I send my therapy bill?

-

wimrow on Chapter 26 of hmtb: WOOOOO I DONT FEWL LIKE SOBBING WITJ THIS CHAPTER!!!!!! (this will absolutely change later on won’t it)

-

genderfluid_bitch on Chapter 29: *does a little jig* THE BABIES ARE HURTING AGAIN

-

Amabsis on Chapter 30 of hmtb: “Grian, are you okay?” NOBODY IS OKAY IMPULSESV!!!

-

Chat on Chapter 31 of hmtb: THATS A BRILLIANT WAY TO END A CHAPTER BUT OH MY FUCKERY ARE YOU CRUEL FOR IT.

-

peskytimes on Chapter 39 of hmtb: everytime i read this fic my mental state gets worse <33 /pos

-

Alcea_42 on Chapter 42 of hmtb: so sometimes 42 doesn't solve everything-

-

Holly_Loves_Reading on Chapter 46 of hmtb: Oh my god they’re so cute! Not even a little bit healthy, but so cute!

-

Pidgey05 on Chapter 47 of hmtb: Omg 200k words of pain and now finnally some fluff T^T it was so beautiful thank you author, for this gift 🤣

-

SongbirdQuela on Chapter 48 of hmtb: Everything’s going so well! Oh jee wiz I hope nothing goes incredibly wrong, boy would that be a rollercoaster, oh golly I can’t wait to see absolutely none of the characters doing anything self destructive!

-

Heartpaw on Chapter 48 of hmtb: “Did you two have a romp?” Says you. Your the one not wearing you own pants. Are you sure YOU didn’t have a romp

--

also have a kiss collection of you guys going insane <33

The_Pesky_Crow on Chapter 28 of hmtb: 12 Chapters from now, in a land far far away, the Grain kisses the Scar

-

Linkito on Chapter 41 of hmtb: I absolutely cannot believe that I binged this FORTY ONE chapter fic of A HUNDRED AND SIXTY THOUSAND WORDS and these idiots haven't kissed. Unbelievable. You're taking slow burn to a whole new level bless you and also I hate you LMAO

-

Bones_exe on Chapter 44 of hmtb: I'm going to be a crinkly old man by the time these two smooch huh?

-

Chocolate_Cake_Enthusiast on Chapter 44 of hmtb: JUST KISS ALREADY. PLEASE. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. PLEASE JUST KISS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-

Xanadu:Wynter on Chapter 45 of hmtb: PLEASE JUST ONE KISS

-

Bioluminescence on Chapter 45 of hmtb: I THOUGHT THEY WERE GOING TO KISS I WAS HOLDING MY BREATH AND THEN THEY DIDN'T this is honestly so predictable of you though smh

--

and some bonus screenshot stuff <3 (first two from elegy, the rest is hmtb)

(in the one below you can see a beautiful duality of comments /pos)

i hope that was fun. i had fun putting this together <3

love you guys!!

----- questions from >>this ask game<<

[oh-no-another-idea]

For the space asks! :D

🚀 Rocket - What do you do when you get new ideas midway through a story? ⭐️ Star - Do you have a favourite character? If so, why are they your favourite?

Thank you so much for the ask, @eccaiia friend! <3 And these are good questions too :D

🚀

I always write down ideas in my planning document, the storyboard document, and if a quick one comes in for the near future, I usually scribble out a quick note to myself a few lines down from where I'm currently writing, as a reminder. If they're real changes, then I would likely either scrap the thing if it's shorter and start over, or wait biting my nails until the next draft...

If it's a brand new unrelated idea, I throw it in a new document and it ruins my writing productivity for a solid few days while I plan and twirl my hair and giggle 🤦‍♂️

⭐️

Hmm, a favorite of my own OCs? Golly, that's so hard, I have so many favorites!!! Paris is probably my favorite in Invisible Girl, Quin is in Stars and Ships, I really love Azrail in Cemetery Sisters, but I also love every single character in that story, so it's really a love fest from me. There certainly are some that are easier to write, and some that are just so fun to play around with, and some that make me groan when I realize I've forgotten they're in the room and they haven't done anything for three pages...

Space Ask Game 🌌

[shivunin]

15 for the get to know your fic writer ask game please?

Ooooh great choice! I have a lot of thoughts about this. Thanks, Anon c:

Obviously, I'm going to be talking about sex here, so if that in any way makes you uncomfortable I recommend giving this one a pass.

(Fic writer questions)

15. How do you write smut scenes? Do you get very visual or detailed? How important is it to be realistic?

Okay, so! Background information in order for me to answer the actual questions coherently:

I think the first thing is deciding the point of the smut scene I'm working on. I notoriously struggle with just writing straight-up PWP, but usually the idea has to do with the positioning of the characters and their relationship with sex/intimacy.

Some of that (often a large part) has to do with each character's relationship with their body, or in other words how much they "live" in their body versus how much they "live" in their head. A character who's distant from their body will have a totally different perspective of sex and touching than someone who doesn't think very hard about that relationship and so on

Secondary to this is the character's relationship with sex. Are they inexperienced but curious? Experienced and uncomfortable? Untrusting, but willing to be vulnerable with their partner/s? Are they coming into this scene with any expectations of the experience or their partner/s? Have the character/s in question been intimate in this way before, and if so how do they expect this round to go?

<- all of that is something I would have in mind before I even begin to start plotting something out. It's not necessarily something I'd write down, but if you have a good feel for the character these are things you'd probably be considering about them...If that makes sense.

Now for the actual questions!

Often, the precipitating "seed" for smut winds up being something like "how might Fenris's alienation from intimacy/physical touch be expressed in a moment centered around intimacy and physical touch?" or like, "how does Cullen express complex feelings about jealousy and loss when he really doesn't have the experience/language to do that?" They usually wind up being questions about how a character relates to someone close to them and the expression of those questions takes the form of exploring sex/intimacy.

And yes, sometimes it's just "someone needs to peg that man and by golly I may well have to write it myself," which is also perfectly valid

I've read a lot of sex/smut/erotica/romance novels etc. so I have very strong opinions about what I enjoy/don't enjoy in this sort of prose. I think the most important thing, for me, is finding a balance between concrete and abstract. "Purple prose" is just not my thing, so overuse of metaphors or very mixed metaphors are something I try to avoid at all cost. I love poetry, but sometimes it just drags me out of the moment.

If my reader doesn't know where their legs and arms are, it's going to pull them out of the emotional heart of the moment (whatever it is).

If my reader only gets, you know, body parts and flesh and fucking, that's all well and good but there's already porn out there for that. Which I have no specific objection to, but like---the point of fic is that it's a representation of particular characters. I want all of my fic to feel like a true representation as much as possible, smut or no smut. I don't think I can do that without some reference to their personality traits/emotional characteristics/etc.

So, again, it's a balance for me. I want it to be easy to visualize what they're actually doing while still holding onto the thread of the emotional/plot part of the scene. For some characters, touch is an easier and clearer way to communicate than words. How are they showing that? If touch is hard, how are they showing that? And so on.

Is it important to be realistic? For me, yes. God. There is so much awful smut out there (I read a list of lube stand-ins a while back and like....please, please, if you ever think of using motor oil or peanut butter for lube, please just stop and go to a sex shop instead) and inaccuracies like that, again, pull me right out of the moment. If I want to feel totally drawn in by the scene and the characters couldn't physically be in the position they're in, I am going to be so focused on trying to figure out how they're doing it that I've already stopped caring about what they're doing.

Idk I just really enjoy writing smut. I feel like it can be such a fun microcosm of a character's personality and beliefs and it's just!!! so fun to delve into. I have a whole bunch of wips that I may never post about it, because I find some questions so compelling but don't necessarily want to get into figuring out if it's a misrepresentation to say that, for example, Fenris is into consensual voyeurism or w/e.

I think the TL;DR here is that with smut, I like everything in moderation: clear physical details balanced with emotional motivations, powerful visuals intermixed with internal considerations, and, of course, I have to be having fun doing it or there's really no point in writing smut at all!

[mocacheezy]

Things that made watching Transformers (2007) easier and even enjoyable:

[note: B'verse gets the treatment that it gets by fandom for good reasons. There are tons of posts that dissect the bullshit of these movies far better than my second-language-english-non-american self could ever tackle, so I am not doing that, or plan on doing that. But if I decide that I'll get through every continuity of the franchise I will find a way to make it fun for myself. And so, this is my search for golden nuggets in these movies, because they did bring in new fans to the franchise and that's why we have other continuities that we might not have otherwise. Credit where it's due, and some positivity for those that did find B'verse at least amusing if nothing else. ]

🍴🥄🔪🍴🥄🔪🍴🥄🔪🍴🥄🔪🥄🔪🍴🥄🔪

Frenzy

Anytime Frenzy was on screen made me smile because his movements and personality were hilarious, he is just so expressive despite looking like someone super glued a bunch of knifes together. I wouldn't know it was Frenzy if I didn't go to the Wiki, but no matter that, he was funny and that's what matters.

The original Cybertronian robot modes

We don't see them for long, but the glimpses were glorious. Just look at Optimus

Gorgeous. What I wouldn't give to see the details up close. Maybe I'll go looking eventually, but this is just so nice.

We also get a "sexily rises from the pool" scene with Ironhide (probably unintentional and I am biased due to being a robofucker. In any case, very very nice and Cybertronians look so good as aliens)

"Excuse me, are you the Tooth Fairy?"

You see this kid?

This little girl was the only human I cared about in the movie until I saw just how badass Mikaela is, and how cool the military dude is. I don't like kids, but I would lay down my life for this girl.

This one scene just makes me think of what would happen if her parents showed up way earlier. Ironhide would be her guardian and it would be both adorable and hilarious because "Honey, you have to drive in a sentient alien that looks just like our car because the goverment men said so or there will be consequences and potential alien threats."

There are so many joke potentials there; the cultural barrier, the "I am the ine that is supposed to keep her safe" glaring contests, there is just so much shenanigans that could happen.

Also, tea party with the kid. Tea party with the kid.

Sam Witwicky actually reacts like an average human would when faced with the situations he finds himself in

Do I like Sam Witwicky? No, he is the kind of character that I would want to punch irl because of his personality and actions. He is disgusting. But watching him scamper and scream and stutter when faced with giant metal robot aliens that can squish him like a bug? Good, that was a beliavable reaction and I enjoyed it a great deal.

Megatron. Just, ✨Megatron✨

(the best screenshot of the few I could take while watching, no, I am not going back for a better one, he looks perfect like this)

I also laughted at how they kept him frozen like a popsicle. And not even well, like, they COULD'VE made an actual freezer and pop him in instead of using those couple of tubes just so he was displayed for all personell to gawk at. HE CRASHED IN THE ANTARCTIC!

The design looks so good, because it looks ALIEN and POINTY and AGH!!! The colors? There are no colors that would make him stand out, he looks like someone opened a cutlery drawer, mixed up what's inside, threw in some extra knifes for a good measure and then shook the whole thing until this guy materialized from the pile. It is both incredibly annoying and satisfying.

🔪

Mr. Welker did an amazing job with his voice, I don't know what the directions were, but oh man it sure sent shivers down my spine. That is the kind of voice that spells "You are going to die" and I already have my coffin picked out.

EDIT: SO APPARENTLY! IT WAS NOT WELKER THAT VOICED MEGATRON.

It was Hugo Weaving, and yes the man did am amazing job, but I apologize a million times, I was CERTAIN that THE OG VA OF MEGATRON WOULD ALSO HAVE VOICED MEGATRON. LIKE, OKAY BAY, OKAY!

🔪

LOOK AT THE AMOUNT OF ICE! With how quick he came back fully online once Frenzy turned off the freeze liquid tubes, I bet he was half awake through the whole thing. Systems just below idling or something, in any case, AGENTS YOU ARE SO DUMB! WHO WAS GIVING SUBPAR FUNDING TO THEM, THEY BETTER BE FIRED!

I also was glad that Sam refused to call him by the name the sector asigned to him, despite Megatron being in stasis. And that he insisted they use the correct name. Good job Sam, acknowledge the threat by the actual name and show respect to a fellow sentient lifeform. Even though said lifeform is hellbent on destruction of the universe and your world.

ALSO, AND I CANNOT STRESS THE LAUGHTER AND AMUSEMENT HERE; the sheer DISRESPECT! They don't disassemble Megatron's corpse. No, these idiots, these absolute morons decide to dump him into the ocean, letting him sink to the lowest possible point (not sure if they did say it was the M' Trench or not), where there are proper freezing temperatures - good! You're learning, good job!! - just... In full. Full corpse. What's left of him. Just blup! Down with the fishies he goes!

I understand that they probably didn't know how to approach Optimus about it, but... At least behead the guy. He came back ONCE, who is to say he won't come back again?! Safety precautions my dears.

They also completely disregard what a giant extraterrestrial metal alien rusting away on the bottom of the ocean could do to the ecosystem at large. Like, I find this incredibly amusing, because this ISN'T something most folks think about when watching a movie but we have giant squids down there. We have so much weird things down there, the ocean isn't even fully explored AND YOU WANT TO CHUCK AN ALIEN CORPSE DOWN THERE?!

Now the real question: is he a looker? *looks at the pictures* hmmmm, depends on if you like knifes. Like, really like knifes. Like really, really REALLY want to get it on with a fine assembly of kitchen knifes that were exposed to the elements but somehow haven't rusted away completely.

I think he's neat.

Needs a good long powerwash though. Preferrably with something to help the whole "I was frozen for more than 50 years and sprang back to action as soon as I woke up" thing that happened.

My man needs to take a moment and get his bearings, like dude. Please. You can conquer the world after some energon and slow system boot-up period. The strain on the systems my dude, you ain't young.

Also love that this "death" was probably reused in TFP because lord golly, do we love our faves ending up under the sea. (Though Megan took a much bigger fall, Bayverse WAS PLOPPED INTO THE WATER LIKE A NEWLY ACQUIRED FISH I CAN'T YOU GUYS I CAN'T!)

In short: I love the comedy of american military giving such disrespect to an Alien Warlord. These guys are really sealing their fate.

I loved the way they got the Witwicky family to be important to the plot

The whole "selling my great great grandpa's glasses on e-bay" thing gives us a very good self insert/OC/rewrite/movie AU potential. Don't like Sam and his disgustingness? Find a way to write a cousin or some far off relative or hell, even just someone who buys the glasses off e-bay and go wild with it!

Archibald was also clearly an inspiration for Isaac Sumdac as far as I can tell, what with both of them using Megatron as a means of helping technology advance.

Only difference being one of them lived and actually talked to Megatron after he came back online and the other got driven to madness and death due to the amount of information beamed into his brain. Isaac also acquired a space baby daughter, so the guy is absolutely luckier of the two.

Mikaela being fucking competent and badass throughout the movie, and not being just fanservice eyecandy

I could do without the fanservice, but her personality? I loved it. I loved that she wasn't crawling to Sam and wasn't being "hard to get". Which is also why I was very displeased at the very sudden "oh yeah, romance! She returns his feelings after he took her for a ride and let her vent her frustrations!". The movie is 2 hours long and they could throw in some moments where these two connect?

Welp, it is an action movie, boy gets girl no matter what, can't complain about the staple in the genre.

However, Mikaela x Optimus? Now THAT is something I considered as soon as the two locked eyes and interacted. Like, even taking my shipping goggles off, these two could have a very interesting dynamic and Mikaela could be a very good protagonist. I wonder what the movie would be like with her as the lead and Sam being the fucking moron she has to drag along with her.

BUT ALSO! Can we talk about the horrible, excruciating fact that her and Bumblebee drove around with Bee's damaged legs dragging over asphalt all the time he was shooting at 'Cons? There were sparks flying! SHE WAS DRIVING BACKWARDS! She took command of the situation and did what she could because Bee still wanted TO FIGHT!

Also, they way she beat up Frenzy? Gorgeous, I want to slap Sam's non-existent balls off for not atleast saying "thanks". The dude would be sliced thinner than cabbage if she wasn't there.

The millitary man we are supposed to care about because his wife gave birth while he was on duty and we see his baby three times in the whole movie, actually being a pretty awesome and well-written character

Look, personally, I was a little confused at the reason why we were seeing his wife and baby interacting/the scene where she thinks her husband is dead. Mostly because I don't like kids, so scenes like that, when I don't even know who the character is, have no impact at all. Him having a baby isn't going to make me like the guy more, unless I know his character. Him being absent because he's on duty doesn't mean he'll be a good dad (though he looks like the kind of man that will try his best, and I like that in a man). So seeing his wife and kid at the start of the movie seemed pointless to me.

BUT! FOCUSING ON THE POSITIVES HERE!

Lennox is a good character and whenever he was on screen I was invested in what is going to happen to him. He's the kind of action movie lead that would have me invested, despite my meh interest in mainly gun fight oriented action movies.

Essentially, loved the guy, would love to see more of him while also being able to tell what's happening on screen. Also the comedy scenes he was in were usually funny.

~

Okay so these are the things I like about the first movie! It was very long, had to watch it on 2,5x speed because it simultainously dragged while ALSO giving me too much information, but the moments like these and the way my imagination latched onto characters I liked made it watchable. It isn't a movie I'd use to introduce someone to the TF franchise, but it provided me with lots of material for my imagination to run wild.

[stasammenarchive]

knowing your partner well makes writing together a lot easier. tag this with the people you enjoy roleplaying with but want to get to know better.

BASICS:

name: carys age: 28 preferred pronouns: she/her sexuality: aromantic asexual zodiac sign: leo taken or single: single three facts: i have the memory of a goldfish, i want to go back to university to study criminology and my love language is gift giving 

EXPERIENCE:

how long (months/years?): oh jesus.. it’s been uhm... golly.. since i was 9?? almost?? 20 years?????? HUH???? WHAT how’d you start: neopets lol platforms you’ve used: neopets, proboards, youtube, msn, skype, tumblr, facebook, discord

MUSE PREFERENCES:

female or male: honestly i’m good with both but maybe i do lean to the girls a little more? i’m not sure why favorite face: don’t have one least favorite face: don’t have one

WRITING PREFERENCES:

fluff, angst or smut: fluff AND angst.. sprinkle ‘em both in there :) i love writing them both so much...  and i’ve only recently started to do smutty stuff again, i stopped doing it for a good few years, and i’m slowly writing it again. it’s fun but not my go-to.  plots or memes: i’d say both personally? just because i like plotting, but i can also be forgetful and not reply to messages.. not because i don’t care, i just.. really struggle w my memory. it’s an issue. memes help keep me interested in things, even if i’m really slow to reply i will always get to ‘em..  are you like your muse(s): uhh not really?? i tend to write characters not like me because i don’t like myself VBGHGDF (unnecessary self-depreciation aside..) i just like a vast variety of muses.. it makes it interesting. 

tagged by: stole it tagging: you :) 

[uncleasriel]

As the resident Reign/One Roll Engine fanatic, I cannot emphasize how awesome this would be for that sort of play, especially if you're partial to some elements of the NeoTrad style of play.

Reign sells itself as "a Game of Lords & Leaders",and by golly it delivers. In addition to having what Unseen Library delightfully calls "TWO Charismas" (Command and Charm, the Yelling and Politeness stats) , it also has a subsystem for organizations called Companies, which are essentially collectively owner player characters that everone at the table can have a stake in

Characters are very similar to how World of Darkness characters work. There are base Stats representing raw talent, and Skills representing trained experiences. Dice Resolution is a basically making a dice pool of Made of Stat + Skill dice, rolling them, and counting the matching sets that result.

What's interesting is how the game also has Companies, which can be both player-facing and NPC organizations. These can be of any scale from your moldering village backwater Dunny-on-the-wold where you're lucky if your stats is no greater than 2, to the massive Veklandian Empire where multiple stats are ranked at 6.

The Company scale things are slightly abstracted, and usually only about one can be made per in-game month, but this ultimately sidesteps some of the more insufferable micromanagement that such a game would imply, and instead leaves room for player characters to take actions to benefit their Company (or compromise a rival Company). Your assassin sneakily took out a sleeping enemy leader on the eve of an important battle? Enjoy a whopping +3 Bonus to that Company Attack roll when next it happens.

It also has wonderful rules for converting Company Abstractions into wealth, or hirelings,or using those hirelings in Mass Combat, all effortlessly translating one to another with a real elegance.

I think that's how I would describe Reign in a nutshell: elegant. Greg Stolze writes some of the most eminently readable prose in TTRPG writing in my opinion, and when I bought a print copy the Enchiridion at a Toronto comics shop for about the cost of a fancy coffee, I devoured it in an evening. You can randomly create characters on the fly, just as easily create Followers to traipse around after them, command those followers in mass combat (in a way which integrates with but never outshines Player Characters) and overall have a jolly old time. There are clean rules for how to handle one Company absorbing another, which makes everything from benevolent mergers to hostile conquests workable and comprehensible to anyone familiar with these rules. The system is designed to be modular, where there are varying degrees of complexity and tactical nuance you can introduce or remove at your player's leisure. If you're feeling spicy,you can even graft on powers from Wild Talents pretty easily, though I do warn that WT is a few degrees crunchier than Reign.

Back when Game of Thrones was on everyone's radar, I kept trying to tell people to run it with this. As much fun as the original Song of Fire and Ice TTRPG, Reign is so much cleaner in play.I found I absorbed the rules fairly easily - they are intricate but keep referring back to the same core mechanics in a way that feels comprehensible and coherent. Grok the core One Roll Engine concept of dice sets and how their timing works, and you've basically got the game on-lock. I also must reiterate the readability of the instructions and rulesets - it's way easier to grasp than Burning Wheel IMO.

Reign is probably my favorite traditional RPG and I wish more people would try it. There was a newly released Second Edition that has both the Base Rules all neatly organized, the base setting that Reign was designed for (and all it's deliciously weird magics, special talents and cultural lore that you should borrow for any game,and the Enchridion (a 1e basic rules summary that's completely compatible with 2e, but isn't as comprehensive). Greg Stolze also put up a lot of the optional rules on his website (this was before he consolidated them all into 2nd Edition), so you can pick and choose what you want here. As well, there are a smattering of alternate settings called Reign: Realities you can poach from, but they're not essential for the task at hand.

Please read and ideally play Reign. I want to have more people to know about it so I can play it with more people. Also Greg Stolze is the coolest and it'd make me family if he got money from you.

What ttrpgs would you recommend if you wanted to focus on kingdom-level politics?

Depending on the specific focus I could go for a few

If I wanted to mostly make the game about the interpersonal conflicts and rivalries of nobles in a king's court and have it be serious, mostly like a big character-driven drama, Burning Wheel, definitely. It has a lot of mechanical grit for running deeply passionate characters who probably want to get balls deep into intrigue. However, it's also a very heavy game and I would only play it with a group who actually cared about learning a somewhat complex game.

If I wanted the interpersonal dramas of nobles in a royal court played as a comedy of errors, I would go for Most Trusted Advisors. It's absolutely hilarious and I want to play it right now. Kind of like Black Adder as a TTRPG.

Now, both of those games still approach their drama via individual characters and their motivations instead of as something that has kingdom-wide consequences that reflect on the whole map. For that type of gameplay I would probably pick something like Free from the Yoke.

Honorary mention to Reign which I know is about controlling whole factions, but I don't know enough about it to be sure.

[incoherentbabblings]

Thank you so much for your reply! You have no idea how much it means to me, and quite frankly, write more! I'm a prolific writer so seeing essays-as-responses only makes me smile ... especially when it has to do with Steph (or TimSteph).

I didn't want you to do the work for me since I already had my outline down, knew for the most part what I was going to talk about, and had my sections planned out. I just really wanted to hear your thoughts on Stephanie Brown as a character, how badly she's been mistreated, and how she's important to the people around her.

Thank you again!

(Also also, have you ever heard of Hadestown? I felt like the main love story fits Tim and Steph so well!)

You're welcome! I apologise if it wasn't quite what you were looking for, but it was still fun to write regardless. 🤗

For me I think the reason I have attached to her so hard is it's always easier to attach to characters who are motivated right? And Steph is just such a motivated character. What those motivations are can be fucking wild, but by golly she always goes for what she wants head on. Tim's much of the same, so it's fun when those wants butt heads and then it becomes a sort of push pull of who's actually thought through what they want more - usually Tim though!

I love Steph because she's undergone a life which was designed to grind out any joy or kindness or laughter and yet somehow she ends up with plenty. I think it's the fact that it can be read as a conscious effort on her part. She deliberately shies away from thinking about how she has been mistreated and instead looks at what she can do to protect herself from it happening again, without clamming up emotionally, as well as see to it that it doesn't happen to others. Like, she can still think Damian's a massive prick and pain in the arse but she can also see him as a traumatised child, which is something really only Alfred and Dick manage initially. It's that empathy and compassion which she grows into which is just such a great direction to take a character.

If I may be overly personal for a moment - that mantra of hers which kind of boils down to 'just keep going' is one I very much identify with. I had an absolute terrible time of it mentally betwen the ages of 17 and 20 (which I am still teaching myself ways to deal with) just before I started to really pick up comics proper and honest to goodness, some days really all you can tell yourself is this dogged, stubborn, angry, 'just keep going'. There's nothing else you can do but keep moving and living and trying, even if at the time there's no clear solutions to your issues; it becomes nothing more than a case of endurance.

So whilst our living circumstances and life experiences are about as dissimilar as you can possibly get - that approach to life really resonates with me, and why I'm quite protective over her. Less I see myself in her, because I'm not a working class American teenager with a broken home life and exceptional physical skills, but rather in the way she sees the world is quite admirable to me.

ALSO YES TO HADESTOWN. I haven't listened to all the differing cast versions, but with Eva singing I'm not sure I want to. The characterisations in her version work better if you want to look at it from a TimSteph angle certainly (red carnation flower UMMMMM).

[jpoeg]

listen to this dream I had

So. I had this dream last night that I was directing a movie, and by golly the quality of this thriller/psychological horror film my subconscious created is grade A. I don’t have any writing talent so I’ll vaguely detail it here, and word of warning mc has some kind of mental illness but I don’t know which one, It’s just that she has one that results in the entire plot. I don't know enough about mental illnesses so i cant (and dont have a right) to make that call. So. yeah.

So, the main character is this college aged girl Ashley. She had light longish red/brown hair that was parted down the middle but fluffy so it worked. She had a kind of strong jawline and a small nose and kinda light brown eyes. I don’t need to go into this much detail but by golly I remember way too much about this dream. She was like 5”7, rather skinny. She wore a startling number of turtle necks. Anyway. 

In the opening scene, she was walking to her next class or some shit it was unspecified when she meets this guy. Imagine like. Wait let me morph an image real quick.

He looked like adam levine but blonde. but with a small stache. Like the nightwing actor from titans during fandome, but blonde. And he had green eyes and wore this dumb sherlock esc trenchcoak thing. Anyway. They meet, like bump into each other, very polite. And they discussed *shared but unspecified* class. He wants to study with her, she agrees. 

Now we get to see a couple study sessions later, shes wearing a light grey sweatshirt and her hair is in a bun with a black twirly hairtie bracelet thing. Hes wearing a loose green t shirt and some grey sweats with cuffs and shit. they be vibin. Laughing and shit. There is vaguely romantic/happy music in the background. Next we have a night out they shared. Like at a bar, just drinking some beers. They’re both wearing sport related paraphernalia. They cheer. Vague bonding shit. Anyway. One of these bonding scenes is Ashley wearing a stupid blue jacket and this guy making fun of her for wearing a winter coat in september.

So Ashley is hanging out with another friend, and shes talking about how cool her new friend is. Her friend teases her about being in love and shit. Ashley talks about hes kinda hot but mostly they vibe platonically, and he’s never made a move before so. Then Ashley is all “you should have met him.” “huh?” “we all have (class) together.” “where does he sit?” “right next to me??” “ash you sit next to an empty seat everyday”. Everybody, place your bets, what is he:

A) Ghost

B) Hallucination

C) Vague being of unimaginable horror

D) An asshole performing human experiments on Ashley. 

Ashley is all, oh damn. She goes back to her place (apartment? Dorm? Idk how college works) and (for my purposes I’m calling him chris but he didn’t have a name in my dream) and Chris is there, sitting on her bed. Ashley is all “the fuck???” and blinks and suddenly it hits her, he isn’t real. She’s the only one seeing him. (the answer is B hallucination). She goes to bed with the static image of chris sitting on her bed.

The next day she goes to a fucking doctors office because she’s having a crisis. But chris is in the passenger seat and keeps telling her how this isnt going to fix anything, he isnt going to go away, because he’s everywhere. And she looks out the window and the guy in the car next to her has chris’ face. She gets into the parking lot of the clinic she’s driven to but has a full mental breakdown in her car because chris wont shut the fuck up and she thinks that she’s going crazy. And yeah. 

So she turns to alcohol, because it’s easier to deal with Chris constant bullshit when she’s drunk. (when i say alcohol I mean like… beer… but with a godlike alcohol content. Because in dream she was drinking out of a beer bottle but like 2 bottles in and she was trashed). And a couple months later she’s out at a pub with her parent’s for her birthday. And chris is sitting in the empty seat next to her, and says something about how her dad is going to die, because she’s trying to get rid of him(chris) and how trying to remove chris is going to tear her life apart. She ignores it, about 30 minutes later her father kneels over with a heart attack and fucking dies. (its correlation not causation). Ashley has another mental breakdown and goes home. Now almost everyone she sees looks like chris. A week or so later she wakes up while the sun is rising from an unshown nightmare. She’s freaking out. And chris is in her room, trying to soothe her. And she looks into his eyes and gets up to leave. She’s driving down this interstate with the sunset ahead of her, and trees on either side. And its like 6am and the road is empty. The shot is from the backseat, and shes driving and sobbing. And out the window there is an endless sea of chris’s in a grid like pattern. And Ashley is swerving around them because she doesn’t know if any of them are people who she just thinks look like chris. And then you get a shot of her full car from the outside with the entire road in the shot, and she swerves off the road and collides with a tree. But the second she collides with the tree every chris blips out of existence. (because she fucking died)

[nokomiss]

4, 8, 20, & 25? since I went on that spree of commenting on your batfam fics on a03 the other night lmaoo sorry about that

Omg that was you?? You have NOTHING to apologize for, that made my NIGHT. I kept giddily opening my inbox and seeing which story you hit next and rereading the comments and hoping you’d be my best friend. ♥ (i am notoriously slow at replying to comments so they’re going to happen just. slowly. i cherish them i promise.)

Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)

This is actually a super hard one for me to answer because I hate rereading my own stuff. But i’m going to go with this part of  to brighten up even your darkest knight: 

Steph knew Batman had a file on her father. He was a criminal, after all. Batman had arrested him a dozen times. But while she’d added stuff to the file on the computer and sometimes went online to add embarrassing and true facts to his wiki page, she’d never looked at Batman’s paper files on him.

Because I laughed a lot at the idea of Cluemaster’s DCU wiki page including stuff like leaves wet towels on the floor and once wore a Miami Vice crop top unironically on his list of crimes.

Is what you like to write the same as what you like to read?

Yes and no! I tend to write the fics I want to read desperately -- like pure self-indulgence, the stuff I want to roll around in. Usually when I do tackle a longer fic it’s because I’ve come to the conclusion that no one else is going to write this very specific idea that I want to read, and unfortunately I have to do it myself.  But I also love to read the kinds of fics I don’t have much desire to write myself -- like epic, intricately plotted things, or long, involved AUs, or really all sorts of things.  (If a fic is super well written, I can and will read almost anything.)

Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

Okay so here’s something! In my baby Steph fic, she is essentially babysat by a waitress named Cathy who is very clearly Catherine Todd, and in my headcanon for Steph and Jason when I write, there’s always that connection between them. I haven’t given in to the urge to write it out yet -- it’s developed more in my mind, where that wasn’t an isolated incident but happened a couple times, and maybe once or twice they even met, even though they haven’t thought about it in years or connected that kid they vaguely knew with this person they now fight crime with sometimes, and eventually one of them finds an old picture of their childhood selves together (and were totally fighting) and it’s this totally improbable connection that makes perfect sense because their lives were so mirrored, they’re so close in age, and their parents could so easily have crossed paths. If Tim and Dick could meet at the circus then by golly Jason and Steph could have, too. It’s very similar to the thing I did with the friendship bracelet fic where Bruce and baby Steph had interacted, so clearly that’s a thing I like doing.  Like, most of my Batman fics so far have been one shots so they don’t really all mesh together but sometimes I mentally tie bits and pieces of them together. 

What part of writing is the most fun?

Oh easily when you hit a pocket of inspiration and the story feels like it’s just APPEARING on the screen. That sweet spot when you don’t struggle for words, when everything clicks, when getting from point A to point B is effortless and when you reread it it makes you grin at the screen. Or, alternatively, when you’ve struggle to bridge two parts of a scene (I tend to skip over transitions or parts of scenes i struggle with to write the part that’s easier, then go back and bridge it later so that I don’t lose momentum) and you come back the next day and think, “OH! That’s where this needs to be discussed!” and it fixes everything. That’s the most fun. 

Also, getting comments/seeing people’s reaction to the story you’ve crafted. Like, it’s work and you think through every word choice and then you just HOPE that someone will share the bits they liked best with you, or tell you they liked it, or kudos it. The sweet, sweet validation after. ♥

[goth-giraffe]

🖊 + your cyborg character (I mean? Cyborg?? Tell me more! xD) 🖊 + for any of your OCs (I'm just really curious to get to know more of your characters :D) I wold also suggest another one for Meredith... (if you want to ramble more about her xD)

Oh awesome! Yeah I always love to ramble about my OCs, I just wish I had more motivation to draw them haha xD Maybe this’ll help though- thank you!

Kaedyn~

Ah- my cyborg character is a pretty underdeveloped, for instance I’m not entirely sure on all their technological enhancements. They basically have really fancy prosthetics in place of at least one leg and one arm too. But anyway I’d love to ramble about them anyway! Their name is Kaedyn and they’re nonbinary! (I use neutral or feminine pronouns with them, I’m currently trying to use they/them but sometimes I slip up- it’s mostly because of my indecisiveness, but I don’t know, maybe they’re genderfluid?) And they live in a futuristic setting which is part of the reason they’re a bit underdeveloped compared to some of my other OCs, because I’m a dummy that wants to create characters in weird settings in theory, but then you have to come up with all these things about the setting to get to know the character better so… haha yeah.

But anyway! Kaedyn is really smart about some things but also very competitive. Not the type to back down from a dare. Whether it’s eating something gross or fighting the Hulk, to be honest… (And that may have had something to do with them losing a couple limbs, but who knows.) They call themself a cyborg mostly to intimidate people to be honest… there are still a lot of prejudices about cyborgs. And they do have at least two fully functioning robotic limbs so. Anyway they get kind of a “Don’t mess with a cyborg” attitude when people look at them weird or are just in general being rude.

They’re dating Numbers, who’s kind of the opposite of Kaedyn - she’s more of a brooding genius type. And she works for her eccentric aunt’s robotics company. They supply robotic prosthetics and other medical stuff like that, and yeah I imagine that’s how they met each other- Kaedyn calls in for tech support and talks past the remote control hologram or whatever, and immediately starts flirting when they start talking to an alive being… which was Numbers. Numbers speaks exclusively in number code though, and she doesn’t talk to a lot of real people (she lives with robots and her aunt Madlin) because a lot of people don’t understand her. But Kaedyn is smart, especially with mathematics and deciphering things so it doesn’t take them long to understand, and they think Numbers is adorable so, basically their relationship is the “extrovert takes introvert under their wing” trope.

Anyway, they like inventing things together. Kaedyn has a degree in engineering (or something? details fuzzy, sorry) and loves tinkering with stuff or rather tearing stuff apart pbbt and Numbers brainstorms schematics for new robots and stuff. Kaedyn is actually really smart, you just don’t see that a lot with their beat stuff up until it’s fixed attitude. (I don’t know if anyone here has seen The Red Green Show but Kaedyn’s motto? “If it ain’t broke you’re not trying!”) Besides that they cuddle or deal with Numbers’ mood swings… and eventually Madlin disappears and they have to take care of this prototype robot which is basically an experiment in artificial mental illness. …Which is not as fun as it sounds. xD

Oh. And Kaedyn refers to Numbers exclusively as “babe”. (Numbers is a nickname but her real name is actually undecided so…… Kaedyn just gives her another nickname haha.)

Okay. I get the feeling I am making absolutely no sense, I’m sorry. Mostly this is like, a vague comic idea I had? Mad scientist aunt disappears, no one really knows where. Her introverted niece has to take care of a prototype robot who thinks he’s a child and is kind of scared of everything… and cope with her partner who picks fights with anyone. …Yeah when I think about this goofy little story I for some reason imagine them in a black and white comic style. Like, Kaedyn’s got their tools and a broken robot on the table and they’re like “Babe where’s my wrench” while they’re scratching their head with it. Very smart but also very stupid is one of my favourite tropes ahaha  

Okay I’m not sure who to ramble about next?? My characters are so underdeveloped, good golly.

Nicholas~

I’m gonna ramble about him even though I have seriously been thinking he needs a lot of work, I’ve actually been considering giving him a new name but, anyway.

He’s in a weird fantasy setting and he’s a dragon! His race of dragons though are basically humans that have can transform into dragons. Except the horns, tails, wing stumps, and some of them have weird eyes. But dragons have some magic and if they master it they can hide those things while they’re in their human form. Nicholas himself though has really only figured out how to get rid of the wing stumps. Still sleeps on his tummy out of habit though.

Nicholas is probably the most innocent character I have, to be honest. He’s very soft- he really likes flowers, braiding his hair or having his hair braided, also he’s very curious about humans. Which is weird for dragons, most of them think of humans as either very dangerous or mid-afternoon snacks. But Nicholas was raised differently, so he’s curious. Not to mention lonely. Dragons are actually pretty rare and he only ever met his parents, but he doesn’t remember his father very well (who died when he was young) and since his mother died in his teens he’s been alone.

I imagine at some point he befriends a witch and they possibly become a love interest for him but this is where it gets fuzzy and undecided. I do like to imagine he meets a human character and becomes close to them, I just haven’t really decided how that happens or if he meets just one witch or a family/household or what. But he also finds out he likes poetry, but he’s illiterate so he has to have someone read it to him. I imagine this in medieval times, so not many people can read but that’s also why I imagine a witch character because. Learning from spellbooks I guess. And just generally not really being part of the human population… and not being scared of dragons. Even though Nicholas would probably not scare many people pbbbt. xD Yeah, anyway. He likes to be read to.

I don’t know, most of my characters are just kind of vague ideas. He’s just a cute little forest creature who happens to be able to grow really big and breath fire. xD I’ve thought about making a more modern AU which would probably be easier to develop but yeah I really can’t decide.

Anyway, except for a couple forgettable doodles I haven’t actually drawn Nicholas… but fortunately, I do have an awesome drawing of him by @iridiscreate! I hope to do a serious drawing of him myself sometime, but I’m actually okay with that being his main reference for now- he looks very pretty! :D

Meredith~

Oh I’ll pretty much always take any chances to ramble about Meredith! Haha she’s the OC I know the most about to be honest xD

The first time her hair was cut short was because her mom was tired of having to chase her down to brush it. So there was a time when she was pretty young that her parents made her wear these big bows in her hair when she went out… she hated them, she still hates them, and her mom still tries to convince her to wear them when she comes to visit, because she cut her hair again. (Yeah… she has some family issues…)

Okay, Meredith loves music. She has kind of a complicated relationship with it, but she loves music. She usually has classical music playing in the background at her apartment, while she’s reading or whatever. She also plays violin, but she’s weird about that, she doesn’t usually listen to it when she plays (she wears ear plugs), and she mostly uses it as an outlet when her emotions get the better of her. She was much more enthusiastic about violin when she was a girl. She’s always had a love of music, it kind of runs in her family. She originally wanted to play piano like her grandfather (who was a singer/pianist in a bar) but her father wouldn’t allow that. Though when the violin option was allowed she was very excited, and when she was little she dreamed of being a concert violinist. Her parents mostly favoured violin because of the discipline it would require to learn and practice, and their past attempts to discipline her? Ehh, not so great. xD In the end though her parents killed her enthusiasm for violin. Their habit of displaying their daughters’ talents to their friends but otherwise having little interest was a bit discouraging… and for Meredith, very damaging. The older she got and the more she thought about it she felt her parents were disinterested in her from the start, so that led to a very rocky teenage years. (For instance she spent ages two to six (ish) being sent to her grandparents’ house a lot. Not with her sisters, no, just her- because she was being difficult and her parents were tired of her. So that hurt when she really thought about it.) So… anyway now she kind of loves and hates violin. Now when she plays it still brings her back to being the trophy her parents preferred to keep on the back of the shelf, but it also brings her back to being the little girl who was in love with music… so. Mixed feelings there. …

Did I have way too many Meredith feels while I was writing this and have to edit out most of my emotions later? NO absolutely not I’m not crying you are SHUSH

Oof I know I’ve already rambled a lot but one more thing. Just a cute little fact, not exactly about Meredith but still. She is her nephew Aidan’s favourite aunt. He’s like four years old and has blonde hair with bright blue tips, because he begged his mother (Meredith’s sis Jessie) to dye his hair blue. Anyway yeah, Meredith is pretty good with kids… they probably like her because she’s so weird. Funny though, because with her looking pretty much like the insomniac goth mess she is, she definitely doesn’t give off any maternal vibes to anyone else she meets… except kids. (It’s the blue hair again, it has magical powers. Haha okay I’m kidding. xD)

Anyway! Sorry for getting this answered so late ahh!! I swear I wasn’t avoiding this ask (I was actually very excited about it) but I kept getting interrupted in the middle of rambling so.. yeah. Anyway thank you again for the ask!! Sorry I rambled an ungodly amount!! xD

Send me a 🖊 to make me ramble about my OCs! (yeah no kidding about the rambling)

[gciltyascharged]

@tennoutoften​ said: 11, 15, and 16!

11 // What one character you’ve thought of RPing but haven’t yet?

Golly... I thought about Omid for a little while! He’s just so funny and his comments are grand in the game ; he was the one character I was so excited to see back, only to have my heart completely torn to shreds and ruined in the small amount of time I actually got to see him again. OTHER characters include: Larry (mostly because I feel like he just got slapped aside ; he was a jackass but he felt so protective of the people he was with -- even though I felt awful for them having to deal with his berating), Carley (I loved her little banters and upstanding justice morality), and Vincent (I liked his sass).

15 // When is the best time for you to sit down and write replies?

Any time that I’m not about to fall over and sleep or when I’m not in pain! I have a knack for getting up and replying to things even when I’m tired, but when I’m head falling over or eyelids too heavy kinda sleepy, it’s just best for me NOT to reply LMAO! Mostly because I’ll either write some complete garbage reply OR I’ll write up something that makes ZERO sense! 

16 // What kind of anonymous questions are your favorite?

Gosh, this one is really hard to say! I mean, I really love any and all anon messages I get ; they really brighten my day, but I absolutely adore ones that talk to me about my headcanons or just genuinely show me that they like what I wrote! Sometimes when I write my headcanons or posts, I feel nervous about them because I had a lot of times where people would sit down and say mean things about me behind my back or say things like, “This is why I like YOUR muse over Marzipan’s!” (I’ve had just some awful fandom experiences before), and, the worst, was one person who hated me so much (that I didn’t even know personally) that they said I ruined roleplaying for them. Broke my heart and made me super scared to do that to other people ; I mean, I’ve even had people assume that just because I portray the same muse as them that I’m trying to outdo them and it makes me sometimes jump off my blogs to let other people have attention because I’m scared to hurt their feelings being on the dash. 

I generally feel...nervous all the time about other people and it’s where a lot of my anxiety build up has happened. If someone doesn’t talk to me out of character and tell me they REALLY like me, I just constantly assume they don’t wanna be near me (to be fair: it’s a valid feeling others can have and I don’t blame them / want them to feel obligated to like me ; I, personally, let them live and don’t want to cause them distress, you know?) and this causes me to push myself away unless approached first.

Even approached first, I need that out of character confirmation to tell me I’m a person they like! It just makes things easier for me and it makes me 100% more likely to bombard them with my actual affections! Otherwise, I just...leave little hearts on their posts or try to send some anon kindness when I can. Sometimes I’ll just value myself lower when it comes to people idk well at all ; I’ll post an open, post an ask meme, reply to their opens/starter calls and say: well, if they’re absolutely in need of something in character. I think I never exactly grew out of that...phase. 

So having those random anons who send me POSITIVE things and genuinely show me interest in what I write just always make my day. No matter what time of day, no matter how I’m feeling, I always have the biggest smile when I see that random mystery person saying something to me that challenges me to think critically about my muse by offering scenarios or by sending me just...sweet little things to tell me they like my portrayal! It makes me feel less nervous going down the dash because this time with those kind mystery people, I just go down it and wonder: DID YOU SEND IT? and it makes me giddy to imagine who might have taken the time out of their day to send it, you know?

Oh, man, that got long. Sorry!

                                                                      → Mun Questions. 

[manifestoonmoralmanlove]

Soulless Riffing: Brainless Ch.10 + 11.

I got a supernatural action/romance book series as a gift that’s just riddled with stuff that I hate….and as a steampunk Victorian London action romance story filled with werewolves and vampires…it’s yeah gonna be easy to poke fun at.

I just want to say, it’s totally cool if you like this story or ones like it!  It’s certainly a better caliber than a lot of what I make fun of…however…I can’t help but want to make fun of it.

Over here for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7+8th, and 9th.

Chapter 10 is short so I threw in 11 too! SO FUCK IT HERE GOES!

Chapter 10

So this zombie bursts in to attack Alexia and Lord Akeldama.  The zombie’s clever plan is to just start…pouring chloroform on the floor. I don’t think that’s how that works but lol ok whatever. Immediately the super powerful vampire is out cold.  They talk about how gaudy and huge Lord Akeldama’s house is, so I totally pictured the zombie kicking the door open, pouring it, and even though he’s still like 50 feet away he’s out like a light.

So my head canon for this is the zombie is like, “Well they’re obviously going to get away! Why bother!?” So he just pours out a medicine bottle’s worth of chloroform out of annoyed futility. Lord Akeldama since he’s such a DANDY thinks the zombie poured some kind of staining liquid like wine all over his centuries old, priceless Turkish rug.  He’s so mortified that his favorite rug is ruined and feints on the spot.

Now this scenario makes sense, YOU’RE WELCOME!

Alexia is able to hit the zombie in the head 3 times before she realizes that’s not working and the fumes OVERCOME HER! YES SHE LITERALLY GETS THE VAPORS!

THANK FUCK! FOR ACTUAL DRAMA!

When she wakes up she’s being dragged bound and gagged into the Hypocras Club for scientists.  She overhears some shady biz about how they want to experiment on Lord Akledama.  She also notices an obnoxiously prominent octopus motif in the place.  It might as well read,

“Alexia turned the octopus-shaped knob, of the octopus-shaped door, to reveal an octopus-shaped hallway, with live octopuses hanging from the wall all wondering where they got such a bad rep from.”

The two of them get thrown in a cell and are able to undo their gags.  The less cool version of Blackadder’s Prince George (Lord Akeldama) explains that the zombie-thing is an automaton or basically a fleshy robot/golem.  He also explains that the robot can only be undone if you speak the magic word. Looks as if safe words work much better in this universe than they ever did in 50 shades!

 ALSO JUST KIDDING CAUSE THERE’S ANOTHER WAY TO STOP IT BUT WON’T BE REVEALED UNTIL IT’S A SUPER TENSE MOMENT! HARDY HAR HAR!

But we actually get a genuinely good scene after this where Lord Akledama talks about the fact they both may die.  He says that, if it’s possible, he wants Alexia to hold his hand so he can see the sun one last time.  It’s cheesy, and probably not going to be applicable in the situation they’re in, but it’s really sweet and sad and I like it.  The baddies then come back to drag Akledama out of the cell, presumably to be tortured to death.

NO! I WAS JUST STARTING TO ACTUALLY LIKE HIM!

Say something Nice Faps:

Actual plot

No or little mention of the dumbass ship

Akledama wanting to see the sun.

Chapter 11

So Alexia is not having the best time in the cell by herself but eventually she hears voices. We have super unsubtle exposition that boils down to.

“So yeah we’re torturing werewolves and vampires, so we can figure out how to genocide them REAL GOOD!”

Hoo boy listen. The only other racist thing against vampires/werewolves we have seen in action is a woman talk briefly about how untoward it is that a business is catering to THOSE kinds of people. I will not count all the vague times Alexia alludes to them being oppressed with no concrete examples.

Going from, Bad person is annoyed they may have to glance at a vampire while at a cafe, to inhuman experiments meant to further genocide is AT BEST a huge jump and at worse flat out feels entirely separate from the setting created.

Fun Fact: Racism isn’t a child predator who hides in the shadows and pops out when you need a scapegoat.  Racism is fucking everywhere effecting everything.

Don’t try to add racism allusions in your story if you can’t grasp that fundamental concept.

Faps, nobody picked up steampunk werewolf fucker for commentary on race. And besides the inability to grasp the complexity of racism is going to seem quaint next to some of the dumb writing bullshit coming up next.

So during this conversation this mysterious bad man also states, “We have a random human in this cell, cause she was there lol.”

“Can I see her?”

“Lol why not!?”

So we open up the cell to meet the big baddie Siemons, whom, I’m probably just going to refer to as childish evilguy nicknames for awhile cause his characterization is as on the nose as you can get.  Like no joke, whenever they mention him smiling it’s, “He smiles psychotically.” 

The guy, Mr. bigbad was talking to turns out to be #1 Stud MacDougall!

GASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSP

Actually I totally called this cause she mentions 3 times during their short conversation that she recognizes the 2nd voice, it would be most DRAMATIC, and cause I have money down that he’s secretly a bad, bad man so Alexia doesn’t feel bad about not fucking a fatty. She’s not shallow; he’s just a bad person you see.

BUT, to this story’s credit MacDougall is AGHAST to find Alexia in there, goes to her side, and demands she be set free at once.

Evilbaddy Von Octo-dump is like, “Oh! She’s Alexia the Soulless who can stop supernatural powers! We inexplicably did not put 2 and 2 together despite being super smart Nazi-scientists.  I mean we very obviously tried to kidnap her 3 separate times, and stole her records for more info. But we weren’t actually interested in kidnapping her. We just tried to get a vampire and took her along for the lulz!”  Why even put in the effort to say they weren’t after her? This is stupid!

MacDougall, despite studying the supernatural FOR A LIVING, has never heard of the Soulless phenomenon and like…

FUCK HOW AND WHY AND ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

The author states explicitly that all the supernaturals in England not only are aware of the Soulless but are informed of the identity of every single Soulless.  How would normies NOT know? Vampires and werewolves hang with humans all the time, and it makes no sense why the Soulless would be hidden information from the general public.  Soulless can pose a threat to the supernatural not regular boring humans, there’s no reason to believe that the average citizen is going to be upset at this knowledge at all.

This wouldn’t even, so far, cause any plot inconsistencies if everybody knew.  I think the rub here is that we have to justify her family not knowing so the reveal would make them upset, but we’ll see how important that plot point actually is.  Honestly, I fear the author is just so used to supernatural media where SOMETHING is hidden from the general population she felt compelled to do the same.

MacDougall convinces Meaniemollusk NaziStink to take off her restraints and try to get her on their side. They allow her to clean up and change. Alexia takes advantage of this to go to the Octopus shaped mirror, break off an octopus-shaped shard, cover it in octo-cloth, and hide it in her octo-bosum.

Alexia tries to play dumb and meek in order to appease Squidlly MurderMan.  He tells her he plans to kill all Vampires and Werewolves.  She points out that they’re scientists with a political agenda and apparently that’s her breaking her bimbo character and the gig is up.

OKAY?????????????????

They then take her to another cell.  On the way there she hears Lord Akeldama’s blood-curling torture screams, but she doesn’t seem all that upset.  I mean she probably doesn’t want to appear outwardly upset to blow the gig even more, but we don’t really have much internal monologue about how worried she is.

So that’s cool.

They want to test her soulsucking ability and she lies saying it takes an hour. (Which is hard to believe, isn’t soulless supposed to be common knowledge in England, and also they stole all the notes anyway they probably know.)  They also OUTRIGHT SAY they’re planning on killing her anyway but it would be rad if she was cool about it. They say they’re going to murder/test it by putting her in a cell with a rabid werewolf to SEE WHAT HAPPENS!? (She’d probably die but lol turns out it’s Lord Maccon aren’t we all shocked.) But like let’s break this whole mess down.

1.)    You uhhh consider LYING that you won’t kill her if she cooperates. That tends to encourage people to cooperate. YOU ARE BAD PEOPLE AFTERALL AND BAD PEOPLE LIE!

2.)    HOW FUCKING INCOMPREHENSIBLY DUMB ARE THESE FUCKING SCIENTISTS!?  You UHH MAYBE consider you could learn a fuck-load from experiments where a person can turn off a supernaturals’ ability at will? PERHAPS it’ll be easier to genocide them if they’re not super-fast, super strong, immortal AND can heal real fast????? WHAT COLOSSAL FATHEADS ARE RUNNING THIS JOINT!? AUTHOR? YOU CAN HAVE THEM BE SUPER EVIL AND BAD WITHOUT THEM IMMEDIATELY TRYING TO KILL PROTAG? YANNO?

Also throwing her in a locked room with a PEAK werewolf, even if they never believed it took that long, is basically instant-death for her.  She’s kinda arrogant when it comes to self-defense but even she’s like, “I’d be super lucky if I even reach the point of having the shit kicked out of me before I can turn him completely enough for them to not be a threat.”

So they take the antidote to the supposed poison they want to snuff out and just dump it down the drain.

BUT GOLLY I’M SURE LOOKING FORWARD TO THOSE OVERGROWN CHILDREN ALMOST FUCKING IN THAT CELL! THAT’S GONNA BE SWELL!

Say something Nice Faps:

No shitty Maccon/Alexia verbal sparring

MacDougall does try to not get her killed. I mean he just shouts dramatically.  Not that I’m asking him to fall right on a sword but it does seem a bit tepid. But like for a woman who gleefully and regularly puts herself in danger? Maybe that’s the response that’s appropriate.

Also the author never really says MacDougall is down to clown with Murder Bigots.  So I guess what I’m trying to say is I’d still fuck MacDougall apart.