#a lesson learned asks

[roguerambles]

Sanji: "BACK OFF, MOSSHEAD, SHE ASKED ME!"

Zoro: "SHE DIDN'T ASK YOU FOR ANYTHING, CURLY, GET OUT OF MY FACE!"

Sanji: "You gonna make me?!"

Zoro: "You wanna die, you useless--"

Reader: *ready to fucking kill them* "I JUST NEED SOMEONE TO GET THE DAMN BOOK OFF THE DAMN TOP SHELF."

Luffy: *stretches past Zoro and Sanji and grabs the book from the top shelf* "Here you go!"

Reader: "THANK YOU, Luffy!"

Sanji and Zoro: "......."

Luffy:

[intotheelliwoods]

Hey so I guess we’re on the same team now lol 👋👋

Bean gang bean gang bean gang!!!!

[nnnneeev]

Tattoo artist!solomon x tattoo apprentice!mc send post

[skeletoninthemelonland]

changing something crucial about Springdad's lore.

When he was, let's say, 10-12 years old, he was hanging around with his friends when they decided to do the usual stupid children activities, like jumping over fences. William climbed a protection fence, lost his balance, and cut his ear on the sharp edges. The cut was so bad they had to cut half of his ear off. That's how he got half a bunny ear.

[lialox]

What if oldest dream behind the wall was Tls123?

“We’ll still stick together from now on too, so why do you sound so grimly determined? Don’t worry. No matter what kind of a monster is waiting for us, I’ll finish it off.”

I gently smiled. Meanwhile, the subway was slowing down even further.

My reflection could be seen in the black window of the exit door. There was a splatter of blood on my cheek reflected on the glass. I wiped it off my face. And then, my mood cooled down.

⸢The blood was really on my cheek, and not on the window.⸥

“Doors are opening!”

Along with Lee Hyunsung’s cry, everyone got ready to fight.

“....Ng?”

However, contrary to everyone’s nervousness, what greeted us was a rather empty subway platform. Sure, there were a few people walking around in the surroundings, but none of them paid us much attention.

“What’s this, there’s no....”

Jung Heewon muttered that out, and as we stepped onto the platform, I was overcome with an ominous foreboding. There it was, the unfamiliar sense of reality touching my feet. Faint sparks, along with every single one of my Fables, were pointing in a certain direction.

⸢Someone was sitting on the subway’s bench.⸥

Black athletic wear as if its wearer had just gone out for a run. A beautiful woman was slouched on the bench, unflinching in her sleep even with the bustle of the crowd around her. The short crop of her hair lightly caressed her cheeks.

As the pulsing migraine assaulted me, I somehow managed to lift my unmoving feet.

⸢Kim Dokja made a promise. To end the culprit who made this world. No matter what that existence was.⸥

There were deep bags under the woman’s eyes. It was as if she hadn’t slept properly in years.

⸢Time isn’t moving because not reading and not imagining.⸥

I did think that all of this could be a dream, a lie. I even believed that this was a dream the evil <Star Stream> had created.

I even believed that I could have been the monster waiting past that wall.

But this person, I didn’t expect her to be the one past the full stop. To have met a writer at the place where the creator of a universe of stories resides…

⸢Y ou we re al rea dy ex pec ting this di dn’t you Kim Dok Ja.⸥

Before any story could be described, before it could be read, it had to exist in one person’s dream first.

The author’s.

The Most Ancient Dream. The world’s most omniscient yet powerless god.

“I… am Tls123?”

Han Sooyoung was the first to speak. Her eyes were trembling.

All of my senses were gnawing at me; they said that that woman was the culprit behind all these scenarios.

It was the same for my companions.

I thought I heard something fall to the floor, and I saw Jung Heewon’s sword rolling around on the ground.

“Ah, ah....”

She was now looking at her. She was looking at the woman, then back at Han Sooyoung. Her eyes were filling up with despair.

As if she couldn’t believe this. As if she’d prefer that this whole thing turned out to be a lie.

[The promise with the ‘Secretive Plotter’ is activating.]

I opened my mouth only to close it several times. Maybe, this might be my punishment.

For daring to dream of a perfect ending in which all of us survived. To have come this far, and shed blood for such a hope.

It was as if the universe was telling me there was no such thing.

The Star Stream wasn’t like that. This was a universe of sacrifices and salvation too, was a paid service.

[You have promised to destroy <Star Stream>.]

[<Star Stream> will not be destroyed unless the ‘Most Ancient Dream’ is ended.]

I now stared at the woman.

The woman who gave me every reason to survive in this ruined world.

[Please end the ‘Most Ancient Dream’.]

+++

Sparks overflowed above my Incarnation Body. My heart was madly pounding away. My head faltered, and I somehow managed to suck in several deep breaths.

[The 4th Wall] was right. Maybe, I already knew.

There were simply too many hints.

⸢I was far too lucky in this world, and⸥

⸢Everything in this world seemed to be geared towards my convenience, and⸥

⸢At times, this world even felt sloppy.⸥

If all of these were the result of the guiding hand of a writer who so desperately wished for our survival…

⸢The genesis of all the world-lines, the original world-line.⸥

I raised my head back up, then stepped forward to lift ‘that’ Han Sooyoung into my arms. She felt so light. This small body carried the weight of every sin in the world.

The world written just for me.

An anguished cry came from the rear.

“Sooyoung-ssi, calm down!”

“You bastard! Let me go!”

It was a voice far more devastated than I have ever heard from her. Tears were pouring from her eyes as Jung Heewon and Lee Hyunsung held her by her arms. A dagger was gripped tightly onto one hand while [Black Flames] were bursting from the other.

“That bitch, why the hell would I write a story like this!?”

She continued to thrash about, and even the kids held onto her legs to keep her from taking another step forward to do something foolish. The entire nebula worked together to suppress her, their status raging forth as Han Sooyoung did everything she could to break free of the restraint.

“Something this fucked up—“ Han Sooyoung snarled. “If I had to write a story for this purpose, to write a novel with these… Shit developments…!!“

Han Sooyoung choked on her own tears as she continued to try to force her way past our companions.

“Han Sooyoung.”

It was Yoo Junghyuk who stepped in between them. The one who had lived this tragedy for thousands of lives.

“It has been difficult."

He reduced his tragedies to a mere few words.

“But it’s over now.”

⸢His forgiveness was offered in this manner. ⸥

“Shut up!!”

⸢It only served to break her.⸥

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!!”

Yoo Junghyuk opened his mouth as if to respond, then suddenly doubled over in a coughing fit.

Thick fog came in from somewhere, and I picked up on the ominous power of Chaos. Yoo Junghyuk’s expression as he held the blade became weird.

“Y-you bastard....”

As he staggered about, the pitch-black Fable leaked out from his mouth. That Fable gurgled out and travelled down his chin, hit the floor, and finally, formed the silhouette of a person.

The blade of the [Heaven Shaking Sword] gleamed between the jet-black coat; a man who only lived for this moment was standing there now.

⸢The Secretive Plotter.⸥

The being who had even forgotten about his real name after experiencing an enedless tragedy even past the last sentence of his story. The man who lived only for the purpose of revenge was here.

⸢No human can control every type of imagination.⸥

Just how many universes were born and broken in her mind? Just how many of her imagined tragedies were inherited by just one person?

⸢And that’s why the most ideal person to end this dream had already been determined.⸥

It was the world’s most fair revenge.

So why did I keep holding onto Han Sooyoung this tightly?

[[ It was you. ]]

The Secretive Plotter’s [Heaven Shaking Sword] continued to wander in the air. That sword was now pointed towards its creator.

[[ The being that dreamt and perpetuated every tragedy in all the worldlines. ]]

I only made it this far because of those tragedies she wrote.

It was the story that I loved more than anything. The story I was indebted to.

[[ Kim Dokja. You must end the Most Ancient Dream. ]]

Every letter here was chosen by her hands. By bearing all of these sins, she brought us to this moment.

It was thanks to Han Sooyoung that I managed to survive.

And now it was time to repay my debt.

“Did you forget?”

[‘Demon King’ transformation is activating!]

[‘Archangel’ transformation is activating!]

I smiled gently and with one hand raised my [Unbreakable Faith]. I pulled the sleeping Han Sooyoung closer in the other.

“I didn’t promise to kill people.”

In this place far beyond our full stop, our swords were drawn.

A new story had begun.

[scatterbrainedbot]

Hello :D

You're so cool

Anyway have you thought that in your rat sons au Splinter might outlive the boys?

You're very cool :D love your stuff dude

(tw for some blood, light gore, implied overdose (kinda??))

hi copper!!! this is a fantastic question!

so obviously typical irl rats have far shorter lifespans than the average irl tortoise. according to google (yes, be awed by my spectacularly in-depth wealth of research) the average pet rat lives between 2-4 years ish, and the oldest on record lived to be about 7. meanwhile, an African spurred tortoise (Splinter's species) averages more around a 50ish year lifespan in captivity, tho is suspected to possibly exceed 75 or more in the wild.

Now, the mutation does give us a lot of wiggle room for playing with these numbers. For the rat sons boys, id say their natural lifespan probably clocks in at about 45-55 years old? definitely not old by human standards, but not young young either. (though, its also important to note that the boys were exposed to the mutagen just days after being born.)

For Splinter, meanwhile, aging is slightly more complicated. He lived the vast majority of his life as a regular normal African spurred tortoise (well, non-mutated at least. there were perhaps some shenanigans of a more mystical variety going on before he was mutated, but thats a separate matter) He was about 70ish i think? when the boys were born and they were all exposed to the mutagen. so he is already distinctly an old man turtle papa. id guess he'd probably still have another eh lets say 25-30 years after his mutation. he could probably push it a little farther even with some mystic nonsense, but when push comes to shove id say his 'natural' post-mutation lifespan would put his death like a solid decade or two before his sons.

of course, the tricky part of the matter is that theres no way for Splinter to know any of this. theres no way for him to know how the mutation affected them all, or if it even affected them all in the same way. especially since the boys dont show many physical signs of mutation for the first few years, and just kinda look like normal rats, (albeit with a more human sort of intelligence) — what sort of health standard do you hold them to? what if they simply dont show external signs of sickness or old age anymore? how do you actually know if something is wrong?

for a while there Splinter is very worried that one of his babies will just essentially reach the end of their normal rat lifespan, fall and not get up again.

so mostly, he just tries to live in the moment, enjoying whatever time he does have with his little ones, taking each day as a gift <3

still,

that fear

never

really

goes

away.....

[aethersflood]

Just don't say I didn't warn you. You're Cid now, and if anything happens to him, we're finished.

[ink-the-artist]

forgive me if you've been asked this before or if its annoying, but how did you learn to use colored pencils like that? your art is so special to me.

ty :) I took an art class for a few years where our teacher had us buy prismacolor pencils as one of the art supplies and had us use them kinda like paints, pressing down hard right away and blending the colors together. its not how youre supposed to use them she was just trying to teach us to use color and ig this was more to the point. I picked them up again years after i stopped going to that class just bc they were there and i wanted to play around w them a bit and ended up actually enjoying it when doing it on my own terms lol

[aro-culture-is]

aro culture is getting really annoyed with the relationships unit in your sociology class because the whole thing is just 100% amatonormativity.

:\

if think your teacher, professor, and/or TAs might be interested in discussing the concept, I have some idea of bringing up the topic?

I'd personally say something like, "Hi, During our section in sociology around relationships, I couldn't help but think it would be interesting to discuss how a sociological theory called "amatonormativity" might relate to these lessons. I gathered a few sources from the professor who coined it, a thesis written on it, and a law review written about the connection between it and laws in the USA. There's some connections between its use in feminist thought and in queer theories, and I'd love to know your thoughts about it. I personally was thinking of when [specific statement] was said, and how I would apply this theory. I hope it's as interesting to you as it is to me."

Coiner's current webpage: https://elizabethbrake.com/amatonormativity/

Thesis: https://vc.bridgew.edu/honors_proj/330/ (click download in upper right hand corner for the PDF, depending on the individual it may be worth downloading and sending that rather than a link)

Law Review: https://uclawreview.org/2022/06/09/amatonormativity-in-the-law-an-introduction/

[erinwantstowrite]

hi! hope your having a good day/night/timezone/etc.! u got any writing tips (like how to not lose motivation/use up as much of it as u can while u have it, any ways to get the words flowing/“get in the writing mood” that have worked for u) for any of ur fellow fic writers? (idk if this’s been asked b4 (it seems like a common question lmao), but if it has, ‘pologies, lolol ^^)

i have a few that i've been thinking up to try and post!!

remember that you aren't on a deadline to write, and to take the time you need. no one wants to read something you rushed, let alone do YOU want to read it. and it REALLY matters if you love what you're writing. you'll kill your motivation trying to keep up with something like that!! if you only had time to write 300 or you had a great day and wrote like 3000, you're doing great either way!!!

there's a lot to keep up with when you're writing, and you have to remember and understand all of it. if you're trying to write while you're tired/upset/etc, you'll likely end up with something you're not that proud of. (granted, art is art, and sometimes these emotions can create something beautiful or meaningful). take metal breaks so you can come back to your work with a fresh mind, and don't overexert yourself. you'll remember and understand more if you treat your writing time like you would when you're studying. sometimes i make flashcards to remember characters, places, events, etc.

sometimes i can get too analytical with my writing, or it starts to become flat? if that makes sense? meaning, like... i'm putting words on paper rather than delving into the story. too many "they felt this way" and not enough "Character A turns to face the man that had changed their entire life with the single shot of a bullet, careless to what damage he could have caused. It's haunting to see that the man is simply that: a man. Not a monster as they had imagined, laying awake at night and wondering what their father had seen in his final moments. He's just a man." what helps with this is putting myself into the shoes of a narrator, remembering that i am telling the story as if i already know what's happening (even if I don't know where I'm going with a scene yet). i imagine that my reader is right there next to me and i'm telling them the story in real time like we're sitting around a campfire telling ghost stories, or that i'm the quirky narrator of a book they just picked up.

During times where i'm losing inspiration or feel like i'm in a loop, i like to go back to my favorite medias and spend some time with them. i recently rewatched Gravity Falls, the Sea Beast, and the Adam Project, and it was a fun mental break that got me into the writing mood. i try to find similar media to what i'm writing at that time. if i want a scene focused on funny banter or a comedic effect, i read or watch comedy. if i want to write a scary scene, i'll watch a horror movie. etc etc. "studying" your favorite media and putting yourself into your fav writer's writing shoes is a great way to improve your own writing. think about why that joke was funny, what the set up was that made it that way, and if it would have been a different joke if another character said it (Gravity Falls is one of the best media you can use for this, but really, reading mysteries in general can help)

physical exercise, if you can. getting your blood flowing and treating your body well!! when i was in band, we used to do "body warm ups" set to music, and i still do them to this day. it gets me awake and alert while also letting me listen to fun music before i write

[thegodthief]

Catching up on old podcasts, only to hear @traegorn say...

"... if the magic described in [the witch trials] was real, Sec would already be a dragon!"

WELP.

(From @breelandwalker's Hex Positive, Ep 36 "Margaret Effing Murray with Trae Dorn")

[cod-dump]

I feel like Alejandro would go to Rudy one random day and be like "No Nut November is ridiculous. How about we do a new version called Nutting Nonstop November?" with no warning or context

Rudy would look Alejandro in the eye and say “Let’s do it” and then proceed making Alejandro REGRET IT. Doesn’t matter if Alejandro was joking or not, he presented Rudy with a challenge and no there’s no getting out of it. He’s begging a week in for a rest and Rudy goes “You said nonstop”. It’s safe to say that Alejandro was drained after all of that, now he’s extra careful with what he says to Rudy. Though give it a week and he’s saying more dumb shit to his husband.

[blueskittlesart]

do you have any thoughts on zelda not staying as a dragon? me personally I like it and am very cool with it mostly because I think zelda should get to be happy forever (and because I'm smart enough to know she changed back because of recall and not some ambiguous power of love lmao) but a lot of people seem to dislike that it made the draconification inconsequential?

i think there's like. some valid concerns surrounding inconsequentiality/"curing" the physical problems characters have as a way of giving them a "happy ending" but I think those concerns don't necessarily apply to totk in the way people seem to be applying them, especially irt zelda's draconification and link's arm.

most of the time when the criticism of this "magic cure" trope is applied to media, it's because the trope is used as a cure-all to erase a character's suffering or trauma and make them "normal" again, and often ignores the character development or themes of the story in favor of giving the character a happy ending. I don't think that applies to totk, though, because the "curing" link and zelda experience is both within the realm of possibility given the worldbuilding present in the game (recall could easily have done it, as you mentioned) AND thematically consistent with the rest of the game. One of if not the most important central themes of totk is the idea of failure and second chances. we see a hyrule that has been given a second chance after link's initial failure with the calamity brought it to the brink of destruction. we see characters who were deeply unhappy and entrenched in the shame of their precalamity mistakes like purah and zelda become active, beloved members of their communities. we see the people of lurelin village take back and rebuild their destroyed home. we watch this kingdom and its people make an unprecedented comeback after a century of struggle and ruin.

Similarly, totk's gameplay is LINK's second chance, his comeback from the initial mistake of losing zelda, of specifically being unable to reach her with his injured hand when they fell. The consequences of that--the master sword's corruption, the loss of his arm, and zelda's draconification, are all supposed to SEEM irreversible, because that's how LINK initially sees them. he believes that he doomed both himself and zelda all because of that SINGLE moment in which he wasn't enough, a viewpoint which is obviously left over from the pressure he experienced to perform to an impossible standard of perfection pre-calamity. The story of totk is about deconstructing that belief and proving it wrong. the mistake he made caused harm, but it's never too late to repair things. he can fix the regional phenomena ganondorf causes and rebuild those communities. he can revitalize the master sword. he can GET ZELDA BACK, with his own arm, uninjured and able to reach her this time. no matter how impossible those things may initially seem, no matter the perceived finality of his mistakes and their consequences, there is always hope. there is always a second chance. no one person's single mistake can doom an entire kingdom for eternity. the fate of hyrule was NEVER resting on link's shoulders alone. he was never their final hope. there was always going to be an after. the whole POINT of the draconification and the loss of link's arm is that they AREN'T final. they ARE inconsequential, because they were born of one mistake and ONE MISTAKE IS NOT THE END ALL.

[entamewitchlulu]

honestly the idea that your first thought in a time loop is "how long before you try to kill someone" when faced with no consequences is just too far out there for me. if i was in a time loop where i thought there would be no consequences the next day i would call out of work every single repeated day and spend that whole day doing shit like reading books, watching anime, playing games that could be finished within 24 hours. probably not art of any kind cause i'd get mad about having my work undone every morning, but i could so some practice doodles and sketches. refine my craft.

"but wouldn't you want to try to kill someone if there were no consequences and possible benefits?" first, list what possible benefits you think that could lend you in a time loop situation. second, you are thinking SO fucking small. imagine going to a new restaurant every day and not caring how much you spent on the meal because the next day you didn't actually spend any money yet.

[witheredoffherwitch]

This fandom is goofy as fuck! It's like you all think you're part of House Targaryen and have to defend your dragon-riding cousins at all costs. Do you realize they are fictional, right? And no, Rhaenyra Targaryen isn't your long lost aunt and Alicent Hightower isn't your evil mother-in-law 💀

“I can't wait for the day when your fave's bloodline dies out and you're left with nothing but karma hitting you in the back.”

WTF does that mean, you sad little loser? These anons are sadly not backing down from these cringe accusations 😭

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

What's something you always wanted to write into your Eleutherophobia fic that you just never had a spot for?

David. Love him as a character, even if I hate him as a person. But if I were to put him in the series, then:

This'd presumably have to involve him making some kind of deal with Crayak. And I don't want Crayak or the Ellimist in my fic.

The consequences for everyone's reputation would be massive and catastrophic. At minimum Rachel would get canceled by the internet. At maximum, the idea of charging all six kids with war crimes would suddenly be back on the table.

I have no idea what I'd do with him after the first scene or two of him interacting with the Berensons. Killing him would be inexcusable. But if he lives, he's going to do everything from rob banks to stalk Rachel to charge Jake with attempted murder.

Either he's no threat at all (because he's still stuck as a rat) or he's a life-ruining level of threat (because he's not stuck as a rat) to Jake. There is no in-between.

That said, I'd dearly love for him to interact with Tom at some point. Just long enough for them to get into a snake-measuring contest. And then for them both to discover that king cobras aren't cobras; king cobras are called that because they eat cobras.