#also the oc tag if you are curious

[wall-e-gorl]

Reblog after voting please!

[whumpacabra]

Whumpy Stories I Enjoy In No Particular Order :]

This will be updated as I get caught up on my current reading/find the energy to go diving through my archive for older pieces that live in my head rent free.

Largely scifi, fantasy, heroes and villains, with a sprinkling of realism, immortality, and eldritch thrown in for good measure.

Science Fiction:

Dystopia -

Biodrones by @just-horrible-things

Weapons Don't Weep by @wolfeyedwitch

Living Weapon: 327 by @whumpy-daydreams

Space Politics -

Dust by @redwhump

The Martyr by @whump-me

Riot Kings (comic, Hand in Hand AU) by @befuddled-calico-whump

*The Sentry and the Strays by @promptsforyourwhumpfic

Fantasy:

Gozukk and Anna, Castor and Ed by @whimperwoods

The Blackmuir Reign by @deluxewhump

Heroes and Villains:

With Bloody Outstretched Hands by @wolfeyedwitch

*Kyle by @whimperwoods

Behind the Masks by @whumpering-heights

Left Behind by @justbreakonme

Wildfire by @befuddled-calico-whump

Darkness Falls by @turn-the-tables-on-them

Hazeshift by @whumpwillow

Alex & Friends [Pat, Aeroseph] by @i-eat-worlds

Immortals and Monsters:

Waking Nightmare by @whumpering-heights

the cave-diving thing by @whumpwillow

*Bloody Ascension by @ash-and-bone-whump

Modern Mercenaries, Mobs, and Spies:

The Kid by @winedark-whump

Zach and Archer by @redstainedsocks

*The Investigator by @whumpy-bi

*I can't find an official masterpost by the op so I have linked the unique tag I use for archiving purposes of each story on my blog

[emberglowfox]

Hi I literally just got here but im already obsessed with ur art and ur ocs i cant wait to know more abt them 🤌❤️ keep being swag have a nice day

HIIIII THANK YOU SO MUCH WELCOME TO THE SHOW!!! here r some class doodles as a humble offering

[direwombat]

wip music whoops-it's-not-monday-anymore 😬

no writing today since we're fresh off the heels of a fic update for katc and most of my writing for it right now is uh. bare bones to say the least. and while i do have an askbox prompt i'm working on, its close enough that i would prefer to publish it once it's ready. so you're all getting music instead.

tagged by @cassietrn, @inafieldofdaisies and @simplegenius042 to share some music inspiring my wips.

here's a track for syb's energy in the first/current arc (ie, the holland valley arc) of katc

Why did love put a gun in my hand? Why did love put a gun in my hand? Why did love put a gun in my hand? In my bed, in my head, in my hand

Was it for redemption? Was it for revenge? Was it for the bottle? Was it for the ledge? Was it for the thrill of pushing my hope to the edge? Why did love, why did love put a gun in my hand?

and under the cut is one that's about my babygirl's enneagram type that just. hits really hard and makes me feel things (especially if interpreting the lyrics as her thinking about/talking to jacob ;w;)

Now you won't see all that I have to lose And all I've lost in the fight to protect it I won't let you in, I swore never again I can't afford, no, I refuse to be rejected

I want to break these bones 'til they're better I want to break them right and feel alive You were wrong, you were wrong, you were wrong My healing needed more than time

When I see fragile things, helpless things, broken things I see the familiar I was little, I was weak, I was perfect, too Now I'm a broken mirror

But I can't let you see all that I have to lose All I've lost in the fight to protect it I can't let you in, I swore never again I can't afford to let myself be blindsided

I'm standing guard, I'm falling apart And all I want is to trust you Show me how to lay my sword down For long enough to let you through

Here I am, pry me open What do you want to know? I'm just a kid who grew up scared enough To hold the door shut And bury my innocence But here's a map, here's a shovel Here's my Achilles' heel

I'm all in, palms out I'm at your mercy now and I'm ready to begin I am strong, I am strong, I am strong enough to let you in

tagging: @marivenah, @statichvm, @trench-rot, @harmonyowl, @fourlittleseedlings, @carlosoliveiraa, @purplehairsecretlair, @aceghosts, @adelaidedrubman, @finding-comfort-in-rain, @socially-awkward-skeleton, @voidika, @locustandwildhoney, @testyfestyenthusiast, @strangefable, @alexxmason, @deputyash, @josephslittledeputy, and anyone else wanting to share some music inspiring them! (taglist opt in/out)

[malk-with-tea]

James Deen we were rooting for you

[dearchickadee]

"I can't help but feel...like I'm not a hero, but a bomb. I may have been built to save us all some day, but not without destroying myself. Detonated at the hands of the gods."

Lark van Laast - Hero of Haven

(@shepherds-of-haven)

[mattodore]

can you describe matthias and theo night routines? and their sleep schedule

<3 ly

Theo doesn’t get a lot of sleep since he’s either out partying into the long stretches of the night or up studying until the words begin to blur on the page. I’d say he normally falls asleep around 3AM-4AM and doesn’t wake back up until 7AM. Four-ish hours is pretty average for how much sleep he gets a night… maybe less at times if he’s more stressed than usual. I should add that he does sleep more when he’s staying over at Matthias’s or vice versa, but generally he tries his best not to let Matthias distract him from studying before bed… which only ever works out about a quarter of the time. Matthias can be... very persuasive.

In the case of Matthias, well… he’s a chronic insomniac whose insomnia is exacerbated by hallucinations and nightmares. Unsurprisingly, his sleep schedule is terribly inconsistent, but if he does sleep then I think he normally manages it sometime around noon and will stay asleep for about an hour or two. It’s actually very rare that he falls asleep during the night—especially after Theo begins to sleep over, as Matthias prefers to read and watch over him at that time instead. Theo has fits in his sleep (from nightmares that he never remembers…) and Matthias gently calms him so he doesn’t wake up.

The only time they fall asleep at around the same time is when they’ve been at it for a while and both need a break. Matthias doesn’t stay asleep for long, though… maybe an hour at most. He does sleep easier around Theo, but that’s mostly just when Theo is awake. I think Matthias finds a lot of comfort in knowing Theo is there watching over him. He went through a lot at the reformation school and there were many times within those years where sleep would be abruptly interrupted and then he’d be back on the killing floor, so to speak, so having someone there to watch over him… I think it really helps. Then, on the other hand, Theo sleeps pretty deeply after they’ve been having sex. There’s never a time he feels more cared for and adored than when Matthias is making love to him, so it's... a relaxing experience. It puts Theo's mind at ease and I think it’s probably when Theo feels the safest. So he'll sleep for a long while after, feeling cradled in Matthias's presence, his anxiety finally snuffed out.

As for their actual night routines… hm. They’re very different, especially before and after the start of Echthroi. 

Theo’s night routine stays pretty much the same throughout the story. He’s not one for self-care, like, at all. Because of that, he doesn’t necessarily have a routine… Theo’s honestly only really meticulous in his studies and everything else suffers for it. However, Theo physically cannot fall asleep unless he’s checked the locks on the windows and doors and closed all of the blinds and curtains. That’s the one routine of his he’s always sure to follow through on, even when he’s intoxicated or sleep deprived.

Otherwise, what else he does as part of his “routine” is up in the air. Sometimes he showers before bed, other times he showers after waking up. Sometimes he combs through his hair all nicely and other times he just impatiently rips his fingers through his hair and shrugs. Sometimes he forgets to brush his teeth, other times he forgets that he’s already brushed his teeth and ends up doing it again. He’s a bit of a mess. If he’s actually aware/awake enough to put himself to bed, then he’ll messily wipe any makeup off his face post-clubbing and/or he’ll shower post-hook up (if it’s the pre-Matthias part of Echthroi). If he’s tired from studying he’ll put all of his materials away and then flop down on his bed. If he has to see his parents in the morning then he’ll wind up in the bathroom for too long, brushing his teeth until his gums bleed. If we’re talking about Theo in the post-meeting Matthias part of the story then he might take a cold shower to try and get Matthias out of his head for a little bit, or he’ll find himself laying in bed staring warily at his phone. Hm… and in general Theo will hum lullabies to himself so he can fall asleep easier… it’s a childhood habit.

By nature of Matthias’s insomnia, Matthias doesn’t exactly find himself preparing for bed during the night like most people. He does, however, still run through his personal care routine at around 8pm. He showers, brushes, flosses, cleanses and hydrates, primps and preens, and then he’ll usually find himself entertaining guests or a partner for the night.

For Matthias pre-meeting Theo, he’s often not alone after dark as he has a string of men with whom he takes to his bed or a list of faceless people to call on whenever he wants to be surrounded by bodies and chatter. There are still quiet nights where he’s by himself or just with Imani, but they’re relatively few and far between. For Matthias post-meeting Theo… woof. He did sleep around here and there still, but I think he gave it up pretty early on… his mind was always swimming with thoughts of Theo and he couldn’t focus on nor did he find himself interested in the men he’d have under him. So after meeting Theo his usual night circuit changes and he often finds himself staying home and reading with some wine and the occasional glance at his phone, waiting for a response. Matthias does a lot of waiting when it comes to Theo.

If they're together at night (when they’re dating), then Matthias will usually make dinner for Theo. He likes feeding him (by hand, even, though Theo often protests). Normally Theo will have a few textbooks with him that he can study from while he waits for dinner and he always winds up going "give me a minute" when the food is finally done. They'll enjoy each other's company just fine at home or they'll go out for a drive or a walk. Theo often winds up getting roped into following along with Matthias's night routine and will poke fun at how fussy Matthias can be as Matthias does skincare beside him in the bathroom. Theo tries to get away with studying again later in the night, but Matthias likes to distract him as he’s personally offended whenever Theo whips out his textbooks past, like, 11PM. In general, they'll wind up having sex at some point, or multiple points, and then they'll shower together. After they towel off and Matthias dries Theo's hair, Matthias will most likely end up reading to Theo until Theo falls asleep. If Theo wakes up during the night, Matthias simply kisses him back to sleep.

[bluejaybytes]

show us your oc lore!!

I'm so sorry but it's exclusively my Splatoon OCs

I'm not at ALL confident in how legible this is, but this is my Web Of Lesbianism(tm), AKA how (almost) all of my lesbian sploon OCs connect to each other, excluding a few who only connect in small places and/or I don't feel like making icons for. Sorry to Scarlet, who absolutely warrants a place here, but I simply Do Not Want to make an icon for </3

Lore under the readmore because I get extremely rambly. whoops and apologies and this is probably the only time i'll ever let myself get THIS infodump-y in a Tumblr post. I'm writing this after I wrote it all out and I'm so fucking sorry it's literally over 2k words because I have no ability to stop once I've started and I've been outright POSSESSED by these losers for the past month. Here's basically everything about my Splatoon OCs

FOR NAMES. Top right is Basil (Blue tentacles), middle right is Penny (Her name is just written because I haven't drawn her yet), bottom right is June (Pink tentacles), bottom middle is Jake (Blue tentacles), bottom left is Parker (Purple tentacles, also the sanitized icon), middle left is Ruby (Orange tentacles), and top left is May (Pink tentacles)

Everything starts when May, Jake, and Ruby are all around ~16-17, while June, May's little sister, is around ~9. May is VERY into Jake, and Jake's just generally a big flirt and a huge romantic, though it's unsure if he really realizes May's extremely obvious crush on him (He doesn't), or he reciprocates, which is unfortunate, because Ruby, who's May's childhood best friend, is also very into her, but May doesn't realize this. When [UNDECIDED EVENT] happens and May and Jake both come to the realization they need to head to the surface to escape the oppressive Octarian domes, Ruby being with them is very clearly an afterthought, and she knows it. So, her jealousy over Jake being someone May has known for less time yet clearly loves more than her, and the fact that trying to escape being very, very illegal, she turns them both in.

Jake manages to call May before he's caught to warn her that Ruby turned them in and the cops will already be heading to her parents house, which gives May enough time to run home, grab June, and make a run for it. Both May and Jake manage to outrun the cops, with May and June ending up far into the outskirts of the domes, while Jake only gets further and deeper within them.

Around a month or two after their initial escape, May's spotted by a patrol of soldiers stationed right around the way to the surface, with the soldier who spots her specifically being Scarlet, the oldest sister to Ruby (Who's not featured here because I don't want to make her icon), who remembers May from when she was a kid and, alongside that, has been feeling disillusioned with life as a soldier, despite her high ranking, and decides not only to let May go, but to even share rations with her. This only increases as Scarlet realizes May is the runaway who's known to have a young child with her, and it goes from Scarlet sparing her own rations to stealing rations from the squad she leads to make sure both May and June are able to eat properly.

Of course, this doesn't last long, as Crimson, the middle sister to Scarlet and Ruby, and fellow soldier stationed with Scarlet's squad, gets suspicious of the missing rations, Scarlet's dismissal of the issue, and her wandering off frequently, and ends up following her and finds her giving the stolen rations to May. A fight breaks out between the two, with Crimson managing to nearly take Scarlet's eye out in the process, as Scarlet's the only person ever to bring a gun to a knife fight and lose. May booked it the MOMENT Crimson jumped out, so she's long gone by the time the scuffle ends, but Scarlet, having just been caught stealing rations, aiding a runaway, and now attacking a fellow soldier (Even if in self defense), bolts to try and make it to the surface as well, albeit she doesn't know where May ran off to.

May ends up making it to the surface around a month after that incident, after wandering lost for the time between, and, while struggling to try and buy some clothes thanks to the language barrier between her and the commonly spoken languages of the surface, one of the employees working there, Penny, is able to help figure out what May's looking for, and helps her with the whole process, since it's a lot different from how it was in the domes. They don't end up seeing each other after that for around a year, but it's important when they do, as Penny's was the first person on the surface May really had a good experience with, so when they randomly run into each other, May's very happy to be able to tell her how meaningful that was to her, and that she's much more adjusted to the culture and language now.

Meanwhile, Jake! Jake ends up wandering deep within the domes, far away from where the actual settlements and cities are, for over a year, just barely surviving through scavenging and avoiding patrolling soldiers. Still, he's not great at it, and eventually he ends up being held at gunpoint by Parker, who insists he tell her his rank and what he's doing out here. He has no idea, as he was never in the military and lies through his teeth. Luckily for him, Parker is a military deserter, and would've had a much worse reaction had she believed him, instead realizing that he's not a soldier and has no idea what he's talking about. Parker's been hiding out in the area, an abandoned sewer system that's frequented as a supply route for soldiers, for several months at this point, and while she actually enjoys her life of living down there, it's a lot of work to survive on her own, and realizing Jake's a fugitive also means he's a potential survival partner.

The two end up meeting up once every day for around a week before Parker feels confident enough that Jake isn't going to screw her over or try and turn her in or anything, and invites him to live with her at her "apartment", an old maintenance closet that's very secluded and not marked on any military maps, under the agreement that the two of them actually work together. Jake instantly agrees because he's been miserable and awful for the past year, while Parker's doing surprisingly well for herself, she even has multiple sets of clothes that she's stolen from nearby outposts (As well as an entire mattress she stole, and her most prized possession, a full deck of playing cards, and an Octo Shot she definitely killed a man for), as opposed to Jake, who's been going off of only what he had on him when everything went down, which is... practically nothing.

The plot basically slows down and chills out here for a while, May and June end up moving in with Penny after a few months of May and Penny hanging out instead of having to live in the shitty motel they'd been living in before (Albeit, the motel was better than the wilds they'd been living in before that), and Parker and Jake get adjusted to their lives in hiding surprisingly well. May and Scarlet even find each other on the surface again, they run into each other while May's out grocery shopping, and it's a very important moment for the both of them, as they've spent this entire time carrying around the guilt of feeling responsible for what happened, so them seeing the other and seeing how much better they're doing on the surface helps ease those guilts.

And then the events of Octo Expansion happen in the background. Parker and Jake know the routines of the soldiers in the area after years of living together, but the supply lines end up being used by sanitized Octoling soldiers after Kamabo starts massively ramping up production, leading to patrols of sanitized soldiers at seemingly random intervals, and outside of the predictable patterns that Parker and Jake were used to. Parker's out doing the laundry when a patrol finds her, and, greatly outnumbering her, end up nearly killing her, and dragging her back to be sanitized. She's in too bad of condition to be saved and reused as a test subject, so she's just sanitized instead.

Jake, naturally, notices when Parker never comes back from doing the laundry, and proceeds to be missing for upwards of two weeks. Jake does his best to look for her, but he also doesn't want to stray too far from their "apartment", as he's scared she might return home when he's gone, and with the unpredictable patrols, he doesn't feel like it's safe to stay out for as long as he wants to to look for her, so he ends up sticking close to home and just hoping he'll be able to find some clue of her. Of course, when he finally does, finally spotting her hanging around the entrance to the hallways that lead to their apartment, it's Not a good thing. He runs up to her to ask where she's been, and the moment he calls for her she turns and attacks him. It's not even a fair fight, even if he went in expecting a fight, he wouldn't have won, but this was a complete surprise. She quickly attacks him and takes him back to be put into the metro as a test subject, and, since he was brought back in much better shape than she was, he actually can be salvaged as a test subject!

And then he isn't. He's in the process of being readied as a test subject, namely, having his memories messed with, that the entire plot of Octo Expansion actually happens, and he's freed when the entire facility shuts down, and the metro is just a normal transport system again. He ends up wandering around for another month or so, except doing so very poorly, as the effects that being prepped to be a test subject had on his memory is bad, and basically erased all of his knowledge on how to survive on his own. Eventually, and luckily for him, he's found by one of the rescue teams that have been sent out in the aftermath of Octo Expansion to rescue lost and sanitized Octolings, and FINALLY gets brought to the surface, as well as being hospitalized for a whole myriad of problems, mainly being severely dehydrated from not remembering safe ways to find and gather water reliably.

When he's ready to be discharged, he realizes he has really nowhere to go, but since he still remembers May's phone number from when they were kids (As it's been years at this point, May and Jake are both in their mid 20s now, and June's around ~17), and calls her to ask if she can come pick him up and also if he can crash at her place for a bit. May is more than a bit surprised that her childhood friend she was fairly convinced had died years ago, and that she feels guilty for abandoning, is not only still alive, but super casual and chill just. Calling her cell and asking if he can sleep on her couch. At this point, June's already moved out, having been encouraged by both May and Penny to get out on her own and try getting out of her comfort zone, and is living in Splatsville with her roommate Basil, and not really having any major plot moments of her own. She's having fun and coming out of her shell and having silly lesbian shenanigans with her roommate in the background while Jake and May are experiencing the horrors.

Ultimately, this is about where thing stop being decided and I still need to figure out what happens next. Jake is living on May and Penny's couch (The universe will never let them have their house to themselves. Not even 3 months after June moves out, Jake's crashing on their couch), and has no memory of his time with Parker, Parker's MIA and potentially dead, and May's struggling with the idea that Jake's either in denial of some major trauma he must've faced through the years, or that she's somehow uniquely fucked up from what happened to them. To make matters worse, Jake's memory issues become more and more apparent, as he continues to struggle to remember Penny's name, instead repeatedly calling her "Parker", yet getting confused when he's corrected. I'm ultimately unsure what I'm going to do to resolve this plot thread, but May and Penny do realize that whoever Parker was, she was someone Jake knew in the time he was missing, and are trying to figure out just exactly who she was, if not where she actually is

Whether or not Parker is dead... it's up in the air. I initially planned for her to die and stay dead, but I'm the worlds biggest sap and I feel bad about killing her off permanently, as well as the fact I have plenty of silly ideas for what I could do with Parker once she's on the surface, so I'm still debating if it's more narratively satisfying for her to die or not. There's, if you believe it, actually a ton I'm glossing over (The intricacies of Jake and Parker's dynamic, the reasons why Parker left, basically everything about Basil and June, literally Basil has an entire friend group that has their own mini-plot that's not at all connected to this and doesn't get mentioned, Crimson is going to be more relevant once I figure out what I want to do with her, ect), but uh. That's the very long gist of it.

If anyone actually, genuinely reads through all of this. Thank you, apologies, and I love you

[elisedonut]

you guys want to see some ship stats? (well ao3 ship stats)

because I got really curious and find stuff like this neat so number in (bracket) is the number the tag search gave me number next to it is how many I see when just opening the tag

Taken 1/27/24

Percy Weasley

Relationship: Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood ‎(2374) 1,576

Relationship: Audrey Weasley/Percy Weasley ‎(537) 494

Relationship: Penelope Clearwater/Percy Weasley ‎(328) 305

Relationship: Hermione Granger/Percy Weasley ‎(324) 256

Relationship: Harry Potter/Percy Weasley ‎(312) 184

Oliver Wood

Relationship: Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood ‎(2374) 1,576

Relationship: Marcus Flint/Oliver Wood ‎(1203) 948

Relationship: Harry Potter/Oliver Wood ‎(257) 178

Relationship: Hermione Granger/Oliver Wood ‎(186) 165

Relationship: Oliver Wood/Original Female Character(s) ‎(160) 155

Marcus Flint

Relationship: Marcus Flint/Oliver Wood ‎(1203) 948

Relationship: Marcus Flint/Harry Potter ‎(673) 191?????? Wait what

Relationship: Marcus Flint/Hermione Granger ‎(418) 360

Relationship: Katie Bell/Marcus Flint ‎(228) 194

Relationship: Marcus Flint/Percy Weasley ‎(173) 131

what did we learn from this?

nothing but it is neat to look at

no actually I lied we learned that Marcus/Harry is broken for some reason? Maybe idk

My original guess for the discrepancy between what the tag search said and actual results were from people

you know

hiding their HP works instead of deleting them via the collections system leading to like tags still being used and counted but not visible but that's the only one with such a large difference that it ends up moving places (from 2nd to 4th)

Well anyway regardless it's still neat to me in particular

[waveknight]

OC-tober day 5 - Relationships - Ruse and Makan (who is @sticksandsharks amazing OC)

The only guy who could have domesticated Ruse but unfortunately he is equally feral.

prompt list

Here's some other sketches of them i did recently

[arklay]

tagged by @denerims @aartyom @risingsh0t @florbelles @fenharel & @morvaris – thank you so much beloveds! ♡

tagging: @aelyosos @aragorngf @brujah @engferth @faarkas @necroticpetals @nocticulas @phillipsgraves @serenedy @swordcoasts @voerman @wrymbloods & i feel like everyone has done this already but if you haven't then i'm tagging you! ♡

OCS AS OTHER CHARACTERS.

rules: take this quiz and share 5 (or more! or less!) results from the top 50 that you feel really fit your oc(s). if you don’t recognize very many from the top 50, feel free to expand into the top 100.

glenn rhee (the walking dead)

peeta mellark (the hunger games)

annie january (the boys)

frodo baggins (lord of the rings)

luke skywalker (star wars)

amy elliot dunne (gone girl)

beth harmon (the queen's gambit)

dr. hannibal lector (hannibal)

melisandre (game of thrones)

mary wardwell (chilling adventures of sabrina)

faye valentine (cowboy bebop)

tyra collette (friday night lights)

gloria delgado-pritchett (modern family)

manny santos (degrassi: the next generation)

mazikeen (lucifer)

[dungeons-and-dragon-age]

OC Associations Meme

Liam Hawke

Seasoning: Cinnamon, nutmeg, basil

Weather: Sunny with patchy clouds; just warm enough to be out without a jacket, and occasionally breezy

Colour: Deep forest green, reddish browns, and dark reds like wine red

Sky: The time right at the end or right after golden hour, when most things are already in shadow but the sun hasn't set yet

Magic power: Earth-based (?)

House plant: Ironically, spider plant

Weapon: Daggers, old and worn but well kept and functional

Subject: PE (not a fan of school lol, and he'd go into some sort of trade profession instead of uni)

Social media: ... my first instinct was to say facebook lmao but probably twitter, cos his friends are there too (can't tell me kirkwall crew wouldn't wreak havoc on there)

Make-up product: Hair oil? Or hand lotion maybe idk

Candy: Salted caramel candy or chocolate raisins

Fear: Failure; loneliness

Ice cube shape: Basic cube lol

Method of long distance travel: Cart/Train, depending on the setting xd

Art style: Realism

Mythological creature: Wyvern, or cerberus (totally not cos it's a dog hsfskljdfl)

Piece of stationary: Post-it notes or a plastic ballpoint pen

3 emojis: 🐶 🤡 🕰

Celestial body: Some random ass asteroid

Tarot card: Five of cups (upright: loss, grief, self-pity; reversed: acceptance, moving on, finding peace) or three of swords (upright: heartbreak, suffering, grief; reversed: recovery, forgiveness, moving on) edit: or ten of swords (upright: failure, collapse, defeat reversed: can't get worse, only upwards, inevitable end)

Thank you @greypetrel for the tag!! :)

This was super fun! Some of these are very much just based on vibes lol, But! It made me finally look into tarot cards for my ocs xD Might have to fill this out for some other kiddos as well ovo

tagging (as always of course with no pressure) @a-drama-addict, @brainworm-terrarium, @snowberry-pie, @drunken-drengr, @bluecadash, @bearsizedant, @beelzebard, @apricot-sprites, @absyntthe, @exotic-inquiry, @quakingbirch, @creativegoblin, @drakonovisny, @curiouslavellan, @superboyconner, @nanowatzophina, @hoiist, @cao-the-dreamer, @bigfan-fanfic, @daggerbean, and anyone who'd like to give it a go!

[silentspectres]

You mentioned Gale Wyll and Karlach having a positive influence on Mercury, would you elaborate? I am very normal about Gale

That's so fair, I have a friend who is also very normal about Gale (he constantly tells me about his need to relentlessly bully him <affectionate> + I am genuinely surprised how much he grew on me too)

thank you once again for being interested in my strange tiefling, by the way!! I love getting the chance to talk about Mercury

I wrote more than I intended so everything's under a read more!

For some background context: Mercury didn't do relationships of any kind before the events of BG3. They maybe held some people close when they were younger, but after a rather striking betrayal they suffered from, they cut people out. As a young rogue who was quickly getting used to underhanded tactics, this was easy for them to maintain, especially since things were much easier to do while fully anonymous (masked + cloaked) and solo. This habit carried over post-tadpole and it took several days once the full group of companions were gathered in camp for any single one of them to even know Mercury's name, which Mercury only offered up because they had previously made a deal with Shadowheart whenever they met again on the beach post crash. (I do have more context for this I can share sometime)

Mercury's isolationist attitude and well-guarded nature played a huge part in their early dynamics with everyone in camp. They kept to themself and humored the people they were traveling with (choosing to help them with their problems) only because they were smart enough to realize dealing with a mindflayer tadpole alone would be tantamount to death. It was well into late late act 1/ early act 2 before Mercury came around to actually caring about anyone in camp, and even though they had people who would freely call them "friend" by that point, they still kept their distance and mostly sat alone from the rest. (The isolated overlook in the camp at the mountain pass was a favorite spot of theirs) At this point, I think they spent a lot of nights reflecting on how they got tangled up in being involved with people again and being just generally upset that they actually care to have a stake in these people's lives and issues. It was difficult to grapple with the idea of accepting vulnerability in the form of caring about others and being cared about in return, especially because the main reason Mercury stayed away from interpersonal relationships was because relationships are messy and complicated and they invite the possibility in of being hurt. Trusting is not something that comes easy to Mercury, but they learn to exercise it.

So, Wyll, Karlach, and Gale were the largest contributing factors to getting Mercury to that point. I don't think any of them realized the effect they were having on Mercury (at least not the extent of it), especially since early on Mercury never spoke more than they had to and didn't even join the group at large around the fire whenever dinner was made more than half the time. They have darkvision - they're perfectly content to eat alone somewhere the fire isn't shining on them. Gale (resident camp cook) was never going to let them go without eating, though, so I imagine he tried to keep an eye on them whenever they did not join the group for food

And in general, it was little touches and nudges like that that softened Mercury. It's something that happened so gradually they didn't even consciously clock it as happening, otherwise they would've reinforced their walls and made more of an effort to keep others out. On an individual level, Wyll, Karlach, and Gale each offered something different that Mercury - ever the mirror they are, albeit one shattered and stained in crimson along the broken edges - ended up reflecting back.

Wyll struck a particular first impression with Mercury as they met him while he was play sparring with a tiefling child in an effort to teach him something of self-defense. Mercury encouraged the kid and treated Wyll with respect - not suspicion or coldness - pretty much immediately out the gate. They were more reluctant to hear him out about his father since they have a complicated history with the city and definitely had a harder time giving him the time of day about some of his heroic tales, but it never really stopped Wyll from treating Mercury as an equal or even favorably, and the turning point of their relationship (which could've definitely broken the tentative trust forever) was whenever Wyll confronted Karlach. Wyll chose to stand up for his principles - helping those in need, protecting those who are vulnerable - even in the face of losing his soul for it, and that left quite the impression on Mercury in the long run, especially because Wyll faced Mizora for a tiefling who clearly wasn't what she had been made out to be. Mercury needed a good role model like Wyll a lot sooner, honestly, but seeing that someone out there was still willing to fight for what they believe to be worth protecting in the world directly challenged Mercury's apathy toward others and set them down the path of wondering if things could be different than how their life had ended up becoming, if they just tried again

Karlach's influence is a lot easier and more straightforward. She didn't really do any one thing per se - she just was. She's loud and friendly and cares so much! All the time! She took one look at Mercury, asked, "Is someone going to be their friend?", and didn't wait for an answer. Their dynamic definitely feels like an older, tired cat (Mercury) begrudgingly putting up with an energetic kitten (Karlach). Her sincerity and the way that she lives completely differently than Mercury (to the fullest vs barely living at all, especially when you know the further context that Mercury absolutely didn't even want to be alive anymore during the first two and a half acts) wore down Mercury's defenses over time. She became one of Mercury's traveling companions at first out of necessity (between two rogues and a wizard, someone had to be the brawn), but she's as radiant as the sun itself and definitely made the trips more enjoyable. She definitely pushed boundaries the hardest, I feel, because she constantly tried to keep Mercury included, and her constant pressure to rope them back into group activities and mindlessly including them in conversation is 100% the reason they eventually started coming around willingly. It's like when you introduce a new cat to a household and have to have them sniff the other cats through a door, except with a strangle little tiefling who for some reason kept eating alone in the dark and is really good at pissing off gods.

This next part about Gale might be needlessly long and I'm so sorry about that, but he is, bizarrely, the catalyst of what finally broke down Mercury's resistance to being actually involved with anyone, and honestly he came to be who Mercury would consider their first friend of the group. (Friend in the sense Mercury returned the sentiment; Karlach's friendship was one-sided until Mercury finally warmed up to her fully and Astarion doesn't count because he + Mercury decided they just. couldn't be normal with each other for so long)

What sets Gale apart in particular is that he is extremely earnest. Mercury was off-put by him for a long time for a variety of reasons (found him in a rock, he speaks so much and is So weird about it, he is direct and honest) and to be completely honest, he was the companion Mercury trusted the least due to the fact he was so open and honest about things. Early on, Gale was by far the person who was the most talkative with Mercury and was the first to ever directly approach them for something, even if it was to cryptically tell them that he desperately needed to absorb magic from artefacts they find. Mercury obliged, tried not to ask too many questions, and somehow hours later they found themself still in conversation with Gale about one thing or another. I'm only slightly exaggerating - a lot of their early dynamic was Gale deciding he absolutely needed to tell Mercury something immediately and Mercury stood there listening to him speak, wondering why they're still listening and why he's telling them about how he fucked a goddess (which they think was a horrible idea + situation), and wishing he'd stop telling them about any new random topic of conversation that popped into his head. They thought he was so strange (as if Mercury isn't) and they didn't understand why he was so insistent to tell them virtually everything about himself, but yet they did always end up listening to him about it. This coupled with Mercury's distrust toward him for how earnestly he spoke about matters and his own feelings meant Mercury especially kept him at a distance - they humored him because it was easier than avoiding him, but they absolutely did not want to be dragged into his whole mess. And yet-

So, at this rate, in the transition of going into act 2 (the mountain pass/the underdark), not only had the party started to get along and grow closer with each other, but all the little influences of Gale actively seeking Mercury out as a conversation partner, Karlach making sure Mercury was included and treated with the same warmness and kindness as she did any of the others with no hesitation to the matter, Wyll providing insight to a way of living for others Mercury had never humored, Astarion starting to just barely come out of his shell (causing Mercury to start to realize he's genuinely really fun), and the others (Lae'zel/Shadowheart) starting to relax, too, in this group dynamic that is so foreign to them, had set Mercury firmly in the position of being comfortable. And they hadn't realized that, yet. That realization came later, when the first major crisis posed to one of Mercury's party members presented itself in the form of a wizened, old wizard: Elminster.

This is why Gale became the catalyst of Mercury realizing they had let themself become comfortable and start caring. Elminster showed up to send Gale a message from the goddess of magic herself - the very same goddess Mercury can't help but think has always taken advantage of Gale, regardless of if he does or even can see it that way - that said "you will be forgiven if you kill yourself for me." Mercury has always had an issue with the gods (for reasons I haven't quite pinpointed yet), and it genuinely upset them that a goddess would offer a convenient 'solution' to multiple issues she could solve herself if she really cared to, all the while masking punishment behind forgiveness, and Gale just accepting it like it's not only normal but the correct thing to do. It was the first time Mercury had felt protective over someone in a long time, which is something they didn't even know they had it in them to feel anymore, especially after years and years of survival instinct dictating that they must care about themself above all else. This, coupled with Karlach leveling with Mercury she's not so sure she'll make it because her engine has been actively getting worse, as well as Mercury realizing their previous discomfort over learning what Astarion's scars said didn't make them uncomfortable just because it read like an infernal pact, but rather because they actually personally cared about the position it put Astarion in, leads to Mercury having a looooong couple of days where they have to grapple with the fact they've gotten themself way in over their head and there's just no turning back now. At least they had plenty wine to keep them company.

I hope this sufficiently answers your question! I uh. didn't mean to write a whole essay, but I think about my character's motivations and growth over the story constantly and I'm always more than happy to ramble to anyone who wants to hear it!

Also as a bonus because you are normal about Gale, the awkwardness of Mercury not knowing how to deal with Gale early on (act 1 - early act 2) was only intensified later when Mercury realized Gale had fallen in love with them at some point? They had to sit down with him and level with him 1) that they would never be with someone romantically (that wasn't a lie at the time, they were genuinely blindsided by falling in love with Astarion) 2) please find someone who deserves you 3) have better taste and I think about that constantly because there's something so funny to me about Gale looking at Mercury, who is an absolute disaster of a person who can barely function socially, and deciding "yeah I'm into that"

[vaugarde]

ngl i don't get the desire for "fanfiction rewrites" for when the original author ends up being an awful person. like at that point i think you're better off just making your own fanfic entirely or ignoring it.

[bhalspawn]

i want to know about differences between dalish clans. does vallaslin vary at all between different clans? what about ones that live in wildly different climates? are there dalish clans that don't live primarily in forests, but wander in mountains or deserts?

[homoeroticvillain]

silly guy