#and various shenanigans

[becomingsoup]

here's a couple assorted thingies to commemorate my brain finally starting to feel normal again for the first time since like april of this year

[shaunashipman]

buck and chimney continuously arguing over who's responsible for the other's relationship more

"dude she's literally my sister, you never would have even met her without me"

"I'm the reason your boyfriend was even alive to meet you"

meanwhile maddie and tommy are just sitting there drinking their wine like "so I'm thinking about oak for the new floors"

[mionkings]

Wrong Twin Bozos 🙄

First ever DC x DP prompt because I've been getting brainrot reading yall prompts and I need a nap :> this is crac–

A classic twin Damian and Danny AU, where Danny ends up with the generic fuckery of having the GIW/Bad Parents!Fentons after him from a bad reveal gone wrong, Vlad outing him, or escaping after getting vivsected and injured badly.

Who Knows? But Danny's GOTTA GO-

Now in some scenarios, we get Danny hitting the deck and going to Gotham, to Batman and Robin aka Damian for help and revealing himself. But some au prompts I've seen of Danny ORIGINS about leaving the League of Assassins is via fake death, help or the pit, etc. Danny left for a reason that got him away with a new life- he's FUCKED if he goes to his bio dad and his twin brother, he tells himself =͟͟͞͞(꒪ᗜ꒪‧̣̥̇).

Going to Gotham aka the BatFam would blow Danny's cover, getting the attention of the League of Assassins after all this time is definitely not on Danny's to-do list. He's got enough on his plate, thank you :']

So instead, while Danny leaves Amity Park with the help of his friends, he doesn't aim for Gotham, he instead goes to hide in other cities such as Star City, Keystone City, or Central City. Honestly, doesn't even have to be a city, he straight up leaves the country if yall feel like it, guy deserves a break dammit. Can't have laws of legal torture affect you when you're in open seas ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Now cue Danny's pursuers scrambling to find the Halfa, a constant chase- that is until they finally get a photo of Danny, scowling with his green eyes, trying to hide his ghostly traits that mustve leaked through when the photo was taken in Gotham.

They begin to get ready.

It's time to capture the creature once and for all.

[cometblaster2070]

highly improbable but a funny hc i've always thought about for darling is that whenever apple says her name, her useless lesbian brain goes BLANK because instead of going 'oh haha yeah that's my name, darling', she instead thinks of it as apple calling her darling as a pet name.

and i like it imagine it happens a lot like:

apple: darling, could you please pass the salt?

darling:

darling, internally panicking: ohmygodohmygodshecalledmedarlingshecalledmedarlingshecalledme-

darling: WAIT THAT'S MY FUCKING NAME.

darling: haha, sure apple, don't worry about it!

raven and rosabella have watched this exact same scenario play out several times. at this point, rosabella takes off her glasses and stares off into space for a bit while raven contemplates murder for a while as a coping mechanism.

[a-most-beloved-fool]

there are many neat reptilian characteristics that one can give Cardassians. I've seen shedding scales, tails and claws, scent marking, and people making them ectothermic.

but consider:

Color changing ridges. Just for funsies. We already tend to headcanon that the ridges and spoons (chula, if you prefer) turn blue when aroused, mimicking the make up they wear in canon, but it would be a bit interesting if the ridges were Fully color changing, a la chameleons. Especially if they changed color based on emotions.

Because their culture is very focused on the Good of the State, it would probably be taboo to have your emotions plainly visible (too much risk of your colors giving away the fact that you aren't 100% content blindly serving the state). I think it would be typical to wear make up to cover up the color changing scales, or to wear paint in 'positive' colors.

Soldiers and the Obsidian Order might even find a way to chemically neutralize the color changing, either temporarily or permanently - it could be far too much of a liability, if someone got captured and interrogated.

Most non-Cardassians would be entirely unaware that this was a normal part of Cardassian physiology. Novels might have oblique references to the colors when describing emotions, but any book that spoke too clearly of them would be almost sure to get banned. Bashir would be slowly taking notes about which colors in novels seemed to correspond to which emotions, but he'd have no idea that it was because Cardassians could Literally Turn Those Colors. He'd just assume their color theory was different, and that they were Really into color metaphors for some reason.

Could be interesting to explore the cultural implications and see what kinds of new mischief happens on the station due to it.

[spacedace]

Damian doesn't know who Santa Claus is and Danny tries to gaslight him into believing in Santa

Okay but, like, wouldn't even be gaslighting! Santa canonically does exist in the DC universe, I think I remember reading something about him fighting through an army in hell to give Darkseid a single piece of coal once?

So like, Danny doesn't have to gaslight Damian into believing Santa's real, he just has to pull out the proof (Danny has a binder of everything he knows about the Spirit of Christmas for the purpose of when he eventually goes to war with him, Danny hates Christmas so fucking much haha) and show him evidence that Santa is real.

Probably ranting the entire time about how much he hates the guy & Christmas and it's obvious that this is Danny's arch nemesis. His one true villain above all others. Pariah Dark? A nuisance. Dark Dan? Just a tuesday. Santa? That motherfucker is the bane of Danny's existence and he will pay for what he's done (spread Christmas cheer).

And Danny's the newest member to the family. Damian's been encouraged to get to know his new brother and try and bond with him a bit, make him feel like part of the family. So, obviously, the best way to do that is to help Danny in his quest for vengeance.

And of course Tim & Jason end of getting roped in on this. Damian's grown since he's first came to live with his father. He still is a little brat to his older brothers - he's the baby of the family it's his right - but he doesn't actively hate them anymore and can admit when their particular skills would be useful. Tim is the best at strategizing, and Jason is a combat master with access to all sorts of weapons. With all of them working together Santa has no chance, they will destroy him.

Which all just makes me think of something like this happening lol:

“What…uh, what are they doing?” Duke glanced between the chaos unfolding in the family room to where Dick was calmly seated in his favorite chair, sipping idly at a cup of coffee.

“Sibling bonding.” Dick said. There was that specific aura of calm around him that said that he’d already gone through several crisis and all the stages of grief at least twice. Considering the calamity and chaos the eldest batkid had seen over the years - and especially the last few months since Bruce officially adopted Danny and brought him into the fold - it was a bad sign that he’d reached this particular state of Done (TM) before noon. The earliest Dick even woke up was two in the afternoon.

Duke contemplated turning around right then and there - the particular combination of people all excitedly feeding off each other’s feral energy on the other side of the room was a catastrophe in the making he didn’t want to be anywhere near when it finally breached containment and spilled out into the wider world - but unfortunately he was cursed with the curiosity that afflicted all members of the bat clan.

“It looks like they’re plotting to try and kill Santa Claus.”

Dick turned to look at Duke fully for the first time since he’d entered the room. He had the eyes of one that was deeply haunted by the horrors they had witnessed. On the other side of the room Tim was ranting about anti-magic tech while Danny, Damian and Jason argued over what weapons would be most effective against a demi god. There were schematics of what looked worryingly like a rocket launcher looking device that - if the scribbles on the whiteboard someone had drug into the room where to be believed - was going to be rigged to shoot ecto-grenades.

“Danny hates Christmas.” Dick said, and Duke noticed for the first time that his hands around the coffee cup were faintly trembling. “He’s declared Santa is his arch nemesis.”

Duke blinked, glancing over to the others long enough to see Danny start frantically scribbling the words Christmas Nuke on the whiteboard. No one else was trying to erase it. Tim looked worriedly contemplative. Damian and Jason where both nodding in agreement.

He was going to regret this. “But Santa isn’t real?”

Dick’s eyes gained a faintly manic glean, and Duke could faintly hear the sound of porcelain creaking warningly beneath the desperate hold he had on his coffee cup. “That’s what I thought!” Dick said, with enough cheer to make Duke flinch back instinctively. “But apparently he is.” A distinct crack appeared in the cup, coffee dripping down into Dick’s lap. “And apparently they’re going to war with him!”

Well, Duke considered, at least that explained why he caught the four of them burning down the giant Christmas tree in the city center last night.

[cubbyhole-for-flea-bee]

what if NMJ just poofs into an owl when qi deviations loom tho

Bonus from a later reblog:

FWUMP

[meamiiikiii]

a star being appeared in your apartment, wdyd?

(aka loop getting reverse isekaied into the modern office au)

also there are some scattered mumblings on loop in this AU under the cut if anyone's interested (spoilers for all of ISAT, including 2hats!)

vvv

TLDR - The Universe keeps fucking with Loop and they are not really happy about it, regardless of timing.

While I haven't decided anything 100% concrete for Loop, the idea of a reverse isekaied Loop in general is interesting to me, so I'll be exploring that a bit here. Especially in terms of timing on when Loop gets taken out of their timeline. At least in terms of immediate outlook within this AU. So, for now, have a couple of those thoughts! 

---

The two main points in time I am currently considering are the following:

1. From when they gave up their original wish and made a new one.

In this instance, I feel like their arc would play a bit similar to in game

Seeing this new world as different & peaceful

Since they don’t have to deal with the loops anymore, just watch whatever happens.

Be a lil silly for funsies! The chaos that can ensue with a star being existing within a modern world! 

Even though it hurts to see Siffrin’s team hanging around, they really don’t have anywhere to go at the moment (hard to hide a star being in this type of world)

To a slow realization of how unfair this whole situation is. In comparison to all of the horrors they went through, this Siffrin has it so easy.

This Siffrin gets to live an idyllic life, free from the world calamity of being frozen & the literal time loop.

This Siffrin gets to freely hang around their family team, with no foreseeable "end" to being with them in sight.

This Siffrin had their original wish, the wish Loop wanted granted, handed to them on a silver platter. 

This Siffrin, nor anyone in this world, would ever be able to come close to understanding what Loop went through; Loop would never truly be seen in this world, not fully anyway.

What does The Universe have against them, to put them into this world and make them witness all of this?

It should have been them, with this carefree type of life, given all they went through.

2. AFTER the fight with Siffrin.

This leans a bit more lighthearted than the last, since Loop would have gone through all the development from the game via convos + the talk at the very end with Siffrin, and has a bit more peace about their whole deal.

Perhaps they would still see the same conclusions as above, since healing from the horrors would not happen all at once, if ever, with additional flavor

Underlying bitterness in why the script is still going. 

Why is The Universe asking for them to continue into a new world and role?

Haven’t they had enough, once making them witness another Siffrin’s loops and perfect ending, and now a completely idyllic Siffrin’s life from the get go?

However, there is also a bit of hope in the entire situation. Since if The Universe keeps deciding to fuck with them (as in, sending them to different world lines) there is still, technically, the chance of going backward as well.

To their original timeline and to their family.

Once could have been a one-off, but twice?

Perhaps three world jumps might be the minimum to go back, following standard wishing rituals?

More hope in this one from the get-go, with that thought in mind.

---

Though there are probably other points in time that would be interesting too! 

Another one I was considering was RIGHT BEFORE the fight with Siffrin, perhaps even mid-fight. However, I don't think that makes much sense for this particular AU ASAFASFASDAS. Can you imagine if Loop just spawned into this world, doesn't realize this is a completely different Siffrin, and attacks on sight?????

Honestly the idea of a reverse-isekaied Loop into different AU's in general is neat, would love to see other people's takes on it!!  Especially cuz of the various reactions/conclusions Loop could have/make based on the scenario/circumstances would be interesting, if that makes sense. At least I think there is something in that thought? I dunno!

I feel like I am missing some characterization bits in here, but that was the main gist of it for now since I cannot remember LMAO.

Mumblings over, thanks for reading my silly thoughts if you got this far!!!

[xenomorphicdna]

On the string propaganda

Heeellll yeah

Bestie is an entire PLACE

I look at those guys and let me tell you the soul of that thing ain't just in the puppet, it's in all the neurons carrying the thoughts and emotions, it's in the power rails that serve as the heart. All the memories in the memory conflux and all the numbers we see flicker across displays, the flux condensers, the puppet; a little avatar.

No way these massive machines see life the same way we do. They have their own experiences and senses and things they hold dear. A world we can't imagine, a way of living we couldn't even comprehend.

I could never tear an iterator apart to be just a puppet. Who am I to decide how's life supposed to be enjoyed or perceived?

You treat your creechurs however you want- I ain't gonna dictate that. But damn, hearing the thrums and buzzes of the linear systems rail? They are alive with so much power, these mechanical beasts are exactly what they should be.

[clumsiestgiantess]

The size swap episode is here! While it does canonically happen in the main story, it’s only ever vaguely alluded to because it has zero plot relevance and never happens again (I just wanted them to experience how the other feels being tiny/giant)

Why isn’t this just an AU, you ask? Because I want the true characters to experience it >:)

(there’s a bit of spice in here as well; you know how the girlies are rn… they’ll be like that for a bit lol) [One day after the end of chapter 27, in Alexis’ living site near the mountains, both a normal-world inhabitant and an other-worldian wake up to begin their travels, only to find a strange new perspective…]

“Alexis!?”  I woke with a start, groaning in annoyance.  What was so important Erica had to wake me by yelling into my ear?  I was about to say something in protest, but I was startled into silence by my unfamiliar surroundings.  Cloth stretched on and on around me in every direction.  The only source of light filtered in beyond the strange material.  It was disorienting and almost frightening.  Where am I?  “Erica?” I called nervously into the empty air.  Now I could see why she’d woken me, but where was she?  I looked to the floor for her, and gasped in shock.  My clothes were gone.  Before I could even begin to puzzle out what happened, the entire room tilted to the side.  I cried out in fear as I slid down the surface of the cloth floor.  A moment later, light blinded me and I hit the ground unexpectedly hard.  The air was thrust from my lungs, and I sat up dizzily.

Daylight scorched my eyes.  I shut them quickly, but forced them back open at the sound of faraway rumbling.  What caused the rumbling was so awe-inspiring and frightening that I forgot to breathe.  Erica was standing what seemed like miles away from me; she stood almost as tall as a mountain, and she was putting on my clothes.  

That’s where I woke up, I realized, recognizing the color of the fabric I’d been lost in moments ago.  No wonder I was naked; my clothes were far too big for me now.  “I shrunk!” I whispered in wonder.  Judging by Erica’s new size and the fact that she had to steal my clothes, I could only assume Erica had grown.  We’ve switched heights!  How is this possible?  I spent so much time trying to shrink to her size, and now that I have, suddenly she’s the tall one?

“Alexis, where are-?” Erica stopped short as she noticed the height of the trees for the first time.  “What the hell?”  Even her confused whisper was loud to me.  As I took in her new height, I had a terrifying thought.  If Erica and I swapped sizes, she can finally get revenge on me for controlling her!  Seconds later, I forcefully shook my head.  No, she wouldn’t; she loves me; she wouldn’t hurt me for that anymore.  However, I tested if I still had the ability to control another person.  I did.

I flinched as Erica shifted to kneel down, carefully picking something up off the ground.  Though she was fairly far away, her movements still took up one half of my vision.  Am I really that terrifying when I’m that size?  I had to be.  

Staring in numb shock, I watched as Erica flinched backwards, immediately scanning the ground and the bottoms of her feet.  She let out a relieved sigh when she found nothing.  “Alexis, did we switch sizes?” Erica asked, sounding almost frightened.  Wow, her voice was so much louder than I’d heard before.  

“Please, say something!  Are you standing somewhere trying to get my attention?  I-  How am I so big?  This feels.. what’s the opposite of claustrophobic?”  She scanned the ground around her carefully before standing back up.  “This is awful!  Now I know why you panic so much when you can’t find me.”  Despite my slight fear of Erica’s new size, I called out to her.  Though it was still unnerving to see her this way, I didn’t want her to be worried about me.  

“Erica!  I’m over here!”  She froze mid-search.  “I’m over here!  Behind you, to the left of the trees!”  Her movements were so large and so fast that I instinctively gasped in fear.  My thoughts spiraled in a panic.  Why am I calling her over!?  I don’t even have clothes on!

The moment Erica spotted me, she sat up and raced over.  Each of her steps covered about thirty or so of mine.  “Alexis!” she cried out in relief, “Thank god!  I was so scared, I thought I’d crushed you!”  I yelped in terror as she swiftly snatched me off the ground.  Vertigo churned in my stomach as I was lifted a horrifying distance into the air.  Her fingers, each of which were longer than half my height, pressed painfully into my sides as she held me dangling in the open air.  

No!  She is going to hurt you! my mind screamed.  She can easily hurt you for everything you’ve done, and you.  Can’t.  Stop her.  “Ow! Ow!  You need to let me go, or else you’re going to break something!” I cried, “Erica please, don’t hurt me!  I’m sorry!  Please!”  Tears welled in my eyes as I was placed back down.  I wasn’t even sure if it was my abilities reacting to my fear that made her do that, or if she really intended to.  I fell to the ground as my knees gave out beneath me, trying my best to shield my completely exposed body from the rest of the world.

“Alexis?”  I glanced up to see giant fingers closing in on me.  A sob escaped my throat, and Erica’s grasp fell short.  She watched from somewhere above my vision as I curled up tighter.  “Alexis, it’s just me.  I-  I’m not going to hurt you...”  “You just did!” I cried out.  Erica was silent for a long moment.  “Hey,” she whispered comfortingly, “Look at me.”  I shook my head, buried between my arms.  “Please?  Just for a moment?”  I reluctantly gazed up at her, vision partially hindered by tears.  Erica had backed off slightly, looking me over with a pained expression.  It faded into a soft smile as my gaze connected with hers — eyes widening in wonder.

“I’m really sorry about grabbing you like that,” she admitted, “I guess I didn’t realize how easily I could hurt you.  It all makes a lot more sense why you’re always so hesitant to get close to me.”  I slowly unfurled myself, coming to stand as my nerves subsided.  “I know how it feels.  I’m probably terrifying to you right now.  But..  Alexis, you know I would never intentionally hurt you, right?”

I nodded, realizing that I’d very quickly jumped to conclusions earlier.  Erica wouldn’t use her newfound strength to get back at me for something I did four.. five years ago now.  Tentatively, Erica pulled herself closer, fingers carefully caressing my arm.  Shuddering at her warmth, I drew myself closer.  “I can’t believe it’s really you,” Erica whispered, “You’re so small.. and.. naked!” she she gasped, fingers quickly retracting from my side.  “Oh, sorry; I should’ve given these to you sooner!”  Erica shifted to take her own small clothes out of her pocket.  “I found these on the ground beneath me when I grew.  They’re kind of torn up, though.  I must’ve grown right out of them.”  Her clothes were split down one side; the only way I could wear them was wrapped around me like a towel, but it was better than being stark naked.

“Thanks,” I nodded to Erica, tying the slightly shredded items around myself.  “Oh, and sorry for taking your clothes,” she apologized.  “Yeah, you literally stole them right off of me.”  Erica looked me over intently, “What?  I did?”  “Yeah, I mean, you grew out of your clothes because they were too small, but I was trapped inside of mine!  I fell out when you picked them up.”  Erica looked slightly stricken after I told her this.  

“I didn’t even see you..”  She gasped, “What if I’d dropped you from all the way up here?  You could’ve been seriously hurt!  I could’ve killed you without even realizing it!"  Erica sat up a ways, looking down at herself in dismay.  "Alexis, how do you stand being like this all the time?”  I chuckled, “It certainly takes some getting used to.  And I’m sorry I accused you of trying to hurt me.  It’s just a little overwhelming, seeing you like this.”  She nodded, “That’s alright, I completely get it.  I’ve pretty much been in your exact situation. With you, actually.”  I sighed, collecting my thoughts.  

“Erica?”  "Yeah?"  "What if this is permanent?  What happens if we don't swap back?  Our whole plan…"  That was the extent of my thought — the rest frightened me too much to say aloud.

Erica stared out over me in thought.  "We'll just have to continue doing what we always do, I guess.  I can probably take out a hell of a lot more bad guys like this, that's for sure."  "Yeah, but.." I trailed off uneasily, "I-  I can't go home like this.  I'll never get to see my world or my family ever again."  I watched the subtle shift of Erica's hands reach slightly forwards, then pull back.  She wanted to comfort me, but had no idea how to do so without scaring or hurting me.  

"This can't be permanent," Erica stated, "At least I don't think so..  But even if it is, I'll always be here to take care of you.  Ivan's in the town too; he could help you get settled in if you end up staying here."  I nodded solemnly, eyes drifting downcast to the suddenly tall blades of grass at my feet.  Finally, Erica couldn't keep herself away any longer.  She slid me delicately into the palm of her hand and lifted me up to her eye level.  This time she made sure to go much slower.

Being lifted was such a strange sensation.  I could feel every little movement Erica made, even her pulse, bobbing just underneath her skin beneath me.  "I don't like this any more than you do," she assured me, “It’s...  Just thinking about anyone besides you seeing me like this makes my skin crawl.  I’m so big anyone can see me do anything, and everyone will be watching me!”

I blinked, never having given that much thought myself.  "How about we do something to get our minds off this, hmm?” Erica offered suddenly, “We'll take the day off; we won't even go into town.  If this keeps up tomorrow, then you and I can start worrying about long term stuff, alright?"  "Ok," I nodded a bit more enthusiastically.  "I was thinking of going for a walk, so I could see what the other-world looks like from your height.  The way it normally looks."  Erica nodded, "Sounds like a plan, then.  Should I put you down?"  "Yeah, I want to see things from a 'normal' height."  I used the term normal rather lightly.  Neither my giant height nor this one seemed very accurate.  I was so used to being big in the other-world that my smaller height just felt weird.  Slowly, I was brought back down to the ground.

I walked through the woods by myself first; taking everything in was strange enough without my used-to-be-tiny, now giant girlfriend pacing around.  After a while I began to get bored, however.  The woods were nice to see at a normal scale, but it really wasn't all that different from taking a walk in the woods at home.  

Home.  Would I ever really return there?  When Erica came to my world, she constantly had to hide from everyone, and she wasn’t able to do very much on her own.  I shook away my gloomy thoughts and headed back the direction I'd come.  Just listen to Erica.  Take a break today, figure it out tomorrow.  Hopefully this is some sort of weird fluke that'll fix itself soon.  

I'd been walking back for almost twenty minutes before I realized that I might have been walking in the wrong direction.  There was definitely not a stream on my way in.  I panicked for a moment, realizing that I was definitely lost, before I remembered who was with me.  "Erica!" I called, "If you can hear me, can you come over and get me?  I think I'm lost!"  There was silence, then I heard the slight tremor of Erica coming closer.  "Alexis, are you calling me?  God, your voice is so small.  Hold on, let me see if I can find you."  Oh boy, maybe I will have to find my way back on my own.  

Thankfully, a few minutes later I saw her form appear through the trees.  I didn't bother calling out to her for directions.  All I had to do was follow her.  Soon, I'd made it to the edge of the woods and flagged her down.  Erica was so excited to see me, she very nearly snatched me up, but she held back at the last second when she saw me flinch.  "Sorry, sorry.  I didn't mean to scare you."  "It's alright," I reassured her, "I was thinking we could finish my walk together?  After lunch though, because I'm starving."  "Good idea."

Thanks to Erica's 'ignore your problems until later' plan, I actually forgot to worry about things for a while.  We talked over lunch just like any other day, then we continued on my walk — not that I was doing any of the walking anymore.  I'd tried to trek alongside Erica, but her strides were just way too big for me to catch up with.  Walking next to her was like walking next to a moving skyscraper; the scale of having to crane my neck vertically up to see her made my stomach churn uncomfortably, so I ended up sitting on her hand the whole time.  Erica had offered me a place on her shoulder, but I quickly declined.  Shoulder rides are her thing.  I would only be more anxious if she placed me there.  Unlike Erica, I actually fear the prospect of falling to my death.

I clung to her pointer finger, wanting to watch the view but also terrified I’d slip off her hand.  There was an almost alarmingly fast pulse beating through it, and when I glanced up I saw Erica quickly look away from me with a flushed face.  Even when I pretended to ignore her obvious fascination with my new size, I nearly got scared straight off the edge of her hand as two fingers fell over me from behind.  Erica pet me with what she must’ve thought were gentle strokes, but really felt like she was squishing me down.  I knew she meant well, though, so I let her.

Our walk was longer than I expected thanks to Erica getting lost.  She confessed she hadn’t really been watching where she was going, and I confessed I knew she’d been watching me instead.  I didn’t mind the length of it.  In fact, it gave me a chance to get more used to the height I was held at.  It also gave me more time to chat with the love of my life.  She was just as nervous as I was, but we were together, so panicking took second place priority over calming eachother down.

Between a dinner lit by bonfire, and all the otherwise normal activities that took place, my day off had been very successful — since we started heading back, I hadn’t worried about my new height once.  

Erica lay in my field, watching the sunset while I sat by the fire.  It died soon after, leaving me with no source of heat while the night grew ever colder.  Erica must've seen me shivering on my own, because she sat up and leaned over me.  "You look cold," she stated.  "My fire died," I responded in a deadpan voice.  "Doesn't mean you have to be cold."  Tilting my head back, I gazed up at Erica.  She had that excited look in her eyes she always gets when an idea sticks in her head.  

"Ok," I sighed, "Pick me up.  I know you want to."  Her digits suddenly laced around me, lifting me upwards as she settled herself back down.  Once she was laying comfortably with my pillows, she placed me on her chest in the same spot I've always placed her.

It was mesmerizing, taking in Erica's larger than life form.  She was everywhere on every side of me — even the very ground beneath me.  Normally, that would be enough to easily frighten anyone.  But not me, not with her.  I carefully made my way to her face as she sat up just slightly so her eye level was even with mine.  She was so big to me that I could see her actual pupils grow a bit wider with each step I took.

"I've never been able to see you like this,” I realized, “You're always so small."  Erica shuddered, jostling me slightly, but I kept my balance.  Everything about her was so intricate and gigantic.  It was almost impossible for me to believe her and the tiny woman I could barely tell the eye color of were one and the same.  

Tentatively, I reached out and brushed a few fingers over her scar.  I'd only done this once before at my normal height.  I was always too scared I might hurt her further, being so big.  Now I could get close and not have to worry about anything.  It was amazing.  I kept going, brushing my hand further along her chin and down to her lips, watching as her eyes widened in awe.  

"It's so weird, tracing your features as big as this," I admitted, "I'm almost convinced this is a dream."  "Same here," Erica whispered.  "If you'll let me, I.. I'd like to trace you too."

A part of me wanted to say no, to deny her simply because one false move could lead to my injury, or worse.  However, I couldn't resist.  "You can," I answered.  Erica tediously edged her hands closer to me, fingers brushing up against my skin.  She softly pinched one of my arms between them, staring in amazement at how miniscule the limb seemed in her grasp.  Her touch gilded delicately up to my jaw, then, with the pad of a single finger, my cheek.  It was all so overwhelming, but in a good way.  This seemed to have a similar effect on Erica, who was stunned speechless.

"You're beautiful," she finally whispered in adoration.  "So are you."  Stepping closer, I leaned in and kissed her lip.  I could only kiss one of them, that's how big she was.  Erica pulled me in, both her lips sliding over my whole face as she returned my tiny piece of affection.  The feeling was indescribable and immensely overwhelming.  Now I understand why she keeps insisting she enjoys this despite how big I am.

Finally, I had to pull away to catch my breath, and the moment I did, Erica went back for more.  After a few strong kisses, her lips brushed up against the ties on my torn clothing.  They slid off me in one flourish.  I lay blissfully in Erica's hands as she kissed my bare body.  Her tongue slid over my torso and I groaned with pleasure, only prompting her to kiss me harder.  As with so many of my experiences that day, I could finally see Erica's side of things.  No wonder she pleaded with me to keep going after I'd nervously called off our first makeout session.  

At some point her tongue slid into my mouth.  I whined softly, opening my jaw to let her kiss me and fill it.  It was nirvana until I heard a crack and felt a spark of pain in my jaw.  I tried moving away, but Erica held me from behind, and again her tongue pressed into my mouth — nearly forcing its way down my throat.  Gagging and choking, I was finally released with a jolt.  “Alexis!  Are you ok?”  I took a few deep breaths and felt my jaw as I opened and closed it a few times.  “Y- Yeah, I think my jaw just cracked and I got scared.”  “I’ll just stick to your body, then?” Erica asked, tentatively giving my stomach a soft kiss. I exhaled in bliss, “Yeah.”

After the ecstasy of the moment died off at last, I curled up under Erica's chin, warmly tucked between it and her throat.  I barely noticed my lack of clothing with how warm she was.  We lay together like that for a long time — both tired, but neither of us ready to sleep.  Finally, I wiggled my way back onto her chest and put back on the torn clothes.  Erica grumbled sleepily, some of her warmth stolen.  "Where are you going?" she asked me quietly.  "I can't sleep on you.  What if our sizes come back?  I would crush you."  "Oh."  I knew she'd be more than a little disappointed, but I didn't want to risk it.  Erica gave me her blanket to sleep on, which was really mine to begin with.  "Goodnight Alexis."  "Goodnight," I answered sleepily.

In the morning I was rudely awoken by the freezing cold winds that swept across the field.  My clothes were gone again, but that didn't bother me in the slightest.  I grew back!  Whatever weirdness that happened yesterday is gone now.  I wrapped my blanket around me and turned to where Erica had been sleeping.  Sure enough, my clothes lay splayed out in the field once more.  A small bump in the middle of my shirt shifted slightly in sleep.  I decided to wait until Erica woke up to reclaim my clothes, and sat with my blanket, gazing off to nowhere in particular, when I was startled by a tinny gasp.  

"Alexis!  Alexis, I shrunk back!  I'm my own height!"  I smiled warmly, gently pulling away the top part of my shirt to reveal her normal-sized form.  "You grew back too!" she exclaimed happily.  "I did!  Now I can finally have my clothes back."

Erica looked down at herself then back up at me.  "Damn, now I'm the one who's stuck with the rags."  I laughed and handed her clothes to her before slipping into mine.  Unfortunately, Erica's clothes were far beyond wearable now.  They'd been through not one, but two giant growth spurts, and were basically just shreds of cloth.  "N- Now what?" Erica asked, shivering in the morning cold.  "I c- can't wear this!"  "What was it you told me last night?" I asked wryly, "Oh yeah.  That doesn't mean you have to be cold."  I held out my hands and Erica braced the wind for a few freezing steps before snuggling into my palms.  

Back to the wind, protected by both my clothes and my blanket, I cupped Erica gently between my hands.  Every once and a while, I'd blow on them to keep them warm.  Inside, Erica dragged a few of my fingers closer.  I instinctively flinched as I touched her, remembering how it felt to me when she was the one doing the holding.  Yet, she persisted on pulling me in until she was pressed on all sides by warm skin.

One of my fingers just so happened to be in the right spot for a bit of flustering.  Normally I would ignore this, maybe even move myself away.  However, I was in a rather good mood thanks to my newly restored height, so I took the bait.  Nudging my finger a bit deeper into the small space where Erica sat, I smiled at the small, almost inaudible gasp that came from within my hands.  "Wh- What are you doing?" she asked, voice all high-pitched in embarrassment.  "Oh, just warming you up," I replied innocently, pressing a little further.  "Alexis," she giggled, "I'm the only one who does the flustering around here, missy.  Just you wai-"  

Her taunts were cut off by a gasp as I rubbed her breasts beneath the pad of my finger.  I felt her squirm in my hands again as I laughed.  "I'm sorry?  What was that last part?"  "You-  mmnn..  Alexis-  nnngg..  it's too early!" Erica complained between little moans of ecstasy as I continued along down her stomach.  I let my finger trail off just above her hips, before slowly opening my hands back up.

Fixing her tousled hair, Erica flipped me the bird while I chuckled in delight.  "I hate you," she said lovingly as I brought the blanket to the front of me and placed her down inside.  "I should've done more with you last night.  I had the perfect opportunity to show you the euphoria I feel when you do that to me, and I missed it."  "Not entirely," I replied, softly tracing her form the way she had last night.  Erica smiled, "Yeah, I guess it wasn't a total waste after all."

[thormanick]

All the Kavetham/Haikaveh ideas I don't have capacity to currently write, a very detailed list:

(Which I am humbly placing here before you. Be warned: this post is an incredibly long one!)

1. Fatui!Kaveh AU, where the night before the meeting happens between Kaveh and Alhaitham at the tavern, Kaveh gets a deal from Fatui representatives to work on a huge project in Snezhnaya. Kaveh is sceptical about it, but decides to accept the offer during the dialogue with Alhaitham (seeing himself as a burden, Kaveh decides that he will cause more trouble to Alhaitham than the Fatui, thus he decides to accept their offer even if it seems too good to be true). He tells Alhaitham about his decision to leave for Snezhnaya, and so the two relatively amicably/peacefully part their ways (not without Alhaitham testing Kaveh's reasoning a bit, but Kaveh's resolve remains strong).

And so, Kaveh leaves for Snezhnaya, where he gets to work on several huge projects for the next several years under Sandrone. Most of them are related to construction, engineering and reverse-engineering of Khaenri'ahn and Khaenri'ah-inspired technology, and he gets barely any time to work on his personal projects (he's overworked and exhausted and doesn't get much time and opportunity to be creative; however, the payments are good and he's on his way to getting out of debt, which is practically the sole reason driving him forward. The projects get progressively more complicated and, in a way, unhinged - engineering military equipment is alright, but working with the remains of Khaenri'ahn technology, dead gods and such proves to be... mentally taxing. Everything happens very gradually though, so Kaveh does not immediately notice the true scale of where the Fatui are ready to go to achieve certain goals). Kaveh doesn't really like the work environment of the Fatui, but he does his best (the Harbingers creep him out whenever he gets to see them on a rare official occasion (he might specifically dislike Pantalone because the Harbinger keeps picking at him for his debt, given a chance), but Sandrone's a decent boss who is somewhat encouraging and invested in his work and personal projects. She might be especially interested in Mehrak's existence and operation). Overall, everything goes quite smoothly for Kaveh, even if he doesn't feel quite at home in Snezhnaya and is aware of how dangerous the Fatui can be. He does not consider himself to be paranoid, but the other shoe has to drop at some point - and that happens when the new Acting Grand Sage of Sumeru gets to visit Snezhnaya on a diplomatic mission (aka: Kaveh reconnects with Alhaitham & Co for the first time in what feels like forever). The situation gets complicated when Kaveh realizes that Sandrone encourages the reestablishment of his connection with Alhaitham specifically - and she never encourages an action if she doesn't directly contribute from it.

Feelings, emotions and shenanigans ensue.

TLDR: Kaveh's doing his best despite being restricted in his ways of work, prevented from realizing most of his creative projects and slowly but surely building emotional walls around himself because Fatui and Snezhnaya; Sandrone being a kind of decent boss with sorta good work ethic but horrendous morals who is not exactly a good influence on Kaveh's idealistic tendencies and guilt complex; Fatui being contextually horrifying but kinda normal coworkers if you don't look at them too close; Alhaitham trying his best as a political figure (Nahida help him) while also trying to get Kaveh to return home with him (because he misses him); the main conflict revolving around Kaveh and his life choices with Sandrone and Alhaitham being kind of foils to each other (with Sandrone gradually destroying Kaveh's idealistic morals and playing on his guilt to get the most out of his potential as an innovator, and with Alhaitham actively trying to resolve Kaveh's guilt and show him that, despite their arguments, Kaveh's idealism still has place in the world and can co-exist with other philosophies). There might or might not be some macguffin-esque Deshret relic that both Akademia and Fatui hunt for that eventually brings the whole crew back to Sumeru. Kaveh might or might not get a chance to meet a fragment of Deshret's spirit within the mentioned relic. But there definitely will be a happy end for everyone here (Deshret will make sure of it).

2. Calamity!AU. The new Cataclysm comes, enveloping all Seven Nations, and so Sumeru does its best to survive. The cities are ruined, and the people gather together in random places to survive. Alhaitham gets to live within one of the settlements, established by the Akademiya. While trying to survive the first wave of the new Calamity, he is also looking for Kaveh; after an argument between the two the architect left for an expedition to the Desert, right before the new Calamity began. Unfortunately, the news comes that his group should have been around Tunigi Hollow - one of the spots in Sumeru where the first wave of the new Calamity hit the hardest. There is no concrete information on whether Kaveh's group survived or not. Alhaitham, not loosing hope, does his best to find any information on Kaveh's whereabouts, but due to Sumeru becoming extremely dangerous to traverse and disjointed as a result of the new Calamity, the search stretches out for almost a decade.

One day Alhaitham helps a caravan, traversing the forests to get to one of the settlements, to fight off the monsters. Unexpectedly, Kaveh turns out to be one of the members of the caravan. Their reunion is almost cut short by the caravan's need to keep going, but Alhaitham convinces Kaveh to join him instead. The two return to the new Sumeru city settlement, where Alhaitham lives and works under the watch of Akademiya and Lord Kusanali. It appears that during his years of travels around the destroyed Sumeru Kaveh learned new ways of architectural construction that would be more efficient against the monsters, born by the Calamity. He also seems to behave quite differently, hardened by the experiences of the past years. Alhaitham proposes for Kaveh to stay with him in the city, and Kaveh accepts. The feelings, new routines, dealings with the changed versions of each other and attempts to find new pace of life in the new world ensue.

TLDR: The world might be ending and impossible to live in, but even so each new day is brighter when the person one loves is by their side.

3. Another Cataclysm!AU, where Kaveh and Alhaitham get assigned separate missions in the grander scheme of things created to prevent the coming of a new Calamity. The plan succeeds and the world remains safe, but not without heavy losses: amongst many others, Kaveh does not survive while carrying out his mission.

Decades pass as Alhaitham goes through his grieving process. Eventually, one evening on the anniversary of the Calamity's prevention, Alhaitham wanders to a place he and Kaveh used to visit together. A Ley Line disruption occurs, and he gets to see a glimpse of Kaveh through it. They have a conversation; the Ley Line apparition (a memory of Kaveh) is convinced that Alhaitham is from the future, and so they talk a lot about the Calamity, whether it was prevented, and about each other's futures. Alhaitham can't bring himself to tell Kaveh that he does not survive the Calamity, but he does tell Kaveh that his architectural legacy lives on. Kaveh commends Alhaitham on his achievements (though not an acting grand sage for a very long time, Alhaitham kept playing an important role throughout Sumeru's history, helping to keep it safe).

Eventually, their time runs out. Ley Line disorder starts gradually disappearing. Alhaitham urges Kaveh to be careful and stay safe, knowing that the Calamity (on Kaveh's side) is yet to come. Kaveh laughs and tells him that on his side, Alhaitham just told him the same words after they finished the debriefing session, related to the Calamity. He says that he was feeling very nervous, but that seeing future-Alhaitham made him convinced that they are on the right path.

And so, the Ley Line disorder disappears. Alhaitham spends some more time at the spot before returning home. Despite painful memories having been brought up, his heart feels a bit lighter.

TLDR: closure comes unexpectedly, takes many forms and does not erase the pain in an instant, but, nevertheless, it heals.

4. AU! where Kaveh and Alhaitham are both magical birds that can transform into humans (and half-humans).

They live together in the depths of Sumeru forest - a domain of a long lost God of Wisdom. Kaveh's feathers are rumoured to bring blessings, while Alhaitham's feathers, on the contrary, are said to bring bad luck or even curses. Humans, living at the edge of magical forest, kinda worship them, but also prefer not to interact with them, primarily because Alhaitham is not happy when others trespass on his lands, and because searching for Kaveh is extremely hard (he's often off working on his projects deep within the forest), and the magical forest is very dangerous on its own. So, the humans build their cities outside of the Sumeru forest, and Alhaitham and Kaveh peacefully live together in the depths of it.

Despite Kaveh and Alhaitham living together for a long time, their opinions on humanity are diametrically opposed: Alhaitham barely tolerates humans, finding them to be reckless, meddling, cowardly and deceitful; Kaveh, on the contrary, finds humans to be creative, inspiring, free and beautiful in their own way. Throughout the years, Kaveh manages to build somewhat of an amicable relationship with the humans, living at the edge of the forest: he learns more about their traditions and arts, while the humans receive his guidance and blessings in various matters of living, craftsmanship and arts. Eventually, Kaveh's knowledge and magical powers catch the eye of Lord Sangemah Bay, who resides in and governs one of the bigger settlements at the forest's border. She makes a deal with Kaveh that, despite providing him with valuable (in his eyes) experience of working with humans on some of his grandest architectural projects, costs him a lot - meaning he has to give away lots of his blessed feathers, which makes his remaining magic much weaker (and generally undermines his health for a bit). Alhaitham is not a huge fan of such approach (in his eyes, Kaveh is wasting his powers and time for nothing, endangering himself), and so a conflict between him and Kaveh breaks. As a result, Kaveh flees their home, secluding himself while he's focusing on other projects he finds curious. Kaveh keeps working with humans, and though Alhaitham certainly keeps an eye on Kaveh's wellbeing, he does not make it easy for humans to reach him. So what if there are new random magical seals, obstacles, almost-traps and riddles appearing here and there when people try to get to Kaveh? It's a magical forest, things happen! (Kaveh knows that Alhaitham does this on purpose, and Alhaitham knows that Kaveh knows, and it leads to them indirectly, and then directly bickering and arguing. The magical forest quite possibly grows very tired of them. Their friends Tighnari and Cyno certainly do, but alas.)

The new equilibrium, found by Alhaitham and Kaveh, is challenged once more when Kaveh leaves to the Lord Sangemah Bay's city to direct yet another one of his grand projects. They do not see each other for a long while. Despite all the challenges, Kaveh's relationship with Dori gradually grows stronger - the two value their partnership - and Kaveh ends up making friends amongst humans. However, not everyone is happy about Lord Sangema Bay's growing friendship with the "deity of blessings" personified. As some people come to despise her for her wealth, influence and ever growing power, so do they come to despise the bird of paradise.

When the project is complete, the time for celebration comes. Kaveh gets to attend a feast by Dori's side as a guest of honour, and is invited to stay the night in her palace before returning to the forest. Kaveh agrees: he's been spending all his days and nights at the building site, and resting a night before returning home would be nice. As the night goes on, however, Kaveh begins to feel weary and unwell - the new type of wine he was served did him no good. He excuses himself early for the night and, as soon as he gets to his bed, he's out cold.

After an undetermined amount of time (in what appears to be the middle of the night), Kaveh wakes up because of immense pain in his back.

As he gradually comes to his senses, he has a horrible realization: one of his wings was cut off when he was asleep. Alerting the guards and Dori yields no results: the intruder escaped, presumably with Kaveh's wing, and there are no traces of them left. While Kaveh gets immediately attended to, he goes in shock and, eventually, loses consciousness.

When the messengers form the city arrive to the forest, Alhaitham receives them reluctantly at first, but as soon as he hears of what happened, he rushes to the city. He ends up taking Kaveh back to the forest, hoping that its healing magic will help restore his wing. However, nothing seems to work: neither spells, nor the powers of nature, not even Tighnari's medicine. Though the wound is slowly healing, Kaveh remains unconscious for days. To get more information on what happened, Alhaitham returns to the city to question Dori together with Cyno (who's also to continue the investigation within the city once Alhaitham returns home), while Tighnari stays with Kaveh.

Though the questioning concludes that Dori knows nothing and is willing to assist in the search of the perpetrator, Cyno concludes that she was not thorough enough in ensuring Kaveh's safety and overall security of the celebration in general, revealing that Dori recklessly cut corners here and there. Furious, Alhaitham leaves Dori his cursed feather, giving her an ultimatum: she has to find the perpetrator and give them to Alhaitham to deal the final punishment. Until then, her city is doomed to slowly crumble into decay and oblivion. Dori accepts the deal.

Alhaitham returns to the forest to look after Kaveh, while Cyno remains in the city to continue the search. When Alhaitham comes back, Kaveh is finally awake. However, he remains extremely closed-off, practically a shadow of himself. The recovery process is slow and challenging, but Alhaitham does his best to support Kaveh in all ways that matter. Kaveh struggles with healing: the loss of a wing affected not only his body, but also his mental state and magic. He cannot transform, he can barely use any of his magical skills, and he cannot fly anymore, which hurts him most of all. It takes a while for Kaveh to get on his feet (quite literally), even longer to finally leave his room. He also feels guilty for being in Alhaitham's care, because he remembers all of the Alhaitham warnings about the humans he didn't listen to, and so lots of internal conflict ensues.

Meanwhile Alhaitham does all he can to try and navigate the situation. He looks after Kaveh's healing process; brings back his blueprints and equipment from Kaveh's place so that he has enough to work with if he wishes; he also (to the best of his ability) remodels their home to make it more accessible to Kaveh. Given that their natural method of moving around their house was flying (whether in form of birds of half-humans), Alhaitham now implements more adjustments for walking or climbing. (When Kaveh feels good enough to leave his room, he's amazed by what Alhaitham managed to achieve. He also helps fix some of the constructions, given he's the one with the experience in architecture.) Alhaitham and Kaveh grow closer, slowly unpacking and mending their relationship, turning it into something new and beautiful.

At the same time, Alhaitham continues to watch the forest borders - to make sure that no intruders interrupt Kaveh's recovery and their peaceful life together. One day he notices an interesting sight: a small, but beautiful shrine appeared right by the forest. He decides to investigate; upon approaching the shrine, he meets Nilou (whom he saw in the palace when he visited Dori). She explains to him that, after he and Kaveh left the city, a group of people decided to organize a shrine, dedicated to Kaveh, to pray for his recovery. Nilou explains that in their eyes it's the least they can offer for all the help that their city received in the past and as amends for the pain they have caused. Alhaitham warns her not to get any closer to the forest, but the action of people leaves a lasting impression on him.

Meanwhile, Cyno's investigation progresses. Cyno writes to Alhaitham that together with Dori they managed to find and capture the perpetrator. Questioning reveals no useful information, but Cyno suspects that there might be more to the attack on Kaveh than they anticipated. To uphold his end of the deal Alhaitham goes to the city to deliver the punishment to the attacker and to undo the curse he put on Dori's city. Before he leaves, Kaveh, scared of what might happen to Alhaitham, sews into his cloak a blessed feather for protection (because Alhaitham wouldn't accept it outright). While Alhaitham is away, Kaveh begins working on a new project: a mechanical wing.

When Alhaitham gets to the city, he is led to the cell where the attacker is being held. Cyno and Dori are by his side for the final questioning. The man - a mere mortal (with strange red-ish eyes), one of Dori's citizens - keeps talking in circles, making less and less sense with each new word. Alhaitham lets Cyno and Dori go before rendering the punishment. When the curse (one of Alhaitham's darkest yet) is finally prepared, suddenly, the tables are turned. The perpetrator attacks Alhaitham, but his movements seem unnatural, almost like those of a puppet. Alhaitham realizes, that the man is being controlled by someone with prowess for strong, incredibly dark magic that seems similar to that of the Desert. The strange puppet manages to overpower Alhaitham in a fight, but cannot harm him (due to the protection from Kaveh's feather). The perpetrator manages to escape, taking with him Alhaitham's cursed feather (they seemed to be pleased to receive it. Alhaitham fears to think what they will use it for).

Dori and Cyno pick up the investigation, with Cyno going straight to the Desert. Dori begins reinforcing the city (her people discover that Alhaithams curse (now lifted) awakened Miasma deep under the ground. The Miasma begins to slowly spread, seemingly in the direction of the Sumeru Forest). Cyno sends back a message, confirming that strong and dark magic seems to be gathering within the Desert, possibly for the purpose of destroying the magical forest.

Alhaitham manages to get back to Kaveh and tell him of what happened in the city. In order to be able to protect the forest together with Alhaitham, Kaveh doubles down on his efforts to create a mechanical working wing. Everything works, besides the golden feathers - they need to be blessed in order to allow the mechanism to work as intended, but Kaveh does not have enough power for it. Alhaitham takes a risk and brings the feathers to the shrine, created by Nilou and other humans, so that they could bless them for Kaveh. (They are short of one feather eventually, and Alhaitham gives Kaveh one of his own, his first blessed feather, to complete the wing.)

TLDR: Kaveh works on restoring his wing and faith in himself and humanity; Alhaitham learns that humanity is not always evil. Dori and Cyno discover that the escaped perpetrator (caugh controlled by Dottore caugh) used Kaveh to get to Alhaitham to gain his cursed feather for completing some sort of ancient ritual to unseal the forbidden knowledge magic deep within the Desert in roder to unleash it on the magical forest, slumbering God of Wisdom and human cities. Kaveh learns to curse his feathers (while opposing Dottore in a final fight), and Alhaitham learns to bless his. Humans and Sumeru Forest continue to coexist peacefully. Alhaitham and Kaveh live together happily ever after.

5. Pacific Rim!AU, where Kaveh and Alhaitham used to be pilots of a Jaeger, but during one of their battles they suffered too much damage. In order to save Alhaitham and what remains of their Jaeger, Kaveh takes most of the damage by severing already unstable connection between Alhaitham and Jaeger's system. Both barely survive the encounter, but meanwhile Alhaitham manages to recover fast, the damage Kaveh has taken leaves him in a critical condition, eventually resulting in him being unable to ever pilot a Jaeger ever again (and putting many new restraints on his usual daily life).

As soon as Kaveh comes to his senses, the two have a huge fight about Kaveh's rash decision, and eventually break off their friendship. They don't see each other for a long, long time.

As the time goes on, Kaveh learns how to live with the changes that his body sustained with the help of his service dog Mehrak. Eventually he takes on a job at one of the Jaeger construction facilities (together with his friend Tighnari), studying Kaiju and creating new Jaeger modifications - though no Kaiju has been seen in the past several years, the world is still afraid of their return.

When the suspicion of the new Kaiju appearance arises, new pilot recruits and ex-pilots are summoned to the facility. There, Kaveh meets Alhaitham for the first time in years. After their fallout, Alahitham resigned from piloting Jaegers, yet now he had no choice but to return to train new recruits (and possibly resume his role of a Jaeger pilot). Now once again the two have to work together as a part of a team in face of approaching danger, trying to resolve their past conflicts and overcome their fears and insecurities along the way (when deep down they simply want to keep each other safe).

TLDR: Kaveh & service animal Mehrak is a neat concept I'd love to see more of, just as a concept in general. I think this one could be an interesting story idea centered mostly around Kaveh's day to day life. Additionally, Alhaitham who used to be only drift compatible with Kaveh but now suddenly discovers he's drift compatible with Cyno. I need more Cyno & Alhaitham camaraderie I think it would do them lots of good (at least in this specific AU setting lol).

6. Oxenfree!AU where Kaveh and Alhaitham are two ex-best friends turned reluctant coworkers (photo-journalist and journalist respectively) working on writing a piece about the disappearances of a group of teenagers that happened at the Edwards Island several years prior (timeline somewhere between the first and the second games). The radio shenanigans ensue, making the two face their past, possible futures and, most importantly, their present. (In Oxenfree tuning into certain radio sequences can temporarily mess up time-space shenanigans, just fyi).

TLDR: I just think that this setting could facilitate some character exploration that would be very fun.

7. Modern MermanKaveh!AU, post-fallout, where it's a little bit more about haunting Alhaitham (and the narrative), than being a merman. Due to an unfortunate set of circumstances, Kaveh drowns one day, trying to save someone from the water. Due to an unfortunate set of circumstances, he doesn't really die, being stuck in between (existence and death, normal life and the necessity to live in water). Kaveh manages, for quite a while even!

But of course Alhaitham has to come back and turn his world upside down once again.

TLDR: can you tell Alhaitham's quote about drowning stuck with me huh (and I made it literal lol). On a serious note... Idk, vibes??? I want to see the "stuck in the middle" Kaveh, whatever that entails. Some existential explorations. And the development of his relationship with Alhaitham, of course. // Kaveh is a merman unable to fully live the life he used to have, and Alhaitham doesn't know that he survived (for a while), alternatively "let me help to save you from metaphorical and literal drowning" Alhaitham and "I learned to live like this, this is what my norm now looks like" Kaveh.

8. Another Modern MermanKaveh!AU/DrownedGhostKaveh!AU, because I apparently have no self-control (I feel like I should also clarify that whenever I mention a mermaid, I think of them more as of ghosts of drowned people and less as mermaids-mermaids, the half-human half-marine creature ones). This idea was initially prepared for chili/zhongchi but it's been sooooooooooooooooooo long and I still haven't done anything substantial for it so I'm borrowing it from myself for myself and tweaking it for kavetham because I figured it could fit them. So here it goes,

Alhaitham is a scientist/marine biologist that moves from the city to a much smaller port town, getting himself a place in a local partially repurposed lighthouse. Kaveh is a merman, who has been dead for a long while and who's been living within local waters ever since he drowned. Alhaitham leads a very isolated life, going through a rather rough patch emotionally (maybe a badly ended past relationship and relocation from an established group of friends to a remote place brought up past negative emotions related to loss that were bottled up for a while. who knows, not me). Anyways, Alhaitham's not doing too well, but seaside walks help him unwind, even if for a short periods of time. During one of such walks, he finds an old pendant washed ashore. He picks up his find, hoping to do some research on it outside of his work time (because research is his fun-time).

He expects this to be a brief excursion into local history. He does not expect to become haunted by the ghost of a man to whom this pendant belonged to way back when.

Kaveh, in turn, is extremely excited to finally, finally be able to get out of the sea to the surface. He intends to stay ashore as long as possible and, well, if he just so gets to amuse himself by haunting a grumpy marine biologist that refuses to believe in merpeople, ghosts of drowned and other supernatural occurences - who's he to say no?

TLDR: this AU can go two ways (in my eyes): the happy ending way and probably more gothic-horror-story-esque ending. So, Alahitham is cursed to be haunted by Kaveh: for a while he's the only one who can see him, with Kaveh being something akin to a ghost. However, the longer Kaveh haunts Alhaitham, the more human he becomes (others can see him, he cannot phase through walls anymore, etc.). The curse in itself goes something like this: the cursed thing, after being picked up/taken in, cannot be thrown away and will always come back. The ghost, tied to the haunted thing, shall haunt whoever picks the cursed thing (the thing should be tied to the ghost, but may not necessarily belong to them) and drain their life energy. The ghost can become free and human again if the haunting goes long enough and they kill the human who picked the cursed object in the end during a very specific time that doesn't occur too often (proverbial blue moon, idk). If they don't kill the human and decide to let them go, then the ghost will seize to exist and the human will regain their strength. (An alternative option to the ghost dying for a less angsty au: the ghost voluntarily takes back the cursed object and returns to the place where they died, but then they will never be able to haunt anyone ever again. The effect of the curse on the haunted remain, but much weaker).

In this case, let's say Kaveh and Alhaitham stay by each other's side from half a year to a year, idk. They grow closer, eventually becoming friends and maybe more (the usual kavetham shenanigans Kaveh falls first but Alhaitham falls harder). Alhaitham's mental state gradually improves, yet overall he becomes weaker because of the curse (to the point that it becomes a serious concern), which Kaveh blames himself for. The appointed time approaches (both Kaveh and Alhaitham are in on the details of the curse), and Kaveh, seeing it as an opportunity to set Alhaitham free, manages to separate himself from Alhaitham. Kaveh is ready to return to the sea/merge with it (ah yes the classic Little Mermaid influence does anybody feel it lol). However, Alhaitham sees through his plan and arrives just in time to stop him. They have a confrontation. Eventually, they manage to lift the curse (as you can see I have not figured out exactly how this can happen but! it definitely can!) with Kaveh becoming human again and Alhaitham regaining his health. The two continue to live together happily ever after.

The other scenario is practically the same, but it's more ghothic? and abstract (and probably more suitable for the og pairing it was made for, but i'll throw it in anyways). I have not engaged with gothic literature much and thus don't have much experience in how it works/how to write it, but the idea is that Kaveh is more of a projection of Alhaitham's grief than a ghost fo a drowned person (in other words, he's definitely a ghost, but his presence is also much more symbolical). The story follows quite similar beats, except the setting of the curse is a bit different: it's more of a "kill first or be killed" thingy with a deadline. Kaveh earnestly tries to drown Alhaitham at first through various means, but the more time they spend together, the more Kaveh sees of Alhaitham's life and pain and feels sympathetic for him. Despite the curse, Kaveh tires to help Alhaitham in various ways; and it works! Alhaitham gradually begins to feel better; the two grow closer to each other (more in a platonic way).

So now the precedent is that though Alhaitham's overall doing better, the curse still preys on him, hindering his life in various ways that become more and more serious/dangerous (the curse's deadline approaches, and it tries to survive the best way it can through Kaveh's influence on Alhaitham). Eventually, Kaveh lets Alhaitham go, merging with the sea (once again, yes, it was partially inspired by the Little Mermaid). Alhaitham realizes what happened and tries to look for Kaveh, but it is in vain.

Eventually, life goes on.

Bonus Elden Ring AU (because guess who suddenly went on a lore video watching spree): Kaveh is a craftsman and one of the inhabitants of Castle Morne who managed to escape before it was overrun by Misbegotten. He's a follower of St. Trina and Miquella (he doesn't follow Miquella at first, but slowly he comes to suspect that the two are one and the same). After escaping from Castle Morne, he finds his way to Jarburg, where he is welcomed to stay and be the new Potentate.

Alhaitham is from a distant branch of Carian royal family and a scholar at the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Quite possibly explored an area of studies similar to Sellen's. Eventually he separates himself from both Academy and his family, becoming a wandering scholar.

The two meet somewhere nearby Jarburg when Kaveh gets ambushed by the same people who were trying to get to Alhaitham. The two fight them off. Kaveh, trying to help injured Alhaitham, leads him to Jarburg. The two continue living together there ever since (not without hiccups, but they're doing their best).

TLDR: this one is short and very simple because I just started diving into the Elden Ring's lore, but I just. Really wanted to make some AU for them. I also desperately wanted it to be peaceful and happy one despite it being a seeming impossibility for anything dark souls/elden ring related, but one can dream. If I were to make this one darker I'd probably expand on the duality of their two characters here, and how Alhaitham probably used to conjure spells on humans (with gaining knowledge being his sole life purpose for a long time) and has challenges with comprehending the world outside of a framework of pure logic, and how Kaveh gets an increasing tendency of escaping to the dream world/wherever Miquella is in order to alleviate his mental turmoil (maybe he witnessed too much during his escape from the Castle), and how the two have opposing perspectives on the idea of worshipping gods, and- like, there's a lot that can be done. But I also just really really really want them to simply be happy together in a jar village, leading a peaceful life.

That's it for now! Thank you for reading all of this, I can't commend your patience enough if you got to the end of this list!!!✨🎉✨

Maybe in the future I will unpack some of these aus. who knows.

[possessable]

obligatory "oas infecting current subject of hyperfixation" crossover art that i somehow haven't drawn yet

[themyscirah]

Amanda... I miss her.

But I don't trust a single person to write her other than Ostrander/Yale. Like I don't trust them to do it right. Because like it's easy to write her being shady and manipulative and involved in secret government conspiracies. That's what she does. But it feels so hollow once you've seen her character in the way Ostrander describes it. Like she is a woman who is desperate and trying to do what she thinks is right. She has found a place of power (as a fat Black woman in the 1980s) and is doing anything she can to fight and hold onto it as powerful and ambitious men try and steal it from her. So she doubles down. She doubles down on the shady deals and the broken promises and the violence and she destroys her enemies, and loses a part of her soul in the process. And then some other ambitious politician rises up and the process repeats itself over and over and over again as each time she loses more of her morality and more of her soul and more of the respect her colleagues had for her. In place of that she gains more power, she gains fear, and an even more badass reputation. Until by the end of the book the villains begin to understand/sympathize with her more than the heroes ever will. Like THAT is who Amanda Waller is. It may happen subtly, it may happen over a longer period of time but that descent is a critical part of her character! She is a tragic character! And I feel like every perception of Suicide Squad I've seen outside of the original has her as this static villainous snapshot which is just untrue to her core imo. Like she is not a hero. But she is also not JUST a villain. She is a highly flawed character who is always descending farther and farther into villainy as she is led there by what she believes is right.

[windmill-ghost]

Kai made me watch too many SFMs and I'm deranged now.

[explodingstarlight]

sharing silly discord doodles because honestly their antics give me sm serotonin

i'll do silent tags this time as not to clog notifications, but for reference:

Sagittarius belongs to @/west-brooke & Xor belongs to @/snailsnaps 😌

[comic-sans-chan]

Sometimes I think about the fact that Q is canonically in love with Picard, like it is baked into the very foundation of his character, and it drives me absolutely batshit