#and‚ eventually‚ in finding that I had more or less become the character which for a long time I had so skillfully played –

[spooky-drusilla]

Hi, hi, how are you? How's school? I feel like we haven't talked in a long time lol, I just saw you're reading The Secret History, what are you thinking? I read some time ago and honestly I liked it but it left me very confused, my friend kind of explained it to me but still, well hope you're doing okay!

Hiii!! Ikr, we haven't talked in so long!!!!!!!!

I'm okay - school is very hard at the moment, I'm always late on studies and there are endless lists of exercises to do😭😭 But honestly I've never understood the subject better, so I think maybe piling us with homework and stress is just their strategy lmao

I'm liking the secret history a lot!!! I just started the second part, but I gotta be honest - I've already looked up how it ends kahskshsk. I just can't handle suspense.

Plus I've seen a lot of discussions on whether Donna Tartt is making satire out of the characters, and I think she kind of is?? Although I would say it's more of a cautionary tale than satire (at least that's what it seems like up until the half of the book, I can't argue for what I haven't yet read). Like, Richard literally says his fatal flaw is always longing for the picturesque above all things. The Greek Class isolated themselves, genuinely thought they were better than everyone else, and lived for the ✨aesthetics✨ and academic elitism. Of course they're bad, and killing people is bad, and etc

So yeah qkhsksh I do believe the book isn't endorsing their lifestyle, I'm just hesitant to say that it's somehow mocking them, since it admits that their perspectives are thrilling and seducing to some level. Again, to me, it's more of a cautionary tale than anything else

And youuu? How are you? What did you think about the book (and what confused you about it)?? How's school?? I hope you're good too❤️❤️❤️❤️💕💕💕💕

[hopeymchope]

No hardcore fandom has ever died so quickly and so completely as Veronica Mars. This is the story of its murder.

They should study Veronica Mars in Hollywood. I'm serious. It's an incredible story of how to go from "loud, passionate fanbase with its own fandom name that campaigns and advocates constantly for it" to "absolutely zero fucking interest" damn near OVERNIGHT with just ONE epically terri-bad decision.

If you weren't there, you don't understand: From 2007 to 2014, the fandom — the "Marshmallows," as they called themselves — were everywhere in the Internet's geek spaces, my friends. They routinely beat the drum about the series' three seasons and its excellence, lamented its cancellation, pushed others to give the show a try, and always - ALWAYS - proudly and loudly called for the series to be revived.

FULL DISCLOSURE/CONFESSION: I've not even watched that much Veronica Mars, frankly... ? Yeah, I'm sorry! it does seem pretty good from like the four-or-five hours I've experienced firsthand. I just never took the time to sit down with it. Regardless, I find fandoms and their dynamics — both how they operate internally and how they display to others externally — deeply fascinating. And I honestly find them easier to study from the outside than the inside. Like, if I'm IN a fandom, I'm more likely to stay in my corner and ignore places that seem negative. But being on the outside lets me just... absorb what's out there, looking into every forum without judgment. It's like studying pop-culture sociology or something? And it helps that I'm very close to some serious(-ly burnt) Marshmallows. It makes it so much easier to find and absorb the gamut of the fandom.

Besides: There is NO fandom story I've ever seen that's anything like what happened to Veronica Mars and the Marshmallows.

(Time to insert a brief explainer for the uninitiated: Veronica Mars was a TV series that aired from 2004-2007 on the now-deceased UPN network wherein Kristen Bell played the titular character, a high school girl whose single dad was a private detective in the fictional community of Neptune, California. She grew up working "unofficially" as his assistant, which meant that she herself was effectively a teenage private detective.

The three core elements of the series were: 1) Veronica investigating each week's big mystery with plenty of quips and snark, 2) Watching Veronica's various relationships develop and shift, with most of the focus given to a) her relationship to her father and b) Her romantic pursuits (which began as the Veronica/Duncan/Logan triangle before eventually becoming focused on the slow-burn, off-on Veronica/Logan love story), and 3) The gradual development of that season's "mytharc" — the overarching BIG MYSTERY that doesn't get resolved or wrapped until the season finale. So it went over the course of two seasons that took place in high school and the third, shorter season that was at the start of Veronica's collegiate career.)

Just how big and how passionate were the Marshmallows? WELL! When series creator Rob Thomas (not the Matchbox 20 guy) and star Kristen Bell announced the Kickstarter campaign for the Veronica Mars movie in March 2013, it achieved its heretofore-unprecedented goal of TWO MILLION GODDAMN DOLLARS within less than 12 hours. At that time, it was the biggest Kickstarter goal to ever succeed — and certainly the fastest to reach that kind of height. Fans fell OVER themselves to pay out for it. Hell, my own significant other was DEEP in the tank for VM at the time and invested enough to get multiple t-shirts as backer rewards as well as a disk copy of the movie when it eventually came home.

And AFTER the movie hit in 2014? It was thankfully beloved and embraced! The once-teenage characters were adults who were actually out living on their own and working for a living, but the fandom had grown up with them, so it wasn't like they were begging for them to stay young students. They embraced Adult Veronica and her new adventure. The fandom rejoiced loudly and continued to be all over the geek side of the Internet... where they, of course, still wanted more. Sure, there were new novels in the aftermath (which were written by the creator of the series), but most of the Marshmallows were calling for more movies or a streaming revival.

And then, at long last... season four was actually announced. And there was much (premature) rejoicing yet again.

Yes, Veronica Mars returned for a fourth season on Hulu in 2019. It was just eight episodes, and it was heavily centered on one season-long mystery instead of sprinkling that amongst a bunch of smaller ones, but it would still feature the same ol' Veronica. They promised a new, more "adult" mystery/investigation plus a strong focus on Veronica and Logan's love story.

New Hulu purchased the rights to the first three seasons and hyped up its presence on the platform while marketing the return for the new run. The marketing team played up the most popular quips from the show's history plus put out TONS of stuff centered on the Logan/Veronica ship to pump up the fans.

The season was dropped all at once using the classic Netflix "binge" model in July 2019. And then... afterwards?

There was a brief explosion of LOUD RAGE from the Marshmallows at what series creator Rob Thomas had to done to burn and spite the fandom and ruin his own goodwill.

SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4: See, at the end of the movie, Veronica and Logan finally entered into a long-term relationship. In season four, they've been dating for years, and Logan proposes marriage. But of course there has to be drama/obstacles: In this case, Veronica isn't sure she's ready to marry... or capable of being in a marriage. Ah, but of course she eventually realizes how much Logan means to her. The two are married, and, in the season finale... Logan is killed by a car bomb in the penultimate scene. The final scene is a flashfoward to a year later, where Veronica leaves Neptune alone.

For most fandoms, that'd be a memorable point of pain. A big ol' speed bump that ultimately throws some people off the bus, leaving only the die-hards. But the fact that fans had been invested in this relationship for literally 15 years and that Hulu (and creator Rob Thomas) had heavily marketed the new season as being a big romantic event for the ship... it was too much. Unlike the aftermath of the Star Wars sequels, there was no lingering group of die-hard fans who were open to whatever was next — at least no significant one. I did some Googling and could only find TWO people who still wanted another season.

Funnily enough? Critics LOVED this. Hell, Vanity Fair infamously penned an editorial about how Veronica Mars had "finally grown up" with this finale. I suppose all the other murders and deaths and drug overdoses and r*pe weren't "mature" enough before now for... some... reason. (The same editorial also featured the author openly hating on Veronica ever being in a relationship because it causes "arrested development" and declaring that the movie -- which was acclaimed by both critics AND fans alike, I remind you -- was a lame dud. So. The writer must be a reeeaaaal fun person.)

But a series doesn't live based on critical acclaim, as it turns out. The fandom was murdered overnight. "Marshmallows" stopped appearing in geek spaces online entirely. No one expressed interest in seeing the next season or the next movie. The constant flow of fan AMVs on YouTube and fanfics on AO3 dried up to nothing or damn nearly so.

Since 2019 ? Nothing. Chirping crickets. An intensely dedicated fandom of 12 years was just... vaporized.

I've never seen anything like it before OR since.

That's why it's so fucking fascinating.

So what went wrong?

Creator Rob Thomas was adamant about two things: ONE, the series was intended to be a noir show, which meant there couldn't be any happiness for its protagonist. And TWO, the death of Logan was necessary to evolve and grow the series.

Thomas thought that having Veronica in a relationship would be holding her back, and that a marriage would absolutely kill the series and leave her stagnant. It never even occurred to him that marriage isn't the end of a character's life and growth. It never occurred to him that plenty of drama can be had AFTER someone is married, or that development/growth could be that the characters mature enough to be capable of maintaining a committed relationship. Thomas' view of his own universe was so myopic that he couldn't conceive of any possible way that Veronica could still be a private detective involved in life-threatening investigations AND be married at the same time. Futhermore, he felt that fans just wanted Veronica to become a pregnant housewife, which is about as far from what Marshmallows were after as you can get without straight-up killing Veronica and/or Logan. He managed to do the only thing wronger than what he wrongly thought was their insistence.

On top of the above, Rob Thomas only viewed "noir" as a vehicle for total fatalism... despite the fact that many of the most famous noir stories are cynical and full of moral ambiguity, but they still feature a positive outcome. The Big Sleep still has the protagonist get the girl. The Set-Up arguably ends with the happiest possible ending in spite of the beating the hero receives.

Perhaps most importantly? Despite Thomas own insistence that Veronica Mars was always "noir," the majority of both TV critics and fans did not think that designation ever truly applied. I suspect that's the reason why Thomas decided to go as dark and fatalistic as possible: He wanted to be noir, and he was being told that he wasn't. So he went so far into noir that he killed his own most popular property.

He was adamant that it was the only way for the series to grow. But as it turns out, it was instead the only way for the series to permanently end. Without that season four finale, a passionate group of fans would still be begging for more. With it? It's over. Nobody fucking cares now.

That's kind of amazing.

[gffa]

Jedi culture & community fics, my beloved! They're a bit of a rare breed for what you're specifically looking for, specifically focusing on positive Jedi worldbuilding, so if anyone has genfic recs outside of the ones I know, please feel free to add them! But these should help scratch that itch for you, each of them has at least some focus on Jedi philosophy or how Jedi interact with each other or the lessons they teach! It's been awhile since I've read some of them, so there might be some that aren't quite as in-line with how I see the Jedi these days, but they're all ones I felt portrayed them pretty positively and they're all genfic (except one that I made an exception for) and all really lovely fics I remember enjoying for the Jedi worldbuilding aspects! And there are some that will make you absolutely melt with how much you love these characters and their beautiful culture, because by god if canon's not going to give us as much detail as we want, fandom will step up. And fandom made sure to not just focus on the disaster lineage--we love Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka, we always want more of them, please don't stop writing Jedi worldbuilding with them!--but also Mace and Yoda and Quinlan and Qui-Gon and even some Jedi OCs get some love in these fics, which makes me want to explode with joy to see! So, come cry about how much we love the Jedi with me, I WILL GIVE YOU A CRAPLOAD OF FIC TO READ. STAR WARS & JEDI CULTURE & WORLDBULDING RECS YOU'LL FIND HERE:

NOVEL AND NOVELLA LENGTH

MID-LENGTH

SHORT AND YET SO GOOD-LENGTH

NOVEL AND NOVELLA LENGTH: ✦ Remedial Jedi Theology by MarbleGlove, obi-wan & anakin & jedi & cast, 51.3k     Let us consider the fact that the Jedi Order is a monastic religious organization based out of a temple, with five basic tenets of faith. ✦ Festival of Light by dendral, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka, 8.7k     During his first year at the Jedi Temple, Anakin learns that even the Jedi celebrate holidays. ✦ Out with Lanterns by SkyeBean, ahsoka & mace & jedi & clones & cast, 312.5k     In another universe, Jedi Masters Plo Koon and Depa Billaba decide a Padawan could do Mace some good. It takes a while, but he eventually agrees. When he takes Ahsoka Tano as his Padawan, Mace knows that he's broken through a Shatterpoint and changed the course of a life. How, he doesn't know. ✦ eat well; be well by gingerbeer, rainsoaked_benevolence (oceans_bluem), obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & yoda & depa & shaak & quinlan & aayla & cast, 18.6k     Or, (almost) all of the Jedi High Councilors (plus Ahsoka) gather to eat dinner together. ✦ Supreme Chancellor Obi-Wan Kenobi by stonefreak, obi-wan & anakin & padme & ahsoka & palpatine & yoda & quinlan & cody & cast, 126.3k wip     By an old Republic law, all members of the Jedi High Council are senators in the Galactic Senate, and can thus be voted in as chancellor. A Senator from a less prominent planet has had enough of Chancellor Palpatine's incompetence and calls for a Vote of No-Confidence and the installation of Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi as Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic. This one action becomes the catalyst that changes the direction of the galaxy. ✦ Pragmatics of the Jedi by aroacejoot, ghostwriterofthemachine, loosingletters, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & jedi, 31.3k     A series of fanfiction exploring the consequences and results of the Jedi having their own language, and speaking it still. ✦ light by loosingletters, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & mace & jedi, 56.1k     Anakin Skywalker is a Jedi and being a part of their Order means that he is protected and accepted. The war is over and the Republic has to recover from the crimes of the Sith Lord, the Jedi have to figure out what it means to be peacekeepers again and the Clones have to learn how to be more than expendable soldiers. ✦ When Darkness Seems to Hide This Place by IllyanaA, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & kanan & ocs & cast, 94.9k wip     After killing three of the Jedi Order's best and brightest, Palpatine's fight with Jedi Master Mace Windu goes shorter than expected. Afraid he's lost his chance at recruiting a new apprentice, Sidious unleashes Order 66 across the galaxy, but, per their programming, the Clone Army is not to harm Anakin Skywalker. After witnessing the most painful loss he's ever experienced and injured at the hands of his captors, Anakin is ready to die like the rest of the Jedi, though not before getting his vengeance.

✦ Knightrise by Deviant_Accumulation, obi-wan & yoda & satine & ahsoka & asajj & cast, 89.4k wip     "Strong enough to fight the Sith Lord, you are not.“ And just like that the fight drained out of Obi-Wan, the barely scraped together agitation running out of him like water from a broken glass. He looked at Yoda, the other Master already hobbling towards one of the back exits, his presence burning with focus, obviously expecting Obi-Wan to follow. ✦ Make a Brand New End by Batsutousai, obi-wan & anakin & feemor & qui-gon & yoda & mace & dooku & jedi, 118.6k     Feemor, Qui-Gon Jinn's first padawan, did not survive Order 66, but the Force granted him a boon: A chance to go back to days before Qui-Gon's death. He doesn't know why the Force picked him to remember that terrible future, but he's going to do what he can to change it. And if he can heal the rift fallen between himself and Qui-Gon, and finally get the chance to know Obi-Wan, well, he's not about to turn that down. ✦ Unexpected Awakening (The Rewrite) by Rhiw, obi-wan & qui-gon & bruck & feemor & cast, time travel, 135.1k wip     The life of General Kenobi is cut short at the hands of his Padawan, but the sight that greets his eyes upon awakening is not that of blinding light of the Force, but the Jedi Temple he knew when he was still a youth. As he struggles to understand the path laid out before him, Obi-Wan unwittingly captures the attention of a singularly unusual Temple Guard, and that of a reluctant Qui-Gon Jinn. ✦ No Rest for the Weary by orphan_account, obi-wan & anakin & jedi, 61k     Needing a break from life at the Jedi Temple, Obi-Wan Kenobi and his apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, visit a Jedi AgriCorps settlement on the Midrim planet of Helia. There they encounter new friends, new enemies and have new adventures, all while attempting to navigate their sometimes turbulent relationship as Master and Padawan. ✦ The Moments That Time Remembered by CallToMuster, obi-wan & mace & vokara & bant & quinlan & garen & depa & jedi, 82.4k     Obi-Wan’s first memory was not his own. Rather, it was a vision steeped in darkness and flashes of red and choking heat and you were my brother and the harsh crash of lightsabers striking one another. He woke up sobbing in the arms of the crèchemaster, Master Kitaddik, who was hushing him and gently stroking the top of his head with her furry hands. Obi-Wan hid his face in the soft folds of her tunic and, still crying, fell back asleep. The first time Obi-Wan collapsed due to a vision was not long after that. [Or: in all the various iterations of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s life, the Force spoke to him. But in this one, it never stopped.] ✦ Starrunner by orpheus_under_starlight, obi-wan & jedi & oc, 80.2k wip     In what would have been the year 17 BBY, Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine is found slumped over his desk, dead to rights and emitting a foul odor. The coroners declare the body victim to a heart attack and the smell a result of a lack of a timely embalming—a bit of bowels humor, the head coroner says with a nervous laugh when interviewed by the Galactic Enquirer.

MID-LENGTH: ✦ 飽了嗎? | Have you eaten your fill? by virdant, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & qui-gon & quinlan & yoda & dooku & mace & bant & jedi, 13k     The Force is the first language that Obi-Wan learned to speak, the brush of one mind against another. But food is the second language that Obi-Wan learned to speak with, and he talks, he talks, he talks. A collection of fics about food and how food is an articulation of love. ✦ We Will Abide by naberiie, plo & shaak, 10.3k     Light. Dark. Balance. Beneath the Jedi Temple, far below the chaos of Coruscant's Galactic City, ancient halls and corridors sleep in silent darkness. Padawans Shaak Ti and Plo Koon are determined to explore them. ✦ What Is My Heritage? by Marnie, qui-gon & yoda, 7.7k     Qui-Gon, age 13, tries to find a place to belong. ✦ Coming Home by Marnie, qui-gon & yoda & dooku, 18.1k     A story telling how Qui-Gon comes to be Dooku's apprentice. ✦ Master by CJinn, obi-wan & anakin, 27.5k     Obi-Wan Kenobi had always wanted to become a Jedi Knight. What he didn't expect was to become a Master merely days after his own Master died. Adapting to his new role as the mentor and Master of the quite unusual Padawan Anakin Skywalker became a bumpy road.

✦ into the statue that breathes by spoonks, obi-wan & feemor & cin & cast, 8.5k     The night watch in the garden was supposed to be the calmest of them all. No mischievous Padawans “sneaking” in or out, or ne’er-do-well civilians conducting “business” around the lower-level entrances that they didn’t know existed. No the gardens was still, and it was like time was frozen in ice that slowly melted away with the rising of the sun. A slow drip, drip— Drip. Immediately Feemor turned towards the central waterfall. Someone was standing there. Whoever they were, they were small and moved through katas with their hands open like a greeting. ✦ The Cave by Ria Talla (ronia), anakin & ahsoka & cast, time travel, 10k     Ahsoka Tano, post-Star Wars Rebels/? And there was something else, more important, though Ahsoka found herself loath to do it. Her lightsabers drawn, deep in the labyrinth formed by the stone warriors and the crumbled temple. Yet the words broke certain into her mind. Your eyes can deceive you. Her heart pounded, as though warning her otherwise. But Ahsoka withdrew her sabers, and closed her eyes. Rather than her weapons, she let the Force be her light. ✦ A Candle in the Night by phoenixyfriend, anakin/luminara & obi-wan, time travel, 12k     In which Luminara finds a heavily injured Jedi, nurses him back to health, and falls in love. Then they get back to the real world, and she just can't figure him out... ✦ Found Clan by silvergryphon, boba & ocs & obi-wan & anakin & cast, 25.3k wip     After the Battle of Geonosis, a Jedi Healer discovers young Boba Fett mourning the loss of his father. Not about to leave a ten-year-old boy on his own, she promptly adopts him with the full collusion of her Padawan. ✦ the heart of kyber by outpastthemoat, obi-wan & anakin & qui-gon & depa & kanan & jedi, 32.7k     Tales of the Jedi: Stories about lightsabers, masters, and apprentices. ✦ Stars of Tatooine by Be_Right_Back, ahsoka & mace & kanan & obi-wan & rex & cast, 10.5k     After the end of the world, Ahsoka more or less kidnaps a child, has to air some old grievances, and tries to find whatever peace the universe can still offer. All paths in the Force lead home, eventually. ✦ The Uses of a Sandwich by Laura Kaye (laurakaye), obi-wan & qui-gon & yoda & cast, 17.6k     A few months after being taken as a Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi faces a challenge: meeting his Master's first apprentice. ✦ Familes Found by fyrefly, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & padme & mace & plo, 8.2k     In a universe where "The Wrong Jedi" never happened, the war ends under different circumstances and perhaps everyone will get a chance at a happy ending after all.

SHORT AND YET SO GOOD-LENGTH: ✦ The Mathematics of Repair by panharmonium, obi-wan & anakin & cast, 4.6k     For raw teachers and rough-edged students building in the rubble: tiny steps are enough, provided they carry you in the right direction. Immediately post TPM, in short snippets. ✦ The Living Force; Parables for Padawans by glorious_clio, obi-wan & cast, 6.1k     Since infancy, younglings are taught the Jedi Code, “Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force.” Obi-Wan Kenobi learns these tenets backwards and forwards again. But even as a child, he is interested in nuance. And so his teachers tell him parables. ✦ A Jedi's Cloak ImperialKatwala, obi-wan & anakin & qui-gon & cody & rex, 6.4k Jedi cloaks are made for children. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a year and a half old when he first sees this principle in action. He is fourteen, twenty-five, twenty-nine, and thirty-six when he gets a reminder.     Or: Jedi cloaks are weird. Here's a series of events showing why they're made that way. ✦ the master, the padawan, the Force by skatzaa, kanan & depa. 1.4k     Caleb expects things to be different after Master Depa takes him as her padawan, but really, it feels like nothing really changes. ✦ For the Future of the Order by thetorontokid, obi-wan & qui-gon & cast, 3.9k     There are important lessons to be found in the Jedi Temple creche.

✦ Memories of Peace by Margan, obi-wan & clones, 2k     It's not quite flash training, but the Clones are used to learning fast. It helps that this is something that they actually look forward to learning, to putting into practice. Obi-Wan teaches the Clones how to make dumplings in the middle of war. ✦ Liberosis by Be_Right_Back, anakin & mace & yoda & jedi, 2.2k     The war is over, the Sith are gone, and there is now Anakin Skywalker's secret marriage to deal with. While love is a wonderful thing, some truths are hard to face, and letting go is the destiny of all Jedi. Or: the Council and Anakin clash. It doesn't go as terribly as it could have. ✦ Accepting Emotion by LazarusII, obi-wan & ahsoka, 1.1k     Dealing with the stress and anxiety of being a prospective Padawan, Ahsoka Tano struggles to manage her emotions. Obi-Wan Kenobi finds her practicing in the dojo, confidence in tatters. His words make all the difference. ✦ A Long, Long Time Ago by ruth baulding, dooku & qui-gon + qui-gon & obi-wan + obi-wan & anakin + anakin & ahsoka, 5.8k     A wisdom tale handed passed down through the generations poses troublesome questions for a line of masters and Padawans, from Dooku to Ahsoka Tano.

✦ Duet by Silver Sky 1138, oc & cin, 2.3k     Asha Scarsi, the Jedi Padawan who feels the Force through music, isn't half as good at lightsaber combat as she is at singing and mindtricks. So she's a little nervous when Battlemaster Cin Drallig calls her to the training room after class. ✦ The One Where Anakin Tries to Be Serious by GirlwithCurls98, anakin & ahsoka, 1k     Even though they're fighting a war, Anakin finds the time to lead his apprentice through one of the Jedi's sacred ceremonies. ✦ Obi-Wan and the Force by AwayOHumanChild, obi-wan & cast, ~1k     One of the first things Jedi Initiates learn is that everyone experiences the Force differently.

✦ Night Shift at the Temple by ReneeoftheStars, oc jedi & cast, 1.8k     A Jedi Temple Guard sees all, speaks to few, and has attachments to no one. One must be prepared for any threats that may arise, especially at night, while most of the Temple sleeps. ✦ The Orchards by Raven_Knight, obi-wan & qui-gon & cast, 3.6k     When young Obi-Wan Kenobi is injured on a previous mission, Qui-Gon Jinn refuses to accept further off-planet missions until his Padawan's recovery. Yoda assigns the pair an in-Temple mission of utmost importance while Obi-Wan heals. Master and Padawan welcome the change of pace. ✦ Tipping Point by Ria Talla (ronia), adi gallia & finis valorum & eeth koth, 3.3k     "I believe that if what's happening on Naboo is allowed to continue, the other member systems will wonder what they owe to a Republic that can no longer protect them." ✦ A Personal Touch by DragonHoardsBooks, obi-wan & anakin, 6.2k     New jedi padawan Anakin Skywalker realizes that there is more to being a jedi then he tought. Discovering a completely new culture will take time and effort, but maybe he'll make some friends along the way.

✦ Jedi Parables by Peppermint_Shamrock, jedi, 5.8k     Values are often passed down generation to generation through stories, parables, and fables. What stories might the Jedi teach their children? ✦ Songs for Little Jedi by soft_but_gremlin, mace & jedi, ~1k     The initiates are having nightmares, so Mace sings a lullaby to comfort them. ✦ a thin thread of hope by wrennette, shaak & clones, ~1k     Shaak Ti introduces some cadets to one of her favourite crafts, under the guise of training. ✦ rah kat by js71, obi-wan & anakin & aayla, 1.6k     "Aay’shee," Obi-Wan murmurs into her ear, rocking her gently, like when jaieh was off on a mission she couldn’t go on, so her jaieh-raheniel would take turns having her over at their apartments. ✦ Lessons on Attachment by Siri_Kenobi12, obi-wan & anakin/padme & cast, 2.7k     "Anakin once told me that a Jedi is actually encouraged to love." She said after Obi-Wan had settled. ✦ Straw Dogs by Cymbidia, obi-wan & jedi & cast, 2.9k     An old Jedi Master imparts some wisdom concerning Mercy, Balance, and the Will of the Force to young Padawan Obi-wan Kenobi and a gaggle of other younglings. It is a lesson that haunts Obi-wan for the rest of his life. ✦ Refractions of Light by Independence1776, ezra & kanan, 1.3k     Kanan celebrates a Jedi holiday with Ezra.

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[kiss-theggoat]

Bluebonnets Pt. 2

Thomas Hewitt x F!Reader

Word Count: 3.4k

Summary: You’ve been in the Hewitt household for a few months now, and things between you and Tommy are starting to get more serious. You realize you're ready for the next level, but is he?

Tw: Loss of Virginity (both F and M), Smut

A/N: Again, I apologize if some of the characters are a little out of character! I hope you enjoy!

The towel beneath you blocked your skin from the dry, scratchy grass you laid upon in the front yard, skin covered in expired sunscreen that you could only pray was keeping you from becoming a crisp. You were content here at this moment. The light breeze brought a sweet scent from the dry trees, cooling you down while still providing you with the warmth from the sun, nestled between thin fluffy clouds and a pretty blue sky. Even though this area was dusty and old, you felt like you were at a five star resort in Maui.

Everyone was in town today except for you and Thomas, but like usual, Thomas was messing around with his things in the basement. You liked being down there with him, but after so long, you had to get out of there and spend some time in the fresh air. You had long discarded your shirt, left in a bra and jean shorts. You’d never lay out like this if Hoyt was home, but with him gone, you felt safe to be shirtless without being ogled by unwelcome eyes.

The sound of a door shutting caused you to sit up, squinting through your sunglasses to see your big hunk of a boyfriend walking out of his house towards you. “Hi Tommy!” You said excitedly, waving at him.

He waved a few times back even though by the time he stopped waving, he’d reached your towel and plopped down into the grass. He seemed tired, which made you frown. You felt a pang of guilt. Knowing that he felt like he always needed to keep busy. You wanted him to feel like he could relax, just like you’d been doing this morning. There was nothing important to do today, so why not let him unwind a little bit?

You stood up, walked to his back and knelt behind him, wrapping your arms around his neck and pressing your chest against his back. “Why don’t you lay down for a bit, hm? The sun feels nice. It’s not too warm today.” You tucked a piece of his stray, sweaty hair behind his ear. “Probably cooler than down in the basement.”

He looked at the towel you were laying on and then back at you, giving you a defeated glance. He’d known you long enough to know that he was going to be laying down, whether he wanted to or not. He moved onto the towel and slowly laid onto his back, and you cringed at the sound of his bones popping. You can’t imagine the way he ached all the time. “Jeez, Tommy…” you sighed, moving closer to him.

Even though the scratchy grass was making your bare legs itch, you couldn’t care less as you reached up to place one hand on his shoulder. “Lay on your stomach.” You said, smiling at him. He complied, easily flipping over with another couple cracks.

You straddled his waist, feeling his body tense up at your presence, but you knew he’d relax. You bent forward and began to rub his shoulders and lower neck with your thumbs, applying ample pressure. His back felt like a rock, and you knew this probably hurt a little, but it’d feel good eventually.

You kneaded the knots out of his muscles and felt him relax bit by bit, until finally when you looked at his face, his eyes were shut and his body was loose. You finally made it to his lower back and hip area, ending your little impromptu massage. It stead you opted to lay down atop him, eyes closed as you listened to his steady breathing and heartbeat. You wondered for a second if you might be crushing him, but you knew that if you were, he’d find a polite way to tell you, and that he loves when you lay on him anyways.

Your relationship with Thomas started off rocky. You had known he was a kind soul, but seeing a man alternate between a leather muzzle and a human face wasn’t exactly the relaxing stability a woman wants. You’d eventually gotten used to it, and getting used to turned to falling for, and falling for turned to completely in love. You were infatuated with Thomas, and you couldn’t imagine your life without him anymore. Even though life here was really difficult sometimes, he made it worth it.

You heard a content sigh leave his mouth and you smiled so hard your cheeks hurt. “Tommy?” You asked softly.

He let you know he heard you by slightly lifting his head.

“Can we go inside? I want to make us some lunch.”

He nodded once and you rolled off of him, watching him stand up from where you lay on the ground. He held a hand out to you, one you gladly took, and walked with him back to the house in a blissful silence.

You walked inside and straight to the kitchen, really craving any sort of food. You decided on simple turkey sandwiches, and you made yourself one, just how you like it, and you made Thomas two, just how he likes them. You handed him his food and sat on the counter, facing away. That’s how you’d eaten together for the past few months. Facing away from each other. You hated it. You’d only seen his face twice, and you constantly tell him you think he’s perfect, but he never takes his mask off.

You scarf down your sandwich, but all you can think about is the fact that your sweet, loving boyfriend is sitting behind you, convinced that he is so ugly he has to eat facing away from you. It breaks your heart every time you think about it, and you decide you need to bring it up again.

You set your plate down, swinging your feet from the counter. “Thomas. Are you done?”

He steps in front of you. Plate empty and mask on.

“Can I ask you something?”

He nods quickly. You know that means ‘of course!’ in Thomas' language, and you feel a little bad knowing that you’re about to make him uncomfortable.

“Can I kiss you?”

He stared at you, eyes focused on yours, body so still that you would’ve been convinced you were staring at a photograph. He slowly began to shake his head and look down to the floor, but you grabbed either side of his head softly, making him maintain eye contact.

“Please, Tommy? I promise you, I will never, ever judge you for what you look like. I’ll always think you’re handsome, okay? Please.”

You felt horrible staring into his eyes. It’s almost like you could see the panic and horror in them, all of the years of bullying and hatred and rejection replaying on tiny projectors inside his head, cast to you through his eyes.

He slowly raised his arms around to the back of his head, buckle clinking as he undid it. You smiled, unable to hold back your excitement. You were finally going to kiss the man you loved. Something you’d been wanting to do for months now.

His head was angled down, face enough you couldn’t see his face as his mask came off in his hands. He stared at it for a second before he looked up at you, a scared expression still on his face. You looked at him, finally all of him, and you couldn’t look away. You grinned, cheeks flushed and eyes bright as you studied his face. He was so handsome. A true pretty boy.

You leaned forward and pressed your lips against his. The kiss felt a little bit different than anyone you’d kissed before, but you couldn’t care less. For the first few seconds, you’d have bet money that you were kissing a statue. But finally you felt his hands around your waist and his lips began to love against yours, he was getting into it. You wrapped a leg around his, you being on the counter gave you an advantage and put you around his midsection. You wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him in closer, reveling in how good his arms felt around your waist.

One of your hands went from around his neck down to brace yourself against his chest, palm flat against his sturdy frame. The other hand slowly made its way up into his hair, gently stroking it as he did the same to the skin on your mid back. You pulled back, looking him in the eye, a dazed look on both of your faces. You didn’t expect the kiss to feel like that, and based on how he looked, he didn’t either. You both felt dizzy, like something had entered directly into your bloodstream.

“You’re beautiful, Tommy. I love you.” You whispered, gently running your thumb along his cheekbone. You looked at him with eyes full of love. He didn’t respond, in true Thomas fashion, instead he did something rather bold. He pressed his lips against yours again, harder this time. More demanding. You had no trouble reciprocating, both legs now wrapped around his body, barely able to hook around him.

His hands trailed a bit lower and rested on your lower back, taking up all the skin that resided there. You ran your tongue along his lips, to which he gladly responded to, doing the same and you deepened the kiss, practically sticking your tongue down his throat.

You held onto the hair at the base of his neck with both hands now, holding him as if he were about to blow away. His hands quickly left your back and moved to your shoulders, very gently pushing you off of him. You felt horrible, questions running through your head. “Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry, are you uncomfortable?” You asked quickly. The last thing you’d want to do is violate his boundaries.

He quickly shook his head, staring down at his feet with a shameful look on his face.

“What is it then?” You asked, a hand gently touching the side of his face. “Never kissed anyone before?” You smiled.

He looked up at you with an embarrassed expression and slowly shook his head.

“That’s okay…” you said softly. “I’ve never…” you stopped yourself. If he’s never kissed someone, sex isn’t even on his radar. You don’t want to take things too far right now and scare him off. “Nevermind.”

He grabbed your hand softly and gave you a look, urging you to continue your sentence.

“I… well I was going to say that I’ve never…had sex before. But I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. I want to do things on your time.”

If this was any other situation, you would’ve laughed at how fast his cheeks turned pink. He stared at you, face red and eyes wide, completely still for a couple seconds. Those seconds felt like agony, and you couldn’t help but feel like you’d ruined everything with him.

It felt like he read your thoughts and wanted to put them at ease because right after you said that to yourself, his hands slowly came back to you, resting on your upper thighs, near your hips. You looked up at him quickly, excitement coursing through your veins. “Are you…I mean…Do you want to?”

He toyed with the loose thread on your shorts for a second before he nodded. You damn near squealed with excitement, hopping off of the counter and grabbing his hands. “Let’s go to the guest room. The bed’s softer than the one in the basement.”

He didn’t respond, mostly because you didn’t give him the chance. You led him upstairs into the barely used bedroom, the one occasionally used for storing a stray victim. You captured his lips in a kiss again, slowly easing him down onto the bed and climbing into his lap. He reluctantly put his hands on your mid back, holding you just as gently as he normally does.

You smiled against his lips, reaching back to grasp his hands. You slid them down your own waist, stopping only when they rested on your ass. With his hands off of your waist, it freed you to take your bra off, which you happily did. You thought that Thomas might drool, eyes transfixed on your chest and lips slightly parted.

You ran your hands up his chest to the collar of his shirt, toying with the button there. “Can I?” You asked quietly, joy exploding inside of your chest when he nodded. You undid his shirt and slid it off of him, admiring his broad chest and arms. He was just your type.

You ran your hands all over his bare chest and he started to find a little bit of confidence with you. It made you so happy to feel his fingertips trail under the surface of your shorts, teasing your thighs and exposing more of them. He slowly traced the side seam up to the waistline, where he stilled completely. You nodded. “Please…take them off.” You said breathlessly.

He unbuttoned your shorts with unsteady fingers, and you had to stand to slide them off. As you stood, he slid himself further to the center of the bed, leaning against the headboard. You crawled back up, looking up at him for permission to take his pants off, which he quickly granted you.

Now, you figured that even though you were both virgins, there was still a significant skill difference. You were no stranger to porn and masturbation before you got here, and you had a feeling that Thomas definitely was.

“I’m going to take my underwear off. Is that okay?” You asked, watching him closely. He nodded, staring at your every move. You slid your panties down your thighs, tossing them onto the ground beside your shorts. “Can I take yours off?” You asked again. This time, he hesitated for a second. “That’s okay.” You said softly, figuring that you’d use that time to warm up more first.

You straddled him, leaning down to capture his lips in a kiss again. You held the sides of his face with your hands, trapping him in a passionate kiss that you put your all into. As you kissed him, you very slowly and subtly began to circle your hips, grinding against him through his underwear. You separated, moving down, placing kisses to his chin, then down his jaw and neck, and finally at his chest, sucking kisses and bite barks and licking his skin there. He was alternating between watching you and closing his eyes with his head leaned back and his hands slowly moved up, finding your bare hips. He held them still tightly, but not out of a want for you to stop, but a need for you to stop.

You smirked against his chest and pulled back, staring into his glazed over eyes with pride in your chest. You stayed still like that for a moment before he nodded at you, slipping a finger beneath his own underwear. You got off of him for a moment and watched him slide his underwear down to about mid thigh.

You would’ve paid to see your face at the moment, because you weren’t sure what you’d expected. You were dating a man who was almost 6 foot 7, 300 lbs and could lift you like you were a feather. His cock definitely fit his build. You felt a little bit more nervous now and you felt like this definitely leveled the playing field.

You placed a hand on his shoulder. “Are you absolutely sure you’re okay with this?” You asked, your one last consent check. He nodded the quickest you’d ever seen him nod, making you giggle a bit.

You quickly straddled his lap again, and you couldn’t believe the view. His silky brown hair, soft and wavy, fell in front of pretty brown eyes like pools of honey, accentuating his unique face that seemed like it was sculpted by gods just for you. You placed your hands on broad shoulders, bracing yourself as you lifted your hips, one hand going between you two to guide him inside you.

The searing sting turned into a dull ache as you slowly eased yourself down onto his cock, your face scrunched up in discomfort, the direct opposite expression from Thomas’. His eyes rolled back in pleasure, jaw slack and cheeks pink and slick with sweat. His head pushed back against the headboard slightly, and you couldn’t help but feel like bragging to someone about this. You’d barely moved and he was already needy.

You very slowly began to circle your hips, trying to adjust to his size. His hands flew to your hips, wrapping around your body almost completely and gripping your hard. Your hands were still planted firmly on his chest as you slowly lifted yourself off of him, thighs trembling with the struggle. He helped you a bit by lifting you up slightly.

A few more of these and you were whining in bliss instead of pain, the dull ache had gone away and been replaced with a pleasure deep inside of you that you knew only he could reach. His cock stretched you in a way that was just right, and you weren’t sure if sex always felt like this but you were damn sure glad it did. Your legs shook and your fingernails dug into his chest, leaving red marks in their wake.

His hands squeezed your hips tight enough to bruise as he guided you down onto his cock, helping you bounce at your own pace even if he felt the urge to fuck you like an animal right then and there. If Thomas was one thing it was a gentleman and he wasn’t going to do something you weren’t okay with. He watched your cute little face scrunch up and turn red as you tightened around him in all the right ways, and it took everything in him to keep from busting on the spot.

You couldn’t help but let out loud moans, whiny and breathy. It felt like you were a woman possessed, bouncing uncontrollably and not being able to control your voice or your face. Thomas’ eyes were glazed over, intensely watching your tits bounce above him. If this was heaven, he was okay with dying tomorrow.

“Holy shit…Thomas…” you moaned, not even noticing the fact that you’d drawn blood on his left shoulder with your scratching. “I…I’m gonna cum…” you whined.

Thomas could’ve cried he was so happy. He could finally let go just after you. He grabbed your hips and made the executive decision to slam you down against him, taking more control of you. The noise that left you was music to his ears, loud and high pitched and beautiful. You held onto him for dear life as he moved you like you weighed nothing, but thanked him for giving your thighs a break.

Your orgasm came on fast and strong. You clenched around his cock, eyes squeezing shut and mouth hanging open as a litany of cuss words left your mouth. Not even seconds later, Thomas slammed you down against him one last time, cumming deep inside you with heaving breaths, eyes closed and head thrown back against the headboard.

You both stayed still, intertwined and limp against each other. You panted, head against his chest with your eyes closed. Thomas slowly started to pet your head, smoothing your staticy hair. As you opened your eyes, you saw the blood on Thomas’s shoulder, along with multiple other raised scratch marks. You gasped and sat up, covering your mouth. “Tommy, I’m so sorry…” you said, reaching down to gently touch one of the scratches.

Thomas smiled a bit and shrugged. It was obvious he didn’t care about the marks, in fact, he liked it. He liked knowing he made you feel good. You both were happy.

“Would y’all shut the fuck up already?!”

You jumped out of your skin and up off of the bed, gathering your clothes as Thomas did the same.

“When the fuck did Hoyt get home?”

[sepublic]

Alright, let's talk about some details from the TOH pitch bible;

A lot of the stuff is what we've already seen and/or in line with the show. What's interesting is that King WAS a former King of Demons at one point, and we would've had an episode where he runs into his old gang and chooses Luz and Eda over them. It makes me wonder if he even had a connection to the Titan in earlier drafts, if he wasn't recognized as one back in the day because he just wasn't big enough, etc. Eda makes a deal to help remove the collar, which IS the source of King's woes, placed by a 'mysterious wizard', I wouldn't be surprised if it was Obron AKA Proto-Belos.

What gets me is that Tibbles originally started off as a friend to the protagonists, while Bump was an antagonist! Coupled with Tibbles being re-elected as mayor after Bump is deposed for corruption. I like the detail of Bump being a parasite controlling a body from the head, because it carried over into his final design with Frewin, and before we got confirmation Frewin was a separate entity, I loved the joke theory that the imp on Bump's head was the REAL Bump!!! Seems that was always the implied story of the design, I love it. Tibbles being the demon fan of human stuff would eventually become Gus instead, so this is technically Proto-Gus too…?

Interesting how Bump and Tibbles' alignments switch completely with one another, and it makes sense that with Lilith no longer the principal in the final draft, it goes to Bump, who ends up being really chill and a subversion in his own right! Interesting, but I do prefer the final Bump we got, and that's fine by me, because when the concepts aren't as interesting as the final product, it means we got the best possible version.

I've already discussed Obron and William in a separate post, and Pupa is someone we've been told about in a previous livestream. Lilith would've been both head of all covens (and not just the Emperor's Coven) AND principal at the same time, and she seems much more of a jerk to Eda in general; She has no qualms with cursing Eda because of a direct order from Obron.

Apparently the curse would've been an AGING spell, which settles my questions on how it would've been portrayed in earlier drafts! This goes along with Eda's older look. Likewise, there would've been a subplot of Eda considering Luz's sacrifice as a way to restore her youth, which likely goes hand in hand with Obron's orders to bring Luz to her, etc. The 'Bloom of Eternal Youth' quest, which Eda and Lilith go through together as their sisterly relationship is explored, feels like a carryover from this past idea.

I think I prefer the final draft; I like that the curse isn't just aging Eda, but also takes away her magic, makes her turn into a beast, etc. I like Lilith being a lot more complicated in her relationship with Eda, instead of just hating her and cursing her without hesitation. The redefining of the curse makes it less about age, and more a chronic illness metaphor, and I like how Eda in the final draft is upfront about having to learn to live with it, deal with it, on her own terms. She isn't trying to find a cure (although Lilith being promised one by Obron feels like a carryover of Eda's moral dilemma with Luz), and that adds another nice dimension to her conflict with Lilith, as well as Gwen. It's pretty frank in its own right about normalizing disability, and those who play an antagonistic role (however brief) are the real weirdoes for making such a fuss about it.

The Bat Queen would've had more of a recurring role based on the description, which saddens me; I always got the vibe she was planned for more, but between all of the other stuff the show had to juggle, plus the shortening, she ended up getting shafted despite being one of the earlier characters. Sashley, Pasha, and Bruno are also interesting, with Pasha in particular giving me freaking Philip Wittebane vibes with his grossness, beard, and anti-demon attitude; He even starts off as a potential friend to Luz because fellow human, only for his true bigotry to show. Makes me wonder if Philip ended up incorporating Pasha, we also have bodily transformation because of consuming magical stuff... P-names.

(Also, I like how in the drawing of typical Demon Realm denizens, I can see an eye demon who resembles a past drawing of Dana's!!!)

Eda was actually a late bloomer, which creates a parallel with Luz in one way, and their relationship is referred to as sisterly (in the final draft it’s explicitly maternal). So Eda wouldn't have been the talented youth, in fact things may have switched between her and Lilith; Lilith's disdain may have partially come from Eda not being as innately talented as her.

Luz and Amity's dynamic seems like it would've had Amity retain a lot of her more stand-offish, pragmatic personality even as a friend with Luz, and this would've come up more; So basically, she'd remain more like S1 Amity. That, or this part of their relationship would've lasted longer, and then we would've seen character development as Amity unlearns a lot of the issues her parents passed on. I also wonder if the Willow who cameos in the pilot was originally supposed to just be an extra separate from ‘Paulina’, but then they combined the two together.

The themes are exactly as I expected, glad to see they're still there, nothing changed! Luz becoming a witch and defying all odds to do so, putting in real work and passion. Celebrating individuality amidst conformity, plus Luz trying to impose her own fictional tropes onto the world, only to have to put that aside... Just like Wing it like Witches. It seems Amity would've had more involvement with Luz's journey to become a witch, though we still do have a carryover of that disconnect with her rant near the end of Covention.

I love the Demon Realm being situated BELOW the Human Realm, way to be subtle about being Hell you guys lol... Apparently portals to the human world are a lot rarer to find and use, which makes me wonder if the pilot's 'dimension port' doesn't have access to the human world; Meaning Amity is Luz's only way back, so her improved relationship with her is linked to getting back home. There's a gag about the Knee having service with the human world, but I can see how that didn't make the cut, for dramatic purposes; It seems like the premise for a S1 episode or at least a B-plot. Would Luz have struggled to communicate with Camila through this, or would her search for wi-fi be for mundane reasons?

Apparently Luz's magic would've required a lot more steps to complete, and I see why the show simplified things down to just glyphs. I wonder if there was always going to be the connection of glyphs as a gift from the Titan, or if the Titan and her story was going to be less intertwined in the overall narrative. There also don't seem to be nine main covens, just the many, many covens, some of which are pretty ridiculous, and Covention's sub-covens seem a callback to that.

Luz's first spell would've been levitation, and THEN she would've infiltrated Hexside, with Amity being a lot subtler about exposing Luz, though in the final draft she does figure that out as the way to go in I was a Teenage Abomination. Yeah, I prefer Light being her original spell, feels so much more symbolic and personal, etc. I wonder if the Titan is even as much of a character in early drafts, and if there's still the whole connection/relationship with the land and learning to respect it aspect. Some of these hypothetical episodes push the idea of Amity as a more episodic, typical popular kid antagonist, though in the final draft, the show goes through her character development and explores Amity's romantic relationship with Luz and its complications.

It seems the idea of the Mirror Ghost was split into Adegast and Vee, with Adegast being the one who offers the easier narrative for Luz to believe in about becoming a witch (only to be a fraud who uses uncanny puppets), and Vee being a doppelganger whom Luz communicates through with mirrors. Interesting how Yesterday's Lie was born from this. We saw the test animation from Spencer Wan for TOH, so I guess we know what Luz's puppet-doppelganger is called! And we can safely call her Proto-Vee. I wonder if she also would've been a sympathetic character, I always thought she reminded me of Lake from Infinity Train (and speculated her to be as such since Enchanting Grom Fright), and now the similarities are even MORE apparent!

Alas, The Good Witch Azura, or 'The Unassuming Princess' seems like it'd have been a lot less dear to Luz's heart, as the pilot also reflects; In the end, it turns out the author is just Eda's ex using her adventures as basis, and including private information. I remember when I once speculated that Raine, before we saw their face, would've been just like this as the author of Azura... Again, I think I prefer Azura as being a lot less mean-spirited in the final draft, and instead a celebration of who Luz is as a person, her relationship with fantasy and fiction, etc. We also would've had a Luz birthday party, the Quincenera we've been hoping for since S1...! In the final draft (and episode) we still get that Human-Demon Realm disconnect, though by that point, Luz is much more attuned and chill with the isles.

There’s definitely more of an episodic, sitcom feel to this pitch bible, especially when you compare Proto-Yesterday’s Lie to its final version. Makes sense, Dana is pitching this to Disney executives, though her statement on Understanding Willow feeling truly like her show makes me wonder if she always intended to push TOH in that more serious, emotional route we got.

[biconickyoshi]

Zuko and Aang as they appear in Book 2: Water of my slowburn Zukaang AU, The Avatar and the Fire Prince!

Overall Synopsis (for new readers):

In the year 96 AG, a freshly burned and banished 13-year-old Prince Zuko discovers a strange boy frozen in an iceberg. When Zhao interferes with Zuko's plans to deliver the Avatar to his father, Aang helps Zuko and Iroh escape. They take refuge in the abandoned Air Temples, Aang searching for any remnants of his people that he can find. Along the way, he teaches an indoctrinated Zuko about the true nature of the Air Nomads. Zuko must come to terms with the fact that everything he has been taught was a lie, while Iroh must acknowledge and face the sins of his past. Eventually, Aang and Zuko become close friends, and Zuko begins to feel things he has never felt for anyone before. However, Zhao will not give up easily, and will do whatever it takes to capture the Avatar and his traitor accomplices.

Book 2 Synopsis:

Zuko and Iroh have now officially denounced the Fire Nation and the Royal Family and are dedicating themselves to helping Aang fight against the forces of their homeland. After narrowly escaping Admiral Zhao at Crescent Island during the winter solstice of 96 AG, Aang, Zuko, and Iroh travel south in search of the Southern Water Tribe village Aang has been dreaming about. The village is in danger: the Southern Raiders are coming, and it will be up to our trio - with the help of a couple of Water Tribe siblings - to unite the remaining villages of the Southern Water Tribe so that they will stand a fighting chance.

I got an iPad for Xmas and I’ve spent the past couple days working on this! :) I’m super happy with how it turned out!

Zuko’s about 14 here - his hair length is how it looks about halfway through this Book. I’ll probably do another piece to show what he looks like at the end of the Book since his hair is a lot longer now with it being almost a year since he cut it in the AU’s timeline (we’re now approaching the Northern Water Tribe storyline). I’ve also never drawn weapons before… so I hope his broadswords don’t look too wonky 😅

Aang is about 13 here. He’s wearing a new outfit as well, which I thought made sense since this AU takes place over 3-4 years instead of less than one year like in the OG series. Aang’s gonna grow a lot over the course of this AU, so he can’t just keep wearing his Air Nomad trainee clothes indefinitely lol.

I plan to do a lot more pieces in the future as I get the hang of digital art, so I would like to draw more characters (like Iroh, Sokka, and Katara) and more looks for Aang and Zuko. I’m also really excited for Book 3, which will be Earth in my fic (Earth is my absolute favorite season of the OG show). Zuko’s hair will probably be long enough to pull back into a ponytail again at some point during that book… Though this time it will be a different style :) gotta do some brainstorming for that one!

I’m close to wrapping up the next chapter, in which our characters make a return to the Northern Air Temple! I haven’t had as much time to work on it recently just due to all the holiday stuff that’s been going on. It’s probably gonna be a shorter chapter as well (which I don’t mind, I hope y’all don’t either). But after that, we’ll finally be in the Northern Water Tribe! :)

[limes-sagau]

Starting My Sagau Writing Journey

Ok Im wanting to dip my toes into the Sagau writing scene and I wanted to put out about 3 ideas I have and plan on writing. Each idea will be outlined below and people are welcome to take inspiration off of them just make sure to tag me in the writing. There will also be a poll at the end where you can vote for which one you want to see first. When I finish writing each chapter they will be put up on AO3. 

Shimeji AU: 

For those who don't know, Shimeji is a browser extension that spawns a chibi version of a character onto your browser. This character can then move around and climb on the borders of your web page and just be a cute little distraction (I know this might sound like malware but its not I've had a Venti and a Lumine Shimegi for a while now and haven't experienced anything that can imply they are malware) 

This would be more of a drabble and less of a full fic. 

Basically the characters in genshin become aware through their Shimeji and then begin acting up in your browser when you're out of the game (when you're in game you're fine).

If you leave your web browser opened when you leave your computer you will come back to it being on a weird page 

Like Venti looking at a wine website 

Diluc somehow ending up on a streaming service watching Batman 

Yae Miko finding your writing 

I'll likely start off with characters from Mondstadt and go down the list for each region.

Kidnapped by the Harbingers (not the final title): 

Exactly as it sounds, in the middle of the night you are taken from your college dorm (or room I likely won't specify) to Teyvat after the harbingers find a way into our world. 

Haven't decided which harbinger will be sent (leaning towards Childe because I feel like it would fit best and he'd be down for that type of experiment). 

Most of it will take place in a separate castle from Zapolyarny Palace. 

If you want to know my specific location I have in mind their is a visual novel called Dottore And The Spy where you become Dottores apprentice (highly suggest this visual novel) but its main story takes place in a castle in the middle of a frozen wasteland away from civilization where both Pantalon and Dottore live. This will be the main location for the story. 

I'll also be adding in Capitano as another permanent resident of this castle because I want to write about a big strong man who is the emotional intelligence of the three main harbingers present. 

The other harbingers and the Tsaritsa will appear but they will be much more understated in their role.

I want this fanfic to go into the mental load that being locked away from the world has on a person's psyche.

Readers' powers will slowly awaken, making it harder for the Harbingers to keep us a secret from Teyvat and specifically Celestia.

This won't be a full blown yandere fic with the harbingers, they will be slightly possessive but it is more about your safety since Celestia doesn't like you. 

Celestia will be the ultimate enemy over all but the story will not be focused on shooting down Celestia from the sky as readers powers will not ever reach the strength needed to face Celestia alone. 

Harbingers plan will not have changed; they are still working to take down Celestia.   

This will be taking place after Sumeru (so no Scara or La Signora and their will be less clones)

The story will also include 

Getting to know and bond with your castle staff like maids or ladies in waiting (I know these are typically only given to female presenting reader but I want to write about gossip and forming friendships so this is what I'm going with) 

Quality time with each harbinger

Impressing Dottore with your basic levels of knowledge on Astronomy (since Teyvats sky is fake)

Eventually a runaway arch

Lots of tears and mental breakdowns, but don’t worry there will be comfort as well

Shenanigans 

Possibly NSFW after reader finally convinces everyone to stop calling them “your grace”

To Make a Haven (Title might change):

Imposter (but reader is the real deal) AU

Reader gets killed once by a mob of NPCs 

I want it specifically to be NPCs so the reader still has emotional attachment to the playable characters

Reader seeks out a safe and secluded place  

Teyvat awakens to readers distress and opens up a hidden area of the map to the reader that can only be accessed through very specific means. 

Reader eventually starts bringing in Hilichurls to what for now im going to be calling “the Grove” 

Reader will begin messing around and experimenting with her powers and finds a way to somewhat heal the hilichurls 

This isn't a full fix it will be like layering a curse on top of a curse in order to negate some of the effects of the original curse

The hilicurls will not return to being human they will become something else (human like but not human) 

This fic will contain way more original characters 

Reader will be more spiteful in this fic but less in like a “make everyone suffer” way and more like “lets shake up the system and make everything more challenging for people because they tried to kill me” 

This fic will span over a larger span of time in world with the reader building a full city in the hidden area Teyvat made for them.

Well those are my three ideas! after this poll is done I'm hoping to get the first chapter out with that week, but I'm a college student and it been a while since I have written fanfiction so i make no promises.

[twsted-kinks]

Mmmm I like to think all of them have a exhibition kink but that's just me projecting shsjjsjs. If I'm actually thinking about what the characters are actually into I can think of a lot of characters and examples. Also this got away from me... hope your enjoy still!

>minors and ageless dni<

Public Sex/Exhibition Scenarios

2nd person so "you" is used, gender neutral, each headcanon is seperate

Content Warning: public sex, dubcon, creampie, unwanted creampie, dirty talk, degradation/humiliation, getting caught, sharing partner after getting caught, no protection cause I'm a cum slut (tho y'all please have safe sex), stealthing, gangbang, some coercion, prostitution, erotic asphyxiation via cock, face fucking, recording sex (con and non), sex toys, bdsm stuff, lots of friends with benefits, lots of facials, Ace whining about wanting sex and being problematic about it, Leona being a brutal top with no care about your pleasure and becoming your problematic sugar daddy, Floyd and Jade being themselves and intimidating others to not get in trouble, Rook is Rook, heights with Lilia

Characters: Ace, Cater, Leona, Floyd & Jade, Epel, Rook, Lilia (With cameos from other characters too)

Ace

(With some first year cameos too)

Ace is a horny brat who wants to get his dick wet, and you happen to have a hole that wraps around his dick just right. How can you blame him for turning a study session in the library for something more steamy, hiding away in the hedge maze in Heartslabyul, or just finding an empty bathroom stall? (Especially the last one because Ace is far from quiet, so you often hear the sound of someone jerking off from the stall next door. You're also pretty sure some people have peaked over the wall of the stall too, maybe even holding their phone to record? ;3c) You could say no to Ace whenever he takes your hand and places it on his clothed bulge, but the tint in his cheeks and the cute whine he gives you always has you giving in. You always end up with your front pushed up against a wall or table with Ace rutting into you from behind.

You keep reminding him to keep condoms handy for your little encounters, but he always tells you he forgot. You'll still help him right? You won't leave him with blue balls right? Don't worry, he'll totally pull out. Yeah, he never pulls out. You can tell when he's about to cum and tell him to pull out, but he just grabs your hips and thrusts harder, saying shit like "but you're too tight I can't pull out!" and "you feel so good I can't stop!" There's even been a time you said "don't cum in me," but Ace pretended he didn't hear the first word. "Cum in you? Fuck yeah!" Whenever you provide condoms, somehow the condoms tear or break. One time Ace claimed the condom must have fallen off during sex when you know he took it off just to creampie you.

Ace isn't the most selfless lover and mostly just slams his hips into yours until he cums, but he's always willing to finger you or give you head if you don't cum which also just gets him hard again and begging to use your hole just one more time. He also loves fucking your thighs, drenching your underwear in his cum and having you go on with the rest of your day.

Eventually you find out Ace has been recording a lot of your encounters without telling you. He swears he's doesn't show them to anyone but then admits he has to show them to his upperclassmen for them to believe he actually gets laid. He begs you to keep letting he record because he's been doing it anyway and nothing's gone wrong. You give in and let him record. What you don't know is that one of the upper classmen he sends the videos too is Cater who uploads them to a porn site online.

Deuce had no idea his two best friends were fucking like rabbits for months until Ace got horny at an impromptu sleepover. All three of you were in the Ramshackle Dorm's main room. Deuce was passed out right next to you, his sleeping face less than a foot away from yours while Ace in on top of you, balls slapping your chin as he fucks your face fast and hard. Of course Deuce wakes up because Ace can't keep quiet, and the poor man freaks out. With a little convincing from Ace, Deuce woke up the next morning no longer a virgin.

These... encounters didn't exactly remain secret from the rest of your friend group. One day you were sucking the cocks of your two lovable idiots when some of your first year friends decided to visit. Jack, Epel, and Sebek open the door to see you on your knees with Ace's and Deuce's cocks in your hands. That night was spent with each one of your friends taking turns using your holes. Jack did his best to avoid knotting you, but your asshole felt so good. He couldn't stop himself from forcing his knot into your while he came. Epel definitely had the lewdest mouth, calling you a "dirty whore," "pathetic slut," and "walking fleshlight." Sebek took a liking to your mouth, gripping your hair tightly as he slammed his hips into your face again and again, but he still had enough brain power to pull out to make sure he painted your face with his cum.

Cater

(With some Heartslabyul thrown in... yes the entire dorm cause I want to be a slut)

Everytime you and Cater fuck in public, his phone is out and recording, and, yes, he has a... let's call it TwistedFans account that he updates regularly. He does put black bars over both of yalls eyes for some form of anonymity.

It started out simple. Just fucking in his room and uploading the videos, but then requests started coming in. Fuck in a public bathroom. Fuck in an empty lecture hall. Fuck in a locker room, library, hallway, etc. It was easy enough to sneak out at night at meet with you, and Cater couldn't say no to his fans, especially with how tight you become when he fucks you in places like this. You look so cute with your lips around his cock, touching yourself as eagerly deep throat his cock.

But, eventuality that got boring. What about you two walking around NRC's campus completely nude? Maybe with you walking around with his cum painting your body and dripping out of your hole(s). Cater even started using his unique magic, so you're fans can see a group of 'strangers' run a train on you all around the campus. Though, one night, the Heartslabyul's kitchen, your usual train gets interrupted by Trey's midnight urge to bake. Of course he was offered a turn to use you.

So, Trey became a regular guest and would fill/paint you with his cum. Trey isn't the only guest though. Cater may have let slip about your nightly escapades and were invited if they kept quiet. It worked at first, but Ace and Deuce are not known for keeping secrets. More and more members of Heartslabyul were invited to use you, and you basically become a communal cumdump for a portion of the dorm.

It finally comes to a climax when almost half the dorm sneaks out into the hedge maze to have a round with you. There's no way to keep all these hornt men quiet, and Riddle stumbles into the scene red faced and unable to form a single coherent word. He knew something was up with his dorm, and he would get to the bottom of it. But this? He never expected to see the Ramshackle Prefect being surrounded by half-naked men, them dripping with cum as cocks continue to fuck them, and them reaching out to Riddle, asking him to join. Riddle's too shocked to respond. Before his brain starts functioning again, your mouth is wrapped around his cock, and Riddle melts.

But they can't be doing this!! There are rules about being out of your rooms after dark!! But, none of the rules say anything about orgies, do they? Well, what if those Unbirthday Parties included another sweet for the men in Heartslabyul to enjoy? Of course, Riddle has to establish rules and protocol for your use: regular breaks, certain people being given the duty of clean up, etc, etc.

Still, even with all of this, you and Cater sneak out with your little entourage at night. Filming you getting fucked all around campus. But now, everyone's a lot more careful about keeping Riddle out of the loop, and that's much easier now that your pretty lips know just how to make Riddle melt.

Leona

(With some Ruggie and the rest of Savanaclaw again cause slut)

It all started as a simple transaction. You had no place to stay with Azul kicking you out of the Ramshackle Dorm, but Leona was willing to let you stay with him. All you had to do was wrap your lips around his cock and drain his balls. You didn't really have much of a choice and Leona was attractive, so why not?

This would be easy. You've sucked enough cock to know you'd be done with this quickly and then could sleep. Leona's cock is long, but you've trained yourself well. You deepthroat his cock easily, licking along the bottom of his shaft, as one of your hands plays with his balls.

"Fuck, you're a real whore, aren't you? Sucked so much cock you aren't even breaking a sweat." Leona comments as he lays back in bed. You bob your head, lick his tip, stroke his shaft, using everything you know to make him cum. But then, Ruggie enters the room, giving his signature chuckle when he sees you sucking Leona's cock. You try to pull away but Leona forces you back down and warns, "Keep sucking or I'm throwing you out."

Yoy give in and go back to boring your head while Ruggie starts to clean Leona's room incredibly slowly. It takes some time, but eventually Leona grabs the back of your head and forces you to take his cock all the way to the base. Leona grunts as he cums down your throat. You pull away, coughing, when Leona finally lets you go. You wipe your face and start to go over to your makeshift bed when a growl stops you.

"Hey Herbivore, I'm not soft yet." Leona strokes his cock. "Your mouth still has work to do." This was supposed to be simple. What you didn't know is that a beastman's stamina is much greater than a human's. Leona must have had you sucking his cock for over an hour before you became tired and your jaw started to hurt, and then Leona ordered Ruggie to pull your head up and down his cock. Eventually, Ruggie suggested for Leona to flip you onto your back, dangling your head off the side of his bed, and just fuck your face. Leona took the suggestion.

He was fast and hard, fucking your face with no caring for your comfort. All he wanted was to reach his own climax. Your only relief was the hyena beastman who eagerly took the opportunity lick and your sex. Whenever you started to get light headed and felt like you might pass out Leona's pounding, the lion beastman pulled his cock out and rubbed his cock and balls across your face to give you a chance to breathe. When ever he came, he did so deep in your throat with his balls pulsing against your nose. He'd make you thank him every time he bred your throat.

You don't know when you pass out, but when you wake up the next morning, your throat is sore and you're being dragged away by Leona to go eat breakfast with the rest if the Savanaclaw dorm. The rest of the dorm seems surprised to see Leona join them. Instead of sitting at the table, Leona sits at one of the plush chairs to the side. You stand awkwardly by him, but then he growls, "What are you waiting for, whore? My cock's not going to suck itself."

You get on your knees, pull his cock out, and begin to lick it. The rest of the dorm is frozen, watching as you take Leona's shaft in your mouth. Ruggie breaks the tension by handing Leona his breakfast. The dorm's morning continues on like normal except for the amount of hard cocks straining against pants.

That same night is much the same. Leona is sitting in the common area with you on his lap. Your legs are spread wide open as you finger your hole to prep for Leona's cock. Then you ride the beastman's cock. You knew about the raised bumps on his cock, you felt it the first time you sucked his dick, but feeling it in your hole is something else completely. It doesn't take long for you to cum on Leona's cock, earning jeers from the Savanaclaw dorm members. You don't know how many times you cum, but you're stuffed full of Leona's and Ruggie is tasked to bring you to the lion beastman's room while said beastman takes a shower. Ruggie takes the opportunity to bend you over and take a turn stuffing you with his cock.

When your ordeal of staying with Leona finally comes to an end, he makes you an offer. He gives you a shit ton of money, and you become his personal fleshlight. He can use you whenever and wherever he wants. Your holes belong to him. He gets to decide what goes in them, and only he can use you. Only he can make you cum. You're not allowed to touch yourself unless he orders you too. With that amount of money and with a dick that good, you say yes in a heartbeat.

Floyd & Jade

You're not really sure how it happened. One minute you're having a normal shift at the Monstro Lounge closing up alongside the tweels, the next minute your uniform is ripped off and the two mers are spitroasting you in the middle of the lounge. Floyd was eagerly fucking your asshole while slapping your ass with every other thrust. Jade forced his cock to stay deep within your throat just so he could make you choke. You knew you were easy, but damn.

So, sex after closing up Monstro Lounge became a common occurrence. Some nights the tweels would take turns stuffing you with their cocks, making sure you're leaving a trail of cum all the way back to the Ramshackle Dorm. Other nights they simply fucked you at the same time, using you and overstimulating you until you passed out. Of course they'd keep using you until they had their fill then cuddle with your unconscious body because they're gentlemen.

This all quickly changed into sexual activities happening during the day as well. It started somewhat small with simple flirting and dirty talk. Then it became more physical with hugging being a cover for groping. Then just straight up groping, not really trying to hide it. Then making out, then dry humping, then fingering, until finally they both fucked you in the hallway when all of you should have been in lectures. Then things got even wilder.

Jade was at least somewhat discreet, well as discreet as one can be with a tall ass sadist fucking you in broad daylight. In the library with other people close by? Jade has you pulled behind a bookshelf with his tongue exploring your hole while he holds a vibrator to your sex. Even after you cum with your thighs shaking on either side of his head,, he does not stop. Eating lunch in the cafeteria? He won't stop feeling you up and undoing your clothes. He unbuttons your shirt, gropes your chest and clips clamps on your nipples. He slides his fingers beneath your underwear and fingers you until you're cumming around his digits. All of this while he has his mischievous smile plastered on his face. Sitting next to Jade in a lecture? Jade got there ahead of time and placed a dildo in your spot for you to sit on. You're able to keep somewhat if a calm demeanor until you discover it's a remote controlled dildo when it starts to thrust into you. You do your best to not your orgasm, but multiple people can sense something is off. Jade just gives a smile and explains how you aren't feeling well. It's not like you never get caught, it's just no one has the guts to report Jade. A single smile in the person's direction has them fleeing.

Floyd is the opposite of discreet. If he is in the mood to fuck, everyone knows it. In the library full of study groups for a big exam? Floyd strips you naked, steals things like pens and other objects from other students, and fucks you with them until you cum, all while everyone around you tries to ignore the scene and avoid Floyd's attention. If Floyd is feeling generous, he takes the hand of someone nearby and uses their hand like a toy to fuck you.

Sitting in the cafeteria eating lunch? Floyd has his cock out for everyone to see, hard and dripping pre cum, as he slaps your cheek with it and whines about how he's in a bad mood and needs you to suck him off. If you open your mouth, he fucks your face in front of everyone. If you don't, he whines even louder and rubs his cock across your face, eventually just humping you until he cums all over your face and hair. Sitting next to Floyd in a lecture? He bends you over the desk and just starts fucking you, not caring about how the sound and sight of his balls hitting your thighs is a distraction for everyone. One glare from anyone who tries to speak up silences any comment, even the professor is too scared to stop him.

When the two eels are together though, that's when it gets even wilder. They like to push your limits, almost making like a game. Taking turns to see how long you would last with their cock down your throat before you pass out. Stealing the pens from others in whatever room they're in to see how many you can fit in your hole. Seeing how long you can go with their cum painting your face before a professor notices. Stripping you and fucking you in front of different crowds and finding out how you get tighter and cum faster with the biggest crowds, especially if they're recording you.

Epel

(Other characters guest star in catching y'all fucking. Also I like to think Epel has one of the biggest dicks out of the twst cast fight me)

The wilderness is the closest you can get to privacy where Epel's from and it's much the same at NRC. you and Epel would sneak off into the woods just so you two could fuck like rabbits. Epel did try to be responsible when it came to protection. He's had sed plenty of times and always used a condoms, but the few types of condoms he could get his hands on at NRC are just too small to be comfortable for him.

During the first time you two snuck out too the woods, you could see his discomfort and just took off his condom. He was about to say protest, but you wrapped your legs around his waist and pulled him closer, telling him to just fuck you. Once he felt your walls raw, he knew he could never go back to using those condoms. He also found out just how much of an absolute slut you are.

"You shouldn't've done that." Epel grunts above you. "Now nothin' can stop me from breedin' you." Epel fucked you hard, but he was also attentive, making sure to make you cum before he did. Multiple times a week the two of you would sneak away to different parts of the woods. At first you two would barely strip anything off, but, with never having been caught so far, you two grew bolder until both of you were completely naked sans your shoes. This went well until one day it wasn't just the two of you.

The snapping of a twig has Epel stopping mid thrust as the two of you look up to see Jade staring down at you two. You're absolutely petrified and go to grab your clothes, but Epel pulls your hips back and pounds into you harder.

"Dontcha try to run, slut. I felt you get tighter when this fucker showed up." Epel grabs a fistful of your hair and makes you arch your back, showing off the noticeable bulge of the smaller man's cock in your stomach. You can't help but moan as Epel hits the spot he knows drives you insane. Jade takes out his cock and begins to jerk off to the scene. It doesn't take long for you to cum on Epel's cock and for Epel to cum with you, filling you with his cum. A few seconds later, Jade steps in front of you. Instinctively, you open your mouth and stick out your tongue. Jade shoots his cum into your mouth and across your face.

Jade isn't there every time you and Epel fuck in the woods, but it's often enough it isn't a surprise. Every time Jade watches and finds a place to cum on you, one time standing behind you, your hole gaping after Epel pulled out, and shoots his cum into you.

What you don't know is, that from day one, Rook has been following the two of you each time you sneak off into the woods. Cock in one hand, camera in the other, Rook makes binders upon binders with dtaed photos of you and Epel fucking with an entirely seperate binder where Jade has joined you. He hasn't showed Vil yet, but really he should. Maybe he should confront the two of you first though? Maybe you can make him an offer that convinces him not to ;3.

Rook

Rook is the master of stealth sex. He's somehow able to keep completely calm with only a pink tint in his cheeks being the only tell you're under the table deepthroating his cock. This all started pretty casually. One day, you're talking with Rook in the library. A few minutes later, your back is against a bookshelf, arms over his shoulders and legs wrapped around his waist, with his tongue down your throat and cock pounding your hole. It doesn't take long for you to cum on his cock and for him to fill your hole with his cum. You're ready to be let down, but he eagerly starts fucking you again.

Rook is an absolute master and finding just the right spot to fuck you. From the library, to empty lecture halls, the hallway between classes, under a table during lunch, you've ended up with his cock inside of youn and he's ended up with a camera in his hands to snap photos each time. He never asked, but he's never tried to hide it. Rook especially loves taking photos of your dripping hole, every time making sure your face is in frame. But, his favorite photos are the ones where your face is covered in his cum.

Rook is also very handsy, groping different parts of you body in broad daylight while surrounded by people. He keeps such a straight face while his fingers are knuckle deep inside you, and you just have to pretend you're okay. He'll casually pinch your ass as he walks by or take a nice feel of your chest while no one is looking. While he adores having you between his legs, he also adores being between yours. Good luck trying to study at the library with Rook under the table giving you head.

Rook is very good about not getting caught, but only when he wants to. There are times he does want to get caught, and you have been caught by quiet a few people. Rook purposefully started fucking you behind a bush in the botanical garden just so Leona could confront the two of you. Of course, Rook never stopped rutting into you when Leona showed up. In fact, Rook spread your legs wider for Leona to get a better look. Rook fucked you in the science lab just before the science club started just so Trey could walk in on your head bobbing on Rook's cock.

You didn't get in trouble until one night where Rook of fucking you against a table in the Pomefiore common room. You hear the sound of heels clicking before you hear a throat clearing. You try to cover yourself when you see Vil glaring at you, but Rook pulls your hands away. Rook gives Vil a whole show, going over each aspect of your body and how you react to different touches. Rook shows off your hole, how well you take him, while Vil's fingers run across your sex. Before Rook fills you, he pulls out and offers Vil to use you. In the morning, you wake up sore between the two men.

Lilia

Lilia is an absolute exhibitionist tease. Your encounters started all because you accidentally walked in on him. You just wanted to sneak into an empty lecture hall, a quiet place to study, but instead come across Lilia floating with his cock in his hand. You and Lilia stare at each other for a moment before Lilia just starts stroking his cock again. Lilia spreads his legs, giving you a better view, as he invites you over to touch him. Within the minute, your floating midair with Lilia's mouth on your sex and you lips around his cock.

Now, when you see each other in passing, it's common for Lilia to flash his cock at you, and you've started flashing him back in return. It's also quite easy for you two to find a place to fuck. Lilia just has you pick you up and float up. He's fucked you against many ceilings, floating in the night sky, and even high above the crowd in the cafeteria. He loves filling up your hole with his cum and watching it drip down to the ground far below you.

Lilia also likes teasing you whenever you're going about your day. You have just enough privacy that no one is looking directly at you? Suddenly the fae's cock is mere inches from your face. Sometimes he just pops in to cum on your face. Other times he hovers in front of you and fucks your face, cumming deep down your throat. There are times he simply humps your clothed ass and cums all over the back of your bottoms. He just likes leaving you with something a bit bothersome for the rest of the day.

It stayed just the two of you for a while until he invited you to come hang out with him in the light music club. Cater and Kalim are happy to have you hang out with them. What they weren't expecting was seeing you end up between Lilia's legs, eagerly licking his cock, while the fae sits there talking like all of this is normal. Kalim seems happy to watch, complimenting you when you deepthroat Lilia's cock. Cater is hesitant at first but then takes his own cock out as he watches your head bob. When Lilia pulls your mouth off of his cock, you whine, but Lilia just coos in response and offers your mouth for the other two to try.

All three of them take turns using your mouth, passing you around as they continue their conversation. You gladly lick their shaft, play with their balls, and deepthroat each of their cocks. Eventually, you end up in the middle of all three of them, mouth open and tongue out as the three men stroke their cocks above you. Cater has his phone out recording the whole seen. Each one of them cums, painting your face and tongue. You happily swallow what's in your mouth and lick your lips, savoring the taste. Now you're a regular member of the club, sucking off each one of them daily.

[oodlesofweird]

Shuro thoughts (1201 words)

If i had to assign a term to Shuro that describes his character, it’d probably be ‘a lack of connection with others’, many of shuro’s relationships in dungeon meshi follow a similar pattern, in that they're all very neutral. He feels like he’ll constantly be in his dad’s shadow no matter what he does, leading to him not trying much, along with some resentment towards him. There’s also his relationship with Maizuru,who was one of the more positive figures in his life who he ends up blocking out as he grows older. Even his relationship with Hien is kinda. Nonexistent. They used to be quite close when they were kids, but their friendship eventually deteriorated when they grew older. 

It makes sense since the difference in status is more prevalent, but this made me think about how he reflects Laois. Even though they both have similar upbringings, with fathers who are in a leadership role which they would benefit from. Laios is still ostracized from the rest of his village, and pretty early on ends up leaving to become a soldier, where he ends up even more ostracized. It’s only when he leaves the army and goes to the island, that he becomes an adventurer and meets his party, where he finds companions who he’s on mostly friendly terms with. Despite everything he’s able to create his own life outside of his family. 

Meanwhile Shuro has presumably lived with his family up until he gets sent off on his adventure. He’s constantly in his fathers shadow, and everyone that he’s surrounded with is in some way related to his father. The retainers are all employed under his father and are more or less lended to him. Even when he leaves for the island, he’s still connected to him by the quest that he’s sent on, and his retainers that follow him. He doesn’t come to the island for himself, it’s for a competition arranged by his dad.

Another way that they’re foils is through their siblings. Laios’s relationship to Falin is incredibly important to the story. They both clearly love each other and left home to find their own path side by side. But Shuro and his siblings have a large distance between them. It’s never stated why, but I don’t think it’s made better by the whole, competition for inheritance thing. I think it’s also interesting how Laios’s adventure brings him closer to Falin. While Shuro’s takes him away from his brothers, furthering the gap between them.

Even in laios’s party, where he’s able to make connections with people not from his home, he still can’t really connect with others. Namari and Chilchuck both drink after work, Falin and Marcille are besties and all get along pretty well. They’re all comfortable enough with each other to speak their mind and jokingly riff on each other, all except for Shuro, whose relationship with them is much more like co workers. 

It’s the same in his old party. Hien and Benichidori are able to form a friendship with each other, and Tade forms a friendship with Izutsumi. But Shuro is distant from them all, to the point where him going “you guys did a good job, I’m sorry I dragged you guys down here” is enough to bring Maizuru to tears and confuse the hell out of them all. While Laios’s party criticizes him pretty openly, Shuro’s party instead just goes with what he does.

One similarity between him and Laios that I didn't really notice until now is that they both lack real friends, just for different reasons. Laios can’t find real friends because he can't read social cues or socialize well with other people, but he still tries to reach out to people even if things end up sour. Meanwhile Shuro doesn't have friends because he doesn't try to connect with other people, he's passive and only makes connections if they come to him first, ending in friendships that he’s not even happy with.

I also think it's interesting how he has a special relationship with both Touden siblings, just that one is out of love and one is out of hate 💀 Both of these relationships lead to him breaking out of his passive personality and making his own decisions instead of just moving through the motions. By falling in love with Falin, he makes the decision of finally leaving the party in order to form his own rescue team. Due to his hatred of Laios, he ends up getting into a fist fight and finally showing his true emotions and feelings. Both Touden siblings influence Shuro to make active decisions throughout the story (Proposing to Falin, leaving the party, deciding to turn marcille in, fighting Laios, etc). Even though these are bad decisions, (proposing to someone without any kind of romantic relationship first, fist fighting someone while half your party is dead), they are still him finding a voice. Both Laios and Falin make Shuro break away from what's expected and make his own path, even if it's very brief, and even if those decisions were very stupid.

Even though Shuro’s whole reason for coming to this island is the quest he’s sent on by his father, we don't really get much of that in the main manga, instead more focus is put on his relationship with Laios and Falin, (something something even narratively he finds his own path by having an arc based on his relationships instead of his quest). If he had an arc in the manga, I presume it would be around him finally understanding Laios? And eventually repairing the relationship between them and forming a real relationship (Though honestly i'm not sure about this). But nonetheless i think Shuro’s relationship with Laios does improve, even though he says he hates Laios, he also admits that he's envious of him. 

The two of them have personalities that fundamentally clash with each other while reflecting the other. Shuros passiveness and Laios' lack of observation skills basically guarantee their relationship would go south, but they do manage to pick up the pieces, after beating the shit out of each other. 

Laios and Shuro have a genuine talk where Shuro admits his envy, and even offers Laios a way to escape to the east, despite not being asked to. And in the final chapters, Shuro ends up hugging Laios with a genuine smile, despite not being comfortable with physical contact. Even though the two had a rough fight, their relationship manages to recover and become somewhat positive. 

By the end of the story, even though it's implied that Falin rejected Shuro (good for her), he's still on good terms with the Toudens. He finally makes his own decisions and speaks, and even though things got kinda ugly, he's still able to have a positive relationship with Laios and Falin, not as besties or as a married couple, but just as fellow people. He finally finds his voice and speaks up, end creates connections by the end of it. 

If anyone would like to add more to this or has points they wanna bring up please do ^^, these are just my disorganized thoughts that i finally wrote down.

[cozage]

HIII CONGRATS ON 2k!!!

Your writing is amazing and you totally deserve all these followers <3

Could you maybe write a scenario modern scenario where you and Zoro go to the same gym, and eventually he starts to notice you and crush on you a little :0

Tysm<33333

A/N: Modern AU is new for me so I hope I did it justice :) 

Characters: gn reader x Zoro Total word count: 750

Gym Routine

Zoro tried to mind his own business in the gym. He threw on his headphones and had his own routine. He never made small talk with people while waiting for a machine, he never bothered anyone and he didn’t want to be bothered. He didn’t really care about the other people who were in the gym with him. 

But this was the fifth day he had seen you, and he couldn’t help but notice the two of you had almost the exact same routine. Which led to you both waiting for each other a lot. 

He didn’t necessarily care, but you seemed to always watch the person on the machine while you waited. You almost went through the motions with them, as if you were perfecting your form along with them. 

Which didn’t make any sense. You had perfect form. He had been watching you out of the corner of his eye. 

And you were doing it now, watching the guy on the rowing machine as you waited your turn. Zoro would’ve been intimidated, if he hadn’t found you so amusing. 

“You can go,” the man said. He had gotten in line first, but only by a few seconds. And he didn’t want to have you watching him while he did his sets. 

“Oh!” you exclaimed, looking back and forth between the green-haired man and the machine. “No, go ahead. You were here first.”

“It’s fine. Go.”

You hesitated for a moment, but decided to take him up on his offer. It was your last set before you got to go home, and you were eager to lay on the couch and finally relax. 

You did your reps and quickly jumped back off, gathering your stuff to head to the locker room.

“Do you come on the weekends?” the man asked you. 

“Huh?” You turned back to look at him. “Oh, no. I just come in after work. I take a break on the weekends.”

The man nodded. “Me too. Name’s Zoro. See you Monday.”

You gave him a polite smile. “See you Monday.”

He wasn’t sure why his heart was beating so hard. Fridays were his easy days, and yet he felt a little nauseous from his routine. 

On Monday, he found himself equally nervous and excited about going to the gym. Once he got there, he was a little less focused on his workout and a little more focused on his surroundings.

“Zoro!” you called, waving to him. “I’ve been thinking about this all weekend. It has been haunting me!” You held your hand out. “I’m Y/N.”

He had also realized over the weekend that he didn’t know your name. Though, he only realized it because he was going to try and find your social media and see what kind of a person you were. Not for any reason in particular. He was just…curious.

He took your hand and gave it a firm shake. “Do you mind spotting me on this?”

You smiled back. “Not at all.”

By the end of the week, the two of you had become gym buddies. You all didn’t talk much, but you had exchanged phone numbers and gym routines so that you could sync up with each other every day and be each other’s spotters when needed.

Zoro shouldered his bag, the two of you getting ready to walk out the door together. “I was thinking-”

You crinkled your nose. “That’s dangerous.”

He rolled his eyes and groaned. “Shut up.”

You snickered at his reaction, but quickly pulled yourself back together. “Okay, okay. You were thinking?”

He gave a hard swallow, trying to muster up his confidence again. “Dinner?”

You raised an eyebrow. “Me and you?”

Zoro shrugged, as if the idea was just now occurring to him. “There’s this nice restaurant, if you want to go.”

You looked down at your attire. You were in baggy shorts and a tank top, and you probably reeked of sweat. “This doesn’t exactly scream nice restaurant.”

“Not right now!” He slapped his hand against his forehead, and you resisted the urge to laugh again. You certainly weren’t making this easy for him. 

“Pick me up at seven?” you asked, your eyes lighting up. “I’ll text you my address.”

Zoro finally gave a small smile of relief and nodded. “I look forward to it.”

“Me too.”

You practically danced the whole way home. 

[toychest321]

With the end of Ramadan rapidly approaching, I'd like to give attention to another Muslim doll line. Though unlike the others, this one is far less obscure...

You know them, you love them, give it up for the Arabian Friends!!!

While Fulla is objectively more popular than Arabian Friends (having a longer span of releases and merchandise), I'd definitely say Arabian Friends are more talked about in western doll collecting circles. This is likely because while all the other Muslim doll lines I've found use Barbie proportions, these moreso resemble Winx or W.I.T.C.H.

Arabian Friends were released by Newboy, the company behind Fulla, in 2007. They were first teased in issues 08 and 10 of Fulla Magazine, before being officially revealed in issues 11 and 14 (the latter seen above).

Only 8 dolls in total have been released for the line: a Deluxe and a Budget doll for each of the four characters. The Deluxe sets came with two outfits, accessories, and an Abaya. The Budget sets came with one outfit and a matching Hijab. Each doll had 7 points of articulation, with bend-and-snap knees.

A third line was announced in 2008 in Fulla Magazine issue 19, advertising that whoever could answer which character had which profession would enter a raffle with the chance to receive a full Arabian Friends collection, but this ultimately never came to pass. (The answers were: Muna - Fashion Designer, Amal - Kids' Teacher, Dunya - Coach, and Ahlam - Air Hostess)

It's said on Dollect there might have been an accompanying animated series, but the most I was able to find were two videos. One seems to be a trailer for the animated series.

The other includes a Back To School merchandise advertisement, and what might be an animation where the girls reminisce on when they were younger and how their aspirations led to their respective careers (the trailer seems to re-use animation from both of these).

A comment beneath the Trailer claims these were actually meant to advertise for an upcoming movie rather than a series, but no further news came out after these videos were released. If this is true it's honestly a shame, and might have been cancelled around when the third series was intended to release. The animation provided reminds me of Sailor Moon, and I would've loved to see it in a full storyline!

First character up is Amal, whose name means "Hope"! Her description reads:

"Never forget that hope is the key that opens all closed doors. With hope in your heart you will never be alone and nothing in life will seem impossible.."

Amal reminds me the most of Usagi from Sailor Moon, as the animation seems to portray her personality as being kind yet clumsy. It's ironic that she eventually becomes a schoolteacher as well, considering she apparently had a habit of arriving to classes late. She's also seen tucking a child into bed, so perhaps she's a mother, older sister, or aunt as well?

While depicted in the animation as having honey blonde hair, her doll has dirty blonde hair in two low pigtails (possibly tied by pink ribbon or thread). And ironically, despite her Deluxe doll using more patterns than her friends, her Budget doll is the only one without a patterned shirt.

Next is Muna, whose name means "Wish". Her description reads:

"Wishes are like bright stars in a dark sky although they are only small they fill our lives with happiness and make the darkness beautiful."

Muna is a Fashion Designer with an eye for intricate design and detail. She spends a good amount of time in her studio, seen drawing on her friend's leg cast and her highschool classroom's chalkboard. At one point, Muna is also seen helping an elderly woman across the street, so clearly her devotion to her work doesn't stop her from being charitable when she can be!

Her fashion style in both doll and animated form definitely seems the most bold out of her friends, reminding me of when 2000s-era fashion would draw inspiration from the 70s! While in the animation she and Dunya were depicted with tanned olive skin, their dolls have the same skintone as Amal and Ahlam. She has brown hair with red highlights. In the animation her hair was often depicted with side part bangs and a headband. However, her Deluxe doll has a red beanie, and her Budget doll has a middle part with braids coming down on either side of her head.

Ahlam's name means "Dreams". Her description reads:

"Dreams are like beautiful butterflies that fly in the wide blue sky. It is good to have dreams because they take you to a place where anything is possible.."

Ahlam is apparently a pianist in addition to her Air Hostess job, having dreamt of flying since she was in school. She seems to be portrayed as considerate and low-key, which aligns with her cool blue color scheme!

Her doll's fashion style seems to be Boho Chic, with beads, frills, and florals. In the animation her hair is short, with a side part and a blue butterfly barrette. Her doll, meanwhile, wears her black and blue hair beneath a navy cap in her Deluxe look, and a middle part tied back in her Budget look. Visually, she reminds me of Ami Mizuno!

And last but not least, Dunya! Her name means "Life", and her description reads:

"Your friendship is like a beautiful flower to me. Your nice words, kind deeds and positive attitude are sure to be rewarded with happiness and love.."

Dunya seems to be a healthy eater, going to someone's house with a bowl of greens (salad or kale perhaps?), and making a smoothie while on the phone. She also does stretches and runs on her treadmill. All of this makes her the perfect fit for a coaching position!

Weirdly enough, her hairstyle in the animation is exactly like Amal's doll, with two low pigtails tied by pink ribbon. Her doll, meanwhile, has brown hair in a side part tied in a high pony with silver elastics (giving me Vidia vibes tbh). Her olive green fashion seems to be relatively modern (at least for the 2000s) and urban. Her clothes are the ones I can most easily see on a Bratz doll!

Overall, I simply adore this line!!! It feels more character-focused than other ones I've covered, and I'm a sucker for such strong color-blocking! It's hard for me to even pick a favorite, since their centralized aesthetics are all so compelling and unique! If anyone who knows Arabic would be able to translate what they say in the animations, I'll happily add an addendum to this post for clarification!

It's a shame the line and its movie was cancelled before it could receive the acclaim it deserved, I would've loved to see what more it had to offer! Regardless, I'm thoroughly impressed with what they managed to put out, and hope the designers have been able to apply their clear talents in other endeavors!

Ramadan Kareem!

[asumofwords]

Smoke, Fire and Ash

Warnings: This fic includes noncon, dubcon, manipulation, violence, death, forced marriage, and inc3st. Tags will be added as the fic goes on.

TW: This chapter includes depictions of noncon and violence. Reader discretion is advised!

This is a dark!fic. 18+ only. Read at your own discretion. Please read the warnings before continuing.

Summary: You are the eldest daughter of Rhaenyra and Daemon Targaryen. You are forced to navigate the difficult surroundings of your upbringing and the eventual disintegration between your family and the Hightower's relationship. What will happen when your older and estranged uncle suddenly takes a more sinister interest in you? (Dark!Aemond x Reader)

Masterlist

Characters: Aemond Targaryen X Reader, HOTD characters.

Note: The moment you have all been waiting for, the night of the wedding. Please, read the warnings before reading this chapter. Dark!Aemond is here to stay. Not going to lie, I had to smoke a cigarette after writing and editing this... As always, thanks for the love, enjoy <3

Chapter 52: Duty

Septa Daella had told you when you were younger, that once you became of age, you would be married to a fine Lord of the realm.

That your duty to the realm required it, and that you would birth his children, as expected by tradition.

A woman’s duty to her husband could be measured in many ways.

To honour him and obey his word, was what the Septa had drilled into you most fiercely.

To build the home, and support the husband in his ambitions, was another.

To bear his children was an expectation, and a reality in which no wife could escape, unless her womb be barren. 

And that is the greatest shame there was. 

‘What good was a wife if she did not grow her husbands seed?' The Septa had said.

When you had your first bleed, you were so frightened that you could not leave your bed. You had sat in the white sheets, and looked down at your shift and mattress, stained red with your blood. You had cried fiercely and curled in on yourself, as the sharp cramps pulled through your body. 

You had been ten-and-two. 

You had expected then, and there that since you had bled, that a marriage would soon be put forth.

Your mother Rhaenyra had come to your chambers at the request of your maids, who could not get you to leave your bed. Upon seeing you, she had sat and held you, letting you cry nonsense into her chest as she brushed your hair with a gentleness that only she possessed.

Rhaenyra had held you against her and promised that she would not send you away, nor would your betrothal come any time soon. She had called for the maids to bring you a warm bath with lavender oil, as well as fresh sheets to change your bed. 

She had congratulated you on becoming a woman, and soon enough, your father Daemon had congratulated you too. And suddenly becoming a woman became less scary for you. Rhaenyra taught you of how to tend to yourself during your bleeds, and even reassured you of any questions that you had had. 

And as you got older, and watched your siblings be readied to be betrothed, you had more questions. Rhaenyra however, was not who answered your burning inquiries. 

Daemon had.

‘A good husband should bring his wife pleasure, not pain. He should kiss the ground she walks upon, and worship her as the God she is.' He had said.

'Are women not the closest beings to gods? Targaryen women even more so. For who else can grow life the way you do?’ 

‘Marriage can be political, though you can find your pleasures elsewhere. You needn’t suffer a dead marital bed.’ He had encouraged.

Yet despite your mothers reassurance, the Septa’s teachings, and your fathers words, you found that in this moment you could not imagine that Aemond, as your husband, would ever bring you pleasure, nor worship any ground that your feet stepped upon.

Aemond had walked straight to the decanter of wine, pouring himself a full goblet, and sitting upon the armchair where he had been when you first arrived. You followed his movement, picking up the heavy wine and pouring it slowly into your own cup.

You looked down at the deep, red liquid.

It reminded you of blood.

Blood from your first bleed. Blood from when Aemond’s eye had been taken. Blood from your feet, your hands, and side. Blood that you had drawn from him in return. 

Blood from your mother. 

Blood from your brother. 

And blood that Aemond would soon draw from you once again.

Your feet carried you to sit at the chaise, uncomfortable and stiff, perched on the edge of your seat ready to run. But you could not run. 

And you wouldn’t. 

Anger rolled off of Aemond in waves as he sat, eye locked onto the flames of the fire place, one hand gripping the goblet tightly, whilst the other sat in a fist on the arm of the chair. His shoulders were stiff, and his chest rose and fell shakily. 

Aegon’s words at dinner had stoked the fire in Aemond, and he had known that you would bear the brunt of it. One of Septa Daella's lessons rose in your mind. 

‘Soothe your husbands worries. Tend to his wounds.’

Pulling the goblet up to your lips you drank deeply, feeling the sharp burn of the spiced wine pooling in your empty stomach, the glow of alcohol having slowly bloomed within.

You watched him empty his goblet.

You need to calm him. To soothe him. 

For yourself.

Standing, you placed your wine down on the table before you, as you slowly walked towards him, cautious to not startle him or crowd him, lest he come at you like a boar.

As you got closer, you could see the scowl on Aemond’s face.

His lips were pulled tightly into a familiar line, and his brows were so deeply furrowed, that his scar wrinkled upon the stretch of his face.

Aemond snapped his head towards you at your slow approach, and you found your hands curling into small fists, as if to protect yourself, at your front.

“Would you like some more wine, husband?” The word felt foreign on your tongue. 

Husband.

It felt heavy, and held a sour aftertaste.

Aemond watched you closely, eye roaming your body, stopping on your closed hands before his eye slid back to your face. 

You held your breath. 

The silence in the room was so uncomfortable, you shifted on your feet as he continued to observe you with scrutiny. You were about to move back to sit in your seat in silence, and drain the rest of your cup and the decanter back at the wall, when he wordlessly raised his goblet towards you, eye back on the fire.

Pulling the cup from his hand a little more roughly than you should have, you moved towards the side of the room to fill it up for him. You took your time filling it, looking down at the cup as your stared at your hands, bandage wrapped tightly around one. 

“Why ask if you’re not going to do it.” Came the snarky voice behind you.

You clenched your jaw, back still facing him, before you snatched the cup from the table, wine almost spilling over the lip, as you walked back towards him, holding it out expectantly.

Aemond watched you the entire way, and smirked up at you, not taking his goblet from your hand. 

Your teeth ground down against each other as he still did not move to take the cup from you. And so you turned on your heel, placing the wine heavily on the table in front you both, as you moved to the side of the room to grab the decanter, filling up your cup to the brim. 

“Gīda ilagon, zaldrītsos.” (Calm down, little dragon.) Aemond purred, reaching forward to grasp his goblet, drinking as he watched you.

By now the wine had settled strongly in your stomach, coursing through your veins. You felt the familiar heat of alcohol rise in your cheeks and in your chest, as you leant back looking into the fire. Aemond let out a small humming laugh as he drank, anger still radiating from him despite his teasing. 

“You’ve been exceptionally quiet this evening. I expected more from you.” He mused, eye back on the flames.

Irritated, you took an angry gulp of wine, fingers fidgeting in your lap. 

Do not let him goad you.

“Are you feeling well, wife?” He asked boredly.

Do not let him goad you.

“Quite well, thank you, husband.” You said back flatly.

A hum came in response.

Aemond pulled his goblet up to his lips, drinking. It seemed the both of you were using alcohol to ease the rising tension that was slowly building. 

And soon, it would explode.

“I wonder what he would think of this.” Aemond mused, and you let your eyes slide to him. 

You breathed heavily.

“Who?”

But you already knew the answer. 

That familiar, sickly smirk curled up his face, and although Aemond had not let his gaze leave the fire in front of you, he knew he had you. 

You had taken the bait.

“Lucerys.” He purred, sipping his drink. 

You felt your heart begin to race as you breathed raggedly in your seat. 

You fucking bastard.

You shoved the goblet to your lips, draining the rest of your cup, before sharply leaning forward to fill it up again, eyes locked onto his form.

One large leg came to rest atop the other, the wine in his hand swirling.

“Wonder what your Strong boy would have thought about you being wed to me. Do you think he would cry? Or try to take my other eye?” He mused.

“Don’t speak about him.” You said lowly, struggling in vain to contain your seething anger. 

“Merely trying to have conversation with my darling wife.” He purred the last word. 

Don’t take the bait. 

Don’t be stupid. 

Be smart. 

You stood from your seat sharply, and finally Aemond’s gaze fell on you, looking at you eyebrows raised. 

“I am going to retire for the night.” You grit out, turning on your heel as you began to stalk towards the large bed, dread sitting heavily in the pit of your stomach as you looked at it. 

“It was a shame he was not there to witness it,” His voice called across the room, “I would have liked to see his face.” He smacked his lips.

You snapped.

Turning on your heel you sneered at him, watching as he looked at you blankly, sipping his wine. 

“Fuck you.”

Aemond’s lips twitched.

“How did my other nephew react? The eldest and strongest of boys?” He continued, his anger and amusement rising. 

“Disgusted that I would be married to a second son. You, no less. Just as I.” You sneered, chest rising and falling sharply. 

He set you alight. 

He always did this to you. 

He always had this way to get under your skin. 

Your uncle stood and moved to the side of the fireplace, looking back into the wild flames, before raising his gaze to you, as you stood angrily beside the bed. 

“And how do you truly feel?”

How did you feel?

Horrified. 

Afraid. 

You felt grief. Loneliness. 

Uncertainty. 

“Nauseated at the thought of being married to a kinslayer.”

“Hm. I am wed to a kinslayer too.”

Daeron.

Your uncle.

His brother.

Aemond stalked towards you.

“You killed my brother.” He said emotionless. 

It was haunting.

You sniffed, stiffening your back as you looked at him, long legs slowly approaching you. 

“Aegon wanted your head. I convinced him otherwise. You’re alive because of me.” He growled.

He saved you.

For him.

“A fate worse than death, I am certain.” You snipped, hands coming to wrap around your front as he approached you, your legs walking backwards towards the bed.

“You have no idea what he had planned for you. You would not have been put to death quickly.”

You stiffened, locked in fear.

Aemond smiled cruelly at you.

“The King wanted to lock you down in the dungeons again. Make an example of you to the knights of King’s Landing. They would have taken turns with you, you know. After him of course.” He spoke as if it did not bother him.

You felt nausea roll inside you. 

“You act as though you aren’t just like him. Like you aren’t worse.” You scoffed. 

Aemond stopped, a mere three paces from you.

“You think me the same as Aegon?”

“I know it.” You sneered in fear, like an animal cornered, baring its teeth one last time.

“You think you know what he is truly like?” 

You breathed heavily as he looked at your face, watching as you struggled to keep your composure. 

“You think I am worse than him? A fate worse than death?” He growled.

“You’re a monster.” You sobbed in anger. 

Aemond crowded your space so quickly, you did not even see him move. You felt his breath fan across your face, smell of wine on his tongue.

The man towered over you, heaving as he watched you stay rooted in your spot.

One final act of bravery.

“A monster you wed.” 

The slap rang out in the room, and your palm stung sharply.

Aemond’s head was still turned away from you, your hand having clipped the scarred side of his face, red heat beginning to bloom upon his pale skin.

Slowly, he corrected his posture, stiffening himself as he straightened his neck, looking down at you from his nose. 

Your chest heaved as you looked at him.

A tide of emotions swelled inside of you.

You had nowhere to go. Nowhere to run to.

You were trapped.

Trapped in these chambers with a man you hated most.

Trapped in a Keep full of enemies.

There was no escape. 

Aemond took another step forward, chest brushing against yours and you instinctually stepped back. He took another, then another. You retreated, trying to create distance between the both of you, until the soft plush of the mattress hit the back of your knees.

He loomed over you.

“Get away from me.” You warned, voice shaking.

The One-Eyed Prince smiled down at you.

You rose your hand once more to slap him, but his own caught your wrist, squeezing painfully.

You cried out. 

“Try it again. See what will happen.”

“Let go of me!” 

You desperately tried to yank your hand out of his grip as he sneered down at you, lips twitching into a smirk. His grip did not falter, and instead tightened, causing pain to shoot up your arm. 

Your other hand flew up in instinct, and hit him on the other cheek. Not a strong hit, but one to cause a sting. A pathetic display of a warning.

A minuscule piece of proof that you would always fight back.

Aemond’s smirk only deepened, hand shooting out to grip your throat roughly as he pushed you backwards, down onto the bed. His fingers dug painfully into the flesh, and cut off your air supply.

You wriggled in his hold, desperately trying to claw out of his grip as he straddled you, other hand coming down to wrap itself around your neck. He squeezed and you saw stars begin to appear in your eyes, his soft hair brushing against the sides of your face as he hovered above you. 

And then his hands loosened, and you sucked in a breath, but not before one large palm roughly reached down and began to hike the skirt of your dress up your body.

Dread pooled into your stomach and you find yourself thrashing against him.

“No!” You grunted, trying to drag your nails down his face, his other hand leaving your throat to catch both of your wrists in his, painfully pushing them onto the bed above your head. 

Your legs kicked out as you struggled against him, the dress being roughly pulled up, shift going with it, before your bare core was revealed to the room. 

Aemond’s eye left your face to gaze down at you, as you struggled against his hand, tears pricking in your eyes. His lips pursed and a low hum rumbled in his chest.

Large, rough fingertips pushed meanly against your heat, rubbing through your folds before dipping inside of you without preparation, and you felt the biting stretch of his fingers.

Tears fell from your eyes. 

This was it. 

It was real now. 

Your husband roughly fucked his fingers into your heat, stinging pain rippling through you as you desperately tried to wriggle away from him. He kept you trapped beneath him with no way out.

Aemond jammed his fingers inside of you, a sharp cry leaving your lips before pulling them out, hand moving to the front of his breeches as he began to untie the laces hurriedly, pulling at the string.

You thrashed beneath him, trying to rip your hands away from his grip as you watched in horror as his hard length was slowly revealed from the confines of his pants. The tip angry and red, leaking pre cum.

“You think I’m a monster?” He purred, shoving his legs between yours roughly, grip bruising your wrists. 

“You think I am my brother?” He sneered from above, heat from his body surrounding you.

“Aemond, stop. Please, stop.” You begged, sob working its way up your throat. 

Aemond hummed as he held his length in his hand. 

You had never seen it before.

It was long and thick, and veins protruded down the length whilst beads of pre-cum began to leak from his tip. He pulled his hand up and down his cock roughly, before beginning to settle between your hips.

“No!” You cried out, trying to wriggle away from him as he descended towards your heat, but it was no use. 

You felt a sharp pain as Aemond forced his way inside of you dryly, splitting you open upon his cock, as he pushed himself roughly to the hilt. The tip painfully kissed at your cervix and you cried out loudly.

Your uncle looked down at your face as he slowly pulled out, watching as you winced in pain and tried to pull away.  

It was unlike anything you had felt before. It seared through you, curling into your gut, nausea rising into your throat. You felt so full, so fit to burst, ripping from his intrusion, and all you could do was cry, and whimper, and try to wriggle away from it.

Aemond looked down to where you were joined, revelling in the blood that streaked his length and began to leak onto the white sheets below. He pulled out slowly, letting you feel each and every vein of his cock, before he roughly shoved back inside, head of his shaft beating painfully against the end of your core. 

“Aem, please, stop.” You sobbed, eyes scrunched up in pain as you cried. 

Aem. 

You had not called him that in a long time. 

You felt his hips stutter, but before you could find any relief, he began to rut into you sharply, more aggressively than before, his thrusts pushing your body up the bed as you cried loudly into the chambers.

Each stroke felt like hell, and he did not relent, no matter how much you begged. Aemond grunted from above you, hand letting go of your wrists to grasp onto your hip.

Disgust and fear curled up inside you, so all that you could do was pull your hands to push at his chest and cry whilst your uncle had his way with you, roughly taking your maidenhead. 

Your first time, taken so violently.

Without love, or care. 

No pleasure was given to you as Aemond sought out his own high. His eye only leaving your face to gaze at his length disappearing inside of you with every thrust.

You cried brokenly, letting your head lay to the side, voice becoming hoarse. You felt yourself cramp as the older man continued to beat against the sensitive end of your core.

It was agony.

Just as the Septa had said.

She had told you it would be painful, unpleasurable, but a burden you would have to bear. 

His fingers bruised your hips as he sat up on his knees, pulling you against him as you squeaked, dragging you down the bed as if you were weightless, before he continued his assault on your body. Using you for his own pleasure, pushing his cock as deep as it could go. 

Aemond's hair was dishevelled, and face concentrated, brows furrowed in anger as he thrust into you wildly. The room was filled with the sounds of his flesh meeting yours, and the cries and whimpers that left your lips.

His good eye was wild, pupil blown wide in the dark of the room so that it almost looked black, whilst the sapphire orb glinted sinisterly in what little light there was of the chambers. 

“Gods, please.” You hiccupped, begging for it to end. 

Begging for him to finish, for the pain to stop.

But it would not.

Aemond shifted, sitting back on his heels as he held your hips in his lap, the new angle causing you to cry out as he thrusted up into your heat, grunting from the force he was using.

It caused a tingle to spread across your lower stomach. 

It horrified you.

“No.” You whimpered, and pushed at his stomach, as he did it again, feeling your cunt clench around him. 

Aemond moaned above you, setting a faster pace as his cock dug painfully into the soft, spongey spot within your walls.

“No. No.” You babbled, cheeks wet with tears, voice hoarse from crying.

Your hands weakly pushed against him, nails digging into his pale skin to stop him, to push him away, but he kept on, slapping your hands away from him as if you were a fly.

Your husband's thumb came down between your bodies and pressed against your bundle of nerves. Painful pleasure rose in your body as he roughly rubbed against you, trying to get you to reach your peak with him.

“Aem, stop. Please, Aem. Uncle, please.” You begged, trying to move away, but his grip did not falter, instead increasing the pace of his thumb against your bud.

A familiar coil began to wind itself inside of you.

The chambers were filled with the sounds of your whimpers and cries, Aemond’s soft moans, and the sound of his cock burying itself into your now wet heat.

A long moan flittered past his lips and you felt yourself clench out of instinct. 

His pace began to falter, cock sliding in and out of you almost messily, as his thumb pressed sharply against you, pulling painful pleasure from within. Aemond's breaths came out in sharp puffs and grunts as he continued his assault.

He shifted, leaning his body back over you, hair surrounding your face like a veil, as he rutted into you desperately.

“Take it.” He moaned, his pace beginning to falter, thumb swirling around your swollen bud roughly.

"No. No. Aem stop, no. Stop." You cried out.

But it only seemed to spur him on, feeling your core begin to tighten around him, and so he pressed and swirled his thumb against you harder and faster, his eye never leaving your face as you stared up at him in horror.

You sobbed loudly as you felt the coil inside of you snap. 

Your back arched from the bed as a painful climax washed over you. 

“That’s it.” He cooed. 

“Please.” You cried, trying to push him away from you, as you clenched around him, pleasure ripping through you cruelly without mercy. 

Aemond's lips came down to press against your neck, teeth lightly grazing the skin.

You sobbed loudly as he continued to piston himself into you, your walls gripping him tightly as he began to lose himself in pleasure. Aemond chased his peak until finally he slowed, pushing into you raggedly as he moaned loudly into the humid air of the chambers, his cum spilling inside you.

“Fuck.” He moaned above you, hips stuttering as he continued to thrust into you languidly, feeling a new wetness within you as you laid stiffly beneath him.

In shock. 

In disgust.

In horror.

You could feel his cock twitching inside of you as his spend continued to come out in hot ropes, movements causing it to leak out from within you and onto the soiled sheets below.

Another broken sob escaped your lips when Aemond finally stilled above you, feeling you cry beneath him. He looked down at you, eye half lidded, mouth slightly agape.

Aemond had just raped you. 

He raped you.

Your uncle.

Your husband.

Someone you had once loved.

Someone who had once been your friend.

Someone who had killed your brother. 

You felt nausea begin to rise in your throat as he slowly pulled out, sharp pain strumming in your core and an odd emptiness settling in, before he rolled lazily onto the bed beside you, his gaze on the ceiling.

Tears rolled down your cheeks as you sobbed brokenly, ragged breaths spilling from your lips as you tried to calm yourself to no avail. Your eyes looked above you to the ceiling, and you gagged, feeling bile rise up your throat.

You were in agony. Every breath you took caused pain to rise up your body, and a different pain settled in your heart, causing it to clench. You felt defiled. Dirty.

Broken.

You tried to steady your breathing, to stop the sobs that flew from your lips as you began to hyperventilate, but you found that his presence beside you could not allow you to relax.

To distract yourself, you attempted to concentrate on the roof.

It was a different ceiling to yours back in Dragonstone. Much different to the one that used to be yours, here, in the Keep. But even as you tried to distract yourself from what had just happened, you could still feel him inside of you.

Leaking from you.

And with every throbbing breath you took, you found you could breath less, and less.

Breath in. Breath out.

Breath in. Breath out.

Pain throbbed from your centre as you laid there, trying to steady your breathing. You could feel his eye on you, feel the way the bed dipped beneath his weight beside you. And even see him in your periphery.

You turned onto your side, facing away from him, curling into yourself in an attempt to self soothe. But it didn't work. Silent cries caused your body to shake, and shudder in the bed beside him. Your skin erupting in goosebumps as you felt his heated gaze on your back.

Was this to be your every waking moment now? To be raped by him? To be defiled? To be used for his pleasure?

To be tormented by them all, and find no solace in your chambers?

You did not move from your position on the bed, terrified of stirring him again, curled up and gripping your sides as tears fell from your eyes and onto the pillow below your head. 

You could feel the wet of your blood and his release, thick on your thighs, and below you on the mattress. You were in agony as you laid there, terrified to move or to speak. Unable to do either even if you had wanted to.

You could still feel his weight on top of you, the way he felt inside of you. You could see his face as he looked down at you whilst he thrusted harshly into your core. You could feel the bruising sting of his grip on your hips and wrists.

It was like it never stopped.

“Y/n.” 

His voice was so quiet, so different to what it had just been as he whispered your name.

You tensed, heart beginning to race faster. You gripped your sides tighter, shoulders rising around your neck as you held your breath. You stiffened, and waited.

Waited for the next blow of pain.

Waited for the next moment of his defilement. 

His torture.

His cruelty.

And then he uttered the name he had called you as a child.

A nickname.

Something you had not heard in so many years. A name in which he had called you in moments of fondness, or play, and you could not stop the loud sob that flew from your lips as you heard it.

That name felt so tainted now.

You clutched onto yourself tighter, gash in your hand strumming as you tucked three fingers into it, trying to distract yourself from the pain between your legs.

Aemond breathed in a loud breath of air, as though he was to talk to you again.

But he didn’t.

Instead, the soft graze of a hand came to touch your shoulder and your found yourself flinch away from it, a terrified sob falling from your lips as you curled into yourself tighter, tucking your knees against your chest in an attempt to protect yourself.

A feeble attempt. 

The room felt still and the air felt stuffy. And all you could do was cry in the bed you would now call your own, beside your husband, that you would be tied to for some time.

Tears fell from your eyes until you could cry no more, and you found that all you could do was stare blankly at the wall beside you. 

You could hear the Septa’s voice in your head. 

“To satisfy your husband, is your duty. It is not always an enjoyable one, but it is needed.” 

The Septa would be proud.

You laid on your side and stared blankly at the wall, feeling a wave of numbness begin to cover you.

It was nice to not feel. To not think. To not be present in a moment like that.

Aemond did not make another attempt to touch you, nor did he try to talk to you. He simply laid beside you, also not moving, as you felt the heat of his gaze.

You laid on your side, not stirring, nor crying, or sobbing, not knowing for how long. Even if you did try, any movement you made caused sharp pain to ripple from between your thighs. And so it was best to lay still, and let the tide suck you in.

You felt the wave rise within you, its dark tendrils caressing your body as you relaxed into its hold.

These waters were familiar. These waters would be kind to you.

You let yourself sink into the depths, letting your weight take you deep down into the murkiness, where the cool water calmed you until your breath evened, and any pain, or feeling left your body.

Movement on the bed jerked you as Aemond abruptly removed himself. You listened to his footsteps move loudly, and swiftly across the room. It sounded muffled, almost like you were truly under water.

And you found you could not rise from the depths you had sunk into willingly.

The sound of the chamber doors opened, and slammed shut, echoing around you.

And then you were alone again, alone as you could be, left to the waters as they swallowed you whole.

Thanks so much for reading along with me, if you wish to be added to the tag list please let me know :) Likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated ! Enjoy <3

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[shantechni]

Leo the Leader vs Leo the Learner

I know almost every iteration of TMNT emphasizes that the boys cannot properly function as a team without everyone there, especially without their fearless leader.

In terms of cartoons and movies though (as much as I've had time to watch/rewatch), the '03 and '12 series are my personal favorites, with Rise and MM tying for a very close second, because they both acknowledge issues in the team that the characters work to fix. '03 Leo and '12 Leo both struggle to lead the team at significant points in their respective stories, but the manner in which they struggle and what they struggle with differentiate, in a good way mind you.

In the 2003 series, the very first episode opens with Leo already being in the leading position as he tries to keep his brothers from going off script or doing something irreparable while they work to find Splinter. And when they do eventually find themselves in trouble, he's the one to lead them through it and make it back to Splinter in one piece. We see this formula more or less repeat for almost three seasons with a few different variables to spice things up; the brothers look to Leo for guidance, think of a plan of action with their combined efforts, and go from there.

Until the S3 finale.

The boys had times where they wondered if they'd make it out alive, but this was the first where it genuinely seemed like the end for their little family, and Leo could do nothing but watch as they execute their plan to blow up with the starship.

Of course they survive, otherwise we wouldn't have another four seasons💀but that short amount of time was more than enough to scar Leo, physically and emotionally. When he begins closing himself off from everyone, April's the only one to get him to open up and he lays it all out: He feels like a failure of a leader. He wasn't strong enough to protect his family or stop the Shredder, their last resort was going out with a bang, and they had to be saved by the Utroms. It doesn't feel like they won and he doesn't feel like he accomplished anything.

His fears and frustrations manifest into an ever present anger, slowly going from cold to hot, that chooses its target at random. His brothers don't know what to do since they don't seem to know why Leo's behaving this way, nor have they ever seen him like this. And dear Mikey says something that so accurately sums up their team: "...it can’t be fun always being the responsible one, and we’re the ones who really benefit. Raph’s free to not think ‘cause Leo does all the thinking for him. Don’s free to dream, and I’m free to take it easy, all ‘cause Leonardo is busy being responsible enough for all of us."

Mikey knows Leo is cracking under the pressure of his role partly because they've become so comfortable in their own roles, and no one refutes him. They didn't intend for Leo to translate this dynamic into, "everything is on you," but that's how it inevitably turned out over time. One could even argue that them not knowing how to handle this new Leonardo is yet another downside to them getting too comfortable, and it doesn't help that Splinter is the only one (aside from Usagi on one instance) who attempts to help Leo, even when the young turtle is pushing him away.

Things finally boil over when Leo pushes a little too hard though and harms Splinter during training, a regrettable action that clears away the steely air he had around himself for so long.

It's not until Splinter sends him off to see the Ancient One that Leo finally pulls himself out of that bubble of negativity and he accepts that there was nothing more he could've done in their final fight against the Shredder.

He did all that he could, and he can continue doing all that he can for his family.

In a weird way, Karai's violent eviction notice was exactly what everyone needed.

Leo was told his family likely hadn't survived the attack, something he'd spent countless days trying to prevent through relentless training, but he believed they were okay and ultimately found them alive. He wasn't there to protect them, but he sees for himself that they made it out without his help, and this was also a learning experience for the others if you think about it. They've already been shown to be capable of handling situations on their own or in pairs, but this was the first time they had to deal with a huge confrontation as a team without the comfort of their leader behind their shells.

Raph is the one who takes the helm for a brief few seconds and dishes out instructions amid the chaos, telling everyone to split up, find their way out and meet back up on the surface, with one last demand for them to be careful. And when Leo finds him, his distress is palpable; he couldn't find the others and therefore had no idea if they were okay, let alone alive, while he kept himself hidden from Karai's forces. Before this, we see that Raph is willing to make his own plan of action in this series' version of City at War when he doesn't go with Leo's word. But this time, in Leo's absence, we see he's willing to fill in as leader when the situation calls for it, and he realizes he isn't quite cut out for leadership like Leo.

We don't see any significant shift in team dynamics after this, mainly because Leo's inner turmoil from their fight with the Shredder is what caused problems with the team in the first place, but that goes to show that outside influences are what gave birth to the team conflict. Despite me pointing out earlier how Leo shoulders quite a bit not just because of his role but because of his brothers' roles as well, we can see throughout the series that Leo doesn't buckle from the pressure until they're in a situation where he can't effectively perform his role to his satisfaction.

As I mentioned in the beginning, Leo had been a leader in essence and in name for many years before their first home was raided by the Mousers. It makes perfect sense for him and his brothers to be accustomed to it by now.

2012 Leonardo is not used to being a leader. He may undeniably be a leader in essence, and had the drive and desire to be one, but he definitely wasn't a leader in name. The very first episode doesn't even open up with Leo being a leader, let alone with the turtles being a team. Their first time fighting together is a train wreck, and rather than Leo's strong sense of ethics and honor being the catalyst for his recruitment (not at first at least), it's the beginning of their long battle against the Kraang that convinces Splinter to officially deem him the leader of a newly formed team.

Being leader doesn't automatically mean the team will follow or respect you, which is something Leo learns right away thanks to his brothers, with Raph in particular challenging him when they butt heads over their opposing plans and ideals. It's touched upon in Rise of the Turtles Part 2, but Raph's desire to lead isn't a major plot device until New Girl in Town where he gets a taste of how Leo feels everytime he's responsible for his brothers and their wellbeing. However, Raph makes it known that even though he's resigned himself to not being the leader, he still doesn't like being told what or how to do something. Even Donnie challenges Leo when they can't agree on the best course of action in preparation for the Kraang, but Donnie realizes arguing was pointless as the invasion begins without warning and makes the idea of a second base the more favorable option.

His brothers aren't his only test of will though, as there are a handful of times where Leo questions his ability to lead and wonders if Splinter chose the right turtle for the job. Throughout all of that though, the boys ultimately rely on Leo and follow his lead when all is said and done.

Where this Leo truly differs from '03 Leo is that he not only struggles with leading a team that isn't so keen on being led, but he also struggles to grasp that he leads a team.

There are many times in the series where Leo runs off on his own or makes the decision to tackle something himself rather than with help, and that's not out of the norm, especially in comparison to his own brothers and '03 Leo. The problem is that '12 Leo's solo decision making more often than not leads to trouble (we all know the tale of him trying to turn Karai to the good side without informing the team about her). One of the first major examples of this though was in the S1 finale when he takes Splinter's words a little too close to heart and gives his brothers the scare of their life. Granted, him holding back Kraang Prime kept it on the sinking Technodrome, but you get what I'm saying.

His family actively calls him out on this behavior on two separate occasions during S4.

After they'd spent six months with the Fugatoid fighting the Triceratons and racing to collect every piece of the black hole generator before them, Fugatoid reveals that he was the one who made the world ending device, a reveal that lights a flame of betrayal in everyone, especially Raph and Leo. Believing that they're being used by Fugatoid, Leo rides off in a stealth ship on his own and nearly gets himself killed, a move that has his brothers scolding him, with Raph being the most vocal about Leo's idiotic decision: "Leaders are called leaders because they're supposed to lead a TEAM!"

The moment isn't lingered upon for long, but they all make it clear that they're tired of Leo's one man missions. They're a team, so they should plan and function like one.

Then, in Broken Foot, Leo starts doing missions with Karai and Shinigami in secret to aid them in taking revenge against the Shredder, but, in an attempt to find out what Leo was hiding from them, the other turtles get caught up in their plans and Donnie gets hurt. Leo immediately abandons Karai (who later apologizes for what happened) and Shinigami to check on them and come clean.

He explains to Splinter later on that he didn't fill anyone in on the situation at first because he knew no one would've agreed to help Karai get revenge, and he acknowledges that it was stupid of him to think he could control the situation. Splinter expresses his disappointment, and April reprimands him for once again not trusting his own team enough for them to help him.

Leo apologizes to Raph and Mikey afterwards, even going so far to say he probably doesn't deserve to lead the team after this, something Raph just harumphs at while Mikey remains silent. He pleads for their help in stopping and eventually aiding Karai and Shinigami, and they go along with him to fix things as a team.

We no longer get any one man missions from Leo in S5 (there surprisingly weren't any in S3 lol), likely for a whole list of reasons ranging from leading in Splinter's absence to learning from his mistakes over time. But he makes sure that whatever they have to do gets done together, and he does his best to keep his brothers in line.

I suppose one could say that '03 Leo remembered what it meant to be a leader, while '12 Leo discovered what it meant to lead.

[flowercrownsanddaggers]

When I Accidentally Became the God of Travel and Protection

Mentioned AU: Isekai AU, calling this type the Active Player AU, Self-Aware Genshin Impact AU (but few are truly 'aware'.)

Featuring: Noelle, Jean, Diluc, Kaeya, Albedo, ft. Others

Imagine being the mama bird of all these Genshin Characters. I just wanna be there and protect them 🥺🥺

—— —— ——

It started with just one. You managed to convince Noelle by accident, really. One time, she had gotten really hurt. She wasn't even supposed to be in harm's way— she's a maid! She was just supposed to collect some Wolfhook berries....

Then, by chance, you noticed her struggle. A morning stroll in Wolvedom for you had quickly become a battle between the Abyss and yourself. This devolved into a battle of strength, which you had to call upon. You wipe the floor with the elements, harnessing that ability since you could finally fight in Teyvat.

That's all it was. The ability to possess playable characters and keep some crazy EM stats on your multi-elemental person. Nothing strange about that, right? Wrong.

You forgot that you weren't just the Traveller anymore. You were you, and you were very super-powered at the moment. Noelle, who had trained everyday with her own immense strength, could definitely notice. Your raw strength wasn't normal by any standard she'd known— not Jean, not Kaeya, nor Amber...

It appeared as if the elements strongly favored you. Could you teach her that? Ah, she's hurt right now... Oh? You know how to help her?

Yes, you could even feed them with magic food. The same kind that only the Traveller ever had...

Noelle had to ask, then! Could you cook with same... magic like they could? Make the same fantastic dishes that they could make?

Needless to say, you left a deep impression on Noelle.

After your parting with Noelle, you simply went on with your day. Nothing changed for a good while and really, you were happy to get to travel around!

Free teleportation, no worries about employment or food, and a bed within a teapot...

Noelle, on the other hand, couldn't wrap her head around it. Did this make you a God? Some spirit or protector? She doesn't remember Lord Barbatos even possessing half the powers you do! Does that make you above Archons?

Whether you were from Celestia or some other third possibility, she made sure she remembered your advice: "Just call out if you need help next time."

Noelle carried this knowledge with her. She heaved it over her back like protective armour, and wielded it like a secret weapon. She didn't want to use it. She shouldn't have to, right?

She would have liked to never use it, but even Noelle can recognize a tough fight. Lawachurls and civilians... they don't mix, and Noelle really needed the help. So, she gave it a try.

She calls your name...

.

And there you are, ready to throw down as a sort of spirit hanging over her shoulder. You were a wisp, really, but you gave her more strength. You called upon more energy. In less than 2 minutes, the lawachurl is defeated swiftly. Noelle's Claymore crackles with the elements. It's all thanks to you, she's sure...

She tells Kaeya. She tells Lisa.

Amber, Klee, Sucrose, who tells Albedo, who discusses it with Jean. Diluc hears about it through Charles, who hears it from any drunkards who witnessed your abilities. Your name, your power, your abilities — they become the talk of Mondstadt. Some are convinced that you're simply an urban legend.

Noelle prays for guidance and protection from you. She prays for the safety of Mondstadt without ever knowing if you can hear her. She doesn't tell you, but it happens. You give her artifacts in the time between prayers, which she happily discovers the power of. If she is suddenly able to defeat enemies more quickly, then it must have been by your grace!

Maybe she asks eventually. Maybe she doesn't. Maybe it's Kaeya instead, who simply finds you. Of course he was going to find you eventually. Mondstadt isn't always so eventful. He probably catches you walking around the Church, or walking into the Angel's Share. You'd be surprised to see Diluc there, if only you knew that he rarely worked a shift.

When questioned, you're calm and normal, if not slightly nervous by all the sudden questions. But who were you to worry? Kaeya had a very silver tongue and Diluc knew how to work with Kaeya. You try not to worry about the questions over drinks but instead offer protection if either of them need it.

Kaeya tries it. Very purposefully, by the way. He picked a fight he knew he could win against particularly weak hilichurls. True to what he's heard, and to what you can do, you simply grab a hold of Kaeya and give a massive damage output. Congratulations, you've convinced Kaeya of your 'alledged godhood.'

Diluc doesn't try it, but he knows it works. Kaeya was particularly insistant that he keep tabs on the little 'god experiment', to see where you were and what you did. You kinda... interacted with a pop-up window. Other than that? Nothing much.

Diluc is convinced that you're definitely someone powerful, and you don't even realize he knows.

Albedo just has to talk to you, now. He has to know how you manage to pull all this off. How far can you do it from? What does it look like from your perspective? Really, he has to measure all parameters. Memorize every detail that you see and feel. Repeat it in increasing different ways to figure out the limits of both you and your possessed character.

He throws himself into the fray. Sucrose helps him with the experiment. Timaeus wants to join in; sadly, you don't seem to know how. It's all so interesting. So much to learn and so many secrets to uncover— it's the first time in a long time that Albedo's been outwardly excited. You've piqued his interest and now, you both get to learn something!

Sucrose and Albedo certainly believe you're strong, but not quite a god. You're from out of this world, right? Maybe you exist within the boundary of a rule unknown to Albedo?

Suprise visit, Lisa wants to talk! Yes, for as much as she knows, she clearly has more to learn. She's happy to sit and discuss this over tea, if you like? Oh yes, it would happen that she invited Jean to sit with her. Jean caught off guard that YOU'RE the plus-one invitee, but she's just as respectful. You have a great time with the Favious Girlies, discussing your days together. You made some good friends, you think!

There's a lot of people to cover, and even more to talk about in the other nations.

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Don't you think it's funny cause actual canon gay characters in BL manga will say "I love you" but only the shounen bromance can spew out some of the most romantic shit akin to a 19th century poet writing a letter expressing his surpressed love for his lover 😭.....

Genuniely can't tell if it's bait or not, but I'm going to treat this ask seriously anyway.

Here, have some examples of beautiful and poetic expressions of love in BL media!

I'm going to start with my favourite murder husbands, Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishu from Word of Honor/Faraway Wanderers!

This happens in episode nine, less than one third into the story- it's that early, they've known each other for like a week and are already able to tell they're meant to be. They've made their decision to be together, and over the course of the story:

They defend each other multiple times and fight side by side in multiple episodes, sometimes protecting their adopted kid/mentee Chengling as well

Zhou Zishu is willing to go against the whole martial arts society for his boyfriend. With zero hesistation, might I add.

They both know the other has done horrible things (lots of murder on both sides here) and that's not only okay, it's a big part of why they're soulmates and get each other so well!

Zhou Zishu is slowly dying (poisoned nails in his chest, long story) and Wen Kexing can and will risk his life to save him. Don't worry, they get a happy ending both in the show and the novel even if the show's last episode is behind a paywall and Netflix didn't even include it for some reason?

But enough about them, let's move on to the immortal fantasy genre boyfriends Hua Cheng and Xie Lian from Heaven Official's Blessing!

Please note how Hua Cheng is ready to accept Xie Lian in whatever state he's currently in- as a god, a fallen outcast, even grieving and angry and at his absolute lowest. He's stood by Xie Lian in his worst moments, even if at the time Xie Lian had no idea it was him.

Hua Cheng has loved Xie Lian for 800 years, ever since he was a boy Xie Lian saved from falling to his death during a procession.

Xie Lian became a god, then fell due to horrible circumstances, almost committed a war crime against another nation that destroyed his country, spend 800 years wandering the mortal realm as a poor cultivator with his powers greatly reduced, and eventually ascended to become a god again. Throughout it all, Hua Cheng loved him and did his best to help him and then find him.

They're both adorable and the definition of a power couple once they're reunited- no spoilers, but they eventually fight an incredibly powerful god side by side and win & the last scene in the story is them reuniting for good since there's no more obstacles to their immortal love.

Let's move on to my favourite Japanese BL, Our Dining Table (also available as a series that came out semi-recently, but the examples below are from the manga.)

Yutaka is a lonely salesman who meets Minoru, a restaurant worker and his much younger brother Tane grieving the death of their mother.

Yutaka and Minoru hit it off by bonding through food they cook and share. The series is incredibly heartwarming, and as seen above Yutaka becomes a much happier person thanks to both his new relationship and big brother-like bond with little Tane.

As a little bonus, the whole found family together!

This post can't be complete without Golden Stage (or Golden Terrace, as the English official translation calls it).

Fu Shen and Yan Xiaohan aren't even in love at this point! This is at the beginning of the story, when their marriage has just been arranged by the emperor and they're still bitter rivals.

Yan Xiaohan is already protective of his future husband- later on, he also builds him a mansion meant to accommodate his disability (nerve damage in both legs, which requires a wheelchair and/or crutches). They're both incredibly powerful military generals, and the emperor was an idiot thinking an arranged marriage would humiliate them.

Of course they fall in love, of course they're a power couple, of course they send each other letters through trained geese when they're separated during the war, of course they run to each other as fast as they can across a wide cold river when they're finally reunited! Of course they're important to me!

....Aaand how about some Wangxian to wrap up this post? They need no introduction, an absolutely wonderful and complex relationship in a complex fantasy/intrigue story available in several forms - the books, the animated series (as seen above), the live action series, the audio drama, there's so much!

Some of their most beautiful moments:

Lan Wangji writing a song for Wei Wuxian and naming it Wangxian. Years after it's composed, Wei Wuxian plays it and LWJ is able to recognise him even in a different body.

LWJ begs WWX to come with him to Cloud Recesses, to safety, after WWX makes himself an enemy of the whole cultivation world for protecting innocent people.

They confront the final villain together, and work together to expose his crimes. This is also when their final love confession happens, and it's hilarious- in front of everyone's salad, WWX declares he also wanted to sleep with LWJ.

Despite censorship, the animated series was still able to allude to their wedding, showing them in red wedding robes (unfortunately can't find a gif rn)

Respectfully, if you genuinely think BL doesn't have beautiful love confessions and displays of romance, you need to find better BL.

[directdogman]

Hey dogman, idk if you answered this

Who, out of both DSAF and Dialtown, was your favourite to write and/or create?

It's very hard for me to pick favourites with my characters because I don't tend to give characters a lot of screen-time unless I find a character interesting or fun to write. You've caught me in a talkative mood, so warning, there's an onslaught of text coming!

DSaF: Dave was the most fun to write for, as I remember it. I mean, the guy is the walking personification of chaos and even when he's being constructive (eg, rigging robots to do insane stuff), it's usually in a destructive capacity. Dave will do LITERALLY ANYTHING but contribute to society in meaningful/valuable ways.

In terms of what character-writing I was most 'proud' of, I was also pretty happy with Dr Henry Miller, as a villain. Namely the research he embarked on, described in his logs in DSaF 3 (which the fandom evidently agreed with, as I got really strong feedback on those logs.)

One issue a lot of people (including myself) have with canon William Afton is that he's this kind of mad scientist character but his research doesn't really seem to be... idk, going anywhere? Other than using remnant (soul nectar?) to make kids possess robots, it's kind of a mystery how he got to this point he did from running a bad fast food restaurant. William gets fleshed out motivations in TSE and even then, it mainly revolves around his relationship with Henry Emily, iirc. It's actually pretty accurate to how real serial killers think, imo, but there's a pretty wide berth between this kind of serial killer and becoming a sci-fi fast-food mad scientist... So, I decided to try to bridge that gap.

DSaF Henry's logs actually mention where the idea for his research came from, namely the fact that he existed in a world with normal scientific rules just like ours and seemingly discovered something supernatural, and he approaches it like an amoral scientist would - trying to figure out how to figure out more about the fabric of reality using the newly discovered phenomenon of possession. The 'joy of creation' phrase people pulled from Golden Freddy's phone call in FNaF 1 is given context - Henry is trying to find out what's on the other side (and eventually, how existence itself formed.)

There's other aspects to his character that make him more interesting too, like the implication that his research is partially an excuse for him to act on an underlying sadism (with scenes implying that he inflicts damage on others than can't be justified as assisting with his research.) His background as a dissident/quack laughing-stock scientist (thanks to pushing his soul theory in a best-selling book, which is considered pseudoscience) BEFORE he embarked on his journey to become a fast food tycoon also makes it less farfetch'd that he'd be capable of y'know, harvesting human souls intentionally to continue his research?

I had more for the character on paper that people haven't seen but some of it wasn't revealed due to it feeling a bit too disturbing to publish. None of the contents would've been all that controversial, more just too tonally disturbing when written about in detail (like a omitted part from his backstory/lore post where he managed to pick up a hazy audio of his wife + son's crying from the radio of the car his wife/son drowned in and reacted with genuine elation upon realizing he'd discovered a new scientific phenomenon (as this was the first time Henry witnessed soul-possession.)) Yeah.

I don't feel much of a need to revisit Henry as a character because as a series villain, he was pretty thoroughly-written and he did his job effectively... And his fate was well earned! (He even got an epilogue short-story a few years back, further cementing his fate!)

Dialtown: From the characters/writing that the fandom has seen? Tough to say. I genuinely really like every DT character. Gingi and Mayor Mingus are two of my favourite characters to write for because they're both really insistent and react to adversity in a really comically indignant way. Mingus is more like Gingi than she cares to admit in very specific ways, which is the core hypocrisy of her character - she's one of the most abnormal things IN Dialtown, and spends the game on a quest opposing abnormality that she, herself, can't stand.

Many absolute rulers have debilitating physical and/or mental cruxes and despite that, usually have the final say on what is/isn't okay, often guided by arbitrary preferences. It's funny to remember all of the ancient kings and emperors who dictated how others should act, talk and even think, when very many of them themselves were anything except a good reflection of their own subjects! It's an irony I quite enjoy and leads to a fun character to write for!

My favourite DT writing is probably some of my Callum Crown speech drafts. I have a definite bias here since Crown's character is based on many figures I've encountered in my own reading (and his story relates to topics I enjoy reading about.) A lot of that is real nerd shit that wouldn't be interesting to 99.9% of DT fans (like a long conversation where Crown + Milt discuss a campaign speech Milt wrote for Crown and they bicker about if the wording/arguments used are truly honest.) Again, not super relevant to Dialtown-proper, but it explains a lot about why the world of DT ended up the way it did.

Realistically, the story of Dialtown itself is basically a weird little epilogue to a story that ended decades upon decades ago, centered around a bunch of small-town nobodies circling around the carcass of the last surviving main character of the old story.

I'm also very happy with Gingi's character partially because I know more about Gingi's past/future than you guys do. Gingi has such rotten memory that Gingi's backstory before DT's story begins is basically a complete mystery. Thanks to Gingi never getting close enough to any humans before laying its eggs, there's nobody in Gingi's life that can fill in the gaps. Companionship means so much to Gingi because prior to meeting The Gang, Gingi is aware of a massive and unknown block of time that's a complete mystery precisely because Gingi had nobody in its life. To Gingi, this time was basically akin to being non-sentient or dead, and Gingi would never go back.

While I was making DSaF, I drafted a ton of other stories on paper. I considered making most of them, but decided not to for various reasons, despite getting some solid feedback from collaborators. Bits of almost all of those project ideas made it into DT, with Gingi having traits from several other main characters I prototyped years and years ago. This includes where Gingi came from and what exactly Gingi is. I don't want to mislead people into thinking Gingi is more important than it is, like Gingi is the key to unlocking DT lore (I promise there's a LOT of aimless scuttling/devouring in Gingi's past and relatively little else!) BUT: Of everything from those old scrapped projects, Gingi is what I decided deserved to survive the most. And that has to count for something.

One day I'd love to make sequels to DT and perhaps explore some of the stuff I've described above, like why the hell the world of DT is the way it is or maybe where the hell Gingi spawned from. Thanks