#ashrom

[ashmates]

I am a humble ashrom fan who wanted a place to organize all the auspisticism posts that strike my fancy.

Icon image by @/kaenith.

Header image by @/nexinfai.

[quadrant-query]

Well, we're finally within two wipes of Ashen Wednesday.

This would definitely explain the influx of ashrom-related inquiries in my inbox. But for those of you who haven't asked yet-- hopefully you have your leaves sorted this perigee.

[ihasafandom]

Thoughts on Quadrants

Concupiscent quadrants are about genetic contributions - improving the species and securing your partners’ genetic legacies by reintroducing the best genes you can find into the slurry.

Conciliatory quadrants are about social contributions - improving the species and securing your partners’ living legacies by ensuring their ability to do great things without getting killed first. Flushed is the only quadrant that is not at all about improving your partner. Red Pity is “oh dang that troll is unfortunate. they’re not going to make it long, and no one else would give them the time of day, but gosh there are a few real gems hiding in that genome. it would be beneficial to the species for that to make it to the next generation, and if some of my genes beat the odds and get glued to those good ones, all the better for my descendants. But the odds of the good genes rolling rather than the bad ones are low, so better to flood the gene pool with a ton of these suckers and let nature filter out the good ones. Helping your partner get better won’t make their genes better, and it’d be a waste of your time and resources anyway. Heck, if they improve too much they’re likely to be able to get those genes into the mother grub without your help, so it’d be time to move on if they did. And doesn’t matter too much if they die; so long as you’ve gotten something in the bucket you’ve fulfilled your drive and it’s time to look for another hidden gem.

Blackrom is about those good good genes. Dang, that troll has some fine genes. You definitely want to attach yours to that; they’ll make good strong babies likely to survive. Worth putting a lot of effort into. Worth keeping them around for a while so you can get as many shots at that gene combo as you can while putting as much investment into each as possible, since you’re sure they’ll do well. But putting that much time and effort and resources into someone is risky if it turns out down the line that they weren’t as strong as they seem. You need to keep fighting and testing their strength and looking for weak points. Bonus if it keeps them alive longer to keep up with you. But if they can’t keep up it’s time to drop them like a hot potato. This is an investment and you need the best around for it to be worthwhile. 

Moirallegiance is about making your partner the best they can be. Wow, that guy is messed up, they have some serious problems, but you can also see that they could really do some good in the world. They could be really strong and useful, and troll society would benefit from their input, but they will absolutely fall apart without help. They’ll get chewed up and spit out and you would be sad. A hilaribad combo with your own genetics though, it’d just cancel out all your strengths. But alive, they are like the yin to your yang; you know exactly what they’re lacking because you’ve got it in spades, and you have the skills and desire to fix them. You can see where they’re going wrong and can break them down and put them back together, and for the bits you can’t fix outright you can at least help them compensate and shore them up behind the scenes. They’ll be at their very best, healthy and strong with no unseen pitfalls to trip them up, and fully able to give the very best in all the ways they shine.   Ashen is about knocking the hard edges off of your partners, thus making them more fit for society. You’ve found someone who can add something to trollkind, if only you can get that focused enough to be useful and keep them in line enough they won’t get offed.  "You are the most annoying person I have ever met. You are grating and terrible and you've got no posse to back it up. You are ruining the fabric of society and the worst thing about it is that deep down, you're not wrong. You have some good ideas, some good skills. You'd make a good troll if you weren't so terrible at other stuff. It's important that people like you are in the world, but whoah dang are you going to brush up against the wrong person and say the wrong thing and get yourself killed. Or get irritated enough to start a chain reaction that kills everyone else. You're an absolute moron, but I value your contributions and don't want you dead. Problem is, being around you makes me see red and make terrible decisions, and the same is true for you. We are a terrible explosive combo but I can't seem to walk away from you. If we had a buffer though to cut off our worst tendencies, we could work well together and get more done as a team. As a unit we'd be solid and dependable and able to focus, and once we settled into that dynamic enough we don't even need the third person present to know when they'd be telling us to knock it off. Bonus, you can get a lot more done in troll society if you've got a couple other trolls watching your back and helping you shove your way through. I can chip at your most annoying habits over time and instill some more patience for those of others, so you navigate society better even alone, but I'll also be there to intervene if things start escalating with random joes too. You'll never not be terrible, but we're the only ones allowed to be jerks to you about it."

I feel like ashmates are the most likely to spend most of their time together, and might also be the most inclined to live together non-disastrously. Black and pale are too intense, making everything into a contest or learning opportunity, a daily grind that would be exhausting if you had to live in close quarters all the time. Red meanwhile would be too indulgent of all your bad habits. All good in generous doses but not quite so functional or comfortable when sharing a room or apartment on a permanent basis.

Ashen you can at least nag eachother into doing household chores without it being a giant Issue or overstepping boundaries. 

[prince-ampora]

Shipping Week 2019 D4~Erisolkat♣️

INFO

-karkat is STRESSED™️

-on the meteor, before the murder sprees, which wont happen

-I'M NOT GOOD WITH AUSPISTICE OKAY???

TRIGGER WARNINGS

-eridan and sollux are constantly fighting and come close to killing each other

***

"MAYBE YOU 2HOULD KEEP YOUR FII2HDIICK OUT OF IIT!" "MAYBE YOU LOWWBLOODS SHOULD STOP BEIN SUCH-" "ALL  RIGHT FUCKERS, BREAK IT UP!" Eridan and Sollux abruptly stop yelling at Karkat's loud voice. "FEFERI, I'M TAKING THEM TO MY RESPITE BLOCK, YOU CAN HAVE SOLLUX BACK AFTER I'M DONE WITH HIM." The fuchsia blood nods as Karkat grabs the wrists of the two arguing dumbasses. He drags them behind him as they keep silent. He takes them into his block and tells them to sit down in some chairs he took from the library. Once they are seated, he turns to glare at them. "ALL RIGHT FUCK ASSES, THIS IS HOW IT'S GONNA GO. I WILL MAKE EACH OF YOU A SCHEDULE. SINCE YOU TWO NEVER GET ALONG, IT WILL KEEP YOU AS FAR AWAY FROM EACH OTHER AS POSSIBLE." Eridan groans and Sollux rolls his eyes, "You can't tell u2 what two do iin our own tiime KK." "ACTUALLY, I CAN. I AM YOUR LEADER, AND YOUR AUSPISTICE, SO YOU KINDA HAVE TO LISTEN TO ME." "Wwhatevver..." "I WILL HIT YOU." 

The two sit as Karkat draws out two separate schedules. Eridan got bored quickly. He checked to make sure Karkat wasn't looking before pulling out his wand. Sollux glares at him, "ED, the fuck are you doiing?" Eridan grins and flicks his wand, sending Sollux's glasses flying. "YOU FUCKIING A22HAT!" Sollux's eyes start to glow red and blue, sparking. Karkat runs in between them, shoosh papping both of them before they kill each other. "WHAT THE FUCK DID I SAY? SIT BACK DOWN." He moved their chairs farther away from each other and handed them each a piece of paper. "SOLLUX, I MADE SURE TO GIVE YOU PLENTY OF TIME TO HANG OUT WITH FEFERI IN THE HORN PILE. ERIDAN, YOU'RE SPENDING MOST OF YOUR TIME IN THE LIBRARY. I DON'T REALLY GIVE A SHIT IF YOU ACTUALLY DO ANY OF WHAT I LISTED BUT PLEASE, STAY IN THE FUCKING ROOMS." They both try to argue with Karkat, but he kicks them out of his block, making sure they go where they're supposed to. 

"JEGUS FUCK BEING AN AUSPISTICE IS HARD. HOW DOES KANAYA DO IT?"

[hareofhrair]

Ey, I finally wrote a chapter of that SolKat Ashen Fleet Au fic I’ve been waffling about doing for ages. Check it out if you like and let me know if you think it’s worth continuing!

[solarianradiance]

So a bunch of us chatted about stuff like ships, and the topic of John/FemTavros/Vriska came. Most came to the conclusion that it simply wouldn't work out, seeing as both would rather be with Vriska than each other (despite her best efforts), but I would like to hear your opinion.

Vriska♥♦John

Vriska♥♠Tavrox

John♠Tavrox♣Vriska

I wanna know who “we” is

A relationship between Tavrox and John would be a highly volatile one as both are Breath players, and sparks would fly between in the form of thunder and lightning storms, as both have their own winds going in different directions

And neither are fighting over Vriska, for the most part at least anyways, but its something she would want none the less, as in my mind, a Kismesisitude is a healthy rivalry improving its two participants in various ways, which is what Vriska DEFINITELY wants, as everyone would benefit from them getting stronger and having a healthy rivalry.

However, because like I said, they would have a volatile relationship, and would need a good ♣Auspice♣ to keep them in line, and stop things from getting out of control.

Vriska might be able to do it, but given her nature to bite deeply and maybe go too far, she might make things worse. She can keep Tavrox in line because shes a Page of Breath, but John wouldn’t let her go too far, even if he might like watching her go to work on Tavrox. Vriska however would be able to at least keep the peace long enough for them to remain functional and effective.

John would enjoy putting Tavrox in her place in a show of one upsmanship, similar to his Pitched relationship with Terezi, but he would also sense attraction both physical and emotional between Tavrox and himself as both of them like to have fun and be rather childish. Not to mention Tavrox really fills out her Page outfit really nicely, so there would be a strong sexual attraction to help keep them together~

EB: god that tavrox is such a whiny lil tool, but god damn her ass and hips are amazing!

Tavrox would not like being bullied and picked on by both John and Vriska, being a Page of Breath, she is innately subservient to John, though being a Breath player herself, she wouldn’t take it lying down and try to blow her own spiteful winds to assert herself. Butt she would still be a bottom bitch, just no question about it.

Attraction to John would be something similar to John’s attraction to her, both having a moderate interest in silly childish things such as magic and adventure, and just having fun. These two sharing moments might cause the pair to vacillate towards a redrom naturally, the issue is having enough of those moments long enough and often enough to where such a vacillation occurs.

She would also have a sexual attraction as well, likely agreeing with someone like Roxy about John and his family being unreasonably hot in the nerd kinda. 

Interactions would likely boil down to both trying to dominate each other, treating everything as a competition, even in the bedroom, where their sex would likely either be them effectively wrestling eachother (I think Tavrox would Dom John most of the time in that ways, because Bullgirl) or one of them upholding a bet (which I think John would win, so we would see Tavrox in a maid or cheerleader outfit)

Which again, its exactly what Vriska wants, for both the excitement of the stormy weather they make and the challenge for herself in keeping it from going bananas in addition to the benefits of them getting their blackrom improvements on.

The ♣Threesomes♣ would be a lot of fun as well.

All parties stand to gain something from the relationship, its only a question of keeping them together and John and Tavrox would keep blowing eachother away, giggity, and Vriska probably wouldnt be on the ball all of the time, not wanting to do excessive amounts of work for diminishing returns, because shes Vriska.

If things are not properly managed, Tavrox and John might seriously hurt one another. Its unlikely to go further than that given their mutual non-violent nature, but you never know what a spite goes too far. And again, Vriska hasnt got the best track record for keeping the peace.

Who knows? She might even instigate them out of frustration or just for the fun of it… because, shes Vriska.

Enter Kanaya Maryam, who would likely be more than willing to enter in such a relationship for everyone involved, as she likes all parties in their own ways, and she is an Ashen hoe through and through. She probably would create a rare double Ashrom of varying colors, and since everyone likes her, might make the situation stable enough to continue effectively without too much of an issue.

Organizing events and special occasions to ensure the romance between Tavrox and John remains healthy while also pursuing her own redrom with each party involved.

Vriska stands to gain the most because, 3 redroms, freaking bitchin for her and all she has to do is show up! Win-Win indeed!

The four-way would likely be the stuff of legend, everyone taking a turn with one another, ending with a mad snuggle fest afterwords.

So yeah, those are my thoughts. Great potential with such a ship, lots of stories to be had, and I want to explore such a relationship now.

Wish I had Femtavros and Vriska Sprites so I can go balls deep~

BTW im calling Femtavros “Tavrox”

Because it sounds like Roxy

And also sounds like Taurox the Brass Bull

[cloudbattrolls]

i may do a mar and just invent more npcs for people to date just because it’s fun to write and i’m such a fussy fucking shipper that trying to ship with me beyond casual dating or a temporary ship is like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle with your feet while blindfolded because a lot of typical romance dynamics interest me in the same way that listening to radio football does.

it’s not that i dislike writing ships! i adore the quad system, tbh. but i rarely find dynamics i really enjoy, though Gliese/Riccin and Gliese/Kit are good examples.

The former being a now canon pitch ship, the latter being an eventual endgame ashrom.

[mmmmalo]

you prolly already saw this, but i think it's safe to say the SBURB kids can be associated with romantic quadrants to some degree bc of this: John bc of his pitch feelings for his Dad, and Terezi and Karkat having pitch crushes on him; Dave bc i guess imo he's the most preoccipied with redrom out of the betas? and Dirk would fit similarly bc of his crush on Jake driving a lot of his actions; Jade with auspiticism.... Nepeta considers her as auspiticising Karkat's two selves... hmmm

roxy with moirallegiance works imo bc of the attitudes she takes to the other alphas as time goes on mirroring palerom to some degree, tho idk if other people would agree with me; personally i DEFINITELY see how Jane connects to kismesissitude but i don’t think i could argue it effectively to most people ; aaaaand i guess i dont see how Jake connects to ashrom and Rose to palerom but oh well

Even though John had a Spade shirt and Dave had a Heart bib, I’m not as sure of the idea that characters have an associated romance type. Though I guess with the quadrants in place, it’d almost be weird for them not to? But I think everybody’s experiencing the full emotional spectrum, personally.

[iztarshi]

What's blackrom and what would Gil and Tarvek's blackrom in Paris be like, please?

Haha, okay, blackrom is a Homestuck thing. Trolls have four kinds of romance, based on card suits

Matesprit = redrom/hearts = human romance pretty much. Love.

Kismesis = blackrom/spades = hate and rivalry with sex

Moraliegance = palerom/diamonds = nonsexual, emotional support

Auspisticism = ashrom/clubs = one person getting in the middle of what would be an inapproproate blackrom to keep it platonic

All of these are romances to trolls and they actively want to be in one of each.

Healthy blackrom, though, from what we see of it, does involve genuinely caring  about each other and sometimes working together, even as you drive each other up the wall. It seems like it can be a mixture of us against the world and us against each other, racing to outdo one another in doing the impossible even as you support one another in it. It’s a kind of love, even though it’s also hate.

Which is why Tarvek and Gil’s “we fought constantly and were archenemies but, by the way, worked together to decode Paris and trusted one another’s information” pinged me that way.

[stbseoblr-blog]

PRAGATI NAGARSATURDAY AND SUNDAY10 AM TO 1 PM JAGANNATH BATI, SUGANDHATUESDAY AND THURSDAY11 AM TO 1 PM GOTU BAZARMONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY5 PM TO 7 PM BETA BUS STANDMONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY4.30 PM TO 7.30 PM AMNAN KALITALATUESDAY, THURSDAY AND SUNDAY7 PM TO 9 PM BARUNNANPARAMONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY7.30 PM TO 9 PM BAROL ( KAMALA MATA ASHROM)WEDNESDAY4 PM TO 7 PM BARANAGAR (KOLKATA)MONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY5 PM TO 8 PM UCHAIWEDNESDAY7.30 PM TO 9

[ihasafandom]

Gwen: I think the thing with Vriska was just as pitch and Eridan kind of lowkey hoped that Feferi would be pissed off at Vriska for stealing her kismesis and he could be the victim of Vriska's manipul8ions and Feferi would flip flushed as a result

Gwen: (but mostly this was justification for continuing it after he'd realized it had started)

ihasa: (which, I honestly thing the huss ain't great at depicting. it was even less interesting on the vriska/kanaya front imo)

Gwen: FR

Gwen: next up on ships to fix: Vriska-Kanaya

ihasa: also? give us some canon examples of ashen workning?

ihasa: yes

Gwen: truth

ihasa: poor sad neglected ash

ihasa: with a bit more to dig our teeth into their might be more ash fic in the fandom

Gwen: so OK

Gwen: the MAIN problem with Vriska-Kanaya is

Gwen: we are TOLD that Kanaya is too flushed for Vriska to be an effective moirail to her but they're still in a moirallegiance on purpose they both know about but Kanaya is pining

Gwen: provide effective consequences or threats to Vriska whatsoever, to make Vriska modify her behavior and be a better person; meanwhile Vriska literally has no clue that Kanaya is her moirail

Gwen: this is, uh, terrible

Gwen: improvement: Kanaya is Vriska's court-ordered probation officer, /TH3 COURT is terezi

ihasa: it is Kinda interesting that Kanaya is the one trying to make it work. she obviously thinks that vriska needs papped (and oh gosh does that girl need to be thrown in a pile), even if she's terrible for the job. but we just don't get much pale action at all

ihasa: and it certainly does not curb vriska one bit

ihasa: I can't tell if that dynamic would be cahoots, ashen, or some kind of semi-pale threesome

ihasa: which is kinda great, especially if that confusion was made explicit

Gwen: that is Terezi hooked Kanaya and Vriska up pale.

Gwen: vriskas perspective: UGH if it will get you off my BACK about the whole murdering our friends thing then FINE

Gwen: terezis perspective: There is no way I can handle Vriska without stabbing her but Kanaya is reputedly excellent in the conciliatory quadrants and says she wants to try her hand at moirallegiance

Gwen: kanayas perspective: I have sworn off the ashen quadrant. for good. Terezi says she has the perfect match for me in pale. Oh shit it is EXTREMELY clear from this conversation that they need an auspistice. ...Addiction is a powerful thing.

ihasa: yes, that would be much better

ihasa: also? entirely possible that they might end up stably grey

ihasa: I can definitely see that

ihasa: and it would be the BEST if it was vriska who actually made the first grey move

Gwen: then Terezi successfully avoids interacting with Vriska for quite some time and Kanaya is like

ihasa: butterfly_pigeon meme: butterfly is labeled "repeatedly intervening between Vriska and Tavros"

ihasa: is this a moirallegiance?

ihasa: lol

that might work too

Gwen: Yeah and then Terezi and Vriska get right back at it soon after

Gwen: and Kanaya is like Surely Trying To Mediate Between One Troll And The World Is The Very Definition Of Moirallegiance

Gwen: and Eridan is like Yeah or youre just an ashen slut

ihasa: I can just imagine terezi, vriska, and kanaya as the snarky trio that talks over and annoys eachother and slaps eachother upside the head every now and then. my gosh. I think this is the first ship dynamic with vriska that I have actually LIKED!

ihasa: amazed

ihasa: definitely it is a more domestic ship than vriska, kanaya and tavros would be. that one's cooking with fire

ihasa: but if those two WERE to be ashen leaves in the same quadrant, one WOULD DEFINITELY want someone experienced and overactive in the auspistice role

ihasa: and kanaya would then have a passionate and epic romance on her grid

Gwen: Terezi: Why is the court-ordered probation officer intervening between the court and the criminal

Gwen: Kanaya: Objection. Is a moirail not an advocate as much as a restraining influence?

Gwen: Terezi: An advocate for the defense... an intriguing concept. Her Honorable Tyranny refrains from devouring the proposer of such an outrageous legal theory, out of curiosity.

Gwen: Kanaya: ...Thank you. I think

Gwen: Vriska: Oh look, more meddling from Fussyfangs! How unexpected!

Gwen: Karkat to Nepeta: Is this... This looks like...

Gwen: Nepeta: Shut up and make us another batch of popcorn

ihasa: yes good

Gwen: they make it through their whole session this way

Gwen: Rose brings it up in conversation over dinner their first night on the meteor

ihasa: OH MY GOSH THAT IS AMAZING! that they would need a human to tell them what's up for them to realize, and that it would come up immediately after in-person introduction

Gwen: Rose: I must say, I understand the ashen quadrant so much better after seeing the interactions of such a successful example today. ...I hope my voyeurism isn't crossing any cultural boundaries, of course.

ihasa: yes gooood

Gwen: Karkat, while Kanaya, Vriska, and Terezi are all choking: WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THE TEREZI-KANAYA-VRISKA AUSPISTICE

ihasa: it's working too well to risk touching it

Gwen: Nepeta: I think it's cute

ihasa: I can see a lot of fashion-related dates in their future. They have such.... disaparate approaches

Gwen: the T-K-V conversation immediately devolves into Terezi and Vriska blaming each other for giving Rose the wrong idea about Kanaya's and Vriska's moirallegiance, while Kanaya mediates

ihasa: lol

ihasa: I was imagining more shocked/horrified silence as they each realize that that's exactly what's going on

Gwen: that was what the choking was for

ihasa: and then they still proclaim it a moirallegiance? that's hilarious

Gwen: are there any three characters in Homestuck who would move so quickly from "horrified realization" to "total denial" if saving face in front of each other and indeed in front of Rose is at stake?

Gwen: actually no i take everything back, edit it slightly, and then lay it back onto the table

Gwen: Rose isn't the one to make everything awkward by announcing how helpful observing the TKV auspistice has been in understanding the ashen quadrant

Gwen: Dave is

ihasa: YES

ihasa: YES HE IS

Gwen: Rose for some reason thinks understanding troll quadrants is important to their continued survival getting along with everyone on the meteor

Gwen: Dave thinks it's all extravagant bullshit that must under no circumstances be indulged, but... he lost a bet, and so

ihasa: I WAS GONNA SAY THAT BUT I THOUGHT THAT YOU MIGHT BE GOING FOR THE STEREOTYPICAL FANON ROSE AND DID NOT WANT TO INTERRUPT

ihasa: also dave pays a lot more attention than he lets on

Gwen: for sure

ihasa: gotta actually understand the stuff to be able to ironically fail to understand the stuff properly

Gwen: he is explicitly resistant in canon to learning about troll quadrants even though he immediately deduces the number of them

ihasa: well i mean that's just english

Gwen: chiding John for not making the name connection even as he insists that he refuses to think about them at all

Gwen: so yeah Dave susses out that TZ is in an ashen relationship with the goth vampire troll and the obnoxious pirate spider troll that John's into

Gwen: probably in the middle of Karkat rhapsodizing about how auspistice is the most complicated of romances and definitely not one that humans would understand with their weak human thinkpans

ihasa: definitely

Gwen: and Dave's like nah it's easy if you got a good example like Terezi and Rose's girlfriend and John's girlfriend here

Gwen: the movie that caused you to start ranting because I said I didn't get it just sucked

Gwen: and TKV flip out at the same time as Karkat does

Gwen: as if they weren't playing ashen footsie through the entire movie

Gwen: (Kanaya sat in the middle. Terezi and Vriska tried to kick each other repeatedly. Kanaya periodically stomped on both their feet at once to make them subside, for a while.)

ihasa: hee

Gwen: and I don't think any of this would get in the way of the dramatic confrontations and conflicts later, either

ihasa: oh for sure

Gwen: when Feferi doesn't need Eridan's orphaning abilities, she can finally drop this charade of a pitch romance that he's obviously not feeling either

Gwen: putting up with him and his emotions and his stupid three-dimensional-chess pitchflirting tactics hasn't kindled the pitch fires of rage in her for a long time... just exhaustion

Gwen: with Sollux, sometimes he means a couple things at once, but he doesn't hide what he feels and make things confusing!

Gwen: Terezi's worried for a long time that Vriska was too much for any one troll to handle, and Kanaya mistakenly thinking that Terezi needed handling at the same time was bound to end up in disaster. It's a shame that Vriska has gone so comprehensively rogue, but now she has to be stopped for good, and Kanaya's in no state to do it.

ihasa: also I see your stable middle leaf there, with kanaya in the middle. but also? kanaya deserves being meddled with too, and imo the most fun thing about a more domestic ash romance is that it can roll:smile: kanaya and terezi get in an argument and vriska pretends like she's actually the mature troll of the trio, look how you two are squabbling, and they break it off to target her for a bit. vriska and kanaya start going at it and terezi puts them both on trial for disrupting the peace.

ihasa: What I'm saying is that ashen footsie goes the same no matter who's in the middle:smile:

ihasa: aw, poor terezi there

[hareofhrair]

Myths and Truths about Auspisticism: Secrets of the Most Mysterious Quadrant

rep=ostin this fr=om flarping fer easier linking

Here's that ashr=om article i been pr=omisin. I sh=ould pr=obably wait an n=ot p=ost this at damn midnight when n=o =ones =on, but ta hell with it im tired an this is l=ong as fuck. enj=oy, im g=onna g=o dig a h=ole an die in it. quirk dr=opped fer readability Myths and Truths about Auspisticism: Secrets of the Most Mysterious Quadrant Auspisticism is probably my favorite quadrant, which makes it real frustrating to see people fumbling with it so much, when they aren't ignoring it completely. So here's a few common misconceptions about the ashen quadrant to help you better approach this unique and fascinating realtionship in the future. Before I start, a definition for those of you who might not be completely sure what Auspisticism even is. Auspisticism, or ashen romance, is a romantic relationship between three trolls in which one troll, the Auspistice, mediates between the other two. In its most widely recognized form, two of the trolls have potentially caliginous feelings for each other which cannot be realized. This may be because one or both of them is already in committed pitch relationships, or because there's a dangerous power imbalance, or because they must cooperate in a way that precludes a rivalry, or one of many other reasons. The third troll, the Auspistice, cares for both potential rivals deeply and mediates to help them coexist without falling into pitch territory. This is far from the only form ashrom can take, but I'll go more into that later. For now, let's dig into some Myths and Truths about Auspisticism!

Myth: Auspisticism is the least important quadrant/not a romance This one seem familiar from the Moirallegiance article? It should. It's the same brand of bullshit. Unfortunately, while missing the inherent romance of Moirallegiance is generally seen mostly from aliens, even trolls seem to get confused about the ashen quadrant. But devaluing this quadrant is not just a shitty thing to do, it's dangerous to the stability of troll society as a whole. Truth: They're quadrants. QUAD-rants. Four equal parts people. I've said this before, I'll say it again. All four quadrants are equally important, and equally romantic. Troll society would not be here without the conciliatory half of the romance grid. We can't function as a society without them. So give them the respect they deserve! If we're going to say one quadrant is more important than another, Auspisticism might be the most important quadrant! A corner stone on which our civilization is built. Ashrom is critical to facilitating cooperation between the naturally aggressive and largely solitary members of our species. Without Auspisticism, the troll race would be awash in pitch infidelity and incapable of actually getting anything done. Think about how much gets ruined by spiteful rivals and trolls deciding to solve their problems by tearing each other's throats out right now. Now imagine there was no one even attempting to keep every aggressive interaction from turning pitch, and throw a healthy dose of scorned Kismesis on top of that. Doesn't seem like a fun time, does it? Myth: The Auspistice is not romantically involved with the auspisticized parties This one should also seem familiar from the Moirallegiance article, and it's also one that affects aliens trying to wrap their feeble little minds around the quadrant system the most. It also affects trolls to all our detriment, unfortunately. But where the aliens seem to get tripped up is a relatively straightforward cultural misunderstanding. The only socially validated form of romance in their societies is serial monogamy. On the few occasions non-monogamy crops up, it's generally regarded as backwards, sexist, or sexually deviant. Now, they seem to be able to process our non-monogamous (polyamorous) relationship standard as long as we're calling each relationship by a different name. But they draw a line at three trolls being in love with one another in the same quadrant at the same time. That's where their feeble little imaginations fail. "Three trolls in hate-love together?" they think. "Impossible. It's just an assisted bad breakup, like when my bestie helped me get my record collection back from my ex." Or, if they're especially open minded: "It must just be that the two in dispute are in love, and the third is just a marriage counselor. Those silly trolls just got confused about their own culture! Gee, they'll just call anything romance, won't they?" Humans already have a damn hard time understanding pitch. Add the additional layer of complication to a hate-based relationship, and the human ability to comprehend falls apart completely. Where trolls get stuck, however, is rather more of a problem. Troll dismissal of the romantic involvement of the top leaf generally stems from a broader dismissal of the importance of the Auspistice themselves, and of the importance of their role in society. There's a tendency to regard Auspisticism, not at as a relationship, but as a service- Inherently impersonal and temporary. This is reflected in the rise of shady ash-for-cash arrangements and con-artists calling themselves "professional" Auspistices. Unsurprisingly to absolutely everyone but the idiots who fall for these scams, the victims rarely get the outcome they were hoping for, because being an Auspistice requires both an intimate personal knowledge of and intense specific affection for your ashmates. If you are a "professional Auspistice" who genuinely wants to help folks as an impersonal, objective mediator, you are not an Auspistice. You've fallen into the same alien misconception above of de-romanticizing the role of Auspistice from a relationship partner into a marriage counselor. Your goals are admirable, but the misconceptions you're supporting are directly harmful. Change the title on your business cards and move on. Truth: Auspisticism is a romantic relationship and all the trolls involved are in a romantic relationship together. They are together, in one of the troll romantic quadrants, which designate romantic relationships, together. They are in a relationship, which is by its quadranted nature, romantic. It's a romantic relationship. Auspistices are absolutely romantically involved with their ashmates. They may kiss, cuddle, cohabitate, or anything else you'd expect from a romantic relationship, depending on what's personally comfortable for them. Being an effective Auspistice requires knowing your partners and their situation in deep detail, and requires a similar depth of care and concern for their personal wellbeing. If you jump into mediating a relationship because you're worried about how it will affect the surrounding social group but you aren't concerned about how the relationship or the loss of that relationship will affect the trolls involved, you are very unlikely to end up with the outcome you hoped for. A stable ashrom can be an incredibly fulfilling life long relationship, and if you really think that can happen while one of the participants is romantically detached, then you're fooling yourself. Or, more likely, you've for the common misconception which causes the most misunderstandings about the ashen quadrant. Myth: Auspisticism is temporary This is a really frustratingly common one. I blame the propaganda fleet. Stable ashen relationships tend to go unrepresented, or are left as subtext. But crisis Auspisticism is dramatic and exciting and allows quick relationship turn over for torrid soaps or an easy return to the status quo for sitcoms. It's also related to the "Treating Auspisticism as a Service rather than a Relationship" problem I mentioned earlier. But I don't think one caused the other so much as they both generate and reinforce one another like an ouroboros of bad opinions. Truth: Auspisticism can and often is a stable, committed relationship. Mediation can rarely be successfully resolved in a single encounter, no matter what the movies tell you. It requires care, cooperation, compromise, and most importantly consistency. There's no shortcut to a successful ashrom. Which is why when people do make it work it tends to be one of the most stable quadrants you can have. When you've worked that hard to develop that level of understanding, you don't just let that go, and you've usually built up the kind of communication skills necessary to make it last. There are temporary ashroms (or crisis ashroms) when a problem arises that threatens one or both of the trolls in dispute or the social structure at large. But they are the exception, not the rule. And even then, the Auspistice tends to be a close mutual friend or even an overlapping quadrant for the trolls in dispute, not a complete stranger. Someone who knows the other two well and cares about them enough to enter this relationship with them. The most stable ashen trio I ever met was a bronze Auspistice mediating between his matesprit and his moirail who had initially wanted to throw spades at one another but didn't want to risk their overlapping quadmate becoming a point of contention or possessiveness and so sought ashen intervention, which it turned out the bronze himself was happy to provide. I've never in my life met three trolls that knew each other that well. They'd been together for sweeps, and still are so far as I know. Myth: Only the Auspistice is ashen, the other two are really pitch / Auspisticism is just a modifier for a pitch relationship Fundamentally incorrect and probably a sign that you've never been in a real ashen romance. This one is probably an extension of the "Treating Auspisticism like a Service" and "Thinking All Auspisticism is Temporary" problems, dangling off that ouroboros of bad opinions like a mutant frog leg. This ashen erasure gets targeted at stable ashen trios most often in the form of well-intentioned or dismissive microaggressions that treats stable Auspisticism as impossible or at least highly unlikely and probably just masquerading some other kind of relationship. At its least dangerous end, it's just assholes insisting you should "stop denying your real pitch feelings." On the more sinister side of the scale, it can be used to imply that the relationship is actually a cover for pitch infidelity, or a façade hiding a deviant, quad-smearing threesome. This can, and has, cost people their relationships and their lives. Truth: Ashen feelings are their own thing dudes. While the initial dispute may be pitch shaded, the lower leaves are not in a pitch quadrant . That's kind of the whole point. And in a stable ashen relationship, those initial feelings develop with mediation into a feeling as unique to the ashen quadrant as flushed, pale, and pitch feelings are unique to their quadrants. That's why they're separate quadrants. You wouldn't imply that all pale affection is just watered down red, or that only the troll doing the pacifying in a moirallegiance feels pale, so why would you expect ashen to work that way? The point of mediation is to help the trolls in dispute find common ground and solutions to the personal problems pushing towards pitch. Those problems can rarely be solved completely, which is why stable ashrom is a thing. As the trolls in dispute move towards greater understanding and consideration of one another, the harsh edge of pitch feeling wears away and reveals a softer animosity. The feeling of ashrom, with its complex mix of hate, competitiveness, empathy, and concern, is difficult to describe to someone who hasn't felt it. You still hate the dumb shit they do. But now you really understand why they do it, and you know they understand you too. They're a nookwhiff, but they're a nookwhiff you can rely on unconditionally and open up to in a way you can to almost no one else. The magic and romance of an ashrom that works should never be downplayed. And while it does happen sometimes that an idiot enters a quadrant with someone hoping they can "upgrade" to the quadrant they actually want, this doesn't mean you should invalidate a person's actual relationship by assuming they must actually be feeling something else. If you suspect someone is suppressing their real feelings, for fucks sake don't comment on it. If the person is a friend, they'll come to you when they want advice. Butting in is not going to help. If they're not your friend, it's none of your damn business. And if you're one of those assholes who assume anyone in a stable ashrom must only be doing it for the kinky sex? Fuck you. Myth: Needing an Auspistice is a sign of personal failure Oh look, it's another gross frog leg on the ouroboros of bad opinions. You see this occasionally in moirallegiance as well, though far less often, as our society tends to frame trolls (or at least highbloods) as being violently out of control by nature. But a troll not able to manage her own relationships? Now that's shameful. Or so some people would insist. Those people would be dead wrong, and furthermore deserving of a swift kick in the gills. Needless to say, this misconception obviously derives, again, from treating Auspisticism like a non-romantic single service band-aid for bad relationships. After all, if Auspisticism only exists to break up badly matched pitch couples, why else would you need one? Obviously, you only want an Auspistice to come save you because you fucked your relationship up, put your social circle in danger, and now you're too pathetic to even clean up your own mess. That's what Auspistices are, right? Just a relationship maid service, on call any time to tidy up after emotional slobs. Do you even think about what you're implying when you spew this hoofbeast shit? Have you ever critically examined a single thought in your recklessly elongated and utterly pointless life? Try mulling it over for half a minute next time instead of just letting your shit opinions spill out of your slack drooling mouth like the world's worst gatcha machine where the little plastic eggs contain nothing but regurgitated stereotypes and cat piss. Truth: Seeking ashen intervention for a troubled relationship is the responsible choice If you think a relationship or potential relationship has become a danger to you or your social group, please seek out an Auspistice, and don't let some mouth breather who couldn't pull his nugbone out of his waste chute long enough to fill a load gaper tell you that it's not the right thing to do. Needing mediation isn't a failure, it's practically an inevitability. Not every case will turn into a stable ashrom, but eventually you are going to run into a situation where things between you and another troll are escalating to aggression and you know you can't or shouldn't allow it to happen. We are an angry, asocial people and sooner or later you're going to be drawn into a confrontation that can't be solved by the good old Abjure or Abscond response. Maybe you work together and can't just avoid them. Maybe you're worried a physical confrontation would end with one or both of you dead. There's any number of reasons to seek intervention, and none of them reflect on your ability to manage yourself or your relationships. Additionally, some people seek ashen relationships just because they want to be in an ashen relationship! Not everyone looking for Auspisticism is in a crisis! Myth: Jades are naturally inclined to be mediators I really shouldn’t have to tell y'all that anything that starts with a blanket statement about a whole caste is probably hokum. But here we are. Jades are widely stereotyped as being gentle, sexless caretakers who just want to be everyone's lusus. Thrown in a dash of ~exoticism~ and they're ideal for the propaganda fleet's latest ash romance. You'd think they would get put in the palerom box as well, but their ambiguous location on the hemospectrum is too big a threat to the fleet's strict "docile lowblood paps berserker highblood" brief. I also wonder if the similarity between the term Auspistice and the term Auxilliatrix (the job title of a Jade engaged in tending the mothergrub) might have contributed to the widespread popularity of this myth. Truth: Jades are people you guys. Yeah, shock and surprise, the propaganda fleet's filmography is not an accurate representation of how relationships shake out in the real world and jadebloods actually come in more than one personality. Turns out they are actually fully developed intelligent trolls with their own goals, desires, and preferences. Who'd have thunk. So you, that troll on tindr cold messaging every jade to ask them to be your Auspistice – guess what? You're being a distended hemmeroidal wastechute. Please take a moment to remember that the trolls you are messaging are actually people and not two dimensional stereotypes. Myth: A 'Floating Leaf' Auspistice is just a Moirail Yeah, Floating Leaf types are common enough to get their own stupid myth. Neat, huh? Don't know what a floating leaf is? Skip this and come back. I have descriptions of different ashrom configurations at the end of the article. Anyway, the assumption is that because both moirallegiance and floating leaf auspisticism are quadranted relationships in which one troll is assumed to 'manage' the other, they are exactly the same thing. This demonstrates a lack of understanding both of Moirallegiance and of Auspisticism. You can refer to my earlier article on Moirallegiance along with this one if necessary. Truth: Ashrom isn't Palerom and this Isn't News. name of my upcoming album look for it The similarities are entirely superficial. A moirail is concerned with the totality of their partner's life and with making their partner as stable and well-adjusted as possible. They have a mutual agreement to help one another keep their shit together as much as they're able. An Auspistice is concerned with the rest of your life only as much as it impacts the specific relationship they are mediating for you, and is not there to clean up your messes or fix your varied and sundry emotional problems. If you want a feelings jam, go talk to your pale. If you want to talk about how you think your irritation with your ashmate's nail chewing habit stems from your nascent germaphobia and can we maybe work out a system for not shaking hands or touching shared objects until he gets that under control- then you can talk to your Auspistice. And a floating leaf Auspistice is just a regular Auspistice dedicated to only one particular troll. You're probably not going to get any fluffy pale bath-sharing hair-combing scenes. You might get your floating leaf Auspistice throwing a bar of soap at you because your stink is driving half the crew insane and they can't hold them off forever! Pull your shit together you walking disaster! Myth: Ashen trios don't have sex/Ashen trios exist for kinky sex Another callback to the moirail article. Because pe=ople A)assume because sex isn't required for this quad it must never happen. B) assume because it's not inherently sexual it isn't romantic and because it's not romantic it can't be sexual. C) forget that people are people and randy little bastards sometimes and if we already have a deep romantic connection many of us don't see any issue with including physical intimacy as well. On the other side of the backslash, there's the subset of people who don't think Auspisticism is a 'thing' at all and are convinced it's just a cover for a lot of wild group makeouts. These people, as covered earlier, need someone to shove a fist down their throat and retrieve their nugbones from their digestion hoses. Truth: Ashen trios can choose to include physical intimacy in their relationship or not according to the comfort of the individuals involved. There's nothing physically stopping them from having sex, so you can bet yer butt someone is going to do it. In this case like every third ashrom you run into. Physical intimacy, when agreed to without coercion by all participants, can be an excellent tool for burning off stress, reducing pitch tensions, and encouraging emotional connection, openness, and vulnerability. Stuffedfabricsquare talk is a thing my friends, and Moirails and Auspistices have been making use of it since time immemorial. That said, sex is not a requirement or an expectation for an ashrom. You should enter ashrom (and any romance, in my opinion) with the expectation that sex is not and may never be on the table. If it's something you prioritize, have a frank discussion about it early on so you can be sure your ashmates are similarly inclined. If they aren't, you have zero right to push the issue, and may want to seek other partners. However, if you're shopping ashmates just looking for threesomes, stop being gross and go post a hook up invitation on Craigslist like everyone else. This is not how you build a relationship. If you've read this far into the article and still believe Auspisticism is just an elaborate, centuries old species wide cover up for a lot of quad smearing deviants having gross sex- Stop! Stop! If you shove your head any further up your ass you're going to be chewing on your own neck! You're in serious danger of turning yourself completely inside out like a gory Mobius strip out of M.C. Escher's worst wet dreams. There's still time to turn back! You may need professional help and a backhoe to extricate your skull from your pelvic bone at this point, but it's better than the alternative, which is to say, spending the rest of your life continuing to defecate through your mouth. Myth: Ashen trios don't date, and those that do are all'horned-hoofbeast hunters' This stems from the over saturation of crisis ashrom in media. The popular misconception is that ashrom just *happens* out of the blue. Your perfect Auspistice will come charging in on a white horse and sweep you and your ashmate off into whirlwind passionate mediation and that'll be it. Or you'll spot that perfect couple just before they go for each other's throats and dramatically throw yourself between them and they'll be so dumbstruck by your beauty that they'll instantly forget their fight in order to lavish you in kisses and praise. This fantasy, however enjoyable, discourages people from seeking out Auspisticism on their own or attempting to learn and gain experience before committing to a serious, long term mediation. But- there is also an unfortunate subset of people, mostly pitch couples, who make joint accounts on ash dating sites looking for 'an openminded Auspistice to spice up an existing relationship.' These people are idiot assholes who don't understand the purpose of Auspisticism, their rivalry is fizzling out, and they think a threesome with a hot stranger will fix everything. Make it an Auspistice (who just *lives* to clean up other peoples emotional messes, remember?) and kill two fluttercritters with one rock. This will never, ever end well. Do not trust horned-hoofbeast hunters. Truth: Auspisticism doesn't happen on its own and no one is born a perfect Auspistice. You will, in all likelihood, go through several "failed" ashroms before you find a stable one. And it may still not be your last. Being a good Auspistice or a good ashmate takes practice, communication skills, and a willingness to learn. You will have to put effort into learning communication techniques, and into learning about your ashmates when you have them. And when you start looking for ashmates, you aren’t going to want to jump directly into quads with the first people you encounter. So, you gotta date. Just like any other quad. You'll meet people, go out with them, get to know them, and decide if there's a spark. You'll have bad experiences and good ones and eventually you'll actually start to kind of have a grasp on how this shit works. Once you start to know who you are and what you want in a relationship and understand your own flaws and strengths, you can really start to build successful relationships and clear the early hurdles and pitfalls inherent in starting a new quadrant. But seriously steer clear of the horned-hoofbeast hunters. They may seem like a really nice couple and a great chance to test out your mediation skills on an 'easy' established couple. It won't. Even if you're alright with the sex, it's going to be awkward and bad, because their relationship is failing. And when it does finally crash and burn they will absolutely drag you down with them. AVOID AT ALL COSTS. Myth: Auspisticism only comes in one form This is less a myth than a chance for me to talk about the different configurations Auspisticism can take, some of which may surprise you. The media tends to only cover crisis ashrom and, very occasionally, a standard take on stable ashrom. But this is far from the only way Auspisticism can develop. Truth: Auspisticism is an incredibly flexible quadrant that can be represented in many ways I've given all the different dynamics and styles very silly names for ease of distinguishing them in the course of this article, but they aren't widely known as this, or as anything but just Auspisticism or ashrom. These aren't new quadrants or molds you should try to fit into. Just different relationships I've observed to fall under the Ashen label and which don't always match the expected image. The idea is just to challenge your perception of what ashrom "should" look like so that you're more open to finding what works for you and your partners rather than trying to fit into prescribed roles and dynamics that may not work for everyone in all situations. First, the standards. The most commonly known configuration for Auspisticism is Crisis Ashrom, as I've talked about before. We've all seen the movie. Two trolls come suddenly to lethal violence at a critical moment, and just when it seems all is lost, a beautiful stranger (usually a jade) intervenes to save them both. Grossly simplified and usually casteist, this is crisis ashrom in its most prolific form. Awful as it may be in cinema, crisis Auspisticism is a critical part of keeping troll society functioning. The Auspistice is generally a close friend and sometimes shares a quadrant with one or more of the trolls in dispute. Crisis ashrom may develop as a result to the Auspistice recognizing pitch infidelity about to take place, pitch flirtations between trolls with dangerous existing power dynamics, or between trolls for whom a relationship or confrontation would throw their other relationships into chaos, or because an existing relationship in any quadrant has down-spiraled into abuse. Yes, Auspisticism, especially crisis Auspisticism, can arise from problems in any quadrant, not just pitch. The only requirement is that the trolls in dispute can't be allowed to begin or continue their current romantic trajectory. An abusive matespritship can be just as disastrous for the social group as an abusive kismeship. And a troll making flush overtures at his kismesis's crush could easily escalate to lethal violence. Emergency mediation for the sake of the safety of the trolls in dispute and the social group at large is more important than quadrant barriers. Crisis ashrom rarely leads to stable Auspisticism, but it has been known to happen. The Stable Clover is the second most well-known form. A dedicated Auspistice mediates full time between two steady ashmates. You see this configuration most often among Fleet trolls or sea-faring landdwellers, folks who are stuck with the same group of people in a fairly confined area for long stretches of time. When you put a bunch of trolls in a confined space, violent conflict is inevitable. But the realities of living and working in those situations makes cooperation a necessity. Still, despite your best efforts, there will be those trolls you just can't stand, or who you want to compete with so bad it makes your teeth hurt, even though doing so would endanger your entire crew. You can't fight em and you can't leave. There's nowhere to go. This is fertile ground for a stable ashrom. Some of the best teams in the Fleet are ashmates in stable configurations, because they've put in the time and effort to understand one another for the sake of improving their cooperation. Now, for some of the different variations which you occasionally see. One of the neglected aspects of Auspisticism is that it allows trolls who otherwise couldn't be in a relationship to still be romantic with one another. What I call a Lucky Clover is an Auspisticism where two or more of the trolls involved wanted initially to pursue a different quadrant but couldn't for reasons beyond their control. Severe power imbalances or other, conflicting relationships or simple social interference. A lot of things can get in the way of a relationship other than just violence. If they can successfully transition those feelings to ashen (which isn't always possible and can sometimes lead to remorse and resentment) they can remain a committed part of one another's lives with the added benefit of someone to help minimize whatever issue originally forestalled the relationship. For example, a Fleet admiral falls pitch for a much lower ranking lowblooded troll. Their rivalry isn't physical and the lowblood is their undisputed equal in whatever their preferred field of competition is, but there is still a dangerous power imbalance. The Admiral has both significant social power over their prospective mate and significant physical power. This could not ever be a healthy pitchrom, no matter how much the two enjoy competing with one another. But an Auspistice steps in, a mutual friend from another branch of the Fleet, who is thus neither subordinate to the Admiral or directly superior to the lowblood. She helps them diffuse the pitch tension and reach an ashen understanding. They can now compete safely under her mediation, enjoying a milder rivalry and each other's company without worrying that either is being pressured into anything they don't want by the uneven social situation. Black Leaf Auspisticism is a fun, fairly common one. There's a popular image of an Auspistice being a benevolent caretaker type, diplomatic and levelheaded. But an Auspistice can have any personality and mediation styles are as unique as the trolls that use them. In Black Leaf Auspistism, the Auspistice is so unbearable that the two trolls in dispute bond over hating their Auspistice more than they hate each other. With a third troll always around to keep one another in check, this can be great for trolls with a high pitch drive, who can channel their competitive aggression into their ashmates without worrying about going too far. These can be very stable when the Auspistice is on board and ensuring adequate communication about boundaries. If the Auspistice isn't on board, they'll probably end up dead. But the bonding experience may still have been enough to settle the disputed couple, so, success? Sometimes you get a Folded Leaf, wherin what initially seemed to be a standard Auspisticism shifts into two trolls essentially mediating between the third troll and the third troll's own issues. During the course of mediation, while trying to find the source of the initial conflict, it's uncovered that the issue wasn't actually a dispute between the two trolls, but one of the trolls lashing out due to an internal stressor aggravated by the other troll. The dynamic shifts not to mediating between the two, but trying to work the afflicted troll through their personal issues, which is not a place Auspisticism excels. Going folded leaf is usually a precursor to collapse of the relationship. They're rarely stable because of the difficulties of keeping such a thing healthy. An Auspistice is not a moirail, and not there to help you pull your life together. But still, you do occasionally see it, generally in situations where the target troll is so valuable or so volatile that to let them fall apart would endanger the group, and for one reason or another there's no viable moirallegiance option, or their existing moirail simply isn't capable of supporting them alone. It goes without saying that a troll that needs two steady Auspistices and a moirail just to keep from imploding is probably kind of a disaster. The two Auspistices are as much for each other as they are for the target, taking some of the burden of propping the target troll up and giving one another a convenient way to vent and commiserate. Obviously, the two mediators must care deeply about the target troll to commit to such a stressful arrangement, but that's rarely enough to keep the relationship healthy. One of the more common neglected configurations is the Floating Top Leaf. Sometimes you get a troll who, while not violently aggressive enough to warrant a moirail, just rubs people the wrong way. Maybe they're bad about sounding like they're pitch flirting even though they don't mean it. Maybe they're crazy skilled at something and attract a lot of potential rivals. Maybe they're just an annoying little fuck and everyone wants to kill them within minutes of meeting them. Maybe they just don't want a moirail for whatever reason, or encountered someone they felt ashen for first, or their actual moirail can't accompany them into the situations where they encounter the most conflict. For whatever reason, they end up with an Auspistice and no third ashmate. The "floating leaf" accompanies them to diffuse any potentially dangerous encounters before they can escalate. This requires a very skilled Auspistice and a lot of trust between them and their ashmate, since the Auspistice will often be mediating with very little information about the other troll. These often settle into stable clover configurations eventually, but some people find they're happy as they are. Loose Leaf Auspisticism is an interesting configuration in which there is no set mediator and the three ashen trolls mediate between one another as needed. These tend to extremes. They're either very unstable or rock solid with little inbetween. A Four Leaf Clover, contrary to the name, is an ashen configuration with any number of trolls beyond the standard three. These tend to develop when an already ashen couple c=omes into conflict with another and the Auspistices have to cooperate to defuse the situation. They aren't at all common, especially stable, but they happen. I once heard of a four leaf headed by a particularly enthusiastic and talented Auspistice which expanded to include the entire crew of a small ship. That girl was the Borg of ashrom, I'm telling you. But you can bet that ship ran smooth as lusus butter. Because of the additional people, four leaf configurations can also have a wide variety of set ups and dynamics that are too nuanced and varied to get into here. Suffice to say, the more people you add, the more unique any relationship becomes in how it functions. So if you're the next to get absorbed by the Auspisticism Borg, try not to go into it with too many preconceptions. So there you have it. A very short, simplified primer on what to expect with ashrom. I could have gone way more in depth, but this is approaching 6,000 words and it's 12:30am and i worked on this for my entire day off, so I'm going to call that good enough for government work. If you have any comments, suggestions, or questions, post them down below and I'll be happy to answer. Have a specific question or subject you'd like me to ramble way too long about? Let me know and I'll talk yer damn auricular sponge off. Thanks fer listenin and happy mediating! - Shafan Nishal

[cloudbattrolls]

For those not in the know: The old clade consisted of Matari, Cennef, Gliese, and their assorted ex quads. Matari and Cennef were matesprits, and Gliese and Matari were in an ashrom that also involved Gliese’s kismesis, and Gliese’s kismesis was also Cennef’s moirail. There was also Gliese’s moirail.

There was also Matari’s ex-moirail, who was friendly with the others but not quadded to anyone in there but Matari (he had a matesprit but she also wasn’t quadded to any of them). A.k.a a bunch of lowbloods, Gliese’s moirail who was green + Gliese. Technically Gliese’s moirail’s matesprit was also in there, but I killed him off so he is now just a pissed limeblood ghost haunting Tetrao’s headquarters in Civitrecce.

[bluhbluhhugefan-blog]

fandom secret: I only ship auspiticeships with red overtones

Davec3<Terezi>8oKarkat: Dave and Karkat bicker viciously, Terezi keeps the acrimony at a slow boil until she defuses the whole situation by distracting them into tender, loving pitysex.

Solluxc3<Feferi>8oEridan: Sollux's and Eridan's constant bickering wears down Feferi's affection until, in a thoroughly dysfunctional way, she suddenly begins auspiticizing and starts fucking with their dynamic, driving them to flip quadrants between ashen and flushed, and manipulating their attraction to her to make them dance/fuck for her viewing pleasure (and occasional direct participation).

... is that misogynistic? I can't tell. OOPS I SHIP IT ANYWAY

[hareofhrair]

since you're some Type of ashen experT, i ThoughT i'd ask you: i Tend To easily develop caliJinous crushes. all my friends and many acquainTences know This. The problem is ThaT every Time i've had someone, sTranJer or friend, sTep in To auspisTicize, i end up falling in haTe wiTh Them Too. i know ashen is imporTanT, i JusT don'T know how To make iT work. i'm sTaying ouT of serious piTch relaTionships for This and oTher reasons for The Time being buT maybe you can Tell me how To fix This

hmm, that is a t=ough =one

well, first it’s imp=ortant ta be certain yer n=ot misinterpretin yer =own feelinsare ya sure what yer feelin is actually caligin=ous, =or c=ould ya be mistakin ashen feelins, =or even just n=on r=omantic dislike, fer caligin=ous?

pitch feelins aint just aggressi=on =or anger

generally speakin, its dislike intrinsically linked with admirati=on

ya rec=ognize their skill at whatever they’re g=ood at, but it pisses y=ou =off that they, specifically, are s=o g=ood at it

ya feel m=otivated ta push y=ourself harder ta d=o better, specifically s=o ya can be better than this =other pers=on

s=o iffin ya see em really kickin ass at their h=obby an ya g=o “damn, that smug bastard is s=o g=ood! why is that assh=ole s=o g=ood? i g=otta get better than them s=o i can rub their n=ose in it!” its prolly pitch

iffin ya see em kickin ass at their h=obby an ya g=o “fuck that guy an their stupid h=obby, they sh=ould eat a dick” ya prolly just d=on’t like em

ashen feelins =on tha =other hand, is a mixed feelin a dislike, respect, empathy, an c=ompetetiveness

ya admire yer auspistice an yer ashmate, ya want ta better yerself ta impress yer auspistice an =one up yer ashmate, an with g=ood mediati=on, ya als=o understand an empathize with yer ashmate in a way that precludes real hate

there’s still mutual dislike an competitiveness between all three, but it aint tha intense hate a pitch 

n=ow, iffin it really is sincere pitch feelins, or even just intense en=ough dislike ta cause pr=oblems, then gettin a steady ashen might be a s=oluti=on, but that’s made difficult by yer fallin pitch too easy pr=oblem

findin tha right auspistice is difficult an it’s n=ormal ta have ta date ar=ound a bit ta try an find tha right pers=on, specially if yer after an unusual arrangement like a fl=oatin leaf

s=o keep tryin, an be real clear with f=olks ab=out what yer l=ookin f=or, an if ya feel like yer gettin t=oo pitch, talk ta yer auspistice ab=out it

they may be able ta defuse tha situati=on thr=ough =one =on =one mediati=on ta determine where tha crush is c=omin fr=om, then talkin thr=ough th=ose feelins till they slide back t=oward ashen=or, iffin ya cant shake tha rivalry, ya might have ta part ways an keep tryin

tha imp=ortant thing ta understand is that findin tha right pers=on, in any quad, is a j=ourney

each relati=onship ya enter is a valuable experience what gives ya m=ore inf=ormati=on ab=out what yer really l=ookin f=or an m=ore skills ta give tha next relati=onship a better sh=ot

a relati=onship that d=ont w=ork =out aint a failure, and it d=ont make y=ou a failure f=or n=ot bein able ta make it w=ork

it’s just an experience

learn fr=om it an m=ove =on

[solarianradiance]

Black Romance

The Black Quadrant of Troll Romance intrigues me to no end, and makes my thoughts churn like a creative slurry in a bucket, wandering what exactly its like under long term circumstances, the little intricacies of unwritten rules and expectations to be found within this sort of relationship.

How did it even first occur? What in Troll biology cause it to be a such a strong fixture in their social culture?

Perhaps these questions will be answered one day... probably in a way that makes me wish they hadn't and force me to moan like a lil bitch in disappointment.

We can only speculate for now however... which is what im going to do.

In its history, Black Romance likely started as a genuine desire to kill a rival, likely over the feelings of the same Matesprite, but unable to do so, in spite of the genuinely serious trying at mutual murder, only to find they dont mind each other so much, even if they dont like many other aspects about them~

 Even though they try to kill their rival they actually begin to make one another as strong as possible through constant conflict. Like two Knights sharpening their skills in a friendly sparing match. After all, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. Given Troll society, they likely take this notion to heart.

Through this rivalry, their partner is made as strong as possible, so they may live to see each other again another day.

I think, in my opinion, a Black Romance is a relationship born of Hate and Irritation, but evolves into a genuine mutual love and respect.

It starts as Hate, but becomes Love over time.

They may start in opposite directions, but they ultimately end up in the same place.

Any actual pain inflicted upon your rival is to make them dulled and numb to that pain. Makes them ready to deal with it mentally. Their weak traits being absolved or mitigated to some extent, and their strengths expanded and reinforced.

The individuals, sharpen each others knives for their partners to use one another, so that they may also sharpen their skills, ensuring that they are both full prepared for the trials ahead.

A Black Romance usually revolves around the two partners actually trying to hurt and injure one another, both verbally and physically, but not cripple, maim or kill their opponent. Its the two trying to Dominate, but not so thoroughly as they cannot grow as individuals. To remove the blemishes in their techniques, working out the kinks in execution.

Blackroms must have times of bonding and enjoyment, a break from the conflict, to relieve stress... by ♠any♠means♠necessary♠~

This often revolves around the two Haters tending to eachothers wounds, and enjoying the typical Red Romance activities, like dinner and a movie, albeit with a side of snark, super sized. Probably poisoning their partners meal, just enough for them to get an upset stomach and vomit over it all.

Signs of affection take the forms of hand holding, kissing, and small levels of antagonisms such as harmless insults or mild scuffles. One method is manipulation to encourage romantic retaliations, such as stealing clothes, pranking their rival, or even publicly humiliating them in way that will embarrass them but wont destroy their standing or self-esteem.

Anything that gets under their skin without causing permanent harm goes and one must always be on guard and never show signs of weakness or reveal any information to their kismesis, lest they use this against their partner.

One sign of devotion in a relationship is wearing the colors of your partner. In the case of a Matesprit, its their favorite color.

In the case of a Kismesis, its their blood color, or at least a color they may hate.

All relationships are born of trust, but for a Kismesissitude, it is far more important, for they must both understand they are not trying to kill eachother while trying to wound one another. 

A good sign of trust is allowing your Kismesis to wear your clothes with minimal reservation, as they probably wont destroy it outright, but probably will at least modify it, such as dying it another color.

This trust is what is crucial for it to succeed, they have to try and hurt without killing. And due to nature of the relationship, they try to one up each other constantly.

Stabbing someone in the arm may result in them cutting off your hand in response.

This often results in the one of them killing their partner kind of unintentionally while being caught up in a whirlwind of passionate hatred~

Sometimes in bed even.

These bouts of hate filled fighting can spill over into society at large, causing damage and injury to others and their property.

This is why the Auspices were founded~

The importance of the Auspice in a Black Romance is critical, for they serve as the referees, and prevent the relationship from getting out of hand. The loss of one or both individuals can be devastating to the group, especially if they’re of great standing and use to said group. Losing your own members to themselves is embarrassing to say the least.

They at minimum, keep the two individuals focused, preventing them from getting embroiled in their bitter dark chocolate freakishness, and having them stay civil as well as decent in public.

Anyone can be an Auspice, be they a passing stranger, or a concerned friend. But many Auspices are more permanent fixtures, usually one party members current Moirail or Matesprite.

But most often, it is normally a third party that is a mutual friend, that aides in keeping things from getting out of hand. A platonic friend that can help cool the flames and calm the storms, so the ship will not sink.

But Not All Ashenroms Are Platonic~

Some Are Polyamourous Relationships Where The individuals Engage in Mutually Consenting Frivolity In Their Own Various Ways, Be They ♥Flushed♣Or♣Pitched♠ And Can Vary On The Individuals Involved, Creating A Sort Of Menagerie Of Earthly Delights, One Could Compare To A Candy Store With A Wide Variety Of Sugary Treats To Suit Every Taste~~~

Which Makes Such Relationships Quite Appealing To Most People~

However, there are times when someone is Auspicing for their own selfish desires. Attempts may be done by the Auspice to change the nature of the relationship, and pull an individual into another Quadrant.

This is why they are known to be “Meddlers”, and prolonged Ashroms are rare, especially when they dont make it to the bedroom.

When they do make it in, its normally so the two individuals can pail and the 3rd party ensures they dont kill one another and nothing more. Once completed, the relationship may continue or end.

If an Auspice doesn't know what they are doing, they may be unable to keep up and be ineffective, or even make the situation worse.

But in the case that an Auspice does succeed, and pays their cards right, everyone can have a grand old time together, creating a rare instance where more than two individuals has a well balanced Romance with variety.

Black Romance often ends in two rivals breaking apart, either they cant handle the stress or one of them dies, usually at the hands of their partner. Or one of them simply gets bored, and doesn't feel fulfilled like they once were.

A Black Romance is after all, based in enthusiastic engagement, and it is not unusual for the relationship to end in mutual separation.

But there are times when one side loses the romantic aspect, and the hate turns true and genuine, and kills their partner on purpose.

There are even instances of cruel situations where one partner is manipulating their other for dark machinations.

Machinations that are Darker than Black

Abuse does often occur, but a proper Pitched relationship has consent, subtext and subtle hints giving expressing desires, and when fulfilled, there is aftercare, wounds are dressed, and reminders that there is affection. Should a deed go too far, a boundary overstepped, a true Kismesis will in one way or another, express regret and remorse over a transgression.

Transgression may include overly controlling behavior, emotionally isolating them, direct harm with intent to cripple or kill, engaging in a relationship with your Kismesis’s actual enemies who want to kill them, destroying what is valued and cant be replaced and manipulating them for personal gains at their permanent expense, especially when they cant afford it.

A Kismesis cares for their partners feelings and well being, and a good one goes out of their way to ensure they are secure and safe, even when having fun.

An abuser does not.

But then there are the very rare instances, where Kismesissitude is so strong and so stable and healthy between partners, that they seemingly end up in the same place as a end of a Flushed romance.

A truly loving rivalry, whose only goal in it, is the joy of having it.

When it happens, its like Black Magic.

The two seem to engage in bantering and mutual antagonism, yet its clear they’re enjoying each other in the act. Vacillating between Red, Black and Pale all within moments.

Should a Black Romantic Couple reach this level, they stay together simply because they love being together.

Marriage exists within Troll society, though it is rare, especially when its outside ones blood caste.

Black Marriages are particularly rare, as the process of getting Hate Married is rather intense.

A proposal involves biting off eachothers right ring finger and swallowing it. Which is pretty hardcore if you ask me.

Which turned out to be too hardcore, which was phased out for simply biting a wound into their partners finger instead

Which was also phased out as it was a custom from a time before oral hygiene was a thing, people died due to infection.

Afterwords it became a case of merely scaring, then branding, then finally tattooing in your fiance’s sign in their blood color on your right ring finger.

A simple wedding ring is also acceptable, usually some cheap metal, like a Black iron ring.

Finally, the two tell each other a special secret about one another, usually something quite humiliating, as a means of making blackmail, so that either one wants to declare a divorce, they simply air their others dirty laundry.