#but ah I probably won't

[forecast-rain]

...I'm looking through my old writing and. huh. those things aren't half-bad but also they're just vague ideas really so there wasn't much to mess up. I like these things though...

[egophiliac]

now that I can think semi-coherently again...whooooo's ready for Friday WEEHOO

[leporidaisical]

Sprout Fight 2024 1 - Renewal, Dandelion Dreams

Quick-and-rough prompt fill for Sprout Fight 2024, featuring Coriander!

[hailsatanacab]

@the-ghost-trader - ooooh, i love this! it has the potential to be so incredibly sad, too, like poor Damian just trying to carve out something normal for himself only for it blow up in his face

BUT, shockingly, i'm not about the angst today! not yet anyway 😇

---

“So, how was your day?”

Despite his answering groan, Damian likes this. This. This whole… thing he has with Danielle. With Ellie. 

And, yeah, he’s not exactly told any of the others yet, but can you blame him? For wanting to keep something, anything, to himself. Wanting to keep this small little slice of goodness he’s managed to carve out, untouched and unmarred by his family, by their other lives, by the rogues, the vigilantes, the assassins, everyone.

“That bad, huh?”

Being with Ellie is freeing. That’s the best way to describe it.

She knows. Damian surprised even himself when he told her—not about the others, mind, but he supposes it’s not hard to put two and two together and Dani has always been smarter than most—but it’s the best decision he’s ever made, and no matter what the niggling little voice in the back of his head says (the one that sounds suspiciously like Father), he can’t bring himself to regret it.

He won’t. Because having Ellie know gives him freedom.

She’s a safe place, a hand to hold, a warm, welcoming presence when things inevitably turn ugly. It’s the freedom to just be normal when everything else in his life spirals into stranger and more stressful missions.

“Richard is being insufferable again. I do not understand his incessant need to know everything about my life.”

“Oh? What’s he done now?” 

“I was subjected to an hour long interrogation about my love life, like it’s any of his business. It’s infuriating!”

“Ugh, tell me about it. I get the same thing from Jazz, constantly. It can be suffocating.” Ellie says as she curls herself tighter into his side. “But it’s just how they show they care.”

“Yes, well, sometimes I wish he wouldn’t—”

“Hey!” Ellie pushes herself up to glare at him, punctuating her shout with a soft whack to his arm for good measure. “What have I said about using that word?”

“Yes, yes,” he placates with a roll of his eyes, “‘Be careful what you wish for.’ I apologise, it won't happen again.”

“Damn straight it won't.”

She maintains eye contact with him for a second longer before tucking herself back into his side, squirming around with a long, contented hum that Damian can feel rumble through him. He smiles and doesn’t complain even when he has to shift to give her more room after a particularly strong elbow jabs him in the ribs. It means leaving the warm patch on the couch, but he’s rewarded with another long, happy moan as she settles and Damian can’t bring himself to mind.

Ellie constantly makes noises. Little mews and hums and laughs and songs known only to her. It reminds him of a cat, sometimes. He likes it. It calms him down; it means she’s happy, so he's happy.

They settle back into the cushions and Damian lets the subject drop, not wanting to spoil the moment. Outside, the wind changes direction and from where he’s laying he can watch as the snow starts to come down thick and heavy. Hopefully it’ll mean a quiet night's patrol.

“Is that why you haven’t introduced me yet?”

“What?” He can't help it, he stiffens at the thought of losing his secret, of the scrutiny he'll be inviting if he lets anyone know.

“Are you worried I’ll embarrass you?”

Damian’s eyes snap down quick to reassure her, only to see her light, teasing grin. He lets out a breath of relief. It figures she wouldn't worry about that.

“Of course not, don’t be absurd. You could never embarrass me.”

“I don’t know,” she muses, her voice taking on a dangerous lilt, “that sounds like a challenge.”

“Believe me, having been subjected to Father’s Brucie persona at every gala I’ve been to, it would take a lot to embarrass me.”

“Alright, bet. I’ll get you, just you wait.”

“You’ve already got me.”

She flicks him on the nose. “You’re such a sap.”

He hums his agreement, enjoying the tinkling sound of her laughter. And then, before he can think otherwise, he asks, “Is that why you haven’t introduced me?”

“That’s different,” she scowls. “You know how hard it is to get there, there’s no signal, and Danny only gets a break like—oh, Ancients!”

Damian gets another elbow to the ribs as she bolts upright, a manic grin on her face that has him laughing.

“What is it?”

“It’s the holidays! It’s nearly Truce Day! You know I said I had a family thing around Christmas?”

“Yes?” 

“Well, do you want to come to it? I can introduce you then! I mean, it’s going to be a bit formal and you’ll have to meet everyone, not just family. There’s going to be some banquets, you’ll have to sit through some long speeches and you have to be on your best behaviour at all times, okay? Absolutely no fighting, it’s called Truce Day for a reason!”

“What?”

“Yeah, it’ll be perfect! I think Jazz is going in a couple days earlier to help with the preparations, so I’ll get her to let Danny know—and fair warning, he will try to give you the shovel talk, but this is great! It’s Truce Day, so he can’t actually do anything about it!”

“I’m sorry, but you're going to have to explain a bit.”

“Yeah, I know, it’s a bit much—but that’s family, right? Danny can get pretty protective over me, which is why going on Truce Day is the best time to do it! He can’t even command the Fright Knight to stab you! It’s genius!”

“Ellie, what?”

“Like, yeah, sure, he’s the king, but even he has to obey the rules of Truce Day—and then once you’ve spent all day with him, he’ll see that you’re a fantastic, wonderful, kind, brilliant, smart, strong, capable person and he’ll get over himself and everything will be good!"

Damian collapses down onto the couch, the wind knocked out of him. This is… He had not expected anything like this at all. For all that Ellie talked about her family, she had never mentioned this.

“Did you… did you say your brother is a king?”

“Yeah! High King Phantom, have I…” The manic grin slips off her face as she turns round and notices Damian. “Have I not mentioned that before?”

“No. No, you have not.”

“Ah. Sorry. Probably should clarify that I’m also a princess.”

“Right. Yes, that follows.”

“And I’m not really his sister, I’m his clone.”

“What?”

Damian blinks and tries to say more, but he has no idea what he’s meant to do with… any of this information. 

Normal. He thought she was meant to be his normal. Nothing could have prepared him for this.

Not that it changed anything, of course, of that he was certain. It’s just… a lot to take in. Overwhelming. But it's okay! He takes a deep breath, and another, and a sense of calm washes over him. Ellie makes one of her little hums as she cocks her head to the side to consider him and he can't help but relax at the normalcy of the sound. It'll be okay, he's dealt with stranger and he can deal with this.

“I’ve, uh… I’ve told you that we’re half ghosts, though, right?”

“What?”

[that-foul-legacy-lover]

what if you were Ajax's sweet childhood friend, gentle and a bit frail. you and him being best friends ever since you were kids- he'd often visit you, no matter the time, and ask you to come out and play. of course you'd always say yes and let him hold your hand and run around in the snow- you were never as fast as him, and always had to wear heavy layers of clothes to regulate your body temperature since you couldn't do it naturally. it worried Ajax tremendously, especially whenever you trip and fall, but you always reassured him that you were fine with that sweet smile of yours. years passed, and Ajax joined the Fatui. you remember when he went missing, the worry cold like ice and the subsequent warm relief when he was found. others said he came back different, violent and bloodthirsty, but to you he only became more worried, asking multiple times if you were feeling alright whenever you spent time together. and you always said yes, because as long as he was okay so were you, his hands wrapped around your perpetually-chilled ones. there was one time you fell sick, during a bitingly cold winter, yet during the entire ordeal you still smiled, even apologizing for how he had to take care of you. Ajax had simply wrapped you in a hug and warmed you to your bones, more comforting than any blanket. as he rubbed your back, he had looked at you and realized- he wanted to protect you.

once, when he became a Harbinger, you called him Tartaglia to respect his new title. but he had paled and grabbed your shoulders, asking, almost pleading for you to call him Ajax. so to you and his family, the ones he often talked about protecting, he was Ajax. he often wrote to you while away, asking how your studies were going, as it was your dream to go to Sumeru and learn about everything, and whenever Ajax returned he would apologize for being away for so long. you'd simply laugh kindly and traced over the scars dotting his palms. "It's alright, I know you'll always come back, Ajax." your complete trust in him made his heart melt, silently swearing that Ajax, not Tartaglia, would always come back to you. and so when the Abyss overtakes his body, digging its claws in and refusing to let go, Ajax sobs. it hurts. it hurts so bad, but the guilt filling his chest hurts more, the guilt that he won't be able to return home to you, that he's broken his promise you didn't know he made. you'll wait for his return with that soft expression of yours, and he'll never arrive, never be able to sweep you off your feet and give you the wonderful, quiet life he'd envisioned. he never even got to say "I love you", and Foul Legacy clutches his horned head and shrieks in grief.

hehe part one

[sysig]

Care for your sparring partner (Patreon)

Bonus:

[liquidstar]

Oh fuck tomorrow I'm going to be a little birthday boy I keep almost forgetting

[storfulsten]

eaouuugh

[eve-pie]

Both ringmaster's, both worked hard to get their circus, married, and cares for their circus crew!

They're similarities are actually pretty funny Slimy is happily married to a lovely lady ans although i haven't seen Merritt's husband yet I'm happy for him!

Merritt Goodshow belongs to @selstice

And Slimy sugarpelt belongs to me!

Until then don't forget to wave up high!💐

[defectivehero]

background: The healer heals people through taking their pain and enduring it themselves. When they meet the villain, they’re expecting everything to go perfectly. Little do they know, the villain is somewhat of a special case...

“Holy shit,” the healer bites out, falling forward and bracing their arms on the table in front of them. There’s a wide look in their eyes and their limbs shake. The villain can’t help but feel immensely guilty that they’re the one causing that pain. Selfishly speaking, though, they haven’t felt this good in years. “Oh my gods. How are you still standing?!”

The villain wants to respond, but they're too overwhelmed by the comfortable fuzziness feeling wrapping around them. Their fatigue is slowly beginning to drain. For the first time in a long time, their eyelids don’t sting with exhaustion. They're floating in the feeling for a few moments, when they realize that something’s off. Sure enough, when they chance a glance at the other person in the room, the healer is wavering on their feet. 

“Whoa, stop,” the villain hisses, getting up and shoving the healer to break them out of their trance. “That’s more than enough.” The healer blinks at them dazedly for a moment, before shaking their head in disbelief.

“Holy fuck,” the healer whispers, looking at them with wide eyes. The villain grits their teeth, dreading the upcoming conversation. “I’m surprised you’re still alive. That pain- I’ve never felt that before. I’ve been doing this for years.”

The villain doesn't know what to say to that, so they don’t say anything. The healer isn’t deterred by their silence, and instead stares at them for a moment longer before evidently coming to a decision. 

“I’m coming back tomorrow,” the healer asserts, turning on their heel and walking out the door before they can argue. The villain stares at the door and the subsequent empty space for a long time after that. 

©2022, @defectivehero All Rights Reserved. 

[iwonderwh0]

An idea for a 3d render/drawing

Connor visiting a grave of original Amanda Stern. Laying a rose to her gravestone.

[mcyt-aro-week]

can i still submit stuff after the week is over? i don't have much time for this kinda thing but i want to participate

Of course!! Once the prompts and stuff are posted, the event is all yours to do what you want with :].

While I can't guarantee we'll be dedicatedly looking at the tag for super long after the posting period, if you @ the blog whenever you finish, we'll definitely share it!

[sleepinglionhearts]

Think I'm gonna end up avoiding aging so slowly the way most of the women in my mom's family have out of sheer stress. I already look older than I am, I'm sure I'm not far off from looking MUCH older than I am.

[toshidou]

Okay, I have a list of WIPs and I'm going to drop them here, please hold me accountable to actually finishing them off and posting them 🥹

Fresh Ink, Bleeding Scars - Simon "Ghost" Riley x Tattoo artist!Reader

A Rock and a Hard Place - König x Reader x Simon "Ghost" Riley

The Viper Chapter 2 - Simon "Ghost" Riley x Reader

Under table blowjob ask - Simon "Ghost" Riley x Reader

House on the Hill - Vampire!König x Human!Reader

Is It Stockholm Syndrome Or Am I Just a Lesbian? [Working Title... probably]- Valeria x Reader

That's all the ones I have at the moment, if there are any you'd want to see first, drop me an ask or a reply and let me know!

[help-me-find-a-name-please-lol]

fuck it I'm going to be controversial and just say it:

I'm glad the character of Aaron Hotchner was spared from the terrible fucking writing of late-season Criminal minds.

I did a #NoHotchNoWatch at the time (which was simply because the show held no interest for me otherwise - small exception Reid but only in relation to his dynamic with Hotch). Eventually decided to give the rest of the show a go since I got enough emotional distance from the loss of my perfect husband my favourite character and blah blah "violence" in the workplace is bad and maybe the show didn't deserve a boycott I guess ... (and it's now available as a brainless streaming choice).

So that means I am only just now discovering exactly how bad the writing got. And DAMN.

I mean I saw it going downhill (even more so from the usual "suspension of disbelief" element that is required) from about season 9, but I had No. Idea.

It's like the show hired all the writers that even Supernatural would have rejected!

So yeah "violence" in the workplace is bad but so is incompetence, and from personal experience I feel like sometimes the people left dealing with it deserve some kind of mental health compensation from the strain it takes. Except the cast members who apparently didn't care.

That is all.

[starpros-sunshine]

See this is why I like enstars because usually the issue would be done now and I'd return back to my usual state of listless apathetic semi-detachement but now I'm invested in getting this card home and if I don't I will continue to be at least a bit sad about it isn't it fascinating how people work isn't it just marvelous that a mobile game can do that to you