#don’t get engagement on the writing or prompts I do post so I post less

[melodyofthevoid]

Ya know having visited 1 analytics site and only looking at my activity occasionally my ass could not be a full time creator of any sort. These numbers get to me (a bit) and I’m not even all that invested overall.

Like if this had any value other than “oh hey people like my writing and thoughts” I’d be devastated lmao

[luxaofhesperides]

Listen. I love the dcxdp crossover. It’s a lot of fun! There’s so much that can be done for this crossover, with all the characters and settings and the many plots that can spring up from them. But as much as I love writing for it and sharing my fics with the community, there’s been a significant uptick in things that are rubbing me the wrong way. Some of these things have to do with canon vs fanon, but others are more about the shifting culture of the community.

(keep in mind that I only see things on Tumblr and am not in any discords, so my experience will be different from others bc I have a more limited experience with the wider community)

(putting it all under a read more bc its long)

Let’s start off with a look at what we’re doing as a group:

Building off of completed fics on tumblr: I always thought the etiquette is to not build off of a completed work without permission. Someone had an idea and executed it, then shared it with us. It should end there. If you want to add to it, contact the author first and see if it’s something they’re fine with; some will say no, some will say yes, some will say yes but be sure to credit them for the original fic. A lot of what I’m seeing is a completed fic gets added on to in a way that completely takes it away from the original idea. Having experienced this myself (on a requested prompt from someone else, no less), I found it kind of rude. Maybe it’s just me, but a completed fic is not a prompt request or something open for building up another story around. It’s already completed. Leave the story as is and let the author know you liked it.

Expecting others to write for you: the prompts are what build this crossover fandom, in my eyes. Prompts are posted and people create something around them, either as a group by adding onto what other people are saying, or as individual fics that one person wrote. Now I’m seeing people throw out prompts that are basically fic outlines, then begging others to write something for it. Like, those prompts are already written! They have very specific details! Why not write it yourself? You’re already halfway there, you can just write the thing you want to see and post it. It’s not about being ‘good’ or ‘bad’ at writing, it’s about crafting an idea to share to the world. Why ask others to write it for you when you’ve already practically done it?

But also, you are not owed fic. This might just be general fandom burn out talking, but being a fic author who has been treated like a machine? It sucks. I love writing, but I share what I write because what I wrote made me happy and I wanted to share that with others. I’m not a content creating machine who has to pump out fic after fic for other people’s entertainment. I just want to share what I love and having people pop up in my notifs only going “write more/tag me/sequel?/etc” is tiring. I get that it’s coming from a place of love bc you liked the fic enough to want to see more, but please actually talk about what I’ve already written instead of going “update? More? MORE????”

Hostility to DC canon: I get that DC canon is a mess, but it still is a canon and has a lot of cool stuff! I’m seeing a lot of posts recently about how dpxdc people refuse to engage with the comics, and I need to let yall know that this is not a new thing. DC fans also refuse to engage with the comics (it’s mostly batfam) and it’s very easy to tell who has and who hasnt ready batfam related stuff bc the fanon is incredibly wrong about characterisation and what happened in comics. But that’s for a different post.

I’m seeing both sides of the argument (this is for fun, reading comics isn’t required, don’t like don’t read vs it’s tiring seeing people butcher my favorite characters into ocs with their name/face, I want to share my love for comics but there’s so much pushback, it shouldn’t be weird to expect people engaging with a media to have actually engaged with that media). And I think you should engage with comics! DP is a unique case in which fanon is for the most part better and more interesting than the original show (also death to the author/butch hartman), but DC comics shouldn’t be engaged with in that way. If you like the characters you see in dpxdc, you should read about them in comics! The whole point of a fandom is that you’re a fan of the original media. That’s why you’re engaging with it in this way, writing within the world and characters and canon.

I don’t know how people write for fandoms when they’re not familiar with the source material. I wanted to write dcxdp so I started rewatching DP. I’m reading comics. I want to know the characters and their stories so I can have a foundation to write from, and also to better understand the media so I can share my love for it. The refusal to engage with source material while engaging with its fandom is so strange to me.

Also dc fans who love the comics are great! In my experience, they’re very kind and willing to help you jump into comics! Don’t know where to start? Pick a character or team and follow them! Want a reading guide? We’ve got TONS. want thoughts on a specific character or comic run? Just ask!

Now to more specific points about what I’m seeing in dcxdp works:

Mischaracterized batfam: this is a group of people who are disasters and have complicated relationships with each other. They’re kind, wonderful people who bring out the best and worst in each other. Why is Batman always adopting people. Why is this a running joke with the batfam. I get it being a joke the first few times, but I’ve seen it so often and done like it’s accurate characterization that I just. I can’t. I leave that fic immediately. I can’t do it anymore. Batman is paranoid and tried very hard to keep kids away from him/away from being a vigilante. Unfortunately all the kids he got are stubborn and smart so he was doomed from the beginning.

Superman and Kon: you guys are pretty much only pulling from Young Justice Animated which I think is a terrible adaptation, but that’s my own taste. But seriously. Clark is kind. That’s an important part of his character! He’s the strongest man in the world and he’s kind. He was also dead when Kon first appeared as a experiment from CADMUS in Hawaii. They’re not father-son, but they are family and they do care for each other, once they get to know each other. Also Kon is not an angry broody boy, he’s funny! And annoying! pls read kon comics guys, i promise youll like his actual character

Chronos??? Guys. Chronos is not a god in DC canon. He is in Greek mythology, but in DC he’s a Captain Atom villain and he’s literally just a guy who got obsessed with having perfect timing. He’s themed around clocks. He has nothing to do with time travel or time gods. The Speedforce is Time, basically, and it is not human. It is an eldritch being beyond our comprehension that can eat people. If it chooses to have a human form, it’s going to choose to look like Bart. Please read Flash stuff, it’s interesting!

Lazarus Pit Madness lasts like 5 minutes in canon. Jason having it, and being affected by it for years, is a purely fanon thing from the dc side. Not going to say anything more on this because it goes into Jason Todd discourse.

Repetition: I’m sorry but I’m tired of seeing the same things over and over. I barely see anything out of the dcxdp tags thats new and fun to engage with. Everything is the same variation of “Danny helps Pit Mad Jason”, “Bruce insta-adopts Danny”, “Superman is mean to clones”, etc etc. Think of any popular dcxdp trope and that’s all you’ll see. I get why these are fun and popular, but the way it’s being engaged with now? It literally makes me exit Tumblr and put my phone down.

Not every prompt has to go down the same routes as the other prompts. Please explore more options, branch out, twist those tropes around to do something new with them. And also stop going onto other people’s fics and saying “what about [dcxdp trope]? Cant wait to see [dcxdp trope]! You should have [dcxdp] trope.” If I didn’t include it, it’s not included for a reason. There are hundreds of other fics that write specifically about those exact tropes. Read those, or write your own. (im being super bitter here but please just let me write what i want to write without trying to pull the story into another direction for a trope you like. Im writing for me, but sharing it for you. Not every fic needs those tropes in them.)

Tumblr specific things: this is less about the content and more about general posting etiquette. Please put long posts under a read more. If it’s more then three paragraphs, consider adding a read more if there is significantly MORE than three paragraphs. Tag appropriately. Content warnings and trigger warnings should be at the very top of the post and in the tags so they can be properly blocked. If you’re posting fic/prompt, please double check your spelling and fix any typos you find because posts that are filled with excessive typos are difficult to read.

There’s probably a lot more to talk about, but just getting this much out is tiring and, frankly, I don’t want to think on it any more today. If you reply/add comments, I won’t get to them in a while bc I will be writing ghostlights and yhk fic to lift my mood :)

[crazylittlejester]

bro. i am in the same boat as you.

asfhdjkss seeing you stress and become disappointed about whumptober is making ME FEEL THE SAME......

feeling upset about your writing and all the prompts not being correctly put down into words can be very hard and complicated!! i get it!!!

it's totally normal to feel that way and i assure you, it's okay!

just know that, even if it is your own decision, you don't have to feel obligated to do all 32 days. that's a bunch of work for someone and a whole lot of planning and writing and that can effect someone's energy and mental health. i appreciate your effort in trying to do it though! but please, don't get worried about producing so many mediocre fics, at the end of the day you're still writing things and im proud!!!

i saw your post about this and immediately felt bad so i hope this can help you feel even a little better... even so, i will be looking forward to anything you end up writing! you are such a fantastic author, never forget that. <3

thanks man 🫶 /gen

i have really been struggling a lot lately with this, and it’s been very hard to not get angry with myself over it because I feel like I haven’t been able to write in months and I’ve been struggling with hating most of what I write these days and I get so incredibly anxious to post anything because I feel like my ability to write and the quality of my fics has deteriorated sooo much. I’ve had my ao3 acc since 2018 and every year I’ve kinda made a tradition almost of orphaning everything I write and starting fresh at the start of the new year because I dislike the vast majority of what I write but I realized a few months ago that I don’t think I can do that this year- this is certainly the most attention my fics have ever gotten and I think at least one person would come yell at me in my asks if i disappeared off the face of the earth never to write for LU again allddkkd

its just very hard not to feel upset about being burnt out for so many months, and it’s hard to see how engagement has been down and have to remind myself it’s not because i suck, it’s literally just because i’ve been making less content. of course engagement would be down, the main reason most people interact with me is BECAUSE I write or do analysis posts or make content, so if im not putting out as much as i used to then that tracks and makes sense, but it’s hard to stop the intrusive thoughts sometimes. It is certainly a fight to not feel useless when I can’t do the one thing I’m supposed to be doing with this blog

anyways… it makes me really happy that there are at least a few people who will read whatever i throw up onto ao3, and all of you who regularly read the things i write and send me asks n such genuinely make me so happy. all of you are awesome

and thank you for this, it was really kind and sweet of you. i hope you have a good day, remember to take care of yourself and get some water n food 🫶

*wet cough* anyway *sniffle* y’all wanna see my tav…? /j *kicks a rock*

[lazerv4]

Thoughts on Game Changers Season 6

Just my raw thoughts not a review or anything We are back again with another season of Game Changer or maybe we’ve been here the whole time. Welcome to Game Changer Season 6 thoughts on which unlike the previous post covering 1-5 I hope is not 7 pages long but we’ll see as I’ve just started writing this.

One thing I mentioned in my previous thoughts on was that Game Changer started to be able to fully manifest it’s original concept around season 4 but now it has truly become a whole different beast, Season 6 includes one single game samer as well as the most ambitious episode to date but again like before we are gonna go through the episodes in order so on to the premier.

Game Changer Season 6 debuts with a very traditional episode in Second Place aka the let’s bully Brennan this episode, the concept is simple, second place always wins the point no matter what happens and this deeply upsets Brennan while Ally and Oscar find it incredibly funny as the monologues escalate and the ridiculousness of the episode escalates until it crescendos into a tie between Oscar and Ally which leaves Brennan in second place and thus the winner of the episode as he launches into another iconic mug monologue that I hope goes down in history as the I cannot win one did so many years before back in Season 4, this is pure unadulterated Brennan and one of the funniest Game Changer moments both on episode 1 of the season.

Episode 2 is The Newlyweb Game, a very Dropout take on The Newlywed game in which 3 couples all at different stages of their relationship as Ify and Emily are dating, Tao and Alexis are engaged and Raph and Haley who are actually newlywed compete to assert dominance and prove they know their partner the best. The prompts in this episode are out of control as a main source of the information is the participants phones and they take full advantage of this asking about selfies, search histories and really strange phone notes that lead to one of my favorite jokes in the entire season, it’s a very fun episode with some great (probably) one time participants that pull their weight and enhance the episode greatly.

While the finale of the season had the most hype and work put behind it, if I had to pick the crowning jewel of this season it would be Episode 3 aka Sam Says 3. This is it, since Game Samers don't repeat more than 3 times (stated by Sam in cut for time and bts) they pull all the stops with this one, the cast consisting of Vic Michaelis, Jacob Wysocki and Lou Wilson is the ultimate chaotic theme of maniacs perfect for how off the wall this episode gets, frankly this is the episode I want to talk about the most but also the one that benefits the most from going in blind so we are doing this again SPOILERS START you can tell the episode is going for the fences right of the bat with the “do something cringe” which then leads to the incredibly pointless and funny swear jar which through the episode makes for some of the most hilarious moments as well cursing is very much a part of the show and since it had never been restricted it leads to many points taken, Sam then begins to fuck with them as he stops saying Sam says and also adds the freeze rule to just make it even more confusing, then we have really bizarre prompts like the fetish challenge which leads to the new supreme insult they try to use constantly “cum” which also leads to some of the most unhinged moments increasing the ante before quickly going for some more normal prompts to chill out the contestants like the slow mo and the do something for the trailer or the traditional special effect insert as well as some less convencional stuff like the don’t look at the little pig with a hat, the dedications and the how big is the hog prompt which do keep some edge on the contestants while still having their guard lowered so that when Zam the puppet comes out it can just completely confuse the contestants before jumping into insanity with both the cowboy clothes and the call everyone daddy or you lose points rule that just makes everything terrible before finally paying off the predictions made early in the episode. The front is now fully united as they agree to equalize points to have more fun before the final prompt (take a shot every time I wrote prompts) which is just having fun in a party bus that is just a dupe to have them lose points to swears and calling people by their name instead of daddy, Vic suffers the most from this part as equalizing the points just completely murdered her chance at winning as Jacob’s control of the daddy prompt made him lose the least amount of points and gives him the win, Lou was a lost cause as soon as he got inside that van even with the points equalized. SPOILERS END The episode is just so much fun and it will probably be remembered as one of the best episodes in the history of Game Changer, let alone this season.

Episode 4 is rather experimental as it’s more of an art contest for artist to show their creativity and flexibility which is very fun but doesn’t quite engage with what makes Game Changer unique from in this case a random youtube challenge rather than a game show but it’s still a fun watch and has some great prompts like the designing a cereal mascot segment.

Episode 5 the Deja Vu episode is the pinnacle of Sam fucking with his contestants which is really surprising after Sam Says but it does get increasingly confusing as the episodes continues to repeat over and over in a weird puzzle concoction that takes the team of Trapp, Ify and Siobhan quite a while to figure out but the payoff is just so much fun and the wenis is a great bit.

Episode 6 is one of the most unique episodes in the series as the whole concept is challenges to even get a buzzer to well buzz in and answer the trivia questions, the places where the buzzers are hidden get increasingly ridiculous as the first couple easy ones are taken until we eventually end up with stuff like one hidden inside a cake, one you have to convince someone outside to press through an audio only set up and interrupting a very intense make out session to get the buzzer on the other side of the bed. The cast of this episode is also rather fun with Erika and Rekha bringing their usual strengths to the show as well as the return of Becca Scott with foot jokes included. Overall the episodes take full advantage of the strengths of Game Changer and is just great television and a fantastic conventional finale to this season before jumping into the two parter which actually ends the season.

Episodes 7 and 8 consist of a single show split into two parts, The Ratfish which I’m told is very similar to The Circle but I haven’t seen that show so bear with me on this. The episodes also come with the most stacked cast in Game Changer history as we get Ally, Jess, Grant, Brennan, Katie, Zac, Rekha and special guest Eric Wareheim (from Tim and Eric) all participating in this bizarre role play texting clue among us type game.

The premise of the episode is that everyone is playing a character in a group chat text and little by little as prompts happen each contestant has to figure out who is playing every other character while keeping their identity hidden, this makes for a fantastic first episode as the stakes are high and the game is very close from the looks of it and then the episode ends leaving you wanting more during that grueling two week wait between episodes which well kind of led to disappointment as the game begins to fall apparent quickly since unexpectedly Rekha figured out the game way earlier than anticipated which breaks the tension but then Katie also figures out everyone which just complicates things further as well as losing both Zac and Brennan which lead a lot of the funniest segments of the episodes it just sadly couldn’t work as well this time around but the concept is solid enough where a Game Samer with more experience could go incredibly hard and I wouldn’t mind it even if it came in season 7.

Overall Game Changer Season 6 is more of the same but taken to 11, things get really hectic in the best ways possible and it continues to be the pinnacle of Dropout as a show only they could produce and make as excellent as it is. It is such a massive L the Emmys didn’t accept the nomination but nominated the currently terrible season of Jeopardy. Game Changer deserves all the recognition as some of the best television of the streaming era and this season just keeps showing why the Dropout team is one of kind and why it’s so worth it to keep this subscription above all others.

[r-ando-m-w-rite-r]

Greedy Thoughts

-Tada.

-3591 words (longest yet)

-Hope you enjoyed this, I know the ending was a little cheesy, but I really tried and hopefully the next chapter will be more engaging and less sloppy. 

-I wanted to give a shoutout to @revenants-queen26 and @deadbydaylightaddict because these two were the ones to encourage me with writing more about a prompt that I didn’t even completely like at first. Thanks for the support, guys! :D

-Lmao I’m srry I forgot to @ you guys in the beginning, I guess I just wanted to get this post out there ;D 

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You landed on the ground with a thud. The sun bore down on you, making you perspire already. You looked to your left and there sat a supply bin, so you quickly ran over, opening it up. Just what you needed, a Prowler and shield cells. There was also a blue evo, which you greedily snatched. Good start to the game.

“Energy ammo here.” Octane said, pinging the small green box. He was outside of a house nearby looting a supply bin as well. You were only a few feet away.

“I need that.” Revenant growled, quickly appearing from the roof and jumping down. Upon impact, the ground rumbled a little as he grabbed at the ammo. “Don’t expect me to thank you.”

“Wasn’t planning on it, demonio-” Octane muttered under his breath but quickly stopped when he saw Revenant’s pure look of disgust on his face.

“How much time have you been spending with that bitch Loba?” he growled, taking a menacing step in the now worried-looking Legend’s direction. It seemed as if he hadn’t let go of what the kid had done to you the night before yet. Octane threw his hands up in an apologetic manner.

“Ay chico, sorry! Just a slip of the tongue!” he cried out. Revenant just snorted furiously before turning around and walking off in the direction of the nearest point of interest. Gunshots could be heard from that area, echoing off the rolling green hills of Olympus. How was he already done looting? 

Not wanting to get on his bad side, even though you weren’t sure if you already had from the second collision this morning, you briskly jogged after him. The loot wasn’t worth him having a grudge on you all game. You decided to walk in his shadow, making sure to keep a little distance as to avoid any more accidents. You stared at the back of his head; the sudden urge to walk beside him hit you like a wave. For some internal reason, you wanted to see his face so badly, and you didn’t even know why. Suddenly, you felt needy and began to crave for his attention. What if you just touched him ever so slightly…

You shook your head, no, of course not. What was wrong with you? Behind you, you heard Octane blurt out, “But I want to loot!” When neither of his teammates stopped, however, he just sighed loudly and followed a distance behind.

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There were people in the tall skyscraper in front of you, you were sure of it. Not only were there extremely loud footsteps, but there were also the occasional rounds of gunshots before quietness filled the space once more. Octane was quickly sneaking around the building, grabbing loot as he went. You briskly followed after Revenant, who was deathly quiet and heading for the open set of doors located at the front of the building. He obviously didn’t approve of his other teammate wandering off, but he seemed content enough having you as back up. Or a shield. You quickly gulped down your worries. No, he wouldn’t do that to you, would he? He paused, and you had to quickly stop yourself before you ran into him again. ‘Head in the game’ you told yourself. ‘this isn’t the time to get lost in thought.’

A few seconds passed and he didn’t move. What was he doing? But just as you had begun to open your mouth, gunshots rang from a few floors up, and Revenant burst into the lobby area. You followed in a flurry behind him as he began marching up the stairs. You realized the other teams were engaged in battle at the moment, so they most likely wouldn’t hear the third party. Smart. Octane was still wandering around outside, though, which made you frown.

By the time you two had made it to the second floor, you were struggling to get past all the deathboxes, which littered the ground. It began to stink of blood and sweat, making you slightly nauseous. Nothing you hadn’t experienced before, though. “What a massacre..” Revenant muttered, taking it all in with his LEDs. “I love it.” His words sent chills down your spine, making you feel both uncomfortable and safe at the same time. Was that possible?

You guys were definitely closer to the fighting now; the ceiling was shaking from pounding footsteps and things being thrown around, and the lights were rattling and flickering on and off. Shouts were heard as well, making you nervous. “Crouch and be silent.” Revenant suddenly demanded as he fell to the ground and continued up the stairs, now crawling. You obeyed, staying quiet and copying likewise. He reached the top of the stairwell, slowly inching his head up to peer into the next floor. The fighting was near, but still slightly muffled, and you didn’t know what to expect next. Was someone going to blow his head off? You held your breath, but when he indicated to continue, you exhaled with relief and continued after him.

You emerged on the third floor and gasped ever so slightly at what you saw. There were deathboxes everywhere. Blood stains coated the walls, half-destroyed defenses were left to waste. Everything stank like death and destruction. The fighting was still happening, but it was all down a different side hallway that you noticed a little ways down the corridor. There was a miniature gap in the wall that led down an even smaller corridor before reaching a pair of doors. You tilted your head and were able to make out blurred movements through the humidified glass. You watched as Revenant carefully stepped over a deathbox, huddling up against the edge of the wall that led down the corridor and to those same doors.

Suddenly, the doors bursted open, and you were expecting the worst, but no one emerged. Instead, the fighting just became louder. You gasped, hurrying to get over to where Revenant was, but stumbled over the deathbox obstructing your path. You fell forward, landing right in front of the view of the doors. You watched as someone darted across from behind the doors as Mad Maggie followed, her Havoc spitting in their direction. 

She cursed, looking in your direction. At first she hadn’t recognized you as human, probably assuming you were a deathbox, and looked away. But after a shocked double-take, she growled, pointing her gun at your head. You yelped as everything happened at once. Hands pulled you back as shots were taken, and you watched as they embroided the rug where you had just been. It took you a second to realize where you were, but as you looked down, your face grew hot. A metal claw held your side, keeping you pressed up against the simulacrum’s body. His legs stretched out on either side of you, indicating he was now in a sitting position. 

His other hand produced his tactical, which you watched him chuck at the door. You heard Mad Maggie screech as it hit her, and the doors abruptly shut as the fighting continued. After a second, Revenant growled down at you. “You need to be more careful skinsuit, or you’re going to end up like all the others.” He indicated at the deathboxes surrounding you both, and you gulped deeply.

There was a moment of silence. You felt his artificial lungs and heart as they did their work, pumping things through his body to keep him going. The temptation was becoming too overwhelming. You looked up. He was staring right back down at you, his LEDs wavering slightly. Seconds, which felt like minutes, passed by as you stared into each other's eyes, and it felt as if time itself seemed to slow and come to a halt. You felt the beating of his heart speed up slightly, and you couldn’t help but blush a little. 

You felt his metallic fingers run across your cheek as he gently stroked. Yes, that was what you had been longing for. You sighed into his fingers, closing your eyes and resting your head on his chest. He cupped the side of your face, his claws drawing circles near your hairline. He was enjoying himself as much as you were. His rubbing pace sped up and then slowed again, then repeated. He was playing with you. You purred ever so slightly, causing him to pause before continuing, this time his claws pressing harder into your skin, but not so hard to where it hurt. 

You twitched. He reacted by beginning to toy a little with your hair with his free hand. Wrapping your strands around his finger and then unwinding them before repeating. After a few moments of this, he began itching your scalp with his long, sharp fingers. He was overstimulating you mentally and physically, and, to your embarrassment, you let a little moan escape your mouth, to which he responded with eagerness to continue pleasing you. So relaxing-

“Amigos! I found you!” Octane shouted out as he emerged from the stairwell. You jumped and Revenant quickly withdrew his hands. You snapped back to reality as Revenant began growling angrily, and you realized that you no longer heard gunshots. In fact, it had been almost completely quiet for awhile now that you had thought about it. 

“You idiot!” Revenant whisper-yelled, but it was too late. The door to your right burst open, and out emerged a team. Revenant was up in a second, both throwing his recharged tactical at the enemies and shoving you back with his free hand. His silencer caught them off guard, giving him time to pull out his gun. Within a second, shots began to fire.

Yelping, you darted past Octane and down the stairs as he rushed in to assist Revenant in battle. You felt bad for not helping, but then again, what were you going to do at the moment? You had to regain yourself. And plus, Revenant had pushed you back, wasn’t that a sign to get the hell out of there? You tucked yourself away in a corner, pulling out your gun. You had to get the battle down here, where there was more room to fight.

As if your request was answered, Octane suddenly retreated, pulling out a shield cell and charging himself with it. “Octane!” you called out. He looked over at you. Good, you had his attention. “Go up behind the team and try getting them down a level.” He cocked his head in obvious confusion but shrugged.

“We have nothing else to lose chica, so sure.” he said, stimming and running past you. He was smart; he was going to use the zipline, which would bring him up behind the enemies. Revenant appeared after a moment, using a Phoenix kit and cursing. Gibraltar stumbled down the stairs after him, shield in hand, but you had the advantage since he hadn’t seen you yet. Aiming, you sprayed your Prowler, catching his side completely and downing him.

“That’s one.” Revenant growled out. Was that approval you heard in his voice? Or pride? Nonetheless, the enemy team abruptly spilled out the stairwell. Horizon used her tactical to fly off the side of the balcony, which opened up on the floor, with both Gibraltar, herself and-

You felt chills run down your spine as Ash turned back for a split second to lock eyes with you. Her LEDs bore holes into your eyes, making you squirm on the spot. But in a moment, they were gone, and you were able to breathe slightly normal again. Revenant must have not noticed, because he set up his totem, saying, “C’mon.” without a further word and chasing after the escaping team, his body now morphed with black smoke. Octane sprinted down the stairs a second later, drawing your attention to his glowing green body. He had definitely loaded up on stim.

“Sorry it took so long, chica, I had to grab a better shield from one of those deathboxes.” he said, winking. “Couldn’t pass that offer.” You rolled your eyes as he touched the totem, sprinting after Revenant with the same haunting look the ultimate had given to both of your teammates. Gunshots could be heard below, and you sighed, standing up on wobbly legs. You slowly made your way over to the totem, but a whooshing sound interrupted your walking, making you turn around. 

Before you could even process what was happening, you had been pinned to the ground by Ash, who smirked at your now-panicked expression. Her metal legs pinned down yours, and her sword was pressed menacingly against your neck. She quickly whacked your gun out of your hands, which were both free but couldn’t do anything to save you at this moment. “Ah, it seems the prey has finally been captured by the predator.” she said in a prideful voice, despite her monotone expression.

“What do you want from me?” you muttered through semi-clenched teeth. You tried to sound menacing, but you still believed the simulacrum could sense your inner fear. Her expression had been proud, but it quickly contorted into annoyance.

“What do I want from you?” she scorned down at you, her LEDs quivering angrily. “I want you to stay away from that murderbot you seem so attached to.” So it was about Revenant! Why though? Did she secretly like him or something? You obviously didn’t want to interfere with that. But as you thought to yourself, did you really? Or did you want Revenant for yourself?

“But I-” you tried to explain, but Ash just pressed the blade down harder, producing a line of pain that burned your neck. You had to be bleeding.

“No ‘buts’, I’m giving you a heeding before I really do make you wish you had never even spoken to that simulacrum.” she spat. “As for now, I will punish you. A quick and painless death is far less than what you deserve, but since I’m in a merciful mood, I’ll do you this favor.” Her eyes glowed with fire it seemed as she spoke, and you just prayed that if she was going to do it, it would just be over quickly. “Now, hold still.”

She stood up, and even though she had told you otherwise, you tried to scramble towards your gun. It was no use though. She pressed her rod for a foot onto your chest with surprising force, pushing you back onto the ground and knocking the air out of you. You grimaced on impact as something internally snapped and produced a load of pain. As she aimed her blade for your neck, you just closed your eyes in defeat. It wasn’t worth watching anyways. On the plus side, at least once you died, you would be able to rest for the remainder of the day…in the infirmary where they would take care of your once-decapitated form. You frowned, but thus was the life of a Legend.

A moment passed, and then there was a grunt and a loud thud that shook the floor beneath you. Your eyes flew open as the pressure on your chest was suddenly removed. You quickly sat up, hunching over slightly and holding your neck, which was not bleeding fatally but was still wounded. Revenant was in front of you, looming over Ash’s crumpled state on the floor. You had zoned out slightly, so you took a moment to regain yourself before catching what he was saying to her. “-and if you ever touch her again, you’re gonna wish you were never given a second chance at life.” you heard Revenant say before grabbing her and throwing her into the wall to his right. She hit it with a thud, and as she slid to the floor, some of the wall’s plaster came off with her.

You winced; wasn’t that a little harsh? But then again, she had just threatened you with death. You watched as Revenant grabbed his gun, aiming it at her head. You didn’t want to watch, but you couldn’t help but notice as Ash lifted her head to look at you, her LEDs boring into your soul. It was such a look filled with loathing and maliciousness that you had to look away. The echo of the gunshot filled the room as Revenant finished her, and the sound of her deathbox hitting the floor made you shiver.

A few seconds of silence passed, but you broke it with your sudden coughing fit. Blood dribbled from your mouth; great, now you were internally bleeding somehow. You listened as Revenant walked over briskly, kneeling down in front of you. His frame was humongous compared to yours, but he still somehow managed to get his face inches from yours. He quickly scanned over you before muttering, “I’ll kill her over and over again for this.”

Your breathing became slightly labored; she probably broke a rib or two. However, you thought back to what she had said to you, how she wanted you to stay away from Revenant. Doing what she did definitely didn’t tilt her scales in his favor, and plus, you didn’t even know if he liked Ash to begin with. Then again, you weren’t all up in the daily gossip and reports about the Apex Legends, so you wouldn’t know.

You two stayed there hunched over on the floor for what seemed like an hour before Revenant stood up. “I know it hurts but the ring is closing and I have to get this idiot back in the game before it’s too late.” Revenant said in a quiet voice, growling at the end. You noticed the little banner icon poking out of his hand, which he stuffed somewhere behind him.

You attempted to stand, but the pain in your side swelled up and shocked you, sending you back to the floor as you cried out. Revenant stared down at you, and you couldn’t tell if he was worried or disappointed. Nevertheless, you didn’t care to check. The pain was slowly making its way around your middle section, affecting everything it touched.

You groaned, waving at the simulacrum. “Go.” you muttered, gripping your side. “I-I can’t walk.” You knew the consequences of staying. You would burn to a crisp outside the ring, but you didn’t care. The suicide sounded better than the suffering you were currently going through. At this point, it felt like your broken rib was stabbing one of your lungs or something, which it probably was. Now that the adrenaline had just about worn off, all the pain was hitting you at once.

Revenant didn’t say anything for a few seconds, he just seemed to be thinking. But after a moment he leaned down towards you. You were confused until his arms gently wrapped around you, picking you up. You hissed in pain as your side bopped his chest, but otherwise his hold on you was semi-comfortable. He was practically cradling you, one hand holding your shoulder and balancing you, the other gripping your, well, butt. You felt your cheeks flush a little at this thought, but the pain washed over you, making your face pale again.

When he didn’t move, you looked up at him. He was staring at you, like he had been the night before, a mix of emotions filtering through his LEDs. As much as you would’ve loved this any other time, the pain was continuing to increase, and you broke eye contact as your side throbbed once more. Without a sound, Revenant began down the flight of stairs, careful not to let you move in case the pain would increase. Out the doors of the building he went, leaving the closing ring behind, leaving the massacre behind, leaving their soon-to-be worst rival behind, where she would sit dead until after the game.

---------------------------------------------------------

Despite the burden you had now become, Revenant had to completely control himself from acting out. He was so tempted to thrust his face into yours, to smell you, your contents, and to hear you. Just the sound of your heartbeat picking up from earlier gave him chills. And your ass, oh, how he wanted to squeeze it and make you react, just to get a noise from you. The way you had moaned earlier, he had replayed it over and over in his head. He wanted more of it. In fact, he wanted to hear all of it. 

He could see it now, you underneath him, begging for mercy as he drove into you like a mad man deprived of sex. Oh, how he wanted to feel what it was like to be inside of you. Having your walls close around his length gave him sheer delight at the prospect. It was a goal, a want, a need. He wanted all of his senses filled only by you. Oh, how he craved you. 

But he snapped out of his thoughts as you whimpered a little in his arms. He looked down to see you sleeping fervently, and it seemed as if you were in a nightmare, as you scowled and grabbed at his arm in your sleep. He nudged your head slightly with his, and if that had been the remedy to it all, you un-tensed and continued sleeping peacefully. How silly it was, the most deadliest and malicious Legend in the entire of the games carrying a vulnerable little sheep like you. He was the wolf, and instead of devouring you, he would claim you as his own. 

No matter what, he would make you his.

[jacksgreysays]

"like normal people do" - Sai/Shikako, cosmic horror under the guise of romance

Anonymous asked: "Memento Mori," Master of Death!Harry Potter/Shikabane-hime!Shikako, vows under the auspices (only shooting stars)-verse, because I really just want to see these two reluctant gods of death being sweet and earnest and soft with each other as the rest of the world watches in bemusement and/or wariness Anonymous asked: Nec deus intersit, nisi dignus vindice nodus (inciderit), Shikabane-Hime 🌌🌟🦌🖤🌠 damnsmartblueboxes asked: jic tumblr ate my counting corvids fake title asks: Would you ever write an Original? Fiction about accidental body cohabitation & platonic devotion? Like cyborg & ai, Venom-style, transmigration, however the temple that is a body is devoted to two gods :p

Because there are SO MANY prompts left in my inbox and I am RUNNING OUT OF DAYS and, also, these four resonated when I went through my inbox, I will be answering these prompts together, I hope you don’t mind anon(s) and @damnsmartblueboxes!

Let me start by saying: while I do look fondly on my fic vows under the auspices (only shooting stars) and consider it some of my best work as well as love how it endeared people to my genin OCs for jounin sensei!Shikako, I’d rather not further engage in the Harry Potter franchise for obvious reasons.

However, the concept of reluctant god of death still applies to Shikabane-hime!Shikako even without an equally reluctant god of death counterpart, and the premise of your prompt still applies, for the most part, especially in combination with the other anon prompt of cosmic horror under the guise of romance. The dynamic of affection from an eldritch being, whether romantic or, as in damnsmartblueboxes’ prompt, platonic.

And what turns these prompts from my darling, dearest ambiguous vibes of god nonsense into an actually plot is the latin phrase prompt: Nec deus intersit, nisi dignus vindice nodus (inciderit) which translates to “That a god not intervene, unless a knot show up that be worthy of such an untangler” or less literally “When the miraculous power of God is necessary, let it be resorted to: when it is not necessary, let the ordinary means be used.”

All of this mixes into the following:

Shikako’s post-Jashin coma is not JUST mental/spiritual backlash of surviving a hostile outer god’s attack. It is, in fact, a chrysalis for mortal!Shikako to turn into burgeoning eldritch god!Shikabane-hime.

UNFORTUNATELY, it gets interrupted by the entirely well-meaning, and necessarily intervention of Sai—who, even so early on, is so ready to defy Danzo on Shikako’s behalf that it’s not even funny.

The thing is—at least with butterflies—you can’t really stop the metamorphosis without, you know, killing the pupa, and if you, for example, poke a hole in the cocoon, the liquified goop that is on its way into becoming a butterfly just… spills out and dies. Uhoh

Thankfully, our girl is NOT a literal pupa. But her metamorphosis has been interrupted. What’s a devoted disciple of a burgeoning eldritch god to do?

Basically, Sai is the mortal/physical touchstone for evolving deity Shikabane-hime. I do also like playing with the idea that worship can look like dating from an outside POV—after all, whether to a partner or a god, devotion is devotion even if differently flavored.

In the damnsmartblueboxes’ vein of Original Fiction, I once wrote a script playing with the idea that the grieving process can look like a messy break up—it involved a ghost, also—so the above concept is the arguably more lighthearted version of that. I mean, it’s not entirely lighthearted, what with the eldritch god and the cosmic horror but, you know. It’s not sad, per se.

I also, keeping in line with damnsmartblueboxes’ prompt and also my own leanings in regard to canon!DoS Shikako and Sai’s relationship, would make this a platonic fic. Mostly because I think canon!DoS has SO MUCH power over Sai. Like. Again, that devotion. I didn’t make it up. That’s in there. Sai is so ready to defy Danzo’s orders to protect Shikako. The power imbalance is just too much.

I am a multishipper, so I do think there is a version of Sai and Shikako that COULD work romantically. There’s even a version of Sai and eldritch god!Shikako that could work romantically in an AU. But since the brainstorm we’re currently running along is more canon divergence than AU, I think this would work BEST as platonic. Especially to further contrast the cosmic horror under the guise of romance. Like, if it isn’t even at all romantic, just cosmic horror and platonic devotion, that makes the juxtaposition all the greater.

Anyway, as I was saying, the plot part of this is: mortal touchstone/devoted disciple!Sai is a very competent shinobi on his own, but even he can’t deal with [[insert divine level threat here]]. Everyone knows that Shikako has been teaching him fuinjutsu—that they have been getting closer/getting along more so than before—but everyone is surprised when he breaks out what looks to be the Shiki Fujin but instead of summoning the Shinigami it is instead the debut of the Shikabane-hime in full force.

What is the divine level threat? Maybe it’s Jashin again and this time, Shikabane-hime gets to go toe to toe with him rather than just slamming the door in his face. Or maybe it’s moon aliens O_O

[chenfordspiral]

43, 44, 45, 48, 49, 50

43. If you take/write prompts: what’s your favorite prompt fic that you’ve written? Mh, probably the two I got that turned into this 4x18 AU. It’s honestly one of my favorites I’ve written, and interestingly enough, when I reread it a while back, it felt so foreign because I could barely remember even writing it. But that was fun because it was like I was reading it from an “outsider” POV, if that makes sense. There's two more that I love, as said here, but for once I made a decision and will stick with it. @escapismqueen could fill a book about me and my indecisiveness, and I hope she's proud of me for choosing only one here.

44. If you take/write prompts: do you prefer dialogue or scenario/narrative prompts? Mh, I don’t think I’ve actually gotten many dialogue ones yet, at least not ones that I can remember right off the bat so I’ll say scenario/narrative prompts. 

45. What’s something you’ve improved on since you started writing fic? Oy, this is tough because it often feels like I haven't improved at all? I do like to think I've broadened my vocabulary (also thanks to reading so many fics), but I'm not sure if that makes it onto the page. Maybe I'm less terrified of hitting that post button now than I was a year ago and trust myself more to pull something off that maybe I would've shied away from before. The better question for me would be "what have you not improved on?" lol

48. What’s the last fic you read? Do you recommend it? I can honestly say that I don’t know the last one I read, it’s been that long. I’ve got about – and no, I’m not joking – 200 AO3 tabs open on my phone with fics I want to read or need to catch up on. Wait! I do know which one! I re-read this one here from Tara because it was the first that came to mind for the chenford fanfic quotes blog. And yes, I absolutely, 100000% recommend it!!! 

49. What are you currently working on? Share a few lines if you’re up for it! Already answered here, but: aside from Little bit of Love, I’m also always (and by that I mean every day) trying to weave my way through an AU that I’ve been working on for… welp, almost a year. Here’s a tiny little sneak peek from what will likely be the first or second chapter. It’s still a long, loooong way from seeing the light of day, though. 

“Geez, Tim. Way to be positive,” Angela sighs. “She won’t like you a whole lot either with that attitude.”  “Great, so case closed. We’re not doing this,” he says and starts to get up from his place opposite of her. “Tim,” she whines and grabs a hold of his arm to keep him from leaving. “Come on. What could it hurt? Just one date. You can see how it goes, and if it’s absolutely horrible and you sit there in silence for two hours, you can go home and call and yell at me for being wrong.”  “Lopez.” “Timothy.” “Stop calling me that.”  “Stop being stubborn.”

Oops, forgot 50 🤦🏼‍♀️ 50. Answer any question of your choice, or talk about anything you want to talk about! All I can say is that I love this amazing community on here. The last few months in particular have been so much fun, and I love engaging with you all here. It genuinely feels like a home and I'm so grateful to get to be a part of it.

Thank youuu 🫶🏻

[superbattrash]

saw your rbed the soft prompts post so if you ever felt like writing anything with (17. fixing the other persons clothes absentmindedly or like tucking their hair behind their ear U KNOW WHAT I MEAN THAT SOFT STUFF) or (38. anything else that makes you SOFT) for superbat or anyone bc i love your writing :DDDD

I don't know what happened here, it got longer than what I was going for, oopsie. Thank you for prompting me something soft and sweet, dear anon! (if anyone else wants to send me a soft prompt (no promises but this was fun), here's the list)

--

“You’re going to mess that up if you keep picking at it,” Bruce says. His voice is gentle, but it makes Clark flinch anyway. Since when did Bruce get out of the shower? And how is he already dressed? It’s taken Clark like seventeen minutes just picking out his outfit. And that’s even after Bruce has already laid it out for him on the bed. 

“Huh?” is Clark’s very intelligent reply.

“Your tie.” Bruce gestures towards the crumbled fabric in Clark’s hands.

“Oh,” Clark breathes and lets go. It’s all crooked but at least he didn’t pull it apart. Yet.

“You don’t have to be nervous,” Bruce tells him as he reaches out to fix the tie. He works efficiently at pulling it apart and tying a new knot. A fancy one, no doubt.

“I’m not,” Clark argues weakly. A blind man would be able to tell that he’s 90 percent nerves at this point. He might even be shaking a little bit.

“You’re a bad liar.”

“Well, you’re-” Clark starts and then sighs, because who is he kidding? “Yeah, no, you lie just fine.”

“That I do,” Bruce agrees easily. He pats Clark’s chest affectionately before taking a step back. “With you on top preferably.”

“Bruce,” Clark groans.

“What?”

“Stop being mean.” Stop teasing me, stop making me more nervous than I already am, Clark wants to say, but words are a little hard when he isn’t even sure he’s blinked in the last ten minutes. People blink. Clark has never had an issue blinking, why is he not blinking? He blinks twice just for good measure.

Bruce looks at him funny. “I’m never mean,” he says, thankfully not commenting on the weird face tic Clark is doing.

“You’re mean at least half the time.”

“That is not true, you idiot.”

“Don’t call me an idiot,” Clark pouts.

“Fine,” Bruce concedes. Too easily. “That’s not true, sweetheart.”

“Don’t call me that either,” Clark says with less confidence. Bruce only ever calls him sweetheart when he’s being overly affectionate. Which isn’t often. And it makes Clark weak in the knees every single time.

“Why not? You love it when I call you sweetheart,” Bruce teases.

“Exactly. I don’t need jelly legs right before we go out there.” It’s just his luck that Bruce decided to hold their damn engagement party at the manor. Why would he do that? He never lets people this close to the cave. Or his home, even.

“Stop panicking,” Bruce tells him with a smile. “Superman doesn’t get jelly legs.”

“Clark does though.”

“How very human of him.”

“Stop making fun of me,” Clark whines. He doesn’t mean it, obviously, because he’s stopped shaking. And he hasn’t forgotten to blink since Bruce started teasing him.

“I’m not. I’m helping distract you.”

“You’re doing a shitty job.”

“Language, Clark, there might be kids out there,” Bruce says with a chuckle. Like he doesn’t know exactly who is in his house and when they got here and the most likely time they’ll leave.

“God, I hope not,” Clark says, even though he could technically just take a listen. He doesn’t though because he doesn’t want to start panicking again.

“Ready?” Bruce asks as he holds out his hand.

“Not in the least,” Clark says but takes Bruce’s hand, nonetheless. He’ll probably never be ready, but he would go anywhere as long as Bruce is there.

“I’m right here with you.”

“It’s the only reason I haven’t run away yet.”

It’s not that Clark doesn’t want to make their relationship public; he very much does. But making it public for him means telling his parents and friends. Meeting Bruce’s kids, introducing himself officially to Alfred. They’ve already done that though and there’s only one thing left. Telling Bruce Wayne’s world about them. It’s terrifying in a way that no superpowered villain has ever been to Clark. He’d rather go a round or two with Darkseid than smile at cameras and answer strangers’ questions about his and Bruce’s love life for an entire evening. Okay, so maybe he’s exaggerating a tiny bit, but he’s nervous, it’s not his fault his mind works faster than the average human’s.

It still works slower than Bruce’s though, because of course nobody can think quite as far ahead as Batman. Which is probably why Bruce is trying to get a rise out of him - it’s awfully hard being nervous about a party when you’re arguing with your boyfriend. Fiancé. And that word still sends a chill down Clark’s spine. He can’t believe Bruce asked before he got the chance to, the sneaky bastard.

Clark knows he has nothing to worry about. Bruce has more than enough experience for the both of them. He brushes off the more inappropriate questions like a pro; gives just enough of a smirk to get away with not answering. He makes sure to keep Clark close, jumps in when Clark panics and splutters a stupid - or too honest - answer to the many inquiries.

Bruce is… scarily good at this. Clark just follows his lead. It’s something he’s both used to and unfamiliar with. Following, that is, not following Bruce. He really would follow Bruce to the edge of the universe if he asked. 

A few hours in Clark tugs at his tie; he’s tired but it’s not in a bad way. Despite the comments and questions from virtual strangers, he’s having a good time. Mostly because Bruce sticks to his side through it all. Ma and pa are here as well, and Bruce makes sure they spend time with them and Clark enjoys watching all of Bruce’s little bats trying to impress his parents. Like they aren’t already completely sold on having a handful of grandbabies. 

“So, how did you really meet?” A woman – Wendy, Clark thinks? – asks, and before Clark can put his foot in his mouth (he really is a bad liar), Bruce swoops in with a practiced story that’s more or less true. 

“Through work,” he says and then turns to smile softly at Clark. His eyes land on Clark’s chest and he reaches out and straightens his collar, never once faltering in the conversation. He does it like it’s second nature, like he’s not even aware how intimate a gesture it is. 

Clark finds himself relaxing and grinning like the fool in love he is. 

By the end of the night Clark feels like he’s talked to every single citizen in Gotham, even though he knows that can’t be right. There’s only a couple of hundred people here but it feels like thousands. He’s about ready to fall into bed. Bruce looks like he’s getting there as well, running a hand through his hair more and more, pulling at his own tie. 

When Bruce downs his third glass of champagne, the product in his hair has all but vanished. His bangs are falling in his face, and he’s never looked more beautiful. 

Clark brushes the stubborn strand of hair out of Bruce’s eyes, just because he can. Because he’s allowed to do so. Because he said yes when Bruce asked if he wanted to marry him. As if there was ever any other answer. 

[nblraevart]

I know this is tumblr so I’m practically preaching to the choir but genuinely AI as its progressing today is so upsetting and I have to vent.

I genuinely think AI will make the average person less creative, or at least less proactive in stretching their imagination. Why learn to draw when I can prompt midjourney to do it for me? Why write a novel when I can give it a few buzzwords and themes and write that for me? What about past traditional creative fields? Why start thinking about how the math I learned in school can be applied in real life when I have AI to do my homework for me? Why come up with my own way of solving a leadership problem in my workplace when I can just hand the solution to Chat GPT? Less and less people will become inclined to even engage creatively with the world around them. I genuinely think AI will become a crutch not a tool. Look at Michael Cohen accidentally sending bogus legal documents. Its like there’s no escape everywhere you go its like its being force fed. Have Canva generate for you! Press backslash for Notion AI!

Thats not even getting to the workers rights. Tech bros will say its like when cars replaced horses but heres the kicker. We’re not the carriage drivers. We’re the bloody horses.

The intellectual jobs are being replaced by ai and the manual ones by automaton. Corporations have no incentive to hire pesky humans that might unionize and need health benefits when a computer will do it with no complaints. Its not like with can even come up with an actual plan for what humans should do. It’s as if all the holes are

Even if AI isn’t actually smart enough to replace people. Your CEO is stupid enough to think the opposite and they’re more than happy enough to eliminate the human variable.

It’s so sad that ai could be used and is being used for genuine good like detecting cancer cells and cleaning the ocean and interpreting sign language. But in this capitalist society that will prioritize profits over human lives its all feels hopeless.

I’ve seen the argument that AI will only replace the midlevel artists and their mundane work. Am I the only one who feels like its an insane take? Like people putting food on the table is not worthy

This feels like doom posting but that’s genuinely all I can feel. Even the fundamentally human jobs like therapy have tech bros lurking in the waters. Each day it feel like less of a joke to just to say fuck it don’t engage in the system drop off the grid with your friends and start a commune.

[hellaciousfaith]

Role Play Rules || Mobile

The Basics

No godmodding. This means you’re not allowed to dictate how my characters react/respond to anything, your characters cannot know everything/all the secrets about my characters without a good reason (such as being told this information by my characters, another character who knows, getting my permission in OOC chat), assume a major development between my characters and yours, or have your character successfully nail every attack they make against mine and-or dodging/blocking every attack my characters make against yours.

Any starter memes found under the “prompts” tag are always open for acceptance, no matter how old they may be. If it’s been more than 24 hours since their initial posting though please send them with a reminder about what meme they’re attached to so I can refresh myself on the context of the meme and its potential settings.

Communicate with me if there are any issues or confusions about something. I am sincerely open to talking things out, despite how socially withdrawn I am.

Muses =/= Mun; The character thoughts/opinions are not the writer’s thoughts/opinions.

Be patient for replies. This is not a primary muse for me, I run a couple of other RP blogs, work a full time job, and have other hobbies as well as responsibilities to attend to. Some replies may be thrown into the queue system to grant myself time and space to do those other things. If you are curious about the status of a reply you are welcome to ask about it after 48 hours since the last posting.

Shiro and the mun are above the age of consent. Mun details can be found in the pending Munday tag (this blog isn't old enough for that yet).

The Finer Points

Fights, Darker Themes, and Plotting

If we haven’t plotted for our muses to engage in combat or any sort of abusive scenario then please ask if it’s alright to shift gears towards that kind of scene first. I am open to writing any kind of violent scene but generally terrible at writing action, and very picky about what abusive themes I’ll engage with, so please don’t surprise me with either of the two.

Potentially violent scenarios don’t have to be a fully detailed disclosure either. It could be as simple as, “X wants to punch Y” and if I’m okay with it I’ll say “Palpatine voice: Dew it.” Then, we can begin discussing/plotting how the fight will go.

Truthfully speaking as well, I have very little combat writing experience so please have patience with my reply timing and be aware that I’ll most likely ask a lot of questions to make sure I’m understanding things correctly. I’m pretty much a newbie when it comes to this theme and I have trouble picturing written action, which makes it difficult for me to understand what’s going on.

If you do not have the patience for this though that’s okay too. We can handwave the scene to an agreed ending and move on our with our lives, no problem.

Certain forms of abuse and toxic personality traits are a major turn off for my muse, due to personal reasons that can be loosely boiled down to PTSD. So if I say no to something - whether it’s a plot or an entire muse - please respect that boundary. I will not write themes with:

Domestic abuse

Parental abuse

Emotional abuse

If you have any questions about what is or isn’t okay with me, feel free to ask! I take no offense to/I am okay with being asked for details because there is no harm in discussing limits. This is just a general guideline to help you understand what I’m not okay with

Don’t spring plots on me without discussing them beforehand. I’m not against plots happening, I just don’t like being surprised.

There will be elements of slap stick humor on this blog because Shiro can be rough in how he handles his friends and family. Arguably, it's less handling and more manhandling. This may come off harshly if it's taken literal and at face value. It is not meant to be. So, please don't.

Text Patterns

“This is speech - AKA the things said aloud and audible to others in hearing range. Things said over/through a communication device will be written like this too.”

This is flavor text to go around the speech.

Full sentences in italics are typically going to be thoughts. Words that are italicized in the middle of an unformatted sentence are for emphasis, like bolding.

[::This is a text message, typically used in any device-to-device conversations.]

((This is out-of-character text on a post, in a reply, or in tags. That isn’t to say tags not written like this should be considered IC, but they are most definitely OOC when written like this))

Selective; Mutuals Only

I’m going to be selective about who I follow for dash organization and cleanliness, as well as muse focus. It’s nothing personal against anyone or any blogging behaviors, I’m just very worn out from my job, want to be able to keep up with my partners’ activities, want to be able to focus on my muse with ease, and overall enjoy what I’m doing.

Anyone is welcome to send asks, send in memes, or makes comments if they feel inclined to do so. Starters and drabble prompts will only be accepted by mutuals. Threads will only be written with mutuals.

Duplicate & Multiverse Friendly

I’ll play with any character - canon or OC - and I’m not exclusive with anyone either, so I’m more than happy to play with multiple versions of the same character.

I’ll play with any character regardless of where their base continuity is or if they’re something completely original. Shiro is fixed in a Blue Exorcist type world, but time fuckery can allow him to interact with other worlds/settings.

Shiro comes from an AU timeline of my own making, and is thus exclusive to his own self. Meaning anybody he encounters is a different version of the individual he knows personally, and visa versa. Alternate individuals may be recognizable and follow similar dynamics, but no one is the individual he knows personally without some prior OOC discussions.

The Basics

No godmodding. This means you’re not allowed to dictate how my characters react/respond to anything, your characters cannot know everything/all the secrets about my characters without a good reason (such as being told this information by my characters, another character who knows, getting my permission in OOC chat), assume a major development between my characters and yours, or have your character successfully nail every attack they make against mine and-or dodging/blocking every attack my characters make against yours.

Any memes found under the “prompts” tag are always open for acceptance, no matter how old they are. If it’s been more than 24 hours since their initial posting though please send them with a reminder about what meme they’re attached to so I can refresh myself on the context/potential settings.

You are more than welcome to specify for a canon timeline with prompts too. Anything sent in without a requested setting will default to the main/current timeline.

Communicate with me if there are any issues or confusions about something. I am sincerely open to talking things out, despite how socially withdrawn I am.

Muses =/= Mun; The character thoughts/opinions are not the writer’s thoughts/opinions.

Be patient for replies. This is not a primary muse for me, I run a couple of other RP blogs, work a full time job, and have other hobbies as well as responsibilities to attend to. Some replies may be thrown into the queue system to grant myself time and space to do those other things. If you are curious about the status of a reply you are welcome to ask about it after 48 hours since the last posting.

Shiro and the mun are above the age of consent. Mun details can be found here.

The Finer Points

Fights, Darker Themes, and Plotting

If we haven’t plotted for our muses to engage in combat or any sort of abusive scenario then please ask if it’s alright to shift gears towards that kind of scene first. I am open to writing any kind of violent scene but generally terrible at writing action, and very picky about what abusive themes I’ll engage with, so please don’t surprise me with either of the two.

Potentially violent scenarios don’t have to be a fully detailed disclosure either. It could be as simple as, “X wants to punch Y” and if I’m okay with it I’ll say “Palpatine voice: Dew it.” Then, we can begin discussing/plotting how the fight will go.

Truthfully speaking as well, I have very little combat writing experience so please have patience with my reply timing and be aware that I’ll most likely ask a lot of questions to make sure I’m understanding things correctly. I’m pretty much a newbie when it comes to this theme and I have trouble picturing written action, which makes it difficult for me to understand what’s going on.

If you do not have the patience for this though that’s okay too. We can handwave the scene to an agreed ending and move on our with our lives, no problem.

Certain forms of abuse and toxic personality traits are a major turn off for my muse, due to personal reasons that can be loosely boiled down to PTSD. So if I say no to something - whether it’s a plot or an entire muse - please respect that boundary. I will not write themes with:

Domestic abuse

Parental abuse

Emotional abuse

If you have any questions about what is or isn’t okay with me, feel free to ask! I take no offense to/I am okay with being asked for details because there is no harm in discussing limits. This is just a general guideline to help you understand what I’m not okay with

Don’t spring plots on me without discussing them beforehand. I’m not against plots happening, I just don’t like being surprised.

There will be elements of slap stick humor on this blog because Shiro can be rough in how he handles his friends and family. Arguably, it’s less handling and more manhandling. This may come off harshly if it’s taken literal and at face value. It is not meant to be. So, please don’t.

Text Patterns

“This is speech - AKA the things said aloud and audible to others in hearing range. Things said over/through a communication device will be written like this too.”

This is flavor text to go around the speech.

Full sentences in italics are typically going to be thoughts. Words that are italicized in the middle of an unformatted sentence are for emphasis, like bolding.

[::This is a text message, typically used in any device-to-device conversations.]

((This is out-of-character text on a post, in a reply, or in tags. That isn’t to say tags not written like this should be considered IC, but they are most definitely OOC when written like this))

Selective; Mutuals Only

I’m going to be selective about who I follow for dash organization and cleanliness, as well as muse focus. It’s nothing personal against anyone or any blogging behaviors, I’m just very worn out from my job, want to be able to keep up with my partners’ activities, want to be able to focus on my muse with ease, and overall enjoy what I’m doing.

Anyone is welcome to send asks, send in memes, or makes comments if they feel inclined to do so. Starters and drabble prompts will only be accepted by mutuals. Threads will only be written with mutuals.

Duplicate & Multiverse Friendly, Multiship

I’ll play with any character - canon or OC - and I’m not exclusive with anyone either, so I’m more than happy to play with multiple versions of the same character.

I’ll play with any character regardless of where their base continuity is or if they’re something completely original. Shiro is fixed in a Blue Exorcist type world, but time fuckery can allow him to interact with other worlds/settings.

Shiro comes from an AU timeline of my own making, and is thus exclusive to his own self. Meaning anybody he encounters is a different version of the individual he knows personally, and visa versa. Alternate individuals may be recognizable and follow similar dynamics, but no one is the individual he knows personally without some prior OOC discussions.

I am a multishipper - meaning I can, may, and will write my character in multiple romantic relationships with the understanding that none of them are crossing over with each other. So, there is no cheating going on and no jealousy occurring unless otherwise stated by me. I will not participate in these kinds of plots without some kind of prior discussion with all the involved parties. Please refrain from trying to start trouble - ICly or OOCly - about these things unless I or my muse have stated something beforehand.

M!A Spells & Anonymous Interaction

I will accept all magic anons (M!As) but I retain the right to turn down/delete ones that do not strike my interest or make me feel uncomfortable. If the latter happens, I will do my best to elaborate on what exactly made me uncomfortable so it can be avoided in the future.

General messages will be answered normally and treated like messages on the datanet. Anonymous messages that suggest, imply, or depict physical interaction with a muse will be treated like an NPC.

M!A Spells & Anonymous Interaction

I will accept all magic anons (M!As) but I retain the right to turn down/delete ones that do not strike my interest or make me feel uncomfortable. If the latter happens, I will do my best to elaborate on what exactly made me uncomfortable so it can be avoided in the future.

General messages will be answered normally and treated like messages on the datanet. Anonymous messages that suggest, imply, or depict physical interaction with a muse will be treated like an NPC.

[roleplaybook]

GOING GHOST

Kicking this thing off with a controversial topic. 👻

For starters, everyone qualifies ghosting a little differently. Ghosting can happen in many contexts, but for the sake of this post, we’ll stick to the context of roleplaying/collaborative writing. Depending upon whom you ask, it can look like:

a stranger doesn’t answer your message

a stranger stops answering your messages

a prospective roleplay partner stops responding during the planning phase

you write a starter, but your would-be partner never responds to it

a writing partner dips after a few posts

a writing partner stops responding midway through a longterm RP

a person you considered a friend stops responding to your messages

a person you considered a friend blocks you and disappears

Personally, I don’t define it as proper ghosting until the roleplay has kicked off and a few posts have been traded. This is my personal opinion, and not everyone is in agreement. That’s okay! The thing we can mostly agree on is this: getting ghosted sucks. It’s a bad time. It’s frustrating, demotivating, and in some cases, downright fuckin’ devastating.

It’s also almost entirely outside your control.

If you’ve ever spiraled, wondered what you could have done differently, or wondered if you were the problem, read that again.

Chances are, the ghosting had nothing to do with you.

Ask a frequent ghoster, and they can probably tell you they’ve ghosted writing partners who seemed to be a perfect fit. That, or they left for irreparable reasons outside the other roleplayer’s control: different time-zones, they weren’t comfortable with the other person’s IRL gender, they lost interest in the fandom they were about to write, etc.

The takeaway is: ghosting happens. Obviously, how fast and loose you play with the term impacts how often it happens to you. The type of roleplay you seek plays a part, too; ERP is notorious for frequent ghosting, because there’s the added possibility the other writer peaces out as soon as they’re “finished,” leaving their RP partner high and dry.

You can still minimize your chances of being ghosted — just know that sometimes, there is absolutely nothing that can be done about it. It’s a “risk” inherent in the hobby, and it’s more and more prolific given the times and increasingly instant sources of gratification coupled with diminishing attention spans. Even the medium or platform through which you roleplay matters.

A few things to note:

Soliciting ERP increases the chances of matching up with a ghost. (Not to say you shouldn’t look for ERP or smut-centric RP! Just know that you may have to weed through more partners when you do.)

More anonymity = more comfort with ghosting. (Meaning platforms like Discord and Reddit make it very easy for people to ghost, because it’s so easy to create throwaway accounts or block strangers.)

You’re a little less likely to be ghosted on platforms like forums and Tumblr, in particular if you vet the accounts with which you engage by checking out their posting history.

They may still stop responding. They may still block at random. They may forget about the threads you had together, or “forget” the threads. On these platforms, it’s more likely you’ll be ‘strung along’ by someone who is, in fact, ghosting you.

AKA, “I’m still interested!” or, “I keep forgetting; just nudge me with reminders here and there!” Some folks really do have trouble forgetting about threads. Mistakes happen to everyone. However, a consistent need to be reminded is pretty disrespectful. There are ways to keep track of threads, even with ADHD or other obstacles.

To mitigate your chances of being ghosted, you can:

Make a thorough ad. Be upfront about what you’re looking for, and what writing partners can expect.

Let your prospective partner know they can communicate with you if there’s anything about your starter that makes it difficult for them to respond.

Take your time with your starter and remember to prompt action on their part. A starter that’s impossible to respond to is a bummer!

Be clear about your age, RP style, timezone, and expectations.

Don’t create a self-fulfilling prophecy. A defeatist attitude and complaining about past partners ghosting as soon as you meet someone will look like a red flag flying from where they stand.

Be selective. It may be tempting to cast a wide net, but it’s better to use the right bait to catch a higher quality fish. ✨🐟✨

Once again, keep in mind that ghosting happens. It’s true some collaborative writers can boast they’re almost never ghosted, but rest assured (regardless of how they see it), it tends to have less to do with how awesome they are and more to do with their style of soliciting RP. For example, when you meet someone in a group environment and work your way up to a one-on-one, you’re far more likely to have a longer-running roleplay and less likely to be ghosted.

All that said, any time you’re having a consistent issue, it’s a good idea to self reflect.

How’s your OOC tone? Be yourself, of course, but if your self is condescending, patronizing, nit-picky, demanding, or inflexible… you’ll either need to pick from a shallower, ghostier pool, or do some work on said self. This is a collaborative hobby, so you’ll need to concede to a certain amount of collaboration.

Are you going in with a gloomy attitude because you know you’re going to get ghosted?

Are you delivering the quality of posts you promise? If you say you write multi-paragraph replies, for example, make sure you’re forking over multi-paragraph posts.

Are your posts the type you would like to respond to if you were on the receiving end of them?

TL;DR: If you are kind, true to your word, consistent, and willing put forth effort, you will find your partner. It can be tricky and it can take time, but it’s worth it. Ghosts happen. Usually, it’s not your fault.

If there’s interest, I’ll write up posts on dealing with getting ghosted, ways to re-frame the way you feel about it, how to craft compelling ads to mitigate the risk of being ghosted, the psychology/reasons behind ghosting, etc. Just let me know what you’d like to see!

[incorrect-strq-quotes]

Drabble Challenge!

Well now that we’re on hiatus following a juicy strq volume, I think it’s a good time to post this. I need to get back into writing anyway, so I’ll be doing this all v9-10 hiatus long. Send me a number (and a strq character, ship, etc if you want) and I’ll write a ficlet or drabble for it.

“That’s starting to get annoying”

“Hey, hey, calm down. They can’t hurt you anymore.”

“You can’t just sit there all day.”

“I’m too sober for this.”

“I’m not here to make friends.”

“I need a place to stay.”

“Well, that’s tragic.”

“You’re seriously like a man-child.”

“You can’t banish me! This is my bed too!”

“The ladies love a guy who’s good with kids.”

“Dear Diary, …”

“She’s hiding behind the sofa.”

“I lost our baby.”

“They’re so cute when they’re asleep.”

“I’d kill for a coffee…literally.”

“You’re getting crumbs all over my bed.”

“Good thing I didn’t ask for your opinion.”

“What’s the matter, sweetie?”

“You’re Satan.”

“I don’t want to hear your excuse. You can’t just give me wet-willies.”

“I’m bulletproof…but please, don’t shoot me.”

“Did you just hiss at me?”

“Do you really need all that candy?”

“It’s six o’clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka.”

“I swear, I’m not crazy!!!”

“The diamond in your engagement ring is fake.”

“No. Regrets.”

“How drunk was I?”

“How is my wife more badass than me?”

“Be you. No one else can.”

“I haven’t slept in ages.”

“I locked the keys in the car.”

“Are you sure that’s the decision you want to make?”

“You work for me. You are my slave.”

“Take your medicine.”

“They’re monsters.”

“Welcome to fatherhood.”

“Why can’t you appreciate my sense of humor?”

“It’s your turn to make dinner.”

“The kids, they ambushed me.”

“Sorry isn’t going to help when I kick your ass!!!”

“Stop being so cute.”

“I feel like I can’t breathe.”

“You need to see a doctor.”

“You’re getting a vasectomy. That’s final.”

“I was a joke, baby. I swear.”

“Dogs don’t wear clothes!”

“I didn’t think you could get any less romantic…”

“Safety first. What are you? FIVE?”

“This is girl talk, so leave.”

“Where am I going? Crazy. Wanna come?”

“There’s a herd of them!”

“Do you think I’m scared of a woman?”

“They’re not your kids, back the f*ck off.”

“You’re a nerd.”

“I’m late.”

“Just get home as soon as possible, okay?!”

“You smell like a wet dog.”

“I could punch you right now.”

“Are you going to talk to me?”

“Welcome back. Now fucking help me.”

“If you can’t sleep…we could have sex?”

“Flea markets don’t carry fleas, you know?”

“Here, take my blanket.”

“I don’t want you to stop.”

“How could I ever forget about you?”

“You’re bleeding all over my carpet.”

“Run for it!”

“We need to talk.”

“Not everyone is out to get you. Stop thinking that. It’s annoying.”

“I want a pet.”

“Just smile, I really need to see you smile right now.”

“I’m not wearing a dress.”

“I’m not wearing a tie.”

“Quit beating me up!”

“Please put your penis away.”

“It’s a Texas thing.”

“Don’t argue. Just do it.”

“I hope I’m never stuck with you on a deserted island.”

“Does he know about the baby?”

“Hold still.”

“I just ironed these pants!”

“Enough with the sass!”

“Show me what’s behind your back.”

“I’m not going to be sympathetic until you go to a doctor.”

“Fine, don’t say anything and make me worry.”

“Stay awake.”

“STOP INTERRUPTING ME!”

“You’re not interested, are you?”

“I’m not buying ikea furniture again.”

“Tell me you need me.”

“Oh honey, I’d never be jealous of you.”

“I’m telling you. I’m haunted.”

“I had a bad dream again.”

“Have I mentioned, I fucking hate Halloween.”

“It’s Christmas, don’t be mad at me.”

“You’re not going to starve yourself on Thanksgiving.”

“The store ran out of Easter eggs.”

“How could you forget your son’s birthday?”

“You can only suffer through my whining for so long until you get up and make me a sandwich.”

(Visit @prompt-bank for more prompts!!)

[swaps55]

2022 Writing Wrap Up

Tagged by @commander-krios. Thank you!

I wasn't going to do one of these things because I didn't think I'd accomplished as much as I have in the past couple of years, but I am thankful you tagged me, because when I looked at it, there was a lot to be proud of, and I think it's important when we work so hard to sit back and RECOGNIZE what we've done, instead of just dwelling on what we haven't.

Total Words Published: 122,327. I think. I had to do math, and my math is never trustworthy. I don’t think I forgot anything? I might have. Part of me feels like I shouldn’t get credit for Concerto, because it was more or less a rewrite, but at the same time it was a lot of work so I should get credit, heh.

Additional Words Written: 27,923. This only counts drafts I intend to actually publish some day (namely two entire Fugue chapters, the beginning of a third one, and Cadenza, a fic that will get written eventually). It doesn’t include the scribbles that may or may not turn into something, or the discarded scenes that got rewritten. This number is probably MUCH higher, but I’m not doing that math.

Grand Total of Words: 150,250. I’m very happy with that. It felt like less.

Fandoms: Mass Effect. It is the only fandom I write for. I’m a one trick pony.

Highest Everything (raw kudos, hits, comments): Of fic published this year, Cantata reigns supreme in every category, even though a big hunk of it was earned in 2021. But the comments on the final chapter alone, which is definitely 2022, are mind blowing to me. Nothing I write will ever match the top kudosed stories in the Ao3 mshenko tag, but I’m floored at how much engagement Opus gets. I’ll take that over any metric.   

Highest Kudos to Hits Ratio: I think it’s Hearstoppers Beyond the Veil. Which I find delightful. It’s such a silly, sweet fic.

New Things I Tried: Sam’s POV is off-limits in Opus, but I have some future scenes that I’m going to need in which he’s my only POV option unless I get creative. So I’ve gotten creative, and am doodling some things in 2nd person to see if I can get what I need while still filtering Sam through the eyes of someone else (in this case, a more omniscient narrator Sam is unaware of). I am pleased with the results so far enough to keep working at it.

Fic I Spent The Most Time On: Fugue. Every single chapter of Fugue feels like a dogfight. It’s such a difficult and complex story to navigate on every level. The story as a whole obviously has been the biggest time investment this year, but each individual chapter is like climbing a mountain.

Fic I Spent The Least Time On: Yours, which is a first kiss AU. It’s a fairly simple story, but it fell out of my head and onto the page with very little prompting from me, and I love it to pieces.  

Favorite Thing I Wrote: It’s hard not to say Cantata or Fugue, but of the one-shots, I’ll give it to Space Talk because I got to make a cow-tipping joke and connect it to Arcturus.

Favorite Thing I Read: This is a very non-inclusive list. Sunset and Evening Star by @shadesofmauve, Trikalon by @dandenbo, Far From Comfortable by @screwyouflightlieutenant, Alke by @mallaidhsomo, red sky at morning by @shadoedseptmbr, we’ll dance this fading life away by @tiltingheartand, Eric and Stella's Cabo Adventure, by @writes-in-space, Friend of a Friend by @otemporanerys, in the deep dark by @urrone

Writing Goals for 2023: Finish Fugue (I am so close I can taste it) and (after a decent break), start Mezzo, Opus’ ME2 story.

New Works: Heartstoppers from Beyond the Veil, Space Talk, Concerto, Warm With You, Yours.  

Tagging (no pressure!) @baejax-the-great, @mallaidhsomo, @screwyouflightlieutenant, @shadesofmauve. Hell, if I tagged you anywhere in this post, consider yourself tagged. And anyone who wants to feel proud of what they did this year? Do it and tag me back so I can cheerlead you.

BE PROUD OF YOUR WORK. If you didn't post anything? Be proud of what you wrote for yourself. Didn't write much? Be proud of your daydreams and ideas and OCs that rotate in your head like a rotisserie chicken. It's ALL worth celebrating. Tell me about it and I'll celebrate with you!

[whumpsick]

Whumpuary #1!!!!

lmao I actually started writing ahead of time for a change, and then just forgot that today was the first day of Whumpuary until I saw someone else's post and was like OMG I HAVE WRITING TO SHARE.

I will most definitely not complete all the prompts this month, but I've decided to have a Very Steddyhands Whumpuary, starting with our first prompt: Captivity / Snow / Secret Revealed

***

Izzy told them that traveling up the coast in February was a stupid idea, but no, he’d been outvoted, outranked. And now here he was, in a cold fucking gaol in fucking New Jersey because he’d told the two twats to run and he would deal with the drunk gang of locals, and he didn’t realize the local sheriff was among the gang. Which was probably fortunate, in the end, because it meant he was here in gaol rather than dead on the street.

The sheriff didn’t know who Izzy was. He’d given a fake name, obviously, and was only being held for assault, or public disorder, or something, he hadn’t really been listening. When one was wanted dead or alive by half the European empires for piracy in the Caribbean, an assault charge in some small New Jersey port town wasn’t top of his list of concerns. 

But the gaol was cold, and they hadn’t given him so much as a blanket in this fucking cell, and even his warmest coat wasn’t meant for northern winters. He assumed Edward and Bonnet would risk their hides to come rescue him, as stupid an idea as that was, so he shoved his hands in his pockets and settled as best he could on the hard wooden bench. He watched snowflakes blow in through the barred window and settle on his coat, tiny perfect crystals.

He didn’t realize he’d dozed off until a voice woke him. 

“Who the fuck are you, really?” 

A filthy brute of a man was standing at the bars of the cell. Izzy tried to recall what name he’d given them when he’d been arrested. 

“I already told you,” he replied, taking the safest route. 

“You don’t look like a James, though,” the brute said. He wasn’t completely wasted, but he wasn’t sober, either. Izzy sat up straight and flexed his cold fingers inside his jacket pockets. 

“Dunno what to tell you,” he replied casually. 

“Why do you ’ave that face tattoo?”

“A friend gave it to me.” It wasn’t a lie. He and Ed had been very good friends on the night Ed straddled him on the floor of his newly-acquired captain’s cabin and placed the small x below his eye. It hurt like a bitch, and it was not a great idea to get a face tattoo, but it was worth every second of having Ed’s full attention. There were few things he wouldn’t do for that. 

“The only people I’ve known with face tattoos were pirates,” the hulk said, leaning against the bars. Izzy said nothing to that. He had no interest in engaging this man, and he was fairly sure he didn’t have a way to get into Izzy’s cell. What the man’s purpose was beyond curiosity, however, he couldn’t tell. 

“I'm talking to you!” the man's voice was raised now. It seemed he wasn't pleased with Izzy's silence. But the cell was big enough that he couldn't reach Izzy through the bars, and Izzy knew his job right now was to sit and observe and wait. 

The large man shouted a bit more, trying to goad Izzy into a fight, but Izzy couldn't have cared less what this oaf thought of him. Gods willing he would never see this silly little town or the colony of New Jersey ever again. Eventually, as Izzy anticipated, he grew bored of shouting at a man who wasn't shouting back, and he left. 

The temperature was dropping steadily. Izzy wished he'd worn a hat tonight, or at least a scarf. His hands were beginning to go numb, and he couldn't stop his teeth chattering. Where the fuck are they? Twats. 

As summoned by his thoughts, he heard a commotion outside the room of gaol cells that could only have been made by Stede Fucking Bonnet. The cry of “Gentlemen, I believe you have something of mine!” confirmed it, to Izzy's mortification. 

The commotion continued, but the gaol door opened and Edward strode in with a ring of keys as casually as if he and Izzy were the only two people in the building. 

“Bonnet’s going to be gutted like a fish if you leave him alone any longer,” Izzy warned. He stood up stiffly and shuffled to the front of the cell, where Ed was trying keys.

Edward shot him a knowing look of amusement. “He's got Jim and Ivan with him, he'll be just fine.”

From the other room they heard Stede shout “I hope you'll remember from this day forth, my good sirs, to never again mess with The Gentleman Pirate and his crew!”

So much for keeping a low profile. Izzy met Ed's eyes through the bars. “‘m not on his crew,” he corrected.

Edward only grinned. “You sleep in his bed, I think that means you're on his crew, mate.” The cell door came unlatched with a satisfying clank and swung in towards Izzy. He tried to make a beeline for the exit, but Edward wrapped him up in a hug. He was too cold to resist, or so he told himself.

“Took you long enough,” he groused into Ed’s chest.

[bleachbleachbleach]

7/2 - 7/19/2023

It’s been kind of hard to get back into thinking about my WIP? Which is an interesting experience, because yeah, sure, getting back into the idea of writing (what are words? who are these characters even) is usually a challenge, the "rotating this WIP in my brain" part is not. The Rotations have been a part of nearly every day for years, up until I needed to get serious about writing my Train Fanfic. And now it’s been almost three weeks and I’m still… honestly just fixated on my Train Fanfic. Every day, still thinking about it!! Train!

I did have to write something for another fandom a bit ago, which I wasn’t initially excited about. It’s for a challenge I’ve participated in every year since 2010, and have helped mod for a lot of that time. As mod, I basically get assigned whatever prompt set we think will be hard to give to a regular participant. Friends, the prompts were Not Good, LOL, and I’m really a very one-fandom-at-a-time kind of person, so I was like, "but... this is not Bleach... I do not want it right now!" It was actually a fantastic writing experience, though—I loved spending time with my blorbos in that fandom, and the writing went really quickly; I finished in 4 hours what for Bleach would take me 12 hours to 12 weeks, and I certainly can’t complain about that.

I really love how telegraphic you can get with the writing over there, and how that allows you to slash away so much narrative, really pare it down, and let the shorthand stand on its own. I think it works so well there because if you write late enough in the canon the characters have these very rote, old hat experiences they don’t feel the need to narrate in full, and the same goes with their relationship to each other. I’m not saying that can’t be done in Bleach, but I often feel like there’s a degree of novelty to most Bleach experiences where like, some weird shit is going down so even what is routine can’t entirely be so; or they’re doing it in new company, or after some fresh set of circumstances that have changed the terms of engagement in either major or minor ways, or they’re going to have to remember to write a report about it later; and the POV character is often needing to take all these things into account. Which is also enjoyable! And I’m not saying my blorbos in this other fandom are static and never have new experiences lol. I just think they’ve perfected the art of distilling their experiences very efficiently, and/or being comfortable with giving less of a shit. It was fun to write in that space!

I also wrote a bit of a Bleach fic I started last summer, which I’d backburnered because while I’m interested in the character relationship and the general premise, I haven’t yet been able to tell myself why it would need to be a story. And without those answers, it just feels kind of gratuitous in a way that I don’t like. There is more of it now, and there are more ideas with promise, but also more elements that feel gratuitous. I know I’m talking in vague generalities. But it’s kind of like—I don’t want to do this character the disservice of presenting her experiences as smooth and soft and clean when they surely were not; but it also feels like to delve into the parts that are jagged and awful requires a really strong narrative/character payoff. Because otherwise I’m like, well, she deserves to have stories that don’t need to be told. So I still need to figure out what the story is that needs to be told, and why it would need to include these things. I KNOW, THE VAGUE GENERALITIES, B3 WHAT ARE YOU EVEN TALKING ABOUT. I am talking about wanting to write a post-Soul Society arc fanfic about Hinamori and Jiroubou, which is surely the natural precipitate of a Soul Society Arc rewatch. It involves a lot of negative interactions with Gotei civil servants and the Gotei healthcare system, and how condor!Tobiume came to be, and a lot of suffering that, while 100% already extant in canon, just makes me feel like… if it’s all to be written out instead of something that happens behind closed doors, then it had better be worth her time.

But what I really want to finish this summer is finish Part 1 of my WIP, not work on this absurd Jiroubou fic!! I have no idea why I was doing that. Rukia has so many things to do in her chapters! Renji has a vending machine to encounter in his! There are alarmingly forthright heart-to-hearts with Akon to be had! Why am I not writing these things, and why have I not written them at any point in the last three weeks!!!!!

[pianocat939]

Could we get that Kappa concept you suggested in the examples? It seems interesting. Any character works, I don’t know genshin well but if you wanna use this prompt to try writing for it go ahead!

If I’m being honest with you, most people get freaked out by its appearance. Japan is known for its freaky and horrifying folklore after all. (photos in this obviously aren't mine, respect to their rightful owners)

Kappa Random Bulletpoints

Kappa かっぱ - “The kappa are known to favor cucumbers and love to engage in sumo wrestling. They are often accused of assaulting humans in water,” (Source is from Wikipedia).

They’re also known to eat people when victims are close to water. Although they aren’t the most aggressive creatures, they do cause havoc according to old folklore.

(Also it’s more common that they’re in rivers. Idk the reasoning but they tend to generally prefer smaller water sources)

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• I don’t care how you imagine this thing, but remember that its form can be interpreted in many ways. Some people imagine them as humans with straw hats who are able to breathe underwater; others see them as amphibian-like humanoid who’s more or less can be compared to a platypus for its odd structure.

• Anyway, I personally think that they are possessive creatures. Given their behavior they often like to keep what’s theirs only theirs.

• You could be just walking along on the shore of a river and they'll straight up snatch your leg and pull you into the water. Depending on what exactly their personalities are they could either: 1. eat you 2. pull you underwater until you're panicking then let you go 3. just be all weird ass "you're a human, you're interesting, I want to observe you."

I personally like to think of them as creatures who'll keep you in an underwater structure that is above the surface of the water so that you're kept alive but unable to leave.

They'll bring you raw sea creatures like fish or just edible things like seaweed. If you're lucky enough to show them how you don't like eating those things/can't eat those things they might bring you things from outside the river banks. (Not too far though, they can dry up like a frog if they aren't in damp areas)

They'll bring toys or random items stolen from people near the river to you. It's more often than not that it's something completely useless. They're trying their best.

I would say they're aggressive creatures, not liking how you're trying to escape from your little habitat. They'll push you and snap their odd beaks like they're wanting to sumo wrestle with you.

Overall, they're annoying creatures who want to make your life a living hell.

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Now I'm in the sudden rush to make random posts about folklore from my home land. (Japan has a lot and I mean a lot of horror mythology and folklore)

- Celina