#don't just hit flapjack

[drawbudd]

i cannot BELIEVE that out of all the things to get me crying in the finale, its hooty's reunion with lilith that does it

[ecoamerica]

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

[flovey-dovey]

Just finished The Owl House so I’m gonna go do the sensible thing and gross-sob myself to sleep now hahaaa

[the-froschamethyst4]

Tentacles

𖤐Pairing: Octo!König x Witch!Reader

𖤐Pronouns: She/Her

𖤐AN: I mean imagine König a 6’10 God of a man the size of a flapjack octopus that is 50cm. I mean come on, it’s perfect

𖤐Warnings: Smut, fluff, language, slight harassment, P in V, tentacle play, kinky, boob grabbing, nipple play, ass grabbing, slight choking, kissing, biting/nipping, obsessions, flirting,

𖤐Summary: König was the familiar to Witch Y/n, and he is OBESSED with her in every way possible always by her. never leaving her side for any reason, is her protector, and has gotten a little to comfortable

————

————

Y/n was the village's Witch, people came to her to seek potions made by her some that are good and some that can lead into problem. Y/n refuses to do any sort of potion that causes death, that is not something she wants on her record.

Her familiar König who was a little flapjack octopus rested on his favorite spot. On Y/n chest aka her right breast. He's too touchy and to clingy but there's nothing for Y/n to do but just except fate.

Her chest and her butt are his favorite places to be.

"Hello, Y/n."

"Oh, Soap, it's lovely to see you again," Y/n says looking at Soap as König growled at him. For some reason König didn't like Soap, she didn't understand why. "Hey, now," Y/n tries to pull König off her chest but he didn't want to move till Y/n started to tickle just under his tentacle. He ended up releasing and she moved him into his tank.

Where he sits pouting.

"What can I do you for Soap?"

"I need a spell."

"You know I can help," she smiles at him.

König made an angry clicking sounds crossing his tentacles over his body.

"I don't see why you have an octopus, Y/n, don't Witch's usually have cats, foxes, grogs and rats?" Soap says, tapping on König's tank. König made some more angry clicking sounds and started to tap on the tank back but a bit more angrily.

"Only in the stories, Soap," she says. "What kind of spell?"

"A love spell."

"Someone you want to impress?" She asked.

"Maybe," he smirks leaning on the counter as Y/n did her magic, moving her black Witch hat out of her face, 14 years of being a Witch and her damn hat still barely fits her head.

"I can only do so much with a love spell, you know this."

"I know, you did it for Price," Soap says.

"So, you know the side effects to it and you know that it can be a hit or miss?"

"Yes, Y/n I know," Soap had turned and didn't see the small black octopus in his tank, he slowly turns around and sees him back attacked to Y/n's chest and clicking at him.

"Behave...I don't understand why you don't like him, König," Y/n says.

König clicks and turns to look up at Y/n who placed her hand on top of his head.

"He's a bit clingy isn't he?"

"Nothing, I can do," she says as she starts bottling up the liquid and placing a cork to block the top and putting a label on it. "There you go, Soap, have a good day."

"You too, Y/n."

"König, come on, you need to get back in your tank, you'll dry up," she takes him off her chest a lot more easier this time and placing him in his salt water tank just behind the counter of her shop.

Next thing she knew someone new walked in.

"Hello." She greets with a smile.

"You must be the infamous Witch of the Kingdom."

"I must be...what can I do you for?"

"Interesting octopus, he's a bit small though."

"He's a flapjack octopus, what can I do you for?" She repeats.

"I need a spell."

"Okay, what kind? I special in many," she says, taking out a notepad and pen. Y/n has learned that there is many different people that come and go from her shop, she has also learned to never get annoyed with customers.

"I need a death spell." König jumps at the man lows voice, Y/n looks up at him and shakes her head.

"Unfortunately, I don't do death spells...it's uncalled for."

“What a waste of my time then,” he walks out and once away from her shop, Y/n quickly get out from behind the counter and locks up for the night, turning her open sign to close and shutting the curtains.

"Come on, König," She placed her hand in his tank and he attached his tentacles to her hand.

Y/n has been working on a little project and it's to make König human, well at least part human, he'll still have some of his octopus features.

She placed him on a little plush pillow just in front of her cauldron. She adds some herbs and a few potions she had to make on the side for this work.

She's tried it at least 4 different times and none worked, so hopefully 5th time is a charm? She stirs the wooden spoon adding a few of those potions in and stirred some more.

König leaned over the big pot seeing the liquid inside go from dark green to a baby blue color.

"That seems right," she grabs her book. "When the liquid is changed from dark green to a baby sky blue, the potion is ready." The other times they'd be blue but never work properly.

She pulls her wooden spoon from the liquid and poured some into a small bowl for König.

"Here, König," she says, he climbs up on the side of the bowl, he sticks his beak in and gets a few sips. "How do you feel, King?" She asked him.

He just looks up at her and clicks in confusion on what's suppose to be happening.

"It didn't work..." Y/n placed the bowl in the sink and looked down at König. "Sorry, bud."

He just clicks at her as a way to apologize and say it's not her fault.

Now, the reason on why Y/n is trying to turn König human is mainly for safety reasons. Y/n had caught herself into some trouble with some old customers of hers and would like to have some sort of protection, so why not have König be able to change into a human whenever he can.

Of course König had given her the clicks of consent as she likes to say when she wants to experiment on him.

"I'm beat, let's head to bed," she says, taking him upstairs to her home just above her shop. König of course resting on his favorite spot on Y/n. Purring in a way to let her know she was happy. "I'm my boob is your comfort place, König," she said, sounding 'annoyed'.

Y/n was doing her usual nightly routine, brushing her teeth, taking a shower with the company of König placing himself on her butt and crawling up to her chest to rest in his spot.

"Shampoo will get on your skin König, I don't want you drying up on me," she tries to pull him off but no use, where König is, he stays.

Y/n continued like normal and got on her pajama set, König was on her heels where ever she walked, he was behind her, suction cups sticking to the floor any time he walked behind her or anywhere.

Y/n could tell where he was just by listening to the sound of suction cups sticking and unsticking to the wooden floors of her home.

She got in bed and König moves under the covers attaching himself to her plush right thigh.

"You need to go to your tank, King, you can't be out all night, we go through this every night," she says, getting him off her thigh and placing him in his little tank just on her nightstand close to her bed, so he could see her.

"Good night, King."

Click, click, click

--------

Y/n was asleep her pillow between her arms as a bit of drool came from her mouth. König swam around just a little bit in his tank, a bit bored, he wanted to be on the bed with her, but he knows that Y/n hates waking up to a small puddle on her bed from him.

He placed his tentacles on the rim of him tank and pulled himself up, moving down the edge of his bowl getting to the wooden nightstand, he moves off the nightstand to the floor.

He felt a bit...off

He saw how tall Y/n's bed was and that he'll need to scale the walls to get back up there again, but the reason why he was out of the tank was because of him feeling a bit off.

He felt weak in a way, he could barely move, he curled up in a small ball on the ground next to Y/n's bed.

Y/n had woken up to a small sloshing sound, she sits up and looks at König's tank seeing it was empty.

"King?" She questioned, she looked on the ground seeing some small water droplets on her wooden floor. "König, are you up?" She questioned.

She walked around the corner still tracking the puddles, she then saw how they got bigger and then turned into a-

"Footprint?" She looks up and the corner they led to. "King?" She asked.

Click, click, click, click

"König, come on out...what happened, bud?" She asked as he came out of the shadow and she saw how tall, and muscular he was.

"W-Woah," she steps back a little, he face was covered by a black shirt with red coming from him eyes, like how he normally looked it he was an octopus but his body ALL human.

He walks towards her confused and doesn't know what to do, she places her hand out on his bare and buff chest.

"Hang on, bud, let me get a good look at you first," she says, moving around him, her hand touching his side to keep him still. "Your human, bud," she said, sounding excited.

Click, click, click

"I know, I know, but...we did it, we finally got you to be human," she says with a smile. She takes his hands and looked at them examining them.

"Your hands are so big," she says as his face became hot and bothered. "This is amazing," she says.

---------

Y/n was still examining König even after a few hours, she had given him a towel to wrap his lower half for now, before she can get him some clothes.

"OH KING! I need to go get some more ingredients for potions, I need you to stay here for now do you understand?"

Click, click, click

"It's okay, I'll be fine, you stay here, you're not properly dressed, I don't want you to get arrested, it's gonna be hard to explain that you are a familiar that turned human," she grabs her purse. "I'll be right back, okay!" She cups his chin and kissed his cheek.

König narrowed his eyes and he was DETERMINED to follow Y/n. He concentrated on turning back into an octopus and surely, he did, he lands on the wooden floor but not before the towel he wore fell on him.

Click, click he says in frustration.

Y/n was so happy that he was finally human, she needed potion ingredients and look for clothes for him as well.

"Well, well, if it isn't, Y/n."

"Soap!" She smiles.

"Where's your octopus?"

"Oh he's at home, he didn't listen to me about drying out, so now he's at home in his tank as a punishment," she lied.

"Ah, I see," Soap moved closer to Y/n, his hand on her waist.

"Soap?"

"Since, he's not here, can I ask you something? Seems like every time I try to talk to you, König gets in the way."

"He's just trying to protect me."

"Normal octopus's aren't that protective."

"Well, he's not a normal octopus, he's a familiar and familiars have different mind sets then a normal animal," Y/n tries to explain. She steps away from Soap, his hand moving off her side.

"He's still a bit annoying," he says.

"Soap, please stop disrespecting my familiar."

BAM

Y/n had looked up and saw a tall familiar man standing between her and Soap.

"King?" She whispers. His hand had slammed down on the table in front of Y/n and Soap. She sees that he had found some clothes.

"Can you move?" Soap says. He doesn't know this is König.

"König," Y/n says sternly. Within seconds König had transform back into his octopus-self. Y/n sticks her hands out catching him mid-air and placing him on her shoulder.

"König?!" Soap yells. "You turned him human?"

"I did, I did it so he can protect me from idiots," she says, giving Soap a stern and serious look. "Good day, Soap," she walked away, König turned to look at Soap and stuck his tongue out at him.

"King, I wish you didn't come out, you could have gotten hurt-"

"HEY WHERE IS HE!!? WHERE'S THE THEIF THAT TOOK MY CLOTHES!!?" A man came running pushing through the crowd looking for none other than König.

"Seriously, King?" She says, he clicks and shrugs. "Excuse me, sir?"

------

"Don't steal, I thought I taught you better than that?" König turns back in his human form and clicks into trying to explain himself. "I understand you need clothes, but I was going to get you some."

He watches Y/n move around the shop, she was about to open her shop but König had quickly moved behind her and pushed himself against her, holding her waist and stopping her from turning her sign.

"K-König," he lifts his mask and his tentacles they were longer not like his normal tentacles, cupped her chest and went around her neck. "Hey, w-what are you doing?" She asked.

He clicks and turned her around, he picks her up and slams her back against her door.

"Where in the hell did you learn this?" She questioned.

Secretly König had seen a few couple get in the alleyway between Y/n shop and the shop next door, he has watched a few...get it on perse and he's learned from the views.

He clicks in response, his tentacles still messed with the strings on the back of her dress wanting it off, Y/n didn't realize he was messing with them till she felt it go lose around.

"Hey, King-" his tentacles went to her waist and down to her butt, he lifts the side of her dress exposing her plush thighs and her thighs being squeezed by her thigh-high socks.

He walks to her counter placing her back on the hard wood. Her legs wrapped around his waist, her hands on his hard chest except her right hand messing with one of his tentacles.

His face was red and he loved when her small hand was messing with him.

"König...do you even know what you are doing?" he just shakes his head 'no' and made some clicking sounds. "It's okay...you can stop whenever."

Y/n had no idea that König that he has been waiting for this moment for so long. He messes with his belt and slips his pants down to his ankles, his hands went to her waist this time, pushing the bottom of her skirt up and looked at her black panties.

König's head moved to the side of her face and kissed her neck, his rough hands squish her.

"H-Holy," she moans.

He pushed the side of her panties with one of his tentacles, another one stuck to her inner thigh, close to her clit and then one was being pushed into her.

She lets out a soft moan, her legs and arms squeezed around him. "You lie," she says as he clicks, he looks down at her eyes seeing tears wanting to fall. He felt bad but he learned that sometimes it takes a while for someone to get use to someone's size.

She then felt something else being pushing inside of her. She looks down and seeing that it was him, his dick, she could see her stomach was bulging. She sees something moving inside of her which was his tentacle.

"W-Woah!" She moans. He starts moving his hips slowly, her head flew back and she let out some soft moans then the tears fell. König leaned forward taking the tears away from under her eyes and kissing her cheek and neck.

He then started to pick up the pace, her arms squeezing around him, her eyes squeezing shut because of the pleasure.

König then started to remove his shirt giving Y/n and good view of his built.

"H-How can you b-be so b-buff?" She asked as he just shrugs, I mean it's not like he worked out as an octopus, the closest thing to working out for him was picking up an empty glass potion bottle.

Y/n cups König's face and lifted the shirt that covered his face seeing his tentacles scrunch up like they were afraid of the light. She takes one and moves her dress scrunched down to her waist and placed his tentacle on her chest.

Some more came out and squeezed her boobs and one pinching at her nipples. She moans and she squeezed herself around his dick and tentacle.

Y/n let him do what ever he wants to her body, his pinches, kisses, nips, at her skin. He placed his hands on her waist and then placed his hand on the bulge in her stomach, he starts moving a bit faster earning some breathy moans from her.

"F-Fuck," Y/n moans. Her hands went to his arms as they were buff and she could feel a few veins in his arms. Her hands then went up his arms to his hard chest and down to his toned body. "H-Holy shit," she moans.

König sees her face and loves seeing her in so much pleasure and loves hearing her soft moans. Y/n could feel herself about to cum, König was close to, his thrusts were becoming sloppy.

KNOCK, KNOCK

"Y/N!? Are you in? It's me, Soap, I wanted to come and apologize," Y/n's eyes widened and König started to make some angry clicking sounds, she cups his face.

She walks to the door just cracking it, she hold her dress back against her chest as König was hitting her now from behind. His hands on her waist, thrusts still sloppy, his tentacles going to her waist, thighs and going between her wet folds.

"You okay? Can I come in?" Soap asked.

"N-No, König is...reeking havoc right now, and you k-know how he is with you," Y/n says. She tries to hold back some moans.

"Your face-"

"What's w-wrong with my face?" She questioned.

"I mean it's all red...are you okay?" He asked.

"I'm..."

"Sick?"

"YES! I am sick, I should go back in and warm up, thanks for stopping by Soap."

"But I wanted to say-" Before Soap could officially apologize König had slammed the door shut. He picks up Y/n taking her back to the counter, he was being rough with her now, manhandling her and bending her back over the counter.

Soap heard some crashing going on inside the shop. He goes around the corner and could just barely see Y/n.

Her head was turned away from the window, Soap could see her hair and her arms resting on the counter. He looks and saw someone tall behind her and saw it was the guy from earlier.

He could see her being dicked down by this guy, his eyes traveled up the guy and could see him staring back at Soap. But it was more of a serious look like 'you wish this was you?' König lifted his mask and showed off his tentacles and Soap knew who this was now.

"König?" He whispers as he drops his mask and went back to pleasuring Y/n. Her moans were soft as far as Soap could hear.

Y/n felt herself about to cum and with a few more thrusts from König she ended up coming on his dick, with a few more he ended up coming as well, he pulls out just in time and came on her lower back.

"K-König," she moans, but she didn't feel that tall presents anymore instead she felt his tiny body running all over her till he made it to her breast. "Seriously?" She says as he made himself comfortable on her chest.

-------

Y/n was in the bath, König still resting on her chest, he clicks when Y/n start to wash her body, her hands traveling all over herself and he watched intently like he was seeing when the next time they did this to learn more of her spots.

Once Y/n was done and drained the tub from it's soapy water, she placed König in his small tank next to her nightstand and started to change into some pajamas.

He clicks and taps the glass of his tank wanting to be out, he knows he can escape but he watched Y/n's naked body move around the bedroom putting on some panties, silk shorts and a silk top, her nipples poking from her shirt.

König jumps out of his tank and makes his way to Y/n's bed.

"King, you're making the bed all wet," she groans but he didn't care he went to his favorite spot under her shirt and laid there all night and his little tentacles pinching at her harden nipple.

"King, I will put you back in your tank if you don't stop pinching," she threatens.

[weirdmarioenemies]

SURPRISE! Did you think the day would come when we would cover Love Live on this blog? I didn't!

Yohane the Parhelion: Blaze in the Deepblue is the Metroidvania-style game based on the fantasy spin-off of Love Live Sunshine, but you probably don't care about that! Statistically speaking, our target audience is Bogleech readers who are deeply revolted by anime girls!

So why bring up? Why bring it up? The answer is 🐠 FUNNY FISH! It's Funny Fish Friday!

Since this game is set in an underwater temple, the enemies this game are all based on sea creatures, and that's cool! Again, statistically speaking, you probably think sea creatures are cool. I really liked seeing the variety of enemies when playing through this game, so I thought it'd be fun if I could share them with an audience of people who otherwise wouldn't care! None of the enemies really have names, as far as I'm aware of. But I'll do my Rubesty...?

Our first guy we encounter in the game is the sort of guy who emerges from the ground like the Zombies from Castlevania, and wow! A good first impression I think. It is sort of a squid mantle, if the mantle was also a cloak for a spooky sort of wizard! The way it doesn't really have a 'face' in the hood and the eye is below really makes it seem like a weird mimic creature. Cool!

They also get a tough lategame variant which looks like a mix between a flapjack and a vampire squid. You don't often see flapjacks be designed as scary!

---

Next is Barnacles! A whole clump of them, like a cake. They shoot Energy Balls at you. Is this what Barnacles can do if they combine their powers...? The top actually opens up, and it looks a lot like a sea urchin's mouth! So maybe it is some sort of naked urchin creature covered in barnacles? Game Theory!

There are also barnacles with Ice Powers. Like real life!

---

Let's give it up for Garden Eel!!!!

What a fine Garden Eel it is! Complete with the sort of grumpy face, and with the addition of two little arms that make it look like it's praying or maybe a bit shy. But it is mean! It also spits energy balls at you, then hides in the hole so you can't hit it. How very sneaky!

SO sneaky, in fact, that these eels have mastered the art of ninjutsu! The ninja eel shows up for a split second in one single room, before smoke bombing away. You'd have to use a time freeze power to get him, but I never got around to doing that. I don't have any beef with a ninja eel! I respect him and his training!

Did someone say CTENOPHORE? I hope you did, or my hearing has really gotten worse. This thing is a grade A ctenophore, only with a ring of Scary Teeth! A little scary to think of a ctenophore who could Bite you, but nonetheless this deserves a :ctenopog:!

---

Let's not forget Fish Vortex! Fish Vortex was the first guy to make me go 'wow, this game's enemies really are awesome!' So of course I had to put him at the top of the post! He is my selling point! I am selling all these enemies to you. For 4.99 a pop!

Anyway. This design is just so funny and cool at the same time. A swirling school of fish that leads into an endless dark abyss, and in the middle, a big eyeball. Also covered in fish. It shoots fish at you! Yay!

There is also a pink variant - it shoots fish that give you the Solitude status effect, which basically just makes Yohane too depressed to summon her friends. Meaning? They are Depression Fish! Maybe she just becomes so jealous of the unity and teamwork of these sardines. She's me like just for real! ^_^

---

isopot :)

---

This slug is an umbrella. That is ridiculous! Ridiculously EPIC! It does the opposite of shield you from rain, which is create rain, that kills you. But I would still want one as an umbrella.

---

When I first saw this thing, I thought it was some strange round Echimoderm I had never heard of. But upon further inspection (I actually asked Mod Chikako shh), it is obviously like a Brittle Star, with each arm folded round to form a wheel! How creative and fun! It even has a bunch of eyes like a starfish!

---

Last but not least- sushi! There are sushi guys and they are cute. They don't really do much and are typically found in their own rooms, so I'm not sure what the point of them is. But finding a funny walking sushi should be a reward in of itself, I guess! Look at their funny rice feet! Or the one with the roe eyes!

I happened to use fire magic on one of them and this happened. Oopsies...

Now I am sure you are saying, thank you for showing me all these funny enemies. But are there any cool bosses? Of course there are, me! What's a Metroidvania without cool bosses? So I shall show you my favorites without delay!

First is this freak (affectionate)! It is a sort of amalgamation of lots of different animals and I think it just looks plain cool! Two squid mantles combined into one, a bit of a sea angel shape, bug legs and of course a great big eyeball!

If it is not freaky enough for you, let it be known that the bug legs turn into big green skeleton hands, and it also keeps getting pinker, and it grows new eyes and then extra horns grow out of those eyes. If THAT is not freaky enough for you then I am sorry but I cannot do anything about that.

---

Now, how about a sampling of this Freaken Thang? It honestly doesn't seem that sea-creature themed, but it uses seashells so I guess it counts!

What is really neat is that this boss has two different forms, upside down and rightside up! When it is upside down it looks a bit like a Magolor type creature. And of course, I really like the flame thing in the middle as well, that really feels like a Kirby enemy or something! Like a wisp made of plasma!

---

Fans of Anomalocaris won't be disappointed by this one! It's a big Anomalocaris tank and boy is it cool! There's something for everyone here, whether you're an Anomalocaris purist or you've always wanted to see it turn into a sort of futuristic beast with a screen mouth that shoots lasers! It really is the future, zura...

---

After covering all these wacky creatures, I'm going to have to end it off with the final boss! What could the big bad, the ultimate boss of all these sea monsters even be, I wonder? Well, it's...

...a coelecanth. Just a big coelacanth! It is big and blue! And really, does it need to be anything else? It is such an honor to make the biggest ultimate boss a coelacanth. It is even pretty cute!! Think he's smiling! 😊

Uh oh! Is it still cute? I guess so. My first thought seeing this was of course the world-renowned tongue eating isopod, so I really hope it was an intentional reference! It probably just wants to shake hands. Still, a pretty simplistic design for our final boss, right?

Buu buu! Its true form actually looks like this! Actually, it's kind of doing too much. Like let's tone it down a little?

So!! We beat the mega ultra coelacanth, and now we can find out what his motivation is! And it is... that he is the memories of the people of the past or something. And they all didn't want to be forgotten, so they turned into fish monsters! But we forgive them!

It doesn't really matter. All the girlies gather around and sing him a song. Look how happy he is! I forgot I was talking about a Love Live game until now, actually. All's well that ends well, the end, et cetera! Hit it, Yohane! [imagine this is like the end of a kids movie where all the Love Live girls are having a dance party and there is a shot of the big coelacanth in jail and he's tapping his mouth fingers along to the beat]

[polyhexian]

yall gotta STOP saying hunter was trying to kill amity in eclipse lake. he was not. he was going out of his way not to kill her. his goal was to get the key and to get the key only.

lets discuss in detail.

absolute first thing that happens: King wehs Hunter

Hunter gets Flapjack staff

He teleports twice, says 'real staffs are weird' and then amity ties him up. he teleports out of this into the air.

then we has his first actual aggressive non defensive move:

This is an AOE attack. area of effect. its an attack that does less damage but hits a larger area. so this sends bolts of magic scattering and bouncing all over the place. none of them actually HIT her. and this attack does not aim at her. It purely puts her on the defensive because she is now dodging blasts.

she hops off her staff to block one and then hunter teleports in

he is now behind her and she is caught off guard. he does not attack her flank, he just reaches for the key, before king tackles him.

he teleports behind her again, and this time comes in with a swing.

one she easily blocks. again, not a magical attack here. staff bash.

okay now follow this:

hes here, with her shield

he zaps over here, lower, moves to swing but doesnt, zaps again

baps her again after her shield has already moved above her head

she moves her shield left, he comes in right but hes not even swinging.

amity punches his fucking lights out and then orbs him

he hits her with this construction punch that knocks her off her staff before she can escape

and finally he breaks the necklace with his staff.

none of these attacks were lethal. he hits her with an AOE instead of a direct attack- and she didnt have a shield up yet because she had JUST used it to tie him up, then he hops around with, frankly, some staff bashes that are really holding back from what we know hes capable of, he knocks her off her staff and then when he has the opportunity to actually HIT her he hits the key instead.

compare this to the way he fights kikimora!

he nearly gets his head taken off when she scrapes his forehead and the next attack he blocks with his eyes on Kikimora, not the attack. thats like, important. that indicative of skill level.

especially because he does it twice in a row! the second time one handed!

look at the completely different posture he zaps in to strike with. the hits on amity he is holding back.

this little bastard does a front flip mid teleport to generate strength behind this strike.

look how effortlessly he does this. imagine how many rotations that is in a single second. hes not even looking at it OR his hands. hes spinning that one handed.

ive trained on a bo staff. this shit is not easy. i trained for two years and couldnt get anywhere near that. just watch this video of noah fort going apeshit to see what this actually looks like irl.

he fucking... hits it back at her....

this little man can spin a staff so fast he can reflect magic and control the direction it fires. he hit kikimora so hard he sent her flying twenty feet.

if hunter had wanted to kill amity she'd be fucking dead dude. amity is a good fighter, like, don't get me wrong. but hunters op as absolute shit. hes a terrifying little man. he also fought her completely differently than he did kiki, and he wasnt even trying to kill her. we've never seen Hunter fight all out like, fight to the death when he was still at full strength. we have no idea what that would look like. but we know that fight with amity was faaaaar from his potential. intentionally. he is seriously holding back and clearly on purpose. its not just that hes exhausted already, its not just that he has a new staff, its that he is holding back. he is not using lethal techniques.

[enchantedchocolatebars]

Healing After A Nightmare

Fanfic for Camila Mama Week 2024 (@camilamamaweek).

Day 5: Nightmares/Healing

To commemorate this wonderful week, I opted to write short stories that feature Camila and her second daughter, Alma, who is one of my OCs.

Summary: With the aid of a stuffed friend, Kid Alma assists her mother in recovering from a nightmare.

Enjoy!

When Camila arrived home after dropping Luz off at school, she entered the kitchen to find her youngest daughter and husband sitting at the table with their usual smiles on their faces.

Returning their smiles with a compassionate beam of her own, she turned her attention to the pantry and began taking out items to prepare breakfast for the two.

Seconds later, Camila spun around and approached the table with a plate of freshly made flapjacks and a tea cup brimming with Earl Grey tea.

The mother lovingly placed the plate in front of Alma and the cup in front of Beardo Philip, and each received a kiss from her, with Alma getting one on the head and Philip getting another on his cheek.

Seeing the pair so pleasantly happy brought joy to Camila's heart as she headed to the coffee maker to make herself some morning joe.

...

Once breakfast had concluded, Camila found herself tending to the dishes and humming along to the Spanish guitar music that played on the kitchen radio.

As she heard the front door open, she assumed it was Philip coming back home after doing his daily grocery shopping for the house, and a smile crept on her face.

With footsteps approaching the kitchen, Camila turned to greet the brunette, holding a glass plate she was drying, only to be met with a familiar face she hadn't seen in so long.

Her eyes widened when they gazed into brown ones rather than blue ones.

"M-Mi amor?" A shocked Manny whispered.

Camila let out a soft gasp, her chest aching with so much sorrow as her eyes softened.

"M-Manny...," she managed to whisper, the pitch of her voice somehow deepening upon saying the name of her deceased love.

The glass plate slipped from her grasp, and it fell down in a slow motion.

Once the plate hits the ground and shatters into pieces, the atmosphere of the kitchen soon shifts into a black void with only Camila and Manny in it.

"Mi amor, how could you?" Manny posed softly with tears in his eyes as he began to approach Camila.

"H-How could I what?" Camila asked quietly, quite confused by Manny's question.

Her heart was weakened by the sight of his saddened and almost disappointed expression.

"How could you start the family that we always wanted with that monster?" Manny asked. "That dangerous man."

He continued.

"How could you remarry and have a child with him? What were you thinking?"

Camila knew exactly who Manny was referring to. "P-Philip? But, Manny, mi amor, he's not--"

"Camila," Manny interrupted, almost sternly.

"You know what he did. If he's capable of doing such a horrific thing to a family member," Manny's voice somehow deepened. "What makes you think he won't do the same to you if he gets extremely angry?"

Camila took a step back, tears welling in her eyes. "H-He wouldn't."

She was hesitant to think about such a dreadful outcome.

"Mi amor, you don't know that!" Manny argues.

Once he was close enough to Camila, Manny wrapped his arms around her in a hug and rested his head on her shoulder.

"I just wanted the best for you and Luz. How could you do this?" he whispered while sobbing.

"I... I... I..." Camila was at a loss for words.

She didn't know what to say as tears streamed from her eyes.

"Mamá?" Her youngest child's voice echoed in the distance of the dark.

"Mamá?"

"Mamá!"

...

Camila emitted a loud gasp and shot up from her sleep.

Her chest heaved, and she took a deep breath, slowly calming herself.

As she looked left, she saw Philip sleeping peacefully.

"Mamá?"

Looking to her right, Camila saw Alma standing by her bed, a concerned expression on her face.

"Baby," Camila whispered, blinking back tears.

"Mamá?" Alma repeated again, innocence in her eyes. "Is everything alright? I saw you crying in your sleep."

"Oh..." Camila wiped the tears that wanted to fall away. "Everything is fine, mija," she softly fibbed, biting her lip as she looked away.

She then looked back at her daughter, scratching the back of her head.

"Mamá just had a nightmare," she answered truthfully with a nervous chuckle.

Alma's eyes widened. "Nightmare?!" she quietly exclaimed. "Oh, no! Mamá, that's not good at all! Wait right here. I know what'll help with that!"

Rushing out of her parents' room, Alma rushes right back in with Star Catcher, her beloved Pegasi pony plush doll.

She places the plushie in Camila's hands and smiles. "Whenever I have bad dreams, I hold onto Star Catcher, and she usually chases them away. I'm sure she'll chase away your bad dreams, too, Mamá."

Camila was touched by her daughter's concern and smiled tenderly as she gestured for her to come closer and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Thank you, mija."

"You're welcome, Mamá," Alma said, walking out of her parents' room and gently shutting their door.

Camila turned her gaze to the plush toy in her hands and slowly brushed Star Catcher's cotton candy-colored mane with the back of her hand.

With a sigh, Camila settled her head back onto her pillow and tried to go back to sleep, clutching tightly onto Star Catcher.

...

Camila found herself back in her dream and in the presence of Manny again, only this time he was softly smiling at her as if she was the most precious thing he'd ever laid his eyes on.

"I... I... I... I'm sorry!" Camila choked out a heartfelt apology, finally finding the right words to say. "I just--"

Manny interrupted Camila by hugging her, bringing her face close to his chest.

"Mi amor, you have nothing to apologize for," he chuckled softly before whispering, "I'm just so glad that you were able to find love again."

Those last words...

Camila broke down in tears instantly and hugged Manny with all her heart.

[lollytea]

Now that Flapjack has essentially given Hunter a heart and it's kinda implied he didn't have one before, I'm imagining Willow flirting with Hunter and he starts getting this weird...pounding??? feeling in his chest and is super confused about it

I always imagined that Hunter's galdorstone did something when he felt strong emotions. Maybe a low reverberation or crackle through his body.

But it's funny to think about Flapjack adding something that modifies the way Hunter's heart functions. So it beats!! Which Hunter barely notices at first until it starts to really pound which freaks him the fuck out.

Willow leaning in close and winding a finger around a long, dangly lock of Hunter's hair.

"Just say the word and I'll take the scissors to it again." She winks and Hunter is already hopelessly flustered but then his chest starts hitting him from the inside??? Like. Violently??? Something is in there and it's trying to escape. Hunter does the rational thing and grips his chest for dear life and screams, successfully startling the fuck out of Willow.

After babbling about how he thinks there's something alive attempting to burst out of his ribcage, Willow eventually connects the dots.

(Obviously she's aware of the grimwalker thing by now.)

"I think...I think that's a heartbeat." She theorizes with a furrowed brow. "Here, lemme see."

She places her hand flat against Hunter's chest and feels the heavy thump beneath. "Yep. Definitely a heartbeat."

"Why's it doing that?!" Hunter demands, scared and confused. "It's trying to break out of me!!"

"Nah, that's just you."

"Me?"

"Sure. Hearts never stop beating but they're usually so quiet you don't notice. But they tend to speed up..." She spreads her fingers across the fabric of his shirt. "When you're nervous. Or excited. Or both."

"Oh..." Hunter murmurs, feeling a flood of relief wash over him.

A second.

Two seconds.

"OH!" Hunter exclaims with a stain of red setting his ears ablaze, as the reality of the situation he's in crashes down on him and his heart erupts in a riot under Willow's palm

Willow laughs giddily, then lifts her head to look Hunter directly in the eye. And though her smile is sweet as honey and warm as candelight, she can't keep the ripple out triumph out of it.

"Is that how you feel right now? With me?" She asks, brazen as ever.

Hunter knows he has to give her some sort of answer, but when he opens his mouth, not a peep falls out.

Willow waits patiently for a moment, before accepting that he just doesn't have the words right now.

"That's okay...." She says softly. She then catches hold of Hunter's hand and guides it upwards. She adjusts his palm so it's resting against her own chest.

"Feel that?" Willow whispers, as Hunter's eyes light up with fascination.

A rapid fire thump thump thump thump.

Having thoroughly exposed herself, rose petals bloom across Willow's cheeks.

"We're in this together." She assures him, the gradual reveal of her nerves cracking through her confident smile.

Hunter likes the speedy reliable rhythm of her heart. He likes to know that she's just a little scared too.

He likes her.

"Together." He agrees with a soft little smile of his own, comforted in the fact that they both have feral creatures in their chests to tame. That's certainly a problem he doesn't want to deal with alone.

[cubicle-eyes]

A Little Longer

Hunter Noceda x M!Reader

Anon asked ...

"just read your latest hunter piece and it is so cute!! touch is my love language and i loved how you wrote it in that fic, and was wondering if you could write more with reader giving hunter lots of physical affection?? ^w^ like playing with his hair, scratching his back, massaging his shoulders, rubbing his back until he falls asleep...just generally pampering him after he's had a tiring day :) this boy deserves all the love <3"

On it!~

Song while writing:

[ Set somewhere in Thanks to Them, before Halloween ]

---

"Hunter? You still sewing?"

Y/N stuck his head over the banister of the basement stairs, looking over at his boyfriend as he kept sewing patches into the jacket. He glanced up, then went back to pushing the jacket under the needle.

"Yeah. What's up?"

"Nothing," Y/N hummed, coming all the way down the stairs and pulling an extra chair up in front of the desk with the sewing machine- careful to avoid the jacket as it flowed over the edge. He smiled as Hunter stuck the tip of his tongue out in concentration.

"You having fun there?"

Hunter flushed, pausing the machine. He glared at Y/N, pursing his lips.

"Yes I am, actually."

Y/N scoffed playfully, standing and moving behind Hunter. Hunter sat up in his seat and his back audibly cracked as he stretched. Y/N blinked at the noise.

"Have you been sitting all hunched over like that since dinner?" He took Hunter's hands before they could drop to his sides, holding them out to the side to make sure Hunter paid attention to him. The blonde huffed, grinning sheepishly as he leaned his head back, the crown of his head hitting Y/N's stomach. He didn't try and hide the way he nuzzled back to feel more of Y/N against him.

"Yeah. I was focused!"

"You're gonna hurt your back worse than that time at the Knee. When you-"

"When I crashed into the tree on Flapjack, yeah, I remeber." He shook his head, trying to pry himself from his boyfriends hands so he could go back to working. Flapjack chirped, as if to acknowledge the story. He seemed to be laughing.

"Take a break. You can go right back after a minute."

Hunter looked unconvinced, and Y/N let his hands go. When he leaned back over, smirking, he winced. Y/N clicked his tongue.

"Oh, does your back hurt? Like I just said?"

"Alright, alright. What else should I do?"

Hunter stood up, sounding snappy but grinning fondly as he crossed his arms, feigning sass. Y/N rolled his eyes pushing Hunter's forehead affectionately.

"Alright, smartass. Sit down, on your sleeper."

"It's a sleeping bag."

"Same thing!" Y/N laughed. Hunter sat down, crossing his legs and folding his hands in his lap. Y/N sat down behind him, hugging him from behind and pulling him closer to fill in the space between them. Hunter giggled, leaning his head back to Y/N's shoulder. The slightly taller of the two pressed a few Kisses to Hunter's cheek, nuzzling into the space between his jaw and shoulder. He pulled away all at once and Hunter laughed again.

"What are you doing?"

"Lovin' on you. Let me rub your back."

"Seriosuly?" He sighed, yet he still got situated in front of Y/N. The blonde leaned back slightly when Y/N started running his hands over his sweater, and Y/N chuckled.

"Here, slip this off. I'm gonna grab that coconut-lavender lotion that puts you to sleep."

"I'm not a baby." Hunter scoffed, slipping the yellow knit off and tossing it on the couch as Y/N sat back down with the purple bottle.

"You're my baby." Y/N teased, running his fingers through Hunter's hair and pressed another kiss to his cheek. Hunter blushed lightly.

"That doesn't count."

Flapjack fluttered around Hunter's head, then flew upstairs. Hunter tilted his head slightly.

"What do you think he's doing?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's just taking a break. I'm gonna start now, alrighty?"

"Alrighty." He huffed in amusement, leaning back against Y/N's hands as they worked on his back, easing the smaller knots before conquering the bigger ones. He sighed as Y/N worked on his shoulder blades, wincing slightly. Y/N eased up on the area automatically.

"No, no, you're fine. Just feels weird, you know?"

"What, you never had a a massage before? Man, you're missing out."

"Har har." Hunter rolled his eyes and Y/N chuckled.

"Luz says they have massage chairs at their mall. Camila said she might drive us up there after Halloween."

"..are we going to be here that long?"

The question stilled the atmosphere and

Y/N stilled for a moment before starting on the last knot in his back.

"I don't know." He said finally, using the heel of his hand to work the spot. Hunter winced and Y/N apologized. "I.. don't think we'll be home anytime soon. The portal isn't.. going well."

"Yeah." Hunter yawned, then snapped his head to the side to glare at Y/N.

"You tricked me didn't you?"

"What?" Y/N asked, grinning innocently. "No!"

"Yes you did!" Hunter laughed, leaning back do Y/N had to hold his weight with his palms, now that Hunter's back and completely relaxed. Y/N scoffed.

"Yeah, maybe a little bit. I didn't expect it to work." Y/N admitted. Hunter sat back up, stretching to reach his sweater.

He pulled it back on and yawned again, flopping backwards so his head landed on Y/N's lap. His arms fanned out to the side and Y/N laughed. He picked the back of Hunter's head up, helping him scoot up on the sleeping bag so Y/N could open it easier. Hunter laughed as Y/N made a spectacle of unzipping it and fanning it open before lying down on his back.

Hunter automatically crawled on top of him, settling for lying on Y/N's abdomen, slotting the rest of his body between Y/N's legs. One of his sock-clad feet rubbed against the side of Hunter's shin as he sighed, running his fingers through Hunter's hair, playing with the strands and scratching his scalp gently. Hunter hummed, then it turned into a giggle. He propped his chin up on Y/N's stomach carefully so he wouldn't accidentally hurt him.

"I love you. Thank you for the massage."

"Of course, Hunter, it was fun. I love you too." He sat up slightly and Hunter got the message, leaning up so they could press a kiss together.

There was a loud snap from the stairs, and Hunter jumped like a cat. Willow laughed, and soon so did Gus, Amity, and Luz. Y/N was startled into laughing too, falling backwards and covering his face as Hunter stood, face flushed red. There was Flapjack, positioned on Willow's head and looking smug.

"Flapjack! Give me that- Picture!"

He laughed, running up the stairs and after their friends. Y/N laughed to himself from the sleeping bag, rubbing his own scalp to get over the sudden adrenaline rush from being surprised like that.

Titan, he wished they were going to stay here for a little longer.

---

I relally like this actually! I hope you do too, anon!!

💙

[waywardsunlight]

I like that Vee, Hunter, the Collector, and Luz, all have different Belos trauma from the ways he impacted their lives. Vee just wants nothing to do with him, she's entirely divorced herself from that part of her life and she's moved forward while still dealing with her trauma. When she fought Belos, she was only focused on saving Hunter, not on him because she doesn't give him any time. Hunter is always going to be stuck with Belos the most in his day-to-day life, he's got severe flashbacks and Belos killed his bird. So like, the absence of Flapjack, everything reminds Hunter of Belos. And Belos was the worst to him, because Hunter was somebody Belos cared about within direct hitting range. Hunter was angry and scared and sad but he directly got to confront and attempted to kill Belos himself because Belos forced him into that position. And Hunter loved him and Belos abused him for a long time so he's still sorting through his feelings.

The Collector kinda seems to recognize that trauma the least of any of them, they kinda don't seem to want to or can't think about it. It definitely hit them in WAD that Belos wasn't good but it's not directly addressed within the show how Belos treated them or how Belos was the only person they could talk to and how he got them to help him kill people and the Collector didn't actually understand that people were dying. That's... a lot. Luz's trauma from Belos mostly comes in her crushing guilt, he makes her feel bad and she starts losing herself and her spark. Luz gets back her hope and realizes that she wants to live and she's finally able to kill him. And she just stares him down as he tries to manipulate her and lets him suffer and it's. epic.

[mybrothercainmybrotherabel]

no one: ...

My brain: hey, what's just the worse AU ever that ends bad for everyone?

Me: well I suppose it would be if Caleb didn't manage to push Evelyn back when the witch hunters attacked, but I don't want to write that...

My brain: 😈😈😈

Me: damnit

TW: hanging, violence, death

Before Caleb could react the mob descended upon him.

“Caleb!” Evelyn leapt forward, reaching out to him. Caleb tried to push her back, but he was too late. The world seemed to slow down while he watched helplessly as Evelyn was tackled to the ground.

“EVELYN!” Caleb screamed, “Get off her!” Flapjack tried to defend her, but the next thing Caleb could see was the palisman smashed underneath a heavy boot. “NO!”

Evelyn screamed. Caleb fought off six men trying to reach her. 

“Leave her alone! Don't hurt her!”

 Something hard hit Caleb in the back of the head stunning him just long enough for someone to gag him. The next time he caught a glimpse of Evelyn she was also gagged. Blood and tears streamed down her face. Her eyes were wide in horror.

Caleb threw his body towards her, he didn't care what happened to himself. But he had to get to her. He had to find a way to get her free. 

They were dragged to the hanging tree in front of the settlement, the bells ringing out loudly to announce their execution. Caleb did not stop fighting. He had to get to her somehow. He had to get her free. Perhaps if he could shake off his assailants and throw himself at hers she could have a chance to run…

People emerged from the settlement. Mr. Fuller amongst them. He saw Caleb and immediately confronted Mr. Archer. Caleb was too preoccupied trying to get to Evelyn to pay attention to their conversation. 

The next thing he knew he was being pulled in the opposite direction, while Evelyn was being pulled towards the hanging tree. Caleb fought harder. Sheer terror filled her green eyes. She knew what was about to happen. They both did. 

No! No! NO!

Caleb didn't stop bucking and kicking and throwing his body in her direction. He held her eye contact until she was ripped away from his view. 

He was dragged to the church, fighting all the while. Even when he was tied up to the pulpit and left alone in the darkness he continued to struggle against his bindings, hoping to loosen them. He only stopped when Mr. Fuller entered the church.

The older man hurried to Caleb and removed the gag from his mouth. 

“You have to save Evelyn!” Caleb cried as soon as he could get the words out. “Please, don't let them hang her!”

Mr. Fuller's face washed over in sympathy. “I'm sorry, son, tis too late.”

“No…No!” 

The knowledge that she was already gone was more painful than his shattered ribs. Mr. Fuller held Caleb’s face as he wept. There was nothing he could do. Evelyn was dead. She had died alone and terrified. She was dead because of him, because he had failed to protect her, because he was too stupid and too selfish to stay away from her even though he knew the risk. Had she died hating him? As she hung there, the life choking out of her, had she blamed Caleb for her fate?  

“I am sorry, son. Twas all I could do to convince them to allow you to stand trial. There was nothing I could do for her.”

“Tis all my fault.” Caleb sobbed. “I promised to protect her! I promised…I…”

“Breathe, son. I know how bad it hurts. Trust me, I know. But you need to breathe. We need to focus on clearing your name, once you are safe, we can mourn her. But first we need to come up with a plan. Philip is claiming you were bewitched, most people are inclined to believe him. No one can blame you for that, if we say that the enchantment broke when she died…”

“I wasn't bewitched. Evelyn, she…she would never do that. She isn't…she's not evil.”

“I believe you, but the others won't.” Mr. Fuller said, “I'm sorry, Caleb, I truly am.”

“I won't lie.” Caleb said, “I will not slander her, she is…” he could hardly speak. “She was kind and clever and thoughtful and…and good. She was good…and now…” 

…now she was dead…she was dead because of him…

“...I won't say she bewitched me. I won't stand trial. I won't.”

“If you don't they'll hang you.” 

“I know.”

For several long moments Caleb and Mr. Fuller held each other's gaze. 

Mr. Fuller was not Caleb’s father by name or blood but Caleb was his son, there was no doubt about it. Mr. Fuller had worked so hard to keep Caleb alive over the past ten years. Anytime Caleb thought all hope was lost Mr. Fuller would come and pull him through. But this wasn't something Mr. Fuller could pull him through. He had made up his mind. 

Evelyn was dead. Evelyn was dead because Caleb had failed to protect her. He would not betray her. 

Slowly Mr. Fuller closed his eyes and lowered his head. The weight of failure aged him, turning his face into that of a tired old man. 

He turned his head away from Caleb for a moment to regain his composure. He would not cry in front of Caleb. 

Finally, after what seemed like a very long time he nodded.

“You grew into a good man, Caleb. I am proud of you. I will always be proud of you. I only wish there was more I could do.”

“Take care of Philip for me.”

“I will, you don't even have to ask.”

“Do you think they'll allow me a Christian burial?” Dread was coursing through him. He was resolute, but not unafraid.

“I will do what I have to do to assure you are both buried. Your grave may have to be unmarked, but I will make sure the two of you are together.” 

Caleb nodded. 

“I'm scared.” He admitted.

“I know.” Mr. Fuller put his hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “I know.” 

“I can't repent. I can't with any honesty or conviction say I am sorry for the love I feel for Evelyn. If that means burning in Hell…”

“Do you want me to give you last rites?”

Caleb nodded.

Mr. Fuller took out the bottle of whiskey he kept in his pocket. “I know tis supposed to be wine, but this'll have to do.” 

He held the bottle to Caleb's lips so he could drink. Then he made the sign of the cross on Caleb’s forehead and recited the Commendation of the Dying.

“I commend you, my dear brother, to Almighty God, 

and entrust you to your Creator.

May you return to him who formed you from the dust of the earth.

May holy Mary, the angels, and all the saints 

come to meet you as you go forth from this life.

May Christ who was crucified for you bring you freedom and peace.

May Christ who died for you admit you into his garden of paradise.

May Christ, the true Shepherd, acknowledge you as one of his flock.

May he forgive all your sins, and set you among those he has chosen.

Amen.”

“Thank you.” Caleb said, his throat tight and his voice hoarse. 

“Here, drink this, it will…it will dull your senses.'' The older man still did not cry, but it was becoming increasingly obvious how much of an active effort he was making to stay stoic. He helped Caleb drink a tincture of laudnuam. “I will make sure Philip is not there to see.”

“Thank you.”

There was still so much both of them had to say to each other that words could never express. Caleb could never express his gratitude to Mr. Fuller for everything he had done. There were no words to repay the guidance, trust, and understanding that Mr. Fuller had given Caleb throughout the years. Nor were there words that could express the depths of despair felt by a man looking into the eyes of the boy he had raised, knowing that there was nothing else he could do to save him. 

“Goodbye, son.”

“Goodbye. And thank you, for everything.”

With that, Mr. Fuller left. After a long time he returned with the other four men who more or less governed the settlement. Zachariah Archer, George Tilley, Eli Carver, and John Percy. 

“William says you wish to forgo your right to a trial?” Mr. Carver said. 

“Yes.” 

“He knows he is guilty.” Mr. Archer said, “I must say, Wittebane, I do commend you for choosing to face your actions as a man rather than put everyone through the spectacle of a trial.”

“Is there nothing you wish to say in your defense?” Asked Mr. Carver.

Caleb shook his head, “I was not bewitched. I truly cared for Evelyn and do not believe her to be evil. I believe we have a misunderstanding of witchcraft and that the witches are innocent.”

“Blasphemy!” Mr. Tilley hissed.

“Caleb, think of what it is you are saying.” Advised Mr. Carver. “If you were bewitched we can hardly hold it against you. We could not allow you to remain in this settlement, but you could leave with your life. If you claim such heresy, we cannot allow you to live.” 

“I understand.” Caleb said, somehow he managed to keep his voice steady. “I did not expect you to believe me. And I will accept my fate with dignity. I only request that I am allowed to say goodbye to my little brother, and that he is not punished for my actions.”

“Surely you understand we cannot trust you alone with him while you are claiming such blasphemy.” Mr. Archer said. 

“But you cannot deny brother's their farewells.” Mr. Percy argued. “Not when they are each other's only kin.”

“Very well, fetch Philip, but they may only speak under supervision.” Mr. Archer said. 

Mr. Percy left to get Philip. 

“Have you made your peace with the Lord?” Mr. Carver asked, his eyes full of sympathy. He was a kind man, Elizabeth's companion came from somewhere.

“Mr. Fuller gave me last rites.” Caleb said. 

Mr. Carver nodded, “I shall pray for your soul.”

“Thank you.”

Mr. Percy returned with Philip, who ran straight to his brother. 

“Caleb! I don't understand! What's going on? Why do you refuse to stand trial?”

“Listen to me, Pip, we don't have much time. I need you to be strong for me, okay? You're going to have to take care of yourself now, but you can do it. You are smart, and Mr. Fuller will help you, lean on him if you need to.”

Philip shook his head, tears streaming down his face. “No! The witch is dead, tis okay now! The bewitchment is broken! They can't execute you! They can't!”

“Tis okay, Philip.”

“NO!”

“Philip, please.”

“Tis all my fault.”

“No. I do not blame you for this. I love you, I have always loved you. You're going to be okay.”

Philip squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head.

“I need you to promise you won't watch. I don't want you to see. Stay here with Mr. Fuller.”

“Caleb…”

“Promise me, Pip.”

“Okay…I promise.”

“One more thing.” Caleb leaned close enough to whisper into Philip’s ear. “Promise to stop witch-hunting.”

“I…I promise.”

“You'll be okay.” 

“Time to go.” Mr. Archer said.

“No,” Philip cried, grabbing Caleb's sleeves, “No, no…”

“Tis okay, Pip. I love you. Goodbye.”

Mr. Fuller silently came up behind Philip to hold him back as Mr. Archer and Mr. Tilley roughly pulled Caleb to his feet. Caleb made eye contact with each of them one last time. Philip’s eyes were swimming with tears. Mr. Fuller gave a solemn nod. It was the last bit of strength he could offer. 

Mr. Archer pushed him hard and he stumbled forward. Outside the church a crowd had gathered. Henry Jones and Elizabeth Carver amongst them.

“Father!” Elizabeth cried as soon as Mr. Carver walked out, she ran to him and clung to his arm. “Father, please reconsider!”

“Tis the law of the Lord, Lizzie. He confessed. Tis out of my hands.”

“Tis okay, Lizzie.” Caleb told her. “Go back to Henry.”

Elizabeth squeezed her eyes shut and sobbed. “At least give him a barrel to stand on.” She begged her father. “Please.”

“Very well.” Mr. Carver said. 

“Thank you.” Caleb said, “and thank you for being my friend.” 

Elizabeth threw her arms around him.

“Eli, you would do well to teach your daughter restraint.” Mr. Archer said.

“And you would do well to show some compassion!” Mr. Carver snapped back. “Come now, Lizzie.” 

Mr. Carver pulled Elizabeth back, Henry came forward to comfort her. 

Mr. Archer continued forward, pushing Caleb along. Tears sparkled in Elizabeth's eyes until she turned and buried her face in Henry's chest.

Others came out to witness Caleb’s final walk. People whispered, but Caleb kept walking with his head high until they reached the palisade gate, that was when the hanging tree came into sight. His knees failed him at the sight of Evelyn's body dangling limply from the branches. 

Mr. Archer and Mr. Tilley caught him under his armpits to stop him from hitting the ground. 

“You'll join her in Hell soon enough.” Mr. Tilley growled.

Caleb closed his eyes and looked away, she was dead. She was really dead. Tears rolled down his face. I'm sorry, Evelyn. I'm so, so sorry. 

Mr. Carver called for a barrel and helped Caleb step onto it. He was far more gentle than Mr. Archer or Mr. Tilley. He was a good man.

“I pray your neck snaps quickly.” He said quietly as he slipped the noose around Caleb's throat. “May God have mercy on your soul.”

Caleb wanted to thank him for his tiny kindnesses, but he didn't think he could speak. His heart was racing in his chest, desperate to get as many beats out as it could before it stopped forever. At least the laudanum had been given a chance to work, causing the world to blur and sway a bit, but dulling the pain of Caleb's broken ribs. 

Mr. Archer addressed the crowd.

“Caleb Wittebane stands before you, having confessed to consorting with witches. We now condemn him to face God's divine judgment.”

The next moment the barrel was kicked out from underneath Caleb’s feet. 

William Fuller waited in the church as once again one of his children was taken from him. In spite of what some people said, he had never seen Caleb and Philip as replacements for his own children. The loss of his brave David, sweet little Felicity, and their mother would forever be a hole in his heart that nothing could ever heal. But when he found Caleb and Philip, they had started building around the hole. He had needed them as much as they needed him. They had given him a reason to carry on living even after he felt like his heart had died. 

Caleb had grown into exactly the type of man William had hoped he would be: curious, open-minded, noble…those traits that had drawn William to him as a child, the traits that made him who he was, those were the traits that led him to his death. 

Young Elizabeth Carver was praying at the pulpit, with Caleb’s buddy Henry Jones beside her. Philip was still clinging to William like a child might cling to their mother. 

Finally, Eli Carver returned. Everyone looked up, his daughter stood as if hoping her father had come to deliver news of a miracle.

“It is done.” He said simply. A new hole ripped wide open in William's heart. Elizabeth crumbled, Henry caught her and lowered her gently to the floor. Eli crossed the room to stand before William.

“William…I…” his eyes were full of sympathy.

“Tis not your fault, Caleb had made his decision, not even I could talk him out of it.”

Eli nodded, “His neck snapped. I thought you should know that. Twas over quickly.”

Philip let out a sob. William put a hand on his head to comfort him. He didn't suffer, that was a small mercy. 

“Thank you.”

“I presume that I need not remind you that giving a Christian burial to one accused of witchcraft goes against the King's laws.”

“I am aware.”

“I also presume that you have every intention of burying that boy.”

“You presume correctly. Are you going to arrest me?”

“No,” said Eli, “I will aid you.”

“Thank you, my friend.”

William exited his bedroom to see Philip dressed and ready to go in the main room. The younger boy had come home with William, unable to face the idea of returning to the empty Wittebane house. 

“You're not coming with.” William told him.

“You can’t stop me.”

“Caleb asked me to keep you safe. I'm not going to immediately go against that promise by bringing you out to break the law.”

“He's my brother.”

“I know.”

“I'm never going to see him again.”

“I know. But your last memory of him should not be seeing him like that.”

“I've seen plenty of hangings, nothing will be worse than what I am already imagining.”

William sighed. With both himself and Eli complicit in this crime, the likelihood of any serious consequences was low. How could he deny Philip the chance to see his brother laid to rest?

“Carry the blankets and for the love of God, keep quiet.”

Philip nodded and obeyed, William shouldered a shovel and led the way through the darkened settlement. 

Eli and Henry were both waiting at the gates to the settlement.

“Let us make haste.” Eli said. 

They approached the tree with the two bodies dangling in the dark. 

“Cut him down, Henry.” William ordered. He and Eli got into position to guide the body to the ground. It looked like Eli had been telling the truth. While Caleb’s neck lobbed at an unnatural angle, his face was absent of the telltale bloating that came with strangulation. Philip could hardly contain himself. He held his brother's corpse to his chest and sobbed. 

“You must pull yourself together.” Eli said.

“Give him a moment to grieve while we cut her down.” 

“Surely you aren't serious!” Eli said. “Tis one thing to bury Caleb, but the witch? Have you gone mad?”

“She is but a girl,” William replied, “By looks younger than your own daughter.”

“She is the one who led Caleb to his fate.” 

“As he led her. Believe what you will, but Caleb loved her, enough that he would rather die than sully her name. I will not leave her here to rot.”

Eli sighed, “Cut her down, Henry.”

Carefully, William guided the girl's body down. She was not as lucky as Caleb. It was clear from the red spots on her skin and her swollen lips that she had not died quickly.

He thought about all the stories Caleb had told about her. She liked exploring and watching animals. She had a little sister and an older brother. She loved to tell riddles and snorted when she laughed. She had hopes and dreams for the future. She was just a kid. They were both just kids. 

“I'm sorry I couldn't have gotten to know you.” William whispered. “I hope you find peace.”

Carefully, William shrouded her in one of the blankets while Henry and Eli wrapped Caleb in the other. 

“There is a clearing by the river where the ground is soft.” Henry said, “Tis out of the way enough that I don't think anyone would disturb it or notice fresh turned soil.”

“Lead the way, then.” 

William lifted Evelyn’s body into his arms, Eli carried Caleb's. Philip trailed along with the shoves, shaking hard. 

Henry had been right, the earth in the spot he suggested was soft and it did not take long to dig an adequate grave. William lay the two bodies side by side. Eli helped him climb out. 

“Heavenly Father,” William prayed. “Look down in mercy upon these two children whom we offer now to thy care. Forgive them their trespasses and cleanse them with thy holy light. Grant them everlasting life in your kingdom. Let them know no more pain or sorrow. For you are the most holy. In your name, Amen.”

[ecoamerica]

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

[lilacthebooklover]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

@snarky-wallflower Thanks for the tag! This was a lot of fun :)

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

67 currently, but I have deleted a few old ones lol

2. What’s your total word count?

Now, when I tell you I went overboard on this question, I went overboard. My private, unposted, solely-written-by-me fics' total word count is 227,868. My total word count for fics I've collaborated with @charismabee on is 477,549, and my total word count on AO3 is 389,530. However, quite a few of my AO3 fics are collabs with Red, so if you take away everything like Wilting Flowers and Owl House but Kindergarten, you're left with 225,235 words written solely by me. So, if you total up 225,235 + 227,868 + 477,549, then you get a grand total of 930,652 words! Then, of course, there's the whole matter of my old fics on regular Word and not Docs, which would probably add up to at least another 50,000 total considering we're talking about my ASOUE and DT17 phases, as well as all of the private Viva Pinata and miscellaneous musical stuff lurking in there, and we've got that weird writing app on my tablet that I used a lot a couple of years ago whenever my phone got confiscated, but I cannot be bothered to search through all of that right now. So, it mostly rounds up to around 1,000,000 words. Fanfiction may or may not be taking over my life. (Gosh I love maths <3)

3. What fandoms?

I've written mostly for the Kindergarten 1 and 2 fandom, my total fics on AO3 for it totaling 38. However, I have written a heck of a lot of OMORI as well, and dabble in the Owl House, DHMIS, a few webseries on YT as well as the Hatchetverse sometimes, too!

4. Top 5 fics by kudos

1. World's Okayest Uncle at 799. My latest WIP, written for the Hatchetfield Universe and based around the concept of Paul Matthews becoming the accidental uncle of every kid in town. Each chapter focuses on a different child (the three so far about Alice, Richie and Pete respectively), and once all of them have been sufficiently adopted, I've been considering adding some slice-of-life stuff, exploring the changed character dynamics, and looking into parts of canon that would change in the AU as well. 2. Hollow at 455, a Hunter-centric one-shot for the Owl House set immediately after season 2 finished. It was written in the post King's Tide craze of awesome Human Realm content, so it got quite a lot of hits at the time. It focuses on Hunter dealing with the aftermath of Belos seemingly having died, and himself having being thrown into a completely new, unfamiliar world as an unfamiliar God took over his own :) 3. Flapjacks at 279, another Hunter-centric piece because TOH fans can't get enough of him lol (I am very much one of those fans). I began writing it back when Thanks to Them was first released, then got the motivation to finish it after I saw Watching and Dreaming. It focuses on Hunter returning to the Human Realm after the Collector's defeat, as well as Camila's thoughts on being a parent of who knows' how many kids at this point. Hunter finally gets the chance to mourn, and finds out what a flapjack actually is. 4. Gravesfield Historical Society, at 275. In which it's only natural that the Boiling Isles' leading Human Expert decides to do some research, and Gus does his very best to ignore the images plaguing him from looking into Belos' mind. Vee looks for some closure, Hunter is very protective over his little siblings, and Gus just wants to have a fun day at the museum. Things... Don't go to plan. 5. Fading, at 215. Yet another TOH work (I was around when the fandom was active as heck), one of the shortest pieces I've ever written at only 722 words. It's from Flapjack's POV during that scene in Thanks for Them. You know the one. I made lots of people cry, and sacrificed the birb.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Of course!! I thoroughly appreciate every comment I receive; they really make my day. Being part of an active fandom with the Uncle Paul AU has sort of taken me by storm so my inbox is pretty clogged at the moment, but I promise that I have read and smiled over and will reply to the comments all of my lovely readers have left behind! It means so much that someone's not only taken the time to read what I've written, but that they liked it enough to leave a comment behind. Even just keysmashes or "<33"s are really lovely to see, so thank you to the wonderful commentors out there! You guys are awesome :D

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Ooh, now this is a tough one! Pretty much 95% of what I write is angst, with a good 70% being Hurt No Comfort. Still, I think the angstiest ending I've ever written would have to be that of either "Enough", in which 13 y/o me decided it was a good idea to follow the perspective of kindergartener Theodore Huxley as his brother pushed him to his death, or "Wilted", in which 13 y/o me decided it was a good idea to follow the perspective of suicidal kindergartener Lily as she gave up on finding the one person who cared about her and committed suicide as a result of being bullied. Wilted should probably win out considering the implications of what would happen to Billy as a result, and bc the ending subsequently led to Nugget's death too, but Ted's train of thought in Enough is so gosh darn sad.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Definitely "McDonald's". That's the fluffiest thing I've ever written, no doubt about it. Not a smidgen of angst, just a bunch of kids with colourful eyes and pointy ears walking into a fast food restaurant and discovering what chicken nuggets are. It literally ends with the promise of more cute adventures to come, so I'd say this one's a no-brainer loll

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I've only ever received hate once, on a little Gravity Falls AU I made entitled "Puppet Strings and Stage Curtains". I got some pretty nasty criticism on it and, as a kid who was still very anxious about posting stuff online, it really impacted me at the time. I'm still a little nervous even now to open up my inbox because I think I might have gotten another comment like that shfjdhhgkjh. I wound up abandoning the fic because my motivation was completely destroyed, and I couldn't even look at the thing without feeling ashamed. However, I haven't received any hate since, which is great! There's just no reason for it, really; if you like something, leaving a comment is wonderful, and it makes the author happy! If you don't, just don't read the fic. Leaving a hurtful comment isn't going to make anyone happy, and can be really damaging to writers. Shoutout to @weedkillercentral, who, without fail, leaves the bizzarest comments known to man on almost every work I post.

9. Do you write smut?

Nope! I am a ✨minor✨ (@snarky-wallflower dw I too am a nerdy prude, sex jokes are Ew). Still, I do enjoy writing romance from time to time! Some ships are straight-up hard not to enjoy reading/writing for :))

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Funny story, actually. I used to have Wattpad and, as much as I hated using it, a friend of mine liked the site so I used it to support her. I wound up posting some of my own stuff on there at one point. I will never be able to get over the fact that when you searched up my username online, the images used to show a picture of Sharkbomb Glomgold. How do I know this? Because small me got bored and looked up my username, and accidentally found a mirror site to Wattpad with some of my stuff on. It credited my username and everything, but I panicked about it because as far as I was aware, I had no control over whether I could take it down or what else could be put on it. So, I deleted everything on my account, and just like that, the fics on the mirror site vanished. So no, I've never had anything outright stolen-- at least, I hope I haven't-- but that was a Not Fun experience for little me a few years ago

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, I'm not famous enough for that lol. I did have an offer for someone to make a podfic of smth I wrote a few years ago, but they never got around to it. Still, if anyone ever wants to translate one of my fics, I'd love it if you did! Please just let me know and acknowledge me as the OG author; having a work translated sounds awesome.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes! Many thanks yet again to the amazing @charismabee, my dear co-author and the Kel shirt to my Maverick cosplay wig. The amount of hours I've spent writing with her is actually insane, as well as the times we've just messaged brainstorming AUs or having far too strong feelings about the show Elena of Avalor. We've done joint Whumptobers and Febuwhumps, fics that are combinations of the nichest stories and characters, a lot of redemption arcs for 5-year-olds... If you like my stuff, I thoroughly encourage you to go give her work a read at TheFearIsRed on AO3! :D

If anyone else ever wants to try collaborating on something, I think I'd be willing to give it a try! There are loads of talented authors on here, and co-writing is a lot of fun <3

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Hmm... Well, Paulkins is an obvious one (remember that one post about "hatchetfield fans when normal man and his barista crush show up for 5 seconds"? yeah that's me). They have a level of mutual trust and understanding that's just really nice to explore, they both have issues galore but will support each other no matter what, half infected Paul content is golden and as an avid Uncle Paul truther, Emma finding out about his many children is just too funny a concept to me. They act like teenagers when they see each other, they're both down bad, she knows he doesn't like the Christmas advert jingles, he thinks she's funny,,, they're so <3

Another strong contender is Pearla (Penny x Carla), from the K2 fandom. @goldmoth82 was the one who got me into writing about them with their absolutely incredible stuff (art, fics, you name it!). They're just a traumatised android and a thieving arsonist, what more could you want?

Gold rush (Kel x Mikhael) is another of my favourites though, mostly because it's so funny. Mikhael has declared them rivals, and Kel could not care less. Mikhael challenges him to races, and Kel beats him easily. Mikhael insults him often, but Kel doesn't retaliate. Mikhael wants to be independent and special, to stand out from everyone else. Kel wants to be appreciated as more than just Hero's brother, to be liked and acknowledged as himself. Mikhael would vehemently deny his feelings until Daphne and Bowen tied them up together and forced him to confess. Rivals are just lovers in disguise, everyone. One-sided gold rush is even funnier, because they're technically one-sided rivals. Kel was Mikhael's homosexual awakening. Mikhael looks so dumb and flamboyant because he's trying to impress him. Mikhael claims he hates him and that his bright red face is from anger after Kel effortlessly beats him time and time again. I love them.

But I think out of everything, Wrightworth would have to take my top pic for favourite ship. Gay lawyers who would die for each other for the win.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

Ohh gosh. There are quite a few, but I'd probably say this year's Whumptober. My mental health went schwoop this October and I only got up to day 11 despite my plans. I still intend to finish the collab one with Red when I have time again (exams suck), and I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to get around to completing it. At least there's always next year! :"]

16. What are your writing strengths?

Definitely characterisation. I have a lot of fun getting into characters' heads and making studies on them in different scenes or just overall, and have a lot of fun bouncing different personalities off of each other. Once I know a character, I know the character, and writing their POV is as simple as breathing lol. I'd also say that I'm pretty good at tension building and breaking, as well as Hurt No Comfort (you need some good old angst, I'm your gal).

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Action scenes, for one, though I've been improving on them since I started the TOH Kindergarten AU! I'd also say that I struggle with slower-paced, filler sort of stuff. I might like to build up to an event, but chapters that don't have plot relevance just sort of stump me lol, even when they're necessary :)

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language?

I enjoy learning languages, and have been teaching myself Spanish for the past couple of years or so. However, writing them is a whole separate thing entirely. If I had a translator, I'd be all good! I just get a little worried when I write any language that isn't Spanish because google translate is unreliable as heck, so I typically tend to avoid it. Luckily, none of my fandoms really require it- but if that Franziska & Miles brainrot doesn't go away soon, I might be in a bit of a pickle trying to write German dialogue hshjhgfk

19. First fandom you wrote for?

A Series of Unfortunate Events (the Netflix show). It was the first fandom I got really, properly into, diving in headfirst at the age of about 12 and finding a lot of awesome content. The obsession I had with VFDBaudelaireFile13's Violet Snicket AU "Misery Loves Company" a few years ago was wild. My writing back then was very jolty, and I wrote in chapters that only lasted a few paragraphs with big, bold titles that often had at least two exclamation marks at the end. Still, ASOUE is one of my favourite shows to this day, and I don't regret a thing from my time binge-reading everything I could find for it (except that one lemons fic I accidentally came across when starved for content), nor any of the silly little unposted AUs I wrote on Word.

20. Top 3 fics I've ever written:

I puzzled over this question for ages, but found it impossible to choose just one! Ignore that I'm cheating a little here, and take three instead <3

1. An unposted collaborative work with @charismabee/TheFearIsRed that we called MPT. It was the first big fic I ever wrote, and it was probably what really got me into writing as a hobby. I got to spend time at random intervals writing about and whumping my favourite characters with someone I'm very close with, making up the plot as we went along. I remember coming up with the initial idea on a swingset, and spending hours colour-coding every segment of those 50,000 words based on each mention of a character as well as who wrote what. MPT is messy, and a tad repetitive in places, and while finished, I don't believe it's something I'll ever post. But it holds a special place in my heart, and it's a lot of fun looking back on my writing from a couple years ago compared to now 2. Not sure if this fully counts, but an untitled Omori WIP I've got going atm is definitely up there. It's Hero-centric with huge emphasis on his trauma, following the course of the year the events of the game occur in. I've had a blast writing his thoughts and time at college, and I'm geberally just really proud of it thus far. Hopefully, it'll be done by January in time for his birthday! :) 3. Now this one is a posted work– Magical Girls: Omori!, another collab with Red. We came up with the idea, binge-watched season one of Glitter Force on Netflix, and ran with the plot. We've planned out all of season 1 with ideas for season 2, incorporated a plethora of great characters, and been able to mess around with a fun fantasy high school full of our favourites. It's always wonderful to write, and I really like how it's been going!

Thank you again to @snarky-wallflower for the tag! You're amazing <3

As for people I know, I've tagged the vast majority of you already sjhkffg oops.

@charismabee @goldmoth82 @weltato @inprisonforsparkling hey there jpr the au mastermind, fanartist of the century, paul whump bestie and king of michie. you guys are some of my favourite writers out there, i'd love to see what you answer with for this (no pressure ofc!) <33

[mdhwrites]

Ok, so i watched the finale, it was pretty predictable but enjoyable. But during the after cred scene, it really just solidified how aimless these characters are, Willow truly became just 'strong athlete' who serves as Hunters arm candy. She doesnt seem to give a shit about plants anymore ig? shes just 'buff' now.

Gus went straight back to 'guy who likes humans who has a group to celebrate said interest'. Amity is just... making abominations? i guess? Hunter is making palismen, which seems shoved in because caleb apparently carved.

Luz is... magic. yeah thats it. Eda is a headteacher, which feels widely out of place, but whatever. King Is. Other characters are rebuilding? i just- it feels like these characters have nowhere else to go because they just had no personal goals outside of very basic shit.

With amphibia, sasha became a child therapist, anne became a biologist who specialised in amphibians, marcy became a game designer. These are all goals that reflect their journey.

Now I want to start by saying that endings are hard and that character endings can be even harder than that. If you do a time skip epilogue, you have to somehow be able to show that all the characters are happy, successful and moving on in a way that makes sense and is narratively satisfying. You also usually have VERY little time to do this with because it's purposefully meant to be fluffy and sweet and disconnected from the rest in a way that isn't going to fit with the core of the show. The problem is that part of why this is hard is because characters are meant to be complex and their endings should reflect on the themes of the piece as well. Marcy's creativity and wonder about things blooming into a webcomic (I believe it's a webcomic and not games at least, though games works too) is great because she found a healthy way to share those passions with others and make connections through them. Anne's whole arc was learning to find the wonder in others and the strange world she was in and so her aquarium job is dead on the money. Sasha had to learn the hard way how to stop being controlling, angry and manipulative and passing those lessons on is far deeper and useful to others than anything her cheerleader base would have made you expect. It also makes it so when the show states the theme of the piece, about separation being a chance to grow and what you'll find coming back together is all the stronger, it hits SO. FUCKING. HARD. And comparing that to TOH... Well, we got effectively six character endings from what I've seen, seven if you count Lilith but hers is just more of what she was already doing as her job in the series, just now with a harpy form so I don't. Only six are meant to be any sort of final cap on their character/lives. And I'm just going to say this outright: They're not all bad. So from best to worst, with the name at the start of each in bold in case you don't care about someone, let's talk about: Hunter Amity Eda Willow Gus Luz Hunter: It's good. It's genuinely pretty damn good. That's not a joke or a setup or anything either. If Hunter's arc was about rejecting Belos to any extent, then this is a GREAT finish, even without Flapjack. After all, the part of the Isles that Belos himself most directly destroyed through his consumption, greed and wrath was the palistrom trees and palismen. Having it be that Hunter is now helping restore those elements is incredibly potent. Of course, there's also the obvious connection of Hunter and Flapjack but arguably the bird had more to do with his arc than any one character so him influencing Hunter's future just makes sense. I think it also just fits well with Hunter's character though. Watching out for people trying to steal palistrom wood uses his old soldier training but now in a constructive way, he's obviously not a very social person so the isolation is probably nice to him to get away from things and the boy has a LOT mentally to deal with. Working on regular wood while thinking about all of that is going to be a good place to release those anxieties and tensions in a good, creative manner. And for themes of identity, I think it's fine too. While Flapjack was Caleb's palisman, I don't think we ever get it confirmed that Caleb himself carved for a living or the like. That makes this genuinely something Hunter is doing himself and not because of someone else. That includes if he's doing it somewhat for Flapjack because honoring a friend is a very personal thing and very different from copying the dead. And again, frankly, the job feels very right for Hunter because it plays into his strengths rather than his weaknesses and gives him the peace he needs. No notes. Good job show. You got one. Amity: Okay, that's a little mean because Amity's is... Fine. It finally gives a point to her and her father's arc that you can't argue with through "X led to nothing" like angst about her father or the abomaton problem. There is a through line to this, especially with her abomatons. It makes narrative sense and functions.

...Except how much have those things actually mattered to her and in how long? She still rejected her father's hug in Reaching Out and didn't ask Em and Ed about him so their relationship by the end of the show still wasn't good. Escaping Expulsion explicitly said Amity was letting her grades slip so she's been at least distracted from magic for over a season at this point. Yes they claim her hair is abomination styled but it's WAY too light colored for that frankly, making it look way more pink than any sort of purple. Worse yet is that Amity's arc, besides becoming Luz's girlfriend, can be generously claimed as having a theme of becoming her own person instead of what others want of her. This technically works but clashes some by her still following in one of her parent's footsteps. She just swapped from her mother's dream to her father's passions. Now Alador never pushed her to copy him, he was neglectful after all so that would have been hard, so it still works. It is still theoretically a form of abominations that is characterized in the show by being about passion rather than simply performance with Odalia pushing the need for it to be commercial, something Amity theoretically won't care about. Frankly though, with how much her arc tries to push her caring about others, her reading to kids, there even being from what I've seen a sweet moment between her and the Collector... Why not make her a teacher or a caretaker of some sort? That's harder to portray than abomination mechanic but it fits as an ultimate capstone for going from someone who only cared about personal position, being the best and would throw away lives for her goals to someone who rejected all of that. To someone who spent their life now lifting others up and her knowledge empowered her to do that better than she otherwise could have. So Amity gets like a B. It works narratively and for the character but there's some improvement that could be done.

Eda: Oh look, a job that is going to make her absolutely miserable! That is my first thought hearing that she's a headmaster. After all, being the lead administrator is NOT the same as being a teacher. The paperwork alone is going to make her wish she was dead, much like when Tsunade became Hokage in Naruto. But that's not really what you're supposed to be thinking with it. It's supposed to be the ultimate extension of both Momma Eda in her students being her kids but also the fulfillment of Eda going from reluctant mentor to full on teacher. Which... If there were more than two episodes of the series where Eda was actually even attempting to be a mentor to Luz, that might actually mean more and that is EASILY the stronger thread being pulled here. You have to make the students into a more abstract concept for the Momma Eda theme to really fit here. What could you have done with her? I don't entirely know but I would probably have said enjoying retirement with Raine. Living a life finally at peace and without a need to hustle and bustle to fight against the curse or the system. She could have the freedom she always wanted without having to fear for her life. Having her partner by her side also makes it so you know she has family, something she spent so much of her life without. So essentially it's an ending that works from a more meta perspective but when you actually consider the events of the show and the character, it's questionable how much it fits or how 'happy' an ending it will be for her, especially when it ties her down so hard.

Willow: Okay, being fair here, from a setup perspective this actually works better than Eda's ending. Her strength is much of what defined her character, magically and physically, and she decided personally to want to go into sports in S2. Her becoming an athlete fits on both of those levels. For a character who is mostly a plot device, that's not bad.

Except it really doesn't play into anything about how she began and her resentment towards the name Half a Witch. It also has nothing to do with her plants. These elements that the show tried to claim had her seething resentment, that dominated her childhood, are ENTIRELY gone from her ending instead of reclaimed in any way. It's frustrating because it really paints that early stuff as pointless and genuinely just for Amity's sake, not Willow's and that's not great when the athletic stuff always felt tacked onto me in S2 just to give her SOMETHING to do with Hunter.

It also just continues pushing this feeling to me that despite setting up and wanting Willow to be the shy, plant girl archtype at times, S1 especially wanting her to just be willing to wilt away, SOMEONE on the writing team hates that archtype. Just wanted to surgically remove every last scrap of that from her character, regardless of if she was given the time to justify it or the like. That was frankly more okay to me with the shy element than the plant element seeing as she feels BORN to do plant magic by the fact that she was a master practically from the first time we see her use it without no training.

But here's the real reason it's below Eda: I hate her design. It's mostly fine but it's also UNFINISHED. She has one kneepad and ONE SOCK. You can make excuses for one of those but not the fucking sock and it drives me up a wall. I also don't like that the reformed Isles would still have a character like Willow having spikes on parts of her uniform for sports. Get rid of those and imply things have become gentler show. It's not like you've ever cared about keeping the Isles' identity intact before.

Gus: Here is where we go from "It functions but is maybe not good if you think about it" to "You're being way more honest than you're meaning to be show." After all, we have that cyclical aspect of Eda where Gus is returning to the start of the show but there is NO thought put into this.

If there was, if the show was willing to show that Gus had become wiser and more considerate, he wouldn't be studying humans. Not on the Isles. After all, how is he even going to do it on the Isles? Studying Luz? That feels weirdly like being friends with Bigfoot while saying you still need to find Sasquatch and prove the legends are true. Dude, maybe stop being... weird about this race you know exists properly now. It's kind of uncomfortable.

It's not even a hard thing to fix: Say he's here to see Luz off before going through the portal door with one of those glamour stones to cover his ears. He needs to go learn anthropology and the political sciences of our world in order to prepare to be a proper ambassador. That actually might have been neat.

But, you know, that would have taken any thought or care with Gus and we're lucky he was even remembered in the finale frankly. It's a flat failure though and really highlights how Gus hasn't grown and is still mostly a joke to the writers.

So then the question is... If Gus is this bad, can it really get worse with

Luz: *breathes in slowly*

*breathes out slowly*

I've been pretending to grade some of these and if that's the case, I don't even accept Luz's ending. I tell the student that they ignored what the assignment was and just copy and pasted the first paragraph of their wikipedia entry and tried to hand that in as their answer to how the MAIN CHARACTER OF THE SHOW ENDS IT. Because that is exactly the vibe of this ending.

Luz didn't grow and she sure as shit didn't learn anything. Remember: Her theme for her character arc, the worst decision to me creatively, is the fantasy she wants to live versus the consequences of that fantasy. It doesn't even matter how bad that theme is ever handled in the show because this is theoretically the largest, explicit theme of the story outside of personal expression being all that matters.

And Luz literally ends the series chasing the same dream she had at the start.

I... I don't even entirely know how to respond to that. The show, which is a kid's show remember, legitimately said that her running away from her problems to play out one of her fantasy books was such a good choice, it should be the thing she does for the REST OF HER LIFE. That it is the final, definitive note for the character that Luz the Human is going to be Luz the Witch.

And you know what? If Luz's journey to being a witch actually meant anything in the show, this might have literally any justification. If during the course of the show she had genuinely learned a lot as a person over the course of becoming a witch, if magic itself had so many rules as to require you to be a functional human being in order to use it, it MIGHT work. It's not great but it might work. Except... Remember back when I was talking about Eda? About how Eda spends two episodes teaching Luz and that's it?

Remember: Luz is like 90% why the Selkidamus is beat while on the boat. By the beginning of S2, and explicitly with Escaping Expulsion, she is already closing in on the ceiling of her powers. She already outshines most other witches to the point where the Emperor is the only person to give her a real challenge combat wise so long as the series is actually remembering to let her cast spells. Half of her glyphs aren't even tried to be connected to anything but instead, as she puts it, are found from other witch's spells randomly. They're just... There and no one else noticed somehow.

And this is what you want to say her character was leading up to? A profession that in the human realm has no transferable skills because she can't just be spinning Stringbean all the time without it being obvious and glyphs don't work in the human realm. It's actually worse in the Boiling Isles because unless she's going to get employed as a glyph master or something, she still needs a job. Everyone has magic there after all and anyone can use glyph magic with ease. You don't even need to be confident in it. Thank you Gus and Looking Glass Ruins.

It is bizarrely revealing how little thought and care was put into Luz and the themes of the show with this being how it ends. It is just, top to bottom, a failure. The only way it functions is fans of the show being happy she's chasing her dreams into eternity. You cannot think about it for even a second without some sort of question coming up.

And what else would she do? Easy. I've been saying she should have become a counselor or a therapist literally even before S2. That was just the obvious way for her to grow to me. She learns that you need to balance reality and fantasy, your passions with the demands of the world and takes up a job that lets her help kids like her find happiness and a place in their world. Either world. It would imply she understands childhood fantasies are just that, it would highlight her empathy and understanding of others and also is an amazing culmination of the theme of Fantasy versus Reality.

And instead the show's response was probably as far from caring about any of those things as you can possibly get. I don't understand it and it blows my fucking mind.

But I mean... if you want to finally drop the pretenses and just admit that your show is nothing but basic, escapist fantasy... I guess there really isn't a better ending than this, is there? =======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead, If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

[goatpaste]

What’s a candy wife 🫣

Ahhh it's kinda a term that spawned from my friend group that's we've spread around in a small radius amongst others lol

But it originally started as a term for 'a fake made up wife' based on candy wife from the marvelous misadventures of flapjack

Like for example, saying like 'I dont beleive that guy has a wife, she's got to be a candy wife or something' in the idea that it's a wife fabricated

Then that evolved into 'fictional idea of a wife, the ideal woman who I would want to be a candy wife to me' which the traits mostly comprised of traits of woman's I likes. It was a joke to me as a single man of the type of person I wanted lol

Which involved like a New Jersey woman, would probably cut my breaks and push me off a balcony or hit me with hammers because she loves me, crazy, type of woman you have a meet cute with in the form of she hits me with her car and manages to blame me for it

Which that has evolved more into a general concept with like, a sorta solid list of traits for what makes up a candy wife and if an individual can make up a solid percent of those traits they could be classified as a candy wife. Doesn't have to have all the traits at once but just a chunk of them

Some traits including

Crazy

Wants to torture their pet husband, usually in funny ways

Would kill for their husband over

New jersey

Leopard print, wine mom paraphernalia

Whore behaviors

Some PRIME top examples of candy wives to me

Fran from the Nanny

Debbie jellinsky from Addams family

Tiffany Valentine from Childs Play

Holli Would from Cools World

Siren from What We Do in the Shadows

Katya Zamolodchikova from Drag queen fame

Candy wives don't have to be just girls tho, there are also male candy wives,their similar bur do carry their own vibe, examples of that would be

Gyro Majima from Yakuza

The king of all Cosmos from Katamari

Preminger from barbie princess in the pauper

Mettaton from undertale

Just to name a few

And their different from husband's of Candy wives, candy wives either are gonna be candy wife for candy wife, often very funny or enabling of each other

or they will often go after 'candy wife prey' which usually entails a very pathetic husband who is obsessed with their candy wife

I literally have a twittee dedicated to daily posting of candy wives for anyone interested in further understanding what can be considered a candy wife :]

[vylithscat]

Lol hi, I'm the carry requester/anon Could I request an MC who is obsessed with sea life and really likes going to the beach, like, ask them what their favourite animal is and they will go off about their sea creature of choice, possibly giving horrifying facts along the way

carry anon!! its great to see you again! thank you for the request! i'm a big sea creatures lover but the sea is terrifying, and so are some of the animals,, so doing this research was super interesting (and horrifying)!

warning, some graphic descriptions are going to be used, they won't be like tons of detail, but still disturbing to read (anything cute will probably be linked) prompt: an mc who studied marine biology and knows a little too much about sea life and their horrors genre: slightly graphic general, gn!mc pairings: bros + dateables (minus luke)

LUCIFER

You were spending time with him in his office as he worked, most of his attention being absorbed in his work

That was until he heard you giggling to yourself

And you just kept giggling until you had to cover your mouth to muffle it

"What did you find, my love?" He cooed at you, hoping to contain your fit of giggles

You excited hopped over to him and showed him the video of the flapjack octopus that hid in its own tentacles

With a smile, he places you into his leg to watch the videos of cute sea life until he can finish his work

"Luci?" He hums in acknowledgement, "Do you wanna know some sea life facts? Some of them aren't that pretty though."

"How bad could they be, my love?"

"Orcas launch seals into the air and when they hit the water they die."

He freezes in place

You said it so calmly and like it was nothing

"My love?" You'd look at him with a smile, "I do not want to know more."

MAMMON

The two of you were cuddling in his bed, with him spooning you as you scrolled your phone

He was pouty cause of how absorbed you were in your search and kept peeking over your shoulder to see what was better than him

You were looking at human world sea animals

"Oi, human!" He growls, tugging on your shirt until you snap out of your sea-trance, "If ya wanna look at that, go to Levi!"

"Sorry, sorry! I'm paying attention now."

"What were ya even so curious about, eh? What's more important than THE Great Mammon?"

"Oh, well, there was a video going around about some dolphins-" You'd take your phone out again and turn the screen to Mammon

It was a video of a dolphin batting around a pufferfish, multiple dolphin, and they looked nowhere near stopping

"What're they doin'?"

"Uh.. Using a pufferfish as a toy? It's not even the worst thing they do really."

Mammon gives you a weird look and it twists into horror as you list off a small amount of things they do

He is never letting you go to a human world beach without him

LEVIATHAN

It wasn't abnormal for you to greet Levi then climb into his bathtub to watch him game or chill on your phone

He'd occasionally, when he had the chance, glance back and check on you

So when he noticed you giggling with your nose buried into your phone, he felt a spark of jealousy as he turned back and tried to focus on his game

What were you giggling at? Was he gonna see it? Come on, let him see it

"Leviii.." You whisper as you poke your head out

He swiveled around in his chair as you tossed your phone to him

It was a live cam of a coral reef with a dozen fish, but they all were running as an octopus pushed its way over to them

Levi tossed your phone back, his brow furrowing, "I don't think I wanna see it again.."

"Oh! Sorry.. I didn't realize that's why so many fish appeared."

"Do you not know about the sea?"

"I do! Surface and below, like the bigfin squid, it's kinda.. freaky."

You'd crawl out of the bathtub before going over to him and scrolling through your semi-scarring gallery of different sea life

Levi helplessly watches as you show and tell about all the pictures

SATAN

You were in the library of the House as Satan ran around looking for as many possible books about the human world

This all started when you talked about manta rays and how you wish you could see some in Devildom

He wanted all possible knowledge on sea life so he could find the Devildom equivalent

"Satan.." You'd gently take his wrist when he came back around

"I'm almost done, kitten, there's only a few more."

"You said that twenty minutes ago.."

Satan kissed your forehead before hurrying off again

"Satannn!" You'd pout, "I studied marine life! I know what to expect!"

"You did?" Satan hurried back over before sitting down, his legs tugged under him as he waited for even a bit of knowledge

"It's not pretty things, you know.. It's things like penguins using other hurt penguins to their.. advantage."

Satan stiffened up before shaking his head, "You know, why don't I just show you our marine life? I don't want to hear that again."

ASMODEUS

Your focus was completely on your phone at breakfast and it was making Asmo's morning worse

It was no fair! He woke up with horrible bed head and his makeup kept smearing, shouldn't he get a kiss or two from you already?

But instead, you were smiling at your phone right next to him

"MC.." He whined beside you and your head shot up

"Sorry! Did you say something?"

"Ugh, all I want is a kiss! Please?" Asmo leaned into your touch as your lips pressed against his cheek, "What's so important anyways? Looking at pictures of me?"

"No, but I would if there wasn't a crab season going on."

All of the brothers gave you a confused look at you settled back into your seat

"Oh, I haven't told you, I have to keep an eye on a crab species, they just gave birth."

"I'd love to see all the cute little babies!"

"I don't think you would, Asmo.."

Before you could explain further, he snatched your phone from you

His face dropped at the sight of the thousands of baby crabs and the parents who sat in the middle and nibbled away on them

You didn't get to see Asmo by the beach for awhile

BEELZEBUB

Beel had asked you a lot of questions since you were a marine biologist in his eyes

You could spot a lot of things even in Devildom fishes

Like which sea life buried themselves, which ones were predators, and which were more likely to be in the deepest parts of their sea

And he loves asking about fish and trying them out with you

But that means he's around you a lot to hear the disturbing facts

He was pretty used to them rather quickly since most that you talked about were tame or about the cuter side

And then came the day you were going on about the different fish of the human world and making him drool at the mouth

"Ugh, but then there's.. Ah, wait, maybe I shouldn't talk about that."

Beel shook away his trance before furrowing his brows at you, "No, keep going. I'm curious."

"It's not a good fact, Beel." You'd mess up his hair, "It's about the dolphins."

"It wouldn't hurt to tell me one."

"Even if it's about them ripping fish's heads off and using them as a fishlight?"

"Those dolphins are cruel.. They would've made good sashimi though."

BELPHEGOR

Belphie was another of your targets who heard a lot of facts since him and Beel were glued at the hip

But he heard the worse of the facts since he shrugged them off

"Is that all you got?" He challenged as he scrunched his nose up at you

"Oh I have a lot more, cowboy." You tease as you return the nose scrunch

"Then go ahead and tell me, I can take it."

You think for a second, you've told him most disturbing facts but this one was a fact that made you gag

"Whale's can build up enough gas when they die to explode and send people flying.. or to their deaths, if they're close enough."

He dryly laughs, "Or dumb enough."

"Really, nothing? It's guts flying or sending you flying."

"Nothing."

You shake your head at his unchanging mood about the topic

Yet another fact that had no affect on Belphie, you need better material

Or you need to let him see it for himself

DIAVOLO

You were spending tea time with Diavolo and had begun chatting about your time in marine biology

He was super interested how human studying works to help improve it for you in the future

And he was happy to learn around the different sea life in your waters

Then you got to the more dangerous fish, like the pufferfish, that has a deadly toxin that can kill humans via suffocation

And then the stonefish, that does a whole bunch of shit to your different systems and can kill you too

"And these are in all beaches?"

"They can be found in a good chunk of them b-"

"I'll be right back, I need to check something."

Without another word, Diavolo stood up and left you alone in his room

You waited for awhile and even texted him, but his D.D.D. buzzed on the table and you sighed

You didn't think those were too bad of facts, some sea life just weren't the safest for humans

Maybe those were a bad idea

BARBATOS

You went to Barbatos to try to find Diavolo but to no avail

"Everything alright, MC?" He hums to catch your attention, "You seem worried."

"Diavolo ran off in the middle of tea time."

"Did he not say where he went?"

You frowned and shook your head, "No, I was just telling him a few sea facts and he ran off.."

"And what were those facts? My Lord may have simply wanted to see if he could see it with his own eyes."

"I don't think he wants to deal with pufferfish or stonefish venom.."

"Venom? From fish?" Barbatos gently put his hand your back as he began searching for Diavolo

And you both spotted him on his beach, scrounging the edges of the water

"My Lord, what are you doing?"

Diavolo explained the fish to Barbatos, who sat you in the hammock as he tried to coax him away and assuring him there were no fish like that in Devildom

It took him awhile but you sensed their worry as they came back over

"MC, I advise you to keep far from the water unless we're around."

SIMEON

He found out almost day one you were a marine biologist and let you teach Luke about some human world animals

Usually hung around to make sure you weren't exposing too much though

But that means he got to hear horrifying facts as he sipped on his tea

And he nearly choked on it today

"Are you okay?"

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that last one?"

"Um.. dolphins will trap a female to use her..?"

He stares at you silently as he processes what the fuck he just heard from you

"Are you sure it's safe to be telling Luke about dolphins?"

"I'm not telling him much, or that they're good, despite how they look. They lack the morality human brains have."

"They.. have human intelligence?"

"Why do you think they do these things, Sims?"

SOLOMON

Knowing you were a marine biologist had him avoiding the topic all together

The last thing he wants is to hear about the sea or what's in it

But you can't help but let something slip and it takes a second to process before he turns to you with a smile

"Sorry, it slipped."

"That's happening a lot more often."

Good luck getting into detail with most of your facts as he doesn't stay around to listen

He'll take going to the beach, but not listening to you ramble about those things

He doesn't mind most cutesy animals but the freaky ones he's gone

You try to tell him a few cute facts and he's still hesitant to listen in case you try to slip a fast one on him

If he's nearby while you're telling others he'll tune it out

Really he just refuses to listen to anything about the sea or the ocean, regardless of the cute factor

sometimes i forget he doesn't like the ocean l m a o

[polyhexian]

hey when you have a sec can you explain some of your logic to me? I admittedly do not think deeply on TOH worldbuilding so maybe I missed something.

you've established Jasper can do 0 magic with Hawk Hunter, which, fair, tho it kinda surprised me cuz I thought Hunter could do some magic with Flapjack? tho now that I've been thinking about it I think it's only his teleport trick and some energy blasts. huh. I mean I guess you could argue that Hunter is just not used to using palisman magic vs artificial magic and thus just hasn't gotten the chance to do much with Flapjack, but...hm. canon really doesn't give us much information on how someone without a bile sac can use magic via palisman and what kinds of magic a palisman would let them use. Stringbean isn't much help here either, we didn't get to see Luz do much with her aside from, again, energy blasts. and the standard flying magical staff ability.

but I don't think Jasper's even flown on Hawk Hunter at all? he uses Hawk Hunter's staff as a melee weapon but otherwise he always seems to run off on foot. what's going on there? is Hawk Hunter okay? is his 300-year-old wound preventing him from doing basic palisman magic? is Jasper just still really disapproving of wild magic?

you've also mentioned Hawk Hunter can't talk - is that connected? he didn't talk to Miles until the very end but I figured that was cuz he and Miles hadn't properly bonded or something. is the poor guy just unable to talk at all at this point?

Yeah, Hawk Hunter can't talk. He's broken. He couldn't fly much back then either and he burned the last bit of magic in him to block that last strike from directly hitting Miles. Ive dropped some staff lore in one of the lament sequels. Palismen staffs channel magic from the witch's bile sac. The artificial staff generates it's own magic. And Grimwalkers are essentially palismen, so a Grimwalker can channel magic directly through the staff. He basically is the staff. Hunter has spent his whole life being taught to use a certain amount of magic for a certain spell. He's been taught to obey a physical limit other people have, but if he kept drawing he COULD get magic indefinitely. He would probably explode or something. Jasper also does not realize this, but he DOES know he can use more magic than regular people- he just thinks he's special. Anyway in addition to the lore in my head, jasper landed in the pit near miles and in contact hawk hunter who is still cracked wood. But then. Like. He's not dead so magic is just passing through like an electrical circuit which kick-starts hawk hunter back up. And hawk hunter doesn't quit. Not again. He lost his first witch and his second witch and last time he just succumbed to his grief. But now there's this guy right here and he can damn well help him. So he does and he forces jasper awake so that he can help himself. They're in the skull itself and that's where the Titans magic is strongest. That's always why the collector is hidden there! Strong Titan magic.