#first chapter coming tomorrow ;-)

[ruporas]

i’ll find you again in every universe. let us be a little more honest, let us have a little more time.

[yours-the-author]

Henry later apologized by bringing Charles a chicken in his teeth, fox-style. This apology was not accepted.

Felt the need to draw, so here's a quick little doodle! I like the "Henry has fangs/really sharp teeth" head canon, so I can easily imagine him tearing into a wild animal for sustenance. When you're forced to steal just to get by, you've gotta eat somehow.

[quirkle2]

various scenes from my fic recondite <3 they're vague enough to where i don't think they're super spoilery or anything, just fun teasers

[getvalentined]

The first chapter of this mostly-slice-of-life Strifentine (also known as slice-of-lifentine) has topped out at 12k words.

What the hell am I getting myself into.

[enjoythesilentworld]

so loaded, eye low ~ ch 1

“Simon! Simon! Tonight’s theme is all about fairy tale encounters. Which fairy tales inspired your look tonight?”  Wilhelm couldn’t help but glance over his shoulder as Simon let out a warm laugh.  “Well, I’ve never been much of a believer in fairy tales. But looking around tonight,” Simon said thoughtfully, then turned and made direct eye contact with Wilhelm, “it seems I might find a prince of my own.” 

Or, the Met Gala AU.

read now on ao3 (E, 1/2)

[cookinguptales]

just saw someone online talking about don hertzfeldt's "rejected" like it was just some "lol so random" youtube video from the early 2000s and like... yeah, it was funny! and I'm sure the randomness and memeability were a lot of what made it go viral. but I'm sad that it's been remembered that way.

like, that short film was about creativity and capitalism and how imagination is stifled and destroyed when it's forced into the box of "marketability", leading to mental anguish on the part of the artist. it's a message that's only become more and more poignant over the years as all art has slowly been reduced to "content" on the internet, particularly youtube, and I still rewatch it regularly.

yes, the fake ads in it were silly and random and violent and weird, but that's because he was purposefully trying to create the least marketable art possible. it has sex and violence and grotesque imagery all wrapped up in a cutesy art style, and it's the exact opposite of the glossy animation you get in marketing. moreover, the point was that the animations became more and more disjointed and "random" and awful as they were forced to exist in a corporate vacuum devoid of any real meaning. that's why the very world they were living in fell apart in the end.

the whole thing! was a very blatant commentary on the damage that commercialization does to art!

and, in a bout of tragic but entirely predictable irony, the art style that he used for "rejected" was immediately stolen, made more palatable for mass consumption, and used for pop tart commercials. it's not so much the death of the author as it is greedy companies shanking the author and then looting their corpse, y'know? it's completely cleaving any marketability from the shambling corpse of their art and leaving the rest for the buzzards.

it's also odd that they listed the short as being something you'd only know about if you hang out on the weird part of the internet because like... y'all know that short was nominated for an oscar, right? that seems about as mainstream as recognition for animated shorts can get. I have literally gone to showings of don hertzfeldt films at major film festivals. he's well known in the animation field.

idk man! I don't have anything against the lol random style of humor from the early days of youtube (I miss it, actually) but to just boil a painfully earnest short film about the devaluing of any creativity that is not palatable to the mass market and the way that artists' souls are slowly killed as they create art solely for corporate interests down to the gifs and memes that emerged from it has me like

man, media literacy really is getting bad these days.

[deus-ex-mona]

anyways, in honour of 1 year of honeypre (rip) eos, what were your top stats like at the end of the game? i’ll go first~~~

[zipzapzopzoop]

There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

Chapter 18: Slipping Through My Fingers All the Time

Franny dropped him without a second thought.

In a fraction of a second, Franny’s anger changed to confusion. She took a step back, trying to understand what was going on.

With nowhere to run, the stranger slumped to the floor and seemed to curl in on himself. Only then did Franny notice the cord and guard attached to the gun she was holding.

“Mom?” 

Franny jolted when the door opened and Wilbur began to walk in. 

“Mom, are you okay? I heard something break.” Franny frantically motioned him out. “Stay in the hall! Don’t come in!” Despite looking startled and confused, Wilbur obeyed.

“What’s happening?” He called.

“I don’t know yet, just stay there! And shut the door!”

Wilbur did so. He waited in the hall for a minute. 

Suddenly there was the sound of something getting knocked over in another room. Who’s there…? 

Wilbur headed towards the noise in the darkness of the house.

Back in the storage room, Franny blindly felt around the walls until she found a lightswitch. 

The light came on, and even without the helmet and goggles, Franny recognized him in a heartbeat. He may be her nephew, but from the moment his mother abandoned him and his sister, Franny and Cornelius stepped up, and he became like another child to her. She didn’t know whether to be relieved to find him or upset that she had attacked him.

“Laszlo! I’m so sorry, I had no idea it was you!”

He didn’t look up at her. Instead he stayed with his face buried in his knees, breathing heavily. She suddenly realized he was having a panic attack. 

For the third time in two minutes, she went into mother bear mode.

Franny kneeled by him. “Honey, look at me.”

A choked sob escaped his throat, and he hugged himself tightly. “Shoot,” she muttered. This is a bad one. He doesn’t have his medicine, that's still in the future. She looked around. His goggles. That might be why he wouldn’t look up. It was discovered a few years ago that when Laszlo was anxious, his goggles always helped.

Franny retrieved them and tried again. “Lasz, look at me. It’s okay, I have your goggles.” Slowly, Laszlo glanced up at her with tearful eyes. He looked at the goggles in her hand and gently reached out to take them. Franny rubbed his shoulder lovingly. He was shaking like a leaf. “It’s okay...”

Laszlo slipped the goggles over his eyes, and Franny could tell almost immediately that they were calming him down. His breathing began to slow, and his shivering lessened. He sniffed and wiped away a couple stray tears that slipped from his eyes. He struggled with anxiety almost all his life, so Franny always knew what to look out for.

She also always knew what helped. 

Gently as a mother could, she pulled him into a warm embrace.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t.. I just… I… I thought…” His voice cracked and broke.

“Shh... just take a second and breathe.”

Franny began to sing quietly, the same way she did when he was little. 

When Petunia first abandoned him. 

 As she sang, he closed his eyes and listened, calming down enough to understand that he was safe, and that nobody was going to hurt him. Not here. By the time the song had finished, he was doing much better. Franny’s music could help anyone in times of need.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were somebody else. There were some men that tried to kidnap me. If it wasn't for Buster and Uncle Art, I don't know where I'd be right now. Usually I can bounce right back from situations, but for whatever reason this one just really got to me. I just… yeah.”

Franny’s eyes widened. “Wait, hang on. Someone tried to kidnap you?! Who?!”

“I don’t know who they were. Some men creeping through an alleyway. Their faces were just… so creepy. I can’t stop thinking about them.”

Franny felt like her heart fell through the floor. Her brothers. Her family. Cornelius.

Someone’s trying to hunt them down.

------

Check out the chapter on my Archive!

[mihai-florescu]

Hmph. An evil boop is just a regular boop to me... heh. I just have a twisted mind i suppose😎🤘

[peaches2217]

Untarnished Chapter 1, or “Take a shot every time you see the word ‘scream’ and any of its conjugations and have an ambulance on standby”

[raksh-writes]

Tfw you have a dream so nice and lovely and normal you stay warm and cozy in your bed for two more hours, kinda maybe hoping to go back. And the dream in question?

Going on a stroll with your childhood/teenage crush :')

[cor-corbinian]

Teruko uses her ability on Sigma as they both started falling to their death and we get actual toddler Sigma for the rest of the plot (or at least till meursault).

Sigma is not amused. Nikolai thinks its hilarious.

[kettouryuujin]

So ya wanna see an Evolution Party? (V2)

The second they’d returned with Lady Lilligant, Akari had basically Extremespeed’d to the supply tent, leaving everyone else in the dust. Rei helped Arezu get her Noble to medbay, grumbling about Dewotts and priorities. Honestly, he didn’t see what the big deal was with this whole “evolution party” anyway.

Honestly, he’d rather rest up and heal. This whole thing was just… a lot to deal with. A whole lot to deal with. And being around the Dewott may only make things worse.

---

Akari was zipping around the supply hall, going back and forth to try and gather the supplies needed for the party. It was astonishing one hadn’t been planned yet, but there was a crisis afoot. That and these weren’t their natural forms, but. That’s no reason to cheat someone out of one of the most important days of their life!

“So...what’s the plan for when we get this all fixed?” Eh? Fixed? Wott?

“Honestly? Mainly getting rid of all these adaptations, and getting rationing reset.”

Hearing all this caused the Water-type to screech to a halt before she stumbled over another’s words. They weren’t seriously talking about...

“Heh, well. I’d kill to have arms again if you ask me. Sucks that I have to ask for so much help.”

“Legends, that has to suck. I’m just glad I still have mine...” As the pair laughed and walked along, neither deigned to notice the slack-jawed Explorer. And, if she was of a clearer mind, she’d be thankful for that. But as it was, she had only one thing in her mind.

‘Legends, why didn’t I think of that...’

---

Rei grunted, working his ~~foreleg~~arm a bit. One good thing about these changes, Potions were far more useful. And if Akari was anything to go by, this wasn’t that bad a fate - Jubilife was adapting enough before she showed up, but once the Dewott had shown that life as a Pokemon didn’t have to be uncivilized things picked up the pace.

On his way out, he passed by a Sliggoo’s bed, where the Rock-type Noble helped remove some shards of stone from his Warden’s goopy body. A small chuckle escaped the Raichu’s lips - another training accident, no doubt. The pair had been sparring a fair bit after both had gotten back to health, and he’d heard even Sabi was joining in. It made sense - while Sliggoo were blind, Goodra could see. Best to get that back sooner rather than later, even if they don’t know how long they’ll... be like this...

Eyes slowly went wide as implications went through his head. Sweet Groudon, was that why?

---

*thump*

“OOF! Sorry about that Rei...”

“I-it’s alright, I wasn’t watching where I was going.” The duo slowly stood up, avoiding eye contact with each other.

Dust drifted upwards as paws shuffled. “So, umm... W-we don’t have to do the party.”

“I’m not sure where we cou-wait, what?” Embarrassment forgotten, the Electric-type’s eyes darted to look at the Mareepish Dewott.

“Y-yeah, I...I kinda was getting all into it, and forgot you guys. May not be staying this way.”

“I...umm. I actually realized that just now...”

“Wait, what?”

A small nod from the ‘chu. “Yeah, I...I know we want to go back to being human, but we don’t know how we’d do it... or when. So I guess indulging in something like an evolution party might not be that bad, especially if we...you know.”

“O-oh... I see.” Silence reigned over the pair, a small wind stirring up the dust and grass. “So, umm...”

huff...puff...

The sounds of exhaustion caused two pairs of ears to twitch, their owners turning over and down to look at the source: A small Growlithe, drenched and out of breath.

Both Surveyors immediately panicked, Akari reaching down to hold the poor thing. “What happened? Is everything ok? Why are you so wet?”

“A-Akari...that’s the young Lord.”

“Wott?” She turned to face her partner (...huh, guess he was!), eyes catching his fear-widened ones.

“He’s not yet taken the Trial yet, but he should be next in line... and Palina watches him like a Staraptor. For him to be here on his own - “

“Something would have to be very wrong...” A shudder overtook the Dewott as she looked back at the shaking canine.

Tears quivered under his bangs as that ruddy muzzle worked, trying to form words - and eventually managing to get something out. “P-please...help...h-help Momma...”

[candyriku]

I realize this is a kingdom hearts blog. however. my level of normal about Noel Kreiss (ff13-2) is reaching a critical level so. I may also write about him, eventually.

[crybaby-bkg]

writing a slow burn enemies to lovers fic is. a lot harder. than I had expected.

[yellow-computer-mouse]

Chapter One - Red

Red stared apprehensively at the building that towered over him. He glanced over his shoulder, but his dad had already driven away, leaving him no choice but to enter the strange structure. To navigate its halls with nothing more than a stupid freakin’ sheet of paper and his arrogance. His shoulders slumped, letting one of his backpack straps slip down his arm, the cheap mesh scratching his sensitive “skin.” His slouch worsened as he realized he didn’t have an elevator card, meaning he had to take the monster of a stairwell. Terrific. He decided just to walk in and try. He could walk up some stairs! He was fucking Red Kafka Vic, and goddamnit, if some stairs were all that stood in his way, he would beat their stair ass. 

He took an overconfident step up, putting his foot down much harder than he intended. A sharp spike of pain went through his right knee as the joint attempted to dislocate around the brace he wore, leaving it technically still in its socket if a little to the left. He widened his eyes in pain, easing up the step much more gently. He grasped the railing tightly, and slowly ascended the rest of the way, bearing a tight grimace. He dragged himself through the door at the top and down the hall with the other students, doing his best not to appear weakened. He flopped into a chair in the main room, silently placing his hand on his injured knee and subtly attempting to shift the joint back into its socket. The brace, the stupid fucking brace, had turned to block part of the opening, meaning Red had two options: to roll up his pant leg and show off the brace (and by extension, weakness) in front of everyone, or suck it up.

Groaning internally, he rummaged through his bag and pulled out a slip of paper. He had all his classes written neatly along the bottom in red pen. Skimming the list, he checked the time on his phone. He had about ten minutes until his first class, ELA. He swiped up to unlock his phone and opened Geometry Dash. After losing in the first ten seconds, he rage-quit and opened his photos. Opening the filters, he tapped “Mal Cox,” sorting by oldest. The first picture showing was a selfie of Red outside his middle school, Mal walking past in the background. A few pictures later, Mal leaning over a trash can in the gym room, Scarlet consoling him, and Red flipping them off. Scarlet and Red posing together on a bus with Mal grinning mischievously behind them, holding a textbook threateningly. He eventually reached the last result; a video of himself, Mal, and Scarlet holding hands in a circle, while his phone lay on the floor. He connected his earbuds, pressing play.

“I’m gonna miss you guys so much,” Scarlet’s tearful, staticky voice said. Mal nodded solemnly beside them, tears streaming down his grieving face. Red shook their arms angrily, his voice choked with repressed sobs.

“Don’t talk like that, assholes!” he snapped through gritted teeth. “We-we can still call each other n’ shit!” His left arm detached from their linked hands, rubbing angrily at his out-of-frame face.

Mal sniffed, rubbing his shoulder against his face. “Y-yeah, I guess.” Scarlet gave the both of them a bittersweet smile, glancing down.

“Oh my fucking GOD ARE YOU RECORDING OUR HEARTFELT GOODBYES?!” he exclaimed, glaring at Red in joking disbelief.

“No,” he replied quickly, bending down and picking up his phone.

“FUCK!” Scarlet shouted, and the video cut off.

Red felt his eyes sting, and he swiped at his sockets, clenching his jaw. He would not cry on his first day, especially not because a group of assholes he used to call his friends didn’t even bother to talk to him once over the summer. A sharp blast of microphone feedback screeched throughout the halls, and he looked up at a middle-aged human standing on a chair on the opposite side of the room.

“Ahem. Sorry about that,” he said, voice booming through the mic. “It is currently 8:30 AM, and we will be starting orientation in the conference room downstairs. Please follow us so you don’t get lost.” The large group of students gathered around a collection of about ten staff members and began walking down the hall Red arrived through.

“Hi!” Red almost fell over, which was better than could be said for the stranger who greeted him. They fell face-first onto the tile floor, bouncing back up almost immediately. “I’m Blue!” Smoothing out his shirt, he stuck his hand out eagerly. Red slowly went to grab it, but Blue snatched his hand, shaking it violently.

“It’s so good to meet you! So good to meet you! Are you new here?” he said, releasing Red’s hand and fiddling with a pendant around his neck.

“Yeah. We all are. Are you a fucking dumbass?” Red replied, adjusting his mitts.

Blue paused before replying, “Probably.” The two fell into a rhythm, walking together up a small flight of stairs into a different wing of the building. Blue started rambling about some bullshit as Red zoned out. He could almost hear Mal’s voice going on about bombs or something. He eventually snapped back to reality, Blue waving a hand before his face.

“Hello? Are you alright? You look upset about something.” Red blinked in surprise, his bright red eyelight momentarily snapping back to his normal off-white.

“No, everything’s fine,” he muttered, voice cracking slightly. “Fuck off.”

“Hmm… alright!” Blue chirped. They walked in silence the rest of the way there. Eventually, they turned sharply and entered a room underneath a staircase. The gaggle of students sat on the scratchy grey carpet, Red scooting away from Blue. He stretched out, hands behind him. He snatched his left hand back up as someone ran it over with a chair.

“OW! What the fuck?!” he cried, swiveling around. A taller skeleton with pitch-black bones and blue tear-like markings running down his cheeks scooted back in his chair.

“S0rry,” he said, rolling his eyes with a smirk.

“Oh, you’ll be fucking sorry.” Red attempted to jump up, hands clenching. He shook his fist in the other’s face, glaring at him threateningly.

“! b3t ! w1ll. $nyw45, !’m #rr0r.” Red huffed, turning back around. He was poked with the other’s chair, so he turned around. He was greeted by Error’s multi-colored middle finger stuck straight up in his face.

“You motherfucker,” he said, laughing slightly. Error nodded smugly, sticking his hand in his pocket.

“! kn0w. %p3c1f1c4lly, y0ur5.” Red laughed even harder, doubling over with tears in his eyes.

“I hate you,” he choked out between giggles. “I don’t even have a fucking mom, bro!”

“)h 5h1t, my b4d,” Error said, waving his hands apologetically. Red started to say that it was fine when Error added, “!5 wh4t ! w0uld 54y 1f ! c4r3d,” before turning away. Red reached up and went to slap him when Error glared at him out of the corner of his eye.

“D0n’t.”

Red smirked.  “Why?” Error shook his head slightly.

“Pl3453,” he murmured, his voice strained. Red noticed he was beginning to glitch out and was leaning away from his mitt.

“Alright,” he shrugged. When Error didn’t acknowledge him, he added, “Pussy.” Error hit him with his chair.

“MOTHERFU-” Red was cut off by a series of claps from the surrounding students.

“Alright! Good job everyone,” stated the human from before. “I am Mr. Powell, your principal.” He clicked the mouse in his hand, switching the screens from black to a slide that read Welcome! Digital confetti streamed down over the words.

“Welcome to Rainbow Charter! This is your first year here, and we hope to make it your last.”

“Ronald!” one of the staff members standing beside him exclaimed. He rolled his eyes, smiling.

“Okay, okay, not your last.” Red didn’t pay much attention to the rest of the presentation. After it ended, Blue sprinted across the room, grabbed Red’s hand, and continued running.

“Where the fuck are you taking me?!” Red couldn’t keep up with his right leg, so he stopped trying to run with Blue and was dragged up the stairs.

“Outside, silly!”

“Why?” Red inquired through the jostling.

“Weren’t you listening? We’re leaving early so we can get our dorms set up!”

“Sick.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty fun!”

“Alright.” They walked in silence for about four seconds until Blue started talking again, this time to someone behind the two of them. The crowd of students around them pressed in on Red’s sides, being loud and smelly and loud.

“Can you shut the fuck up for like two seconds, please?” he asked angrily, clenching and unclenching his fists. Blue quickly fell silent.

“Y0u kn0w sw34r1ng d035n’t m4k3 y0u c00l, r1ght,” Error deadpanned.

“Shut up.”

*

They eventually made their way to the dorm building, with all their bags packed and ready inside each of their rooms. Which room was theirs, they didn’t know. Looking around the main entrance, Red recognized Blue, Error, and the couple from earlier. He headed up the staircase, which led him to a hall with 5 dorm rooms, plus a shower room. For some reason, all the lights were turned off, so the group of students explored the building in the dark. Red finally found his bags in the first room to his right, Dorm 3F. He expected some sort of bed, a mattress, something. However, the room was empty. There weren’t even lampshades covering the sconces that supposedly lit the area.

“Do we sleep on the floor?” Red heard a familiar voice ask. He turned around slowly, and sure enough, Blue was right behind him, looking around curiously.

“! gu355,” came a staticky voice from just outside the doorway.

“Wait. You both dorm in this room specifically. With me.” A jumbled affirmation came from the two other skeletons. Red bit his lip and did his best not to decimate his new roommates. He sighed, mumbling out, “Fucking hell.”

“Aw, come on! It’s not that bad!” Blue said cheerily, obviously trying (and failing) to convince himself. “It’ll be like a sleepover! We can-”

“Th3r3’5 4 sp1d3r 0n y0ur h34d,” Error interjected, pointing to Blue. He froze up, slowly moving his hand to the back of his head. “)h, n3v3rm1nd.” The shorter monster relaxed slightly.

“!t’5 4 r04ch.” Blue yelped, tossing his head to the side violently. The bug fell to the floor and started scurrying around.

“Gotta love public school,” Red said as the three of them slowly backed out of the room.

“What should we do?” Blue asked, seeming much less jumpy now that the bug wasn’t touching him.

“Put 1t 1n 4 j4r 4nd n4m3 1t Fr4nk13,” Error said. Red looked at him with a deadpan expression.

“Or see if anyone here wants to touch a roach,” he suggested. Blue nodded, running down the stairs. Red looked over to him. “Wait, Blue-”

“Hey! Hi everyone!” he said cheerfully. “Um, there’s a bug on the floor in our dorm, and I just wanted to know if anyone wanted to try and get it out.” Red facepalmed.

“Blu3, n0b0dy w4nt5 t0 t0uch 4 c0ckr04ch,” Error said.

“Yeah, I know.” To the trio’s surprise, a lanky skeleton (by some coincidence, they were all skeletons. Weird.) raised their hand slowly.

“Are you sure?” Red questioned. “I- I mean, it’s pretty fucking big.” Error poked him with a dry-erase marker.

“%hu5h. W3 h4v3 s0m30n3 wh0 15 w1ll1ng t0 gr4b s0m3 r4nd0m r04ch 0ff th3 gr0und f0r u5. D0n’t ru1n th15.” Blue beckoned the new skeleton up the stairs and pushed them into their dorm. Error peeked around the corner, watching with Red and Blue as the monster bent down and gently cupped the bug into their gloved hands. They began to walk out of the room when the creature started flying. Blue squeaked and hit the deck, while the tall skeleton calmly put their other hand out, halting its flight pattern. They rolled their eyes.

“How in the good fuck are you so calm right now?” Red asked incredulously as they reentered the main room, the bug caught safely in the skeleton’s hands as they walked over beside another, this one with pitch-black sockets and mascara trails coming down from their eyes.

“How in the good fuck are you so calm right now?!” Red interrogated, limping over to him.

“Please. I’ve known Dusty since they were, like, a baby.” Dust held up nine fingers, admiring the bug in their hands.

“Yeah, if you want to be boring,” he said, elbowing them. Dust gave him a dark glare before refocusing on the cockroach. They were lightly stroking its head, smiling softly. “Anyways, I’m Killer.”

“Red,” he muttered, turning away. He began returning up the stairs to unpack, Blue and Error on his tail. Entering the now (hopefully) cockroach-free room, he opened his bags and dumped them all out on the ground in a pile. On top was his sketchbook, which he quickly hid underneath piles of clothes. He glanced over his shoulder, checking that the other two didn’t see. Error was examining a threadbare hoodie and Blue was rummaging through a bin of pushpins, a rolled-up poster next to him. Error also looked over to Blue, staring curiously at the folded paper.

“Wh4t’5 th4t?” he inquired, pointing beside the excitable skeleton.

“A band poster,” Blue replied.

“What, Taylor Swift?” Red said, smirking. Blue unrolled it, holding it up for both of them to see. Intertwined blue and pink humanoid figures were sat together, looking vaguely mournful.

“No, TV Girl,” he said, placing it back down.

“Ah.” They continued to unpack in relative silence, aside from Error asking where they would sleep. Red replied, “On the floor,” and Error laid his blanket out by the door. Red snickered and did the same in the far left corner of the room, Blue taking the other side of the door.

“If someone comes in in the middle of the night they’re gonna hit you in the goddamn fucking face,” Red said, grinning.

“Good. Black eyes match my aesthetic,” Blue replied without skipping a beat. Error broke into hysterical laughter in the corner and continued to quietly wheeze for around six minutes. 

Red waited patiently until he calmed down to say, “It’s not that deep,” sending the oddly colored skeleton into another laughing fit. Blue had used the time to fill most of his “bed” with stuffed animals. Error wiped his eyes, still giggling slightly, before shouting at the expanse of plushies.

“G00d g0d, th4t w45 f45t!” he yelped, pressing himself against the wall behind him. Red sighed, laying down on his side and pressing his pillow over his head in an attempt to take a nap. It was gonna be a long year…