#funsies? to be dramatic? help me out here

[ariesbilly]

i learned today that my family legitimately thinks my mental health didnt get bad until after high school which is absolutely insane behavior to me considering i am the girl who threw up every morning before school and this was a problem in my household for years

[somerandomdudelmao]

i was writing this all out in the tags of one of your recent updates (part 9 of 'donatello') when i realized i might as well just send it to you directly before i hit tag limit. (i hope you don't mind haha) this recent comic really reminded me of a concept that i've seen in your work that i haven't seen commented on a lot (though i could be wrong.)

casey jr and donatello's relationship as you've portrayed it is interesting in a number of ways. one i've been thinking about recently is the aspect of physical touch, and how you use that to represent the underlying themes/ideas behind their dynamic (and the story as a whole).

in the series, donnie is generally the least physical of his brothers, in that he prefers to be the one to initiate contact. (as a fellow autistic, i relate to this on a visceral level /lighthearted.) however, in your portrayal, this rule bends for casey's sake.

you've been setting up casey to follow in donatello's metaphorical footsteps for a while now, with this coming to fruition (to an extent) in recent storylines.

but going back a bit further. there's this major theme of... i guess i would call it 'responsibility?' that has been weaved through the story from... basically, day one.

in the first comic, his conversation with f!leo following leo's brief foray as a nugget (one of my favorite lines from this series overall is "...and leo-nugget." amazing, genuinely), casey admits to him that it was scary being responsible for someone that could get hurt so easily.

in one of the following chapters, we see the question asked: 'but who is there to save you?' (this chapter being a bit of a microcosm of the theme/story as a whole haha.)

though it was a chapter i had originally assumed was just for funsies and angst opportunities, i now realize i was wrong (though, i don't know exactly how intentional you were being with all of this, so i could be missing the mark here.) it actually sets up his arc rather nicely -- with casey being the one to save donatello when he was injured/knocked unconcious.

now, bringing this all back around to the original intent of this ask: how physical touch is used to represent their narrative dynamic (is that a thing? 'narrative dynamic'? am i just making shit up right now? whatever its fine /rehtorical)

taking everything in account, i want to return to a specific moment that really struck me in the comics leading up to donatello's death. it's the time where the resistance is being attacked, and donnie, despite being sick, goes out and uhhh... extirpates the problem (its always fun to see donnie go apeshit with dangerous weaponry /positive.)

during his dramatic reveal and attack, casey is by his side, clutching onto him not to cling, but to physically support him (at least, that's how i think that moment was supposed to be interpreted? i could be totally wrong here.)

i can't help but feel this is emblematic of the larger themes at play here-- i.e., casey's arc in relation to donatello.

i can't help but find it interesting how donatello, backbone of the resistance--

(despite his soft shell... which is why him no longer wearing his battle shell when he got sick was actually symbolic foreshadowing of-- *sound of gunshots*)

[editors note: i'm gonna stop myself right there, before this goes from ungodly long to "will break your dash and ask box if allowed to continue further"]

-- and certified plot mechanic (oh, so that's why he named it convenient plot-twist serum... finally, the mystery has been solved /joking /lighthearted), who is a very independent/self-sufficient character, allows casey jr to subvert his rules with casual touch. enough so, that when he is so weak that he can barely stand, he trusts casey jr to keep him upright.

out of everyone, he trusts casey.

casey jr, who, at the very beginning of the comic, saved donatello's life, physically carrying him back to the base. and casey jr, the one who, now, has rescued donatello from a fate worse than death, only to once again bring him back to safety.

(...can you tell i'm a little bit obsessed with your comic? lmao)

[also to note those most recent panels: a return to the "norm," with casey clinging to donatello's side, also providing a nice parallel. i know it's because he is very much reunited with his uncle who has been dead for two years, but c'mon. let me have this /joking.)]

anyway, i hope this made sense, and if you did manage to get through my pretentious (and probably somewhat far-fetched) rambles about the "symbolic narrative significance of touch" in a fanwork about the teenage mutant ninja turtles (/lighthearted), may i just say: i am in love with your work, and can only aspire to tell a story as engaging, heartfelt, and clever as the one you have woven.

you are a blessing to this fandom, and i am so excited to see where you go with this story.

I have to say that I didn't specifically do the mental planning for all of this. Most of this theme is simply because I do what I feel will be right. It's more of an intuitive desire than a prescribed plan, so it was pretty surprising to me to see this thought actually being formulated haha

Thank you:>

[midnight-pluto]

Hi! <3 could you please write a mutual pining only one bed fic for a gn!reader and Nico di Angelo

MOVE OVER — nico di a.

TROPES: mutual pining, only one bed, fluff, crack-ish

UNIVERSE: riordanverse

PAIRING(S): nico di angelo x gn!reader

WARNING(S): mentions of injuries, takes place after the giant war, i slipped incorrect quote in here for funsies, also because im slightly high

A/N: mattresses don’t count as beds

THE INFIRMARY WAS bound to be filled to the brim after todays events. Even with the help of the Roman Apollo kids, it was still practically double the amount of kids injured making them bring out mattresses for all of them to be taken care of.

You were one of the many kids to get hurt during the battle, a gash on your thigh along with minor cuts and scrapes was bound to get you landed there. It was unfortunate that you ended up on the mattress on the ground but you understood.

There were others in deeper trouble.

Something you were glad that happened is that your mattress was the one closest to the window with only one bed next to you, and on that bed is someone you’d like to call you’re friend. However, you’re unsure if he would dub you the same.

Nico di Angelo — son of Hades. From what you understood, he had known of the existence of both the Greeks and Romans, yet chose to not let them know of each other. That was one of the many things you admired about him.

The way he always manages to show up in just enough time and helps turn the tide in his favor, or the way he was able to bare the fact that he was treated as an outcast just for his parent and not make the rumors true. He was someone who you truly respected.

Nothing more. Nothing less. Totally.

Nico was laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He was instructed by Will to sleep but couldn’t find it in himself to close his eyes for more than two minutes. He kept on glancing towards your figure laying soundlessly on the mattress on the ground.

You were one of the only ones to still smile at him whenever he passed by after the Titan War glory wore off. You were one of the only ones to not actively avoid him. One of the ones that didn’t send weary glances in his direction. You were someone who he truly respected.

Nothing more. Nothing less. Totally.

As the hour’s drifted past with nothing but murmurs and grunts filling the room Nico had drifted off to sleep along with it.

However, when he slept you awoke. Flashbacks from the past events and wars coming to haunt your dreams. Looking up only to see Nico’s back, only then do you make your move.

AS NICO BLINKED himself awake, he felt another presence in the bed. His hair was being played with was all he knew of, but it wasn’t a feeling he was opposed to. Tempted to relax once again, he fought off the urge and turned to face the other side of the bed for his eyes to only widen in surprise.

“Morning,” you smile, moving your hand away from his hair, “How’d you sleep last night?”

“What the hell,” Nico whisper shouted as to not alarm some of the sleeping patients, “What’re you doing in my bed? You were supposed to sleep on the air mattress on the floor.”

“I had a nightmare.”

“And you deciding sleeping on my bed was a solution to that problem,” he deadpanned, sitting up to face you and the pillow resting on your lap.

“Listen, I needed to feel comfortable and I was getting this weird power dynamic vibe from me sleeping in the ground and you sleeping up there,” you say, pointing to mattress on the floor and patting the sheets of the bed.

“Ah yes! How high and mighty I am up on my not even twin XL,” he deadpans, observing his and the rest of the beds in the infirmary.

“That is not what I meant—“

“Silence in the presence of your king,” Nico dramatically turned away with his eyes closed, leaning on one hand while the other was holding up its index finger as if to shush you, “Who sleeps at a lofty twelve and a half inches above the ground!”

Sighing with an amused smile on your face, not getting to see this side of him all that often, “Listen, I am not ashamed. I slept comfortably when I got up into your bed and I’m sure you did too.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“You know what, I wanna know,” you lean your back against the headboard, “How’d you sleep last night?”

Sighing, he answers, “That was the best I’ve slept in a while.”

Gasping, you whisper, “The king slept comfortably with a peasant in his bed!”

“I did not consent to this—“

“But my liege our love is forbidden,” you joke, laughing softly at his flushed ears and deadpan expression.

A/N: did I want to add more detail? yes. would it be just slightly out of place? yes

[turtletimewriting]

Knee Problems

Summary: Mikey had gotten up to grab a drink and sees his oldest brother sitting up alone.

Note: I hope you heed the tags before clicking as this is a tickle fic. So proceed with caution. I wrote this all overnight and I know it has errors but I do not have the energy to fix it. So here ya go.

_._._

It was late at night. The entire Lair was pitch black with only his t-phone light pointing around, drenching the normally welcoming Lair in harsh white lights and dramatic shadows. Mikey felt the back of his neck prickle enticingly in the way that creeping around your home in the middle of the night could. The sensation of wandering through the unusually quiet and empty rooms and knowing that he was alone and every room had endless potential.

Not that he was planning to sit around the Lair for funsies. His throat was super dry and scratchy so he was just going to grab water and then head straight back to sleep.

Well, that was his plans until he saw Leo sat on the sofa and clutching at his left leg like he was scared of it.

"Aw man, is your knee bothering you again?"

Leo startled from the unexpected voice, causing him to flinch and jarring his knee further. He couldn't help the gasp that was ripped from him.

Mikey winced in sympathy. He smiled gently though and walked over to sit beside him on the sofa.

His older brother tried to hide away the pain and sit up to distract him but that fell away quickly. Leo couldn't help but gasp again as he tried to settle into a new position. His fingers held a white knuckled grip on his knee. He looked wide awake and frustrated.

A look everyone had become familiar with over the past few weeks.

It meant that Leo hadn't been able to sleep with his knee playing up again.

Donnie was looking into finding a medication that could help. There had to be something!

Leo's attempt to hide crumbled under the comforting weight of being alone at night. It was just them. No judgement. No cruel harsh light of the day time to make a small ache seems ridiculous. Just Mikey sitting beside him and whispering if he was okay.

"It's playing up again," his voice broke harshly as it always did when he was tired. Well, it now always did ever since he woke up with his throat damage. "Do you wanna me to get you anything?" He offered genuinely. Sometimes it hurt too bad for him to walk. "Nah. Just… had to get out of my room." Mikey nodded. "I get it." "Wait, what are you doing up?" Ah, there was the older sibling protectiveness. "Relax dude," Mikey rolled his eyes playfully, "I was just getting water. Think I'm getting a cold." "Eww, don't get too close then," Leo laughed out weakly.

Oh thank god, his pain wasn't that bad.

But it was still enough to stop him from sleeping.

Leo hated everyone pitying him and making a big deal of his knee but it was hard not to in moments like this. Mikey could only smile back at his older brother's hunched over form as he sat in the complete darkness trying to hold in how much it hurt. Mikey would never know what it felt like to be in his position. He could only watch him struggle and hope that he would be able to help when the moment called for it. What he wouldn't do just to take that pain away.

"I can try kissing it better?" Mikey whispered , trying to keep up the lighthearted jokes. To hopefully get Leo to actually laugh rather than his polite forced huffs. "Eww Mikey!" Leo slapped his leg lightly. "At least let me help!" He squabbled. "Unless you can magically click my knee then you're not going anywhere near me," Leo sighed. He rest his head on the back of the sofa, his eyes shutting in sheer exhaustion. Yet his leg remained tense and tight.

Mikey let himself cringe now that Leo wouldn't see his expression.

"How about we watch some tv? We can put it on super quiet. See if that helps you sleep," he suggested. "Sure," Leo said deadpan. Obviously he thought that wouldn't help but it would surely make him feel better than sitting here in silence.

So Mikey quickly turned on the tv and had the heartattack of trying to turn down the volume before it could play whatever channel they had left it on. Nothing good would be playing at this time of night so Mikey quickly threw him a random video left laying beside the tv. An episode of Robo Mecha Force. Some silyl and fun.

The bright colours of the action scenes and characters swamped over the living room. Leo still looked washed out somehow. Maybe it was him flopped over and exhausted but unable to rest. He kept his leg laid straight for awhile but by the third episode he was fidgeting.

"Ugh, I hate this part," Leo sighed and Mikey knew to brace himself.

Leo sucked in a deep breath and pulled his leg up so his knee was bent. He whimpered but continued with the movement.

His leg was now bent up and Mikey rubbed his ankle as a congratulations.

It never failed to amaze him how such a simple movement like bending your knee could be so painful for Leo.

The knee itself looked normal. Totally normal. Leo had broken the kneecap. It looked so much worse when he had first broken it. The knee was warped and knobbled in a way that the human body should be never be. Well, mutant turtle body. Now all that was left was the cross scar from where Donnie had to physically re-piece together his knee cap.

Mikey gently placed his finger on top of the scar.

Leo flinched and tensed. His mouth was snarled open ready to yell at him if he made one wrong move. Mikey knew that if he caused Leo any ounce of pain then he would be yelled at.

So he was extra careful. As the episode ended and the fourth episode played, he brushed his finger along the scar. Slowly over the bump of the knee to the other side. It was a huge scar really. For such a small part of the body.

Leo huffed funnily. MIkey gave him a weird look. "You're uh… tickling me," Leo embarrassedly whispered. "Oh do you want me to stop?" The response was so quiet that he almost didn't hear it under Robo Mecha's shenigans. "Nah. You can keep going."

Mikey grinned but kept his motion light. As fun and silly as this was, he did not want to cause more pain.

His fingertip barely touched his skin. Just hovering over. The barest brush of his finger as he trailed over the bump of his knee again to finish the x. Once he finished the letter, he circling around it like he was drawing a spider web on to the scar.

Leo squeaked once he started going in circles rather than long stripes. His hand curled into a fist but he never once moved his knee.

But to be fair, that could be to avoid hurting his knee further rather than because he wanted the tickling to continue.

Well it was probably both.

Leo would never admit it, even under the threat of torture, but everyone knew it. As a kid, he loved being tickled and starting tickle fights. He would ask for to be tickled again. It was funny, as a kid, he thought Master Splinter tickled him so much just because he must've liked playing around with him. But as an adult, it was obvious that Splinter thought it was adorable.

He wouldn't admit it now but Leo still loved his tickles now. Everyone made sure to give him a few pinches every now and then to make him happy.

Mikey giggled along with him as he continued his gentle ministrations.

Leo's quiet giggles bounced under his breath. His gruff and husky voice made his giggles deeper. Thankfully, the voice change hadn't affected his proper full laughter. But it wa a shame that his giggle sounded different.

"Remember when Sensei would spread his hand over our knees? Kinda like this?" Mikey copied the motion over Leo's knee. His fingertips together at the very top of his knee before slowly spreading out. He couldn't do as effectively since he had fewer fingers. But judging by Leo's silenced squeal, it still tickled. "Mihikey!" "It was weird right? He was better at it than me. He had those sharp rat nails! Dude, do you remember how much they would tickle!" Mikey gasped.

It was very true. There was no greater tickle monster than Master Splinter.

He continued trailing his finger over Leo's knee, doing absolutely nothing to heal the pain throbbing underneath the skin but it helped Leo focus on something else. His mind swam lazily through memories just as easily as his finger glided along his brother's skin.

Leo continued quietly giggling with his new voice and Mikey was glad he could distract from the new pain that had made its home in his muscles.

The night was getting late but they giggled together in the dark.

[bad-cos-ideas]

[I'm still FUMING so HERE WE GO]

Horrible idea!! Including an unskipple PSA on the title screen that reminds people that

1. This is an ONLINE MULTIPLAYER GAME, and when you KOS you effectively make it AN INFINITELY LESS FUN GAME FOR EVERYONE ELSE ON SAID GAME

2. It's a survival game, yes, so killing for food or for defensive measures is perfectly reasonable!! However, if you're just committing mass genocide because you enjoy killing, it's no longer about survival!! It's called you have some fucking traumas that you can work out in therapy instead of projecting it ONTO A ROBLOX GAME ABOUT BEING A FUNKY CREATURE

3. Just because you play as a carnivorous beast Does Not Mean You Can Treat People Like Absolute Dogshit And Not Expect Them To Get Mad At You: your CHARACTER is a carnivorous beast, you being an asshole is YOU.

4. Again, this is a multiplayer game. These are REAL PEOPLE that you talk to!! So when you decide to tell someone that they should off themselves if they're so mad!! It's more than just being an asshole!! That's being a whole ass complex that you need to sort out ANYWHERE BUT ON A GAME PLATFORM LARGELY INHABITED WITH CHILDREN and even if it WEREN'T why the FUCK do you think its OKAY to treat ANYONE LIKE THAT? (this is not dramatized. I have been in multiple servers in which the chat was just a fucking cesspool of pure dickery and gaslighting and bullshit and everyone either trying to tell someone to Stop It and Get Some Help or a group of people deciding that everyone else on the server is the problem, if they're unhappy it's their fault and totally unrelated to this hellspawn of a pack making almost the entirety of the map hostile grounds and borderline unplayable)

5. YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE TO MAKE EVERYONE ELSE MISERABLE IN ORDER TO BE HAPPY, SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP.

This is a psa from someone that someone kindly asked "hey are you okay with being killed? I'm doing a mission" and completely respected when I said no because I was just Straight Chilling, and then immediately after that exchange someone else tried to murk me (and at that point had attempted to and nearly killed me 5 fucking times over I am not even joking) in front of them so they chased off and killed that person only to get immediately hunted down for several fucking minutes by whomever they killed's murder buddies, ending with them being killed for being a polite nice fella and said murder buddies feeling absolutely justified because "that's the game" and It Wouldn't Be The Game If You Just Played It Like A Survival Game instead of Kill For Sport For Funsies

A lot of people would tell me "oh, it's just a game, why are you so mad?"

Because. It stops being a game when it stops being played as one. If you want a battle royale, you still have to understand that people can Not Want To Battle in a Not Battle Royale Game.

gonna be serious for a sec here, because you brought up something that hits close to home for me

everyone needs to read number 4 here especially. i see this shit way too often in game, there is absolutely no reason why you should EVER tell someone to off themselves. i don't care if you're "joking" or whatever, it's not funny, it's not cool, it's not okay. i'm not saying any of my followers do this btw, i'm using general you, this is just something that i see all the time

anyway. serious over. shrimp emoji

[beeehar]

miles writing steel samurai fanfic for funsies at some point during the time span where he believed he killed greg and while he was writing it he was like 'yea this is fine just me projecting some of my feelings onto the magistrate for it to seem a little more realistic yk. Make the character feel human' and he thinks it pretty tame, not intending for it to be too angsty. But once he posts the first chapter it kinda blows up and all of the comments are like 'im sobbing someone sedate me' and he's like damn u guys r sooo dramatic get a grip lmao??? And then as he posts more chapters (and as life starts to go even more off the rails than what it was before hand) the comments morph from 'cryibg' to 'fu.ck you genuinely what was going through your mind when you decided to rip my heart out I'm losing it get therapy I'm serious u need help I think' and at that point he's like ok so what going on here. And then one night after he learns that he is not in fact a murderer (and after he left the letter and went to Germany) he reads through the comments of genuine concern. And that on top of everything else makes him realise that everything is pretty fucked up and maybe. Just maybe things can get better.

(meanwhile the steel samurai fandom is like where tf did go he hasn't updated his heart wrenching fic in a year I miss that prick who'd make fun of us for crying at any chance he got:((. and there are tons of theories abt his disappearance floating around. And yk that trend on tiktok with the song Mary on a Cross where it's like "no quote had ever affected me" and then shows a quote from like a famous poem or movie or something. Well ppl do that with random quotes from his (not tagged as slash but everyone picks up on it) magisteel slowburn fanfiction and that in itself ropes more random ppl on the internet into the lore that is miles edgeworths ao3 account. Like his fic has its own fandom at this point and ppl had all of these inside jokes about it and stuff)

uhh fastforward to a 35 yr old miles randomly remembering about that fanfic he first began writing under the covers in his cold bedroom in the Von karma manor so he logs in and find hundreds of comments asking if he's ok and stuff and he rereads the fic and is like Jesus Christ did I actually think this was normal back then. So then he finishes off the draft he had sitting in his docs for years and says something along the lines of 'damn u guys were right idk why I thought this was fine' in the notes and he posts it and is almost immediately flooded with relieved comments and everyone's like 'rejoice he's not dead' 'took you a while but we love a self aware king'. And then he goes and kisses his husband and smiles at his hoard of children and life his good all is well.

[blackjackkent]

Shoutout to @genderdotcom for letting me know that Jaheira doesn't take up a standard party slot so we can still bring her along with us! I have reloaded and added her into the party. :D

Jaheira gets a badass pre-battle speech, because she is amazing.

"At the ready, Harpers! In this light, there will be victory! In this light, we will avenge the fallen!"

Lots of cheering from the onlooking Harpers.

"The time has come. Ketheric will taste of death at last."

Somewhat comically, after this dramatic setup, literally nothing happened; presumably the game is waiting for me to take the lead and push forward, but it was pretty funny to see all the Harpers cheer and then everyone just stand perfectly still.

Jaheira did have another ambient line afterwards:

Hell yeah. \o/

We're able to loot some more bodies here, some of which have more tadpoles to steal. I've got a collection of eight of them at the moment beyond the ones I already had Hector consume; need to sit down and figure out what other skills are worth spending a worm on.

Quick chat with the quartermaster who is also here and apparently brought her whole stock to the battlefield, and then we're off up into the tower!

We've got what looks like a boss fight coming up straight in the door, as Disciple Z'rell is already set up with some mirror images and some guards. And Mig!

I'm legitimately kind of bummed about this; I felt like we bonded with Mig over being the only people who knew about the meat in the walls. But I guess we have to fight her too. :( Sad times.

Z'rell is pretty ticked off:

"You dare show yourself here, after all you've done? You have betrayed me! You have betrayed General Thorm! You have betrayed our god!"

One could, perhaps, make the argument that she doesn't know we betrayed anyone; all she knows is she sent us off to help Balthazar with Aylin and then Aylin was free. For all she knows we didn't even get there, or got knocked out by a Justiciar on the doorstep of the temple.

Maybe I just suck at my job, Z'rell. Did you ever think of that?

"And for what? These Harpers? Moonrise will be their tomb, and in death, you will all serve the Absolute!"

Hector has three available conversation options here (besides just attacking immediately):

Generally speaking, #2 is the most Hector-ish response; he's not a fan of killing even though he's had to do a lot of it, and for a lot of the people duped by the Absolute, he would be willing to allow them a peaceful surrender. But his first experience with Z'rell was watching her explode all the blood vessels in someone's head with a snap of her fingers for funsies, and to be honest, she's not really going to recover from that in his estimation.

So we're going to go with #3.

"I've looked forward to killing you since the moment we met," Hector tells her coldly.

Z'rell grins. "You hid it well. I thought you'd be another notch on my bedpost, but instead I'll make a trophy of your bones."

Hector stares at her. Notch in your bedpost? The idea makes his skin crawl.

Z'rell's grin widens, seeing his discomfiture, and she pulls the blade from her back, turning the point in his direction. "Boys, make this traitor bleed!"

------

"Hec," Karlach says dryly as she brandishes her blade and the battle lines are drawn. "We have got to have a talk about the effect you have on people."

"I'm not doing it deliberately!" Hector says, somewhat strangled. "We talked to her once! I think I *glared* at her! You know, when she killed someone with her mind?"

"I mean you are pretty hot when you're angry."

"We are not having this discussion right now."

[anddreadful]

I'm curious, I really like all your dnd characters, and I was wondering how you come up with them! Do you write all your own backstory and motivations?

thank you!! I adore inflicting my blorbos on people online and i’m always thrilled to hear that they enjoy it. the short answer is yes— I like to leave gaps in my backstory for my DMs to exploit, and obviously those DMs are running the overall story, but my PCs (player characters) are all original characters of mine, and their assorted bullshit is entirely up to me. (in case it’s unclear, that only applies to my PCs, Teddy and Aster being the ones I mostly talk about On Here. Clay, Borakov, Strahd, etc are all created and run by friends who are generous enough to occasionally let me gnaw on their characters like chew toys).

"How I come up with them" varies a lot! One of my PCs, Tailor, is a repurposed side character from an old book I was writing (which was itself inspired by Alice in Wonderland -- he was the Mad Hatter character). With my storm sorcerer Marin, I knew I wanted to do an Ocean Aesthetic, so I gave her a mysterious shipwrecked-with-amnesia backstory and a pirate found family. Teddy's backstory is lightly plagiarized from Alina's in Shadow & Bone, and Aster's antiquities expert background and general archetype is inspired by Evelyn in the Mummy. Like coming up with any character, it's just a game of picking one cool thing and then scaffolding out other elements that interest you and complement the core idea.

And what's great is that character creation is just coming up with a STARTING PLACE. A PC's Whole Deal emerges over time, a combination of discovery and deliberate choice that's really fun to craft.

These days, I try to keep my backstories to a tight 2-3 paragraphs with 1-3 meaningful NPCs. I've done the long convoluted backstory thing with Tailor, and it turned out very cool -- my DM knocked it out of the park incorporating everything -- but I wouldn't do it again. Aster, my most recent character, has probably the most minimal backstory I've ever done. I wanted to do something simple and strong, do it well, and be free from the traditional backstory resolution D&D arc in favor of whatever else the campaign is going to throw at her.

I love that you mention motive! Puzzling out what my characters want and feel as the story progresses is sooooo fun for me. Inbetween sessions I try to look at what's happened in game lately and ask what it changes for my character, logistically or emotionally, and how I can incorporate that moving forward. And this has increasing returns! Over time, asking myself a lot of small questions about how I want them to react, why they might do that or feel that way, and then playing that out -- taking into account all the improv RP decisions that happen along the way!! -- builds up to a strong sense of who they are. And that becomes REALLY helpful when dramatic narrative choices have to be made in-game.

This is a big part of all the fic and meta I write -- it's an exercise in bringing into alignment what's happening in game and my conception of who these characters ARE in a detailed, specific way. Because the better I can reconcile them, the more they'll feed each other and make each other richer and more interesting, and the easier and better my realtime RP will be. Of course, this is an optional thing I do for funsies, and it doesn’t pay to overthink it -- this stuff is organic and always evolving, and we’re here to have fun at the table first and foremost. BUT it’s super rewarding for me and has become a huge part of why I enjoy the game so much.

[whatifxwereyou]

The Oncoming Storm Part 7: Symptom

Liu Kang x Reader and Kung Lao x Reader (gonna do both, two paths!)

Three days in a row on accident because I have 0 self control. Someone on ao3 suggested a hot spring scene but it didn't fit the narrative- SO I have also written two "interludes" in the springs. I will post those both this weekend for funsies. No idea where they fit in the story but they're fun so who cares? Haha.

Part 6 Interlude One: Electricity in the Springs (Kung Lao x Reader) Interlude Two: Steam (Liu Kang x Reader) Part 8 Chapter Index

Together you walked through the temple, Kung Lao leading you down several flights of stairs, further into the mountainside. He chatted with you casually about several of the halls that you passed; what was down them and places he had explored with Liu Kang when they had been strictly forbidden to do so. You were grateful for the white noise of conversation. It was even nostalgic. He’d talk like this when he’d come to visit you at your Grandma’s. He’d talk and talk about anything and everything, even if you never said a word.

“Y/N?” He slowed his walk. You turned toward him and stopped walking just in front of where he’d now stopped. “Can I ask you something? And will you be honest with me?”

“Depends on the question, Kung Lao.”

“Are you sweet on Liu Kang?”

Completely floored by the boldness of his accusation, you stuttered and then laughed uncomfortably. “Excuse me?”

“I’m just curious. You lit up when he joined us in the pit.” He seemed barely able to say the words without gagging though there was a playful smile on his lips still.

“I don’t remember you being such a gossip.”

“You’re avoiding answering the question, Y/N.”

With a roll of your eyes, you shoved his shoulder. “I’m not dignifying that with an answer.” You were flustered to say the very least. Kung Lao was so damn forward, a far cry from how any of the time you’d spent with Liu Kang had been. He’d just outright asked! Of course you were sweet on Liu Kang, of course you were.

“Oh? Well, then what about me?” He tapped his chest with a childlike grin. “Were you ever sweet on me? Are you still?”

“You know, I am seriously considering throwing ink at you again.” You batted your eyelashes and spoke in a teasing sort of way. The questions were intrusive but he said them in such a way that it was actually comical. It was funny, honestly, to think that you’d fallen right back into a rapport that you’d had with Kung Lao when you were kids. He stepped in front of you to stop you from continuing forward. Then he pointed to your left. You followed him down the hall and then he leaned against the wall near an opening that led down yet another hall. He tapped the sign to his left that read ‘women only’.

“I can’t go past here without getting in trouble.” He held his arm out to stop you as you made to walk past him to further avoid awkward conversation. He didn’t need to say anything. The look he gave you was enough to know that he wanted an answer.

“I’m not thinking about that right now, Kung Lao. I’ve got ink in places that I don’t want to discuss with you.” You pouted and knocked his arm aside. He pulled it back. “What’s going on with you? You just got back and we’ve barely spoken since, you know, you died.” You emphasized the word more dramatically than necessary. The humidity beyond the hall in front of you was already filling the hall and you craved the comfort of clean, hot water. “These are silly questions, anyway.” Your nerves were very much shining through. You weren’t ready to admit anything to anyone. The last thing you wanted was Kung Lao meddling.

“I brought you something, that’s all.”

“I feel like this something comes with terms and conditions with the way that you’re talking.”

“Not at all. But if you’re sweet on Liu Kang then it might make things weird.”

“Do whatever you want, Kung Lao, just do it quickly. The ink is starting to crust and this conversation has made me so uncomfortable.”

“I didn’t say that I wasn’t going to give it to you no matter what your answer had been. I was just trying to weasel an answer out of you.” He smirked and you rolled your eyes.

“Some things never change.” Despite your obvious frustration, you couldn’t help but smile. Kung Lao had been a huge comfort to you when things had been at their most difficult in your youth. It was as though he’d never left. The lack of distance you felt between you was strange and you struggled to wrap your mind around it. You had to remind yourself that you hadn’t seen him in almost twenty years. “You’re such a pest, Kung Lao.”

You walked through the doorway but Kung Lao grasped your wrist and twisted you back to face him. You made a sound of surprise and stumbled into him. He caught you with a laugh.

“You’re clumsier than I expected after how you fought earlier.”

“Kung Lao, I swear.”

He reached between the folds of his shirt and withdrew a small purple flower. Your stomach dropped and you stared with your mouth hanging open, having been forming an empty threat. The flower. It was the exact same kind of flower that he’d given you the last time that you’d seen him when you’d been kids. Your heart had practically stopped in your chest.

“I made a detour on the way back. You’re right. They don’t grow in town anymore. Had to look around a bit before I found one.”

“Kung Lao…” Chills raced down your spine and you swallowed the sudden lump in your throat before reaching to grasp the flower. Kung Lao pulled it out of your reach.

“I thought that instead of teasing you like I used to as a dumb kid that I would be better off making a kind gesture.” Much to your surprise, he took your hand and placed the precious flower in your palm.

“I… uh…” You stuttered, feeling just about as clueless as you sounded.

“Enjoy the springs, Y/N. You can have your privacy for now but next time we’re joining you.” He patted your shoulder then tipped his hat and turned, walking away with a skip in his step down the hall.

You watched him go and sighed, resting your back against the stone wall while staring at the flower that he’d left you with. It was a precious little thing, with soft rows of petals that seemed frail but held on stronger than they looked. There was a small speck of pollen at its center and the stem was just long enough that you could wrap your fist around it. You’d gone looking for those flowers once in hopes of keeping them in the garden behind the dojo. There hadn’t been any and when you’d asked about them, no one knew where you could find one. It had been so long since you’d seen one living that you’d forgotten how resilient and perfect they were.

It seemed a small thing but it was also a huge gesture. He hadn’t said what the gesture meant but he had implied it well enough. You were surprised by how touched you were by the flower. If he’d caught you out there staring at the flower, then you would have never heard the end of it. He’d likely have teased you for being sweet on him.

You turned and entered the hall just to your left. There was a changing room with rudimentary waterflow systems so that you could clean off before going into the actual springs. You had never been so grateful for running water in your life. Ink pooled at your feet as you showered off, scrubbing as much of the ink away as you could. As you did, you felt your side sting painfully. Then blood flowed freely with the spray of water. You held your hand over the wound on your side and winced. You’d forgotten that Kung Lao had gotten you with the hat. You’d been so full of adrenaline and excitement that it had slipped your mind.

Now that you’d felt it, it was difficult to forget. Besides that, it was bleeding fairly freely for something that had happened some time ago now and should have scabbed over. It was probably a bad decision but you were going to enjoy the springs anyway. You found a first aid kit and covered the wound with gauze, then the gauze entirely with tape to protect it from the water. Then you took one of the towels there and wrapped it around yourself.

The cave beyond was smooth and the steam filled the room from floor to ceiling. These springs were huge. The cave formation seemed fairly natural, settling in shallow areas with deeper pools spread throughout. From where you stood, you couldn’t see the end of it but you didn’t feel the need to go far. In the distance, you could see several other monks enjoying the springs but they were far enough away that you wouldn’t be bothered by them.

You were suddenly disappointed that Kung Lao and Liu Kang hadn’t joined you. It was likely that they were too busy anyway. Your face went red at the mental image of what could have been and you sunk into the water and swooned. It was probably for the best that you’d come alone. Next time though, all bets were off. You rested the flower next to you on the stone beside where you rested your head.

It was difficult not to fall asleep with the warmth of the springs and the sound of rushing water in the room behind. Now that you were drifting in and out, you were grateful for some alone time. Often the air around Liu Kang was so stifled with whatever tension you’d cooked up that day that you couldn’t talk or think straight. And you had no idea what was happening with Kung Lao. You had to talk eventually and catch up but for now, those were all problems for you to deal with later. Future Y/N’s problems. Right now nothing mattered except for you, the steam, and the comfort of the springs.

Finally, you got up and as you did, the room spun. How long had you been lying there? Time was difficult to judge in the dimly lit cavern with scant an opening to the outside world. You lifted yourself from the springs, cautious of the flower you’d set aside, and sat on the edge. Then you whined since your towel and the water surrounding you was stained pink. Apparently two layers of gauze and a roll of tape wasn’t enough to keep the wound closed.

How embarrassing. Light-headed with blood loss because you’d been careless.

You picked up the flower and returned to the changing room. There were no extra clothes so you had to choose towel or filthy gi and you trusted the gi more than the towel. It was as crusted as you had joked it had been earlier. Before tying the top closed, you checked the wound and inhaled sharply at the sight of it. It bled freely and was red and ugly looking. Panic swelled in your chest.

When you’d been a kid your wounds had bled more freely than they should have. Even a scraped knee had been a problem. Doctors had put you on medicine to help you clot but it hadn’t helped. There was no way it was happening again. You’d outgrown it.

No, you were being silly. It had been the water and bad timing. You wrapped the wound tightly again but the damage had been done and your fingers tingled as a reminder. You’d been a fool not to go to the infirmary before going to the springs. Between the poison having made your blood such a mess and your recovery from those wounds, it was a wonder that you hadn’t accidentally bled to death while napping in the springs!

Carefully, you tied the gi closed and then tucked the flower inside of it safely. When you’d been led there by Kung Lao earlier, you’d made a point to remember where you’d come from so that you could return without getting lost. You’d spent more time lost in Raiden’s Temple than you had ever spent lost in your life.

You felt Liu’s energy before you saw him turning a corner and walking toward you. He smiled in greeting but it quickly fell into a look of concern. “Are you okay?”

You sure were tired of that question. Then again, you didn’t feel well thanks to your lack of foresight.

“Huh?”

“You’re incredibly pale.”

“Oh yeah. It’s dumb, really.” You pulled on the tear in the side of your gi and Liu’s worry only worsened.

“You said you were fine earlier.”

“Adrenaline is a funny thing, Liu. I forgot about it until I was cleaning up.”

“Kung Lao didn’t help you take care of it before letting you go?”

“I’m almost certain that he alsoforgot about it.”

“Careless.” Liu Kang didn’t sound surprised. “Come sit with me. We’ll take care of it.”

You looked him over, pulled the sliced gi a little and then looked back to Liu knowingly. What, were you just supposed to take your shirt off so that he could take a look at your wound? He laughed and held both his hands up defensively as if realizing what he was asking you to do. You caught the slightest bit of red on his cheeks. It was nice to know that it wasn’t in your head.

“If you aren’t comfortable doing that then come with me to the infirmary.”

“Ugh.” You were so tired of the infirmary! But you were feeling the impact of blood loss at an alarming rate. Your fingers were frigid and your breath was shallower than it should have been. You leaned against the wall nearby with a heavy sigh.

“Please?”

“I can probably sleep it off, Liu.”

“You’re like a ghost, Y/N.” He tried to joke but the worry in his eyes wasn’t going away. You were such a sucker for those eyes that you melted almost immediately.

“Fine. But I’m not happy about it.” You pouted and he laughed, offering you his arm.

“Thank you for humoring me, Y/N.”

Together you walked through the maze of corridors. Liu filled you in on what he and Kung Lao had done after you’d left. It hadn’t been anything remarkable, mostly tasks they were given to contribute to the life they lived in Raiden’s Temple. When you reached the infirmary, you were taken away by one of the female monks that you’d gotten acquainted with during your time there. They offered you a change of clothing and you couldn’t have been more grateful. A tank top and some comfortable loose pants. Familiar clothing, at long last. It was far easier to maneuver those around with the wound on your side.

Afterward you returned to the main room and sat on one of the benches there. The monk crouched next to you and you lifted up your shirt to show them the wound. It definitely looked uglier than it had earlier but it had also gone completely numb. Why couldn’t it look like the minor convenience you’d viewed it as earlier? Now it was swollen and the flesh was torn and jagged. Liu’s expression shifted and he turned away from you to hide it.

“It’s good you came to us. Don’t want to get an infection.” The monk offered you a smile then set about working on the wound. It was no longer numb and you twitched but stifled any painful objection you may have had. Liu stood behind the bench and offered you a hand to squeeze which you took.

“I’m fine.” You reassured him but your brain was buzzing. Did he think you were weak? Frail? Easily broken? You were strong! You had worked so hard to be strong. It was just a bad situation, overall. Kung Lao had immediately regretted throwing the hat at you. Accidents happened. You were getting it taken care of and you would be the better for it.

“Stay with us for a few hours to make sure you are alright.” The monk said and while it seemed like a question, it didn’t really seem optional. You exchanged a glance with Liu who you knew would argue with you to get you to stay. You had no leg to stand on except that you wanted to go back to your room.

“Fine.” The monk bowed to you gratefully and walked away. Liu had you scoot over and then took the seat next to you.

“I told you that hat was trouble.”

“You did. And I know staying is the right thing to do. I’m not happy about it though. I want to be strong again, Liu. It’s one setback after another.” He picked up your hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

“You’ll get there. Be patient with yourself.”

“Yeah, yeah, monk stuff, inner peace and all that.” He laughed at you. “So much for celebrating.”

“There will be plenty of time to celebrate later. This is more important. Tomorrow is another day.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“I’ll stay until you find rest.”

“I’m not sleeping here tonight, Liu. I’m going back to my room the moment they say I can.”

“Sure, Y/N.” He seemed unconvinced and you pouted. Afterward you made casual conversation about your arcana, things that Liu wished to test, and what they thought your capabilities might be. Liu seemed to think you’d be excellent at mimicry. What was ink used for if not to record things? Before you knew it, you had fallen asleep against his shoulder.

***

Liu Kang waited until you fell asleep then watched you for some time afterward. Just to make sure you were alright. Then he crept away from where you rested and consulted with the monks, ignoring their snide remarks about the attention he paid you. It wasn’t their place to judge what he did with his time.

He finished his errands for the evening and as he returned to his quarters, he found Kung Lao in the fight pit, tossing his hat about and practicing. Liu stepped into the fight pit and when the hat turned toward him, he knocked it back with a definitive kick where it slammed against the sand. Kung Lao willed the hat back to him, caught it, and slipped it back on his head, strip neatly tucked under his chin.

“Want to spar? I don’t think I can sleep.”

“No, I’m good.” Liu folded his arms over his chest. “You were careless today, Kung Lao. Y/N nearly bled to death because of it.”

“What? Is she okay?” Kung Lao took an aggressive step toward the stairs but Liu held his arm out to block him, stepping back with him. Liu then explained where he’d found you in the hall and what they’d had to do in the infirmary where you were now resting. “…so she’s fine, is what you’re saying.”

“That’s not the point, Lao.”

“I’m sorry, Liu. I forgot. She handled it like a champ and kept on fighting. I was extra careful but it slipped! We were having so much fun that we may have gotten carried away. We used to pretend when we were kids…”

“I’m not here to scold you. I only wanted to let you know and to remind you to be mindful. Not all the warriors with the marking will be the two of us. Some might not have any experience at all. We’re lucky that Y/N does.”

“What is this, Liu?” Kung Lao’s tone shifted and his lips curled into a knowing smile.

“The consequences of your actions.” Liu turned to leave the arena.

“You know, I asked you to make sure that she was okay and keep her safe not to fall for her.” Kung Lao called after him. It wasn’t an accusation. He didn’t sound angry. He’d always had a way of stirring the pot.

“And keeping her safe is what I’ve done. Then you come back and undo half of the progress she’d made because you wanted to show off.” Liu turned again to face him. There was nothing that would undo their bond of brotherhood but Kung Lao had always been his careless counterpart. In the Academy he’d skipped classes, ignored studies, and had dragged Liu into all sorts of trouble. While Liu had been more studious, he’d gotten them into plenty of trouble over the years too.

“I’m sorry. Really, Liu. I’ll be more careful.” Kung Lao slipped his hat under his arm. “You’d tell me though, right?” Liu threw him a disapproving glare. “When I left back then one of my biggest regrets was not telling her the truth. I never thought I’d see her again so with time I wasn’t sure it mattered. Now I have a chance to be better than I was then. So, I’m going to ask you again. What is this, Liu? You’d tell me, right?”

Liu stepped back. They’d wrestled over far less and he was in no mood. He didn’t know what to say either. He didn’t want to lie to Kung Lao but he wasn’t sure what it was other than a few close calls and some pretty clear attraction.

“That was more than enough of an answer.” Kung Lao dusted off his still ink stained shirt. “Well, may the best man win.”

“This isn’t a contest, Kung Lao. We’re brothers. Always and no matter what.”

“Of course. And I’m going to win.” Kung Lao walked past him and hopped up the steps two at a time, waving him off with a laugh. Liu Kang sighed deeply and looked up at the starry night sky. That could have gone better but he supposed it also could have gone worse.

[btsslowburnfic]

The Arrangement Ch 17

Story summary: Desperately in need of money, you answered the questionable ad. AKA-Arranged marriage AU featuring Y/N and Yoongi

Chapter Summary: Part one of the photoshoot

Previous Chapter here

The work week proceeded as normal. Well, what had become normal. Delivering coffee and reminding Yoongi to eat, answering emails, trying to figure out which meetings Yoongi actually needed to go to and which ones were a waste of time. Of course you always went to the meetings, and holy shit you couldn’t believe the topics couldn’t have been discussed via email. You were looking forward to this particular day because you got to go visit Hoseok in the style department and Jimin had decided he was tagging along “for funsies.”

Yoongi was supposed to go and get measured and try on clothes for his photoshoot. When you reminded him that morning he laughed at you, “Uh no. Hoseok knows what size I wear. He can figure it out. Go look at the clothes and I might try some of them on tonight.”

You and Jimin met up for lunch and then headed up to the styling department.

“I’m excited. I’ve never been to a photoshoot before.” You said bouncing up and down in the elevator. 

“Yeah, they’re pretty boring actually. Like if it’s with some of the hotter models it’s a little fun for the eye candy, but then you feel bad for them because they have to sit for so long  making awkward faces. They are constantly getting their make-up and hair touched up. Touch base with craft services to make sure there’s plenty of water. The lights are bright.”

You took out your phone, “Oh thanks. I wouldn’t have even thought about that. Any other tips?”

“It’s Yoongi. It won’t take as long as it does with the other people. He’ll show up, do it, and leave. JK and Tae, especially Tae, want to chat with everyone on set and if they are together it takes foreeeeevvvveeeeeerrrrr.” 

“Huh, ok. Thanks.” The two of you arrived at JHOPE Fashion and walked through the rainbow vomit doors. 

Hoseok was wearing glasses with yellow lenses today, which made his dramatic facial expressions stand out even more. He immediately rolled his eyes. He pointed to you. “You are not Yoongi.” He pointed to Jimin. “And you are not Yoongi.” He put his hands on his hips. “So why are the two of you here?” 

“I’m sure you can guess why.” You responded dryly.

“Ugh. That ungrateful man. I had lovingly hand stitched these pieces. For him. These patches...” Hoseok pressed his fingers together as though he was praying. “Fine. Fine. You. Y/N. Come. You. Jimin. Wait right there.”

Jimin’s eyes went wide. “Me? Why do I have to wait here?” 

Hoseok turned from where he had started to walk towards the back. “You will thank me in a minute. A certain someone is coming to get his fitting in a few minutes.” He raised an eyebrow and then turned around, his heels clacking against the red tile floor.

Jimin started to blush profusely and before you could ask, Hobi interrupted, “Come new girl. We have work to do especially if that boss of yours refuses to come here and experience these magnificent beauties for himself.”

You followed him through the large door, which led to lime green hallways and then to a quiet, more muted workspace. The walls were lined with fabric bolsters, the middle tables with ribbon, thread, patches, paint. Paint? 

Hoseok sat down. “From what I understand, this album will have an acoustic feel to it versus his previous albums. For that reason I have chosen these natural materials such as cotton, linen, and denim.” He spread out several pieces onto the large table. “I have also opted for a more neutral pallet, as much as it hurts my soul. I have chosen colors found in nature. I have chosen brightly colored accessories such as these silks to stand in contrast with the stiff fabric and more neutral colors he will be wearing. Additionally, I avoided black. We’ll see if he notices.” 

You watched as he draped the red and purple silks over the top of the clothes. For whatever reason, you found it mesmerizing watching the fabric juxtapositioned in such a way.  “It’s so cool to hear you tell a story just using clothes.” You said, somewhat enchanted.

Hoseok flicked his eyes up to you, “Thank you. That is what I try to do with my collections. Everyone’s outfit tells a story, even if they don’t mean for it to. May I?” He asked, stepping back and gesturing at you.

“Oh man. You know I don’t dresses fancy--”

“Shhhh you don’t tell me.” He looked at your outfit. You had opted for an Aline skirt and blouse with a casual blazer.  “You had meetings this morning, that’s obvious by the jacket. You usually dress cuter. Which means you are either sick or not feeling great. You look fine. So I’m guessing...you are on your period. Sorry, this just comes out, I can’t stop it,” he paused for a moment as your jaw dropped open slightly. He stepped closer, inspecting the shoulders of your jacket. “The blazer is at least ten years old but you shouldn’t have had a blazer ten years ago unless it was for your school uniform and that isn’t a school jacket. Which means it probably belonged to an older sister or aunt. You are very responsible and well organized otherwise you wouldn't be Yoongi’s assistant. Therefore you are most likely the oldest or only child so that is your aunt’s jacket. Your blouse is nice. You actually like it, you’ve worn it twice in the week you’ve been working here. You bought it at a thrift store. You don’t spend a lot of money on yourself, but you are very confident. Therefore, it’s not that you don’t think you deserve nice things, it’s just that you can’t afford them so you likely grew up poor and it has continued into your adulthood.”

“Holy shit. You should be a detective.” You said to him.

“The shoes, I gave you last week. They don’t have a story yet, other than a very good -looking man in a suit helped you out because Jimin said you were a nice girl. You wear zero accessories which shows a lack of both funds and sentimentality. Most people have at least one piece of jewelry that means something to them, but if you have one, you don’t wear it.” He smiled at you, his white teeth gleaming. “ Now, how much am I right about?” He crossed his hands in front of his chest.

You clapped your hands as though you were in an audience. “All of it. Although I am still weirded out that you know I’m on my period. Next time I’m going to wear something skin tight to throw you off.” You joked.

“Well,” he started, “At least now that you work here you don’t have to worry as much right?”

Given the shitshow you went through this weekend you weren’t sure about that, but you shrugged, “It definitely pays better. And money doesn’t buy happiness, but it sure helps make some things less hard.” You gestured to the pile of fabric on the table, “So...what do I do? Take these clothes with me for Yoongi to try on or will they be at the photoshoot tomorrow? Do I need to bring them to the photoshoot?”

Hoseok sighed dramatically, “I could dress Yoongi drunk, in my sleep. He can just show up tomorrow and I will dress him then. My staff will make sure the clothes and accessories are at the photoshoot. Here,” He walked over to one of the garment racks. “More clothes for you. I know you have a big closet. And if you run out of space, just take Yoongi’s, he only wears like three things despite my best efforts.”

You laughed, “Yeah, you’re not kidding. Ok thanks,” You took the clothing. “I appreciate it.”

“It’s no trouble. Feel free to see yourself out, I’ll see you tomorrow. Oh and please make sure the catering has strawberries.”

“Strawberries? Got it.” You were learning so much today. 

You exited the backroom and saw Jimin over near one of the pedestals. He was chatting with JK who was getting fitted with a corset. What an itty bitty waist, you admired. The two of them seemed to be having a good time and you had a new list of things to do so you waved at Jimin and headed to 1802 to drop off your new clothes. You had forgotten Hoseok knew you lived with Yoongi. The week had flown by.  

You sent a text message to Jiwoo asking if you could stop by her desk and ask her a few questions to make sure everything was set up for tomorrow and then stopped by the apartment.

You conferred with her and learned how to navigate catering requests via the company website; apparently it wasn’t available on the app, good to know. you felt much better about the shoot tomorrow but still nervous and excited.

You knocked on the door to Genius Lab. No answer. Never any answer. You typed the code in and saw Yoongi wearing his headphones, lost in his own world. He had told you to just wait on the sofa when this was the case and that he would eventually notice you. Normally the smell of coffee was what alerted him to your presence, but you had come empty handed today. You sat down on the couch and took out your phone.

YN: I don’t mean to alarm you. But there’s something behind you.

You saw his phone light up. He ignored it for a minute, presumably to finish listening to a song, and then picked it up. You heard him laugh and take off his headphones.  “You are the worst.” He spun around.

“So mean. Hey. Tomorrow is my first photoshoot. I checked on the outfits for you. By the way, Hoseok is like Sherlock Holmes with clothing. I learned I’m supposed to contact catering, I have hair and make-up requests in. Do I need to do anything else?”

Yoongi thought for a minute. He never really participated in that side of the photoshoot, now that he reflected on it. He walked his way through a day on set.  “No. The changing rooms and photography are handled by other departments. Check with Jiwoo or Jimin, they’ve both set up a shoot before.”

“I did. I’m getting ready to send in the last food request. Any requests?”

“Mandarins. I don’t like to eat a lot on set because I don’t want stuff getting stuck in my teeth.”

“That makes sense. Ok. I’ll let you get back to it then.” You got up and stretched.

“Tomorrow will go fine. If you forgot anything, it will be somewhere in this building.” He reassured you.

“That makes me feel a lot better.” You said honestly. “Alright, I’ll see you around.”

“Later.”

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

The next day arrived with Yoongi heading off to the hair and make-up department and you heading to the 11th floor to see what the photo set up looked like. You exited the elevator. Man your hands were sweaty, you followed the sounds of voices and made your way to the shooting location. The lighting crew was checking their overheads, a stand-in was posing on the various props they had set out. It looked as though there were three separate “areas” for shooting photos. One area had a large white couch, complete with coffee table, rubber plant, magazines. The whole set up designed to look like a living room. A second space was a blue sheet with a white background. The third space was a kitchen, complete with an island, stovetop, and refrigerator. Holy moly this space was huge. You marveled at it.

“Hello, can I help you?” An older man walked over.

“Oh hi, I’m YLN. Yoongi’s assistant. I was stopping by to check the set up. It looks incredible.”

“Thank you. Yes. Here, let me walk you through it.”

You received a tour of the set and also an overview of the order of shooting. You also found out that next week, weather permitting, there would be a second shooting at the park across the street. You got catering checked in, or at least pointed to the table and felt like you did a thing. The same happened when the clothing team showed up. You pointed to dressing rooms and the vanity where the accessories trunk should go. You were thankful no one had asked you any questions so far. This was a steep learning curve. You had hoped someone you knew might be here today to help ease your nerves, but so far, it was all new faces.

Finally, you saw one familiar face. Alice walked in, carrying a small case with her. You waved.

“Hey! It’s nice to see you again.” She said. “I had no idea you were Yoongi’s assistant until today.”

“Oh, yeah. I guess I didn’t mention that. I was so overwhelmed that first day,” you smiled.

“No worries. He was just telling me and Bongcha that he had an assistant now. He’s almost done. His make-up is setting. I’m on hair today which isn’t my strong suit, but it’s not like he’s needing a fancy up-do or anything and it’s good for me to practice.”

“Ok great. This is my first time at a photoshoot, so if there’s something I’m supposed to be doing but I’m not, can you let me know?” You confided in her. 

“Absolutely. It looks like most of the stuff is set up how it usually is. Just remember,” she got closer to you and spoke quieter, “You are Yoongi’s assistant. Some of these people, especially these older guys will try to get you to do stuff like get their coffee, grab them snacks. That is not your job. It’s not by job. If they have an assistant, it’s their job.” 

“I knew I liked you when we first met,” you smiled at her. “Thanks for the heads up.”

“Anytime Unnie.”

She walked over and took out her hair tools and placed them on the table reserved for hair and make-up. A few minutes later you saw Yoongi walk in wearing a black shirt and grey sweats. His face looked even more beautiful than normal. Next to him was a petite girl with long black hair pulled up into a ponytail, dragging a make-up train behind her.  Yoongi looked around for a second, and then locked eyes with you. You saw the tiniest smile threaten to come out as he walked over.

“Hey. Everything here looks good.” He gestured to the room.

“Thanks. I didn’t do most of it, I just pointed and people seemed to know what to do already. Your face looks good.” 

Yoongi chuckled, “You can thank Bongcha for that. Bongcha, this is YN.”

Bongcha stuck out her hand, “Hi. Nice to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”

“Nice to meet you as well. You do good work. I give his face a 10/10. Highly recommend.” 

“Well, it’s easy when you have such a great model to start with,” She smiled while looking up at Yoongi.

Yoongi had started to blush between the pair of compliments. “Is Hoseok here yet?”

“No not yet.” You took out your phone to see if you had any messages from Hoseok. Nope. You looked back up, “Bongcha, I’m sure you already know, but the make-up table is over there.  Alice is setting up right now.”

“Great, thanks!” She headed over, her shiny hair swishing behind her. 

Speak of the devil in blue himself, Hoseok strutted in at that exact moment wearing an electric blue suit. His crisp white shirt underneath popped beneath the jacket, and his pocket square had little sunshines on it.

“Wow. You look like the sky.” You said before you could help it.

“Thank you. Indeed. It was my inspiration today. It’s a crime to be indoors beneath these artificial lights on such a beautiful day. Oh well. It can’t be helped.” He laid eyes on Yoongi, like a predator gazing on its prey, “Yoongi. Baby. Come.”

Yoongi scrunched his face. “Don’t call me baby. If you miss the sunlight so much, leave. I know how to dress myself.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, you don't know which pieces go together.” Hoseok grabbed Yoongi by the shoulders and started leading him over to the clothing section, leaving you to laugh at the pair of them. You went over to the table you had set up for yourself between make-up and the food. You had printed off several lists that morning to help you stay focused. You checked off several action items. Satisfied, you sat your clipboard down and looked around. It was a well-oiled machine for sure. You walked over to the hair and make-up table. “Hey ladies.”

“Hey! Have you two met yet?” Alice asked, referring to Bongcha.

“Yep, we just did.” Bongcha confirmed, putting on her make-up apron and filling it with various powders and brushes.

“Ooooo we should do a make-up party sometime.” Alice squealed. “We try to do it with all the new girls. And since Yoongi is” she hushed her voice again “One of our favorites. We have to take care of his assistant.”

You smiled, “Sure. That sounds nice. Excuse me.” You decided to go see how the clothes were going.

“Yes. Yoongi’s assistant. So glad you’re here.” Hoseok turned to you.

“She has a name, it’s YN.” You heard Yoongi say from behind the curtain.

“Yes yes. I know. We talked yesterday, remember? At that meeting I scheduled for me and you that you did not come to. Anyways, here. The outfits are now coordinated. They have tags on them corresponding to their accessory in the accessory trunk. Some pieces have more than one option that the Director of Photography and Yoongi will decide on. Got it?”

You looked over the set up. It seemed simple enough since Hoseok had organized it so well .”Yep. You going out to enjoy the sunshine?” 

“Honey, I am the sunshine. I’m off to get laid after having to deal with this cloudy baby.” He gestured to the changing room.

“Don’t call me baby.” Yoongi shouted from behind the curtain. You just laughed as Hoseok turned around and left. You waited for a few minutes. 

“You ok in there? Need me to come help you put your pants on?” You teased.

“Not necessary.” Yoongi slid open the curtain. Why was everyone teasing him today? He pouted without thinking about it.

You walked over, straightening the collar of his shirt “Hey now, you can’t go around pouting like a baby and not expect people to call you one. Here,” you handed him a mandarin. He scowled at you as he took it. “Such a pretty face” You laughed. 

“Yeah whatever. I can eat this while they set up the white meter. You should be fine to just hang around at this point.”

“Alright. Sounds good.” The two of you walked over to the main part of the set where the Director gave Yoongi instructions about where to sit as they practiced the blocking and softbox placement.

“Oh my god he looks so good eating that tangerine.” You overheard. Your eyes bugged out slightly and you turned around. A group of women from the photography team were looking at the images to check the saturation and focus, as well as apparently the model. Damn. NEXT CHAPTER

@lidda  @anpanman-sonyeondan   @firefairy1  @cuteipat​  @sugaslittlekookies​  @janeelizabeth1216​ @deeepvibes​ @gxldenhunny​ @livelyjay​ @niniita-ah​ @bobbyboops​ @honeysunandsoil​ @deathkat657​

[scorchrend]

i wrote some etre + xioct shop dialogue for deltasleep chapter 3 funsies then the characters came up then it got out of hand. text below cut

(enter)

Etre: Hey, welcome!

Xioct: Welcome.

(buying)

Xioct: We sell more than flowers. Feel free to look through our items.

(bought)

Etre: Thaaank you!

Xioct: Pleasure doing business.

(cancel buying)

Xioct: Mm, understandable.

Etre: We have other items for you to check out!

(selling)

Etre: Oh, oh! Random garbage for our compost?

(sold)

Xioct: Cool, thanks. Etre, here's the garbage.

Etre: Why me?!

(cancel selling)

Etre: Are you just waving your stuff in front of us or selling it???

Xioct: Please, we don't need more trash.

(leave)

Etre: Goodbye and good luck!

Xioct: Stay safe. See ya.

(talk)

options:

You

Eve

See others?

You:

Etre: Oh, us?

Xioct: We're just florists.

Etre: Former knights of the Chapel, but yes, we're florists. It gets REALLY COLD, so someone has to take care of the plants, yeah?

Xioct: They sell well. Can't get them anywhere else, so.

Etre: How they stay warm is a secret!

(Berdly: What's the secret???

Etre: Friendship)

Eve:

Etre: She's a nice kid, really!

Xioct: Well, ever since the Bishop vanished, nothing's really the same.

Etre: It's hard to face them, especially when we were, specifically, hired to defend… Ahhh, ah! Nevermind!!!

Xioct: Still, we visit them sometimes. Keeps going on and on about this "Knight" though.

Etre: No, she isn't talking about us. But, isn't this just like before her mother…?

See others?:

Rudy:

Xioct: Oh, our liege?

Etre: He saved us earlier from a glass cage!

Etre: Thus, we have once again taken up the mantle of knighthood! None shall harm him on our watch!

Xioct: Dramatic wording, though not wrong.

Noelle: Uh, hold on.

Xioct: ... Hmm? Yes?

Noelle: We're talking about the same person, right??? Rudolph Holiday?

Etre: Mhm!

Noelle: That's my dad.

Etre: Oh ok cool.

Etre: WAIT, WHAAAAT?!

Xioct: Hmm, I can see it.

Kris:

Xioct: The blue lightner? They were with our liege.

Etre: I think they looked pretty disoriented. I wonder if they're okay…?

Xioct: Don't worry, our protection extends to them too. Though it seems they're quite adept on their own.

Etre: You say that like our liege can't defend himself!!!!

Xioct: Heheheh.

Etre: XIOCT!!!!!!!!!

Spamton:

Xioct: Who?

Etre: What an odd name.

Xioct: I'unno. Would be funny to meet someone with that name. Maybe in another time.

Noelle:

Etre: Nice tree branches!

Xioct: They look good on you.

Etre: What do you mean they don't grow leaves? It's not just because of the cold?

Etre: … What do you mean they're not branches?

Berdly:

Etre: I think he's pretty cool.

Etre: Understood our fancy and formal knight-speak, so he must be.

Xioct: YOUR fancy "knight-speak," not ours.

Etre: Same thing!

Xioct: Anyways, he has a damn nice weapon.

(Etre: DANG!!!!!!!!)

Xioct: If he needs help with the spear though, I can probably show a few tricks.

Etre: Don't believe him. Xioct's a crap

Etre:

Etre: Bad teacher.

Susie:

Xioct: She's a nice girl.

Etre: Agreed!

Xioct: It's nice that you've found someone who can protect you with her whole, and someone for you to protect in return.

Etre: Though, uhm. Good luck, Noelle. We won't be of any help when it comes to romance.

(Xioct: ????)

Etre: Anyways, her rudeness is rather charming, actually. I mean this in the nicest way possible. She reminds me o

Xioct: If you say she reminds you of me I am not doing any of my duties for the flower shop this week.

Etre: Haha so as I was saying I hope Susie has a wonderful day.

[hhuta]

every day i think about how they changed the le bien qui fait mal and l'assasinphonie choreography so salieri wasn't dancing close with sexy half naked men. do we know why. i have tried and failed to pinpoint an exact time. i feel like im going insane. they no homoed a dance

anon.. i think about that daily too... im so happy someone else loves the original choreos like i do 😭 it took me a while to reply cuz i was on a mission to answer ur questions as best as i could. so... finally... here is what i found out:

first of all if u wanna read my rant about the changes, in general, here are the posts about le bien qui fait mal and l'assasymphonie

second of all "do we know why" is a good question. meaning i dont have an answer dlkjaskl i just now started to learn french so if they ever talked about it in a video, or something... i missed it. so right away im telling u that i can only offer my guesses.

///

starting with LE BIEN QUI FAIT MAL, as i said in that post i linked, i tried to figure out whether they only degayed it for the 2011 proshot or not and i found out that no, the changes were also present in live performances.

then an anon told me massimiliano (the dancer who manhandles salieri) couldnt be at the 2011 proshot recording. i checked the video and he really wasnt there at all, but that still doesnt fully explain things, bc as u will see from my extensive, very professional research, unlike in the 2011 proshot, in live 2011 shows massimiliano was there, performing, in other parts of the musical. just not during lbqfm. i know he is an irreplaceable icon, so much that i couldnt find a single video where he wasnt the one manhandling salieri (even tho other dancers, from other parts of the choreo, kept switching), but to me its now clear that that was not the case. they really just decided to change the choreo.

so now lets see how it all progressed

for that its helpful to know the dates of mor performances. based on that i was insane enough to watch as many videos as i could to try to pinpoint when the choreo changed. except it wasnt that simple. i quickly found out that a loootttttt of other changes happened before that major one, before massimiliano left. so here it is

THE LBQFM CHOREO CHANGES I NOTICED

03.01.2010 last PDS performance, still the original

6, 26 february 2010 original

11 march 2010 original (massimiliano's skirt fell off 😭)

20 march 2010 original

8 may 2010 original

9 may 2010 not so much the original anymore. this is the first change i've noticed. @1:28 originally its a male dancer who bends back salieri and then there are 2 men and 2 women who .. idk how to describe it, but do that push and pull motion. here one of the guys is not there

(10, 11, 12 no performances)

13, 15, 16 may 2010 now the other guy is gone too, only women left (but the dancer is not really gone. im pretty sure hes there, doing another thing next to them)

(cannot find a video from the 17th, that was the last performance in lyon)

performances at zenith de saint etienne begin at the 21st but i couldnt find a video from it

22 may 2010 original again (sidenote salieri is really unhinged here)

27 may 2010 change. female dancer who's usually interacting with salieri during the first verses isnt there, just massimiliano. not sure if its the same woman who calls him during the bridge and moves him thru the dancers but anyways shes also not there, he walks around alone. so when the Climax happens, again, only massimiliano is there grabbing him

31 may 2010 and 6, 10, 13 and 19 june 2010 another change. the female dancer is back, but during "j'adore l'avoir dans la peau" usually there are two dancers next to him mimicking playing a harp with their bodies but not this time

now the dates that matter the most i cant find a single videeooo 🤡 which are the performances in limoges (25, 26 and 27 june 2010) so all i can say is that

3 july 2010 is the first time i could find that massimiliano wasnt there. aka the degayed choreo. but i cant say if it is the first. also the original choreo for the "j'adore..." part is back again. thats the only performance they did in nancy and its also the last tour performance from 2010. a bunch of people were at the curtain call, even albert cohen was there, so its very weird that massimiliano was absent. im so mad i couldnt find those videos from late june bc all i got is just one video of him not being there, which makes me think he just couldnt be there so they had to change the choreo

9 november 2010 they are back in PDS and its the original again (also this is just for me but he still has the original cravat here. im trying to kill two birds with one stone)

2 december 2010 original (salieris beautiful cravat is gone 😔but this is one of my fave videos)

5, 11 december 2010 still the original

12 december 2010 changes again 😭 "j'adore..." harp dancers are gone again

14 december 2010 they are back <3 (funny video bc mikelangelo forgets to give florent the score)

18 december 2010 NOW HERE ITS WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING. a little change. massimiliano is there at the beginning, he drags salieri around but then hes gone before the first verse starts! and he doesnt come back !!! harp dancers are still there tho lmao

19 december 2010 massimiliano is fully gone 🎻 yamin even replaced him during la mascarade, like it happens in the 2011 proshot. i think since this date this change became the standard for a while, before they went back to the original. in the meantime, im guessing its when they shot the 2011 proshot

26 december 2010 still just the female dancer

4, 8 january 2011 still just the female dancer

9 january 2011 still just the female dancer but because it was the last performance in paris, before going on tour again, she has a whip for funsies. also they added, at the end, 2 female dancers sorta removing and quickly putting back salieris coat

28 january 2011 first tour performance, still just the female dancers. and i was not paying attention to this before, but i noticed for the first time in this video the 2 women dancing together, like they show for 2 seconds in the 2011 proshot. lesbian rights <3 i dont think it was part of the original choreo? its hard to tell exactly when they added that bc people usually record salieri, not the dancers, and hes not next to them when it happens (its before the bridge)

4, 5, 6 february 2011 still just the female dancer. but unlike before, this time (but idk exactly when it began) massimiliano was there for other parts of the show; yamin and other people didnt replace him (on the 4th: im pretty sure hes present in l'assasymphonie) (on the 5th: hes in la mascarade, le trublion, etc)

so. they really just changed it. massimiliano not being able to perform wasnt the case. we have to accept that they made a mistake <333 ldkajslk

19, 20, 27 february 2011 the original is back

19, also 19, 20, 23, 26 march 2011 it changed a little again but massimiliano is still there. no one bends salieri back and just one guy and one woman do the push and pull motion. also i think around here they removed the two women dancing together? maybe i just cant see it

20 mai 2011 original back once again

01 april 2011 .................... clearly an aprils fools joke bc massimiliano is gone again. i randomly picked this date cuz i knew it would be cursed dlkjaslk.. also again salieri doesnt get bent back and just 2 dancers do the push and pull... u knOW IT !!! WE GET IT !!!!! ok but i love him dramatically sighing and falling on the floor at @2:58 hes doing the most to make up for the flavour that got lost

03.06.2011 original again

12.06.2011 just massimiliano, no female dancer. im obsessseedddd with this video fully bc of the things massimiliano does!! obsessed with his evil smile @0:48, obsessed with salieri forgetting to throw the score on the floor, so massimiliano grabs it from his hand and forces him to kneel and stand up again. can u tell im a massimilianator and the choreo without him has no chance to please me?

17.06.2011 back to the original again

now im gonna skip to the very last performance from this production bc im honestly tired lkdajskl

10 july 2011 its the original thank god

TL;DR: 19 december 2010 is when the degayed choreo became the standard for a bit and on 19 february 2011 the original returns.

im confident that watching all those videos in a short period of time gave me brain damage but .. anything for science <3

ANYWAYS i started to do this to figure out why they changed It only to realise they changed A Lot of other things throughout performances (some things i didnt even mention, like the dance the woman does next to salieri during the first verse changes a lot) and they kept going back and forth to the original choreo. i think i can safely say not a single part (involving salieri) remained the same throughout the whole thing (not even the bending him back part was always there. i could swear it would be but!! no!). my guess is maybe because a certain dancer took a break or maybe they just wanted to do something different

in conclusion i figured out the exact dates but i cant tell u why massimiliano wasnt part of lbqfm for a while. i couldnt even find people talking about it on forums but, again, maybe bc im not fluent in french. to me it was a big loss, the whole thing loses its spice, i obviously prefer the original by miles. no idea why they simply didnt chose someone to replace him bc the other dancers changed all the time.

maybe it was in florents contract that only massimiliano was allowed to manhandle him <3 dlkjaslk im half kidding bc who knows? maybe it was a legal thing, maybe massimiliano invented this part of the choreo and only He could do it 😭 but honestly. my real final guess is that they simply wanted to change things to make it New and Fresh. as we saw, massimiliano leaving wasnt the only lbqfm choreo change.

///

moving on to L'ASSASYMPHONIE thank god bc it will be a lot easier to pinpoint when they changed the choreo. i believe they changed it and never went back to the original </3 god knows why </333 so when i find the new one ill stop looking

03.01.2010 last performance from "season one", at PDS (before going on tour) and also the last time they used the original choreo bUT ! THERES A BONUS! MORE MEN !!! LKDJALKS they said we will degay it later but u can have more naked men as a goodbye gift <3 really caught me by surprise, its the first time i watched it. but u wanna know whats really weird? this blurry shaky video is the only one i can find?! i even had to scroll a lot on youtube to get to it... conspiracy theory dove is trying to hide the original choreo. but honestly it makes no sense bc it was a Special day..... i cant find it anywhereee not even outside youtube... this is a hate crime. this is offensive. this is the heresy salieri sings about in the song.

the only thing i found was another performance from the same day but i think its the morning or afternoon performance and not the very last one. its for sure different than the one i linked first. i dont think there are 100 men onstage but at least we can see he had black nails 🥰 anyways... if anyone knows a better shot video of the very last performance... let me know... im really upsetklfdjalsjdal I FEEL SOOOO ROBBED...

and im even more mad now, remembering that from now on we get this new choreo. it began on their first tour

04.02.2010 2010 tour begins, first time we see the new choreo

and i have absolutely no idea why they changed it. again, i never saw an explanation and i dont have a single guess. i cannot imagine why they thought the new one was better. if i have to say one nice thing about it is that i like the background, the moving curtain that kinda looks like flames. they should absolutely drop the stupid flashing lights and just leave that background for the Cool effect and bRING BACK..... THE HALF NAKED BLINDFOLDED MEN (HNBM) ...........  THEY CAN REPRESENT SO MUCCHHHHHH... I LOVE THEM....

thats all i got to say otherwise ill start repeating myself.. if u wanna read more about my opinions on the hnbm and why i prefer the original l'assasymphonie choreo its all in the second link of this post..

anyways big thanks to anyone who read this, hope u enjoy all those videos. even with the dagayed choreos, florent and the dancers always deliver amazing performances. so, regardless, its a good time to watch them. lastly if anything is wrong, if i put down the wrong date or something, my bad, but it was .. a lot.. to go through, so if anyone sees a mistake let me know !

[allofthefeelings]

It's been nearly two years since endgame and I'll still get a random wave of grief every few months where everything hurts. Ok Marvel does it count as trauma at this point because it should.

Here are my two responses:

THE VERSION I WANT TO HAVE BUT I KEEP TRYING TO INTELLECTUALIZE SO IT DOESN’T HURT SO BAD:

OMFG I KNOW RIGHT???????????????? IT’S THE WORST AND I’M TIRED OF BEING SAD, I JUST WANT TO LOVE THEM.

THE INTELLECTUALLY STEPPING BACK VERSION WHICH GETS LONG BUT IS HOW I AM RATIONALIZING [cw: lots of talk about grief; some abstract discussion of the pandemic]:

It's because we haven't gotten any new Marvel texts, so this is what we're left with. The movie was designed to be the end of a chapter, not the end of the novel, and they intentionally organized their schedule to have a long break to make us sit with it- originally seven to ten months between FFH and Black Widow, if I understand correctly (they moved dates around when they postponed Guardians of the Galaxy 3), but it was never supposed to be this long. FFH was July 2, 2019; it’s going to end up being 675 days between Marvel theatrical releases. The texts create the trauma and then help us process it, but because there’s been so long between them, we don’t have the healing.

FFH was about grappling with Tony’s death, but you can look at the first few Phase 4 projects as dealing with other major losses: Black Widow about Nat’s legacy, WandaVision about Viz’s, and Falcon and the Winter Soldier about Steve’s. (Marvel somehow does not seem to understand that Gamora also needs to be mourned, because they brought back an old version of her. This is a Problem. The same Problem exists with Loki, but it seems like the TVA in the Loki series will be actively dealing with that?) The Hawkeye series is also kind of by definition going to be dealing with the whole mess of Endgame emotions; to tell any new story about Clint, it’s going to have to wrestle with him becoming a racist murder ninja for funsies and everything that came after.

It’s really hard to deal with grief over fictional characters because they’re fictional. It feels like you’re taking a made-up story about superheroes too seriously; it feels like you’re invested in something that doesn’t matter when so much in the world does. But at least for me, the fact that the stakes feel lower makes me invest that much harder, and when they go from low stakes to what they did in Endgame- which raised the stakes dramatically but did not seem to understand the additional weight it was carrying for increased catharsis- it hits that much harder because it changes the rules we’d been playing by. And knowing that Eventually In The Future we will have texts that help us wrap our heads and our hearts around these losses doesn’t help, because they don’t exist now and all that we really have is, well, a lot of dropped storylines and a performatively-thrown bench.

And on top of that, we’re living in a world right now full of grief we don’t really have outlets for, and fiction is supposed to be our escape, but because it never gave us the end point for that grief it can’t be the necessary release valve. I’ve seen some reviews saying that the snap can, retroactively, work out incredibly for Marvel; in 2019 it felt like this big a loss to the world of the MCU couldn’t possibly resonate for the audience, and now the world is mired in huge losses and we desperately need that fiction that is far enough from our experience to not be gutting but close enough to give us catharsis. The problem is that Endgame didn’t give us that catharsis, relying on later texts to do so, and that means we’re stuck in a holding pattern in fiction like in real life.

I know that at least for my mind, grief over fiction feels really embarrassing (it combines feelings, which are embarrassing, with being overinvested in media, which is ALSO embarrassing), but also easier to access than grief over real people, which is so huge it still feels numbing. So it’s grief without catharsis, but it’s grief we can fathom and feel.

And that is my intellectual justification for why sometimes I think about Vormir and my heart wants to explode, even a year and nine months later.

[angelsswirl]

Whatever Makes You Happy

Chapter 9: dance in the moonlight

Notes: do we like the angst? if not this chapter represents a slight turning point. and i also made a new title card for funsies.

Wrd Cnt: 1.3k

Rating: T

I know it's warmer where you are. And it's safer by your side. But right now I can't be what you want. Just give it time.

"I'll kill her. Just say the word." Jennie seemed to remind you for the one hundredth time.

You rolled your eyes in response, "It really isn't that big of a deal. She got what she wanted from me. I got part of what I wanted from her. End of the story."

Jennie looked to her girlfriend for help. Jisoo only shrugged.

"But you want more."

Your sigh caused your eyelashes to flutter, "But she doesn't. Look. There's nothing I can do about it. There's nothing I'm going to do about it. I'm going to keep my head down, do my job, and only interact with her if I absolutely have to."

"...but you don't want that."

You slapped your hand down on the counter of the bar. It was noon, so there was no one in the building but you, Jennie, Jisoo, and her boss who was out of earshot in his office.

You were tired of people telling you what you wanted. Tired of people telling you what you needed. It seemed like you were the only person okay with giving up.

"I know it's not what I want. It doesn't matter what I want."

And you had known that fact from the very beginning.

"It should." Jennie mumbled.

"But it doesn't. And it is what it is."

It is what it is. That was your story, and you have no choice but to stick with it.

You frowned at the note on your bed. Next to it sat an elegant gold gown, definitely more expensive than probably everything you had ever bought for yourself combined.

Dohyung peaked his head around your doorway. Kijung did the same thing a few inches below him. You would have found the sight comical if Dohyung hadn't have fallen directly on top of Kijung three seconds later.

They murmur between themselves for a few seconds before finally entering your room properly. They smile at you brightly, clearly wanting something.

"You see your gift?" Kijung asked, pointing to the dress and the note.

You nodded, not particularly enthused, but the boys didn't need to know that.

"Mom picked it out for you. So, you can go to her grown up party with her. You have to hurry up so you can make it on time. Mom says it's bad to be late. So, I guess that's always why she just doesn't go to things."

You stifle a hardy laugh behind a cough.

"It's nice of her. But I don't think I'm going to go. I rather stay here and hang out with you guys." Truth was you didn't want to give Lisa the satisfaction at this point.

"We want you to go, Y/N."

You took a deep breath. They were giving you the eyes. The puppy eyes. They knew you couldn't resist.

"Fine. But I'm not wearing this dress."

The boys shrugged indifferently. Little did you know, their allowance had only relied on getting you to agree to going. Lisa never said anything about you wore. So, as far as they were concerned, they had done their job.

"I thought you said Y/N was coming." Chaeyoung inquired. She attempted to sip at her flute of champagne nonchalantly.

Lisa rolled her eyes, "No I didn't. I said I invited her. There's a difference."

"Then, where is sh-" Chaeyoung trailed off as her eyes shown up at the top of the grand stairway.

Lisa followed her eyes with a frown, her face soon mirroring Chaeyoung's.

There you were.

Standing at the top of the stairs like you owned the place. And at this point, Lisa easily could have been convinced you did.

At one point she thinks she even stopped breathing. Because you were, well, breathtaking. But, of course, Lisa had always been ever aware of that simple fact.

You seemed to be descending in slow motion. At least half the room had their eyes on you, including Chaeyoung. Much to Lisa's chagrin.

Ages must pass before you come to a stop in front of them.

"That's not the dress I picked out for you." No. She does not know why those are the words that choose to spill past her lips. Yes. She does regret that those are the words that choose to spill past her lips.

You wore a sparkly tight fitting red gown with a slit down the side to reveal your matching red skinny heel pumps.

"Oh, look. She's becoming self aware." You said sarcastically.

Liss supposed she deserved that.

"I-" You cut Lisa off promptly.

"Come on, Chae. Let's dance."

And Chaeyoung followed you like a lost, drooling puppy immediately.

Lisa supposed she deserved that too.

Lisa absolutely did not deserve this.

She had been watching you drape yourself over Chaeyoung all night. You were her guest, gotdammit!

She had half a mind to rip you away from Chaeyoung and sweep you off your feet dramatically. But you were already mad at her, and that would improve nothing at all.

So, she sulked.

Even though she was supposed to be networking.

Sulking felt much more appropriate.

She'd maybe go as far as to say that you were purposely attempting to make her jealous.

She'd go even farther as to say that it was most definitely working. Her excuse, is that it's Chaeyoung. If it was anyone else she wouldn't care. But that wasn't true. Lisa hated seeing you with anyone that wasn't her.

And yet.

And yet, she kept pushing you into the arms of others.

She knew this was hard on you. It was hard on her too. She made a mistake. Not sleeping with you. That was one of the single best decisions of her life. No, the mistake she made was pulling away from you that morning. Her mistake was making you believe that you were only worthy of a one time fuck.

The truth of the matter?

Lisa was fairly sure you ruined her for anyone else that night.

But.

But she was engaged. And yeah, Seulgi may not be here tonight but she was still engaged to her. No matter how much she didn't want to be. She still had to provide for her children and make sure they would be set in the future. She still had to run her business efficiently, and effectively, and her way. She still-she still.....you just leaned your head onto Chaeyoung's shoulder like you enjoyed being there. Like you had never placed your head onto Lisa's. Like you could never put your head onto Lisa's.

Lisa Manoban was in love with you.

And there was nothing either of you could do about it.

Lisa still had to do all of those things. Or so she thought, before she realized she was in love with you. A realization that she finds staring back at her at the bottom of her champagne bottle.

Lisa still had to do all of those things. Or so she thought.

Now, she's looking at you through the warped view of the bottom of the champagne flute. And somehow, she's never seen you clearer.

Having her cake and eating it too hadn't been working. She only ended up putting more obstacles in your way.

So, that meant she was just going to figure out a way to remove all the obstacles. Even if it meant running through them head first.

She finally brought the empty flute down from her lips. Her eyes met yours as you peered over Chaeyoung's shoulder. Your arm wrapped around the tall woman's neck, locked in a secure embrace as the two of you slow dance.

Lisa winked at you and you stepped on Chaeyoung's toe.

Checkmate.

[hmgfanfic]

Talk about all the Fillory worldbuilding in LQoF, please :)

THIS IS INEXCUSABLY LATE. I’m so sorry!

And I wish I could say it was just my scatterbrainedness, which is definitely a constant factor, but it was also that when you sent this, I was deeeeeeeep into writing the final few chapters of Little Quirks of Fate and I was kind of... in my head about it. It took a lot longer to finish than I had planned (a cardinal sin to my particular combo of severe ADHD and Type-A personality) and I was spending excessive amounts of time making sure I figured out a satisfying ending by my own exacting standards, so I just didn’t have the headspace to think through my early process yet. Very sorry about that :( But now that I’m finally done, I’m excited to look back! So if you’ll indulge me a very late answer, I’d be tickled. 💗

Long ramblings and major fic spoilers under the cut.

The truth is a lot the world building came down to character stuff foremost, followed closely by my preferences as a writer. I adapted the world to the story I wanted to tell, while using the little bits of information we’re given in canon as a baseline, rather than building the story around the world. And that was a lot more fulfilling for me, since I only really love worldbuilding through the lens of character, rather than as an exercise unto itself (though it’s super fun once you get rolling.)

To explain what I mean by that, you need to know that Little Quirks of Fate was originally going to be a oneshot. My plan was about 25-30k (lol) of a pure S2 retelling, only with Quentin in the role of Fen. It was also going to take a much more traditional enemies-to-lovers’ path—with Quentin as an active member of the FU Fighters—and the whole thing was going to be in his POV. Also, they weren’t even going to kiss until after the bank heist (which, yes, was going to be a thing here), but that got abandoned the fastest in favor of trying my hand at smut. But two things made me realize I needed to significantly shift course:

1) I was struggling to make Quentin actually feel like Quentin. I wrote this very atmospheric early scene at the FU Fighters encampment, with lots of description of the bonfires and the way their shirts dyed in Fillorian red looked like blood (you get it.) It took place in the black of night, shrouded in secrecy, and when Bayler questioned Quentin about his new husband, Quentin said something like, “He’s a drunk idiot, we have the advantage.” It was all very lush and dramatic, but it really, really, really didn’t feel like Q in any recognizable way to me. Now, I’m not someone who thinks Q needs to be a precious sweetheart all the time, but what I was writing didn’t have his idiosyncrasies or a motivation that felt true to who I feel he is.

2) The draft was DEFINITELY missing Eliot’s story and his perspective. I certainly don’t think Eliot’s POV is always necessary (sometimes not having his direct thoughts heightens tension in romance especially), but it felt really necessary here, to fill in the gaps of what Quentin was assuming and also—more importantly—because the events were just as impactful on him, but in a very different way. So I knew I was missing half the narrative, but that meant I would need to deal more explicitly with the Beast (i.e., Mike, the most devastating storyline to me, personally) and I really, really didn’t want to do that.

My first step in making a more recognizable Quentin was figuring out a way he could more or less use the same syntax that he does on the show. Voice is the first way I connect with a character, so while many writers in this fandom thrive at modifying speech patterns and keeping the heart of a character alive, keeping close to Quentin’s canon speech was an easy fix for me in a story I was excited to get rolling. Sort of like the old adage of uplifting your strengths before putting outsize energy into things you struggle with.

The easiest way I could think to give him the same syntax was to figure out a way Quentin spent some significant time on Earth during his formative years. And once I rewatched 2x06 and was reminded that Ess went to Phillips Exeter Academy for high school, I lost my damn mind. I started sketching out ways that Quentin could get there too and that’s how I built out the idea of Umber brokering a marriage deal with the actual landmass of Coldwater Cove, which included an education opportunity for the boys (in a nod to Fillory’s patriarchal nature), and also the reason why Umber did that, which was to take advantage of his brother’s orgy mistake with the first Children of Earth to usher in a more productive and orderly Fillory. So that created a whole new set of rules and essentially a whole new world for me to play with... all for the sake of Quentin getting to say “fuck.” It was that important to me. :p

And as I worked through all that, I realized I also wanted to give Q magic, since Quentin’s relationship with magic is something I’m interested in. But I had read on ye olde Tumblr that the reason Illario uses a wand in 2x06 is a nod to the books, where Fillorians specifically aren’t Magicians and that’s the rationale for the Children of Earth royalty. And while I generally see the books as interesting supplemental material with zero bearing on the television show canon, I still said to myself, “Self, wouldn’t it be kind of funny if Quentin was the only native born Fillorian who had magic and so the FU Fighters believe he’s the chosen true High King, but instead of it being because he’s ~special~, it’s because Umber made a clerical error? Lol! Hilarious!”

So while all my questions for how to explain all THAT spun out into more and more detail, at the same time...

I caved to the idea that this story was going to be a No Beast AU, just like my last two stories, mostly because I really couldn’t bring myself to deal with the Mike of it all, even tangentially. I could have just changed that single element, but I’m not a half-measure gal! But I still wanted to stick with the vague background theme of Fillory = adulthood from a questing perspective and I wanted Julia leading the charge this time, but without the sexual assault that occurs in canon. So obviously, the answer was avenging all of the murdered and cannibalized “grown-ups,” i.e., master Magicians, by seeking out help from the gods in a balanced Fillory free from the devastation of the Beast. Duh! ;)

So then, like anyone would do, I rewatched every episode up to 4x11 that makes a mention of Fillory and took about twenty pages of notes on the canon worldbuilding, along with an analysis of how much a particular piece of information would be impacted or not by balance in the realm. For instance, the existence of geraniums (per The Fillorian Candidate and Tick’s misunderstanding of “power plants”) and the lack of diamonds as a precious stone (per the River Watcher not knowing the value of Margo’s earrings in Knight of Crowns) struck me as static facts unaffected by Ember’s reign of chaos. But I shifted the overall feel of Fillory to one that’s more functional and a lot more bureaucratic, leaning on things like the existence of socialized health/vision/dental insurance (the idea of which is canonical, per a petition from the beavers requesting dental coverage from acting High King Josh in Ramifications), strict taxation plans, and an overall sense of thriving Ceremony to show Umber’s influence.

Basically, I wanted Eliot to inherit a much, much easier Fillory to rule—especially with the highly educated Quentin as a built-in and passionate advisor—mostly so it wouldn’t completely strain credulity when a lot of his energy goes toward his love life rather than the intricacies of ruling (though Margo would say he still favored his personal life more than he should have, and she wasn’t... wrong. He wants to be a husband more than a king!) But I specifically made it so most of the chaotic elements were played as whimsical (sorry) quirky shit or smaller hints of greater injustice (see: Ember getting rid of STDs, but still letting magic-poor citizens die of sepsis because that’s too boring to deal with), all while a cataclysmic danger lurked under the surface.

After that, I just filled in details as they worked with character stuff and plot stuff, and I tried to make sure they didn’t contradict each other in a way that couldn’t be chalked up to “chaos.” I basically lived with the Fillory map open all the time and also took screenshots of Benedict’s map of Loria, which gave me alternate ideas for the overall feel of the landmass rather than just the kingdom. And pretty much that’s the basic process I used to create the world! It was extremely fun, and I learned a lot, though I’m *definitely* focusing on some pure relationship kind of stuff for a while because... oof, sometimes it was a lot.

Annnnnnnd if you’re still with me, here’s some stray observations, for funsies:

I wanted Quentin and Eliot’s starting points to be more mature than in the show. Quentin when we’re introduced to him as an adult in LQoF is a lot more jaded and cautious than S1 Q, which is because in this world, his S1 mentality happened while he was on Earth and came to a head during the throes of his fucked up relationship with Bayler. Similarly, Eliot had already gone through a lot of shit too, and was much more self-actualized by the time he agreed to be High King here than in the show. It was still out of desperation for purpose, but not coming out of a direct trauma spiral. I think if they had been younger, both in age and mentality, the story wouldn’t have worked because they would’ve blown it up day two. They’re both still disasters, as we like to say, which is why the... everything happens, but they’re not disasters in the exact same way as in early canon. I thought of them as closer to their S3 selves, pre-Mosaic.

While I mostly kept Quentin’s syntax the same as on the show, I did change it up in some ways to reflect his Fillorian upbringing. The most obvious was replacing “goddamn” with “godsdamned” and “Jesus” with “Hades,” but I also made him slow on the Earth idiomatic uptake and slightly more likely to use passive voice and less likely to use contractions, especially early on and especially when speaking with Fen. He also said slightly out of date things even for someone who last remembered 1999, since Earth was still overwhelming despite his immersion. E.g.: In the epilogue, he asks Eliot if he can spend some time “Googling the World Wide Web” instead of watching Gossip Girl together, even though by 1999 most people were saying “on-line” or “the internet” by a pretty wide margin. But in my mind, the first term he learned was World Wide Web and he stuck to it like glue.

I originally had a full-blown coronation scene, where Quentin helped Eliot with the answers to the 90s questions via subtle charades, such as flapping his hands at his sides to give him the answer “Wings” (and Eliot was eventually going to Eliot-Logically use that moment to argue to Quentin that maybe Q really is the true High King since he was the one who actually answered the Knight’s questions, etc.), but I cut it and only showed bits and pieces in flashbacks because it didn’t really matter. They had to treat it seriously because it was An Event in this version of balanced/un-Beasted Fillory, with a full audience bearing witness, but the whole thrust of the external plot was about dismantling that moment and the concept of monarchy in general, so giving it too much weight outside of the Eliot and Julia friendship felt disingenuous to the story I was telling.

This is also why it was important to me that Margo hated the title High King Eliot the Kind, even though I only brought it up textually once or twice. But in my view, she fucking hated it and never came around to it. Which isn’t because she doesn’t think Eliot is kind, it’s that it felt like a simplification of all that he is, and the coronation ceremony in general felt similarly shallow. It wasn’t just the four of them working out their shit on the beach; it was true ceremony after a year of questing toil and a lot lingering uncertainty/resentments (especially regarding Julia), so it was too Big Shiny Happy Bow to her.

Yet on the same theme, my greatest regret was not being able to work in the fact that Margo’s title for Penny (King Penny the Persistent) was supposed to be half-sincere and half-sex joke. She did genuinely admire that he stuck it out even through his initial heartbreak because he gives a shit about his people underneath it all, but—and this is a very important headcanon to me—she admired his dedication to the art of the female orgasm even more.

I was originally also going to include the One Day More sequence with way more details—such as Umber taking the Javert lines, Ember taking the Thenardier lines, Bayler taking the Enjolras lines, and Penny taking the Marius lines, but... uh... writing a musical number is apparently not in my skill set. Also, honestly, the weirdness of the original is its whole charm and so I didn’t want to improve upon perfection. See also, in a more serious way: Eliot bowing to High King Margo on the Muntjac, the events of Plan B, and Quentin & Penny in the Flying Forest. Would not touch it!

My favorite Fillorian detail was either the guy who sent a citizen petition requesting a “smidgen” of Eliot’s earwax for an undisclosed purpose, or the use of the verb “to peg” to describe a Pegasus flock greeting an outsider with honor. They encapsulate the obscene yet pristine feel I always tried to give Fillory.

My favorite subtle(-ish?) ironic moment is Ess, the heir to a hereditary monarchy, taking Quentin to task for not honoring the anarchy patch on his high school backpack. In general, I don’t like everything being neatly resolved, including on an overarching world level. And I very strongly felt they had ZERO business meddling in Loria, so it left some fun-to-me unanswered questions. Will Ess usher in democracy for Loria based on his experiences on Earth? Maybe! Maybe not, since tradition’s a hell of a drug and Loria has its own history and complexities. Who knows?

I misread the town name Sutton as Sultan on the map the first time I referenced Bayler’s hometown (Sultan’s Ridge), but instead of going back to fix it, I just made it a sister town. Whatever!

I do not know how Quentin got a full bookshelf of Earth literature back to Fillory with him. Magic, I guess. (That’s the answer to anything I didn’t totally think through.)

I occasionally get asked whether Quentin and Fen were physically related. The answer is no, though it doesn’t totally matter. But I intended heart-cousins to be more like close family friends. (Though I actually originally had a joke where Eliot still wasn’t sure by the epilogue, but it didn’t land/feel realistic so I cut it.)

The details of the magic frequency poisoning were DEFINITELY what I thought through the least. My main goal was to have something catastrophic happen to Fillory based in part from the historical actions of the Children of Earth and Ember, patently ridiculously but with lasting consequences. Hence, god orgy that took away Fillorian human magic and sent out a slow poisoning of the overall magic “frequency.” It sounds all well and good, but it’s definitely something that would fall apart with even the lightest bit of prodding. It serves it’s purpose though, so I figured the gaps could be filled in or politely ignored. ;)

This question was way too much fun and a helpful retrospective for me! Thank you so much for indulging me, many moons ago. 💗

[nctvrnal]

hey y’all this is not a full character intro but a rundown to get some quick plotting going!! i’m vee and i use a lot of exclamation points i can’t help it but also i can and yet i can’t!!! find me on discord @ baby límon 🍋🐸#6632

first up there’s ivy!

 [ SOOYOUNG / JOY, SHE/THEY, GENDER APATHETIC ]  —  [ IVY MOON ]  is a child of  [ HECATE ]  with the power of  [ MYSTIOKINESIS ] .  they were born in  [ 1996 ]  and have been in nemean lion since  [ 2013 ] .  with the change, they  [ HAVE GRADUATED FROM ]  the  [ AMBASSADOR ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually  [ INTERACTING WITH FANS & BAKING ] .

 click here to go to her page!!

really any sort of connections work to her since she’s messy and annoying! hook up, ghost hunting buddy, animal crossing friends, coworkers, anything really!! just know that she will not shut up so someone who doesn’t like her works too please 

and then marcus!

[ AVAN JOGIA, HE/HIM, CISMAN ]  —  [ MARCUS JOHNSON ]  is a child of  [ HADES ]  with the power of  [ UMBRAKINESIS & SHADOW TRAVEL ] .  they were born in  [ 1995 ]  and have been in nemean lion since  [ 2007 ] .  with the change, they  [ ARE TRAINING IN ]  the  [ STANDARD ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually  [ STUDYING & TAKING CARE OF THEIR BABY ] .

HE’S A DAD!!! his daughter is two and his wife died in a recent monster attack ):

so he’s back at nemean for protection and some training

he got adopted by the johnson fam when he was 14 so he’s siblings with astrid, miri, pax, and juniper!

he needs friends pls uwu

listen about trevor he’s so funny please

[ SEOKJIN KIM, HE/HIM, CIS MAN ]  —  [ TREVOR AHN ]  is a child of  [ APOLLO ]  with the power of  [ HEALING ] .  they were born in  [ 1993 ]  and have been in nemean lion since  [ 2011 ] .  with the change, they  [ HAVE GRADUATED FROM ]  the  [ MEDICAL ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually [ RUNNING THE INFIRMARY & TEACHING ] .

sooo before nl went public trevor would travel around and perform “medical miracles” and heal people. he’d only charge rich ppl tho the rest he would do for free

he had some fame and did tv appearances and really milked the whole miracle thing

he would even be like the pOwER Of GOd hEaLS YoU bc he’s a dick

anyway he’s actually smart and studious but hates being serious it feels awk

now that it's out that he's a demigod ya boi doesn't want public blacklash so he's pretending he just find out too and he's like :O who would've thought, huh

he runs the infirmary so if your chara works there or is studying that track they should know each other!!

also he’s dating miri <3

now on to drew!

[ TAEHYUNG KIM, HE/THEY, NON-BINARY ]  —  [ DREW SUH ]  is a child of  [ NIKE ]  with the power of  [ ENHANCED SKILLS & CERTAIN VICTORY ] .  they were born in  [ 1995 ]  and have been in nemean lion since  [ 2010 ] .  with the change, they  [ HAVE GRADUATED FROM ]  the  [ HERO ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually  [TRAINING & STUDYING ] .

 tbh i think at some point all my charas had a crush on drew he’s just minds his own business and vibes

he’s been training hard since arriving to nl so he’s super advanced in combat and overall skills

nl’s perfect poster demigod and tbh idk how he feels about it

has completed many missions so drew sped through the hero track and was one of the first ones to graduate

will do 1 on 1 training if he has time!! drew loves to help out those new to the demigod stuff and give out advance for combat and wielding weapons!

joonho is also vibes but also chaos

[ SEHUN OH, HE/HIM, GENDER APATHETIC ]  —  [ JOONHO KWON]  is a child of  [ TYCHE ]  with the power of  [ META PROBABILITY MANIPULATION ] .  they were born in  [ 1996 ]  and have been in nemean lion since [ 2016 ] .  with the change, they  [ ARE TRAINING IN ] the [ AMBASSADOR ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually  [ VIBIN’ ]

u kno when ppl are like teehee i’m not just a pretty face

well joonho IS just a pretty face and wouldn’t have it any other way

anyway with his power he riggs stuff and will enter contest/giveaways for funsies

if you’re his friend and ask him to win something for you he’ll do it no hesitation!

oof, daphne. this one is a little longer than the rest

[ DAVIKA HOORNE , SHE/HER, DEMIGIRL ]  —  [ DAPHNE SAENGMAI ]  is a grandchild of  [ HECATE & ATHENA ]  with the power of  [ MAGIC ] .  they were born in  [ 1993 ]  and have been in nemean lion since  [ 2004-2015 & 2020 ] .  with the change, they  [ HAVE GRADUATED FROM ]  the  [ BUSINESS ]  role which makes sense since they’re usually  [ IN HER OFFICE & BOSSING PEOPLE AROUND ]

she’s a grandchild of hecate & athena. 

one thing u gotta kno about daphne is that she just doesn’t care!!!!! alright well she does care a little but mostly doesn’t! everything reflects back on her so she has to pretend she does. 

so back in the day her mom lou had a half sister (also hecate) and she died but her ghost/spirit whatever stayed roaming the earth and lou kind of trapped her bc she was p vengeful n angry! then daphne as born and named after her aunt and then lou agreed to let ghost daphne stay in babie daphne’s body if she dedicated herself into protecting lou’s daughter and ya so alive daphne has a ghost named daphne living inside of her and she has random knowledge and memories that aren’t hers and if you hear daph talking to herself she probably actually isn’t lmaooo 

also her magic is stronger than it’s supposed to be bc of it. 

anyway ok so daphne got the call from her mom that it was time for her to take the ceo position at nl and let me tell u!!!! she cried for like 10 min on the phone and then her mom was like r u done being dramatic and she was like ya but also i want an ice rink (she did figure skating growing up and wanted to persue a career but :/) and i’ll go quietly and her mom was like ok deal. she’s been gone the past 5 years so if your chara has been here longer feel free to assume they know each other p well or hmu!! either way everyone should know daph even if it’s a new acquaintance bc she’s in charge and she’s good w names and faces.  i can’t explain her daphne is j daphne have fun teehee

ANYWAY that’s it really i will plot anything with anyone uwu