#hopefully i didn't totally get him out of character but i needed to add a little dialogue between him and the reader yk

[cvntyworld]

omg are you gonna do a part two to your platonic ghoul fic I need to see if ghoul gets his ring back 😭

no refunds ( the ghoul / cooper howard )

summary: after finding the culprit behind his stolen ring, the ghoul decides to take you with him for a visit to your local pawn shop to get it back, to hell with the no refund policy, there's always option two.

part one , klepto

contents: part two to klepto, usual fallout shenanigans, violence, gore, shootout, reader insults the ghoul, he's a hater through and through, platonic relationship, reader ends up in a gun fight, ghoul traumatizing reader further, pawn shop owner polks the bear and brings up coopers family and it doesn't end well for him, tried to make this more soft but still rough, kinda sad, ect...

What the predicament you'd gotten yourself into with the scary cowboy dressed ghoul who smelled rotten and had an even more rotten attitude towards you.

Of course, you understood his attitude was valid, you had stolen from him after all, but, you were sure people would have done far worse to him in the time he's been alive. He still ruined your days, basically the rest of your week, he'd not even given you the chance to wrap a bandage around your hand or use a stim pack on the open wound he very obviously caused, your nose stopped bleeding but it was still very out of place and broken, he didn't care, he didn't have to, he just wanted his ring back and for some reason he thought he had to bring you along to get it. He had an annoying grip on your arm, marching you along as if you were a scolded child, and then there was the annoyance you felt as he whistled a tune while walking.

The few townsfolk that wandered around after dark were eyeing the pair of you warily, some glanced concerned as you walked past, you were a familiar face amongst them, a young face at that and those with hearts worried at the sight of you being forced along by a ghoul, and while the concern was obvious it wasn't confronted because most folks who lived here were cowards.

Your feet dragged slightly, tired from all the walking and desperate for rest, but you weren't going to receive it, not until the ghoul got back what was his. A rattly cough had erupted from him and he stopped, leaning over to try and breathe better, he let go of your arm as he heaved, taking an inhaler with liquid gold out of his pocket and letting it be breathed in heavily. You didn't bother running, he was very clear that would end with a bullet to your legs and a bullet to the legs would be bad for business on your end. He rose to his full height again with a breath and adjusts his hat on his head before turning to you, scoffing when he saw the grimace on your face. "That's some awful ass cough you've got, Mister." You stated and he huffs out a breath, shoving your shoulder to push you forward, you stumble over your feet and roll your eyes when you find that the pawn shop has entered your line of vision, with hesitant steps you approach the door and stop.

"What's the hold up?" He asks sharply and you turn with a wary stare, catching his questioning gaze, "They're closed so..." You trail off and he tilts his head, "And?" Was all that he replied back, "Well, we can't go in if they're closed, it's a rule around here, Mister..." The ghoul approaches, with a smug grin, "I don't know if you've forgot but I ain't from around here, so, guess that don't apply to me." He laughs breathily and opens the door, shoving you inside with an aggravating push and following after, the bell above that old door jingled and made you flinch, your nerves shot to hell as the ghoul approached the counter and knocked on the wooden surface mockingly.

"Yoo Hoo, anybody home?" He calls out smug, and you're quick to spot the older man who runs the place entering from the back room, looking rather furious. "Y/N, the hell are you doing here, can't you read? Sign says closed!" He states sharply and you stare with worried eyes, your gaze gesturing to the ghoul who was leaning on the counter, a rhythmic tap to his gloved fingers as he catches the mans attention, his eyes narrowing in disgust as he turns back towards you furious, "Now what in the fuck do you think you're doing bringing that fucking thing in here?" You're quick to take a step back unsurely, something the ghoul notices, and so he turns back to the man with a sigh, "I'd rethink that tone, you're scaring the little one." John Joe, the owner, draws his attention to the ghoul, "If anyone is scaring the little one, it's you, they're good for giving me the shittiest of shit and they know not to come here the moment that sign says closed so I'll bet the stupid little shit stole something of yours."

An unsettling silence filled the store and the ghoul nods, "Lookie here, Y/N, we've got ourselves a know it all." The ghoul laughs at his own words when you merely stare at him with worry in your eyes. "Not a know it all at all, just a good listener, little Y/N here was talking shit when they'd waltzed on in here this afternoon with that ring, going on about how they'd stolen some ring off a feral ghoul, looks like they get the feral part wrong, you're him, aren't you?" You glance between the two, confused, at John Joe and his words, who was him, the ghoul turns to you with this unreadable stare and you want to disappear, "That true? Were you being an arrogant little shit about who you've been stealing from?" Your terrified face says it all and in that moment you're so sure he's going to kill you, shoot you dead right there, but instead he laughs wheezily at you and then pats you on the back, almost proudly, you feel yourself tremble and try to shuffle away but he was no longer staring at you but at John Joe, who gave him the middle finger, but it wasn't the insulting hand you'd both been staring at, but what he wore on it.

A simple gold band, hammered out to fit on John Joe's fat middle finger. You glance up to stare at the ghoul in front of you and he wasn't as humoured as he was when he had walked in, his hardened stare made you take in a breath, fear churning within you as the silence became a lot more insufferable than before. John Joe put his hand down with little care, "Now, when little Y/N walked on in here with this beautiful little thing, they thought that it'd been boring, just another thing to make up the caps, but as soon as I had a closer look I knew exactly who this had belonged to, hell, I knew you'd go after them for it, they were stupid enough to steal from you of all folks so I let em' go home with more caps than usual, compensation for the death sentence they gave themselves."

The Ghoul was still quiet and you felt yourself backing up slightly when you saw his fist clench tightly by his side, "I had a replacement in place for you anyway, your shit was getting a little boring, no offence, kid, I thought that you'd never step foot in here again, that he'd shoot you dead." A laugh left him and he turned to the ghoul once more, "It's at least what I've heard from all those stories, you killed a lotta folks for less, or maybe, just maybe, some little shits rebellious tendencies are bringing back some memories, a certain someone, ain't that right, Coop?"

Coop, you frowned at the name, when you'd first walked in John Joe acted as if he'd known nothing about him, he acted oblivious to who this ghoul was and now he acted as if he knew every little thing about this ghoul that stood beside you silently. "I bet you miss that little girl of yours a whole lot, the wife too - pardon my mistake, ex wife." You knew he was poking the bear and you grew worried when the Ghoul laughed abruptly and then went silent, the two stared at one another for a moment and just as John Joe is reaching for his gun under the counter, the ghoul held his gun forward and fired, the bullet smashing apart flesh and bone, John Joe's hand being shot clean off, you are quick to stumble back in fright, watching as the ghoul is approaching the hand slowly and picking the limb up, a sadistic grin as he slides the ring off the useless finger, a breathy laugh leaving him as he stares at it.

John Joe was screaming, whaling, rolling around with a look of pure agony as he clutched his handless arm, the ghoul wasn't finished yet, rounder the counter with a tilt of his head, staring down at him mockingly, "You're right about one thing." He says calmly, "I have killed people for less." He admits and John Joe's cries are cut off when he pulls the trigger once more, shooting him dead without a care in the world.

You remain quiet, pressed into a corner with a frightened look, tears burn in your eyes but you blink them away the moment the ghoul looks up to find you. "Dry your eyes, if I was gonna kill ya, I woulda done it the moment you had came through the front door of that little house of yours." The reassurance didn't give you a lot of comfort and you watch as he slips the ring into his pocket again. "Why do you hide it, your ring, I mean?" You ask suddenly and the ghoul glances in your direction, meeting your curious yet worried eyes, he shrugged, "It's like your deceased friend said, ain't no point wearing a ring when there ain't a wife to wear it for."

You move forward but not enough that you're near John Joe's dead body, "My daddy still wore his ring, even after my mama passed away, it's the one thing that he kept of her, the one thing he didn't sell off to some lowlife." You'd remembered that ring, it was made of wire, it was still on his finger when they'd chopped his hands off.

The ghoul laughed quietly, "hate to break it to you, but, I ain't the sentimental type like your daddy was, sweetie." You scoff at this, "My dad wasn't sentimental, far from it, he just, he loved my ma, you know?" The ghoul sighs at your saddened words, but didn't attempt to bring a kind of comfort to you, you didn't want comfort. "Do you ever miss your wife, mister?" You suddenly ask and he felt as if he'd been frozen in place, unsure why he would even let a conversation like this open up, he felt his heart in his coat pocket, the ring cold against his hands.

"All the time." He admits quietly, "All the damn time." You frown, a waver of sympathy that comes and goes and at his final answer he approaches you and places the pouch of caps in your hands that he'd stolen from you when he had broken into your home.

"You keep that heart of yours strong, ya hear?"

Then he was gone.

[sundrop-writes]

Officially announcing my new series: Careful.

A limited multi-chapter series with Spencer Reid and Fem Reader, featuring angst, smut, and the trope of exes to lovers where Spencer finds out that he is a father four years after you have given birth to his child.

'When you and Spencer broke up, he tried to forget about you. He pushed all of those feelings for you down - until he sees your name on a list of potential victims being hunted by a man who kills single mothers.'

The series will be approximately 40k long in total (spread across six chapters) and will be posted every Friday, starting on March 8th, 2024, and continuing until ending on April 12th, 2024.

THE FIRST CHAPTER IS NOW POSTED!!!

(I am making a posting schedule, and I am gonna try really, really hard to stick to it this time guys.)

The series is already finished in my drafts - it just needs to be edited before posting. However, comments and encouragement are highly appreciated and welcomed throughout this process. The fic will not have a taglist (taglists are not something I do) - if you enjoy the concept or the preview below and you want to know when future chapters are coming out, then you will simply have to follow me here and turn on notifications for this blog, or you can find me on AO3 and subscribe to me there to get emails when this series and it's future chapters are posted.

Below is a short preview of the fic - so if you want to get a better sense of what the fic is about, click through and read it, and hopefully, you will enjoy.

Preview Word Count: 1,800

Warnings: typical Criminal Minds episode warnings; mentions of murder/killing; the reader character is being targeted by a killer and doesn't know it yet; the reader has a young child (a four year old son); the reader is a cis woman who uses she/her pronouns and a has a vagina; emotional angst between Spencer and the reader; the reader and Spencer had a romantic relationship around season 1/season 2 and this is meant to take place around season 6(ish) but you can picture any later version of Spencer you want; the reason that the reader and Spencer broke up is purposefully vague here but it will be fully revealed in the full story; the reader purposefully kept the pregnancy/Spencer's child away from him; Spencer didn't know he had a child out there in the world; there is some smut in this - unprotected penetration (a flashback to how the baby got here); possibly something that could be labelled as a breeding kink; making love/intense passionate sex; I believe that's in for this short part.

...

The team found themselves buried in paper, looking through the preschool applications for anyone who fit the UnSub’s victimology - praying that they would be able to pick out the next victim and get to her before the UnSub did. 

“We’re never gonna get through these fast enough, are we?” Prentiss sighed, continuing to sift through the papers. 

“We just have to go as fast as we can, and hope the UnSub sticks to his schedule.” Morgan replied. “He has to spend time stalking them, learning their routine. Even if he has chosen his victim by now, he won’t break into the home until he’s fully confident that he won’t be disrupted.” 

“And the stalking helps build up the fantasy.” Reid added on. “He romanticizes them from afar, sends them gifts. It adds to his delusions of grandeur and forbidden love. The idea that he’s swooping in to become the perfect father figure for these ‘broken’ families.” 

“Plus, most of these applications are from two-parent households.” JJ pointed out. “We can throw out anything with a second applicant on the form, because he’s only targeting single mothers.” 

The conversation was easily drowned out for Spencer when he saw it. 

It should have been just another page among the sea in his hands, but when he saw those words on the page - that name - it was like a punch to the gut that brought back a flood of memories he thought that he had locked away forever. 

It was you. 

What the hell were you doing applying for preschools? 

Spencer rushed to tear this paper out from the others in the stack in order to read it more carefully. 

You had a son. 

… 

When you answered the knock on your door, you were entirely lost for words, your mouth going numb from shock when you saw him. 

The last thing you were expecting was to find Spencer Reid on your doorstep. 

Your heart raced inside your chest, your body so overwhelmed so quickly that you couldn’t even decide on an emotion. 

Happiness. Joy. Lust. Longing. Sadness. Relief. 

Shock. 

You lingered on shock for a while as you stared at him, your eyes locked on the sight of him - wondering what the hell he was doing standing on your porch. How did he know where you lived? Why was he here? 

“Y/N,” 

He said your name in that honey-sweet way, and it brought you rocketing back to that awful night all those years ago. Your stomach dropped, and you felt like you were standing in that apartment all over again, tears in your eyes as you faced down the crashing reality that the best relationship you ever had in your life was over. 

This brought on a whole new wave of confusing emotions. 

Anger. Rage. Sadness. Bitterness. Regret. 

Like your brain was a spin-wheel, it whirled around for a few hectic moments, and then - you landed somewhere between anger and pure rage. 

And that was when you finally spoke. 

“Spencer Reid.” You hissed out his name like it was pure venom - immediately, Spencer’s features fell from looking at you with nostalgic fondness, and dropped out to fear. “What the hell are you doing here?” 

Spencer opened his mouth, seemingly to answer this question, and the rage pumped harder in your system. You found that you didn’t want to hear whatever it was that he had to say. 

You stepped through the door, easily stepping into his personal space as you came onto the porch, and you gave him a hard shove in the middle of his chest as you spoke your next words - much louder than you intended. 

“What the hell is wrong with you?” 

You screeched, your emotions carrying your actions before any sense of logic or common decency could kick in. It was emotion that you had locked away four years ago - and apparently, it had been aging like wine, only becoming more potent with time. 

“You think that you can just magically show up in my life again after I specifically told you not to contact me?” You added on with a howl. “Do you think that order has a fucking expiration date on it?” 

You gave him another hard shove - perhaps expecting to prompt an answer out of him, or wanting to shove him off the porch entirely and get him out of your life once again. Which of those it was, you weren’t even sure. 

“You better have a good fucking reason for showing up here!” You screeched, your voice becoming so loud that it wore out your throat. 

“Look, Y/N, I-” He stuttered out. 

“Don’t say my name.” You hissed, cutting him off. “Don’t say my name like we’re friends.” 

You glared at him, crossing your arms over your chest, and Spencer shoved his hands into his pockets, now finding himself utterly speechless. 

He definitely was not expecting this kind of reception. 

… 

You hadn’t taken the news that you were potentially being hunted by a serial killer very well. 

Although, strangely enough, that wasn’t even close to being the hot topic when JJ and Spencer got back in the car, watching you pull out of your driveway to attend to something you said was entirely urgent. 

“What the hell happened between the two of you?” JJ asked, the question finally unleashing from her lips. 

“It’s complicated.” Spencer huffed out in reply. 

…

Eventually - you did sit down and talk things out with Spencer, calmly. 

He had a lot of questions, and you tried your best to answer them. 

“Can I ask you one more thing?” Spencer asked when it came to the forefront of his mind. 

“Sure,” You sighed. “I think we have a few more minutes before you have to go.” 

“When did you find out that you were pregnant?” He asked. “Was it - was it before? Or after?” 

“After.” You told him. “It - it was about two weeks after. When I took one of those at home tests. And I had already made up my mind that I never wanted to see you again. So just - then and there, I decided that I was gonna raise the kid alone.” 

“So - so do you know when-?” Spencer began, and you cut him off. 

You already knew what he was going to say. 

‘Do you know when he was conceived?’ 

“No.” You rushed to say. 

But it was a lie. You knew. 

You felt like you couldn’t tell him the truth about this. If there was one thing you couldn’t afford to do right now, with Spencer Reid sitting at your kitchen table, staring at you with his big, inquisitive, glossy eyes, licking his lips, with his firm jaw set tight in contemplation - you couldn’t afford to go reminiscing with him about the night your son had been conceived. 

You had spent a lot of time during your pregnancy thinking. Doing the math. Trying to remember. 

And you knew exactly when. 

The night was so vivid in your mind. 

… 

He captured your lips in a smooth, knowing, passionate kiss - you didn’t hesitate to moan into his mouth, and Spencer echoed it right back. He had missed you so much during the day; even though he had seen you less than forty-eight hours before this, he felt decades of yearning in his heart. 

When he felt the bare head of his cock bump up against your entrance, smearing your wetness over him, he moaned even harder against your mouth. He pulled away from the kiss with a huff, moving his hand to your hip then as he asked a very important question. 

“Do you have a condom?” 

It broached the front of his mind, then, that he hadn’t brought one with him. 

“You don’t need one.” You breathed out in reply, combing your hand through his hair, raking your nails across his scalp in a way that made his hips unconsciously buck forward. 

When he felt more of that warm wetness smear across him, his cock just barely dipping into your heat - he didn’t entirely care to decipher the meaning behind your words. He simply trusted you. 

“Please, Spencer.” You begged quietly. “I need you. Just you.” 

(Later, when he was looking back on it, he would have guessed that you meant you were taking your oral birth control consistently. But looking back on it now - it was the only time within those last months of your relationship that the two of you didn’t use a condom. You were urging him on, and maybe, at the time - a baby truly was what you had in mind.) 

He wasn’t one to deny you anyway. And he certainly wasn’t going to deny himself of this. 

He reached down and used a hand around the base of his cock to help line himself up, and gently guided the length of his cock into you. 

This was always his favorite part. 

The gasp - the lilting moan you let out when his cock first slid into you, the way your thighs flexed around his hips - it was all so perfect. But it was even more perfect without the barrier of a condom in the way. 

It was perfect. It was so easy; it all came so naturally between the two of you. It was a perfect rhythm between your bodies that came from knowing each other so well, feeling so at ease with each other. 

It wasn’t just out of the visceral need to have him inside of you; it was the pure yearning to feel close to him, to have him as physically close as possible. 

With you, so tight and beautiful around him - he didn’t last. He couldn’t. 

“Y/N.” He warbled out your name, almost as a warning. 

“It’s okay.” You breathed back. “Cum for me. Come on, please.” 

Spencer couldn’t resist - not when you said ‘please’. 

The sound that came from his chest could only be described as a cry, and any fleeting thought he might have had about pulling out left his brain in a millisecond when he felt your tightness fluttering around him, his hips unconsciously fucking deep into you, his body loving the feeling of being held tightly there while your cunt milked him for all he was worth. 

He certainly didn’t miss the sweet moans you let out - the bright eyed awe you started up at him with as you felt his cum fill you up for the first time. 

… 

It was one of the last good memories you had with Spencer - one of the most perfect pictures you had of who he truly was before he came home from Georgia such a different person, and you had no clue why. 

Spencer could instantly see the lie in your body language - how closed off you became, how quickly you rushed to cut off his words. Along with the intense heat reflected in your eyes. You were thinking about that night. 

He thought he knew exactly which night you were thinking about, and he was going to call you out on it, make you admit in your own words how perfect that night was, even if the two of you were ruined now, a shadow of what you once were. 

But he was disrupted by the sound of his phone ringing.

[a-door-to-somewhere]

Can I just say that spiderverse has done such a good job with characterization and character driven storytelling and relationship building that there's just SO many interesting ships? Even though the pacing is so fast the films still took time to spend on each of the spiderpeople (and spideranimals) enough so that character dynamics are interesting IN TEXT. like there's no extrapolation or fandom accepted headcanons needed to start, yk?

They didn't just assume that people would ship miles/gwen because they're the main m and f leads. They spent time building that dynamic and relationship and it may be clear that they'll eventually end up together (hopefully) but they didn't just let us assume that. They still put effort into convincing us. And then I also love that even with such a big cast a lot of the side characters also had dynamics with other side characters, something that can be hard to add in at the right amount.

Like we get the feeling that Gwen admires Hobie and is friendly enough to Pav that she talked about Miles with him (they totally had sleepovers and painted eachothers nails and discussed boyfriends and girlfriends) and generally agrees with Peter B.

And hobie is, of course, looking out for everyone he cares about, goofy with Pav, supportive but not overprotective of Gwen, is honestly trying his best to stick up for Miles. Even in the first one even though most time is spent fleshing out Peter B's story, the other spideys interact with eachother and generally don't just act as one homogeneous blob of background characters.

The only dynamics there's nothing for are the ones who haven't met on screen yet. Every other relationship isn't overlooked and there's something to go off of for the shippers. Honestly I'm not really a multishipper but spiderverse has so many good options lol

[theseasasleep]

Story of Kunning Palace E03 (semi-live reaction)

So, it's our heroine's fate to always be crushed on by the spoiled Princess? LOL

There's no way a young woman who climbed all the way to Empress can avoid most of the path to that fate. In most of the webnovels of this type I've read, reaching that type of pinnacle means you have a fate with it, regardless of the ultimate outcome. The best Xue Ning can do is flip the script on circumstances while doing her best to skirt around the thornier aspects of future events.

1st Life: the Princess thinks back to her first encounter with Xue Ning with humiliation, embarrassment and rage

2nd Life: the Princess will think back on their first encounter with pride, happiness and warmth

So far so good. Although I totally get why she'd want to avoid tangling with a temperamental royal who she had a terrible experience with.

...

I really like how this show is shot. Sometimes you never know with cdramas if you'll get a cheap or pedestrian directing style or a dramatic and/or compelling one.

...

The show is still building its foundations and I'm just so eager to jump into the action!

*fight sequence starts 1 minute later* AND HERE WE GO!

Dude is more pissed off by the damaged qin strings than the assassination attempt! HA!

Xue Ning, as hostage: *minimize connections to minimize involvement* Mr. Hostage-taker, sir, I know Xie Wei only through the grapevine...

Xie Wei: MISS XUE NING, PLEASE DON'T SELL OUR CONNECTION SO SHORT! YOUR FATHER AND I ARE GREAT FRIENDS! IN FACT, YOU ARE MY LIFE SAVIOR!

Xue Ning:

...

Take me instead.

Mmm. Something about the silky oomph with which he said that line combined with his expression... Okay, okay, Zhang Ling He. It took three episodes but you got me: the character of Xie Wei is now officially attractive to me. All he had to do was low key deliver a line that just vibrates with high key threat.

Man, what era are my hormones in? Between finding my mojo over one ML threatening to tear an offensive man's tongue out and fixing my posture when this one is nothing but velvet menace, I need a name for it. I need to know. Should I be worried? Scared? Aroused?

oh. oh. he's so sexy... okay, now you're just showing off; put the murderous sexiness away

Not this man calling her out, leaving her neither a fissure to hide in or a crumb for modesty!

I... I can't wait until he's incandescently in love with her because I just know, I just know it will be so magnificent I won't know what to do with myself.

Girl, while you are absolutely right to defend your current relationship with Yan Lin and right to say it is a flirtation that is undeserving of such rude scrutiny... you (and us) know that man speaks no lies. You are trifling with Yan Lin and you would have done him plenty of harm without the benefit of literal 20/20 hindsight.

That being said, I see @dangermousie point: kicking off a relationship trying to gin up, stoke and maintain fear in the other party is an excellent way to receive future comeuppance in the form of watching the woman you desperately love side-eye you as she lavishes protection and support on her other suitors.

...

I like Yan Lin. Not too sorry to say that. Hopefully Life No. 2 keeps him off the rapist track.

It's nice seeing Xue Ning enjoying festivities. The impression I have of her first life self is that while she reveled in being "wild", she likely didn't really allow herself to enjoy being young and with friends, too busy being hungry.

Dear. God. That seamless transition from earnest Yan Lin in Life No. 2 waxing poetic about his first impressions of Xue Ning to embittered Yan Lin in Life No. 1 waxing poetic about his first impressions of Xue Ning with the exact. same. words. Add to it the implied threat of sexual violence in LIfe No. 1!!!

Chills.

*gagging* Did I say I like Yan Lin? Show, it's going to be hard for me to keep that opinion if you keep flashing back to that.

Me during the Life No. 2 Ning x Yan kiss scene:

I want no part of it.

All right, dude, are you telling me you raped her because she plain text told you she planned to marry someone who could help her achieve her goals?! She didn't sell you out to the devil... Or refuse to shelter either you or wounded family members... but because when you were at your lowest, like the bitch she admittedly is... was..., she told you the truth and cut ties? I mean, that's reason enough not to warn her a coup is coming for her ass in Life No. 1. There's no reason for rape, ever; even if she lit your dog on fire, you can't rape her. Just WTF, guy?!

...

Not that it excuses any of her horrid behavior but I can see how lonely Xue Ning is in what should be her familial home. That cozy scene between her parents and half-sister where in her absence there is only affection and warmth and in her presence, only awkwardness and discomfort.

She lived a childhood in poverty and exile being spoken and looked down upon; returned to her parents' home to find herself being shunted as second-born (in an era where hierarchy matters) and defective instead of receiving proper homecoming. I can see why the attraction of her sole dream, her ultimate goal - becoming Empress - would become all-consuming, especially if such a dream sustained her in exile and fueled her defiance at home.

...

Oh, jesus christ, Yan Lin, don't be an idiot! Don't believe in an enemy soldier during wartime, like...?!

...

So Xue Ning might have accidentally sold Yan Lin out to the devil.

But in her defense, that wasn't her intention. Just to watch him. Like a politics-minded creeper.

Me to Ning as she reads her former coachman cum spy to filth: GET HIM.

[greypetrel]

HI ARJA I’m so curious about your moby dick AU lol you always have the best AUs

HI ROWAN I'm glad you asked! :D It's gonna be a big ass rant, so it's under the cut. I'm very excited about this AU, it tackles some things I love and have first-hand experience of, so yeah, I'll be chatty about it ahahahah.

I've posted a chapter at random on AO3 and you can find some snippets in the whale au tag!

So, it's "Zoologist Aisling who thinks whales are the best thing after sliced bread saves Cullen, who happens to have survived a shipwreck caused by a whale". Shenanigans happen.

It was an idea of @shivunin (thank you again) and I'm currently trying to give it a little outline not to go totally at random. I am thinking about characters background, it's a non-magical AU and so stuff needs to be adapted. The title of the WIP is old, I realised after that... You know, it's a Moby Dick INSPIRED thing. The first idea was having Aisling as Melville and Cullen as Ishmael teaming up to write Moby Dick. Cullen has the sailing parts, Aisling filling in with conspiracy theories about whalers and spite over naturalists. And both of them inserting a gay relationship because I'm still a big part of the Bi!Cullen agenda, and that book is terribly gay.

I did realise later on that there's a limit to the horrors I'm willing to put characters through and write, and cannibalism is really NOT one. I also moved it to another period and to the 1900s because I already did research for another original project and I'm more familiar with it.

The title of the file will change when I'll have a better one for this AU.

For now I do have a background for Aisling, what she's in Nantucket to do, and I'm so happy to say @melisusthewee jumped on the bandwagon aboard with Quinn and Horatio, but I'm letting her introduce you to them in this. I'll just say that Aisling refers to Quinn as "Mr Arch-Nemesis".

She's in Nantucket for a research over sperm whales behaviour, restore her family's name (dad was a scholar too, but alas, he was caught being a member of the Fenian society and giving money to the Irish revolutionaries... She's the Royal Society's favourite person, yes) and hopefully put a brake on whale hunting (the 1900s saw the peak of killed whales, you can bet miss "I'd adopt a dragon if Bull didn't constantly prevent me to try and befriend one" won't be ok with it). Dorian and Josephine -whom I couldn't fathom being there with her, seriously I can't picture Dorian on a ship if not in first class, unless he was beaten unconscious before boarding and dragged on. Josie finances ships, sure... but being on board of one and working? A whole different thing. So, they're Aisling friends, but they stayed in London to get her fundings.

Cullen needs to find reason to get to the sea again, he was a harpooner and worked on ships all his life... After being the sole survivor, he needs to find his centre back and get on with it. The crazy whale fangirl may or may not help him on this.

And there was only one bed, of course. (have I already said that Moby Dick is VERY gay?) (I had a blast reading it, thank you so much @salsedinepicta for making me curious about it! <3 Also if you want to throw your characters in this GO ON.)

I thiiiink I may change names and design and also do something fully original. I'm particularly enthusiastic about it because it allows me to tackle stuff I experienced in my life (I did some sailing! Very little and purely recreational, but still) and to re-use some research I already did for another original project which I love dearly, but it's definitely more than I can chew on my own. If I don't chicken out because the place is linked to some trauma, I maaaaay add a part in the seaside town I spent a lot of time growing up.

But again, let's see how it goes, researching on Italy isn't the easiest thing ever if you're not aiming at Rome or the Renaissance, and we're talking about a pretty regional side of Italy. I have good hopes because the people are very very very much into their own history and claiming it back, so I may find some good infos without spitting too much blood.

it's a work in progress, but there's gonna be more about this!

[tangyangie]

Can I please get some body hair comfort/ headcanons for Mha boys? Specifically for the belly, legs, arms, between the legs, etc.

» no bed of roses... ☆彡

characters: izuku midoriya, katsuki bakugo, shoto todoroki, eijiro kirishima, denki kaminari

description: you're insecure about your body hair. how do the mha boys comfort you?

hii and thank you for requesting!! i didn't know who exactly you wanted, so i just put these guys. i would've done more, but i'm tired and i was really busy today :((

» izuku → he's a total sweetheart, and completely understands your feelings. he's had his insecurities too.

"i know how it feels to not like your body. perhaps not this exact situation, but i'm right here, and i'll listen as long as you need me to. i think you're incredibly brave for telling me your feelings."

he would totally give you hugs and snuggles and whatever else you wish for. he would shower you in compliments to make you feel good about your body.

» katsuki → he thinks it's stupid, because he doesn't understand why?? body hair?? is?? bad?? because it's not.

"huh?? who told you that your body hair is something to be insecure about? i'll kill them!!"

perhaps he's a bit direct, but he gets the job done. after he's done interrogating you about this 'person', he will sit down next to you and listen to whatever you want to say about the situation.

» shoto → he rushes to attempt to comfort you as soon as you mention this insecurity.

"you're so beautiful, don't listen to whoever made you think that body hair is something to be ashamed about. it's completely natural. personally, i think you're very, very pretty, no matter what you feel."

he's so nice, and will gently hug you before sitting down with you and encouraging you to spill your feelings to him and comforting you about every single one <33

» eijiro → he thinks you're incredibly cool, and doesn't care about how others feel about your body hair.

"you're so cool! i don't care what other people tell you, you're amazing and beautiful. i will totally out-man them if you ask me to!!"

he's a little confused as to why you're so insecure about it, as he deals with it too. but, he's totally up for comforting you and making you feel happier about your body image!! he will then go and out-man everyone.

» denki → he does his best to cheer you up and make you feel better about yourself and your body.

"you don't need to feel bad about that! it happens to everyone, it's completely natural. whoever made you think that doesn't deserve you."

he'll totally add in some jokes, as he knows you best and knows what will make you laugh and get you out of your sadness. definitely be prepared for some tickles, because he will take any risk to make you happy!

notes: guys please request some genshin 🙏 i'm totally feeling it rn and i'd go completely crazy over some ganyu requests..

anyways i really hope this was up to your expectations!! i think i'm starting to get a better sense of my writing style, so hopefully it won't take as long to start posting consistently!!

[illyrian-jedi]

Part 2 of unasked for opinions on Wednesday

• I wanted to restate and add onto something I saw someone else post, but Tyler is not the villain. He is made out by the fandom to be this evil person who manipulated Wednesday just because he wanted to, but so many people are forgetting that Tyler's absence of a motherly presence was used against him by Laurel to CONTROL him, not to just get him on her side. Tyler doesn't have to be your favorite, but stop making him out as the villain because it gives you a reason to justify your ship.

• Enid and Lucas had chemistry, and I'm tired of pretending they didn't, that is all.

• That being said, Ajax and Enid are the cutest. I have no idea who I think Enid should end up with just because we haven't seen enough development in either relationship, and there can always be a new character to join, but they are at least a temporary couple I can support wholeheartedly. Whether they should be endgame or not, TBD.

• Bianca Barclay is a queen and deserves to be treated as one. I don't think she needs a relationship for her character to reach full potential, but if she ends up in one, her partner needs to treat her like she deserves and more.

• Also, if Bianca is to be in a relationship, I think it would be a cool idea to have some kind of outcast that is able to resist the siren song so that she can have total confidence in the relationship and in the fact that the other person likes her for her.

Part 3 coming tomorrow (hopefully)

I have at least one more but let me know if you want part 4+

[soupbabe]

can i request wholesome keicho headcanons with nonbinary transmasc reader...good keicho content has been so scares lately

Keicho Nijimura x Non-binary! Transmasc! Reader Headcanons

Tbh anon this is such a breath of fresh air!! It's always fun getting requests for uncommon characters. I've only written Keicho once and that was for a Halloween event I did a couple years ago 😅😅 hopefully I can do him some justice anon <33

- Keicho falls into the ally category of "loving you because you're literally a self made person"

- You're building your own identity from the ground up, going against societal norms to be the happiest and strongest version of you, it makes him so proud to be your partner

- It's hard to explain but Keicho isn't one for a lot of PDA, but he loves showing you off

- At most he'll hold your hand in public, but he takes you everywhere with him

- Listen I'm not saying he bragged to Okuyasu about getting a boyfriend before he did, but...he totally did let's be real here

- He's also a very dedicated and attentive partner, digging up anything he can learn about your identity so he can recognize those who hurt you and to prevent himself accidentally from hurting you

- If anyone were to slip up around him, even if you know that person didn't mean to misgender you, oh it's over for them

- again not saying he would kill em but...

- Ugh head empty just thoughts of Keicho offering to give you a massage if you bind

- Like you wear it for too long and you start to feel sore, a more softer side of Keicho comes out and asks if you need him kneading at your back and chest

- His hands are rough, firm as they knead into your skin

- Yet Keicho's movements are calculated and focused, he knows exactly where to move and add pressure and it's so hard not to melt into him

- He makes sure your head is turned away from him so you don't see him smile. He loves making you feel good, he loves being able to provide comfort for you

- head full of Keicho helping you with your side effects of your testosterone

- Like he loves to be the one to help you shave in the morning

- Sure he brushes it off as offering some help and teaching you "how to be a man," but really half of his lessons is sitting you on a counter and shaving your face for you

- Imagine his hand resting against your face as her mutters you to "stop moving" and warn you about how sharp the razors are

- Call him out on his lack of actual instructions and his face tinges pink and you both go back and forth for a little bit

- He cares a lot but he hates it when people know that he does, flusters him to no end

- Tease him about it all you want, you're going to get a little shove and him telling you to shut up all while his face gets hot

[suns-out-sleeps-in]

Rollo's got a Dirty Mind

I have no justification for this other than I think it's funny to make this bastard man so astronomically down bad for a fem!Yuu. If you want someone to blame, blame @mymainwastoocluttered and @marisakumi because I basically lifted this exact prompt from their post. Like y'all I literally got possessed to write this last night at like 930 wtf plus @adrianasunderworld I think you would like this too since we've been bullying Rollo

@mymainwastoocluttered I know I promised you hellfire scenarios and I swear I will give you them once the whole event is translated but I needed to get this out of my system. Also like wow I made this super depraved and Rollo is a big ol' yikes. 2.2k words of him being yikes plus plus implied Malleus x Yuu because I can.

tw: Rollo being Frollo, Delusions, Obsessive behavior, Yandere, Kissing, Tickling, Tickling used as foreplay, Malleus being a simp, Threesome MMFM, Dirty Talk, Praise, Cunnilingus (Fem receiving) Hickeys, Groping, Titty Sucking (please someone tell me if there is a better name for that), Strip Tease, Male Masturbation, Dacryphilia, Fingering (Fem receiving), Rough Sex (MxF), Degradation, Post Nut Delusions, Regret, Gang Bang, More Delusions. Basically, very NSFW so if it ain't your thing then scroll away.

🔞 NO ONE UNDER 18 CAN READ THIS 🔞

I forgot to add this the first time so I'm editing it in now but I do not care. If you are a minor go away this ain't for you.

None of the sexual stuff actually happens Rollo just has a fucked up imagination.

p.s. I wrote this as a fem!reader in mind so I only used words like (she/her/the girl) to describe the reader so...I don't know, you'll see what I mean and hopefully it isn't confusing but tell me if my grammar is off.

Also I didn't know about what happened in part 3 of the event because I wrote this the night before and just finished editing in the morning. Only to go on TikTok and see Rollo being 😬 y'know? So imagine my slight surprise at him being THAT crazy. But still I think this interpretation gives more possibilities even if it's not totally accurate to his character.

How could this have happened?

Rollo Flamme was the prestigious student council president of Nobel Bell College. He was a man both men and women feared and respected as he met their eyes. Yet they dare not to stare into the abyss of his gaze lest they be pulled in.

So how? How could he feel so…undone by a single magicless girl?

His plan was perfect. He finally had THE Malleus Draconia in his grasp by imploringly debasing himself in a letter to that blundering headmage, Dire Crowley, that they simply must have Malleus attend the symposium. Even though he had thought they would send Malleus anyway if not for that blasted lottery system the headmage decided to employ and the fact that Malleus was apparently not even in attendance of the selection anyway. But no matter, he is not above having his assistant give out some meaningless flattery in a letter if it means his plan falls into motion.

Yet the moment the students arrived in the common area and he met her gaze, everything began falling apart.

A…girl? A girl was attending Night Raven? Not even one of Trein's daughters, no! She's simply a student paired with a feline familiar who can speak! Surrounded by all of these delinquent men, floundering for her attention AND she can't perform magic? What has Night Raven College become?! What is that headmage thinking?!

He cannot help how his gaze wanders toward her. She chats so casually with the first year known as Deuce Spade, the two of them are obviously very close. He lets his vice president and assistant speak for him as he imagines the freshman's love-struck gaze filled with longing and beginning to lean in to-

He nearly startles when Azul begins questioning him about the history of the college. He refocuses his mind as they begin the tour.

Why in the world did his mind wander like that? Men and women can be friends and not have feelings for one another. He knows this, and yet, he ponders. 

She is a quiet girl, no doubt. Taking in the scenery so unlike that of Night Raven as they continue the tour while her feline companion badgers with questions aplenty. Him and the sophomore known as Ruggie Bucchi seem to bond over food related inquiries as they question when they will receive sustenance, with the freshman known as Epel Felmier chiming in with more savory options.

Rollo's mind wanders again as he sees Ruggie pull the girl close to him by the waist. The contact is far from friendly yet he can see her relax in his grip as Ruggie whispers conspiratorially in her ear before attempting to tickle her with his clawed fingers. Epel was about to join in before a sharp cough from Trein and Riddle made the three pause and laugh guiltily.

Yet, Rollo sees something more salacious in those two. He sees them restraining her and assaulting her with tickles until she cries out for mercy. Would they grant it to her without question? Or would it come with a price? He takes out his handkerchief and breathes in the scent before he can question just what that price may be.

The worst event happens in the bell tower. His mind had already wandered when she became winded alongside Azul and Idia, with Jamil offering her some water to quench her thirst, but Rollo was quick to shake his head at the image of her grateful smile towards the Scarabia sophomore. But the seed of madness was planted with an offer from Malleus to carry the girl back down the tower lest she becomes unsteady and falls. An offer she was apparently happy to accept.

These two…were friends? Not only friends, but close enough to joke about such displays of skinship with each other?

No. There was no joke. That was love in the ancient fae's eyes.

Malleus Draconia is in love with her.

The very thought makes Rollo want to scream.

The freshman guardsmen known as Sebek Zigvolt tries to dissuade his liege by offering to carry her instead but is rebutted by his senior guardsmen Silver, stating that Malleus could carry her if he so chooses to.

The most lascivious and depraved image fills Rollo's mind as he pictures the three men all but clawing at her bare form. Her whimpers of pleasure are unbidden and raw as Malleus sits her in his lap, whispering words unknown yet passionate in the language of the fae as his two guardsmen drive her mind and body to the brink of ecstasy. Malleus guides the younger fae to lap at her core causing her to squirm in his grasp yet his grip is steady and true on her thighs as his comrade teases her body with softer touches. Silver mindlessly praises her for being able to handle them all at once as he parrots Malleus' words in human tongue. The sophomore litters her neck and collarbone in kisses and lovebites as the girl lets out squeaks and moans of pleasure. Malleus' hands slide across her body to grope her chest and play with the soft mounds of flesh in order to tempt the human into taking one into his mouth and sucking on it. Her hands are stuck in Sebek's hair as he begins to bring her to the brink of ecstasy. Her cries reach a fever pitch in his mind just as everyone decides to descend the tower.

And just as he fears, Malleus Draconia sweeps the girl off her feet as they begin their descent. Her laughter sounds even sweeter than the Bell of Salvation as she admonishes the fae for not giving her a warning first. He teases that it is his duty to playfully startle her when he can. He sees her loop her arms around the fae’s neck and pulls herself closer to him, close enough for him to whisper in her ear something that makes her voice titter with a laugh.

Rollo takes out his handkerchief once more from his pocket. His grip almost tearing the fabric in two. 

He simply must get a hold of himself. He is a man dedicated to fulfilling the duties of the Righteous Judge, for Seven's sake! He is above such debauchery and lust that simply being in a girl's presence would bring a lesser man. He feels himself begin to calm down once they exit the bell tower and return to the square where they gift everyone their festival wear.

"How do I look?" Oh no…

See, the plan was to give the Night Raven students ceremonial outfits to fit the theme of the festival. Knights, merchants, and performers were the inspiration yet how could he have known there was a girl in attendance at an all-male school? So they gave her a slightly altered costume.

He knows the question isn't directed at him. Gods above he knows it. But he can't help the way his mind races at the image before him. Her costume fits perfectly in all of the right ways and Rollo feels his face burn as she smoothes the fabric around her waist, accentuating her figure as she parades around to her friends, playfully tipping her hat towards the upperclassmen in respect. The junior known as Rook Hunt all but bursts into song about her beauty and Rollo can't help but agree with the blonde. Now he pictures himself dressing her down until she-

The students turn themselves out into groups before they head out into the city. Trein takes responsibility for the girl and her cat as Rollo gives the excuse of needing to attend to other duties before he can join them. His Vice and Assistant get no chance to question his off behavior before he retreats to his private dormitory.

As soon as the lock is turned, Rollo flies towards the bathroom. He nearly rips the clothes off his upper body before he pulls his belt loose enough to pull down his pants. He hesitates for barely a second, there is no going back once he begins his sin, but he is far too pent up and his heart is racing too fast to stop before releasing his cock from the confines of his boxers and beginning to stroke to the thought of her.

His pace is rough and fast as he pumps himself to her visage. What she would look like if she went to Nobel Bell instead of Night Raven. Seeing her in their traditional garments. What she would look like in his garments? He groans in arousal at the thought and hisses at the burn of his cock in his hand.

"See you later, Rollo!" Her sweet voice as she waved to him before she left. Her cute smile as she walked off with Trein and Grim. How he wished he could guide her through the city alone, free of that cat monster and the old man. He would show her the sights, taking in her awe-struck expression and her curious nature as he tells her of the history of the city. 

Cute. Cute. Everything about her was cute as Rollo's mind revisited his visions from before, this time with him as the one longing for love. He pictures her gazing at him as he leans in for a kiss. How sweet would her lips taste as he swallows her moans of his name? He would give anything to know.

He pictures himself tickling her as her laughter fills his mind until she's all he hears. How adorable would she look with tears in her eyes as she cries for him? Perhaps he should invite his Vice or his Assistant to keep her pinned as he pushes her to her limits and makes her cry out for mercy. But he has no mercy to give for one so sinfully cute.

He can feel his cock nearing to burst with his final vision. He can see himself spearing the girl on his cock, one hand groping at her chest with practiced precision while the other plays with her core like a violin. Her skin is so smooth, he thinks, as she keens under his touch and she begs for him to take her properly. Would his whispered words be praises for a job well done, or would he admonish her with filthy rebukes for tempting a pious man with her sinfully seductive body? Either way, she screams with pleasure for more. More of what, he did not know, but he would satisfy her until she was painted in his lust.

Painted. His mind clears from the haze of sin as he realizes he has painted his toilet with his semen. He takes a moment just staring at himself, covered in his own fluids and struggling to breathe.

"What have I done?!" Rollo panics and washes himself off as quickly as possible to get rid of any evidence of his perverse desires for the girl from Night Raven College. 

Perverse. Never did he think he would use that word on himself. Just what manner of curse did that girl put on him to make him obsess like this? She must secretly be a witch, he reasons. He has barely known her for half a day and already he wishes to have her for his own. At first, all he wanted was Malleus Draconia. Now, he couldn't care less about the fae prince and only desires the girl. He finishes cleaning himself off and goes to sit on his bed. He hangs his head in shame at what depravity he has committed in such a short time span.

The problem is, the images don't leave his mind. His lust turns to anger at the persistent reminder of his sin as his thoughts replace him with the other students once more. Now it's Riddle Rosehearts kissing her so sweetly, Rook Hunt and Jamil Viper teasing her with sweet words and playful touches, and Azul Ashengrotto alongside Idia Shroud as the two of them debauched her. He imagines her taking all of it with such an innocent smile on her face, the trust she has in those heathens unwavering as she sighs in bliss. His mind then conjures more scenarios, The freshmen kiss her in faux sweetness before the sophomores dirty her with their grubby mitts. All to prep for the juniors to sully any purity she might have had left. Different individuals mix in new lewd and licentious combinations and she takes it all. She fuels their lust with her own with a smile as she encourages their lecherous behavior.

Rollo can feel the blood burn through his veins as he becomes hard once more, thus starting another cycle of lust. He feels like a voyeur in his own mind and growls as his mind spirals.

None of them deserve her. She is a pure light of innocence and beauty and those hedonistic brutes would only tarnish her.

If only he could show her that none of those men would be able to love her like he could. He would devote himself night and day to her, treat her like the goddess she is, worship her with every breath in his body and spill the blood of any who would try to take her from him.

Wait, love? Is that what he feels towards her? Is this insatiable, burning feeling actually love?

It burns like hellfire. But if he must burn, then so shall she.

She must choose to love him and join Nobel Bell College as his goddess or burn at the pyre like the witch she is.

[sorcerous-caress]

Sending this all in one ask even though it's technically four different things, hope that's alright-

1. Ik it's small and just in the tags but the Sol response for the soulmates post is so 💞

2. I really liked the writing in your Yurgir post, just thought it was really neat and I liked your wordings (I could not come up with a better way to word this, though- my bad). Let him protect Tav!! Even though he's also completely wrecking them <3

3. I agree really hard on the backgrounds giving dialog options. It really feels like it should be a thing- I think maybe all background affects dialog wise, is whether or not your character gets the Baldurian tag..? But that might just be a race thing (in which you'd either get Baldurian or Underdark. Or... Nothing for githyanki? Unless they have the Planar tag? Idk)

I may not be able to have the option in game, but in my mind's eye my noble Tav introduced themselves proudly with their full name, and Astarion immediately poked fun at them for how much of a mess their family is known to be. Them most likely recognizing Wyll as the Ravengard son and assuming he'd know of them as well but he straight up doesn't. Beautiful stuff

-Tressym anon

Thank you for taking the time to write this! Love hearing your thoughts <3

1 - You read it!! I didn't think anyone would notice, I'm so happy. I really want to add them to the several characters mini-lists I make but I always hesitate because since the post will leave my blog tags, I don't want it to feel like I'm forcing my OC into the fandom main media?

So I just leave it in the tags for my readers to hopefully find, since only you guys know about Sol and will see the OG post while most people will see reblogs of reblogs without my tags.

It's like, while Halsin embraces fate and has faith in it, Sol and Minthara do not. They realise how incredibly lucky they are to have met you. Sol condems fate for being so pitiful, how easily they'd have never met you and just spent their life hiding their true self and following their family.

While Minthara fears fate, she knows she would've killed you under any other circumstances. She dreads the idea of never waking up from her brainwashing, be it from Lolth or the Absolute.

2 - I'm glad to hear you liked it! I can't stress how I will never get tired of hearing this or how these comments never get redundant to me. Honestly, I'm having a really bad day rn but still pushed out a fic bc I felt like it's been a while, it makes me feel appreciated when people tell me they liked anything about my works. So thank you again from the deepest of my heart.

3- omfg, the Astarion idea is gold. He would totally have gossip on most noble families since he spent so much time in the upper city. You'd be announce yourself and titles so proudly and he'd be like "didn't your cousin runaway with that barmaid and leave his wife and three kids behind?"

Or playful banter with Wyll since he came from nobility originally, the two of your characters could've seen each other as kids or something before the whole Mizora thing and he'd be like "wait...I remember you! You're that kid who stole my piece of cake during my birthday party"

Also imagine insulting Gortash during his coronation with a noble background, basically calling hime fake nobility and how he doesn't know the first thing about rulling or etiquette.

Maybe when you come back to the city, you already have an account made in the bank and don't need to start another? Maybe you get pickpocketed quite often because you "look rich" and if you sleep at any camp besides the elfsong tavern, you remain restless and don't heal to full.

Being an obnoxious noble sounds way too fun. A spoiled rich person who has to trudge around in the mud in the underdark and complain about their silk clothes getting absolutely ruined while the party snicker behind you.

Imagine teaching Lae'zel and Shadowheart how to slow dance <3 or taking Karlach to a very fancy restaurant reservation during her date in act 3!

[xiv-wolfram]

I'm new to tumblr and looking to start my own visual stories. I stumbled upon yours through the suggestions and I am INVESTED. Raubae is a beautiful man and Wolfram and he are a beautiful couple!

Can you give a noob visual storyteller pointers on how to get started with their own comics?

OMG THANK YOU!!! 😭 I'm totally normal about them. I also want to apologize for Tumblr being a bit of a mess in terms of following the comics. Highly recommend the Carrd for chronological links.

As for comics - I'm far from an expert but I do see myself getting better with each one I make so hopefully some of this will help. 🤞

Read a bunch of different types of graphic novels. Pick the ones you like the most and pay attention to how they do things. I personally like lots of dialogue and character development, dramatic lighting, and focusing on facial expressions. Others focus on the action or scenery. Some a mix of both (which I'm working towards). Just find inspiration in what you love and let it help you find your style. 😁 Looking into how comics are made and what the different speech bubbles mean/text decoration/etc was helpful.

Use Clip Studio Paint or a program like it. Basically you want something that will let you cut out comic frames and add dialogue boxes easily. It really streamlines the workflow.

Write out "scripts" before GPosing. I know some folks who can freestyle but for me scripts with minor stage direction and dialogue have helped a lot. I have a different numbered line for each GPose I need to take too.

Everyone does plot/characterization differently. IDK if you were curious about that but I personally focus my plot around 3 main storylines - WolfBahn relationship arc, Wolfram's voidsent problem/past trauma, and MSQ. These plotlines overlap A LOT and come to a head in Endwalker. A lot of folks focus on their OC (I of course do.) but its also nice to develop the NPCs in some way. Most of Raubahn's development comes from MSQ which makes that easy but I do take time to touch on some of the things MSQ doesn't cover heavily like his recovery after being rescued from Halatali or the toll fighting to liberate Ala Mhigo takes on him. So I guess I just think - stories are more engaging if you flesh out the NPCs a bit. That may be personal preference though...

Really know your characters. I've found answering WoLQoTDs helps a ton. Along those lines - a timeline of their major events. Mine includes Eorzean events like The Autumn War and Garlean invasion of Ala Mhigo so I can fit my character's story in with the greater world. Before starting the comics I had a summary of his story on his Carrd (it's down now though). I also made a family tree. Replaying cutscenes helps get me in the zone to write too. Knowing them really well makes the writing flow pretty effortlessly.

Spend the time to edit each screenshot. I didn't do enough of this starting out and regret it. Even just upping the sharpness makes a big difference. Highly reccomend hitting it with the dodge/burn if you have time. The images will be smaller than most gposes so zooming in or cropping closer can help show the fine details (another place CSP shines).

Make dialogue box text large enough so that the majority of users on mobile won't need to zoom in. What I've been doing is 50 in CSP.

This one I don't do - but I should. Have someone with good grammar who also actually enjoys your story go over your comic before you post it. Ideally over the script as well. They'll point out grammatical mistakes but also since they're fans they may have some cool character insights you hadn't thought of!

Don't be discouraged if you get less "likes" than you do for GPoses. I usually get way less. On the flip side I get more actual interaction with the comics. Nice convos. It's how I've met some of my best buddies! So it's a good trade-off IMO. Most important of all - it's FUN to tell stories!

I hope this was helpful. Feel free to DM if you have more specific questions/want to have a convo too. I'm always excited to see more GPose comics! :D

[shiningclown69]

Also replying to @winxdclub about that post

Its v fun to read and reply but also IM SO SORRY that this has led to so much spam 💀😭 Hopefully you don't feel obligated to respond to everything. Ok, now i can respond

Yeah, I am begging for the writers to let Riven NOT be the cause of every single problem. Helia is totally prone to make mistakes on his own, pushing most of the blame to Riven is such a cop-out. Esp when the lesson should be that mistakes don't define Helia's worth as a person at all. If Riven does screw up, let him be apologetic!!! He has shown he has the capability to apologise!!!

Also yessss it would make more sense that the rumour be that Helia was a prodigy who screwed up and left RF. It adds to that layer of mystery Helia has and makes it more rewarding when the rest of the guys grow to trust him

Helia: Maybe Brandon should be leader since he's the ONLY one who hasn't tried to put Riven in a chokehold at least once.

Timmy: But I haven't?

Helia: You would if you could.

I'm sorry to make you hopeful for S6, it WILL be disappointing. But hey, new characters mean new reworks from Rus haha wink wink

Oooo the idea that Brandon's struggle is not rly seen bc of the subtlety of is interesting, tho I wonder abt the logistics of it working in a episodic setting. Istg all these sound v prime for a specialists fanfic or rewrite haha

Yeah Brandon is probably an outlier when it comes to reacting to fuck ups. Tho, I don't think there's much opportunities we see that if i rmb correctly. Only times I can think abt is S4 when mitzi kissed him and he just awkwardly walked away from the argument, some moments from S6 when he confronts Stella, and him apologising solemnly when he breaks up w stella in the comics. And maybe the funniest moment: Him washing dishes when he hasn't resolved things with Stella yet, and there is an unecessary amt of awkward tension. For DISHES.

Brandon bias <3 <3 How he ends up being sexy haha funny man with this kind of backstory + the most serious way of dealing with conflict is a mystery to me.

Hmm I did consider that Erendor prob wouldn't like Sky being friends with Brandon. The only justification I came up with is that (if this info i saw from the magazine canon) Brandon's parents are close to Erendor/Samara, as their advisor/handmaiden respectively. I don't think they respect their courtesans much, but that connection might have given Brandon some leeway to be friends with Sky.

My hc before I knew his family info was q similar to your idea I think? That Brandon was the son of Erendor's longtime bodyguard. The fact that his father could easily train him + similar age + accessible and "acceptable" to let near Sky would prob make Brandon a good candidate

ALSO YES we need to acknowledge more than Nabu was prob left alone with his servants and guards!!! I feel he defo snuck out alot, which is why he learnt invisibility spells and changed his name. Might also explain why he has a tendency to babble sometimes abt things he's interested in (getting trapped in a cage is NOT a good time to talk abt music my man), mans prob happy to be around ppl his age who are willing to hold a conversation with him.

Ok i should have elaborated more. Brandon IS a child soldier, but I was imagining the duration that he's been put under this job. 15 is a good range but I hc he might have started younger at around 10-12? Idk maybe this has smth to do with the S6 thing i mentioned Brandon keeps mentioning "since we were kids" as if it feels rly long ago

Also I didn't know where to put this but I looked back at the S2E14. Brandon going "I've been here before" when the gang are inside Yoshinoya's prison cell?? Brandon what??? Are you ok????? I don't like that implication!!

I think Sky should defend Brandon more. Yknow, as a treat, for both of them.

[psychewritesbs]

I sent in a precious ask whining about megumi, and asking about how the characters would be spread to fight against sukuna and kenjaku, so I wanted to clarify I wasn't two anons T_T I'm just continuing from before ~

I believe yuji will play a big role in defeating kenjaku. What about you? Gojo's presence (I love you I do okay) makes thinking the how difficult given his title as strongest, but I'm wondering when yuji and kenjaku will interact with each other again and in a meaningful way. I'm not expecting immediate love family stuff and all that, but it's wild how small their interactions and dynamic is made of so little despite kenjaku being yuji's parent. As a result, I'm more excited to know how he'll handle sukuna than kenjaku 😭

Like, kenjaku's nefarious ways to birthing yuji is admirable in a loose way and I love what it means about yuji, but can we actually have them interact again please. As of right now, I don't mind who defeats kenjaku lol which is a shame for me. I know others would be upset (I understand) if his defeat was by someone other than yuji.

I wouldn't be surprised if gojo does too because though kenjaku isn't just about geto, but for gojo's motivation/pov, that's still something that has inhabited his best friends body, and then there's yuta, and I'm sure he'll fight kenjaku, but I'm unsure if that'll be his own defeat, and with that in mind, I'm curious to see how this can get done with the literal strongest who they had to seal being back in the game.

As for megumi, like I mentioned last ask about his sense of self overpowering sukuna's, but I can see yuji playing that big role with megumi playing a more active role to defeat sukuna.

Maki is a beast too, so I wonder what's going to happen with her. Also, miwa looked so ominous during her walk after the sendai colony, but I saw her standing with the group too?? I thought she would do something, but these next few chapters will tell something hopefully. Kashimo is in an interesting position as well since he wants to fight sukuna, so that's another thing. I could really see him leaving early and fighting sukuna already 🤣

Another question, but now that sukuna has megumi's ct, do you think him using it against gojo later would put him in a different light than if he didn't have it? Sukuna is pretty arrogant and confident in his strength and we still don't have 20 finger sukuna, but I always felt like him obtaining the ten shadows to add to his arsenal would make him seem like he knows he needs it to defeat gojo if he uses both his cts and that would mean he thinks hes not strong enough on his own and that doesn't seem to fit. If he fights gojo, I'm not sure gege would go the same route again with sukuna using only the 10S against gojo to make it seem like defeat by one of his students is his ending, so perhaps he may just use Shrine and if he believes he can win, then later he would use the 10S to create his world. I ask this because gojo vs sukuna is also the fated gojo vs zenin fight and what would it be without the six eyes plus 10S, so it's a mystery of how it'll all be handled.

I do think giving the antagonists, especially kenjaku prepping time will bite them in the ass.

Looool, this is how far behind I am on returning mail. HOLA! Welcome back anon 🥲.

Thanks for the Megumi love. The Megumi love is always indeed precious. There's seriously something about Megumi fans.

I believe yuji will play a big role in defeating kenjaku.

Ok but everything you wrote on this topic... yes.

let's keep nerding out under the cut.

Ehem... I actually totally forgot Kenny is Yuji's momdad.

This is a super weird tangent, but lately I saw a sign advertising 60k in exchange for becoming a surrogate mother and I considered it for a whole minute. My biggest concern with this would be getting attached to the child and then feeling a gaping hole about the kid for the rest of my life.

So I 300% agree about how significant it is that Kenny went through pregnancy for the sake of hishertheir plans. That's commitment.

I've seen what babies do to the body, now imagine Kenny having to fight sorcerers with morning sickness.

That's commitment.

As of right now, I don't mind who defeats kenjaku lol which is a shame for me. I know others would be upset (I understand) if his defeat was by someone other than yuji.

Anyways, I don't personally have any thoughts on who'd kill Kenny but there's defo a theme of patricide/matricide with Choso and Yuji. So, I wonder whether someone here is going to kill their mother/father, whether metaphorically or figuratively.

On the topic of Kenny, I love how much thought you've put into it lol. You're so right, there's several characters out for Kenny's neck rn and anyone could literally be the one to kill Kenny. My best guess is that Gege will milk this for angst purposes lol.

Ok, what about Tengen?! Tengen is sus, but not like when I used to think Hana was sus lol. Like... there's something going on there between Kenny and Tengen that we are being kept in the dark about.

miwa looked so ominous during her walk after the sendai colony

MAN. I really wanted to see Miwa not be useless. But I guess she's another victim of side character syndrome. Such a shame, really, but I guess I can't expect for every character to get the same amount of air time.

Kashimo is in an interesting position as well since he wants to fight sukuna, so that's another thing

You know what this feels like? It feels like Gege is playing chess with us. あの猫！

I had also forgotten about Kashi omg. I just wonder whether Kashi stands a chance against Sukuna. Anyways, as you say, here's another contender for killing Sukuna too.

but now that sukuna has megumi's ct, do you think him using it against gojo later would put him in a different light than if he didn't have it? Sukuna is pretty arrogant and confident in his strength and we still don't have 20 finger sukuna, but I always felt like him obtaining the ten shadows to add to his arsenal would make him seem like he knows he needs it to defeat gojo if he uses both his cts and that would mean he thinks hes not strong enough on his own and that doesn't seem to fit.

You know, this whole time I've been thinking Gojo might be the one to loose (his clothing choices aside) because he's arrogant about his abilities. But you're so right about Sukuna being arrogant af too.

That's why I loved seeing him struggle in ch 223.

Like he's realizing he has to take Gojo seriously.

Anyways, these two crazies are about to go at it and I'm looking forward to it.

But also... I don't know if I'm understanding you right, but it seems as though you're wondering whether Sukuna's interest in Megumi was because he needed 10 shadows to defeat Gojo/become the strongest?

I see what you mean.

I was also wondering whether Sukuna is a ct hoarder since he opens and closes something when he deploys ct that is different to his usual domain expansion.

I ask this because gojo vs sukuna is also the fated gojo vs zenin fight and what would it be without the six eyes plus 10S, so it's a mystery of how it'll all be handled.

This. I mean... so far Sukuna has shown us he has an uncanny ability to manipulate 10 shadows in a way that Megumi had not begun to comprehend yet. Argh... I just hope that if it comes down to it, if Gojo has to die, let it be at Megumi's hands, not Sukuna's.

I need to see Megumi save himself.

I do think giving the antagonists, especially kenjaku prepping time will bite them in the ass.

This was honestly a bit of a cop out for me with how Gege handled Gojo. Like Gojo literally just said "oh ok, sure, let's not fight rn". I hope he has a plan lol.

Thanks for the Megumi love 🥺.

[unnursvanablog]

The Uncanny Counter, season 2 / kdrama review.

This is just my opinions on the season two of the kdrama The Uncanny Counter, pretty much spoiler free.

I've often felt that one of the charms and appeals of kdramas is that there is only one season. There are emotions, there is plenty of quiet character moments, angst, and a beginning, a middle and an end all in one season that American show would stretch out over 5 seasons. It's not really in the kdrama formula to have a season two. It just doesn't seem to work all that well (although series like Kingdom or Age of Youth have managed it or series that are independent continuations of each other like the Reply series). And I think this second season of The Uncanny Counters sort of proves that. The story was over. It had a beginning, middle and end. It doesn't need more.

The plot here is predictable and there is nothing there that adds to the narrative of the first one. There is a lot of room for character development, but the drama doesn't use its time well at all instead giving us rather silly, fluffy moments between the characters and overall, it just feels rather poorly done. As if the people behind this didn't really care or didn't feel like it needed to bother with the plot all that much.

Instead of giving us more time to delve deeper into the characters they give us a cardboard cutout of them and a few romantic moments between some of the characters that are totally cute or sweet but add nothing to the story itself. Nothing that happens really matters. There are no puzzles to solve or mysteries to uncover, backstories to explore (like why the bad guys are bad) which pretty much takes away a lot of tension from the narrative. Everything is easy. There is no real desperation or intensity in the story. The struggles they had that made them interesting in the first season are no longer there. There is no battle going on here.

Many of the characters don't work the same as before and neither do their superpowers. The character who struggled in the first season doesn't struggle now. So Moon seems almost invincible and way too rugged and cold when he was the soft heart of the story last season. He doesn't even feel like the main character here or the sensitive as the heart of the series and we are not following him learning more about his powers. But there was still no decent successor to him to fill that main character, fish-out-of-water role so the story has no anchor or focus.

Our characters have nothing much to do but try to fight some very dull and colorless bad guys. They are not being given time to grow organically so they will change with the narrative. They have changed, without us getting to see it as it all happened off screen between the two seasons, to serve the oh-so-generic, bare-bone plot that this new series has to offer.

While the plot of the first series felt like a story that has been retread a little too often, it also managed to find some fresh and exciting angles on the very common underdog superhero story with some good tension and humor along with a great lovable cast and characters. And although the actors and characters are still lovely, the story here doesn't really nothing to say here. Not about human greed or corruption or humanity. At least not in an exciting new way. Everything is a little too simple or convenient to hit it's mark properly.

On the surface, the series is cool, flashy, with funny moments and some really cool special effects and fight scenes, but that was never really what made The Uncanny Counters, or any sci-fi for the matter show fun to watch. People may start watching genre shows for the setting; dragons, swords, superpowers and all that but people keep watching for the plot and the characters. The character struggles, seeing those less fortunate stand up for something bigger than them, people coming together and working together using their powers makes for an exciting narrative and hopefully a good story. It's so much more than just some superpowers. The previous series seemed to understand that, but this feels very much surface level to its approach to a story.

This series seems rather dull. The story is missing something and both the old characters and the new ones we are meeting do not have the same charm and depth as in the previous season. There isn't really any story going on, very little momentum or character moments that move the story forward. It just sort of tugs along. Everything is too easy, too predictable and there is very little real conflict going on, apart from cool fight scenes, or characters growth which makes it really boring to watch because nothing really happens. Or matter. There is nothing about season two that stays with you after watching it. If you have nothing to add to a story, don't make season two.

[marblemoovt]

Hi again! This is long but I’m just really into your one shot and wanted to respond to the ramble it it’s ok ❤️

It’s fascinating to hear about your thought process as you wrote this one shot. Your care in psychoanalyzing the characters is what makes it feel so real! Also, if I may I add—as a fellow realist who spends a lot of her time daydreaming about fictional characters living out different scenarios, I totally get why this story needed to take place in a non-eclipse universe. 💔

Which takes me to the next point…that this one shot is a huge what if; as you said, what if Griffith met his equal and thus no longer feels the need to drag himself and everyone he supposedly holds dear down such a harrowing path? I love that you provide glimpses into Griffith’s true nature—both the good and the bad. I specifically keep rereading the parts where Griffith wonders why the princess matters to him so much and when he flat out admits he’s trying to figure her out. And the ending is just…ugh! My heart! The princess has such a hold on Griffith that I’m convinced there’s an actual chance that he won’t later devolve into a complete monster. I love that you humanize Griffith without making him OOC.

I adore Sadie being the one to talk sense into the princess, letting her know that she’s offering an escape if all goes wrong. I commend you for tying all the loose ends together while keeping it realistic :)

Lastly I want to say I fully understand why you’d have mixed feelings toward Griffith. I think many people feel the same. Sometimes you just want to see the good in others and I think that desire can grow when you encounter purely evil, depraved characters like Griffith. Just my thoughts! If you read all this, thank you for doing so! Please don’t feel pressured to respond quickly or at all. I’m just happy to chat with someone about the nuances of Griffith’s character.

Response below:

You are so right about the huge what-if part, anon. I'm a sucker for happy endings--or at least endings where everyone doesn't die. And for that to even be possible, any chances of the eclipse occurring have to be yeeted out the window.

Providing the different glimpses of Griffith stems from my inability to reconcile who I want him to be and who he is lol. I want him to be good, but I know he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice anything for his dreams (as proved by the eclipse). I also just wanted to toy with the idea of what it would be like to be loved by someone but never be their top priority. And could that be changed?

Sadie was a complete accident. I needed a reason for the reader to go into town and Sadie poofed into existence. She was meant to be like an NPC with minimal to no background/personality. But I love a good sassy friend who has your back. I thought that since the majority of the nobility disapprove of the reader's behaviour outside of formal settings, there should be someone who accepts all these aspects and even encourages them in a healthy way. Suffice it to say I love Sadie and her knee-cap-breaking gremlin energy.

I feel like the desire to see the good in evil/depraved characters reminds me of when people say 'I can fix them'. You want to see the good, and so you believe it exists and that you can bring it out of them. But I don't believe that people can change unless they decide for themselves. Because at the end of the day, no matter how much you love someone, that person won't change unless they really want to.

This was something I wanted to be careful about in this oneshot. I didn't want Griffith to 'change' solely because of love. I wanted it to be more nuanced than that. I don't think I got around to it in this oneshot. But hopefully, I can delve further into this whenever I write a continuation.

I think Griffith is a rational person, he's very calculative in everything he does. This is why I wanted him to start developing little impulses that throw him off and cause him to re-evaluate his situation. I think unconditional love would be a foreign concept to him, he would even deny its existence. That's where the reader comes in and shatters everything he believes in, and he realizes that there are other ways to achieve his goal. For once, there's someone he can't bear to trample as a stepping stone even if it moves him closer to his dreams. And this frustrates him to no end. I just think realizing what you wanted might not actually be what you want is such a neat trope. Because how do you account for another person in your future when you're so used to only considering yourself?

Feel free to send any more asks about Griffith or other characters I might know! It's always fun to analyze and see other people's interpretations. It also helps with characterization when writing them.

[animeomegas]

Can you please write something about minato or hashirama please

They are my favorite characters!

Of course! Let me give you some random headcanons about Minato!

Tw: stillborn mention below

Minato has three pups in total, although he had a still born pup between Naruto and his second pup.

(The hardest thing Minato has ever had to do was explain to Naruto why he didn't have a baby sibling anymore. Naruto was only four and didn't really understand.)

Minato keeps all his pregnancies secret for as long as possible to avoid other countries taking advantage of his perceived weakness.

Minato is actually very, very private about his nest. He gets so protective over it that it makes him feel embarrassed. He wishes he were the sort of omega who can have friends in his nest, but he just can't, it makes him feel weird and uncomfortable.

He does, however, keep his sofa covered with blankets and cushions so when his friends/his team are around, he can still bundle them up while keeping his nest private.

He shows his nest to his alpha after they've been together seriously for about a few months.

Minato is obsessed with cuddles. The second he's alone with his alpha, he wants to sit on the sofa, with a blanket and snacks and cuddles. Add his pups to the cuddle pile and that's Minato's favourite place to be!

In my headcanon, Minato and Kushina are Naruto's parents, but then Kushina sacrificed herself (already so weak from the Kyuubi escaping) to seal the demon into Naruto, and then Minato raised Naruto alone until he fell in love with a new alpha, who was the other parent of the rest of his pups.

Minato has the most powerful "I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed" face. It's a one hit K.O.

I like to think that Minato's alpha is the push needed for Minato to finally pseudo adopt Kakashi. Before, Minato lowkey tries, and Kakashi is too proud to ever acknowledge it, but hopefully, Minato's alpha is able to bring Kakashi into their family.

Naruto takes to Minato's new alpha very, very easily. He doesn't remember Kushina, which helps, but also Naruto is just so friendly and loving and incredibly excited to have another parent around while his dad is working.

I've run out of inspiration, but Minato is very cute! 🥺