#i literally think i just described the whole book haha

[ecogirl2759]

THE MOMENT WE'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!

Here it is, guys!

The Kiyotaka Ishimaru Mastermind comic from 4コマ KINGS Vol. 4!

SPECIFICALLY CITING THIS SO THAT OTHERS KNOW WHERE TO FIND THIS COMIC!!!

Huge, HUUUUGE thanks to @panicuriprince!!! They helped me with clearing the text, rewording panels and putting everything together! Pages 4, 5, and 6 are her doing! PLEEEASE go send her some love, they REALLY helped me get this done and I literally couldn't have done this without her :D

There's a document below the break with more literal translations for the comic, as well as translation notes, a link to a Google Drive folder with ALL of the pages, and other interesting tidbits! Please give it a read!

The Japanese pages will also be below the break! (As well as a little spiel of mine. It's quite long, so be careful!)

(also please forgive how many tags there are here-)

Remember to read right to left <3

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As promised, here are the Japanese panels:

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AND HERE'S THE DOCUMENT!

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✨ WOW ✨

I can't begin to describe to you all how AMAZING this feels!

I've spent the past 2 years on what felt like a wild goose chase, desperately searching for this one comic that I wasn't even sure existed.

This all started with me finding a photo on Tumblr of this comic and spiraling into this deep dive. First I didn't know if this was even real, then I found out that this comic series had ceased printing, then I couldn't be sure which book it was actually in.

There is literally almost no information out there about the fourth volume of this anthology series. I've said this before and I'll say it again, volumes 1 and 2 both have full translations that you can download off of other websites, and while 3 doesn't seem to have that, there are a lot of separately translated comics floating around out there, namely on Pinterest.

The 4th volume had NOTHING! No matter how hard I searched or how many links I clicked, no one has really said ANYTHING about this book, which was why this specific comic was so hard for me to find.

But I have all of the books now, so I definitely want to do this again for all of them so that people have easy access to these translations. I'll start with book 4 though haha.

Also, I'm not sure who it was, but HUUUUGE thanks to the kind stranger on Ebay who was willing to sent me the whole series!! I literally don't know where I would be right now if these books weren't with me, so thank you <3

Also, thank you to all of my Japanese teachers that I've had throughout the years. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have been able to understand the comic, haha! One even helped me out in the early stages of this process, so extra thanks to him <3

I feel really passionate about accessible media. I think that everyone should be able to read and find whatever they want. That's part of the reason that I've endeavored on this project. I want everyone to be able to seek out and find these comics if they really want to. And, of course, I want everyone to be able to understand them, too.

So please enjoy this comic! If you'd like to repost it, I'd appreciate being credited just so that others know where they can go to find the full comic.

This one-man project isn't so one-man anymore, and I seriously can't thank everyone who's helped me enough!!! I'm honestly so glad I didn't have to go through this alone <33

ALSO

If you see anything, LITERALLY ANYTHING, that you think I could change/improve (like formatting or different interpretations of the Japanese text), PLEASE shoot me a message!! I want to make sure this comic is as good as it can be, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Even if you don't have a suggestion and would just like to reach out to ask a question or something, PLEASE don't be afraid to do that! I know I get really cold feet when sending people asks, so I'm going to reassure everyone who needs to hear it now: You're never going to be a bother to me! I love getting asks! Whenever anyone sends me something, I get really excited <3

So ask questions! Tell me I did a horrible job and got none of the text right! Ask why Ishimaru literally cannot be evil! I don't know the answer, either!

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Thank you all so much for the support and the kind words you've been giving me ever since I first announced I was translating this comic! Your support has been extremely motivating to me! Also, you guys are hilarious with your tags!

Seriously, thank you so much! Words literally can't express how I feel right now, but I guess the best way I could describe it is cathartic. I'm REALLY happy that I finally get to share 2 years worth of work with you guys! You've all been a massive help to me in more ways than one <333

KEEP BEING AWESOME <3

[swollenbabyfat]

How did you come to draw and paint the way you do? What inspirations do you pull from? All of your art oozes with some strange, almost ethereal emotion I've not quite seen anywhere else, something similar to what I'd like to capture with my own works.

I’ve always had a bit of a hard time answering this bc like…I honestly think aesthetic/inspirational/taste stuff is a library you build up over your whole life, or maybe a closet that you try things on to see what does and doesn’t work for you. My biggest advice to this kinda stuff is to experiment a lot and take in a lot of media in a purposeful way, and try to actively apply things you like about said medias to your work. And don’t just consume stuff within your field, I take inspiration from a ton of stuff that isn’t art. I also recommend having somewhere to keep a kind of reserve of inspo, wether it be on tumblr or Pinterest or what have you.

So with that being said I’ll try to sum up what I can about myself.

I’m a horror lover, have been since I was (too) young. I’ve consumed a ton of horror movies, read a lot of books, and certainly have digested a lot of art about it. I am a bit of a haunted person haha, and I’ve always really attached myself to horror, and with some exception to just purely cute stuff I truly am always thinking about it with my work. I am not really aiming to make people feel comfortable with my stuff, in fact often the opposite, but many feel understood anyways which feels nice. I don’t think horror for horrors sake is always as fufilling to me, it always pulls from something internal that I’ve been wrestling with or are afraid of myself.

I am classically trained in fine art due to the kind of art program my highschool had (magnet program if that means anything to anyone), it was incredibly good and I always feel so lucky I got to go there. Bc of this I learned a lot of techniques in painting as well as the fundamental of art. I don’t think my art would be the way it is without this training, but I also think with how the internet is now you can probably do the same thing at your own pace, just have to be dedicating a decent amount of time and mental energy into it.

Bc of my highschool training I also learned about art history, which had a big impact on me, particularly renaissance, baroque, and rococo. Religious imagery as well had a huge impact on me, particularly catholic (probs cause we learned about it it the most). I would say doing master studies with these would be a huge help.

I would say it’s important to me that each “full” illustration tells a story of sorts, I can’t really help it, I’m a story teller at heart. I use a lot of symbolic imagery, I pull a lot from religious imagery but also within fruit, flowers, personal objects… I think “what am I trying to say with this work” and kind of go from there with what I choose. Make your own personal symbolism language.

There’s like this certainty digital painting aesthetic I really enjoy by niche furry artist lol, many of them really nsfw so I don’t feel comfortable linking to them. It’s like…highly detailed well rendered pieces that they make with literally one brush that is often without any kind of pen pressure, just layering things with opacity. It’s crazy and yeah idk they’re definitely up there in inspo for me.

I really really care about fashion. Lolita was my first love in terms of clothing, and I pull a ton of inspiration from it, but also a lot of other street styles and runways stuff. I like drama and frills.

I play with my art and stories in a way that I don’t know how to describe other than childlike. It’s important for me to do so in my process, but basically, I let my imagination run wild, I talk to my characters, I listen to music and think about them. A lot of my bigger pieces take a lot of time of me thinking about them ahead a time, I draw in my head a lot. Sketchbooks are a huge help in this.

I thiiiiiink that’s all I have to say for now…I could probably list a million things but this feels like a good core to start with. I hope it’s not too vague, but I’m always good to keep answering stuff like this if you wanna know about one part in depth.

[jorenilee]

Got curious and looked into why the colors were so off in the book and from what I can tell... they just color picked from the art. Which is SO funny, because all of the art absolutely has lighting changes and dramatic moods etc. Ivypool is literally bathed in a sunset/sunrise and Bluestar is like, in a bright moonlight... and they just COLOR PICKED...

Ridiculous. RIDICULOUS HOW'D THEY FUCK UP THAT BAD HAHA

THIS IS THE BAFFLING PART TO ME because they 100% hired someone who A. has no damn idea what a warriors cats is and B. doesn't know how to colour pick??

Like I dont even know WHERE they're getting these colours. Clear sky is 99% just gray and somehow they threaded the needle and nailed the gleaming shine on his forehead aka the SUN.

I think the funniest part of this is where they just. Mix the cats up. They did not hire someone familiar with the series cuz they just read the names left to right. When runningnose has his Running Nose In the Art

Also this ones the funniest and sums up the whole thing because not only did they switch Dappled Pelt and Cloud Spots (hilarious because their names describe What they Look like), but incorrectly picked both of their wrong colours. How do you look at that man and think hm yeah slate blue

I'm left utterly flabbergasted because like. Im so genuinely confused about how it got approved like this. The average 11yo who read only the first series would probably do a better job

[emlovessid]

I’m so sorry I’m late to the party, but I have a prompt for you, if you���re still interested.

Sirius talking to James about how much he likes Remus and everything he wants Remus to do to him, sexual and otherwise, and Remus overhearing and just being like :o and trying to act normal around him the next time they talk, especially without tipping Sirius off that he heard. Of course, he fails miserably.

This is incredibly similar to an ask I’ve sent in on another blog and I’m sorry for that, but in my defence this scenario plays over and over in my head 24/7 and there’s so many ways it can go.

hi love! you are so fine, sorry it took me so long to get around to this one haha. hope you enjoy <33

“—and I’m losing my mind, James. How do you deal with it?”

“Deal with what?”

Remus freezes where his hand was about to push open James’ door to ask him if he needs anything from the supermarket, fingers hovering just over the door handle when he realises he’s about to interrupt clearly a very important conversation. Taking a step back, he’s ready to retreat down the hall when Sirius starts speaking again.

“With being in love,” Sirius sighs. “I thought when people described love as this all-consuming thing they were just exaggerating, but god, they were not exaggerating. If anything, they were under-exaggerating. How does anyone get anything done?”

Remus knows that he should walk away, knows that he most definitely should not be eavesdropping on this coversation right now, but his heart is stuck in his throat as he tries to wrap his head around the fact that Sirius is apparently in love?

Without giving James a chance to answer, Sirius is rambling again, and Remus can almost imagine his manic eyes and his arms waving about as he says, “It’s literally all I can think about, all day. And then I go to bed and I fucking dream about it, about him, about him and his stupid face and his stupid smile and how much I want to just stick my tongue down his fucking throat.”

It’s with a shaky breath and a sting behind his eyes that Remus finally manages to start moving back towards the kitchen, but then the whole world comes to a shuddering stop when James groans, “I don’t need to know about how much you want to stick your tongue down Moony’s throat.”

Moony? Moony?! Sirius wants to stick his tongue down his throat?!! There’s no way—

“It’s not just that. I mean, yeah, obviously I want to snog him, and have him fuck me so hard into my mattress that I can barely walk the next day—” Remus can barely hear James’ complaints over the sound of his own heart beating thunderously in his ears, “—but I also want to just, walk down the street holding his hand and run my fingers through his hair while he’s reading a book and wake up next to him in the morning.”

Remus actually pinches himself on the wrist then, sure that he must be dreaming, because in what universe are his months of pining actually reciprocated?

“That’s great. And I hope you get all that, I really do. But in order to get that you actually have to tell him you—” Remus leaves midway through James’ sentence, his feet finally catching up with his mind and hurrying back down the hall, grabbing a reusable bag and his keys on his way out the front door.

—

By the time he makes it back from the supermarket, he’s successfully pushed down all thoughts of what he overheard to the deepest depths of his mind, piling on top of it his shopping list and the recipe for tonight’s dinner and what clothes he needs to put in the wash later. That is, until, he walks back inside and finds Sirius leaning against the kitchen counter, jar of peanut butter in one hand as he grins at Remus around a spoon.

“There you are!” Sirius cheers, and with just a look and a smile, all of that pushing down was for naught.

“I want that too,” Remus blurts.

“The peanut butter? Sure, let me grab you another spoon,” Sirius says with a shrug, reaching for the drawer behind him before Remus’ hand on his wrist stops him, his eyes wide and searching as they meet Remus’.

“Not the peanut butter,” Remus sighs, taking a deep breath before continuing, “I want – I want to hold hands and feel your fingers in my hair and have your face be the first thing I see in the morning.”

Sirius’ voice is barely a whisper when he says, “Oh.”

Taking a step closer until he’s practically caging Sirius in against the counter, Remus continues, “And I would like nothing more than to stick my tongue down your throat—”

“Oh.”

“—and fuck you into your mattr—”

Sirius doesn’t give him a chance to finish, surging up and capturing Remus’ lips with his own, the taste of peanut butter on his tongue as he licks into Remus’ mouth, but it’s everything Remus had hoped for and more.

follower appreciation – drop me a prompt <3

[jessi4fanfics]

TROLLS HOLIDAY OF HAVOC- A VALENTINES FANFIC: Part 1 (warning, rlly long)

only read this story if you are like REALLY bored and have nothing to do for the next bajillion minutes cuz ITS LONG

Its a mix of Broppy with a bit of Cliva!

I wrote this on Wattpad if you would rather read it there. 😘

"UGHHHHHHH," John Dory groaned as he and the rest of the BroZone brothers fell onto the couch the morning after one of their shows.

They were in Branch's bunker living room, where all of them except for Bruce lived now, though Bruce did live there when he was planning on staying in Pop Village for a while for shows, like this last week.

And there was only one way to describe what the brothers felt now: EXHAUSTED.

"I can't believe we did six shows in five days last week!" Clay groaned.

"I don't think I've slept since Monday," Branch sighed.

"At least we were all together," Floyd suggested. "It's better than when we were all apart, right?"

They all stared at him. It was obvious from their faces that they didn't really agree.

"I miss Brandy," Bruce sighed sadly, taking a picture of his wife and kids out of his hair.

"You always miss Brandy," John said, annoyed. "Why don't you enjoy hanging around us for a little while at least?"

"Because you guys never tell me how much you love me," Bruce shot back.

Floyd touched his shoulder. "Bruce, we love you a ton."

Bruce stared at him, then shrugged Floyd's hand off of his should. "Ehh, it's not the same."

"I'd be concerned if it was." Branch stood up. "Guys, we're all acting weird and mopey. You know why?"

"Because you didn't make us pancakes for breakfast like we asked?" John asked.

Branch frowned. "What? No. I told you; I don't have all the ingredients!"

"Well, I offered to go to the store for you, but nooooo you said--"

"It's because we all need a break!" Branch interrupted. "We've been working our butts off ever since we got back together, which is good, but we deserve a break sometime. Which is why--" He turned and grabbed the BroZone Planner book from off of the breakfast table, "--I completely emptied all of our activities this week." He placed it in front of Clay.

"What?! No way!" Clay opened the planner to the week that it was. It was true. The whole week had nothing written anywhere on it.

The brothers stared at it for a while. 

"Omigosh, yes!! This is what I've been secretly wanting for the past two months!" John gave a sigh of relief.

"That means we can do whatever we want all week!" Floyd smiled. "This is gonna be so much fun!"

"Guys, we should totally go bowling!" Bruce suggested.

John gave Bruce a funny look. "Why?"

"Cuz I haven't been bowling in forever! Last time I went bowling with Brandy, I broke my left pinkie toe!" He lifted his foot to show his toe, which was hanging in a weird way.

"Eww, that is disgusting, put that down!" Branch shrieked, covering his eyes.

"Dude, it's just the way of nature. Things break. Including toes," Bruce explained.

"That doesn't mean we want to see it!" Floyd gagged.

"Okay, okay!! If you put that foot down, we'll go bowling!" John compromised. 

"Okie!" Bruce put down his foot and gasped. "We can call it-- browling!!"

"Haha!! Yes! I love it!" John laughed, nudging him.

Clay had been quiet. His eyes were so wide they looked like saucers. Then he gave a relieved sigh. "Oh my gosh, it is so satisfying to open this planner to this week and see nothing in it."

"There's not nothing in it," Literal John pointed out. "It says 'Valentines Day' right there."

Clay gave him the bro, are you kidding me?  look. "Thanks."

"You're welcome! 🤗" John answered.

"Ahhh, Valentines Day," Bruce gave another sigh, this time full of relaxation and enjoyment, as he sat back. "You know, Brandy and I met on Valentines Day."

His brother turned to him, annoyed. 

"Yah, we know," John grunted. "You tell us every Saturd--"

"It was exactly ten years ago," Bruce began suddenly.

The rest of BroZone groaned. 

"I was new to Vacay Island and the Islanders, and watched them party in the evening of Valentines Day, all partying like they were never gonna stop. I watched sadly, wishing that I had my own Valentine to party with."

"And then that's when you saw her," Branch predicted.

"By the snack stand," Clay continued.

"All alone," Floyd reminded.

"Looking kind of depressed," John finished. "Maybe a bit like us right no--"

"And then!" Bruce didn't wait for JD to finish. "I decided now was my chance. So I walked up to that beauty. Her eyes were shining like bits of heaven itself. Her skin as yellow as a really ripe banana. Her hair as stringy as the cheese in a cheese and spinach ravioli."

"Why do you always describe her like that?" Clay asked. "It absolutely disgust--"

Bruce ignored him. "And I walked up to her and said, 'Hey, you must be today's special cuz you're making me hungry!"

All the brothers winced, just as they always did whenever Bruce got to that part.

"I'm really surprised she didn't punch you after saying that," Branch remarked.

"Oh, she did," Bruce chuckled.

"Wait, what?!!" Clay gasped.

"Dude, how come you've never told us the one interesting part in this lame story?!!" John gaped.

"I don't know. It didn't really matter," Bruce shrugged.

"What is wrong with you?" Clay asked.

Floyd laughed.

"Well, anyways. After I said that, she--"

They all groaned again.

"BROOOOOZOOONNNEEEE!!!" came a high but sweet voice from the hallway.  

Queen Poppy burst into the living room, her face full of excitement and joy. She waved a pink envelope in the air before twirling excitedly in the room. "I'm sorry that I just popped out of nowhere, but I had to tell you--!!"

She stopped, noticing Bruce's mouth open, mid-story. "Oop, am I interrupting something?"

"Nope, you just saved us," Clay said gratefully. 

"Yes, please continue. Even your news may beat Bruce's story," John pleaded. 

Branch smiled and rolled his eyes. He was completely grateful to Poppy for interrupting though. Hearing the same story every week wasn't very fun.

"What'd you want to tell us?" He asked, walking toward her.

"Well, you know how Valentines Day is in two days?" She sang in a happy voice.

"Ugh, don't start Bruce all over again!" John said, alarmed.

Bruce crossed his arms. "I don't get why you guys don't enjoy it. It's absolutely lovely."

"Sure, Bruce. If you say so." Floyd patted his shoulder.

"We were just talking about it," Branch informed Poppy, who looked a bit confuzzled.

"Oh. Well, good!" She grabbed his left arm. "I wanted to invite you all to--"

"Wait, invite us to?" Branch stopped her. "Poppy, I thought I told you, we were taking a break from parties and everything else all week!"

Poppy looked at him, remembered, then blushed. "Oh. Well, uhhh--" she scratched the back of her head. "It's not really a... party."

Branch sighed and took the pink envelope and opened it. Inside the card said:

YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO POP VILLAGE'S FIRST ANNUAL VALENTINE'S DAY DANCE!!

Formal Dress Required. Snacks Provided! 6pm to 9pm.  

"Popppyyy," he gave long groan.

"I'm sorry, I didn't-- I forgot, you don't have to go!" Poppy's face flushed even more. 

"Another party?!" John moaned, leaning back on the couch.

"But I was hoping to go back home that day!" Bruce said. He sighed. "Well, I guess..."

Clay also gave a sad sigh. "There goes our empty week." He grabbed a pencil and tried to bring himself to write in the planner Valentine Dance.

"For the second time, it's not empty! It already says 'Valentines Day', right there!" John pointed out again. 

"DUDE HOW LITERAL CAN YOU BE?!!" Clay shrieked.

"Guys!" Poppy yelled.

They all turned to her.

She turned back to Branch. "Look. You're right. You told me not to invite you to a party. I thought the ball would be alright since it wasn't really a party, but I shouldn't have taken you so literally, and I'm sorry. You all don't have to go, no pressure." She gave him a kind smile and turned around and left.

They all stared after her.

"That was really sweet of her," Floyd said.

"Wow. Branch. She practically got on her knees, begging for forgiveness, and you just stand there like a doofus!" John said.

"Yeah, Brandy never would never have done that for me," Bruce said, impressed.

"Mostly because she doesn't have knees," Clay smarted.

The Clay and John snickered.

"I don't find that funny!" Bruce shouted.

Branch sat down next to Floyd. 

"Penny for your thoughts," Floyd said gently.

"I think I'm gonna go to the dance," Branch said shortly.

"What?!" John turned to him. "What happened to browling?!!"

"We have all week to do that, it's just one day, guys." Branch shrugged. "Besides, I kinda want to make this Valentines Day perfect for Poppy. The past few haven't gone-- well, very well."

"What do you mean?" Floyd asked.

~~~ THREE YEARS AGO~~~

"Happy Valentines Day, Branch!!!" Poppy held out a Valentine's Day card to a grumpy Branch.

He took it with a plastered smile then stomped on it angrily.

"😱😱!!!" Everyone gasped. 

~~~ TWO YEARS AGO~~~

"Happy Valentines Day, Branch!!" Poppy held out another Valentine's Day card for a grumpy Branch.

He took it and stomped on it.

"😱😱!!!" Everyone gasped.

~~~ONE YEAR AGO (Branch has his true colors now, y'all)~~~

"Happy Valentines Day, Branch!!" Poppy held out her annual Valentine's Day card to a now happy Branch, sure he wasn't going to stomp on it.

Glitter sprayed in his face.

"EEEWW, I GOT GLITTER IN MY MOUTH!!" Branch shrieked. "I THINK IMMA PUKE-" runs away gagging dangerously.

 "😱😱!!!" Everyone gasped.

~~~BACK TO PRESENT TIME~~~

"Oof, yah, you do owe her a good Valentines Day," Floyd completely agreed. 

"And maybe this is my way of doing it," Branch said. He got up. "I'm going to go tell Poppy. But none of you guys have to go."

"Oh, don't worry, we've got that in mind," John said, annoyed. 

"Poppy!" Branch ran out of the living room smack into--

"Hiii!!" Poppy gave him a giddy smile.

"Poppy, were you standing there the whole time?" Branch asked, lifting an eyebrow.

She shifted uncomfortably. "Mayyybeee."

He couldn't help smiling.

"I was hoping you'd say you would still come! And you did!!" Poppy gave an excited squeal and jumped onto him, giving him a big hug.

"Okay, okay, but I don't think the rest of them are coming," Branch gently pushed her off of him.

"That's okay." She waved her hand carelessly. "As long as you're there."

He grinned.

"Viva and I are so excited, we're planning on decorating it all by ourselves and we're ordering the biggest cake you've ever seen and--" she gave an excited gasp. "Branch!! You'll have to come over tomorrow! I have so many ideas for your tuxedo!"

"Well, I-- uhh." Branch wasn't sure if he wanted to wear another tuxedo in his life. He had worn that all week so far.

"How about around 11am tomorrow?! Okay, good!" She kissed his cheek, not waiting for an answer. "I'll see you then!!!" And she danced toward the elevator.

Branch gave an exasperated sigh. 

~~~ The Next Day~~~

"I'm off to Poppy's to see about tuxedos, guys," Branch said. 

"Ouch, good luck with that." John lay on his back on the couch, covering the whole thing.

Branch rolled his eyes.

"Branch, do you have a mailbox?" Bruce asked from the breakfast nook. "I haven't had mail in forever!"

"Pfft, who'd send mail to you?" John asked. "You aren't a thrilling teenager anymore, Bruce."

"As a matter of fact, I get tons of fanmail, Mister I'm-Jealous-Cuz-I've-Never-Gotten-One-Fan-Letter-In-My-Entire-Life. But I was talking more about my family," Bruce said defensively.

"Mmm." John had no comeback.

"As an answer to your question," Branch finally managed to cut in, "No, Bruce, I do not. Poppy's working on that. I can go get your mail at the post office if you want."

"Ooh, and while you're there," Clay handed him a letter to mail.

"What's this?" Branch asked.

"Well, it's--" Clay began in his I'm-about-to-blab-about-serious-boring-and-important-stuff-for-about-fifteen-minutes voice.

"Ya know what, doesn't matter, I'll take it." Branch was not about to stand here for fifteen minutes. Not when he could be talking to Poppy. "Anything else?"

"Oh! I have a grocery list!" John got up and handed him a five-foot-long list. 

"John, I'm going to Poppy's pod. I'm not going anywhere near the grocery store."

"Well, you asked 'anything else' and I told you!" John went back to the couch. "You're welcome."

Branch rolled his eyes. 

"Here, Branch. I'll go do that stuff." Floyd got up from the breakfast table. "You can go on ahead to Poppy's pod."

"Oh. Thanks, Floyd." Branch gave him a smile. 

"We're off!" Floyd announced.

"Hmm."

"They don't care, let's just go before they order us to go pick up something somewhere else," Branch whispered.

"Good idea," Floyd agreed.

They started off toward the direction of Poppy's pod (the post office was on the way).

"Soooo...." Floyd said in a singsong voice.

"Soooo?" Branch asked.

"What's your gameplan?"

"For what?"

Floyd laughed. "Asking Poppy to the dance!"

"What?" Branch gave him a funny look. "I have to ask her? She's not just gonna assume we're going together because we're dating?"

"Well, of course she does. But it's more fun for the girls when they get asked." Floyd grinned. "You know, you'd think you've never been in a famous boyband."

"Yeah, well, girls weren't always my first priority, you know."

"I can see that." Floyd's grin turned into a gentle smile. "Branch, I want you to do how proud I am of you."

Branch shifted uncomfortably. "For what?"

"Getting along. Without us. Even before you had your true colors back. You dealth with Grandma..." Floyd gulped. "Well, you dealt with that all alone. And you still went on."

"Barely." Branch shrugged. "If it wasn't for Poppy, I don't know where I'd be right now."

"Well, it wasn't just Poppy." Floyd looked straight into Branch's blue eyes. "Poppy isn't in control of you changing, Branch. That's almost all you. She may have changed you, but you let her. And that's why you're here now, dating the Queen of the Pop Trolls."

Branch flushed. 

Floyd chuckled. "I remember the day you were born. Clay made ten lame jokes about you right away, laughing at them by himself, Bruce seemed to be grumpy because you had blue eyes when he had always wanted them, and John looked like he wanted to die because he now had four brothers instead of three. But I knew right away, you were something special, Branch."

"I'm not that special," Branch said. But he couldn't stop smiling. "Oh, there's Poppy and Viva!"

They were in front of Poppy's pod, doing backflips in the grass, giggling like crazy.

"Oh, man, they're gonna break their necks!" Branch rushed to them. "Poppy, wait, don't--!!"

Floyd laughed, watching. Then he looked at Viva. She was laughing at Branch as well, giving him a teasing push, and he turned on her and tweaked a blonde curl, grinning, something he had grown to do lately as he as now as close to her as his brothers.

Branch knew a lot about Viva already because he hung around Poppy so much. Floyd wondered if he was close enough to her to be able to jokingly tweak a curl. 

No, definitely not. But it would be fun to have a friend like that. And he hadn't had very many since he went to Mount Rageous. 

Suddenly, an idea popped in his head. It sounded alright. Would Viva think so?

He smiled and walked toward her calmly, on a mission.

...

[vickyvicarious]

"if the specimen I enjoyed of their hospitality be of the average kind, their lives must be pretty comfortable." good for the Bilders!

the polite, casually musing, "did I tell you to go to hell?" is so funny

Bilder hating Dracula on sight <3

ahhh it's good to hear Dracula's voice again. I mean I hate him, but, you know.

"I have made pets of several." Dracula making his little jokes again...

"he said, with a suspicious sort of modesty" hahaha, the delivery of this line was so funny

the Bilders laughing and literally going like "hohohohooo" is so funny. they're just 'gotcha!!!!!!' it's great

they are so playful. good for them

I love the long talk about how this wolf isn't clever or dangerous or anything... ending with "well, and I guess he could eat a baby" haha

Correspondent not liking that door being opened

it IS a shame that people are allowed to top their walls with broken bottles, I agree. I love how soft his voice gets on "come along, Berserker."

"the only exclusive information" hahaha yes, kudos to you, Correspondent

I like the doorbell noise quite a lot.

And the saw noise!

I never noticed them going round to the back of the house, but um. Probably a good choice before breaking in!

Ooh, the way Jack's voice falters on "but there was no sound... that we could hear"

I LOVE the music as they open the door and see Mrs. Westenra and Lucy

my immediate reaction was DO NOT BRING BRANDY

I do love that Jack tested it to make sure it wasn't poisoned though

"there was a gentleman who had come with a message from Mr. Holmwood." HERE HE ISSSS

god, that van Helsing doesn't have any hope for Lucy to survive this anymore. his only goal is to save her from vampirism

THE TWANG COMING IN WITH QUINCEY AHAHA

also the way Jack says "Quincey Morris" he is in love

oh god Art's voiiiiice

"Her struggle back into life was something frightful to see and hear." oh god

I love Jack's uncertainty upon reading Lucy's memorandum. The vulnerability in his voice as he asks van Helsing what it means, and if Lucy is mad.

Quincey's voice is so soft and sweet when he asks to have a talk with Jack.

Man, Jack really is running around all over the place isn't he.

"I don't want to shove myself in anywhere where I've no right to be;" this is why Quincey has been gone from the book for so long.

the music while Quincey describes the vampire bat

love the "royal lot of [manhood]" line, but also the whole bit before it, with Jack being so soft and full of sympathy for Quincey, more so than himself

"What took it out?" Quincey asking the real questions

Lucy's sobbing aches to listen to

"Some may not think it so sad for us," oof, she sounds kinda bitter. perhaps insinuations have already been made? not necessarily that they killed him but that this is mighty lucky for them isn't it/that they deliberately got close to him when he was dying in order to inherit

"my belief in him helps him to have a belief in himself." YES. YES.

Mina reaching out to Lucy for comfort and support... unaware that Lucy too is plunged into a nightmare

oh she sounds so agonized when she says the letter was unopened. oh ouch.

[disturbedreams]

How do you write horror?

I actually had like a conversation with my friends abt this a little bit ago so I'll talk about it here- this is a very broad question so I am going to answer it to the best of my abilities (like, how do I write vs. how do I write horror), so,,, pls be patient with me haha.

So, to kind of lay the groundwork I've kinda come to the conclusion that there are maybe 3 types of horror writers/ways to come at horror?? Or at least, that's how it gets categorized better in my head! Inspired by a post where someone described Jacob Geller as an architect's mindset, I think the 3 main ways to come at writing horror are as follows;

- The Language

- The Philosophy

- The Architecture

Keep in mind that this is all like ENTIRELY my own opinion and just how I come at writing my favorite genre, & I was/am an on and off fic writer and that's where most of my style was able to be developed!

Understandably these categories do seem a bit random but I think the example I can use best to explain it is gore, probably?

So with gore & body horror as an example, I'll go in the order of Philosophy > Language > Architecture for it to kind of make most sense.

Philosophy - Gore is many things. A lot of times the human mind meets it with, "that's wrong- that's wrong, wrong, wrong!"- and it gets worse with body horror, which seems to almost make an art form out of it. It is grotesque and obscene, and it forces you to be vulnerable- all things the mind hates. Organs that were never supposed to see the light of day are now being exposed to air they were never supposed to touch- and it's incredibly disturbing and upsetting because this isn't supposed to happen.... and worse, the longer you sit in it all, and you let it fester, it starts to become a "What really makes us human?" kind of thing. Everyone's reaction to the initial reaction to horrifying vulnerability of viscera is different.  Some curiously engage with it, some will become obsessed with how intimate it is, some will still desperately want to get away from it. It's always a fun little "how will I write these gore scenes this time" & understanding how I want ppl to react, which brings me to the next bit- language

(P.S. no body horror in it, but if you do want a good horror book that delves into like the "What Makes Us Human?" bit of things, I rec Obscura by Joe Hart!! like it literally becomes an overarching theme in the book! A+)

Language - I spend a lot of time trying to put human experiences down on paper, and it just... doesn't work because language as a whole is not enough of a vehicle to get across all of my thoughts and my feelings on this one subject- this one subject that is, undeniably intricate (no matter what subject it is, at any point in time). With body horror or just generally terrifying scenes where I really need to get across what exactly is happening and why it's so terrifying and you should be scared too- it helps to find words that are as specific as possible to the moment, especially with gore, because it forces the character(s) and the reader to be vulnerable. I focus a lot on character's reaction to things as well, as a way to convey like 'holy shit this is NOT OK!!! I am not cool with this!!', and really- it wouldn't be a good story if I didn't intrigue myself a bit imo- whether I terrify, or I scare, or I just get myself obsessed... understanding the concept of what I want to get across as much as I can, so I can then spend as long as I want trying to get it across as accurately as possible in a way that will have others sharing my fear/intrigue/obsession... that is my personal goal!

Architecture - Your terror needs legs to stand on. Your dread needs legs to stand on. Fear/scares can be induced from a simple movie's jumpscare, or a couple of terrifying lines that build a scene quickly and get the ball rolling- but for good 'ol gothic terror it's a bit of a consistent slow burn that slowly grows over the course of the story. It's usually why the gore happens towards the end of a story if it's the climax of the story, or, in other cases, gore tends to be used as a way to break a character. It's not only about the structure of the story, it's about the structure of the character. When you develop a character it's like you've carefully constructed a small building- and in this case, the gore scenes are direct attacks on where this character's support beams would be. A building within a building.... within a building...? If you will.

Kathe Koja's short story The Neglected Garden (Extremities) is actually a perfect example of this, as it starts off with the gore straight off the bat- and from there it's a slow decline (in this story specifically, it's akin to watching a team of workers construct a house incredibly quickly, then being like "it doesn't seem that sturdy-" right when a storm comes by and the house itself sinks and gets *really* fucked up... and then from there starts to slowly deteriorate and crumble.)

I think this applies to writers as well lol- like, I'm definitely more of a language oriented horror writer because of how much I focus on my vocabulary, my sentences, my prose, etc- and not even in a way where grammar is my strong suit. In fact, I am like, incredibly bad with grammar and this post is probably a prime example of it! but I really try hard to get across a concept/idea with the tools available to me and I try to expand those tools when I can, because it frustrates me when there aren't enough words in the dictionary for "he screamed".

Outside of gore and body horror, I usually have a concept, and then I write the scenes were I'm very into the concept of it and what I want to be portrayed... and then I start expanding from there and building plot, etc, until I eventually sit down and write it in it's entirety- so my personal order tends to be; Philosophy, Architecture, then Language.

(And yes, these are all just fancy words for plotting and drafting but they help me think about it easier so pls be nice to me LMFAO)

[ieatsmallorphansnamedtom]

Headcanons for the bachelor's with a S/O who has wings? Idk, I'm just a wing fan rn lol.

Stardew Bachelors with a Winged S/O

Ooh, I love wings too. For this, I'm just going to assume it's normal but only a very small portion of the population have it (like 2%). Just to give a bit more variation other than everyone panicking, haha. Either way, I hope you like it!

Sam

He's obsessed. Constantly bombardes you with questions. Saw you fly once and nearly cried over the beauty of it. Probably wonders if he could get Harvey or Maru to put some of that wing DNA in him. Tried to get you to pick him up and fly with him, but it ended in you two crashing through the roof of the barn and landing in a pile of cow feces.

Elliott

He's very respectful of the whole wing thing. You must get a lot of questions, so he doesn't want to add to them. Can and will use you as inspiration for books and poems. You're also a great reference for describing what flying feels like. He likes to watch you fly around.

Sebastian

He's super proud of you, even though you had literally no say on if you got wings or not. He's tried convincing you to dye them all fancy colours for different events or to match. I imagine he's a lot lighter than Sam, so you can actually glide off the house roof with him in your arms and not break any bones.

Harvey

Like Elliott, he doesn't want to ask too many questions. But this man can't help himself. He's always wanted to be up in the air, and you don't even have to be surrounded by metal and engines to do it! He's very interested in the anatomy of it, and gives you detailed instructions on how to care for them (despite you already knowing).

Shane

Cares the least. He still thinks it's cool, but he's gotten used to it by then. Takes time to get expensive wing care products for you when you're too tired. Pierre's and Jojo wouldn't sell them, so whenever he's got a reason to go into the city he'll stop by and grab something. Wishes he could fly so much, but never mentions it.

Alex

Okay everyone, this is Alex we're talking about. He's gonna try and buff them up until you can't even fly anymore. Like a pair of pure muscle lumps on your back. He's very curious if he could possibly get himself wings and pesters Maru and Demetrius about it a lot. Tons, and I mean TONS, of curated food made especially for you to help keep those feathers nice and airy.

-~-~-

Tada! I wish I could have wings so bad (っ- ‸ – ς). Hopefully this brings some comfort to a dead dream lol. Remember to drink water and get good amounts of sleep!

[luke-life]

replying to your tags bc :3 thank you for your thoughts they're tasty and im chewing on them

I didn't think too hard but omg yes if he's a delivery/cargo escort boy then he can reasonably meet xingqiu, delivering his family's silk shipments or smth, or moving some books from xingqiu's random warehouse in qingce lolllll i also agree they'd have similar food prefs !! i think gaming would enjoy xingqiu's crystal shrimp dumplings haha he seems the type to like fresher dishes that have less like heavy oil/seasoning

about your proposal of chongyun angst 👀 wwww if you care to elaborate i'm looking very hard, i need to see our boy put in Situations!! i wonder if they meet... would cy feel deficient seeing gaming get along so well w everyone whereas he has to try so hard to keep his condition under control which limits how much he can get excited n stuff T_T I hope gaming can help him w it though </3 after all they can be boyfailures together (/JJJJJJJJ) with gaming's rather... unsuccessful lion dance monetization and chongyun's problems with exorcisms

it just with how Ga-Ming is described it sounds very similar ,obviously I would rather they be friends first but if not the angst please.

So to add on ap, chongyun’s Yang state has a variation of responses, he has tame ones like in the poetry event those are fine. It’s the chaotic ones that are a problem “he chases people around, passed out,danced on top of furniture, broken furniture, and gotten injured and he sometimes doesn’t even remember himself being in Yang state.

and then when all is said and done he still get’s told that he’s entertainment(a sign in wangshu btw), that his Yang state is the real him and the fact that his friends always seem to be giving him chilis because they think that his Yang side is better for him.

Then here comes Ga-Ming he’s good at fighting , he can dance and perform all he wants, he’s happy and cheerful without consequences, he uses a claymore, he admires Xiao as well, he’s probably friends with his own friends.

a big slap in the face that tells him “ hey, you know that Yang side of you that causes you a lot of trouble personally, yeah well seems that they prefer you that way” and boom the angst

Now I obviously I don’t think chongyun’s friends are *that mean or that they even have bad intentions but it’s always personally bothered me the language they use around him and about him idk it always feels insensitive. Not only that but the disregard of his own feelings and boundaries always bothered me. Doesn’t help that his Yang and anything related to chilis is meant for jokes. But c’mon Xiangling’s job is literally a chef her whole job is meant to be making food, she can scold people for being picky but she sometimes puts chilis in her friends food even though he can pass out like where’s the logic. At least she makes him his popsicles. this includes hu Tao also like she is a prankster and all but she takes her job seriously and one of the things she has to do is keep the balance of yin and Yang so like you’d think she’d be like “hey my friend having a pure Yang body is probably not a good thing but nah let’s prank him even though he clearly doesn’t like)

like c’mon he’s just asking for no chilis in his food it’s not hard

anyway that’s my idea basically it can also happen the opposite way with Ga-Ming being a friend who does respect his boundaries(please just one friend) and still finds way to include him in events without triggering his Yang so Chongyun hangs out with him which leads to other’s self reflection. so yeah that’s all I have.

thank you for listening.

[vostok3-ka]

Hi Aisha, hope you're having a nice start to your week! For the writer truth or dare ask game: 🦴🔪🌵(could be a character playlist or not)❄️(could also be something you wanna write yourself!) 🍄, and 🏜️. I'd add more because all of these are great but this is already one too many lol so feel free to pick and choose which ones you wanna answer, ofc<3

Hi Max!!! Thank you! It's Eid tomorrow so that's a pretty sick way to start the week ;) Thank you so much for the ask!!!

🦴- Boy howdy is there a piece of media that inspires my writing haha. I have quite a few that it's hard to put name to them all. Whenever I read a book or watch a movie/show I always feel like I take something away from them in order to incorporate into my own writing, but if I were to choose a few specific pieces of media that really inspire my writing, it would be Hannibal, what with the beautiful imagery and the way it is almost poetic in its brutality. I think the writers of the show did a really good job, and I just absolutely adore it. True Detective (season one) is also a piece of media that REALLY influences my writing. I adore the gothic vibes, and I love the way they make the characters human, realistic, with lots of flaws, instead of making them into heroes, and I am just in love with the very synesthetic feeling it gives, I myself am synesthetic and I think it really resonated with me in a way, and gave me a lot of inspiration as in how to describe scenes and emotions. Catch-22, both the book, film, and tv show, have all inspired my idea of Bucky in the war, and I have a few songs including Achilles Come Down by Gang of Youths, О как хотела мама by Shortparis, Две недели by Aigel, and O, Children by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, that heavily inspire a lot of my Russian-era Bucky Barnes writing, as well as, for some funny reason, the TV show Бригада. I just feel like the show really shows both the human and terrible, gritty side to organized crime that I am CERTAIN Bucky was involved in, in some way, shape or form. Another film/book that has, heavily and directly, inspired my both my fanfiction writing and original writing is the 2008 film, "Morphine" and the inspiration behind it, the novella by Bulgakov, Morphine. My fic Noch' Ulista Fonar' Apteka was very non-subtly inspired by Morphine, so much! AAAND- I better stop here before I write a whole essay about how media has influenced my writing, because I could literally go on forever and ever!!!! ;)

🔪- I think the weirdest thing that I have had to research for a writing project was for my fic Noch' Ulitsa Fonar' Apteka. I had to, somehow, figure out how to write drug addiction from a first hand perspective, and, of course, I myself have not, and never will take any form of recreational drugs, so I had to scout through many pages of google before finding this legendary gem of a website that has been a lifesaver for me. The website looks like it was made in 2008 and I honestly was a little worried about clicking on it, but it turned out fine haha. It has a bunch of really detailed first hand experiences with all sorts of drugs you could imagine, including withdrawal, good trips, bad trips, and coming down. I think I spent a few hours just reading and absorbing everything to try to write Bucky's experience, and honestly, I came away from the research with an even stronger desire to never try drugs, as most of the reports highlighted how the spiral began. But yeah! That might be the weirdest thing I have researched, unless of course, if you count the time I had to research equine veterinary care in 1980s Russia lmao.

🌵- Gilded Soul This is my favourite playlist I've created, and it's so gentle and sweet and I listen to the songs on it so often. I adore it so much! All the songs have memories and feelings attached to them and ugh- my favourite. Hope you enjoy too ;)

❄️- Oh my God I know exactly what this fic is. I really, REALLY want a fic dealing with the aftermath of Hydra and Department X/The Red Room's brainwashing on Bucky in TFAWS era, but in a way where it doesn't become the point of the fic, and is just like a part of him in subtle, slightly noticeable, and not overwhelming way. I want to see him struggle and yet stay strong, stay independent. I want to see him have realistic feelings towards things like therapy and such, considering the time period he is from, and the fact that he's probably been abused in such settings before. I want to see him make bad, unhealthy decisions while still remaining himself. I want to see him smoke his anger away, I want his staring problem to be addressed subtly as a leftover from when he was trained to look straight ahead while in parade rest, I really want to see him have headaches, mild psychosis, and all the realistic after-effects of electro-shock therapy, and yet, I really do not want to see it in a way that makes him dependent, or child-like. I want to see him get up, grit his jaw and move on. It isn't the healthiest way for somebody to cope, but it's the way I am guessing Bucky would cope. I want a fic that has an overarching plot where these issues are a subplot, as not to make it ALL about his recovery, instead being interesting and realistic in the world that he would be living in. I feel like I have said realistic so many times, and that is the core of it all. I want it to be as realistic and true to comic/film character as possible. I might not make much sense but yeah! That's what I really want to read, and I don't know who would be the best writer to write it!

🍄- OOOH I like this one! A headcanon I have is that Bucky and Natasha dance a lot. They are both trained dancers, and they love it, and they just put on gentle, nostalgic Russian music and dance so prettily together when they are alone!

🏜️- Oh for sure the types of comments that point out what affected them personally. I really want to connect to people through my writing and whenever somebody comments that a certain bit made them feel in a specific way I just absolutely melt in joy and delight!!!

Thank you so much for the many questions again, this was SO much fun to answer. Hope you have the loveliest of days!!!

[mooifyourecows]

What typically gives you inspiration to write your stories? How do they become fully developed concepts after you gat hit with inspiration?

I'll get inspiration from anything tbh. Dreams, videogames, movies, tv shows, books, other fics, songs, something i saw at the grocery store, etc. Sometimes I just have a character or relationship dynamic that i want to write and build around that.

I'll think up a new story idea almost every other week. Not all of them become something though lol some of them are just a flash in a pan idea that i quickly forget about/abandon because i just can't really sink my teeth into it, you know?

When i do have an idea that i want to pursue, it slowly grows into fully developed concepts over the course of weeks or months. I keep notes in my phone and add to them when ideas come to me. Eventually, when the story is starting to hold water, I'll make a playlist for it because having that musical connection really helps me develop even more of the story/character/mood. I've changed whole story ideas because the playlist i put together had a different vibe from my original plan haha it's VERY vital to my creation process. which is why everyone should listen to my story playlists because THEY'RE IMPORTANT AND REALLY DRIVE HOME THE VIBE! (ehhh some of them are more important than others. some are mostly for my own benefit, having certain music playing while i'm writing to keep the mood/voice)(but still)(pls like my playlists, i put a lot of effort into them)

I'm not the type of writer who can get an idea and then just write it. (if those types of writers even exist. do they exist?) I really take my time planning stuff out. I have several stories/story ideas that I've been consistently thinking up and jotting down notes on for literal years. I think of a lot of really great stuff when i give myself the time to do it. And I'd miss out on absolute gold if I just sat down and wrote them the instant I had enough to make a story.

Some stories do grab me immediately though. Like recently I got an idea for a new DaiSuga fic and I've very excitedly spat out 12k words in the past two-ish weeks. In cases like this, the story just fleshes itself out so perfectly that I can't help but get it out of my head. I might hit a block on it soon and have to put it on the backburner until I figure out a way around it, but for now, I'm just putting whatever I can onto the page, regardless of how good it is.

And a lot of the time, it's garbage, you know? I just write total trash. Boring dialogue, zero description, scenes that cut off in the middle because I don't know how to progress to the next one, etc. Most of my stories are in this horrible Pre-Frankenstein state where it's just pieces and parts I have to figure out how to sew together and shoot some life into them so they move the way I want them to. And sometimes that takes a long time to accomplish, so they just kinda sit in my wip folder, waiting for me to get the sudden motivation to dust them off and fix them up. (or on occasion, restart from page one)

I'm really not super organized or professional or anything. I just think things and I write them down so I don't forget. Somehow they manage to fit together into something people want to read. It helps that I'm constantly watching movies/TV or reading. Once you get a really good feel of how stories of all different genres work, you can make your own. And I can't really say for sure how good of a writer I am, I definitely don't think I'm on the same level as a lot of writers that I've read, both in fandom and in original fiction. I can see how my vocabulary, grammar, description, etc doesn't hold up to those people. But if there's one thing I know I can do, and feel confident in my ability to do, it's telling a story.

I may not be able to describe a setting but boy howdy can I tell a story 🫵

[robotsprojekt]

Hi! I came across your post about niche sexualities and I saw musicsexual was tagged. I was wondering if you'd be open to telling me more about that one specifically because I think I might have an alter that identifies with that but there aren't a lot of resources that talk about being musicsexual!

For sure! I've tried to detail my experience with it here but if you want to talk about anything else my DMs are always open :D

There's no term that really fits my attraction to music in the way I feel it, which is actually the whole reason I made that post in the first place... (i did not expect it to get the traction it has received but i'm all for it!) Regardless, I tagged it with musicsexual because I felt that might be the most easy term to look up? Another term I found was Musicophilia, but that mostly just linked back to a book (under that title) about sound psychology and music theory, and didn't actually detail attraction in regards to romance/sexuality. Musicsexual doesn't really feel like it fits personally, either. I feel like there should be some official term made for it that's broader than sexual interest, in the way 'objectum' is for those with platonic/romantic/sexual interest for those with objectophilia. Honestly I'm not sure how we'd go about that, though.

Now onto my experience with music itself- this probably won't be entirely sfw as it'll talk vaguely about sexual interests, but nothing detailed? I'm not sure what warnings would apply here lol

It's not every song I'm attracted to, it's specific ones. Songs that make me feel confident, music and soundtracks that I have an emotional attachment to, songs that do "get me in the mood", but not even necessarily towards a person or a craving for romantic/sexual connection, more just that the piece of music itself brings me such intense emotional and physical feelings that I don't see many people relate to. It's like that, if that makes sense..? There's likely better ways to word it, but I'm rambling off the top of my head here.

Typically my attraction comes to songs with a strong beat, something you could dance to. It makes me want to personify the music in a sense, just to be close to it. The best way I can show that is through enjoying myself, dancing, learning the lyrics, reccomending the song, etc etc. On occasion, it'll be songs without lyrics, usually something orchestral or from a game's soundtrack, perhaps both if I'm lucky. I suppose for others their 'type' in music would be different, as it is for attraction to other people.

It's not like I believe the music itself can be the reciprocate of affection, it's not like that. It's moreso just that my brain takes the phrase 'music is beautiful' very literally, and it makes me affectionate and loving towards the piece itself. I could talk for hours about my favourite songs, and my heart would beat the same as it would if I were to ramble about all the things I love about my darling partner. It's love. Attraction. Affection. I'm not even sure what to call it, but I know what I'm feeling is the same.

Sexually? I don't know how to describe it other than "this song is HOT." I mean it's not like it always makes me feel like I'm attractive myself, though it usually does by proxy, sometimes the song is just fuckable. It just makes sense to me that way. Of course, it's not uncommon that people play music during sex, and though that is a wonderful experience in its own right, it's not quite the same to me as actually enjoying the music in a sexual sense without the need of a human presence to be attracted to. That's what made me realise that musicsexuality is its own thing, and not just some weird kink: people aren't necessary to the attraction whatsoever. Though, again, it is a nice bonus when they collide! Haha!

Put simply, music affects me in a way that makes me feel in love, and to my knowledge it's not a common experience for people to feel that way. A lot of people probably do, and don't know how to put it into words, or think it's too taboo, for one reason or another. I'm attracted to certain music, and it's nice, and it's pure. I hope there are others with my experience out there, too.

I'm not sure what else I could detail here, really, but again, if you have any questions my askbox/DMs are available! Hope this helps you and your alter(s) feel seen, at the very least :)

[harbingerofskulls]

2, 8, 17 for mattia :>

:3 hehe thank u for the ask!!!

2 - Why does your oc look the way they do? What are your reasons for their appearance?

Mattia looks the way he does in-universe because he's died multiple times and rotted. Plus, he's had a few run-ins with characters that have led to him missing chunks of himself. :)

Out of universe, I really really fell in love with the Mortuario merit and Flesh of the Corpse flaw in v20 and wanted to build a character around that. I was especially drawn to the idea of a character that Knew Autopsies and had Done Autopsies having one done on them. Throughout my time playing as Mattia, he's picked up other distinguishing features because I really think the whole 'memento mori' aesthetic of it all is so cool. He's a weird amalgam of mummies, zombies, and Catholic catacomb saints/nuns aesthetically.

Also, I just like exploring the concept of a character that is immortal, but sort of feels like there's a ticking clock on said immortality. Sure, he can live forever theoretically, but if he can never heal from injury, at what point does he just fall apart? There's only so much he can throw himself into things because if he fucks up, he has to live with the consequences forever. Like his left arm - he's lost a lot of strength and sensation in it because it's Literally Just Bones. He's got to weigh what he does against how much of himself he's literally willing to put on the line.

8 - Does your oc have any notable flaws or activities they're not good at? Why did you give them those flaws? Why do they exist in-universe?

Yes! He's terrible at socializing, at making friends, at doing anything that requires Functioning Like A Normal Person. Additionally, he's also quite poor at combat and self-defense. He's all brains, all the time unfortunately for him.

I made him bad at interacting properly because I am also somewhat bad at it - better than he is, but it's certainly not one of my strong suits! He's not neurotypical, not that he would admit or really acknowledge it, because it's hard for me to make characters that are. The poor combat is because I really enjoy the concept of throwing a book nerd into fights and making him think his way out. It forces him to come up with dirty tactics and make creative solutions. :)

In-universe, his terrible social skills are partially due to just his brain wiring/neurodivergence, and partially due to how he was raised and some of the experiences he's had in his existence. Being raised Giovanni and in private schooling meant that he was already having less social contact than others when he was younger, and it didn't help that he also was/is kind of A Pretentious Douchebag. After that, when he was first embraced, he got tossed into the catacombs under Rome alone for about a decade. Having no human contact really fucked him up, and it took him a while to get used to being social afterwards. He never really truly recovered his previous social skills, and is still extraordinarily introverted because of it.

And in-universe, he was a pretentious rich kid who went to medical school and was coddled all his life. He had no reason to learn how to throw a punch, or defend himself really. He's only now realizing how useful it would be to know more about such things... (thankfully, he's resilient as all hell, loads of stamina - he can take a beating, just not give one).

17 - List/describe up to five tropes that apply to your oc. They could be related to the oc's characterization or their narrative arc.

Obviously the first one has to be that he Came Back Wrong. :) He's also got a heavy dose of My God What Have I Done still, and has a lot of Catholic Guilt over a few things he's done in the past. Another big trope for him is Reassigned to Antarctica (if we go by the canonical TV Tropes names haha) - getting shunted to the catacombs for years is a huge part of Who He Is. And another big one right now for him is Shed the Family Name, he's trying to leave his life as a Giovanni behind desperately right now. Aesthetically, he's got a lot of experience with Self-Surgery/Pulling Himself Back Together. :)

[sailorblossoms]

Thanks for the tag @erzbethluna​!

I’m sharing a bit of The Same Old Story, which is the only fic I can think of at the moment despite having multiple WIPs, because I’m completing it in real time while updating daily (I actually did it! that little bitch is practically finished! I just need to add the details in the last two chapters and we’re done here.)

From the chapter that’s going up today: 

When I first met Baz, I thought he was a posh git. 

“That didn’t stop you from stalking me,” he said when I told him, matter-of-factly. He didn’t even look up from his book.

- 

“Shepard or Shep,” I repeat. If I have to hear Baz calling him Love I might finally lose whatever’s left of my sanity. I just can’t do it. "He’s very sensible—you don’t want to be rude here.”

Under the cut, I want to answer a question regarding this fic: Why 1949? This is something where the explanation is entirely in my head, shaping choices and concepts, but won’t ever be "addressed” in the fic, so I think it’s fair game to talk about it here for anyone who’s interested in behind the scenes. 

It all started with good ol’ Bazzy boy saying Agatha and Simon look like “a 1940s picture” standing together. Other things were inspirations too, but this is the #1 thing that shaped the whole thing. I really wanted to use this line, so I picked the 40s (instead of literally any other decade, or instead of just situating it in the present time)

Because I picked the 40s, most (but not all) of the songs and movies referenced are from that decade (I’m posting a list when the fic is finished.) The decade shapes not really the aesthetics or the fashion (even though I’m into both things) (I don’t even describe their clothes) but mostly the media choices and what they portray.  

Why 1949? Because war shaped a big part of the 40s, and I didn’t want to go there. However, towards the end of the 40s, we can see a shift towards returning to traditional femininity (hourglass figure: that dress with the huge skirt and tiny waist and defined bust that was so popular in the 50s? the design debuted in 1947, and it was very different from the more natural and boxy shapes of the 40s that were meant to project power and strength) reinforcement of traditional gender roles (leaving behind anything that would challenge the idea of the traditional wife/mom/homemaker)  and the like that would mark the 50s. This seems like an “ideal time” to focus on comphet and “the norm” etc etc (look at me holding back the impulse to explain the fic haha) 

Why December 31? Same reason: to get the closest we could get to the 50s. This is also a date that’s associated with letting go of the old and receiving the new. It’s a date where we get ready for big changes. Also, because this is a time loop, I needed to have a defined date, so it’s very clear we’re reliving the same day again and again and again. 

tagging @ionlydrinkhotwater @hushed-chorus​ @basiltonbutliketheherb ​ @johnwgrey​ @raenestee​ @carryonsimoncarryonbaz​ @chen-chen-chen-again-chen​ @bookish-bogwitch​  @ivelovedhimthroughworse​ @artsyunderstudy​ @whogaveyoupermission​ @larkral​ and whoever wants to join!

[the-portrait-of-seraph]

June's Review...

I completely forgot about this, please forgive me

Lolita: Nabokov, Vladmir

A great book in the way it's written! I greatly admire Nabokov's style and prose and I think it's pretty hardcore that he translated his own book (Lolita) into Russian. But does that make it Russian or European literature???

Humbert is the only unreliable narrator I don't like, I wonder why. Maybe it's because he was pining after a freaking twelve year-old? I know that this books gets a lot of hate for its depiction of pedophilia, but Nabokov had stated that this book was written for the opposite intention, to show the disgusting nature of pedophilia and even had specific instructions for the book's cover, which many did not listen to-

It's an interesting book to say the least, the characters, the plot, and even the setting really plays into Nabokov's masterpiece.

The Grapes of Wrath: Steinbeck, John

Ugh, I love this book!!!! The Grapes of Wrath is oftentimes considered Steinbeck's greatest work (I can refute that lol) and for good reason. The story is about the Joad family, who travel to California in hopes of a better life, but when they get there, life isn't all that it seems, and Tom Joad finds himself caught up in a worker's revolt.

Honestly, the stars of the show were the Ruthie and Willie interactions. They're so cute haha, especially when they see a flushing toilet and thought they broke it-

Rose of Sharon,,, she's so lovely. I felt so bad for her and her baby, and she was so excited too.

Connie really just left her because the responsibility was too much? Ran away and began studying hard to become the president of the U.S. huh?

There's a lot to unpack, but I am such a horrible explainer. It's not only the Joads, but the Reverend and the revolt also have so much more depth and allegory in them.

The Idiot: Dostoevsky, Fyodor

Myshkin,,,, I loveeee youuuuuu. No but seriously, I loved Myshkin throughout this whole book, he was the light in the dark dingy world of 19th century Russia. Truly a holy fool.

There was so much happening in this story??? The Rogozhin/Nastasya/Myshkin drama, the Aglaya/Myshkin development, the Rogozhin/Myshkin rivalry???? How Myshkin vehemently denounces Catholicism? The Rogozhin/Nastasya escape? Nastasya's death??? It will be hard to keep up with, but I promise you, the Idiot is so good.

Man, I love Nastasya Fillipovna. Fuck Trotsky though, he literally molested Nastasya throughout her time as his ward, that's not cool. And how Nastasya just burns a hundred thousand roubles, has two men wrapped around her finger, and ends up with neither of them? Gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss!!!

Sonya and Raskolnikov wanted to be everything that Nastasya and Myshkin were/j (Take a shot everytime Hyeji says Nastasya). Myshkin had pure intentions and saw the good in Nastasya/wanted to help her, and Nastasya absolutely lost it fr.

First Love: Turgenev, Ivan

I liked this one! First Love tells the story of Vladmir Petrovich and his love for his next door neighbor, Zinaida. However, Zinaida is aware of her good looks (as she should!!!) and has a lot of men vying for her hand, Petrovich being only one of them. She goes on to play her suitors against each other, while Petrovich is not aware of his real rival (spoiler, it's his dad).

Turgenev describes love as a summer torrent that changes a person once it's over, and he was damn right. As much as I wanted to root for Petrovich, I was also hoping for some sort of tragedy to act as character development.

It's very short, so you could read it in one sitting! I highly recommend it, if you like the feeling of hand sanitizer on half-healed cuts.

Poems of James Joyce and the Exiles

Okayyy, I see you Joyce!!!! I've only really considered James Joyce as an author, so reading his love poetry and only play really paints him in a new light!

Ugh, his poetry describes everything that I've ever felt about every person I've loved. I don't know if it's a lot, but I'm digressing. And his play??? Gorgeous, but sort of messed up? You have Robert and Bertha, the unmarried couple with their son Archie; they return from Rome to Ireland, to run into Richard, Bertha's ex and Beatrice, Robert's ex. Harmful hijinks ensue. I know that this play wasn't as successful as his other works, but I really liked it.

In Search of Lost Time: Proust, Marcel

I didn't not enjoy this as much as I thought I would. That doesn't mean I hated it!!!! I do admire Proustian writing style, but there wasn't that sort of compelling force that wanted me to keep turning the page. It certainly was interesting, I have a love and hate relationship with this series though haha.

June was not my month, too many things to do and now its my summer break!!! Going to try and be more active here now :)

[valleynix]

Chapter 8 is finished. It was a wild ride. I'm still not over those events. The further I went the harder it was to gather my thoughts but here they are.

As if the scene with Daniela wasn't already enough to kill me with its sweetness THEN THERE'S ONE WITH BELA my god.

Naur pls the Cass/Bela scene was already so funny with how dramatic Cass acted and then she got Daniela to join her in annoying their sis. I lost it when she grabbed Bela's arm and went Bela, Bela, Bela 😭

I love their little sibling interactions so much. Adding it to my mental list of fav scenes.

I really think that's how they'd be with each other in canon.

"Our human" awww <3

But yhm yeah that's it for Bela's self control. It left the chat.

"She sees you. It’s over, isn’t it?"

The horror

Bela's kinda (very) hot when she's feral.

Reader out there thinking about boobs while their life is under threat of being taken😭😭😭

THE CASS SCENE after the blackout absjswjjsjsj *inaudible noises and screaming*

I had to take a break to recollect myself HOW DO YOU WANT ME TO SURVIVE TILL THE END OF THE CHAPTER WHEN YOU'RE THROWING SUCH THINGS AT ME CONSTANLY FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.

NOT LADY D TOO, GIMME A BREAK.

Yhm yhm I got a break, coz here comes the angst

"You desperately hope this isn’t some hallucination Donna put you through, that you’re not just making a massive fool of yourself in the real world."

Haha

HAHA

HA HA

THE WAY IT WAS ACTUALLY MUCH WORSE

OH. MY. GOD

Honestly, I can't even be sad and heartbroken from the girls' death because for the whole time I was too amazed and mind blown at how it all just made sense instantly. How you described each of their death. And that through the chapters we could hear pieces of their lines, trying to reach to the Reader pls. But Reader was living those silly memories thinking it was the reality, while destroying everything they love in true real world. AMAZING.

Idk what else to say here it's just wow WOW chef kiss. There was no reason to be scared of how this chapter went, it was all done so well. I can just picture the flashbacks of the events from before as everything settles in place, the horror coz it starts to make sense and it HURTS.

Especially that Reader said they won't/don't want to hurt anyone.

Just sweet pain, sweet pain, it hurts so beautifully.

So just let me tell you, let me summarise my experience so far as we reached this important moment (idk how hard it was for you but regardless) I admire and I am impressed how you managed to pull it off, with the plot in general with its mystery behind the events.

But also with the characters. I think you gave them a fair amount of time to let them shine in their own unique ways. To show their personality and how they interact with the fictional world around them.

And I like how it's said on many occasions that Dimitrescus do bad things, they're dangerous and literally eat people, but it's not all they are. They care for each other, can care for other people too, and show other side of them. Because people are complex and so are they.

It was so exciting, trying to collect the hints and put them together to understand something. I had SO MUCH FUN trying to solve the mystery and waiting for the big reveal. Nice I wasn't completely lost haha.

I'm definitely not planning on dropping the story, I'd like to follow our dear poor Reader till the end and see them being happy if that's possible :(

This is definitely my favourite RE8 fic, one of my favs in general. Hell, if it was a real book it'd be in my favs too.

I love your style, your way with words and how you operate with the language, especially that you keep any feature (besides the eyes) of the Reader up to imagination which I assume requires more effort.

This story completely captured my heart, I love your mind, I just wanna... kith your brain for allowing you to create it, this piece of art, a masterpiece.

And sharing my thoughts on your work with you brings me so much joy too🥺 You seem like a kind and beautiful soul

can i just say that i genuinely almost started crying while reading this :’)

OKAY BUT ONTO THE POINTS!! very glad you got through chapter eight, because it was one of the more difficult ones (i think 13&14 are also difficult to get through because of plot??)

*im just out here trying to kill y’all with these scenes of the girls HEHEHE

*PLEASE BAHA, i ADORE writing them just like regular siblings that love but annoy the hell out of each other 😭 Cass has a flair for the dramatics and Dani just likes joining in on the chaos

*listen Cass just saying things (like “our human”) without thinking about the implications is so <333

*the one thing coming true that you’ve been fighting so hard to stop :’)

*i was so worried the feral scene with Bela was gonna come across as SA-y but i’m so glad it hasn’t been received that way 😭 like homegirl was genuinely about to kill them but in the most mocking/teasing way

*listen boobs are just priority B)

*PLEASE I LOVE CASS BAHAHA, she’s so just… *her*

*i simply must destroy the sapphics’ minds with my powers of gay >:)

*THE DELVE INTO THE ANGST WAS SO FUNNY IM SORRY, going from this sweet, tender moment to just “oh my god. oh my GOD”

OKAY BUT!! i am genuinely so happy you liked the chapter and that everything made sense in the end, at least in some way. it was really fun tying events together and having slips of reality, moments where things don’t seem quite right, but i’m glad to know the anticipation of what’s been going on was worth all the pain and wait

the really heartbreaking thing i tried so much to add onto the already confusing plot was that you could definitely hear them trying so hard to reach Reader, even if they were completely lost and couldn’t understand what was being said to them :(

the thought that Bela never gave up on them, that Daniela never thought they couldn’t be saved or redeemed… i love writing these murderous, sadistic, cannibalistic women as people who genuinely care and are just PEOPLE. seeing them try so hard to reach someone so far gone hurts so well imo

but i’m really glad you did like it and it makes me so happy that you admire all the work i’ve put into it :’) like that’s honestly one of the sweetest things i’ve heard recently

i did try to be pretty fair with each Dimitrescu and sometimes give them their own designated chapter, just so we could really bond with them and see them as more than just what the rumors about them say or as who they pretend to be. Bela is a nerd that enjoys music, Cassandra loves science and art, Daniela loves getting lost in her romance novels, and Alcina is a wine loving mom who adores her daughters above all else

honestly, i think it was your chapter seven ask?? you were INSANELY close to what was going on and i was like oh my GOD she’s figured it out. i genuinely don’t think many people actually guessed what was going on, but it was so interesting seeing how you saw things through your own eyes and how each hint connected in your brain :D

i can say for certain Reader will most likely get a happy ending, even if we have to wade through a mountain ton of angst to get there. with long stories like this one, i dislike leaving things angsty and with an unhappy ending, but also because of all the shit they’ve gone through (and will continue to go through). happy endings after going through a LOT of traumatic shit are simply superior

GRRR KNOWING IT’S ONE OF YOUR FAVORITES MAKES ME SO HAPPY, i will actually cry. pls thats so sweet omfg

i honestly highly dislike fics where it’s supposed to be like x reader but it’s just an OC?? i do try my best to keep everything inclusive, save for the eye color, and i do sometimes have to change scenes to fit that but still keep the vibe 😭

but god, i will literally never live this down. this ask is going to be ingrained in my memories for months to come and it’s going to be what i look back on when i’m feeling down about my writing

thank you so so SO much for sharing your thoughts with me <33 i do look forward to hearing what else you’ll say or come up with in future chapters, since there are still plot points and antagonists we have to work through before our dear Reader can be happy for once :’) <3333