#i will never be able to make another fanart this close to the source's art style ever again

[stardink]

Waiting for stardust to get killed by the king again! There is no way he'll ever beat him-

[hannahhasafact]

Personal art ramblings below:

I always have a weird relationship with my art, but god waiting to hear about artist alley entry stuff truly makes the relationship weirder.

Because if I get in: That would be WILD, and CRAZY, and AMAZING and I would have a lot of work to do. And if I don’t get in… I don’t get in. My financial situation is not immensely changed by not being accepted into artist alley.

I’m at this point where I’m like: Hey, if you want to be able to sell your art, you have to create art you can sell. Why not work on creating art you can sell now?

And I have! I’ve been thinking more and more about dimensions of my art, what file types I’m using, what things I think would make people interested in buying. And it just puts this weird, “you have to be marketable/you have to become capital” energy on creating that feels weird.

A lot of my “art I desire to create” type of art is art I can’t sell. I make fanart for dnd shows that would definitely not be sellable at events. I make silly fan comics that wouldn’t print well. (And this isn’t about the legality of selling fanart, because that’s whole conversation that I have researched SO MUCH and literally took a class about in college.)

So I get stuck in this weird “make art that is marketable” vs “make art YOU want to make” mindset. And don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy making “marketable” art! But not as much as the “silly times” art I make. When I make “for fun” art, I can see it turns out better than my “marketable” art. Which is frustrating, but makes sense!

And a weird side to that- despite having a minuscule art following… I do believe I have the skill art wise to be able to sell just a little bit. Before my R*b*bble was suspended (for literally no reason, but I needed to close it anyways I guess?), I sold art. I sold art that honestly I think wasn’t that great. But I was able to sell a few things. And I think my skills have skyrocketed since selling art on that site. I’ve seen some art that has sold at conventions and thought, “Yeah. Skill wise, I think I could do this.” Granted, maybe that’s some false confidence, but like… I think I could do it. (Also two of the years I’ve applied for K-Con’s AA I was waitlisted? And last year I was on the “you’re within ten miles of the con, can you be ready to sell in two weeks?” Email list [I could not be ready in two weeks]. So… just saying.)

And what makes it weirder is that I don’t really want a full time art career. If anything, I would like to be able to have art be a part time thing for me. Do I want to sell art at events? Yes! But I also like having a reliable source of income, insurance, and I want to still enjoy creating. (which I know sometimes can be affect by those who are full time artists. Having a job in art is still that; a job.) But no matter what kind of “marketing” energy you put on art, it’s still going to affect the relationship you have with art. Not to mention, I’ve been wanting a new job for awhile, so drawing when I should be job searching puts a weird strain on things. Because yes, I’m working on making stuff to potentially sell, but I could be working on other aspects of career stuff. Job stuff is important! Creating art is important! Am I wasting time by working on art???

Not to mention my constant “I should be working on this I should be working on that I should be-“ etc mindset I live with that just gives me stress about existing. Because if I’m working on one thing, I’m not working on another aspect of my life that I need to improve on. Because my life is never at a satisfactory point, I always have to be working on making myself better somehow (but that’s a story for another day ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

Anyways. I love creating art. Creating art is stressful.

God I just want to know if I got in or not.

[chipper-smol]

Hi! Call me a noob, but what exactly are adoptables, and how does all this work?

Hey it's totally fine to not know everything, learning is a part of human nature!

I'm gonna explain it in the best way I can cause I've never participated in making adoptables until now.

Adoptables are unique character designs that are created by hand by an artist. Adoptable designs can come from fandoms (like Vessel adoptables from Hollowknight), can be based off of an animal (like foxes or dragons), or can come from a closed species (I'll briefly explain this later.)

The way adoptables work is that the artist can either make one-off designs or entire batches that other people can purchase the copyright for. They basically buy the rights to the design to do whatever they want with it. So they can insert it into a story, use it as a video game sprite, commission other artists to draw it, roleplay with it, etc. It's like buying an OC.

Adoptables are also normally sold using bases. Bases are linearts that artists draw their designs on. You might wonder what's the draw of drawing something apparently copy and pasted, but its not about the original artwork, its about the design. The adoptable is basically the papers and references to the look of a design for you to do whatever you want with later.

Some artists have rules for their adoptables. Mine is that while you buy the rights to the design, you can't do anything with the original image. To explain it more clearly in another context, Team Cherry allows fans to sell merchandise based off of Hollow Knight, but they cannot sell anything that is inside the game. Team Cherry can sue people who take sprites from the game and sell them as pins or keychains, but they allow people to make fanart of characters and sell that as long as its their own work. So for my adoptables, you can do whatever you want with it, as long as you don't do anything with the original source material beyond using it as a reference for the design.

Usually though when a design is sold, its yours to do whatever with. However, there are things called closed species. They're typically a creature that belongs to a specific world or story that the artist owns. This creature will have its diet, habitat, social structure, age, traits, etc, explained in specific detail. Some artists will also create breakdowns of each of these things and pour hours and hours of time into creating a closed species. Once a species is established, they'll sell designs specific to this world.

That kind of situation really only takes off if the artist is well known enough to start with. I don't want to make a closed species cause the thought of restricting a design someone bought to a specific set of rules doesn't sit comfortably with me. Other people, artists and buyers, are completely fine with that. It's just a personal preference.

Why adoptables tho?

Adoptables are a way for people to support an artist and also get something one of a kind in return. I know my commission prices get very high and that my ko-fi rewards are still under construction, so adoptables were a way to allow people to get something of their own at a cheaper price!

Some people think adoptables are a scam, and I can see why some would come to that conclusion. Why buy an adoptable from an artist when you can just make your own? You have eyes don't you?

Well there's a couple of reasons why:

1: Again, people like to support their favorite artists. They may not plan to do anything with the design, but they want to be able to show their support (n I really appreciate those people ;w;)

2: Some people aren't artists, but they still want cool looking ocs. It's rude and in some cases illegal to take someone else's work and claim it as your own, especially if you sell it. If there's a design up for sale that grabs their attention, they can buy it and feel excited to actually own it. It's not about the art, its about the design.

3: Some people are artists, but are still learning how to pick color choices and color arrangements. Buying an adoptable gives them a cool oc that they would've struggled to come up with themselves.

4: Some people just like cool designs

I hope this explains some things? I'm not an expert but hopefully this can give you stuff to look up on google if you're still unsure.

[undertale-data]

[Image Description: An Undertale chat box that has “WHY FANS LOVE UNDERTALE” at its center. Next to it are a line chart and an Egg from the Dating Hub on its left, and a CRIME measurer (also from the Dating Hub) on its right. End I.D.]

[Image Description: a pie chart titled, “LEVEL OF LOVE FOR UNDERTALE.” The textbox on the top right reads, “On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least and 10 being the highest, how much do fans enjoy Undertale?” From the top going clockwise, 12 or 0% chose 5 and below; 23 or 1% chose 6; 98, or 4%, chose 7; 325, or 12%, chose 8; 529, or 20%, chose 9; and 1664, or 63%, chose 10. End I.D.]

It’s clear from all of the data analyzed so far that fans who took the time to answer our survey love Undertale. It is unlikely that they would have taken the time to answer so many questions if they had not, and even less likely that they would have come across our survey in the first place. Naturally, it comes as no surprise that 63% of our responders gave their love for Undertale a score of ten out of ten. 95% gave their love for Undertale a score of eight or higher, and only 12 responders responded with five or below, a number so small that their responses had to be lumped together to be visible on the pie chart. Of those, only 3 responders gave their love for Undertale a score of 1, and based on those responders’ other answers, it is likely that they were only intending to troll. We are very fortunate that the vast majority of responders took the survey seriously, enough so that responses like this are barely a blip in the data.

Now, for our final analysis post of the event, we will delve into the reasons that fans love Undertale so dearly.

(Essay and highlights under the cut.)

There have been countless essays on the impact that Undertale has had on people’s lives. I can hardly add more on the subject than what has already been said, but I hope this summary can provide a brief overview of what stood out among the over two thousand answers given in response to this survey. That said, due to the sheer volume of answers, I could not read every single one in depth—however, I did skim all of them, and some that stood out or were representative of several responses have been highlighted below. If you would like to see what every fan who consented to share their response had to say, you may view the full list of responses here. Note that these responses have not been edited in any way. This document may take a long time to load, as it is over 100 pages long.

(Warnings for mentions of suicidal thoughts in the following essay.)

Several responders loved the theme of choices mattering in Undertale. Whether people played the pacifist, merciless, or neutral routes, they enjoyed how the game reacted to their actions. For some, it even made them consider their own morality. One touching response explained the impact that the theme of mercy made on them. “I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.” Many fans left similar comments about how the themes of Undertale made them better people.

Undertale changed how its fans treat others, and it also changed how fans treat themselves. The theme of staying determined and the messages of hope in the game were a light to a very large portion of fans. I cannot list all of the fans who said that Undertale helped them out of a dark place, or that they would not be alive if not for Undertale. “DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.”

Undertale brought fans together in unexpected ways. Some said they met friends or significant others through the fandom. “I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale,” one fan said. A different fan who is non-native English speaking mentioned that the game and the fan community helped them to learn English.

It would be impossible to discuss Undertale without mentioning the fan community. Whether for good or bad, many responders mentioned the fandom in their responses. Overall the feelings towards the fandom seem positive, though many made references to “toxic” parts of the fandom without specifying which parts they consider toxic. Others rejected the idea of toxicity in fandom. One response said: “[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!”

One thing that makes the Undertale fandom unique is the way it embraces various AUs. Some fans are tired of AU content, but the majority of responses show a love for the creativity behind AUs. “Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.” The lack of a judgemental atmosphere seems present in the AU community, according to the responses we saw. There is an interesting balance between AU and canon (sometimes referred to as “classic”) content that another responder pointed out: “The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertale fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)”

Regardless of the many AUs the fandom has created over the years, the original game of Undertale still feels like home for many fans. They wished they could reclaim the feeling of playing the game again for the first time, but even though we can’t reset time in real life, there is still a special feeling for fans each time they play Undertale. One fan said, “Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.” This feeling is one that can be cherished time and time again. In the words of another responder: “It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it.” Others pointed out the strength of the found family trope in Undertale, which likely contributes to this feeling of “home” as well.

As mentioned briefly earlier, the music is part of what makes Undertale feel like home for fans. Even when responses focused on other aspects of the game, many would throw in a comment about the soundtrack at the end. One comment focused on the music said “IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.” Like with the game itself, the music has incredible replay value, an amazing feat considering most of the tracks use the same few motifs. “I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story,” another responder said. “They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.”

If the music sticks with fans in their hearts, then the game’s lore sticks with fans in their minds. Even six years after the release of Undertale, fans are still creating new theories and digging up new secrets. The way the game breaks the fourth wall in particular intrigued many fans and has stuck out through all these years. The awareness that the game shows for the RPG genre makes it memorable. The game plays with the player’s expectations and turns them on their heads, all while reminding the player that they’re in a game. There are few other games that do this on such a large scale, so it’s no surprise that fans cite this as one of their favorite things about Undertale.

Lastly, the LGBT+ representation in Undertale has been a huge draw for fans. Especially in 2015, the sheer volume of non-cishet characters was unprecedented, as one fan pointed out: “It's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. Hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. It's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.” The LGBT+ cast including Frisk, Chara, Napstablook, Monster Kid, Mettaton, Alphys, and Undyne each connected with fans in unique ways. It’s clear how important this is from responses such as: “There are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.” “It made me gay and trans so thanks for that.”

Once again I am overwhelmed with just how much there is to say about Undertale. One responder really understood when they compared Undertale to an iceberg, explaining that there are so many layers to the game that there is something for everyone: “everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans—from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers—is the mark of the coolest games!” I would have to agree with them.

It’s been six years, and despite everything, it’s still you. Thank you for reading, participating in this survey, and above all, staying determined.

Highlights:

DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.

I think the coolest thing was having the opportunity to watch the AU community grow from its bare roots. It's nearly insane how big and complex it's gotten, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.

i love how the lgbt rep is so naturalized... there are just gay people! and its nobodys business!

The music is my go to answer, but what I really really REALLY love is how the minor characters have so much personality to them when you talk to them. They aren't incredibly important to the overall story, but they're all so likeable and diverse that you just can't help but like them immediately!

I think it was the first videogame I have played that broke the fourth wall that much. Of course there has been other videogames that broke it but just for one or two tongue-in-cheek jokes. The guilt of killing mama goat was also something intense as well that I appreciated as an experience and that I didn't think a videogame could cause on someone.

I love how no character can be seen as completely bad! Everyone builds up Asgore as some horrible villain, but he turns out to be a 'fuzzy pushover' who's broken and just wants his family back by the time you meet him. Then you think Flowey's an irredeemable killer who engineered the suffering of the monsters across many timelines, and he is... but he also used to be the kind and beloved Prince Asriel Dreemurr, traumatized by his death and subsequent rebirth, projecting his best friend onto you.

The fact that choices matter in the game. Your first playthrough and getting the golden ending for the first time. I can never replicate those feelings again, wish I could erase my memories and replay the game from the start.

I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale.

(Toxic parts of the fandom aside) The community is possibly one of the kindest I've ever met. Cringe culture is completely dead, and I feel like I can be myself. I felt a very close connection to many of the characters, and I loved consuming content about them when I was in a rough patch in my life.

just everything, the whole game has just impacted my life so much. i know it sounds really lame, but when the game first came out, i would purposely put my hands in my pockets and sway slightly, like sans' idle animation. of course i dont do that anymore haha, but undertale still really impacts me to this day, and i wouldnt have it any other way :)

it made me gay and trans so thanks for that

I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.

The thing I love most about Undertale is no matter how many times I play or watch a playthrough it always makes me genuinely happy. It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it. Toriel still makes me feel all warm and cozy in her home, the Skelebros always make me laugh, and I still cry on the inside watching Frisk comforting Asriel. And on the flip side the No Mercy run still invokes the negative emotions in me as well. In short Undertale just feels like a second home to me and I always wish I could stay.

The reader inserts are my favorite way to decompress after a hard day

I think Undertale helped me discover my love for 8-bit games, and made me realize how IMPORTANT music is in video games.

the worldbuilding and character design are my favorite parts of the main game apart from the music! I’m also a huge fan of the random AU music- not for like underswap or underfell i like the stuff where someone makes a megalovania for a random au where gru from despicable me replaces sans as the character. i think its funny

Just... the vibe, honestly? Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.

there are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.

[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!

There's a scene where Frisk (the player) is going towards what is presumably going to be their death. They will fight Asgore and he will use their human soul to break the barrier and free his people. The music, despite the player's impending doom, is... triumphant. You are not the triumphant one here, and yet, the score invites you to experience the monsters' joy and happiness as they tell you the tale of their subjugation. The monsters are going to be free. This is their victory, but they don't hate you or want you to die. They're just... happy. That scene has always struck me very deeply. I feel it represents the best parts of Undertale.

I loved how well thought out the Geno route was. It really made me feel like I was doing something horrible, and the characters were very obviously reacting to dire circumstances.

I dunno? I like Undertale for it's characters, story, music, secrets and many more. I am not good with Headcanons but I also like the neutral endings and how different they can depending on who you spare and kill

I was very bad at english before, i thought i couldn't progress because i was very shy and not confident. But my sibling and i wanted to have the best experience with this game so we wanted to play it in english. It's this game and the fandom which helped me to make huge progress in english !

THE SOUNDTRACK. IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.

to avoid writing an essay i will say one word. Mettaton

It is like Toby specifically made the games to fit the iceberg meme and it's awesome, everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans - from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers is the mark of the coolest games!

I love almost everything about Undertale as a game on its own. The music, the art and especially the characters and how they interact. They made me feel at home. Undertale means a huge amount to me. (I even got a tattoo of the castle when you and MK walk together!) The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertake fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)

the mystery. toby fox refused to give answers to anything and i think thats very sexy of him.

I just feel guilty for liking it so much when I'm in my 30's. But I recently got diagnosed with ASD, so I guess it explains things a bit. Many ppl consider Papyrus to be neurodivergent, and some adult fans are too, so seeing that makes me feel a bit better.

i think about "Despite everything, it's still you" everyday of my life.

I like how it's just as funny as it can be serious. All routes are this way. I laughed as much as I cried when I played the Pacifist route and then once I opened the game again and Flowey was telling me to let them be happy, I immediately turned off the game. I somehow felt bad.

The Found Family Trope

The True Pacifist Ending is just...man. And the fanworks about saving everyone even when the game doesn't let you? MANNNNNN

I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story. They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.

there's honestly a LOT to love about this game, but i think one of my favorite things about it is just how many lgbt+ characters there are??? i can think of alphys, undyne, frisk, chara, mettaton, napstablook, monster kid, asgore, mad mew mew, the dress lion, the royal guards, and arguably even papyrus off of the top of my head, but im sure i'm forgetting a few from just undertale alone (there's even MORE in deltarune)!! it's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. it's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.

[Image description: A wordcloud in the shape of the capitalized word UNDERTALE. The text is white on a black background, and uses the font found in the game. Some of the most visible words are: Game, Love, Music, Life, AU, Store, Friend, and Feel, which represent the most common words in the essays people wrote about their love for the game. End of ID]

[legionofpotatoes]

I love your art, it is very detailed in a neat way. Was wondering how you got started making it as a source of income? How did you get your first paid work, I'd love some advice on how to get started, if that's ok

Thank you. Of course it's okay, although I doubt I have enough work experience in art to really delve into this. I only went full freelance this year, and had been juggling art as a side hobby until then. If you're still interested in my somewhat narrow perspective, and are okay with my long-winded rambles, I'll give it a shot:

So to answer your question fully, I'll describe how I started and move into personal advice and learnings later on. As a disclaimer, I am a white cishet dude in my late twenties with a moderate cocktail of mental illnesses, but overall I can pass for a functioning adult so a lot I have to say may come laced with privilege I cannot fully identify.

So uhh I began drawing in around 2012? I think? Maybe halfway through 2011? And I mostly made fanart for things I enjoyed and tried to branch out in communities that felt nourishing to my style and interests (I caught a bug for alt posters and enjoyed mainstream movies so I spent a long time on posterspy early on). There were a handful of opportunities that came from there but I could only accept a couple because of primary workplace commitments. Still, it showed that networking in a focused community was definitely a good place to start; I myself have huge trouble committing to social networks and really staying socially active, but I knew it was an essential ingredient in succeeding so I tried to make myself be involved in challenges and art support trains etc. as much as I could.

In parallel to all that I also ran a few third party online stores (redbubble, teepublic) for disposable income and would sometimes, if rarely, hit around $100-150 a month from those sources combined. It is a sort of thing that requires helper accounts on other social media sites to promote it on, because the stores themselves have a huge volume of content that translates into low organic discoverability. Obviously it was never gonna be the way towards financial independence through art, and with community projects being few and far between, I opened private commissions in around uhhh 2017 I think, focusing on offering a few styles I knew I could do well, and sometimes operating in individual fandoms (it was mostly a bioware thing to be frank). But I had to close them back down after a year or so, again because of work-life conflict and how badly it was burning me out. The reason I kept trying to monetize this hobby is because I honestly hated what I did for my main job and wanted to see a way out in some shape or form in the future.

And then in 2020 I had to quit my main job altogether because of *gestures at pandemic* and deal with a mental breakdown from all the wonderful things it did to us and me specifically. I took a short break and decided to give art a shot full-time, and that was around May this year. I was planning on opening up commissions again (and I still am), but a few sudden opportunities that fell in my lap moved that timetable down and now I'm grateful to even be doing something I am getting adequately paid for.

So, with that somewhat limited perspective, here's what I've learned that I'd tell myself if I was just starting out:

1. Being a fan of something can be a shortcut towards effective networking kickoffs. Which are important evidently. If you love something and enjoy making content for it, join communities, settle into a combination of social media websites that feel right for those interests + your body of work + your inner rhythm, and try to play to content discovery as much as your mental health allows you to. Like I said, I know that I myself am incredibly bad at self-motivating to talk to people, so I found that synergizing common interests into fanart - which I enjoyed making anyway - could be a way to give myself a gentle nudge forward and build those bridges leading to community activities, which then net experience and coverage. Sometimes even freelance projects from official avenues. Again; picking the right spaces for what you're after is key. Companies roam twitter, concept art recruiters scour artstation or linkedin etc, instagram can land you private commissions and collab opportunities, so on and so forth. Find your niche and try to kick up dust. However...

2. I do not believe that any social profile can replace a good portfolio. The thing that made an immediate difference to me this year was building a coherent, simple website with my best work front and center and a contact form on top. Every single opportunity I got came from that form (maybe via twitter or instagram initially, but always sealing the decision after going through the website), so I firmly believe that showcasing your skills and portfolio in a visually arresting and user-friendly way is a big priority. I had some reservations about tackling that task but fortunately I had help from a savvy life partner and we slapped it together via wordpress in less than a day. Twitter/whatever social media is prevalent in your target groups is definitely important to get the right eyes on your shit, yes, but those eyes will then look for a second stop where your work and rates are more clear and concise. Simplicity is key imo, I cannot overstate this. So make a cute, simple portfolio!

3. Your skills and rates will grow and change as you do. Let them. Over the years I built several lasting professional relationships from my obsession over mass effect and kept getting opportunities both from bioware and their partner companies, some small and some a bit bigger. A one-off job earlier this year opened an unexpected door to another much larger commitment, and then the work I did there brought some attention from small businesses looking for commercial commissions. These were all incredibly different projects in terms of scope and budget, and I've been tackling them all on a case-by-case basis and slowly coming into my own irt my needs, rates, and SOW thresholds. It is still a work in progress (and a LOT of literal work as well), and very much a thing I struggle with in publicly marketing, which is why I felt a tad underqualified to answer your question in the first place (obviously I did not let that stop me). But what it means for me now is that I am rapidly developing into whatever my "version" of a functioning freelance artist is, and when the conditions for that guy are met, I need to be able to confidently plant myself and operate from that space despite past precedents. Do not let anyone bully you into downpricing what you yourself perceive as legitimate products of personal growth and development. Speaking of which...

4. The shitty challenge of turning envy into inspiration, and paddling outside your comfort zones in full riot gear. it is hard, but realizing that being a miserable, self-hating artist in my early days got me nothing but more misery back was the first real step I took and what truly blew the hinges off. I was just not pleasant to be around, I would badmouth my work all the time, and it all somehow made sense in my broken mind because the validation I sought was purely external and the way I sought it was through eliciting sympathy via self-victimization (even when I made something objectively nice). It all led fucking nowhere. Except perhaps to my own narcissism that I one day managed to identify and start managing. So I started looking at things that made me seethe with envy and calmly deconstruct and figure out their inner workings instead, do studies, and find nuggets of inspiration or discover new ways to approach rendering or building up specific elements. It was an application of analytical diligence to what I wanted to be a purely emotional, esoteric workflow, but that I deep down knew wasn't. Art is a discipline and a skill, and maybe it isn't a straight line, but you gotta find some line to thread nevertheless. Being self-hating was almost an identity I had to break out of, and despite it still being like, 4-5% there? I realize its cause and effect on me, my work, and those around me, so it is with a conscious choice that I gently set it aside when I work and especially when I learn. It won't always stay quiet, but the effort is the difference. Your doors towards accepting true growth and venturing into uncharted territories, art styles, and networking will really open from there. But there's a huge caveat...

5. Toolsets, accessibility, privilege, and all the good things that enable artistic expression and profitability are not given equal to all. you might do all the mental work I mentioned to be ready to rock and roll and learn and draw your way out of anything, but digital art is a fucking money pit that asks almost too much at times. I don't got a good case study here but identifying and ensuring accessibility to the tools you need to do your best work is, like, super important. The ergonomics can improve as you make money and settle into the job, but the basics have to be made available to you. And some of that might not even be under your direct control. That can be anything from pen tablets to software subscriptions to opportunities in hiring sullied by sexism or what have you. You gotta navigate all that through careful networking and money/time management. I don't do a good job of devoting specific slices of time to work/study, and my primary clutch is iPad software which went from a good deal to a nightmare scenario over the years. So all I can say here is do what I didn't; network, invest in a PC/tablet, and pick a software you'll learn that won't burn a hole in your pocket.

6. Be nice to work with? This one is hard to articulate and has landed my own ass in hot water in my early years because of how socially inept I am, but nothing is more worthwhile than being.. like. a good person to work with. That can be anything like meeting deadlines, or sometimes missing them but eloquently articulating why, being generous in early stages, being communicable and not too wordy in your emails, having a good grasp on abstract artistic concepts and how to describe them in simple terms, having a clear, laid out framework of your working rates in commercial and non-commercial projects and sticking to those guns with grace, understanding when you need to say no and saying it well, the works. Just being nice. Sometimes that might mean going headstrong with something you believe in, or simmering down and sucking up to the big man, all relative and adaptive. Part and parcel of the service provision dance that we all have to do in order to make bank. Know your lines here, obviously, and don't like. work for nazis. or uh.. *shudders* exposure. but be nice and empathetic and communicable and word will travel eventually. Skill may be in abundance these days, but good people are most certainly not, and capitalism has a way of bubbling up scarcity. Grim, but uh, them's the breaks.

I know I'm ultimately telling you to like. Have a body of work, make a portfolio, grow, and network. But that's really how I see it for now. And being nice can be a cherry on top that sets you apart, along with the inherent irreplaceable voice of your artwork. I think I rambled on enough, but if there is something specific you need my help with, even if you want to come off anon and talk in private, please feel free.

[acrispyapple]

why do you watermark official pics that aren't yours? i'm honestly shocked cybird hasn't had you banned for dcma laws + spoiling paid stories and epilogues, but you do you. you made it so i never have to pay money for any of the cybird games + mlqc. also i read why you aren't posting the sprites which is cool and all but you shouldn't be posting game elements either way. that's super shitty of you to do because spoiler THE ARTWORK ISN'T YOURSSSSSSS. the pic of victor on your twitter isnt yours 2

heya! i’ve already answered an ask like this recently and ignored the follow up ones because i don’t really wanna keep repeating myself. but since you’re very persistent and it’s still the same thing, here i go! putting under a cut because it’s long and has images – with stuff written on them! dun dun dunnnn (¯▿¯)

to start things, i’m the wrong person to accuse of being irresponsible with my posts because i’m very mindful of posting etiquette. have you not seen all my campaigns about not stealing from artists, from blogs, etc. i ask for permission for everything, even for random text i want to translate from someone’s post. even for cosplay i’ve seen other people freely post, i always go to the source and ask. i hope my answer clarifies things for you because i don’t really wanna have to repeat it again! (*^^*)♡

re: watermarks (complaint mostly about mlqc because i don’t really do it for cybird)

re: cybird

i’m not exactly a hidden secret blog, so i’m pretty sure cybird is well aware of me. plus, they’ve left comments on my blog in the past. sooo, there’s nothing shocking about it at all! maybe what’s shocking is you somehow expected cybird to not have noticed my blog all these years. do you actually know what the digital millennium copyright act covers? (dmca not dcma btw) as long as i know how to read and understand rules and i’m always within its boundaries, there’s nothing being violated. always post obstructed cgs / never full, snippets of 10 for screenies, never in consecutive order, etc. you should read the rules tbh, you seem unfamiliar with it. ☆

re: you never having to pay money for any cybird game

again, snippets = not full stories. everyone can post snippets. paid or not. that’s so weird that you feel you don’t need to pay for ~any cybird game~ anymore because of my blog. i haven’t been consistently posting paid content for so long. even ikesen epilogues. because i don’t have the time. and i’ve skipped posting a couple of events on my blog too. i don’t post ikerev / midcin consistently either. i’ve posted from two ikevam events in the past months with epilogue snippets. i guess you only played those? that’s hardly everything. nice attempt at creating an issue about me making cybird lose money tho! for someone who thinks i do dodgy things, you sure do like reading from my blog– if what you’re saying is true. but you seem to not know my blog content either. (⌒_⌒;)

i have another answer for this from an ask from 9 months ago:

re: not paying for mlqc

they allow posting everything from their game, i even verified with their team! but even i don’t have the time or post slot to post everything from it. i mostly post about victor soooo, i guess that’s everything you need to know about mlqc then? yay for you only needing victor! ♡

re: game elements

what?

anyway, moving forward to my twitter header:

it’s from this post i made, where i screenied scenes (and edited them a bit to look brighter and prettier) from the pv of the new chapters in the ch version.

now, i just put my username there as a marker and it was already covered in the first part of this ask. (how it helps me keep track of my posts, helps me when people are able to identify it’s from my blog and alert me of it being posted elsewhere, etc.) but i wanted to show it even clearer so you can finally let go of whatever it is you’re burning with. ( ˙▿˙ )

it just says acrispyapple on this screenie i took (that’s right, it’s just a screenshot lmao), it’s a random word or name. i made it small and inconspicuous so it wouldn’t distract from the image. the weibo watermark is bigger and clearer but i don’t use it– i can, but i don’t. when people see it, they know it’s official art and that’s it. there’s no “made by acrispyapple™©®”

(thanks for visiting my twitter btw! it doesn’t really have a lot of followers haha)

sooo, there’s weibo and its automatic watermarks (location can be changed).

“damn, all the users on weibo are claiming stuff as their own!!!! it’s not just a marker that a certain thing was posted from a certain blog!!! they’re claiming it as theirs even tho it’s clearly very easy to see that it’s one of many free-for-all official images!!!” (≧◡≦)

and i’ve seen people use the cards as banners for fanfics and other stuff, or even memes where they put random stuff on it like this:

but writing a random word on it, just because you know my blog is somehow a great sin? it’s not even acrispyapple.tumblr.com ✿

would it maybe make you feel better if it wasn’t just acrispyapple? i can use random words and it’ll still serve as a marker for me lmao

anyway anon, it pays to actually listen and read before you get mad and accuse. i’m not breaking any rules and i’m very much aware of what’s not allowed and what’s allowed. (^ ^*)♡

edit:

i kinda like it. (^◔ᴥ◔^)

side note: if you have a vendetta against me, you’re free to have one. but please don’t try to make stuff up just to yell at me. you can hate me quietly from afar or just avoid me altogether. or if you want to find a reason to yell at me, at least try to educate yourself about what you’re planning on yelling at me about. it’ll save me time trying to explain stuff! i also don’t like wasting my post slots for the day. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

i would suggest looking at my actual content first, so your lack of knowledge of it doesn’t give you away. also, try asking yourself if you really think cybird’s en team would miss me after all these years and if you’re somehow the only enlightened one who can see all my ~misgivings~? are you aware of mlqc’s rules?

it’s funny because i’m not even close to covering everything for mlqc and there are blogs that cover far more than i do. i answer a lot of asks (i wish asks were paid content, as in i get paid to answer asks), but game content-wise, i’m faaaar from covering everyone. unless you really consider victor the whole game (♡). in which case i’m still missing his ch11 and ch19 screenies and one date. oh and the recent rumors&secrets! if you take a look at my posts, it’s mostly announcements, asks, fanart, general info, avatar posts, etc. i think you blindly went in with salt. ( ˙▿˙ )

i don’t really interact with people unless i have to talk about reposts and fanart-related stuff. i also just talk about games on my blog. so i don’t know what i could’ve done to merit your hatred. maybe you dislike that i ask for basic courtesy or that i enforce rules given to me by artists? i’m always polite tho. hmm, mystery-desu! ✩‧₊˚

[witness-protection-official]

Today’s chapter art is actually fanart made by Amiy_trash on Instagram! Check her out, she’s really good!

Warning; contains heavy swearing in some parts. Song mentioned in chapter will be linked at the end

Witness Protection- An Eyeless Jack x reader

Chapter 3

"So why do you look so uncomfortable?" You tilt your head. He remained silent. "Hey, come on, after what just happened I deserve to know something about you,"

"What just happened doesn't matter," He stated, back to using that monotone voice. You huff.

"We kissed!"

"You and I both know it meant nothing,"

"But still-!"

"Dropping the subject now," he shut up. You groan and smack your head against the window. You mutter an ow, sitting up properly.

"Does the radio work?" He shrugged. You reach over and try to turn it on, only met by static on all of the channels before it shut itself off. "Great," you grumble quietly to yourself. You pat a small beat on your lap, the silence driving you mad.

"Stop that," your head rolls back against the headrest on the seat, rolling your eyes and glaring at him.

"Well then do you have any idea what I could do to entertain myself? Don't get me wrong I'm really enjoying these 'chats' of ours where I try to strike up a conversation and you completely ignore me, but I'm kind of going insane," you groan loudly. "There's like nothing for me to dooo,"

"Play a road trip game or something,"

"You need two or more people for those, and you're highkey too boring for them,"

"I'm going to pretend I know what highkey is and tell you to figure out how to do it yourself," You groan again, leaning forward to smack your head on the dashboard space right above the glove box.

"I spy with my little eye, an annoying bitch," you huff, crossing your arms.

"You?" Your eye twitches. "No? Damn. Ok, my turn, I spy with my little eye an annoying little cunt that is going to be gutted and left to bleed out in a river if she doesn't shut her fucking mouth,"

"Lemme guess. You?" He made a 'wrong' buzzer sound.

"Wrong, try again,"

"Me?" you sigh.

"Bingo, now shut up," You grumble some unheard curses and lean your elbow on the weird arm rest thing on the side of the door, resting your head in your open palm. There was a long silence. It felt like it must've been half an hour, at least.

"I'm still bored,"

"It's only been 10 minutes since you told me that," he stated.

"Feels like longer, now entertain me,"

"In case you don't remember, I kidnapped you and am in no way obligated to entertain you,"

"Can't I like, borrow your phone or something?"

"I would be an idiot to let a hostage use my phone," It's becoming painfully clear that he is not going to cave anytime soon. You sigh and stare out the window, watching other cars pass by with a half lidded expression. "Eat or something,"

"Bored eating is how I get fat,"

"Then suffer in silence," Another silence washed over you, the uncomfortable humming of the vehicle becoming the only thing you could use from drifting off into insanity. The car stopped after a long while, and he climbed out.

"Where are you going?"

"To eat," You raise a brow.

"Why would you need to get out to eat?" He smiled at you, condescendingly. The effect of the meds had worn off by this point, revealing sharpened teeth. You gag, remembering what he had eaten back at the hotel. "Yeah, please do that far away from me,"

"Planning on it, I don't need puke in my truck," He slammed his door shut. It is only five minutes after he's left the truck that you are even more bored than before. Yet another heavy groan leaves you. Patting a small beat on your legs seemed to help, but only barely. You glance behind you, seeing him in the back of the truck. Well, you could only see his back, as he had it facing the cab section of the truck. Should you go out and bother him? One on hand, there was a strong possibility of you vomiting up your lunch from earlier. But on the other hand, he was your only source of entertainment. Your boredom won over your common sense and you unbuckle, trying your door. Child locked, of course. Your gaze flicked to his door. Glancing back out the back window, you sneakily climb onto the drivers side seat, trying the door handle. The door popped open and you felt like cheering. You wouldn't though. If he was gonna be mad about you sneaking out of the car you might as well spook him too by surprising him.

A small tune hits your ears as you step out of the truck, closing the door quietly. Your footsteps fell silently on the dirt as you approached. Granted, the heels made walking uncomfortable, but you'd rather suffer through the curse that is your work shoes than walk around barefoot. Random thought aside, the tune sounded like quiet singing. It was barely audible, barely above a whisper, but pleasant sounding. Your brain caught up with your ears and eyes and quickly came to the conclusion that Jack was singing, very softly. The song was unfamiliar to you, but his voice did sound nice, so you quietly hop onto the bed of the truck, next to him, all while ignoring the empty freezer bags that used to hold what you knew to be some poor man's insides. He paused for what seemed to be an instrumental break, as he nodded his head a little to the rhythm in his head.

"For a murderer, you're pretty good at singing," you comment, breaking the silence. Nothing will ever compare to the joy you felt as Jack's eye sockets shot open, and he squeaked loudly, standing in an apparent flight reflex before almost tripping over the rim of the bed in his shock. However, you did not laugh, for you were no fool. Although it was increasingly tempting as his grey face grew to be a bright red, non existent eyes widening in pure shock, terror, or embarrassment.

"How much," he muttered, blinking with a gulp.

"What?"

"How much did you hear," he elaborated.

"Not much, I've only been here for maybe a minute or so,"

"Too much," he took a shaky breath.

"What?" he repeatedly shook his head.

"Too much," he muttered again before muttering something very quietly to himself.

"Truck. Now," he vaulted himself over the edge. You raise a brow and climb off the bed of the vehicle. He gripped your arm and guided you to your side of the truck, opening the door. "In," You scurry in, clicking the seat belt into place. He seemed… stressed. He climbed in a little bit after, seemingly having cleaned up the remnants of his meal.

"So uh-,"

"Don't- don't talk,"

"But-,"

"Shhhh," he whispered, holding a shaky index finger to his lips to signify silence. With a deep breath, he strapped in and turned the car on, getting back on the road. Despite the radio not working, the clock did, and you stared at it. For an hour. You knew because you had watched an hour pass on the old digital display. Finally, he sighed.

"You can talk now, I guess,"

"What the hell was that?"

"Probably a nice mix of anxiety and embarrassment smooshed together to create a hellish combination of wanting to die,"

"You have anxiety?"

"I don't want to talk about it," you nod slowly.

"You're singing was nice," you murmur.

"Uh, thanks," he muttered. "I don't uh- I don't typically like people listening-,"

"That would be totally understandable if you weren't that good at it,"

"If you think complimenting me will make me let you go, you're wrong," he visibly tightened his grip on the steering wheel, the black fabric of his gloves pulling taut.

"Wasn't what I was going for, but ok,"

"Then what were you going for," he sighed heavily.

"Could you sing something? Like, louder than a whisper?"

"No," his response was immediate. "Absolutely not,"

"What? It's not like I'll be able to tell anyone," he did a small leg bounce.

"Will you shut up about being bored if I sing one song?" A hum and a nod from you give him his confirmation. "Shit…," he sighed under his breath. "Did you have a song in mind?"

"No," he groans quietly.

"Not a single one?"

"No," you shake your head. "Hadn't planned on you saying yes, so just pick one you like," He threw his hand up in what could only be exasperation.

"Fine, fine," he took a deep breath, looking about ready to start. "Do I have to do this?"

"If you want me to shut up," He whined under his breath.

"But-,"

"Stop stalling and you can get it over with," You lean forward to see his face, which is still beet red with embarrassment, but this time with pursed lips.

"Gah, fine," he huffed, defeated. With another deep breath, he began. "I can't get a hold, hold on myself, tossin' and turnin' and screaming' for help. So much to say, so many words, but sometimes, you're lookin' so good that it hurts,'' You blinked slowly, eyes slowly widening. He'd probably stop if you said anything, so you remain quiet and avert your eyes from his head, leaning your head in your open palm again as you listened to the song. It wasn't a very fast paced or high energy song, making it sort of soothing to listen to. Mixed with his strangely superb singing voice, it melded together into a calming melody that was slowly making you relax and be ready for a nap.

"I know I'm not right, I'm messed in the head, so hurt me, desert me, just leave me for dead. I'm thinkin' 'bout thinkin', now my sun is shrinking'. I know I can float, but I'm sinking' instead. I don't wanna lose you, glad that I knew you, don't wanna be in my own head," he seemed to be enjoying himself as much as you were, except he wasn't dozing off like you. As he neared the last few sound effect things that were in the song, you had closed your eyes, breathing slower. In your half asleep state, your brain registered that he had finished singing, but it didn't matter to you as you slipped into unconsciousness, willingly this time.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She was out cold and he sighed in relief, leaning his head against the back of the seat. Never again. Never again will he sing like that for someone else. Too much pressure on him to make it sound good, even if he didn't give a flying fuck about her opinion of him. Her sleeping form made him realize just how tired he was and he yawned. He'd gotten a max of two hours the night before, and even then they were the suckiest two hours of his life. This just meant he needed to get to his next hotel set up. He pulled the car over again and pulled out his phone, scrolling through nearby hotels. The closest was two hours away. He groaned silently and checked the bookings for it anyway. There were also no double beds. Peachy. Just peachy. His bottom lid twitched before he smacked his forehead on the broken horn again, sighing heavily in exasperation. No doubt she was going to bitch, but he really didn't have a choice. He needed proper sleep and she'd have to deal. He booked one of the rooms and took a breath to recollect himself before shutting his phone off and stuffing it back in his pocket. If he was lucky this place would have booze or something, it would be great to have a nice bottle of whiskey or something when dealing with this woman. The drive was obviously quiet, her soft snores the only noise to drown out the sound of everything wrong with his truck. In the silence, his mind wandered, as it usually did, which led him to the question of what the hell was this woman's name. It had been on her name tag, probably, but that had been stained with blood and removed earlier that day. Damn, he didn't even know what it began with.

Regardless, he drove in complete silence. Fastest two hours of his life, if he was being honest. With how tired he was, the promise of a nice bed and possibly alcohol made him a little giddy. The parking lot of the hotel came into view and he cheered quietly.

"Yes!" he sighed in slight celebration, pulling into the lot and quickly finding a place to park. He shut the car off and got his pills and took two. He liked to call them 'normal pills' because they made him look, well, normal. Anyway, he climbed out of the car and walked to her side, opening the door and climbing up on the step. The button clicked once he pushed it, and the seatbelt came up to go back to it's weird resting position against the side of the cab. He scooped her up bridal style. He was going to have to sell the dating thing again, not wanting to risk the weird look his mind guaranteed would be sent his way. He shook his head, removing the thought from his mind and hopping off the step, using his shoulder to push the door closed. With a quick grip adjustment, he headed for the door, barely making it through the sliding doors, as he was too impatient to wait for them to open fully. He did the usual checking in process, the person at the front desk only glancing at the sleeping woman in his arms.

"Girlfriend?" They hum. He nodded. "Keep any noise you make tonight to yourselves,"

"What?"

"Be quiet," They clarified. He flushed up at what they had implied, and began to stammer over some of his words. They snort. "Calm yourself down boy," He swallowed.

"S-Sorry," They shake their head.

"Anyway, the pool is that way, the exercise room is right next to it, there's a bar over by the breakfast area. Pool hours are 9 AM - 11 PM, same with the exercise room. Bar is open from 7 PM - 6 AM," They hand him his key card. He nods a thank you and hurries to the stairs. It's more than a few floors up, but he didn't feel like going to find the elevator just yet. The woman stirred in her sleep, but he was too absorbed by his thoughts to notice.

"Jack?" He almost dropped her down the stairs in fright.

"Yeah?" he shook his head, resuming his climb.

"Where are we?"

"The next hotel,"

"Oh… what city are we in?"

"Only a fool would tell his hostage what city he's moved her to," he huffed. "And I am no fool," She grumbled.

"Dammit,"

"Don't pout about that, I've been fairly decent to you so far," She glanced up at him, brows furrowed.

"Yeah, but why?"

"You're more obedient when you're well taken care of,"

"Oh really? And what proof do you have for that?"

"You didn't tell that woman I had kidnapped you," he hummed.

"Because you were right next to me,"

"You've listened to my orders, more so when I'm not being violent,"

"I-,"

"You aren't resisting now, either, especially since you have the chance," That one was a test. He just told her she had a chance to escape. She remained still, cradled in his arms. "You aren't going to even try?"

"The stairs are really steep, I don't wanna risk falling," He nodded.

"Fair," He glanced down. "But I would fall too, wouldn't I?" More testing. He had to be sure she wouldnt run off on him if he had to leave her alone in the room for something.

"Just because you kidnapped me doesn't mean I want you to fall to your doom on a hotel staircase," she crossed her arms, huffing.

"Ok, Ok," he stopped talking. She continued to pout while he made his way up the rest of the stairs, onto their floor. Their room was at the end of the hall. He grunted as he shifted her onto one arm. She grew a bit flustered, probably because she was being held on one arm and that was kind of weird. He pulled the key card out of his pocket.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ok ok ok, yeah, he's pretty cute when he's 'normal' looking. But now he's holding you on one arm. He's fucking strong. Like, really strong. 'Lord give me strength,' You think to yourself. He slides the card into the slot and opens the door, shifting you back so he was using both arms to hold you. He walked in and threw you on the bed.

"Why- why is there only one bed?" you tilt your head.

"There weren't any double bed rooms available when I booked it,"

"So we'll be sleeping on the same bed?"

"I don't care if you sleep on the floor, or the bed, or even the bathtub," he shrugged.

"Bed sounds comfy,"

"Then sleep on the bed, I'm too tired to care," he flopped back first onto the bed, sighing in relief.

"What if we accidentally spoon though?"

"Oh nooo, physical contact, what ever will we dooo??" Sarcasm was evident.

"You know for a guy who panicked when I saw him singing you're awfully chill about straight up cuddling me," He shrugged.

"I'm tired, and tired me just does not give a shit," he rubbed his eyes. "Besides, human bodies are cooler than demon ones, you'd be like the cold side of a pillow,"

"What the fuck," He let out a strained laugh.

"Sorry," he sat up, running his fingers through his hair. "I'm gonna go get my stuff, you gotta promise to stay here,"

"I make no promises," you cross your arms.

"I could always lock you in the bathroom with no means of entertainment, or you can stay out here, in a decent, air conditioned room, with a tv. Your choice," You sigh.

"Fine," a quiet grumble leaves you.

"I'll bring the clothes and toiletries up first, so you can take a shower,"

"Are you saying I need one?"

"We both need one, I'm just saying yours will probably take longer," You mull it over.

"Fine," He gave a thumbs up and stood.

"I'll be back," He left the room. You sigh and crawl onto the bed fully, closing your eyes.

(Song is Alonely by Public)

(I also use this song as a voice claim for Jack)

(Here’s the link)

https://youtu.be/b-MsOr5LCHI

[ramheavenandhell]

The Lines Between Ricks And Mortys – Chapter 4: That's just disgusting / Time to get your hands dirty

Warnings: fanboying, horrible fake accent, more violence, more artistic liberty with Morty battles, also a bunch of handsome Mortys in this one

The Lines Between Ricks And Mortys – Chapter 4: That's just disgusting / Time to get your hands dirty After A-22β6 had reported that Salesman Rick was most likely not involved in any illegal crime activities, but just an old sad man, who was probably misunderstood, the number of suspected Ricks had quickly dwindled down to only one – Dirty Rick. This time K-4872 promised to look into it and he would do it thoroughly.

The C-137 team meanwhile continued their interdimensional travels to catch more Mortys and gain more badges. Once more, they stepped through a portal to arrive at a random place… "Oh great. A fucking cave dimension. Just lovely…" Rick groaned. Indeed, they were inside an underground tunnel system. The walls, the ceiling and the floor were made of dirty brown stone and the only source of light came from the lamps that were strung along the ceiling. The air was stifling and Morty felt immediately claustrophobic even though the cavern in which they stood right now was still pretty spacious. It was quickly decided that he disliked this dimension as much as his Rick did. Nonetheless, the scientist and unchallenged leader of the group pulled out his trusty Mortytector and lead the way. They ventured through several tunnels and after they walked around the maze-like lair for more than an hour even Morticia feared that they were hopelessly lost. It was only after a flash of bright yellow caught the female's eyes that she gained newfound trust in her grandfather. This was the Morty that Rick seemed to have been looking for. Morty C-137 just wanted to take a closer look from a safe distance, but at that exact same moment, the other boy noticed him, too. Of course, Morty was expecting the other boy to flee from him like the wild Mortys always did. However, this one brightened up and actually began to run towards him. The somewhat strange clothes and the slightly delirious look on other Morty's face creeped the brunet out and so C-137 began to ran, too. He was fleeing from the weirdo. Rick watched the whole spectacle in mild annoyance as the boys were running around him in circles now. Seemingly, he was undecided if it was a good thing that the Super Morty Fan Morty wasn't running away from them so they wouldn't have to chase after him in this damn underground labyrinth or if it was a bad thing that he was actually pursuing his Morty. Well, the only bad thing about this was obviously the fact that his grandson was such a pussy again! Morty C-137 was close to having a panic attack as the Super Fan tried to hug him. "Please wait! I just wanna cuddle you!" the crazy boy yelled and made a smooch-face. Instead of having a calming effect, this only made the hunted one speed up. Rick sighed, not being able to see his pathetic grandson being chased by another version of himself for much longer. "Shadow Morty. You go in and beat that little turd up." He ordered the black specter beside him. Shadow Morty didn't waste any time and with a menacing face – even though the only thing you could see were his white eyes – he hovered between the two, efficiently stopping the Morty Fan. The boy halted and looked with big eyes at him before asking after a few moments, "Are you a Morty, too?" He didn't wait for a reply as his eyes turned all glazed and starry. "Wow!" The Morty Fan Morty tried to hug the shadow, but of course, he passed through the non-physical form and landed on the ground. With a pout and slightly teary eyes, he looked back up at the specter. Shadow Morty decided that he had seen enough of his opponent's antics, but just as he was about to attack the other stopped him. "Hold on a second!" he said and hastily drew a sketch block and a pencil from his Morty-shaped backpack. Curious what the other might be trying to do, Shadow Morty held off his attack and only watched in confusion as the Super Fan started to scribble something on a blank sheet of paper. It didn't take long before the fanboy was done and presented to Shadow Morty the masterpiece that he drew. The content of said picture was of rather questionable nature, depicting what looked like the Super Fan and Shadow Morty in a rather compromising position. Shadow Morty made a screech that sounded like an "eep", looking horrified by the art and dashed to hide behind his Rick's back, cowering as if he had been just traumatized. "What the heck?!" Rick commented on his most violent Morty's behavior. But then, he also got to see the surprisingly detailed fanart. "Urgh! That's just disgusting!" He may have seen and done a lot of shit in his life, but this kid should seriously seek some professional psychological help. That picture was in one word gross! Nonetheless, this little turd was just what was missing in his team and he would catch him somehow. "Morticia, go and knock him unconscious." The girl was his ace card. If she couldn't do it then he'd have no faith that his team of Mortys are even worth keeping, small as it was as of yet. With determination, Morticia stepped forward, ready to punch the living daylights out of the fanboy. Just as she was about to attack him – delivering a hard kick straight into his stomach – the Super Morty Fan started to fanboy again. "Oh wow! You're a girl! Aww and so cute!!" Embarrassingly enough the compliment made Morticia halt in her actions and blush. Rick only groaned. This girl had been his last hope. He was never going to win against the Council of Dicks with these useless Mortys… As the Super Fan glomp-hugged Morticia, Morty became emphatic enough at the girl's plight that he tried to come to her help, ignoring the possible "danger" of getting to close into the fanboy's range. Helplessly he tried to pull the other boy off of his victim and soon you could only see a tangle of yellow and limbs. Seeing the mess, Shadow Morty found heart again to also join in and managed to wrestle his two comrades free. As Super Fan Morty – apparently a very forgetful boy – tried to hug the specter again and plummeted to the ground, Rick stepped in and injected the chip to the boy's temple. All four stood with baited breath and watched the LED blinking. "Peep! Peep! Peep!" the annoyingly high and loud sound that accompanied the blinking was echoing through the cave. "Peeep!!" With the loudest beep-noise, the light turned green and the C-137 team released the breath that they had been holding. On second thought, the Mortys started to wonder if they even wanted to have this guy in their group. Well, nothing to be done about that now. Rick had already made up his mind and would keep this one as long as he proved that he could win some battles. The entire team watched as the chip reprogrammed the Morty's memories and as the glazed-look vanished from his face and his eyes were focused again, the three Mortys started to hold their breath again. "Hey, Rick. Wow, what's going on? Who are these Mortys?" he grinned happily as his sight landed on his teammates. "Those are your new playmates. Try to get along with them and don't harass them too much, okay?" Rick explained and took a big sip from his flask. The trio was grateful that Rick was trying to do some damage control. They knew that they needed that kind of support from their grandfather and leader. "Okay, Rick." Super Fan Morty chirped happily.

Morty K-4872 had done his research and he had done it really thoroughly. He could testify that Dirty Rick had so many felonies on his back that he would be stuck in jail for a really long time if he would hand him over to the authorities. However, none of the things that he had found out linked him in any way to the illegal Morty brothel ring. Then again, dealings like that were so well guarded and kept secret that they were probably not easy to unearth with just a little search about background history. No, in this case Morty would have to get his hands dirty and make this up close and personal. Actually, he hated interrogations, though usually his Rick was the one who led those while Morty had to inflict the torture and pain at his mentor's command. This was easily the top reason why he hated interrogations in the first place. But this time, it would be different because this time his grandfather wouldn't lead – he wouldn't even help him out with it. And this was bound to make all the difference. Yet, the Morty was still unsure if he could really go through with it. He had to! This wasn't for himself, but for the sake of all the other Mortys who were in pain and tortured and the ones that were in the very danger of ending up like that. Who knew how many Mortys counted on him rescuing them from their cruel fate and how many more needed to be protected so that they wouldn't have to suffer, too? Morty-abuse was sadly enough such a common thing in the Rick community – not just on the Citadel, but in general – that it was beyond believable that there were still some who felt the need to stack such heinous crimes on top of it and make the lives of every Morty Smith in the multiverse even harder and more unbearable than it already was! With those thoughts as motivation in his mind, K-4872 stomped inside the Morty Games Coliseum. His Rick was slowly following him, clearly with far less enthusiasm as the boy. Why should he get worked up over this though? This was his boy's mission and not his own after all. Morty didn't have to search for long, quickly finding a counter at which his target stood positioned at. It was really just the counter on the right side, just after entering the entrance hall. He was so easy to recognize with his cocky smirk, sharp angled face, dark bags under his eyes, the long slicked down hair that he tied together in a loose ponytail and the cheap suite that he wore. The tasteless bling in the form of golden rings on his hands of which one held onto a toothpick and in the shape of a bunch of ear studs as well as an unoriginal necklace that had a golden lock dangling from it, didn't make him one bit more likable. His entire appearance screamed shady whether it were those tattoos that he so openly presented on his neck and the back of his hand or that band aid on his cheek that was covering up a fresh wound that might probably leave a lasting scar… or that facial hair of his. In short he looked like a dirty rat! This was without a mistake the Rick that he was looking for. Rick D-9 – Dirty Rick. With an air full of confidence, he walked over to the counter. It was finally time to get his hands dirty… The Rick looked down at him in slight confusion, only used to dealing with Ricks and not with Mortys themselves. "Whazzup? Ya lost dat Rick of yaz?" he asked slightly irritated in an odd accent. "I'm not looking for my Rick. I'm looking for some answers!" Morty K-4872 practically spat as he tried to look the other down with narrowed eyes.

Morty C-137 still couldn't stop thinking about their last battle. It was a fight against a trainer, but this one hadn't been alien, at least not to him – it had been his dad. He had an Ad Space Morty, a Jerry Morty and a Jerry Fan Morty on his side and he happened to overhear from the trio that he didn't even catch them, but the Mortys had decided to stay with him out of sympathy. After his loss, his father had only begged Rick pathetically to not tell Beth about the Pocket Mortys fad because he worried that things would get really ugly and violent if he did. Well, Morty's mom was extremely competitive at times so he could imagine it pretty well. He still kind of wondered how his dad got involved into this – or from which dimension he was for that matter. Then again, it probably made as much sense as the Burger King rip-off of at the Citadel – Jerry King – which had been build and was run by a bunch of Jerrys (and Mortys). Rick had made it a point to avoid that fast food joint though. Even if he did want to try them all out, no one said that he couldn't leave out a few. Thankfully, the dimension that they were in right now looked normal again. Actually, it was even more normal than "normal". Not only were they outside again, but the dirt looked brown and the grass looked green. The sky was blue and the trees looked just the same like they did in Morty's home dimension. If he didn't know any better he'd say they were actually on earth again. Only the fact that they rarely met any humans and only alien Morty trainers, reminded Morty C-137 again that this wasn't home. "Heads up, dipshits. Here comes the final boss." Rick declared as they walked straight towards a big boss battle arena. The brunet gulped and his comrade's faces became steely and hard as they climbed the stairs. No matter how often they faced off against a Rick leader, it never became easier. Quite the opposite actually. However, Morty was hit by surprise as he saw whom they were up against. The opposing Rick wore a pink blazer, blue shirt, light-blue pants, green socks, white shoes and pink-tinted mirroring sunglasses. His ashen skin also looked a little more like a tan. Somehow, he looked like he came straight from the beach. However, not only the Rick looked very unusual. Morty was quite impressed by the four interdimensional counterparts that stood behind the gym leader. They were Sexy Devil Morty, Super Unicorn Morty, Turbulent Juice Morty and Mortaion Morty. Especially the last one drew Morty's attention to herself – for several reasons. "W-w-wow." He stuttered and blushed. "Why does the other Rick have so se—uh—handsome Mortys?" "Yeah, I've heard of this guy. He's called Miami Rick and owns a nightclub in his earth's dimension's Miami." Rick replied as if that would explain everything. Morty only looked strangely at his grandfather now. Any further questions that he might have had were lost as the battle was finally about to start. "Let's just get over this quickly. I've got places to be, Rick." Miami Rick said and selected his first Morty – Sexy Devil Morty. "Heh, that's my line, Rick." Rick C-137 commented and sent his original grandson on the field who sighed. He didn't really feel like fighting anymore against other versions of himself. Honestly, what exactly was even the point of those battles? Wasn't it all just for Ricks' selfish entertainment again? As his Rick sent him a stern glare, he at least tried to put up a determined front again. No matter how he looked at it, they would have to win and just get through some more battles if they ever wanted to attempt catching that Mysterious Rick and finally go back home again. So, he tried to direct the anger that he felt for Ricks on his opponent even if the other Morty didn't deserve it. Actually, the Sexy Devil Morty looked pretty harmless. He looked like he was only a boy who for some odd reason was still wearing last year's Halloween costume. Additionally he looked as uncomfortable about having to fight as he felt at the moment. Admittedly, Morty C-137 felt really bad for having to beat him up. "Well, c'mon Morty. Use swing." His Rick commanded impatiently. "Yeah, yeah, Rick." The brunet mumbled back unenthusiastically and went to attack his enemy. Since the other brunet just stood there still with the expression of discomfort on his face, Morty closed his eyes as he took a swing. He blinked them open in surprise again the next moment as he noticed that he only hit air. The devilish Morty had dodged his attack and his face has warped into one of boredom now. "Uugh… Morty! What the heck was that?!" Rick C-137 immediately scolded his dumb grandson for missing his opponent. It was now the other Rick's turn to order his Morty to attack. "Quick, Sexy Devil Morty! Use your surprise attack! 666!" The boredom shifted to malice as the boy suddenly pulled a pitchfork from behind his back. Morty C-137's eyes widened at the sight. Where had the other even hid that thing? Since he was still in shock, C-137 was reacting too slowly as the other Morty attacked him. He screamed like a banshee as the prongs of the fork pierced the skin of his arm. After the hit, he felt even worse though. He groaned sluggishly and staggered, barely able to hold himself up anymore. "What's wrong, Morty? It was just a little prick. Can't have hurt that much." Rick's irritated voice penetrated the fog inside the boy's mind. "I-I-I think… I've been poisoned…" he moaned painfully. "WHAT?!" Miami Rick cackled now along with his Morty. "Indeed. That special attack of my Morty is poisonous." He boasted. Now it was Rick C-137's turn to groan. In annoyance. He rummaged inside his coat and dug a green capsule-shaped object out of it. "You're real lucky that we just picked this up from another trainer a few battles ago, right Morty?" he said as he went over to his grandson and used the serum that was labeled poison-be-gone. The item immediately cured the horrible effect and Morty instantly felt better. "Thanks, Rick." He said in an honest tone and with a sincere smile. "Psht! Just do better now and don't get poisoned again, you little shit. I don't have unlimited supplies of that stuff, you know?" the older man replied contemptuously. Morty nodded and luckily noticed from the corner of his eyes that the boy in the red spandex suit tried to attack him with the trident-like weapon again. This time his reaction was much faster and he not only evaded the attack but also countered and managed to disarm his opponent. The glowing-red hayfork fell with a loud clank on the ground just outside of the ring. Sexy Devil Morty looked with a highly displeased face after it. Next thing the boy found himself also on the ground since Morty C-137 had slammed into him. Said boy was sitting on his opponent now and began to lay into him. After that mean and devious attack, C-137 saw no point in holding back anymore. The other had been only playing the role of an innocent boy and tried to trick him so he would let his guard down and worst of all, it had actually worked. Morty C-137 didn't stop his attacks until he was sure that the other was no longer able to fight. "Yeah, Morty! That's what I'm talking about!" Rick C-137 cheered, actually a little proud of his grandson. Miami Rick didn't look as fazed as his first defeated Morty crawled back to his side again. He only nodded with his head towards his Mortaion Morty who now stepped onto the battlefield. Morty C-137 gulped a little and blushed as his new opponent winked at him. "C'mon, Morty! Get a grip!" His grandfather sounded annoyed again as he saw how Morty was acting. "Y-you're right, Rick!" he said and tried to focus again. "I really shouldn't feel this weird about an alien girl version of myself." Miami Rick interrupted this time. "Actually, that one's not really a Morty. She's part of an exotic type of space sirens who just happen to look like a sexy female Morty. So it's not like this would be considered narcissism or selfcest or something like that…" "WHA-WHAT?!" the revelation was so shocking to Morty that he again failed to dodge his enemy's attack. "Goddammit, Morty! Don't be an idiot! She's obviously a trap!!" Rick C-137 shouted. Unfortunately, this information confused the brunet only more. "What? What's that supposed to mean, Rick?" His inattentiveness towards his opponent rewarded him with another hard punch and more damage towards his health. The Mortaion Morty didn't stop in her attacks and kept going with a mix of flirting and precise, strong hits. So, it didn't take very long till Morty C-137 was on the ground. "Damn, Morty! I can't really watch this anymore." His Rick groaned again. "Tag out. Morticia, you go in. Take care of that bitch!" The girl stepped forward, looking more determined than ever. Obviously, that flirtatious attitude of the other female Morty was something that Morticia took personally. 'There's no way that that cheap whore is going to beat me!' she thought with envy clearly flashing in her eyes. The space siren noticed it easily and giggled sweetly in amusement. This in turn made the brunette narrow her eyes even more. The tension between the two girls became quickly thick enough that you could cut it with a knife. "Oouuuh, a real cat fight!" Super Fan Morty suddenly started to blurt out. "The only thing that would make it better would be if there was mud in the arena." "Hah! I agree with that." Miami Rick commented from his side of the field. Rick C-137 looked at both his opponent and his own Morty weirdly. "…I would agree, too…if those two were hot chicks instead of Mortys." The girls didn't take any notice about the conversation that was going on about them. They were still too busy staring each other down. Quick as a flash, Morticia was the first one to strike. The Mortaion Morty blocked her punch with her arm as if it was nothing. Seems like the siren wasn't just all looks. She proved it further by dealing a punch to the yellow-shirted girl. A heated fight broke out in which fists flew and kicks were dealt out in almost rapid succession. Somewhere in between the girls even started to use cheap methods like scratching and hair pulling. It was quite a mess to watch. Despite the even hits, it soon began to look like Morticia was the one on the losing end. She was in a really bad shape, littered with scratch marks and bruises and panting rather heavily while her opponent still looked mostly fine if you ignored her disheveled hair. Still, the brunette swore to herself that she wouldn't back down and win this match. So, she concentrated all of her remaining strength in her one last move. Quick as a bee she lunged at the Mortaion Morty. The other almost burst out laughing, thinking that her opponent's aim was completely off. However, it wasn't since Morticia hadn't tried to hit the alien girl. It was something that the green-skinned siren only noticed after it was already too late. The Mortys and even the Ricks blushed at the view. Mortaion Morty screeched in a high pitch as she covered herself with her arms. Morticia had grabbed her skimpy clothes and managed to tear them off, completely exposing the other. Blinded by humiliation, the alien suddenly fled from the battle arena while still screaming loudly. "So, that's what you meant with trap…" Morty C-137 mumbled, brows furrowing. "H-Hey! Wait a second!!" Miami Rick called after his escaping Morty, but it was no use. Since he was still in the middle of a battle, he also couldn't just chase after her. He sighed and groaned sarcastically. "Great…" After all the trouble, he went through to catch one of those… "Well, no helping it." His posture was back to normal again. "Guess it's your turn now, Super Unicorn Morty." The impressive, tall and muscular Morty with the long pink and blue mane stepped forward now. Since Morticia had been weakened a lot in her battle, Rick C-137 decided to switch her out. "Come back here, Morticia. Shadow Morty, you go out there and win us that badge!" He was actually convinced that the specter might be enough to finish this entire arena fight. After all the ghost-like Morty was almost undefeated. The pretty Morty on the enemy side still looked as relaxed as ever. Rick C-137 thought that the unicorn might even be high. Not that it mattered. If anything, this would make the fight probably even easier for them. "Shadow Morty, use one of your dark and creepy attacks. Wha-what-whatever they're called." He ordered. Obediently, the shade went forward with the intent to deal some deadly damage to his opponent. Super Unicorn Morty didn't even attempt to evade the oncoming attack. Maybe the drugs in his system made him oblivious to the danger that he was currently facing. At least that was what Rick C-137 had thought until Shadow Morty lashed out and… nothing. The unicorn wasn't bothered because he seemed to know that it would deal no damage to him. That was odd. How was that even possible? Miami Rick cackled in delight, clearly having expected this. "Ha ha ha! Didn't you know that light beats darkness? Time to use your rainbow powers, Super Unicorn Morty!" In an instant, the powerful Morty began to attack. The pink horn on his forehead started to spin like a drill and shot rainbow-colored laser beams at the specter. Shadow Morty shrieked in pain and immediately went to hide behind his Rick's back. "Oh, c'mon. You can't be serious!" he looked in disbelieve at the odd and magical creature and then to the frightened shadowy phantom behind his back. It was obvious that trying to send out Shadow Morty again would only end in failure and since Morty and Morticia were already out for the count it left him with only one choice. "Guess there's no helping it. We're tagging out. It's your turn now, Super Morty Fan Morty." He said with little enthusiasm. "Really, Rick? I can? Can I?" the fanboy asked excitedly and jumped up and down. Apparently, he was very delighted to be facing the pretty Morty. Rick C-137 was unsure if that was a good sign or not, but he had hope that this Morty would win him at least this battle. What to do with the remaining Morty that still stood waiting beside his Rick was something that he would think about when the time for it came. Even if he were short on Mortys, maybe a miracle would occur today no matter how little the scientist believed in such things like fate and wondrous happenings. As it was, he could only watch the delirious version of his grandson enter the battleground now. The Super Fan immediately hugged the other Morty around the middle who was again completely unimpressed. Still, the fanboy only continued to hug. Miami Rick laughed again. "What? Is that all that your Morty can do?" Rick C-137 felt embarrassed beyond believe because apparently that was the only thing that his Morty would do. "Super Fan, attack him properly, will you!" he yelled clearly frustrated. "Nooo. I don't wanna." The crazy Morty argued back. "He's just too pretty. And just look at all those gold handprints on his body. Can I touch them, too?" Rick only slapped a hand on his face while the gym leader guffawed loudly. Super Unicorn Morty still looked as calm as ever and awaited further orders from his trainer who was too busy trying to catch his breath again. Miami Rick actually had to hold his pained side and wiped tears from his underneath his shades. For as strong as a Morty like the super unicorn was, he sadly was too dumb to actually act on his own so he still continued to wait and just ignored the fanboy that was still clinging to him. "Oh, hey! Hey! Can I take a selfie with you?" Super Fan asked his opponent and dug around in his pocket for his mobile. Rick C-137 was at a loss for words and Miami Rick almost died of laughter since the battle became only more hilarious. He was suddenly interrupted though as his mobile phone began to ring. Quickly calming down again, he ignored the ongoing battle that he had and answered. "Hello, Rick speaking?" "Where the heck are you, Daddy?" a voice which sounded like that of a Morty immediately started to bitch on the other end. "Sorry, Princess, but I'm currently very busy." He replied. Being distracted by the call, he almost didn't notice what went down on the battleground.

Super Morty Fan Morty finally found his own mobile and proceed to take a selfie with his opponent. Upon taking the photo, the sudden flash blinded the unicorn and made him momentarily dizzy.

Rick C-137 perked up at that and saw the perfect chance to land a hit on the enemy.

Being quick on his feet about it, he shouted. "Quick, Morty Fan! Glomp hug him!"

Now that was an order that the fanboy could follow and he tackled his enemy who fell to the ground.

"Shit! Morty!" Miami Rick yelled, noticing that the other side managed to land a hit on them.

Immediately a voice on the other end of his mobile started to yell.

Rick talked back into his phone. "What? No, not you!"

Seeing that his opponent was still distracted, C-137 continued to attack.

If the other didn't fight back it wasn't his problem.

"Morty Fan, choke hug him!" He commanded with a big grin on his face since the tables had turned now.

His Morty followed through with it swiftly.

Surprisingly his hug was really strong enough to make Super Unicorn Morty fight for air.

"Goddammit!" Miami Rick cursed. "Princess, I'm kinda busy right now… what? No. I'm not in the middle of another drug deal right now!"

C-137 just didn't leave his opponent a chance for a comeback.

"Just squeeze the air out of him." He said, not even bothering trying to come up with a different attack pattern.

While Miami Rick was still in a discussion with his original Morty on the other end who insisted that he came back home to him right now, he could only helplessly watch as his strongest Morty lost consciousness and was therefore unable to continue the fight.

The man could only groan and nodded towards his last standing Morty.

Seeing, as Turbulent Juice Morty didn't seem to get the gesture, he said, "Drag Unicorn out of the ring and get in there."

The blond followed suite and picked his unconscious comrade up to place him next to the dizzy Sexy Devil Morty before taking the Unicorn's place.

"Now use your muscles to squash him, Morty! No! Again, I don't mean you, Princess!"

Rick C-137 actually feared that they might lose the last battle as the tanned and muscular Morty approached the fanboy and tried to squish him in his arms.

Surprisingly the Morty Fan took it rather well though.

"Oh, you wanna hug, too?" he said slightly breathless and wiggled around enough so that he could hug his opponent back.

C-137 wasn't sure if he should be amazed or just plain weirded out by his latest catch. The Morty really had a displaced view of reality as long as it involved other Mortys, didn't he?

Nonetheless, since Miami Rick was still on his phone and trying to pacify Miami Morty, he had to try to use this chance to turn this battle into his favor again.

However, it seemed that his lucky star had burned out because no matter how good Super Fan Morty had held up against his opponent in the end he was still crimped with such a force that he eventually lost consciousness.

"Ugh, it would have been too good to be true…" Rick groaned as the now dizzy Morty was carelessly dropped on the ground.

He looked over at his team again.

His original Morty was clearly out of it and in no condition to fight.

Morticia might have been able to go for a bit longer, but she was also too badly wounded so using her would be pretty pointless.

That only left Shadow Morty who had been wounded by Super Unicorn Morty's attack and still looked quite frightened, but was the only one in the condition to battle.

"Well, Shadow Morty. Looks like it's your turn to try again." He said and motioned with his head towards the still standing enemy.

The specter still looked out of it and only reluctantly floated back into the ring again.

Morticia meanwhile had been kind enough to pick up the Morty Fan and drag him next to Morty C-137.

The ghostly Morty floated unsure back and forth in front of the enemy.

"What the heck are you waiting for?! Just attack the other Morty!" C-137 yelled.

Shadow Morty ignored the order and looked like he was too scared to approach his opponent.

Miami Rick then found the time between his call to order Turbulant Juice Morty to attack. "Just crush this one like the other Morty!"

Then he was back to discussing with his dialogue partner on the phone who started to quip again over one thing or another.

The tall blond Morty followed the command and approached the tiny floating shade.

Shadow Morty screeched in fright as his enemy tried to grab him but passed through.

Both looked at each other dumbly.

The phantom-like Morty blinked before he seemed to overcome his fear and rose up above till he was hovering over his opponent.

With his confidence back intact, the specter expanded like a stormy raincloud and encased his enemy.

Both Ricks were gaping as they watched the whole scene unfold in front of their eyes.

Thunder was emanating from the shadowy cloud as dark spiked tendrils rained down on the confused Turbulent Juice Morty.

After everything was over, Shadow Morty returned to his previous form and returned to his Rick's side, content now after he had gotten his revenge on the enemy side for scaring him as they had.

"What the heck…?" Miami Rick could only muttered and almost dropped his phone as he looked at his defeated Morty.

Again, the voice of his original Morty piped up on the other end of the line.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm on the way." He answered and finally hung up.

As C-137 marched towards him, he threw the badge over to him and grabbed his portal gun.

He first opened a portal for team C-137 and then one for himself since he had to get back to his

princess

immediately.

"Trouble in paradise, huh?" C-137 mocked.

"Mind your own fucking business." Miami Rick replied with a frown and then was gone.

His beaten Mortys were left behind forgotten.

"Um, should we bring them to the Healing Center?" Morty C-137 asked as he looked down on the defeated opponents while clutching at his own wounds.

"Nah. We'd probably only get in trouble if we do, since those aren't my Mortys." Rick replied and took a swig from his flask again. He had been too preoccupied in the battle to think about his alcohol and really needed a drink now.

"You don't want our asses getting hauled into prison because we've been accused of stealing another Rick's Mortys, do you?" he asked as he saw that his grandson was still staring pitifully at the other injured Mortys.

Morty sighed, but agreed with his Rick and followed him through the portal that would bring them back to the Citadel.

Of course, that didn't mean that he was okay with what they were doing.

The system that all of those Ricks had built was truly fucked up.

Morty K-4872 huffed as he walked away from Dirty Rick's counter in the entrance hall of Morty Games. His Rick had been waiting close by the entrance with crossed arms and folding one leg over the other as he casually leaned against the wall. As he saw his Morty approaching, he arched his eyebrow and asked, "You done here?" "I can't get anything out of him…" the boy replied, his eyes downcast. He had tried to pry for information, but that Rick was a sly one who didn't even slip up a little. Morty K-4872 had tried every little trick in the book, used everything that he had learned in the time that he had spent with his mentor and gone through every intimidation tactic that was available to him and yet, he got nothing out of him. Obviously, the innocent front that the Rick had put up was completely fake – his nickname was Dirty Rick for a reason and his appearance practically spelled out that he was shady. However, there was no way for Morty to get the information that he wanted. Not even bribing seemed to work. "So you are done here?" Rick K-4872 asked for confirmation again. "I'm at my ropes end here, Rick! I'm sure the guy does know something, but I just can't make him spill the beans!" the boy almost shouted in his frustration. He didn't want to leave yet. Not until he had done his investigation of this Rick properly. However, he also couldn't whip out a gun at this place and demand answers from him. He'd be kicked out by the security and probably even arrested because owning an unauthorized gun at the Citadel was illegal and the only Ricks and Mortys who were allowed to carry weapons were the police force and the military. So, he saw no chance to proceed here. There was nothing left for him to try. He really hit a dead-end this time… "Okay, I get it. You're donesies." Rick said and stood up straight. Morty wanted to protest that they couldn't just leave like this, but to his surprise his grandfather and mentor didn't move to leave, but started to walk in the direction of the counter where he had just come from. Without looking back at his grandson, he said, "I know, I said that I'll let you handle the entire investigation and I wouldn't intervene with it, but it looks like a Morty can't get any further than this…" '…so we have to use other methods now. Rick methods.' He continued to think as he approached Rick D-9. Morty could only look with wide eyes as his mentor talked with the suspect and they seemed to go along pretty well if Dirty Rick's laughs were any indication. His grandfather then came back and without another word left. Morty followed quickly behind him as he noticed it. "W-what did he say? Could you find something out?" he stuttered while trying to keep up with the other's long strides. Still not answering, Rick leaned against the wall at the far corner of the Morty Games building and lit a cig. This attitude confused Morty and he decided to give his grandfather a little more time to answer. However as he noticed that he wouldn't get one and Rick only calmly continued to smoke, he got irritated. Just as he wanted to shout something at his mentor, Rick stood straight once again, looked back to the entrance and threw his half-smoked cigarette to the floor before vanishing around the corner. Following the other's gaze, he could see that Dirty Rick was approaching them, but he completely ignored Morty and also vanished around the same corner. The boy's eyebrows drew together and he also followed the men, not wanting to be left out of the action. The action was already going on though as he came around the corner and saw how his Rick had pushed the other against the wall and held him up by the scruff of his shirt. "I hope you can give us the information we want now?" Rick K-4872 asked, his face so close to the other that their noses were almost touching as he glowered. "W-wat? I-I dunno a'thin, buddy. R-really." Rick D-9 said, lifting up his hands in a defensive motion and putting on a fake smile again. "Fine. If you don't wanna talk, I guess I'll just have to make you!" With those words, he was starting to beat the living daylights out of the other Rick. Morty was shocked at what unfolded before his very eyes. He had never seen his grandfather look as menacing as that and this and his violent behavior actually scared him. Usually his grandfather was so calm and calculating – the perfect example of being in complete control of himself – so it was really unnerving to see him act like this. In the darkness and solitude of the little alley, no one would come to Dirty Rick's rescue and all three people present knew it. That's why Dirty Rick eventually gurgled out a little response that sounded like "S-stop… I'll tell ya…" "Oh, so you do know something now?" Rick K-4872 spat and stopped beating up his victim, but still held onto the scruff of his now bloody shirt. "I a'mit it. I've work'd fur Rick A-66, but I swear I only sold thems drugz once and I dunno where'z he at now!" "What?! That's not what I wanted to know! I want to know about the Mortys!" Dirty Rick looked slightly disoriented for a moment, but as the other raised his fist again, he started to speak up. "Okay—okay! I'll tell ya. We get te Mortyz from Day Care. It'z te onez that're assigned to Boot Camp trainin 'cause dat way we can beat t'o birdz wiz one stone." He hastily answered. Rick K-4872 looked irritated "What do you mean with that?" "I mean dat they're get theirz trainin and we have Mortyz dat we can lend out fur te battlez. But dun tell no one dat you had thiz from me." Dirty Rick knew that his boss would have his head if he knew that he just leaked out confidential information. This wasn't exactly something that anyone should really find out about… Dirty Rick was drawn out of his thoughts by a kick in the crotch. "That's not what I wanted to know! I wanted to know about the Morty sex trafficking. I don't care how far you're involved in that shit, I just want names or addresses. Just spill it already!!" Rick K-4872 wondered if he was trying to take him for some kind of schmuck. Why would he want to know where Morty Games got the Mortys that they were lending out for the tournaments? Unless those were further sold off to any brothels that information was completely irrelevant to him. "I dunno a'thin 'bout dat." Dirty Rick answered. Apparently that was the wrong answer because Rick K-4872 started to beat him up again, hitting with such a force that he nearly broke bones despite their special metallic coating, which made them sturdier. Ricks got those enhancements for a reason… Morty winced as he watched, but didn't dare to intervene. After all, he was the one, who wanted that information and if this was the only way to make that Rick talk then he wouldn't stop his grandfather. After the sound of some cracking – definitely the enhanced bones – Dirty Rick gurgled out another response again. "You remember something now?!" Rick K-4872 yelled as he stopped hitting his victim again. "List'n! I really dunno a'thin 'bout thez Morty kidnappinz!" Rick D-9 whimpered. Just as the other lifted his fist again, he quickly added, "B-but I can tell ya sum interestin information that mighta help ya find te culprit." "And what information would that be?" the glasses wearing Rick asked, not looking convinced. "It'z about te owner of Morty Inc. Pretty sure he'z got sumthin to do wiz it. Ya'll think so, too, after I'll tell ya wat kinda guy he iz…"

Bonus: In dimension C-899, a certain Jellybean was hiding behind some bushes. He wore a yellow baseball cap and other Morty merchandise. How he came here or why he was even still alive was something that no one could answer… "Hehehe. I've heard that a naked Morty was running around in this dimension." He whisper-talked and rubbed his hands together in glee. As soon as he had heard of that he had come to this dimensions and been lurking in the hopes of catching that Morty. He perked up as he heard sounds of running and got ready to jump out of the bushes to surprise the Morty. Just as something moving came into sight, he leaped up and tried to catch it. The Mortaion Morty screeched as someone jumped in her way and she bashed and kicked her (attempted) assaulter. After her opponent was on the ground, she stomped over him and continued to run while still trying to cover up her exposed body. Mr. Jellybean laid in a heap on the ground. His sticky green blood was pooling around him and his body was dotted in blotches of black and blue from all the bruises he received. The candy-like creature looked thoroughly crushed and bashed in and didn't move anymore…

AN: Lame bonus, I know. But take it as a little homage to the now removed Mr. Jellybean in the game.

Part 11 of Entricked Fates

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Part 1 of Entricked Fates: Gotta Catch Me Some Morty

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Part 2 of Entricked Fates: Mortyfied and Rickfused

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Part 3 of Entricked Fates: Ricking the Routine

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Part 4 of Entricked Fates: Ricks will always be Ricks

oneshot

Part 5 of Entricked Fates: The Morty-Lover

oneshot

Part 6 of Entricked Fates: Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Part 7 of Entricked Fates: Rickvestigating the Morty Disappearances

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Part 8 of Entricked Fates: When the Morty’s away, the Rick will play

oneshot

Part 9 of Entricked Fates: It’s Not His Ricking Fault!

oneshot

Part 10 of Entricked Fates: I Ricking Hate My Life!

oneshot

Part 12 of Entricked Fates: The Mortys and their Stories

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

[cuddleslutloki]

I have a genuine question. How often do you actually deal with antis? I've been following you for a bit now and it seems every so often you bring up antis. I've certainly kept my interest about thorki shut and locked away in a box from my friends for the simple fact that all of them think it's incest. It's not an easy topic of conversation but you just seem to handle all the antis so well? Also on an off note about beast!Thor, his favorite pass time must just be rutting into Loki 24/7 🤔

when someone tells you that you're romanticizing abuse [bc i made a stockholm moodboard for a fic] I don't know what I'm supposed to say other than I don't condone it but I write about it? Is writing about abusive relationships bad in writing??? you're the only person i ask for advice so thank you for anything in advance

i’m honestly really glad you came to me. i really do like discussing this topic in this kind of way bc i’ll never reblog an anti or answer an anti ask. even if you’re arguing against them, i don’t think it’s worth it to argue against them if it means also spreading what they’re saying

the basic premise of all anti behavior and ideology is censorship. that’s all it is. 

“i don’t like this topic, you need to stop writing it and making art for it. if you don’t stop there will be consequences.”

that is censorship and that is the kind of shit fandom has had to fight ever since there’s been fandom. women, poc, lgbt+ folks have been dealing with people telling us what we can and can’t write and enjoy for... well, probably forever. but we’re still here, creating the kind of content we want to see and indulge in.

as far as how to deal with antis, my advice is to ignore, ignore, ignore. they want what any bully wants: attention

you stop paying attention, you stop giving them time they don’t deserve from you, they’ll die off. there’s no point in fighting them directly. produce the content you want to see and enjoy what you want to enjoy. drown them out. you don’t owe them a response just because they come to you. they don’t have any qualms about being rude to you, so be rude back and just ignore them. i love blocking antis, personally. take out the garbage, y’know?

antis use the words ship and support as synonyms because they think that shipping is some radical call to action for lgbt rep instead of entertainment

shipping is not activism. shipping is about entertainment and enjoyment, nothing more

so this is why i have this very blasé attitude about antis. i just don’t give a fuck about them beyond making posts trashing their idiocy. because that’s what it is. it’s idiocy, but going deeper it’s puritanism at its finest. antis use fox news scare tactic logic under the guise of some pseudo feminist agenda because they don’t understand and don’t want to understand that enjoying dark fiction as entertainment isn’t equivalent to some greater moral stance

they use the same argument about shipping and fanfiction that WASP moms use against video games and loud music: that enjoying and consuming it will make you think it’s normal and there’s nothing wrong with it irl

okay, well, vlad the impaler never played CoD or far cry and caligula never watched hentai but we know why i’m bringing them up in this context without even heading over to wikipedia, don’t we?

they use the words abuse and pedophilia waaaaaayy too liberally and they’re doing more harm than good because they’re twisting and warping words that should have very specific meanings by using them so goddamn vaguely and irresponsibly 

my own personal theory is that these people are terrified that if they don’t yell in opposition to these topics 24/7 and actively attack content creators that they’d probably enjoy it, and they’ve been so programmed by the echo chamber of tumblr and twitter that they think this means they’re bad people. 

spoiler alert: that’s not what it means

i literally watched a circle jerk on twitter where screenshots of some mafia starker au got tweeted and retweeted w/ pictures of someone pouring bleach into cereal and people had asked to see more of the post. if you really don’t like something, you shouldn’t hate-read about it. it’s not productive, it does more harm than good if that’s the actual issue rather than some reverse psychology-style enjoyment they’re probably getting out of it.

they claim to hate this shit so much, but they’re reading hundreds and thousands of words and putting these images in their heads of their own free will. i don’t do that with shit i genuinely dislike. i avoid it.

i see antis say they enjoy thorki fanart because they think it’s cute, then they see it’s tagged thorki and they have an over the top reaction because the nature of anti ideology states you should never enjoy something like that, so if you do then you have to make the excuse of ignorance to prove that you’re still innocent and pure. enjoyment is apologism to them because they aren’t content to simply attack fan creators, they want to try and drive away the people who consume our art as well because they know you’re the cornerstone of fandom. consumers are why creators create. yeah, i write because i enjoy it, but i also write to connect to my readers and have people commenting on my fics when they like them.

it’s also worth noting that antis only ever talk about shipping. they only talk about sexual and romantic ships. i’ve never seen an anti talk about (often extreme) levels of violence in canon source material for the ships and characters they want to froth at the mouth over. 

seeing someone bleed out and choking on their own blood after being stabbed or shot or bludgeoned? meh

seeing a character who was once a child have a sexual thought about a character who was also once a child and is also their close friend? omg why are we trying to make fandom unsafe for people?

personally, i’ve also noticed that fandoms with darker canon material tend to have more chill fandoms most of the time. i think it also depends on the average age in a given fandom. there’s a major difference between fannibals and steven universe fans, let’s just say that.

creating a moodboard for a dark fic is not “romanticizing abuse” and at this point antis honestly have no fucking idea what that phrase is. they use those words the way a bored CEO uses social media buzzwords and hashtags in a staff meeting

if antis want to see true romanticizing of abuse then they can go to serial killer thirst tags and spot the fucking differences between shippers and people who forget that ted bundy was weak, flaccid, cowardly piece of shit

writing something dark or violent or whatever else and condoning the act or doing the act are different. this is why stephen king isn’t under government surveillance or in prison.

make no mistake, this anti shit only applies to fandom. they’re attacking creators here because creators out at the professional levels don’t give a fuck. they’ve tried, and they’ve failed. 

creators at the professional level understand something antis don’t: that being able to reconcile your enjoyment of dark media can be a sign of emotional intelligence and good emotional health. it’s cathartic. it’s allowed to be cathartic.

the most common consumers of dark fiction are members of minority communities and people who’ve been emotionally and/or sexually repressed for one reason or another. 

antis want to say that fiction doesn’t exist in a vacuum and they are 100% correct! because writing fanfiction and original fiction that relates to parts of my life that nearly killed me gives me control over something that was beyond me in the original context. writing about fucked up codependent, violent romance allows me to process my shit in a way that’s healthy and produces something fun and enjoyable.

my therapist knows i ship thorki, she knows i write thorki. i’ve had her read pieces of fanfiction i’ve written in addition to pieces of original fiction. y’know what she said? “wow, baylen, that’s vivid. you have a way with words!”

i read her a line out of smart boy and told her what the story was about and this trained professional said “well it’s a productive way to process some emotion that you clearly need to let out”

but you know what? if someone doesn’t have the trauma i have? let them write it, too! let them create and enjoy the fictional content they want! more cake, y’all!

finally getting around to one of the first parts of your ask, lol. thorki is incest. thor and loki are brothers. they were raised believing they were blood brothers, even. loki being adopted doesn’t change a thousand years of personal history where thor looked at loki and thought that they came out of the same woman, y’know? 

that’s his brother and in the comics his attachment to loki is even more intense. the mcu nerfed that shit. loki’s life has been intrinsically tied to thor’s ability to feel a full sense of joy. 

enjoying an incest ship isn’t some sign of moral depravity. writing abusive relationships isn’t bad. gone girl was made into an award winning movie. art should look like life, and sometimes life fucking sucks. dark stories, sad stories, fucked up holy shit idk if i can go to sleep after i read this stories exist for a reason. we need them. we have to have an outlet for our frustration, our anger, and especially our fear.

so which is the healthier option of these

to write up a piece of fanfiction where two siblings are in love in a way that might be cute and soft or might be destructive, depending on your mood?

or

attacking strangers you don’t know online and threatening violence against anyone who doesn’t think like you do?

i know what kind of person i want to be.

ship and let ship, thanks for reading my doctoral thesis office hours are always

[hidden-otaku-stuff]

(1) Hey! So sorry for replying late, a lot has happened these past couple of days D: but I hope you've been doing good! (I say as if I've been gone for months aksjdf) anyway, yeah, they're definitely scary. I think it'll be worth being able to be that soft and open with someone though. And I'm glad it did have a positive impact on you! Even if they were hard you came out stronger or wiser in some way. And thank you, you're so sweet :') So do you hon ❤️

hey honeymoon! sorry for taking my time to respond, i hope everything’s been alright with you! 

(2) Terushima really does just seem like a big dork who loves volleyball haha. I feel like his initial vibe would make me not want to interact v much lol but once you get to know him he's actually a good person. and that tongue piercing tho 👀. "that one definitely hurts a lot more than Falling does" then I think I'm good for awhile hahaha. I've already read a sad hospital AU so I'm going to stay FAR away for now. Honestly I wish there was an interesting story behind it but there's not :')

(3) basically I had an art blog and the name of it was kind of a pun with the word "honeydew." but that nickname was already taken and I wanted to be ~original~ sso I didn't want to use it lol. I still liked the honey aspect though and I thought Honeymoon sounded cute. I'm also kind of a secret hopeless romantic and at the time I kept my identity on my art blog a secret, so it kind of felt like an "alter ego" of mine? long story short I liked the nickname and it kinda stuck haha

ok i mean, to be fair, he was super aggressive when he was meeting kiyoko. but i definitely feel like there’s that dorky side to him LMAO.

oooof idk if I can handle any angst rn tbh so i can definitely relate 😭 

that’s honestly such a cute story though??? like, that’s literally so freakin’ adorable. what type of art did you use to do? (and honestly girl, this whole blog is on the DL and i tried super hard to keep it hidden from my life LOL).

there’s nothing wrong with being a hopeless romantic though! it gives you a chance to day-dream hehe 💞 what’s your favorite romantic trope? it could be as cliche or non-cliche as you’d like! 

(4) "i’m sorry for being a sadistic fk 🥰" 😀 something tells me you're kind of not LOL (really though I know you're sweet and don't actually want to hurt people akdhf) and honestly I'm glad you decided to expand on it! Chapter one is also great as a standalone but I'm so grateful for the rest so far, and you're doing an amazing job with it love 💖 I understand the chara x chara thing. I don't know if I've ever actually shipped anything to the point of me /wanting/ it to be canon

(6) like, it'd be cool if it was, but I don't actually care y'know? unless it was actual romantic tension built up in the movie/book/series. Fanart and fic is what mostly got me lol. I think the HQ fandom is super diverse/creative in its shipping. Not only because of an incredible story with great characters, but great fans and creators as well. And yes! someone else who likes KuroIwa!! I think that ship is really cute (and they're my top 2 faves so I'm biased haha) have you seen neutinya's art?

i swear i’m nice 💞 thank you so much for the love!! 🥺 i’ve been having writer’s block for a bit, and your comments have honestly motivated me to write so much more for it LOL

i definitely agree though, like, i can’t aggressively fight for one ship over another because it’s literally just not canon. it just feels wrong to “shove that agenda”, so to speak. but it’s always interesting to see all the different character combinations. i never would’ve imagined half of the ones out there if not for this fandom LOL

neutinya’s literally why I have a thing for KuroIwa!! LMAO. i really like the art that they put out. same with bright_stars_45 on IG. Their stuff is literally why i ship Bokuaka soooo hard. 

(7) (did I skip 5?) I really hope I'm numbering those right it's 12:30 am here lol. anyway, it's probably a good thing you weren't in the fandom then. I don't know how it is now, but it was p chaotic and toxic and there was actually controversy surrounding one of those fics. I'm sorry about you and your sister love :( I don't know if you'd ever want to have a strong one with her but I hope you do if you do! and if not then there will always be people you share that with, blood or not 💕

LOL you did skip 5, but it’s okay bby 💖 it’s not too serious tbh. i’m not really close to my family, so i’ve always believed in the “my family is the one’s i choose, not necessarily the one’s i’m blood-related to” :) 

(8) Piglet has always been my fave, but Eeyore and Lumpy are also great. do you have any favorite characters or ones that mean a lot to you? and that's really cool too!! I know being mixed can get super complicated but knowing you have all of those cultures in you in some way is pretty amazing. Honestly I've been undecided for the past 2 years but after everything going on in 2020, I've felt this need to release the truth? no matter what that may be. I know a lot of people say journalism 

(9) isn't an honest profession but, and this will sound arrogant, I want to change that. Even if that just means me being an independent journalist while being an editor to make a living, I'm okay with that. Also it can give you the opportunity to travel, and writing has always been my strong suit. socio is so I can have a better understanding of the world and learn to be less biased and more objective and understanding. What about you? :O

my favorite Disney character is honestly Tiana from Princess and the Frog! her hard-working story is hella relatable to me, and it inspired me to be better for myself if that makes sense? 

TBH the most annoying part of being mixed is being called eXoTiC by guys who are tryna sleep with me 💀 there’s definitely a lot of fetishization about it lol

i hella respect that! the need to release the truth. journalism is honestly a raw and authentic profession that people underestimate because they read from biased sources or the things they read isn’t accurate. i have mad respect for you for following that career path! if there’s anything i could do to help, lmk love 💖 TBH, i chose business because i wanted to open my own business and i love psych because i love understanding the world and the people in my lives. psycho-analysing is one of my hobbies hehe. so similar as to why you did socio!

(10) and yes!!!! tbh I've always liked theatre but was never really one for the stage. I was in a child friendly version of macbeth in 6th grade and that was it lol. In my senior year of high school I performed a slam poem about my depression and my teacher called me emotionally constipated lmaoo. and because of how hs went down for me I never got to take classes anyway. I started getting into sfx/film makeup though and I really want to do that! I also just love the energy of backstage tbh

(11) this is getting really long akfdjh. but yeah I want to learn more! I'm actually kind of struggling in my stage management class right now because I honestly don't know much about theatre so it's overwhelming. I haven't even seen a lot of shows (I did see The Lion King when I was a kid though!! and a few hs productions). enough about me though, what's your favorite part, or what are some of your best memories? I love seeing that it makes you so happy :D

omg i’m so sorry that your teacher called you that. that’s so inappropriate, especially considering the subject matter. i hope that you’ve had a more positive experience involving your work since then. if you ever want to talk about your struggle, please feel free to reach out, ok? 

you must be pretty talented with makeup though! that’s so cool 🤩 i’ve always admired sfx and people who are talented with makeup tbh. what’s your favorite part about it so far? 

i was fortunate enough that my hs had a super talented theatre program that i could be a part of. i had the opportunity to be in both tech, management, and on-stage. i honestly really enjoyed being behind-the-scenes in the management part! it was so great seeing a production from start to finish and knowing that i was involved with that process. i’m a huge theatre nerd tbh 😅 i love watching shows like Phantom of the Opera, Hamilton, RENT and I’ll routinely watch them haha. 

[sinkingorswimming]

The Cosplay AU I need a name for

(Previous parts found on my cosplay au tag!)

It’s maybe two weeks after Otakon when Yuuri checks his email. He has stuff from his school about prepping for the incoming school year and a message from his class President about a seniors only gathering at the Party Bridge near campus.

He also sees one, subject: HI! <3 from sender vmnikforov@gwu.edu.

Yuuri immediately slams his laptop closed.

He covers his mouth with his hands and squeaks. His best buddy (who is not human) comes bounding off his bed to his desk with concern. Vicchan, his reddish brown toy poodle (yes, named after guess who) is Yuuri’s favorite thing in the world. 

He gets his phone, opens the mail app. Right there in the inbox, marked unread. HI! <3, sender vmnikiforov@gwu.edu.

Yelping, Yuuri closes his eyes and opens the email like it’s a bomb.

Hi, Yuuri! This is Victor, from Otakon? I saw your email on your entry form---hope you don’t mind! Anyways, I have a project in mind for Katsucon in February, and I thought you might be interested in partnering up with me! I know you usually work with your friend, but this is a special idea I’ve had for forever and I feel like after seeing your work up close, you’re the perfect fit! 

If you’re able, I’d like to get together soon to begin discussion---it’s going to be tricky to source some of the materials, especially the lace! Can we meet for dinner this weekend? Say, Saturday at six, The Source on Pennsylvania---it’ll be my treat!

Thanks, talk to you soon! <3

Victor

Yuuri screams. He’s home alone---his mom is at her book club with her old friend, Minako, his dad is golfing at Lansdowne, and his sister is away for the week with her college friends---so he doesn’t need to come up with a lie about the reason for the screams.

He calls number three on his favorites, though.

“Hey, this is Phichit,” he answers on ring #2.

“Oh my God,” Yuuri cries. “Oh my God, he wants a costume, me, us, a pair---oh my God.”

“...What?” Phichit answers.

“VICTOR EFFING NIKIFOROV WANTS TO DO A PAIR COSPLAY WITH ME,” Yuuri shouts.

“Holy shit,” Phichit replies.

“Right?” Yuuri tries to slow his heart. “What do I say? I don’t...it’s not you, it’s a pairs thing, I don’t---”

“Okay, whoa, stop,” Phichit replies. “You are not contractually obligated to only ever cosplay with me. You can do a thing with him, I’m not offended as long as you don’t completely abandon our partnership. I’ll probably do that Bleach outfit you have no interest in, it’s fine! Do the thing!”

“You sure?” Yuuri says.

“Yeah, but I’ll need your help,” Phichit says. “I can sculpt the actual Bankai stuff myself, but sewing the uniform is a little above my pay grade.”

“No problem,” Yuuri says with a sheepish grin. “Okay. Um---I better email him back. Thanks, Phichit. You’re a peach.”

“Yup, sure am!” Phichit laughs. “Talk to you later---my mom needs help with the pool.”

“Can I come swim later?” Yuuri asks.

“Yup! Leo and Guang-Hong are coming, Seung Gil maybe too. I’ll text you a time. Later, skater.” Phichit hangs up.

Yuuri reopens his computer like it’ll bite his hand off. 

Hi, Victor,

I’d love to meet with you! I’ll google the address and take the Metro. My cell is 571-585-1090 if you need to change plans or are running late. 

See you Saturday!

Yuuri

It’s Thursday. He can...be cool for two days.

Actually, no he couldn’t, as was evidenced by his mother on Friday night during their evening ritual of Catan begging him to try to stay still. He did not. Therefore his dad made him forfeit his sheep. 

Catan is an equilizer in the Katsuki household.

Yuuri can’t sleep, his nerves buzzing too much even though he played white noise through the headphones in his iPhone. Did nothing. Vicchan slept like everything was normal. 

Yuuri gets up way too early, obsesses way too long over his clothing, finally deciding he was as good as he can get, drives to the Silver Line, and begins the trek to the District. He gets off at the correct stop, walks to the restauant, and immediately regretts all of his choices up until that moment including being born. 

He is in a nice pair of jeans and a t-shirt. It’d a Wolfgang Puck dim sum restaurant. Oh no why, Victor will think he lacks culture.

“Yuuuuuri!” calls a happy, familiar voice. 

Yuuri starts and his eyes go wide. 

Victor stands before him in a linen dress shirt and a pair of salmon colored pants. His hair and skin are flawless. His eyes are beautiful. Yuuri’s heart stops and restarts. “Hi,” he manages. The shyness comes to the forefront. He wants---he isn’t sure, but...it’s something more than a hello.

He gets a hug. Victor grabs him like they’re old friends, and Yuuri hesitates but hugs him back. He pauses and takes a moment to inhale his scent---it’s not that shitty sandwalwood the douchebags at his school wear, it’s lighter...like lemon balm. 

Victor keeps a hand low on his waist as he steers him to request a table. They get a cute one for two like it’s a date. (Is it a date? Did Victor mean this as a date? Thirteen year old Yuuri will die of joy if it’s a date. It in no way can be a date.)

Victor smiles, looking like Yuuri just gave him a rainbow. “I’m glad you came,” he says.

Yuuri chokes on his water. “Uh, thanks? Um...me too.”

Victor grins. “I guess I should get down to business first. Unfortunately, it has to come before...pleasure.” 

Yuuri pushes up his eyeglasses. He nods. 

Victor pulls up an image on his phone, passing it to Yuuri. Yuuri peers down at it---it’s an elaborate fanart of Fuuma and Kamui from X/1999. They have very detailed wings, there’s obvious hand beading and embroidery on their outfits, and they’re perfectly tailored. Fuuma is in white, Kamui black, and there are red ribbons cascading off both of them. “Red string of fate,” Yuuri says out loud. 

“You spotted that,” Victor replies with a grin.

“I’ll have to get help from Phichit on the wings, I’ve never done them on my own,” Yuuri continues. 

“I have, that I can handle,” Victor says. “It’s more how finely tailored the outfits are. My tailoring is always a bit weak, so I tend to do costumes that don’t have quite such an emphasis. I have access to embroidery machines on campus, so I can have you come up to work on those. It’ll be more expedient.”

“The beading I can do in class, the home ec department is out of stuff to teach me so they just let me bring in my projects,” Yuuri admits. 

Victor gives him a look. “Wow,” he says. “And you’re...just in...high school.”

“Hm, well I turn eighteen Thanksgiving day this year,” Yuuri says. “I need to figure out college stuff soon, as a matter of fact.”

“You should come here!” Victor blurts.

Yuuri starts and looks up. “Um...”

“The Corocoran,” Victor clears up with a blush on his cheeks. “They have a production focus in their Theater program. You could...major in costuming? It’s...well, it’s an idea.”

Hm. 

“Phichit’s applying there,” Yuuri says as he zooms back in on the image. CLAMP and their Christian idolatry, yikes. “He’s going into the fine arts. I guess I could think about it.”

“I just think it’d be nice to have you around school with me,” Victor says. His finger glides over the rim of his glass in a slow pattern. “Chris Giacometti is in the photography department, but...I’d like seeing you every day too. Just think about it.”

Yuuri meets his eyes and...no, he’s imagining it. He clears his throat. “You want to make these for Katsucon?” 

“Mmhmm,” Victor says. He ordered them the duck, and it arrives, smelling crisp and mouth-watering. Yuuri is starving, he realizes. He looks at Victor again, this gorgeous guy even out of cosplay and make up and Photoshop and he---

He blushes and focuses on his dinner.

Victor chats the whole time, Yuuri chiming in where appropriate. When they finish and Victor pays as promised, he takes him on a walk. It’s late enough the murky, humid swampland that is DC has become manageable to walk around, and it’s not even ten minutes to the Mall from the restaurant. 

Yuuri mostly sees shots of the Tidal Basin at night from the end credits of his favorite local news program, but Victor escorts him there with a hand on his back as he extols the virtues of his university as well as his skills at sewing. Yuuri listens and smiles with pink cheeks, telling Victor about what he likes to do besides cosplay---video games with his friends, late nights at the Amphora diner in Reston, checking out Starland in Annandale. 

Victor opens up about his parents---his father a supervisor for a lab at Langley, his mom in the State Department, his dog Makkachin who he moved off campus into a pet-allowing studio as quickly as possible to keep by his side, how he misses the local chain called Another Universe and how he’s considering Dragoncon next year to branch out into film and American comics costumin.

They both marvel at how many times they’ve come to the annual Sakura Matsuri in their very spot at this moment and somehow never met.

The lights are pretty, the stars reflect in the water like sequins embellishing a black velvet gown, and Yuuri with all his heart longs for this to be a date. 

He’s imagining it---but some moments, it looks like Victor feels the same.

They head back to the Metro by the Newseum---Victor to GWU, Yuuri to Tysons. “Let’s do again this soon,” Victor says.”We can meet at G Street, see what our local options are, and head to my apartment for more planning.”

“Okay,” Yuuri agrees. Victor’s apartment, he exalts in his head.

“Ah, Yuuri---” Victor adds. “I have a Gaylord room for Katsu, a nice one with a view. Would you like a spot in it? There’s room for one more.”

“Oh um---” Yuuri stumbles. He’s never stayed overnight at a con before, but he’ll be 18 then. His mom and dad can’t refuse, though they’d probably want to meet Victor for reassurance.“Yes.”

“Okay,” Victor says, his smile shaped like a big heart. “Talk to you soon! I’ll text!”

“See you,” Yuuri says.

They part ways, and Yuuri can’t sleep for the second night in a row, his heart pounds so hard as his smile threatens to split his face.

[putris-et-mulier]

This shit is why I prefer reading scanlations (as opposed to licensed manga in a graphic novel)

Note: I talk about fangirls and fanboys not referring to gender or sexuality, but in the social structure way of being in a geeky subculture split into two subcultures of its own: consumerist geeks (fanboys) and creative geeks (fangirls)

Honestly, and this is super overdramatic, but I kind of feel loved when I read scanlations. Whether it's funny things like this to cover up unavoidable things that the licensed version could easily get around or a word is misspelled it makes me appreciate the work people have put into it and how proud I am to be part of that tradition.

One page takes multiple people working together just to share something they already have with other fans and depending on the fandom also made it mandatory for work like this to be done by people of different races regions of the country. The Internet was a huge boon because before that it was strictly zines and people in your neighborhood but it also added an element of people from different countries also being required to interact.. It's a lot easier now but in the 90s fangirls, much like our foremothers, somehow worked as a hive mind. No matter who you were or what languages you spoke you could contribute. (Six And I would argue you still can.) I was so lucky to near different Asian communities as well as like a lot of pop culture from Asia. When we were able to go, and had money, we would go and pick up specific titles, if possible, of things the translators wanted or else just get anything that seems the most unfamiliar. It could become a prized jewel of an OTP.

I think it's harder to feel like a community now because the "regular" fans who can't produce art or fiction or translations or brilliant meta have a lot less of a role. They are who kept the community tight and in contact with each other while those of us who could would lose a couple days because we were scanning every single page of a stack of graphic novels or magazines. I knew that if I ever needed to know or find anything I could just shout it out into the fangirl void and I would get an immediate answer because the "regular" fans were librarians on speed. That's how I met one of my closest friends, cosmic, the one I do the podcast and everything with. One of us was very loud and had a platform while the other lurked everywhere and saved everything. When I found out years later that she had seen something I had made before we met and she liked it was amazing. I wasn't upset that other people had taken it and put it on other websites or that she had taken it (and probably immediately delete it, such a jerk) I was really honored. 

It always breaks my heart when someone writes in about the podcast or something else and says that they wish they could have friends with a relationship like ours, not just because we are close but because we like different things and have different opinions and not only still get along, we respect each other's opinion and genuinely listen to each other even if we both know we will never let the other person have the last word. I've never met cosmic in person but I've known her for almost half my life exactly but I love her, she's my sister, and we wouldn't have met if the two of us were in fandom now because of the strict class differences.

The "regular" people who surfed around saving pictures and reading over any public conversation knew everything and if they didn't know they knew someone who did. Don't get me wrong, those people who didn't talk to anyone, whether to be informative or just be friendly, were despised lurkers.

The "regular" jobs are easier now but the etiquette laws are a lot more strict. It was a lot simpler when it was all just illegal and "credit to whoever made this" was widely accepted. Mostly because someone would immediately tell everyone who the creator was and people were genuinely interested in the answer because seeing anything new meant that there was something going on somewhere that you aunt and there could be things you have seen yet. It was also a lot easier to excommunicate people from the community who did things like steal fanart/fic because everyone had one IP address.

Everyone's biggest concern was sharing source material with each other, I see fans now who make gifs who are adamant about people not using them or if they do use them to credit them even if they put a watermark on it and I… That perplexes me.

Gifs were my shit, I did them for years and I started back when you did it by taking a screen cap of every frame but you would have to rewind after taking one cap and go back to hope you can identify the next one. It's because videos were impossible for so many people to view but gifs were something everyone could load at least one of if they had a few hours. It was imperative to the fandoms that connected overseas or through a different language like anime and manga fandoms. I would put hours and hours and so many fucking hours into making these things because I was an American with a good Internet connection and parents who hadn't yet found out the dangers™ of the World Wide Web™. I would lovingly make gifs of my OTPs and then begrudgingly make gifs of my nOTPs of things I was even an anti-fan of (usually a competing boy band fandom) because I had the ability to do it and there were tasteless bitches out there who couldn't and might not be able to see it unless I did it and I did this for them and I did because they were my sisters.

Also it made a fandom look bad if the anti-fandom had them out before you.

So, just like sisters.

It's so much easier to make gifs now and the majority of people have the ability to watch the original videos so people making gifs are doing the ones that they love to share with other people that also love them. But that's it? You don't want people to save them and post them as many places as possible so everyone can see what you love? Is that love? It sounds like an abusive relationship, like, "your family is allowed to come over if I know about it in advance but you can't go out with your girl friends anymore" kind of thing.

I get that a majority of fandom still only follows things through gifs so the work is still important but it's so easy to do now and unless you are in a rare fandom someone else is probably already making it. That's why I stopped; but that's another holdover I have from old fandom culture because if I made a gif of something and then someone else did it was a huge insult, and insult I would not make. 

Fanart/fic is different so although my being old school makes me less sympathetic to people who don't watermark (and people who cut off watermarks were the scum of the earth) it's also less important than the issue that corporations that have been stealing fanart/fic. Fanart/fic being published, putting fan works under their licenses, it's the thing is a community should be at least concerned about. That goes for people whose fanart is shown on TV or fan fiction is read on TV or a podcast. Fangirls from my era have literally put together legal teams to fight this. I'm proud that a lot of us have used our grown-up skills to still participate in fandom and aren't ashamed of their age.

But gifs? The tiny moving picture you made purely for self-indulgence makes you mad? I get that we came up in different fan cultures but I saw a gif on this website that I had made a decade ago on servers that no longer exist and I cried.

I had made something that I loved and not only did other people love it enough to keep it this whole time but it was thing that people who weren't even born when I made it are enjoying. They are looking at the same little pixels as their foremothers did having the same experience as generations of fans from around the world.

I sound like a fucking hippie but I swear to God I was born in the 80s and I have an obscene amount of Terminator trivia to prove it.

One of our foremothers, who in respect will remain nameless, literally invented slash as the Western genre and she didn't want anyone to know who she was. That seems a little extreme to me but that was the generation before me and so I suppose my generation probably seems out of date.

Regardless of my communist attitude I would be pretty disgruntled doing that job in this current time because you are required to do a great and unique job or no one will even notice what you made. Even if you have a huge talent for it seeing anyone insult you or just not be thankful would be infuriating.

I can also sympathize with the "regular" fans now who feel like they don't have a place. I've had a lot of people tell me that they feel guilty or they are embarrassed that they can't make anything, they can only share it, and I've also had people tell me that they wanted to get into a fandom but because they couldn't make anything they didn't bother because no one cares about them. They didn't watch movies or read books or comic books or listen to music that they may have come to really love and would play an important role in their life. They stick to their wheelhouse and their wheelhouse is what society says people that look or live a certain way determines what the you are allowed to consume.

If that isn't obvious I'll put it simply: diversity becomes more and more scarce this way. People always start with what they are expected to enjoy. Everyone comes into their hobbies and interests starting with what they've been given, already we start out with segregated media/merchandise depending on any minority or "demographic" but people coming into fandom are now coming in already segregated, even amongst people geographically similar to them. The culture of fandom, at least girl fandom, depended on people of different kinds to work together. Diversity is the lifeblood of a subculture like this/these.

The "real" fandom, the part of fandom that has kept the culture going since even the 1700s going, are the ones wasting their time with this because they genuinely love it, if you found something you love that much the fandom becomes your family. Kind of like Drag… Which makes sense because it's art based off of pre-existing work. We form a relatively diverse (based on subcultures) patriarchal communities with people who become closer to us than family, and we half ironically use matriarchal terms and even feminine pronouns universally. Straight dudes in our community were flattered when people assumed they were girls. If a straight dude could pass as a girl on a message board he would get all of the straight girl ass.

I'm not saying that's great or isn't incredibly problematic, I'm just saying… What am I saying? I guess I'm saying that smart straight guys not  afraid of masculinity's fragility enough to be effeminate always have stacks of girlfriends. Guys that try that now and fail call it being "friendzoned."

Maybe that's why I love straight guys, I knew all the greatest ones because they were the guys that got into our communities. They were all annoying perverted assholes but they have been some of the best people I've ever known. And they were smart enough to know how to socialize with women naturally enough to understand their relaxed social cues and then they know what the flirting language is amongst general straight women and they use the girls own language to seduce them. That's a good strategy and also safer because you both will have the same expectations of how to broadcast what you are thinking or going to do. And you know how people think that people with foreign accents sound sexy? It's like that but instead of the tone of your voice you could just use a regionless DVD player and some anime.

Straight girls now just have… A bunch of grandmothers around them (you know, people that you don't really want to touch and won't stop telling you what to do) just going on and on about how disappointed they are in you but refusing to even attempt to speak your language so you understand just enough to know you want to get out of the room as quickly as possible and if they suddenly died it would clearly be God's will.

[pi-stry]

Voltron Power Ranger AU *Spoilers*:

Disclaimers: *This AU may have been done before, but I have not seen any and I am sorry if it seems like I'm copying someone else's AU. Also, this AU is based on the NEW Power Rangers Movie that came out March 24, 2017, and any others in this series if and when they come out* *This AU will contain a lot of angst, especially towards the beginning as everything comes together*

This post is an in-depth first headcanon post for this AU. If you do have any problems with how I laid out this AU then please tell me so that I might try my best to change things, but there are thing about this AU I WILL NOT change, and those include (There maybe more added later); -What characters are which -Making canon AU ships (There won’t be any “canon” ships for now and you may ship who you want, as in the movie everyone interacted enough that anyone could just be shipped with anyone)

Location: A Small town named Altea

The item everybody is after: The quintessence crystal (source of life for Earth and other Planets)

Roles:

Ranger -> Paladins: -Red Ranger: Shiro -Blue Ranger: Hunk (This was hard for me to choose between Hunk and Pidge, but I feel like they fit their roles/personalities better this way) -Black Ranger: Lance -Yellow Ranger: Keith -Pink Ranger: Pidge I have a poll going on here: https://twitter.com/Anima_Zione/status/846189607331004417 to decide what and if I should change anything in this AU

Allies: -Alpha 5: Coran -Zordon: Alfor

Enemies: -Rita: Sendak -Goldar: One of the Robeasts -The rock creatures Rita summons: Galra drones

Character Headcanons: *SPOILERS* -Shiro: Species: Human - Japanese Family: Mom-Living, Dad-Living Lives: Lives with both of his parents in a house Story: Shiro is the star football player for his school (The Garrison, Mascot are lions) and while pulling a prank with some friends he gets in a car crash by himself while being chased by the cops and his arm is permanently injured (aka gone and replaced by a prosthetic) and because of this (and the fact he was placed under house arrest) he is unable to play football anymore. He attends detention on Saturdays at the school where he meets Pidge and Hunk. Fast forward to when they get their Ranger coins and the next morning, Shiro wakes up with no memory of how he got home, with great strength, and his arm is now upgraded (haven’t decided how yet), but plays it off as Hunk making a few adjustments to it. When training Coran replaces his regular human prosthetic with one that can help Shiro fight better (aka connects with Shiro’s armor, nerve feeling per Shiro’s request, and can match his new gained strength). He becomes the leader of the Rangers.

-Hunk: Species: Human - Samoan (idk if that’s spelled right) Family: Mom-Living, Dad-Deceased in war Lives: With his mom in a house Story: Hunk has a medical symptom that makes it hard for him to grasp humor, but not impossible. When he was young his died overseas at war, but before that whenever his dad was able to come home Hunk and him would go out exploring for stuff out in the local gold mines and after his dad died he continued this without his mom’s knowing. Hunk is only in detention because he had built a tracking device in order to find more of something he found, but it ended up exploding in his locker. After meeting the other Rangers, he finally has friends and a place where he feels he belongs after years of bullying from others.

-Lance: Species: Human - Cuban Family: Mom-Living (has a disease and is dying), Dad-Not in the picture, Siblings-Not in the picture (with their dad or off somewhere) Lives: In a mobile home park Story: When Lance was younger he was a part of a big and close-knit family and he absolutely admired his mom for who she was and what she did. But, around the time Lance was 8, his mom developed a brain disease that would kill her some day and his dad had decided that it would be best to leave with the kids, but because Lance adored his mom he refused to leave and instead stayed with his mom. Lance had soon stopped going to public school and was instead homeschooled by teachers his dad paid for because Lance refused to go to school just in case something happened to his mom. This went on for a few years until his dad stopped paying the teachers and was almost completely out of Lance and his mom’s lives except for a few birthday and Christmas cards. Lance had started working at whatever jobs he could find as his mom’s condition worsened to point where she couldn’t work, but even through all of this Lance tried to friendly, fun, and caring for others. When he meets the other Rangers he feels as if he’s found a new family he can trust in.

-Keith: Species: Human - Korean Family: Mom-Not in the Picture, Dad-Deceased, Siblings-None Lives: In an orphanage run by nuns (right now), but has had to move from one orphanage to another earlier due to disciplinary issues. Story: After moving 3 times in almost 2 years from one orphanage to another, Keith has become closed off to others and decides it’s better to not get involved with others. Keith doesn’t go to school much and usually hangs out near the local forest/goldmine to get away from things. After meeting the other Rangers he starts to open up, but not completely as he doesn’t know how long it’ll last.

-Pidge: Species: Human - American Family: Mom-Living, Dad-Works overseas in a lab, Siblings- One; Matt; works under his dad overseas at Kerberos Labs Story: With both her dad and brother gone overseas, Pidge’s mom has a hard time coping and starts to take it out on Pidge (not physically though. None of that) because she knows that when Pidge is done with school she’ll go to work with her dad and brother overseas. At this time also the person she likes (who she is sort of close with) wants to get with her friends and both of these incidents cause a lot of stress for Pidge until she snaps and betrays both her friends and the person she likes by sharing an indecent pic of the friend to the person she likes and punches one of their teeth out, this is what lands her in detention where she meets Shiro and Hunk. Because of what she did though, she is completely kicked out of her friend group and eventually quits track because of the peer pressure. She eventually becomes a Ranger and a friend to the others.

-Coran: Species: Android (talking robot) Family: None (he’s a robot) Lives: On the original Power Ranger’s ship Story: Coran is the Android that helped to train and guide the original Rangers and now helps this new team of Rangers.

-Alfor: Species: Altean or as he is rn a wall Family: All Deceased Lives: Within the wall of the Power Ranger control room within the ship) Story: Was the original Red Ranger (Funny because wasn’t he the Red Paladin in Voltron?) and after the first battle with Sendak that resulted in him and his entire team dying along with the end of the Cenozoic period, get placed into the wall of Ranger Ship by Coran, in order to preserve his consciousness and soul.

-Sendak: Species: Galra Family: None Lives: At the bottom of the sea for 65 million years and then is homeless Story: In this AU, Sendak takes the place of the main villain, Rita, but unlike her, Sendak wasn’t the original Green Ranger and instead stole the Green Ranger’s Power coin after killing them and then used the coin as a power source to summon a Robeast. Before Sendak could summon the Robeast though, the asteroid had crashed into the Earth and threw him into the ocean, but was able to survive (sort of) for 65 million years because the Green Ranger coin he stole had connected to him in a sense. After he reawakens he goes around Altea searching for the materials needed to summon the robeast (precious metals) and attacks the town for the quintessence crystal.

Extra Stuff that is changed from the canon stuff so the AU makes more sense: 1. Ages: Matt is 2-3 years older than Pidge and should be in Shiro’s grade, but he skipped ahead and is now working with his dad overseas at Kerberos Labs. Shiro, Lance, Hunk, Keith, and Pidge are all in high school (sophomores and up). 2. Hunk and Lance used to be childhood friends until Lance’s dad and siblings left. Lance started to stay home more and more until he stopped going to school. Hunk would sometimes see Lance in town, but never approached as he thought it would be awkward and he didn’t know what happened to Lance. 3. I would like for Pidge to be in the mindset of figuring out whether or not she is or will become transgender, but whatever happens with her decision on this will be decided later on down the road.

Extra stuff for the future as the AU progresses: 1. This movie has been said to have 5 more movies coming out and in the next one(?) a new Green Ranger will become part of the main team and in my mind, that’ll be Matt. Meaning that later on down the line Matt will become the Green Ranger in this AU unless their characters don’t match up and Matt either stays out of the picture for the most part or becomes the White Ranger (when the white ranger comes into the picture). 2. Allura will also be joining the Ranger team later on down the line as either the Green or White Ranger (Which ever she fits). In this AU Allura will be the reincarnation of Alfor’s  daughter who was also a Ranger, so There are going to be some awkward and sad moments between them. 3. PLEASE IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS OR HEADCANONS FOR THIS AU I WOULD ABSOLUTELY LOVE TO HEAR THEM!!!!!! Please message me about them here or on my twitter (@Anima_Zione)                                                 4. As stated before there WON’T be any main CANON SHIPS in this AU, but this does NOT mean that you can’t draw ship centric fanart or that I won’t post ship centric art either, they will just not apply to the AU as canon.

Disclaimers: *This AU may have been done before, but I have not seen any and I am sorry if it seems like I'm copying someone else's AU. Also, this AU is based on the NEW Power Rangers Movie that came out March 24, 2017, and any others in this series if and when they come out* *This AU will contain a lot of angst, especially towards the beginning as everything comes together*