#it feels weird to ship my ocs tbh

[scarystickers]

Trying to write romance but feeling uncomfortable like as if I'm intruding on a private moment :')

[thomine]

🍒 - Mimikyu

What’s your favorite character dynamic to write? (Can be romantic or platonic, specific or general!)

— 🍒 from fruit emoji ask game,requested by @andromeda-nova-writing

opposites, but not necessarily opposites attract. i quite like putting together characters who are on opposite ends of a spectrum and wondering how them rubbing off each other might bring them closer to the middle, where they learn to see eye to eye.

in a sense, it has the feeling of “i learned something from you, and you something from me.” i like it when characters have to overcome hurdles to understand the other party, and through the foundation of newfound understanding, start to deepen their bonds. i’m not sure what label to call such a bond. it can be platonic, romantic, etc… i just see it as 2 people who deeply care for each other.

it also opens doors to possible dynamics like “more alike than they think” or the ever iconic “enemies to lovers”.

[luxsf]

Rating Sally Face ships !!!!

(IF YOU DONT AGREE THAT IS OKAY)

Salash (Sal x Ash): 7/10 I think they are very cute :D Ashely can be kinda too much at times so I gave it a 7/10 !!

Salvis (Sal x Travis): 9.5/10 I personally think it is the best ship but I think both of them have a lot of problems and mental struggles that I feel would probably get in the way of their relationship.

Sal x Larry: -51298383928101011477219/10 Disgusting.

Todd x Neil: 10/10 One of the best ships (and it cannon yesss) Neil is so sweet and I love him sm they are perfect for each other jabdidbsiebwjwbsj

Larry x Ashley: 7/10 I feel the same way about this one like the one for salash tbh. Its really cute tho and I think they are really good for each other :D

Todd x Sal: 6/10 I only recently found out that people ship other characters with Todd. Like i thought we all had a mutual agreement that Neil and Todd were perfect together but ig not lol I dont have a problem with it tho i think it adorable. I personally dont really ship it. Maybe kinda but not really lol. Its kinda cute tho!

Todd x Travis: 10/10 (used to be a 7/10 but now its my fav ship lmao) Once again i didnt know people shipped anybody else with Todd. This is kinda cute I actually like it a lot lmao I feel like the bathroom scene still makes sense with this ship. Its kinda cute and I like it more than sal x todd lol

Larvis (Larry x Travis): 6/10 (This used to be a 2/10 but I have changed my mind lmao) i actually really like larvis now bc bow I actually know why people ship it. I think it is pretty cute🙏🏻🙏🏻

Larry x Todd: 4/10 i dont have any strong feelings on this tbh. I dint really see it but I dont hate it or anything it okay.

Chug x Maple: 10/10 Cuteee (and cannon aaaaaa) they are a great couple and work really well together. I love this a lot :D

Maple x Larry: 6/10 I can kinda see it tbh. I saw this theory that the reason Maple is so awkward around Larry is because they used to date or something. Idk if its cannon tho but I like this idea a lot :D

Chug x Sal: 0/10 why is this a thing?!?!?!?!

Phillip x Travis (Phillip is gonna get his own post that will discuss this ship as well): 3/10 If phillip was in the game as a cannon character with actual scenes then maybe this would have liked this ship better. Fannon phillip is just to much like sal and is kinda of not his own character. I dont really like it that much but ig its not terrible.

Phillip x Larry: 0/10 wth is this fandom omg😭😭 Phillip isnt even a character idk who you guys are coming up w this stuff.

Phillip x Ashley: 2/10 I feel the same way for basically all phillip ships! (Except for Phillip x Travis) but i read a fanfic that had this ship as a side ship it was kinda cute so extra points ig

Any cannon gay character x one of the girls: 0/10 your gross if you ship that

Also for all of the oc x cannon ppl i give your ship a 10/10 !! (I love oc x cannon sm) (also if your oc x cannon is like illegal or proship then 0/10 immediately. Thats weird and gross.)

[zaptrap]

Seeing that you've been here since 2012 is INSANE like you've witnessed it all huh. You've seen probably SO many weird and crazy things in this fandom like man that's so cool for you I feel...

ive def seen and participated in a lot of dumbass bullshit over the years LMAO. although notsomuch during the skybound-to-seabound era cuz i'd lost interest for a bit

Random shit I remember off the top of my head (plz feel free to fact-check):

deviantart era: (2012-2013)

that bright green ninjago ask meme

like, literally everybody making self-insert purple ninjas (sometimes orange, teal, or rainbow) and shipping them with their fav ninja

everyone making their own genderbends of the ninja. cole was almost always called nicole or colette lmao

people also naming their accounts (name)-the-ninja (or "teh-ninja", since this was 2012)

there's a non-zero probability that if you were in the fandom during the season 1 era, you're a furry now

naruto crossovers

half-snake ninja aus.........wonder who uh......who could've done that.....heheh (me) (that was my whole deal pre-nindroid!jay lmfao)

everyone posting like, doll-maker things they made of ninjago? especially dragon ones

(me) posting leaked screenshots of season 2 eps that i found on the lego wiki or smth lmao. this is also how i found out zane was a robot. i think i kept posting leaks when i moved to tumblr

legends of chima releasing and i thiiink it was supposed to be a ninjago replacement? like, legitimately? though a lot of people weren't happy about it. "furry gang drug wars" was a phrase used a lot lmfao.

tumblr era (2013-2016 for me) (may overlap with dA era)

everyone losing their minds over the shirtless ninja in ns2 lmfao

that one video of kirby marrow (rest in peace) saying cole was 14

that other vid of like, behind the scenes and it was the ninja's actors but like in-universe? it's where "cole bucket" comes from

also some behind the scenes vid with the actual voice actors lol

thinking back on this, im like 100% sure it was bullshit but when the end of rebooted aired, there was a rumor going around about fans being so upset over zane's death that they carved a snowflake on their stomachs. lots of people were freaking out lmfao

the rise and fall of "fucknoshittyninjagoOCs" (ashamed to say i heavily participated in harassing this blog even if i rlly didnt like the premise.........)

maypong

lots of tension with instagram cuz of all the art reposts. like. tons of reposts. i remember someone blocked me when i said to take something down but then unblocked me the same evening and apologized LOL so

roleplay twitter accounts (twitter was kinda not-as-a lot at the time)

nindroid!jay of course. its so old there was an update that was made in flash lmfao...

absolute fucking shitloads of AUs and headcanons. i dont think this has changed much but like. there were so many lmfao. entire threads

actually there's too many fucking AUs. im scrolling through my main blog and i cant fuckin find anything cuz ITS ALL THESE STUPID AU THREADS THEY AREN'T EVEN LIKE DEEP LMAO

ask-all-the-ninjagians

the absurd screenshot redraws i did. like they were super stupid lmfao. icr which blog they're on but they're on my comp still at least

ninjagians just. being a term used at all lmao

the ninjago fan-tournament during ns4. people would draw/write about their ocs doing whatever prompt was posted and then everyone came together to defeat a big bad snake man

tbh i started naturally losing interest during ns5, and then VERY QUICKLY dropped the show (and therefore fandom) when skybound came out lmao............... so i dont really remember a lot from this era and everything after

and now im back :D

i hope this is insightful! xD

[crown-of-roses-thsc]

This AU now has a blog because…..I feel like the tumblr people would like it!

Like me or my comic? Give me a donation or commission me here!

You can see my favorite THSC artists here :)

THE BIG STICKIN’ MASTERPOST

Heyo! I’m SnickerDoodlez, I’m a she, and you can call me…basically anything that correlates with “SnickerDoodlez” at all, OR the name of my blog! Or just anything that you vibe with tbh!

Just a warning, despite the fact that you would expect a Christian such as I to be…I don’t know, strict? Uptight?- I act REALLY unhinged in my posts sometimes- just don’t let that scare ya off ;) this is a judgement free zone and despite my seemingly rabid exterior I don’t bite. I’m always up for asks, DMs, anything like that!

Chances are if you ask me for permission to do whatever with my characters / AU / etc etc the answer will be an emphatic YES

FAQ:

Q. What is Crown of Roses?

A. Crown of Roses is my Henry Stickmin AU- its story is told through comics that I post on different social media platforms! As for the synopsis…

The Aquatic Division of the Toppat Clan and most of its inhabitants have blown up in a sudden and unexplained "accident", leaving Ellie Rose- one of the few survivors- to be transferred to the airship division, home of Chief Terrence Suave himself. But Suave isn't all he seems to be, and Ellie has taken it upon herself to overthrow him- accompanied by her two new friends, Reginald and "Lefty". But Suave has eyes everywhere... and everyone has a secret to hide.

This prequel-fic comic is named an AU mostly for minor inconsistencies (The way Sven talks about the airship implies that he was part of a different division, whereas in this he's part of the airship, for example), but I hope you can enjoy it nonetheless! It is heavily inspired by a side game that never saw the light of day (though funnily enough I came up with the basic idea before hearing about this!)

Q. May I make fanart of your AU?

A. Fanart / fan content for this AU is always allowed! And you can of course ship whoever you want (within reason, which should go without saying :P), and if you draw it I’d love to see the fanart ;) even if it isn’t a canon ship! And as long as it’s sfw I’ll reblog any fanart I get! My only request is that you tag me in it ^v^

Q. How old are the characters? / It’s weird to ship Reginald and Ellie.

A. Some character ages are changed in this AU! Not to an insane degree- no child-to-adults or adult-to-minors….and most of the ages aren’t confirmed in-game anyways, so I guess it’s not definitely changing? But still, there have been some changes! For now, here’s what I’ll say for ages (they are subject to change, and are mostly to show the basic differences between character ages!)

Carol is 22. Ellie and Sven are 23. Reginald and Burt are 24. Lefty is 30. Terrence Suave is in his 50s.

And yes, Copperrose is a weird ship :) the weirdness of it was actually what inspired me to make an overly-angsty-crack AU….which eventually turned into a story that I’m proud to say seems to be beloved by quite a few people!

Q. Any disclaimers I should know for this blog / AU?

A. This blog DOES contain fictional gore, violence, suicide, alcoholism, references abuse, manipulation….etc. Viewer discretion advised! However, it does NOT contain swearing (only slightly coarse language) or sexual topics (at most there are references to an affair and a joke or two at Reginald’s expense regarding his nonexistent love life)

Q. Do you accept asks?

A. Yes! Send me asks about the story (I may give spoilers ;)), characters, headcanons, etc…) or if you send an ask aimed at any of the AU’s characters, I may respond with a drawing! In fact, PLEASE SEND ME ASKS. PLEASE. I HAVE NO LIFE. DO NOT WORRY ABOUT BEING CRINGE I SHIP COPPERROSE WHICH IS MEGA CRINGE WE DON’T JUDGE HERE.

Q. Will you feature my OC?

A. I have hosted contests in the past where the reward is to have an OC featured in either the background or as a minor character in the project! You’re always free to ask, but unless you win a contest offering it there are no guarantees! At the moment, the main people who have gotten featured characters are contest winners, friends, and my mega-supporters <3

Q. Do you accept art requests / trades?

A. I accept art requests that are specific to my AU, but otherwise I usually won’t. HOWEVER, I’ll art trade with almost anyone as long as I’m not busy! I only have a few no-nos, which are that I won’t draw any shipping (characters you ship are fine, but the art I make wouldn’t be shipping!) and I won’t draw anything political. (I try to avoid flags as well, but if your character has like…a pin with a flag on it that’s fine)

Q. What are the characters’ sexualities?

A. The short answer is that I don’t confirm those sorts of things in my fiction- ship who you want- but for more info / the exceptions please read this post!

Q. Where can I read this story?

A. See below!

WHERE CAN I READ THIS STORY?

YouTube Dub (Discontinued)

WEBTOON

Ao3

Tumblr

BIOS

Set 1

CHARACTER INFO / REFS (WIP):

LIVING (as of Chapter 1):

Terrence Suave

Sven Svensson

Carol Cross

Reginald Copperbottom

Dr. Vinschpinsilstien

Burt Curtis

Calvin Carter / “Lefty” / John Doe / “Right Hand Man”

Ellie Suave-Rose

??? & ??? Randrolf

Bach

Minty (belongs to @stan-the-man-in-simp-land )

Wilting and Ed

Wolf (belongs to @oreothefox715)

Brutus (belongs to @smoresthehalloweenqueen)

Gabriel (belongs to @icilarastudios)

DEAD

Randy Radman

T.R.N.K.

Jessica Rose-Suave

Chloe Cross

Valentine Galeforce Copperbottom & Gold Copperbottom

Sir Wilford IV

[camprell-art]

I need to make a post to pin here and help you navigate on the mess that my blog became. So here we go!

Hello, I'm Camprell! I'm Brazilian, a 24 year old and genderfluid and I go by any pronouns, I do prefer he/him, but it's not really important. :)

I'm gonna give the warning that if you're younger than 16 please, don't interact, I'll have to block you.

I post a LOT about Super Paper Mario, I have 300000 ships and interpretations for the same characters, which means that if I want some characters to be like siblings they'll be, but if I want the same characters to be a couple I will completely disregard the other interpretation. (What also happens is me ignoring 100% of the canon just so a ship or whatever can work)

So no, I am NOT a proshipper, I DON'T ship incest, and I DO NOT endorse abusive relationships, here, what happens in fiction (in terms of portraying violence and abuse) stays in fiction. (and that DOES NOT mean I'll let icky stuff happen here, if I catch any of you saying something weird I'm throwing you at the void)

Be nice and I'll be nice to you too! (If you're not nice I may cry, and that's it I guess kasdjh)

For art it's just: #my art

For OCs it's: #my ocs or #original character/s

If you want to read me talking, the tag is: #camprella talks

For asks it is: #camprella answers

I have a #boomentio comic with no name, if you wanna read it, just search for the ship tag! (I need to tag it better tbh)

Sometimes I post ✦spicy✦ stuff, if you don't like it, are a minor or have triggers, do block the tag #tw suggestive, I will put more tags if necessary, so feel free to tell me! And this counts to anything too, if I post something that upsets you and there are no tags, do tell me! :)

Commissions are open btw! Here is my price sheet.

(If it's low res it's because I don't have the original image aksdgha It's on my other computer).

Payment is PayPal only (sadly)

I won't draw: loli/shota, mecha, furry, fetish stuff and detailed backgrounds. Nothing against furries btw, I just suck at drawing them

I'm okay with suggestive art tho!

That's it I guess, welcome to my blog! And thanks for reading! :)

[princesstarfire1234]

abt your rant on how ppl are weird towards orion pax- no cuz ure so right,seeing those fanarts at first i was like idk maybe some people have a heavy preference on making him be submissive etc? but the way they do it- it goes beyond just artstyle wise and interpretation 😭 its just fetishizing in all the wrong ways,not just that but that one comic of him being blind? it was so weird like they could of just had a diff approach where he doesnt get beaten up or is a crybaby like- wtf

not just orion pax though,for example in tfp optimus is drawn and seen as this uwu twink boy and its so?? like did we see the same series...that is NOT optimus prime that is just an oc that looks like him atp 😭

anyways,not making this any longer cuz its probs boring- but yeah,i fully agree that some artists are way too weird like borderline problematic about the way they draw orion pax/optimus prime

more ppl need to speak up on this topic tbh

Not at all boring to read lol, I like getting long asks, anyhow...

Yeaaaahhhh, like I'm not trying to say people can't draw or write Optimus or Orion as being more soft or "submissive" or whatever. Do what you want with those characters, I'm not the fandom police, but there's a point where it becomes weird.

Like you're taking a guy, you're taking Optimus fucking Prime and rewriting his character so not only is his agency just gone but his entire being revolves around being the cutesy boyfriend in a ship with a big masc man and nothing else, he's seemingly incapable of doing anything he's proven to be skillful in... despite being a very strong and courageous character...

also yeah I'm so glad I'm not the only one who feels very weird about the Orion being blind AU, I'm not against the idea, I think it could be interesting but all they really did (last time I saw it and a bunch of the art for it) was take a character, make them disabled, and suddenly they need to be coddled around and rescued by an abled person from a fight that IN CHARACTER they could've done something about or didn't have to cry like a child about it... like someone in the comments of my post said, it's bordering on ableism, but I don't wanna label anyone.

[thepolysworldau]

( inbox is empty and I am thinking about this. So I figured while we waited it would be fun to look at some old art of this AU. )

( one of my first passes of Tom. Also a poor attempt at perspective )

( here is an old sketch around when I first started to ship polysworld. I think at the time I had Edd as the shortest )

( a drawing with some REALLY old designs and a ship child some people may recognize as a kid from a now defunct blog )

( Me not knowing which way hands went. )

( VERY old pass at Edd sprites )

( I think I struggled with Edd's design the most..)

( He looks ill in this one )

( Actually still proud of this drawing, but the designs are old and the style is a lil weird )

( pretty sure this is my first ever attempt at a lineup of them. )

( I used to be so proud of this help )

( Look, ocs! First one is an (i think old) design of @corrupte-hunter 's clone oc and an old version of Quincy )

( "textured shading looks so cool it adds so much feeling to the art" -me 4 years ago )

( old pride headcannons )

( people underestimate how unhinged she is. )

( an oc that has not showed up yet. Wow. )

( I present shit that got me bullied on tik tok )

( Tbh this isn't as bad as I remember )

( I present my first piece of eddsworld fanart. )

( old Quin ref wow )

( this just makes me remember how long ago beaster bunny came out got-- )

( Tomtord )

( Backgrounds? I don't know her. )

( I actually still really like this design. Idk what I did but I ate. )

( This looks nothing like Tord help )

( hey look, the neighbors )

( I end with stuff I lack commentary for )

[malewife-overlord]

Six Cycles Later -- Part I

OKAY SO. after speaking to literally two people about some oc transformer fic ive been working on, ive decided to post just chapter 1 here, to see if anyone else would like to see the ocs ive been quietly going crazy for in the background. instead of writing actual proper fanfic ive decided to just go off the rails writing a canon elaboration on characters who dont exist. i will now make it everyone elses problem.

tbh im intending to keep writing this for as long as it brings me joy, and im already working on chapter 2. whether this gets attention or not won't change that fact. just kinda posting here to garner some attention/see if anyone else would like to get invested in my silly lil ocs.

this takes place in sorta a g1/idw mixed continuity, im not particularly picky or strict about canon, because really, im just here to have fun and vibe. it will focus on my OCs, not canon characters, though a couple will still be present :> this idea has been one that nagged at me for a bit--isnt it a bit weird that the decepticons just straight up seem to abandon their prior base on earth in g1 following the movie? i wondered for a while what it'd be like if any of them were left behind. so, i've decided to make an oc for it and explore that a little. aaaaaand then i kinda went off the rails (but we'll get there, lol). if none of that is particularly off-putting to you, feel free to proceed! and comments are always appreciated if you enjoy

Summary: Invert is a nobody. One of a million Seekers constructed for a war that would claim their lives, she's survived due to her uselessness. Forged with a defective frame and kept around for a single devastating ability that hurts her to use it, she may as well be a glorified cleaning bot. Months after the other Decepticon's left to assault Autobot City, Invert remains behind on Earth, waiting, on the sunken Victory, maintaining the base and holding out hope that her brethren will eventually return.

But with only silence and an emotionless ship for company, she's started to become increasingly desperate--so much so, that, when an SOS from a ship that should be empty arrives, she just might throw caution to the wind and leave on a mission that could change her life.

Luster was somebody, once. Was. He can't remember any of it. Having disappeared at the start of the war on some ludicrous quest, only now has he awoken on a strange planet called 'Earth'. Accepted back by his Autobot brethren, the void of his past haunts him endlessly, as does a mysterious, insatiable hunger. He's determined to get to the bottom of both--but with the fog they produce only deepening, how long does he have before he's lost eternally?

Chapter 1 --Word Count 7495

Orbital cycle: 6.3. Approximately 182.5 solar cycles since initial launch for attack on Autobot City. Diagnostic report: no structural damage detected. Energon levels: 27%. Energon levels of 50% recommended for full functionality. Defense systems: offline. Offensive systems: offline. Cloaking systems: online. Communications: partially online. Power saving mode recommended at Energon levels of 25%. 

She records the report in her datapad down to the final recommendation, which really was not necessary, considering any proper engineer would have understood that by now, the ship should have entered power saving mode eons ago. If it had been placed in that mode when the other Decepticons had initially left, the current Energon levels would sit comfortably at the recommended 50%, and she would still have the long distance communications beacon up. But that was in the past, where they were supposed to have returned after a few solar cycles. 

It had been dozens now, and Invert was starting to wonder if her brethren were going to return. A far more patient bot like Shockwave would not have felt any doubt up to the first double digit million years–how else had he held down Cybertron for so long? By comparison she was young, having barely lived for over a million. The hundreds of solar cycles that had passed as she was left alone on the Victory were now starting to seep into her processor, bringing with them questions of uncertainty.

The raid was supposed to last barely a few days. They’d brought everyone in the local system with them. The greatest warriors the Decepticon cause had were deployed. With all of them attacking at once, even the heavily fortified Autobot City should have been leveled in under a deca-cycle. 

And yet there was silence. No cries of victory. No chaotic messages on the airways calling for aid. No declaration of retreat. Just silence. 

They couldn’t be defeated. If they’d been defeated they would have retreated back to Victory. If they’d gone back to Cybertron on Astrotrain, then surely Shockwave would have contacted her on earth. He knew her name. He knew he’d sent her there orbital cycles ago. He’d know they’d left her behind to hold down the fort. 

There was, of course, one other option. Silence was begetting of only a few characteristics when it came to the living. The Autobots, surely, wouldn’t. They were too soft-hearted. But if the attack had truly gone so badly, and they’d deigned it necessary–

Total obliteration. Total razing. Total loss. 

She pushed the thoughts swirling in her processor aside and focused back on Victory’s main computer, typing in a few commands. 

“Victory, run an internal scan. How are your habsuits looking?”

A map of Victory’s internal structure appeared on the screen before her. Dozens of rooms were selected and zoomed in on, each of which specifically served as living space. One by one they started as black, then turned white as they were provided the all clear. 

Structure: stable. Living conditions: adjusted. Doors: unlocked. 

“Alright, that’s good…” she muttered to herself, swapping to the cameras on the outside of the ship. They revealed an empty sea around her, dark and creeping with small organics. Their crude forms made her cringe, even in the restricted view she had of them. “Gross…Victory, illuminate your external hull.” 

Victory obeyed, revealing a vast expanse of metal currently covered in the earth version of space barnacles. The white-shelled creatures had opened their filthy maws, extending forth feelers characteristic of some kind of horror show. Invert grimaced and swapped the camera views, checking instead on the door to the airlock. It was immaculately clean unlike the hull, though a few many legged organics crawled across it. 

She checked the back of the ship, its thrusters, its scope, and finally its body. Making a note of each location that needed proper cleaning, Invert tapped the information into her datapad and closed the camera system before issuing another command. “Victory, check the wavelengths for any signs of communication.” 

The screen before her went black, turning to a single unmoving flat line. She stared at it in silence, waiting for a peak, a leap, a blur, a single beat to indicate that anyone was out there. 

Nothing happened. 

Frowning to herself, she tapped a button on the keyboard before her–the one for “broadcast”. 

“Fellow Decepticons,” she said, “if any of you are out there, I am Invert of Cybertron, broadcasting from the Earth base Victory. I am alone here and have been so since the attack on Autobot City. If you are hearing this message, please respond.” 

Her servo left the button and she waited. And waited. And waited. 

And waited. 

And waited. 

And nothing came, as it never did. 

She vented and focused back on her datapad, the frown perched upon her face seemingly eager to make it a permanent home. There was her chore list, plain and simple. It would take her several megacycles to complete: clean the habsuits, clean the storage vault, clean the weapons vault, clean the hallways, feed Victory, scrape away the organics on Victory’s hull, manage the outside of Victory, air another message after seven megacycles, spy on the Autobots if possible.

If possible. The last one was becoming an increasingly harder task to pull off. She was no Soundwave, and Victory’s listening equipment had been down for a while now to preserve power. Furthermore the equipment in Soundwave’s habsuit was either completely foreign or off-limits to her. He may not be here now, but he would return, like the others would, and if he found out she’d been messing with his items, well. She was only a lowly foot soldier, and he was the head of communications of the Decepticon cause. 

She’d be lucky if only her wings were broken off and used to decorate his sparsely covered habsuit. 

Speaking of her wings…she cast a glance down at the inverted things, which pointed towards the ground as opposed to the air. They would do her no favors in navigating the outside of the ship and certainly no aid in reaching the higher spots in the larger habsuits. Her boosters were functional, but the Energon they’d consume to keep her airborne would drain her at twice the levels of a normal Seeker. 

She’d have to use them sparingly if she wanted to continue her present consumption rate of only one Energon cube a day. If she offlined from low power, that was fine; eventually her brethren would return, find her, and bring her back. But without her, no one would feed Victory, who would eventually offline from low power. Victory had to stay online, no matter what. 

Where else would the Decepticons go when they came back, if they didn’t have Victory? 

“I’ll keep you going, girl…” she whispered as she left the control room, reaching a hand out to run along the walls of the ship. Victory, as usual, was silent. It always was. 

Perhaps none of the other Decepticons had shared her sentiment, but Invert had always thought of The Victory (Victory for short) as a fellow ‘con. It was a crashed ship, yes, but it was alive and functional, and it provided them a home within its body. Victory could respond to commands and hold conversations if it so wished; just the majority of the time, it preferred not to. For all she knew Victory was just trapped in permanent stasis lock, and would perhaps free itself one day. 

As such, it was important to take care of Victory, for more purposes than just maintaining a Decepticon earth base. Victory was an ally with much greater might than her. If it fell, everything was lost. 

That was why they’d left her behind when the entire cause had prepared for the assault on Autobot City–it had to be. Someone had to take care of Victory and it was for the better that that someone was her. Perhaps it had been said to her in a less kind way, but the others had had a point when they said that someone who couldn’t contribute properly to a fight would be better off staying behind. 

Okay, they’d said it a lot less kindly. More so, they’d chided her that a flightless Seeker was utterly useless on the field despite whatever “special talent” Shockwave had promised she possessed. And for the battle of Autobot City, they needed soldiers who were functional, powerful, and wouldn’t prove dangerous to their allies as well as their foes. Besides, for swelling their numbers, they had the Insecticon clones. So someone like her, broken, glitched, and more of a liability than anything else, would only be good for ensuring that Victory didn’t somehow miraculously break while they were gone. 

Because really, if Victory was invaded, it wasn’t that big of a deal. The ship was equipped to deal with invasions. Its defensive systems were more than adequate for dispatching invaders both inside and out. Invert was only present within it to mop up the Energon remains of whoever was fool enough to try. 

No one had been–but that could also be attributed to the fact that the Autobots didn’t seem to know where the Decepticon base was. That, or they just didn’t care. Invert preferred the former. Why would it be inconsequential to know where the enemy’s base was, where they were likely to crawl back to and lick their wounds? And surely they were licking their wounds somewhere out there, weren’t they?

So why hadn’t they come back?

She pushed the thought away again and threw open one of the few cleaning closets the ship possessed, grabbing all the equipment she’d need to properly clear out all the habsuits. Nowadays it was more dusting than anything else, but she still brought along a mop and bucket, just in case. 

The habsuits would start with Starscream’s, of course, because if she cleaned anyone else’s first and he found out, he’d throw a fit. And a fit from her commander was not something Invert wanted to sit through. He always treated her with more vitriol than any of the other Seekers, no matter how inconsequential her mistakes might be compared to theirs. She had an ounce of resentment towards him for it, countered only by the fact that, no matter how awful Starscream could be, he was deserving of respect for his flight abilities. 

But that was a low bar. Any winged Decepticon could fly circles around her while all she could do was watch and seethe. 

She vented and tapped the passcode to his habsuit’s door into its keypad, the double doors opening to reveal a pristine and lavishly decorated room. Starscream was nothing if not dramatic and narcissistic. All the valuables and self-care items stored in his habsuit spoke lengths to just what he’d do for a decent polish. Cleaning it was always a nightmare, even after all the times she’d done it before. If even one item was an inch out of place, she’d hear about it later. 

A tiny chuckle escaped her at the thought–when was the last time she’d heard Starscream’s voice for any purpose? Be it admonishing her for attempting even once to be a proper Seeker, bossing her around, treating her as his personal slave, or verbally abusing her to let his Megatron-induced anger out, it had been so long she almost found herself forgetting how cruel the insults had been. 

Almost. She entered his habsuit with her cleaning gear and checked everything over–berth, vanity, table, overly expensive one of a kind statue in his image, all the data-pads he pretended didn’t contain failed plans to assassinate their great leader, full length mirror that somehow hadn’t been broken, each and every one of his polishes and maintenance equipment, and of course, the additional weapons he kept on the wall. 

There wasn’t a speck of dust on anything nor any indication of water damage. The berth was made perfectly.. The floor was clean save for her own pedeprints. And the metal of the walls gleamed like it’d been treated with the same care as Starscream himself. 

There was nothing to clean, but she still gave everything a dust off, just to be safe. Giving everything one final look over for rust, Invert confirmed there to be no contamination on any of Starscream’s immensely precious belongings and left his habsuit, locking it behind her.

One down. At least fifty more to go. She vented again and moved to the next.

—-----

Maintenance was finished by the time the Earth’s sun moved high into the sky. Her internal clock read 16:23, a new method of telling time that had been adjusted for her when she’d arrived on Earth. The planet operated on a twenty-four megacycle basis, working around when the sun would orbit to the other side of the planet. The absence of the sun was named “night”, and could occur anywhere from 17:00-21:00, sometimes later. Having spent much of her time on Cybertron, she had been unaccustomed to Earth’s time, and figured it to be useless for the majority of her stay on the planet. 

“Night” had its benefits, though. Its darkness concealed well, and most organics chose to enter recharge when it came on. It was the perfect time to enact plots, schemes, and occasional terrorist attacks on Autobot City. 

The season Earth was presently in was dubbed “summer”. That meant night would not come until 21:00. She had time. After finishing with the habsuits, Invert focused on maintaining Victory. 

At 16:28 she scraped away the organics on the outside of the hull, using her thrusters to properly climb up onto it. Finishing the front at 17:34, she headed to the side, then the back, ending at 18:20. Once back inside, she accessed the Energon vault and took stock before feeding Victory. 

92 cubes left. Victory sufficed on ten per day. Power saving mode was beginning to look tempting now, if not for the risk that it would cease cloaking. And considering how often she had to transmit, the loss would be nothing short of catastrophic. 

More Energon was needed, then. She’d have to ration herself more. She fit eleven cubes in her arms and brought them to Victory’s engine. As they were tossed in she held the one extra up. 

“To another cycle, Victory.” It was brought to her dermas and promptly consumed. 

Victory gave no response, as always. Invert stared at the empty cube in her servos for only a second before turning to take it back to storage. 

At which point Victory’s system suddenly lit up. The screen turned on behind her, displaying a map of the planet and pinging a specific point somewhere in Asia. Invert looked back and raised her brows. 

“SOS signal of Decepticon origin detected,” Victory stated in its monotone voice. “Displaying coordinates on screen. Incoming message. Playing now.”

Before Invert could even brace herself, an unholy buzzing suddenly sounded through the speakers, so shrill and constant that she collapsed to one knee, instinctively slamming her servos over her audials. Gritting her dentae she opened her hub and turned her audials all the way down, which made the buzzing just tolerable enough for her to reach Victory’s main computer and slam her fist on the OFF button. 

The sound stopped so suddenly it left her processor ringing. She blinked several times, then knocked a fist against the side of her helm, shaking it a few times to properly orient herself. 

Victory had gone silent again, but continued to display the ping and its coordinates. Invert looked up at them, transcribing them in her memory. What kind of distress signal had that been? Victory’s audio systems must be going, perhaps from too much time spent under the Earth’s water. An SOS signal usually captured the sound of blaster fire, of desperate voices crying for help, of bitter regret as whatever ‘con was on the other end laid aside his pride to admit he needed back-up. 

That thought made her uneasy. Buzzing. Why have an SOS signal that was nothing but buzzing? 

“Victory…” she paused, winced, and told herself that it wasn’t going to hurt as badly the second time. “Play the SOS signal again. At a decreased volume!” 

It complied, the loud, painful buzzing sounding over the speakers once more. Invert increased her audials this time, even though the sound made her want to rip them out of her helm. Listening closely, she focused on differentiating corrupted audio from what might be beneath, be it voices, blaster fire, or the sound of fleeing pedesteps. 

But the clip ended without any differentiating sounds. She found that odd, and replayed it in her processor again and again, trying to filter through it. Nothing. Just buzzing.

“Victory, run a diagnostic on your audio systems,” she ordered. The screen changed as Victory did just that, then returned several cycles later with a clear report: nothing was wrong. 

The Energon she’d consumed sat uneasily in her tank. Invert grimaced. “Display the coordinates again,” she commanded, though they were already saved to her memory. Seeing them on the screen solidified her doubts. 

Bali. There was a ship in Bali that she knew about, one that had harbored several unsavory occupants of the Decepticon cause. They, too, had disappeared after the attack on Autobot City. 

Insecticons. Members of the cause notorious for how untrustworthy they were. She hadn’t been around for all the cases where they’d proven themselves to be nothing but hassles who only cared for endless consumption, but she’d read reports of actions and abilities. They were a self-contained group and stuck to their own–why would they call for help now, several orbital cycles after their last appearance in Autobot City?

Buzzing. Their entire signal had just been buzzing. She frowned, thinking it over. Their alt modes were based off of filthy organics, and as such, carried some characteristics of the ugly things. Was the buzzing a possible side effect of that? But they could speak, so why wouldn’t they?

Unless they weren’t able to, for some reason? During an SOS signal? 

An SOS signal from a self-contained, proud group, perfectly capable of surviving on their own, that contained an off-putting buzz likely made to avoid speaking.

Just what were they facing out there that would cause such behavior?

“Victory, open a comm to the Insecticon ship,” she said, leaning over the control panel. “Insecticons, this is Invert, speaking to you from the Decepticon base The Victory. Come in Insecticons.”

Silence. 

“Come in Insecticons.”

The ping repeated itself again and again. SOS. SOS. SOS. 

No one was going to answer. Her frown deepened and she stepped away from the control panel. The only Decepticon here was her, the last on Earth, for all she knew. If they weren’t answering, they could be offline for all she knew. Or worse, it could be an Autobot trap, and she’d be playing right into their hands. 

But if it wasn’t, and someone was there on the other side, waiting for help, desperately trying to reach any other Decepticon on this planet…

Even if they were gross Insecticons…

Rescue would fall to her. And though she would be taking a huge risk, with no guarantee for results, with the possibility of capture or permanent offlining…

It was, finally, something to do. Something beyond just maintaining Victory. Something that was a real mission. Something that could get her honor, respect, and maybe even a friend!

Her frown gradually gave way to a grin. Her first real mission. Her first real rescue. Her first chance to make a decision on her own, with no one ordering her what side to choose. 

Oh, she was excited. It didn’t matter that her jet mode struggled to fly and that she’d need to pack away six cubes of additional Energon for the journey and her weapon–she was getting out, and she was going to rescue those Insecticons. 

“Victory, open the weapon’s vault,” she eagerly commanded, taking off down the hall. “And prepare the hangar for take-off.”

—------------------

“I think you’ve had enough, bud.”

He raised tired optics from the glass currently gripped like a lifeline in his servos, the pink Energon within rippling from how his arm shook. Upon the bartender, a shorter mech with a white and yellow paint job, did his gaze land. Whatever was in it seemed enough to cause them to flinch, but they held their ground, clearly experienced in dealing with the far more unruly. 

“Seriously. You’ve had five of those in the past Earth hour. How you’re not horrendously overfueled by now, I dunno, but you’re on your way to an early grave if you keep that up.” They gave him a hard frown, narrowing their optics behind their visor. “I’m not havin’ it on record that someone died at my bar because of my negligence.”

Luster didn’t answer them at first, letting his gaze drift back down to the Energon swirling in the glass he held. How it hadn’t cracked yet spoke to its quality, or perhaps how weak he’d become. Either worked. 

The glass was half-drained. It hadn’t tasted like anything in particular. He never ordered for the flavor, since anything they could provide him would be irrelevant. His glossa didn’t taste like it once must have, even if the memories of what had been felt like they existed just beyond a fog barrier. And besides, no matter how much he drank, his tank never felt full. 

Not anymore. 

He pulled up a report on his tank capacity in his hub–93% capacity. Ignoring the bartender, he brought the glass to his derma and promptly chugged, feeling his frame protest against more. Another tank report came in–100%. If he consumed anymore, he’d have to purge. 

There was still a drop at the bottom. He forced it down despite the warnings and slid the glass forward, looking just past the bartender, never at them. 

“One for the road,” he rasped, venting harshly. “Please.”

“Absolutely not. If you’re not at capacity by this point your sensor’s faulty.” They took the glass with what almost seemed like disgust. “Aren’t you supposed to be here with your guardian, anyways? Where is he?”

Guardian. He coughed at the word, not because he wanted to, but because it reminded him of what his life had become. The motion jarred the Energon inside of him and he felt sick. Swallowing down the urge to purge, Luster moved to shaky pedes, gripping the bar for support. 

“I don’t need him,” he grumbled. “I’m not a Sparkling. I’m not a protoform. I’m…I was someone, before, I don’t need a guardian.” 

The bartender grimaced. “Luster…look, buddy. I didn’t know you before the war. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of your work. I know Magnus says you did somethin’ important before the retreat from Cybertron. But all that’s in the past now, aight? This is Earth, not Cybertron, and we all know whatever it is you were lookin’ for, you…”

They paused as his cold optics finally focused on them, reconsidering their words. 

“...We all know you had some tragedy while you were out there. Real sad. No one here wouldn’t feel bad for you. But you can’t keep drinkin’ yourself to death over it. And I know you’re a grown ‘bot, but considerin’ the memory problems and all…well…course we all think you could use a guardian.”

A low rumble escaped from somewhere deep within him. Tank capacity at 99%. He needed more Energon. 

“One more for the road,” he asked again. “Please. I’ll pay you double for it.” 

Their frown tightened. “I’m calling Uptick.”

“No.” It came out harsher and faster than he intended, sounding like the warning growl of a tiger. His optics widened and he closed them, the gentle lighting of the bar suddenly too much. “Please. No. Don’t call him.”

They had their hand to their helm as they grimaced at him. Luster growled and turned away, almost falling over as he did. His balance equilibrator was off courtesy of overfueling, and focusing on what was normally a clear beeline for the door was difficult. One pede in front of the other. One pede in front of the other. 

“Luster! You’re not goin’ out alone?” The bartender called after him. He ignored them, turning down his audials to focus on walking. 

Spilling out of the bar, he stumbled for the nearest wall and rested a hand against it, leaning on it for dear life. His head was spinning. Standing was becoming increasingly difficult. 

Tank capacity at 98%. 

It wouldn’t stay there long. He needed to be back in his habsuit before that happened. Which way to his habsuit? He focused on his internal map, pulling it up in his hub and searching the coordinates. A small box lit up on Metroplex’s form, his tracking systems illustrating a path for him to take milliseconds later. 

It was late. Autobots didn’t sleep, not really, but it was likely that, due to the time of the planet, he wouldn’t run into anyone. Luster vented again, feeling warm Energon slip out from between his lips as he did so, and began the journey back to the place he was temporarily calling ‘home’. 

The path his systems had picked took him through some of Metroplex’s tighter corridors. On Cybertron, back before he had launched on the fateful mission that took his memory from him, he would have once felt nervous. Now he felt nothing, nothing besides urgency, urgency that did not originate from fear of being attacked or robbed. 

No, it was urgency that sprouted from the deepest recesses of himself, telling him to hide for his self-preservation, for if he did not, the symptoms would soon manifest, and in his present state, he didn’t know if he could take them. 

He made it about halfway before his proximity sensor went off. With his audials turned so low, he realized he hadn’t picked up the voice of whoever was calling to him, and they’d approached, their presence now close enough to seemingly reach out and touch him. 

He turned his helm, uncaring, for whoever it was could not be worse than–

Him. 

Uptick was following within grabbing distance of him, his dermas moving as he ranted on about something Luster was glad he couldn’t hear. He paused in his movement and Uptick did the same, though he didn’t once stop talking. Of course he didn’t.

Slowly, Luster turned his audials back on, just enough to make out the slew of Uptick’s commentary like the gentle, cooing sound of a cyber pigeon. 

“--and furthermore you are in direct violation of your curfew, which states you aren’t to be out beyond the Earth hour of 21:00; it is presently 01:20 and here you are wandering the passages of Metroplex like a lost turbofox!” He put both hands on his hips, glaring Luster down. “This is your second warning. You know what happens if I have to issue a third.”

He shuttered his optics and stared blankly just beyond Uptick. “You lock me up in the clinic until I’m completely fixed or I don’t function anymore?” 

“What?” He sounded incredulous. “No! I’m not here to–do you consider this some kind of torture? Luster, I’m trying to help you!” 

“Then can you leave me alone?” He grumbled, turning away and continuing on his predetermined path. “I’ll be fine…I just need to go back…”

Back to where? The habsuit? The ship? The planet of fog in his memories? Back, back. Always back. 

“You need to stop drinking,” Uptick scolded, grabbing his shoulder and bringing him to a halt. “And stop these late night wanderings. Everyone’s concerned for you because of them.”

He let his shoulders slump. 

“That’s a lie and you know it. The only ones who still care about me are the medics who want to poke my processor. Now can I please go back home?”

The buzz was starting to fade. He didn’t get that nice warmth from Energon overfueling for long anymore. Balance was restoring. And worst of all, the reports were coming in. 

Tank capacity at 95%. Fuel proficiency at 20%. Uptake at %$^&&*^# levels. Seek alternate methods of refueling. 

Uptick let out a long sigh. “Let me walk you back. There’s no point in you getting lost and scaring others again.”

He didn’t fight the offer. There was no point in it. Once Uptick was convinced of doing something, he wouldn’t stop until it was done–especially if that task regarded protecting someone else. 

So he trudged along, the ‘bot slated as his “guardian” trailing just behind him. “Guardian”. “Caretaker” was more like it. Uptick followed him everywhere, kept an eye on how much Energon he was consuming, tracked his recharge cycles, kept a close eye on just what activities he engaged with on a daily basis, and probably had a tracker installed beneath his aft to keep him from ever having an ounce of privacy. 

Of course he did, though, after that night with the other ‘bots. He knew what he had been doing and why he had been doing it. He just didn’t know why he’d stopped.

The Autobots he’d frightened were significantly less green than he was. That wouldn’t keep them safe. They’d returned to their habsuit to begin a cycle of “enjoying one another’s company”. That was why he’d picked them. Two for one. It would have made the whole situation easier on them all.

Except it hadn’t been easier on anyone, especially him. They’d both become creeped out when, upon discovering him in their personal quarters, staring at their recharge slabs with optics more devoid than a moon, he’d purged his dinner and collapsed, whining like a sick turbofox. 

That was when Uptick had been assigned as his caretaker. There wasn’t anything wrong with Uptick, by any means, and he didn’t hate him. He was, like all Enforcers, large and imposing, and tended to play by the rules too much. His paint was cheerful colors of blue, green, and white, meant to match with the new planet he was eager to call home. And his personality was surprisingly forgiving–for being the sucker stuck with the mental patient, he had quite a tolerance for nonsense.

No, Luster despised Uptick’s company for an entire other reason. One that didn’t have to do with how closely he watched him, how constantly he reminded him to attend his appointments, or how constantly he changed his curfews and rules.

It had to do with his sparkbeat. With how close he insisted on staying, Luster could hear the damnable thing’s constant pulsing despite the layers of glass and metal and wires separating them. It was loud and full of vibrant life. 

He could feel the solvent building in his mouth. 

Tank capacity at 93%. 

—-------------------------------

The habsuit allotted to him was at the very end of Metroplex’s furthest row. It was close to the wall, away from any streets or alleys. The original request put in regarding a space for him had placed him near the clinic, where other Cybertronians would be passing by. His vehement rejection of the idea had only been approved after the arguing had made him purge. 

Uptick brought him right to the sliding door, inputting the code to open it on its keypad. The metal let out a quiet shff as it slid open, revealing the small space within. He turned, giving Luster a look. 

“Your visit tomorrow is at 09:20, Earth hours. I’ve already sent you the data package. You seem to have ignored the first four.” There was a hint of annoyance in his voice as he raised a servo to his helm. “I’ll send you another. Be there on time, please, so I don’t have to come here and convince you, alright?”

“Convince”. Luster almost scoffed at the word. The heaviness that came with overfueling had left him by now. With its cloud gone, he found himself choking on bitterness again. 

Instead, he vented, giving a tiny nod. 

“Alright.” Stepping past Uptick, he paused in the threshold of his habsuit when a hand suddenly landed back on his shoulder. 

“Luster. You know these visits are for your health, right? No one here wants to hurt you. We don’t see you as a processor to be poked.” 

“I know.” He didn’t turn around. The lights in his habsuit, motion activated, had turned on, illuminating the sparse few belongings within it. 

“I mean it.” His grip tightened ever so slightly, then released. “We want to help you. All of us.” 

“I know,” he repeated. “Now please leave me alone.” 

Uptick said nothing as the door slid closed, sealing him, and the outside world, away. Luster stepped fully into his habsuit and paused, gaze fixed on the berth. 

It was a recharge slab, standard issue. They’d tried to pull a better one for him due to his circumstances–the medic’s had posited that he may have recharging terrors. They’d been right, of course, but he knew it wasn’t the fault of the slab, so he’d let it lie. They didn’t need to know about the terrors that plagued him, for they were meaningless, and besides, if they knew, they’d want to keep a closer eye on him. 

Who cared about terrors that only consisted of strange humming noises, anyways?

Besides, a closer eye was the exact opposite of what he needed on him. If they watched him more closely, they’d take him away from the bar. They’d take him away from his quiet habsuit. They’d take him away from his place at the edge of their world and draw him right into the middle. 

And if they did that, he had no idea how long he could ensure their safety. 

He stepped over to the slab, observing his reflection in it. They’d taken away the mirror after he’d shown distress staring into it. Something about his frame just didn’t feel right, and the more he looked at it, the more out of place he felt. 

His paint was blue, a gaudy blue, one with a sheen to it that made him literally shine. One of the medics had stated his color was particularly reminiscent of a bird known as the “peacock” on earth. He’d never met the thing, but from the way they’d snickered, he assumed it was excessive. 

On his chassis were diamonds, which, according to the doctors, had been placed there, willingly, by him. He couldn’t imagine why he would have ever reasoned to do such a thing. The stones weakened the integrity of his armor, and furthermore, they drew attention. Cut into varying shapes, they were arranged into delicate patterns that continued on his faceplate, where several more had been embedded just below his optics. Had been. When they found him, all that were left were the indentations of what had been. They now felt like ugly scars. 

The gemstones were gaudy enough, but worse, in his opinion, were his drills. Their blades rested comfortably on his arms, with the largest sitting on his back as a heavy extension. His treads were on his legs, which, combined with the weight of the drill, made even lifting the damnable things a chore. According to the medics he hadn’t even been a miner back in the day, but a scientist of sorts, so why he was so equipped for drilling, he couldn’t even say. 

All of this shaped up to make his frame bulky and uncomfortable. His steps were heavy. His pieces tended to bump into things. And his excessive decorations drew gazes and snickers alike from other mechs. 

He hated the face that looked back at him. The optics were green, a gaudy green, because apparently, he’d once been obsessed with fashion, and made himself a different pair of colored optics for every day of the week. The others were lost, but the green he’d been wearing when he disappeared weren’t. 

His faceplate was a pale gray, like most mechs tended to be. Pale, with those intricate, delicate etchings, designed to make him look ‘beautiful’. His helm had a sharp point in the middle, reaching about halfway down, and of course, in the middle of it was another gemstone. This one, however, was cracked. 

A cracked gemstone accompanied by diamond shaped holes that had once held something supposedly precious. That was all he saw when he looked at himself. 

He tore his optics away from the visage and sat on the berth, keeping his pedes on the floor as he turned to look at his habsuit. It had a desk, a window, a few datapads, and a small storage shelf. That was all. 

They’d offered to bring him some of his surviving “collection”, whatever that meant. He’d declined.

The ceiling lights dimmed as he tried to lay down on his back, found it impossible, and instead did so on his side. He’d never get used to the damnable drill on his back, he just knew it. It wasn’t supposed to be there. It hadn’t been there before. Why did he have a drill on his back? He couldn’t ever remember a time where he did. 

But that was the problem with remembering. He couldn’t remember much of anything. 

It had been only three Earth “months” (solar cycles?) ago that he had landed on the planet, in an unmarked spaceship that had been dated back to the middle of the war. The bots who had discovered him found his frame locked in a stasis pod, almost offline from how little power he’d had left. Taking him back to Autobot city, an emergency transfer of Energon and a strong shock to his processor had brought him back online. 

And that was when the trouble had begun. He’d awoken in a room he didn’t recognize, in a time he didn’t know, in a place he’d never been before. He still remembered coming online. For so long it had been just darkness, darkness and the very hum of the universe, the electrical pulses that dictated the existence of life, making up the entirety of his world. When he’d come online, that hum had ebbed, becoming less than background noise. 

It had felt like being cut off from a lifeline. His optics had onlined, and he had been greeted with the sight of one of the Autobot medics, First Aid. There was celebration to be had as he had groaned and tried to sit up, confused, delirious, and wondering just how he’d gotten to this strange place. They’d insisted he stay down until his energon reserves were replenished. 

But even when his tank hit its safe capacity, a feeling that should have left him satiated and energized, he hadn’t had the strength to properly move. He’d known in that very instant, as the question arose as to why, that something was wrong with him. 

Another electrical shock had returned the ability to properly move to him. They released him from the medical bay after he’d demonstrated he could walk–right into the hands of their Enforcers. For according to their records, he was not to be alone, and the question of just what had happened on his mission was hanging heavier than a spaceship in orbit. 

The issue of his memory had arisen almost immediately. They’d asked him his name. They’d asked him why he had been alone. They’d asked him what had happened. 

He couldn’t remember any of it. 

“His processor seems to have been damaged, sir.” He remembered one of them saying, looking over the scan that had been provided from the medical bay. “They’ve found evidence that a code was written to delete some memories, but even more than that…” The datapad had been handed over, and the interrogator sucked in air through his denta. “How is he even still functional, with scrambling that bad?”

It looked like his processor had been ripped out, smashed, and placed back into his helm. He had no recollection of any of it. 

“Do you remember why you left?”

“Do you remember the name of your ship?”

“Do you remember the research you’d been engaging with when you’d decided to leave?”

“Do you remember what you found?”

“Do you remember Solace?”

“Do you remember what happened to him?”

“What happened to Solace?”

Who’s Solace?

The interview had ended shortly after. 

He vented, watching the lights in the ceiling turn down. Uptick’s data package pushed at the edge of his internal hub. He accepted it because he had no other choice. 

Solace. The name haunted him like a specter. Solace. Who was Solace? Solace had been someone he’d been very close with, apparently. Solace had been someone so important to him that he’d left Cybertron with him, in search of something mysterious to help the Autobot war effort. They’d been joined at the hip all their lives, apparently, 

And he couldn’t remember a single thing about the mech. But why?

He shuttered his optics and tried to think back to the day he’d left Cybertron. It had been sometime in the middle of the war, apparently. He’d made some big decision and gotten a ship somehow. He was going to prove something, or save them all, or change the tide of the war. Something heroic, or whatever. They’d said he had once been outgoing. 

He tried to picture himself standing on Cybertron (did he even remember Cybertron?), chassis puffed out, engine revving, the diamonds on his faceplate and chest glittering. A huge smile was on his face. He stood before the ship he’d arrived on, except instead of its decrepit state, it was a fully functioning spaceship, fresh off the factory line, without a single chip on the paint. 

Before him was a crowd of Autobots. They were cheering his name. Optimus Prime himself was there to see him off. 

He looks them over and grins widely, holding his arms out. Yes, he was going to save them all. He was going to travel far away, find something, and help end the war. He would be so full of hope, nothing could dampen his spirits. 

And there, beside him, would be Solace. Solace, his best friend, his one in a billion, his greatest ally. 

But when he looks beside him, there is no Solace. 

There was only fog, and blank space, and when he looked back, the planet of Cybertron was empty, a barren wasteland of gray. The sky was dark velvet blue. Stars glittered like diamonds overhead. 

There were stars in his chassis. He blinked once, twice. The planet was empty, and he was full of stars, and he was alone. 

And here, alone, in the emptiness of space, he floated, watching all of existence fall away and turn into the hum of electromagnetic pulses indicating life. Life that he could not see or touch. Life he could only listen to as he lay dreaming, drifting through the universe alone. 

In his cradle of stars, dead $^%#%&*^&8 waits dreaming. 

Not alone, really. He had not been alone while he was dreaming. He had heard something else in the hum.

He replayed the sound again, the hum he was so familiar with. It was millions of years worth of noise, stored within his processor because he had nothing else to comprehend for all of it. 217 gigabytes of nothing but humming. His processor ran through all of it in mere minutes, then ran through it again. 

There was something beneath all of the noise, something explicitly subtle. He opened his internal hub and pulled up a spectrograph. The noise was replayed again. 

The waves showed up as nothing in particular for a long time. Then, slowly, they began to form a curve. One by one, each contributed a single line, through millions of years, until finally, he reached himself now, still intuned, just barely, to the electromagnetic pulses of life. 

The image looking back at him was in the shape of a crescent. It was the very shape which he saw in his charge terrors, the one which, ever present, hung in the background, watching him like a cybercat would a mouse. 

His spark felt cold. He closed the spectrograph and opened his optics, staring at the gentle light of Earth’s moon shining in through the window. His internal clock beeped a warning to him–five hours until he was designated to be at the clinic. A pop-up recommending he enter recharge appeared. He moved to close it.

Tank capacity at 68%. Fuel uptake at &%#$^*(&%$$%&&%$%^^^&* Seek alternate fuel source. Seek alternate fuel source. Seek alternate fuel source. 

Dozens more appeared at the death of the one. He pushed the notifications away. 

Seek alternate fuel source.

They came back, one after the other. His frame felt like it had been starved of Energon for years. 

Seek alternate fuel source. 

He forced his optics to shutter, letting the notifications drown out the fear he felt. 

Seek alternate fuel source.

It was going to be a long recharge.

[zinnynia]

give ur opinions on every half life cast member go into details i want to see how ur brain functions

My opinion on the Half Life cast? I don’t have any/many opinions about most of them, so I’ll just not talk about those characters.

I’ll be going from least - most thoughts and opinions, starting with Lamarr.

Though, not really about Lamarr, but headcrabs in general. Out of every alien and enemy in Half Life, Headcrabs and Headcrab Zombies are the scariest to me. Idk man, they’re terrifying, and the concept itself is depressing.

D0g + Eli and Russell are all three very cute characters. I always love seeing them interact with Alyx, and their relationship with her is very sweet. D0g was made by Eli, and Alyx kinda just continued to add more to him, making him the D0g we all know and love. I haven’t completed my Half Life: Alyx run yet, but so far, Russell and Eli seem like really nice parental figures for her. Russell is funny, and has genuinely made me smile and enjoy his company in stressful situations, and Eli just seems like an overall great father. I think I have daddy issues.

I don’t really like Adrian. It’s not that I hate him, or like him at all. I mean, the art of him is kinda cute tbh, and maybe the angst and shit, but he doesn’t really hit the spot like Alyx, Gordon and Barney. I mean, his concept is kind of cool, I guess, but I really wish we could see more of him. Maybe in Half Life 3 (if it comes out), the G-Man could possibly use Adrian against Gordon, as sort of a way to “distract” the gang and make Adrian join the Combine ranks. ..I could be cooking some fanfic ideas for y’all, so PLEASEEE cook up some Combine Adrian AU fr fr. Make him hot too (I might have a thing for the Combine Ngl).

Alyx is girliepop. She ate, slayed, and left no crumbs. What I really like about her is that she doesn’t really idolize Gordon, like what most of the Resistance does. She treats Gordon like a normal human being, and has shown from time to time that she genuinely cares about him. I think she’s well written, but what I don’t really like is that she’s the “love interest” of Half Life. I don’t really think there needs to be romance, because the story is already pretty good. I also find Freemance kind of… iffy. Gordon kind of knew her when she was a baby, and I can’t imagine popping out 20 years later and some kid I knew started crushing heavily on me, or their dad starts shipping us together. But that’s controversial, and if you ship it, you do you. Not my business, and it’s all fictional. Plus, they’re both consenting adults, just the idea is kinda weird.

The G-Man’s concept really intrigues me, and I feel like a lot could be built off of him in Half Life 3 (if it ever comes out). I’ve written a Half Life OC kind of based around it, actually! Basically, the G-Man manipulates and uses resistance members to distract the gang, taking and stealing them, along with Alyx. This causes the gang to feel stressed and discouraged, hopeless even. Barney is nowhere to be found (he’s safe and untouched), so it’s just Gordon and Eli. I feel like a lot could be done with this, and builds more on the G-Man’s manipulative and antagonistic character. It would also be cool if the Combine joins forces with the gang, and defeat the G-Man, then agree on a truce, leaving Earth or co-exist together. I also just feel like I’m intrigued by the G-Man so much, mostly because I’ve written my story’s main antagonist similarity to the G-Man coincidentally.. and that’ll be a story for another post.

Last, but not least… Gordon and Barney omggg!!! Barney and Gordon are both my most favorite characters of Half Life, Barney especially. About a year ago, when I laid eyes on Barney, something inside of me literally just…. Clicked. I was like “I like this man. He’s my favorite character now.”

^^^ Pieces of artwork I made when I first got into Half Life))

I didn’t really understand it, until I really started to look into the fandom, realizing him and Gordon were best friends, and how he practically missed Gordon for 20 years, holding onto crowbars and thinking about the beer he owed Gordon. This REALLY hit me, as I’m in an oddly similar situation.

^^^ The him))

My childhood best friend and I were pretty close, despite knowing each other for only 2 years. We got split up, but met again, but never got the chance to reconnect and actually chat. But throughout the years, I always bought lockets, and sometimes items with sunflowers. Lockets, because he and I were BIG Undertale fans back then (also FNaF and Pokemon), and our parting gifts were paper heart lockets. Sunflowers, because of flower symbolism (wishful thinking, happiness, etc etc) and the idea of “Summer.” We always did everything together, like paper crafts. Another funny thing is that, after finding him again recently, our dynamic is somewhat similar to Freehoun in a way. Me being the more chatty one, while he’s a little more silent. My problem is that I'd rather hear him talk, because he’s really everything I’d want to talk about (no homo 4 him pls I swear). It’s also funnier that he’s a science guy and works out, and is taller than me. It’s giving……. Gordon to Barney.

It’s also funny that a lot of the fanfics I’ve read and liked remind me a lot of us. One fanfic had Gordon and Barney have a conversation, talking about how they can’t “resume” where things left off. That reminds me about a thing he told me one night, about how we weren’t the same people we were in 2nd and 3rd grade, but truthfully I didn’t love him (platonically) for who we were, but for who he is. On the topic of fanfics, I’ve written my fair share (2), and they’re all vents about him in the form of Freehoun! Though, they aren’t technically romantic, they could be interpreted as romantic.

^^^ Old artwork I made based off of my fanfic "Never Again."))

And speaking about Freehoun, I’m actually not much of a “Freehouner.” Sure, it’s cute, but I think they’re just really cute friends. The things they’d do in Black Mesa, and the beer. The way Barney looks at Gordon, and how upset his face was when he had to part ways in Episode 1. Anyways, it took me 7 years to finally have him back (technically 2 + 5, but we didn’t get time to really chat, so I add the 2 years), and I told him “I’d wait another 7 years if it means I’d get to talk to you again” and I also did kinda write him a 2 page (platonic) Valentines Letter that he DID kinda print out cus it was a google doc. Letters are kind of our thing, because I always gave him letters back then when I had a way to send them (via people/connections).

Plus, Gordon is kinda fine...... And Barney's really cute. Like??? PLEASEEEE who decided to make two good looking best friends like tf? And can we PLEASE TALK about how sad Barney looked at the end of Episode 1???? Shit still has be crying.

[hazbinmurderparty1846]

Full list of casting for the Sweeney Todd AU (and reasons for all of them)

Mr Todd: Obviously it has to be Alastor. Why? Well, because first of all: serial killer. Second of all, I feel like Todd is what Alastor would become if he went off the deep end. I know he's already pretty fucked-up, but he's not as bad as he could be, and mark my words if you put him through something like what Todd's been through, that is exactly how Al would become. Possibly even worse.

Mrs Lovett: Rosie. Do I need to say more? She's a sweet, cheerful cannibal lady with motherly qualities, and she cares for Alastor a whole hell of a lot. I did have some issues with casting her as Lovett, though, mostly because Lovett seems slightly less stable than Rosie and her relationship with Todd is clearly not very healthy on either end even before he kills her. But Rosie still fit her too well not to.

Toby: Now here, look. I couldn't figure out who the hell to put as Toby, so unless y'all have any ideas I'm gonna be casting an OC in his place. Said OC was already intended to be Rosie's adopted child, so it fits. But if anyone has a better idea I'll be glad to hear it, I hate using OCs in things that aren't centric to them.

Judge Turpin: Valentino. Again, need I say more? His main thing is being a rapist, and so overwhelmed by lust that he would ruin a man's life for a small chance at a woman he found attractive. Val already demonstrates this kind of behavior in canon, albeit towards Angel Dust, not Emily. Who else could it be? Plus he dies, so.

Beadle Bamford: Velvette. She's the closest character to Val that I could think of, and them being assholes together would make sense. Plus I just really wanted to draw her in a suit and top hat.

Signor Pirelli: Vox, of course. His only purpose is to be Todd's rival and get murdered by him almost immediately, who else could it be? Vox would probably openly allow Alastor to murder him tbh, the bottom that he is- plus, I also just really like the idea of him singing opera in an obnoxious Italian accent.

Lucy: Emily. Now hear me out - I'm not normally an AngelicSmile shipper, but it's the only Alastor ship other than RadioRose that I can even remotely picture. Plus, she's sweet and naive enough to be Lucy - her getting taken advantage of by Val and attempting suicide after, while a very dark and sad concept, is very plausible.

Johanna: Again, unless y'all have any ideas, I'm replacing her with an OC. I considered Vaggie, but decided against it because she'd be Alastor and Emily's daughter and that just felt weird. I considered Niffy too, but Niffty x Charlie is really not something I wanna write, so I scrapped that too. Help is welcome.

Anthony: Charlie. Who else could it be? A naive, idealistic, determined young sailor who never gives up, especially when it comes to love. Sounds like Charlie to me. Plus, her rescuing Alastor and bringing him home is such a Charlie move, let's be real, nobody else on the cast would do that.

And that's it for now! :D So, do y'all agree? Any suggestions for improvement? I'd love some help if you'd offer it, but if not thats fine! ^^

[ghooostzone]

idk how to format this in a way that makes any cohesive sense but i saw a post abt farcille (the ship) not being toxic yuri n i was like agreeeeee srry for putting this on my oc blog but i don't feel like this should be on main -- i'm making it abt ocs somehow

anyway the replies that stuck out to me were:

"I think people are just obsessed with [toxic] gay relationships rn and are trying to impose it on any single one they like"

"people are trying to romanticize messy things too desperately"

some ppl following me here might disagree with ^ but tbh being on tumblr n seeing 5 million of the same 'sexy toxic this; let queer stories be messydark that; we need more bad gay rep yada yada' posts over n over makes me feel these so hard. i even randomly ran into a post that said erotica with "morally upright consent and neat and tidy safer sex practices" (their wording) was boring in their eyes which is a whole 'nother problem this site has but theres overlap. n theres always been ppl out there who will find ways to make healthy ships unhealthy in their fanon for no real reason

the only arguably toxic doomed etc couples i have currently r orvalsy n bad-end timeline yvesmikko (the latter i never even talk abt srry......) but my healthy couples still do crasy things or have certain flaws or are a lil obsessive thats how love be (shoutout to waynealec)

it's like. idk messy or unhealthy relationships can be rlly interesting but the way some ppl treat them on here is just weird i can't describe it. sometimes it's just nice when the gay ppl r good for each other n make each other happy. it doesn't even have to be super lovey-dovey the way my ships usually are. does anybody hear me it's so dark in here

[jimmymonett]

O’grady oc doodle 🤭🤭

Anyways her name is Caitlyn Moore and she’s my fave

- She’s in the AV club

- Only friends with Beth, Harold, and Phillip mostly

- She carries a lot of random ‘health’ or ‘crunchy’ products on her

- I’m guessing she’s probably related to Jasmine

- She probably has one of those hemp backpacks

- The only pants she wears YEARS ROUND is the least flattering khaki shorts

- She carries perfume that’s Honey scented but also carries bug pheromones in the same pocket

- The reason she has that is cause she’s weird and has a bunch of pet bugs

- I feel like she has her ears pierced and then one other one on some random part of her body

- She wears those chunky hiking shoes which make her a lot taller then she is, granted she’s not short but she’s not exactly tall either

- I don’t rlly ship her with anybody but I kinda head cannon she’s down horrendous for Dave but idk for sure. She could just be single forever tbh

V.A claim- Sally from MAMD

[townofcadence]

11. When do you think a ship is not fruitful for your muse development or enjoyable to write?

Munday Questions

Hmm! A good question. I don't really fully know, because I think I leave it very much to the muse's discretion lol. I don't tend to go into interactions planning to ship. So with that, I kinda end up not knowing what to expect! I could probably tell you by interaction how that's affected the character and their feelings on the other person, but even the littlest or biggest thing might change the whole trajectory. Tbh I think everyone brings something interesting and unique to the table, so in most cases i'm open to it if the chemistry happens and it feels natural regardless of speed it happens at. It's fun because personalities can have some real interesting chemistry narratively you don't expect!

BUT that's kind of a side tangent. The best answer I can come up with is if it feels like the mun is trying to force it? Like if the mun tries to undo every conflict, especially if their muse is instigating it, either by having it erased, or their character immediately trying to fix it? Or making their muse behave out of character to make something happen (especially if it aligns with the muse they're interested in's wants/needs), and coming up with reasons why after the fact? Even going out of character and basically asking what the right answer should be so their character can say the right thing, so they can get extra points with the other muse. It feels kinda metagamey and trying to force a good relationship to happen, and it feels inauthentic and kinda makes me feel weird and uncomfortable sometimes?

The other thing is if some of that stuff happens and it feels like the only thing the other mun is after is a ship between the muses. I think shipping stuff can be a neat side effect of rp! But my focus is on characters and how they change and grow and bond when connecting to others, and the constant ever changing growth that comes with being a person. So when someone is clearly there for the ship, most of the time they don't know my version of a character, just either the canon version they're interested in or in OC cases, that they like their look. They'll usually approach and immediately ask to ship, and I'm just not comfy without at least having some kind of interaction first, even if we establish a baseline to make that easier and not need an introduction thread that's an in-character first meeting.

Gosh, that reminds me of a story i find funny though.

It was yearssss ago and it still kinda makes me laugh at the absurdity. I had yet at the time the ability to say no to anyone. someone approached asking for an rp. I agreed, and they immediately wanted to ship, and toss Artair and his gang into a ship with their oc. I was kinda like 'haha i don't know your muse' and they were like Okay. Then just remove the single woman in the ship. Which is bonkers as a response? And i was like 'well maybe we should have them interact first, Artair is demi' which they they asked me to explain why he was demi, how it worked and why that would prevent him from liking thier OC, and what specific traits that they should describe their muses having so I could decide if he'd like him--- and then when i said i didn't know if hearing the traits and not seeing them in action would work, they were like 'okay just put him with the other guy not artair' .

i didn't know how to say no so i just tried to make it sound really boring if i wrote him, so they changed their mind and agreed to just a platonic thread with artair. And then immediately jumped into stuff like a demon chopping off all their limbs and artair needing to make prosthetics and attach them to this character. I distinctly remember that they said artair could surgically attach them and i said I didn't think artair could do that part, and they went 'well then who can' and i was like '.....a doctor?' with the most bafflement lol. It was wild, and my one friend still jokingly says 'paging doctor art-io' as a joke (art-io was because I said artair was as qualified to be a real doctor as dr. Mario was when i told them, i think xD)

That mun went to eat dinner and never came back to the conversation, which i was alright with. Then six months later they reached out and asked to rp again, and i told them if they want to rp, I specifically don't ship-- and they never responded and i never heard from them after that xD

[danse--macabre]

20 questions for writers

thank you for @jiubilant for the tag! :)

tagging anyone who'd like to do this.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Across all accounts, 33 works.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

203,958. damn!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

currently, just BG3. in the past I've written pieces relating to elder scrolls (mostly Morrowind), star wars, and avatar: the last airbender though.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

The Eyeliner Incident

seeds of darkness planted within you

To pull a heart apart strand by strand

Flowers for Zuko

Considering the Weekend

I've bolded and linked the ones here worth reading; the other two are ancient star wars ficlets that I'm not particularly fussed by.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Where possible I do! If people leave comments on older works or fandoms I've moved on from, I sometimes don't always get around to it.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably Considering the Weekend. Which makes sense given it's a Disco Elysium fic about mostly-closeted gay/bi cops in love, who will not be able to break their chains until they realise the police is a violent force of capital.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

A lot of my ATLA pieces have lighter endings given the source material is a lot lighter. The Eyeliner Incident and Follow the Rhinestones are both fics which I think could have had worse endings - but didn't. I wanted to be optimistic in both circumstances.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Luckily, no.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Not really?

I wrote exactly one piece of smut for Elder Scrolls (The Sword that Lies Between Them), which was a fairly chaste piece of lesbian smut all about two rival queens/political leaders in the 1st era circling around each other while one is about to be married off, politically, to a man she has complex, not entirely romantic feelings for. It was my first attempt at it and I think it shows.

Since then, I've tried to write smut for BG3, but it hasn't really ever materialised.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I don't write these, but I do frequently think about the Elder Scrolls/BG3 crossover where my weird dwarven Elder Scrolls OC Bthemetz gets yeeted out of her universe by the nautiloid -- which, tbh, doesn't feel that out there, Mindflayers are Aberrations that originate from Far Away in at least one iteration of D&D lore.

She'd get on with them swimmingly. She's a highly traumatised 3,000 year old ex-priest + ex-revolutionary who got turned into an automaton after dying in a revolution who is 1. technically undead, 2. had her heart literally stolen for lore/plot reasons, so she is shaking hands very firmly with astarion and karlach for various reasons. She'd have the funniest rivalry with gale given she hides much of her bullshit under the appearance of being an eccentric professor, but also she hates wizards on principle.

It would be a hoot. Nobody would read it. I am not writing something no one would read <3

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No, luckily enough.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I've had a request for this once on a popular ATLA oneshot I made - but I don't think this was ever realised. I also had one ATLA oneshot turned into a podfic for charity.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic?

I've attempted this, but it never materialised into anything.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

f!Kagrenac/Bthemetz from my Morrowind dwemer fanfiction. First loves whose codependent 500 year old lesbian relationship turns toxic after the discovery of a deity's remains. Breaks down with an academic feud, treason, attempts at apotheosis, and the revelation they killed each other in a past life. Despite the fact that one sends assassins after the other to kill them, they're still utterly obsessed with each other. Literally nobody else is doing it like them.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

The Tragedy of Lady Noriko. This was an Ursa-centric ATLA fic that explored her familial relationships & relationship with the Avatar, and wanted to provide an 'alternate universe' Ursa who would not abandon her children - for better or worse. A Covid-19 project that ran out of steam once work picked up.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think I have a few! My current favourite thing about my writing is that I think I have a very strong sense of narrative voice. I'm able to capture how different characters sound very well. I have historically (though less nowadays) been very good at poetic prose too.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Plots! Particularly mysteries, or plots that require lots of pieces. My writing is mostly embellished character pieces and I would like to tackle something where more happens one of these days. I also think I have issues pacing and knowing when to start/finish scenes.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language?

I think it depends on the audience, the language, the length of dialogue, and the intent. It can sometimes be very meaningful, especially if one is trying to make a point about the importance of languages, languages as a means of bridging divides, and lack of language as something alienating, potentially, or isolating.

However I will say in a large number of circumstances I find it deeply pretentious. I was reading... a well-loved literary fiction classic by a well-loved London novellist recently, and the fact that the French dialogue was not translated drove me up the fucking wall. There is no reason not to provide translation unless you want to show off how clever you are.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

When I was nine years old I wrote a diary from the perspective of Jack Spicer from Xiaolin Showdown. I definitely didn't know what fanfiction was at that age, I just had an urge to create things using fictional characters. I didn't even use the internet back then, I remember this was back on 'the family computer' in 2003 or whatever.

If we're talking about published pieces, I put some (sigh) Eragon fanfiction up on ff.net back in 2010. I was a teenager, obviously.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

it's the Eyeliner Incident. It's a combination of interesting worldbuilding + fun characterisation + formally interesting without being overly wanky. I also wrote it in about five days, in time for my birthday (<3), and because I wrote it in such a short time, I didn't have time to resent it.

A Thesis: On Twelve Tones is close to my heart as well but I have a MUCH more mixed relationship with that in terms of pure writing quality even if I think it's one of the most significant pieces I've written in terms of developing as a writer.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

I have a spidersona but i feel i won't get accepted because I ship her with Miles...🤦🏾‍♀️

Honestly GO FOR IT - like RUN AT IT

The best part and root of fanfiction is exploring and expanding on parts of the character we don't get to see on screen. And OCs are THE BEST at doing that.

SO DO IT. GO FOR IT no matter who you are!!

TBH I've always been rather meh about canon couples because like.. I know they're gonna end up together so I don't really crave things like fanart for them.

To me Canon Couples are like a jumpscare. If I know it's coming it's gonna get less of a reaction.

That's why a lot of my Spidey-writing pre-ATSV is about dancing around MJ and keeping her platonic. I much prefer Felicia Hardy (The Black Cat) because she challenges Peter's character in a way we don't often see.

The same goes for SpideyPool too. It's so cute because Spidey is nice to everyone, but REALLY sassy with Wade.

Relationships and OCs can bring out so much color and variety in a character, that like...they're so useful writing wise. Not just in a fanfic sense, but expanding your writing.

AND I AM NOT ABOVE KILLING OFF CANON CHARACTERS - DO IT FOR THE ANGSTTTT and for the indulgence I'm genuinely surprised I haven't seen anyone kill off Gayatri and ship an OC with Pavitr cause like...nothing stopping you. That's a great fic opportunity.

And if Hobie gets a Mary-Jane: hell yeah I'd kill her in a heartbeat NO MERCY idgaf how happy she makes him and im deadass!!!! fjgdgjdgh

I will ALWAYS say OCs are the best writing practice, far beyond canon stuff. Because not only are you writing canon characters, but you're shaping and filling in gaps in your story, and reflecting how characters react when a whole new influence (your OC) is brought into the situation.

OCs ARE MY LIFEBLOOD OKAY -

I know you didn't ask for this but

OFF-TOPIC SIDEBAR: Adults can ship their OCs with Minors - That's literally how all writing works

[below is a short rant where I beef about people who say 'Adults shouldn't ship their OCs with teenagers' - spoiler alert: EVERY minor ship in media is written by an adult.]

One final sidebar before I go cause I feel like this is such a weird thing people have beef with -

I find it SO WEIRD when people are like 'Oh adults shouldn't ship or write their OCs with minors that's weird and nasty'

Like ?????????? ?? ???? ?? Think about that sentence.

So. Who you think wrote the movie then? You telling me a minor wrote ATSV?? They had a 16 year write the movie??

Or did an adult do it? Like how adults wrote literally every minor relationship you've watched..since the begininning of time?? Cause like - Wasn't....Gwen & Miles romance written by an adult?? Am I missing something?????

Stranger Things. Wednesday. Riverdal?? The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Leonardo and April?? MCU Spiderman 1, 2, AND 3???

TWILIGHT??? ALL teens dating, written by an adult. JOHN GREEN FAULT IN OUR STARS?? HELOO??

Like.........99.5% of the relationships about minors you read is written by adults. Almost EVERY ship of fictional minors are written by an adult shipping their characters together sfhkjghkjdfgshkjdg

Are we arresting people for that now cause if so put the writers of Euphoria IN CUFFS and put a curse on their land!!!!!

idk it's just funny logic to me cause like ?????? my sibling in christ you are enjoying the adult written minor relationship as we speak djkgfdgjkf

"Don't write your OC in love with Miles, the only adult that can do that is the dozens of adults in the writers room getting paid to do just that, most of which didn't create Miles or Gwen themselves"

umm.. ok.

Make OCs, ship them, explore character relationships, WRITE. Ship them with canon characters, talk about your OCs like they're canon, let them build relationships and grow within the story nobody can stop you.

And last point honestly saying adults can't write stuff like that - HORRIBLE writing advice. HORRIBLE.

Because if you're a writer who can only write adults and you leave younger people out of your story - or you write teenagers as adults because you have no experience writing them... not a good look. How do you expect to write a character arc with a character that doesn't age or go through stages of their lives? You need range to write all ages. Half of romance movies out there start with them falling in love as kids and reuniting, you need to know how to write people at different stages of life. Telling adults they can't write anyone below 18 is just...not good advice. Like you can't just...refuse to write a large part of the population??

N E Wayyyyyy Once again this became a rant lol but this isn't like an angry one, it's like a '???why is the statement??? why it exist when it make no sense'

here hobie look at him wooo

hes so sassy looking :3 i love him his shape up is so nice

Bye.