#it may be a long shot but I’m hoping for lore

[studioghibelli]

a tale of two cities | a cooper howard x reader

summary: you’ve been kidnapped by the Big Man. a certain bounty hunter comes to rescue you.

warnings: inaccurate fallout lore, obvious age gap, pre-established relationship, mentions of virginity, angst central, very brief allusions to previous sexual encounters, etc.

notes: wanted to try out a different writing style with this one. don’t know how i feel about it just yet! hope y’all enjoy, i love my sexy bone man so much.

“-Well now, you see what we got here, don’tcha? Young female, vital organs intact, high egg count-“

“What do you know about my eggs?”

In unison came a harsh “Shhh!”

You stood behind a counter of an “organ bank” that you knew was a front for something or another, eyelids heavy with annoyance as you listened to your captor bicker with the festering attendee.

“Can you please get this over with?” You were practically begging, knees sore from the long journey, and tongue dry from a lack of water.

“Didn’t your daddy ever teach you to keep your mouth shut when others were talking?” A man with a ratty face and browning teeth glared at you, the bowie knife in his hand glistening with the promise of an oncoming cut if you kept running your mouth.

You looked down at the ground, kicking at a pile of rubbish. You couldn’t help yourself when you muttered: “I never knew my daddy.”

“Bitch!” The man snarled, holding the blade of his knife to your throat.

The attendee at the counter stood up, placing a hand on your captors arm. “Now, now, Isaac. You know the Big Man doesn’t like his women all scratched up in the face.”

This supposed Isaac shot you a chilling look, before retracting his blade. The attendee spoke again. “I can give you seventy-five caps.”

“Seventy-five? You’ve got to be kidding me, man. This one’s worth at least ninety.”

“Ninety? She’s got a scratch, right there-” The attendee pointed in your general direction, muttering something or another about the Big Man.

You stood there, crossing your arms and staring at the ceiling. You counted each speck in the tearing paint, getting up to 962 different splatters, before they had finally reached an agreement. Apparently, you were worth 83 caps.

Hmm. Not bad.

“Alright ma’am, follow me. Right this way.”

You followed the mystery person, turning to glance over your shoulder. The ratty captor twirled his fingers at you, glancing down to shuffle through his caps. You snapped him your middle finger, rolling your eyes as you tripped over your own two feet.

Big Man was not a name you had ever heard of, and to be frank, you had no clue what was going to come to you. At best, you’d have a kidney taken out, and at worst you’d be sliced up for sandwich meat.

“So…. what is this place?” You asked.

“A breeding center.”

You stopped dead in your tracks. You were sure your eyes were about to pop and roll right out of their sockets. “A what now?”

“A breeding center.” The attendee repeated it as though it were the most normal thing in the world. “The Big Man has goals for our side of the Wasteland, you know. It all starts with young women and his seed.”

“I think I’m going to vomit.”

“Oh, please don’t do that, miss. The Big Man hates bodily fluids.”

“Apparently all bodily fluids.” You muttered, your feet dragging as you followed.

The man stopped at an iron door, motioning with his hand towards the entrance. “You may enter in to his office now. Have a good day!”

You were face to face with your apparent destiny. Behind that door, you weren’t too sure what horrors awaited you. A gigantic, gnarled, half-radioactive man who was more monster than human? A charming megalomaniac with a penchant for collecting limbs? It could be anyone, anything, for all you were certain of.

But enough guessing, now it was time to get your hands dirty. And other places too, apparently. With a deep breath you pushed the door open, coming face to face with….

The shortest man you had ever seen.

He had a blonde bowl cut and icy blue eyes, plump pink lips and freckles across his nose. The top of his head probably stopped at your breasts, and he wore a black leather jacket that was stained by the sun.

“Ah, there you are, miss.” He spoke like a toddler, his speech inflections odd and hard on the ears.

Enter: Sarcasm. The man exuded sex, really.

You didn’t know what else to do. You stood there blinking, unable to form any coherent sentences.

This was the Big Man? You could reach your hand out, place your palm on his forehead, and stop him from touching you, like a child trying to pester an adult. The thought made a smile grace the corner of your lips.

“You’re…. uh- you’re the Big Man?”

“Yes.” When he nodded, his hair swayed in unison with his movements. It was almost mesmerizing.

“Um… okay. So do I just- do I take my clothes off here?”

“Ew. No. That’s not how we do things around here.”

“But the guy outside told me it was a-”

“Yes. We will artificially inseminate you.”

You sat yourself down in a seat, staring at him as you tried to process everything. “What…. the fuck.”

“I know this is a lot to take in, miss, but rest assured you will get the upmost care here.” Big Man smiled at you, clasping his hands together as he tottered over to his chair. “Now, I just have a few questions to ask you.”

“Uh, sure. Go ahead.”

“Age?”

You answered him, still not fully there as you took in the room. Book shelves lined with tearing pages, framed photos from days gone by, bottle caps and vials spread about- it was the room of a rich man, that much you knew for certain.

“Do you have all your organs?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Very good!” He smiled, writing something down on his paper. “Okay, yes. Let’s see here… oh! Yes. Of course. Are you a virgin?”

“What?” You scoffed, almost insulted that he would ask.

“It’s a simple question we need for our records. You won’t get in trouble if you’re not. Well…. maybe a little trouble.” He pinched his fingers in the air, a mischievous giggle escaping his lips.

You were half tempted to lie, but also half tempted to see what would happen if you were honest.

The truth was- you were definitely not a virgin. Your eyes settled on an inhaler of drugs in the corner, your head swarming with thoughts of your Ghoul, of his hands, of his tongue.

Your eyelids fluttered shut for a moment.

“Hey there, little lady.” His voice was imprinted in to your brain, the twang of his words, the smell of his clothes. “What do we have here?” He eyed you as he inhaled the last supply of his vial, tongue sweeping across his lower lip.

You were splayed out on the desk of the abandoned building, legs spread, open and tantalizing for him.

“Here to serve you your dinner.” You whispered, shooting him a sultry wink. “Mr. Howard.” You added with a giggle.

Cooper had nearly pounced on you then and there, his head buried in your thighs in record time. His nails dug deliciously in to your skin, and your hands cradled his smooth head as he devoured your arousal, allowing your taste to burn in to his tongue.

“Um… I am…uh.” You were flustered now, and you couldn’t help but fan yourself with a spare piece of paper beside you. “No. No, I am not a virgin.” You finally stated.

“What?!” He exclaimed, throwing his hands up. “That’s not good. Not good at all.”

“Hey! You just said-”

“Terms and contracts my dear, terms and contract. Oh, this is not good at all. Not good. Well, we’re just going to have to dispose of you. Ugh. It’s so hard to find a clean woman out in these horrors.” He was moaning out in annoyance now, his voice pitiful and low. Blah, blah, blah. It all sounded the same to you.

You scoffed. “Whatever. I never even signed a contract.”

Big Man walked over to his intercom. “Keegan, we have another dud. Send in the reinforcements.” He spoke, eyeing you through narrowed, angry lids.

A few moments passed, and Keegan, who you assumed was the festering attendee that had walked you down to his office, had yet to respond.

“Keegan?” Big Man said into the intercom. “Answer me, my little peanut.”

God, this guy was weird. You stared at him with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow, trying your hardest to take this situation seriously. Okay, maybe not your hardest.

“Maybe a roach got him.” You shrugged, and the little man looked at you, scoffing as he shuffled through his drawers.

“He’s useless to me anyways. I’ll just have to do the dirty work myself.”

Neither of you had paid attention to the door opening, but soon the smell of gunpowder and dirt filled your nostrils.

You knew who it was without having to turn around.

“Allow me, my good dir.” The figure behind you purred, and you heard the sound of a lasso unhooking from a belt. In five seconds flat, Big Man was on his belly, wrapped tight in a rope.

“Cooper.” You muttered, giving him a glance from the corner of his eye.

“Little lady.” He greeted you back with a noticeable lack of enthusiasm. “Knife or gun?”

“You asking me or him?”

“You.”

“Gun. He doesn’t like bodily fluids.”

There was a scoff. “Always were fuckin’ soft.”

A gunshot ricocheted through the walls, followed by a head thudding against the wood flooring. When you turned, the Ghoul was standing there, a hand on his hip as he inspected the chipped tip of his pistol.

You hadn’t seen him for months. You had gotten in to a fight, he had thrown some low handed insults your way, and it ended in a wrestling match that had you shaking sand from various crevices of your body for the weeks to come. The lonely, Ghoul-free weeks.

And to be honest, you had missed him. You had missed his dark eyes, his southern drawl, his witty quips. You had missed the way he’d hold you beside your fires, the way he’d practically dance with you while you were fighting off raiders and monsters.

With him, you had known some of the happiest times of your life. But according to Cooper, you were nothing but a distraction, a good time in the middle of a shit storm.

The thought made you scoff.

Yeah, just a good time. That’s why he just saved your ass. Well…. “saved.” There wasn’t much to save you from, and yet, he did.

“Why are you here?”

“Vials and caps in here.”

“How’d you know about it?”

Cooper rolled his eyes, turning to look at you over his shoulder. “I got my ways. Now leave me alone.”

“Leave you alone?” You scoffed, picking up a half broken figurine off the Big Man’s desk. You chucked it at his broad back, watching the fickle glass shatter against it.

He turned around in record speed, picking something off his desk and throwing it at you in return. You dodged it easily. “Don’t fuck with me today.” He warned, pointing the tip of his gun towards you. “I mean it.”

“Yeah right.”

Your name tumbled off his mouth low and slow, like a warning growl from a predator in the night. Your stomach turned, and you knew he was being serious, his barred teeth sent in your direction said it all. But for some reason you wanted to antagonize him, you wanted to make him feel pain. You wanted him to feel the way you had been feeling for what seemed like an eternity.

When he turned his back towards you once again, shuffling through boxes and shoving caps into his pockets, you picked up a dusty book, staring at the cover.

A Tale of Two Cities.

Raising your arm behind your head, you threw it square in the middle of Coop’s back, knocking him forward with a raspy grunt.

In two seconds flat you were tied up in his lasso and thrown to the floor, his weight resting on your body as he straddled your hips and pinned your hands above your head. His forehead was on yours, and he was growling through gritted teeth like a hungry tiger.

“Now, I gave you a warnin’, pumpkin. I think that was pretty fair of me.” His voice was deep, angry, and his eyes were aflame. “Don’t you?”

You struggled beneath his grip, gasping out for air as you kneed his stomach. He grunted out, the tips of his fingers digging uncomfortably into your wrist at the intrusion.

“Don’t you?” He repeated.

You finally gave up your futile attempts to struggle against him, your neck falling back against the floor. You stared at the speckles on the ceiling, swallowing. These days it seemed you didn’t have that much fight left in you. Exhausted seeped from your bones with every waking moment.

“Yes.” You whispered.

He hummed out in satisfaction at your response. “Thatta girl.”

His gloved finger traced over the edge of your jaw, and he breathed out quietly. His spare hand moved down your arm, tangling itself in your hair as the air grew thick with silence.

The Ghoul hummed out as his gaze traced over you, and you were unsure what emotion had befallen his features. He had always worn a mask of gruffness, of some dark, distant passed that you had never personally known.

“Should I kill you?” He asked quietly, an index finger tracing across your lower lip.

You were quiet, watching him examine you, as if he hadn’t spent countless hours getting to know every inch of you. Your body, your scent, your laugh- it was engrained into his brain. There was a you shaped crater in his chest. He was unsure how you managed to slip past his defenses, but you had.

He had become careless in his old age.

Yet despite it all, what a wonderful creature you were, to be careless with.

Cooper’s thumb was digging in to the dip of your cheek as he awaited your answer. “Should I?”

“I love you.”

The words fell from your lips before you could stop them, and you both stared at each other with wide eyes, unsure of what had gotten in to you.

“You what?!” 

“Ohh my God. Oh my God.” You were panicking now, unsure of why you would ever admit to something as embarrassing as that.

Cooper sat up, still straddling you, and looked up at the ceiling as he searched for words. He placed his hands on his hips, no doubt calculating what his next move would be.

Your next sentences were spoken in unison:

“Why would I say that?”

“Why would you say that?”

His eyes were stirring with emotions you had rarely seen him wear so evidently. Guilt, annoyance, bitterness- no longer was he the smooth talking cowboy. Not right now.

No. Right now, he had no idea what to do, no idea what to say. Hundreds of years of roaming the wasteland had not prepared him for this. Whatever… this was.

You sat up on your elbows, cocking your head to the side. Your thoughts were flooded by that night. The night you had seen him last, before he had knocked down the door to this office less than thirty minutes ago.

The campfire was crackling, a roasted slab of meat sizzling atop the embers. It had been a long day. An exhausting day. You were hungry, annoyed, tired.

The wasteland was full of assholes and cannibals, and it seemed on some days that they were all out to get you, and only you. The sound of boots behind you stirred you from your thoughts, and you smiled at the feeling of a hand on your shoulder.

“Hey trouble maker.” The Ghoul’s voice was quiet, tired, you knew he was aching after a long day, you knew no matter how much sleep he got, it never seemed to be enough.

“What if you never find them?” You asked quietly, poking at the flames with the handle of your gun.

“I will.”

“But…. how do you know?”

“I’ve loved her for two hundred years. I’ll love her for two hundred more if that’s what it takes.” He turned to look at you, and you knew he was telling the truth.

You swallowed thickly, jealousy coursing through your veins. You were the one who had been by his side for five years. You were the one who got him out of trouble, you were the one that had been there for him day and night, traveling the wasteland together, fighting off hoards of ungodly, unspeakable creatures.

And yet, despite it all, despite all the blood, the wounds, the sleepless nights- he only seemed to care about her. His ex-wife. The woman who had helped cause the end of this world.

“Who says she has?”

He turned to look at you, daggers shot in your direction. A silent warning to tread carefully- a warning you both knew you would not heed.

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve loved her for all these years. How do you know she has, too? She doesn’t strike me as the loyal type, considering she’s part of the reason we’re here. You’re radioactive, I’m being hunted, the world around us is falling apart. To be quite honest, Cooper Howard, I’m not so fucking sure why you’re still hung up on her!” You had never been so heated, you had never raised your voice like this with him- but your ever growing resentment towards his mission had been festering for far too long, and now it was bubbling up at the surface.

That night he took you by the throat, holding until you saw stars. He offered you no words, he only choked you until he was sure he’d kill you. But something inside him wouldn’t allow for that.

What a horrible choice that was.

You slammed your heel into his groin, watching as he tumbled to the ground. With a mighty roar he tackled you, a face full of sand coming your way as he rolled you on to your stomach. While attempting to tie your wrists you squirmed away, kicking your knee into his chin.

For what felt like hours you two tangoed, wrestling until you were bound to give up. In a way, it was the most honest exchange you had ever experienced with him.

Two tired humans, fighting for something neither of them truly understood. It bordered erotic, the way your bodies moved and pressed, the way his blood tasted in your mouth, the way your skin felt between his teeth.

By the end of the night you both were laying down in a tangled heap beside the dying fire, and when you awoke the following morning, Cooper was gone.

In the dingy light of the office room, the memories of that night flooded your memory. You still had a healing wound on your neck the shape of his incisors, and your arms were calloused by the crusty scabs caused by his fingernails.

Above you, the Ghoul swallowed thickly. His hand moved from where it rested at his side, and he pressed it flat against your chest. For a moment he allowed it to rise and fall with each of your breaths, focusing on the feeling of your heartbeat on his palm.

“You’re a pain in my ass.” He whispered, sucking a rush of air in through his teeth. “Always have been.”

“Are you leaving me again?”

“No.” A long moment passed before he spoke again. “Because she was my wife.” He muttered beneath his breath.

“What?”

“That night. You asked me why I kept lookin’ for her. Because she was my wife.”

“Was?”

He looked at you, blinking slowly. “Was.” He repeated quietly, as though he had just discovered something he didn’t want to. The truth of the matter was- he had.

“Coop.” You whispered, cupping his face in your hands. His skin was rough and leathery beneath your fingertips, worn and aged by the harsh test of time.

“Did you mean it?”

“That I love you?” He nodded. “Yes.”

Cooper stared at you with sad, distant eyes. “I’d love you back if I could, sugar.”

“You-you could.”

He shook his head slowly, the brim of his hat gingerly shaking around his head. His finger traced shapes along the ridge of your brow. “I can’t. I don’t got anymore left in me. Been searchin’ for the same thing for so long, don’t think I can change my ways.”

Cooper eased off of you, sitting down beside you. His hand rested on your thigh, and you placed your own over it, staring up at the ceiling once more.

You counted 836 speckles before he spoke again.

“I can’t give you lovin’ but I can give you protection. And in this world that’s practically the same thing.”

“Don’t know if I could handle that, Coop.”

He let out a low sigh, pulling you close to his chest. “I know.”

You buried your face in his neck, hands grasping ahold of his arm as he hugged you. The Ghoul’s fingers were running up and down your stomach, your thighs, your sides- anywhere he could touch.

You both knew this was the last time you would ever see one another, and in the air a heavy feeling of burden hung low and dormant.

“D’you want to fuck? For old time’s sake?” He whispered in your ear, teeth gently tickling against your neck. Arousal stirred in your belly, and you knew it would be futile to fight against it. In this world, you had learned to give in to your primal instincts.

Turning to meet his gaze, you rested your fingers on his cheek, a smile falling across your mouth. “If you promise me something.”

“What?”

“If…. when you find them, will you send me a postcard?”

He laughed out loud, a chaste kiss being pressed to your temple. There was something sad to his chuckles, something neither of you had ever known before. Despite the feeling of emptiness that began looming within him, Cooper spoke once more, putting on that charming persona he had worn so many moons ago.

“What address should I make it out to, little lady?”

[shapard]

hihii! I was wondering if I could request a Lucifer x fem!reader, where the reader was a nun in her life and still is kinda one in hell but dedicates herself to lucifer yk what I mean? :3 I’m sorry if this isn’t really in detail!

Demons

Lucifer x Sinner!Nun!femreader

A/n: Heyy! I hope this meets your expectations!

Soft Lucifer, Social awkward Lucifer, Nun reader

Part 1 < Part 2

You hate it here. 

Hell was full of sinners and Demons. The ground is covered in crimson blood. The blood bleeds into your clothes, leaving the white in pure red.

Violence was the only way Sinners communicate. 

You were mad at the Lord themself. You prayed each day and night. Always followed the rules and gave up every rich thing in your life. All to serve the father.

Many people thought you were too young to pursue this path but to you it was a blessing itself. 

One day, the worst and best thing that ever happened to you. You saved a life and you died instead. 

You waited and waited for the light of Jesus and God. So that they can take you in their hands and lift you to paradise. Yet after all you've done, you were falling.

The void of pure darkness ate you and threw you down to the most feared place. Hell.

The compact on thee ground hurt as if you died again. The force knocked you completely out. Luck was on your side and gifted you a home. At home two demons were leaving and let you stay in their old house.

You'll never forget them.

One day you took a walk in a different area, trying to find a loophole anywhere. Just one sign to get to those purely gates. To your dismay, nothing.

Instead of worrying too much you went to a hell’s Library. Reading through every book to get Information about this place. 

The Lore of Lucifer is very Interesting.

The father’s Favorite banished from heaven because of the Forbidden Apple. As you kept reading the more it Fascinated you. 

Why did Lucifer give Eve the Apple? 

How is Heaven? 

The more you found out about the king of hell the more obsessed you got.

Who exactly is Lucifer Morningstar? The Lord you served so long for let you down so easily, but would Lucifer? Too many questions spiraled in your head, it started to pound in pain.

The library was closing soon, so you stuffed the books into your rucksack and left the place in a fast pace. 

The book may not give you the answers you need but Lucifer could. Without wasting any seconds, you wander around the so-called pride ring in Hell. 

It seems there are 7 rings like the 7 sins. One of them being Lucifer. The fun part you learned is that the appearance in hell has something to do with the way you die.

Your appearance resembled a black cat hybrid, you mainly looked humane just with some extras. A pair of cat ears, claws and a tail that swayed behind you.

Finally, after headaches, Mental Breakdowns, and research you got an idea how to get Lucifers attention.

Praying. A very simple yet tiring process. After weeks of preparation you got everything that you needed. Your body shook under fear as you lit up the candles.

You don't feel that confident anymore. Praying to God is something different. They were pure and was the creator of everything. But Lucifer was the pure evil. The complete opposite.

You were in the center of a pentagram that was drawn with your and a goat’s blood. The flames around you were so hot you thought you were in the middle of a fire. 

With a shaky breath you closed your eyes and sat down on your calves. Another deep breath and you began your prayer. 

When you were finished the candles were burned out but nothing besides the wax that coated the floor.

With a sigh you rubbed your hands on your face. The whole procedure was for nothing.

Exhausted you took the candles and threw it in the dustbin. “Was worth a shot.” You said disappointed as you sat on a very old bed. A loud crash sends you out of your little sweet daydream about kittens. You jumped up and grabbed the next object, a Fan.

Curse words echoed through your Livingroom. “Who’s there?” You shouted as you switched the lights on. A short figure with a huge hat came in the view.

“Fuck! eh... Sorry for the mess.” Confused at his words you looked around seeing your Livingroom really a complete mess. Nothing was at its usual place.

The guy watched as your jaw dropped a bit. “What in the name of Jesus did you do?!” He smirked up to you and you raised the fan above your head. “Why do you have a fan in your hand?” He asked pointing with his clawed finger at your fan. “Because of people that break into private homes, like you!” With a snap of his fingers the fan in your hand vanished into small sparkles. 

“Technically I didn’t break into your house.” The stranger said as he swung his cane around. You raised your eyebrow at him, “You obviously did.” What the hell is with those sinners.

He sighs in frustration and leans onto his cane, “Let me re-introduce myself. I’m Lucifer Morningstar. The devil you summoned.” His sharp red eyes focused on your e/c ones and his Pupils dilated a bit. The more you two looked in the eyes the hotter and thicker the tension got. 

“You’re Lucifer.” You fast to break the thick ice. You don’t want to focus about the growing desire for the Archangel in front of you. Lucifer smirk grew only more. You didn’t think this was even possible. “Yes, the one and only.” He winked and a shiver went down your spine.

“of course.” As the sin of pride, he’s doing a great job so far. 

“For what do you need me, darling?” Lucifer asked and you immediately asked him the question that is burning your mind. “I have Question my Lord.” Pink hue glazed Lucifer's face as you said my lord. “Ehm,” He grabbed his collar and pulled it with his claw, “Of course darling… We- I mean I have too much… No, fuck- I have a lot of time reserved for you! Hehehe.” Lucifers sudden overtalking caught you surprised. 

The King of hell, Lucifer Morningstar gets nervous when you call him My Lord. 

“Okay first my most Important question. How do I get in heaven? I don’t know what I have done in my life to end up here.” Lucifer raised sassy his eyebrow giving you a side eye. “Darling. You’re in hell and there is no ticket up. Believe me.” He tapped with his cane on the floor, “There’s no way.” He pressed again. 

But you don’t give up. 

“Then give me a meeting. I can prove that I’m innocent. I was a nun almost my whole life and I died saving someone’s life.” Lucifer’s laugh was ego scratching and you glared at him. “I could get you the meeting sweetheart, yet it wouldn’t change anything. But in exchange you have to do something for me."

“What?” You asked as Lucifer stepped in front of you, his face so close that it’s brushing your face. He breathed in and you smelled so divine. “only time will tell.” And just like that he disappeared. Confused you looked around. 

“That was weird…” 

A/n: I'm ALIVE!! Anyways Part 2 will be out soon<3

💫

@i-have-no-life-charlie @sirenetheblogger @concentratedconcrete @ylovei @cimadreamer @ayanazoldyck @froggybich

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[aces-and-angels]

countdown to 2024 @choicesfandomappreciation

deadlines? we don't know her😗💅🏼 so many works to shoutout- so brace yourselves gang- this'll be a long one

now- without further ado- here are some writers that made my year:

🖤@thedistantshoresproject

sending love to the whole team on board who are working tirelessly to finish this magnificent project. i was so excited to read the demo this year! knowing how long the journey has been and reading the updates each week- i realize how weary yall must be and hope that i can convey my gratitude for bringing back our favorite pirates in one awesome sequel 🖤

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🖤@bloodboundsiege

another demo for the books- and another fanmade project that i am rooting for; i personally have only read through finn's demo but i'm already in love with all the characters. plus- who wouldn't be excited for the chance to romance gaius??? there is a ton of lore in op's blog for all the new lis that i 100% recommend to read through. excited to see what's in store in the new year!

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🖤@hashiedraws

the way i ran to play this story when it dropped😭 if yall are fans of ilw- then you may know that one of the artists released this wonderful vn this year. it's a story that keeps on serving 🎾 the artwork is incredible and the accompanying story is an absolute treasure. i was on the floor- in tears- jaw-dropped. trust me- it was an experience. one i recommend yall take too 😊

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🖤 @lovehugsandcandy

the queen of colt- and tbh- one of my literary muses. your writing is such an inspiration to me and having you back on the dash this year for blades was definitely a highlight 🖤 a snippet from one of my favorite fics this year:

read 'bound' here "Of course. We have plenty of time for that... don't we?" “Because you’re not leaving?” He squeezes her hand. “I’m not leaving.”  It’s a whisper more powerful than any rope.

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🖤@jerzwriter

the heart you have is so warm and inviting- and it shows with each work you've shared🖤 i've cherished reading your works for trystan x carolina- picking one to highlight seems cruel but i'll give it a shot lol. their banter/dynamic is so beautifully portrayed and never fails to bring a smile to my face:

read 'tricks and treats' here “There is no Trystan,” he snickered, playfully pulling her close. “Only the Big Bad Wolf..uh.. no.. I mean Grandma! I’m Grandma, trust me.” “Grandma? What big paws you have!” she beamed as he nuzzled into her neck and playfully growled. “The better to paw you with, my dear...” “Well, you can paw me once we get to the party. We’re very late.”

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🖤@theoriginaltortuga

your four part series- 'responsibility, rage, and recent resurrection' was such a good read and deserves some love. it ain't a secret i'm a big ilw fan- and a sucker for bonus scenes. reading a more fleshed out version of connor's eventual turning was *chef's kiss* immaculate- i shamelessly go back to this fic from time to time:

read 'responsibility, rage, and recent resurrection' here Grief and terror had been a part of Connor since the night Devon died. The feelings came and went, but they never left completely and Connor worried that he would never feel peace again. With Devon alive but unconscious, a massacre set for a few days, and the man who’d killed his mother on the loose; those feelings were more overwhelming than ever. Not to mention the anger that had been festering in his chest since his mom was killed. All of it led back to one simple thing: Westchester wasn’t safe. 

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🖤@linkysmommy

mother lincoln- i wanna thank you for blessing me with not only ilw itself but ilw fics (and some other works of yours i've recently had the pleasure of reading😉) though, imma pivot real quick from ilw and actually give some praise to another project of yours- and the reason i downloaded storyloom in the first place- open heart: a toxic situation. what a story full of mystery, romance, and ✨bryce✨ (there are multiple lis to choose from- i just really love bryce lmao)

read this beauty right here

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🖤 @saibug1022

the angst legend- i go to you for the hurt lmaoo. but really- it is a talent to write the way you do and i'm lucky to reap the benefits of reading your work. the time you put into crafting your mcs- making them fully fleshed out blorbos- then giving the most heart-wrenching scenarios to deal with- incredible✨ here's some love for the villain stories out there:

read 'a funeral of faith' here “I had no place in Undermount while humans and orcs treated me like an outsider. I was kidnapped and tortured while my friends and two of the men I loved gave up on me and left me to die. And the other man I loved used and betrayed me for power and disappeared when I still forgave him.”

---

🖤 @professor-abeloved

prepare to be adored, admired, and appreciated- your mcs are everything to me. the way you write is so special and uniquely you- and i love your work dearly. i've got your fics seared in my brain- here's one of the many (bc we as a fandom silently agreed that linc angst just hits different):

read 'lincoln's bad day' here “Sorry,” Ro called out for what felt like the nth time with an awkward grimace. “You okay? I can get an ice pack or a salonpas or—” “It’s fine,” Lincoln says, clutching his aching jaw. In some weird way, it’s surprisingly… therapeutic? There’s something about a being confronted with such raw, unimaginable Power that has the capacity to utterly destroy you if it chooses, but instead it’s draping a small, lilac cardigan over your shoulders as it looks you over for bruises. read 'lincoln's bad day' here “Sorry,” Ro called out for what felt like the nth time with an awkward grimace. “You okay? I can get an ice pack or a salonpas or—” “It’s fine,” Lincoln says, clutching his aching jaw. In some weird way, it’s surprisingly… therapeutic? There’s something about a being confronted with such raw, unimaginable Power that has the capacity to utterly destroy you if it chooses, but instead it’s draping a small, lilac cardigan over your shoulders as it looks you over for bruises.

---

🖤@mydemonsdrivealimo

bless your beautiful, magnificent brain- atp your hcs are my canon lmaoo. bryce and jensen are so special to me and it's no secret how much love you've poured into them through your work. slowly but surely, i'm getting around to reading all the fics of theirs. the ones i have read were amazing. time to shower praise for your most recent work (also i'm rooting for you- writer's block is a biatch):

read 'halloween' here “Hey, sorry,” Bryce said, giving his waist a quick squeeze before unceremoniously flopping into one of the chairs, the force sending it back enough that Jensen had to pull him closer. “You’re lucky I didn’t lock you out and eat it for you,” Jensen said with a quick wave to the food in front of him, taking a seat in his own chair. “M’fucking starving.” He was already shoveling crab rangoon into his mouth, ignoring the steam coming off of it.

---

🖤 @aria-ashryver

a ray of sunshine- you deserve the world and more🥰 one thing on my to-do list for the new year is to finally sit down and read SICSIG. from the snippets i've seen, i know i'll treasure the heck out of it. when i do- i apologize in advance for the person i become lmao (give it up for the poly romance yall)

read 'snow in crimson, starlight in gold' here

---

🖤@me

self-love, amirite? reading through old works is either a hit or miss for me lol- but the process of writing has been a welcome journey of mine. from the frantic word vomit to staring at a blinking cursor- it's been a ride. and i'm thankful to everyone above for inspiring me to keep moving forward 🖤

read whatever yall want here

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this list could go on and on and i'm definitely missing some people- but to the writers out there: you are the heartbeat of the fandom and we are lucky to have you 🖤

[unhappy-day-in-hell]

The Dissection of Hazbin Hotel, Episode One: part 2

We got through the opening monologue and here we are in the show proper. Now, we finally get into the episode itself and explore the boring middle. Everyone ready?

CW: This part will briefly touch on Angel Dust's SA.

Part 1:

Part 2: //

Part 3:

Part 4:

--Aaaa ew there it is. This is the first bit of real animation we get from the show, when Charlie lifts up the key.

Somehow, just this one little motion looks awful. As the key moves with Charlie’s hand, it doesn’t look like it’s physically in the world with her.

The animation department was fucked over so badly. It really, really shows.

--Lilith has been missing for 7 years.

Because of course she has. We can’t make the twists with her character TOO subtle!

This is really just trying to make us feel bad for Charlie, but Charlie and Vaggie’s voices sound so lifeless and disinterested that it elicits no emotion from me. (If I was a new watcher, it probably wouldn’t elicit any emotion from me if anyway, since we’ve JUST met Charlie and we haven’t gotten to know her yet; we have no attachment to her and thus can’t immediately care about her Sad Backstory. Missing Mom is a stock sad backstory anyway. We also don’t care about Lilith enough yet, because she was only a vague figure in a fairytale, we don’t actually KNOW her; in fact they even neglected to tell us what her dream was, or what she actually did in Hell, so we don't even have a vague idea to see her as a GOOD figure. And, if her empowering demons IS the reason for demonkind being so terrible, she may be a terrible person. So her missing status means nothing to us.)

--Soooooo……. The extermination just happened, but we’re not going to see any of its aftermath up close? We’re not going to look at the streets of Hell to see the carnage, or the damage? We’re just getting some overhead shots of the city smoking? Okay.

In the pilot, we had a long sequence where we saw the carnage and destruction the exterminators left behind. It was so much more impactful.

But we’re not doing that here. We’re staying up in this cozy penthouse just looking down at a still image of the city. Which means we’re not going to learn about the world at all. No establishing shots, no interesting or visceral imagery to get under our skin and make us FEEL for the sinners. This is very bad storytelling.

Also: If I didn’t know what the exterminations were like from the pilot, I might not even realize the smoke and fire coming off of the city was meant to be DAMAGE – I might just assume Hell was Just Like That.

Terrible job everyone. Terrible opening sequence.

--Vaggie: I enjoy your theatrics.

But Charlie didn’t do anything…

She didn’t even get to light the fireworks like she did in the pilot, which were the signal that the extermination was over and the sinners could come out.

--We go from the opening lore dump… to even more lore dumping!! Yay!!

This is so boring. It’s boring composition and boring animation and boring dialogue with actors who sound sleepy.

Vaggie and Charlie are sitting in a room talking. They’re not even doing anything interesting to look at. This is telling and not showing.

They mention their love for the kingdom, but again, we don’t have any scenes showing the streets, the deceased, and the normal citizens, which might make the AUDIENCE care about it. As of now, the audience doesn’t care because we aren't seeing anything. Throughout the opening fairytale and up to now, we haven’t learned a single thing about how this version of Hell functions. (And we don’t learn that through the entire episode.)

--This dialogue is also so stilted. “I just hope what I’m trying to do here will work.”

Can you have any personality in your lines at all? In the pilot, Charlie says “I don’t know if I’m going to make a difference, I don’t know what I’m doing”, which is just a bit more personal for her; she wants to MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

In the pilot, Charlie’s voice was so much more energetic, and sounded optimistic. Here, yeah she’s SAD and obviously being sad will make her sound softer, but pilot Charlie had a bright, optimistic tone that showed her optimism was unshakable.

--Alastor’s commercial. He really shouldn’t be making this. He’s the radio demon. The conflict is that he doesn’t want to make a TV ad, but was forced into it. This is a dumb conflict. Alastor would never do something he didn’t want to.

Afterwards, the B Plot of the episode will have Vaggie filming a commercial (a second commercial to be better than Alastor’s), and eventually she’ll coerce Alastor into helping her film it. So THAT MEANS Alastor’s first commercial was entirely pointless! Why not streamline this entire B plot? Skip Alastor’s first commercial; the gang gather together and discuss ideas for a commercial; Al is against it, Charlie has too many grand ideas, Vaggie is down to Earth, and Angel offers himself as an actor; then Charlie gets called away, so she gives the responsibility to Vaggie; Vaggie struggles but then Al steps in to help because he knows an empty Hotel will be boring; he then uses his radio powers to create broadcast an advertisement through the airwaves.

Alastor’s voice is also so tame now too. I dislike it heavily. Every line lacks the insane edge it had in the pilot and the radio filter is toned down.

They massacred my fave.

Raggle Fraggle.

--Alastor should never say “daddy issues.” That’s just way too modern. ALSO NOT REALLY? It’s not daddy issues?? If anything, Charlie has talked much more about Lilith in this version, saying it’s her mom’s dream. Daddy Lucy has nothing to do with this. Get your words right, you stupid script.

--The animation is just really bad, especially the part with the rafter falling down from the ceiling.

Also wasn’t it Alastor’s job to use his magic to clean this place up? He did a horrible job.

--Uh huh. We’re continuing the trend of nothing being explained. How the Hotel came to be, and how the crew was amassed, is not going to be explained at all.

We’re dropped in here blind with it already having happened.

It’s true you can’t just recreate the pilot for episode 1, but this is the worst way they could have possibly reintroduced the world.

If you didn’t watch the pilot, then you’d have NO idea what was going on in this place.

--Alastor: So, what do you think?

When I first heard this line it made me sad.

When I hear this line now, it makes me sad.

--Vaggie: I’m sorry, what the fuck was that?

There it is, the unfunny Fuck word being used like a joke.

Pro-tip: just saying the word Fuck does not make a joke. We as humans grow out of this when we stop being high schoolers.

--Why does Alastor look mad when Charlie says the tone of the advertisement is “a bit off?” Nothing should be able to shake him. If anything, he should revel in their discomfort (he reveled in their discomfort in the pilot.) In the pilot, he probably would have made the advertisement like this INTENTIONALLY just to get a reaction out of them and to see them squirm. Here he acts like he wanted them to like it and is upset they don’t.

It makes him look pouty. And making him pouty makes him look weaker.

The heck’s up with this shot? What a weird angle.  

--Alastor hasn’t been active in Hell for some time, huh? It’s because he was hired by Rosie, who is Lilith, who went missing 7 years ago. Viv can’t keep a plot twist secret.

Also, the animation for Alastor when he says he hasn’t been active in some time is weird. It… I wanna say feels kind of noodley? It has a different quality from the rest of the animation.

--Alastor: So I had a little fun with it.

That was a good shot of him passing his microphone from one hand to the next. It’s a second long but I’ll give them that. Maybe Al will get the few scraps of anything decent that come out of this. (Probably not. The leaks say otherwise.)

--Vaggie: well this is NOT what we want to represent us. …. Instead you’re MOCKING us.

These words are oddly stilted again. It’s like when characters speak like they know too much therapy language, when they really shouldn’t.

--Oh Angel. There he is.

….After Viv blew the budget on hiring expensive voice actors, I think all the remaining shoestring budget went into animating him, because he’s way more fluid than the others.

………….Because of course more attention is given to Angel (male) than to Charlie, the actual main (female) character.

--Angel wants to have a porno where he’s sleeping with Alastor. Alastor replies: “Haha. Never going to happen.”

This line lacks any of the manic energy that Alastor had in the pilot – there, when Angel said “I can suck your dick!” Alastor had a short moment where he was shocked, but then he replied with an energetic “HAH! No!” where he still sounded like he was having fun. In Episode One, Alastor sounds tired and annoyed, which takes away his feeling of power. He’s supposed to be this big Overlord; if he had actually laughed heartily and said “~HA HA HA HA! NEVER going to happen, my dear fellow!!~” with oomph, it’d be more in line with how in control he is of everything – but he’s not. He’s whiny. He’s weaker.

This moment shows that OTHER CHARACTERS have the ability to get under his skin when nothing should be able to get under his skin. He's the one who makes everyone else's skin crawl and loves it.

--“This body was MADE to be exploited!”

Alright, show, I’m going to stop you right there.

There's too much to unpack here. People better qualified than me already have.

So let’s begin by saying: Angel being sexual is not the problem. Using sexuality as a coping mechanism is not the problem. However, this crosses the line right from the start.

Angel is the victim of SA, which this has given him trauma. Remember Addict, one of the highest points in Vivzie’s career? Addict showed how BAD he feels by his exploitation; it actually took his situation seriously. At the end of Addict, Angel had frank lyrics where he finally admitted to himself that he was addicted and helpless, and was reluctant but willing to try for something better by staying in the Hotel. Everything Hazbin-related leading up to the show was Angel wanting to ESCAPE his sex-trafficked life.

So for Angel to joke about his body being made to be exploited… Just… How could you possibly think it’s okay? There is no tact here. There is no plausible deniability because of Angel’s history with SA; he’s saying his body is made to be SA’d.

If Angel had replied something like:

Charlie: I don’t want to exploit you in that way!

Angel: Aww, dame! I wanna help ya out, and this is just what I’m good at!

It wouldn’t be so heinous.

Or Angel could be shown to be a little socially intelligent about how Hell works:

Charlie: I don’t want to exploit you in that way!

Angel: But dame! Dame, ya gotta listen. This might be a squeaky clean joint for prudes, but Hell’s full of sexy, sex-loving freaks! And I’M the most famous sex-loving star is all of Hell! If you put me on your advertisements, you’ve got a GUARANTEED audience, and boy is it a massive audience! Your Hotel’ll make it to ALL those sinful, lusty sexlords who get off to me! I mean, you’re the one tryinna redeem ‘em, don’t you think some of THEM might be interested?

(I do kind of like that now that I’ve written that down; at least in that version, Angel actually has something going on in his brain. And Charlie can either concede and be like “yyyyyeah… I guess… you’re right…” or she can go “no Angel you left that life and I won’t be an accomplish making you go through that anymore.” Or something. SHOW SOME FUCKING CHARACTER.)  

There isn’t even anything to joke about with the line as it is. It’s just… thoughtless.

(And... from episode 4... God. It's sickening. This is just a taste of how BAD it is going to get.)

--Angel’s joke about his body parts goes on way too long. The joke overstays its welcome.

--Why is Angel drawn with pink lines on half of his body while all the other characters have full black lines???

--“Oh Trust Me, I can!” Man… it was a glimmer like this shot that makes me miss what Alastor used to be. It’s actually kind of fluid, and it’s like seeing a tiny bit of what the character could have been. But it still, again, completely lacks the raw DANGER and unhinged-ness the originala brought to the show.

--Oh Husk. Oh, Husk, no. Your voice. Oh Husk. They fucked you up. Where’s the exhaustion, where’s the jadedness? You don’t sound burnt-out and hollow (like a HUSK) like you’re supposed to. Good lord.

Also… “Why do you think I’m here? You think I’d be cleaning bottles and listening to you fucks whining if he wasn’t forcing me?” So much telling and not a single ounce of showing.

--Nifty: I like being forced.

………… A little too close to Angel Dust's thing to be saying that, Nifty.

--THIS IS TOO MANY CHARACTERS ALL AT ONCE. This is a huge overload of information. How is a newcomer to the series supposed to register and remember all these guys? (We haven’t even gotten to Adam and Lute yet, meaning even more are on the way.)

Husk and Nifty don’t even do anything in the episode. They don’t need to be here.

--Apparently, Angel has a habit of harassing Husk. I’m worried. Listen: sexually harassing anyone is not okay and it’s not funny. In the pilot, Husk showed disinterest in Angel’s flirting, but nothing super outright or angry – here, he sounds angry. He sounds serious. He doesn’t want to be flirted with. But Angel doesn’t stop. This is not okay.

Why doesn’t Angel understand consent if his entire character arc is about SA and escaping exploitation. Of ANY character, he should have some modicum of self-awareness about this. At the least, they needed to dial back his lines. He’s already gone too far, as we’ve mentioned.

(...From the rest of the episodes, and the leaks, god it gets so much worse.)

--Vaggie: We can’t force sinners to stay here. They have to choose to.

Wow, can you sound ANY deader, Vaggie. This line is miserable.

--Angel thinks the hotel’s idea is stupid. So… why is Angel having this conversation with VAGGIE? This is Charlie’s show! This is Charlie’s dream! This is Charlie’s endeavor, the thing SHE believes in! Charlie is the main character; she is the one who is fighting for redemption!

Why isn’t it Angel and Charlie having this conversation, so Charlie has to defend her stance and Angel can challenge her, and it’ll be our first sign of Charlie facing opposition?

As it is, Vaggie doesn’t even sound convicted in their idea. Her voice is just fucking dead. And Angel cares nothing for the Hotel as stated, so he doesn’t bring any life into this discussion. Charlie is NEEDED in these scenes to bring energy to it.

It's because Charlie isn’t the main character. Viv doesn’t like female characters. She’s the main character in-name only. The male ones like Angel, Alastor, etc, are the ones that are the focus. This becomes more apparent with further episodes too.

--Angel: Crack is expensive.

Angel just coming out and saying that to Vaggie, when like, being off drugs was one of the conditions to staying in the hotel. He says he wants keep staying at the hotel rent-free, he should be hiding that he’s doing it so they don’t cut him from the program and tell him to get lost.

----------

So that was our first look at the show proper. I think that’s a good place to pause, because now, we’re coming into the worst part of the episode, where this train wreck just fucking falls over the edge of a cliff. It will have my most intense thoughts, and explain how Hazbin destroys itself before it can even begin!

Stay tuned!

[thirdeyeblue]

Ten x Rose | Adult | One-Shot (9k) | AO3

Tags: First Time, Confined Spaces, Dry Humping, Fluff & Smut, Etc

Since I wrote this way too early for a Halloween fic back in February, it’s only fitting that I share it way too late on Tumblr (past 10 PM on Halloween night). I’m not feeling super great mentally, however — and posting fic makes me happy. May it hopefully find at least one person who’s never read it and wants to keep the spooky spirit alive a little longer. It’s not my best fic, not by a long shot, and the whole premise was lovingly contrived from an inside joke born out of Discord server lore — but it is what it is! 🎃

On a small, Earth-like planet called Roon, it was always autumn.

The Doctor landed the TARDIS near an orchard abounding with great, big apples he claimed were the sweetest and juiciest in the universe, having Rose’s mouth watering before they’d even stepped foot onto the luscious grass beyond the doorway.

Before them was a field lined with endless rows of fruit-bearing trees, each filled with multicolored apples so heavy that they bent the branches they grew upon.

Signs were posted every so often; worn, painted arrows indicating a myriad of family-friendly attractions within walking distance. This is how they realized the orchard they’d arrived at was actually a year-round, traditional, Halloween-themed farm; replete with pumpkin carving, petting zoos, photo ops, and what was supposedly the biggest ‘haunted maze and adventure’ on the planet.

Rose hardly even had to beg to get the Time Lord to agree to explore once they’d picked their fill of apples, even after he’d surmised they landed in the relative ‘off-season’. 

‘Far as I’m concerned, that’s just fewer people around to get in our way,’ he’d declared with a grin. 

After dropping their bounty back on the TARDIS, they went hand in hand down a seemingly endless row of trees, following the arrows that directed them towards what was more than likely the epicenter of entertainment.

The lack of crowds on the farm made it easy for the pair to take advantage of whatever they wanted. They spent a guilt-free hour in the Cider Barn sampling all sorts of sweet drinks, scooping pretzels in apple butter; then raced down the street to spend far too much time petting the planet’s sort-of-but-not-quite-Earth-like livestock.

(Rose’s favorites included a flock of docile chickens as tall as rubbish bins, as well as a pair of noisy horses with dog-like paws.

All afternoon long, they were looking forward to their ‘haunted adventure’, deliberately putting it off until nightfall, per the advice of an employee. He’d been a teenage boy with violet skin and amber eyes; wrists sore from dipping and packaging candy apples, obviously overjoyed to finally have a customer for the first time in hours. 

"It's not the best time of year to come here," he'd told them with a shrug. "Might be a little scarier if you go after hours."

They thanked him and bought two sliced caramel apples, snacking on their treats at a nearby picnic table that overlooked a massive labyrinth of hedges.

It was already sunset, so when they’d finished eating, they returned their baskets to a collection bin and linked arms. Together, they began to make their trek towards the first part of their ‘adventure’: an arched gate leading into a dense forest. 

They figured it couldn’t hurt to get a tiny head start.

x

With arms crossed, Rose brushed her palms up and down in an attempt to create friction, hoping to warm herself up as she watched the Doctor kneeling over a rock and grinding down pine needles. She wanted more than anything to wrap herself up in his great, big coat, but he’d left it on the TARDIS, having not foreseen any of this. 

It'd all taken them by surprise: the duration of the ‘adventure’, the dramatic drop in temperature, and the need for anything that would have done a less archaic job of accomplishing what he was now working to achieve by means of a makeshift mortar and pestle. 

About an hour and a half into their surprisingly lengthy jaunt along a winding path dotted with holographic horrors, flashing lights, and spooky sounds, something had caught the Doctor's eye. He’d dragged Rose behind several tall bushes when he caught sight of something lurking in the distant dark: a species of canine known as "crendals". The large, wolf-like hounds were terrifying to look at, but according to him, had only been utilized due to the fact that, in spite of their ghastly appearance, they were virtually harmless.

That is, unless you happen to be made up of “deliciously warm and plasma-based blood”, something that didn’t typically exist in the advanced species of that particular solar system. 

“Probably been ages since a proper human came around,” the Time Lord mumbled absently as he dropped another hefty pinch of needles onto the flat rock and began pestling with determination. “Crendals aren’t native to Roon, so someone had to have brought them over, and… Suppose since it’s the off-season, it seemed scarier to let a bunch of big, threatening hounds loose than continue paying actors to lark about in makeup and costumes.” 

After several moments, seeming content with his work, he scooped half of the powdered pine into his palm and rose to stand before his companion with an apologetic smile.

“So, what is this going to do, exactly?” she half-chattered.

“Well. Unless you'd prefer that I fashion a rope and bind you to my body for the last leg of the forest, our safest bet is to utilize a simple, temporary olfactory misdirection.” He picked some of the fragrant green substance between three fingers, holding it in front of her. “Pine is a pungent fragrance, like citrus. Incredibly proficient at masking the smell of anything else around it, which is why it’s often utilized as fragrance in things such as candles and cleaning supplies. Sort of like the way fruit is so often used to cover up the taste of vegetables in smoothies and liquor in cocktails. Now, just hold still...”

Rose did as he said, trying not to think about how it might not be so bad to be bound to him as he began to blow pine dust around various points around her body. She also tried not to pay attention to how nice his breath felt as it caressed her neck, then her arms, then thighs. Her attempts to distract herself were nearly thwarted when he collected a little more from the rock and began applying it to her visible pulse points, suppressing a shiver when his fingers pressed beneath her ears and rubbed gentle circles into her sensitive skin.

“That should just about do it,” he smiled, bending down to collect the rest in a leaf, then folding it up shoving it into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. “If I’d have brought my bloody coat, it’d have done a much better job of disguising your scent, but… Well. suppose I’ll never leave that behind again.”

Rose drew a cold-shaken breath. “It’s f-fine,” she chirped.

The Doctor’s eyes widened as realization swept over him. “Blimey, why didn’t you tell me you were freezing?”

“I-I’m not that c-cold.”

With an exaggerated sigh, he had his jacket unbuttoned in seconds, pulling it off and prompting her with a nod to extend an arm so he could begin slipping it onto her. “I’m sorry, Rose — I forget I’m flush with layers when I haven’t got my coat on. Good thing is, this should only help to cover up your... human-ness.”

Being that it’d been resting against his cool skin, the jacket wasn’t very warm at first, but the insulation had her warming up almost immediately anyway. Plus, it did smell like him, which was a lovely little added bonus. “Thank you,” she sighed, and still standing behind her, he smoothed the material over her back. “D’you really think we’re gonna be safe like this?”

The Doctor spun her around and put his hands on her shoulders, raising his eyebrows in that way that he does when it’s most imperative that she listen, and listen well.

(Bit difficult to listen with the way he was now more dressed down than she’d ever seen him, barring the Christmas jimjam incident)

“I will not let anything happen to you. Alright? Never. Just gotta get through the maze, and we’ll be on our merry way.” He smiled. “I’m sure the exit is just on the other side. Now…” Releasing her, he stepped back and held out his arm, which was now clad in nothing but a navy blue oxford. “Shall we?”

They walked stealthily — or rather, as stealthily as they could with arms fastened to one another — through the last leg of the forest, finally entering an area made up of tall, artificial hedges that made up a classic maze. Enormous jack-o-lanterns and assorted props were spread all over, including real, donated skeletons, but only of the native species. The rest were fake, extraterrestrial recreations (with “an embarrassingly shoddy lack of anatomical accuracy”, according to the Doctor).

There was a depressing lack of anything actually scary, reinforcing why the apple-dipping teenager had suggested they go at night; but the threat of encountering the mangy, red-eyed, wolf-like beasts around every corner was more than enough to make Rose shiver from more than just the chill.

Eventually, the narrow hall of the maze opened up into a large, circular courtyard lined with wrought iron lanterns that glowed dimly through the thick cover of fog, as well as a tall, ornate fountain that stood as a silhouette in the center of the haze. There were spider webs spread across every hedge and lamp post, as well as spooky, ambient music playing from speakers disguised as fake rocks on the ground.

“See Rose, we ought to be getting close. Been a while since we’ve seen one of these old fake rock speakers, hasn’t it? They really skimped out for a good stretch, and if I had to fashion a guess, I’d say it’s probably because nobody wanted to go hiking out that far. Really, there’s nothing to panic ab—”

The sound of a snarl in the distance cut him off, and he clutched her hand tightly, tugging her closer to his side. When she looked up at his face with alarm, he tilted his head in the direction he intended to lead them, which was through one of three openings in the hedges that lead elsewhere in the maze.

Continuing on with their strategy of following a single wall in one direction, they proceeded to make their way toward the opening on the right, picking up their feet as quietly as they could.

Neither said a word as they stepped through what was now a new area to them: a long path with a massive influx of spiderwebs strung all across from one side to the next, with skeleton alcoves lining the length of it. The spiderwebs (fake, thank god) were obviously placed strategically to require attendees to exert themselves a bit, bobbing and weaving through the thready, straggling obstacles like secret agents through a complicated network of lasers. 

They met each other’s eyes again to nod in solidarity, relinquishing their held hands to begin their journey through the maze-within-a-maze. Rose wanted so badly to just tear down every web and be done with it, but to make any unnecessary noise would have been very bad indeed.

It was difficult to tell where their pursuer lurked until, just a row over, a growl tore through the quiet space.

In a move completely void of grace, the Doctor’s hand shot out to the side and grabbed one of the plastic human skeletons with the nonsense anatomy by the neck, yanking it from its alcove with a plastic clattering of bones. He then grabbed Rose around the waist and all but threw her into the small space, stepping in and pushing her into the fake, plastic hedge. She swallowed hard, now cramped into the tiny rectangle of space with the Doctor completely boxing her in. 

Under normal circumstances, she’d be having something of a claustrophobic panic attack, but… well. It was the Doctor, and he was so close, and her fear was suddenly at war with a very different feeling — one which she abruptly shut down before it could fester into something very, very bad.

The next words he spoke came out quickly and quietly, but without so much as a single flub.

“Right. What I’m about to do might seem incredibly rude, if not more than a bit offensive — but I assure you, I’m only doing it because it’s absolutely vital in order to ensure your safety — so, if you… you know, if you wouldn’t mind standing still—”

Before she had a chance to puzzle through whatever it was that he was on about, claws clacked and scratched against the stone walkway nearby, pushing him into action. Without further delay, he used his whole body to press her into the hedge, tucking his face into her neck as he proceeded to grind himself against her.

Rose’s hands shot up to take hold of his shoulders as her legs nearly gave out. She gasped lightly but swallowed the urge to make any more sound, lest she gives herself away. He rubbed his body against hers over and over, doing so in a way that was undoubtedly not meant to be sexual, but her body didn’t know that — only that she and the Doctor were smashed together in the dark, and between the tight proximity and his breaths on her neck, it was almost enough to break her teeth from how tightly she clenched her jaw.

She hadn’t even realized the enemy was closing in on them until, through her half-lidded eyes, she caught a glimpse directly behind him, meeting a pair of huge, red, pupil-less eyes set in the face of the massive head of a Crendal standing no more than ten feet off.

“D-Doctor,” she whimpered, and oh god, that sounded ridiculous, didn’t it? It sounded like she was certainly enduring something, but what that ‘something’ was, err...

It definitely wasn’t fear.

“Rose,” he moaned into her neck — again, moaned into her neck — using his hips as the primary point of pressure the next time he rubbed against her, and ahhh, she did shudder then, because how could she not? It hadn’t seemed sexual before, but now it clearly was, and oh, okay, yeah, coherent thought was no longer something she would consider a ‘distinguishing feature’ of her psyche.

“Th-the… it’s right there,” she indicated as her head fell forward, landing on his shoulder. It was truly embarrassing, considering he wasn’t even applying any pressure where she really wanted it — also clearly wasn’t hard. Because what he was doing wasn’t sexual. Not one bit. 

“Right there?” His voice was exaggeratedly husky as he pushed her into the hedge with his hips, making her gasp again. 

Rose’s eyes squeezed shut as her arms wrapped around his neck. God. She was hopeless to hide her state if she responded even minutely, so she bit down on her lip and just waited for it to be over, waiting for either him to stop or to just be eaten by the creature and be done with it already. 

The mere fact that randiness was dominating over fear in a situation involving a Lovecraftian beast was something she didn’t feel like examining, not that she could — it was difficult enough to think clearly.

Quite abruptly, the Doctor pulled away from her, avoiding her eyes as he cleared his throat.

“Right, then. Think we’ve thrown it off for now.” He turned away from her and peeked around each corner, then gestured outward from the alcove with a tilt of his head. “Let’s go.”

Rose righted her posture, straightening her skirt and clearing her throat as it registered that her face was burning hot… and she was alarmingly aroused. She didn’t even know what to say as he led her out into the open area and carefully replaced the skeleton, but thankfully, he spoke first.

“Sorry ‘bout that, I’d, erm, intended to just get enough of my scent off on you, but when the Crendal lingered, I sort of… Wellll. I panicked, and, well, I realized I needed to resort to more… radical measures.” His hand darted up to ruffle the hair on the back of his head. “It was either that or pretend to be eating you. Anything to ensure they knew you were, erm, spoken for, so to speak. In one way or another.” He still hadn’t met her eyes, ducking beneath one of the webs and holding it up so she could pass through easier. 

“Course.” She sounded breathless. 

“Good thing is, you should absolutely smell enough like me to keep those hounds off of our trail for a little while... Suppose pine wasn’t cutting it as much as I’d hoped it would.”

“R-right.” Rose brought a fist to her mouth and coughed, ducking beneath the web he’d cleared for her. They were nearing the end of that stretch of maze, but the bulk of her energy had since shifted to trying to steady her heart and her breathing. The Doctor had to have picked up on the state she was in, and now he was acting uncomfortable because of it. There was no other explanation for his skittishness.

Mortifying. 

How did apple picking turn into this?

Thankfully, the next several minutes passed smoothly as they continued their strategy of following the wall in one direction. Amongst the quiet music (now reminiscent of a run-down carnival) and ghostly sounds playing from hidden speakers, they encountered a couple of ‘ghost’ holograms that were actually quite impressive, as well as their first (what would turn out to be the only) proper hired actor of the night: a man with a chainsaw that clearly didn’t have a chain running through it.

It was still quite jarring after having not seen anything but crendals on their trek, and with hands clasped, they ran for their lives, not stopping until they finally popped out of the other end of the maze just a moment later.

Before them was a pumpkin patch to their left side, which lay against another series of apple trees. On their right was a big, rusted barn that blocked most of their view of the rest of the field.

“Ahh, brilliant, if that’s the barn I think it is, we’re right at the end. Spotted a brochure at the Cider Barn. Only unfortunate bit is that we’ll be missing the little shop, since it’ll likely be closed this late at night… Really ought to have planned this better… But! No matter. Let’s just go around.” He squeezed her hand and tossed her a grin, finally meeting her eyes for the first time since the alcove, and her heart stumbled. She swallowed roughly and smiled.

“Yeah, that sounds good, I think. Lead the way.”

Together, they tiptoed along the back of the barn, keeping their eyes and ears peeled for threats until they reached the corner of the building and walked around it. Still threat-free, they snuck quietly along to head to the front of the building, hands clutched between them, and Rose was so ready to just finally get out of there — to just get back to the TARDIS and put the whole experience behind them.

… And deal with her body’s pleas to cope with what’d happened in the maze.

As they rounded the next corner to step in front of the barn, they saw the aforementioned little shop, which took up half of the barn, walled off to one side. On the other side was a large, open space; in the center of which they were able to make out the shape of one of Halloween’s classic cliches in the moonlight: a hearse.

A rather large hearse, at that. The elongated back had a higher ceiling than Rose would have expected, and curiously, the rear door was hanging wide open. 

“Look at that, Rose! Just like back home, eh?” The Doctor’s voice was an enthusiastic whisper. “Oh, it’s a beauty, too. You know, I always wanted to drive one of these. Not the most efficient mode of transportation, nor is it exactly eco-friendly, but truly unique in both appearance and purpose.”

As he wittered on, Rose was busy scanning the landscape of trees and pumpkins they still had to traverse when she spotted a very welcome sight in the distance: the main cluster of barns, booths, and pavilions they’d first arrived at outside of the orchard. More important than anything about their 'haunted experience' was how it seemed like they'd gone much further away from where they started. They really had just looped around it, and quite brilliantly. She hadn’t even realized they’d gone in a circle. 

Then she heard a snarl, then another, and at the same time, hers and the Doctor’s heads both whipped to their right, where they saw an entire pack of crendals not far off. At least seven or eight, by the look of their shadows.

“Well. That’s not good,” the Doctor murmured. “That’s very not good indeed.”

Rose looked up at him with wide eyes. “Could we get into the shop, do you think?”

He turned to her and reached into one of his suit jacket pockets, almost immediately withdrawing his hand. “Bollocks. I stashed my sonic in my coat earlier... Remind me to never go anywhere without that blasted coat again, even if we’re in the bloody desert.” He frowned, then turned fully towards her, meeting her eyes head-on. “Don’t worry, though, they can’t see from that far off — but we need to hide. Come on.”

Taking her hand again, he ushered her towards the back of the hearse and gestured into it. “Get inside, quick, quick.”

Rose did as he said, climbing into the vehicle. There was a massive coffin in the center, which sent a chill down her spine despite knowing there definitely wasn’t a body — it was a prop, after all. She slid alongside the box and sat pulling her knees to her chest, watching the Doctor trying and failing to pull the door shut.

“Oh, brilliant,” he scoffed quietly. “The latch is jammed… Oh, there isn’t even a latch. What sort of hearse is this?” A nearby growl made him stiffen, and he tossed a glance at Rose. “Get down. Far as you can. Now.”

Right when she began to lower herself as directed, she had an epiphany that, in retrospect, seemed fairly obvious. 

“Doctor, wait, why don’t we just…” She got up on her knees and tested the heavy lid of the coffin, then pulled it open, not knowing what else they could possibly do that would be a better idea. She reached inside and felt the surprisingly plush interior, then she was climbing in, sitting up as she held up the lid. “Plenty of room in here, yeah?”

And there was. There was more than enough room for them to lie side by side, it would just be a bit tight. The walls were deep enough that they could close it and still have plenty of space above them, hopefully not feeling entirely like they were being buried alive. They could spend the rest of the bloody night in there if they wanted.

She saw his silhouette look back and forth from the coffin to the outside a few times. He must have been weighing the risk factor, but the sinister sounds of snarling and panting were drawing even closer — likely no more than twenty feet off — and his mind was made up. He pushed himself up and climbed into the box, still sitting up halfway on his side when a loud, barking growl jarred them from right outside the barn.

In a moment of (quite literally) blind panic, Rose grabbed his arm and yanked him down hard, accidentally knocking him half on top of her. Just for good measure, the sharp jostling of weight sent the lid of the coffin crashing onto his head, knocking him the rest of the way down onto her and practically crushing the wind from her lungs.

“Ouch,” he whispered in the pitch-blackness, seemingly unbothered by his position, chest to chest with one of his thighs sandwiched between hers. She was very happy he wouldn’t be able to tell just how deeply she was blushing. “Are you alright?” 

Rose’s heart was pounding painfully from both fear and position. She couldn’t see his face — or anything, for that matter — but she imagined his deep brown eyes fixed on her with a look of concern that creased his brow beautifully. “I-I’m fine. Are you? Is your head—”

“Shh,” he covered her mouth with his palm in a fraction of a second, and before she could protest, she heard the crunching of paws on dried grass nearby, followed by a series of sniffs and deep, rumbling snarls.

The Doctor lowered himself further onto her; slowly, carefully; even taking consideration to adjust himself so there was more of his body touching hers. Covering her scent in his again, she imagined. That didn’t matter, of course; because the Doctor was on top of her with his hand on her mouth in the dark, and his thigh was so painfully close to her groin, the area of which was covered by nothing more than knickers beneath her skirt.

“Shhh,” he repeated almost shakily, pressing meaningfully against her, his chest and belly encroaching on hers and his thigh irrefutably pressed between her legs. 

She shuddered. 

He noticed. 

At least she assumed he noticed, because she felt him grow slightly rigid as soon as it happened — but it was too late. It would have taken the restraint of a nun to keep her body from reacting to what was happening, and she was nothing of the sort, so she was absolutely fucked. 

They needed to get out of that coffin. 

Soon.

Her breaths through her nostrils were heavy and irregular. Just like back in the alcove amongst plastic hedges and skeletons, she wasn’t even thinking about the threat anymore, because in that small space, every sense was heightened — all of them concentrated on the Time Lord above her.

Outside, they could hear at least one of the beasts coming to investigate the hearse. Rose could hear it sniffing around on the floor of the back of the vehicle as its mates growled and cackled in the distance, and seconds later, the sounds of its sniffing traced the thin line where the lid of the coffin met the base. 

Without warning, the Doctor nearly mashed his palm over her mouth as he pressed his thigh down hard between her legs.

Oh. God. Rose’s nails pressed into his shoulder over his layers as she bit the inside of her cheek, squeezing her eyes shut, channeling every shred of self-control she had to keep from moaning or shaking or grinding on him like some incorrigible little trollop. 

The Doctor remained perfectly still above her as lust and frustration rushed about like madness in her skull. She wondered what he was thinking, because of course he knew, didn’t he? Why else would he be hell-bent on providing such intense barrier between her crotch and the open air while creatures were attempting to sniff out a human nearby?

When it finally grew quiet outside again, he exhaled in a heave of a sigh, pulling his hand from her mouth. She heard soft ruffling in the bedding as he planted it beside her head. 

“Rose,” he murmured, his voice almost strained. And still not moving off of her, she noticed. “Are you…”

Her stomach dropped.

Please don’t send me home, please don’t send me home, please don’t send me home…

“Well… yeah.” She turned her head to the side, nose practically touching the wall of the coffin as she felt shame and embarrassment washing over her. “Sorry. Can’t exactly help it.”

The Doctor didn’t speak for a moment, completely still above her again, then she heard the distinct sound of him wetting his lips.

“Was gonna ask if you’re alright.” 

He finally let off some of the pressure between her legs, and as though he’d instead been pressing his leg over her windpipe, Rose gasped in a quiet breath, doing her best to avoid sucking down air as though she’d been tied up at the bottom of the pool. It was much easier to think clearly without feeling him touching her there, however indirectly.

“I’m the one who should be apologizing,” he added. “I had to… it’s just…Thing is, they can smell far better than they can see, Rose, and… and…”

“Doctor…” Rose sighed. “I get it. S’fine.”

“You see, in times of intense adrenaline brought on by stress, the body is highly susceptible to strong reactions to things such as—”

“Doctor. You haven’t got to say anything else, just…” She deliberately clunked her forehead against the wall of the coffin. She just wanted him to shut up, please for the love of god just spare me the embarrassment. 

“Oh. I, well…” she heard him swallow, “I just wanted to tell you that it’s normal, alright? For stress to make the body do things it normally wouldn't, erm…”

Rose was at her wits end. “Right, of course, s’the bloody hounds that made me feel like this,” she bit out, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I… wait.” The Doctor was silent for a moment, and she swore she could almost hear his brow wrinkling above her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Still struggling to breathe properly, Rose curled her toes in her trainers in a nonsensical beat from one foot to the next. “Don’t pretend you don’t know.” Because he had to have been pretending. Of course he was. Surely she wasn't just dumping a bucket of new information over his head.

The Doctor’s voice was deep and serious the next time he spoke.

“Indulge me.” 

... Or maybe it was new information.

Maybe she could have just kept her mouth shut. Saved them both the trouble. Her fear of rejection was searing hot inside of her, loud and growing and clamoring about.

Well… It was too late to walk it back now.

“I just mean… y’know. Maybe…” Her voice trailed off, then she collected herself. “Maybe I’m not reacting like this ‘cause I’m scared.” She licked her lips. “Maybe I’d, you know, still react the same way even if there weren’t any… dogs.”

There were several seconds where the Doctor said nothing; not moving an inch as he allowed the air to fill with the sounds of their breaths, hers still far more uneven than his.

She'd already said too much. She knew that, and she was scared — but for that quiet, in-between period, she found stasis beneath him; in the surprising warmth and smell of him, all crisp autumn leaves and warm, sticky caramel from the apple slices they’d been dipping before they’d embarked. 

After the longest handful of seconds she could ever remember experiencing, there was a slight shift, and she knew he was closer now. She could feel the presence of his face right above hers, could hear the sound of her breaths bouncing off of his face at a much closer proximity.

“Rose…”

His voice was low and labored, and though Rose always thought there couldn’t be a chance he would handle it well if he were ever made privy to her feelings, his body language would suggest that he had no intention of moving away.

Not a single centimeter.

“You’ve been in this state before around me,” he realized. “Not just tonight.”

She should have known he could tell. Of course he would be able to. Her heart clenched with nerves. She was searching his voice for any evidence of disgust, any indication that he was uncomfortable with this revelation, but she consistently turned up short.

“Yes,” she admitted, biting down on her lip and chewing anxiously.

“Was…” He cleared his throat. “Are you saying that was because of—”

“Yes.”

“Oh.” He swallowed. “Oh.”

“... Yeah.”

A few more seconds of silence.

“Really?”

She rolled her eyes. “Doctor, don’t be stupi—“

He dropped down and kissed her suddenly, swallowing the end of her sentence with the insistent press of his lips that was so unexpected, it took her a second to register that it was actually happening. It was imperfect, messy; an impulsive clash that only hit the mark by half — the other half landing somewhere in the vicinity of her chin. 

Rose didn’t care if it’d landed on her bloody eyebrow. The Doctor was kissing her. He’d just found out that he turns her on with semi-regularity and now he was kissing her, breaking away and coming back to take her lips properly in a demanding snog that swiftly had her heart fluttering with the beat of a hummingbird’s wings.

Before she could wrap her arms properly around him, he used his thigh to push very deliberately between her legs, the action so unexpected that a moan flew unbidden from the back of her throat.

Breaking away again, the Doctor breathed in through his teeth, pressing a little more firmly against her. “That okay?” 

Rose nodded shakily, frantically; but just as soon realized he probably couldn’t tell, so she did the only thing she could think of and rolled her hips down to grind against him. 

The groan he responded with was incredible; possibly the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard. Shock and pleasure zipped brilliantly through her, adrenaline running high, then she felt him moving and shifting above her.

He rolled onto his left side just slightly as his hand moved and reappeared at her hip, skimming down the outside of her thigh, then slipping beneath her knee. Rose could only surrender to his actions as he pulled her leg further open, readjusting his lower half at the same time.

As his weight settled comfortably back over her, her frazzled brain shorted out as she fully recognized their new position, with the Doctor’s hips between her thighs. 

Her breath hitched.

“Rose,” he whispered, so close to her face. He lowered his forehead to hers and pressed tenderly, shaking as she felt him stiffening beneath his pinstriped trousers. He grew hard much quicker than she could have anticipated — probably a Time Lord thing — but in that impeccable moment, she could feel him there, feel the gorgeous weight of him resting between her legs. He was letting her feel it, feel him, and her responding goosebumps covered her body from head to toe.

“Doctor.” Her arms were like jelly as they attempted to clench around his neck. He kissed her softly as he drew back, then rolled forward and ground his erection against her. He moaned and Rose gasped out a small, squeak-like sound, her head dropping hopelessly against the soft pillow beneath her as a tremor ran through her in the darkness. “Oh, god…”

The Doctor hummed deeply and kissed her again, then he was tugging at the denim skirt of her overall dress, pulling roughly until he’d gotten them up far enough to push her legs further apart. When he pressed himself against her that time, she made a needy, begging sort of noise against his mouth, feeling the length of him pressed snugly against her. It left very little to the imagination other than wondering exactly what it might feel like to have him inside of her.

She hooked her leg around his hips to slowly rut against him and he groaned achingly; trapping her lower lip between his teeth, skimming fingertips around her thigh to grab a handful of her bum as he pinned himself to her with a firm push of his hips.

It took a few tries to work the angle out, but when they did… Oh, when they did. 

Amidst a soft chorus of moans, three hearts beat heavily between them as he began a slow, dragging rhythm, pulling her close each time he ground his hard cock against her. Rose let out a shaky mewl as the fabric of his trousers slid along her thighs, rasping over her knickers; precise, focused thrusts working his length against the split of her folds to rub gentle friction along her clit.

His kisses were teeming with emotion as he pulled one moan after another from within her, moving his body in wonderful sync with hers. She clung to him just as he clung to her, not caring for one second that this was all very sudden — she wanted him, she was smitten, and if the way this was finally going to happen just happened to be fully clothed in a pitch-black prop coffin, she would take it.

When the tiniest little sound cut off in the back of her throat, the Doctor broke away with a shuddering breath, murmuring her name against her lips. It was intoxicating, and oh, she wanted more than anything to look at him, to see her beloved, beautiful Time Lord spun out in pleasure. However, just to be able to hear him, to feel him; it was so intimate, so perfect, that she didn’t care if she never saw anything else ever again. She could stay suspended with her Doctor in the heart of darkness forever, until she breathed her last breath, so long as she could do so in the cradle of his arms.

So softly, he pressed his mouth to hers, his tongue sneaking out to gently tease her lips apart as warmth bloomed through her chest like cotton wool. She parted for him and he slid inside; his caramel-sweet tongue moving like velvet over hers. 

He was a devastatingly brilliant kisser, she was pleased to find; lost to the way he continued shrouding her in affection, rocking into her with insistent hips. 

Scraping her nails through his hair, Rose lowered her calf from his hips to wrap around the back of his thigh, tugging him closer each time he rocked into her, whimpering hopelessly into his mouth. He broke away and panted hotly over her lips between a few wet kisses, still hard at work unraveling her.

“Oh, Rose.” He met her hips with a swiveling twist that made them both shiver and gasp, and again, why did it have to be so dark, she was aching to see him. “This feels so good. You’re so warm and soft…”

Her breath caught on a moan and she nodded, eyes nearly closed. She started to say something, but then he swiveled into her again and her voice fell into a whimper, completely lost to what he was doing to her.

“Yes,” he hissed, lowering his face to her neck and sucking softly at her skin before kissing his way up to her ear, where he began to whisper as he moved. “You make such sweet, lovely sounds. You must look so beautiful, Rose… I wish I could see you right now. Wish I could watch you.”

“Aaahhh…”

“Oh, yes… Yes, just like that...”

“Please,” she sounded quiet and frantic, split on a razor’s edge as her hands moved across him like she didn't know where she wanted to touch most, when really, she just wanted to touch him, all of him, all at once. Her hands found his perfect bum, then moved again to his lower back, pressing her tension into his oxford with her nails. “Oh, please, Doctor…”

He purred against the shell of her ear, flicking his tongue across her earlobe. He then drew back and kissed her again, three loving presses of his lips, his mouth slanted over hers as he whispered, “Anything.” Another kiss. “Anything you want. I’m yours.”

“Please,” she repeated, shaking all over. She couldn’t believe how badly she needed him, how much she loved him. She couldn’t believe he was doing this with her. Her heart felt like it might burst. “Pleasetouchme.”

He hummed again, a hungry, impassioned sound that expressed approval as he eagerly raised his hips and slid a hand down between them to cup her sex. 

“Ooh,” her hands clenched at the fabric of his shirt and tugged. “Yes…”

The Time Lord let out a tattered sigh as he rubbed a few circles over her knickers. He only toyed with her for a moment before slipping beneath the edge of the thin fabric, flicking it aside so he could press intently, two fingers dipping between her soft folds. He breathed out a curse.

“Rose,” he growled, then briefly pressed inside, pumping gently as she mewled and writhed beneath him. “Oh, sweetheart. Just feel how wet you are…”

His slick fingers retreated to coast upward through the split of her, then he was playing with her clit, stroking back and forth before painting tiny circles that had her whole body racked with shivers. Endless, quivering sounds poured from her lips as he touched her reverently, skilled and determined.

She was so close already. She’d already been dancing along the edge from their grinding, but now she was properly there, rotating her hips along with his touches, picturing what he must look like above her as he stroked her. She mewled his name again on a shuddering breath and he kissed her, sucking at her lip as his fingers teased the pulsing bud again and again. He broke the kiss to lay his forehead back over hers.

“So beautiful,” he purred, nuzzling her nose. “Go on, sweetheart… I want to feel you come for me… That’s it…”

Seconds later, her mouth fell open as she slipped straight over the edge, gasping, nearly breaking her hands with how tightly she gripped his shirt to keep from crying out in the darkness. The Doctor’s fingers continued slipping back and forth over her clit; soft, wet caresses that propelled her through her pleasure, slowing down near the end as he brought her down gently. 

As she returned to herself, he was pressing kisses all over her face, ending at her lips, where he welcomed her tongue back into his mouth in a lazy snog that he moaned into almost instantly. 

“That was wonderful,” he murmured when they broke apart, making her melt with the way she could literally hear his smile in his voice. “I wish I could have seen it, but oh, the sound of it…”

Rose came so close to saying it: ‘You can see it any time you like’, ‘We can do it again as soon as we get back to the TARDIS’, but she was afraid to, so she just kissed him again, sliding a hand into his hair to hold his mouth against hers.

When he pulled back, he dropped a kiss to her forehead, then pressed another to the tip of her nose. “Was that alright?” he asked once she’d been quiet for a moment. “Is everything…?”

She exhaled in a soft huff. “God, yes, but…”

“... But?”

She steeled herself as her tongue darted out across her lips, tasting him there. “Do we have to stop?”

A few seconds passed before he spoke.

“Rose,” his voice was somewhat guarded, trepidatious. “What do you…?”

“I mean,” she pressed into him, where he was somehow even harder now, which was a bit too much stimulation over her for a moment. “You’re still…”

“Oh… Oh, don’t worry about that,” he chuckled lightly. “I’ll be alright.”

Ergh. He was always taking the lead in just about everything they got up to. Why did that have to end at sex?!

She took another long, deep breath. “But… do you want to stop?” 

“As opposed to…?”

Damn it.

Right, okay then. He had to be deliberately skirting the obvious, she realized. Playing dumb because he was the one worried about overstepping her boundaries.

She rocked up into him and he groaned, breathing hot and heavy, pressing into her at the same time. The sound spurred her on, and she did it again. 

“I want to do this,” she purred, pushing against him one more time. With a burst of bravery that she latched onto with everything she had, she reached down between them, pressing her fingers over the button of his trousers. “Without these.”

The Doctor gasped at the unexpected touch. “F-fuck… Rose, are you sure?” A pause. “Here?”

No hesitation this time.

“Yes.”

Thank god, he didn’t need any more convincing after that. 

It was a little frantic in the tight space as they both attempted to divest him of his barriers, like they were both equally worried the other might change their mind about this reckless thing they were getting up to in the dark. Still, the Doctor slipped the button free himself, which was followed by both sets of hands working in frenzied tandem to get both his trousers and pants down his legs as best they could — which was just about to his knees.

Rose reached between his legs and wrapped her hand around the warm, smooth skin of his shaft, then he swore again, moaning and dropping his mouth to hers. He lowered his hips as she continued to stroke him, reaching with her other hand to pull her knickers further to the side, not even caring about taking them off. She needed him desperately, no more interruptions.

She gently pressed him through her slit, teasing herself with the silken head of his cock. Bloody hell, he was so smooth against her; so much hotter than the rest of him, pressing tantalizing heat against her sex as she guided him up and down again and again. She couldn’t wait to feel him inside of her, and he must have felt the same, because the sounds he made now were every bit as eager and needy as hers. It only served to make Rose wetter for him, igniting a primal need that brought her just short of begging him to fuck her.

They moved together a few times, slickening him up. He was breathless, trembling above her, then she positioned him at her entrance, keeping him there to guide him as he pushed forward and into her. 

“Fuck,” they gasped in unison, then his lips were back on hers. He kissed her as he buried himself deep, fitting her perfectly, then he broke away so they could both moan.

“Ooh...” He drew back and slid into her slowly. “Oh, Rose.”

She didn’t know how to form words, overcome with emotion and all-encompassing completeness beneath him, so she pulled him down mould her lips against his. He felt so good inside of her. 

The Doctor started to make love to her right there on the bedding of their coffin, and did so exquisitely. The threat outside was long forgotten, replaced by their soft, tremulous sounds of pleasure, joined together in the dark.

“Oh, god,” Rose’s hands returned to his lower back, sliding down to his bum and pulling him closer with each delicious slide through her heat. “Don’t stop.”

He whispered her name as he slid a hand back beneath her to angle her pelvis, then his hips, making her cry out softly as he entered her with one exploratory thrust that was both hard and fast. The adjustment created the perfect pathway, which he followed eagerly, each thrust driving his cock straight into her g-spot as he entered her. 

Over and over, he drove his hips into her, burying himself deep; panting and moaning above her as Rose spiraled into a procession of whimpers and curses and ragged, wavering moans. Tiny specks of blue burst through her vision in the dark as the Doctor fucked her hard and slow, nurturing that delicious heat as it pooled inside of her all over again. 

It was difficult to believe what was happening to her, that the Time Lord would share himself with her like this, but the thought was fleeting as he brought his mouth to hers. “I’m yours,” he murmured through her parted lips, dipping his tongue inside to glance against hers before withdrawing slowly from her mouth. “So long, I’ve wanted this. Wanted you… Needed you… Oh, fuck, please tell me you’re close…”

“So close,” she insisted breathlessly. “Doctor…”

He brought a hand to her face and caressed her cheek with his fingertips, drifting across her eyebrows, her eyelids, then her mouth, and she realized with a skip of her heartbeat that he was trying to ‘see’ her, trying to paint a picture of what he looked like while he moved inside of her.

“Beautiful,” he rasped, kissing her before tracing her lips again. “Mine. Oh, Rose. Need… Please…”

His desperation meshed with the incredible feeling of him throbbing deep inside of her, and Rose came hard; her climax hitting her with a suddenness that made her entire body surge upwards against his. He gasped out her name as his body stiffened, then with a heavy, shuddering moan, he was coming apart above her, riding her through her orgasm as he joined her in release.

Their bodies shook as they slowed to a stop, kissing each other over and over, not an inch between them. They continued to exchange languishing kisses as they caught their breath, slowing until he finally broke away, resting his forehead against hers.

“Wow,” he gasped. “Oh, wow.”

“Yeah.” Rose laughed. “Wow.”

“Rose, that was unbelievable.” Another soft kiss. “You’re incredible.”

Her heart, still raw with emotion, did a flip in her chest. “Doctor…”

“Mm?”

“Are we alright?... You and me?”

Again, she could practically hear his face contort above her. “What do you mean?”

“After that, I just mean…” 

He cut her off with a brief kiss, then he sighed. “Rose, I don’t know what that was for you, but as soon as I get you back to the TARDIS, we’re going straight to the Vortex so we can do that again. All day, preferably, with the lights on, so I can see every brilliant face you make.”

She blinked, not knowing why she was so shocked — only that she most definitely was. “Really?... You’re not, I don’t know, planning on running for the hills?”

He laughed properly at that, sliding back and out of her before carefully repositioning himself at her side. “What I said a moment ago wasn’t just… dirty talk.” He sought out her forehead in the dark, then traced his fingertips along her hairline and brushed a few loose strands away from her face. “I have actually wanted this, you know.”

Rose was incredulous, wishing she could look at him properly; wishing they had so much as a single Christmas light to be able to see each other in the darkness. It was killing her, not being able to make eye contact with him for any part of this. “But why didn’t you say anything?”

“Come off it with that. What could I have said? I’m not supposed to get up to these sorts of things. I don’t get up to them, thanks. Well… that is to say, I have, but I certainly haven’t in… Oh, longer than I can even remember. Certainly not in this body, nor the previous.”

The relief that flooded through her was almost embarrassing. Perhaps once or twice, a couple of incidents had led her to believe that he’d perhaps that wasn’t the case, but she trusted him completely, knowing he wouldn’t lie to her about something like that.

“We can talk about this in the morning, though. Hm?” He cupped her cheek and leaned forward, missing her lips again now that he was in a new position, having not memorized their location from her side. They both laughed lightly before he kissed her again, his lips resting perfectly over hers before he drew back. “Should probably get some rest. At this point, I’m certain I smell just as much like you as you do like me, so I’d rather not risk crossing that field tonight.”

“We’re just going to sleep here?” Rose grinned, certainly not hating the idea. “Grab a kip in a coffin?”

“Well. We’ve just grabbed a shag in a coffin, haven’t we? Where exactly is your line, Rose Tyler?”

They laughed together again, ending as he pulled her close and tucked her head beneath his chin. She snuggled up to him, happier than she ever thought possible. 

After a little light pillow talk, they finally drifted off, arms glued around each other in the night. 

x

Early in the morning, the Doctor jolted awake to the sound of a loud creaking sound, followed by the hearse shaking beneath the coffin. 

It was light enough outside that the light shining through the cracks in the coffin dimly illuminated the space, and he looked down at Rose, who was looking back at him with wide eyes.

She had never looked more beautiful, and blimey; he wanted to tell her as much, wanted to show her, wanted to pin her down and fuck her all over again, but it seemed they had more pressing matters to attend to.

“What was that?” She asked quietly.

Outside the box, there was another voice. 

“What? Is there someone in there? Hey, who’s in my hearse?!”

The Doctor held up a finger, then he turned his head as he pushed up slowly on the lid, peeking out. At what he saw, he cleared his throat. “Ah.”

Directly outside of the hearse, they’d managed to miss the elaborate photography setup about fifteen feet away. The roof of the hearse was also on hinges with a mechanism to prop it open, and clearly, they’d taken refuge inside the coffin that was intended for people to pose inside for a photo op.

“Who are you!?” a large, green-tinted Roonish man yelled from beside the vehicle, arms crossed. “What are you doing in there!”

The Doctor lowered the lid and looked down at Rose, who had her lip caught between her teeth. Her face was tinged pink as she smiled sheepishly. 

“Erm, well. Rose, it would appear we’ve taken shelter in a Halloween photography setup.”

“What?!”

“There’s cameras and haystacks and lighting rigs outside, evidently.”

“Oh.” Her hand flew up to her forehead, and she looked like she was trying very, very hard not to laugh. He smiled.

“I’m calling the authorities!"

“No, no, no, no —” the Doctor pushed up the lid again, this time joined by Rose, who popped up at his side. “There’s really no need for that —”

The man’s jaw dropped when he saw that he wasn’t alone. “Wait… Wait! What were you doing in there? Get. Out. Of. My. Coffin!”

Rose waved a hand flippantly. “Sir, please at least let us get decent, for god’s sake.”

The pair disappeared back into the coffin, ignoring the angered babbling of the employee as he prattled on. They held back their laughter as best as they could; exchanging a few kisses as they got their clothing situation in order, pulling things up and buttoning them, and tucking things back into place. 

It took a moment, but when they finally got out of the coffin and stepped dizzily out of the back of the hearse, there were already security guards waiting for them.

With just a touch of guilt, the Time Lord reached into the pocket of his suit jacket, which was still being worn by Rose, and retrieved his psychic paper, demonstrating that they had every right to be there, as they were testing the safety and durability of the coffin. It didn’t please the owner of the photo stand at all, but they were still allowed to leave, which they did hand-in-hand, running at full tilt for the TARDIS. He already had too much in store for their day, and jail didn’t factor into any of his plans.

The following evening, a brand new and far superior coffin appeared in the hearse with an apology letter neatly tucked inside.

The previous model was hauled away, stored deep in the TARDIS, awaiting what was destined to become a new and brilliant Halloween tradition… One they would be sure to enjoy in a far more private location next time.

[rings-of-power-realm]

I've been a fan of Tolkien for over 40 years, read everything he has published and read The Hobbit and LOTR a half dozen times over those decades. I loved the Rankin/Bass animated versions of the story as a teen and I thoroughly enjoyed Peter Jackson's take on the tale and appreciated the artistic license he took to round the stories out for film. I had no expectations going into The Rings of Power, positive or negative. I hoped it would be a beautiful expansion of a world I love and wanted to see more of. I saw the usually people already complaining about this and that, assuming they knew what was best for the works and of course knowing exactly what Tolkien would want and dislike (eye roll) and tried to ignore these trolls completely. They seem to like to ruin any and every journey before it gets a chance to begin and I would not want to spend one moment with these joyless creatures. All that being said I sat down with a snack and refreshments release night and watched the first episodes of The Rings of Power and was dumbfounded. What did I just watch I said to myself. It certainly wasn't anything like the trash mob of negative internet trolls said it would be. It was glorious. From the moment Galadriel's opening voiceover began to the second she plunged her brother's dagger into the ice wall I realized I had leaned forward on the couch and was smiling from ear to ear. The world had faded away and I was enthralled by the beautiful cinematography, the vivid colors and the sheer breadth of the opening shots, the Tolkienesque dialogue...I watched it again. Nope not me imagining it. I watched the rest of the episode and was so tickled I watched it again. I then watched the second. I was so happy, it's indescribable. They struck all the right notes and I was in that world again, like I was reading the books or watching the movies... immersed in Middle Earth and it's tales. Somehow they took the charm and detail of Jackson's movies, added a heavy dose of Tolkien lore, some artistic license and flawless creative CGI and created something fresh but familiar. I knew this place but it was like seeing it with new eyes, the inhabitants and places the same but even more vibrant. So far I'm thrilled with what they have done. If the story pans out and it continues on this path they may have something fantastic on their hands. Something to be celebrated by TRUE Tolkien fans and lovers of Middle Earth. "But it's not Tolkien's story." Well he's not around to create any more content, and it is based on the world and characters he created. If you don't want to watch something he didn't actually write tune out, but don't ruin it for the rest of us. What's wrong with more stories from Middle Earth even if they aren't written by the man himself if they're done well and in his spirit? "Why did they cast so diversely?" Well I don't know how to help you with your "problem" but the way I see it, the only people taking umbrage with that probably have questionable character. Tolkien created a large world with many races, species, etc. I don't remember him ever writing specifically that they were all white. Naturally in a world that big there would be many beautiful types of people, races, ethnicities and cultures. The expansion of this in the show only adds to the richness of the story. If not it would a pretty vanilla tale indeed. If you find yourself complaining about diversity you should probably take a long look in the mirror and ask yourself the real reason you have a problem with it. Lastly I want to address once more the groups that like to mass negative review things. You reveal yourselves when you give a negative review to something before it's even been released in its entirety. I'll be the first to edit this if it turns badly later, but I'll give it it's due first. It's seems like some kind of sickness, the need to try to ruin something just because they don't agree with how it's done or who's in it. It really invalidates all your reviews because you're not reviewing a thing on its content, you're reviewing it on your prejudice, you're reviewing according to your hateful opinions. You won't even give it a chance because "I hate this, and don't like that...oh the wokeness!" Not one of you will be able to look past any of your personal hang ups to give the story and it's presentation a chance to stand on its own, therefore your reviews are meaningless and should be treated as such. I hope that that's taken into account when the time comes to invest in more chapters, seasons and stories if this pans out. If you don't like it go away and let the rest of us enjoy it without having to listen to you try to ruin something without giving it a chance. Gandalf would disapprove. "May dawn take you all and be stone to you!" More Middle Earth is a Good Thing! by redkingisalive imdb 10 star review

[confused-wanderer]

SPOILERS!! COD MWF III

TW: MCD (you have been warned)

—————————————————————————

“Johnny” “Soap” “MacTavish”

Please

There’s a shadow in the corner of my room, and I am sure he can hear my heart breaking. The twisting feeling of a knife making sure when it’s done I stay dead.

“Aye, fit’s wrong?”

And the voice is the reason for it. The sobs break free, fingers shaking, itching to reach out for him. To hug him, to offer words of comfort and demand he never leave. I can’t do this. I won’t, I can’t let go. Please, I need him to stay.

And he’s there. Johnny “Soap” MacTavish, the outline of his Mohawk visible as he comes closer. His brown eyes are full of worry, and when I can’t meet them anymore I look away, notice his hands are shaking too.

“You’re dead,” I rasp, barely able to believe the words myself. Dead. Dead and gone. It’s not the first time I’ve seen it happen to those I loved, who were world of pages, ink and binary. But I loved them. And I grieved. Every single time.

“Ah’m not”

He knows I’ve seen it happen. Everyone has.

“Makarov shot a fucking bullet in your head. Price, Ghost, Gaz, they were all there. I was there. ”

Soap nods, sliding down next to me with his eyes still searching my face.

“But I’m not dead. That wasnae me. Wasnae all o’ me. They made me, ah’ll give em tha”, but they didnae kill me. They cannae. Know why?”

I shake my head, too afraid to whisper or he might fade.

“They brought me into existence. You brought me to life. Filled me with stories, with grief and love, with tiny tics of personality and family. You made me yours. Ah belong to you. They killed their version of me. But the others, the thousands of others people made, ah still live there. Still am alive. Death, the cocky bastard he is, isnae coming to get me.”

“Maybe you’re still alive.. maybe they just pretended to kill you.”

“Hope is dangerous. They might’ve, might not have. But I’m not dead. I am yours. And I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon. This- the taskforce, the lore, me, Gaz, Ghost, Roach, everyone, everyone is yours too. They’re all what you want them to be. Just because we’re stories, doesnae mean we aren’t truth. So many people have their own versions of reality, of life so why not stories? Stories that are yours to do with as you please?”

“So you’re not dead.”

“Do you want me to be?”

“.. no. I don’t. I really don’t.”

“Then I’m not.”

“But the game-“

“The game,” He laughs softly, shaking his head, “the game may have given me a one way ticket to Hell, but if you say so, I might just miss the boarding call.”

And with that he gets up, dusting his pants and muttering in Gaelic about cleaning up my room a bit. There’s a hope fluttering in my chest, and I look to meet his eyes.

“Where are you going?”

He winks, giving a mock salute before strutting out of the room.

“I’m going home kid, to the taskforce. You should start heading back to your reality soon too.”

—————————————————————————

Listen, we’re all free to do with canon as we please. But there’s been so much negativity I’ve been hearing about others either saying everyone should just accept the canon and move on or asking why people are being so soft or just overall toxicity towards others about the event that shall not be named. People are allowed to grieve, or react however they want as long as it’s not hurting anyone. There are cases where the fandom is steadfast in their own reality that canon bends to them. Basically all I’m saying is:

Fictional characters are old friends we’ve known our whole lives, but never met in this one. So be kind to one, and let’s all keep our Soap happy and alive 😄

[centaurianthropology]

General Thoughts of Candela Obscura E1

So, for those who are waiting for the drop for Youtube, I’m just going to put these under a cut.

The first episode was ... fine.  I like the characters, but the story was a little less horror than I was hoping for.  I think this is likely a side-effect of it being an introduction to the system and the world, and I hope we dig deeper and get into way worse and creepy things in Oldfaire, because the town gives off some serious Yharnam vibes, and I really want to see much worse below the city.

The horror seems currently on the level of something like Fallen London (another strong similar vibe I got from the setting), where it can be mildly creepy, but nothing to spook even the biggest scardey-cats.  And part of that, I think, is Matt being first and foremost a D&D DM.  His favorite horror is body horror, clearly, and his sensibilities are geared for D&D combat and monsters.  And that is no bad thing, but so far I really haven’t seen him dig deep and come up with a really strong horror hook.  

And to be fair to him, doing horror in a TTRPG is HARD.  The sci-fi horror series ‘Eclipse’ had only one episode out of three seasons that really got me properly creeped out.  Taliesin’s Call of Cthulhu one-shot ‘Shadow of the Crystal Palace’ had some great horror moments, such as the moment with the guard and Travis, but that’s as close as we’ve come to proper horror content from CR.  And this introduction to Candela Obscura, despite being hyped as proper horror spooks, lacked any real fear.  We got ..blue ghosts?  A big warrior spirit?  Cool, sure, and definitely some fun visuals, but nothing that felt actually scary in that existential, unexpected way.

I also sort of wish Taliesin was playing the group’s Lightkeeper, as I think he’d bring more gravity and spooky shit to the table, essentially acting as a junior DM and NPC.  He would give the circle instructions and would be available to discuss lore and such with them as needed, but would always give off a vibe that interacting with him for too long might be dangerous.  It would also make his intros feel a little less separated from the rest of the episode.  

Now, all this may sound like I was pretty down on the episode, but I did enjoy it.  The characters are fun, they’re good horror tropes (particularly Laura’s crazy-eyed occultist, who gives off some delightfully weird vibes).  Having them have personal connections to one another is also great, as it gives them more to lose (and I am really hoping we do lose a few by the end of the third episode, as I want Matt to ratchet up the danger hard).

And as I said at the beginning, this is very much the first episode, with some kinks to work out.  I’m hoping that, now that the establishing episode is over and done with, Matt can destroy all my doubts and show me that he can really embrace the fucked-up horror vibes this show really needs to have proper teeth and linger with the audience.  Having a system weighted toward failure or only partial successes, with true success seeming like a rarity, could really help with this, and giving the characters more resource crunch could also be great.  ‘Call of Cthulu’, for example, has very few rules about fighting, but a lot about running away, because that’s what you’re supposed to do.  So it’s great that none of the characters in this current run are active combatants.  Sending them into Oldfaire with no real means of defending themselves and barely enough information to keep them alive could really up the terror, and leaning into reality-breaking cosmic weirdness seems like a great angle to take if and when they descend below the city streets.  

Setting up proper scares and paying them off would also be a huge benefit.  Taliesin had some great moments of this in ‘Shadow of the Crystal Palace’, as I mentioned, and though the rest of the series never quite rose to the same heights, the third episode of Eclipse, ‘The Dark Zone’ is frankly a masterclass at being properly spooky and unsettling that could be referenced for ways to get your players spooked and keep them there.  So it is doable, but it requires the DM to go in with spooks set up and ready to go.  Matt is fantastic at set-up and is an incredibly diligent DM, so I do trust he can do this.  And he’s got a good buddy who has experience doing it if he needs any ideas.

I am looking forward to following this run, and I think a lot of my issues with this first episode are simply early growing pains of a new system and new players.  I think by the third episode, if Matt really cranks up the horror, I am going to love this series, and I am both a big fan of CR and a big horror fan, particularly cosmic horror.  So I’m very excited to see what the next run might be like after the growing pains are over and the kinks are worked out.  I hope we get at least three runs with three different DMs, because getting to see how this system plays in different hands with different approaches would be really beneficial to those of us tempted to run Candela Obscura ourselves.  I would love to see Ivan van Norman DM one of the runs, as he’s got a great sense for horror.  And I would really like Taliesin to take the reigns.  This is his baby, and right now his distance from it is probably deliberate, as he wants to see how it plays without his interference, but I think his DM style from ‘Shadow of the Crystal Palace’ would really bring this setting to life, dragging his investigators into darker and darker places.

All in all, not a bad start.  Not great, but first episodes of any of CR’s campaigns (or frankly pilot episodes in general) are often weakened by everyone being new to their characters and the DM still figuring out the tone they want to go for.  I think that we’ll be seeing a lot of improvement, and a lot of what’s already strong (the characters) getting built out to the point where, if we start losing them in episode three, it’ll have some serious impact leading into the formation of the next circle for the next run.

[authortobenamedlater]

Oh, and even tho I know nothing about b5, Half baked B5Halo has me INTRIGUED.

(Hey @infinityactual you might find this interesting re: our conversation this morning.)

Send me WIP asks.

So. This got LONG. Sorry not sorry.

This not-story has the working title “For Such a Time As This” owing to a scene in my head where Delenn says “Perhaps the universe has brought us all together for such a time as this.”Appropriating Bible verses for the Minbari, oh yeah.

Right now this document is just a collection of ideas about how these universes might interact, and a few scenes/ideas. Such as:

- Infinity’s communications officer falls and breaks her nose when they crash out of slipspace. Lasky is shoving gauze at her when Babylon 5 makes contact. He shows up on the station with blood all over his uniform and his first conversation with Sheridan is something like “Do you have laundry around here? Also, what year is it?”

-Garibaldi and Palmer have to chase Halsey around the station. They bond over a shared love for Loony Toons. Palmer is a Roadrunner and Coyote girl, change my mind.

- Franklin is utterly furious when he finds out about the Spartan program. And that’s just the IVs. He doesn’t even know about the IIs.

- Lasky is insanely envious that B5’s computer can turn the attitude OFF and that cryo is not widely used in their world.

- Ivanova and Palmer become besties and give their respective captains a few headaches.

- Garibaldi wants to keep the Spartans because WOW are they useful for security.

- Various Halo characters grappling with the “who are you/what do you want” questions (I have ideas about this I will save for another post).

- What a fight with the Shadows might look like with Infinity in the mix. Seeing as Infinity is more powerful than anything in the B5 world. Sheridan and Lasky would make a fascinating team, too.

- How the Shadows would end up using Halsey, because even she couldn’t outwit them, and the trouble she could make in another universe.

- Lasky muses at some point how Babylon 5 gives him hope that one day humans and aliens can all work together peacefully; maybe the UEG should give something like this a shot. Palmer tells him, “You know they’d want you to run it” and Lasky is like F—- NO.

Now, all my reasons for why this epic will never make it out of my head:

Altering the B5 storyline (namely having to scrap the tensions with Earth for simplicity’s sake) would feel to me like sacking the Jerusalem temple.

I’d need to know even MORE about B5 lore than I already do, not like I’d have a problem with that research project, and a whole lot more about Halo than I do. On that last point, I am married to a walking Halopedia who would gladly tell me everything and then some.

There’s also the matter of having to make several OCs for the Halo side. Aside from Lasky, Palmer, and Roland, we don’t meet many of the Infinity crew. Does Lasky even have a first officer? I mean, he obviously does, but does he ever talk to this person? We got through all of Spartan Ops and Halo 5 with nary an XO in sight.

Finally, silly as this may sound, I’m no Straczynski and don’t trust myself with his characters and universe. I have no problem taking a sledgehammer to Halo because it’s great and fun and sometimes just mind-bogglingly stupid. But B5 is so brilliant I can’t bring myself to touch it. I would be scared of incurring the wrath of my fellow fans and also probably feel like I had to write JMS a letter of apology.

—

I WAS going to post a snippet from this mess of an AU but I’ll put it in a reblog later to keep this post from getting even longer.

[nibsthoughtcorner]

The Old Ruler and The Forgotten

A Disney Dreamlight Valley Theory

POTENTIAL MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE MAIN STORY! (Also spoilers for Dazzle Beach Story Quest and Glade of Trust Story Quest)

So here’s the dealio

When I unlocked the Story Quest for Dazzle Beach, I obviously got that lil cutscene of The Forgotten going into a portal through that cave, and if you remember the cutscene, the shot was of The Forgotten’s shoe.

Now I don’t know if anyone else noticed, but I noticed that with “my” Forgotten, the shoe looked an awful lot like the sneakers my character was wearing.

And obviously if Disney was going for a unique design for The Forgotten, they wouldn’t design them wearing plain clothing.

Which leads me to believe that The Forgotten isn’t their own person, but rather a different form of The Old Ruler (aka us, which we only find out after Glade of Trust Story Quest)

So

I propose that The Forgotten is a physical manifestation of the negative/shadow side of The Old Ruler.

If you remember some of The Old Ruler’s diary entries, they start to get kinda creepy after Dazzle Beach is unlocked. You see weird purple drawings, which is the same color of the magic making up the Night Thorns, as well as the same color as The Forgotten’s apparition.

In those creepier diary entries, The Old Ruler talks about more negative emotions such as fear, longing, loneliness, and other such feelings. Which leads to the next point.

The Forgotten is the manifestation of The Old Ruler’s negative emotions and fears.

This would explain why, despite the fact that Merlin is a wise and powerful wizard, only we can get rid of Night Thorns. They’re born from a twisted version of our own magic. It’s essentially a reversal of our own spells.

It would also explain why we’re the only ones who can enter and leave the cave Ursula is trapped in. The Forgotten trapped her, and since we and The Forgotten are counterparts of each other, we serve as the exception to any spells and effects The Forgotten placed on the valley.

Now with this theory in mind, it now makes more sense as to why The Old Ruler tried to leave. The baseline logic here was likely that, since The Forgotten and The Old Ruler are connected, The Old Ruler thought that if they left Dreamlight Valley, they would, by default, take The Forgotten with them.

The problem, however, is that it seems that, if The Forgotten was more dependent on The Old Ruler prior to The Forgetting, they became much more independent by the time The Forgetting happened. This probably means that The Forgotten does indeed have its own consciousness, despite supposedly coming into being as a manifestation of negative emotion.

Now obviously, I don’t have all the information. Like, I seriously started Dreamlight Valley on Xbox, and I’m replaying it on Switch. On neither console did I ever reach The Forgotten Realm. My assumption here is that once I do, I’ll have a lot more to work with in terms of lore surrounding The Old Ruler, The Forgotten, and their connection to each other.

But for now, since on Switch I only have The Plaza, Peaceful Meadow, and Dazzle Beach, this is as far as my theory can go with the knowledge I have.

Once I unlock other regions (and subsequently more lore), I hope to revisit this theory and come up with a part 2, where I add more thoughts, proposals, and possibly tweak any assumptions I feel may have been disproven by the lore.

I hope you all enjoyed my theory and analysis on the connection between The Old Ruler and The Forgotten in Dreamlight Valley.

And hey, if you enjoyed my little theory, check out my blog for future theories and thoughts (and maybe even analyses).

Until next time,

~Nib

[carewyncromwell]

“What would I give to live where you are? What would I pay to stay here beside you? What would I do to see you smiling at me...?”

~“Part of Your World (reprise) from The Little Mermaid

x~x~x~x

Carewyn turned back to Jacob. “But how did you survive? Grandfather said Rakepick shot you in the back and threw you overboard…”

Jacob gave her a sheepish smile. “Honestly? I have no idea. All I remember is something carrying me through the water – and after that, waking up on the beach. Who knows? Maybe a mermaid saved me.”

Ashe gave a very loud, almost offended huff. “Mermaid? And here I thought you remembered who it was that really saved your life, by lugging you out of the water onto the beach?”

Jacob grinned almost cheekily. “Oh, come off it, Ashe, I already said it was thanks to you that I’m alive, didn’t I?”

“May you always remember that,” said Ashe very dryly.

~POTC AU, Act I / Part 8: Black Jack Roberts

x~x~x~x

Ahhhh, my precious Jacashe!! In all universes, I love you both so! 🥰

But yeah, this is Jacob Cromwell and Duncan Ashe in the Pirates of the Caribbean AU I did a long while back. Ashe is a merman much akin to the sorts you might recall from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (read some of my lore for Ashe’s species here), in the sense that he’s less friendly and much less human in appearance while swimming in or exposed to the water. As explained in better detail here, Ashe developed an attachment to Jacob (or “Jack” as he solely calls him in this AU) from afar, only for him to save Jacob’s life when he’s shot in the back by Patricia Rakepick and thrown overboard his ship into the sea. So that’s what I drew here -- Ashe still wet enough with ocean water to look like his real, less human-ish self, checking on “his human” now that he’s dragged him to safety on the beach. 

My musical accompaniment while working on this included this fabulous Bass cover of Hoist the Colors from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, as well as Ashley Serena’s version of The Song of the Sea and this variation of Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair by Peter Hollens and Avi Kaplan. And obviously this art was heavily inspired by that one certain scene from The Little Mermaid, visuals wise. 💚

Hope you all have a lovely night! Much love!! xoxo 🌊

[xxlordalexanderxx]

i love your muse for so many reasons. first of all because you are non-apologetic about how you write him. which i find every mun should do. toning down villains for the sake of a minority of people who just can't stand the fact that villains greatly contribute to a story, is what i have gotten very tired of and i am glad more people finally start to just embrace writing muses of all kinds without feeling bad about it.

alexander is a monster of a guy in every sense of the word. i love his height compared to jafar - it make me laugh. your art of him is simply mindblowingly fantastic and i am in awe to say the least. i adore your interaction with hannah. the contrast of beast and child - this is the shit i live for. i wish i could write something similar with jafar but sadly he is too sociopathic to care about kids. so i get my share of it absorbing y'alls threads every time they pop up on my dash. (so this is also a finger guns at hannah mun for writing an amazingly well created oc!!!)

i like how jafar and alexander interacted so far and i hope that despite their differences they can maybe become friends. maybe alex is gonna just know that jafar is this special snowflake he needn't really take too serious because at the end of the day we both know who's whose bitch if things got out of hand. ok. before i write a novel just know that you are amazing and your character too. i am glad we met and i hope we stay mutuals for a long time!

Oh man, I’m blushing, thank you so much for this kind message.💖 I feel the same way honestly. We need more people to go ham with their villains and just have fun. I mean sure, at the end of the day we all can agree that certain things need to be omitted like the really bad shit [if you know you know] but other than that villains shouldn’t be watered down because that defeats the purpose. But it’s also okay to explore other avenues within reason and depending on the muse.

I would love for Alexander and Jafar to be pals, they may get on each other’s nerves but at the end of the day they can find something they can agree on I feel. I also wouldn’t mind Jafar using that staff on him because that would be hilarious. Making him go completely feral or something for his own use. I don’t mind that kind of god-modding as long as I know of it and I get to have fun, I’d make a special exception for that because let’s face it that’s one Jafar’s special quirks and it would be interesting to see what would happen.

I was very intimidated by you at first, but I’m glad I hit the follow button anyway because I enjoy their banters and writing with you when I get the chance too. And likewise, you’re one of my favorite mutuals and it’s always a joy seeing you on my dash, esp when you post silly things like Merlin talking shit to Jafar. I find those way funnier than what they are meant to be. And your art is rad too, the first piece I saw I thought it was like, official concept art or something or a screen-shot.

Thank you so much, firendo.

And shoutout to @hannah-the-small mun for having fantastic characters with amazing lore. It's no wonder Alexander wants to adopt Hannah and James. :3c

[gardensandtaverns]

Dev Journal: Day 2

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised to see some attention already on my post yesterday, and it makes me happy to see some people who are already interested. So I’ll start by saying thanks for the support!

Before I go over the developments of today, I guess it’s worth saying exactly how much time is going into this daily. My routine is getting to my desk at 9am, teaching myself Unity and C# through to about 1:30pm, taking about 40 minutes for lunch, and then Creation Kit from the end of my lunch to about 5pm, maybe 6pm on days that I don’t have anything going on in the evenings. Once I’m done with the Creation kit work for the day, I write, so that I can take screencaps without needing to restart my work environment from earlier that day.

So with about 3 hours of work today, what got done? The full structure is built! There’s no glaring holes into the void, though I did notice that a couple of my tiles are placed a few pixels into another, causing some graphical twitching, but that’s okay, and it’ll get fixed tomorrow while I go about furnishing. I also took the time to place a couple of detail items around, but honestly my brain is fried at this point so I’ll probably go back and do it again later. The only negative result from today is that the two-tier library isn’t going to work with the existing textures, but that’s alright.

So what am I going to show you today? Well... everything. All of the rooms in their minimal state, and maybe I’ll write a brief blurb on the context of each of them and changes I noted to make for myself as I was walking around in demo mode. If you ride it out to the end, there’s a little bit of Skyrim trivia for you too!

The scriptorium will be the main vestibule of this construction. In its finished product, the center of the room will be filled with bookshelves in a classic record-stack format, while desks will line the walls for scribes and researchers alike to study, transcribe, and dispute the works contained in the Vault’s extensive library. While this place has long fallen into disrepair, more magical works like spell tomes, scrolls, or books of particularly important and interesting lore may still litter the desks and shelves of this room. I need to reorient a handful of tiles in this room to remove a couple overlaps, but otherwise it just needs to be detailed.

The laboratory may be a small space, but it was designed that way so the use of the space for long-term experiments was discouraged. The vault was not built to accommodate travelers for weeks on end, but to house them for a few days while they performed their research to take home to their own labs. Of course, some of the librarians held private experiments and studies that were more involved and time-consuming.

Opposite the lab are a handful of quiet cells, used by guests for sleeping accommodations or personal study. The northwestern cell is a communal bedchamber for the librarians, as well as a small section of the room used for the repair of degrading or damaged tomes. During my walkthrough I felt as though the guest cells, and perhaps even the resident cell, were a bit too large, so I may use different closing tiles for the far walls tomorrow before I start furnishing, or make the decision after I’ve furnished one. Also all of these cells still need doors.

This shot is taken from the opposite side of the Special Collections door, where few individuals were permitted. The entrance is off down the left fork of the hall, and to our back will be a reading area for these reserved or restricted titles. Down the corridor lies one more chamber where the head scribe was conducting some interesting research into... well, now, I can’t give everything away, can I?

I suppose that covers everything for today! Tomorrow likely won’t be as long-winded, nor have so many pictures, but I hope you’ll continue to enjoy it regardless. Now, I made a promise of trivia. It’s something I learned today while testing.

Did you know that the standard character in Skyrim, if you were to travel to another map location via the coc command from the main menu instead of loading/beginning a save, is a Nord with iron armor, an iron shield, the iron one-handed weapons, a longbow, and iron arrows - much like the promotional character from the trailers all those years ago? It also means those pesky Imperials took the armor off your back when you got caught up in that ambush. Just another reason to side with the Stormcloaks, I guess.

[moon--toon]

Been a while, huh?

So... a lot has happened since my last “update post.” I got a new full-time job that leaves little free time for me to relax, my laptop’s hard drive crashed and I lost all my writing progress, and to the people who read my BatIM fics: I’ve just kinda... lost interest in Bendy in general, to be honest. I thought that maybe once the new game released, my interest would be sparked again, but I guess for me, It’s too little too late.

Basically, this is me saying that all my ongoing fics will have very few updates, if any at all.

Under the cut is a bit more in-depth summaries of my thoughts on each fic I haven’t finished yet, plus a bit more info regarding requests and such. Besides all that, I do hope to post a few more one-shots between fic updates (specifically pokemon fics because I have fallen deep into that game), but given how little free time I have and with the holidays right around the corner, even short fics like these will be sparse.

Lost to Time: I’ve mentioned briefly above that I’ve lost interest in Bendy, and I honestly think it really shows in my writing. I went and re-read my fic from the start, and I think my boredom with writing Bendy really shows in the later chapters, which isn’t fair for you, the readers. You deserve better than short, “post it for the sake of posting” chapters. I still want to finish this fic though, so I’ll update it when I can. It’s just that chapters may take anywhere from months to years, due to my lack of interest or motivation.

Into Shadows: I mentioned before that this work was always a “back burner” project, and that still stands. Especially now that I haven’t played DS or DST in a long while, apparently they completely changed the farming mechanics? Needless to say, I’m very behind on canonical lore and content, which isn’t something I wanted to happen, because I was hoping I could weave the canon in with my own personal ideas. Chapters for this one will likely take a year or more, and there will be a lot more canon-divergence than initially planned.

Half Moon: This one... hoo boy, this one sure was me biting off more than I could chew. If I remember my now-deleted notes correctly, the Main Character wasn’t meant to actually meet Aaravos until many chapters in. I had several chapters planned that would better flesh out our MC’s life, and what I thought it would be like living among humans as a half-elf. This is the one I lost a LOT of progress for, and it’s definitely gonna take a lot of time to work back to where I was. On top of that, I’d also like to wait for more seasons of The Dragon Prince to drop so I get a better understanding of everyone’s characters and how they’ll develop in the show, and how things would change given the events I have planned for this fic. Updates will most likely take years, unfortunately.

I’ll also be deleting all requests I have in my inbox still - if you sent one and I didn’t get to it, I’m sorry, but I just don’t have the time nor energy for requests, nor do I have any plans to open requests again in the near future.

Sorry to everyone who was expecting more from me - honestly, I was too, but this past year was a lot harder on me than I’d hoped. But I’d like to thank everyone who stuck around, because it really means a lot more to me than you’d think, and you’re all why I haven’t just completely thrown in the towel just yet. I still have every single comment and compliment in my inbox that I’ve gotten over the years, and I don’t plan on deleting those. Seeing them really helped motivate me to keep working on the projects I love instead of giving up, and I hope that I’ll be able to write more works worthy of your praise :]

Anyway, you probably won’t see a lot of me for some time after this. I’ll try and write more now that I have a new laptop, but I unfortunately can’t make any promises. Wishing you all the best, though!

[lananiscorner]

A long overdue update regarding my WIPs

So, those of you who have been following my writing probably noticed that I haven’t actually updated anything since... *checks AO3* May 4th. Ouch. I wanted to give everyone an update on why, and where we’re (hopefully) going from here.

First of all, I want to apologize to everyone who has been waiting for updates for months, especially readers of Conversations of a Lion Prince, where I actually tried to keep a consistent schedule (one chapter every Monday night/Thursday morning). I have always been wary of posting unfinished multi-chapter WIPs on AO3 for this exact reason. No-one should have to wait this long between chapters. Truly sorry.

I think what really ruined my writing drive for FE3H fics in particular (both the WIPs I actually have published on AO3 and the ones I haven’t put up yet) is the Warriors game. I haven’t played it, but just its mere existence is enough, and with every bit I learned about it, some more of my writing drive died, mostly because of how my writing/world-building works: I try to stick to canon as closely as possible + I try to keep all my stories within a single franchise somewhat consistent, so that it feels like all of them happened in a single universe, in a single playthrough, if you will. Readers of my Batfam stories know what I mean--I actually organized most of my Arkham Batfam stories into a series for that reason.

So for a new spin-off game to come in with new lore and such, some of which is almost guaranteed to go against the lore I headcanoned based on FE3H canon, to fill in the blanks left by that game, kind of makes my brain go “great--now all the stuff you wrote is invalid, because what *actually* happens in the lore as *actually* shown in the spin-off game is [insert thing that does not match up with what I wrote]”. And I know that’s a ridiculous way to think about it, because fanfiction is explicitly a place for exploring headcanons and different interpretations, but this is just how my brain works. Nothing kills my motivation faster than a spin-off game that invalidates (part of) what I already wrote (which is the same reason why I haven’t updated any of my Darksiders fics in many, many months, and likely won’t until Darksiders Week later this year).

So where does that leave me (and you, my readers) now? Well, I have deliberately kept up with what happens in the lore/storyline of Hopes, because spoilers are inevitable and if I am going to be spoiled, at least I get spoiled on my own terms.  I must be one of the 4 people in the world who are actually HAPPY that the lore in there contradicts FE3H in places, because that’s making it easier for my brain to write off Hopes as “not stuff that we need to be canon-compliant with in our own writing”. That said, I have deliberately avoided almost all of the supports content, because if 3 Hopes has Dimitri supports with people he can’t support in 3 Houses, then I don’t want to see them AT LEAST until I have finished Conversations of the Lion Prince.

So... here’s the new plan:

I’m gonna try to tackle my WIPs one at a time, starting with A Ghost Here Amongst The Living. This one was never supposed to be multi-chapter and only became so because I was 6k words in, with no end in sight, at something like 5 am and I wanted to get at least something out in time for Dimitri’s birthday. Terrible scheduling choice on my part. I will try to get this one done before I get spoiled on the details of how the Lions support Dimitri in Azure Gleam, because the entire point of AGHATL is “how the Lions support Dimitri, and not just Byleth, in the aftermath of Gronder”.

Next up on that WIP list are going to be two unpublished one-shots that I started when playing SS/CF (one where Byleth suffers the logical consequences of losing their powers post CF and one where Byleth decides to take a third option inside the Holy Tomb). These two are actually very dear to my heart, because I started them literally after finishing those very scenes in the game because my brain was just like “we HAVE TO write this”.

After that, I will return to Conversations of the Lion Prince. I started and re-wrote the Bernadetta chapter at least 5 times by now, because on one hand I would like to break from the pattern of “someone does something innocuous > Bernadetta panics > misunderstanding gets cleared up > Bernadetta still panics”, which is so prevalent in her canon supports and which I personally find very, very annoying, but on the other hand... that pretty much IS her character, so not doing it feels like I’m not writing her correctly, and I hate it. This one is a chore to write, ngl.

Finally, I recently got gifted Steam keys for the original versions of Darksiders 1 and 2 (which are no longer available for sale on the Steam store), so I’ll be replaying those two games and aiming to finish 5 Times Mayhem Turned White while playing those.

Once those stories are done, I’ll take stock of what’s still left to do and see where we go from there. I won’t make any promises as to when any of those chapters will be published, as that’s just setting myself up for failure, but I’m hoping to get at least AGHATL finished this month.

Thank you all for your patience! May your own muses be kind and your brains be more co-operative than mine!

[tzimiscecore]

Here is some completely unsolicited advice on filling out a character sheet for VtM and VtR games. I realize this may be applicable to other similar RPGs, but since these are the ones I’m more familiar with, I’ll stick to that.

I hope this is helpful for a situation in which the ST wants to get a chronicle started, or wants to run a one-shot but wants to let the players create their own characters. Sometimes you may notice the player is having a hard time deciding how to distribute the dots on the sheets, which may indeed be time-consuming, a potential "wall of awful” (and as ND, I’d say sometimes very annoying if you don’t have time to read through the book) that may end your game before it even starts.

First: someone could transform simple questions in a quiz that outputs a semi-ready sheet. While this isn’t out there yet, there are some apps that make filling out quicker and easier (like this one that includes even name generators) and there are interactive character sheets with PDF scripting (like MrGone’s and Nerdbert’s). (btw here are more name generators if this is the block)

I am assuming a completely novice player, meaning they never read the long description sections in the corebook but want to play without necessarily diving into a 200+ pages “introductory reading” task (the lore will probably lure them in later though).

Some storytellers say letting the players “suffer” through this is healthy because it “weeds out uncommitted people”. I say this is a game, not a startup; it takes a village. While everyone wants good players, and often those are the ones that read the book, we probably don’t want to lose them because they don’t have time to read the entire thing.

Approach 1: Use one of the character templates that are provided in core books. This is the easiest, quickest, and applies to most versions. There are a few character sheets with the dots already distributed, and all. You should check with the storyteller if that fits the player profile they need though (because they may have decided about the “age” your character can be, which impacts how powerful/resourceful you can be). Then you can go and edit the template to your taste/concept.

Approach 2: This is the most “story-driven” one, and fits better if you want to leave most of the details up to whatever happens in the story (I won’t say it’s random because it isn’t), also referred to as “normal” method, usually summarized like this in reference sheets. This is also what most character creation tutorials on YouTube will do.

You come up with a concept of a person to begin with, describe who they were while mortals. You may have a good idea of which style of character you want - if they are to be known for physical abilities (strength, dexterity, stamina), social abilities (charisma, manipulation, appearance, composure), or mental abilities (intelligence, wits, resolve). Based on this preference and on the life story you came up with, the storyteller may help you distribute the dots in skills/abilities. They may also help you pick a clan (or better, be picked by one) based on your profile. So, basically, the strategy that is described in the book: concept and character story come first and determine clan, sect/covenant, how many dots you will have in each trait, if any, background etc. Personally, I think unless this sheet is being done while narrating, it takes too long and is a pain for the player.

Approach 3: Fix the mechanical part first. This is a more strategy-driven approach, to try and avoid future frustration. I want to detail this one better here because I couldn’t find this information around. (I am pretty sure I saw some of this on reddit a long time ago; for example this one). Anyway here is the link for the reference numbers again, for comparison.

- You can pick your clan first, based on the “archetype” you want to play. At least that, you need to read. Do you want to be the pretty one, the scary one, the bossy one, the nerd one, the visionary one who nobody understands, the angry one, the shady one? Do you want to be closer to human society or something completely out of it? For this part, there are even some personality tests, like here , here and here.

- Alternatively, decide what sorts of “powers” you would like to have. Do you want to be fast, or strong, or play with their minds, or become a bat, ...? Look up how they are called as “disciplines” and pick your clan based on that (there are reference guides in the books, but also here and here for example). Either way, each clan will usually give you 3 options for disciplines, and you can check which ones they are in their clan descriptions. Discipline choices are not necessarily a “closed deal” once the clan is chosen, because depending on several things you may want an uncharacteristic (”out of clan”) discipline, but for the sake of keeping things simple, it’s better to start with the “regular” until you are familiar with the clans, and all, see why below.

- Find out where are your priorities to put the traits dots in your sheet (the attributes and skills/abilitites). In approach #2, you would be filling those out kind of more based on how you think your character was as a mortal. Here, you backfill that into the story so that your powers can actually be used. :/ You will likely have a small amount of dots anyway, so why make things more difficult. To do this go back to the descriptions of the disciplines and see what rolls (dice pool) the power/level of each needs when it’s used, and mark them. Those will be the attributes and skills you want to put at least some dots in later.

Not every power will require dice rolls, but still. For example, in v5, suppose you want to have Animalism (basically talk to animals and the like), level 1, to interact with a ghouled animal. That may require Charisma + Animal Ken (meaning it would be frustrating if you had no dots in animal ken, out of all the available skills). For a level 2 power, “feral whispers” would require Manipulation + Animalism, or Charisma + Animalism (so now you know you know besides the 2 dots in animalism, you need to have decent dots in manipulation or charisma). So you mark them to prioritize them when distributing your dots.

- The same applies to whichever predator type you pick (V5), because there is a dice pool for each style of “hunting”. So pick the style, and mark which attributes/skills you need to not suck at feeding yourself.

- Now you go back to fill out your attributes and skills/abilities according to the instructions in the book (the amount of dots to distribute differs, for example 7/5/3 or 5/4/3 across attributes, this will be in the book). You will likely have a good idea about what you want for your character, on whether you want to be more physical, social, or mentally erm, talented. If it’s for VtR, you may already know which attributes are favored based on your clan so it’s decided for you. However, the things to keep in mind: there are trackers that depend on those dots, so it is in your best interest to not have them too low. For example, willpower (the sum of dots in Resolve + Composure), health (Stamina+3, or Size+Stamina+Resilience), humanity (in v20, you need to balance 7 dots among Conscience + Self-Control and Courage; the latter will determine your willpower and the sum of the other two, your humanity).

- You probably don’t want to be completely zeroed out in brawl, athletics and some sort of weapon.

TL;DR: decide your powers first, so that you know where your priorities are for putting your dots, and know what will you suck at (there is no way to not suck at something). After that you can go crazy creating your story and distribute freebie points, xp and so on.