As I slowly create a moon fanfic for myself, I decide upon that Marc and Steven moved out and get new apartment, one where has a garage area. They go check it out, despite them not having license, but to their surprise they get handed two keys. One for white limo and one for black cab. I wonder who those cars belong too?
Something I've been thinking about over the past week is that Rachel's expectation over whose death would fuck Jake up the hardest vs. whose death actually fucked Jake up the hardest wasn't right, and how that says so much about their characters and how it also hurts really badly.
Now, don't get me wrong: I'm not saying that Jake wasn't affected by losing Tom, because he very obviously was. Tom was his entire reason for joining the war in the first place and part of him held onto hope until the end that Tom could still be saved. And I'm also not saying that Rachel didn't think Jake didn't care about her at all, because that's not true either. She knows Jake does, but that he's doing what he has to do.
But when you think back to the conversation they have when Jake gives her the assignment, and he tells her that he won't have a way out for her, Rachel's concern for him isn't how her death would affect him, but Tom's. "It won't just be the yeerk. It'll be Tom." And while she acknowledges that of course Jake doesn't want her to die in her opening narration in book #54 and is making this call because he has to, at the same time there isn't a sense that Rachel thinks her death is going to be the one to hit him hardest here. It's Tom's, she's sure of it. Emotionally, Jake could afford to lose her, but Tom? That one gives her pause.
But one year after the war . . . again, Jake does still mourn Tom, obviously. He carries the guilt and grief of everything. But one of the strongest images of #54 that has always stuck with me is Jake sitting at Rachel's grave for several hours at a time, after hours, with regularity. It sticks out to me because you know Tom must have had a grave or memorial as well, I'm sure Jake's parents would've had one set up, but in all of Marco's stalking he doesn't see Jake sit and visit with it. Jake doesn't visit Tom. He visits Rachel.
And it just, to me, speaks to a complete subversion of Rachel's expectations, which were predicated on her own perception of how the rest of the team saw her. They "loved [her] in their way" but she was also a monster, blood thirsty, the garbage disposal, the one to do the dirty work. And she was as fine with that as she wasn't. (It was the biggest point of inner conflict for her—the war between her fear and her need to appear brave, her need to protect her friends from the gruesome vs her revulsion at what her actions said and made her out to be, etc.) Jake cared, sure, but also he saw her as a blood knight who might as well die in battle because that was her role, that was what SHE did, better her than anyone else on the team. Jake knew that, it would help him recover from his correct choice, far more than he could ever recover from losing Tom, who—unlike Rachel—was wholly innocent.
But Jake didn't recover. Because yes, he loved Tom and Tom was a wholly innocent victim from day one. And Rachel was overtly aggressive, and reckless, and part of her scared him, as much for her as anything else. But also, he talked to and fought and bled beside her for three traumatizing, agonizing years. They saw the best and worst of each other. Jake left her in charge when he had to leave on that trip. They talked about leadership after, about hard choices, understood each other on a level that would lead to that final choice in the last battle. Rachel couldn't see it because she couldn't see her value in the team as anything other than the brute and garbage disposal, but she WAS more than that, to Jake. She meant so much more to him than that, and it hurts so bad that she didn't realize it.
I know the decision to have Julian's parents have him augmented was made on the fly but imo its pretty obvious from early on that Julian has Family Issues because he avoids talking about his family like the plague and I think they should've incorporated this into the Julian and Sisko dynamic right from early on because I think it would've made for some really compelling stories and moments and could've set up a REALLY interesting Julian and Jake dynamic which they kinda started to do but never fully went for
Guess what. I'm joining the rest of y'all in the angst train. And the ship itself. I like it. I guess I have a preference in dynamics. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
[...] He presses a quick peck to her lips before crouching down until he’s level with her stomach. He leans forward and peppers kisses around her belly button, rubbing soothing circles against the extended skin with his hands.
“And I missed you too, littlest one,” he whispers.
“I wanna give the baby a kiss too!” Neteyam says, crowding against Jake to leave his own kiss on the curve of Neytiri’s belly.
Jake laughs and scoots over, making room for the baby's big brother to show his love.
Kiri shifts and leans into Neytiri’s side, causing Neytiri to wrap an arm around their daughter. Kiri places a hand on her mother’s belly and pats it gently as if reassuring the baby that she’s there and ready to be the best big sister possible.
Lo’ak pushes himself under Jake’s arm and curls into his side – his little arms tight around Jake’s neck. He doesn’t offer to kiss or touch Neytiri’s belly. Out of all the kids, he’s the one struggling with the idea of a new sibling the most.
Jake thinks it’s just because Lo’ak has been the baby for as long as he can remember and is afraid of his place in the family being usurped. Jake hopes that once the baby is born, Lo’ak will realize that he isn’t being replaced and grow to love his new sibling. [...]
-Chaos Theory by WriterInWhite
this scene was just sooooooooo cute, I had to draw it!! 😭 this is the kind of fic we need more of plz fandom im begging
I can now recreate most of chapter 8!!! / bonus features below the cut / follow for more cool stuff
Jin Ling's sprites:
His share code is MVDLXY :)
Congrats, Jin Ling! You have 3 different poses, showing three different levels of irritation, making you the most complex character so far.
His sprites were traced off of Cody Hackins from 1-2. His little puffed-cheek sprite screamed Jin Ling.
(NASA announcer voice) Aaaand we have soundtrack. I thought Luke Atmey's and Furio Tigre's themes both suited Jin Ling pretty well. Other contenders before I decided on Moderato 2004 were Allegro 2002 and Investigation - Middle 2002.
Will take a break from these for Art Fight probably but they have been sooo fun to make. Plus I get to show off my objection.lol skills outside of stupid discord arguments.
Jiang Cheng's sprites & Nie Huaisang's sprites / masterpost
I've got this image of Dad!Tsu’tey from my Father-son-shenanigans AU turning up in ATWOW during the aftermath of the SeaDragon, specifically on that one rock. And he has no idea how he ended up there, but whilst Jake and Neytiri are quaking at the sudden appearance of their dead friend (visibly aged from the joys of fatherhood), Spider pops out of the ocean.
Naturally, Tsu'tey only has eyes for his son, and immediately gets launched head first into Protective!Dad mode at the state of him. He looks like a drowned rat, has several sluggishly bleeding cuts along his body, his stripes are faded more than his Spider ever allows. Not to mention, his dreads are matted at the scalp and are in desperate need of a retwist. But most alarming of all, none of his other family members (The Sully's) seem to remember to check on him in their shock of discovering Tsu'tey's presence.
Since no one else seems to be bothering, Tsu'tey helps Spider out of the water, noting the shock on the boy's face as he hesitantly takes Tsu'tey's outstretched hand.
<"Are you okay?"> Tsu'tey asks, as he has done for countless years. And horrifyingly, instead of Spider replying with "yes Dad," or "no Dad" Tsu'tey gets a-
<"Yes sir.">
Spider has never referred to Tsu'tey as 'sir' before. It's either 'Olo'eyktan' when he's in a mood and wants to get under Tsu'tey's skin, or 'Dad'.
<"Sir?"> Tsu'tey repeats with a curl of his nose. <"Who the hell is sir? I am Dad to you. I have always been Dad to you.">
And of course, Tsu'tey is dead in this universe, and Spider has no clue who this strange forest na'vi is. Not to mention he's had a very long and emotional day surrounding another father figure.
<"Dude, I have no idea who you are.">
Cue:
Tsu'tey from my Dad!Tsu'tey AU looking at Spider in our ATWOW: "Watch out kid because you're about to get the strongest and most stable support system any clan has ever seen."
BONUS:
If Spider were to admit to Tsu'tey that Quaritch is alive (he's only known the man for an hour but Eywa does he trust him to keep Neytiri from mauling him):
Side Note: Tsu'tey has it all under control, and now has recruited Neytiri to go hunt down that dead beat dad.
for something as trivial and simple those feelings sure are hard to get rid of
also made a gif a version for fun + alt version with no tears under the cut
the gif is in very low resolution...this is a feature (i could make it bigger but that would require saving each frame individually and than glueing it all together. also i feel like low resolution suits it better. aesthetically and fits the mood)
the trinyvale triplets are horrible because it's like okay. here's a pastel goth woman with a hot accent and an mpreg pet unicorn from the moon. here's a male stripper in a maid's outfit and high heels, gay and literally engaged with a prince. here's a well-meaning himbo with a mullet who's never heard of the concept of a shirt. they would ALL blue hair and pronouns you
You said you box is always open XD so here I come, bearing, perhaps, inspiration. Because you (or sunmontue cannot remember and am too lazy to look it up) mentioned tongue piercings all I’ve been thinking of the last 12 hours is Piercer!Bradley with like a bunch of tattoos in a grungy tank (you know the baggy kind with the homemade no sleeve look?) piercing Jake’s tongue. Like Jake at stomach level, looking up at Bradley with his tongue out, the little pincher thing holding it in place. Idk. Just been swimmin in the brain. Please feel free to ignore me XD - Alex ❤️
Alex you have a wonderful wonderful brain😤😤😤 i will probably still sketch jake getting his tongue pierced but for now plez have a hastily drawn piercer! bradley <3