#love that neither of their stories end well for the other. oops.

[hylfystt]

letting you pretend if you can tell me more about greer and kostas?? 👀👀👀👀

hehe thank you pau!! <3

greer and kostas met when she still lived in the city, about a year or so before her father falls ill and dies and she leaves baldur's gate to take care of her mom. they're both taken with each other instantly tbh!! she likes his kind heart and sincere charm and he likes her easy laugh and boundless compassion. they should have had forever but...they didn't

tbh i think they get to me because it's like..........love that never got to be all that it could have been. being absolutely smitten with each other and long summer days spent in the shade of a tree in the garden, talking and reading and painting and dancing that becomes long winter nights spent in each others arms.

and then death and duty pull them apart. greer's father dies, leaving her mother distressed and no longer able to stand the confines of the city. greer, grieving her own way and not wanting to leave her mom alone, agrees to leave the city and go with her to the enclave her mom was raised in. kostas has his life and love for the city that she can't ask him to leave -- wouldn't ask him to leave -- so she ends things. (but i think, in her heart, she doesn't believe it's really the end. she'll be away a few years, just enough to see her mother settled and set on the path towards healing. she won't begrudge him if he doesn't wait, of course, but maybe...just maybe.....)

and then he dies. she finds out he's been injured by letter and by the time she gets to baldur's gate it's too late. he's already gone. so she leaves the city, for good this time she thinks, and spends the next century under the blessing of silvanus.

but in another life, one where they're both born many summers later, he doesn't die. and they do meet again. she travels to the city often and he always opens his door and his arms to her when she returns. young love grows into a ring in his pocket and a future ripe with possibilities and...and the vision of her body cold and lifeless and mangled. and happiness falls away to grief. "we're so sorry, guardsman. but there's nothing we can do." grief, and then fury. what's the point of the watch if they can't help people, if people like greer, good and honest and innocent, keep losing their lives in horrific and mysterious killings? it isn't right. it isn't fair. why her?

love turns to grief and fury and an oath.

[cowgurrrl]

Layla

Pairing: rockstar!joel miller x actress!reader

Author’s note: oops (fic named after this song)

Summary: Nothing good ever happens on an LA road [2.3k]

Warnings: NOTHING SUPER GORY, car crash, injuries, hospital setting, found family but make it angsty

When you first moved to LA, you and Ryan would drive around for hours, just talking and taking in the sights. Normally, you'd end up sitting somewhere and gossiping about this actor or that producer for hours. But, with each of your busy schedules, it's a little harder to find time to just be friends instead of coworkers. That's why when you both had a free day, you decided to drive around and update him on everything that's been going on. You tell him about the auditions you have lined up, the reshoot schedule, and even what happened during and after New York.

"You met his kids?!" Ryan half-yells in your ear, and you smile as you turn on your blinker to get off the freeway. "That's huge! Did they like you? How old are they? What are their names? Do they want to be friends with Elizabeth?" 

"Sarah is eighteen, and Ellie is fourteen, so I don't think they'll be particularly interested in hanging out with your toddler." You say, and he feigns disappointment before sitting up again, suddenly giddy.

"But they liked you?"

"I think so. They invited me to their family movie night on Friday."

"They as in the girls?"

"We're in a group chat. Ellie's idea, not mine." 

"No shit?" He asks, and you nod. You stop at a red light and turn in the driver's seat to look at him. You can't help the big smile or how it grows when Ryan looks at you all excitedly. "Is Joel just head over heels in love with you now that his daughters like you?" You scoff and roll your eyes.

"It's only been a few months. He's not in love with me."

"I knew I was gonna marry Carolina on our third date."

"Well, that's because you guys are crazy."

"And you think you and Joel are sane?" He has a point, but you'd never tell him he's right. "But, seriously. Do you see yourself being with him for a while?" He asks, and you turn your head to watch the red light turn green.

Before you got to know him, before you went to New York, before he introduced you to his family, you would've said no. You would've made up some lie about how it's just for now, and neither of you is really looking for anything serious. But now he's inviting you over for movie nights and late-night studio sessions like this is how it's always been, and you like it. You like being a part of his life and having him in yours. You just don't know what that means for the future.

"We're just… having fun. I'm not worrying about the future for once in my life. Can you please let me have that?" You sigh, and Ryan throws up his hands from the passenger seat.

"Fine, but I will say one more thing before we drop it," he says, looking at you sincerely. "You seem really happy. Like the happiest I've ever seen you. So, I'm Team Joel, as long as you are. I'll make t-shirts and cheer you guys on, and when the time comes, I'll even officiate the wedding."

"I don't know about the wedding part, but t-shirts would actually be hilarious," you laugh, even though the genuineness in his voice makes you want to cry. You reach over and squeeze his hand. "Thank you, Ryan."

"You're welcome," he squeezes you back. "Now that we're done talking about your love life, can I tell you what Elizabeth said the other day?"

"I wish you would." You say as the light turns green and cars slowly begin moving. Ryan begins spinning an elaborate story about how Carolina's dad was visiting last week, and they were playing in the playroom. You swear you're listening, but traffic is backing up in your lane, and you're desperately trying to get over. Thankfully, someone lets you in, and you can finally go the speed limit for once. Ryan is laughing at his story, and you're tuned back in when he gets cut off by metal crunching.

You don't know exactly what happened after that. You think you saw a black— no, a blue— car sputtering away after hitting you. Your ears ring, and your vision blurs as you struggle to breathe. It feels like someone is squeezing your lungs like a stress ball. Pricks of pain erupt across your face and thighs as your eyes flutter shut. Your head weighs a million pounds, and all you want to do is sleep, but then you hear groaning, and you suddenly remember Ryan.

Something takes over as you look at him, glass and blood all over his body. You unbuckle your seatbelt and get out of the car on shaky legs to run to his side, the side hit by the speeding car. The door is partially dented in, but you're able to open it and see his chest rising and falling. You curse under your breath as you apply pressure to the gnarly-looking cut on his head. He jerks under your touch, and you shush him gently. Distantly, you hear sirens and pray that they're for you.

"Hey. Hey, you're okay. You're fine. We're okay," you say. His eyes open halfway before dropping down again. "No, no, no. Hey, you gotta stay awake for me, okay? You gotta finish telling me your story about Bethy. What did she say? You didn't tell me." 

"Are you okay? We called 911, and..." a kind voice approaches, making you jump. You turn to look at her and watch a flicker of recognition pass over her. "Holy shit, you're-"

"He needs help," you cut her off. "Please, can you help him? I... I don't know what to do. The c...car came out of nowhere, and he..." The asphalt sways under you, and she quickly reaches out to grab your elbow. You shake your head and grip the mangled door for balance. It's then that you realize that your car is stopped in the middle of the intersection, with broken glass and car parts littering the road. You also realize that bystanders surround you, their beady camera lenses pointed at you. A shudder runs down your spine despite the California heat, and something in your side twinges in pain.

"You need to be sitting down." The woman tries to pull you away from Ryan, but you rip your arm away from her. You position your body between his and the cameras, bending over him to protect his bloody face.

"No. No, 'm fine. Need to be with him." 

"Honey,"

"I said no!" You yell as an ambulance squeals to a stop nearby, and paramedics rush out. 

"Are you hurt?" A paramedic asks, medical gear slung over her shoulder as she approaches.

"I think he hit his head. I don't... know. He's bleeding." You say, and the paramedic nods. You think she says something to the kind woman about shock, but you can't hear over all the blood. It's on your hands, your clothes, and in your hair. The dark red is suffocating you, and all you can do is watch.

Ringing takes over your senses as they cut Ryan out of his seat and put him on a stretcher. You repeat Carolina's phone number over and over again. You tell them his blood type, the dosage of his anti-depressants, and his bad knee. The left one. The left one gives him the most trouble. The left one pops when he stands too fast or walks upstairs. He needs surgery, but he won't get it. You tell them he's a father. You tell them that there are people who need him a lot more than they need you. Your legs give out as soon as he's loaded into the ambulance and sent away with shrieking sirens. Someone catches you before you can hit the pavement, and you can feel yourself shaking.

"Your friend is gonna be okay. We're gonna meet him at the hospital. Is there someone I can call for you? An emergency contact?" A medic asks, and you shake your head.

"That was my emergency contact. I... I don't have anyone else. I don't," your chest heaves with panic when a set of numbers flashes in your head next to Carolina's phone number. You repeat to the medic, and they quickly scribble it down. "His name is Joel."

"And who's he?"

"My partner."

Your body feels heavy when you wake up, like someone tied cinderblocks to your joints and told you to swim. Ringing fills your ears before giving way to a cloud of painful noise, and for a second, you wonder if the car crash was just a dream and when you open your eyes, you'll be back in bed. You'll text Ryan about how weird it was and make plans to hang out later in the day. Except, when you open your eyes, harsh fluorescent lights shine down on you. Your face pulses with an unrelenting throbbing. Pressure explodes across your temples, and you grit your teeth as you try to take a deep breath, but your ribs protest. A gentle squeeze of your hand surprises you, but it doesn't hurt.

"Don't move too fast. Doctors said you'd be sore," Joel says quietly. You slowly turn your head and find him sitting in a chair next to your bed, both of his hands holding one of yours. Tears immediately flood your vision, and your chest aches under the weight of your cries. "What's wrong? Are you in pain?"

"'Ryan. Where's Ryan? Is he okay?" It hurts to talk, and Joel has to move closer to hear you, but once he realizes what you're asking, he kisses your hand.

"Ryan's next door with Carolina. He's got some bumps and bruises like you, but he's gonna be just fine," he says, reaching out to smooth your hair down, and you let out a sigh of relief. "You were the first thing he asked about when he woke up, too."

"Really?" You ask, and he smiles.

"Course. Said he could hear you the whole time, but he couldn't say anythin'. He told me that knowin' you were there made him feel safe." 

"I... I told the paramedics about his knee." You sniffle, and he raises his eyebrows.

"You did?"

"His left one is bad. They needed to know. I had to tell them." 

"You did great," he murmurs, wiping your tears away with gentle thumbstrokes. You take a shaky breath and focus all your strength on squeezing his hand. He smiles and kisses your forehead, his eyes glistening with tears. "You scared me."

"'M sorry. I didn't know who else to call."

"Hey, don't be sorry, okay? You did the right thing tellin' 'em to call me. I was scared because you were hurt."

"What's the damage?" You ask, and he takes a deep breath as his eyes scan your face.

"You've got a concussion and bout seven stitches on the side of your face here," he traces a line over his left eyebrow to show where he's indicating without hurting you. "Three cracked ribs and two broken ones from hittin' the steering wheel, some cuts from the glass, and lots of bumps and bruises." You nod as you listen, taking a mental inventory of everything. He watches you process silently, pressing kisses to your hand, forehead, and cheek whenever he gets the urge. Memories of blood, warped metal, and phone cameras run through your mind, and you swallow thickly.

"People were taking pictures of us after we got hit." You say, and Joel nods.

"I saw 'em."

"Out of all those people, one stopped to help us," your voice cracks. "I thought Ryan was gonna die, and they were fucking taking pictures."

"He didn't. He's safe. You're both safe, and Mel is already workin' on gettin' those pictures taken down, okay?" He says. You just nod and wrap your other hand around Joel's wrist, bringing your joined hands to your chest. You stay like that for a while, listening to the incessant beeping of your heart monitor and Joel's breathing. He doesn't rush you or make you talk anymore. He waits.

It would've been so easy for Joel to not show up. Or to show up, focus only on you, and completely forget about Ryan and Carolina. But he didn't. He knew how much they mean to you. He showed up, and he visited them, and was there when he woke up. He talked to Melanie about getting the photos from the accident taken down. He held your hand and said you did the right thing and didn't flinch when he saw your bruises. I'm Team Joel, as long as you are, echoes in your mind, and you smile.

"Thank you," you mumble as you kiss Joel's hand.

"For what?" He asks, and you shake your head.

"Bein' you."

"You're gettin' sweet on me, pretty girl." 

"Mm, I don't know about that one," you say. "Think people will still wanna cast me with a big ass scar on my forehead?" Joel nods as he leans down to kiss you gently.

"Oh, yeah. 'S sexy." He says against your lips, and you chuckle. 

"Shut up."

"Yes, ma'am," A wave of fatigue hits you as Joel settles in his chair again, and you yawn. "Get some rest. I'm not goin' anywhere." He squeezes your hand again, and you close your eyes, letting the pain meds drag you under again. 

You don't remember what you dreamt about that night in the hospital, but you remember blood washing down the drain. It wouldn't stop. There was so much. You remember thinking the blood on your hands almost looked sparkly as camera shutters reflected in the red. Everything looks prettier on camera, right? 

Right?

[still-with-koo]

2:31 am with Yoongi | MYG

pairing: yoongi x reader

summary: you’re in love with your friend. but he’s moving to another country. is it too late?

wc: ~850

genre/warnings/rating: 15+; friends to lovers; angst; fluff; a few swear words; kissing; sexual innuendos; suggestive themes. the characters in this story are my own and do not reflect on the members of bts or anyone else. this is all made up and just for fun, please don’t take it too seriously!

a/n: this is a repost of a milestone drabble request. i changed some of the story a tiny bit at the end, hope you like it!

You should have told him.

This is the single refrain playing over and over as you sit by your window, staring out into the azure sky sprinkled with glitter, fingers mindlessly dancing along the sill.

Your friend Yoongi had given you the perfect opportunity to confess your feelings. The ones you’ve been holding onto for forever. And now he’s moving to another country and you’ll never see him again.

Ok, that’s a tad dramatic.

You won’t see him for a year.

It played out like a movie earlier this afternoon. Sitting side by side on your front porch, eyes fixed on a spot a few metres ahead, he hesitated before giving you the news. “I’m leaving, Y/N.” And though you couldn’t hear his next few words over the booming in your ears, you did catch one important detail — he was set to fly out the next morning. Technically, this morning.

There was something in the way he said it… or maybe in the way he didn’t… that left an unspoken question flutter between you two. The awkward pauses that followed signalled endless possibilities neither of you were courageous enough to grasp.

You should have told him.

Yoongi has always felt like more than a friend to you. A lot more. And part of you thinks you mean just as much to him. But it’s a delicate balance neither of you are willing to upset, just in case you’re wrong.

But you’re pretty sure you’re not.

You glance at your clock, the red glowing numbers letting you know you should be sleeping right now. 2:31am.

But how can you? Your best friend will be on a flight to the other end of the world in just a few hours and soon he’ll meet many beautiful people that will claw all over him, the sexy foreigner with a quick tongue and an alluring gaze. He’ll meet someone. And that someone won’t be you. He’ll fall in love with them. They’ll elope. And the next time you see him he’ll be cradling a tiny little Yoongi in his arms.

Ok, maybe the baby is a stretch.

But you should have told him.

You gasp for air that isn’t there, quickly shoving open your window to escape the onset of suffocation.

As you take in the cool night air you feel another wave of melancholy wash over you.

And then you see it. You see him.

“Yoongi?”

He’s sitting on your front porch and at the sound of your voice he twists his head upwards, towards you.

“Y/N, hey,” he manages, standing upright, brushing dirt off his pants.

“Hold on,” you yell out, rushing downstairs to greet him. Throwing open the door you feel a gush of cool wind hit your body.

Yoongi’s eyes quickly float over your body and suddenly you become very self conscious, your flimsy tank top and shorts leaving little to the imagination. In your excitement, you forgot to throw something over your pyjamas. Oops.

You shift your weight from one leg to the other as Yoongi’s eyes snap away from your body towards the road, as if he’s contemplating a plan of escape. Then his jaw clenches, a look of pure determination washing over him before he steps towards you, his gaze finally meeting yours.

“Yoongi, what are you doing h—?”

“I like you.”

“Wha—?”

“Well, of course I like you… I mean, I like you, like you. A lot. Too much. I didn’t mean to, I swear. I tried so hard not to. And when it happened I shut up about it but I just, I can’t leave without telling you… how whenever I walk beside you, my hand wants to hold yours. How when you scrunch your nose I want to kiss it. How when you let another loser treat you like shit, I want to beat the crap out of him. And how every time I see you I want to kiss you. Every single time. Do you know you have that effect on me? Like even right now, all I can think about is what it would feel like to have your lips on mine, to hold you in my arms, to finally call you mine. Ugh, see, I’m making you uncomfortable, right? This was a mistake, I’m sorry I—”

“Shut up, Yoongi,” you demand, closing the gap between you and pressing your lips against his, seeing his eyes flutter shut before yours close too. It’s sweet and delicate, like the cotton candy you both shared at the fair he took you to last year, and perfect, like the man himself.

You pull apart and notice the blown out look in his eyes accompanied by a lopsided grin.

“Does this mean—?”

“Do you want to come inside…for coffee?”

You gesture inside, your grin replacing his as he just stares back at you in amazement.

“Coffee? Do you realize what time it is? It’ll keep me up all—”

You roll your eyes at him. Min Genius. That’s what he calls himself. But even geniuses get it wrong sometimes.

You grab his hand, watching his fingers interlace with yours, his gummy smile reappearing as a flicker of comprehension flashes across his face.

You fix him with a devilish smirk.

“Ah, that’s the point,” he breathes, eyebrow quirking when he catches your eye, “like the cat.”

Your smirk falters.

“Please,” you whisper under your breath, “not the cat thing again...”

[yostresswritinggirl]

𝐊𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐢 - 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑔𝑢𝑒 𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

pairing -> Tighnari x Kshahrewar!Reader

word count -> 3,666

themes : fluff, pining, strangers to friends (to not yet lovers), spoilers to Tighnari's story quest. This is part 1 of 3.

Komorebi - sunlight, filtering through the leaves of trees. Bring to his unknowing heart these specks of warm feelings. Love the vague emotion, the innocence, the memory.

"Kulilu!"

"Paimon and Traveler will make sure to visit you every week, Karkata!"

Sensing the end of the conversation, knowing full well that they're intruding on someone's working hours, the Traveler would turn away from the mechanical crab to look at the forest watcher. Intending to say their goodbyes, his intentions were forgotten at the sight of the fox hybrid deep in thought.

Unalert for once as Tighnari's gaze lingered on the object in his hand. It was one of those pictures, Traveler deduced as he made his way over, the image getting clearer - it's a photo he hasn't seen from the pile the forest watcher had laid out when they barged into Pardis Dhyai.

"I can tell you're wondering about something," Tighnari was quick to cross his arms, photo still dangling between his fingertips. "Well? Out with it already." He was no mind reader, but he can tell what the subject could be with the way the other's golden irises followed the object of interest.

Though neither of them brought it into conversation when the floating companion was quick to open her mouth upon reaching the two, eyes sparkling with unabashed curiousity as she points at the image. "Oh! What's that one? Paimon didn't see that earlier!"

With a defeated sigh, Tighnari simply stretched his hand out to show the picture without much restraint, knowing full well that coming clean would be easier than deflecting or paraphrasing what's in it.

What the duo saw was identical to the other photos - a Sumeru scholar taking a picture with Tighnari. However, this one had obvious changes, something Paimon gasped at and exclaimed in exaggerated surprise. "Woah! Look, Tighnari's smiling in this one, how is that even possible?!" Which prompted the man in question to pull back with an unamused glare. "Oops, did I say that outloud?"

"What did I say about yelling?" Beneath all that, the Traveler continued to mull over the photo even when it was out of their sight already. There's more to it than Tighnari's rare smile. Like the fact that he wasn't in his forest watcher attire, and instead wearing the same uniform as the scholars from the Akademiya. There was also something in the hand of the unknown person, a familiar yellow flower, seemingly held in utmost care while they posed for the picture.

Huh, now that he thought about it - the Traveler zeroes in on a similar flower pinned by Tighnari's right shoulder.

"Alright, alright," the forest watcher raised his hands up in what seems to be defeat, sensing two pairs of eager eyes staring holes through his head. His ears twitched in alertness and an unknown emotion only he is privy to. "I supposed I can indulge on your curiousities seeing as you had been a great help yesterday."

Yet the moment his gaze landed on the photo again, all of him seemed to have melted, calmed in an instant. "Well, where do we start..."

The day he first saw you is permanently etched at the back of his mind, like the symptoms of a hallucination-induced fever, like the blooming pattern of a nilotpala lotus.

Unforgettable, whether he wants it to be or not.

It was one of those days where the Akademiya wasn't being a pain, and his unlikely friend wasn't bombarded with Matra work (although, if it comes to playing cards, he knew the man would make time no matter what), crowded by fellow scholars watching their duel. Genius Invokation TCG.

Tighnari didn't really know what brought him to notice, but there was some kind of pull the moment he caught the figure in his peripheral. A fellow scholar with three books in hand, not even sparing their little crowd a glance as you disappear behind the doors to the Akademiya, robes fluttering in tandem with your hurried steps.

Since then, that brief glance lingered every time he was out by the benches with Cyno, playing mat draped between them as they played. Tighnari didn't even see much other than a simple side profile, yet whenever he raises his stare from the game, he would involuntarily look for some kind of sign.

Despite anticipating and searching, it was still a shock the next time he'd seen you around, in full view for him.

This time you're part of the crowd, spectating their routine game while still being a modest distance away from their space.

You were leaning a bit, trying to look at Cyno's cards over his shoulder. That was an enjoyable experience watching your unsuspecting self look as serious as his opponent, nodding when he assumes that a good card was pulled, shaking your head when it wasn't, and cringing when a particularly bad move was made.

It was even better when Cyno looked quite proud of his turn while you're behind him sputtering; usually when that happens, Tighnari wins the round without fail.

When there's more than two books in your arms during break time, he's come to learn that you wouldn't linger for much longer, or at all.

So on the rare times that you could, the fennec fox hybrid would ask for another round, something that his companion would usually do.

He thought he was being slick.

Even though this impulsive behavior are unexplainable even to him.

Cyno speaking brought him back to reality, prying his attention from your fleeting figure, four books threatening to slip out of your arms.

"Pardon?" The general's fiery gaze was also faraway, until he made eye contact.

Cyno repeated the unfamiliar name. "That's the name of the Kshahrewar scholar you kept looking at."

"How do you know them?" The shock of the information overrode his embarrassment of being caught looking at you.

Placing his cards face down, the white-haired man leaned back on his hands as if preparing for a long conversation. "The Matra investigated them a while ago," his tall ears stand taut at the news, tense. "Something about taking electives for every darshan. The Akademiya thought that they were scheming about distributing the knowledge illegally..."

There was a pause too long after that pushed the normally patient Tighnari to be restless, antsy, so close to choking the information out of the general. "Well?"

Cyno had to fight back a smirk at the edge of his friend's voice. This little - "I quickly realized there wasn't anything bad happening, and the case was closed." A white eyebrow raising in amusement as the Amurta scholar seemed to breathe a loud sigh.

But there were still lingering thoughts in his mind reminiscent of being an Akademiya scholar, card game long forgotten.

"If there's no hidden agenda, then what's the explanation for their behavior?"

You have an obsession, Cyno wanted to reply instead. There were only so much that can occupy Tighnari's mind, and it's usually about flora and fauna. But for his loyal card game opponent, the least he could do was satisfy his curiousity.

"It's quite simple." The general's head turns to the Akademiya doors. "They're indecisive."

He thought it would end with that, with his curiousity satiated and questions half-answered, and things would return back to normal.

But Tighnari never half-assed anything. Never dipped his toes in the water and left it at that.

Was this how it felt like for those scholars who sought after canned knowledge? The addiction for the pursuit of forbidden knowledge? It felt like it, what Cyno unloaded to him, that he it wasn't something the general would normally be so open about.

Perhaps he indulged him just so he could focus on their game again.

Your name fell off his lips like it was a deity he could only worship in private, lynched if he were to be found uttering your name. Under your confused gaze, perhaps he shouldn't have been so casual.

"Oh? You know my name?" Your hand hovered over the back of the chair next to him, intending to take the seat next to him in the fairly empty classroom.

Out of the many times he had seen you walking to and from the Akademiya, seeing each other in his Spantamad elective class as classmates isn't what he imagined to be your first official meeting. His ears stand taut upon realizing his slip-up, the action catching your attention.

At least you're not looking at the tail that won't stop wagging behind him.

"Pardon me, I heard your name here and there. I didn't mean to be rude, my name's -"

"Tighnari, right?" This stupid tail won't chill! "You're pretty famous among the Amurta." The polite smile you offered released the tension in his body in one sweep that his ears almost drooped completely. He would not have been able to explain how he knew your name.

Tighnari graciously took your offered hand and shook it, more enthusiastic than he wanted to come off as. But feeling your hand grip his own finally cemented reality into his mind as if the events prior were but a skeptical dream. You are real and right in front of him.

"Can I take this seat?" Oh right, you're still standing.

"Please." Is that the right answer? "No one's seating there, if that's what you're worried about."

It felt surreal being this close after only ever seeing you from afar. The many books you had in your arms piled on the desk where he can see the titles; the way your hair framed your face and how it sticks out on some places as if you had messed it up in frustration that morning; the Kshahrewar badge on your hat reflecting the light and catching his attention.

His object of wonders in arms length. Everyday for one hour.

With the window of opportunity, glances became greetings, and meetings became much more frequent. Spantamad is a wonderful course but being partnered with a creative seatmate made it all the more entertaining.

Tighnari found out that your father was a mechanic and your mother graduated from the Akademiya before you enrolled. Because of your father's influence, you had been blessed with being able to create your own inventions, but you're still lost on what you really wanted to do with it. If you put your mind into it, you can think of solutions with the aid of machinery, so it wasn't really intelligence that you lack.

"Indecisive, huh..." The Amurta scholar mumbled to himself as he watched the Kshahrewar student hunched over a book at the House of Daena, hours of reading evident with the black bags under your eyes.

The best word to describe you is...

Uninspired.

Tighnari liked hearing you talk, rant, vent, anything that would keep his ears occupied. Even if it wasn't about the courses you're both dealing with, somehow he couldn't help but indulge in your numerous ideas. For once, he felt like he was being taught - as this time the conversation was about the elements and visions - over a course he wasn't so knowledgeable of. Why did he pick a Spantamad elective again?

You didn't have to have groundbreaking ideas to catch his attention that's often divided for his juniors, no, even just talking about random trivias you picked up from reading here and there had him hooked.

He finds it endearing how easy it was to fall into step with you, without having to one up one another or prove anything.

"If you were to get a vision," his eyes followed your fingertips, spinning a 'blank' vision on top of your shared table. "Which one would you want?"

The class you two shared focused on the elements of visions and how certain reactions happen when some elements interact. Each partner was given a blank vision to study and observe, inquire if they could, although there wasn't really anything to work with.

The question had him a bit flustered upon remembering a memory. And your observant eyes caught on to all the signs - his tail that won't stop swaying, his ears that twitched in random intervals, the pink that slowly colored his pale skin - all of which had you sitting straight, looking at him with obvious expectations.

He'd told this tale many times to friends, so why now does he feel embarrassed to say it? "A dendro vision." He spat out with great hesitance, but when you nodded and waited for more, he couldn't help but sigh. You're still curious. "I've always prayed to get one, so that I can make ladders to reach higher up fruits."

A beat or two later, you had to turn away and cover your mouth. Tighnari looked exasperated (tho you couldn't see that) at the way your shoulders bounced in silent laughter. He couldn't even admit that the sight and sound was endearing, focused on his regrets of opening up.

"I can't believe you, I shared a great secret with you and you're laughing."

"Nooo, it was just really, really-" funny. "Unexpected!"

His glare only spurred you on. When your conversation was cut off by the lecturer ending the class, he thought that the conversation would end there, finding a comfortable peace between you as you walked out of the Akademiya together.

There were no plans or routes in his mind, no destination. Tighnari hoped you didn't mind that he was sticking close.

"I think it would suit you," his brown-green irises looked up from watching your arms swing by. "A Dendro vision. They say those that are outstandingly smart or with an honest drive for knowledge gets one. You fit it quite nicely."

You complimented him. Well, not directly, but it can be read that way. He's reading it that way.

"W-Well I think you'd fit a Geo vision then." At this, you stared back at him with pure confusion, forehead creasing even. "Because you're quite attached to inventions? Creations? You know, constructs." His ears drooped when his statement became more and more unconvincing.

He only said those out of the blue without much thought, wanting to compliment back while also sounding smart.

But your skepticism told him he didn't really succeed on his plans. If it were plants, he would have been smoother with his praises.

"I'm not sure." Ah, that felt like a stab to the heart. "After all, Geo doesn't really have any synergy with Dendro."

Tighnari could barely function for the rest of the day then. Cyno, who usually enjoyed their duels together, looked quite irked at how easy the rounds were when fighting with an absent-minded Tighnari. But the scholar couldn't really care about his losses.

He felt like a winner already.

And he thought he was winning, you know.

Between the times you'd cheer him on when he had the time to play his silly card games (he wonders if when he didn't see you before, it was because you were looking over his cards behind him instead), walking to class together (despite only having one similar class), and catching up with one another outside of the Akademiya, he's gotten closer with you to an extent he didn't think he'd reach.

But it wasn't enough, and it dawned on him just how fast time passes. Next thing he knew, the last day of his Spantamad elective approached.

Tighnari can sense your worry at the not so subtle glances you sent to your seatmate. Perhaps it was obvious that there was something on his mind by how tense his tail seemed, but you didn't dare comment as you both listened to your lecturer and his closing statements.

"Visions are not just tools to harness elemental energy. Remember what we had learned from the case study in Inazuma, they carry within it their will, hopes and dreams. Parting from one's Vision can be akin to losing your vision, your motivation in life."

The Dendro Vision hanging by his waist felt heavier than usual.

"It has been an honor teaching you about the basics of ley lines and the elements, especially to those who are not under the Spantamad. May you carry these teachings, this marks the end of our class."

Chatter of gratitude and parting mixed together within the classroom as the professor dismissed everyone early to converse among themselves one last time. Yet despite the want - no, need to talk, Tighnari still had yet to find the right words to say to you.

Call him a pessimist, but he knew that this would perhaps be the last time he would be this close to you. He wanted to make it last, impart his own wisdom, anything that can help you in the trouble you had yet to decide upon.

Indecisive... Yet passionate. His olive brown eyes silently watched as you slowly packed your table, dragging the motion slow as if hesitant, unlike the times you were meticulous about time due to your next class being a major one.

It was only when you turned to look at him with hopeful yet somber eyes did he finally have the courage to speak, although without much thought behind them. "Don't forget what the professor said, keep your vision close and you would not lose your motivation." He turned to fully face you which you followed suit. "I know you can do anything so long as you put your heart to it. So follow that which makes you happy, and I'm sure things will turn out the best for you."

Tighnari barely remembered the words he has just uttered that day. The moment your confusion turned to determination, with the way you smiled gratefully over his sincerity, he knew that he made all the right decision.

"I'm going to miss being seatmates with a genius like you."

"I should be the one saying that." And you both shared a laugh, before inevitably departing in opposite directions.

The arrival of the new semester left Tighnari with nothing but conflicted feelings from his own overthinking, sitting down for his new Amurta class that he had forgotten what was about already. He felt both fulfilled and unsatisfied with the turn of events, even if he knew by heart that this is how it would end.

A scholar's curiosity is endless, but the search will always have its end. The chase, the mystery, all of it had lasted long enough for it to finally reach its finale.

The hybrid sighed. He just wasn't sure if he ended it right.

He sighed again when he heard the chair next to him be pulled, signalling a classmate occupy it for themselves. That's one thing too. Who would have thought he'd be so attached to the idea of who would be seating next to him, now with you as his standard, no one else could compare to being the greatest company —

"Can I take this seat?" His head whipped around so fast that his chin almost fell from his palm, his wide eyes staring into your mirthful ones.

"What are you doing here?" He hoped he sounded more curious than perplexed, but you simply took your seat next to him like you had done many times before. Your gaze refused to leave the blackboard at the front of the classroom, but he can clearly see the quirk in the corner of your lips.

"Just following what makes me happy."

"Ah, to think someone could make me ramble on like this over something that's not related to my profession." Tighnari's smile betrayed his words as he shook his head in a whimsical manner. "Anyways, after graduating, I went to Ghandarva Ville and they were asked to stay in the Akademiya. The rest is history."

The Traveler took time to absorb the heartwarming story, gold gaze lingering on the well-kept photo. Judging by the happiness of scholar Tighnari, they don't really see any reason to doubt the story. However out of character it may be to the forest ranger today.

Is that related perhaps?

"Aww, to think that Tighnari actually has the capacity to be that kind." Paimon mumbled as she looked over the Traveler's shoulder, also examining the photo. "Oh, but wait! Now that Paimon thinks about it, the flower in the photo!"

Tighnari's attention was already divided at this point, looking at Karkata at the other side.

"It looks just like the flower on your outfit! Ohh~ Is that a gift they gave to you? It's so sweet that you kept it!"

"What, this?" The fox gestured to the yellow flower on his person before looking at the two with a nonplussed expression. "You're heavily mistaken, this is a cactus flower only found in the desert. It's a gift from my father."

Well, that does make sense. However, that doesn't exactly explain the overall picture here. Perhaps Nahida had heavily influenced Traveler into overthinking things at this point.

"Oh, but, it's still kind of sad. You two seemed so close..." Looking at the photo one final time, Traveler offered it back to Tighnari who gratefully took it back. This time, it was him looking over it intently. "But because of your different darshans -"

"Oh, you're worried about that?" The fox hybrid couldn't help but laugh as he pocketed the photo ever so carefully. "There's no need to fret, we still see each other from time to time when our schedules align. Now where was I? Right, Karkata and I still have some notes to record while the day is still young. Do you still have any questions?"

Before Paimon can ramble any further, the Traveler simply shook his head and nudged his companion to let up. After all, they've done what they've sought after and took up most of the forest ranger's time already.

That, and he could at least feel that Tighnari isn't so keen to talk more about the matter.

Yet after they said their goodbyes and started leaving, Traveler couldn't help but look back one final time, his ears barely catching Tighnari's voice —

"I'm sure you'd love Karkata." His eyes closed with a long sigh, dropping his crossed arms as Karkata simply tilts its head.

Traveler took his leave before Tighnari could notice him idling by.

Next part will have spoilers to 3.2 archon quest.

@maehemthemisfit @fpyura @lunavixia @ventitto @crxwned-mxnarch @theflatdoorkicker @ropesou0yomu @quintessentialdreaming @angryhope @leena-shii @loyal-mad-dog @heeseung-lover686 @chevalrie

[wooahaes]

skz versions PLEASE

while im waiting for pasta sauce to thicken up a lil...

my immediate thought for 'older brothers best friend' is aussie bros being actual (adopted) aussie bros. reader is chris's best friend and felix is in love with them but has 0 idea how to talk abt it. where like... the seokmin-chan dynamic was "i'm worried abt how seokmin will respond :(", the chris-felix dynamic is "chris can never find out because he has so much dirt on me and i'll never live"

i like the idea that reader n chris meet in high school and just click together rly well lol and felix starts crushing on them after reader shows up to a swim meet a few years later while felix is a freshman. reader's cheering on chris and felix because they wanna be supportive and reader hugs felix afterward and he's like omg (flustered). he doesn't act on it for a while because he thinks the crush will go away, esp after reader goes abroad for school, and then they come back and felix's crush comes back in full force. all of his friends (the rest of the 00z + jeongin) know the lore by now and have been sworn to silence. there's just some sort of rekindling of things, both have matured a bit, and its kind of a "im getting to know you again and oops we're falling in love" while reader and felix scramble to keep their relationship hidden from chris (bc reader, like felix, also knows how much dirt chris has on them. neither part of this relationship will get to live with chris around)

i like to imagine that eventually it leads to a big fight because i live for the drama in fiction lol where chris finds out and he's hurt because two of the people he loves most have been hiding this from him and he feels horrible because why wouldnt they trust him??? reader calls things off with felix because they feel guilty for hurting him, felix is upset and feels guilty for hurting chris as well, and the three start to avoid one another fully after the fallout. it 100% takes the rest of their friends to trick them all into the same room and being like 'ok work this shit out because ur depressing us.' they work things out, probs w chris admitting he never wanted them to hide their relationship and he def didn't want them to break up as a result, he just wishes they had talked to him, etc. and they work things out and happy ever after :)

sorry u can tell i was thinking abt this while i was cooking sdkfhdsf

fake dating but the guy needs it instead of the reader... hmm..... god, who is the funniest option for fake dating.... my heart says seungmin if im honest because like. he feels like the type who's like "i would never get myself into that situation"

and then he turns around to reader and hes like "i need you to pretend to date me. don't ask questions." and reader (his friend and coworker) is like. uh. my guy, i kind of have to ask questions rn. and seungmin starts telling this long story about how he saw his ex out in public and they're dating someone new and they were kind of a shitty person when they dated and turns out they're still shitty bc they saw the chance to put seungmin down because ohh ur not dating anyone? of course ur not :) and hes like ACTUALLY I AM (pulls up picture of him and reader when they were hanging out) they're hotter than you :) and now he's invited to some party that he knows his ex will be at and he needs reader to go with him. readers like whats in it for me tho other than showing up ur bitchy ex. and seungmins like idk ill cover one of ur shifts.

thats not enough and he ends up promising to take u out for whatever food afterward and covering one of ur shifts as soon as u need it (barring him having any personal emergencies/being physically unable to cover it). reader is 100% the one who kisses seungmin's cheek while at the party...

and probably also the one who yanks seungmin in to make out with him in a bedroom when they hear seungmin's ex wandering around for him. they absolutely pull away and are fine right after its all over. the two probs keep up the fake dating for a while w the PDA becoming more and more common until seungmin just looks up one day and hes like

holy fuck. we're just like... actually dating now arent we.

they r idiots together <3 mwah mwah

[lilicannotfly]

Azul Ship Headcanons

So I already made a thread ranking(?? Judging?? I dunno lols) all the Azul ships I care about and so here's a post with headcanons for them and I have important things to do but shhh don't remind me and I won't remind you :)

Azuvil 🐙👑

I dunno all my energy for this ship died but I think it would be fun to write or read or work with because imagine they're both doing it for like appearances or something else of that manner and someone catches feelings or something but also they both think the other one thinks it's real from the beginning ??? So fake dating but extra steps. There's like this one fic that put this into my head but I don't remember the name lols

Azujami 🐙🐍

I really already explained this in the tweet but yeah this is only good when they get together after university (not NRC, but after they graduate and then graduate uni) and then get married and then divorced and then the story is them healing at fifty. Perhaps they become just friends, perhaps Azul learns to leave well enough alone, perhaps Jamil gets mad, perhaps they go their own ways, maybe one of them dies ?? I dunno this would seem fun to play around with :)

Jeiazu 🐬🐙

I don't really have anything to say about this, except if you aren't related or already in different relationship, being business partners? Pretty gay ngl. Pretty queer.

Floazu 🦈🐙

Do I have to write about this? Why did I include it. This is not a ship I care about like at all :/ Bumping it down to 1/10 ya'know I hate the childhood friends to lovers trope? It's too messy why would you date your childhood bestie I would let her kill me yes have we spoken in years no but would I date her no. No that's silly. I despise the trope actually. Please get it out of my face ahhhhh anyways

Azuide 🐙💀

I don't know why I included this either errrrr.. though I feel like they would bond over chess. The whole thing with the game of life in the comic anthology was pretty funny and I feel like working with a relationship with them would be very silly because it would be like that all the time and also neither of them know how to give or recieve affection properly so lols

Azurook 🐙🏹

As I said, this is literally just Rook being like "ooh interesting what if...I hunted you down??" and me projecting my unhealthy relationship with attention onto Azul. Oops.

Also I wanna be able to come up with cool ship names TwT I wanna come up with something like eight tailed arrow or something but everytime I try it sounds so stupidddddd how do y'all do itttttt I'm sure there are other people who have come up with this ship and maybe I just sound stupid let's move on.

Lizu/Water Spirit 👻🐙

Okay so this is really a crackship like she found him not up to standard but imagine if she didn't and also imagine if they got married and imagine if the whole story was just them healing in the afterlife?? That would be pretty cool imo :) So yeah that's it. It's gotta be awful to be seventeen for five hundred years and I'm gonna be honest I don't remember how she died so maybe she could work through that and Azul can work through his self worth issues and body issues, especially that he is now without a proper form. It would be cute, imagine it !

Zuel/Sailor's Lungs 🐙🫁

'Cause selfship names have no rules !!! But also this doesn't even count even because we're literally the same guy (not like I am him or vise versa but more like we're similar) so it would be like dating a fucked up mirror. Selfcest 😭😭😭 Zero out of ten, moving on.

AzuRid 🐙🌹

I forgot to include this in the original thread, oops. They're t4t lesbians (transfem riddle and transmasc nonbinary azul <3) and also in love and also the healthiest relationship here (shhh these are my headcanons I do what I want they get along beautifully once they get together) and also happy !!! Finally !!! And also they would be fun to work with because academic rivals to lovers is always fun. (I know these images are crispy as hell shhhhhhh don't mention it)

End of Headcanons !!!

If you have more please share I need more things to read to distract me from my schoolwork because my eyes hurt and my bones hurt an d I need to do something <3

[mirersc]

MLB AU x SONADOW

What's the result?

A chaotic AU with the most unbearable slow burn of all ages.

Yep, we're doing this. Or at least we will talk about it, because I need to share it with someone. Anyone.

Warning: contains spoilers of MLB movie

So ever since the new movie of MLB came out -btw you should go see it, it's pretty light-hearted and adorable- my head is spinning and thinking what would happen if our two hedgehogs had been instead on the main characters' place, but with their own personalities.

Sonic would take Marinette's role, I haven't thought of a backstory yet, -and no he is not shy and without confidence, he is sly and cocky as ever- but he lives with Tails -when he isn't on one of his trips- and together they attend Chaos High on Green Hill -I'm still planning the settings and the names in my head-

On the other hand, Shadow takes Adrien's role, but unlike him, he's actually moving from his home in Station Square to go live with his best friend, Rouge, for a while, who miraculously lives in Green Hill as the others. And surprise, surprise, Gerald is alive! Does that mean that he is Hawk Moth and that Maria is Emily? To be honest, I'm still debating if Gerald is the real villain, because I want to include GUN in the game as well, but oh man, stuff like that takes time.

For sure though Maria takes Emily's place.

There's a high possibility though that she isn't dead. Just pretty sick. For now at least ;) *cough* I meant, she will be fine!

Tikal is the guardian so she takes the place of Master Fu and there are no kwamies. Yes, that's right. Instead of kwamies -do I even spell that right?- we have chaos, thus and why Tikal is the guardian of them. And instead of having a plethora of them there are only seven of them, each of them bearing a chaos emerald.

So skipping into the plot we have first day of a new year with everyone knowing everyone and Shadow being the new transfer student, who clings to Rouge's side and his personal robotic assistant Omega -yeah we're bringing him because we stan Team Dark!-

Introductions are made and oops, the two hedgies make a brief eye contact while at class. Neither of them shows any interest. Ouch I know, but wait, we have track. That's right. And where Sonic believes that his only rival is Jet here comes Shadow to steal the spotlight with his AIR SHOES, even if Sonic deems them rocket shoes. And just like that the blue blur finally pays attention to the stoic new student. Not as if he's fallen in love, but he is intrigued by him! I mean, have you seen any other running as fast as him?

Note; there are no super powers in this world, but Tails still is the smartest of the group, lol. That's just his nature. However he doesn't know that he can fly with his second tail. That's something that he'll discover later.

Anyways moving on, Hawk Moth -or however I'll remain the character later, because I'm not keeping those names for copyright issues- suddenly awakens the purple emerald, thus and the chao with it that have been lost in the fight that have broke between the echidna race and Tikal is forced to call upon the chaos of the dark blue and red chaos emeralds, named -that's actually a good question, I'm debating on Azul and Shade, but that's just basic? Or nah- Anyways, both chaos don't go well with each other and decide like in the movie to select on their own their champions.

Long story short, because there's no way I'm revealing everything, Azul ends up with Sonic and Shade with Shadow and they both activate their powers -after a lot of convincing by both ends, I know surprise for a specific blue hedgehog but sus- I was thinking that the could say, “Chaos Activate” with their respective chao on the start of the sentence, but working on it. Oh they are on their super forms, when powers activated, because I couldn't think of something better and thus their original abilities are unlocked, a.k.a Sonic's speed and Shadow's manipulation over chaos energy.

So the heroes meet while trying to discover where the corrupted with dark chaos energy is -yep, no akumas either- and they do not get along. Shadow having thought of it more, had already picked a name for his secret identity, named -I'm bad at names, but I was thinking something to do with Chaos, like Chaos Controller, but that's just too big so I'll think of something better-. Sonic soon realises that he still haven't thought of his own name, but then the corrupted arrives and interrupts them.

So they fight, they banter, Sonic haves a panic attack, Shadow almost loses his emerald, but they work it out. But like in the series they forget to cleanse the dark chaos energy something that BOTH Sonic and Shadow are able to do with the power of the chaos emerald.

They both find their way after that, working together, learning from their mistakes. Surprisingly, it is Shadow that finds a name for Sonic. Without even thinking of it too hard. He just calls him something and Sonic likes it so he keeps it.

And here's the moment that you all waited for.

The love matter.

Which takes a LOT OF TIME to finally come.

So to put it simple.

Sonic loves Shadow.

Shadow loves Super Sonic.

-this is where you all start clapping and fangirling-

There I said it. You can all just toy with the idea now, if you haven't thought of this already. And oh they both get refused by the other like the movie. But first is Shadow who declines Sonic and then Super Sonic who declines Super Shadow. Why? Because one thing led to another and Sonic accidentally reveals his like to the other hedgehog. Shadow of course is taken aback, because he didn't expect Sonic to like him. Not that Sonic would like to change anything in their current relationship, because it's perfect as it is. He just wishes to know if Shadow would like to keep it like that and after graduation. Shadow, however, likes Super Sonic and thus declines Sonic. Of course he doesn't express this in a harsh manner. He is considerate of the other's feelings. But Sonic of course is hurting. So imagine the SAME time in the evening to getting asked by Super Shadow, if he would like for their relationship to grow into something more. Sonic just can't and he leaves immediately like he'd done a prior hours ago.

Of course I'm not telling you how they get together or how they overcome this, because where's the fun in that? Don't know, if I'll make it into a fic this idea yet, but feel free to send me asks, if you have any questions.

Furthermore you can even take this idea and turn it into something unique. Just be sure to let me know so I can keep an eye out of it. I wouldn't mind reading an AU like this or seeing art of it.

Thank you for managing to come this far. I am super grateful and hopefully my next posts will not be as big as this one. Be safe and be happy! Gotta love our two hogs.

[lizardlicks]

one vague ATLA idea I have in mind for AU stuff is less specific but more of a broad AU spectrum and the general point is that instead of Team Avatar being a fairly small central group, they pick up people as they go along so that the folk who join them in the Zuko Friendship Arc and flee at the begining of the Southern Raiders stick around since their introduction; Haru, maybe a few members of Jet's crew, perhaps Jee from Zuko's crew following the end of Book Water, Chit Sang after the boiling rock, maybe even Iroh throughout Book One as a more extreme AU where Aang accidentally incapacitates Zuko and takes him hostage early on and Iroh and Zuko's crew go 'oh nooooo you have captured us and we're with you now I guess' while Iroh low key attempts to provide Aang perspective on the Fire Nation for dealing with them and some basics on Firebending philosophy, but anyway who else do you think would be interesting to see in this kind of AU joining up with Aang and his mission to free the world

Answering this TEN DAYS LATER OOPS

Personally I haven't thought about anyone else joining the gaang outside of Zuko joining the gaang early plots. First, I wouldn't include any of the adults. While yeah, there's something wrong with their world in the fact that actual teenagers have to save it from a century of war, if we actually stuck one of the adults into the group dynamics, they would alter the story and themes in a way I don't find satisfying. Too many of their own motivations and personal hang ups. Iroh works for Zuko because Zuko doesn't really have friends or any other social support, but even so to get to the core of Zuko, we have to separate Iroh's direct influence on him.

So for the other kids: NGL I think Haru as a character is boring. he's dry wheat toast. He exists only as a vessel for katara's hero complex. Teo could be a lot of fun; him and Aang play off each other really well, and it would give us more non-bender rep.

Jet I could not see willingly giving up his leadership role and joining the gaang. He might butt heads with Sokka first, but eventually he would piss off "everyone works together and does their fair share" katara, "I don't respect any form of authority" toph, and even "we're all friends and equals here" aang when he won't give any slack to the reigns-- metaphorically but also possibly literally. Similarly, I don't think smellerbee or longshot would willingly leave jet.

I love The Duke and Toph's relationship. I would have thought of anyone in the gaang for him to latch onto he would have gone with Aang or Sokka, but him looking up to and becoming really good friends with Toph is just really good. And him and Pipsqueak are more non bender rep too!

Suki joining the gaang earlier than canon would be great, especially if she brought a couple other kyoshi warriors along with and we got to see more of their dynamic as a group! Plus more sukka, and Sokka in the kw outfit.

Yue. Alright I apparently lied above, Yue is definitely one that I've thought about joining the gaang. In AUs where Yue lives, her getting out of the North and coming into her own as a person who can assert her expertise and authority is a big deal for her. Might also add some fascinating conflict: did she leave with Arnook's blessing or did she see an opportunity and leap??

Thousands of words have been devoted to the "zuko joins the gaang early" tag, but here's mine:

Zuko knows Azula. He knows not to trust when she puts her hands up and claims defeat. It's an old, old trick, not even a clever one, and they both know it. When her smile falls on uncle, Zuko doesn't even think twice. He's burned before. He knows how. Sinks into that familiar pain like an embrace from an old friend.

Iroh is horrified when Zuko drops like a stone (sick with guilt that he has to see this again, again, it never seems to end). Zuko stays down. His nephew never stays down. He begs the gaang for help, pleads for a mercy he knows neither of them have yet earned. They hesitate, but Toph also insists; Mushi, Iroh, whoever he is, he was kind to her. Whatever his nephew did, the other kids are alive and whole enough to bitch about him, so it couldn't have been so bad as to deserve a slow, painful death.

Katara pulls back his clothes, revealing the burns, the deep purple-black bruises from his fight with the earthbender soldiers, his starvation and exhaustion. It's abundantly clear to everyone that Zuko needs more help than they can give just standing around in an abandoned desert town, and the kids are exhausted. Iroh asks one more favor, a big one: watch over his nephew and keep him out of trouble while Iroh tracks down some old friends who will help find someplace safe for them to hide.

It's only supposed to be temporary, but now the gaang have to deal with wrangling a cranky, ornery firebender who's ass much a threat to himself as he is to them.

[orchdaries]

(  aespa's yoo jimin (karina) ,  cisfemale , she/her  )    : ̗̀➛   twenty-five years young , a firebender from the noble house of choi . many know them to be fanciful & unambitious . how unfortunate , truly … i’ve always found them to be softspoken & dutiful . they oft fulfill the duties of a healer . oh , i should tell you — they oppose the rule of house yi . well , you know how every storyteller bends the tale they tell .   ✶   sky , +21 , she/they  .

please welcome house choi's middle child (along with her twin), choi aera! contrary to the tendency of her house of learning lavabending, she preferred to focus and hone her bender abilities into the healing field instead of the combat one because she's the support type of character through and through (she really really really doesn't want to be sent to the battlefield and fight if house sungold or house yi ever makes them fight, help), thankfully the universe smiled at her and, even though she isn't the best healer you'll ever meet, she can do her job quite alright! under the cut more info about her past + personality and a couple of plot ideas!

choi aera. 25 y/o. firebender & healer. awakened her bending abilities at 10 y/o and as much as it was fun to incorporate fire bending into her daily life and how much she learned about herself in that process, she doesn't really enjoy the combative part of bending.

half because she does value peace and half because she isn't really good at conflicts especially when they end up getting physical (which is super ironic considering she's from a military house); hates the idea of getting hurt but also honestly would give up a limb if it meant she didn't have to go through an agni kai.

likes to daydream about a lot of scenarios in this very "seeing the world through rosé colored lenses" type of way and sometimes can even seem like an airhead, even more so with how softspoken she is; daydreams about some noble from another house coming to sweep her feet away at least five times a day, dreams of saying goodbye to her family (or even the fire nation) to live her own adventure another ten times but honestly lacks the courage to really do so.

in the end she likes the comfort and familiarity of what she already knows too much to really abandon it for the unknown. but it doesn't mean!! she won't enable others to chase after their own dreams no matter how unrealistic they are!! yes, @/head of house [redacted], go elope with that [redacted] commoner, aera will be rooting for you!!

loves loves loves to live vicariously through other people so pls tell her everything while she does a check up on your chi paths!!

does a lot of wishful thinking too, in this "everything will be alright in the end and if it isn't ok yet then it's because this isn't the end" way.

wasn't really the troublemaker type when growing up and much more like the good kid that wanted to be praised by her parents especially, but she liked fairy tale/fantastic sort of stories since then. i imagine playing pretend with her was super fun because her imagination was wild.

grew up as a mommy's girl through and through, going out of her way to spend time with mom when she was still alive (from unprompted and not so unprompted tea time, to bringing books so mom could read to her or asking to be taught this specific fire bending technique, etc etc) and showing off her results to her was motivation for aera to work hard 99% of the time; so it obv hit aera hard when she died, much more than her dad's death did (oop).

for the longest time she thought that she could've done something to prevent their deaths and that's why she almost started studying to be a doctor instead of a healer; still got into the study of herbs/potions for a while but she's no expert in neither of those areas; she knows the basics and that's pretty much it.

her mourning is mostly over at this point, but sometimes it still hits her very hard; that also made her mature a lot pretty quickly and now she keeps most to her more dreamy part of her personality to herself or to the people she lets in her inner social circle because she also closed herself off a lot more even though she does seem as friendly as ever.

overall a very sweet girl with sweet dreams but zero backbone (and actual desire, i guess) to chase them!

doesn't really like house yi because she feels they put way too much pressure/restraints on her family due to their ability to lavabend and wished that a "kinder" royal family ruled them instead.

wanted connections

fave client ! someone who always has the best stories to tell while she does her work on them. regardless of whether they're true or not, she's always looking forward to work for them because it means she gets to hear what adventure they got (or will get) themselves next!

childhood/teenage friends ! someone that not only knew aera before the tragedy with her parents but also was close to her and saw firsthand how the light in her eyes dimmed with what happened. someone that she feels like she can count on to this day or maybe they drifted apart at some point for some reason and now they're trying to reconnect (successfully or it's just very very awkward)

crushes ! she's much more in love with the idea of love (esp one that comes straight out of a love story) more than anything else + is very weak to good looking people so she gets infatuated with anyone pretty easily. i imagine she has an endless list of people she crushed on (but then falls out of it very easily too); people she's more in love with the idea of them than the person themselves.

the one that got away ! talking about which!! someone that she was in a relationship with but then it never got too far for any reasons— aera's immaturity with actual love, the other person's own shortcomings, maybe they were right for each other but met at the wrong time, etc etc, but it's still someone that she keeps in a very special spot on her heart, making her go wild with what ifs in her head. the one she'll always love (maybe in a first love or that one special summer affair sort of way) regardless of anything else.

older sibling energy/knight in shining armor ! as much as aera reaches out to look after people, she also has this energy of can't be left alone (affectionate but also a little derogatory). aera just feels like someone who'd fall for scams every and anywhere with how easily she genuinely believes that this really random guy is part of the earth nation's fallen royal family and traveled all around the world to hide themselves while collecting wealthy and knowledge so now they're looking for a new spouse to rebuild their dynasty with. basically someone who can't help but feel protective over her.

this is everything that i could come up with but i'm always open to brainstorm any and everything!!

[storiesofsvu]

Heavy Hearts Ch 4

Casey Novak x reader Warnings: language, some toxic family dynamics. Here we go, a little more background into yn's family and upbringing. Also, being the Canadian dumbass that I am, while I was originally writing this, I completely forgot that US Thanksgiving is in November, not October like it is up here. So if things seem weird timeline wise/how long these two have known each other or been together... that's why. I didn't catch it until I was editing LOL. oops.

After your first night together you were incredibly thankful that things weren’t that awkward, there were plenty of morning cuddles and shared smiles as you started to wake up, watching some mindless television as you stayed tangled in your sheets. Finally, Casey was very reluctantly forced to leave your bed, needing to go pick up one of her friends from the night prior who hadn’t made it back to the dorms. She left a very tender kiss on your lips and assured you that this wasn’t a one time thing.

A few days later while neither of you couldn’t stop thinking about each other you realized this was definitely going to be something that was more than just friends with benefits. You shared a lot of the same beliefs, perspectives, and always had each other’s backs when it came to helping each other out with school, studying, projects and the like. You weren’t totally sure, but you felt like you were good enough about reading her body language and the way she would blush around you, so you asked if she would like to get dinner the following week. Casey let out a small giggle, ducking her gaze as she said she would love to and both of you spent the rest of the day fretting over your real first date. Thankfully, things went splendid and you ended up back in your dorm with a bottle of cheap wine, laughing over a movie together before you very happily fell asleep in each other’s arms. You were basically attached at the hip from the first project you’d worked on and when a mutual friend asked if you were girlfriends that was all it took for you to solidify the title.

The weather got colder, a chill clinging to the air so heavily you could see your breath walking to morning classes, the days were shorter, your evenings usually spent curled up with Casey under thick fluffy blankets. Your activities always varying, most days were studying or working on papers while other nights were spent laughing and telling stories, or the more intimate nights where you explored each other’s bodies for hours on end.

Fall break came and went, celebrating with your group of friends so no one had to take time away from school. Everyone pitched in, bringing various food items, snacks, side dishes, far too much wine and beer and a few staples to eat while relaxing from the stress of studying. Once the long weekend was over it was time to focus on studying for exams, working on research papers and practically the only thoughts on your brains were of the law. You spent the night in the library with your group of friends going over old assignments and swapping ideas and theories before the conversation started to dwindle away from school work to the upcoming holiday season. You did your best to ignore it, burying yourself into your text book until Casey nudged at you and you realized everyone was packing up to leave for the night.

You gathered your things, linking your fingers with hers as you all said good night and the two of you began the walk back to your dorm. It was one of those balmy winter nights, where it was just warm enough to be comfortable, that you could enjoy being outside as the fluffy flakes of snow drifted down from the sky.

“You going home for Christmas?” Casey asked, glancing towards you and you let out a heavy sigh.

“Don’t want to.”

“Are they really that bad?”

“Do you follow politics at all Case?” You asked with a laugh and she shrugged.

“Not unless I have to.”

“Well you should start, would help your career.” You let out a little huff, only continuing when she squeezed at your hand.

“So? Your dad’s a senator?”

“A republican senator.” You rolled your eyes, “and my mom is no better. She had a full fledged career as a journalist when they first met, she had dreams, goals, and she dropped everything to be the perfect little trophy wife. I like to hope that she didn’t agree with all of his views when they first met, maybe give me some kind of pull but they’re both so fucking…. Conditioned? I don’t even think that’s the right word.” You shook your head, feeling the build up of frustration rocking through your body “they don’t get the whole human rights thing. I’m honestly surprised I wasn’t kicked out and cut off when I came out to them. I think their only saving grace was that I identified as bi and they thought they could thrust a man on me and I’d fall head over heels and forget about how much better women are.” You rolled your eyes, letting out a groan as you stalled in your step, turning to face her, your free hand reaching up to cup her cheek tenderly, “I would absolutely adore getting to take you home to meet them, getting to shove it in their faces that they’re wrong, that I’m not going to be some white picket fence wife…”

“But…?.” Casey raised a brow and you sighed once again.

“I’ve been barred from ever bringing a girl home if I want to hang onto my trust fund. I know, pretentious. But I don’t exactly have much time to work around school hours, I dunno how you managed to do it.”

“They’re really that homophobic?”

“My brother isn’t.” You shrugged, “and I honestly don’t think they are, they could be, but they’re so fucking worried about appearances. Dad’s always deep into passing the bills and laws that prohibit rights to people like us that I think he’s scared about having someone as close as I am opposing them, especially as I start to work in the law community. I think he’s worried about me bringing a girl home and like paparazzi catching us together and causing a whole like, controversy.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah… so no, I don’t exactly plan on going home for Christmas.” You let out a little sigh as you finally returned to the dormitory, turning to Casey, “what about you? Your parents are in New York, right?”

“Yeah.” Casey smiled softly, waiting for you to unlock the door and do the quick check that your roommate was indeed gone, before she spoke again considering the later hour. “I know it sounds super cheesy but we love to do the whole tourist type thing at Christmas. Markets, Times Square, Rockefeller Center”—

“Rockettes!?” You turned to her with an adorably very excited expression on your face and she chuckled softly, pausing to steal a kiss.

“Yes.” Her bag and coat found a home in a spare chair, “and if we’re up to it we do the whole ball drop on New Year’s. If not, it’s off to the Hamptons house for a couple of days.”

“You own a Hamptons house?” You raised a brow, stripping out of your coat and chucking it to the laundry pile.

“Yeah.” She laughed.

“And you called me little miss rich pants.” You teased with a scoff, starting to pull off your clothing to replace them with cozy sleep options, tossing Casey her usual preferred garments as she did that same.

“Oh, okay.” She laughed, “so a Hamptons house equals rich nowadays?”

“Well it doesn’t exactly mean you’re struggling to make rent.”

“Remind me again, how big was that house you grew up in?” She smirked as you turned back to her.

“Like, eight bedrooms?” You practically winced as you turned back to her and she laughed.

“Didn’t you have a pool and an entire guest house?”

“Pool yes, guest house was demolished when I was in high school to make more space for the fancy gardens my mom wanted.”

“And how many housekeepers?” Casey asked with a laugh and you let out a half annoyed huff, dropping down onto your bed as you tossed the blankets back, slipping underneath them.

“Too many to count.” You grumbled, “to cut to the chase, we’re really fucking rich, okay Case? But that doesn’t mean I like it. That doesn’t mean I want that lifestyle, that life, I’d much rather just be happy and with the people that I actually truly care about.” You missed the way Casey’s expression softened, the bright grin breaking out on her cheeks as she tugged on the hoodie before dropping down onto the bed beside you, her hands grabbing at you, cupping your cheeks and pulling you to her.

“You really care about little old me, hey?” She asked before kissing you and you let out a small laugh.

“Yeah…” you felt your cheeks heat, “I really do.” You smiled into the next kiss she stole, “I never thought I’d meet someone at school who made my world complete, but it turns out I did and I don’t care what my family thinks because I know they’re wrong, you’re all I need.”

“God you’re so fucking adorable.” She kissed you once again, “and I don’t give a fuck about where you came from, or what kind of bullshit your family is, all I want is you.”

“I adore you.” You replied with a dopey grin, wrapping an arm around her as the two of you nestled into the pillows, burrowing into the blankets before falling into a very happy sleep in each other’s arm’s.

The next morning Casey called her parents, happily checking in and catching up for nearly an hour before the upcoming holiday came up. She’d already told them about you and they were more than excited to know that you were still going strong and cared about each other so the obvious answer was yes when she asked about bringing you home for Christmas. You were expected the regular slew of push back, being reminded that you would be sleeping in a guest room, or a hint of distaste because you were a woman, but the phone was put on speaker only a moment later. The Novak’s immediately asking if you had any allergies, what your favourite food and drink options were, if you’d been to New York before and what were the must do’s that they would schedule for the four of you. Casey’s mom began to excitedly chatter about getting Casey’s room set up, saying she would make sure there were lots of extra blankets and pillows for the two of you and you cast Casey a surprised glance that she laughed off, leaning in to kiss your cheek before continuing the conversation.

You on the other hand, waited until Casey had disappeared to the gym to call your own parents, knowing that the conversation wasn’t going to go as smoothly. You opted to call the house landline, figuring that maybe you would get away with just leaving a message either on the machine or with one of the housekeepers. You paced through your room while the line rang, letting out a low breath when your mom answered.

“Vanderbilt residence, Caroline speaking.”

“Hey, it’s me.” Your pacing stopped but you dropped down onto the bed, fingers toying with the phone cord nervously.

“Oh sweetheart, it’s so good to finally hear from you! We missed you at Thanksgiving.”

“Yeah, didn’t really have enough time to come home with all the studying and stuff.”

“Well I’m glad exams will be done soon; I’ll have Larissa start setting up your room.”

“Uh… there isn’t any need for that…”

“Oh come on now, I know you’re focussed on school but you can’t stay there all by yourself over Christmas! If you don’t want to deal with the airport crowds I’m sure the Lexington’s wouldn’t mind us using the jet.”

“Mom!” You groaned, having to cut her off, “I won’t be alone, and I won’t be staying in Cambridge, I wanna go to New York.”

“Hold on, your father just got home.” She didn’t even hear what you’d said, and you let out another frustrated groan, collapsing back onto the bed behind you as you heard her say something to your dad before the line beeped and you knew you were on speaker.

“Well hey there chickadee, what a nice surprise this is.” His voice rang through the line and you grimaced at the nickname he still stuck with.

“Hi dad.”

“Now what were you saying? You want to go to New York over the break?” Your mom asked and you quickly veered from your original plan while still staying on topic.

“Yeah. I mean, I’ve always wanted to spend a Christmas there and it doesn’t hurt to start to make connections in the legal community out there now, be a step ahead of everyone else when we graduate, right?”

“That’s my smart girl.” Your dad beamed, “I’ll email you information for my contacts out there, maybe even get you set up interning at a defence firm out there over summer.”

“Yeah, that’d be great but I don’t want to work defence.”

“What on earth do you mean?” Your mom asked and you let out a sigh, rolling your eyes.

“Firm experience is fine but I want to help people not support criminals, you should know this already.”

“I really think that’s going in the wrong direction there chickadee, but you’ve still got two years left, there’s more than enough time to change your mind.”

“Sure.” You surrendered, “I am still only a semester in. So is it okay that I’m missing Christmas this year?”

“Well who are you going with?” Your mom asked, “Ethan said you started dating someone?” For fucks sake, your brother just couldn’t keep his mouth shut, could he? “You know, he and Sarah are getting pretty serious.”

“Yes mom, I know.” You knew she would end up on way too much of a tangent if you didn’t cut her off.

“We just need to know who you’re staying with.” Your dad cut in, “I don’t see any hotel charges on your credit card?”

“I’ll be staying with the Novak’s.” You let out a huff, “Benjamin and Grace if you feel the need to do a full search.” You rolled your eyes, knowing just how your parents were, you knew it was technically for your safety but they were just a little too invasive, and always had been.

“Benjamin Novak, why does that sound familiar?” Your dad asked and you could practically hear the wheels turning through the phone, “was he military?”

“Yes.”

“Wait… I remember meeting them at a few parties.” Your mom interrupted.

“Yes, Caroline you’re right. But they only had a daughter.” There was an awkward pause where you knew you parents were doing their best to have a silent conversation, “chickadee, are you trying to tell us you’re dating this Novak girl?”

“Well the point of this phone call was to ask if I could go to New York for Christmas, but now I guess it’s this. So yeah, I am.”

“Well I guess you can, because you know the rules, she can’t come here. And chickadee you better watch out, there’s lots of paparazzi in the city, you better behave yourselves and not be all over each other, I don’t want the tabloids blowing up with anything.”

“Preston.” Your mom scolded, “she knows, you don’t need to remind her.”

“Thank you.” You muttered though you were sure she didn’t hear it, there were sounds of hushed arguing on the other side of the phone before it beeped again and you knew your dad had stormed off and you were off speakerphone.

“Is this girl at Harvard with you?”

“Yes. Here for law, same year as me.”

“And I suppose if the Novak’s were at a party we were they’re a respectable family?”

“Yes. Got a house out in the Hampton’s and everything.”

“As long as you’re safe out there and you’re happy I suppose that’s all that matters. We will miss you at Christmas though.”

“Thank you mom.”

“Shame though, those Lexington boys… Archer just got married, I think Brock was hoping to spend some time with you over the holiday, we’ll have to wait for summer.”

“Did we not just talk about me interning in New York over the summer?” She didn’t hear you, or at least she pretended not to, continuing to ramble on.

“Maybe Brock would want to go out to New York with you! I mean, I’m sure this thing with this Novak girl is just a college phase, you’ll grow out of it, you’re just lonely.”

“I’m hanging up.” You deadpanned, dropping the receiver down and you let out a loud groan, running a hand over your face.

It had always been like this. Your dad would completely ignore it and pretend it wasn’t happening, warning you to not damage his or your own reputation, though that applied to more than just dating girls. You weren’t allowed to drink in excess, you’d gotten strict warnings about never doing drugs, if you were to ever be in the spotlight or papers it was to be in a positive light only. You’d been doing charity work since you were fourteen, but only if there were cameras around, you had to be at every gala and fundraiser possible. And thanks to your dad’s rules you were either to appear alone, or with a male chaperone, your parents seemed to have picked out Brock Lexington for that and still weren’t giving it up all these years later.

Your head rolled towards the door at the sound of it opening, a dreamy smile taking over your cheeks as Casey entered the room, flashing you a dazzling grin.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” You pushed yourself up to sitting while she tucked her gym bag into the closet before joining you on the bed.

“You get the go ahead for Christmas?”

“I did. We are all good.”

“Amazing.” She beamed, “it’s gonna be so great.” She paused for a moment, her brow furrowing as she took in the way your shoulders were slumped over, the slight feel of defeat hanging thick in the air, “what?”

“Nothing.” You shook your head, smiling across at her, “I’m just really glad I met you.”

“Me too.”  She smiled back at you, figuring if something was wrong, you didn’t want to talk about it right now and she wasn’t going to push it, you’d say something when you were ready. Instead she simply leant in, kissing you tenderly, letting out a happy hum at the feeling of your lips curving up into a smile against hers. You were happy with her, and that was all that mattered.

_______________

@bisexualcrowley  @red1culous @imlike-so-gaydude @wannabe-fic-reader @altsvu @disneyfan624 @svulife-rl @svushots @whimsicallymad @mysticfalls01 @swimmingstudentchaos891 @naturalxselection @cmmndrwidw @bumblebear30 @wosoimagines @solemnnova @infernumlilith @australiancarisi @cerberus-spectre @emskisworld @thestarrynightslover @lawandorderuswnt @ex-uallyactive @hbkpop @samwithnoplan @multifandomlesbianic @drduckthief @narvaldetierra @dxtery  @poisonedcrowns @anlin2058 @a-little-bit-of-this-and-that @yesterdaysgone @clarawatson @mickey-gomez @borg-queer @momlifebehard @softgamerking  @yeeterthek33per @brooklynmhm @summergeezburr @alexxavicry @anya-casablanca @daddy-heather-dunbar @evilregal2002 @alcabots @7thavenger @augustvandyne @msvenablesbitch @kdaghay

[oknowkiss]

fic claim: the july tree

for @hpdrizzle​ and @ladderofyears​!

TITLE: THE JULY TREE PAIRINGS: DRARRY, HINNY (like… the gayest version of hinny) RATING: E WORDCOUNT: 51.6K

READ ON AO3 HERE!

TAGS: 8th Year, Sexuality Exploration/Discovery, Tree of Life, Magical Plant Theory, Oops You’re Dating Now Surprise, Falling in Love, the Mortifying Ordeal of Being 18, Banter, Dating, Drinking, Smoking (cigarettes and weed), POC Harry, Desi Harry, Master of Death Harry, Alternating POV, Masturbation, Anal Fingering (more fingering than you’re expecting), First Time Sex, Angst & Humor, Mentions of Blood & Discussion of Micro-Aggressions (details in the chapter notes where they happen—no surprises)  SUMMARY: Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail… nor well-meaning friends, nor questionable communication skills, nor seven years of hating each other’s guts can keep Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy from falling in love. 

OR: It’s Eighth Year, and Harry Potter has detention. What else is new? Well, since you asked: Greenhouse Four and the Tree of Life, for a start, and then there’s the new shared Eighth Year common room, and Harry’s sexuality, and these pesky dreams he keeps having about a blond man pushing him into things…

when i saw @ladderofyears​ incredible @hpdrizzle prompt about harry and draco being set a project to repair the temperature regulation charms in hogwarts’ greenhouses, i immediately knew i wanted to do something involving all the fun weather tropes you get in romcoms (heat = stripping naked, crying in the rain, cold = huddle together)… what we ended up with is a short novel that IS about all those things, but is mostly about being young, dumb, and full of cum. 

this wasn’t supposed to be this long, but as i started writing i realized i really wanted to explore an 8th Year story centering the paradox of being young but also an adult: that time in life where you feel everything very much but have no idea who you are, and by that i mean: where everything feels like it’s only happening to you, where every love is the most powerful love that’s ever existed, where every mistake is the end of the actual world, where you barely know how to be alive but desperately want everything. 

if it’s not too bold to say, i think i achieved that, but i absolutely would not have done if it wasn’t for three very important people: @sorrybutblog @sweet-s0rr0w and @maziktheli. these three heroes held my hand and listened to my woes and busted my many many commas, and their feedback and time and thoughtful critique absolutely shaped not only this story but my writing in general. a special kudos to @sorrybutblog who was quite literally waiting in the wings for the final chapters as i pushed this thing out through my 3rd extension. 

i’m going to be bold again and say that this is my favorite thing i’ve written, maybe my 8th year magnum opus (and probably the last 8th year i will write for a very long time) and it was an honor to write it for you @ladderofyears! you are such a tour de force in this fandom, and we are so blessed to have you. 

[togalnu]

Do you have any specific hcs for fem togainu or just fem nitrochi as a whole? I'd love to hear them! ^^

Oops I meant to answer this earlier. Anyways yes! I will be putting this under a read more because. Lol. Enjoy!

You wanna know a secret? Earlier this year I was researching parodies and the legalities of them because I had the grand idea to make a togainu remake but yuri and with some story changes. A whole ass visual novel. I was seriously planning on making it. Suffice to say I have put in some thought in turning these yaoi boys into yuri girls.

We will be here all day if I list every little thought and headcanon I have! I'll def make more posts about my visions in the future, but for right now I need to talk about Shiki. I NEED TO TALK ABOUT SHIKI.

First and foremost, my overall thoughts about Shiki: wasted potential. His route was a huge disappointment when I finally got to it. It was fumbled so fucking badly and it pains my soul because Shiki is hot and I love the concept of his character but.. man. What a let down. I ended up thinking about him a lot because of this. What I would do if I were in charge of writing his route, parts of his characterization that I'd rid of or ameliorate, and maybe even giving him some new quirks to not make him so one-dimensional-evil-villain type. And then along with this, I started thinking about what if he was a woman. because I am attractdd to women. Typical thought process.

First, his design. I am a sucker for black haired red eyes bitches. I love black and red. I'm dying my hair black and red at the end of the year. The majority of my wardrobe is black and red. I do not play around #EMO. I love the almost leather gothic look he has but unfortunately it is not enough for me. I felt that he needed more unnecessary accessories and belts and other clothing items, as any goth should have. I've had a few ideas in mind for Shiki girl outfit and they all lean into these more, like giving her extra bracelets, belts, necklaces, crosses, whatever. I want her DECKED OUT!!! But I also struggle coming up with outfits so I can't really decide what looks good LMAO

Things I love about Shiki's outfit:

- The gloves. UGHHH gloves are so fun. The longer the gloves are the better.

- His stupid coat

- The spikes and crosses. The silver adds a lot to his appearance

- Turtleneck<3

Things I don't like about Shiki's outfit:

- those stupid ass notches on his pants. I can't tell if he has insane thigh-high boots or strange pants, and neither can a lot of artists it seems like? Though it seems pants are the consensus. SAD!

- Turtleneck should have long sleeves

- Or his coat should have long sleeves. One of those two

- What the hell is going on with his belt. It'd look fine if it didn't have those strange hanging.. circle... things

NOW MY IDEAS

I like the idea of her having a corset and fishnets, so I've been including that in whatever iteration of her design I'm working on. I gotta keep the coat too as it's like, a Shiki classic. I've also been trying to decide how a skirt for her might look (I love the idea of it having a slit so you can see her fishnets and thigh high boots).

But I'm torn on including the turtleneck as much as I love it.... I feel like it kinda clashes. Idk maybe i should just move her skirt up so it's not hanging off her ass but also it's fun to draw it that way.

Although adding another belt with the skirt could work too, and have the fishnets peaking out from the skirt slit... not gonna draw that rn though im just brainstorming here

Like I said earlier I'd love to give her way more accessories than base Shiki has but I need to definitely play around with outfit ideas more bc I don't want her to look too cluttered either. Also sorry all the pics are torso only because for some reason I struggle HARD with drawing calves and feet

I don't have much to say for hair ideas.. I just like the idea of it flairing out + two long.. idk what to call them... strands of hair? Down her cheeks?? Okay well u see what I mean in the pic. Bangs pretty much stay the same

And ohhh my god I know togainu is set in the post-apocalyptic future, but considering it came out in 2005 I feel obligated to rework some of the designs to be a little more y2k.. Akira with low waisted flared jeans... making Shiki even more gothic... it's so fucking fun HOW CAN I NOT!!

Also the other day I saw this one corset that I LOVED and wanted to see if I can Shiki-fy it but hmm... idk... I definitely need to play around with the idea more but here's a quick sketch i did just for funsies so you get the idea

Okay moving on

Second, his characterization. I love the idea of what they were going for in terms of his relation to Nano. I wish so badly they had expanded on this past Shiki just hating line users and killing them because he's unable to kill Nano (although I do think this is a pretty good bit of characterization). I'm pretty sure the Chayamachi manga goes more into this but idc we are talking about the game so I'm gonna pretend it doesn't exist.

Shiki is smug and cocky. Incredibly so. But a big part of his character is how hateful he is, so much so that it's this hate that motivates everything he does.

I love it. I love his hatred. I wish the game went more into it sooo badly and like if he found out Akira had anti-line blood before the end of the game and there was time given to show his reaction? Would he hate Akira for it??? Would he feel any kind of resentment?? If I was Shiki I'd definitely feel complicated as fuck over it!!!

Anyways I'm still working out how fem Shiki could be improved upon in terms of this, and I LOVEEE LOVE LOVE LOVE writing personality and backstories and relationships with other characters and how they all interact with each other. I have very deep oc lore because of this but i will not get into my ocs rn because they have nothing to do with togainu.

This post is already long enough however and if I were to talk about all the ideas I had for Shiki characterization upgrade... well it'd take even longer. To say the least. One day I'll talk about it though! In a more comprehensive post including other characters and whatnot. It's something I definitely also need to work out in my head more tho

It's been a pretty fun project so far that I hope to do more with in the future. Side note that doesn't really matter but there's this song that I always imagine fem Shiki amvs too oops.. RIDE IT by LustSickPuppy... this part especially.......

(the part is around 1:17 if you don't feel like listening to the entire thing. But u should)

Urggghhhh I love lsp ugh ughhhhhfuhrhhcuuhfhuufghh sorry for posting lyrics and a spotify link. It will happen again

OKAY. AMYWAYS

I do not give a fuck if all of this seems too self indulgent. If anything it's supposed to be!!! It's a labor of love!!!

Thank u to anyone who read this far. I appateciate it

[cute-girls-from-vns-anime-manga]

I feel like every het romance manga goes the exact same way, even ones with unique concepts, where its boy meets girl, both like each other, neither will admit it, followed by 500 chapters of tropes like "oops accidentally grabbed ur tit" and "Doki Doki! that's an indirect kiss!", 0 character development and 0 progression, and maybe, just maybe, when the manga ends, they share a dry kiss and it ends there. Why can't we have yearning? Why can't we have angst? WHY CANT WE HAVE A MANGA WHERE THEY ACTUALLY BECOME BF/GF AND WE SEE THEIR LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER DEVELOP??????????

I dont acutally know the answer to this you are not wrong at all, and the most you get for variety is when they go the opposite way and make it an enemies to lovers situation. Go read/watch Horimiya, its kind of this, My dress up darlin has also handled the relationship between Marin and Gojo very well and is actively progessing their relationship isolated from many stupid distractions like a love triangle or idiot best friend who is only there to be a cuck.

I think a lot of shoujo/romance writters forget THAT YOU STILL NEED A CHARACTER ARC for your romance STORY to be engaging!

[kinmokusei-stars]

This is Kouko's scene of properly confessing to Inuyasha after they finally established and admitted that they have mutual feelings for each other, after a month of ridiculous mutual pining.

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(Long Description, be warned!)

Getting this done within 6 days is such a huge achievement for me LMAO Especially when I got sick at the very end of it's production! Yeesh. (╥_╥) I originally planned to put this out as a single drawing with a written story in the description, but I always feel so awkward writing things like that, so of course I go all in instead. (￣▽￣*)ゞ Oops...

Did this wear me out? Absolutely. Was it worth it? ...I mean, I definitely think so! I had a blast! It's monochrome currently, but I might go back and color it properly in the future. Either way, it's finally here!

Emotional explanation under the cut -v- Feel free to ignore if you don't want paragraphs about my OC x Canon pairing and would just like the comic LMAO

Kouko's an extremely selfless lover. She loves intense, but so so softly. Really, she just wants the person she loves to be happy and fulfilled, whether that means they'll be together in the long run or not.

She feels no competition or malice towards Kagome, and even though deep down she doesn't think him and Kagome fit well together in a romantic manner, she wants Inuyasha to have the freedom to be with whoever he wants. She understands she hasn't been there for the entire journey to see the buildup to where they are now and why they've developed some degree of feelings for eachother. Though she loves Inuyasha, she feels guilty for not only potentially hurting Kagome, but possibly making him feel as though he's obligated to be with her due to their shared, now out in the open feelings. She knows their love is mutual, but she also knows that his love life is extremely complicated at the moment with her, Kagome, and his (to him) fresh loss of Kikyo. That he needs time. Time to process, time to figure things out.

She doesn't want to put any pressure on him, because no matter what, whether he spends his days with her or somebody else, she'll still love him.

And he does actually choose to be with Kouko a little bit later on after this! And really? Neither could be happier with the arrangement. They're lovebugs, even if they don't show it publicly often. And their deep connection that they forged over time, really only makes their love more true, there's a reason they end up genuinely happily married years later! They're the epitome of the phrase "Love takes time, and love takes work"

I'm such a sucker for these two LMAO

[killsandthrills]

15 questions for 15 mutuals!

i was tagged by @jake-and-amy-are-married i meant to do this days ago, but i didn’t have the time until now. thanks for tagging me!

1. Are you named after anyone?

i’m named after my grandma.

2. When was the last time you cried?

last week i think? i was watching a sad movie.

3. Do you have kids?

nope!

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

not as much as i used to.

5. What sports do you play/have you played?

i’m not really a sports person. i love to swim though.

6. What's the first thing you notice about other people?

most definitely their hair.

7. What's your eye colour?

a really light brown. my mom says they’re hazel, but i don’t really see it.

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

would it be weird if i said neither? i just want a well written story with an ending that suits it.

9. Any special talents?

umm, i can find almost anything on the internet. is that really a talent though… idk.

10. Where were you born?

los angeles.

11. What are your hobbies?

reading, writing, singing, painting, coding, graphic design, photography, yoga, traveling, watching movies, and playing video games. i also collect stuff like books, posters, maps, ticket stubs, etc. i’m also trying to get into decluttering, but yeah…

12. Do you have any pets?

no, but i used to have a cat. it was killed by a coyote though. and that coyote was awful too… it killed everyone’s cats on my block.

13. How tall are you?

5 feet exactly :)

14. Favorite subject in school?

english lit.

15. Dream job?

i do not dream of labor :) but for real, ideally i’d like to start my own business where i sell art that i make as prints. that, or working in a bookstore. i used to want to be a film director, but that dream is long gone. and when i was a kid i wanted to be evie from the mummy lmao.

tagging (wayyy more than 15 lol, oops): @rebeljyn @therebelcaptain @hegodamask @kaleidoscopegirl @sparklingbinjuice @seleneisrising @olympain @gayvillains @ex0rin @blackstarising @starlady66 @abnerkrill @trinuviel @liminal-zone @swan-orpheus @elizabethmulder @lavandorhaze @captawesomesauce​ @kroi @laz-laz-ace-pilot

[abalonetea]

Can I ask a kind of thinky GHD-adjacent question that's sort of more form than substance? I remember the original, and how it was sort of this fusion of cute and nice with dark and horror because of the 2 versions and glitches and all. Since, since then, you seem to have put a lot of work into more darker-toned and more horror-themed pieces, does that have an impact on the direction you think the eventual GHD rewrite might end up taking? (This is the part where I am hinting you should TOTALLY ramble about changes and tone and themes if desired). Also, would one expect more "these things start small and become more noticeable as we go until OOPS maybe things aren't so nice," or a jarring back and forth between the light and dark parts? (I think either would be fun there tbh).

Yes, you can! I love questions like this! Also nonny, you've been here that long, that makes me super happy to hear <3 I'm glad to still have you in the area!

Okay, so! I have definately been writing a lot more horror and crime stories recently, and even a lot of fantasy and modern-day pieces with a darker tone to them. It's been a lot of fun! And I actually put GHD on the back burner for a long time, because I wasn't sure whether I wanted to twist the new draft to match those darker, more horror-esque vibes.

Like, it's been on a solid year long haitus because I couldn't figure out whether I wanted to keep the lighter tone or not! And I've actually recently come up with an answer: yes, and no.

When I first started writing for GHD, the story didn't have a cemented plot on Locke's side of the world! As such, the first draft was a hot mess, it was so hard to sort through, for real. But as I started to grow in my writing, and then read over GHD, and explore other themes, and return to GHD, I realized that I already had the skeleton of the story that it was meant to be.

GHD is not meant to be the same as, say, Sun Touched. Sun Touched is the break down of a singular character; an up close look at someone who was never meant to be in a war suddenly being in a war. It has a lot of heavier themes to it (side eyeing Isaac's cigarette problem here, and I don't mean smoking them) and a very specific tone. I thought about it and... That's not GHD!

GHD is a dichotomy, and it's a story of hope. And it's meant to stay that way.

BUT I'm finally at a point with my writing where I can handle the nuances of the story more.

In the first few drafts, I tip toed around Fara Falls (the glitched dystopian world) a lot, because I wasn't sure how hard into the dystopia I wanted to lean. In the current draft, that's going to be a huge focus. We're going to look at the world and see exactly how Bolte ended up the closed off person that he is by the time the story starts. But more importantly, we're going to use it as a warning.

Fara Falls has always had EXP hunters, famines, food hoarding, fight clubs, and gangs. But in the current draft, it's going to be highlighted even more. The glaring danger of the world, the heavy burden on Bolte's shoulders, as well as both Celeste and Captain's stories. Neither of them are happy.

But then we're going to bounce to Locke's story, and it's going to remain the cute, soft, hopeful world that we've always seen. Locke is the embodiment of Hope. His world is, for the moment, still mostly good. The candy is still sweet, the bees are still buzzing, and... Locke's story is still one of Hope, but here's the thing, nonny, here's the thing.

Bolte's world has already fallen. But it's in such a state because of something that's about to happen in Locke's world. That's the key feature the first draft missed! So while Locke's story starts out as a venture of health and hope and healing, we soon realize that the world isn't as happy as it used to be, that the Queen is acting different, that there's something wrong.

There's going to be a tonal shift at the middle of the story. A sudden departure from the slice-of-life style at the start, shifting closer to the action before a brewing war. And it's never going to be as dark as Fara Falls and Bolte's journey, but we're going to be able to see the places where things could go wrong, where if left unchecked... Well, maybe Bolte's world makes a lot more sense now.

So, it's a jarring back and forth, and then a slight creep towards... Maybe the back and forth isn't so jarring after all.