#surprised this is the first time i've drawn them honestly. this was a lot of fun even if im not a huge fan of this composition

[mothcpu]

obsolete apostle

[ooffmlsorry]

Getting Drunk with One Piece Men

sabo, ace, law, zoro, sanji

A/n: Ngl writing drunk characters is my bread and butter. Idk man. It's just how I am.

Content: gender neutral except female pet names in Zoro's

SABO

Y'all become idiot 1 and idiot 2, honestly you might even fight over who gets to be idiot 1

Koala's so tired of y'all omg this poor woman deserves a vacation from the two of you

You can drink him under the table, he's such a lightweight

I'm so sorry to tell you your man's a wanderer. At least once you're going to turn around and say "where'd Sabo go????" Half of your night might be spent looking for him

Despite being drunk Sabo's still a gentleman, you two are gonna stumble down the street arm and arm, he'll walk on the outside of the sidewalk closer to the street to keep you safe, and he likes getting your drinks for you

He drinks sugary drinks and will have a HORRIBLE hangover in the morning

He's not necessarily an angry drunk but he is a loud argumentative one, when he inevitably wanders off you're going to find him loudly arguing on behalf of the revolution and shit talking the world government to anyone that listens and to anyone who won't

You're also going to give each other increasingly stupid dares and stunts throughout the night

Gets affectionate as the drunkness gets closer to tiredness and then he turns into a cuddly man baby

Y'all also both crash pretty unceremoniously. Hack is going to find you two curled up in a coat closet together with a random dog and a dick drawn on your face???

ACE

two words: GOOFBALL ALERT!! He's unserious normally but when he's drunk unless something really, really bad is going down, don't expect a serious response out of him

So LOUD!!

"Ace, why are you yelling? I'm right here."

"I'M YELLING???"

You're all of his impulse control for the night and if you don't have any either than good luck to Marco...

Will loudly brag about you to anyone who listens. Probably does a toast just because you exist and will probably say something he shouldn't

Please stay near him, he just wants you to be right next to him. If you're a wanderer you're gonna stress him out real bad and he's gonna start spiraling. He's just physically clingy, he's got his arms wrapped around you, his head resting on your shoulder, sitting on his lap would make him very happy. -10 personal space.

Lights a shot of liquor on fire and drinks it to impress you. Every. Single. Time.

Speaking of that he repeats SO MANY of the same stories he's told you before

Also wants to dance with you, you've got no option unless you absolutely hate it

Tells you he loves you once every 2 minutes. please say it back. Don't be surprise if he proposes to you a couple of times when he's drunk

Inevitably starts crying...the later it is the more likely it is to happen. Just be prepared to coddle him and be covered in snot before morning.

LAW

First of all, it's gonna take a lot to get this man to actually drink. He's not a fan of being out of control. But he would do it, especially if someone told him he couldn't or told him not to

He also doesn't have the highest tolerance, the fact that he's tall is the only thing saving him from being a lightweight

You know he's drunk because he gets really expressive and talks with his hands a lot more.

I'm telling you this man is going to start talking about his coins. Fucking coins. And Sora. He's gonna out himself as a huge fucking nerd.

He's the most self aware drunk you've ever met. For the entire night he's fully aware of the things he shouldn't be doing/saying and still does them.

"I've had way too much, Y/N-ya. This is going to be awful."

*Gets another drink*

This also includes being all over you. If your relationship was a secret it's not anymore because he can't stop staring at you and keeps finding his way back to your side. And he does this thing where he keeps inspecting your hands and fingers??? He's captivated by them. You think he's trying to hold your hand without looking like he's holding your hand??? But it's kind of unclear????

The more I think about it the more I'm certain that drunk Law turns into a little weirdo.

If you touch him at all he's going to turn into putty, like his face is just gonna look like 🥴

Might start telling you secret dumb thoughts that he has or recalling good memories with Cora.

If Luffy or Kid is there he won't say no to a challenge, he doesn't say no anyway but it's so. much. worse.

He's gonna have to drink enough to put him to sleep or he's going to sober up and recall the horror of what drunk!Law was like

Please act like none of it ever happened. Please.

ZORO

This man is gonna fall asleep.

Can Zoro even get drunk???

Well, hell froze over and he did. Somehow.

Drunk Zoro is surprisingly friendly, he even almost compliments Sanji which is WILD

Like he kind of has something nice to say about everyone worth saying something nice about

There's still something really intimidating about him especially if anyone makes you uncomfortable

Suddenly Zoro can't remember your name and only refers to you as "my girl" or "woman"

Honestly, he can't believe you're actually dating him and he'll tell you several times

Will probably say something like "damn, I keep forgetting how pretty you are. 'S fucking weird."

Teases you a lot. He's like a kid pulling your pigtails because he likes you. As soon as you do it back you're going to get a big reaction out of him though

"OI! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR???"

"NOT SO FUNNY NOW IS IT!!"

He might play fight with you lmao, be prepared to be manhandled because he's rough around the edges but man does he love you

Like I said...this man is inevitably going to fall asleep, hopefully you were done partying by that point because he's not letting go of you. You're stuck. Sorry. You're his new nighttime plushie.

SANJI

Oh Sanji *long sigh*

He thinks he's being smooth but he's boderline incoherent when he's really drunk

He's gonna hype you up!! A LOT!!!!

Probably the most normal drunk because he's already a perv and being drunk doesn't make it that much worse

He can be a little petty though lol, not towards you but you might hear him muttering something here or there

Wants to take a bunch of pictures with you

Unfortunately over half of them are gonna be a blurry mess

Absolutely wants to dance with you

He's not drinking nasty alcohol

Honestly, he's kind of giving Brittany Broski in the sense that depending on what drink he has he's gonna gag

Sidenote: he could theoretically stomach it, Zeff didn't raise no bitch(/j) but why torture him??

So excited you exist??? Like for a moment he's gonna get philosophical and be in complete awe that the two of you exist at the same time and met??? How lucky can he be!!!?

Actually, drunk Sanji gets kind of deep after a while, especially when the two of you are alone

He's not gonna cook drunk. Big no-no. That's a hazard. But if you were drunk and hungry or wanted to sober up he'll make you a cup of coffee and something that doesn't require fire or a lot of knife skills

Would rather whisk you away somewhere quiet to be alone with you after a while. Like, he's not a wanderer per se, but he wants to be alone with you

Leans on you a lot when he's drunk

He might definitely be the little spoon that night, he gets so soft by the end of the night just hold him, okay?

[illdowhatiwantthanks]

Hi, honey! Could you please write something about Emily Prentiss having a teenage daughter who sh’s and Em finds out? I know you wrote something similar and it’s perfectly okay if you feel like this is too repetitive <3 Ps; you’re so incredible and I aspire to be able to write like you do!! <3

Here you go, Anon! It's true, I've had a lot of SH-related requests recently, but I really don't mind the repetition. If it's something people want more of, and it helps them feel safe and heard and loved, I'm happy to write it. ❤️ (and thank you so much I'm so flattered! <3)

Tiny

Emily Prentiss x daughter!reader Warnings: self-harm, discussion of self-harm and self-harm tools, mental illness, internalized homophobia, explicit language (please let me know if I've missed anything!) Word count: 1.8k

Summary: After your best friend moves away, you start to struggle with depression, loneliness, and self-harm. You do a pretty good job of hiding it for a while but your mom is a profiler after all.

You’d been so good, so good, at hiding it. Long sleeves. Bracelets. You kept the tiny, sharp travel scissors in your locker at school, disguised in a bag with fabric and buttons and needles. A sewing project, you always said if anyone asked. But no one asked.

The truth of the matter was that you didn’t have many friends. And Sophia, your best friend since second grade, had moved to Denver last year for her dad’s job. You’d sworn to keep in touch, sworn that you’d stay best friends no matter what. And you’d tried, you’d really tried. But the daily texts had turned into weekly texts. The every-other-night FaceTime calls became every-other-month. And every time you talked to her, it seemed like her life was better than ever. She had new friends. A new soccer team. Even a boyfriend. It seemed like every time you called her, she was with him.

It hurt when you realized that Sophia liked spending time with her new boyfriend more than spending time with you. But it had hurt even more to examine your own jealousy, your own inexplicable rage at her moving on, making new friends, having new experiences. The reality–that you liked Sophia as more than a friend–hit you like a gut punch. And you didn’t know who to talk to about it. Normally, you’d talk to Sophia. But you couldn’t talk to her about this. Honestly, you weren’t even sure you were good enough friends to talk about boys or girls or whoever anymore. She’d drifted away and left you behind.

You thought about talking to your mom–she’d dated girls. But she was so busy with work, so stressed. She tried really hard not to let on when she was home, but you could see how tired she was, how she nodded blankly when you told her about your day, her mind elsewhere. No doubt with the hundreds of psychopaths and murderers she investigated every day.

You didn’t know who you were or what you were. You just knew that you were lonely and hurt and so deeply confused. There were other LGBTQ+ kids at school, but they’d all been out since middle school. They had that unbreakable comradery that queer kids who flock together often have. And you’d missed it.

All the confusion, all the hurt, all the feelings, roiled inside you until there was no place for it to go except out. The first time you’d drawn the scissors across your forearm, the blood had surprised you, as had the brief moment where there was blood but no pain. But when the pain did hit, it felt like a balloon had popped, like something that had been growing and growing and pressing in on you had shrunk back down to a manageable size.

Of course, the shame followed. Of course, you felt terrible, guilty, ashamed, sick to your stomach. Of course, you cried when you thought about what your mom would say if she saw it, what Sophia would say. But even worse, you knew they’d ask why. And you were terrified to talk about why. So you put on your long sleeves. You started wearing bracelets. And you hoped that no one would notice.

But that night, after a quick dinner of takeout pizza and Caesar salad, your mom had asked you to wash up and, without thinking, you’d rolled up your sleeves to do the dishes.

“Oh my god!” your mom exclaimed, rushing to your side. “What happened to your arm!?”

It was so stupid. You’d been so careful. You’d kept this a secret for months and now, with just one fuck-up, you’d ruined it.

“Nothing!” you cried, squirming out of her grip. “I just… I scratched myself, that’s all.”

But your mom wasn’t stupid. She spoke six languages. She headed an FBI unit. She was the smartest person you knew. She profiled people for a living. And she could tell when you were lying.

“Y/N!” she chastised, grabbing onto your arms hard. She'd also trained in hand-to-hand combat so you were really no match for her.

She turned your wrists around so she could see the inside of your arms, and the look on her face nearly broke you. It was sadness, it was guilt, it was shock and disbelief and worry, so much worry. You stared at the ceiling, willing yourself not to cry, mouth clamped shut.

“Y/N,” she said, quieter, running a gentle thumb along your forearms. “Tiny, look at me.” A tear dripped down your cheek. She didn’t call you Tiny much these days. And you always rolled your eyes when she did. It was what she’d called you when you were little. I love you, Tiny. You're so strong, Tiny! You can do it! Everything’s gonna be okay, Tiny.

You sniffed and lowered your head to look at her, more tears falling. You saw that your mom had tears in her eyes, too, and it made you feel awful.

“How long have you been hurting yourself?” she asked, her voice calm and gentle, full of emotion.

“I don’t know,” you mumbled, sniffling. “Maybe like… six months?”

She let out a shaky sigh and nodded. “Okay,” she said, more to herself than to you. “Okay.” After a moment, she drew you into her, and you pressed your face into her chest, finally letting yourself cry.

“It’s okay, honey,” she cooed, smoothing your hair as she hugged you. “It’s gonna be okay.”

When your sobs had calmed to hiccups, you emerged, face red and blotchy. Your mom wiped your face with her hands and motioned to the kitchen table. “This might be hard for you,” she started, looking at you earnestly. “But we need to talk about it. Go ahead and sit down. I’m gonna make us some tea.”

You took deep, soothing breaths as your mom set a steeping cup of chamomile in front of you, holding her own close to her chest.

“Are you mad at me?” you whispered, scared of the conversation to come.

“No, baby,” she assured you, squeezing your hand. “I’m not mad. I’m worried about you, that’s all.”

You nodded.

“Now, first things first,” she began, and you winced, sure she was going to take something away from you or ground you or something. “Do you know how to properly clean and dress a cut like that?”

You blinked in surprise. “Uh…” You were floundering. This is not where you expected this conversation to go. “I mean, I put band-aids on them.”

“Yeah, no,” your mom said, taking out her phone and making a note. “We’re gonna get you some alcohol sterilizer. Let’s see… Neosporin, gauze bandages. Probably butterfly bandages too, just in case. And whatever it is that you’re using for… this… you need to be sanitizing it before you use it.”

Your jaw dropped and you stared at her. “You don’t… want me to stop?”

She clicked the phone shut and stared purposefully at you. “Oh, no. Hear me loud and clear. I absolutely want you to stop. But… from what I know about self-harm, it’s a process. It might take some time. You might have relapses. And I just want you to be as safe as you can in recovery.”

“Thanks, Mom,” you said quietly, surprised at her response. You hadn’t really thought about being safe while cutting. Since cutting itself wasn’t exactly safe. Trust your mom to always be looking for ways to take care of you.

Your mom pursed her lips for a moment, as if thinking about how to proceed. And, once again, you were terrified that she was going to make you feel worse somehow, even if she didn’t mean to.

“It’s okay,” she stuttered, breathing out heavily, “if you don’t want to talk to me about what’s making you want to do this, but you need to talk to somebody. So tomorrow I’m gonna make some phone calls and we’re gonna find a therapist. And if your therapist recommends it, we might need to find you a psychiatric facility for a little bit.”

Ice-cold panic flooded your veins. “No, Mom, please!” 

“Hey, hey,” she said, grabbing your hands. “It is not a punishment. There is nothing wrong or shameful about your brain needing some help, okay? Even if it’s scary, we’re gonna do what we need to do to help you get better. Yes?”

You exhaled and nodded.

“Okay. So that’s what we’re gonna do.”

You were both silent for a moment, sipping your tea. You wished you could tell what your mom was thinking. You wished you could tell her what you were thinking. You so desperately wanted to tell someone. And you were scared. Scared that your mom would never look at you the same again. Scared that you’d never again be that same little girl, her Tiny. There was too much wrong with you.

You sniffled as your eyes filled with tears again. “Mom?” you squeaked.

“Yeah, honey?”

You asked what you were most afraid to ask. “Do you still love me?”

“Oh, baby,” she said, scooting her chair toward you and wrapping you in her arms. “Of course I do. I love you so much. I’ll always love you. You’re my little girl, you’re my Tiny.”

Your shoulders shook as you wept. “I just feel…” you cried. “I just feel like no one really loves me.”

“That’s just not true,” your mom said, rubbing your back. “I love you. All your aunts and uncles at the BAU love you. What about Sophia? She loves you.”

You cried even harder. “No, she doesn’t, Mom.”

Your mom brushed your hair away from her face. “What are you talking about? You talk all the time.”

And when you finally said it, it felt like a weight off your shoulders, like you’d been carrying a mountain for months and someone had finally lifted it away. You shook as you spoke. “She doesn’t love me like I love her.”

Understanding flooded your mom’s face. She nodded, and you could tell by the look on her face, by the empathy in her eyes, by the way she squeezed your hand and cupped your face and pursed her lips that she knew. She knew what it was like. She knew the confusion and the hurt and the self-hatred. She knew it all.

And it was almost better that she didn’t say anything. Anything at all. She just looked at you and understood. She just brushed your tears away with her thumb and let you finish crying. And when your sobs subsided, she held your hand. And she kept holding it. And after a while, she brushed your hair out of your face and said, “Everything’s gonna be okay, Tiny. I promise.”

And you knew–because she was your mom, because she was her, because she loved you and you loved her–that it would be.

[brbsoulnomming]

Tell Me Sweet Little Lies Part 14

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | AO3

-----

Everyone does end up having to go home. Except him, obviously, and Steve, whose house Eddie has learned he's apparently going to be squatting in until they can figure out a way to clear his name.

Is it squatting if he's invited? Eh, whatever.

Nancy and Robin swing by to drop off the prescriptions they'd picked up for Eddie. Both of them linger, long enough that Eddie thinks they might just stay - kind of wants them to stay, torn between wanting to be alone with Steve and not wanting to be alone with Steve.

Robin hugs Steve really tight, and he folds her up in his arms and holds her close, just staying like that for a long, long few minutes, talking so quietly they can't be heard. Nancy takes both their hands and squeezes when they're done, and surprises Eddie by giving his hand a squeeze as well. Robin looks like she kind of wants to launch herself at Eddie and hug him, too, but she settles for ruffling his hair, and then grimacing when her hand comes away grimy.

He laughs at her, and they promise to check in tonight, then they both leave.

Mrs. Sinclair comes to pick up Lucas and Erica and Max, and Eddie stays out of sight with his heart hammering in his throat, but they don't venture beyond the front hallway. Eddie can't quite make out what she says as she picks them up, but her tone is low and worried, and there's an underlying note of a familiarity, a gratitude, as she speaks briefly to Steve.

Eddie wonders, again, how long they've all been doing this. How many times their parents have worried about them, how many times Steve has apparently brought them home safely, looking beat to hell.

Mrs. Henderson is much louder when she comes to collect Dustin, though she doesn't go into the living room either. He can hear her fussing over the bandages around Steve's neck, asking how bad it is, sounding only mildly reassured when he tells her that it wasn't as bad as Starcourt. She asks him to come stay with her and Dustin, and Eddie thinks he can hear something like longing in Steve's voice when he declines, promising to come to dinner next week instead.

Then it's just him and Steve.

Steve collapses on the recliner, tipping his head back. Eddie's eyes are drawn to the long line of his throat, the stretch of tendons and muscle broken up by white gauze.

His mouth goes dry.

"I've got a guest room ready for you upstairs," Steve says.

His throat works as he speaks, and it takes Eddie a moment to process it.

"Fuck," Eddie mumbles. "Stairs, really?"

Steve laughs softly, tipping his head back up. "Yeah. It's got an ensuite and the bed's decent, we can set you up a lot better in there."

Eddie swallows. He wants to ask why Steve's doing this for him, but he's a little bit afraid of the answer, so he just makes an exaggerated whine of complaint.

It works to make Steve chuckle again, at least, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, you'll be glad once you're in an actual bed. Look, I'll get you some food and your next dose of meds first, just hang tight for a bit."

Eddie grumbles unintelligibly, but honestly, Steve's probably right. He must doze off a little, because the next thing he knows, Steve is gently shaking him awake, helping him sit up, and giving him something.

"What's this?" he asks, blinking blearily down at the bowl Steve handed him. It kind of looks like chunky baby food, though it smells pretty good.

"Oh, uh, frozen shepherd's pie," Steve says. "Not a lot to work with right now, we'll have to see about a grocery run soon. But I figure it's probably at least better than snacks and hospital food."

Eddie shrugs. "Not exactly a picky eater over here," he says as he digs in.

It's warm, and tastes a hell of a lot better than it looks. Like meatloaf and mashed potatoes all mixed up together, all hearty and comforting.

"S'good," he mumbles around a full mouth, prompting Steve to make a face at him.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, gross," Steve bitches.

Eddie feels compelled to stick his tongue out at him, still with some mashed potato remnants stuck to it, and Steve rolls his eyes.

"You make this?" Eddie asks, once he's swallowed the rest of the potato.

"Yeah." Steve scratches the back of his neck, just above the bandage. "Sometimes I'll freeze up smaller portions if I make something big, so I have stuff to grab when I'm in a hurry. Or when I've got recuperating metal-heads in my living room."

Eddie huffs a little laugh. "That a common occurrence? And here I thought I was special," he teases.

"You're something," Steve returns, though the grin he gives him is wide and fond as he reaches for the prescription bag Robin'd dropped off, pulling out the pair of bottles within and reading them over. "You're not due for your antibiotics yet, but you can have the pain meds."

He opens the bottle up, then pauses, frowning down into it. "Did they give you the wrong prescription?"

Ah.

"No," Eddie says, feeling exhausted.

"But we have the same meds, and mine is like. Four times this amount, even though your injuries are way worse, infection aside," Steve says, looking back up at him with his brow furrowed.

"They said it's because I left against medical advice."

Steve snorts. "That's a load of crap."

Eddie sighs. "What do you want me to tell you, Steve? You know what my side job is. The whole town does. Every time I go to the ER for something, to them, I'm just drug seeking."

Steve looks stricken, and god, Eddie's not sure he can take any well meaning pity right now. He kind of wants the couch to just swallow him up.

There's just silence, though, and then Steve's jaw sets in determination. He gets up, leaving Eddie floundering a little and staring after him as he walks into the kitchen, returning with a bottle that looks almost identical to the one Eddie was given.

He sits back down, popping them both open, and promptly tips his bottle to start dumping his own pills into Eddie's.

"Whoa, hey, what the fuck!" Eddie struggles to get up without hurting himself or dropping his bowl, gives up, and tries his best to glare at Steve from his position on the couch under the blankets.

"You need them more," Steve says stubbornly. "It's not like I'm going to take them, anyway."

Fuck, that's worse than pity, and Eddie feels his blood boil.

"No, of course not." Eddie sneers. "Is His Majesty above such petty things like pain? Would he rather muscle through on sheer meathead determination than turn to drugs like the lower class?"

Steve goes very still. "Do you really think that?" he asks quietly.

Eddie opens his mouth to snap that he doesn't have to think it, that Steve just showed him it, but - he looks at the expression on Steve's face instead, how it's gone closed off but it isn't hard, isn't angry. It's just blank. Abruptly, Eddie feels wrong-footed, like he'd fallen back on old habits and responded as the guy everyone thinks he is, to the guy he used to think Steve was.

"No," he says, just as quietly. "I don't really think that."

Steve's frozen exterior melts a little, and he shakes a pair of pills out into his hand, holds them out for Eddie to take. Eddie does, swallows them dry, and shovels another spoon of shepherd's pie into his mouth to keep it occupied. Steve looks like he's thinking about something, and Eddie doesn't want to risk saying something to throw him off.

"It's not that I'm trying to muscle through," Steve says, apparently coming to a decision. "I was drugged last time we dealt with Upside Down shit, it was a whole thing." He waves his hand. "I was high as hell for some of what was going down, and it was. Not a great time."

Eddie tries to imagine fighting off the demobats while drugged out of his mind, and goes a little pale. "Fuck."

"Yeah," Steve says. "I can't really do anything stronger than alcohol or the occasional joint now."

"Fuck," Eddie says, softer and with more feeling. "Jesus Christ, I'm such an ass, why do you even like me?"

Steve opens his mouth, and Eddie flails, slapping his hand over Steve's mouth before he can say anything.

"Nope, nuh-uh, this is an apology, not a ploy to get you to say nice things about me," Eddie insists. "Okay?"

Steve's laughing at him, he can tell just by his eyes, but he waits until Steve nods before he pulls his hand away.

"That's not what I think of you," Eddie says again. "I got defensive and lashed out, and it wasn't fair. I'm sorry."

The laughter in Steve's eyes fades, and he looks - caught out, all surprised and vulnerable, and he's staring at Eddie with something like wonder.

It makes Eddie squirm, feeling both like he doesn't know what he did to get that look and like he never wants it to stop.

"Thank you. Apology accepted." Steve's quiet for a moment before adding, "I'm sorry, too. I could tell you were upset but you didn't want sympathy, so I just."

He shrugs, and Eddie's going to press him more about what he just, but first - "You could tell?"

"Yeah. Your face does this thing - you're usually so expressive, but you just kind of shut down, like you're resigned."

Oh. Fuck. He hadn't realized Steve noticed him like that, and he focuses really hard on the other thing he wanted to push about to avoid thinking about it too much. "So you just?"

Steve gives him a crooked little smile. "Jumped to fixing it. Robin says I have this thing, where if someone I care about is upset and I don't know what else to do, I try to fix it. But sometimes how I try to fix it and what they want are different things."

Eddie's mouth opens, and before he knows it he's said, "I'm okay with that."

Steve blinks at him. "Really?"

Eddie'd shrug, but he's not sure his shoulder - or his entire torso - is up for the motion right now, so he just tries to look as casual as possible while half huddled on the couch, in hospital scrubs. "Yeah. People don't try to fix things for me, not unless it's my uncle. Might be kind of nice."

"Oh." Steve's got this look on his face like he doesn't know what to do with that - maybe he hasn't gotten many people who let him try to fix things for them.

Which, fair enough. Under any other circumstances, Eddie'd probably be one of those, just - he doesn't think he's lying, even not touching the fact that Steve hadn't reacted to what he said. "I'm probably going to be a dick about it when I'm not recovering from being half dead, though," he adds, just to be safe.

Steve snorts. "You've met just about all of my friends, man, that's nothing new. Usually I do a decent job at figuring out when they're just being dicks and when I'm actually going too far, but they're good about telling me when I don't get it right. They do it when I'm being too much of a dick, too."

"I can do that," Eddie decides. "Tell you if you're going too far."

He probably shouldn't make decisions right after leaving the hospital against medical advice, but screw it, he's doing it anyway.

"Okay," Steve says after another moment of consideration, then narrows his eyes at him. "I'm still taking a rain check on telling you all the things I like about you. It's getting to be kind of a long list."

Eddie gapes at him. Fuck, he can feel his cheeks burning, and he really hopes he can blame it on the bite wounds or the pain meds.

Hopes Steve won't ask, because he knows that would be a lie.

"Go away," he says, curling over his bowl so he doesn't have to look at Steve. "Let me eat my luxury baby food in peace before I have to drag my ass up all those stairs."

Steve laughs at him again, but it isn't mean, and he does leave, heading upstairs to - Eddie doesn't really know what Steve Harrington does with his free time when he's not ripping apart demobats or complaining about babysitting, actually.

Huh.

He thinks he might like to find out.

He shovels the rest of his shepherd's pie down methodically, then sets the bowl down on the coffee table and eyes the stairs. Despite his earlier words, he's pretty sure there's no way he's going to make it up them on his own. He pulls in a breath and lets it out, then calls, "Hey, Steve?"

Steve emerges almost immediately, a couple of towels tossed over one shoulder and an armful of plastic bottles. "You done?" he asks, tromping down the stairs.

Eddie eyes him. "What's all that?"

"The hospital did a pretty good job at getting most of the Upside Down grime off of us, but I thought you might want to wash it out of your hair," Steve says.

And fuck, yeah, Eddie really, really wants to - it's not just Upside Down grime, honestly, what with the whole being on the run for a week thing, and it just feels gross. Still, Eddie grimaces.

"Not, uh. Not really sure I can stand up long enough," he admits. "Plus I'm not supposed to lift my arms that high yet."

Steve's ears turn just a little bit pink, and Eddie struggles to keep his expression neutral, not to let his eyebrows raise up or to lean in too hungrily.

"I can wash it for you," he offers. "The laundry room's got a pretty deep sink, and I can pull up a chair and have you lean back a little."

He looks so fucking earnest that it makes Eddie flounder a little, once again having to restrain himself from asking why. Why is Steve doing any of this? Is it just because this seems to be what he does, because he thinks of Eddie as part of their Upside Down fighting group now and is focused on taking care of a party member? Were the handful of stolen moments during all of the fuckery and in the hospital real, or is Eddie just fooling himself that this is something he could actually have?

"Yeah," he says before he even realizes he's agreeing, while his thoughts are still a tangled up mess. "Appreciate it, man."

Steve shoots a smile at him. "Gimme a sec, I'll be right back."

He disappears down the hall for a few minutes, then comes back to help Eddie up. It's slow going, with Steve taking most of Eddie's weight, but he knows it's not going to be near as rough as the stairs will be, so he tells himself it's a practice run.

There's a low backed chair pulled up in front of the sink when they get to the laundry room, a folded up towel already pillowed on the edge of it. Steve guides him to sit down and tilt his head back, neck cushioned by the towel and hair spilling into the sink.

And then -

Fuck, Steve is close.

He's been close before, obviously, he let Eddie get all up in his personal space when they were walking through the Upside Down and he leaned over Eddie's shoulder a few times to watch what he was doing, and Eddie's literally been leaning on him to walk since he got here, but - with all of that, there was something else going on, some kind of other purpose or at least a buttload of pain he was trying to ignore.

Sitting like this, Steve leaning over him as he fiddles with the knobs to get the water to a good temperature, he's just close. Eddie can feel the body heat coming off of him, and he can count every freckle and mole on Steve's forearms, where he'd pushed up the sleeves of his sweatshirt. He's not trying to look, but he can still see the scrawl of writing that disappears under the sleeve of his left arm, can just make out I don't think. He can hear the heavy beat of his own heart and the way his breath quickens, and he forces himself to breathe slow and even, trying not to draw attention to it.

Then Steve's fingers are in his hair, gently sweeping it all together as he starts rinsing it out.

"Shit, man, this might take awhile," he says apologetically. "The water's coming out as black as it did for mine, and I've got less hair."

Eddie hums noncommittally, afraid if he says anything he'll end up telling Steve that's fine by him, they can stay like this all night if he wants to. There's the sound of a shampoo bottle opening, and on his next breath in he's hit with the scent of something, he has no idea what, like a honeyed summer day, all sunshine and sweet and clean.

And then Steve's hands are on him again, fingertips rubbing small circles over his scalp, blunt nails scratching in just the right way to send shivering goosebumps down his spine.

He's not proud of the way it makes him fucking whimper, but mostly because the sound prompts Steve to freeze.

"That hurt?" Steve asks softly.

"No," Eddie manages to get out. "It, uh. Feels nice."

Nice is an understatement, but not a lie, so it's the best he's got right now. It makes Steve continue, at least, so Eddie's taking the fucking win.

His eyes slide shut, and he thinks he might drift off to sleep right there if it weren't for the fact that he really wants to cling to how fucking good this feels. God, he can't remember the last time he felt a physical sensation that wasn't pain or discomfort, and he tells himself that's the reason that this is making him react so strongly.

No one's ever done anything like this for him before. No one's ever wanted to, even before the murder accusations, and between the exhaustion settling over him and the pain meds kicking in and the euphoria of feeling good - Eddie's dangerously close to begging, here. To saying please, just, please can he keep having this, please can this mean something, can this be because Steve wants to and not because he feels obligated.

"You okay?" Steve asks quietly as he rinses Eddie's hair out, and starts lathering up for a second wash.

Eddie hopes it's just a general are you okay, in light of the whole everything, and not a specific hey you look like you're going through something right now. Doesn't actually matter, he guesses, because he still has to say something, and he doesn't know what to say that isn't a lie or isn't something that's too much.

"Haven't, uh. Haven't had anyone do this before," he admits, because that seems like the safest thing to acknowledge.

He thinks what he means by this was pretty obvious, but apparently not, because Steve gives a thoughtful little hum.

"Take care of you?" he asks, cradling Eddie's skull in his hands so delicately it makes him want to weep.

Or shove him off and run until he can't anymore, but that's not any better.

"Fuck, Steve, not holding back any punches here, huh?" he asks, his voice a little raspy.

"I mean. We almost got eaten by demobats together, and we're in kind of a bathroom. That's prime bonding time, for me."

Eddie'd shake his head, but he doesn't want to do anything to dislodge Steve's hands, so he settles for heaving a pointed sigh. "No, Steve, people haven't been lining up to take care of the freak. It's not like I need it, anyway."

Steve makes this little sound - Eddie's not sure he's even aware that he does it, really, but it's like the verbal equivalent to rolling his eyes. "Everyone needs it, sometimes. It's okay to want that, especially after all of this. This isn't the first time some of us have stayed together in the aftermath."

"Yeah? Who looks after you, then?" Eddie asks.

"Robin, usually, sometimes Dustin. Why, you volunteering?"

He can't see Steve's face, but he thinks that was probably meant to come out as teasing. It doesn't quite land there, though, a little too soft, a little too genuine, and it makes Eddie swallow.

"Maybe," he says, feeling his heart beat in his throat.

"Oh," Steve breathes out, his hands stilling for a moment.

Eddie fights not to open his eyes.

"Yeah, okay," Steve says, a little too carelessly, fingertips scratching back over his scalp again. "I look after you, you look after me."

That's not quite what Eddie meant, but he doesn't know how to say what he meant, so he just says, "You don't have to. Take care of me, I mean. Just because you think it's okay to want to be taken care of, you know, it doesn't have to be you."

He waits for Steve to point out that Eddie'd just said that no one else was lining up for the job, maybe make a joke about how it's him or nothing.

Instead, Steve says, "I know. I want to."

Fuck.

If this is the way Steve always is, Eddie can see why so many girls were into him in high school.

When he's reasonably sure his voice isn't going to shake, he says, "Thanks, man. For - all of this."

He's kind of worried Steve is going to tell him that he's doing it because he wants to again, but fortunately that seems to be enough talking about not quite emotions for both of them, because Steve just hums as he starts rinsing Eddie's hair again.

Eddie lets himself relax, sinking into the soft, floaty feeling that wants to pull him down, and just enjoying the feel of Steve's fingers in his hair, the edge of pain blurred and fuzzy from the meds, and finally, finally feeling like maybe he's safe.

It takes another round of lather and rinse for Steve to be satisfied with how clean his hair is, but Eddie sure as hell isn't protesting. Time kind of slips and wobbles, anyway, as he doesn't doze so much as just fucking melt into the chair and under Steve's hands, like all the tension from the last week plus is oozing out of him. He thinks Steve murmurs something about conditioner, but he honestly doesn't care, as long as he can keep sitting here like this.

Eventually, the water's shut off, and Steve's tilting his head up, draping his hair over a towel and gently scrunching it before wrapping it up.

"You awake?" Steve asks, voice a little sing-song like he's teasing.

"Depends on how you're measuring awake," Eddie mumbles back, not entirely sure he managed to get all those syllables out in the correct order.

Whatever he says, it makes Steve laugh softly. "Come on, Munson, up you go. Let's get you to bed."

Eddie's hindbrain immediately takes over, and the next thing he knows he's saying, "Fuck, yes please, finally."

Fortunately, Steve seems to take his eagerness as an eagerness to be in bed in general, and not in Steve's bed specifically, because he just says, "You gotta stand up for that."

Eddie whines, and Steve's hand on his elbow where he'd been tugging him to get up slips, and Eddie looks up at him, eyes wide.

Steve's staring back at him, and holy shit, Eddie might be high on pain meds and a boneless mess from what was basically a head massage, but he knows what desire looks like, knows Steve's eyes are probably a mirror of his own right now.

Then Steve's eyes are closing, and he visibly shakes himself like a fucking dog, before his hand finds its spot on Eddie's elbow again, nice and firm.

"Steve," Eddie murmurs, even though he knows he's missed his moment to speak, because Steve is already guiding him up and wrapping his arm around him to help him walk.

"Not too far, Eds, I promise," Steve says. "We'll be there before you know it."

"Steve," Eddie says again, and this time Steve pauses, swallowing once before he looks at him.

Steve's arm is still around him, and he's so close they're practically breathing the same air - so close he can see the flecks of hazel in Steve's eyes, see the way his lashes brush against his cheek, and Eddie -

He doesn't want to do it like this. Eddie knows he's pretty far gone right now, a little floaty and a little loopy, and he's honestly not sure what words he can even get out of his mouth, let alone if he's going to remember this tomorrow.

"This is gonna have to be mostly you," he says, not letting himself think about how it could mean more than one thing. "I'm barely standing after that, let alone navigating stairs."

Steve laughs softly, steering him out of the laundry room and towards the stairs. "Long as you keep your feet on one side of the steps, you'll at least have one up on Henderson last time I had to help him up the stairs."

"No promises," Eddie replies, but that does make him look down at his own feet, trying to be careful and deliberate about how he places them as they slowly make their way upstairs.

With the meds, it doesn't hurt as much as it probably should. It mostly just takes so much goddamn effort, feels like walking through jello, and Eddie's not ashamed to admit he's breathing heavily by the time they make it to what must be the Harringtons' guest room.

It's… well. It's boring, honestly, minimally decorated, but the bed looks huge and insanely welcoming at the moment, all the blankets turned down and the pillows carefully arranged to resemble the way he'd found was the most comfortable at the hospital. The lamp on the nightstand is glowing softly, and there's a glass of water and Eddie's bottles of pills next to it.

Clean clothes are laid out on the bed - a pair of black boxers, black track pants with a white stripe down the leg, and a dark blue Henley.

Another lump forms in his throat, and he swallows past it as Steve points out the door to the bathroom.

"I'm just down the hall," Steve tells him.

Eddie manages to mumble out a thanks, and only stares at him a little as he walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Honestly, Eddie's too fucking exhausted to sort out anything about anything right now, so he just shuffles his way over to the bed. He strips out of the hospital scrubs, leaves them in a pile right where they fall, and struggles into the clothes Steve's loaned him.

Like the stairs, it doesn't hurt, but he knows that doesn't mean he can risk overdoing it. He's careful, moving gingerly to pull the shirt on and sitting on the bed to step into the boxers and pants. Then he collapses back, tugging the covers over him. His head lolls to the side for a moment as he stares at the lamp.

If he's honest, his decision to leave it on is part that it feels like too much effort to turn it off, and part that he's not sure he wants to be alone in the dark right now.

Maybe in a bit, he thinks, but he's asleep before he can think anything else.

Taglist (let me know if you'd like to be added!): @vampireinthesun @koibug @estrellami-1 @mentalcyborg @allbimyself26 @questionablequeeries @the-s-is-silent @whimsicalwitchm @a-gae-af-racoon @tinyplanet95 @n0-1-important @velocitytimes2 @swimmingbirdrunningrock @newtstabber @jcmadgirl @roblingoblin285 @lexyvey @paperbackribs @goodolefashionedloverboi @evix-syne666 @raisedbylibrarians @stxrcrossed186 @nightmareglitter @greekgeek24 @starman-jpg @crazyhatlady86 @imfinereallyy @manda-panda-monium @deleataecount @prideandsensibility @chaoticvictorianspirit @maydillydally @disrespectedgoatman @scarlet-malfoy @i-less-than-three-you @hbyrde36 @hallucinatedjosten @dragonsandgayships @arepaconchocolate @g4ys0n @novelnovella @bisexualdisastersworld @ghostofyourvampiregf @scarletyeager @pettrichore @nerd-and-nervous @hiimlevi @queenie-ofthe-void @cinnamon-mushroomabomination

-----

Part 15

[kanekisfavoritegf]

Well Done

I finally re did this

COD GHOST

i should honestly make it a series since i’ve written multiple that are all kinda connected but i’m lazy

warnings: dry humping, a tiny bit of praise, if you squint.

Sweat dripped down your body as you stood in the middle of the empty training room. You had been in there for a little over an hour. Your knuckles were now bloody, and your legs were probably covered in bruises. It was a little past two A.M., and you couldn't fall asleep, opting to train until your body finally gave in.

In a few hours, you'd be introduced to the members of 141. You were nervous. It was your first time being paired with the special operation group.

You were officially a sniper, one of the top five in your country to be exact. But now, you were being asked to go undercover for a mission to seduce a drug lord until the 141 were ready to collect you and kill him.

A lot was running through your mind, and all you could do was take your anger out on the sack of sand before you. Kicking and punching every ounce of anxiety away.

You were lost so deeply in a trance that you ended up not noticing the man who now stood behind you. You jumped a little at his tap on your shoulder.

The first thing you noticed was his chest. Not because you are drawn to them but because of his ridiculously tall frame. His eyes were the next thing to catch your attention, as they were the only thing that you could see at this moment. You knew who it was immediately.

“Ghost?” You were a little surprised to see him so early in the morning.

“Shouldn’t you be asleep?” He questioned, causing you to scoff a little since he was just as awake as you.

“Are you my superior?” You responded, turning back to the punching bag in front of you.

“No, but I bet I outrank you.” You could practically see the smirk on his face from the tone he was speaking in.

“Oh, I bet.” You said in a sarcastic tone.

Turning your attention back to the object in front of you, you raised your leg to strike at the bag once more, but before you could kick, the man behind you grabbed your leg, pulling it to him as he reached out for his hand to your shoulder pushing you down. Causing your back to meet the ground with a loud thud.

“How mature of you.” You while letting out a large huff looking up at him in annoyance.

“Hilarious coming from you, Y/N.” he quipped back.

“It’s Rogue.” You corrected him.

“They finally gave you an alias, huh?”

“I've had it for quite some time now. You were just off on many different missions, Riley. A lot has changed. Since we first met.”

He lowered his mouth to your ear, whispering the words, “I can tell.” You were at a loss for words.

He was the man you met when you were a rookie sniper on a mission in Dubai. You had been reckless and a little too confident despite it being your second official mission. Long story short, You and Ghost were in hiding for a few days for the death of a widely known senator as you waited for the government to settle things.

You had an okay relationship with him, not particularly good, but it wasn't exactly bad either. You barely ever saw him now, not after you began to rise in skill and rank. You were both off doing solo and group missions. Though it has only happened two or three times you've ever had this awful habit of fucking him whenever you were in close proximity for more than 15 minutes.

The annoyance that flowed through you distracted you from realizing the promiscuous position that the two of you were now in. He was on his knees in between your legs, one of his hands resting on your upper thigh, holding it in place around his waist, while his other hand rested beside your neck.

You tried wriggling out of his hold, but it was pointless. All it did was cause him to press more of his body weight onto you. If you decided to struggle anymore, you'd just end up dry-humping him.

“I thought you had gotten better at this.” He chuckled above you, leaning in a little.

“You caught me off guard.” You retorted with speed.

“You should always be aware of the people around you.” His eyes squinted a little. You felt his weight press down a little more. It almost felt like he was trying to grind on you.

“I was aware of you, I just didn't think you'd try to tackle me.” You said a little breathlessly. Gasping at the feeling of his semi-hard length pressing into you.

“Don't see me as a threat?” He teased.

“No, you are far too weak.” You smirked a little as you heard him scoff. He stared at you for a few seconds before deciding to speak.

“You look good, Rogue.” He took his time saying your new name. Staring deeply into your eyes.

“I wish I could say the same but...” You joked at his mask.

“You should be a comedian.” He said in a monotone voice.

The tension between you felt too intense, as his face was now a few centimeters away from yours. You could feel the fabric of his mask graze your skin ever so slightly. Taking this opportunity, you slid to the side a little. You tightened your legs around the man, using all your power to flip him over.You were now on top of him. Resting right above his crotch. You had him pinned.

“You should be more aware.” Your eyes shined as you smiled down at him.

Simon slowly sat up, making you to now be face-to-face with him as you straddled his lap. His hand slowly raised to each side of your waist. Your face fell in shock as he began to rock you over his dick.

Your mind went blank as you felt the pressure of his dick sliding against your cunt. He rested his head on your shoulder. Groaning little at the feeling you moving on him. He uttered praises into your neck.

“Well done.” Was the most coherent thing he had said, since he started rocking into you.

Was this a dream?

Where you losing your mind?

Had he lost his mind?

Whatever it didn't matter.

You would say something in return, but you were starting to feel your sanity slip away as his hard-on started to rub harder against your clothed cunt.

You let yourself give in to pleasure. Not caring if anyone entered anymore.

[prettycottonmouthlamia]

My re-reading project has gone reasonably well, my ADHD is still untreated so I often have a lot of trouble actually starting (Who is Real consistently created this roadblock in my mind for whatever reason), but it was re-reading Under Tides that has had me sitting down and digesting it for some time.

Under Tides has a dramatically different tone from pretty much every single other event that I've read so far. It's a very moody work, dramatically more so than previous events (and, definitely in comparison to Stultifera Navis), both in story direction and in art direction. The residents of Sal Viento are drawn in a way I find really compelling for the nature of the story: they look like they've had the life and energy sucked out of them, and share the same muted palettes with the Inquisitors. It really makes the Abyssal Hunters standout in comparison to the rest of the world, in Skadi's vivid reds, Gladiia's blues, and Specter's monochrome colors.

This piece, on top of just being absolutely breathtaking honestly, is a really good example. Sal Viento sits, tilted in ruins into the sea, but at this angle it feels impossible to tell where the land begins and where the ocean meets the city. It makes Sal Viento feel very isolated from the world, and it is in many ways, and I in particular like the way the support structures at the right, now broken and falling apart, make Sal Viento feel skeletal. How much has been destroyed, taken by the sea? It's great.

But Skadi is the only splash of color. Skadi's red stand out amongst the very muted blues, the blues that feel barely distinguishable from the dismal grays of rain clouds and brackish water, and the sterile colors of Sal Viento. Skadi and the Hunters are the only splash of life in this landscape; even the Inquisitors cannot be said to do this, because much if not all of what the Inquisitors leave in their wake is death.

But it's also a much darker story than usually, and that's a bit surprising considering how much fare Arknights up to this point has had with the ideas of corporate corruption, discrimination, and cleansing. It's a lot to do with how the characters are positioned to each other: the people of Sal Viento are almost zombie-like, being slowly eaten away from ingestion of Seaborn flesh, and are intensely paranoid and disapproving of outsiders. Only Anita stands out amongst them, a beacon of innocence and curiosity that hasn't been stamped out yet by the constant erosion of the tides. Skadi and Gladiia are both oppositional to each other and oppositional to everyone else in the story. There's no real sense of cooperation or camaraderie between any of the characters outside of Anita, which creates a really rather oppressive atmosphere. The dark parts of Talulah's story in Chapter 8 stand in contrast to the warmer parts of her relationship to Alina, Frostnova, and Patriot, and it stands in contrast with Amiya and Ch'en. Maria Nearl's attempted assassination at the hands of the KGCC stands stark against Marcus and Zofia's support of her and her naive ideals.

There's no contrast in Under Tides, it's a constant gloomy, dark feeling, it's being in a cave that's constantly damp, dripping, and moist. That works really well for the type of story it wants to be, especially for its climax moment, where the first time character's connect with each other, it is portrayed in the form of a mental breakdown.

"She is a monster. She murders her own kind. She for her own kind murders her own kind. She by her own kind murders her own kind. The eyes of the people in the streets are filled with warmth. They don't know anything. The eyes from the research institutes and in the tents are filled with ice. When the hunters sleep, there are patrollers guarding. No. Those aren't guards. That night patrol doesn't serve the hunters. The patrollers are waiting for the hunters to become monsters."

Aside from her, anyone and everyone probably knew. Sea monster. And–she has already committed the gravest sin...

I killed it. I killed her. I killed Him.

There's some questionable writing decisions made in this chapter, especially with the way that Anita and Irene have a habit of narrating action scenes in dialogue, but this will not be what I criticize. This is the climax of the story: where the truth of the matter, where Skadi understanding the bizarre idiosyncrasies of her biology and what they mean, causes her identity to collapse, leaving Skadi to try and grab at anything she can.

And she grabs onto being a monster.

Becoming a Seaborn is in some ways both an invasion and a form of acceptance. Your biology changes, but the outcome is not a guarantee. Skadi only avoids her fate here because Gladiia deliberately took a massive injury as a trap. If that hadn't been intentional, if Gladiia truly took a mortal wound, Skadi would have fallen right there.

"Your neural cells are rapidly metabolizing. Remember, you are a hunter. They can't do anything to you."

It's truth and its untruth. The extent to which Skadi's condition can be directly tied to her biology is questionable: we've already seen this questioned in Skadi's own monologue. But as long as Skadi remembers that she is a hunter, that she has a purpose and can resist, she'll be fine.

It's good, it's a fantastic climax that leads to the rather nice and cathartic reunion amongst the Abyssal Hunters. Really liked this event.

[pixelatedraindrops]

RAINCODE COMIC DUB~🎙️

NEW PROJECT ALERT!

Story takes place at the start of Chapter 4 (MINOR SPOILERS)

Comic Title drawn by Kazin (as well as the whole comic)

Here's the Dub! Vocals and Editing done by me 🎙️📑 Enjoy!!

Further Rambling Below

Hehe I bet you all didn't think voice acting was among my list of hidden hobbies/talents didja? (I’m just full of surprises x3) Well... I can only hope that I delivered well enough here. (please feel free to laugh at my attempted Yakou voice… LMAO)

So this is yet another collab project that @kazinsblog and I did together. The story is based on a kokowendy ch4 canon divergent skit that I made way back last fall. When Kazin saw it, she wanted to make it into a full comic. I didn't protest (I never do LOL) but then I wanted to try something.

I've never attempted a solo dub of a comic before, and honestly I didn't think I would with RainCode due to a majority of the characters being male. Sadly with my naturally high voice I can only do so much with attempting male voices. I usually only do female or child character voices.

But since Kurumi is the lead role of this story, and has the most lines, I decided to give it a try. I do love Kurumi (she's my best girl) so I hope I did her justice here. I like to think I did her voice fairly well. I struggled a bit with the guys (and Halara) but I think my Yuma is decent enough... x'D (plus it was really fun making him sound tired and out of breath :3)

I do enjoy Kokowendy as a ship, though I'm not a huge shipper. But these two are just too cute... ;w; So I think a scenario like this suits them both. Plus it gives Kurumi a chance to be reliable and try to help her beloved hero in his time of need <3 Honestly it can even be seen as platonic. Its very tame (the only small hint is that Yuma blushes at some point, but that's it)

I had a lot of fun doing this!! I got the voices and editing done in only 3 days, so it’s definitely not a long lasting project. (on my end anyway) But I still think it’s a pretty big project with all of the work both of us did. Editing the video was probably the most fun part for me >w< I knew exactly what BGM and sound effects I wanted months in advance c: I only hope I did the editing style of it right. Comic dubs are very peculiar in the way they’re done… 💦 (also no I’m not putting this on YouTube, this is a tumblr exclusive ONLY! And I give NOBODY permission to re-upload it without my consent!)

I’m not sure if I'm the first that's attempted a RC comic dub before, but if I am, then I am very happy c: Idk if I'll do another full one though. Like I said too many of the characters are male... x'D This may be a one time thing for me here. But if I were to do one, I figured why not on a comic that was made specifically for me? c: (ty again kazin!💕)

Anyway I'm done yapping now, I hope you all enjoy! 💜 Feel free to let me know what you think or which role you enjoyed from me the most! (tho I think the answer is obvious lol)

[snootlestheangel]

Some Of Earthly Things lore dropping via a conversation between Simon and Gaz. Enjoy!

Gaz frowns at Simon before looking away again. He fidgets in his seat before taking a deep breath and turning back to the other. Simon's wide amber eyes are fixed on him, deep and knowing.

"If you're the guardian, how are all..." Gaz trails off as he gestures at Simon. The guardian tilts his head, confused.

"All human... looking." Gaz adds after noting his confusion, and Simon's shoulders stiffen as his confusion morphs into a serious frown.

"Oh, um..." Simon looks away from Gaz as he thinks.

"Like how'd you get the name Simon Riley?"

"That was his name." He answers simply, steeling his gaze as he looks back up at Gaz.

"His name?"

"What you see is Simon Riley."

"So, he is a person, and somehow you're always him? I'm confused." Gaz responds, and Simon patiently takes a deep breath.

"He died a long time ago, in my forest. I buried him so that he might know peace, but in doing so, I made him a part of me. As he rotted, he fed the ground, which fed plants, which fed the animals. He became a part of the forest, which means a part of me. I think he finally knows peace, but he is the reason I ever interact with humans. He misses them." Simon whispers the last part, almost incredulously, before turning away from Gaz's intense gaze. The man frowns.

"You say that like it's a surprise to you. That Simon would miss people."

"It is. To me, at least. Humanity was not kind to him." A dark growl accompanies Simon's words, and Gaz nods solemnly. They sit in silence for another moment as Gaz processes the information about how Simon Riley and the guardian came to be one.

"You love him, don't you?" Gaz asks, yet it isn't teasing. It's solemn, an understanding of their mortality as mere humans as compared to the guardian sitting next to him. Simon takes a deep breath, grounding himself.

"I believe so. At least, that is the word I think conveys how I feel about him. There is something about him I cannot help but be drawn to." Simon whispers, almost shyly, as he ducks his head and stares at his hands. Gaz chuckles lightly, gently tapping his fist against the other's shoulder.

"He's that kind of person, honestly."

Another silence falls between them, unspoken questions lingering in the air. Gaz looks over at the guardian, a sadness forming in his eyes. Mourning, a silent, desperate plea for something.

"What happens though? When he grows old and gray?" Gaz asks, and Simon looks at him. His gaze softens, and his head tilts slightly.

"With your permission, I would bury him." The unspoken result of that is enough to make Gaz scoff as tears form in his eyes. That Johnny would be so loved he'd be buried to become a part of the guardian.

"With my permission?"

"Of course. You care deeply about him. There is something unique to your relationship with him." Simon answers, and Gaz nods, wiping away a stray tear.

"He's basically my brother. I never knew my parents, and I lost contact with my sister once we got split up in the foster system. I felt so alone for so long. But then I met him, and it was like we had known each other for years. So, yeah, he means a lot to me." Gaz rambles quietly, and Simon patiently listens, amber eyes warm as they study Gaz.

"Now, don't think this means I am saying yes to you burying him. I'm not ready to accept that just yet." Gaz says, pointing a finger at Simon, yet the gesture lacks malice.

"You are afraid."

"Yeah. I'm afraid that if I accept it now, then I've jinxed it. I've always told him he has to let me die first."

"I understand." Simon says, and Gaz meets his eye again. A quiet understanding passes, a simple nod to mortality, yet love often can withstand it. That love is something timeless, not bound by the mortal plane like they are.

"Geez, now I'm all fucking depressed." Gaz mumbles as he gets up and stretches.

"I could have an awkward conversation with Price. I know that always makes you laugh." Simon says rather seriously, and Gaz snorts loudly, shaking his head. He continues to laugh as he shoves Simon's shoulder before leaving the room.

Simon smiles softly to himself before following Gaz, knowing the man's physicality is merely a sign of affection.

It won't be so hard to get permission to bury Johnny in the forest.

[nemoys]

a very long messy review of link click (season 2)

alright so reading through a bunch of (mostly negative) reviews of the season thus far i've come to my own conclusions over how this season felt, and i really feel like addressing them since i personally feel like it deserves recognition (and rightful criticism) within certain aspects. really interested in everyone's takes so lmk whatever you think about all these aspects i'm about to gloss over.

NOTE ; i'm not going to be talking about the art direction or OSTs . i believe those have been nothing short of phenomenal and i feel like we can all universally agree over that

1) tonal shift : from a more emotionally driven s1, coupled with sprinkles of slice of life moments, we turn to a mostly thriller/mystery plot line. personally, i've always seen this coming. the tonal shift really didn't take me by surprise. with the lg stabbing at the end of season 1 it almost seemed inevitable that the more light hearted aspects of the first season weren't going to happen. more importantly, it was very clear that there was always a higher presence to fight. link click was always meant to be a thriller, this was always the plan, and so i suppose logically i assumed the second season would follow that path. i understand how people might've felt disappointed, or 'robbed', but i don't think the shift was all that shocking quite honestly, it was always set up. link click was never light hearted, even at s1.

the more shocking shift has to be the shift from an emotional, to suspenseful change in writing. the emotional writing in link click has always been the best part of the show and that hasn't changed, the emotionally driven plot lines of s2 (chen bin, ltc/ltx) have been written very well. the suspenseful writing also works. replaces the tear jerkers with an unsettling anxiety, and it's executed relatively well. you can clearly tell that the crew's been experimenting quite a lot with this season, and yes, that's usually what season 2 is for.

2) pacing : now i totally get the criticism in this aspect. in my opinion, the weakest part of s2's been the pacing. with overly drawn out fight scenes, and unnecessarily long recaps, i think the issue has to do with the fact that lc just has a LOT to address, and so it makes us feel less inclined to sit through longer scenes that don't directly advance the plot.

obviously i get that the fight scenes show off a lot of the animation budget #tm and they do look great but the fact that we had way too much time dedicated to a five minute long fighting cutscene in the FIRST episode just made me feel impatient.

3) red herring endings: alright this might be an unorthodox opinion but, aren't red herring cliff hangers a norm in general with these kinds of shows lol. idk i've come to expect the total opposite every time so it doesn't really bother me i guess i'm just used to the medium. not really a lc problem it's a story telling problem in general but that's just marketing i don't know what else to say.

it'd be nice if they followed through but some part of me thinks they're pulling a whole boy who cried wolf situation, eventually they'll pull the trigger when we don't really expect it.

4) shipping/ main trio reconciliations : it's a really serious ongoing situation. i kind of get why the main trio/shiguang don't get a chance to talk things over amongst themselves, it just isn't the time. keep in mind everything that's happening rn is happening continuously, there are no gaps within the days or anything, kind of makes sense that they don't really talk about it. they probably will get to once it's all over, which might be well into s3. again, this was always meant to be a thriller more than it was trio focused. also idk about you guys but i think we actually did get a lot of sweet moments within the trio, cxs and lg, even the sibling dynamic with ql and cxs were really lovely this season.

5) the women: okay i REALLY don't understand the problem here. the women are written well. ql is written FANTASTICALLY and all side characters like ltx and that one red eyed lady i'm forgetting the name of were great too. hell even chen bin's wife was great. i think for a donghua/anime where women are usually given dirt in terms of actually strong writing, lc has always been very solid. their lives do not revolve around the men in the show it just happens to be that men are a part of their lives. they have very distinct personalities and aren't treated like weird objects to gaze at (what a bar lol) but yes i do think the women are written quite dimensionally.

6) unanswered questions : when have linear shows ever answered questions (especially mc based) in season 2?? when has season 2 EVER tied loose ends? when it comes to linear television, season 2's purpose almost always build towards a greater evil/climax. there's a reason why season 2 hasn't answered questions we've had, season 2s in most shows rarely ever do. from what i can tell, with a confirmed s3, i've always expected s2 to simply do its job as a second season and further raise stakes and raise even more questions. i do get the frustration, i get the lack of any backstory, but i want to refrain from making any actual comments over that till every episode's aired ahah, however, im not too mad at it. i just think this show's ride is currently still at an increasing accelerated pace (guys i'm sorry i study physics), things will only be explained once we've once hit the climactic point or go downhill right after. time will tell i guess

Conclusion

overall, i think this season was actually pretty solid. s1 set a very unrealistically high bar, as s1 in my opinion is one of the best seasons in television period. but s2 and s1 shouldn't be compared in the same way, their tone is quite different, and needs to be analysed individually instead. i'll make a complete review once the season is over, but honestly i've come to enjoy the season most when i stop expecting too much out of it. i think people had way too many things they've expected from s2, that were bound to simply never happen.

that said, i do hope the crew takes the valid criticism regarding the pacing (and ig the character focus?) into consideration and implements it well into s3. it's worth noting that i believe nothing was meant to be complete with s2 in the first place.

i've really enjoyed this season, and i'm beyond ecstatic to rewatch it all once it's done airing, in order to properly take it all in. it's had its flaws, more than s1 has had (let's be real s1 had little to none). but that's bound to happen to shows when they head down their linear routes. currently sitting at a 7/10

[miscellaneouslibrary]

"Sword Fight" short comic

Lol, more Philomina content.

I drew this in my handheld calendar so that's why there's spotted lines.

For this comic, I was really inspired by the fights in Dandadan(great manga, though a very surprising first chapter). Paneling, perspective, foreshortening, speed lines, dynamic posing, I did my best in incorporating all those in this here mini comic. There's a lot of cut corners, like how Phil and Blade seem to be battling in a white void, and where the heck both their swords have gone, too. Next time, I'll draw the background so the space doesn't feel so barren!

I'm very proud of panel 7. In manga, I love how characters are sometime drawn out of frame to showcase speed or power. In this case, Phil looks like she's jumping into the frame to show her speed to the reader! It's just really neat. Hopefully, the way she's posing guides the readers to the next few panels. Also, the way Blade is flying backwards and the way the onomatopoeia "BAM" is drawn just accentuates the force behind Phil's kick, with the speed lines and negative space attracting your eyes to her shoes 😌 Absolute chef's kiss imo.

Honestly, this is the first time I've ever drawn Blade, so I don't really know if I did the man justice in the handsome department 😅. I didn't draw his mouth most of the time because I wanted his eyes to do the talking. I tried my best to draw him as a beast of sorts with determined and crazed eyes looking only at his prey, in this case Philomina(who we sometimes take the perspective of). His focused expression only falters when Phil does something that surprises him.

I don't know if I showcased it well in the comic but Phil is using her rapier to pierce through Blade and curving the rapier's blade to stab him multiple times in order to restrict his movements(panel 5). Then after that, Phil has the rapier spiral behind Blade to an unrecorded amount of length hence the star. Then, while Blade is confused because he's never fought an opponent who's done this before, Phil kicks him in the gut real hard, the force pushing him back. And you know what's behind him? That's right, a spiraling blade that breaks if applied too much pressure to the sides of it. So while, Blade is being kicked by Phil, he's also getting sliced up in the back by multiple shattered pieces of the rapier's blade. And because Phil is significantly smaller than Blade, she won't sustain as bad of injuries as him.

Little tidbit: Philomina despises the Stellaron Hunters. She believes that the actions they've done are unorthodox and vehemently believes that there are other options in changing fate than committing crimes. Speaking of fate, she doesn't believe it at all. Phil believes that the future can never be predetermined and claims that prophecies are psychological traps that prevent people from recognizing other options than what was shown to them by "fate". You can see why she has vendetta against Elio of the Stellaron Hunters. By looking into the future, you are cementing that future as the only option forward.

Because of that, she doesn't believe the Finality is actually real(never has she seen such evidence aside from stories from the Creed Exequys and Omen Vanguards) and argues a lot with a pink-haired master diviner from the Xianzhou Luofu.

[munchboxart]

My in-depth-ish thoughts about Paper Mario TTYD

There will be mega spoilers so don't read if you haven't finished or are interested in getting into it. Also mega yapping, I am the yapper

I thought it was overall pretty fun! I enjoyed it. I'll talk about the battle mechanics first then the story.

My first experience with the Mario RPG games was with Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga, so I was a little surprised that the command inputs are a little less involved? I was also surprised by the lack of moves, especially for the partners. I think M&L's moveset is a little more fun honestly, but the ones here are also pretty interesting! It's surprising to see that Vivian's is a little more complicated compared to the others too (using more buttons than tilt the joystick or the a & b buttons). I also really like the Superguard and Guarding system, kind of brutal but it's a nicer idea than just being able to jump over attacks like in M&L.

It was also surprising that you don't really raise your attack through experience, but by getting BP's and using badges that increase Attacks (WHICH COST 6BP EACH!!!!). It's a nice idea! It makes it more strategy and and a little more skill based I think, though I couldn't help shake off the feeling that I wasn't doing enough to increase my attack power. But overall the battle system is nice.

Story wise, it's pretty fun and cute. I will say that it's biggest drawback is the amount of backtracking, good GOD there's so much. It's so bad that I can't even pick a favorite chapter. I can for sure pick segments but I can't pick a favorite chapter honestly. I think they're all pretty equal.

Uhmmm Chapter 1 is cute, Chapter 2 is cute as well but good fucking god I HATTEEDDD going around the tree, it was awful. Chapter 3.... I was surprised to hear it was really well liked, and I can understand why, but I felt like the climb went on a little too long. I was also surprised to see how small the island is... I thought it'd be bigger or at least bustling with a lot of NPCs.

Chapter 4 is one I really looked forward to because I love Boo's and I've heard about Doopliss so I was excited to see him, and good god I think the town part of the Chapter brings it down a lot in terms of memorability. LIKE.... WHEN IT CAME DOWN TO THE FIGHT WITH SHADOW PEACH AND WHEN IT WAS SHOWING THE CRYSTAL STARS GOING THROUGH EVERY CHAPTER LOCATION..... AND THEY ONLY SHOWED THE MOM AND MAYOR TALKING BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE WAS IN THAT CHAPTER.... LMFAOFJDSIFGHUIREHGUJN

LIKE AT LEAST THE OTHER CHAPTERS HAD MEMORABLE CHARACTERS.... THIS ONE THEY DGAF. Big Boo fight is super cute though, love love love it, I don't know if the other chapters had secret bosses like it? Also the Boo's in this game are totes cute, I love how Boo's were drawn in the early-mid 2000s god

ANYWAYS, Chapter 5 is... fun. I'm not a big fan of pirate themes but I WILL SAY, I LOVE CORTEZ he's so fun and love his design. I really like that his earrings tie down his jaw and head together since it's papercraft. I also really like Bobbery, the thing with his wife was really sweet.

Chapter 6 is... a chapter 8E83RHWFIUEFGERGER. OK WELL NO I usually like train mystery stuff. I enjoyed Sonic Murder Mystery a lot, but the early part of the train stuff was kind of a slog to get through... Unfortunately I think I've seen the Poshley Heights part before from a long time ago, but it was mainly getting to the Crystal Star rather than Doopliss and the 2 sh*dows. I WILL NEVER FORGIVE THEM FOR BEING MEAN TO DOOPLISS AND VIVIAN!!!!! MARK YOUR WORDS BELDAMMMMM

I enjoyed Chapter 7 a lot actually, maybe I can call it my favorite chapter. I think the music for the X-Nauts Fortress slams nuts a lot and definitely heightened my experience for it. I also like TEC a whole lot, I don't think I've mentioned that yet but I'll talk about the Bowser and Peach segments later.

Chapter 8 visually is definitely a highlight. I absolutely love how it looks. I can't say much about the actual areas itself though. The tower was pretty nice I guess, the puzzles are easy, though. I will punch Beldam for being mean to Doopliss. And the fight with Shadow Peach was hard! At least for me. I came in without upgrading my whole party and trying to get through it with Yoshi and Bobbery and boy did I get sweeped. I went back and upgraded Goombella and we traded Power Lifts and beat her up and saved the world the end. I did like that it was the toughest boss you've met yet and not only that, I think the only one with over 100 HP? (I don't know about Gloomtail and Hooktail since I didn't have Peekaboo enabled on)

For the Bowser and Peach segments, the Peach ones are really sweet and TEC is super sweet. I am upset that Mario didn't tell Peach his last wish on screen IT MADE ME SO MADDDDD.

Bowser's is really funny, I love love love him and Kammy they're such a funny duo. Also I can't lie, the 2D segments with Bowser really felt like Flash ripoffs from the web to a T LMFAOOOO. I will say I was a little surprised how uninvolved he actually is with the story. A little disappointing but honestly, I wouldn't change the story at all.

Oh also everything visually was so fucking beautiful, and the soundtrack slams cheeks

Sorry for the long yap but TTYD was really fun, definitely worth the time I poured into it (Nearly put 30 hours into it and still adding more since I haven't done the pit yet at all). I'll play the original Paper Mario next since I am interested in Lady Bow and the baking scene that I watched oomf do and fucked up 5 million times to poison the toad.

Probably the last time I'll talk about TTYD though since I don't have any other thoughts, unless the pit changes my life somehow.

[imperator-titus]

Ghost from the Past [Part 5]

I continue to be a menace to society (and my grad school classes)

Having fun revisiting the dialogue for Astarion/Gale. I've debated if Halsin will be a main fixture, as this story has less development between the other characters, but I think Eletha would be very drawn to Halsin and Jaheira.

More relationship development, a little more emotional anguish.

Please feel free to comment or anything about what you like, I love hearing people's opinions/questions! Everyone has such interesting takes.

(Prev)[Part 4] (Next)[Part 6] [Master Post]

[I've run out of relevant gifs and tumblr keeps shitting the bed. feels naked here. so sorry, gif by greenstarzxo]

Eletha and Gale took their turn staying behind at camp, cooking and easing the pains of their journey out of their bones. With a bottle of wine, she chose to keep him company as he tended to supper.

“I’ve thought about that moment we shared under the Weave,” he said fondly after a moment of silence passed.

“Oh?” she responded in surprise. It wasn’t exactly the answer Gale was hoping for. Tentatively, he asked, “Do you?”

“It’s no fault against you, but… I try not to.” Eletha hurriedly took a fortifying sip of wine. “It was nice, in the end. I’m… ashamed you saw the first part.”

“What you chose to share with me was wonderful,” Gale reassured her with an easy smile. It gave way to his usual manner of pensiveness. “I’m not a big believer in fate, but I do believe in serendipity. Life is a tempest of events that sometimes we brace against and sometimes embrace.”

He looked her in the eye, open and bold. Eletha could feel her heart flutter. “You’re one such event that, one day soon perhaps, I’d like to embrace.”

“Bhin, don’t play with an old elf’s heart,” she said with a nervous chuckle, quick to return to her drink and staring at the campfire flames. “What does ‘perhaps’ mean to you, exactly?”

“If I recall correctly, the Waterdhavian Dictionary of the Common Tongue of Faerûn defines it as an adverb that conveys the meaning of 'it may be that', or 'possibly'.” Gale laughed as Eletha rolled her eyes dramatically. “Sorry, sometimes I just can't help being quite insufferable.”

A lot of that going around, Eletha thought to herself, knowing better than to say it aloud.

“Is that how you see me? As just a ‘young human male’?” Gale asked her when she had nothing to say.

“Isn’t that what you are?”

“I’m not that young for a human… Though I suppose I am young compared to a mage of my skill.” Gale clicked his tongue as he mixed their supper. “I suppose I am quite young compared to you.”

“I’ll stop calling you Bhin if you want,” she offered. Gale shook his head.

“I kind of like it. Keeps me humble.”

“Yeah, if only I was around to keep you humble before you put ancient magic in your chest.” Gale laughed.

“Indeed.” A few more moments passed in silence. Bonnet passed by and Gale offered her some scraps from his preparations. Then he asked, “Is that… a no?”

“I’m honestly really flattered that someone like you would even consider… me, in any fashion. I just… don’t want to drag someone into my problems,” Eletha told him honestly, voice tinged with regret. “With- well, you know who, back in my life… A lot of old demons are getting dragged back out of the hole I buried them in.”

“I understand. There is a lot to revisit there. Time heals all wounds, so they say, but there’s no rule on how long it takes.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt your feelings. You’re a good man. You don’t deserve that.”

“It’s quite alright. I respect your honesty and compassion.”

“I would still like to accompany you back to Waterdeep, when this is all done.”

“You don’t wish to go home? I’ve been thinking, with all this traveling, that it would be marvelous to have you as my guide through the Dalelands.”

“I can’t go back there,” Eletha said definitively, taking a long drink of wine until her bottle was empty.

“I see…” Gale was worried, but he tried to not let it show too much. Eletha didn’t always respond well to concern, much like Astarion. It was a little funny how alike they were in some ways and so different in others. “Well, if that’s the case, my home will always be open to you.”

“That’s kind of you. I’ll have to introduce you to all my other traveling friends,” she told him with a wink. “They’re a bunch of weirdos, so-”

“I’ll fit right in?”

“Exactly.”

----

Old habits die hard. When Eletha felt herself slipping, felt that familiar darkness creep back in, she stalked their surroundings while the others slept. It’d be nice to have fresh meat, sometimes she found something worth foraging, but that wasn’t the purpose. The point was to wade through the darkness and wash away all sense of self. Here in the woods, there was no past or future, no responsibilities except the need to survive.

Her sense of self came back as something crashed through the brush. Astarion. As satisfying as it would’ve been to put an arrow in him for bothering her, she scanned the woods for the hidden threat instead.

“It’s just me,” Astarion told her giddily, limping to his feet. Smiling like a fool, swaying in a little circle, arms thrown out wide, he cried out merrily, “There you are! My… Well, I don’t know what you are. You’re not… my darling, my dear, my sweetheart. We’ve tasted each other’s flesh and I can’t even call you my friend.”

“The hell happened to you?” Eletha asked, slinging her bow over her shoulder. He was scuffed up, and not just from running through the bushes.

“I found a bear. Not your bear, obviously. He took a little of my blood, I took all of his,” he explained smugly, swaying and gesticulating animatedly. Fixing his hair, he asked, “What are you doing out here all alone?”

“Running away. Going to Baldur’s Gate all on my own,” she told him casually, not exactly as scathing as she expected it to come out. Astarion laughed and it was so honest and familiar that it made her chest hurt.

“I suppose I deserve that.” He sighed in satisfaction. “You gave me a lot to think about, you know.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

“And you call me a cock.” Reflecting the moonlight, his red eyes flickered as he watched her remove the stopper from her waterskin and take a drink. He sobered a bit in order to sound serious. “Those elves. In that vision you showed me. They were our families?”

Eletha took out and put back the stopper several times, sometimes even raising the skin to her lips before pulling it away. His heightened sense of smell could tell it was a liquor, stronger than the one or two cups she’d have with their evening meal. Sometimes he could taste it in her blood when he asked for just a sip.

“Yes,” she managed to answer eventually.

“I don’t know what I want to do. For so long I raged against Cazador for taking my old life away from me, but if I ran off so easily… Would I want to see them again? … Would they want to see me?” he asked himself. “Now I have someone who knows me. How tragic that it’s under such circumstances. Or is it fortuitous? If you’d met me back in Baldur’s Gate, you’d just be another snack for Cazador.”

Eletha took a large swallow from her waterskin and, before she could close it, he took it from her. He had to keep from choking, its strength surprising him. She must have an iron liver to be knocking back stuff like this. He fixed her with his gaze, his eyes roaming over her face, following her scars and lingering on her lips before flicking up to her eyes.

“You told me I have to ask you for what I want,” Astarion whispered, somewhere between dreamy and husky. “I want… for us to be friends. I want to be your Star again, if just for a moment.”

Eletha reached up and threaded her fingers into his curls as she crushed their lips together. Her ears were deaf to everything but the blood rushing through them and their soft moans. The only sensation she knew was his lips against hers and their bodies pressed flush against each other.

For a while now, she’d been walking along the edge of a pit with no discernable bottom. It was the pit where she threw all of the things she left behind. Her family. Her homeland. Her heart. She’d danced on that edge before, longing for something unavailable to her. Something hidden in that pit would sing out to her, bidding her to wallow in that comforting darkness. But she knew that if she went in, she would not come out.

It was so easy, too easy, to open herself back up to the pain he brought her. It was so easy to accept his caresses and meaningless words of affection. With him, she could revel in self-destruction, in the darkness, until the last vestiges of her sanity gave way and she succumbed to madness, where she could finally be free from herself.

The body pressed against her was cold. Its breath was practiced. It didn’t smell quite right. Its movements, while perfectly in concert with her own, were mechanical and impersonal. Its touch was just a bit too forceful, lacking in tenderness and comfort.

This wasn’t right. This wasn’t what she wanted. She’d thought about this for centuries and it felt wrong.

Eletha pushed Astarion away forcefully. His mouth hung open in shock. Hurt reflected in his eyes. She tried to speak, to tell him something, to explain herself. There were so many things she had to say to him.

Then she braced herself on the tree they’d been using for leverage and vomited. Violently. When she was done, her knees wobbled and tears streamed down her face. 

Astarion made a disgusted noise, then clicked his tongue. “Aww. Poor thing. Let’s get you to bed, shall we?”

Thankfully, everyone was asleep. It didn’t look too good, half-dragging Eletha’s limping body into camp.

After making her as comfortable as he could in her tent, Astarion rose to leave. Unexpectedly, her hand snatched his.

“I won’t… let him hurt you… anymore,” she said deliriously, her blue eye hazy with exhaustion. Astarion laughed quietly.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” he whispered to her. He tried to leave again, but her grip was surprisingly firm.

“If you want… to see them… I can take you…” From the sound of her voice, he could tell that it wasn’t just the exhaustion that made it hard to speak. “You have to promise… to not let them… hurt me… again.”

“Why would they hurt you?” Astarion asked firmly, protectively. Anger flashed in his eyes.

“Because… I did something horrible…” Eletha tried to force back her tears. His shoulders sagged as he sighed. Of course. She was just fucked up from drinking. It did seem to be happening with increased frequency…

“You’re almost as much as of a good-two-shoes as Wyll. There’s no way you did something so bad your family would hurt you.” Astarion managed to get free of her grip and he attempted to tuck her in tightly so she couldn’t escape again. “Now get some rest.”

“No. I don’t want to,” she argued, fighting against the blanket. Quietly, as if the thing she feared could hear them, she whispered, “The bad thing is there.”

“The bad th- You’re a mean old bitch, not some child hiding in their mother’s skirts,” he sniped, reaching for one of her many bags. This one clinked as he rummaged around. “There must be a sleep potion in here somewhere…”

“You can… call me… your friend…”

“I wish I could,” Astarion said with a disappointed sigh, “but you won’t remember this in the morning.”

[alethiosr]

A New Approach to Daemons

I've been interested in the concept of daemons since I first read His Dark Materials as a kid. I honestly don't remember when I first read it, just that daemons were the only thing I remembered about the series years later. I discovered daemonism once and was very drawn to it but the more I looked into it the more I knew it wasn't for me. Yet at the time I had this image of a large, spotted grey feline stuck in my head for a long while afterwards. I didn't know what it was, which looking back is surprising considering how much I loved nature and still do now, but I knew it was important. Years later I started researching the Canadian Lynx and thought I must be a therian, but that didn't stick. That experience still gave me a lot of respect for therians and other alterhumans however, so I don't regret it. Earlier this year I was reintroduced to His Dark Materials after my mythology class decided to watch the HBO show after finishing assignments and I decided to get the books and reread them after so many years. Daemons once again jumped out at me and I started digging into the concept and trying to analyze it. I also started going back to learning about magick, but this time through a more traditional occult lens and eventually realized I did in fact have a daemon and how daemons likely work in our world according to traditional occult philosophy.

We all have daemons within ourselves, but usually they are fully united with us and go unnoticed. Through work, I believe you can gently separate yourself from your daemon until they present similarly to the daemons in His Dark Materials, though with the limitations of this worlds laws. At this time I have a deep awareness of my daemon, Fallon, but we're not separate enough for a communication or projection. I have some ideas regarding the exact mechanics of daemons, but any methods beyond my current step I'm not so sure of. If anyone does have any ideas, I'd love to hear them, but as this is my first post I'm doubtful I'll get any reach.

[shipperneko]

So I'm going to say a lot of things I've already been said because you know this is already been out for a while I'm pretty late to the party but I'm still going to say it because if I don't I will regret it for the rest of my life and this is a very important piece of my life.

I first found out about this when I saw someone's art and I was like “oh that's cool art” and I scroll down a little bit and I saw the same piece of art but drawn in a different style and then stuff started to click and I started to scream and I don't think that I have been this feral in a long time.

We have waited 434 freaking days for this Pomeranian to come back to us and I don't know how I imagined it ( probably something where he just like woke up probably or something similar to this) but the way he did it was just so dramatic and the light-

I know people are already talking about this but the light that returned to Deku’s eyes when he saw him just hurts.

You cannot look me in the eyes and tell me that My Hero Academia wasn't written like a romance novel. Like come on, come on even the homophobes and dudebros are coming on saying that they don't ship it but they're starting to respect the ship because it is insanely obvious. I saw someone that said that it was like the Super Bowl for bkdks and I resonate with that.

I am ecstatic

I don't know what will happen from here on out. While I’d love to see them together I doubt that horikoshi will end the series with either of them in a relationship, whether it's with each other or not I just can't see him doing that. Even though I say that he continues to surprise me so if it ends with something a little less than platonic I’ll be…moderately surprised.

I honestly just wanted to talk and get this out there because I'm going feral over this.

Give me a couple days and I’ll come out with a detailed essay about the events but for right now I leave you with this:

He’s back baby

[quannaix]

Your style is so cool! Where do you tend to get your clothes? The shops where I live are usually very boring

thank you! Honestly I have no consistency where I get clothes. I love hand me downs from friends, often it's things I wouldn't have bought for myself and they end up being my favourite things.

There's also these two random stores in melbourne that I love to shop at when I go there but I don't think either of them have online stores sorry ;_;

Also I usually keep clothes for four hundred million years so whats in fashion is a meaningless concept to me and I tend towards buying things i just think are fun and wearing them till they fall apart.

In the past 5 years I've bought new clothes from DollsKill (once really, but I wear those pieces a lot), uniqlo (see next paragraph for how to get fun things from regular places), Holy Clothing (love big ye olde dresses, they can take a while to be delivered because they make them to order so factor that in if you have a deadline but otherwise love them. Also DEFINITELY wash them separately first time the dyes DO bleed even in cold water haha), I did buy some stuff from Cider but most of it was a bit small so I had to begrudingly admit that and get rid of it, Dangerfield too for some work things that are still fun.

I tend to be drawn to anything colourful whether i'm shopping online or in stores (to no one's surprise) and I love things that look so ugly that I have to have them. if you look out for things like this you can sometimes find the one or two interesting things in an otherwise bland store.

[edwinspaynes]

theories on the images?

Yes, let's go!

KIERARKTINA

Starting with the ship I don't care as much about so that I can get to the others, which happen to be my 3 favourite ships of all time, LOL.

At first I was really confused because I didn't notice Mark and thought that it was Kieran and Cristina and a horse. There was a brief moment where I thought Mark might have turned into a horse. I do not think this is the case, lol.

So the displayed items for them are:

Horse (I'm assuming a steed of the wind hunt)

A bow and arrow

Just two arrows

The Fae King's crown (perhaps just a character symbol of Kieran)

The three rings (that I am speculating are wedding rings!)

I think it's likely that Kieran and Mark will in some way briefly be drawn back to the Wild Hunt and take Cristina with them. They will, in my opinion, likely be married in some kind of Wild Hunter ceremony.

I don't think I can get more in-depth than that because I honestly do forget a lot of TDA and don't have a ton of opinions, but yeah! I will say I'm also really curious about why Cristina is silver while Mark and Kieran are both gold. Perhaps it marks her as a Shadowhunter rather than a Hunter? We shall see.

WESSA

I am PUMPED to see Will and Tessa again, they're my OGs, my little darlings. And LOOK THEY'RE GAZING INTO EACH OTHER'S EYES, 10/10 cannot wait for this.

The symbols surrounding them are:

The Eiffel Tower (not a surprise since Cassie said the story was set in Paris)

The Arc de Triomphe (once again, another symbol of Paris)

What appear to be cards or tickets to something

What looks like a magical snowglobe or crystal ball of some variety

A devil tail wrapped around a pitchfork.

The first two just tell me that the story is set in Paris. But I'm the most fascinated by the snowglobe because it gives off a sort of... ethereal vibe. Look at the symbol in the middle - it looks like a magical talisman, probably something psychic/fortune-telly. Maybe they get their fortunes read and the tickets are for a fortune teller.

This brings us to the devil pitchfork and tail.

We know that the story is set very shortly after Clockwork Princess, meaning that Tessa doesn't know the ins and outs of her demon heritage yet. It feels likely that in this story she'll discuss it with Will a bit...

OR. Or. And I like this one... Belial tries to possess Tessa while she is asleep and the Angel Ithuriel protects her. Belial talks about this having happened in the All Places Hell chapter of Chain of Gold. This would be really interesting because I've long thought I wished to see Tessa have some even indirect interaction with Belial. OH MAYBE WILL FIGHTS HIM OFF TOO YES.

Okay there that's it.

Now...

HERONDAISY

Babies, my babies. I love them so fucking much, they and Thomastair are by far the ones I'm most excited to see again. So let's unpack the Herondaisy corner THOROUGHLY.

First, I do appreciate the fact that Cordelia is still running (but, as @angeldaisies said, she is running side by side with James now and I am going to cry happy tears yet again.) Anyway, it also amuses me that she's running and James is like, reaching after her. She's going to do something brash and brave and impulsive and her and he's going to be adoring it every step of the way and I love that for them both.

So, symbols!

The chess piece (a self-explanatory symbol for their relationship that we all know and love)

The throne

Two pomegranate halves on either side of the heart

I can't think of what the throne is for, but it's very possible imo that it goes with the chess piece because - and I am willing to do a longer essay on this someday that isn't today - the final battle in ChoT is... a chess game. That ends with James, the king, on the Coronation Chair. And this throne in fact looks very much like the Cornonation Chair.

This brings me to something interesting, which is the idea of the symbols inside the hearts vs outside the hearts. I am only going to explore this for Herondaisy and Thomastair because that's what I'm doing.

In any event, James and Cordelia are the only couple to be inside the heart with no props. The other ships all have something with them - Cirenworth for Thomastair, the snowglobe for Wessa.

I am wondering if perhaps the things outside of the heart are things that the story is missing. Will and Tessa wanting to go sightseeing and getting stuck with dark dealings instead; Thomas and Alastair wanting to find Zachary who is missing (I'll get there) but instead feeling stuck at Cirenworth.

In this case, the Coronation Chair represents the past, as does the chess piece that Cordelia is running towards.

Now, I might be reading too much into that. But I'm musing and I like it.

I have 0 idea of what the Pomegranite may be - fertility? Feels too early. Katherine of Aragon? Long dead. Temptation to the underworld? ...Maybe.

In any case, I think and hope that this is going to be their honeymoon story. I want to see them in Istanbul SO BADLY and as angeldaisies pointed out the epilogue of ChoT sets that up nicely. The second wedding runes could be a flashback... maybe James is what's tempting Cordelia <333

THOMASTAIR

I am DYING with excitement for this one as well as Herondaisy's, if I don't get it ASAP I may wither and die in a blob of sadness. But I WILL get it and thus I will thrive. Herondaisy, Thomastair, Arianna, Wessa... the harvest is come.

Inside of Thomas and Alastair's heart, we have their figures running as well as a building that I'm fairly sure is Cirenworth.

Other symbols outside the heart are:

Zachary's pram (rolling downwards, away from the heart)

A car (driving upwards, away from the heart)

A baby shoe

A top hat

Assuming that the hat is Alastair's because he canonically wears hats. And remember in Chain of Gold what he did? He lost his hat.

Absolutely and 100% believe that this story will be about Thomas and Alastair losing Zachary and having to find him. Thought this before, but think it even more when analyzing the symbols.

Since it's a romcom, maybe it's like a heist romcom - they need to follow clues like the baby shoe and the pram rolling about to try to find him (watch him be nursing with Sona or something lmao). But yeah, and their car is gone maybe, so they don't know how to get around or look, and hijinks ensue.

I think this will be set while they're helping Sona move into Cirenworth, by the way, and when they move into Cornwall Gardens. Which I LOVE. HONEYMOON STAGE THOMASTAIR 10000/10.

AN END NOTE

Please don't get to attached to my theories or headcanons, and know that I am not too attached to them, either. I'm speculating for fun, and there is no way I am not going to love Thomastair or Herondaisy stories. Like, I'd read an entire book about either of those ships making breakfast cover-to-cover 100 times. This is just what I think based on symbols.