#thank you again for drawing altair!!!

[teecupangel]

On a matter of better parents - and the quote from one of fics I've read that basically implied William (possibly even yours?) should better be prepared to answer to Altair Ibn La-Ahad about his treatment if Desmond in afterlife... Imagine William passing on and really having to face all the past assassin's who may or may not have been semi aware of Desmond coasting along, and certainly were returning favor by watching his life now

We going to assume everyone who has died is in the same afterlife and not in, you know, whatever Isu bs Alexios/Kassandra went through in Elysium/Underworld/etc

By the time Bill died, Desmond would technically be dead long enough to be buddy-buddy with the rest of the dead populace of the AC franchise so... it's not just gonna be the Assassins who want to 'talk' to Bill.

My idea is that you will see Bill sitting on his heels/legs which is commonly called seiza like this:

But without the mat. The thing about this type of sitting is that it takes lots of practice to keep sitting like this for hours without feeling any pain or discomfort so it's a kind of torture for those unfamiliar with it.

So he's sitting like that and someone has placed a sign on his chest that says "Fucked up my son really badly, come yell at me" like one of those bad pet photos.

Then you'll see two long lines of people just waiting to have a go at him. The lines are so long that people are holding up signs that say "line ends here" and "priority line for ASSASSINS ONLY" then a smaller sign that is duct taped to it that says "except if you have a valid id that confirms your blood relation with William or Desmond Miles"

The lines are so long and the afterlife is... well, time is meaningless in the afterlife anyway, so everyone is just lining up and some are still walking towards the end of the line (and maybe some have already had a go but are lining up again). The loudest voice that could be heard is Claudia Auditore shouting on a megaphone

AN HOUR PER PERSON ONLY UNLESS YOU HAVE COUPONS! ALL COUPON HOLDERS MUST BE CHECKED HERE FIRST! MAXIMUM OF 3 COUPONS PER SESSION ONLY! IF YOU HAVE MORE THAN 3 COUPONS-

Claudia takes the time to glare at Altaïr, Ezio, and Connor who are actually in the normal line. Altaïr is glaring back at her, Ezio is looking at his sister with puppy dog eyes that don't work on Claudia at all and Connor looks so embarrassed being part of the shenanigans that Altaïr and Ezio had done earlier in Desmond's 'honor'. She aims the megaphone directly at them.

YOU CAN ONLY USE 3 COUPONS AT A TIME AND MUST REJOIN THE LINE! YOU CANNOT JOIN THE PRIORITY LINE AFTER USING 20 COUPONS AND MUST JOIN THE NORMAL LINE! WE DO NOT ACCEPT 100 COUPONS FOR A SINGLE SESSION! I REPEAT. WE DO NOT ACCEPT 100 COUPONS FOR A SINGLE SESSION! A BADGE SAYING 'DESMOND'S FAVORITE' DOES NOT GRANT ANY SPECIAL TREATMENT!

"But it is official!" Ezio shouts proudly as he showed the badge pinned to his robes (the badge has a chibi drawing of Desmond doing two thumbs up and a dorky smile and, if you squint really hard, you might see a familiar signature just at the edge of the drawing) while Connor tries to hide behind the two badge-wearing dumbasses even though his height and build makes that impossible. His own badge shines even as he hides behind the two.

And then Layla takes the megaphone from Claudia and aims it at the lines themselves

DUE TO DESMOND MILES' GENETIC MAKEUP, THE RATIO OF PRIORITY LINE TO NORMAL LINE WILL BE 3 TO 1! THANK YOU!

Just as Layla returns the megaphone to Claudia, someone from the very end of the line that sounds a hella lot like Rodrigo Borgia shouts "What does that even mean?!"

Claudia just places the megaphone by Layla's face as Layla shouts

IT MEANS 3 PEOPLE FROM THE PRIORITY LINE CAN HAVE A GO AT HIM THEN 1 PERSON FROM THE NORMAL LINE CAN GO NEXT THEN WE GO BACK TO THE PRIORITY LINE!

There's a bit of noise going everywhere and Layla groans as she shouts

JUST, EVERYONE LISTEN TO MALIK AND BAYEK'S INSTRUCTIONS WHEN YOU GET TO THE FRONT!

"Bayek's in the priority line!" Somebody that sounds like Taharqa shouts in the middle of the normal line.

Layla turns to look at the priority line and, yeah, Bayek is there, waving three coupons at her with a smile on his face so she grabs the megaphone from Claudia and shouts in his direction.

YOU ALREADY HAD YOUR SESSION, BAYEK! IF YOU HAVE MORE COUPONS-

Layla turns to Claudia and whispers, "How many coupons has he already used?"

Claudia shows her thirty-three coupons that say "This is a Desmond Miles approved coupon to shout at my father for an hour. signed, Desmond Miles" with a chibi drawing of desmond doing the "(ﾉ≧ڡ≦) Teehee~!" expression (and a small signature of Leonardo da Vinci by the picture) and had been hastily (and angrily) written over with BAYEK at each one in Claudia's handwriting. All thirty-three of those coupons have already been noted with the word 'DONE' on them as well. Layla rolls her eyes and turns back to Bayek

JOIN THE NORMAL LINE, BAYEK! PRIORITY LINE IS ONLY FOR ASSASSINS WHO HASN'T HAD A SESSION YET AND HAVEN'T USED UP 20 COUPONS YET!

There's a clearing of throat and Claudia elbows Layla hard. Seeing Maria Auditore raise an eyebrow at her as she stood at the priority line. Layla sheepishly used the megaphone to add

AND ANYONE WHO CAN SUBMIT A VALID ID THAT CAN CONFIRM THEY HAVE BLOOD RELATIONS WITH WILLIAM OR DESMOND MILES. THANK YOU.

Layla runs back to where Bill is and hopes Malik is holding down the fort now that Bayek has rejoined the line.

So Claudia is repeating the same instructions, sometimes adding in the following:

ANYONE NOT FOLLOWING THESE INSTRUCTIONS AND GIVING US AN EXCUSE OF 'EVERYTHING IS PERMITTED' WILL BE BANNED FROM JOINING THE LINE FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS.

CLAY KACZMAREK IS BANNED FOR THE NEXT 45 HOURS FOR NOT FOLLOWING THE 1 HOUR PER SESSION RULE AND MAKING HIS OWN CLAY COUPONS. WE DO NOT ACCEPT CLAY COUPONS! I REPEAT WE DO NOT ACCEPT CLAY COUPONS.

WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF ADDING MORE EVENTS WITH WILLIAM MILES. AT THE MOMENT, THIS EVENT IS SPECIFICALLY FOR HIS TREATMENT OF HIS OWN SON, DESMOND MILES. EVENTS FOR OTHER PEOPLE OR OTHER GRIEVANCES ARE CURRENTLY BEING PLANNED AND WE WILL ANNOUNCE OTHER EVENTS WHEN IT'S READY. IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO YOUR OWN EVENT, PLEASE TALK TO RANDVI AT THE INFORMATION DESK. THANK YOU!

ANYONE CAUGHT SMUGGLING ANY OF THESE BANNED PEOPLE INTO THE LINE WILL BE BANNED FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS AS WELL.

99 HOURS REMAINING: EDWARD JAMES KENWAY, ALEXIOS AND KASSANDRA OF SPARTA, AND EIVOR VARINSDOTTIR FOR ATTEMPTED ASSAULT WHILE DRUNK.

70 HOURS REMAINING: MARIA THORPE IBN-LA'AHAD FOR POSSESSION OF FIREARMS AND INTENT TO USE FIREARMS.

67 HOURS REMAINING: CHARLES LEE AND OTHER COLONIAL RITES TEMPLARS, INCLUDING SHAY CORMAC, FOR INSTIGATING THE 'HAYTHAM KENWAY IS BEST DAD' MOVEMENT.

52 HOURS REMAINING: JACOB FRYE FOR SMUGGLING DESMOND THE DOG INTO THE LINE AND ORDERING SAID DOG TO BITE WILLIAM MILES' PENI-

"Excuse me."

Claudia looks down from the box podium that she had been given to stand on.

"I was kicked out of the priority line-"

Claudia aims the megaphone directly at him

PRIORITY LINE IS FOR ASSASSINS AND ANYONE WHO CAN SUBMIT A VALID ID THAT CAN CONFIRM THEY HAVE BLOOD RELATIONS WITH WILLIAM OR DESMOND MILES ONLY. PLEASE GO TO THE NORMAL LINE.

"But I'm an Assassin."

Claudia stares at him for a moment before grumbling under her breath "the nerves of some people..."

She aims the megaphone where Malik is stationed as he's keeping a timer to make sure no one goes over the one-hour limit (unless with coupons) and says

MALIK, ARE WE COUNTING AL MUALIM AS AN ASSASSIN OR A TEMPLAR?

A loud chorus of angry and irritated shouts rang all over the two lines and you can barely hear someone that sounds oddly like Robert de Sablé shout "Put him next to William Miles!"

"He betrayed the Brotherhood! Normal line for him!" Malik shouts and it's almost hard to hear him because of how long the distance between them is and the other angry shouts.

Claudia turns her megaphone back to the old man and says.

YOUR BETRAYAL HAS INVALIDATED YOUR ASSASSIN STATUS. NORMAL LINE!

==== Meanwhile ====

Desmond is just signing more and more coupons while Leonardo and Sofia are printing more and more coupons using the fastest printer that Leonardo himself made together with Alexander Graham Bell. All coupons are being delivered by Darim and Sef Ibn-La'Ahad, Flavia and Marcello Auditore, and Io:nhiòte and her two other siblings. Coupons are free to order but priorities are given to anyone with Ibn-La'Ahad, Auditore, and Kenway bloodlines.

Shouts of "NEPOTISM!" are ignored.

Shouts of "FAVORITISM!" are answered with "Hell yeah, we are!" without any shame.

[just-a-silly-little-whumper]

Year of Whump: Dusty Attic

Masterpost | Read on Ao3

Altair and Elze’ith are called in to investigate some strange noises in a local’s attic.

Contains: Monster hunting (but no killing!), minor injury, mild hypothermia, magical exhaustion

~~~

“You said you were hearing some strange noises up here?”

The man— an older fellow by the name of Russel— nodded. “Yeah. No one’s been up here in ages, but towards the end of fall I started hearing things. There’s a strange chill over the house, too, even when I have a fire in the hearth. Could never find anything whenever I checked, but it’s unsettling. Makes it hard to sleep at night.”

Altair surveyed the dark, cluttered attic. Nothing immediately struck him as out of place, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. “We’ll take a look.”

Russell nodded. “Thank you, lads. I’ll get some tea going while you work; it can get mighty cold up here. Let me know if you find anything.”

He disappeared down the small ladder, leaving Altair and Elze’ith alone.

Altair gave a small grin. “What are the odds that it’s just a raccoon or something that was looking for somewhere to spend the winter?”

“Fairly high,” Elze’ith replied lightly.  “But it could be something else. We should be careful.”

“Of course, love.”

They split up to cover different sides of the room. Most of the things in the attic obviously haven’t been moved in ages, and Altair wasn’t about to go rummaging through a stranger’s belongings. But he still gently pushed some crates and chairs aside, looking for tracks in the dust or other signs of life. In his peripheral vision, he was aware of Elze’ith cradling a magical light in his hand and shining it in the corners of the cluttered space, trying to see what he could find.

At first, it seemed there wasn’t anything to find. No tracks, no remnants of fur or other things left behind, no trace of a creature in the attic. But then Altair heard a startled yelp from Elze’ith. When Altair whirled around, he saw Elze’ith kneeling in front of the brick chimney, cradling his hand to his chest. 

Altair rushed over to him. There were deep scratch marks in Elze’ith’s hand that were giving off an ethereal blue smoke. Next to the chimney, tucked away in a dark corner, was a small, semi-transparent spirit, appearing to be something between a cat and a fox. It was phasing in and out of visibility, seeming to flicker between being half-stuck in the chimney and being fully exposed on the floor in front of them. Altair’s approach caused it to bare two rows of teeth in a weak threat display.

“It’s just scared,” Elze’ith said softly, already making the scratches on his hand close up with a wince. “I think it’s stuck here.”

“Wonder why Russell never found it.”

“It might just be too weak to hide anymore.” His hand healed, Elze’ith tentatively reached for the spirit again. It snapped its jaws at him, and he pulled back. “From what I know about spirits, I think this one might be related to fire elementals. Not enough to have its own fire, but in the sense that it needs heat to live. That would explain why it’s gravitated towards the chimney, and why it’s so weak. The winter is too cold for it.”

Elze’ith’s words made Altair smile; he always loved hearing his partner talk about the various things he had learned through his years of life. But still… “Heat, huh.” He sent magic into his hands, making them radiate warmth like a campfire. He cautiously reached out for the spirit, trying to convey his nonaggressive intent. The spirit eyes him warily, but when it sensed the magic and warmth Altair was giving off, it leapt into his arms.

The spirit was freezing. It seemed to draw all of the heat out of his body and into its own. The sudden shift in energy caused him to sit down hard where he was crouching as he attempted to comfortably get his arms around it. Tiny claws dug into his arms for purchase, causing pinpricks of pain that made Altair hiss. It soon settled, its head tucked against Altair’s chest, Altair’s arms under it like he was cradling a child.

Elze’ith looked at him, gaze soft. “I wish I could see you like this more.”

Altair huffed a fond laugh. “There aren’t that many opportunities. Maybe once we’re across the sea.”

“Yeah.”

The more time went on, the more the spirit’s shaking and shuddering faded as it regained its grasp on its physical form. A chill had settled into Altair’s bones as the spirit claimed almost all of the heat and magic he could put out, but he just let it take what it needed. After a minute a deep rumble started as the spirit began to purr. Eventually, though, the glow the spirit emitted began to brighten, and the spirit vanished gently into the ether.

A wave of dizziness immediately washed over Altair. He swayed where he sat, blinking as the room spun. He was suddenly exhausted, and so cold. Elze’ith immediately noticed his unsteadiness and put a solid hand on his shoulder.

“It’s gone home now,” he murmured. “You did well.”

“Yeah,” Altair replied, voice soft. “That— that took more out of me than I was expecting.”

Elze’ith’s other hand came up to cradle Altair’s face. Altair instinctively leaned into the warmth of his hand. “You’re freezing, love. We need to get you warmed up. Let’s go downstairs, get some of that tea Russel was making, okay?”

“Yeah. That sounds nice.”

Elze’ith stood, pulling Altair up with him. With how drained he was, Altair just let Elze’ith guide him to his feet. He leaned on Elze’ith as they made their way downstairs, where the promise of warm drinks and good company was waiting for them.

[shima-draws]

Lurker anon again from a few days ago! I have indeed been following for a few years! I dont even know how many lol

But it always impresses me how you've drawn for like half the fandoms I've ever been in!

I remember adoring stuff like your UT/DR, your pnf and your mystic messenger ask blogs just as an example!

Oh and altair!! God I love altair so much,, I remember drawing fanart of him in my sketchbook when I was still in school, i was just always too shy to share it dhakdhak

I just wanna start spreading more positivity for my favorite artists even if its anonymously;; being known is scary;;

I hope you have a wonderful day!! <3

-👻👁

THAT'S INSANE TO ME. YEARS...then again I HAVE been here for almost a decade now :")

That's the fun of having ADHD I consume media like a sponge and then forget about it so I can experience it all again 2 months later. LMAO

Also AAAA OMG you drew my baby boy?? Aww man I'd love to see it 🥺 That's such a high honor, tysm <3333

Thank you for your kind message it means a lot that you decided to brave sending an ask!! I totally get how intimidating it can be to send an artist a message haha

[vacantgodling]

1, 6, and 7

thank you!!! this was the answer tumblr fucking ate originally 💀

1. Who was your first ever OC? Do you still “use” them? How have they evolved over time?

first ever oc was one i made when i was like 3-4 with my grandma and i called her nature girl. she was a superhero plant woman fairy thing—very inspired by that one green fairy from neopets as i got older lol. but i don’t use her at all she’s not really my style anymore tho i do still enjoy fairies. i think it’d be interesting to try and give her a form or design—a revamp of some sort, and i tried in like 2015 i think but i don’t feel like trying to find that sketchbook lol. it doesn’t do her justice but maybe i’ll try again one day.

6. Do you have any OCs without stories? Will you ever create one for them?

quite a bit but sorta—mostly bc all of my characters have at least a bare bones general gist about them? however between characters i only draw or characters that were abandoned from old wips with my ex/roleplays that i don’t do anymore i do have some. i usually try to repurpose these ocs; like di, toph, quill, red, hel (all came from the same now defunct universe for example) but there are some that just kind of exist in limbo bc they’re so tied to their stories i can’t figure out what to do with them (an example is aslin rou eliduel; a fae esque dude) or i just can’t think of much to do with them (like utah & gator as an example). soooo i wanna do stuff with all my ideas if i can but i’ve accepted that sometimes it takes time or maybe it won’t happen at all lol.

7. What are your favourite relationships between your OCs? (romantic or platonic!)

i have a LOOOOT of favorite relationships across my wips. amon & hya are the obvious chief otp but here are some of my other favorites:

TCOL: by nature of having a huge cast i have a lot of favorite relationships but clear x forte, lath & ensio (i’m extremely not normal about them), piper & saith (ugh… the unrequited really hits the spot for me idk), erik x dion (THEM!!!!!), cameron x jihi (ouGhHh), and altair x charissa i’m not normal about

carlos & jenna from TLSS are my literal everything do not separate. also the polycule from donut wip of julissa, andres, saul, daisy, and joaquin is 🤌🏾🤌🏾. juls and juvia’s sisterhood makes me emo also

GOD EATER: not normal about naveah & little bear or taj x thei or the four of them in any aspect. also while lucifer x ava / lucifer x kyu is SLIGHT crack i’m still 👀

TGWD: definitely graves and dove but that’s obvious

VDTRT: aside from darren x gabe, dave x estel (crackish but it’s lowkey canon to me), corsel x blackpeak, and raymond x laurent (ESPECIALLY THESE TWO OHHHHHHHH MY GOD) do it for me

dead rites: i mean n x bibi for sure. you’ll notice the pattern that i make wips based on the relationships i’m not normal about 8 times out of 10

LR: di x toph but also trish x nix they are so cute i’m obsessed with them and their little family. nix & toph’s friendship also makes me mad emo, and beki, crispin, rill are chefs kiss (besties)

ALIZATH: kirsi x juven x amarette might become a thing bc i’m kinda 👀👀

PURPLE HAZE: calvin & jake’s friendship means the world to me but also jake x luke i’m not normal about and jenny x ramone are ADORABLE

MOUNT HEREDOSA: i mean. nyoka x verin are boning and that’s the whole story

NAD: the friendship between nyseah, don, and alona makes me emo. the found family is so strong in this wip esp among nyssie and all her kiddos :((((

GOTHICA: genuinely surprised at how attached i got to len x aurora x mori

THE WHITE SHIRTS: marin x prosper are a… guilty pleasure of mine.

SUPERNATURAL DADS: i mean hue x jihan

CELESTIAL WEDDINGS: is all about relationships but i’m specifically feral about dag x lillia (UGHHHh), dag x aenlin (obsessed with them a LOT), dag x vigustav (OUGHHHHHHHH), and dag x zhujen (emotional damage). also dag x almine is just extremely hot thanks.

SIXTEEN CANDLES: i’m biased about ranger x nanette

TEARDROPS: QUILL AND CINN EMOTIONALLY HEALTHY EXES WHO ARE RIDE OR DIE FOR EACH OTHER HAVE MY WHOLE HEART

RED DEATH: red and hel im just *vibrates*

PERI & DANDY: peri x dandy bc it’s basically selfcest but it isn’t and i love them and they love each other, but also emotional about she x he :(((((( them :((((

DREAM TEAM: the four hooligans and their wild ass friendship (oliver, britt, seth, & danny)

MARVIN AND LINDA: i mean it’s in the name. they’re full of pain.

[astralmile-records]

Cinema (YOASOBI cover) - English translyrics by ASTRAL MILE

IMPORTANT INFO: music/lyrics: Ayase (YOASOBI) cover by: ASTRAL MILE vocals/mix: *nao vocal/visuals/translyrics: altair

**THESE LYRICS WERE ORIGINALLY WRITTEN FOR A SEPTEMBER 15, 2021 RELEASE (part of the Sonora Duet Battle in 2021)**

Please credit altair (ASTRAL MILE) if you use these lyrics and link back to here or the YouTube video! Thank you~

All of a sudden, everybody started moving On top a lack-of-sense scenario before me Oh, isn’t it just like a movie? Oh, just the same as like a movie? Wherever you go, you know there’s a story

Before me lies a path that’s wrecked with all my mess-ups How I’d lost count of all the ones that had been crossed out Oh, won’t you tell me what’s the bad part? Hey, won’t you point out all the bad parts? If nothing else, that’s all I wanted to know…

A breaking dawn Belied with lies Precious anti-rides All while playing the mistook hero The traffic lights Jamming up the night This or that No, it can’t be tried now This wasn’t how I’d planned so surely Then how was it then planned, so “surely”? The more I think, the more that I go…

Oh no, this can’t be right, right It’s not a role where I will be fine Out of my type, type Do I give it up ‘fore the sunrise? That’s not right, right Wonder when the day will arrive by when I would be the one in the spotlight?

Every moment when I’m lacking as I laugh to ease And all the baggage that I’d count while I would cry to sleep For all the plans that never panned out as I feel upset It ain’t on anybody else, I feel so lost at that The city lights that shimmer bright and with a radiance The wretched faces of the ones that I would pass on by, if it’s A time to make a start, you gotta start it now Again, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go

This can’t be right, right It’s not a role where I will be fine Out of my type, type Do I give it up ‘fore the sunrise? But the times I’d let the thoughts circle in my mind Just holding out some more for the next time

A breaking dawn Belied with lies Precious anti-rides All while playing the mistook hero The traffic lights Jamming up the night This or that No, it can’t be tried now It was something that I knew so surely It was something that I’d drawn so surely As time had passed, where had it all gone…?

All of a sudden, everybody started moving On top a lack-of-sense scenario before me Tell me, what is it I’m playing? Oh tell me, who is it I’m playing? No, not a chance! No way, it can be me…!

It’s still too soon, I--

It’s still too soon, I’ll fight, fight No way it’s the end, am I right? Out of my type, type? Then I’ll go and write something else now For the most part Always and whenever, for sure I’ll-- I’ll be the one that stands in the spotlight!

Some day it’ll be bye-bye Everything must draw to a close Roar of applause, pause Wave and smile, a curtain call The fate I’d wanted to be changing was here, just Whatever and however that I’d want it It’s here, it had been From rock bottom, we had risen to glory Just like the movies and their stories

[fenrhi]

Fafner or Gundam SEED For the fandom thing :3

I'm choosing Fafner, of course!

Send me a fandom and I’ll tell you my:

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most) : I'm gonna be super predictable and say Soukazu adsdgjlk

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped): THE CORE BRANCH OF THE MINASHIRO FAMILY (Tsubaki, Orihime, Kaguya and Sakuya). I love them, I love drawing them, I love thinking about them and I definitively don't talk about them enough. I like to think the Twins escaped the cycle of life and death that plagues the Cores from their family thanks to Altair and they will live long, happy life on Tatsumiyajima

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave): there's a lot of characters this could apply to but for now I'll go with : MAYA AND MIWA. God i have so many things to say about them. So, Maya first. She has always been unpopular on Tunglr ENG Fafnerdom (especially when Exodus was first airing), and then I remember seeing some posts being harsh on her when TBY started airing. That's a shame, because I think she's a really interesting character (and yes that includes her relationships to Soushi and Kazuki). I wrote some hugeass post about her a few months ago and I'm ready to do it again, partly as a reponse to people who think KazuMaya "won". I could write more about her, but I need to talk about Miwa too afddghj. Ok so, Miwa, Miwa, my baby girl, your character arc was one of the best things that happened in TBY. If it was any other series, I might have rolled my eyes at the "Altair Ex Machina" moment, but here? It fits perfectly well, because Miwa always symbolized hope, and Altair was presented as something akin to a god. I will even say that Miwa (a human) joining hands with Altair (a Festum) to make the world a better place is probably THE most satisfying end to Miwa's character arc. I was always scared of the possibility of Miwa sacrifying her life to save everyone and I'm so glad that didn't happen. I also loved Miwa's interactions with Malespero: despite everything he has done, she still chooses to give a second chance. I had more things to say, but I need to stop somewhere

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week): can I put Chocolat in there.... I mean, I don't know who else to choose asfhklgdfl

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave): The Vilain Gang in TBY. I mean, tbh there's so little discussion about them I don't even know if they're controversial or unpopular. Anyway, I did love that TBY chose to spare them, finally something original in my Fafner series. But the "Maris plot twist" was sooooo stupid tho, but that's for another post

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason): MARIS (those who follow me on Tweethell know how much I love to tenderly roast him)

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell): Ubukata uuh, Hester? I found it strange that she didn't appear in TBY ep12, maybe she died and went to superhell as she deserved

[skylights2000]

Hey Syler! Your letter did send the first time, but I’m really glad you sent it twice because I accidentally deleted the most recent one, and I was really panicking 😅

I really don’t mind that you used this format again. It’s one of my favorites because I’m a space fanatic. I love stars and planets. I love seeing the different phases of the moon, and which constellations are out depending on the season. Did you know some constellations only show up during winter, while some only show up during summer? Someone told me that recently. Im not too sure if it’s true, but if it is, that’s really cool!

As for my favorite constellation, it’s hard to pick. There’s so many to pick from! My star sign is Cancer, but it feels kind of silly to say that’s my favorite. I used to know the stories behind a lot of constellations, but I’ve forgotten them over the years. I should go look them up again later.

My favorite color is a difficult question, solely because it changes depending on my mood. Right now, it’s yellow!

I absolutely adore baking! You’d think I would love cooking too, but baking is just so much more fun to me. I did make chicken alfredo for my family one time, and it was really good, but that’s probably the only thing I’ve cooked from scratch.

I almost became a baker, well, technically a pastry chef. It was my first choice for my career (other than being a writer). I ended up deciding against it though because it took all the fun out of baking for me. Having someone yell at me about perfect measurements and following the recipe to a T just wasn’t for me.

I recently got a book about how to design and draw video games, and I’m really excited to read it!

Wow, that’s a crazy legend. It’s very interesting though. I’ve never heard of that one before, so thank you for telling me! I honestly don’t think I could settle on one legend to be my favorite. There’s a legend behind the stars Vega and Altair, and that one is one of my favorites. Bear with me because it’s been a long time since I’ve read the exact legend, so I may get a few things wrong.

From what I remember, Vega was celestial princess, a goddess of the sky I believe. She was Immortal, but she was weary because she would live in eternity alone.

One day Altair, a mortal, caught Vega’s eye. She descended from the heavens to greet him, and as they got to know each other, she fell deeply in love. Vega promised Altair that no matter what they would be together in the heavens.

But when Vega’s father found out, he was furious that his daughter had fallen in love with a mere mortal. His anger only grew when he discovered that Vega promised to bring Altair up to the heavens with her.

Vega’s father granted the promise that she made, but there was a cruel twist. The two lovers were placed in the sky as stars. Yet while they were both in the heavens, they were not together. The great Celestial River, (known to us as the Milky Way) separated them.

Yet each year, a bridge of magpies formed across the Celestial River. Though it would only be for one night a year, the two were reunited because Altair dared to travel to her.

The star that represents the bridge is called Deneb, and I’ve always remembered that name because it gives me so much hope. I’ve never been one to believe in Fate, but that legend gives me hope that no matter what happens, good things can prosper and come to fruition. It’s a beautiful story to me.

I hope you’re having a lovely day, and sorry for the late reply! Things have been crazy with the school year starting so soon, and sometimes I forget to check my notifications 😅

See ya soon,

~Madison(◍•ᴗ•◍)❤

PS: Here’s a picture of my dog a few days before he had to be put down. He’s such a cutie 🥰

[refinedbuffoonery]

Quarantine Moments (5.5)

By popular request, here’s QM #5 from Mac’s POV. This idiot is pining so hard and he doesn’t even realize it. 

*****

Mac watches the sun set behind them in his truck’s side mirror as Riley drives, the sky shifting from blue, to pink, then orange, then a dark burning gold, before fading to inky black. In front of them, the rising moon is barely more than a glowing sliver in the sky, and once they leave SoCal’s sprawling metropolis behind, the vast desert darkness swallows the beams of the truck’s headlights. 

Riley rolls her window down, letting the warm night air tug wisps of hair from her messy bun, and Mac can’t help but watch the way she smiles softly and breathes deeply, completely at peace. He rolls down his own window, and the wind ruffles his hair like a lover’s playful fingers. 

Mac is surprised when Riley parks in the empty campground. He assumed other people would have the same idea, but but as far as he can see, the area is devoid of human life. 

Mac turns his gaze to the glittering sea above. His eyes land on Vega and Arcturus—two of the brightest stars in the sky—before trailing the Milky Way to find Sagittarius along the southern horizon. 

Riley’s soft gasp draws his attention back to earth. Her lips part as she smiles, awestruck, and the stars are reflected in her big, dark eyes, almost as if she’s robbing them of their light. Thankfully Riley doesn’t notice his staring, because Mac can’t bring himself to look away. 

He should. He knows he should. But, for some reason, he can’t. 

Mac is still looking, minutes later, when Bozer yells at him to help make their bed. 

It’s not until he’s lying beside Bozer on the mass of pillows and blankets that Mac realizes how small his truck bed really is. In his mind, they all fit perfectly, but in reality, it’s only wide enough for two grown adults, not three. Mac and Bozer scoot to the sides to give Riley as much space as possible, but their shoulders will be overlapping no matter what. 

Riley’s arm brushes Mac’s as she squeezes her slim frame into the space in the middle, her warmth soaking into his skin. Mac likes her this close, likes her steady, reassuring presence at his side. They used to gravitate toward each other more, before he got back together with Desi, and Mac will never admit it aloud, but he misses the closeness he once had with Riley. 

Quarantining with her, there were moments that felt like their old selves—the people they were back when Jack was still around and their biggest problem was Mac and Riley’s respective daddy issues—but then there would be a long, awkward pause in conversation or Desi would come up, and then that weird gap between them would be right back, wide as ever. 

Mac isn’t sure how it even got there in the first place. 

He tries to forget about it, distracting himself by searching for constellations while he waits for the first meteor to appear. Finally, one does, zipping across the horizon in the blink of an eye. 

“Did you see that?” Bozer squeals.

Riley laughs softly. “Yeah, but I have no idea where it came from, or where I should be looking.” 

Mac opens his mouth to explain, but Bozer beats him to it. “For starters, don’t look straight up. Look near the horizon. As Perseus gets higher in the sky during the night, the meteors will appear to come from higher up too.”

“Thanks.” 

They watch the sky in peaceful silence. 

Eventually, Bozer gets up to pee, and while he’s gone, Riley nudges Mac with her knee. “You’ve been quiet,” she says. 

How is he supposed to say that even though their shoulders are literally touching right now, that even though they’ve been locked in his house together for months, he’s never felt farther away from her? That there’s this ever-widening chasm between them that he doesn’t know how to bridge? 

Mac doesn’t look at her as he speaks, his eyes finding Vega overhead. “Ancient Chinese astronomers believed Vega and Altair were lovers, forever kept apart by the Milky Way.” He points with two fingers, one toward each star. “Vega is one of the brightest stars in the sky. It’s in the constellation Lyra, which just looks like a parallelogram. And over there is Altair, which is part of Aquila, the eagle.”

Riley doesn’t say anything. Mac glances at her in his peripheral vision. She’s squinting slightly, the way she always does when she’s focusing on something. She must not be able to find the stars, he reasons. Mac doesn’t think before sliding an arm beneath Riley’s shoulders and pulling her closer so that her head rests on his shoulder. His arm brushes her cheek as he points again. 

It’s odd being this close to Riley without catching lingering traces of her perfume—a warm, dark scent he can’t pinpoint but likes anyway. She hasn’t worn it since quarantine started, and Mac is starting to miss it. 

“I see it,” she breathes. Mac lets his arm drape across Riley’s body. 

She tenses, but she doesn’t try to extricate herself from his side. Part of Mac knows he probably shouldn’t be holding her like this. A bigger part doesn’t care. Riley is his best friend goddammit, and he can cuddle her if he wants to. It doesn’t have to mean anything. 

“Show me something else,” Riley says softly. 

Mac takes a slightly unsteady breath before pointing in a different direction.  “Over there are Sagittarius, which looks like a teapot, and Scorpius, which looks like a hook or the letter ‘J.’ Between them is the supermassive black hole that exists in the middle of the galaxy. All of the matter in the Milky Way orbits around it.” 

Black holes are easy. Black holes make sense. But Riley...Riley doesn’t. 

Especially when the moment passes, and she turns her head away to holler at Bozer. “You good, man?” 

Bozer yells back from the other side of the truck. “Yeah! Got a little performance anxiety from this creepy bug staring at me.” 

Mac imagines Bozer having a staring contest with some random desert bug sitting on the hood of the truck and bursts out laughing. His arm inadvertently tightens around Riley, and the wicked gleam in her eye when she looks up at him makes the moment even funnier. 

He feels it again, that gravitational pull toward her. He’s tempted to let it drag him closer, but he’s afraid of what it might mean if he does. 

Riley squirms when Bozer climbs back into the truck, and Mac hesitates before letting her go. 

The three of them lay together for hours, just looking up at the stars, until Bozer initiates a chain reaction of yawns. “Mac,” Bozer says. “Did you set the alarm?”

Patting the pillow above Riley’s head, he answers, “Yeah. My phone is right here.”

Riley twists to look at him in horror. “Alarm?” 

Mac explains, “The meteor shower’s peak is between three and four am. So unless you’d rather stay up all night...” Riley groans, pulling up a blanket and rolling onto her side. Chuckling at her dramatics, Mac grabs a blanket for himself and watches the stars until he falls asleep. 

~ 

The volume of his alarm is set far too loud for the phone only being inches from his ear, and Mac winces as he’s forced into consciousness. Beside him, Riley growls, “Turn it off.” 

He’s lying on his side with an arm around Riley’s waist, holding her in the curve of his body, but it doesn’t feel weird or awkward. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t like the way Riley fit against him. Mac accidentally bumps her face as he silences the alarm, and he mumbles, “Sorry.” There’s no room to move away from her, so Mac just brushes Riley’s hair out of his face and puts his arm back around her. “I hit snooze. You have five minutes.” 

She sighs, absentmindedly brushing her thumb over his hand, and warmth spreads through Mac’s body that has nothing to do with the fact that it’s still nearly eighty degrees outside, even in the middle of the night. He lets himself snuggle closer. If he could live in the calm safety of this moment forever, Mac would. 

But he doesn’t hold Riley for long before feeling like he’s about to explode. Mac rubs her shoulder. “Riles, move. I have to pee.”

Riley groans again, but then her hips press into his as she pushes Bozer away, and Mac scrambles to get up before anything awkward happens. 

“I’m awake,” Bozer slurs.

“Sure you are.”

He’s back by the time the alarm goes off again, and Mac can hear the soft popping of Riley’s joints as she sits up and stretches. The meteors are more frequent now, nearly two a minute. Most are quick, bright flashes, but a few are slower, gracefully crossing the sky before burning up.

“Riley stop blocking the view,” Bozer says, kicking her in the back. Riley flops back down. 

A massive, glowing meteor arcs across the sky in slow motion, lingering for a few seconds before winking out of existence. “Wow,” Riley whispers, smiling. 

Wow is an understatement. Mac would’ve driven all the way out here for that meteor alone. 

Mac keeps his eyes trained on the heavens until the sky lightens and the first rays of sunlight stretch across the desert. The air seems to hum, the way it always does in announcement of the scorching summer sun. 

When they pile into the truck, Mac blasts the air conditioner. He’s already sweating, even though it’s barely six am. As he drives out of the campground and toward the highway, Bozer rattles off suggestions for where to stop for breakfast burritos on the way home. 

Apparently content to let Bozer decide, Riley demands, “Wake me up when you have my burrito. Goodnight.” Mac glances at her in the rearview mirror and smiles; she’s sprawled across the pillows and blankets, already fast asleep. 

[lutzsan]

I took some time to test some coloring ideas I had and got kinda fired up  (haha)

This is one of my most precious oc, Altair, which has been by my side for several years and I used the opportunity to draw some portraits of the facial scars she gets by the time and some slight hair cut changes

Commission Info | Ko-fi

To summarize the idea, at first we have her as she was before - and honestly I myself am not used to seeing her with both red eyes- Then, she loses sight of the left eye and gets some burn scars on her face and shoulders during a time of intense emotional trauma (and her fire power goes boof). Alty learns to adapt to her the circumstances, most of her friends only know her from after the accident. And then during a fight where she overestimated her power (which is imense, but not to be used along arrogance), she loses her right eye, leaving nothing but a burning scar in the place where it once was, leaving her completly blind. I acctually posted a redraw for this fight.

The last image represents her getting control over her live once again, her growth, and in some way, her acceptance with herself. Despite the constant serious look on her face, she's actually a sweetheart who cares a lot for the people she loves.

I love her a great deal, and she's probably the original character I drew the most since I created her... I have pictures of her all over my room and inside my wallet, just so you have an idea of how much love there is hahah   So, if you read to this point, thank you very much for taking an interest in my special baby girl

[painted-piggy-ships-archive]

Slice of Life

Betelgeuse x Hannibal Fawley

Word Count: 1520

Tag List: @heavenshipped @fangedwife @the-rocknroll-cryptid @cherry-bomb-ships

Summary: Slice of life in my domestic au! :o) Ft. fankids Altair, Crux, and Spider Lily

Warnings: Babies and pregnancy mention, empty ideation of suicide (in an annoyed context, idk how common the phrase “if such and such happens I’d shoot myself” is but I’ve heard it a few times before and decided it fit in this context), a somewhat rude principal, bug mentions.

REBLOGS > COMMENTS > LIKES - Thanks for reading!

The Fawley household was far from average. It consisted of Hannibal Fawley, otherwise known as Bill in less formal settings, his husband, a poltergeist known as Betelgeuse, and their three children; Spider Lily, the adopted, eldest, human daughter, age six, and Crux and Altair, half-geist twins, only a few months old at this time.

Hannibal’s income came from stories he wrote, and Betelgeuse worked as a “bio-exorcist,” an exterminator of the living, for the sanity of the dead. Spider Lily was of course attending elementary school, where Hannibal occasionally volunteered as well. It was never a dull moment in this family and they, mostly, happily made do.

Hannibal was washing dishes, his babes in a sling under his chest, fast asleep as he quietly worked, when his phone rang. He slipped it out of his pocket and quickly answered it, trying his best not to disturb the twins.

“Yello?”

“Hey, babes, it’s me. The shuttle’s clogged to the Netherworld and back, I might be a bit late getting home.” Betelgeuse’s pleasantly gravelly voice came through.

Hannibal sighed. He knew he couldn’t exactly control the times souls had to do their afterlife jobs, but tonight really wasn’t the best night to get stuck like this.

“Beej, we have a meeting with Spider’s principal tonight.”

“Shit, tonight??”

“I told you yesterday. And this morning.”

“How about I meet you at the school??”

“5:30. If you’re not there by 5:35 I guess I’m going in by myself.”

“C’mon, Hanni, don’t be like that, y’know I’d be there in two spits of a coroner’s flame if I could!” Betelgeuse paused. “... So the hell are we talking to her principal for again?”

Hannibal shrugged, shifting his phone to the opposite ear. “Not sure. Maybe it’s something to do with grades.”

“She’s in elementary school for JC’s sake, how the fuck are they going to grade coloured-pencil drawings???”

Hannibal glanced at the time. “I don’t know. If you can make it, you’ll find out, now I’ve got to go pick her up. I love you.” Hannibal made a pronounced kiss into the phone, to which Betelgeuse responded with the same.

“Love you, too, sweetcheeks.”

Hannibal hung up and quickly fed Crux and Altair so they wouldn’t get fussy on the car ride, before changing his shirt and setting out to pick up his daughter.

~~~

“Gods dammit, Beej,” Hannibal cursed to himself as he waited by his car with his daughter. He had left the twins home with a trusted sitter, and as his watch struck 5:35, Betelgeuse had not yet arrived. He took a breath, smoothed down his hair and clothes, then took his daughter’s hand and walked into the school.

“Ah, Mr. Fawley, I’m delighted you could make it,” Miss Calls, the principal of Spider Lily’s school, greeted and stood as Hannibal entered her office. He nodded and shook her hand.

“And I’m delighted I could find a sitter,” he joked, “should Spider be in for this?”

“If she would like to be.”

“No.” Spider Lily almost immediately stated. Hannibal smiled slightly and got down to her level.

“Alright. Do you want to wait in the main office? I saw some toys and books you can use to entertain yourself for now.”

Spider Lily nodded and Hannibal took her back out of Miss Calls’ office, before returning and taking a seat.

“Is your husband not joining us?”

“He’s just running a bit late is all-”

The door opened and Betelgeuse entered, having put on a human disguise that looked much like his regular self, but with a lively skin tone, a lack of mold and moss, and thicker hair. However, he still dressed like a suspicious cars salesman, and it took all of Hannibal’s willpower not to introduce his palm to his forehead in that moment.

“Sorry I’m late, horrible traffic,” Betelgeuse took Miss Calls’ hand and shook it much more enthusiastically compared to Hannibal.

“Ah, well, I’m just glad you’re here,” Miss Calls smiled as Betelgeuse took a seat beside his husband. “I don’t think I ever got your name…?”

“Beetle.”

“Beetle… Fawley?”

“My parents were… eccentrics, to say the least,” Betelgeuse chuckled as Hannibal regained his composure. Misses Calls nodded and reclaimed the seat behind her desk.

“Let us discuss why I’ve called you here… your daughter’s teachers are… concerned, about her.”

“Oh??”

“She’s very quiet in class, but she seems to like terrorizing other children on the playground with bugs and very strange stories…”

Betelgeuse chuckled again, knowing at least in part the bugs were probably his influence, but stopped when Hannibal cleared his throat.

“That sounds pretty harmless to me. I was a quiet kid, and I certainly had quite the imagination… who’s to say she’s any different?” Hannibal inquired. He was slightly annoyed they had been gathered for this of all things. Spider Lily had a tendency to be obvious when she was unhappy, and she hadn’t shown any of those signs recently.

“Her teachers are just concerned that she doesn’t really have any friends. They see her try, but there’s nobody she’s really connected with.”

“Not her fault. Maybe the little playground br-” Betelgeuse winced as Hannibal subtly and silently dug his heel into his husband’s foot as a warning. “I mean, maybe the little playground tykes ought to get to know her better before being so quick to judge.”

“I suppose you’re not incorrect.”

“So, what’s the plan? Her teachers are concerned, you called us here to talk, what do you propose we do for Spider so she has more opportunities to make friends? I don’t suppose elementary school has clubs.” Hannibal mused, wanting to cut this meeting short.

“We were thinking, and don’t take this the wrong way Mr. Fawley, you could help her with social skills? It’s clear that being around peers is not quite the right approach…”

Hannibal felt himself grow livid from the insinuation he wasn’t trying his absolute goddamn best to raise Spider Lily in the most safe, educational, and loving environment possible, considering the circumstances of her parents. Betelgeuse noticed the aggravated straightening of his husband’s spine and put a soothing hand on his knee. As much as he’d love to watch Hannibal chew the principal out for her careless words, he knew it wouldn’t help the situation much.

“Well, that’s a fine request, Mrs. Calls.” He spoke calmly with a dangerous undertone. “But don’t you think we’re trying our best at home? I don’t think there’s much we can do to help this situation, at least until Spider Lily finds somebody who likes creepy-crawlies as much as she does.”

Betelgeuse stood, taking Hannibal’s hand so he stood as well. “If Spider wasn’t happy, we’d know. And if we found out it was because of your or one of your employee’s negligence, you’d fuckin’ know, too.”

Betelgeuse’s snake eyes flickered through his disguise in his frustration, making the principal’s hair stand on end.

“Have a nice evening,” Hannibal spoke softer than his husband, tired. Betelgeuse led them out of the office, taking his daughter’s hand as well as they all went back to the car.

“Am I in trouble?” Spider Lily asked.

“No, of course not!” Betelgeuse and Hannibal said in near unison.

“Rollie-pollie, you’re not having any trouble making friends at school, right?” Hannibal asked over the back of his seat. Spider shook her head.

“Some of the boys help me look for bugs at recess. I don’t know many kids’ names, but some are nice to me.”

“Are any of ‘em mean?” Betelgeuse’s disguise melted away as he drove his family home.

“No… but they’re scared of me.”

“Well, so long as you’re not unhappy…”

“I’m not.”

Hannibal smiled. “Then you just make friends at your own pace, alright?”

“Okay.”

“Who wants ice cream before we get home?” Betelgeuse asked. Hannibal contemplated telling him no, it was a bit late for Spider to be having anything sweet, but instead he caved. They all deserved something sweet tonight, to take the edge off things.

~~~

When the trio got home and Spider Lily was set to bed, all Hannibal could do was strip down to his undershirt and boxers and bury himself in Betelgeuse’s side on their bed. He hadn’t undressed yet, but had his shirt unbuttoned and his tie undone.

“Tuckered out?” He growled lowly and sweetly to his partner.

“You have no idea. Gods, I hate the school board. If I have to mingle with another Susan, Debbie, or hell forbid Karen at another fucking bake sale I’ll shoot myself.”

Empty words. Betelgeuse smiled at Hannibal’s venting.

“You wouldn’t trade the kids to be rid of it, would you, though.”

Hannibal allowed himself a short chuckle. “‘Course not. Love them damn kids. The two I birthed myself, with my own manly hoo-ha, and the daughter we adopted because nobody else would.”

Betelgeuse coaxed Hannibal’s head out from under his arm and placed a sweet kiss on his lips.

“That’s the Bill I know.”

Hannibal dragged his fingers through Betelgeuse’s tangled hair, already much more relaxed compared to before. “I love you, Beej.”

“I love you, too, darlin’.”

[julesnull]

Hullo! Fancy talking about one of your characters? :0

I sure do :D

Baudran Kelly Degensay, Bau for short (pronounced Bo)

Current age: 33

Height: 4'11

Sex: Male, he/him

Race: Junzec-Speaker mix

Sexuality: bisexual polyamorous

Nationality: Australian, grew up in Ayncashi.

Interests: Cooking, sketching, alone time, spending time with his daughter, music, foreign cuisine, walks,

Dislikes: loud noises and spaces, crowded public spaces, public bathrooms, uncleanliness, the sound of dishes hitting eachother, yelling, doctors offices, rude people, disorganization, coughing, the sound of chewing or sniffling.

General background: Bau grew up in Ayncashi with his family of 7 excluding him, his 5 siblings and parents. Bau's family is very artistic, most of his siblings choosing some sort of craft as their career. Feeling pressured by his family's expectations, Bau pursued drawing when he was a teenager to young adult, taking it upon himself to teach himself and learn from online tutorials. During his college years Bau split his attention between drawing, cooking, and babysitting family friends kids, twins Altair and Virgo. A few years of stress, learning and babysitting later Bau had his own child at 25, an accidental daughter named Evie he had with just a mutual, who gave him custody and parted ways. Bau took Evie with open arms, feeling it was his responsibility after knocking someone up in the first place. Skip a few years and Evie is 4, Bau is 29 and Altair and Virgo are both 22. Bau lived with the twins, having them babysit Evie for him while he worked at a restaurant trying to help them put food on the table.

Part 2 bc I didn't realize how long this was, I'm not gonna try to make this be pretty

So eventually Bau visits Winterday for work related reasons and meets Jacale. Nothing much happens but him and Jacale get together romantically and Jacale comes home with him to Ayncashi occasionally to visit. After living a few weeks with Jacale, Bau is hospitalized for a broken leg which the cause is later diagnosed as bone cancer or Osteosarcoma. And his leg is later amputated because of the severeity, yes I know this all sounds fuckin insane. Some time later Bau has a prosthetic and has fallen into a deep depression, rarely eating and only getting out of bed if he had to. During this, Bau leans on Altair for support, which quickly turned romantic (I know it sounds bad with the age gap), and a relationship was formed a bit after. Though Altair had a girlfriend at the time Bep, and a daughter on the way.

Time skip again, because nothing significant happens, life goes by, Bau is on meds and him, Altair and Jacale are happy. Bep being informed about the relationships and accepting it, as long as Altair loved her just the same. Bau is happier, used to his prosthetic, putting on a healthy amount of weight, etc, and is looking for a job, where he lands one at a tattoo parlor. I didn't know how to fit it in before but Bau evolved his art career into being a tattoo artist, and has done many tattoos before including on himself. Eventually Bau finds himself in yet another romantic relationship with his boss Mochi, a small dragonborn who ran the tattoo parlor. At this time, Altair and Bep are married with two kids, and Jacale is married and has one kid.

O ka y I'm so sorry you had to read that you poor soul. It all sounds insane and it really is but I love to talk about this character. There's also probably a lot of inconsistencies or details I missed so don't take it all as 100%, it might be like 99.9% idk man

thank you for asking :D I apologiz for the late respons

[shortpirateking]

2,11

Ja(*reeees in confusion and how to come up with good qualities*)

2. What’s 3 things your f/o likes about you?

I have....literally no idea- especially on specific F/o’s... I guess for the general it’d be creativity, adventurous, and silly???

11. Free pass to gush about your f/o

Okay so!!! I have many many many *MANY* f/o’s- all from different fandoms and even to a few of my friend’s oc’s!! so it’s hard to list every single one but I am ABSOLUTELY going to list many of them with a little ramble(and the fandom because sO MANY CHARACTERS. (not counting transformers characters, book characters, or Oc’s/ readers for the sake of space)

Dark Crystal(first ofc)

SkekTek: oh do I LOVE this boy!!! His intelligence, his backstory!! I just wish to hold him close, protect him from the world and go on a vacation with him and Sidetic!!!

SkekVar: Originally I wasn’t so fond of him- but his dumb himbo self has grown on me- i remember having a dream a long time ago of the skeksis turning human after saving thra(long plotline) and becoming like teasing partners who playfought a lot. I wantthis still.

SkekGra and Urgoh: They’re just!!!! So sweet!!! I want to snuggle with them, make puppet shows together with them and just enjoy being hermits!!!!

UrVa: Husband material?? yes?? His voice is amazing and i just want to be wrapped in his arms in the forest, learn archery and!!! AAAHSUAIHSA

SkekMal: Scary forest man who shits in the woods with a dark and sexy voice??? sign me tf UP *So many things i’d do with this feral lad*

UrSol: I just....love him so much- I want to snuggle, spoil, tease, and sing with him. 

UrTih: I would do ANYTHING to make him blush, embarrass him then snuggle him as he hides his face. UrTih is mY LAD

UrSan: She’s literally a mermaid and she’s so!!! PRETTY I’M SO GAY FOR HER

SkekSa: EVEn GAYER FOR thIS  LASS HOLY SHIT SHE COULD STEP ON ME AND I’D THANK HER DUOIS

SkekLi: As a musical/history/folklore nerd. I’d kill to sit by a fire, sing folk songs and tell stories, make up our own plays, and just...enjoy being silly without the worry of being ridiculed.

SkekShod(Sorry shroom-): My??? My love?? I want to give this Skeksis my treasure chest of shiny rocks- I want to hold him close, love and kiss him- if he ever told me he loved me i’d *melt*

Assassin’s Creed

Ezio Auditore: he is *beyond* handsome- and good golly is he just!!! PERFECT. He has so much character development- i just want to learn Italian, follow his adventures and see all the things he has seen!!! (and befriend all of his friends)

Yusuf Tazim: Turkish lad??? Dorky, and just so silly??? yes??? I just....want to run through Istanbul with him---

Federico Auditore: HE WAS ONLY ALIVE FOR LIKE 5 MINUTES OF GAMEPLAY BUT I WANT TO MARRY HIM OK

Altair Ibn La-ahad: Oh boy have I had so mANY DAYDREAMS WITH THIS MAN. I’d kill to have the frenemies to lovers romance with him, aid him in his quests, become his right hand man and just....Share life with him and Maria- being the weird aunt of Darim and Sef

Malik Al-Sayf: SAME HERE WITH MALIK. I just...want to grow up with him and Kadar, learn to be an assassin with them and just- help him through his grief, change the course of time- or if not, be there for Tazim as he grows.

Charles Vane: I have literally no reason to like this man, but I do. 

Anne Bonney and Mary Reed: Amazing tough pirate gorls who kick ass and take names- what is there to NOT love?!?!?! (I just want to flirt and love on both of them- and many other NSFW things)

The Hobbit/Lotr

Aragorn: a king and warrior, strong and brave- and just!!! iosjdisada

Boromir: I really feel bad for this lad- he was merely a mortal, and sacrificed so much to regain his honor... I wish I could have saved him- or gave him comfort-

Bofur: He is the life of the party and I want nothing more than to dance on a table with him while singing at the top of our lungs. 10/10 best friends as lovers

Bifur: I want nothing more than to learn Khuzdul, speak with him and just...hold hands as I watch him make such intricate toys, see both that wild side and gentle side. 

Nori: I just like his stupid starfish hair and shenanigans okay??? he’s a little shithead thief

Kili: babbi boi....babi

Tauriel: Strong independent woman??? Red hair??? badass?? I don’t care that she wasn’t in the book, I WANT HER HAND IN MARRIAGE

Marble Hornets

Tim Wright: husband?? I would have loved to hold him- before all went to shit- i’d love to be in a poly/open relationship with him, Jay and Brian(brian we’d share, but Jay would be is(As he is CANON GAY AND I’VE NEVER BEEN SO HAPPY BEFORE MY HC WAS RIGHT)

Alex Kralie: Honestly was probably an adorable dork before the sickness got to him- I still love the bad ending @probably-rabid and I roleplayed before-

Arata Kangatari(manga is the best)

Kannagi I just- love his character arc so much!!! even afterwards he’s such a dORK AND I LOVE HIM

Yorunami: Okay look- we both went through so much from our parents- so much trauma. I wish to hold him and help him to let go, to forgive but understand that doesn’t mean he has to excuse behavior.

Isora: He went through so much...so much... he didn’t deserve anything that he got, like at all... the fact he turned evil is not a surprise at all- i would have too...I just wish I could love on him, allow him to know there is love.

Eto: He’s such a good big brother....I just...want to love him... so much

Kuroshitsuji: 

Hannah Anafeloz: She was my first gay crush I can remember(then again I can’t remember too much of my childhood at all so-) and I love her so much-

Claude Faustus: I fucking hate him- and yet I love him sso sosososo much(Legit he is more of a yandere f/o and I rEEEE)

Herman Greenhill: Idc what happened in the manga- Often daydreamed about getting into Weston high and just... having him question his sexuality(As I’d be presenting as male the entire time) and just--- !!!!

Wolfram Gelzer: Big bad guy who learned to love?? Like!!! He is so sweet!!! big scary Germany teddy bear. 10/10 would snuggle. Also I love sullivan so we’d team up to tease the crap out of him

Gregory Violet: emo boi...likes black and cloaks. He is my goth boi and just...I want to draw with him- save him from Bravat along with the others- and other things that are plot related

Lawrence Bluer: Same for him-and I love how he is! I feel like he’d be a blushing nerd sometimes- but also be calm and collected. gOD I JUST WANT TO HOLD HIS HAND AS WE SHARE A BOOK

The Triplets(thompson, timber, and canterbury): I have no reason to love them- yet i do.

Agni: *incoherent screaming and sobbing as I recall what happened* HE DESERVED SO MUCH AND I LOVE HIMMMMMMMMMMMM

Snake: Babbi boi...babbi pt 2- I love him so much- he was my first ever cosplay, tricked my uncle into naming his snake after one of his(Keats). I just want to snuggle this boi.

Joker: sweet boi put into bad situation- I wish I could have saved him and the rest of the circus act-

Jumbo: okay but he is literally like 10ft tall. I want his height. I WANT TO BE CARRIED BY THIS MAN. LET ME BE CARRIED BY MY SUPER TALL HUSBAND OKAY?!?!?!

(I have so so so so SO MANY MORE- but that’s the main ones. Thank you for my TedTalk)

[storytimefromthecreed]

The Assassins as Roommates: Christmas 2019

“Shoes? They’re wonderful! Many thanks.” Haytham returned to his seat beside Ziio, who’d gotten comfortable in the giant, quilted blanket she’d gotten. Draping it over them, Haytham held her hand beneath the folds, and Ziio leaned against him.

“They’re dancing shoes.” Edward joked, a twinkle in his eye as he gave Connor a shoulder.

“Since the genes seemed have skipped a generation, Father.” Was his grandson’s response, and they broke out in laughter.

“Burn, mate!” Jacob was clutching his sides, Alexios laughing beside him. They’d begun their game of White Elephant in the backyard. There was a chill in the air, snow on the ground, and a gray sky above them; and god were they happy. Ziio had started a bonfire nearby. There were similar set ups scattered around the backyard thanks to Claudia, Aveline, and Elise. Everyone had arrived. From Bayek to Desmond, from Aveline to Adewale, Assassins and Templars from around the world had joined for this time of year. The game was concluding it’s first round, the round where everyone opened the gifts, and was about to begin it’s second round, where the stealing of gifts began. The gift could be stolen only twice, then it was gone forever. Eyes darted as friends became foes, and enemies made truces.

“I’ll get those daggers if you help me get the cowboy hat.” Arno leaned in to Alexios, and Jacob pulled his boyfriend away.

“Aye, no cheating, mate. Besides, Alexios is helping me get Liam’s ropedarts, aren’t you, babe?” Alexios looked between the two and sunk lower in his seat. “Babe?!”

“I’ll have you know I dance wonderfully.” Haytham declared proudly, and looked to Ziio. “Right, dear?” Ziio’s eyes went wide and she looked at Connor, who’d begun laughing anew, clutching Edward for support.

“You dance wonderfully, dear.” Ziio assured loud enough for the other Kenways to hear and gave Haytham a kiss on the cheek to solidify the fact.

“All these relationships,” Altair voiced to Ezio, “Let’s hope the happy couples don’t take anything out on one another. However, I’d love to see what Claudia does to Yusuf.”

“You and I both.” Ezio laughed but then rose a brow. “Though I don’t like the way Maria is looking at you.”

Altair followed his line of sight and gulped. Maria pointed two fingers at her eyes and then back at her husband’s, and Altair, remembering his tardiness at his birthday, felt himself shrinking. “You and I both.”

“Time to steal!” Malik shouted. Those who loved their gifts tried hiding them behind themselves, behind other people, or making them seem uninteresting. Yusuf took Claudia’s hidden blades under his arms and pulled her near.

“I’ll protect you, Claudia.” He declared dramatically, kissing her cheeks and wrapping his scarf around her to protect her from undeserving eyes.

“Yusuf!” She could barely make out between laughing fits. Ezio eyed them, but said nothing. It appeared their relationship was growing on him.

“This spear? Not that great.” Alexios said with an eye roll.

“I can’t stand these hidden blades, if anyone would like a new set.” Shay said.

“Oh, we all know why you don’t want hidden blades.” Liam said under his breath, making Maria laugh.

“What was that?” Shay asked, and Liam looked around.

“Wouldn’t recommend this shield. I will do everyone a favor by hanging on to it.” Phillip sat on his shield, finally at eye level with Adewale.

“If anyone wants to take this axe, then I guess it’s fine.” Demetri leaned against Aveline, his newest crush. “I’ve seen better.” Both Gerard and Liam eyed it.

“Anyone touches my bow, you’re losing a limb.” Aveline secured it behind her back and Demetri nodded.

“I’ll steal from you, you steal it back?” Demetri winked and, for once, Aveline didn’t roll her eyes at him.

“Deal.” Demetri, who was number one, took her bow. Aveline was number three, so all she had to do was wait.

“Already lost one.” Malik grinned, and walked across the circle of gasping faces as he stole it from Demetri.

“The betrayals begin!” Elise shouted and Arno laughed, hushing her.

“Don’t incite a riot already.” He begged.

“Bet you won’t hit ‘em.” Maria yelled and then hid her face behind Altair’s shoulder.

“No!” Altair pulled her into his chest and held her before Malik. “If you’re going to start a fight, don’t come to me to end it! Take her, Malik! Take her!” Maria’s body shook, her mouth open, unable to draw breath from how hard she was laughing, slapping her hands weakly against his chest. Altair tucked her back into his chest, kissing her head and nestling around her. It was comical the way he had to hunch down to compensate for her smallness.

Malik puffed his chest. “Don’t call me Altair’s right hand man for nothing. Besides, I was quite the archer back in the day.”

“When you both arms, you mean?” Altair called from his place in between Maria and Desmond. Both buried their faces in their hands.

Malik snapped, “No, when my eyesight was bett- yes when I had two arms, you jerk!” Both men threw their heads back in laughter. No one understood their humor like they did.

Aveline sputtered, “Malik!” She handed it to him, and Demetri glared.

“You’re making a grave mistake, mon ami.” He said.

“It’ll be decoration for my study.” Malik chuckled, and bowed low. “We were getting a bit too chummy. The best gift of all, is your distress.”

Aveline was next, and she looked at Alexios’s spear. Alexios lost his spear but took Arno’s hookblades. Yusuf took Gerard’s dinosaur onesie. Gerard was happy to see it go and stole Phillip’s shield. Kassandra stole Adewale’s sweater.

“How will I fight if I’m freezing?” She explained, getting into it. “I’ve never lived anywhere this cold.”

“Kassandra,” Alexios now rethinking his gift groaned, “Switch with me.”

“I told you to bring your jacket!” Jacob removed his own and threw it over Alexios, wrapping him up in his arms.

Evie was fine with her jacket, and Henry took Jacob’s Captain’s hat. “Mate!” Jacob frowned.

“I’m the captain now.” Henry winked, placing it expertly on his head. Evie stuck a tongue at her brother.

Once everything was stolen, the scene looked a little like this. Elise spun nerf guns, Arno tilted a cowboy hat, Connor held the wanted axe. Edward stole the Captain’s hat and left Henry with a scarf. Ezio took the shield, Phillip a giant nerf gun, Demetri shoes, Gerard throwing knives. Alexios ended up with a belt, Maria a coat, Desmond a hood. Altair lost his mind when he saw him wear it, and Ezio cried real tears. Yusuf won a globe, Claudia new hidden blades, Bayek a watch, Aya a helmet. Finally, Shay a book, and Liam dual cutlasses.

The fight began as it did every year, with the frustrations of the past hour pushing them to pick targets. Connor ran after Haytham, per his tradition, and this year was aided with Adewale and Edward. Shay and Maria were mid-duel. Maria span, tricking Shay into loosening the hold on his sword and then elbowed him in the ribcage, straightened her arm, and held him at swordpoint. Scooping at handful of snow, Shay flung it at her face and Maria backed away to clear her vision.

Liam tackled Shay before he could smirk, and the two wrestled in a snowbank. Once vision was returned to Maria, she joined. Shay and Liam rolled into a standing position and were standing in front of one another. Maria ran, leapt, and used her shoulder to plow into Shay. Liam caught her by the waist before she could fall, and Shay, covered in snow, stared up at his laughing friends, giving high fives at their success.

Arno and Phillip were behind trees shooting each other, and whoever passed, with their nerf guns. Arno got Gerard in the face, but Gerard thought it was Phillip and took after him. “Gerard!” Phillip’s cries resounded the backyard. “Why would I hit you?”

Gerard paused, and eyed the tree Arno was hiding behind. “He went for the face, Gerard!” Arno snickered, calling from the tree he’d claimed as his outpost. Elise had joined him.

“The most sacred tenant is broken!” She called and Phillip, running past from Gerard, hurled a shelf of snow at them.

“Stop inciting riots!” He said, and swore to get back at Arno.

Aveline was in a fort with Desmond when Malik joined and she readied a snowball. But before he could receive it, Malik handed her the bow. “Merry Christmas, friend.” He said, and disappeared, leaving her spluttering.

“That Malik,” Desmond commented with a shake of his head. “What a guy.” He peeked over the fort and threw a snowball. Getting Yusuf at the back, Desmond hid behind the snow and laughed. Peeking out again, snickering at Yusuf’s confused face, Desmond threw another. Yusuf spun around, undoing his blades, and made a circle.

“Claudia?!” He called, “Ezio?!”

When his back was to Desmond, he threw another and ducked again. Aveline muffled her laughter in her sleeves, but Desmond couldn’t. Laughing, he looked over the fort wall once again, and found Yusuf was gone.

“Damn it!” Aveline hissed, her eyes darting side to side.

“He’s not by Liam,” Desmond observed, “not with the Kenways either.”

“Did you check behind you?” Yusuf asked, and the pair spun around. Aveline docked an arrow to her bow and shot a snowball destined for her. Desmond was not so lucky. But hey! The hood was awfully warm and took most of the impact. Yusuf danced off before they could retort.

Haytham and Ziio were behind a tree, Ziio peering around to glare at her son before ducking from the snowballs. “Leave me, dear.” Haytham sighed, “It’s me they want.”

“First, I’m not leaving you. Second, I’m not letting Ratonhkhake:ton best me. God! If only I had,” She eyed the branch above them, and smiled as a plan formulated. “Haytham, can you reach that?” Haytham reached his arm up and grabbed hold of the branch. Ziio instructed he bring it down, and piled it with snow.

Connor, Edward, and Adewale were waiting with bated breath and mischevious grins for Haytham’s hat to appear on the other side of the trees when they heard a whip. Snow, a blanket that filled the air white, was heading straight for them. Edward leapt in front of Connor, screaming, “No! Ratonhnhake:ton, no!” before hitting the earth. Snow hit Adewale’s face and got into his clothes, leaving him speachless from cold.

“How bad is it?” Edward croaked, throwing a hand over his forehead. Connor knelt in the snow beside him, and lowered his hood.

“You did not have to.”

Edward took his hand. “Of course I did.”

Connor smiled a sad smile. Then, Edward closed his eyes, his lips moving. “I can not hear you, Grandfather.” Connor frowned, leaning in.

“I said, I’m leaving you.”

“Please, do not, Grandfather.”

“I must, dear boy.” Edward coughed.

“Please, do not leave me.”

“I will always be with you. For now I must go, because....” He coughed and Connor leaned in closer. “It’s fucking cold as hell, and I’ve got snow in my under trousers.” Connor rolled his eyes and helped Edward up. He pat Connor’s back. “Avenge me, grandson. Also, do you take marshmellows in your hot chocolate?” Connor nodded, “There’s a good lad.” Then Edward went inside.

“Dramatic Kenways!” Malik called, and fought off Kassandra who was trying to steal Altair’s Santa hat. He wanted to wear it!

Evie and Henry were mid battle with Jacob and Alexios. “Freaking Kenways!” Jacob yelled from the other side of the backyard before Henry threw a snowball at him and caught him in the face. “Greenie! What the hell? I thought we were in this together?”

“I’m not a Frye, Jacob!”

“Yes, you are!”

Evie interjected, still fighting Alexios. “Jacob! I took his name! Remember? You were at the wedding!”

Jacob rolled past Henry’s guard and clipped him between the shoulders. Training with Elise and Alexios had really improved his swordsmanship, and he looked betrayed. “I thought there was one fake Frye in this backyard. Turns out there’s two.”

“Do you take French Fryes?” Demetri called, leaping over Malik’s shoulders and landing in a somersault bringing their duel to a halt as he ran through. Claudia and Desmond were hot on his trail.

Ziio and Haytham were still high fiving, celebrating their victory. Connor shook his head and threw on his hood. Haytham grinned, and Ziio formed a ‘L’ with her thumb and finger. “It seems I have lost both parents in this battle.” Connor glared, and his mother dropped her smile.

“What was that, Ratonhnhake:ton?”

Connor’s heart fell and he put his hands up. “Mother, I was joking. It was a joke.” Ziio emerged from the trees, and Adewale backed away.

Connor looked between Adewale and Haytham. “Ziio, maybe we should-” But she shot him such a look, Connor understood why he closed his mouth. Connor bolted. Aya, who was wrestling Bayek for his fort, saw this and took after with Ziio. Aveline joined them, always did love beating up on Connor.

“Greenie! After all we’ve been through?” Jacob sparred Henry, but Evie ducked under his arm and came to stop the blow. “Evie!”

Evie circled his sword, causing him to almost drop it, but Alexios took his boyfriend behind him and battled both. “Got your back, baby.”  

“I’m both embarrassed and turned on.” Jacob grinned, and Henry dropped his sword.

“Hand to hand?” He offered, and Jacob tossed his sword, readying his fists.

“This I can do. Love ya, Greenie!”

“Arno, you bastardo!” Ezio yelled, tossing snow over his shoulder but without a good eye on his target, it was just for show.

“Mon ami, admit you were wrong!” Arno yelled back.

“You overseasoned! I will not lie to aid your delusions!” Foam bullets pelted the tree. “Stop hiding, coward! Face me!” Ezio called over his shoulder. Arno was pinning him against the far side of the backyard, and if he didn’t break from this then he’d be taken out by Yusuf and Kassandra who rolling tree to tree and getting closer.

A rustling at his side made him jump, and Maria landed beside him. “Which one do you want?”

“Yusuf.”

“They’ll be expecting you to take him, so I’ll rush Yusuf first, then switch to the Spartan.”

“All well, Maria, but how are we going to get past their shooter?”

Maria smirked then formed a gun with her fingers, and blew on it. “I’ve got shooters of my own.” As if on cue, the shooting stopped as Arno was contending with Phillip. Demetri, you see, had been creating the pretense that he was Phillip poorly shooting at Arno while the real Phillip sneaked to Arno’s side and was now exacting his revenge on him. They didn’t call him the Shadow for nothing. Phillip truly was a ghost, his ability to disappear made him a great asset.

Confused over the sudden stop of their cover, Yusuf and Kassandra readied themselves for anything. Maria and Ezio charged.

Desmond, Claudia, and Elise were fighting Liam, Shay, and Bayek. “Keep you stance open, Desmond.” Bayek coached, and Desmond did as instructed.

“You’re on our side!” Shay tossed snow in the air as a cover for Liam, who ran through and landed in between Elise and Claudia. Not taken by surprise, Claudia circled around him and placed herself between him and Elise. With a swift kick, she pushed him to his side. Elise rolled over her back and landed with a kick of snow, blinding him.

“I’m on everyone’s side!” Bayek laughed, dueling Desmond who jumped and spun, catching him on the forearms. Bayek pushed him back, and congratulated him. “Beautifully done, Desmond. Keep your back low when you land. Don’t want to become a target yourself.”

“Thanks, Bayek.” Desmond smiled.

“Who wants to trade for Bayek? Connor? Altair? Anyone!” Shay called to anyone who would listen. He was trying to get to Liam, but Claudia and Elise were keeping him at bay.

“It’s only a game, Shay.”

“Don’t say that too loudly.” Aya leapt into Bayek’s arms, and he dropped his sword to spin her around. It landed with a tiny crunch in the snow.

“Ready to go inside?” He carried her easily, and she rolled from his hold. “I find myself longing for hot chocolate by the fireplace.”

“After this one battle, promise.” Leaving him with a kiss on his cheek, Bayek fondly watched her run off. “She always says that.” He said dreamily.

Desmond clapped his back. “I wouldn’t mind heading in myself.”

“Would you like me to carry you?” Desmond thought about it a moment, and then nodded. Scooping him up, they went inside.

“What’s wrong with Desmond? Is he hurt?” Altair cried, kicking back Alexios.

“Desmond’s hurt?” Ezio sparred Kassandra, ignoring the snow pelting him.

“He’s just being funny.” Maria sighed, stopping her duel against Yusuf to adjust Altair’s Santa hat. Ezio and Altair nodded, but kept a sharp eye on Desmond.

Tried of his antics, Claudia fell Shay by lowering herself in the snow and kicking a leg at his shin. Liam, seeing his fellow fighters were ended, accepted the snowball to the face.

The battle raged until their fingers, toes, ears, and noses were pink, cold, and running. Edward had hot chocolate ready when they came inside. Connor threw a blanket over his parents, nestling in with his father on one side and Aveline on the other. Aya sat beside Ziio and showed her how to care for her new hidden blades. Elise, Aveline, and Phillip were laughing and giggling, their conversation flowing from English to French and back again. Demetri sat gazing at Aveline. Arno and Ezio were with Desmond, under their own blanket, going back and front on sports. Jacob and Alexios with Altair and Maria were taking pictures under the mistletoe, interchanging couples and striking silly poses. Alexios lifted Altair, and Altair threw a hand to his forehead, swooning. Seeing this, Adewale and Yusuf joined them. He lifted Yusuf in the same manner.

Henry gave a cup to Malik, deep in conversation of the Creed with Evie and Shay. Liam was congratulating Kassandra and Claudia in battle, then asked for lessons.  The sun had fallen and their spirits were never higher. It was a wonderful Christmas indeed.

[moirai-au]

Timeline: arc 6 - Aftermath, about a week after the Orator is defeated

Warnings: shippy, Davil, vague mentions of alcoholism and self-harm

Taglist: @immabethehero @bupine​ @tabbynerdicat @i-maybe-exist @its-ethan-bro @sandinthetardis @honestlyitsjustkenna @taikeero-lecoredier @idkwheresanti

if any of yall (18+ only for the love of god please) wanna see the ns*w version, it’s over here.

“And you still won’t tell me where we’re going, or what we’re even doing.”

“Nope! That’s the whole concept of a surprise, babe.”

Cecil pursed his lips, unamused. He closed the book he’d been finishing just a moment prior and set it aside, on the growing pile of useless volumes right next to the desk. It wasn’t as big or as comfortable as the one in his own apartment, but it made do. “You do know I still have three other idiots to take care of here, right?”

“They’ll be fine, trust me. Charlie can take care of himself, Mars barely does anything but sleep for now, and Ollie’s watching over him. You can leave for a few hours without the mansion burning to the ground, you know.”

Cecil raised a brow. “...Were you even here for the last month and a half?”

“Painfully present, yeah,” Dave chuckled. “Remember the smell of the oven melting? I still don’t understand how the kid pulled that one off.”

The older man groaned. “For someone who wanted to reassure me, you’re not doing a very good job of it.”

“Oh c’mon! It’s gonna be okay, I’m sure of it. Besides, you really need a break.”

“I do not!” Cecil protested, distractedly scratching at his appearing stubble. Dave peered up at him with a deadpan look, considering his wrinkled clothes, his emaciated face and the dark rings under his eyes. “...Really? You know what, it doesn’t matter,” he shook his head, his blue eyes hardening. “This is me putting my foot down, not a negotiation. I’m not gonna sit here and let you run yourself into the ground like this. You’re coming with me, and that’s final.”

 The doctor stared at the younger man, taken aback- he’d never heard him use this tone before. it was firm, confident, and evidently left no room for complaint. “...Fine.” he heard himself say before he even realized it. Verdammt. Maybe he was more tired than he thought, giving in that easily.

Or maybe Dave just had this natural sense of authority Cecil had never seen before, because he’d never actually needed it. It actually made sense, considering he was a father.

Thinking about it now, it was obvious. Cecil could’ve hit himself.

“Great!” David beamed, his previous sternness gone as fast as it had arrived. “Just lemme grab a few things first, and pack warm clothes. I’ll get my car.”

“I- your car?” the doctor repeated, his confusion growing- just how far was Dave planning to take them? The smaller male only winked in response, an impish grin on his tanned face. “You’ll see.”

 ***

 It was an abnormally warm night for mid-december.

Well, warm as in… not freezing. Enough above zero that you could stand outside comfortably with a thick enough sweater kinda warm. When-even-are-seasons-anymore-climate-change-is gonna-kill-us-all kinda warm.

“I don’t get it.” Cecil mumbled as they exited the car, making a valiant effort to tone down his annoyance. “Why have you brought us here?” There truly was nothing here, other than miles and miles of rolling hills, some train tracks a few yards away, and a forest somewhere East.

Dave didn’t respond- he just smiled up at him, a hand holding the strap of the backpack he’d brought along. A giddy smile that made Cecil’s stomach flutter a little. Then he silently pointed upward, looking at him expectantly.

Cecil frowned, nonplussed, reflexively following the other’s movement; what was he-

What… was…

 He was looking up. Up, up into the endless sky. And he kept on looking, jaw growing slack, arms falling to his sides.

Because there was just so many stars so many stars more than he’d ever seen in his entire life, it was like he was ten all over again looking up through the window and babbling about rocket ships and aliens and how he was going to see it all one day-

 “You okay in there, hot stuff?”

Cecil snapped out of his stupor, looking down to see David smirking smugly at him- he was holding a thermos in each of his hands, and there was a blanket laid on the grass, big enough for the two of them. So that’s what he’d packed in his bag. “How-” he cleared his throat, “How did you…”

Dave only winked, tapping a finger against his temple. “...Oh.” the doctor realized. Right. They’d all been in each other’s heads.

“It’s mostly faded by now,” Dave shrugged, setting the warm containers on a corner of the blanket, “Those are your memories, and nobody should snoop through them… but that one stuck with me. And I- I really wanted to surprise you, y’know?”

Cecil nodded, not the slightest trace of anger or annoyance on his features. He just looked up again, silent, pale moonlight lighting up his milky white skin.

Then he looked back at him and Dave was pretty sure he was going to die on the spot.

 Cecil was smiling. Not the cocky, arrogant smirk he sometimes wore. Nor the small, timid one he managed to draw out of him once in a blue moon.

An actual, genuinely happy smile that went up to his grey, dark-rimmed eyes, crinkled up and sparkling with joy. Oh, fuck me, he thought.

 Could one fall for the same person twice?

 “Thank you,” Cecil breathed out, his voice uncharacteristically unsteady. “I… You… I’m sorry. For- for getting annoyed, I know I shouldn’t, you don’t- you deserve better.”

Ah, shit. This tall motherfucker was actually going to make him cry at this rate. “Shit man,” Dave choked, stepping closer to Cecil. “Just- c’m’here.”

He wrapped his arms around the taller man’s middle and pulled him close, tilting his head up to welcome the German’s lips on his own, the older man’s slender hands settling on both sides of his face. The kiss was slow, tender, yet filled with latent intensity and passion. They somehow ended up on the blanket, sitting ever-so close and filling the chilly air with wanton sighs and hums, carried away by the cold breeze.

 They eventually pulled back, catching their breath- they were both flushed, eyes slightly glazed over, as they looked at each other with gentle devotion. “I must say…” the doctor murmured, still a bit lightheaded, “This is… quite the break.”

Dave chuckled fondly, before pecking playfully at his lover’s forehead. “Told you you needed it. You’re running yourself ragged Ceec, no wonder you’re on edge.”

“Still, I shouldn’t keep taking out my frustration on you. It’s not right.”

Dave hummed. “Yeah, I know. But you’ve gotten better at it, really. Just gotta keep going forward, yeah?” He tucked a strand of greying hair behind Cecil’s left ear. “ ‘sides, you know I won’t just stand there and take it if you really start to be an ass.”

Cecil snorted. “So I’ve seen. You’d probably snap me in two.”

“Damn right I could! Look at that scrawny ass, I could kick it into the sun.”

“Mmh, I don’t think so. You like it too much, as you keep telling me.”

“Aw shit, he figured it out,” Dave fake-whispered, before they both broke out into laughter. “Oh, also,” he gasped when the hilarity subsided, “this isn’t just a break. S’also a celebration!”

“A celebration?”

 Dave smiled, holding out a thermos to the older man. He looked proud of himself. “Happy one month clean, handsome.”

It took him a few seconds to understand, but when he did, he reflexively rubbed at his arm, feeling his face warm up significantly as he accepted the offering, taking a sip. Mmh, black coffee, no cream and no sugar. Just how he liked it. “Ah… yes, thank you.”

“And I’m almost three months sober!” the father cheered, wrapping an arm around his partner’s neck to pull him closer. “Man, look at us. We’re doing amazing, sweetie.”

Cecil chuckled, a little smile gracing his lips as he looked up at the inky skies above. “I… guess we are.”

 They laid down next to each other, their shoulders bumping together as they huddled under the extra blanket Dave had brought along. Alone, together on that grassy hill more than an hour away from the city, they tried to find as many constellations as they could while Cecil offered trivia and anecdotes on each of them, like the Earth’s sky map had been burned into his brain at a young age. 

But then again, with the doctor’s photographic memory, it might’ve just been.

 Ursa Major. Altair. Alpha Centauri. Supernovas. Nebulae. His eyes shone with almost feverish enthusiasm as he talked, making him look so much younger, so alive, as Dave listened with rapt attention.

Then, as the older man was going over the specifics of the supermassive black whole at the center of the Milky Way, Dave rolled them over, coming to a stop to stand on all fours above Cecil, smiling lovingly.

The German stopped rambling and blinked up at him- with his hair uncovered and framing his face in auburn curls, his deep blue eyes crinkled up in amusement, and the myriad of stars surrounding him, David looked like he belonged in a Van Gogh painting. Beautiful. Almost ethereal, yet so real, so… tangible. Oh how he wanted to frame the moment so he could keep it forever.

He gulped. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Before he could stop himself, his finger mindlessly started to trace invisible lines between Dave’s freckles, drawing a surprised giggle from the man. 

 His very own milky way. Full of constellations for him alone to name. All within his reach.

 “Shouldn’t you look up? The stars are up there.” he mumbled, thoughts not quite straight. Dave laughed, clear and deep. “Don’t need to. I can see them in your eyes. That’s more than enough for me.”

Silence. Cecil huffed. “That was the corniest thing you’ve said yet.”

“C’mon, you know you like it. You’re blushing.”

“Shut up and kiss me again, you dumm.”

 Dave happily complied.

***

It would be dawn soon. As they stared at the endless space above them- mostly void, partially stars- sipping hot tea and coffee from their respective thermoses, huddled together under a thick woolen blanket to shield themselves from the chilliness of that winter night… they felt like they’d brushed with eternity.

“Hey.” Dave whispered, breaking the comfortable silence.

A quiet hum of acknowledgement.

“Do you.. regret not going? Up there.”

“Mmh. F’course, a little still. T’was my dream.” the German mumbled, words slurring together. Right. Of course he did, dumb question. “But…”

The father blinked. “But…?”

“Wouldn’t have met… Mars. ‘liver.” A pause, an intake of breath. “Met you.”

 Dave bit his lip, his heart thumping loudly in his chest. Ba-dump. Ba-dump. He wiped at the wetness at the corner of his eyes, smiling so hard it almost hurt. “Y-Yeah. I guess so.” He squeezed his lover’s hand underneath the blanket. “Ceec…?”

 A quiet, soft snore was his only reply. Dave chuckled quietly and turned his head- Cecil was out like a light, lips slightly parted, his usually sharp features smoothed over and relaxed.

The smaller man gently reached out to cup the other’s sleeping face, his thumb slowly stroking over his cheekbone- just watching. This wasn’t a sight he was graced with often; they might have been sharing a bed for a few weeks now, but the doctor always went to sleep later than he did, and always got up before him, by the pale light of dawn… that is, when he even bothered to sleep at all.

That was the main reason why he’d dragged his partner out on this little trip- Cecil had been working himself to the bone again, going over piles and piles of old books in search for an explanation, for any information on Mars’ abilities and his newfound… condition. To no avail so far, which was driving the older man even more frantic. Between this, trying to cater to everyone’s physical and mental wellness, and the logistical nightmare that was the latest addition to their little group- an honest-to-god time-traveler… well, he looked like the slightest breeze would knock him over.

In short, he’d been in need of a break. Badly. Preferably the kind that would knock some sense into that big brain of his. Since they both had gotten together, Dave had been trying to get Cecil to take better care of himself, to stop skipping meals, to finally sleep a decent amount each night… hell, he’d started to see some actual progress before Mars was kidnapped and everything had gone to shit. 

He couldn’t let his efforts go to waste, especially not now. Not in such a delicate time, when they were all still recovering. And now, looking at Cecil, sleeping deeply and peacefully for the first time since the kid had disappeared almost a month ago… Dave was glad he hadn’t given up.

 And that he’d filled that thermos with decaf, but Ceec didn’t need to know that.

 Dave sighed contentedly as he snuggled closer to the other, burying his face in his chest and drawing the blanket higher over them both, letting himself be lulled into a comfortable drowsiness. Their backs would probably be sore from sleeping on the hard ground... but that was a problem for future them.

[bravelyseriescollabs]

Bravely Series Collab 2020 -How to choose characters and guidelines

Thank you to everybody who voted in the poll! The results were very close - one vote - but in the end, we had a  winner.

The theme for the Bravely Series Collab 2020 is a Modern AU!

Basically, how you think the characters would dress if their world was ours in 2020~ 

How to reserve characters:

Send me an ask/instant message here @bravelyseriescollabs​ or @misedejem​, on the twitter (@/bravelycollabs/@/misedejem), or on discord if you can contact me there with the one character of your choice - though this may increase depending on participation

It’s first-come-first-served, and one artist per character, so I may request a backup character if your first choice is taken. You’ll be contacted if your favourite becomes available again

Guidelines:

Anybody can take part, and you can join right up until the deadline

Any Bravely Series character is available, major or minor, so long as they are canon (from Default, Second, Default II, Praying Brage, Archive, or Fairy’s Effect)

The poll results were very in favour of Octopath and 4 Heroes of Light, so in addition, you may also choose to draw any of the playable characters from said titles (eight from OT, four from 4HoL). This is just to avoid spoilers for anybody who has not played those games.

Feel free to design named characters with no artwork (e.g. Altair/Vega)

Submissions can be digital or traditional, or even things like cosplay - but block colour backgrounds/transparent backgrounds please!

No smaller than 1000x1000 px if possible, no larger than 4000x4000

Keep it SFW and try to avoid spoilers

Full-body or half-body is fine, but please avoid cropping the sides (visual representation below, feat. a Tiz)

Side note: If anybody wants to draw a background, contact me~ I usually split the characters into groups based on their role, so multiple backgrounds would be fine.

All previous collabs are on this blog if you want ideas~

You guys said late July - early August was best for you, so the deadline is currently July 31st 2020

Reservations will be posted on this blog/a google doc and linked elsewhere

Please post your work here/on twitter under #bravely collab 2020

Have fun! Let’s get started~ -Mod Misede

[animebw]

Binge-Watching: Re:Creators, Episodes 8-10

In which we find out where Sota’s past went wrong, I wish the story was better at living up to its meta, and crazy girls are all the rage.

When Fanfic Goes Wrong

So at last, we have a (mostly) full picture of how Altair and Sota fit into this picture. As it turns out, Altair started out as the most heinous creation imaginable: a fanfic re-skin. She was a re-imagined version of a character from a game that already existed, one that was changed so much from its origins and grew so popular on its own terms that she became a wholly separate entity. That’s a really fun idea, playing into the concept that fanfiction isn’t just mindless copy-pasting someone else’s work; it’s an act of creation all its own, and if it’s done well enough, it can break free into its own unique identity (or even if it’s done poorly: see, Fifty Shades of Grey). And this character was a creation of Sota and his former friend Shimazaki, the girl we saw in the opening scene. They worked to create her together, writing and drawing her legacy as a team. But as time went on, Sota became more and more jealous of how good Shimazaki was at drawing. He was so insecure about his own art that he projected that insecurity outwards, making Shimazaki a scapegoat for his own self-loathing. We still don’t know exactly how things went down, but it’s clear Sota ended up seriously hurting Shimazaki with this anger. Their friendship fell apart, Sota left her feeling nothing but resentment and antagonism, and then... she killed herself. At least, that’s what seems to have happened based on the show’s opening scene. I’m not ruling out the possibility she’s still alive and kicking somewhere. But whatever really happened, the fact is that Shimazaki’s gone, and Sota blames herself for driving her to it.

None of this is too surprising considering how the mystery’s been built up, but being predictable doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. I completely understand why Altair would be driven to such violent extremes based on that backstory. Her creator was betrayed, unfairly treated, and left to suffer alone by these supposed “gods.” If they don’t even treat each other with respect, how could they ever treat their creations with respect? Better burn the whole system down and start fresh. And while I’m still frustrated by how little action Sota’s taking, it makes sense why he’d be so withdrawn and passive. He blames himself for Shimazaki’s death; it was his own desire to be valued that drove him to such jealousy when he felt he wasn’t measuring up. Forget writer’s block, it’s a miracle he’s able to take a stand on anything he cares about anymore. Thank god that Meteora’s read enough books to know you should never drag the tragic backstory out, and she refuses to let him shrink away from talking about it. And I’m not gonna lie, when he finally breaks down crying and admits the full extent of how heavy this has been weighing on him, I genuinely felt sorry for the kid. It’s the first moment where it feels like he’s making progress beyond being a wandering shell, and the bravery he shows in the battle right afterwards is a promising step forward for him re-taking control over his life. If he’s gonna start repairing the damage he’s done, he can’t keep hiding from it. He needs to nut up, accept his grief and culpability, and work to be better so he doesn’t make the same mistake again. And if he can pull that off and become an actual character, I think this show’s prospects are looking up.

Talk the Walk

But speaking of which, I think I need to take a closer look at why Re:Creators isn’t grabbing me as much as it could. I mean, I’m having a fun enough time with it, but for all the crazy plot turns and emotional drama, I’m not really swept away. And thinking about it over the course of these episodes, I think what it comes down to is this: Re:Creators isn’t as clever as it wants to be. Or at least, not as clever as I want it to be. The thing with stories as explicitly meta elements at this one is that they can’t help but draw attention to their own status as stories. By commenting on storytelling, tropes, fiction in general, you set the expectation that you’re gonna be smarter than the usual fare. After all, if you want to dig so deeply into the mechanics of your own medium, it only makes sense that you’d be very good at using that medium in the first place, doesn’t it? You don’t write a play about playwriting unless you’re a damn good playwright, you don’t make a movie about making movies unless you know how to make movies, and you don’t create an anime about the creative spirit of anime unless you’re capable of making creative anime yourself. Otherwise, it’s like trying to present a masterclass on cooking when your regular dinner subsists of frozen pizza rolls. And while Re:Creators isn’t outright pizza roll territory, it’s nowhere near good enough to work the kitchens in Le Bernidan, if this metaphor makes any sense. Point is, if you’re gonna be meta about storytelling, you better make sure you know how to tell a damn good story.

And Re:Creators definitely wants you to think it’s got it in the bag. It’s got plenty of clever asides that comment on the layers of stories within stories going on here. Alice remarks the human world is kind of a mess even in comparison to her world, because with no structure to give it purpose, it takes more than a single hero to set things right. Things tend to be easier in stories when there’s a set goal and a set hero capable of accomplishing it. And when Selesia tells everyone to save themselves and leave her to die, her creator has a great moment where he tells her she’s too good a character- and he’s too good a creator- to spout such trite lines. Plus, using the power of Twitter to shift audience perception of her was a kickass payoff to the idea that the fans are the ones that ultimately own the story. But underneath that surface-level polish, the story keeps running into cliched beats that undercut its own creativity. Like how Mamika and Alice get their romantic confession (SHUT UP IT’S CANON) only because it makes it more tragic when Mamika dies right afterward. Or how when Alice is tricked into thinking Meteora killed her, Sota doesn’t just tell her right away that he knows Magane was lying. Like, I know we had to have a big fight scene, and Alice wasn’t likely to believe him anyway due to how hollow she’s become from still losing everyone she cares about, but did he really have to wait a whole ten minutes to even try? It can’t but feel contrived, like these situations are being squeezed into place by the hand of the author rather than evolving organically. It’s not like I’m expecting Gintama levels of trope subversion from every anime with meta aspects, but when you’re trying to make a point about artists’ responsibility to their creations, it feels like you should be making a bigger effort to be responsible about your own creation in turn. And as much as Re:Creators likes talking the talk, it doesn’t always do the best job walking the walk.

With All Due Respect to Gigguk

Still, these complaints are only explanations for why I don’t like Re:Creators more than I do. On its own terms, there’s still plenty I’m enjoying here, from the hype action to the fun character dynamics. And let me tell you, few members of the central cast are as fun as Magane, who takes the spotlight in a big way over the course of these episodes. Good lord, this girl is a hoot. I’ve always had a soft spot for absolute bastards who toss all the rules aside, do whatever the hell they want, and love every second of it. Yes, Magane is dangerous and despicable, but she’s having so much damn fun dancing to no one’s tune but her own that I can’t help but love her regardless. She’s a fountain of great lines (”You’re just a laughing piece of skin hanging over a bunch of lies.” “Oh, what a cool compliment.”), she snatches the spotlight of whatever scene she’s in, she’s constantly making ridiculous choices just for the hell of it (Dressing up as an Akahabira maid was inspired), and she even makes a fucking Jojo’s reference at the end of episode 10. A Jojo’s reference, god dammit, how am I supposed to hate her now? But her winding labyrinth of words also makes her the show’s most cutting character; she’s such a talented liar that she’s able to rip apart everyone else’s lies with ease, and she revels in taking them to task for hiding their true selves. It’s unnerving how easily she sees through Sota’s half-hearted attempts to talk about Shimazaki, and the way she guides their conversation so it rebounds back upon his internalized guilt of inadvertently causing other people to die is so deliciously evil. She is one fucked-up lady, but the one bright side of being a wild card is that not even Altair is safe from potentially feeling her sting. So there’s still a chance we can weaponize her inner chaos for good. And I hope that ends up happening, because she’s just too damn entertaining not to team up with our protagonists at some point.

Odds and Ends

-”Why is a cosplayer from my manga here? Though he’s doing a good job.” Lol, respect.

-”Don’t do anything to his right hand and his head!” askdahsd sure the rest of him is disposable I guess

-One unusual side effect of Magane having so much presence in these episodes; she’s such a talkative character she ends up highlighting just how silent Sota really is. Whenever they’re talking, Magane will go on massive, incredibly verbose tangents with a million words a minute, and Sota will maybe have two lines of dialogue in the space of an entire minute. It’s wild.

-”I choose this path.” And you just so happen to choose the path you were already following. Are you sure you’re not following anyone’s script, Altair?

-What. the fuck. ALTAIR HOW DO YOU TRANSFORM A SWORD INTO ROSES

And on the battle rages. See you next time!