#the line work on that idk how i did it i tried to recreate it on the others but it just didn't turn out the same

[andypantsx3]

hi andie!! 🥺 i have a few lil questions for you, if you don’t mind 🥺 (you may choose to answer this publicly or privately, whichever is more comfortable for you!)

would you have any tips/advice for writing/posting on a schedule? 🥺 how do you manage to stay on top of releasing/writing parts of your series consistently? do you keep daily goals? internal deadlines? a system? 🥺

i’ve always adored how organised you are with your fics!! and how regularly you write and update too 🥺 i am currently ~~trying to write and post more regularly (esp the ones for ficsforgaza!) but am stuck on how/where to start 🥺

Hi Sellie my love!! Omg yeah of course I'm happy to answer!! Idk that my system will work for you because everyone is different but I'm happy to explain my process!

These days I do not have much time or large stores of the right kind of focused energy it takes to write, mostly due to work and other personal life things I have going on right now. So I'm all about keeping goals microscopic as hell, removing blockers that distract me, and removing any pressure to write, actually lmao. I find that I'm most enthusiastic and productive when I don't feel like it's another obligation to deliver on, in the midst of all the other thousands of things I am responsible for in my day-to-day, if that makes sense?

In terms of goals, I have a loose one of writing just 100 words a day, but I cannot emphasize enough how loose it is. I do not ever try to make up for days I missed because that just adds more pressure. I do not try to push myself into doing it if I'm not feeling it because the last thing I want is for writing to feel like anything but a fun hobby. If you intend to take the Andie approach, I would advise you to set a goal that you think is so small you could achieve it by sneezing on your keyboard. Meeting goals is like, proven to release dopamine & boost your mindset, so it's more important overall to meet any goal than it is to have an impressive one.

Relatedly, I only promise things on a schedule when I know 100% I have the enthusiasm to meet it. I don't set deadlines to motivate myself, rather I let the deadlines be motivated by me, if that also makes sense? And if I have competing fics, I will prioritize working on whichever one has an actual deadline (like I set aside all my other fics to work on the one for Lore's a/b/o collab) because I know the boost I'm going to get from delivering on that is going to help me write the other ones after anyway.

I also try to remove as many blockers as I can so that writing is easy as pie. I write when I know I can control most of the factors that would sabotage me—early in the morning. If I can help it, I usually try to write first thing before I log on to any of my socials in case there's some spicy discourse I'm going to be absorbed by. It's also essential for me to do before work because work sucks the absolute life out of me right now, and I am almost never in the right headspace when I get home. Also no one ever tries to call or text me first thing in the morning so there are fewer distractions at play and it's quick work to just sit down and bang a few lines out.

I also set up my fics so that it's easy for me personally to work through them. They are all planned in advance so I know where I have to go with my writing and I'm not stuck waiting for an idea. But they're also not planned down to the detail, so that I don't feel like there's nothing left for me to explore mentally when writing!! That helps keep things directed but still interesting to me, so I feel motivated to keep returning to them.

It's really all about finding what works for you! Reflecting on what you've written already, when did you feel most motivated to write? What time of day was it, most often? What fic was it and how had you planned that/what was the subject material? Was it when you'd had a deadline to work against, or when no one knew you were working on it? Recreating those conditions to the best of your ability is what I think will help you stay engaged.

And again I cannot emphasize how much more important it is to stay motivated than it is to deliver anything regularly or on an impressive timeline. The motivation is the key to helping you to keep delivering long term. If you write something regularly for 2-3 months but then burn out, that's not gonna help you!! And honestly, meeting small goals and feeling good is actually going to motivate you to write more and faster anyway, so it's a win-win lol.

[ourlordapollo]

EDM REMIX: Battle! (N) - Go Ichinose

Raaahhh this took me forever, but I'm finally done! Still learning how to mix, but I gave it a try!

Credits + details:

Music transcribed by: AnonymousRandomPerson

N's voice lines (Daman Mills)

Zorua and Zoroark cries

But yeah I recently picked up Pokémon White, because BW/BW2 are the only mainline* Pokémon games I haven't played and I figured it was time :) I heard N's theme and really liked the galloping snare, and I thought it would make an excellent buildup in an EDM song, and here we are

I tried really hard to mix this well and unfortunately did not do a good job, but, as they say, perfection is the enemy of success. Hopefully I'll do a little better next time!

*I don't care what anyone at TPC says, P:LA is not mainline and I will die on that hill

Anyway! Idk if anyone will be curious about my process, but might as well make some notes:

So music in video games tend to be made up of loops. Usually there will at least be an A section and a contrasting B section. Because of that, there was no identified "chorus" I could use for the drops.

Since I used the bass line for the buildups, I kind of had no choice to use the long synth/trumpet melodic fragments as the drop. Because N's theme is made up of loops, it was really easy to just kinda Lego pieces together wherever I wanted them

I didn't have a lot to work with which is why this track is kinda "buildup, drop, buildup, drop, end"

That being said, this is not a 1:1 recreation of N's theme because ngl that would make a pretty shitty dance track. It's more like I chopped the loop up and turned it into train tracks, if that makes any sense

Anyway, enjoy!

[majorshatterandhare]

I’m thinking about which yarns I will order next for my dolls. The copper color for sure, and I know which skin and hair tones I want to use for Ashes and Marius, so I can get those. The other skin tones are harder because I’d like to have variation in them and it’s hard to tell if they’re too pink or too yellow or too orange or whatever, like, the color looks greyish but is it actually or is it bad lighting? I have photos from two different sites of the same yarn I am using do I can get a slightly better idea. TS gets to be a “wood” color (wood colors align pretty well with skin tones though so it’s basically gonna be whatever color I want) and I’d like a muted tone for Nastya since there’s not really another way for me to show her mechanism. I need two skeins of each color (actually I need four I think because they’re only twenty-five gram skeins) so I’ll likely order of a few of the lighter tones so I can decide who gets what color or if there’s one that just won’t work or something. I’m just not sure I’m gonna do that yet.

I am thinking about doing some trials to bleach some of the yarns, so I can get a nice color change for Nastya and Ashes’ hair. I was thinking vinegar or something might work, but I have used household bleach for cotton bleaching purposes before (it was just a denim jacket instead of strands of yarn). But the yarn is mercerized, so I don’t know how that will affect it.

I somehos just had the idea of only doing Brian’s heart and not his whole insides, since, like Tim, Marius, and Raphaella, his mechanism is visible from the outside. But I love how he and Jonny are foils, so showing his heart too would be great! And potentially give context for whatever grey lump ends up being Jonny’s heart. I think Brian’s heart is visible through glass, but recreating that would necessitate clear plastic, which would be hard to begin with due to size and the fact it’s fiber (ie, just trying to glue the edges in there probably wouldn’t work), but also I’m trykng to keep them natural fibers. On the other hand I do want them to be relatively accurate. …Weave a little cage cover using fishing line or something… still won’t br clear but leaving purposeful gaps would still allow viewing without opening… IDK. If anyone has a good idea for thaf, let me know. The best I can come up with so far is allowing this exception and using a piece of one of those plastic clam shell containers you get food in, because, while sewing through that would be pretty impossible (except maybe is I use a hot needle to melt holes in it?) it’s sturdy enough super glue or the like may work.

I tend to stuff things hard. Like, really hard. The most recent ami I made, I purposefully tried not to stuff it too much, and thought I did a pretty good job, but my mom insists is still quite hard. I think the Mechs would think it was fucking funny to be able to beat each other to death with little dolls of themselves, though, so….

Anyway, so I started Brian’s head and it is smaller than I was dxpecting but it looks really good IMO. This yarn is barely plied together, so holding it double results in the plies just melding to look like one thinker strand instead of two smaller ones, which is really cool. I’m a little concerned about doing Brian first, since he has several changes for body type, so I really out to be doing whoever I decided would be as written first, which is part of the desire to order some of the other skin tones, although I believe that I have planned neither Marius nor Ashes to be as written either. I don’t know. Shouldn’t take too long for the felt to get here once I order it, since the seller it relatively near to me.

[curoopeez]

Evil art style challenge!

Thanks a lot to everyone who replied. According to peer review my usual art style and my evil are:

-friendly, round faces -> sharper, intimidating faces

-simple eyes and lips -> detailed facial features

-rim lighting -> blended lighting

-solid colors -> gradients and blending

-clean lineart -> either messy, sketchy lineart or lineless

-simple background -> detailed backgrounds

To make things harder on myself I did this a character I've never drawn before (sorry it took so long docm77), with a different drawing softer and different drawing hardware than I usually use

Highlights of the art:

I had trouble drawing lips and even when I looked for tutorials I only found tips for female lips, until I remembered our lord and savior Jonathan Joestar and used him as reference

I used some sketchy brush to make a lineart that wasn't so clean and at what point I forgot what brush I was using for that but had more stuff to line so I tried to recreate that feel but idk if I found the right brush

I tried like 6 different brushes to do the lighting, none of them felt like the one I usually use, but after I was about done I found a brush that was exactly like what I was looking for so I started over and it looks much better

Because, as I said, I was using a new drawing program, I had to look up where were all the tools I usually use and it felt really nostalgic, it feels like when I was learning how to draw all over again. In some aspects it also looks like when I was learning.

There were parts I felt I was tackling some of my blind spots that I definately want to work on more in future projects.

[catnippackets]

How to come up with tunes basically. Like how to make music that sounds good. How to put different sounds/instruments together in a way that is enjoyable. All I have to work with is GarageBand but I feel like everything I’ve tried to make just sounds like… disorganized? Idk it never sounds like it flows well. I try to do it like the songs I’ve enjoyed do it, where it starts with one sound/instrument/beat and then more sounds are added one at a time until the additional complexity makes it sound better and better - like what you did in Help Like You. How do I do that is what I’m trying to ask, I don’t know if I’ve articulated that properly. How do you put different sounds together in a way that doesn’t sound like a mess?

this still feels very vague to me so I'm just gonna try to explain what I do and hopefully that's of at least some use to you lol I'm not good at all with explaining my process behind any art that I do so I honestly don't think you're gonna get much out of this but I'll try anyway (I also cannot read or write music so idk if that will make my advice better or worse lol)

music does not come naturally to me, at least making songs never feels very natural. usually in the past when I've made music it's felt like I would just wake up one day and my brain would know that something had to come out today and then I'd write the song and then I wouldn't be able to do it again for another like 8 months. it's a little easier to do it now though. when the melody doesn't just come to me like that I usually either fiddle around w a keyboard (I'm sure there's one in garageband if that's what you're using) and hit some notes that sound nice together and then just kind of go from there. OR what happens a lot is I'll be in bed right on the verge of falling asleep and I'll get a little tune in my head that comes from nowhere and then I have to quickly roll over and hum it into my phone before I forget it and then when I wake up I do something with it lol. usually I come up w the melody for the chorus and then for the verses you just sort of build off the chorus to do something that fits with it?? idk how else to explain it

another thing that works in my favour in this regard is I'm really bad at mimicking other people's styles (both visual art and music sounds), so if I'm listening to a song and hear like a drum beat that I really dig I can think "hm I wanna make a song with that drum beat" and then when I recreate it, it really sounds nothing like the drum beat I was trying to mimic, but it still sounds nice and then I have a nice new song that you can't tell was inspired by something else at all bc I can't copy things lol

I would say if you're having trouble, do a bunch of covers of songs you like first instead of starting with your own music. make a playlist of songs you really like and study them, see how the different sounds work with each other, and then try to recreate them, so you can see how many layers go into a song and what makes other people's songs work. you can start small, with the bass/harmony and then singing along with it, like someone who just plays the guitar or piano and sings, and then progress to adding more instruments. adding harmonies will make the melody stronger. adding a bass line (no specific instrument but it will probably be very low) will sort of support the melody and give it a little more depth without distracting from it. the beat will indicate the speed of the song (generally the beat is what you dance to, instead of the melody). you don't need all of them to make a good song, it can be as simple or complicated as you like, but there's plenty of songs out there that only use like one instrument and still sound lovely so you don't have to get too crazy, especially not at first

also I've never used garageband cuz I don't use apple products but before I bought fl studio I used bandlab, which is free for anybody to use and super easy, they have a wide range of instruments and you can also add premade loops too! just in case anyone else is reading this who can't use garageband, the layout looks very similar to it (the only annoying thing is you only get 16 layers which sounds like a lot at first but truly is not lol)

good luck!!

[shootingstarpilot]

Shoulder the Sky AU

So. A commenter on HtBHH mentioned a while back "oh, man, what if there were other clones in the compound and that's why Obi-Wan thought he sensed them" and while that wasn't how I was intending it, I cannot get the thought out of my head.

IDK how it happens, some sort of similar "they think he's dead" thing in a battle a week after they get sent back out and Dooku thinks taking one of Obi-Wan's troopers would be a better way to get him to cooperate or not fight back, or something, unimportant, basic premise is "he will remain unharmed as long as you don't fight back" because we all know THAT'S THE WAY TO BREAK OBI-WAN THAT IS WHAT WILL MAKE HIM NOT FIGHT BACK.

and idk how but somehow they can see what's happening anyways through some sort of video feed or something and I have not been able to stop imagining- what if it was Helix? I've just got this one very vivid scene in my head of Helix screaming Obi-Wan's name, for Dooku to stop, swearing at him, threatening him, etc. until he realizes- of course there were recorders in his cell, and Dooku, trying his best to recreate a nightmare of a medbay, now has access to the voice of Obi-Wan's CMO.

And I’ve just been thinking- what would recovery look like, from that? What would recovery look like when Obi-Wan is utterly unwilling to let Helix out of his line of sight, but depending on how aware he is sometimes the sound of his voice can send him into flashbacks? What would it look like for Helix, who has been forced to witness as everything that he is and values and has worked for gets twisted into something unrecognizable and used to hurt? Oh, hell, what if Obi-Wan is- oddly calm, and willing to accept medical treatment, he doesn’t fight it or anything, and then something happens and they realize the only reason why is because his brain is still hardwired into thinking that if he says no, if he tries to fight back in any way, then Helix will be the one to take the punishment, and he wants them to stop so badly but doesn’t- can’t- say anything because he doesn’t want Helix to get hurt? I feel like Mace would be the one to pick up on that, definitely, because the only sign of the fear and the stopstopstop would just be screaming in the Force.

And I can just imagine Helix just... stops talking, for a bit. He realizes that his voice is a trigger- hell, not just for Obi-Wan but for himself, as well, because he’s been witnessing all these recordings of his own voice- edited, of course, because he would never- he would never (but what if he did after all it’s his voice), so he just... stops talking? So focused on making sure Obi-Wan’s okay, completely neglecting to take into account his own trauma?

Anyways, I’m sure I’ll probably have more thoughts on this later, because now I’m thinking ok, what if it was some of the younger vode, oh fuck what if it was Stitch- IDK man I’m having a lot of feelings.

(Also the first three paragraphs are copied over from my response to @fancan‘s comment, so if they look familiar then that’s why!)

[m0tel6mxzzy]

I’m an OG gossip girl super fan but I didn’t want to watch the reboot. I’ve seen you posting about it a lot so I decided to give it a go! So here I am to ramble in your asks, sorry!

I’m on e5 right now. Do you think they’re trying to recreate character roles? I read your post about Monet being Blair coded, obviously haven’t watched far enough in to see that yet, but I’m seeing a lot of Dan in Obie, a lot of Chuck in Max, Jenny in Z.. it just feels like it’s not lining up properly?? I wonder if I need to just look at it as an entirely different show rather than as a reboot or being connected to OG gossip girl at all. Also I’m a bit put off by the teachers being GG and the fact that we as an audience KNOW that. It felt more immersive to me, when we were just as confused as the characters in OG. IDK! I like it. But I’m stressed!

no worries anon i love asks! so i 100% feel like the rb characters are heavily based off the og characters, but in some ways similar to the books. i think it’s more so the dynamics between og characters that are being replicated. like intentionally it’s not supposed to line up 100% but so far placing luna has been the hardest, which also bothers me bc she seems to be the least developed character thus far despite being a stronger character than obie imho and i feel she could totally have more screentime if the teachers were cut.

i think they should’ve been given far less than they were given anyway. i think the teachers being gg is in response to the reveal in the og. essentially, “we’re all gossip girl” which is better than having a random twist ending that does not at all make sense and feels incredibly out of character. that kinda moral to gossip girl rb could’ve gone with the teachers being hidden under the end. these are my opinions:

[blair and serena: monet and julien/luna

blair and chuck: audrey and max

blair and nate: audrey and aki

serena and dan: julien and obie (their conflicting beliefs often drive them apart)

jenny: zoya (in the books, jenny idolizes serena instead of blair, similar to how zoya idolizes julien rather than monet)]

and i have no idea where to place luna. i feel like she’s the aspect of “old serena” from before serena improved her grades and stopped caring abt popularity and taking advantage of that status, and julien is the “reformed” serena that tries to halt any competition with blair and try to ignore her own wealth, even when sometimes that does more harm than good.

i also feel like obie is supposed to be a “rich dan” but i don’t think he’s been developed enough as a character despite getting so much screentime. in the books, dan is this pretentious dark and tragic writer stereotype who smokes and chugs black coffee, which i love bc as annoying of a “not like other guys” person he should be translated onto screen, it works for him and gives him indirect characterization.

i do not get much from obie outside of him flip flopping his values based on what sounds good tho, whereas dan was set on his beliefs but did have moments of reflection, like when he’d realized he’d misjudged blair as a person, that she had a soft side and like rufus had said—was secretly going through a lot. i think monet and zoya out of all the characters have been the best established in terms of their linked to the og characters, and their arcs kind of set the foundation for the show and bring it into the old gg universe imho.

julien did the same as obie (flip flopping, will she or won’t she back stab zoya) but it’s much clearer she wanted to be a good person, whereas obie never seemed to account for his mistakes and wanted everyone but himself to change.

and what makes me perceive monet as being “blair coded” is the fact both of them have very similar personalities and issues. they’ve bribed their teachers to change grades, can be incredibly manipulative toward longtime friends, seem to dislike their friend’s bf who rejects the status quo, their mothers are at times one might say emotionally neglectful, they each pick on and ruthlessly bully the younger student that idolizes their lifestyle, etc,.

[crabbygouache]

uhh a doodle dump for colour practice, ft. strilondes

[fangirlingtodeath513]

Ayo this is unedited notes from Misha’s panel excuse the emojis (except for the one after Misha said “what are they gonna do, fire me?” because that one was warrented)

* Watching the finale was tough because it represented the end of a chapter of his life but he has a palpable feeling that the spn family isn’t going anywhere

* Favorite memory making a recipe w/kids and Vicki? Pasta with jam sauce 🥺 bizarre and totally disgusting 😂

* Projects in mind? Yes, worked a lot on US election which was pretty invigorating for him, plans to do more work on Georgia runoff elections. Publishing a book of poetry, close to closing a deal with a publisher for that. Couple of film projects he’s trying to get off the ground, one he wouldn’t be in or direct, other interested in directing and possibly acting.

* What do you think happened when Jack brought Cas back and what’s he doing? There was a different ending that COVID made impossible to shoot. Not supposed to talk about it but it was big crowd scenes. In the original iteration, he didn’t go to recreate Heaven, he had a different ending. Didn’t read the last two endings and watched them as they aired. Knew in the abstract what Cas and Jack’s fates were but he doesn’t really know what the answer is.

* What was West and Maison’s experience of watching Spn for the first time? They can’t watch scary things at all so they haven’t ever watched a full episode. West and Maison asked him to tell them when a scary part was coming up and Misha said “well unfortunately, I don’t really know”. Kids looked totally shellshocked at the cold open 😂 Spn may have been good for his career and the fandom but has irrevocably scarred his children

* Screencapping chat because they’re typing too fast 😂

* Will you go to Russia again? He’d love to but he’s said a lot of bad things about Putin so he might be arrested 😂

* What qualities do he and Cas share? Over time, the character melded with Misha and became softer and more sensitive and tried to do the right thing and be a good person.

* What’s the one thing you’ll take with you from playing Castiel? He thinks a lot. On a professional level, it was fascinating to play a character for so many years, (discussed recently with J2) the characters really became a part of them. Watching Dean’s death he cried, but because “that’s Cas’s friend Dean dying”. Cas will always be will him, an aspect of his being forever.

* What’s your favorite thing to bake with kiddos? Loves to bake pie, fave is strawberry rhubarb.

* He teared up watching 15x18 🥺

* Have other cast members disclosed what the original ending was supposed to be? Doesn’t want to be the one to reveal state secrets but “What are they gonna do, fire me? 😏”

* We saw a version of Heaven that was populated with all the people from their past. But they couldn’t do that due to COVID restrictions.

* Fave BTS memory from set? Don’t have one, they’ve been close friends for 12 years. They’ve had laughing fits, fights, gotten pissed off at each other, but some of his fondest memories of work are of Supernatural.

* Why did Cas’s trench coat stay intact? He can magically mend his clothing. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ When he went in, they wanted him to look like Constantine-suit was way too big, had to fold his shirt and tuck it because it was too big. He got a new suit at first which wasn’t explained, lost the tie and then brought it back, which wasn’t explained, and once season they just started him in a new wardrobe and said nothing 😂

* Stole trench coats from set, will probably wrap them around himself and cry at some point

* To get in the zone for Cas’s confession and death, he went and sat in a dark corner of the set and Rob Hayter stood guard over him so no one would bother him 🥺 and when they were ready for him on set, Rob would come over very gently and say “Misha they’re ready for you”

* How did you feel when you read 15x18? He knew that ending was coming for a long time, been talking to Berens about it, and was really happy about it. It was the ending he wanted for Cas. Felt risky and brave for the show to do and he was proud to be a part of that. Seen people complaining about bury your gays trope and he doesn’t feel that’s what happened with Cas’s ending. He’a glad Cas got to have that moment and he’s proud the show did that.

* Do you think you’ll get an SPN tattoo? Doesn’t have any, was thinking about getting some for his children. Should he get tats of Jensen and Jared’s faces? 😂 Get a tat of Cas’s face on his abdomen? 😂 Probably no tattoo re:spn for him but he totally supports anyone that does.

* The last scene he shot as Cas was the last scene of the day on Friday. He, Alex, Rich, and Jensen all had to get to Vegas for a con. They shot late into the night and finished around 1:30-very teary, Misha’s goodbye to the show- had to get a chartered flight to get there on time. One of the engines exploded and they had to circle back, plane was shaking, really scary. Texting their families, didn’t know if they were gonna crash land. It was such a strange night, super intense.

* He misses the pimpmoble.

* What non-hunter job would Cas be good at? Security guard, he never sleeps and never gets bored. Not a great teacher, architect, or artist. Handy in the kitchen, maybe a cook?

* What color are Cas’s wings? Shit, idk, I always thought they were black. Ah! They’re rainbow colored, how about that?

* When he was directing, Jared would take the canvas off his director’s chair and lay it over so it looked like a real chair and Misha fell for that probably 5 times. Jared kept messing up lines so Misha cut and went to see what was wrong and Jared pied him in the face. Jensen brought him another shirt with was nice, went for lunch and Jensen pied him in the face 🙄😂

* Real story behind the handprint in 15x18? He doesn’t remember but it was a really nice touch.

* Fave thing about panels? He and Jensen have had a lot of fun panels in Rome 👀 Brought up the resume-off 👀👀 Had pizza delivered to a panel once.

* Fave version of Castiel to play? Had fun playing Lucifer. Loved playing human!Cas, was fun to explore what it would be like. Just regular Cas was his favorite. Wouldn’t have wanted to trade regular Cas for any other iterations 🥺

[hoe-imaginess]

red | shigaraki tomura

Shigaraki x hero!soulmate!Reader

Based on two soulmate prompts:

You can only see color when you and your soulmate are touching.

You can’t use your quirk to harm your soulmate. 

word count: 2.4k

a/n: is two soulmate prompts cheating? idk. anyways, this is just some random angst I thought of a while ago, and just recently found in my drafts. probably some typos. pretend not to see it (:

⤰⤰⤰

If there was one thing worse than recruiting weaklings, it was recruiting slackers.

Active enlistment in the criminal world had the unfortunate ramification of attracting the lowest of the lows. The last two miscreants Giran drafted for the League had used the weaponry rationed to them for petty crimes. This included the robbing of a video store. Not just any video store, but one directly down the street from the League’s hideout.

Of course, that was unacceptable.

Shigaraki had little patience for the new recruits to begin with, but it was rapidly extinguished with their hazardous act, along with any leniency he might have had for their punishment. These men had exploited the power Shigaraki gave to them, and worst of all, undermined the League’s legitimacy. The solution to this problem was clear.

Kurogiri offered to dispose of the traitors swiftly and soundlessly, but Shigaraki’s hunger for retribution against these trespassers required a personal effect. And so, Kurogiri transferred Shigaraki to the location. The men were hobbling around in the same alley they’d been found in when Shigaraki emerged from the black vapor’s of Kurogiri’s quirk.

Upon seeing him, the duo went into an indignant frenzy. They knew who he was, and without even needing to ask, without even needing to hear the promises of violence that Shigaraki muttered under his breath, they knew what he was here to do.

The confrontation lasted mere seconds. They were as meek as they were stupid, and neither men were fast enough to counter when Shigaraki grabbed for them. He dispatched the first man with voracious haste, but took his grueling time with the second.

As the man’s sleeve cracked like dried mud, pieces falling to give way to vulnerable flesh underneath, Shigaraki reveled the sight with a sickening smile.

The deteriorating man’s cries of anguish were dreadful: the cries of a man forced to confront his imminent death.

It was a sweet tune of victory to Shigaraki’s ears.

Then, something ruined it.

“Stop!”

At the sound of your voice, Shigaraki glanced over his shoulder, his feverish, red eyes glaring at you from behind Father’s mask.

A hero. A hero on patrol, Shigaraki guessed, seeing that you were fitted in your uniform.

“Put the man down,” you demanded of him, with that confident, entitled authority that heroes enjoyed, and Shigaraki detested.

But Shigaraki granted you the request, not much concerned with revenge, or the man, now that he was soon to be a pile of dirt. Indeed, the minute Shigaraki loosed his grip on the man’s arm, Decay took its freedom in stride and consumed him within seconds. The screams abruptly stopped.

Now it was just you and Shigaraki in the empty alleyway. What had remained of the forgotten men floated away in the light breeze.

Your throat was tight, acid edging its way up the back of your mouth. The scene before you was horrific. Where the distressed man had just been, now remained only dust. And the villain standing over the formless corpses was looking right at you.

Shigaraki didn’t recognize you, didn’t know what your quirk was. But it didn’t matter. He would have killed you anyways, but the fact that you’d just disrupted the recreation of his revenge was all the more reason to do so.

He took a step forward. Not to be daunted, you did the same.

“Stop right there,” you demanded again.

Just another disillusioned display of hero supremacy. Shigaraki had no patience for it.

“Stop,” you commanded, firmer now as his approach went undeterred.

The eery slowness in his gait betrayed the bloodlust he radiated; his fingers twitched with their vitalized hunger for violence, and after you’d seen the carnage those fingers extracted on human flesh, you weren’t about to let your guard down.

In an instant, he was lunging for you. His speed shocked you, and the second you spent activating your quirk for a counter-move was enough time for him to invade your space. Adrenalized fear shot through your limbs, and briefly, you wondered how your quirk might defend against his. But it didn’t matter. You were about to find out.

With surprising agility, he ducked out of the way of your defensive attack, then took hold of your forearm. His quirk descended upon your flesh. The pain registered, and your throat tightened around a cry of alarm—

But then, something in the air between you burst.

Like ripples fanning across a puddle, euphoria extended from the top of your head to the soles of your feet, filling every space inside of you as it invaded your senses.

Shigaraki suffered a similair disturbance. The explosion was almost nauseating. But even more shell-shocking was the world which greeted him once his eyes adjusted.

It first registered in his peripheral: something glaringly present, something striking against his vision—

Was that his hair? 

No, it couldn’t be. 

It didn’t look like his hair. Not the hair he normally saw shrouding his face.

But then he realized it was in fact his hair. His hair, but colored.

It stood out unimaginably stark against the drab schemes of the alley. But then, the alley too found life. Its color came to fruition: a wash of brown along the brick wall, dirtied, beige cement holding the structure together.

Then, from the periphery, the infectious color worked its way to the center of his retina. The kaleidoscope of color that was you hit him in full force. Your outfit, your hair, your face and eyes—your eyes which flicked desperately between his own, and the place where his hand made contact with your skin.

Reminded of his assault, Shigaraki looked to where his digits curled around your forearm, and took in the color of your skin. The color was intervened by another now, deeper and angrier, as fissures broke along your flesh under his Decay. Lines of destruction that had always looked grey in his monochromatic world, like topography on a map, were now imbued with life—with the real, true physical destruction.

But the new life in his vision was momentarily overshadowed by another discovery: you were still alive. Alive, and whole.

He looked again, closer, at the place where his lethal hands gripped your arm. The spread of his Decay was compromised by some unknown force, the destructive lines breaking your skin denied in their desire to consume you completely.

His quirk had been stopped. He couldn’t hurt you.

All of these discoveries happened within seconds, and for a moment, his mind lost its war with rationale. He came as near to speechless as he ever got. While his sense of the world, of its truths and realities, tried to reassert itself, he became ignorant to the dilemma before him, and lost himself in the pleasure of color.

Something suddenly caught his eye, and he glanced downward. 

Were those his shoes beneath him? 

Their vibrant color was the very same as that of the raw sinew that showed itself beneath your flesh, as it cracked away under his quirk—

Red.

That was the name of the color.

He’d heard it before: a way to describe spilt blood. It was blood he was seeing. Your blood.

And the reason he was seeing it, the reason he was granted the gift of this true sight, the reason this contact hadn’t yet ended in your demise—was because you were his soulmate.

Shigaraki pulled away, eyes wide. The color left the world, replaced with the grays he’d endured for a lifetime.

He wondered if breaking contact would elicit Decay to recover its power. His mind raced as he prepared to watch you crumble, to watch you scatter into flakes and blood and organ—

But no. Decay was still obstructed by something unseen. It had damaged you, but refused to do any more than that.

“That’s impossible,” he muttered, almost uncertain if he’d spoken it out loud or not; the fretful shock on your face, and your lack of response, giving no indication.

Apparently, you didn’t even notice the catastrophe his quirk had left on your skin. You merely stared at him, stunned into silence, consuming the same realizations he was.

Then, stirred into an involuntary need to confirm the revelations, to make certain it wasn’t some trick of the mind, you started to move toward him.

It couldn’t be, you told yourself. It couldn’t be him: this villain. It couldn’t be…

Shigaraki knew that you intended to reach out and touch him, your hand shaking as it angled upwards. But before you could make contact, he stepped back, extending his own hand not in an invitation of contact, but as a threat, his palm out and fingers ready to deliver Decay. Useless as it had proven itself to be against you, it was the only sense of control he had in the situation.

“Don’t,” he warned you, his voice weaker than he’d thought it to be.

There was a lump in his throat, centering his confusion and panic, both which spread over him in quick fashion. Mania returned to him like clockwork, a mania he often endured when facing accursed heroes. But he’d never felt it like this. Now there was anger, bewilderment, curiosity, and adrenaline all in one.

Unlike him, you worked through your confusion vocally, sputtering strings of rampant logic.

“But you’re—We—” You shook your head, and your arm moved again, inching up to him, seeking a touch that would give you answers. “We can’t be.”

Distress rushed through Shigaraki and he growled. “I said don’t.”

“It can’t be,” you kept on sputtering. “You’re a —It can’t be.”

A what? A villain? A monster? He dared you to go on. 

But even as his frustrations rose at the implications, Shigaraki concurred. You were a hero. A plague on society. But wasn’t the truth inescapable? Hadn’t that flash of colorful vibrance that nearly stopped his heart been evidence enough? Evidence that you two were fated to each other?

“It can’t be.” You said your mantra again, so close to touching him now. Kill, a voice in his head urged. Kill, kill, kill—

The pad of your finger made feather-light contact with his wrist, and the iridescence reinvented itself without delay.

All the colors that had teased him made themselves known again, bringing with them some disgusting bliss that made his insides curl with warmth. It was a delectable temptation, so overwhelming it made him nauseous.

Your eyes searched him, scrutinizing his colors and imbedding them into memory. An inkling of degradation tugged your brain as you realized the life of color you so desperately reaped was from a villain, one of the worst you’d ever encountered. Only from him would your sole, real taste of reality come.

You both pulled away this time, and the dull world of gray welcomed you like an old friend.

You shuffled back defensively, no colorful heaven able to erase the precarity of the situation. The throbbing, searing pain in your forearm returned, reminding you of the death he’d aspired to bring you.

Shigaraki stared behind Father’s fingers, eyes red and wide.

Kill, the urge came to him again. Kill you. Kill the colors, kill it all.

But he wasn’t sure if he could.

“Get me out of here,” he muttered.

You stared at him, wide-eyed. “What?”

“Get me out,” he demanded again, infuriated. “Now.”

And after brief static, Kurogiri’s dutiful voice answered from the other end of the hidden communicator. Shortly after, the promised warp gate opened against the alley wall.

Shigaraki stepped back into its gloomy arch quickly. Realizing that he made to escape, you stepped forward, eager to prevent it.

“Stop,” you pleaded, but not with the antagonistic authority you’d shown before. It was a simple, desperate plea. Shigaraki knew he was leaving you with no less confusion than he felt in his departure, but his mind was scattered, and unable to rationalize this so long as he was in your presence.

Your mouth opened around another fruitless protest, but Shigaraki was already backing into the safety of the hideout, its colorless interior granting him security.

With one last valiant effort, you shot forward to reach for him. Shigaraki stumbled back and hit the floor when you lunged for the portal, but it was too late. The warp gate conjoining you both disappeared, separating you from him for good.

With Kurogiri’s gate officially closed, and you officially out of reach, Shigaraki simply stared at the spot where you’d been eager to touch him just moments before.

He was reminded of his station on the ground when he felt the hard wood on his backside. But he didn’t bother getting up; his muscles refused him.

“Shigaraki Tomura.”

He ignored Kurogiri. He ignored it all, let it fade into the gray banality of the colorless, lifeless world around him. How else could he describe it except lifeless, now that he’d had a taste of the true world?—The colors and their vibrancy?

And what was the price of attaining this world of bliss? Knowing that his fate was tied to you. A hero. The very thing he’d dedicated himself to hate, to kill. You, a hero, his soulmate.

It was disgusting. It was cruel. It was unfathomable.

Kurogiri was saying his name again, but Shigaraki didn’t care. He instead looked down at his body, down his stiff legs to his feet. His gaze remained fixated.

His shoes. What fucking color were his shoes? Red, he knew. But what did red look like? Why couldn’t he fucking remember what it looked like?

Kurogiri’s voice was harsher now, spurred by dutiful compulsion. “If you’re injured you must let me know,” he pleaded.

“What?” Shigaraki answered, voice thin, and lost. “What happened? Are you injured?”

“No.” “Then... why did you retreat?”

Now Shigaraki looked at his hands, the hands that had tried, and failed to kill.

His quirk. His Decay. For once, his touch had bore something other than destruction; it had shown him life.

Years before, when he’d still doubted his purpose in the world, and had yet to fully commit to any ambition besides to survive, learning about the histories of soulmates had been a gratifying discovery. Learning that there might be someone out there that would see him as more than just a destroyer, more than just a wielder of such a deadly power, had inspired hope.

But now, now that he’d all but given up on the idea of a soulmate—ridiculed it, in fact, having seen the optimistic idiocy it swelled through the populace—he wanted no part in it.

He’d always known the idea of a soulmate was baseless; that two people were to be decided for each other by fate.

Fate? What did fate matter?

Only cruel fate, the very same which had left him to suffer under the mantle of false heroes in his youth, would presume to make his soulmate one of those very heroes. Only cruel fate would show him a world of colorful life, but put its key in the hands of the enemy.

And what—he was expected to willingly accept it?

No. That wasn’t his fate. It wouldn’t be. This was no blessing. Tasting the promised world of color wasn’t worth the fretful irony. It was filthy. It was greedy. It was wrong. And he didn’t want it.

However alluring the true world was, however satisfying its colors and exquisite its details, Shigaraki fought the compulsion of its visual pleasure. He wouldn’t be a slave to destiny.

“Send me back,” he suddenly commanded. Kurogiri lingered over him, nervous in his confusion. “Are you sure? But, you asked me—”

“Send me back.”

There was only one way Shigaraki would find resolution. He would have to destroy the unattainable world of color, so he would never be weak to its promise.

And to do that, he would have to destroy you.

[catxsnow]

PROM DATES

Request: Hey, could I request a batmom where the topic "prom" comes up (idk how) and batmom says she never went there and regrets it and batfam makes her her "own" prom and she dances with all of her sons.

Warning: fluff

A/N: This was so freaking cute!! I loved writing it, all the fluffy feels 

GIF not mine

Word count: 2.4k

Bruce Wayne's kids didn't get along. They fought, argued, and even threatened to maim each other. However,  they would also die for each other, avenge each other, and fight anyone that tried to hurt them. They had a messed up family, but if there was one thing that they could agree on, it was how much they loved you.

Each Robin grew up with you in their life. You were there to support them, help them when needed, and be the person to look to when they needed guidance. They might not have been your own kids, but you loved them like they were. Bruce loved you for that. It was a crazy family that you had formed, but you wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

Alfred had worked far too hard for you family. He never showed that the work was ever too much for him, but you knew that when you offered for him to take the day off and relax that he appreciated it more than you could imagine. You decided that it was your time to clean the massive Wayne Manor.

Hours of washing and scrubbing as your family worked themselves away down in the cave. It was nice having the place to yourself. Music was blasting and you were able to dance around without any of your kids teasing you for it.

By the time that you reached the study, you had found an old album of Bruce from high school. He looked far younger than he did now. Stress free, no wrinkles, still the same smile that he gave you now. He looked handsome, but that never changed with his age. You couldn't stop yourself from flipping through the album to see what his life was like before you.

He seemed so different back then. Sports, hanging out with his friends, being irresponsible. You didn't think Bruce was ever capable of that. It was when you reached his senior prom pictures did you stop to admire. He looked better than ever with his suit on and a smile on his face. No lines of stress or thick scars were on his skin. 

"(Y/N)!" You nearly jumped as you name was called out. You were far to engrossed in the album that you hadn't noticed Damian and Tim exit the cave. They looked excited to see you - as they always did. Tim moved to stand behind the chair you were sitting in and Damian stood at you side.

"Bruce looks so different," Tim looked at the pictures in shock. Damian analyzed his father, at that age he looked the spitting imagine of Damian. "His prom date doesn't even compare to you. Who was your prom date in high school?"

"I never went to prom," you sighed. High school was a long time ago, but you still regretted not going to your senior year prom. Getting to dress up and get your hair done, it was something that you never got to experience. It had been decades and you still missed not having that night.

"No one ever got around to asking me and all my friends had dates already. I didn't want to go alone," you explained to them. Tim placed a reassuring hand on your shoulder. He had seeing you upset about things - especially so mundane like this where there was nothing that he could do to fix it.

"It seems lame anyways," Damian scoffed. He didn't enjoy the idea of wearing a fancy suit just to stand around in some gym with half-ass decorations and people who didn't wish to be there. To him, it was pointless. But he could see that this night meant something to you. He didn't want to see you upset about it.

You suddenly closed the album, not wanting to think anymore about your own past anymore. Tim and Damian looked between each other. It didn't take being the son's of Batman to realize that you were upset. You kissed the tops of their heads and ushered them to to the kitchen for lunch.

Tim and Damian walked far behind you and paused to glance at each other once more. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Tim asked.

"For once, yes."

><

All week you had been suspicious of your family.

For the first time in a long time, Jason had come home without your request. Dick was more giddy than normal. Even Damian seemed to hint at a smile every time he looked at you. Whatever they were scheming, you wanted no part of it. Last time they had those looks, a prank war nearly broke out.

Saturday morning, Bruce had offered to take you out for brunch. It wasn't very often that you got to lavish on dates, but he claimed that the media needed to see you out and about together - you were just happy to spend time with him. He also encouraged you to dress fancy since the place you were going to was rather expensive.

You loved getting dressed up for him - mostly because you got to hear the endless amount of compliments from him.

Brunch went as you expected it to. Delicious food, pictures from the paps, and the best kind of company with the man you loved. No matter the time or place with Bruce, you always loved getting to be with him.

He took the long way home, wanting to show you the new development that WE was working on. It was going to be a beautiful new building that would help thousands. You were always amazed at what Bruce could come up with. He held you hand the rest of the drive back, gazing over with love in his eyes.

There was a hint of a smile on his face as he drove up to your home. Something had been up with him all morning and you still weren't sure what it could have been. Nonetheless, you graciously accepted his hand as he opened the door for you and walked up to the doors of the Manor.

"What's with you?" You stopped him. You hand rested on his chest while the other was still intertwined with his own. "You look far happier than you ever are."

"Am I not allowed to be happy when I'm with my beautiful wife?" Bruce leaned down to kiss you again. You smiled into it, even more so when he pulled away. Only with you, did Bruce's gaze ever soften. "Come on, let's go inside."

Bruce pushed open the front doors and you were nearly taken aback with shock. Your front entrance no longer was the spotless floor that it usually was, but instead, was covered in classic high school decorations. A picture backdrop was in the far corner, a balloon arch right as you walked in, there were even streamers hanging from the high ceilings.

You felt like you were back in high school again. However, it was the decorations that caught your attention, it was how beautiful and handsome your adoptive kids looked standing in the middle of the foyer. For the first time in a long time, everyone had gathered together, just for you.

Dick, Duke, Tim, Jason, and Damian were in the best suits they owned. Their hair was styled and the all had gleaming smiles as they watched your expressions. Steph and Cass were there as well, both of them in gowns that looked so perfect on them that they looked way more grown than you ever remembered them being.

"What's all this for?" You asked. You broke away from Bruce's hold and did a full spin of the room to see everything that they had done for you. Finally, you had seen the prom poster with the year that you had graduated hanging up. "You recreated my prom?"

"You said you regretted not going," Tim spoke up. He looked over to Damian, who had been the one to help him get everything set up for you. "We wanted to let you have that special day, too."

Tears brimmed your eyes at the idea that they had gone through all of this just for you. Getting everyone together was hard enough as it was, you had no idea how Damian of all people was able to swing something like that. That was the thing, they all loved you enough that they didn't have issue to clear their plans for the day just for you.

Damian was the first to notice the tears in you eyes. He broke the formation that they had and approached you. He looked up at you for a brief moment before latching around your waist. You knelt down so that you could be eye level with Damian instead. He didn't say anything, but you knew what he had on his mind. "I love you too, Damian," You kissed his cheek.

He went back to his original spot and just as he did, music started to play. You had just noticed Alfred standing off to the side with a record player by him. Bruce stuck his hand out for you to grab, "May I have this dance?"

"Of course, my love."

Your afternoon had gone nothing like you expected it to that morning. The surprise of having your kids recreate something so irrelevant in their lives, just for you, warmed your heart. The conversation about prom with Tim and Damian had been so short, you never assumed that they even thought twice about it.

You were wrong, very wrong. They had managed to create you the perfect prom. They even played all the same music that was from your year, it was incredible. You had finally gotten the prom that you wanted, and this was far better than what it would have been in high school.

With this, you had the chance to dance with each of your sons, and the love of your life. Dick had been the most giddy to ask you to dance. The second that Damian had brought the idea up to him, he was all for. You were the most important person in his life growing up, he would do anything to make you happy.

Dick was grand and dramatic as he twirled and dipped you. As the oldest, and having known you the longest, he wanted to make the best first impression of your prom. You were laughing and smiling the whole time he danced you around.

Jason didn't look overly thrilled to be there, but his attitude changed as he danced with you next. Growing up, you were always his biggest supporter. Even now, with Bruce opposing all of his new morals, you still saw that excited little boy in him. For him, you were his voice of reason, you respected him in a completely different way than the rest of his family.

It was moments like those did Jason realize just how lucky he was to have you in his life. When your song ended, Jason had pulled you into a tight hug, muttering words of thanks quiet enough that the others couldn't hear. No matter what he did, he always wanted your praise.

Tim had been next. "I can't believe you did all this for me," You told him. "I don't think I can ever thank you enough, this is... this is beyond incredible."

"Of course I did it for you," Tim smiled. He spun you around in your dance before continuing. "I think if Damian and I can agree on something then it must be very worth doing. We love you, (Y/N). You're the best adoptive mom we could ever ask for."

"As crazy as you kids are, there's no other family I'd rather be in," You agreed. As the dance ended, Tim kissed the top of your head and allowed Duke to take his spot. Duke grinned as he grabbed your hand.

He always felt like he didn't have the same kind of connection with you as the rest of the kids, but he couldn't be more wrong. Duke was an excellent kid, and you were so beyond proud to say that you had a part in making him who he was today. "You look so grown up in that suit."

"I am grown up," Duke argued. He was. All of them were. They weren't the young Robin's that showed up broken and alone to your home. They were all - besides Damian - grown up. You wanted to hold onto Damian's youth forever, you feared the day that he would leave you and Bruce.

Finally, it was Damian that offered his hand to dance. His hair was slicked back and he looked just the image of Bruce. The older he got, the more you saw his father in him. "Thank's for doing this, Damian. It means a lot to me."

"It wasn't difficult," Damian tried to play it off. He was much shorter than the rest of your dance partners, but he had more skill than the rest. He didn't twirl or dip you, but you swayed around the entire 'dance floor'. "I'm happy that you're enjoying yourself."

As the last song ended, you were left feeling happier than you had in ages. Seeing all your kids together, getting along and chatting? That was all you wanted in your life. You hated seeing them fight, but you knew that they all had their reasons - as well as their reasons against Bruce. As much as he wanted to keep them safe, he was too hard on them at times.

Bruce joined you once more, snaking his arms around you from behind and kissing along your jaw and cheek. You looked around the room at everyone. Tim was dancing with Steph, Cass with Duke. Damian and Dick were chatting while Jason was talking to Alfred. This had been the most peaceful your home had been with everyone in it.

Bruce spun you around so you were facing him. His hands were low on your waist and he pulled you as close as he could. Once again, there was a loving smile on his face that was reserved only for you. "Today was perfect, Bruce."

"I'm glad," Bruce kissed you. He did a dramatic dip in the middle of the room, gaining the attention of everyone else. Dick had snapped a photo just at the right time. That picture would be better than any high school prom picture you would have had all those years ago. "I always wish you to be happy."

"I'm always happy when I'm with my family."

[shima-draws]

Aww yeahhh time for Kiyo to make his entrance!

I wrote an entire essay about him (again whoops) so it’s very long and under the cut for your viewing pleasure ;)

Kiyo

Age: 29

Hair color: Green

Eye color: Brown

Element: Stars

Kiyo, the Guildmaster of the Asterstone Guild! He only took up the position recently and has had the Guildmaster title for about a year and a half. He was the previous record holder for youngest Guildmaster until that title was stolen by Taku. (Kiyo holds a grudge about it but it’s playful.) 

Kiyo, just like lots of other characters in ATS, was taken in by the Asterstone Guild at a young age. He’s similar to Shima in that he has no previous memories before showing up outside the guild one day, battered and bruised. (That marks three characters in this series with amnesia now! Wrow) He grew up under the watchful eye and tutelage of the previous Guildmaster, and because of how attached to him she’d gotten, it wasn’t long before he began to express desires to take over the guild once she retired. After a lot of thought and contemplation she eventually handed over the position to him. This initially resulted in a lot of outrage from the guild members because they did not think Kiyo was suited to be the Guildmaster, but he eventually proved them wrong once he stepped up to the plate and showed them he could act like a true leader!

They did have good reason to be nervous about that, though, as Kiyo is normally a very laid-back and carefree person and is strictly non-violent. This has lead into lots of situations where he’s opted out of fighting, leading his guildmates into lots of trouble when they needed a hand, and they labeled him as both a coward for avoiding necessary battles on missions (which is practically a requirement for a guild member going out on dangerous quests, you sort of have to have a battle prowess to take on any foes) and lazy for not participating when he should. Initially this bothered Kiyo a great deal, but the previous guildmaster assured him that not everybody is suited for battling others, and that he can still pave his own way to success in a non-violent manner. While Kiyo may not have a liking for fighting, he has an extremely smooth tongue and is very capable of talking himself out of sticky situations (mostly by bribing. He is VERY good at that lmao). He has a talent for manipulating others into doing what he wants them to, though he rarely uses this on people he considers friends. When Kiyo’s able to complete a mission and win the day without resorting to using their elemental powers in a fight, his guild members have to stop and think for a second like. Hold on. He just did that so easily, he made it look so simple, we really need to stop underestimating him and calling him totally useless (Kiyo: Hey. HEY).

Kiyo’s pretty close to all of his guildmates despite their constant ribbing—the one person he’s close to that adores him completely is Lacie, because he was the person to bring her into the guild (she was around 10, he was 17), and being the first person to genuinely show her kindness that wasn’t for ulterior motives, Lacie became very attached to him. Kiyo acts like an older brother to her, and Lacie supports him in whatever he does. She was thrilled when he took on the Guildmaster position, and he has a very soft spot for her :’) She always sings his praises to anybody outside who will listen, and gets angry at Emrys the one time he called Kiyo incompetent.

After becoming the guildmaster, Kiyo actually does a good job at taking charge despite the general opinions that he wouldn’t. He’s still very casual about it though and is a bit more flexible with how the guild is run, preferring to let the guild members do things their own way and be less strict about the overall rules. He’s basically got the “Do whatever you want!” and “Just wing it!” outlook, and while a lot of the members don’t like this attitude, a lot of them do. At the end of the day they all do respect him, though! While he isn’t a fighter he’s very good at giving orders and keeping things in check around Asterstone lol

Despite Kiyo’s insistence on staying out of battles, he’s actually an extremely skilled fighter, and is probably the strongest and most dangerous person in the entire guild. The issue with this, though, is that whenever he gets into a fight, he tends to get too “serious” and starts going off the walls, treating the battle as a game and something fun and entertaining. This leads into him not knowing when to stop, and nobody else being able to stop him, so he’s seriously injured other people without meaning to—revealing that he’s actually terrified of violence because he loses himself in it, and why he prefers to stay on the sidelines. It’s only when Kiyo gets really serious in battles that a darker side comes out, and where the star mark in his eye appears. It’s only been seen a few rare times throughout his life at the guild, so nobody really thinks much of it or notices it. It’s only after the star mark appears that Kiyo passes out afterwards, having exerted a lot of power and extremely skilled battle prowess nobody has ever seen before. However, after a grand guild tournament where Kiyo faces off against Taku and gets too into it, revealing his star mark and almost slicing Taku’s head clean off, one of Kiyo’s advisors at the guild starts to look into it out of concern for both Kiyo’s safety and that of others.

In the middle of all this mess, Kiyo meets Toru, and after nearly forcing him to join Asterstone, the two start growing closer 👀 Toru joins the squad of not putting up with Kiyo’s bullshit, but that’s only after he gets over his starstruck fanboy phase. Because Toru is newer to the guild and because he’s a non-elemental not suited for fighting, Kiyo instantly becomes attached to him, finding similarities in their preferences and backgrounds. While Toru does think Kiyo’s an idiot sometimes he treats him very kindly, and is usually the first to defend him when the other members playfully tease him, so Kiyo’s just like you are an angel sent from heaven just for me and I adore you. Still though with Toru being a non-elemental Kiyo stresses about his safety CONSTANTLY, even after Toru gets official training in self defense. If Toru’s in danger Kiyo will blow off literally everything else to go rescue him first, which the other members have to get used to as it happens more often than they’d like akdasbmlads

Later down the line the guild is caught up in something terrible, and find themselves being targeted by a descendant of a great inventor and sorcerer (not Elymas this time tho lol). She’s apparently seeking what’s known as the Velle Nova, and has reason to believe Asterstone is in possession of it. After Kiyo’s forced to fight and unleashes the power behind his star mark, the descendant reveals that Kiyo has the Velle Nova, and then the truth finally comes out…

Kiyo remembers everything about his past. Years ago, his town had been caught up in a great disaster, and he was the only survivor. He was forcibly taken in by several scientists, one of them being the ancestor of the girl descendant. They were attempting to recreate the Velle Nova, one of the great sorcerer Elymas’ inventions, which is said to grant any sort of wish imaginable. They wanted to claim that power for themselves and possess the powers of the universe itself. However every attempt had failed, and without the real Velle Nova they couldn’t achieve what they were after. So they decided to pour all of their research into Kiyo instead, and try to create the weapon inside of a human being. This ended up making a twisted, broken version of what should have been the Velle Nova. But Kiyo couldn’t contain its power—it was going to unravel the universe itself and either destroy everything or alter it tragically into something unimaginable. One of the scientists working with the group realized how awful their experiment was and, being a Time elemental, decided to erase Kiyo’s memories (with some help) and send him centuries into the future so that the rest of the group couldn’t get their hands on him. Hence Kiyo winding up outside of Asterstone with no memories, and the truth behind his star mark. It had been granting Kiyo his wish the whole time—the longing to protect the things he cares about by being able to defeat any threat in his way. Of course with the unstable power that he can’t control, it usually leads into disaster;;

Kiyo, now having recovered his memories, realizes that the same thing is going to happen again, and decides to seal himself off to protect Asterstone and the world before the universe unravels. Cue an epic PMD-esque goodbye scene where he bids farewell to Toru, gives him his trademark scarf, and vanishes, escaping into a dimension between time and space where his power can be contained. *Starts playing I Don’t Want To Say Goodbye*

Toru, absolutely devastated by Kiyo’s farewell, decides he’s going to break time and space to save his man, except there’s one small issue...nobody else remembers that Kiyo even existed, and Toru only managed to by some miracle (and also maybe bc Kiyo handed him his scarf idk some magic soul connection thing). But after a while...a long while, maybe like a year or more...they finally unlock the key to finding Kiyo!!

Toru and Kiyo share a tearful reunion, and Kiyo cries a lot because it had been so lonely sitting in that black hole all by himself for so long. Toru begs Kiyo to come back, and suggests that Kiyo separate himself from the Vella Nova in order to live a normal life, but Kiyo informs him that he and the Vella Nova...are the same. They’re the same combined entity! Kiyo says that if he tries to unfuse, he’ll just end up destroying himself, because there’s nothing to separate, being one singular existence. So Toru points out uh hey since you’re the same thing, don’t you get a say on how your power is used? “It’s your power, Kiyo” yes we’re referencing Tododeku here we go

Kiyo’s like hmm uh yeah I guess you have a point;; so we went through all that for nothing huh. And Toru tells him you’re a fucking moron and Kiyo’s like ahh yes but you loved this moron enough to come rescue him from the void ;) And they kinda sorta confess but not really? Kiyo’s too nervous and Toru’s too distracted trying to figure out how to get them out of there but no worries they sort it out later. Kiyo tells him that hey I’m still dangerous and I could lose control at any given moment and Toru’s just like well I guess we’ll just have to stop you and bring you back to yourself. So with the knowledge that he’s got a whole guild of awesome people backing him up and a boy who broke the laws of the universe to save his ass, Kiyo and Toru escape the rift and finally return home together 💕 And that’s pretty much how their arc ends!

Extra personality traits

-He has a really short attention span so this makes things painfully hard on mission briefings, which leads to Kiyo usually screwing up the mission one way or another

-He often charges ahead without thinking and is the first one to become a target in a bad situation. Nobody really feels bad for him though because most of the time it’s his fault for walking right into it LMAO

-He can be very childish sometimes and most of the time he does it on purpose. His guildmates complain that their leader is a whiny, immature brat

-He is an expert on how to annoy people do not test him oh my god

-He can be incredibly selfish;; He’s gotten better with it during recent years, but he got scorned for it a lot when he was younger. He’s also very emotional, and you can read what he’s thinking like an open book! When his friends can’t read him that’s when they start getting worried.

-He has no experience in romance whatsoever and it’s the one (1) thing that can get him flustered. Nobody at the guild has ever seen Kiyo get mildly embarrassed or caught off guard, so they begin to think it’s impossible to make him blush. Then Toru shows up and ruins everything lmao

-He has a great sense of humor and can always make others laugh! He’s also very mischievous and sometimes plays pranks on other members of his guild.

-He’s very stubborn when he wants something and not in a good way. He also pouts a lot when he gets like this

-He loves his guild and his guild members man :'( If any of them are ever in any real danger he's quick to offer himself up first as a target. He's protective of his friends and will do anything to keep them safe!

-A very very affectionate person. He mostly shows this through physical acts like hugging and generally touching other people. In return he also craves affection and gets very soft when it’s given back to him. I’d probably say he’s a little touch starved despite being in close contact with others all the time lol

[writefightandflightclub]

Mixed signals

Author’s note: just a quick, simple hit of pure fluff, sweeties. Wrote this super quick idk. 

Summary: you are Poe’s favoured comms officer, and it means so much to him to have your voice on the end of the line during a mission. You’re great at comms. You’ve talked him through some tough times. So why in the hell can’t he get you to speak to him when you’re face-to-face? And will his cute idea to get you talking work?

Warnings: hell, not a one.

(GIF by @cmorgana​)

Poe has grown pretty fond of you over the past few months. The first time he spoke to you was over the comms, when his usual signals operator was injured and you were drafted in. He liked your style and you gelled well, and soon after he requested with the General that you be assigned to him and his squadron permanently whenever he was out on a mission. He trusted you to get the job done clearly, calmly, and decisively. You always stayed admirably cool in a crisis. And, to be honest, the other guy had always rubbed him up the wrong way, which was the last thing he needed when already under pressure.

He has come to depend on your voice on the other end of the line. Particularly the way you go over and above for him. Sometimes you talk him down if he’s scared on a mission -whether on the ground or in the air-, you boost him up when he’s hopeless, and sometimes you’ll even just keep him company through a private channel on his long flights home. You’re even ballsy enough to call him out when he’s being a dumbass, which he respects, even if he doesn’t admit it at the time. Your voice is often his lifeline, his saviour, and he’s losing count of the number of times you’ve guided him back home. 

But when he’s face-to-face with you things are different. He can’t -for the life of him- get you to speak to him. It’s not like he hasn’t tried, of course. Case in point, the first time he spoke to you face-to-face, when you had just a couple of missions under your belt together, didn’t go down so well. He’d sidled over to your table in the canteen, thinking that he wouldn’t mind grabbing lunch and introducing himself to this (cute) new recruit he’d laid eyes on.

“Hey. Can I sit here?” he asks with a broad smile. “I don’t think we’ve met?”

“Yes, Commander Dameron.”

He recognises your voice instantly, suddenly turning goofy when he realises it’s you. “It’s you! From the comms!” he exclaims, with a succession of finger guns, cringing inwardly even as he does it, a heat slowly rising up his neck.

“Yes, sir. It’s me from the comms.” you slink away immediately, setting your empty tray down on the side without so much as a smile. He’s left sitting there alone, feeling like a bit of a buffoon, if he’s honest.

From then on, even in spite of that, he couldn’t stop wanting to talk to you. Your voice, the way you were with him on the comms already... did things for him, got him thinking about how he’d like to spend more time with you. But meeting you in-person, seeing how gorgeous you were, it had only cemented his attraction to you.

So, he tries again. And again. But no matter the situation, the topic, the time of day, the weather, you always seem to clam up and disappear, tight-lipped. For someone apparently skilled in communications there has definitely been some kind of break down between you. Maybe you’re just shy, he thinks; hopes, at first. But after a while he comes to the conclusion that you simply don’t want to talk to him unless you’ve been ordered to.

Finally, after months of pining, after becoming desparate to recreate the rapport he has with you over the radio, he just has to know what he’s doing so wrong. Did he piss you off? Is there something about him that you find deeply offensive? He needs to get you talking, and after some consideration, he figures out a way to do just that. At least, he has an idea and he prays it doesn’t make things any worse.

So, to implement his master plan, he approaches you in the canteen one day. He pulls you aside and softly asks if he can borrow you for a minute.

You clear your throat and respond stiffly. “Yes, sir.” 

He smiles thinly when you fail to call him Poe, yet again, but motions for you to follow him anyway. He leads you into a spare bay in the hangar -now cleared out while everyone dines or hangs out in the mess hall- and gestures for you to tak a seat in the chair opposite him. Seeing the nervousness, discomfort in your expression, your tense shoulders, he reassures you that there’s nothing to be concerned about. It’s just a comms exercise. Then, he passes you a little hand-held radio and asks you to close your eyes tight.

“What’s happening?” you say, clutching the device in your fingers, your brows furrowed in confusion as you perch on the edge of your seat, clearly unwilling to relax.

“I’m going to ask you a few questions. And I just want you to close your eyes and talk to me like I’m in the air, ok? Just imagine I’m in my X-Wing, and you’re in the control room.” he sees a soft, subtle smile pass over your lips, sees you visibly unclench, just a little.

Maker, he likes looking at you. It kinda makes his heart flutter. Great, and now he’s getting nervous; he hopes this isn’t another of his utterly dumbass ideas. Only one way to find out, as per usual. Dive in.

“Black Leader to Nav Six. Do you copy?” He calls out, then mimics the “kchhh” sound of the radio.

You hesitate, your lips twitching up at the corners, but you respond. “Nav Six, I copy.”

“Do the noise.” he prompts you, with a gentle whisper. 

You shake your head in confusion, flashing your teeth in a good-natured smile all the same. “Nav Six, I copy. Kchhh.”

“Black Leader to Nav 6. How’s your day going? Kchhh.”

 “It’s getting a little weird, over. Kchhh.”

Poe notices your nose crinkle in amusement. He finds it adorable, and can’t help but smile in response to you. “Ok, Nav Six, I got eyes on the prize.” You must be able to hear the smile in his voice, because you reciprocate with your own broad grin. He always swears you can detect the emotions in his voice better than anyone. Always know what he’s feeling, often better than he does himself. Maybe that’s why your face drops as his tone switches, becoming more serious. Again, you mirror his expression unconsciously. “I gotta ask, Nav 6. Why do you talk to me on the comms but never face-to-face. Over.”

The radio drops from your lips and your face scrunches in mild distress. He swears a flush creeps up your neck, your skin beginning to glow with a soft sheen. He watches as you let out an audible, nervous breath, but determinedly bring the radio back up to your mouth. “Your voice alone is bad enough and then face-to-face? I have to look at you too?!” you blurt out.

“Wow, OK. Kriff. Copy. Loud and clear. Black Leader out. Kchhh.” He sits back in his chair, defeated, face agape. Maker, he hadn’t quite expected you to be that blunt. But at least he had some answers now. Mission complete?

“No, wait! I mean...” you appear to clutch the radio a little more tightly, screw your eyes up a little further. He watches your shoulders rise as you suck in a slow, deep breath. There’s something more. Something worse?

Searching your face, he leans forward again in his chair, his voice soft and gentle. “Talk to me Nav Six. Over.”

After one more long inhale you blurt out: “I have a huge crush on you, Poe!”

Oh. Oh. It’s a classic case of mixed signals.

“What?! You do?!” he smiles in utter delight, a warm feeling spreading through his chest, giving him jitters. Happy beeps. Happy kriffing beeps. 

And now that you’re talking you can’t seem to stop.

Your hands are clasped together nervously, your shoulders practically tucked up next to your ears but you’re talking. “On the comms I can hide how I feel, a little, but in real life you’re so damn handsome and you smell too good and you make me so kriffing nervous that I can’t even speak.”

Now this. This he could work with. He scrapes his chair across the floor to come closer to you, and you bite your lip with apprehension as you hear the sound.

“Tell me more,” he encourages. “Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”

You huff a little. “I was trying to avoid you finding out because it’s embarrassing and... and there’s no way you can like me back.”

He just looks at you, checking you’ve finished your outburst. Unbelievable. You really have no idea how utterly perfect you are, do you? You gulp as he shuffles his chair closer to you once again. He must be close enough for you to smell him now, he estimates, as your nostrils flare slightly, your breath quickens a little.  

“Ok. Let’s review, Nav Six.” He can’t keep the smile off his face at the fact you still have your eyes screwed tight shut. “Some of that was correct- I’m handsome. I smell great. What I wanna know is why is there no way I can like you back?”

“You’re Poe Dameron...”

His eyebrows jump up in surprise and confusion. “What does that even mean?”

You laugh, hopefully realising how silly that sounds out loud. 

Then he simply asks you: “Open your eyes.”

“Nuh-uh.” you shake your head, nibbling nervously on that delicious lip of yours.

“Fine, if you really don’t want to see me when I tell you I do like you back.”

Oh, you open your eyes now. You open them wide.

His eyes crinkle at the corners as he finally gets to gaze into yours. He looks up at you from beneath his pretty lashes, a little more nervous himself now. “In fact, I like you so much that I don’t even mind if you get all spluttery and nervous. If this is any indication? Then, it’s adorable on you anyway, quite frankly.” He reaches out tentatively to take your hands in his, scraping his chair a little closer. “But one thing I do kinda mind” he says, dropping his voice a little into his throat “is not getting to talk to my favourite person and look them in their gorgeous face at the same time.”

You’re grinning. “Are you done? Do the noise.”

“Sorry, Nav Six.” He says, matching your grin. “Kchhh.”

You giggle, and he just looks ardently at you, drinking you in. He traces his thumb affectionately along your jaw line, under your chin, over your bottom lip.  Your breath hitches. 

“See, this is exactly what I mean..” you say, becoming evidently flustered.  “You ... you make me feel really... nervous.”

He leans in until his lips are almost on yours, enjoying the effect he’s having on you already. “Hmm, but I only wanna make you feel good, baby.”

Then he presses his mouth to yours, and suddenly... you’re giving him all the right signals.

[missmorosis]

Sokka S/O Headcanons!

from my matchups <3

i found a couple of em cute and decided to combine em all LSKDJFLKSDF

i got rid of the ones that were too specific to the person, but other than that, here you gooooo

here’s the zuko version, if you’re interested!

aang version here!

suki’s version here!!

toph, ty lee, and katara’s here!

if you like hugs, he’s your man

he loves giving you hugs

he’ll SQUISH you

but issokay- YOU LOVE IT LKSJDFLSJDF

⊷⋆⊶

just THINK about the art dates you two would have

“okay okay, just try to guess what this is”

he would eagerly shove his drawings into yours

you would have no idea what it is- poor baby i- he tried, okay

MEANWHILE he loves loves loves your art sm and thinks its SO GOOD

he would def try to recreate some of your art and it would just be the sweetest thing 🥺💖 even if it doesn’t look exactly the same :)

even though he’s not nearly as good

its something both of you enjoy!

“LOOK AT MY DRAWING!!” “wow sokka... it’s.. great! what about mine??” “it’s great, but not as good as mine 😎”

⊷⋆⊶

yall could sass each other back and forth

both of you would MAYBE hate each other sometimes but then yall would get along so well AHHHHHH

probably would tease each other a lot???

⊷⋆⊶

he’s pretty kindhearted- although sometimes he may tend to focus on goals and whatnot

and sometimes he can be a bit... aggressive?? is that the word lskdjflskdf

ANYWAYS

overall, he’s a caring person <3

he will TOTALLY put in as much effort into the relationship, if not more!!

HE LOVES YOU AND HE WANTS TO SHOW IT

⊷⋆⊶

he’ll totally throw a bunch of parties for you!!

“hi sokka i’m ho-” “SURPRISEEEE” “what’s the... occasion?” “NO REASON!!”

HE LOVES YOU HE LOVES YOU HE LOVES YOU

⊷⋆⊶

he is definitely someone you can have fun with!!

it’ll never be boring with him as your s/o

tell me yall wouldn’t have prank wars

whether it’s you drawing on Sokka’s face when he’s asleep (which is often) or him replacing your toothpaste with frosting- it goes on forever, and none of you mention it directly

SOMETIMES it gets annoying, but issokay cuz you prank him back :D

the gaang def finds it annoying tho

“DID YOU TWO DO THIS.” “of course 😏”

LOTS of laughter between the two of you <3

⊷⋆⊶

he’ll take you on trips to the beach

he’ll totally splash you in the waves

“DUDE SOKKA DO NOT-”

too late-you’re already drenched in sea water 🤪

looking for crabs together!!

“I FOUND ONE” “QUICK GRAB IT AHHHHH”

⊷⋆⊶

or mayhaps a walk at the park!!

he just wants you by his side the whole time

crunching on dry leaves in the fall :D

yall would go out for ice cream after hehe

⊷⋆⊶

movies for dayysssss

he’ll totally watch movies with you!!

you guys would have movie nights every Friday~

he WILL cry if it’s a sad movie (no shame in that tho I CRY ALL THE TIME WHEN WATCHING MOVIES)

“h-he’s deAD 😭😭😭”

he has definitely cried while watching up. definitely. 

you would totally be comfortable with sokka!

he’ll make you feel SO SO loved

he’s literally so supportive and you would feel right at home with him :)

⊷⋆⊶

yall can quote tiktoks and vines together

“uhm chile anyways”

*debby ryan*

“can you read this for me sokka?” “no because what up, i’m jared, i’m 19, and i never fking learned how to read” “SOKKA JUST READ THIS FOR ME PLEASE”

⊷⋆⊶

10000/10 supportive baby

if you’re into music, he’ll go to EVERY SINGLE PERFORMANCE 💕

even if it’s a dress rehearsal

he’s screaming your name, cheering so loud lskjdflskdjf

⊷⋆⊶

if you like to flirt, he’ll flirt back

will OCCASIONALLY get flustered at first

but pickup lines with this dudeee

⊷⋆⊶

if you like skating, HE’LL SKATEBOARD WITH YOU!!

he kinda gives me skater boy vibes 😎

you two would skateboard around the neighborhood

if it’s during the day, you would skate and talk at the same time

can you even skate and talk at the same time sljkdflkjsdf IDK IDK

if it’s late at night, you would skate to an ice cream place that’s still open

he’ll get you ice cream, and yall would chill together for a bit :D

⊷⋆⊶

GOING TO CONVENTIONS WITH SOKKA

if you like to cosplay, he’ll take you to a convention

he’s there for the food ngl

you’ll cosplay together!!

yall would probably have a cute matching costume :D

⊷⋆⊶

2am convossss

“is water wet?”

“oh my gosh sokka it’s 2 in the morning. But no, water isn’t wet.”

“but like… water makes stuff wet.”

“yes, but it’s not wet. can water be dry? no.”

“OHH. okay. good night.”

“good night <3”

“... what about me? am I wet? hm. not yet 😏”

LSDKJFLSKJDFLKSJDF ANYWAYS

⊷⋆⊶

he’ll be so so happy when you get him gifts

“YOU THOUGHT OF ME 🥺😭💕”

“of course!!”

⊷⋆⊶

hiking to the top of a mountain together hehe

“let me carry you if you’re tired!!”

stubborn you would reply “i’m perfectly capable of walking mysel-”

too bad you’re already on his back lsjdfkl

⊷⋆⊶

he loves to braid your hair when you’re reading!!

it gives his hands something to do

he’ll chat with you and braid at the same time!!

the braid itself isn’t very good, but the time spent together is 🥺

⊷⋆⊶

please cook for him omg- he’ll love all the food you make him!

“THIS IS THE BEST THING I’VE EVER TASTED!” “Let me try some.” “NO, I’M NOT SHARING WITH YOU. MAKE YOUR OWN.” “SOKKA, I MADE THIS FOR BOTH OF US.”

he’ll lift the food out of reach and you end up giving up 😔

⊷⋆⊶

SHOPPING DATES WITH SOKKA!!

you guys would go to a mall or outlet together!

first, get a snack, like a pretzel or a smoothie :D

then yall would head to the clothing shops!

he would choose an outfit for you, and you would choose one for him hehe

make him fashionable 😌

he would either get something really cute OR really fugly on purpose- it depends on his mood

if he wants to laugh at you for a bit, expect something hideous :D

⊷⋆⊶

if you like music, you two would have a playlist yall work on together 👀

“ooh I like this song! Put it in our playlist.” “this song reminds me of you, add it”

⊷⋆⊶

he would make you bookmarks!! 

if you like to read, he would make you bookmarks for fun! maybe those photos from the photo booth?? Yknow the line of multiple photos 

he would laminate those and decorate them for you to use 😭😭💕

stickers are a bookmark’s best friend :D

and every time you open up a book you see you and sokka posing in the goofiest poses

mY HEART SDLKFJSLDF

⊷⋆⊶

sokka would love ALL of you!! 

Including your flaws

in his eyes, you are PERFECT PERFECT OMG WHAT DID HE DO TO DESERVE YOU

⊷⋆⊶

overprotective baby 😌

he will do all that he can to make you feel as safe as you can

he would do ANYTHING for you!!

⊷⋆⊶

would rest his chin on your head when you’re just on your phone or reading, and wrap his arms around you!

sokka would LOVE you and would def make you feel like the most important person in the world

⊷⋆⊶

play a sport? he would CHEER YOU ON and would love that you play a sport like

:O

is so excited for every game/match/practice

would play with you, even if he wasn’t good at it

helps you practice and get better :D

you would help him get better until he masters it

then it turns into a competition between you and him 🤷‍♀️ can’t help it

⊷⋆⊶

you two would have the cutest art-related dates???

just chilling together, sokka drawing and you’re writing

would def make posters for your writing and advertise it for you

“yall see this poster”

“its for y/n’s writing 😌”

“you need to read it”

⊷⋆⊶

you two would talk everyone else’s ears off

everyone’s lowkey tired of you guys

even sokka gets tired of you sometimes 😳

“can you just… shut up for a sec”

“no 💗”

but yall are cute so issokay :D

⊷⋆⊶

hiking trips with sokka hiking trips with sokka hiking trips with sokka

he would be the one planning them, ofc

mapping out the routes and stuff, perfect scheduling

he’ll make sure you guys get home on time

“can we stop for a sec- it looks so pretty here!”

“okay, you have 5 minutes before we need to move on”

“it's all part of my schedule.”

⊷⋆⊶

if you’re anxious, its okay :D

sokka will def help you feel better

will cuddle you

so much.

i hope you like cuddles sldkjflsjkdf

he’ll make Zuko make you tea so you can feel calmer!

this baby literally loves you sm <3

⊷⋆⊶

hope you enjoy hehe <3

[scrawler-jay]

new digital projects

So it's been almost a year since I've posted anything here. I have been drawing (though not every day, unfortunately), but it's been mostly just doodles or figure studies - nothing particularly involved.

I bought myself an iPad 9 for college and received an Apple Pencil for Christmas, so of course that led to me getting Procreate from the app store and messing with it. After a few hours of doodling, I finally watched some tutorials and started getting serious.

I've been wanting to get into digital art for a while. Don't get me wrong, I love the tactile elements of traditional art, but it's unforgiving towards mistakes and all of the supplies/materials take up more space than you'd expect.

I was fortunate enough to receive a small drawing tablet from a good friend @dieselsardine several years ago, and worked with a free digital painting program called Krita for a while -- as mentioned in this post where I got into drawing mice -- but the tablet pen stopped working after my cat knocked it off my desk and onto a hardwood floor, and I felt uncomfortable spending the money to replace it. I found Krita to be... overwhelming. There were so many things I could do, and none of it felt particularly intuitive. Also, the program crashed OFTEN and I was terrified of working with more than 4 paint layers at a time.

Procreate feels like a breath of fresh air in comparison.

Admittedly, I have gotten used to more "typical" painting programs, so it took me a while to learn how the circle tool and color picker worked, and there's still a bunch I don't know -- I'm sure that, after less than a week, I've barely scratched the surface of what Procreate is capable of.

I was looking for something to draw in Procreate, something complex that would be an actual challenge. I'm terrible at coming up with ideas, so I decided to copy this stock illustration of a steaming teacup wreathed with a blackberry vine.

Now, copying ≠ tracing. (Trust me, if I'd traced, my final product would look a LOT better than it does, and I'd have learned nothing). I just used the stock image as a reference and tried to recreate it as best I could.

In Krita, I would try to use as few layers as possible. I had one layer for a sketch or background, one for lineart + colors, and 2 extra for any miscellaneous details. It wasn't a good system. With this project in Procreate, though, I found myself using more than 7 paint layers at a time and the app didn't so much as stutter under the load. I'm very impressed.

I started with a basic sketch of the whole scene:

(Note: this image has been altered to enhance contrast, since I wasn't sure it was easy enough to see).

I used the circle tool a few times! I wanted this stage to just be a general idea of whether everything goes, as opposed to a refined sketch. Because the original stock image doesn't have a lot of shading/shadows, I didn't feel the need to block in lots of values. (Also, IDK how to do the trick where you paint in grayscale, working exclusively with values, and then can switch the grayscale to color. I want to learn but I need to watch more tutorials).

I worked on the blackberry vine next, since I like botanicals. This part took me... about three days, working for maybe 1-2 hours per day.

I still only have the default brushes. I mostly used the technical pen for the lineart, since I like very opaque, thin lines. Adding color was done primarily with the round brush and the syrup brush, and you can see with the leaves that I was trying a lot of different blending methods -- some more successful than others -- before realizing that the smudge tool existed.

By the time I finished this part I was reaching the 50/50 stage of pride vs. loathing whenever I looked at what I had created. The teacup itself would make or break my feelings about this project.

The cup looks... okay. The circle/ellipse tool is a godsend and saved this entire project. I did some shading, which ended up being the easiest part of this entire picture, then overlaid the layer with the botanical elements, and all that was left were some wisps of steam.

And that's it! The stock illustration uses more subtle shading and adds a bunch of lines to give an impression of depth, but I prefer the more dramatic shading here. (Though tbh I worry that it's a very different style from the blackberry leaves themselves, and that the 2 styles aren't especially harmonious). My pride vs loathing is now at 65-35, in favor of pride. I can tell that there's still a lot I need to learn how to do, but as a first art piece on a new digital art application I think I did pretty well.

[kikis-writing-world]

Who’s The Boss

Summary: Max has a late night meeting with his boss to discuss his recent poor performance. She might have an idea or two on what he can do to keep his job.

Pairing: Max Phillips x F!OC (It is written third person, but there are very few descriptors. Could be read as F!Reader)

Word Count: 3.8k

Rating/Warnings: 18+ SMUT! D/S dynamics (sub!Max, use of “ma’am” and “good boy” honorifics), abuse of power (consensual boss/employee,) oral (f receiving,) squirting, fingering, p in v sex, unprotected sex, role playing, established relationship, aftercare conversation (he’s a vamp and doesn’t really need any, but it’s brought up CUZ ITS IMPORTANT!) Swearing. No beta/editing. As always, if I miss a tag please feel free to let me know! I wanna keep my bbys safe <3

A/N: Idk why I thought I should write Max being dommed? I guess I wanted our vampire frat boy to be put in his place?. Anyway... here it is, I’m only mildly ashamed lol

Max watched as the final person boarded the elevator, finally leaving the office. He’d been anxious all day, uncharacteristically so, for the rest of his coworkers to leave for the night. He nearly felt like shooing Elaine out of the office by the time she was packing up. With the floor empty, he finally turned towards the closed door of the office.

She’d disappeared into the office about 40 minutes ago. The door was closed but the light was on, bleeding through the crack under the door. He steeled himself, not truly knowing what he was going to meet on the other side once he knocked. Grabbing the nearest file folder off the nearest desk, he shook his arms loose and crossed the room. His knock was answered by a clipped voice, calling for him to enter.

She was sitting behind the desk, looking over various papers and reports. Her bottom lip, perfectly painted bright red, was caught between her teeth. The cardigan she’d worn earlier in the day was draped over the back of the chair. The top two buttons of her tight blouse were undone, the third looking ready to pop open over the swell of her breasts. He cursed the desk from blocking his view of her lower half. He’d seen the pencil skirt she was wearing as she walked the office earlier and he would love another look at her bare legs.

“Can I help you, Mr. Phillips?” She drawled. Her voice oozed with boredom and she didn’t even look up at him. Something about his disinterest had him aching to catch her attention.

“Uh, yes, Mrs-”

“Miss.” She cut him off with a sharp glare before he even had a chance to say her name. It was so abrupt, he almost felt like he was slapped with the syllable.

“It’s Miss.” She repeated, eyes boring into him. “I’m not married. What use would I have for some useless husband?” She scoffed, sitting up and giving him her full attention. His eyes dropped to her chest, seeing the way the movement put even more strain on the fabric covering her.

“Well? Are you wasting my time for a reason, Phillips, or are you here to stare at my breasts?” She snipped, eyebrow quirking up in challenge. Her lips pursed, proud of herself for catching him. He might have blushed if he was physically capable.

“It’s my sales numbers.” He grimaced. She was already in a bad mood and it was about to get worse.

“I’ve already seen your numbers, Phillips.” She sighed, standing up. His eyes followed her hands as they smoothed down the front of her skirt. “Have a seat,” she ordered, gesturing to the chair opposite her. He sat as requested, keeping the folder in his lap as she rounded to the front of the desk. The red patent stilettos she wore nearly made his mouth water.

“Now Max,” she paused to perch on the edge of the desk. He fought to keep his eyes on her face and not the long legs on display in front of him. “May I call you Max?”

“Of course.” He nodded, desperate for her approval.

“Max, we had very high hopes for you when you came to us but lately your numbers have been dropping. You’re not quite up to par. What’s going on, buddy?” She asked with an exaggerated pout.

He struggled to answer, not only because he was scared to disappoint but also because she crossed her legs as she spoke. Any thoughts he had about defending himself disappeared, the only thoughts on the smooth inner thigh and scrap of red fabric she’d flashed him.

She tsked, stopped his ambling for a coherent thought. “That’s a shame. You had good credentials, good references, you did amazing in your interview.”

She leaned back onto her desk, both arms stretched behind her to keep herself propped up. He wished beyond wishes that button in the center of her chest would finally give way.

“If you don’t start impressing me, we’re going to have to let you go.” She stated.

Max’s eyes widened, tearing his gaze away from her body to her eyes. “There has to be something I can do. I need this job. I’m better than these numbers, I promise.”

“Hmm,” She hummed, biting her lower lip as she thought. Despite the worry over losing his job, he wondered how it tasted. “There may be something you can do for me, Max.” She decided, uncrossing her legs.

“Anything.” He breathed, and by god did he mean it.

The last thing he was expecting was for her to lift her leg, resting the arch of her foot on his shoulder. The overhead lights bounced off the shiny material of the shoe as it found its perch, the thin heel pressing not uncomfortably into his collarbone. His mouth ran dry as he followed the line of her leg up from her foot to where it disappeared under her skirt. The skirt that had ridden up her thighs as she lifted her leg high enough to pin him in the chair.

“Why don’t you show me that silver tongue you bragged about when we hired you.” She purred.

Max’s jaw dropped and it took his brain a second to catch up. It didn’t help that what little blood he had coursing through his vampiric veins was entirely focussed below his belt.

“Yes ma’am.” He breathed. He tried to move forward, but her leg kept him in his seat.

“You can start there.” She instructed, very glib for what she was asking him to do.

“Yes ma’am,” he repeated. He cupped her calf in his hand, pressing his lips to the inside of her ankle. He kissed it tenderly, eyes on her to see if he was pleasing her. Her lips quirked up, almost imperceptibly so but it egged him on regardless. He kissed her ankle, licking the soft skin. He tested the pressure against his shoulder, moving his lips farther up her leg. When he met no resistance, he continued upwards.

He nipped at the skin of her calf, worshiping every inch of skin she permitted him to reach. When she felt his teeth against her skin, she didn’t jump, but warned him not to bite. He glanced up at her, trying to show his apology in his eyes. She seemed appeased and didn’t say anything more, letting her leg drape over his shoulder as he moved higher.

He reached her thigh, looking up for permission to push her skirt out of the way. Instead of verbalizing a response, she hooked her other knee over his shoulder. Trapped between her soft thighs, he could already smell her arousal. She lifted her hips from the desk, pushing her weight onto him. He slid the skirt up to her waist, revealing the lacy red number that she had been hiding all day. He moved to pull the garment down over her ass, but she stopped him with a hard pull of his hair quickly grabbing his attention.

“Do you really think you’ve earned that yet?” She asked. He could tell it was rhetorical, that he hadn’t earned it. He responded by releasing the lace, which earned him a good boy. He didn’t have a chance to preen under the praise as she pushed his head forward to her core.

He gripped her thighs as he licked at her through her panties. The fabric was already damp and tasted of her. He groaned, gripping her plush thighs tighter.

She sighed above him, releasing her tight grip on his hair to stroke it instead. Her nails dragged along his scalp in the most delicious way.

The lace grew slick quickly, his own saliva mixing with her arousal as he worked at her. It clung to her skin, almost showing him what she looked like underneath. He longed to taste her without the damn barrier between them.

Her hand left the back of his head, but having received no further instructions, he kept licking and sucking at her. He pushed his tongue as deep into her as the underwear allowed, swirling his tongue against her walls before focusing back on her clit. Chancing a glance upwards, he saw that she had unbuttoned her blouse, her hands playing with her nipples through the matching red lace bra. He moaned at the sight.

“Focus.” She chided, although her tone was breathy with pleasure. He obliged, hoping that if he made her feel good enough, she’d give him more. “So easily distracted.”

“Sorry, ma’am.” He muttered, not daring to move away. He heard her breath hitch as his voice vibrated against her. He hummed against her, hoping to recreate the sensation.

Her hips bucked as she gasped. He smirked proudly against her, but a moment later she was pulling him away by his hair again. He looked up at her, licking her taste off his lips as he wondered what he’d done wrong.

“Take them off.”

He barely stopped himself from ripping the delicate fabric into pieces, instead sliding it hastily down her legs. He dropped the red lace to the ground, diving back into her core. He moaned at the taste of her with nothing blocking his way this time. He devoured her like a man starved.

His increased efforts seemed to be working for her, as she leaned backwards onto her elbows with a moan. He wanted to tell her how exquisite she tasted, but was worried taking his mouth off of her to do so would just annoy her. He tried to convey it with his actions, licking as deep into her as he could. He groaned as her juices coated his tongue, dripping down his lips and chin.

Her hand was back in his hair, firm grip directing him up to her clit. He obliged, circling the bud with his tongue. He tried different motions, listening for her reactions to find what she liked best. Anytime she moaned or gasped, he tried to make her do it again and again. His chin was soaked, but it felt like she was growing wetter by the second against him.

“Fingers,” she breathed, a pleading tone to her voice. The sound made him ache in his pants, her in-charge facade losing power as he pleasured her.

He plunged two fingers inside her, her walls fluttering around them as she whimpered. He worked them in and out, crooking them upwards against her muscles as he searched for the spot that would drive her wild. He knew he found it when her hips jerked against him, heels digging into his back as her grip on his hair grew near painful.

“Right there,” she confirmed, voice breaking. “Oh god Max, right there.”

He thanked whatever evil magic behind vampires that he didn’t need oxygen to live. Even if he did need to breathe, he wouldn’t have been able to pull out of her tight grip as she came. As her taste flooded his mouth, he acknowledged that this would have been a valiant death indeed. She ground her hips against him, using him to prolong her pleasure.

He only pulled away as her body went limp, her hand releasing the back of his head as she reclined against the desk, panting to catch her breath. He sat up, devouring the sight of her splayed out in front of him as he licked her from his lips. Her lipstick was smeared so slightly from biting her lips, her skin shimmering with a sheen of sweat. He could see her nipples peaked against the lacy bra. Her legs were still propped on his shoulders, giving him an exquisite view of her twitching pussy. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her as he began undoing his pants.

The sound of his belt clanking open had her looking down at him. She frowned, despite her relaxed stance.

“Oh no, no, no.” She practically sang, stopping Max in his tracks. “You think one little orgasm and I’m going to let you fuck me?” She laughed, breathless. “It’s going to take more than that. Especially if you want me to forgive those awful sales numbers.” She sat up, chest still heaving. She fanned her blouse, trying to cool her body.

When Max’s voice finally returned to him, he asked “What do I need to do?”

She cupped his chin, making sure he kept his eyes on her face. “Such a good boy,” she cooed, caressing his cheek with her thumb. He leaned into the loving touch, craving more of it. “If you want to make me forget those numbers, you better make me soak this desk. Make a mess of those reports and I won’t be able to read the numbers, will I?”

The grip on his chin tightened as she leaned forward, holding in place as she stared him down. “And then maybe I’ll let you fuck me. Understood?”

“Yes ma’am.” He gulped, staring deeply into her eyes.

“Good boy.” She smiled, giving his head a quick shake before she released her grip and laid back against the desk once more.

Max didn’t need to be instructed further. He wanted to fuck her. Wanted to prove that he deserved to fuck her, that he could make her feel so good if she let him. The second she laid back, he dove between her thighs once more.

She was still sensitive from her first orgasm, if her twitching muscles and breathless moans were anything to go by. He eased two fingers back inside of her, searching once again for that spot. She was tighter but wetter than moments before and he throbbed in his pants. He could feel his dick leaking with excitement, but he had to ignore it for now. It would be worth it if she finally let him fuck her.

He sucked her clit gently to start, easing her back into the sensations, but worked up to a feverish pace quickly. She was writhing under him in no time as his fingers twisted inside of her.

He heard objects falling off the desk as she squirmed. She was making a mess and he loved it. Anything that could serve as proof that he was rocking her world was good in his book.

“M-Max, I’m-” She moaned as something heavy clattered to the ground.

He growled against her, massaging and pressing inside her. If she wanted to make a mess, he’d make a mess of her.

He felt her whole body tense up and shake before exploding as she cried out. Her convulsing walls pushed his fingers out of her as she came, warm and wet against him. He moaned as it soaked him, drinking up as much of the sweet nectar as he could as he circled her clit with his fingers. He felt his shirt sticking to him as her cum dribbled down his chin and neck.

As quickly as it happened, it was over. She lay whimpering and twitching on the desk as he sat back against the chair beaming with pride. She didn’t even look up at him as he gently lowered her legs from his shoulders, bringing them into his lap instead.

He caressed her lower legs, grounding her and letting her know he was there as he waited for his next orders. He was almost painfully hard as he waited for her to come back to him, to finally give him the permission he craved. If he didn’t get to fuck her, god he was going to kill something tonight.

She sat up slowly, her hair a mess. She looked like the perfect centerfold of the dirtiest magazine he could think of, eyes hooded and dark. She reminded him of the MTV video vamps he jerked off to as a teenager, only hotter. Teenaged him would have blown his load twice-over by now.

“So, you can follow directions then.” She hummed.

Max couldn’t stop the laugh from bubbling in his chest. “When there’s an incentive.”

She chucked with him, leaning towards him. She reached out to wipe his face, collecting her juices on her fingers. “The carrot instead of the rod then.” She smirked before sucking her fingers clean.

“Whichever one gets to fuck you.” He shot back, adding a ma’am as he remembered himself.

“Don’t get cheeky,” she warned although she grinned. “But you’ve earned it.”

Max thought he might faint as she crooked her finger, beckoning him forward. He stood so quickly the chair toppled behind him. He stood between her legs, pressing as close to her as he could. He could feel his pants dampening across his thighs where he leaned into the desk under her. He was trembling with anticipation, but he waited for her permission to go any further.

She caressed his cheek, tiling her face in thought. He nuzzled into her hand, aching for more of her touch, to please her.

“You want me?” She purred.

“Please.” He nearly whimpered.

“How do you want me?”

“Anyway you’ll have me.”

“Good boy.” She grinned, patting his cheek twice. She turned his head, pressing her mouth to his ear to whisper “bend me over the desk and fuck me like your job depends on it.”

He was never so glad for super-human speed. She was bent over the desk, ass on display in a second. He heard her gasp as she was laid flat over the top of the desk, but he could hardly care. He was too busy pushing his pants down his thighs, finally freeing his cock.

He lined himself up, not daring to ask if she was ready lest she take back the permission she’d given. He thrust into her, groaning loudly as he finally sank into her warmth. She moaned, back arching under him. He had to pause, already so close to cumming after the long wait.

“Fuck, Max.” She panted as she adjusted to his size. It only took a second until she was wiggling back into him.

He gripped her hips tightly. Not having been able to bite her, mark her up, he hoped her hips bruised. Hoped she would have a lasting reminder of him taking her over the desk in the days it took to fade.

He thrust in and out, hearing the breath punched out of her lungs with every stroke. Her hands were scrambling for purchase, looking for something solid to hold onto as he fucked harshly into her. He grit his teeth, trying to stave off his own increasing pleasure. He had to make this last. She moaned beneath him, pushing back into his thrusts once she gripped the edge of the desk for leverage.

He was glad he’d had the patience to wait until the office was empty. There was no doubt what was happening in this room from the lewd sounds. Skin slapping skin; moans, grunts and cries. Watching her ass bounce against him, he was glad he hadn’t died between her thighs. He wouldn’t have wanted to miss this.

Feeling bold by the noises she was making, he reached forward and gripped her hair, pulling her head back. She whimpered before moaning his name loudly. He felt her tighten impossibly around him. Taking that as approval, he kept the grip tight.

“God, Max,” she moaned loudly, voice echoing off the walls. “If you could make sales with your dick, we’d be rich.”

He growled through clenched teeth, eating up the praise. Releasing her hair, he wrapped his hand around her neck, pulling her flush against his chest. She whimpered as it changed the angle inside of her, her eyes fluttering closed.

“‘S’at mean I’m keeping my job?” He huffed into her ear before licking a stripe up her neck.

“Seal the deal first.” She shot back. He nearly laughed that she was still trying to hold authority over him in such a vulnerable position. Her legs were shaking, her voice trembling and hoarse.

He released her neck to palm her breast. He squeezed at the soft skin as he nosed along her shoulder. She smelt like sweat and sex, her typical perfume all but faded. He swore he could even smell the blood in her veins, flowing so fast, so hot.

She cried out his name as he pinched her nipple. He pushed her back over the desk, feeling her legs close to giving out. He could feel her getting close to her third orgasm, her walls fluttering around him. He stopped holding back, ready to chase his own release. Sneaking his hand beneath her, it only took the barest flick to her sensitive clit until she was wailing beneath him.

His eyes rolled back as her walls clamped around him. Feeling her walls fluttering around him, convulsing with release, it only took him a few more shallow thrusts until he was joining her. His loud groans bounced off the walls of the small office as he buried himself deep within her. She whimpered softly, reaching back to hold the hand that was clasped around her hip.

As he came down from his high, he pulled his softening length from her. He watched her walls flutter against nothing, his seed dripping out of her. He gripped a cheek in each hand, massaging them. It made the milky liquid drip out of her quicker, spreading over her lips. It was hypnotic.

He stopped himself before any could drip down onto the carpet. He took a kleenex from the box that had miraculously stayed on top of the desk throughout the encounter, using it to clean her up. She whined softly at the touch, overstimulated and spent. He threw the used tissue in the bin with perfect accuracy.

Lifting his pants back to his hips, he rounded the desk to sit in the rolling chair she had occupied when he entered. He couldn’t help but laugh at the goofy sated smile on her face as she remained on the desk. She looked up at his laugh, eyes bright but tired.

“So, do I keep my job?” He asked with a grin, smoothing down her hair.

“Mmhmm.” She nodded, closing her eyes at his touch. “Are you okay? Do you need anything?”

He laughed heartily at that before pressing a kiss to his forehead. “Another round, maybe.”

“Ugh, vampire.” She scoffed, rolling her eyes. “I mean, I didn’t say anything-”

“No, you were perfect.” He promised her.

“‘Kay. Good.” She sighed. “Cause if you needed, I’d move right now. I would.”

“I believe you.”

She groaned as she stood up, stretching her tired muscles. She kicked her shoes off, legs shaky enough without the heels, and padded slowly around the desk, leaning heavily on the furniture for support. Max watched with a smug grin.

“Shut up.” She pouted, sitting delicately in his lap.

“Didn’t say anything.” He argued, wrapping his arms around her.

“You were thinking it. It’s not my fault I can’t keep up with you.” She complained, nuzzling into his neck.

“Nope.” He denied, letting the word pop. “I was wondering if I get to be your… what did you say, “useless husband” again.”

“I was getting into character.” She laughed softly. “You’re always my useless husband, Mr. Phillips.”

“Don’t you forget it, Mrs. Phillips.”

Tagging @wickedfrsgrl​ @din-damn-djarin​ @thisisthe-wayson​ @vonschweetz​ @insideafictionaluniverse​ @driedgreentomatoes​ @computeringturtle​ @gorgeousgrogu​ (you replied to my post about writing this, but I can remove the tag if you’d like)