#tldr i got au brainrot

[ariapmdeol]

thinking abt time travel aus again,,,

one thing i want to incorporate into time travel is the fact that the characters aren't! omniscient! they do not know the lore on the same level that we do, so of course they are gonna make mistakes and screw up and get surprised! i think we deserve more aus that go into that

ALSO. i think we should explore the fact that time loops and time travel change the person who's time traveling drastically, and have other characters pay attention to it. I believe in butterfly effect supremacy, if your character is time looping the characters around them should react to them a little differently each loop, depending on their behavior!! If someone is speedrunning through an area like they already know it, people should take note! go 'hmm this guy is kinda sus actually' and RESPOND TO THAT

tldr i love time travel and time loops and shenanigans

[purple-obsidian]

Your fic and your Ak Jason man, aaaaaauuughhh it's getting the brainrot even harder

I wanted to know your take on your ak Jason with a reader that treats him with the most gentle touch, the sweetest words (probably a reader with a savior complex). Cause I got the picture of Jason being defensive as hell as he feels like some kind of 'healing project' for reader or a charity case

thank you, my dearest anon <3 I am so happy that you enjoy!

i think you’re right, jay would get defensive and possibly angry at reader if he felt like he was being treated like a charity case. he’s very much in a state of mind where he’s trying to restore his dignity [after joker stripped him of it, to put it lightly.] I don’t think jason is the type to care too much about what others think, but he does, at this point, demand respect from his men and reader, even if he doesn’t give respect back. so being coddled or infantalized has the potential of pissing him off.

but in the same breath, i think jason would secretly enjoy being doted on in such a way. in my own au/storyline, i imagine him and reader were dating before he died, but they were like 16 or 17, super young and still in the honeymoon stage. they never really fought a whole lot, every real memory jason has of reader is a good one, filled with the excitement of being desired by someone for the first time and reciprocating love. having reader be extra gentle and accommodating to him and his needs would reinforce that idealized image of her in his head, and make him feel even safer with her.

the reoccurring theme here is the back and forth, the mood swings, the instability of his mental state and ego.

a lot of his reaction would depend on the context. in front of his goons or other criminals, he would be embarrassed and pissed at reader if they were to be all sweet and gentle with him. [in ‘say it back’, I briefly referenced a time where reader told jason she loved him in front of his militia and he just laughed at her, same energy here.]

if they were alone, i think he would tolerate it or even play along until reader said something to set him off. in ‘let go’, we see him stay calm and level-headed while reader is patching him up, but as soon as she challenges him and his way of thinking, he’s triggered and has an extremely emotional response.

i didn’t want portray reader in that ‘savior complex’ way, though. thats one of the struggles for me with doing reader inserts instead of oc’s. for complex storylines like this, it’s hard to not imbue reader with some personality or assume what they would do. but i wanted to show that reader is also very much at war within herself, knowing jason’s treatment of her is wrong but being so in love with him and worried for his well-being that she can’t bring herself to abandon him, even if it would be well within her right to do so.

remember, jason was robin. the best of the best. a shining star among the ever-growing darkness that is gotham. he used to be her hero, everyone’s hero, and she still sees him in that light, and hopes he will find himself, hopes that her love and support will be enough to fill the dark void in his heart. not because she sees herself as his savior, but because she knows jason won’t let anyone else get close to him or help him, and she just wants him to be happy. which is why i am trying to write her as extremely tolerant but still confident enough to challenge him or correct him on things. she wants to remind him who he is, and encourage him to be better. she’s also, of course, somewhat scared of him now too, which brings up a whole other topic. i have another ask in my inbox talking about that so i’ll save it for later.

tldr; having reader be extra gentle and sweet with him would probably confuse his emotions even more, adding to his ups and downs, resulting in more yelling but also open him up to some more moments of vulnerability. deep down he craves such gentleness, but he struggles with allowing himself to accept it because of his deep-seeded insecurities that were exacerbated by jokers torture and manipulation.

thanks for the ask!

xoxo sid

[rimzieiei]

I HEARD FATUI KAVEH AU AND PLS TELL ME EVERYTHING I KNOW NOTHING. GIMME ALL THE DETAILS PLS

HI OKAY I DIDNT EXPECT TO ACTUALLY GET ASKS BUT ILL DO MY BEST TO EXPLAIN MY AWFUL BRAINROT :3

(im so sorry any die hard kaveh fans because this au fucks him up beyond comprehension this is NOT your babygirl anymore)

(also, ive made up a LOT of characters and lore for this au so bear with me while i explain it all)

brighella, the beast (4th of the 11 fatui harbingers)

he is in charge of the realms investigation division, aka fucking around with the abyss/the elements/celestial stuff and finding out

kaveh was recruited to the fatui right after his mom moved away to fontaine. the fatui had an interest in studying his unique constitution. during this time, he worked closely under the innamorati (the previous 4th harbingers). going so far as to become a right hand man.

after a tragic incident where one half of the innamorati attacked and killed their partner (before being taken out by kaveh), he was promoted and took over his old boss's position.

kaveh stays in sumeru (instead of working from snezhnaya) because its the easiest place to access irminsul, and (before the sumeru archon quest) it was a hot spot for abyssal activity.

also, with how awful the fatuis reputation is, id make a bet that most nations try to keep as many of them out as possible. but they cant really get rid of someone that was born there and has citizenship. dottore probably got his citizenship axed after his crimes against humanity or revoked it himself because he could just live in snezhnaya. tldr kavehs the only harbinger that can waltz in and out of sumeru without any problems which gives him an intensive to stay and manage the fatuus stationed there.

id say kaveh has a generally good relationship with the rest of the harbingers. he gets along well with sandrone. he often exchanges information with signora and dottore (plus they both attended the akademiya) so theyre friendly. with pulcinella and tartaglia, they just exists together. generally positive i guess!

the closest harbinger to a friend is definitely columbina! (columbinas role in the fatui is a historical archivist because i believe the theory that shes a seele so shes old as hell) most of the motivation for kaveh ending up as a harbinger had to do with understanding the fuckfest that is his family history so columbina would have been a big help to him! which would then lead to them becoming friends not friends (also i think them talking shit about the other harbingers together is such a fun concept) (you CANNOT tell me columbina isnt a mean girl LOOK at her)

and because capitano and columbina are basically mother and son (this originated from a theory video about natlan lore all in all i think theyd be pretty close due to their lore intertwining) kaveh and capitano are friendly.

anyways! onto the harbingers hes not on good terms with...

pantalone would dislike kavehs because the abyss is dangerous and verrry expensive to deal with safely (paying out the families of fallen agents...). he didnt have this problem with the innamorati. kaveh would despise pantalone for making it incredibly difficult to get funds.

scaramouche hated everyone.

and ohhhh boy arlecchino... these two have the craziest beef with each other. if they werent both harbingers, the other would be dead. ill probably make a separate post at some point that describes their eternal feud. but in simple terms: theyre like each others twisted mirror version.

i dont really know what else to add to this??? but i will definitely be posting more about it :3

[aquaquadrant]

hey aqua, i'm here to ramble about your stupidly amazing au that's got me bouncing off the walls between chapters being posted

firstly, i put all the fics in a doc (because you know, I gotta keep track of what i've read and haven't read, and it's totally not because i want to save it forever and pass it on to my grandchildren)

the doc contains the warnings, summaries, a/n's and everything in between but i wouldn't think it would make a huge difference to the 100K WORDCOUNT

so here is is, the horrifying word count that is honestly longer than most actual published novels and the amount of pages, which to be honest, would be larger if this was actually printed in book size (font size proportionately to the page size), to which the page number would be.... too much, honestly. even I don't want to calculate that and i'm insane

now i assume you knew all this already, since you probably have also been writing this in a google doc to keep track of it, but then again docs slows down dramatically under 397 pages of brainrot-inducing writing so i dont expect you to be using it too often. if you are, congratulations and have a gold star

it's more of i'm collecting useless bits of information like this to show to whoever has read the series, because it's so good, it's so ridiculously amazing, and it so could be turned into a book if someone tried hard enough and i need people to back me up

heck, it's written so much better compared to most novels, it's just that good. i even turn to it when i don't feel like writing. i read it, and then through some miracle, i have all the writing talent and motivation in the world, seemingly having absorbed it from your work.

tldr: htpau is amazing. if you haven't read it you should read it. and it's that good that it literally could be a book. zero exaggeration. (can you tell that this thought has kept me awake many nights)

now hopefully you weren't too baffled to see such a long ask in your inbox, and hopefully you don't question me, as someone who hasn't read a proper novel in years, who has basically reread every chapter once or twice basically as soon as it comes out

i don't need therapy, i need more of your writing. (because hels no does chapter nine end like this) ba dum tss

and then, i leave you, with a gold star and many thanks ⭐

HAGAJDHJA HOLY SHIT

i do use google docs but i make a new one for every chapter for the reason u mentioned, once they’re past a certain page count it gets real slow and i don’t have the patience for that. so uh yeah, i don’t think i ever bothered to calculate the total running word count. it’s not the longest fic i’ve ever written, and i don’t think it will be by the time i finish it, but that’s definitely a NOT INSIGNIFICANT number of words, goddamn.

someone did bind one of my fics into an actual hard cover book once, just for their own personal use. man, that was sick. now i don’t think i’d ever try to alter a fic of mine to actually publish it, cuz so much of what i write hinges too much on the original content, but fan-bindings are A-OKAY so long as i get to see pics :3

anyway, no worries about the long ask, i love hearing from u guys. i’m flattered u went thru the trouble of consolidating it and i’m glad ur enjoying the au!

[worldismyne]

Kirona fics recs.

"@worldismyne thank you! I'll check it out! Yeah, I'd love some recs. I prefer Crona as a boy (trans or cis) but I still like fics with them as non-binary or a girl."

------

Alright, it's been a hot minute since I read some of these, so any ff.net recs are vaguely remembered through rose color glasses, but they def left an impact on me.

Masc recs...

The Lycan and the Vampire (T - Incomplete)

Summary: Crona is a lycan via bitten. Kidd is a vampire by birth. Kidd hates the lycans. Crona doesn't know how to deal with a vampire. Male!CronaXKidd. Rated T for sexual references mentioned mostly by a Lycan

Review: I am paranormal romance cringe. I remember this fic being the first I remembered when thinking of good MxM Kirona. The AU was fairly well world built as well.

Kid x Crona : Hades and Persephone (G - Hiatus)

Summary: Have you ever wondered if there was more to the story of Hades and Persephone? That there was more than what was said in stone?

Review: This is a mythology AU. I just got started with this one, but I'm a sucker for greek mythology. Seems pretty cute so far.

The Difference Between Us (M - Incomplete)

Summary: An ongoing Death the Kid x Male!Crona fanfic. Kid shows Crona what it means to be loved. Slow paced and many chapters long.

Review: tldr, have not read this one, 1st person is not my jam. But, the people for people who do like it (according to other reviews) it's got solid characterization and is a decent long fic to settle in with.

NB recs...

Beneath All the Hate and Despair (T - Incomplete)

Summary: Even after switching sides and making peace with most of Maka's friends, Crona has a rocky transition into Kid's good graces. Things get even more difficult when traces of Medusa crop up. An exploration of two wildly different but curiously similar people that come closer together. Mostly canon compliant, but an AU of sorts. NB Crona. (Revamped fic)

Review - This is the OG for me, and by that I mean how young me found out about they/them pronouns. (I didn't really get it at the time, but I still read the whole thing AND the author went back 10 years later to do another copy edit once they had more expirence. Mad respect.)

Stir the Cauldron (T - Updating)

My summery: A continuation of the manga where Kid uses his new powers to help save Crona.

Review - Really nice getting to see Kid adjust to being the new Lord Death, the internal dialogue is really on point. Bonus points for addressing Ragnarok and having Crona be artificially made (gotta be one my fav HC).

Devestation Rots (NR - Complete)

Summary: In which Kid is shattered by the loss of two people very important to him.

Review: Cute hurt/comfort two-shot. Bonus points for Liz/Patty + Kid in a sibling dynamic.

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I read mostly fem!Chrona longfics way back. So The Birth of Scelus the Kishen and Child Born of Love are the absolute classic longfics that have survived (I could have sworn there were four or five others, they may have been deleted). But both of them are complete and rated T. I have 0 clue how well they've held up, but they got me through many a class and roadtrip growing up.

There is 10 pages of fics on ff.net (the ship predates the ship filter feature. So just pop in romance into genre and only have them as the listed characters). There used to be more, but like I said, people like to delete their old stuff.

キックロ or Kikkuro is the ship name in Japanese if you ever want to look for art on other sites. I know there were a few doujins back in the day, but very few were translated to English at the time.

It's so interesting to see a ship that used to be in the main trifecta of ships fall out of favor. I'm mostly writing for other ships now too, so I'm not complaining lol.

Daughter of Madness is the longest fic I ever wrote and now with the sequel, they've fully transitioned from she/her egg to they/them god X'D

I still love these two together in any interpretation. So if you ever get brainrot or wanna talk headcanons, my inbox is open lol.

EDIT 10 Pages of fics when browsing on mobile, 28 if you're on web.

[tallowandport]

https://www.tumblr.com/tallowandport/742177476402446337/the-mlp-infection-au-brainrot-has-gotten-to-me?source=share

Your au seems so intresting so far but gotta ask and sorry if this is spoilers for the story...just excited to see more and so curious:

Why would Celestia release such a devastating plague? Did the pony population get too big and she needed to kill some off in order to prevent overpopulation? If that guess is right, I'm curious if this will turn into a situation where Celestia is like "yes...yes the plan is working perfectly....ok maybe a little too perfectly...oh dear me, ok maybe I made this plague a little TOO strong because at this rate, ponies are going to go extinct...what have I done!?!?!"

Or was it originally intended to kill off an enemy of equestria buuuut it accidently reached ponies instead of the enemies and Celestia doesn't want to admit it was her because she knows it news that she caused a devastating virus and had planned to basically do virus warfare, the ponies would be VERY upset?

Or...those are just some guesses on my end on why Celestia would make such a horrifying virus and decide to release it. (Hopefully she was smart enough to make a cure so in the middle of the pandemic, she could pretend to be a savior and cure the ponies...if not or if the virus had evolved into a new strain that the cure doesn't work on due to the amount of hosts it had gone through, equestia is screwed.)

Also...two questions I wonder if Celestia thought about if she infected the ponies on purpose and not some accident happening when trying to attack an enemy...who is she suppose to rule if she had noone to rule over? How does she rule an empty kingdom? Bet she didn't think that tiny tibit through.

Still sorry for so many questions and stuff, just so invested in the story and curious about it and can't wait to see what happens!

Lol, no worries! I do actually have a rough draft of an evil monologue Celestia goes on about why she does this.

It is still a rough draft though, so I might change some details later, but here it is for now! I think this should answer all your questions.

Here's a transcript for accessibility:

[transcript]

This whole thing is Celestias evil monologue:

"Do you know how many times I've remade the world, Twilight? Of course not. Because this world is the only one you've ever known."

"I've done this so many times. At first, it was merely out of necessity. The first few worlds were destroyed by sheer accident and freak chance. Diseases, natural disasters, that sort of thing. And then it was War."

"I must've snapped at some point, maybe I lost hope? It's been so long that I've forgotten."

"The wars and conflicts got to me. I began destroying and remaking the world in order to get a fresh start, clear my head, make it perfect 'next time'"

"This world has probably been my best one yet. I even thought it could be the last one I'd ever need to make."

"But... Lunas rebellion a thousand years ago was the first worrying sign."

"I almost destroyed everything then and there, but then I thought... 'well, what world wouldn't benefic from a little interesting history?' so I held off."

Then, you came along, and it felt like my wish for conflict resulution could finally be solved... for the first few disasters."

"but then, conflicts just Kept Popping Up."

"You would solve one, and then an entirely new, unrelated, issue would present itself!"

"As if you were not a cure, but a magnet!"

"I can't let this go on. I am sick and tired of something always coming along to ruin my world."

"But I am also sick and tired of destroying the world like I usually do."

"So I decided on something different this time around... I thought releasing somethingslow and agonising onto the populace, something that'd make them destroy the world on their own, would be entertaining to watch... And you know what?"

"It has been the most fun I've had in AEONS."

[End of transcript]

Tldr: Celestias actually some sort of perfectionist God that's been destroying and recreating the world whenever something doesn't go exactly as she planned, and this time she decided to have fun with the destruction.

Ah, and as for why Luna, Discord, Cadence, and all them aren't mentioned is (for now, this is still a rough draft, this could change in the future) the fact they aren't actually gods, Celestia created them, too. And gave them the pretence that they had power.

Part 1, part 2

[lastlight-inn]

Hi hi!! 🩷🤍🤎

I answered 🩷 and 🤍 here already but I gotchu with 🤎.

🤎 Brown: How did you decide to write (or why are you writing) a certain fanfic? (Asker, feel free to choose a specific story you're curious about. You can also let the answerer choose the story.)

As I only have one real long fic I've been writing, I will address You're At the Top of My Lungs.

Poppy is a very very old OC and she is frequently subjected to my hot boy of the month. But as a result of her being so old, I have a canon history with her. She "lives" in our timeline. I know her birthday. I know what she was doing in 2012. A lot of her background that I've shared in YATTOML is "canon" as it were lmao. I didn't have to develop it for my bg3 story with her, it's been sitting with me for years.

She dumped her last partner in 2018 when she found out they were cheating and all her other attempts at dating afterward fizzled out. So she's sort of been celibate by choice for a few years. This can be helpful because it gives me "room" to have her meet someone...whenever in that timeline (though COVID does throw a wrench into those things.) Given all of that, It was very easy to slip Gale into her story.

I sort of did the reverse that people have been doing with Gale x Tav. I pulled Gale into our world with Poppy instead of inserting her into BG3. It was already "canon" that Poppy's mother was born in England and moved to America for the boy she met at University. I had started thinking that Poppy would visit England in her summers as a child ages before I started playing BG3. It was easy to make Morena her mom's childhood and university friend, for their children to be close in age and to befriend each other.

In one version of this universe, Gale does NOT miss her mother's funeral but something else happens that breaks the relationship, but in a much more forgiving way. So when Poppy decides to move to England for Reasons in the fall of 2023 and happens to run into Gale, it's easier for her to forgive him in a low-stakes scenario such as that.

That being said, and to get back to the original question, I spent months thinking about Gale and Poppy in Our world before I sort of hit a wall (like...what does their future look like? idk what Poppy's future looks like because I haven't lived it yet )That's where the actual game comes in.

I play a self-insert Lore bard version of Poppy in my main bg3 playthrough. That is not canon. Instead, I started trying to figure out how I could actually fit Poppy into the story given what I already know about her background, character, etc. It's copied over fairly seamlessly. Having the friendship breaking moment be that Gale misses her mom's funeral is Insane (I am very aware, I apologize to anyone that's been turned off by my fic because of that lmao) but I couldn't use the "real" reason because...Mystra is a goddess and the reason isn't really possible in my mind because of that fact. Eventually the Gale brainrot turned into full-on PoppyxGale brainrot to the point where I needed to write it all down.

I have never written Poppy before for two reasons.

Her story in "current day" is nebulous and I want to keep it that way.

Her backstory (i.e. who she's friends with "IRL") is a little too self-indulgent for me to feel comfortable sharing. I feel pre-emptive embarrassment even considering writing that idk her bandmate used to be the drummer for My Chemical Romance (I'm going to go throw up now please don't look at me).

But the BG3 storyline is so Contained and far, far away from #2 that I was like...wait....I KNOW exactly what happens. This is a static storyline I'm creating...and I want to remember it. And share it.

Idk if I'll ever write what I consider Gale x Poppy's canon story in our timeline (I consider BG3 an AU as it were lol). Sharing that maladaptive daydream feels too personal.

tldr; brain got Too Full and I needed to write it down lmao

As for the Modern College AU I have in the works that I talk about in the linked ask/answer, I wanted to write that one because a) the lack of Modern AUs esp with a younger Gale and b) my love of college radio. I was a part of my university's college radio station for all 4 years and it was so important to me, my growth, and my life at that time. I want to write something that's sort of an ode to that and I feel like would be a bit different! I want to use the radio as a sort of Greek Chorus for the fic and that one idea has been singlehandedly fueling my writing and brainworm for that particular project. Now all I need is to figure out how Gale and Poppy actually get together in that universe 😭.

WELL THAT WAS LONG but ty for your ask 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

[jinn-mori]

@johannepetereric You asked for '3' in the Spotify Wrapped Ask Game.

It's 'Curses' by The Crane Wives.

AKA my go-to song for a lot of my ships. Maybe it's just cuz I've been having AiIchi brainrot as of late but this song is so them. Specifically, I could see it going well for my AU 'Take A Ride On The Devil's Back'.

TLDR, it's an AU where Aizen is set to be sacrificed by the Cult Of the Soul King but manages to escape and unseal Ichigo, the King of Hell. Ichigo's got a grudge against the Soul King for reasons I won't reveal and the two make a contract so they can both see the Soul King fall.

And then one of my OCs goes well with this, Soleil. He's a runaway noble with lots of issues.

[lady-starbind]

One thing I look forward to about playing Pokemon Violet is learning more of that sexy Grusha lore! I’ve seen ppl on here talk about him, one person mentioned that they had read about the Gym Leader in the library of the game if I’m not mistaken? (ik one of my besties had said that there’s a library in the ingame school w books about the Gym Leader) I WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT GRUSHA FJDBLFVNDLKVNFDL If any of you guys have pics of what the Library book says ingame or something... or literally any canon lore, I’m all ears! (idm spoilers honestly... The brainrot is so real and I need a better understanding about my fave fictional jock) ALSO HIS BACKSTORY?! SO SAD THAT THE BEAN HAD TO GIVE UP HIS DREAMS! ;w; ...I’m no expert on snowboarding, but ik that it takes a very fit and athletic person. Is his injury so bad that he couldn’t go back to being pro? ...You sure there isn’t a way that maybe, if he was determined enough, he could overcome impossible odds and snowboard again? Anyways I love Grusha.... he has a very special place in my heart~ (Lowkey he’s actually got me obsessed and brain rotting over my icy oc girl Cryo and her lil bestie Tom jkbvksbksbdssdjk) I definitely ship Grusha and Cryo.... maybe there’s an AU where they fall in love and smooch?! I already have a cute name for the ship: “Crusha” (I love how it has the word “crush” in it lol) ...as far as a proper Pokemon sounding ship name? idk lol... Ice Shipping? IcyLover Shipping? IceLover Shipping? StoicIce Shipping? kdvbdakjbvdskvdbjkss ....Also what dynamic would an icy jock w dashed dreams and an icy bookworm who hates everyone have? I even have a self indulgent character arc idea in mind for Cryo that she’ll go through, where she “almost” ends up with romantic feelings for Grusha. (but narrowly dodges it bc girl hates le romance lol) ...may even write fanfiction for it! :D tldr: I am obsessed w Grusha and would happily accept any canon lore on him, even if it’s spoilers bc the brainrot has hit me hard. Grusha reminds me of my oc Cryo, and I ship the two romantically even tho Cryo hates romance... May make fanfiction w my oc Cryo avoiding a crush on Grusha. PS: I love how Grusha’s name has Slavic roots.... I have Slavic in my blood as well, so that makes me very happy to see a pretty boy with a pretty Slavic name ;w;

[blessedshortcake]

I cannot stop thinking about my au where Mulled Juice adopts Espresso and Captain Caviar adopts Clotted Cream and they kinda just raise them together

Clotted is still the Consul of the Republic but now he isn't part of House Custard but instead he's with Caviar since. He raised him n all that lol

Like I have such a bad brainrot about this and I don't even know why.

More under the cut because I am about to go on a ramble and I don't want to take up anyones tl so open if you wanna know more ig??

AAA okay

I always liked to HC that Espresso got to the republic by his mom smuggling him on a trade ship when the coffee tribe kinda collapsed for whatever reason. Its still a bit hazy with what exactly I plan with her and how Espresso would end up with Mulled Juice but generally I like to think he kept sneaking into his classes or kept trying to listen in from somewhere nearby, or like idk I'll be back with more in a hot second.

Clotted Cream's part is way simpler tbh. Caviar figures out that Custard is abusive after a bit and when Clotted comes to him for safety he kinda just ends up adopting him unconciously.

Oyster also helps them raise the kids, originally I thought of her and Caviar co parenting Clotted Cream but then I had this whole idea of Espresso and Clotted being siblings and all that so that's where we are.

Generally all the Elders kinda pitch in in their own ways, like Vanilla sometimes babysits them and for a while the boys think of her like some kinda weird non blood related grandma figure who they can play cards and old board games with.

Clotted Cream would still be a mage but I am trying to lean him more towards the bomber category like Caviar. He wouldn't have his glock cape (/lhj) since that is a Custard thing but imo being a mage is like a him thing.

He also knows more martial arts here but he is more on the defensive side of things and he also knows how to use a sword because Oyster taught him so. I am still thinking about What exactly his skill would be so I shall be back with that soon

Espresso is a bit more tricky. I think he would still be a pioneer of coffee magic as he is now but with Juice and Caviar raising him, he'd also have way more skills. Like he would also know some martial arts but he would still be more interested in science and engineering than like physical fights.

Juice would probably also help him a lot with learning since he now has way more access to, well pretty much everything tbh. He would teach him more about making stuff and support his research infinitely more like this.

I am imagining their looks being slightly different here too since they have like completely different experiences and wardrobes probably but I cannot draw for the life of me so </3

I hope this was coherent, even if it wasnt ill be doing this again soon lmao-

If anyone wants to talk about this or has like Questions then PLEEEEASE ask me about it here or in my asks or whatever in dms, I am Itching to talk about this as much as possible

Tldr: im insane

[rebuke-me]

42 (Im obsessed with your AU's how do u have so many)

the answer is i genuinely have such bad brainrot thats existed for almost 6 years and ive always been an au bitch. anything i consume regularly ends up being a bmc au in some shape or form.

oh okay you got. the cult au. this one's a bit much. its going under the cut.

cult au is a bit. a bit close to what the vibe is but i rlly wanna rename it but its the best title i have at the moment! so.

this is a human squip au. most of my aus are human squip if they exist in the au.

its structured very similarly to the original plot but a lot darker

rich gets taken under the wing of this man who promises that he can make his life better. as long as he does as he's told and brings in his friends.

the man is kind of seen as a god. he can do things with technology and pills that no one's ever seen before. he says he can make a perfect world, and people believe him, because all the people he turns out seem perfect from the outside

rich takes advantage of jeremy's outcast status and tells him that he can give jeremy a way to feel alive, to live properly. and jeremy's susceptible to this sort of thing so he falls for it. its fine for a while, sure, but shit starts going wrong

rich disappears first. just seems to fade from existence, gone from school and work and home. he's just... gone.

and jeremy disappears afterwards.

michaels freaking the fuck out. his best friend just disappeared after acting super weird for ages.

and then jeremy starts showing up in weird places, just a little off. too happy. too smiley. he's fucking blonde. and he's talking to people about how he can help them, they can be perfect.

he doesn't seem to properly remember people right. he's talking to people he'd never be caught talking to, people he avoided out of fear of ostracization. he's hanging out with the popular kids.

tldr. squips basically a cult leader and brainwashing these kids to try and take over everything but saying that its to "help" them

[enderspawn]

dream smp asagao au, aka the very specific high school au

also aka the post thats very self indulgent for me and maybe 3 other people.

in short: its a dsmp high school au based on the game asagao academy, where everyone is part of a gaming club and compete against one another in tournaments. more in depth info about the AU/Asagao itself, as well as more info about the plot and roles of the AU itself.

Asagao Academy Basics

So to start, let’s cover the basics: what is Asagao Academy. ….well, an old Youtuber dating sim game (which, despite unfortunately including some fairly questionable CCs, IS still really good and well written and I recommend it) But what is it for AU purposes?

Asagao Academy is a highly elite world-wide boarding school set in Japan for those who are either rich enough to afford it, or those skilled enough to get scholarships. Within the game, there are two main clubs: Normal Boots and Hidden Block. They’re both gaming clubs, and joining is seen as super exclusive since they’re ALSO the most popular people in the school.

The two clubs compete with each other in various tournament events with specific categories. For example: Satch (from NB) and Jimmy (from HB) both compete in the “Tech and Invention” category, where they have to create/invent something related to gaming and have it judged at the event like a science fair. Meanwhile, Jared (from NB) and Wallid (from HB) both compete in “Dance” aka DDR and the person with the highest score wins.

The other categories featured in game include: Puzzle games (like Bejeweled or Tetris), Video Game Trivia, Pinball, Retro Platformers, a three-person fighting game, and 100% completion speedruns. So tldr; the categories can be kind of fiddled with and be whatever you want them to be, because even the original ones are pretty wack.

Also, there’s no rules against competing in multiple categories— in fact, most of the HB members in game do! It’s more about balancing time and practicing for them alongside school and other activities.

The winner of the competition is the team/competitor(s) with the most total wins.

Another thing to note: despite competing as clubs, they’re all actually pretty good friends. It’s all lighthearted and fun in the end, hell the leader of the opposing club even helps the main character join the main club just because he wants a decent challenge.

Speaking of… the main character! Hana Mizuno! I don’t have any current plans to include her in this AU (a la new dating routes), but I wanted to mention her for a few reasons.

For the main reason: her hair. Even as soon as she shows up, Mai (her best friend and roommate, who can break the 4th wall) immediately calls her out for her hair for looking like a main character which as we learn… isn’t an exaggeration. She’s literally a born protagonist, thus being born with naturally pink hair and a tragic backstory. Not only that, but other people are also born protagonists with pink hair as well— she isn’t an exception.

About the AU -- Revolution Era

A few things to note: in this au, when I first drafted it I… wasn’t looking to include 20+ people. I cut a lot of characters, but instead working with the idea that they’re still THERE, they just… don’t compete? Either they aren’t in the club and are just friends with the members, or they’re members who just don’t compete professionally. It’s nothing personal against those CCs and tbh as times goes they may get added more, but for now they’re just in the BG vibin.

It covers a really basic retelling of s1 for most of the planned au. It starts with One Club: the Dream Team. Members include: Dream (sophomore), Sapnap (sophomore), George (junior), Wilbur (junior), Eret (junior), and Fundy (freshman).

For reasons, possibly just as a goof or spite towards their American counterparts, Wilbur declares independence from the Dream Team and makes his OWN gaming club: L’Manberg. He takes Eret (a close friend from his grade) and Fundy (the freshman he immediately adopted) with him, causing the two teams to be 3v3.

But Wilbur’s got a dastardly surprise up his sleeve: TOMMY, HIS YOUNGER BROTHER (bc I am nothing if not a dedicated crimebros stan), AND TUBBO. They’re both too young to actually attend Asagao yet, but theres no age rules in the actual competitions so its fair play. They’re Wilbur’s secret weapon. After all, a 5v3 where the team with the most wins wins the competition? That’s a massive advantage.

… we all know how this goes though don’t we. Wilbur’s day be so fine, then BOOM, Eret betrayal 😔

In this case Eret feels it’s a LITTLE unfair to blindside them like that, plus Dream promised to make him the Leader of the Dream Team and, yknow, that kind of stuff DOES look good on resumes, so…

TLDR; Eret rejoins the Dream Team crew, as well as informing them of Wilbur’s plan with including Tommy and Tubbo and becomes leader. They’re still letting Dream and Co. basically actually do the leading, they don’t care that much, the title is just nice. L’Manberg cusses her out and promises to hold a grudge, but it’s all in good fun. After all, they’re just teens goofing around and playing. The clubs are again 4v4.

Dream tells the L’Manberg club that they can separate, sure… under one condition. They have to win the competition. If they lose, they have to rejoin the Dream Team club.

L’Manberg accepts, but come competition day… they lose. Tommy outright challenges Dream post awards to a speedrun competition for L’Manberg instead. …which Dream professionally competes in, and Tommy DOESN’T.

He loses, but he puts up a good fight despite having little to no actual practice put in, so Dream “grants” L’Manberg their “Independence”. (In this au, instead of being like… weirdly obsessive over Tommy, it’s a lot more “he sees himself in Tommy and wants to support/mentor him” and a “friendly rivalry” kind of deal bc its a damn HIGH SCHOOL AU)

So L’Manberg can be it’s own club! …Next year, when Tommy and Tubbo actually attend, since Wilbur and Fundy aren’t allowed a two person club.

About the AU -- Election Era

SO time skip! Congrats, everything up to now has been BACKSTORY. It’s now the next school year, with two main clubs (I’ve tried to keep them fairly balanced, which is why not all CCs are featured, sorry!)

Dream Team club:

Dream - junior

George - senior

Sapnap - junior

Eret - senior

Punz - junior

BBH - senior

Awesamdude - junior

Ponk - junior

L’Manberg club:

Wilbur - senior

Tommy - freshman

Tubbo - freshman

Fundy - sophomore

Schlatt - senior

Quackity - junior

Niki - sophomore

Jack - sophomore

(Also fun fact! Their grades are loosely based on the CCs actual ages! …Except Fundy, who got Baby-fied to fit the “Wilbur’s Kid” joke, and Eret bc it fit better to be the same age as Wilbur I thought. Oops HEKANDNSN)

So, for whatever Reason (listen this was an au I made in like one night when plagued with brainrot, it’s not all figured out), L’Manberg holds an election. Maybe it’s related to Wilbur wanting L’Manberg to be meaningfully different from Dream Team, maybe it’s a joke, idk!

…. SOMEHOW, Schlatt wins. Which ticks off Wilbur a lot. It’s his damn club, and the whole point was to avoid Americans, tf?? The two start to feud a lot and it threatens to split the club entirely via ppl taking sides. Worse, it means people aren’t practicing for the competition.

All while this is happening, there’s a new intrigue building. Dream catches word of an infamous player in the area, someone known to win entire competitions against teams of people all by HIMSELF. A man with bright bubblegum pink hair called Technoblade. That’s right, literal universe-assigned protagonist Techno. If Dream could enlist him, there’s no doubt in hell they’d be able to beat L’Manberg.

L’Manberg hears of him too and works to try and enlist him as well, so he basically gets courted by both clubs trying to get him to play for them to mixed results. He’s pretty chill vibin by himself, so what’s in it for him? (….I don’t know, remember how this is a WIP au I worked on once?)

Eventually, a teacher named Phil (who’s been the honorary sponsor of the L’Manberg club) gets pissed at Schlatt and Wilbur’s fighting and bans both from competing (aka this AUs version of them dying). Which fucking SUCKS for L’Manberg. They’re now going 6v8 with a wildcard player who’s undeclared on which side he’ll join, if at all.

… honestly, that’s as far as I got. Theoretically, Techno joins L’Manberg to reflect Pogtopia and they win. I never had plans to go into s2 due to its darker theme, but there are definitely changes that could (and might?) be made for the s1 plot just so it flows better.

I already had to shift Wil and Schkatt’s “deaths” to fit, unless I were to have them LITERALLY make a new club. Maybe Schlatt uses his power as Club President to make them work with Dream Team (to the point it basically merges the clubs). Sure, they might be guaranteed to win now but it removes the competition and fun as well as the spirit of OG L’Manberg. So then Wilbur rebels and makes his own club AGAIN, calling it Pogtopia with the intent to get L’Manberg back. Then Techno, intrigued with this group of like 2-3 ppl going against a team of like 13ish people, decides to join them. Idk! Alternative possible plot based more closely on s1 I guess!

I’m gonna add a list of characters in full with their age, their club, and what they compete in (if it’s already brainstormed, most ppl are unknown) below

Character List

dream (DT) - junior - speedrunning

george (DT) - senior - coding/tech and invention

sapnap (DT)- junior -

eret (DT) - senior -

wilbur (LM) - senior - rhythm game/guitar hero-esque

tommy (LM) - freshman - (possibly pick up speed running during election arc?)

tubbo (LM) - freshman - chess

fundy (LM) - sophomore - coding/tech and invention

schlatt (LM) - senior - he never actually declares what he plans to play and then gets banned anyway, aka no game kekw

quackity (LM)- junior - dance

niki (LM) - sophomore -

jack (LM) - sophomore-

punz (DT) - junior -

bbh (DT) - senior -

awesamdude (DT) - junior -

ponk (DT) - junior

technoblade (SOLO) - junior - multiple categories

FINAL BIT

here’s some scraps for ppl who know Asagao already as well as small bits I didn’t bother to write up any further

- Karl, much like Mai, is ALSO aware of the 4th wall and has time travel powers because of it.

- Purpled (undecided if he’s a solo player like Techno or has his own team he competes with that’s not a formal club) plays Literally Bedwars in competitions

- Callahan is the Dream Team club sponsor, Phil is L’Manberg’s club sponsor

- Karlnapity is real and canon bc I say so

- both for balance/laziness, every person only competes in one category. also bc it makes Techno that much more Protagonist-y that he does

- I made this AU in like February man idk I’m just vibin

- Fuck I never even included Ranboo huh

[shadowstrangle]

KibaNeji is an interesting concept! Can I hear more about it? What do you like about it? How does it work? Thanks, have a lovely day~

Oh god this is my dream read below the cut

Ok tbh I’m not really sure it works in canon and I genuinely have only read filth for it but my brainrot started when we were talking abt a modern AU in the kankiba server in which Neji is Hinata’s rich cousin and comes over to Team 8’s shared apartment every now and then with Hanabi because she can’t drive

ANYWAYS ill rant about the au more another time if y’all want but what GOT me was uptight Neji x kiba who literally doesn’t give a fuck about anything ever, and Neji pretending he’s not interested in kiba when he clearly IS, while simultaneously being jealous of kiba for being so outwardly comfortable with himself

Like honestly???? The dynamic is hate sex all the time. Neji says Kiba is loud and stupid and not funny but secretly wants to be around him. Kiba says Neji is just an uptight rich kid but likes the company when Neji’s over. Neji’s smart, he’s actually sort of funny, and probably has a 12 step skin care routine that makes him totally hot (bonus)

Anyways this is a mess but TLDR I’m a sucker for banter and the “I hate you but we’re fucking dynamic”

[vagarius]

misukazu 21

(if you saw me fuck up the other one no you didnt)

EDIT I THINK THIS ONE GOT A LITTLE FUCKED UP TOO BUT IT’S... READABLE...

questions from this post, and answers originally written for this thread!!

If you had to change the pairing’s very first meeting, how would you change it?    their canon first meeting is already so good SHDGFLJASHG but if i had to choose a different one that's still within the context of mankai... meeting as kids and losing touch and coming back together completely different at mankai

What song fits your pairing the most?    uhhHHhhHHH i don't have a real answer but i do have a partial playlist for one of my misukazu aus and the only two songs in it are furaregai girl by sayuri and champagne's for celebrating by mayday parade and i feel like that says enough sldhgalsdhfalsh

What is your favorite AU/prompt idea/trope for your pairing?     ALL MISUKAZU AUS ARE GOOD but. i really love any au where their first meeting is in the future and both are still kind of lost but they're Older and it's hard to let themselves fall into the easy trust they find in canon. i just think that'd be neat.

Do you prefer canon ideas or do you have your own headcanons for them?     I'VE SAID THIS MANY TIMES BUT CANON MISUKAZU GIVES OFF MADE FOR EACH OTHER VIBES AND USUALLY I DON'T VIBE WITH THAT BUT THEY REALLY ARE WHAT THE OTHER NEEDS... AND I THINK EVEN IF THEY HAD TO PART THEY'D STILL BE ABLE TO BE BETTER PEOPLE BC THEY HAD MET

Favorite canon moment of them?     THERE ARE SO MANY but the one that immediately comes to mind is misumi carrying drunk kazu to bed (latest bday line) because drunk kazu is so soft and it implies that misumi wanted to wish happy birthday to kazu pretty late... what did he want to give him...

Least favorite canon moment of them?     hmm... there's not really one i can think of??? IM SORRY I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY I LOVE ALL THEIR CANON MOMENTS

Favorite headcanon trope/idea? (Your own or someone else’s)    this is somehow both vague and very specific but i think misukazu gives off this vibe: He's beautiful. I can't tell him. or "Kazu is always beautiful~" Don't call me that, Kazu thinks. I'm not. so... insecurities i guess ????? AJSHAJJD

Favorite aspect of them/their relationship dynamics?     THIS IS GOING TO SOUND SO CHEESY but i love how /real/ they allow themselves to be around each other. misukazu at their best is when one thinks "you're you. and i love that you" and the other knows this. i just. THEY VALIDATE THE OTHER SO MUCH CRIES

Least favorite aspect of them/their relationship dynamics? (Can be headcannon)     this isn't a "least fav" so much as "it makes me sad" but if either of them showed any sign of not being interested anymore the other is more likely to give up then push anything. sort of like "it was bound to happen, so i'll enjoy now until they drop me" or EVEN WORSE they think the other would be better off without them and pushes them away. so yeah the fact i can see one of these happening makes me sad.

If they aren’t a canon pairing, how would you get them together?     they give off "everyone knows we're dating but us" energy but at the same time i feel like they'd acknowledge there's something and just not define it bc a) they don't need to (misumi) or b) they're too nervous to (kazu). in other words i think one day they are holding hands and misumi says "kazu? is this dating?" and kazu holds his breath before asking "do you want it to be?"

If you had to take them and plunk them into another fandom, what fandom would that be? Why?     i think theyd be hilarious in any sports animanga (kazu is manager tho bc noodle arms but maybe they bond when misumi walks him through some of his usual training menu one night - ahem. anyway) BUT ALSO horimiya au...

How hard is it write/draw your pairing? Scale of 1-10.     AJDHAJDHSF I REALLY LOVE THEM SO IT COMES PRETTY EASILY... but sometimes you try to put them in tropes and realize they would Just Not Work Like That. idk where i'm going with this. but yeah. anyway 3 for sankaku.

Is there a pairing that you think rivals them?     in terms of what i ship, i tend to ship kazu and misumi individually with a lot of dif charas AJDHAKD. but in terms of like... in-universe "rival" pairings: kazu side: tsuzukazu (maybe, lbr it would take them 273924 yrs to actually get together), kazu x someone from winter (i... have my reasons but they'd take longer than what this answer entails) misumi side: ... surprisingly none that i can think of ahdjahd

Which character of the pairing do you like more? (Would you ever pair yourself with them?)     you know that tweet that's like "sometimes a ship is just your two favs"? yeah that's misukazu for me. but if i had to choose... misumi AJDHAJHDSF I HONESTLY WASNT THAT INTO YUME UNTIL THESE TWO CAME AROUND (NOT COUNTING 707)... but yeah if they wanted to hold me in their arms i wouldn't oppose

Which character of your pairing would be the one to break up with the other? Why?     OOOOOH BOY well. i think it could be either of them. i don't think they'd break up for lack of love but too much love and wanting the other to be happy and thinking that the only way to give them that is to let them go. so i guess the question is which of them would be more likely to be selfish and hold on. thinking this way, i think misumi would be more likely to break-up, bc kazu has lots of friends who are better than him!! and misumi is more ready to leave if he thinks he needs to than kazu is. now im sad.

Are they relatable as characters or as a pairing?     THE NUMBER OF TIMES I'VE BEEN CALLED KAZU KIN... in all seriousness kazu's struggles with speaking out and (shinobi spoilers) his uncertainty over his future hit real close to home... while i don't relate as much as misumi, his struggles always manage to tear my heart into pieces... ((oversharing alert) i guess what really separates me from misumi is his struggle with his desire to connect with family who has treated him poorly... whereas im more "lol fuck you") tldr i relate to kazu slightly more LOL

Did you once/ever dislike one/both of them?     i never disliked them but i was NOT expecting either of them to shoot up so quickly into my favs list ahdjahdjf. also i started shipping them Immediately After reading summer main story so there's that

On an estimate, how many posts have you made about them?    as of september 28th 2020 i make up 11/78 fics on ao3 in the romantic misukazu tag and 2/12 in the platonic one. i may have brainrot.

What made you decide to ship them?     TBH I FINISHED THE MAIN STORY AND WENT "OH MY GOD... THAT'S MY SHIP" but now that i'm here i continue to ship them because they have the potential to bring out both the best and the worst in each other and i'm all about that

Favorite genre for them? (Angst, fluff, etc.)     angst. i just. angst hurt/comfort all the way. im so sorry babies.

lol you thought there would just be 21 ANYWAY EXTRA 1: how do they spend breaks/vacation?    they'd travel a lot when they're older!! kazunari loves to travel and misumi would follow kazunari anywhere (also, new triangles!!) so they go somewhere new whenever they have the time. however i think eventually one or both of their future careers will take them anywhere and everywhere anyway, so their "ideal vacation" might turn into an evening in, cuddling and catching up (as if they didn't already send play-by-play updates over the phone of whatever they did during the day)

EXTRA 2: first date?     i don't they ever have an explicit first date, but if asked they'll cite the time they had a picnic in the park turned triangle hunt turned accidental dip in the duck pond. at least, kazunari will. misumi just tilts his head and wonders what you mean.

EXTRA 3: gifts?     IM FEELING REALLY CHEESY SO I'M MAKING THIS ABOUT ANNIVERSARY GIFTS they both end up getting each other jewelry (although kazu was really really nervous bc he wasn't sure if misumi would wear it). kazu gets misumi a bracelet (with triangles, of course although misumi only wears it sometimes because he doesn't want to lose it) and misumi gets kazu a pair of triangle earrings "so we can match!" and kazunari combusts at the implications

EXTRA 4: sharing clothes     THEY'RE ACTUALLY AROUND THE SAME SIZE (and tend to wear baggier stuff barring kazu's skinny jeans)... but they have completely different Styles so it's still really obvious when steal each other's stuff ahdjajdkaf. as cute as kazu would look in sumi's sweatshirt i think the much more likely scenario is kazu wrapping misumi in his jackets because this boy nEVER BRINGS HIS ANYWHERE anyway just. accidental shared wardrobe misukazu.

EXTRA 5: lake house au    consider: kazunari living in a house on the shore of a lake for a summer for Art Purposes (and a little bit for Dealing With Life purposes but he's not gonna admit that) and meets his lake neighbor misumi who kazu thinks might be a ghost or spirit for a while but he actually just lives further down the lake and misumi unknowingly helps kazu with his Life Issues and maybe they fall in love

[starrysamu]

miss remy I must ask,, how did you plan for next time? did you intend for it to be 16 chapters at the start? i am Scared™️ of writing series I say as I plan out a seijoh brainrot au 🌊

HHH okay ummm to be honest i had like four chapters written out before i started posting it? and then actually after i posted the fourth chapter i took a break from posting it and then wrote the WHOLE THING. i had originally accounted for 15 chapters, but then i wanted to make it 10 bc i wanted to get it over with, and then i realized 10 was not going to be enough ..... 15 wasn’t even enough - 

but also like . as i updated every week, i found a different direction to take it in, so i usually ended up scrapping what i already had and then just rewriting it the night when i’d post. it was really counterintuitive but i can’t lie and say that i miss the Old Version of what i had for it 

so like? tldr - i didn’t really plan for it. i normally don’t plan my fics out either (which i should) but i kinda just write for it and see if i like it. that would be a thing i would’ve done differently though - i would’ve done some more planning and put some more thought into outlining it more fully tbh! and if i had done that, i would’ve outlined each scene within each chapter to make sure i don’t have any plot holes and once i’ve got each scene outlined, then i’d probably write it, see if i like it, and if i don’t, then i’d mess around with it some more. 

i think u just gotta find out what works for u! it’s scary but u won’t know if u don’t try :3 and people are really understanding and patient and supportive when it comes to updates, so don’t feel pressured by any of that! i had a lot of fun with it because i could expand on the characters and their growth - it was a lot more fulfilling to me than oneshots are. you could also try writing a long one shot and then splitting that into a few parts! still counts as a series :3 

good luck miss yuki! i’m rootin for ya <3 

[voidsaber]

swanto - downfall (nightclub)??? ;👀👀👀

ALRIGHT SO. (i’m grinning just thinking about this stupid au). This all started like nearly 2 years ago when my coworker invited me to go to a club with them. I’d never been to a club before (not my scene and with experience still isn’t). So I go home at a reasonable morning hour but I can’t get to sleep cause on the way back my brain is full of Eli/Cygni brainrot with the silliest idea that basically. what if Eli was undercover in a nightclub (because fanfic plot reasons). And Cygni was there. and then they flirt and hook up. and that was meant to be it. that was the plot. i just wanted random cute one-shot swantos.

and then my brain made angst happen by giving thrawn a bigger role and slapping in some one-sided thranto. so then the fic kept going and we have thrawn meeting eli in the hotel the next morning and being Concerned but also jealous and hurt. and so thrawn confesses he’s got feelings for Eli but eli basically has none of it cause he’s kinda fed up with the manipulation schtick. in this au Pryce and Thrawn never meet and thus never help one another and so eli is stuck as an ensign and we get a lot of thranto angst and possibly some very vindictive space cowboy. it was initally titled “nightclub au” for ages before I gave it the temp. name of “downfall”. I have a playlist for this au also. i just checked and there are 18k words i don’t remember writing all of :’) it’s really fun writing eli/cygni interactions with cygni being a lil snarky and eli getting riled up but also getting snarky right back at him. and also being soft n cute. and also thrawn just pining really hard. and also eli’s frustration at a stagnated career path.

uhhh select snippets under the cut?

- - -

Cygni shrugged. "Spice, Dust, people... not my modus operandi."

"And I'm to believe you?"

"I told you - I'm in no position to lie. Besides, why would I? Is it that difficult to believe I'm not keen on those who profit off of the stuff? I've seen what it does to people. And I'm just me tonight."

"Just 'you'?" A flat statement more than a question. He didn't understand Cygni's words.

"Yes." The damn smirk was equal parts infuriating and attractive and infuriatingly attractive. Clearly there was a punchline he wasn't getting. Whatever. Eli pushed it aside, not caring for games. He cleared his throat.

"So," Eli ventured. "Whatever you're doing, it's not some kind of play. Or trap."

"Of course not. How would I even know you were to be here tonight?" Cygni smiled wryly. "You think if I knew I would show up, considering our previous encounter?"

"No. I don't think you'd be that bold. Or that stupid."

Cygni snorted from across the table. "Well, I'm glad you think so, at least. I'd say we're getting along just fine, wouldn't you?"

-

(at the hotel)

He watched as Cygni shuffled backwards to sit cross-legged on the wide bed. He followed suit and made himself comfortable facing him. The way he leant back and propped himself on his hands was very appealing. Eli let his gaze wander, down along the scrunched creases of his shirt at the shoulder, his arms, a little more muscular than he'd first thought, pale scars catching on his dark skin that gave Eli a twinge of cold uneasy recognition, of remembrance, and to those solid hands that had felt so good on his scalp. He dropped lower down to the drape of his shirt - really if he'd wanted to blend in at the venue he could have worn something a little more... exciting - past the strained fabric of his trousers, nicely fitting, quite tight, actually, and a strange blue-green colour that Eli wasn't sure blended well whatsoever with the pale shirt or dark skin but really he was just focussed on the want for their absence; and then with rising heat down elsewhere, to Cygni's feet. Eli suddenly felt very strange for wearing his shoes whilst on the bed. He gulped, getting back to the matter at hand - that being the growing desire inside of him for the man before him. He raked his eyes back up to Cygni's wry grin, though not entirely free of tension.

He must've had a strange expression on his face because Cygni spoke up in a jovial tone. "Not going to try and weasel some information out of me are you, Vanto?"

Eli huffed quietly, tension lifting. "As if you'd fall for that. And it's Eli," he said, and leant forward to kiss him again. "You can call me Eli."

-

(thrawn confronting eli the morning after. which is very rude of him)

"You are well aware it is against protocol--"

"I know, sir," Eli muttered, pained.

"--and more so it was unwise. There is conduct to follow, Ensign."

Eli flinched. He knew better than to try answering that.

"However, I do not expect any individual to solely rid themselves of any desires they have. As you said, the path of duty can oft impede or interrupt chances at proper rest or indeed.. indulgence. What I wish to understand is that it seems there are those on the Thunder Wasp who would respond positively from such an advance from yourself, and despite regulations I see no reason why you could not engage in sexual activity with those you wish to, whoever they may be,//such colleagues albeit within appropriate timeframes, provided it does not impact your work. Yet you have chosen to ignore this in favour of a different party. I do, of course, notice these things."

Gods what the fucking weirdest thing Thrawn was saying.

"Oh yeah," Eli replied sarcastically, unable to help it now. "I'm sure the Empire’s finest are dying to get a shot at screwing a Wild Space hick who barely made the cut at the Royal Academy and is getting such special treatment – all for being bilingual. Care to name a few?”

"I myself, am one such example."

"What."

-

(after thrawn and eli’s fallout)

Oh right - Thrawn was talking to him. Of course he was. And didn't seem to care that Eli wasn't listening. It's not like he wouldn't notice. He just expected Eli to pay attention to him. Like usual, he expected Eli to give him every waking moment. No time to think for himself, about himself, lest it lead to foolishness.

"Sir?" Eli said bitterly. All of this clamouring in his head was driving him mad. He felt sick. He couldn't remember half of what he'd been driving round and round in his skull, and from the rest of it he couldn't tell if it was his own spiteful hyperbole or if it was truthful. He didn't know which was worse.

A small flicker of something crossed Thrawn's impeccable features. Eli didn't know and didn't care what. He supposed he should. He paid attention. "I was suggesting, Ensign, that you be taken as ill. I have noticed your demeanour becoming--" he paused. muttered something, or maybe just mouthed it. Eli was frowning at him, hardly trying to stop himself, and could see the word was Sy Bisti. Still on translation duty after all these years. Only useful because it wasn't worth the hour programming a droid. Eli's existence could be quantified in a measly number of credits in that regard. And yet he hadn't even bothered to say the word, to ask Eli for that translation. Was he trying to be nice, or polite? What a first. Or maybe he wasn't even worth that anymore.

-

tldr: what if... we hooked up in a nightclub while i was undercover on a mission... and the encounter really gets to some hidden emotional part of me for reasons unknown... and then it turned out my commanding officer has been madly in love with me the whole time but my head’s too busy with whatever spell you put on me when we had sex that one time to even look his way... haha jk.... unless..?