#verse: where the wild things grow

[formorethananame]

powerful enough to drown, soft enough to cleanse.

[witchnordemon]

“No! My only weakness! Dying!” @mellowsmuses (King Clawthorne to Collector!)

@mellowsmuses

Collector held the makeshift sword, fashioned together out of cardboard paper towel rolls, in his left hand, the other end of it currently between King's upper chest and arm - as though the little Titan had been stabbed, and they looked down at him as he spoke.

❝ It is no use, beast, for I have caught you now, fair and square. ❞ They croak out in reply, voice slightly cracking from having to actively pitch it lower for their role in this game. They reach up with their free hand, tilting the paper mache crown atop their head to cast a dramatic shadow across their face - a move they had seen once while watching a human "anna-may" show, and smirked. ❝ It is with your puny weakness of death - this great triumph, that I can announce that my kingdom... has won. ❞

With that final sentence, he broke into a fit of giggles, dropping the cardboard sword and collapsing next to King in a heap, his paper crown toppling off his head. Once he had finally stopped laughing enough to compose himself, he rolled onto his back and grinned over at King.

❝ Ahh, witches vs. demons is always a fun game. So, do you wanna play again, except this time you win? Oh! Or do you wanna do somethin' else? ❞

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is:  Sidekick_Hero! @sidekick-hero has 82 works on AO3 in the Stranger Things fandom and 80 of them are in the Steddie tag!

@steddieas-shegoes recommends the following works by Sidekick_Hero:

I wore his jacket for the longest time

Suitcase of Memories

to the rhythm of eternity

Will you cleanse me with pleasure?

Sandy is an incredible writer and always manages to paint beautiful scenes regardless of rating or situation. She was one of the first authors I found in the fandom who really captured so many things about Steve and Eddie that I love. She continues to inspire me constantly! -- @steddieas-shegoes

Below the cut, @sidekick-hero answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

Great question! I'd been out of fandom and on a writing hiatus since 2016, the spark had just left me. Until early 2023, when I wanted to give Tumblr and fandom another try, but nothing really clicked until late summer when this wild-haired, bambi-eyed guy started popping up on my dash more and more. I fell in love with Eddie first, looked him up, and found that people were shipping him with this Steve character. I've never seen Stranger Things. I went to AO3 looking for some fic and the rest, as they say, is history. I fell in love with this ship the way you fall asleep, slowly, imperceptibly, and then all at once. I think what drew me in is these two characters who are so different from each other on the outside that you'd never think they'd work, but the closer you look, the more you can see how well they would fit, how good they could be for each other, bringing out the best in each other.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

Wow, so many. I actually love the range of tropes this fandom offers. I'm a big fan of modern aus, especially ones where one or both are famous. If it's canon-based, I'm a sucker for Kas!Eddie. In general, I love it when one or both are creatures of any kind. I also love friends with benefits fics because they are idiots. Enemies to Lovers and Fake Dating are also high on my list. Last but not least: Porn with feelings and hurt/comfort.

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

That's tough. I enjoy writing all kinds of smutty tropes as one-shots. When there's more plot going on, I really enjoy the "exes to friends to lovers" trope, just because as someone in their 30s, I look back on past relationships and hookups and realize what went wrong and how it could be different today, and I think that's something I can relate to a lot when I'm writing it for Steddie. I also love writing about second chances in general.

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

It’s impossible to pick just one, sorry. I give you three with the disclaimer that there are so many more I could - and probably would - have picked on a different day. But I wanted to share some older ones in the spirit of what this blog is all about. the most remarkable thing about you standing in the doorway is that it’s you by greatunironic Keep it Steady, Eddie by outofmygourd Love blooms, love hurts, love prevails by corrodedbisexual (mishabawlins)

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

Yes! I definitely want to explore some fantasy/creature fics (more outside of a pwp I wrote with Lake Creature Eddie), I already have the idea for Werewolf!Steve, and I really want to try my hand at Vampire!Eddie. I'm also super excited to finally get to work on a fake-dating trope fic for the summer exchange, I've been dying to do that. Last but not least, I really want to try writing an omega!verse at some point, I just don't have an idea yet.

What is your writing process like?

Pretty straightforward, I guess? It never really feels like a process, to be honest. I have an idea and I let it grow in my head (daydreaming, my beloved) until it has grown enough to become an actual fic, and then I sit down and write it out chronologically. Before I start writing, I need to know a few things about the story. I don't usually work with outlines or anything like that, but in my head I know where it starts, what the emotional beats and major plot points are, and how I want it to end. The rest I let unfold as I write. That's why I'm not the fastest writer (plus the whole not-native-English thing). Often the story tells me where it wants to go, so as long as I have the cornerstones, I let it flow.

Do you have any writing quirks?

Not sure if these are quirks, but my sentences tend to be very wordy. My dear friend @yournowheregirl used to comment on my fics when she beta-read them, "Another Sandy sentence. Make it multiple sentences." Also, I only write in present tense, even though I know most people prefer past tense, but it's too hard for me. Other than that, I can't have too many WIPs, I have to finish one story before I can start another.

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

Post when I'm done writing, for sure. I hate waiting, I have the patience of a toddler.

Which fic are you most proud of?

I wore his jacket for the longest time, no question.  It's still so precious to me, especially because I got to write it with my platonic writing soulmate @legitcookie, but also because I got to really explore these characters and their growth in this story. It has so much of me in it and I'm really proud of how it turned out.

How did you get the idea for I wore his jacket for the longest time?

Actually, it wasn't all me. I just had this idea of them being kind of friends with benefits, but Eddie wants more than Steve is willing to give him, so they hook up one last time before Eddie sends Steve away for good. That was the original idea that inspired the prequel "we pass the ghosts that haunt us later". The idea for that actually came from a song, "we can never be friends" by mgk. Jen (legitcookie) would not accept the ambiguous (sad) ending, so she demanded that we fix it. So we decided to find a way to let them both grow as people apart and then rebuild their friendship, because only then would they have a real foundation for their second chance.

When writing I wore his jacket for the longest time, what was something you didn’t expect?

How much fun it would be to develop those OC side-characters, especially Mrs. Horowitz but also fucking Tom or even Fritz. It was also the very first time I collaborated with someone on a fic and I was a bit apprehensive if this would work out so I was surprised when I discovered how much I love writing with someone else.

What inspired to the rhythm of eternity?

My love for London, really. I am madly in love with this city and have explored it a lot, so I wanted to use my experiences in a fic. And when @tboygareth asked for a long distance relationship fic for our server holiday exchange, I knew this was my chance. Their meeting as well as the ending is heavily based on my own experiences.

What was your favorite part to write from Suitcase of Memories?

The dreams! They were so much fun to explore because there's a certain mood I wanted to set with them, that dreamy feeling mixed with events from another time period. Their first date and especially their first kiss is a close second, though, because the swing set scene is something I've been thinking about since I saw 13 going on 30 as a teenager.

How do/did you feel writing Suitcase of Memories?

To be totally honest, a bit stressed 😀 It was my first big bang and I was so glad to have Jen by my side, but then real life happened and I realized it's hard to write on deadline. BUT I still love this fic. Especially the theme of love as a choice, even if some cosmic interference gives you a second chance, you still have to WANT it, you still have to work for it and choose it, over and over again. I feel like we nailed that pretty well and I'm proud of us and this story.

What was the most difficult part of writing Will you cleanse me with pleasure??

The emotional setup, because it was a gift for Ger (@steves-strapcollection) and he wanted them to be disgustingly in love, but I also needed Eddie's condition to be something he kept from Steve at first for fear of losing him. Besides that, the logistics, really. So many tentacles, man. So many.

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

Okay, some very, very self-indulgent scenes I wrote are for my Runner!Steve verse. I am a passionate runner, and it was so much fun to write that love for Steve and to geek out about it in my writing. Another scene I'm very fond of is from my very first ST fic, "I'm tired of asking to settle the debt," and it's a scene where they're both kids and meeting for the first time, it's winter, and Eddie is doing an impression of a dragon with his breath.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

Well, by the time this comes out, I will have posted my reverse big bang fic "Emotional Motion Sickness" with art by the amazing @arimakes. There's also the summer exchange, in which I was lucky enough to claim my dear friend @starryeyedjanai's prompt, and the steddie big bang 2024. I'm also finishing the last chapter of "hold me close (I'm shaking apart)" and hope to post it soon. 

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

Yes, I want to thank everyone for making this project possible! This fandom has grown so much and there is so much amazing fic that easily gets buried under all the content, so having this project to give the writers of this fandom some visibility and love is precious to me. Thank you, really 💜🙏 Also, all my love to every single writer out there - you make my life and the lives of so many better by sharing your gift with us.

Thank you to our author,  Sidekick_Hero, and our nominator,  @steddieas-shegoes on tumblr! See more of Sidekick_Hero's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[iridescentscarecrow]

the yoshida inside cover is so interesting to me because so far i've found that all the part two inside covers so far lean very hard into the texture of the city to create this atmosphere of claustrophobia and obvious tension.

it's a lead in from the chapter 98 scene with asa & the class president looking up at the buildings spanning the sky, the palpable lack of nature/plant/greens or any sort of reprise from the grittiness of the city & commenting on how corrupt the city is.

which is why the way the city & the lack of it manifests in the part 2 inside covers reveals so much about each character's reaction to this. i don't think i got at the meat of this though when i initially considered it – the way greenery then sets itself against the city in various instances. i'd got an anon about plant symbolism in part 2 a while back which set me off thinking about it. unfortunately, i am in no way well versed in plant symbolism intricacies so this discussion will only pertain to the way this works re: the narrative.

and the yoshida cover [the first cover to not feature the city at all, the first cover to be set within the wildness of the forest] is so meaningful when it comes this.

ASA & YUKO: UNOBSCURED CITY

all the covers very purposefully do not show the eyes of the characters in question. fujimoto's use of this detail in panels before [the bomb devil arc, the yoshida syringe scene] can be considered to reveal the interiority/obscured thoughts of which jarr with their actions.

here in asa's case the city shadows her. her eyes are bled out of focus, almost by its corrupted grit. yuko, though is different. she's turned her back to us, her eyes can concievably visibly exist in frame but she's looking away/at the city: assigning it its values & ultimately getting swallowed up by it in her quest for justice.

asa dominates the frame & her face is featureless / yuko's figure in contrast is small & diminutive when set against CITY.

i think specifically a lot about the asayuko encounters & the potted plants in their wake. they're set in moments that are potently releases of tension [an anti claustrophobia] which stems directly from them resolving their internal contradictions.

in comparison the leadup to the "don't come to school tomorrow" scene (chapter 105) is full of tension & also plantless: there is no shade, no intersperse. they're sitting in the glaring sun, their conversation occasionally cutting away to CITY attributes: telephone wires/buildings. later, yuko lights a bonfire. fire burns away plants and the fire devil is also the presence that burns down denji's house. the same house with the potted plants nayuta & denji grow.

ASA & KIGA: SHADOWED [] & FEATURELESS SELF

the movement of shade here is genuinely so impactful when considered alongside asa & kiga's covers. for kiga the classroom itself is dim. outside, the sky's light peels back the room's darkness and renders kiga within it.

kiga's setting within the classroom is i think extremely important. during the sisters' public safety breach, kiga makes asa & her keep their school uniforms on. she's never appeared outside it, in fact. she's so settled within this particular role that for her the grittiness of the city is instead manifested by the classroom. more on this later but:

what strikes me is the featurelessness to both of them. they're both horsemen & their faces are bled of indicators – the ringed eyes & the scars that portray their status. you are left with their hollow schoolgirl bodies. it's a very specific flavour of contextualisation, one that offsets the decontextualisation that is [removing families|ripping off uniform/clothes|turning the hybrids into weapons]. asa's power functions through context, through a thing's history, through the guilt of its weaponisation. kiga's appearances always occur at moments where asa is struggling with context (the fight with yuko & her mother's uniform, the aquarium date, her feeling things for the CSM).

KIGA & MIRI: OBSCURED CITY

> the grittiness of the city is instead manifested by the classroom for kiga.

but the miri cover is not that. its shielding (through the potted plants) works against the CITY so much to that the tension to it is almost invisible. the potted plants here are in a way indicative of miri's self illusion of agency and it's something i have a lot of fun comparing to miri's actual cover, with the lucky clovers & that grin on his face as he holds onto the beautiful butterfly of a sword that he materially is.

the nature of the CITY in these two covers is also something to be commented on: for kiga, as i said – the city is miniscule (the sky dominates). miri's presence in his frame is more visible yet simultaneously the city threatens all the background & the angle both emphasises his smallness & enlarges him.

i do find it interesting how miri's eyes are specifically cut out frame. they're visible: he has his own interiority occuring outside this narrative, his own story of himself, but it is inconsequential to the pawn that he is. yuko's eyes while also obscured by framing are within frame. her motivations are essential to the narrative she operates within.

MIRI & YOSHIDA: THE PLANTS

while the [potted] plants grant a reprise from the claustrophobia for miri, the forestry punctuates yoshida's inside cover's tension.

i've already talked about yoshida as a framer for part 2 in an earlier thread of mine (chapter 156, if i'm not wrong) but bringing this into light next to how yoshida excludes himself from the city is interesting. this exclusion is what brings him claustrophobic tension, this abnormality. he is not participating in the city.

i think a lot that surrounds yoshida's character right now is speculation but balancing this with the syringe/head pat scene & the theater scene does bring out a picture of very potent pain (self enacted) when it comes to his own circumstance. the plants around him are wild, undomesticated & unlabelled (his existence as the framer) – in sharp contrast to the potted things grown within cities as hope.

KIGA & YOSHIDA: STANCES

kiga & yoshida's postures mirror each other. they're both faced down, towards the ground, arms held limply at their side. they're both stagesetters: yoshida framing for us the narrative with his two choices, parasocial relationships dialogue / kiga pouring her hunger into the world of part 2 & directing asa's weaponisation.

they're both in areas that are NOT city & CITY is not what inspires their respective tensions. kiga is working within the classroom, education – feeding into people what hunger is and what it means and teaching them what to want. yoshida dons the school uniform to adopt his role before reverting to the public safety suit!

their conversation too, set into perspective for us the overarching plot of part two.

Afterword:

there's so much to tease out from these covers and specifically the urban and urban lifeforms presented to us in part two. there definitely can be analogies drawn to part one's city mouse/country mouse metaphor (*) but i also think that the way autonomy is written at this stage of the story makes this particular play of tension a far more nuanced iteration of (*) and it's one i'm particularly interested in seeing explored in future covers.

thank you for reading!

[tojiscrack]

is it weird that i wish y/n existed in the actual jjk verse. like her personality fits so well with almost every single character, and the chemistry between megumi and y/n is THE BEST ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

her personality is so real and unlike any other reader i’ve come across in other reader x [insert character] fics. the chemistry between her and other characters doesn’t feel forced, if you understand what i mean? i thoroughly enjoy reading EVERY scene because of that! (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

you said to look out for foreshadowing which is what i have been trying to do but perhaps i’m being a little silly looking way too early, considering other chapters have not been released yet. but one thing i have noticed is that megumi only really has shown CLEAR signs of liking her more than just a friend when he is about to leave her (not the scene where he’s silently fighting over sitting next to her at yuji’s place because that could arguably be seen as platonic too despite me seeing it as him liking her) - for example; when he’s going on vacation without her. now i understand that this is only one example but i have a feeling that this may become a reoccurring theme - what was it, absence makes the heart grow fonder? i have a feeling he’ll only ever understand his feelings for her when he is away from her. and given the angst hashtag, it wouldn’t exactly be surprising if for any reason they moved away from each other, whether figuratively or physically.

i could be completely wrong though and if that’s the case, then this is embarrassing ( ᵒ̴̶̷᷄◡̶͂ᵒ̴̶̷᷅ )و

but regardless, i’m so happy i stumbled across this fic. seriously, the way u write is awesome and i can only wish to be as good as you when it comes to writing! the dialogue, the chemistry between the characters is so cute and feels like a coming of age sitcom. i love it i love it i love it and i love you!! (๑˃́ꇴ˂̀๑)

please keep up the good work, soldier. i salut you for your hard work keeping us all sane after gege shattered our souls (stay alive, don’t let him find you) ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧

liar, liar masterlist here

oh. my. GOSH. a long message? AJSJWKSJWJSJ STOPPP I’M SO EXCITED TO ANSWER THIS

it is not weird at ALL. i created this y/n with the sole thought that there should be a character as wild as her (i love goofy characters sm you have no idea). like my fav character from aot? connie. fav from jjk? gojo. fav from haikyuu? tanaka and hinata. fav from death note? L (don’t lie, that man was funny af).

read that entire sentence about her chemistry with megumi and the relationship she has with the other characters not being forced with a FAT smile on my face 🙂‍↕️ an author knows they’ve won once someone points this out using their own free will. thank you for that 😭💞

the second i saw the word ‘foreshadowing’ in ur message, JAISJWISJWJSJ. YES, YOU HAVE A PREDICTION? TELL ME MORE (i feel like a mastermind rn muahahahaha) 😋 you are nawt silly for looking for it earlier. i’ve dropped so many hints and no one’s picked it apart yet (surprisingly). some are more obvious than others, but let me tell you now, once you’ve noticed it, you’re gonna smack ur forehead and think ‘why didn’t i see this before?’.

i LOVE how you’re playing devil’s advocate for yourself (you’re so smart omg). like you’ve mentioned how the only in-your-face type of thing we’ve seen so far is the airport scene (i mean, if gojo pointing it out wasn’t so obvious, dk what is, really, lolol). and i also like how you’ve made it so that the arguing in yuji’s room can be easily seen as platonic despite what you might think (we need smart people like you so pls don’t die tyvm).

and OOH, IDK WHAT TO TELL YOU WITHOUT SPOILING IT. distance makes the heart grow fonder… yeah, can’t reveal whether this trope is for them or not. i can, however, confuse you a little and say that you’re half right. maybe, like, forty five percent right if i have to slap a number on it. yeah. but there is something that occurs later on (you guessed it, with the angst hashtag) that makes me want to say that you’re actually fifty five percent right. idk, you’ll see what i mean once the main story’s out 😭

this would NOT be embarrassing for you if you’re wrong, let me tell you that much. this fic’s been out since the end of december (beginning of january?) and no one’s come to a prediction as well thought out as yours. for that, i will NOT forget you when i write out the half-correct prediction of yours in the coming chapters.

i’m so happy you stumbled across my fic too! 😭 i’m having sm fun writing this out and laughing to myself (not at you babe, just as the evil mastermind that i am). i’ll be responsible for your complaints once the angst chapters get out (plural because there’s a LOT of them planned). tysm for ur kind message, i’m so flattered my writing pleases you 😭 dialogue is hard to write, trying to match it with the characters ofc, so i appreciate your support on that 💘

girl, gege will never find me. after what he did to my satoru, i will find him. don’t get it twisted.

on the contrary, i’m so upset you wrote all of this anonymously but i respect it, there might be a gazillion reasons why you’d like to remain anonymous. so if you ever send a message again, just lmk it’s you. call yourself the ‘big brain anon’ (😤) because you’re so smart and ily and don’t be humble about it, you are SO smart <3

[itsnotmourn]

SONG RAMBLES | animal skin (moloch)

───── I CAN SEE IT IN THEIR EYES ...

i have always associated this song with Moloch the most !!!!!!!

there’s a common phrase in media, a wolf in sheep’s clothing, where it's usually depicted as a wolf wearing a sheep’s coat or body. so yknow, i figured that could technically apply for humans as well. like Moloch wearing the bodies of Dexter and Patty (and others but shh).

the song itself is probably about a person, despite their insecurities, masking themselves as something greater and (perhaps growing into one through an animalistic manner).

but here, i want to use the lyrics in the literal sense and how it connects with the lore.

───── THEY'RE COMING FOR YOU, HONEY !!

You've gone total primitive Instinct just the will to live Never been there, never been there But I'll go, I'll go, I'll go

This verse details about Moloch's feelings between The Stars and Unwanted Guest; the demon wants to get OUT but he is stuck in that dang ouija board by two little kids. He was patient but patience can have a limit. He's growing desperate to leave, to the point of making his presence known in Skid's house.

I know where you're vulnerable Wild things can't get comfortable Quiver and shake, quiver and shake Oh no, oh no, oh no

In the second verse, Moloch in the Hollow Sorrow episode is shown to at least have some ability to read through the memories and/or feelings of the person he ate and possessed (probably...??? I don't remember seeing it being exactly confirmed but regardless, he is a good manipulator). He gets into the soft parts of the heart and pull its strings.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work on Father Gregor but it's effective either way.

I can see it in their eyes They're coming for you, honey Painted faces, sharpened knives Do you think it's funny? If you dress it up, you'll have to break it in But you never look better then when you wear your animal skin

In both times Moloch possessed a person, he encounters another being. However, as Dexter, he was the hunter and as Patty, he was a hunter turning into the hunted (...or well,.. kinda ???? my point is: he was no longer the apex predator in that situation LMAO).

But for some reason, he still tries to possess children (Roy, and then Skid and Pump). He's getting cornered now, and he was until the end.

-

uhhh yeah that's my rambles!!! not so much analytical (i think i may dive into it for songs about skidad) but as long as it makes sense...

of course, i'm not claiming that this song is Moloch, just that i associate Moloch with this song a LOT! i'll be back.... ty for reading !! :D

[evolutionsvoid]

There is so much beauty in nature, it would be impossible to catalogue it all. I mean, the Rainbow Mountains alone give you as much color as you could possible handle. But even the more mundane and simple biomes have their gorgeous views and wonderful charm to them. Even the Volcanic Deserts that I so detest are an incredible sight to behold. But one must remember to admire nature with respect and caution, as there is always a bit of danger. While I compare it to art, do not think to treat it like a painting that you can gawk at from up close. And for the love of everything, do not think cute wild animals are cuddly little toys that will tolerate being treated like a pet. When you see something beautiful when on a hike or exploring, appreciate it, enjoy it, and be sure to learn something from it. Know what it is you are looking at, so that you may treat it with the proper respect it deserves. Many animals stick to simple coloration and patterns so that they may blend in with their homes and not attract the attention of predators. So when you see a beast so bold and brilliant, that it is impossible to miss, ask yourself: why is this animal not afraid of being seen?

Bright colors and patterns typically work as a warning sign to those who would try to eat them, promising the foul taste of poison to any fool who tries. But in some cases, some beasts are bold and vibrant because they have nothing to fear. The Cyoxik is a combination of both. Just from its size and appearance you should see why! The Cyoxik is a True Dragon, and a relative to the Fuldruk and Sulfrik. It shares the same armored serpentine body, and bizarre head that rejected eyes for a large melon-like sensory organ. Their jaws long and thin, and tails ending in nasty pincers. The Cyoxik, however, has the difference of being incredibly colorful and incredibly pointy! Its purple plated body is bristling with sharp, barbed blades, all in a gorgeous hue of pink. You would think it is about to attend a festival with such colors! But like I said before, sometimes those vibrant shades are a warning sign. Against what? Well, in the case of the Cyoxik: everything.

If you know anything about its relatives, then you know that the Cyoxik is a species that should not be trifled with. Honestly, it is a species you don't want to be within a mile of. These True Dragons are powerful, dangerous, fast and worst of all: smart. Cyoxik are very cunning, and are well versed in the ways to hunt prey and "amuse" itself. The most obvious weapon in its arsenal are the countless blades on its body, which are wicked sharp! Stories claim that these serpents can carve paths through a forest just by slithering through them. They slice and stab, making any whip of its tail or writhe of its body dangerous to those close by. When prey is cornered, they love to coil them and constrict, impaling them upon dozens of razor spines. Their tail pincer can grab tight and drag victims closer, while that snapping snout can certainly do some damage! But it is inside that maw where its true power lies...

Cyoxik have a breath weapon, billowing out from their mouth in misty colorless clouds. You may only see it for a brief second when it is unleashed, a rushing spray from its throat before it "vanishes" into the air. But the big thing is that you will smell it, and when you do, that is a sign to hold your breath and RUN. Their breath smells of almonds, which is not unpleasant, but being exposed to these invisible clouds makes the word "unpleasant" an understatement. This breath weapon is a toxic gas that hangs in the air, poisoning those who remain in the cloud. Brief whiffs of it leads to headaches and dizziness, and it only gets worse the longer you are exposed. The body gets weak, your mind grows confused and disoriented, vomiting is likely and you will find it hard to breathe. Long enough exposure at high levels eventually leads to passing out, where the poison will finish you off. It appears that the heart goes into arrest, and then it is over. Often your fading life is spectated by the Cyoxik, clicking its pincers and clacking its jaws in delight.

The Cyoxik is a cruel creature, mainly because it is smart enough to grow bored. Thus, it needs to entertain itself and find stimulation in its environment. Sadly, it appears that prey are their toys and they get a real kick out of playing with them rough. Their gas is used in low doses intentionally at times to make prey confused and clumsy, making them perfect targets for poking, prodding and playing. Often after they have gassed an area for a hunt, they will circle their bodies around afflicted victims and watch as these poisoned stumbling creatures desperately try to leave this arena of spikes. These attempts are useless, often resulting in more injury as they fumble around these horrid spines. The Cyoxik will close its coils more and more, until finally the blades meet flesh. It should be noted that due to its frequent use of toxic gas, a residue will build up on its body and spines, making those spikes also poisonous. So that is another thing to worry about!

These dragons use ambush and gas to drop their prey, eating what they can then dragging what is left to their lairs. They set up home in caves and rocky shelters, even using their pointed beak to dig out more space. They like to structure their lairs in ways that trap pockets of poison gas, thus creating a deadly aura for intruders. Sometimes, they even leave bits of meat out that have been soaked in their toxins, so foolish scavengers may eat them and perish. Their lairs and hunting grounds can be identified by large amounts of scratch marks left in trunks and stone. These scars can have flecks of pink to them and a hint of almond to their smell. Some trees or pillars of rock will be covered by spirals of cuts and gouges, which come from the dragon coiling around them. These are territory markers, and many know well enough to keep out!

The Cyoxik live in forests and mountainous regions, using the cover of vegetation to hunt and the stony peaks as a source of lairs. Folks who live in these areas are sure to steer far away from the nest of a Cyoxik, though these creatures don't always do the same. These dragons know that villages can carry lots of food, and that panicking villagers can be a whole lot of fun. Thus, if a Cyoxik is spotted nearby, folks know that it will inevitably have to be slain before it starts causing a whole lot of carnage. However, you can easily see that this is not a quick little hunt.

They are fast, they are toxic and they know how to use all of it. Their serpentine bodies make them hard to hit and they can easily outmaneuver foes. Belching poison gas requires magic or special masks to keep one safe, but unfortunately, that doesn't guarantee safety. Their many spikes have a poison coating, meaning enough scratches can lead to death. And if the gas gets in high enough concentration, the Cyoxik will happily reveal the second trick to its weapon: it's volatile. Yep, their gas can explode. A single spark can ignite it and blast everyone caught inside to pieces. The dragon, however, can usually survive such an explosion, thanks to heavy armor and a protective covering for its sensitive melon. So if an enemy refuses to fall to its poison, then its horrid pincer will strike itself like flint and steel to set off a chain reaction to blast them to bits.

Thankfully, their weaponry provides a few weaknesses. Their spiny bodies are fond of coiling and cutting into their surroundings, so hunters may cover trees and barricades with sticky sap or glue. When they slither over it or around it, they may be slowed or stuck. Some folk have made dummies of meat and glue to be tossed into their coils so that when they constrict their "prey" they are instead held fast. Their fondness for stony homes means that proper use of explosions and traps can lead to boulders falling upon them to crush or pin. Their love of gas and mocking foes can allow one to "play dead" or pretend to succumb to its effects, allowing the cruel beast to come closer for an easy strike. And while their volatile gas is not often a danger to them, their throat sac full of it can be a lethal target for a fiery bolt or heated lance. The membrane is thick and tough, so it isn't easy to pierce, but if you can stab it with something on fire, the resulting blast will decapitate the beast. Just don't be too close yourself!

Though these creatures are a terror, they do still inspireslike any good dragon. They are a symbol of lethal beauty, and their hardened hide is valuable for incredible armor and ornamentation. Some folk claim that it makes the ultimate beast hunting armor, as its numerous spikes and poisonous nature allows one to ward off attacks and mortally wound predators who pounce or coil when it comes to prey. However, some people whine about the colors and claim it is far too flamboyant for any "real" hunter. These are opinions and wrong ones at that. The venoness absolutely adore these beasts, due to their colors natural armor and built in poison. Any dryad who can get their hands on Cyoxik materials to craft a blight vessel or armor will be the envy of all poison users. Assassin blades and weapons of ill intent are carved from their spines, with deadly toxin already applied and ready to kill! If you can kill one, then you can make quite a lot of money from it! Just good luck not dying while doing it!

It should be noted that due to its appearance, colors and "flowery" head organ, that some folk have dubbed it the Rose Dragon, or the Dragon of Rose's Thorn. I have even heard Thorn Dragon be bandied about. Neat names, but all completely forget the fact that roses don't have thorns! They have prickles! Some folk have even factored in the heart-shaped pincer and call these beasts "The Dragons of Toxic Love." That one...that one is pretty annoying. I don't have issues with it on a science or classification level, I just find it obnoxious. Ever read a bunch of terrible poems whinging about the pains and betrayals of love? Its "deadly poison" and "cruel barbs." Calling this dragon that name is the epitome of these awful artsy bellyaches, and I can't stand it! The name also opens people up to telling the worst jokes or making annoying comments about their own failed love lives. Ugh...I bet Eucella would like that rubbish poetry...

Chlora Myron

Dryad Natural Historian

[msfcatlover]

The Public Personas I think each Wayne Kid would get in the Reverse Robins verse

Duke: The easy-going, down-to-earth, reasonable one. Or, perhaps more accurately, the straightman to Bruce’s comedian. Duke’s fond exasperation & surprisingly grown-up attitude as a child made for an excellent counter to Brucie’s bombastic antics, and had plenty of people joking that Duke was the actual parent between the two of them. Seeing the two of them at work is seeing a decade-perfected comedy tag-team in action, and it is a beautiful thing. As Duke grew up, his reputation shifted to being the Chillest Dude (gender neutral) in any given room, and he mastered the sort of subtle, charismatic warmth that makes everyone feel like they’re your best friend. Duke’s one of those celebrities you just want to crack a beer open with and chat about your day, because they seem like they’d be fun to hang out with, y’know? (Which also helps separate him from his hero identities. Duke Thomas? Dress up like a cross between a motorcycle racer & medieval knight in order to speed around downtown, jump off bridges & skyscrapers, and kick the Joker in the face on a biweekly basis? Are you fucking high?)

Damian: Starts out as the acerbic, hotheaded brat. Grows up into Gotham’s favorite Bad Boy With A Heart Of Gold, thanks to both his maintained public attitude & work with helping animals around the world, even after he mostly moves to Bludhaven. (Yes, he rides a motorcycle, wears mostly leather, and has just so many piercings. Most of the piercings are fake, so that they can’t be grabbed in fights; the real ones he almost exclusively wears small studs in. They all come out in preparation for patrol.)

Cassandra: The Ice Queen, so cool & confident that some people genuinely think the family is lying about her selective mutism and it’s just a front so she has an excuse to ignore people. (She is deeply offended by this.) Zero tolerance for bullshit, cutting edge fashionista, single handedly got ASL added as a language course to every school in Gotham, and got plenty of rich jerks to learn if only to know what she was gossiping about with her siblings when they kept glancing over and laughing at everyone else. Universally assumed to be the one who'll take over WE when Bruce retires, despite her complete lack of interest.

Steph: The Wild Child, the only one to follow in Brucie’s footsteps. This was not the persona she wanted but in her society debut gala, something came up and Duke needed a distraction so he could go deal with it. Steph set her shoulders, grabbed a bottle off the snack table behind them, and said, “You got it.” First impressions are everything, and she never could shake that one… not helped by the fact that sometimes, an empty-headed party girl was exactly what they needed to gather information, and Steph had both the reputation to play the part & clout to get wherever she wanted once Bruce fostered her. (After her death, people call it a “downward spiral.” Others counter this with a clip from an interview she gave earlier that year, where Stephanie Brown talked about her hard work in school & the community, and her frustration over her reputation. “Of course it bothers me,” she said, “It bothers me that what I’m wearing matters more than the causes I promote. It bothers me that a few sips of wine outweigh organizing an entire event. It bothers me that flirting with people my own age upsets people more than a fucking shooting in downtown Gotham!” She laughed bitterly. “Is it the hair? Should I dye it? Would that make people take me more seriously?” She turned to look directly into the camera, tears shining in her eyes. “I’m—I’m sixteen. What do you want from me?”)

Tim: Tim starts out as the resident Cool Nerd. He’s friendly, he’s chill, he likes skateboarding & computer games—and also, he GMs on the weekends, he likes to solve math puzzles & write his own algorithms, he knows more about the history of sci-fi than any human has right to. Tim’s the kind of nerd who makes his nerdy hobbies seem cool by association. (Still figuring the rest out, honestly. Since he’s Oracle in this verse, part of me feels like he’d stay out of the public eye more? But another part of me says Tim would make his public persona as loud as possible, so that people think of him beyond his injury. “Bruce Wayne’s Paraplegic Son” is not an identity Tim would ever be okay letting people define him by, I think. I know he does a lot of charity work, and is more open to talking about his challenges than Cass is, in a very “if I tell you upfront, you can’t use it against me (also, maybe someone else needs to hear this)” kinda way. I know he’s still involved in the business world to some degree. I’m just having trouble pinning down how Tim would characterize Timothy Drake-Wayne [post-injury] to the public.)

Jason: Jason is kinda the inverse of Damian, being soft-spoken & seemingly shy until you bring up a cause he cares passionately about. He's very protective of his siblings, and is responsible for about 80% of the "Wayne Kids Spotted! You Won't Believe These Adorable Pictures!" tabloid headlines (Cass & Damian dote on Jason, those candids being one of the only times people get pictures of their "soft sides." Jason also volunteers to help Duke & Tim out a lot, and is often seen trailing after them trying to look professional.) Every woman over 30 in Gotham just wants to pinch his pudgy little cheeks, at least until Jason hits his last growth spurt and comes back from a year abroad looking like an absolute hunk. But still just as humble, just as polite, and just as passionate about helping others. Isn't he just a Big Ol' Marshmallow? (Jason maintains this reputation mainly by biting his tongue & constantly reminding himself if he can't think of anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. After every single interview or public event, you can find him down in the cave, ranting to himself about everything that pissed him off and taking it out on the poor training dummies.)

Dick: Started out very surly & private, but all his siblings defended that the poor boy had gone through so much trauma in under a year (losing his parents, being taken from the family he grew up with, and then losing Bruce just a few months later,) that it was only to be expected. They worked hard to keep him protected from the public eye while he was grieving. When little Richie finally made his public debut, Gotham was delighted to discover an energetic Sunshine Child, who wasn't exactly a great listener & was more than a bit of a showoff, but gosh darn if he wasn't the cutest thing anyone had seen in years. (Dick keeps up the shallow-but-cheerful Sunshine act all the way into his adult life, coming the closest out of any of them to having a true Brucie persona as an adult.)

[superfluouskeys]

i know you're probably not into maleficent/aurora anymore, but since you were like THE malora writer, i'm curious in what do you think would happen to maleficent when aurora dies? either from natural causes like old age or somethiing terrible happened

My friend, this is so kind of you to say!! This is also, unfortunately, MY JAM LOL

So in my personal interpretation, I think once Aurora became more sure of herself and the relationship, she would learn (passively, not even really thinking of it as such) to de-fuse Maleficent a lot of the time. Maleficent is naturally temperamental and always about 3 bad steps away from starting a fight. Once Aurora learns that this is just sort of how she is and she isn't actually mad, and doesn't even usually mean anything by it, Aurora learns to just kind of skillfully sidestep like 99% of Maleficent's bad moods. As a result, because she isn't being fought at every turn, Maleficent (also without realizing it) calms down a LOT, and tends to stop seeing everything as a challenge or threat, even from ppl who are not Aurora. This mostly just freaks ppl out, because you know she always seems super calm until she is suddenly Not LOL, and the average person does not know how to tell Maleficent's "actually calm" from her "quietly seething."

Additionally, while I believe that Maleficent operates on her own code of ethics and doesn't just do whatever, I also think her ethics and what she considers "wrong" differ significantly from where the average human would draw the line. As she grows more comfortable in her relationship with Aurora, I think she would be surprisingly willing to draw lines where Aurora wants her to, at least most of the time, because in her mind, e.g. not harassing someone who mildly annoyed her is important to Aurora, while it's not that important to Maleficent.

However, I think both of these changes, no matter how long Aurora lives, are utterly temporary. Once Aurora is gone, Maleficent will go back to the way she was before, if not ultimately worse, because in a sense kindness will remind her of Aurora, and I don't think she will ever reach a place where that is a good thing for her.

I think Maleficent's first reaction would be a kind of desperate fury, sort of like a wounded wild animal but with very powerful magic. She would be absolutely terrorizing the countryside, especially anyone she perceived to be responsible. It's almost worse if Aurora dies of old age, because then the fault in her mind would lie with...everything, the nature of life itself. This phase could last forever, depending on other factors, and I think it would be a very long time before Maleficent is even slightly functional again.

Even in eg. Prisoner-verse where Maleficent has other friends, I can see her getting into terrible fights with almost all of them. Girl can be next-level vicious when she wants to be, and even if her friends have known grief, most of them don't know exactly what she's going through, and therefore from Maleficent's perspective are not in a position to comment. Also I think "Aurora wouldn't want you to live like this" or similar would be like, the worst possible thing you could say to her, and might send her spiraling into a murderous rage all over again, because how DARE you presume to tell her what Aurora would want?

I am really a sucker for these kinds of villain backstories LOL, you can play me the same tune over and over and I will never get tired of it. I think the only kind of person who could reach Maleficent would be someone who's sort of similar to Aurora, at least in unfailing kindness. I'm imagining someone just trying to save her village or w/e from being razed to the ground showing sympathy to Maleficent for her lost love, and Maleficent showing just the smallest amount of mercy in memory of Aurora, even if ultimately she hasn't changed or healed at all. (oh my godddddd don't look at me I want to write this now lol)

So anyway, it was 5:30 in the morning, a very normal time to be awake, and I was thinking, well, would anyone in Prisoner-verse be able to calm her down at all? I think she and Kinsale would absolutely get into a really bad fight, and Zenovia would try to be chill about it but she would also pretty quickly be like okay well talk to me when you've calmed down lol. And then I realized............

--

“Hey.”

Maleficent doesn’t move.  She doesn’t know how long she’s been sitting here.  Odd, that she doesn’t feel a fresh wave of fury at Joy’s presence.  Then again, perhaps she is simply too tired to feel much of anything.

“I’m not going to say anything.”  Joy holds out her hands in a show of defense.

Maleficent inhales, sighs.  Her throat is burning.  She only distantly remembers the sound of screaming, and realizes now that the memory was of her own voice.

“Good,” says Maleficent.  Joy of all people should know that there is nothing to say.

A long silence follows.  Joy joins her on the floor some distance away, and pretends to train her gaze upon the fire.

“I do have one question, actually,” says Maleficent.

“Hm?”

Maleficent closes her eyes.  She tries to imagine Joy the way she looked in pictures, with long, beautiful hair that she wore in intricate curls, and a radiant smile full of youthful mischief.  “How did you…not…”

But words fail her.  She holds out her hand, grasping at nothing.

“What,” says Joy, “burn down the world?”

Maleficent sighs again.  It is as apt a question as any.

“Well, it was perhaps to my benefit that I am not nearly so powerful as you, Mistress Maleficent,” says Joy, although her characteristic attempt at wryness comes out remarkably strained.  “I wouldn’t have gotten very far.”

Maleficent opens her eyes.  The flames of the fire flicker and dance, enticing in their destruction.  “I’m not sure I would have cared.”

Joy chuckles, dry and mirthless.  “Yes, well,” she says.  She does not continue.

Outside, a terrible wind howls, desperate and mournful.  The windows rattle and the fire flickers low, casting them both in dramatic shadow.

Maleficent inhales.  She closes her eyes again.  “Does it ever…?” 

The words catch in her throat.  She already knows the answer.

“No,” says Joy quietly.  A long silence follows.  The embers from the fire crackle meekly, and the mournful wind falls deadly silent.

“But…I don’t know.  You find…other reasons.  To, you know…”  She waves her hand vaguely at the fire, and stokes it back to life.

Maleficent shakes her head.  Reasons?  The word feels foreign, meaningless.  “I don’t know that I ever had a reason for anything, before…”

Before her, she means to say, but she cannot.  There was always a before her, yes, but now there is an after her.  Everything from now on is after her, without her, and the mere idea of it is something akin to drowning, or perhaps slowly suffocating, deep underground, with the weight of the earth sinking down upon her chest.  What did she do before?  How did she live?  However is she to live now, knowing what she has lost?

“Yeah,” says Joy simply.

Maleficent doesn’t know how long they sit together in silence after that.  It hardly matters.

--

ANYWAY THANK YOU ANONYMOUS FRIEND I HAD FUN LOL

[arisenreborn]

For the not-so-nice oc ask game: future and midnight for emrys :3c

Thank you so much Vale!! :D (OC asks: not-so-nice edition)

future: What's the worst possible future for your OC? Are they taking steps to avoid that outcome? Are they even aware it's a possibility?

ooh boy, almost definitely the Bad Ending in unmoored world where he goes plaguedragon mode and fuses Olivia's (mostly) lifeless husk into his heart and is basically a mostly-mindless beast compelled by grief, regret, and a desire to 'fix it'. :'D But he definitely can't predict or imagine it, let alone try to avoid it.

On the other hand, as he gradually grows attached to Olivia (even from the earliest point of this begrudging transition) he is well aware of the manner of fates that await many Arisen - and he... doesn't want that for her. Either she dies a miserable death and he's left in the world without her - now worse than ever for having known her, or she becomes Sovran and their bond will more or less be severed as she lives out her days and he's called upon by other Arisen.

He tries all manner of little things to nudge her off of the chosen path. Earlier on even subtly attempting to sabotage her attempts to help people to dissuade and dishearten her, or sometimes withholding information that would point her in the 'right' direction, and also not above resorting to distracting her in other ways 😏 (Needless to say he gets uh... an earful for this when she realizes.)

Unfortunately, it eventually becomes clear she's too strong-willed and stubborn to stop, so he has to simply... work harder to make sure those outcomes don't become reality. 😅

(In one Verse, however, he actually does rather desperately beseech her to stop (after they got fucked up during a certain mission) and she gives in to simply run off with him, becoming one of the former Arisen.)

midnight: What keeps your OC up at night? Do they have nightmares? Fears? Anxieties? What do they do in the small hours of the morning when they should be sleeping?

Emrys has a number of chronic aches and pains that can keep him up at night, and he often suffers nightmares that he can never quite remember with clarity, just impressions: writhing darkness, people screaming and running, the smell of blood, the sounds of flesh and bone being torn asunder, and an overall feeling of... wrongness. Fear, hatred, elation, ecstasy, a complete loss of selfhood.

When he's out in the wilds, the sounds of nature or the stars overhead often soothe him, though he'll also occasionally consume or smoke herbal blends to take the edge off if he's feeling a flare up - albeit rarely in the company of strangers. When staying in the city, he likes to have a few drinks in him to soften the edges.

If it's a nightmare sort of night, he'll more often than not just get up and abandon any attempt to sleep again to fletch arrows, tend to gear, or clean out and organize their packs. (If he's in bed with Olivia, he'll just watch her and listen to her breathing, sometimes even soothed back into slumber.)

[formorethananame]

@pillowxtalk, a closed starter

Today was an unexpectedly busy day, but River loved those kinds of days. When the aquarium was full, it meant had a chance to do one of the things he loved the most - educate those that were curious about his underwater friends.

River was in charge of the touch pool today. He adjusted his microphone as he finished his speech, watching the patrons carefully. Everything in the pool was safe, but he was more worried about keeping the animals safe from the humans. As he looked around, his heart jumped in surprise at the sight of a familiar face.

Biho was coming closer, rounding the pool, and River couldn't keep the grin off of his face. He made sure that his microphone was turned off before greeting his friend with a hug. "Hey! Long time no see!"

[neverchecking]

I present to you: Dad Ravio

The whole chain is arguing over who's kid it is. "Well if it has purple eyes it has to be mine!"

"And if it has my nose it's mine!"

So imagine their shock when the baby comes and she has a full head of pitch black hair.

(Side note, baby's a girl. He'd be a girl mom don't argue with me on this)

Sage goes, "I think someone told me once my mom had black hair." Chaos ensues.

It takes a while to get to the correct era. But once once you land there and walk into the house with a baby that looks eerily like him, Ravio's all over you.

He won't let anyone else touch her. He'd use his scarf to make a wrap to carry her around. He'd sing Loruleon lullabies to her as he did paperwork with her to his chest.

And the chain? Oh, they are LIVID. They already had a halfway agreement that they would all raise the baby, no matter who's it was. But Rav wasn't in on that. Because he wasn't even a possible thought in their heads. How could those few nights with him verses DOZENS with them-

But Ravio doesn't seem to care one bit, he wakes up during the night with her, feeds her, bathes her. Everything he should. He falls into place perfectly. How could he not love a mini him?

But when a portal opens up, you don't really know what to do. It eventually comes to the conclusion that you and the baby will go on and will visit when you can. Ravio falls to his knees, begging you not to go, not to take her with you. But you kinda have to. She's still too young to not need her mother. And you have to keep going. You give him a kiss to his head and promise that it won't be long before leaving.

The kid grows into a magic obsessed little heathen. Legend shows her a few magical artifacts one day when she's around four, and it's all downhill from there. Four has to physically keep her away from the foursword. Time has to keep his bag of masks out of reach. And every time you end up back with Ravio, she barades him with questions about Lorule and their magic. And he loves it.

He teaches her phrases in Loruleon. Some things she probably shouldn't be saying at five. But he's her dad, and if he says she can say "Link is a dumbass" then what he says goes.

nofnofnf DAD RAVIO SPREAD THE WORD

Sage going 'Someone told me my mom had black hair." AND WILD JUST GOES 'We had the same mom and no one has ever told me that. Everyone who knew her is DEAD Sage."

So idk if this was something I mentioned on an ask or something I was talking about with Moss or Dree, but Ravio has some control over traveling in Eras. Bc in Hyrule Warriors, he was there (And semi-useless, but come see come sa-). So I imagine should he get impatient, he just...shows up? So maybe he pops up bc where was his Goddess and why do the heroes get to hog her?

And when he does and there's this little baby, black hair and dazzling green eyes? He just knows, then and there, it's his baby. And of course he has a precious baby girl <3

He's immediately taking his baby from anyone that's not you or him, wrapping her in his scarf in a form of a baby wrap. He's using Sheerow to mimic soft background music while he gently mumbles the words, just loud enough for her (and you) to hear.

The chain is pissed. If it was one of theirs, fine. The all had the spirit of courage so in some semblance (With some crazy mental gymnastics) it was all of theirs. But not Ravio's. He wasn't a part of that! How could they think he would even be a possibility?! He was nothing more than a pest. A merchant that happened to be useful to Legend.

Ravio is thrilled. I mean, his baby is his Goddess' kid as well and he is just so thrilled and in love. He loves being a dad and he loves helping Reader.

When said portal does open it is kind of a tense moment. Because you aren't leaving the chain. But you aren't leaving your baby. Ravio is absolutely livid when it comes to this because the Links are just like petulant children. So if they can't have your kids, he can't either?! What kind of faulty logic was that??!

You bet he's showing up all the time though. There are some breaks, bc it takes a lot of magic to jump like he does, but he's always there when his little girl needs him.

The kid is a gremlin. One thousand percent. Between her dad and Legend and all the magic around her, it's no wonder. And she gets into everything there are bag checks every time they move somewhere and should something go missing, she is number one suspect.

He loves teaching her all about Lorule and the language and the magic and the culture.

She curses all the Links out in Loruleon, not bc she wants to but bc her dad said it was a compliment in their language.

[flamingplay]

Everything Everything's Mountainhead: a Track-by-Track commentary from AppleMusic

Everything Everything lead vocalist Jonathan Higgs thinks that the thread running all the way through the Manchester quartet’s catalogue is the urge to encapsulate the effect on humanity of living in this time. “That’s really what all our albums are about,” Higgs tells Apple Music. “It’s a varying degree of looking inward and outward, observing how it feels to be alive in this place in this time. This one is very much looking outward for the most part.” “This one” is Mountainhead, Everything Everything’s seventh record and another astounding leap forward from one of the UK’s most inventive bands. It mixes pulsing synths and gleaming guitar licks, euphoric electro grooves and art-rock dynamism—music where the strange and the soothing seamlessly overlap.

The album pairs a dystopian concept about a society which has built a huge mountain and its people live in the shadowed pit it has created at the bottom (a “Mountainhead” is someone who believes the mountain must continue to grow taller no matter the cost) with some of their most rhapsodic pop hooks yet. It’s all been created with the confidence that there is an audience for this sound. “It always feels like we’ve got a lot of goodwill from the last thing we did, so a lot of people are waiting for the next thing we do,” says Higgs. “I think people really liked the last record [2022’s Raw Data Feel] and this one’s better.” This is the sound of Everything Everything on the crest of a wave, confidently hitting new peaks seven albums into their career. Allow Higgs to guide you on a journey to the top of Mountainhead, track by track.

“Wild Guess”

“This was a little demo we made on tour with Foals back in 2017 or something. I put a vocal on it but it was all sung an octave up from what you hear, which was ridiculous. We happened to rediscover it and were like, ‘Remember how ridiculous this song was? Maybe it’s fine to do it now.’ There was just something about the confidence of that big fat solo beginning the record, no vocal for ages and it’s not very nicely played. It’s the same recording Alex [Robertshaw, guitarist and keyboardist] did backstage into his laptop all those years ago. It just felt like this was a good way to start a record, basically, like, ‘Fuck you. Here’s your big fat solo that sounds awful and you’re going to have to wait for your vocal.’”

“The End of the Contender”

“This is vaguely about Ronnie Pickering [ex-boxer who went viral in 2015 for a road rage incident] and people of his ilk, but it’s also about the creep of capitalism and how it’s seeping into everything. I’ve tried to put a reference to money or electricity on every song, so he talks a lot about it in that song—whoever ‘he’ is. Obviously, ‘It’s all about the Benjamins’ is quite a cheeky thing to sing in the chorus, but I don’t think I’m going to get sued for it.”

“Cold Reactor”

“This is setting out the stall of the record. It really hinges on the human element of it and the desperation of it. The ‘I haven’t left the house’ line, somebody being quite isolated and communicating through screens and emojis, felt very relatable. There’s a sad longing for connection that you can’t quite get to that runs through it and because it has this rushing feeling of everything coming to a point, it really emphasises the desperation of it. It was a question of getting the right sort of heartbreaking-versus-hopeful tone and trying to get across a lot of exposition in the verses in quite a short time. It feels like a film script in terms of its simplicity.”

“Buddy, Come Over”

“This is about cancel culture a little bit, it’s got this dark-side- and underworld-type feeling to it. There’s a line, ‘Make me a website so I can completely ruin my life’ and that made the guys laugh quite a lot. Sometimes when that happens, we’re just like, ‘Yeah, let’s go down this path.’ It fell together quite easily, it was more like a really fun one to play live, like, ‘What can we play that feels good in the moment rather than trying to get all these tracks on the go.’”

“R U Happy?”

“This is about the effect of isolation, living in cities, living now and asking the question, ‘Are you happy? Does all this stuff make you happy?’ in the simplest way I could, which is to literally say, ‘Are you happy?’ over and over again. There’s definitely a through line of being an animal and the ‘dance in a skeleton way’ line was me saying if there’s a skeleton there, you’re dead but if there’s a skeleton there, you’re alive as well, talking about being alive and trying not to be sad all the time.”

“The Mad Stone”

“This is more about the religious element to the idea [of the album]. It’s more like a spiritual song in its presentation and its content. It sounds like an argument between two or three people who really believe in this idea of the mountain and people who are very doubtful about it. The thing on top of the mountain [in the chorus] is this big mirror that reflects you over and over again into infinity—that’s the more magical element of what might be at the top of the mountain. I was trying to come up with a metaphor for an idea of something that would be an actual goal that someone might want to get to, but it’s also really obviously selfish and self-aggrandising. It took an afternoon of singing it to get the chorus right, getting it so it just didn’t sound silly—being understood and not sound like I’m mumbling.”

“TV Dog”

“This was a demo that Alex had made that he called ‘Coney Island’ and we all thought it sounded like a New York string quartet. Coupled with that title, it opened up a few little avenues on the record, some strings that appear on other songs. I had about twice as many lyrics and we were like, ‘Is this song going to develop into a bigger thing? Are we going to bring the drums in?’ and then we were like, ‘The most poignant thing you can do is just hear it for a minute and a half, a couple of good lines and then it’s gone.’ Alex went down to a cathedral and recorded loads of ambience in there and put that all over the track in the background, so you get this sense of it being in a huge space.”

“Canary”

“If some of the other songs feel like you’re on the mountain, this one’s very much in the pit, it’s being in the dark. It’s the canary in a coal mine, a warning song that just so happens to fit very well with the larger concept. It’s the darkest underbelly of the album and the imagery is the most fucked up. It feels like a warning about something bad that’s coming, which tends to be where I often find myself as a character in my songs—as a warning character. This was a big production number for Alex, I think he wanted it to be a bit Björk or something.”

“Don’t Ask Me to Beg”

“I started with layering up vocals, I was trying to make a kind of choir thing. I was listening to Massive Attack, even though they don’t really use choirs. We tried different rhythmic schemes for ages to try and get it sounding less white-boy funk and cool. It took us ages working on the drums, actually, and then trying to re-record all of those cluster vocals. I think we just gave up in the end and used the demo ones, so no one knows how to sing those parts. If we have to do it live, we’re going to struggle!”

“Enter the Mirror”

“This is about a friend of mine who was struggling and I wasn’t sure if he was going to make it through. It’s a song about singing to him as if he was gone and remembering our childhood. I haven’t really worked out what it means yet. I think I wanted to say that we’re both the same deep down, even though there’s two of us. But there’s also the mirror on top of the mountain, which might be like you find yourself if you go into it. I don’t know, I’m still a bit too close to that song to even fully say.”

“Your Money, My Summer”

“This was another demo from around the same time as ‘Wild Guess’, something that we thought was just a bit too silly to do something with back then and now, I guess we didn’t. In the past, we would have had a litany of reasons why we wouldn’t do that and now it was like, ‘This is good.’ It’s definitely the most relaxed track of ours you’ll ever find. You won’t find us playing like that anywhere else, a sort of Chili Peppers rhythm section. We would usually run a mile from that stuff but we were just like, ‘Why are we running?’ It’s an example of us being relaxed with each other.”

“Dagger’s Edge”

“This was an older demo. It always had that feeling of being a song of two halves. I think I wrote the second half and Alex wrote the first. We’d binned it because we thought it was too silly. It does sound pretty light-hearted in the first bit, but then the tone changes. I’m taking the piss out of somebody and saying a lot of ridiculous things and then suddenly just turn into this really desperate old wise man on a mountain. No other band could do that and I really believe that that’s very much our thing—a song that sounds like Dr. Dre and I’m taking the piss out of a guy, calling him those ridiculous names, and then suddenly, a harpsichord comes in and it’s turned into a really existential thing about everyone turning into bacon.”

“City Song”

“This is another one that’s got that New York strings thing going on. I wrote the demo and it was much more hip-hoppy. It’s got a hip-hop speed, but, stylistically, that’s been shed. I was trying to do like a David Byrne-style lyric, the sadness of mundanity or trying to make mundane things special. I think there was also some elements of the Mark Fisher book Capitalist Realism, where he was talking about how impersonal it can be to work for a big company where no one really knows each other. I wanted to get across that feeling of isolation, but also no one really knowing who you are and no one knowing each other, living under the lights of the city and it all being very anonymous.”

“The Witness”

“I’ve barely listened back to this because it makes me quite emotional. It was about witnessing somebody go through a weird transition, thinking that it might be a kind of religious experience. It was written on guitars but Alex swapped out the guitars for synths because it sounded like a Radiohead-type song, two guitars picking and a sad guy with a falsetto. It was just like, ‘People would like it but this is really music from 25 years ago that we could do standing on our heads.’ It’s what we were trained to do, we’re good at it, but it wasn’t pushing us in any direction. So we swapped out the guitars for synths and we made a few other weird changes.

[alexanderlightweight]

Cat Magnus if someone tries to take Alec away (yes, i realize i just called Alec a snack that was very smart of my subconscious)

Did you update your tumblr app btw? They added a read more button!

i have not updated my phone (lets be real, saeth normally does that for me because the update alerts come when i'm busy and then i never remember they came) but thank you because now i'll try to remember that

also your subconscious is brilliant! and correct

oh 100% that is Magnus with Alec

i don't even know if this was a prompt but here we go because i love this verse so much and magnus was not happy to wake up and find his skittles missing... i mean alec

<3 lumine

-

Alec wakes to warm softness and he rumbles, almost curling deeper into the fur around him before he realizes he’s hungry.

It’s the work of a thought to shrink to the size of a ferret and he wriggles his way past the large paws that were holding him close. Magnus shifts in his sleep, whiskers twitching and paws tightening on the empty space where Alec was.

Alec waits a moment, admiring the markings of Magnus’ coat before he pulls himself away and follows his senses to the roof.  He flies up the stairs and while Alec could simply go through the door, he whistles to it until it unlocks and then goes through.

Alec can’t keep Magnus if he doesn’t prove he can protect Magnus’ nest and while Alec normally takes things to his hoard, it won’t be the first hoard he’s built around a priceless treasure.  Alec will miss sleeping in the singing fire opal caves that he claimed over a hundred years ago, but he’s sure he can eventually take Magnus there.

Once he figures out how to convince the warlock to ride him of course. Portals don’t work in the caves and Alec’s magic and intent have made the caves impossible for anyone else to find or navigate, even other dragons.

With a sigh of contentment, Alec fishes out a last mouthful of the freshly formed koi crystals.

It’s enough to sate him for now and while he likes Magnus, the magic of the roof of the roof is created all from him and Alec is too content to move.  Instead, he stretched himself out in the large gazebo made of willows and he slowly lets himself grow until he fills it and then he shuts his eyes.

—

Magnus wakes because his paws are empty and half asleep, he blindly reaches out and finds nothing but emptiness. It’s with a snarl of outrage — at himself and falling asleep — that he wakes completely and throws his magic out.  It’s hard to pinpoint if a dragon has gone through his wards, but Magnus can certainly find out if he’s still nearby.

He is back on the roof and Magnus should be fondly amused, but he won’t be happy until he has his little dragon back under his watch.

The roof is open, petals and leaves on the staircase and Magnus chuffs, using magic to shut it as he stalks carefully through the garden.  If Alexander is simply hungry then Magnus will have to ensure he has easier things for his little dragon to snack on. Magnus is hardly going to suffer losing his little treasure every time Alexander gets peckish.

Magnus can’t pinpoint his location, can only feel that his presence is within the bounds of Magnus’ own magic and it’s only that knowledge that keeps Magnus from slipping into a feral rage. 

The koi pond has been raided but is empty and the water Alexander tracked has already dried.  Magnus created a dimensional space on his roof, and he nearly regrets it now, when he gets to the tangle of his garden that he’s neglected for… a few years.

He stalks through the thick foliage, wild with the magic that nourishes it, and it isn’t until he steps on something long and sinuous that he pauses.

When he looks down, paws kneading curiously, it’s to find a long, tapered and scaled black tail.  It’s far larger than anything Magnus has seen so far and he’s instantly curious as he follows the tail. 

There he finds Alexander, several feet away from where his tail has coiled around a warm rock.  He’s nearly twice the size Magnus is and he’s on his back, belly exposed to the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves that form the roof.

Magnus shifts before he can think anything of it, reaching out to pet over the matte and gorgeous scales that are his dragon’s skin. 

“I’m going to have to keep a very close eye on you,” Magnus murmurs as he admires Alexander’s form.  “A very close watch.”

[sweetfirebird]

A Suitable Captive

A Suitable 'Verse story set in the time of the Earls

The mysterious figure known as the Wild Dog has risen up to crush and humiliate the Earls who control the North. Fen, son of a powerful Earl, has been sent to form an alliance to benefit his father’s plans against the bold rebel. There are many kinds of alliances in the world of nobles, but political alliances often grow to include the intimacy of lovers or even marriage, and Fen has been ordered to use his famed beauty seduce his intended, regardless of what he feels. But Fen has no love for his cruel father or in forming any kind of alliance with a noble his father prefers. He takes his first chance to run, only to end up lost and hungry in vast wilderness… where he is found by the Wild Dog himself.

Lan, called Wild Dog by furious Earls who don’t like to be challenged, looms over Fen and most others, and yet carries Fen when Fen is too weak to walk any longer. He allows his friends to tease him and ensures his people are fed before he sits for his own meals. Fen, who has rarely known kindness, is captivated. But Fen is also an Earl’s cub, and if the Wild Dog can change rules that have always existed, then so can Fen. Without his father’s say he offers an alliance of his own, promising to use his knowledge of the nobles to help the Wild Dog achieve his aims. No seduction is required, although for the first time in his life, Fen considers it. Each time Lan listens to him, or pulls him close to share warmth as they sleep, or shows that he trusts Fen, Fen wants him in a way he barely understands.

But Fen is more powerful than he realizes or that his nickname of “Flower” would suggest. He sees destiny at work when he looks at Lan. The Wild Dog is something greater than a mere Earl, and fate, or the fae, have placed Fen in his path. Now it’s time for Fen-the-flower to decide if his agreement with Lan might become more—an alliance, or marriage, for the ages.

(Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Wild Dog.)

(Or, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to My Cousin's to Flee a Forced Alliance)

(Or, Things to Do in the Mountains When You're on the Run From Your Father and Your Fiancee and You're Captured by a Hot Rebel)

(Or, Master and Commander: Fen Gets Tied Up and Has Feelings About It)

I'll stop now.

Anyway. A Suitable Captive--December 26th!

(Content tags on the copyright page as usual. It's a standalone but reading the other two ain't gonna hurt the experience.)

[potatoesandsunshine]

ok for the benefit of everyone i am putting my ttpd thoughts under the cut bc i had a lot of them. i did listen to the album and i had a fun time writing my opinions as i went! i haven't done any of the extra songs yet but i probably will tomorrow.

overall thoughts: i like this album pretty well! definitely more to my taste than midnights. i'm not instantly in love with it, but i will listen to at least some of the songs a lot and i'll give the whole thing a few more chances to grow on me. kind of a 7/10 for me personally - i'm not sold on songs as vehicles for Lore, i need to think it's a good song to listen to if i'm going to like it. i wanted more differences in tempo or dynamics throughout; at times songs felt a little same-y. anyway, my first impressions song by song!

Fortnight: honestly i just don't love the word fortnight there are too many T's in it. overall 7/10. i like it but i want a tempo change or something.

TTPD: the lyrics... babe. but at least she figured out how to say fuck like a normal person. "Gonna troll you" is also a lot. 5/10 doesn't hugely do it for me, would skip.

MBOBHFT: like this one more. she's doing that thing she does where there are more words crammed into the verse than she needs but the chorus really does it for me. 7.5/10

Down Bad: i like the dreamy vibes. weirdly reminds me of another song? specifically fuck it if i can't have him; my brain is itching. anyway 7/10? WAIT if i can't have you kelly clarkson. (not totally convinced that was it. still can't place it)

So Long, London: wish it had instruments? interesting cadence, reminds me of Lana a little. i wish she didn't use so many modifiers but it's a decent song 7/10

BDILH: y'know i like the message. she's right fuck swifties. we're handshake about this. this one is pretty good! 7.5/10. too long though. has the staying power of like a 4 min song (i think everyone was so extremely weird about this situation and it makes sense that she thinks so too)

FOTS: again i just want less synths. i like the chorus a lot actually. kinda over how she uses American. wait what's happening to this song. solid 7/10

Florida!!!: Florence!!! this one was a guaranteed hit for me. fav so far for sure. 9/10 going on the playlist (the no-skip tswift playlist)

Guilty as Sin?: starting to feel a little samey! not a ton of tempo differences on this album. wild to write a song about wanting this hard. feels kinda honest which is refreshing after midnights. not super my song but i don't hate it. 6.5/10 JESUS COMPARISON??? (this added a point. i feel like people throw out 'unhinged' about her when she's always struck me as an extremely precise planner but this was still a big moment for me. she should do more stuff like this. she should get weirder.)

WAoLOM?: stranger things ass imagery. i like the scream i want more variation in dynamics. pretty good song! i like it as a continuation of anti-hero. 8/10. on the playlist

ICFH(NRIC): we love talking about him and smoke i will be listening to colors. i wish it was faster! but i like it. 8/10

loml: again with the modifiers. nice lyrics in this one imo. kinda sounds like you're losing me. 8/10

ICDIWaBH: very mastermind intro! again w/ the thesaurus problem. thank you. thank you. faster song. 9/10 on the playlist. get a therapist fr girl

TSMWEL: she said you get one fast song. piano!!! honestly i like the way it builds and i like the paranoia. again, feels honest. 7.5/10

The Alchemy: i like it! reminds me of the archer + willow. god she loves a sports metaphor. i will listen to this more. 8.5/10

Clara Bow: kinda feels like an Olivia dig. been very interesting to see the progression of The Lucky One -> here. can't pretend you're not the establishment. 7/10

and just for fun - here it is in the glitter gel pen :P i had fun with this! i'll probably do it for the other tracks too - it was like pretending to be a reaction channel