#;tmnt oc: cassia dubois

[redstringraven]

some tension in the studio today...

[grozva]

some oc sketches from a while ago bc I haven't posted to tumblr for some time :3

characters here with allan and andy belong to my friends :D

[redstringraven]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF getting super close to being done with cassia's profile stuff!!! i've also drafted two of the written sections. aiming to have this thing posted either during or at the end of the holiday! then i can start the next year with nyxram's!

[redstringraven]

i know this isn’t the how the current meme goes, but i can’t see “you know what that means” without thinking of the vine.

[redstringraven]

Okay I gotta pull an uno reverse card and ask you about your ocs now bc you asked me really good questions and now I'm wondering how in depth your OCs are 👀. If they each had to introduce themselves in a small group of strangers how would they do it? How do they react to someone incorrectly correcting them in something they know a lot about?

<:333 *excitedly paps hands on my desk* omgg THANK YOU 🖤🌷

these are such good questions, too, aaaAAA!!!

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if they each had to introduce themselves in a small group of strangers how would they do it?

cassia she's usually pretty fearless (and eager) when it comes to meeting new people! if you look interesting, or what she overhears from your conversation catches her attention, girl's gonna step right up and involve herself. a decent amount of her ''''introductions'''' start with complimenting an accessory of yours she loves or thinks is neat--maybe asking where you got it. if the vibes stay good and groovy through that initial exchange, she'll follow up by giving her name. if not, she'll dip. simple as that. nyxram pre-triceraton rebellion? she simply would not. most of the time, her presence in the room is either subtle or unnoticeable, anyway. she's only going to socialize with you if there's no other option, and she definitely won't be the one to initiate it. it will be less an 'introduction' and more 'how many ways can i signal to you i don't want to talk'. post-rebellion, she's, in some ways, forced to socialize a bit more, but remains monosyllabic and minimalist as she can get away with. you'll get her name, and the bare minimum answer for any question that follows that. she'll be as friendly as she feels she has to be. gwyn chances are, if she's the one initiating the interaction, she's talking to you because she thinks you might be 'useful' somehow. you won't know this, of course. could be as small as needing directions or getting a scope of the area, but she could also be looking into swindling you out of a meal or lifting something off of you when you let your guard down or even setting you up to take the fall for something. she will have discretely hovered nearby--listening, getting an idea of what you respond positively and negatively to--and when she actually does talk to you, she'll use whatever approach will put you at ease the fastest. could be joining the conversation enthusiastically and confidently, could be joining with the preface that she's a little lost and needs guidance as she's new in town. she's a tricky one. a social chameleon, for better or for worse, and she'll work a room when she needs to. ash will most likely NOT make herself known in a group of strangers and continue playing the role of an inanimate object (she often takes the form of a dagger on gwyn's belt). on the rare occasion she feels the need to make herself known, it's usually in a threatening manner and done to keep you away from gwyn (who's most likely unconscious) or herself. this is how they met the turtles, actually. after gwyn passed out from a burn-wound, leo reached to pick ash (currently in the form of a spear) off the ground, and she shape-shifted into a scythe-like weapon, cutting his forearm in the process.

how do they react to someone incorrectly correcting them in something they know a lot about?

cassia immediately tells you you're wrong, probably with a lopsided smirk and a long "uuuuuhhhhh noooooo?". depending on the energy you gave her when you corrected her will depend on the energy she gives you back. if you were rude about it, she's going to be equally rude and condescending when she corrects you--and best believe she'll have receipts and proof that she's right. if you weren't rude, she'll be more gentle and take a more 'educative' approach. you shouldn't be shamed for being wrong if you're willing to learn! and also if you weren't a jackass about it. nyxram says nothing verbally, but her eyes say it all: you're wrong. this isn't an opinion, it's a fact. but you're free to continue living in your wrongness. she makes no effort to correct you and carries on as though you said nothing at all. whether you think she's right or wrong, or whether you know yourself to be right or wrong, doesn't matter to her. the only exception i can think of to this 'rule' is traximus (and maybe grax's spouse, xi, once they become friends), but i doubt he'd correct her when it comes to an area she's obviously very knowledgeable in. the most likely situation would be when it comes to translating/communicating with other races and potentially getting words or sentence structure confused. he's often on the right track with this sort of thing, but not quite right. when this happens, she prompts him to provide reasoning for why he thinks his answer is right, then bluntly (but not unkindly) tells him why it's not. he's usually receptive to this; they trust each other. gwyn varies with who she's talking to, as well as the context of the situation. like... if she thinks it'll be beneficial to let you be right, she will. if it'd be even more beneficial to stroke your ego, she might prompt you to "tell her more" or "teach her" (this will not only give you a false sense of control, but it will also give her a better idea of YOUR understanding of the topic or lackthereof, which could be useful to exploit if necessary). if she doesn't think letting you be right matters, she might go the opposite route and respond however she thinks will most embarrass you or make you feel stupid. could be laughing at you, could be bluntly telling you you're wrong... again, depends on the person, the topic, as well as her current 'needs' out of the exchange. ash says in the most matter-of-fact tone you can imagine: "...no." and then moves on. does not elaborate--in fact, often refuses to elaborate. you'll know you're wrong, but nothing more. die mad.

[redstringraven]

Your OCs are in my head rent free so have a question for each of them:

Cassia: How is her relationship with April? and by proxy Casey? Does Splinter see her as one of his children?

Nyxram: I think it would have been interesting if The Ultimate Ninja challenged Nyx to a duel to the death like he did Leo. How would that have gone down?

Gwyn and Ash: Since Ash considers herself dead does she feel any remorse or hesitancy about being used to hurt or kill people? Does Gwyn have reservations about using her like that? Does Gwyn know Ash considers herself dead?

over here being emotional because that made me so happy, and i'm extremely grateful. ;w; for real, thank you for these asks and saying that, i just. ahhhh!! it makes my day. i always get so excited to talk about and further explore my dweebs.

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cassia: how is her relationship with april? and by proxy casey? does splinter see her as one of his children?

cassia's interacted with april slightly more than she has casey, and i think they get along very well! she's also close with april's niece, bree (@/plantdonut's oc), so they run into each other a fair amount. cassia LOVES the 70s aesthetic and weird little trinkets. it wouldn't surprise me at all if she scopes out april's shop for things from that decade, or dropping not-so-subtle hints that it'd be super cool and stuff if april kept an eye out for anything of the sort. no reason. it'd just be pretty cool of her.

as for casey, they get along for the most part. though, casey tends to have moments where he... exposes how much learning and growing he still has ahead of him. like making a comment he didn't consider would be offensive or asking a question without thinking. cassia just stops what she's doing, stares at him and bluntly says "dude." (raph can be seen pinching the bridge of his beak in the background and groaning because his friend is a moron and, oh my god, you're embarrassing him).

thankfully for casey, cassia's willing to be patient with him, since he at least IS trying and making genuine efforts to correct bad habits, so... that's recognized and appreciated. and the turtles or april are there to back her up. ...i don't think esme would like casey very much, though. he seems like the type of person who'd have her on edge the whole time she's in proximity to him, and she'd likely be much less patient than cassia due to mother-bear-protectiveness (her side of the family did not accept cassia's transition; they've since been estranged). casey is someone esme can endure being around, but... that's about it.

i don't know if splinter would go as far as considering cassia one of his own. he does very much appreciate that his sons have a few more friends their age, and that cassia can be a more grounding presence for them. we DO have another slight 'personality clash' situation with splinter and cassia, where she can be high energy and loud, which adds to any chaos that may already be present in the lair that day. she often enables antics between raph and mikey, or enjoys the challenge of managing to pull a prank on leo.

...i can also see cassia developing a stupid one-sided-joke with splinter, where if she and mikey are watching a movie, and the actor pulls off a wild stunt, she turns to splinter and points at the tv and goes "DID YOU TEACH THEM THAT???? dude, that's crazy--that's mega coconuts" and splinter just kind of stares at her.

it's possible this has expanded into more ridiculous things like ...vehicle stunts... anime moves... ...godzilla firing his laser. i'm so sorry, sensei.

nyxram: i think it would have been interesting if the ultimate ninja challenged nyx to a duel to the death like he did leo. how would that have gone down?

oh. he'd. ...he'd die. >xDDD

like. i normally don't like sitting here with the air of "lmao my oc's power level is so high haha"--if this were asked of gwyn i'd waffle around, weigh her chances based off the environment and how resourceful she's allowed to be or if ue even allowed her to use ash as her primary weapon--but this is nyxram.

nyxram was birthed with the intention of forging the perfect killer. she's the only survivor of her clutch because she fought for it from the day she hatched, and that was by design. her parents wanted to weed out "the weak". she was meant to surpass her mother and father in their skills, she's supposed to be walking death, serving the prime leader and triceraton republic. this woman has single-handedly taken out small federation fleets and made it look like they just oopsie-daisy'd and vanished into a black hole.

like. i cannot emphasize enough... ue is DEAD.

being the daimyo's son, i'm pretty sure he's high-profile enough that he'd be on her radar by default. he'd have almost no element of surprise; she'd go into the fight already having an idea of what to expect from him. the SECOND he opens himself to a kill shot, she's taking it. NO hesitation. none. this is, literally, what she was made to do.

there would be some chance she'd spare him if this were post-rebellion, but... --i've had gwyn use this line in RP before, but nyxram would also abide by it: if you're going to kill, you better be ready to be killed.

you challenge her to a duel to the death? ...alright.

i'd ask what you want her to tell your family, but it wouldn't matter. she won't be reaching out to them. you should have considered that before you threw your knife at a reaper's feet.

gwyn and ash: since ash considers herself dead does she feel any remorse or hesitancy about being used to hurt or kill people? does gwyn have reservations about using her like that? does gwyn know ash considers herself dead?

for the first two questions, in short: it's complicated for both of them.

just in case it needs restating, the entire reason they're having to survive like this at all is because, ever since ash wound up trapped in the shape-shifting weapon, they've been followed, tracked, hunted, set upon by assassins and bounty-hunters--just, endlessly pursued. a liáfsian druid, darach, is near always on their heels and trying to get his hands on the weapon (this is an extreme nutshell version of that situation because the question's not about that). neither of them WANT this.

i'd say who has more reservations with causing harm highly depends on the situation, and it's near always done in self-defense. ash wants gwyn to live, and she'll do whatever she can with her limited power to keep her alive. gwyn tells herself repeatedly that if SHE dies, what little remains of ash dies, and thus will do whatever she feels she has to in order to keep herself alive. because she CAN'T let ash "truly die". i can't really say which of them is more prone to lean into violence or revenge or spite; they both have their share of triggers that might cause them to 'twist the knife' more than they need to in a survival situation. but it's usually because one of them feels the other was wronged in a specific, pointed way, and they want the source of it to pay.

they both also have ways of preventing a more violent outcome. like, if ash is currently in the form of a sword and doesn't WANT to used to stab someone, she can simply take the form of a whip instead. gwyn has no control over ash's shape-shifting.

and vise versa, if gwyn doesn't want to use ash to hurt someone, she can put ash in a sheath or other location on her person where if ash tried a sneak-attack, she'd risk hurting gwyn in the process. in most cases if one of them doesn't want the violence to happen? it won't happen.

gwyn does have more autonomy than ash does, though. if ash won't cooperate, gwyn will find something else to do the damage she wants. but this rarely happens because if ash makes it clear she doesn't want a certain outcome, gwyn will almost always listen to her. they tend to be on the same page.

and for that final question: yes. gwyn knows ash considers herself dead. they've had this argument dozens of times; most of them took place in the earlier period of ash's presence in the weapon. as time's passed, ash has grown more and more exhausted with the topic. now it mostly comes up when gwyn's had a near-death experience, and ash is panicked and pleading with her to just let her go and get on with her life already. but gwyn... just won't listen to her. the moment passes. and they carry on.

there're times gwyn wonders if what she's doing is entirely selfish, prolonging ash's torment with her delusional hope. spirits in liáfsini exist, free in the afterlife, and ash SHOULD be among them. instead, she remains trapped in the weapon. gwyn knows dozens of people--several of whom she's never met--have been left suffering in her path because she clings to the possibility she can get ash back in a body. ash's only real agency is her voice, but gwyn's fear of someone stealing her robs her from having her own relationships and connections.

but the more she dwells on that, the more terrified she becomes with the realization that she has... nothing. ash is all she has, all she's ever really had. she doesn't even know who she is anymore if she's not searching for a way to get ash back. so maybe it is selfish. but if she were to leave ash behind and, someday, stumble across a way she could have gotten her back... how could she ever forgive herself? ash gave her life protecting gwyn, after all. guess the whole ill-omen and parasite thing wasn't too far off, was it?

[redstringraven]

🎙oc voiceclaims!

i've shared my ocs voiceclaims a few times, and they'll be mentioned again when i finish their profiles, but i thought i'd make a separate post for it with some linked samples as well!

💕🎒 cassia: penny parker (snapcube on yt)

mid-to-late teens , early 20s onward bonus: the house of mirrors incident (feat: mikey, don and raph)

⚔🔻 nyxram: shohreh aghdashloo

sample 1, sample 2 additional: when wearing her helmet/rebreather, it distorts her voice in a way similar to mr. freeze's from the arkham games

🌲🌪 gwyn: marisha ray (primarily her beauregard voice)

sample 1, sample 2 bonus: unguarded/genuine, squeaky laugh

🦋🎶 ash: salóme gunnarsdóttir

sample 1, sample 2 additional: ash tends to sing in higher octaves, especially when kulning/calling to the fauna of liáfsini, and i associate that with the vocals from GRIS

[redstringraven]

Ok question about Cassia in particular, if she ever met Rise Leo, how would they interact. It seems like that would be an interesting duo to me where they might get along great or absolutely hate eachother's guts. What if Rise Donnie is there too? Also are all of your OCs from the TMNT 2003 world? or, universe rather

full disclosure that i've barely interacted with rise; almost all of my exposure to it has been osmosis via being around other tmnt fans/seeing it pass by my various feeds.

but i know enough to know that if you put them in the same room together, someone would likely say "oh no, god made TWO OF THEM???" and then the universe would divide by zero, and we'd all implode.

i think the biggest difference between them (again: limited exposure to rise; sorry if this is inaccurate) is that cassia's more capable and willing to drop the goofy facade and take things seriously when needed. despite her tomfoolery, she IS my most stable OC of the four, having regularly been to therapy since she was young and knowing how to self-reflect, identify what she's feeling, and manage it. she's a lot more emotionally intelligent than she lets on, and--in enneagram terms--is on the healthier side of her 7 where she's willing to slow down and process the heavier feelings.

as for rise!don... my gut feeling is that she'd butt heads with him a lot and potentially become easily frustrated around him or generally Done With Him™. we don't like the energy we've created in the studio today. the vibes are off. i don't think they'd be outright antagonistic toward each other, more so they're just... personalities who don't jive. oil and water and all that.

and yes! all my OCs are from/for the 2003 iteration. c: it's the one i'm familiar with, the one i grew up with, and the only one i have any real interest in engaging with and expanding on! this isn't to say i think lesser of the others, of course! '03 is just what i know, and it's where i like to spend my time and energy. 🖤

[redstringraven]

hi!! who are each of your OCs closest to emotionally? (canon or otherwise). who would they like to be closer to?

hi!!! ;u; and omg THANK YOU!!!

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who are each of your OCs closest to emotionally? who would they like to be closer to?

CASSIA if we were to exclude cassia's parents (esme and oliver), without a doubt, cassia is closest to mikey. not only are they cut from the same cloth in terms of humor, energy levels, mischief-making, and love of art, but they're both aroace. i bring this up because it's something mikey's... not 'struggled' with? but is kind of something he's surprised by in terms of thinking he and his brothers were all on the same page when it came to the subject, only to realize that this wasn't the case. cassia's not only had the socialization to realize this about herself, but her therapy, involvement in new york's lgbtq+ scene and her own transition has given her the opportunity to have access to more information, insight, and other things to better understand who she is and know she's not alone in it. when she starts picking up that mikey thinks something's "wrong" with him, she basically tells esme what's going on, the two of them compile a silly little educational slide-show, and mikey is kidnapped for a night of learning, support, and movies plus good, homemade snacks. get loved, BITCH.

as for who she'd LIKE to be closer to... probably don! i wouldn't say it's not that they aren't already somewhat close, it's more of a conflict of energy and personalities.

cassia's already got a bond with raph going much in the same way he and mikey rough-house and get along, and leo kind of has this energy and demeanor that reminds cassia of her mother--which is a compliment in every way that it can be, because cassia adores her mother. don tends to keep to himself; he needs gentle coaxing out of his lab or away from his projects. so, cassia tends to try meeting him in the middle by wandering into his spaces on her own and asking questions about what he's working on, then she makes her exit when she starts to get the sense her presence is smothering him a bit. it makes for slower bonding, but! she's more than happy to go at his pace. i think i've said elsewhere that while cassia has a "little sister" relationship with leo, mikey and raph, she tends to have more of a "big sister" relationship with don.

NYXRAM close? emotionally? uh. i'm kidding (mostly).

nyxram is closest with traximus and... pretty much JUST traximus, if we're being entirely honest. at least for the time being. before he was cast into the arena, she'd already developed a decent amount of respect for him from a distance. he was a brilliant commander, kind and loyal to his colleagues, and one of the few people in the room willing to push back against zanramon. when he escaped the arena and started the rebellion, she sought him out (which terrified everyone for a while; imagine the prime leader's personal assassin showing up at your secret base and being like "i want in"--what is this, a trap?). nyxram and traximus went from being sort of reluctant comrades, to being willing to trust each other with their lives, to having an extremely strong and genuine bond.

it's important to me that it is highlighted, circled, underlined in bright red ink that they have never been--nor ever will be--romantically involved. they've found solace in each other due to having gone through experiences none of their other peers will ever understand, and each is fiercely loyal to the other.

nyx would LIKE to become closer to her personal squad: grax, ceron, ranzar and zuron. i think she envies their natural closeness and their ability to bond with each other so quickly and (seemingly) effortlessly. she's making efforts, but she's struggling. they're doing their best to be understanding of the fact her worldview is incredibly warped due to her upbringing and experiences, and that she's not used to working with or relying on others.

with time, i think she'll form a strong bond with grax and his spouse, xi. at some point the two have a clutch, and, since triceratons raise their young communally, nyxram will have a part in helping with the babies. she and xi will become very good friends, and xi will play a big role in helping nyxram learn to live a more mundane, peaceful life, as well as discover she's more than she was born and forged to be. traximus is making efforts in this area as well, but i think having a civilian with little-to-no exposure to violence and war will help in its own ways.

GWYN i'd be outright lying or straight up inaccurate if i said gwyn was closest to anyone but her twin. ash has consistently been the only person who's treated her... like a person. multiple births are extremely rare in liáfsini, and it's considered a splitting of the soul, with the second-born being viewed as an ill-omen and almost a parasite. gwyn's existence threatened her parents' standing as practicing druids, and she was an outcast in the community as a whole, shunned at best and targeted for bullying by other children at worst. but ash's love and loyalty to her never faltered. ash would teach her lessons in secret, would play and explore with her, would hold her hand when she was sad or lonely. so, when ash died protecting gwyn, and her soul became one with the shape-shifting weapon... it was just a given that gwyn would do whatever it took to get her sister back in a living, breathing body. and ash has continued to be her only constant through this journey.

...at least up until now, when the turtles have entered their lives. as it stands, gwyn's closest to mikey. i've mentioned previously that he's her first and best friend. when gwyn needs assurance that she can trust someone, she looks to mikey first. when she wants company, she seeks him out. he's the only one out of the four brothers who she's willingly handed ash over to (she does NOT like having ash off her person; she's extremely reluctant to let anyone else hold ash out of fear they might try running off with her). she loves gassing him up whenever he brags about being the battle nexus champion. he's the one she's been the most open with.

as for who she'd like to be closer to, probably @/plantdonut's OC, min-ji. gwyn and min-ji got off to a pretty rough start, as both tend to be paranoid personalities and wary of the intentions of others. min-ji's grown protective of the turtles in her own way, and is also protective and worried about her own family getting involved in the dangers gwyn presents (as well as being emotionally hurt by getting close to her only for gwyn to run off). gwyn would often feel judged by min-ji when it comes to how she's managed to stay alive or her willingness to use others to get what she wants or needs. they both thought the other despised them. they've semi-recently had a bit of a heart to heart, and they've agreed to try starting fresh. gwyn knows min-ji's extremely important to the boys--they love her--and she does sincerely want to get to know min better and prove that her relationship with the turtles isn't transactional, like her past relationships have been. they're working on it.

ASH you can kind of copy/paste that first part of gwyn's answer down here because it also applies. i'd be lying if i said ash's closest relationship wasn't gwyn; even though ash was slightly more accepted by the community and actually given opportunities to be involved, she still stuck to gwyn's side like glue.

...you can also copy paste mikey's part of the answer because... well, ash doesn't have a lot of autonomy right now. if gwyn spends most of her time around mikey, ash does, too. it feels kind of like a cop-out answer, but it's just kind of the situation ash is stuck in. i refer to what i said in a past ask: "since ash does consider herself 'dead’ and is at peace with the possibility she’ll be a literal shapeshifting weapon for the rest of her sentience, i think a lot of mikey's meaning to her (right now) is very rooted in what he means for gwyn."

as for who she'd like to be closer to? i almost have to say, right now, no one. she... considers herself dead. a huge part of her has come to wish that gwyn would let her go and find her own happiness, her own identity. her pessimism and acceptance toward her situation kind of prevents her from desiring relationships (because if she IS stuck in this weapon, that's just more loss and more pain she has to endure). gwyn continues to cling to the possibility she can get ash back in a physical body, and ash... goes along with it, because it's this drive that's keeping gwyn moving and on her feet and determined to stay alive. she won't take that away from her.

[redstringraven]

Also sorry if you have already answered this, but for Cassia, does her therapist know about the turtles or does she kind of dance around mentioning them in incriminating ways? How long has she had her current therapist, has she had any other therapists, good or bad?

i've absolutely not answered this!! and even if i had, NO APOLOGIES! i very much appreciate the question >:J thank you!!

cassia's therapist ...knows loosely about the turtles. as in, she knows cassia has friends who she refers to by various nicknames (cassia gives ALL of her friends several nicknames and will cycle through them just as often as their name-names, so this isn't unusual behavior for her or anything that might draw 'suspicion' from her therapist). as far as her therapist knows or can tell, they're a group of kids who go to a different school nearby or something, and she met them at the skate park. there's... four of them? she thinks? jell-o, mothman, ...bey-blades and aslan. --or, wait, are bey-blades and aslan the same one? no, blues clues and aslan are the same one. --i'm sorry, who's "tangerine"? --oh! another nickname for jell-o. *writing furiously* got it, got it.

mmm i'd say she probably--in the beginning--went through three or four therapists before she found her current one, and she's been with her current therapist for maybe five or six years? not all of her previous therapists were "bad" experiences, more so she just didn't feel a connection or they didn't click very well. i'm sure at least one of them was a more negative-leaning experience (came off as judgemental or was maybe passive or uninterested in any topics tied into her transition), and esme and oliver would have gotten her out of that immediately and started searching for a new one.

she adores her current therapist, tho!! they've got a great connection; cassia would glide in on her heelies wearing sunglasses and carrying a margarita if she could, say "dude, you're not gonna fuckin' believe this", drop onto the couch, and her therapist would click her pen and say "girl, spill", and that's the energy we've cultivated in the studio.

[redstringraven]

Okay question for your OCs, if they were tasked with getting information out of someone how would they go about it? (coercion, getting close to them and tricking them into revealing it, spying, etc.)

<:D! first of all omg thank you, second.... :D *chuckles*

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if they were tasked with getting information out of someone how would they go about it?

CASSIA is most likely NOT going to wind up in a situation like this. at least, not in one where the stakes are extremely high. it'd be more like... a friend asked her to discretely find out what another friend might be hoping to get as a birthday present, or if someone is single, or if they'd have any interest in being surprised with tickets to a concert--that sort of thing. mundane, slice of life stakes. and... cassia's also often just... too excited to be 'good' at this sort of thing. >xD yes, she can be a little manipulative when she wants to be, but most of the time she's.. just.. gonna ask you. yes, the original asker said to be discrete, but SHE'S asking. so there's still an element of surprise, as the answer isn't for her! there are obviously some exceptions to this, especially if she's in on it (i.e. she and mikey are setting up a prank on raph, and she casually asks don if he happens to know where raph is or if he's going to be back any time soon--oh no reason! she just wanted to know if he had any spare skate wheels haha okay BYEEEEE DONNIEEEEE~! nailed it). NYXRAM heavily depends on context and the kind of information she's looking for. i'd say in most cases, it's spying and research--either through hacking or "field work". there've been multiple situations where nyx has known her marks arguably better than their family members and friends; she shadows them, learns their routines, schedules, usual haunts, accounts they have have--just, the list goes on. it will never be "excessive"; it'll be anything she believes she needs to know to complete her task efficiently. this was one of the first things she'd do before a job; knowing your mark allows for the easiest clean up, including possible ways you could pin their death or disappearance on someone else or simply making them vanish from the record all together. you gotta know where the cracks are and what to drop into them. there have been a few instances where she's been required to get intel before killing her mark. sometimes her sheer intimidation factor is all she really needs. if that doesn't work and you need a little persuasion, best believe it's going to come with cross-checking. torture isn't a guaranteed method for success; they'll often just give you information they think you want to hear to get you to stop. if they're lying and you kill them, you've just wasted a bunch of time and a resource you can't get back. better to have two parties. separate them. rough them up enough that they know you could do worse, and you know what type of pain they most respond to. ask them the same question and make it clear their buddy better answer the same way.

if you don't have a buddy for the cross-checking, don't worry. she'll have found some other way to test or verify that you're telling her the truth. lying to her never ends well, and she'll know if you are.

if they're a lone wolf and have nothing to lose? or just that stubborn? you're better off just removing them from the board and finding the information yourself. they'll just slow you down. GWYN kind of like nyxram in the spying department, and then it just... HEAVILY depends on the situation and context.

like i said in a previous ask, she's likely to linger around you and get an idea of what social things you respond positively and negatively to. the game's started long before she actually approaches you and makes her presence known. gwyn's learned that people will willingly give you all SORTS of information if you prompt them in the right ways, pay attention, look for connections, and get their guard down low enough. sometimes they'll get so comfortable, they'll perform actions that should be more private almost subconsciously: they'll open things around you, reveal pin codes or phone passwords, door codes, key locations, back entrances, small details about the area--all kinds of information you can collect passively and potentially use later. relying on her charisma and ability to mold herself into someone you're comfortable around is her 'default' approach, but she will resort to violence if she decides it becomes necessary (this is usually in a situation where she already feels backed into a corner, so to speak).

she's also not above getting close to you to get something she wants. if she's trying to get information or a resource out of you, and you seem remotely attracted to her? she's leaning into that. sometimes... there IS some sincerity in wanting that company; she was outcast from her community since birth, and her twin sister was the only real friend or companion she ever had. even if she has an ulterior motive for why she might start getting close to you... it's... nice. to feel desired and wanted. she's had a handful of relationships throughout her travels, some flings entirely for convenience and some that ran the risk of becoming more. but the inevitable 'backstabbing' has gone both ways, so. this is always a dangerous game to play. gwyn's going to do whatever she feels like she needs to in order to keep surviving and get closer to finding what she wants. methods and results vary.

ASH highly unlikely to be in this position since 99% of the time, gwyn's the one who does the talking and ash continues to play the role of an inanimate object.

in her youth, she was sometimes good at manipulating her parents, neighbors, and the druids through good behavior in order to get extra lessons or resources that she could share with gwyn in secret, but... she's obviously very out of practice when it comes to socialization thanks to the whole "being trapped in a weapon" thing.

[redstringraven]

For Cassia: 3, 8, 11! And for Nyxram: 1, 6, 11!

<:D!! AAAAA thank you so much!

Secret Ask List

-------------------- .: • CASSIA --------------------

3) what song describes your oc?

cassia is one of those ocs where the music i find for her playlist is almost all vibes and not really based on lyrics. it's the energy of the music, the way it makes you wanna move or bob or sing along. that being said: "rage" by hyper crush and "joyride" by kesha immediately make me think of her. lyrically, "i love it" by icona pop might be a good fit.

8) what hobbies does your oc have? what do they do to unwind?

cassia's major hobby is rollerskating! but she's also super into street art, and she enjoys beautifying her favorite areas of new york in a manner of silly or meaningful ways. when she's at home, she also enjoys random doodling--mostly ideas for graffiti or future street art--learning dances from her favorite music videos, and playing a variety of video games.

11) what was your inspiration for your oc?

i distinctly remember driving to my local movie trading company to see if they had any physical dvds for tmnt'03, and "girlfriend" by avril lavigne came on spotify shuffle. for whatever reason, i got the image of a pink-haired girl in rollerskates, and she wouldn't leave my head. cassia's my first tmnt oc, and i think she was always meant to be kind of like april in that she's a grounding presence in their otherwise chaotic lives. despite how high-energy and mischievous she is, she's extremely stable and does regularly go to therapy, which has made her more thoughtful and aware of others along with herself. her biggest conflicts come from being an out trans-girl in the 90s and early 2000s, but none of it is tied to her immediate family (her parents ADORE her). she is, for the most part, about as ''''average'''' a civilian in the tmnt'03 world as you can get. i dunno! i think i kind of just wanted to give them all another anchor of sorts, another safe haven. cassia's parents, oliver and esme, also become guardian figures to the turtles in a sense (especially mikey). esme loves to mother them.

-------------------- .: • NYXRAM ----------------------------

1) does your oc have a voice claim, if so who?

god yes. nyx's voice claim is shohreh aghdashloo. the moment i heard her as enforcer grayson in arcane, i pointed at the screen and muttered: "you". as someone who's very picky about these sorts of things i seriously feel like it was gift-wrapped to me. >xD shohreh also provides the voice for the dragon in damsel, which is a dumb as hell movie but i will continue to listen to it for the sake of hearing her talk.

6) if your oc is in a fantasy setting, what profession would they be in the modern day?

kind of a weird question, since 'modern day' implies that this is more a difference in time period? e-e;; i imagine she'd likely still have assassin roots, but. after the rebellion succeeds, the republic begins to rebuild, and the games are disbanded, nyxram takes it upon herself to use her family's "estate" as a sanctuary for the animals used in the games, since most of them can't be returned to their natural habitats due to injuries and/or being raised in captivity. so! i think a potential "modern day" or "human" profession for her might be owning and managing something like an old friends senior dogs sanctuary. providing housing, love, and comfort for older animals when most folks want younger pets, and ensuring that their last few years are happy and safe. she's taken so much life, so... it feels like giving back, in a way.

11) what was your inspiration for your oc?

@/plantdonut doesn't live with me (alas), but if she did, i would have turned to her during our '03 rewatch a few years ago and asked, bluntly, "why do all the triceratons gotta be dudes? where're my giant, amazon warrior dinosaurs?". and within a few days, i was practicing my hand at drawing triceratons, so i could make it so. my two major points of inspiration for nyx come from cassandra cain (2nd batgirl, pre-new52) and john wick. cassandra for being... basically born and bred to be the perfect assassin, only to have 'too much' compassion and love and guilt and go hero instead, and john wick for being a 'baba yaga' to anyone who knows his name. not the boogeyman, but the one you send to kill the boogeyman. the idea of a triceraton assassin was very cool to me, given that they're often a straight-forward, loud, and blunt force to face with little concern for being subtle. it also draws an interesting connection to her and the turtles; at some point nyx comments that despite their practice being tied to assassins such as herself, any blood on their hands comes from self-defense. in some ways, she envies them. but in many more, she doesn't. she's the sole survivor of her clutch, and the only one of her siblings to 'earn' a name. she was, in a way, a political move--a gift/tool offered to the prime leader to ensure that her parents had a connection to power and could continue their own work with protection from punishment. ...they just didn't expect for her to want something else. since the triceratons seem to have a handful of 'nods' and aesthetics pointing toward the roman empire, i named nyxram after the greek goddess 'nyx', the personification and substance of night. i also specifically use greek spelling with her, whereas her parents will have roman spelling of their names to further emphasize her 'otherness' from triceraton society as a whole.

[redstringraven]

26) What flower do you associate your OC with?

<:D ! thank you!

Secret Ask List

26) what flower do you associate your oc with?

• cassia the sunflower comes to mind first, due to its "always facing toward the light" nature and its general association to positive energies and optimism! but i'd also associate her with daffodils, since they're tied to rebirth/new beginnings, creativity and resilience. • nyxram i've kind of answered this for her in the past! but definitely the purple hyacinth, begonias, red dahlia, orange lilies, marigolds, and/or wolfsbane. they all have ties to regret, sorrow, pleas for forgiveness, and also foreshadowed betrayal. • gwyn tbh, i less associate gwyn with flowers and more associate her with trees, in which case i'd choose either birch trees or rowan trees. but for the sake of sticking to more floral things: forget-me-nots, hollyhock, sea thrift or irish moss. both forget-me-nots and hollyhock are said to belong to the good people, making it bad luck to bring into your home. sea thrift is tough and stubborn, and irish moss isn't a true moss, rather a plant that resembles it, which i think speaks to gwyn's social-chameleon habits and the loss/sacrifice of her own identity for the sake of survival. • ash chamomile, foxgloves, yellow iris, white water lilies. chamomile was associated by druids to life-giving forces, foxgloves were believed to belong to the good people, the iris has connections to the goddess brigid, and white water lilies are found in still or slow moving water. i find myself associating ash to water quite often, and these are sometimes called duilleagbhaite bhan (the white leaf of drowning) or ruamalach (beacon or warning).

[redstringraven]

OC question for you! Is there an item, belief, or person that your OCs refuse to (or struggle with) leave behind? Does this have a positive or negative impact on them, either long or short term?

(And why do they hold onto it so strongly?)

<:D!! aaa THANK YOU!! omg, this is a great question.

---*---

CASSIA while she's not usually one to hold onto things, i know for a fact cassia carries a strong and bitter grudge toward her mom's side of the family--specifically her maternal grandparents and one of her two aunts. i'd mentioned previously that esme's side of the family didn't accept cassia's transition, but that's not the heart of the reason for her grudge. their rejection was more a general final straw and lead to their estrangement (also they would have been estranged regardless, if they hadn't accepted cassia for who she is ofc, just to clarify; i just mean to say shit was already stacked up).

esme struggles with high anxiety. where cassia is loud and energetic and loves being the center of attention, esme has always been soft-spoken, a bit timid, and tries to take up as little space in a room as possible. much of this behavior can be attributed to the environment she was raised in.

while esme (and oliver) haven't provided cassia with heavy details--your child can support you, but it isn't their responsibility to carry your burdens--she knows enough to understand why esme's demeanor would change during certain family visits.

cassia will sometimes commit petty acts of '''violence''', such as signing up to junkmail newsletters with her aunt and grandparents' email addresses, or prank calling their house before caller ID was a thing, or a variety of other harmless--but extremely annoying--"pranks". she mostly only does this when she's in a low place, herself, and she doesn't talk about it to much of anyone outside her therapist (because she knows her parents would gently chide her). it's her dirty little secret. wouldn't surprise me if she has some kind of burn book somewhere in her room specifically for them.

NYXRAM nyx is not a person to hold onto things, be them grudges or material items. if something's becoming dead weight she lets it go.

there is, however, one exception.

i've mentioned nyx was the only survivor of her clutch. she doesn't remember most of her siblings, but she does remember her brother. for dozens of cycles in her youth, the two of them trained together. they had a complicated relationship; there were moments of competition and resentment, but there were also moments of silent support. until the day came that their parents decided it was time for that first kill to be made. nyxram's first kill was her brother and last remaining sibling. he never earned a name.

i'm not sure if "haunted" is the right word, but nyxram seems to believe her brother is still with her in some way. she refers to him as a feeling she gets--almost a sixth-sense-like impulse that alerts her to approaching/unseen danger and keeps her alive when something should have gotten the jump on her. whether she considers this a blessing or more of a curse depends on the day. she got to live that day, so she's going to keep living... whether she wants to or not.

for a long time, she kept the knife she used to kill him. but when traximus goes to mourn tilus and leaves a spear at his grave, nyxram leaves the knife. i wouldn't say she's left her brother, or the associated tangle of complicated emotions, behind. but it is a first step to allowing herself some kind of peace.

GWYN it's a cop-out answer, but i feel like i have to say ash, given this is a point of argument between them throughout their journey.

ash considers herself dead, as i've mentioned, and has come to peace with it as well as the idea that she may be a literal weapon for the rest of her sentience. she often wishes gwyn would move on and live for herself, rather than continue risking her life for what ash considers an unreachable goal. but gwyn won't, or can't, let her go.

darach has tried the tactic of "look at the trail of pain and misery you've left behind--all these people hurt, the sense of security in their lives forever tainted; it would all end if you just surrendered her to me".

and like... gwyn knows he's right. he'd stop pursuing her, the "ripple effect" of her presence on any world would vanish and people around her--regardless of their involvement--would stop suffering. but... whether you call it loyalty or selfishness, she won't let ash go.

now she's landed in new york. and the ripple is starting to spread.

ASH again, a bit of a cop-out answer but if i were going to provide any answer, it'd be gwyn. ash will absolutely use whatever little bit of power she has to keep gwyn alive. outside of that, though... she's at peace with the fact she's "dead". she doesn't hold on to much else.

[redstringraven]

in the name of the moon, we will steal unclaimed pizza! ✨🌙🌸

doing a couple updated pride pieces! this time with headcanons for the boys. no idea if i'll be able to get all of them done before the end of the month BUT. shall try. u-u!! first up: cassia and michael.

[redstringraven]

cozy in bed

this post crossed my dash, and i wanted to answer for my ocs! this, as expected, got a bit long, so m'just gonna dive in!

—*—

.: cassia

do they sleep in a bed or in something else?

a bed! she has her own room in a small, two-bedroom apartment; her parents have the other room.

how many pillows or blankets do they have and/or need?

cassia loves surrounding herself with pillows and cute stuffed animals to either hug at night or make a bit of a 'nest'. she likes the sensation of an enclosed sort of space when she sleeps rather than starfishing out.

what do they wear to bed?

varies! in the summer, she usually sleeps in a comfy t-shirt and gym shorts. in the winter, she has two themed pajama sets that she swaps between. they're warm, soft, and often pink, yellow, or white. she also wears knee-high, colorful socks in the winter and likes to have silly slippers around the apartment. hello-kitty or totoro themed--something like that.

do they sleep well?

most of the time! cassia has bad dreams here and there like your average person, but for the most part the only real interruptions to her sleep are self-imposed all-nighters for one silly reason or another. like... learning the entire dance routine to a music video or video games or a movie marathon. after the triceraton invasion, however, she does have more frequent stress dreams and nightmares. especially when her dad is traveling.

do they share a bed with anyone?

not usually. but after the triceraton invasion she sometimes struggles with stress dreams or anxieties about her dad being so far away. on these nights she'll sleep in her mom's room alongside her, or she and esme will build a little blanket fort in the living room and sleep in there together. there were also a few nights following the invasion where she and her parents would sleep in the same room. just... all wanting to be in arm's reach of each other should something else happen, more or less.

do they chill in bed often or do they just use it for sleeping?

fifty-fifty! cassia's a bit of a floor gremlin--she likes to sit on her floor when she spends time in her room--but she definitely uses her bed as a space for chilling. kind of varies with the activity she's doing. video games or painting her nails are more likely floor activities; reading comic books or talking on the phone/shell-cell are bed activities.

—*—

.: nyxram

do they sleep in a bed or in something else?

it's a bed, yes, but it's about as bare-minimum of a bed as you can get. it's used for sleeping and nothing else. nyx has a handful of hideouts and rotates where she sleeps, but all 'beds' are relatively the same: simple, have what's needed, and plain.

how many pillows or blankets do they have and/or need?

i personally picture triceraton 'beds' being more a carved out circle in the floor than a raised piece of furniture, since their frill would lead to them sleeping more on their stomachs or sides. pillows, if any, are likely used to line the 'walls' of the bed or 'texture' the mattress so it's higher/more supported in some places and lower in others. that all being said: the bare-minimum again. she has what she needs and nothing more.

what do they wear to bed?

whatever she's currently wearing, honestly. nyxram does have civvies, but, since sleeping puts you in a vulnerable state, she'd be more likely to sleep in most of her armor even if her designated sleeping locations are secure. if, for some reason, she has to sleep somewhere that ISN'T one of her hideouts, best believe she'll be napping in full armor. weapons included.

do they sleep well?

most nights, yes. by the time she sleeps, she's tired enough that she doesn't dream and remains asleep unless disturbed. there is one reoccurring nightmare, however, that surfaces once in a blue moon, and after it does she can't fall back asleep.

do they share a bed with anyone?

no. absolutely not.

do they chill in bed often or do they just use it for sleeping?

the bed is for sleep only.

—*—

.: gwyn

do they sleep in a bed or in something else?

she's always on the run and, therefore, doesn't have a bed nor home to call her own. she catches sleep where she can and when she feels like it's safe enough to close her eyes, let ash 'take watch'. sleeping locations can vary from trees, naps on public transport, alleys, abandoned structures--whatever she can find, whenever she feels just secure enough to grab it. after coming to earth and eventually befriending the turtles, she sleeps on a cot set up for her in the reservoir station.

how many pillows or blankets do they have and/or need?

after befriending the turtles, she has two pillows and two blankets. she normally only uses one of the latter, as liáfsians are used to cooler climates. the chill of the station is familiar to her, in a sense.

what do they wear to bed?

gwyn doesn't have clothes aside from those already 'on her back', as she can't afford to carry more while traveling and discards anything she can no longer wear. she sleeps fully dressed, footwear included (just in case she needs to wake and run). after befriending the turtles, casey and april pitch in to provide her with more clothes. over the years, she slowly eases into sleeping in boxers, then boxers and either a large t-shirt or hoodie.

do they sleep well?

no. gwyn's not only an extremely light sleeper most of the time, but when she does manage to fall into heavier sleeps she's prone to spells of severe night terrors and sleep paralysis. the turtles found out about the former after she'd been staying with them for a while, and she'd wake them up in the midst of a night terror. it wouldn't be until after gwyn and raph started dating and sharing sleeping spaces that they'd learn about the latter. raph's snoring acts kind of like an 'anchor' point for gwyn, too; they find she's slightly less prone to sleep paralysis when sleeping near him and much less prone to night terrors. raph also develops a few 'routines' to go through when she wakes up with sleep paralysis to make it manageable and less panicked until she can come out of it. after a while--should they not be able to sleep in the same space for some reason--gwyn starts to find it harder to sleep without him around. sometimes the CD with whale songs that min-ji gave her helps. other times, she just won't sleep.

do they share a bed with anyone?

as kids, she and ash near always shared a bed. presently, if you count the fact that gwyn always sleeps with her sheath on where ash has taken the form of a small dagger, then she still 'shares a bed with ash'. otherwise: no. sometimes after a night terror, however, she'll bunk in the room of whichever turtle (or splinter) kept an eye on her while she was wandering the lair. this is most often don or raph, since they have the least consistent sleep schedules in the family, but mikey and leo have extended their rooms to her as well. after she and raph start dating, they slowly go from just sharing the same napping spaces to then sharing the same sleep spaces. this usually turns out to be raph's room, as he loves his hammock and gwyn comes to find a lot of comfort in the hammock as well.

do they chill in bed often or do they just use it for sleeping?

since gwyn's spent a long stretch of time without having a bed of her own--before she befriended the turtles--she's not really used to using a bed for anything except sleeping. that being said, however, she does sometimes relax in her cot when drawing, talking to ash, or if she finds klunk taking a nap there, she'll join him.

—*—

.: ash

presently: her spirit is trapped in the soul gem powering a shapeshifting weapon. since she no longer has a physical body, she can't and doesn't sleep. this will change... someday. ...eventually.