#✧*∙ ❛ PONDERING PROMPTS / ( memes )

[blackjackkent]

Prompt fill for @astreamofstars from this ask for this prompt meme. Karlach - "It is my fault, I think, that you have forgotten to fear me."

-----

“Oy, who’s the glowy bitch by the door, then?”

Karlach knows better than to bother looking up when the fresh-meat greataxe grunt starts talking, down the barracks a ways. This shit isn’t new. They always like to talk, the new arrivals to Zariel's army. And as soon as they see Karlach, no other topic will do.

Fair play enough, after all; she does kinda stick out. There's nobody else like her in the platoon, or in the whole army. In the eight years she’s been here, nobody else has ever gotten the tin can stuck into them and survived. She’s special, as Zariel likes to assure her, though special has never bought her anything but more blood and death - and the attention of every ignot who want to pick a fight.

Today’s mouthy prick is a draegloth, which explains why he’s talking a big game. A dogskull’s almost as unique as Karlach is around here; makes sense he’d pick out a target fast before anyone can pick him out for an asskicking.

“Oh, that? That's Cliffgate,” says another voice. This one Karlach recognizes - Namtar, a cambion, one of the platoon sergeants. He and Karlach have butted heads before, because Namtar is a rotten pissant. “Zariel's little kiss-ass. No heart, just an infernal engine in her chest.”

"No way," the draegloth says. "That's the Demonsbane? A ruttin' tief? Not even hellsborn?" He laughs sharply. "Lettin' in all sorts these days, uh?"

Karlach ignores the mocking words, focusing on choking down the tasteless morsels that pass for rations around here. The bunk across from her creaks unhappily as weight hits it.

“They're talkin’ about you, Dart,” Flo says with a nasty grin, settling onto the bed and lounging back against the wall. “Gonna sit here and take it?”

Karlach sighs. She picked up the nickname around her second week in the Hells, and it's never once been meant with kindness. Even Flo says it with a nasty edge, and Flo is the closest thing she has to a friend.

Good reminder, I guess, that no one here really gives a fuck about me, no matter how much I might like to pretend. Even after eight years, she can sometimes, if she squints, convince herself that there's camaraderie here, like there was in Gortash's old crew before he sold her out. But it's vain hope, a desperate attempt to pretend this place isn't rotting her fro the inside out; the illusion never lasts long and always just leaves her feeling lonelier.

"If it's not them, it'll be somebody else," she says noncommittally. "Lemme eat my dinner in peace."

"Nawww..." Flo says, comfortably dismissive. "C'mon, Dart, give us a show. Been too long since we had a proper scrap in here besides the piece in your chest."

Karlach laughs softly in spite of herself. It's a pretty weak pun, but the jokes in Avernus are as bad as the food. "I'm wore out, Flo," she says, shaking her head. "Leave off."

She looks up to find Flo's smile has turned a shade more brittle. "C'mon, now, Dart," she says, and there's a warning note in it now. "Y'know I can't be seen bein' friends with a softy. Give us a show, I said."

The message is loud and clear, as it always is. My friendship is conditional. And you'll do as I say, 'cos you *don't* want to be my enemy. Now dance.

Karlach huffs out a weary, flame-hot breath and tosses aside the last bit of her ration pack uneaten. With a groan, she pushes herself to her feet and strides down the barracks corridor towards Namtar and the draegloth.

"Hey, there she is." Namtar looks up with a lazy grin as she approaches. He's flopped on his bunk with his boots off, his wings furled neatly under him and feet up on a stack of equipment piled at the foot of the bed. "How's tricks, Dart?" Before Karlach can respond, he shoots a conspiratorial glance at the young dogskull. "Y'know why we call her Dart, Markos?"

The draegloth -- Markos -- looks puzzled. "Why?" he asks.

"Dumb-Ass Rusty Toaster." Namtar brays with laughter so hard it shakes the bed a little. "Fits, too, cos all she's good for is throwing at things t' poke holes in them."

Markos snickers loudly. Several more of the platoon have picked up on the conversation; smelling blood in the water, they've started to circle up, leaned casually against the walls or peering over the edge of their bunks. Some of them are grinning, enjoying watching the Demonsbane get a dunking. Others - the smart ones - are eyeing Karlach warily. She hasn't said anything yet, but her eyes are smoldering. In spite of herself, the rage is building. 

She doesn't want to fight them. She never has. She's always been loyal, and even in this bitch of a place, even under Zariel's thumb, she'd have fought hard for anyone here who wanted to fight for her in return. But that's never made the slightest bit of difference, because everyone here is a fucking tosser.

Hells. Maybe, when you come right down to it, so am I.

And that, really, is what enrages her, far more than these empty little insults.

"Y'know," she says slowly, looking the draegloth up and down. "I expect this sort of crap from the fresh meat. A mouth spewing shit 'cos you haven't learned to shut the fuck up yet. But you--" She turns her gaze slowly and deliberately to the sergeant. "Eight years it's been, Namtar, and neither of us dead yet, so you'd think you'd have figured out not to mess with me." She lets a slow, feral grin curl across her lips, and there's a ripple of anticipatory mumbling from the gathering crowd around them. "My fault, I guess, that you've forgotten to be scared of me. But I can fix that."

She moves suddenly, with no windup, her fists and feet all shifting at once. Her left fist crashes into Markos's jaw, knocking him back into the steel frame of the bed behind him; his skull ricochets off it with a metallic whingggg as his skull ricochets off the metal. With her left foot, she kicks behind his knee while he's unbalanced and fully flips him sideways. As he bounces back from the bedframe, he goes careening onto his front, his nose crunching into the stone floor.

Meanwhile, her other hand grabs Namtar by the collar and drags him out of his bunk. He has almost two inches on her, but she lifts him with ease one-armed, the engine roaring in her chest and sending energy coursing through her bicep. Spinning out of the kick at Markos, she slams Namtar into the wall, then releases her grip for a split second, only to refix it tightly around his throat before he can fall.

All of the cambion's bravado has vanished. His eyes are wide and brilliant white in the dark red of his face and he squirms ineffectually against Karlach's implacable grip. His wings, crunched between his back and the wall, struggle feebly. "Oy! Let me go!" he bleats, gripping her hand with both of his and trying to pull it away.

She glares at him. "Maybe. If you want to grovel a bit. Otherwise I'll finally just kill you. Maybe everyone else would finally get it through their thick skulls that you don't mess with me."

He sneers in an attempt at disdain, though it's considerably weakened by the fact that he's now struggling to breathe. "You wouldn't dare."

She laughs humorlessly and leans forward until her nose is nearly touching his, so he can feel the heat radiating off her body and see nothing but the exhausted fury in her eyes. "That really a chance you wanna take, sergeant?"

He hesitates, balanced between his anger and his fear. But something he sees in her eyes must convince him, because the fear wins. "Sorry," he mutters.

"What was that?" she asks coolly. "Didn't hear you."

"I'm sorry," he snaps. "Now let me go."

She could drag it out further, but the whole situation feels sticky as hot tar on her skin, burning down into her bones. Gods, I hate this. I hate all of it. I don’t want to be this thing they’ve made me, but I don’t know how to stop.

She releases his throat with a jerk, letting him slide down the wall to the floor, where he sits clutching at his neck and wheezing. Markos, nearby, is out cold where he hit the floor.

"Good," she mutters. "Just... stay there and shut the fuck up." She doesn't wait to hear what the other gathered soldiers might have to say, but turns and stalks away back down the row of beds towards the other end of the barracks. 

Flo gives her a slow clap as she returns to her bunk, grinning unpleasantly from ear to ear. "Nice one. Damn good show, Dart, just as I asked."

"Shut up," Karlach answers, tossing herself facedown onto her mattress. The engine is still running hot, surging pain through her chest and her head and her arms with the slow letdown of adrenaline; she can smell it searing a scorched mark into the bedsheets. "You too - just... just shut up and leave me alone.”

[casyawn]

serious yet embarrassing question. do we need to start up an iwtv kink meme like in the olden days. iwtv is such a horny show ripe for the most fucked up weird fic yet i feel like the fandom is holding back somewhat. do we need to bring anonymity into the picture to get the real sickos out here

[h3lfaerie]

𝕊𝕒𝕝𝕦𝕥𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤 𝔾𝕒𝕟𝕘!

You may know me as Helfaerie (Hel or Fae for short), and I am a freelance performing artist with a deep love for HTTYD.

When I'm not on set and/or tryna' figure my life out I am writing this behemoth of a project called Path of Alfheim which you can find on the coveted AO3.

ℙ𝕒𝕥𝕙 𝕠𝕗 𝔸𝕝𝕗𝕙𝕖𝕚𝕞 𝕚𝕤 𝕒 𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕞 ℍ𝕚𝕔𝕔𝕦𝕡 𝕏 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕗𝕒𝕟𝕗𝕚𝕔𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟.

It features a compelling story deeply inspired by Norse Religion and Lore, where Hiccup Haddock, following two years after the death of his father, is forced to cross paths with the elusive and deadly FMC (You!)

This fanfiction is highly explicit: violence, horror, gore, tragedy, sex, death, the likes.

𝕀𝕟 𝕠𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕤, 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕞𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝕄𝔻ℕ𝕀.

I respectfully ask that you do not interact with me if you're under eighteen. I don't feel comfortable discussing my work with you.

𝕋𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕜 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕚𝕟 𝕒𝕕𝕧𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕖.

-> As of now due to the size of this project (with Fic 2 already in the works) Path of Alfheim is my only fanfiction. This blog features additional content based around the storyline, as well as general HTTYD whimsy!

Hashtag guide:

(All tags listed here are also featured in the Search Bar)

1. #PoA Art -> Features Artworks created by Readers for Readers! By far my favourite branch of this page. Thank you to everyone who has contributed!

2. #FMC Art -> Features Artworks depicting the elusive protagonist, yourself!

3. #PoA Animation -> I legit still can't wrap my head around the fact that someone sat down and animated stuff frame by frame for this fic.

4. #PoA Audio -> Immersive sound bites that feature either voice acting or other types of auditory content.

5. #HTTYD Whimsy -> Memes and whimsy in relation to PoA and/or general HTTYD content.

6. #HTTYD General -> Pretty self-explanatory <3

7. #Progress Update -> Features posts about recent edits, announcements, and updates.

8. #Music -> Features songs I have accumulated for Path of Alfheim. Alternatively now you can go listen to the Path of Alfheim Playlist!

9. #Concept Art -> Think of this as a compilation of visuals I've used for inspiration while writing. Or any art I've come across that is reminiscent of the universe in some way. A Pinterest Board is in the works! (You may find additional visuals in the End Notes under each Chapter.)

10. #PoA Asks -> Features any Terror Mail you've sent me (and I encourage you to do so btw).

11. #Poll -> This is where post general discussions and interesting questions for you to ponder on. You can also greatly help me with writing the fic by answering these polls!

12. #Writing Prompt -> Think of this as a sneak peak into my notes! I have far too many and there is no guarantee which bits will actually make it in the fic.

13. #Resources -> Here's one for my fellow HTTYD fanfic writers! This tag features things like an interactive version of Hiccup's Map, Viking History Facts, and Nordic Folklore.

14. Finally we have the off tags like #General Fanfiction (Fanfic stuff unrelated to PoA), and #Rant (where I complain).

Thank you for the love and support you've shown to my work!

[tuhhadkeryo]

C2 with hacker for the "i'm so f*cking done" meme? if you want :3

A bit more loosely based on the prompt but I love this one nonetheless. A scene from my most recent addition in my fanfic story/collection of stories, Hacker ponders suppressed feelings and copes over ice cream.

[carrotcakecrumble]

The Charioteer tag game: thanks for the tag!!! I’m so sorry i can’t find who tagged me originally it’s been so LONG but im very grateful this was very fun

1. "He would not fucking say that" only they did and it's canon. When/who?

im sorry but the way Laurie reacts to Gyp’s death girls like. where’s your drama gone girl. your energy, your passion, your over-thinking and over-the-top displays of emotion?????

2. Did they kiss in the study? Yes/no + why you are 100% correct about this.

Ok yes but no but also yes? but also no. but also YES and also no but maybe yes but definitely no except yes?

(Basically i like both the idea that Laurie leaned away and also that girlfriend leant IN, i think Ralph’s reaction makes sense for both right? and i like the implication both outcomes would have throughout the book equally 💅)

3. Mandatory question about Ralph's alleged tattoos.

YES and so much yes i wrote a fic about it. I would also like to add that he definitely has a trampstamp. Can’t say of what at this point in time but let me ponder for a little while

4. 53 vs 59 edition: quote a line or paragraph that is better in the edition you like the least.

Ok so five minutes ago i would have said no clue, but I’ve just seen that bitchery (59) vs cattiness (53) thing and sorry but bitchery goes so hard. Alec’s catty, laurie is bitchy. there’s a difference.

5. Which TC character would feel right at home here on tumblr dot com?

Someone said Sandy and yes definitely Sandy one hundred million percent.

6. Tag yourself at Alec's birthday party.

The ‘is it a queer book?’ guy like CMON. Maybe also Alec’s mystery sandwich, not gonna elaborate. oh and you know how Harry turns up late, embarrasseshimself a bit and then leaves? yeah me too.

7. Post a TC meme: im sorry but this is still the best thing I’ve ever made, i know no one else likes it but the thing is. i find myself really entertaining and clever and funny so.

8. Easy to talk about who deserved better. Who deserved worse?

Ok girls you’re gonna hate me for this and i even hate myself for this but ,, we ever gonna talk about how Reg was one laurie-sticking-his-nose-in away from going and killing a man? and maybe Madge?????? Wasn’t that implied??? some anger-therapy is needed atleast

9. You can break the fourth wall (at any point in the novel) and say a single sentence to our protagonist, Laurie Odell. What do you say?

LOOSEN UP GIRL PLEASE. I BEG. JUST A MILIMETRE LESS UPTIGHT PLE ASEEE I PROMISE LIFE WILL BE SO MUCH MORE FUN. and i wouldn’t say it at a specific point but rather just gently prompt it throughout the entire novel very frequently when he starts to become unbearable

10. What's a question you have about TC? One you haven't found an answer for yet.

HOW DOES RALPH KNOW WHAT HAZEL’S UP TO. DO THEY KEEP IN TOUCH? AND WHY? AND SINCE WHEN? AND HOW?

[timebegins-onopeningday]

Question: when do you want the prompt meme open?

Hello everyone! I was pondering the nature of baseball fandom, as is normal to do in the middle of a random Sunday, and was thinking of opening this year's prompt meme at the start of the season and closing it around the end of postseason, with soft deadlines in between and a hard deadline at the end of the year. The schedule would that it opens on March 28th and closes sometime in November.

How does that make you all feel? Please vote and tell your friends:

Why do this? Well, some of the narratives to come out of this year's preseason are absolutely bugfuck. In addition, towards the end of last season, well after the prompt meme closed, there were some bananas narratives that we did not get to engage with and players were traded or walked, so inspiration kind of fizzled. I'm trying to think of a way to include the full breadth and scope of a season, while also acknowledging that this fandom is quite small.

Let me know! Thank you 🙇🙇

[enruiinas]

        Between talking to new people over the meme call & the prompted starter call today (+ the usual side-ooc ranting), I just have to say I can't tell y'all how much I enjoy the ooc picking each other's brains on our stance on things for our muses. I haven't started writing on my multi yet, but even just getting to vaguely talk about or start pondering things for the muses I'm planning to write there has been SO MUCH fun and gotten me so excited about them. I love passing thoughts like that turning into entire chains of thoughts that become headcanons and snowball into more and more understanding of the muses.

        So yes, I will use this excited babble to implore you all to please feel free to send in any hc prompts, random asks (anon or not) about things, or even just drop into my DMs or discord if you want to see how my muse(s) feel or think about certain things for ongoing or potential interactions! I love these convos!

[purlturtle]

Spring, sand, fire

Thank you for these!! (from this ask meme)

Spring: Have you ever scrapped (a huge chunk of) a story to start over?  Why did the change come about?

Still pondering scrapping a large part of my pirate story (yes, I'm still working on that!), because I'm a bit mired in how I want to resolve the plot. If/when I do, though, I'll keep the old version around (that's what adding V2 to the file name is all about!), just to be on the safe side!

Sand: What’s the softest scene you’ve ever written?

I've written a whole series of soft prompt fills and all of them would qualify, I think. Trying to think whether any one scene from any of my other fics could fall under this, but coming up blank, I'm sorry to say. I do try to write gentle moments wherever they fit, but it's not necessarily a focus or goal. It's often connected to a bit of whump, though!

Fire: What’s a scene that you are dying to write?

Oh god so many of them. Regency!Myka trying on clothes that Helena suggested and being all insecure about how well she looks in them, and only really believing they look good on her when her sister Tracy barges in and off-handedly says something like "who knew that you could look good in that kind of garment" - the first one that springs to mind!

Thanks for the questions! I'd love to delve deeper, but my hands are still not up to much, so I'm trying to keep it brief.

[espectres]

@1amsong sent: 

"The relationship between a father and his daughter is tenuous." FROM ENAAA theyre getting the shittalking session they deserve

[ PROMPTED BUT I CAN'T FIND MEME ] ...  ▬▬▬   accepting !

DRINK TWIRLS BETWEEN ROUGH FINGERS, his oreo milkshake swirling in little waves in its plentifully decorated cup with each little & big step Shou takes. He listens carefully, taking the occasional sips from his drink and the opportunities to chime in with a comment or an opinion or simple affirmations of sympathy. 

" Tenuous ... " He repeats after her, a little bit of contained laughter escaping along. " That's a good word for it. " He says after a while, the word almost sounds new and foreign, but it's a way to describe it for sure. It's been pleasant finding someone who could understand whatever tension is going on with his family, finding someone who could relate to in his bitterness, his perpetual anger, his justified uglier kind of feelings that many would rather ignore or shun upon. 

Eyebrows knit together as he raises the cup to his lips again. And he thinks about airports and an empty home and unsaid goodbyes and the many, many times he had to simply stand his place and endure being left behind, insignificant, small. Even when those eyes so familiar to his spared him a glance, he couldn't feel more disregarded, unimportant, invisible. " Sometimes it's hard to believe we had ... anything to begin with. "

It's hopeless, somewhat. Useless to worry about and ponder over. His father was far off the picture, taken away and no longer capable of causing any more trouble to anyone and especially Shou. But in this profound freedom and safety, away from cruel hands and cruel eyes and crueler words-  Shou misses something, so deeply. And he's never been so afraid to admit something his whole life, even to himself. 

Tch, a bitter chuckle. " Shitty pops, always messing things up for everyone. " 

[aquietwritingcorner]

Thank you all for a wonderful Whumptober!

I enjoyed writing all the stories I put out, and it made me quite happy to see you all enjoy them! I loved every reblog, comment, tag, and like here, and every kudos, bookmark and review over on AO3 and ff.net! Believe me, I look at and read every one of them! They make me quite happy! I promise, I'm slowly getting around to responding to everything!

For the next month, don't expect to see a lot out of me. November is always NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and I'm throwing myself into making that 50k word count! It's my 13th year, and I don't plan to make this year the one I lose!

But I do have some questions for you that you can help me answer during this month. So far all I've posted on this blog are stories and snipets of things I've written on rp blogs. But I would like to interact with you all more.

So. Here's my first question to you. What other things would you like to see on this blog?

Do you want to see headcanons? Analysis of characters, scenes, episodes, etc? Thoughts and ramblings? Small silly scenes that pop in my head? Would you like it if I posted memes where you could ask me questions? Prompt memes? Let you give me ideas? What other things would you like to see?

I would very much like to interact with all of you more. My ask and submit are open, and anon is on for all of you shy people out there. What would you like to see more of that might help with that?

My second question is: Are there any of my stories that you'd like to see more of?

Any you want me to do follow ups on? Any you'd like to see me revisit in an expanded way, with more detail? Any verses you'd like to see me do more writing in?

I can't promise that they'll happen or happen quickly, but interest in them does help fuel the desire to write them!

And, lastly and purely hypothetically at this point: Would you like to see things besides writing from me?

I haven't drawn in forever, but would you like to see art from me? Would you like to see just new art? Would you like to see old art? If I did something else, like, say, if I learned to sew and did something, or painted or something, would you like to see that?

These are questions I've been pondering for a bit. You don't have to have answers to them all, or opinions on them all. You don't have to like any or all of these ideas. I just want to know what you think. Anon is on, and I'd appreciate some feedback.

Thank you! I can't wait to hear from you, and to, hopefully, provide you with more stories! ^_^

--AllyKatie

[chiropteracupola]

fic writer meme

tagged by @sanguinarysanguinity — thank you, this was an interesting one to ponder!

ao3 name: chiroptera_in_the_cupola

fandoms: as writing and interest generally goes, I think the major players currently are and have been Treasure Island, Hornblower, Flight of the Heron, and [one look at the work-in-progress spreadsheet later] uh, I guess Sharpe as well at the moment :]

I do like to pick up other things for a small thing or two, and plan to continue doing so, but I think those first three are the ones that have really captured my interest in a way that supports sustained writing, altho' we'll see how things shake out as time goes on.

number of works: 56, which is really quite a few for only a bit more than two years of actually posting work on ao3!

work I spent the most time on: 'well met, my dear one' went through revisions and periods of abandonment for nearly two years. it was one of the very first Treasure Island fics that I began, but needed to be entirely begun over again from scratch at one point, and so took rather a while even though it's not all that long.

works I spent the least time on: 'make my bed where the bodies lie', 'the king shall dress in gold', and 'the way was carved in ice' were all written in about four or five hours each. it's always lucky when inspiration strikes like that and can carry me all the way through a story in one go, but less lucky for any other things I might have planned on doing that day!

longest fic: 'Nane Shall Ken Where He Is Gane', or, as I've more frequently called it, the Wormsfic — and that's only a third of it so far! oh boy!

shortest fic: 'who's to blame', the very shortest of a series of a few very tiny little micro-fics done as part of a prompt game some years ago.

most hits: 'as in a mirror dimly', my one fic for The Mummy — hm, I think I'd say that that one is mostly on account of the movie itself being a much more well-known thing than many of the other areas I more frequently write in, altho' the central relationship is. shall I simply say unpopular.

most kudos: oddly enough, 'here in your arms is cured', my first Kidnapped fic — hopefully I will someday finish more, that they may be similarly well received!

total word count: 90,380

favorite work of my own: this is one question I can't really answer — a lot of stories are my favorites for very different reasons! but I'll take this space to mention 'Shaking Off Our Shadows', which, since it's for rather an obscure book, I've not discussed much, but I am nonetheless very proud of, among my recent work. Reading The Wolf and the Watchman left me feeling very cold and grimy and sad, and I'm very pleased with the results of attempting to spin a happier ending (and a not-entirely-joking beach vacation) for Cardell and Winge.

fic you want to rewrite / expand on: I've actually already done a rewrite of one that I felt particularly needed a second take with time (that being 'sleep in it slowly (if you can)' / 'Midwinter Thaw', my pair of winter-at-Graçay Hornblower fics) and am in the process of working on another — both of the fics getting done over in this way were written fairly quickly and mostly while I was sick, which left them with some oddnesses that I'm enjoying getting to smooth out in the later versions. and both of these also do happen to be things that I'd like more fic about in general, so I might as well write myself what I'd like to read. some of my earlier Treasure Island fic also could probably do with a revision, since I've grown a lot as a writer (and also as a Person!) in these few years, but that'd take time I don't really feel inclined to use for that right now.

when it comes to expansion and sequels and such, I'd really love to write more in the same continuity as my most recent Sharpe fic (giving the Chosen Men the Monstrous Regiment treatment certainly deserves more time than I've given it thus far!) and I've got a great many more Flintlock Fortress tales in the works as well.

share a bit of a wip or story idea you are planning on:

“Whatever it is is clever — my snares are sprung, but there’s nothing there.” “That’s a man done it then.” “No, there’s only paw-prints, no boot-marks at all. And big ones, too.” He spread his hand to indicate the size, fingers splayed nearly to their full extension. “There’s nothing got paws as big as that, Dan,” said Cooper, with a little less conviction than he’d aimed for.

here's another chunk of my Ladyhawke AU for Sharpe, which has been taking up quite a bit of space in the old braincase these past few days. hopefully I shall manage to make it to the actual meat of the plot soon, altho' I'm also enjoying the sort of shenaniganerous Lads' Miserable Camping Trip of it all thus far!

and hm, I see a lot of the usual suspects have been tagged already — @dxppercxdxver, @kigiom, @bishakespeares, @baronetcoins, @phoenixflames12, would you like to give this game a go?

[damnslippyplanet]

So here's the thing. I'm not actually doing the meme @saturnskyline tagged me in where I concoct a movie featuring me and whoever I've most recently saved a photo of, because I have zero thoughts on the actual topic. The only movie I can conceive of featuring me and any of the rotating cast of Thai BL twinks is one where I sit everyone down for a documentary where we talk about the history and philosophy of Thai BL product placement. The sex bread alone would get a twenty-minute segment.

But I DO want you to all know that I howled with laughter when I saw the prompt. And that is because not ten minutes earlier I had saved a truly egregious photo to my camera roll. Because some friends had decided to introduce me to the Denim Crimes of Gun Atthaphan Phunsawat, and I took one look and went, "Oh. Okay. I am going to forward this crime to three other group chats, the world needs to know about this."

So if I had been tagged half an hour earlier I might have had a semi-normal response to this. As it is, I was forced to open my phone, stare at this photo, and ponder "what...what would that movie be about???"

Please know this photo is now saved as "shirt crimes dot jpeg", and also that I looked this up and it costs fifteen hundred dollars.

[waywardted]

3, 11, and 13 for the fandom asks ❤️

3. a character that fandom has helped you appreciate

Hmm maybe Beard.. not that I didn’t like him or something, but there’s some really great fic and stuff that explores him in a way I probably wouldn’t have on my own.

11. if you're a writer or artist, what fic or piece of art are you proud of making?

This was fun to ponder as I scrolled through my gifsets and there are a lot I’m proud of for different reasons! I’ll pick this one because it was challenging and I think it turned out really cool and conveyed what I wanted it to. I still really love that quote as a way to read all the parallels and soulmatey stuff. Even more agonizing post-finale 🫠

13. your favorite type of fandom event (gift exchange, ship week, secret santa, prompt meme, etc)

Probably secret santa, but any kind of gifting is fun because I like trying to think of something very specific to the likes of my giftee! Also appreciation weeks!

[sharkuda-prompt-meme]

Works are due in one (1) month!

Hello Sharkuda fans, just a reminder that works are due in ONE month, on April 3rd on 9pm PT!

To those of you who have posted already, great job and thank you for your patience while waiting for reveals. To those of you still working, never fear, you have four weeks left!

As a reminder, prompts can be claimed and filled all the way up until the deadline. Plenty of time left to decide what you want to do! Further rules and info here.

Schedule Fics due: April 3 Fics revealed: April 5 Creators revealed: April 8

And finally, I was pondering the nature of the Sharkuda organization and Sharkuda fandom, as one does, and I decided that next I'm opening the prompt meme at the start of preseason and leaving it open until our teams bomb out of the postseason. Why? Because you are all very funny, and we are all very crazed by the Sharks and Barracuda, and it seemed to fulfill an important role in the ecosystem of Sharkuda fandom. Stay tuned for more details later this year.

Good luck creating this month and I'll see you in April 🦈🥒

[hidingoutbackstage]

Bored so I'm gonna talk about color in Goncharov, specifically the color white because omg this is brilliant

I know tumblr just lovesss its color theory memes, but in Goncharov it honestly feels so obvious but the deeper meaning when applied is so fascinating

The most obvious example of this, of course, is Sofia. She's wearing a white jacket and white skirt when we first meet her, she wears a white apron at the cafe she works at, she almost exclusively wears white eyeshadow except for scenes where her face is bare (almost always around Katya👀) the lighter she uses to light her cigarettes is silver with white decals, the dresses she wears are all shades of white or cream, you get the idea.

This is because white represents innocence, and so does Sofia. Sofia is an outsider, she is not part of the mafia, has no associations with them (at a glance but I'll get to that later) and is essentially the "good" girl in this story. Sofia almost always wears white, while Goncharov almost always wears black. It's far from subtle imagery.

Outside of Sofia, there is still a good amount of white throughout. My favorite is the cat that Goncharov encounters on that late night walk pondering what to do after the shootout, it's remarkably quiet, we only really hear footsteps and Goncharov's breaths, and then we hear a cat meow. We then see the white cat as it cautiously approaches Goncharov. It does not run from him in fright. It does not hiss at him. Goncharov does not shoo it away. Innocence is still attracted to Goncharov, and he is fine to welcome it in, as shown when he picks up the cat and does not harm it. It's very deliberate that a street cat is pure white.

Another example is Katya's iconic dress in the ballroom scene. She attends the party, arriving separately from Goncharov, as she just had her conversation with Sofia, the innocence. She is working against Goncharov's wishes and ideals, and her wearing white while he wears a black suit and black tie is more contrasting imagery. Katya desires her freedom, feigns her innocence, while secretly the audience knows about the dagger with the black handle strapped to her thigh.

The only other time Katya wears white is the scene in Sofia's bedroom. She's wearing Sofia's robe, she is allowing herself to give into Sofia and attempts to reclaim her innocence, but like the dress at the party it's just a costume. She takes it off before she leave's Sofia's home. The innocence cannot stay.

Back to Sofia, the boat scene where she is wearing the white dress is of course memorable, doubly so when blood spatters on her face and the dress itself in the confrontation. There is no denying this world from Sofia anymore. She is stained. She wipes the blood off her face and her dress with her hands. Blood is now on her hands. More and more deliberate imagery.

Speaking of, remember what I said about her not being associated with the mafia "at a glance"? Well, as people have suggested, the reason Sofia's parents are dead might be because they were involved in the mafia, and killed, without Sofia's knowledge of their involvement. Goncharov recognizes her when his associate says her last name, and although it prompts him to ask "the waitress at the cafe my wife frequents?" the surprised look of recognition on his face might be because he knew about Sofia's parents and what happened to them. The scene where Sofia mentions her parents being gone, she is applying red lipstick. Red like blood.

My favorite black vs white contrasting imagery is the scene where Sofia confronts Goncharov about his marriage to her best friend. Sofia is once again clothed in white, and Goncharov is dressed in black, except. Sofia is wearing the necklace of black pearls Katya gifted her, and Goncharov is wearing the ivory wristwatch he took from Ice Pick Joe's home. Sofia is showing off the sign of her corruption. Goncharov is presenting proof of his innocence. Neither of them are who they pretend to be. The corruption to their characters is there, but not in full. It's an accessory.

[irisopranta]

For the awkward ask meme: 💬 - Pangolinheart

Awkward Prompts

💬 - Talking to themselves.

After talking with Hancock, Iris decided that a nice soak at the hot springs would be good to clear her mind. her thoughts were consume between the war and dealing with feelings that were said back in Ishgard.

After changing her clothes and washing herself off, she head into the spring. She sat down. The heat from the water made it so she sank down to her shoulders.

"Aymeric, Artoiel, Stephanivien, even Francel." she muttered to herself. "I know I did a lot for Ishgard but wasn't expecting that many people interested in me."

"Boo!" a loud voice shouted. Iris jumped to snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned around to see Taturu. The lalafell sat down right next to her. "Sounds like you got a few things on your mind. Care to share?"

"Y-you didn't hear what I said, d-did you?" Iris knew Taturu heard what she was telling herself and started feeling embarrassed for thinking out loud. She sank down further, where her mouth was cover by the water. She didn't want to talk about it. She hates talking about her love life.

"You knew that I was going to ask. I have heard the rumors you know." Iris gave Taturu an icy stare. "Oh, don't give me that look. Better me than say Alphinaud or Estinien."

Iris sighed, knowing that she has been thoroughly defeated on this subject. She swam towards the rocks that Taturu was sitting on. She got up and hug one of the rocks next to the lalafell. "It's just so complicated. They are all great men. How can I bring myself reject all but one. Sure I could let them down gently but then what." she paused for a second "With Stephanivien and Francel, if I pick one the other might not be all too happy with the relationship. I already dated Artoiel's brother before so that also feels awkward if I go out with him now. Aymeric seems to be perfect but I feel I'd get daggers from any noble lady within 100 feet of me. I know it's such a trife matter in the middle of the war but it does bother me quite a bit." She sighed again.

Taturu gave Iris a few head pats. "Oh Iris, I think you are over thinking the situation. Quite honestly, I think you should be selfish instead of trying to make everyone else happy. What is it that you want?" Iris pondered the question for a moment. What is it that she wanted in a relationship.

Iris pick up her head from the rocks. "You do bring up a good point Taturu. Maybe I should choose I want instead." she stated with a bit of optimism in her tone. It was as though a weight was lifted from her.

Thanks for the ask @pangolinheart. Sorry it took a while.