#Again i have to add that i am not developing this into full au

[acgames]

I'm sorry for being insufferable but I need to know more about your Naruto au 🤣

Is this au a full crossover (could Mira run across Naruto, for example) or just Naruto's world with Assassin's Creed characters in it?

What's the Assassin village like?

What is Mira, Elio and Morrigan's dynamic?

Who's their sensei?

Who's the- uh- Assassinkage, I guess?

Do you have some other teams in mind that can interact with the main trio?

What made Morrigan leave?

What does she think about her fellow Akatsuki members, and who is she paired with?

(I have so many questions, but I'm going to stop here because this is already too much 😂)

Hey, you are never insufferable you know that 😂.

It was just something I had idea to draw, so I wouldn't say it's a full crossover I am going to develop, but I think it would be closer to Naruto universe with AssCreed characters in it, adopted as close as I could from AssCreed and my headcanons.

Yeah, I am glad you noticed they all are from Assassin Village 😂 I think that would be unique Village containing descendands of ancient lineage of Isu (would isu be Otsosuki like alien lineage? Perhaps). Still Assassin village clans share same ancient blood trait they inherited from Ancient Isu, called Eagle Vision, just every clan within Assassin village would most likely developed their own variants and jutsus around it.

Most prominent clans within Assassin village would be Ibn-La'Ahad, Auditore and Kenway. Ibn-La'Ahad clan are clan of strong will, so summoning and sealing are their strenghts, Auditore clan are known for their battle techniques and agility, so they are capable genjutsu users, but also possess most capability with their eagle vision and perfect chakra control, while Kenways have physical strenght and capability to connect with wild life, so they are not only master taijutsu users, they can be perfect spies and shinobis for secret missions.

Mira, Elio and Morrigan have some classic team 7 vibes to me: Mira is energetic and knucklehead of the team, Elio is mostly reserved and studious, while Morrigan has the designated "traitor" of the team (not her fault tho). They get along fine as children, even if there is growing animosity between Mira and Morrigan (typical Naruto/Sasuke style) as they see eachother as competitor (they in general would dislike eachother in any au due to Templar/Assassin conflict)

I think their Sensei would be Connor- Jonin level Shinobi from Kenway clan. Still due to actions of his father, Connor carries great shame and was orphan of the village and sole survivor of Kenway clan. Also I think Connor might be jinchuriki of a Tailed beast as some other characters (Adha for example also was jinchuriki of Tailed Beast).

Assassinkage (🤣) of the village would be Altaïr, the patriarch of Ibn-La'Ahad clan, and Mira is his granddaughter.

My team 7 (Connor as sensei, Mira, Elio and Morrigan) are second to youngest team. Younger than them team are team 8 (Flavia, Marcello, Io:nhiòte with their sensei Arno). Other older them is team 9 (Killian, Iokennó:ron and Kanièn:tara with their sensei Aveline) there also is fellow nomad village of rebel assassins, who are allied with assassin village, who are lead by Aguilar de Nerha too, so they have some of their own teams of genins.

Morrigan left, because her father did. Shay felt his warnings were ignored by Assassinkage, so he took his children and left to join Akatsuki and their leader Haytham Kenway.

Morrigan got to grow up into adult with her fellow Akatsuki members and she natually was paired with her older brother as they both got thier father's training and knew how to work as unit (in my stories too Morrigan and Killian work together, so this one was no brainer). Morrigan trusts Shay's word and Haytham's leadership, though she dislikes other members and feels their goals aren't as noble as her family's.

Sorry if it's too long, but these questions got me developing the au on a whim, while I never meant to, but thank you 😂 it was fun

[vesperaink]

Friends, my necromancer!Tango/grimreaper!Jimmy, Team Rancher modern with magic apocalypse AU, Graveyard Shift, for @mcytblraufest's Reverse Big Bang is here!

But wait there's more--go read chasing crimson written by @aliferous-ly, beta'd by @dibs2win, my fantastic team for aufest. If you love enemies to lovers, unlikely partnerships, and the power of soul-bound magic weapon contracts, this hilarious + dramatic 22.9k fic kicks off from this comic!

chasing crimson

Jimmy Solidarity works for the esteemed god of Death, reaping lost souls and taking care of unsavory characters. He's recently finished his training, and is determined to do well on his first solo mission. Perhaps this "Tango" would be a good start. Only, the god of Death disappeared years ago, and Necromancer Tango Tek's long since discovered a way around dying. He can't say he enjoys Jimmy swinging through and killing him where he stands, though.

Thank you to my team for being as feral about this AU as I am, and kicking everything about it up to 110. I had so much developing this world with them!

Thanks to @onawhimsicot for helping me with the comic's dialogue, fixing my composition woes with "just add more smoke," and encouraging me to complete it in full color! Check out Cadence's aufest fic, I take it back (ill follow till I fly or till im dead), a Cult of the Lamb AU about follower!Tango and Lamb!Zedaph, the meaning of devotion, silly experiments, eldritch transformations, and...the most platonic slowburn ever?

Lastly, thank you to the aufest team for another wonderful event! I had a blast again, and was giggling kicking my feet at everyone's reactions during claims, I loved every single one of them. Graveyard Shift is definitely an AU I'm coming back to. As always, my askbox is open if you'd like to chat, and I'd love to be tagged if anyone makes anything <3

Timelapse / AU art chatter under the cut!

While Graveyard Shift is the amalgamation of many of my interests, the main premise for this AU is loosely inspired by the webcomic, I'm the Grim Reaper, in both its apocalypse themes and its aesthetics! Not a required read, but highly recommend if you enjoy this au, as well as the anime and manga, Soul Eater!

I came up with a lot of AUs for this event but necromancer!Tango and reaper!Jimmy have been rattling around in my brain in separate AUs since before I started brainstorming for aufest. So I smashed them together, naturally.

(Unfortunately I didn't record all of my process, but most of it is here! CW for flashing; song is Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene by Hozier)

I could go on forever about concept art and character design if anyone's curious but here's some fun bonus details about this comic:

Originally, Tango's outfit was going to be more like his Dungeon Master outfit but I wanted the setting to be more modern and Jimmy stole the fantasy cloak vibe from him already lol

Jimmy's entrance of lightning is my nod to the Life Series final death sound

The scarf Jimmy's wearing is designed to be a boneyard shawl

The panel of strange text reads "Protection Three" in Galactic :)

+ The name "Graveyard Shift" was thrown at me by Cadence in like 3 seconds flat after i spent 2 days agonizing over a name for this au LOL

[miserycanary]

MISSION: LOVE KILL  ᡣ𐭩 [trailer]

pairings: Simon 'Ghost' Riley & fem!reader

synopsis: the trailer to my very first full-length series set in a soulmate AU. 

pairings: (applies to future parts) angst, smut, fluff, mutual pining, misunderstandings, rivals to lovers to rivals, featuring Ghost's inability to communicate, graphic mentions of violence, might hint to sexual violence, BARELY PUT TOGETHER, torture, one bed trope, i-will-wait-for-you trope, loving-you-is-like-breathing trope, slowburn (unless I get bored and rush this), poor poor attempt in crack, will add more as we go on

The subtle searing pain on the back of his neck is enough reason for Ghost to hate the idea of soulmates existing. It wasn’t just the fact that he has lived up to his 30s feeling like a fire wasp is buzzing under his skin, it was that the government fully developed their system with pairs in mind. You mean to tell him that he has to have found his partner—who’s probably cities or even continents away—just so that he could fucking own property? Utter fucking bullshit, he calls it. 

‘Nutjobs! The lot of them’

It was also the fact he had to watch his mum’s so-called soulmate almost beat them up to death each day. How could someone whose single purpose in life is to torment them be his mother’s soulmate? Fate either has a weird take on the concept of love and the whole shenanigan or it’s fucking wicked. Either way, the S-word has left a bad taste in his mouth—and memory. He would rather die, not having property—or anything really—to his name if it means that he wouldn’t comply to the fucking standards of pairs. 

Or so he thought because, once again, life is fucking wicked like that. 

When he first broke the news that he would be retiring from the army, he expected his future days ahead full of smooth-sailing lounging. Maybe a cup of tea in hand or even some biscuits if he was feeling fancy. Imagine his shocked face when he inquired with a real-estate agent to finally have something to call home, no longer needing to stay by some cheap hotel with what his little pay could afford, that he cannot fucking do that! 

“Yeah, this would be good. Really nice stuff here,” Ghost gruffs. “Yeah? Well, let’s get started then. Um, here are the paperworks that you need to fill out. Uhh, you just need to input your government code and your partner’s. It is policy that you bring your pair in with you when it comes to legal documents, but I’m sure that we could make an exception for our veteran here,” the agent smiles; one that Ghost did not reciprocate. “I ain’t got a missus with me. Haven’t found them yet.” 

It was a simple explanation, not wanting to dwell too much on his reasons. Before he could even take the papers in his hand, the man retracts. Confusion etched on Ghost’s face while pity is on the man’s. “Oh, I am really sorry but you are legally required to have a partner before you could own property—or anything for that matter.” Ghost looked this agent for a good few minutes, anticipating the ‘sike’ that he desperately wishes to hear but only dead silence echoes. “Surely you could, say, make an except for a veteran?” he nervously chuckles out, trying to weasel his way into a fucking home. Nothing. Dead fucking silence that’s heavy with pity. Ghost loathes it.

Without even saying a word, he turns his back and starts walking towards the car he rented today, because you can’t even own a car in this government! He should have flagged it as weird when the lady in the car shop insists that he should rent first before buying something. So, now he sits in the dingy bar that Soap has dragged him into after he informed the force that he would not be settling anytime soon. After explaining his circumstance, he expected them to react like he did before, but no. They all replied like they knew this. Even saying stuff like, “you didn’t know?” Of course he didn’t! It wasn’t like Ghost was invested in property or anything for that matter while he was serving. All he cared about was surviving each day, and that is it. 

“Aye, cheer up, lad. Life ain’ that bad. Ya’ just gotta get them lassie, and all yer problems would go away,” the Scot on his right drunkenly offers advice—a shit one at that. Did he really think Ghost hasn’t stepped foot on every land they got deployed with heavy hopes that he’ll find whoever he needs to find there? He fucking hates it here. He should have not retired this early if he knew this would happen. Now he needs to go around the world and search for the lassie whose presence—or her lack thereof—is the root of all his problems. 

If finding a needle in a haystack is hard, imagine finding a lady that’s probably moving countries as he speaks with Soap. “Yeah, like that’s fucking easy,” he scoffs, rolling his eyes before lifting his mask just enough to down his shot of whiskey. The fiery burn of the alcohol down his throat is nothing compared to the one on his neck. He would rather have it cut at this point than to go on about this miserable lifetime any longer.

“Should I just cut and peel it off?” he mumbles to no one in particular; probably to Fate if that shit is listening. Seeing that no one else in the rundown bar is really paying attention to him, Soap takes the honour in replying to him instead. “According tae what I’ve seen, jobby pain is hee haw compared tae th' pain ye will feel in yer heart. Doctors say that th' pain goes tae th' heart instead while tripling”. Unprompted, Ghost curses like a fucking sailor. Saying stuff that will probably get him on the government's watchlist if he wasn’t part of the military serving this goddamn country. He risks his life daily and this is what he gets? Ungrateful bastards.

With a slam of the glass on the mahogany table, he stands up with a new profound determination. “Fuck it, I’m finding that missus if it’s the last thing that I do”. “Eyy, that’s the spirit, matie,” Soap drunkenly encourages him, which should have been the first red flag on this idea. Any idea supported by Soap is an immediate botch.

Well, what could go wrong? He’s retired anyway. 

Turns out, many could go wrong. Well, here’s to the fucking shit-show of his life.

꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱: please give this love!!

dividers by @cafekitsune

Please reblog!! Ask is open!

⟢ taglist is open!! @hotvinimon

check out my other works in the masterlist: ୭!

[laura1633]

Fic list and introduction Thought I would add a pinned post as a bit of an intro and also to provide a list of some of my stories (which are contained below the cut). My blog is mostly Lestappen related although I do post other F1 bits and pieces from time to time. I am a huge Max Verstappen fan so I am always happy to talk about Max, although only in a positive sense because I want to try and keep away from negativity as much as possible on this blog. I also adore Charles and not just in a Lestappen sense. I love Charles' racing style and I love it most when Max and Charles are battling on track. There are various other drivers I like such as Oscar, Fernando, Alex and more.

My ao3 name is - LaurawritingF1 I have written far too many stories to list them all here but I have included quite a long list of Lestappen fanfics I have written below the cut. I have tried to organise them into bottom Charles, bottom Max, omegaverse, silly, cute and drama. Feel free to send my any questions you have about any of my stories but please know that I am really still practising and learning so please try and be nice. Also please check the individual tags on each story on ao3 as there is a large variety. It's not a full list and doesn't include the other pairings I have written for (inc Landoscar, Maxiel, Max/Oscar), all my other fics can be found on my ao3 page.

Feel free to send me any questions about anything x

********** Links to various ao3 fics:

Bottom Charles: Good Boy - Multi Chapters - Trainee sub Charles and soft Dom Max. All the gear, no idea - Large cock Max, Size queen Charles. My first time - Virgin Charles. Daddy - Charles accidentally calls Max daddy. Curious - Charles' first experience with rimming. Princess - Max giving Charles the babygirl treatment. Nice Guy - Max comes to Charles' rescue when he is handcuffed to the bed Jealous - Max cuckolds Charles and Charles realises he is jealous of his girlfriend My Pretty Princess - AU -Multi Chapter - F1 driver Max and Camboy Charles. Safe - sub Charles safe words out of a scene, Dom Max gives him aftercare. Two Minutes - Charles tied up and vibes whilst Max is in a meeting. Solo - Charles lets Max watch him masturbate. Keeping warm - Charles cock warming Max to help him relax. Wake up call Charles riding Max whilst the Dutchman is asleep Like a Prayer - Sexy Priest Max and sex in a church I do - Multi Chapters - Angst with happy ending - Sex in a church Save a Bull, Ride a Thigh - Charles rides Max's thighs after a padel game How to properly care for your boyfriend’s thighs; A lesson by Charles Leclerc Red - Angst - Max fucks Charles in front of Charles' boyfriend Two Things - A developing relationship told through sex. No way at all - Max and Charles in a M/M/F threesome but interested in each other.

Bottom Max: Sounds from above - Charles hears Max having sex in the apartment upstairs The Sweetest Deal - AU - Sponsor Charles/Driver Max - Babygirlification Favourite Activity - Developing relationship told through sex 50 shades of red - Charles praises Max and makes him blush Pretty Cute - Charles telling Max how pretty he is The Auction - Dom Charles/sub Max - Charles bids on a night with Max All Yours - Multi chapters - ongoing - Dom Charles/sub Max 5 times Charles helps soothe Max to sleep - inc non sexual bondage Picture perfect - Max and Charles get Grindr Fast learner - Virgin Max Knock Out - Charles walks in on Max masturbating Can't even get it started - Frustration for Charles means he can't perform You play the role so well - Virgin Max Your hands on me - Charles chokes Max as he fucks him Earn it - Bratty sub Max and Dom Charles Late night question - Max is horny so goes to Charles - topping from bottom Pretty in red - A history of Max's experiences wearing panties Still Pretty in Red - Max in panties (again) A not so private show - AU - Camboy Max / Driver Charles Feel nothing. Feel something. Feel .... Charles is upset and needs to fuck it out A Late Night Snack - Charles eats Max out. Sweet like sugar - AU - Sugarbaby Max and Sugar Daddy Charles Other: Misunderstanding - Hand job - Max is oblivious to Charles' flirting with him An outfit fit for a surprise Charles in a crop top and Max masturbating over his waist Practice makes perfect - Max help Charles practice his blow jobs Pens, fingers and most definitely cock … - Max has an oral fixation Fia approved stress relief - Charles uses a sex doll that looks like Max, Max watches You're Hot - Charles praising Max in front of the mirror and giving him a blow job The Impact of errors - AU - boss Max spanks secretary Charles Red, Don't leave - Max providing Charles with aftercare Coming together - Soulmates - AU Porn start Charles and F1 driver Max Omegaverse Stories - List can be found here Tentacles: Don't touch what isn't yours - Max fucked by a tentacles sex toy Beautiful, unique and made for pleasure - Max has tentacles

Cute: A million times over - Max wakes from an operation and hits on his husband Charles Carburettor - Max and Charles have to look after a baby doll as part of grill the grid Tomato Soup - Max helps Charles prepare for his dinner date. Compliments -Max'f girlfriend never compliments him but Charles does. Falling in love - Love Confessions through a game involving a series of questions Just Pretend - Fake relationship trope - Angst with a happy ending A Different Kind of Hook up - Max asks Charles back to his to cuddle Caregiver Charles and Cute Little Max - Fluff - Multi chapters- Age regression

Silly: Zombies - Max gets scared by a zombie movie whilst at the cinema with Charles Heartbeat - Max is dressed up as a nurse and it's really affecting Charles' health. A shower, a spider and ...- - Max and Charles scared by a spider

Drama: On the line - Angst with happy ending - Charles gets his drink spiked In the morning - Angst with a happy ending - Max gets his drink spiked. Birthday Drunk - Multi Chapters - Falling in love over a series of Charles' birthdays Like a cat - Charles has a panic attack and Max looks after him I wish you could have known the person ... - Angst with happy ending - Coming out Not quite ready - Angst with hopeful ending - Max is outed against his will Drag me to the show - Charles shows Max his dresses - Supportive Max A love song - Angst with hopeful ending- Max comforting a stressed Charles Hitching a ride - Very Dark themes - True Crime AU - Hitchhiker Charles Enough for now - Angst with a happy ending - Max pining for Charles Red and Blue - Soulmates - Asexuality - Angst with happy ending Holding on to you - Charles navigates his relationship with asexual Max

The other Lestappen pairing: Firsts - Multi Chapter - Virgin Arthur - Falling in love - Max/Arthur Leclerc Threesomes/Foursomes/Groups involving Max/Charles: A Handful of Winner's Medals - Multi Chapter - Max fucked by multiple drivers The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Wolff - AU Anatomical model Max - Max x multi drivers An Unconventional Surprise - Top Max, Bottom Pierre, Bottom Charles Sleepover in 816 - Top Charles, Bottom Max, Top/Bottom Oscar Two's company; Three's even better - Pierre/Max/Charles - Free use bottom Max A weekend away - Foursome - Max/Charles/Carlos/Lando Three - Max/Carlos/Charles - Threesome from three perspectives with a twist Both so good - Lando and Charles give Max a blow job The Show - Carlando are stuck in a closet and watch Lestappen fuck Naughty or Nice - Competitive Threesome for Max's attention- Daniel/Max/Charles Double Date - subs Lando and Max with Doms Carlos and Charles A Lot to Handle - Max is too much for Daniel to handle alone - Daniel/Max/Charles A Little Bit of Max Time - Poly Daniel/Max/Charles There are other stories on my ao3 page &lt;3

[amerricanartwork]

Quetzalli on Trafficlights and Birds

Well @toxictoxicities, it has been done! You gave me the chance for me to give my own interpretation on this matter, and I can’t resist chances to add some narrative significance! I decided to make a separate post on it because what I came up with ended up being long (as always with me), and in case anyone else would enjoy these thoughts.

However before I go in with this essay I've put together I have to give a very important note: These thoughts are gonna be primarily based around my personal interpretations and headcanons for Seven Red Suns and No Significant Harassment. I’m generally a person who needs to know exactly what I’m working with to do something well, and as such my ideas about metaphors, symbolism, and greater narrative significance typically depend a lot on me understanding the characters and ship not just in their general dynamic, but various other deeper elements — what their core desires/fears are, what their backstories/histories are, each of their main character traits and why they are that way, then from there what they see in each other and why their relationship benefits each other in-universe, and what other effect(s) the relationship has or could have on the characters in-universe as well as the greater narrative out-of-universe, with the additional optional knowledge of what the main plot of the story they come from is to possibly tie in important moments. Seeing as you probably aren’t going to explain your Trafficlights interpretation completely to this intense of a degree anytime soon (though I’d absolutely enjoy hearing it whenever it comes!), if I’m going to make some metaphors I think the best option is to just use my current character interpretations so I have this background familiarity, especially since I’ve actually been developing these things a whole lot for my own iterator off-the-string happy ending AU!

Also, I want to say to that if some of these idea sound familiar, it’s because I realized I can actually project some of my previous Lilypad ideas onto this Trafficlights portrayal as well. I feel my Suns and Moon are similar enough in their personality traits that many of the same dynamics and significance could reasonably apply. In fact Tox, I’m gonna admit I actually did take some inspiration for my Lilypad portrayal from seeing your particular Trafficlights and drawing my own conclusions about how that dynamic worked, and overall my depiction of Seven Red Suns is largely inspired by your own take on that character, which I found quite unique compared to the rest of the fandom for being the first one I saw to show Suns as being far less imposing and confident internally than they seem in public. So I guess I am once again coming full circle now!

I think this is already more than enough words, but I just felt the need to give those prefaces as context for all of these ideas. With that being said, I hope you like at least some of these!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Option 1: Birds as Freedom

From what I’ve read, a common symbolism for birds is freedom, which to me is easy to see because of their signature flight ability. Flight can be considered the mode of travel with the greatest freedom because it’s not restricted by landmasses (or even planets, if you include space travel), and because flying is literally defying, or “freeing oneself” from gravity, one can easily associate it with weightlessness and thus being carefree and without worries or negativity.

With any off-the-string iterator story, it’s easy to give going off-the-string a positive significance because it’s literally the puppet “freeing itself” from the limited confines of their chamber, and by extent the limits imposed upon them by the Ancients. This is further supported by how some iterators in canon do appear to perceive their cans as a limitation or cage, as evidenced by the broadcast dialogue. In fact, I've heard No Significant Harassment is one of these very iterators, so I imagine he’d absolutely want to go off-the-string so long as he has a good incentive to. 

To relate this back to birds, you could very much use a caged songbird as a metaphor for the iterators; beautiful, brightly-colored creatures “raised” in captivity and trapped in boxes to serve other people, once “singing” out their ideas from within to those people, but now just giving those “songs” to each other. Thus, going off-the-string (perhaps to the Emergence facility in your AU) could be seen as these “birds” finally flying free to be with one another “in the wild”, finally able to fly and live their lives more fully as they were denied for so long. So regardless of any other symbolism, Trafficlights — and any other off-the-string iterator ship by extent — leaving their cans could be seen as them “flying free” together from the restraints forced upon them.

However, I’ve also recently realized another freedom symbolism besides freedom from the Ancients’ restrictions, and that’s freedom from their own. This is something more impactful to my Seven Red Suns, who like Moon, is also someone who hides a lot of his true personality for a more polite, proper, and dignified public persona, shoulders a lot of weight he isn’t always able to handle alone, and puts lots of limits on himself and what he’s “allowed” or “supposed” to do, albeit for entirely different reasons. Now contrast that with Sig, who although he also hides a lot of his true feelings and knows when to dial it down, is someone who is a master at breaking rules and going against convention. In fact, I like to imagine it’s literally in his nature (er, programming) to think outside the box, generating all sorts of different ideas to solve problems that don’t always totally follow outside rules or what’s “typical” for using a certain item. 

When you bring these two together, I imagine Sig could absolutely be the one to encourage Suns to let loose more, letting down his proper and and uptight persona to show more of his emotional side and explore things he didn’t allow himself to before (like I said, this is one of the ideas that works with Trafficlights as well as Lilypad)! It’s as if Suns is a bird too used to living in the cage and afraid to truly fly again, and Sig has to coax him out into embracing that freedom. You could even take this with the idea of iterators not being used to romance, a restriction Suns absolutely puts on himself and even others because he believes a “proper” iterator isn’t supposed to have such deep attachments, of which romantic love could be considered the worst because it’s both breaking Karma 3 of Companionship and can directly lead to Karma 2 of Sexual Intercourse, so it’s essentially a double-risk. But again, Sig is willing to explore these new feelings, and now that they’re off the string and can love each other more physically and directly than ever, what better time could there be for Suns to “spread his wings” and fly alongside him?

Option 2: Birds as Passion/Romance

To me, the second biggest symbolism that birds can have is that of passion and general romantic ideas. Technically all birds could have this association because feathers and wings in general are pretty showy, so spreading one’s wings could just as easily be a gesture of great emotion and expression as it could be preparing to be free. In addition though, whereas the previous point was more related to songbirds, this seems to correlate more with birds of paradise especially, who have the most colorful and varied plumage of the bird kingdom, thus making it easy to say they’re “showing their true colors” without fear. Some birds of paradise, particularly parrots/parakeets/macaws/etc. are very social creatures by nature, so it’s even easier to draw the connection between their vibrant plumage and social behavior with being expressive and outgoing.

As for the romance element, to me it seems birds are commonly used as such symbols already; there’s doves and swans being symbols of love often included in some way at weddings, words like “lovebirds” referring to lovers as well as one of my favorite words, “twitterpated”, which means to be very smitten and infatuated and also has a clear bird-based association and maybe even origin. But then there’s the idea of songbirds singing to each other, which I think is a particularly romantic idea which plays into one of my favorite shipping tropes I call, “answering the call”. So far, I like to describe it as when someone is looking for companionship and romance for a while, either openly or as a subconscious desire, but is eventually found and “answered” by someone willing to love with them. It’s such a romantic idea to me because it often includes so much loneliness and sometimes even tragedy before, making that moment where they finally find someone all the more sweet!

Okay, now to bring this back to Trafficlights. Starting with the first idea, I think it’s easy to associate Sig with these kinds of birds, especially macaws and such, seeing as I imagine he can be just as “colorful” both literally and personality-wise, and cares deeply about his relationships in a similar manner. But even then, like I mentioned before Sig can sometimes feel like he needs to hide those feelings because others don’t fully understand him and he doesn’t want to risk creating tension (although hiding his feelings like that kinda does anyway). 

To resolve this, I’ve decided to use what I imagine Sig would appreciate and value in Suns that would evolve the relationship past friendship to romance, that being that Suns was one of the first people besides Moon who believed that Sig’s ideas and his dedication to his friends could be something more, something better and used for good. My Suns is defined largely by his perfectionism and endless drive to make things the “best” versions of themselves. In my timeline of events he already helped Sig in that way during a pretty important moment, not to mention it’s just really inspiring how much Suns cares about trying to bring about the “best” for everyone. On Sig’s end, this is how they at least developed a friendship, and in this alternative what would cause that appreciation to evolve to romance eventually. In fact, in my headcanon it was the combined efforts of Moon first understanding Sig’s feelings and Suns helping to perfect his role in his group, with both of them working really hard to help him find new belonging with the Local Group, that was what got Sig out of his “rough patch”. Thus, in a way, Suns directly helped Sig make new connections, “spread his wings”, and “find a new flock”, which can easily be the main reason why Sig would fall for Suns.

Now, what about Suns? Relating him to birds and passion also hinges largely on another pretty crucial headcanon about my Seven Red Suns, which is that he is secretly a huge romantic with a passion for the fine arts. In addition to striving for an “ideal” world at all times, he appreciates art and the deeper symbolism within. However, because of what I said earlier about Suns placing a lot of high standards on himself, he doesn’t actually make art of his own, believing it’s “not an iterator’s place” to do such a thing themselves because it’s not in their purpose. But even then, he can’t help himself from seeing things artistically and drawing his own conclusions about things.

That being said, I imagine Suns could have a strong appreciation for birds in particular; their beauty, combined with their flight, makes them seem as though they’ve already “ascended” on some level above other animals. On top of that, I think Suns would come to see Sig as sort of a bird himself! Maybe a big green macaw with the most beautiful plumes who’s also far more intelligent than others think. But even more so, when it comes to what Suns appreciates in Sig that causes him to fall in love, I imagine it’s how Sig is the only person who sees through his facade for who he really is. Everyone else around him seems to either put him on a pedestal, with their own high expectations to follow, or is intimidated by his grandeur into avoiding much direct contact. Again, however, Sig naturally thinks outside the box and challenging people’s ideas, so it’d be pretty easy for him to break down some of Suns’s diplomacy to show that more emotional side (another idea that I use in Lilypad as well). No Significant Harassment is the one person Suns feels like he can be himself around, helping him realize that even those parts of him he hides make him “perfect” by virtue of being his real and unique self. It’s like Suns is a great eagle, looked up to and feared by other birds as a large bird of prey and thus lonely and pressured to soar above all else, and only the surprisingly smart macaw is able to lower his guard, helping him see he’s just as beautiful and inspiring on the ground as he is soaring high in the clouds. 

And then there’s the idea of “answering the call”. I’ve already seen your Trafficlights will probably play out as a slow burn, with Sig and Suns harboring growing feelings for each other for a while but only really acting on it once Emergence kicks in. In this case the dynamic would be mutual, with both of them longing for a deeper connection, but perhaps not realizing it until this timeline. I imagine Sig would be the one more conscious of this desire though, seeing as he openly seeks connection with others, so it’d be as if he’s a lonely songbird wanting to sing out but never getting an answer. And then of course, when Suns finally does respond it’s that much more poetic!

Trafficlights as Rio (spoilers, by the way)

OKAY HEAR ME OUT, I just have to include some words on this because this movie, this freaking movie is not only one of the two that kickstarted my love of birds but is what started this whole Trafficlights-as-birds-symbolism thing for me.

To give some context, if you don’t already know I am someone who not only loves making metaphors and symbolism with my ships, but loves finding associations between them and outside music or stories. I often look for connections to the old Disney animated fairytales, but I really end up doing it to all sorts of animated stories that I believe have pretty universal themes.

That being said, if there’s any association I’d make for Trafficlights as I currently see them, it’s to Blue Sky’s Rio and some of the scenes from that story. Firstly, Blu as a character already somewhat parallels my Suns in that he’s awkward and not the best at interacting with others. Not to mention his inability to fly, which came from him never getting a chance to embrace his emotions before being captured and taken from his home, could be paralleled to Suns’s bottling up his emotions, especially since flight in that film is directly related to feelings of happiness, love, and freedom, so Suns in a way is also “stunted” in his emotions. Meanwhile Sig on the other hand is more like Jewel, someone who at least understands his emotions a lot better and thus “knows how to fly”, and who resists others’ attempts to cage him and tries to get his partner to do the same. Like Blu Suns refuses at first, his logic and desire for a dignified self image getting the best of him being able to let loose in any environment where he isn’t surrounded by close friends. 

Then there’s the freaking “Hot Wings” scene, which takes the most responsibility for this association of mine. Largely because the two side-characters, Nico and Pedro, also seem to carry a dynamic with their lyrics that just reminds me of Suns and Sig, respectively, a lot (honestly I just thought about it on a whim one day and I can’t unsee it now…). Not to mention the entire scene is about pretty birds dancing, which given you’ve also made a decent number of drawings of Trafficlights dancing together, I think is just super fitting. And then Jewel’s singing once again brings back this idea of freedom and showing one’s emotions and love, with the remaining question being whether or not Blu can eventually unlock this feeling inside him despite his fears and fly up with her. This is something I think could work with Trafficlights, at least how I see them, for even if Suns can be more emotional around Sig and maybe his friends, he still has trouble doing so in public, not always liking the pressure of being “perfect” but not wanting to risk looking like a fool around everyone who looks up to him.

It works even better with one of the later scenes in the film when Blu and Jewel finally manage to cut the chain keeping them together, which causes Jewel to immediately lift into the sky with the pure joy and euphoria of once again being free to fly as she pleases. However, Blu is left looking up at her as she flies with their friends, and you can tell he’s both realizing again just how beautiful she is and longing so much to join her in the sky, yet still unable to fly. Once again I can’t help seeing Suns in Blu’s place, looking at Sig having fun and being so carefree, loving the feeling of being off-the-string, and him thinking Sig so beautiful and wanting to join him too. And eventually, just like Blu does in a true “answering the call fashion”, he is able to “spread his wings” and they finally can fly away together!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Okay, I think that’s all I have to say for now on this topic. This essay, excluding the preface at the beginning, is 2498 words! I think that might be a little bit more than my Lilypad essay! I really hope it delivered!

But even then, this was so fun to do! Even though Trafficlights isn’t my main ship and isn’t going to happen in my own AU, I’ve recently been looking to better figure out Sig and Suns’s relationship anyway to understand why they’re at least friends with each other. Of course there are some other factors in their relationship, some of which I’ve edited out for the sake of these ideas because it throws a bit of tension in the dynamic that could compromise its ability to work as a ship, but this was still an important aspect and I’m glad to have gotten a chance to develop it! And then of course, a reason to think about ships as well as shamelessly plug one of my favorite movies ever is also very nice!

This may all sound super silly and maybe none of it works with your Emergence Trafficlights, but regardless this was seriously such a fun opportunity, and I’m glad you gave me a reason to do this! I would love to hear your thoughts on or additions to all this, if you can!

[doodlegraveyard]

I also wanted to know how you felt about the pixies and if you were going to use them in your au

@seth-the-whalelord you are two for two on 'asking very simple questions that send me into a brain spiral' lol thank you this is. actually very useful for getting me to figure this stuff out. This is what i've gotten to write thru on my lunch break.

So! Pixies.

Once again I have no idea if I’m about to spout an Unpopular Opinion or not but…..I don’t like…..little, ‘Mascot’ characters. And I tend not to like the Pixies. Theyre trying Too Hard to be Beloved and it CAN be pulled off..........but I’m sorry I can’t stand their shrill little voices………………

I GET that it’s a kids show and you want little critters to appeal to little kids and sell toys of but like… the cast of Winx is HUGE and bloated at a baseline?? Like the Winx and Specialists by themselves are already so much to deal with. I will say upon rewatch, the Pixies are definitely better than like, any of the other little critters they add in later seasons. There are definitely episodes where the pixies Work and aren't completely overwhelming, and they're liked enough to be worth keeping, conceptually.

I like the idea of the pixies being plot relevant to the fairies development, and I actually have been thinking about explicitly tying them to charmix (or, idk if I’m keeping the concept of Charmix entirely intact because its BARELY a form. But i guess it can remain as a concept, and as a stepping stone to leveling up a fairy has to get her pixie/charmix (so its a standard step not just something the Winx girls have)

I really like how Amore and Chatta specifically contrast Stella/Flora’s respective personalities, because it brings to mind to me that charmix is supposed to be about overcoming some personal fear or weakness/character flaw, it makes sense to me to tie them together.

THAT SAID some of the pixie/fairy relationships are stronger than others.

Lockette’s theming as Pixie of Portals/a wayfinder can be styled as helping Bloom who is currently feeling ‘lost’ in an unfamiliar world, help her navigate both herself learning about and her newly discovered backstory/identity. I think that pretty much works: Lockette encourages Bloom to find the truth even if she’s kind of afraid to/ has been avoiding it. Amore’s calm peacekeeper demeanor definitely helps to temper Stella, and I feel like she could help deal with issues of not just romantic love but her relationships with her friends and her parents. I think Stella is full of love and affection, but doesn’t always show it / in the most considerate way.

Chatta forcing Flora to talk to Helia about her feelings is a pretty good example of what she brings to the table there, though I never want it to be just flattened to Flora’s romantic subplot - Flora could do with speaking up more in general! Have her forced to intercede in a friend conflict or assert herself when previously she was just letting the group overrule her!

Piff. I am conflicted about. Because like… she’s just a fuckin’ baby. there's a limited amount of personality there. She's sleepy. She's baby. I guess I think it’s cute that she helps Aisha with her bad dreams. I knee-jerk wondered if it was in bad taste to ‘mom-ify’ Aisha by giving her effectively a baby to care for but it really doesn’t read like that too much because Aisha is arguably one of the best-written and most complex of the girls. Piff could play a dual role - as someone Aisha has to stand up for and be brave for, but also a manifestation of childish wonder, to push Aisha to enjoy things she maybe didn’t have the opportunity to experience as a kid.

Tune is where it starts to lose me. I get it, Musa is tomboyish and brash and Tune is about manners but that really doesn’t feel as…important a problem to deal with? I feel like it may be a thing where Musa has to like… repair difficult relationships she has that are made rockier by how quick she is to argue, or maybe take responsibility for mistakes - like a formal apology and maturely talking about things rather than being avoidant? I’m not sure it’s best styled as ‘Etiquette’ if that’s the case. I’m taking suggestions on this one idk.

Aaaaaand they didn’t even try with Digit. She’s just a Flanderized version of Tecna. It doesn’t feel like she contrasts or challenges Tecna’s personality in any interesting way...Idk I kind of feel like she has to be changed whole cloth?

I know they replaced Tune and Digit but I’m not as familiar with Cherie or Caramel. I might look into whether their concepts work better for Musa and Tecna character arcs as they are currently swirling around in my head. What's the general consensus on those two?

My design thoughts are. I want to make the pixies much more…. Abstract I guess? What if they’re not their own species as much as concentrated sparks of magic - Fairies generate a lot of excess magic, hence ‘their pixie’ is actually a part of them - a little external manifestation of their magic fissured off my whatever internal conflicts or unaddressed needs they have, and resolving that allows them to re fuse with the Fairy? (Bonus: pixies are only around when relevant and I can poof them away when I don’t want them in a scene lol)

[ellie-s-list]

Light in the Darkness (5)

Abby Anderson X Fem!Reader, College AU, Part 5

Tbh this is my favorite chapter, basically the best thing I’ve ever written. Also this series is going to be 8 parts, and since I have it all written out now I will be posting at least once to twice a day (twice if there’s a short chapter).

Schedule:

Chapter 5, 4/22/23

Chapter 6, 4/23/23

Chapter 7, 4/24/23 tbd

Chapter 8, 4/24/23 tbd

There might be short blurbs to add on to round things out because I am not a perfect writer, and there’s hella holes.

TW: Anxiety, over thinking

Chapter 5–> Pinch Me, Young Friend, Week 13

Lyrics: “On my own, so alone

I can’t tell if this is real

Someone pinch me, wake up.”

After Abby puked on you, you pushed her away. You cleaned yourself up, changing into pajama shorts. Coming back into the living room, you saw Abby laying on the couch, facing the back cushions.You went and got an Ibuprofen and a glass of water, going back to the living room.

Abby turned to watch you as you set the painkiller and water onto the coffee table. “Hey,” She said your name as you sat down on the carpet, back against the couch. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” You ask, not looking at her. A headache was developing behind your eyes, all of your thoughts fighting each other. It was hard not correlating the kiss with her puking on you. She puked because she was drunk. She kissed you because she was drunk. She never really liked you.

She must have been drunk every time she flirted with you. She had to be.

Before you could delve any further into your thoughts, Abby was talking again. “For puking on you.”

“It’s okay, go to sleep.”

Abby was silent, probably hoping you wouldn’t have been so dismissive. She made a noise, probably repositioning herself, “Okay.”

You awoke to someone calling your name. Your neck was stiff, your legs feeling like stone as you tried to open your eyes. A hand was on your shoulder, lightly shaking you.

You opened your eyes, turning and looking up to see Abby. She was peering down at you, sitting on the edge of the couch. You were huddled up against the couch, legs pressed to your chest..

“What happened?” Abby asked. Of course she wouldn’t know. Of course she wouldn’t remember her puking on you, her kissing you. You searched her face, somewhat hoping she was playing a trick on you. You were relieved that she was asking you what happened, but you couldn’t help but feel a slight twinge of disappointment at her bout of amnesia.

“What do you remember?”

Abby rubbed her eyes, humming. Her hair was now fully out of its braid, falling into a curtain of waves around her face. “Everything until I went to the bathroom.”

Nodding, you briefly fill her in on what happened next. You left out the kiss, and the compliments. But after learning she puked on you she seemed to get quite embarrassed. Good.

Gesturing to the untouched medicine and water on the coffee table, you say, “Those are for you.”

“Thank you.”

Abby left about an hour later, not until after she promised to take you to coffee after classes on tuesday. She insisted it was both a “thanks” for taking care of her, and as a “sorry that I puked on you and ruined your pants.”

Abby took you to a quant cafe underneath a bookstore. The inside was full of green and brown patterns, giving an earthly feel to the shop. You two picked a small two person table. You tried to forget about the kiss, you really did, but it was always on your mind.

Abby, if she did end up remembering something, seemed too chill. If she didn’t, then she was acting normal. But she could feel how you’d get awkward at random things, if she’d get too close, you’d stiffen. Some words she would say you might make a face about. She would back off, not getting too close, watching you closely when she spoke. But now, after class, she seemed to have regained some confidence with you, now testing the waters.

“What were you thinking of getting?” Abby asked, following you to the register.

You shrugged, “I don’t know.” You played with your hands, biting your lip in thought.

A barista walked out from the back room, greeting the two of you. For a second you didn’t even recognize her, having to take another glance. But it wasn’t a dream, or just a weird trick of the light. Clare, an old friend,and your first ever girlfriend and ex girlfriend, was standing in front of you.

Clare changed after the two of you broke up. She used to have shoulder length, wavy dark brown hair. She used to wear clear rimmed glasses, and bright colors. She didn’t have any piercings, or tattooes. Clare was very much straight-passing, not showing too many hints at being on the same team you were. But now, her style clearly screamed, ‘I love women’. She was masc, her arms full of tattoos. Her hair was short, her ears having multiple piercings. Clare also now wore contacts, no makeup on her face. She had a nose piercing, a hoop on the left side.

Clare’s eyes squinted at you, she even said your name. “Is that really you?” What a dumb question, you didn’t even change that much. Maybe you were wearing a different style, one you were more comfortable in. You mainly changed after high school, but you were dating Clare out of high school, so she knew you after your transformation.

You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms. “Says my social security card.”

Abby, seeming to feel the situation tensing, moved slightly closer to you. She was more polite, nodding to Clare, “I’m Abby. Are you one of her friends?”

She was dumb. How the hell did she not notice the glare you gave Clare, or how awkward Clare was? She should have noticed Clare flinch at her own question, looking at you with pinched eyebrows.

Clare blinked slowly at Abby, “She’s my ex.” She clarified, the brunette then turned to you, obviously just being polite since she was getting paid. “How’ve you been?”

You narrowed your eyes, but played along. “I’ve been. Anyways, can I get an iced caramel latte?”

Clare bit the inside of your cheek, probably hating your indifference. She’s always seen how quickly you cut people out of your life, how easily you went from having in-depth conversations to just one worded answers, never initiating anything when you didn’t like the person. She may have thought she would never be on the other side. But she was the one who ended the relationship, even after you chose the same college like she wanted. Clare watched as you faltered to save a failing relationship that she helped bring down, and you fell into a trap, disillusioning yourself into believing it was salvageable.

“Size?” Clare asked, her words now clipped.

Who was she to be mad? To be bothered by you? You let her leave after she stomped on your heart, leaving you to pick up the pieces of her empty promises. Maybe she was jealous, maybe she thought you were on a date with Abby. She had no right to be jealous, you didn’t care who she got with. Whoever had the blessing to be with Clare was also cursed with someone who hadn’t grown up one bit. But Abby could easily be coded as more masculine than any girl you’ve seen. She was muscular, wearing a muscle shirt as well. Abby had defined features, and she stood with an air of confidence that just screamed masculinity. The blonde even took a step towards you, slightly shielding you from Clare’s piercing eyes.

“What price is the medium?” You asked, tone steady. You weren’t going to let her mess with you, you couldn’t do it to yourself anymore.

Clare went to answer, but Abby beat her to it. The blonde grabbed your wrist to get your attention, “Price doesn’t matter to you, I’m paying.”

Squinting, you decided to let Abby take charge, knowing Clare will think into the action. Maybe you were petty, but you weren’t going to clarify anything to someone who didn’t deserve it. Also, things happen, people move on. And who knows who Clare has kissed? Who she hooked up with? It may have only been thirteen weeks since she broke up with you, but she’s always been extroverted.

Clare bit her lip, you didn’t miss the way she quickly glanced down at Abby’s hand, which completely engulfed your wrist. Clare looked back up at Abby, “Is that all?” She deadpanned, face going blank. But you knew, she was always so easy to read for you.

Abby didn’t seem phased, “I’d like a medium hot mocha.” She ordered, smiling. She slid her hand down your wrist, warm fingers meeting your own as she held your hand. The blonde wasn’t dumb, she knew Clare was jealous, and she was happy to play along. PDA wasn’t easy for you though, heat creeping up your neck as you pulled out your phone to distract yourself.

Abby exchanged money for the drinks, being sure not to let go of your hand. Their voices were muffled, your mind a loose telephone wire. Abby, the hurricane that caused it, led you to the end of the counter to wait for your drinks. Why did she do that? Of course she helped you out, but she didn’t have to. She obviously knew there was some history, and she didn’t seem to mind acting like your girlfriend. Abby’s grip on your hand increased, you looking up to see her looking at you.

Was it just you, or were her hands sweating too? She was giving you a reassuring grin, but you couldn’t help staring at her lips. They were just on yours a few nights ago, and the memory resurfaced. Abby said something, but you didn’t listen, still entranced. Abby gently took your phone out of your hand, causing you to blink rapidly. She had gotten closer, real close. Leaning down to look you in the eyes. Concern was written all over her face, her forehead creasing as her eyebrows pinched together.

“Are you okay?” She whispered.

You noticed just how hard you were gripping her hand. How fast your heart was beating. You should have ordered decaf. Releasing the death grip you had, you gave her a small smile. She didn’t let go though, giving your hand a squeeze.

“Yeah,” You didn’t elaborate. Not too close to Clare, no, she didn’t need to know what you and Abby were talking about. Clare didn’t need to know the emotions you were desperately trying to hide. “You can let go,” you whisper, looking at your intertwined hands.

Abby didn’t let go, she placd your phone into her pocket. She took her other hand, placing it on your chin to guide your face up to hers. God, was she always this brazen? Your cheeks were on fire, heart threatening to beat out of your chest. Why was she doing this?

“I figured she looked jealous,” Abby whispered. She tried to meet your shifting eyes.

“Here I thought you were a dumbass,” You whispered back, deciding to look at her eyebrows.

“We can go back to the dorm after the coffee’s done,” She offered, not letting you go. Why did you let her take charge? She seems to love playing with Clare. And you, she always teased you.

You shifted your eyes back to meet hers, searching. Surely she was annoyed at having to go back to the dorm. Back to your safe space. Maybe she was disappointed. Having to leave because you can’t handle this situation. To be honest, you had it together until you realized Clare thought you and Abby were together. Well, you really never had it together.

Abby wasn’t disappointed though, no hints of annoyance gracing her features. Just concern, care for you. It warmed you, grounding your mind for just a moment so you can think.

“Yeah, that would be great.”

When you and Abby entered your dorm room, Max was playing video games with Tatum. They were obviously talking about you, maybe even how you always talked about Abby with them. They looked at the two of you with such guilty faces, you just knew they were.

“Hey,” Max greeted the two of you as you passed them on the way to your room.

You waved back, Abby deciding to speak, “Nice see you two again.” She smiled, right behind you.

Opening your bedroom door, you wave for Abby to go in first, closing it behind you. Before you closed the door, you looked to see Max and Tatum smirking at you, and you gave them a warning glare. Yet, you knew they were going to gossip, maybe even make up fanfiction.

Abby was standing in the middle of the room, glancing around. To your left was your twin bed, random blankets and cat stuffed animals scattered acrossed it. To the far end of the room was a desk full of books, a mini fridge with a microwave sitting on top of it, sitting to the right of the desk. To your immediate right was a coffee table with a small tv, your PS4 hooked to it. The one in the living room was Max’s, since he plays more often. The lighting was dim, only a cat lamp sitting on your desk gracing the room with a pale yellow light.

“Are you okay?” You ask, not liking how quiet Abby had gotten. Given any other situation it would be fine, but you basically let Abby play as your pretend girlfriend.

At your question, Abby turned to you. Worry was etched onto her features. “I’m sorry,” Her voice was soft, hesitant.

“For what?”

Abby bit her lip, not looking you in the eye, “For making things awkward. For taking advantage of you in front of your ex, for taking you out for coffee.”

Blinking, you were quiet. She didn’t really take advantage. You knew if you told her to stop, she would. Also she couldn’t have known about Clare, hell you didn’t even know.

“She broke up with me,” You say, sitting on your bed. You leaned back fully, laying now on the bed. “You didn’t take advantage. I let you, also you did me a huge favor.”

The bed dipped beside you, “Did you a favor? I triggered your anxiety.”

“Not really,” You tap your fingers together. “It’s always there. A bird hitting my window could do the same thing you did.”

Abby went quiet for a few minutes, only the sound of your heartbeat returning to your ears to soothe the silence.

“Me touching you is the same as a bird dive-bombing your window?”

Choking out an incredulous laugh, you cover your face with your arms. Smiling, you huffed with laughter.

“God, Abby,” You say breathlessly, “No, I meant that as in convincing my ex we weren’t ‘just friends,” You managed to catch your breath, sitting up to rub the tears from your eyes. You looked over to Abby, pausing at the way she was looking at you. There was such fondness in the way she looked at you, a small grin at the corners of her lips. Her eyes, usually indifferent to the world around her, now looking at you with a tenderness usually reserved for a lover.

“Just friends,” Abby hummed, breaking the stare you both were holding. She looked down at her lap, fingers picking at her nails.

Tears were drying on your cheeks as you stared at her. Was she now embarrassed at the way she acted? At your words? Did she not want to be just friends? You were frozen, yet your heart was beating fast. Too fast.

“Thank you,” You whisper, causing her to look back up at you.

It was her turn to say, “For what?”

“For being so damn determined for me to talk to you,” You say, still whispering. You were afraid that if you spoke any louder she’d leave, “For being so annoying that I gave up tolerating you and decided to become your friend.”

“I was annoying?”

You rolled your eyes, pushing her shoulder lightly. She barely moved, licking her lips.

“Yes, you are annoying.”

Abby rolled her eyes this time, looking back at you with a smirk. “Thank you for allowing me in.”

“You seemed safe.”

Posted on: 4/22/23

WC: 2,670

[baddieladdie]

Hello!! So I'm an RPer (gross) and I dabble with Joshua Graham. I do cross-canon occasionally and I have stumbled on weird romantic (maybe??) tension with him and RE5/blonde Jill Valentine based on the fact they both were manipulated by someone they respected and did horrible things (even if hers were against her will and he did them by choice) and it's become this heavy, weird tension full of lame, longing gazes and pretty decent fight scenes! Is it possible to get them together? 😬

Regardless, stumbled on your work and I love it!! 😍

I have not played Resident Evil, actually! I had to look up who Jill Valentine was, at first I thought she was Nick Valentine's daughter in some AU\

SO - How 'bout this? I will get us started with some opening context on Joshua Graham. Then you could take it from there? I have a feeling you are a bit more familiar with Jill than I am :)

Tag me if you add on to this - I'd love to give a read!

An idea for a structure could be:

Ch1 - Joshua Graham (see below the cut) Ch2 - Jill Valentine Ch3 - Combat/Meet-cute, Joshua and Jill meet in fire fight Ch4 - Connection/Tension/Romance

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Rating: Teen

Description: Mormon missionary turned co-founder of Caesar's Legion now roams Zion under the guise of folk legends as the Burned Man. He is haunted by his actions while part of the Legion, yet cannot so easily release his dependence on violence as he leads a vicious campaign to bring 'God's justice' to all those who would threaten the safety of the innocent.

Joshua drags his thumb across the bumpy ridges of his Bible. Absent-mindedly, he traces each letter stitched into the black leather. The book was worn down. It could hardly be recognized for what it was - the Holy word of God. The book, like Joshua the man, had been irritably changed in time by the unforgiving nature of this mortal life. Joshua flips through the book, pausing at a page crinkled by a dried blood stain.

18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 1 Peter 1:18-19

“Divide et impera,”  Edward exclaimed, gesturing to his beloved novel ‘Commentarii de Bello Gallico’. “Divide and Conquer. Joshua, this is just like the Roman Empire of great! We conquer these tribes and we make them better. Stronger! Outfit them with weapons and battle strategies. From this tribal strife, we will raise a great and mighty empire!” Sallow laughed with cynical joy.

“It is brutal,” Joshua mumbled in thought. Edward had studied all his life with the Followers of the Apocalypse. His knowledge of societal development and anthropology were next to none. Perhaps Sallows knew something he didn’t. And the good Lord knows it’s good to have friends. He should trust Edward to the very end. Joshua nodded hesitantly,“What better way to unify these groups than under the threat of death. They would have a better chance of surviving if they worked together.” 

“Yes, yes!” Edward walked around the table to get closer to the hesitant missionary and man he called friend. “Leave the brutality to the soldiers. I-” He awkwardly cleared his throat and corrected himself, “We only need you to translate.” He gestured openly with a wide smile. “You’ll never have an opportunity like this again, my friend.”

So that is what Joshua Graham did. He translated for Edward as he spoke to the crowds of tribals he had gathered. But soon, translating became giving orders. Giving orders slowly became leading in battle. Leading in battle became training, punishing, terrorizing. A series of small mistakes before Joshua Graham's great fall.

In time, he would become Caesar’s second in command and most trusted advisor. Never had Graham held such power. Death came as he demanded it. Riches poured from the Earth as he wished it. It was as if the very thread of fate was his to design. 

Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole. Galatians 3:13

Sweat beaded at the tip of Joshua’s nose as the Mojave sun beat down on him. Sand carried in the wind irritated his skin. He cursed, putting the hammer down for a moment to adjust the legionary mask snuggly around his nose and mouth.

“Please, I haven’t done anything wrong. Let me go!” The man cried in desperate agony, trying to pull his hand free from where it had been nailed to the cross. Blood spurted generously from the wound Joshua had inflicted. The naked man screamed from a place of consuming pain, but no living soul was around to hear. Their only witnesses were the bodies left in Joshua’s wake. And the man’s pleas meant nothing to the heart that had hardened inside him. Joshua had heard the dying screams of men, women, and children far to often to feel anything at all. He was as stoic as the corpses behind them. 

Graham leaned over the man screaming and punched him squarely in the jaw. The jaw swung open lazily, the man stared up at Joshua horrified that he could no longer speak. Joshua firmly grasped the man’s free hand and pinned it to the right arm of the wooden cross. The man under him squirmed in futile effort to free himself from his inevitable fate. The hammer came down swiftly, pushing the rusty nail through the delicate flesh of the man’s palm. Blood sprinkled Joshua’s legion uniform. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. No matter - his job here was done. The resistance group dead and their leader crucified. With a grunt of effort, Joshua stood the cross up. It was an eyesore against the flat desert landscape. However, it sufficiently served as a warning to any who would cross Caesar and his legion. 

Joshua dusted himself off and stowed his hammer away. He turned his back on the suffering man and walked slowly across the desert plain back home. Home to Caesar’s legion. 

John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. Luke 3:16

The nervous raw recruits stumbled forward towards the center of the dam. The veteran's stood before the Malpais Legate (Joshua Graham), silently recalling their first battles as a raw recruit. Joshua felt no remorse. He had followed the Legion military doctrine excellently. They had the enemy on the run and he intended to leave no survivors. Dead men tell no tales.

THUNK

The legionary veteran collapsed next to Graham, a bullet wound oozing from the back of his head. Instinctively, he traced the bullet's trajectory to a platoon of sharpshooters. The First Recon of the New California Republic.

THUNK THUNK THUNK

Bodies of veteran soldiers fell around him at an alarming rate. "Fall back!" the Malpais Legate cried. The raw recruits panicked at the order, dropping their weapons and running for their lives. More experienced soldiers simply pivoted and ran for the ridge.

THUNK THUNK

Bodies of legionaries continued to mount as they made their escape towards the pass through the ridge. Joshua's eye was caught by a glint in the afternoon sunlight. More First Recon shoots and NCR rangers. It was a trap - this whole damn time! Joshua cursed himself, then Caesar for underestimating Chief Hanlon. Swallowing his rising panic, he shouted over the pop of rifles, "Be weary of crossfire! To Boulder City! For Caesar!"

The is when he lost the remainder of his good men. Boulder City wasn't just protected by rangers and sharpshoots. The whole damn city was rigged to explode. Mines and traps lined every square inch of the town. The opposition, having placed them, evaded the threats, only luring the legionaries in further. What was meant to be a great victory for the mighty Caesar had become a costly defeat.

-

veni , vidi, victus

-

"Mighty Caesar," Joshua approached his life-long friend's throne. "We have lost this battle, but not the war. I won't give up. We-"

"You will do no such thing," Edward barked at him. "Your failure has brought shame to the great legion of Caesar! Such a disgrace will not be tolerated, Malpais Legate." Sallow spat his words with such vile hate, Joshua could no longer recognize him. The personification of the roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, had finally consumed the former- follower of the apocalypse completely. No more was Joshua's friend present before him.

"And for your transgression against the might of Caesar, you shall be burned to death!" Caesar shouted til he was red in the face. "Legionaries! Cover the former-Malpais Legate in pitch, lit him on fire and cast him into the Grand Canyon!"

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and it to the full. John 10:10

“Life has not been good to us without your guidance, Joshua.” Follows-Chalk guided a stumbling Joshua Graham through the Dead Horse camp. “We tried to live in your ways but have been driven from our home. With your return, we can take back Zion from the White Legs.”

"I am sorry to hear what has come to pass. God willing, I can undo the harm that has been done here."

"What...happened to you, Joshua?" Follows-Chalk paused, noticing that Joshua had been lagging behind.

"I do not enjoy reflecting, but I pray to God that someone may learn from my mistakes. Was there something specific, Follows-Chalk?"

Follows-Chalk eyed the puss oozing from the bandages around Joshua's face. His bloodshot eyes and uneven gait all clearly showed the man was in undeniable pain.

"How did you survive, Joshua? Such a fall would have killed most men."

"I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me. I feel down into that dark chasm, but the flame burned on and on. The next morning, I woke up and crawled out of the northern edge of the Grand Canyon, that cursed place. It took me three months to return."

Follows-Chalk hung to every word of Joshua's tragic downfall, guiding him to the healer's tent and away from the gaze of the merciless sun.

"The Dead Horses are happy you have returned to us. You are welcome to stay," Follows-Chalk spoke sympathetically. He opened the tent wide for Joshua. The man hissed at the pain as he crouched under the flap to enter the room. "You have been good to us, Joshua."

"You are kind to offer," Joshua groaned as he lowered himself onto a straw mat. A woman rushed over with a basin of clean water and bandages. "It never stops burning. My skin. Every day, I have to unwind the bandages and replace them with fresh ones." He nodded his thanks to the woman. She smiled politely and awkwardly shuffled out. "Exposing my body to the air is like living through it again. But it's better to be clean than comfortable."

Follows-Chalk nodded and turned away to give the Burned Man space to clean his wounds. "Have you met Daniel? He is a missionary like you."

"Who?"

"A Mormon, like you Joshua. He is helping the Sorrows not far from here."

"Take me to him," Joshua gasped in a pain as he removed a bandage that has wound had adhered too. Fresh blood trickled down his back. "In the morning. Tomorrow will be here soon enough. And there is much to do. God be with you, Follows-Chalk."

Like an enemy he has strung his bow; his right hand is ready…he has poured out his wrath like fire on the tent of Daughter Zion. Lamentations 2:4

"Ye have sown death and so shall ye reap it!" Joshua roared, lunging towards the remaining White Legs tribals. He greedily drove his knife into the back of tribal, revealing in the screams of man he had not heard in years.

The lost courier beside him fired lucky shots from a .45 pistol. The bodies of White Legs fell around them until only Salt-Upon-Wounds remained alive.

Joshua stood over Salt-Upon-Wounds. His jagged features highlighted in the dim firelight. It was akin to watching a skilled hunter taunt and play with its prey as it made feeble attempts to escape. "We warned you at Syracuse, and you persisted. You took advantage of us at New Canaan to drive us out, and like the dogs of Caesar you are, you followed us to Zion. And now you stand on holy ground, a temple to God's glory on Earth. But the only use for an animal in our temple is sacrifice!" He smiled grimly at the terror in Salt-Upon-Wounds as the tribal leader curled in terror under Joshua's gaze. "Kale watcha nei conserva oh! You understand me, don't you? Don't you?!"

"Outman!" Salt-Upon-Wounds hissed at the mentally distant courier. "Kuma-man mad! He has killed all White Legs. Please, you talk. You stop this!"

"Stand up and look at what's come for you!" Joshua pulled the tribal leader to his feet. Salt-Upon-Wounds raised trembling hands behind his head.

"Don't listen to this… thing!" Joshua spat. "His cries are those of a mad beast caught in a thicket! He gave no mercy to my family, and I will give none to his!"

The courier squinted their eyes at Joshua, "Is this coming from the missionary Joshua Graham or Malpais Legate? This is brutal and beyond reason. You know it is. Look Joshua, you've already won," The courier gestured to the bodies of the dead that surrounded them. "There's no need to kill him."

"He has a debt to pay for what he's done and I've come to collect," Joshua stammered, but the anger was already starting the leave him and along with it, his conviction. "And so he's chosen to cower in the water like a dumb animal."

The courier stepped over still bodies, moving closer to Joshua. "If what you believe is true," the courier stumbled slightly over an arm shrouded in the darkness. "he'll pay for it later." The courier balanced themselves next to him and whispered, "The Sorrows don't need to see you this. Let's go."

"Go," Joshua sighed in defeat. He released Salt-Upon-Wounds and continued, "Get out of here. Go back. Back to the Great Salt Lake."

Joshua watched Salt-Upon-Wounds scamper off and abruptly turned to the Courier. Angerly, he fumed, "I wanted to take from them what they took from me, from my family!" The courier watched him with mindful pity.

Joshua sighed, allowing his true sadness, underneath all the rage, to flow in. "In this life. I want them to suffer. I want all of them to die in fear and pain," He continued. "I want to have my revenge. Against him. Against Caesar. I want to call it my own, to make my anger God's anger. To justify the things I've done. Sometimes I tell myself that these wildfires never stop burning. But I'm the one who starts them. Not God. Not them. I can always see it in my mind. The warmth and the heat. It will always be a part of me," Joshua paused, looking down the path where Salt-Upon-Wounds had fled. "But not today."

[voxofthevoid]

Tropes Game

Tagged by @cursedvibes. Thanks, man! This looks fun, and I loved reading your responses <3

Rules

How much do these tropes affect your decision to click on a fic?

-10 -> very dissuaded

0 -> don’t care either way

10 ->  very enticed

nope -> if it’s a hard no and you’d never click on a fic with that tag or or you even have the tag blocked or you’d insta click out of the fic if it wasn’t tagged.

Bonus points for explaining the rating and whether it’s conditional.

Trope List

Age gap:   7/10

Age gap alone isn’t a selling point for me, especially since there’s a world of difference between, say, 30/40, 20/30, 15/25, 50/500, etc. But if I get into a ship that has an age gap, especially a le problematique one, I will lean into it full tilt, as you can currently see with goyuu. There’s a lot of fun, often fucked-up, things to be done with differing life experiences and maturity levels, and that’s usually interesting to explore. From the reading end, it depends on the individual ship and also how the specific fic approaches it.

Codependency   10/10

Hell to the fuck yeah! I prefer unhealthy relationships over healthy ones (...in fiction, Tumblr), and codependency tends to add a fun flavor. I’m picky about it when reading. I default to it when writing.

Enemies to lovers   10/10

Good stuff, and I’ll never say no to some violent hate sex. I don’t have many ships like this though; it’s mostly something I read. Or make AUs of.

Enemies with benefits   6/10

Fun concept, depends on the execution. I’d prefer that it become enemies to lovers in the end, however.

Fake dating/relationship   -7/10

It’s not an instaquit, and I have read and enjoyed fics with this premise, but the trope itself is something that I’m not a fan of. Mostly because it tends to follow a certain romcom formula that I’m not a fan of.

Found family   -5/10

I’ll read it, and as a theme, it’s fine, but for one, what I often see described as found family is...not. It’s friendship—and that’s my preference anyway. Friends who support and love each other, without the label of family attached. This is a heavily personal preference, obviously.

Friends to lovers   7/10

It’s good; it can be fun. The way friendship evolves into a romantic and/or sexual relationship can also be quite interesting and emotionally fulfilling.

Friends with benefits   7/10

As a central relationship, I’d prefer that it become friends to lovers eventually. The execution matters again because too romcomy, and I get turned off. Throw in some emotional fuckery, and I’m sold. It’s also one of my go-to flavors for minor/background/past relationships when writing. Friends who fuck without strings is a fun concept.

Hurt/comfort   8/10

A solid concept, and depending on the execution, it can range from pleasant to devastating (in a good way).

Love triangle   -10/10

A “proper” love triangle is something I find about as compelling as stale vomit. It’s not an instant nope because I like the sort that evolves into poly—either triads or V-style poly (that is, A/B and C/B, with A and C as metamours). When reading, I prefer the former, and when writing, I prefer the latter.

Mistaken/hidden identity   10/10

Sign me the fuck up. Identity porn is almost as good as actual porn.

Monster fu… relationship   10/10 (100/10)

I have "Monsterfuckers Inc.” as a semi-frequently used fic tag on Ao3. I’ll let you guess just how into this I am. I’m into it for the freaky sex, but typical relationship development is always a plus.

Obsession, possessiveness, etc   10/10

Unhealthy relationships my beloved.

Opposites (like grumpy×sunshine, etc)    0/10

Fine in theory, but whether I’m into it depends on the execution. I don’t think I write it much.

Poly   7/10

JJK is the first time I’ve written (and planning to write more) poly relationships, but I’ve read and enjoyed quite a few in previous fandoms. Again, execution matters, but the concept is fun.

pregnancy   nope/10

Major squick, and it seems to be becoming more and more of one these days. Ironically, I’m very into breeding kink and monster-style impregnation (eggpreg, insta-birth-type monster offspring etc.). It’s realistic pregnancy (and the mpreg equivalent of realistic pregnancy) that puts me off.

Second chance   0/10

Rated it neutral because this can be either 10/10 or -10/10 for me depending on how it’s handled. No middle ground lol.

Sex to feelings   10/10

Been there done that. Love the concept, can go rabid over it if done right. I certainly like writing it.

Slowburn   6/10

I’ve read and enjoyed plenty of slowburn fics, but it’s not a formula I’m a fan of. When I write it, it always tends to be the “sex to feelings” sort.

Soulmates   0/10

Another case of either 10/10 or -10/10. The easiest way to get me into it is to play into the horror/angst aspects. “People who fate decreed as belonging to each other” doesn’t appeal much to me.

Tagging (no pressure) @thelionshoarde @actualalligator @stilllostinthedaydream and @sorrythatwasamistake @joeys-piano and anyone else who wants to do it

[cherry-blxssxm-chaos]

I pay attention to and fixate on some of the smallest details, huh? You guys notice Mystery never did anything to really truly get rid of Reverb's possession? Just rip and tear-

So what if there was still a little bit of Reverb's influence left behind? Just really, super dormant? Except Arthur's constantly around a lot of supernatural energy... like constantly.... even without my self insert gal there, he's got Vivi with her latent spiritual stuff and Mystery with his very much present spiritual energy... Add on to that that in The Future you've got Lewis and Shiromori, then Reverb getting control of Mystery...

Also have I mentioned I like mentally torturing my favorite characters? Yeah, so basically, I'm finally splitting off an AU from canon for Mystery Skulls Animated with "what if right after The Future, Arthur learned he could turn into a demon form?" And I went off with it

Initially, he's green- poor bastard goes from "I think Lewis and I are kinda cool even though he tried to murder me?" and "Oh god, my arm is freaking out!" to "..... oh dear God I'm the reason Lewis is dead and it's happening again and I'M GREEN WHY AM I GREEN I'M BEING POSSESSED AGAIN AREN'T I-"

He'll get used to it, eventually. It is frustrating that to have two arms in this form he has to look more demon, but the mechanical one isn't spirit proofed enough to handle his energies in this form. But hey, he can scare the shit out of people with the new ghost arm! (And with practice, use it without going full demon form)

It'll help in the future that over time as he makes the powers his own (he'll develop smoke and electricity elements), his demon colors will fade from dark and mint green into his usual orange and yellow, it's just gonna take time and practice!

And, uh... motivation in the form of a pink and green haired half ghost~ Cerise'll help him get through this with a smile. And yes, he'll be able to turn the form off, just has to work with this new power.

[jacksgreysays]

Out of curiosity, have you watched/read Demon Slayer?? Firstly, it's been really great and I think you might enjoy it, but secondly, I haven't seen much on the DoS forum about it which is surprising...! I've always thought a period with demons au like Demon Slayer or Inuyasha would be interesting for a character like Shikako. Plus, it's so full of characters like her overall who are wickedly competent and trying to survive but still maintain their humanity and loved ones. And I think the idea of her being a Slayer and developing her own Breath Style would be very very cool.

Tysm for all your hard work and writing btw!!

Thank you for reading and also reaching out :D

I've not consumed any Demon Slayer, unfortunately. There was a several years gap in my manga/anime consumption a while back and I think that's when Demon Slayer was first coming out/most popular and by the time I was back in other things were coming out so I just never circled back to it.

I did grow up on Inuyasha though and consider it one of my, like, foundational anime but I think because of that my brain forgets that it can play with it as more than just a ctrl find and replace type thing that I did so long ago in these tiny three sentence fic

There is something to be said about the different genres of DoS recursive fic and how more than the strict AU setting, the most defining factor is how easily Shikako can handle the main problems. Or, rather, what the problems that she can't wave away are more indicative of the genre than anything else. Maybe I'm using these terms incorrectly... maybe tone is more accurate.

Because I've read, for example, several "Shikako goes to the Warring Eras fic" that felt like different genres depending on if Shikako could feasibly beat Madara/Tobirama/Hashirama/etc in a fight. If she can't, then it becomes a high stakes horror/thriller where any wrong move could get her killed. Whereas if she can then it becomes a political drama.

I'm maybe getting too off topic. The reason why I brought it up is mostly because it would be interesting to see a recursive fic where Shikako's abilities only just allow her to keep up with the setting as opposed to her usual steamrolling. Don't get me wrong, I also love OP!Shikako enters a new world/dimension and runs around doing whatever she wants, bewildering everyone who witnesses her. But it's rarer to find her in a new world/dimension where she has access to her shinobi abilities but they aren't OP.

(As opposed to the fic where she reincarnates into a new world, but because that world doesn't have chakra she only has her memories/tactical experience. Which isn't nothing, but also isn't the impossibilities of sealing. I mostly am thinking of Leaf/Tavina's the world will hear us roar series in which Shikako is reborn as Tywin Lannister's twin which is fantastic)

So to see Shikako in a world where demons are definitely real and everything she's learned from the Naruto world is only just enough to survive would be very cool!

... I am now letting thoughts of a proper Inuyasha!AU percolate in my brain, lol...

Thanks again for reaching out and for the recommendation I will definitely add Demon Slayer to my list. :D

[typhoonvash]

i'll run forever if i have to!

an independent, selective rp account for vash the stampede (trigun stampede) by melee

Current Status (for all blogs) : active but slow due to Gaming

name: melee, some know me as kaz pronouns: they/them age: 29

muse nickname: canary (if you are referring to my vash in particular, you can use this name instead of saying "melee's vash")

rules: -18+ only. no minors. -my vash's main verse (and appearance) is post-stampede s1 with early trimax inspiration. some interactions/threads may occur pre-stampede or during stampede, but the stampede timeline is a constant. -doubles okay and encouraged. -n/s/f/w sometimes and only with 21+ muns. will be properly tagged and placed under a read more when intense. -rp style: multiparagraph preferred with small text. i've been moving away from using icons as my muse develops and takes its own image, but don't let that intimidate you from using icons yourself! -oc rp is friend only and very selective. -if you are a multifandom multimuse i likely will not follow back unless you're serious about plotting threads and keeping them going. i prefer to keep my dash trigun and friends' threads only. i also don't enjoy short, shallow interactions without any development. sorry. -if you run both a trigun character rp blog and a character from another media, we can talk about crossover interactions after we get to know each other. i do not want to do research in order to rp with you, otherwise it is too difficult to write. the same rule applies to extreme canon divergence/aus. i dont mind joining them after we know each other, but again, don't expect me to research everything unless i explicitly tell you i will. -not interested in drama. -shipping is by discussion only. flirtation is fine, but if we're shipping, we gotta be friends. -multiship and polygun friendly. each rp partner will get their own 'verse.' this allows us to best develop our muses and plot stuff together. i dont mind combining these personal verses with others though (for instance, we are a vash and wolfwood, but we want to add a meryl. that kind of thing) -this blog is not k/v / plantc*st / plant wo*d friendly. do not expect me to follow you back if you are interested in the ship. i will not start drama about this decision, and it is non-negotiable. -will tag common triggers not present in trigun. blood, violence, and alcohol will not be tagged. i try to read bios for personal triggers, but please let me know if it's extremely serious/common/i mess up. -lastly, i am very patient. i do not mind if you take a long time to reply. don't feel pressured if you haven't replied to something in a long time, but if possible i would like it if you kept in touch. i likely will not ever hassle you for replies out of courtesy.

m!a status: open anons: open random starters: open

threads preferred, but short interactions will happen.

Please read my full About and Rules pages before following. I'm pretty open, but I do have some basic things.

I have an RP wishlist if you're not sure where to start with me; feel free to ask me about any of it or send an ask with a starter!

I will provide my discord via request.

other muses:

wolfwood: @forgivenpunishment midvalley: @thathollowsound

[emelkae]

Hey Emel, nice meeting you, I got a weird timing question for you. I have been reading through your novel tag - it's so amazing it's published btw - and I would like to ask, what's the story behind this story? How did you come up with it? How was writing it? What are the plans with the sequels? What are your favourite kind of scenes to write - I'm seeing hurt/comfort, siblings and brothers which are my fave things ever so I'm squalling - in short: what kind of writer are you? I wanna know

@writingonesdreams

Thank you so much 😊 That makes me remember that I should've tagged more stuff honestly lol, I have so much Wannabe content

This answer ended up loooong, so I'm putting it under a cut:

The War Machines series started as an AU fic idea. It turns out that if you keep asking "what if," scramble up traits, change dynamics, and add new goals and new characters, you're gonna end up with whole novel full of OCs. Or... a trilogy of novels. I'm happy that my little AU scene got so wildly out of hand.

I could easily write the prequel to Wannabe now, but the sequel (Warrior) was giving me a ton of trouble. I recently figured out why:

I write best out of order; the first scene I wrote in Wannabe ended up in chapter nine I think. For Warrior, I was trying to start at chapter one and placing loads of importance on it, then writing myself into corners and having to scrap my draft over and over and over and over. I'm going to start writing the scenes I want to first and then filling in extra stuff the way I did with book one.

The goal I had in mind for the characters in Wannabe was "how can I get the Machines to realize how deep their bond is/how can I heal them?" But the goal for Warrior was literally "what sort of painful stuff can I put these characters through to make them develop" and that ended up dragging the tone down a LOT, obviously. So I need to keep in mind that even though there are some heavy topics they have to deal with, this series is ultimately about love.

I was overthinking character arcs and motivations. Instead of coming up with something external for them to deal with and letting the internal changes happen naturally, I was coming up with internal changes first and then forcing situations that would make them change the way I wanted them to. Basically, I was treating my characters like tools or puppets instead of letting them grow organically, and then not understanding why every plot point and interaction seemed so stilted. So now I'm just gonna Put Those Boys in Situations and let them tell me how they're feeling.

Even if none of the 100k+ words in my scrapped drafts end up making it into Warrior, I don't see the time as wasted at all. I've learned so, so much more about writing in the past year alone than I've learned from every class or book on writing I've ever taken/read.

I really really like writing angst and whump hehe, but I tend to get heavy-handed with the Angst Hammer in my original stuff. I think it's pretty easy to write character development that way. While there are angsty parts in Wannabe for sure, there's also fluff and a ton of bonding in between crazy action scenes. I especially love subverting romance tropes to make them platonic, hopefully adding a depth to Found Family outside of "these people are around each other a lot."

I can't mention the War Machines series without also mentioning @avrablake. Avra was honestly the reason I ended up learning so much. She has this incredible knack for offering feedback and criticism in a way that ends up feeling so encouraging, and she always gets me to think deeper about my plot and characters than I could on my own. I am truly grateful for the time she's spent on helping me through the best and worst of my ideas.

I'm about to start trying to write my sequel again. I have a few scene ideas and I'm itching to play around with them :)

[badassxbirdy]

June Activity Update (Pinned Post)

Happy Pride Month to all fellow members of the alphabet mafia! 🥳 🏳️‍🌈

Before we get into it: there was apparently a following glitch recently. If I unfollowed, refollowed, or you softblocked, my apologies and please see this post.

With that out of the way, it’s time once again for an activity update! If you’re new here: these monthly posts help me to keep track of what the frick I’ve been doing, particularly when tumblr breaks or the brainfog strikes. This update includes things posted or in drafts for the month of May. Everything else can be found in previous monthly updates under this tag. There’s also the thread tracker here.

The full activity update (along with OOC house keeping) is below the cut. Bold text = links.

If you want to see all IC interactions without the other stuff, click here. If you’d like to start something new, there are opens, memes, and the wishlist, or you can just hit up the DM’s. You can also add Ty on Wire for IC texting.

Now onto the update!

OOC Housekeeping:

For folks waiting on AU replies: please see the note beside your tag! ❤️

I’ll be at my parents house for another month, but have the Firefox workaround for trimming threads on mobile. The extensions sometimes play up a bit when using that, so please let me know if there are any issues with my replies, and I shall sort it out.

I want to start doing more story arc development on Ty’s blog again, so expect a few posts about that to come soon.

Threads, replies, memes, and other IC interactions:

(In alphabetical order by username. Not including memes still in the inbox!)

At the motel (link) - @demcnsinmymind

Ty is both offended and a scared by Azzy. (drafted) - @demcnsinmymind

Random encounters meme: drunk Ty! (link) - @demcnsinmymind

Taking Lance on a hunt! (drafted) - @demcnsinmymind

Car trouble (drafted! So sorry for the wait, Ty is refusing to cooperate with her other verses rn.) - @demcnsinmymind

GDI Kage. 😂 (link) - @demonstigma

Birthday mischief: crossbow excitement! (link) - @derschwarzeengel

Damon meets dark!Ty (drafted) - @derschwarzeengel

Finding Vampire!Damon (link) - @derschwarzeengel

Traumatised for life. 😂 (link) - @derschwarzeengel

Making their getaway. (link) - @derschwarzeengel

Damon shields Ty, Ty is ANGY. (link) - @derschwarzeengel

Werewolf problems. (drafted) - @derschwarzeengel

Roasting 50 shades (drafted) - @derschwarzeengel

Universe differences (drafted) - @derschwarzeengel

Tyler learns about Darklighters and it all gets very sad. (end of thread) - @derschwarzeengel

Starter from @first-born-to-his-name! Thank you, I’ve got it in my drafts. ❤️

Birthday cuteness! (drafted) - @heavenguided

Meeting Hook (link) - @hvbris

Tyler being massively confused by Wednesday (drafted! Sorry for the wait!) - @hvbris

Birthday mischief: extremely normal headwear. (link) - @imprvdente

Human!Ty and FBI!Fish (drafted! So sorry for the wait, Ty is refusing to cooperate with her other verses rn.) - @imprvdente

At the fair (drafted) - @indyflanery

Attempting to babysit the doctor. (link) - @innerwar

Bad jokes with Charm. (drafted) - @innerwar

Demon problems (link) - @magaprima

Leaving the compound (drafted! So sorry for the wait, Ty is refusing to cooperate with her other verses rn.) - @razorfst

“Are you sayin’ I look like a blogger?” (link) - @tobeblamed

No 👏 dead 👏 Sarah’s 👏 allowed!👏 (link) - @unbearablyindifferent

Drafts: 14

Memes/Asks: 9

Headcanon, dash games, and assorted silliness:

No new headcanons or dash games this month! However I am boosting this post from my dear Rookito, so please take a look.

I think that’s everything! As always: please let me know if I’ve missed something. I never intentionally drop threads without notifying, rest assured that if it’s not here I simply have not seen it. Remember to be kind to yourselves, stay safe, and happy pride! ❤️ — Em

[lemuelthelemmy]

You guys are able to choose what FNAF project i should work on.

(This is a copypaste from a post i made on freddit, so if some things doesnt make sense is because i talk about it)

A few days ago i made a post introducing my 4 FNAF main projects in comments i said that in future i would make a poll to let people choose wich one i should give priority, so the moment has begun, i decided to make this post to introduce the projects, talk about the development, show some material, and welp, put below the link to the form so you could vote wich project you think i should make.

It also has a optional section when you can write thing, but i also would appreciate comments here to tell me wich interest you the most.

I made this due to two reasons.

1- Some recent incident made me want to leave FNAF a bit far of my life (it's not a reddit matter and it's related to another sector of the fandom, so i will not bother with it)

2- Have 4 FNAF projects is a mess because work with the 4 at the same time will avoid me to work on non FNAF projects i already left apart, so i want to focus in just one while i make other things for my team.

So, with all of this let's began.

FNAF LAST GUARD

Last guard is a FNAF RPG Maker survival horror game i've been working since 2020 but i left apart due to other things.

This is actually a remake of an old RPG maker game i made re-using Five nights at F***boys sprites in the time of FNAF 3.

when i came back to FNAF during 2020 and after reading some books i decided to make an actual remake about it, adding new Lore.

The plan is to make the whole think of 0, the sprites, the maps, and a unique survival system for the game giving animatronics mechanics and make it feel like an actual FNAF fangame.

for now i wanna prioritize the game system as im struggling with the art style the sprites are gonna have, so i think how the game works is more important that this.

The plot is basically the same of the original game Lemuel gets a work as a nightguard and has to survive 5 nights and help a misteryous man named Vincent to destroy the animatronics after the place has closed)

I also decided to add new characters who may be familiars to us

This game forms part of the Lemuelverse that is one of my personal projects, but also works as an standalone game.

Plan is to make it both english and spanish so everyone can enjoy.

I want to warn that this is a reimagination, so this game is not my interpretation of the FNAF timeline and rather just an AU for Lemuelverse.

INTO THE PIT: The Graphic Novel

I announced this project in 2020 too, this is a complete reimagination of Into the Pit i planned way before we even had Twisted Ones graphic novel, i love Into the Pit and i wanted to make of it a full Graphic novel.

I'm still on an early stage (Oswald is still on school but soon)

Even if this is a Graphic novel of Into the Pit, i knew eventually we would got an official one, so it's not a 100% accurate adaptation of the story and rather a whole reimagination of into the pit, having some minor changes and added a few scenes.

Also, because of that, the book will be full of cameos and references to other books and games wich i think it's a fun adding that will make people try to find every piece of it.

I truly love into the Pit and i hope to give a worth adaptation to this story.

FAZBEAR HIGH

Fazbear High is an AU i made long ago were Henry and William made an school instead of a pizzeria.

It's basically a High school AU but instead of Animatronics i use the FNAF Human characters and it's full of stereotypes, let's say this is a parody rather than something serious.

Long ago i tried to make a comic with this, but then the lack of views kinda made me want to drop it, but i got interested again and i decided to build a team for this project and see if i can make an animated series (kinda like FNAFHS, yeah i know people hates it but this is for enjoyement and i am not going to commercialize this, it's just fun) or another team comic like many others

I think this story may be funny and entertaining as it has characters we already know and they are twisted in a funny and exagerated version that can make you Laugh: Sammy is shy because he barely appears in the franchise, Elizabeth is the mean girl of the school, Mike the popular guy, Bite victim just cries, all of that and more.

Let's see if this time, with more people, the AU survives a bit longer.

Afton

And the final project on the list, Afton, wich born as an idea: "What could be the story of William Afton? Why is he like that?" and made me want to imagine his Childhood.

All of this evolved on the idea of make my own interpretation of the FNAF timeline adding some of my belief + some creative decisions to give sense to the things we never saw.

With this the idea is to start on William Afton cruel childhood, then his College years, the born of his company, how he met Henry, and continue until welp... the end of William Afton.

Making this a webcomic that it's making an story and at the same time, showing how i think the FNAF timeline works.

I know for the premise and the pics, it looks like any other William Afton story AU: "William was a good man until something goes wrong like the death of his kid or how an evil entity corrupts him and then he starts to kill"

But no, this is not that, William is a bad person, he's evil, charismatic to people but hiding darkest secrets, he had a bad life, the world has mistreated him several times, and he wants to overpower everyone.

Many people may think that Eleanor ghost kinda makes him a victim of a greater evil, but actually that's not the case, as Eleanor Ghost is just a manifestation of his own evil, she will work more as a guide to us so we could see what William is truly thinking, and to show the origin of Eleanor as well.

TLDR. No, William is not truly a victim here.

And... those are the 4 project i introduce to you

Here's is the poll were you can choose the project i should prioritize,

The other 3 projects will be just left in hold until the others are finished or get a pretty advanced status, but they are no way in hell cancelled, so don't worry, even if another one wins, eventually the others will come.

[archetypal-ergo]

Greetings!

Behold! Ouroboros! He belongs to my OC Csar (my old IZ OC from way back when, but was “Tallest Czar”…voming my insides out from memory cringe)…but he is also perfect as an introductory post if you understand the symbolism…

I like to dabble in doodles…my imagination is a speshul place.

Thanks for @khaliarart for directing me to the font!

TLDR: A pinned post.

More long winded babbling under the cut.

I draw crazy stuff and am currently becoming invested in my old Love of IZ and Irkens…but I also just love Aliens and Monsters and Dark Fantasy and stuff I can’t post here anymore. Sad face emoji.(Yes, I DID write that out…🙃)

My style is wild and wacky. I’ve been told it’s feral; I just like exaggerated expressions, teeth, claws…other “stuff.” Perfect to mutilate characters with.

I have a lot of characters that span from many other things I used to be into so…they are being transmuted for the Irken Empire I guess. Or whatever horrible manifestation of it I’ve created as my AU…dur dur.

That being said; I’m getting my doodle hand back up and going but probably a lot of sketches and other nonsense because reasons.

I work full time and hide a lot so I’m apologizing ahead of time that I’m not super sociable. I’m old…uh yeah…my excuse.

Been a long while since I’ve used Tumblr at all; let alone bothered to post art so for the time being…here we are.

I’ve become reclusive in my older years, haha…

I’ve recently dipped my toes back into IZ; though mostly the Irkens and their Empire which I’ve morphed into some screwed up AU of mine that crossovers a few of my past story concepts and characters from other fandoms that will blend with my other love which is Philosophy, Depth Psychology and watching the World burn through Decadence. Nietzsche would be proud…

It’s like IZ meets Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World” and the Roman Empire but incredibly stupid but also probably really adulterated because I’m terrible. Mirroring the stupid corruption of Humanity is fun and depressing to me.🥲

I’ll probably add more as I go along and post stuff; I know there appears to be a lot of other AU business going on with other folks but I don’t creep that hard and have no idea how the fandom is compared to how it was circa 2001. Ugh I was in highschool then…😬

Was a big fan/part of the IZ fandom when it first aired…the Irony of it returning to me now some 20 years later is hilarious since it played a big part in my art style development with extreme expressions. Big thanks to @khaliarart for popping that balloon in my tired brain but it’s nice to be inspired again. PLEASE STAY INSPIRATION!!

ANYWAY! I’ll be posting my art, my horrible OCs, and other stuff probably…

I will also state if you’ve made it this far; kudos.

Some things:

I don’t do requests. Art trades are tentative but not open right now unless I know you.

Commissions are touchy but I may open them up if I keep at it. I’ll post if so.

I don’t RP. I used to LOVE it but I work full time and live REAL LIFE so it’s something I can’t distract my Self with. RIP

I’d like to think I’m pretty friendly but I’m very aloof; I just put this down honestly just in case I get chatted at and don’t answer. Social Media is a strange beast for me now a days - if you really wanna try and get a hold of me I guess poketh.

And that’s that unless I add more later.

G’day!