#Alisa Woods

[addictivecontradiction]

Haunt, 2019

[deross-cultist]

Day 26 (04.07.2022):

I like to think that Alice and Lisa were each other's worsties/besties in WSSA days.

More thoughts under the cut.

Also personally, i headcanon that Lisa Beck was Alice's very first very gay awakening. She pined for her so so bad (down bad) she even composed a piano song for her (the piano tune playing in one of WSSA rooms).

But alas, the feeling was not reciprocated, yet her time with Lisa changed her completely to the person she is now.

They get to reunite after the "final game", [[which also something i talk about way later when I feel less sleepy and when I organize my thoughts better....]]

[softpine]

"So... How do you rate our chances of survival?" "I'm trying not to think about it."

↪ Until Dawn AU

you should be able to follow this even if you haven't played until dawn, but i'm not sure anyone will want to read this lmao. major spoiler warning if you do! also since you're not supposed to say the monsters name and it was a bastardization of native beliefs anyway, i'm just calling it "the creature".

anyway, here's how the frozen pines crew would fare in until dawn...

Danny purchases an abandoned hunting lodge in Blackwood Pines. He hasn't gotten a chance to stay there himself, but he allows Asa to bring his friends up for a weekend visit as long as they check in regularly. Unbeknownst to anyone, this lodge was closed down in the 80s after a teenager (Finn) disappeared, and the team sent to find him was found partially eaten in the woods. Finn's body was never recovered. He's said to haunt the lodge ever since, chasing away anyone brave enough to step foot inside.

The group arrives at the lodge just before sundown. Alisa reveals that she brought her Ouija board, so they all gather around to use it – except Austin and Elaine, who are annoyed because they'd been the last to arrive and the cable car had gotten stuck, meaning they'd had to walk all the way up the mountain. They just want to relax, not taunt spirits. Asa mentions that there's a cozy guest cabin down the path where they could be left alone. Austin jumps on the opportunity, but Elaine is reluctant to walk even further, especially now that it's dark. Stevie picks up on her anxiety and argues with Austin on her friend's behalf. ("Why did we come all the way out here if you two are just gonna go somewhere else and bang?") Matt tries to diffuse the situation, but it just makes Austin more annoyed. He says he's going to the cabin whether Elaine comes or not. Elaine rolls her eyes but eventually follows him, though she promises she'll call Stevie once they're safe in the cabin.

As they're walking, Austin apologizes for getting angry and Elaine forgives him. They make it to the cabin without incident, but when she tries to call Stevie, she realizes she lost her phone. She wants to go back to the lodge, but Austin convinces her to stay and they'll look for her phone in the morning. This part follows the events of the game closely, ie. Austin starts a fire and they talk for a while. They start kissing and undressing, but are interrupted by a loud crash through the window: Elaine's phone. She thinks Matt and Stevie (but mostly Matt) followed them to play a prank on them. She flips out, yells at them from the porch, storms back inside, and... gets yanked through the window and is dragged away screaming. Austin grabs the gun off the wall and chases after her. POSSIBLE DEATH #1: If Austin takes too long, Elaine could have her throat ripped out by the creature. If Austin is fast enough, he'll follow her screams through the mines, finding her injured but alive. As he reaches out to grab her, the elevator shaft falls and she disappears from view. Either way, Austin will believe Elaine is dead. Stunned, he searches for who or what took her. He heads for the abandoned sanatorium in the distance, unaware of the horrors that await him.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group is finally using the Ouija board. Finn isn't responding with the planchette, but he's scaring them in other ways: making the lights flicker, random sounds come from the vents, and making himself appear in their vision for just long enough to think they've imagined it. Everyone gets scared, except Asa, who finds it intriguing. He goes upstairs on his own and tries to talk to Finn with compassion rather than morbid curiosity, but Finn isn't ready to hear it and he continues to scare everyone. Stevie is the most worried, especially because it's been a few hours without word from Elaine. She wants to go check on her at the guest cabin. Matt thinks this is weird and codependent, but after enough convincing, he agrees to go with her.

When they find the guest cabin, they see broken glass and blood everywhere, with the door wide open and the gun missing. They follow the footsteps until they reach a cliff. Matt knows he can safely climb down it because of his experience in parkour, but Stevie won't be able to. He tells her to use the nearby radio tower to call a ranger for help while he goes to find Elaine and Austin. Here, he has the option of giving Stevie his swiss army knife, or keeping it for himself. He makes his way down into the mines, until there's no more snow, thus no footprints to follow. That's when he hears Elaine screaming. POSSIBLE DEATH #2: Matt rushes to help her, but the screams were only the creature mimicking her voice. He's strung up by his neck and dragged deeper into the mine. If he still has his knife, he can cut the rope and survive. If he gave it to Stevie earlier, he will be defenseless and die. Either way, he or his body will remain trapped in the mines.

Stevie finds the radio tower. She successfully calls for help, but the ranger says they'll only be able to send a rescue team when the snowstorm subsides at dawn. She waits for Matt inside the tower, but he never shows. If Matt is still alive, his shoe will be tossed through the window, landing at Stevie's feet. If he's already dead, his decapitated head will be thrown inside. In both cases, Stevie is horrified and scrambles to call the ranger again to stress the urgency of the situation, but before she can reach it, the tower starts to collapse. She holds on for as long as she can. The tower crashes to the ground, trapping Stevie in between bits of mangled metal. If Matt had given her the swiss army knife earlier, she can use it to shatter a window and climb out safely. If she doesn't have the knife, she has to kick the window out, hurting her ankle. She decides she's done being a hero and starts running/crawling towards the lodge, bawling her eyes out.

Cut to Asa, unbothered, taking a bubble bath in the jacuzzi tub. Finn is leaving him alone, because even he knows there's a time and place for haunting people. Instead, he's focusing on scaring the shit out of Jada and Alisa, who have been wandering around the lodge searching for clues about its history. The basement is filled with animal carcasses in various stages of being skinned or stuffed that were never cleared out after the hunting lodge was abandoned. Jada starts to feel sick, but Alisa is fascinated and wants to keep going. Finn continues to scare them, getting more and more agitated the further the girls explore. He screams at them to get out, but they don't listen. Eventually, he becomes fully corporeal and begs them to leave, but Alisa notices that he's trying to prevent them from entering a small door at the very end of the basement. Naturally, she has to enter that door. She pushes past Finn and steps inside, though nothing could have prepared her for what she sees: A decomposed human body, mostly just bones, curled up in the corner of the room. He's wearing the same clothes as the ghost. She realizes the missing teen didn't die out in the wilderness on a hunting trip – he was killed by someone in the lodge.

Asa hears the girls screaming and hurriedly gets dressed (no anti-gravity towel for him, thank you), but in his haste to find them, he trips down the stairs and scratches up his face. He doesn't know what's going on and he's just plain scared, so he can't help but start crying. This is what makes Finn realize he doesn't want to hurt anyone and he doesn't want to be alone anymore; he wants these people to survive. He helps Asa stand up, which surprises both of them, because he didn't think he was capable of moving things in his environment without being angry. He says Jada and Alisa ran outside and he'll help Asa find them.

Austin flees the sanatorium, which was crawling with monsters and wolves (he was nice to Wolfie, don't worry). He catches up to Stevie in the woods. She sees a gnarly bite mark on his shoulder but thinks nothing of it, because she has no idea about the creatures and assumes it was some wild animal. If her ankle is hurt, Austin helps her walk and Stevie feels compelled to apologize for generally being rude to him. She doesn't hate him, she just worries about her best friend. Austin understands, but then he has to break the news that Elaine is dead. Stevie tells him Matt is dead too. (either, both, or neither could still be alive at this point, but they are always presumed dead). Stevie flat out refuses to believe that Elaine died, while Austin is defeated and believes they're all going to die tonight so there's no point looking for their bodies. Regardless of what Austin says, Stevie will leave him and go after Elaine herself. Austin continues towards the lodge.

Austin runs into Jada and Alisa next, who are stumbling out of the lodge, terrified. He yells at them to go inside. ("Whatever you think you saw in there doesn't hold a fucking candle to what I've seen out there.") They go back inside and lock themselves in a room with a weapons cache. Austin tells them everything he learned in the sanatorium – the forgotten miners who resorted to cannibalism, the monsters they became, and how the news covered up the massacre they caused. He says Elaine and Matt are dead because of these creatures, and Stevie will likely be dead because she ran off on her own. Jada wants to at least find Asa and let him into the safe room with them, but Austin says he's probably dead too (no one knows that Finn is watching out for Asa now). He teaches Jada and Alisa how to shoot a gun. It's while he's doing this that Alisa notices the bite on his neck. For an hour now, Austin has been stressing that these creatures were human once, but they became infected, dangerous and deadly, and he never mentioned that he'd been bitten by one. She screams for Jada to look at it, but Austin is quicker – he grabs Alisa tightly, covering her mouth. Jada is still holding the gun Austin taught her how to use. Even with a hand over her mouth, Alisa can be heard begging her to shoot him. Jada trains it at his forehead and... POSSIBLE DEATH #3: Jada can shoot Austin. If she does, Alisa will thank Jada for saving her life, and says that if they make it out of here alive, she'll tell everyone she did it in self defense. If Jada can't bear to shoot him, Austin will throw Alisa to the ground and run away.

But he doesn't get far. Right there in the living room, two creatures hang from the ceiling sculpture. Austin slows to a stop, holding his breath. It's nearly impossible for anyone to die here, as Finn will save them by creating a noisy distraction. Finn himself is only a visage, so he can't be harmed by the creatures which angrily circle the lodge for their prey. He suggests the only way to escape is by causing a gas leak and exploding the lodge with the monsters inside. POSSIBLE DEATH #4 & 5: If Jada shot Austin, then no one will be able to warn Asa that there are still people in the lodge, therefore Jada and Alisa will die of smoke inhalation in the weapons room. If Austin is alive, he does warn Asa (despite his anger about nearly being shot), and Asa instructs Finn to help the girls escape first. This leaves Asa (and Austin, if he's still alive), vulnerable to the creatures, meaning POSSIBLE DEATH #6 & 7: Asa and/or Austin can fail a don't move section and die. In the event that Asa dies, Finn becomes enraged and lights the fire himself, blowing up the lodge immediately and killing everyone inside, including the humans. If only Austin dies, Finn feels that he has failed, but he still makes sure Jada, Alisa, and Asa are out of the lodge before starting the fire.

Stevie hears the explosion and runs faster towards the mines, terrified at the idea of all her friends being dead. Elaine can't be dead too. POSSIBLE DEATH #8: If neither Elaine nor Matt is alive, Stevie will automatically be killed here, because she still isn't aware of the creatures in the mines and has no idea she needs to stay quiet and not move. But if either (or both) Elaine and Matt are still alive, Stevie finds them in the mines. All of them are in bad shape now, but they're thankful Stevie came back. They have to move very slowly. When they reach the edge of the mine, so close they can see the moonlight from the cracks, they're cornered by a creature. POSSIBLE DEATH #9, 10, & 11: If Stevie runs, she will die. If Stevie hides with Elaine/Matt and fails, Elaine/Matt will die. If she succeeds, they all survive. They stumble out of the mine just as the sun starts to rise over the horizon, the sound of rescue helicopters growing louder.

Much later, after the dust has settled, police recover Finn's body and lay him to rest. The investigation into his death has only just begun, but Finn isn't concerned. Because for the first time in as long as he can remember, he has a companion... In life or in death.

THE END.

please do let me know if you read this whole thing because you're officially my new best friend :') there's a ton more choices and branching pathways i thought about, but i figured this was already insane enough, so i tried to keep it simple fjksjds

[silly-little-gooses]

what your favorite the inheritance games character says about you!

from my humble little brain (pls don’t get offended this is a joke)

~ avery - you’re sticking with the classic. a good choice, although a bit boring. you definitely relate to her *cough* daddy issues *cough* and you dream of becoming rich. tig gave you very high standards for men and you’re questioning if they will ever be met.

~ jameson - you’re either madly in love with him or you think he’s cool and relate to his trauma. you’re definitely fun, perhaps irresponsible. you’re extremely loyal and absolutely hilarious pls marry me.

~ grayson - WE GET IT. YOU LIKE HIM. 😐.

~ xander - you have excellent taste, my friend. you definitely relate to him *cough* daddy issues pt 2 *cough* and struggle with being good enough. however, your trauma has made you funny so that’s a plus!

~ nash - to be so fr, idk if yall exist. he is a criminally underrated character. either you think you’re quirky by picking the least popular brother or you think he’s underrated (like me). nash got you into western style and now you say “howdy” unironically.

~ libby - you are an absolute legend. ik I’ve said this but you definitely relate to her trauma with parent issues and abusive relationships. you’re also the sweetest human being ever and ilysm let’s be friends and bake pastries together and have picnics in the woods yk

~ max - god tier sense of humor. you’ve also probably never cursed a day in your life and you’re glad you finally found a character that captured your escense. you either desperately want a xander in your life or you want to be the cool rich sassy single aunt/uncle. either way, ily.

~ emily - you don’t exist

~ eve - you REALLY don’t exist

~ rebecca - hello lgbtq+ community. we get it, you’re angry and angsty and you have great music taste, okay? if you’re queer, you def had internalized homophobia as a child and if you’re not queer, then you just really relate to a character with anxiety.

~ thea - you’re so cool. a bit judgy at times, but still cool!

~ alisa - I support all women’s rights and wrongs and I will support you on your plots for revenge or whenever you’re feeling stressed pooks <3

~ oren - icon. that’s you. that’s all, byeeee!

[honeycrispappletree]

ON THE UNDER SIDE OF TOKYO // keiji akaashi

masterlist

PART 1: OBLIVION

" I never walk about after dark, It's my point of view

'Cause someone could break your neck, coming up behind you

Always coming and you'd never have a clue"

“UNIVERSITY OF KYOTO TAKES THE WIN FROM UTOKYO, 54-22!”

The stadium sighs in unison. Few UKyoto fans who are scattered around the stands cheer loudly. Another lost basketball game for the University of Tokyo. The exits start flooding with students, disappointed in the outcome and wanting to leave as quickly as possible. 

Yn stayed in her seat at the back of the stands and finished her report. She drags her pen across the paper, trying to fabricate some interesting way to say the UTokyo basketball team absolutely sucks, and are 0-8 for the season so far. She hates being assigned to sports. But its much better than reporting on the meal schedule. Her journalism class assignments are mundane to say the least. Losing sports, knocked over trash cans around campus, and late buses are all things she knows very well.

Yn takes her attention off of her notebook and onto the moping players. They huddle together at the end of the court, getting yelled at by their coach. She cringes at the insults coming out of his mouth. It is his job on the line, after all. Her focus shifts to one specific player being shunned by the rest of the team, number 11. Throughout the game he had been missing shots and overshooting passes. His green eyes gazed down at the wood gym floor, in what she thought would be shame, but instead it was something else. She couldn't quite place it, but he looked like he wasn't even there. Not in the moment, everything being shouted at him seemed to be going in one ear and out the other. Yn tries to find out his name, but fails and just settles for writing down his jersey number. She jots down a few notes about his appearance before shoving her notebook in her backpack and leaving the gym. 

Yn steps outside to be met with an ill omen, the sunset. A warning to hurry home, she quickens her pace as she heads to her dorm. Although her university campus is deemed as protected, she can't help but be skeptical. A few months ago, a guy she slightly knew from one of her classes went missing on campus. He just vanished from school without a trace. Some people thought he was kidnapped, but police never really entertained the idea. Everyone just assumed he must have dropped out. Nobody ever heard from him again. She shudders at the eerie reminder of her exposure. It reminds her of the stories her older brother used to scare her with. How sinister things happen at night, people wander in the subways and look at you strange, and if you ever walk alone you'll go missing. She followed his directions blindly as a child, but as she got older she realized they were dramatized tales. Now though, she wonders if there was any truth to it. Yn shakes her head, not wanting to think about this kind of thing as she's traveling in the dark. Almost to her dorm, she takes a left and passes a utility pole scattered with advertisements and stickers. School clubs, basement shows,missing people, campus elections…

Missing people.

Yn backtracks to the pole to check what her eyes were telling her. She in fact finds a missing person poster, pinned front and center. A girl about her age is staring right into her eyes. Something about it makes her feel sick to her stomach. The girl's smile is innocent and unknowing. She's frozen in time and has no idea what's happened to her. Yn studies the page closer.

Alisa Haiba. Her eyes are green and her hair is a muted shade of blonde. She's pretty. Too pretty to be missing. Yn notices at the bottom of the page a phone number of someone named Lev Haiba, and to call them with any information of Alisa’s whereabouts.

‘Odd,’ she thinks to herself, ‘wouldn't you call the police with something like this?’.

Although thousands of people go missing in Japan every year, something feels different about her. Yn can almost feel her asking for help. An unsettling feeling is creeping up her shoulders and neck as she stares at the printed page. The sun is no longer visible and there is only a tint of brightness in the night sky. Torn, yn decides to rip the poster down and shove it in her notebook. She doesn't really know what she's supposed to do, but she feels obligated to do something. 

She whips her head around to check if anyone is nearby, and books it for her dorm. She makes sure the blinds are closed and the door is locked before slumping on her bed and pulling out her phone.

more!

akaashi and yn became friends in high school after becoming the co editors of their yearbook and running the school paper

very ambitious those two they both want to be succesful journalists

they work together well but are both very competitive towards each other

their professor gives them very lame stories and tears them to shreds when they arent interesting

yn's brother used to scare her with all the stories and she grew up and figured he was lying, but she isnt too sure about that recently

Utokyo has MISERABLE sports most of the time and yn is always put on basketball

her least favorite

Alisa was last seen entering the subway before dusk

taglist: none yet, reply or message to be added!

a/n: FIRST CHAPTER gang i cant write for actual shit im so sorry but i had fun anyway its fine im just better at my little text messages. im trying to make this ominous but like also funny but also sad and angsty but also cute but also everything at the same time ok Bye also the poster was supposed to be a png but it didn’t freaking work now it just looks DUMB

[choccy-zefirka]

We previously had a whole Discourse Session about x reader fic on this blog, but I just saw this in visual form on my dashboard (Blorbo hugging/kissing a greyed-out silhouette instead of the artist's OC), and I am back to thinking how being expected to insert my OC into the author-prepared slot is not my thing (and makes me a bit sad, actually) because... all my OCs fall for their love interest, even if it's the same person, for different reasons.

Isk and Wyll are childhood friends who keep being torn apart by circumstances but inevitably find each other. Mariposa and Wyll are gender-swapped Beauty and the Beast; he is the radiant guiding light that inspires her to rise above her Dark Urge. Wilhelm is a classic sad dad, so his partners Wyll and Karlach help him find joy and whimsy in life again. Or, for example, Alyrr stirs Halsin's heart because she is kind to him, while Cinder falls for Halsin because he is kind to *her*; same goes for Niamh and Zevlor vs Dee and Zevlor.

Likewise, in other fandoms, Azelma Cadash and Blackwall initially despise each other because she thinks he's a boring straight-laced fuddy duddy, and he thinks she's a spoiled princess luxuriating in her father's crime spoils and wearing a Stop Being Poor T-shirt, but as their friendship progresses, each discovers that the other is a more nuanced person than their first impressions might suggest. While Naali Adaar teams up with him as Protector of the Small, and Adiba Adaar turns his head with her incredible Nerd Powers (Nana Lavellan is somewhere at the intersection of that, because she is both a nerd and a professional babysitter in her clan). Thraer Aeducan bonds with Morrigan like a golden retriever excitedly following her around; and Revas Mahariel sits across the room from her like they are a cat and she is also a cat, slowly getting accustomed to each other. Nella Amell gets to Zevran with her sweetness and faith in people, and Zevran gets to Brianna Cousland with his roguish charms, even as she appears to have hidden herself behind a wall of ice and grief.

Alisa Shepard is a neurotic perfectionist, Natalie Shepard is an enthusiastic, confident space adventurer; Garrus loves each of them. And in my newest obsession, Cyberpunk, my current rough and tough but secretly artistic street kid V is going to employ different tactics when convincing Takemura to ditch Arasaka through the power of love (shhh, let me have my headcanon) compared to a hyper-stressed, disillusioned corpo V and a happy-go-lucky nomad V I also have planned. And so on and so on and so on.

Can all these different love stories truly be expressed through x reader fics? Even if x reader is mostly focused on smut, I am not sure how much maneuvering you can do while leaving it generic. Again, going back to my own OCs, Arryn Lavellan, a hot-headed 20-something Dalish First, is a virgin who pretends to be sexually experienced to win Respect Points, and then learns the lesson that he did not have to do that; while Elgara Lavellan, a Circle mage and ex-Tranquil, is also a virgin due to her life circumstances, and her lesson is that there's no shame in having a "first time" after 40. Cinder the Tav is a half-Orc, half-Tiefling, used to being fetishized by intimate partners because of her appearance, so she gets her mind blown when Halsin worships her body as a great gift of nature. Laulu the Tav is a half-Orc, half-Halfling, a humble farm girl with dreams of someone who will love her for her, not her glamorous elf bard persona (courtesy of Disguise Self), so she gets *her* mind blown when Gale takes her, the real her, on a journey through the stars. But Amaya, a full Halfling this time, is a vengeful paladin who used to be married to an evil wizard that entrapped her in illusions of love and bliss in order to manipulate her to do his bidding, so she opts for the humble tryst in the woods, blowing *Gale's* mind this time as he realizes that he can be wanted for more than his magic. So for all of them, even smut will flow differently.

Some anons I got argued that inserting your OC into a love story focused on a canon character is too self-centered; you have to give other people a chance to imagine *their* OCs in this blank spot! And I guess it works for some people (a lot of people, in fact), but I would rather write stories and make art about specific OCs and read stories and admire art with *your* specific OCs and all the endless ways they can kiss that Blorbo.

[powerofelvis]

Daddy’s Business

Pairing: Elvis Presley x f!reader 

Word Count: 1K 

Summary: Elvis has a little trouble learning how to change his daughter's diaper, but that doesn't mean he won't give up until he gets better. 

Warnings: fluff, Elvis being a little anxious, Elvis bonding with his little girl 

A/N: This is a request for @arianatheangel-girl. Ariana, my darling girl, I hope you enjoy this little request of Elvis and his little girl. I used the name of Alisa based off of the name that Elvis and Anita Wood wanted to name their daughter if they had one. I also found it pretty cute. 

prompts.

It was another night at your home at Graceland. You were trying to catch up on much needed rest as you spent the last couple of days bonding with your newborn daughter, Alisa. Finding out that you were pregnant brought on different emotions that you had never experienced before. However, while you were counting down the days until the arrival of your daughter, Elvis was trying to learn everything that he could get his hands on regarding caring for a child. Elvis was at first excited, making sure that you didn’t lift anything heavy or eat the wrong things. 

You had to admit that it was endearing to see how much Elvis bragged about his new family, seeing that family meant a lot to him. He would baby proof the house in advance, raving on about how he wanted his little girl to have fun in her new home while also being safe. However, as time grew closer, his excitement took a back seat where fear and anxiety became the forefront of his every thought. He was so worried about whether or not he was going to be a great father, double checking every nook and cranny to ensure that everything was right just for his little daughter.

When you and Elvis brought her home, Elvis wouldn’t let anyone else hold her other than you and him. You would find him sitting in the nursery with her, speaking over her with such adoration. He would speak baby talk to her, beaming as she cooed, balling up her little fists as she watched her father communicate with her. Although he tried his hardest to help out with little things such as feeding and holding her when you were busy around the house, he never seemed to get the hang of changing her diapers. 

You were determined to help Elvis with this, calling him into the nursery every time that you had to change her soiled diapers, but he would end up leaving the room, completely clueless with how the entire process worked. “I don’t think I’m cut out for this daddy business.” He sighed, standing next to you on the night in question, watching as you finished feeding Alisa before she was put into her crib. You turned to face him, a frown over your lips as you shook your head. “You’re doing great, honey. Alisa loves you, you’re the entire world in her eyes. However, we definitely need to get you used to changing her diaper.” You giggled, watching as his brow furrowed. 

You laid in bed with Elvis, catching up on sleep until you heard Alisa’s little cries through the baby monitor. You groaned, turning over as you wiped the sleep from your eyes. Elvis placed his hand on your arm, muttering that he had it handled before getting up from the bed. “Are you sure? What if she has a wet diaper?” Elvis stopped in his tracks, turning to face you before a smirk crossed his lips. “I think I got it handled.” He chuckled as he headed towards your daughter’s room, seeing her little fists balled up, her cries filling his ears.

One thing for sure, she had a set of lungs on her but Elvis adored that about her. She was his twin from the inside and the outside. “Oh, what’s the matter, yittle? Daddy’s got ya.” Elvis picked her up, pressing little kisses on her cheeks before noticing that she indeed had a wet diaper. What he didn’t know was that you were standing by the door quietly, wanting to be a few steps away should he have any trouble. “Don’t worry, yittle. I’ll have ya cleaned up in a bit. Let me get everything that we need, hm?” 

You watched from the door as Elvis grabbed a diaper and some wipes, unsnapping the safety pin that held her diaper together. You chewed on your lip, worrying that he would clam out, but you were soon proven wrong. Elvis folded up the cloth diaper, placing it neatly beside him before cleaning her off with a few wipes. He placed the diaper securely on her bottom, snapping the safety pin together before pulling her night gown back down her legs. “There we go, sweet girl. I bet ya feel better now, don’t cha?” He whispered as he picked Alisa up in his arms. 

He turned around to see you standing at the door, a smirk displayed over his lips as he rocked the newborn in his arms. “I may have been wrong about not being cut out for the daddy business. I changed her diaper without any problems.” He whispered, coaxing you closer so that she could get another feeding. As you sat in the rocking chair that sat beside her crib, Elvis placed Alisa into your arms, where you got her latched on to your breast successfully. “I told you, honey. You’re the entire world in her eyes. You could do no wrong.” 

Elvis stood proudly, not believing that he was having trouble with a simple task such as changing a diaper. “From now on, I want to be the one to change her. I think I need more practice.” He declared, looking down at his sleeping daughter as she suckled from your breast. Once she was full, you handed her back to Elvis, watching as he patted her back a few times until she burped before laying her back into her crib. He turned the mobile on, backing away from his sleeping daughter before taking you by the hand. 

Surely enough, Elvis stayed true to his word, being the only person who would change Alisa’s diaper. Regardless of the time of night, he made it his mission to have the practice that he needed. It didn’t take long for him to become a pro, taking little to no time to get her clean. His excitement was returning, bragging about how he was the only man in his friend circle that could change a baby’s diaper and implored his friends to take some classes to be prepared for when their children arrived. 

To think that he was having issues with changing a diaper was the bud of every joke, but once he showed everyone how it was done, there were no more jokes being made at his expense. Elvis was beginning to like the daddy business and you were too. 

Taglist: @lindszeppelin @loving-elvis @lovininapinkcadillac @beeandheroddobsessions @missmaywemeetagain @softsatnin @cryingabtab @elvis-bucket-hat @flwrs4aust @plasticfantasticl0ver @presleyenterprise @prayerstopresley @presleysdarling @coolgirl462 @galaxygirl453 @generoustreemystic @steph-speaks @woundmetender @flowersofcement @mixtapemasterjipc @elvisshowusyourpelvis @burninlovebutler @troubleinapinksuit @precious-little-scoundrel @ab4eva @elvisabutler @succsessions @luluthesandgoose @thatbanditqueen @foreverdolly @rosaminny @urlittledairyqueen @venus-haze @18lkpeters @dre6ming @dkayfixates @crash-and-cure @literally-just-elvis-fics @dhimpson1 @rjmartin11 @kendralavon7 @samfangirls @ccab @peaceloveelvis @kiankiwi @iloveaustinelvis @ilovehobi101

[riddles-n-games]

Here it is, the headcanon that you've all been waiting for but you didn't know that you were waiting for: that age old debate of coffee or tea, Hawthorne edition.

Nash-This cowboy enjoys a good calming green tea out on the balcony at dawn, watching the sunrise on those days where it just hits in that way as the sun comes out over the Black Wood. Though, he absolutely loves very sugary lattes for whatever reason and Alisa used to wonder how it straight up didn't stop his heart. He goes out with Xander on these outings where if they're experiencing this need for caffeine and really don't want anything from the chef's kitchen, they go out for coffee at any random cafe they can find and they usually like going to different ones for experimentation purposes; Nash for his lattes and Xander for his mocha/chocolate iced drinks. They both love going out on these ventures and it's another favorite brotherly bonding activity. Anytime that Alisa becomes aware of these outings, she warns Libby to not make any cupcakes so that Nash doesn't get a severe sugar rush and it's just come to the point where both Libs and Alisa are terribly concerned that this man might get a heart attack so they've took it upon themselves to be his intervention tag team. It's a very tumultuous effort on their part.

Grayson-He actually prefers either given at any time but it does sometimes get event-dependent based on the intended outcome of his goals. If he wants to feel relaxed and refreshed, he drinks tea at a gala or charity dinner but in the case of working a late night for the foundation or his own homework, he needs coffee. He drinks copious amounts of black coffee when the stress of his work gets too great. One time it go so bad during a large project that his grandfather assigned him that in the middle of one of his work nights, he literally threw the mug of black coffee at his face he was so tired and drained. Nash went to check on him that next day to see if he was fine but found him asleep at his desk with coffee stains on Gray's usually pristine white shirt and sticky remnants on his face and then went to see the security footage. The older Hawthorne never told a soul and to this day, not even Grayson knows that it exists because Nash erased it from the cameras or that Nash saw him in his unruly state. As ironic as its sounds, when it comes to tea, his favorite flavor is Earl Grey (come on, you all saw that coming, right?) but he also loves a hazelnut roast with a sprinkle of apple cinnamon. He'd also never let anyone know this but he actually sometimes secretly buys himself a pumpkin spice latte anonymously because he's a sucker for it during the fall.

Jameson-Coffee through and through. He loves a good espresso and on occasion, if Nash is nowhere in sight and he needs an alcohol boost to get through the day, he sneaks in a shot of Bailey's. But, Jamie does have an oddly specific order for cold brews whenever Nash and Xander go on one of their caffeine-fueled urge adventures (yes, that's what they're called, according to Alisa, that is).

Xander-Forget coffee, he actually enjoys drinking hot chocolate more, specifically with milk, never hot water. He finds it absolutely disrespectful and sacrilegious to do this as it's always been referred in alternate terms as chocolate milk not chocolate water. This boy, being the genius he is, literally created an entire machine that actually can detect if a hot cocoa drink is made with milk or water; yes, he's that passionate and picky about this. Xan will debate on this topic very heatedly and most often than not it's one of the only opinion-based subjects that get him really going off. But yeah, when he's actually working in the middle of the night of an ongoing project that's likely lasted at least a few days with each one being an all-nighter, he gets black coffee and drinks two cups worth straight from the pot. Though, he loves trying out the different iced caffeinated drinks with chocolate or mocha flavors during summer.

[thosesillylittlegayghosts]

Secret Shanghai couples/characters as surprise song mashups

High tide: False God X Slut (kinda based on the vibes for this, also because of Orion canonically being a bit of a manwhore and for the start of fhh when everyone was reporting on Rosalind’s connection to Orion and the fact that in the past people used Dmitri against her)

Rosalind: This is me trying X labyrinth (timt is so her coded and so is labyrinth, thank you Taylor for singing these songs tonight so I could include it)

Alternatively Rosalind (tvd): I almost do X The moment I knew (quite obviously about Dmitri but as it was happening specifically when she finds the note from him in ove)

Again alternatively Rosalind: Closure X a perfectly good heart (doesn’t really need an explanation apgh is her at the end of ove and closure is her at the end of flf)

Orion: The archer X Question (again the archer is so him coded and he just gives midnights vibes)

CeliaXOliver: You are in love X Cowboy like me (I have a lot of feelings about how close they were before they got together okay? And they were friends for YEARS before they did so they lowkey own yail, cowboy like me screams them purely because of how well they understand each other, I can deffo see it being Oliver’s pov)

Alternatively CeliaXOliver: Everything has changed X so high school X Mary’s song (they were just friends then they weren’t, she actually will be 87 when he’ll be 89 and they make each other feel like the teenagers they never got to be)

Philas: Hits different X Death by a thousand cuts (I pictured you with other girls…is giving Phoebe getting jealous of herself, moving on was always easy for her and dbatc is them for most of fhh when they didn’t really trust each other)

Romajuliette: Out of the woods X is it over now X clean (ootw is them in tvd, iion is them in ove and clean is them in last violent call prove me wrong)

Alisa: Clara bow X the lucky one (something about her being the only montagov left in Shanghai and how that should be a good thing but she’s the only montagov lonely and how she was lowkey haunting the narrative in last violent call)

Benmars: State of Grace X you’re on your own kid (mainly the vibes ngl,

[sunkeeperxiv]

FFXIV Write 02 - Horizon

Timeframe/Spoilers: Stormblood, the journey to Kugane.

(780 words) It's a long voyage to the far east, and Daca'li has a habit of stepping out for some night air.

Daca’li suppressed a yawn as he hauled himself up the ladder separating the ship’s sleeping quarters from the lower decks. The soft soles of his lounge boots were thin enough that he could feel the woodgrain on the rungs, but they at least kept him quiet as he climbed. None of the pirates aboard the ship would have taken nicely to being woken in the middle of the night because one of their passengers felt like a late-night stroll.

He lifted the trapdoor at the top of the ladder, snaked through, and closed it again as quietly as he could, pointing an ear toward the figure sitting at one of the benches as he did. The quartermaster Paisley was awake late, a lantern beside her on the table as she fussed with papers, pen and abacus.

“Good evenin’,” he said, not wanting to startle her. The crew’s response to being startled would be to stab him first, and most likely second and third as well. Asking questions probably wouldn’t come into it at all.

She jerked her head up at his voice, her hands flying to her musket and her lantern, although for a mercy she didn’t draw the musket. She’d learned his voice at this point, he supposed. “Up and about again, Mister Liath?” she asked, lifting the lantern only a little, likely enough for her to see his silhouette.

“Aye, ‘Master Paisley,” he responded, looking just barely away from both her and the lantern. She’d admitted a week back that seeing his eyes shine in the darkness gave her the shivers. “Just need to see the stars for a spell.”

Paisley nodded and placed the lantern back on the table, turning it so the light shone on her papers. “If you’re goin’ to make a habit of this, you could consider takin’ a spot on the night watch. The crew would appreciate it. Ain’t many enjoy bein’ up all hours of the night.”

Daca’li considered it a moment. It was true enough that he didn’t much enjoy just waiting for the ship to arrive in Kugane. He spent most of his days studying Doman letters with Alphinaud and Alisae or sparring with Lyse, but day after day of the same had begun to drag. Doing something to help aboard the ship would be a change of pace. It might even be a relief.

“I’ll think about it,” he told her, although he’d already all but decided to do it. She nodded brusquely and returned to her paperwork as he made his way up the stairs to the main deck.

Even after weeks at sea, the sea breeze retained a uniquely refreshing quality. Despite the late hour, the wind was warm, and the ever-present ocean tang was sharp and soothing. He made his way over to the railing and leaned up against it, resting his chin on the wood. The moon was at half her light, and even with his keen eyes he could just barely make out the horizon, the line where the stars stopped and the water waves began.

He looked behind the boat and saw only water; ahead of them was likewise barren. They’d been sailing for two weeks now and had several weeks left before they’d arrive in Kugane. They hadn’t been moving slowly, either. Carvallain had informed him several days ago they were making very good time. The expanse of ocean they had to cross was simply vast.

A sort of clarity came over him, remembering that remark. He thought, for a moment, about all the ocean they had surely already crossed, and then about all the ocean they had yet to cross. The full length of Aldenard and Ilsabard put together. He spent so much time jumping from aetheryte to aetheryte, chasing crises, that Eorzea had shrunk into a collection of cities and towns and battles to fight. Now, though, standing on the deck, watching the same endless horizon that he’d been surrounded by for days…

A shiver crossed his skin despite the balmy breeze. There was so much of it. Once in his life the Shroud had been the biggest thing he could imagine. From the Shroud to Eorzea, and now this… his breath caught in his throat. The more he saw of the world the more it seemed to grow.

Daca’li adjusted his posture so that he was leaning more comfortably against the railing and settled in for a spell, watching the ocean waves. He resolved to ask Paisley later about taking some of those watch shifts, and the other members of the crew what they knew about Kugane and Doma. He’d just become a great deal more eager for their arrival.

[caliburn-the-sword]

fhh ch35-40

another day another suffering cause of chloe gong lesgo

scarf and sunglasses look?? did miss chloe just reference the superhero disguise gag in the mcu of sunnies, cap and hoodie?? given she marketed the first book as like captain america,,, it's almost defo the case fvksdjfs

just the entire comedy bit about orion's big head fksdnfs

the way rosalind is inching closer and closer to figuring out that phoebe is priest

omg poor phoebe being approached by her mother's men RIGHT after expressing her abandonment issues

i really hope lady hong's men don't bring back rosalind's blood on the knife a sample for her to study and apply to her supersoldiers,,,

PHOEBE YOU IDIOT WHY WOULD YOU GIVE YOURSELF UP OMG

orion pov again. especially interesting now that he's more or less seeing rosalind in action for the first time

nation over everything? nation over everything, but never you, sweetheart. and yet here celia is, almost choosing not to sacrifice communist agents even if it means she can't save oliver, because of her principles, because she doesn't want to lie. god i love celia. stop giving her the hardest battles i can't take it

ROSORION KISS ROSORION KISS

"to hear a proper laugh and store it away in a place no one could ever take from him again." THAT'S SO KAZ BREKKER CORE I'M THROWING UP. HE WOULD HAVE BOTTLED HER LAUGH AND GOTTEN DRUNK ON IT EVERY NIGHT

orion likes to get bitten confirmed. kinky bastard. i love knowing where all those "rosalind bites people" memes were coming from now fksjdhn

orion IS a prettyboy

alisa is such a little shit i love her. you go you funky little cockblocker

phoebe's identity crisis and being three girls at once because of all the faces she puts on, not knowing who the real one is >>> there's a reason she's my favourite character i'm smashing my head against a wall again and again and again until a crack forms and brings down the entire roof of the house on my head

poor phoebe my eyes are actually burning i will NOT cry but my poor girl

"there was no such reality where Phoebe could have stayed in the shadows forever protecting Orion. Eventually, people had to face their own danger." phoebe is totally gonna expose herself at the nationalist base to save oli

SILAS WHAT THE FUCK. I AM GNAWING THROUGH SOLID WOOD AND METAL WITH MY TEETH. WHAT THE FUCK. HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN. I REMEMBER THE SILAS IS A QUADRUPLE AGENT THEORIES. BUT THIS IS WORSE. THIS IS SO MUCH WORSE. HOW COULD HE BE WITH LADY HONG

phoebe's urge to go all priest on her mum for her betrayal -> she's gonna go all priest on silas. i NEED it

delulu is the solulu i will simply believe that silas is quadruple or quintuple agenting rn until it becomes trululu there is no way he's NOT on our side

"Maybe they ran into each other at headquarters," oh they've run into each other alright celia ksjdnfs (coping with humour is the only thing left for me to do without screaming)

hgdjhb i love orion he's such a little guy for enjoying the wires

"Rosalind and Celia may as well start taking turns on whose mission partner went missing." STOPPPP MISS CHLOE THAT'S FUCKING COLD

SILAS YOU MOTHERFUCKER. N O T H I N G ON PHOEBE??? MOTHERFUCKER. I'M FIGHTING HIM I'M FIGHTING HIM I'M FIGHTING HIM HE HAS NO BUSINESS GOING ON ABOUT THE OLI RESCUE AS IF WE WASN'T TAKING BLOOD FOR LADY HONG. AND THIS IS REALLY BOLD CONSIDERING I DON'T EVEN LIKE OLIVER

I HATE DRAMATIC IRONY THIS IS KILLING ME

silas seems genuine but i don't trust him. i fear he's also brainwashed as lady hong's little spy. he was in london with the others for very long. it would let her have eyes and ears in the two major forces in china, nationalists and commies. or maybe lady hong promised phoebe's safety. who knows

the fact that phoebe was called by her name for the entire chapter, only to be called priest at the end?? chills. also i'm dying

SILAS POV. MOTHERFUCKER

THE FACT THAT SILAS SEES THE MOON AS HE DRIVES TO THE NATIONALIST COMPOUND I AM FROTHING AT THE MOUTH

SILAS IS A GUILTY BASTARD HE'S CONSCIOUSLY AWARE OF IT

now celia sees the moon. i want to cry

omg oliver was hallucinating celia. that's almost romantic

oh shit japan is bombing

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

24 in 2024

i haven't seen any of these floating around yet, so i thought i'd get one started! here are 24 books i want to read in 2024 (and a bonus readerly goal):

Welcome to Your World: How the Built Environment Shapes Our Lives by Sarah Williams Goldhagen

Obsolescence: An Architectural History by Daniel M. Abramson

Offended Sensibilities by Alisa Ganieva

The Night, The Night by Rodrigo Blanco Calderón

Dayswork by Chris Bachelder and Jennifer Habel

Dawn by Sevgi Soysal

Trashlands by Alison Stine

The Girl in Red by Christina Henry

How to be Eaten by Maria Adelmann

The Way Spring Arrives and Other Stories edited by Yu Chen and Regina Kanyu Wang

The Scourge Between Stars by Ness Brown

Black Tide by KC Jones

A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys

The Ambergris Trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer

The Great Cities Duology by NK Jemisin

The Spider and her Demons by sydney khoo

A Shining by Jon Fosse

Bad Cree by Jessica Johns

Other Terrors: An Inclusive Anthology edited by Vince A Liaguno and Rena Mason

Self-Portrait with Nothing by Aimee Pokwatka

Always Coming Home by Ursula K. Le Guin

Unexpected Places to Fall From, Unexpected Places to Land by Malcolm Devlin

Always North by Vicki Jarrett

At the Edge of the Woods by Masatsugu Ono

Bonus Readerly Goal: i'm gonna try REALLY hard to only buy a book after i read five (5), this year (pre-orders DNI). gotta get that backlist under control SOMEhow, right??

notes on the color-coding: the green books are Just Because books (with a couple little red riding hood adjacent retellings in there, which is writing-project-related). a few of these came in a translation subscription box, and i am Interested in Architecture, and i'd love to read more of both this year.

the blue ones are bookmarked for nano prep (i wanna write something fucked up about space this year, i think, it's still cooking). i know it's early for that, but The Vibes™ have to marinate for a while. will probably add some haunted house books to this part of the list!

lastly, the purple ones are driscoll adjacent! filling my words well with related vibes worked well, this year, and i want to do that again next year. since i read through the entirety of my previous ~driscoll vibes~ stack last year, i've been restocking it, so most of these are very recently purchased.

(please note that all this color-coding/explanatory text is absolutely optional and Extra™, if you want to play--you can add it if you'd like, but by no means feel Obligated To Do So lol)

tagging @asexualbookbird, @six-of-ravens/@sixofravens-reads, @agardenandlibrary, @freckles-and-books, and anyone else who wants to play!

[romajuliettemai]

Chloe Gong Character's Names + Their Meaning

We all know Chloe picked the names based off Shakespeare- but it's also possible she picked them based off what they meant.

Here is a list of names and their meaning!

(Some of these definitions were picked that best suited the characters/ were taken out of a much larger definition. Also these defintions are taken from several different cultures/origins/ countries, so the meanings may vary.)

___________________________________________

Secret Shanghai Series

Rosalind - Literally translates to "gentle horse", meaning a balance between elegance and strength.

Orion - Beyond the Greek Hunter translation (which is most likely where the code name 'Hunstman' came from) and the meaning 'Great Hunter' is derived from, more meanings are the celestial 'Rising in the Sky', 'Dawning' and 'Shining Star'. This is most likely from the constellation as well. The name in general means warrior, strength, bravery as well as a connection to the sky.

Celia - "Heavenly" (hold significance as a character from As You Like It obviously), An ideal hero: witty, fearless, independant and extraordinary- destined for great things. (Shakespeare introduced the name to the English language and giving it the definition it has today.)

WIKIPEDIA SAID BLIND FOR SOME REASON LMFAO

Oliver - "Ancestor's descendants". "olive", "olive tree" - associated with "olive tree" in peace, dignity, fruitfulness and beauty.

Phoebe - Bright or radiant- refers to the greek god of the sun, Phoebus Apollo

Silas - "Forest" or "woods", great love of the outdoors- the name inspires the image of "a daring explorer unfazed by the depths of the darkest woodland."

Roma - I am not even joking, this can translate to "One with shiny hair"- However it also can also relate to "wealth" & "prosperity"

Also a type of tomato, but, yk, that's not really a name definition

Juliette - "Youthful", a person with this name can be described that "they love their life and have eternal spirit." "shiny, sky" another definition is "downy" meaning soft/ fluffy or also "covered with fine soft hair or feathers" for some reason.

Benedikt - "Blessed" or "the blessed one." as well as "well spoken."

Marshall - "Caretaker of horses." Literally not even kidding. If read into more it can be seen as "animal lover."

Katherina - "Pure" with connotations of "tradition, beauty, and excellence." In the Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare, Katherina is depicted as fiery and spirited in contrast with the meaning of the name.

Alisa - "Great happiness" and "joy." It can also mean "noble" and "kind." The name suggests that "you give up what you want so other people can have what they need."

Lourens - Derived from the Latin word "laurentum" meaning wreathed/ crowned with laurel. The name signifies "a freedom-loving and free-spirited individual."

Surnames

Hong - In the mandarin dialect, the name translates to "rainbow", "enlarge", "great", and "expand." It can also mean "water" and "flood."

Here's a funny little story I found on it-

"Legend has it that Hong as a surname dates back to the 23rd-century b.c. to a group known as the Gonggongshi. The clan took Gong as a surname but changed the character by adding a water component to escape their enemies. Gong converted to Hong, and, thus, a new name was born."

(TheBump Baby Names - https://www.thebump.com/b/hong-baby-name)

Lang - "A passionate person with a fighting spirit" as well as "tall." It could also mean "flame."

Mai - "To sell", "to betray", "to spare no effort", and "to show off or flaunt." It could also mean "dance."

Montagov - I found absolutely nothing on this name or even 'Montagova' as it is the female version.

The closest I could find was 'Montague,' (picked especially from Shakespeare) literally meaning "pointed hill."

Cai - The name originally refers to "the tortoise used in ancient rituals of divination" in Chinese. It also means "rejoice", "happy," or "feminine." "Pure" is another defintion.

Seo - "Slowly" and "gently."

Wu - "Martial", "military", or "martial arts." It can also mean "affairs business", as well as "shaman" or "sorcerer."

Van Dijk - meaning "from (the) dike."- it's a "topographic name for someone who lived by one of the many thousands of dikes in the Netherlands."

FLESH AND FALSE GODS

Calla - "Beauty". The calla lily flower actually embodies "life, fertility, and purity."

Anton - "Priceless" or "praiseworthy." It can also mean "flower."

August - "To increase" and "great." It's derived from the name Augustus, meaning "exalted" - "(of a person or their rank or status) placed at a high or powerful level; held in high regard." and "venerable" - "accorded a great deal of respect, especially because of age, wisdom, or character."

Galipei - There is absolutely nothing on this name.

The closest I could find was the name 'Galilei', which is the surname of Galileo, so it relates to being astronomical.

SURNAMES

Tuoleimi - There is absolutely nothing on this name either.

I used 'Ptolemy' since that was where this name was derived from. It means "agressive" or "warlike."

Makusa - This name can mean "truth, reality, and genuine" as well as "pure."

Shenzi - Literally means "savage" or "barbarian."

Weisanna - I could also find nothing on this.

The closest I found was 'Weissanna', meaning "sacrifice", "innovative", and "powerful."

Author

Chloe - "Blooming" or "fertility", the literal translation refers to "young shoots of foliage that appear in the spring."

Surname

Gong - "Royal palace" in Chinese. The Mandarin form of the surname means "showing respect for elders or guests." There are many other meanings, but the surname is laden with many events in Chinese history.

___________________________________________

I hope you all enjoyed this post! I know I haven't posted in a while but this one's been in the drafts for a good few days and I figured I'd finish it and post it. Let me know if you manage to find any more meanings to these that you think I should add. What connections can you make between these definitions and the characters?

[ortodelmondo]

Kifoula in the woods near the coastline of the English channel. Kifoula came to Normandy, France, from Brazzaville after the civil war in Congo and currently performs in several theatre and dance companies in Normandy. “Kifoula told me that he was concerned that a lot of people who managed to get to Europe from African countries were losing, or even rejecting, their roots. He believes that founding a local community of fellow countrymen can help to preserve their native culture, and language, even when far away from their homeland.”

© Alisa Martynova

[no-1-rosalind-lang-apologist]

Would you rather have to be stuck in an elevator with Orion or be stranded in the woods with Alisa?

Honestly I think that I would feel 0 fear if I were stuck in an elevator with Orion and being stuck with someone and forced to talk to them or them deciding that they are going to talk to me is probably the most successful way that I have been able to make friends ever so I will choose that. I love Alisa so very much however I think being stranded in the woods with her would be terrifying.

[choccy-zefirka]

OC name choices

Sooo I was tagged by @judithmactir and since I have a ton of OCs I will be just firing at random!

Alisa Shepard is supposed to have American and Russian ancestry, and I named her after Alisa Seleznyova, the spunky kid protagonist of the middle-grade sci-fi books I grew up reading.

Maedhros Lavellan was obviously named after Tolkien's Maedhros, because I created him just after learning the Trespasser spoilers about the fate of the Anchor.

Verisin is my wood elf from Elder Scrolls Online. Her name sounds pretty elfy, but also means "the most bloody" in the Finnish language, which is a good fit for her because she is technically a healer but is morbidly fascinated by what makes bodies of flesh and bone tick, and has the worst bedside manner in history.

Utheneril is another one of my OCs from Elder Scrolls Online, but his name actually references the Dragon Age concept of Uthenera, because he too is an ancient elf who was suspended in magical stasis for millennia and then awoken in the more modern era

Alyrr, my Drow OC in BG3, actually had some in-universe lore research put into her name. Her background borrows somewhat from Phantom of the Opera (she is a bard-turned-warlock, and the "Phantom" is her patron, a weird fae dude living in her opera theater's walls). To reflect that, I dug through a Drow glossary on Reddit and assembled the syllables into what is meant to signify "song-wielder".

Same goes for Isk'Irthos, who's the product of a forbidden love between a dragon and her rider (dragons in DnD are fully sentient and can shapeshift into humanoids, so no worries!). Her existence was kept secret, and the name Isk'Irthos allegedly (as far as the Forgotten Realms wiki goes) means Secret Star.

Lady Amaya, my Halfling Paladin of Vengeance from the same game, was, unexpectedly, named after the queen from the Disney movie Wish. I did not watch this movie, but I have seen some critiques of it that are not very encouraging... One critique, however, pointed out that it would have been more fun if the evil king's wife was also evil, like in the concept art, or had been bewitched by wish magic to think she was in love with him. I went with the latter option as inspiration, so Amaya's schtick is that she seeks vengeance against wizards who use mind control after what her evil husband did to her.

Maud Ryder is the wackier, less adulty twin than her brother, so her name is a reference to Mabel Pines from Gravity Falls. The names start with the same letter; plus, recalling the instance when the mean girl Pacifica tried to insult Mabel by saying that she has a name like "a fat old lady", I figured that Maud evokes the same frumpy old-fashioned associations as Mabel.

I have to stop before this post grows too long, and tag @mutantenfisch , @lazyadmiral , @poetikat and @mightymizora