#I FINALLY FINISHED IT!!!! LET'S GOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mel-loly]

-These two started with one goal: “to get away from everything and everyone”.

And in the end, they decided: “to stay, to continue their story from 13 years ago”.

[leslieseveride]

maxton hall

me:

[maskymoo]

TBHK is getting another season, wooooo!!!

Glad to hear that since I'm right now catching up on all the volumes. I may not talk about TBHK that often, but honestly, it has to be one of the best stories I'll ever read. Please check it out if you haven't, it's a beautiful series.

[s0lar-ch3ri]

OH BOY i have so many thoughts on hair i made so many tags for it on your post about undersea and hair

one about chip:

and one for jay:

i have A LOT of thoughts on how hair works, some i forgot to cover, in the world of riptide! for this, im gonna have to go character by character (it also will be following the idea in the post i referenced also by you lol, idk what the hell to call you so for now just fellow fan fiction? sure). as always spoilers ahead and ill try to keep my writings within the eps youve seen so far lol

update i procrastinated this long enough that youve seen them all so nvm the second part of tjhe last sentence

addition thoughts for jay: i know she removes the pin when under cover because shes going in disguise but like. i have to talk about that. she wears it while sailing on the open seas. and she also carries her sisters badge. like shes so connected to the navy, yet she chose to be a pirate. at first it felt like the pin wasnt holding any hair out the way, but like in the more recent design she has, it holds back her bangs (which must be better for her vision and aim j bet), like she can put those ties behind her. shes still connected to them, but not as much as before. i also wanna bring up jays connections to failure! she probably is seen somewhat as a failure, by her family and by herself (also friends idfk). she failed to help ava. she failed to be a true pirate at first. she failed to stick to plan and keep being a spy. shes failed several times before, and im not even talking just in battle or to save or whatever! shes failed in inventions, talking to people, lying, you name it! yet, her hair is messy and down and long, and thats because she survived it. she survived the failures and its her way of winning. her wins outnumber her failures and she knows it, so she lets it down fully because shes more proud, and more free to fuck up things that arent shit.

thoughts with gill himself: gillions hair has never really changed. one may argue nobodys really has, but thats where your wrong! when in disguise, its only really later on that gillion does shit to his hair. YEAH TYING IT UP ISNT MUCH (jay) BUT LIKE. HE JUST DIDNT TOUCH THAT SHIT. including that disguise detail though, his disguises and shit are like very similar (we do not count jort storm here, he can go kiss chip again). villian, emo gillion, killion, all of them are very similar. hes also the only one to have used hair dye btw. yeah it was for emo gillion, and i think it wad like dripping out, but he still used it. would dying your hair be like showing some representing to how baytles were won or how they fell on it? interesting on how gillion chose black...OH ALSO THE CORALS WR GOTTA TALK ABOUT THEM! im thinking about how hats would mayter to hair in this jdea, and ik gills corals arent like a hat but like. its described like a crown. would some who didnt know treat it like hes some royal fuy? idk lol, just thinking. curious on why hed change his hair then...

thoughts with edyn: following the theory, edyns hair is very short. yeah, its absolutely from gillion, but he hadnt seen her for YEARS. hair grows after tike unless you cut it yourself. i wonder if edyn just kept cutting it everyday because she was so sorrowful over that failure.

thoughts with finn: the thing with fin is he has a pretty long beard. i bet you he may have been a damn god researcher, but he must have disappointed people when he left to go above. yet, he has such long hair, and its because he didnt regret it. and maybe gillion is confused by that, but we do have to note something: finn would know more undersea culture then gillion because gillion was sheltered badly by the elders. finn also knows more oversea wise because hes been there longer. yet, comparing the two, it looks like gillion has failed so many more times then the man who willingly left home and disobeyed their religious ideals.

thoughts with chip: chips new hair has a lot of similarites to people hes met. its wild and free like jays, he has a little braid like lizzie and/or ollie, its like how he changes with eceone he meets. this is also how hes choosing his hair to look, what with the undead thing now. SPEAKING OF THAT, THE BANDANA MUST BE SO INTERESTING FOR THIS! like, chip can make his hair any length with this, so its not off the list that he wouldnt make it longer or shorter. he can change how it looks, and with this it must mean it changes around meanings. if he chooses to have it shorter, its more meaningful because hes acknowledging that he fucked the hell up. theres also how like the hat is kinda big enough to hide some of his hair so its like hiding his failures and victories, hoorayyy!!!

hope you like this soap

anyways cause i love hair headcanons and minor pieces of symbolism in things like inherited appearance--

mae (may?) ferin has brown hair, but it's very curly.

jayson ferin has the fiery orange hair that's the signature of the ferins, but it's straight.

thinking about ava ferin having the same hair as her father, because she took after him and fit the role she was meant to. became a navy captain(?) and allat

thinking about jay ferin having her father's red hair, but her mother's curls because she doesn't fit the mold of being a ferin in the way her sister did. she's a pirate, first of all-- she never becomes the navy icon she was meant to, but she still has that lingering loyalty that comes from family. she's caught between her rebellion and her love for her family and i love how her alignment isn't black-and-white.

[autogyne-redacted]

Let's fucking goooooooo!!! I finally finished a draft of my zine and other than two little sections it doesn't even feel that rough. I'm soooooo pumped

[memberment]

good morning everyone!

I have ruined my sleep schedule. Someone save me LMAO

(10:00) as I reach the end of what I've written for morning glory, I grow tired. I need to take a nap. Will I finally finish this Fourth of July chapter today?? Perhaps.

But no one and I mean NO ONE is allowed to let me forget I need to incorporate the mostly bit at some point. Like there are so many canon refs in here it's SCARY. I NEED THE MOSTLY BIT IT IS MY FAVORITE CARTMAN BIT. NO ONE LET ME FORGET!

(6:11) this is my third good morning of the day, second on record good morning, first on record crying over my writing.

LIKE WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN THEY'RE GONNA DIE I'M GONNA THROW UP

(I'm literally not okay I need to stop writing tragic creek)

(7:04) Guys I'm almost done with my morning glory reread and when I tell y'all I just nearly died from shock bc Craig casually mentioned he 'Doesn't believe in coincidences.' Like, it's such a benign statement but after WRITING his storyline in Genesis and randomly seeing something like that in the wild that I totally forgot about almost just took me out.

(10:20) Guys after I reread this Genesis chapter and code it I AM OFFICIALLY WORKING ON MORNING GLORY AGAIN LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOO (This Fourth of July chapter will get finished tn I SWEAR TO HECK!!!!)

(And then I get to read my fav once its like 5am bc I can only read my fav fic at like 5/6 when the sun is just coming up and my room is perfectly cold and I'm almost ready to go to bed but not quite the vibe is JUST RIGHT here's to praying to the gods we don't believe in I get blessed with an early chapter(bc I have literally been trying to space them out and save them and sometimes I do get lucky and get to read two at once and it's literally the best istg))

(11:17) I forgot to reread said chapter and quit at some point but tell me how Morning went from 84.6 (?? ish) to 86.1k?? LIKE HELL YA LETS GOOOOO WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS!!!!

(11:29) It's not, like, haha funny, but I find it so painfully hilarious that I keep going back and forth between writing like fun wholesome dirty mountain kids figuring out life creek and then like them literally DYING for each other with the most gut wrenching dialogue surrounding it all. My brain needs to be studied, I fear.

(3:28) I just spent like the last 30 minutes being a fucking lunatic BACK TO MORNING GLORY!!! We're at 87.1k ... Which like, honestly, for me on hiatus??? I'm kinda impressed. Kinda proud of myself. (Not to mention the other shit I wrote that is not Morning Glory today, because I did write some of the most gut wrenching shit for Revelations just because I felt like writing angst LMAO)

(5:14) I know I've said this before. And I'll probably say it a million times. Jack stands on business and it's so FUCKING FUNNY. Like 'killing him won't solve anything'

'yeah but it'll feel good!'

LIKE OKAY DAMN LMFAOOOO

(6:27) and tonight I shut down with 89.7k

Which like, holy shit, yippie. 4th of July is done, they're doing powerpoint night, and I am just that much closer to being done with summer.

[colemckenzies]

Mid-Year Book Freakout

tagged by my queen @asalesbian

Number of books read so far in 2024: 56

Best book read so far in 2024: Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata. Which could honestly go in biggest surprise bc full 5* for a short story collection is CRAZY but it was just so so good

Best sequel: thank GOD i just finished the golden enclaves or I would not be able to answer this question lmao I haven't read any other series. this wasn't even technically a sequel its the final book of the scholomance trilogy. It Was Fine.

New release you haven't read yet but want to: the only book on my tbr with a 2024 release date is GENDER THEORY by madeline docherty which. does genuinely look good but also the description was like 'a story of love, friendship, and endometriosis'. yeah <3

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year: LET'S GO WITCHLINGS 3 LET'S GOOOOOOOO

Biggest surprise: Next Year For Sure by Zoey Leigh Peterson i rly thought this was gonna be Mum Fiction's First Polyamory but it was so genuinely compelling and moving and thoughtful i LOVED it

Favourite new (debut or to you) author: I don't really notice authors but I have been working my way through my gf's Mieko Kawakami collection and it's been pretty strong

Newest fictional crush: not something I really read for but I will say. not to repeat books but katherine from next year for sure genuinely one of the strongest fictional characters I've read in years. love her.

Book that made you cry: according to my storygraph there have been FOUR books I have cried at this year but most notably my first book of the year, Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto. that fucked me up!

Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year (or received): I'm working through my physical tbr atm so not acquiring that many books but I did buy a nice locally published edition of What's Eating Gilbert Grape? in bath the other day which had a cool vintage 50s illustration cover. similarly on the same trip got a hardback of Levitation For Beginners w a 70s aesthetic and wrapped in plastic. this is justified bc I have already finished reading that one.

Book that made you happy: She Loves To Cook She Loves To Eat vol 1 :) food lesbians!!

What books do you need to read by the end of the year: I have a single small bookcase of my physical tbr atm and I'd like to clear the top row at least. most notably finishing middlemarch, my lotr reread, and how to be both by ali smith (the favourite book of one of my best friends)

I'm gonna tag @hawkeyefrommash since they're a legit bookstagrammer, also book club besties @keclan and @dykemarcille AND ALSO @yellowjckets, but anyone else who wants to do it pls tag me as your tagger so I can read!!

[clowndeery]

AAAAAUGH FUCKING FINALLY OKAY!!

baby's first walk cycle lets fucking goooooooo!!! I spent way way way longer on this than i wanted to and rendering to output was a fucking pain, but ultimately I managed to not only finish this but save it in a format that can actually be shared. my plan was to save it as a gif, but despite multiple attempts at saving a render to output it just. does not exist. straight to the void those files went.

I also had a time where i would start to edit an image on the wrong frame, creating a new frame that upon undoing would scatter the frame that came after it. my roommate thought I was playing a horror game with the amount of horrified noises I was making lol

All in all I'm learning a lot, and despite my frustrations I AM having fun! as for the render issues i scoured reddit and it seems that getting an older version of ffmpeg should solve the problem. but that's for tomorrow!

[hurdy-girly]

LETS GOOOOOOOO

I haven’t had a chance to read through this yet but I am SO EXCITED!! For someone who has only played 2 LoZ games and finished neither (I’m procrastinating on BoTW but I’ve finished most of it and I’ve played some of the start of Link to the Past) I am extremely immersed in the lore of the franchise and now I can learn more!! I really wish I could just. Play all of the games. But they’re spread across so many consoles and emulators can only take you so far and I do not have the money to buy a single console of any sort let alone several so this is wonderful!! I can finally figure out the Actual Canon Lore!!!!! I really enjoyed reading through the BoTW creating the champion book thing so I’m hoping this will spark the same joy!

[karuvapatta]

Here we goooooooo

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9

***

Come Monday, there is a noticeable improvement in the atmosphere down in the Archives. Maybe it’s the illusion of a common goal to work towards, or just an after-effect of a moderately pleasant evening at the pub. Either way, it probably says something worrying about each and every one of them, but Jon can’t bring himself to care.

On a different note, his copy of House of Leaves is already lying on the desk in his office, with a short note written in Elias’s elegant handwriting.

You were right, the note says. I did like it.

Jon re-reads it obsessively before he finally caves and shoves it somewhere into the depths of his desk, along with the book. What does it mean? Did Elias mean it sincerely, or was he being sarcastic? Is he toying with Jon again? Why didn’t he hand it over in person, and share some of his thoughts? Is Jon severely misinterpreting the nature of their relationship? Because it’s not all that strange to exchange book recommendations with your professional acquaintances, isn’t it? And then discuss them?

The most probable answer is that Elias is avoiding him. Which shouldn’t hurt, because Jon has been avoiding Elias, but it still does. A bit.

That is, until they can avoid each other no longer. One of the dreaded interdepartmental meetings is coming up, and Jon doesn’t think he can weasel his way out of it, unless he gets himself sick or injured. And Elias will of course be there, given that he is organizing the damn thing.

Jon gets up earlier on Thursday and puts a bit more effort into his appearance, even going so far as to hanging his mirror back on the bathroom wall. He really needs a haircut at this point, but as he doesn’t trust himself with scissors, he tries to pin back his hair into a somewhat-professional looking bun. It does make him look too much like a hipster, unfortunately, but it’s better than letting it hang loose in front of his face, or pilling it up into a messy ponytail he usually ends up with.

The outcome is—honestly the best he could have hoped for. At least he ironed his shirt properly, and it almost fits him. He almost doesn’t look like an awkward teenager, dressing up for his first real date, or a job interview. Almost.

The meeting begins at 9 a.m. sharp. Jon already feels horribly underdressed – not to mention underqualified, as he is one of the youngest people here. And it’s not at all helped when Elias makes his entrance, looking perfectly stylish, from the subtle pattern on his tie, to the tips of his polished shoes. Jon doesn’t look up as Elias makes his way through the room, pretending to read the papers stacked before him on the table, and praying that no-one hears the frantic pounding of his heart.

“Good morning,” Elias says genially. The pleasant lilt of his voice does something utterly embarrassing to Jon’s insides. “I trust you are all having a productive week. Now, if you please—”

It’s just reports. Jon needs to deliver a report, assert that the Archives are operating without any problems, that he needs no additional funding, has no issues with the other departments. Nothing actually important. In truth, this entire meeting could have been an email, but Elias insists on bringing them all here. Possibly because the forced eye-contact enables him to read everyone’s mind in search of anything unorthodox.

Come to think of it, this is very probably the reason.

The Head Librarian is going through the usual: new acquisitions, outsiders requesting access to the Library, and an unpleasant incident involving a strange book that may or may not have been a Leitner. Jon spaces out, trying to rehearse what he’s about to say, and barely even notices when the man finishes speaking.

“Thank you, Salim,” Elias nods. “Jon?”

Good lord. He shouldn’t have been avoiding Elias. He shouldn’t have waited until now to face him, because his head is empty, his thoughts swirling in unhelpful patterns. Is Elias wearing the same cologne? There is the faintest trace of it in the air. And—and he’s waiting for Jon to speak, probably with that calm, expectant look on his face, distant and professional, while Jon sits frozen, unable to speak.

He looks up, and meets Elias’s eyes.

It’s—he’s seen them before, hundreds of times. There’s no reason for his pulse to speed up. He has seen Elias’s lips, the finely sculpted bones of his face, the delicate web of crow’s feet in the corners of his eyes. He has kissed those very same lips, the memory so strong it’s almost a tangible thing, so soft against his own mouth, gentle at first, and then more pressing, insistent, moving deeper, taking everything Jon didn’t even know he had to give—

Elias looks away and clears his throat.

“Jon? The report?”

Oh fuck. Elias can read his mind. And here Jon is, fantasizing about the man sitting three feet away from him, his boss, during a business meeting, surrounded by his co-workers—

“Right,” Jon hurries to say, nearly scattering the papers he had folded so carefully in front of him. “Excuse me. Right—”

He doesn’t look up again, pretending to check the notes he has already memorized, and lets his voice carry on while the rest of him curls in shame. Thank God no-one comments or asks him any questions.

“Thank you,” Elias says curtly. “Ingrid?”

It goes on like this. By the time Keith finishes arguing with Elias about the security measures and rapid personnel turnover in the Artefact Storage, Jon can almost breathe normally.

Of course he nearly misses his name being said again, this time by Ingrid, Head of Research, and his former boss.

“Jon?” she repeats, clear disapproval in her tone. “I was requesting access to the Archives.”

Access? To his Archives?

“What for?” Jon asks.

Too late, he notices the strange quality of his voice, a buzz of static; Ingrid frowns but she opens her mouth nonetheless, about to give him the answers he seeks. Compelled to.

“That is—” Jon hurries to say. “The Archives are still in a state of disarray. We are not nearly done cataloguing everything. If you let me know what exactly you’re looking for, I’ll be able to find it for you.”

Ingrid scowls. “Not done cataloguing? What, pray tell, have you been doing these past months then?”

It doesn’t seem like she noticed Jon’s question, or understood its significance. Does she even know what he is? Do any of them know? Do they also possess strange powers? Are they even aware of what it is they all serve? Is Jon being kept out of the loop, or is Elias keeping them all within their own little corners, feeding everyone bits of information, and then forcing them here, so that they can regard each other suspiciously above the unassuming conference table?

Because there is the faint undercurrent of fear in the air. He hasn’t noticed it before, too preoccupied with Elias, but it’s most definitely present. Every person has their own secrets to protect, and they sit here, afraid of those secrets being exposed in front of their co-workers, while the Eye already sees through them all and feasts on their fear.

He shakes away these thoughts and tries to compose himself.

“I believe I’ve already given my report on the state of the Archives,” he says. “I can repeat it, if you’d like.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Elias interjects. “Ingrid, if you require anything from the Archives, I’m sure Jon will be more than happy to assist you. I’m assuming you can sort it out between yourselves?”

“Yes,” says Jon.

“Of course,” says Ingrid.

The rest of the meeting is blissfully uneventful. Jon takes meticulous notes he isn’t planning on reading, just to keep his focus where it should be, and to hold his thoughts in check. Not an easy task once Elias leans back in his chair, his long, elegant fingers steepled together, observing the proceedings with rapt attention. There is a weight to his steely gaze that feels almost physical. Jon finds himself caught in it once Elias turns to him, and it takes conscious effort not to shudder. Good lord, if that’s what’s going to happen every time Elias looks at him…

He breathes a relieved sigh as soon as Elias dismisses them. That is, until Elias says:

“Jon. A word, please?”

Rosie gives him a warm, sympathetic smile as she picks up her laptop and a stack of reports. But she still leaves the room and closes the door behind her.

It’s just the two of them. Jon, half-standing, awkwardly trying to sort through his notes. Elias, sitting back in his swivel chair, perfectly poised and professional.

“Lock the door,” Elias says.

Jon swallows; his throat is dry as sawdust. But he moves, automatically, takes the several steps around the table, reaches the door, and the key in the lock. Turns it. Swallows again, with little success.

Elias is waiting, silent, his silhouette outlined against the windows behind his back. It’s a bright, sunny day. Almost too bright to look at.

Why isn’t he saying anything? Is he waiting for Jon to speak? To apologize? For what, his errant thoughts? The reckless use of his powers? His inability to concentrate? Or is he simply waiting for Jon to implode under the weight of his own anxieties? Because he’s fairly sure it wouldn’t take long.

What Elias says, however, is: “You look nice.”

Jon startles, then begins to laugh. “What?”

Elias tips his head to the side and frowns. “Although the suit is abysmal. I should introduce you to my tailor. We may then find something that will actually fit you.”

“I can’t afford your tailor, Elias,” Jon says, exasperated.

“Oh, I would be more than happy to pay for it,” Elias says. “Besides, you’ll need it for the next fundraiser.”

“What fundraiser?” Jon is starting to panic.

“I’m sure Rosie keeps you informed about upcoming events,” Elias says. “Have you checked your email?” At Jon’s blank expression, Elias sighs. “You do have assistants, do you not?”

“They’re not in charge of my schedule,” Jon protests. “Or sorting through my emails.”

The corner of Elias’s lip is twitching. He is enjoying this: flustered, wrong-footed Jon, fumbling through his answers.

“I assume you didn’t keep me here to insult my appearance?” Jon asks, trying to wrestle back some control over the flow of this bizarre conversation.

“I complimented your appearance,” Elias says. “It’s just your wardrobe I take issue with.”

“I see,” Jon says. “So, what is it? You want to dress me up in fancy clothes and have me dangle on your arm during the next posh event for all your rich friends?”

“Pretty much.”

It’s just a game, Jon thinks to himself, gritting his teeth. It’s Elias. Everything is a game to him. If Jon lets it get under his skin, he’s already lost.

Elias stands up, every move practiced, elegant. He reaches Jon in a few easy strides. Without the table separating them, Jon feels exposed and helpless. He’s sure Elias knows this.

“This is what I’m talking about,” Elias says, casually smoothing the creases of Jon’s damn suit. The touch of his hands is electric, even through the layers of fabric; it has Jon shivering, his breath catching in his throat. Worse, still, when Elias’s fingers slip upwards, to adjust the collar of his shirt, just shy of brushing the skin of his throat. “It’s too big on you. Or have you lost weight again?”

“My weight is none of your business.”

“Your health is very much my concern.”

“Why?”

“I told you. You’re my Archivist.” Elias’s voice drops into a whisper, warm and possessive. Jon’s indignation is feeble, melts away quickly, too quickly, with every frantic beat of his pulse against Elias’s fingers. “Do you know how damn hard it is to concentrate on my job with you there? When you look at me, when you think about me?”

“Then stop reading my mind,” Jon says. Elias is so close; if he lowered his head, if Jon stood on his tip-toes…

“I can’t,” Elias says. “I need to know, Jon. I need to know everything about you. I’m sure I don’t have to explain what it feels like.”

He’s smiling as he says it, huffing out a breath of not-quite laughter. But there’s an edge of frustration to his tone that Jon doesn’t know how to cope with. And he’s looking at him this entire time, his grey eyes pinning Jon in place, not even searching for anything. As if the sight of him was enough to satisfy whatever urges coursed through Elias’s veins.

“It’s hard to imagine the Beholding cares about this,” Jon says.

Even so, he cannot resist pressing his fingers to Elias’s cheek, just to feel it again; to see Elias’s pupils widen, watch the curve of his mouth as he smiles with wry amusement.

“I assure you, it craves the fear of its servants’ as much as anyone else’s,” Elias says. “More, perhaps.”

Is the Eye watching them now? It’s hard to tell. It’s hard to think.

“What are you afraid of?” Jon asks.

The compulsion rolls of his tongue, easily, as easy as breathing. And Elias shivers when he feels the pull of it, closes his eyes, and leans down, to close the last few inches separating them. To kiss Jon, hungry, drinking in the power he had bestowed upon him. He struggles to resist it, his lips forming words he refuses to voice, in between the frantic kisses he presses to Jon’s mouth.

He loves the struggle. Jon knows this instinctively. He loves it, and it’s exhilarating.

They part, breathless. Jon smiles, Elias’s warm breath tickling his skin, and presses another quick kiss to the corner of his mouth before pulling away.

“You never answered my question,” Jon points out.

“Right now? I’m mostly afraid Rosie will figure out what happened and report me to HR,” Elias is joking, but only just.

“Yes, that would be dreadful,” Jon says.

“Get back to work,” Elias says.

“Yes,” Jon nods. “I should probably do that.”

He doesn’t fully process it until he’s back in his office, staring at the wall while the events of this morning play themselves out in his head, in full, loving detail. Everything he said and did. Everything Elias said and did. Everything it could potentially mean.

Oh, this is bad. This is very bad.

[recurring-polynya]

Writing/Art Update 12.5.2023

It took me all week, but I did, finally, finish Chapter 5.

I had two great wordcount weeks in a row. This was not a great wordcount week. I did spend a lot of time thinking about my fanfic, and plotting and outlining. These are not normally activities that I enjoy, but it honestly wasn't so bad. I decided that I didn't want to keep proceeding forward until I had decided how this thing is going to end. If you've ever read any of my writing advice posts, you'll know that I nearly always advise deciding how the fanfic will end before you start writing the fanfic. The only reason I didn't take my own advice is because I usually don't need to. While I am infamously bad at ending individual scenes and chapters, I nearly always know how a fanfic is going to end, and this time I just...didn't?

Anyway, I thought about it all week and thought up some scenes I would like to do and thought about the character arcs and motivations I wanted my three mains to go through in the second half of this fanfic, and I also thought about characters whom I felt had not gotten enough screentime. All of these things were easier than coming up with an ending, but I did eventually come up with an idea for my last few scenes, and I think it's good enough that the rest will fill itself in as I go. We are definitely shaping up to be 9 chapters and an epilogue, which means I am now slightly over halfway done? Yay? It still feels frustrating because the front half is pretty self-contained and I want to show it to people, but I cannot, it needs to wait but there's soooooo muuuuuuch left to goooooooo.

Anyway, let's focus on the positive! I added 2,939 (new) words to Chapter 5, bringing it up to 10,160, the longest chapter so far, but not egregiously so. I added one scene which is both unnecessary and dreadful. It ruins the pacing at the end of the chapter, it goofs up my alternating narrator structure, and it's just extremely weird. Also, if I cut it, the chapter length will better match the other ones. I wrote a note in my outline "this scene is bad and you should delete it." Will I? Readers, I likely will not. This is fanfic and when you write fanfic, you can just make people read unnecessary scenes about Renji and Iba's dirtbag friendship and they can't do anything about it because I do not receive any sort of compensation for this. I promise that if I come to my senses and actually ax, I will post it here. In other news, everyone who loved the Squad Six-gets-universal-healthcare scene from Hearts will be overjoyed to learn that this one features a bit in which Ukitake-and-Yumichika-discuss-the-Gotei-13-procurement-process. Once again, I do not get paid.

I also spent some time this week fixing up the portion of Chapter 6 that I had already written. Some of it needs to be fully reworked, but there was a significant chunk that could be pretty much pasted in with a little minor editing.

That brings the wordcount for this week to 17,423 for Part B, or 54,296 overall (+10,207 for the week). That is...that is starting to become a fanfic.

It's also December, and there's a lot of stuff going on, so I'm really trying to not be too ambitious in my goal-setting, but I'm hoping that maybe I'll be able to get through Chapter 7 by the end of the year.

I did a drawing tutorial this week. It was okay. I'm kinda 🫠about drawing lately, but sometimes I can only really concentrate on one thing at a time.

[strawandstream]

Spoilers for the new Penguin trailer that dropped a few days ago, and my thoughts.

Finally, an Oswald adaptation that understand how much his mother means to him. She book ends this trailer, start to finish, it's all about her. From his very first canon backstory, she's been the force in his life, and I can't wait to see more of her.

I will admit I was a touch worried about Milioti's casting as Sofia. Gotham's version, a similar slight and small lady instead of the physically imposing vision of Sale and Loeb, had many issues, and I reflexively was reminded of that. This, though? This trailer specifically removed any and all doubt I had about casting: Cristin manages to exude exactly as much deep menace and unnerving command of a room as her larger comic book counterpart. She is balanced on a knife edge between control and chaos, and she rightfully scares the shit out of Oz.

DARK VICTORY BELIEVERS LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOO!

Okay, now that I've got that out of the way: Reeves might be the only guy to do live action Batman besides Sam Hamm who actually read, enjoyed, and most importantly understands the comics. I don't think they would suddenly reveal DV's biggest twist like this if they didn't have one of their own up their sleeve, befitting Sale's vision of Batman as a detective noir.

I'm entirely ecstatic about how this looks, and how many people this is going to introduce to Dark Victory, and Oswald as a character that isn't just a punchline.

[mille-marteaux]

Touhoumon Purple (pinned post)

This is a pinned post! There is newer blog content below this point, but the rest of this post is contained beneath the Read More button.

Last update: March 19th, 2023

Documentation, downloads:

Changelog:

New documentation hub and landing page. It's included as a link to a Google Spreadsheet. While this is primarily the same as the contents of the text files, its easier on you for not having to juggle like ten tabs or whatever.

Mandatory Strength boulders have been pre-moved by default. Optional ones for items still require the HM, however.

Starters now evolve at level 30 instead of level 36. Learnset levels are adjusted for starter Chibi forms and evolved forms, including stone evolutions.

Red UFOs exchanges changed. They are now used for IV maxing NPCs near Mossdeep.

There are four NPCs with different IV spreads.

One is all 31. This is for most casual users in-game.

One is Attack 0, rest 31. This is to minimize self-damage from confusion on puppets that aren't using their Attack stat. Very min-maxy.

One is Speed 0, rest 31. This is even more niche and min-maxy than the last; the only use case for this is for purposefully slowing puppets down for Baton Pass. Gen 3 will sometimes use Baton Pass as a neutral turn switch, similar to U-Turn.

The last is Attack/Speed 0, rest 31. This is very niche and min-maxy. This is again for Baton Pass, but also minimizes confusion self-damage.

EV training NPCs in the Frontier changed. They now give 4 EVs in their listed stat per battle. This slows the process of EV training down but makes it way easier to make specialized EV spreads.

All TMs are now in Lilycove Mart, as well as the "rare" berries

Tori can now evolve into Chibi versions of the birds in the sprite

Yes, this does some absolutely ridiculous things to their movepools. blast burn mystia lets goooooooo

Tewi, Attack Tewi, and Defense Tewi can now all fully slide Attack and Defense could already slide, so this just makes it funnier. Use a Power Shard on Attack Tewi to turn her into normal Tewi, etc no advent though she can keep that movepool to herself

"Energy Ball" has, finally, been renamed to "Focus Blast"

Evolved Koishi now holds PP Up at 50% and PP Max at 5%

Reisen II buffs, finally -- Typing is now Heart/Fire -- Stats are now 65 HP, 60 ATK, 80 DEF, 130 S.ATK, 65 S.DEF, 85 Speed -- Her level-up movepool is unchanged, but she can learn a huge mess of special moves via TM now. This makes her usable if you want to, but you have to invest in her pretty heavily depending on what you may want to run -- Her primary ability is now Magnet Pull -- Gained Pickup as a secondary ability

Added another above-curve item, similar to Elder Pain and Psycho Wand -- It functions as a Quick Claw that always activates. Due to its relative ease of obtaining compared to the previous two items, there is only one way to obtain it unless playing the Sandbox version

This is actually the final update to this hack because I'm sick of binary hacking. It's tedious, slow, annoying, and things can just break. I'm tired of making multiple gigabytes of backups just because I want to change some images or text around.

This project is done! Complete, finished. There is nothing more that I can reasonably fit into this game anymore that I want to include.

I want to be done with this project.. so I am! Unless something is broken, I guess. If it literally does not function by my own fault, I'll fix it, but I'm not adding or changing anything else from this point on.

The shift to a Google Sheet is because we anticipate the current hosting, and by extension website, to go down permanently.

While backups are in place whenever a new hosting plan is picked out, this will continue to exist as a central information hub just so you don't have to thumb through multiple text files and wiki dive.

As of the time of posting this, the documentation is not 100% complete - I have yet to do level-up movesets and TM/HM compatibility, but I intend to work on that soon enough.

There are a few more things cooking right now, so stay tuned!

[bluehairedspidey]

For character ask: Mileena and Reptile

finally finished this let's goooooooo

Mileena

General opinion/How much I care about them: Not one of the characters I spend the Most time thinking about but i love her!! <333 A ship I love: Mileena/Tanya is top tier of course, but I'm also really interested in the potential of Mileena/Frost! Particularly because of some of the intro dialogues in MK11:

Kotal Kahn: I despise you as I did Mileena. Frost: You have problems with strong women? Kotal Kahn: Those who seek stations above their faculty.

Frost: I've never killed a clone. Mileena: Nor have I a construct. Frost: May the best woman win.

Mileena: Kronika has offered me a body like yours. Frost: Don't be a fool. Take it. Mileena: Show me its worth.

Mileena: We're the same, Frost. Frost: Both written off and underestimated. Mileena: Together, we'll surprise them all.

A non-romantic relationship that I love: It may not be the most in character but I love Shao Kahn actually caring about Mileena as a daughter! She didn't ask to be made the way she was, and it seems like really all she wants is love and acceptance. Its no wonder she wants so badly to live up to Shao's expectations of her and follow in his footsteps when he was the first person who didn't immediately reject her as a monster. I also love the idea of Shang Tsung caring about her at least a little in his own way as she's one of his creations, and I'm super interested in the potential of her relationship with Baraka because I love hearing people talk to Mileena (and Baraka for that matter) as an equal, like in these lines:

Baraka: Join us against the Emperor. Mileena: And forever curtsy to my sister? Baraka: Better Kitana's partner than Shao Kahn's slave.

Baraka: You belong with the tribe. Mileena: I belong with my father, Baraka. Baraka: Your blood is ours, not his.

The NOTP: Hmm idk if I have any specific ships that I super hate, I guess I'm not particularly into any ships of her with men, im not a fan of her and baraka as anything but platonic My biggest headcanon about them: I've talked about it already but I really do think she just wants love and acceptance. idk if getting it from the right person/people would be able to turn her "good" at this point, but if anything could it would be that An idea for a fanfiction I would like to write/read about them: Since I mentioned Baraka earlier, I'd LOVE to see a fanfic where (perhaps after Shao Kahn's death) Mileena decides to accept Baraka's invitation to join the Tarkata tribe and when she does she's finally able to find a place where she fits in with people who love and accept her <;3 Something that makes me think of them: I mean she is very Jennifer's Body lol

Reptile

General opinion/How much I care about them: Similar to Mileena, don't think about him the most but I do love him! His less human/more lizard-like forms are my favorite, like in Deadly Alliance and his reptile form in MK1 (I'm not really a fan of his human form in MK1 ^^; ) A ship I love: Reptile/Kotal Kahn babey he can be his little creepy crawly <;3 A non-romantic relationship that I love: I ship Reptile/Kotal/Jade/Kitana/Liu Kang, so I'm interested in Reptile's platonic relationships with all the other members of the polycule that he's not involved with :) (EDIT: I FORGOT erron and reptile friendship as well :) The NOTP: None in particular (except perhaps, again, any straight ships) My biggest headcanon about them: This isn't even a headcanon it's just from the MKX intros but I love Kotal calling Reptile "Little Lizard" and Reptile calling Liu Kang "Little Dragon" <3 I do also headcanon that Kotal might call Reptile "Topitzin" ("little lizard" in Nahuatl) An idea for a fanfiction I would like to write/read about them: Currently have a WIP that's just Johnny, Liu Kang, Kitana, Jade, Kotal, and Reptile having an orgy Something that makes me think of them: Would it be cheating to say lizards lmao

[westmansion]

tagged by @ronniesssss !! (I DIDNT EVEN SEE THE NOTIF UNTIL NOW ROFL) thank u!

Last Song: walking on the moon by the police

Currently watching: nothing atm cause busy rip

Currently reading: i just finished rereading the amber spyglass again because i love those books so much

Current obsession: not exactly an /obsession/ but its been the only thing on my mind rn, my brother and i have been apartment hunting for the last few weeks and ive been doing my best to not snap when looking at the prices rofl but WE FINALLY SIGNED!!! LETS GOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(but otherwise actual obsession rn is metal gear SPECIFICALLY the 9years in between pw and mgsv because of a few fanarts someone made of kaz and oceot)

tagging @happiighost @scarbuns @mabangiswolf @dahlingplease and @trick-starr

you dont have to if you dont want to :D

[eeveearoace]

WOO BOY, i just finished the owl house, and MAN. i am feeling a lot of things, and i wanna talk about them (putting it under the cut just bc there's so much lol)

firstly, i know there's a danger in comparing shows to one another, but i'm honestly WAY happier about how toh ended in comparison to amphibia. i understand WHY amphibia ended the way it did, but honestly? i think it was kinda the wrong way - but that's probably just personal feelings, idk. but TOH?? overall, i really liked the finale. the idea that friends and family wouldn't be able to see each other again after everything they went through is just heartbreaking, and even though i love angst, sometimes it just doesn't work for canon.

"it'll be nice to see everyone again after all this time." "luz, you saw them last week." i had to pause the episode after that, because THANK FREAKING ARCUES. if luz got separated from them,,, UGH. SO glad they didn't take that route lol

one minor complaint i have about the episode is that the beginning made me feel like i was missing something, or had somehow skipped ahead, or was watching the wrong thing, or just. idk. i get why they did it, it definitely made the collector's game hit us as an audience harder, but since i didn't see it live, the beginning. just made me feel like i was missing something idk lol

and the episode did get a bit "power of friendship!"-y, but whatever. it wasn't too bad lol

but OH TITAN when the animation got SMOOTH??? i went a bit feral ngl (it!! was so good!!!!!!!!!!!)

also, i'm just. so glad that raine didn't die. i wish we got confirmation about raine and eda, but honestly, i'm just SO RELIEVED that one of the few nonbinary characters in media didn't die (and that the only nblw ship in media that i know can still sail!!)

"i'm sorry for everything" going feral going feRAL GOING FERAL (they knew what they were doing. they wanted to traumatize us. *velociraptor screech*)

TITAN. LUZ. that design was SO GOOD AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH (also, HARPY LILITH?? HECK YEAHHHHHHHHH)

titan dad ;^; his nonbinary vibes,,,, ;^; i loaf you,,, ;0;

willow becoming a grudgby player just makes me so happy, but HUNTER CARVING PALISMANS??? SCREAMING SOBBING YES :,))))))))))))))

blue flapjack,,, pancake,,,,(?)

i'm really happy that with titan luz, her powers were still all sigil-based (i'm really glad that the show didn't cure her "disability", even if it would've only been temporary)

the collector learning and growing :> we love to see it

okay, so i know belos is evil and everything, BUT. okay that goopy cursed design kinda slapped super hard idk what to tell you-

also LETS GO RAINE the way they FOUGHT AGAINST THE POSSESSION?? heck yeah. nonbinary bards let's goooooooo

the way that luz just. is so done with belos. she's not falling for the "oh the curse made me evil" stuff. she's just like NOPE and honestly? we love her for that

"i'm sorry for everything" i already mentioned this. but i'm still reeling from it

flapjack tattoos ;^;

HOOTSIFER AND LILLYYYYYYYY ;0;

it's honestly really kinda cool that luz looses her connection to the sigils until king gets older (i mean, it sucks for her, but still) because sigil magic was ALWAYS connected to the titan, ie, king's dad - but it starts to return as king gets older (but it's still nowhere near as powerful yet, which makes sense)

there's probably stuff i'm forgetting tbh, but it was just. really good. and i'm so glad that raine didn't die and that luz can still go back and forth between the human and demon realms :,)