#I love seeing my hatchlings out in the wild

[starcorvid]

Time buddies are the key to a speedy recovery

[kaijutegu]

Aug ABSOLUTELY deserves the praise, @ryukikit. St. Augustine Alligator Farm is one of my favorite animal facilities, hands down. It's a pretty zoo, doable in an afternoon if you kinda like crocodilians, or an all day affair if you REALLY like crocodilians. Here are my favorite things about it and why I think it's worth supporting.

1. They keep animals in interesting social groups.

Crocodilians are heavily involved parents, but most places that breed them don't have the enclosure space to let the babies stay with the parents. St. Augustine does. One of my favorite groups was their crèche of slender-snouted crocodiles. They had the parents and then a yearling cohort and a new hatchling cohort. This aligns with how these guys live in the wild- the babies stick around longer! They have the space for it, and they are very in tune with the social needs of their animals.

Very, very few zoos can keep their baby crocs with the adults and still perform maintenance and animal health checks safely. This doesn't mean these facilities are bad- it just means that they have different management practices. And frankly, a lot of these species aren't frequently bred elsewhere. Your average zoo doesn't need a setup where you can have a multiyear crèche for slender-snouted crocodiles. Some species have better success when the young are pulled early, and some zoos are better set up to raise out any offspring separately or behind the scenes. Every facility's practices are different, and this just happens to work well at St. Augustine and be really enjoyable to see as a zoo patron.

Crocodilians are exceptional parents and very protective. It's a sign of incredible animal management practices and animals that feel very comfortable with staff that St. Augustine can do this with nearly every species they breed.

2. They understand the social needs of their animals.

Some crocodilians are social. Some are solitary. Some can live happily with a member of the opposite sex but get territorial around members of the same sex. St. Augustine pays incredible attention to their social groupings to ensure that they aren't just meeting the animals' physical health needs but their social needs as well. They do continuous scientific research about social structures in crocodilians, taking blood samples to test stress hormones and observing stress behaviors to see how group dynamics change.

For example, St. Augustine is home to one of the world's largest known living saltwater crocodiles, Maximo. And his comparatively tiny mate, Sydney. During the educational presentations with these two, they point out that even their monster of a croc needs his social group- he won't eat if she's not around and he is calmer during medical checks if he can see her. These animal share a deep and special pair bond, and they make sure to talk about how the social aspect of these animals' lives is integral to their care. It's a unique aspect of the way they talk about these animals, because he IS a spectacle and he IS a sensation, but they don't talk about him like he's a mindless killing machine- they talk about him like he's a big, complex predator with social needs like any other animal. Aug is the only facility I've been to where the emotional and social needs of crocodilians is part of the education they provide guests- and speaking of education...

3. Their demos and presentations are extremely good.

The presentations at St. Augustine are some of the best I've ever seen, and I've seen literally hundreds of animal talks on everything from aardvarks to zebras. But as you... can probably tell from my blog content, I've spent a lot of time learning about and working with reptiles. I really enjoyed all of their presentations because they are very scientific about things and avoid sensationalism. They really want you to be fascinated by these creatures and love them- but more than anything else, they want you to respect them.

Also, they do a really good job handling their ambassadors. I really enjoyed something as simple as watching an educator tell us about snakes. Throughout the whole presentation she made sure that most of the snake's body was looped in her hand. The snake was always supported and was very calm. She gave the snake plenty of head room so that it didn't feel constricted- it was just good handling all around.

But also, the presentations made it clear how much the park cares about the animals' well-being. When they do the feeding and training presentations, they make it very clear that the animals' participation is entirely voluntary. They do things differently for their 9-foot saltie and their 16-foot saltie, because the 16-footer is so large and heavy he actually struggles walking on land sometimes. They adapt their programs and his care to ensure that he's completely comfortable- and he didn't actually participate in the whole feeding when I was watching! At no point did they try to push him into anything uncomfortable; they offered, he didn't engage, and they moved on. It was a clear expression of his boundaries, and I really appreciated how much his caretakers respected that.

4. Ethical Interactions

I've been to... a lot of tourist locations in Florida that have animals you can hold. Almost always against my will! Many of them are pretty terrible, and you don't actually learn much, if anything. But I really found that to not be the case at St. Augustine. Every single animal presentation and interaction opportunity was accompanied by education about the animal's biology, habits, and- crucially- their conservation status.

When I held a baby alligator at St. Augustine, the proctors- there were two, one to ensure I was holding the gator correctly and the other to educate- were very informative about the role alligators play in their ecosystem and their conservation history. The animals were all properly banded, and one of the two proctors was there to ensure that none of the baby alligators were uncomfortable. As soon as they started getting squirmy or tense, they were removed, unbanded, and taken to an off-exhibit area to relax. And when the babies age out of petting size, they just go in the lagoon to live with others of their species. I saw one upset alligator the entire time I was there, and he was clearly upset that his escape attempt was foiled by a keeper during my nursery tour.

Even though he's restrained in this shot, you can see that his full body and tail are supported, and the grip, while firm, is gentle. He's distressed, but after I took this picture, she put him in his enclosure and he calmed down immediately.

Sometimes when you have petting attractions with baby animals, those animals... don't have a happy ending. (See: cub petting.) But St. Augustine's program is fine- the gators are all aged out of wanting to have mom around, there's no declawing/defanging, and they're handled with care. And it's worth it, because people love what they understand. St. Augustine was integral in raising public awareness about alligators back in the 60s when they were endangered, and now they're thriving- largely in part to programs like St. Augustine getting people to care.

And speaking of getting people to care, let's talk about their research.

5. Shared Research Results

St. Augustine is also home to more species of crocodilian than anywhere else in North America- all of them, usually. (They didn't have a Tomistoma when I visited- that may have changed.)

Because of this species diversity, it's an incredible research resource. Having every species means that you can do a lot of work comparing their behaviors, their growth patterns, and more. They've been a major research site for crocodilian biology since the 1970s. Today, they're one of the key sites for studying crocodilian play and social behaviors. They actually maintain a blog where they post copies of papers that were written using their animals, meaning that you can actually see the results of the research your admission helps fund. You can see that right here: https://www.alligatorfarm.com/conservation-research/research-blog/

All of this adds up to a zoo that provides a unique experience, tons of actual education, and transparency about what its research and conservation steps actually are. St. Augustine's come a long way since its opening in 1893, and they really do want you to leave with a new respect for the animals they care for. Ultimately, if you're a fan of reptiles, you can feel good about visiting the St. Augustine Alligator Farm- their care and keeping are top of the line, they do a ton of innovative conservation research and support for conservation organizations, and you can see this animal there:

(Gharial from the front. Nothing is wrong with her that's just what they look like from the front.)

[the-fandom-is-now-my-life]

Hi..do you accept request?

If you do could you make Xiao is the father of creator child?

Thank you

The creator had a:

Birdly child

WC: ~700

I'm in love with how two asks came at the same time about Xiao, it's time to give the emo baby some love

I remember reading hatchlings often have rough feathers and aren't as photogenic as grown ups until the first feathers fall off.

“Bright yellow eyes aren't all that uncommon too” furina looks over your shoulder as you nurse your daughter, she would say she looks surprisingly unremarkable if that didn't sound like an insult of sorts even if it was true, dark blue hair and striking yellow eyes but nothing much. For one minute she hoped she would come out with long blue streaks and sharp angled ears, even if only so she could tease Neuvillette about his meeting with you.

“I’m happy enough that her face is similar to their grace” the tsaritsa sits beside you, a tea cup between her hands, as bitter as she seemed to whoever she expected was your lover her confirmation to the baby shower was the first to arrive, a few plushies and older baby clothes.

Zhongli stands just behind furina, watching her face as you burp Xuezhui, the little lift at the end of her eyes making them slightly sharper than they are, reminding him of a certain someone. Snow and bird, Aren't you a bit too on the nose? Oh, well, at least his dear apprentice and friend found some happiness. 

His gold eyes look at furina, a soft smile forming “I think she looks so cute, like a finch hatchling” his hand getting close to her and lightly brushing her rough hair with one finger, such a tiny baby.

“I never said she isn't!”

“Did you want to see me, Morax?” Xiao appears beside zhongli, Xuezhui was getting fuzzy and you decided to put the baby to sleep before returning to the archons, during that time they divided to do as they pleased, and by the steaming teapot Xiao could guess he decided to enjoy some tea 

“Take a seat”

“Is anything wrong?”

“I see you truly took it to heart to protect their grace, even spent the night in their room to be sure” zhongli swirls the golden tea inside the cup. The noise of the slight splashing drowned by the noise of him choking on his spit.

“My apologies, Rex Lapis, it wasn't meant to-” quickly he bows, his forehead touching the table but zhongli cuts him with a small smirk.

“when two finches love each other very much they spend the night together and-” 

“I'm already repenting, please…”

The night is warm and clear, the crescent moon on full display and your baby isn't in her crib yet you aren't truly worried after walking to the balcony and seeing a figure seated on the edge of the nursery's roof.

Xiao holds his daughter to his chest while trying to manage the wild mane of blueish hair she has, the exact same he had as a kid but chose to cut. Now, to some extent he wishes he listened to guizhong when she spoke of hairstyling. 

For now he settles with two pigtails on either side of her head, one lower than the other but his daughter was starting to wriggle around and start pushing her head against his neck, wanting to return to her crib and sleep. 

“Is she looking at me?” Arlecchino asks as she feels a gaze burning on her neck, usually if it was one of her children she would tell them off for being so obvious but for it to be a rather spoilt toddler who isn't training to be a spy she couldn't say much.

“Ah, apologies about it, she is going through a phase of watching everyone” there is your kid, her hair on two braids and her yellow eyes watching owlishly.

“You know, if you lent her to me I could train her, she seems to be a natural” she teases you.

“Oh, don't even worry” as you return to the conversation without paying her too much mind you can still see her unblinking amber eyes from the door.

“Stop crawling over your crib’s railing, you are going to hurt yourself!” You scold your toddler, one leg and an arm over the railing attempting to escape nap time “go to sleep, you are in a bad mood if you don't nap”

she mumbles something you guess was her saying she wanted to play or crawl around but you don't follow her game.

“I don't care! To bed, young missy or your little night scrolls with your dad are done!” she huffs and sits down her back facing you.

[spacey-xannabelle]

[Template]

2024 Art Summary!

Artist notes/ramblings under the cut

January - March: A lot of the art I did during this time was mostly doodles and sketches that I didn't post anywhere, but during this time I did start planning the test comic project for my story, Startrails!

April: Only art that I posted during this was the art of one of my Startrails characters, Mira.

May: I finished the test comic during this! It was a great practice to do and it gave me a lot of insight on what part of the comic process I should work on so it flows more smoothly for myself. And it was really cool to see my two main characters in a comic format qvq

June: On June, I wanted to do a bigger illustration to practice backgrounds more. And since I was in a Splatoon mood at the time, I went and drew a nice little scene of some inklings and octolings hanging out in the locker room before a match.

July: Artfight month!! I was team Stardust this year, and the art featured in this art summary was a character by @/artisticdragons. I'm honestly proud I drew as much as I did for artfight!

August: Earlier in January, I had started and finished playing Outer WIlds (along with the DLC) and around here was when the brainrot returned tenfold and had be in its clutches. This was one of the many silly doodles I did for the game

September: Major outer wilds spoilers for this art! But this here was the comic I spent a little over a month working on. A comic inspired by an Undertale quote that I felt really encapsulates Hatchling's journey. I also posted this on Twitter and it got noticed by both Mobius Digital and got a comment by Andrew Prahlow and I'm still losing my mind over that qwq

October: Outer Wilds DLC spoilers here! I drew a lot for October bc during this, I was participating in an Outer Wilds Inktober event ^^ This art was something I did as a little bit of a break from the inktober stuff. But also bc the DLC gave me a lot of feelings and I had to draw them out

November - December: During this time, the Outer Wilds server I joined created our own Nomai clan so I spent.. So Much time drawing mostly Nomai ocs djdfg. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed being able to be silly with my art and participate in this group endeavor!

Overall, I'm proud of how much I was able to draw this year despite juggling a full time job that would usually leave me too drained and tired to draw. Some days it's still difficult to keep drawing but joining a group of creatives really inspired me to create for fun.

I'm hoping to continue creating art next year, maybe make more fanart of stuff I love. And absolutely hoping to draw more oc stuff, especially of my story, Startrails! :)

[syndrossi]

Who are the hatchlings favourite dragons after caraxes? I feel like quelebrys might take a shine to the red queen though she did scare off the twins in that one resonant chapter. They have already met seasmoke but I cannot remember much about that interaction. I feel like shadow would much love a mischievous dragon like him though that might be one of rhaenyra's children's hatchlings or the wild dragons on dragonstone (danger! Stay AWAY from the cannibal). In regnal au I am much excited for the hatchlings to meet vermithor/silverwing (and their riders if they're still alive by the time they're introduced lawl)

Too early to say, honestly! Like you said, they've only met a few: their "cousins," and then Seasmoke and Meleys. I feel like Syrax and Qelebrys will probably butt heads? Syrax is all "you hussy!" at Caraxes for rearing these strange eggs/hatchlings, and Qelebrys is like "that's my Caraxes" about her dragon-dad.

Shadow wants to be every dragon's friend, but his favorites will probably be their older cousins. Imagine the hilarity of Shadow being all adoring of "big brother Vermax" and then three years later, Shadow has already surpassed him in size.

We'll have to see! Usually I don't know the dynamics until I'm writing them. 😅

(It'll be very interesting in Regnal, I agree! Poor Silverwing doesn't get rides anymore, since Alysanne is no longer is good enough health to ride her, which breaks both their hearts. The Vermithor-hatchling interactions will be ones to watch out for!)

[erisenyo]

“Ever wonder if the world would be better off without you… ?” for zukka?

For this prompt game!

“Ever wonder if the world would be better off without you?”

Sokka freezes in the sitting room door, heart beating hard and alarm tightening his throat so fast that it takes him a moment to register Zuko’s pensive, almost abstract tone, the loose set of his shoulders, the easy-burning fire in the fireplace.

“It’s not something I dwell on,” he says after a long moment, forcing himself to finish stepping into the room, feigning casualness as he sets down the latest Republic City expansion plans and trying not to overreact but Agni's flapping tits what the fuck—

“Hm,” Zuko hums, like he isn’t making Sokka’s heart stop with terror, “I’ve been thinking about it.”

Sokka makes himself breathe, weighing the words against Zuko’s general calm and thoughtful expression as he gazes through the half-drawn curtain out the window. He’s too at ease to be truly upset, none of his usual tells in the tension of his shoulders or deliberate stillness of his hands, and there’s no pinched tightness to his brow like there is when it’s something with Izumi, which means… “What did you do?”

Zuko purses his lips. “Remember how I rescued that turtle duck?”

Sokka raises his eyebrow. “That whole family of turtle ducks?”

“And how I kept feeding that wild one?”

“I’m not sure I’d call one living in a fountain wild, but sure.”

“And how, generally speaking, not all our turtle duck hatchlings stay in the pond once they’re big enough to fly?”

“…General speaking,” Sokka repeats, feeling a flutter of premonition the same way he used to whenever Izumi and Bumi both turned wide-eyed innocent looks on him back when they were young.

“And that time I found those two injured snapping turtle swans and nursed them back to health?”

“…What did you do,” Sokka asks again, resigned, and Zuko just hums and pulls back the edge of the curtain a bit further for Sokka to come over and see…

“I’ve never seen so many turtle ducks in my life,” Sokka finally says.

“Yup.”

“They can’t all fit in the pond.” Not even if they had two ponds, Spirits…

“Nope.”

Sokka cuts Zuko a sideways look. “…Where are they staying?”

“Where have they been staying,” Zuko corrects, and Sokka takes a long moment to process the fact that this has been…going on for a bit, then, and that probably explains all the pastries disappearing from the breakfast table, like Zuko is some kid secreting away snacks and not the Fire Lord for going on forty years, Spirits. What an idiot. Sokka loves him so much.

“Where have they been staying?” he repeats, obedient.

“Azula’s room,” Zuko says serenely just as a high-pitched, startled shriek sounds out, along with a ruckus of quaking and honking and—

“ZUZU! I’m going to fucking kill y—ow, what the fu—”  

Sokka makes a thoughtful noise as Zuko lets the curtain drop back down. “So you asking about whether the world would be better without you," he finally says, resettling his armband, "Was more about your impending demise?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Zuko agrees.

Sokka hums. "It was nice knowing you."

"The best," Zuko nods. “Let’s hide,” he adds, grabbing onto Sokka’s wrist and already hauling him along behind him like they’re teenagers again, Sokka letting out a startled laugh to suddenly be finding himself in motion.

He glances back to the window and the growing cacophony outside, to the Republic City plans, to the stack of correspondence he really needs to get through and the pile of new airship designs he really wanted to work on. Then he turns back forward to catch the flashing edge of Zuko’s teasing, wicked smile and finds he can't do anything but grin helplessly back, find that he's perfectly happy like he always is to pretend to be young again, instead, and let Zuko drag him away again on another adventure.

[devilsrecreation]

Since the ep is INSPIRED by POTO, I’mma point out the similarities and differences

Similarities/references to POTO:

-There are obvious parodies of the characters in the book/musical. Neema’s obviously the Phantom, Paka kinda has Christine’s role, Nne and Tano are kinda like Madame Giry, and there’s an herbivore with Carlotta’s role. Maybe a wild ass

-Neema pulls very similar stunts Erik pulls, mainly sabotaging performances. But he also has a secret lair in a water cave that he takes Kiburi’s float and Paka

-The Grasslands has a tradition called the “kupiga mpira”, meaning “masquerade ball” where everyone dresses up in costumes. Neema crashes the party lol

-Like Christine, Paka is a (rookie) performer and has a relationship with the Phantom

-I guess you could say both Erik and Neema had a hard life (granted, Neema’s past wasn’t as bad as Erik’s but still) that somehow affected their reputation

-He put Paka to sleep with a soothing melody (AKA he recreates “Music of the Night”)

-“[Why would anyone want to date a strange individual who’s killed people? That just sounds like a toxic relationship.]”-Neema at one point

-The reptiles like to refer to Neema as an “angel of music”

-Tamka brings up “the point of no return”

-Like Erik, Neema kills someone

-One of the reasons he sabotages a show is that a certain spot isn’t left for him. It’s HIS spot, no one else’s

-Neema and Erik both get exposed

-Both phantoms get affection at the end

-Neema’s point of no return is to either quit this double life thing and go back to being in Kiburi’s float or stick to being a phantom and leave his only family permanently. Although Tamka/Nduli think Neema’s gonna give THEM a choice to either join him or he’ll kill everybody, to which Kiburi shuts it down cuz that makes zero sense

Differences:

-There is no operatic singing in the episode. It has singing (the Grasslands are a musical place) but not actual opera. Also there’s no Raoul nor Persian

-While Erik loves/is obsessed with Christine, Neema is aromantic and has no interest in anyone

-Neema does not wear a mask that covers his face (except during the masquerade scene)

-Like I said before, everything between them is platonic and healthy. Though Neema DOES have a soft spot for her. If anything, they’d be QPP’s

-Erik and Neema haunt their respective places for different reasons. Erik does it cuz of his passion for opera and obsession for Christine. Neema honestly just likes the music. The hero thing just comes with it.

-Two things: it was completely platonic and Neema hummed the song since he’s mute and can’t sing. It’s more of a lullaby than a romantic ballad

-Neema isn’t jealous nor possessive. The most he does when he sees Paka with someone else is make sure they don’t hurt her. He’s more protective if anything

-my guy is not a teacher. He’s never taught anyone anything (except maybe how to stand up for yourself)

-As much as I love the scene, it ain’t happening with Neema and Paka. Way too sexual for them (and the episode fic) 😭

-Unlike Erik he killed someone cuz he was hungry, not to sabotage the show. Though everybody else seems to think differently

-He doesn’t kill anyone cuz of it, although he does cause a monkey to interrupt it by scaring him

-While Erik’s face gets exposed during an opera in front of everyone, Neema’s confronted by Kiburi’s float and basically gets exposed then

-Erik gets a kiss while Neema and Paka share a hug and a head pat :)

-Neema’s ending is veeeeeeery different from Erik’s. Neema doesn’t die like in the book nor does he completely quit being a phantom and not see Paka again. He goes back with his float in the end, but he continues to be a Phantom hero in the Grasslands.

There’s a reason Neema kept up the whole “Phantom” act and it kinda has something to do with his past. Neema was raised by strict, but somewhat supportive parents as a hatchling. He never learned to actually talk but his parents convinced him that being quiet was a good thing. “Silence is golden” they’d always say. “Just do as you’re told and they’ll like you”. It was like that for a while until the day he saved that lizard. Being referred to as a “hero” awakened something in him that day. He likes being some mysterious heroic entity, he likes playing with the Grasslanders and telling them what to do, he likes keeping animals on their toes, he likes the music the Grasslands have.

He likes being his own animal.

He’s been following and obeying his leaders all his life. Don’t get him wrong, he doesn’t necessarily mind it and he loves his friends, but it just feels nice to be someone now that he’s found his passion.

Nne and Tano found out when they got hungry and wanted to try something different rather than a mole rat or trying to eat animals from the Pridelands. They soon found themselves in the Grasslands and just so happened to spot Paka walking around. Just as they cornered her, Neema came out of nowhere, gave Paka a chance to run away, and began to attack the pair…until they recognized him like “Hey wait a minute…we know you! You’re one of the crocodiles in Kiburi’s float! What’re you doing here?”. It took a bit, but the pair finally figured out that Neema was a phantom and decide to join him. They never let anyone know since (until Kiburi basically forced them to tell where Neema was going).

Ever since Paka heard about this supposed phantom saving one of her lizard friends, her sleep schedule has been out of whack (seeing how black-footed cats are nocturnal) and she’s been obsessed with seeing it for herself. It only grew when Neema saved her and she went from wanting to see him to wanting to get to know him. Luckily, Neema took interest in the little feline due to her personality and shared love for music and began watching over her. He’s even led her to his water cave (where he hummed her his lullaby) and their friendship grew from there. She doesn’t really understand him so they communicate by yes or no questions until Kiburi comes along. Same with Nne and Tano.

Unrelated, but I just realized a pattern with my headcanons for Kiburi’s float: I gave them all desires

Kiburi wants to be good enough to make his dad proud like he promised

Tamka wants to be seen as more than just one thing (which is an idiot). He wants to pursue his passion and show he’s capable of doing things

Neema wants to feel like somebody. Like I said, he’s been a follower for way too long and he wants to find himself

Nduli wants everything to stay the same. He’s lost so much due to change and he doesn’t want to lose anything or anybody else, so he clings to his loved ones in hopes they won’t let go

Wakali wants to be taken seriously since her young age and albinism causes other animals to underestimate her

Even Makuu wants to show everyone that he’s changed his ways and wants to leave a legacy. It was the same thing with Pua, although nowadays he just wants to live his best life

Ucheshi got what she wanted in that Udugu episode I have-she got her big brother back :)

[pastoria-marsh-official]

Today, you can look out for...

Skorupi!

Photographer

... I do not want to say Skorupi is an easy Pokemon. It is not an easy Pokemon. Their behaviors and body language is very different from many other Pokemon, and many people confuse it with reptile Pokemon, especially since Drapion loses its Bug typing with evolution. Additionally, the toxin it injects is potent enough to be lethal with a high enough dose. The threshold is lower than you'd think.

However, Skorupi are an incredibly patient and intelligent Pokemon. They eat rarely in the wild and are not picky with their choice of dinner- they are carnivorous, though, and can have berries as a treat. They are not loving the way a mammilian Pokemon is, but they respect a Trainer that knows well how to work with them.

There are two distinct lineages of Skorupi. The sort that we have are the Skorupi accustomed to marshlands. Their exoskeletons tend to have brown and green tones, and they tend to be bulkier and more flexible with longer stingers. However, they're "softer" than desert-dwelling Skorupi, and need to eat more and more often as well as properly dampen themselves on occasion.

Recently, a few of our brooding Drapion mothers have laid clutches of Skorpui... and since Drapion can have up to thirty hatchlings in one clutch, there's no shortage in the Marsh. However, keep in mind: If I catch you mistreating your Skorupi, I will find you, I will catch you, I will release your Pokemon, and I will ban you from my park.

Keep in mind: Most of our wild Drapion are not in the capture pool. Any Drapion with a radio collar is firmly off-limits. If you see a Drapion that does not have a radio collar, contact a park ranger FIRST before trying to capture it. If you do capture it, please bring it to a park ranger as soon as you can. And remember, we check your Pokeballs before you go.

[belladonnakimdracula]

Maytroid 2024

So for May I participated in a fun challenge named ‘Maytroid’. It’s been going for a few years & 24’ is my third year of participation.

This year the theme revolved around Ridley, the main antagonist & resurrection diva lol. Last year I had committed to an aesthetic which was based on Nazca Lines & this year I went with the aesthetic of 80’s neon signs. So I limited myself to a neon color palette I grabbed off google & went in swinging.

As you can see I did the first thirty prompts (Day 29 got two pieces cuz I love that prompt) which means the final one is missing. I’m planning on doing a separate full piece at a later time cuz life’s a bit wild at the moment.

Regardless I loved how it came out & I really shocked myself at how I didn’t fuck this up LMAO.

1. Ridley (His OG 86’ design)

2. Fiery

3. Winged

4. Pirate (ARGH 🏴‍☠️⚓️)

5. Mecha

6. Fang (Say Cheese)

7. Cunning

8. Menace

9. Meta

10. Armor

11. Talon

12. Fierce 💅🏽✨

13. Omega(verse)

14. Relentless (He got into Smash just to fuck with Samus)

15. Nemesis (The FEDS)

16. Hatchling

17. Proteus

18. Thief (Stealing Kraid’s roles lol)

19. Sinewy (SWOLE)

20. Tail

21. Deceptive (Poor Samus)

22. Stalk

23. Savage

24. Taunt (🖕)

25. Clone (Brrr)

26. Haze

27. Strike

28. Vendetta

29. Neo (Design so nice, I drew it twice)

30. Victor (Samus always kicks ass, sorry Ridley)

~

See y’all next scribble

[celestialorcas]

The Outer Archives

Spoilers ahead for all of The Outer Wilds, all of Echos of The Eye DLC, and all of The Magnus Archives

So played outer wilds a couple years back, and its remained as my favorite game of all time, so I got to thinking recently, which locations in outer wilds can be mapped onto different fears from The Magnus Archives which i also loved! (Not as much as outer wilds but not really a fair comparison-) So today I got to work and made this:

First obvious thing before I go into my reasoning's for each is Timber Hearth is clearly missing, thats just cause I could not think of a link to any of the fears, it really is just a chill place- Anyway my reasoning's (some are obvious but bear with me) The Sun: Represents the end, I thought about maybe The Extinction, but thats more the end of humanity with everything else carrying on, the sun I think perfectly represents the end cause it's supernovae-ing alongside the rest of the universe, everything is ending and the sun serves as a manifestation of that. The Ember Twin: All those little cramped caves systems slowly filling up with sand that you can get buried and crushed in The Ash Twin: It's the centre of the whole loop, its the ash twin project after all, everything that happens in the game can be attributed to the ash twin project, something out of your control till the end that youre stuck in The Attlerock: Esker..... Its a tiny moon thats easy to miss, with the character who in game is forgotten about a lot by the rest of the Hearthians, a quiet space for them to be alone and forgotten Brittle Hollow and Hollow's Lantern: The whole thing is slowly falling apart and being destroyed, catalysed by the big fire rocks from Hollow's Lantern being chucked at it, Represents collapse and destruction Giant's Deep: Big water planet, open space, tornados that can throw you from a vast ocean planet, into the infinite reaches of space. The depths that Gabbro swears they say a sea monster in, very vast. Dark Bramble: I can see how people could think of The Dark for this, the anglerfish being blind and hidden out of sight, but I think corruption fits better for the "planet" itself, it wasnt always Dark Bramble after all, it was once an ice planet that dark bramble corrupted and grew on until it took over its host, shattering it. The Interloper: The cause of the slaughter of this games Nomai clan, senseless destruction and killing just by chance (The Trickster from Doctor Who/SJA would have a field day with this) The Quantum Moon: Constantly changing from what you expect it to be and what it should look like. It's surface is different depending on what planet it orbits, and everything on it moves around, the world is not right, its the spiral The Stranger (EOTE): Not because they are named the same, thats just an amazing coincidence. The whole thing is unknown, no one you know has been there, all has an air of unease and creepiness to it, the burnt out reels destroying/changing information, the whole time I was there, despite the peaceful river (until...y'know-) and calm vibes, under the surface theres something just not quite right Eye of the Universe: Again, not because of the name, another great coincidence, or i guess not really a coincidence. The eye sees everything and constantly outputs a signal calling people to it, it rebuilds a new world based on the experiences of the hatchling, what the hatchling has seen. Just like the eye in the magnus archives, it takes all the experiences of the main character (Hatchling/Jon) and makes something new built upon them (New universe/The apocalypse). Love to hear peoples thoughts and where they would place things differently (especially if yall have an idea as for Timber Hearth-)

[supacutiepie]

My family knows better than to watch Jurassic Park with me because I will go OFF about lore? It's one of my oldest special interests, I adore this Saga. Have you seen the Telltale game? Have you? Did you know that in Jurassic Park, Ian Malcolm is actually talking to his sorta future father in-law? His father-in-law being the guy who's tending to the sick Triceratops? Did you know that?? Dr. Harding??? Sarah Harding's DAD. Sarah Harding who is the Second movie's real protagonist mvp, yeah her Dad is the main medical biologist for Jurassic Park hence why Hammond got in contact with her. She has a kid sister. Said kid sister was on the island with their dad. That's the hidden lore of Jurassic Park featured in the game that is canonically sound because it explains how the vials of DNA got back to Dodgson: he had a team of mercenaries on the island with Nedry. See? See how there is MORE INFO?? Speaking of Biosyn Dodgson: The Second Island Lost Footage. There is a lowkey cult dedicated to the Lost Footage and Muldoon that fans of the movie created and its genuinely scary as shit?? You remember how, on the second island, that there was this huge broken down second park? And that in the third movie there was the massive research facility broken down? Same island right - well, the Spinosaurus is why it's broken down in both park/labs. It got out when younger, destroyed a massive chunk of the reasearch. There was a massive break out, hence why the second island is already so established by the time the Lost World and Third movie came out. BUT You know how Blue is 'the first to reproduce via parthenogenesis' ?? False. It was the Spino who did it first. The Spino which had an entire clutch of eggs and baby Spino's by the time that Dr. Grant was on the island with the mercs and the family looking for their son. Spino had babies. Spino was the only Spinosaurus created though. "How do you know she had babies then??" Because it's the deleted segment from Jurassic Park Three. The opening for the plane sequence was cut due to taking too long to explain and show and they needed to move into this complicated ass setting and delivery for the practical plane crashing scenes BUT: When the Mercs go into the forest, they don't just stumble into the Spino and get a little bange dup before running away. Did that ever make sense to you as a kid? No? Exactly: they didn't even know she was there. The entire point of the third movie, is "what will a parent do for her child". The Raptors hunting them down for the eggs, the kirby's going through all that for their son, even the little tie in of Grant and Ellie's son. The Spino was included in this. The Mercs stumbled into her nest. They were attacked by much younger, MUCH smaller Spino hatchlings, and they killed the nest. That's why the one guy only has his arm injured, and why they hauled ass back to the plane and could make it that far before Spino showed up. It's also why she prioritizes hunting them the hell down. The entire movie is a revenge plot that never got revealed: The Spinosaurus is hunting down the killers of her nestlings. See??? See how much deeper that well goes???? I fucking love Jurassic Park so much. Now, here's the wild thing: it's not actually confirmed that Spinosaurus was female. It's actually heavily implied, its the first male antag of the dinos throughout the movies (second being the indo raptor). So how did Spinosaurus have babies??? They couldn't answer that, which helped them to cut the nest sequence out entirely.

[friendlyengie]

Do you think Tf2 X Outer Wilds could be anything?

If im going to be completely honest, i have a deep, profound love for outer wilds, but i have a Really hard time doing anything au related for the game just by virtue of the story it tells and the conclusive ending it has. And tf2 could not be more tonally different from outer wilds as a game.

Obligatory “play outer wilds please for the love of god play outer wilds” schpeal uhh you should do it. Super cool open world space exploration game. Sort of like subnautica but minus any resource gathering or building mechanics, very environment and story oriented, but a wide amount of all types of people playing videos games can confirm its a really cool experience even if it didnt seem like a game they’d enjoy. Prepare for a lot of reading and puzzle solving. Also funny non-binary aliens which is awesome.

So, ignoring the wider Narrative Implications, it would still be fun to assign roles to the mercs. So. Cracks my knuckles. Dishing out role under the cut

I think Engineer should be the Hatchling, the main player character, because he seems like the only one who would commit to solving the Mysteries of it all.

Sniper’s very gabbro coded to me, stick him in Giant’s Deep.

Mmmmmm. Medic on Ember Twin in Chert’s place perhaps? Probably the closest one aside from Engineer who would make all the Realizations Chert does during the game.

I think Scout could be a fun Riebeck. Guy who promises hes so not at all afraid of the black hole but also hes just gonna uhhh chill out for a while ok.

Soldier. Soldier Feldspar. You know. Yk.

Maybe Heavy as Esker? Wouldn’t have the same desperation as them, id see him being pretty content (or at least indifferent) to being stationed up there.

Pauling Solanum perhaps. Demo, Pyro, and Spy can be timber hearth residents. Maybe Pyro Hal and Spy Hornfels… Demo Tektite.. checking out the Dark Bramble Seed. Nods.

[reyraereads]

Hello, there! I started reading your fanfic, Through the Raging Flames: The Gold Rises, and I am very intrigued and sapped into it. I was wondering if I could ask some insight on how characters in the fic are and would react to Aegon's actions and character — mainly Team Black.

I mean, I would have no doubts that they would start suspecting changes, Aegon is undergoing, maybe even as early as the visit to Driftmark chapter, though some — Daemon and Corlys — wouldn't suspect much of it. They would think Rhaenyra and Laenor had some misinformation on Aegon's character. Largely, because in the fic, it is in Aegon's point of view, I wouldn't be surprised Viserys made a comment or two on Aegon's new personality and maybe a couple of brownie points (this man just loves tearing his family apart as a part-time, let's be honest 💀) on how PROUD he is becoming of him.

I was wondering how do, Rhaena and Baela view their cousin too? I mean, they are obviously influenced by Daemon (who should never be one's parental role model.. ) by how they regard the Targtower children — from Aegon's point of view. It is obvious they have no malice towards them but are just somewhat indifferent to them. I mean, so far, I can tell Baela admired Aegon and Sunfyre (the comment Jace said that she said Sunfyre was a big dragon), and after his skit at the Squire's Tournament.

Lastly, does any of Sunfyre and Aegon's extra dragon-riding training time(and just avoiding family time 😭) mean Sunfyre would be stronger than in general? In Chapter 9, Daemon comments how impressive Sunfyre's growth was even though he is still a hatchling and the obvious comment by Baela that Sunfyre is big and Viserys's notice by the Dragonkeepers, that Sunfyre is growing stronger. I wouldn't be surprised if Sunfyre is growing stronger, just like Aegon is growing in this timeline.

For example, in terms of mass and wing-span in general, I read a Reddit post, and the person said that the dragons grown in captivity are smaller than those in the wild and thus restricts their natural growth (lack of space) and I'm slightly convinced of that. In the books, as biased as it can be, Syrax is mentioned to be the dragon equivalent of a pet cat if she didn't breathe fire — always being overfed and spoiled and can't even hunt a sheep properly. In the show, they do try to make Syrax a bit more competent and show that she can fly even if her abilities are more on the dragon rearing side like Dreamfyre (well, even Dreamfyre has the advantage of both size and ferocity).

So, in Sunfyre's case in your fic, would that make him stronger and grow a bit larger than his book and show counterpart? Even if it was just a bit, it would still make somewhat of a difference seeing how much faster and durable Sunfyre is in your fic.

(Okay. I lied, I'm sorry 😭 But in this, do you think it would be more obvious to many that when Daemon and Rhaenyra named their kid Aegon as a slight to our Aegon? I know it was mentioned in the book, and Alicent was angry about it, but I'm just curious. Surely, more and more people would notice this as an insult seeing how popular the Golden Prince is becoming with the people..)

Hello!

TB insights on Aegon--

Daemon-- This kid is proving to be more of a challenge than I thought. But let's wait it out as he grows older; cups and whores will interest him, and the interest in kingship will wane.

Rhaenyra---What is happening?

Rhaenys---My cousin is such a fool. What did he think would happen? That his son would accept being second-fiddle to his sister?

Corlys---Conflict can arise, but Viserys has not changed the succession in 13 years. He'll not change it now. As long as we marry the twins to the boys, everything will be fine.

Rhaena and Baela are quite young, 7, and Aegon is their older cousin, so he'll always be kind of cool regardless of what Daemon says. Like they're too young to understand 'Valyrian racial purity' and 'bastardly', so they don't really know what 'Hightower whelp' means and that it's meant to be an insult. Now, Team Black kids are very sheltered---they live on an island---and seem not to stay in court longer than a month, so the opinions of Rhaenyra and Daemon impact how they see their cousins. Still, the large age difference means they don't really know them, and they're too young to make an informed opinion. Also, unlike before, Aemond claimed Vermithor, not Vhagar, so there's no bad blood between the twins.

Sunfyre is growing bigger and stronger since Aegon rides him daily. I actually like Sunfyre's size on the show. It is one of the only things they did well. It's pretty accurate for a dragon that fought Meleys, Greyghost, and Moondancer. However, Moondancer's size annoys me, she should be as small as Vermax when we first saw Jace's dragon. Meleys is far too small for a dragon that in the book could have taken on Vhagar, and Caraxes is too small as well. I cannot imagine show! Caraxes killing Vhagar--- I just cannot, especially since Vhagar's neck is quite thick. Sunfyre, like his rider, is very resilient.

The thing with Syrax is that the book explicitly says that she was used to being chained, which tells me that she's not ridden that often, which is not surprising considering Rhaenyra is the Princess of Dragonstone, the liege lady of the island with her own busy duties. She was pregnant six times, and I'm sure she can't ride in the last months of pregnancy and needs at least a month to recover before getting on a dragon. On the other hand, Aegon had no duties and could ride his dragon as much as he wanted, which certainly impacted Sunfyre's resiliency.

For your last one, the response would be similar to the book. Both Alicent and Rhaenyra are trying to capitalize on their sons having a conqueror's name to prove their worth. People would not see it as insulting. It is more like recognizing the deep rivalry and both sides trying to claim the legacy of the conqueror.

At this point, none of Rhaenyra's kids have a 'royal' name and look nothing like Valyrians. Rhaenyra's child with Daemon is purely Targaryen and made with the man she always wanted to marry. So, to Rhaenyra, her child deserves the best name, and she'd not care if people thought it was insulting--- they're not going to say it to her face anyways.

[spricket-central]

ive been putting off writing this memorial for over a week now, partially because i knew it would take a long time to write and choose the right pictures, but also because i knew that writing it would make her death feel that much more "real." i think im finally ready to write it though. no matter how much it breaks my heart to do it, im ready to write the closing chapter of her life.

im going to tell you about my dear friend, Poppyseed.

like many of my sprickets, i met Poppyseed in the wee hours of the morning, just as i was getting ready to finally go to bed. there's one huge difference though: Poppyseed wasnt a "wild" spricket i happened across. no, Poppyseed hatched from an egg, one laid by my very first pet spricket, Crouton.

it was May 28th, 2023, and i had gone to moisten the soil of the small container id been "incubating" a few of Crouton's eggs in. upon spritzing the contents, i thought id noticed something leap out. half asleep and bewildered, i looked beside the container and saw the tiniest little speck of a creature on the counter top. i scrambled to catch it, and soon managed to get the tiny thing into a small enclosure.

it was a beautiful, miniscule spricket, a fresh hatchling.

i cant even begin to describe how over the moon i was. after months of waiting, i had FINALLY, for the very first time, managed to hatch one of my sprickets eggs.

the timing of the hatchling's arrival was a bit awkward. i was actually heading off to Boston to visit a friend soon, and i wouldnt be home for a few days. i was nervous about the little nymph's survival, and i opted to hold off on naming her for a while, but very quickly the perfect name came to me, and i couldnt help but bestow it upon her: Poppyseed.

little Poppyseed, practically the size of her namesake at first, began to thrive. she was growing ever so slowly, and it was such a delight to watch. id wake up each day excited, eager to check on Poppyseed to see if she had grown. she was so, so small compared to the adult sprickets i was used to seeing, or even the nymphs i would occasionally encounter! one of my favorite pictures is one i took while cleaning Crouton's tank (and her tankmmate Breadcrumb, of course) in which, moping in the corner of her temporary enclosure, i was able to get a photo of Crouton right beside Poppyseed's tank.

Poppyseed was only a little over a month at the time. her father, a sweet boy named Biscuit, had passed long before her hatching, and she would never actually meet Crouton face to face (i never cohab nymphs with each other- let alone with adults- for fear of one harming the other during/after molting), but i loved having both mother and daughter in my care at the same time.

having Poppyseed around meant that much more to me when Crouton passed away. i was devastated, losing the beloved spricket who marked the beginning of my adventure in keeping/raising these underappreciated little bugs, but Poppyseed was her living legacy, and that gave me great comfort during my mourning. it still does bring me comfort, even in my grief after losing Poppyseed, knowing i was able to raise Crouton's child from a tiny little seedling into a beautiful flower.

and boy, did she bloom.

seeing Poppyseed finish that final molt that signaled her maturity into adulthood was magical. the shy little nymph who id raised over the course of 4 months was all grown up, and she was absolutely stunning.

she had developed these dark markings on her face which ran from the front corner of her eye all the way down the side of her "cheek" to the bottom of her head capsule, like mascara-stained tears. her stripes were bold and stunning, only getting more so as she aged. she was a gorgeous little lady.

i had actually been raising another nymph alongside her in a separate tank since she was only weeks old, a boy named Bagel. after Bagel finished his final molt, about a week after Poppyseed had, i felt it was time to move them in together as i had long been planning to do. i wasnt sure what to expect when introducing them to each other, but what happened certainly wasnt it. I'll never forget their first encounter.

Bagel had gotten spooked upon entry into their new home and ended up hanging upside down on the ceiling. Poppyseed, perhaps by scent, took notice of this, and she was FIXATED. she kept climbing on top of the tube hide that was on the ground beneath him, reaching up with her antennae to touch his, wiggling them excitedly all the while.

then, no longer satisfied reaching up from below, she sprang up and joined him.

Poppyseed and Bagel truly had a fascinating relationship. to whatever degree sprickets can develop a "fondness" for each other, they absolutely had it. they spent so, so much time together. sometimes theyd cuddle up against each other in their egg carton hide or under the "spricket coop," other times theyd just stand beside each other, calmly waving their antennae around. i adored watching the pair interact... though they did NOT know how to share when it came to food, ahaha. it was very common for one to ambush the other as they were eating, an altercation that usually ended with Poppyseed picking up the veggie she was munching (her favorite was corn) and running away with it.

Poppyseed had SO much personality. as nymphs, sprickets are generally much more shy than adults, and its only upon reaching maturity that they really come into their own, and Poppyseed was no exception. she was energetic, and perhaps a bit sassy. despite sprickets being nocturnal, she could often be found out and about during the day as Bagel napped in the egg carton. sometimes, after id open the spricket enclosures in the afternoon to give everybody fresh veggies and spray some water on the inside of the tank walls to make it more humid, id walk away and come back to find Poppyseed standing tall and attempting to climb the walls, dancing to sip the "morning mist." it never failed to put a smile on my face!

Poppyseed, at the time of writing this, is the only spricket ive managed to raise from an egg so far, so i wasnt sure what to expect in regards to a lifespan. id raised Crouton and Breadcrumb from nymphs, sure, but they were already months old when id found them, so i couldnt say exactly how old they lived to be. besides them, the only sprickets i had raised by then were ones id caught as adults, so knowing what age they were was impossible. research on the greenhouse camel cricket is extremely minimal, so finding information on them is difficult. id seen their lifespan reported to be from 1-2 years, but ultimately i didnt really know long a full life would be for Poppyseed.

on the night of her 11 month hatch day, i noticed her slowing down dramatically. i saw all the signs id grown to be familiar with when a spricket is reaching the end of its life: extreme lethargy, slumped posture, hanging the head and antennae low. i knew it was time to prepare to say goodbye.

the following afternoon, she was gone.

i cant even begin to describe how much Poppyseed meant to me. ive tried so hard to get it to come across in this memorial, but no words i write can feel strong enough to express how much i loved her. i still do love her, with all my heart. saying goodbye to her has been excruciatingly hard, but, as i often say, love is an investment in heartbreak.

and the 11, beautiful months i got to spend with Poppyseed were worth every tear.

its one of the hard things about raising animals like sprickets, coping with how short their lifespans are. some pets you get a decade or more to enjoy the company of, whereas a spricket's brief life only affords you months.

a spricket isnt nearly as interactive of a pet either, of course. i can kiss and cuddle my cat Wembley until both our little hearts burst with love for each other, but my sprickets dont even truly know i exist. how could they? imagine if a mountain were to reach out and try to touch you. how could you even conceptualize what was happening? the sheer scale of it is simply too grand, a force of nature, surging towards you, unfathomably large and equally as terrifying. to my sprickets, im not a friend; im a phenomenon.

but that doesnt make me love them any less.

as i cared for Poppyseed, i got to see her hit so many milestones. i watched her grow, both physically and as an individual with a unique personality. i got to see her gain confidence and form a relationship (the simplicity or complexity of which i find irrelevant to its significance). i saw her blossom.

when Crouton was dying, i made a promise to her. i promised id raise her baby to be big and strong, and give her a happy and healthy life. i feel confident in saying that i kept my promise to her.

Poppyseed, i dont even know what to say. i loved you. i loved you so, so much, and i will always love you. the time i had with you was a blessing, and I'll always cherish your memory.

I'll take good care of Bagel for you. im still seaching the substrate you shared for eggs, but ive already found at least one that looks like it could be viable. who knows? maybe you two will end up parents, just like Crouton and Biscuit were yours. i would be honored to keep your lineage alive.

i love you, my special seedling. your roots will always remain in my heart. thank you for being my pretty little poppy. thank you for making me smile and laugh. thank you for being my friend.

Poppyseed

May 28th, 2023 - April 29th, 2024

[sonicasura]

I see Infected/Plaga/C Virus Leon aus like @prettyflyshyguy , @erinmccomics to @polarspaz and I can't help but think these buggy guys need help from a Pokemon Trainer specifically one with Bug Types.

When you consider the various species of pocket monsters that a trainer can catch, they definitely know how to help Leon with his new insect like body. Physical Therapy and Restraint Training? Golisopod, Drapion or Heracross can help. Diet? There's various food and berries that could assist. Care products? Pretty sure there's stuff good for chitin or what type of hide he has.

Plus the Trainer in question would completely be unfazed at Infected!Leon's appearance. "I raised a Guzzlord and got chased by a Beedrill horde twice. You don't scare me." Be even funnier if the Pokemon Trainer is like twelve or fourteen and Leon's protective instincts just kick in.

Leon: *chitters angrily* "WHO THE HELL LET'S THEIR CHILDREN GO ON A JOURNEY TO CATCH MONSTERS BY THEMSELVES!!"

Trainer: I've been doing this since I was 10 and plus I'm a Pokemon League Champion/Frontier Brain dude.

Leon: *exasperated chitters intensify* WHAT?!

It even be funnier if the buggy man somehow gets adopted by their insect like Pokemon. Leon is just a hatchling or recently evolved Bug Type not used to his full capabilities in their opinion. Chris be laughing his ass upon the sight of Trainer's Alpha Drapion just holding the buggyman by the scruff like a kitten. (Alphas are 3 times the size of their species so the Poison/Dark would be around 16 or 17 ft.)

Leon: Put me down! *embarrassed chitters*

Drapion: Drapion drap. (My larva now.)

Chris: *taking pictures* Claire would love to see this!

As for how Leon met them, it was probably on accident. Man gets badly hurt or is in a half lucid daze when Trainer finds him. Their Pokemon put a Safeguard (infection/zombification counts as a status like in Monster Hunter World RE DLC and Safeguard nullifies that) so any viral infection can't affect them.

Plus it be funny if the DSO/BSAA try to apprehend Trainer only for them to escape using their Pokemon's Teleport or on the lines of it. 'I can come and go whenever I please. Hasta la vista!' then just vanishes in thin air. Meanwhile Leon is just laughing like no tomorrow.

Somehow this traumatic experience does have a huge turnaround and he doesn't feel so out of place. If some stranger from another world came to his aid, to help him in this monstrous state, then there really is hope that things can get better. Infected Leon can have his old life back or at least some of it.

Plus Trainer just taking him to their home in the Pokemon World as they live in Paldea or Galar's Wild Area. Vast expanse of wilderness with little chance to encounter people. Leon could goof around to his heart's content and not be stuck in a claustrophobic or tight in environment.

Overall, dear buggy man is in for a wild but hopeful ride.

That's all I have for now! Until next time folks, I'll see you later! Here's the Pokemon mentioned in order.

[wcrriorhearts]

The beating of mighty wings was the sound Elaena had fallen asleep to hours ago, trusting Sapphire entirely to take her to the land of their birth, the place she loathed with everything in her, because it was where she had lost so much. Eight years had passed since the dance and though she had been aware of her brother's coronation, not many other news had reached her parts of Essos, until rumors of a prince weeding out the Greens had sprouted in the streets of Pentos, one whose character reminded of the rogue King consort Daemon, but who was supposed to be the dead Queen's eldest son. Those rumors attracted her attention and after a long debate with herself, the shunned princess decided that it was time to go home. She had never desired to return to Westeros, because she believed everything she had loved about it to be gone anyway, but three of her brothers lived and so did both of her sisters - mayhaps not everything was lost.

A roar startled Elaena awake and she sat up straight on the she-dragon she called her own, tired lavender eyes blinking into the sunrise above King's Landing. She saw people scatter in the streets below, panic visible in their erratic movements at the sight of a dragon, when all of them had been extinct during the dance or shortly after. No one could fault them for their fear, for Sapphire was a vicious beast, who was more feral than tamed and would gladly eat them all. But despite her wild nature and seemingly violent nature, she listened to the human girl who had tried to force her into clothes as a hatchling and so no one was harmed as they soared over the city towards the pit where once all of the family's dragons were housed. There was no way of confining Sapphire to it, who would not be caged, not even for Ella, but that was no problem in the girl's eyes, for she would just let the dragon free as usual. Sapphire would find a spot to hunker down and come when she was needed.

The pit was unguarded and no dragon keepers lingered here any longer, but her arrival had not gone unnoticed and she found members of the King's Guard there to greet her, suspicion and confusion on their features. Elaena slipped from the back of her dragon and landed on naked feet, already missing the desert heat and way of living in Essos. Everything here already seemed stiff and like a fragment of a past she had long left behind. "I am Elaena Targaryen and I demand to see my brothers", she said in High Valyrian, no longer remembering much of the common tongue. The guards seemed confused, but one of them had picked up her name, eyeing her suspiciously. Fine, she was supposedly dead, killed alongside her mother at Dragonstone. Maybe she should have sent a letter ahead. After a moment of deliberation, they decided to escort her to the castle. The trek through the city was painfully long, all the while Ella's anxiety rose at being back here and facing her brothers after so long.

@all-that-is-gold-is-now-gone gets a starter