#I'm not making a list for 2024.

[thecruellestmonth]

Jason Todd 2023 fic recs

Some of the best Jason Todd fics that were posted or updated in the year 2023.

"Beneficiary" by sirsparklepants https://archiveofourown.org/works/44845189 - The beneficiaries of the estate of Jason Todd. Wonderfully bittersweet. A story about "the logistical demands of death" and "the banalities of death and grief".

"The Extremely True Story of the Titans Tower Attack" by Wisetypewriter https://archiveofourown.org/works/45011785 - Red Hood evilly dragged the iron maiden Talia had gifted him in the Titans Tower’s kitchen. He cackled to himself, so deliciously happy to be able to test it on Robin. -- The most "Titans Tower AU" ever of all time. A must-read masterpiece for anyone who hates or loves fanon.

The Foreigner by somecaveats https://archiveofourown.org/works/44992420 - Jason had played out Bruce’s first words to him again and again, the blame, the disgust, the rejection, and then, sometimes, when he was feeling sentimental, tears and warmth and muttered prayers about the miracle of his return. He had thought he was prepared for anything. --Or; Immediately after the Lazarus Pit, Jason comes back. -- You know those fantasies of Jason returning to the family in a neater and more palatable way? And all his loved ones react so sweetly and supportively and sensitively—as if Jason's own behavior were the singular deciding factor for whether the family is functional and healthy in canon? This isn't that. Or; in which Jason receives a damningly tepid welcome home, has several ugly ugly panic attacks, and expertly deduces that one of Bruce's Wayne ancestors got it on with the portraitist John Singer Sargent. [work in progress/incomplete]

"how it feels to be immune" by maangoes https://archiveofourown.org/works/44490682 - He spent a year in a villa in the Hindu Kush. He doesn’t remember most of it. There were people that cleaned and made him food. The whole house smelled like Talia, like rose and jasmine flowers. This is a soothing little vignette, like a calm before a storm. Talia shines in her competence and in her tenderness, while also struggling to make the right choices for Jason's post-resurrection recovery.

whether a beast or a human being by Goldmonger https://archiveofourown.org/series/3417622 - The Red Hood has been recaptured by the Batman and consigned to a private prison, one buried deep beneath Gotham City. The Dark Knight has encountered insane and deadly criminals before, and knows the havoc that can be wreaked from allowing them any kind of freedom. The Red Hood will spend the rest of his life under observation, and will be cared for according to the directives of the Batman. It is unlikely that he will rejoin society, but that is a sacrifice that must be made to protect the citizens of Gotham. Or: "The Wide Sargasso Sea: Jason Todd Edition." Now serendipitously even more relevant after Gotham War! This story contains extreme and unmitigated pain, and severe medical abuse. In the words of the writer: a story "of how even the closest relationship with the most love in the world can fall apart under the right conditions." This is an ongoing/incomplete story, but each installment feels like a satisfying pausing point.

"catch and release" by hellsreluctantheir https://archiveofourown.org/works/50457703 - Dick & Jason hurt/comfort, with POV Dick. In the words of one commenter, this is a sweet story that really appreciates Dick's "constant worrying & planning & trauma and huge sense of responsibility that he’s always got going there" with respect to the ups and downs of his history with Jason.

"Neighbours" by Aingeal98 https://archiveofourown.org/works/40132554 - Bruce loved his son. Bruce was delighted that his son was making new friends. But there was something odd about that family, and no it wasn't just because Cassandra's mother outvoted him at the last PTA meeting, Jason. (That may have played a small part. Sue him, he's human.) PTA AU starring Cass and Shiva, with Jason as a supporting character. A feel-good story with comedy, friendship, family, and tiny pre-teen urban justice crusader Cass as our intrepid hero!

"EURUS" by cowboymater https://archiveofourown.org/works/50555239/chapters/127711369 - "Eurus is a continued interrogation of our own beliefs […] the record seeks to capture the feelings of dark woods, dry branches, dead leaves, and wondering who had migrated — you, or your flock?" OR: Jason Todd, his convictions, his forgiveness, and the cycles of violence and hope (violent hope, sometimes) he may never be free of.

"Ages 12 & Up" by motleyfam https://archiveofourown.org/works/52384984 - See, the real reason that Damian always refuses painkillers is that he cannot swallow a pill. Cute and fun Batfamily fluff. Damian is a tough little guy, and Jason is an obnoxiously annoying big brother.

"YOU MUST KNOW LIFE TO KNOW DECAY." by orpheusaki @damianbugs https://archiveofourown.org/works/48513616 - For as long as Jason can remember, it's always been raining. Jason's memories of rainy days throughout his life. The rain continues, and so does Jason.

"Get Joker" by chucklesbuckles https://archiveofourown.org/works/49377664 - Harley tries to bond with Jason over their singular shared point of trauma, obsesses over the dead bird's hands, and alienates him by having a platonic hard on for his dad. Jason just wants to make bets over who on their team will bite it first. In which Suicide Squad: Get Joker! is scrapped for parts and melted down. Harley's retrospective on having knowingly loved someone who tortured Barbara Gordon and killed Robin. [POV Harley Quinn.]

"Down to Dust" by Sparkypants https://archiveofourown.org/works/47407291 - It's not the warehouse that Jason has nightmares about. It's Bruce. Bruce deciding to cremate him instead of bury him. Because if he had, what would Jason be now? An infinite number of pieces, cast into the wind. Smoke hanging in the air and never whole or home again, part of him always missing. A spiral of psychological horror, then some hurt/comfort.

"the shadow of violence" by shipyrds https://archiveofourown.org/works/49059019 - Jason shoots someone to protect Damian. Bruce, as usual, has opinions.

"promises" by sunspikes https://archiveofourown.org/series/3413851 - After a nightmarish premonition, young Jason makes Bruce promise not to bury him.

"through death and time" by sparkycap https://archiveofourown.org/works/45733813 - After a mission that takes Batman and Nightwing back twenty years in the past, they end up with time to kill. Bruce does what he does best: he finds a kid. Luckily this one is already his. The fluffiest feel-good fluff available, featuring Bruce & Dick & Jason. Sweeter than WFA.

"The Daughter of the Water" by chucklesbuckles https://archiveofourown.org/works/46605205 - “To walk the world!” it croons, bright gold spilling over it’s cheeks, highlighting the springy white curls crowning it’s head. It bends, cold wet hands cradling Talia’s face, wiping her tears away. It places a soft kiss to her forehead, tucking a loose curl of hair behind her ear, torchlight eyes burning. “Thank you for the body.” The Lazarus Pit takes Jason's body for a long and productive joyride. A creepy and wet story featuring Talia & Jason, with POV Talia.

"Confessional" by Temeritous https://archiveofourown.org/works/45307363 - Jason gets hit with a truth spell and uses it in an inadvisable manner. Ooh, the emotional pain here is exquisite. It's like helplessly watching a glass bottle of olive oil drop and shatter and spill all over the floor.

"Oracle Movie Trailer" by centreoftheselights https://archiveofourown.org/works/47940070 - A screenplay for a trailer for a Oracle: Year One origin movie, featuring Robin II as a supporting character. We love the idea of a movie following Barbara's recovery and journey to becoming Oracle.

Red X by ilovelegendsalot https://archiveofourown.org/series/1211157 - Mostly following the canon events of the Teen Titans cartoon, from the perspective of the second Red X, Jason Todd.

"salt in the wound (and a kiss on my cheek)" by pseudonym123 https://archiveofourown.org/works/52471159/ - A RHATO #25 canon divergence fic where Roy doesn't come to Jason's rescue that night on the rooftop. Bruce and Jason deal with the fall out. [incomplete/work in progress]

[2022]

[r0semultiverse]

Small indie artists in need of support for moving out by September!

💜 These lovely folks [@QuinsCurse (they/them) & @sswitchblade03 (xe/xem and he/him)] are part of a small queer-owned Youtube community I'm in. 💖

💖 If you could lend a helping hand by reblogging & queueing this post up until the start of September, I'd greatly appreciate it & I'm sure these fine folks would too! 💜

⚠️ Do not tag as d*nations or anything like that! ⚠️

"Hi everyone! Requests are officially closed as I am opening emergency commissions! Please consider supporting me as we are getting kicked out and have managed to find a place that’s affordable but need to save up 5k by the end of the month! Anything helps! I also have a dontations page if you are willing to help do that! All the money received from commissions will be going to the deposit! https://ko-fi.com/quinscurse/commissions https://ko-fi.com/quinscurse/goal?g=32"

⚠️ Do not tag as d*nations or anything like that! ⚠️

"https://ko-fi.com/sswitchblade03/commissions https://ko-fi.com/sswitchblade03/goal?g=0 EMERGENCY COMMISSIONS!! My roommate ‪@QuinsCurse‬and I are needing about $5000CAD for a down payment on a new place as we need to be out of our current place by September! Every bit counts! My goal is to be set to $3000CAD. I will draw anything (coloured and rendered) for $5 CAD each! If you are willing to give more it will be appreciated. Examples of my work below!"

⚠️ Do not tag as d*nations or anything like that! ⚠️

[cozylittleartblog]

my ACEN tip gimmick has been fulfilled, aaand i got a little carried away with it. I haven't had time to draw for myself (or at all, really??) in like two weeks, i needed to Doodle and Have Fun. ... also, i did not think he would get so many donuts. people understand the value of giving treats to fictional characters :) its what he deserves

also shoutout to snazzyskeletons who had the same Tip Theme i did. we took pictures with our tip jars together. they are adorable v

i'm glad their vash got some donut money too :) 🍩 please check them out if you want some cute trigun stuff

[gallawitchxx]

day thirty-one • @gallavichthings kinktober 2024

↳ 31 days of kinks & cards in 3 sentences

WAX PLAY x THREE OF WANDS

By the end of the night, you’re dripping with come and covered in the tri-colored candle Ian insisted on buying at the new sex shop down the block. You’ve survived hours of sensory overload like you’ve never before experienced: the hot sting of the wax, the cool caress of breath blowing it dry, the ache in your balls, the pulse of your prostate, the fullness of Ian’s cock buried so deep your belly bulges, the warm splatter of spunk—yours, a relief, a reward; his, a benefit, a brand. Later, you’ll breathe and bathe, cleaning yourself of all but your filthy memories, but now, you blink and beam, soaking up what you can of Ian’s attention, his praise, and his unconditional, unrelenting love.

[runefactorynonsense]

YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS.

TIme to binge RF tracks while planning for October!!

As of right now I'll be using the list I found above - thank you, Melosprout on Insta! - from last year. The tag will be #Melotober!

Year 4 of this tradition, let's go!!

[nikki-tine]

So it's come to my attention that despite the page I have set up within the desktop version of my blog, I don't have a mobile version of an introduction post here. Oops! This one's newly written, too, in a different format than the other.

So, that being said - Hello!

I am Nikki/Niko (Whichever you prefer!) and I am a 27-year old Genderfluid artist person (My birthday is on January 9th!). I don't think there's too much to be said here, but I can and will say with confidence that this blog has been, especially in the last few or so years built up to be a catch-all for whatever I deem good to reblog or post (All of which typically related to fluff stuff, feel-good vibes or something that I may feel strongly about).

This place is, and always will be a safe space for a) People with disabilities (I am autistic, have ADD and Bipolar as well as Anxiety) and b) LGBTQ+-identifying people (I am, as mentioned before Genderfluid, and I'm Pansexual Panromantic!).

If a reblog or post makes you uncomfortable, then I will happily delete it if asked.

I make it a point to keep these posts SFW especially nowadays - however, I can't quite vouch for possibly the oldest of my posts (as I've been here since the early 2010s along with some ol' dumb teen thoughts involved and it'd take forever to sort absolutely everything out from over a decade ago at this point). I'm pretty sure that I've removed most of the NSFW stuff already from those years ago, but if I missed something then I don't mind deleting it as long as you let me know first (I'm incredibly disorganized and would appreciate a nudge in the right direction).

With these details out of the way - I am an artist that dabbles in various fandoms with no real sense of rhyme or reason outside of either hyperfixated interest or otherwise with the intent to update old ideas and refresh them into new ones. Like most artists on the internet, I ask that you do not repost without credit, trace and/or copy my work. I'm quite literally living paycheck by paycheck with my family right now. You CAN however use my artwork as a reference or as inspiration for your own work - If you do, lemme know! I'd love to see the result!

Here's a vague list of fandoms I dabble in (though my post history doesn't quite show that as I tend to leave most of my stuff to posting on Discord instead):

Pokemon (I've been a part of this one almost my entire life lol)

Sonic the Hedgehog (Another fandom I've been in for a grand majority of my life! I'm more of a casual fan as I haven't made much art recently, but I still absolutely love looking at what others come up with for OCs and stuff.)

Undertale (ESPECIALLY AU-centric)

Digimon (Passionate about this one specifically - I have a project I've been working with under this fandom since 2014 on and off)

Cookie Run (Kingdom primarily with a minor Ovenbreak focus for AU concept ideas)

Dark Cloud/Dark Chronicle (This one's SO obscure, but if you know these games then I give you a virtual baked good of your liking! These two games hold a very special place in my heart.)

Dance Dance Revolution, NotITG, Friday Night Funkin (I'm a rhythm game nerd and love the creativity of the communities surrounding these three - I just haven't been able to piece together anything for it yet visually except for FNF stuff on and off)

A Dance of Fire and Ice (Same as the DDR fandom part, but I've made a couple fanart pieces before so this one I may have an easier time of conceptualizing later)

FNAF (Specifically Security Breach AU work! This one's not as frequent as others but I still have stuff in mind for it. Security Breach is how I finally caved with the FNAF series as a whole after watching how the fandom grew over the years.)

Warriors (Warrior Cats, in our year 2024? Eeyup. I just like the funny spiritual witties!)

Team Fortress 2 (This one's in and out but it's one that I come back to a lot as my boyfriend, regularly interacting and involved in the GMOD animation community reminds me of my own TF2 stuff with his presence alone lol. Love you James! <3)

Persona 3, 4 and 5 (This one's a lil self-explanatory but I have AU ideas surrounding these games that I want to make more art for eventually)

If I have anything else not listed before, I'll add it to the list. C: Please keep in mind that although I dabble in these fandoms, AU versions of existing characters may be changed in terms of sexuality, personality etc to reflect the AU they are from (For example, I have a version of Cream Unicorn Cookie that uses he/they pronouns, and my Redeemed!Pomegranate Cookie from the same AU leans bisexual over lesbian for reasons relating to reflection of character and overall character development. I like to make characters more flexible while self-indulging, so keep this in mind). I note this because my own headcanons about certain characters have set off one or two people in the past unintentionally and they VERY much have pushed things in an effort to keep canon down my throat out of retaliation. Let's just say that this part in particular is a thing that taps a sore spot for me for personal reasons. :/

When it concerns making art of my characters - surprise or not, feel free to make art of them and mention me in post (and/or message me, either way works)! It makes me feel SO loved when I get art from others, and I appreciate every piece dearly. 💜💜💜 (I go so far as to hold onto an archive of art that was done for me - with artist names in-tact within the file name nowadays!)

A few things to consider when it concerns tickling-related matters with me:

I am a Switch! I'm unsure how far Ler or Lee I am just yet, but I do enjoy tickling both ways. Unfortunately, however, I'm the kind of person that practically flies across a room when poked,, (if it comes down to tickling my sona - Niko Spirata - tie or hold 'em down if you want to wreck 'em with tickles lol)

My interest in tickling alone is purely SFW - It feels too weird looking at IRL photos/videos with very rare exception (a lot of the exception is the giggle the lee produces from ticklish contact). As a result, all the stuff I'll be reblogging and posting here is art or animation-related instead!

My favorite tickle trope is the one where a shrunken someone or a small something wiggles under the unwitting lee's clothing to tickle them! (Points at wormonastriing's Squirmles as an example of this trope :3) No, seriously. If I end up with art of any of my characters getting destroyed with tickles in this manner I will ASCEND BEYOND GALAXIES.

My favorite spots with tickling overall are belly, side and rib tickling - on rarer occasions, I enjoy tickling in other places (I prefer foot tickling if the lee has paws instead of normal feet!). This lines up with a particular enjoyment of characters being slightly chubby! I looove a good squeeze of the sides or belly, enough to get the lee blurting out giggles.

I have only a few tags I use now on a regular, but these are:

#nikki-tine (This is my user tag and I put it in with my art posts and other things I post sometimes. You may also see others' posts under this tag, primarily with stuff related to asks or when art's been posted for me in the past <3)

#art, #tickle art, #tickling art (These are self-explanatory!)

#NJEGNJ (Something to that effect, lol. It's not exact but keyboard smash tag is typically wrote similarly or around the same for several posts, all of which ones that got me chuckling or giggling like a dork!)

~

My Commission Status is currently set to OPEN (paypal prioritized for now).

It's really complicated, however, and I don't have any other methods than Paypal and Robux right now so if you have questions about that then feel free to message me and I'll try to clear it up as best I can!

I only have two prices, both fully colored and shaded.

Chibies are $25 USD (+ 5 for an extra character)

My normal art style is $50 USD (+ 10 for an extra character)

I do best leaving the BG transparent, but if I HAVE to work on one then I can do nature-themed backgrounds pretty okay. It’s not a strong-suit of mine, however…

My Art Trade Status is Busted Wide Open™ to Mutuals, but I'm a little picky and choosy with random people.

If I decline an Art Trade, please don't take it personally!

In terms of Roleplay, It's Closed on-blog, BUT I'm Open to Roleplay in Discord servers (Provided there's a Tupperbot there for me to use).

I've been looking to find an RP server that has mutuals/friends and allows Undertale-related stuff (especially of the tickling-related kind!), so if you're a part of one please let me know!

DM Status overall is Open (As long as you are kind to me, I will return kindness back!).

My Asks are ALWAYS OPEN! I really like getting stuff in my inbox (and I unfortunately don't get asks often at all).

I'm most comfortable interacting with other adults and SFW blogs (this is more-so for safety than anything else on my end. I don't have the emotional or mental energy to handle potential drama involving context-disconnected words). I don't mind interacting with NSFW blogs here but only if in the context of specific interests of mine and not much else.

I don't really have much in the way of who can't interact with me as long as you are respectful/mindful of chat etiquette and are aware of the kind of impact you may make in messaging people like myself.

I do my best to look at blog descriptions and respect DNI's - If I end up poking at something I shouldn't by accident, as long as it's not met with aggression in DMs, I will happily fix whatever problem you may have related to that. I HATE making others uncomfortable/upset!

If you have questions, feel free to ask! I don't really use other forms of Social Media, but I do use some websites with a social aspect to them casually.

Links:

Flightrising (Funny dragon site)

Chicken Smoothie (This one's a fun lil adopt site from the late 2000s)

GPX Plus (This is literally Pokefarm Q before Pokefarm Q lol)

Gaia Online (Another old site with unfortunate currency inflation, but it's the site that's kept me going with character designing and such over the years! The blog part here is old, but the avatar is updated from time to time. This site is the reason I lean on Monochrome + a color as an aesthetic a lot lol)

Bluesky (mostly inactive - want activity there? nudge me here!)

DeviantArt (It's VERY rare I post here now. Also a warning for those under 18 - there's suggestive and nsfw art in my favorites dotted here and there so look with caution. my gallery itself is SFW however and all the works that would have been nsfw are archived.)

Artfight (Self-explanatory!)

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

Books of 2024: THE KAIJU PRESERVATION SOCIETY by John Scalzi.

I picked this up when he and Martha Wells were talking about WITCH KING at one of my local bookstores last summer partially because I felt bad shoving a stack of things for her to sign at her with nothing for him, sitting right next to her, after he'd been so delightful to listen to too, but! It is finally time! I need something funny and ridiculous and light, and I have it on good authority that this'll work.

[aeb-art]

i was thinking about characters i've found myself attracted to and,,,

[seagull-scribbles]

2023 Tumblr Top 10

1. 1,917 notes - Oct 1 2023

2. 1,765 notes - Sep 7 2023

All of my Out of Touch Turts-day in a video for easy comparison 💕 

3. 1,071 notes - Jul 20 2023

4. 1,058 notes - Aug 17 2023

5. 898 notes - Mar 15 2023

6. 860 notes - Jul 27 2023

7. 772 notes - Aug 10 2023

8. 740 notes - May 31 2023

9. 668 notes - Aug 4 2023

10. 649 notes - Aug 24 2023

[erasedcitizen2]

ATTEMPTING TO GET THROUGH THIS LIST OF DRAGON AGE MEDIA IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER IS HOW I'M DEALING WITH MY DRAGON AGE: THE VEILGUARD HYPE LMAO

(pls send help)

Disclaimers: I put this together by looking at a couple of lists other people have made to see if multiple people put things in the same order, things might still be incorrect tho and dates especially might be incorrect I haven't spent a whole lot of time double checking everything. Sorry that it's messy I was just making it for myself but maybe someone else wants to do this too so here ya go. I also skipped some minor things like short webcomics that I personally wasn't interested in.

Book: The Stolen Throne, 9:00-9:17 Dragon Book: The Calling, 9:10-9:11 Dragon Movie: Dawn of the Seeker, 9:22 Dragon Short story: Sebastian, 9:22 Dragon Short story: Aveline, 9:25 Dragon Short story: Fenris, 9:28 Dragon Origins DLC: Leliana's Song, 9:28 (before Origins) Game: Dragon Age: Origins, 9:30-9:31 Dragon Origins DLC: Warden's Keep, 9:30 Dragon (DURING ORIGINS before final battle) Origins DLC: Stone Prisoner, 9:30 Dragon (DURING ORIGINS before final battle) Short movie: Dragon Age: Warden's Fall https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vbs_FaXNyI Origins DLC: Awakening, 9:31 Dragon (after Origins) Origins DLC: Golems of Amgarrak, 9:31 Dragon Short story: Anders, 9:31 Dragon Short story: Varric, 9:31 Dragon Short story: Isabela, 9:31 Dragon Short story: Merrill, 9:31 Dragon Origins DLC: Witch Hunt, 9:32 Dragon (after Origins) Game: Dragon Age II, 9:30-9:37 Dragon Web series: Dragon Age: Redemption, 9:34 (DURING Dragon Age II after act 1 before act 2) II DLC: The Exiled Prince, 9:33 Dragon (DURING II you meet him in act 1, becomes companion in Act 2) II DLC: Legacy, (DURING II Before 9:37 Dragon) II DLC: Mark Of The Assassin, (DURING II Before 9:37 Dragon, Act 3 before end of game) Comic: The Silent Grove, 9:38 Dragon Comic: Those Who Speak, 9:38 Dragon Comic: Until We Sleep, 9:38 Dragon Book: Hard in Hightown, 9:40 Dragon Book: Asunder, 9:40 Dragon Book: The Masked Empire, 9:40 Dragon (Game: The Last Court web game) Short story: The Riddle of Truth Short story: Paying the Ferryman Short story: Paper & Steel Game: Dragon Age: Inquisition, 9:40-9:41 Dragon Comic: Mage Killer, 9:40 Dragon (DURING Inquisition, before final battle) Inquisition DLC: Jaws of Hakkon, 9:40-9:41 Dragon (could be either during or after Inquisition) Inquisition DLC: The Descent, 9:40-9:41 Dragon (could be either during or after Inquisition) Comic: Blue Wraith, 9:40-9:44 Dragon Book: The Last Flight, 9:41 Dragon Inquisition DLC: Trespasser, 9:43 Dragon Netflix show: Absolution Comic: Knight Errant, 9:43 Dragon Comic: Deception, 9:43 Dragon Short stories: Tevinter Nights, 9:44-9:45 Dragon Comic: Dark Fortress, 9:45 Dragon Comic: The Missing, 9:45 Dragon

[sinni-ok-sessi]

a rec list of sorts (2023)

@inimitablereel's rec list has inspired me to make my own! an eclectic assortment mostly defined by 'did I remember to bookmark this fic?' and 'do I remember why I bookmarked this fic?' As my memory is very bad, there are no doubt some extremely good fics I read this year that are not included here, for which I can only apologise

Beyond Evil

boy, don't you know you're a hurricane? by pale_and_tragic (M, 51k, Han Joo Won/Lee Dong Sik) Somehow the only BE fic I bookmarked this year? I'm sure there were more, but I do love an almost-canon-but-not AU, and I loved how this fic handled Han Joo Won's relationships with the rest of the cast.

Mysterious Lotus Casebook

like rain that you slept through by mimosaeyes (T, 4k, Lotus Tower trio in various permutations) Again, surely I read and loved more MLC fics than just this one? But I did love this one (and its sequel) very much. A post-canon slow healing.

Nirvana in Fire

darkness had a queen by Stratisphyre (T, 14k, Qin Banruo & Consort Jing) Two extremely intelligent women play 4D chess and manage to render much of the canon plot unnecessary. I have sent this one to basically everyone I know, so its inclusion here can't be much of a surprise.

Pour Herbal Oil by ShanaStoryteller (unrated, 20k, Yan Yujin &/ various) If you are a Yan Yujin Enjoyer you have almost certainly read this a thousand times, but I am as ever late to the party. Fundamentally altered how I see Yujin as a character

suffer the same condition by plalligator (T, 3k, Mei Changsu(etc)/XiaoJingyan) This is cheating of me because I definitely did not read this for the first time this year, but I did read it (and its sequels) at least twice this year so maybe it counts. Anyway. Plalligator's fics are a perfect mix of very funny and also sad if you think too long about anything, which is precisely what I want from NiF fic.

Miscellaneous

Ted Lasso/Station Eleven crossover: all the men and women merely players by laiqualaurelote (T, 51k, Ted Lasso/Trent Crimm, Roy Kent/Keeley Jones/Jamie Tartt, plus various canon relationships) Oh boy. I think I spent like half an hour after finishing this just staring blankly into space. Have you ever wanted the Richmond gang to become wandering actors in a post-apocalyptic world? I didn't know I did, until I read this. I'm not usually a fan of crossovers but this is really, really well done.

Protector of the Small (Tortall): We're Leaving Our Shadows Behind Us by lady_ragnell (T, 70k, Keladry of Mindelan/Nealan of Queenscove/Yukimi noh Daiomoru) Neal's perspective on some of the later events of canon. Feat. some interesting considerations about the Chamber of Ordeal.

Lord Peter Wimsey novels: Lord of Misrule by [anonymous] (T, 6k, Peter Wimsey/Mervyn Bunter) An extremely late entry to the list, given I read it on the train uh yesterday, but I am always fond of fics that engage with period-typical attitudes to queerness.

[sandboxscenes]

You've been challenged! (Pokemon AU)

A/N: This is an experimental piece that I wanted to try out because I was inspired by this Pokemon Battle featuring Delphox. This is a different take on a Genshin Impact Pokemon AU. This was done in conjunction with @xianyoon for their Extreme Bias Game. Special thanks to @floraldresvi for assisting me with the ideas for Thoma's section.

Characters: Lyney, Thoma

Genre: Mostly fluff, with hints of angst

Summary:

Pokemon and Genshin collide in this Pokemon style AU that answers the question: What would happen if the characters you encountered in Genshin Impact challenged you?

If you were challenged by them, what would be their in-game tagline when they challenged you to a battle? What would their title be on the game screen? And most importantly, what would be their character summaries?

In short, it positions the different Genshin Impact characters as in-game coded sprites.

Word Count: Lyney (277 words), Thoma (328 words)

You have been challenged by the House of Hearth's Second in Command, Lyney!

Tagline: "Let's give them a show to remember!"

Brief Summary:

Tricks, Illusions, and Magic galore! Whenever anyone takes a seat at Lyney's shows in the Court of Fontaine, they will be in for a magical time. Charming, charismatic, and talented are all words that describe the renowned magician. Lyney and his aforementioned magic shows are famous across the Fontanian landscape. But few know the man behind the spectacle.

Growing up, Lyney owes much of his present success to his upbringing in orphanage known as: The House of Hearth. His sister, Lynette, and his (adopted) brother, Freminet, also grew up there as well. While not much is known about The House of Hearth, it is full of unexpected surprises.

To Lyney, family means to the world to him. He will do anything to protect it. Second only to the "Father" of the House of Hearth, he is the one that will eventually be "Father's successor." Despite his young appearance, there is a reason that he is the second in command. Anyone who ends up underestimating him, regrets it.

For the Magician Lyney, he always wants to keep people on their toes. His Pokemon are the same way. Some of Lyney's trusted Pokemon partners include the show stopping, Delphox and Meowscarada. They also have some tricks up their sleeves as well.

Special Notes:

Lyney's interest in magic has spread to his Pokemon too. His Delphox is a bit of a magician as well - blink and things will disappear. On the other hand, his Meowscarada is ready for anything. It's able to adapt on the fly, like any good magician does.

-------

You have been challenged by the mysterious foreign fixer, Thoma!

Tagline: "Let me protect you. It's what I want to do."

Basic Summary:

Inazuma is a land of tradition.

However, Thoma himself has a very non-traditional skill set.

As someone with skills in cooking and cleaning, he enjoys using his skills to assist people whenever he can. His earnest kindness, his willingness to help, and loyalty have made him well liked among the Inazuman Citizens, despite their wariness towards foreigners.

As a foreigner, Thoma cares deeply about others. He knows what it's like to have people be wary of you due to things out of his control. As someone with a deep sense of duty and loyalty, he is not someone who forgets his debts or reneges on them.

Thoma's actions have earned him the nickname of fixer, as he is well-versed in the art of fixing problems. For someone like Thoma, resolving things peacefully is always preferable. Whether it's a small fight between children over toys to a fight between foreign and local merchants, Thoma would prefer if both sides could compromise.

But if things things escalate, don't be fooled.

When push comes to shove, Thoma's willing to do what it takes to protect himself and his family from harm. Once you have wormed your way into the heart of the foreign fixer, he will protect you until his dying breath.

For the mysterious Fixer, he is well-informed of any happenings going on in Inazuma. He has to be, due to the nature of his job.

With such a dangerous job, he needs partners he can rely on.

One of his trusted Pokemon partners is Talonflame. Talonflame soars above the skies of Inazuma, its keen eyes alerting Thoma to any potential issues that may arise within Inazuma. And for those conflicts that can't be fixed peacefully and require a 'forceful' touch, Thoma's other partner Blaziken, is there to help - both its master, its family, and the people of Inazuma.

[spartanlocke]

me: ok this is clearly having a negative impact on my mental and physical health so i'm just gonna ease off the politics for a bit and try to relax- republicans: so head's up you're gonna have to spend the rest of the year checking your registration info because we decided we can just walk into the polls and get your registration removed if it's sus (see: not registered republican) lmao me:

[sheliesshattered]

I finished my lightsaber bag last weekend, but work has been so hectic that I haven't really had the time to take photos and write up a post about it until now.

The finished bag, when closed like this, is 39" long and 5" wide. It fits my lightsaber (hilt with 28" blade attached) just perfectly, and it's so nice and soft and padded inside that I feel like my saber is protected from most things it would encounter either at home or out in the world. I wouldn't check it as airline baggage in just this bag, but short of that it feels pretty secure.

The top flap closes with a large strip of brown velcro, which makes it quick and easy to get my saber out when I need it. That faux-suede fabric I used for the lining is a bit grippy, and the interior of the bag is too narrow to get even my tiny raccoon hands into, so it takes just the right amount of force (no pun intended) to draw the lightsaber out of the bag. Even with the flap open, there isn't much risk of the saber just falling out of the bag.

The fake pocket flap in the middle of the bag, near the right edge of the above picture, hides another bit of velcro, which allows me to close off the bag at a slightly shorter length by folding the top flap down even further, until the velcro on the left side of the picture meets up with the underside of that flap. I didn't get any pictures of that, since it's really only usable when I separate the hilt and blade of my saber, which is just fiddly enough that I prefer to keep them attached when I can. But it does give me the option, say for a Disney trip, to remove the hilt and wear it on my belt, and then have just the blade in the bag, with the bag being a little bit shorter and lighter and easier to carry onto rides and such.

The pocket at the lower end of the bag is sized for carrying the hex wrench and little screws needed for attaching the blade to the hilt, and also has enough room to tuck the charging cable in there as well.

I've taken to storing my fingerless leather gloves clipped onto the bag, just so they're handy for practicing with the saber every evening. I've built up a good repertoire of flow arts combinations, training on both hands pretty equally, and find that my frequently achy wrists and shoulders are much happier for the routine. I'm hoping to get video of it soon.

When I'm not using my saber, it lives in the bag hung from a hook on the wall. I might like to eventually have a dedicated hook at something closer to waist level, but for now this higher up coat hook works just fine.

The carrying strap took a little bit of fiddling around with to figure out what was most comfortable (even though the whole thing is easily under 5lbs, probably closer to 3), but looped through the top ring and then clipped at the bottom seems to be the winning combination. I can pull the bag on over my head, but the easier thing is to unclip the big S carabiner from the lower ring. The strap isn't permanently attached to the bag anywhere, so I can experiment with other arrangements or even other straps in the future, if I want to.

The chalk guidelines from when I put the lettering on are still showing up somewhat in these photos, but in person they're hardly noticeable. I may do another erasing pass on them at some point, and I still haven't decided if I want to do some weathering with fabric paints or just leave it as is. Generally I'm really happy with how it turned out, but it's nice to know that I can easily make a few more adjustments to it if I feel like it.

But the next thing I want to spend some time working on is the lightsaber hilt itself. I picked out this particular combination of pieces knowing that I wanted to do some practical weathering on it. The hilt is made from aluminum with a nice matte black finish over top, and I've seen lots of examples online of the difference that sanding that surface makes to the overall look of the saber. Now that I've gotten to know the saber and figured out where my hands naturally want to hold it most often, it's just going to be a matter of getting in there with some sandpaper and starting to take off that black paint in a few places.

I've also been toying with the idea of adding a bit of heat bluing to the emitter using paints, and I think all those details will really help it look more like the 'fragile antique' that the bag proclaims it to be. Modifying my saber like that is a bit daunting, but I have a pretty good idea of what I want the hilt to look like when it's finished, so it's really just a matter of carving out some time to take pieces of the hilt apart and strategically attack them with sandpaper.

And besides that, the only thing I still need for Star Wars Nite is the actual tickets to Star Wars Nite, lol. We're coming up on the end of our third week with our new client, and we have a better idea of when the major milestones and deadlines are in April and May, so hopefully Jack and I can sit down soon and figure out when we want to head back to Batuu.

[ittybitsysword]

good afternoon, if you had to pick one piece of horror media (book, tv, show, movie, comic) that describes your taste or why you love horror what would it be?

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

24 in 2024

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

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

Obsolescence: An Architectural History by Daniel M. Abramson

Offended Sensibilities by Alisa Ganieva

The Night, The Night by Rodrigo Blanco Calderón

Dayswork by Chris Bachelder and Jennifer Habel

Dawn by Sevgi Soysal

Trashlands by Alison Stine

The Girl in Red by Christina Henry

How to be Eaten by Maria Adelmann

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

The Scourge Between Stars by Ness Brown

Black Tide by KC Jones

A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys

The Ambergris Trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer

The Great Cities Duology by NK Jemisin

The Spider and her Demons by sydney khoo

A Shining by Jon Fosse

Bad Cree by Jessica Johns

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

Self-Portrait with Nothing by Aimee Pokwatka

Always Coming Home by Ursula K. Le Guin

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

Always North by Vicki Jarrett

At the Edge of the Woods by Masatsugu Ono

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

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

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

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

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

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