#I'm so bloody excited

[kylobith]

GUYS TOMORROW ONE OF MY OLDEST DREAMS IS COMING TRUUUUUUUE

[monsieuroverlord]

The two tiny appearances of Akihiro in today's Alpha Flight#1!

Written by Ed Brisson, art by Scott Godlewski

Very important note: that either he decided to let his hair grow out, Godlewski just draws him that way or both

[clarafell]

@deathdanse has made a contract.          —         ★

In the beginning, the newly created earth is without form and completely empty. Darkness blankets the surface of the planet until light is summoned into existence, instantly pronounced as good. The light, now called day, is separated from the darkness, which is now called night. The dance of day and night continues to be an endless cycle as the sun and the moon continue to fight for the right to rule the sky.

In the beginning, Homura Akemi woke up from her now shattered dream. The world around her is dark and cold and devoid of life. She lies neatly upon a cool marble surface, mimicking a corpse in her final resting place. Dull, slightly wilted flowers surround her motionless body. The Isolation Field, the place where the Incubators created just for her body, is now destroyed.

The countless red eyes that once closely examined their isolated experiment are gone, but it matters not to the experiment. They never, not even once, shown any sign of remorse, or any other emotion, for anything they have done in the past. She awakens, though she still looks more like the deceased body than some dreaming shell of a person. No longer trapped within the depths of her dreamy labyrinth, she opens the eyes she was never meant to open again. First, there is darkness and emptiness until a dazzling light chooses to rain down upon her.

A goddess draped in white reaches out to her with a piercing gentleness, but Homura is finished with waiting— No, she will not be taken away with the Law of Cycles to go to somewhere beyond the earthly soil— Homura gripped her destiny with a calm viciousness until she found herself ripping the radiant goddess apart. Everyone can scream for her to stop, but she is finished with backing down. She will tear divinity apart until she finds what she wants. The Incubators were always getting in the way, weren't they? Always wanting to seal as many contracts as they can, claiming they only want preserve the universe from entropy.

No one can stop her now, can they? Oh, they can try. She welcomes the challenge simply because she knows there will always be an enemy in her way. Blood will always drip upon her soul, so why choose to dream of anything else? She might as well as embrace the broken reflection, not avoid it by draping a shroud over it for the rest of her life.

As she rewrote the universe, the ascended being began to experiment with her power. Trial and error is common, she knows from experience. Mistakes are bound to happen. No one, not her years of repeating the same time, can prepare her for what happens next. The new stage of her soul gem, all of this unfamiliar magic and sensations, begins to overwhelm her. One such mistake did happen when she got thrown back into the past, far deeper than she has ever gone before—

She landed back in Europe during the Hundred Years' War, in fact.

Homura always did have bad luck, but throwing herself that far into the past has to be her pièce de résistance—

This is where she meets Corbeau.

Though they were (supposedly) never meant to meet, Homura crosses paths with the sworn enemy of the heroic Jeanne d'Arc. Though she had yet to meet the French hero, none of that crossed her mind. All she truly cared moments before her discovery was catching that troublesome salamander, the same creature that clung to her soul. At the time, Homura did not know what to make of the creature. None of the soldiers understood why Corbeau chose to bring the suspicious stranger closer, but the seasoned fighter fed all of them a easy-sounding cover-up story.

Homura, in all honesty, wasn't sure if she could trust the masked stranger. She knew she refused to trust any of the men outside the tent, that's for sure. Corbeau, however, at least understood part of her perspective. They both, after all, traded their souls for a wish. Homura knew she couldn't trust all the people the Incubators found.

Fighting over grief seeds and territories were common, at least back in her original time. Desperate and all alone, she took a risky bet in assuming that Europe in the Late Middle Ages had to be a lot better than her home. The Late Middle Ages, she imagined, were full of witches and man-made wickedness. Lots of despair to go around when the bubonic plague existed.

She couldn't tell if Corbeau was her rescuer or a potential kidnapper, maybe even a weird blend of both, but...

Corbeau still offered her shelter and water and, more importantly, answers.

❝  It's quite pleasant to see you again, Corbeau. ❞ Homura's voice rings out, pleasant and perhaps a bit too calm. She wasn't sure where to place Corbeau exactly, but... She decided to choose a quiet library in the depths of a museum, hoping the soothing environment wouldn't be too much of a cultural shock. Homura's time in Europe was... not her best of times, so Homura wants to try to make Corbeau have a much more easier time. She chose to wear her uniform, the very same outfit that Corbeau met her in.

❝  I do apologize for not bringing your sisters with you, but— I wasn't sure if I could trust them, if I'm being honest. Fear not, they are safe. ❞ As someone without any siblings to call hers, Homura realizes her phrasing might be a problem. She tries to sound reassuring, though she doesn't know how effective she is until she tries.

She wanted to address the missing sisters as quick as possible, not wanting to potentially cause a potential fight to break out. It would be horribly awful for the poor books to get hurt.

❝  I'm sure you must be very confused, judging by your staring... ❞

Homura is risking a lot with her gamble with fate, but she is more than prepared to control the situation if a confused Corbeau decides to attack her to gain the upper hand. The self-proclaimed devil knows the chances of her gaining any allies is slim, so she has decided to enlist the help of witches. It's why she brought Corbeau to her time, after all. It's entirely selfish of her, she knows that, but what is the harm? Well, it isn't a complete selfish seed... Homura also brought her back because she did desire to repay Corbeau for her act of kindness.

❝  I have an important question for you, so please refrain from yelling at me for just a moment. We're in a library, after all. Now... Do you remember me? ❞

[mads-weasley]

[cassmouse]

Going through a phase of watching every single possible trailer we have of Rez Dogs season 3 in a sudden burst of excitement for the 3rd of August

It's gonna be dope as shit oh my god

[oleredacted]

AAaaah

Moving to M*nchester a week today!

[kathgon]

So I just watched the first episode of the Live Action and it is VERY GOOD.

It was really fun, and the differences made are interesting so I'm looking forward for the next.

The main thing that I picked up that I really liked was the set of roles that were established when the map safe was involved.

Nami had the knowledge necessary to locate the safe, but not the strength to open it.

Luffy didn't have the knowledge to find or open it, but had the strength to break the safe out of the floor so that it could be done later. Although he could lift it, it would be a bit difficult.

And that's where Zoro comes in. He can lift it with relative ease, although he likely wouldn't think about breaking it out of the floor impulsively and certainly wouldn't know where it is.

Nami has the knowledge, and as navigator she needs to know about everything involving the sea.

Zoro has the strength to act as a combatant, but also to support the others as first mate.

Luffy also has the strength to act as a key combatant, but he operates at the very front and makes it easier for his first mate- just as a good captain should.

They all contribute in a small way, and it really shows their dynamic as a crew already forming so early on.

[seravphs]

Five recs (but the recs are my own writing) 

Thank you to lovely @gardenofnoah and @stellamancer for tagging me! 

Halfway through this I realized I was treating it like a writing critique instead of an actual fic rec so it’s more a reflection on how I’ve developed as a writer lmao.

hard feelings — I love Rin and the potential for exploring complicated relationships and feelings through him. Out of all my works, this is the most reader centric. I always feel like I can improve on my angst, and that it’s never as emotionally crippling as I want it to be, but I enjoyed writing about a more imperfect reader in this one. I’d love to keep writing for “bad” readers, actually!

ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies — I like amnqaitynl because it’s how I became friends with Aleks but also because I think it really captures the pining of a friendship turned something more. While it’s not high stakes because it’s just a college relationship, at the same time, it’s so intense! It’s everything to you, this friendship and the potential of losing it and the potential of earning something more, if you’re willing to take a little (big) risk.

religion, like crime, is also organized — Writing mafia fic is inherently hard because I’m constantly trying to avoid the wattpad label, but I really enjoyed exploring a fraught, tense dynamic where you’re not sure if the other person has your best interests at heart because the push and pull is so fun. Playing with religion as an element has always interested me as well!

a lost love takes a long time to die — The only long fic that made it onto this list is for Nanami, which is the way it should be. When I was writing Teen Dad Gojo all the way back in 2021, I always knew I was going to write a series of (unconnected) long fics for the big three (Nanami, Gojo, and Getou.) It took me until 2023 to finish alltalttd because I was so underdeveloped as a writer that I could never manage to write more than a few lines. I think it pushed me a lot in learning how to write fight scenes, deal with major character death, create a complete world, etc. whereas in Teen Dad! Gojo I completely bullshitted it if I’m being completely honest. I also really loved the supernatural element in this! If I could do it over, I wish I could explore the ghost marriage aspect more, especially culturally.

cruel summer universe — This is a love letter to the ordinary extraordinariness of having love in your life. Even though I write it to be very sweet and happy, in the back of my mind, I’m always thinking about how it ends in tragedy for Gojo and crew, so it reminds me of this quote about how even if the love didn’t save anyone, it was there. So this is the work that’s closest to my heart because it’s about how beautiful my relationships with others are.

It’s also my coming of age requiem! While I look forward to getting older, I’m nostalgic for a life that I know is now slipping out of my hands. I’ll still have the people I love, but the shape of our relationship will inevitably change with age. It feels like growing pains, something I have to resist until I realize how good it can be for me. 

Someone commented that it feels like a hug to read, and that’s how it feels to write. Even though it flopped so badly when I first posted it to the point where I thought it didn’t make it into the tags, it ended up being the fic I connect most with others on. Cruel Summer has brought me the most beautiful and heartfelt interactions.

honorable mention: arrive through obliteration — I don’t like the smut in this and I wish I could take it out lmao but I like the atmosphere! Fight scenes are also hard for me, so I’m really glad I pushed through it. 

honorable mention: starboy — technically star boy isn’t posted yet, but while I was working on it, I realized I’ve improved a lot since Teen Dad! Gojo. One of the reasons I dislike Teen Dad! Gojo so much is because I feel like a lot of the scenes could be trimmed down where I was struggling to move the timeline along, whereas in starboy, it feels fluid and natural.

no pressure tags: @seoafin (hope you’re enjoying Japan!) @oh-katsuki (also in Japan and presumably doing better things than thinking about fic lol but in case you want to!) @mintmatcha (no pressure means no pressure but I love your writing so I’d love to know what you think are your top five are!) @andypantsx3 (on hiatus...this is not shaping up well for me lol but if you’d like to, I’m interested in what your personal top five are!) @princess-okkotsu (you’ve definitely been tagged in this before but I would love to hear your thoughts on your writing!)  And anyone who’s reading! I’m serious, I would love to hear people’s thoughts on their own work! A writer I really like does author’s notes whenever she posts a fic and reading them after I finish a fic is the best feeling. 

[flowerflamestars]

Timeloop au snippet

The arrow that caught Elain might have been Hybernian. It might, fletched in shining black, have come from the Night Court’s hands. What mattered- what stopped everything in sick, numb horror, was that the iron and ash barbed bolt went right through her.   The Archeron sisters, the same in this always: dead, or fae.   Fae just long enough to die again.   Feyre wailed, but Nesta- Nesta, Cauldron water dripping, catching unreal silver off her ruined nightdress, more flame than person, the wind abruptly screaming in this airless, trap of a palace- Nesta grabbed the first soldier who approached her, and ripped his head clean off.   “No,” Nesta said, dropping the skull like it was nothing, sick sound of flesh and bone on cold, wet stone eerily familiar. She looked up, through it- Hybern wounded, frozen in fascination. Tamlin bound, Rhysand on the floor, Feyre weeping in his arms- looked past them all like none of them were real, and found Lucien.   “Not like this,” Nesta hissed, a silver-eyed fury, blood splatter stippled so thickly across her face and neck it was dripping.   He thought he might have winnowed. He certainly didn’t bother to walk, waste the time.   “I’m going,” Nesta said, absolutely sure, rocking back a step.   Not alone- not if he could help it- not- Lucien didn’t need to say it, much less try to stop it. He was already reaching, she was already there, taking both his hands. A question, silent, raised on her upturned face, eyes searching his expression.   Lucien squeezed back, as much as Nesta’s sheer grip would allow.

“Not like this,” he agreed, quiet, and leaned it.   She made it quick.

[moe-broey]

AARON WEST SHOW YAAAAAYYYYYYYY 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[strawberrypinky]

writing a villain main character for the first time has been both humbling and exciting. it's just one unhinged, intrusive thought after the other and i'm somehow carefully constructing it. 10/10 would recommend though.

[piningbuddies]

wip wednesday

i was tagged by @honestlydarkprincess thank u my love MWAH!! i haven't written much for this fic the past week or so because of Big Life Stuff, but i'm slowly chipping away at her!! here's a snippet from earlier in the fic, and a reminder you can add yourself to the taglist here!

He feels Jamie back him towards his bed, and he knows he’ll thank himself later for having the presence of mind to be able to lay himself flat before he’s pushed. His eyes fly open and Jamie above him is a fucking sight. Roy thinks he’s going to be getting off on this for a long time to come. Jamie’s chest’s turned a little pink, his hair is messy and he’s leaning down to undo Roy’s jeans, peeling them slowly down his legs. “Let’s get these off you, Grandad.” The familiar teasing goes a long way towards clearing his head, drawing an unexpected laugh out of him as he arches himself a little off of the bed, allowing Jamie to get his pants the rest of the way down. “You’re such a fucking brat, Tartt.” “So I’ve been told.” Jamie shrugs, looking down at Roy with hunger in his eyes. Like he’s starving, and Roy’s the prime rib-eye he’s been waiting to devour. It’s a little unnerving and very fucking hot. “Now, how’d you wanna do this?” Roy leans up on his elbows then, raising a brow. “Do you normally strategize your approach to sex?” “Well, no.” Jamie quips, sitting on the bed next to Roy’s hip. “But then again, I’ve never had sex with a fuckin’ octogenerian before—” “Watch your fuckin’ mouth.” Roy growls, no real heat behind it. Jamie just smirks, looking very much like the cat that got the cream. “I mean, I can think of a better use for it, if that’s something you’d be interested in.”

tagging uhh @swiftietartt @useramor @911onabc @diazass @alyxmastershipper @barbiediaz @thatbuddie @butchdiaz and anyone else with something to share!!

[autumnoakes]

so mad at the thing in my brain that makes me freak out whenever there is something gorey or honestly just medically gross like. do you know how many games, movies, and TV shows are entirely inaccessible to me because of this? how many i've had to stop watching because they went a bit too hard in the gore/body horror department? how much money i spent on games i'll never play again? (regretfully looks at resident evil 7 and 8 in my steam library. at least 7 was on sale)

[microtyalm13]

after a two-month hiatus i have a renewed 💥desire💥 to get back into photography oh lord save my soul

[revengesworn]

Mikey can feel himself shaking.

He hates it. This weakness - this fear and the heart-pounding terror that, at times like these,  always emerges from so deep in his core that it feels like it defines him. He’s supposed to be strong. How can he be a leader when he can’t carry the people he loves through their pain and beyond? He can barely even manage to stand on his own two feet, let alone protect the people he cares about.

He’s always been weak, and he’s always hated the weak. The weak can’t do a thing. If they just tried a little harder, fought a little more, then they’d be able to protect themselves and the people they love... but they don’t even try. The weak make excuses, and bring nothing but misery to those around them, and there’s no-one out there weaker than Mikey.

He can lie, and deny it to himself, but... at times like these, he knows the truth.

But that doesn’t mean he’ll accept it. No matter how much it hurts, he’ll stop his body from shaking and put a smile on his face as if nothing is wrong... because Baji deserves it, after all - he’s the one who really suffered here.

As he enters the hospital room, Mikey feels his heart come to a stop. It’s just for a moment, as he sets eyes on Baji - who’s alive, he’s not dead; oh god he could’ve died too - but a barely-strained smile forms on his face regardless. He’s scared, because he doesn’t know if Baji will be happy to see him. But..

“Baji. ...You really scared everyone, you know.”

@prxenuntius​ ( starter for baji! )