#I'm super proud of it but it's also nothing compared to some of the

[anotherbeastarsblog]

I'm planning on doing a series of shorts about my whole island being a polycule and also just some broader AC headcanons about how the world works and general fluff, and I thought it'd be cool to have an actual town to show off to contextualize it all. I'm making this post to try and like, help force myself to actually get it out.

My island dream code and HHP code if anyone wants to check it out: DA-9346-0904-6067 RA-5814-1260-7037

[rottingparts]

Cool okay! May I request some general romantic head cannons for Bay! Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet ? Thank you so much ! :)

(SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! My internet is fucked, but only on my computer, so i'm struggling atm.)

OF COURSE!! My favorites.... I mean I totally love them all equally :) I wrote them with a Human!Reader (that's all i write but i just wanted to calrify)!

Optimus Prime:

My love... probably the most normal of them honestly

Isn't like super duper outwardly romantic when others are around. He isn't too fond of PDA. BUT he still shows affection in lowkey ways.

Like, he will gently nudge you if you seem anxious or off in general, to get your attention and when you let him know you're ok he gives you a slight nod and continues on with his conversation.

It's really no secret, because him crouching down and his giant hand descending from his side and nudging you is not very subtle.

He is way more protective over you than any other human. Will not let anything harm you. And if something does, nothing will get in his way to help/save you.

LOVES (when it's just the two of you) for you to gently hold his face in your tiny (compared to him) hands! Double points if you gently bonk your forehead against his.

If you are not feeling it, having a bad day, what have you, he will take you for a ride to calm down. his voice is so soothing! Sometimes he'll even talk to you until you fall asleep if that is what you need.

You two became an 'item' mostly because you had made offhanded comment to Cade about Optimus being attractive in a way and Cade shut that shit down immediately but Optimus heard. It was too late, Cade has to deal with this now...

Literally so sweet! Will kill for you!

Ironhide:

Oh my... definitely the least normal (in an endearing way).

Doesn't mind/completely understand PDA honestly. Like, you wanna grab him and nuzzle his face? Please do. He will be forever grateful.

He definitely wants to show you off, he is so proud of you!! He also needs everyone to know you are taken :)

Like he will do little things to make sure the others know he is with you, like bringing you towards him when someone gets a little too close.

Wants you close to him at all times, so he knows you're safe.

If anyone threatens you in any capacity (even if its sarcasm from a close friend) his arm is around you, guarding you, while he points a gun at the one threatening you. It takes a minute to calm him down.

If you are like visibly upset/anxious/not having it, he is very vocal about pulling you out of the situation. Has zero problems taking you away in the middle of a conversation.

Will literally go into alt mode and just... drive away with you. Your friends don't like that too much.

Ironhide definitely was weird about his feelings at first. Him liking a human? No thank you. Definitely tried to push the feelings away, until getting tired and telling you how he felt.

When you lit up and said you felt the same? Oh he was over the moon!

Very protective and secretly very sweet! Will also kill for you!

Ratchet:

My sweet cinnamon bun....

Will literally die for your hugs!! Please just wrap your arms around his neck when he bends down and hug him so tight!

Doesn't mind PDA (in a sense of like hugging and being sweet) but does get very flustered!!

Call him any pet name (honey, dear, etc.) and he will combust. If he could blush, he definitely would. Really wanna make him weak in the knees? Call him 'My love.'

Ratchet would worry about you constantly honestly. Waaay more than anyone else.

I mean, you're just a human! You're squishy and small. There is a lot to worry about!

He realized he liked you because he was so worried for you, then he grew even more worried!

He accidently confessed his feelings for you when rambling about how worried he had been for you, and when you go wide eyed he is retracting everything and ready to run away.

When you reassure him and tell him you like him too? He is even more likely to combust.

Is always wanting to check in on you, and learns very quickly what upsets you and what soothes you. he is very attentive.

So fucking sweet and will die for you!!

[shannonsketches]

Rewatching Battle of the Gods and mAN. If you're ever scrolling my dbTag and going 'Sketches, what do you mean Toei does the same plot but completely changes the story, that makes no sense.' I'm talking about Character-Driven Storytelling. And the difference between Toriyama's Character-Driven Story and Toei's Plot-Driven Story is Most Glaring in comparing Super's movies and the anime retellings of Super's movies, because the screenplays for the last four movies were written by Toriyama, and obviously the show was not.

I saw BotG back first when it came out, before the anime was released, and The Point Of It was that it was the very first Dragon Ball story in which Goku failed and Vegeta was left in the position of The Protagonist, due to all of the growth he experienced in DBZ (Beerus in this movie takes Goku down immediately, and does not compliment him at all. King Kai, in this movie, has nothing rude to say about Vegeta and just warns him not to engage with Beerus because Goku just tried and lost, which freaks Vegeta out). So even while Goku still is the guy who gets to fight Beerus in the end, the majority of the movie is about Vegeta's efforts to not have a fight at all.

Like this is the Whole Thesis of Super (as Toriyama wrote it). Vegeta is being handed the mantle of Earth's Guardian (because as Piccolo points out later, he was a Prince and is becoming nostalgic as he gets older (as so many do), so his role is slowly coming full circle back to a proud inherited leadership position, which Goku has no interest in.)

You may have seen me complain about Vegeta and Bulma's dynamic being weird and bad in the anime despite them having been married for ~12 years by this point.

That's because the reason for and the dialogue from when Vegeta gets to the party was completely revised. In the show, Vegeta goes because Bulma yelled at him.

In the movie, he is still wearing his armor because he left training and went straight to the party with the Express Purpose of keeping everyone safe. Bulma not only knew Vegeta was training and expected would be there eventually, but also immediately recognizes something is wrong when he does finally arrive, because he is still wearing his armor, and she notes that him being broody like this is, by this point, unusual.

His behavior is, of course, is because he because he is trying to sense Beerus -- who he has just been told would destroy the Earth if anyone engaged with him. The game of the whole movie becomes Vegeta acting Completely Insane and throwing his pride aside to make sure everyone is safe, because protecting Earth and his family has become his top priority.

His frustration isn't because he finds her or any of the Z Fighters annoying. It's because he is trying to manage a problem that he can't tell anyone about, for fear that the other fighters will get involved and try and solve the problem -- especially if they learn this man's harmed Goku -- and Vegeta knows their good intentions will only make matters worse.

His outburst is because Bulma is (two glasses of champagne into her day and) trying to talk to him while he's trying to concentrate on locating this massive incoming threat he can't find. And what's more is that his raising his voice to Bulma is a shock to everyone.

Including Bulma.

Because the point is he is not normally like this.

And even though Vegeta can't sense Beerus' ki, he knows when Beerus is present, because he is suddenly terrified.

And then the gag becomes that Beerus speaks to Vegeta only, and Vegeta doesn't yet remember exactly who Beerus is or what he looks like, so he looks Completely Insane trying to find him,

When Vegeta does finally find Beerus, he immediately remembers who he is and treats him with the utmost respect, because he understands how Heirarchy works (this is completely changed in the anime, and turned into an attempted fight, for some reason).

Because he will not tell anybody what's going on, who Beerus is, or why he's there, because the risk is JUST too high, he just plays along with Bulma's assumption that they're friends of his. Which means Bulma (who is absolutely plastered) happily invites them to come party with everyone, leaving Vegeta the incredibly comedic task of running context-free interference for the universe's most temperamental god while the most fight-minded people on the planet are getting drunk.

Toei loves pretending Vegeta can't interact with people in a normal way, but Toriyama loved reminding the class that Vegeta is a seasoned professional with 25+ years in a semi-corporate military force who can and regularly does behave as one.

The whole bit of this arc is Vegeta being so scared of his planet and his family being destroyed (again) that he is willing to sacrifice his pride to herd a cat, because Dragon Ball has always been a comedy and Toei is so bad at remembering it's a comedy

I will also die mad that in the anime Gotenks fights first, when in the movie Trunks (as he has before) got involved when he saw Beerus beat his dad, and Vegeta begged him not to fight. Gotenks getting spanked (literally and figuratively) by Beerus is also what got Vegeta back on his feet.

Then there's this (y'all when I tell you someone at Toei fucking hates Vegeta,,)

For context, in the anime Beerus compliments Goku and insults Vegeta. Surprisingly no one, in the movie it is The Opposite. Beerus never says a bad word about Vegeta (and doesn't say anything to Goku after their first fight), and compliments his fighting instincts. And that's before Bulma gets hit.

In the anime, Vegeta can't do anything to Beerus, who drags him for like two minutes straight. Then he walks away from Vegeta, who cannot bring himself to stand, and takes his aim.

In the movie, Vegeta gets back up when Gotenks is knocked down, compliments Beerus, and accepts that the gap is too wide between them. Beerus decides it's time to be done here and charges directly at Vegeta.

Vegeta does not defend himself, does not dodge, does not flinch, and does not break eye contact. Then he says it might be an honor to be killed by Beerus (complimenting Beerus) (where in the anime he says it might be a proud way to go (complimenting himself)), and is ready to die on his feet.

(note: He doesn't say anything about pride, because his actions speak for him, as is very commonly the case with Toriyama's Vegeta, whose pride is loudest in his quiet confidence, not in his insecure outbursts).

The other major difference I absolutely hate in the anime is that for some reason they decided Beerus hitting Bulma was a long, drawn out, dramatic thing.

In the anime almost a full minute passes between her hitting him and him hitting her back. She hits him first, then lectures him, then the rest of that time is spent cutting between Beerus winding up and Vegeta reacting to him winding up, despite The Rest of the Party standing Right There and anyone could've easily pulled her away (Piccolo, for example, is unharmed and standing, and is literally like ten feet from where it happens. He has expanding limbs. Non-Issue of Moving Bulma).

NO. [spray bottle sounds] BAD WRITING.

The point of that moment, in the movie, is that it's a 'blink and you'll miss it' moment. THREE SECONDS pass between the moment she strikes Beerus and the moment he hits back. Vegeta only has time to be shocked that Bulma slapped him, because Beerus' rebuttal happens So Quickly, absolutely no one could've reacted fast enough to stop it. And even if it had been more drawn out -- because Vegeta had Beerus follow him away from the party to fight so that nobody else got hurt, Gotenks and Bulma both end up following him out there, and while everyone else stayed back and watched, nobody was close enough to stop it.

The point of that moment is to be Shocking. There is no wind up, there's no drama, there's not even a music cue. It is Completely Unexpected, for the characters and the audience alike, and that's why Vegeta has such an extreme reaction. He had No Time to brace himself for what was about to go down and No Time to change it.

This is another scene that was fully About Vegeta that Toei made About Someone Else (Beerus), changing the shot to a group shot of his power up and immediately having Beerus block all of the attacks, where Toriyama said, "Vegeta's strength scared the SHIT out of Beerus for a hot sec"

And if you've been following along in my vent tags about why Toei's writing is so bad and what they constantly center everything around, you can probably guess why the premise for this movie was changed so dramatically. But if you're new here, it's this:

It's because Vegeta's SSJ1 could do what Goku's SSJ3 couldn't.

And Vegeta didn't even notice, because he is not Trying to beat Goku. After his own fight and until he shows back up, Goku's probably only mentioned twice, because this ain't about him. Vegeta's not even really trying to beat Beerus here. He's not trying to prove anything. It's not about power or pride or saiyans or being the best, it's PURELY about protecting the people (specifically in this instance, the woman) he loves. ALL of which become the theme of, "Vegeta you are stupid powerful when you can stop overthinking everything."

But that's not allowed in Toei's writing room, nO SIR!!!

Bonus Part 1: Someone at Toei Hates Vegeta part 41238712: The episode About Vegeta's Response to Bulma Getting Hurt is basically titled 'Yay, Goku's Back', because despite stretching this 1hr45m movie out into 14 Episodes, the one that is about Vegeta surpassing Goku (in the movie) and fighting to defend his wife of Over a Decade is a five minute fight scene followed by twelve minutes of Oolong's two minute rock-paper-scissor gag.

What was the fight scene, you may ask??? Instead of having Vegeta know he's not strong enough and still stand in Beerus' way, for Beerus to say 'chill out, I told you it's over' and tap Geets on the forehead to knock him out cold, like the movie --

They decide to have Vegeta just stop trying mid-fight, have Beerus tell him he's too weak to be a threat, then add that he had more fun fighting Goku before knocking Vegeta on the chin and having him land on his back fully conscious.

God I hate Toei's writing aksldjlaskdalkj

Bonus Part 2: That thing Vegeta spent the entire movie trying to avoid telling his wife because it would've scared the shit out her and ruined her party, scares the shit out of her and definitely would've ruined her party.

Crazy that he knew that and did everything in his power to keep it from becoming her problem. He treats her like she's his wife or something ahahaha 🔪 toei 🔪 hahaha

anyway if you figure you've seen the anime so you don't need to watch the movies cause they're basically the same no they're not they're only the same in terms of Basic Plot Points, PLEASE do yourself and your writing skills a favor and watch the movies

[crystalreydraws]

Greetings, fellow Jamil enjoyer ✨️ I'd love to hear what's your story behind rediscovering that enthusiasm to make personal art again? Well basically, anything you'd like to share further about your creative journey. You caught my attention when you said you were feeling lost for years, because that coincidentally describes my predicament with digital art right now! 😅 Anyway, all the best with your drawing, and may your passion continue to motivate you to create to your heart's content! 🌻✨️

I nvr expected anyone to be interested in my story😳

Well, to put it simple, I started feeling lost around the time when I started work as a junior concept artist that once told my boss, "One day I want to be involved in anime-styled projects!"

↓

That day haven't come yet. Instead, I keep getting jobs that I don't enjoy cuz I'm too bad at it.

I felt like shit cuz, imo, I keep disappointing ppl.

I felt like trash compared to other artists.

I felt like I was wasting time if I wasn't practicing color & lighting.

I felt ashamed of my personal artstyle cuz it's no use in my current job.

I stopped drawing in my free time cuz after stopping myself from drawing what I like, I didn’t know what to draw anymore.

I was hiding all my likings in weeb shit too cuz at this point I thought I was a embarrassment. (I nvr decorated my desk either.)

↓

Things started to change when I was given time and chance to do a small anime-styled portfolio project with a colleague. It’s like leaving a testament to whoever discovers this project, telling them that yes, someone is dead ass serious about anime style.

After that, I took a long break from my company. Staying home, I'm like, "That last portfolio I did I love it so much, I want to do it again"

"Fk it, now no one can judge me imma draw what I want. I will use my best skills even if companies may not need it."

Did some character design & fanart in free time, showing more anime-styled works on ArtStation.

"Instead of pushing everything to average, imma push what already had best in me to 100, so ppl see me, they can see what I’m best at, not just someone average. I want ppl to see that 0.0001% rare job they will immediately think of me."

"I should be proud of my art more to make a career out of it."

Self love, embrace more of my likings by decorating my room with my own art, more pkm & twst merch right👏 on👏 the👏 table👏 not in the drawer anymore.

↓

Finally, time has come. Got a great opportunity. Found back confidence, went back to company to start working on it (this time my office desk is decor with pkm 🥰).

It was super hard & stressful as fk, but I never felt this alive before, it feels good to get feedback on something u truly want to improve. 1 compliment can make me go "I can do this, I still have way more to go."

At the same time, double hair down Jamil has dropped & I'm feeling myself to draw in free time again. Now, every morning if nothing to rush, I will arrive early at office & draw personal art, which is most of the recent drawings u guys are seeing right now.

That's all of my story✨☝️

In short, the main reason me feeling lost years ago is because I keep doing jobs I don't enjoy & I thought my personal artstyle is worthless to my job. I also keep comparing my weakest point to other artists' strongest point (which is a no no)

The key that get me back to personal art again is finding self confidence by knowing what's the best in my style, embrace it, and starting self love.

"I only draw personal art for myself, not to impress anyone. I enjoy my art more than anyone. Even if no one ask for this I still had fun drawing this." Remember this!✨

Moral of story is keep drawing in the way you truly desire, especially in your free time. It's the only way u can "revenge" on ur current state. If you have no drawing intention, how bout starting off finding artstyle goals on Pinterest? Color goals✨ shape & lineart goals✨design goals✨ Discover good arts that makes you jealous & go " That's so cool I want to do this too!"

The most important thing is, not every art pieces need to hit everything perfectly. Monday u can do 1 piece focus on shapes. Tuesday u can do another 1 piece focus on color. Wednesday anatomy. Thursday lighting. Let 1 subject become the main focus. It's ok to hit only 1 subject perfectly. Let that 1 become the strongest point in this drawing is enough.

Oh gosh this is getting too long.

I hope you enjoy drawing again. Wish you an amazing new year☺️

[dragon-susceptible]

TDP Rewatch S2 E3: Smoke and Mirrors

Rayla got the intro voice this time! My girl!

I had actually forgotten that Callum lost Harrow's letter and only gets it back from Claudia.

Rayla not telling the boys their father is dead is honestly a plot line I kind of love? Because she was wrong. Because they let her be wrong. It's fair of Callum to be angry with her. But you also get why she did it, too, because how does a child her age tell another child that her father killed his? And she tried and failed. Also, Callum handles it with such startling maturity, because even though he's upset, he just tells her he can't talk right now, and he's focused less on the lie and more on how he's going to break the news to Ezran - which leads him into understanding why she couldn't tell him.

I love Soren so, so much. He sees his little sister crying and is immediately ready to go after Callum for that alone, to go after whoever or whatever she wants. "I'm always here for you, to punch someone or . . . whatever you need." He cares about her so fucking much, and I just. The older sibling feels just fucking hit with him, because I get it. I get what it's like being the older sibling trying so hard to protect the younger one and then watching them slip down a darker and darker path while there's nothing you can do about it. I just . . . I'm sorry, Soren. You didn't deserve this.

Callum is also such a good big brother, listening to Ezran talk about his dreams. Saying he's really proud of him. These poor kids deserve so much better than they got.

It really says something about how Callum's mindset is already shifting that when he reassures Ezran he has support, he mentions Rayla and Bait, but not Soren and Claudia.

"Ezran, you're a handful!" nearly made me cry, goodness. I understand why Callum's looking at the kid like that when it cuts back to him. Callum must have heard Harrow say that a hundred times, and just saw him in Ezran imitating it, saw how the mannerisms mirror and carry on even though Harrow's gone and god now I'm actually crying.

I love Callum and Rayla's bonding moment over it. And it just - it really says something about Callum and his trust in Rayla compared to the other two that he went to her to talk about it. He went to her, and sympathized with her, and it was her shoulder he chose to cry on.

I do really wonder what the rest of Aaravos' prison looks like. We only really see that one room, but he enters and leaves it through a door we can see from the mirror. So where does he go?

Soren's reaction to being told off and getting mad about it is really interesting to contrast with his father's. When Amaya pisses Viren off, he strikes out at Gren. When Claudia pisses Soren off, he walks away - he does strike a tree out of frustration afterward, and end up fending off a swarm of moths for it, but we can't expect a child to be raised by someone and not learn anything from them. So Soren's grown up around a man who reacts to frustration with physical violence. That's how he's been taught to react. But when Viren does it, he strikes at people, and when Soren does it, he strikes at objects. I like that we can see how Viren influenced Soren and also how they're fundamentally different people at their core in that.

It makes perfect sense, because Callum is a teenager with a crush so of course he's not examining it too closely, but honestly, super should have been a red flag that Claudia and Soren were so insistent that the boys come home only to just be like oh okay, let's go then!!

I absolutely love the illusion/trick plan, especially with some of the stuff we see referenced in Arc 2. Rayla learned this kind of trickery from Runaan.

Lujanne blandly mentions them "desecrating this sacred place these past few days", and I can't help but notice that Rayla kind of sheepishly winces, and Soren keeps exercising but his eyes drop to the ground, but Claudia just raises an eyebrow and doesn't stop smiling. She really just doesn't care that this is a sacred site.

I think that Lujanne is also lying through her teeth a bit about how much support Ava's illusory leg gives her. If she can imitate the texture and sensation of food, and her illusions change the shape of the world around them, it seems to me that an illusion held by a substance like Ava's collar is more like a hard light projection from Star Trek than just a mirage. Ava carrying around a whole child on her back without particularly limping while missing a leg doesnt quite make sense otherwise.

Soren "I'm just a nice guy and people get the wrong idea sometimes" makes me smile and also feel sorry for the poor guy at the same time. So this has actually happened to him, huh? Where he was just genuinely nice to someone because it's in his nature to be nice, but he's actually had to turn on them later? That has to suck.

"You don't speak sarcasm so good, do you?" "No I do not." But also his smile just drops after he says that, and I just have to gesture wildly at Every Goddamn Conversation He's Had With His Father Until Now. He absolutely does understand sarcasm. He's very good at it, actually. Rayla was just hitting him in the vulnerabilities.

You know, Rex Igneous mentions in Arc 2 that Avizandum would intentionally antagonize humans at the border to go after them. I wonder if that applied to Aaravos' prison too. Did Avizandum also sit at the mirror and taunt the imprisoned fallen star? What has Aaravos been thinking since he stopped getting that visitor, and what was going through his head when he finally saw someone again and it was a human in a dark room - a human with a touch of Dark Magic. A human that wields Ziard's staff. How interesting.

I also don't believe for a second that Aaravos didn't see him that first time.

Oh yeah so the illusions being semi solid does have support, I forgot, the illusions of Callum and Ezran were solid enough to hold up Claudia's chains, so Ava's leg is also probably solid.

I love Ellis howling with her wolf, it's so fucking cute.

Soren does go after Ellis and Ava with his sword, but to me it kind of reads the same way as when Runaan went after Rayla. Like yes, he's doing it, it's what he's supposed to do, as far as Soren knows this girl helped kidnap his charges, but we've seen him be more effective than this and he's just not doing it now.

I wonder how long Corvus has been watching from the shadows to realize that Soren and Claudia are more of a danger to the princes than Rayla is. Also, for real this man keeps getting so many head wounds, someone get him a helmet, jesus christ. The hair of Arc 1 is truly iconic, yes, but it shouldn't come at the price of a TBI.

Ellis calling out to them telling them not to forget her stings a bit given we never really see her again. I'm a tad salty about it.

What is everyone else thinking about where Lord Viren is right now? He's just been holed up in his personal dungeon staring into a mirror for like two days at least.

Yk, when I first watched this show, I was a Gren/Corvus shipper, actually. But I get where Sorvus started, I really do. This pretty hunter just being tossed around so easily by the guardsman definitely has a vibe to it. Soren really just manhandles this dude like he weighs nothing. And then gags him.

"I hate the moon!" - Soren, circa 2019, and also Markiplier, circa 2022

It's adorable that Zym is a bit scared of heights at first, as a storm dragon.

I really love how fond Rayla is of the younger kids. With what we learn about Moonshadow elves and their child-rearing in Bloodmoon Huntress and Season 7, and how communal it is, and how she's largely treated as an adult by her society as a whole (Runaan's self-deprecating scoff at her being a child aside), it makes me wonder if she's already taken rotations looking after Mooncubs before. She's also good with kids, and obviously enjoys looking after them.

It's been said before but yeah, I do think this is the moment where Callum lets go of his crush on Claudia. I don't know if his crush on Rayla starts immediately, but I think this moment, going so abruptly from Claudia attacking them and spending all that time ignoring Ezran, to seeing Rayla actually engage with and be soft with his brother, made him realize that Claudia doesn't care about the same things as he does, and that it's possible to find someone that does.

[hbpseverus]

i just don't understand how anyone can be as hypocritical as some marauders fans with their treatment of snape compared to other characters. and i'm not even taking issue with the marauders themselves here, they are flawed and complex but overall good characters, and while i myself don't love them i see why other people do, and i also see why people dislike snape. generally nothing wrong with that.

but then tell me why they are stanning evan rosier? a character we really know nothing about other than that he was a pureblood slytherin who became a death eater? i just do not get it. he didn't even get a redemption like regulus. we know that he died in battle against aurors, as a proud death eater who enjoyed duelling which lets us assume he has probably also killed a person or two along the way, unlike severus.

so, literally how does this make any sense? why do they show grace to every character except for severus? not that i would be a fan of it, but at this point they could just give sev a new fanon personality and make him more likable as they have done with like, every other character in the series. what makes him different from regulus and evan? it could be because they don't like his adult character, but that becomes irrelevant in marauders fanon where every teenaged character is assigned a new personality anyway and apparently adult evan rosier being an active DE doesn't disqualify him either. sooo is he just not aesthetic/attractive enough? i don't want to believe they would be so shallow but at this point what else could it even be?

i'm yapping about this because a person repeatedly, for days now, has been telling me that it is morally wrong and problematic to like snape and that cancelling people for liking him is perfectly reasonable (insanely chronically online statement btw). then i go on their profile and see they're posting positively about rosier et al. and when i point it out they tell me it's fine because his fanon character is different. so... can i headcanon that snape was actually always super sweet and kind and a cinnamon roll who never did anything wrong ever and then it's finally okay to like him? i have no interested in making him that uninteresting, i just wish i could understand this logic.

[adamnablelittledevil]

Reacting to The Vampire Lestat - Part V (with a bit of spoilers and maybe important quotes?)

Armand!

YAY!

Okay, what the hell is happening?

??????

Seriously, WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING?

Am I lost because I'm reading the Brazilian Portuguese version and maybe it's not properly translated?

*Downloads an English PDF copy* Yeah, this isn't much better and it looks like it was poorly transcript.

I'm still not sure I'm following...

Well

Whatever

I still like this anyway?

Also, I can see I'll have to read at least this book twice anyway. Maybe more or even the whole chronicles.

Because since Armand showed up I'm DEVOURING this and I can see myself maybe missing a few details... I'll need to read it slower and savor it in the future. I also assume that knowing more of the lore will give me perspective on a future read.

Armand is never boring.

Still my favorite character. :) Let's hope nothing ever ruins that. :) /hj

Not one Lesmand/Armandstat interaction is wasted tbh, I don't care if they're vibing or hating each other's guts, they're always A MOMENT™.

Let's hope nothing ever ruins that. :) /hj

They also have some pretty valid and intriguing conversations, really.

The impression I get is that they want to stay close, but deep down know it's better not to because they're so messed-up and would be even more messed-up as friends or else (and maybe it's the or at least one of the reasons why they attract each other?), but there's some frustration in that acknowledgement too. Like, doing something because you should is not the same as doing it because you want to and... Well.

I mean, there's more I could say, but this is the short version of how I generally feel about them lol.

Can't wait to see all of this on season 3.

Assad is right, I want Armand to be unhinged too. So glad we're on the same page about all thigs Armand ever and that the spirit of Armand posses Assad on a daily basis so he can play him 100% the way I imagine him. SMILING THROUGH IT ALL, CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS MY LIFE RN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm also ready for more Lestat (Armand's version) and finally some Armand (Lestat's version). Let the battle begin. I wonder who will be more insufferable.

Little bit of Armand's back story. :/ I wanna put him in a bubble.

I don't really think I'll be interested in Marius, tbh.

Anyway... He's not here yet.

Gabrielle jumps from roofs like Cat Woman and Armand quickly and silently vanishes from places like Batman. I hope we keep the Gotham-esque vibes of these scenes. I think it's super cool tbh.

I also love seeing Armand talking to people telepathically? Feels so much deeper and kind of poetic, idk. Not to mention is such a cool concept. I hope the show explores more of that.

Also, when he stops blocking his thoughts and let's someone peek at his thoughts it feels intimate? And not necessarily romantic or anything like that, but just like, "hey, this is a little piece of my soul, I'm sharing it with you". Or maybe I'm too romantic and trying to find the beauty in everything lol.

But then he finally speaks out loud and it feels deeper and more meaningful as well? I don't know. Maybe I'm becoming insane.

Lestat went like 3 pages without mentioning Armand's beauty. I'm proud of him.

Nevermind, now he is mentioning it 50 times per sentence. Even more than he did before. It's like he regretted it and it's making up for lost time lmao.

Some of the words Lestat has used to describe Armand so far: beautiful, sublime, ethereal, exquisite, perfect, soft, saint, angel (there's more, but it's been so many synonyms for beautiful I can't remember... still, you get the point). Not to mention comparing him to a Caravaggio and Da Vinci paintings.

I feel like he'll run out of words to describe him pretty soon.

I guess we all feel pretty (not) normal about Armand.

This is also ruining it for me, because if someone doesn't describe me as "irresistibly beautiful" then what is even the point, really...

And it's not like they're a couple or anything, SO??? STOP!!!

They're not lovers, they're not friends, they're not enemies, they're a fourth and more sinister thing that not even them can classify, let alone my mere mortal self.

Anyway, I hope Lestat will be even more annoying describing Louis. He set the bar too high now.

I wonder if Louis appears (for a significant amount of time) on this book.

I hope so, but I don't know.

"But I was so glad it was finished. So glad that we could go on. Yet I held to the bars for a long time just looking at the distant woods, and the dim glow far beyond that the city made upon the lowering clouds. And the grief I felt was not only for the loss of him, it was for Nicki, and for Paris, and for myself." This is sad...

"So let him be your patron saint if you need it" LMFAOOOOOO.

Is Gabrielle wrong, though?

NO, SHE ISN'T!

Just have fun with your immortality instead of going on an uncertain quest to find Marius? Stop being stupid???

You'll probably just find danger or disappointment. Or both.

LISTEN TO THE VOICE OF REASON, LESTAT!

"And the sense of grief came back to me, the realization that we were really going, that it was finished with Nicolas and finished with the Children of Darkness and their leader, and I wouldn't see Paris again, or anything familiar to me, for years and years. And for all my desire to be free, I wanted to weep." So, he finally starts making a life for himself away from his abusive family. Then, he is forcefully turned into a vampire, has to live this double life with mortals, without ever being able to be completely open, honest and have real, deep relationships with them. Later, he turns Gabrielle, Nicki, meets Armand and the other of his kind, but they're all so troubled or with completely different interests... And it's clear as a day that they can't stay together anymore, he's slowly coming to the realization he's losing everything and everyone he knows and will soon be alone again... I'm (not) fine.

Also, this is so BPD-coded of him. He's had these pretty sad and traumatic moments, but he never allowed himself to feel those emotions for too long, he always found stuff to distract himself with, tried to see the "the good side" of things, embrace them, be positive instead etc, but you can only ignore it so much until it becomes such a big problem you can't possibly avoid anymore. And then the emotion hits 9483958345x harder than it would have if you processed things properly and had better coping mechanisms. Like, I get him, but OMG. Get him some vampire therapist.

Btw, Armand feels pretty BPD-coded too.

I also heard somewhere that Armand is a Scorpio?

And Lestat is another BPD Scorpio...

That would explain A LOT actually lmao.

End of "The Vampire Armand" chapter and they're parting ways.

So I guess I'll just rot and die, then?

Or...

...Armand will return in the worst possible way lmao.

I tried to find a gif of 2x05 saying "everything is fine!" to represent how I'm feeling right now, but failed, so consider it done anyway. Everything is (not) fine!

[acelynonix]

I am coming back to hyperfixate on A17. Not as much when I was a child, but I'm still passionate about him. I was a child and I am Italian, for context.

I had so much fun and I built so many good memories I regret nothing.

Here's a sum up of my experience as a DBZ Android 17 (A17, C17 or simply 17) hyperfixated fan from 2012(? Probably more 2013) to 2017 (when his comeback in DBS happened) and also until nowadays:

I started both writing, videoediting and drawing thanks to him. He was my inspiration all along🥺✨️

I talked about A17 24/7 and I was a walking encyclopedia about him. No day is complete without at least one small thought of 17, even nowadays.

17 was my comfort character during very hard times (not only him, but he was too).

This hyperfixation has always been something mostly personal that I rarley shared with someone deeply (because nobody loved him as I did, soo yeah, I talked a lot about him, but it always felt something mine, idk how to explain it better)

I knew by memory his sentences in the anime, I watched the episodes with him in them... idk how many times. Lots of.

My favorite match was A17 vs Super Namekian Piccolo and I hated Cell for interrupting them.

My music tastes depend a lot on his AMVs too (nowadays I listen to everything more or less, but a big part of my favorite songs were from YT AMVs).

Everytime I hear his voice on TV (ITA dub) I can't avoid thinking about him. I can recognize his voice very well at this point. When the voice actor was the same in DBS I was so happy!

I also like the japanese voice too and I once heard the ENG one too.

My whole family knows about him. Even my grandparents. And my parents know many details because I'm an info dump champion.

I put the number 17 everywhere so it reminded me of him.

I liked how he drived💀

My grandma made me a cosplay of A17, I was SO DAMN HAPPY running around in comics conventions... I should do it again ya know?-

My hair have been often A17 inspired during my life, before finding my personal style (the influence is still visible I think)

At my first comic convention (I was a child, in middle school), at a certain point my mum called me and told me to look at my right. I did it and I swear I saw him in the crowd. The cosplayer did so well I SWEAR IT SEEMED POPPED OUT OF THE ANIME😭✨️ so I have this memory of me actually seeing my first real crush coming out of an anime. Then, there was the fastest run of my life to reach him and I took a photo with both him and A18, they had been so kind and sweet with me and my little brother🥺✨️ (also they were kinda tall compared to us)

Nowadays both my style and my tastes are still A17 inspired or they remember him.

I mostly wear black, blue and white.

I made earrings holes years ago because I wanted to wear his earrings too (but I let the holes close because they got infected too many times and the earrings were too much to handle for me) - it hurted like hell but I did it anyway XD

I had to buy new storage (a lot) to, ya know, hyperfixate offline too with fanarts, ffs...

At a certain point I thought I watched most of A17 AMVs and I can still remember many of them nowadays

I remember michiru95's A17 and A18 AMVs on YT and many other channels and AMVs / video related to them.

I spent my free time mostly on YT for AMVs and on EFP ff.

I talked a lot with some other A17 and A18 fans. I remember the Android 17 fandom as a chill corner of the internet, both on youtube and EFP.

At a certain point (before 2016 so I was very young and naive) I thought I saw every image of A17 and was so proud of my extended knowledge (little did I know that tumblr and pinterest existed, I lived in my own little world. But it was a good discovery because I had loads of new content for my hyperfixation all at once).

I discovered deviant art and fanarts / fanfictions thanks to A17. And also what ffs/fanarts😏 (some of them)

When I didn't, I searched for eventual new news about A17 (especially about his past or his new life after he came back to life at the end of Cell saga)

I put his human name everywhere I could when I found out (I think it was in 2015)

I didn't find many news so I ended up searching for answers in ffs

I'm still waiting to see the photo of his wife and kids

I'm still waiting for some updates on ffs paused since 2015

I still remember many ffs I read

I'm still crying because my favorite A17 ff is not on internet anymore. 17 x Loria (OC of the autrice) will always live in my heart😭🥺✨️

A17 lived in my mind rent free on daily basis in every moment

I had a whole multiverse based on A17 ffs I wrote, I had various AUs and OCs related to the androids

I also wrote a lot of cringe stuff but I still laugh at it nowadays

I even found some cool gadgets before he got famous in 2017 (where I live it has been hard for me to find those, so I was so proud to find them / happy if they were gifts)

I wanted black hair and blue eyes so bad (now I love myself the way I am, long story short, even if I still love the aesthetic and his look etc)

I really hated Dr Gero, Cell, and the Super 17 saga in GT for what they did to 17 and 18 (I still don't like them, but growing up I developed a keen eye for how complicated some characters and stuff could be. Example: now I understand better how Dr. Gero became like that. This doesn't mean I justify him or I like him, he still makes me angry)

I was very strict about distinguing the three timelines we saw in the DBZ anime in thr android saga and, therefore, the three 17s we saw: the present timeline, the future trunks timeline (we call him Mirai!17 if I remember well, when needed to distinguish him from the present one obv), and the Cell's original timeline one... remember when we saw him and 18 running away from that lab and disappear? Idk what happened and I'd love to know, but anyway, Cell didn't find them, so he came back. There's also another Cell that ends up in the future trunks timeline at the end of the saga, so he's related to another timeline too... anyway it's just a mental trip of mine, I believe in Hugh Everett's theory anyway (multiverses, in a nutshell). I believe in infinites A17s🤣

Let's talk about DBZ Adbridged I love the androids saga

I wanted to learn japan because of him too... I bought a japanese book recently, what a coincindence (now it's not only for him XD)

Spoilers about DB Super Tournament of Power Saga ahead: When the Tournament of Power came out, I was so happy I can't describe it with words. My legend had a cool comeback, became one of the main characters so he had a lot of screen time compared to DBZ... and everytime he did something cool I was amazed and overjoyed. This was the first time I really cared about the result of a tournament I didn't take part to. When it seemed he died, I swear I ran in the other room in tears and stayed in the bathroom for so long. I was glad he survived. But the best moment was... when Goku and Freezer vs Jiren was about to end, I saw the three of them about to fall off the ring and before it even happened I started to scream and jump because hey, 17 was still on the ring and nobody was attacking him. A17 was winning. And I did it long after it was all confirmed. I got scolded cause my father fell asleep and I didn't notice I woke him up but hey, how could I not scream overjoyed?

I'm buying every db manga where I see him since I was like 11 I think?

I had a yt channel and made videos where I talked about him... not public nowadays though🤣 but still, good memories😌

I had the most unrealistic ships XD

[hearthouses]

top 4 works of 2023

I was tagged by @nameslikeguns and also @preseriesdean was an inspiration, but I modified it to four because I'm not super proud of any of my edits this year and I wasn't able to squeeze out another fic before the end of the year, so we're going with top four! I am also not going to rank them, but list them in chronological order from their posting date.

This year was a better year than the last two in terms of writing output, I had a rough 2021 and posted nothing, and only posted one fic in 2022, so four is a massive improvement, even if it feels miniscule compared of other people's outputs. The Fall was when I was most productive and I am very proud of what I wrote then, exploring concepts I was particularly interested in, even if it's not the most popular and putting myslf out there regardless.

I think I would have continued that streak had I not gotten covid, then 2+ months of complications from covid, but I am trying to drag myself out of that funk. I am hoping to write more in 2024 as I have so many WIPs I want to get to and finish.

Anyway, here's the list:

1. when you're smiling and astride me

This was the first work I posted this year. It felt good to write it, but it also came with some challenges because I wrote it for an exchange and I was very nervous with some of the concepts and how they would go over. But the exchange itself was based on the idea of freeing your id and going wild, so I eventually just went with it and this was the result. I really love exploring Dean's feelings about his body and gender expression, and how Sam helps with it, and my only regret is I wish it was longer.

2. you say, go fast (i say, hold on tight)

This was written in a haze of early Fall because of another exchange that created a level of freedom that unlocked something in my brain that kept me from second guessing myself. It sprang from a concept fanvid and I came up with the idea wholesale from some mental images and let the story happen. I'm very fond of the result, even if it feels saccharine and too sweet and romantic for some. I really love the vibes and the imagery, plus how in love Sam and Dean are.

3. the landscape after cruelty

The process for this fic was grueling. No idea was working the way I wanted, so I needed to come up with a new idea altogether and at times, I almost didn't finish this fic. I have no playlist because I needed quiet to work on this. None of my usual preparations for writing fic worked for this one. The subject matter was daunting and I'm still unsure if I accomplished what I set out to, but I am proud of it. It's not very popular and I wonder if I hit the wrong notes often, but I'm also very protective of it. It's a weird fic that I'm not sure how I feel about the end result 100%, but I had to at least try and explore my feelings around the subject matter.

4. we could live forever in each other’s faces

This fic was written during the height of my illness. It wasn't supposed to be the fic I wrote because I had bigger plans (longer, more complicated fics), so I needed to scale them down to something more managable. How I did that was I chose to write the scenes in a series of drabbles, double drabbles, and triple drabbles, so I could focus on the preciseness of the word count. While this style of writing might feels limiting, it helps me to focus. I really love the dreamy, fairytale-like result of this. I still want to write a longer fic about these themes, but I am glad I wrote this all the same.

[yandere-sins]

Good Afternoon! If seen your spiels and tales for a while now and may I just say I adore it all, you’re quite talented in your work and you should be proud of yourself! I aspire to write as well and I’m wondering if you have some tips for the long run?

Hey!

Here are my latest posts with links to the ones where I actually went a bit more into details about what I recommend doing.

For the blog

For writing

Honestly, not much has changed, at least for me. It would be interesting to find out whether the tagging rules truly are still the same from the past but from recent experience I can tell you that posting regularly is the key to building a following. But at the same time I know now, more than ever, it's just not doable under normal life circumstances unless you find a rhythm to write and use the queue to schedule your posts.

If you want to write yandere stories specifically, personally, for me it's very important to be balanced. Like a super strong yandere is always cool, but it's cooler if they are so delusional that they will end up hurting their darling with their strength. Or a manipulative yandere is fun and tricky, but if it turns out they are deadly afraid of being left alone and are a bit pathetic about it, that's yummy! Also, depending on the darling, the yan's personality might change as well. I guess what I want to say, balance out the parts of the story to keep it more "realistic" and less Mary-Sue-Behavior. Not always possible or necessary because an OP yan has its benefits in certain situations, but it makes for a good story if there are some flaws in everything.

Also use the tropes. As harsh as it is, no idea of yours will ever be completely original. But I love retellings of ideas! And so do others! I don't care how many more times I read the same "chased by a monster only to be pinned down to the dirty ground" I will literally inhale these stories!!!! I love them!!! And you will put new words and new spins to it, so it will never feel dull!! So yeah, absolutely nothing wrong to lean into tropes and cliches. It might even be very beneficial for bringing your writing closer to people.

For warnings, I'd say, depending on if you do requests or your own work, always warn everything you find problematic in your own works before the story starts and add warnings if someone asks for them. For request, do the same if you derail from the original request too much to not warn (like, have sexual acts/gore/etc. suddenly even though it wasn't specifically requested). I'm not a fan of warning if the request is very clearly what the story will be, but do as you are comfortable. It's your blog. In the end, no one can tell you what to do, but of course don't be mean about it.

Doing requests is fine, but doing your own ideas is also fine. Of course, starting out with only your original ideas can be hard if you don't have a community built already, but you can always mix fanworks with OG writing. I know it's tempting to say "others do it too and they manage to just write their own things" or "I don't want to write for fandoms" but it will be very hard if you do. It's just the truth, tumblr isn't for original content in writing, it has always been for fandoms and blogging and art. It got better over the years but it still is.

Following up with this is: don't compare yourself to other writers/artists on here please, honestly, if you keep finding yourself discouraged by how much more likes and interactions they get, you should unfollow them. It's harsh. I love the stories and the writers of some blogs here, but I had to prioritize myself. Sometimes I sneak back to check out what I missed, but it will still get whiplash and compare myself.

In the same notion: If someone is mean or an idiot in your asks just block them and move on. Drama can entice people to interact with you, but it's not the kind of interactions you want constantly. And it honestly ruins you vibes if your blog becomes dramacentral. It's okay to speak out sometimes and make it clear that you don't want certain kinds of interactions, but feeding the trolls will only end in more and more and soon you feel bad and your followers feel bad, while the trolls are thriving. 9/10 cases it's just not worth it. Block and if it was a crossed boundary, let your people know afterwards unrelated to an ask.

And most importantly: pease just have fun. Put your ideas out there for the sole reason that no one will ever put them into your words the way you would. Of course it's impossible to ignore likes and interactions because it really does fuel the motivation. But I wish you two that you can create because it makes you happy. The rest will follow.

[wlw-cryptid]

You're making a modpack that sounds so cool! Please tell more!

kicking my feet and giggling

honestly the most intensive part is just that I'm trying to make a quest book where you can pick between a couple different progression paths for yourself depending on how you like to play

I split it up into (names not really settled):

tinkerer: for the factory builder, focused on using Create to make resources from nothing. I found a mod that locks waystone crafting behind create auto crafting so they at least need to be able to produce brass. I also found add-ons that let you make upgradable armor and I think creative flight within a certain radius (but I can't remember rn if that was working or if I had to remove it). They also join the push for the nether bc they need blaze burners

I want to make it a little more engaging beyond Create but I haven't really settled on what that should be

warrior: focused on dungeons and bosses killing and looting for resources. Optional Irons Spells, exploring many biomes for archeology artifacts, food made out of mob drops, & I'm going to make a few dungeons personally so I can put the End Remastered eyes as rewards. I also have a mod that complicates entering the nether and I imagine this path leading the push for that too

Wanderer: a more average minecraft experience, farming and building and less dungeon exploration. I can't decide if I'll have this one split into two paths for living in the over world and living in The Dimensions (tropicraft and then the under dark to start), if I'll just assume tropicraft start (bc I have a few friends I know really wanted that mod), or it I should try to make it generic enough it doesn't matter which dimension you start. I'll give them some more guidance towards diversified food production, archeology again, meeting the new mobs, and trying to integrate the mods into gameplay.

I added simply ships and a mod that makes you a mermaid in water, origins, mowzie mobs, and I plan for them to go through quite a few kat-made quests and eye dungeons too. I know a little about using commands and I can leverage that

+ the general progression chapters for getting started (a lot of basic info, storage mod, Tetra, info on quark additions), the nether, a chapter for Alex's Caves (since anyone can stumble into those), the end, and then Deeper and Darker

+ some optional gameplay suggestions that I usually do myself to spice things up like being vegetarian, or only eating foods with fish, or trying to Never Go Mining, or actually using potions (which I added Dave's potioneering for too), or just telling them to really lean into their origin's themeing. I can't actually enforce these so they're just check mark honor system quests but theyre there for fun

We did a mod pack like a year ago (no fancy quests, just vibes) that went well but it did make it so I wanted to avoid mods like twilight forest or bewitched or the ars magica suite . bc we all already played through all that . and nobody gaf about the aether which is sad but oh well

For the most part I don't think it would feel THAT HEAVILY like a super duper modded experience compared to other heftier mod packs unless you take the wanderer path to effectively jump in the many modded puddles. rn it runs clean w 4 rams and I'm proud of that

the most difficult part is that I Want to throw together a quick mod? datapack? just to add some recipes (for inter-mod compatibility, like making tropicraft fish cuttable on the farmers delight cutting board) and maybe maybe ideally make it so a certain iron's spells mob doesn't drop netherite scrap. but. I don't know how to code. I've been watching tutorials and I don't even know what program they're using to do it in or if methods that work in vanilla would work on modded features. worst case I try using that infamous MCCreator thing and hoping for the best. but I'm having a lot of fun

[pygmypyncher]

Hello, hope this is ok. Just to say how much I have enjoyed your writing for Bodies. Your writing is so beautifully detailed, and the internal nuances are delightful to wander amongst. I have read all TRC books, not my favourite, but I really like your fics, but Oh boy, I can see how your writing has developed since then. So, just a big thank you for writing all these pieces. (Do you have any recs for queer media that you have enjoyed?)

Thank you so much for messaging! It's really lovely of you to say!

Also very glad to hear my writing has come on since the TRC days! I was very proud of those fics at the time, and really do still think of them fondly, but I am aware of how much I've grown as a writer since then (hence the slight jumpscare this morning, for which I can only apologise!).

Queer media! Let me dredge my memories for a bit, and I will no doubt mention stuff you've heard of or watched/read already. There are doubtless SEVERAL things I've forgotten, as it is well past my bedtime, but if any glaring omissions occur to me I'll send them on! Shows: Recently I've really enjoyed Our Flag Means Death - you've probably at least heard of it (and as you've been looking at my AO3 you'll have seen I've written for it), and it's completely different from either TRC or Bodies tonally bc it is, in essence, a pirate sitcom, but there is honestly nothing so unashamedly and joyously queer out there at the moment. The fandom is a bit of a terrifying juggernaut, so I suggest treading neatly round the edges and delving into some absolutely top-tier fic (of which there is no shortage) if the whim takes you. On the other side of the pirate scale is Black Sails (DO NOT compare these directly they are very different beasts). Excellent story, very dark and gritty, great pay-off. Deadloch is another great show - Australian detective black comedy, filled to the brim with lesbians! The Haunting of Bly Manor is just a gorgeous ghost/love story with some brilliant characters. Feel Good is one of these unexpectedly heart-breaking sitcoms that I can't recommend enough even though it took me a year to build up the courage for a rewatch A League of Their Own (TV) is just brilliant, and i am GUTTED we're not getting a s2 I'm gonna stick Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries here too, bc even though it isn't actually all that queer (but it DOES have Miriam Margolyes, which definitely qualifies it), it's super camp and has what is possibly the only straight mc romance i've ever been invested in which is saying something Books: KJ Charles is a favourite of mine. She writes really great, quick-to-read queer historical romances that always have a great mystery and body count. The Will Darling Adventures (1920s pulp action-mystery with a romance between an ex-soldier who now runs a second-hand bookshop and a disgraced aristo) are my absolute favourites of hers, but everything she writes is very solid. I've also really enjoyed The Locked Tomb by Tamsyn Muir series so far - very complicated Space Opera, again chock-full of lesbians. Sex: Lessons From History by Fern Riddell is a really interesting non-fiction book about, shockingly, attitudes to sex through history, and takes a delightfully non-heteronormative approach to it that I wasn't expecting going in. As Meat Loves Salt by Maria McCann is an all-time favourite read of mine, but is quite challenging as the main character is Not The Greatest Guy and it does carry some hefty stuff and warnings. Girl Meets Boy and How to Be Both by Ali Smith are both just brilliant stories with some great Gender Stuff going on.

Like i say, I'm sure I've missed stuff! And it's a bit all over the place because, as well as replying to your AO3 comments too early this morning, I am now answering this too late at night. I am sorry, but can do nothing about it :P I hope this is a little bit helpful at least! <3

[friend-of-giants]

Lines Tag Game

Tagged by @elfinismsarts to post some choice lines from my fic! I guess I will tag @mareenavee @paraparadigm @thana-topsy @boethiahspillowbook @wildhexe @archangelsunited @rhiannon1199 @rainpebble3 @snippetsrus @thequeenofthewinter @thelavenderelf and anyone else who wants to participate, consider yourself tagged! I'm pulling lines from both Into Ash and Ascent from the Ashes.

Also most of these lines are actually snippets and this got super long sorry not sorry

A line from your fic that makes you laugh

Into Ash Ch. 5 "Realizations"

“I didn’t ask for your help, but thanks,” [Wren] said, giving [Teldryn] a little smile.  Her teeth were goofy and uneven, almost rabbit-like, and she rarely let them show, but Teldryn thought they were an endearing feature of her otherwise plain face.

“It was nothing, sera.  Now, let’s get going before Neloth pisses himself.” 

Neloth’s face contorted as if he had just smelled a fresh pile of netch dung.  “What?  I do not piss myself, you fools!”

A line from your fic that makes you sad

Into Ash Ch. 6 "As Hermaeus Mora Intended"

"These people you lost, who were they?  If you don't want to answer, I understand."

Teldryn’s question struck like a slap to the face, though it did not hurt as much as it once would have.  Time had dulled the sharpness of the pain and left only a hollow ache in its place, an ache she was trying to forget.  She blinked, then fixed her eyes on an unassuming mound of snowberries at the table to gather her thoughts.  

How much should she tell him, if anything?  Why did he even want to know?  He was only a mercenary and likely didn’t care, but something about him had changed over the last week.  She felt a new sense of security with him, and had found herself speaking more openly with him since that day at Nchardak, when she had proven to him exactly who and what she was.

He had changed, and she almost felt as if she could trust him.  She supposed there wasn’t much to lose by opening up a little. 

"My family," Wren began after a long moment of silence.  "Not the one I left behind, but…”  Her attention turned from the snowberries back to Teldryn, to the light from the fire shining off his goggles.  He remained quiet, the only sound around them being the crackle of the flames and the angry wind rushing against the roof.  

A low, gravelly whisper broke the silence and cut her off before she could even open her mouth again.  “The one you were trying to make?”  

His words caught her off guard, spoken as if they were plucked straight from her own tongue.  She nodded slowly, and blinked back tears that were beginning to form.  “Something like that.  They’re gone because of me.  I’m not meant to have that kind of life, not with what I am.” 

A line from your fic you're proud of

Ascent from the Ashes Ch. 7 "A World Worth Living In"

There was something about the vast Rift forests that calmed her in a way that nothing else could quite compare to.  Perhaps it was the trees rising around her, white-gray trunks reaching for the skies topped with quivering clusters of leaves in every fiery shade imaginable.  Or maybe the sweet scent of old, decaying leaves that covered the ground in a soft blanket, or the crisp mountain breeze that swept through to rustle them.  

Far from those who hated her, who cared for her.  From those who saw her but did not know her name, and from those who did not even know she existed.  She was one with the wilderness, everywhere and nowhere all at once. 

The forest was hers today, there to stand guard and keep a vigilant watch, to take in her secrets and let them blow away in the wind, never to be heard by anyone except the Gods.  

And Dagon, of course. 

A line for your fic you think could have been better

Uhhhh most of the first 3 chapters of Into Ash, honestly. I'm planning a rewrite as I had absolutely no idea what I was doing at the time of writing those chapters lol

A line from your fic that makes you want to punch a character

I hate Rolff, alright?

Ascent from the Ashes Ch. 10 "Respite, Part 1"

“You make me sick,” Rolff snapped. “Don’t take kindly to women talking back to me, ‘specially not some disgusting gray-skin whore.” His cold, hateful eyes fell upon Teldryn once more, who was still flabbergasted that Wren was handling the situation with such a level head. Teldryn himself resisted the urge to leap down and beat him, but she was right. Rolff wasn’t worth the effort. “How much you pay for her? I'd ask for my coin back if I were you."

Wren's posture stiffened and she scooted away, putting a small gap between herself and Teldryn. "I ain't doing that anymore, now get out of here."

A line from your fic that makes you go 'aww'

Into Ash Ch. 7 "Awakening"

Wren nodded again and turned away to head into the bedroom, whimpering softly.  Teldryn tsked.  "Great job, n'wah, you made her cry."

"I did not try to," Frea said, confusion showing plainly on her face.  "What I said should not have hurt her."

"I don't think you hurt her.  Something tells me she doesn't get thanked very often."  

"Oh," remarked Frea, glancing in the direction of the bedroom, where the occasional sniffle could be heard floating out.  "I thought she would be used to the praise.  She has defeated Alduin, yes?  I do not understand." 

Teldryn got up and stretched.  "You'd be surprised.  People can be very ungrateful to heroes.  It's a sad truth that wears you down over the years."

"We were planning a feast in the event of her safe return, but I do not want her to cry again."  Frea grinned slightly.  "Perhaps we can find another way to thank her." 

"No," Teldryn said softly, peering around the doorway to check on the Dragonborn, who had made herself at home in the bed once again.  He saw a smile on her lips, despite the tears trickling down her cheeks.  "I think the feast will be fitting.  Make sure there’s plenty of salmon."

A line from your fic that's full of symbolism

Ascent from the Ashes, Ch. 8 "What Guides Us"

There were a thousand things to be said about [Teldryn's] relationship with the Gods and Daedra, with Azura in particular. He hummed thoughtfully and gazed back out over the waters, to the torchbugs that still flickered and danced along the shores. Most people were small and insignificant in the eyes of the Gods, just as the bugs were to men and mer.

But as the mortal races would often catch an exceptional specimen in a jar and hold it dear, so had Azura chosen Teldryn, her champion, the savior of Morrowind and all of the Dunmer people. Through all of his trials, from the shining, glorious moments to the times where the darkness had surrounded and suffocated him until he had screamed for the merciful release of death, Azura was there. She always was, and always would be.

A line from your fic that contains an Easter egg

Ehhhh, without being too spoilery (as the scene itself is super graphic), have this single line. Inspired by a similar line in Stephen King's Misery, which I thought might perfectly describe the feeling of having ones leg chopped off lmao

The pain was screaming, and so was she.

A line from your fic that's shocking

According to Kel, it's this scene since I'm not a fan of horse death lmao

Ascent from the Ashes Ch. 10 "Respite, Part 1"

Giving a hasty tug on his horse’s mane, he wheeled his mount around and rode hard back the way he came from.  He had to make it to her before the guards did, he had to.  

The pounding of the gelding’s hooves against the road and the rush of wind in his ears were the only sounds he could hear, until a sharp twang caught his attention, followed by the sickening sound of bone shattering and a squeal from his horse.  The gelding staggered for a few steps before he crashed to the ground, and Teldryn was thrown from his back and tumbled to the dirt beside him.  

A line from your fic you want to talk about more

I know this scene got people thinking and theorizing of what the Thing is. I want to talk more about it but i CAN'T! Not yet! Absolutely down to hear peoples guesses though!

Ascent from the Ashes Ch. 5 "Withered Away and Crumbled to Dust"

"I was cleaning up one day and found this.  Thought you might want to keep it."  

Wren squinted at Lydia's closed hands, and her fingers parted to reveal a piece of soft golden cloth.  Upon recognizing the gift, the blood in her veins froze instantly, and it was as if something had forced the breath from her lungs and replaced it with ice.  She knew exactly what this thing was and where it had come from, but she did not want to acknowledge that it was here, right here in front of her.  

“W-what makes you think I want this?"  Her voice was small, weak.  A shadow of what it could be.  Her vision blurred as tears welled in her eyes, and she blindly reached out, grasping at nothingness, until Lydia's hands found hers and pressed something soft into her palm.  

“You need this," Lydia whispered, her voice crackling.  Wren felt fingers comb through her hair and warm lips on her forehead.  It did little to comfort her.  “Take it.  It belongs with you."

Wren clutched the piece to her chest, kneading it between her fingers.  It was incredibly soft and should have been an object of comfort, but now only served to suck the life from within her.

[post-office-by-the-bay]

dearest covey,

how is life by the sea treating you? i hope the salty air and wet sand are making you feel at home.

no, but in all seriousness, i love the new blog! this must have taken so long to make! the idea is so cute, too, the vibes are immaculate. I feel like i'm actually at the seaside.

i know i haven't sent a letter in for a while, and i'm sorry, it's just been a super hectic week. i went to visit my grandparents this weekend, and they don't have internet at their cottage, so i wasn't able to access tumblr, but i did manage to finish an essay that has been stressing me out this past week, and i'm really proud of it! in othwe news, i went thrifting on friday, and found the CUTEST white maxi skirt, plus some pretty pajama shorts with blue flowers. i also got some makeup from the mall, including some nice blush/highlighter, and some lip oil. my little brother (5th grade) came third place in a district-wide chess tournament, which makes me a little worried about him getting bullied, but i'm still proud of him lol. seriously, though, that kid is scary smart. he's definitely the favourite child. (joking, I hope). do you have siblings? i have two younger ones, my brother and my sister, and while they can be a pain in the butt and hog the nintendo switch, i'd still die for them any day.

i'm thinking about converting the radio station to a flower shop, if only because there's better inspiration pics on pinterest and i'm not extroverted enough to be a dj lol.

that's all i really have to say, but I hope you life has been good recently!

love from way up in canada, flora. 💐

to my best girl flora,

the salty air is amazing, but compares nothing to sitting in your flower shop with you by my side!!

(squealing- we're so cutesy, you and i!)

no worries about the time between letters. i'll always wait for all of you!! i actually spent my weekend by the beach but i had the worst goddamn cell service like fr not a single bar in sight- pissing me off lmao. congrats on finishing that essay tho!! i FINALLY found time to talk to my ap gov teacher and she was a massive help with my FRQ4 (essay answer, basically) bc ya girl was STRUGGLING. also, i loveeeee when i have a good thrift. i found the cutest tank top the other day but it's been too gloomy to wear as of late.

also, about your brother, TELL HIM CONGRATS FOR ME!! my school is kinda strange bc we're also having chess competitions rn but they are actually hyped up more than football games. everyone who competes is actually so cool and well loved, so just let him know that cool people play chess too!!

i've got an older sister who's pretty cool. but...tbh, i think in every single other universe, im the older sister (lemme explain-). she's got really bad anxiety so my parents have always kinda babied her and there have never really been any expectations put on her, so they were all kinda put on me. i've gotten really good at lying to take the blame for things that she did bc her anxiety and mental issues would just make my parents reaction worse so i just take the blame bc she's my sister. of course im gonna look out for her, ya know??? she also went through a weird phase of wishing i didn't exist to my face when i was like eight BUT she's gone to therapy and apologize for that so we good!! i truly do love her but i know im her protector, not the other way around!! which is chill, ya know!

ANYWAYS MOVING ON FROM THE KINDA TRUAMA DUMP- i think a floral shop would be so so cute!! and while i LOVE the dj theme, i think it's kinda hard but the floral shop will be so much easier and wayyy easier to find pics for too!!

all my love from da beach,

covey 𐙚⊹ ࣪ ˖

[firstdivisiongirl]

hii!

i was thinking of asking for a matchup and didin't decided to do it until i saw your post bout them closing!1!1! so i was wondering if i could get a perfect matchup with a male tr character pls (๑´ ˘ ` ๑) ♡

soo i'm an entp scorpio, and i tried taking the enneagram test (didn't really understood nothing but it was fun) and i'd say i relate more to 5&9?

personality-wise, i tend to be really hard to approach. i don't really know how to act when people come up to me and may end up being percieved as weird and unwelcoming. i am mostly shy and awkward, but i try to be more positive with my friends. for the people i am with, i am innovative with the things i say, since i am more or less a foreigner and our cultures are very different. lowk selfish and avoiding but i am good at heart i promise😓 when i am v comforatble with som1, i am more relaxed and spontanous. i often hop in the first bus i see with my bsf to see where it takes us and end up lost in the city to discover the things around.

i like fashion, reading&learning (esp sociology and politics hrglg it's so interesting) latin spanish music and the beach!1!1 please drag me out of the city and put me in a tropical beach, i was not made for the urban lifestyle my hobbies are (punctually) baking, cooking and i take pictures of flowers i find pretty w my new camera. i like big plants--esp flowers like hibiscus nd orchids. i actively dislike mean, judgmental and people who are rude for the sake of it.

as in appeareance, i am a 1.70, tan and rather skinny girl with dark brown eyes. my hair is very black, wavy and it ends in the middle/upper part of my back.

that's pretty much everything i can think of saying about me(x_x) idk if it's enough. i tried comparing it to previous matchups to see what i should say, soo yeah! that's it. thanks in advance for the req if you do it& keep up with your series! i really like your emma x draken ones, they're so cute and fun to readദ്ദി ˉ͈꒳ˉ͈ )✧

Hello there. Thank you for tall the nice words. I have to say, the Emma x Draken story and series is my favorite thing I have ever write. I am most proud of it and it is honest something I read whenever I am sad or just want to smile. They are my favorite anime couple. But let's get on with the matchup! I hope you like it!

You Got...

Kokonoi Hajime!!!!

Yes, he can be mean, but it's only because of what he's been through and how he coupes with the pain. He is also really only rude to people who are against him and his cause. He is actually a nice person if you think about it! He's super loyal (with how he stays with Inui and helps him with his dreams) and he was willing to give himself up just so others were safe.

He would love the spontaneity of your personality, he loves crazy and will do anything in the moment.

Would buy you so many pretty clothes.

The conversations between you two would be riveting and intellectual. I think the man would love a good political conversation!

He would take the lead when people approach you. He knows it's hard for you and would want you to be at ease.

He'd get you the best camera money can buy. And he would take you all over the world just so you can get some amazing images of not only plants but the whole world.

Would eat your cooking and give some to coalleges. He would beat them up if they were mean

[lgctaeha]

 「 ❀ 」  ━━ ˗ˏˋWORKSHOP OPPORTUNITY 002 ! ( 1-on-1 ; © )

"Hi, hi, hi!" Taeha enters the small conference room with a bit of a bounce in her step. It had been quite a while since she'd last had a sit down with Kwon Soyi, and she all but greets the woman with a giddy hug before nodding her head and flopping into a seat across from her. "Where should we start?!"

The conversation flows smoothly with Taeha hopping from topic to topic as she's known to do. Finally, after a few rambles about Osaka and plucking chicken feathers out of her hair, the acting coach is able to ask - what do you think are your strengths right now?

"My strengths?" Taeha parrots, chin pinched between her thumb and forefinger. "I think that this year I've really been able to improve on stage! I was watching a few clips from my first big performance as a trainee compared to an LGC Girls' stage, and I think that I've really grown overall as a performer," she nods affirmatively, folding her hands in her lap. "I came here a pretty confident dancer but with everything else I just... Sort of... I was very unsure of myself? And I think that showed whenever I performed. My face just always looked like I knew I was about to make a mistake... But now I think that I have a lot more fun? I feel a lot more... like the stage is home? So, performance definitely! I also feel a lot more confident about my rapping ability! Before LGC Girls Japan, I hadn't really thought I could ever see myself as a rapper... But now, I think that I really hold my own. Even my older brother who used to rap was impressed by how far I've come - and, I beat him in a rap battle over Chuseok!" She gives the coach a playful grin, flipping a lock of her over her shoulder. "And of course, Japanese! I'm really proud of how far I've come in such a short time as well. Being on tour and getting to interact with all the fans in Japan really helped sharpen my language skills, and of course there's always more to learn, but for now I think I've made a lot of good progress and can chat pretty okay!"

What are three skills that you would like to work on in the next few months?

"Oh! If I got to choose? I would really, really, really love to spend more time on dancing. It's always been one of my strengths, and although I've been doing a lot of choreography while being part of LGC Girls, I would really like to devote serious time to trying out new styles of dance, and maybe... possibly choreographing more of my own? Then, of course, singing. Over the past few months I've felt very good about my vocals, but I know that I'm not as strong of a vocalist as some of the other trainees. I've been planning to meet more with the vocal coaches for one-on-one sessions, and maybe even trying to sing some ballad-type songs? I'd like to become very versatile in that way! And then... maybe some acting? I haven't done too many acting workshops outside of those we were assigned for the Project Origin musical... but I do think a lot of the skills that I learned in those have helped me become a much better performer now, so... maybe more of those?"

If given a chance, what types of gigs would you be interested in participating?

"Oh, oh, oh! Drama acting and variety, for sure!" she beams, clasping her hands underneath her chin. "I loved being on Charms Japan and Invisible Youth, and I would love, love, love to try out more variety. I think that I've done pretty well so far so I'd like to do different kinds of shows too! Maybe... The kind of variety shows that have a lot of puzzles to solve or, or, or more traveling type shows? Like Charms but in other locations around Korea? Or even internationally, like... Hawaii!" she grins, well knowing that a show like that would be nothing more than a ploy to take a quick vacation trip home. "And for acting... I think I would really like to star in a drama one day! I've been watching them since I was a kid and although I don't have much acting experience, I do think it would be super fun to try!"

During your time here in legacy, what are some of the lessons that you’ve learned about yourself?

"Lessons?" The question gives Taeha pause, gaze wandering up to the ceiling. "I think... I think - I think that I've learned its okay to go at your own pace... To be where you are, when you are, in this moment!" She points to her lap, knees bouncing up and down once for emphasis. "Sometimes, I can get really trapped in a... bubble of worries? But lately, I have found that I really enjoy... the journey of all of this? No matter where the road is taking me, and all the ups and downs and bumps and blips on the way - I really am happy where I am, with everything that I'm learning and... I'm always hoping to learn and grow, but I still feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. Here and now." She tilts her head to one side with pursed lips. She wonders if she should add the most important lesson she's learned thus far - 'never try to ship coaches.' ...Nah.