#It's actually kind of uncanny how similar these two are

[pruneunfair]

"Maybe in another universe, I wouldn't be abandoned and abused by almost everyone in my life and suffering at the hands of wealthy men."

The other universe:

[flippinpancakes64]

How would the Cullens react when they meet a human with their last name who physically resembles them too much? And when they investigate it they realize that it is some kind of granddaughter or niece, And who is your only living relative?

I really love your writings!!!

The Cullens with a Relative! Reader

Thank you so much for the kind words!

This story is obv going to be with a platonic reader so just know that. And don’t come at me for the ages or specifics for family relations. I did not think about it so uhm… just get creative!

Thank you for requesting and I hope you enjoy!

Edward:

His original name was Edward Anthony Masen Jr

Masen is not an incredibly common last name

So when the Cullens show up to a new school and he sees you, reddish hair and defined jawline with his last name, he gets a bit suspicious

He starts combing through every newspaper article and obituary he could

He eventually traces you back to his mother’s cousin

He has no clue what to do with this information

Eventually, he gets closer to you, helping you with school stuff, inviting you over to the Cullen house

After a while, he tells you about how you’re related

Which also means telling you about vampires

You take it all surprisingly well

Your family never knew what happened to Edward

The story had always been that him and his mother had died in the hospital but his body had gotten lost somewhere in the process

You’re also so happy to find another “living” relative

Y’all become best buddies

He’s happy to find out that you also love to play the piano

Family bonding ❤️

Alice:

Her name was originally Mary Alice Brandon

So it’s not like a super uncommon last name

She’s met people with the same last name as her before

But none of them looked so similar to her as you did

The small stature, dark brown hair, and striking similarity to her personality

She had seen a vision of you not too long ago

It was nothing special, just you and Alice going out shopping and hanging out

She didn’t know who you were at the time or what your significance was, but now she’s sure that you have to be related somehow

She talked to you for a bit, pretending to just want to make small talk

Eventually, you got to the part of your family tree where your great-great-great grandma was Alice’s sister, Cynthia

You, again, had heard stories about your great-great-grandma’s sister who went crazy and eventually died

And here she was, right in front of you, definitely not crazy

You two became inseparable

Going shopping together, watching movies, going to every class together, everything

Alice is so happy to finally have a piece of her family

She’s always been so upset that she can’t remember any of her human life

Being around you makes her feel more connected to that part of herself that she can’t remember

Jasper:

His name is definitely one of the most original ones

Jasper Whitlock (no middle name mentioned sorry yall)

He has never, in his almost 200 years of living, ever met someone with the same last name as him

So he’s already a little sus when he hears your name

And then of course the blonde hair and the piercing (scary) eyes, the resemblance is uncanny

He’s more hesitant to talk to you at first

He does all of his research online

He starts with his younger sister, and from there he follows her bloodline and finds you at the very end

He also sees that everyone else in your family is dead

Your parents died not too long ago, and you’re living with some family friends now

He feels really bad, so even though he knows he shouldn’t, he starts to get closer to you

You start to get your own suspicions when you start to notice how similar he is to you, too

The more quiet, reserved personality

The love for Alice

Alice ends up being the one to tell you that you guys are actually related

You’re so happy to have someone from your family again, even if he is your great-great-great-great-great granduncle

Your favorite thing to do with Jasper is just to sort of coexist

He sits on the couch reading a book and you sit on the other side crocheting while a movie plays

Rosalie:

Her name was originally Rosalie Lillian Hale

She’s one of the few who kept her last name while pretending to be human

She might have met a couple of people with the same last name as her

But to be honest she does not pay attention to the humans at the school

She’s not too fond of them anyway so why would she care

But one day she passively noticed the sub teacher call your name during attendance

And then she really looked at you

Blonde hair, strikingly good looks, beauty mark, and a constantly annoyed look on your face

Instantly, you reminded her of one of her little brothers, and when she got home that night she did some digging

She hadn’t thought about her family in so long, it was very bittersweet for her to look back through all of the obituaries, marriage licenses, birth certificates, everything

Everything she was supposed to be a part of

But now you’re here, and she wants to get to know you

Instantly, she takes on the older sister role for you

You two hit it off instantly

Bonding quickly over your hate for stupid people and your love for cars

She asks you so many questions about your family, what everyone was like, how everyone died

She’s so sad that she didn’t keep up to date with any of this stuff

But of course, before the internet it was really difficult to

When she learns that the rest of your family is dead, she begs Carlisle to take you in

She feels such a maternal instinct for you, even if you’re the “same age”

She wants you to be safe

And she wants you near her

You’re family after all, and that’s all she’s ever wanted

Emmett:

His name was Emmett McCarty

Again, not a super common one but not like super uncommon either

He has never noticed if anyone else had the same last name as him

And he didn’t even really notice you either

Rosalie was the one who pointed you out, and that’s when he saw the similarities

Same last name, dimples, dark brown reddish hair, super tall

He just approached you straight up

“Hey. McCarty was my last name before Dr Cullen adopted me and we look pretty similar, who’s your dad?”

Just super blunt about it

He’s curious, so why would he beat around the bush?

Together, you two trace your family tree back to one of Emmett’s younger brothers

And of course, he has to drop the news that he’s a vampire then

You two are attached at the hip after that though

You both love to go outside and run around, he loves to play wrestle with you

You’re like having one of his siblings back

It’s nice for him

Canonically, he watched over his family for a while after he was turned and asked Carlisle to drop some money off for them

So he obviously cared about them a lot

So he’s happy to have a piece of them back

He’s not happy that the rest of your family is dead, though

He is moving you into the Cullen house instantly

You’re his family, family watches out for each other

No way he’s letting you live in a foster home or orphanage

Esme:

Her name was Esme Anne Platt

Another one that’s pretty uncommon

But when she first sees you, he mind doesn’t immediately go to you maybe being related to her

She sees the similarities, the dark brown hair, the nose shape, the face shape

But she doesn’t necessarily connect it

After all, she didn’t have any siblings or any kids, so realistically her blood should have ended with her

But after a while of getting to know you, the similarities just become too much

She ends up looking into her father’s side of the family and finds that he had a brother she had never met

And of course, it traced back to you

Making her your seventh cousin or something

She doesn’t know what to do with this information

Similar to Rosalie, she’s always wanted a family

She was never able to have that, and as far as she knew, the rest of her family died a long time ago

She’s stuck between wanting to be close to you, to tell you the truth, but also not wanting to put you in danger

She remembers all too well the danger that Bella was in just because she was close to the Cullens

The idea of putting her own flesh and blood in danger scares her

I feel like it would have to be extreme circumstances for her to do anything

Maybe the foster family you’re staying with is pretty abusive or you’re about to die or something

Only then would she tell you

Selfishly, she wants to turn you

She loves you so much, you’re like a sibling or niece/nephew to her, she just wants you to be safe

And she can’t imagine living without you anymore

Carlisle:

His name is just Carlisle Cullen

Keeping it simple

Cullen is not a very common last name, but at the same time, he’s been so many places and met so many people

The chances are pretty high that he’s met someone with the same last name as him

But he can instantly tell there’s something different about you

Blonde hair, blue eyes, square jaw, and affinity for helping people

Not to mention that you remind him so much of his aunt on his father’s side

It’s easy for him to do the research into your past

He’s pretty good with that kind of stuff

He does end up tracing you back to that aunt, and he’s so happy

He never had any siblings (that we know of), his mother died during childbirth, and his father would have been more than ready to kill him

So he never got to feel very close to his family

He sees you as an opportunity to do that

He doesn’t tell you outright who he is to you

He prefers to just hang out with you

Showing you around the clinic, taking you into town, giving you life lessons that your father might have not done

I can see him taking on a fatherly role for you

He would be perfectly content with never telling you

The only time he would would be if you were on the verge of death and he turned you

He would be secretly so happy

He has come to love you over the months/years since he’s known you

You are his family, flesh and blood, and he doesn’t want to leave you

Yippee for family

Vampire! Bella:

Isabella Marie Swan

Talk about a weird last name

She’s never met anyone else with it

Admittedly, she hasn’t been around for too long, but still

So she’s shocked when she sees you for the first time, dark brown hair, brown eyes, perpetual look of discomfort

She almost doesn’t believe it

But then she does the mental gymnastics

Charlie’s brother who died forever ago, his kids, you’re probably one of their kids

Making her your second cousin

The smallest age gap here tbh

Nice change of pace

She also doesn’t know what to do now

She’s socially awkward enough as is

She can’t even begin to think of how to approach you with this

“Hey, did you have a grandpa who died before you were born in a motorcycle accident? Cause if so then I’m your cousin!”

Like yeah no she’ll pass

She can’t stay away from you for too long though

You guys are so similar

Similar tastes, dislikes, personalities, senses of humor

She loves hanging out with you

She doesn’t want to tell you about her being a vampire or about her relation to you, but eventually it just comes out

Oops

Oh well

She’s not mad about it

Now she can spend forever with you

[1863-project]

I've been thinking a lot lately about my experiences as an autistic adult and how difficult certain things actually have been for me, and one of the things that really hit me recently was how I can tell the patrons at the library I work at are judging me. They say things to me they'd never say to my co-workers, because my co-workers seem "normal" to them. But I can think of two different cases in the last year or so that really stand out to me that illustrate this.

The first was a patron who wanted the writing address of the governor of New Hampshire. I found it and went to write it down for her. She didn't want it that way, she wanted it printed. Of course, Wikipedia wasn't going to print well, and she was starting to get difficult about it, so I came up with a solution - I'd type it into a Word document and print it for her. I was excited that I'd come up with something, and I enthusiastically expressed this excitement by raising the volume of my voice. She decided I was "weird," told me so to my face, and left instead of letting me help her.

More recently, I showed similar excitement when showing a patron how to use Google Maps, excitedly reassuring her that we'd do it together and that I wasn't going to just tell her to do something she didn't know how to do. This patron told me my enthusiasm made me seem "like a schoolgirl." I deflated immediately, pointed out I was actually 34 years old, and did everything else with an extremely dampened mood.

Being an autistic adult in the workplace - or anywhere - is an uncomfortable experience. The first patron decided I was scary. The second patron infantilized me. The dichotomy of being an autistic adult is that some people decide you're uncanny and scary and some people decide you're actually a child. Both are microaggressions. Both are ableism. The third option is, of course, to mask so well they can't tell, and then get told "But you don't seem autistic!" when you drop the big reveal on them (if you do). There's no winning here.

I think, often, of Ingo and Emmet, autistic adults who, like me, are in the workplace, are really good at their jobs and take them seriously, and are really enthusiastic about what they do. I think about what sorts of things people must say to them, about the judgment they likely experience from passengers and trainers. I think about how gratifying it must be for them to repeatedly face trainers like Hilda, who only cares about battling and not who she's up against, because in those moments there's no judgment, just Pokemon battles. Just as my regular patrons who know me and are okay with me are a comfort to me, so too must their returning trainers be one to them, a beacon of acceptance in a world that refuses to understand.

I think sometimes about how I can't go into the tags for these characters that are just like me, because there's content that treats them the way the real world treats me. It isn't all of the things people make, but it's enough that I can't take the chance of looking myself, because you never know. It's been this way since 2010, and it shows no signs of stopping. I think about how all fandoms have this problem, about how many people experience this, and it hurts deep in my chest. I wish desperately for a kinder world in which people like me aren't treated as "weird" because we're enthusiastic about work, because we don't have volume control, because we can't mask, because we're not like most people.

I do what I've always done - I generally just talk about the things I like with trusted friends who also like the things I like. It's safer that way. I don't have to worry about stumbling upon the things I already experience in real life. If my friends find something safe, they bring it to me, a wonderful show of kindness and affection that I am always deeply grateful for.

I just wish I lived in a world that thought about how things affect people more, about how a respectful portrayal can give someone hope and help them love the person in the mirror. But every "unhinged" or "scary" depiction of normal autistic traits reminds me how far we still have to go, how Autism Speaks and other hate groups still dominate the narrative even as they fade into the background.

Everyone can do what they want in fandom, but it's supposed to be an inclusive space, not an alienating one, and I think it's good to be thoughtful. You never know who you may be helping or hurting.

[fadobeijaeu]

in my humble opinion rddk is lowkey deku's best ship and it shows in their mbti. ENTP x INFJ is infamously known as a "golden pairing" because they're complete opposites of each other in ways that challenge, energize and inspire both parties, while still being fundamentally similar enough to understand each other easily.

One of the many ways this shows itself is the how INFJs are known as the most extroverted of the introverted functions while ENTPs are known as the most introverted of the extroverted functions, so the two are excellent at meeting each other half way and bouncing off of each other.

In Deku's case, his INFJ shows up strong in how formal he is around most people, even his closest friends, thanks to a mixture of anxiety and the desire the to please others and keep the peace, rather than risk the chaos & uncertainty that might come with revealing their overly emotional and passionate selves.

ENTPs, with their impish charm and sense of humor, have the uncanny ability to disarm INFJs completely. They are the INFJ's chill pill, excellent at making them at ease, safe to reveal all of their passion, their ideas, their personality. The ENTP's knack for chaos makes them appreciative of other people's uniqueness, which in turn makes them attracted to the basket of quirkiness that always come with INFJs.

That last scene of rddk laughing their asses off despite the world almost ending and the both of them casually bleeding from severe wounds is like the most INFJxENTP shit I've ever seen.

We've rarely, if ever, seen Deku treat such dramatic situations with such gaiety because while many people wouldn't, INFJs much less so. INFJs can be such serious, intense people with very set ideals of what's okay and what isn't. But with the ENTP at their side ready to crack the perfect joke at the perfect moment to break the tension, everything goes out the window and the INFJ realizes that things don't have to be so serious when actually they are quite fucking funny because what the hell. From the outside, it'd look as though the INFJ becomes a different person around the ENTP. In reality, that person has been there all along, but requires the right kind of energy to show themself.

Deku has a lot of other ships that are totally valid for all sorts of reasons but man you've gotta admit none of them unveil Deku the way homeboy Rody does~ <3

[freelanceexorcist]

OK. I watched the first chapter of Ever Crisis First Soldier episode 2 and of course I have thoughts.

Cut for spoilers and length.

Sephiroth has officially become a sympathetic character. I mean, he always was, but there's no doubt about it being official now.

The way he's acting toward people, pushing them away? He's not being arrogant or sullen or a dick. He's a sad, traumatized kid with crappy self-esteem. He's in pain and grieving the loss of Glenn, Matt and Lucia's friendship. He's trying to convince himself that he's a soulless machine because machines don't have to feel what he's feeling. He's pushing everyone away because he doesn't want to make the choice he had to make between saving Rosen and saving himself and his friends. If you're cold, calculating and ruthless, such choices are a lot easier.

Except he's not any of those things or he wouldn't be acting the way he is. He wouldn't care, but he obviously does here. If you push everyone away and keep them at arms length, it doesn't hurt so much when they inevitably leave.

Except Angeal ain't havin' none of that. He's gonna make Sephiroth his bro if it kills both of them. The dynamic between these two so far is

And you know it works, too, and at least they get ten good years as friends after that.

So yes, the Sephiroth from Episode 1 is still there, but he's depressed and traumatized. If he returned to Midgar between episodes, he probably got a good dressing down from the top brass at Shinra and suffered who knows what at Hojo's hands. He's hurting and I think on some level Angeal knows that, which is why he's trying so hard to break through.

Now let's talk about Sephiroth's dream. I hope that was just a regular dream and not Jenova fucking with him because that would be a real kick in the nuts. I'm going to say it was an actual dream triggered by seeing Alissa "Definitely Not Jenova" Goldie and her uncanny resemblance to Lucrecia. And he was handed an empty bowl and told it was pumpkin soup because he doesn't know what pumpkin soup looks like. He just knows it would be good and that his mama would make him some if she could.

And speaking of Definitely Not Jenova. Nope, definitely not Jenova or Hojo mindfucking him. Not at all.

But since I'm a glass half full kinda gal when it comes to these things, I'm considering another angle. Yeah, purple and purplish pink are colors associated with Jenova, but those lights swirling around Alissa remind me of will o' the wisps or spook lights. Depending on which culture's folklore you're looking at, these can represent elemental spirits, the fae or demons (demons as in "spirit that never walked the earth in physical form" and not the Biblical nasties).

What if a forest spirit or similar entity took an interest in Sephiroth and wanted to get a closer look to see what makes him tick? Such an entity wouldn't really understand humans, so throwing Hojo in his face wouldn't strike it as being cruel or malicious. It was just curious to see how he would react.

Yeah, it's probably Jenova. "Those you hate, those you fear, those you love" after all. The other idea is worth considering, though.

Some odds and ends:

*i'm glad that the existence of female SOLDIER operatives has been confirmed. Not sure how I feel about them having to wear coochie cutters while the guys get real pants, though.

*I wonder how Sephiroth will get Masamune from its namesake. I'm going to be optimistic and say Mr. Epic Eyebrows will deem him worthy of receiving it, because that's how that seems to be shaping up at first glance. My prediction is that Masamune will pop up at times throughout the story to observe Sephiroth and test his mettle. He already knows Sephiroth is worthy, and these interactions will serve to verify that.

*Bachman's kind of a pain in the ass, isn't he? Sephiroth isn't your show pony, dude. He didn't even know you'd be tagging along.

*EC is really playing up how innocent and good these kids were back in the day. Angeal certainly had it helped along by his upbringing, but it took work for Sephiroth to maintain his goodness. He's the way he is despite his childhood, not because of it.

*I know I sound like a broken record but bog standard villains just don't get that kind of development. We're not supposed to see them sympathetically. At least not the ones for whom a redemption arc isn't in the works. We're supposed to cheer when they get what they have coming in a movie or on a show. We're supposed to feel accomplished when we beat them as the final boss in the game. We're not supposed to see their inevitable defeat as the heartbreaking last act of a tragic life.

*EC took pains to make the connection between the purehearted pre-Nibelheim Sephiroth and the Sephiroth at the Edge of Creation. It's looking more and more to me like EoC Sephiroth and the Sephiroth menacing the party are two different people. Or, more accurately, two versions of the same person from two different universes/timelines and one of them isn't answering to Jenova anymore (if he ever did in the first place).

*I mean come on. The symbolism. The white feathers (which pop up all over Rebirth, too). This:

*That's not there by accident or because it looks cool. It's a single white wing to contrast with Jenovaroth's single black wing and highlight the differences between the two. The battle theme that plays during the behemoth fight is called White Winged Angel, fercryin' out loud! I will die on this hill.

That's all for now. Thanks for sticking around to the end of this if you did.

[galvanizedfriend]

Any chance for a snippet for the next chapter Yokan? Or any idea when the next chapter is is going to come out ♥️ I’m re reading the Wolf 3 right now and am nearing the end of the updated chapters lol 😭

Hii, friend! ❤️ I can't promise when the next chapter will come because this is turning out to be a monster. 🥲 I'm at about 80% now, and have been making decent progress, but editing this is going to be🙃 So I hope to have it finished soon, but I don't know when. But since you asked, I can give you a little snippet. 😁 This is a scene I had been working on earlier today, Kol and Eve having a 1x1. Don't know if that's the kind of thing you wanted from this chapter, but I was actually having some fun writing this. 😂 Bear in my mind that I have not edited anything, so this could all change. But I hope you enjoy it. 🥲

From TW4x03: "Hello," he greets her, only half her face visible from where she's hiding - quite poorly, mind you - behind the kitchen door. Eve blinks up at him, but stays remains quiet. "Cat eat your tongue?"

She abandons her cover, stepping fully into the kitchen now, all pink pajamas and pigtails.

She is... Big. Kol is definitely not used to following humans' growth spurts from up-close. It's perfectly normal, he supposes, but it still comes as a bit of an irrational shock to see how she went from a little baby to this fully formed mini-person. A mini-Niklaus, nonetheless. Though with none of the malice and aggression and the annoying hubris ingrained into every line of Niklaus' body after a thousand years of living in pure rage. That aside, the similarity is uncanny. It's easy to forget there was once a sweet boy somewhere before the moody tyrant took over.

"My mom says I shouldn't talk to strangers," she tells him as though reciting words she's heard countless times before.

"Ouch. Out for blood, are you?" he retorts flatly. Her wariness doesn't bother him as it seemed to bother Niklaus earlier. In Kol's experience, it's smart to remain watchful around this family. "I'm not a stranger, though. I'm your coolest uncle. My name is -"

"Kol," she finishes for him. "I know."

He smiles. "See? You do know who your coolest uncle is."

"I don't really remember you, though."

A frown appears on her little brow, as though she's straining to remember, sweeping through her admittedly short tapestry of memories after any moments the two of them might have shared. The fact that he knows she won't find any does cause a bit of a pang, he must admit.

Kol doubts he would've spent much time around his niece anyway, seeing as he was always trying to free himself of his family's clutches, but the reasons why he didn't are still a sore spot. Niklaus didn't even trust him enough to tell him about his daughter at first. And when he finally did, Kol ended up murdered by another one of his brothers before he could even be properly introduced to Eve.

"Yes, well. A sore shame if you ask me. I'm rather delightful," he remarks, detracting from the bitterness. "Isn't it a bit past your bed time anyway? Are you up to no good, by any chance?"

"What are you going to do if I am?"

Kol coughs up a laugh at her unexpected show of defiance. "That depends," he bargains. "Are you planning on putting a frog under your uncle Elijah's pillow?"

Eve giggles. "No."

"Filling Rebekah's pillowcase with flour?" More giggles. "Oh, I know! You're going to spread spicy pepper on your father's toothbrush."

That gets a full-out belly-laugh from her, blue eyes twinkling with delight at the thought of playing pranks on her family. Kol likes her more and more by the second.

"That's mean!" she exclaims in-between waves of laughter.

"You say that because you haven't seen his face. Then it's just hilarious. But if anyone asks, I never told you that." He punctuates it with a wink.

[adobe-outdesign]

omg can you review the mighty poogle 🥺

The Poogle is one of those really abstract Neopets wherein it's just a Creature(TM). What kind of creature? Who knows. I guess they're meant to be vaguely dog-like (seeing as Poogle racing is a thing, and it does sound vaguely like "poodle"), but they really don't lean towards any one specific animal, which is always something I enjoy.

What makes Poogles appealing is undeniably how chubby they are; it makes them look extra cuddly and is part of what gives them their distinctive noses (or lack thereof) and double chins. It also comes with a bit of lore about them living primarily in cold-weather regions, kind of like how seals have blubber to keep them warm.

Beyond that, I also like their stripes; they break up the design just enough without feeling too distracting, similar to their underbellies. The shape of the stripes is also mimicked by their distinctive ears.

I will fully admit though: Poogles got the raw end of the deal when it comes to customization. Not the absolute worst conversion job, mind you, as for the most part they look pretty dang similar—same pose, same proportions, same markings, etc.

However, what got completely messed up is their faces. Originally, Poogles had a soft, fleshy snoot that had two sets of lines to indicate that it was mostly fat and that it went back in space a bit. Removing this upper line makes their snouts look hard, and also has the side effect of making their snout and even their entire head look too wide.

Likewise, the chin got messed up. The Poogle originally had a pretty distinct double chin/fat neck that, once again, showed how chubby they were. More importantly, their chin lines weren't closed off, so their heads bled directly into their bodies. On converted Poogles, they now just look like they have one weird normal chin instead of a chin and neck. The end result is actually kind of uncanny if you stare at them for too long. It's a shame, because like I said, everything else about the conversion works, and there was no reason to change the elements they did. They're still cute, mind you, just slightly less so.

Favorite colours:

MSP: Species-specific colors always tend to be iconic and a delight, and MSP Poogles certainly are no exception. They're basically the same thing as a regular plushie Poogle, except Evil(TM), with red eyes and a nasty set of sharp teeth (side note: canonically, all Poogles actually have sharp teeth; you just rarely see them). The unconverted version also is bipedal, unlike the regular unconverted plushie, which was quadrupedal.

Both converted and unconverted MSPs have a super fun chaotic gremlin energy to them, and both designs are good depending on which stance you prefer (I kind of like the converted quadrupedal, though granted, the loss of some stitching and extra softness is a bit of a shame.)

Toy: This color literally just released last month, but a toy Poogle based off of the good old iDog is just delightful. Even if you don't know anything about iDogs, the design is still good, with the eyes serving to complete a multi-colored hexagon that draws attention to the head, and the rest of the body considering of just a smooth off-white and black.

Zombie: The mindless eyes on this one are just absolutely delightful and give it a ton of personality. I also like the details, such as a few stitches here and there, a scraggly mouth, scratch lines against the usual stripes, and liver spots. As a bonus, it looks good both with PB clothing and without.

BONUS: I don't normally mention "recolor" Neopets as much on these reviews just because they tend to be mostly by-the-numbers, but the pastle Poogle is honestly gorgeous, with subtle gradients and a low-contrast blue and pink color scheme, helped by colored lineart. It's nothing fancy, but it's definitely one of the all-time best pastels out there.

[nninoxasaur]

main dynamics in In its wake

Hiccup edition

Hiccup and Merida:

Dear lord its complicated at the beginning. Culturally they come from similar places and share a lot of folklore, beliefs and traditions besides Dun'Broch's sexism which isn't present in Berk. They also both understand what it's like having a very traditional father but where Merida adores her father and sees him as a pillar of greatness but Hiccup lowkey hates his for the shit that went down before he left Berk. A lot of the conflict in their relationship centers around how they view their culture and parents. Hiccup sees where he comes from as a point of shame, both a reminded of the man he wishes to never be and the relationship with his father he will never have. Merida on the other hand wants to be her father but her role as a woman stops this. She loves her culture but despises her role in it, and her mother for locking her in that role.

Hiccup sees Merida's parents and finds himself incredibly jealous, to him, bending the knee would be worth it a hundred times over to not only have one, but two parents who respect and care for you and the fact that Merida is complaining makes him livid.

To Merida, Hiccup is the lucky one. As a woman on Berk she would have thrived, Stoic would adore her and she would embrace chiefdom gleefully.

The fact that both have what the other craves makes them angry that the other cant appreciate it. They manage to cool down the fighting the more they can empathize with the others struggles but they only really get super close after Merida has to leave her clan. Vulnerable and depressed, Merida is looking for someone to support her and Hiccup sees this uncanny mirror to his 15 yr old self and decides to guide her as an older brother figure.

Hiccup and Rapunzel:

Hiccup was literally the first person Rapunzel ever met outside Gothel so she has a massive soft spot for him. Hiccup, who spent most of his life around people with little empathy is deeply moved by Rapunzel's kind and empathetic spirit - something he had previously thought of as a defect within himself.

Hiccup is very generous with Rapunzel, sharing his things with her like clothes, money and even his sketchbook (she gets the second half and he gets the first) when she mentions that she misses being able to draw.

Their relationship is all about sharing skills and information to feed the others creativity in this very sweet exchange of ideas. The two eventually become the defacto leaders of the group, balancing responsibilities and wrangling Jack and Merida who frankly need child leashes.

Hiccup and Jack:

The beginning of their relationship was a bit of a respect push and pull, working out if the other actually warrants respect lol. Jack, ever the boundary pusher is constantly making prods and Hiccup to see how much he can take and Hiccup meets it with a dry humor that Jack finds delightful (and reminds him of Bunnymund honestly)

When they aren't friendly bullying each other there is a quiet understanding. Both know what it means to be an outcast, and both at some point in their lives have been accused of being a changeling (absolutely not a light accusation in iiw and if taken seriously can lead to execution.)

Acknowledgement and understand is something the two of them crave deeply but when met with it in such a genuine way they are almost offput so they avoid verbalizing. They see each other as kindred spirits and it really helps them get through moments where Jack is being an idiot or when Hiccup gets a little too harsh.

[whisker-biscuit]

Sonic Big Bang 2024

Close Encounters of the Grim Kind: Chapter 5

---------------------------------

Tails liked to believe he had a good head on his shoulders when it came to dealing with surprises. It was practically a requirement for working side-by-side with a hero who could move faster than sound. After years of fighting and reacting on the fly to the most unusual of scenarios, he’d thought he was prepared to face just about anything without flinching.

Life certainly liked to prove his strongest hypotheses wrong at every turn.

The hologram of his doppelganger stood on his desk, about a foot and a half tall. The purple sheen and occasional static of feed did little to combat the uncanny effect of what was basically himself from a different existence. Same fur color, same head and body shape, same two tails twitching anxiously. Aside from the outfit he was wearing and the metal appendages limp on the ground around his tails, every physical trait was identical to Tails’ own.

Emotionally, however, was an entirely different story. Nine’s expression was flat and as unreadable as some of Shadow’s best. His hands were clasped behind his back in a stiff posture that gave off the impression of indifference, and he gave the slightest tilt of his head when his eyes locked with Tails.

“This isn’t a recording, by the way,” he continued when silence drifted between them for a solid several seconds. “I am broadcasting to you in real time. We can have a conversation this way without any delay.”

“That’s…good to know,” Tails said.

He glanced to his left, where he saw that Shadow had backed away from the desk and was now watching from a corner of the room. The hedgehog gave him a dangerous look that said in no uncertain terms was he to reveal his presence.

“Uh, can you see me right now?” He asked, turning back to the hologram.

“Yes,” Nine confirmed. “Just the top half of your body, however. My visual range is limited with what little Prism energy I had on hand to make this work.”

“You have Prism energy?”

The other fox hesitated. “Yes. I’ve been…siphoning it from the device we use to communicate.”

Tails saw Shadow’s quills rise from the other end of the room. Amazingly, thankfully, he didn’t act out on whatever emotion had just been triggered from that revelation.

“It wasn’t for any nefarious purpose, I promise. I wanted to ensure our communication was possible both ways. I didn’t want to have to rely solely on someone I didn’t know or trust to get the answers I needed.”

“The answers…about the Shatterverse?”

“Yes. That, and to check up on Sonic.”

Tails blinked, surprised. Shadow was still glowering. “Check on Sonic? But – but you never asked me about him until I brought him up first. You even made it clear that you didn’t want to talk about anything unrelated to our research.”

Nine sighed, and his multiple tails sagged against the floor of wherever he was broadcasting from. It was the first shift in his rigid demeanor since he’d started speaking.

“I think I need to start at the beginning before this gets too convoluted to easily explain. When you sent that first probe out, it eventually found its way to my dimension. My dimension is what I call “The Grim” which is on the very edge of the Shatterverse – or at least the edge of what I knew in the limited time it was possible to traverse the dimensions with my own technology. I thought it belonged to the Chaos Council at first and immediately contained it.”

“Those two weeks of radio silence,” Tails murmured, more to himself than his counterpart. “I saw from its travel logs that it had been halted to a standstill for most of that time. That was all your doing?”

“Of course. I couldn’t risk a potential threat to me or any other dimension to roam free.” Nine paused again, and a sheepish look crossed his face for a very brief moment. “Actually, I ended up taking it apart just to be sure it wasn’t. It was so similar to how I build my own inventions that it wasn’t hard to put it back together when I decided it was benign.”

Tails shrugged, unbothered by the admission. He would have done the same; he had done the same with countless Eggman devices. There was no space for him to judge.

“That was actually the reason I realized it wasn’t from the Chaos Council, but more than likely one of my own counterparts. And considering what was powering the probe and how the Paradox Prism originated from Green Hill, I was pretty sure it was you on the other end.”

“Huh. You know, this entire time I’ve been trying to figure out whether you were an Eggman counterpart. You could have told me right off the bat to save me a lot of headaches.”

“I didn’t want you to know who I was.”

“Why not?”

Another pause. Uncertainty in his expression this time. “I…wasn’t sure how much Sonic told you about me. I didn’t want you to cut off communication before I could finish this project if you didn’t want anything to do with me.”

“Why do you think I’d…” He glanced at Shadow, who was watching the conversation with rapt attention and not a single blink. The cryptic message Nine had sent right before this flashed across his thoughts. “This is related to what happened to Sonic, isn’t it? You said that it’s your fault he nearly died. He hasn’t told me what happened because he seems to think I’ll feel guilty about it.”

“Of course, he’d think of it that way.” Nine’s voice was equal parts exasperation and shame. He seemed to take a moment to brace himself for whatever he was about to say next. The hologram briefly flickered as if in tune to his emotional state. “I’ll stay true to my word and tell you everything, but I’d like to make one request first.”

“What is it?”

“That if you decide to cut off connection with me afterwards…please let Sonic know that I’m doing okay. The dimensions are all still stable and he doesn’t have to worry about it.”

Tails gave a firm nod. “I will.”

“Good. Thanks. Well, it started shortly after we stole the Prism Shard from the Chaos Council…”

In the end, Nine shared everything. Every gap that Sonic had intentionally or even unintentionally left in his story was filled by the other fox’s recounting. Tails absorbed it all as quietly and respectfully as he could, no matter how much his mind reeled with everything he was learning.

Sonic accidentally placing Nine as a stand-in for Tails while Green Hill was a shadow of itself. The miscommunication that led to a betrayal. Stealing the Paradox Prism for selfish intentions instead of using it to fix the interdimensional deterioration the Chaos Council had caused. Nine’s realization that he was still missing everything he needed to complete the Prism, and where that energy was. The attempts made on Sonic’s friends’ lives just to force him to surrender and give up his life. The hours-long battle within the Grim while space-time was literally collapsing around them all.

Sonic and Nine finally reconciling, and Sonic’s decision to sacrifice himself to save them all. The last thing Nine seeing of his first friend was him being carried off towards Green Hill, fading further and further from existence with every second.

“It was my fault that Sonic nearly died,” Nine said at the end of it all. “If I hadn’t been so stubborn, I could have spent all that time finding a safe way to extract the Prism energy from him to fix the Shatterverse. Instead, I wasted it all and nearly doomed him – nearly doomed everyone. And I was so unsure whether he’d even survived, whether he’d gotten back to Green Hill at all, that when I realized who you probably were I just – I couldn’t help myself. I needed to make sure he was okay.”

“…But you couldn’t ask outright, either, because you were afraid to lose that connection to him again.”

Tails wasn’t quite sure how he found the words to speak amidst all his other thoughts and emotions. He had curled up in his chair with his tails around his body quite some time back, and was now rhythmically stroking them just to keep his brain grounded. Shadow had been quiet this entire time, too – he hadn’t dared look back at him one Nine began his tale, and he didn’t know what he was thinking.

“That’s correct. I was so relieved when you first brought up Sonic in relation to our research and talked about him in the present tense. I knew that if you were who I thought you were, then he had to be alright. That was about when I started working on this,” he gestured down at his holographic form, “just in case you realized who I was and cut me off. Thank you for giving me a chance to explain.”

The young scientist finally stopped petting his namesakes, thinking carefully about how to respond. A large part of him was horrified about what his counterpart had done, but another part was equally understanding about how a mindset like that had come to be. He still remembered the ache of having no one in his life before Sonic. Just the idea of going back to that time was nearly unbearable to think about, much less live through for as long as Nine had.

People could do some truly terrible things when they thought they had nothing left to lose. He’d known that as a hero for years, and now he knew that even he had the capacity for it. It was something he was going to lose a lot of sleep over for a while.

But that could be set aside for later, when he was alone. Right now, there was still someone waiting for his judgement, and he wasn’t about to keep him waiting any longer.

Tails took a deep breath and met Nine’s cautious gaze. “I’m not going to lie; learning that Sonic almost died and I never would have known about it has definitely shaken me up. But…I know you didn’t do what you did to be malicious, either. You just wanted someone to understand, and you didn’t want to get hurt anymore.”

His counterpart nodded, looking both relieved and nervous over Tails’ assessment.

“I’ve had a lot of fun working with you these last few weeks,” he continued, touching his hand to the device that had started it all, “and I don’t want that to stop prematurely just because I’m upset. It’d be nice to have someone to talk to who doesn’t need an explanation for every mathematical term I use. I don’t really have a lot of options in Green Hill besides a certain mad scientist.”

 “Well, neither do I out here in the Grim.”

“Research partners?” He offered, holding his hand out to the hologram.

The ends of Nine’s mouth curled upward in the beginnings of a smile. He reached his own smaller hand out until it phased through Tails’ fingers. “Research partners.”

“Cool.” Tails returned the tentative smile with a much bigger and brighter one. It faded as he felt a familiar intense gaze pressing into the back of his head. “Um, I think it’s my turn to come clean. I haven’t exactly…been alone for this conversation.”

Nine’s expression shuttered into shock and then panic. “Sonic’s here?”

“No! No, he’s not here. He doesn’t know about this yet, although I’d really like to – um, sorry. No, Shadow is here with me. He said he wanted to make sure you had good intentions.”

The other fox tensed up all over again, looking like he wanted to be hurt by Tails’ omission of information but also seeming to understand the reasoning behind it. In the end, he accepted the state of things with a quiet sigh and closed eyes.

“Well…I appreciate the honesty. And I understand why he doesn’t trust me. I doubt he ever will after what I did to Sonic.”

“You presume a lot for someone who claims to be a genius.”

Shadow’s voice startled both of them, as did his sudden presence at Tails’ side. He stared down the hologram with unblinking eyes and crossed arms, who seemed to be visibly struggling not to fidget under its weight. Tails knew that urge all too well.

“Shadow.”

“Nine.” The hedgehog glanced at Tails. “I’d like a few moments with him alone, Tails. If you don’t mind.”

“Oh, uh…” He looked at his counterpart, who gave a small nod with a grim set to his mouth. “O-Okay, but I’ll be right outside, so…let me know if you need me to come back at any time, okay?”

He wasn’t sure whether he was telling that to Nine or Shadow, but they both acknowledged it before turning to focus only on each other. The fox trudged outside and sat down against the side of the building. He couldn’t hear anything when he pressed his ear against the garage door, so he leaned back to study the clouds and soak in the sun in an attempt to relax as he began processing everything he’d learned.

Two days in a row with two different revelations big enough to send his head spinning. It had to be a new record at this rate. He sincerely hoped it wouldn’t be topped anytime soon.

It was almost an hour before Shadow emerged from his workshop, carrying the Paradox Prism with him. Tails jumped to his feet but the hedgehog put a hand up before he could say anything.

“The two of us have come to an understanding. As long as he never betrays me or Sonic again – or you, for that matter – then our relationship will remain cordial if we ever interact in the future. And…” Shadow hesitated, then shook his head and placed his hand on Tails’ shoulder. “If you decide to let Sonic meet with him again, I won’t stop it. I trust you with this.”

The fox nearly staggered under the shock of that confession. “You – wow, I – thank you, Shadow. Thank you for everything.”

“Hm. Don’t get used to it, Fox.” Despite the words and tone, there was a smirk on his face. “If you ever pull a stunt like that without telling me again, you’re going to regret it.”

Without giving him a chance to respond, Shadow pulled out his chaos emerald and, with one final “Chaos Control!” yelled to the sky, disappeared with the Prism in tow.

Tails waited until the hedgehog’s afterimage was no longer burned into his eyes, then pulled out his Miles Electric as he re-entered his workshop. The hologram of Nine was still there, looking contemplative.

“Hey,” Tails said, holding up his device for his counterpart to see. “Mind if I set up a reunion?”

---------------------------------

“Tails, buddy, you know how much I hate surprises.”

The fox rolled his eyes as he carried Sonic onto the top of a loop-de-loop overlooking Green Hill. From here they could see just about everything from the ocean to their scattered homes to the distant mountain where the Shatterverse adventure had all began.

“And you know I’m not going to spoil the surprise just cause you’re impatient.”

“Not even if I ask really, really nicely?”

“Not even for that.”

He set his brother down on a blanket he had already put down, right next to a small picnic basket that sat unopened. Sonic tilted his head curiously at it.

“Uh, Tails, are you sure that thing had enough space to hold food for both of us?”

He grinned, unable to contain his excitement as he grabbed it and opened it. “Don’t worry, Sonic. I packed exactly what we needed.”

Tails pulled out his spherical probe and the little square drive, setting them atop the basket and watching the hedgehog as he turned it on.

“Alright, pal, but if you weren’t hungry then you could’ve let me kn –”

Sonic’s words ground to a halt as a small, purple hologram of a very familiar face appeared in front of him. His mouth fell open, his body went still, and he looked almost as though he was about to cry when Nine lifted a hesitant hand to give an even more hesitant wave.

“Hi, Sonic,” the other fox said. “It’s, um, been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Nine!” He cried, lunging forward until his face was an inch from the hologram. “Oh, Nine, it’s so good to see you! I’m so glad you’re okay! I was so worried about you guys cause I didn’t know if the dimensions all stayed after I left, and I didn’t think there was a way to find out but of course I should’ve known you two would’ve figured it out! You’re so smart, Nine, oh man, I can’t believe this is really real!”

As Sonic continued to speak, so excited he barely stopped for breath, Nine’s eyes wandered briefly towards Tails, who smiled as wide as could be.

After a moment, Nine smiled back.

---------------------------------

END

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[serial-serializednovelreader]

Do you think a Dracula MBS AU would work? If so, in what way? Hope you are doing well!!!

Sophie, I love this question!! It’s actually something I have thought of, but wasn’t sure if I wanted to make into a post on its own. And I’m doing well, hope you are too :DDDD

Yes, Dracula MBS AU could be a thing, but I would definitely need to make a few tweaks. Us Dracula book fans aren’t a huge fan of “tweaks” for…certain reasons (*side eyes adaptations*), but this one would still be faithful to the spirit of the book. :)

Note: Heavy spoilers for Dracula, and the Mysterious Benedict Society. Also, I’m basing this AU on the MBS books, not the series (Curtain is not really redeemable in this one, though he is the gremlin man you know and enjoy!). As a disclaimer, all of the MBS characters that are kids are adults in this AU — in their 20s to be precise. Everyone else retains their original ages (except for the one who is playing Dracula, of course).

Jonathan Harker -> Reynie Muldoon

You know I had to start off with my one of my favorite blorbos and honestly, this just works. These two characters are a lot alike, more than you might assume. Both are considered “average” by others, and are constantly underestimated, which they shake off in different ways (Reynie with his abilities, Jonathan through the power of Tumblr’s book club). They have a kind heart and love helping others. They are meticulous and can be bold when needed, sometimes using clever words to talk themselves out of a situation (Jonathan several times in Dracula’s castle, Reynie when Curtain catches him looking at the Executive’s list). Jonathan and Reynie are also leadership material, though you probably wouldn’t think it by looking at them.

Mina Murray -> Kate Wetherall

Yeah, so those who know I ship these Reynie and Kate may have expected this one. I can’t help it! Still, I think these two work as well. Mina is very much an extrovert and will talk to everyone she meets, just like Kate. Mina may not carry a bucket, but she does carry her journals and writing around with her! Kate and Mina are both silly at times, adding their own personal flair to situations. I would see Kate embodying Mina’s bolder side and being excited about journalism for the chance to meet people. She is fine with studying and typing (especially to help/bond with Reynie), but it’s not her favorite thing, if that makes sense. Or, alternatively, she could have more of Mina’s affinity for typing and thoroughly love it! Up to you. Those who have read Dracula all the way through also know that Mina and Kate are also alike in their need to be *in the action*, not sidelined. And they’re absolutely correct.

Dracula -> Ledroptha Curtain

Yeah, this one is pretty obvious. Both are cackling villains, both like their cat-and-mouse games: it just fits! Plus, if you compare Curtain’s weird lecture/manipulative speeches to Reynie in the first book to Dracula’s speeches to Jonathan…it’s almost uncanny how similar they are!!! Dracula and Curtain honestly use a lot of the same tactics to draw their victims in (making them feel special/isolated, puffing his own ego, etc.).

Renfield -> Crawlings

I’ll be honest, Crawlings is my favorite Ten Man and I can just see him as Renfield. He’s soooooo weird and I love him for it!!! Bro has one eyebrow and was constantly being quirky. Can I see this man eating a fly and being locked in an asylum in 1800s England? Yes, yes I can. Plus, his name is Crawlings and he follows Curtain. ‘Nuff said.

Van Helsing -> Nicholas Benedict

You probably also saw this one coming after I paired Dracula with Curtain. This Dracula AU fits a lot better than one first assumes and here is another example. Van Helsing in the novel is very much a quirky professor, befuddling his former student (Seward) with his metaphors and laughing far too much to be in the horror novel Dracula, let’s be honest. In the same way, Nicholas Benedict is a jovial, unassuming man, who one wouldn’t think to be a genius instrumental to saving the world, yet he’s in the very name of the book series! In the same way, Van Helsing has garnered a name for himself that has far outlived his first appearance in the novel: as much as Dracula lives on in the public sphere, Van Helsing is right beside him. I think this fits Nicholas to a tee. Plus, Nicholas and Van Helsing are capable of great seriousness and emotional depth when the situation calls for it.

Aaaaaaand this is where things get switched around. I’m going to list the characters first, then describe how exactly their arcs would be changed, but I want to make it clear that this Suitor Squad would not be a Suitor Squad anymore in my AU. I do not ship these characters!!!!! Just want to make that clear upfront.

Lucy Westerna -> Constance Contraire

This one is a bit of a stretch personality-wise, but it’s the clearest fit in terms of leading/supporting characters. Lucy is obviously a very sweet person and Constance is…well…the society says it best: “Constance is Constance”. However, in RoA, we do get a glimpse of a sweeter Constance and I do believe this is how Constance will be once she matures: still her feisty self, just able to let her empathetic side show more. And really, that’s who Lucy is. She has a defiant and bold streak within her: this is just held back by the confines of Victorian society (though not in the way adaptations want to portray her — I just mean she could be more sassy if she wanted to). Whether Constance adapts more of Lucy’s bubbly and sweet personality or retains her sassy and grumpy self is up to you. Either way, her and Kate (Mina) would definitely still be best friends and have a similar relationship they have in MBS, perhaps with a dash of maturity (LOL). Lucy/Constance is also the youngest, clocking in at 19, to everyone else’s mid- to late- 20s.

Quincey Morris -> Milligan

You can probably see why I emphasized the importance of not shipping these characters. So yes, Milligan now takes the role of an American cowboy and I think he would adopt this role with gusto! Of course, in this AU he’s never lost his memories so he is his cheerful self. He is a lot like Quincey in being perpetually cheerful, compassionate and a good friend to the rest of the Crew of Light (plus, earnestly cheering them up when needed and kicking Dracula/Curtain’s butt — both of these characters excel at their job). Quincey is known as the oathmaker of Dracula, always keeping the promises he makes. Readers of MBS know that Milligan also takes his promises seriously, so much so that his last promise became his very name (how his name is still Milligan when he didn’t lose his memories doesn’t make sense, but…you know…uh….*magic*). Is he Kate’s father in this AU? Perhaps. 😏 I once commented to @nobodysdaydreams that these two would be father/daughter in every universe, so I think even if they’re not biologically related, they would certainly fit that dynamic and adopt each other as such.

Jack Seward -> George “Sticky” Washington

Seward is definitely on the darker side of what Sticky is capable of, but I don’t think this is out of the realm of possibilities for Sticky. I honestly think he could’ve become something like this, had he not been exposed to Mr. Benedict and his friends at a young age. Not that Sticky is “bad” or “evil” in this AU — Jack isn’t either!!!!!! I would just say he has bad coping mechanisms and needs therapy for depression…so just hand that over to Sticky without the strongest support system and I think these two meld together well.

Arthur Holmwood -> SQ Pedalian

For all my SQ lovers, this one’s for you!!! SQ and Arthur are both sweet guys who really shouldn’t be in traumatic situations, but, unfortunately, are. Fun to be around and a beacon of light to those they meet, SQ and Arthur always try to make the best of a bad situation! I think SQ would fit right into Arthur’s role, though it won’t be easy for him as the book goes along…

Three Vampire Sisters -> Martina, Jillson and Jackson

I believe it makes sense for Curtain’s most trusted executives to also be in his castle as his vampires in this AU. Oh, and Jackson’s here too — for the vibes. :D yes, they do try to “seduce” Reynie. Yes, it is weird (though, as a reminder, minus the vampire thing they’re similar in age — Reynie is in his 20s and the vampire siblings got turned into vampires around the same age). No, I don’t want to dwell on it.

Mr. Hawkins - Miss. Perumal

While it wouldn’t make any sense for Jonathan/Reynie’s boss to be a woman in this time period, I am making Mr. Hawkins Miss Perumal anyway because I do not care. Jonathan basically calls Mr. Hawkins his adopted father and that is what Miss. Perumal is to Reynie. Whether you want to make Miss Perumal a guy or just make Victorian England less sexist in this AU is up to you (I’m rooting for the latter).

Captain of the Demeter -> Captain Noland

I think this one explains itself. Noble captain of The Shortcut becomes the noble (and, unfortunately, doomed) captain of the Demeter. 🫡🫡

First Mate of the Demeter -> McCracken

My choice here might seem strange — and it is — but I honestly think this first mate that gets more and more desperate is better filled by McCracken the Ten Man than anyone else. I truly believe if something supernatural happened to him, he would not believe it and would scoff at anyone who did — until it was too late. Then, he would try to fight the monster (as the First Mate does), and if he had no option left…flee. That’s my interpretation of McCracken’s true character anyways — just give him less weapons and less self-confidence. Plus, I wanted McCracken to be a part of this and had no good place for him (lol). 🤷‍♀️

Second Mate of the Demeter -> Canonball

The bravest “mate” on the crew, I chose Canonball as Second Mate instead of First Mate because he would be exactly the type of man to volunteer to keep watch and let everyone else get some sleep; unfortunately, that kind of selflessness is not rewarded by Dracula. :( RIP Canonball in this AU, you will be missed. 🫡

Mrs. Westerna -> Number Two

I’m envisioning a different kind of relationship than mother/daughter for Lucy/Constance and Mrs. Westerna/Number Two. I’ll explain it more when we get to my “changes”, but suffice it to say, Mrs. Westerna/Number Two is an aunt or mentor figure to Lucy/Constance rather than a biological mother. I picked Number Two for this role because she has Mrs. Westerna’s strict adherence to rules down and an anxious streak, though to a lesser extent of course. These qualities would be dialed up to 11 for the AU.

“Correspondent” -> Rhonda Kazembe

According to a number of posts I’ve seen on here (though I haven’t been able to find anything when I looked it up — doesn’t mean it’s not true, just means my research skills needs work!), Stoker originally envisioned a woman reporter who ended up working with the Crew of Light to take down Dracula. Whether due to time constraints or too many characters to keep track of, he dialed this character back to a “Correspondent” (gender unidentified) who reports on the Demeter’s landing, and what has become of the ship. While we don’t get much from this Correspondent, they show a lot of personality in just two entries: boasting about their running abilities and reporting about villagers wanting to be friends with a dog. I would definitely select Rhonda for this role because, while she may seem quiet and ordinary, she hides a ton of inner personality! I think I would give this Rhonda a little bit of her energy from the show because her actress just did such a good job of embodying her character and giving her an even more distinct personality that I think would go great with the Correspondent. Other than that, I do think she would work with the Crew of Light in this one, as Stoker originally intended, though how much and in what capacity, I’m not sure of.

Mr. Swales -> Risker

I was honestly thinking of picking one of the Ten Men for this one, but I think “kooky old man who you can’t tell what he’s saying half the time” fits Risker perfectly. 😂😂

Now that we have all the chess pieces into place (yes, that was an MBS reference), how do they move around the chessboard? Most Dracula fans by now will probably be shouting at me “But Nova, if there’s no Suitor Squad, how will you fulfill Lucy’s arc?” Well you see, there’s one relationship we need to consider here: that of Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict and Lucy/Constance.

So for those who may not know (on both sides of the fandom), Van Helsing considers Lucy to be his daughter in a sense. In MBS, Mr. Benedict ends up adopting Constance, though this is not an easy process, as her papers are lost to time. I intend to merge these two story arcs.

So to start, Lucy/Constance would be an orphan, not being born from a wealthy family like in the original book. She would meet Jonathan/Reynie and Mina/Kate and they would all be childhood friends, as in the original book, though perhaps Lucy/Constance understands the other two on a deeper level — as they all three know what it’s like to be orphans and to want for friendship and parents.

Somewhere along the way, Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict meets Lucy/Constance (she’s in her teens at this point) and he starts to see her as the daughter he wants to have. Unfortunately in Victorian England, there’s no legal adoption process. So basically, Lucy/Constance can only have the feeling of having a father, no papers to prove it. And just like in the MBS series, this causes her to feel frustrated and insecure (though with a bit more maturely, since she’s older lol). Another issue is that she rarely sees Van Helsing/ Mr. Benedict since he’s working on research in Germany. He doesn’t want to take her with him, since he presumes she should be out living her life and learning how to be a lady (more out of a desire for her to fit in with other girls and make friends than him sticking to the confines of society). Which is why he’s entrusted her with Mrs. Westerna/Number Two, providing her a permanent place to live. We can also work something in there about Milligan/Quincey (a family friend of his) adopting Mina/Kate along the way or them being father/daughter (you could swap Mina and Lucy’s roles here). I personally like the former option, but the latter works as well!

Living with Mrs. Westerna/Number Two is nice, but not what Lucy/Constance wants. She only wants to be with her father :(. At this point, she’s an adult and can make her own choices, so she asks her father if she can go on a trip with him. Surprisingly, he says yes!

Rather than the three iconic proposals here, I envision Lucy/Constance telling her three family friends (because Van Helsing has a LOT of those) about her impending trip instead, which they all take in different ways. Seward/Sticky does not take this well. Van Helsing is kind of a father figure to him as well and having him be away has been difficult for him to handle. Now, hearing that he’s going to “lose” someone he considers to be his sister as well is just too overwhelming for him to hear. He accepts it, but doesn’t like it. Milligan/Quincey is excited for her, but sad to see her go. He feels a “loss” as well, since he considers Lucy/Constance to be his daughter, though he’s never said it. Arthur/SQ is the only one truly excited for her, giving her travel tips, as he’s traveled himself and wants her to have only the best experience. It may not be as dramatic or exciting as proposals, but I do think this works with hitting similar emotions from the three men (grief, bittersweet, and joy).

Then we come to the sad part of our story. Lucy/Constance begins experiencing symptoms of a vampire bite and while Sticky/Seward tries to care for her himself, his last resort is to call in Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict (which he doesn’t want to do, because he doesn’t want him to see her like this and it feels too much like the end…). When Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict arrives, he understands very clearly what is going on, and it pains him to see his daughter in this condition. However, for her sake, he keeps to his jovial self (and he retains his narcolepsy, so you can play a lot with him trying not to give in to this emotional turmoil).

At first, it seems like things are working in their favor: they put up garlic and it seems to keep the evil bat away. Unfortunately, Mrs. Westerna/Number Two doesn’t get the memo and takes the garlic down, leaving poor Lucy/Constance exposed. That’s when the bad turns to the worse.

If you want maximum angst here, you can go with the canon ending…which is that Lucy/Constance dies. And if you thought Van Helsing’s reaction to Lucy’s death was bad (which is a full on mental breakdown, by the way), this is oh-so much worse. Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict is inconsolable. He won’t talk to anyone. He keeps waking up and passing out for a full day, he is SO full of emotion. He mourns that he was never able to take her on a trip or able to legally adopt her. Not to mention, Dracula/Curtain took Mrs. Westerna/Number Two from him too, so he’s mourning THAT death as well. So yeah, needless to say, he’s not in a good place. And he’s determined to avenge the people he’s lost at any price. Also, he would have to be the one to stake Lucy/Constance when she eventually turns into the Bloofer Lady (which he would be in denial about at first, though he would see all the signs). Because I need this to be more heartbreaking, apparently. By the end of this AU, him and Jonathan/Reynie are very much silently sharpening a knife, waiting for their moment to strike at Dracula/Curtain (who looks eerily similar to Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict, that’s strange…).

Since MBS is included in this, though, I don’t know if this would be what happens. I kind of believe Lucy/Constance would make it through in this AU. So either Mrs. Westerna/Number Two actually listens to Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict (which is likely, let’s be honest) or they’re able to save her in some other way. Bottom line: Lucy/Constance makes it, and she’s infinitely grateful! Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict vows to take her on a trip very soon and makes her a little adoption certificate thing. It’s not real, but to them it is! On the inside, however, Van Helsing/Mr. Benedict is very angry at Dracula/Curtain for almost killing his daughter and that’s not something he takes lightly…

So yeah, those are my ideas for a Dracula MBS AU. Hope you like it! :D

[cryptidclaw]

Birdflight!

Design Notes:

This is actually the exact same drawing as the last Bridflight/Runningwind design I posted, I just added my little eye shine thing I started doing and I added my preferred font for the names!

Bird is a dilute red tabby, but he's a dusty color which makes him a bit more brown like in his canon description! I made him this color so that Sandstorm's color could be explained! She takes after Bird a lot!

Character Bio:

Birdflight

(Runningwind)

Gay; Cis Tom; he/him

Age as of 1st arc's beginning: 3 cycles, 7 moons; 30 Hyrs

Title meaning: -flight = this is an especially fast cat and/or a cat especially good at jumping; this cat always has energy

Hunt Charge of Thunder Order; Birdflight is one of the fastest and adept hunters of the Order, something he passed on to his daughter Sandstorm.

Mothers: Fogtalon (biological); Leopardfoot

Sire: Sparrowpelt

Siblings: Mousebite

Mate: Redtail

Kits: Sandstorm; Poppy; Flint

Grandkits:  Squirrelflight; Leafpool; Foxleap; Icecloud; Briarlight; Bumblestripe; Blossomfall

(note Leaf, Fox, Ice and Briar are not grandkits by blood)

Other notable kin: Specklesnap (aunt); Lionheart (cousin); Goldenflower (cousin)

Extra notes: Sandstorm got her confidence from him, Bird also spoiled her way too much, but he just loved his kit a lot <3

Sandstorm reminded Bird so much of his older sister Mousebite, it was uncanny how similar of personalities they had. He as glad that Mouse wasn't made Sand's mentor, he feared that the two paired together would be an unstoppable force of sass and mockery.

....

[Image ID: a digital drawing of Birdflight an au version of Runningwind from warrior cats. His is walking with his left paw raised, and his right side showing, he has a kind, happy expression on his face. He is a short furred, slender light brown/ tan sandy colored tabby tom with green eyes. He has a light cream under nelly, muzzle and paws, and his stripes are an even darker shade of brown along his back, tail, and on some of his face markings. His inner ears, nose and paw pads are all a light pink color./End ID]

[oneforthemunny]

Hi Evie! I dunno if this has been asked before, but with nb and rockstar!eddie's kids, how are they similar to each parent? Like, looks, personality, etc...

i don't think it has been asked tbh! i think i'm going to try and make a lore cheat sheet for all the aus but specifically this one bc it has the most lol!

so persephone looks like eddie more, but acts more like nb (if her parents were loving and mentally stable lol??? idk how to explain it) she's very much so a high achiever and driven and responsible.

kensington looks just like nb's mom, tana, actually. like what she looked like when she was younger. esp when she gets a little older, it's all the tabloids talk about is the comparison between the two. i don't think she acts like either one of them truly. personality wise, she's emotional in a lot of ways, especially when she's little. she's just got a lot of feelings!!! but she's very sweet and loving in that way too. she feels everything very fiercely.

sicily and sienna are twins but fraternal, but they share similar features? kinda a mix of both. looks like nb in the face but long and lanky like eddie in build. sicily is definitely more fierce but like a sneaky kind of fierce. she's more likely to lead the charge of being mischievous and sienna follows. sienna is more quiet, less out going but still extroverted like her sister. they're both sneaky in their chaos.

zahra is eddie's mom's identical twin. like it's scary how close they look alike. wayne notices it first when she turns about five, like holy shit. pours through piles and piles of photo albums to find one and it's uncanny how much they look alike. zahra is very quiet, very very chill. like amidst the chaos she is so unbothered. very into music and art and quiet and keeps to herself.

vega has more of nb build and facial features, but eddie's eyes and hair. and when i say hair i mean the most chaotic, unruly curls. you think she's your last girl, and you got it down with how to handle the hair- you're wrong. she's eddie's karma is what everyone says. however wild he thought he was back in the day, he's got nothing on her. she's like a sour patch kid, first she's insane and like a little terror, then she's sweet. she's very smart and quick too, especially with her comebacks and very observant.

[aceouttatime]

7 and 10 for the shep game? :-)

Thanks for the ask Mars! <33

7. How approachable are they?

-> Pre-Lazarus? He's got a very severe case of resting bitch face, though not much more so than your average traumatized serviceman. I'm tempted to say not very approachable on that front.

He's decent at sussing out people's intentions, but generally gives them the benefit of the doubt, so once he's actually talking with you, he's less 'unknowably annoyed and terrifying.' I've mentioned before that his eyes are unnerving. Both how he's constantly shifting his gaze, like he's checking corners where there are none (whoops, paranoia), and the way that just-too-bright green bores into a guy when he's look at 'em. As far as body language goes, he's partial to leaning against walls and railings like he's cool (back issues) and doing the old 'crossing your arms and jutting a hip' type deal (also back issues).

Post-Lazarus? Downright unsettling, uncanny valley, kind of unapproachable. Even if you didn't know who he was or that he was supposedly missing in action for about two years, he has a presence about him that's not quite right. The angles of his face are too sharp, like the features were meticulously pieced together and ripping along the red-scarred, patch-worked seams of his body. When he moves, he moves like he is overly aware of his body, or like his body isn't in sync with his brain. He seems sensitive to even the lightest touch or sounds outside the range of what his hearing should be. It's most noticeable when he uses his biotics--he hadn't had them before Cerberus' intervention. He's the juxtaposition between a fawn finding its footing for the first time and an old god as assured and aware as the earth beneath its hooves.

'They came back wrong' is my favorite way I've heard Shepard(s) in general described, and that absolutely applies to Sylvan. This post sums up my thoughts so well.

10. How do they handle a teammate being badly injured during a mission?

-> A stranger would be different. Even a squadmate he has been able to stop himself from becoming emotionally vulnerable to, no matter how much he values them, would be different. But if someone close to his heart is injured in a life-threatening way, it impairs his judgement, and he'll take more fire than he should because of it. It can leave other forces vulnerable, and it's not yet been enough to entirely compromise a mission, but enough that his actions don't align with how he acts under other sorts of heavy pressures he's forced under.

It is a weakness that has been exploited, and it is one that has been attempted to be beaten out of him. It's the major one that almost made Nihlus keep hold of his recommendation of Shepard for the Spectres. He had planned to force Shepard to compensate for his deficiency.

Shep's had good conversations with Anderson about it, as the captain has faced similar lapses in judgement. It's a sensitive subject for Anderson too because of his past with Saren and the major difference between their modes of working being their regard for collateral. "That's our humanity, Shepard. You can't change it, I can't change it, shouldn't, really, if we don't want to lose it. It's almost selfish, that we're these vehicles of our own morality; Spectres are not. It's a numbers game for them. For you, now."

It's part of why he keeps up so many walls, and it's a byproduct of Akuze and Virmire and all of the other losses he's faced, but above all, Mindoir.

He's proficient in battlefield first aid, and he will laser-focus on that task if he's in that more panicked mindset. He's followed squadmates into the medbay more times than he should.

[imperfectnothing]

Thought of Fai and Yume for no reason a moment ago, and now it won't leave my head the connection I have made of them (+ ciaran & murrelet) with other characters in Danganronpa: Another Despair/DRA.............

!!!!!!!!! Incoming nerd ramblings but keeping them way shorter because I don't want to . Spoil the game. It's so good. So not nearly as ramblings but just me talking about aus tbh w/ the 4 Musketeers (this is just as long as my other asks on your main. Dear God I should mute myself)

First I had them as "Yuki" and Akane, but it would only work in chap6 when the masterminds are revealed (the boredness that MM1 has while Taira is just ecstatic and all about "hes so great, he saved me and I'll forever follow him"). But then I thought of it more and Fai is very Kinjo Tsurugi. Kinjo is so cold, a straight forward guy and such, (tho if in SDRA2, he would most definitely be Syobai. No doubts, only in DRA I see him being Kinjo, for the small things..). — but he's so open to 'Yuki'. He's only ever vulnerable around him (Ciaran can be "Yuki" in this context, but along with Murrelet)- the free time events you can have with him show that.

The memorable thing in my head of Kinjo and Akane is a similar slap scene to Togami and Aoi, and then the mastermind reveal (a bit too early in the chapters but DRA is FUN like that). And honestly the funny thing about Akane is that she is also, honestly a generic girl. So like- that ties well with Yume, and the switch up also ties up with him. The obsession, the devotion. Again, the whole he's so great, he saved me and I'll forever follow him.

With having Fai, Cia and Yume already figured out, I then I had to fill up the space of Murrelet, and I went with Haruhiko (might change if plip decides to do anything with murr). But for now, it's just because I see Murr as just some silly guy caught up in this square with three unhinged guys (again might change, and so he might also be... Shuts up before I say the name and spoil it all)

The thing that's super interesting to me about Fai and Yume's relationship is how utterly incomprehensible it is. Like obviously, from an outside glance, it doesn't really seem that way, it seems pretty straightforward, Fai is the person who is kind of gruff and mean towards Yume and seems not to like him and Yume actually kind of acts like himself around Fai but only because there isn't any expectation of Fai judging him for that. Maybe I'm misremembering, if I am, I'm so sorry but the thing about Fai, when it comes to Yume, is Fai actually cares about him a lot more than he lets on. When Yume dies, that is a catalyst in a downward spiral for Fai which ends up with him lashing out at the other two musketeers and isolating himself (commitment issues) because he views himself as someone who only makes other people's lives worse.

As much as Faisal is unsettled by Yume's obsession and his uncanny "generic" personality, Fai sees parts of himself in Yume (which is why he initially despises Yume so much) but what he sees that's different, he loves. He loves Yume in his own fucked up way and when Yume dies and is brought back as some echo of himself, Faisal is extremely not okay about it.

So yeah thank you for sending me a Faiyume ask this was very fun to mull over and while I'll admit, I've not played Danganronpa, the way you articulate it and connect our characters to it is very very fun

(I'm gonna tag Starry and Plip just in case they want to be tagged, since Ciaran and Murr are mentioned- @starry-skiez and @pwippy)

[coldgoldlazarus]

Heyy so i've been enjoying a lot of the yuri things you post about a lot, are there any good shows that you recommend watching? Ive seen and enjoyed bocchi and witch from mercury a ton and i have a lot of time these next few days to burn :)

Oh, I'm glad to hear that!

Hmm, what are some good Yuri shows aside from Gwitch and Bocchi?

---

Admittedly, this is hard to answer as thoroughly as I'd like, since I generally have a hard time starting new shows and keeping up with them, so there are a fair few that I haven't actually gotten around to watching yet that I've really wanted to. Still, I'll mention a few of those since they do come highly recommended and I've had my eye on for a while, and then get into the ones I actually have seen.

-Kase-San and Morning Glory: Haven't seen, but did read the manga it's based on a while back; as I recall it's a very simple but very sweet slice-of-life sort of thing about a girly girl, a tomboy, and their shared love of gardening. Rather than a full series, I think it was adapted as a longer OVA or two? So I don't know how much of the story it covers, but it's also the kind of thing where, outside of the developing relationship of the leads, there's not too much in the way of like, a hard-hitting narrative to adapt. It's just super cute.

-Lycoris Recoil: In contrast to the last one, LycoReco is a recent anime-only sort of thing, and much more plotty from my understanding. It's basically the next thing I plan to properly sit down with in the near future, but until then I'll admit I don't know a whole lot about it; the main vibe I've gotten is that it is like, this action-drama about secret agents(?) first, yuri romance second, but it still does go out of its way to make the romance unambiguous and compelling, rather than trying to hide it behind subtext like older shows would have done. So at least based on what I've heard, it sounds worth your while, just I guess tread with caution since it may also get into some darker territory?

-The Executioner And Her Way Of Life: Another recent one that I haven't gotten to yet, but have read some of the manga for and so at least have some idea of what to expect. It's similar to Lycoris Recoil in being an action show first, but still very very clearly gay, so yanno, factor that in on whether you want to see it or not.

The premise is a sort of parody-taken-seriously of standard isekai stuff, taking place in a fantasy world that's constantly suffering from people reincarnating there from earth, growing overpowered and selfish, and causing radical, harmful upheaval. In response, an elite assassin's guild was formed to hunt down and eliminate these isekai "heroes" before they can get too powerful. The protagonist is one of these assassins, and the plot (and romance) starts when she's sent to kill a recently-isekai'd girl... who's special power is that she's seemingly unkillable, and immediately develops a crush on the assassin. Very much a slow burn enemies-to-lovers sort of vibe, but what little I read seemed promising.

-Wandering Witch: Another one I don't know a whole lot about, just that it's come highly recommended by some people whose good taste I generally trust. As the name implies, it seems to be a fairly slice-of-life-ish piece about a pair of witches? But beyond that, I don't really know much, so prolly worth looking into more yourself.

-Otherside Picnic: As I understand it, it's basically like the movie Annihilation, but gay? A pair of girls traveling through this uncanny sectioned-off region where all sorts of creepy supernatural happenings are going down, and it gets very existential. I've admittedly kinda dragged my feet on this one, since I have a complicated and inconsistent relationship with horror stuff, but it does sound very intriguing. Though I will say, from my understanding the yuri is very clear in the LN and manga, while the anime downplays that stuff into subtext? So it's probably more worth reading than watching.

---

With those out of the way, time to talk about the ones I do know! A couple of these I'll pair up because their vibes are similar, but I'll still try and discuss each with due depth.

-Urara Meirochou & Konohana Kitan: These two are cut from a pretty similar cloth, that I guess I'll just call "Historic supernatural cuteness"? Both are set in fantasy versions of olden japan, but the overall vibe is similar to modern-day Cute Girls Doing Cute Things shows. I considered leaving them off the list since they're also much more reliant on subtext than most of the others here, but I have too much of a soft spot for Urara Meirochou to be able to ignore it ^^; (I have half-unfinished fanfic for it, which given the scarcity of my writings these days has to count for something!)

Urara is about a group of girls seeking to become apprentice fortune-tellers in this mazelike city dedicated to the craft, though all coming at it from very different walks of life. It's pretty simple and episodic, but the main thing that made it for me was the dynamic between the main protagonist, a literally feral girl who's having difficulty adapting back to human life after being literally Raised By Wolves, and a prim and proper noble daughter who's completely befuddled but also enamored by her antics.

Konohana Kitan, meanwhile, I never got around to finishing just because Life Happened™ at the time, but it featured a bunch of Kitsune running a bathhouse; very Spirited Away in some ways, but a lot more relaxed in tone.

-Izetta, The Last Witch & Princess Principal: Another pair that came out around the same time, but that are tonally kind of the opposite of the last two. Both take place in kinda steampunky/dieselpunky parallel history versions of early 1900s europe, and feature spies and intrigue and action primarily, while, due to when they came out, the yuri elements legitimately straddle the line between subtext and just text.

Izetta is almost a precursor to Witch From Mercury in some ways? Just again, different settings. It takes place during a parallel of World War I and II, with the Germany analogue attacking a tiny border country as part of its overall war plans. The princess of that smaller country, though, winds up calling on help from (and falling in love with) the last witch in the world to help repel the invasion with magic. Izetta very much feels like a prototype of Suletta, and rides an anti-tank-rifle instead of a broom, which is awesome.

Princess Principal, meanwhile, is more focused on class divides and zeroes in on the spy theme more clearly. Basically, in an alternate version of London that's split down the middle Berlin-style, a group of teenage academy students who are actually plants by the opposing side, team up with a traitorous lower princess to sabotage the royal family... though one of the spies has a pre-existing history with her that makes everything even more complicated. It's a really interesting one, told in non-chronological order, that understands the less glamorous side of intelligence operations while still having a fair amount of dramatic action and twists, and alternates between feeling like a CGDCT show and an intense political thriller. And yanno, the gay. I also actually haven't finished this one because Life Happened™ and it's been a while since, but one of these days I want to rewatch and properly finish it. What I did see, was very very strong, though.

-Black Rock Shooter (2010 OVA & 2012 Series): This is another one I wasn't sure I should include, but eh, here we go. Basically, a sort of supernatural psychological slice of life? It alternates between a fairly straightforward school drama, and mysterious glimpses into this almost eldritch other world where monstrous humanoid entities are locked in endless, often rather brutal, combat. As things go on, the two seemingly disconnected stories wind up coming together in interesting ways. Being an older series, the yuri is very much subtexual, but still kind of a core element of the story anyway? It's difficult to explain. The OVA and the Series are basically different takes on the same premise; I favor the OVA as the more subtly-told version, but despite the series getting weirdly melodramatic in places, manages to expand on the concept in some cool ways, so I'd say both are worth watching if it sounds interesting.

(Sidenote, though: Don't confuse BRS 2012 with the more recent series, Black Rock Shooter: Dawn Fall. Dawn Fall is part of the same franchise, but other than some shared characters it's almost completely unrelated, with a wildly different core premise and tone. And while I did like a couple things it did, on the whole I just can't recommend it, especially in comparison to the original but also just kind of in general on its own merits. I'd steer clear of that one unless you're morbidly curious and able to stomache some frankly unnecessarily disturbing content.)

---

-Citrus: Something of a dishonorable mention before we move on to the big ones. Citrus is one I kind of have a lot of mixed feelings on personally, but I still feel like it's worth consideration, at the very least for the historical significance. TLDR; a boisterous gyaru moves to a new school and immediately winds up clashing with the school's repressed killjoy Student Council President, only for it to turn out that thanks to their parents remarrying, the two are now stepsisters. Cue lots of weird sexual tension and a revolving door of side character rival love interests.

A lot of people list the psuedo-incest nature of the two leads' relationship to be the big point against it, but to be perfectly honest, that aspect of it doesn't really bother me; I just didn't care for it because of basically the rest of the writing. There's a lot of what's basically sexual harassment in the manga, that the anime further escalates in adaptation to be as 'steamy' and 'torrid' as possible, and between that and the aforementioned side characters who (almost, there is one big exception and she's another reason I wasn't a fan) all have a more compelling (and respectful) dynamic with one or both of the leads, it failed to really sell me on the central pairing. I hear it does develop in a better direction later on, but that's after I lost patience to keep reading, and the anime basically only covers right up to the point where their interactions stop feeling so... uncomfortable.

At the same time, though, I will admit that Citrus does have its merits. There are a lot of people who do love it, so I'm not really speaking for a crowd here, and while I strongly dislike the student council president stepsister, the gyaru protagonist is a genuinely fun cinnamon roll who did nothing wrong and made what I did read/watch enjoyable despite my complaints. And like I said, I have heard it gets better, if you can get further in the manga.

And if nothing else, we do honestly owe Citrus, because the manga did help make yuri more popular and well-known, and the anime marked the shift from subtext being the only way to imply a relationship between girls, to more recent series being able to show it in full and not downplay the romantic or even sexual elements of a lesbian relationship. So, I guess despite what it took to get there, we probably wouldn't have it nearly as good as we do now without Citrus, so on that merit it is probably worth checking out.

---

And finally, there's my top three recommendations:

-Magirevo (or; The Magical Revolution Of The Reincarnated Princess And The Genius Young Lady): Another recent one, but that I actually was able to sit down and watch through entirely, huzzah! Genre-wise it's kind of a weird one, being technically an Isekai but only barely; the protagonist has vague and fuzzy memories of a past life on earth that do inform her decisions and drive to an extent, but she refreshingly still feels mostly a part of this world she was born and raised in. It also takes a lot of cues in terms of the setting and typical tropes from the traditionally (tragically) more het-oriented Otome/Villainess genre, so without as much familiarity with that, some of the metatextual twists to those formulas that I really enjoyed, may not land the same? But it's still pretty solid even aside from that.

The basic concept there is that the protagonist, a princess in a magically-strong royal family who herself lacks any magical capability, becomes something of a mad scientist in her efforts to find a way to use magic through other means, and abdictates succession to her younger brother. However, over time he begins acting more erratic, until a breaking point is hit when he publically disavows his betrothed fiance. And the princess, who's also a massive lesbian who's long held a crush on said fiance, takes advantage of this to swoop in and drag her into assisting with her experiments.

It's admittedly kind of an uneven series, veering wildly between slice-of-life hijinks and surprisingly in-depth amounts of intrigue, and so the overall tone is a bit messy. The big issue is that its commentary on the flaws of monarchism and royal politics winds up feeling a bit undercut/incomplete, by virtue of being an incomplete adaptation that the LNs and Manga continue past, but I'm still willing to forgive all that, because the romantic development is very strong. While I understand some of the other series above that I have yet to watch or complete also don't have to hide behind subtext like older shows did, this one feels like it really takes advantage of that freedom. Despite the main plot distracting from it at times, on the whole the girls' relationship feels wonderfully central and gets a really good payoff. If you're here for gay with a little extra something on top, this is my recommendation.

-Symphogear: This is a case where I simultaneously really recommend this, while not entirely being sure if it should be on the list. While most of the others I've listed are single-cour and thus pretty quick to blast through, (even if sometimes to their own detriment, more on that later) Symphogear has five seasons' worth of content, with possibly more on the way, (there was a recent announcement of something new coming in a few years, but whether it's a new season, a spinoff, or just some unduly hyped merch or something, is yet unclear.) so is more of an undertaking. It's also a bit more rough around the edges in some spots, so my recommendation does come with disclaimers.

Premise-wise, it's kind of a weird mashup of genres; Magical girls, super robot mecha anime, and idols being the big ones. In a near-future world that's regularly afflicted by incursions from deadly entities called Noise, there are a group of girls wielding Symphogears, music-powered magitech devices that allow them to transform and fight back. However, there's a whole lot more going on beneath the surface, as the mystery of where the Noise are coming from is tied to a web of conspiracy involving alchemists, monsters, enemy symphogear wielders, and ancient sumerian myth.

It's definitely an action show first and foremost, but part of what both makes it interesting (and somewhat difficult to explain conceisely) is the way it evolves over the course of its run. The original season just started out as like, one of the wave of edgy grimdark "being magical girl is suffering" Madoka-clones that came out after Madoka, (so yanno, if you watch it, go in prepared for it to go some dark places) but it fairly quickly found its own identity and direction in being deeply, unapologetically maximalist about everything it does. Maximum edgy darkness! Maximum awesome hype! (And resultingly, maximum weaponized mood whiplash!) Maximum music! Maximum conspiracy! Maximum violence! Maximum comedy! (For better or worse, maximum fanservice!) Maximum gay! Maximum gay drama!

So like, it's just... A Lot,™ for both good and bad, and best taken at a measured pace rather than binged all at once. Also, while it's technically just subtext in its yuri until the last season, as with everything else about the show, it's so blaringly, gleefully unsubtle about that stuff that it may as well be text anyway.

So yanno, I personally like it, I think it's a great show that more people should watch, but I'll also readily admit that while it probably has at least something for everyone, it also probably has something that might turn people away, with either the plentiful fanservice, or the more oppressive grimdarkness of most of the first season being the two biggest concerns. It uh, goes some places. But, all that being said, it's still a pretty great ride on the whole? So if you think you could deal with those aspects, I do think it's worth taking a look, and the payoff is very much worth it.

And finally...

-Bloom Into You: In terms of just pure yuri, this is one of my favorites, and a pretty popular one for good reason. It hits a really nice balance between the chillaxed gentleness of most slice-of-life stuff, and the angst and drama of some other series; I feel like the best word to describe its tone is thoughtful. It's very well-written, and very sweet while still giving more to chew on. (Also helped me realize I was demiromantic, so that's also a point in its favor.)

A girl entering high school has always dreamed of and idealized romance, but after actually getting confessed to and feeling nothing about it, winds up kinda reconsidering and uncertain of what she actually wants. She meets an upperclassman who seems completely disinterested in romance and tries to connect with her over that, only for the upperclassman to fall for her instead; while aknowledging it's unrequited, she regardless asks her to enter a sort of one-way semi-romantic, semi-platonic relationship. As it goes on, and more context comes to light, she starts to realize there's a lot more emotionally complicated stuff going on, that I'll let you find for yourself.

Very very good series, but with one major flaw, that being that the anime only covers the first half of the manga and cuts off before everything can really properly resolve. They did tweak things a bit so the last episode does serve as at least something of a conclusion, but it's still just not quite there. Unless they do a second season to cover the rest, (which at present seems unfortunately unlikely) my recommendation would honestly just be to read the manga on dynasty scans, or watch the show and then read the rest. It is at least a very faithful adaptation, so I don't think you'd be missing too much if you choose the latter route. But yeah, either way, if you only do one thing off this list, this one is what I'd suggest.

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I hope this helped! Went bit overboard here, whoops ^^;

[tisorridalamor]

OC-tober Day 14: Who/What inspired your OCs?

Lots of inspirations for my OCs but it's mostly Oops! All video games!

My Main Girls were initially created during middle / high school, so their inspiration can be almost entirely traced back to what video games I was into at the time. This was mostly JRPGs. Every OC (with the exception of Kama) at one point had their own gaggle of JRPG party members, most of which have been reworked or removed entirely. I could not stop myself from assigning every side character a combat role, deciding they were a healer or a tank or support... Outgrowing this approach to character / story creation has heavily influenced all of my OC's and led to a lot of reworking!

Lark: Appearance and initial story was heavily inspired by Fire Emblem Awakening. Lark is what I named Robin (the player character) and her look is based off of how I styled Robin:

Truly the resemblance is uncanny. And yes, the prince she meets is likewise based off of Chrom 😅 They're both younger than their FE counterparts though and have VERY different personalities now. Putting them side by side makes the comparison obvious to me, but Lark has truly grown into her own and no part of her story really mimics Robin's besides the initial meet cute.

Cadence: So there's a few notes of inspiration in here. Surprise surprise, it's Fire Emblem Awakening again - Cadence was initially based off of Cordelia (hence the red hair) but she's more nervous and less skilled. Actually, when FE 3 Houses came out, I realized that Marianne was far more similar to Cadence than Cordelia! Cadence's "magical girl / superhero" style is closer to Cordelia though, because it's when her hair is down and she becomes more confident. Also, I've always had her theming that of a valkyrie, and in my mind her disguise is similar to the male Valkyrie class in Bravely Default (specifically the helmet and how covers the face for obscuring her identity). Cordelia is a pegasus knight which is similar to a valkyrie, so I wonder if that's how I made the connection between the two?

Cadence used to have other supporting superhero characters (one for each color of the rainbow, Cadence was red of course), but they have been deleted / had their powers revoked. Only two really remain, Cadence's photography friend and love interest Ira (formerly pink) and her old roommate who was based on FE Awakening's Lissa (formerly yellow).

Kama: Kama's story is inspired by genderswapping the opera Turandot, or more specifically the idea of the "ice princess"'s cold heat being melted by that of a special gentleman. I made it far more literal here though, with Kama's prince literally becoming a magic ice man and her getting fire powers to fight / save him. The source for her story being an opera rather than a JRPG means she never had a party of side characters like my other OCs, but it has made coming up with side characters in general a bit harder.

Micha: Micha herself is just a cool knight character that I've gradually made suck more and more (she used to be far more noble), but her setting and many side characters were influenced by the Tales series. Of the "JRPG party" characters I've made I like hers the most and they've stayed to some degree in her story. Going through the party roles quickly, Micha is the tank / damage and protagonist, she has a mentor character who is long range damage / support, a sibling duo of grumpy older brother medic and energetic younger sister heavy damage dealer, and a young musical magic user. Last but not least there's of course the rival character who eventually joins the crew too. Her story no longer supports all of them traveling together in classic JRPG style but they are still present in the world and I'm very fond of them :>

Delta: Delta's first iteration was totally inspired by The World Ends With You, which is also why she's in a modern urban fantasy (or scifi?) kind of setting. All side character's for Delta's story are no more as I've shifted from TWEWY's JRPG style for more of a mystery visual novel focus, which works far better with her character. I am literally always imagining Delta in goofy protag poses from mystery vns.

My dream for her is to carry the torch of "normal but slightly snarky mystery vn protag". I'm so tired of male protags though we need more women protags in mystery vns and if that means I have to do it myself then so be it!!! Also... her name is entirely a homage to the Zero Escape series' Sigma and Phi. It really suites her so I'm glad I tool that inspiration.

GG: GG is really interesting cause her design is inspired by a piece of concept art by an artist I love that I saw when I was younger. The only elements that are the same now are the white hair and the pink dress, and her personality does not fit the original art I remember at all. I think I made her sci fi because I really wanted a sci fi JRPG setting... It was originally another Tales series inspired world too, but GG has become much more of a loner and I don't see her traveling in a party like she used to. Her setting is still being reworked but I'm a lover of spacefaring scifi and have a lot of series I like that I could take inspiration from. Much to consider.