#Kos writes

[otiksimr]

Secretkeeper Drabble

Word count: 881

There’s probably a lot of mistakes in this wa…

——————————————————————————

Secretkeeper had her doubts when she saw the egg, silver and glittery under the moonlight.

Maybe it was just an odd large stone, or maybe it was a rainwing egg that had rolled its way out of its nest. By all accounts she's never actually seen a rainwing egg before, but they had to be bright, right? She had scrounged around the area where she remembered leaving her egg in, no dark, sad gray egg to be found. All paths lead to this shiny silver thing being hers unless a predator snatched the real egg up or some dumb rainwing mistook hers for its own.

And her own instincts have been rather sure that it was hers, or it had just decided that any remotely egg shaped thing was something worth looking after. She had thoughts of this being a mistake, sure she wanted her child to stay away from all the brainwashing back at the island and stay even farther away from the constant looming threat of the volcano. But even so at least Secretkeeper would have the insurance of other nightwings, how at the very least the hatchling in some way would be safe from the outside world. There were at least no predators, or any tribes lingering around at the island.

And the child would have other nightwings there to look after them, they could have friends there. They wouldn’t be lonely.

Secretkeeper pondered and pondered as she held the ‘egg’ in her talons, staring down at it as she was weighing her options. Whether or not she should just keep it here or fly back to the volcano with it, tell everyone the truth and admit to all the lies she had told them. Admit that all the times she went to scavenge around the rainforest she’s actually been checking up on her egg.

But today was the day it would hatch. It wouldn’t be safe to fly around with an egg about to burst open at any second. But it also wouldn’t be safe to leave a little hatchling to be out on their own in a dangerous forest with beasts and other tribe dragons. Especially those little scavengers wrangling about. But they also would be fed all the time with all the little animals and fruit just lying around. They wouldn’t have to constantly worry about a volcano exploding at any second, they wouldn’t have to breathe in smoke for their entire lives. And if they hid well enough they wouldn’t have to worry about any animals snatching them.

The rainforest was far colder and likely more dangerous than the volcano but at least there were ways to work around the danger, there was lava everywhere at the island, and the threat of eruption was constant.

Secretkeeper’s thoughts had been interrupted as she felt the egg move in her talons, cracks forming as slowly but surely the shell split apart. She stared at it, wide eyed and filled with wonder. She’s been to hatchings before, but this one. This was hers.

As it continued to shake and break apart, chirps came out from it. Quiet, small little noises. As the shell continued to crack all around, the little hatchling inside fighting their way out. Secretkeeper continued to stare as the egg hatched in her talons, the cracks continuing to form around the side of the egg.

Until eventually, a little hatchling made its- her way out.

Secretkeeper has seen hatchlings before. They were always the color of rock or smoke, sometimes even lava. Various shades of gray with some red here and there. But out of all those hatchlings, out of all the dragonets of the tribe. She can't think of one that’s had even a single star on them.

Her little hatchling, dark scaled and round, tiny little wings that would flap in earnest as she squeaked up at Secretkeeper. Even with how dark her scales were they had swirls of color in them, most noticeably hues of greens and blues, not unlike a galaxy. Actually, as Secretkeeper glances up at the sky and back down at her hatchling, they looked quite alike. It was as if a piece of the night sky had fallen down.

And the stars, she harbored so many of them. Little specks of silver all across her body. With as much as she’s seen and known, stars were only present on nightwings who’ve ventured outside of the volcano frequently like the ones tasked with surveying the rainforest. But even then, none of them ever had this many. The stars they had were always sparse, few to the point where they would be easy to count in quick succession.

But her little one had so many, a freshly hatched dragonet with so many stars, it was almost mesmerizing to look at. A little galaxy in her talons.

Her little Moon.

[commissions-shop]

Hello! Welcome to the Commissions Shop!

My name is Juice (he/him) from @electricpurrs!

This blog is a project made to share as many commissions posts from artists on Tumblr as possible.

The goal is to create a hub where artists can have their commissions equally shared for visibility, and people seeking to buy art can just scroll for easy access to a wide variety of commissions from tons of different artists!

For now i am going to be reblogging any commissions posts i see on here, and people who have commissions open (or know someone who does) can send them to me through asks or DMs, and I'll reblog them as well.

I want this to be a varied space! All kinds of art are welcome, be it digital art, traditional, writing, plushies, embroidery, adopts, stickers, charms, prints, fursuits and more!

I will work into implementing a tagging system so hopefully posts are easy to navigate, and people looking for specific things can find them easier!

Advice/Suggestions on how to improve are welcome, my inbox will be open for any questions or suggestions, as well as DMs.

UPDATE: Now everyone on tumblr feel free to tag your commissions posts with the tag #commissions shop ! i will be following the tag and adding any posts i see on it to this blog's queue!

[lazer-t]

Great Auk for a $15 Ko-fi supporter

The Great Auk (Pinguinus impennis) is also known as the Penguin. Though the name is contemporarily associated with an unrelated group of flightless birds from the southern hermisphere, these were named penguins by european explorers due to their superficial similarity to the Great Auks they were already familiar with. The Great Auk became extinct in the mid 19th century, and its extinction is believed to have been primarily caused by human exploitation. (x, x, x)

[rs-hawk]

Dragon pinning you down by the throat with their claws and using you as a flesh light. Chuckling at your mewling and whimpering. Telling you how sure they are that you can take more when you cry out it’s too much. Praising and degrading you for each orgasm that shakes your little human form. “That’s my perfect slutty toy. My gorgeous and pathetic human. You’re such a good hole for me.” Pulling out to cover your torso and lower body in cum as a sign of dominance because you do and always will belong to them.

[vapolis]

sneak peek: chapter 006

“Will you ever tell me who got the drop on you?” they ask wearily, the furrow between their brows not easing. They take a step back. And another. Press their back against one of the walls of their backroom, the lights buzzing overhead dim. Just enough to make it possible to blink against the cotton-y feeling in your head. That utter blankness that makes understanding Echo difficult until it clicks and you remember the pain. That ache as it brought you to your knees. It’s absent now, that same pain. That agony that spread outward from your ribs and wouldn’t let you fucking breathe without your vision swimming. Not for the first time, you’re thankful for that utter bliss. That nothingness that has taken over your side; your senses. With a half hearted grin, you murmur, “Should have seen the other guy.”

ko-fi

[avvail]

prompt #103

“How was I supposed to know you loved me?”

The villain raised an arched brow at them in disbelief. “It was obvious.”

“You threw me off a fifteen story building the other week alone.”

“In the name of love.”

[alistair-blackwood]

images saved under folder titled "actual 22-year-old who should have been at the club 😭"

I know there's this idea in fandom that Kabru is already in a place where he's able to easily shoulder others' burdens, or that maybe taking care of someone else would teach him how to better take of himself. I'm sure a huge part of that comes from his fairly utilitarian role in the main story (he doesn't really get the chance to be vulnerable or break down outside of maybe ch 76), but I just don't subscribe to that. If anything, I think it would be excessively easy for him to continue neglecting his own needs if it's for the sake of other people, especially for someone he cares about 👇

I think it's important that, in the end, Kabru isn't the right person to say what Mithrun needs to hear here. The only desires Kabru offers up to Mithrun are Kabru's own desires to help others with their needs; "I want you to live a life that isn't driven by revenge", "I want to help my friend by eating my fill" (as beautifully illustrated by @yuri-puppies here). Mithrun says, "I wanted to die and part of me still does", and Kabru thinks that this is an acceptable thing to feel so long as Mithrun is able to keep his promise and be useful to others. It takes Senshi offering the idea that scraps are useful no matter what that Mithrun is able to finally feel relief. Just look at the difference between,

versus

which I think is a message Mithrun needed to hear as much as Kabru does. All this to say, I hope Kabru is able to get to the point one day where he feels safe and secure enough to put his own wants and needs first, even when it helps no one but himself

[yuesya]

Kusakabe sucks in a sharp breath. Faint pinpricks tingle over his body –not fear, exactly, but something close to it.

In front of him, Zenin Naoya sits boredly atop a bloodied, misshapen figure.

And there’s no mistaking the young man’s gesture as one that’s bored. One foot crossed over a knee, chin resting in the palm of his hand while his elbow is propped up on the side… his body language is one that speaks of unmistakable boredom. Dissatisfaction, as well, with a faint trace of irritation.

Around him, the surrounding buildings have been completely leveled to the ground, and there are sharp chunks of ice scattered everywhere. Ice, and copious splatters of blood.

This didn’t make any sense. This didn’t make any sense at all.

Zenin Naoya was supposed to be dead. So how was he here, alive and well? And perched over Fushiguro Megumi’s corpse, no less?

No–

Not corpse.

Beneath him, Fushiguro Megumi is still alive.

A bloodied arm twitches, broken bones snapping back into place while open lacerations slowly begin closing in on themselves, when in the world did Fushiguro learn how to use reverse cursed technique–

The sword in Zenin’s hand stabs down through the healing limb.

“Man, just give up already,” the not-dead man says. “If you can’t even beat me, then what makes you think that you’re going to stand a snowball’s chance in hell against Toji-sama? … Wait, no, Toji-sama is dead in this world, isn’t he? Fuck. Whatever, still doesn’t mean you stand a chance, so you might as well save yourself the struggle.”

… Toji-sama? No wait, that’s not the most important thing here. Why is Zenin Naoya–

“Arrogant sorcerer, I’m going to–”

Zenin Naoya’s sword slices down into Fushiguro’s cheek, silencing his words in a dark splatter of blood and steel. “Yeah, yeah, you’ll kill me and strangle me with my own intestines or something. Good for you. I’d be happy to do the same once, y’know, you get the fuck out of my nephew’s body. Damn, I bet Shiki-sama could just cut you out of him directly…”

Fushiguro… no, there’s no way that’s Fushiguro. Kusakabe recognizes this terrible cursed energy, the same cursed energy that had been released from Itadori during that fateful night in Shibuya.

Itadori Yuji stumbles over from the side, chips of ice crumbling down from his body. “Who’s Shiki?”

“That’s Zenin-sama to you, kid,” the undead sorcerer responds. “Man, I can’t believe that apparently Zenin Shiki was never even born in this world. Must be why everything’s like this.”

At the utterance of ‘this,’ Zenin Naoya waves a hand towards their surroundings, all rubble and destruction.

“Things wouldn’t have been so bad if Gojo-sensei hadn’t been sealed,” Itadori shakes his head.

“Gojo-sensei?”

“Uh, Gojo Satoru.”

Zenin Naoya snorts. “That wishy-washy, indecisive guy? I’m not surprised he got himself sealed.”

“Hey! You can’t just say that about Gojo-sensei, he–”

“I’ll say what I want: Gojo Satoru doesn’t hold a candle to Shiki-sama.” Zenin Naoya suddenly lifts his gaze, sharp eyes staring directly into Kusakabe’s own with the piercing, authoritative gaze of someone who expects to be obeyed. 

“Oi, you,” he demands, pointing the end of his bloodied sword at Kusakabe. “You’re the backup? Mind telling me why there were a couple of students trying to throw hands with Ryomen Sukuna here on their own?”

[bunny-jpeg]

Hey bunny! Pretty pretty please could Konig serve me a croissant, also some crepes and millet-feuille? Oh and some champagne would be lovely with that 🙏💖✨

the bakery menu

there are still tons of items on the menu! feel free to submit your own! i'm happily accepting requests! as for this one, i am so happy to get a könig request! i always feel like i focus so much on price or ghost that i always forget the mountain of a man. and the prompts are very good as well! i did change croissant a little bit, still the same vibe of a prompt, just switched up the language a little! thank you for the request!

croissant ("i wonder if your father knows what happens during the off hours. if he knows you're here with me.") + crepe ("pretty girl.") + mille-feuille (“that’s it, fuck, that’s a good girl.”) + champagne (sugar daddy) served by könig (call of duty!)

cw: smut/pwp, sugar daddy-adjacent, daddy issues, size kink/difference (it's könig ofc), könig in love, dirty talk, cockwarming that turns into lap sex, unprotected sex

könig never imagined himself with another person. he simply thought that his line of work and his anxiety would scare too many people off. but you were not like most people, where most were scared by the mountain of a man with a few too many facial scars, you saw a helpful boyfriend to help you move your stuff into his apartment.

you were a total go-getter. nothing could stop you, you were brave and kind. most of all sweet and könig thought that he'd die happy in between your thighs. he hated that he had to be gone for so long.

that was where the money came in. he wouldn't call it a sugar daddy situation, that would imply there was no real emotional connection. and there was, you were already pointing out engagment rings when you were out together.

there was a definite strong emotional connection.

könig just wanted to make sure that you were taken care of when he was away. because his time away from you could be a few days or a few months, and he wanted to make sure his little schatzi was alright. yes, yes, yes, he knew you had a career, but a little (read: a lot) extra was what he wanted to give to his darling.

the other issue was your father. he was high up in the chain of command for kortac. which meant that you were off limits, but you honestly didn't care. you were a grown woman. your father agreed through grit teeth when you told him you were moving in with könig. your father couldn't stop you, and at least you wanted to live with someone who could protect you. könig was huge.

despite it all you were a happy couple, könig was in love with you. his precious little flower. he'd do anything to keep you happy. and where he took care of you financially (despite your protests), you took care of him in every other way.

one of those ways was being such a good girl for him. his hand was currently in your hair, made your skull seem small in its grasp. you knew that the 6'10 man probably had crushed someone's skull with his bare hands. but his grip on you was loose, the idea of him hurting you made his skin crawl.

you were softly licking his cock while he watched the football game. originally it was supposed to help you beloved relax after two weeks away on a mission. but it was hard to focus on his beer and the game when your pink tongue was brushed against the underside of his cock.

you were great a lot of things sexually, but you were terrible at cockwarming. anyway you tried to do it, you'd just get too excited and do more than just warm him.

"meine liebe." he said softly, "please."

you looked up at him, his cock pressed against your nose. you said, "sorry, honey. i just can't help myself."

"pretty girl." he said, "such a pretty girl."

you giggled as you gave his heavy balls a kiss, "thank you, my love." but made a small yelp noise when könig picked you up from under the shoulders and got you on his lap. you felt his erection against your clothed pussy.

"i want to feel your pussy." he said, "you look better in my lap then on your knees." his voice was such a hot rumble but it carried such a sweetness to it, you couldn't help but eagerly peel off your sleeping shorts and underwear.

you got in his lap properly, knees on either side of his large thighs and sank onto his cock like you had done a million times. you wrapped your arms around your lover and rested against his broad chest. his cock nudged against the back of your pussy and you felt content.

one of the few things that would calm you down was the heft of your lover's cock snug in your damp pussy. it was a far cry from when you first got together and he wouldn't fit in you.

könig put the beer down on the side table before it tumbled out of his hand. your pussy was a familiar presence for him. the tight fit felt good, "that’s it, fuck, that’s a good girl"

you kissed the scar by his mouth and said softly, "thank you, my love."

he cupped your behind and held you while he continued watching the game. austria was getting their asses kicked but the sensation of you seated in his lap made him honestly not care. usually he was an avid football fan, but to have his sweet girl curled up on him felt good.

you mumbled sweet nothings into his ear. he felt the pleasure grow in his gut which meant that you were getting excited too. you started to roll your hips a little, you impatient little thing.

no wonder, the austrian loved you so much.

"mmm, honey." you whimpered.

"i thought you were meant to warm me?" he chuckled softly as he held you.

you replied, "i can't help it. it feels so good. it makes me want more, more, more!" you were soaked and it drove könig crazy as well. two forces that came together.

"alright, meine liebe. i got you." he kissed the apple of your cheek. such a precious little thing."

the more you got cock-drunk the looser your lips became. it was a good thing you weren't a spy, or else a little pressure on your pussy would have you spilling international secrets!

"i wonder what my father knows what happens in the off time. what you and i do together in this little house." you giggled as you rolled your hips. your nails dug into his shoulders.

he groaned, "meine liebe." he hated being teased, but he didn't want to push you too hard and bruise your cervix. something he had done a few times already.

your thrusts were almost cute, little humps as you kept his cock inside of you. you were a far cry from cockwarming. but your boyfriend could never deny you a single thing. so he placed a hand on your hip and the other on the arm of the sofa and let his precious little flower ride him.

he held you steady as you rode him. his cock pressed against your softest areas and earned sweet little moans. your airy little moans, the wetness between your legs, the heat in your face. he lucked out, whatever god was out there blessed him with his cute little flower.

"please, honey."

"i've got you, meine liebe. my pretty girl." he purred as he knew you were getting close. you didn't last too long, he could tell by the stagger in your thrusts and how desperate your moans were.

he softly rubbed up against you as you rode him. a counter thrust to you erratic movements. you were just so painfully cute like this. you peppered his face with kisses and his heart swelled.

it wouldn't be much longer before you dug your pretty nails into his shoulders and clenched around his cock. you were trying to milk him as you slowed down. you slumped against your lover.

his cock was still painfully hard inside of you, it took him a good while to finish off. but you were out of comission for at least twenty minutes. orgasms hit you fast and hard.

but that was fine, he kept your face against his chest as you calmed down and he then grabbed his beer and took a hearty sip of the drink. he rubbed your soft hair and relaxed.

after the game he'd take you to the bedroom and wring two more orgasms out of you before he shoved all his cum into your sweet cunt. you told him once jokingly that you literally had 0% austrian genes in you, but he thought with the amount of cum in you that number was at least at 5%. <3

[otiksimr]

A Duet, a Solo

Little bird,

Do you hear these songs I play for thee

Each little note

Every strumming of strings

Each and every one of them

Dedicated to you alone

Can you hear them

These string of keys

The responding sound of my heart

This noise dedicated to you

Little bird

Little bird

Silent as you are,

Once more

I long to hear your song

Will there ever be a day

That we will play together again

Little bird.

[venfaaniik]

thank @turtlemurmurs for sponsoring this coffee

[siriuslyobsessedwithfiction]

Zoya Nazyalensky: how to ruin a character

Zoya Nazyalensky was a mean-spirited, vain and ambitious character in Shadow and Bone trilogy. And while I didn't necessarily commend her bullying attitude, she seemed to hold some care for her people, so I was excited for her to get her own duology. To see her grow from a popular girl in school to an actual position of power and overcome hardships that come with it. Except we didn't get to see any of that. Why couldn't Zoya just be her own character instead of making her "the right version" of the Darkling?

Tell, not show

We never get to see actual growth or an actual struggle. We're constantly told she is a good leader, but we don't see it. What we see is Nina developing anxiety because instead of mentoring, Zoya constantly criticized her even at the things she was good at. We see Zoya lose her temper in delicate political situations. We see Adrik and Nina discussing how everyone in the second army was scared of her but also had a crush on her. That's your good leadership? Imagine if the Darkling did that, the fandom would bury him even further. What we see is Zoya abandoning the plan in RoW and going off on her own to fight. That's the general of the army right there. But of course, everything magically works out for her, which brings me to my next point.

Men and the narrative handing her everything on a platter

The crown? Handed to her by her simpering boytoy boyfriend.

The title of a saint? The Darkling shouts "Sankta", which makes people follow up.

Handling the Apparat? The Darkling is the one who shuts him up by making shadows come out of his mouth. It is only after that when Zoya does an unnecessary thunderclap (which used to be the Darkling's thing - "a sound like thunderclap" before the place would plunge into darkness) and orders to seize the Apparat.

Her powers? Given to her by a man after two days of training because he wanted to escape the limbo he was trapped in and she was the only Grisha there. Some chosen one she is. And for some reason, the famously ill-tempered Zoya has no problem with adjusting to immortality, her DNA being rewritten, and two ancient beings constantly living in her head.

Zoya saying "Will you have a Suli Queen?" only to be met with dead silence. There's the moment for her to speak up and put people in their places! And what happens? Some count jumps in to protect her because he has a crush on her. Why? Why is Count Karigan speaking for her?

Yes, it's YA, but the author is not acting or writing like it's not supposed to be taken seriously. And once you've established a universe with certain laws, you can't throw it all to the wind, give the readers a half-baked explanation and say it makes perfect sense. The SoB trilogy showed us how Grisha were not accepted even when they fought the Kings' wars for centuries and a Grisha saint destroyed the Fold. The SoC duology told us that the civil war destroyed the second army and Ravka was bankrupt and collapsing. Since the draft wasn't mandatory, no one wanted to go fight and die for a country that has given them nothing. But suddenly, the nation of Fjerda, who has hated and hunted the Grisha for centuries, is swayed by cheap tricks to worship them as saints and Ravka will be fine because because Zoya becoming a dragon magically solves every problem centuries of diplomacy, servitude and assimilation couldn't solve? Or what, Zoya can flap her wings and burn whoever opposes her? Yeah, 'cause that went so well for the Targaryen dynasty. Speaking of which, LB ripped off Daenerys Targaryen's story: both were child brides, Stormborn - Stormwitch, "If I look back I'm lost" - "Don't look back", the dragon Queen with flocking suitors, etc.

Weird sexualization

Why is being hot an excuse for everything when it comes to her? She constantly tears down everyone, is not a good commander, doesn't inspire or properly guide her subordinates, and yet everyone literally worships her because they had a crush on her. What the actual Sarah J. Maas hell is this? Not one character is constantly described as "perfect" and "elegant", except Zoya. Even when she's just standing, we are told about her "perfect profile in the moonlight". The otkazatsya nobles, who are supposed to see the Grisha as the lesser, who Zoya assures us would never accept "a raven-haired witch", constantly praise her. It's like all the problems, that would actually be problems, only exist in her head, because when it comes down to it, it's solved in half a minute. Not sure what happened, did LB realize she dug herself into too deep of a hole in KoS and quickly solved everything in RoW?

Her being "manipulated" by the Darkling

It's the typical "I thought my crush liked me back but since he doesn't, I now hate him". The Darkling didn't owe her anything. He was a general who travelled all year all across Ravka to protect the borders. Zoya was the one who thought she was the best and wanted to prove herself to him. Nothing wrong with ambition, but how was he supposed to know some young squaller considered him her father figure because of her daddy issues? All he did was not punish her when she screwed up: she took away an opportunity to claim an amplifier from a Grisha who actually deserved it, and marked the cubs she "freed" for death because she got her scent on them and they'd be killed by another tiger. And years later, she still refuses to accept the basic zoology fact and Nikolai supports her delusion. Childish naivety to just point fingers to blame we often see from her.

"When the children misbehaved, he slaughtered them". Majority of the second army was on Darkling's side. He killed like ten Grisha that were on Alina's side. And what otkazat’sya did he kill? Do you mean the soldiers Nikolai used to fight the darkling because for some reason he decided he was the best fit for the throne even though legally he had no right to it? Well neither did the darkling, why couldn't he be the King? Y'know, someone who actually had done things to make Ravka better? Or do you mean the brainwashed actual twelve year olds in Alina's cult she decided to use to fight the Darkling? They declared war on him and he still told her to stop and avoid bloodshed.

"When my aunt was killed by the Darkling" - her aunt wasn't killed by the Darkling, as she often claims. Zoya's aunt was a moron who saw the Fold, a giant wall of shadow moving in her direction, ran towards it and started pushing random people out of the way instead of grabbing her daughter and running in the opposite direction like everyone else was doing. When there's a catastrophe, people evacuate in an as orderly manner as possible. Since when is running into a tsunami considered bravery when you're not even a trained individual? This isn't a matter of bravery or cowardice, it's suicide. And the Darkling moving the Fold to destroy only the area near the docks wasn't a mad power-obsessed move, it was a military action to warn off the enemy countries from attacking Ravka, which they were planning to do and basically already doing with creeping occupation and clashes at the border.

Do the fans even realize that Zoya literally said "He could've told me what he had planned, if I could've warned them..." - I don't know Zoya, your aunt might've still ran towards the Fold. And why would he warn you? Even if you had been his favorite, which you weren't, you literally cracked the most precious Grisha's ribs out of petty jealousy, proving you weren't dependable. If the Darkling had told Zoya about his plan to destroy the docks near Novokribirsk, Zoya would've gladly stayed on his side and would've bragged about how she was his favorite (she wasn't. The Darkling was only close to his otkazatsya guards Oprichniki, and a few heartrenders. He had more important things to do than go around manipulating random young women).

“Where is the shrine to my aunt? To Saint Harshaw? To Sergei or Marie or Fedyor? Who will worship them and light candles in their names?” - All she cares about the Grisha she knew personally. Where are shrines for countless soldiers who died in King's wars? Where are shrines for Grisha who were executed in sham trials after Alina ran from Ravka? Where are shrines for Grisha who had to run from Ravka after the second army collapsed and got snatched up by enemies, like Retvenko, Anya and the Grisha working in the White Rose? Where are shrines for Grisha who were forcefully taken from Ravka because she couldn't do her job as the general? Zoya insulted Sergei, a double traitor, even after his death, but she brings him up when she needs to add names to her hate-list against the Darkling. She treats everyone like dirt when they're alive, but she will plant flowers in her garden after their deaths! Absolutely useless for them, but it makes Zoya look like this deeply compassionate, benevolent commander who grieves every soldier they lose on a personal level. That kind of pointless grand posturing is exactly what a self-absorbed narcissist like Zoya would do. They don't feel empathy, they perform it. (quote from @taragreenfield).

Giving Zoya's flaws to the Darkling and his virtues to her + never acknowledging Zoya's very much remaining flaws

I was flabbergasted when the Darkling being vain suddenly became a thing in KoS duology. Where did that even come from? But no, in SoB trilogy, Zoya was called vain by Alina (because she was), so obviously somehow it had to become his flaw.

The Darkling's good looks were mentioned by Alina and Genya, yes, but we are shown it had no part in making people respect him, and it was established that when he was a boy, he often had to change his appearance in a rough manner to look different in order to survive the witch hunters and amplifier hunters. Poorly dyed hair, shaved head, etc. But in KoS duology, Sankta Elizaveta tells Zoya that he always picked a handsome face when tailored because he was vain. Utter shite. Tailors were extremely rare and he couldn't have been tailored often. He couldn't even been tailored well because Grisha back then couldn't carry around a kit with materials like cells inside. The goal would've been to just become unrecognizable, like Nikolai/Sturmhond. And when he was, how is picking a handsome face when his real face was also handsome a bad thing? What, he had to be ugly and make himself an even more of an outcast during the time when he had nothing?

On the other hand, it was established that Zoya looked down on everyone and used her good looks in her advantage, turned her nose up and called people commoners, peasants and insulted their lack of fine taste, no matter if they were actually peasants or not. Examples: Mal, Adrik, Genya, Alina, Kaz, Jesper, etc. Typical bully rich girl behavior in order to contradict "I'm not like other girls" mindset Alina had because that was trendy when Shadow and Bone came out. However, when LB needed a sad backstory for Zoya, she made her a peasant who couldn't even afford food. So, she was just faking and shaming her own social class for years.

And Zoya never stops being vain. She didn't just destroy the Darkling's rooms, she swung the first hammer, then stopped because she didn't want to break a nail or get callouses. Does that seem like actual self-righteous rage to you? But she did pull away a bunch of Fabrikators from their work in a disbanded army to destroy the rooms entirely and remake it in her taste. In a bankrupt country when they couldn't even afford to buy metal to build weapons to defend themselves against two very well-armed enemy countries! In a bankrupt country where Grisha were being kidnapped off the streets and the people starved, the first thing to do is renovate perfectly intact rooms! What an empowering move! I cannot fucking believe this is canon.

LB hastily making her Suli for diversity points, not for Zoya herself

Zoya was considered white before KoS. Her features: blue eyes, black hair and I quote - "a perfect nose" (did you mean a small straight nose, Leigh? I sure hope not) were mentioned a lot while her skin tone was not. But, every time a character was Suli in the Grisha trilogy, no matter how minor, the text would explicitly state that. Before KoS came out, people were complaining that all three main characters in KoS would be white and upper-class, then LB commissioned Zoya's official fanart to look Suli, and everyone was happy that Zoya was a brown girl. THEN, we find out in Rule of Wolves that Zoya actually looks white and never bothered to say she's Suli, or to learn Suli language or one of its dialects taught in the Little Palace. It's framed as though the Little Palace, where Zoya grew up, was discriminatory towards Suli, when in reality, we only see Alina who was racist and was making fun of Suli accent. It was actually encouraged to learn Suli for missions and we see Marie and Nadia do it. The Little Palace had Grisha from all over the world, including the Suli, so if it was anywhere to feel safe and accepted, it was there. I guess Zoya's mother and some Ravkans being racist really stuck with Zoya and she chose to hide her Suli heritage in order to seem "perfect". But then that's on Zoya too, she had internal prejudices and it should be acknowledged.

Zoya admitting to be Suli could've been done in so many ways. I was so invested when it was revealed she was passing as not Suli. What would her feelings and relationship be to her heritage? Zoya was a proud woman, why didn't she reveal she was half-Suli when she came into the position of power as the general of the second army? Remember when Inej felt uncomfortable with the triumvirate in CK and didn't want to meet them because Ravka hadn't been good to Suli in recent years? Why wasn't that explored? It might be possible that during Nikolai's father's rule, while the Suli were on the Ravkan soil, they were tested for powers and taken to the second army since the draft was mandatory and that's why Inej didn't like them. Because there weren't a lot of Suli left anyway, especially ones who still led the nomad lifestyle. When the mandatory law for Grisha testing and drafting was abolished, what happened to Suli Grisha children? Suli also travel to Shu-Han, where they kidnap Grisha and experiment on them, so they wouldn't have been safe there. Why isn't that acknowledged? Instead, all we get is a promise that Zoya will include the Suli in her version of new Ravka (they were already included), the typical promise every politician makes? It feels like shallow performative progressiveness because it is.

And don't say "it's just YA, we can't expect more complexity", yes we can. If the author brings up an issue and uses it as a plot device, especially an issue that exists in the real world and has affected people, the readers are owed more than that. Naomi Novik's YA fantasy book The Spinning Silver executes the prejudices and marginalization a Jewish main character faces in a country based on Slavic countries masterfully. Even LB did better than herself in SoC duology with Inej. So we know she can do it, she just didn't bother.

And the grand reveal of Zoya admitting she's Suli was so awful. That scene where Zoya apologizes in Suli to the Suli in Kerch? Everyone acts so surprised when she struggles through a few words. Nikolai's jaw drops "How do you know these words?" as if he himself isn't currently learning Zemeni and doesn't know that every language was taught very well in the Little Palace to the point where you can speak like a native. But Zoya saying a sentence is sensational how, exactly? And why would the Suli believe Zoya? A man literally tells her she speaks Suli like a tax collector. These are the people who had to travel and stay extra careful because Kerch exploits Suli. They should know that even if someone speaks perfect Suli, they could be a Ravkan spy or someone indentured by Kerch. It could be a trap, a scam, a human trafficking attempt, etc. But no, they accept her with open arms because Kaz somehow knew they would because Kaz is all-knowing. It's an incredibly cheap execution. Yes, Suli don't forget one of their own but they also forsake one of their own if they plan to have a part in harming them. We learnt that from Inej. There are a thousand ways the reveal could've been done better.

But guess what was erased? The Darkling's Suli and Shu heritage. He is canonically Shu-passing and can speak the language fluently. His half-sister Ulla looks Suli in her human form (her skin is greenish grey in mermaid form). The mermaids/the sildroher in Grishaverse all have white skin and the ones Ulla is surrounded by, including her sildroher father, have white skin in human form too. Ulla's mother, Baghra, is described to have dark hair and dark eyes. Since the Darkling has pale skin and grey eyes, it must've come from his father while the dark hair came from his mother - Baghra. And since Ulla looks Suli with dark hair, dark eyes and "burnished bronze" skin, it must've come from her mother. So, the Darkling's mother Baghra clearly has Suli heritage, and we know that she often travelled with them in the past.

In conclusion, Zoya's character is one big wasted potential, and a lesson to discard responsibility and taking accountability in life, which sends the wrong message.

[rs-hawk]

Farmer Minotaur

Want to read the full story? Check out all 1k+ words and smutty details on Ko-fi or Patreon

He is so burly and strong. His dark eyes track you across the farmer’s market that the town holds in the old town square that’s now just an empty lot. You smile and wave, just like you do every time you two make eye contact. He waves back, one hand almost as large as your face.

Over the new few weekends, he starts calling you over, offering for you to sample his vegetables and fruits. A bite of the ripest tomato you’ve ever had here. The crispest apple you’ve ever bitten into there. Soon enough you find yourself getting there early to help him set up just so you can snag a snack or two, which he is always happy to give.

One weekend, the farmer’s market gets rained out, but you didn’t have his number so you decide to wait at the parking lot anyway, going to at least see him. You’re mentally cursing yourself for waiting to let him make the first move because this was supposed to be the last market for a few months since starting next week, the weather was predicted to be not only wet, but cold, and Southerns don’t do cold.

You play on your phone as you wait, the light from the small screen and your headlights being the only thing to really light up the gravel parking lot. After a few minutes, a familiar truck pulls up along side you. Seeing the familiar outline sitting in the truck that just pulled up, a smile splits your face when you see the horns in the outline.

Despite the rain, you hop out of your car, grabbing an umbrella to help shield you from the onslaught of the really winter thunderstorm. When he sees you rushing around to the passenger side of his truck, he chuckles, unlocking the door so you can crawl in.

“Hey,” you grin as you climb in, tossing the wet umbrella in the floorboards.

“Hey you. Wasn’t sure you’d really turn up with how it’s lookin’ out there,” he chuckles again, his Southern drawl making the smile on your face widen.

(God((s)) above and Lord((s)) Almighty, as a Texan I would do anything for him)

[vapolis]

sneak peek: chapter 006

You’ve been there before. Pretended to be someone you’re not. Blended it, vest itching at the collar despite the fit. Your reflection is blurry across the grimy metal of the tray but you catch the edges of a young face staring back at you. Blue eyes. Dark hair. Skin so pale he must have never even thought to see the sun rising beyond Vapolis. Or couldn’t afford to.

patreon. ko-fi.

[monstersholygrail]

Do you make money every time you use the words "gummy walls" in your (amazing btw) stories

Would this be considered a backhanded compliment?

Genuinely don’t know how to take this

But if you’d like me to use something else you can surely pay me to do that instead. I take commissions <3

[fir-fireweed]

Would you ever consider doing RO POV's of some of the one on one scenes? I love your characters and would love a chance to peer into their thoughts

Hello! I have considered them, but if I do they’d be paywalled content behind a Ko-Fi subscription. I’ve actually written a couple of POV moments already, but finding the time to write the IF itself, much less extra content, is difficult.

Having different POVs in IFs breaks the immersion for me, so it’s not something I’d ever introduce in story.

I do appreciate that you enjoy these characters enough to ask, thank you!