#Love how half of my thoughts are in the tags now lmao I'm not sure if I should take them out of here and place them in the actual post🥸

[anerdynerd]

I do wonder what Jericho and generally any android that has ever worshipped/followed/looked up to Markus would react like, finding out that he has had to kill fellow dying androids and rip them of their compatible parts at the scrapyard in order to walk the Earth again

Those were difficult circumstances, so I wonder: Would they blame him? Would they not be able to see him the same again? Or do they empathize and know/think that they would do exactly the same to survive? Do they maybe even know about the whole thing already? Did someone start telling the story of how Markus came back from the dead? Or do they sense it somehow? Has he talked about it to his close friends? Does he think about it? Or was it easy for him to move on because he knows it was the only way? Is that part of why he took on this role of helping all androids? To make up for it? Or does he 100% believe that it was justified?

[demonvampire180writes]

rules: you will be given a word. then you share one sentence/excerpt from your wip(s) that starts with each letter of your word!

I actually had two of these. I was tagged by @jamieroyjamieroy AND @fairytalegonewronga03

This is gonna be tough, I'm not even gonna lie lol I don't have a lot going on in terms of WIP's right now lmao 🙃

First word:

CARDS:

C:

 Courtney wasn’t known for his sense of humor, and he certainly wasn’t known to laugh for seemingly no reason. Courtney waved him off, took another sip of his… coffee… and regretted it. He set it aside and decided he’d dump it down the nearest drain when Tieg wasn’t looking. He didn’t want to offend his one friend.

A:

“Alright, Jee. You’re going to hang out with Uncle Buck today, okay? He’s kind of sad so it’ll be your job to cheer him up.” Her mommy told her, smiling down at Jee as she smoothed her hair back. “Daddy and I are going to go do some shopping, so we’ll be gone for a few hours. Do you think you can take care of your uncle for me?”

R:

 Researchers did say the seemingly harmless white substance could be just as addictive in large quantities.

D:

Dmitri chuckled low, and throaty before nipping the cartilage of Courtney’s ear hard enough that he yelped before righting himself and bringing his hands down to the man's hips which were angled just right. “If you beg, maybe I’ll let you. Can you do that for me Courtney? Can you beg me to fuck your slutty hole until you can’t even walk straight?”

S:

Sighing, Buck eventually lamented, “I’m going to get the dishes cleaned up. Why don’t you go turn on a movie or something while I finish?” Tommy gave him a cheshire grin at those words and once again his body lit up like a firework, his cock hardening behind his zipper. “Fuck, Tommy. Don’t look at me like that. I need to clean up.”

(I 100% am having to borrow from some of my original WIP's because I apparently don't have a lot of variation at the beginning of my sentences. 🥴)

Second Word:

TOMMY:

T:

Tommy told Buck about the Mustang he’d been working on restoring after buying it dirt cheap. It had been in complete shambles, more parts missing than there, but Tommy was bringing it back to life.

O:

...once again his body lit up like a firework, his cock hardening behind his zipper. “Fuck, Tommy. Don’t look at me like that. I need to clean up.” (Is it cheating to begin mid sentence? 😅)

M:

Maddie chuckled, sounding wet, as she replied, “No, Jee. I think he liked us very much, especially your Uncle Buck.” She took a heaving breath and bundled Jee into her chest. “Sometimes things happen when you grow up and you can’t be together, even if you love each other.”

M:

Mommy didn’t answer, choosing to instead kiss the top of her hair before burying her nose in it. Jee thought she could feel something wet but she wasn’t sure. Since it wasn’t raining, and she wasn’t in the bath, how could her hair get wet?

Y:

“Yes, Evan?” The big man purred, nosing along his jaw to his ear where he grabbed onto the sensitive lobe and gave a gentle tug before licking along the outer shell. Buck couldn’t help the shudder that worked down his spine in response. His half hard cock was getting more and more interested, and the dishes were becoming less and less of a present concern.

This was hard and y'all are mean.

No pressure tag, and sorry if you don't want me tagging you:

@cull3nblaze , @chimneyz , @silversky9

Your word is INFINITE

[strangeharpy]

Fanfic Writer Interview Meme

Tagged by @redtailedhawk90 <3

How many works do you have on AO3?

I currently have 83, though that's about to go up by the end of this week... :3c

What's your total AO3 word count?

449,334. Jesus, almost half a million.

Your top 5 stories by kudos:

Out of This City - TAZ - an Angus character study.

nothing's changed since the witching days - 3rd Life - some fraught Scarian.

part-time soulmate, full-time problem - 3rd Life/Hermitcraft - Written with @lotsadeer, just some fun Mumscarian Mumbo angst.

Indelible Ink - TAZ - my Johnchurch soulmate AU.

Once, We Were Gods - Homestuck - a very old, very abandoned Beta OT4 fic.

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I got really overwhelmed trying to respond to every comment and ended up not responding to a bunch and now it feels awkward so I just don't respond and I feel bad about it. >.<

Do you write crossovers?

Technically yes? I mean, the Life Series and Hermitcraft are two things I often pull into each other, and I've written some crossover stuff for gift exchanges, but I'm more of an AU girlie (gender neutral) most of the time.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do, and it tends to vary a lot. I think most of the smut I've written has been Cass/AuDy though lmao

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not that I'm aware of, though part of me wants to try translating something into German just to see if I could manage it.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I sure have! Co-writing is so fun and I want to do it more.

What's your all-time favourite ship?

Cass/AuDy is the ship that taught me what an OTP really IS. Like, I've had ships that I enjoyed and I thought they were OTPs, but no. Cass/AuDy will be with me forever, even as I kind of drift away from being as involved in the FatT fandom.

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I don't know that I'll ever finish Arranged Candidacy AU. It's just too big and ambitious and I love the concept but I don't think I have it in me to do it justice.

What are your writing strengths?

I've been told my character voices are good. A comment I got that I think about when I feel bad about writing involves the phrase "(disgraced Merle Highchurch creator Clint McElroy gives up. "Yes, harpydora is the Merle person now")."

What are your writing weaknesses?

Pacing. >.<

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

I have a very silly idea for some musical!Beetlejuice/adult Lydia fluff that I want to write for Danielle. I just have to clear my plate first.

What's your favourite fic that you've written?

light up the way, hands down. It is still in the top five longest things I've ever written, and I frequently go back to it because I'm still pretty happy with all the character beats. It was so self-indulgent.

Tagging: Anyone who wants to do this too! Tag me so I can read it!

[wurmzirkus]

twenty questions for fic writers

@raylangivins tagged me in this!! TWICE! thank you sm and thanks for waiting so long, i love you

How many works do you have on ao3?

48! wow time passes quick

What’s your total word count?

354.554

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

unprofessional (432)

we are the next time around (312)

comet (159)

harder to hide than i thought (156)

prove it (112)

half of these i dont really wanna look at anymore lmaooo

Do you respond to comments? Why/why not?

i havent in a while but i DO! bro its the least i can do, getting comments is the nicest thing. i really love nerding about writing thoughts when they get a little longer...... imperial-evolution if youre reading this your comments mean everything to me

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

trying to figure out if there's something more angsty than those fics that just play with w359's canon ending. probably the kepler phonecall one.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

probably the kiradax fic i wrote that one time?? i really don't write many happy endings. the kepcobiwell timeloop had a pretty much perfect ending but like, the absolute trauma of it all puts a bit of a damper on it maybe

Do you write crossovers?

the last crossover i've written was in probably 2013/2014? which was a fic i wrote using my friends' and my ocs for their specific eyes only. the fandoms that i crossed over were uh. soul eater and the arthuriana. twas a jolly good time

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

nah, just one of those "ai content detected ☝️���" trolls

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

ive tried many many times. im bad at it! experience has shown im much better at erotic poems than prose :/

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

nnnnnno? most likely not

Have you ever had a fic translated?

nah

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

YEAH nammikisulora and i wrote the sequel of one of my fics together. it was soooo much fun, she's such a clever writer. as always, if you like kepcobi and youre not reading her fics.... what the hell are you doing

What's your all-time favourite ship?

i dont think i can indefinitely answer in an All Time way, but kepcobiwell sure did mean a lot to me. i havent written in a very long time and there probably wont be much of them from me in the future, but man. theyre something special

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

there was one kepwell fic i've been working on for i thiiiink over a year now, maybe longer. just the last sequence was missing which inclued kepler watching maxwell maim a guy and enjoying it wayyyy too much. i don't think it's happening but man. sure was a sexy image

and this is more of a wip than an idea, but i'm really sad i probably don't have it in me to write the wolf 359/severance crossover with kep undergoing severance... mo i think you and cherish and i were the ones talking about it agesssssss ago, and i think it would have been so good. alas alas.

What are your writing strengths?

i've been told i'm pretty good at writing intimacy and longing, and i think i'm good at putting multiple layers into characters' action and thoughts if that makes sense. also dialogue

What are your writing weaknesses?

ACTION................... terrible. i'm an all vibes no plot kinda writer :/

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

i've literally never thought about it before. is this a big thing people do? i guess it depends on the context lmao?

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

first fandom i published on ao3 for was detroit become human, first fandom i ever wrote for.... well i wrote plants vs zombies fic when i was 10 or so, i think that counts

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

it's very rare that i get invested enough in something to actually write fic, so it's probably not going to happen again for a long ass while. it's been lots of arcane brainworms lately though. i really wanna write about sevika, i just don't think i could get the characterisation right very well. however. she's on my mind

What's your favourite fic you've written?

i dont know about favorite, but man i'm really really really proud of the comet sequel i finished + posted this year. i did so many things in there i was so pleased with, i could talk about it for so long. i think i really gave every character an interesting little arc to go through, i think i handled the emotional stakes of it really well. i watched the thing kinda go completely off the planning rails while i was writing and just, kept getting more and more excited about where it was going. and i was really unsure about how to wrap it up for a long time, so now i'm especially proud of the end. i think the final chapter is some of the most impactful fic i've ever written. just really happy with it all around :')

mo this was so much fun thank you for tagging me!! i shall tag @agentmika, @imperial-evolution, @unsureprincess, and anyone that would like to give this a go!!

[the-cult-of-russo]

Such a Softer Sin (Part 1)

Pairing: Billy Russo x Reader

Warnings: I’m not specifically tagging this one, if you’ve seen the show, nothing will shock you. Smut will happen eventually so minors DNI, thanks.

A/N: I’m back with a new story, bitches!!!! Loooool This is the story I’ve been working so hard on.

A few words on this one. First off, I’m not an expert in writing for this genre or trope or whatever but I’m also choosing to do whatever the hell I want. I know there can be some rules when it comes to this subject and I’ve gone with the flow and picked and chose what I wanted. If you’re some kind of connoisseur for this kinda literature, don’t come at me telling me I did it wrong. It’s a piece of fiction and I’m just having fun here lmao

Also, this story isn't set in a specific era, it’s more of a different reality kinda thing. So some things seem modern, others more primitive etc and this is on purpose. I wasn’t thinking about like time and era and all that with this one, I created a whole new thing for the story. 

With that, I hope you enjoy this one!!!

Title is from the song I Caught Fire by The Used

Seemed to stop my breath

My head on your chest waiting to cave in

From the bottom of my

Hear your voice again

Could we dim the sun and wonder where we've been?

Maybe you and me, so kiss me like you did

My heart stopped beating, such a softer sin

In your eyes, I lost my place

Could stay a while

And I'm melting

In your eyes like my first time

That I caught fire

Just stay with me, lay with me now

—-----

Billy looked off over the balcony to the mountains with a heavy sigh. The weight of the world was a hard burden to bear, but it was his and it would be until he had a child. Every King needs a Queen in order to have an heir, the only problem was that he hadn't yet found his Queen. Billy was the King to the wolves, but he was more than that by blood. He was a Demigod, the only remaining Lycan on earth. He was strong and fierce, he was the one who was placed in charge of every wolf around the globe. He was well respected and revered, but at the same time he was feared. He could be ruthless when he needed to be and he had to make sure no one ever thought about crossing him. At times he appeared cold but he was always just. It wasn’t easy being a King to an entire species like this, he had to keep the fear alive to make sure they all stayed in line. He wasn't the King to the other species, but the humans and witches still viewed him as royalty and respected him. The vampires however were a different story. The war between the wolves and vampires had been over for almost a century now, but he knew it wouldn't last. He could taste the impending war once more on the tip of his tongue. He knew it was only a matter of time. He looked in his 30s but in reality he was older, much older. He couldn't even remember how long he had roamed the earth but it was enough to witness grand changes throughout the ages. But now in the present, he still had no Queen. 

Even as a Demigod and Lycan, he was still technically a wolf. He had the same instincts, the same everything but on a grander scale. That meant he couldn't just pick anyone to be his Queen or just anyone to give him the son he desperately needed. He had to wait for his mate, and oh how he waited. He had been patient at first. He had scoured the world countless times in hopes he would find her, yet he still hadn't. He had no idea why his mother was torturing him this way, making him wait for the love he desperately needed. He watched in envy as his Beta and those around him found their mates. He watched with a dull ache in his chest as they found their other half of their soul whilst his was still ripped in two. He’d often think about her. Her face was always blurry, the only thing he knew for certain being the color of her hair. He would think about meeting her, mating her. He’d think about making her his Queen, her giving him a son. An heir. Once his son would be of age he could take a step back from all of this. He wouldn't have the weight of the world on his shoulders anymore as his birthright would be complete. His son would take the reins but he would be there every step of the way to guide him. To ease the burden that he knew was so heavy. 

Over the centuries, he’d given up hope for his mate. He knew he had one but he didn't know just when his mother would gift her to him. After they mated she would become immortal like him. Just like his Beta and Gamma and their mates. She would forever be by his side, they would have a happy life and he would spoil her with love. But now he felt hollow and cold. With each passing year, he found himself getting colder and more angry. He couldn't hope anymore, he couldn't dream of the life he craved more than anything. It was easier to think he would never find her because then he wouldn't keep getting his heart broken. It was hard having a Goddess for a mother, she hadn’t even been the one to raise him. He’d been raised by High Priestesses of Selene who had ensured he knew what he was and what his role in all of this was. Ensured he became the rightful ruler of the wolves. He loved his mother despite never meeting her but it was hard. He never knew who his father was and his mother was absent. He felt a deep loneliness gnawing at his soul that he couldn't shake but he knew it would leave once he got his mate. He knew his mother would let him have her when it was time. Despite the great pain her torment was bringing, he trusted his mother blindly. 

He kept up his pretense to the outside world. Attending meetings and balls between the wolves, humans and witches. The humans would watch him lustfully, in awe. His presence would make them feel his power although they didn't understand it the same way wolves did. The wolves would bow their heads in reverence to the Demigod King. He was the Alpha of Alphas, The Son of the Moon Goddess. Wolves would come far and wide to plead for his help, for his direct contact to his mother. It made him think of the Pope. Some of these wolves treated him that way and he hated when he couldn't accept their requests. Some things he could grant them, others he couldn’t. He wasn't in the business of tampering with fate and if his mother wanted something so, then it would be done. No matter what it was. 

He took a long chug of his brandy, not that it did anything. He couldn't get drunk. It would take a hell of a lot to get him there and even if he did reach that state, it would be gone in minutes with his metabolism. Still, he found it soothing as it burned down his throat. As he watched the view, he couldn't help but think of his mate even though he tried to fight it. He wondered what color her eyes were, if her hair was truly like his mind always showed him. He wondered how tall she would be, what her skin type was. None of it really mattered, he’d love her no matter what, but he wanted to know. He wanted to hold her in his arms, to feel that electricity flow between them as their wolves recognised one another. He wanted to be consumed by her and to drown in her. He wanted to give her everything. He would rip out his beating heart and offer it to her as a sacrifice if that's what she wanted. He just fucking wanted her. 

His wolf howled in pain in his mind, a sharp ache ripping into his chest. His wolf needed her badly, he was getting restless. As much as he hated it, he often found solace in another's arms. He never remembered their names or faces. It happened at gatherings when the women fawned all over him, both humans and wolves. His body still had urges and his wolf was getting harder and harder to control with each passing year without his other half, so he sated his carnal urges with women he cared nothing for. He would always be disgusted with himself afterwards. His wolf would snarl and growl at him, sometimes retreating altogether for days. He felt vile, knowing how he had betrayed his mate already and he hadn’t even met her, but when he felt this restless, it wasn’t something he could control. He knew if he didn’t sate himself his wolf would break free. It had been a long while since his wolf had full control. He was deadly to everyone in that form and he usually tried to lock his wolf inside of him unless there was some kind of war and he needed to unleash it. But he hated the feeling the morning after. Dirty. Broken. Guilty. Maybe that’s why his mother had refused him his mate. He was already unfaithful to her, he didn’t deserve her. He didn’t know if she would have slept with someone else and he growled low in his throat at the mere thought. He was a hypocrite. He slept around like a whore yet if his mate had even been touched by another he’d find who it was and rip their head clean off their shoulders. Another chug of the liquid slid down his throat and he focused on the burning sensation. What would she think of him? It wouldn’t be hard for her to know what he had done, he was royalty and people loved to gossip. There was plenty of talk of him and other women. All nameless. Meaningless. Would she reject him when she found out? He knew it would be his own fault if she did, but he also knew just what happened when a mate rejected you and just because he was stronger didn't mean he was exempt from it. If anything it would be tenfold. When a wolf rejects the sacred bond his mother had bestowed on them it would cause them both great pain. So much so that they would either slip into insanity or die. 

He leant his forearms on the railing as he inhaled a deep breath. His mind never stopped, he was always busy. Once again, the weight of the world heavy on him. He just needed his mate to make things better. He’d been alone for so fucking long and it was hurting him so much. He heard the sliding doors behind him but didn't bother looking as he drank some more brandy. He knew from the scent who it was already.

“Come on, Bill, you need to rest. You’ll find her when the time’s right,” Frank said softly as he rested his hand on his shoulder. Frank was his Beta and his best friend. He was ruthless when he needed to be and loyal, but to those he cared for, he was a gentle soul. Billy didn't know how he’d cope without him. Frank had found his first mate a long time ago and she had been human. It wasn’t common but not unheard of either and he honestly didn’t know just why his mother had done it. But Frank had gone on to have two kids with his mate, Maria. He’d loved that family like they were his own, felt their loss as his own once they were gone too. He’d tried hard to comfort his friend after what happened as much as he could but they’d still never been able to get the revenge they needed. Luckily for Frank, Karen came along. Billy had brought her in to help, she was a witch. It was obvious to Billy that they started developing feelings for one another and shockingly enough, it turned out they were mates. Second mates rarely happened and never a witch and wolf pairing. But his mother had told him that it was to help, that Frank was important to him and Frank’s pain was his pain. She’d given Frank a second mate as a gift. Billy would admit that a more selfish part of him, the cold and bitter part of him, longed for the days where he wasn’t the only one alone. Deep down he was happy for Frank but it didn’t ease the sting of knowing his best friend had two mates and he had still yet to meet his own. He always tried to push down those treacherous thoughts when they popped up though. He knew it was unfair and Frank deserved to be happy. 

He turned around and nodded, knowing it was useless to keep thinking about it. He followed his Beta inside to his large room and Frank left him knowing he wanted peace as he sat on the bed for a moment. It was late now. The sky was deep blue, alight from the many stars and the moon. His wolf was yapping at him so he decided he’d go for a run. The guards would always plead with him not to, or to at least let them tail him. They were concerned for his safety but it was futile. He was far stronger than anything that he may come across. He liked to run at night when people weren't watching his every move, when he could just try and free himself and let his wolf have some comfort. He stood and went over to his closet, picking up his work out clothes that he had specially made for him. Something less restrictive than his usual ensemble. Everyone had their uniform of sorts in the castle and he was no different. His usual clothes consisted of deep maroon or black pants, leather boots, a white tunic and his cream and gold jacket with the royal crest on it. If it was cold he’d also wear his furs. His Beta and Gamma had clothes similar to him, the only difference being that their jackets weren't cream and gold, they were cream and black. His elite warriors wore black and red, the staff around the castle wore white and red and the guards wore all black. He didn't like to go around looking too different to everyone else and he sure as hell didn't have a crown on his head. Anyone who didn’t know him and didn't know how the uniforms worked in the castle wouldn't have any clue just who he was and he liked it that way.

He didn't look like a Demigod or King, he looked almost human to the naked eye. His power contained within him. His dark hair was shorter on the sides and longer on top, slicked back out of the way. He had grown out his facial hair just a little and it left him looking more rugged. He looked after his appearance because he liked to, not just because it was expected of him, but he was a King after all and there were certain expectations he was held to. No one would take seriously a King that looked disheveled. All of the women seemed to go wild over his appearance, not that he cared. He did care what his mate would think of him though. He’d never had a relationship and he wouldn't until he found his other half. He never even went back to the same girl twice no matter how persistent they were. He was attractive, he was made to be so. But he also knew it was his power and status that lured in the she-wolves and human women.

He left his room and jogged down the steps. The guard gave him a look but he growled and they bowed their heads, not bothering to ask him knowing he would tell them no. They may have worried for his safety but he was their superior and they had to obey his orders. As he stepped outside, he let the chill of the air soothe his wolf, breathing in the fresh air and relaxing. It was cold but he didn't need layers since his body was like a furnace. Usually, he would run in the vast land that surrounded his castle. He wasn't the only one to live there, his right-hand men did too with their mates. Billy had the whole top floor to himself while the others had the floor below. Then the dining hall and common rooms were on the second floor and the grand entrance and bar on the first, along with the ballroom that he held parties when he needed to. In his grounds he had a large training and weapons center, there were lots of smaller buildings too that housed the staff and the warriors that his Gamma and Beta trained. Some packs sent him their warriors to be trained by the best. He owned all the land around it which was covered with woodland that his wolf adored. The parameter was secured all the way around with a high fence, it was enough to keep things out but guards still did parameter sweeps every hour. The only way in and out of the place was the towering gates at the front. Those too were manned by at least four of his guards at all times.

He started his run as he always did, he always ran the edge of the fence first, effectively doing his own security check at the same time. He let his wolf come to the surface, letting the run soothe him and his restlessness. He couldn't shift and let him take over. He couldn't risk it, not again. The beast inside of him was not something he could control and he wasn't about to put everyone at risk. He could however let him come to the surface and enjoy the moment together, trying to forget about the empty loneliness that gnawed on him from the inside out. He’d been out there for less than an hour when he felt Frank pushing into his mind. 

‘Bill, we got a problem,’ Frank mind-linked him. Billy rolled his eyes as he stopped, catching his breath.

‘What is it?’ he asked back, wiping his sweaty brow with his shirt. He started back to the castle as he waited for a reply.

‘We found a rogue lurkin’ around the fence, the guards brought him in. He's detained in a cell. The thing is… he smells like vamps. Like he's been stayin’ with ‘em,’ Frank's words made Billy stop, his brow furrowing. A fucking rogue with vampires? That was never good. Rogues were a real problem and one Billy never had the patience for. They were a sore spot for him, and as just and merciful as he liked to say he was, when it came to rogues, his ruthlessness and coldness came out full force after what they took from him. The fact there was a rogue that was somehow involved with the vampires he knew they were on the brink of war with, well that spelled trouble. He needed to get information out of the rogue.

‘I’m on my way,’ Billy mind-linked, taking off and running back to the castle.

As he walked inside, Frank and his Gamma Curtis were waiting for him. Curtis was dressed haphazardly, whereas Frank was just in his sleep pants, his short hair stuck up every which way. Billy’s lips twitched up slightly at the sight of them despite the feelings he was having. He knew he needed to calm himself before he went and saw the rogue or he’d never get any information out of him. He’d end up ripping his heart right out of his chest. He couldn't help it though. Frank had mostly gotten over his issues with rogues, knowing in reality, they weren’t the real reason his family was gone. They had simply been a pawn in a much larger game. He’d gotten through his issues by taking out the rogues who had a hand in what happened and it seemed to be enough for him, at least when it came to the rogue part of it all. Billy struggled to get over it though, struggling to see past it all. It would just be a glaring reminder of what he lost, what he failed to protect. They stayed silent as they all made their way down into the dungeons. They didn't need to say anything to know how he was feeling. When the pair had sworn their loyalty to Billy, in order to become his Beta and Gamma and to become immortal like Billy was, they had to do a ritual. A blood bond. They all felt the other’s emotions and with Billy being as strong and old as he was, his emotions were almost amplified compared to theirs. They felt his overwhelming grief and guilt. His blinding pain and anger at the split second he thought of the ones he’d lost. They knew all too well how the pain still haunted the King even if he never spoke about it. Losing his surrogate family all those years ago was something he still couldn't bring himself to talk about but the two men knew it still ate away at him, which is why they were always on hand whenever Billy had to deal with a rogue. They had to make sure Billy didn't lose it and shift. That wasn't good for anyone. 

When they walked through, the putrid smell of piss and vomit floated through the air as they passed the cells. As sad as it was, the smell no longer affected Billy, it wasn't his first rodeo being down here. He could hear the sound of chains being tugged on and snarls as he walked over to where two guards were standing in front of a cell. The guards bowed their heads to him and moved away, letting Billy and his two right hand men look through the bars. A man who looked to be in his 30’s was chained up with silver, growling and snarling. Billy tilted his head as he watched him, catching the man's eyes. It only seemed to make the man thrash more and a wicked smirk spread on Billy’s face.

“Stop fighting,” Billy’s voice was eerily calm yet still more dominant than any other Alpha on the planet. And despite the fact this rogue held no loyalty for the King, his wolf forced him to submit as his body went lax and he glared at Billy. It only made Billy’s smirk widen.

“What are you doin’ with the vampires, rogue?” Billy asked carefully through the bars. The rogue just laughed, the sound empty and devoid of any real happiness and it made the hair on the back of Billy’s neck prickle up. He felt his annoyance growing, his wolf snarling and snapping in his mind. Frank’s hand on the back of his neck grounded him, soothing his wolf and bringing him back to a decent state of mind. He knew it was fucked up that Frank was the one comforting him here after it was Frank’s family that got killed but he couldn’t help it. He felt far too deeply and far too much and he loathed it.

Curtis unlocked the cell and Billy stepped inside flanked by both men. It was an unspoken rule but both Frank and Curtis had well capped syringes of tranquilizer laced with wolfsbane in their pockets. It was part of their job to always have one with them as well as the guards. It wasn't for this rogue, it was for Billy. If he started to shift they were on firm orders to sedate him. Neither of them wanted history to repeat itself and it had been hard enough trying to fix the mess the last time Billy had shifted involuntarily almost a hundred years ago. Knowing the boys would have his back like that gave him some peace of mind. He took a few steps towards the rogue and the rogue spat at his feet as a show of disrespect. It didn't phase Billy one bit but he heard Frank growling at him in contempt for disrespecting his King.

“You're gonna to tell me what the vamps are plannin’ and how the rogues are involved,” Billy stated carefully. Not a question but a statement, because he knew the man would. 

“I won't tell you shit,” the man growled. Billy smirked to himself, pushing out his Alpha aura so much that even Frank and Curtis bowed their heads in submission. The rogue lowered his head, his whole body tense, clearly not liking having no control over his actions.

“That’s funny. Let's see if you still say that in an hour, pain can be a really useful motivator,” Billy grinned eerily, not missing how the rogue’s body tensed up even more. 

Billy wouldn't be the one to extract the information himself. He couldn't trust himself or his wolf not to go too far in those circumstances, no matter how badly he’d love to rip into this insolent little wolf. That was what his men were for. More specifically, Frank and Curtis had a good thing going on when they teamed up, almost like a good cop bad cop routine. Billy took a few steps back, relishing in the fear he could smell from the wolf in chains. He turned to leave the cell and glanced at his Beta and Gamma.

“Do whatever necessary to get him to spill. I don't want him dead until he tells us everythin’ he knows,” he ordered firmly. They both nodded and Curtis stepped out of the cell with him a little.

“Do you want me to send anyone to the Nomad pack? See if they know anything?” he asked quietly with a frown. Billy pursed his lips and heaved a sigh.

“No. The Council has already asked ‘em to come in for a meetin’ and I doubt they know anything,” Billy said as he raked a hand through his hair. He knew what Curtis was getting at though. 

The Nomad pack wasn't just a normal pack of wolves, they were a pack of rogues. It was unusual for rogues to band together to make an actual pack, but they weren't the usual types of rogues. Normal rogues were exiled or left due to how hostile they were, their inability to listen to orders. They were vicious and vile creatures and their humanity was almost non-existent. The Nomad pack were a group of wolves who had suffered loss or who were outcast and treated badly. They were labeled rogue at first for the simple fact that they didn't belong to a pack, but then they banded together and took on more misfits, expanding their pack. They had quite a reputation. Not only because they were the first and only rogue pack but because of the things they had done. People feared them for the fact that they used to be rogues and they were clever enough to use that to their advantage. Before long, other Alphas started requesting their help, hiring them as bounty hunters for unruly pack members or helping in wars, because having the Nomad pack as an ally was far better than having them for an enemy. Billy had met the Alpha once and the Council kept tabs on the pack just on the off chance shit went south with them due to them once being rogues. But Billy didn't think they were a threat. He knew the Council for the past year had been paying the Nomad pack as bounty hunters too for more high profile wanted cases with wolves and they’d been doing a good job with them. As far as he saw it, he didn't see them as rogues anymore, and even before then, he wasn't blind by his hatred enough to not see the difference with the kind of rogues they were compared to the one sitting in his cell. People may think he was vicious when it came to those not in packs but it wasn't the case. He knew not all wolves had the luxury of being in a welcoming pack or having a pack to raise them. 

Curtis was always overly cautious and he knew that's why he was asking. Their connection to rogues was practically non-existent except from a label they used to wear and Billy just knew they weren’t in on this. The Council had requested their presence in a few days anyway so he could just speak to them then, just to ease his Gamma’s mind and assure him they weren't a part of this. With a nod, Curtis went back inside the cell with Frank and Billy started making his way back out of the dungeon. Before he left, he heard the screaming start and he felt his lips curl up into a satisfied smirk at the sound. He’d place a bet that before the sun rose, the little wolf would have squealed at least one useful bit of information. If he knew what was good for him that was. Whatever shit the rogues were cooking up with the vampires couldn’t be good and it needed to be nipped in the bud as soon as possible, he learned that lesson the hard way last time. He knew the war he’d expected was coming sooner rather than later. It was time to amp up his warrior’s training and to call a meeting between the Alpha’s soon. They needed to be ready for whatever came their way.

Taglist: (if you’ve been asked to be tagged and aren’t here, it wouldn’t let me tag some people.)

@firexfate

@blanchedelioncourt

@on-ya

@sunshinedaisies-anddeath

@snowkestrel

@music-indie-tv

@idaofinfinity

@sweetserendipity65

@ramadiiiisme

@k-marzolf

@celestialams

@woowwwee

@noortsshift

@rainbowgoblinfan

@mysweetlittledesire

[beccibarnes]

GOOD OMENS HIVE MIND - I made another mistake...

See... there is a lot of meta on this website. Like... A. Lot. And I love to read them, I get distracted by my own thoughts while reading them and FREQUENTLY forget to like and/or reblog.

I will then tell friends about some meta fact I read at 2am and they are like "That sounds so good, do you have a link so I can read for myself?"

And now I sit in front of my archive, despairing again, because no, I have not.

Enter, the Hive Mind (that means you).

I am looking for a meta post about the Final Fifteen. It mainly focuses on Crowley and how he dissociates for most of the second half of it. I think, that part in particular was an addition to the original post, by someone who has experienced that kind of dissociation. They said, Crowley only snaps out of it when Aziraphale says "I don't think you understand what I'm offering you." The first part might have been about Crowley putting his glasses back on again and the symbolism of that but 1) I am not quite sure about that part and 2) there is a TON of meta on the sunglasses.

Last time, you guys were lightning-fast, digging out a post for me, so I'm holding out hope you can do it again.

(I promise I'll get better at tagging lmao)

[blood-mocha-latte]

I’ve just finished obsessively going through your mwdttau tag and I just wanted to say oh my god it’s wonderful and I’ve already teared up multiple times from it. I would love it if you wanted to share a snippet or just anything about it!

this is so so sweet <333

the mwdttau is one of my most insane wips for Sure, lmao. i'm hoping to completely finish little talks by autumn and start posting the mwdttau by winter/late fall, so she's on her way for Certain

might i offer????? a snippet??? for you????

---

“How are you still cold?”

“I don’t know.” Web says, and it sounds almost like he’s complaining. “Just… turn up the heat, okay? Please.”

Joe sighs, but does so. “Shoulda grabbed your jacket out of the back at the restaurant.” He mutters, anyways. Web snorts and pushes against his seat. It’s dark out, now, and the occasional light streaks his face in orange.

“God, you sound like my father.” He says, and Joe would point out the incredibly clear connection there if he wasn’t certain that Web’s almost half-asleep. As it is, he just hums.

“Then your dad sounds like a smart guy, ‘cause you shoulda.” He says. Web hits at his arm with the back of his hand, shifting against the seat again, like he’s trying to get comfortable.

“They’re always saying that.” He mutters. “That he’s a smart guy. Smart guy this, smart guy that. Well, fine, he’s a smart guy, doesn’t mean he’s good at anything.” Joe keeps his eyes on the road, but is almost paying more attention to Web.

“Well, he did something right.” He says, gesturing vaguely with the hand not on the wheel. “Not you, per se—” Web snorts a laugh, “—but, you know, business things. I mean, he and your ma have, what, two houses?”

“Four.” Web mutters balefully. “One in New York, one in Maine, one in Florida, one in Washington.” Joe blinks.

“Whoa.” He says.

“Yeah.”

“Christ. Well, they all must be nice. And you must know, since you’re visiting ‘em, and all.”

“Yeah, well. I’m only visiting them for my mother. My dad doesn’t give a shit what I do. He’d probably be happy to never see me again.” Joe huffs. That seems slightly more dramatic than it needs to be. 

“I mean. All parents and kids have differences.” He says, and almost thinks of his own dad. He doesn’t, but it’s a close thing. When he glances over at Webster, mostly out of habit, the other has his cheek pressed to the headrest, eyes watching Joe blearily.

“He…” Web starts, and trails off, waving a hand absently. “Disapproves of my… my ‘choice of lifestyle’.” He makes air quotations, wrinkling his nose. Joe frowns.

“All parents are like that.” He says, almost supposed to be comforting. “When I told my ma I was movin’ out east, you would have thought I’d murdered her dog.” Web huffs.

“Yeah, well.” He says, and is quiet for a beat. “Y’know, he once told me that I would’ve died of AIDS in the eighties, not because of my ‘preferences’—” again with the air quotes, “but because I slept around so much.”

Joe blinks. “Christ.” He says.

“Yeah.” Web says, again. He drops his hands into his lap. “Creative, right? I was almost tempted to actually catch it, just out of spite. Still am.”

Joe snorts, in spite of himself. “You’ve got problems, Web.” He says, and Web huffs.

“Doesn’t everyone.” He mutters, maybe to the headrest. “Still love him, though. That’s the problem. I still want him to be proud of me.”

Joe sighs. He doesn't think he signed up for this. 

“Yeah, well.” He ends up saying, after a beat. Web’s cheek is still pressed to the headrest. “Plenty of time to get back at him, if you want. I guess.” He tightens his grip on the steering wheel and loosens it just as quickly. “Going down to… to Florida, or whatever. Rich people revenge.” 

Web hums, and it's like a laugh. “He likes Henry. I think that's probably part of my problem.” Joe snorts.

“Oh, that's definitely part of your problem.” He says, and Web waves him off.

“But it doesn't matter, anyways.” He says. “I'm only going down there for the ocean.”

And he says it in a way that's such pure, unadulterated Web that Joe can't help but smile. “Of course you'd be an ocean freak.” He says, amused, and Web sighs at him.

“I just like it.” He says, as if in defence. “The colours, the way it moves, the tide…” He trails off, and Joe’s tempted to laugh. 

“I grew up next to the ocean.” He says, and thinks of California. “It’s not all that great, believe me.”

[asleepinawell]

assorted dawntrail thoughts below in no particular order. they range all over the place

loved the first half of the msq story. super fun, cool areas, interesting npcs, paced out pretty nicely. traveling around meeting/helping people and learning about cultures is what the wol thrives on and that is their type of vacation imo. shard of azem behavior

wuk lamat is one of my fave characters in the whole series. himbos stay winning. the amount of (usually bigoted) hate she's getting just makes me like her more. people seem mad that the wol wasn't the main character but i prefer it that way. they are there to help people!

erenville 😢. enjoyed his parts and man i felt so bad for him in the last area

krile finally got more time on screen but it did feel like her main bit was crunched in at the end kinda

alpacas 💯💯💯💯💯💯

overall the scions got a lot less screen time which was mostly fine. one thing I'd really been hoping for in dt was that y'shtola would finally get the focused arc that almost all the other scions have (krile was the other odd one out until now). and boy did the opposite of that happen. i don't know why they made the choice to basically not include her at all but it sucked. estinien was the other one who got almost no screentime but he had a whole xpac about him already. so yeah, that was my biggest negative overall. sometimes i wonder if there's some writers who don't like her or if the fact many fans hate her influences the focus on her. she's my favorite character in the whole game so, yeah, disappointed

second half of the msq. hmmm. shaaloani felt like a filler area and was meh though i got a laugh because of course they put dinosaurs in the wild west area. it did feel a little "wooooo cowboys!!! and oh native americans maybe exist, moving on". I'm not going to make any comments about cultural sensitivity stuff in dt since i think there are other people better qualified to examine that, but this part did feel like everything not yeehaw cowboys was an afterthought

the sphene part of the story confused me, as in i was confused why they went with that. it felt so much like the amaurot story which... we've already done? yeah there were some differences but it had the same vibes and themes. it was fine? just a weird choice. wish zoraal ja had had a little more going on beyond daddy issues for someone we spent a lot of time dealing with. i felt like i didn't even know what his relationship with his father was like. there was some piece of story tying into his motivation and past that was missing. sphene was more interesting though i wish they hadn't gone the route of 'she was programmed to do this so you can't dissuade her' and kept it more as her choice. i'm not saying i wanted her to be 'evil' just that it makes her more interesting if she's acting with free will

las vegas as the last zone lmao. kinda bummed the area stays dark now. like yes it makes sense for the story but it's now a much less visually interesting area to run around and that's a shame. it would have been fun to fly through and now it's just bland and empty

gulool ja should NOT be in charge of a city, he should NOT be at the club, he should be playing tag with ga bu in the park and living his best life. I'm taking him into protective custody

VERMEDICA ii

cities! tulliyolal is great! they did a really nice job of making it feel alive and bustling. it will probably be my main city to hang out in for the xpac because... solution 9... just was not a fan. it feels huge and empty and has elevator music. i like cyberpunk bi lighting but it just isn't enough to save it for me. ah well. neither of them can replace radz in my heart but i didn't expect them to

dungeons. they were all pretty and i liked how they incorporated little events into them like zoraal ja blocking a path. i wasn't crazy about most of the boss fights. they're definitely harder than ew mechanics but it was more that i didn't find them intuitive. I'm sure I'll learn them eventually but the types of mechanics in them just weren't fun ones to me. also i do them all duty support and while it seems like they've broadened the ai abilities for the npcs they also added a ton more aoe and line marker mechanics and those SUCK with npcs because the npcs will run to a predefined location with theirs regardless of what you do and they sometimes wait to do this until the extremely last second. so you move to be somewhere safe and oh no alisaie what are you doing *dead*. this happened a bunch in dead ends and mothercrystal (urianger..... you know what you did) and i was hoping they'd make less of those situations but no they made MORE. so in addition to learning the mechanics you also have to learn where the npcs are going to run. once you know you know but it's frustrating the first time through when your own buddies are killing you

trials. the first one was fine. second one i Did Not Enjoy (also hope that a wipe in the second half only sets you back to phase 2 start because the cs....). third one i really liked though i still have no clue what happened in that one part. you know which part. fortunately a healer survived it to lb3 us so we didn't wipe. i don't even want to imagine what the ex of that will be like. it was a nice ending trial

i was having a harder time than usual seeing mechanics in dungeons through my own ability effects (old and new) for most of the boss fights and i figured it was just me but some of my friends reported the same issue. not 100% sure what is going on there. i only have my own effects on and i really don't want to turn them down but :(

two of my favorite cute little moments: 1) when wuk lamat was despairing that zoraal ja brought back the fancy alpaca and then apologized to her own alpaca and told it it was great and it did a little step towards her to encourage her 😭. i just loved the alpacas okay. 2) vrtra showing up! and then azdaja doing a tiny roar!! crying yelling throwing up etc

i did all the side quests as i went and I'm glad i did. especially in the first half they felt like they added to the whole learning about new people main story and there were some fun ones. i had to catch a hyper cat in solution 9... that's my sort of quest

I've only done the magical dps role quest so far. comparing notes with someone who did a different one it seems like the role quests are very silly storywise this time. it wasn't the most exciting story but i liked my npc buddy and the final duty wasn't bad

job gear looks fantastic except for poor pld who is cursed to be a shiny knight forever. gnb coat is superb. blm wins though i think. cat staff!

i had to turn off shout chat when i got to solution 9 because i guess that's where all the cool kids hang out to talk about how much they hate the game they're paying to play. i haven't switched it back on and am enjoying blissful silence

i swear we've seen that world traveling key thing before???? it looked so familiar. also looked ascian which would make sense. they should not have left it with my son he is going to make a blue raspberry slushie in it or something horrible. please give it to an adult

i haven't been looking at too much in the way of interviews or speculation about the raid series, but my guess is it will involve the ascian(s) who were on whichever shard alexandria is. my crack theory is one of them is, uh, duedaf...duedalus...dudeathon........ whatever i'll get it eventually, because the constellation from their stone is an upside down triangle like the ones on the robot faces. big if true. a friend told me there was something that might have looked like part of an ascian sigil in sphene's outfit decoration but i wouldn't have recognized it on sight

pct is great. hanmer time! i am not a 'serious' gamer and i am so pleased to have a new job with a not serious aesthetic. vpr i am trying very hard to like but so far the gameplay style hasn't vibed for me

have i mentioned i love the alpacas? the ear wiggles!!!!!!!!

i probably forgot a ton of stuff but those are my rambles for now

[the4rcanist]

Oooooh I wanna hear about Eagle-singer please!

Thank you for the ask! (And for the tag!)

Is a Davrin x my Rook Rowan Mercar, Assan and her eagle Revas. I don't have an exact place in the timeline to place this (as I've written it as a way to conceive a bit of my character's backstory and also for a bit of self indulgence what I can say I love Davrin sm lmao only that it's after Weisshaupt and that my two pookies have already talked through their differences.) Since in my headcannon I have two "Rooks" at the same time, I refer to Rowan as the "Knight".

"Eventually" Rowan unpacked the fried bread and cheese; The Dalish Heart Cake Davrin made when Adryn sequestered Lucanis for the evening; A warm forest fruit cobbler; The fried fish; A good handful of spiced jerky from the storage that both hunters made sure to keep well supplied; Ingredients for her mother's lentil soup recipe; Seasoned cabbages stuffed with meat and the Gurgut roast served with mushroom sauce. "I got tired of doing nothing and I ran away. If I had a second chance, why couldn't they?"

"How old were you?" Davrin asked, half laughing while finishing to light up the campfire. He offered her a hand, and she just noticed he had sit in a fallen tree log.

"Thirteen," She said, giggling, a bit embarrassed, and took his hand. "Can you imagine? A kid showing up at a Shadow Dragon fence shop asking 'Hey, can I kill some slavers for you? I can hold a sword, an axe even'"

The Warden couldn't hold his smile, feeling his heart warm a little. It was a bit silly, yes, but still…"Your heart was always in the right place". He was still holding her hand.

"I guess" She felt the intensity of his stare and focused on handing over the ingredients for the soup. "Cause they took me in"

Rowan heard a ruffle of feathers and turned her head to see Assan and Revas landing at the lake shore, playing catch. "Don't go far!" The woman barely managed to shout before the eagle launched herself into the air again and Assan followed her into the water.

Davrin squeezed her hand gently. Encouraging her to continue. "And then" she sighed "From administrative to courier, from courier to scout, from scout to the brawler. I had, as you said to me once, a "purpose", to make sense of all the hardships I faced, to make sense of all the days and nights I spent training, sharpening myself" the Knight moved, taking a bite on a few pieces of spiced jerky and offering a bit more to him before both of them started making the soup. "No warehouse was small enough to bust. No wound was terrible enough, not for me, not for War."

"The spirit."

"Yes" She uncorked their source of clear water and poured on the pot while catching a glimpse of the two birds playfully diving on one of the upside-down waterfalls. Davrin bumped her shoulder softly to call her attention back. "Sorry, I'm…hum…They started coming and going whenever I got myself into a fight, but I didn't knew it was them. I know you are weary of this, especially of Spite, but as someone who had been dealing with it for half of her life, I can at least say that Lucanis has better self-control than anyone else I've ever seen"

"I understand better now. After...after everything" He looked down, shaking his head, half laughing again "Damn. Now I'm just worried for him too"

"Aren't you for everyone, Hero?" she teased with the nickname her sister had given him and the Warden returned a smile so sweet that made yet another dent in her heart.

"How have you ended up with the Avvar?" Changing subject. She thought. He does this every time.

"Well, once..." Davrin added the rest of the ingredients and she started stirring the pot "They sent me to burst a warehouse at the frontier with Nevarra. Then, I was to cross the Silent Plains and bring the people to a large commercial outpost named Ashen Mammoth Hold where a contact in the Free Marches would take them in and find where they had been taken from or find them a new home."

"Doesn't ring a bell"

"Right?" Rowan pointed with her spoon. "It was a new settlement formed ten years ago when Inquisitor Lavellan exiled a Thane from Ferelden, armed and supplied his tribe. The place then flourished" she looked again and breathed in relief seeing both their children still playing in the water. "I did the job, but the slavers persecuted me through the sand. I was one of the few guards since this was supposed to be a covert operation"

"Was it bad?" The elf felt a hand on the back of her shoulder. By the Lady of the Skies, he was so effortlessly sweet.

"Enough that War took me over" She savored the warmth and let gaze wander far on the horizon, watching Revas dive into the water, grab a fish and throw it at Assan. "I woke up a few days later with the Augur fussing over me"

"the Augur?" He asked.

"The Hahren of their tribe. He was curious by the interest the spirit took in me"

"So you decided to stay with them? Had enough of the city?"

"Over the course of my recovery? Yes. It was easy, you know, having friends, a community, much like…much like now" She tasted the soup, and the face she made must have been terrible because the man immediately handed over the salt bag. "In the city, I had the other Dragons, I had Ash, but still it was so…lonely, stressful. Out in the plains, even when I was just out by myself scouting, with my toes freezing blue, I was so at peace..."

"I know the feeling" He smiled gently at her, again. Would it be so bad? To say yes and make him smile everyday? A thought passed. Somewhere. "Still want to know how this happened"

She shook her head "I… don't know? Mogran was the one that rescued me in the entrance amidst a pile of bodies, then he started dragging me into their dinners, then their celebrations, then their tests. The Augur asked me to accompany them to some rituals made to learn to control myself when under possession and, when I realized, I was asking for stories on the gods."

"He adopted you too" He pulled their bowls and spoons out when the water started boiling.

"I suppose. When I recovered, I didn't want to leave as much, so I asked to keep my job escorting the freed ones to the Free Marches"

"And how does her" Davrin pointed with his head to Revas, now back on the shore again, trying to pull a loose feather out of Assan's left wing while the gryphon stared at the floating water "Comes to picture?"

"It was another job, another that was angry enough to cross the desert" The Knight stirred the soup absent-mindedly "The "lord" came with them, surprisingly, with the ugliest set of clothing, carriage, everything, ugh.." She frowned "He also brought his favorite 'pets' with him. Among them an Arlathan Forest Eagle, still a fledgling"

"Revas" There was an edge of barely contained anger in his voice.

She nodded and smiled "I… I'll admit that I loved her at first sight" glancing back, she caught her eyes, and the eagle then called her back cheerfully "So I did my best to raise, teach and love her, like you're doing now with Assan"

"I…"

"You are, I won't let you fight me on this, Davrin" She heard a fluttering of wings again and noticed both of them coming back over the smell of the soup "For the other half of my life, she listened to me, was my eyes, my scout. When the Huntmaster got the ear of it, Movran gave me my first legend-mark, Rowan Eagle-singer" She filled one bowl and handed it over to him.

"Thank you" He held her raised hand and the woman hitched her breath. Gods. it would truly be so bad? "So that's where it comes from. You've led a pretty busy life, Rowan"

It would. It was easier, to keep distance, to try to not lose the few pieces she had left of her weary, terrified heart. Even thinking of losing him now made her eyes water and her skin crawl.

"Says the Halla Keeper, Monster Hunter and Grey Warden" Rowan blurted, blinking a few times, awfully aware of each one of his movements and trying to forget the fluster creeping into her cheeks. "But all of my adventures were nothing compared to what we're doing now, trust me. When Varric told me we're going after an elven god, I choked on my drink" she laughed bitterly "I still don't have any idea how he expects me to pull that off"

"Rowan I…" The Knight turned her head to him, expectantly "I don't think I've ever said that to you but I'm sorry, really, for what happened to him" he laid a comforting hand on her arm.

The woman went immediately to the side, going completely stiff "It's alright. I'm alright" she said, eyes dark and voice bleak, while giving him the most unnatural smile he'd ever seen. And the Warden thought he might had gone crazy for all of his instincts that recoiled from her in the strangest sense of danger he had never felt before, but she hadn't moved an inch from the log.

Rowan looked down to her feet, made a bowl for herself, and suddenly raised her head again "What were we talking about? Ah yes the soup"

[softpine]

→ oc questions tag ←

tagged by @subtlefires thank you!! i haven't seen this tag before, so this was really fun 💖

i decided to do casper to make up for all the times i've chosen coco

→ 5 words to physically describe your OC (do you have a drawing? even better!) (since we already know what he looks like, i chose general descriptions and stole your moodboard idea hehe)

energetic, reliable, persistent, lacks confidence, sweet

→ Who inspired your OC?

at first, nobody. casper was meant to be the... not comic relief exactly, but a break from the heavy ghost/death/trauma stuff in the main story. but as he got older, i started putting so much more of myself into his character. without going into detail, i've learned things about my own family that makes me relate to casper's situation more than i thought i would when i came up with it. i never planned to go more in-depth about his biological father & half sisters because i thought, well, he has 2 loving parents and siblings he grew up with, why would he lose sleep over these people he's never met and is only connected to by blood? it was one of those things where i thought i knew how i would feel in that situation, but i never really knew until i knew. i wish i could say this is the only part of my life i've imparted on casper, but it's not 😅 casper is also the first character we've seen in college since beth, and my college experience was SO much closer to casper's than beth's. so like. it's me, i inspired casper fjksdjs

→ Give me a song to define your OC

soda by nothing but thieves // lyrics:

i once had a thought, but don't know where it went 'cause i've been living off soda and cheap cigarettes maybe when i was a kid i was dropped on my head yeah, that would make some sense

i don't want to be myself it's making me so unwell

→ If I met your OC on the street how would they greet me?

he doesn't make it a habit to greet strangers aside from a polite nod, but if he already knows someone he would loudly call out to them even if they're far away and it's embarrassing for everyone involved – that is, if he remembers them. he's really bad with names!

→ Can your OC be your best friend? Why?

oh yeah for sure. not so much now, but i was friends with so many jock types in high school. i think it's because once those guys find out i'm a lesbian they just treat me like a bro 😌 but they would tell me things they didn't think they could talk about with anyone else. i love being the friend everyone comes to with their problems because i'm telling people what they already knew but didn't want to admit, and making them feel like they came up with a solution all on their own. that's exactly what casper wishes he had in a friendship right now. also i want him to be my personal trainer!

→ 1 adjective and 1 noun to describe your OC

neurotic // i know this word is outdated, but i still use it for myself and i can't think of a better word to describe the way that he manages to be anxious about anything and everything. so much of his personality / habits / lifestyle were formed in response to anxiety (like, he was afraid of staying the same so he changed everything about himself all at once. he did so many sports and he exercises all the time because it keeps him busy. etc.) and the important thing is that most of his fears are totally irrational and not the more common worries people have, even other people with anxiety. it's not like "are my friends secretly mad at me?" it's "i'm going to walk to class today because i'm afraid i'll run someone over with my car" and things of that nature; things he knows are irrational, but that doesn't make them feel less real. but we'll get more into that later

toaster // LMAO... it's a ubiquitous household object you take for granted will always be there. you don't really know how it works on the inside, you just count on the fact that it will. you don't even take notice of it unless something is really wrong with it. but it's a tried and true part of a daily routine and you'd be really bummed if you lost it! tell your toaster you love them today sdjksjd

→ tagging: feels weird tagging anyone after i got so personal here lmao so if you see this and want to do it, consider yourself tagged!

[dwarfsized]

things that i would like to know about my fellow writers!

tagged by @aevallare thank you my looovveee

i will tag @simon-says-nothing and @raccooncrimes!

Last book I read: 

i am stalled on The Witch King by Martha Wells, not because it isnt good but just because. lmao. If im reading, i cant be writing. or sewing. or or or. The last one I remember finishing was This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, and i loved that.

Greatest literary inspiration: 

I put part of a Mary Oliver poem on my graduation cap. Also genuinely quite inspired by Tamsyn Muir.

Things in my current fandom I want to read but I don't want to write:

I dont know if I'd ever try my hand at a modern au but i adore aevallare's pour one out.

I certainly wont write no-magic or all-human aus (I like tieflings a normal amount, she says, lying) but I'm sure someone could do something cool with those.

Things in my current fandoms I want to write but I think nobody would be interested in them but me: 

:') i already think this about my work but i write it anyway. who wants to read astarion stuck in a druid grove when he's [redacted]?? well, i do, so now we have eldath's mercy.

i am working on a story rn where kira is a ghost haunting the szarr palace. do i think very many people will be interested in that? i dont know! but I want to write it, and at least one other person probably wants to read it, so. eventually, it will go up onto ao3.

id love to do something with a focus on minthara. she's going to matter in true colors but that's not going to happen for a while. for now i rotate her in my brain.

You can recognize my writing by:

7000 word chapters where fully half the words are the characters thinking sooo hard, mid-chapter pov shifts, asides about tiefling/druid culture that i've made up whole-cloth, tail mentions.

My most controversial take (current fandom):

if you mod anyone in the game to look younger/more conventionally attractive i am putting you in the oubliette in my mind-palace. why cant you like these characters as they are. i thought we enjoyed this game

if you mod gortash clean or mod away a character's scars, i am putting you in the oubliette inside of the oubliette in my mind-palace.

Current writing mood (10 – super motivated and churning out words like crazy, 0 – in a complete rut):

2 babeyyyy, but if i could instead shelve all the current wips and start wip #15 id be at an 8. alas! i cannot do this.

Top three favourite tropes:

in no particular order:

when a character's specific past experiences lead them to a wrong conclusion that is soooo wrong but like, ohhh sweetie. of course you think that.

magic that has a cost, even divine magic, and cannot fix everything

you were not selected for this. anyone could have been the person in this position. but you are here now, and you have to do the task. get to it.

are these even tropes? do i know what tropes are anymore. help

Share a random frustration:

I USUALLY AVERAGE 700 WRITING WORDS A DAY BUT IVE BEEN EDITING ELDATH'S MERCY CH 2 FOR ALL OF APRIL AND IT HAS BROUGHT MY AVERAGE WORD COUNT DOWN TO 26. 26 WORDS A DAY. BITING. BITING AND YELLING.

[tempests-bards-and-birds]

i was tagged by @kanonavi! i appreciate the tag <3

-

why did you choose your URL?

my current one is just my online name (tempest) + bards (venti) + birds (xiao). i know that fandom URLs can seem a bit cringe or whatever but idk. i like it!

2. any sideblogs? if so, name them and why you have them.

nope! i toyed with the idea of making one but i like keeping things in one place, so sorry to my irls who don't follow me for genshin. thanks for not leaving lmao

3. how long have you been on tumblr?

my archive goes back to april 2022 so just over two years now. it feels longer but oh well

4. do you have a queue tag?

the only thing i use the queue for is scheduling posts for specific days so no.

5. why did you start your blog in the first place?

a couple of my irl friends said that they were on tumblr and i thought i might as well join and see if there was anything to do with miraculous on here (spoiler alert: there was.)

6. why did you choose your icon/pfp?

venti.

7. why did you choose your header?

it's just a gif that i made of the one piece of canon xiaoven content that we had pre-endless suffering. it's there and i don't really see a reason to change it soooo yeah!

8. what's your post with the most notes?

this miraculous gifset that i posted july 2022 that has 3,180 notes as of writing this (it hasn't gotten any in A While so i think i'm safe for now)

9. how many mutuals do you have?

including irls it's 14 but excluding irls it's 11! i love you all

10. how many followers do you have?

308 but i think a significant portion of them are inactive now. love you guys too tho btw

11. how many people do you follow?

250 exactly

12. have you ever made a shitpost?

depends on what you consider to be a shitpost i guess. if you would class stuff like the rhodeia post i made last week as shitposting then sure.

13. how often do you use tumblr each day?

probably anywhere between half an hour and two hours depending on how active my dash is and just how much i'm rotting in general.

14. did you have a fight/argument with another blog once?

not that i can remember?

15. how do you feel about "you need to reblog this" posts?

no. absolutely not.

16. do you like tag games?

yes but a lot of the time i don't do them because i never have any idea if my mutuals are comfortable with them or not and deciding on who to tag always gives me far more stress than it probably should because i am chronically afraid of Annoying People.

17. do you like ask games?

yeah! people aren't obligated to send me asks for them though i don't wanna seem attention seeking either aha

18. which of your mutuals is tumblr famous?

i don't know if any of them are tbh i don't pay that much attention to stuff like that (if any of you do consider yourselves to be tumblr famous though please tell me)

19. do you have a crush on a mutual?

platonically sure, but. uh. *gestures to pfp*

20. tags:

@girlboy-frankensteins-monster @dopefrickingjelysquid

[sightoru]

hey scout!

not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but you moved to another state somewhat recently right? I was wondering what that process was like and how you did it. I'm in a red state and really want to go to a blue one. But I'm just unsure of how to even go about it since I don't have a remote job. Any tips would be appreciated, thank you!!!

You are remembering correctly! I moved in with az (@/haruchiyos) in June of 2023. HOWEVER, I moved from a blue state in New England to a Red state in the midwest.... so the opposite direction. Tho I will say I live in a very blue area, which was kinda blinding this election season since I was like 'wow yeah its so liberal here' I forgot about the rest of the state briefly.

However, I will tell you in the 26 years of my life I have lived in 4 different states, and moved cross country 4 times :') most of these moves were not planned. when I moved to my current state it was like 3 days notice and when I moved I thought I was coming back lol (ill put those details in the tags). ANYWAYS, you'll have the benefit of... planning lmao. I'd start with looking at jobs first, and community is important. if you know someone in a blue state that lives in a city you like, I'd recommend making a visit. it would also be easier if you have a place to stay for a bit, and someone who can look at places to live for you.

the benefit of working at a major company also comes to play here, especially if you can transfer stores/offices/ etc and look for jobs. you might also have the benefit of a degree, which could make finding/switching jobs a bit easier (when I moved, I only had az. no degree, no license. it took a month for me to find a job, but I also hadn't worked in 3 years which added to the struggle. I worked for the last year at a grocery store chain, then briefly as a barista, before moving into a healthcare role which is nice and im finally in a type of job where I feel like im not at a deadend lol). Remote jobs can definitely help, but tbh remote jobs are so hard to get and very oversaturated. everyone wants one, making it harder to get one. (one of my friends WFH, and their rec is to apply directly on job sites for it instead of ziprecruiter/indeed/etc, since a lot of them are scams)

Look into subreddits for your city of choice, find what people like about it. ask questions!! ask about cost of living, safer parts of town, what's hiring. my city's subreddit has so many posts like that. if you have the stomach for it, look into working for the government offices/ city offices/ state offices in that city. the benefits you'll get are great and they tend to start much higher than minimum wage.

for friends, try Bumble friends ! look on Facebook for meet up groups. community is so important, now more than ever (which is why I recommended moving to a city where you know someone).

for states, California and New York are what come to mind for very blue states. Northern California is gorgeous and I loved living in New York. NY is where I'd consider home and I still get very homesick thinking about it sometimes. I think Vermont in particular was one of the most gorgeous states ive ever visited and the people were very friendly!!!! like unnervingly friendly idk maybe it was the proximity to Canada lol. Ive been talking to my partner lightly about moving out of this state once they finish college in a year and a half, and I mentioned moving back to New England area in general.

anyways, this feels all over the place!! I hope this helps and as always, im here if anyone has any questions!!!

[arvoze]

do the beast dungeon protags have names? I noticed you only tag them by their species (I want to know more about them smiles)

unfortunately I took this and ran with it as a summary instead of "yeah this is their names"

yes! well, half and half. sudowoodo is quite literally just called sudowoodo, but the nuzleaf is called locke! every now and then, some of my pokemon just don't receive names, because nothing seems to fit in my head (and I like to think that some pokemon just don't feel obligated to go by any particular name). locke is named after, well, i'm sure you can figure that out (nuzlockes LOL)

their team is called "two guys", cuz they're two guys. despite this, they'll eventually recruit fries (zigzagoon, she/her), unnamed veluza (might just be called veluza, undetermined pronouns) & unnamed geodude (she/her). they rarely work as a full team (locke fucking hates everybody), they're more of just A Group (the "team" is still sudolocke, others just tag along or split off). they all live in the same kind of vicinity and all have a similar life goal/interest: some kind of life involving pursuing... flower maintenance. of some kind.

the above is primarily sudowoodo's dream. he wants to find a legendary seed and grow a legendary tree/flower, and deal with everything else along the way; he doesn't go into dungeons to rescue people (that's a plus), he's solely focused on his own personal task. locke has absolutely no goals and aspirations, originally sticking around sudowoodo after hearing about his goals because he thought it was *so* stupid, that he just had to be there to watch sudowoodo fail (in actuality, he had absolutely nothing going on in his life. it's true he followed sudowoodo just to mock him and piss him off, but locke ended up becoming genuinely attached, fully taking on sudowoodo's dream as his own. though he would never admit to any of this to anyone other than sudowoodo lol)

the pair are yaoiful in a situationship kind of way. like they're in love but they're uncertain about it and neither of them would necessarily call eachother boyfriends/say "i love you" all that often if at all/so on so forth. everyone around them just assumes they've got something weird going on. genuinely have no idea how to describe how these two feel about eachother LMAO

(fries just thinks a place full of flowers is Cool, veluza would like a chill place to finally relax that will also be considerate of fish mons, geodude herself has plants and moss growing on her head so seeing other mons dedicate their time towards nurturing a space like this has her wanting to get involved as much as possible; this curated space is like a home to all five of them. the intent is for it to be a pretty decently-sized place they'll all come to manage, kind of eventually becoming like a flower garden/nature reserve/all that)

unfortunately things turn a bit south when sudowoodo & locke end up in silverwood tangle (forest), a wrong place wrong time situation. this becomes the introduction of beast dungeons themselves (mystery dungeons helmed by ultra beasts). this is where the meat of everything begins which i won't get into here because i've already rambled overtime but SHDHDGSGF i know people are typically around for VV and not DC:BD (bluesky feed numbers are a big tell of this), but they're my silly guys and i like em :-]

[tanenigiri]

Cherry Magic has pretty quickly cemented itself in my top 5 among BL series, so when I found out it was getting an anime version I was onboard immediately. I discovered the series through the original TV show and I've been following the manga ever since, so seeing what looks like an animated version of the manga is such a treat.

So in the same vein as what I did with the Our Dining Table adaptation last year, I wanted to put my ramblings about it here, starting with Episode 1.

- The first thing that immediately jumped out to me was how the comedic flair of the original TV series is slightly more downplayed. Sure, the first half of the episode still had those funny beats such as the kabedon and the mole in Adachi's neck, but the second half really doubles down on focusing on Adachi's thoughts and doubts. Even compared to the manga - Episode 1 is a pretty faithful adaptation of the manga's first three chapters, with the phone call with Tsuge also being the last scene of Chapter 3 - I feel like the animated series spends a bit more time with the serious beats and a bit less time with the comedic beats.

- On one hand, I'm slightly worried about how this would dictate the show's tone, since to me, Cherry Magic is a romcom at heart. But on the other hand, what really made me a fan of the series as a whole is Adachi's character development and how his mind-reading is just a catalyst for this development, and if the animated series is gonna make that the focus, I'm 100% all in. This episode already started the discussion on Adachi's troubles not only with socializing, but in making connections with other people in general, so seeing that slowly be withered down by the people around him will be such a treat to watch.

- There's something really sweet about how the very first time we see Adachi smile here is when he talks about the manga that he and Kurosawa both like. It goes back to what I said above about how Adachi finds himself a novice not just in romantic relationships, but in friendships in general, so finding a common thread with someone he sees as perfect is a huge deal for him.

- It's also why that last scene where Adachi runs away at the end hits pretty harshly. He's overwhelmed not only by what Kurosawa's thoughts actually mean, but his perceived inability to deal with them fairly, so he does the only thing he knows how to - avoid it. I think it's a great note to end the episode on since it establishes that the story isn't about them getting together, but about how Adachi is gonna overcome his own hang-ups about himself - getting a boyfriend is just the cherry (hah!) on top.

- I'm really excited on how they're gonna tackle Kurosawa's own inner turmoil here. We get a sneak peek of it here with that scene in his bedroom, and the manga itself does have a few chapters that takes Kurosawa's POV instead of Adachi's, so I'm guessing we will get some scenes from his POV here. There's also something to be said about how Kurosawa's fantasies here are amped up to 11 compared to the original TV show lmao.

Thanks for reading! It was also through going through the tag here that I found out that there's apparently a Thai version also running right now? Cherry Magic fans are eating good huh. As someone who absolutely loved the manga and the original series, should I check it out?

[17redeye]

15 People, 15 Questions

This was so fun both to read and answer 😄 thank you for tagging me @zipegs!

1. Are you named after anyone?

Kind of, I'm named after Katherina's character (the shrew!) in The Taming of the Shrew. My mom loved the movie with Elizabeth Taylor (below) so it was going to be either Katherine or Elizabeth. I'm glad with what I ended up with 😅

2. When was the last time you cried?

Last time I teared up was reading BattyMadisons fic Wasting Time.

Last time I straight up bawled? Hard to say, either reading Good Enough by sourweather or Overcoming by purefoysgirl. I will go read them if I feel like I need a good cry, tears everytime.

3. Do you have kids?

No way, man. 😬 Pets are plenty enough responsibility.

4. What sports do you play/have you played?

Only a little bit of volleyball. Never really enjoyed team sports.

5. Do you use sarcasm?

I used to, SO MUCH because I grew up around it, but I broke the habit.

6. What’s the first thing you notice about people?

Hmmm, I guess I'm pretty vigilant to people's body language and the way they speak and how receptive they are to humor. Sometimes there's nothing like cracking jokes with strangers.

7. What’s your eye color?

Brown 👁️👄👁️

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

Scary movies: Alien, The Thing, Cube

9. Any talents?

I'm pretty good at picking out tasting notes from whiskey actually.

10. Where were you born?

11. What are your hobbies?

Reading and now writing Hannibal fanfiction. Rewatching Hannibal. Watching HEU movies. Working on a pet project with the Hannibal scripts. 🤷🏼‍♀️ It sounds ridiculous when I write it all out like that lmao.

12. Do you have any pets?

My darling boy, Whiskey 🥰

13. How tall are you?

5'5" 👀 omg same as hunter whaaaaat

14. Favorite subject in school?

Oh, French for sure. Thank God too bc there's so much French in Hannibal fanfics 😂 half the time I don't even have to use the translator and I get inordinately proud of myself.

15. Dream job?

I really wanted to be a librarian when I was a kid bc I thought I'd be able to read and organize books all day. Huge let down finding out it's much more people orientated 😭 and you need a master's degree wth. I guess now I dream of owning a used bookstore where I can read and organize books all day 😌

Tagging: @obsessiveagony, @indigocarnation, @mutualldisorder 🫣