#a slept on character that i had to redesign

[1930sdarlin]

[Do not repost without my (the artist's) permission]

[doubleddenden]

Diving through the leaks from today (I have not slept yet) in regards to the cut gen 5, 4, and even 3 content has been such an adventure. I feel like I've discovered several more AUs in which 1 small decision could have had a ripple effect on the franchise for years to come.

Especially the gen 4 beta lore that was apparently dug up. Yall thought shit was religious now, they had a straight up PANTHEON planned. Not to mention it makes that church suddenly make sense- this wasn't just worshipping a Pokemon, this was literally a god with god like mythos. Like Arceus hatched from an egg in the middle of chaos at the beginning of time, his own egg shards became GIANTS that tried to kill him, and Arceus rapidly grew and beat them all. He made Dialga and Palkia to be his alter egos out of his own blood and to be God's of time and LIGHT, apparently, and Dialga and Palkia LOVED EACH OTHER- not hated and tried to kill each other, LOVED EACH OTHER. HAD CHILDREN. And assuming I read correctly, those two had the lake trio, who made the tree of life, destroyed it, and Rayquaza, Groudon, and Kyogre were born. In fact, Rayquaza may have been the shadow of ANOTHER POKEMON that became the pillar of the heavens?

It's pretty hardcore and confusing stuff. The giants stuff absolutely puts the Fighting Plate lore into perspective with its text "the power of giants fills this plate with power" or something.

I think it's pretty obvious why it was all cut or severely dumbed down, but it is actually very interesting to see that at some point, they were extremely dedicated to the world building of the franchise before they kinda said "fuck it it's whatever now."

On a mechanical end, it's also incredibly interesting. Gen 5 was almost the gen to introduce 3d models for players, apparently. I think it's pretty obvious why they went with an enhanced 2.5d approach, given the ds wasn't ready for much beyond ps1 graphics, but it's still incredible to think that was even a concept at the time.

And the lost beta Pokemon, oh my God. Gen 3 had a bunch that were eventually redesigned. Lickylicky in gen 4 almost made sense because it's body looked READY TO ROLL OUT! Archeops in gen 5 was almost cool af with some slightly different proportions. There's just a bunch that go completely unused.

And characters- yall, Team Galactic almost served cunt. Saturn almost was cool, and Mars and Jupiter would have DONE something to people. There's also in depth profiles on certain characters- Skyla was apparently modeled after Jennifer Lopez and was coded to be Hispanic. Each gen 5 gym leader had races assigned to each, and a real life inspiration behind each.

Even mechanics are talked about- a lot of scrapped ideas, such as one from Morimoto that was basically Pinkan Pokemon from Orange Islands but shifting your Pokemon's colors depending on the berries they ate. Masuda apparently had some reservations about following Pokemon- hence why it was so limited in DP and other games he directs.

It's information like this that really amazes me. So much of what could have been, so much info fans have theorized just kinda confirmed in some cases. I wish they'd talk about this stuff, because this is all genuinely interesting to see. Genuinely, I want to know the thought processes going on for some of these ideas and designs.

[pyjamaart]

Breaking Bot (read more for some rambling about mega man fully charged)

Mega Man Fully Charged has been on my mind again lately, which made me realize that there's literally a robot named Chemistryman who worked as a chemistry teacher. Not using him as a Walter White stand-in would be a criminal offense.

I'll have to admit I started getting back into Fully Charged again after seeing some asshole on twitter complain about the character design for the hundredth time. I just can't stand that kind of negativity. I swear to god, Fully Charged is like the Sonic Boom of the Mega Man franchise. Personally, I really enjoy the FC designs. I've probably said this before, but I feel like the redesigns give some of the more forgettable robot masters way more character. Like, do I care for Classic Drillman from Mega Man 4? I mean, yeah, I do, but I wouldn't care as much if it wasn't for his Fully Charged incarnation.

I also really enjoy most of the original robot masters. I already talked plenty about Blastowoman and why I love her so much, but I want to talk about the others this time.

Take for example Chemistryman. Comparisons to Walter White out of the way, I feel like his character was a really fun idea. God knows I had teachers who put me to sleep back in the day. For me, it wasn't chemistry though, it was my economics teacher. I always compared her to a story teller at a Christmas market who would read children stories out of her big fairy tale book. Only that in reality, it was stuff like the minimization/maximization principle. Most of my notes for that class were incomprehensible chicken scratch, because I just couldn't keep my eyes open. In the end, I slept through like half her classes, lol. But I gotta say that I still always got a B or higher in the end. Somehow. I thank god every day that I never have to step foot in a school again.

I really wish Chemistryman got a little more time to shine though. Two episodes is just way too little. I would gladly take three more episodes with him over those gross Gutsman episodes. I know I love talking about wasted potential with this show, but I wish there was an episode that focused on Chemistryman outside of the school setting. I get that his whole character is "boring, bitter teacher", but I'd really like to see what he gets up to when he's not trying to force children to listen to his chemistry lectures. Like having Aki try to talk him into going into retirement for good. And then he tries to find hobbies for him so that he doesn't bore himself to death. I can see him getting into building model ships or something like that, lol.

Now that I'm already writing up a storm again, I might as well talk about some other headcanons I have about the FC bots. Since Woodman was in sleep mode for 30 years after the war ended (I don't know where I got that number from. I rewatched his debut episode, but the exact number doesn't appear anywhere. Oh well, let's just pretend this is canon, even if it isn't.) we got kind of a Shadow the Hedgehog type situation on our hands. All of his friends and family got to live their lives in this new, peaceful world of harmony between robots and humans, while Woodman spent 30 years powered down in a bush or something. Completely forgotten about. Like, why didn't they go look for him after the war ended? I don't think Aki and Suna wandered that far into the forest for their school assignment. If you really think about Woodmans back story for a moment, you realize how fucked up it actually is. 

Now my explanation for this goes into heavy heavy headcanon territory. When Suna calls the principal about Woodman, he warns her that Woodman is dangerous and to get away from him immediately. Now why would he say that? The principal also calls him "ruthless" in that same explanation. What I think happened back then was that Woodman actually planned to assassinate the human armies leader. (Possibly Sgt. Night?) The leader of the robots caught wind of his plan and put him into sleep mode himself, since he and Dr. Light were on the brink of finding a way to end the war peacefully. In my mind, this leader is the FC version of Swordman. Don't ask me why, he was just the first guy I thought of. And then it just stuck.

I know this makes Woodmans back story even more fucked up, but I just love putting my favorite blorbos through hardship. Don't even ask me about my headcanons for Drillman. They'd actually put me in prison.

Now all this culminates after Woodman is reactivated by Suna and Aki. Finding himself alienated from all his former friends and comrades (Maybe the other Mega Man 2 robot masters?), what was he supposed to do? He couldn't spend the rest of his life isolated (and homeless) in the forest, could he? And this is where season 2 could have delivered. But I'm done whining about that. If Capcom doesn't deliver, I gotta write my own season 2. Simple as that.

Anyway, getting back to Chemistryman, since he's pretty old, I imagine that he was already working as a teacher when Woodman was still around. Maybe he even was his teacher at some point.

And since I love having my favorite characters interact, I also thought of a scenario where Drillman wanders into the forest out of frustration over his miserable life, only to meet Woodman by coincidence. In the end, Woodman helps him work through his daddy issues and his body dysmorphia, while Drillman helps Woodman reintegrate and manage this (for him) completely new world of peace. Another great headcanon of mine is that Chemistryman is actually Acidmans father. Just because I think it would be funny. And as Fully Charged has confirmed: robots in that universe do indeed have parents. (Flashback to the time I drew Dr. Light beating the shit out of Drillman's father)

Speaking of Drillman.... For being one of my favorite Mega Man characters of all time, I haven't drawn him nearly enough. That will probably be my next project.

This might also be a great time to tell you that I've never watched Breaking Bad before, lol. Everything I know about it comes from RTGame's Stardew Valley playthrough and the RTVS Half Life parody.

Sorry for all the yapping. But if I don't talk about robots at least once a day, I might die. This is a serious condition.

[ladyknightellen]

Omg I didn’t think I had friends who like Descendants! Your first post was such a lightbulb moment for me - I also thought it was off, but I don’t have the personal experience to see why at a glance. I’d love to see some of that rewrite!

AHHHHHHH yay! I debated even including that one in the list so I'm so glad someone is interested in that one!!

So, this is the petty disabled remix where I earn my self appointed title of 'CEO of making your favorite characters disabled'. Even I don't know how many I'm going to write as disabled before I'm done with this. What I do know is that Auradon Prep is getting a massive accessibility redesign, there's going to be wheelchair fencing and I'm currently attempting to imagine what the adaptive version of the Tourney game would look like. And a whole bunch of other things. In short: this is my incredibly self indulgent fuck you to Disney for showing me ONE disabled character and constantly trapping her on platforms with no ramp or putting her in the middle of the fucking grass!!!!

Also, Doug has dwarfism because I said so. Obviously I know little people can and do have average height children, so it's not necessarily unrealistic for him to be average height, but I just feel like it was a missed opportunity for positive representation.

Anyways, enough of my yapping and on to the snippet!

Doug is waiting for him when Ben finally returns to their room. He’s sitting on the steps to his bed and leaning back against it in a way that makes him look completely relaxed. If it weren’t for the way he’s studying Ben like he’s a complex math equation, it would be believable.  “So, do you want to tell me what that was all about today?” He asks before Ben can even think about what to say to him. “I was going to ask you earlier, but you kind of disappeared.” “Audrey fell asleep in the library. I had to take her to her room.” He says finally, not exactly a lie, but certainly not an explanation.  “That doesn’t answer my question at all.”  “No, it doesn’t.” Ben says, letting out a long, weary sigh as he slowly pushes himself forward to stop in front of Doug. He has no idea how to say what he’s feeling. He’s not even sure exactly what he’s feeling besides an intense ‘wrongness’ about everything he’s ever known. “I’m not mad at you Ben. I’m not accusing you of anything. That’s not why I want an explanation.” Doug says finally, standing up on the bottom step so that they’re eye to eye. “It’s just me, your best friend since forever. You can be honest with me you know. Just tell me what’s wrong and why you look like you haven’t slept in a thousand years.”  “This morning when the kids from the Isle arrived, I was afraid that I’d made a terrible mistake bringing them here. Mal and Audrey were at each other’s throats and I just wanted to separate them before something catastrophic happened. Now I’m not so sure.” “Not so sure about what?” “About literally everything I’ve ever known and believed. I didn’t make a mistake bringing them here, my father and all of the other rulers are the ones that made the mistake of creating the Isle in the first place!”

[nochi-quinn]

the legend of vox machina season 3 episode 1: a deadly bargain OR s p i c e

lance reddick 😔

those eggs only make me thing someone on the art staff plays flight rising

can you imagine how much more of a menace vax would have been if he could use the wings as often as he does in this show

I need byroden to be like it was in exandria unlimited

#notalldragons

"diseased deceiver" say that three times fast

man, remember brimscythe? good times.

ah yes, easily keyleth's most irritating era

PUT YOUR PITCHFORKS DOWN I always get irritated when a character is the lone voice of dissent in every argument on a single topic, it tanks their characterization for me. I'm not saying she's WRONG, just that it's annoying.

vesticles

I love the sparkly plate of the dawnmartyr demo

I also love keyleth's "go fuck yourself" face

I also ALSO love just human raishan's whole design

GRAND POOBAH

I did fully believe yennen was dead

pike gets me

[keyleth screeches]

this is a very good vax face

oh my poor doomed babies

RAVEN QUEEN FUCK OFF

LET HIM LIVE

vax TALK TO HER

thumps him in the head

the number of times my partner has asked me 'how did you sleep' and I responded with 'you assume I slept'

trinket's bombastic side eye

I feel like vex got a redesign? or like a design tweak. idk I'm not digging up side by sides rn

[trinket roars a mighty roar]

NO WAIT HOLD THE FUCK UP I had to crank my volume up but WE GOT MATTHEW MCCONAUGHTREE???

I have been so sad at the lack of mcconaughtree y'all this made my night

you can't make me watch gilmore's heart break in front of me like that

something something unspoken plan guarantee

giant glittery gilmore G

scanlan has now used mythcarver twice, which is twice as much as he ever used it in the campaign

I'm glad it was already canon that grog just carries the gnomes so we didn't have to come up for a way for them to keep up with the group

oh so he's crazy crazy

I want to see gilmore's parents :(

emperex is such a cool title

vex's chin is definitely pointier

"it's high noon" frysquint

remembering that percy is like. 22? his frontal lobe has not formed

look he TOLD him to get down

keyleth already cusses much more this season. they are all very bad influences

do you spice

they explained The Farting Spice Merchant in the round table and I missed it

Not Now Pusheen

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Blurb: Bestselling author Ava Reid makes her YA debut in this dark academic fantasy perfect for fans of Melissa Albert and Elana K. Arnold.

Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. Haunted by visions of the Fairy King since childhood, she’s had no choice. Her tattered copy of Angharad—Emrys Myrddin’s epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him—is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to redesign the late author’s estate, Effy feels certain it’s her destiny.

But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin’s legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them—and the truth may bring them both to ruin.

Part historical fantasy, part rivals-to-lovers romance, part Gothic mystery, and all haunting, dreamlike atmosphere, Ava Reid's powerful YA debut will lure in readers who loved The Atlas Six, House of Salt and Sorrows, or Girl, Serpent, Thorn.

Review:

A gothic dark academia mystery featuring two rivals-to-lovers who find themselves hunting down the truth about the author of a famous story... only to find themselves fighting against the Fairy King and other dangers as the truth will come at a price. Effy Sayre lives in a world where women aren't afforded the same opportunities as men, and as the only woman in the architecture college (when she wants to be a literature student but it is forbidden for women to be in the literature college), life is hard enough, especially since she is still reeling from the scandal with her advisor... the one in which people think she slept with him to get ahead when the truth is that she didn't want any of it. Effy's only solace from her haunted visions, her terrible childhood, and the assault she faced is her book Angharad, a book that tells the epic story about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King and destroys him. Effy idolizes the author, Emrys Myrddin and the author himself is shrouded in mystery. Yet when the Myrddin family is offering to let a architecture student redesign the house, Effy knows its her chance to find out more about her author. What she didnt expect was that she would be going with Preston Héloury, a literature scholar who wants to expose Myrddin as a fraud and not the true author of Angharad. Things to also note about this universe is that Effy's home land is at war with its neighbor and one of Preston's parents is from the neighboring war land and he is also faced with prejudices. Effy immediately dislikes Preston because he rented all the books on Myrddin when she wanted them, she is also jealous that he is able to be a literature student. Though they both get off on the wrong foot they both find that they are hunting down the truth of the Fairy King, yet Effy is plagued by visions of the Fairy King and she doesn't know what's real and what's in her head. Yet the more they try to find answers the more danger closes in on them. Will they be able to find the truth before it's too late or will they die trying?

This is Ava Reid's third book and her first young adult novel, it features her gorgeous writing and its definitely an atmospheric read. The story deals with a lot of triggers: sexism/misogyny, a sexually-exploitative power imbalance, grooming, rape and dubcon, ableism, mental illness, an emotionally abusive parent, alcoholism, PTSD and intrusive memories, mentions of drowning, and child abandonment. Effy isn't really a likable character and comes off very very young and the writing feels a bit juvenile at times when it comes to her. I did like the overall mystery but I wish there was some character work on Effy and Preston, I wanted them to be a bit more fleshed out and kind of wished there was a better flow to their romance. I liked the book overall but it's definitely not my favorite of all her books. This is her first young adult novel and it definitely feels young as the characters read a bit more juvenile despite being in college. Overall, it's a beautiful atmospheric gothic read with a dash of mystery, romance, and fantasy!

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, HarperTeen for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[sepublic]

Anthony Higgs, Mauk, and Kreatz

Fun fact! In the Zero Mission manga, Samus has two Federation comrades named Mauk and Kreatz, a Simian and Elfin respectively! They’re ride or die teammates, going along when Samus jeopardizes what is supposed to be a purely reconnaissance mission to instead save the inhabitants of Jigrad from Space Pirates. Later, when Samus defies orders to go to Zebes and rescue her home from the Space Pirates (she fails), Mauk and Kreatz also defy orders to accompany Samus, and later escape with her.

What’s interesting is that according a captured Space Pirate from Jigrad, Kreatz’s Elfin species is looked down upon by the Federation, as they’re blamed for the ‘Species War’ (whatever that is). Likewise, the Simians are seen as so primitive that they weren’t even considered for Federation membership until the Chozo pushed for them to be recognized.

That last bit intrigues me because it definitely gives new meaning to Mauk’s dynamic with Samus, who is half-Chozo; Did he ever find admiration for Samus’ heritage, ask about the Chozo? Express appreciation, and mourn when they were driven from the galaxy by Mother Brain’s betrayal? Did he empathize with Samus’ own grief to some level, being supportive that way?

I dig these characters, and they’re surprisingly slept upon! They’re Anthony Higgs before Anthony Higgs, and given how much the fandom (rightfully) loves him, I’d like to see more of Samus’ other friends from the Federation.

Speaking of Higgs: From what I can tell, I think “Remember me?” is partly so memed upon because it’s that same gag of Remember that Guy, where we’re introduced to a character for the first time as someone who the MC or someone else has apparently always known and they’ve always been there. And it made me think of how the line could’ve been so much more impactful had it been Mauk or Kreatz who said it, returning years after the manga was published.

And it made me think; For a Metroid show, why not consolidate the elements of Mauk and Kreatz, as well as Anthony, as friends from Samus’ time in the Federation? Specifically, by making Anthony part of that same squad; We know him and Samus fought together in the same unit, so instead of Samus having two separate teams, let’s just do the one. Seeing Anthony in S1, before finally returning nine seasons later, would be great.

Likewise, I want to explore the concept of Samus’ old squad because in the source material, it’s comprised of non-humans who fight in a distinctly non-Federation way, save Samus; But even her power suit is non-conventional. We have Kreatz’s energy whips, as well as Mauk’s brute force blows and punches. There’s definitely this implication of them as a special unit of non-humans.

Additionally, I want to radical redesigns; I love how the manga gave us Federation aliens that could be good or bad! I just wish a character like Kreatz was more alien, because as his own species name shows, he’s basically just an elf; A human with pointy ears. Similarly, I do want to give Mauk a radical redesign for the same reasons, though he’s more forgivable. I also want to incorporate this idea I’ve had for Metroid worldbuilding about species who don’t fit within the same frame as others, and struggle for it.

So Kreatz is now this plant alien; Resembling Plant 43 from Resident Evil 2, the original version, with a three-petal mouth, vines for arms and leaves at the ends as fingers, and gnarled trunks for legs. He can lurch back to then hurl forward a glob of acid. In homage to how his pointy ears were the only distinguishing aspect of him, Kreatz has two leaves on his head, one on either side, acting like ears that can go up or down to emote.

The Elfin are a race of sapient plants; They can spew acid and have flexible vine arms. This has rendered them to a special fighting style centered around energy whips they can flail around their bodies with perfect control, with their whirling whips acting as both offense and defense for them, slashing apart enemy and enemy fire. Should an enemy get close enough, they get acid in their face.

Being plant-based organisms, the Elfin don’t speak with sound; They rely on pheromones. With most species relying on sound, this creates a huge communication barrier, with the Elfin being expected to put in the work to bridge it. Hence, many Elfin have devices attached that can translate the pheromones they emit into words; Similarly, these devices can interpret words and translate them into corresponding pheromones. It’s not perfect but it works.

The reason Kreatz’s name is so human is because his true name cannot be translated into letters, due to being pheromones; So it’s like how some PoC have an ‘English’ name to get by. For Kreatz, he’s in the Federation military, as part of the army; The army is comprised mostly of humans, so he uses a human name to appeal. The same applies for Mauk.

Mauk is also of an ‘unconventional’ species, deemed ‘abstract’ by the majority. She (gender change because we need more women) is a clam-like creature; She comprises of an armored shell on top that is impervious to damage. Beneath that shell are folds of muscles that can crush any prey beneath her, to then devour and digest. It can be a bit sobering to see Mauk drag a Space Pirate beneath her shell as they scream in agony, their legs obliterated, before she finishes them off by crunching their lower half; This method avoids exposing Mauk’s vulnerable underside to any weaponry, wielded by the arms.

To move, Mauk has four soft yet muscular limbs, short and stumpy, arranged around her body; They fold underneath her shell. She can use these arms to prop herself up, or drag prey beneath her. Mauk uses these limbs to handle technology, and each is equipped with a device that translates her thoughts into words; She can hear sound just fine. Otherwise, Mauk’s species communicates by tapping rhythmically.

The Federation has always employed esoteric species; So it makes sense for them to have special units for the purpose of utilizing the unique talents, methods, and capabilities of other races. Especially the stronger ones, some of whom could qualify as bosses in the games in another context… Samus is a part of this unit, as she is a hybrid, half-Chozo, half-human, and uses a unique Chozo power suit. Samus finds a lot of camaraderie with Mauk and Kreatz for not fitting within the typical military mold.

So how does Anthony Higgs factor into this? I don’t want him to be their human commanding officer, because I feel that does take away a bit of the camaraderie that would otherwise come from them all being in the same trenches together, so to speak. I did consider Anthony being the same rank and lacking authority, only there to remind the others of standard Federation protocol. I didn’t want to make Anthony an alien because it felt like whitewashing to me; Not the same exactly, but the same in effect of erasing characters of color.

But I’ve considered another idea; He IS essentially human, like Samus, while also being an esoteric species; But not in the way Samus is. Anthony isn’t a hybrid. Instead, he’s a host, to his wife. His wife is of a sapient parasite species, one that bonds with a host when they become old enough; To them, it’s marriage, and the host has to be consenting. Ordinarily thìs species evolved with another sapient one, or maybe they relied entirely on animals before making contact with other planets.

Regardless, in the present day they all need a host upon adulthood; Or are expected to. Some don’t fit that mold, amongst a species that already doesn’t fit the mold of the Federation or Space Pirates or other groups. But in the case of Mrs. Higgs, she was happy to meet Anthony and bond with him for life. She lives inside of his body, enhancing it and maybe emerging to attack and defend. Only Anthony can hear and understand her; The two mutually agreed to serve the Federation. People address Anthony, and sometimes allude to his wife, who like most of her kind prefers to remain private. It’s a truly mutual relationship where they both make decisions together in the heat of the moment.

So technically, Mrs. Higgs is the ‘esoteric’ one within this unit, and Anthony is just along for the ride, or IS the ride. Regardless, he’s another unusual case, which adds to the sisterhood he experiences with Samus, Mauk, and Kreatz; A clam, a parasite, a plant, and an android. Samus isn’t an android, but many mistake her for one due to her constantly being clad in armor; It’s a callback to the NES manual speculating her as such, and how the name Metroid was originally assigned to Samus (combining Metro and Android), which makes the jokes of “Why can’t Metroid crawl” even more understandable.

With the exception of Anthony, the others didn’t really go through Federation boot camp, not the typical kind at least; Given how the Federation has already employed and worked with other species before, they were essentially loaned/recommended soldiers from their own worlds. The Federation accepted, and after a proper training period where they were taught Federation protocol and familiarized to its environments, Samus and the others were assigned to one another. This special forces unit answers to Chief Hardy, and are assigned to do recon on Jigrad.

We’re first introduced to the squad via Mauk and Kreatz; A Space Pirate patrol stops so one can relieve themselves upon on a small tree, singling it out by reasoning that “Plants actually appreciate what I have to offer, unlike some regular rock.” Speaking of rocks, another notices a strange one and realizes it’s not a rock at all; It’s Mauk, who goes still, withdrawn in her shell to avoid attention, trying to blend in. Due to not being intimately familiar with Jigrad’s ecosystem and possessing biases, the Space Pirates assume this faceless creature as just one of the local fauna. One tries to shoot Mauk for fun but is disappointed when she’s unharmed; The Space Pirate is mocked and they all leave with the other one’s business finished.

That’s when tree in this scene moves out of their posture, facing Mauk; This a sapient individual named Kreatz, also unrecognized by the ignorant Space Pirates. He apologizes to Mauk for having to go through that; He speaks by grabbing a stone to use the rhythmic taps of Mauk’s species, a language the Elfin can learn to accommodate without relying on technology. Mauk reassures Kreatz that it’s all right, and anyhow he’s the one she feels sorry for. Kreatz admits it’s actually quite all right; That Space Pirate was correct, that WAS refreshing for him, and the most those pricks have ever contributed for the Elfin!

The two return to where Samus and Anthony are hiding; Samus has also mastered the rhythmic language, but Anthony struggles and laments this. Kreatz uses his device to speak, reassuring Anthony that it’s all right; He still struggles sometimes himself. The group alludes to “Mrs. Higgs,” whom Anthony reassures them on, while reiterating she prefers to be private to assuage any concerns.

The story goes about as you expect, just with Anthony (and technically Mrs. Higgs) present as well. Anthony appears to be a regular Federation soldier and that’s how the Space Pirates underestimate him, just thrown in so the others can be reminded of the Federation’s authority, until Anthony shows off what him and Mrs. Higgs can do together. Samus is the only one not underestimated, something that precedes the intimidating reputation she earns amongst her enemies.

Anthony, Mauk, and Kreatz are all ride or die friends who remain in the Federation when Samus leaves. When the Metroid crisis begins, we get a scene showing what they’ve been up to, and how they attempt to survive this new threat. It’s sobering when an indestructible shield such as Mauk, who often props herself up to protect others, is told to retreat because it doesn’t matter how impervious she is; If a Metroid latches on, she’ll be drained and killed like any other victim. It’s a testament to how Metroid is unlike anything anyone has ever faced, and a true threat.

Like in the manga, we get a scene of the trio fighting back against the Space Pirates on Mauk’s homeworld of Jamoru; After Samus completes her Zero Mission, there’s an aftermath episode acting as the season finale where we check up on her old comrades, who help turn the tides against the Space Pirates. They hear the rumors of a bounty hunter named Samus Aran single-handedly defeating Mother Brain, and express admiration, having always believed in her.

Cue all three disappearing for basically the whole show, until nine seasons later, when one of them returns on the BOTTLE ship, working as part of a new special forces unit… More on that later. Anthony asks Samus, “Remember me?” And this time the viewer actually does, with the same elation and disbelief as Samus.

[whatyadrawin]

Crystal Lake Shadows 18+ Only!  Ch 7

Masterlist

Approximately 2,296 words

Pairing: Jason Voorhees x AMAB character

Warnings: Violence, strong language, strong sexual themes

A/n: Things are going to pick up from here on out, thanks for reading!

Chapter 7

                The morning drive to the lakeside lodge was strangely peaceful despite the occurrences that happened the day before with Rob. The teddy bear was sitting next to Sergio as he drove down the dirt path. The sun was beaming down into the forest and made everything look so bright and cheery, the work today was going to be a lot of redesign and paint matching. As Sergio unlocked the lodge door, he looked around to see if there was anyone inside the property just in case, and as usual, empty.

Sergio went up to the bedroom where he originally found the teddy bear and started to look inside the dresser drawers and the closets to see if there were any other secrets to be found. He looked around for what felt like a good half hour until he saw an etching behind the headboard of the bed that read ‘Jason’s bed 1955’. Hm, someone must have made this bed for him when he was a kid Sergio sighed and got to work. Hours had passed and Sergio started to feel extremely tired from walking around all day and having wandered around so much the day before, he tried to wake himself up but his efforts didn’t seem to work and the exhaustion washed over him like a heavy blanket. He decided he needed a nap, he decided Jason’s bed was safe to sleep in despite being too tall for the twin size bed; it was surprisingly soft and comfortable regardless of the dust, Sergio fell asleep the instant his head hit the pillow.

---

A few hours had gone by, noon turned to evening and the sun was nearly finished setting before Sergio would start to wake up. His eyelids were heavy with sleep still and it wasn’t until he opened them fully that he realized he slept the entire day away. He got up from the bed and felt panicky, How the fuck did I sleep so long? Holy shit its almost nighttime I need to get the fuck out of the woods! He quickly made his way down the stairs and ran towards the truck, scared out of his mind, anxiety at full strength telling him to leave before he sees something he doesn’t want to see. He didn’t lock the door and he didn’t even have his toolbox but he knew he needed to leave, as soon as he got to his truck, he realized he didn’t have the keys Fuck they must still be upstairs! He ran back into the house leaving the door open behind him, and made his way up the stairs and looked around for the keys.

As Sergio looked around frantically, he heard a sudden shutting of the front door downstairs, he froze where he was in Jasons room, not making a single sound, listening as intently as he could. There was dead silence for a moment until he heard loud, deep thuds, these were footsteps that could only be made by someone very heavy. The thundering footsteps wandered the downstairs, Sergio couldn’t move, he had so much fear he thought he would pass out. The thuds continued downstairs until a creak was heard on the staircase, Sergio didn’t know what to do, he looked around and saw the bear was on the bed right next to him, he reached slowly for the bear and as soon as he touched it, he felt the power to get moving. He made his way as quietly as possible to the closet to hide from whoever was making their way slowly up the stairs.

The closet was empty and small but very dark, the sun had now set and the room was so dark it was hard to see anything at all. The footsteps had now started thudding around on the upper floor where the bedroom is, Sergio clutched the teddy as tightly as he could and held it up to his neck, it was allowing him to calm his breathing and heart rate but the fear was too great for this seemingly magic bear to repel. Sergio watched closely as the door to the room opened slowly, what entered through that door was unimaginable.

A dark shape, tall enough to almost touch its head to the ceiling passed through the door, this thing had to duck under the door frame just to get inside the room. It was shaped like an enormous man, wider than the door and from what Sergio could see, there was a menacing mask with what looked like glowing red eyes behind it. The man slowly wandered around the room, he looked at the bed and noticed someone had slept in it from the disheveled top sheets and tossed pillow. The man started to look around the room and all Sergio could do was close his eyes and hope that this monster wouldn’t open the closet door.

The mammoth of a man stood at the window for a few minutes, and the light from the moon lit up the man’s body enough for Sergio to make out some details. This being had the bulkiest frame Sergio had ever seen on a person, pecs that were almost bursting through the tattered shirt sloped down onto a wall of a stomach, the legs of this creature were like tree trunks, each one must have weighed over 150lbs. Sergio gawked in awe of the specimen in front of him, he couldn’t help but be impressed by the size of this person that stood at the bedroom window. Sergio watched as the man turned to walk to the bedroom door, he saw a massive blade hanging on a leg strap on this giant’s leg, it was a machete that was longer than any he had ever seen before. The monster stopped in line with the closet and turned his head looking directly at the closet doors, Sergio couldn’t help but gasp which he tried to stifle but the beast had heard the noise and made his way to the closet.

The closet doors opened and Sergio didn’t know what to do so he fell to his knees, holding the bear in front of him like a shield

“Please! Please don’t hurt me!” Sergio pleaded; tears were welling up in his eyes “I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die, please!”

The monster just stood there looking down at Sergio who now had streams of tears running down his face, Sergio just remained kneeling and holding the teddy up as a barrier between him and this unearthly entity. A moment passed, the monster had said nothing, as Sergio looked up, he saw the man staring down at him with red eyes that felt like they were burning into his soul. The being lowered himself down to inspect the bear, he gently took the bear from Sergio’s hands and held it. Sergio watched as this massive behemoth tenderly caressed the ears of the teddy bear, his head cocking to the side curiously. Through a choked-up throat, Sergio spoke

“That was Jason’s bear, I gave it a wash, it… it was comforting me”

The enormous man looked back down at Sergio, then back at the bear, Sergio followed

“A-are you… Jason?”

In a swift motion this beast lunged down at Sergio and lifted him by the shirt and pinned him against the closet wall; only one of the demons’ eyes was wide open while the other was half lidded. Sergio gasped and yelled out

“Please! I was asked to come into this house and restore it! I don’t want any trouble; I’m not trying to do anything bad please!”

The massive man was breathing heavily, his muscled, swollen pecs were heaving through his shirt. Sergio felt strange, he was scared but he wasn’t in fear of his life, this giant was terrifying but something about his eyes made Sergio feel like there was humanity inside of this monster before him. Sergio gently touched the forearm of the man to indicate that he wasn’t a threat

“Please, can you let me down? If you are Jason, that bear is your property and I’m sorry I took it”

Sergio spoke with sincerity and hoped it could reach some part of this creature’s mind so he would be let go of.

“I only want to make this place nice for Mrs. P, but if you want me to leave, I will never come back and you will be left in peace”

The monster suddenly looked up as if he was hearing something, Sergio could hear something too, almost like an ethereal whisper but he couldn’t make out the words, all he could hear was ‘Jason…. down…come to m….’

The man immediately lowered Sergio to the ground, Sergio looked up at the man whose white face covering was that of an old hockey mask. Sergio stayed as flat to the wall as he could, the monster then slowly backed away and walked out of the room, the thudding footsteps went down the stairs and out the front door until Sergio couldn’t hear any steps at all. Sergio remained in the closet as still as possible, the silence of his surroundings was unbearable, a few seconds passed after the large man left the lodge and suddenly the forest seemed to come back to life with frogs croaking in the distance and owls hooting in the trees. Sergio took a deep gasp of air and fell to the floor sweating bullets, he wanted to crawl into a ball and hide, he looked for the teddy but it was gone, that man had taken it with him when he left and Sergio felt like a lost puppy not knowing what to do next and paralyzed with fear.

Sergio lay on the floor in the closet for what felt like hours until he heard a vehicle coming up to the lodge, a car door had opened and someone was calling out his name.

“Sergio! Are you out here?”

It was Marina, he felt an immediate jolt of energy and jumped up to life as he ran out of the room and leaped down the stairs to where she was standing in the living room

“Oh my god Marina, I am so happy you are here!” he yelled

Marina looked relieved and asked “What are you doing here? I didn’t see your truck outside the apartment and it’s really late. What happened?”

Sergio paused and realized he would sound out of his mind if he told her the truth, so instead he lied and said,

“Oh, I fell asleep and a nap that was supposed to be a few minutes turned out to be much longer”

She looked weirded out “Why didn’t you just come back home after you woke up?”

Sergio scratched his beard “Eh, I-I’m afraid of the dark and I was too scared to turn on the lights”

Marina laughed “Oh man you poor guy! I’m so sorry you woke up in the dark you must have been so scared. Next time you better set an alarm if you nap”

Sergio chuckled and smiled “Aha yeah, I will make sure to do that the next time. Thank you for coming all this way to check on me”

Marina smiled and took his hand to lead him out the door “Well let’s get going, I have a lot of leftover pie from the dinner shift I want you to have”

Sergio left his toolbox on the table and closed the front door without bothering to lock it, both he and Marina got in their vehicles and left the lodge to go back home. The entire drive back felt like it took forever, the forest was pitch black even with the moon shining brightly down the road. Sergio tried to keep his mind off the beast he encountered, as he got to the apartment, Marina fetched the pie from her apartment and brought it back to Sergio and promptly left so she could get some sleep.

Sergio sat on his couch and ate the pie in silence, he stared into nothing as he mindlessly chomped away at the delicious fruit which filled the inside of the dessert. After the last bite, he felt calm, he began to head to the bed, taking his clothes off along the way. He flopped onto the mattress in relief, but as soon as he lay his head on the pillow, all he could think of was the massive man. That had to have been Jason, he took that bear with him and he freaked out when I said his name, it had to have been him; Sergio turned over to his side What were those whispers? It sounded like a woman but, how could Jason hear them too? They felt like they were inside my head Sergio closed his eyes to try and sleep but his mind started to move to a very different place I have never seen a man like that before, he made me feel so small and weak. He couldn’t get the feel of Jasons forearm out of his head, it was like it was made of steel covered in warm rough skin. That chest, his body must be all muscle or something, how was he able to lift someone as heavy as me with such ease? Sergio lay there repeating the scene in his head until he remembered Jasons eyes; Those eyes, they were glowing red! No human or animal has eyes like that, what the fuck is he? For the rest of the night, he would continue to ruminate about Jason until he passed out. Was Jason a human? Or was he supernatural? The only thing Sergio knew was that he wanted to go back.

[oumaheroes]

So i went to reread the three other oneshots you tagged in your recent of Gabriel leaving Arthur and Francis home but it doesn't make much sense

In the one of them at the party, at/towards the end you mention Alfred being caught by Antonio having "a lot of fun' meaning he was caught doing something naughty 👀

And then you mention Matthew hiding the good wine from Alfred, meaning they're AT LEAST 18 years old to be at this party, drinking and going into lewd acts with others.

But in the Marriage Counseling AU, they're both kiddos being told "your dad and i got into a fight" and how kids can tell that something is going on between their parents

Also.... Uhhh, just my own opinion about what Arthur's feelings... Uhhh

Is it Wrong that I really want Francis and Arthur to divorce?

I'm not sure what Arthur did that was bad aside from missing out on couples therapy, and him mentioning to Gilbert at the bar that he ALMOST fucked up, but catching or finding out your husband fucked some other person isn't something you can simply move on from, and if Arthur isn't ready to forgive or forget, and if he doesn't want to at all then thats a valid response from him. Lord knows i wouldn't but i guess he just loves Francis so much that he's willing to stay with him still, or maybe he's doing it for the kids like he tells Gilbert .

I'm also assuming maybe it's Antonio that Francis slept with, since they mention their absence when it's him and Gil at the bar drinking , like he had something to do with it.

Not sure, but yes, the whole au seems a little confusing now

Oh Anon, you speak such truths!

TLDR:

The Couples' Therapy AU exists in scattered parts and, as each part was written so far away from the parts before, the story has changed from the original design (where Al and Matt are Arthur and Francis' adult friends) to what they are in the next three installments- their children.

I've never revealed (aside to NeedCake hehe) what the storyline actually is, or what Arthur and Francis are actually fighting about or have done to each other. This is a secret for now and the stories posted are little flashes into it!

Rather than go back and edit the first part to fit, I'd rather write the whole thing out officially and prettily ;u; Thank you for your patience with me! I'm sorry things are a little confusing

Okay, long detail under the cut:

The Couples' Therapy AU originally started out with this. I had a vague idea of what I wanted but it was only going to give context to the -this was never meant to be anything more than a one shot! Arthur and Fran were a newly married couple sorting out some jealousy issues, Al and Matt are there but aren't related to them, and it was all going to be fine and dandy

And then Whumptober happened

Whumptober did things to me, Anon. I saw Day 2's prompt and the whole AU came back to me with a bang but this time, in my Whumptober fuled mania, it came back evil

From this point I fleshed the entire story out, each character's involvement, and then let it simmer. In this fic, listed as part three of Couples' Therapy, I kept the core idea of jealousy issues but redesigned the whole structure- Fran and Art are now a family, they've been married for years, but over those years cracks have begun to show and someone from Arthur's past comes along and inadvertently, innocently, steps on some fragile ground and breaks the whole things apart

The second listed part of Couples' Therapy then, written near the end of Whumptober, is the direct aftermath. What has happened has happened, everyone's hurt and split by it all, and we get a glimpse into what really went down

As for the truth of what happened, you'll have to wait and see. I've been waiting for the motivation to sit down and write the thing from the start but cake's birthday gift makes part number 4, which is chronologically the second story in teh timeline of events. It's about to kick off and we just need to watch it happen

'Is it Wrong that I really want Francis and Arthur to divorce?'

No it is not, they have done terrible things to each other

[scatteredcloud]

Unfortunately I do really enjoy this work I find it incredibly rewarding but holy fuck I am so scared. The only other shows I've done as The costume lead have been little student directed works and small casts. Into the deep end I go I hope everyone gets collective amnesia about how I don't/can't be normal without being some sort of chemically altered and I really really can't start smoking again. I hope everyone forgets that I had to leave mid production last year 0 explanation because I put myself in partial hospitalization. I hope no one realizes that I will way way more frequently than I would care to admit miss rehearsal because I slept through it. Yeah the rehearsal that starts at 4pm yeah that one.

Not to mention feeling like a freak (social ostracization) and a pervert (visibly genderqueer) under normal circumstances and under these circumstances?? I'm fighting so hard to be and look and act normal.

"Hey when I was imagining you in my head a month before you even started reading the script I imagined you wearing this. Do you like it. Also do you have a white bra. when I was imagining your character I realized that her underwear would be slightly visible. It absolutely doesn't have to be if you don't want to. But when I was thinking about your charcaters and by extension your boobs I imagined it like this. If you're cool with that. Do you like it" like jesus fucking christ i don't know if i'm going to get out of here alive + without a chemical dependence on a substance of choice.

I've been told that I've been very tactful and mindful while navigating fittings and working with body image which is gratifying I'm glad that at least two people think that but what if they think I'm weird anyways. I'm starting this interaction at a social deficit.

"So I start months before you and I've interpreted your character like this before you've done any character work and before the dramaturgy packet is due so I wanted to ask Is this ok do you think this makes sense for your character do you like it? Is it ok that I was thinking about you for that entire time because I need you to like it I need you to like it I need you to like me I need you to feel like you look good on stage that is actually my number one priority because if you don't it not only reflects badly on my designs but also will affect your performance everyone says it wont and dont worry about it but it does and it will so I need to know Do you like it."

It feels like a set up it feels like I"m going to get the rug pulled out from under me and everyone's going to hate it actually and I"m going to have to redesign all 22 of these fucking costumes because actually it'll turn out that I'm way off base with the concept I completely misinterpreted it and not only do people think I"m a weirdo and a pervert but also that I'm bad at design.

Cognitive distortion count : >4 conspiratorial thinking, catastrophizing, emotional reasoning, jumping to conclusions

[cosmic--static]

thanks for the tag @watercubebee :D

current mood: tired :( very tired I havent slept very well the past few days (i say as I am still up past midnight. hm 🤔🤔 I wonder why you haven't slept well sosmo)

current activity: getting ready to sleep... hopefully I might wait to post this until morning tbh

current favorite song: that's such a hard one :(( I usually have a favorite song but I can't think of one rn so the song I've been listening to the most recently: Sweet Transvestite from Rocky Horror <3 I have been listening to this SOOO much the past few days

currently reading: Nemesis by Louise Cooper (does it count if I've only read the first page 🫣) but also I have sooooo many books that I am "currently" reading. by currently I mean I started them 2 years ago and have not touched the book since... yikes

currently watching: nothing really :^: mostly it's been youtube or a movie I've already seen

current favorite character: a few days ago I might've said dream or hob but they are slowly getting overcome by my own oc, Kirov, who I had to redesign today and I love her very much :3

current wips: oh boy... [holding closed a door that has fic wips threatening to burst out of it] oh y'know... just a few doodles for artfight and-- [the dam of fic wips bursts]. but yeah. I'm always working a little on my fun retired transfem dream fic (has not worked on it in months. but I am always thinking about working on it so... same thing right?)

tagging you @myvoideisstupid because why not <3 and anyone else who wants to do this, consider yourself tagged! I do not have the brain power to think of anyone else to tag so hahsjjabsjd I sleep 🛏️

[solradguy]

i don't know if you're still accepting character asks but if you are; testament

Testament? More like BESTament AYYYYYY. When Testament was announced for Strive, I was listening to a lot of Testament the band at the time. It felt like I’d summoned them haha 

💀 Overall opinion of them:

I gotta admit that I wasn't really interested in Testament until they got added in Strive. Their original design isn't something that usually appeals to me, but I love their Strive redesign a lot!! It's cool seeing them back again, and that they're happy with themselves too. As a fellow LGBT humanoid, any LGBT character getting a good ending is instantly a favorite for me. Guilty Gear having at least TWO (3, if you count the Justice mistranslation) nonbinary characters right from the start with Testament and Baiken back in friggin 1998 is so goddamn cool. Even if Daisuke didn't know the correct terms for everything back then he still at least tried. Thank you Daisuke and ArcSys 🙏

💀 Gender/sexuality headcanons:

Testament is musei, which I think the ArcSys English team decided to translate to agender? I’ve never thought about what their sexuality might be though...hmm... Other than a few close friends, it kinda feels like they enjoy being alone. Maybe they’re aro/ace or demisexual? 

💀 Favorite moment in canon:

Strive reveal trailer with their new design 😩💖💖

I hope we get the bit of lore where Testament realizes they’re not under Justice’s control anymore and can have hobbies and a life of their own again. That would be really nice. 

💀 Favorite line, in canon or otherwise:

Ahh... A lot of Testament’s dialog is just like “DIE MONSTER I HATE YOU” until Strive... Their intro dialog in a mirror match in Strive is pretty good though:

(P2) "You there, arms up a bit. It's more graceful."

(P1) "Is that so? I was just thinking lower would be better."

💀 Characters I love seeing them interact with:

DIZZZYYYYYY. I think Testament would get along with Ky pretty well too. Maybe the three of them have regular tea dates together? It would be cool if Testament and post-Strive Sol got to have a conversation and work out their differences too. Testament seems to have/had a lot of resentment towards Sol because he was close with Kliff while Testament kinda got pulled out of the picture when the whole Justice thing went down. 

💀 Last thing before sleeping headcanons:

Testament’s been confirmed as being a bubble bath enjoyer so they definitely take nice long pre-bed bubbly baths when they have the time too, with music, candles, tea, and a book. The whole shebang, ya know? When they don’t have time for a bubble bath, they still have a pretty lengthy nightly beauty routine. There isn’t a place in this meme template to put it so I’m gonna put it here haha I like the imagine that one of Testament’s hobbies is making their own clothes. One of their hobbies is confirmed embroidery and a few of the others are pretty crafty too. Maybe before bed Testament enjoys browsing fashion boards for outfit inspiration ideas and has a scrapbook of ideas they’d like to try out some day. 

💀 Sleeping habits headcanons:

Probably Testament has a pretty standard bed (though one with a huge canopy) and sleeps like a normal person would, but Gears are FREAKY and I think it would be much funnier if they slept hanging from the ceiling by their feet or something wild like that. 

💀 First thing after waking up headcanons: 

Morning tea, absolutely. Then breakfast. I think Testament enjoys trying new recipes when they can so if they aren’t in a hurry that day, they try something different each morning. Testament feels like the type who would subscribe to all kinds of different topics of newsletters, several of which are from recipe/cooking sites. They have neatly hand-written index cards of recipes they tried and liked that they bring out when guests come over. 

💀 Favorite locations headcanon:

Out in nature for sure, but mostly resting by streams in forests or in the shade on a beach where they can catch up on reading and planning new projects or trips. They don’t like the mountains as much because it’s too windy that high up and it makes it hard to keep the right page open in their book. 

[faulty-writes]

Alright so. For the past few days, I have just wanted to scream. Mostly because writing is a passion of mine and I'm tired of all the excuses and boundaries I've experienced with it lately. So I figured, I'd make some comfort pieces. Not sure if these are headcanons or drabbles. But all credit for this prompt goes to this lovely individual. Please excuse my icons appearances below, I made them in a rush. I'll redesign them later. Until then I hope you enjoy, at least you know faulty-writes cares.

PROMPT: You’re just lying on the floor of your bedroom, maybe listening to music, reading, or just staring up at the ceiling. Your comfort character walks in, not saying a word (or they do whatever) and just lays down next to you, maybe they join in on whatever task you’re doing if you’re doing one. Now you’re just vibing.

Nothing had been going right lately, the more you tried the worse it got. Like some invisible entity was hand-delivering you a continuous dose of karma for little to no reason. Despite being a third-year student and someone who faced down countless villains. You, for once, felt utterly defeated as you laid on your bedroom floor, staring at the ceiling.

You didn't expect anyone to knock on your door, "Pardon! Y/n, but may I have permission to enter your bedroom?" you should have known Tenya would take it upon himself to check on your well-being and show concern when he saw you laying on the floor with your arms and legs spread in such a way that it appeared you truly had just plopped yourself down and refused to move.

He was immediately by your side, lowering himself to his knees before leaning over you. Taking you in from head to toe to make sure you were physically okay. "Are you injured? Did someone grow violent and push or harm you in any way?!" his hand as usual chopped through the air as he rambled off his questions but you simply shook your head refusing to speak.

He seemed to take the hint that something was wrong, but also seemed to understand that his questions wouldn't get him anywhere. "I hope you have properly cleaned this floor prior to laying on it," you knew Tenya was a clean and tidy person, the thought of laying on a dirty floor must have disgusted him. But you hadn't fully expected him to do it, that is lay next to you. Staring at the ceiling just like you and you tried to ignore the tingles that coursed through your skin when your hands brushed against one another.

The silence was almost welcomed, and Tenya seemed to understand that perhaps all you needed was someone to sit with you through the silence and be there for the possible storm that could follow. Slowly he enclosed his hand around yours and gave it a reassuring squeeze which caused you to turn your head. You were surprised to see such a kind smile on his face but somehow you knew it meant that everything would be okay.

The television was the only thing that illuminated the room as you laid on the floor, listening to the voices echo and drone on about something you didn't know or care about. Maybe you had put the television on so you wouldn't feel alone. It had been a rotten day and though you could have easily climbed into bed, slept the rest of the night away. You found yourself not wanting to move an inch.

You were so lost in your thoughts that you didn't notice your closest friend, Taishiro walk into the room. His round curvy figure maneuvering past the doorframe and a bright smile was on his face before he took notice of how dark the room was. "Enjoying yourself a little shade are ya?" he teased in his normal happy tone before he went to flick the lights back on, "I think a little sunshine looks better on ya," he joked, but his smile faded when he noticed you laying on the floor.

Taishiro normally wasn't one to pry, unless you happened to be a villain. But you should have expected him to ask you again and again what was wrong. The way his gentle hand grasped and tugged your arm, "Come on now, let's see that bright smile! It does wonders for me ya know, whenever I see ya wearing it. Well I couldn't be more blessed knowing I got to see ya so happy," you knew he meant his words, but you still didn't move nor speak and Taishiro seemed to know when he was bested. But even so, you knew that wouldn't stop him from doing what he did next.

He had insisted you would be more comfortable laying on top of him as opposed to the floor. But you remained silent all the same, even as he laid his arms over you. Gently stroking your hair and massaging the small of your back. "Ya know, ya can always tell me anything. I ain't about judging ya for what ya been through, but I also don't mind if ya wanna stay silent. Just as long as I can continue to hold ya nice and close," he said and you could feel his arms tighten around you.

You didn't recall anything after those sweet words, only the continued silence between you and Taishiro and the way your body slowly sank into his. His comforting embrace welcomed after such a rotten day. His breathing seemed to drown out the television as you closed your eyes and allowed that very sound to lull you to sleep. It was more comforting than you'd admit, feeling so safe and sound in someone's arms. Knowing you'd be protected until the morning.

Music was the one thing that seemed to comfort you after a bad day, the lyrics depicting your emotions perfectly as they echoed in your ears and allowed you to drown out the world around you. The sounds outside your door blocked out, and for good reason. You didn't want to face anyone today. In fact, you were pretty certain that you didn't want to see anyone for the rest of your life.

But your classmates seemed to notice the fact that you had locked yourself away and it seemed they had voted that Shouto Todoroki would be the one to check up on you. However, the knocks went unnoticed by you as did the fact that Shouto let himself in after he heard no response. It was almost scary to open your eyes only to see two different colored ones staring back at you, but Shouto seemed indifferent to your reaction. "Are you alright...why are you on the floor?" he questioned in his usual monotone way.

It was almost amusing when Shouto took notice of the music you were listening to, the sound faintly blasting from your earbuds. "You can't hear what I'm saying with those," he stated, but all you saw were his lips moving. He blinked and reached down, attempting to take one earbud out but you grasped his hand and simply shook your head. "Oh...I see," his posture relaxed some as he got the message and proceeded to sit next to you, crossing his legs to allow his arms to rest on his ankles.

He didn't entirely seem to understand why you were doing what you were doing. But in a way, it was nice to have his company. After a long moment, you noticed Shouto was staring at you like he was waiting for you to say or do something. You reached up, taking out one earbud to hold out to him. He seemed confused by the gesture but took it anyway, "Would...you like me to listen with you?" he questioned, though it took him a few seconds to place the earbud into his ear. Eyebrows furrowing together as the new sound echoed through his ear.

You wouldn't have thought that Shouto of all people could provide you with silent comfort. But it was nice that he was there and taking part in something you loved to do. Eventually, you convinced him to lay on the floor with you and found yourself smiling as you played song after song for him. The curious expressions that played across his face almost made your horrible day worth it. You only paused the music for a short moment to thank him, but he seemed oblivious to the reason behind your thank you. Maybe one day he'd learn just how much his presence comforted you.

[ascalonianpicnic]

Selva Piratescourge - The Silent Siren approaches, beware her songs

Norn Thief - gender inconclusive, she/her or they/them - aro/ace, married to the sea

As a young girl, Selva had dreamed of growing up to be a skaald, to be famed for telling the stories of others and for truly singing the praises of heroes. She had wanted to inspire and enchant with her voice. Instead, as a young woman, she fell in with a charismatic pirate captain, believing him when he said it was love. The two terrorized the seas together, Selva thoroughly under his spell, until one day, during a raid, it really sank in for her the things she was doing, the people she was hurting. Not long after, she killed the captain during a night spent alone together, crashed the ship while the rest of the crew slept, and took the small dinghy, escaping into the night and leaving them all for dead. She went on to spend the next several years defending shoreline towns from raids by other pirate crews and terrorizing pirates on shore leave, becoming a bit of a legend herself as the woman who even the hardiest of pirates and sailors fear.

After Ellen Kiel finished with the rebuilding efforts in Lion’s Arch, she reached out to Selva, who’s name was well known all across the city, offering her a ship and the chance to build a crew, if she was willing to take her skills back out to sea to protect travelers and merchants from the pirates that still roamed the area. Selva was glad to accept, missing being out on the open ocean, and started gathering herself a strange and unique crew of misfits who wanted to do right. She and her crew now roam the waters around Lion’s Arch, protecting the innocent from those who would take advantage of them, regardless of what side of the law they’re on.

---

Due to circumstances Selva would rather not discuss with her former captain, she experiences ptsd and is selectively mute because of it. She and her crew have their signals sorted out through a system of communication via whistling. Any information that needs to be quickly passed is whistled over the sounds of the ocean, and this grants the extra advantage of enemies being unable to understand and preempt Selva’s orders. She is fluent in Tyrian Sign and uses that for all communications, her first mate Elli serving as her translator whenever she has to deal with others who don’t know sign. She and her crew are all quite close, and everyone on the ship either knows sign or is learning it.

She’s dangerous in a straight up fight, but Selva’s real prowess is in striking before the enemy knows she’s there, causing massive damage and chaos before the main battle ever begins. She earned her title of the silent siren during her days on shore, when she would go after the cruel and terrible. No one would ever see or hear her coming, they would simply find the victim or victims dead, and those who listened closely could hear her singing to herself on her way home after.

(end notes: Selva’s my second character i ever made lmao. I saw big lady with tattoos option and went wild. She used to look a lot different, but I ended up growing really dissatisfied with how she started, so when i got an identity repair kit with one of the expacs, i redesigned her and changed her name a bit. I didn’t enjoy playing her at first, which is funny since norn and thief have gone on to become my fave race and one of my fave classes, but because of it, I still don’t really ever play her. She mostly sits around looking pretty and having birthdays)

[hqrbinger]

1-30 satoru :D

this took so long for what <//3 (this is my oc NOT gojo)

My first impression of them

well at first, satoru was supposed to be a fuckboy flirty motherfucker.... i was so prepared to make him some hoe ass who slept with everyone in the kamisato estate but that changed SO FAST

When I think I truly started to like them (or dislike them, if you've sent me a character I don't like)

i really started to vibe with him after figuring out a lot of his lore, and delving rlly deep into it with u on vc (cough cough the affair..... yoimiya.... etcetera etcetera)

A song that reminds me of them

valentine (prod. flavors) - altas (mostly bc i think the voice of the singer sounds like how satoru would sound) and night shift- lucy dacus

How many people I ship them with

two! (but i dont mind if others ship him with other characters too :D)

My favorite ship of them

CLEARDAWN MY ABSOLUTE BELOVED BELOVED

My least favorite ship of them

ayato x satoru

A quote of them that you remember

"i'd wait for you forever if i have to"

Your favorite outfit of them

satoru's mafia!AU fit is.... wow... sheesh........

Your least favorite outfit of them

HONESTLY HIS CANON FIT LMAOOOOO might have to redesign soon bc compared to his other fits hes so much hotter, maybe its the pants?? idk i need to add more Spice™️ to it man

Describe the character in one sentence

you oblivious, stupid, headstrong little man. maybe THINK for a second before you do shit mfg

What’s the first thing you think about when thinking about the character?

........cleardawn or pink

Sexuality hc!

satoru is canonically bisexual!

Your favorite friendship they have

besides akio, i LOVE his relationship with itto. i mean its more mentor/father figure to like son fingure ig but i LOVE THEM

Best storyline they had

i honestly love his canon sm <33 im very proud of how i wrote him

Worst storyline they had

i dont think he had like a badly written storyline but in terms of like, bad things that happened to him, probably his childhood LOL

A childhood headcanon

when he was a kid he trained at the kamisato estate with the kamisato and the asato siblings in the art of the sword!

What do you think their first word was?

uhhhhh probably somethin DUMB like mom or dad man

How do you think they were as a kid? (Like, were they shy, noisy, wild, etc)

he was a WILD fuckin kid bro. like im talking that one kid u knew in elementary who was bouncing off the walls and shit

but he could also be quiet and respectful, his parents drilled etiquette into him so <3

The most random ship you've seen people have with them

i have not rlly seen anyone ship him with people (not many people know about my ocs akjhsdfkjlsdf)

A weird headcanon

satoru is so blind without his glasses, and he has shattered and snapped through at least 15 pairs in his lifetime. he has at least 4 backup pairs of glasses in his room at any given time (if one of his spares breaks he replaces it IMMEDIATELY)

When do you think they were at their happiest?

he was at his happiest when he settled into the kamisato estate after being on the run from the shogunate army once itto lost his vision. he had a job, a stable home, he had lovely friends, and he was able to see his best friend all the time

When do you think they were at their lowest?

the night akio left. he had never felt more empty than that night

Future headcanon

satoru finds a little peace with himself and is able to live a little peacefully <3

What do you think is a secret they have that they never told anyone?

he has not told anyone that he and yoimiya are half siblings! he doesn't even think yoimiya herself knows

When do you think they acted the most ooc

when this mf pretends he's not madly in love with akio

When do you think they were being "themselves" the most?

whenever he's cooking! he loves to cook, and when he's able to really be focused and himself if ykwim

If they could meet a character from another show/movie/etc, who would be the most fun for them to meet?

i would love for him to meet hero from omori.... i feel like they would get along really well.... if u catch my drift....

The most unnecessary thing they ever did?

literally not confessing to akio. bitch. this is the root of all your problems.

How do you think they would be as a parent? (and if they are a parent, how do you think they would be if they weren't?)

i think he would be great :D he would want to he the polar opposite to his own parents, so he would be super swag i think <3

The funniest scene they had?

any moment he has ever shared with yoimiya is utter chaos. they do stupid shit together and i love them for it <3

[renegadepack]

how about leah and the boys and their pets? like i think embry would loves cats for some reason. what about the others? just an idea

ur goddamn right he would

Embry loves cats. He had one of his own, a long-haired cat named Sabrina. She was found as a little kitten wandering the woods near his home, and his mother volunteered to take her in. Embry nursed her back to health, and had had her ever since - almost ten years now. He had tons of pictures of her that he showed anyone at a moment’s notice. They were inseparable: she slept in his bed at night, sat next to him while he did his homework, and played with him after school.

Quil always had dogs growing up. His father loved them, so they always had at least a few. They had their own, but always took in fosters when the need arose. Quil was in charge of walking them twice a day; once before school and again in the evening. He explored most of his hometown with the dogs, sometimes going deep into the trees, rain or shine. They loved running along the beach, no matter how cold the water got.

Jacob didn’t have any pets growing up; there wasn’t really the time or the money for them. He always wanted one, begging for a puppy every birthday and Christmas, lingering by the animal shelter’s adoption tables outside the grocery store every Saturday. But the answer was always no. He made do with his friends’ pets, cat-sitting for Embry when his family went out of town and helping Quil walk his dogs.

Sam wasn’t one for having pets, but Emily wanted to keep chickens in their backyard. He built a coop for them one day, and they began raising chickens. Sam didn’t expect to love it as much as he did. They carefully chose names based on the chickens’ looks and personalities, naming them after favorite characters from books and movies.

Leah loved animals of all kinds, but didn’t necessarily want one of her own. She wasn’t sure of the responsibility, and couldn’t decide what to get anyway. She compromised by volunteering with the local animal shelter. They mostly had cats and dogs, but occasionally other animals like rabbits, rats, and reptiles. She learned all she could about each one, wanting to take care of them the best she could and answer any questions potential new owners had. Leah worked at the shelter as often as she could, cleaning cages, socializing and playing with the animals, and helping facilitate adoptions.

Paul often tagged along with Lea when she worked at the shelter. It was where they first became friends; Paul needed something to do after school, and a couple of people suggested the shelter. Leah’s shifts often overlapped with his, and she taught him pretty much everything he knew. They got along well, bickering back and forth while they took care of the animals. They goofed around and chased each other while playing fetch with the dogs, and talked while they cuddled with the cats. They were surprised by how much they had in common.

From a young age, Jared knew he wanted to be a veterinarian when he grew up. He researched all kinds of animals, finding information online and checking out books about different pet care through the library. He had a shelf at home full of the books he found most interesting. There were reference books full of different kinds of animals, detail books ranging from cats to turtles and everything in between, and so much more. He never had any pets of his own, though. Occasionally, he took in strays until he could find them a more permanent home, or sick or injured animals that he nursed back to help before releasing them again.

Growing up, Seth always had a collection of rats. Money from birthdays and holidays was spent on creating different cages for them to live in; they were spread out and connected by different tunnels and other things throughout his bedroom. He taught them simple tricks and let them run around his room while he did his homework or other projects. h e was constantly redesigning the cages, creating or finding new toys for them to play with.

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