#already have an eclipse theme planned

[cero-sleep]

Any milagro masked dragon themes y'all would like to see in a raffle?

[miwachan2]

hear me out VampiricEquinox-BAND AU

LISTEN 3 days ago i was listening to "The Law" by Reach and I was like, "This is definitely a vampire eclipse song, it fits him so well and i listened to it on repeat and then thought what if Eclipse sang it? .... What If Eclipse Sang It omg what if he sang it on a stage- BAND AU! and now this band au exists OwO I already got a little lore~ HEHEHEHE but i'll put that under the cut because its gonna be long and vague and messily written

So its a twist of the original Vampiric Equinox au lore with ALOT of changes and changing the whole vibe just for it to make sense (to me atleast) SO Eclipse, Sun, n' Moon were in a band, a VAMPIRE themed band Aka: "Eclipse & the Bats" (idk about the name but bear with me) (also may or may not be real vampires, im debating if I wanna keep that or not), Eclipse was the main singer and leader, did the writing, choreography, everything was under his control and decision. Sun was the guitarist and Moon was the drummer and they both followed Eclipses plans I even got concept ideas of that sun n moons outfits looked like when they were in a band with eclipse (not solified but ill fix it later)

something something The band breaks up! and that pissed off Eclipse but TOO LATE! band broke up, he lost his brothers, now he mad lol and then kinda drops off the face of the earth, doens't release anymore music because hes a sour puss Sun n Moon are stuck. they want to keep making music but they have no idea what to do, they were never allowed to be anything but a guitarist and a drummer, and they don't have a singer anymore Plus their fame was all because of Eclipse, so they're kinda back at square one BUT THEN! they come across Y/N and Bee! a small duo trying to make their music, which isn't bad, but it lacks some needed sounds to really get their foot in the door. Sun n Moon team up with Y/N and Bee and THUS! "The Hunters" is born! more something something, their band starts to gain popularity! But just as they start to be getting better gigs and onto an actual stadium

ECLIPSE RETURNS TO TAKE THE SPOT LIGHT! He got a new band and back up replacements, popping out songs, new band name: "Total Eclipse" AND his first song, a diss track against "The Hunters" GASP! and THEN!! They become rival bands!

HUueHuehueHUEHUEh uHEhuH EUHeu hEHEHEHEHHE

aight thats all I got OwO Look- I know its cringe, its so cringe, but I like it uwu Might do a few more doodles of this Au of my AU 'cause the brainrot is rotting

[casualhedonists]

✩ it don’t need your loving, it just needs attention ✩ (chapter three)

pairing: Coriolanus Snow x reader

chapter: 3/? (MASTERLIST)

warnings: NSFW (18+), snow being snow, themes of sex work (not the reader), cuckolding, eventual smut, fake relationship, unprotected sex, themes of voyeurism & mild exhibitionism, murder mention (but no actual murder) (not yet at least?), MAJOR manipulation/gross power dynamics + generally darkish themes, power play, oral sex, thigh riding, degradation, dirty talk, eventual piv, i’m new to full on smut bear with me here (and pls tell me if i forgot anything!)

i do not give permission for my work to be reposted/translated anywhere, under any circumstances.

taglist: if you’d like to be tagged, leave a comment on the masterlist post and i’ll add you! 💌

a/n: thank you for your patience and condolences / kind messages over the past week i’ve been awol. i’m very happy to be back. very long, filthy and much awaited chapter ahead, so strap in and hope you enjoy the ride.

in the words of miss zegler herself: oh we are so back.

You weren’t sure how long he stared at you, smiling with a fire in his eyes that rivalled yours until it was eclipsed. A third and final time, you found yourself speechless, dumbstruck, and one final time, much like the others, you took a few shaky steps backwards, before turning and fleeing.

He knew. He’d known this whole time. How long had he been planning this? Exactly how much of this had been an act, with Snow puppeteering you as you slowly lost your mind?

You almost felt pity for the girl, because she was played just like you were. She was a mere pawn in his game of chess, where he’d toyed with you until you were backed into a corner, unable to make a move.

Well, not this time. Now you knew what he was playing, you were ready to up your game. This wouldn’t be another stalemate; you wanted to win, and you had a few ideas of where to start.

You were already up and dressed when you heard a knock at your door the next morning.

Dreading the worst – despite the fact that Snow had never actually been in your room before, but the rules had changed now and you weren’t sure quite how much – you paused for a second to prepare yourself, praying that he wouldn’t be there, ready to put a stop to your plans before they’d even started.

You fell lucky. It was one of Snow’s footmen, George.

“Good morning, ma’am. I, um.” He swallowed, not meeting your eye. “I have a message from Master Snow. He’d like for you to meet him for breakfast in a half hour, if you will. He says you have something… quite important to discuss.”

Typical Snow. Never liked to get his hands dirty. Too proud to knock at your door himself.

You considered.

“George, could you please tell Coriolanus that if I’ve already eaten, and that I’ll come to him when I see fit. If he isn’t satisfied,” you added, for his sake, as you knew Snow wasn’t above killing the messenger, “Say I have an urgent matter to tend to, and I’m not sure when I’ll be back.”

You grew a lump in your throat from your refusal, fearing the consequences. But you’d set your plan into motion now and there was no going back. Once George had been sent on his way, you snuck down the stairs on the far end of the building and slipped out the door through the servants’ quarters, where you knew Snow wouldn’t see you leave. The one upside to the last few weeks was that you’d learned how to sneak around the manor unnoticed. You were certain there were at least three hallways he’d had never even set foot in.

You had Lucille call Henry – Snow’s driver – in advance so you could leave right away.

“Where are we going, ma’am?” He glanced at you over his shoulder as you slid into the black town car.

“Head into the city. I’ll explain on the way.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Henry took some convincing – and some light bribing – to finally cave and tell you what and where this gentleman’s club was. Of course, it was a risk, a roll of the dice to go there without concrete proof, but you knew Snow. You knew his little neuroses and hang-ups, and he was paranoid; in all senses, it would seem, except when it came to you. If he’d been frequenting this club for some time – some years, according to Henry – and trusted their discretion, then you highly doubted he’d play Russian roulette and pick somewhere else.

You were dropped off outside, and sent Henry to the tailor to pick up some of Snow’s things; an excuse for the outing, but a part of your plan too. He was hesitant to leave you alone in such a place, but you insisted you knew exactly how to handle yourself, and so he gave in.

You’d deliberately dressed down for what you were about to do, worn your old coat and let your hair down with a hood pulled over it. It being daytime, the place was closed for business, but you knocked on the front door expectantly.

You waited. Went over the plan, and knocked again.

This time, the door opened and a burly man now stood between you and the inside of the brothel. Your curiosity made peek over his shoulder before he cleared his throat.

“Can I help you, miss?”

“Yes. My name is Margaret, sir, I’m a maid at the, uh,” You dropped your voice to a low whisper, “Snow household. I have a message for the owner of this establishment, from my master. Is he here?”

The man cleared his throat and glanced around the nearly empty street, then beckoned you in quickly.

“Anything for Mr Snow, miss. Right this way.”

There was your proof.

The empty club was a classy one, you had to give Snow that. The bar caught your eye, silver panels lining the wall behind it in an otherwise jet-black glossy room, with dark red couches and shiny tables, booths, single chairs, a stage with shiny metal poles, and a few cordoned-off alcoves.

You took it all in, certain you’d be able to appreciate the aesthetics of it more if it wasn’t for the seething rage inside you. You were stopped at a closed door near the back, and the burly man knocked.

“Yeah.” Came a voice from inside.

“All yours. He’ll take care of you.” Your guide stepped away. You pushed at the door.

A dark-haired man sat facing a desk, poring over paperwork. He didn’t look up.

“If you’re here for a job, sweetie, it’s Tuesday after 11.”

This incensed you.

“I’m not here for work. This is official business. I was told you take care of… special clients.”

He spun around, frowning.

“I’m listening.”

“I have a message from President Snow. He has a series of requests to be carried out with no delay.”

“Ah, yes. Mr Snow. I see. And you are to him?” He prompted.

“Just a maid from the household. He sent me as a messenger.”

“Excellent. Well in that case, of course, miss. How can I be of service?”

You took a breath, hoping desperately that he didn’t see right through you.

“Firstly, the shoes your girl wore.”

“What would he like with them?” He asked.

“He’d like to keep them. He’s willing to pay, and he’s not up for a price negotiation. This should cover them.” You slipped a bill across the table, and he nodded. You learned long ago that money causes loose lips, and this man was no exception.

“Of course,” he obliged, “They’re in the lockers through that door there. I’ll bring them to you. We ordered them in specially for Veronica, he made a point for her to wear them on the first floor. Usually our girls get instructions to sneak through clients’ houses quietly, but we handle every request as thoroughly as possible.” He chuckled.

That fucker. He really had planned it all out to get in your head.

“Was there anything else I can do for you, miss?”

You swallowed thickly.

Here goes.  

“Yes, actually. As of today, he’ll no longer be needing your services, or her services. He’d like to terminate your contract, and he doesn’t wish to see her again. Ever.”

The owner blinked. His mouth moved, as if he was about to say something, but then it closed again.

“But, um,” he stammered, “It’s only been three weeks. Veronica is our best girl, and he’s her top client. She carried out his orders to the absolute best of her ability, I can assure you. Are you sure those were his words?”

You sighed.

“She’s getting off lucky with a dismissal. Take it as a warning, sir. President Snow doesn’t show mercy to thieves. If she shows her face again, I can guarantee you, he’ll have her head.”

His face turned plum-red with horror.

“She was… stealing?”

In a way, yes.

“She was caught by a maid last night.” You nodded, and the owner swallowed thickly.

“I – I understand, Miss. I am terribly sorry for this. I apologise that our services weren’t up to your master’s expectations, truly. Please, if there’s anything I can do- and I can assure you, I’ll be having some very stern words-”

You cut him off.

“There is one more thing, as a matter of fact."

"Anything." He pleaded.

"You can send word that… Veronica, is it? She’ll be paying him a visit this evening. But you are not, under any circumstances, to send her. Am I understood?”

He furrowed his brows, puzzled. But you stared back challengingly and held your ground.

A small, sheepish smile formed on his face.

“Much obliged. I can assure you your requests will be carried out with the utmost discretion.”

“Thank you.”

He brought you the heels in a shiny box, and you turned and left.

Henry was waiting outside, and you slid back into the car.

“Get what you needed, ma’am?”

“I certainly did.”

The drive home was your chance to pick up lunch, finetune your plan, and go through the suits you’d had Henry pick up from the tailor.

They looked impeccable – crisp and creaseless, the white shirts brighter than the stars, and the maroon red jackets and waistcoats deeper than blood itself. It was one of these jackets that you chose to take upstairs with you, leaving the rest to be taken up to Snow’s room later, hoping the missing item would go unnoticed.

You retraced your way up the winding stairs of the manor. Luckily, Lucille had informed you Snow had left not long after you that morning, and was expected to be gone until evening. Nonetheless, your paranoia made you glance left, right and left again before every turn. Finally, after an exhaustingly long morning, you were back in the safety of your own room.

But the work was far from finished. You ate quickly, then began getting ready for your discussion with Snow. He hadn’t sent for you again; he was too proud. You took pride in knowing he’d be positively seething at your turning him down that morning. You kept going, showering, teasing your hair, adding a little more makeup than usual – not excessive, but enough to make a difference – then finally wandered the room as you picked your wardrobe for later.

You lay out the heels – which were a little big on you, but would serve their purpose – as well as the jacket you’d stolen, taking the time to run your fingers over the smooth maroon velvet you’d felt only briefly before, when brushing against Snow at public events. You then dug through your underwear drawer, debating between a red lingerie set and a white. You picked the latter; the tones of red would blend in with the jacket and white made more of a statement.

Innocence. If only.

You checked the time. Three hours or so until Coriolanus would be expecting Veronica. You hoped that he would be back by then, and more so, that your performance with the brothel owner had been enough to hold him to his promise of sending word. But if you’d learnt anything from Snow, it was that fear commanded respect, and better yet, obedience. So your doubts were few and far between.

In all honesty, that’s what had drawn you to Snow in the first place. It wasn’t about money; your family had money, more than they knew what to do with. It was the power, the fear. Even the richest man in the world would crumble to the ground with a gun to his head. Power trumps wealth every time, and the enigmatic, newly elected President was by far the most powerful man in Panem.

It was its own kind of thrill, pursuing a man like that. The temptation to get him wrapped around your fingers, ravenous, hungry for power, hungry for him. It all blurred together at this point, the man was like a magnet. You wondered if this thirst for more, always more, was an affliction the two of you shared. Or perhaps, an affliction you’d developed a taste for because of him. And the longer you spent at his side, the louder it began to beat in your chest like a second heart. You wanted to consume it, and let it consume you.

It thrummed in your chest now, adrenaline coursing in your veins. You fidgeted as you waited for the hours to pass, your craving growing with each second. You flicked through a few books; you drafted a letter to your mother. Each tick of the clock bringing you closer to finally taking the one thing you’d wanted since the day you met Coriolanus Snow. It was almost time for your big move.

✩✩✩✩

As enough darkness crept into your room and you stood to light some candles, you heard soft footsteps pass your door.

For a change, you recognised them as Snow’s, even and deliberate. He was home. With half an hour to spare until he’d be expecting his whore.

You jumped at the opportunity to change. Slowly and carefully, you slipped out of your clothes and into the underwear set, until you were clad in crisp white lace, with a matching garter belt as a finishing touch. You slid on Snow’s jacket – which smelled like him, of his cologne – the usual fitted shape it would give Snow now hanging loose and slack around your body, falling to the tops of your thighs. You did up the first button, tracing the neckline that plunged down your chest, leaving very little to the imagination. You slipped into the heels, checked the time, and after scanning yourself over in the mirror, made for the door.

The few worries you had about being seen by the staff were short-lived; the hallway lights were dim as you wobbled in the heels, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. You weren’t sure if Snow had fallen for your plan, but what mattered was that as you turned the corner, there were lights shining from under his bedroom door. He was in there, waiting. By now, it was odd seeing it closed. You tried your best to emulate the sound of the footsteps you’d drilled into your brain, the clicks giving you a sense of power knowing Snow – apprehensive or not – would be in for at least one surprise.

Click. Click. Click.

You considered pausing before barging in, but you didn’t. When you reached the end of the hallway, seconds away from your fate, you reached out a hand, pushed Snow’s door open, and walked right inside.

Snow was there; of course he was. Facing his dresser and away from you, he didn’t flinch at the sound of your arrival. You closed the door behind you, and took a step towards him. Stared at his back, scanning his black dress pants and the white shirt he’d rolled up to his elbows, cufflinks on the table, blonde curls a little unruly as he smoothly poured himself a drink.

This, right here, was where the solid part of your plan ended. It was caution to the wind from here on out, and you could practically taste it, high off the adrenaline; off his presence. And he hadn’t even looked at you yet.

This was the moment of truth.

“Well,” he said, taking a sip of his drink. “Look who finally figured it out.”

“Not who you were expecting?”

“She’d never reschedule.” he said simply, turning on his heels, eyes glinting at you. “Figured you were up to something. Drink?”

“Think I’ll pass.”

He approached you, eyes scanning your body, deliberately clad in the skimpiest underwear you owned. You figured this was as good a time as any to unbutton the jacket and let it fall open. It brushed your sides, and you watched him lower his glance, hungrily taking you in for what could quite possibly be the very first time. He wet his lips, took another sip.

There it is.

There was that power you craved, that look that you’d been aching to see in his eyes while he stared at you, and although it was fucked up, you let the pride fill your head with confidence, and stepped forward.

“Now, just where did you get that?” A slight narrowing of his eyes gave him away. At least something you’d done had made an impression.

“Borrowed it. In case I get cold.” You smiled.

“Cute. Didn’t your daddy ever tell you not to take things that aren’t yours?”

“Oh, I take whatever I want, Snow.”

You raised your head in defiance. Proud of your voice for not faltering once.

“Clearly. Nice shoes. Borrow those, too?”

“Why, do they look familiar?” you quipped.

“I think we both know the answer to that, doll. Now why don’t you tell me why you’re here?”

You sighed, feigning exasperation. A chill crept up your legs but you barely noticed.

“You wanted to talk to me, Coriolanus. Talk.”

“Is that really what you came here for, sweetheart? Dressed like that?” He put his drink down on the dresser, not once looking away from you.

“If this is what it takes to get your attention, Snow, then yes.”

You took another step closer, and the jacket fell further to your sides, more skin slipping out from underneath for him to feast his eyes on.

“I think you know plenty about trying to get my attention. I watched you struggle for weeks.”

“Didn’t think you cared.” You muttered.

He laughed, low, more like a scoff.

“What, your childish attempts at seduction? They were pitiful at best. I’d expect that kind of behaviour from a common whore, not a lady of your standing.”

“Thought you liked whores.” You retorted.

“They’re no fun to live with. And there you were, proving my point.”

Your eyes narrowed, and when you spoke, it was through gritted teeth.

“So what, you had to go and fuck one to prove a point? Mature.”

“Mature?” he glowered, then before you could think, he stormed towards you, grabbing both of your wrists with a hard squeeze. You gasped.

“Mature like you, with your short skirts and your fuck-me eyes, sucking your fingers off at the breakfast table?”

You squirmed. Tried to jolt yourself away but it was no use.

“I didn’t think you-”

“Oh, I noticed.” He said, moving in to corner you, grip tightening until he was walking you backwards across the room as he spoke, never once taking his eyes off you. “And it’s a real shame this couldn’t have been easier for us both, but you just had to start it. So I watched your pathetic little displays, day after day, knowing if you’d behaved better, I would’ve given you exactly what you wanted.”

You fought not to trip over yourself until your legs bumped against the ottoman at the foot of his bed and you caught your breath. His eyes bored into yours and you blinked helplessly. His grip loosened on your wrists. You tried to speak, but your mouth had gone dry.

“If you’d been good,” he continued, voice lowering, “you wouldn’t have played around like that. Good girls don’t whore themselves out to respectable men.”

Your eyes narrowed in defiance as you felt heat start to brew in your stomach.

“Respectable?” You spat, and his grip tightened again, bringing one hand up to trace your jaw, almost pitifully.

“See what I mean? You dig yourself deeper at every turn. Good girls ask nicely, and say please. It didn’t take me long to figure out you had issues with authority. It could’ve been so easy for you, sweetheart. You had plenty of chances. You could’ve asked me very nicely to fuck you, but instead you behaved like a desperate slut for weeks on end. Eventually, I knew there was only one way to shut you up.”

Your ears started to ring and you fought harder to gain composure. He’d never talked to you like this before. And now, all this, all at once, it was almost too much. Goosebumps had long covered your arms and legs, despite the heat inside you burning you up. You were vaguely aware of heat pooling uncomfortably between your legs.

Your breathing was heavy as you stared into him, his hand gripping your chin, and you couldn’t hide it if you tried. He finally backed away, letting you peel yourself from the ottoman. His hungry eyes scanned over you, suit jacket now crumpled at the wrists. You swallowed as you tried to pull yourself together.

“You knew I was watching you. The whole time. Every time. It was… for me.”

He watched you knowingly, raised his eyebrows a little. His lips grew into that smirk, that fucking smirk you knew all too well.

“We were playing the same game, sweetheart. I was just… Better.”

“A little excessive, don’t you think?” Your voice faltered and you cursed how breathy it sounded.

“Oh, on the contrary. It was very entertaining to see you struggle, but I could’ve gone further.” He mused. “I even considered fucking her on your bed.”

Shit.

A thought popped into your head, and a strange smile made its way to your face.

“Aren’t you going to ask me where I got these?” You asked, glancing down.

He frowned for a second; good. You’d thrown him off guard. But he caught up fast.

“The heels? You know, I had her walk right past your door in those so you’d follow her and see just what you were missing?”

If you weren’t so wired with adrenaline, you were pretty sure you’d be tearing up with how desperate you felt. But his words channelled it all into pure anger.

“Fuck you.” You seethed, and he smiled.

“We'll get to that. But go on, I’ll bite. What did you do to her?”

“Let’s just say she deserved much worse than what she got. Maybe you should’ve fucked her on my bed. Would’ve given me a reason to choke the life out of her.”

“You think I’d care?”

“Course not. Knowing you, it’d probably get you off.”

“Which brings us right back to now.” He stared at you, challenging. You laughed again.

“Is this you talking? You’re not very good at it.”

“No, this is me giving you a second chance. The way I see it, you made your move, I made mine. Now, if you’re a good girl, and ask me very nicely to fuck you until that pretty little head of yours gets filled with nothing but empty space, I might consider putting an end to this and giving you what you want. Maybe.” If you thought you’d survive smacking that smug look off his face, you would.

“You want me to ask nicely, Coriolanus?” You closed the gap between the two of you and glanced up at him through your lashes. He looked back at you, and no chill in the world could cool you down from the fire in his eyes.

He stepped away, paced towards the desk chair – the one he’d watched you from last night – then dragged it across the floor, spun it around, and took a seat. Once again, last night felt worlds away now. A lifetime sat between that moment and this one as he made himself comfortable, unbuttoned his collar. As if the room was now a stage, and he was the sole spectator.

“Go on. I’m waiting.”

Cocky bastard.

Another airy laugh escaped you. But you’d be lying if you said he wasn’t exactly where you wanted him. So you played into it.

“You want me to beg you? Say pretty please?” Your voice softened as you slowly stepped towards him, holding his gaze. A passing thought reminded you of your childhood, asking your mother what you’d feel when you first truly fell for someone.

Fireworks. Thousands of them, crackling, hissing, charging the air between the two of you into something heavy. Thick clouds of smoke you could almost taste as you stared into darkened eyes. You paused in front of him, fingers playing with the hem of his suit jacket that brushed against your thighs. Caught your bottom lip between your teeth.

“Take it off.” He ordered.

“Gladly.”

You slipped the jacket off your shoulders, and it fell smoothly into a pile on the floor. You kicked off the heels next, landing haphazardly to the side with a thump. His eyes never leaving you, consuming you.

“Like what you see, Snow?”

He took you in, long and hungry and shameless. Like you were simply there for his entertainment, nothing else. You wondered where along the line he’d lost all his inhibitions, at what moment in his very young life he’d decided to simply stop caring. It should scare you, but it just made you burn warmer. Maybe your wires were a little crossed, too, because it didn’t make you feel cheap.

It made you feel powerful.

You knew you looked good, too; you’d made sure of it. But he was looking at you like you were carved out of solid gold. He didn’t answer, because he didn’t need to.

“Think I like you better when you’re not acting like a dumb slut.”

You hummed, determined and unphased, moving in closer until your legs touched his knees. His words shouldn’t turn you on - nor should not knowing exactly how much he meant them – but they did.

“You like me better when I’m begging, then?” You placed your legs either side of his, straddling him, but still standing, and took his hands in yours. You ran one of them across your lips, brazenly taking a digit in your mouth, releasing it with a wet pop, then dropping your head down.

“You want me to be straightforward, Snow? Tell you exactly what I want?” you breathed, your foreheads almost touching, looking down at him from a thrilling vantage point, your hair falling either side of his face. “To beg you to rip this off me?” You guided his hands to your hips, letting them slide over the lacy fabric. “You want me to beg you to kiss every inch of skin you see and make it yours? Beg you to fuck me until I can’t think, and forget my own name?”

You ran his hands down the sides of your legs, then, inch by inch, letting him take a good long look on the way, you finally lowered yourself onto his lap. Your blown-out eyes met again, at the same level this time. You shifted your hips once, feigning getting comfortable, and hid a smile as he let out a strained sound.

You were close enough to feel his breath against yours, fast but steady, controlled. You moved closer, your head dipping cautiously under his chin to kiss his neck. He smelt clean, like fresh laundry and his cologne, and his skin tasted like salt as your tongue traced a line across it. It felt like power, having him like this. Slowly starting to grind your hips as your mouth pressed against his pulse, every shaky breath you elicited from him awakening something new in you.

“Say it, Snow.” You murmured, breath catching. “Tell me you want me to beg you, and be good for you.” Another trail of messy kisses across his jaw, and you finally heard it, ragged and coarse, words shooting through you like knives softened by the heat of his breath on your hair.

“Be a good girl, and fucking beg me.”

You hummed with satisfaction. Moved your lips to his ear, hand cupping the back of his neck, and leaned in close.

“If you wanted me to be good,” you whispered, “then you’ve picked the wrong girl.”

You felt it, his whole body tensing beneath you. But you had it now, the upper hand, and you weren’t giving it away. Your other hand came up to close over his mouth with a warning shake of the head, and you gripped the back of his neck harder with the first. Craned it backwards so he could look at you, a different kind of fire in his eyes. A fire that could burn you far worse than any other. You leaned your weight into him until you were flush, skin pressing into fabric. Tightening your legs around his so he couldn’t kick out. You felt dangerous. You felt alive.

When you spoke, your voice was a vial of vitriol.

“You thought I’d just give into you? Three weeks of torture and you call it even? No fucking way, Snow. You wanted to play? Let’s play.”

You were closer to him now than you’d ever been before, infinitely closer than when you’d held hands in front of an audience, or danced in the middle of a ballroom, or when he’d draw you in for a lingering kiss at the head of a busy table.

You were closer still because of the common denominator: you were alone, your bodies pressed together, soft and firm colliding. And your stomach ached with want, but your rage burned brighter.

When you were sure he wouldn’t move, you readjusted your position on his lap so you were sat on one thigh, your right knee pressed firmly against the chair between his legs. Slowly, you dragged your hips against it, firm muscle between your legs, shameless as you stared him down.

“I’d like to modify the terms of our agreement, as of tonight. Starting with this: I’ve made sure your little whore won’t come running back here. If I so much as hear a whisper of a rumor that you’re fucking someone else, I’m leaving. Don’t think I don’t know how to disappear. I can, and I will.”

He scowled at you, and you’d never felt power like the rush you got from seeing your hand clamped over his mouth. His own hands, now easily able to overpower you and push yours away, instead sat at your hips, digging in so hard you knew there’d be bruises for weeks. As you moved, he started to follow suit, rocking your hips on his thigh faster.

He’s allowing this.

The realisation made you pull your hand from his mouth, and yet he didn’t speak. There was a tightness in his jaw, locked down so hard it must’ve hurt as he watched you move, helped you move. It sent a shock through your core, and you ground down harder.

Who’s on top now?

This was getting to your head.

“President Snow,” you mocked. “What a title. Thinks he can take whatever’s in his sight. Thinks he has the right. Did you think I’d come crawling back to you?” Your voice lowered.

“Did you think I’d get on my knees, like she did?” You glanced down, running your now-free hand over the front of his pants, gentle at first, then pressing in firm, and he hissed.

“Did you really think, after all your little shows, that I’d just submit? Not a chance.” You spat, and his breath turned a little shaky as your hand slid up, then down.

As it evened out, and he reached for composure again, he pulled a countermove. Got in close, with words so sharp, they nearly cut through you.

“Which one was your favorite?”

You pulled your hand away. Your hold on the back of his neck tightened, and in turn, so did his grip on your hips, pulling you down harder as you got closer, panties bunching up as you became desperate.

You shook your head.

“Don’t.”

He smirked.

“I gave you plenty to go off. Tell me, was it when I sat right here while she rode me? Or when I was fucking her mouth and calling your name?”

He pulled your hips in rougher, and you gasped, barely able to think. You were sure if he kept this up, your thighs would chafe. You just couldn’t find it in you to care.

“No, I don’t think so.” He hummed. “I know which one it was. It was the second time, wasn’t it? When I was making her cum all over my tongue, wondering what you tasted like.”

You couldn’t help it – a moan slipped out of your lips. He kept up the pace, rolling your hips faster, flexing his thigh as you started losing your bearings. He laughed at the state of you.

“I knew that one would get to you. Tell me something, princess, how many times did you touch yourself after that night wishing it was me? Or did you lose count?”

You gritted your teeth, fighting the spinning room.

“Cocky much?”

He let out a breathy laugh again, as if he was losing himself as much as you were. Pulling you in harder in response.

“Look at you,” he mused, “riding my thigh like the needy slut you are. Bet you’re close, too, and I haven’t even touched you yet.”

“Fuck.” you panted. “Stop fucking talking, oh my god.”

“You sure about that, sweetheart? You know I can feel how wet it’s making you, right?”

Your head dropped down and you whined. Sure enough, you’d soaked through your panties and dripped an embarrassing wet patch on his dress pants. You cursed under your breath as you slowed down.

“Beg me.” He ordered.

“No.” You gasped as he pulled you back again, faster, hips bucking as your legs started to shake around his.

“Beg me,” he repeated, "or I’ll stop.”

“Fuck, no, don’t fucking stop, I can’t-”

It was so much friction it hurt, but you kept chasing it.

“Yes, you can. You want to cum? Ask nicely, sweetheart. Just ask me.”

The seam of your panties got wetter as you moved, just enough to let the pain melt into pleasure instead as it caught on your clit, and you started to ride out your high. You were right at the edge, he was keeping you there, hair stuck to your face in a hot sweat as you writhed on his lap. So fucking close.

“Fine, shit. Please. Please help me cum, oh my god. Right there, please. Fuck.”

And maybe you were more like him than you thought, because you weren’t ashamed. You rode his thigh like you’d ride him, unabashedly, while he watched you starting to fall apart. He moved faster, pulled your hips hard in as if you were riding him, as if he could feel it, breath running ragged, desperate. It only brought you closer knowing this would be sending him over the edge, holding you so near and yet so awfully far away. The look in his eyes screaming danger, and you let it swallow you whole, squeezing his shoulders like you were scared you’d float away.

"That's it. Knew you'd sound incredible, asking me all pretty like that."

His lips met your neck, teeth grazing your skin and that’s what did it, your legs squeezing his as you shook through your orgasm, crying out, falling to pieces, hearing going fuzzy. The words good girl echoing through your head so distantly, you couldn’t tell if he’d really said them or not.

You sighed, glazed eyes rolling open, coming back to yourself. Your right hand was pressed against his chest, fingers curled into the creased fabric of his shirt. As you looked closer, you noticed it had opened wider, and he was missing a button. Had you done that?

When your eyes finally met Snow’s, you couldn’t look away from them. Beautiful and blue, like an ocean frozen over, staring into yours like you were all he’d ever wanted. You could get high off this feeling, live off it.

“Get on the bed.” He breathed. “Right fucking now.”

But too much of any feeling isn’t good for you.

“No.”

He glowered, face flushing even further, and as he leaned in to make another demand, you quickly stood, trying your hardest not to let your wobbling legs give you away.

“You should understand, Snow. We’re doing things my way now. And I’m going to be doing them as I please, when I please.”

You picked his jacket up from the floor, and slipped back into it, the soft fabric cooling down your burning skin.

“You think you’re funny, sweetheart? Nobody likes a fucking tease.”

You chuckled, doing up a button and brushing your hair out of your face, damp with sweat. You walked to the dresser and took a swig from Snow’s half-empty glass, then turned. He sat there, and it took everything in you not to smirk at the mess you’d made of him. You handed him the glass when you were done drinking and turned away. You felt him stand, but you didn’t acknowledge it, still fiddling with your hair, smoothing it out.

“You said it yourself, Snow. I’m no common whore. If you want me to beg you to fuck me, you’re gonna have to work for it.” You turned, pulling him in for a chaste kiss. His face was unreadable.

“But be a doll, leave your door unlocked.” You added, stepping back. “You never know when I might change my mind.”

“You’re not going to leave. You wouldn’t dare.” He seethed, the rage in his voice only propelling you on.

“Wouldn’t I?” You smiled, giving him a once over. Dropped your eyes down pointedly, first at the ruined leg you’d ridden, then at the uncomfortable-looking tent in his pants. You met his eye again and bit your lip, really laying it on thick. “Good luck with that, sweetheart. I’ll see you at breakfast.”

He huffed, incredulous, disbelief painted across his face as you made for the door, swinging it open. You glanced over your shoulder.

“Buckle up, Snow. I’m just getting started.”

You missed the way his shocked face turned almost admiring as he watched you leave, walking barefoot down the hallway, leaving the door wide open.

Checkmate.

a/n: hope it was worth the wait 😌

taglist: @superchatnoir07 @itsrainingreid @nycweb-slinger @lookclosernow @etfrin @resibunn @serving-targaryen-realness @harmfulb1tch @demonsnangels @superb-icarus @julesandro @gracieroxzy @slyhersophia @shadowsepiphany @ben-has-arrived @unclecrunkle @zerotwo-sciencequeen @itsleniiilosers @thesiriusmap @ooooglymoooogly @darkqweenn @going-through-shit @loverw1tch @stinkii-boii @tqmqkii @not-avery @natsgf @sleepysongbirdsings @hopebaker @darknight3904 @pemberlystateofmind @bxtchopolis @real-lana-del-rey @24kmar @louweasleymalfoy @m1ndbrand @coconut-dreamz @cosmicgyral @urfavevirgoo @mk15x @theamuz @ashy-kit @violante777 @snowlandstop @badbleep88 (more tags in the comments!)

[snowleopardcrk]

more symbolism!!!

ah yes, more Midnight Lily, a silverbell cameo and two Moonflower doodles. AU by @cuppajj

For Moonflowers story, we have her main conflict with her father, Saint Vanilla Cookie. But what about Midnight Lily Cookie, her mother? To give a little context for whats coming up, Moonflowers story theming around the Saint where Moonflower symbolizes the Moon, which includes the Solar Eclipse to contrast the Saints light themed imagery. Plus Moonflowers additional and more religious theming being based on the Spirit of Apostasy.

It is abundantly clear that Midnight Lily is an enabler of the other Neo Beasts, while to some extent understandable as she is the weakest of the Neo Beasts (she has long crossed the line of it being acceptable).

To compliment well with the general religious theming, I did additional research into the role of a mother in the lens of the Bible. 'the mother is one who "binds" the family together, holding them together individually and collectively through her love and actions' Despite how broken the family is, the only remaining connection that Moonflower has with the Saint IS Midnight Lily. And in return, she does care for her daughter and the Saint at some level. Yet, she does nothing to genuinely mend what has been broken (no one is, Moonflower is afraid of her father and the Saint is so delusional that he believes that this is the best course of action to save everyone). This fits her pattern of enabling and being generally passive to the world around her, for the most part.

Another aspect that I have neglected to mention is her slow-burn of a plan, she seeks by the end to have the others at least playing by her rules, but also not liking when her children do things she does not like. This is now territory where I do a lot of guess work and personal thoughts n' research so this is very much subject to change if anymore gets revealed.

How I have understood the few tidbits we get about the Beast of Sovereignty, she is an enabler and insecure about being the weakest. And I think her insecurity in some way, even if unintentional may reflect on her relationships where she is the one in power. In general, she is fine with her kids, generally passive until they get too unruly. At that point, she will remind them with harsh words who the mother is. I'd like to note quickly, she will NEVER get physical. She only uses WORDS. It is also important to note that she does wish for her child to understand where she is coming from. She is an enabler because she holds little power over the beasts, but in dynamics where she is the one in power, this side vanishes for the most part. Despite valuing sovereignty I believe she still wants to retain some level of control so Cookies don't do things she does not like. This is generally in line with how leadership generally operate, they don't care when you're doing smth positive, but when it turns negative, that's when it starts turning sour.

As for the actual arc of Midnight Lily and Moonflower, I have a general framing but it is difficult to make something as substantial as the one she has with Saint Vanilla. Gotta wait until I get more lore and story for the gal. But in short, it is a conflict of the two trying to make each other understand their respective sides. With Moonflower trying to save her mother, her only remaining parental figure from being a beast- while Midnight Lily seeks to make Moonflower truly understand her side and hopefully have Moonflower join her permanently.

Heres other tidbits for Moonflower and her relationship with the Creme Republic. For her ventures to the Silver Kingdom are actually secret. She is a very powerful and talented magic user (similar to her parents), so her travelling long distances quickly is very possible. Moonflower is already an outcast in the Republic, it is well known who her parents are. And Cookies keep their distance, there are very few Cookies who come and check in her. Its mostly some scientists who are researching the neo beasts (espresso, maybe, depends on his condition in this au), Clotted Cream Cookie, GingerBrave, Financer (sort of, she tags along the Consul) and depending on the direction of the story, Madelaine Cookie(I will start really brewing something here once more stuff comes out~). She stays isolated in her lab in the undercity, she never comes out, and when she does, she hides her face and just retrieves things like food or research material. It is normal for her to not talk with anyone for well over a week with nothing but a single lost Raisin Crow to keep her company. I'd like to note that this raisin crow is now an albino, and Black Raisin tasked Moonflower to take care of it since it was bullied and ousted by the other raisin crows (I took inspo from the myth, but it is generally agreed that white color corvids are subordinate to the colored ones).

But she is also an outcast in the silver kingdom, despite being Midnight Lilys kid (its a well known fact), she has gotten into disagreements with their monarch and isn't the upmost loyal member- she has a strong stigma around her. Silverbell Cookie does take pity on Moonflower.

That's all for now. I'm gonna lay down, I've done so much research...I silently weep at the thought of fully showing the complexity of the three in full force.

[turningwheeltarot]

This Week in Astrology (Mar. 10 - 16)

The beginning of the week starts out on a quiet note, but the energy gets bigger as the week progresses, leading up to the Virgo lunar eclipse on Friday, March 14th. The day after, Mercury stations retrograde. Even though the eclipse doesn’t happen until the end of the week, we will be feeling the eclipse energy all week (and have probably been feeling it already). Eclipses are intense and push us to evolve on a soul level, which can be exciting, uncomfortable, or difficult (possibly even all three at once!) There is a huge emphasis on what is ending, what we need to move on from, and what we need to let go of at this time.

On/around…

Mar. 12 (Weds.)

♈️Mercury (Aries) conjunct Venus (retrograde)

. Support for tactful yet direct communication

. Reflecting on what we truly value, our sense of self, and self worth - pay attention to insights that arise

Mar. 13 (Thurs.)

♓️Sun conjunct Saturn (Pisces)

. Serious energy, may be a bit heavy

. Focus on developing maturity, having healthy boundaries, and committing to our spiritual practice

Mar. 14 (Fri.)

♍️🌕Virgo full moon lunar eclipse

💫Favorable aspects to Uranus, 4-planet conjunction in Pisces

. Significant emphasis on endings, closures, and release - what we need to move on from/let go of is being illuminated in a big way

. And we have beautiful support (Uranus) for making the changes that are needed

. Major soul lessons/soul growth themes: letting go of fear and embracing trust, letting go of perfectionism and embracing self-acceptance, bringing our dreams into reality, putting our spiritual ideals into practice

. Very creative energy

Mar. 15 (Sat.)

⏮️Mercury goes retrograde (Aries - until April 7)

. Increased likelihood of miscommunications, plans being disrupted, technology issues, and mishaps in general

. A time to review, reflect, and reconsider - especially matters related to our who we truly are and what we truly want (until Mar. 30 when Mercury goes back into Pisces)

✨follow me on instagram @turningwheel360✨

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

If a version of Midnight Sun existed for each following instalment of the Twilight series (New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn), what do you think they’d be called/what would you call them and what (new) scenes would be in them?

Anon, you speak my greatest dream. I want this in my life. If no one else does, then I am the sole person who does. If there is not one person who wants this, it means that I have died.

I need this.

But for now, I can only imagine (and no doubt fail miserably to what it would be in actuality).

New Moon

The thing is that Meyer would also want to call this New Moon for the reason that she called it New Moon for Bella: this is a book about hopelessness. Edward leaves, Bella's soulmate, she literally cannot survive without him and this book is her discovering "oh, yeah, I literally cannot survive without him" (and making friends with Jacob but let's be real Meyer was never that into that).

It's a book where the moon, the light, is gone.

For Edward, we have the same narrative, he tries to leave Bella for her own good, fails, has a miserable time, and comes crawling back only to find that he's made everything worse.

But because Edward is more dramatic, and to thematically work with Midnight Sun (named thus as Bella is the unexpected sunlight in what should be the darkest of Edward's nights) we have Polar Night which is the phenomenon opposite of Midnight Sun where instead of the sun never setting at all we have the night never ending.

As for what would be in it. My friend, my beautiful friend, everything would be in it.

We'd get the scene where Edward bullies his family into leaving, many of them having reservations, and then steals all Bella's photographs and tries and fails to steal the stereo out of her car. We'd get scenes of Edward fantasizing about Bella marrying and holding hands with MiKe NEWtoN and it being entirely too much for him. We get all of the birthday party, period, which from Edward's point of view would no doubt be insane.

We have Edward so fucking depressed that he feels he's bringing the family down and chooses to leave on the vague pretext of catching Victoria. Then he doesn't catch Victoria and loses her in Mexico but is so depressed he just keeps going south until he hits Brazil.

Where he stays, and per what he says to Bella (which is undoubtedly not the entire truth) he was fucking miserable and did nothing for months. Did he have a Hallucination Bella who told him not to eat human food because it'd make him sick? Did he write a rock opera about Bella Swan only to realize it didn't live up to real life and burn it in a fit of despair and anger? What about the family calling to check in? We know that happened, Rosalie could reach Edward and he answered, so did they just call and quietly try to ask if Edward's coming back home or not? You know? Anytime? Edward?

And then of course his pleading for death with the Volturi, being told no, planning his elaborate massacre-suicide before settling on good old suicide without any murder and Bella being alive and that whole debacle from his point of view including "OH NO OTHER MAN MOVED IN" when he realizes Jacob's... kind of... a thing...

Everything would be new in part because we see so little of Edward and given the insanity in Midnight Sun that was never in Twilight I can't even guess to what Edward got up to for months in Rio.

It could be fucking anything.

Eclipse

Or "Edward did a bad thing and is now very nervous" the novel. As for what it's call, this is less clear as we have to go with the sun/moon themes here, and Eclipse is already taken. If we're allowed weather related events maybe "Eye of the Hurricane" as there's a storm out there and this book is about Edward barely holding his shit together. This is his nightmare scenario in every way.

Bella has a new love interest, a friend she believes is platonic who is very interested in her, and worse, Edward actually does admire and is hands down in Edward's opinion the better man for her to be with. Bella's changed when he was gone and is now an adrenaline junky, what else about her has changed? How much did he miss? She's involved in werewolves who all hate Edward, for good reason, and want her to leave him, for good reason. Edward has discovered that he actually can't leave Bella, Alice was right, even though he wants to be that strong desperately. Bella got the family to agree to turn her and they'll do it, Edward's barely gotten her to agree to be turned by him instead, but she's hemming and hawing about marrying and committing to him and she wants him to bang him (which will likely lead to her death)

Edward is straight up not having a good time, bro.

So, we'd get Edward's insane plans to keep Bella and Jacob apart, his meeting Bella in the road after her looking like he'd love nothing more than to pull The Terminator where he chases her car down. We get Edward's increasing nervousness that Bella "wants to be with him forever" but "doesn't want to marry him" (which for Edward, understandably as he doesn't have Bella's background, is something that just doesn't compute). And there's Jacob, kissing Bella, warming her up at night, thinking very dirty things when Edward's sitting right there internally screaming.

And of course, offscreen things with the family, likely venting about the Denali who are leaving them to die because they won't let them kill the children Native Americans, wondering if they're all going to die in this fight, even more of the tent scene with Jacob (which I'm sure, somehow, I'm sure, got very homoerotic in there). Probably sobbing to Alice "I fucked up" and then hating Rosalie BECAUSE THIS IS ALL HER FAULT HISS HISS.

And of course, what we know he sees from Bree and perhaps the discussion with the family that Bella never got to be privy to.

And I imagine a lot of fantasies of Bella pregnant with Jacob's beautiful babies.

Breaking Dawn

I'm going to bow out for this one too, Meyer would want to name it that. Maybe we get "Hailey's Comet" or something, in that Edward has related Bella to a comet streaking across the bleak sky of his life and this is him learning to accept to be happy and perhaps good things are allowed to happen to him.

But anyways.

I mean.

We get Breaking Dawn.

We get Edward gearing himself up for sex and asking the family how to bang a woman. We know he did this. Canonically he confesses to Bella, in the weirdest manner possible, that he asked his entire family how to do it (and it made it clear that Carlisle didn't really approve and was pretty :/ and "don't do it" about all of it). We get the family probably watching Alice like hawks because they're waiting for her to tell them if Bella lived or died through intercourse. We get Edward interrogating the maid in Portuguese and god knows what they even said to one another but it had to be wild.

We get Edward planning Bella's abortion, the betrayal by Rosalie yet again, and then more planning of her forced abortion with Jacob and his opinion on Jacob turning from "respected rival" into "my only friend".

Then we get Edward's complete flip on Renesmee which must have been... I don't even know. But he'd be thinking she's the spawn of Satan before that (in the most Edward manner possible) and then that she's Jesus after that (in the most Edward manner possible).

Then of course there's "my son, Jacob" and honestly probably fantasizing about an adult Renesmee pregnant with Jacob's beautiful babies. Let's be real here. and just...

Look.

I can't predict this.

What we saw of Breaking Dawn was already insane and this would only be more so because it's Edward. There's so much we don't see as Bella pays 0 attention to the other vampires and to the family at large and Edward would just...

I have no idea.

It would just be madness.

TL;DR

I need this.

[tsbs-shipfessions]

*spiralling in space*

How fucked up would it be if Solar and Sun were TOGETHER before Ruin's plan went into action. If over time, everyone had gone partially bio-mechanic, and it led to some absolutely wild side effects - that being that Sunny got pregnant. They knew. They'd spent countless hours snuggled together under blankets, whispering giggled exchanges and talking about names and themes and "I hope they have your rays" // "I hope they get your smile"s. They knew, and when Solar was brought to his knees, when Moon clung to his side, the eclipse model's fading hand pressed reverently over the flat expanse of Sunny's abdomen, with a watery smile and trembling "I love you both"

Gods this has so much potential and I'm already brainstorming for a fic aaaaaa-

...Anon... ow???

[scarlett-ink]

Secret Skeleton for @pocketcrimes :

Pumpkin Pixels

Summary: Halloween season has hit the Pizzaplex. Eclipse (Ruin) and Starfall are enjoying some holiday fun when an unexpected guest joins in. word count: 3.2k Starfall belongs to @pocketcrimes go check them out!

Halloween was fast approaching the Pizzaplex. A chill was in the air, brisking in through the doors the customers entered through, with many a staff bot sweeping up stray leaves that had been tricked in. The bright neon glow of the place was now accompanied by spooky banners, posters advertising events, and cardboard cutouts of Halloween themed characters. Attendance was up and so were the prices.

The guests were not the only ones joining in on the festivities. Each animatronic had new events scheduled for guest from making spider paper pals, a trick or treat event in rock star row where children went to each Galmrock’s room for candy, a Halloween themed dance party with DJ Music Man, and so on.

The spirit of the season for the animatronics was not limited to working hours. All the animatronics were taking time in their off hours to have some fun, particularly in the Superstar Daycare.

While Sun and Moon worked with the kids, currently making pipe cleaner spiders to match the paper pals, the other animatronics in the daycare were enjoying some downtime by getting into the spirit of the season.

 Eclipse and Starfall were in the balcony room above the ball pit, the walls littered with children’s drawings with many of the newest ones having a Halloween theme. The two sat across from one another, a couple of pumpkins on the floor between them.

The plan was to paint them since carving them and all the extra work that required would be an even bigger mess than the daycare usually handled. Sun and Moon had enough sticky messes to deal with between the glitter glue and the sticky fingers of children running around all day, they did not need globs of pumpkin innards and pumpkin seeds in their room. Painting was a safer option, both in the mess sense and the actual safety sense.

Starfall and Eclipse were sitting on top of an old tablecloth that had been laid out to help avoid making a mess on the floor. It was already proving to have been a wise idea, drops of paint littering the thing. Though there was still plenty of paint on the floor anyway, something they were sure Sun would complain about later.

But for now, the two were enjoying each other’s company and painting pumpkins. Each were currently working on fresh, orange canvases. Starfall had already painted two pumpkins and Eclipse had done three.

The first of Starfall’s pumpkins had been a simple, traditional silly face. A big painted on smile with upturned eyes in a triangular shape. The second one was of Eclipse’s face, which Eclipse found endearing. There was also some tape and colored paper used to liven up the pumpkins, Starfall having attached paper triangles on the sides of the one pumpkin to mimic Eclipse’s rays, he would work on a paper nightcap for the pumpkin when he was done painting the rest since that took a bit more work than just cutting out triangle shapes with safety scissors.

Eclipse’s pumpkins were in a similar vein to Starfall’s second pumpkin, with one having Sun’s face, the second Moon’s, and the third being Starfall’s. Eclipse’s pumpkins also had the paper cutouts taped to them, at least the ones that needed them. The hats for Moon and Starfall’s pumpkin designs still needed to be made once Eclipse was done with his other pumpkins.

“What’s your next pumpkin design going to be?” Starfall asked, tilting his head. His cap dragging on the floor as he did.

“Hmm, not sure,” Eclipse paused in thought for a moment. “Maybe I could-.”

Bzzt

Eclipse was cut off by a sound coming from somewhere else in the room. It had sounded electrical, a crackle of some sort.

“What was that?” Starfall leaned to the side to look behind Eclipse.

“Not sure,” Eclipse began. Before he could continue, Starfall stood from his spot, pumpkin still in hand.

The noise sounded like it had come from the secret little room connected to this one via a little blue tube crawl space.

Bzzt.

There it was again. Starfall bent down, crawling through the tube to the other room. His upper pair of arms held the pumpkin while the bottom pair were used to crawl along. The plastic creaked and shifted under his weight, and when he arrived on the other side he discovered the source of the noise to be an old arcade cabinet.

He had seen it once before when first exploring back here, but it had never turned on before so it was little more than something to look at. The arcade cabinet was predominantly a sky blue, with red trim around the edges of the machine. A pattern of fluffy clouds and colorful balloons covered the side of the cabinet, accompanied by Sun’s face in the sky and Balloon Boy floating thanks to some balloons in his hand.

Bzzt bzzt.

It made the sound again, louder this time. The blank screen booted to life, a soft staticky sound starting to hum from it.

Eclipse had stood from his spot at this point. “Find the noise?” he called.

“Yeah it’s-,” Starfall approached the arcade cabinet, carefully reaching out a hand to touch the controls, but was cut off when he did so.

Bzzt bzzt bzzt.

Starfall drew his hand back at a tiny little shock. The noise increased in intensity and then the screen went to a garble of pixeled static. The screen began to let off a soft yellow and orange glow, and Starfall watched as the pixels on the screen seemed to bleed through into reality. Pixels danced in the air around the screen and then a clawed hand appeared out of the screen.

The colors were a dark, rusty red and black with glowing yellow joints for the knuckles, and the modeling of the hand and arm resembled that of the other daycare attendants. The arm even had a ribbon and bells wrapped around their wrist. The hand gripped one side of the arcade cabinet before another hand emerged from out of the screen and did the same to the other side of the cabinet.

The hands pulled and pushed forward a rayed head through the screen. It resembled Sun’s face only with an extra, smaller set of yellow rays surrounding the main set of orange rays. Its eyes were glowing yellow, and so was its fanged grin.

“Hello!” his voice came out staticky and at awkward, shifting pitches. Pixels were radiating off of him as a second pair of arms emerged out of the screen, coming to rest on the control panel of the machine.

“Is someone else in there?” Eclipse asked from just outside the plastic tube.

“There most certainly is~” his grin widened as he spoke.

“Oh!” Starfall leaned forward, no concept of the personal space he could’ve been breaching. “Who are you, new friend?” he asked eagerly.

“Quite eager, aren’t you?” he laughed before continuing. “You can call me Eclipse.”

“Eclipse? You can’t be Eclipse, that’s Eclipse,” Starfall turned back toward the entryway, pointing to where Eclipse was on the other side of the tube. The Eclipse in the arcade cabinet let out a little scoff.

“That’s obviously a different Eclipse,” he said.

“Oh, well…maybe we could make it easier to not mix you two up. We could call you…Arcade Eclipse or-,” Starfall glanced up at the title on the arcade cabinet. “Balloon World Eclipse?”

“Hmm I suppose Arcade Eclipse should suffice. And it’s faster than saying ‘Balloon World’ every time,” Arcade Eclipse seemed to accept the decision.

“What’re you doing in a game? Why are you out now? Can you come out and join us?! Oh, that would be sooooo fun!” Starfall rambled.

“Well, I’d require some assistance to fully leave the machine, I could only escape this far because you touched the controls.” Arcade Eclipse made no attempt to explain or give answers to Starfall’s first two questions, but Starfall was too eager over the possibility of a new friend to mind. He cared little about where this new friend came from anyway, more concerned with where this new possible friendship was going instead. “Hmm. What do you have there?” Arcade Eclipse gestured to the pumpkin still in Starfall’s upper pair of hands.

“Oh, this? We’re painting pumpkins for Halloween! You should join us!” Starfall lifted his lower pair of arms. “You said you need help, right? I’ll pull you out! It won’t shock me again, will it?”

“One way to find out!” Arcade Eclipse grabbed onto Starfall’s hands with his upper pair of arms while using the lower pair to push against the arcade cabinet.

Starfall pulled, with all the strength he could muster, and Arcade Eclipse slowly made his way fully out of the arcade cabinet.

Bzzt bzzt bzzt BZZT.

With one final tug, Arcade Eclipse was free of the confines of the arcade cabinet. The electrical hum of sounds from the machine faded away, Arcade Eclipse dusting himself off. A few more pixels radiated off of him as he did.

“There we go! Now you can paint with us, come on!” Starfall pulled Arcade Eclipse along behind him back towards the little plastic tube they had crawled through. Arcade Eclipse was cut off guard by the tug, nearly stumbling as he was forced to follow along. “Eclipse! Meet our new friend who’s decorating pumpkins with us!” Starfall beamed as he came out the other side of the tube, Eclipse waiting for him there.

Once Starfall moved aside, Arcade Eclipse climbed out after him. “This is Arcade Eclipse! He’ll be joining us in the fun!”

“Hello, nice to meet you,” Eclipse greeted, taking in the four armed sight before him.

“Likewise,” Arcade Eclipse looked Eclipse up and down before turning his attention to the pumpkins laid out on the tablecloth across the floor. Before he could speak again Starfall grabbed him by the hands again and started walking towards where the pumpkins were, pulling him along.

“Come on, come on! Oh, here, you can paint this one!” Starfall stopped pulling once they both arrived to the tablecloth, turning to Arcade Eclipse and passing the unpainted pumpkin in his hands to him. “Sit, sit!” Starfall encouraged, taking his own seat where he had been before his little investigation of the sound.

Eclipse joined him, returning to his own spot as well. Arcade Eclipse remained standing there for a moment, glancing between the two and shooting a glance to the balcony before returning his gaze to the pumpkins.

He supposed it wouldn’t hurt to entertain this idea.

Arcade Eclipse took a seat between and to the side of Eclipse and Starfall. He stared at the pumpkin in his hands, turning it this way and that to examine it.

“Do you know how you’re going to decorate it?” Starfall asked curiously, holding out a paintbrush to him.

“Hmm, not sure painting in particular is really my thing. Though I do have an idea~,” Arcade Eclipse held the pumpkin in his lower pair of hands, while using one of the top ones to drag a clawed digit down the skin of the pumpkin.

There was a slight sound of singeing and as Arcade Eclipse dragged his finger along the pumpkin a burned, etched in line followed.

“Oh my,” Eclipse said, leaning over to watch.

“WOW! That’s amazing!” Starfall leaned over as well, getting much closer to Arcade Eclipse than Eclipse had. “Just be careful the only thing you burn is the pumpkin,” he reminded. Safety was important after all.

After a moment to ensure Arcade Eclipse was being careful, Starfall went back to working on his last pumpkin. Soon Eclipse did the same.

Eclipse was planning on making this last pumpkin be a little painting of him, Sun, Moon, and Starfall, but now he was adding Arcade Eclipse to the mix in an effort to be friendly.

Starfall was making his last pumpkin be Arcade Eclipse’s face, similar to the pumpkin he had made of Eclipse. Starfall also tried to take a peek at Arcade Eclipse’s pumpkin every now and then, but he didn’t really get a good look at whatever design was being made.

“What do you think, new friend?” Starfall suddenly asked, holding up his painted pumpkin to Arcade Eclipse. “I still have to add your rays, but do you like it so far?” Starfall asked expectantly.

Arcade Eclipse stared at the thing for a moment, and then another. “I like it.” It was simple, to the point, but Starfall appreciated the compliment none the less.

“Oooooo yes! I’m so glad!” Starfall set the pumpkin down and then grabbed some orange and yellow construction paper, tracing out triangles, and cutting out the shapes. “Once I’m done this, do you think you could help me with the nightcaps, Eclipse?”

“Of course, it’s no problem,” Eclipse assured.

By the time Starfall had finished making the paper cut out rays and moved on to working on the nightcap for Moon’s design, Arcade Eclipse was still working diligently on his own pumpkin.

Arcade Eclipse wasn’t so sure why he had gotten so invested in the simple task of drawing on a pumpkin. He supposed it was simply a time killer until it was safe enough to explore his new surroundings without having to worry about human staff freaking out over him being out and about. He could get the lay of the land later, with the way Starfall eager to talk he wouldn’t be surprised if Starfall offered up a tour himself.

“What’re you going to do when you’re done your pumpkin?” Eclipse suddenly asked, turning to Arcade Eclipse.

“Good question! What’re you gonna do? You’re not gonna leave and go back into the arcade cabinet, are you?” Starfall pouted at the thought of his new friend being sent away so soon.

“Hmmm. Not sure, never been out before. Don’t know how long it’ll last before I need to go back to the cabinet to recharge, or if that’s something I need to worry about at all. But it doesn’t matter, if I must return I can simply employ to pull me back out again,” Arcade Eclipse shrugged, not too bothered by the idea since he had a certainty he wouldn’t be trapped permanently in that old dusty box again.

“You’ve never been out before?” Eclipse asked, tilting his head and his rays ticking inward slightly as he asked.

“That’s awful! Or maybe it was nice, I don’t know how cramped it is in there- Oh! Maybe once all the Halloween festivities calm down we could give you a proper introduction to the plex!” Starfall rambled.

“It is a bit hectic at the moment with all the special events, so I think waiting before parading you around the plex for a tour is probably for the best,” Eclipse concurred.

“Fair enough,” Arcade Eclipse shrugged again, not arguing to explore sooner. The process of lightly burning his pumpkin was unexpectedly soothing, even if it did produce a slightly burnt smell in the room.

The three continued to work on their pumpkins and just as Starfall and Eclipse finished making the paper nightcaps to place on their pumpkins, Arcade Eclipse had finished his work too.

“Can I see, can I see? Please, please, please?” Starfall leaned forward quickly, trying to see around the pumpkin before Arcade Eclipse had a chance to turn the thing.

“Yes, yes, hold on,” he huffed before slowly turning to reveal the burnt image. The pumpkin held an intricately scene of an arcade cabinet with ghostly hands reaching out of the borders of the screen while through the center of the screen Arcade Eclipse himself was emerging. His fanged smile appeared to have wisps of either smoke or trails of ghosts seeping out of it, and the arcade cabinet itself had depictions of ghosts swirling around it.

“Oh, wow! That’s so detailed! It looks amazing! And spooky, hehe,” Starfall giggled, setting his face right next to the pumpkin to examine each tiny part of the scene. From up close Starfall could see the lines making up the design were almost pixelized along the edges.

“It is very nice. Seems like we’re out of pumpkins now,” Eclipse pointed out.

“Maybe we could get some more! Or we could find something else to do, Eclipse do you think you could see if there are any more?” Starfall asked.

“I could see if there were any I missed but-,” Eclipse was cut off by a sound.

Bzzt.

The noise returned from the other room, but this time it also seemed to have an effect on Arcade Eclipse. He jerked around a bit where he sat, a larger amount of pixels radiating off him.

“Are you alright?” Eclipse asked.

“Oh no! What’s wrong?!” Starfall asked worriedly.

“I think-,” Arcade Eclipse’s voice cut out in a static mess for a second before he could regain his bearings. “I believe I have been out of the arcade for too long. My body isn’t used to being out of it.”

“Perhaps its something you need to slowly accumulate to? Staying out of the arcade a little longer each time until your used to it enough that you can stay out without issue,” Eclipse theorized.

“I hope that’s the case! I don’t want our new friend to be stuck in that box again,” Starfall sighed.

“Hopefully. But I should return before things get any-,” Arcade Eclipse was interrupted by another bout of jerky movements.

Bzzt bzzt.

“Worse,” Arcade Eclipse grimaced before being greeted by Starfall’s hand in his face, held out to help him up.

Arcade Eclipse took Starfall’s hand, another slight shock happening when he did. He was led by Starfall back to the arcade machine, Eclipse following behind him.

Bzzt bzzt bzzt.

“We’ll be sure to have you visit again soon, friend! We don’t want you stuck in there too long,” Starfall promised. “And we’ll be sure to display your pumpkin with all of outs! Unless you’d like to take it with you?”

“Keep it. I’m not so sure it would survive the trip into the cabinet,” Arcade Eclipse explained. “I’ll see you again, you can be sure of it.” His grin was sharp as ever as he reached out to touch the game’s display screen.

Bzzt bzzt bzzt BZZT.

There was a flash of yellow and orange light from the screen, pixels emanating off the machine and lingering in the air for a moment. The air had an electrical smell and once the light faded, Arcade Eclipse was gone, returned to the confines of the arcade cabinet.

“Well, that was nice,” Eclipse said, heading back out into the main room. Starfall lingered by the arcade cabinet, staring at the now blank and empty screen, before ultimately following Eclipse.

“I hope we get to see him again,” Starfall said. “What should we do now?”

“Come on, lets see what other craft supplies we have lying around. We could make paper plate Halloween masks,” Eclipse suggested.

“That’s a wonderful idea!” Starfall said, following Eclipse.

They left their pumpkins huddled together on the paint splattered tablecloth, with an extra, lightly burned pumpkin among them as a new, official friend of the group.

[swallowerofdharma]

So, what is Berserk about after all?

Please be considerate to me, don’t repost this, don’t share it outside of tumblr, don’t copy parts of it, thank you.

I have read really funny critiques and reviews of Berserk. Often they would refer to Miura supposedly saying that he didn’t plan everything out and they would use this statement to support their argument that after the Golden Age arc the story just looked like it dragged on. One, don’t ever fully believe what artists and writers say about their work. Second, without a proper conclusion it is impossible to make that kind of judgement and the story is ongoing. Then, not having a plan or having just vague ideas and taking inspiration here and there isn’t how manga works or how it gets published. When asked in an interview why he started creating Haibane Renmei as a doujinshi, Yoshitoshi Abe replied: “With mainstream publishing, it would've been difficult to do it with that avenue because of this particular approach with everything being adlibbed. I don't know how the story will be developed, how it's going to end up, or what the ending's going to be. If you go to a mainstream publisher, by their general approach, they have to know what the characters are, who they are, what the story's going to be, and how the story's going to develop so they know if there's going to be a serial, continuing storyline. They need to know how it's going to go”. Even though plans can be renewed and renegotiated, Miura still needed to make solid advanced plans and decisions and respect deadlines and page quotas. Even without considering this, the world building of Berserk seems too intentional and coherent to me to think that he didn’t really know how the story would go. Granted he created a reality that could be changed and bent by the human imagination and psyche, from the inside. This happened to be a brilliant choice for a long project like the Berserk manga.

I once read a review that pointed out the weakness of the later arcs and episodes, making the hypothesis that Miura was influenced by the success of stories like One Piece and Pirates of the Caribbean. I can’t really say that I share this opinion, either. Reviews like these make me smile, because they reveal how people missed a very big clue that Miura never really hid. Berserk was inspired by the story of Peter Pan as told by J.M. Barrie and reinterpreted in several different ways, not only visually. He went as far as dedicating to it the Lost Children chapters, immediately after the Eclipse, when the tension of the story was higher than it ever had been. We should read the Lost Children as an homage to the story of Peter Pan and Wendy that plays into the already disquieting themes of the original in darker tones and with much more horrifying elements; but we should also pay great attention to the Lost Children chapters as an important recontextualization of the events of the Golden Age arc. While I want to dedicate proper analysis and attention to this, I am going to add here that in Peter Pan we already had the pirates, the islands with hidden caves and the mermaids. The journey to Skellig island and Elfhelm had to be long enough for Moonlight Boy to make an appearance at least twice before the big reveal of his full identity the third time, and since he can only appear on nights of a full moon, Miura had to make the readers feel that time had passed. But Guts had always belonged in Neverland.

In my rudimentary outline of various elements that contributed greatly in building the world and story of Berserk, I actually ran out of space. And I want to properly address the various points and develop them more. For the moment I just really wanted to show that Miura had a very strong grip over the story and that he was really attentive to nuances. I said to myself, if I want to criticize the writing in Berserk at least I have to make sure I understand it to a sufficient extent.

Also I really wanted to at least give an idea of how important a role Shōjo manga had to Berserk. I hope to be able to fully explore this element soon.

[penny-the-pissed-poltergeist]

RWBY Volume 4 finale: No safe haven rewatch thoughts. RWDE/Critical opinions ahead, you have been warned.

.Interesting how the episode starts with RNJR having already engaged the Nuckelavee.

.Thank god I can finally talk about the Nuckelavee's design, because it's the literal best grimm design we've seen so far. The fact it's a clear amalgam of two grimm that we haven't even seen before this, the smoke that comes out whenever it breathes, the horrid cracks it makes whenever it's top half moves, even the mismatched front & hind legs all give off the impression that this thing is unnatural even by Grimm standards.

.Continuing of that idea, Lusus Naturae or a leitmotif of it play during it's appearances, a theme that was originally made for the game "Grimm Eclipse" and that song is very likely to be from the perspective of Dr. Merlot, that games main villain who's entire thing was modifying and mutating Grimm. It's very likely (to me at least) that Merlot MADE this thing.

.Okay back to bitching, I really don't like these slow ass reaction shots.

.I have to assume that Ren's semblance either makes who he's using it full on invisible to Grimm or Grimm vision is like heat vision but for emotions.

.Why is Jaune getting this moment with Qrow when that's Ruby's uncle? This isn't just me moaning about Jaune, Ruby has the speed semblance and could've gotten Qrow out in 2 seconds.

.So Jaune is the one who get's a moment with Qrow, and the one actually leading, AND shows off his really dumb but still somehow kinda cool weapon upgrade... Why is Ruby even here if your going to do this?

.God I love how the Nuckelavee seems to be in pain and mutating constantly. They do this again with the Hound and annoyingly just like with the hound, nobody tries hitting it when it's doing that for some reason.

.That attack Ruby and Nora just did is called Sugar Rush you can't convince me otherwise.

.This is a REALLY stupid time to do an up-skirt joke. The nightmare abomination that ruined both Ren & Nora's lives is right in front of them and your having them do an overused anime gag?

.Nora, you coulda just let go of Magnhild and you would've been mostly fine.

.This scene between Ren and Nora is really good and I like the symmetry with it and the flashback. Nora hitting Ren here feels a lot more justifiable here then something like Blake smacking Sun across the face. I doubt it's what you should do IRL and I get why people wouldn't like it but still.

.So Ren had that knife the whole time and just... didn't use it, even when he been disarmed before? I do like the knife but it's a blatant retcon.

.This last plan (that Ruby came up with?) makes killing this legendary cryptid seem kinda easy. How has no trained Hunter killed this thing in the decades it's been around if school kids with a single year of professional training can?

.Ren actually finishing it off does go hard and features an inner monologue which I don't think we've gotten since like Volume 1. (Kinda goofy he only says the last part out loud)

.Okay Ruby does get a moment with Qrow, it evens out I guess.

.These airships are the only even kinda advanced thing that feels unique to Mistral.

.Wow look at that beautiful 2d Image of a city!

.Why is there still 15 minutes of episode left?

.I think Qrow's hand is backwards in a shot. His thumb is at the bottom of this his hand somehow?

.Aww they holding hands.

.Okay, there's one other inner monologue here with Ruby writing the letter. But If I'm remembering correctly, I don't think the show ever uses them again even when they would've been useful.

.Hey look, pilot boy. I like how he tells Weiss he ain't covering for her if things go south.

.I already have my issues with Yang's new outfit, and I find it really funny that a third of it gets discarded when they remember they have to animate her fighting in it later.

.RNJ moment is really nice. Wait there's only one bed and three of them....

."If we gave up every time we lost, then we'd never be able to move forward" Knowing what Ruby goes through later just makes this really sad.

.Oh Blake takes out the new white fang logo and replaces it with the old one, because violence bad. (kill me) Nothing says "moving forward" like regression!

.Yang and Oscar taking boats and planes just reminds me again of RNJR's dumb walking plan.

.How does Emerald know about Ruby's new outfit? I know this won't be last time illusionists on this show somehow just know shit but still.

.Ruby letter makes it clear she kinda going through it already. Someone give her a hug, she misses her team.

."Aren't I normally the one saving you?" Not to be an asshole, Qrow, but she's kinda the reason you got in this predicament in the first place.

.Why is Yang's outfit so weirdly green here. They say you can't tell what direction she's going in, but you totally can. ;)

."Now that we've made it across anima, I really think things are gonna start going our way." HAHA NOPE

.And Lionheart's been compromised, fun. (does she know?)

.And finally the post credits scene that plays in volume 5 later anyway! I guess Ozpin can't override Oscar yet because I think he would've just done that instead of making Oscar ask.

[esshetic]

APRIL ASTROLOGY : Star Gurlz

Hey hey hey, we have made it to spring, the first quarter of the year. Through the death cycle of wisdom and reincarnation, are we the same? Yes, but a little different also.

For this month, I want us to enjoy the present and not really plan for the future. There is too much going on outside that is beyond our control, so please ignore those quarterly reviews of goals and such. Those goals may have been set during a time when you had limited knowledge of what you wanted, or perhaps they may not be achievable in a year, and you need to spread them out over 3 or 5 years.

Nevertheless, it's not a failure to have not achieved what you set out to do within a specific timeframe. Having a goal and dream is like cosmic mail, a message from the future, giving you breadcrumbs on your path to where you will eventually get to.

The full Moon eclipse has opened up energetic awareness and brought things to light that you needed to pay attention to. This month is asking you to not bury your head in the sand but to keep paying attention to what was revealed. I see a cavalry, a holy cavalry, arriving. The solutions won’t be created by you; they will be received by you.

Life goes on, baby girl!

For the Signs:

Aries: April showers bring May flowers. This month will be emotionally draining. Ease up on yourself and go with the theme and mood of each day. You don’t need to have it all figured out and together in order to move forward.

Taurus: Weather is rain, rain, and more rain. April, for the most part, is in the fire of Aries, which is too harsh for right now. The energy is trying to keep you awake as you have a propensity to fall back to sleep. The energy is still going to be harsh, and it's time to face the music with how you really feel.

Gemini: I, I, I will, I do, I am. April for you is warming you up for your season as the sun is moving from your 11th to embark on your 12th house transit. Whatever comes this month, you got this. Every hit, you counter punch. The more the hits come, the better you get at counter punching. Finally, you feel alive!

Cancer: April will be sweet for you, sweet and steady. The moon, your domain, is at its highest performance of a solar eclipse, and it will be business as usual for you. You don’t scare easily and take everything as it comes.

Leo: In April, you are a star, girl! I don’t know what this means; it just came to me. I see an idea coming together with friends or people you admire. The sun is moving through your 8th and 9th house, and it's about someone coming to you with an idea that will make you feel excited. Dust off that note book of dreams and Ideas, its is in there!

Virgo: April showers for you too. I am seeing some sadness in the romantic department, perhaps someone not meeting your high expectations. If not romance-related, I am also seeing something falling apart that you are trying to keep together. It's already fallen apart, and you have to let the pieces that are missing go. You didn't really need them.

Libra: April will bring you some much-needed relief and guidance from a good spirit. Someone has your back and is in your corner, fighting for you right now. This guidance is coming through as career-related; a promotion or career recognition is coming your way.

Scorpio: April will also be pretty sweet for you, like Cancer. There is peace around you while you wait for your illumination at the end of the month. The worst that could have happened has already happened, and it does not feel as devastating as you thought it would. Now, let's wait and see.

Sagittarius: April will feel confusing for you, with conflicting energies trying to influence you. You don’t know what to think or what to do. It will feel uncomfortable to sit in this confusing energy, so if you can’t ignore it, move your body! Get away from the stress around you.

Capricorn: April is looking like a good month for movement, physically. If you are getting ready to move house, then the one you pick is the one you should move to. Don’t wait; there is not something better. April will also be a joyous month for you and your family.

Aquarius: April will be fine for you. I can see that you are worried about a few things, but it's all going to be okay in the end. I sense a lot of worry coming through about various things going on in your world that has you losing sleep. I just want to let you know that everything is going to be okay.

Pisces: April showers fertilize the ground for the next sowing and future reaping. There is disappointment with things as they are showing right now, but it's for the better in the long run. I see that you are settling for less, what is practical and easy, and not what your heart truly desires. The tears are to break open your heart and reveal your truth to you.

[sitp-recs]

My pet peeve is when Harry and Draco start liking each other too fast... Especially when it's physical attraction. Do you know any slow burn fic, where they really dislike each other at first, and slowly fall in love bit by bit as they get to know each other? Even better if one (or both) don't realize that they might like man at the start

Hi anon! Hmm I tried to think of enemies to lovers without the fast sexual burn element (which I personally love lol) and couldn’t come up with many fics. I thought I’d keep it simple and go for my favourite slow burn with some initial animosity and/or bi confusion (in some cases). Maybe my followers can share more recs? I hope you’ll find what you’re looking for!

Here's The Pencil, Make It Work by ignatiustrout (M, 50k)

Harry thinks "Why is Malfoy working in a coffee shop in muggle London?" is a much simpler question than, "Are you going to accept that auror offer and, if you don't, what will you do?"

That Old Black Magic by bixgirl1 (E, 77k) - fast sexual burn, forced marriage

Centuries ago, marriage contracts were the norm — ready-made alliances between families, expected and complied with, without complaint. But norms have a way of changing, and when a long-dormant contract flares to life, Harry has to navigate an unexpected splintering of the path he'd thought would be easy after the war... with Draco Malfoy.

Reparo by amalin (E, 85k)

Voldemort's final defeat does not mean Harry Potter's troubles are over; far from it. In the aftermath of war, he returns to a Hogwarts that is fractured and divided, but this is no break that can be fixed with a spell. New owls, fading scars, surprising alliances—and along the way, the hardest task of all, to live with it.

Wild, orphaned (E, 92k)

“No,” Harry said, by way of greeting. Malfoy’s blonde head rose slowly, carelessly. “Get out.” “I feel as though we’ve already established this, Potter,” Malfoy responded. “And I feel that what we established was that you telling me to get out of places really doesn’t make me more likely to vacate them.”

By the Grace by lettered (T, 140k)

Harry is an Auror instructor. Malfoy wants to be an Auror.

Temptation on the Warfront by alizarincrims0n (E, 180k)

Draco Malfoy is forced into hiding with the Golden Trio and dragged into their search for horcruxes. What ensues is a journey of redemption, unexpected friendships and an unwanted, turbulent romance with Harry Potter. Warnings for swearing, sexual content, and dark themes.

Eclipse by Mijan (T, 287k)

Draco swore his revenge on Harry for Lucius's imprisonment, and Harry all but laughed at him. But Draco is planning more than schoolyard pranks this time. The old rivalry turns deadly when Draco abducts Harry for Voldemort. It's the perfect plan, guaranteeing revenge, power, and prestige, all in one blow. But when Draco's world turns upside down, the fight to save himself and Harry begins, and the battle will take them both through hell and back. If they come back.

Turn by Saras_Girl (E, 306k)

One good turn always deserves another. Apparently.

[bthump]

this has probably been asked here before but how likely do you think it is that the author actually truly intended for Griffith and guts relationship to be romantic? How likely do you think it is we’ll get a blatant confirmation (eg a confession of love beyond being friends or even a tragic kiss) and if it does happen do you think it’s likely we’ll get an explicit confirmation on both of their ends so we know the feeling is reciprocated (because I know guts feelings can be underestimated sometimes compared to griffiths). Likelihood as a percentage or on a scale from one to ten lol. I think it’s already pretty obvious enough for me to be satisfied whatever happens but it would be nice if there was an undeniable proof of mutual romantic love. because I think no matter what happens if it’s anything less than spelling it out word for word people would still make attempts to deny their feelings which is kind of sad to me. But I could be wrong of course and romance wasn’t intended by the author. Either way I want them to reveal their feelings for each other whether platonic or romantic.

I'm cynical, so I feel like the odds of something textually romantic happening are like, 2/10 at best. Might've gone up to 3/10 if Miura was stlil alive since it's getting more and more common to confirm gay subtext and that might've influenced him, but since it's being written now by someone determined to adhere to the plans Miura told him, whatever happens is frozen in amber circa Miura and Mori's last conversation, with no room to evolve.

That's all pretty much a moot point anyway because again, I think the odds were always gonna be pretty miniscule anyway.

That said, I think the odds that Miura intended the gay subtext are like 9.5/10 lol. I think the romantic undertones are almost certainly deliberate.

I guess I just don't think it necessarily follows that the point of the subtext was ever to eventually become text. I think it was probably there for a lot of potential other reasons: to add a sense of depth and complexity to their relationship; to add more chemistry; potentially to appeal to women; to suggest that their relationship had the potential for romance that will never be realized therefore making their relationship even more all-encompassing and adding to the tragedy; serving the theme of childhood trauma fucking up your relationships; etc.

Of course I'd be overjoyed if it was acknowledged eventually, and I think the story would ultimately be better for it, like I'm not gonna say it's ~deeper~ if it stays subtext lol. But I think that considering the main target audience for Berserk is horny straight dudes, and while it's getting more common it's still very rare to have textual gay romances between two leads, and almost unheard of in legacy media properties, I just don't think the odds are in griffguts' favour.

Oh, though I do want to add that I'd say the odds of getting an acknowledgement of intense feelings between them post-eclipse is very high. I don't think it'd likely be a romantic confession, but yeah I think it seems very likely that Griffith and Guts are going to acknowledge the intense emotional hold they still have over each other. And if that happens I'll be happy even if it's not textually romantic. I'm sure it'll at least be homoerotic enough for me lol.

Thanks for the ask!

[shadows-coffeebeans]

1, 2, 4, 5, 11, 13, 14, 15 (if they were to wear any besides shoes and gloves-), 16, 17, 19, 20, 21~!

Gonna be answering these with all my current fankids cause I barely ever talk about them. Be prepared to read a whole lot O_O

What are their child's/children's name/s?

The fankids I have currently for my Starlight AU are; Starlight (sonadow), Dimout (knuxouge), Phantom & Jazz (part of a future AU for the fankid AU) (infidget), Opal (metamy) and Peri (name's a work in progress) (REDACTED)

I also have a Boom!Shadarry fankid AU (it's actually older than the Starlight AU); Ecliplse (shadarry) and Dani (sticks/amy)

2. Why did you pick those names/that name?

Starlight and Phantom - asked a discord server cause I was stuck on names

Dimout - reminds me of diamond, also just fun to play around with the light/dark theme

Jazz - I was thinking of Princess Jasmine, stuck with the name when i realized i made the siblings Phantom and Jazz >:]

Opal - I thought the name "Opal Rose" was cute

Peri - was thinking "pirouette" cause she looks like a dancer to me, like i said though, I might change the name eventually

Eclipse - Thought it was fun

Dani - Dani Phantom, also a name i might change

4. Having this/these character/s as their parents, how did it affect them?

Starlight - I feel like Sonic and Shadow would be pretty hands off which left Starlight to have to learn things on his own via trial and error, he has fun though - He's homeschooled by Amy as he doesn't exist in the eyes of the law and they've been putting off getting him an official birth certificate

Dimout - Knuckles is training Dimout to be able to guard the Master Emerald. Dimout doesn't care much for training but feels the pressure to do so and live up to what he thinks are Knuckles' standards. Rouge is often doing GUN missions but when she's with Dimout she tries spoiling him to make up for it. She's his hype man, hypes him up no matter what he's doing (much to Dimout's embarrassment).

Jazz & Phantom - Gadget tries his best, not great but not bad either. Infinite likes to go on long tangents about his old power and his hatred for Shadow (cause i think it's funny). Jazz and Phantom just tend to roll their eyes whenever he does. Both Jazz and Phantom have a better relationship with Gadget, Jazz is closest with him compared to Phantom as they've been work-out buddies since she was small. Infinite tries living through Phantom as he has a bit of the Phantom Ruby in him (hence the red eye), he wants him to harness that power to help Infinite. Phantom does not like Infinite for that reason.

Opal - Thanks to Amy she has a big heart. Metal helps her out with maintenance and how to fix whatever issues occur with her (she's also a robot, not sure if I mentioned that before).

Peri - (REDACTED)

Eclipse - Lived in the woods for a while, Sticks taught them to use their instincts and how to survive in the woods. Eclipse left soon after learning what they needed. Once Barry found them in the trash, they took them in and tried teaching them how to "behave". Shadow didn't care much for them before but now they like causing chaos together.

Dani - Sticks and Amy taught her to be tough and independent, to never let other people's opinions of you stop you from doing what you think is right. She could be a little paranoid thanks to Sticks' conspiracy theories. Dani also cannot control her temper at times.

5. Any planned stories/events with the kids in your head?

I scrapped so much of the original story for both so bear with me if there isn't a whole lot

Starlight AU - Starlight and Dimout meeting, Peri as a whole, might do the whole Eggman turning Starlight against Sonic and Shadow thing I had planned before, the future au

Boom!Shadarry AU - mostly just Eclipse and Opal interactions and shadarry getting together

11. How are their relationships with other relatives (grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc)?

Starlight and E-123 Omega love to blow things up together. I mentioned this already but Amy takes on a more mentor role (?) with Starlight. And while Tails thought he was fine at first, he does not want him near his lab or equipment ever again.

13. How does their relationships look with their parents?

Already spent like over 2 hours answering the questions (at the time of typing this) and I already sorta answered in 4 so

skipping this one

14. How old have you imagined them as?

Starlight, Young Phantom & Peri - 10 years

Dimout - 11 years

Opal, Young Jazz and Dani - 16 years

Eclipse & Phantom - 17 years

Jazz - 23

15. How is their clothing style?

Starlight - Anything with bright colors, especially if it lights up

Dimout - Doesn't care much for the look as long as it's practical, would wear jewelry if it doesn't get in the way

Phantom - Comfort>>>>, lives in his baggy shirts and crocs

Jazz - Business casual

Opal - robot

Peri - think those fancy ballet dresses with gold accents

Eclipse - just wears gloves and inhibitor rings, nothing else.

Dani - Idk a mix of Boom!Amy and Sticks' fits

16. Do they have any struggles in any way?

getting tired so I'm skipping this one D:

17. Do they have any fears?

Starlight - The dark

Dimout - Disappointment

Phantom - Not being able to tell reality from the illusions the Phantom Ruby creates in his mind

Jazz & Peri - Failure

Opal - Being wrong

Eclipse - Eggman

Dani - bugs

19. What are their main interests?

Starlight - Rollerskating

Dimout - Painting

Phantom - Video games

Jazz - Fashion

Opal - Animals

Peri - nothing found_

Eclipse - Bugs

Dani - Collecting things

20. Is there anything significant about them that you wanna share?

nope but I would like to ask what y'all think the Starlight AU should be called (not vibing with "void of stars")

21. What are their middle names if they have any?

No middle names :]

[euri-matsuri]

i wanted. to make him an astral duo costume . i plan to make him a beach one too in the future when i have the energy. but i cant keep procrastinating finalizing his actual normal outfit . but its just so fun to draw him . so heres euri in the thralls of astral duo

ill keep my rambling about design choices for this under the cut ♫

his outfit just pulls elements both from kuyas & quincys . mostly because im not great at coming up with costumes and while studying theirs, what started as "i'll use a white/black balance!" turned into "i really like this midnight/gold combination". he also already utilizes some gold and midnight themes in his story / standard character design, so i ended up sticking to it

aside from that he doesnt actually have two tails .. thats just thanks to the moons. euri's struggle ends up sitting more in the realm of combatting his history (bordering on amnesiac tbh) & more literally that his human and tiger form split during the eclipse. though they dont create two physical forms, his transformations get really intense and unstable!

he's stuck literally just resisting the urge to act without thinking. constant, reckless and harmful naivete and impulse & back-and-forths with the presence and voice of his tiger form (which manifests his actual history) vs. his human self (the current-day him, who he feels "closer" to). so i played into it with lots of imbalance on his outfit—like the double vs. split leg garters, only one glove, asymmetrical arm belts, etc !

his coat pulls a lot of tiger/leopard prints . hes a youkai/youjuu himself (learned that latter term from some people speculating about the original word in the japanese sub. i love it) and did you know i literally did not know about sooley or leogers when i made him? (hadnt gotten to that point in the story). i just wanted the theme of cheetahs/leopards (because i was thinking about those nervous cheetahs with anxiety?) & the tiger was just "damn. ive never had a tiger character!"

anyways. that made it really fun, realizing that i dont think leogers are native to the wood territory? or at least i cant tell/remember.

ok im rambling off topic on i gotta shut up this is what character pages or toyhouses are for

[bloo-the-dragon]

Why did Solar have to die permanently while Eclipse gets to keep coming back over and over like freaking Megatron!?

anon you stirred an ancient ghost inside me with mention of megatron lmao /silly

but anyways - i think it became a running theme that Eclipse was gonna keep coming back like peepaw. But this time however there has been a big shift in his character, so the coming back from death thing has ultimately had a greater effect this time around than the last.

For starters, it's already been confirmed he is not really Eclipse. At least not the prior incarnations. He's a mimicry a different entity who carries only the fractured memories and directives of the ones who came before. The only thing that even really connects him to the Eclipse character beyond that is the fact his code was made from Solar's (who is also an Eclipse)

He is very much like Eclipse in personality for sure, unhinged and a complete asshole. But his unique circumstance, being brought so low that he truly is an inferior Eclipse, a false copy, and the fact he knows this has greatly altered his view on himself and his goals. He can say how he's superior to everyone all he wants but 1. no one cares anymore and 2. he knows it's a lie anyways.

But with Earth showing him genuine kindness and patience lately combined with the aforementiond, this has finally allowed him to actually open up a bit and maybe just maybe allow that sliver of a chance for redemption/to find a new purpose in life, even if that is away from the plex. I don't expect him to suddenly turn into a nice eclipse like Solar, in fact i would very much prefer for him to continue being a little asshole rat bastard /aff - but i do want him to be free of his past and find a new purpose, a new reason to live that isn't just antagonising others and hungering for power.

But i'm getting off track here-

We don't actually know if Solar will be dead permanently. It's been said already there is a way to bring him back but it would require sacrificing someone else, and not only that but their entire existence. My moneys on it being the creator ngl because as it stands he is pretty much unkillable. Using him as that sacrifice would be effective in removing him entirely but the only problem would be actually being able to go through with the plan because the brain's a tricky guy to pin down (plus i don't doubt Earth would be conflicted about it)