#also originally i wasn't going to make it all purple but then i was like who's going to stop me

[nguyenfinity]

More school stuff!!

These are spreads from a type specimen booklet, the objective was to make an 8-page 5″x5″ booklet showcasing the many uses and variations of only 1 typeface on any topic of your choice

So I once again decided to get silly with it--

My other topics in consideration were:

A full summary of all 16 seasons of Ninjago (scrapped because I’d have to write that summary myself and I did not have that kind of time [we were allowed to copy paste as long as we included our source])

The entire national Pokédex. All 1015 of them. Just 8 pages of listing every single Pokémon. It was funny until I realized that’s way way too much.

Narrowed it down to the full dex of just one region but that was still too much-- (body copy requirement was just 5 paragraphs and too much text would be too cluttered)

[complete-clownery]

Hahaha okay rant about this amazing fanfic (you probably heard of this one already but still)

So whenever it comes to explaining and writing under my posts I just get lazy but I need to push through this cuz I need to talk

So the fanarts were made for the lmk fanfiction sunbreak, that a lot of you (probably mostly shadowpeach shippers) had read, and it is amazing, I read trough it as fast as my brain let me and as you can see it has pleasantly scratched my brain so much so that I even (attempted) to make fanart for it

Ngl if I wasn't a major pussy I would try to illustrate the whole thing or make covers for each chapter but Im unable to work on something more than 2 hours and I would want those to look good, but good looking art (if I don't mess up) takes 6 hours ughh--- annoying much---

Anyways I'm not good with literature but man is this fix a masterpiece *chefs kiss* its everything its amazing, I was unable to put it down once I started it

Okay i dont think I have the brain capacity to explain how much I worship the writer of this masterpiece @ladygreenfrisbee , so i'm just going to talk about the drawings a tad

So first picture with Red Son and MK its sort of like an au in the fic where the whole lbd plot is somehow nonexistent and after Macaque gets to his sisters domain they settle down and raise the kids together without much of an issue aside from assassinations keep happening and trying not to get in trouble with the heavens

Id like to think that Gongzhu still wouldn't let the court tailors to put any form of red or gold on MKs outfits and only allowed the yellow after when MK was old enough to declare that yellow was his favorite color, but even now she would insist on some form of purple and shadow motives to let others know who the mother is

We also got baby MK and toddler Red Son and sassy LIF and Mac

Third pic with the lion: I don't know what it was or why but I just love general Song so much--- he's a major dickhead but sgvshshsevkdididhr (actually I kinda love all the original characters in this one, from the generals to the old lady in the beginning of the book, (gosh I also wanna draw some scenes from those chapters I loved how Mac and she interacted hshsjsj))

so chapter 34 was probably my favorite so far I re read it about two more times cuz it was amazing to see Macaque being the schemer he is and try to piss of Song lol

Last picture: its a sketch/a wip or whatever (probably not going to finish it but im still putting it there cuz its somewhat decent looking)

Its the part where Wukong remembered of Macaque finally finding him and asking for him to come back to flower fruit mountain.

I tried to make Macaque look more unhinged on this one but since I didn't finish it I dont think its that noticable so fuck that but I also gave him a halo like the saints to symbolise his suffering and what not (thought it looked cool and fitting think whatever you want about it lol)

And that all ((((hollly mother))))

If you read this trough, thank you and congrats👏👏

[waitineedaname]

i was thinking my little thoughts while falling asleep last night, and a concept occurred to me: what if binghe learned about the system not from shen qingqiu, but from shang qinghua

look, he likes shang qinghua alright. he's pretty disinterested in p much anyone who isn't shen qingqiu, but on the list of People Luo Binghe Tolerates, shang qinghua is relatively high. he gave him advice on wooing sqq, after all, and sqq likes his company, so binghe tolerates his shang-shishu

but the thing is, shang qinghua is a spy. has been for decades. binghe knows this. really, everyone knows this at this point, which isn't a great look for a spy, but still. and since shang qinghua is a spy for mobei-jun, who is a subordinate for luo binghe, then technically shang qinghua is also working for him, but you don't get to the position of demon emperor without a healthy amount of suspicion for everyone in your court

so he decides to test shang qinghua a little bit. nothing major, just a little poking around in his dreams. he starts out with a subtle touch, just sifting through his memories. most of it is what he expected. he sees his time on an ding as a disciple and then later as peak lord, he sees him working for mobei-jun. he sees mobei-jun in some compromising situations, which he files away for later, and then sees him in an entirely different flavor of compromising situations, and binghe immediately decides to act like he never saw that

then he decides to take a more direct approach and starts nudging the dreams in other directions, to see how he might react to certain scenarios, test his loyalty. he expects shang qinghua to act cowardly, or bluff his way through a situaton, maybe even draw his sword if pushed far enough

what he doesn't expect is for shang qinghua to frown at the changes luo binghe made and go "I didn't write it like this"

what

binghe is so bewildered by that response that he loses his grip on the dream for a second, and before he knows it, shang qinghua has spun the dream scenario back into the way the scene originally played out. he steps back and looks satisfied. "there we go," he says. "that's how it went. you know, if I'd known I'd be dealing with this scene myself, I would've written it differently"

what the hell does that mean?

fascinated, luo binghe continues to test him. most of the time, when he toys with someone's dream, they're completely unaware of the changes. shang qinghua, despite not seeming aware that he's lucid dreaming, seems very aware of how each scene should go. except for, strangely, many of the scenes that binghe himself was in. binghe pulls up one from his disciple days, one of the times he remembered shang qinghua coming to qing jing on some errand. he hadn't even changed anything yet, had just let the dream version of his younger self launch himself at shizun in a tacklehug, but shang qinghua tsks and takes the reins from him before he can make any edits. "sorry bing-ge, but that was just way too out of character," shang qinghua says. the dream copy of luo binghe's younger self is sent further away, watching the peak lords with a sullen gaze. he's skinnier than binghe remembers being at this age, and one of his eyes is swollen with a purple bruise. that doesn't make any sense, luo binghe thinks. he hadn't been beaten on qing jing peak for years at this point.

the shen qingqiu beside shang qinghua in the dream stands with his back straight as a ruler, and when his gaze lands on luo binghe, he sneers behind his fan. shang qinghua sighs. "cucumber-bro really wasn't as good of an actor as he thought he was. he's way too soft to ever seem like the original goods."

alarmed, luo binghe dispels the dream and steps out of it entirely. sure, he knows shen qingqiu's personality changed almost overnight when he had that qi deviation. everyone knew that. he avoided questioning it much, unwilling to look a gift horse in the mouth when it meant having a shizun that cared for him

but shang qinghua. shang qinghua seems to know something more about shen qingqiu's personality change. something he's not sharing. luo binghe didn't like the idea that one of his subordinates could be hiding something as vital as this from him

well, this had been a test of his spy's loyalties, hadn't it? perhaps he should make a visit to an ding. he had some questions.

[mrabubu]

/the ref is a bit old, but the info is mostly accurate/

So, I did kinda sketch ref for my Kraang character and make her more of a person, or something, with a name and all. I'm still going to use they/them pronounce and Y/N when people will be asking something about Krangified AU.

More information about her below.

So, her name is Ana now.

About her personality before she was turned into the Kraang zombie I still can't say much at the moment (because I'm mostly focused on their interactions in the present timeline), except for her being the person who was genuinely worried about Leo and what's been going on in his head. She saw his attitude and for her it was obvious it was mostly a facade to hide his real emotions and wanted to help him, being a shoulder to lean on. I see her being the weirdo to others that found his jokes actually funny.

After Kraangification, I can describe her with one word: DEPRESSION. I mean, you've been a mindless zombie for about 10 years that practically flashed before your eyes. You wake up facing the facts that the world has been at war with the Kraang for all this time, everyone you knew grew up, your family is long gone, your boyfriend been through hell and lost his arm, and, yeah, your still kinda a zombie also facing some self-control issues. Your Kraang half is taking control over you from time to time, attacking others and even friends if provoked. Not to mention that a lot of things that used to be casual to you are now something you need to learn to be used to again, like bed or actual food. Yeah and also that little inconvenience that she has to eat people now.

She's been dozing off a lot at first, after Leo got her to their base, just staring at one point, processing the whole situation and still feeling like it's just a very long nightmare. And only Leo could snap her out of this state at least for a short amount of time.

When I've been making first sketches with her I gave her this pointed ear and horn like Kraang appendage on her forehead, and thought this kinda reminded of oni's (demons) from Japanese folklore, which kinda resonated with this whole Kraang AU concept.

I also can't stop thinking about Beauty and the Beast (original Disney animated movie) concept, only with them swapping roles in contrast to the original story.

I really like the concept of the turtles being able to make this chirping and churring sounds, and thought, why can't she make something like this? So, yeah, she can churp and purr (I don't know if there's a difference between churring and purring, still didn't understand, and this churring sound is still mostly fictional, fanon thing..? but, anyway). I like this idea of Leo and Ana being able to communicate with the language only they (and other turtles) understand.

A few more sketches with her and a couple of scenes.

Her claws on the Kraang arm can extend. I thought about her being able to shapeshift her arm further, but for now it's either extended claws, or something like a sword or some other sharp pointy thing...

I've been thinking about her fighting style, and for a reference I used the The Witcher 3 again (yeah) There's a vampire species, Bruxa and Alp, and I'm thinking her fighting style would be something like of an Alp. Fast and agile, also pretty strong (tho still not strong enough to take out big enemies like the Kraang in their suits).

I have this scene in my head that I actually been sketching already, where she's fighting the Kraang hounds, and pretty much able to lift one grabbing it by it's throat and throwing it into the tree like a rag doll.

Another thing is her screech she uses to intimidate/immobilize her enemies. It's also more of an alp than bruxa, especially in this video time code 00:36, this is pretty much how I imagine it.

I also know that I've messed up her eyes when she's in her Kraang mode, because they should be turning purple, like Raph's left eye that wasn't covered by Kraang flesh, but, uuuh, I don't want to change that at this point...

I think that's it for now...? If I'll have more ideas I'll either be making other posts, or updating this one.

[moongothic]

MY BLANKET OF DARKNESS HAS BEEN COMPLETED

✨👁️✨ I AM SO COZY NOW ✨👁️✨

So I started working on this blanket around June of 2022. Got like, maybe half-way through the blanket and then the yarn I needed for the blanket went out of stock at my local yarn shop. Now I didn't know the yarn would be completely unavailable for like 6 months (until the stop closed permanently), so I just kept on waiting, hoping for it to come back in stock-- but it never did, so in January I finally looked online if I could find the yarn elsewhere and I did, I got the yarn I needed, and finished the blanket. So it kinda took me 6 months to make this blanket but also not

What made this blanket a truly exciting and fun project for me is that this has been the first blanket I actually made for myself and designed for myself. Like I've enjoyed every single blanket project I've had so far, but having a blanket that's Just For Me is just. It's nice

I originally planned the granny squares out digitally because I wanted to have a fun pattern of different granny squares, something that wouldn't be too busy looking and was carefully planned, and here's what I came up with

I had two versions of the square pattern, one with moon phases right in the middle of it and another without them. I do like how the moon version looked and part of me kinda regrets not making that one, but I'm not sure the moons would have really gone well with the eyes... So I did go with the first version

(Sidenote, it's not on the pattern above but I added extra rows of just black squares at the top and bottom of the blanket, so there's two rows of black instead of just one)

(Sidenote 2, although I knew I wanted the blanket to be mostly black from the begining, I wasn't entirely sure what accent color I wanted to use, it really was depending on what colors the shop had available. Like I used yellow as kind of a default color since it worked nice with the stars and eyes, but I could've gone with some other color too. In the end, because I didn't like the color options for the yarn at the shop I ended up going with a yellow anyways) (Also I tested out a reverse color version with the pastel purple and white base and no eyes, just for funsies, it looks kinda neat)

But yeah, that's how the planning of the blanket went.

The blanket is made of 231 squares in total, 11x21 rows. 186 of the squares are plain black, the rest are patterned. The star squares were the worst to make because of how many strands of yarn I had to weave in, 0/10, would not reccommend.

I used the Cedro 100% wool yarn (reccomended hook size 5, 50g=100m), and it took me about 38 balls of yarn to finish the blanket (including crocheting all the squares together and doing a single round of double crochet around the blanket to finish it off)

This is literally all the yarn I have left from this blanket; one untouched ball of black and three partially used balls.

I gotta admit.

I'm kind of shocked by the size of the blanket. Like I very carefully measured it to make it the exact size to fit my bed, and it fits perfectly. But I'm still kinda shocked how big it is. (Which is why I didn't make the border of the blanket any bigger, even though I could've with the yarn I have)

Also

It's HEAVY

Like, of course it's heavy, it's 100% wool and thick, but MAN I didn't expect it lmao

But that kind of makes it perfect for cold winters especially, it's super warm and the weight makes it cozy- like who needs a weighted blanket when you can have one of these lmao

Now I just need to figure out how to protect the blanket from being covered in my white cat's hair...

[blazetbw-art]

Hello, attempted a modern Sonic Bunnie Rabbot redesign!

@thepinkgalaxy55 did a post on twitter and it reminded me to finish this design from last year lol.

Check under the cut for the journey down the rabbit hole.

Started out with a sketch of her previous designs to get a better idea of what makes 'em tick.

From Left to Right: SatAM, Archie, Archie Reboot-all bunny, and Reboot Robo-bunny After that, figuring out the head. Stayed round, but wanted to avoid the same copy-past-face. Took out the bun-toof in the final since it really wasn't needed and she never had it anyway.

Next, let body & mech parts.

Initially started Forces Avatar like, but switch it over to a different direction. I wanted chonky lower legs and the Big O hydraulic fist. Started toying around with the joints found in the more modern renders of Metal Sonic and other bots.

Final lines and Color tests! Or at least with the original colors to see how I could make them fit, and where to take her design from there.

Went a more EggPawn style because they're very practical in their form and function in terms of design. I also like to think that if the modern Eggman were to turn to robotizicing, he'd probably keep the bots more simplified for what he could mass produce over something more complex that would require more fixing and tweaking.

She also got a pony-tail like MLP's Applejack because I felt it would help her shape a bit more.

And finally, figuring out colors for myself.

I ended up going towards the dusty-rusty-rose on the end to help her stand out from the bots as well as the other pink and purple gals already in the cast.

Yennyway, thank and be well~

[afreakingdork]

Deep Dive: Rise of the TMNT Donatello's Bad Boy Persona, His Cute, But Mean Type, and Why He is None of These Things

I made this presentation to delve into my take on Rise Donnie!

It was a power point, but I'm going to break it down here. I do want to preserve the first slide though because...

Did you know Black dahlia's aren't actually black? They're very dark red and in flower language they represent dishonesty!

Apropos, let's get into it...

Donnie is a Bad Liar

We see this throughout the show

“No? No… Of course I did… n't.”

"Uh, nothing. Just having a typical normal mystic free day."

"We are just typical, normal humans who got lost in the middle of our normal, everyday human lives. Nailed it."

"Oh man. Uh. This hurts me. Uh. I'm very sad?"

He has all the characteristics of a terrible liar. He sweats, his pitch warbles, his eyes dart, ect, everything you would expect.

Sarcasm! The Perfect Cover?

When Donnie does go for the use of sarcasm, he almost always points it out.

"I feel better already," he said without a hint of sarcasm."

"Oh, sure. Let me just load my tap-into-every-security-camera-in-New-York app. I'm sorry if that sounded like sarcasm, it wasn't. I am in."

Point Out the Obvious Much

However, when he doesn't point out the sarcasm, he also can't help but make mention of the oxymoron. We see this a lot, especially in Donnie vs. Witch Town.

"Oh yes very cool says Donnie as he quietly lets something go."

"Ooh, fireworks. Science never would have thought of something it was originally inventor of."

So basically, if Donnie tries to lie; he gives himself away. If Donnie tries to fudge the truth; he's compelled to make note of it.

I bring this all up to specifically tackle this sentence:

“So unfair. Although it is a boost for my emotionally unavailable bad boy image. “Y’ello.””

Why do I do so? Let me remind you of my first slide...

But how can that be? We just established that he's a bad liar. In the 'bad boy' line, he's not falling for any of his tells. He's body language gives no indication of lying. He doesn't make any note of sarcasm. No one after this line makes a face or corrects Donnie and he doesn't point out any discrepancies.

How could this be a lie?

Because Donnie himself doesn't know it's a lie.

Let Me Take You Back

Things I Did Unironically as a Teenager

Added Japanese honorifics to the end of my friends nicknames (-san, -chan, -kun)

Had my friends help me wrap myself up in caution tape for my birthday, but told people they made me

Wore a dog collar with a dog tag that had my name in Romanji on it

Had screen names like RubyBlueSango62 and blahweeblah626

But That’s Just Personal Experience!

Things Donnie has Unironically as a Teenager

"Ah, yes, so in this case a game of bask-eh-ball."

"Prepare to eateth thy words."

"Oh, hey guys. What’s the haps? Huh? Oh, oh this? I didn’t realize I had it on. This is my sweet new purple satin jacket- Got it from being a bit of a tech wiz. Purple Dragons. Members only. No big deal. Mm-hm. Well, you better grab some toast, fellas, 'cause you are all jelly!"

“It's Bootyyyshakker9000. Capital B and three Ys in booty.”

I believe it's a universal experience for teenagers to push boundaries. For so long, most parents decide everything for you. With hormones and growth, you want to experiment, but since autonomy is new, you try to break from the mold and do it uniquely. Anything that is outside your norm, especially things that swing wildly from what you once new seems especially exciting. From embellishing speech, to wearing specific clothing items, and even your first screen name, you don't know boundaries! It may be 'cringe' in the future, but when you first do it, it seems like the coolest thing ever! It's something that wholly represents you. This online space you. This you that is ungoverned! I'm an only child so I can't imagine, but I bet you especially want to do this when you have siblings. Where the shame in that?

I mean... Kat Haynes agrees with me on this...

Low Empathy

Now to get a little more serious. Alexithymia is a term that describes those who have difficulty feeling emotions. While not always associated with autism, it is more common in individuals with it. About 1 in 5 people who have autism also have alexithymia.

As already stated, it is clear the Donnie suffers from alexithymia. Most Donatello-centric conflicts in Rise have nothing to do with Donnie being emotionless and instead often deal with him lashing out due to his confusion or insecurities. We see this a lot especially in Witch Town where he is grappling with himself the entire episode. He's insecure about how he doesn't understand mysticism and he doesn't know how to process it or his place on the team. He's not emotionless, he's insecure when he doesn't understand something.

"Yes, feelings. Hot, cold, sleepy, hungry…"

"I don't normally feel things, but that one got through!"

Emotions on his Metaphorical Sleeve

Nothing about alexithymia says that you don't feel emotions. Instead, it's characterized by not understanding them. Donnie feels his emotions big and large just like Mikey does and especially if something is important to him, you'll see those reactions dialed up to eleven.

All Talk

While many think of the classic "semi-lethal" line and the "Speak for yourself" when Mikey says they aren't savages in regard to Donnie, he's not really the bad boy he plays himself up to be. When the theatrics are set aside, most of Donnie’s snap judgements are the altruistic kind or he thoughtfully plans out ways to not only take care of his family, but actively ensure their safety (to varying degrees of success, but that's not what we're saying here):

created devices which both counteracted his brother's flaws because they were getting them hurt

Used himself as a shield for Mikey on multiple occasions 

Risks his own safety and bodily harm especially in Turtle-dega Nights: The Ballad of Rat Man and Breaking Purple

Builds Escape pods for everyone 

Enters a sensory nightmare for the sake of the world

Often asks, especially Raph, if he's okay and looks out for the oldest brother

Yet the Presentation Continues?

Why yes, because there is another line of Donnie's that I want to tackle that I believe falls exactly in line with the 'bad boy image' one...

"Oh, you’re so cute, but so mean. Why do I always go for your type?"

You know what I'm about to posit again...

Insecure

As touched on previously, Donnie is insecure. He's insecure about his emotions. He's insecure about his place on the team. He's insecure about anything he doesn't understand and his insecurities are exceedingly personal in nature because he ties them intrinsically to his personality.

"The real thing is much more personal and thoughtful, and I really hope you like it, ‘cause if you don’t I will just be crushed!"

"This’ll teach you to compliment my work and give me my first positive reinforcement from a parent aged adult, ever!"

Speaking of parent aged adults... i wonder where this could stem from...

Role Model

Who do all the turtles model themselves after, but their own father? Whether they knew it or not, Lou Jitsu was someone they all strived to be like. They commited to learning all the lines from his movies. They fought like him outside of the training course Splinter sets them on. Heck, Donnie takes his hero worship so far that his character defining brows are exactly Lou Jitsu's! Babies start learning how to establish social and emotional relationships around 18 months. We have Splinter, a despondent, but loving care giver who unfortunately did not give Donnie the validation he craved. This manifests in his insecurities where he bends over backwards to get the attention he craves. He wants to be seen, again compounded by having three rowdy mutant-powered brothers, and so he ends up tying his worth into his ability.

Now, while for a majority of the series, the turtles don't know about Splinter's past or that he dated Big Mama, but it wasn't as if Splinter hid that part of himself away so obviously. In fact, because he himself is still mourning his lost humanity, he ends up feeding his son's a hardy diet of his life's existence. The boys are secondarily raised by Lou Jitsu movies in place where Splinter is not always present. Obviously, Lou Jitsu seemingly disappears, but Splinter's feelings on the matter don't. He openly still cares about Big Mama in the present and this I don't think it's a stretch to say that he would let these feelings leak in a similar way to how he presents Lou Jitsu in the boys lives. Big Mama is a attractive, albeit manipulative woman. This is awfully close to a little line someone says, especially when we consider that he models himself after this man.

Also, if we're taking models into account. Something we know for a fact shapes teenagers. Something we know for a fact that Donnie does. Something that is equally canonized in the show, then we have to talk about.

Donnie’s True Canonical Idol

That's right. You know her. You love her. You believe that Donnie is a thigh man because of this Lass' existence. Donnie says flat out that Atomic Lass is his childhood idol. He goes to great lengths to dance with her, smashing Leo out of the way. He then even goes so far as to ask if her and Atomic Lad have split up because his intention to date her is so clear. Now she was obviously a mutant in a costume, but that didn't matter because he loves Atomic Lass that much and Atomic Lass?

She's a heroine.

Only cute and mean in the context of the episode, this is not the Lass he fell in love with. The Lass he loves is a comic book hero that travels the universe doing good.

Also....

Ron Corcillo Agrees With Me

A staff writer on Rise, I apologize I can't show the origin tweet because it was deleted, but it was a dual question that asked both about the Turtles meeting Spider-man and about Donnie's preference. Now you could say he's forgotten a line that may not be as important to him, but doesn't that in and of itself say something? It says that it could have been a one-off joke or that it wasn't something that was necessarily intrinsic to the character.

To Recap:

Donnie doesn’t always know himself

Donnie is a cringey teen

Donnie is insecure

Donnie has difficulty understanding emotions and himself

Donnie isn’t actually an 'emotionally unavailable bad boy'

Donnie doesn’t actually like the ‘mean’ type

Sources:

Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes:

Mystic Mayhem

Donnie's Gifts

Pizza Pit

Hot Soup: The Game

Shadow of Evil

Donnie vs. Witch Town

The Mutant Menace

Breaking Purple

Turtle-dega Nights: The Ballad of Rat Man

End Game

Repo Mantis

Mascot Melee

Donnie's Gifts

Bug Busters

War and Pizza

Goyles, Goyles, Goyles

Lair Games

Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie

lactoseintolerentswag's post on Rise Characterizations Pt. 3!!!

skulltrot's Donnie (Rise of the TMNT) | Autism Representation in Media video

Ron Corcillo's tweet from Cartoon Brew's Feb 10, 2024 AMA

Alexithymia | Autistica

earthytzipi's post not understanding why people characterize Donnie has hiding his emotions

hyperfixatinator's post about ROTTMNT Theory: Donatello's Hidden Role

[dragonridernoobie]

TFP ancient predicon reader, predaking will soon learn he's not the king when meeting them seeing they just meet a predicon emperor/empress ( trying to be neutral here)

Who just told them to bow down to the true king/queen of the beast

I think I understand what you mean (I'm known for not being the brightest) so I will try my best! Also, thank you for having patience with me! I am going as fast as I can with my hurt amr/hand.

Predaking X Predicon Reader

Predaking knew he wasn't seeing things. He was right! There is another predicon. Though, he doesn't remember another predicon being made in the lab with him. And there were no records of another predicon being made before him.

So, who was this predicon? With a mission on his mind, he set out to find this random predicon and see who or what they are.

He found them the next time he was out to find a cybertronian artifact. They stood still, stearing at eachother. They didn't move, speak, or attack.

After a while, Predaking decided to speak first. Making sure his voice is loud and and strong.

"I am predaking! The king of all predicons."

"That'd a stupid name."

"What-How dare you! You will respect you're king!"

Ya, this other predicon beat the living shit out of predaking. This predion was not a lab made one. This one was a original. They where called (Y/N).

(Y/N) attacked him in ways he never new was possible or seemed stupid to do. After they beat him, he ask if they show him the ways of the predicons since he is only a lab made one.

(Y/N) only agreed to this if predaking leaves the decpticons since (Y/N) is with the autobots. Obviously predaking dident want to since he made to serve the decpticons but with knowing his roots and his kind from a real predicon, he had to.

So, he left the decpticons and joined the autobots. (Optimus welcomed him with open arms) and there, is when (Y/N) showed him how to be a predicon.

How to fly in ways that makes the air bend at you're command, so you can fly faster, slower, upside down, or anything.

How to breath diffrent type of fire, blue for the coldest fire and purple being the hottest.

How to find energon with only you're sense of smell and instincts.

And how to act like one.

After years of this, predaking is happy. He has become one with his instincts and now became real predicon.

(Y/N) was still on his side when they went to cybertron and when the new 2 predicon where found and made by the decpticons, they brought them in with open arms and showed then their original ways.

They flue thru the sky's of cybertron, enjoying how free it is. They enjoyed They wernt alone. (Y/N) was happy to know they weren't alone.

The autobots helped them make more predicons just like Shockwave did. When more and more predicons where made, they took them and showed them the right way.

How a predicon acts, lives, eat, etc. They helped cybertron grow. They help bring back the land to life and made sure to make peace with the autobots.

After everything. Predaking was happy. He had his species, had friends, family, a purpose, and a old friend who showed him how to be what he is.

Predaking is happy.

He is free

He will portect all of it.

[howlyourmelancholy]

Drunk In Love

summary: in which you're both drunk.

warnings: thigh riding. mentions of alcohol consumption/being very drunk. possible hints of exhibition. public setting. some teeth rotting fluff thrown in for good measure.

words: 967.

notes: james is a clingy mo'fo and i'm here for it. he's also down bad for reader. reader is also down bad for him. it turned out a little fluffier then originally intended.

It wasn't always like this, but when it was, it was wild and invigorating. The two of you were a tangled mess of limbs, and heavy breaths made between frantic kisses. It was almost painful to have your lips not touch his. His hands were everywhere and nowhere all at once, leaving you restless and squirming in his lap. You were completely and irrevocably lost. The taste of his mouth was intoxicating—a robust mix of his natural flavour, the faded mint toothpaste he'd used that morning, and the spicy tang of the whisky he'd been swigging from all night.

You were drunk, hopelessly so, clinging to him as you straddled one of his thick thighs, your arms wound around his neck while you attacked his lips with swift kisses and zinging bites. James didn't mind, not one bit, because he was in a similar state. His head was swimming with the buzz of alcohol and the taste of you; his senses captivated and ensnared by the sweet sounds you were making. "You're so pretty," he whispered softly, as though the words were a precious promise meant only for you.

The adoration and utter love in his voice made your breath catch in your chest. You loved the boy; you realised that in that moment. You wanted to marry him; you wanted to have his children; you wanted to spend your life with him, always by his side. The words died on your tongue before they can be given life, morphing into a sigh that he stole from your lips with cherry-sweet kisses that send shocks of pleasure shooting down your spine.

He knows, though.

He could feel your love in the way you cradle his face in the palms of your hands, thumbs sweeping over the apples of his cheek as though to brush away non-existent tears. He could feel it in the way you whisper his name against his lips and steal the breath from his lungs. He could feel it in the slow grind of your hips over his thigh and the sticky-sweet trail left on the fabric of his jeans. He's gentle tonight, letting you use him how you wanted—the usual male aggression that fuels his ego having melted away only to be replaced with something softer.

You don't mind.

You'll have him however you can. You craved him in all forms—the soft and sweet, the wild and untamed. "How are you feeling, baby?" he murmured against your neck, caressing you with his lips. You couldn't help but whine. The way his voice dipped into a lower octave, rough with desire, had your slick walls clamping around nothing.

“Feels s'good,” you replied as your hips rolled more firmly along the column of his thigh, making you both groan beneath your breath. The rough fabric of his jeans had you slowly going insane; the rips were a delicious caress against your cunt through the thin, wet barrier of your knickers that sent wisps of pleasure shooting through your veins. James could feel how wet you were; you grabbed at him here, there, and everywhere, just to ground yourself in the moment. Your head was empty of thoughts, and he couldn't have been happier.

"Yeah?" He breathed, his head tilting to the side but his lips never leaving your skin. James left little love bites in the wake of his mouth, blue-purple signs of how hungry he was and how much he loved you. "I can feel how wet you are, love. Can't wait to get home and fill that pretty pussy with my cum. You want that? Want my cum inside you, pretty girl?"

You felt the splash of moisture his words brought to your core as you floated further into the clouds. James grabbed your hips when your pace faltered, the burn in your thighs becoming too much. He slid one of his hands around to the small of your back and then travelled south, his big, warm palm grabbing a handful of your arse to help you along. He wrapped the opposite arm completely around you and held you to his chest as you rode him.

The stitches holding your soul to your body began to unravel, causing your moans to become louder. James didn't mind—not at all, not one bit. He liked when you were loudly proclaiming his name to the heavens as though he were a god and you were praying at his feet. He can tell that you're embarrassed by how you've cemented your mouth to his neck and how your nails dig into his back as you press closer. Even drunk, you're shy and nervous.

He doubted any of them were paying attention to the two of you tucked away in the corner—not that he'd have cared if they were. With the volume of the muggle music, it easily drowned out your moans as an orgasm rolled through you. It felt like the peak of a roller coaster: a slow build-up, and then as you fell down the other side, all the tension exploded through you, shooting up your spine, down the backs of your legs, and everywhere else. James crowded around you, smothering your senses, and held you impossibly tight as your eyes rolled back into your skull.

He found himself painfully hard, his cock throbbing in the confines of his jeans. He hummed against your ear as sobriety crept through his mind. After a while, you came back to reality with the ache in your clit now throbbing in time with the beating of your heart.

You felt so relaxed but still wound tighter than an antique clock. His hand came up to capture your chin and tilt your face towards his so that he could brush his lips on yours. "Ready to go home, pretty girl?"

[jals-stuff]

hello my love! If you don't mind I would like to request something for Orter. He and reader are still students in Easton and absolutely despise each other (something like academic rivals) and they ended up having to take care for a magical creature together for a class project during a few weeks! sorry if its a bit confusing, english is not my first language 🥹

good evening darling~

First of all, I would like to apologise because I originally wanted to make something short but it ended up being just a little longer than what I expected...

edit: part 2 ← right here

also i am receiving a lot of requests recently for some reason. thank you for your patience.

word count: 5.7k

warnings: f!reader, i hope you aren't scared of snakes (this one is cute tho), bit of swearing, not proofread

Taking care of it!

Group assignments are, and always have been the worst. The extroverts usually left you with the heaviest workload and you'd just end up doing everything by yourself while they took credit for it. However this time, the assignment wasn't like anything you would've expected.

The teacher was going to pick random students and put them into pairs, and each duo would be given a small wooden box with an egg inside of it.

“These boxes contain mandragora snake eggs. This species hatches into different colours depending on how you take care of them and help them grow.”

The teacher explained and brought two different creatures to her desk. The left one had beautiful and healthy dark green, glossy scales and stunning purple flower patterns with big eyes and seemed extremely docile; it was a rather medium-sized specimen and it looked kind of cute. 

But the other one was a completely different creature; an aggressive beast with long, hooked fangs, completely hollow eyes and its scales were an alarmingly fluorescent shade of green with almost no patterns at all. Its scales were in a pitiful state and seemed uncomfortably stony. It kept trying to bite the teacher.

“The left egg has been taken care of perfectly, and is now a healthy, beautiful mandragora snake. The right one however, has absorbed too many negative energies from the ones taking care of it, resulting in… this.”

And just as you started wondering how it was possible to mess a beast up that badly with only negative energy, the teacher called out your name.

“(L/N) (Y/N) and Orter Mádl, come and get your egg as well.”

That couldn't be good, this snake was probably never going to hatch at all. The two of you exchanged an uncomfortable yet similar side eye. Existing in the same classroom as him was already enough of a pain in the neck, and now you had to raise a magical creature together?

Oh boy.

…

You were both sitting in front of this egg now, in absolute silence as none of you knew what to say or do. You had never taken care of a mandragora snake— or any type of pet other than a cat in the past, and surely anyone could guess Orter was not the nurturing type.

“This snake is going to have horrible parents.” You thought out loud, and for the first time, you saw the cold, distant jerk nod. He crossed his arms and looked at it for a while without saying a single word. Just… what was he trying to achieve? Did he think he was going to turn into a mandragora snake expert just by looking at an egg?

The teacher cleared her throat to grab everyone’s attention again and pointed at the blackboard. 

“These creatures usually hatch after approximately one week, and they will gain their patterns after one more week, but an unhealthy egg will take longer than that. You must take good care of them until their colours are completely visible. Your schedules have been cleared accordingly so taking care of the little ones should not be an issue for the next month.”

Orter didn’t quite appreciate the idea of spending a month with the likes of you, nurturing and hatching a pet together as if you were some kind of happy little family. He raised his hand.

“Is joint custody allowed?”

“Absolutely not.” The teacher deadpanned at his question and you almost slammed your own face against the desk at how dumb of him that was. After a while, everyone left except the two of you, still staring at the egg.

“That was dumb of you. I’ll be the one to hatch it since you can’t bear to have responsibilities.” You gently pet the egg with one of your fingers. “Isn’t that right, Rivers?” That last part was mumbled as if you were talking to an actual baby, and Orter rolled his eyes.

“Dumb? Should I remind you that your last two brain cells are fighting for third spot?” He mocked, giving you a condescending side eye. “And why are you giving it a name already? It hasn’t even hatched yet.”

It was your turn to roll your eyes and look at him as if he had just asked the most obvious question in existence. He made no commentary about the way you looked at him. 

“Since you don't even care enough to give it a name, Rivers will stay in my room. I’ll take good care of it.” You shrugged and very carefully picked the box up, holding it against your chest like an actual child.

“Isn't it supposed to be a two person assignment? How am I supposed to participate if it stays in your room?” He sighed, visibly growing more and more annoyed at your behaviour.

“You can visit if you want, it's not like I do anything other than going to class. Neither do you, I’m assuming.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose and stood up from his chair to follow you as you walked to your dorm room. “You’re really going to ignore what the teacher said about joint custody? The snake-”

“Rivers. Its name is Rivers, don't call it ‘the snake’, Orter.” You shot an angry glare at him and he had to physically hold himself back from punching a wall. 

“Rivers can't only stay with you.” He sighed as he finally used the name you had given it; a small victory but a victory nonetheless, even though he seemed a little angry at you for being so damn annoying.

“Neither can it keep moving between your room and mine, and I’m pretty sure that's what the teacher meant when she said no joint custody, besides...” You trailed off, looking down at the egg. “I doubt you're the nurturing type, I wouldn't even trust you with watering a plant.”

You giggled mockingly and he clicked his tongue in annoyance, but you were also right, as much as he hated to admit it. He muttered something and walked away in the opposite direction, leaving you alone with the mandragora snake egg in your hands. 

You were determined to hatch it, with or without this jerk. Carefully, you placed it upon a cushion on the unoccupied bed in your room that was supposed to belong to your roommate, but she hadn't showed up in literal months, so Rivers was now your priority.

You enveloped the egg in fluffy, soft cloth and looked at it for a bit. Sure, you were the nurturing type… in spirit. How were you supposed to take care of a magical beast you had never even seen before?

None of your books had ever mentioned anything about it and you weren't really studious either unless Orter was about to get better grades, in which case you absolutely had to surpass yourself and crush him completely.

A few hours had passed and you were almost falling asleep, studying how the egg was reacting to sounds and touch. You could feel something move underneath the shell but you couldn't exactly tell what was happening.

It seemed stable, at the very least, but focusing so much and taking notes was draining. However, a knock on your door took you out of your drowsiness. “Come in?”

As you wondered who it could be, you were surprised to see that dear Mr. Mádl had stopped sulking and actually showed up, much to your annoyance. He closed the door and stepped closer to the egg, not even paying attention to you at all, which irritated you slightly.

“What's all this?” You asked as you noticed him holding an uncomfortable amount of handwritten notes. He pushed his glasses back up and finally looked at you.

“I went to the library to research a bit on mandragora snakes.” He stated with his usual emotionless expression. “Unlike you, I can put in some effort.”

Oh, he was getting on your nerves so much after only two minutes spent in your room. It took all of your remaining energy not to kick him out immediately. But for Rivers’ sake, you decided to keep calm.

“Look. I get that you despise me, because in case it wasn't clear, I despise you too. But for the sake of this assignment, can we please quit being passive aggressive?” You sighed softly, trying to calm your bad mood down.

“I’m not the one to blame here.” He shrugged, crossing his arms as he gave you his signature condescending look. “You didn't even research anything about this species, you're not even doing anything right now, and I bet you've been doing nothing for the past hours as well.” 

You exhaled softly, feeling the small creature in the egg get a little agitated and trying to stay calm. “I took some notes on its reactions to sounds and such. I believe it can actually sense negative energy.” You handed him your notes and he raised an eyebrow. 

“Sounds like bullcrap. It didn't say any of this in the books I read.” 

You held your snarky remarks for yourself and shrugged your shoulders. “Maybe the authors didn't think it was necessary. But it's clearly reacting. It also reacted when I sang to it.”

He chuckled, his expression unchanged, and you just knew he was about to say something rude, so you decided to talk before he did. “Anyway, it's good that you did some research.”

Orter raised an eyebrow in suspicion. Surely there had to be something snarky at the end of this sentence and that wasn't all.

“Because..?”

“Because I couldn't have done it while checking its reactions, so it's good.”

The room grew silent quickly and the snake within the egg started to calm down a little. Though Orter didn't seem convinced at all, and still thought you were bullshitting him with this whole reaction thing.

“I still don't see it. Why would you sense reactions and not me? Are you just special that way?” He asked in a mocking tone, and you were getting more frustrated by the second. 

“Just touch the egg right now.”

He did. Even without touching it, you could feel the magical beast getting agitated, but it seemed like he didn't. Not one bit. 

“There's nothing. You're full of crap, (Y/N). Just say you haven't done anything the whole time, I won't be surprised.” He mocked, but you decided not to bite back. You knew what you had felt earlier and you wouldn't take his criticism for that.

“Whatever you say, Orter. But you'll have to stop acting like that because whether you want to believe me or not, it is reacting.” You sighed softly, wanting to change topics. “So anyway, was there any advice on how to help it hatch correctly?”

He flipped through his notes with his eyebrows raised in contempt, as if you just couldn't do that without him (you couldn't, let's be realistic here) and he stopped on one of the pages.

“They need company, warmth and lightning. I suppose even you can provide that, correct?” He looked up from his notes and you didn't have to look back at him, you knew exactly what kind of expression he had right now. 

“I suppose I could.” You sigh softly, already fed up with his behaviour, and you felt the snake get agitated again. As if instinctively, you ran your hand against the shell. “It really doesn't like negative energy…” You muttered, not really towards anyone.

“I really think you're making things up here, otherwise it would've been mentioned in those books.” Orter said, putting his notes back against the bed where the egg was resting. You shrugged again, looking at it pensively, and for once, the snarky sandman didn't say anything.

“It's late… I’ll sleep for now.” You rub your face with your hands and sigh softly once more, then stand up and make your way to your bed. He, on the other hand, doesn't seem to be moving an inch. It's almost like he's trying to catch up with the egg for some reason… 

“You could directly tell me to leave, you know?” He adjusts his neck tie as he stands up and turns towards you. You wanted to shoo him, send him flying or something, but you needed this mandragora snake to be healthy and you couldn't afford to do such a thing.

“I’m… tired, is all. Really tired. I wasn't kicking you out.” You muttered, sitting on your bed and looking up at him. Even when he isn't insulting you, he still finds ways to be insufferable.

“..right. I will be here tomorrow morning to ensure you won't be doing anything… dumb with this egg.” He cleared his throat and left without another word. What kind of jerk was he anyway? He'd been especially awful today and you had no idea why. 

Maybe tomorrow is going to be better?

You spent most of the night tossing and turning, occasionally glancing at the egg, and it felt like the beast inside of it was mimicking you. Since sleep was evading you, you made your way to the other bed and sat next to the egg, looking at it in exhaustion.

“What's going on in there..?”

As if it was going to reply, yeah. You rubbed your hands against your face and sighed, lazily grabbing Orter’s notes on mandragora snakes and flipping the pages until you found the hatching section.

As insufferable as he was, his notes were flawless and easy to understand. What a pleasant handwriting… you shook your head and kept reading through it until sunrise.

He kept his word and showed up early with a bag full of… something ? He sat on the extra bed close to the egg, and pulled some more cloth out of the bag, as well as cotton and other fluffy materials he placed around it.

“I went and got some more.. warmth for it, since you couldn't do it correctly on your own.” He scoffed, and you just chuckled, not even looking back at it.

“Ahah, thank you, that's really helpful.” You were way too tired to bite back and honestly, he was putting in effort when all you were doing was go with the flow and panic when something happens.

The sn- Rivers seemed pretty stable at the moment, which was surprising considering how agitated it gets whenever… oh.

“I think it likes you,” you looked at Orter, a little amused. “It's been agitated all night and now that you're here, it's just… calm.”

He pushes his glasses back with a neutral expression and looks at it for a bit. “Perhaps it likes me better.”

You groaned slightly at the idea. Even though Orter was the one bringing supplies for it, you were obviously the one caring for it! Making sure it's stable and safe! You stood up and stretched your arms.

“Maybe… since it likes you so much, I’m going to go and get coffee or something, I’m exhausted.” And as soon as you took a step out the door, he called for you.

“Wait, (Y/N), something is wrong, come back.”

You raised an eyebrow and when you stepped back in, you could feel the beast’s agitation, like it was panicking or something. You just sat back and touched it.

“What's happening?”

Nothing. Well, nothing anymore. It just calmed down immediately and went back to being stable. You looked at Orter in confusion and he returned that same look. What was going on with this beast?

“It’s merely a hypothesis, but…” Orter trailed off as he stepped outside of the room and… the beast was still pretty much stable. Sure, it was moving around a little but nothing too critical. 

“I think it likes me more.” You muttered, and heard him chuckle dryly and walk away. Did you upset him? That wasn't your intention at all, for once. Laying down and facing the beast, you wondered what was up with it. Why would anyone get such an assignment anyway? It was so much work!

The door opened again around twenty minutes later when Orter came back with a small bag. More supplies? Again? 

He reached for the inside and then handed you a cardboard cup. “Umm.. what's that?” You asked in a confused tone and he raised an eyebrow at you like you were the stupidest, silliest little thing he'd ever met.

“What do you think it is? It's coffee, you idiot.” Oh. Oh. Ohh. You grabbed the cup and looked up at him, a bit puzzled. This man really was unpredictable.

“You… got me coffee? But… why ?”

“You said you were exhausted, and apparently you can't leave Rivers for too long, so…” He crossed his arms, and you suddenly felt really weird. Was he being nice to you? It was so odd. Right now, you didn't want to rip his head off or throw him out the window.

“That's… thank you.” 

You couldn't say anything else, looking at him with the most disoriented look he'd ever seen before; there was no malice and no anger or frustration in your eyes, just… questions. 

“Don't get me wrong,” he sighed softly, “I’m only doing this because I don't want anything weird to happen to it.” He specified, looking straight at you. Could he just not ruin a moment like this?

“It wasn't completely stable when you were gone.” You said, looking at the egg and taking a sip of your coffee. “It's only stable when both of us are here.” You muttered while adding this to your notes, and he made no commentary. 

“It gets really agitated at night, even when I’m here.” 

Orter cups his chin with his fingers and looks at the egg pensively. “Then I suppose you weren't lying when you said you could… feel it.” He reluctantly admits. “Should I keep it at night and see how it goes?”

You know for sure it's going to be a problem if you try to move the egg, so what to do..?

“I think so… but we can't possibly move it so, I would suggest…” You trailed off, visibly looking for something to say afterwards as you really didn't have a clue what to do, but Orter finished your sentence.

“...for me to sleep in this bed, is that your idea? Really?”

You blinked once. Then twice. Was that your idea? Not really, but after thinking for a while, you would've eventually brought this possibility up.

“Yes, I mean- no. Or, ahh… I guess..? I don't know. I didn't really…”

He sighed loudly and looked down at you with something of a mocking glare, and it suddenly felt really embarrassing. What was embarrassing? The idea of having him sleep in the same room as you, or the fact that he was being so condescending about it and had you stuttering?

“So, you just gave me every possible answer in one sentence…” He mused and crouched to take a closer look at Rivers. “Well, I suppose I can do that. But don't expect me to be nice to you.”

“You don't have to tell me, you ass.” You muttered and his eyes narrowed as he turned towards you. 

“It's merely in case you forgot, since your brain looks a little… dysfunctional.” He taunted.

“Oh, you're taking care of my memory now? That's awfully nice of you, Orter.”

“Don't get too used to it, (Y/N).”

You chuckled as an answer and sighed softly, looking at the egg. “Can you hear that, Rivers? The audacity of that man.” You muttered, making sure he could hear you, and he gently pushed you aside to look at the egg.

“Don't listen to her, Rivers. Even you know I’m right.”

Did he just.. talk directly to it for the first time? And to say such a thing, too? You couldn't hold it in anymore and just burst out laughing, pointing your finger towards him, uncontrollably wheezing and giggling.

He looked very startled at first but then a little embarrassed. He slapped your hand away, pretending to be angry but he was just really flustered and had a very faint blush on his face. “Shut up… Hey, hey! Shut it now… Jeez.”

But you weren't exactly laughing at him. It was just very cute that he suddenly decided that it was fine to talk to this egg as long as it was to discredit you, and honestly, how could you not laugh?

Everytime he slapped your hand away, your finger came back to point at him, as if you were accusing him of something. It was really hard to stop laughing and it took you a good while to calm down, only to be greeted by Orter’s pouty expression, something you never thought you'd see.

“Ahh, I’m sorry Orter, I wasn't making fun of you. It was just really cute.” You said before realising what it implied, and it was your turn to be embarrassed. “I mean- cute as in, you know, you're talking to it now… and it's… you know.”

OHHH MY GOD STOP TALKING, SHUT UP! You internally yelled at yourself, and the way he sighed made it seem like he wasn't mad at you. Or was he? At least his flushed expression was gone, much to your disarray.

“Right…” He cleared his throat and crossed his arms as he sighs once more. “I mean… I suppose you are right and Rivers can feel our emotions..”

“..’so let's try to be good parents’ is what you're about to say, isn't it?” You muse, slightly teasing him. “C’mon, say iiiiit.” 

“So let's try to… to…” He sighs and turns around, his hand on against his hip as he adjusts his glasses again. “...I’ll get some food, since you can't.” And with that, he immediately steps outside of your room, feeling like… like something. He doesn't know, and he hopes you don't either.

You chuckle to yourself, somehow thinking he's cute when he gets embarrassed. But you remind yourself that he despises you, and that you also despise him… or, well, not that much. Maybe despise wasn't the right word. You just weren't so sure anymore.

Orter, on the other hand, was trying to get this awfully embarrassing moment out of his mind as he walked to the Academy's shop to get some things. However… He didn't know what to buy. He then walked to the counter and looked into the store employee’s eyes very seriously.

“What kind of stuff do girls like to eat?”

He should thank the gods that you weren't there because the way he asked this with a completely straight face and flat voice would've put you to your grave. 

While he was at the shop, you were reading his notes and humming slightly to try and soothe the mandragora snake inside the egg. It was working, but it definitely wanted both of you to be here. 

You stopped on one of the pages as something caught your attention: “...mandragora snake eggs will drain a parent’s energy to grow, which is why the other parent usually hunts for the family and is in charge of making the nest more comfortable.”

With this, you almost spit out your coffee. Was this the reason why you were so tired yet restless? And also why it was panicking every time you weren't close to it? Putting more thought into it, you also realised something else.

Orter was the one who brought most of the cloth to keep it warm and he had also brought you sustenance so far. The two of you had taken these roles in very seriously without even knowing it. But since you were the one giving energy to it, perhaps…

You sat up and tried concentrating your mana into your hands before touching the soft shell, as if giving it a part of it… And much to your surprise, it seemed like something happened but you couldn't tell what exactly. 

After an hour or so, Orter came back to your room only to find you laying down in exhaustion next to the egg, completely drained for some reason. You eyed the bag he was carrying and he just put it next to you. 

“I didn't know what you wanted.”

What you wanted? Does that mean..? You sat up and looked inside of it; tons of snacks, candy, pastries and whatnot. You did need sugar right now, and so you immediately grabbed a pack of sweets and opened it.

“You are a lifesaver, Orter.” You sighed as you ate a few sweets, regaining your energy bit by bit. Pointing at the specific paragraph on his notes, you slightly tapped your finger against it.

“That's why I’m so tired, this little rascal has been taking all of my energy.” You muttered, sighing softly as you kept eating more and more sweets. He read the passage, holding his chin.

“And have you tried sending mana directly into the egg?” With your nod, he hummed. “I could try it too.” And so, he put both of his hands against it and tried sending some of his mana into the shell. Neither of you could tell if it worked.

You decided that you needed to take a shower and go to sleep, and as soon as you tried to stand up, your legs gave up from fatigue and you started collapsing, but Orter was quick enough to catch you. “Oh, crap. Are you alright?”

You groaned in frustration and nodded, even though you were completely incapable of standing up again; the sweets were apparently not enough to let you use your legs. 

“You've really outdone yourself, haven't you?” He chuckled, and you looked away. He was being awfully nice and you just didn't know how to respond to that type of behaviour, especially coming from him. 

He gently lifted you up and put you down on your bed. As embarrassing as it was, you couldn't really have managed otherwise. You were thanking him when your brain just shut down and you fell asleep quickly. He made sure to pull the covers up against you and he sat there for a bit, looking at you. 

It was clear he hadn't been very nice at the beginning, and he was now trying his best to atone for that fact. While you rested peacefully, he couldn't help but move some of your hair away from your face and place it gently behind your ear. 

From that moment, this is how most of your days went. You'd spend your day giving mana and energy to the egg and Orter would bring you some coffee, water and food, and whenever he was about to sleep, he'd give Rivers some mana as well.

After six days, the egg had grown quite a lot and you weren't sure what size the “little one” was going to be anymore. All you knew was that it was getting more and more tiring to keep feeding it with your energy. 

You were laying down, exhausted even though it wasn't that late, and Orter was reading a book on the chair next to your bed. No insults, no snarky remarks had been exchanged since last time, and he was rather helpful to you. 

After all, you were the one spending all of your energy on helping Rivers hatch correctly. Most of the time, he had to move you back to your bed because you'd fall asleep while giving it your mana. You could've sworn you felt him touch your face but you could've very well been dreaming… or were you?

The embarrassing question was stuck in your mind now and you couldn't stop thinking about it as you kept giving your mana to the egg. “Should be the last day, right?” You asked quietly, visibly really tired.

Orter closed his book and adjusted his glasses as he looked at you. “Yes. If it's healthy, then it should hatch tomorrow.” His eyes softened just a bit as he looked at you. “Why don't you call it a day? You sound exhausted.”

You sighed softly and moved to the edge of the bed to stand, and he immediately stood up to come and help you. It was… unexpected. You held onto him as if the two of you had never despised each other, ever, and he helped you get to your bed.

As much as you didn't want to admit it, he was really helpful. And since he had stopped being so condescending, it felt quite comforting to have someone sleep in the same room as you, not that you’d ever let him know about this detail. He was also really thoughtful and good at taking care of Rivers, so that was a plus… 

In fact, he was rather nice overall. He seemed to remember what your favourite snacks were, and also what kind of coffee you liked, all of this just from studying your expressions carefully as you consumed what he had brought. He really was thoughtful, and since you had started taking care of this mandragora snake egg together, he hadn’t been snarky or mean even once.

“Are you alright?” He asked, looking at you with a hint of worry in his eyes. When you started wondering why he was concerned with you when you felt his hand slightly squeeze yours. Oh. Ah. Ah. You had unwillingly grabbed his hand when you tried to stand up, and hadn’t let go since then. While you were overthinking, he was just looking at you in confusion because you just… wouldn’t let go of his hand.

“O-oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- uh… I was just-...” Ah, it was no use. Your face was slightly flushed with embarrassment and you were trying to stutter your way out of this situation, but no words seemed to come out. You looked up at him and noticed that he was ignoring you. He had grabbed his book again and crossed his legs, reading it while flipping the pages with his free hand.

When he noticed you were talking to him, he just raised both eyebrows, but the gesture did not change his neutral expression. “I don’t need it right now, I don’t mind you keeping it.” And with this, he immediately went back to his book, as if he really didn’t care. The truth was that he just could not look into your eyes right now.

Orter was trying his absolute hardest to conceal the very faint blush on his face while you actually didn’t let go of his hand. Was it because you just wanted to hold it? Or were you just too embarrassed to do anything about it? Or was it both? 

Even if you weren’t near it, you could feel some kind of weird vibration— or maybe just an emotion coming from the mandragora snake egg. You couldn’t tell what it was exactly, but it had started as soon as you had grabbed Orter’s hand. Was Rivers absorbing whatever emotion that was too? 

That was just too much thinking for you and you decided that the only reasonable course of action was to collapse in bed and stare at the ceiling. That being said, you still hadn’t let go of his hand, and it didn’t seem like you planned on doing it anytime soon because as soon as you closed your eyes, you fell asleep. 

He didn’t notice until he closed his book and saw you resting peacefully against the pillow while still holding it. He was about to pull his hand back and let you sleep, but it didn’t look like it was keeping you awake or anything, so he just decided to look at you for a bit, his thumb unconsciously rubbing your palm soothingly. 

Sitting on that chair was rather uncomfortable, but he didn’t feel like letting go of your hand, so he was going to bear it anyway until you’d let go by yourself. 

…which you didn’t do. You were just resting and holding his hand hostage the whole time. 

Approximately two hours after you had fallen asleep, Orter heard a weird noise, something indescribable. As his eyes searched the room for its source, his eyes widened slightly. He turned to you and squeezed your hand. “(Y/N), wake up, hey.” His free hand reached for your shoulder, slightly shaking it. 

Your eyes fluttered open slowly and you groaned in frustration. But Orter’s expression looked amused and a little excited, which woke you up immediately. “What’s the matter?” you asked as he chuckled and pointed at the egg.

“It’s hatching!”

Holy shit. You immediately sat up and made your way to the opposite bed as you watched the small snake slowly get out through a hole it had pierced. It then slithered away from the shell and looked at you and Orter, as if it was confused. You couldn’t help but squeal at how cute it looked. It was just a little baby!

You extended a hand and it instinctively moved towards you, then rested in your hand. It was such a precious little creature, you were holding back your tears. “Oh my gods, oh my gods… What are we supposed to do now?” You asked frantically as if in a panic.

Orter immediately flipped through his notes and then reached for a small bag of supplies, taking out a small piece of mandragora root and feeding it to the small snake, watching it greedily bite against it like “chomp!” and swallowing the whole piece. 

“So, according to the notes I’ve taken, we can move him now and it doesn’t have to stay warm anymore. I’m assuming it’ll need to stay with us until its patterns start appearing. It also says it might sleep a lot.” He flips through the pages again to see if he hasn’t missed anything.

You thought for a bit. Maybe you could grab one of your scarves and put some cotton and such into it to make a… snake holder? This way you could walk around the academy with Rivers in your scarf and without worrying about it too much. 

You had literal stars in your eyes and Orter looked completely lost as soon as he laid eyes upon this beautiful expression of yours while you were holding the small snake.

There was still a whole week left to the assignment, and it felt to him that time was flying awfully fast.

[thehollowwriter]

Summary: Slaving away in the bowels of Octavinelle as an anenome, Ace finds himself desperate to find a way out of his mess. Being put under the watch of a quiet Octavinelle second year thrusts an opportunity at Ace. Ace decides that, yes, Finn Clearcove would definitely be a help in this situation. It goes about as well as expected. (It does have a part 2, but I'll see how well this goes before rewriting that XD)

This is a rewrite of my first ever Finn fic, over a full year later. Please stick around to the end, I've got some special words for ya'll. (Here's the original, but pls don't look DON'T LOOK it's embarrassing/hj) Art for banner by @authoruio

Warnings: Swearing, forced labour, mentions of blood, that's about it Word count: 5239

(Pls reblog and leave a comment ❤️)

Anenome-Free Gaurauntee! (Hopefully)

Ace Trappola had fucked up. Now, this may seem unsurprising to most. Ace could never keep himself out of trouble. Whether it be running his mouth mouth or acting brashly, his actions often landed him in hot water.

This time, though, Ace had really fucked up.

The ghastly purple and blue anenome protruding from his head like some vile fungus was the bane of his existence. Not only did it look ridiculous and showcase his failures to anyone with a pair of eyes, but it turned him into a living puppet that bastard Azul could pull and contort as he pleased.

Ace was so confident when he made that contract. He never once thought he'd be kissing his freedom goodbye when he scrawled his signature onto that damning page.

Ugh, if only he'd known how many other poor souls had also made contracts and that he wouldn't have a chance. Maybe then he wouldn't be in this mess.

"Or maybe you wouldn't be in this mess if you didn't make a contract at all and asked Riddle for help or something." Yuu had said pointedly, and Ace could only groan in frustration and regret.

Now, Ace was standing in the VIP room in front of Azul's polished and tidy desk, wondering why he had been called here.

He didn't do anything wrong, did he? Floyd wasn't going to squeeze him again, was he? Oh no, anything but that, his ribs still hurt from last time-

"Don't look so terrified," Azul said, his smooth, suave voice laced with amusement. "You haven't done anything wrong. This time. But you're cutting it awfully close. I decided it would be best that I be generous and warn you that you're riding a fine line, Trappola. Your next punishment will be much harsher if you continue fighting against paying your dues. You're almost worse than the Savanaclaw anenomes."

There was a brief silence, and Ace quickly nodded, his gut tightening as he wondered what could possibly be even harsher than what was already dished out.

Azul checked his watch. "Your break ends soon. You best get going. But while I have you here, I'll let you know we're holding an event to commemorate the sports tournaments this weekend. Further details will be announced in time, but Floyd will be playing for the second year's, and Jade will be working front of house. You," Azul pointed at Ace with his cane. "Will be in the back because I can not have your abysmal attitude ruining the experience for the guests."

"Wait," Ace spluttered. "I have basketball games on the weekend too, I can't-"

"Your games are midmorning." Azul interrupted calmly. "You can work in the afternoons and evenings."

"But I'll be exhasuted-"

"Then you're lucky to be working in the kitchens and not running around for customers. Aren't I just so benevolent?" Azul's smile was stupidly smug as he spoke. "Of course, you will need someone watching you and the others while Jade and Floyd are absent. Hmm, I think Finn should be up to the task. He can keep you all in check."

"Who?" Ace blurted. Finn? Who was Finn? The name was vaguely familiar, but there were so many students in Night Raven that it could be anybody.

"Finn Clearcove. One of my second years."

As Ace eyed Azul wearily, that feeling of recognition sparked again.

Finn Clearcove. He'd heard that name before. When did-

Ah. Ace remembered now. When he and the others were helping Yuu and Grim investigate the strange freak accidents orchestrated by Savanaclaw, Finn was one of the students on their list of possible targets.

They found him in the library, reading silently in a dark corner. Ace almost couldn't believe that such a tiny, though definitely not light, guy was on their list at all. Sure, the dorm leader was small too, but he carried himself in a way that demanded respect and let you know he was powerful. This guy didn't give that vibe at all.

Their attempts at talking to Finn failed drastically as Finn's piercing eyes stared right through them, and he told them into to leave in a way that hinted at consequences if they did not listen.

Ace didn't really think about Finn after that. Finn wasn't scary, and he didn't do or say anything particularly striking, like the twins or Jack did.

Now, though, Ace's mind was running a mile a minute, trying to scrape up any other memories of Finn that may have been buried under other things weighing on his mind. Nothing.

What was Finn like? Was he as bad as the twins? Did he also relish in people's suffering? Did he play around with the emotions of others, too? ...Did he need a stepstool when getting stuff from a shelf?

Ace was drowning in these thoughts even as Azul ushered him out of the VIP room and back to work, forcing him to slave away under the watchful eyes of the twins until the skies turned dark.

Ace collapsed into bed, exhausted and woke up sluggish and filled with dread. Although he was confident in his skills, the damn anenome prevented him from practising when he wanted and left him tired and grumpy even when he did have time.

Unsurprisingly, this affected his gameplay. Cut to the aftermath of that morning's game and...they lost horribly. Sure, NRC lost a lot anyways, but even as Ace wiped sweat from his forehead and chugged down water, his heart was pounding in a mix of exertion and fury at the fact that the damn anenome made this loss worse than it ever could have been.

He made so many dumb mistakes. Mistakes a beginner would make! It pissed him off and embarrassed him to no end. And that wasn't even covering the fact that the stupid thing sticking out of his head was visible for all to see! They kept pointing and laughing at it!

Ace's mood was sour, and a storm cloud might as well have spawned above his head as he got changed and stomped to Mostro Lounge.

Somehow, Ace's heart managed to sink further when he saw just how many people were there. Not just students but families who came to watch the games. Parents, siblings, extended family, the whole place was packed to the brim.

When Ace arrived at the kitchen doors, Azul and Finn were already there, quietly conversing with each other.

Ace couldn't hear what they were saying, but he wouldn't have cared anyway because he was too busy biting back a snort at the sight of Finn. The guy was even smaller than Ace remembered, probably shorter than Epel.

Finn's face was set in a blank, unreadable expression as he quietly listened to what Azul was saying and occasionally murmured a reply. The conversation came to an end when Azul caught sight of Ace and that enraging smile spread onto his face.

"Ah, Ace, I see you're on time for once. Good." He said. "Finn, this is Ace Trappola. You'll need to keep an extra eye on him today and tomorrow, I'm afraid."

Finn nodded but didn't say anything in reply. He gazed silently at Ace with bright, light purple eyes that would make one think of an amethyst stone.

Ace met Finn's gaze and was suddenly overcome with such an overwhelming feeling of dread it startled him.

Azul must have noticed because he smirked and said, "I'm sure you'll behave, Ace." And left.

Ace didn't answer, still locked in some kind of weird staring contest with this tiny second year.

Finn suddenly turned and motioned for Ace to come inside the kitchens, where the other anenomes had already started working; preparing ingredients, cooking, washing dishes, and more.

Finn pulled a kitchen uniform from the small rack near the entrance and began putting it on, then pointed to where a Pomefiore student was frantically washing an ever growing pile of dishes consisting of both kitchen equipment and dishes from the Lounge itself.

"You're on dish duty, Mister Trappola." He said, and Ace realised this was the first time he'd ever heard him speak since the library encounter. His voice was so soft that Ace almost didn't hear it, but it was firm and commanding all the same. Sharp teeth just barely poked out from his lips. Was he like the twins?

Ace nodded and forced a smile, goosebumps rippling across the skin as he looked back at Finn. When he looked away to go and start on the dishes, the feeling of dread vanished.

Ace looked back at Finn. He caught his eyes, and while Finn gestured at him to get to work and feeling returned. Ace looked back to the dishes. The feeling vanished again.

Ace frowned. Weird.

"Get moving, Trappola!" Finn, well, it was too quiet to classify as a shout, so... called. He called, and Ace hurried to work.

Ace hated dish duty. There was always more than he could keep up with, but he didn't want anything to slip out of his hands and break, so he had to take it slower than he wanted. He was always hurried and run ragged, and then those damn twins would tell him he "missed a few spots" and make him do it all again.

Ace much preferred working front of the house, charming customers, and carrying drinks and food to and fro.

Well, at least he could see the rest of the kitchen from here since his station was at the back and out of the way. Ace found himself focusing on Finn.

For someone with such chubby fingers, Finn was nimble and efficient with knives. He wielded them with an ease and familiarity that only came from years of experience.

Though Finn was small and soft-spoken, the anenomes and other staff listened to him whenever he gave those quiet but firm commands.

Some anenomes were stubborn, but Finn's withering stare got them to shut right up. If they continued to resist, well, a harsh tug on the blue and purple monstrosities on their heads was enough pain to get them in line.

Ace wondered if he missed something because, sense of dread aside, Finn was pretty hard to take seriously with the way he strained his neck to look someone in the eyes and how he needed a step stool to grab anything a bit far off the ground and the way the buttons of his uniform seemed ready to snap right off with the way it strained against his middle.

When break came around, Ace was ready to bolt and embrace his brief moment of respite when he realised the room wasn't completely empty.

Finn remained alone in the kitchen and busied himself with making two cups of tea and a small snack.

"Pretty sure we aren't allowed to do that." Ace commented. "We have to bring our own stuff. Azul's gonna take that out of your pay, you know."

There was a long stretch of silence before Finn quietly said; "It's for Jade and Azul."

Ace furrowed his brows. "Why? Are you like their assistant or something?"

Finn didn't reply. Ace decided to take that as either a yes or a maybe. He watched Finn disappear into the VIP room, where he didn't come out until the very end of the break.

When Finn returned to start prepping for the next slew of orders, Ace found himself paying a little closer attention to him and his appearance.

Well, he didn't see anything new at first. Just the same details as before. Finn was very short, very chubby, and had curly green hair pulled back into a painfully tight bun. His eyes were like shining lilac amethyst gemstones, the colour only accentuated by the... dark circles under them.

Huh. Ace didn't notice that before. Now that he really looked, though, Finn looked really exhausted. He didn't really show it in his actions or voice, but it was prominent in his eyes.

"Work, Trappola." Finn hissed, and Ace nearly jumped out of skin. How had Finn noticed? Nevermind, he had to get to work before he got in trouble.

The rest of the night went by surpsingly quickly, the pace becoming calmer as the number of customers dwindled and the sky darkened.

At 9pm, Mostro Lounge closed its doors to customers. At 11pm, Ace was finally allowed to leave now that every bit of cutlery, crockery, and cooking utensils were cleaned and packed away, and the work surfaces and tables were wiped down, and the floor was swept and mopped until the place was sparkling clean.

Ace was the last anenome to leave, exhaustion from his game and full day of working slowing him down.

However, before he left, Ace paused at the doors when he realised Finn was still there, bringing tea to the VIP room.

"You do know that Azul's not gonna pay you overtime or give you special treatment for doing all that, right?" He called. "Your shift's over."

Finn stopped walking and glanced at Ace, his usually deadpan face crinkling to form an irritated expression. "We don't tolerate loitering, Mister Trappola. Leave."

Ace felt a sudden spike of pain at the base of his anenome and laughed nervously. "Hah, right. Yeah, I'll go. You keep doing... whatever you're trying to do." He said, backing away and out of the Lounge.

When he was out of sight, Ace heard the door to the VIP room open and close.

Just how long was Finn going to be in there this time? What was he doing in there? It didn't take an entire half-hour break to give someone tea.

...Well, going out of your way to make someone tea when you aren't obligated to is pretty nice.

Ace sighed. Poor Finn. If he wasn't an assistant or trying to gain something like Ace first thought, and instead acting out of the kindness of his heart or whatever, then the shortstack was in for a nasty surprise. Azul would take full advantage of someone like that.

The next day was Finn's second and last day of watching over Ace and the other anenomes. It passed by without incident, more or less the same as the previous one.

After Finn's time there ended, and things returned to normal, Ace found himself paying attention to his presence anytime he noticed him.

He wasn't too sure why. Maybe it was that sense of dread. It did pique Ace's curiosity. He's never experienced something like that. Maybe it was Finn's unusual dedication to the finely dressed tyrants that made Ace's life hell.

Whatever the reason, Ace's observations carried on enough for him to recognise Finn had a routine that repeated day in and day out, a routine that he rarely broke from.

Finn was always at the lounge early, before any of the other staff or anenomes arrived, either talking to Azul and the twins or beginning prep for the upcoming shift.

He worked quietly and efficiently at the bar, which seemed to be his usual workstation (how had Ace not noticed him before?), methodically mixing drinks and avoiding people's eyes. He rarely spoke aside from a passing word or two to customers and co-workers.

In his brief moments of respite, when he had nothing to make, Finn would close his eyes and listen to the live band always performing at Mostro Lounge, or gaze out the large glass wall into the sea of vibrant corals and fish with a tired, melancholy expression. Or at least, that's what Ace guessed it was, Finn's face still looked more or less the same as always.

When Finn's break came around, he would busy himself with making tea (the number of cups depended on if either of the twins were there or not), then disappear into the VIP room until his break ended.

And that wasn't all. Even when Finn didn't have a shift, Ace would occasionally spot him around. Most of his time would be spent in the VIP room if he did show up, unless there was a "client" seeing Azul.

When he left, sometimes his clothes would look just a bit ruffled, and other times, his face would look just a little pink. Weird.

Ace wouldn't dream of giving a fraction more of his time to those bastards outside of what he was forced to give. He couldn't imagine willingly going in there in his free time (that is, if Finn was willing at all), but it seemed Finn didn't stop there.

Sometimes, but very rarely, Ace would catch sight of Finn having lunch with Azul and the terror twins at the cafeteria. His plate would be piled high with food, and he'd quietly eat while the other three spoke.

Finn would join in from time to time, but he only really seemed to say a word or two. Sometimes, he'd even laugh. At least Ace assumed that's what it was, if Finn covering his mouth with his hand as his shoulders shook slightly and his eyes crinkled was anything to go by. Ace wondered what they were talking about.

It was... weird. Watching Finn. Ace couldn't for the life of him figure out if Finn was a secret addition to Octavinelle's infamous trio, or some poor soul somehow forced into the role of assistant or secretary and made to follow them around.

"Is Finn... always around those three?" Ace asked another Octavinelle student during his break, gazing at the firmly shut door to the VIP room. He wasn't a creep, he wasn't going around following Finn everywhere he went! He barely knew anything about him!

The third year he was talking to shrugged. "Not always. But Finn's been hovering around them since they arrived together in their first year. No idea what he could want with them, nor do I care.. He's a weird little creep that keeps to himself, and I'm happy with that as long as he doesn't come near me."

Ace glanced back at them to ask another question but stopped when he saw them holding their hand out expectantly.

Ace growled a curse word and dug through his pockets to slap a few madol in their hand. He didn't say anything, though. It was on him for asking something from an Octavinelle student. However, he didn't entirely regret it.

Finn Clearcove was definitely... close to Azul, Jade, and Floyd in some weird way. Ace wouldn't go so far as to say they're friends, but they weren't simply strangers or acquaintances either. Ace knew Azul would rather die than let just anyone enter the VIP room as they please. There were also a few occasions when Ace witnessed Finn sway Azul's opinion in one way or another or convince him to do something.

However, Ace swore he saw Finn with Azul's study guide once. He would have thought Finn was actually an anenome too, but the second year was very much lacking the presence of an anenome on his head.

The best guess Ace could venture was that Finn worked for those three, running around like a personal assistant making tea and everything, and being run so ragged he had eyebags.

Ace mulled over all he had learned, and then, well, an idea began to form. Would it work? He had absolutely no idea. Probably not. But it was worth a shot to get out of this hell.

Trying to convince Finn to help get rid of the anenome shouldn't end too badly... right?

***

After another gruelling half shifted at Mostro Lounge, Ace sacrificed the momentary relief that was his break to instead stop Finn before he could leave with his teatray to enter the VIP room.

Finn was busy fixing a pot of tea as always when Ace came into the kitchen.

"Hey, Finn!" Ace said, coming over to stand next to him. Finn didn't reply, simply busying himself with placing the teapot onto the silver serving tray with the teacups and their matching saucers and the milk and the sugar.

Ace frowned.

"Finn! Hello, I want to talk to you!"

Finn continued to ignore him. Ace reached out to tap his shoulder, but what whatever he was going to do or say next was interrupted by Finn suddenly grabbing his hand and wrenching it back before he could even react.

Finn clutched his wrist so tight it hurt. Ace yelped and tried to pull back, but the older boy's grasp was far stronger than expected.

Finn's eyes seemed to pierce right through him, and that horrible sense of dread came crashing down on him once more.

Ace paled. One of the reasons for Finn's placement on the list of Savanaclaw's potential targets sprang forth, finally clambering free from its place buried underneath other memories.

"He has a knack for spotting weakness."

"Mister Trappola," Finn said slowly. He didn't loosen his hold. His knuckles started turning white. "I'm busy. What do you want?"

"I, uh-" Ace swallowed before continuing, deciding his freedom was worth the shortstack's wrath. "I wanted to- to ask if you could do something for me."

Finn's expression didn't change, but there was a brief flicker of interest in those creepy, iridescent eyes. "If you want something, Azul-"

"No!" Ace snapped. Then he took a deep breath and continued again. "No. Stop with the Azul advertising! Please? I want a favour from you, Finn."

For a good few minutes, there was no reply. Ace would say Finn was in a state of disbelief, but it was impossible to tell.

Finally, Finn raised an eyebrow and looked Ace up and down, then said; "Is that so?" In a tone that almost made Ace take his words back. "Well, what do you want, then? I want to leave while the tea's still hot."

To emphasise his point, Finn gently tapped on the teapot with his pointer finger.

"Uh, right. So, you and Azul seem to hang around each other an awful lot. He must trust you quite a bit, right?" Ace said quickly, silently cursing at himself as every single word came out the entirely wrong way than intended. "Well, I mean, of course he must, you're always in that VIP roon of his and- and you've changed his mind about a few things more than once. That's quite impressive, right? A guy like him doesn't seem interested in what other people have to say, unless-"

"Get on with it, Trappola." Finn interrupted, his soft voice cutting clean through Ace's own much louder one somehow.

"Right, sorry. What I'm saying is, you and Azul have some weird situation going on, and I won't pretend to understand it at all, but I do understand enough to ask that perhaps you would have mercy on this poor freshman and convince the boss man to get rid of this anenome early..?"

Finn blinked at him, and for once, Ace could actually read his expression. Disbelief. 'Better than anger, I guess..?'

"You want me to... what?"

"Get rid of this anenome!" Ace repeated, a little louder. "I can't stand being a puppet! I want this damn thing off my head! Look, I'll even help you get out from under Azul's thumb yourself in return, just please get it off!"

Finn crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at Ace, contemplating his words. Something... shifted in his eyes, though Ace couldn't really describe what it was.

On the inside, Finn wanted to laugh. He didn't know Ace all that well. Their interactions were few, and conversations, fewer. He didn't like Ace and didn't care to spend much more time around him than he needed to.

Now, though... now, he had an interesting opportunity presented to him, an opportunity in the form of an overworked and desperate freshman who did not seem to understand that the person he was talking to was not some sucker contorted to Azul's whims.

"Fine. I'll humour you. You want me to question my own housewarden for you, then? Me, not even the vice housewarden, asking Azul Ashengrotto to free a stubborn little first year from the terms of his own contract? The 'payment' you just offered me?" Finn made a noise that sounded far too much like a haughty scoff for Ace's liking. "That is bottom of the barrel scrap. For what you want me to do, I just might take your services for myself."

"I can do that!" Ace squawked, trying and failing not to sound as desperate as he felt. "As long as I'm not slaving away for that guy, I don't care!"

Finn regarded him with a bemused expression.

"And why would I want that?" He asked. "You slack off and put up a fight, Mister Trappola. Why would I agree to this when I could make the same deal with someone more obedient?"

"I- Well, I- I'll listen to you!'

Finn cocked his head to the side. "Can you prove it?"

"Yeah! If you just give me a chance, then I'll-"

"A trial period, then?" Finn asked, humming thoughtfully as Ace frantically nodded his head. "That's not a bad idea. How about this. I'll give you, ah, about a month. Do what I ask of you, and if you behave and meet my expectations, we'll negotiate further terms from there, and I'll see if I can convince Azul to release you. Deal?"

"D- wait. Do I have to do all that on top of my work as an anenome?"

Ah, so he wasn't that stupid, then. Finn hummed. "Yes. I won't be unreasonable, but you will be giving up more of your free time. Of course, whether it's something worth giving up is up to you."

Ace went quiet, quite an unusual thing for someone like him, as he pondered his options. Although Yuu was confident they could somehow find a way to get rid of the anenome, Ace wasn't too sure. He certainly couldn't get rid of it himself, and Jade and Floyd weren't going to help him unless a miracle happened.

The other anenomes and Octavinelle students didn't want to risk coming under fire, and his own dorm leader was a bit too enthusiastic at the idea of him suffering the consequences of his actions. The professors seemed uninterested in doing anything about Azul at all.

That just left... Finn. Ace could either A. Slave away until Azul completed his education at Night Raven, losing sleep and energy and the will to live, or B. Slave away while also doing things for Finn for one month, and if he impressed Finn enough then maybel he'd have a chance of losing his anenome and just doing stuff for Finn, who was quite notably not running an entire cafe, instead. Ace much preferred those odds, slim as they were.

Ace looked back at Finn, wincing at those piercing eyes, and nodded. "Deal."

There was a brief pause, and Ace became painfully aware of the fact that Finn still hadn't let him go.

"Uh-" Ace pulled, though it was futile against Finn's iron grip. "You can let me go now-"

Finn tightened his hold and pulled Ace down so they were eye level. "We're not leaving it at that, Mister Trappola." He hissed. "Hold still."

Ace couldn't bite down the shriek of surpise and mild pain that left him as Finn's free hand scratched at his skin with nails that seemed a little longer than they were before. A tiny droplet of blood bloomed on the surface of his skin, red against peach.

"Ow, what the hell-"

"Shut up." Finn growled. He swiped the droplet away with his pointer finger so that it stained his own skin. Then, he began to... well, Ace wasn't too sure what it was doing, but it looked like he was drawing a picture in the air.

Ace opened his mouth to ask Finn what the hell he was doing, but his mouth clicked shut as sparks of scarlet began to appear before his very eyes.

Ace watched in silent awe as Finn began to draw a circle of scarlet around the spot where he gripped Ace's wrist, then drew some weird symbols Ace couldn't recognise inside that circle

The pentragram-sigil-glyph-thing?- hovered like that, quivering. It made Ace feel a bit nauseous just looking at it.

Finn murmured something too quiet for Ace to hear, and the cursed circle thing pulsed, then disappeared.

"What..." Ace almost couldn't find his words for a moment. When Finn finally released his grip, the card soldier cradled his aching wrist . "What the hell was that?! That's no magic I've ever seen!"

"That," Finn said slowly, feeling the side of the teapot and frowning. "Is a binding. To ensure you keep your word. I don't make contracts like Azul."

"Is that some kind of second year spell I haven't heard about?" Ace's mouth was moving almost immediately. "Ugh, I knew my brother was hiding some cool kooky stuff from me-"

"No." Finn's curt response stopped Ace short and blinked at Finn.

"No?"

"No." Finn repeated. "You won't learn that here."

"Where did you learn that, then?"

Finn said nothing, and Ace, upon realising he wouldn't be getting a response, instead asked, "What does that do, exactly?"

"I just told you, it ensures you keep your word," Finn replied, tapping his pen against the teapot to reheat the now lukewarm water.

Ace furrowed his brows, tracing over the bruises Finn left on his poor wrist, red slowly turning purplish.

"What happens if... if I don't?"

Finn put his pen away and tilted his head at Ace. Then, he smiled. His teeth, still not fully visible to Ace, gleamed in the light. It was an... unnerving sight. Ace wasn't sure if he had ever seen Finn smile before. If this was his smiles really looked like then, well, he understood why.

"I don't think it'll come to that." Finn said softly. "But if it does... you'll be wishing you never spoke to me at all. Now, off you go. You've wasted enough of my time."

Ace hesitated for a moment, but the dull aching of his wrist was a good reminder to listen. He scrambled for the door, mumbling his goodbyes, and vanished into the fray of staff and customers beyond the kitchen.

He leaned against the wall in one of the furthest corners of the lounge, panting a little from his run. As he tried to calm down and tried to collect himself for the next shift that was bound to start soon, he wondered if he had perhaps made a mistake of some kind.

Unbeknownst to Ace, Azul Ashengrotto was leaning against the doors to the kitchen, smiling at Finn with that sharp smile only Azul was capable of.

"When I noticed you hadn't come, I didn't expect to find you terrorising poor Ace." He said without a hint of sympathy. "What a magnificent display, Finn. I didn't realise you finally got that binding spell right."

Finn laughed. "Hah, no. That's far too advanced for me. Papa's helped best he can, but I'm not quite there yet. Doesn't matter, though, Mister Trappola seems quite convinced it's real, and that's good enough for me. Besides, it wasn't all for show."

Finn held up the hand he'd been grasping Ace with, a large smile spreading onto his face and displaying all his teeth to his unflinching housewarden and... partner.

"I have a new voice now."

-End

...........................................

Super Special Author's Note: Over a year ago, on November 14th 2023, I wrote a story for my twst oc Finn. That's nothing too surprising, I like to write stories for my characters, after all. What did surprise me was how it all snowballed into where I am today, with so many wonderful moots and friends I never thought I'd meet, as well as their wonderful ocs I never thought I'd get to know.

It's been a pleasure to interact and draw and write with everybody, and I hope we're able to do all the more in the next coming year. Thank you everybody for caring so much about my skrunklies and getting to know me. You all mean so much to me.

Quinn <3

Tagging: @distant-velleity @br3adtoasty @rainesol @theleechyskrunkly @jovieinramshackle

@galaxies-and-gore @cyanide-latte @cynthinesia @officialdaydreamer00 @krenenbaker

@offorestsongs @kitwasnothere @elenauaurs @boopshoops @inotonline

@1dont-really-know @kazumify @minteasketches @elysia-nsimp @skrimpyskimpy

@casp1an-sea @offorestsongs @tixdixl @poisoned-pearls @the-trinket-witch

@ramshacklerumble @ghostiidasponk @thegoldencontracts @sillyslipperybananapeel @cloudcountry

@skriblee-ksk @twstinginthewind @lumdays @theolivetree123 @natsukishinomiyaswife

@authoruio @jewelulu @raguiras @honeynclove @moonyasnow

@skibidibabygirl @paperclvps @quartztwst @yuizenihaswriten @devosin

@yourlocalyin @sillyfull-jua

[mechaseraph]

One guy. Er, I mean two, no, no! Four, four completely different guys, no correlation between them, no sir! Started this around same time as this KID one. It should be same style proportion-wise. As I was messing around for fun/on purpose of finding something that more cartoony? simpler in flow? Anyways, the design/style notes/thoughts under the cut, I did put lots of my exhausted braincells into Kaito/KID difference

Overall style inspos: 1) "I need to think of Sonic but like more human-y" 2) Miho Shimogasa (PPGZ/Kaito Joker/BatuSpi Toppa Bashin) 3) PSWG and SPvsW lol kinda, just from my head how I remembered em though

>Cone and Shin: Originally wasn't planning on putting shadows in his eyes, but without em he's straight up "People with blue eyes" meme. Creepy too much. Neat and sharp a bit. Cone is a pain to size correctly. I think I kinda got it right? But maybe he should had been just tad taller? You never know if he's like 95cm or 1m and something Side note, but Cone's shoes really make me think of Sonic's- >Shin and Kaito: Neat and bit sharp vs more laid back and messy. Also more puffy/round on corners? I basically want him to have puffy sleeves/sleeves that got some volume to em because it fits the magician in my eyes. Adds to hands/arm movement Also Shin's eyes of more your blue/dark blue shades, while Kaito's of blue-ish purple That's to say, I imagine/think Shinichi is the one who hunches more, while Kaito is the one who tends to lean back a bit/keep posture mostly straight (if he ain't sleeping in class lol) >Kaito and KID: Kinda pathetic and messy vs your perfect phantom thief. More shadowy/half-closed eyes vs "oh he's bright awake and ready to go stupid go crazy". Some guy vs the charisma itself. That's to say, shadows cover Kid's visible eye most of the time. And he also has that grin...or his mouth hidden at all. His hair appears bit more fluffier and neater, too. I also tried to keep that juxtaposition with Shinichi of "more sharps vs more round" with him as well. Overall, I like the thought of what if Kaito was more loser in canon, as in less people in school liking him, pitying for his family situation, etc, no entirely of course, because it's simply him, but feel it be more fun in contrast with Kid (and Shinichi) Also, for Kid's cape...just didn't felt like drawing it here, you can excuse me, right?

I think that's all I have to say, but if there's anything ya wanna point out/hear, please ask away!~

[mikimakiboo]

Tiny menace

I really have to do everything myself around here /jk

Liiiiittle summary: Bitty Nightmare got adopted by three very creepy skeletons ! Turns out they are nice, but they still give panic attacks every hour

HEAVILY inspired by A Blackened Soul Finally Lightened on AO3

Maybe I will write a sequel... maybe I won't... you tell me

Part 2

And if you like angst with a happy ending, you can check out You Will Be Fine, Now, which is unrelated to these parts but is focused on bitty Nightmare too !

Tw: mention of euthanasia

Bitties have always been very popular. There were so many of them, anyone could find one they would like, and just as any popular thing they were produced in numbers. If bitties originated from a single AU and reproduced naturally at first then it wasn't the case anymore: bitties were now selectively breeded by " specialized farms" in such a way that there would be numerous versions of the same bitty depending on their popularity, which was mostly among children.

Two particularly popular bitties were part of a twin set, they were called Dream and Nightmare, two white skeletons made to be opposites, one being positive and the other one negative. You couldn't separate them, if you wanted to buy one you had to buy the other too. But the more you produced the more you were at risk of making mistakes. In some rare occasions, the Nightmare bitty would come out... wrong. Instead of white bones and two bright purple eyelights, they would come out covered in a black substance with only one cyan eyelight. They couldn't be sell, they were deficient, and bitties could live just as long as any monster or human, so keeping these deficient versions would be a waste of space, time and, above all, money. They called these deficient bitties "Corrupted", and each time a Corrupted Nightmare happened, they would be euthanized.

Only one escaped this fate. An association specialized in rescuing bitties from breeding farms got their hands on the case and managed to definitely close one of the farms, taking every bitty in there to put them in a shelter, with way better living conditions, where they could be adopted. One of the bitties was a Corrupted Nightmare, the only one still alive, a rare one that everyone thought would be the first to be adopted. But no one wanted him. He wasn't as cute as the others, he wasn't appealing, and his personality didn't help: most bitties were sociable and energetic, a few were calmer but they were still loving in their own way, this Corrupted Nightmare wasn't, he was aggressive, he didn't like physical contact, he preferred to stay alone and never went out of his enclosure to see the customers, staying hidden in the dark corners. He wasn't suitable for keeping company and definitely wasn't suitable to play with a child.

How much time did the Corrupted Nightmare spend in the shelter ? He did not remember. More than a year, maybe even more than two, he didn't count, so he didn't really know. He spent his days the same way each time, staying in his enclosure, only going out when the staff forced him to, they said it would help with first impression and getting adopted, but all it had done was confront him to disgusted looks from the customers. "Tomorrow is another day" the staff always said, but to the bitty every day was the same. His enclosure was a little comfier than the others', because unlike the others who didn't have much time to adapt before being adopted, Corrupted had plenty of time, so he gained some advantages such as his own heating lamp instead of the community one for the lamia bitties, as his mucus, his corruption, often tend to be cold. He had many cushions all around his enclosure to lay down, his back often hurting due to the four little tentacles he had. All the bitties had little houses for their intimacy, decorated with some accessories that would be sold with them, such as clothes for example, but also some items. Corrupted had many books, a rocking chair, a bean bag and a little lamp shaped like an apple tree for his reading corner, he also had a room with a round bed with purple sheets and a little bathroom. He liked his little house, he was much better inside of it than sitting in front of the glass wall of his enclosure, watching everyone pass by and never stopping to great him. Some of them looked at him, but quickly turned away to go see some cuter bitties. He eventually got used to it, no longer trying to catch someone's attention by tapping on the glass, he just sat and waited until he could return to his house after spending enough time outside.

He had watched so many bitties leave, all of those who were brought here with him had already been adopted a long time ago, and every bitty who had been brought here after that left too. He had seen the shelter renew so many times, and yet he stayed. Always. Because he was unwanted. Maybe he should have been euthanized like all the others... he knew what happened to them, he knew it because the other bitties told him, the ones who were in the farms with him, they told him that every Corrupted Nightmare would get euthanized, and that it was such a miracle that he was still alive !

He didn't like that miracle. He despised it. He was so scared of dying but he was so done with living. He knew he was going to be euthanized, he remembered that cold metallic box, he remembered all the needles and bottles, the heat of the stove, the look of disappointment on the farmers' face, he remembered all of that... and somehow he got out alive, so relieved, but for what ? Spend his life in another box ? Sure his enclosure was way better, but it was still a box and he was still unwanted.

He got up from where he was lying down, a fluffy pillow near his heating lamp, only to jump with a scream of fright at the sight of two big empty sockets against his glass. He fell backward on another pillow.

- Oop, sorry, didn't mean to scare ya !

He heard the stranger chuckle. He slowly looked up, analyzing the person standing in front of his enclosure: a skeleton monster with empty eyesockets and black tears running on his cheeks. What was this monster doing here ? Shouldn't he be looking at the others ? Since when was he watching him take a nap ? The Corrupted bitty slowly rose his tentacles menacingly, not understanding what he wanted from him, and not reassured by the way he looked at him.

- Ooh threatening me I see, you're a fierce one ain't ya ? Such a tiny menace.

He said, visibly amused as a sharp smile appeared on his face. The bitty didn't like that, what did this skeleton want ? Why did he seem so pleased to see him defending himself ? Did he want him to fight someone ? Was he going to make him fight other bitties ? He had heard the staff talking about dismantling many clandestine bitty fights, many of the bitties ending up in the shelter, was it why this skeleton was there ? The little bitty started to shake, hiding a little bit more behind his pillows.

- Aw you're so cute, the guys are gonna love you !

He cooed, getting up to go directly to the counter, leaving the little bitty even more scared. Was that monster going to buy him ? Why ? He didn't want to fight ! He didn't want to spend the rest of his life fighting other bitties to survive ! He rushed to his house, trying to hide, he didn't want to go ! Not with him ! Why couldn't get a child or a grandma like everyone else ?! Why did he have to get the crazy looking guy ?! He saw the lid of his enclosure opening and pressed himself against a corner, feeling his breathing fastening as he was scooped by a member of the staff to be put in a square cartoon box with little holes so he could breath. He tried to wiggle free, hitting the hand with his tentacles, he screamed, but he was dropped in the box and it was closed before he could get up. He felt the boxt moving and being put somewhere, probably the counter, he heard noises all around him but couldn't decipher what it was, his own soul pounding too loudly to hear anything else.

He was about to pass out when he felt the box moving again, waking him up brutally, he couldn't see what was happening but judging by the air he could feel through the holes, he was outside. He heard a noise, and there was no air anymore.

- I'm hoooooome !

The skeleton sang. Home ? Were they at his house already ? How ? They just left the shelter ! And who was he talking to ? Were there other people ? Would he fight right away ? He pressed himself a little more against the corner of the box, curled up in a ball with his tentacles in front of him, shaking. He heard another raspy voice.

- Brought... food.. ?

- Yep, I got the food ! And I even got better than food !

Food ?! Was he going to be eaten ?! Were they going to eat him ?! To feed him to a snake like a mouse ?! He needed to get out ! If he hit hard enough, maybe the cartoon would break !

- Killer I swear if you brought another chicken I'm gonna make it shit on your bed.

A new voice said. How many were they ?!

- It's even better than a chicken !

Killer, apparently, responded as he put the box down on a table to open it, revealing a shaking bitty curled up in a corner, looking up at them with a wide open eye and fat tears running on his cheek like a waterfall.

- Ta-daaa ! ~

Three skeletons were above him, Killer, the one from the shelter, a big one with a hole in his skull and a glowing red eye, and another one with a hood on, making it impossible to see his face apart from two red eyelights, the one on the left having some blue in the middle. The one with the hole spoke.

- ... Looks scared...

- Why did you buy a bitty ?

The one with the hoodie asked, visibly annoyed.

- He was so cute ! I couldn't leave him behind ! Plus the guy selling him said he had been is the shelter for four years, so I basically rescued him !

He argued. The bitty watched them argue until he flinched, the bigger skeleton was looking at him, frowning. He stepped back for a moment and the bitty couldn't see him anymore, until he reappeared and put his hand in the box. The bitty flinched again, pressing his tentacles against him to protect himself, but he didn't feel anything... he hesitantly looked up, the hand was gone, and a little cube of ham was in front of him. He looked up, the skeleton was looking at him again. What did he want ? Did he want him to eat this dice of ham ? Why ? Was it poisoned ? Was it how he was going to die in order to be cooked ? By being poisoned ?

- For you.. eat..

The skeleton said. The bitty hesitantly shook his head, he didn't want to eat that... the skeleton frowned again but seemed to understand that he was to scared to eat anything. Maybe it was because the bitty didn't know them ?

- Name's Horror.. this is Dust.. and Killer..

He introduced everyone before pointing at the bitty.

- You.. ?

The little one didn't answer. Did he have a name ? He was called Corrupted but was it his real name ? Or was it just because he was a deficient, corrupted version of another bitty ?

- Oh his name's Nightmare ! It's written on the b- ... oh I forgot you couldn't read, sorry..

Nightmare ? But... he was the corrupted version of the Nightmare bitties, why give him their name ? Anyway, that didn't matter as he was going to die soon.

- Did you at least take things to take care of him ?

Dust asked. Nightmare looked at him, still shaking. What did he mean by "take care of him" ? Killer smiled brightly.

- Yep ! Everything is in the second box !

He proudly announced as he went to grab the box and put it on the table next to the first one to open it. Nightmare didn't want to see it, he didn't want to see the tool that would kill him, he didn't.. ! He... he felt everything become dark, he couldn't hear them anymore, couldn't see them... it was all black...

He felt something soft under him as he slowly woke up, he was lying down on what seemed to be a big pillow, big to him at least, as it was normal size to the skeletons gathered around him. Killer was kneeling on the ground, his face at the same level as the bitty, looking worried, while the other two were behind, Dust sitting on a couch and Horror standing up behind Killer. Nightmare looked up slowly, he was on an armchair. He felt something brush against his skull, it felt.. good.. soothing.. he looked up to see what it was and jumped off of his pillow when he saw is was Killer's hand. He heard him cuss as he quickly grabbed the bitty before he fell off the armchair and put him back on the pillow.

- Hey lil' guy it's okay, don't be scared.. !

Nightmare's tears resurfaced as he backed up against the chair back, his tentacles pointing straight to the skeleton.

- You said.. you said you were gonna eat me.. !

Nightmare choked on his tears, his voice quiet, used to not talking that much. He saw the look of confusion on the three skeletons' face as they looked at each other before returning to the scared bitty on their armchair.

- We're not gonna eat you, what made you think that ?

Killer asked, tilting his head.

- You.. you said you bought food...

Nightmare hesitantly answered. Killer frowned for a second before realizing what he was talking about.

- Oh ! No no no, I wasn't talking about you ! He chuckled, I went to the store before passing by the shelter, we were out of vegetables, we're not gonna eat you !

Oh. Nightmare felt his cheeks getting warm, he felt so dumb right now. But that still didn't resolve his first worry: was he going to fight other bitties ?

- Why did you bring me here... ?

He asked, his tentacles still sharp and pointing straight before him.

- 'Cause you were so cute on your little pillow ! At first I was just planning to have a look and then go home, but man, love at first sight ya know.

Nightmare didn't know if it was a good sign or not, after all he had seen some very cute bitties in the shelter who came from clandestine fights. He didn't feel any vile intention coming from any of them though, only excitement, curiosity and caution, so maybe he was safe after all, maybe this skeleton really adopted him to take care of him...

He lowered his tentacles slowly, still shaking a little. His stomach gurgled, catching the attention of the three skeletons. Horror got closer and bent down to hand him the same cube of ham that he must have kept in case Nightmare was hungry.

- Eat.. ?

He asked. Nightmare looked at him for a moment before looking at the ham, he wasn't supposed to eat normal food, it contained too much magic and protein for a bitty, so they had special food mimicking the normal one but with appropriate dosage for them. A treat from time to time wouldn't hurt, though. He slowly reach out to the cube and took it, smelling it before finally taking a bite. The big skeleton gave him an approbating look, glad to see him eat.

He flinched when he felt something touch his skull, one of his tentacles reacting before him by hitting the thing away, thing that was in reality Killer's hand as he made a pouting sound.

- Maybe don't touch him right after he thought he was going to die ?

Dust said from the couch, having been silent until then. Killer sighed and got up.

- Okay, okay, I'm gon' make him a nice lil' spot for the night, I'll go buy wood and everything tomorrow to make a better nest.

He said as he left the living room, leaving the bitty with Dust, Horror and his snack.

- Gonna make dinner..

Horror announced before returning to the kitchen, leaving Nightmare with Dust who was still looking at him from his place. He bent over, his elbows resting on his knees, looking at the bitty.

- I can see why Killer choose you.

Nightmare flinched, looking up at him.

- You were unwanted, right ?

What kind of a question was that ? What was he trying to do ? Nightmare frowned.

- Four years in the shelter, bitties are usually sold faster than that.

He chuckled as Nightmare looked down on his half-eaten ham. Four years. He had spent four years in the shelter. He thought it had been two years, which was already long, but four ? Was he really this bad ? He knew he wasn't as affectionate as the others, he liked his privacy, but was it such a big problem ? He didn't caught it when Killer said it the first time, too busy being terrified, but now that he thought about it, four years was a really long time...

- It's kinda like... a necessary condition to be part of our group you know. I think he saw himself, saw us, in you.

Dust continued. Nightmare looked back at him, confused. What did he mean by that ?

- It's not my place to tell you their story, you'll have to wait for them to tell you, but we all kinda had to deal with rejection one way or another. I think Killer took pity in you like he took pity in us.

He explained. Was it why Killer said he rescued him ? Did he really adopt him to "save" him from the shelter ? A part of Nightmare's soul warmed up at the thought, for the first time in his life someone genuinely wanted him, someone deliberately PAID to have him, to bring him back to their house, and he had been so scared... he felt a little bad for that, judging Killer by his look when he was complaining about how himself was being looked over specifically because of his look.. what a hypocrite he had been.

- Hey lil' guy do you want to sleep by the fireplace ?

Nightmare jumped, clenching on his piece of ham, he didn't expect Killer to appear behind the armchair. He looked at him, looked at the fireplace on his right, and looked at Killer again.

- I can put, like, a blanket with your bed for tonight, so you have a place to sleep while I make a proper nest. I can put it somewhere else tho.. I can put you in my or one of the guys' room if you want ? Oh right I didn't show you my room.. or the whole house... want me to show you around ? I can carry you in my hand or you can rest on my shoulder if you prefer ?

There... there had been too many questions for Nightmare. He looked at Dust, unsure of what to answer, but the skeleton was on his phone. He slowly looked back at Killer who was still waiting. It would be good if he showed him the house, he didn't want to get lost.

- I... you can.. show me the house... ?

Killer smiled at that answer, carefully reaching out to scoop Nightmare in his hand. The bitty tensed at that, not used to being handled, and munched on his ham as a reflex, his tentacles curling around Killer's fingers to ensure stability. In case of stress, eating was apparently the right thing to do, which made Killer snort: Horror did the same thing.

- Want to go in the hood ?

Nightmare nodded, trembling on the hand, he didn't feel safe this far from the ground but at least the hood would be more stable than a hand. Killer carefully placed him next to it, letting le bitty crawl inside at his own speed. Nightmare shifted once inside but ended up finding a comfortable position, letting only his head pick through the fluff. It was so warm here, and so soft too... he felt a gentle pat on his head that made him tense a bit, but he quickly relaxed, seeing that the contact wasn't painful and was even enjoyable...

He fell backward in the hood when Killer moved and had to grab some of the fluff to sit up again, the last piece of his ham in his mouth.

- So you already know the kitchen and the living room, which is also the dinning room, so all that is left is the bathroom and our bedrooms !

He announced as he walked up some stairs before pausing in a hallway with two doors on each side. He opened the first door on the left.

- This is the bathroom !

Nightmare stood up in the hood to look over the furr. It was a small room, with a bathtub, a shower, some cabinets and a sink.

- But it's too big for you so I'll make you a lil' bathtub, don't worry.

They left the room, Nightmare sliding back inside the hood. It was so warm inside of it... warm and cozy...

- That is Horror's room !

Killer exclaimed. Nightmare slowly looked up, seeing a rather messy bedroom with what looked like to be a record player with the records in a box next to it. Did Horror like listening to music ? Nightmare didn't see any books, but given the fact that Killer said he couldn't read it wasn't really surprising. The bitty yawned as they closed the door to go to the next room.

- That is Dust's ! I'm not allowed to go inside.

He said as he opened the door to enter.

- Good thing I don't care.

There was a strong smell of chemicals inside and Nightmare could see many bottles and notebooks opened. No doubt Dust liked to make some experiments... they didn't spend too much time here and closed the door again. Nightmare struggled to keep his eye open.

- And last but not least... this is mine !

This room was messier than Horror's. Like, really messier, with clothes on the ground, bedsheets in a ball on the bed, knives stucked in the wall, ... if one day Nightmare slept in a room, he would chose Horror's. He didn't like the smell in Dust's one. But, for now, he was more likely to take a nap in Killer's hood. He didn't want to, he didn't feel safe enough to do so, but he had such a stressfull day, he just couldn't fight it any longer, he really needed to sleep... he looked up one last time to see that Killer was talking about his collection of knives, but he couldn't understand the words as he was already drifting away, but it was okay, he just needed five minutes... just fives minutes...

- So yeah that's it ! Soooo, where do you want to sleep ?

Killer asked, but received no answer.

- Lil' guy ?

Still nothing.

- Nightmare ? ... oh shit I dropped you ??

He turned his head to look over his shoulder, shoving a hand inside his hood, he let out a relieved sight when his fingers came in contact with the bitty's little tentacles as he made a tiny grumpy noise. He carefully scooped him to hold him in his hand, seeing that he was asleep, he gently pat his head with a loving smile. He put him back in his hood before leaving his room, seeing how he started to shake from the cold air.

- Sleep well Nightmare, and welcome to the family...

Killer already loved their little bitty so much, he hoped he would rapidly get accustomed to them and trust them, he really wanted him to be happy here... he was their little guy now.

- the end ... for now ? -

[mumms-the-word]

Illithid Souls - Part 3

The Case Studies: Karlach and Gale

Welcome to the third and final part of this wild deep dive rabbit hole monstrosity that is the three-part series about illithid souls and whether mind flayers, or specifically you as a mind flayer, have a soul.

If you read Part 1 and Part 2, then you know that yes, illithids have souls, they're just different souls that the gods don't recognize as souls because they're non-apostolic, or incapable of divine worship (as opposed to being apostolic like most humanoid souls). You now also know that you turning into a mind flayer is a bit of a special case because of the Netherese magic in the tadpoles, and this might be why you retain more of your soul than normal mind flayers would.

Also, a quick reminder of the two theories we're working with here: Theory 1 is that when someone becomes a mind flayer they essentially just die and their (apostolic) soul moves on to the Fugue Plane and the mind flayer body just gets a new illithid soul from somewhere. Theory 2 is that when someone becomes a mind flayer their soul is transformed and altered into an illithid soul, which remains tethered to the mind flayer body. BG3 seems to operate more on the Theory 2 side of things, but as we'll see with Karlach and Gale, it's more complicated than you think.

So let's deep dive, shall we?

The Case of Karlach

I'm going to be candid here and say that the mind flayer ending for Karlach makes me really sad, even knowing that there's a very high chance that her soul is mostly intact and she is mostly still Karlach. But there's no denying she's at least a little different, though the game tries to comfort us otherwise after she transforms.

Narrator: *She is transformed. Her body is no longer hers, but her eyes, her heart - she is still Karlach, for now. Only - there's a hunger in her eyes that wasn't there before.*

That "for now" is rather ominous, isn't it? But we have enough evidence from Tav/Durge/other Origins and Orpheus to suggest that the likelihood of her retaining her memories and her personality is very high. In fact, when you talk to her during the epilogue, she does seem mostly the same, though her language has mellowed out to a more formal tone and she speaks less colloquially (and swears less and less).

If you talk to her immediately after she transforms, she marvels that she's still "herself" but also "more," which again reinforces that we all get to be special mind flayers who don't completely lose our souls. But I think there are some interesting lines in this dialogue:

Karlach: This is wild. I'm myself but... but more. Player: I don't like the sound of that. Karlach: Don't worry, soldier. It's still your old pal under all this purple. But suddenly 'I' am different than I ever knew. And my engine, it's... it's... silent. No heat. No gears. Still there, but no longer threatening to explode. Soldier... Player: I guess turning into an illithid has its perks. Karlach: Here I thought I was making a sacrifice. Thank the gods I'm a noble fuck! Shit. I'm gonna be all right. I get to be alive. I get to stay. As a hideous monster, sure. But one that can feel. Think. Live. But I'm still myself. And I know what our mission is. I'm glad I get to the do the honours.

Karlach reiterates over and over that she's still herself, but you can literally hear the change in her voice. Where normally her tone and volume would be boisterous, loud, and energetic, she's now calm and mellow, even when she's swearing. Her tone here is more one of wonder. It isn't just the internal and external fires that have calmed down, her overall demeanor seems "cooler" too.

Also, in her romance ending just before the epilogue, where you're both in the Elfsong Tavern room, you can mention that she does seem a little altered.

Player: I still love you, Karlach. I still want to be with you. Karlach: I love you too. Before, that love was an irrepressible inferno. Now it is a calm, cool object of beauty. Player: I can see you're still yourself, but there's something else in there too. An illithid calm. Karlach: Maybe you're right. I feel less... changeable. Less afraid. I feel ready for whatever is to come.

It doesn't tell us much, but it does reinforce that when we or any of our companions turn into a mind flayer, we likely retain a lot of our former personality, but in a much more calm, even-keeled kind of way. Again going back to the idea that our soul is still there, still mostly the same, but has been made a bit more illithid.

What is more interesting for Karlach, specifically, is her discussion of her diet as a mind flayer. Remember what souls are allegedly made up of? Intelligence, personality, and what else?

Memories.

Karlach: For example, my favourite food used to be mutton chops. Do you know what it is now? Brains, soldier. Brains. Player: Comes with the illithid territory, I suppose. Karlach: True. But I've found ways to maintain my values while respecting that which I am - that which made it possible for me to live. I've made arrangements with a healer in the city. When a patient is beyond saving, but still able to speak for themselves, they're offered a choice. They can go as nature intends to take them. Or, when they're ready - when their goodbyes have been said, their affairs settled, and all that awaits them is pain - I relieve them. When I consume their brains, I am nourished by much more than the physical nutrition. Their memories - from birth to death - become part of me. I've lived hundreds of childhoods, first loves, marriages, feuds and friendships. I remember them all. And in this way, we all live on. Together.

There's so much to unpack here. One, she still remembers her values, even six months later, but is trying to negotiate her former humanoid values (and personality, I imagine) with her needs as a mind flayer. That seems very Karlach, through and through.

But then, when she consumes these dying patients' brains, she absorbs and retains their memories. I imagine their souls still go on to the Fugue Plane, because I highly doubt that mind flayers also consume souls when they eat brains, but it still leaves me with questions. Karlach isn't part of a hivemind, which normally circulates memories between each other, but she's becoming a similar kind of receptacle for memories, and only she is the one that contains them, rather than an entire hivemind.

I have to wonder how much something like constantly consuming and remembering memories that are not your own affects you as a person/creature. Does that eventually lead to a loss of self, as you begin to "live" multiple different lives? Or does it all count as mere knowledge?

In some ways this would put her in competition with any elder brains still out there, but she's also not collecting knowledge for the sake of knowledge. She's collecting memories and living them out in her mind, which is a certain kind of tragedy. She's literally living vicariously through these people because her mind flayer body is too scary to go out and about in, and she's making up for a decade of life she didn't get to live. She's alive, but she's not...living if that makes sense. And again...how long before all these memories start to change who she is?

(An aside. I really don’t think her eating brains and collecting memories keeps someone’s soul from moving on. If you use the spell Speak with Dead, you don’t call back an entire soul, but the corpse still has access to its memories. I think in this case, even though memories make up part of a soul, Karlach consuming brains and collecting memories is more like her downloading a copy of the memories for herself. The dead person likely still takes their own memories with them to the Fugue Plane, where they will be judged by Kelemvor or collected by their favorite deity. She’s just copy/pasting data, not transferring everything from one hard drive to another, if that analogy makes sense.)

This arrangement where Karlach consumes the brains of dying patients is expanded or clarified a bit if you're romancing her during the epilogue, and also includes a reference to souls as well.

Karlach: I can’t wait to say hello, but to be honest, I’m keen to visit the doctor before it gets too late. He said there’s a potential in his infirmary. A very old woman recently diagnosed with a wasting sickness. She seemed interested in what I have to offer. I’ll want to have a good long talk with her before we make an arrangement. Though if I’m being very selfish, I hope she’ll say yes. I’m absolutely famished - and think of all those memories. Player: Glad to hear. I was worried you were getting hungry. Karlach: I don’t hide it well, do I? Some things don’t change, even when everything else does. It’s funny. I’m hungry in my body, but in my soul too. That woman has lived a long life - births, deaths, love, misfortune. And if she agrees, I’ll be able to give her a dignified end, and remember it all in her honour.

Or if you go with a different option:

Player: I'm still not sure how I feel about this arrangement. Are you sure it's ethical to feed on the dying? Karlach: I'm sure of very little these days. But at least this way, I can live. And those who offer themselves to me can live on too. Births, first loves, marriages, losses - I remember them all and always will. Each memory I've consumed is of value.

It's just so interesting to me. One, her remark that she's eager to say hello but slightly more interested in chatting to a doctor about her next meal suggests that some elements of becoming a mind flayer are much harder to ignore. I imagine if she's hungry, she feels less like Karlach. (And I have thoughts, for another post, about whether she becomes "too fixated" on living when she's a mind flayer, given the cost of what it means to stay alive as a mind flayer.)

But she also says she's hungry in her soul. Her soul seems deeply interested in these memories, and I wonder if that's because memories are (or could be) part of souls themselves. Maybe the remark isn't really that deep, but she specifically connects the hunger of her soul to all the memories a long-lived woman will have. It's almost as if these memories nurture her soul, but it's unclear whether that is because it's somehow healing to see and "experience" life in ways she can't now that she's a mind flayer, or if it's because the memories have some kind of tangible effect on her soul/souls in general.

I suppose we won't know for sure. What we do know from Karlach's case, however, is that a great deal of the original soul (personality, memories, etc) seems to stick around even six months later, though there are noticeable changes in personality, such as an overall calm demeanor. There are also hints that consuming brains could lead to further changes down the road, but there's nothing really concrete. Just hints.

In the end, Karlach is still Karlach, and her soul still has plenty of elements of the original Karlach, even six months later. This is a good sign, but we can't completely ignore that her new body/mind as a mind flayer will necessarily mean some things have permanently changed. Whether you judge those changes as good or bad is up to you.

With that said, let's move on to the final and most mind-boggling case.

The Case of Gale

If you play a companion as an Origin run, the mind flayer decision typically works out the same way as Tav...unless you're playing as Gale. Gale gets some extra options at the end of the game.

This is mostly because Gale has perhaps the most apostolic soul that hangs in the balance, second only to Shadowheart, and her soul pendulum swings between Selûne and Shar. Gale, however, seems to be walking on a knife's edge trying to retain or earn back entry into Elysium, Mystra's domain in the Outer Planes. He's allegedly already been there, though not as a dead soul, so he knows what's at stake if his soul suddenly becomes non-apostolic or disappears.

In other words, Gale has a formerly Faithful apostolic soul, but he spends much of the game probably worried his soul will be judged as False when he dies (since he lost Mystra's favor) until Mystra offers her brand of forgiveness, which is essentially "if you sacrifice your own life, I'll let you into Elyisum again." It's a guarantee that he ends up in the afterlife he wants to be in. That's what Mystra's forgiveness really boils down to.

Now, this is a man who does not want to sacrifice his soul, and also (Netherese orb aside) does not want to die if his soul is going to be judged as False by Kelemvor rather than welcomed into Elysium as a Faithful soul. We know that Gale finds the Fugue Plane exceedingly depressing, so I can't imagine he has any desire to wander around it for any stretch of time, even if Mystra does eventually deign to invite him into Elysium. I'm sure the thought of becoming part of the Wall of the Faithless might as well be hell to him.

Gale: It’s a relief to be back in beautiful Faerûn. The dreariness of the Fugue Plane oppresses one’s soul so very quickly.

[mumm's note: yes my man died in service of a Tactician battle against Grym, but he got better]

It's a little surprising to see how adamantly Gale would prefer to choose the Netherese orb over letting himself or anyone he cares for become illithid. Look at some of what he says when he tries to offer the orb as an option for the final battle:

Gale: An easy proposition for the Emperor to make - 'become a mind flayer' - it has no soul to sacrifice. If it did - perhaps it would understand the weight of what it's asking of us. And why we might seek an alternative.

I couldn't get this next dialogue to trigger in my game, but in the same conversation as above you might potentially get the option to remind him about Mystra's offer to cure his orb condition, and even then he reminds you of the stakes that come with becoming a mind flayer.

Player: Mystra will cure you if we bring her the Crown of Karsus. You don't need to do this. Gale: To cure me of the orb, yes. But what of the guilt of allowing one of my friends to sacrifice their very soul and become illithid?

Now keep in mind, up to this point no one has shown any evidence that turning into a mind flayer won't actually mean the total destruction of one's soul. Up until now, the only evidence anyone has of an original soul remaining intact inside a mind flayer body is the Emperor (we have no frame of reference for who Omeluum was before he was a mind flayer), and most of the companions do not trust the Emperor one bit. So Gale genuinely thinks that becoming a mind flayer means your soul is either destroyed or changed so much that it's no longer you.

I mean, think about it. He's half expecting you to take the tadpole the Emperor offers and literally cease to exist. He's expecting to fight alongside a mind flayer who has, at best, your name and a few scraps of your memory, and at worst, no shred of you at all. Because again, up until this point in the game, none of them realize that they could become a special mind flayer who does actually retain most (if not all) of their soul, including their personality and memories.

Gale literally thinks that blowing up and going to the Fugue Plane is better than you or any companion becoming a mind flayer.

But that's in a companion run. Obviously, if you play him as an Origin, you can have him turn into a mind flayer as a different kind of ultimate sacrifice. The decision plays out the same as a Tav/Durge run or any other Origin run. But after the game ends, Gale gets unique dialogue if he (1) sacrifices himself or (2) does not sacrifice himself and goes to meet Mystra with the Crown in hand.

Any run of his sacrifice (aka, using the orb, regardless of whether or not he is illithid) results in Withers finding him in the Fugue Plane for a brief conversation. This conversation isn't much different if Gale is a mind flayer when he uses the orb, since all it does is add an extra option to their conversation that references being illithid ("One illithid for the whole of Faerûn seems like a fair trade to me," which replaces the option "One wizard for the whole of Faerûn...etc").

(An aside, I don't have an Origin Gale run so I can't test this, but I think if he ends his life on the docks as a mind flayer, the way Tav/Durge can with a knife got the stomach, then he just gets the usual Tav/Durge conversation with Withers about how his form has "something of the spirit" about him. See Part 2 if you're curious about that conversation.)

What this conversation with Withers reveals is how much control Mystra seems to have over his soul, especially if/when he's a mind flayer. If Gale decides to sacrifice himself using the Netherese Orb, Withers remarks about how surprising it is that Mystra hasn’t picked him up yet.

Withers: Who flickers there ‘twixt the shadows? Gale, who didst surrender his very self for the salvation of Faerûn. I feared I might not find thee here - that Mystra would have already plucked thy thread from the tapestry of fate. But she may wait a while yet.

It’s a little unclear if Withers uses “plucked thy thread from the tapestry of fate” to mean Gale gets to go to Elysium or something else, and it’s equally unclear whether Mystra waiting is a sign of displeasure or a sign that she is interested in sending Gale back to the Material Plane. She is capable of doing that, after all, and has frequently resurrected her Chosens, like Elminster, if it suits her.

But I highlight this conversation to show that you can get it as a mind flayer, and (if you are a mind flayer during this scene) that Mystra waiting isn't because he's a mind flayer and she can't find his soul. She waits for a minute regardless of whether he's illithid or not. But Withers is certain Mystra will be able to find Gale's soul, because he was able to find Gale's soul and recognize it as Gale.

So, not to harp on this again and again, but it's proof that turning into a mind flayer didn't destroy Gale's soul. It's still Gale's soul, even in the Fugue Plane, even if he's mind-flayer-shaped, and that soul is still capable of journeying to Elysium, should Mystra bother to find it wandering the Fugue Plane (or wherever he is).

But things are a little different if Gale decides to become a mind flayer and then goes to visit Mystra with the Crown of Karsus in hand. Keep in mind, Origin!Gale always has the option to face off against Mystra after the defeat of the Netherbrain, and this face-off is where he decides to hand over the Crown, become the god of ambition, or straight up try to fight Mystra.

However! If Gale is a mind flayer, he gets a secret fourth option.

If Gale goes to meet Mystra as an illithid with the Crown of Karsus and then gives up the Crown to her, Mystra offers to take Gale to Elysium with her. More than that, she offers to literally restore his humanity and cure him of illithidness.

Sort of.

Mystra: So, Gale of Waterdeep, you have become the inheritor of Karsus’ powers at last. What do you intend to do with them? Gale: I came to surrender them. The Crown, the Karsite Weave - take it all. Mystra: This offering cost you greatly. There is no hope in life as an illithid, devoid of soul and conscience. It is within my power to restore your soul, and your humanity, if you are willing to leave the mortal realms behind. Return with me, to Elysium.

No one else is offering this kind of deal to an Origin-turned-mind-flayer. Selûne and Shar don’t care if Shadowheart turns illithid, and Withers isn’t exactly offering to restore souls and humanity (or…mortalness?) to everyone else. This is a signifier of the sheer amount of power Mystra has, yes, but this also hints at some other things.

One, despite evidence of the contrary, Mystra is adamant that Gale-as-illithid is or would be “devoid of soul and conscience,” even though we know that that likely isn’t true (just see Karlach, Tav/Durge, etc). Perhaps Mystra is unaware that Gale is a Special Mind Flayer (seems unlikely), or perhaps she’s simply trying to convince Gale to come with her. After all, what she’s offering is still a kind of reward.

Then again, maybe Gale and/or Mystra fear the long-term effects of illithidness. Maybe over time he would become less and less like Gale, perhaps due to consuming memories, or other factors that come with being a mind flayer. Still, though, saying that his life would be "devoid of soul and conscience" seems like a massive stretch on Mystra's part.

But anyway, the reward for him turning into a mind flayer and giving her the Crown is a restoration of his humanity...but only in death.

Mystra: Return with me, to Elysium. Devnote: respectful - Gale sacrificed his humanity to achieve what she asked. If he’s willing to die on the mortal planes, she will restore his soul and body but in the heavens.

Now before I get to what happens if Gale agrees to this reward, I want to point out that Mystra herself sort of acknowledges that Gale isn't exactly devoid of soul and conscience if he refuses her offer. Here are some of the ways Gale can turn her down, with her answer to each option being the same:

Gale: [Option 1] Thank you, but no. I have someone waiting for me. Gale: [Option 2] Perhaps one day, but for now there is more I need to accomplish. Gale: [Option 3] Being an illithid has its advantages. I'm content as I am. Mystra: Then you are free to go with both my thanks and my promise - henceforth, your prayers will always be answered.

The whole idea of an apostolic soul is that it means the person is capable of worshipping a divine being, and this worship ncludes prayers. She might have said that him being illithid would mean he would be devoid of soul and conscience, but in nearly the same breath she promises to answer all his prayers. So she recognizes something of a soul within him. So why say he would be devoid of soul?

Of course, things get weird if Gale accepts her offer to be restored and go to Elyisum. If Gale agrees, then she fulfills her promise and even restores his place as one of her Chosen.

Gale: I crave nothing more. Take me to Elysium. Mystra: So be it. Gale of Waterdeep, Chosen of Mystra. Cinematic Tag: Mystra transforms Mindflayer Gale back to his human form (hollow) and grabs Gale’s hand. They return to Elysium.

This is wild to me. You see, originally when I started this project I thought I was going to be writing posts about how interesting it is that when you become a mind flayer, your soul is probably hanging out in the Fugue Plane or something, and eventually I’d suggest that Mystra is able to restore Gale’s soul to him because it’s already gone to her domain or she knows how to find it because he used to be so faithful to her. But none of that works now.

Because now I’m convinced that the Netherese tadpole changes everyone into a Special Mind Flayer whose soul is still present in their mind flayer bodies, just altered or transformed. So what’s up with this stuff from Mystra? She recognizes Gale as Gale even when he's a mind flayer and promises to answer his prayers, so clearly there's some kind of apostolic soul thing going on here. So why does she offer to "restore his soul," and also, why only in death?

She does say that she will restore Gale’s humanity, so now I assume that somehow her powers allow her to un-alter Gale’s soul so that it isn’t so illithid anymore. My idea is that she’s essentially restoring his soul to its former state and not, as we might otherwise infer, literally giving him his soul back, as if it were separate from his body. Gale’s soul is still in his mind flayer body, if all the rest of the evidence holds any water, so Mystra must have merely changed it back to the way it was.

quick picture break, this is from Northalix's video, linked below

Which makes me wonder, can a completely original, apostolic-type soul exist in an illithid body? Or does the body dictate that the soul must be somewhat illithid in order to be compatible?

Because the thing is, this deal comes with an ultimatum. She’s not going to let him go back to the mortal realms after she’s restored his soul. She probably could—she’s probably capable of doing that, if only by giving him a completely new body (she's done that before with Elminster). But she doesn’t. The cure comes with a cost. He only gets to be human again if he agrees to die completely and join her in Elysium. There is no undoing the illithid sacrifice, which seems more like a game limitation than a Mystra limitation (although we can certainly brainstorm reasons why Mystra would be so petty as to basically say "I can make you human again but only if you die completely.")

I want to point out that Mystra doesn't offer to let Gale come back to Elysium as a dead guy if he's not a mind flayer. Like, we don't get the sparkly ascension scene if he blows up with the Netherese orb, we get the Withers visit in the Fugue Plane. This Elysium offer is an illithid-only option. If he's not a mind flayer and he returns the Crown, she cures him of the Netherese Orb and sends him back. There's no option to join her in Elysium. Why is this an illithid-only option?

Also, just...I need you to watch the scene.

There's a lot that bothers me about this. One, the gestures she makes are the exact gestures God!Gale makes when he ascends Tav/Durge if they romanced him and agreed to become a god with him. Do with that what you will. But two...it just gives me the ick. This is a different kind of ascension for Gale. It's a restoration of his place in Elysium, but it ultimately means his premature death. If this is the route you take as him...it's hardly better than him sacrificing himself using the Netherese Orb without becoming a mind flayer. Only this time, we get to see the scene where he goes to Elysium, I guess.

It also massively complicates the whole idea that everyone gets to be a special mind flayer with a mostly-intact, mostly-apostolic soul. If the soul didn't change, why does Mystra need to "restore" it? And if it did change, why is Mystra the only one capable of un-changing it back to its original form (is it because he’s her Chosen and is/was so faithful)?And if such a thing is possible, why offer it and then say "but you're dead now"?

It seems as though her "fixing" Gale's soul was really just her...I don't know, separating it from his physical mind flayer body so the illithid anatomy wouldn't mess with it as much, and then dusting off his soul, which is now bodyless, and taking it with her to Elysium. I'm not saying that's what she did, but that's the weird vibes I get from this interaction. Like, there seems to be some kind of implication that you can't have a fully humanoid, apostolic soul housed within an illithid body. The soul has to be altered somehow to work with the illithid body.

So why not just give him a new body, Mystra??? Fix is soul and give him a new body! You’re absolutely capable of that!

I have so many questions.

Of course, keep in mind that Gale can reject her, obviously, and return to the mortal realms as a mind flayer. She does acknowledge that he has at least something of a soul that can pray to her so...I mean, there's that.

Anyways, what have we learned?

The Summary

With Karlach, we see that being a mind flayer does necessarily change parts of a person's personality (which, again, is part of their soul). Usually this results in a person seeming calmer, more mellow, less emotional than they normally would have been, but it does seem that for Tav/Durge, the companions, and Orpheus that turning into a mind flayer doesn't completely destroy their soul. It just seems to alter it a bit. In my opinion, the soul just becomes a tiny bit more illithid. Karlach’s case does leave us with questions about how “good” consuming and retaining so many memories might be in the long run, but as of six months post-ceremorphosis, she seems fine.

From Gale, we learn that apparently it's possible to restore or un-alter a partly-illithid soul so that it goes back to normal, but this power is extremely rare and likely relegated to the gods alone (or a particularly powerful Wish spell). We're also reminded that keeping recognizable parts of one's soul, like the personality and memories, is a huge surprise, because that's not how normal mind flayers work. We know this from Orpheus, but Gale just kinda reinforced it.

I guess we also learned that Mystra is a massive—but I should keep this civil. We all know what Mystra is.

It shouldn't come as a surprise that she's unwilling to accept Gale into her domain while he is still a mind flayer, even though his soul obviously would fit the bill based on what a soul is/does for the gods. He has a viable apostolic soul, it’s just mind-flayer-shaped!I'm sure Mystra thinks she's being magnanimous by offering him eternity as a human in Elysium, but I think it ultimately just shows how shallow she can be. Gale only gets to come back if he’s not mind flayer shaped.

And I think, deep down, Gale has always suspected that would be the case.

And on that familiar note, my friends, thank you for joining me on this excessively long deep dive into mind flayer souls and things we can learn from the game and the lore.

~*~*~

If you made it to the end, congrats! More gold stars for you!

✨⭐️🌟⭐️✨⭐️🌟⭐️✨⭐️🌟⭐️✨

If you read through all three parts and also made it to the end of this one, you are the real MVP and I wish I had stickers or achievements to give you so you can be like "I survived another three-part deep dive from mumm." But I don't even have a lousy T-Shirt to offer you.

You can have this random picture instead though :> it's my Tav Dani looking very unimpressed by the Emperor's offer of sexy times (sorry not sorry Empy, she's got a man and his name is Gale and she prefers him and all her friends to be tentacle-free)

Enjoy the lore and remember that it's all up to you to decide what you want to keep or reject! I'm just showing you what's out there!

Tags for those who wanted an update! @galesdevoteewife @stuffforthestash

[downbaddetective]

I'm finally coming back to one of my previous posts. (Thank you to @m-eowdy for the reminder to finish the thought. I'm sorry if it's a little disappointing after the wait.)

Specifically these two shots of Edwin being completely covered in our two most important colors, because the symbolism here is significant to me.

I lost the original thoughts that I had (unfortunately migraines make me forget things) and by the time I was feeling kind of okay I knew that there were things I wanted to say but couldn't remember how. So, instead, I sat and rewatched the show, taking notes so that I could make sure that I wasn't making anything up.

So, color symbolism in this show is so stupidly important, and it's called out by characters in universe (thank you, Niko). We obviously see our characters in their colors, Edwin in blue, Charles in red, Crystal in purple, and Niko in pink. But it's also not that cut and dry. Edwin, in all reality, is very grey, Crystal wears a lot of different colors, and so does Niko. Obviously, part of that is because the girls aren't dead and have to change their clothes, but the colors that are worn are still significant to their state of mind and the events happening around them. With Edwin and Charles, it's very similar, though a little different. Charles' red gets darker as he is more and more affected by what happens at the Devlin house. Edwin, though, barely shows his blues most of the time, but when he becomes vulnerable, he sheds his grey layers, and we see it a lot more.

Now, I think that it's worth mentioning that Edwin and Charles swap their afterlife colors, so when they look at each other, they see their afterlife. The red and blue also give us clues as to things that they're hiding. Red being often associated with anger and blue with sadness. That being said, I'm now getting to the symbolism in the fact that Edwin is one of two* characters to be washed in both hell's red and death's (heaven's?) blue like this.

Edwin's entire journey is kind of impeded by the fear of getting caught by the afterlife and being sent back to hell. Red is his constant source of fear, hell being the biggest example, but Charles in his red is also the cause of Edwin's issues. Charles is the reason why both the Cat King and Monty have some type of red associated with them during interactions with Edwin. These colors are omens for Edwin. Charles essentially shared his blue afterlife light with him. They were meant to be detectives together, and that's where it all starts, right there in that attic. The red, on the other hand, is indicative of the bullshitery that is incoming, including the worst-case scenario, aka BEING DRAGGED BACK TO HELL. RIGHT THERE. IN THE APARTMENT THAT THEY GO LOOK AT RIGHT AFTER THIS. (Even though it is definitely at least partially his own darn fault.) The fact that we see these two scenes out of order also indicates that by the end of it all Edwin has overcome the previously stated bullshitery. We see Edwin interact with these two colors as a collective much more in the show, and it's seems it's because this was Edwin's time to learn and grow, and I suspect that if we get a season two at some point, we will see that flip so that Charles can have his turn.

All in all, I am absolutely in love with the colors in this show and I will probably have more to say later but I wanted to finish at least this part of the color analysis so that I could have a resolution to the previous post. I don't think I was able to recover all of my original thoughts about the significance of these two, but I think I got a pretty good chunk of it. I do want to say that I've seen the other color analyses floating around. I will be taking a look at some point, but before doing my own, I will be avoiding them for now because I want to write about my own perception rather than accidentally just stealing other peoples work.

(* Ngl, a little worried about Jenny if we ever see a season two)

[vitamin-cunt]

hiii im a new follower and can i request a dabi x fem!domme!reader

format is full fic but if you want can you also add some headcanons at the end

kinks to add

•sadisim (reader

•masochism (dabi)

•dumbification

•frotteurism (ok idk if you make your fics automatically match with your blog theme [hospital for horny mfs like me] but can you make it so that dabi is a paitient of a hospital for sub people and reader is his most favorite doctor so theres alot of intimacy)

•master and pet themes (reader makes dabi wear a collar, very very short maid dress with frilly black lingerie, cat ears and a cat tail butt plug)

and can you make it so that the reader has a genital type quirk were reader can give people the genitals of the opposite gender and do it to herself without removing their original genital (ex. reader gives dabi a vagina and clit while still having a dick)

A/N: anon I'm in love with you. I'm on one knee rn, you have no idea (Tired asf gonna go proofread this in the morning)

CW: As stated in the ask above, GN! Pronouns, cock mentioned (can be interpreted as a strap tho), Dabi has a pussy at some point (idc, idc there's the door), fingering said pussy

Making a broken man of Dabi

What the fuck was he doing here?

Like, seriously, why the fuck was he here???

It was a strange situation, really. A hospital for incredibly lewd individuals to seek treatment-

And he of all people was here?

He didn't have lewd desires, just-

Well, fuck, he couldn't have normal sex but that didn't require an intervention or whatever this was.

He ran his tongue over his teeth as he rolled over in his hospital bed. Even the uniform was weird-

He was in a maid outfit. A black, short-ass maid dress.

"Awww, look at him blush~ Let me have him, I think we're gonna like each other."

His face burned furiosuly at the memory. When he was first admitted, he'd been uncooperative with pretty much everyone. The "doctors,"(if that's what you could even call them), the nurses, even other patients, because he wasn't like them, dammit!

He wasn't some sex-obsessed lunatic that fucked any hole in sight, he just-

He liked certain things. A lot more than most people did, but that was fine. At least he thought it was fine.

He'd scared off all but one of the staff.

You.

He couldn't make you disappear and, for whatever reason, he'd come to appreciate your presence.

You treated him more human than anyone did in this God-forsaken hell-hole. You checked on him, catered to his needs, listened to his moans and groans about this place...

He swallowed down the excitement as he realized you would be coming in today.

The one thing that set you apart from the staff was that you knew what buttons to press with him.

"I think this thong will look so cute on you~"

"You did such a good job touching yourself for me!"

"Be a good boy and lift your ass up just a little higher for me."

It was like you could read his mind.

Yeah, that was Dabi's "problem." He liked being a toy.

Your toy.

He'd always known he had a thing for being treated like shit, but he tried to keep it on the down-low.

Too bad Daddy dearest found out.

A knock came at his door, and before he could even sit up, you were entering the room, an oddly wide grin on your face.

"How's my favorite patient?"

He narrows his eyes and rolls over in his bed to face you and the door. In your hands was a duffel bag of god knows what. "You're only this happy when you have shit to try on me," he says, eyeing the bag and trying to guess what was making those bulges from every angle in it.

You laugh and ignore him despite his bite of a response. "God, Dabi, what did I tell you about keeping these blinds open?" You walk over to his window blinds and sharply close them shut, leaving the room in the eerie purple glow of the lights above. "How are you going to masturbate with any privacy in this place?"

"What, you want me in the dark all the fucking time?" He hoists himself up on one elbow and follows you as you unpack your supplies. "Yeah, the one thing that gets me hard is a dank-ass hospital room."

"Mmm, just that? Not your favorite doctor?" You fake a pout, hand halfway in the duffel. "Even after I stretched that ass last night? Even after I played with those tits?"

He throws his head back, outwardly in exasperation and inwardly with a humming arousal in his chest. Even his low sigh could be confused for an excited groan.

And one wouldn't be wrong in thinking that.

"Why do you always..." he covers his hot face, trying to put into words what he wanted to say without sounding absolutely pathetic.

But, how could one get any more pathetic laying in a maid outfit in a rehabilitation hospital for the most debauched and depraved sex-addicts?

He swallowed and began again. "You're always describing my body like...like...you know I don't have those parts, right?"

After a moment of silence, he peeks between his hand to find you smiling down at the cat ears and cat butt-plug in your hands.

Your favorites.

When you look up, its with a craze in your eyes. And why should he be surprised?

Only the most depraved could work here.

"You're saying it would make more sense to use those words if you had those..."parts?" You tilt your head innocently. Well, as innocently as someone could with a bottle of lube in their hands now accompanying the lewd accessories.

"I guess," he muttered, his hand sliding down to his jaw and muffle his voice.

He was glad you couldn't see his cock twitching to life beneath his skirt. He loved that face. The look in your eyes right before you fuck him dumb.

"Can I show you a trick?" you ask, approaching his bed and laying your "materials" next to him. "You know the position, get in it, baby," you command, before he can answer your first question.

It always takes some time to follow your first order, but he always does it. Even now, with his head buried in his folded arms and his ass in the air, exposing his thong.

"Happy?" he bites, even through the muffle of his pillow.

He hears you donning your gloves and next came the sound of lube squirting from a bottle.

"We'll tell the insurance this was a prostate exam."

A cold finger pushes itself against the entrance of his hole and then inside him, sliding in easily.

He groans in arousal and discomfort. He guessed it wasn't entirely an entirely normal thing to prefer the feeling of surgical gloves to human fingers, but why give this hospital further justification to keep him here?

"Don't rock, baby, I've told you this before."

Right. He was already fucking himself back against your fingers despite only one being inside.

Your other gloved hand rubs his ass, lifting up the skirt to see the skin beneath it.

"You're still a little red from yesterday, so I'm not gonna spank you today."

He simply nods, hypnotized when you slip in a second finger. And then a third, and, fuck, even a fourth.

This couldn't even count as prepping when you were hitting his g-spot so earnestly that you had him moaning into his pillow. But he had, notably, reduced his writhing because, dammit, you made him want to be obedient.

And just like that, you'd slipped your fingers out, leaving him feeling empty.

"Fuck, if you're gonna prep, then fucking prep, don't..." he swallows as he realized he'd crossed a line.

Never back talk.

"I-I just mean...because it's like you're teasing..." he stutters out weak follow-up after weak follow-up, trying to backtrack from his outburst.

But, to his shock, you don't get angry at him. You laugh, in fact. Soon, something metal was pressing against him and after a moment, the metal plug end of the cattail slips inside him and slotted itself perfectly as he'd grown accustomed to.

Even then he arches his back and pants.

What were you playing at?

Any other day you would have punished him to senseless tears for the way he talked to you, but now?

He's pulled from his pondering when you adorn him with the cat ears.

"On your back, Kitty," you say, walking away to change your gloves. He obeys, wondering if you were going to come back with a cock ring like you'd had last night.

But, besides the fresh pair of gloves, you'd come back empty-handed.

He was really concerned now, especially as you mounted the bed with a grin that left his thighs trembling and his mind buzzing.

"Fuck's going on?" He growled, testing his luck with his mouthiness.

You don't answer, instead choosing to lean forward and press your lips to his. He'd kissed you before, but this...

Why was he suddenly hot? Like, burning, he...he hadn't activated his quirk, had he?

Suddenly, a buzzing emerged from between his legs. Then, a dampness in his thong. Finally, a sudden wave of inexplicable pleasure.

"Wh-what the fuck!? Why do I- mmmmh, it's not supposed to feel wet down there, what did you- ahhh- what did you do???"

He squirmed beneath you, the hospital bed creaking loudly as it usually did during your encounters. His face burned as a new warmth overtook his loins, one that he'd never felt before.

He rubbed his thighs together, trying to rid himself of the incessant ache, but you place your knees between them before he can really do anything.

"Why're you so freaked out?" You say above him, removing your scrub top. "It's just sex therapy!"

"Bullshit." His eyes scan your bare chest and abdomen, having seen it for the first time ever, really.

You laugh lightly through your nose. "Okay...Just sit still while your master plays with your little pussy, okay?"

"I told you, it's weird when- ah- haaah~ fuck!" His eyes went wide as your fingers slipped past his thong and inside him.

But not his ass.

All he heard was the slick squelch of your fingers penetrating him, and before he knew it, he was arched against his bed, gasping and reaching for the thin, cheap sheets above him.

He couldn't stop the moans, the uncharacteristic whines, the sounds coming from his- his-

"Your pussy's dripping for me, baby~" you laugh.

You gave him a pussy. What was worse was that you gave him a pussy and he liked it.

He could feel you scissoring in his walls, just like you did in his ass but it was different, this wasn't the same, it would never be the same-

He covered his face, you couldn't see him like this. Fine, make him wear the tail and the ears, keep him in the outfit, watch him roll his hips against your hand as you fold your fingers inside him-

But he'd be damned if he let you see the blissed tears running down his burning cheeks.

"Are you gonna cum, already?" You tease, noting his tells. His moans turning to breathless pants and a repeat of soft "uhn, uhn, uhn", his thighs trembling, his covering his face. "I didn't even get my dick inside you yet!"

You inside him? When he could feel every movement of your fingers, the aching of his- his clit-

He couldn't take it, even the idea of being filled-

"Not yet, Kitty." You removed your fingers from inside him, once again rendering him empty.

But it wasn't the same, this time, this time he felt as though he could cry. The tears fell faster now, he couldn't even hide them.

What were you doing to him?

He was crying because you wouldn't keep fingering his pussy!?

Furthermore, he was rejoicing when you'd slipped a bit of your cock inside him, his pussy clenching around nothing but air and your tip.

This is crazy, this is insane-

"Ohhh shitttt, ohhh shittt~ yes, fill me up, fill me up!"

He sounded insane-

"I know it's against protocol to directly penetrate your patients, but for you?" You whisper as you lean down and it let him get adjusted. "I couldn't let anyone else be the first person to use this pussy~"

You quickly grow impatient of letting him adjust and it shows because soon, light rocking turns to full-on thrusts in and out of him, fuck the slapping noise it made, fuck the squelching noise it made, fuck how loud he got-

Fuck, he was so loud-

He doesn't know what to do with himself but sit back and take it. Take getting pounded mercilessly like a little bitch.

"Seems like after tonight, you'll fit in with the other patients, hm?" You grab his jaw and turn his dissenting face back in your direction. "Think I trained my Kitty well, don't you?"

He could barely understand you, not with you grabbing the tops of his thighs and pulling his hips down into yours as you slam up into him.

"Tell me you deserve to be here, baby. Tell me you're just a depraved sex slut like the rest of the patients."

He wanted to reply, he really wanted to, but how could he when his tongue was sticking out of his mouth and his eyes were stuck in the back of his head?

"C'mon, baby, I know you can do it. Tell me you're no different, c'mon, let me hear it, baby."

"Haaaah, I'm n-no different! I-I'm the same! I deserve this!"

It wasn't much, but even you knew that he would cum before you could get more out of him, at least at the rate you were going. And, frankly, you didn't want to stop.

In fact, you wanted to take things a step further.

You grab his cock, the same cock that he'd barely registered still having, and began stroking.

And that was all that it took for Dabi, because seconds later he was clenching around you as tight as he could and cumming. It was almost like a double orgasm, what with his spurting white cum onto his black dress, and cumming clenched around you. White hot shocks sent his paralyzed body into brief jerking motions and the pleasure was immense beyond his understanding.

He would deal with the implications of this event when he wasn't still coming down from his high.

"Remember this the next time you complain about how I describe you, Dabi. Because you might just get what you wish for."