#although welcome back

[thewolfisawake]

Well that was one way to end a mission, Aspis thought as he headed back to his lodging. It had been another drop in an awful week. And certainly not one wanted to explain to his hunter friends. Not when he'd finally felt he'd finally bounced back from the last incident. With the buzz within the Bastion and all of them called to deal with something going round...Aspis couldn't bring himself to figure some excuse.

The pain was getting worse. Sure, it always hurt, but he's never had it spike as it had has been lately. And the random bout was paralyzing. And boy had it cost him during assignment. A fall here. Dropping a belay there. And the latest being slammed with a mindsplitting pain that ended with claws that dug towards muscle. He couldn't continue with that injury...well, he could, but those he was assigned with couldn't in good conscience do so. And with another bout of a migraine...Aspis was in no mood to argue.

While normally Aspis could find a joy in mundane walks in the perpetually foreign streets he found himself amidst zooming store fronts and walkers. A static lingered in the air. The closest thing he could describe it was when spirits attempted contact or possession...but it wasn't that? Like there was something there but he was unable to hear it.

All of it reminded him of...of his early days. An iciness rushed through his veins. He didn't want to go back to that again. He had just gotten to where things were okay. He'd dug himself from his mired reputation, he'd made friends, he'd even started to make peace through his godfather...

But hadn't it been like this? The pain that made him useless, a liability? A lack of understanding that made him a liar and unreliable? The combination thereof that made him a burden and made others turn away?

That time had been hazy since regaining bits of his memory. But the wrongness--this dread--that seized him brought a frightening clarity. And those memories...a wave of nausea had him retching in a nearby bin. His hands shook from force and tears that threatened him.

"Not again," he murmured, sinking to a crouch. His hands clung to the rim, "...why can't I be okay, just once...?"

[catliker49]

Surprise!

Quite literally! I have Finally drawn again! I am so Happy! My style is a bit rough.. or perhaps I should say... ruff! (Haha, sorry!) but that's just because I have not drawn anything other than my Final Piece for the past few months!

OH!! SPEAKING OF! I GOT DISTINCTIONS IN EVERYTHING! HAHA! (The highest grade for everything! Yay!) OOH! And! Final thing.. I am starting to use my name for my Signature, so, if you can spot it, that is why it does not say Catliker :O)

[catrinaroseprince]

Listen, Jackles, we know you have something to announce, and the funniest possible venue just opened up…

[tethered-heartstrings]

hiii! just wanted to give everyone a heads up that I am having gender-affirming surgery next week and will very likely not be on very much if at all as I recover. I will try and have memes and posts scheduled but I probably won't be able to make more when those run out. I'll also up my queue/rb my old posts. in my absence please feel free to check out my ao3/fic masterlist and older memes/metas/etc. or my ko-fi if you like what i make!

[beginnerblueglass]

I was telling my sister about Titans, and she was like, “the whole Bruce/Dick/Jason storyline is like the prodigal son story, with the older and younger brothers' positions switched,” and I was like ohhhh???

[carpthecarp]

It’s Ed’s birthday 🗣️

[galaxseacreature]

[pciu3-r]

Stitcher said you do “solo missions”

I was wondering what kinds of things you do during a solo mission?

Archivist Frank @ask-archivist-frank

[signed-sapphire]

An idea came to mind, how about drawing a crossover between rottmnt and your Wish Au? It could be Michelangelo and Asha sharing their drawings!

My Apple Pencil is back but now my iPad is dead… so take this traditional doodle of TFS!Asha and Rise!Mikey sharing drawings of their best friends! Well, Meat Sweats is Mikey’s best friend, and Asha is Cielo’s best friend.

Believe it or not this is my first actual Rise fanart

[potentiallypolyglot]

Last day of work at the job I've worked for 7 years.

7 days until I get on a plane and move to China.

[lil-grem-draws]

Dedicating this to everyone who has ever been involved in the Nosy the Niffler roleplay or has been following his chaos for a while. @kiwiplaetzchen is a true blessing. All hail Kiwi, the mightiest Kiwi and her Nosy! 🥝

[elliemarchetti]

The Snake and the Wolf

Chapter 3 - Hounds

The plot took over this story, as did the POV changes. I hope @erisweek2023 readers are ready for a complete detachement from the canonical events of the book, because the moment of Nesta's escape has arrived.

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 4

Words: 1.281

Nesta didn’t know how she got to the stony coast of the Night Court. One moment she was walking down the steps of the House of Wind and the next she was running away from Velaris, crushed by guilt and fear of what Rhysand might do to her. She gave away his secret, she gave back to Feyre what had been taken from her, and now she no longer had a home. Her mind raced to Gwyn and Emerie, to what might happen to them, since Cassian and Azriel knew they were her closest friends. She had to find a way to make them escape, to warn them to get to safety, because Nesta knew that the High Lord would try to enter their minds to see if they had any idea of her whereabouts. She hadn’t told Feyre that her first pregnancy would also be her last just because she had a good heart, but deep down they all knew she deserved to go to her death with her pride intact, like she already did to free them all. Furthermore, there was probably a solution to the problem. Considering how they took the fact that Feyre possessed a drop of everyone’s powers, Nesta doubted that the High Lords would’ve ever agreed to bring her back to life again, but maybe another Death-God resided somewhere, trapped in a mountain or a tree, and Rhysand could’ve sold his black soul to save his Mate. Nesta wondered if she would’ve done it in his place, given the chance, but didn’t like the answer she found within her, so she resumed her walk, going further and further south, with the sand under her bare feet and the now cold water lapping at her ankles with the rhythmic motion of the waves. She’d never been to the seaside before. If the situation had been different, she would’ve tried swimming, and then she would’ve found a house and wrote to Elain how beautiful it was, and how she had nothing to fear, unlike when she was thrown into the Cauldron, but the situation was no different and there were no villages in sight, so Nesta’s only hope was to reach a Court willing to help her before Rhysand tracked her down. In the library, she had read countless books that explained how to defend herself from the powers of a daemati, but since she hadn’t met any other beside her sister’s husband, she didn’t know if she was using those techniques well or if even a child could’ve destroyed her mind with just a snap of the fingers. Another incentive to keep up the pace, until her knees gave in and her vision went blurry from exhaustion. Before the Valkyries, before she rediscovered the joy of having purpose and friends, she would’ve gladly accepted the oblivion, better than the one provided by alcohol, but now she realized she had reasons to live, places to explore and lessons to learn. Allowing herself the luxury of dreaming, Nesta would’ve liked to visit the Autumn Court first, that enchanted and colourful place described in the novels she had shared with the House. She was sorry she had to leave it behind, even if it was depressing to say that her first, true friend in the Night Court hadn’t been a person but the darkness inside a building. Maybe, in honour of that bond, she would’ve indulged its desire to delve deeper into her powers, now that she didn't have to endure the pressures of the Inner Circle, or maybe she would’ve not, her life as Fae full of possibilities, if only she managed to survive and crawl out of the niche in the rocks where she had taken refuge for the night.

She though she would’ve woke up because of the humidity, or the pangs of hunger and thirst, but she discovered to her amazement that it was something wet touching her hand that shook her from her torpor. Even opening her eyes, caked by the salty air, cost her immense effort, but the cries of the creature managed to completely steal her from her dreamless sleep. The dog, clearly a hound of some sort, had a long and slender body, his ribs almost protruding from how thin it was, but it was its muzzle that struck her, so elongated and elegant, and at the same time almost grotesque, with those big eyes and short ears hanging down at the sides of its small head. It was the strangest beast she’d ever seen, yet something in her desired to reach out to pet it, to seek some comfort in its short gray fur. It must’ve been an excellent hunter, judging by its long sharp teeth, but it was also very playful, seeing how happily it wiggled its tail while she scratched its belly. Nesta had always wanted a pet, not necessarily a dog, perhaps a cat or a bunny would’ve sufficed, but her mother always forbade it, and her father never bothered to get her one, despite the huge numbers of requests. It wasn’t noble enough to take care of something else beside themselves, and when they fell from grace, it was too much, yet Nesta knew she had it in her to be a trainer, perhaps a little soft-hearted if all puppies had the same expression as the creature she was snuggling at the moment, but always attentive to her pet’s needs.

“Where is your owner? Are you lost?” she asked as if it could answer, her voice hoarse after more than a whole day of not using it. It had been a meaningless question, to which she certainly hadn’t expected to receive a reply, but the dog stood up on his long legs and ran out of the niche, into the sunlight flooding the dark beach. Nesta followed with great difficulty, but the beast didn’t move any more, as if it was waiting for her to catch up. They went on like this for hours,  the dog advancing and Nesta dragging herself through the sand to reach him, until the sun almost completed its descent arc and another dog barked in the distance. Nesta knew they couldn’t have moved too far, not with her in those conditions, but all those animals could mean only that she’d reached a town, and the larger the settlement, the more the possibilities of someone offering asylum to a dying young female, at least for a few hours. Her bones ached even more at the thought of a soft bed, and her stomach growled as she pictured every kind of food known to both men and Fae, but although she was almost certain the sun had burned the exposed skin on her arms, the worst torture had been the dryness in her mouth, which made it difficult to even swallow the little saliva she had left. At some point, when imagination and reality began to merge, she heard someone call her name, and a male figure appeared at the horizon, the burning red of the sun the same shade as his hair. The glorious hallucination approached her at a brisk pace, one dog at its heels and the other trotting alongside, satisfied with its distressed discovery. A pair of muscular arms, thinner than Cassian’s but no less strong, caught her before she could fall to the ground again, and Nesta could’ve sworn the smell of burnt wood, fresh apples and sweet cinnamon engulfed her as it used to do when her maids cooked her favourite treats.

“I found you,” murmured a familiar voice, full of concern and apprehension, its owner’s face buried in her matted hair. “I’m here, and we’re going home.”

[unwelcomeoutside]

Hellooooo! How have you been? It feels like forever!

(this question is to anyone)

[dylanconrique]

aw c'mon, why'd i have to get my period on a saturday???? 😩😩

[pinkeoni]

Actually nightmare post-show scenario is Jopper stays in Hawkins to be cops

[mav-the-artist]

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY