#au ideas for myself to enjoy :3c

[the-owl-tree]

oh my GOD I love your isekai warriors au.... I love that the isekai trope is becoming a lot more popular, especially in anime... please tell me more about it!!

shaking ur hand rn hello fellow isekai anime/other mediums fan :3c FIRST lemme go on my tangent about this genre and my main inspo because wow this got way too long lol

isekai is total comfort food for me haha it's my go to genre of manga/manwha/webcomic reading whenever i'm feeling down and while i generally feel the genre is getting bloated and somewhat stale in anime, i still enjoy it quite a bit. It's a cute idea with a lot of potential, i just wish less of the shows went for the wish fulfillment route of things since we have so many by now.

mine is very inspired by a lot of korean manwha style stories in which the protag gets trapped in a show/game/book/etc. and has to deal with it, specifically what if you became the villain of a story. A lot of them play off the trope of the one dimensional evil villainess and how an average person would have to deal with coming into the body of someone like that and dealing with consequences. That, or it's the tragic villain, someone's who's life is marred by tragedy usually of their own doing.

The most interesting ones are those that play on how character archetypes would actually work in the story. The cold bad boy is just a shitty abusive guy, the shy guy who follows the girl is kind of a stalker, and so on.

One of my bigger inspirations was a plotline that also stuck out to me: a teen girl who died too soon and got reincarnated as the mother of the protagonist. obviously she has no clue what to do, she's a kid who wants to go home! And the only way she thinks she can is by ensuring the story goes as planned (and this of course is doomed from the start, unbeknownst to her, the villain is a reincarnater too and has already made tremendous changes). She dies and the reader never knows if she gets to go home or not. It's kind of this rough around the edges gem of an idea that I love and obviously had to steal for myself.

note for anyone getting intrigued by my descriptions uh a lot of these stories tend to be pretty shallow in their exploration. this subgenre consists a lot more of wish fulfillment/revenge fantasies comparatively to like a deep dive of "oh my god i've fucked up the narrative". Not to say they don't have interesting ideas! many are super interesting. just like. temper your expectations if you're going in

originally the story was gonna be set in a canon arc but that felt boring so i decided to just make up a whole story for it

The story is meant to be a (loving) poke at old fanfiction, common tropes in the aforementioned subgenre of isekai, and just a general ""cliche"" Warriors series (in the human universe here, I figured it's call Battlers/Battle Cats or something stupid lmao). In this story, Frostblaze is born into [ONE OF THE FOUR FAKE CLANS I HAVENT FIGURED OUT NAMES YET IM SORRY]. She's the born to an unnamed mother who tragically died of illness when she was just a young baby and has no clue who her father is.

She's isolated from her peers due to her eyes which some believe are an omen of her unnaturality. This only worsens when she is apprenticed to their Clan leader and causes Honeypaw, the daughter of the Clan leader, to become enraged with jealousy. She is one of Frostpaw's worst tormentors in the early parts of the book and eventually, during a battle, tries to off Frostpaw herself....but is killed by Frostpaw's love interest, the dashing and handsome (if a bit stupid) Eaglepaw of [INSERT RIVAL CLAN HERE].

The two hit it off (Honeypaw is an after thought at this point) and work together to stop the eeevviilll leader of uuhh eviiiiilll clan. They win, live happily ever after, Frost is actually their Clan leader's daughter and Honeypaw is her half-sister and blah blah blah.

At least, they're supposed to. Honeypaw, out hunting, is hit by a truck at the same time a human is. Human wakes up as a cat about to be buried because everyone thinks Honeypaw is dead and freaks the fuck out.

A lot of the plot points are kind of just me working through my gripes of the subgenre lmao:

"the person who is reincarnated is more adept and cool and better than their character and everyone loves them" -> Honey is awkward, neurotic, and can come off as rude to those who don't know her. Even her coolest trait, her wrestling ability, is off-putting because oh my god why are you putting a cAT IN A SPIDER GUARD THEIR SPINES DON'T BEND LIKE THAT HONEY PUT HIM BACK TO NORMAL-

She reread the story before she died but, because she has no pen, no paper, and sadly of all, no thumbs, she's unable to write it down to keep remembering it when she gets sent to this world. It's awful and she desperately wishes she had thumbs back.

she stands on two legs, makes weird comments alluding to being a human, and just is a bit of a weirdo. Honeypaw was isolated for being mean, Honey is isolated for making everyone uncomfortable (unintentionally). However, her isolation allows her to slip under the radar and do some more investigating, as she's noticed that some of the details in the story aren't adding up...

The story is strange and the characters aren't as she remembers now that they're in the flesh. Of course, her main priority is to thwart Honeypaw's assassination attempts, the spirit being intent that the way to get her body back is if she dies again. It's only from a near death experience that they realize that that's not gonna work and have to work together to change the story so they don't die!

and, as many people have pieced together, they're not alone.

[clood]

ao3 wrapped [writers edition]

MUAHAHAH time to be super annoying >:3c [copies and pastes the ones i've answered via ask]

1. How many words have you written this year? me: sees this question and immediately whips out the phone calculator this year i wrote 39,118 words! nowhere near as much as the freakish anomaly that was 2022, but still nothing to sneeze at ;) this is also not counting a SECRET WORK that i cannot reveal yet... that puts me at 41,208 heehee

2.How many works did you publish this year?

a nice, even 10!

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

because of the nature of the reverse bang and getting to create a fic for someone else's art, i am very proud of both rose-tinted and play pretend. particularly play pretend, because i think i achieved the princess bride vibe i was going for.

then of course i am so proud of myself for venturing into the one piece world with i'll leave it to you, which i don't consider to be good very at all but it marks the point where i took a little leap and shared something in a new space! growth!

4. What work of yours has the most hits?

only human, no contest. such is the nature of multichapter and big bang works xD

5. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

i'll leave it to you was so unexpected! with hxh being a relatively quieter fandom, i had no idea i would get as much engagement on a silly little oneshot in the one piece fandom as i did. bizarre.

goes to show that metrics like kudos and comments and hits are all fake and you should just write what makes you happy.

6. Favorite title you used

not so bad (after all) is such a good, classic something (something else) ao3 title xD

7. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most?

y'all. i'm being so for real when i tell you i am SHOCKED AND AMAZED at the fact that i did not use one single song lyric this year. what happened.

8. Pairing you wrote the most for this year?

LEOPIKA!!! you can tell i was in a leorio phase this year

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year?

LEOPIKAAAA!!! see above ;)

10. What work was the quickest to write?

the figurine disaster came so quick because it was so fucking funny in my head xD

11. What work took you the longest to write?

longest because of its length would obvi be only human. longest in terms of the emotional toll it took for me to figure out what the hell i was doing is nearly a tie between not so bad (after all) and play pretend.

12. How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year?

hmmm only the one that's been sitting in my wips for nearly 3 years now. librarian/florist au i will destroy you.

13. What’s your longest work of the year?

my longest work this year is my hxhbb fic, only human, which sits at 16,724 words.

14. What’s your shortest work of the year?

omg so fun. conversely, my shortest work this year is the figurine disaster, a fic written for the greed island challenge server i help shal and liv run! this one has 1,221 words.

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

please see question 12 orz

16. What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag?

y'all i am so shit at tagging things on ao3. tie between fluff and missing scene, which only have 2 works each xD

17. Your favorite character to write this year?

LEORIO!!!!! i had so much fun with leorio this year, i'm so glad i found my rhythm with him this year because every fic with him has been so much fun to think about.

18. The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year?

oof i think i butchered melody, tbh. not so bad (after all) was SO HARD to write because i didn't know who the hell melody was deep inside the way i felt i did leorio, so it feels really unbalanced imo. however, i am still proud of that work and i think the one person it was written for enjoyed it, so that's all that matters!

19. What’s one pairing you want to explore next year?

leozep... more zosan... shuggy... i read this question wrong and therefore will not choose one

20. Which work of yours have you reread the most?

through sheer force of will in editing, i suppose only human.

through the absolute giddiness of entering a new fandom, i'll leave it to you.

21. How many kudos in total did you get this year?

495. fic with most kudos was full bloom, merokomu fans have good taste

22. Which work has the most comments?

only human, as my only multichapter fic this year

23. Did you do any collaborative works this year?

if reverse bb fics count, then yes: rose-tinted and play pretend. otherwise, not this year!

24. Did you write any gifts this year?

yes!!!!! rose-tinted, play pretend, whisper in the wind, girl stuff, full bloom, and housewarming! 60% of this year's fics were gifted!

25. Did you receive any gifts this year?

YES SOBS. my dear sweet selkie wrote me THREE gifts this year and then some friends in the greed island server came together with gifts!!! for mods!! where Fathomless_Crazy wrote Paint This Paling Town and i wept about it

26. What’s your most common category?

M/M lmao with gen in second place

27. What do you listen to while writing?

i think this year i was a total weirdo and sat in silence. i do have a tunes for typing playlist though with no words to distract me that's just a mix of classical, videogame and anime soundtracks, and some random lofi

28. Favorite work you wrote this year?

maybe rose-tinted? or honestly the figurine disaster was kind of funny. although i did really have fun with i'll leave it to you. GAH.

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

oh christ. after brief reflection, i think the following chunk from my most recent fic and foray into the one piece fandom, i'll leave it to you, wins. the drama!! the angst!!

The reality is, Sanji has no idea what he’s doing, or even if he’s helping Zoro or just making everything worse. His hands, his goddamn fucking hands still tremble, and no amount of nicotine can help him now and—god fucking dammit Zoro is just bleeding through all the bandages Sanji is wrapping around him, staining a silk tiger crimson. So he keeps wrapping. There is nothing left for him to do but use up all the goddamn bandages he has. Sanji isn’t a god-fearing man, but as he works he is praying to whatever gods favor Wano—or don't, given what he’s seen of this desolate country—that he isn’t paralyzing or killing Zoro as he works.

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?

probably that i didn't do very much of it this year! i don't know where all the time went... through this it was a pleasant surprise to find that over half of my fics this year were gifts, so that's fun!

PHEW. now i cast the plague upon ye and tag everyone in the world who sees this to do it too :)

[maniacwatchestheworld]

tag 9 people you want to know better

I was tagged by @arkhana

3 ships: How about... Mia/Moreau from Resident Evil Village... Emmet/Johanna from Pokemon... And... (former) Wheeljack/Shockwave from Transformers Cyberverse lol I like a lot of ships. And I know. I’m disappointed that two of these are straight too. But Mia/Moreau is my weird little monsterfucker ship that I and only I enjoy from the RE8 fandom, and I’ve been working on something for my Coordinator!Emmet AU which would eventually (probably) end with Emmet and Johanna getting platonically married to meme on Ingo and for tax benefits lol. Wheeljack/Shockwave is here because I’ve recently been watching Transformers: Cyberverse and Wheeljack and Shockwave are TOTALLY exes and I love it! Shockwave’s probably my favorite character in Cyberverse since its version of Starscream is just... SO BAD! Cyberverse has a good version of Shockwave. Still has that classic loyalty from gen 1, while being an unethical scientist like later iterations. Also he kept his severed hand around and programmed it to float around and do stuff for him, and I find that HILARIOUS! Cyberverse Shockwave is a good iteration of him! Even though his vibes are RANCID lol. Oh, but as a bonus to the person who tagged me, @penquinlori​ and I have talked A LOT about Bernadette Beneviento/Salvatore Moreau as an idea. Basically the idea was that Sal was engaged to Bernadette (Donna’s aunt) some time before he started undergoing the cadou experiments. At some point Miranda took Bernadette for experiments and she died. Sal was away from the village at the time and so was never really made privy to what happened to his fiance. Sal’s brother Mihai may have also been involved in all of this too. It’s all very heartbreaking and I love it. >:3c And we’ve both been working on fic that features this relationship. :p

1st ever ship: I think it must’ve been... Naruto/Hinata from Naruto...? Because that was the first fandom that I like... REALLY got into...? Yeah, boring, I know. Like maybe I shipped May/Ash from Pokemon before that? Hard to say. But I remember shipping Naruto/Hinata pretty hard when I was a kid. Though I did have an OC that I made to be with Gaara lol

last song: If we’re not counting the theme song from the Ghost and Molly McGee or the music from Encanto... According to Spotify the last song I listened to was Smoke Damage by Hi I’m Case. Though I’ve also had Sarah by the Derina Harvey Band and Never Love an Anchor by The Crane Wives stuck in my head lately lol

last movie: Encanto (I just wanted a good cry, you know? Honestly, I didn’t cry as much as I would have liked. I could probably use some more good cries. >.< )

currently reading: Uhhhhhh... I’m REAL bad about reading things. I’m a very slow reader and can mostly only focus on like... Manga... (Which I’ll read a volume in one sitting) so the best I can come up with is like... Metro 2033...? Which I haven’t gotten around to reading in like... Over a year... >.< I guess you can maybe count The Promised Neverland too. I like reading that one when I go to the library.

currently watching: The Ghost and Molly McGee (literally in the other window while I wait for it to load a little lol)

currently consuming: Peppermint tea with chocolate truffles as the sweetener lol

currently craving: Soup and orange juice (will have after I’m done with the tea)

I was also tagged to create myself in in this picrew.

I’m very pleased about all of the options for black people, but man... Not a lot of options for more masculine presenting people who aren’t black in this picrew... Though to be fair, this is a Japanese site and I’m Asian, so I usually have tons of options lol. Little disappointed they didn’t have a darker brown for eyes and hair in this picrew either. :p

tagging (but only do this if you want to): @penquinlori​ @steeltypeloverbecca​ @keets-writing-corner​ @momodarling89​ @xenoverse2194​ @waywardstation​ @detectivesnickers​ @bonf​ @trashbunnysblog​ @zeco5000​

[hexfloog]

Hi! This is Numbkid from AO3, the one who wrote "The Puppeteer" and commented on your fic.

Thanks for sharing your Tumblr, I enjoyed consuming all the Evil Conan AU. I'm really glad to find more people who'd like to see Conan as "evil". Back when I wrote that fic in 2016 in FFnet, it wasn't well-received as much. I thought I was the only one who wanted to explore that kind of AU (and I felt lonely).

I really like the way Conan looks as evil in your drawings. I also read the short comic where Hattori Heiji is confronted by evil Conan.

Did you know his VA also voiced Envy (an antagonist in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood)? This makes it easier for me to imagine him saying all these evil things and having an evil laugh due to the character Envy.

Hi, glad you found your way here!!

I don't claim to have a good gauge on the fandom or anything but I've mostly been under the impression DCMK+Horror Enjoyers are few in number. I'm pretty picky about the kind of horror I enjoy, myself, so even among general horror fans it's a bit hard to find people with similar tastes. But we're here, and adjacent to the Angst Enjoyer crowd, too! You're definitely not alone :)

Thanks for taking the time to go through all the Evil Conan AU stuff though!! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it-- and I'm delighted to hear you enjoy how evil he looks in particular!! Sadistic glee, calculated malevolence, and just about any flavor of demonic is 100% my favorite kind of expression to depict with any character so it tickles me to hear when it makes an impression on someone :3c

I've certainly lost momentum over the last few months but I do still think about the AU and it tends to be on the brain as I grind my way through Detco episode by episode. I may not be writing or drawing as much but I'm happy to answer questions and entertain ideas and scenarios if you have them! That tends to be how I flesh out AUs anyway (piecemeal, that is). My asks are always open ***though I don't guarantee a response, let alone a swift one.

Sooo I've not actually watched any FMA, ever,,, Please be gentle LMAO it's been on my anime bucket list for years alongside some other quintessential titles but I just haven't been able to will myself to get started :') It's so hard to start watching something without any inertia. But that's a fun little fact, I'll keep that in mind going into it!

***Edit after queuing, after I went looking for examples: OH NO WHAT HAVE YOU DONE (affectionate)

[thomine]

slo's playlist of thoughts

description: going to talk about AU August (2023 edition) and the state it's currently in, brief 4.0 thoughts (no spoilers), and just general tomfoolery updates on life. | 16/08/23

i'm still working on thoma's story for AU august. it is 1197 words long and i just reched the mid-point of the plan. quite excited for this as it's a bit different (and darker) than what i usually write. the nature of noir is not fun and games after all.

thoma's work will be posted when i finish it. i'll probably work on it with the prompt of the day.

for works that i've missed (itto, gorou), i will only get to them after the challenge. i will write according to the day's prompt.

i could also just release the notes/ideas i have for the days i've missed, but i started this challenge not just to train myself to think of ideas on the fly but to also implement them. i think i can come up with ideas pretty fast. it's the execution i need to polish.

on that note, feel free to ask for the notes and questions of each AU if you'd like! i will gladly share them :3c the beauty of these AUs is that it's not solidified? meaning that a lot of things can change so feel free to give your own input and we can roll the ball from there :3c

did you know that freminet's "name" in chinese is feimini and that sounds so cute. did you know that i'm eyeing freminet as my favourite character from fontaine. did you know that this is possibly kaveh all over again (LMAO).

i have been busy since there's a lot of things coming up so i'll take a while to respond, but i'm always very grateful to those that leave a nice comment on my fics... i can't believe you read through that wall of grammar and spelling mistakes...

here's a few things i have in mind after AU august: 1. proofread and edit the stories while... 2. writing the prompts i missed. then... 3. post the notes for each AU before continuing... 4. 10 confessions and when that's complete, write... 5. my cyno wip

i might hibernate as i work on my cyno wip, but when i return with my newly birthed creation i hope you guys enjoy it!! might work on requests here and there when i can :3c

as per the poll, i will remain as thomine. i'm glad people find this nickname cute. i find it so cute.

[twig-in-a-wizard-hat]

Trying live blogging again :D

looks at tw: FEAR

I guess the maestro would brand Lex tho.

Still wonder if the music teacher is a vamp (old maestro spawn, now dead, or some poor sap who lived too close).

I wonder if not telling Anders technically saved Anders, since I doubt the Maestro would let some human snoop around, forget about trying to save a thrall of his. Though it might've been the only thing that could've saved him (if Anders somehow became/was a vampire hunter).

Au where Lex is still turned and Anders rescues him perhaps (feels like lots of angsty potential).

"He arrived at a manor as icy as its occupant." I like this line C:

Just realizing with the maestro kidnapping the ballerina the cycle really is repeating itself >:3c >:O

Whow, Lex cite singing

"'You are mistaken. You came here to see if you are worthy of instruction.' " , aw nu this man is doom for sure. He should've read the bad vibes and noped out, probably regretted that for the rest of his life and unlife :c .

"He certainly wouldn't be coming back." oh something really bad is coming isn't it.

"One hundred and sixty." - Maestro, in his absolute insanity. That's actually pretty impressive for Lex tho, I would assume. I applaud him, virtually.

aw nu this must mean the Maestro decided Lex was for keepers. (He absolutely is a keeper tho, just not for the maestro). Well.... did half forget some... unsavory opinions he has with humans, but i'mma gloss over that as compared to the maestro he is a saint rn.

"While music is my passion, I don't think it's reasonable to aim for perfection. That's an impossible goal." Agreed.

"'So you aspire to mediocrity, then, as does the rest of humanity,' he said. 'Very well. The choice has been taken from your hands. I have made my decision. I will train you.'" uh oh. Also this dude will never be happy fr. If he wasn't so hard headed and cold hearted I bet the idea that his perfectionism keeps him from enjoying anything and making meaningful relationships would hit hard.

The fleeting ghost of a twisted smile appeared on his face. oh no x2, also I wonder if this is one of the few times the Maestro smiles. Also scratch what I said about him not enjoying stuff cuz of perfectionism. I think he does enjoy something and it's tormenting others and flaunting his power.

"Is that so?" gives the vibes of a cat lifting it's paw over a mouse before it inevitably traps it.

"His eyes went wide with terror even as every other muscle in his body tensed, caught mid-step. He tried to take another step, to move his arms, to even make the smallest movement of his fingers. No part of his body would respond to his most desperate entreaties, completely paralyzed except for his pounding heart and ragged breathing. He couldn't blink, couldn't shout." oh no x3

The maestro must be pretty powerful thought to not have needed any induction, though I wonder if part of the "singing lesson/prove urself" was in part that. The Maestro breaking down an unwitting Lex before he could really register it.

"All humans must obey me, just as the ocean must obey the moon" that vampire hunter is so going to wreck him C:< "It's a simple, unchangeable fact." he will be so unawares C:<

"I'm a far more miserable creature, a lonely thing that must rely on the blood of inferior beings in order to survive. In short, a vampire." he's going to bite him now, isn't he.

"And that meant that he was going to die, wasn't he?", rip, prob wished he'd died there lol (but also very much rip). Poor guy for many years got fate worse then death. May he have many years of thrall and spawn and spawn's thrall snuggles as compensation.

"The placid, unreadable look did not leave the Maestro's face as he slapped Lex lightly across the cheek." true colors totally revealed *gasp*

"Instead, you should wish for them to forget you, rather than perish by my hand." previous predictions confirmed.

"I'm loathe to indulge myself in the pleasures of consumption, but even I cannot ignore my earthly needs forever." (points) puritan. omg wait he's supposed to be super old.... maybe he is. small rip for the maestro, that would explain a lot.

"I will take you to your chambers now," omg is the maestro going to cuddle him. (for warmth).

"where a chair by the fireplace and a stack of books waited for him." aw man it must've been so long since he'd seen a library.

"Lex fervently wished that he would not investigate, lest he find himself in this same hell./If he were fortunate, his dear friend would never find this place, even if it meant Lex would never see him again." suspicions confirmed :D (poor Lex tho, he is now becoming sad wet cat).

"so he sank into an unnatural, agitated sleep full of nightmares that he could not wake from." great line :D

"Lex would rate this experience one star." omg the thought of the Maestro's different thralls/sired rating his manor. All of them leaving horrible reviews except a few Maestro puppeted (I don't think he'd actually care, or understand how a "Yelp" worked, but see my vision) that sound like a cross between a bot and a old person who doesn't understand how to write on the internet. (maybe he'd do it cuz too many humans where snooping around the "one star murder manor". "vologging" with their strange metal boxes, and he got annoyed at having to kill them too often.)

"Next week, Fitz is doing extremely okay. " aw nu. I have a feeling he is very much not. I wonder if it's cuz it all goes VERY south with the hunter plan, or "present" time line Fitz gets a surprise visit from we know who.

---

Hope I didn't some off as too aggressive to the maestro, I think I did but I don't wanna re read everything to edit rn :/ . He is a great villan tho, one u love to hate :D .

At some point for some reason I was trying to come up with a good way to turn the maestro's name into a catchy insult to get under his skin, and came up with Mc Stickyface. do with this as you will, but I found the childness of it hilarious and had to share. I think/hope he'd get annoyed fast with someone calling him that.

was wondering at some point how to make a read more link, and just found it, but I'm too lazy to fiddle with that rn, so have at ye with the live blog/reaction to the chapter. I hope it was entertaining at the least C:

The Rare Bookseller Part 65: Alexander's Lesson

Previous > Masterlist

tw: kidnapping, branding, body control, blood drinking

December 1815

Lex was glad that he'd made it out the door early, especially since Anders wouldn't stop badgering him about where he was heading on such a cold night. He'd made up some excuse about an errand, but he seriously doubted his ability to keep this secret from Anders for long. Maybe once he'd had a lesson or two with this teacher and made up his mind about whether he was going to stick with his instruction, he'd tell his friend. Master Laurent wouldn't approve, but what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

It was somehow even more bitterly cold than it was the previous night, and Lex dearly wished that he were back home by a fire. He wasn't fond of the idea of spending the next several hours in the company of the frigid and imposing man who'd glared at him for his entire practice. Still, if he was such a fine and exclusive vocal teacher, beyond even Master Laurent's skill, this would be worth his while.

He arrived at a manor as icy as its occupant. It was surrounded by a wrought iron gate, and inside was a stone courtyard covered in snow, with no living plant in sight. The windows were all shuttered and there was no sign of any light. Anxiety sat like a stone at the bottom of his gut, urging him to turn back -- but he could hardly tell Master Laurent that he was like a child, spooked by the thought of a haunted house.

He picked up the brass door knocker and rapped on the door.

The door opened right away. A stiff and pale looking man in a well-kept suit beckoned him inside. "You must be Alexander. My master is expecting you. Please enter."

"Good evening," said Lex as he stepped in, trying not to flinch as the door shut behind him. There were a few gas lamps flickering on the walls, barely enough to penetrate the gloom. In the dim light, he could see that the entrance had oppressively patterned wallpaper and objets d'art in every nook and cranny. It looked more like a museum than a home anyone actually lived in.

"This way," said the servant, leading Lex down a foreboding hallway. The servant's manner of walking was odd and unnatural, almost like a puppet on strings. He thought he saw a pair of eyes peer out at him from one of the darkened rooms, but it disappeared as soon as he turned.

Just a music lesson, Lex reminded himself to soothe his heart. He's an old and eccentric music teacher, nothing more.

At the end of the hallway, the servant opened the door to a room far better lit than the rest of the home, the most extravagant music room Lex had ever seen. His fear was forgotten for a moment as he admired the wide variety of perfectly kept and cleaned instruments lining the floors and walls. Polished horns glistened on their stands, stringed instruments were hung perfectly straight in brackets on the walls, and one corner was occupied by a beautiful gilded harp. The center of the room was dominated by a grand piano. It was a much older sort than Lex was used to, but in ideal condition, and his fingers ached to play it.

To do that, though, he'd have to get past the man who stood from the piano bench to receive him. He was dressed all in black, as he was the previous day, and his piercing gaze was all the more impossible to ignore when Lex was the only other person in the room. There was something oppressive about his presence that gave Lex a senseless urge to turn and run.

Oh, how he wished he were already by the fire with Anders, laughing about this whole thing!

Lex bowed, and he felt almost as stiff as the servant (who had already fled the room). "Good evening…" He realized that somehow he'd completely neglected to get his new teacher's name.

"When you are here, I am your Maestro. You may call me that, or sir," he said.

"Yes, sir," said Lex. No greeting, apparently.

"Come. I wish to hear your talent." He gestured to a stand with sheet music arranged on it.

Lex stepped forward and took a look. The music was handwritten but impeccably neat; the piece was complex and the lyrics were in a language he was not familiar with. "What language is this, sir?"

"Irrelevant."

"I'm going to need to know how to pronounce it."

"You will learn."

Lex scowled. This Maestro's style couldn't be more different than Master Laurent's. Master Laurent was stern and critical, but not harsh like this man, and the things he asked of Lex were always reasonable. He could already tell they would be butting heads.

Well, if he didn't like the instruction, he could always turn down future lessons and give his apologies to Master Laurent.

"I'm going to need to warm up first, sir."

"Very well. I will observe how you go about it."

Lex sang a few notes, loud and soft, up and down the scales, all the while conscious of the Maestro's gaze upon him. Lex couldn't help but think if he was going to be so nakedly judgmental of Lex's warm-ups, he could offer instruction on how to improve them. Wasn't that what he was here for? Instruction?

As he warmed up, he scanned the music to get a sense of it. The difficulty must be to test him. He wasn't about to shy away from a challenge, especially where music was concerned. No doubt the Maestro wished to see if he was actually a prodigy in vocal skills, or yet another mediocrity propped up by his family's wealth.

He finished his preparations, and he sang.

The acoustics of the room were excellent, and Lex's voice rang out clear and pure. He stumbled over a few of the unfamiliar words, but the notes he sang were true.

It was objectively an excellent performance, given the circumstances, and yet his new teacher sat there stony-faced without a glimmer of a reaction.

"Again," he said, a moment after Lex finished.

"Sir, before I sing again, I'd like to know how to properly pronounce some of these words."

"Again."

"You said I would learn how to pronounce them. I can't learn that if you don't teach me."

"I will teach you much before we are through. But now I am ordering you to sing again."

Frustrated, Lex was even more determined to put everything he had into it. Surely there must be some level of effort and talent that could budge this man. Now that he'd sung the song once and had a feel for it, he was able to sing without hesitation, not caring how he pronounced the unfamiliar words as long as the sound fit the melody.

The Maestro may as well have been a statue throughout Lex's virtuoso performance. "Again."

So he sang it again. And again. By the fifth time, he'd lost his patience.

"With all due respect, sir," Lex said, "I came here for instruction, and so far, you haven't offered any."

"You are mistaken. You came here to see if you are worthy of instruction. Most men, even those who imagine themselves to be musicians, can produce sounds little better than the barks of dogs. I don't wish to waste any more time than necessary in the company of such men."

"Surely my voice is better than the barks of dogs."

"Again."

Lex was burning with irritation now. He knew very well he was in possession of a temper, one which he preferred to keep under check, so that his classmates and teachers found him patient and easy-going. This man, however, was determined to fray his patience to the breaking point.

He certainly wouldn't be coming back. He'd have to tell Master Laurent that the so-called instruction wasn't worth the frustration, and hope his teacher would be forgiving.

This time, he sang the song with the passion that was boiling over in his heart, determined to either provoke a reaction from the Maestro or at the very least know for certain that he had done his best.

The Maestro stood from his place on the piano bench at the end of this rendition, walking over to Lex, who couldn't help his defiant glare. Let him find fault with that, if he could.

"One hundred and sixty."

"Excuse me?"

"One hundred and sixty mistakes."

He was certainly just trying to get a rise out of Lex. "There aren't even that many notes in the song."

"I'm well aware," he said with that insufferable glare. "The mistakes begin even before you open your mouth, with your breathing and posture." His eyes swept over Lex, analyzing. "Stand up straighter. Eyes forward. Chest full. Deep breath from your chest. Allow your lungs to inflate fully."

To Lex's surprise, he felt himself following the instructions automatically, his back and neck straightening to the point of stiffness, taking in a deep breath. He felt strangely out of control, almost as if the Maestro had some sort of unnatural hold on him.

It must be his imagination. He complied with the instruction so quickly because he was intimidated by that icy glare, nothing more.

"Now, sing a scale."

Lex did so, and it sounded improved from his usual, and he hated that it did.

"A passable result, for an untrained voice."

"I've trained with Master Laurent for years, sir."

The Maestro scoffed. "You would never achieve perfection with him."

"While music is my passion, I don't think it's reasonable to aim for perfection. That's an impossible goal."

"So you aspire to mediocrity, then, as does the rest of humanity," he said. "Very well. The choice has been taken from your hands. I have made my decision. I will train you."

At this point, Lex hardly cared if he was the finest music teacher on the green Earth, he didn't want to spend another moment with this man's constant insults and sour look. "I've made my decision as well, sir. I appreciate your time, but I'm afraid I have to turn your offer down. I will not be training with you."

The fleeting ghost of a twisted smile appeared on his face. "Is that so?"

"Yes, sir," said Lex, backing towards the door. "Now, if you'll allow me to take my leave, it's getting late and it's very cold outside tonight, so I'd like to return to my dorm as soon as possible."

The Maestro gave no response as Lex turned and started towards the door.

And froze.

His eyes went wide with terror even as every other muscle in his body tensed, caught mid-step. He tried to take another step, to move his arms, to even make the smallest movement of his fingers. No part of his body would respond to his most desperate entreaties, completely paralyzed except for his pounding heart and ragged breathing. He couldn't blink, couldn't shout.

"I did tell you that the choice had been taken from your hands," said the Maestro.

Slowly, methodically, Lex's body was turned around against his wishes, even as every instinct was calling on him to flee. He began to walk forward to where the Maestro was sitting on the piano bench, helpless as a sleepwalker as he drew closer.

It must be a nightmare. He'd been anxious about this lesson and the strange man who had been at practice yesterday, and he'd fallen asleep by the fire, his mind turning a man into a monster. He would wake soon and tell Anders of his nightmare to make him laugh.

Lex was stopped just before the Maestro, and was dropped into a kneel, his knees hitting the wooden floor with uncomfortable force. His head was forced into a bow as his arms were arranged behind his back, the very picture of a submissive servant.

"How are you doing this?" said Lex, as soon as he realized that control of his mouth had returned to him.

"All humans must obey me, just as the ocean must obey the moon," said the Maestro in an incongruously melodic voice. "It's a simple, unchangeable fact."

"What are you? Are you a demon?"

"Some might consider me a demon, but no." He reached down and tilted Lex's head upward by his chin, and Lex was looking into his eyes, as cold and hard as stone. "I'm a far more miserable creature, a lonely thing that must rely on the blood of inferior beings in order to survive. In short, a vampire."

A vampire! Lex had never believed in such things, thinking that they were superstitions of the uneducated. But if this wasn't a nightmare or a fit of madness, then he had been very much mistaken. There was little doubt in Lex's mind that this man was exactly what he claimed to be.

And that meant that he was going to die, wasn't he? An undignified whimper emerged from his throat. He was only just a man, with many winters and summers yet ahead of him. He hadn't even finished his education or courted anyone. To die here, in this dreadful place, to feed a monster…

Icy fingers traced over his jaw. "It's exceedingly rare to find such exquisite blood, especially paired with musical talent of even meager promise. Perhaps I have the unwise hope that your company will please me."

Lex's throat felt as though it'd been coated in sand. "Are -- are you going to drink my blood and kill me?"

The placid, unreadable look did not leave the Maestro's face as he slapped Lex lightly across the cheek. "Idiotic child," he said. "Did I not already tell you that I will be training you? In exchange for instruction, you will provide me with your blood and your service."

So he wasn't to be killed, but would be a slave instead. It might well be a worse fate -- but one with some possibility of rescue. "My classmates and teachers will notice I'm missing," he said, hoping to sway the vampire into freeing him.

"Yes, so they will."

"My parents will be informed," he tried. "They're going to search for me. They'll surely get the police involved, as well."

The Maestro gripped his chin, leaning further into his face. "They will not find you," he said with stern finality.

"But what --"

"And if they did find you, how do you suppose mere humans will deliver you from a being that can control their bodies with the slightest effort?" He dropped Lex's chin. "Instead, you should wish for them to forget you, rather than perish by my hand."

He could picture it all too vividly, his parents coming to his aid, become frozen in place as he was, and swiftly cut down. Lex didn't doubt for a moment that this monster would do it, either. There wasn't a trace of fear in his eyes. He seemed used to this, almost bored with the business of kidnapping -- of course, if he lived off human blood, he would have to be used to it, wouldn't he?

As Lex trembled in fear, turning over his desperate position in his head, the Maestro stood up. He pulled a small metal object from his pocket, and began to heat it in the flame of one of the lamps. As Lex watched in horror, his arms were released from his back, and he felt himself unbuttoning his shirt, removing it…

He tried to scream, but he had been silenced once more, a prisoner in his own body.

The vampire's power held him completely rigid as the dreadful brand neared his chest, pressing into his skin with a sickening noise and smell. Lex would have wailed if he were able, or vomited, or fainted dead away, but he was held fast in the vampire's spell. His vision blurred, his reason leaving him, as all he could think about was the intense pain and fright.

"It has been a very long time since I've had truly satisfying blood," said the Maestro, sitting down in front of Lex once more. "I'm loathe to indulge myself in the pleasures of consumption, but even I cannot ignore my earthly needs forever."

Perhaps it was a mercy that Lex was already driven from his mind as the Maestro dug his fangs into the place where his neck met his shoulder. With his rational thoughts gone, he was left to the primal parts of his mind, screaming within him to remove the predator from his flesh. Yet none of this inner turmoil was allowed to surface, as he was kept perfectly still for the vampire to drink his blood at leisure.

As his blood was drained and his head further fogged, foreign and unwelcome emotions invaded his consciousness. He was drowning in it, pitch-black waters closing in above him as he sank into the depths. It was a quiet, lonely, empty place, numb and freezing, a vast expanse of despair.

Lex was barely aware as he collapsed into the Maestro's waiting arms, the spell over his body finally lifted now that he was too weak to move. He shivered violently and gasped for air, wanting to push the vampire away but unable to lift his arms to do so.

"I will take you to your chambers now," said the Maestro, picking him up as though he were a doll. Lex tried to summon up the will to fight as he was lifted, but as soon as he began to stir, he felt his limbs unnaturally shackled once more.

Defeated, he fled into the recesses of his mind, where a chair by the fireplace and a stack of books waited for him. Anders would notice his absence when the hour grew late, and Lex fervently wished that he would not investigate, lest he find himself in this same hell.

If he were fortunate, his dear friend would never find this place, even if it meant Lex would never see him again.

Lex was carried into an austere chamber and placed upon a cold, firm bed. The Maestro removed his shoes and placed them by the bedside, then placed several rough, wool blankets over him.

"You will sleep," the Maestro said.

Lex couldn't imagine being able to sleep through the agony and terror racking his body, but then the vampire placed a hand on his forehead, and his eyes began to drift shut against his will. The sleeping spell did nothing for the pain, and so he sank into an unnatural, agitated sleep full of nightmares that he could not wake from.

Previous > Masterlist

Lex would rate this experience one star.

Next week, Fitz is doing extremely okay.

@d-cs @latenightcupsofcoffee @thecyrulik @dismemberment-on-a-tuesday-night @wanderinggoblin

@whumpyourdamnpears @only-shadows-dwell-where-we-are @pressedpenn @pigeonwhumps @amusedmuralist

@vampiresprite @irregular-book @whumpsoda @mj-or-say10 @und3ad-mutt

@sowhumpshaped @whumpsday @morning-star-whump @silly-scroimblo-skrunkl

@steh-lar-uh-nuhs @pirefyrelight @theauthorintraining @whump-me-all-night-long @anonfromcanada

@typewrittenfangs @tessellated-sunl1ght @cleverinsidejoke @abirbable @ichorousambrosia

@a-formless-entity @gobbo-king @writinggremlin @the-agency-archives @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi

@enigmawriteswhump @bottlecapreader @whump-on-a-string @whumpinthepot

@cinnamoncandycanes @avvail-whumps @tauntedoctopuses @secret-vampkissers-soiree @whatamidoingherehelpme

@strawbearydreams @ghost-whump @tippytappytyping @natthebatt @fire-bugg14

@fuckcapitalismasshole @slightlydisturbedbeans @paperprinxe @demetercabingreen-thumb @the-broken-pen

@pokemaniacgemini @jumpywhumpywriter @basica11ywhumped @anoontjecanush

[feralghxuls]

hehe, for the fanfic asks gimme: 4, 13, 22, 43, 55, 57, 74, 78 >:3c

hehe hiiii ghestie

4. How do you choose which fics to write?

god its so hard. its SO HARD TO PICK. so many things i want to write and never enough time waugh. but usually what happens is i get a few lines of something in my head and i go to just jot those down and uhh it usually turns into a fic from there. but sometimes if a fic idea is sparkly enough i'll sit down and start writing it anyway even without the inspiring words

13. Do you listen to music while you write?  If yes, what have you been listening to recently?

yes! if i dont have music playing i am far less productive with my writing but it has to be a specific vibe. lately i have been listening to niels nielson and MCC for writing, they have very nice quiet sounds (for the most part anyway, mister niels has a couple of songs that jumpscare me bc he just starts talking in the middle of them). but i also listen to autoheart while im writing, especially if i'm working on something with a lot of emotions to it

22. Do you title your fics before, during, or after the writing process?  How do you come up with titles?

well. usually what happens is i finish a fic. i edit it. i get ready to post it and then i go SHIT I NEED A TITLE

occasionally though a title comes to me before im finished writing something, which is always a nice surprise. with my ghost fics i always use ghost lyrics as titles teehee

43. Is there a trope or idea that you’d really like to write but haven’t yet?

hmmmm. hm that is a good question. well my favorite character dynamic is grumpy/grumpy or grumpy/dry humor and there arent many options for that with the ghoulies (although now that i think about it...dew and mountain would fit the grumpy/dry humor trope fairly well....hmmmm)

as for ideas, i think for the most part i have wips or notes of most of the ideas i want to write, but one of them that i am very excited to work on more but have been stuck with is my rain/swiss soulmate au

55. Have you noticed any patterns in your fics?  Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

i feel positive that there are wordings and phrases i use a lot, but even after skimming through some of my fics i can't find any good examples right now

but definitely some common themes, one thing i really enjoy doing is implementing dynamics that are unusual for the characters, its fun coming up with circumstances and situations that change things up and take them out of their comfort zones

57. How conscious are you about including symbolism or foreshadowing in your fics?

oh i LOVE symbolism and foreshadowing, but honestly a lot of my fics aren't planned out enough for much intentional foreshadowing but i like to think that for some of the longer series i'm working on it'll work out to have some nice foreshadowing

74. Do you have a fic you wish got a bit more love?

🥺yess

my cumulus and swiss fic is one im really proud of with very tasty sweet mean cumulus and subby swiss

and then also this one with dew and swiss ft finger sucking a little bit o boot stuff (sub swiss again...i prommy i have some dom swiss content in the works)

78. What motivates you during the writing process?

one thing about me is i love completing things. i will add something to a list just to immediately cross it off and im a completionist in video games too, so just the feeling of having finished a fic is pretty motivating

another thing thing is sending snippets to my friends, thats always a nice little boost of serotonin and motivation bc i get some feedback and its always nice to hear someone say they're excited to see where a work is going

i also usually have ideas of things i want to happen later on, and if i wanna get to that i have to write my way to it so i basically am just dangling a carrot for myself lol

thank you sending so many questions!! twas fun hehe

[sunny-x-endeavor]

you know that fantasy au that’s like a thing in my hero canon? I got an idea for it to drop my self insert into it

So like Shoto is a prince from a far off kingdom, that that makes Enji the king. Been thinking about it, I’m the witch he goes to for some magic or for a task. I’m just like a bog witch chilling a run down shack but my potions and spells are known to be legit. He probably shows up and says something like “give me a witch blessing or anything give to my children so they can grow up strong and wise”.

I’m just like “Cool Cool tight tight. No problem but you gotta do two things for me. Hook me up with a sick ass house in the middle of nowhere, and two I also your have baby”. 

He’s just looks at me like “You a nasty little freak bog witch, but I love it. You got yourself a deal” And that’s how the king of kingdom started having an affair with some random bog hag witch aka Me :3c

My son (chris) grows up being the long lost heir of the throne. He’s a traveling bard when he grows up. Probably runs into prince Shoto on his travels. Have some fun adventures there. 

[daz4i]

read a joker palace au that was pretty good but i also couldn't get quite into to cause the point ended being like "joker only really feels free when he's with akechi everyother phantom thief he wears a mask" and idk i like akeshu but i don't like the idea that only akechi gets joker or that the other phantom thieves like don't care enough? idk

but basically : bold to assume joker isn't in love with literally all his friends and he feels the most free whenever they're together while also puttting on a mask for each of them(even akechi) because he's scared they'll leave if he doesn't

( this can tie back into the joker siblings hcs >:3c! he feels like he has to prove themselves!)

OH MY GOD YEAH I HATE WHEN PEOPLE DO THAT

i actually have a whole rant abt this bc it’s making me way too irrationally angry and i’m trying to restrain myself from getting into it rn lmao 

BUT YES YOU’RE SO RIGHT BESTIE why wouldn’t joker not feel free around his friends. what made him gain back his rebellion after yaldy ordered the twins to execute him if not his friends. ofc he loves them he wouldn’t go to all these lengths if he didn’t love them 

and ofc he’s putting on a mask with them as well, bc that’s just how humans work, we all have different masks for different situations that’s where the whole concept of persona came from in the first place! but ESPECIALLY in the case of a person who’s scared to disappoint others or scared of being betrayed (if his in-game dialogue options are anything to go by) 

i THINK i know what fic you’re talking about and it’s a good one (writing wise, and the palace itself is good) but you really have to power through the anti-thieves stuff in it to enjoy it lol 

[crystalninjaphoenix]

*sneaks inside*

Hey.. Its Me.. Hunter. ⟟ brought Tea 🍵 Want a cup? *holds Cup out for you* Enjoy it ^w^

How are You doing My Good Chap! ⟟ hope good ^^ did you drink and eat something? ⟟ hope you did. Yes ⟟ will ask that everytime now UwU.

SPOILERS FOR THE FANTASY MASK AU CHAPTER 19 IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT YET DONT LOOK INTO THIS.

Anyway ⟟ did read the new Chapter of TFMAU and DAMN ⟟ hope everyone will be safe 🥺 also Bad Doggo! ⟟ wanted to pet you >:/. ⟟ hope they will evacuate Fast Also that Jackie's Arm Gets better, Damn Draco you really had your Claws out huh. Hmm what else ⟟ swear ⟟ wanted to say something but forgot it now- Ah! ⟟ remember! About Henrik Ze Good doctor ⟟ like how you always mix German words into it (⟟ mean ofc We know Henrik is part german) But like ⟟ still find it cool me as a german myself ^_^ just you read English and then boom German haha ⟟ just love it.

⟟ wanted to ask Something >~<" ⟟ hope it's not rude. ⟟ wanted to ask if you Have like Small Intrest for Everyone for fun like Jairsolas likes to paint or Jair knows how to Dance Waltz or Jackie Has a secret collection of Idk what things. So like Small Funny/silly informations about them that we can know that wouldn't spoiler something.

Hi Hunter! Always good to see you ^-^ Thank you for the digital tea. I did drink a lot of water but I haven't had dinner yet, I'll probably be making something soon unless my family orders food.

I hope everyone will be safe, too. I mean, I know what will happen, but I'm not giving out any spoilers :3c Enid was technically being a very good dog, if you mean that she was doing what her owner asked her to do. But yeah, not good for the main characters. And yeah, cats can be surprisingly vicious. There's a reason you're not supposed to get in the way of two cats fighting. I'm glad you like the little German words I throw in there! Technically, since this is a fantasy world, German doesn't exist. But because Henrik is German in canon I based Alterde on Germany.

No, don't worry, I love little questions like that! Some fun stuff about the characters, huh? I'll try to come up with one for everyone. Hmm... Jameson had a pet rabbit when he was little! Technically it was a family pet but he took care of it the most. Chase's son Quentin used to make little yarn crafts that Chase would wear as bracelets or necklaces. The reason Marvin likes cats so much is because he once read a story where a kid was adopted by a family of stray cats and grew up to be a powerful sorcerer who protected animals. He always loved the ideas the story had. Henrik brought his scarf with him from Alterde. It was made by one of his childhood friends as a going-away gift and he takes great care of it. Jackie is actually a pretty good cook! He doesn't do it much these days, but he still enjoys making food.

[pixelateddork]

Monke wishes all his enemies a very pleasant die.

Lupin but he’s totally unhinged and just a full on sadistic murder that probably also eats people IDK 🙃

I really like how all the blood turned out! Took forever to draw the blood on his shirt, and I redrew the blood on his hand and butchers knife like 5 separate times. But I think it ended up working out and it turned out pretty good! This is now a full on AU, because I can’t help myself. Enjoy the murder monke ❤🔪

I might even have some angsty ideas involving this AU coming up :3c

[coconi]

Fanfic Writer Interview

Heyyy thank you so much for the tag, @chromochaotic! 💗 I've seen this game do the rounds and I always wanted to do it! Doing my own post since I imagine yours will end up creating a few different reblog chains hehe.

Tagging @princesses-and-bitchcraft, @heleentje, @ginneke, @velosarahptor, and @ghirahimbo if y'all feel like it, no pressure!

How many works do you have on AO3? 10

What’s your total AO3 word count? 58,779

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

On AO3, I've written for three fandoms: Breath of the Wild, Twilight Princess, and Fruits Basket.

We do not speak of my old ff.net accounts, but I wrote a couple drabbles/one-shots for Harry Potter and Pandora Hearts back in the day.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Come Morning Light

Swan Song

Treading Water

Meet Me Halfway

A Fire in a Flask

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I always respond to longer comments or those that give me something to talk about beyond my thanks. The rest I sometimes leave as they are because I always feel like I'm just typing the same reply over and over and I second-guess myself ;;;; Plus I don't like to offset the total numbers too badly with my additions.

I appreciate any and all comments though, from wordless emoji dumps to big paragraphs <3

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

Definitely Swan Song. It was my first revalink fic and I had a lot of feelings about Link (and Medoh) being left behind at the end of the game, so I needed to get those out somehow ;w; All That You Rely On is also a sad one, but there's more of a silver lining to it.

Do you write crossovers? If so, what’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I've never written one. Not exactly opposed to the idea, though.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Thankfully not! I did get one... odd comment where someone went on a mini rant about Hylia for some reason?? But it was perfectly harmless, just disconcerting lol

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

Nah, it ain't for me, but I admire those who can write good smut.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Same as Emmy, not that I'm aware of! (Don't try it, demon)

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope!

What’s your all time favorite ship?

I can't say I have an ultimate favorite, but the closest to that would be Elliot/Leo from Pandora Hearts. It's been years and I'm still not over them ;________; (revalink is up there tho)

Whats a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

There's a really elaborate modern AU I have for BOTW with supernatural/thriller elements, but that's a project I don't dare tackle until I get some practice dealing with multi-chapter works. Who knows if it'll ever see the light of day.

What are your writing strengths?

Sensory descriptions and emotions, I believe. People often tell me my writing is comforting to them and I'll never stop being over the moon about it ;w; <333

What are your writing weaknesses?

Complex plots, long stories, writing a wide variety of characters at once, extended dialogue, action scenes, etc. Most of these are due to lack of experience/practice and I'm slowly trying to correct that 💪

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

If done right, it can certainly add to a story, but it's a delicate balance to strike. It has to be organic and non-invasive, otherwise it becomes a jarring experience for the reader. Also, the writer has to actually understand what they're putting down and, if applicable, how multilingualism works (see: that one infamous hola, ¿qué pasa? klance fic sdgkjfd)

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Harry Potter. At least that I can remember... I might've written misc Pokemon, Digimon or CCS stuff as a child, who knows! Certainly not my brain!

What’s your favorite fic that you’ve written?

I have a soft spot for Treading Water for multiple reasons. It's my longest fic to date, it was the first story I dared to publish without any beta reading, and that was the first time I joined a fandom event as a writer + worked with someone else's prompt! I quite enjoyed writing Revali's journey of understanding through other people's eyes... and him falling for Link in the process :3c

[alphasmoonlit-selfships]

🎫 here’s a gush pass :3 feel free to gush about whichever f/o you want, however much you want, then send this ask to 3 other selfshippers >:3c

(@rose-wine-selfships 🌹🍷✨)

Ahh! A gush pass??!! 😳🎫 @rose-wine-selfships thank you! Better late than never right? 🥺💖 ahh!

Am going to gush on the best two fictional loves of my life if you don’t mind? 🥺 I love Atsushi so much and I want to talk about my dear Jason too! 🥺🐺🐯 I hardly do and he deserves some nice spot light too ! For those that don’t know him to well! 🥺

Come and hear my rambling under the read more ≧ω≦

Mi Tigre! Mi amore! He is such a mood and such a vibe! I love his overall person, his design, his personality, his sweet and beautiful kindness towards people who have gone through similar situations as he had and his just can’t help but want to save them from such fates. He wants the best for all those he cares about and how he believed for a long while that if he can safe others than it would be enough proof for him to continue living. Even at the cost of his own life and I just (ಥ﹏ಥ) nooo my love please,,,

It’s kind of scary how much I resonated with that… not gonna lie, I’ve always had such a mentally too to an extent when I was younger, heck even a bit now but not as drastic as my younger self thought… (then again Digimon college Au definitely tells me otherwise… ;;w;; ahh anyway),,

Atsushi has definitely grown so much and is still learning to better himself! I believe that in this new environment of being with good people of the Agency, he will continue to develop and get better. Being surrounded by a found family that cares and loves his well being, will boost his confidence! And soon he will be truly an amazing mentor towards a future main 👀 watch the manga end the way it started with Atsushi saving someone who was in a similar situation 🥺 of course not the way Dazai did 👀 but it will be a full circle 🥺 like just envision an older!Atsushi in Dazai’s place of saying his name, “My name? Nakajima, Nakajima Atsushi!” 🌅 hdkahdkalfkaldhlasads not gonna lie I just want to see older Atsushi rocking his confidence and growth 💖🥰

Overall, I don’t think I’ve ever come to love such a main character before? The way I resonate with him makes me all warm and fussy and has allowed me to see,,, a lot about myself and reflect on it better. His path to healing isn’t linear, it’s been a constant up and down motion 🥺 I really don’t want to see him encounter more bad things ;;;~;;; but I know it’s to progress the story and for him to get better; but please Asagiri-sensei, don’t be so bad on him ;;0;;

I love mi Tigre so so much UwU he truly my source of comfort and love daydreaming of sweet and silly romantic things with him 💖 the ideal relationship and try to definitely lift myself up in anyway I can with him, especially during my depressive moments. Which happens a lot especially when it comes to comparing myself to others ;;w;; it’s a terrible thing and I swear I break my own heart so many times a day,,, but I know despite it all Atsushi loves me entirely because I am me, there is none other like me 🥺 all his kisses warm my soul ♥️(*´°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥﹏°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥ )人(´°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥ω°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥｀)

Now!! TO MY PRECIOUS GENTLE STORM, MY RAIN, MY DEAREST MATE 🥺‼️🐺🌧

Aghddkjahdkfkaljddj!!! The best boi, the best oc I love so dearly like! 🥺 Jason “Jaystorm” Grey! He is my own fictional OC that I created sometime in 8th grade I believe? About 2010! So almost 11 years I think!

He has dealt with a lot of my creative mind and just pure high school into college anguish ;;;w;;; my gentle storm hasn’t had the best life, in either Au or actual story he’s in. Legendary Wolf Warrior’s story, he and his later sister where born from an affair situation. While not much suspicion was raised with him, he later had to endure a lot of traumatic events in his life.

First, with his older brother leaving him behind to deal with his alpha father’s (older brother’s biological dad) anger.

Witnessing his actual dad (Jason and Lula’s dad) get murdered in cold blood, right in front of him, believing it was his fault for him trying to run away with his brother.

Become physically and mentally abused by his alpha, who was trying to shape him into something worse under all this abuse.

Witnessing said alpha, murder his mother for supposedly sending away his sister through a river. And because of the affair she had that birthed him and his sister. Who’s fate is unknown to him for a long, long time until they are much older.

And then the aftermath of standing up to alpha’s abuse and fighting back for all the years of torment he was put through. Gaining his powers of the Storm in the process. But Jason, bless him, never wanted to be the one to kill him, he just wanted to leave of his own accord, but this terrible wolf that raised and abused him wanted to fight and kill him for trying to leave.

Because of this, he is often plagued with nightmares and believes he sees him in the far distance for a long while after he travels on his own. The mental and emotional abuse staying with Jason for a long while. Even after when he arrives at the Forest of Dreams, being the last warrior to arrive of the seven that exist.

He has no control of his powers for a long time, sometimes drawing storms with the slightest anger. He had no idea how to fight without almost killing someone else in the process. Jason had so much guilt and fear of losing control of this higher power he possessed, even scared of losing the other warriors because of his lack of strength and skills at them. They, who have had their powers for far longer as younger pups.

But of course he has them too, despite his insecurities and fears, the others help him and show him how to better control such a power, especially at his age. They don’t turn him away as he worried so much, they train him and tell him to control his emotions that cause a major melt down of his powers.

Danielle especially (me in that sense UwU), who understands what it means to let one’s emotions get the best of them, helps him find his balance and most especially helps him talk about his past.

He definitely says it so nonchalantly, never realizing how bad his life was for a long time. Actually believing most alpha’s in wolf packs led with such a tyrannical stance. More than surprised by Dany’s father’s lead and his genuine kindness to others and other animals around the Forest of Dreams. A lot of it is due to the abuse of his own alpha and how his mind was filled with such negative things, especially about himself.

Jason does feel like an outsider most of the time, even more so than some of the other animals/humans who lived similar lives, but especially because of his powers. But he grows from when he first arrived in FoD, he learns to socialize more, how to hunt and give to the forest, how live a life of his own and not be ruled over by past influences. He looks back on his younger self a lot and reflects on how he wished to save that young version of himself from so much.

But he has in a sense, by living on his life and being everything his alpha never was and tried to instill in him. He has a new family, one that is genuine and true and would never leave him despite the terrible things that happened. 🥺🌧

Jason is my best mans, the best boi that deserves the world and much peace. Many think the Storm power for him is kind of odd considering his pretty pacifist nature and gentleness. I think it fits him perfectly anyway 💖🌧 he is pretty similar in Digimon Au, though most of his strength and growth is him and his experiences and also the voice encouragement by his Digimon, Raiwolfmon. Even so, he is still a dear and precious person, nothing like the terrible “father figure” that raised him. He is all his own and so much better.

Well I’ve talked for too long 👀🥰 I hope you enjoyed my gush ramble on the two loves of my life! 🥺💖🥺💖🥺💖 I love my Atsushi and Jason so much and this gave me so much time to reflect on them, especially Jason 👀♥️ he is the best boi and love him so much in private a lot UwU but hopefully I can do more DanyJay things 💖🥺🌧🥰

Thanks again for the gush pass rose! 🥺 sorry for the long wait too UwU, bless you! 💖♥️🥺♥️🥺♥️💖 and excuse my rambling and maybe confusing spasm speak to explain things ;;w;; by all means I’m here to answer all the questions 👀😳

[knightofameris]

Hiii! I was wondering if you had any fluffy fic recs? If you use AO3 and have any recs from there that would be nice too! Thank you!!!

AHDJSJD. okay I honestly do not mind giving out fic recs. Just for starters tho I do have a fic rec blog @knightofreaders !! You can also search through my blog with the tag “ameris’ fic recs”

Otherwise for now I’ll rec some AO3 ones and tumblr ones rn!! Mostly AO3 because you can find the tumblr ones on my rec account. I’m just giving recs I can think of off the top of my head rn. I’m sure I’m missing some.

Some of them might actually be GN!reader and not fem!Reader. I may have fucked up when labeling. Hmm.

Also I curse a bit on this. a lot. LMAO also terrible spelling throughout. good luck. 

Fly High, Baby! by beartea on AO3

180k+ || slowburn || series ; completed || reverse harem || fem!reader

This one is one of my favorites. I’ll probably go hunting for the post (here!) I made for it but I went so hard on my lil review. It’s a reverse harem, slow burn. But they have such a beautiful writing style and their characterizations are spot on. I don’t know if anyone else have ever understood these characters this well with how they break down the characters. Literally break them down, make them raw because they’re crying and you’re crying suddenly too. The MC is incredibly relatable IMO. She has a personality while also being written where you can relate to her. I see myself in her. But I also see my friends. And my friends are themself in her. And she’s annoying. And frustrating. And she’s human. Reverse harem includes: Ushijima Wakatoshi, Kuroo Tetsurou, Sugawara Koushi, Akaashi Keiji, Iwaizumi Hajime, Oikawa Tooru.

Times I’ve cried reading: probably like at least 5x. MC does have a given last name but that is because she’s adopted. Also, I’m not an Ushi fucker at all, but tea made me like,,, just love ushi,,, a lot

Ghosts We See by Renesis on AO3 // @renesis-jj here on tumblr

200k+ || slowburn || isekai || series ; ongoing || fem!reader || reverse harem

Another masterpiece, also a favorite. I think Ren does a great job world building, she truly makes it an experience and at this point I’m not even reading it for the haikyuu boys LOL. I absolutely love how she brings us into the story (as the MC or just as a reader) and submerses us into this world she created. she does a great job showing us the world rather than telling, keeping us in the dark like MC, and guiding us through the world like MC as well. Ren also has an incredible way of understanding the characters, even their alternate forms because at the core they’re all the same. But because the ones in the alternate world grew up in a harsher environment of sorts, they seem different. Harem includes: Ushijima Wakatoshi, Bokuto Koutarou, Kuroo Tetsurou, Miya Osamu, Miya Atsumu, Kita Shinsuke, Suna Rintarou, Oikawa Tooru 

Ren has multiple side stories intertwined as well which makes it just absolutely amazing. I should ALSO mention, I was already an inarizaki fucker but Ren made me go oh shit. also the same as I said about Ushi from beartea, I was not an Ushi fucker but Ren also made me like him a lot more

Next Time by @\dorkyama (I am not tagging her I’m too shy lol)

??k+ || slowburn || exes to lovers || completed || fem!reader || Miya Osamu

UGH one of my favorite series (I keep saying that) for osamu this time. I love the way remy portrayed MC. She’s frustrating and annoying but so real. She also did a great job showing the relationship with MC and Osamu. It’s funny people were always angry at Osamu but personally I was always angry at MC. I think more so because I’d do what she’d do lol (i was going to add all the chapters word counts but lol)

Sugar Sweet series by @kuroos-babie​

parent AU??? lol || ongoing || fem!reader || multiple  

So this is actually connected to all of her single mom!headcanons. I haven’t read all of them but I DO know that the one’s I have read make my heart just throb. If you know me, you know how much I do Not Like Kids. Well it’s not that I don’t like them, it’s more like I would not want to be a parent lol. I’m fine with being that older figure someone looks up to, but not in a parent way,,, but like Chiqui makes me question it every so often LMAO. But I’d like to be the cool aunt or idk. 

embroidered hearts by memento_amare on ao3

2.1k+ || one shot || strangers to friends to lovers || fem!reader || Sugawara Koushi

This is just insanely fluffy. And. It makes my heart cry with how cute it is. Because MC is scared of love and yet,,, Suga shows her it’s okay to be scared but to let herself love. 

the comfort of your hand in mine by memento_amare on AO3

1.2k+ || one shot || childhood friends to lovers || fem!reader || Sugawara Koushi

Another fluffy one. I just loved it for the mutual pining and childhood friends to lovers and the revelation. Ugh. It’s also on tumblr now :3c

Read more because I have a lot lol.

Claustrophobia by melremade on AO3

11.2k+ || two shot || friends to lovers (?) || Sugawara Koushi || a lil spicy || fem!reader

I thought this one was cute LOL. Sugas adorable in here and it’s only a lil spicy cus it had a pretty detailed make out session

Miscellaneous by Thisisforthebest on ao3

?.?k+ || multiple parts || fem!reader || has some SPICEY moments but it’s cute fluff mostly.

This ones hard to group. This one has a bunch of stories split into parts throughout different chapters of this uhhhh AO3 fic? I’ve admittedly only read Suga’s and Oikawa’s. I love both and Oikawa’s is still unfinished. suga’s is childhood friends to lovers and ugh it’s just so cute. Oikawa’s is also cute and I wanna scream. There are also other characters on here, but I haven’t read them oops. I only was interested in Suga’s and Oikawa’s lol. 

Drop the Guillotine by rosequartsy on ao3

13.7k+ || one shot || friends to lovers (?) || a lil SPICEY || fem!reader || Miya Osamu

I’ve gone back to this fic once or twice. It’s well written and it’s obvious about the pining going on in both sides and. Well I like it kol. And idk how to talk about it without giving out spoilers

All I Want by declaraso on AO3

44.5k+ || series ; completed || slow burn || childhood friends to lovers || fem!reader || Miya Osamu

The slow burn in this one was so FRUSTRATINF. and yet I kept reading because I loved it so much. You really want to bonk MC AND SAMU.

Crush like WOAH by herecomestroublr on AO3

9.2k+ || one shot || established relationship || fem!reader || Sugawara Koushi

HINATA goes to his two upperclassmen for help on confessing. And MC and suga explain their relationship development lol. This one was just really cute cus it focuses on Mc and suga but at the same time not.

too easy by @\kuroopaisen

3.2k+ || one shot || friends to lovers || Sugawara Koushi

Another fic I go back to a lot. I JSUT love friends to lovers. And I can see how this relationship developed so well and realistically??? Because there were moments in there I could relate to with my former relationships lol

pillow fort rituals by @\kuroopaisen

3.9k+ || one shot || childhood friends to lovers || Kuroo Tetsurou

My one single kuroo rec on here. lol. Well not counting the reverse harems. Anyways this one I absolutely LOVED. it was just well written and it was another type of relationship I’d want, one that kinda eases into one from friendship. I love that shit. I also think about this one a lot. I also enjoy this one a whole lot because, well, I like the idea of a relationship developing naturally in a way where there are no declarations of love or likes. It just happens and you know it’s there and the other knows its there. and maybe eventually you both do talk about it but. it’s there. 

Can you guys tell I have a strong preference towards gray haired characters 🤡🤡 and can you tell what my favorite tropes are ajdhajjd

Anyway I’m sure some of these you may have already seen. But these are my absolute favorite. Or maybe they are ones you’ve seen while scrolling through AO3 or tumblr but never gave a chance because I dunno. Some ARE long which is understandable. But hopefully this will convince you because hngngh

[bettydice]

I didn’t expect you to be lonely (too)

Xicheng, Modern AU, JC&WWX reconciliation, E-Rated

[Read on AO3]

Chapter 5

Jiang Cheng I need your help Nie Huaisang this should be good

Jiang Cheng I’m already regretting this

Nie Huaisang awww Cheng-Cheng! I’ll be good :3c

Jiang Cheng … Do you know a nice coffee shop? something quiet and cozy but not like empty not too fancy but not cheap

Nie Huaisang why?

Jiang Cheng because I want to drink coffee what do you think

Nie Huaisang hahahahahahahaha

Jiang Cheng Maybe I just want a quiet place to study!?!?!

Nie Huaisang lololololololol

Jiang Cheng forget I asked

Nie Huaisang there’s a cute place next to the park the one I carried you to cozy interior, lots of plants

Jiang Cheng thank you

Nie Huaisang do you need help picking out an outfit for the date?

Jiang Cheng shut up Who said it was a date? I can dress myself

Nie Huaisang you have that dark purple v-neck it looks so good on you paired with some tight jeans nobody could resist you

Jiang Cheng I didn’t ask! but thanks

Nie Huaisang say hi to Xichen-ge call me after

Jiang Cheng fuck off

Nie Huaisang :-*

Jiang Cheng messages Lan Xichen with the details, and they agree to meet directly at the coffee shop. Since they’re meeting at 4:30 p.m. and Jiang Cheng woke up at 6 a.m., he has many hours to obsess over it. What should he wear, what should he talk about. What should he not talk about, under any circumstances? (Anything involving Wei Wuxian, probably.) Is it really a good idea to meet at a place Nie Huaisang suggested? Should he have offered to pick Lan Xichen up? But he doesn’t have a car. He could have asked his sister to borrow her car, but then he’d have to explain why and… He’s not ready for that conversation.

He somehow makes it through the day without panicking and cancelling on Lan Xichen. When it’s finally time to get dressed, Jiang Cheng does eventually settle on the purple sweater. Not because of Nie Huaisang, but because it’s the best choice.

Jiang Cheng arrives too early, so he waits in front of the coffee shop. Above him, the sky is dark, clouds foreboding. Of course he forgot his umbrella, again. He frowns at the sky when the first rain drop lands on his nose. He doesn’t really want to wait inside. At least this way he can pretend he just arrived and Lan Xichen will be able to spot him immediately. Luckily he doesn’t have to wait much longer until he sees Lan Xichen approaching in the distance. Jiang Cheng sighs, relieved. Apparently a part of him thought Lan Xichen would not show up? When Lan Xichen sees him waiting, smiles and waves, Jiang Cheng tenses up again, heartbeat speeding up.

Fuck. Why is he on a date? There’s no way this will go well. Lan Xichen will end up disappointed and/or offended. He doesn’t know what Lan Xichen is looking for in a … whatever… but Jiang Cheng can’t be it.

But it’s too late to back out now. Because Lan Xichen is standing in front of him, looking wonderful. His cheeks are flushed from the cold and he’s wearing a light grey scarf and a coat and looks so much better suited for this autumn day. Jiang Cheng would like to know what it feels like to have these arms wrapped around him. Fuck.

“Jiang Wanyin. Hello.”

“Hey.”

They simply stare at each other for a few seconds because already they have nothing to say to each other because Jiang Cheng can’t do small talk or big talk or anything. Before he can develop a full blown panic that ends with him pretending to have a stomach bug and needing to leave, a raindrop lands on Lan Xichen’s nose. Not wanting that Lan Xichen gets rained on is a very simple want Jiang Cheng can follow easily, so he says: “Shall we go in?” and opens the door. He gestures to Lan Xichen to go in first, but Lan Xichen makes the same gesture at the same time.

Jiang Cheng gestures again, more intently. Lan Xichen looks a little surprised, then laughs and finally steps through the door.

Inside, it is… cozy. Jiang Cheng thinks that describes it well. Wooden floor, colourful mix and match furniture, and - Jiang Cheng is relieved to see - quite a few plants. Lan Xichen will probably like it here, so Nie Huaisang hasn’t led him astray. (Not that he would.)

As they approach the counter, Jiang Cheng hopes Lan Xichen will order first, so Jiang Cheng can adjust his own order accordingly. He doesn’t want to be weird because he orders too much or too little. However, Lan Xichen seems to be waiting for him to go first. The person behind the counter gives them an unimpressed stare.

“Why don’t you-” Jiang Cheng starts, but he’s not quick enough.

“Please, go ahead.” Lan Xichen steps aside, so Jiang Cheng is the only one directly in front of the counter.

Fuck. Alright. What’s a normal thing to order in a coffee shop? Black coffee is too boring, right? Shit - and food too? They sell cakes and muffins but also soup and sandwiches. What is the right choice here? Obviously he’s overthinking it, but… Lan Xichen deserves as much consideration on Jiang Cheng’s part as possible!

“Ready to make your order? Would you like me to recommend something?” The person behind the counter asks, and Jiang Cheng randomly picks the Autumn Latte that’s advertised on a little chalkboard next to the cash register and a piece of chocolate cake. He pays for it and only belatedly realises he should’ve said that he’d pay for both their orders. Oh well. To his relief, Lan Xichen orders something of the same magnitude (a hot chocolate and an apple-cinnamon muffin) and they move to the left to wait for their drinks. Lan Xichen doesn’t say anything, only smiles whenever their eyes meet and Jiang Cheng can’t think of a single thing to say. They haven’t even sat down, why is he already out of conversation topics? They haven’t even had a conversation yet! Fuck.

Lan Xichen turns to him, mug and plate with muffin in hand, cocks his head a little, raises his eyebrows and smiles. Today, he seems to be quietly insisting Jiang Cheng should take the lead, which is a horrible idea, because Jiang Cheng is a certified Dating Disaster. But they should really stop hanging out at the counter, so Jiang Cheng moves purposefully towards a table in a corner, as though he’s confident in his choices. A large plant, vaguely looking like a palm tree, is standing next to the table, so he hopes Lan Xichen will approve.

Once they’ve sat down and taken off their coats, things do not get any easier. Lan Xichen is wearing a very soft looking, teal sweater. He looks… as though he gives really great hugs, which is not a thought that helps him relax.

Right, he needs to stop staring and start talking.

“I hope you found the place well.” This is not a line of conversation that will get them very far, but at least it’s a start.

“Oh, yes, I could walk here from home! It’s a lovely place.” Lan Xichen looks around the room once, then looks back at Jiang Cheng, smiling. “Do you come here often?”

“I’ve… never been actually. A friend recommended it to me.”

“It was a good suggestion.”

Jiang Cheng nods his agreement, then they both fall silent again. He takes a sip of his drink, but it’s still too hot and he almost burns the roof of his mouth. Fuck.

“Why don’t you tell me more about yourself?” Lan Xichen suddenly says. He seems to realise it was a bit out of the blue and laughs, a bit embarrassed. “I’m sorry, there was no lead up to that at all. I just realised that I don’t know too much about you other than who you’re related to.”

This is what Jiang Cheng was worried about. There’s nothing good or interesting to know about him, which Lan Xichen will realise very soon and lose all of his attraction to Jiang Cheng. Well, better get it over with then.

“I’m a student. Business degree.”

“Oh.” Lan Xichen clearly didn’t expect this answer. “Do you enjoy it?”

“Do I…” Jiang Cheng didn’t expect this question. Is it even possible to enjoy a fucking business degree? He laughs and can’t keep the bitterness out of it. “No, I hate it.”

“Then why do you study it?” It’s a reasonable question, but Jiang Cheng doesn’t have a reasonable answer. If he had one, maybe he’d hate it less.

“Because… I started it.” He never wanted to. He did it, because he told himself he should follow in his father’s footsteps, do what his mother expected of him to honour her memory. But his father never meant for those footsteps to be filled by him, and his mother… There aren’t many good memories worth honouring.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” Lan Xichen is clearly thrown by how bitter Jiang Cheng sounds. His smile looks a little strained now, and there’s a crease forming between his eyebrows. “Let me ask more casual questions! What… what are your hobbies? What do you like to do?”

Another reasonable question Jiang Cheng has no reasonable answer for. “I… I like to…” He’s stopped doing things. He’s stopped liking things. He can’t think of anything he does for fun these days. Is there truly nothing? “Well… I like… playing with my nephew. And… uhm… I like animals.”

“I noticed.” Lan Xichen leans forward, probably happy he found a topic they can discuss without running the danger of Jiang Cheng having another one of his emotional outbursts. Why is he like this? Lan Xichen deserves better. As is evidenced by his beautiful smile when he says: “I think animals like you too.”

Nobody likes me, is his first thought and why can’t his brain ever shut up? He decides to ignore it this time, Lan Xichen’s voice is lovelier to listen to, anyway. “Though Cloud did pee on me.”

Lan Xichen laughs, his brows smooth again. Jiang Cheng is glad. “She did. But as I said, I’m sure it was a sign of… proprietary affection.”

Jiang Cheng laughs too. “I’ll take you by your word, you’re the bunny expert. I actually used to volunteer at an animal shelter, but they didn’t often have bunnies there. Mostly cats and dogs.”

“That’s such a wonderful idea!” Lan Xichen’s eyes light up and he looks at Jiang Cheng with such warmth, it could start snowing right now and he wouldn’t be cold. “But you don’t go there anymore?”

“Ah, no… I suppose I… got busy.” That’s a lame excuse and Jiang Cheng is sure Lan Xichen knows it too.

Lan Xichen, because he is wonderful and lovely and nice, only nods and says: “I used to go to the botanical garden every week, but these days… Once you stop, it’s easier to leave it instead of picking it up again, isn’t it?”

“We should go together. The botanical garden. Or the shelter, whatever you want.”

Before Jiang Cheng can regret his words, because maybe Lan Xichen will not want to meet with him again after today, Lan Xichen smiles. “I’d like that. I’d like to visit both with you.”

“Oh.. oh, okay. Yes. Great!” Jiang Cheng’s face feels hot for some reason. Maybe the thought that Lan Xichen wants to keep seeing him fills him with such warmth it has spread to his face. Maybe it’s because one part of his brain keeps yelling ‘I want to kiss him.’

“Would you like to tell me more about your time at the shelter? What exactly did you do there? Were you allowed to play with the animals?”

Jiang Cheng finds out that he can talk for a surprisingly long time when it’s a topic that doesn’t fill him with existential dread. He even ends up telling Lan Xichen all about his favourite animals - their names, their habits, whether they found a new home. Lan Xichen listens intently, sometimes asks a question, always smiling.

It isn’t until Jiang Cheng takes a sip from his drink, only to find out his latte is empty, that he notices Lan Xichen’s tea and muffin are both still untouched.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to monopolize the conversation.” How long has he talked about random animals Lan Xichen doesn’t even know? If Nie Huaisang could see him now, he’d probably sadly shake his head, telling him he’s a lost cause.

“Oh, no, not at all! It’s lovely to see you so passionate.”

Lan Xichen smiles at him, but… he looks a little pale, doesn’t he? Or is it just the light playing tricks?

“Lan-laoshi… are you alright?”

Lan Xichen’s smile falters. “Mhm… why… why do you ask?”

“You haven’t eaten anything. Your tea must be getting cold, too.”

“Oh, you’re right! Ha…” Lan Xichen looks down at his tea. Then he raises his hands from his lap, wraps them around the mug. He tries to lift the mug, but his hands are shaking so badly, the tea almost spills over. He quickly puts the mug down again, then sends an embarrassed smile towards Jiang Cheng. “Sorry. It’s… Don’t worry. I’m fine.”

As soon as Lan Xichen says the word ‘fine’, the door opens and a group of laughing teenagers enters the coffee shop. Lan Xichen twitches, his hands gripping the edge of the table. Jiang Cheng can see sweat beading on his forehead. Fine is definitely not what he is.

“Lan Xichen… are you not feeling well? Should I get you some water? Do you want to leave?”

Lan Xichen closes his eyes for a second, wipes his forehead with one shaking hand, then lets out a frustrated sigh. “I’m really sorry. I just get overwhelmed sometimes… in public spaces…”

Alright. This is a problem with an easy solution. Jiang Cheng stands up and puts on his jacket. “Then we’ll leave. Come on. The park is on the other side of the road. Let’s get some fresh air.”

Lan Xichen just stares up at him, lips slightly parted. Jiang Cheng smiles gently, hoping it will reassure him. “Put on your coat. I’ll get a bag for your muffin. Would be a pity not to eat it.”

He rushes to get a paper bag from the counter. When he returns, Lan Xichen has stood up, his coat in one hand, but is simply looking down at it, as though he isn’t sure what to do. Jiang Cheng puts the muffin into the bag and stuffs it in the pocket of his jacket. Then he helps Lan Xichen into his coat and slings the leather shoulder bag over his own shoulder. He takes Lan Xichen’s hand in his and smiles up at him. “Let’s get out of here.”

Lan Xichen looks down at him, a little helpless, and it hurts Jiang Cheng to see him like this. But when Jiang Cheng starts walking, he follows him out of the coffee shop. Into the pouring rain. Of course Jiang Cheng doesn’t have an umbrella with him, because he’s terrible at dating and at life. He wanted to take care of Lan Xichen and all he’ll accomplish is that they’ll get soaked.

“Fuck!”

[heckyeahepithetswitched]

candaru liveblogs reading her own writing: episode 7

let’s get right to it boys

in my head she’s doing the lame cartoon gag where they cross their arms over each other

IT’S FUNNY BECAUSE IT FITS HER JUST AS WELL AS, IF NOT BETTER THAN, HOWIE

same energy as/swap version of “Listen here, Mr. Police officer—” “It’s Ms.”

I tried to give him a gambling theme to give him SOME sort of different flavor from canon Zora, although apparently it made some of his lines confusing “-_-

listen I really love Yoomtah and Sylvie’s relationship. he pretends not to care but he doesssss

I feel like,,,, I ended up mixing motives a little bit here, but shhhhhh it’s fine

“I am NOT. a KID.” + “I’M NOTTA SQUIRE!!!”

little reference to some more Zora HCs that were later confirmed, regarding her powerset :3

I really liked this bit with the playing card, but oh BOY was the entire ending fight a giant knot to untangle. I spent like an hour trying to sort out one part in particular while my family played cards in the next room

very, very lame throwback to the McHammer reference in the Museum Arc which I regret

THIS WAS THE PART I WAS LOOKING FOR IN THE SCRIPTS WHICH MADE ME GO “I actually don’t remember writing any of this, I should do a reaction reading of my own scripts” BGJASDK

I HC that this is tied to how Ramsey lost his eye in this universe :3c

trying to write Ramsey’s voice was STUPID hard; I kept mixing Zora’s voice + accent and Will’s (Ramsey’s) voice + accent and those REALLY DO NOT MIX

there’s an improv game called “the hardest game in the world” where you have to mix two accents and now I see why it’s called that

this is 9x funnier when you consider the types of commissions Ramsey is known for

1. I am very proud of myself for figuring out a way to swap Zora’s speech

2. I got SO close to making Ramsey call Zora a “Stardew Valley character” but decided against it because I wasn’t sure if SDV was too much of a passing trend that’d become irrelevant. now I kinda regret that decision because it probably would’ve been funnier and it’s not like these were made for posterity

another small jab at Jello for THE INCONSISTENCY OF ERASER CUFFS

ok so

I originally had Percy as Sylvie’s daughter just because 1) I thought for some reason maybe that was a thing in the AU??? I think it was actually people going “haha swap!Sylvie would totally adopt swap!Percy on sight” but then like it turned into an ACTUAL thing in my head, and then 2) it provided a VERY good excuse to get the police into the museum in the museum arc because nobody ever calls the police or trips the fire alarm

but then by the time we hit this part, I was 1) in love with the Ashling-King family unit, and 2) thought that having Percy around really added motivation to Sylvie’s character, and also gave another dynamic to the bond between him and Zora, which is just (chefs kiss)

I had a split-second heart attack about “WAIT HOW DO I GET THE CUFFS OFF ZORA, SHE CAN’T HAVE HER ARM CHOPPED OFF BECAUSE I DON’T THINK SHE COULD REGROW THAT/EVEN IF SHE DID IT’D BE GRAPHIC, AND RAMSEY’S NOT EVEN TRYING TO CUT HER HE’S TRYING TO TURN HER TO GOLD—” before I remembered that gold is soft enough to bite through and I was like aw yes nevermind, I got this

hehehe :3

I knew I wanted a plot twist of some kind during the final battle because people wouldn’t be expecting it, but nothing that would impact the story, and this ended up working perfectly

also you know we had to get Beefton in there somewhere! :D

I, personally, think the gold cracks are a REALLY cool idea

everyone thank goldbricker-ramsey for that one

THE FACT THAT ZORA IS STILL TALLER THAN HIM KILLS ME

I do not remember deciding that the height chart was Zora -> Ramsey -> Sylvester but that’s how it is I guess

we decided (and by “we” I mean Mari) that since canon Zora hates kids, of course swap!Zora must LOVE them, hence her softening up around Sylvie a lot once she learns he has a daughter :’)

the hardest swap of the Museum arc was Mera and Indus because they were TOTAL OPPOSITES

the hardest swap of the Redwood arc was Ramsey and Zora because they were the EXACT SAME ENERGIES

again... I felt there was just a liiiiittle bit missing with canon Percy and Ramsey’s dynamic, and for me personally, this moment fills that missing bit in. but that’s just me and this IS my writing, so XD

so, just as a heads-up, apparently the people who did the audiobooks changed around some of these minor-character (well, “not-yet-revealed character”) swaps

and since they know the AC characters better than me, I’d proooooobably go ahead and use their swaps if this project ever did continue?? hypothetically??? basically these last bits are all still malleable

I wrote this entire scene with Trixie and Phoenicia before someone pointed out that Trixie and Phoenicia already had swaps in this universe

*facedesks*

probably not. but hey!! it was super fun!!! the most fun I’ve had in a LONG time, actually. I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a project as much as the Epithet Switched scripts.

Spliinkles thank u for letting me take ur awesome idea and just run wild with it, writer brain went brrrrrr and it was such an absolutely fantastic experience that I can only hope I get to relive :’)