#bc they each have something very different about them which makes their work so striking

[theloveinc]

i wish i liked ethel cain as much as i like nicole....... cuz i really think she could outdo the doer if she tried but in my mind... just isnt? for some reason?

[mattiebluebird]

Yk that post that's like ‘signal is the spiritual successor to nightwing’ bc I DO & IVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT IT NON-STOP.

And the comics pretty much confirm it (To Me) in Grayson #15.

So in this issue each of the Robins, minus Steph (RIP Steph) get paired off with one of the We Are Robin gang and give them their own advice on what it means to be Robin.

Tim—whose main problem with this whole thing is that they don't know these kids, how can they trust them?—gets paired with Andre Cipriani, a mob kid whose dad was murdered by a rival gang when he was eight years old. Tim trains Dre by having him fight blindfolded. He tells Dre that being a Robin is about truth and investigation, which makes sense, right? Tim became a Robin by figuring out Batman and Robin’s secret identity (keep this in mind, all the Robins’ advice links to their origin).

To be a Robin, you have to understand what you don't know. And then you must seek to know it. You must always ask: how can I see into the dark? Batman once told me, being a Robin can be summarized into one word: investigation.

These two were an interesting choice to pair up. I would've thought they'd put Dre with Jason, given their violent tendencies—Dre is smart, but at this point in the comics doesn't strike me as particularly investigative. Then again, right after this arc he goes undercover in a gang, so maybe he learned something?

Speaking of learning something: at first I thought they should've paired Dre with Steph (#teamcriminaldads lmao), and while that would be an interesting team, Dre did learn from Tim. If Riko were present in this issue, she would've been a good fit for Steph, as she idolizes the Batgirls and Steph was both a Batgirl and a Robin. Plus, Steph and Riko are both brave & have mean streaks, something that Riko has trouble showing because of her shyness. Steph’s advice probably would've been along the lines of “being a Robin is about defiance”.

Besides, if Tim and Dre weren't paired up, we never would've gotten this interaction.

— You like Liszt.

— What?

— Franz Liszt. The composer. You play the piano. I looked you up. People who play the piano like Liszt.

Points to Tim for the most autistic small talk ever. ‘You like this, which I know because I researched you in a totally non-creepy way.’ Amazing. 10/10.

Dax gets paired with Jason. They're interesting parallels. Dax is the inventor/mechanic of the team, but also sort of the wild card with very strong morals, like Robin!Jason in a way. Like Jason, Dax’s father is (implied to be) a crook, though they took different moral directions because of that—Dax is completely opposed to gun violence.

Anyways, Jason's main reservation is that you can't have Robin without Batman. And I guess he decided to solve this issue by just becoming Batman & making the WAR crew relive his origin story by stealing tires from the mob.

Y'know, kid, Batman once told me, being a Robin comes down to one word: confidence.

Jason Todd, the Crime Alley street kid who had the balls (and the skills) to steal Batman's tires and get away with it. Sort of. Confidence, indeed.

Damian's problem with the Robins is, of course, that they're weak, and strength (according to him) can't be trained; you either got it or you don't. He gets paired with Izzy, who probably has the toughest home life of the WAR crew. Her brother's in a gang (that he regularly beats her up for not joining), and she's failing all her classes because she's too busy working night shifts at her mom's restaurant to sleep or do homework.

So Damian's advice to her is pretty apt:

Batman told me that there is one word that captures the essence of being Robin. Suffering.

Damian and Izzy are both outwardly surly, stubborn characters who have had to fight to survive. Notably, Izzy is the first of the crew to almost resort to killing/guns (in WAR #6). She's also probably the best fighter in the WAR crew after Dre and Riko. She does dancing, gymnastics, judo, and kick-boxing.

And, finally, we reach the point of this whole post: Dick & Duke.

Duke deduces Dick's secret identity in like .5 seconds.

— I've solved a lot of hard in my time. This ain't hard.

— No. No, it wasn't hard. Not for you. Again, Duke Thomas?

Dick: You discovered my secret identity!

Duke: What? Like its hard?

After scoping out their strengths and weaknesses, Dick sends the Robins on individual assignments: Dre and Tim to investigate, Dax and Jason to cause a distraction, Izzy and Damian to apprehend Robo-Batman/Gordon.

Dick brings Duke on to a roof for a stake-out, where they have this exchange.

— You think only the originals understand how to be Robin?

— Nope.

— Yeah. Me neither.

Then it turns out that Dick actually turned them all in to the cops because he wanted them out of harm's way. He's been watching Duke for a while and he knows he's scared of heights, so he led him onto a roof he knew he couldn't get off of. Just before they part ways, Dick imparts his Crucial Robin Advice:

Batman once wais to me that being a Robin is about one thing. Family.

(I find this whole thing super ironic considering Dick's whole aside concerning the Robins was the fact that it doesn't matter if people know you're manipulating them as long as it works.)

The point of Robin? Family. Dick and Duke are alike in this way. Dick only became Robin to get justice for his parents’ murder. Duke only joined WAR to find his parents.

Their origins and motivations are similar, and so are the characters themselves. Dick is often called the world's second-greatest detective next to Batman himself. Duke is a child prodigy—one of our first introductions to his character is when he tried to solve the Riddler's riddles in Zero Year. He loves puzzles. He's an amazing detective.

And, of course, one of the things we know and love about Nightwing is his inherent kindness, something that's present throughout Duke’s entire character arc. Even their hero names, Signal and Nightwing, are parallels of each other (light and dark). Batman’s first sidekick and his last. And, like Nightwing, Signal formed his own team (WAR) with no help from the others (except Alfred ig).

Of course, the entire point of Signal’s character is that he's not just a Robin. He's something different. It reminds me of that post that's like—’poor dick grayson, originator of a legacy he never meant to be a legacy, crushed with guilt and jealousy when he looks at all those who came after’. To me at least, it makes sense that Nightwing’s successor would've never been a Robin at all.

[us3rnam3-r3dact3d]

It is my birthday today, so here are some Redacted Boys on their Listener’s birthdays

David

Birthday planner extraordinaire. David plans birthday presents months in advance, consults Asher (master gift giver) and your friends to find out the perfect gift is. He doesn’t believe in giving you refills on any of your every day self care products, fav foods, any of that. He wants each and every gift is special and something you’ll actually enjoy, but not something you’d think to get for yourself. Angel strikes me as a party person, and David is a magnificent host. He once even managed to pull off a surprise party for you without a hint of suspicion.

Asher

Birthdays are an all week (sometimes month) affair for Ash. He starts the celebrations on the first of the month (a few weeks ahead of that if the first is your actual birthday). He decorates the entire house, gets you multiple cupcakes and treats throughout the month “because it’s your birthday!! I know it’s two weeks away what does that have to do with anything??” Ash is, as previously mentioned, a master gift giver. He gets you several gifts, scattering them across the month, that are Exactly what you want, often without you even having realized you wanted it. He pays attention to you throughout the year, especially when you go shopping together or what you’re online shopping, and keeps lists on his phone of stuff you look at but don’t get for whatever reason. He makes you feel special for as long as he can milk it!

Milo

Extravagance is the name of Milo’s game. He’s a bit more low key about it than Asher, but he puts just as much attention and dedication into making your birthday special as his friends do. Milo believes in quality over quantity, and he has expensive taste. You stopped looking up the prices of his gifts years ago, since they often made you a bit queasy. Very nice clothes, jewelry if you’re that kind of person, accessories and items that have to do with your hobbies that you haven’t gotten bc of how expensive they are. He gives you a few, beautifully wrapped gifts, gets you coffee in the morning, takes you to lunch, your favorite shops/activities, and finishes the day off with an expensive dinner out. He takes the day off work, even though he never willing takes his own birthday off (David has forced him to a few times). Although it’s true year round, Milo makes sure on your birthday especially that you know you are the center of his world.

Vincent

Vincent used to be an extravagant person, but in recent years he’s come to appreciate the intimacy of a quiet, private day for the two of you to celebrate together. Vincent showers you with gifts of course, but that’s no different than every other day of the year. He spends every second of the day waiting on you hand and foot. He makes you breakfast in bed, makes sure you have time to shower, do some self care, peacefully do the things you love without having to worry about anything. He learns and practices how to make your favorite meals in private, gets a fancy cake shipped in from out of state, and spoils you with fine wine and champagne to celebrate. He plans and purchases a birthday outfit for you every year, which perfectly compliments your style and is tailored to fit you (how he does that without you ever having to sit for a fitting eludes you), and he takes you to all of your favorite spots where the two of you can celebrate together.

Sam

Simple is the name of the game for Sam and Darlin. I feel like neither of them are huge birthday people, but Sam wants his partner to feel special, even if it’s just another day. A simple gift, something you already need but probably won’t but for yourself. He makes sure nothing and nobody bothers you all day, often employing the pack to make sure you’re left alone in the peace of the cabin you two share. You go on walks around the woods, sharing the quiet together. He makes you a cake himself. The icing is messy and it’s a touch too dry, but it was made with so much love it hardly matters. He makes you feel loved and special without feeling exposed or observed.

And that’s what I’ve got rn. Might come back later with the damn boys, but I’m going to go eat some cake!!

[bloomeng]

Shout out to the person who noticed Steph was the only one in heels and said Dick would totally wear heels. You didn’t know it but you were ahead of your time (it was always my plan to put discowing in heels).

Steph originally wasn’t going to get heels but then I got the idea to add the wings and I fell in love but I think the in universe reason is she wanted them for the drama and she was extrapolating design elements from Batgirl’s og outfit and Batwoman. I was going for like a gothic princess sort of vibe which turned out a bit more Fischl from gi than I intended, but I think that actually suits the vibe pretty well.

Another shoe detail: Jason’s shoes are meant to be slight platforms to match his desire to be tall and imposing.

This is a side tangent but I want to talk about it. For this au I’ve been trying to strike a balance between feminine and “would this character actually wear this?” Now the answer is mostly no. The outfits by nature are impractical as hell bc that’s how magical girl media is, so the question I’ve been asking is more “would this character feel comfortable in this outfit?” I want each look to be equally feminine which means I’m hyper conscious of not making the women more feminine than the men. Magical girl designs are hyper fem by default so my goal is to basically make everyone relatively the same amount of fem.

However, I’m also trying to take into account personality. This is where I might lose some people but hell it’s my au. So why are Jason and Cass the only ones so far with real skirts? This is totally my headcanon but I think they’re the only ones who would benefit from skirts:

Dick would be fine with wearing a skirt but I think he’s ultimately neutral about it. He would totally do it though if someone asked and would be fully aware of how nice he looked.

I don’t know if I’d say Tim would like wearing skirts so much as he doesn’t care. He’s more concerned with practicality.

Steph doesn’t have any issues with skirts but I think as a part of her uniform she would feel stifled. As as I said previously I think part of her look is based on Bats she would’ve looked up to but also partly it was secret wish fulfillment for that little girl who would’ve loved to look like a kickass mary sue demon princess from a y/a novel.

Duke in my opinion wouldn’t see the appeal. I think he’d be similar to Dick but just a little more shy about wearing one. I gave him a little ruffle though bc I thought it was cute.

Babs is fine with skirts but tends to prefer pants.

Cass is a bit different because I think wearing something frivolous is so novel to her. I wanted her outfit to be a blend of her canon design and her appreciation for dance. I tried to contrast her more practical elements (like her pants and armor) with the soft things I think she would enjoy (like a flowy skirt.) I still have ambition to go back and design a Black Bat outfit for her but I haven’t quite figured out the direction I want to take with it.

Jason on the other hand— this also very much in hc territory— I think didn’t know how much he would enjoy a skirt until he got to wear one. Stepping away from the universe for a sec; Jason is the most masculine design fundamentally which means that in order to match the vibe I would have to make him the furthest from his canon design. I’m really not trying to make a statement or subvert things by putting men in skirts bc it’s supposed to a silly au with aesthetically pleasing designs. I like feminine things and it shows in my work however I don’t see clothing as naturally gendered. That’s my little context psa back to my point. I think Jason is the most likely to wear a skirt and actually feel empowered by it. At first I think he was embarrassed by it but the outfits choose you so he just went with it out of necessity. And through that he found he really thrived in the juxtaposition between his intentional imposing figure and this unashamed femininity. He’s a drama kid at heart and fr what’s more dramatic than an ill-advised fit that serves. The skirt to him feels like a costume that helps give him the confidence to be Red Hood or ig… Red Bow. (Which is sorta how I think of the red helmet in canon but I also do believe that Jason and Cass would have the most fun wearing a skirt.)

I haven’t decided if Bruce will get a skirt or not but if he does just know that my reasoning is that his artifact was humbling him. Like you take yourself too seriously calm down with the brooding. He would use the skirt as a way to conceal more weapons.

(I think Kon would love wearing skirts but in this au because he built his own outfit I think he was trying to seem impressive and edgy and distinguish himself from Clark. I also think, despite enjoying skirts, he would have to work up the courage to wear them in public and never as Superboy because he would be too conscious of his image.)

Anyway I don’t claim to always succeed with my intentions coming through in my work but this is what is running through my head.

[woahtherebuckerino]

Fic Recs: Linked Universe

these are seven fics i have read recently and adore... lu has put me in a chokehold out of nowhere but you know we roll (all of the following are on ao3)

that's all it is by rosetintedtears

Sky tilts his head, a beat passing between them as he absorbs the words. Slowly, he signs, ‘I think I know why I’m here,’ and then he uses Time’s namesign: like the sign for ‘minute’, but with a ticked ‘t’ instead of a raised pointer finger. ‘Time, it’s not your fault. The heroes, me, everything. It’s mine.’ - - - or: in a forgotten temple, Time meets a ghost.

when i say how many times i have read this fic is innumerable. honestly one of my favourite lu fics ever bc i absolutely love how time and sky are written. it is bittersweet and hopeful and i am probably going to read it again now.

Fairies Against Bottles by theScrap_Witch

“I’m sorry,” said Legend, rubbing sleep out of his eyes, “but what do you mean the fairies are going on strike?” “They’re angry,” said Hyrule, not sure what part of that Legend wasn’t understanding. Did he not think fairies had emotions? Did he not believe in fairy equality? “They don’t like how you all have been treating them and won’t heal any of us until it changes.”

this one is so funny,, i love the idea of warriors paying fairies for their work in the war, and hyrule is so real for joining the fairies on their strike. incredibly light-hearted and amazing

The Shape of The World by VEcuzimlazy

Legend and Wind get into a rare argument (Which is cover for their not so rare gambling). In order to settle a bet, Legend turns to the rest of the chain and starts asking some simple questions. Questions that the other Links have never considered before. As the hero's slowly descend into a reasonable amount of chaos, Sky decides to make everything worse... on purpose. Or How many Links believe in the Flat Earth Theory?

i had never considered this before reading this fic... in their heart of hearts they are flat earthers and they are so funny about it. sky is peak menace energy here and i love it

new material by schrodingers__cat

“Play it for Epona, and she’ll come right to you.” “I don’t need your horse, I have a bird.” “You love my horse.” “You love my bird.” They both nod at each other in solidarity. (In which Twilight does his job, waxes poetic about the scenery, and teaches Sky a new song.)

sky and twilight interaction the beloved. they are so sweet and this fic is so lovely - something something the cyclical nature of time itself

Brothers At Heart by RiverNight

Having only recently met, Sky doesn't know much about his fellow heroes Time, Twilight, and Warriors yet. They work towards a common goal, pursuing reports of unusual monster behavior around a small town. Each of them is experienced, but like most of them, Sky is unused to acting as a team. An unexpected ambush at night puts the tentative trust the heroes build to the test.

this fic is simply so good. i really like fics set early into the chain's meeting, and this one shows exactly why i like them! they are bonding and learning to care about each other and it is great

A Land Called Hope by FactorialRabbits

Be silent, be still. Do not engage, do not wander. Stay close, and listen to me. If you get into trouble, do not shout. If you see another person, do not speak to them unless I do first. Keep your weapon in hand. Sneak or die. If you get into a fight, do not scream. Stay close enough to hear if someone is knocked out; if we attract attention yelling, we are all dead. Light no fires, leave no traces, and above all else do not bleed. ~Hyrule, scene 1 paragraph 3. (Alternate summary: Time meets the fairies of Hyrule's time in less than ideal circumstances, and more of them than he thinks.)

this one hurts right in the heart. the way the fairies are portrayed here, and the relationship they have with hyrule, is so well done and i especially love the differing views held about hyrule's era amongst the chain - it all felt very real

Even Hylia's Chosen Need A Little Love by FlamingIdiot

Sky is not particularly close with any of the heroes, and none enough to feel free to express himself properly too, or so he thinks. Still, when emotions are running high and he's at the end of his rope, he's surprised to find one of his brothers ready with open arms, and of course it's the one person nobody else believes is capable of it. Or Five times Sky got a hug from Legend and one time where he gets to initiate it.

god i love sky&legend fics, and this one is amazing bc of how the both of them are portrayed. sky is a little more bitter and legend being the one to reach out hurts. yet another fic i have reread a few times now

[red-riding-wood]

I’m so sorry about what happened to you and so many others. Disgusting misogynistic behavior. You all deserve so much better ):.

Also sending this bc I do believe he has made two new accounts. Drcranessweetestdoe and monsterfromthewoods. I have no proof these are him ,but it just strikes an absurd resemblance to his writing and he seemed to interact with both of them a few weeks ago. The first one hasn’t blogged in weeks either. Just seems strange. Once again though, I could be wrong. Just something for everyone to stay weary about. Stay safe ❤️

Thank you for the well wishes, anon! I really do appreciate you reaching out. <3

From my conversations with @drcranessweetestdoe, she does not behave like Kill (nor does her writing style compare to his), and I am pretty positive he is incapable (or at least very bad) at taking on different personalities since I believe I witnessed his attempt with the second account you mentioned. Aurora is very sweet, and she used to be a fan of Kill's writing and mine. I don't want people to be suspecting her of foul play because I do believe she is genuine. Kill has a pattern of reblogging fics as a way of seeing what victims he can latch onto and I see that as a coincidence with his reblog of Monster's.

As for @monsterfromthewoods... I was hesitant to make a callout, mainly because no one has actual solid proof that he is Kill. But, there is too much evidence for me to ignore, and I wanted to give my honest opinion and observations. Monster, if you are not this person, feel free to reach out and vouch for yourself, and if I am wrong, I am deeply sorry.

Fuck that. As I was typing this message up, I decided to check my DMs and noticed that my friend had said that he gave her the same name that, as of this morning, was revealed to me as his actual name along with his real picture and Facebook profile. That really sealed the deal for me. Here is the rest of my evidence to prove that this is "Kill":

Monster followed my friend around the same time that she blocked Kill.

Monster followed me the same day that I sent Kill a confrontational message, calling him out for his lies and pleading with him one last time for medical treatment and answers.

From the posts on Monster's account, and the one comment I know he made on my friend's post, his personality exactly fits Kill's. This is why I said I do not think he is capable or likely to be able to craft a believable persona.

Monster made a post about suicide, and a pro-Palestine post, the former of which Kill discussed with me a lot and the latter my friend pointed out as suspicious since Kill was also very strongly pro-Palestine. Seeing as Monster doesn't have that many posts yet on his blog, this isn't irrefutable evidence but it is very coincidental.

Lastly, I actually did my best to analyse and compare Kill and Monster's writing, since I had recalled a few things that stuck out to me when I read Kill's writing. Him and Monster share many similarities with their writing habits/consistencies. They are as follows (the examples listed are from 18+ content so please do not view if you are a minor):

Use periods and exclamation marks -- but never commas -- as punctuation to end dialogue tags.

Starter dialogue tag always facing outward. Like: ”So... Tight”

Tend to each use a snapshot style of writing, favouring incomplete sentences with frequent use of periods. Examples: K: "His mind, usually so sharp. Focused and organized like the most expensive machines. A killing machine, that worked in perpetual motion, living off killing, adrenaline used like a drug." M: "Your dear, understanding doctor. Doctor Jonathan Crane, who laughed out loud suddenly a couple moments ago. The dark colour covering his exotic looking eyes as he revealed his real nature to you."

Similarly, they both tend to avoid using possessive pronouns and determiners. Examples: K: "_ Pale, little pussy peaked from between her thighs." M: "The scars covering _ man's pale skin," _ = absence of "her, that, the," etc.

Often use adverbs after verbs in a way that feels out of place.

Capitalise after ellipses, always.

"Y/n" always has a lowercase "n".

Sometimes use three ellipses, often use only two.

Use "pants" but never "trousers".

Yeah, so, I may have spent way too much time on this. And I think most of this is redundant, now, especially after the name revelation, but still, I put work into it and didn't want it to go to complete waste lmao. I also had no idea until I was tagged today that apparently there are programs that do this sort of thing for you. Oops.

[ganondoodle]

sorry, long post, got totk thoughts ...again

first botw vs totk shrines aesthetic and meaning; then shiekah symbolism thats overtaken by sonau

botw vs totk shrines (not in quality of puzzle since i talked about that a little before, but as in aesthetic, meaning etc)

something that worked well with shiekah shrines in botw was that these things were built SPECIFICALLY to make a future link stronger, theres that denialability to it that kinda make sense when you think about it, they are small challenges for the future hero to test and make them stronger, they are spread around the world bc you wouldnt want to hide some major source of power in one place, a monk literally sacrifices their life to enable you to gain more power their dead body waiting for you at the end (neat!!), they are each a little different in pose and clothing and im pretty sure its implied each monk made the puzzle for their shrine themselves; and the ones that rely on something happening in the world first can also be explained by their ability to see the future, the shrines and towers all rise up from the ground, which gives them that believable sense of they have been down there all this time and been activated via the net connecting them all to signal it is time- their design is also just .. nice? its got a nice contrast of the dark and the ligher brown with eye catching light from orange to blue to pink telling you in what states of operation it is (idle, working/done, corrupted) and their shape design is a very striking mix of bigger emptier spots of dark with the lighter browns wiggly lines coming in in nicely paced patches and the strong lights poking through giving you a nice soemthign for your eyes to look at (their tech is also a mix of magic stuff AND mechanism, they still look and work kinda magical but still have cogs and springs and looks like they are actual maschines put together)

totk shrines have no real denialability to why they are the way they are, its pretty clear that they are there for game reasons (and to copy botw i guess?) with no proper thought given to it (or failed to convey); they are already there when zelda does her time travel bs, and i heard (havent seen it myself? or dont remember) that the sonau shrines were built to .. keep monsters at bay? ok, im not even gonna question that part ( ... but i am .. i guess lightmagic wahtever dont think about it) so .... why do they contain a puzzle at all? its not to prevent monsters from entering since you need raurus hand to activate it (in botw you need the shiekah stone to do so which isnt really found besides yours either but ... their purpose is to test and empower you anyway .. and pehaps in a wider range to strengthen the bond with other folks when you have to work with them to get to it) then they werent present in botw so they must have ... somehow appeared out of nowhere? their connection to the lightroots might have been an attempt to try and make them feel more connected but that didnt work either imo, the shrines on the surface mirror lightroots in the underground, implying they are connected somehow, i at first thought like the lightroot is their root and the shrine is the flowerbud, but its very clearly just some ...magic rock crystal with stuff built around it including a teleportation thing thats pretty much copied from the shiekah ones (??) and you somehow ... enter magic dimension (which is .. fine, but i liked how in botws it was an elevator going down, making it feel like you are put into a physical room underground) but then there .... are also shrines in the sky ... that have no lighroot to connect to .. (i guess .. magic light wahtever dont htinkaboutit) so that part kinda falls flat- and the bring-crystal-to-shrine-spot (uhg) also debunk that thought since its a (tasty looking) green crystal that just kinda warps into a big grey rock ... for some reason, at their end is always the same colorless statue of da kind and his fridge wife (not her build) they are also missing that denialability that they were built for link specifically, sonau cant see into the future so (unless they yoinked that from the shiekah too??).. how does .. anything of that work then? especially with the crystal ones given that they are always a blessing shrine sicne bringing the crystal to its spot is counted as the puzzle but they couldnt have known that thats where it would end up at (and then ...how and why would you put a shrine thing into a crystal thing and disconnect it and throw it whereever when it manifests somehow again thousands years later- i need to stop thinking about it)- then their aesthetic is white green and gold(ish) which is a nice color combination in itself tho its lacking that neat status singaling and the eye catching contrast with their glow, the green glowy bits dont stand out as much, their shape design i dislike alot since it ... looks kinda unfinished and in a strange disconnect to their tech; buildings and statues are very blocky solid colors with the occasional rune or dragon carved into, which is also very blocky and one colored, their shapes are pretty uniform in a blocky way, theres not alot of shape contrast anywhere besides basic smaller block and bigger block, the most interesting looking ones are the ... outer walls of the shrines with their scaled look and the ground with the circle patterns; their tech and clothing is in a strange disconnect, its got a gree-tealish scale like texture in anything solid, be it tech or ornaments, it also features alot more gold and also brown stones that look rather untouched- now, for clothing, that is fine, the shiekah didnt dress like their tech either (.... mostly, ancient armor does exist) BUT the constructs and tech also have that more natural look to them

the fact that the same blocky statue waits for you at the end alsso removes not just coolness but also personality, instead of individual monks that gave their life for you and you setting them free once you take their spirit orb its the same representation of the holy king and queen giving you some light juice to cure you more of miasma .. which doesnt actually matter sicne you get your normal arm back no matter how many light juices you got at the end anyway (their "tech" also just looks less like actual maschinery and much more like .. magic tm, the constructs have nothing maschinery like about them and are just floating rings animated by green magic wiggle lines and function almost the same as literal bokblins with the added thing of being able to fuse/use tech.. the empty spot of a threat like the guardians is very prominent once you realize that the constructs are largely just like a reskinned bokblin, and the miasma hands, while neat, are more like a surprise jumpscare and less like a looming threat and are also not taken to their full potential)

theres also a disconnect between the sonau as we are introduced to them in totk and the actual sonau ruins from botw, which share a common dragon motive but have a much more .. MORE aesthetic, theres even color present you dont see anywhere in totk sonau stuff, like the red paint- you are given the explanation that those are ruins built by hylians as a monument to the sonau but i think it falls very flat sicne its clear it wasnt designed to be meant like that in botw and also looks much more withered than the totk sonau ruins which rarely look withered at all despite being even older than the botw ruins; im very sure its jsut an excuse bc their design for totk sonaus got changed ... for some reason, just like their "barbaric" origins in the phirone/faron region

shiekah symbolism and more kinda overtaken by sonau

so, soemthing i really dont like about the sonau as well is that theres quite a bit that they take from shiekah and kinda... present it as being the origin of it, actually;

we all know the very dominant symbol of the eye/third eye with three eyelashes and a tear drop for the shiekah which is established in the very first chronological game (skyward sword) but also featured in alot of other zeldas, it symbolizing their connection to hylia and their foresight (perhaps even more? i dont know everything); now we got the sonau who ... have a LITERAL third eye (and it doesnt even look special ..) that has three lashes and they paint tear drops under their eyes... (which has only the connection to .. the tears zelda sheds when shes a dragon, no other character does so at any other point, lol?) it makes it seem like we are to assume that the shiekah got their symbols from the sonau, actually, just like their tech wasnt their invention either but the sonaus, actually, who are new to the franchise and have no other connection to anything of past games, unlike the shiekah who have been there from the start really

then theres the tech, the ancient shiekah had very advanced, mystical tech in botws ancient history and now the even MORE ancient sonau had even MORE advanced tech way before them in totks lore which goes beyond even botws ancient history

im not saying symbols gotta be exclusive to one group of people but .. it holds alot of significance carried from the older games too, it feels strange for them to highjack the shiekah symbols and achievements WITHIN the two games that are supposedly directly connected in timeline and world (while also pairing them with those supposedly aniecnt hylian feather crowns and belly out look ... which, im no expert but i raise my eyebrow at that) together with the fact that nearly any and all traces of shiekah tech, except for the little needed parts that are never called that though and are just footnotes .. if anything, are precisely erased feels .... off

another long ramble about my thougths about totk, some people graciously call them analysis but i wouldnt say its that, its jsut a largely incoherent waterfall of words that would have spun around in my head for weeks if i didnt write them out and i keep coming up with more thoughts bc im thinking about the rewrite and well ...

im gonna have art soon again ... promise <(＿　＿)>

[mirror-imaged]

idont think anybody understands sheffbrien the way I do (insane) I'm sorry they're literally so bad for each other (affectionate) I could go on and on forever. I will actually. sheffbrien post be upon ye. thanks to ashe for talking about this w me on discord. this is a kinda obrien centric post bc of that loll but I'm obvi getting into sheffields whole deal too

having reread tc22 again and done some literary analysis a few days ago on a plane at 2 in the morning (I'm out of the country rn helloo ^_^) I picked up on a lot of thematics for them I find very interesting. long post ahead!

1 - the dynamics in their relationship are so wildly interesting. I think their characterization in tc22 does wonders for them. firstly, there are a lot of false differences id say? they seem so different, but when you boil it down they have a lot in common. sheffield is affluent and intelligent but has a spiteful and hotheaded side, obrien is seen as angry or rude but is taken for granted with his intelligence quite often by others. he got into an ivy league school at 17. there's also how sheffield seems so charismatic while obrien is abrasive and lonely, but they both really have no other friends when you get down to it? and last example for now, sheffield sees himself as divine while obrien seems to have renounced religion, but he really hasn't done the work of removing his mindset from a catholic(?) framework. expanding on that,

2 - obrien has religious trauma and this is heavily established. he doesn't actually ever move past religion as a concept though, he just moves on from God. he replaces his concept of God with his concept of his sister. more on this later. sheffield also has a relationship with religion, but more in the sense that he inherently sees himself as something unlike humanity, something greater and to be revered. he refers to himself as an angel in a way that doesn't strike me as being ingenuine the way he does in other places. I need to draw art about this it makes me abnormal

3 - for obrien specifically, there are some insanely interesting threads left about his trauma creating a savior complex within him. obviously shown at the start of the story with professor harris, but there are also the times he mentions going into genetics due to his guilt and wanting to entirely eliminate the disease that disabled his sister and when he says he feels an involuntary sympathy for stella when he found out she didn't mean to kill harris. it also makes me wonder if that plays into his protectiveness of sera later on.

4 - obrien has some severe internalized ableism going on that I wish more people actually picked apart. I know tc22 is a small scale story and a lot of people haven't read it, but it's fascinating stuff. he obviously grew up with the mindset that his sister was somehow contagious and describes how he felt he would somehow fall ill because of this, and that sort of mindset does a lot to dehumanize somebody in a person's mind. after eventually passing on an illness to her that results in her death, he is driven entirely by guilt as a character. he becomes certain that if God were fair and true, he would have died instead of her. but, like I mentioned before, he never really renounces religion in any specific way aside from this. he even mentions how he now prays to his sister instead of God, which I think is so fascinating. he never saw his sister as a person, and by elevating her to this status of somebody he needs to grovel to or even just uses as a holy figure in his life, he continues to see her as inhuman. he recognizes his past ableism, but he never does anything to deconstruct and rebuild from it. much like with his relationship with religion!

5 - obrien is treated by dds2 as the morally virtuous character, but he's really not (if you get the context from tc22). my boyfriend put it as him being just on the right side of history, which I absolutely agree with. I know tc22 was probably written after dds2 and doesn't necessarily inform the writing decisions for the games, but it definitely adds juicy layers to me. obrien is seemingly not motivated by any true desire to help sera or the nameless sufferers of CATCH22, he is motivated by the guilt from his sisters death hanging over him like a shadow. not to say he doesn't care at all, but it seems more like a quest to make up for his sins in the eyes of his sister than a desire to do good, which seems awfully catholic to me. this is absolutely the most interesting part of his character presented by the narrative. God I wish they did this better in the games.

6 - moving on to sheffield, sheffield is actually one of the most interesting and real depictions of a character with NPD traits I've ever seen, hands down. I know I talk about this frequently, but it's especially strongly done in tc22 and one of my favorite parts of his character. to start, he's mostly presented with extremely minor and often-masked aspects of the disorder a lot of people don't really pick up on. vouching personally. he quickly becomes passive aggressive and seemingly personally offended when challenged, like by inspector Harvey for instance. he is a practiced and seemingly compulsive liar, able to make things up on the spot that nobody but obrien questions due to his confidence. he seems to get along swimmingly with people he doesn't know well, charismatic and understanding. he pays exceptionally close attention to other people's emotions, expressions, and demeanors to adjust and match theirs. he also is debatably depicted with real delusions of grandeur. he only seems to be able to let his guard down around obrien, actually. and my absolute favorite moment of his, really relatable for me, is that when he stops masking he does not become dangerous. he does not go into a rage, he just goes blank. entirely and visibly unable to express emotion "normally", and obrien is initially scared, but realizes he just doesn't understand sheffield as well as he thinks he does. this is incredibly accurate to real life for me. it's actually insanely well depicted. and what I really appreciate is that sheffield is never presented as truly malicious [IN THIS STORY]. with dds2 context, he can be seen that way for sure, but he isn't actually shown being morally reprehensible. he's dubious and seems to have trouble understanding where he crosses a line, but that's also very true to real life for me. he isn't necessarily trying to be evil, he's just nosy and invasive of boundaries on occasion. they also never actually label him as or call him a narcissist, which is so good?? props to tadashi for once?? I think he is one because I have the disorder and can more accurately assess this sort of thing, but labeling every character who's like Abusive as a narcissist is so tacky and distasteful to me. it diminishes the harm they inflict on other people as being something born of mental illness, which isn't necessarily true. he is definitely abusive to sera, but that is not related to his narcissism.

7 - sheffield is just such a good character in this. I raved already about his npd stuff but I want to get into other things a little too. firstly, he does seem to genuinely view himself as inhuman, which is something I also believe contrasts obrien a little. obrien has this deep internalized self hatred, while sheffield has this genuine belief he is on a different level from other people. despite this, he sees obrien as being his Equal in some way. as being worthy of his presence, his assistance, his friendship. the pizza scene really really drives this home for me. (that's another subtle npd ass trait but I've said enough). in addition, sheffield tries so desperately to present himself as worthy of something more, maybe backed by doubt, or maybe even just true belief. he tries to appear intimidating, has knowledge of how to get into people's heads, etc. maybe this is because he's young and people see him differently for being so ahead of his grade, but I also see it as a display of insecurity in an implicit way. his delusions of grandeur also play into this characterization, because delusions of grandeur are often born from extreme and severe self doubt (at least in those with mental health disorders, which I've already mentioned I believe he strongly aligns with). him coming from a wealthy background in Portland of all places would not help any of that kind of thing.

8 - i don't even know what else I could say about them. they make me so abnormal. not even a toxic romantic relationship between them (which I do like think about but obviously post tc22 I don't like their age gap) but simply their dynamic as two characters. sera is a figurehead for their conflict, really. all the things we learn about both of these characters really makes me question how much BOTH of them care for sera, not just sheffield's two-faced lies. she is representative of their ideological dispute. she is a small child who has the potential to save the world, but obrien is too scared of letting another child die as a result of his inaction and sheffield is too focused on his end goal of getting what he believes he deserves, divinity and becoming a revered savior of the world, no matter who falls along the way. they are built to contrast each other. you even see this through heat and serph to a degree, with how sera mixed them up. heat declares he is on the same level as God during the jp text of the vritra fight, while serph inevitably sacrifices his own life for the sake of sera.

9 - what happened between tc22 and the dds2 flashbacks? I actually need to know what caused their relationship to split so heavily. I'm fucking obsessed with them. post over please join my sheffbrien Island there's like 2 other people here

[guentzel]

q & a for fic writers

tagged by @cuprun ! tysm lovely!!

How many wips do you have currently?

this. is a dangerous question aksjdfh i am an au and wip disaster. and theres the fact theres hrpf+brpf to consider.

brpf: 24

hrpf: 20🫠

i am desperately trying to finish them but every time i start something i get distracted by another fic and just. can never finish anything (ntm theres the melancholy and self-doubt but thats beside the point!!)

Which one are you finding the hardest to finish?

hrpf: there's two: gilded blackbird and dirty, dirty boy. gb is taking forever because i have to rewrite it (thanks) bc the original plot/storyline did not work (why me thinking figure skating geno being injured in the usa and being abandoned by his company in the states would work narratively is beyond me) and then. ddb is smutty abo kyle dubas/tanger/geno with voyeur sid and i just. i get so close to finishing it but then feel terrible about my smut skills, and i think where i stopped writing last time is just. atrocious. and im too distracted by baseball rn to actually go through and fix it.

brpf: im not gonna be a loser and say the smut prompts (even though i am. in agony) so right now i would say rebury me. writing a fic where someone (or multiple someones) were forcibly outed bc a pornographic video they filmed with their bf got leaked is very compelling, but realizing that its going to be a long(er) fic (around 10k) makes me pause. because i want to actually do this right and good, and i kindve. seize up at the thought.

What does it usually look like when inspiration strikes for you?

lots of fics published in a short amount of time! or even me mentioning a fic idea i like and then said fic being published shortly after, but mainly the former. when im inspired it produces a lot of short fics in a short amount of time. in july i published six fics which was a very good time for me personally. i also started a lot of fics in that time, so thats another indicator, but thats also more like... an internal indicator

Do you curate playlists for each fic or is your process different?

no playlists for specific fics! i do have playlists that are purely for "daydreaming" said fics and trying to figure out what i want and how to get it to work. it means a lot of the same songs are used over and over again for different scenarios, but i like molding the "amv" to what i want it to be.

Do you go balls to the wall and write as you go or are you more organized?

the only time im organized when it comes to writing in any aspect is when im writing original work. mainly because i have rewritten the same novel 5x now and im sick of looking at it and im sick of having to do this, and being organized like this keeps it from happening in the future. with fics i go balls to the wall, basically just write what i want and leave it for a week after its done then proofread. the idea of working it like an original novel makes me nauseous, bc i wanna write what makes me happy, and just hope that it makes others happy, too.

tagging: @theflirtmeister @barkovsasha @hischiersjohnston @hughesquinn and anyone else who'd like to participate

[distant-velleity]

tagging @thehollowwriter bc um....... yeah :)))

this is for the chrysos overblot scenario~ bear in mind that this is all very rough and could be ironed out more, but i wanted to write it out at least

-

when chrysos first got his invitation to NRC, he was overjoyed. because at that point rielle had already been at RSA for a year, and what it meant for him was--he could finally start to be on the same level as the prince. he was free from the expectations of the court back home. he could finally have something of his own; going to a school without rielle, making friends without rielle, establishing a place for himself without rielle...

and then, naturally, nrc announces it's going to have a two-week-long exchange program with rsa; among the students coming to nrc is prince rielle.

chrysos doesn't even know what else he expected. why would he ever be allowed to have this for himself?

(more goes wrong beneath the cut :) )

when rielle actually arrives, it goes exactly like how he'd expect--the prince always hangs around him, chrysos has to attend to him... becoming so quiet and obedient that it unsettles those who know him personally. it's almost like a defense mechanism; draining himself of any personality so that everything goes over smoothly.

(it's not unlike jamil's situation, to be honest)

--and of course, now the entire school knows of his affiliation with rielle.

it's awful. it's awful. they look at him differently now, some people wondering if they can win him over to earn favors from the prince, even if he's an octavinelle student... of course, people are never going to forget that first and foremost, "chrysos" refers to "prince rielle's retainer" and nothing else about himself. not his hard work and diligence, not his combat capability, not his singing--no, they're only going to remember "hey, he's associated with that prince, isn't he?"

chrysos hates it.

-

the first few days passes by without any incident. and then the murder attempts start.

it's little things, at first; poison slipped into rielle's meals or drinks, a dangerously corrosive potion left in rielle's bag, a faulty broom... some of these things are caught by the ever-capable chrysos right away, who warns rielle right before disaster can strike. and every time, without fail, the culprits behind each "sabotage" are found and punished. even if they scream and beg honestly that they really didn't do it--people saw their faces and their bodies committing the crime, so how could it not be them?

(chrysos goes to great lengths to make sure no one notices the blot accumulating in his magestone.)

it gets so bad that chrysos has to start accompanying rielle to his classes for the prince's safety. and once that happens, the murder attempts do stop. for a day or two, things look like they've settled down.

then suddenly chrysos himself is nowhere to be found.

rielle doesn't seem all that concerned; at least, he doesn't go over the top with it? he seems anxious, of course, and a little afraid, but he doesn't let it get to him. he goes through his classes as usual, probably with someone to accompany him. it seems... fine, really.

what happens next is really the tipping point, though:

after school, rielle is at octavinelle returning to his room with one of the octatrio/quartet when someone shouts to catch their attention-- it's santiago, followed by... another rielle? one who was apparently gagged, tied up, and locked up in a storage closet, no less.

well, it's not reasonable to have two rielles, obviously. and they both keep insisting they're the real deal, no matter what the other says, especially no matter what the others have to say---

and the others almost figure out what's going on--

until the first rielle, the one who'd been attending classes all day and had looked almost reassured by chrysos' disappearance, starts coughing up pure, liquid blot. as he falls to his knees, chrysos' magic pen, which he'd kept with him all day after the retainer's disappearance, clatters to the floor--with the gem almost completely black.

his hair, his face, his clothes---it all melts off to reveal chrysos, looking deathly pale and absolutely furious.

if they hadn't seen the full picture yet, well, now they do. turns out chrysos had been the one orchestrating all those murder attempts, trying to subtly kill or at least horribly injure rielle and using others' appearances via his signature spell to disguise his involvement; but ultimately he couldn't go through with it each time. so he stopped, and then turned to blatantly try and silence the original rielle while stealing his place. which failed.

obviously he'd overestimated his own ability to use his UM, and now it's backfired on him to the point of weakness and literally spitting out blot, and he's this close to overblotting--but he manages to hold on a little longer, long enough for them to put the pieces together, long enough for them to say "we really need to get you to the infirmary so you can rest and reverse all this blot accumulation."

but then rielle, looking down at the kneeling chrysos, expresses sympathy and concern despite it all, somehow not taking those attempts on his life seriously, and the patronizing feeling of that--from the person who unwittingly looks down on him the most--is the last straw.

octavinelle is filled with the murky darkness of blot as chrysos succumbs to his anger, hatred, and envy.

[rainy-weather-supremacy]

I STRIKE BACK!

Which character would survive being exiled in Antarctica?

Funniest thing a character has said or done?

Tell me some more about your magic system! I love magic systems!

Where do your characters live?

If her brother is a evil landlord then what’s Marys job?

Who would you NEVER want to hang out with?

Who is most like you?

If you could put them in a specific time period and place in history, where would it be?

Does your story have multiverses?

Who are Granny’s and Mary’s wives?

Why did your characters end up the way they did?

One: Probably Mikaela, since they can make magical fire that would keep them warm.

Two: This one is hard bc as I think I mentioned I don't have any real story yet.... One thing that's kinda funny is that Jamie has had two seperate occasions where both she and the other person wanted to kill each other and ended up dating both. Also once Avery was trying to dig a grave for someone and accidentally dug up Daniel who was just vibing in the earth.

Three: The magic system doesn't really have any hard rules, there's just magic everywhere manifesting in different ways- Trees that make their surroundings cold or drain the light like a cloud around them, green flames carried on the wind etc. People can use this magic to do whatever they were born to do and with some studying, you can also learn a few other kinds of magic.

Four: I don't know what country they're living in, but Daniel, Jamie, Ozan and Avery live in a house in the city. Jane and Mary live on a top floor apartment somewhere in a different city. Mikaela and Tara live on a pirate ship, Camilla in Nature and Jackson also has a house. For the rest I don't know.

Five: Mary doesn't really have a job. If she does, the description is something along the lines of 'storm witch' or something like that. She can't really keep the storms away, nor does she want to, so sometimes there's just a storm and she runs around looking cool. That is her job. (Thank jod she has a wife with a job lmao)

Six: Hmm, tough one. Most of them can be pretty scary, but I actually think I couldn't stand to be around Granny without feeling bad for her and also for myself and she has a kind of weird effect that makes you feel weird too which I wouldn't wanna be anywhere near- Yikes!

Seven: Most like me... I think Arthur is kinda similar to me, because he likes watching the stars and has social anxiety and stuff but still is cool (Like me obviously) (And you in case that wasn't already clear :D 👍)

Eight: The french revolution, just to watch all of the chaos they'd cause. Mary would 100% try to get Daniel beheaded. Tara has never had more fun getting people that deserve it killed. It think they deserve to go there. As a treat.

Nine: They don't explore the multiverse or anything, but it does simply so that I can make the story where they are all in medieval times canon.

Ten: Granny's wife is Esther and Mary's wife is Jane.

Eleven: Ohh okay. Well, Mary is the way she is because her parents were really ducked up and she responded to violence with violence. The storms make her feel free. I made her because I wanted a cool character. Jane hates the way her flesh is, partially because she's trans, so she is now working on replacing it with carefully carved wood. I made here so Mary can have a cool wife. Daniel started off as a kind of antagonist to Mary but I really like him now, he had the same bad parents as her and he's like that because his first path of action is now manipulation bc if it worked then why not now. Avery was a bit more fucked up first but it's the way it is because it came from a very rich family where people where cold and backstabbers to even their loved ones. They also hunted a lot, so she does that now too but different (TM). Ozan lost his legs for some unknow reason and just started telling lies about it and now the reason he lost his legs are different every day (It's the worst when he wakes up and finds that he currently still has legs because then he actually has to go through it again). I'm not sure why I created him but he's here now and not leaving. (CW: CHILD DEATH) Leon I thought of when listening to 'welcome to the internet' and heard the phrase "here's a nine year old who died". He is the way he is because he was always very indifferent about death, so much so that when he got run over by a car he didn't really die. He's a ghost now that can only touch things that will die soon. That's also the reason his sister Camilla is like that, tough I'm not exactly sure what lead to her cooking with rotten food and having moss grow in her hair. She's just silly like that. Created because I thought of the phrase "my cousine Carmilla from the Corruption" and thought it was funny. For Tara I just took the aroace siren and added agender. I think that probably something fucked up ahppened to them but who knows, they just want revenge on everyone now. Mikaela was also just there someday and their story has something to do with running away, but once again has not been worked out. Toby didn't mean to start taking happiness from the people by watching them but it happened because he liked to observe them and I guess he was just so happy about them being happy that they were no longer happy, if that makes sense. I made him because wouldn't that be fucked and Arthur was based on another character I made once that started existing when humans observed the stars for the first time and ceased to exist after the last. Arthur was kinda bullied and stuff, so he just turned to the sky for comfort. His loneliness attracted some kind of magic power, so here he is. Jamie was kind of smiliar, with being made fun of in school until he was afraid of being known. The darkness, where no one can know what you look like, called to him so much that he can now shapeshift freely as long as he's in the dark. Esther I made because I thought a mysterious but kind grandma with kinda evil intentions would be cool. I have no idea why she's like that she just is. Granny was the last one I made but I kinda just got the idea fully-formed in my head one day. She's like that because she magically went insane, but I don't know why yet. Jackson I made because it would be funny to have a normal dude and tbh he's just vibing and George the monster baby bc it would be funny to have a baby in the family. He's a monster because his parents where and he might actually come from another world.

Thanks! I will return it tomorrow 😈

[honking-up-a-storm]

6/23/23

Using this page to start off the day cuz idc that there's some doodles already on it. I think it's gonna be another slow day, 4 handicap spots are open, more open past the entrance, and the main lot is very empty. It could fill up who knows, but my hopes aren't very high. Funny how active online I was in 16'-17', maybe it's because that's when a lot of current websites came out that have a clear record. Ungh, I want to do something where is everyone? I guess I can get some reading done today. As long as my feet hold up I guess. I knew there would be slow days, but slow and standing in one spot is killing me. Oh! I bought the book so I can properly do this, it should be coming in 5-14 days, though the seller is in state so it should be quick enough. One car, not gonna touch it since it has the handicap adapter on it, I could drive it but I don't wanna adjust the settings. I think this writing is good for a least cracking a dent in this book. Had a very deep dream where things were okay again, makes no sense. If it's a premonition, I don't want it. Could try reaching out to her though. I feel bad and I miss her. Taking the easy way out isn't cute. There's totally shit going through my head right now that's too fast to write FFS. It's cuz I'm thinking about IT, which is annoying. I've exhausted all thoughts on the subject, made my conclusions, pretty much moved on less than a week later due to good timing on the new circles. I guess I'm frustrated with my exit. I had more time than I thought. I guess it's only natural to have wanted things to go your way. It just sucks cuz I wasn't attached to those thoughts and words anymore and the grief I have for them is still very potent no matter how much I try to hide and deny It. I find it odd too that I didn't feel sad after, I thought over the scenario so many times that I was sure I'd just fall apart, but I didn't and don't feel sorry for myself cuz I was a full-on bitch who deserved it. The frustration and grief are what linger. And I think grief is the appropriate word bc jesus christ I loved them, I loved all of them and I don't know why I was that fucking monstrous (Well therapy helped find the route of that but still, tldr: Family source, took that kinda shit talking as a normal way to vent and be done with it bc worse shit has gone around the house and yet everyone claims to love each other, should have never done it to my friends). And I'm frustrated because jesus christ even though I don't remember much of the exit I know I was just spewing bullshit and was pissed beyond hell that it was happening while I was not in a good spot mentally and physically. They probably think I threw myself into therapy because of the situation, but nah it's because for the first time in my life I let myself stand a little too close to the edge of the train platform and envisioned some things. But shit the only thing that stopped me was my own fear of death and that girl who got her leg torn off by the green line a few days prior. Anywho I'm glad I'm better, obviously not cured or perfect but much much better. My paranoia is gone, I'm less irritable, and life is just enjoyable again. It's kinda funny how I'm working a job where I was only in it for the money (financial issues strike again when the V work is said) but like I'm having like actual fun working, it's literally the perfect job for someone with ADHD, every day is different and I get to move a lot, interact with a lotta people. Also like I work with cars all day, I love driving. I'm in my pink era, I'm starting to love life again.

Notes:

A - Truman show/ Fleabagging, mirroring, mimicking, repeating, fixations, extremely picky with food, shutdown rather than lash out

M - Overstimulation, IFYKYK, sensory issues

N - Can drive, good balance

it feels like summer again

I am made up of so many things

Gift of the day from funny old dude regular: 3 Musketeers bar

"FTM" license plate is real

[piduai]

(long ask, sorry! i just. need to talk to Someone about dungeon meshi yeehaw. tbh im not on anon bc i just went thru your dm tag so uh. not subtle lol) heyyyy, i've seen you rb dungeon meshi stuff and due to Circumstances decided to start it finally and. omfg. omg. how do i recover from this. it's so good??? Anyways. i feel like you have some really interesting takes so i was wondering if i could ask you abt what you think of the series?? like. idk it's so good?? you start and it's fun but then it just keeps building and building and then poof you now have a wonderfully crafted story and it's seamless and amazing??? also the designs. i LOVE the designs. tade is so agdjwgdhw and falin and marcille and namari and- anyways women <3. but yeah all the designs are so good, and the characters.... at first i was like. ok. abt laius but now i love him and just. wow ryoko kui is so skilled. manga so good it makes me forget abt the horrors even if there are horrors in it too lmao. anyways, i'm really excited to see how this story is gonna end!!!! and then ill make time to reread it slower too..... but yeah, i'd be happy to hear abt your thoughts on the series!!!

dungeon meshi is very nice :) i think it's as basic as it can get in terms of plot/writing but it excels in other categories. it's just pleasant to read, pleasant to look at, misses the rough around the edges feel a lot of obscure manga have (not that it's obscure lol it got awards and stuff. but it's taken a while to get an anime project) but doesn't feel forced & fabricated either, it's a rather intricate work, like a beautifully crocheted shawl done in vibrant shades... it strikes a good balance between feel-good and eerie. what i personally like the most is how you can see that the author is a very artsy person through her additional sketches, it's someone passionate about her craft who has depth of perception but also knows how to appeal to a wider audience without losing authenticity. i like how her sketches are individualistic and at times unsettling, but the manga itself has a very neat, rounded up, tidy style. another thing i like about the manga is just how diverse the character designs are, not in a "races have distinct designs" way, but that there's a wide variety of physiques, body types, skin colors, and it just does not feel forced or tokenized at all. it's just nice to see something different for a change! and like, i'm a person who really dislikes the setting itself (dungeons & dragons lol. and i don't like anthro stuff and human/animal hybrids either) but it's still easy to enjoy it even for someone like me. and it's rather funny! it has an up-beat optimistic tone overall, light-hearted, the comedy is always timed and delivered well. it's like a more nerdy less plot-heavy fma, comparison to which is always a huge compliment in my book. and yes, the characters are very lovable. marcille is the poster girl for classic main female character, it feels like they even stopped making those lol. everyone is just so different from each other and all have unique personalities explained by their circumstances, even rather episodic characters, and with that you can feel the tremendous care that went into creating them. as i said i don't consider it anything worth writing home about in terms of plot/character writing (it DOES have a video game setting after all...) and frankly in the beginning it was a bit boring but with time it becomes really fluid. "pleasant" is the perfect word for it, it's a good manga

[kiatheinsomniac]

Hey! Could i pls request some headcanons with all the assassins (included male and female eivor if thats not much to ask) and how would they react to their SO being very insecure of their body image? and what would they do to make the SO feel better? im really chubby fat i dont know how to call myself and well i never truly liked the way i look, not only specific parts of my body but all of it and everything about it dark eyes included...i always compare myself with others and i know i shouldnt but im not to blame while all of my friends are so pretty...it would really really mean a lot if you would write it. I find comfort in your works plus i always have adored the way you write❤️❤️❤️

notes: of course I can, darling! Remember that beauty is found in so many different things that look nothing alike so it's not fair on yourself to compare how you look to your friends and I'm so happy that you find comfort in my writing <3 Also I just settled for gender-neutral Eivor so they can be read as male or female

characters: Eivor, Altaïr, Ezio, Edward, Connor, Arno, Jacob

☾ ⋆ﾟ  MASTERLIST /RULES /TAGLIST FORM

e i v o r :

They love that you're plus sized and always make sure that you know this

"You look stronger this way, more beautiful, I wouldn't have you any other way, my love"

They enjoy idly tracing their fingers across any stretchmarks that you may have while you're cuddled up with your pet wolf at the end of your bed

Story-telling is important to them and they see such marks as giving you character

They just adore your dark eyes too, it's something they could just swoon over when they see you and all they want to do is gaze into them for hours and they'll utterly shower you in compliments about them when they're up close to your face

They also love just how soft your ass feels when they lift you onto any surface to kiss you dizzy after coming back from a long quest (and let's face it, with muscles like theirs, they're perfectly capable of lifting you, even if you try to protest against them doing such)

a l t a ï r :

He's obsessed with your eyes

Like he will find himself sketching them from memory, just your eyes, brows and the bridge of your nose, thinking of you the entire time and emphasising just how dark they are in his sketches

He loves how soft your body feels under his hands too

He'll always be the one to squeeze back harder when you hug him and he loves to wrap his arms around your waist and rest his head on your belly when the two of you cuddle in bed together

e z i o :

Ezio strikes me as a connoisseur of ladies - he won't knock anything until he's tried it and so he's come to see the beauty in all shapes and sizes of women

He adores any stretchmarks you might have on your breasts first of all as they give him the opportunity to cover each one in his kisses

He loves how soft you feel when he pulls you in for a hug - which is often bc Ezio is a touchy man

And your eyes have him wrapped around your little finger, seriously he could get lost in them and he always tells you how warm, welcoming and pretty they make you look

e d w a r d :

This is the 18th century, babes, so plus-sized is in!

He loves tracing all of your stretchmarks when he's laid in bed with you and will tell you how much he loves learning each little detail of your body, telling you how precious you are and how they shimmer like tigers eye/pearl

Like Eivor, he adores how soft your ass feels in his hands, how much there is to grab, especially when he's lifting you onto any surface in his cabin while he kisses you silly

Sometimes, when he's hand a long day, he'll like to sit/lay with you and cup your face in his hands and stare into your eyes as he presses little kisses across your face, losing himself in thoughts of you as he stares into your dark eyes

c o n n o r :

Connor loves your thighs in particular

When the two of you eat lunch as a picnic on the homestead while the weather's nice, he'll end up resting his head on your lap and sometimes just palming the softness that your thighs have to offer

Connor's eyes are dark too so, if you're insecure about yours, he might see if you can get you to love your own through loving his

He also makes sure to tell you endlessly just how pretty he thinks you are and how he just wants to hold you close at all hours of the day

a r n o :

TWO WORDS: LOVERS EYES

If you don't know what this is, it was popular in late 18th century Britain and they were miniature paintings of eyes that were typically worn on jewellery

Yeah, Arno adores your eyes and will absolutely wear a small painting of one of your eyes in a little locket that he keeps under his clothes. He will take it out to look at when he misses you while out on a mission.

When he's back home, he will want to lay with you like Altaïr does: arms around your waist, between your thighs with his head on your belly

When cuddling with him, maybe curled up by the fire reading a book together, his hands will roam over your body - not with any intention behind it, but just because he wants to feel you and he loves how soft you are under his hands

j a c o b :

Plus-sized is even more in fashion at this time so you bet you're the peak of Victorian body standards, baby!

Jacob loves holding you tight for hugs, feeling the softness of your body against him and he'll keep you there like that for a while, swaying on the spot

Like Connor, he loves your thighs and will kiss over any stretchmarks that you have there before settling his head on your lap or doing other things

He loves your eyes and, sometimes, while he's kissing you, he'll keep on pulling away to get you to open them, wondering why he's stopped but it's all for him to get a chance to gaze into your dark and beautiful eyes before kissing you again

☾ ⋆ﾟ Buy me a coffee?

🏷️@gojohater101 @daddyadler @writing-noah @havatnah

[jakekiszkaenthusiast]

By The Fireside

pairing: sam kiszka x reader 

warnings: none! fluff :) 

author’s note: okay! i’ve decided to turn the ‘christmas with you’ story into a...series? i’m doing an imagine for each member of greta van fleet, all in different scenarios- this story is going to be with sammy, exchanging gifts and being cosy and festive. i hope you all enjoy these, and get excited for our michigan boys during christmas. also- i’m not sure if it’s ok to talk about sammy’s dogs irl bc of the breakup, so the dogs in this story are entirely fictitious. 

“holy fuck, it’s cold! baby, come here- you gotta cuddle me.” sam called to you, already standing outside with one of the dogs, etta, the leash trailing out of his pocket where his hands were stuffed deep inside. 

“just a minute, stop being dramatic!” you yell back, bent over as you tried to clip the leash to your other dog, bonnie. finally, she let you clip her in and you bounded out of the open front door, albeit stiffly due to the many layers you were wearing. 

almost immediately, sam moves to wrap you in his arms, not paying attention to your dogs getting tangled. you laugh as he smooshes his face against yours, pressing kisses to your still-warm cheek. sam was always clingy, but he managed to get even worse during winter, using every excuse possible to cuddle with you, or hold your hand. 

bonnie got impatient, tugging on her lead to start walking. you and sam laugh before detaching and untangling everyone and beginning your walk.  

it was actually very cold, and after almost an hour-long walk, you felt frostbitten and your teeth chattered. sam had linked his arm with yours, trying to keep you close to him, occasionally kissing your cheek or laughing at your visible breath as you spoke. 

it was the twenty-fourth of december, and you wouldn’t be spending christmas together- you were going back to your parents’, as was sam. it made you sad, but you knew your ‘mini-christmas’ you were having together, just the two (well, four if you counted bonnie and etta) of you, would be enough until you reunited. 

when you got back into the house, you didn’t want to shed the many layers you wore and instead flopped onto the couch, waiting for sam to get to work lighting the fireplace. he crouches over the fireplace, striking a few matches and stoking a few logs before sitting comfortably in front of it, letting the flames warm his skin. 

he turns around and motions for you to join him. you scramble up from your seat, pulling your jacket and scarves off and sitting next to him, sides pressed together. you rest your head on his shoulder, and his head rests on top of yours. bonnie had come to settle just next to you, rolling over for her tummy to be tickled- etta was doing something in the kitchen, most likely something you would have to clean up later. 

“i’m really gonna miss you tomorrow, sammy.” you sigh, pouting. 

“i know, me too. but we can call, and we’ll be back on the twenty-eighth in time for new years.” he reassures, wrapping his arms around your torso. you knew it would be fine really, you were excited to see your family and you knew sam felt the same- but you were still going to miss him a lot. 

you both stay like this for a while, quietly talking about what you were going to do without the other, all of the food you were excited to eat back home. you made sam promise to bring back a slice of your favourite pie, after two years together you had decided that only mrs kiszka could make it right.   

“okay, mini-christmas starts now!” he says, removing his arms and head from you, getting to his knees and crawling over to the christmas tree to your right. he pulls a few wrapped boxes out, passing them to you and asking which ones were his. 

you had three poorly wrapped boxes in your lap- two were medium sized, but it was the third and smallest box that held your attention. you commented on the sloppy tape-work, laughing at his sheepish face. 

sam delcared you should go first, taking turns between the two of you to unwrap each gift. so far, he had given you a special edition of your favourite book and a knitted sweater in your favourite colour. you had got him two of his favourite jazz records, a piece of art he had talked a lot about and finally, a silk kimono you knew he’d love. all that was left was your final, tiny box. 

“go on, open it!” he urged, pushing it into your hands. 

it didn’t take long to unwrap, and nothing about the outside of the box revealed its contents. you nervously opened it, revealing a silver ring adorned with small diamonds and opals. your eyes widen and flick up to meet his, cocking your head with confusion.

“okay, i know it looks like...that, but it’s actually just a promise ring. to tell you that i love you and to make sure you always carry a piece of me with you. diamond is my birthstone, and i know you love opals,  so i thought this would be perfect.” he explains, a hint of nervousness in his voice. you smile widely, taking it out of the box and sliding it onto your finger. it looked perfect against your skin. 

you shoved all of the discarded wrapping paper out of his lap and crawl into it, wrapping your arms around his neck to crash your lips against his. he laughed into the kiss, one hand finding the back of your neck and the other stroking up your back. 

after pulling away from the kiss, you rest your forehead against his, letting your noses bump every now and then. 

“i love you so much, sammy. i love the ring, and the meaning behind it, too. i’ll carry you with me forever.” you murmur, smiling widely. 

“one day soon, it’ll be the real thing. not just a promise ring.” he says seriously, looking deep into your eyes. 

“i can’t wait for it” you whisper against his lips, kissing him deeply by the fireside. 

the rest of the ‘mini-christmas’ was spent lazing around the comfortable living room, drinking wine and picking from the cheeseboard you had set up. you turned a christmas movie on, but it was quickly forgotten when you shared warm kisses. the dogs cuddled close to you, trying to steal bites of food and licking your chins to get your attention. 

you loved the little family you had created, and could already see flashes of your future to come:

his face as he sees you walk down the aisle 

his first time holding your firstborn

bringing your baby home, the dogs sniffing curiously at their head

finally getting to spend christmas together, everyone’s family laughing. 

you couldn’t wait for your life to play out together, knowing he couldn’t either. you would get to share warm kisses for the rest of your lives. 

[chemicalpink]

If it’s alright with you could you do an astrology post about how bts would flirt with a person they were attracted to?

So.. god I really hate disclaimers because I like to believe that we are all reasoning people, plus there’s a general disclaimer on my page BUT I know for a fact that people don’t read that (those same people won’t read this one anyway).

Disclaimer: This analysis/reading is based on my experience and knowledge of astrology, it is not meant to be the absolute truth, as BTS are real people, and astrology can only capture so much about multidimensional humans that have had past experiences and cultural approaches amongst other things, it does not have to resonate with you since this is in no way related to anyone reading it (unless you are a member of BTS in which case, get out of here lol ) This is just for entertainment purposes.

OKAY NOW THAT THAT’S OVER by default, Venus and Mars could give us an insight into their love styles, but I’ve already got reading about those here, here, and here 

We are going to use those BUT I’ll focus on their EROS (if you want me to do actual research and post a full love life analysis for each member, let me know in my ask)

SO BASICALLY THIS IS BTS’  FLIRTING STYLE ACCORDING TO THEIR VENUS, MARS, AND EROS. 

Kim Seokjin ʕっ˘ڡ˘ςʔ

I feel like a dad joke to tune into the other person’s humor is his way to go.

His Eros in Scorpio points to someone blunt in his approach, so something along the lines of overly flirting pick-up lines.

His Cancer Mars points to his overall romantic self so if Kim Seokjin is flirting with you prepare to live a drama scene where you feel like the only person in the world.

His Capricorn Venus reinforces the fact that this man is straightforward when flirting, and is very VERY selective as to who they approach.

So all in all, these three placements tell me that Kim Seokjin is a man that loves the fact that people are so multidimensional and he is here for it! he wants to know everything about the person he decided to approach because this man’s standards are over the top and he knows it. 

There's a lot of talking involved while getting to know each other, although he drops facts about himself here and there along with some funny storytimes, he will make it all about you.

A gentleman at his finest, drop you by your house, make sure you’re not cold, that you’re enjoying your food, that you’re comfortable.

This man’s way into your heart is ultimately his actions + his humor.

Min Yoongi  /ᐠ｡ꞈ｡ᐟ\

He’s... silent. Kinda shy, okay very shy, unless you gave off a great vibe, you’re not getting past awkward introductions and anxious small talk.

If you make it past introductions(because let’s be real, this man’s standards? impossible to fulfill), you’re in for a ride.

His Eros in Capricorn makes him crave to connect in a physical sense, even if it’s just hand-holding during dates, funny enough, this placement is the hardest one to make him open up so.. he’s not talking much about himself.

EVEN FUNNIER his Aries Venus points to someone bold and confident, which I can totally see him doing, the first move if he sees someone that plays into his idea of perfection.

Idk why it just strikes me as he knows what he wants from people, he’s not afraid of a challenge and chase, and his boldness as well as need for physical touch, makes him a great candidate for a fun short term, especially since his Eros signals that he pretty much values work more than love life.

Yoongi is... very much handled by his ego self, so he might be aloof at times, it has to do with his terrible high standards, a somewhat fear of intimacy and love for his work that keeps him from any type of social life (because he values work too much), but this man is also very romantic, and a great listener, as it is told by his Cancer Mars.

It’s all a matter of getting through his hard skin to get to the mushy Yoongi he doesn’t let many people experience.

Jung Hoseok ʕ♡˙ᴥ˙♡ʔ

This man loves a challenge, the thrill of the chase, not very healthy if you ask me but hey, you do you.

Playing hard to get will most certainly interest him. As well as letting him help you so he can “save the day”. This is all according to his Aries Eros. 

True to his Eros, his Aquarius Mars makes him be the biggest fan of flirting, and he obviously succeeds, thanks to his huge charisma and wittiness. 

LISTEN- THIS MAN as oblivious to affection as he is, can flirt with a whole group of people at once.

Free-spirited and quick-witted people are his cup of tea since it makes it easier for him to keep the flirting flow going.

I know I’ve said it many times before in this post, ISN’T IT FUNNY his Pisces Venus points to him being shy and awkward but cute, which I think pretty much describes Hobi, minus the shy.

So all in all, Hoseok flirting magnet, he is all smiles and will fill your heart with cute stuff and funny things, also, KING of not giving off mixed signals, he doesn’t even have to say a word, he flirts with his whole body.

KIM NAMJOON “φʕ•ᴥ•oʔ

THIS MAN BEING AN EROS IN LIBRA MAKES SO MUCH SENSE. He has a more traditional sophisticated way of flirting, kinda like courting.

It also makes him very giving, up until the relationship is off-balanced, then things end, so yeah, he likes to give, but he also likes to receive just as much. 

Also, very much into intelligent refined people. 

Just like Yoongi and Jin, he has a Cancer Mars, which only heightens his leaning towards traditional love and courting.

He will be devoted even when flirting, wanting to know everything about the other person, even on the first date, just- very very soft Joonie.

Lowkey, as poised as he is, his Scorpio Venus will give everyone a run for their money on terms of flirting. This man knows whats he's doing and how much he affects the person he is flirting with.

He’s just- so used to flirting and connecting with people that he doesn’t have an outcome in mind, just finds flirting fun and exciting.

Basically, Namjoon is a man that knows what he wants and how to get it, but flirting stages are just so common to him, he does it out of boredness, not that he doesn’t want to connect with people, quite the contrary, he finds people so amazing, it’s just- flirting doesn’t have an endgame for him.

Might I dare to go as far as to say, Kim Namjoon might end up in a relationship by accident just because he didn’t know when to end his constant flirting. 

PARK JIMIN  •᷄ɞ•᷅ 

His Eros in Pisces makes him one of the more emotionally passionate of the bunch, to an unhealthy state, in which he may manipulate himself in order to satisfy the other person. 

There’s a lot of thought going into dates, small gifts “because they reminded me of you” and a lot of cute stuff. Very Very passionate.

He has a Scorpio Mars, so as much as he is passion-driven and very much into cute stuff, and believing that he should 100% merge with the other person, he knows what he’s doing when he flirts.

Different from Namjoon, Jimin doesn’t just flirt for funsies, he entertains the idea of love when flirting, future plans, meeting the parents, he can just see it all.

AND he also has a Scorpio Venus so he is definitely aware of all his flirting and how he affects the other person, especially since there’s a lot of sex appeal going into it.

Not so much a mystery himself, but he tries to be the perfect fit for all. Which might ultimately hide behind this perfect partner facade. 

This man doesn’t just end up in a relationship by accident, this man falls in love on accident.

KIM TAEHYUNG ʕ •ᴥ•ʔ

We’ve got another one in love with the thrill of the chase.

Tae also has Eros in Aries, so there’s a lot of playfulness involved in flirting, from banter to playfully shoving the other person aside.

Might also be into dates where he can compete with you, like arcade, or something that he disguises as competition but he knows beforehand he’ll win.

Someone tell him it’s not healthy to crave impossible relationships, anyway, he’d love to be the shinning armor in his love story.

He has Capricorn Mars, which makes him have an honest, practical, and straightforward style of flirting.

The vibe check is real, so unless you pass it with flying colors, do not expect to be flirted with.

Although, his whole aura screams social and flirty due to his Aquarius Venus, which involves a lot of charisma and a great sense of humor. 

Just like Hobi, Tae can flirt with a bunch of people at once without even trying.

JEON JUNGKOOK  ₍ᐢ ̥ ̞ ̥ᐢ₎ ♥

Flirting for Jungkook is more of a mental game than an emotional one, according to his Eros in Gemini. 

Now listen, the nerdier, the better. But you would have to approach him first, as much as he enjoys the idea of talking to people, he doesn’t really do it that well.

Just like Jimin, he has Scorpio Mars, so in line with flirting being a mental game, he knows his game plan, his moves, he knows how people will react to them, he knows what he wants, and more importantly, how to get it.

He very obviously knows about his sex appeal and uses it as an advantage, even though at first he’s kinda awkward about it.

Much like Namjoon, he enjoys flirting so much that he doesn’t even need to have an endgame in mind. He likes to hear people talking about their passions and loves it even more if he learns a thing or to about it in the way, but his awkwardness comes through when he doesn’t really measure that most of the time when you flirt its because you’re interested in pursuing a romantic relationship.

His Libra Venus also plays the part, since it signals him being flirty and witty without even trying, just a man, his beauty, his charm, and his charisma. 

He’ll do anything possible to make you feel like you matter, even going as far as daring to hold your hand just because (which is a great pointer t know if he is really interested or just flirting bc he can)

Ultimately, his flirtation serves as a means to cheer themselves and other people up.