#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?

[ganondoodle]

About Shargon: What kind of compound are their horns made of? Is it the same as his teeth or skeleton? What’s the reason behind their glow? I think it’s really cool so I thought I’d ask

Thank you for the ask!

so, alot of demon anatomy revolves around their demonic heart and its blood (which is concentrated energy/magic- the color of which is determined by their elemental type, Shargon is type lightning, which is generally a mid blue going into greenish, but there are always slight color variations even between the same types) their bones too are made of crystalized demonic blood, its coated in a black layer of depleted blood (so the substance without energy) that acts as a sort of armor and makes the bones more durable and able to withstand even alot of bending (when a demon shape shifts their bones have to decrystalize to some extent to shift into different forms and sizes, its really uncomfortable or even painful depending on how well trained they are or in stressful situations since that process is something that needs to be done right or they end up really messy and vunerable) bones are also hollow and filled with demonic blood, it also aids their flexibility and the shapeshifting process and makes sure that if one is broken its quickly healed again since the bone doesnt have to decrystalize first

teeth and claws are not hollow and lack the black layer bc it eases using magic/energy through them and makes them harder to break, unlike the bones they are as hard as possible instead of flexible; the liquid blood isnt necessary since a broken tooth or claw usually gets discarded entirely and regrown from the ground up

horns are a mix of both, they dont have a black layer but are hollow (at least partly through) and filled with an even more concentrated version of demonic blood, very similar to heartblood (only found in the heart, the most concentrated version with a similar consistency; like a thick floaty liquid) and connected to it (you could see or feel a pulse in Shargons horns) but it lacks the genetic information actual heartblood carries- horns act mainly as a sensing aid ... like antenna in a way, or how whales melons work, it aids in sensing energy nearby, navigation, limited long range communication or if an energy wave that was sent out has hit something like a living demon .. or a dead one if theres still some remaining energy left (works best between demons of the same elemental type, but isnt limited to them and also depends on how skilled or mighty a demon is- for example, Eadrya, type water but extraordinarily powerful, could sent out even a really weak energy wave and they would be able to sense if it hits Shargon while Shargon himself might just feel there was some energy, but not from who or what type) and can pick up frequencies of distress calls that have lost the hearable part

the downside to that is if a horn was to break it might actually be the most painful thing to happen to a demon, even worse so if it draws blood, its like stabbing the most sensitive nerve that goes through their head and spine and heart, depending on the severity of the injury it might be paralyzing or drive a demon temporarily mad- worse than a stabwound into the heart itself

not all demons have horns, they are a very diverse kind of creatures that are each built better for different things (Eadrya doesnt have horns, the extreme amount of energy at their disposal pretty much closes any gap horns could have made in aiding senses- an advantage being less vunerability, a downside though is easy disturbance of anything relating to those senses by other energy types or frequencies .... and a general downside to Eadryas .. overproduction of magic even, is being basically the most detectable demon in the world due to them constantly emitting energy at very high levels if they are in good health)

(since Shargon (he/they) is the main example here, hes a demon that is built for speed and flexibility, for quick strikes out of the shadows, his bones are thin and bendable, his teeth are long, sharp and angled in various ways so if he bites he can lock it down hard without escape, even if the force of his bite isnt the strongest in itself- he can turn his head fully around multiple times (like an owl but worse) and his throat is largely made of pure muscle (the most muscle on him is his throat and to the big primary arms) perfect to bite and pull and twist until whatever he bit into gives out, getting him off of something is rather impossible without doing massive damage to it in the process (unless he lets go willingly of course)

-since i compared him to Eadrya (they/them) already- they are quick but only in water, their sheer size, thick skin, bones and well, body is really hard to damage, their teeth are small and all in the same shape in two rows on both sides, their maw is really wide and their bite force is pretty strong- if they bite it is with the intent to bite clean through, if that doesnt work they would need to let go and go for it again here older art but just to give you a general idea for Eadrya (demon form):

Thor (any pronouns) is another one that is really different- they are massive and armored with thick, hard plates, they are slow and have little mobility but are nigh impossible to take down unless you know exactly how; they dont have alot of teeth, rather small and probably not very sharp either and due to her two big tusks going forward its rather hard to actually get to anything to bite into, if she were though it would be somewhat akin to alligators (i think) that just smash their massive bones together to break whatever is in between with little to no actual 'biting' going on

(rather outdated art that i still, somehow, like- her humaoid form:

and an even MORE outdated ancient doodle of her demon form:

the only somewhat accurate part is the general shape and head, though the mouth isnt accurate anymore either ... barely anything is but something is better than nothing and the roughly lobster inspired design idea is still currently the idea)

OC lore ramble over :3

[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.

[slaaverin]

I love that last ask, and your reply.

Just one thing I’ve wondered since the ending of the show myself…

So, I was thinking hypothetically, that even if it was the case that jikook didn't see each other for months, if they are ‘just friends', why on earth did they need to carve out time to travel together? They could have literally just hung out in Seoul when eventually free, had dinner, drinks, gone to a gig, (I mean they did, when they went to D-Day, they hung out with Yoongi as Jimin said), like they do with others, like Jimin going to an art gallery with Joon (who he also didn't see much of in 2023).

I mean seeing as how busy they were, especially as the schedule was fit into JK's already very busy schedule (and literal release of his first solo single) squeezed in, why would it matter?

Because if they are just friends, they are no more just friends than any of the other member, or any of their other friends?

I know they made it work, by having it filmed, and had to bc of MS, and that this was planned and executed by the company, and sold to Disney as we know. It was obviously part of their chapter 2, I think spearheaded by Jimin, but it is such a major thing to do.

But, again, if they were only friends, why?

I say this also because in a majorly loud way, it marks them as different to the others. The why of it all. Why they wanted/needed to do this with each other, and only them (as was intended). Jimin spent half of 2023 saying the only members he saw were Hobi and Yoongi - which in turn made other shippers think that they are finally ready to show the world their relationship (and I mean that literally, I saw a thread about it yesterday, that in 2023 Yoongi was fulfilling Jimin's words in 'Serendipity'). I digress… but he also supported Hobi at Lola and Yoongi in Newark.

If we think about it, in real time we did not know what they were doing in NYC, and we only got fan stalker pics, nothing from them. Nothing on social media, no live. Why? Jimin went live with Yoongi, and posted pics of them on Instagram, also with Joon when they went to the art gallery. Why didn't they post or go live even if it was just him supporting JK in NYC, like he did Yoongi, and Hobi. It makes no sense if they are 'just friends, as to me, again, it marks them as different?

I can’t wrap my head around it if they are just friends (I know they aren’t in my gut), because it hits different to me.

There was another thread going round on x about unpopular opinions on them. Ridiculous thread, some comments were downright ridiculous, homophobic ( coming from supposed supporters) and typical they broke up: have never been together: are just bros… blah blah. Again, from jikookers. However there were some good takes shouting back. Especially when it comes to MS.

The enlistment then hits harder. That is so damn loud. The only idols to ever use the buddy system. To me the whole laying low in 2023 makes sense in that context. We didn’t know about the show until after their enlistment had been secured. We saw them at Yoongis concert but that was fine bc he is a member, they were with Tae. They were in NY we didn’t know why, until we got that infamous back selca, we had nothing. Then boom, what followed a year ago in 10 days is something none of us saw coming. The fact they left everyone behind but each other, is loud. It’s so loud it’s hard tk believe it’s real. Again, to me in this scenario and with them being who they are, this was so meaningful. If they were ‘just friends’ why? There was no need. Especially seeing how again, from our perspective and the fandom at large they were distant in 23, didn’t see each other, then bam. They enlisted?

What in the world?

It should be lorded over, protected too, and shouted from the rooftops. But I know, like you said, it’s safer this way. For us who see it to protect them. To celebrate them quietly.

You see that's something that has always been striking to me.

The fact that Jimin or Jungkook have no trouble sharing some of their outings or interaction with other members but somehow when it comes to the two of them it's always a bit more "hush hush" meaning they don't really show it and we often have to learn it from other people.

Why the need for this kind of privacy if they are just friends? It's doesn't make sense.

It seems that their time together is something precious to them, something they cherish. You cherish the things you love.

So that's very telling.

Once again with enlistement it's everything we need to know.

To discuss that kind of commitment you have to see each other and communicate a lot, plan, think, talk. It's not a small things. So god knows how many times they have seen each other without anyone knowing.

The fact they don't really need us to know it shows it's not really about public image or their colleague realtionship. It was a deeply private and personal decision.

As I said before all of them are friends. They could have enlisted with anyone in the group, or alone, but they didn't.

It shows the strength and commitment to their relationship, which is obviously more deep that what's going on with the group and the public.

Honestly even if we were pretty sure about jikook since all these years for me there was still a bit of healthy skepticism you know like "maybe we're just...wrong?" 😂 but damn when the annoucement for enlistement came it just comfirmed everything in a very solid way. The way it all played out, it was clear that their feelings run deeper than simple friendship. It's way, way more. Because this is simply a huge decision to make.

And the way they talked about it in AYS "I'm not worried about us fighting" do you get the level of connexion to make a statement like this? Once again, huge.

Ah I simply have zero doubts in my mind. Like, they did everything, they told everything that show the amount of love and commitment they have for each other.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and take care 💜

[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.

[twojamie-o-clock]

(this is going off of the s6b route in my head that goes from “save yourself” to “world game” (which I think is a pretty common path) but!!)

Do you ever think about how the first s6b companion DIES & how that sets the tone for the whole ‘season’……..like how Jamie is chosen maybe practically because he is allegedly “good at handling the rough stuff” or also somewhat selfishly because the Doctor knows it’s going to be so much more dangerous now……

and how that would explain why Zoe never crops up in s6b eu much until bigfinish steps in??? Like not just that she is so much safer than Jamie atp (on the wheel vs you know. a plantation or other consequences) but also bc s6b will lead to so much more danger and the Doctor knows this.

They actively know what they are roping Jamie into, and how that could go to show this sort of. “I love you enough to be WILLING to put you in danger” and this insane trust between them & the guilt the Doctor probably feels over all of it - but also the way they’re literally saving each other? Because Jamie was going to be unsafe either way, and in this the Doctor can, you know, be with him while experiencing different dangers. Working for the Time Lords of course won’t just be the odd visit here or there to save a planet but truly disgusting work that they care enough about to interfere with but are just ashamed enough to use the Doctor for it.

And all of this strikes you in the face and leaves you stinging because Serena died. Just like the Daleks’ Master Plan - which, like, outside of the show of course was the chaos of Doctor Who itself changing - starts off a very dark streak of companion deaths and chilling narratives through eu & tv canon until Steven’s eventual departure.

I wasn’t awfully attached to Serena, but it really shows Two how far the Time Lords will go & how little they care. The mysterious Players are never expanded upon but they don’t really need to be. This is a mission - approached as the Doctor’s first, I’m assuming was Terrance Dicks’ intention - where the Doctor’s assigned companion is another Time Lord. And yet she dies.

But it’s not just kicking off this era with a death that hits, it’s everything she represented - the narrow minded typical Time Lord who meets the Doctor & is so changed and enchanted by them that they begin to understand and unlearn their own programming. The hope that the Doctor might feel when they begin working for Gallifrey - maybe it will be alright after all, maybe they can make a difference, maybe being home doesn’t have to be so different from, say, their past family of Jamie & Zoe, because they too unlearned their own programming by traveling in the TARDIS. And then Serena dies. And while it isn’t entirely gloomy or haunting -

The way this ends is so….of course it’s intended to lead into the Two Doctors but it really says something to draw a reference to the dead companion who represented so much of the shape of s6b right next to Jamie….not to mention how quickly the Doctor uses her death to bargain for Jamie….god I really can’t say anything coherent about this. I just think Serena should get more of a highlight not just as a Time Lord “swayed” by the Doctor’s,,,eccentricities but as someone who affected them so much and their ensuing, new-ish relationship with Jamie. Again I think this can also sort of explain the general lack of Zoe in s6b even though it feels like wasted potential (I’m working on a Zoe s6b fic and,,it’s rough. I love her post-TWG eu so it’s a Time…) - not just because the Doctor is only allowed one companion, but because of this darker tone, for the plot and season as a whole as well as the Doctor and the foundations their reunion with Jamie is built on.

I’m not saying this is like my main headcanon for s6b of course, but it’s an interesting thing to entertain imo

[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

[pangaeaseas]

Fic Writing Tag Game

tagged by @wisteria-lodge

How many fics do you have on ao3? 36, most of which are one-shots.

What's your total ao3 word count? 82,319

What are your top 5 stories by kudos?

1. bring out the coffin, let the mourners come is unsurprisingly my top fic as it rides the regulus black wave. the summary is something like 'regulus dies, Sirius finds out' and that's exactly what happens. it's not my finest work (I don't think it does anything particularly striking with the material) and i'm not particularly proud of it, but I'm glad people enjoy it!

2. remembering past enchantments and past ills is my first hp fic on ao3 and since it does have a more interesting idea I am quite proud of it. it's about ginny as a parselmouth. It seems to have been the fic that pushed the Parselmout Ginny tag into full reality, lol.

3. A Fistful of Miracles was written for a fic exchange and is probably the most successful piece of romance I have written thus far, though there's growing pains. Got me into Narlily! My current WIP is influenced by it but will hopefully be better. The title just kind of came to me and had to be shoehorned in, lol.

4. but I am not resigned is possibly the fic I'm proudest of thus far. It does much more interesting things with regulus black tbh than any of my other fics with him. I've also gotten good comments on this one from people who picked up the themes because it has themes yo! mostly holds up very well except for the random JFK assassination conversation lol. and it's actually about Hermione.

5. Misery With Company is one of the longest things i've ever written at a whopping 6000+ words and is almost entirely ginny and Sirius, two of my absolute favorite characters, talking to each other. some of the dialogue is a bit stilted but I'm still pretty proud of it. and they somehow managed to never mention JFK. good for them. gave me a whole new brotp.

Do you respond to comments? Yep, all of them, even the ones that are just a crying emoji. I love talking about my fic!

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending? Hmmm I have to think about this one. Honestly it's probably the Anna Karenina one (high school was a dark dark time don't ask why I was writing fucking pretentious af ao3 fanfiction about Tolstoy characters...) because the patriarchy cannot be defeated in the way Voldemort can.

Or it might be the cauldron of morning, which features some of the darkest character headspace i've ever been in. especially given I was purposefully trying to make the ending brutally ironic.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

Ummm uhhh...probably remembering past enchantments and past ills because it's all about self acceptance and healing or A Fistful of Miracles which is actually canon divergent, or maybe Indoor Quidditch, my canon compliant Andy and Narcissa fic, which is ultimately about finding hope and healing after very dark times. Honestly them coming to a better place with so much to work through might make me happiest bc it's about pulling yourself up from the lowest lows. so yeah the fic where one of the main characters is mourning her husband, daughter, and the sister who killed her daughter might be my 'happiest ending'.

Yes, I love angst.

Do you write crossovers? ....Does the Tolstoy thing count?

When I was a kid I had an extensive HP/PJO crossover universe that never came to fruition. Honestly not sure I would do many crossovers, especially with universes that are mutually exclusive (for instance, a HOTD/HP crossover would be pretty pointless since they're on different fucking planets and putting Rhaenicent in HP would make them completely different people).

So I guess if I think there's something to be gained from crossing over, or if it's a shared universe kind of thing (same author, etc). But not often.

Have you ever received hate on a fic? No, but I did get someone who said they hated me and elaborated in the next comment it was because I had inflicted emotional trauma on them with my fanfiction. Scared me for five minutes lol.

Do you write smut? Nope.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Hope not.

Have you ever had a fic translated? No, but I did have a podfic once, it was great!

Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, but I've edited other people's fics, which is quite fun! Also I gave my friend a bunch of OCs once. In public.

What's a wip that you want to finish but don't think you ever will? I came up with an extensive plot and wrote about 500 words of a crack fic where Draco Malfoy has to be Delphi's teen mom which is sadly unlikely to ever see the light of day.

I also have a very very ambitious longfic project with several thousand words of worldbuilding and the complete plot of...the first book of a necessary several. that one maybe i'll come back to once I have more life experience lol.

What are your writing strengths? I can do pretty prose if I work at it. I'm pretty good with voice. I also write and come up with good scenes. Oh and ideas. Premises.

What are your writing weaknesses? PACING and actually finishing things lol. Occasionally dialogue? Sometimes I think I'm good at dialogue, sometimes I hate all my dialogue. I use too many similes and run-ons. I tend to exposit a lot in the name of pretty prose rather than actually fucking scening it out. I need to work on showing and not telling lol.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? Never done it, unlikely to do it since a) I only speak one other language and that not very well and b) it's fic and it feels a little mean to make the reader of the thing they are reading for fun for free go look up some French words. Maybe if I knew how to code in the little hovering insta-translate thing. Or spoke better French.

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to? Ship: Romione (the aforementioned unwritten longfic WIP has Romione romance as a major subplot). Wolfstar, which bizarrely I have never written. Honestly I could buy a Draco/Harry/Ginny polycule, or either Drarry or Drinny. Possibly Lilypad. Bellamort would be a substantial challenge.

Fandom: Can't wait to finish Game of Thrones (TV) so I can mock its ending in fic LMAO. More seriously I want to write Scholomance fic, but am a little intimidated by the quality of Naomi Novik.

If I was really crazy and also had a PhD in Russian literature I would write the incredibly deranged fic idea that haunts my brain and begs to be written about shatov and kirillov lying on the floor of that hut in America, which sadly has never been made into slash fic as far as I know and absolutely should be.

This was fun!

tagging: @slitheringghost, @copper-dust, @thistlecatfics, @nyx764, (please feel free to ignore this lol) and anyone else who wants to play!

[pynkhues]

https://www.tumblr.com/pynkhues/772513853190864896/httpswwwtumblrcompynkhues772465774083375104

same anon, i should explain that panic didn’t factor into it for me bc i don’t mind if the show releases in 2026… i think we agree here, like srsly who cares if it’s jan 2026 and not say nov 2025, does it make that much difference? so i’m not panicking at all, and i’m not saying we should even trust them, only that if they *have* seen something that indicates shooting in general doesn’t begin until, say, spring or summer, then imo that would be all the info needed to conclude that it’s very unlikely (not impossible) to air in 2025, due to the the length it takes to film (both seasons were around 5 months each, excluding the break for the strikes in s2) and post-production time (again i think both were approx 5 months, maybe a little less for s1 but that was an ep shorter). so not saying we should believe them or that we should panic or get worked up at all, only that i don’t think knowing the broadcasting schedule is necessarily a pre-requisite to determining s3 is unlikely to air this year, other information could certainly indicate that

Thank you both for clarifying, and I'm sorry if I was abrupt. I've had a few weird-to-unpleasant asks in the last couple of days, so I'm - - mm, not on-edge exactly, but I think perhaps more prone to reading things as bad faith that aren't, just because of what some asks are nestled between.

But yeah, I mean, it's impossible really to tell where the chips are falling at the moment, but at least in my experience here, those sorts of announcements even to unions usually happen relatively close to productions happening? A part of that is the Australian industry where most films and shows don't really know if they're going to happen until the last minute, so end up crewing-up pretty late, but even this week, my sister as a costume stand-by has been offered three different shows that all start filming in two weeks time. That's not to say that she doesn't know about them longer in advance, but if we take that post at face value, it sounds like the show's crewing up, which means we're heading in the right direction.

I will say there are a few weird details in that post to me? Like they're right, they wouldn't be allowed to say anything about it, which someone working in the union should know, and at least in terms of the Australian industry, it'd be a pretty big faux pas to post something like that publicly (and honestly, if it was someone wanting the job, they wouldn't post it publicly because it would jeopardise their chances). Also the comment about hoping to work on the show as a lighting tech - - yeah, okay, but a production will hire a gaffer, who will usually (although not always) bring their team with them [or rely on another member of their team i.e. of the three jobs my sister's been offered this week, one has been direct from a designer she's worked with before, one from one she hasn't who's had her recommended to her, and one from a supervisor helping a designer to crew up) so if they are a contract tech posting that sort of thing - - I don't know. Maybe they know a gaffer who's in talks with the production manager already, but it just flags a little for me. So yeah! It could be true, but it also might not be, and for now, I do think it's just best to trust what AMC's putting out.

[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 <(＿　＿)>

[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

[cartoonishlyincorrect]

THEY ARE DONE..... lore dump under the cut because i dont want to subject everyone to that. Might go back and redo Verity's outfit a bit later but I'm done for the time being lol

(click for better quality bc you know how tumblr is)

I don't have an AU name or anything so just. whatever. anyway

After Asgore declared war on humans, there were still some pretty major concerns given monster's comparative weakness as well as just how badly the last war had gone. Despite Royal Guard applications going through the roof, no number of monsters could realistically overpower all of humanity. Out of desperation, Asgore turned to Gaster, the royal scientist, to create a weapon or tool or anything that could be utilized to win this (still very theoretical) war and give hope to his people, which Gaster happily obliged in what would become the very first DT experiments. Working alongside Sans and Alphys, the trio set out to create a weapon that could win a war against humanity.

Things... don't go particularly well. Potent magical energy is incredibly reactive and dangerous on its own, and an excess of Determination in a host vessel effectively... decays it? so early trials show very little success. As years pass, Asgore becomes impatient, having effectively promised his people something miraculous and unable to continue stalling for much longer. The trio disregard precautions in a last-ditch effort to produce anything to show for their work, and during what was supposed to be simply a rushed DT extraction both Sans and Gaster are shattered across time and space. The memory of the two wiped from the universe, Alphys returns to Asgore empty-handed (she's not sure why she feels the need to present anything. he's not sure he asked for anything. his people aren't expecting anything from anyone).

The pair in the void slowly (probably not actually slowly, because an endless expanse of darkness tends to do that to people) begin to spiral, realizing that there's likely no way out and that they're trapped here for the rest of time. With the few vials of DT they kept on their persons, Sans and Gaster begin doing just about anything and everything they can think of to make any progress, down to injecting their own blasters with DT. Nothing happens. The DT runoff of each failed experiment begins to build up. Gaster is the first to crack. In a fit of delirium, Gaster threatens to inject Sans with the last of the remaining DT: having a vessel that is still living may produce different results, and he's willing to try just about anything at this point. Sans isn't so keen on the idea, first trying to reason him out of it, then resorting to fighting against Gaster's attempts to subdue him. He isn't successful for long, and Gaster manages to pin him. Sans cries out for help. Something hears him.

Physiologically speaking, monsters aren't much more than magic held together by some soul trait (not strong enough to be visible in the same way a human's is, but still held together). A coalescence of DT runoff, potent magical energy held together by Determination, is therefore a monster.

Gaster is caught off guard, of course he is, by this new figure that has joined the two of them, but this moment gives Sans enough time to escape his grasp. The figure is still... forming? Not yet entirely material, but physical enough to strike, lashing out against the doctor. Sans watches from a distance, exhausted but curious, allowing the figure to retaliate in his stead. He doesn't want it to hurt Gaster too badly, just teach him a lesson, maybe snap him back to reality a bit. It doesn't know that, though. It lands the final blow on the doctor before Sans is able to register what has happened.

And then there were two. The creature... walks? Trots? over to Sans, confused, perhaps even naive, covered in dust. Sans is terrified, of course he is, but... well, it's not like there's anything else here. It sits down beside him. They wait for eternity to arrive.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alright I'm mostly done being cringe for the time being, made these two when I was like in early high school(?) and never shared them but I'm tired of just rotating them in my head so here you go lol. Will draw some more stuff with them later, might make a mini comic or smth, idk man.

Fun facts time!

They make their way out of the void and to the OT eventually, whether they get rescued or if they just. noclip out I'm not sure yet. Their bones are darkened from void exposure over the decades.

Fable got its eye scar during their tussle with Gaster, and can't see as well out of that socket because of it. Verity has both eye lights, it just doesn't show well in the reference image lol.

Verity probably does her name and pronoun change at some point in the void as well. Not much to do down there, might as well self-reflect a bit.

Fable acts almost as a guard dog for Verity for a while, just because it's all it knows, but eventually tires of being bossed around and leaves her. Verity does. not take this well.

Speaking of, Verity develops an almost fanatical obsession with the source code and appoints himself as an enforcer of some kind? She's convinced it's her job to make sure everything stays in line (given how he kindof. fell out of it, and is now stuck in the void because that backdoor existed) and makes Fable help her for a while, up until it leaves, at which point he gets really pissed and insists that Fable was created solely to help him. Fable does not like being told what to do, nor the implication that it is reliant on Verity. Chaos ensues.

Fable can use bone attacks but can't use blasters (it uses its axe for most of its heavy attacks), and Verity can use blasters but can't use bone attacks (uses chains for most of his light attacks)

They consider themselves siblings! They are still fighting over who's older. Verity thinks it's herself bc Fable didn't really exist until he fell into the void, and Fable thinks they're the same age bc it was ..."alive" in a sense, as long as Verity has been alive

Go crazy with the dog&owner, devil&angel symbolism man. just go at it. I knew what I was doing.

[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 😈