#but questions like these help me flesh out the characters outside of the fic

[lorelune]

o4o: extended author's note

🎀 masterlist 🎀

WOW!! i genuinely... genuinely cannot believe i finished this piece 😭 like truly. around a year ago, i was cooking up the idea for an a/b/o collab and to think... almost a year later i have finished my piece :3c

o4o was originally just supposed to be a one shot featuring beloved omega jing yuan and his heat, but the idea expanded into much more fleshed out world, reader and dynamic. i truly never intended to go explicit with the mommy kink but you Know. sometimes things simply occur and you gotta go with the flow!!

omegaverse is so interesting to me in so many ways... the social workings of secondary gender, biology, and the relationships characters can have based on secondary gender too. i've had this very clear vision of scent gland anatomy in my minds eye for literally two years and it felt sooo nice to get it down in part iii for folks to like see. the vision. in o4o there is also this element of queerness that like... cannot exist in the real world! which is very fun and fascinating to me as an author to explore. both reader and jing yuan are omegas and the dynamic they with one and other is inherently informed by their secondary gender, but they express that secondary gender in very different, complimentary ways.

when i was cooking up o4o, i wanted to try and lean away from the reading of a/b/o which boils down to "alpha = stereotypical man" and "omega = stereotypical woman". femininity and masculinity are socially-informed concepts, and thereby change by concept and time, and i really wanted to (and attempted to) keep some amount of like... liminality to their expression. though jing yuan is perceived an alpha by the xianzhou alliance at large (because he is large, strong, and has a commanding presence), this is like... mostly coincidence and fabrication on his part. he cannot help that he is large (a great deal of which is soft omega pudge anyways!! and a slow metabolism adds to it), he's strong due to his lifetime of hard training, and his 'presence' is something he's like... constructed and honed because it is convenient and serves him well.

reader is more genuinely stereotypically in their world (at least what we see of them!!). they're a bit of a weakling, a lot of a crybaby, and very easy to coddle!! more like an omega kit than a grown one to be so real (see why jing yuan takes a liking to you LOL). but there's like embers of reader that distinctly aren't this stereotypical omega. they traveled to the Luofu alone, and settled without a pack or family unit. in part iii, we get a peak into reader's family, and you get a glimpse of reader's family, which is very non-traditional as well. they want to claim bite jing yuan. there's like!! in general lots of playing with perceptions in this piece. it's been very fun. playing with the expected bounds and outside of as well!!!

i DO have a sequel planned, a fun little spanking fic from reader's pov that truly i have been dying to write hehe. getting to do a deep dive on kink like o4o is very fun and like... rewarding. playing the long game on a kink to set up the Brain reasons why the characters involve enjoy it is like... long and hard. but very!!! gratifying. i'm excited to revisit these two, as both crybaby reader and milfy jy have altered my brain chemistry in unknoweable ways <3

finishing this piece would truly. TRULY. not have been possible without the cheering and support of multiple beta readers over each part. my pal honey helped out on parts i and ii and sadly doesn't have a tumblr anymore, but their jy thirsting and thoughts were VITAL!! @harmonydove was such huge help combing through part iii for clarity and cielo (@aimfor-theheart) did a much-needed final read through despite not going to hsr. and. AND!! truly truly TRULY this fic could not survived, lived and thrived with the continued, in-dms support of beloved mermie (@ofmermaidstories). she read this fic as i wrote and listened to my many questions and anxieties as this piece grew and grew. forever grateful. to all of these lovely folks!!!

thank YOU reader. for immersing yourself in this story and its world, and enjoying. truly there is nothing more that i desire as i writer. enjoy this piece this holiday season and be well 💗 🎀 💦

— lore 🩷

[summ3rhead]

what kind of science fiction does emo beatrice/1930s au beatrice tend to write? is it “oh no! aliens!/oh no! creatures!” ala war war the of worlds and like, godzilla

dystopias like 1984 & episodes of black mirror, humans doing fucked up stuff that comes to bite them in the ass aka frankenstein and like every 1960s sci fi film about some giant creature that came about because of nuke bombs (which were pratically all the films then it seems), Weird Shit Happens ala the twilight zone, Exploring Them Oceans, Exploring Them Earth, or Exploring the depths of the earth ala journey to the center of the earth

Woag, space, ala more star trek esque stuff (spef tos), boom bam in space ala more star wars esque stuff? Normal people with normal problems but in sci fi settings! Among Us? (Side note that gave me the mental image of jonty in an among us costume thx to ava who convinced beatrice to let her dress him up via them puppy dog eyes and now i’m laughing my ass off.

semi related do you think beatrice would be the type to have a bunch of random & obscure dog merch? feel like she isn’t, that’s more ava’s thing, and ava’s thing is more on weird ass clothes for the dog that she deems cute, but i feel like beatrice probably has the occasional impulse buy or something that in hindsight was either stupid and/or the dog didn’t like collecting dust in her attic or something

((pls tell me beatrice has had the often universal pet owner experience of buying something more expensive than usual only for that money to just go to waste as the pet is near apathetic and likes something cheaper. i’m in hysterics imagining beatrice being Extra MopeyTM because she got some new relatively expensive dog food that was highly recommended by dog owners & vets w a bunch of Nutritional Benefits and she was excited to gift it to jonty, only for jonty to just sniff at the food, not touch a morsel of it and then whine that he didn’t get his usual birthday bone))

but i feel like beatrice might have like, a bunch of pictures of her dog and/or her & the dog, maybe even a whole album for them, and beatrice might have like a bunch of silly and/or matching pictures, like taking a picture in one of these type things, etc etc

Great questions.

I think (unsurprisingly) Beatrice would be suuuuper influenced by H.G. Wells and definitely Shelley. The sci-fi she writes would be along the lines of what if the world was the same as it is now except for this one fucked up thing or like The protagonist meets this one character or thing that changes them and flips their world on its head.

Her novels were probably verging on social satire and were inspired heavily by the war. She retaliated against her upbringing through her books. her father was absolutely Oxbridge educated and had a lot of books/subscribed to literary journals so Beatrice had a lot of material as a kid.

(The more... ahem frowned upon books she had to source herself. she definitely read Flowers of Evil and Carmilla etc and was left feeling very 123?!!13XZSDVFGH4????!!!1f?? by them. Also definitely read The Well of Loneliness and hated it a little bit.)

Short stories like The Croquet Player and A Dream of Armageddon were a reference point for her early writing probably. (she definitely had a wild time reading the time machine, as did I) Themes around Duty vs Love etc are just very very Avatrice so A Dream of Armageddon felt very them. It was sort of like what if Avatrice chose to leave together instead of fight etc and rejected their responsibilities in favour of being together and unbothered and in love and ran away back to Switzerland (but in the story it's Capri) idk it just made me think of that a little bit.

I imagine one of her more popular novels would be something about the intersection between religion and Science and some sort of reconciliation and/or divide between the two. Like maybe a new theory/invention/revelation that seemingly disproves a major theological belief, a la Ted Chiang's 'Omphalos' except in 1930 lol. Idk I'm not about to write an entire novel inside of this fan fic. Or am I... probably not,,, but who knows??? (not me).

I don't think Bea would hem herself in too much though. So there'd totally be weirder more experimental books the older she got (and the more comfortable she got in being a bit weird). Overall she'd lean more towards speculative/dystopian fiction rather than full-blown Star Trek-type sci-fi. Like, imagine how fucked up we can be as opposed to how fucked up things from outer space can be.

In regards to the pet tangent:

Beatrice has a million comfy dog beds for Jonty but (a lot like my own dog) he sleeps on none of them, much preferring cardboard boxes, people's shoes, or the windowsill. The Cardinal (Beatrice's cat) appreciates the beds though.

Jonty is far too wriggly to be still enough to have his picture taken/be put in clothes. The Cardinal on the other hand is perpetually :| and chill with everything so Ava would probably convince Bea to spend money on buying a camera or paying for professional pictures of him like these:

Beatrice would scoff but then, a few days later, would have them framed and put up.

This hc spiralled a bit but god was it fun. Thanks as always for the great question/thoughts.

[steddiebang2024]

I was a teenage dirtbag  |  Mature  |  75k

Author: @hellfireloserclub

Artist: @academic-clown

Beta Reader: @kaypie91

[Link to fic]  |  [Link to art]

Pairings: Eddie Munson/Steve Harrington

Characters: Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington , Erica Sinclair, Dustim Henderson, Nancy Wheeler. 

Tags: Slowburn, Future Fic, Year 2000, Post-season Four, Bisexual Steve, Bisexual Eddie, Comedy /angst, Long distance friendship to lovers, Radio Host Eddie, Hairdresser Steve, Wedding fic.

Trigger Warnings: Sex, Alcohol, and Recreational drugs

↳ Keep reading below for a summary!

“So…” Dustin started.

“So what?” Eddie asked, fixing his eyes on the side of Dustin’s face, trying to work out what way this interrogation was going to go.  

“I don’t have my own ringtone, Wayne and Mom don’t, but Steve does?” Dustin avoided looking at him, staring at the overhead signs pointing to the short stay parking, acting like they weren’t at the airport at least twice a month with the family coming and going. 

“I thought it was funny,” he said in his own defense. 

“And I totally believe you.” It sounded like a question. 

“But?”

“But are you sure there's not more?” someone shouldn’t look so smug as they reverse in a multi story, yet here was Dustin excelling at it. When Eddie didn’t answer he cut off the engine turning to look at him, all signs pointed to the next few minutes being incredibly uncomfortable.  

“Spit it out, I have to get to the gate,” Eddie grumbled, he felt like he was under a microscope, his little brother's eyes boring into him.

“Are you sure there's nothing going on between you and Steve?”  Eddie wanted to yell- yes, I just don’t know what? But he bit it down, this wasn’t the time to trigger a Dustin intervention. 

“Just because you can't procreate outside of the close knit circles you were dragged up in, doesn’t mean we all have to hook up within our little friend group.  You gotta stop trying to pair us all off dude, it's not cool. Remember when you used to keep trying to pair off Steve and Robin? How did that work out for you?” Eddie questioned. 

“In my defense-”

“No. Say less. Stop. I broke up with Yumi two weeks ago, I don’t need you to help, I don’t need your psychoanalyzing me with Max over the phone. I don’t need you to try and set me up with a rebound. I’m a big boy alright. I’m going to Boston to get stupidly drunk with Steve, talk shit about you all lovingly, and lament the fact that both me and him are probably gonna die old and alone.” He reached over the back of the seat and grabbed his duffle bag, before reaching over and tapping Dustin on the cheek. “But look at the plus side, if me and Stevie don’t bring a plus one to the wedding that will save you two meals and a headache with seating plans.”

“You make my resolve to not meddle in both of your love lives impossible, you know that right?” Dustin asked, leaning over the center console. 

“Cause you were doing an absolutely stellar job of it before this conversation?” Eddie closed the door behind him. “Dusty, I love you like you’re my own flesh and blood. But please, let this one go?” 

Dustin looked poised to say something else but Eddie didn’t have time for it. “If the words curiosity journey come out of your mouth, I’m not speaking to you for a month.”  Dustin snapped his mouth shut. “That’s it, save it for Applejack, I don’t want to know.”

Eddie gave the car a courtesy wave as he went through the doors of the airport, but he didn’t look back. He was pretty sure Dustin had hit the nail on the head with his observations, but as far as anyone was aware Steve was just his friend, and letting go of any control on that narrative was like letting a fox off in a hen house. It would be chaos. Although Eddie was starting to think it was a lost cause. This was so much easier when he and Steve hated each other, enemies to fuck buddies was a much easier story arch, with a lot less emotional baggage.

[cnroth]

Fanfic Q&A

I was tagged a long time ago by @curator-on-ao3 and meant to do this later when I had time, but then I forgot. More recently, I was tagged by @strkamand, which has prompted me to actually do it this time haha. So thank you both!! 🩵 😘

1. Why do you write fanfic?

Short answer: Cuz it’s fun!

Long answer: I started writing fanfic in 2016 because I had spent the last year and a half clawing my way back to some semblance of sanity after a really shitty time in my life. We got Netflix for the first time and I found my favorite childhood show—Star Trek: Voyager. It was like a warm blanket in the cold.

I still remember playing Star Trek on the playground with school friends, inventing stories of ourselves as original characters on Voyager, and suddenly I had the thought—what if I actually did it? Made an OC that was actually complex and fleshed out and stirred her into the mix? Added more representation of mental health issues to the show? I also applied for grad school around this time with the goal of eventually working in the mental health field.

So I dusted off my old creative writing skills and began making fanfic as a way to share my ideas with other fans, explore ships and characters I thought were interesting and/or underdeveloped, or just enjoy playing with my favorite dolls while processing my own experiences, as well.

And here I am now, eight years later, still doing just that.

2. Which of your posted stories do you think about the most, even though the story is “finished”?

This is a complicated question, because the answer is and has always been the very first story I joined the fandom to share, and one that took me years to tell—the Far From Their Bones series. Technically, it is finished.

That being said, I may-or-may-not currently be working on something closely related to that… 👀

3. If you could give yourself fic advice from when you first started writing fic, what would that advice be?

I honestly can’t think of anything I’d say. I think that my fanfic journey, bumpy as it may have been, was what I needed to go through to become the writer I am today.

4. What’s your relationship to fic stats?

I rarely check them. Honestly, I post so rarely and a fair amount of my stuff is niche stories few people are interested in reading, my stats are probably shit anyway.

5. Is there a pairing or scenario or friendship you miss writing? If so, why? If not, why not?

The closest thing to an answer for this question is I suppose J/C. I used to be fairly prolific in that ship, but the community for that ship was eventually taken over by a few toxic people who manipulated other participants (especially newer ones) into a very narrow idea of what was acceptable as a J/C fan and shit-talked people who fell outside of that, and I ended up deeply burned. It took out my ability to read or write J/C for a long time. I’ve dipped my toe back in here and there since then, and I won’t say I’m done with that ship forever, but it definitely was a major pain having to grieve the loss of a ship that had brought me so much joy.

6. What motivates you to write?

Usually random story ideas that pop into my head when I’m trying to fall asleep at night.

Also, comments can sometimes prompt me to write more.

7. Why do you write for the fandom(s) that you write for?

I think that’s mostly explained above already. Someday, I might finally write the Hunger Games fic I’ve had in my head for many years, as that series of books/movies was also instrumental in my trauma recovery, but for now Star Trek: Voyager (and occasionally other Trek shows) is where I’m comfortable and inspired.

8. If you’re stuck writing a WIP, what do you do?

There are two strategies I use most often to deal with this:

One, making playlists of songs that fit the story in some way, whether through the lyrics or even just the vibe. Then I listen to that on repeat to help drive me into my other strategy, which is…

Two, I use imagery to develop compelling scenes in my head, mentally watching them and shaping them until I feel like I can write them down—even if they’re incomplete. In the end, I may end up dumping the scene, or changing it, or writing the most inspiring scenes first and filling in the gaps between them later, but ultimately the goal is just to get myself moving again.

9. What do you wish people knew about comments?

Comments prompt my brain to make more dopamine and serotonin. As a mentally ill person with a neurodivergent brain, that is HUGE.

I do my best remind myself that I’m writing fic I want to read, and that can often mean not many other people will want it like I do (or have the time to actually read it), but in the end getting comments lets me know I’m not alone and that my exhaustive efforts in creating fic are appreciated.

It’s also just like fucking Christmas morning when I see that email from AO3. Like, massive mood booster.

I also would like people to know that comments have, more than once, given me ideas and/or energy to write more.

10. Maybe there’s a question you wish had been on here. What’s that question (and answer)?

Not that I can think of 😊

I have no idea who has already done this, and most people I know who write have been tagged by the ladies who tagged me. If you have already done this, tag me in a comment on your post or something so I can read it!

And if you haven’t done this yet, consider yourself tagged!!

Let’s see ummmm @gijane-7702 @seema-unbound @cheile @caladeniablue @theredheadedcaptain @70thousandlightyearsfromhome anyone else who wants to join 🩵

[violettduchess]

hello 🦁❤️

i was just wondering what your process is for making oc’s. like why’d you start with silvio? what inspired their personalities? how do you name them? will you make more?

actually i wonder how other people in general have their oc’s coalesce

Sui 💜 how sweet to hear from you!

I started with Silvio because I wrote a Pirate AU with him and the trope Ex-Lovers and I had so much fun writing it, but felt a little constrained by the fact that it was a Reader fic. Then through a combination of @lorei-writes encouraging me to make an OC and @bellerose-arcana saying "Hey you already have this interesting Pirate Reader character" it sort of just made sense to take that character and flesh her out. Choosing Silvio was mainly based on the rapport between him and the Pirate Reader in that fic. (But I do also love his character, thorny as he is)

I chose the name Leyla because I have always liked it and it felt right. Feminine and mysterious and a good counter to the brevity and hard sound of her last name, Quinn.

Because I wanted her to be a sailor/merchant/pirate vigilante I knew she would have to be tough, physically strong and very good at assessing situations and people. And then it became a matter of figuring out her background and how that would shape her personality/how much influence that would have.

In Silvio's route one thing that bothered me was how meek the MC is and I really wanted to counter his brash personality with someone who could match him insult for insult and someone who would call him out on all of his nonsense.

All of this helped me to develop her background.

When it comes to Marigold I started with the idea that to counter Clavis and his extremely jubilant personality, you need someone more serious and more introverted. But also someone who would see his value and worth, see how intelligent he is, how much he truly cares.

I also did not want to give her a traumatic backstory. There is enough tension with her relationship that can come from outside (his connection to Chevalier and the violence that comes with that, his status as a prince and she's a commoner) Not to mention Clavis has his own internal demons. So I made a very conscious choice to give her a stable family life and job.

As far as the name goes, I wanted a name that was a little bit fussy like she is and because she's from Jade I wanted a flower name so Marigold just seemed to fit.

I have a third OC who keeps knocking at the door and would be paired with Matias. But she's going to have to wait a little because there's only so many hours in the day 😅 I also do not want to give up writing Reader fics. They're still what most people want to read and I enjoy writing them too.

I rambled SO MUCH 😳 but I hope this answers some of your questions and feel free to ask anything else! I'm always happy to see you 💜

[amusingmusie]

Hello Musie! I hope you are doing well on this out of touch Thursday. Would you be comfortable with sharing what inspired you to begin writing? Do you have a muse of your own that inspires the way you build dynamics between your characters? I was curious if you had anything that you had outside of source material (ie Hazbin) that helped motivate you?

I've always loved to write, but always burned myself out before the ideas manifested into something more substantial than daydreams. You have inspired me to at least focus that energy into comments and questions! I just wanted to say that you have a fresh approach to building meaningful conflict between characters and developing background YT. You've got me researching New Orleans history so I can further the immersion as I read! I still cannot get over how fleshed out Nel is. I can absolutely go on, but yeah!

Thanks a million :)

Hello! Sorry I answered this so late (it's Monday for me whoops!). I can't lie, I got really excited to answer this so I can nerd the hell out and YAP PROFUSELY.

What inspired me to write- With every single piece of media consume, I immediately (and I mean immediately) begin to construct some kind of OC to throw into that universe, and Nel was no exception! I got very attached to human Alastor since one of my favorite things about Hazbin is the tradegy of the human lives the characters lived, and Alastor's death in particular seemed incredibly tragic (but deserved) that I ended up fixating on it. I think something I asked myself was "Goddamn, I wonder how people who knew him reacted to his end?". That, combined with how much I loved Al's dynamic with Husk/Vaggie (the sterner characters) birthed Nel pretty quickly after I watched the pilot.

I NEVER thought I'd post a fic. Like ever. I did not think I could do it. I've been writing for myself for years and I would write on the job (I was doing secretary work at the time), so this story slowly started building and building until I had the whole thing drafted. It wasn't going to be posted until I started casually going through the Al/reader tag and saw that there was BARELY any human Alastor. And I sorta thought weeeellll I guess I gotta be the change I wish to see, I've got the whole thing drafted, why not? I'll see how long I stick with it. The fandom was super dead at the time, so I figured my fic wouldn't be exposed to a lot of people anyway, so why not?

Then you insane (/pos) people got invested in my silly shit and I am still in fucking awe that everyone is so supportive!

As for other muses (heehee) that give me inspiration- READ DEAD REDEMPTION 2. I love the RDR series, I am obsessed with it, and I think the storytelling is so beautiful. The setting gave me a small amount of inspiration (the wilderness and the country, rugged characters) but mostly the impact of the story and writing has had a lot of influence on my creativity if that makes sense? The dialogue feels insanely natural, they use old-timey slang without it dominating the conversations, and the story flows deliciously. Like, the game has had a huge impact on my life and I think if I had half the effect on you guys with my fic as that had on me, I could die somewhat happily.

And finally, I'm glad my work has a bit of a motivator for you! I'm not the best at giving advice to get motivated to start writing (I live in hyperfixation hell), but what I can say is that when something sticks, nurture it :) Try writing for yourself and see what feels right first. You never know what it can turn into!

[alluringwidow]

published a new TWD fic on my wattpad @alluringwidow below is just a short synopsis of the story, hopefully you guys decide to check it out :)

SUMMARY:

ELOWEN TATE was born into a not so-normal childhood of her own - a world that involved back-to-back hospital trips, new medications, and the weekly exams to see if her heart would decide not to give out just yet. Elowen Tate's life was no-so-normal, but it was her normal. But she never realized that her not so-normal world could be flipped upside down until the dead began to roam the streets - devouring every living thing in their path. It was their not at-all-normal way of living.

The undead were driven by this insatiable hunger, it was like they were never full. They feasted with their mouths and clawed at your skin; their bites felt like sharp-hot iron being driven into the flesh of their victims and their nails felt like needles plunging into the skin. Their cold, decaying fingers grip your arms or yank your clothes. Their skin is leathery and clammy, their bones brittle, yet they use all their strength to pull you into their grasp. They get so close you can feel their hot breath on your skin, you can smell the blend of rot and decay that encases them inside and out. They den't want te tet ge; they won't let go. If you're strong enough you can fight them off - put them out of their misery, but if you aren't they'll sink their rotting teeth or long nails into your skin.

Spreading the curse that transformed the living into their undead counterparts, something monstrous and unrecognizable. One moment, you were you, with your own feelings and memories, the next you were driven by the thoughtless urge to consume.

Elowen's life took on a grim new meaning when her heart, for once, wasn't the thing that tried to kill her. Now, it was everything else.

In this shattered reality where survival was measured in heartbeats and every breath was borrowed time, Elowen found herself questioning if it would've been easier to succumb to her illness rather than face the twisted fate of the new world. But even as the undead surrounded her, clawing and gnashing for a piece of her humanity, there was a stubborn fire inside her a relentless will that refused to be extinguished. If the world was going to tear itself apart, then she would face it head-on, her not so-normal life preparing her for something far more savage. After all, Elowen had spent her whole life fighting against an enemy within. Now, she'd fight against the one outside.

DISCLAIMERS:

- The Walking Dead does not belong to me. Only my original characters belong to me, including their backstories. All rights and credits belong to Robert Kirkman.

- The trigger warnings that apply for the AMC show, also apply to this book. As well as depictions of health issues and seizers. Nothing more, nothing less. Please read at your own risks.

- With that being said, Elowen does have a heart condition, Supraventricular tachycardia— or SVT, I've done some research on this health condition and I've written Elowen with myself and others in mind. Though I may not suffer from this exact condition, I do still suffer from a heart condition, I wrote Elowen as a way to advocate about heart conditions and bring awareness to ones that may seem small.

- This book follows the plot of the AMC show, though as you may see there is a character I have added in a character some of you may be familiar with, that character being Lee Everett. This does mean there are some game references/easter eggs, but the main plot will follow that of the show.

- Please try not to be a silent reader! Seeing comments really mean a lot to me as it does to other writers, mostly because it helps let us know whether people or are not enjoying our stories. Feedback is appreciated as long as you're respectful! Seeing comment's really does motivate me to keep writing so don't be afraid to leave a few!

- Lastly, please do not ship Carl and Elowen together, they will be portrayed as found siblings. I don't mind if you want to ship Elowen with characters her age, but please do not be inappropriate, Elowen is a minor throughout most of this story, starting at the age of twelve and aging according to the shows timeline. Her and other minor characters should be seen as such. Any inappropriate comments will be deleted.

[adminbryantsaki]

Admin's AU Prologue

Admin’s AU

(This Au will follow the main events of the canon. In this AU, the tropes of fantasy and Omegaverse apply. The dynamics that can apply to people are Alpha, Luna, Beta, and Omega. The main ship is Erasermic x oc. I do not own the characters of My Hero Academia. Horikoshi Kōhei does. I also don’t own any of the fast-food franchises or any of the other references to other super hero movies or groups.  I own Bryant Saki. Here is her info Please do not steal.)

(These are the Headcanons. Please read these before the fic.) This will take you to a lovely list of all my other works

~ Chapter one

Wc: 1,049 Tw: Omegaverse Shenanigans, polygamy, PTSD, Breeding kink, Breeding, trauma, fear, ED (eating disorder).

Prologue.

It’s a dark and stormy night, A portal opens over the rooftop of an apartment building and I fall through, there are two open and raw wounds on my back and I am weak from the fight I just came from. The portal closes and I lay on the roof for a few minutes before I prop myself up and cough up a blood clot. I groan and stand up slowly, moving to the fire escape and climb my way down steadily and land in the alleyway. I’m in a new and unfamiliar universe. I look to where the sidewalk was and see that it is bustling with people even though its night outside. I hold onto my side and hold onto the wall as I walk to the street to see where and when I am exactly. When I reach the street, I look around to see bright lights on advertisement boards selling different kinds of food. The lights are so bright that I had to give myself a moment to let my eyes adjust to the brightness in contrast to the darkness of the alleyway. I saw Japanese kanji on the billboard which told me that I was in Japan at least. It seemed to be slightly futuristic so I was in a time somewhere in the 21st century so that was good. I stood up straighter even though it hurt badly with chunks of flesh missing from my shoulder blades that had been freshly scarred over just before I was dropped into this universe. I must have drawn attention because I heard someone scream, I turned and saw a woman pointing at me. My eyes widened and I almost fell over until something large and orange caught me.

���Hey, easy there. You look lost. Can I help you?” The person attached to the large, orange gloved hand spoke. This man was larger than me in height and size. But he didn’t come across as a threat. He seemed like a nice person so I let myself relax in his hand as he helped me off to the side to talk. “Yeah. I need help… I just dropped in here through a portal and I think I’m lost. I’m not from around here.” I told him.

“That’s good. I need to ask you a few questions before we decide what to do next. Let’s start with your name. Mine’s Taishiro, but you can call me Fatgum. What’s your name?” He asked. “My name is Bryant… Bryant Saki.” I spoke. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Saki. Let’s get you down to the police station where you can fill out some forms, okay?” Fatgum spoke. “Alright.” I responded and he carried me to the nearest police station. Little did I know, this was the beginning of my new life here.

**********

We arrived at the police station and Fatgum informed the officer of my situation. As he did so, I looked around the room, seeing several individuals with some kind of change to their appearance. One of the officers in the station had a head like an orange cat and they were talking to a person in a business suit with the head of a spotted dog. I wasn’t too weirded out by this as I have seen stranger things in my time. I looked at a television to see that there was an attack in a place called ‘Tatooin Station’ in a city called Mustafu. There were two attacks there today, one earlier in the day with a villain that could increase their overall size that caused a disturbance in the rush hour traffic. A group of people called ‘heroes’ stopped the villain and rescued the civilians. That was good. I noticed that the heroes wore flashy costumes to separate them from the crowd. That made sense. Does this mean that Fatgum is a hero too? He wore a bright yellow hoodie with orange gloves and boots which definitely made him stand out. I waited until he came back with a clipboard and a pen and told me to fill out the form. I couldn’t do this though as the from was in Japanese and I couldn’t read what was on the form. “Are you a hero? You look like the ones on the television.” I spoke and pointed to the television showing the news. Fatgum looked and nodded. “Yeah! I’m a Pro Hero. There’s a lot of them here. If you’d like, I can introduce you to a couple of my friends when we get out of here.” He offered. I nodded and looked back at the form on the clipboard then back up at him. “I can’t read this. Can you help me?” I asked and handed him the clipboard.

“Of course.” He spoke and read off the items on the form to me and I filled out the answers. Once we were done at the police station, I waited outside the station for Fatgum, who soon came out of the building and looked to me. “Well then, You’re all set. Do you have a place to stay until you get on your feet?” He asked. “No, I don’t. I was going to find a shelter until I could get a job or find a place of my own.” I told him. “That’s a good plan, but I have a space at my apartment that’s currently empty. I also need an assistant at my agency, and you seem to fit the job, you want it kid?” He asked. I nodded and shook his hand, sealing the opportunity and moving into his apartment.

[lostloveletters]

Hi Battie! I was wondering how you get inspo for your OCs? Like how do you come up with them and everything? If you’re ok with sharing that ofc!! Love your writing💖

Thank you so much! This means a lot to me considering I'm relatively new to making OCs, but people have been really supportive, so I appreciate it more than I can coherently express. I was definitely hesitant to make any, but I think starting with The Godfather helped because it's not a very big, active fandom to begin with, and there isn't a huge readerbase for OC fics on top of that, so it wasn't like I was jumping into a fandom with a lot of eyes on what I was doing or worrying too much about comparison with other writers.

It's honestly so varied! I guess I’ll discuss Gloria (The Godfather) and Holly and Woody (Masters of the Air). I can’t say I make OCs with the intention of them being paired with a specific character. I’ll go into it more under the cut, but Holly and Woody definitely had minds of their own when it came to that lol.

I find it helpful to write short “scenario” type of fics for my own personal reference (I use the term fic loosely because these end up being a mix of actual story and bullet points and chunks of dialogue) to figure out a character’s background and personality. Also making Pinterest boards and playlists are a huge part of the creative process for me! If I get an idea for an OC, I’ll make a private board for them and start adding stuff and see how their vibe comes together over time. Character spreadsheets or question lists (outside of ask games) feel like such a chore to me, so those aren’t part of my process at all.

Gloria

I wasn’t originally planning for Bruised Fruit to become a longfic, but I've always had "Gloria," the little Sicilian-American troublemaker she is, in some shape or form, but she was a lot of vague ideas and a Pinterest board that I never did anything with until I threw her into Bruised Fruit. What’s now the first chapter was just going to be an experimental one-shot because I had that specific idea. I left the ending open to be continued. I still had inspiration, and a few people expressed interest, so from there I kind of had to actually flesh out Gloria to who she was beyond that first chapter.

Holly

Miss Thing went through like 3 names and 2 backstories before I settled on the Holly Dean we have now. I actually started out thinking she was going to be paired with Buck! I started writing Damn Yankees as some background on Holly and Bucky’s friendship because he was going to play matchmaker for her and Buck. Literally so much changed from when I started writing that fic to when I finished. I had two versions of it that I’d switch back and forth between before finally settling on what I posted. As y’all can tell she went way off track the planned track, but I love where she ended up!

Woody

*Ray Liotta in Goodfellas voice* As far back as I can remember, I always knew I wanted to use Veronica Lake's look in So Proudly We Hail as the basis for an OC. Woody also changed a lot! There was always a past she was going to be running from, but the context of that changed from what I started with. I was kind of playing around with the idea of her being with Rosie, but I could never quite get their dynamic right as I began outlining. That’s when Holly kind of took over as my focus. Then as I’d go back to my messy as hell doc for Woody, I figured I’d focus on her friendship with Holly and see if anyone else came to mind in the meantime, and she and Brady just clicked.

[wouldntyou-liketoknow]

The Pentas Family Encyclopedia

So, if you’ve been reading my more recent fics, then you’ve probably noticed how I can’t seem to shut up about [The Future Mob Project]. Although this project is going to take a very, very, VERY long time to actually complete, that’s not going to stop me from fleshing out its characters, environment, and lore piece-by-piece. I’ve already written a few stories for this, and plenty more stories are on the way. 

(Except for Murdock—and, to an extent, Two-Toes Johnny—every character/ego on this list is MY creation. If any art or other stories happen to be inspired by them, PLEASE make sure to tag/credit me as the creator. I haven’t been this motivated to write in a long time, and I put a lot of time, thought, and effort into my work. If you have questions about the characters or lore, feel free to send me an ask or a DM. I love talking about creative stuff!)

This mob has a lot of growing/developing to do, and I will ABSOLUTELY be making updates/reblogs to this post as new characters are introduced and new ideas are implemented. Please keep in mind that updates may be sporadic, because adult life is complicated and exhausting and I’m ScaredTM.

(Also: @sammys-magical-au​, I can’t thank you enough for all the help/advice you’ve given me with certain plot-points so far. You’re an amazing friend, and I’m so excited to brainstorm about upcoming characters/stories with you.)

Now, without further adieu, let’s get on with the infodumping. . .

__________

🆃🅷🅴 🅿🅴🅽🆃🅰🆂 🅵🅰🅼🅸🅻🆈

This mob consists of several contract-killers, spies/informants, and Black Market merchants. The Boss will often assign the mob’s members to dispatch specific targets, but the aforementioned members are still able to take on hit-jobs if they’re approached by outside clients. 

🅲🅷🅰🆁🅰🅲🆃🅴🆁🅸🆂🆃🅸🅲🆂

They’ve long-since claimed the Cove Port Inlets (a quaint seaside city) as their territory. The Inlets used to have an expansive subway system, but those underground tunnels were abandoned due to a bad flood; thus, the above-ground stations were repurposed into varying shops/houses. However, each of those former stations are still connected to the subway tunnels via concrete staircases (which are now carefully hidden). The former stations have all been purchased by The Pentas Family—now, the mob’s representatives either live in or work out of them. As a bonus, the abandoned security offices/subway platforms are used as underground dens/hidey-holes, and the tunnels offer discreet movement beneath the city. 

There’s no enforced dress-code, but it’s still advised that Pentas representatives wear red. The red garments in question can be any type of clothing so long as it’s visible, and they can vary from shade to shade. 

In the event that the mob gains an ally (not a new member), that ally will be provided with an enamel pin designed to look like a poison dart frog. This dart frog pin will act as an identification device for Pentas members who somehow may be unaware of the new alliance; that way, the ally won’t be mistaken for an intruder. (The dart frog pin can also be used as a warning sign for unallied outsiders—basically, This person is under Pentas protection; screw around with them and YOU WILL REGRET IT.) 

__________

🅻🅴🅰🅳🅴🆁

The Boss [NAME TBA]

Who She’s Based Off Of: Pamela Horton (PamelaHorton13)

Red Attire: Collarbone tattoo of Egyptian star flowers, aka Pentas lanceolata

Notes:

[INFORMATION TBA]

Current Stories: [TBA]

__________

🅼🅴🅼🅱🅴🆁🆂

Murdock Mallory

Who He’s Based Off Of: Mark Fischbach (Markiplier)

His Method of Work: Honestly, he’s a jack-of-all-trades. Oh sure, he has an unhealthy amount of knowledge on different types of blades, but that’s just the beginning. Pretty much anything can be a weapon, depending on how creative (read: insane) you are. He also knows his way around firearms, but for...personal reasons, he only uses them when there are no other options available.

Red Attire: Turtleneck sweater (Currant)

Notes:

He has a rare case of eye-misalignment. Specifically speaking, his right eye is turned to the right (as though he’s looking at something sideways). His left eye can move around in its socket as intended, but his right eye never follows along with that movement. According to him, the misalignment was caused by a traumatic accident he experienced before he’d joined The Pentas Family (apparently, it’s a miracle he wasn’t rendered half-blind). When he’s working on underground business, he wears his sunglasses. But when he’s keeping up appearances in normal society, he wears a white medical eyepatch.

Both his black-tinted sunglasses and brass necklace are trophies from his earliest kills. (Yes, I will try to go more in-depth with this idea in the future.)

He was the first official member of The Pentas Family, and has since earned a reputation for being The Boss’ right-hand-man. (Notice: I don’t have the backstory/relationship between the two of them completely nailed down yet. But what I do know for sure is that THEY ARE NOT ROMANTICALLY INVOLVED WHATSOEVER. NOBODY IN THIS MOB IS.)

He's a legit bird-whisperer. I’ve seen plenty other people post about him chilling with crows or ravens, and that’s already perfect, but I think adding more birds in general to the mix would make it even better. Chickens, ducks, sparrows, cockatiels, parakeets, pigeons, etc. Even GEESE tend to be calm around him (which could count as a sign of something being wrong with him). It’s not uncommon for him to spend his off-time at the park feeding the birds he claims to have technically adopted.

He lives out of a houseboat docked near the quiet part of the beach. He’s not above driving it long distances across the water when he needs to travel for his work.

If his scene in ISWM Part 2 was anything to go by, he enjoys making morbid jokes/puns. Ironically, he tends to get dissapointed or annoyed whenever other people make morbid jokes/puns. He and Caliban have gotten into arguments (with varying degrees of violence) over puns on at least three separate occasions.

He’s currently acting as a mentor to The Newcomer. It’s his responsibility to teach them and introduce them to the other Pentas members.

Current Stories: (Goretober 2022) Day 2: Cannibalism, Running on Empty, God, Being an Accessory to Murder is Exhausting, Update the Letter Board!, (Goretober 2023) Day 3: Broken Bones, (Goretober 2023) Day 4: Amputation, (Goretober 2023) Day 7: Needles, Bloody Tricks and Even Bloodier Treats, (Goretober 2024) Day 2: Operation, (Goretober 2024) Day 5: Submerged 

The Newcomer

Who They’re Based Off Of: The Reader (Y/N)

Their Method of Work: They haven’t developed a personal signature quite yet. As of right now, they’re content with just assisting Murdock and the rest of The Pentas Family. They’ve got a surprising/disturbing amount of competence, but they’re still a rookie; therefore, they still have some things to learn.

Red Attire: Leather gloves (Scarlet)

Notes:

[INFORMATION TBA]

Current Stories: (Goretober 2022) Day 2: Cannibalism, Toxic Tutorials, (Goretober 2024) Day 4: Burst Vessels

Caliban Crawford

Who He’s Based Off Of: Matthew Patrick/MatPat (Game/Film/Food/Style Theory)

His Method of Work: He acts as one of The Pentas Family’s many body-disposal resources (if they disposed of bodies in just one way, they’d risk gathering concentrated amounts of evidence). His particular technique for disposal is good ol’ fashioned cannibalism.

Red Attire: Leather jacket (Crimson)

Notes:

Aside from the body-disposal stuff, he’ll often help other Pentas members navigate the Black Market. He’s also invaluable when it comes to organizing certain trading events. He’s a cannibal, sure, but he also knows just how much of a pretty penny human organs can make. (Besides, not all body parts are safe for consumption; brains, eyeballs, intestines, and bones for example.)

Cannibal puns 24/7. The subtlety—or lack thereof—with which he delivers these puns can vary, depending on the situation he’s in. (“I’ve been told I have a great taste in people.” “If anyone’s a humanitarian, it’s me!” “I am what I eat, after all. . .” etc.) 

He has a pet leucistic hare named Snare (somewhat inspired by Matt’s childhood pet bunny, Sunny). As hares are proven omnivores/scavengers, it just makes sense for Caliban to spoil Snare by feeding him human fingers as treats (highly inspired by Monty Python’s Killer Rabbit).

He has an ENORMOUS collection of butcher knives and medical blades, because of course he does. His favorite of them all is a damascus steel cleaver, which he frequently carries in his jacket pocket as his primary weapon.

There’s a silver tooth cap in the place of his upper left canine. He lost said canine when one of his victims surprised him by grabbing his tenderizing hammer and hitting him in the mouth with it as they tried to escape (this also left a small, jagged scar on the left side of his upper lip). Obviously, Caliban recovered from this. But the person who knocked his tooth out? Not so much. . .

His house is located in the downtown area, and is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels. He’s basically turned the old security office into a basement-kitchen setup.

(If you’d like to see some awesome artwork of this character, please go here and show the artist some appreciation!)

Current Stories: (Goretober 2022) Day 2: Cannibalism, Running on Empty, God, Being an Accessory to Murder is Exhausting,  What’s That Saying About Cinnamon Rolls. . ?, (Goretober 2023) Day 3: Broken Bones, (Goretober 2023) Day 4: Amputation, (Goretober 2023) Day 7: Needles, Bloody Tricks and Even Bloodier Treats, TCoTOS: Part 1, TCoTOS: Part 2, TCoTOS: Part 3, TCoTOS: Part 4, TCoTOS: Epilogue, (Goretober 2024) Day 2: Operation

Azalea Crawford

Who She’s Based Off Of: Rosanna Pansino (Nerdy Nummies)

Her Method of Work: She knows pretty much everything there is to know about poison. Toxic plants, venomous animals, man-made chemicals, you name it. The collection she keeps for hit-jobs and the like goes way, way beyond your typical arsenic. She even has a greenhouse full of deadly plants (including her namesake, obviously) in her backyard. When she’s on the clock, she’ll usually take care of targets by slipping poisons into a nice little baked goodie. Azalea’s not squeamish about needles, but this is easier and more discreet.

Red Attire: Headband (Cherry)

Notes:

This lovely lady is Caliban’s sister, and shares a strong sibling bond with him. (In fact, she actually taught Caliban a lot of what he knows about cooking. Sure, it took a bit of trial-and-error for some recipes to work with human flesh, but it just be like that sometimes.)

She has a pet scarlet kingsnake named Cuddles. Scarlet kingsnakes are harmless, but they specifically evolved to mimic the coloration of coral snakes, which are infamously venomous. Azalea understands the irony of this perfectly. She also understands how easy it is for people to mix up the color patterns, so, of course, she’ll occasionally handle Cuddles purely for confusion/intimidation.

She’s the owner/head chef of Aftertaste, a popular restaurant/bar, in order to help keep up appearances for The Pentas Family. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels. 

If any Pentas members decide to use poison for a hit-job, then they need to go to Azalea for help. She’s one of very, very few people who can be trusted to use such dangerous substances properly. (But sometimes, even mobsters aren’t immune to hubris. So, Azalea keeps a stockpile of antidotes/painkillers in order to fix certain mistakes.)

She’s the reason Caliban was able to adopt Snare. She found the hare in the basement of one of her past targets (who was the leader of an exotic animal trafficking ring); he reminded her of her brother, so she ended up giving him to Caliban as a present.

(If you’d like to see some awesome artwork of this character, please go here and show the artist some appreciation!)

Current Stories: What’s That Saying About Cinnamon Rolls. . ?, Update the Letter Board!,  Toxic Tutorials, (Goretober 2023) Day 3: Broken Bones, (Goretober 2023) Day 7: Needles, Bloody Tricks and Even Bloodier Treats

K.O. [Kaiser Oasis]

Who He’s Based Off Of: Ethan Nestor (CrankGamePlays)

His Method of Work: Whether he’s in the arena, defending himself and his peers, or extracting information from enemies, K.O. packs a major wallop. Not only that, but his stamina is roughly on-par with that of a mongoose fueled by a few too many Pixie Sticks. . . He was discovered by The Pentas Family shortly after The Boss decided to branch out into the underground fighting business.

Red Attire: Fluctuates between jeans for when he’s out of the arena, and boxing shorts for when he’s in the arena (Amaranth)

Notes:

Despite being a mobster, he’s a surprisingly courteous fighter. Yeah, he pummels his opponents, but that’s literally what career-fighting is all about. Now, on the other hand: if you’ve personally wronged him or someone he cares about, or if he catches wind that you’re going to try and cheat your way through a match with him. . .well, I wouldn’t count on him having too much self-restraint. 

Ironically, K.O. also serves as a medic for The Pentas Family. It took some time and practice, of course, but he’s gotten pretty damn good at patching up stab/bullet wounds and resetting broken bones. (It’s not uncommon to get bumps and bruises in the underground business, and going to a normal hospital is typically a big no-no, since the staff there would likely ask too many questions about certain injuries.) 

While he only wraps his hands for his fighting matches, he’s still not above occasionally using brass knuckles—which he has affectionately named Francis and J.P.—for interrogation or message-sending assignments. 

Though he’ll sometimes travel for certain assignments, K.O. usually represents The Pentas Family at a place called The WormRoll: roller skating rink by day, hidden-in-plain-sight fighting arena by night. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels, and K.O. has made his personal platform-office-den into a training room.

Before and after his matches, he wears a black robe with a picture of a peacock mantis shrimp embroidered on the back. (When K.O. first joined The Pentas Family, Murdock commissioned a sewing artist to make said robe as a welcoming gift for him. Yes, Francis and J.P. were included in that gift.)

He’s multilingual; he can speak English, French, Portuguese, and Italian on a conversational level. This obviously means a lot of foreign swearing when he’s frustrated/angry. He has no trace of an accent from any of those languages, and none of his peers know why or how he picked them up in the first place. K.O., being the gremlin he is, doesn’t plan to explain anytime soon. (Plus, he can’t not be a little smug about being the only Italian-speaking member of a mob. Just like how he can't not use that to tease Murdock.)

Y’know creepy-crawly lollipops? Yes, the ones that have a cricket or some other insect frozen inside. Those are K.O.’s favorite candy. Unless he’s in the ring, he’s almost always got one in his pocket. (On a slightly more humorous note: sometimes he’ll make a small show of pretending that the lollipop sticks are cigarettes.)

Current Stories: (Goretober 2023) Day 3: Broken Bones, (Goretober 2023) Day 7: Needles, Bloody Tricks and Even Bloodier Treats, (Goretober 2024) Day 2: Operation

Garret Wyre

Who He’s Based Off Of: Mick Lauer 

His Method of Work: If there’s two things to be said about Garret, it’s that he has a pair of big, strong hands, and he knows how to use them. You could argue that “Everyone knows how to use their hands, idiot.” To which I say. . .first of all, chill out. Words can hurt. Second of all, not everyone can make a career out of strangling people. But Garret most certainly has. That being said, he knows when to use other tools  (ropes, scarves, cords, stuff like that) to get the job done. He knows he can’t realistically rely on his hands for each and every one of his assignments. In any case, the day his grip isn’t firm is the day he’s not Garret.

Red Attire: Scarf (Maroon)

Notes:

Garret brings a complex vibe to The Pentas Family. His disposition is stern, but he knows to be patient with the other members. Despite this, he’s always a bit. . .fidgety. Restless. He has a hard time sitting still, and an even harder time not giving people the side-eye or glancing over his shoulder. In fact, the only times he seems genuinely calm and self-assured is when he’s choking the life out of his targets. Sure, he still acts aggressively toward said targets, but there’s no denying just how soft and quiet his voice becomes when he taunts them.

His hobbies outside of mob work include knitting and sewing. It just seems to ease his nerves a bit. He even made the very scarf he wears whenever he’s working on Pentas business. This also bleeds into the fact that Garret is on the superstitious side. Half of his sewing/knitting projects involve making voodoo dolls of those who screw around with The Pentas Family. He treats said dolls a lot like stress toys, often patching them up after bashing their stuffing out only to do it all over again sooner or later.

He very much believes in the concept of luck. Quite ironic, considering he was born on a Tuesday The 13th (look it up; apparently those are even worse than Friday The 13ths). He doesn’t bother with all the chakra-crystal-incense stuff, but he does keep a glass Evil Eye charm in one pocket, as well a miniature horseshoe in the other. He never goes directly home right after taking care of a target. He avoids the number four like the plague. He makes sure his right foot is leading whenever he enters a room. Et cetera, et cetera. 

One of the few superstitions he doesn’t believe in is black cats being harbingers of doom. In fact, he adores black cats. Particularly Juju, a stray black kitten he adopted after a very last-minute, impromptu hit-job.

He’s the manager of Itchy Palms, a popular casino on the edge of The Cove Port Inlet’s uptown area. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels. And it’s safe to say that Garret knows. His. Business. He knows how to play each and every game, as well as several ways to cheat at each and every game without giving said cheating away. His outlook on fairness is. . .unconventional.

Current Stories: (Goretober 2024) Day 4: Burst Vessels

Parker Thenope

Who He’s Based Off Of: Nathan Sharp (NateWantsToBattle/Give Heart Records)

His Method of Work: There are several ways to be adept in water. Such as holding a person under it until they stop moving, or drenching a person over and over again until they give up the information you need. Which is exactly how Parker earns his keep. His assignments often involve haunting the local beach—or, more precisely, the cluster of shallow sea-caves along the beach’s edges. But in a pinch, he’s willing to use pools/hot tubs/etc. to his advantage (it just means he’ll have to be clever with how he goes about the job). 

Red Attire: Face-mask (Carmine) 

Notes:

Parker is the personification of “it’s always the quiet ones who snap the loudest.” Sure, he’s cooperative and understanding toward his peers in The Pentas Family, but underneath his chill, humorous, nonchalant veil lurks a bit of a ticking time-bomb. As a child, it was constantly drilled into him to camouflage his real emotions, to always appear calm and collected on the outside. If you’ve done something to majorly piss him off, then really, your only chance is to hide and hope he doesn’t find you. 

Fittingly enough, his hobbies include swimming. He learned at a very young age, so, it’s safe to say that he’s excellent at following the flow of water, holding his breath for generous periods of time, etc. And who can blame him? It’s a lot of fun, it’s great exercise, and it allows him to have the upper hand whenever he happens to also be in the water while taking care of a target.

When it comes to anything music-related, he’s incredibly skilled. Not only does he have a lovely singing voice, but he’s an expert on playing guitar, drums, and even the piano on occasion. Music is a very effective form of stress-relief, and he’s been using it as such long before he entered the underground business. 

He’s very familiar with Ear Caffeine, a music studio in the Cove Port Inlets. He works there as a songwriter/lyricist, as well as a session musician, though he’s now basically in charge of the place ever since its former owners disappeared into thin air. (The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels, and Parker was instrumental—pun vERY MUCH INTENDED—to The Pentas Family claiming it as part of their territory.)  

On top of that, Parker also owns Chord Craft, a combination of record store and instrument-repair shop on the side. He was the head-honcho over there before he was welcomed into the mob, and while he’s since hired more people to run it, he still cares for it. 

Even before he joined The Pentas Family, he made a point to wear a face mask every day (he sees the red one he wears now as an upgrade). He only ever takes it off when he’s swimming or sleeping. He doesn’t have any scars to cover up; he just finds comfort in personal anonymity. 

He’s learned to consider all the different ways decomposition can work in watery areas. Just because his signature is to drown targets doesn’t mean he can always afford to just leave their bodies floating. It’s not uncommon for him to seek out Murdock, arranging to take a ride on the hitman’s houseboat in order to dump certain bodies far out from the Inlets’ boundaries. 

Current Stories: (Goretober 2024) Day 5: Submerged 

Val Ocitie 

Who They’re Based Off Of: Lio Tipton

Their Method of Work: Tommy guns may be rare nowadays, but that isn’t a problem for Val. Their hidden arsenal is already impressive enough; you could say they have many, many neutral specials. Sure, they can see the appeal of blades and other deadly stuff, but guns are fast, efficient, and most importantly of all, devastating. (Especially if a silencer is involved. Ooh, does that help thicken the plot.) Don’t screw around with them or their family unless you want to cosplay as swiss cheese. 

Red Attire: Chainmail bracelet (Vermillion) 

Notes:

Val has long-since learned to thrive in chaos, to the point of outright craving it. Sometimes they see underground business as a game. While their attitude is usually excitable around those they trust, their energy can turn aggressive in a heartbeat. They’re the type to get up in an enemy’s face, wearing a false, icy grin all the while.

Along with the hit-jobs they're assigned, Val is responsible for supplying The Pentas Family's firepower. Similar to how Caliban is an expert in organ-trafficking, Val knows the ins and outs of the illegal weapons trade. They've rearranged their personal gun collection several times now, selling and exchanging certain models to avoid leaving any patterns in their work.

Once upon a time, Val worked for a different mob; one that wasn’t exactly on good terms with The Pentas Family. Well, things ended up falling apart, and Val found themself at the mercy of Murdock and his peers. Of course, things were rocky at first. . .but somehow, Val eventually realized that they felt some kind of kinship with them. It took some time, but they were welcomed in, and are now following Pentas operations with strong loyalty.

They grew up somewhat rural, learning how to handle guns at a pretty young age. Though their family wasn’t poor, hunting game animals for food was still a big tradition that they helped to carry on. They don’t really do that kind of hunting anymore, but they still take monthly trips to shooting ranges in order to practice with clay pigeons. 

They’re the only Pentas member who doesn’t live in/work out of a building that’s connected to the abandoned subway tunnels. Instead, they live in a tidy cabin located in Reilpi Woods, a huge forest about a fifteen-minute drive from the Cove Port Inlet’s city limits. Not that Val minds, though; the area gives them nostalgia. While they can appreciate all the conveniences of more urban environments, they’ve always enjoyed being surrounded by trees. Besides, it’s not like they don’t know where all the secret entrances to the underground dens are.

They’re a natural when it comes to evaluating another person’s character. It’s an important skill to have in this line of work, especially considering how the work is question is very much illegal. Despite their uncertain start in The Pentas Family, it hasn’t taken much time at all for Val to learn each of the other members inside and out. . .well, except for The Newcomer. (For now, at least.)

Current Stories: [TBA]

Two-Toes Johnny [Johnathan Shine]

Who He’s Based Off Of: Bob Muyskens (Muyskerm)

His Method of Work: Though he’s not really a hitman, he still knows his way around interrogation and message-sending. His weapon/tool of choice is a baseball bat that was apparently an heirloom he just so happened to inherit as a teenager. It might not look like much, but neither will those who anger The Pentas Family (or their clients) after Johnny uses it to beat them black and blue.

Red Attire: Belt (Tawny Port)

Notes:

Now, to address the elephant in the room: yes, he actually does only have two toes. The right big-toe and the left middle-toe, to be specific. All that’s left of the other eight are scars, and exactly how he lost them is a total mystery. Sure, he might vaguely rant about the incident(. . .s?) from time to time—usually after he’s had a few too many drinks—but it just seems impossible for anyone to figure out what the hell happened, as well as why the hell it happened.

(Plus, just to clarify: yes, I did get all my inspiration from the episode "Who's The Worst?" on Distractible. However, this character is still meant to be somewhat different from the persona Bob put on for one particular dilemma Mark gave him. The primary difference is that this version of Two-Toes Johnny does not have a son.)

While he’s able to get tipsy or wasted, Two-Toes Johnny is nothing if not an experienced drinker. Working in the illegal alcohol trade will do that to you. When he’s not overseeing illicit spirits, he’s The Pentas Family’s primary bookkeeper, organizing all the money he and his peers rake in.

He’s the owner/manager of Liquorty Splitz, a (what else?) popular liquor store in the Cove Port Inlets. It currently supplies alcohol to Aftertaste, Itchy Palms, and several other joints. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels. (He also has a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend type link to a place called The Robe. It doesn't fall under Pentas control—it’s basically an open secret in the criminal underground as a whole—but ever since Johnny entered the mob, he’s sort of paved the way for Murdock and the others to occasionally use their free-time to pay it a visit.)

He carries a very rough-around-the-edges demeanor. Sarcastic, blunt, quick to make snappy remarks or roll his eyes. It’s one of many survival mechanisms he’s learned over the years. Despite this, he still knows how respect and basic decency work. Earn his trust, and you’ll have an invaluable friend for life. (In such cases, the term “aggressive motivation/positivity” is an understatement.)

He’s a bookworm. His collection of novels is almost constantly threatening to grow bigger than his collection of vintage alcohol. He appreciates a lot of modern stuff, but he’s always had a soft spot for the classics. In fact, he always keeps a few books in his desk at Liquorty Splitz to read on slower nights. 

He has two tattoos on his face: a silvery little star just below his right temple, and the branch of a cherry blossom tree stretching along his jawline and ending near his left eyebrow. It’s not uncommon for him to trace the linework of either of them with his fingertips while he’s thinking. He claims that there’s no symbolism behind either of them, that they were the results of a couple drunken nights that took place a long time ago. (There’s a decent chance that’s true. . .but then, why does his expression occasionally turn soft and unreadable when he looks at these tattoos in the mirror?)

Standing at 6’4, Johnny is the biggest/tallest member of The Pentas Family. And he obviously knows how to use this to his advantage. As in, if he and his peers are in a violent situation, he’ll barely hesitate to pick said peers up by the waist/collar/legs and just. . .swing them in the direction of the enemy. Since the peers in question often have weapons on-hand, this method is shockingly efficient. It’s typically not appreciated, of course.

Current Stories: [TBA]

Phoenix Rhong 

Who She’s Based Off Of: Safiya Nygaard 

Her Method of Work: Playing with fire can be hard (depending on your perspective, at least), but getting burned is quite easy. Not so for someone who’s had as much practice as Phoenix. Where there’s smoke, there’s her. Pretty much a pro-gamer when it comes to plotting and coordinating, she’s the one to look for when riskier jobs need to be taken. After all, find an empty building in a very specific part of town, and voila! Instant Distraction—Just Add Fuel and Sparks! 

Red Attire: Ring (Garnet)

Notes:

Phoenix serves as a semi-dirty lawyer. As thorough and calculating as The Pentas Family is, mistakes can still be made. Bad timing and unlucky coincidences are still a factor. In such cases, Phoenix is invaluable for keeping her peers safe and their work hidden. On top of that, it never hurts to frame or expose an enemy or two; that just means less attention on her family, as well as less competition to deal with. She knows how to discreetly sow discord among enemies, how to tamper with evidence (whether planting it elsewhere or outright destroying it). 

Yes, she’s addicted to watching flames dance and hearing them crackle, but she still understands that they’re much more brutal than they are pretty. To be clear, she’s made her peace with reducing the corpses of certain targets to ash, but. . .well, they’re corpses. Like paper or clothing or many other flammable things, they can’t scream or feel pain when they’re being disposed of. (Not anymore, at least.) Whatever her peers did to those targets beforehand is just how they earn their own keep.

She’s responsible for the ironically legal parts of underground business. Negotiating prices/terms, relaying important messages, that kind of stuff. She helps form the contracts that the other Pentas representatives use, and she’s almost always in the room when those contracts are being discussed with outsiders (clients, allies, etc.). 

She’s very savvy when it comes to flammable chemicals. How exactly they burn, what to mix them with for the best results, how long it takes for them to reach their peak. Sure, matches and gasoline can be pretty damn effective, but an inferno often has to be handled very specifically. Sometimes the flames have to burn slower or faster. Sometimes they need to snuff themselves out at a quick rate. Sometimes they have to leave burned imprints behind rather than devour everything they touch. It all just depends on the job at hand. 

As part of an under-the-table agreement, she’s the owner of Scattered Wishes, the one and only crematorium the Cove Port Inlets has to offer. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels, and she uses her personal den to hide various forms of evidence until they’re ready to be loaded into one of the ovens. 

“Phoenix Rhong” is NOT her original name. It’s not a fake identity, either. How she managed to take the name for herself. . .well, I'll go into more detail about that later. 

Current Stories: [TBA] 

Miles C. Peyote and Howie Thetaxi

Who They’re Based Off Of: Lewis Dawkins (Dawko) and Ryan (8-BitRyan), respectively 

Their Methods of Work: When your reputation precedes you from all the way across the pond, you’ve definitely done something right! (Unless that was never your intention, in which case you’ve done something horribly, horribly wrong.) Remember the board game Mouse Trap? Well, Miles probably played it a few too many times in his youth, if the booby traps he sets up nowadays are anything to go by. Whether the goal is to kill or simply capture someone, his designs never fail to be. . .elaborate. Howie, meanwhile, doubles as a mechanic and driver. From ditching cops to running enemies off the road, he has more than enough skill to make professional racers envious. Never, NEVER forget the importance of seatbelts if you’re getting into a car with him. (Also, never put your feet on the dash. It’s rude.)

Red Attire: For Miles, a pair of leather boots (Oxblood). For Howie, a pair of gauge earrings (Carnelian)

Notes:

These two got their start in The Marble Hummingbirds, a different mob based in the UK that  has had a strong alliance with The Pentas Family for years now. As part of standard underground affairs, Miles and Howie volunteered to relocate to the US and work more closely with Murdock and the others. The adjustment was a bit difficult (especially for Howie), but they both understand that it makes several aspects of business more efficient. They both retain a good balance of loyalty between their original crew and their new one. 

Miles is selective when it comes to speaking. He’ll talk freely when he’s among people he trusts or is in a place that he’s deemed safe/comfortable, but when he’s out in public, he’s just. . .very quiet. He’ll still talk a little for the sake of politeness or formality, but only a little. If an area is open or unfamiliar, he’ll usually prefer to use body language and the like. (This does absolutely NOT stop him from cackling like a maniac over his traps.)

Howie has no qualms about reckless driving. Swerving, speeding, staging accidents; he can do it all without batting an eye. Whatever it takes to get himself and his buddies (plus their cargo) from Point A to Point B without getting stopped or caught. However, this mindset only applies to his personal driving. When he’s casually out and about, he can’t stand other drivers who tailgate, block lanes, cut others off, etc. If you act rude toward him in traffic, he can and will make a side-quest out of finding a way to get back at you. And yes, this extends to when he’s on the job. It’s not at all uncommon for him to go back and forth between chatting with his passengers and yelling at idiots on the road in the middle of a high-stakes-chase.

Miles has a habit of collecting plushies; especially odd-looking ones. (For example: the creepy-yet-cute stuff you might find on Etsy.) But his plushies aren’t just for aesthetic or decoration. He’s modified each and every one of them to be soft little storage units. Some have well-hidden zippers in their backs, while others have their heads function as the lids to jars stuffed inside their stomachs. Miles uses this strategy to hide valuables, such as varying sums of money or the odd piece of jewelry taken from a target. 

Howie is miraculously conscious of animals on the road. That’s one of few exceptions to his typical stance on getaway driving. He will always, ALWAYS make sure to avoid hitting cats, dogs, raccoons, deer. . .or squirrels. As a matter of fact, one squirrel that he managed to spare back in the day seems to have pledged a life-debt to him. Seriously, he avoided hitting it while he was still working in the UK, and by now it’s followed him to the US. Wherever Howie is, the squirrel always seems to be somewhere in the background, just watching and waiting.

Along with all the getaway driving stuff, Howie has helped The Pentas Family to form its very own chop-shop. Whenever cars are stolen from targets or enemies, Howie will be there to dismantle or sabotage said cars. Legitimate parts are sold, and certain jobs involve filling a vehicle with counterfeit parts in order to frame its owner.  

Ever since relocating, both Miles and Howie live out of The Five Seasons, a hotel near the Cove Port Inlet’s city entrance. The building is connected to the abandoned subway tunnels, and the duo rotates between sharing the hidden den; Miles will use it to build/test his traps, and Howie will use it simply to store/tamper with various car parts. The hotel just so happens to be right across the street from the car repair garage (Oh, for God’s Brake!) that Howie uses for his day-job.

Current Stories: [TBA]

Jay Aienyouess

Who He’s Based Off Of: Thomas Sanders

His Method of Work: The Pentas Family can be thought of as many things. Well, if you were to think of it as, say, an anglerfish, then Jay would play the role of that bright, shiny lure. He can put on a Grammy-worthy act in the blink of an eye, whether to lead a target to their doom or to keep any potential witnesses away from a soon-to-be crime scene. 

Red Attire: Nail polish (Cochineal)

Notes:

(Just to get this out of the way: yes, his name is a weird, stretched-out reference to Janus Sanders. The slimy boi himself has always been my favorite character of Sanders Sides. While Jay does partake in a lot of lying for his work, please keep in mind that he’s not meant to be a complete copy of the snake he’s named after. Sanders Sides was just a huge part of my comfort-stuff in high school, so, as usual, I wanted to make a reference.)

On top of con-games, Jay can also be quite stealthy if the job calls for it. Sneaking around enemy turf, setting up a sabotage or two, gathering information, spying on those who give off weird vibes during business negotiations. . .

Unlike most of his peers, Jay was raised in a comfortable, pleasant environment. . .or, that environment was comfortable and pleasant while he was a kid. Things changed pretty drastically after he became an adult; more specifically, after he came out. He ended up leaving his hometown behind, hopping from one motel to another. Though he worked various odd-jobs, he also quickly learned to pick pockets in order to survive. 

By the time he had a chance-meeting with a few Pentas representatives, Jay had already somewhat dipped his toes into the criminal underground. Mainly via listening to the hurried whispers of passersby, and then trading those memorized details for cash.

Despite what happened to him, Jay has never once questioned himself or felt ashamed of who he is. Even when he was offered a place in The Pentas Family, he was still very much intimidated by them at first. But the support and open-mindedness they showed was quick to seal the deal for him. This in turn led to him (along with Val) having a hand in making sure that any Pentas-owned businesses are clearly marked as safe spaces for queer people.

He is most certainly NOT immune to morbid fascination. True, he doesn’t do any actual killing himself, but. . .well, I wouldn’t put it past him to look over the carnage left after a hit-job, all curious and thoughtful. The cleanup crew has gotten pretty used to him hanging around while they work. 

He works at Bullskit, a theater/auditorium that serves as one of the oldest buildings in the Cove Port Inlets (it’s still in business; it was even freshly remodeled when Jay joined the mob). It’s connected to the abandoned subway tunnels, and Jay kinda just lives there after hours. During hours, however, he dabbles in a bit of everything: stagehand, greenroom tech, assistant to the directors, you name it. If a target or enemy happens to get on the stage, Jay isn’t exactly above looking the other way when his peers sneak in to drop sandbags, switch out prop weapons for real ones, rig the special effects, etc.

Current Stories: [TBA]

[aelaer]

Just saw your post about having to block the doctor strange x reader tag, and I must agree it's become the predominant DS fic that comes up as recommended on my feed as well. There are several authors I enjoy reading in that category (although lately the overall amount of fics is overwhelming), but I only started writing them myself as my stephen x ofc fics could never gain a bit of traction. I have a theory that if I went back and changed my ofc's to reader inserts, I'd probably gain a lot more readers--but I can never bring myself to doing that as I wouldn't be true to myself as an author.

I suppose that's just a writerly woe I'm sharing with someone who might understand.😏 But I'm curious; are you open to reading non-romance fics featuring original characters? I've found that tumblr can be quite snobbish towards that species of fic.

I wanted to reply to this ages ago but it requires my computer and some thinking, so I kept pushing it off again and again and again and whelp, here we are. My bad. ><

I'm the same way where being true to myself as an author is writing what I want, so I get you there. Doesn't get As Much Engagement as other tropes would, but y'know what, I can live with that. If anything, I've actually found that the fic I compromised most on (because it was for a themed exchange) is one I want to reread the least. So if anything, a lot of me writes for "do I want to reread this in the future" and that has helped me since.

It's funny since OFC romances used to be pretty popular way back when, but I guess "reader" took over that audience over the last decade because the majority of the people just wanted to insert themselves into the position instead of reading about a full-fleshed character? Honestly not sure.

Right, I keep delaying the reason I took so long to get back to you - non-romance fics with OCs. The answer, by the way, is yes. Great OCs are fantastic, but you don't tend to see many OCs outside of romance, or you only see them as side characters in another pairing's fic. They don't often have starring or co-starring roles. But I wanted to find examples with great OCs which would take time.

And now I'm taking that time. Here's some good OC-starring fics that I scoured through the tag. They're difficult to find. I had to smudge that requirement after a while. Then I gave up after I got to 2 years back in the tag.

Some of the stories that I know have very good OCs are also IronStrange, but I know that's not your cup of tea so I left it out. But I found a handful.

Keshwyn was the author that came to mind when you originally sent this ask, but I wanted to have more than one author when I wrote this. Read their series, highly recommend, top-tier OCs across the whole spectrum, with the main star being female.

This fic by LexLemon is technically PalmerStrange, but the OCs are her parents, so it's basically a delight in my eyes as Stephen's fish-out-of-water act is always funny to me.

Dragonnan writes good OCs, usually the mean sort though, the ones who hurt Stephen rather than befriend him (male and female lmao), but if you're in a whumpy mood at some point...

This isn't technically an OC, but I don't know the character from the comics, so she's an OC to me! This Stephen's new apprentice is Casey Kinmont fic by Stratagem. They just updated recently too, need to cheer them on at some point.

*sigh* Sorry love, I ran out of good OC fics that didn't have background/primary IronStrange that I could find/remember. But yeah. There's some fic/author recs.

(If anyone wants to add to the list, feel free to leave a comment or reblog. I was avoiding IronStrange for the asker in particular but I don't think the asker sees reblogs so go for it if you'd like).

Also, I love the OCs that I've come up with for my various stories in both LOTR and the MCU. I'll ramble all about them if you (or someone) wants me to, quite happily.

Hope that answers the question/reason for the ask, mostly.

[merge-conflict]

Since you asked twice: 4, 61, & 66 for the fic writer asks :>

Heheh :3 (questions here)

4. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas?

I ask myself questions. The scope and number of questions depends on the idea. Am I looking to complete a next scene? Why don't I know what the character will do next? Do they need to make a decision, or does something need to motivation to move past an obstacle? Is their struggle internal or external at this moment? Are they at full capacity or are they tired or hurt and more likely to mess up or do something impulsive?

For fic ideas it's just that but broader. Usually I get a snippet of a scene or inspiration from some outside source- either my own life or some other story. Maybe I just think that two characters should meet, or be put in a situation where they have to fight. Maybe Johnny should punch Valentine in the face. Then I just work backwards from there- what kind of pressure would cause them to be angry at each other? If they have an argument can it be exacerbated by some vulnerability or just because they're having a bad day? Because something else happened and now they're on a hair trigger? What would cause them to fight instead of just walk away? And then just sort of reverse engineering the situation from there. It fails a fair amount of the time, but asking the questions themselves helps flesh things out to make it easier to work out ideas for those characters or any characters, so there's never anything lost through brainstorming.

Also honestly sometimes when I can't think of anything or I'm frustrated and want to vent or cry about it... I'll give myself a weird objective. Try a new POV. Keep it a certain length. Change tense. Write about someone without ever saying their name. It also doesn't always work, but concentrating on some new kind of goal often gets me out of the pit I've been languishing in even when it fails.

61. Why do you continue writing fics?

I love doing it, and also I can't really control my brain when it comes up with stories. So they're going to be in my head anyway, and writing them down helps me develop them and enjoy them even more. Obviously I do love and enjoy the community part of writing fanfiction, and getting feedback and engagement. (Love it. Crave it. Don't we all?) But ultimately I just love doing character studies, and constructing scenes and making things. Sometimes I "write" for hours and get very little done but I really enjoy that time, and if that ever changed I wouldn't do it.

66. How do you deal with writing pressure (ie. pressure to update, negative comments, deadlines, etc.)?

I don't think any of those things worry me too much. I do feel bad for not updating regularly sometimes but I hardly do anything regularly. I could keep a habit for 3 months and drop it in 2 days for something new. If I don't like something I'm hitting the bricks. Honestly the biggest struggle I have is that period of time just before and just after sharing a story- it's like as soon as I hit post my self-confidence dives, and by that time I've usually reviewed my own writing so many times that it just looks like garbage. Similar to saying a word over and over until it becomes meaningless and annoying? It's kind of the worst. So far the only solution I've found is to leverage my adhd and distract myself until I'm out of the danger zone. I've also found the more I do it the easier it gets, like exposure therapy. The anxiety poison damage from posting gets a little less now that I know "How It Works (tm)".

I do often get stuck on something (a scene, etc.) but my writing process is really messy and so I will leverage having multiple projects and just sort of tool around through them until I find something I can make progress on. If I have motivation I have to follow it or I'll never do anything so just going with the flow and not getting too hung up on doing things In Order or finishing my writing veggies before my writing dessert. Having little to no executive function means that there are some things that I can't do without spending extra spoons and I'm alright with some comfortable chaos.

[vodid]

I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS IF YOU DONT MIND—

How many words do you currently have on your next chapter of Vulnerability? If you’ve started it, of course, life can get rough sometime •~•

What inspired you to make your Vulnerability and The Obsidian King fanfictions? Personal experiences or seeing some other people doing some romantic stuff or maybe another fanfiction?

What’s the best part of writing these two stories? Developing the world, the actual characters, the romance?

What are your current favorite scenes in The Obsidian King fanfiction? Mine is when Prowl requests Jazz at that festival thing to welcome Prowl as king to play a piece that Jazz wrote himself. OH and when Prowl and Jazz stole sweets, that was really cute and adorable and omg I love them so much

Was there anything like really really big that you had to research for your two books that took awhile and maybe frustrated you a bit trying to figure out how to write that one scene or chapter?

Will you ever have a full cover design for your two fanfictions? I find it really interesting and cool when fanfiction writers put a cover at the beginning of their fanfiction as if it’s a real book! Of course if you’re never going to do that, it’s cool, I love all your fanart of them anyways and will just fan over it!

Where do you like to write? Like, in your bedroom, library, coffee shop? I personally like to write in my bedroom, all snuggled up and cozy. Except when I end up getting distracted by something in my room that takes me away from my story for a good 20 minutes or so -~-

LAST QUESTION I have so many, but a few of these are pretty big questions to answer so I’ll just send some more some other time ^-^

How does it feel knowing that people all around the world are reading your fanfictions and connecting with your story? Like, Vulnerability has 316 kudos and 4340 hits, and your Obsidian King fanfiction has 151 kudos and 1959 hits. Like- that’s a lot of people man, so how does that feel knowing you are pretty popular in terms of fanart and fanfiction writing?

WAH HELLO HSDGFHSDFS anon coming in clutch with these questions ok ok oh boy here we go. long ask, long answer \o/

currently, i'm at about 1.4k words. a big portion of that is the beginning/setup of the chapter and the rest is lots of dialogue. the average word count for the chapters seems to land above 6.5k words (ch2 was over 8k!) and since this chapter is probably going to be the most important of the entire fic, it may come out to be way more 🤔 we shall see

the obsidian king was purely because ppl kept getting curious if there was a fic, which made me think about it and it got me writing <3 it's not my proudest piece but i've had fun making it! it's an expansive universe and i'm afraid i may have bitten off more than i could chew and without the right prep, so i've lost a lot of confidence for it unfortunately

vulnerability on the other hand came after i binged the biggest blitzbee fics (such as roe, omtop, showstoppers). i told myself i probably wouldn't end up writing a fic for them but a good scene eventually occurred to me and i went with it. the more i fleshed out the setting, the more i realized how much i wanted to explore the raw concept of their ship that appears in many of their longfics. i wanted to dig into and challenge the typical "enemies in a life-or-death situation they must help each other get out of and end up in a secret relationship until blitzwing leaves the decepticons" — not because i didn't like that dynamic (are you kidding me i ADORE it) but because — copying and pasting an ao3 reply of mine — i wanted to take that and put my own huge spin to it. i wanted their growth to happen willingly and not out of necessity. a test to see, can this ship happen without a dire situation they're stuck in while staying true to their core characterizations? basically, is there a pattern to this ship for a reason or can it realistically work outside of that? it's been very fun :)

favorite thing about writing obkau is just all the idiots in love scenes. had me kicking my feet and smiling like a goof writing all that. the romance may be quick in that fic (speedrun!) but its for the shits n giggles n blushes — and on that note, my favorite scene also has to be the kitchen raid or perhaps the first time they were in the crystal gardens together :)

a lot of the research that's gone into obkau was more so for the au rather than the fic itself. things about crystals and their healing properties, names for ocs, city-states, lore doors to the lore mansion that needed a lore key to unlock, only obtainable through giant rants with my buddy mag until something clicks.

now, vulnerability is The Fic where the past 3 years of practice have been coming together and finally paying off. a lot of that practice was put into jazzprowl fics that unfortunately never made it out of my wips just yet, but they caused the many hours and days i spent studying plots, characterizations, natural and unique character dialogue, hidden details that circle back around... and that brings me to the next question: research! oh man...

i've brought up that i used suna_scribble's writing advice for reference, so i'll skip that part. that research did take me about a full month to look through and apply to my fic's plot, and i continued to develop it as time went on but it didn't particularly frustrate me. it did get tedious at times having to get certain points and details to come together but it was more of a fun challenge if anything. so along with that, in between chapters, i'd spend a couple weeks (legit hours a day straight) researching bpd for blitzwing. mounds and mounds of research. i looked at clinical sites, personal blogs of those with bpd, reddit/quora for outside (albeit very stigmatized but still important) perspectives, and admittedly, i glanced at fanfics to see how it was portrayed there (while still remaining critical of any inaccuracies). it is difficult to write an experience i've never had so figuring out that aspect probably took the most amount of effort to get through — and i'm still working on it! as the fic goes on, i hope for a better and more realistic portrayal of blitzwing's bpd, as it's pretty much become the driving force of the story and his character development

also i'm sure if anyone's been closely following my blog, they'd know i started learning german solely for the fact that i was trying to find a simple german phrase for blitzwing to say in my fic. and i now use my lil studies to sprinkle some more german into blitzwing's dialogue :)

i've thought about covers, mostly for one of the j/p wips i mentioned earlier, but not so much obkau or vulnerability. HOWEVER, i have thought of inserting illustrations into the obsidian king for certain scenes. like in between paragraphs or at the very end of a chapter. i never got around to exploring that more but with vulnerability, it could be a possibility too (i did make that comic but thats not something i'd insert in the fic itself)

i don't have many options for places to write but i've tried a good few spots. where i end up most is in the basement (basically our family room) with a bird video on for my cat. i've had a hard time writing in my bedroom and at places not my house (except back in high school, i would write ALL the time when i had the chance — if i wasn't already busy reading fic) but i once sat outside with my phone when it was drizzling and wrote out a good portion of chapter 1 for vulnerability. never been able to replicate that tho besides once bringing my laptop out on a sunny day. few times, i've done some writing in bed, typically before sleep, but most of it was reading over what i had already written and making small edits since i prefer to use my laptop for writing (felt that about the distraction tho lol guess in a way, it's easier to get distracted on my phone than my laptop)

in all honesty, those numbers pale in comparison to what my art and my old old writing back on ffn (no i am NOT showing you.) garnered (as well as other tf fics), but regardless of that, those are pretty big numbers and it will always feel weird if i think too hard about it. weird in a good way. it's easy to think of kudos and hits as just numbers but those are, in fact, people. individual people who decided to give your work a shot and drop a lil heart on it. out of the millions of things they could have possibly chosen, they chose yours.

call me humble, call me oblivious, but i really am not fully aware of my influence in the fandom. i don't know how i impact others, how many truly know me and like my work, how many find me to be cool or famous in our little corner of the world, how most even perceive me, and i certainly don't know the effects of my writing. i'm just a guy making art of stupid little gays and y'all are hitching a ride

feel free to ask more :)

[alectoperdita]

i'm back with more questions!!! loooool also some nsfw haha

what does kaiba wear on a normal day off from his lawyer job

what is kaiba's erogenous zone (or was it mentioned in the fic and i just missed it 🤔)?

what makes kaiba aroused the most when it comes to jou?

does kaiba jack off in the shower (based on your random facts post) HAHAHAHA

how seriously mad would jou be if kaiba got kissed square on the lips by someone else and which character would it be? 👀👀

is jou still friends with yugi in this au?

Hello again! I always have a lot of fun answering these questions. Also very helpful in fleshing out the story/world further. 💜

what does kaiba wear on a normal day off from his lawyer job

A very tough question given that I suck at fashion and it's always hard to imagine Kaiba dressing as a normie. But I guess that's the answer. Outside of his suits, Kaiba dresses very normie in a yuppie kind of way. Business casual and kinda preppy? Turtlenecks are a must-have in any Kaiba's wardrobe, but they're mainly reserved for the colder months. So basically turtlenecks and cashmere sweaters in the winter, light linen shirts and neat slacks in the warmer months, his tees are solid colors and have no prints, and he has a decent amount of athletic wear for when he remembers/makes the time to exercise. He must have an old hoodie or sweatpants from his college days in the back of his closet as some of us do.

what is kaiba's erogenous zone (or was it mentioned in the fic and i just missed it 🤔)?

Hmmm I don't think I've drawn any attention to an especially erogenous zones. He likes it when Jou pays attention to his nipples. I think he would be weak to slow, wet kisses on the back of his neck. Nothing especially notable has stood out to me (yet).

what makes kaiba aroused the most when it comes to jou?

Not sure if this makes much sense, but Jou's physical strength? He's weak to Jou's beefy physique. Sometimes he really likes the idea of being held down or feeling hints of Jou's full strength. Even more often is when Jou actively doesn't use that strength against Kaiba because he's ready to let Kaiba lead (so I guess a willingness to submit to Kaiba). This Kaiba might be a bit of a brat. 😏

does kaiba jack off in the shower (based on your random facts post) HAHAHAHA

Hahah yes, that would be one good place. Especially if he wakes up with a hard-on and is running short on time.

how seriously mad would jou be if kaiba got kissed square on the lips by someone else and which character would it be? 👀👀

Oh man, for some reason, I feel like Mai would be brave enough to do that on purpose. Both to rile Jou up and unsettle Kaiba. Jou would definitely not like it (because no one but him should be kissing Kaiba, thanks!), but he wouldn't get too steaming mad at Mai?

It also feels like motives matter a lot in this situation. Because if someone is sexually harassing Kaiba, you can bet Jou will be ready to break a nose or two.

is jou still friends with yugi in this au?

Yugi has not come up in this fic so far. I've been musing on if he's there. Because as of chapter 4, Mai, Anzu, and Miho will have made appearances. There's no particular reason why Yugi couldn't be friends with this version of Jou (unlike Lure), just not sure where I want to necessarily fit him in.

LOL I had a thought while answering this. Would it be funny if I made Yugi the owner of the neighborhood sex toy shop?

[nearasuzuna]

Amnesia AU

Alrighty! So to start off, this one isn't completely fleshed out... but I'm still working on it.

Spoilers ahead for the Todoroki family and Dabi!

Essentially this AU is based off of the question: What would've happened if Touya had woken up with amnesia from his coma.

From there, I started to work off the idea that instead of starting a fire, he woke up and spent some time in the nursery/orphanage before managing to escape. Touya spent his time there trying to piece together who he was, who everyone around him was, and why he felt like he needed to leave.

When he left, it wasn't by starting a fire or because he felt like he needed to go home. He snuck out to try and find out why he felt like he needed to leave, resulting in him struggling on the streets and falling in with various small time criminals.

Due to the fact that Touya can't remember anything, and the adults not giving him any relevant information, he doesn't have a way to get a legal job. He grows up on the streets, moving as needed and picking up any kind of job he can find. He also ends up manifesting his ice, due to the lack of knowledge about the fire aspect of his quirk ,after talking to others about how they use theirs. He spent a decent amount of time thinking that he might actually be quirkless until his ice appeared.

The actual story I'm writing around this idea takes place after the final war (still working out how everything plays out with the absence of Dabi). The majority of it is actually going to be from Natsuo's and Shouto's perspectives, on account of wanting to explore more of the Todoroki family and their unresolved feelings about Touya's death.

I've always felt like Natsuo is a very underrated character and more complex than I've seen some people give him credit for. And after writing some smaller stories for him, I decided to give him more of a spotlight in this story. I feel like this particular story works better from his perspective and it gives me more of an opportunity to explore some of the difficulties around grief, abuse, and not getting answers that you desperately want in those kinds of situations.

The parts that will be from Shouto's perspective will be more to cover what Natsuo can't, such as investigating, having to interact with the other family members, and events that Natsuo won't be present for. I'm hoping to use him to give a bit of an "outsider's view" on a lot of what happened since he wasn't actually involved/doesn't really remember most of it.

There will be some parts from Touya's perspective, but at this moment I'm unsure of what they will be. In this fic, he's more of a stranger to his own family and has no idea about anything from their lives. His part in this will definitely be more difficult, but I'm looking forward to it!

The fic starts off around two years after the final war, and ten years after Touya woke up with amnesia. Natsuo has graduated and become a doctor, he's married his girlfriend, and is working on his relationships with his siblings, although he struggles with being a workaholic to avoid his family by having a "valid excuse" to not see them. To try and stay busy, while also doing some good, he manages to convince some people to fund a clinic project geared towards helping a lot of the people that don't have access to decent healthcare for one reason or another after the war.

It's at this clinic that Touya runs into his family again. As someone that's been homeless for ten years and doesn't actually have any government papers, and a healthy fear of the police, he decides to stop in for a check up.

From there, Shouto finds him in the waiting area, brings him directly to Natsuo because "He looks like Touya", and Natsuo ends up kind of befriending him. They have a difficult friendship, full of a lot of emotions that force him to confront his experience of their family's past and his habit of using work to run away from everything.

I'm still working on a lot of the in between stuff, but eventually they do find out that Touya is actually Touya (there's a few different ways I want to try handling this part ranging from comical to devastating, but I'll figure it out as I get the rest sorted out). This leads them to having to figure out how to move forward with all that they went through.

I do plan on it having a somewhat bittersweet ending, but I'm aiming for a more hopeful note to it!

Overall, I'm really looking forward to how this'll turn out!

[reliquiaen]

Adding on to a few points:

Subplots. Are excellent, yes, we love them. Consider that all the subplots don't have to be about your main cast. Give the parents something to do, have the barista be doing something that develops whenever they appear. You'll have a main, core cast, and then the b-cast that supports them and it really REALLY helps to flesh them out juuuust a bit so they don't feel like props. It doesnt have to be super detailed, job drama, family drama, bad breakup, whatever. But giving them a subplot makes them feel stronger and also takes a load off the main cast.

Speaking of cast: don't be afraid to drop some names even if the characters never actually appear. Keeping your cast at just the right number to prevent the story from getting out of control is hard. And it'll depend on you personally (and I mean, if it's fanfic, it'll depend on how many characters the source material has so... grain of salt etc) and how many you're comfortable handling. I find the trick to be something along the lines of 'screentime'. Who are your core cast? Focus there, and allow for interactions with others outside that as necessary. You might find some random you threw in for a one off conversation actually serves a purpose in more than one situation, and it's better to reuse side characters where possible instead of constantly adding new faces.

This idea about word count and chapters and all that. Like yeah okay, use them if it helps, but it's also totally valid to not care at all about any of it. Don't set a limit, don't set a minimum bar, don't write with chapters. I'm admittedly a much more flexible writer when it comes to long fics, but I... Don't use chapters. I open up my doc and I write one scene at a time, not always in order, and when all the scenes that matter are down I'll go back and check the transitions make sense. It's only once I'm done that I think 'where do I make the chapter cuts'. This won't work for everyone, obvs, but I find it helps my writing feel more cohesive overall. Doing it by chapter feels like a monster of the week style show for me and we don't get on.

Don't be afraid to cut stuff out, also. When I'm doing long fics I keep a whole folder for cut content specifically so the story doesn't balloon wildly. You don't have to delete it, post out-takes or use it to springboard a separate stand alone fic. But try and keep the main story focused.

Re: world building. Keep a journal, physical or digital doesn't matter, and ask questions. If you've got friends who'll listen, talk to them (or rubber ducky can help sometimes). All that matters in the story itself is that it will make sense to the reader. But keep track of all those cool little details and answers to plot holes or mentioned-in-passing factoids because you never know. It might be useful later, or it might make for a nice lil one shot.

Do you have any advice and how to write a long fic?

I'll encourage long fic writers to add on in the notes, but as someone who tends to prefer short and medium-length fic, I'll tell you how I go about it.

Get a premise that you just absolutely love. You're going to be writing this thing for months, if not longer, so you want it to be something you're willing to spend a lot of time thinking about.

Embrace subplots. You'll have your main plotline that you want to see through from beginning to end, but you can also weave in some subplots here or there. The way I do this so that I don't get lost down a rabbit hole is that I always make sure that every chapter has at least 1 thing that moves the main plot forward and then if I want to spend 1-2K with some side characters doing something fun I can do that as well. Subplots can extend for the length of the full narrative, but they can also just last a chapter or three. If you're used to writing short fic, these might give you that familiar feeling of "completion"

A chapter is only as long as it needs to be. Don't get hung up on having a consistent chapter length. Don't get hung up on hitting some arbitrary number every time. Instead, figure out what the next part of your story needs to include and write however many words it takes to get that chunk across. Varying your chapter lengths is a normal thing to do and not something to stress about.

The next thing that I find important personally may or may not be relevant to you, but I find that I can't plot anything in much detail. If I get too into the nitty gritty with my plotting, it just feels like I've already written it. I need to keep it at the level of "And then A and B meet C and hijinks ensue." I can figure out the particular hijinks later. It's the characters meeting up that's the next important thing for me to figure out. Getting too far ahead of myself is a death knell for me in writing long fics, but there are other writers who swear by it. Test out different ways of approaching it and see what works for you.

As someone who tends to write more briefly, another feature that's common to longer fics is more extensive descriptions. People spend time painting visual pictures of the setting or the characters or the actions that are happening. Write the more bare-bones style that focuses more on dialogue (if you're like me) and then go back and read through what you've just written and see if there are opportunities to add in more detail. This can lead to some really interesting characterization choices and also help you out with worldbuilding.

When it comes to worldbuilding, you don't have to get it all on the page. You just need to share what's relevant for the reader in that moment and what is useful to lay out now so that it's already there in a future chapter. You can have an encyclopedic knowledge of how your world works in your head, but it's not actually necessary. No one is going to be quizzing you later - and if they do, you can always figure it out at that point.

Most important for me when I'm trying to get myself to the end of a longer fic, have a friend or a group of friends who are also into what you're writing - or at least willing to hear you get excited about it. Being able to get excited about your work is so important. It's like a bottle of water being handed to you on mile 10 of a marathon.