#clever way to figure out my age anon

[tired-and-triggered]

what's ur star sign & birth year? :o

My star sign is Cancer ♋ & I was born in 2003!

[kaga-ribi-612]

Oh… you seem very… very… interesting…♪

Full name: Jördis Kagari

Nickname: Courtney*

Age: 37

Birthday: 6th of December

* The nickname Courtney was given to her by some members of Team Magma, the motives behind that nicknaming are unknown

I like to… observe… and analyse. And… of course… be helpful to leader Marc and Lis…

I’ve seen… the other me‘s… you are interesting… ♪

OOC & Lore/Infodump down below (I may add stuff in the future)

//OOC - About this Courtney:

Hi, I’m @starlightcosmos04245 and I’m playing this Courtney as well as her universes Maxie (@matsubusa-m) and my OC Lizzy (@ematsubusa).

This Courtney, her name is Jördis (from the personification of earth in Norse mythology, Jörð), is from the same universe as my Maxie (aka Marc) and therefore from many years into the future. She still works for the reformed Team Magma. She’s a researcher and very observant. In comparison to other Courtneys in the multiverse, though, Jördis is a lot calmer. Although she can always explode if provoked. Aside from that, she loves to share pictures of Marc and his family. She’s a little leaker, when it comes to that point. To some members of Team Magma of this universe, she’s like a strange older sister.

She is bisexual and currently in a romantic relationship with Team Aqua’s biggest puppy - Matt.

♪

//OOC - About this blogs boundaries:

I, personally, am usually very open about everything. Though I have to admit I’m very shy and get nervous easily… so sorry for that. I’m happy though to be included in everything happening ^^

(I maybe disappear sometimes for some time due to mental health reasons or just stuff in my life happening. We all need breaks sometimes ^^; )

I’m okay with ic anon hate, poke fun at Jördis. Tease her, or just joke with her. She will be responding accordingly. Also, feel free to ask her any questions. If they’re too extreme, though, I’ll ignore them (fyi). I also won���t condone any ooc hate. It’s inappropriate. This is a RP-Blog, after all. We’re all here to have some fun :)

♪

Heads up, there will be my headcanons and lore for her following! ^^

☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

HEADCANONS / LORE

Like I already mentioned, Jördis and the others live in a future many years after the events of ORAS.

After Team Aqua and Team Magma made peace, the teams started to hang out together more. That’s when she started to actually notice Matt. His puppy-like energy and his whole personality overall scratched her curious brain just right… so she put herself together and became friends with him. After some time, they started dating and eventually had a son shortly after Marc and Lis had their fraternal twin sons.

(Sorry, I’ve been a sucker for Betaadminshipping ever since I saw Chip‘s Fanart for them σ^_^; )

Speaking of relationships, she is on very good terms with Lizzy, Marc’s wife. They are as close as sisters, often hanging out, going out to the arcades together, etc.

Marc is her mentor, her role model, and kind of like a father to her after she ran away from home.

Her parents were abusive of her, so she ran away at 11 years old and found shelter at the newly formed Team Magma. Marc saw her potential and decided to take care of her until she can care for herself (which is also why she seems a little obsessive about Marc sometimes. She feels grateful towards him and it’s her way of showing). Thus, she brought her bright, clever mind into his plans and quickly climbed up the ranks. She was there before Homura (aka Tabitha), wo joined shortly after her.

Homura is her best friend and somewhat of an older brother-figure. She knows she’s not good with people, so he takes care of most of the people-oriented things within Team Magma for her.

Jördis likes to take pictures. Not just of Marc and his family, but also of landscapes, Pokémon… basically anything. She likes to collect as many memories as possible like this.

She also likes to play video games. She’s a regular customer of the arcade in Mauville. The owner of the arcade is afraid of her. Not only because of her somewhat unnerving stare but also because she’s impudently talented at the claw-machines. Her room is filled with Pokémon plushies she won there.

Jördis is half icelandic half japanese. Her mother is from Sinnoh, her father from the Pokémon-worlds equivalent to Iceland (if someone has a fan region based on iceland, please tell me). She was born and raised in Sinnoh until she ran away from home.

She likes Vocaloid music. A singing computer program… that scratches her brain just right and intrigues her. Her favourite Vocaloid is Megpoid Gumi.

Aside from that, she also often listens to J-Pop, J-Rock or the things Marc likes.

☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

If you read through all this, again, thank you very much! I hope you have fun with her ^^

[eggman91]

So feel free to delete this but I got this idea from this comic called “Miss Kitty and her Bodyguards” where a young child humanoid cat is the hero’s to a mafia group and is raised by the bodyguards who are protecting her. It’s a pretty good read so I suggest you give it a chance but anyway back to my request.

I was think of Atlas having a daughter before he died (you can choose if she was born before Atlas met Mitzi or if the daughter is their biological child) and she’s raised by the Lackadaisy crew.

Thank you for your time.

Nah fam it fine and anon I like this idea

I’m going with the idea atlas had this child before he met Mitzi she would be like around Ivy age so I’m gonna just write their relationships because yeah also apologies this might be lazy

-atlas (your dad die lol)

you and your dad well, complicated you know he love you in his own way but he was a mix of distance and stoic probably because of all the booze empire, but he did pay for all your school and toys and stuff but still his death was hard but he did try to teach you some skills of his

(I feel like atlas, wouldn’t care about gender as long as you knew how to shoot a gun and run a business so he would’v try to teach both genders)

-Mitzi (your mom got it going on)

she just mom well you haven’t called her mom in a long time. Just Mitzi but when you first met she spoiled you alittle you never met your actual mom and well she became your strongest mother figure (one reason she liked you is she didn’t have to have a pregnancy to ruin her figure and especially if you’re like a girl )

but yeah but after atlas death you was one of her rock (well once she didn’t really use a lot but still) you learn lot of charisma from her even learning to play the ukulele

-Ivy (your “little” sister)

your sister from another mother and Father both of you grew up in the speakeasy. It was a little over there, so she was like your little sister, but little by little bit but you guys are thick is thieves and still are (if it male some people say you should dated, but that would’ve been weird) you’re a little overprotective of her but she a clever girl…

(if girl she would probably get you in to the more fashion sense buying clothes, for the both of you making me wear these flapper outfits and if boy the same but she get this pinstripe suits)

-viktor (uncle with big divorce, energy)

I’m just gonna do it again it’s the same with the IV but like there’s two IVs now you see the both of you like his metaphor children but to you he like your tall gruff slav uncle Ivy have a definite has a better relationship with him I guess but you understand him a bit

(like Ivy you learn some mechanical stuff from him )

-Mordecai ( estranged brother with big divorce energy)

well he like your older brother kind of he was more busy with Atlas (honestly made you a little jealous) but it was a OK acquaintance, but you did share a nice appreciation of crossword puzzles, to be honest you weren’t really close to him but he seems like he was an OK guy a serious weird OK guy your dad liked

but then he left after your dad death you don’t really have much feelings on him. Yeah, you were bit sad that he left but he kneecapped Viktor that oathbreaker

(he probably try to pass some more refined, intelligent words to you. Most of them went over your head, but some stuck)

-zib (your mess of a uncle and …..your mom ex)

oh boy this mess of a cat at he didn’t talk to you and try to ignore you didn’t know why but after you and Ivy shenanigans he open up a little more and more now he’s just zib you did play ukulele for the band from time to time when you was older he was just zib

then boom you found out he was your mom ex and your dad cucked him hard which was fucked up (he did teach you how to bum a cigarette )

-rocky and freckle

They’re both relatively new Rocky been here for a year and freckle only for a short while (also dating Ivy ) to be honest, you don’t mind honest….. anyway you rocky freckle and Ivy are the club main rumrunner now you know rocky better then freckle and freckles, a bit weird at least rocky is honest weird but freckle he has something in him those eyes when he get a gun

you sometime play with Rocky he with the violin you with the ukulele

(Sidenote rocky x Atlas daughter you alway thought rocky was cute in his own manic way he was one of your rock when Atlas died you cry on his shoulder and well you wouldn’t mind to date him )

[cheeseboi420]

OKAY i am more or less finished with the barebones outline of the jasons mom fic. Now time for the real work to begin hehehe 😈😈😈 by which i mean i take ages to actually write this fic and tumblr slowly forgets i ever said i would in the first place. In the meantime, a couple excerpts from my outline (in no particular order) that i think The People might enjoy! Also send me an anon if you wanna be added to the taglist for the fic! I'll be posting it on ao3 as well as tumblr!

Jason shows up! Wowie! The boy!!!

'Damn, bitch you live like this?' (but in like, a not judgemental way)

"Why do you have Bruce Wayne's credit card anyway? What do you mean he adopted you? WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE’S BATMAN?"

"What do you mean you called Batman a boob????"

Mom says something that makes Jason laugh (note- must come up with something funny)

Bonding with the boy!!!!

Baby birds gotta leave the nest 💔

Jay gets to be clever and helpful and come up with the escape plan (note- must come up with clever escape plan)

Happy ending, yaaaaay (come back to this)

Jason "I'd die for you" Todd vs Mom "not if i die for you first" Todd

[REDACTED] does the Big Reveal and monologues in typical Bad Guy style

Man, that Self-Sacrificing gene runs STRONG in the Todd family, huh?

If i cant make Robin and Nightwing Tragic Siblings, i will simply have to make the Tragic Siblings up myself

Batman and Robin save the day! (note- must figure out how tf theyre going to save the day)

[squadrah]

So you had two asks about La Squadra being toddlers, but what about them being old/older men? Maybe in their 40-50's or as senile old people. And my mind ain't exactly wondering there, but what do you think they'd be like as dilfs?

I managed to find an old post where I was asked what they would be like as old man: here it is! You also reminded me that I had once written about them as parents in general, and I could have sworn I published it, but I ended up finding it at last in my drafts, so I'll make sure to queue it after publishing this ask!

That just leaves the question at the end, ehe... I will try to do these from the perspective of a young adult, probably a friend of their child(ren), while they themselves are in their forties and fifties.

Risotto: His sheer size and deep voice are already enough to set the butterflies aflutter, so the way he wears sleeveless shirts and dirty overalls at home is almost too much. He is best observed in the garage where he enjoys quietly working with power tools, and nobody can look at his work table without imagining him sweeping off the clutter to make room for them instead...

Formaggio: He ages so gracefully he looks like he could still be in his thirties, but the way he cracks open a cold one while giving clever responses and showing at least basic knowledge of just about any topic introduced hints at decades of experience in a variety of areas. Whenever he playfully manhandles his spouse in the kitchen, guests cannot help but chug their own cold beverages in vain.

Prosciutto: Never seen without his signature dress shirts and crisp trousers, and when he's around, the temperature always drops enough that all unnecessarily noise and frolic dies down. Most agree they would not want to live with him as their father, the bar is just too high in that respect, but nobody would mind him in a hotel chair with a bourbon in his hand and ordering them to get to work...

Pesci: At first he seems nothing special, especially because he's not much respected by his children, but as soon as he easily lifts something that he ought to struggle with at his size, and tells you how much he think it weighs by touch, the magic begins, and those who have gone on fishing trips with him on the weekend and watched him reel in that big bass are now smitten for life.

Ghiaccio: Whenever you meet him, he's either preparing to go for a run or has just returned from it all sweaty and glistening, and no real decrease of stamina to show for it. Going to the gym with him is a rite of passage; he will explain every machine and challenge you to various feats of endurance. Spotting is obligatory, and many hit the showers afterwards in greater frustration than they began.

Melone: That one anon ask of "your dad looks gnc af" sums him up perfectly, he is so impeccably and unabashedly A Look and An Icon that all his various issues are easily buried in a tidal wave of gender envy and lust. His children are so confident and well-educated when it comes to sex that their friends can only imagine what a wealth of experience could be gained from the fountain head.

Illuso: He always lets his luscious long hair down at home, physically and metaphorically, and exudes such minor soap opera antagonist vibes that his heckling his children and spouse come off as almost entertaining, a good example of how much people forgive to a pretty face and a nice tall figure. He's not above teasing his guests either, and you will either hate him for it or want to kiss him.

Sorbet: He's not conventionally attractive and seems to love his plants more than his children, but he has a certain Addams Family aesthetic about him that carries his dry wit and odd ways perfectly, especially when he's trimming his bonsai or is outside gardening in the shade in special gloves and up to his neck in dirt. You are welcome to indulge his obscure opera obsession, but watch out.

Gelato: That one extremely friendly dad that claps you on the shoulder and shoves a drink into your hand as soon as (and even before) you hit drinking age, and is always two seconds away from hugging you and kissing you on both cheeks in a fit of camaraderie and general mirth. Watching him grill sausages and cook in a big outdoor cauldron permanently changes your brain chemistry.

[cctinsleybaxter]

2023 in Books

I need to stop bragging that I’ve got this reading thing all figured out, because man if 2023 wasn’t a year of terrible books. I liked less than half of the 37 I read and nothing quite gripped me in the way it has in years past… but to put it more optimistically I liked a full third of what I read, and the ones I liked best were a fascinating and unexpected silver lining. Without further ado:

Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand, trans. Brian Hooker

Tell this all to the world- and then to me. Say very softly that… she loves you not.

I read a couple of plays this year for the first time since college and liked them fine, but there’s a reason this has been adapted five million times. Everyone go watch Megamind right now.

Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand

Of all the found footage-inspired horror fiction I’ve read this one makes the best case for existing in its chosen medium, as a 70s UK folk rock band are interviewed about the summer they spent recording what would become their final album [thunder crashes.] It reminded me of a Tana French mystery in its language and ability to make space feel lived-in; the character writing is so strong I realized that at some point I had stopped checking the interview headings to know who was speaking. Hand unfortunately distrusts her audience to read between the lines at a few crucial moments (and ruins what would have been a perfect ending and a deeply affecting scare by gilding the lily, or, in this case, photograph), but I love that she went from seemingly by-the-numbers American YA fiction to a meticulously-researched and truly unique horror novella. Puts other writers working in the genre to shame.

A Kiss Before Dying by Ira Levin

Reminiscent of the best kind of TCM suspense thriller (and was adapted into one), but could only exist as a book for the kind of narrative tactics it employs. Levin is brilliant at setting and character; I think any one of his contemporaries would have leaned into archetypes for this sort of story, and he instead distinguishes his proper nouns in subtle, clever ways that lend them the weight a noir needs. Can’t wait to read more of his stuff!

All the Names They Used for God by Anjali Sachdeva

I’d like to know why this anthology got hit with what a friend has termed a pottery barn throw pillow cover + a ‘the tiny things we know to be small’ title, because the eponymous story isn’t even called that! It’s just The Names They Used for God, and is, appropriately, about two women kidnapped by a religious extremist group. High risk-high reward; I think taken at their base premise the stories could have been insufferable and are instead strange, compelling, and fantastical. There’s a methodicalness and, I don't know, lack of whimsy? to them that’s unusual for fantasy, but also an absence of any one goal or moral in the way Le Guin speaks so highly of. It made me feel the way I did reading and adoring Kelly Link in middle school, and Sachdeva has a much different style that I guess works all the better on adults. My favorite was Robert Greenman and the Mermaid.

Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Lauren Hillenbrand

Someone recommended this to me via Tumblr anon over five years ago, so let me start by saying if that was you I’d like to thank you properly! This book rules! It was written in ‘99 so falls prey to a very specific kind of jingoism, but the mechanics of that are interesting in and of themself. Seabiscuit the animal is a lens through which to view turn-of-the-20th-century America written from the precipice of the 21st; his story told through the expertly-researched biographies of his owner, trainer, and jockey. Hillenbrand is not only a good pop nonfiction historian, but has been a sports writer since the 80s and I never imagined the genre could be so thrilling as I did reading her work. Horse racing is insane and no one should be riding these things btw.

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

It was one of the great livery-stableman’s most masterly intuitions to have discovered that Americans want to get away from amusement even more quickly than they want to get to it.

Wharton came from old money New York*, was deeply disillusioned with it and pined for rational (i.e., even more insane) social and political scenes, had myriad thoughts about women and gender relations, and held a love for interior design. I learned all of this after reading but it’s apparent on every page; deeply funny and perceptive, fantastic use of language, the moments where it lost me completely nothing if not interesting. What sticks with me the most are a flair for the operatic and an ability to voice both the feeling and consequences of losing oneself to imagined scenarios. Read the pink parasol scene.

*Ancient Money New York; the saying ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ is apocryphally attributed to her father’s side of the family

Owls of the Eastern Ice: A Quest to Find and Save the World's Largest Owl by Jonathan S. Slaght

We’d return to our camp to huddle in the freezing tent and wait for our owls in silence, like suitors agonizing over a phone that never rings.

One of the better pieces of science writing I’ve read in a long time, as Slaght frames rural communities as a quintessential part of ecology rather than a barrier to it. His style is amiable and matter-of-fact (sometimes overly so; the amount of metric GIS directions, help), but he's super engaging and clearly holds just as much compassion for people and history as he does animals and natural landscapes. The Blakiston’s fish owls he’s studying are described as unreal, with hoots so low and quiet it sounds like someone has thrown them under a blanket. You can listen to them here.

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Took my breath away and surprised me in a way a book hasn’t in years. I'd read Clarke’s 2004 novel when I was maybe fourteen and had vaguely positive but mostly neutral memories of it, and Piranesi being sci-fi-fantasy that came recommended by Tiktok had me very dubious. I ended up devouring it in the way I haven’t read books since I was fourteen; more of a mystery than the suspected high fantasy, with characters I would do disservice to in trying to describe in brief. While the mystery isn’t difficult to ‘solve’ (I’d argue the book also skews young!), the story ends in a way that’s both deeply unexpected and in the only way it could have.

Honorable mentions

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, trans. Peter Washington

[Jigsaw voice] Every man has a devouring passion in his heart as every fruit has its worm.

I spent so much time running my mouth about this one on Tumblr there’s really not much left to say. I think it’s a work of genius that was physically exhausting to read, and I’m sticking it with the honorable mentions mostly because I remember The Three Musketeers being the better book. If you want to read Dumas- and you should- start with that one.

Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead

I would’ve liked this more had I read it in my late teens/early 20s, but I still think it’s pretty good and would absolutely recommend to anyone in that age bracket. Things that normally annoy me about philosophical first-person lit fic didn’t matter under the weight of Jon’s narratorial voice. He reminded me a little of Lynda Barry’s Maybonne in his understanding and depictions of community and family; his stream of consciousness letting contradictions sit rather than trying to explain them away (Whitehead also makes sex very prosaic and pretty-sounding while still being frank and gross about it, which is a rare talent!)

The Seeds of Life: From Aristotle to da Vinci, from Sharks' Teeth to Frogs' Pants, the Long and Strange Quest to Discover Where Babies Come From by Edward Dolnik

This one fell in the rankings because the writing isn’t my favorite (think early days Vulture article rather than NYT), but I cannot stop referencing it in conversation. I want to read the whole thing to people and make them understand how truly unfathomable it is not only that every one of us is the product of 1 sperm and 1 egg, but that anyone ever figured out how that process works. When Western Europeans first started using microscopes they studied water; there were gross little bugs in there to watch and enjoy, so when semen was revealed to have its own bugs no one was shocked, but they also weren’t impressed. We would not see one enter an egg until EIGHTEEN SEVENTY-FIVE.  

Killer Dolphin by Ngaio Marsh

The Malaise of First Night Nerves had gripped Peregrine, not tragically and aesthetically by the throat but, as is its habit, shamefully in the guts.

Has made it into my top 5 favorite Inspector Alleyn mysteries. I’m not keen on Marsh’s theater settings (and there are a LOT of them), but a convoluted setup made this one all the more rewarding. The final revelation as to a point of blackmail is visceral and bizarre in a way I haven’t seen from her before.

The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon

We all have dirty hands; we are all soiling them in the swamps of our country and in the terrifying emptiness of our brains. Every onlooker is either a coward or a traitor.

Best read in conversation with other writers, I wouldn’t recommend Fanon as the end-all-be-all introduction to communist and socialist thinking (the fact that he inadvertently describes what was going wrong with the USSR at time of writing is fascinating), but he explicitly invites that conversation and the value and impact of his work really can’t be overstated. Our points of disagreement tend to be in regard to nationalism, not his condonation of violence.

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Fascinating to see how Austen was thinking about relationships near the end of her short life. I laughed to see the idea of preferring your brother-in-law’s family to your own was back in full force from my own favorite Emma, as well as an eleventh-hour ‘maybe I should ship the villains??’ My biggest issue is that, like Emma, Persuasion is written in third person limited narration, but Anne is fundamentally Good™ so doesn’t need to learn anything about herself or the world; critic Bob Irvine points out that she and her dashing, misogynistic sailor are beset rather than changed by it. That said I love a people being beset by people (concussed temptresses) places (Bath) and things (cars), and Austen's writing style is really firing on all cylinders here.

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

The Children

Hello hello! I absolutely love all of your stories, they're all such delights to read! Imposter syndrome and all the among us ones after it especially has my heart and have helped me through some rough times. The latest one made me think of what would happen if Cyan also was a little kid around purple's age and how different Black's reaction to them may-or-may not be, considering they're now both a kid and an alien? maybe they were hiding in the vents of the ship?(which, of course, you don’t have to write if you don’t wanna but it could be fun to see! Thank you and I hope you're having a nice day!) – anon

Read on Ao3

Warnings: implied/referenced child abuse

Pairings: gen

Word Count: 2966

In yet another timeline...

Black finds not one but two hidden stowaways in the aftermath of the Skeld massacre.

"No, no, no—please, please!" Orange's fingers scrabble against the wall in a fruitless attempt to stop. "I won't say anything, I won't do anything, please, let me go!"

Black barely falters as they haul the body up and into the airlock. Orange snivels and whines and keeps begging, even as the glass closes.

"No! No! I'll help you! You need clearance—I can give you clearance! Please! I'll do anything!"

Black pauses, hand on the control. "Anything?"

"Yes, yes! Yes, I'll do absolutely anything, anything you want—"

"Then perish."

The vacuum of space sucks Orange out of the airlock, the last of their screams cutting off into static. Black shakes their head as they turn and make for Navigation. They pass by blood splatters on the walls from earlier kills and make a note to find a mop in some corner of Storage once they're underway.

This mission hadn't been particularly gruesome, not compared to some of the others, but it had its moments. Certainly this crew of humans had taken the 'do not go gentle' approach to dying, save for Orange who…in hindsight, definitely spent too long cowering in Comms to be considered 'brave.'

No use lingering over them.

They reach Navigation and reroute to Polus, carefully overriding the automatic updates back to MIRA and plunging the ship into radio silence. They scan radar for surrounding ships. None to be found. Excellent.

Black leans back in the captain's chair, stretching their arms until they hear a small pop. They've spent longer periods in complete human form, but for some reason this body's been giving them trouble for a while. Eh, no humans anymore, they can afford to shift just to stretch. Their maw lets out a groan of relief as sloshing sounds fill Navigation for a moment, letting them stretch out properly before assuming the human form once more.

They stop.

Listen.

Their attention slowly turns to the vent in the corner.

Was that their imagination, or did they just hear another sloshing sound?

Their maw rumbles for a moment, then they go still again. After a pause, they swear they hear something rumble back. But that's impossible. There's only one Impostor assigned to this mission, and no additional life signs detected upon moment of entry. They get up from the chair, kneeling down by the vent and carefully sending a tendril through the grate.

Almost at the limit of their reach, they smell it.

Something's in there.

They stand up, quickly going from Navigation to Shields, doing the same thing to the vent in the corner. Again, just at the limits of their senses, they smell it. Some bizarre amalgamation of human and Impostor scents, but something alive and moving.

Black's not enough of an optimist to hope that whatever's in there hasn't figured out that they've been alerted to its presence. And it probably has no way of knowing that—at the moment—Black doesn't intend to hurt it. It's clever; it's picked a spot equidistant from Navigation and Shields, which means whichever end Black enters the vent, it has the whole rest of the ship to escape to from the other end.

Black sits back on their haunches, thinking. Strategically, it would be better to isolate the problem until reinforcements—or at least one other Impostor—could handle it simultaneously. They're too far from Polus for a signal to reach and if it managed to stay hidden for the entirety of the voyage so far, it would likely remain so until they docked. Black could simply block off these vents and keep it contained.

…but in those little glimpses their senses managed to get, they smelled fear.

Both human and Impostor.

While it wasn't out of the ordinary to bring humans back to Polus, Black wasn't in the habit of unnecessary risks. Better to deal with a human here, now, then risk a containment breach on Polus.

With this in mind, they get up and reach into the electrical closet next to the manifolds, removing two sets of thin metal poles and attaching them in place over the vent cover. Then they move quickly back to Navigation and check their course heading. A quick confirmation that there aren't any asteroids that'll need to be cleared and they open the vent.

Immediately, they're caught with a wave of skittering noises as whatever it is shuffles to the other side of the vent. How have they never noticed this before? They've used every vent on the ship at this point, had they just always been picking the ones this thing wasn't in? Black shakes their head as they carefully enter the vent. Something to ask, perhaps.

The smells grow stronger as they make their way toward the other side, as do the banging noises as whatever it is works frantically at the jammed vent. Halfway through, Black stops, one hand on their knife as they send out a tendril. After a moment, they hear something else.

Fuck.

Fuck.

That's a pup.

There's a fucking pup in this vent.

Black's hand leaves the knife and their maw rumbles. After a long pause, they hear a chirp back. They shift slightly, just enough so their mother tongue will work.

"Pup," they rumble, "pup, can you hear me?"

The banging sound stops. Then: "yes."

Great. "Good, pup. That's good. Are you hurt?"

"No."

Black's maw rumbles. "I can smell your fear, pup, you don't have to lie to me."

Another jolt of fear, stronger, and they quickly rumble soothingly.

"It's just me on the ship now," they add, "no more humans. Just Impostors. It's okay, pup, I won't hurt you."

"You won't?"

"No, pup."

There's another quiet sloshing sound and Black shifts on their haunches.

"Can I come over, pup? You're hurt, I can tell, let me—"

"No!"

Black jerks, almost hitting their head on the inside of the vent.

"Don't come closer," the pup repeats, the smell of their fear growing stronger, "stay away!"

"Easy, pup, calm down. It's okay, I won't come closer, I'll stay right here, okay?" They rumble and trill a few times, their maw panting a little heavier. "Calm down, now."

It takes a long while—a long while for the sloshing sounds to subside, even longer for the fear to dissipate, but after a moment, the pup chirps back and Black's shoulders relax.

"If you don't want me to come to you, could you come to me? I won't move, I'll stay still, and you can decide how close you come, how about that?"

"You promise?"

"I promise, pup."

More sloshing sounds and then a small tendril flicks against theirs. They rumble, sitting down heavily in the vent. Slowly, so slowly, the pup crawls down the vent, following the tendril. Black lets the suit slip and their maw falls open, tongue lolling out slightly to allow the pup to hear it. They can smell them better now and they're young. Barely older than a nestling. How did they end up here?

At last, a small pup pokes its head around the corner of the vent, arms curled tentatively about the bolts. Black waves, their maw panting as the pup peers out a little more.

"Hey, pup," they call, "just me, see? I'm not gonna hurt you."

"You…you're Black," the pup mumbles, "are—are you the one they talk about?"

"The one they talk about?"

"Yeah. The—the shadow killer or something. Is that you?"

Oh, for—that moniker really is overdramatic at best and a gross romanticization of war at worst, but the pup seems to know who they are, so… "Yeah, pup, that's…that's me."

"Did you kill all the crew already?"

"Yes, they're dead. It's just me left. I won't hurt you."

"Are you taking us back to Polus?"

"Yes, we're on our—'us?'"

The pup shuffles. "Y-you know…the ship."

Black frowns. That didn't sound like the truth. But they let it go for now in favor of smelling the hurt still emanating from the pup. "You're hurt, pup, I can tell. Let me see, I can help."

"It's okay."

"That's not what I asked, pup, if you're hurt, we should make it better."

The pup's tendril shuffles against the bulkhead. Black rumbles again encouragingly and the pup trills back. Then they slowly move from behind the corner and oh, fuck—

"Pup," Black rumbles, reaching out for them, "pup—that's a stab wound, how did that happen?"

"Reactor. The vent cover broke."

"Come here, let me see—" they're so tiny, they're so fucking tiny, where the fuck is their nest, who let them be all the way out here alone— "you're very lucky. It doesn't look like it hit anything super important. But we need to get it patched up so it doesn't get infected, okay?"

The pup shuffles in their arms, their maw nibbling on another tendril. They're so tiny, how in the fuck did they end up all the way out here?

"I've got some stuff in the crew quarters we can use, can I bring it here?"

"Yeah."

"Stay here, okay? Don't leave the vent, then I won't be able to find you."

"H-how—" Black stops pulling away when the pup tugs on them— "how did you find me?"

"I heard you. Then I smelled you."

"You smelled me?"

"Yeah, pup, I can smell you."

The pup pulls away, shuffling a little on the floor. "Will you bring the stuff here?"

"I'll be right back. Stay in the vent, okay?"

"I will."

Black quickly climbs out of the vent and makes it to quarters, snagging their emergency tin and tucking it safely into their belt. Their mind won't stop running over and over—how the fuck did a pup manage to stow away in the vents? What the fuck happened? How did I not notice this?

They'll have to ask once they make sure the pup is safe.

They climb back into the vent, sending out a tendril and moving to where they were last time. After a moment, the pup reappears, crawling close enough that Black can start applying the medicine to their wound.

"Easy," they rumble when the pup whines, "I know it stings, just try and hold still. This will help, I promise."

"Why are you being nice," the pup chitters, "did—are—am I in trouble?"

Fuck. This is a baby, how in the fuck is Black supposed to know what to do with a baby?

"No, pup, you're not in trouble. I'm just worried, okay?"

"So you'll help?"

Black frowns. That twinge in their instincts is back. Something else is wrong. "Yeah, pup, I'll help."

Despite the feeling that something's not all what the pup says it is, the reassurance makes them relax a little more, letting Black finish applying the medicine. They toy idly with the pup's tendrils, their maw purring reassuringly as the pup begins to calm down.

…of course, as the pup's fear begins to fade, they smell something else.

Human fear.

The pup trills when their hands slow and they look over the pup's head, a tendril flashing out and down the vent.

The human fear grows stronger the further they go.

Fuck.

"Pup," they ask slowly, "is there a human down there?"

"N-no."

"Don't lie to me, pup." When the pup doesn't say anything, Black bites back a curse and reaches for their knife. How fucking despicable, that a human would hide behind a wounded pup. "Stay here."

"No!"

Black startles when the pup wraps its arms around theirs, spreading out as much of their form as they can to try and block the vent. They've got barely an akk-kitten's strength but they're trembling with the effort of keeping Black still.

"Pup—"

"You said you would help! Don't go down there!"

"Pup, you're hurting yourself—"

"Stay away from them! Leave them alone!" A tiny maw bites their arm and it—well, honestly, it tickles. "I'll—I'll fight you!"

"Calm down, pup, you're frothing."

The pup trembles and the smell of their fear begins to permeate the vents again. Black reaches out and takes them in their hands, tugging them gently off the vent and holding them in their lap. The pup still thrashes and tries to bite them. Black's maw rumbles and they take them gently by the scruff, rubbing small circles.

"Shh, pup, calm down. Shh, shh…easy, there you go."

The pup can't seem to decide whether to melt or keep fighting back, trembling in Black's hold as their maw digs into their arm. Black keeps at it, patiently waiting as the pup starts to whine, tendrils slowly curling in on themselves.

"Don't hurt them, please, they're—they're just a hatchling. They're just a hatchling, don't hurt them!"

"They're a human, pup."

"But they're just a hatchling!"

A juvenile, probably. Black sighs. At least it's not a fully grown human, that makes this a bit easier.

"Are they hurt too?" When the pup makes a noise of confirmation, Black adjusts their grip. "They'll need to get fixed too, pup, they'll have to go to Medbay."

"Don't hurt them!"

"I'm not going to hurt them, pup. I'm trying to help. Like you said, remember? I said I'd help."

"You promise you won't hurt them?"

"I promise."

The pup stills, finally, and shifts a bit toward the other end of the vent. Black glances behind them.

"If I go wait outside, will you bring them to me? I'll help."

"You promise?"

"Yes, pup, I promise."

The pup's jaw tightens on their arm in what would be a very threatening display if they were just a little bit older, but really is just terribly endearing. Then they let go, shuffling toward the other end of the vent. Black sighs, wondering how the fuck this happened for the eightieth time, and climbs out of the vent to crouch next to the opening.

The smells start to get stronger again and—really, it's worrying how much they blend together; Black's only able to separate the pup's fear from the human's after being right next to them for so long. Finally, they see a tendril poke out of the vent and flick one of their own against it.

Only years of experience keeps them from gasping audibly when the pup clambers out of the vent wrapped around a human so small it looks the length of Black's arm.

The human's eyes widen as soon as they see Black, tiny hands—fuck, they're so tiny, they're so fucking small, how is that real—grabbing onto the edge of the vent and trying to stop the pup from exiting. Their little face looks so scared and Black's rumbling before they can stop themselves.

"Hey, baby," they murmur, "it's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you."

Small. Small human. Oh, fuck, small human hatchling. What the fuck is my life?

"Shh, it's alright." They hold their hands up. "See? I'm not gonna hurt you. I didn't hurt your friend and I won't hurt you."

The pup trills, squeezing the human carefully and getting more of their arms out of the vent. The human whimpers in fear—or pain?—and Black sits back.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. It's okay, baby, look, I'm not moving, see? I'm not mad, you're not in trouble, it's okay. I just want to help."

They watch as the pup starts to chirp at the human, wrapping their arms around them and pushing them gently out of the vent. The human's fear slowly starts to fade as they carefully climb out. The pup trills at Black, holding them out.

"Can I pick you up, baby? I want to see if you're hurt."

The human curls around their side—shit, did they get hurt by the same thing that hurt the pup? Black reaches down slowly, so slowly, holding out their hand.

"Come on, baby, you can do it, it's okay."

If you had told Black they'd be cradling a human hatchling in their arms as a stowaway pup fussed next to them, they'd have killed you.

And yet, the human blinks up at them with wide eyes as their maw rumbles, letting them peer at the stained part of their side.

"You're hurt, baby," Black murmurs, "we need to fix it. We have to go to Medbay, okay?"

The human glances around, as if looking for the rest of the crew.

"They're not here anymore, baby, it's just me."

The pup chirps as if in confirmation and the human reaches out. They tangle their fingers in the pup's arms and hold on tight.

"Can we all go to Medbay?" When the human nods and the pup clambers onto Black's shoulder, they stand up slowly with the human in their arms and start the long, slow walk to the other side of the ship. "Close your eyes, baby, it's going to be too bright for you."

The human shifts and tucks their head against Black's shoulder. The pup burbles and slides over to help shield their eyes. Black has so many questions but bites their tongue.

Once we get to Medbay, they think as they contemplate just how fucking weird their life has become, then we'll figure out what to do.

[m1d-45]

Okay wait a min! You know how like the abyss mages and the hilichurls are all like in the lore to be part of khanriah and in general they’re the ones to quickly recognize that the imposter is the creator and they protect us and stuff? So like does that people of Kahnriah has some special ability to recognize us? So wouldn’t that make kaeya, albedo, dainself to recognize us? (Sorry I’m absolutely struggling to spell kahenriah)

Also I had a thought how does our interactions with Dainslef go? Like typically in imposter aus he doesn’t seem to care much about the creator. But if he’s met with the actual creator would he protect them? But like personally I think he would hate them at first for what they did to Kahenriah but slowly comes to care and love them? Because he begins too see and realize this is truly the creator when they see how Teyvat bends to their will and stuff

(Also could I be 🦑 anon?)

YOU X2.

i know i’m guilty of this trope but in truth i never thought about it that much. i suppose i was operating under the assumption that it’s the same as the animals or the wind: they just Know. the people do too, but due to humanity having silly little things called critical thought, doubt, and generally more than one thought at a time, the acolytes don’t follow the slight buzz in their skin when they’re near you. if anything they assume it’s adrenaline.

but like. hilichurls clearly do have thought left—they have language and some sort of society, clearly… hm- you know how in the chasm quest it’s said they’re like eternally cursed or something-? let’s assume the creator lightens that pain, making their existence more bearable. this is something they know to be impossible except by the divine, and they don’t have loyalty to the false god, ergo you must be their god!

abyss mages are mages, so i’m gonna assume they’re a bit more tuned into their elements/the leylines/general auras or whatever. for this same reason i don’t think mona would join the hunt, but that’s for another day.

in addition! they’re affected by the abyss itself, which is just more “you lighten this impossibly heavy curse i have. hey god.” but like more reverent.

now. onto the more human khaenri’ahns.

dainslef is canonically afflicted by the Curse from before and i imagine he is more familiar with your visage/behavior/attitude/powers/whatever simply due to his age and all the time he must have spent studying holy books. also, though he is a Human Person—and hence suffers from the lifelong condition known as critical thought—he’s definitely more likely to follow his instincts. cokes with the territory of being the twilight sword, i suppose.

albedo is. hm. he’s not a child of khaenri’ah- it’s up for debate whether he’s khaenri’ahn at all, really. he was created by rhine, who was khaenri’ahn…. but he held no part in the calamity 500 years ago, and nor does khaenri’ahn blood run in his veins—he’s a child of alchemy, synthetic. he also isn’t canonically cursed. however, as an alchemist—and doubly so for a student of khemia—i’m certain he has a higher interest than average in the creator. whereas dainslef would know you’re you by your kindness, your speech, the way you talk and all your mannerisms, i think albedo would figure it out by how the world acts around you. the spike in leyline flow, the suddenly perfect weather, the way the wind always blows behind you, how the flowers and plants around you are the healthiest.

kaeya… is an interesting case. he’s khaenri’ahn by blood, yet isn’t cursed to my knowledge. i think, like albedo, he’s more likely to realize the difference in how the world treats you. he’s an observant and clever guy, i’m certain he can put two and two together. less on the technical side than albedo… but he’ll notice how the weather suddenly sours before one of the knights’ patrol, how their luck seems to be as bad as bennett’s when searching for you.

moving onto the second part of your ask,,,

because i want people to be happy i have somewhat… creatively interpreted what happened in khaenri’ah during the calamity. obviously every version of sagau is going to be different, but because i dearly adore both kaeya and albedo, here’s my version of events(copied and paraphrased off my post on the subject for ease of reading):

khaenri’ah was built entirely by people. they did worship you, but refused to allow you to meddle with their nation. you could have all of teyvat but you could not have their nation. they lived underground, away from your holy light, and in the dark of a cave with only the earth as their witness, they began to learn khemia. they began to learn how to create, how to mimic your power. theirs was more transmutation, less pure creation, but it was so close to it that rhinedottir let it get to her head.

that glosses over some details, but it’s enough for this discussion.

in my version of sagau, he would definitely protect the creator. he wouldn’t worship the one on the throne, nor would he engage in the hunt (because he knows both are lies), but if you happened to ran into him, you would be safe.

to reiterate: in my version, khaenri’ah collapsed under its own hubris. hence, dainslef would have no reason to dislike you. be awkward, yeah, he hasn’t had an intelligent conversation with another person since the traveller, and before that it was 500 years.

that being said, he could be a bit resentful, even if he didn’t blame you. after all, you didn’t stop rhine, you didn’t do anything to keep the calamity from occurring. yeah it’s because khaenri’ah staunchly refused to have you involved no he hasn’t put it together yet. give him time.

of course, though, this is all my opinion and carries no actual weight.

oh, and welcome!

[veilder]

Q's for writers: 16 & 25

Thank you for the questions, dear Anon! :D (For the ask game here!)

16. What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever used as a bookmark?

Haha, this is such a funny question! And I'm racking my brain trying to think of something clever to say, but... Man, I think my worst offense is probably the flap of a pack of Orbit gum that is still currently in my copy of Lord of the Rings. XD It's been there for so long? It's even a different design than the current packaging now, lol. But that's all I can really think of. XD

25. What is a weird, hyper-specific detail you know about one of your characters that is completely irrelevant to the story? Man! You know, I spend all this dang time thinking about characters and how to write them and their backstories and such... And here I am drawing a complete blank. XD Okay, wait! Y'know what? How about my headcanon for Elijah Kamski from DBH? Specifically the reason he was ousted from CyberLife and how he ended up where he is in canon? The entire thing is... very long and detailed, lol! But the short version is: Kamski was a child genius with opportunistic parents who was thrust into a world he wasn't emotionally prepared for. He struggled with relating to his peers and really only found solace in his college mentor, Amanda Stern, who became something like a mother figure to him. She's the one who really encouraged and fostered his talents, encouraging him to strike out and found his business at such a tender age, and she became one of the founding members alongside him, a steadfast support on his Board of Directors. (I hc there was also a third member of this little founder trifecta, but that's not important rn.) After CyberLife was established and the first androids were set to market, Kamski's innovations continued as he preferred the hands-on R&D to the actual minutiae of running a business. Gradually, the Board would take more and more responsibilities from him, especially after Amanda's health begins to worsen, which would eventually lead to her death soon after. Around the same time, a grief-stricken Kamski would throw himself back into his work, and it's then he'd begin noticing odd discrepancies in his field trials, eventually leading to him formulating his original Theory of Deviancy. But by now, CyberLife is taking off like a damn rocket. When Kamski brings his findings to the Board and puts forward his motion to halt business until he can figure out what exactly is happening, he's overruled. With Amanda's passing, her share of the stock would be seized by the third founder, and Kamski would've been in no place to intercede even if he'd known it was happening. At this point, he's well and truly lost control of the business he helped build from the ground up, his CEO title nothing more than a cheap title the Board uses to placate their shareholders and the public at large. But all of this leaves Kamski in a very dangerous place. His best ally is gone, his powerful empire usurped, and his creations may not be as infallible as he once thought. The last straw is when his experimental RK prototype schematics are seized, though it would take years for CyberLife's engineers to even be able to decipher them, much less catch up to his original craftsmanship. (Hence why CyberLife's RK800 is more or less on par with the far older RK200.) He tries to sabotage the takeover of his own intellectual property, but by ordinance, it belongs to CyberLife. He has no choice but to surrender his creations (though the completed RK200 "Markus" is spared due to a legal loophole of him being gifted to a third party). But he does end up having to surrender the RK100.

I have a whole pet theory about that, too, but suffice to say, the Amanda in the Zen Garden who acts as Connor's handler is the original prototype RK100. The initial experiment was a sort of memory preservation attempt, as the human Amanda's body began to fail her. Kamski wouldn't tried to find some way to save her, and making a sort of imprint of her mind was one of his attempts. Sadly, Amanda would pass away before the full prototype could be built, though the imprints of her mind would remain as the bodiless RK100 in it's virtual world. Kamski would then painstakingly craft the virtual Zen Garden as a space for her, as a sort of memorial to his beloved mentor, which CyberLife would then revamp as a sort of AI to sync with their RK800 series. After that, Kamski would resign his position, leaving with his fortune to become the recluse we find him as in his mansion. He takes with him his first Chloe, the RT600, who he created before CyberLife's bylaws were drafted and so was exempt from the seizure. He would build her multiple bodies that could function independently, but all have access to the same sort of hivemind. And he would begin plotting to take down his former company in the coming years. Starting with purchasing an old, abandoned freighter permanently docked within CyberLife's very shadow... ...Haha, well, I said I wouldn't get into it, but I kinda did. XD Suffice to say, I have *a lot* of thoughts about Kamski that have never actually made it into any of my fics, lol! But I do genuinely think he wants his androids to succeed in their revolution. Now, whether that stems from some sort of twisted altruism, a megalomaniacal god complex, or just good old revenge against the people who wronged him, who's to say? Could be any of those or something else entirely. Could be everything combined. But he does seem particularly invested in his androids triumphing over their human masters and how that will shape history going forward. (And there's also that deleted dialogue of his where, if Markus fails, Kamski himself dares to take up the mantle of leader, which is... 👀👀👀) Anyway, hope that answers your question, lol! Thank you for sending these in, Anon! :D

[thesunicarusfellfor]

icarus my beloved, may i please request for a zombie apocalypse au (dsmp) and the characters haven’t seen you ever since the apocalypse started and they’ve been trying to find you for a long time, but once they finally find you, you’re already turned. basically how different dsmp characters would react to finding you turned as a zombie :> also i find your stuff ✨imaculate✨

and may i pls be ur 🌧anon?

I lovvvvveeeee Zombie apocalypse AUs. I'm very excited to write this. Also, thank you! I appreciate your compliment!

Yes, you can be! I'll eventually make an Anon list... Eventually.

In order of: Dream, Bad, Tommy (and Tubbo?), Ranboo, Ghostbur, Philza

Tommy's story is Bench Trio while Ranboo's story is more around Boreal Boys.

The Boreal Boys is set around the Antarctic Empire rather than the DSMP.

Edit: Trying to put a cut in. 50/50 on whether or not it worked.

DSMP Reacting to You Being Turned Into A Zombie (Multiple x GN!Reader)

They grunted, stepping over a fallen log as they yanked a crossbow bolt out of the skull of a fallen zombie, shoving it into their bag where other bolts and arrows were wrapped up. Ignoring the murmuring of their companion(s) as they looked over the faces of rotten flesh, thankfully none of them striking a familiar chord in their mind.

"They could still be alive..." They murmured softly under their breath as they walked back to the campsite that they and their companion(s) had originally set up. With a sigh, they plopped down in front of the crackling flame and adjusted the food that had been cooking before a horde of zombies had made their way through the makeshift barricade.

Ignoring the snores of their sleeping 'teammate(s) of survival', they eagerly dug into the food after it finished cooking before pausing mid-bite as they heard a crackling in the branches. Drawing their sword out from the sheath on their hip while they set their food down back into the pan, they spun around to face their possible attacker, silently hoping it was a wild animal they could use for meat, wool or feathers.

Glancing through the forest, they squinted as they saw movement but the firelight only spread so far which wasn't enough to shed light on the figure. With a sigh, they took a burning branch from the fire and lifted it, beginning to walk forward.

Judging by the guttural growls, groans, and scent of rotting flesh, it was definitely a zombie. Lifting the makeshift torch enough, they were able to see the undead being better and squinted, trying to recognize the creature before it turned around.

(H/c) hair... Albeit matted and overgrown, and torn clothing loosely hanging to their rotten skin... But when the zombie turned their head... They'd recognize them anywhere... Even after so long...

(Y/n).

Dream

His breath caught in his throat temporarily and he felt the torch slip from his hand, but it didn't fall.

Gritting his teeth together, he cringed and gripped onto the damaged smiling mask he usually wore.

"Fuck... (Y/n)... FUCK!" He took a few steps back to avoid the lame swipes you took at him.

He was thankful that your movement was hindered to the point where your steps were small shuffles.

"You promised..." He whispered, looking down at his trademark symbol.

It was a gift from you. Two years ago... You had promised... You promised that you would be okay...

And now here you were... Lifeless but alive... Groaning and gnashing your teeth at him...

He faintly heard the pounding footsteps of George and Sapnap behind him, likely having heard him yell.

"Dream?!" George yelled before the steps immediately came to a stop.

"Is that..."

"They promised..." He whined softly before pinching his eyes shut again as anger quickly overtook him. With a fierce battle cry, he swung his sword.

The strike was sloppy, filled with emotion and too much power. He had a feeling that if Technoblade was around still, he would be mocked to death for such a shitty swing.

But this was a brainless corpse. They couldn't rub two brain cells together to even think about dodging. This wasn't his smart, clever... Cunning... Alive... (Y/n)...

So it hit.

The gleaming diamond sword sliced through the rotten skin like a hot knife through butter, especially easier due to the Fire Aspect engraved into the sword.

He took a sharp intake of breath as he heard the horrible screeching noises that came from you as you sunk to the ground, desperately reaching out to him in one last attempt to get even a taste of his flesh.

He turned from your burning body and placed his mask on to cover his face before his friends saw the silver tears in the corners of his eyes, "Let's go."

"Dre-"

"I said, let's go."

They decided not to comment further.

Bad

He slowly felt the torch slip from his grasp and clatter to the ground, burning the dew-soaked grass it had landed on but it didn't matter.

Groaning and snarling at him, you lamely stumbled forward to grab at him, but he grabbed you first.

The Demon cringed slightly at the feel of rotten flesh beneath his fingers, but he held you back from walking forward.

He dodged the gnashing of your teeth as you tried to bite his arm, but he couldn't bring himself to bring the sword through your chest to finally end your suffering...

He glanced in the direction of the camp where Skeppy was still asleep, hopefully anyway...

Bad knew Skeppy would never agree to keep you around, even if you had once been someone very important to him.

Neither of them knew how zombie bites would affect Diamond Sprites or Demons, and weren't too eager to find out.

"(Y/n)... You muffin..." He put a hand on your chin, preventing you from chomping on his arms, "I wish... I wish I could've said goodbye..."

"Maybe I could've protected you..."

"Would you still be alive if I hadn't stormed out that day?"

He continued whispering questions to your mindless form, but his only responses were watery gurgles and the odd groan.

"Muffin... I'm so sorry..." He whispered, lowering his head to look down at you better, lava tears dripping down his cheeks and landing on your rotting away face, causing horrible screeches and snarls to escape from you, but you didn't yank away.

"Bad?!" Skeppy's voice came from the camp, and he looked over his shoulder to stare at the Diamond Sprite, "What... Why are you..."

"I-I... Skeppy... Do you think... If I had done anything different... They'd be alive?" He whispered, moving aside to let his small friend see his former friend.

The blue-skinned male sighed and loaded an arrow into his bow and grabbed onto the string, getting ready to pull it back, "Bad... You can't rewrite history... What's done is done, it's too late for them..."

"Can... Can you...? I don't think I can..." He whispered and finally let go of you, causing your balance to be set off.

The second he turned his back, he heard the stretching of a bowstring before releasing it. He shut his eyes tightly as he heard the familiar impact of a bow hitting mostly rotten but still solid flesh.

He didn't turn around, instead choosing to keep his head down as his friend brought him back to the camp.

"Goodbye, (Y/n)..."

Tommy (and Tubbo?)

He was frozen stiff, his grip tightening on his sword and the torch as he stared down the undead being.

Honestly, if anyone had asked him why he was still fighting through this damned apocalypse, he would say that he was fighting to survive.

No. He was fighting to make sure you were still alive...

Now, what was left?

"For fuck's sake! You were supposed to be alive!" He yelled, no doubt waking up the camp of other survivors.

"You were the only one- Dammit, (Y/n)!" He cried, ignoring the tears running down his cheeks as he threw a punch that connected to your jaw, cracking the weakened bone almost instantly and causing it to hang like an angered Enderman.

He continued to shout at your undead form and cry, ignoring the worried calls and frantic scrambling of his friends from back at the camp.

"You used to be such a great fighter, and you lost to FUCKING ZOMBIES!" He swung his arms around, his mind barely cluing into the fact that he dropped his sword and torch, "You almost beat Technoblade for fuck's sake! Technoblade! And-and..."

'No. No. Stay angry. They lost the fight. They- Don't mourn their stupidity...' He crumpled to the ground in despair, his tears dropping into his lap as he quickly grew deaf to the sound of shuffling feet.

Luckily, someone ran past him and shoved you to the ground with a shield, sending you rolling into a puddle of mud.

"Tommy!" Tubbo cried, setting down the shield as Ranboo quickly looked him over for any bite marks or injuries.

Once he found none, he gave a large sigh of relief and looked over at the corpse that Tubbo had shield bashed away from his friend, "Oh... Wait..." He frowned, struggling to remember the face that was struggling to crawl their way over to them through the mud.

"That's (Y/n)..." Tommy murmured, sounding rather numb, Tubbo and Ranboo noted, "They taught me and Tubbo to fight, back before we lost L'Manberg... They practically raised us... Despite being a similar age... They were so strong... and brave..."

Tubbo's breath hitched as he took another look at the growling creature desperate to feast on their flesh, "N-No... They're too strong to- I don't- No- No!"

"Guys... I know- I- No, I don't know... But we have to leave. They're going to call more zombies- And... We have to kill them..." Ranboo whispered, flinching a bit when Tubbo and Tommy whipped their heads in his direction, fire burning in their eyes.

Tommy's inner flame was the first to die out.

"I know..." He whispered, ignoring Tubbo's cries of protest as he picked up the diamond sword, twisting it in his hand and watching as the torchlight reflected off of it.

"You can't kill them, Tommy- They're like our older sibling-... Were... like... Our older sibling..." Tubbo corrected himself with hesitance and a sniffle as he looked away.

He turned back to your gurgling form and walked over, moving his feet away from your grabs at his ankles while raising his sword.

With a sharp intake of breath, tears continuing to drip down his cheeks as he rose his sword, "I'm sorry..." He whispered before bringing it down through your chest.

Ranboo

Sure, his memory was bad, but he could NEVER forget the face of the name that was scrawled through his memory book.

He stumbled backwards and tripped over a log with a small yelp, his sword and torch falling from his grip.

The water from the recent rain seeping through his torn clothing caused his skin to hiss, and a small whine tore from his throat as he scrambled backwards.

His noises of pain and distress failed to scare the zombie of his former best friend off, instead only persuaded them to lazily drag their feet towards him a little quicker.

Thankfully, although he was deaf to it amidst his panic and sobs, heavy footsteps and the ruffle of feathers echoed through the forest.

"Ranboo?! Mate, are you okay!?" Hands flew to his shoulders while a pink and red blur hopped the log he had tripped on to start a brawl with the zombie.

"DON'T HURT THEM!" He wailed to Techno, fighting against the hands that held his shoulders to reach out at the zombie.

"Heh?!" Techno used his shield to hold you back, dodging the swipes you took at him with your unkempt nails, "Ranboo! They're dead! A zombie!"

Ranboo sobbed louder, fighting the urge to cover his ears at the horrible words, "(Y/n) isn't dead... They aren't... They can't be! No... no...!"

Calloused hands carded through his black and white hair, which would've calmed him down on a normal day, but now... How could he feel anything but despair? His best friend was now a lifeless being...

They promised that they'd see him again, alive, not like THIS!

"Ranboo..." Phil murmured from behind him, likely having finished checking him for bites. The avian pulled him into his chest, allowing him to bawl his eyes out, the fabric muffling his desperate wails and preventing the tears from burning his skin too much.

"You- you said a gapple and a weakness potion could turn them back, right?!" Ranboo cried, looking up at the elder male, "C-can't we try it out on them?!"

Phil and Techno were silent, and the only sounds that were heard were the crackling fire back at the camp and the gurgles of his former best friend.

Perhaps he panicked himself into a light-headed state, or maybe his memory was worse than before because the next thing he knew Techno was dragging a chained and growling corpse while Philza was practically carrying the enderboy who was pretty much twice his height.

The next few days felt like a fever dream. He spent most of his time sitting in front of a cage where the corpse of his friend laid on the cold stone ground.

Phil had doused them in a splash potion of weakness and forced a golden apple down their throat a few hours after they caged them, now it was Ranboo's job to watch over them for any changes and write them down.

"Yeah then Me, Phil and Techno travelled out of the Tundra back on the DreamSMP, and we made our way to the Antarctic, back to the old Empire that they used to rule over..." He rambled onto your lifeless corpse, reading through his memory book to continue telling you stories, even if you were dead.

"Ran...Boo..."

"(Y-Y/n)?!" He threw the book aside and ran over to the cage, only to see the corpse had gained more of a human flesh tone rather than a sickening green, and formerly black, now (e/c) eyes were staring up at the stone bricks that made up the roof.

Ghostbur

He absolutely lit up with a happy squeal.

"(Y/n)! I knew you would make it through this whole apocalypse thing!" The ghost walked over and put his hand on your shoulder, brushing off the way that you didn't flinch away from the intense cold that radiated off of him.

You only continued walking...

"Oh? Do you know of any shelter? Lead the way then!" He chirped, pulling on the lead that was hooked up to the blue sheep he knew as Friend.

The two of you walked through the forests, Ghostbur blabbering away about memories he had involving you both, but he had a tight grasp on something blue the entire time.

You never responded to him, other than the odd groan or gurgle, but the ghost never found anything wrong with it.

Inside, he knew that you were an animated corpse. He knew that you would never be able to lose your three canon lives, and become a ghost.

Instead, you were stuck as a corpse that would perpetually come back to life over and over again until your body completely got destroyed.

Every time he looked at your growling form, he wanted to feel happy, you were back travelling with him! But... You weren't the same person...

"Wil- Ghostbur!" A voice came from behind him, and he saw the father of Aliverbur standing in front of him, sword at the ready.

"Phil!" He chirped, moving beside you and holding your shoulder, so you didn't run towards Philza, "Hey, how's it going man?" He smiled widely.

The flightless avian put his hand on his hat as he watched you reach towards him uselessly, being held back by the ghost of his son, "Ghostbur... That's not..."

"(Y/n)? Yes, it is!" He continued to smile, although it seemed a little forced, "It's just been a while, don't be so negative, Philza Minecraft!"

He sighed heavily, "Wil, that is not (Y/n) anymore. They are a senseless mob!" He reached for his sword, only to blink when Ghostbur quickly ran in front of you.

"No, no! It is! It is them!" He sobbed, his tears burning his transparent skin as his body shook with horrible coughs. "Please... It is... It is..."

"Okay, okay." He put his sword in the sheath and held up his hands in surrender to make Ghostbur stop crying, "It is, it's (Y/n)... Go say hi to Techno and get some food for Friend... I'm going to talk to them."

Ghostbur wiped his eyes with his sweater and eagerly nodded, "Okay! I haven't spoken to Techno in so long, I hope he's been doing okay..." He continued to ramble as he walked to the attached cabins next to the mountain, dragging Friend along.

Philza turned back to you and drew his sword, watching as you dragged your feet through the snow to reach him, "I'm sorry, (Y/n)... He just... Doesn't understand that you're stuck suffering..."

"Philzaaaa!" Ghostbur skipped out the door, pulling his blue sheep along as Philza sheathed his netherite sword, "Where did (Y/n) go?"

The avian folded his wings to his back under his cape as he looked over his shoulder, "Oh, they were going towards the portal. They said they would be back soon."

"Oh, they finally spoke? I'm so proud of them! I'll wait for them here!" Ghostbur smiled widely, completely unaware of the burning corpse hidden behind the trees.

Philza

Maybe he should've felt something more...?

Then again... He was the Angel of Death, he caused and attracted death like a magnet with a knife.

He swung his sword simply, watching as the corpse burned and crumpled to the ground before him with desperate wails and growls.

First Wilbur... Then Tommy... Now (Y/n)... Who was next, Ranboo or Techno?

He sighed, turning away from yet another person who had meant the world to him but was now nothing but rotting burnt flesh on the stark white snow.

"Phil!" Ranboo gave a chirping noise, a static-filled deformed mimic of one of the noises he often made due to his avian genetics, "Are you alright? One of the traps went off an-"

He wanted to smile, he did. He wanted to tell the boy who was practically shaking with worry as he checked him for bites that he was alright.

"It... Was (Y/n)..." He murmured softly, feeling... Oddly calm about the situation... Or was that empty? It was like how he felt after he killed his son...

Ranboo's bi-coloured eyes slowly rose up to meet Phil's blue ones and almost cringed as he saw that he was practically looking through him, "You... Mean, your..."

"Yeah... That's them. B-But it's okay-" He went to say but Ranboo gave an upset growl sort of noise as his monochrome tail wrapped around one of his lanky and abnormally long legs.

"Okay?! Phil, you just killed one of the most important people in your life... You- You aren't okay! You're numb!" The Enderman grabbed his shoulders... And the feeling of floating that he hadn't even noticed came to a sudden halt.

Oh. He was numb... That's why he didn't feel it...

Wait when did Ranboo bring him inside?

He slowly glanced out the window to see the sun had set long ago, and the fire in the fireplace had practically died out. Ranboo was curled up on the couch on the other side of him, and Techno was nowhere to be seen.

'I killed them... Without a second thought...' His mind caught up with the situation much slower than his body had, and he slouched against the arm of the couch he was propped up against.

'I killed them like I killed Wilbur...'

'Terrible person... Horrible...'

'I kill everyone I love...'

'Techno and Ranboo are left... They're in danger from you too...'

"Phil?" A hand grabbed one of the ones that were entangled in his long golden locks, "Hey, hey... I want you to listen to my voice, okay? You're okay... Follow my breathing..."

When did he start crying?

[hella1975]

HELAL

I have a lot of stuff running through my mind rn and im in a hurry and idk if its going to make sense but oh well.

(its list anon and I have another thing to add to my 'favorite things about finding myself in Hellas circle of existence list thing)

The thing is how much your personality sinks through into your writing and blog thing.

Let me explain,

I lost internet for a few days and I just got it back and was scrolling through tumblr and noticed one of my mutuals reblog something of yours and I was like 'I havent been on the internet for like four days, I wonder what Hella has been up to.' and so I started stalking you (as one does) and like scrolling through your blog and everything and I came across the post you thinged about your hometown and about how shameful you are about your writing and that sent me into a spiral because I know the feeling and couldnt put it into words and I felt so called out.

Thats besides the point.

I had this thing to add to the list for a while and couldn't figure out how to explain it without seeming weird so Im just doing my best here.

It's like when you post things about the things that go on in your mind. I touched on this in my first list thingy with the whole 'when you post little snippets of whats going on in your mind and turn it into what I can only describe as poetyry' part. It's simular but it's not the same.

It's really easy to see someone and follow someone who is so eloquent and brilliant and hold them close to divinity and think about how untouchable they are, which seems weird because I'm on Tumblr of all places. But like when you follow your favorite authors on twitter or instagram and they seem almost inhuman. And sometimes it feels like being that talented is so unattainable because you're not them, you can't spew out flawless lines of words seemingly effortlessly and you cant come up with a plot that clever and even if you can't you can't give the story justice because you're not that good of a writer.

Even other writers on this site are like this and so...ethereal almost. I've mentioned before how a lot of other writer almost run their blog like a business and everything and you scroll through them and see people constantly sending them asks about their works and sending them fanart and people obsessing over their art and like I said it seems unattainable for your average person. Like I dont get that so maybe I'm not that good.

Then I come to your blog and you talk about situations I relate to and you don't hide your humanity and you talk about your classes in economics of all things and your home town and all your problems (while valid) are normal. You're more relatable than the other writers I follow at least.

I've mentioned in other asks ( I dont think they were list ones but they might have been idk ) that you inspire me a lot. This is why. Also the fact that you're my age (I'm 18) and your not in your 20s and you havent taken a decades worth of writing classes and you dont have a degree in literature. You're literally just person living a normal life. That's not to say other authors and writers arent just normal people but you just show it a lot more, idk.

Like reading things like taob and tbos and then going to your main blog and seeing the way you write your stuff in your mind and then going two posts down and your talking about normal things makes me think that maybe I can write something incredible too one day.

And the reason I have the ability to feel that way in relation to you and your stupid blog (affectionate) is because you let your normal personality show, not some robotic businessy- type personality.

That's not to say that I don't think your just an average person, average people can't describe things so rawly. But, like I said, you're not untouchable.

Based on what I see from you and what you show online, I really think that you have the potential to be great one day. Not that you should hold yourself and force yourself into a life you don't want, like if you don't want to be a famous writer, don't be. But I genuinely just hope that you grow up and find a career you're happy in.

More than anyone I see on the internet, you deserve to live a life that you absolutely love, no matter what that might be.

I said it before that I always feel really obsessive when I send asks like this, and I feel creepy, so if I come off that way I'm sorry. I just try to make it a point to tell people when I enjoy them as a person.

Also I have some songs that kind of remind me of you.

The first one if Vienna by Billy Joel. I think the chances of you not knowing this one is very slim because it's such as popular song right now. But it's my favorite song and it reminds me of you.

The other one is read all about it by Emili Sande (pt 3 is the best) I think this song is also pretty popular, it also might not be, idk. But it's one of those songs that not a lot of people that I show it to like. Idk why. The vocals are weird (in my opinion) but I love the lyrics.

If you already know these songs just ignore this part :)

ME WHEN LIST ANON:

[yufei]

I'm starting to plan my own story and wanted some advice. How do you go about world building? Where do you start? And how did you go about figuring out the magic system without making it to complicated? If that last one would reveal any spoilers to explain, then you don't have to answer it.

Hi, Anon. I can't call myself a writer and I still haven't figure out the whole world of HN, I still add stuff as time goes. But first I was thinking about what era I want the HN to be. Sure, I like Victorian one aesthetically, but I don't really have any knowledge how the life was at that time. I didn't want it to be any earlier than that either. I also didn't want the comic events to be in the modern age, since it's pretty hard to write a good, clever mystery in the era where cameras, cellphones and gps are the factors that you need to keep in mind (unless you make characters act really stupid/reckless). So I picked 1940s and since it's alternate universe I just reference what kind of technological progress was in that time, but still can mashup fashion of different eras because I can and want to. You can try going from small to bigger picture. Like create characters, their city, their country, other countries, the world. Or try otherwise: think of the whole genesis, different countries, how people live in there, pick a city, create characters. Whatever way is better for you. Since HN is a personal project, I have all time in the world to polish the lore. So I expand it whenever I have an idea or if I'm writing a script for the chapter. It's been 3 years since I'm creating HN and there's still a lot of blank spots and characters are still evolving and getting more nuanced. So I think the point is to not stress out so much to have a perfectly imagined world and read/watch something new, you never know where you can get inspiration.

[thatscarletflycatcher]

What's your opinion on Andrew Davies's fixation on the Mr. Knightley-Emma age gap (through Mr. Knightley's repeated comments about holding Emma when she was a baby) vs. his apparent lack of interest in dealing with the Col. Brandon-Marianne age gap? Why does he want us to think Mr. Knightley is creepy but Brandon isn't?

Oh, anon, I'm gonna answer you and then digress terribly, forgive me, but ITV's Emma is one of my favorite Emma adaptations and it's very interesting that way (and unlike S&S 08, we have a making of book!).

The main reason, IMO, is that I don't think Andy cared about S&S as a story at all. It is true that the quality of his screenplays has decayed with time too, but this one gives me a lot of "I don't care about this" vibes. He did care more about P&P, but I think Emma was the one he had OpinionsTM on. S&S was a paycheck and as it is a novel that has a lot of leeway for adaptational choices, he just Davies-ized Brandon and Edward into his vision of idealized masculinity and called it a day.

You can tell by just watching ITV's Emma that there were things he wanted to make plain, like his interest in putting the class divide, the poor and the servants at the forefront. It's the only adaptation you can tell that Robert Martin resents Emma and doesn't forget what she did. Even if it is a couple silent shots, he's given awareness and as much agency as his position allows him.

Reading the companion book this becomes even more evident because he says a lot of things about the characters, and some of them are surprising. For example he says that Emma wants to be "the artist" and "God and move the pieces around the board" and that he pities her because she never goes far from home and ends up marrying one of the three guys she met in her life. He thinks Jane is a passionate creature repressed by circumstances (he sees a hint to this in her musical talent and preference for Italian music). But also Andy HATES Frank Churchill. I need to quote this because it's something:

"Frank Churchill is both disturbed and dangerous in my view. His mother went and died on him and his father handed him over to his aunt, who has treated him appallingly, so he really has it in for women. He plays to them. I think he's a clever, dangerous mysoginistic charmer --dangerous because he's taken the trouble to work out how girl's minds work. He treats Emma badly, but he treats Jane worse because he is terrified of Jane's power over him. He just has to be in control of the game." In the harvest fest the comment about Frank is "He will flirt with other women, he will probably make love to a lot of other women, he will parade it, he will confess, he will expect to be forgiven, he will make her life a mysery."

Make of that what you will XD

But when it comes to Knightley... his opinion of the character is overwhelmingly positive: "I thought it would be nice to think of Knightley as a person whose authority was so secure that he could roll up his sleeves and join in with the men". He writes him as someone that is kind and attentive to everyone, and the one to offer some sort of bridging to the social gap with the harvest fest: "we show Knightley as an ideal old-fashioned landowner who wanted to share and celebrate with his tenants. I hoped this would form a nice contrast with the Eltons" "The Georgians depended quite a lot on the Knightleys of this world, though few were probably as enlightened as he was." In the screenplay he's first described as "vigorous, animated, decisive". We are told that "Emma smiles most of the time he's here. He cheers her up, she likes his sense of humour and his forceful manner. But apart from that, it's an odd sort of relationship. He's a bit like a much older brother, a bit like an uncle, a bit like a godfather, a bit a father figure." But also a few scenes later his heart melts when he sees her carrying little Emma and she's presented as looking like a young mother. "He always likes to hear Emma sing and to admire her appearance". at Box Hill "he can't bear her to let herself down like this". There is no judgement in either the book or the screenplay about the age gap or the cringy exchange during the proposal scene. And the only reason I can find for that is the disturbing notion that to Andy that's spicy and kinky rather than disturbing. I'd love to hear if someone else has a better theory.

Still, there's quite a bit about this version of Knightley that I think is very clever and interesting and that has its repercusions in Emma 2009 and 2020. But that's topic for another post.

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers (February 22nd, 2021)

Hello! Here’s another collection of anon ask answers all put together in one big post.

This might be strange considering how upbeat yall are about the fandoms for your games in general, but is there any particular trope or ship you WOULDN'T want us writing/drawing/etc. in relation to your stuff? (IE, any canon you don't want us 'overwriting' or something like that?)

Of course we would want the fan content people make to not be racist, sexist, homophobic, bigoted, harmful, etc. But in terms of generally doing non-canon pairings or adding in headcanons or stuff, we really don’t mind that. People are welcome to have fun and explore their own ideas.

for the 1.2 Android update was it meant to download as a  separate app? I really want to keep my previous save files but they don't show up (also thank u for the updates I'm really excited to get back into the game!!)

We had to change the name of the file and unfortunately for some phones that meant it’s treated as a brand new game. I’m sorry your saves didn’t transfer over to the new version. You can try to look up your specific phone and see if there’s a way to access save files for games on your device and then transfer those saves over to the new build manually. It may or may not be possible.

I'm having some trouble figuring out how to get the update from Itichio without losing my save files? Is it the same game or a folder I can put in the properties? Sorry if this question is not worded well or if this isn't the avenue you'd want to take technical questions on

Are you using Android? If so, the above answer may apply to you. If you’re on PC or Mac, the save files will automatically still be included.

Hey. I really loved playing our life. It was a fun experience and I never thought I would like it this much. I do have a question, I am currently replaying the game and I am choosing choices I never chose at first. In step 2 during the road trip arc, I decided to ask Cove about what he liked to see on people. One of his response was anklets and black eyes. My MC have just happens to have black eyes. Do Cove say black eyes cuz my mc have it or it was just a coincidently programmed into the game?

He uses your eye color intentionally! If you changed your eye color he’d change what he said.

Will step 4 have 10 moments like steps 1-3? 

Step 4 is only an epilogue. It plays like the openings/endings of the earlier Steps where it’s a bunch of scenes all in a row, there aren’t any individual Moments.

hi! who was/were the artist(s) for our life? 

&

who is the artist for Our Life: Beginning and Always?

Main Sprite and CG Artist: Addrossi

Main Background Artist: Vui Huynh

Main Interface Artist: Winter Slice

Other artists who helped out can be seen in the credits of the game.

In the new ol, there are two main love interests... Would it be possible to pair them together or is that weird? 

You can’t stay single and pair them together. If we are going to add all the extra content to have a route where the two LIs get together, it’d be a full poly route where them and the MC were all dating. And that’s not a for sure option yet because it’d add a lot of extra complications. But either way, in OL the relationships all gotta be about the MC, haha.

In OL2, there will be extra LIs in form of DLCs? Like Dexter and Baxter. 

Maybe! We’ll see how it goes.

Since Cove will have 2 diff body types in s4, will the storyline and dialogs reflect this? Or all of it will be the same? Btw love the game and sorry for bad english. Hope this doesn't sound rude 😅 

Some descriptions and pieces of dialog will change, but it won’t impact the story really. And you don’t need to apologize! It’s all good.

Will you ever release the transparent sprites of the Our Life characters? 

Probably not, I’m afraid. They’ve got a lot of pieces and it’d just be kind of hard to deal with, aha.

Something I was curious about, what was your inspiration for making a game with so much customization?

Initially, the idea was just about having a romance where you actually grew up with the LI. But it was pretty stressful to try deciding how fast the relationship would progress with it taking place over such a long period of time and with no real storyline carrying it. People might not wanna play a game where the characters don’t get along as kids, but other people might not bother with a game where kids immediately liked each other. So the obvious answer came, just let the player pick themselves how it goes. From there we simply continued to add more flexibly with the MC due to the same thought process of wanting to make sure people were onboard with how their life was going.

What made you decide to change the artstyle for ol 2 so much? I of course respect all your decisions and will buy the shit out of everything related to ol 2, but i love the original style and i m honestly not a fan of the styles shown on patreon, despite me liking the painterly style in general. (I don t mind the style being changed, just that the examples shown so far all feel like there s something wrong with them.) 

We’ve always used different art styles for each of our projects. They all have distinct looks from each other. It’s just nice to do something new. I’m glad you really like how the first game looks, though. And those samples were only general concepts, rather than the exact options being decided between. We wanted to see reactions to different options. The art style we’re going with won’t be exactly like those, though I personally like all of them. I think players are gonna enjoy the style Our Life: Now & Forever when it’s revealed.

Hey! Is it ok to ask what gender ourlife2 protagonist will be and if we'll be given the same opportunity to customize an MC? Totally understand if you're keeping this under wraps for now if u don't wanna say! 

OL2 will have the same type of MC customization as OL1, but even more refined! So their gender will be up to you.

Hi! I happened upon Our Life on Steam by pure chance. It is such a great game, I am super excited about the DLC, and I just want you all to know that you are awesome! :D I have a question, and I'm sorry if it's been asked before. Do you have plans of making more games similar to Our Life, with customizable player character? The customizable player character was probably the one thing I personally have been desperate for in romance VNs. So glad there finally is one and would love to see more.

Thank you! And yep, we do have plans for more games like Our Life, most notably is another game in the franchise- Our Life: Now & Forever. We’ll also likely have other, non-OL, games with customizable MCs, though we may still have some games with set MCs in the future as well.

On the patreon dlc just curious but is it possible to play it without actually sleeping together/getting the nsfw content? I just want to spend more time with Cove 

Yeah, you can still choose not to go that far. Though the event is shorter if you pass on the 18+ stuff.

At the beginning of Step 2, did Cove end up accidentally falling asleep in your bed? Or did he fall asleep on the floor? 

He fell asleep sitting on the floor with his body/head leaning against the side of the bed.

This may seem like a weird question, but what exactly is the difference between "direct" and "relaxed" on the comfort scale?

Direct is blunter and more teasing, relaxed is lighthearted and goes with the flow.

can the MC have tattoos in step 3? 

Not in Step 3, but you can in Step 4.

how would Cove react if he visited somewhere like North Carolina in winter where it can get in the 20s(F) at night sometimes? 

He would be shocked and unprepared for what serious coldness is really like, haha. The poor beach baby would wanna go home.

Hello! I just joined the PATREON!! It’s amazing! I love your games! I have a question, approximately how much after will the nsfw be out? After or before the dlc 3 and step four? Sorry my English isn’t the best!❤️❤️❤️ 

Thanks so much! The NSFW DLC will be out after the Step 3 DLC but before Step 4. And you don’t need to apologize for that ^^.

This might be obvious but, will step 4 have dlcs? Also, where will the nsfw dlc happen? Won't bother me at all if it s in in our or his house but i do think it d be moderately funny 

Step 4 will have the Cove Wedding DLC and the Derek and Baxter romance DLCs each add a lot of new content to Step 4, though they’re also partially set in Step 2 and Step 3 respectively. The NSFW DLC happens in Cove’s room.

I keep wondering what would've happened if Mr. Holden met Lizzie first instead of the MC. I can't see that turning out well somehow lol. 

It wouldn’t have made a difference. He met the MC’s parents first and they told him about their two kids. He wanted the MC specifically to be Cove’s friend because the two were the same age.

Even though we have a way to go I'm really excited for OL 2! I was curious though, is the next main character going to be adopted again? I thought it was really clever to make the first main character adopted so when players are customizing,  they can make them look how ever they like without worrying about pesky genetics. Just wondering! 

The OL2 MC is not adopted. We wanted to go for a new dynamic. Instead their parents are their biological single mother who is partially customizable and an off-screen sperm donor father. So the mom will look generally like the MC and any other traits not from her can be assumed to come from whoever the father was.

—– —– —–

Thank you so much for all the asks ^^

FAQ   If you prefer to just see the main posts without all the asks/reblogs, feel free to follow our side account instead: GB Patch Updates Blog

[mod2amaryllis]

ur really cool actually and it is kinda nice seeing someone good and properly adult still having interests. Idk if oversharing but my parents have always been socially dead and had 0 hobbies or interests besides tv so i thought when you became an adult you automaticly boring. im 20 and 1/2 and i was kinda scared about that because my childhood was kinda shit so i somewhat thought i had lost my chance to have fun. bit silly, bit rambly, anyways ur writing is really dope like i did almost nothing for 2 days besides basic necessities to read through it all because it was so interesting. please have a nice day because i really want that for you

f..fuck anon this is an incredibly thoughtful n appreciated ask, I just. ;_;

your timing rules cuz I've been thinking about this a lot. turning 28 tomorrow. the thing is like...I've loved aging. cuz you're always YOU, and aging just gives you more time to get to know yourself, build a relationship, figure out your priorities. your brain works better, it's easier to like yourself as you get older. I don't mind telling you, I did NOT like myself at 20!! and a lot of things that bring me joy now would make v.20 mod despair lmao, like going to bed at 10, yardwork, early morning walks...so ya in a sense you DO get more boring but in good ways, and some things stay the fucking same! my interests still sweep me away like they always have

sorry lots of words lol I just really think it's cool that you'd share this, and I wanna reassure you. you didn't miss any chances you're gonna feel so much joy man <3

(((AND! and! very sneaky slipping in a writing compliment there at the end, making me BLUSH????? veeeeerrryy clever anon)))

[loudlyunladylike]

You know what's fascinating? Humans and our history with technology. From a caveman who hit two rocks together and made fire, to now where a few days ago a satellite entered the sun's atmosphere. When you consider the vast length of time Earth has existed and the time homosapiens have been around, we've accomplished so much in seemingly so little time.

Another fascinating point: people some 3,000 years ago, how they stored water or how they specifically farmed or any other number of things that we can't figure out how they did. We think ourselves as smarter and more superior than our ancestors. But then comes along a small farming village in somewhere like ancient Barcelona, that had advanced ways of watering their crops without there being a lake or river or something nearby. And we can't figure out how they did that. I remember reading how ancient dams of someplace had this kind of sand or salt or other mineral that sucked out impurities in the water to purify it, something we now commonly use today. We figured that out years later after they did.

And equally fascinating is how we lost knowledge like that in the first place. For as much as we are good we are equally as horrible. We've enslaved others and erased their culture to match ours, erasing with it practices of things as small as farming. Burning books and scrolls because we think it's something like blasphemy. The most notable of something like that being the burning of the Library of Alexandria. (Very fun fact! Quite a few of the books destroyed had copies of themselves, and thus technically survived. Scribes copied their texts when a book was brought to the library.)

This is just me rambling, but it sounded so much clearer and structured in my head. It is 5 am and I haven't slept yet, I'll sleep don't worry. All in all, we (as a whole species) are smart, but we don't know everything.

-Vibes Anon

True!!! yes yes this is all so interesting!! Like history and people and societies and they way they grow, and fall, and adapt, and learn, ee! yes!

Like those in the stone age were clearly so incredibly clever because they managed to figure out so much integral stuff that we still use today and they had literally nothing to previously build off, like that’s crazy!! And like tons of people today are also insanely clever because they’re building off these old things as well as sometimes finding new ones. And it’s so amazing in itself that we are even able to learn these things and it’s mad to think about the almost infinite amount of things that we might not know, maybe that we might never know,,,man