#convoluted aus my beloved

[bloominglegumes]

making my own food,,

[captaindarkiplier]

Soooo how did your idea of dark being the captain started ? how different would his role be compared to the y/n captain in iswm ?

Alright... Let's get into it

Question 1: It actually started as a theory that I gradually believed more and more in a short span of time as everyone was consuming ISWM part 1, and when part 2 dropped, it both lead me on further, as well as disproved it. … (but really Markiplier's live stream on it disproved the theories for real) But that didn't really bum me out, because I had been ready from the start for it to not be true, so I just converted it to an AU, because I was projecting my own measure of story/characterization into it anyway.

Question 2: I don't have 1 answer for this! Either a complicated one, or one that enables any kind of headcanon… Answer A: The captain's choices and behavior doesn't change because we are sharing a body with Darkiplier('s parts) -- I just really like the idea of "What if we (D/A) stayed with Dark" and how that would be like a dramatized version of DID (of which I have! /info) of the "D/A" part (us) (…on top of likely forgetting the events of WKM due to AU stuff, but then remembering after gaining the multiverse abilities of the paradox…) forgetting or not knowing what Dark is doing in other timelines, (my favorite characterization idea of Cpt.Dark is that he's fronting in the routes where he throws Mark around or generally leads us to demise that might benefit him in the looooooong run- aka how he somehow canonically "finds" the paradox gem for the box at the post-credits) … while the Captain chooses to get along with Mark in other routes, doing something childish as sharing candy, which is much closer to my personal "D/A" characterization, not at all what Dark would be doing ahhaha

Answer B: If I wanted a timeline to occur differently from the "Canon" events of ISWM, to characterize Captain Darkiplier as separate from Canon Captain… well, Dark could just do about anything he wanted,

(from here onward is rambling, not relevant to the question!:)

… if he could .. If he somehow escaped the inevitability of the causality of meta-narrative events of what has and will occurred in ISWM via the writing of Market Plier- lol Kind of like how Damien and Celine can't outrun their fate or Actor's bullshit as seen at the end of DAMIEN, which I think holds some thematic power or significance over the future events after the "seal" is broken on the multiverse stuff- aka everything After WKM. … Mark has said a lot in live streams but one thing that stuck with me is how he explained the "timeline" noting that moment when Dark picks up the staff , as the exact moment where the events of DAMIEN is condensed. IIRC. And then for this AU I kind of added more onto that- AHWM ISWM ADWM could have happened in a condensed fashion similarly… The glass breaking in the first video of ISWM, the ice breaking in DAMIEN twice… The lines Head Engineer speaks at the canon ending mirroring the lines spoken by Damien and Celine at the end of DAMIEN… It's as if it's like, a loop, or pocket, or spiral, some kind of non-linear shape… Whichever way it is, I guess the most important point is that it's non-linear. I like to call it wobbly time (a theme in my OC's as well) It's not essential to consume nor understand a story by understanding how its universe works. After all, we as people in real life don't know how our universe is shaped. Is it infinite, or does it loop? (Can you tell I'm a bit autistic about space?) But the desire to adventure and discover what's out there is sometimes commendable and a beautiful instinct of human life… other times, not so much. We could all learn from Head Engineer's mistake. But yea, Dark is powerful but not God of this Universe powerful… I think it'd be funny that if Dark tried everything in his power to defy the laws of the universe, once he finally got a hold on the time paradox that literally allows him to traverse the multiverse to find any timeline that gives him an upper hand on his #1 Enemy, when he travels to literally the ends of the universe, Mark (The Real Life Author) is like "no" so Dark has to go back to the main story line (or at least close to it, there's plenty of legroom for fanon things to occur around the "main timeline") Dark's like "ugh fine" and completes the ending of ISWM like it's a videogame to gain back his agency splitting from D/A (You and your choices in the "videogame") again, and to get away from Head Engineer- even though he's one of the more tolerable Marks, I GUESS- (Frenemies trope x The Unlikely Friendship trope x Doomed trope, and some other dynamic or development that can't really be similarly labeled as a trope, which hopefully I will be able to share to everyone who will want to know about it) I also like to think that's why he's dangling the box in front of us in AHWM instead of actually using it for anything. He can use us to get what he wants quicker than by doing it alone. Using the anomaly gem in the box for his own needs a second time would not work nor worth the risk of ISWM 2.0

What I love about Markiplier's cinematic universe is that it involves both distortion of identity and distortion of time/space- anything and anyone can happen. I relate to it and my chaotic (and also very analytical and ""DeeP"") creative style is very compatible with it. :)

Thank you for the questions !! Feel free to ask as many questions as you like about what I said here if it didn't make sense, because damn it's compact. It could be explained better if paced out (or storytold?) instead of all dropped into one post heheh

[reineydraws]

Is the renkaza a crackship?

nope! on ao3, they're the third biggest kny ship and the biggest kyojuro ship, actually--not that popularity automatically means a ship can't be crack? hm.

the definition of crackship is debateable lol but to me they're not cracky 'cuz the things akaza was saying during their mugen train fight and akaza's human backstory provide a lot of give in terms of connection points to kyojuro.

they're a ship for all the people who love enemies/rivals-to-lovers plots, and ships that involve a lot of physical fighting and/or searching for humanity, which are some of my fave things to look for haha. they can also just be deeply convoluted and toxic when romantically involved, which is its own brand of fun! (tho i personally tend to look for stuff that ends more wholesomely. angst with a happy ending my beloved. 💞)

i will say that while they're not a crackship, the au's where akaza just fucks off completely (like my au comic haha) or where kyo goes all-in on being a demon right away can come off cracky, but i think that's less "crackship" and more "crack taken seriously".

i hope this makes sense!

[inexplicifics]

Hi , hello, I had the most convoluted and insane AU crossover idea when I was cooking dinner earlier. We already had Ciri's Magic Gone Awry: Time Edition. Now get ready for Ciri's Magic Gone Awry: Universe Edition! Basically, Ciri manages to yoink AND mix & match game canon, Warlord AU, and Wolfblood AU versions of Lambert and Milena, completely switching pairs and universes, resulting in: (1/2)

Mix & Match AU (2/3) • (Game) Canon Lambert + Wolfblood Milena to Warlord Universe = Lambert learns how to heal and have good things again, even when things are terrible. Also, he gets to have closure with Aiden. • Warlord Lambert + Canon-setting Milena to Wolfblood Universe = Milena gets to learn what it's like not to be a Good Noble Daughter and learn that, maybe, there could be a Witcher out there who loves her when she's fierce and stubborn. Mix & Match AU 3/3. • Wolfblood Lambert + Warlord Milena to (Game) Canon Universe = "Hey, you're not my beloved, but this place sucks, wanna see how much shit we can fuck up in order to get societal improvements before we get sent back?"

Those all sound like glorious chaos, I love it.

Wolfblood Lambert + Warlord Milena would cause such problems for everyone else in game canon 'verse. Just...so many problems. Probably a lot of dead kings.

Game canon Lambert would have...so much trauma. So much. Poor bastard.

Warlord Lambert in the wolfblood 'verse would spend so much time looking at his counterpart and going, "A redhead? Really? In this timeline I'm a redhead?"

[yestrday]

the first thing I think of when Reader is portrayed as naive and innocent in an AU is how in the future they’re worse then all their hybrids combined, and I’m getting some major brainrot over the hybrid AU so just hear me out here ‼️‼️

Reader was of course innocent and naive, sheltered in every way, but that was before their father suddenly decided that playing the role of a doting father in public would boost his dying image more then keeping reader locked up

So Readers thrust into the life of an heir, forced to come to grips with the cold harsh reality that is the business world, and realize that they’re never going to have any true power or freedom as long as their father is still around

So they plan and scheme, analyzing their fathers greatest achievements and his worst failures, learning all about how to play the business world, and people in general, like a fine tuned instrument. Just patiently waiting till their fathers gradual cover ups over the years suddenly make their way into the public eye.

And when it’s revealed that Readers parent abandoned them and then picked them up again for his entertainment, forcing them to turn to mere hybrids for genuine human interaction?

Well, both those concerned for Reader, and those not, take note. Suddenly investigations are happening and their fathers tax fraud and million dollar bribes are revealed, and oh what’s that, he’s also involved in multiple different crime organizations? How horrible

Reader miraculously finds themself to be the CEO how every company that their father had, an owner of all of his properties, and immeasurably rich beyond belief when their father dies in jail under simply tragic circumstances.

Only this time, Reader won’t let the opportunity to take the world by storm pass by. After all, they have a rather beautiful collection of hybrids waiting at home for them, and you know how clingy beloved pets are when you make them wait.

You cant blame the poor darlings though, the public whispers behind lustful gazes and adoring stares, they just can’t get enough of their powerful owner

actually anon this ask (which has been fermenting in my ask for a year now) has been the inspiration in why there's been a whole heir sub plotline in my hybird works.

i like the idea of the hybrids subtly corrupting the innocent bird that's been in their cage for far too long, now able to spread their wings but just doesn't know how. they feed darling whispers about how their parent abandoned them, how they're the only family they have. and all of them are oh so eager to follow reader's convoluted schemes to bring down their father and the company's enemies.

i find that corrupting darling would have many benefits to the hybrids. one, well, corruption arc? it would be just so lovely to see your naivety crushed and broken, making you rely on them not as your protectors but also as your fellow sinners in this plan. two, since you're so influential, you'll be able to at least influence society's views on hybrids. you'll be in a high enough position to influence lawmakers to loosen their binds on hybrids, to make hybrids equal... idk, just a thought.

this only applies to zhongli, since he's bound by a contract to your father, but this could be the perfect opportunity to revenge. what better way to take revenge on the man who coerced you into a humiliating contract than watch his own flesh and blood (who he does love despite all his callousness) impeach him from his throne and throw him into jail. it's perfect. plus, he'll be able to spend freedom with you forever and ever <3

[kakishirocream]

Breaking down a bad Frisk and Chara analysis

Honestly, in my opinion this has to be one of the worst analysis on Frisk and Chara

Im not going to elaborate on the AU “Stand In” much. All you have to know is that its vile like all fr*ns aus are, convoluted, and a bland sci fi romance with undertale painted on. Anyways onto my point. And yes, this was made back in 2016 but the OP still believes in that fanon.

They arent a goody two shoes, theyre far from it and they can be sadistic and they dont do things because its good, they do things because “i need to know” “i have to” and does things for fun

Yes, the last image can refer to the Player but in universe it talks about Frisk. This isnt deltarune and undertale’s meta is completely different from deltarune because in undertale the player is non diegetic. while in deltarune the player is diegetic and the meta is more “in your face.” Yes you can bring up Flowey talking to “the player” but thats supposed to be ambiguous about who he is talking to and honestly it is kinda irrelevant if Chara is talking to Frisk or the player at the end of the geno route because again its a in-universe vs out of universe thing. Keep in mind that Undertale isnt necessarily a meta game (aka knows its a game, etc) its a game with Meta themes and things like resets, etc are an in universe thing that can be explained in universe.

Yes, Frisk and Chara represent a mindset of a player but not in that way.

Frisk is not “mercy” they are completionism, curiosity, emotional attachment (which can be perverted sentimentality), child like wonder, and the memories you cherish and the joy you have from playing the game, enjoying heartfelt stories and characters you grow to love. The memories you cherish and the joy transcends video game metrics and number based rewards.

However again like mentioned Earlier, Frisk has no morals whatsoever and does things because they're curious and does things for fun even things that are depraved and disgusting.

Chara not just “fight” they are your True RPG character and their name is whatever you want. Theyre the representation of the addiction to number based rewards and the desire to reach “the absolute.” Theyre represented by the number 9 the final single digit number.

Even in the pacifist route there is that feeling of wanting a number based reward. Even by just wanting more GOLD they are that feeling.

*sigh*

OF FUHCKING COURSE YOU ARE ALSO TRYING TO JUSTIFY YOUR BELOVED SHIP BY MAKING THINGS UP AND SEVERELY MISCHARACTERIZING AND MISSING THE POINT.

Again, Chara is the addictive feeling to numbers going up in games however they are not that’s doing the murders nor they even want to kill monsters until the end. Again, Frisk is NOT the innocent uwu bean, they are pretty much as just as responsible because they have the right mindset to even ensure the geno route is possible from the very start as mentioned. Also, i have to bring up the fact the player is non diegetic in UT AGAIN like i had to bring up previous points again.

Im not gonna bother diving into the au parts of the analysis, just the OPs thoughts on what they think the meta is. The last part just completely gets frisk‘s personality wrong. They are NOT introverted and Quiet

Thank you for reading, im concluding this thread. PLEASE do not harass the OP because it will cause more harm than good

These docs by @lazynickname would be useful if you want to know more about frisk and chara.

[gojonanami]

I'm having a thought and I'm smacking you with it; Western AU where Satoru and Suguru are basically co sheriffs and Suguru has a thing going on with a cute gal from one of the biggest ranches in their community. The girls dad is a bit over protective since he lost his wife already and there was def a moment where Suguru was chased off the property after the dad caught him in bed w his daughter/reader, inspite that she ends up pregnant

Suguru decides to try and ask for the father's blessing, unfortunately he arrives on the property that faithful day to find everything in disarray, the father and younger siblings are dead and his love is missing.

Suguru being Suguru, spirals as a result, and it gets worse when he learns people turned a blind eye to the chaos on the ranch that day to protect themselves and he starts to take the law into his hand as judge, jury and prosecutor and finds himself lacking the empathy he once had.

Yaga, the big boss, basically tells Satoru has to bring Suguru in now because he's a danger to himself and others. Suguru skips town because Satoru more or less gives him a warning to leave by sunrise because he can't bring himself to hurt his friend.

Suguru makes himself a name as both a terror and a hero over the years as he hunts down people from the group that attacked his beloved's family home, since they're causing problems everywhere in the west. ( he totally has a gang comprised of characters that were his most loyal cultists from og canon )

It culminates to an insane showdown/shoot out in another settlement where Suguru happens to sees a kid stumble into the mess. Despite his lack of empathy and convoluted and unresolved emotions he can't find it in himself to abandon a child, so he scoops up the kid and tosses them to one of his gang mates

uhhh satoru is there it's a mess and something something, when it ends the child's mother is shouting the kids name, and Suguru pauses his escape because he recognizes that voice that's haunted him in his sleep for years and he turns around, there she is, his beloved. Alive and well. The child wiggles away from his men and runs to her, shouting mom.

Suguru didn't really look at the kid before but he does now. That black hair and purple eyes. Just like him. And his beloved looks up at him, ready to thank him for saving her child when she realizes it's him.

And all those emotions he thought he locked away comes undone and Suguru is just a fucking mess. They're here. They're alive. Somehow, they escaped their kidnappers and they've survived.

something something

idk the overarching mess of that one gang is resolved once Satoru and Suguru team up one last time to take the leader down and Satoru once again turns away and lies to Yaga that Suguru died in the shoot out. Suguru, their lover and child begin a new life together far away from it all on a ranch of their own.

okay I literally want to write this so bad and I love it so much — I’ve been racking my head for a western story and this is so good!!!

if you don’t mind, I would love to write this 🥹🥹🥹

[zozo-01]

"but it burns me up when i let you down."

Google Docs said I started this fic back in August of 2022 and now two years and an accent change later, I'm finally done!! David and Darlin' unfortunately hold a part of my brain that refuses to leave me, despite my adoration for their canon counterparts. So its only fair if I gave them the same treatment that I do for the others!! :D

Thanking the lovely @thesunandmoons-blog, @lostinanothersmemories and @friendlyfaded for probably forgetting this fic existed, but it's here!! And thanking my beloved @taelonsamada and @nortyourself for reviving it again. Finally, a huge shoutout to @androgynouspenguinexpert for being the amazing beta they are and @floofdeloop for making the playlist where I got the title from!!

CW: No Angel or Sam AU, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Injuries, Kidnapping, Torture, Blood, Broken Bones, Vomit, Character Death, it's off screen, Allusions to a Toxic Relationship and Sexual Assault, not explicitly mentioned but very much implied, Non-Consensual Trancing, vampires obvi, Quinn is a Bad Man, Canon Divergent, an alternative take on how the quinn storyline could have gone, Divine Intervention, it's me im the intervention, Love Confessions, in the most convoluted way possible, David is Bad at Feelings, And so is Darlin', Quinn is not British, apologies my bad for that, i started writing this two years ago and how so much has changed, shoutout to the Leafs once again except they're doing alright, for now

click here for the ao3 link!!

--

“Here.” 

“Why the fuck are you giving me a necklace?”

“Thought it was pretty and you’d like it. So take it.”

“Alright, no need to be pushy baby Alpha.”

“How many times have I told you not to call me ‘baby Alpha?”

“And I won’t stop… I- um… thank you for the necklace… David.”

“...Of course Darlin'.”

David was chained up to the wall of what he thought was a basement. There was blood seeping into the hardwood floors, some of it was his and some of it was dried up from long ago. The style of the room was similar to a bar that Darlin' frequented during their lone wolf days. How he knew that wasn't important. Was the dried blood theirs? He shook that thought from his head. He had more important things to focus on. But they're important too.

It looked like he was trapped in a bar storage room, judging by the varying bottles of alcohol along the shelves. He couldn’t tell. His eyes were too damn blurry to see his hands when he held them close to his face.

He tried to lift his head from the floor, but it was throbbing with pain. The pounding registered as its own sound, but that couldn't stop him. He needed to lift his head, move his body, so he could see what the hell was going on. 

His first thought was to shift through the chains, hoping that they would break with his larger wolf form. But one look at the handcuffs made him realize why that was a terrible idea. They were magic dampening cuffs, the kind the Department would use to contain 'dangerous shifters'. If he decided to try and shift through these cuffs, his wrists and ankles would have shattered. With no healer nearby, this would have been a death sentence.

David pressed his palms on the floor, attempting to get up. This time, he was able to lift himself onto his knees, ignoring the aches that seemed to be everywhere. After a deep breath, he straightened his back, leaning onto the wall behind him. As he shifted to sit in a more comfortable position, his eyes began to clear up. He was able to see properly again. He saw what—who was in front of him and sat there, body trembling at the sight of the man in front of him.  

“So tell me, Alpha, how long do you think it will take for my little wolf to show up?”

He may not remember how he got here. What he did know is that the vampire Darlin' has been hunting for the last two years was in front of him. 

Quinn sat on a chair, legs crossed and hands placed in his lap. He cocked his eyebrow. “Well, I’m waiting for my answer,” he said impatiently. Quinn wanted an answer now.

David took a deep breath. “They won’t be coming for me,” he said, lying through his teeth. Darlin' was the type to lay down their life for a stranger. They always cared more for others than they did themselves. If they had heard anyone was alone with Quinn, they’d haul ass to save them. Only God knows how fast Darlin' would be running if they knew it was David in Quinn’s clutches. Part of him was desperately hoping that they wouldn’t come. That they would have faith in him to save himself.

His more selfish side wanted them to be there. To see for himself that they were okay. To end Quinn’s life in front of them. To end their living nightmare.

It was his duty as their Alpha and it was his duty to his heart.

Quinn found David’s lie so amusing that he let out a laugh of disbelief, wiping the tears falling from his eyes. “Now that— that was a good joke Shaw,” he choked through his laughter. Letting out his final chuckles and calming himself, he got up from his chair and stalked towards the wolf. David tried to get up, but the chains locked onto his wrist were too short to let him stand. The most he could do was kneel before the vampire.

Quinn stood in front of David, eying the defiant Alpha. He crouched down to meet the wolf’s eyes. He glanced down to David’s bloody, snarling mouth. 

“I forget how sharp shifter teeth are.” Before David could move away from the vampire, Quinn grabbed his chin and opened his mouth, admiring the shifter’s canines. “Reminds me how much they loved my teeth.”

David’s eyes went wide. ‘Makes me remember how much they loved my teeth?’ What the hell did he mean by that? He didn’t know what Quinn was saying and he hated not knowing. But he had an idea.

A deep snarl came from the wolf within him. The images of his— no, not his. As much as he wishes they were, Darlin' was not his to claim. The image of the wolf he knew laying on a bed - fuck, they’d look gorgeous on their back - with Quinn on top of them was enough to make his skin crawl. Picturing the vampire sinking his teeth into Darlin'’s neck makes him want to throw up.

“Oh? You don’t like that?” Quinn smirked, showing off his fangs. Fangs that had the luxury of marking their skin. “You don’t like the idea that they used to beg for my teeth? That my fangs had the pleasure of tasting them?” 

David had to remove himself from this situation, at least mentally. He couldn't just sit there and let Quinn talk about Darlin' in such a demeaning manner. For a moment, David could forget about his predicament and just think about Darlin'. Their beautiful body and somehow more gorgeous heart. No one could have captured his heart the way they did, he'd keep 

 A sharp pain bloomed across David’s face, knocking him out of his thoughts, and his mouth filled with the iron taste of blood. It took him a second to realize that Quinn had punched him square in the jaw.

He looked up at the vampire, who was wiping the Alpha’s blood from his knuckles. 

“Apologies for the drastic measures, but I can’t have you think of them like that.” Quinn paced around the room and his hands were clasped together as he spoke. “Believe me, I know they are incredibly attractive, but that doesn’t give you permission to think of my wolf like that.” 

David took a deep breath. The chained up Alpha was in no position to make threats against the Old Blood in front of him, but he needed to say something to relieve the pent-up anger. He was going to explode from the rage at the thought of Darlin' ‘belonging’ to a man like Quinn.

In all honesty, David was fuming at the thought of Darlin' not being his.

“They’re not yours.”

“Oh really?” Quinn said in a low growl, daring David to finish his thought.

“They don’t belong to anyone.” David wolf howled right under the skin, and had it not been for the magic dampening cuffs, he would have made sure his body would be unrecognizable.

He cackled like it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard. “Is that sentiment supposed to make you feel better about the fact that my mark is on them?”

David’s jaw clenched as a smirk arose on Quinn’s face. “Am I wrong in saying that? My teeth were in their skin. My mark is on their body.” He let out a manic laugh, pacing around the room in a frantic glee, the total opposite of the calm villain role he was playing earlier. Darlin' probably just had that effect on him, unfortunately.

 He knelt down, cupping David’s jaw in his hand. "Whether you like it or not, they’re mine. And I never let go of what rightfully belongs to me,” he sneered.

David snarled, trying to bite off the vampire's hand. The thought of him laying his filthy hands on Darlin' was enough to make him hurl, so why not do something to prevent that from happening, or at least try to? “You fucking touch a single goddamn strand of hair on their head, and I swear to God I will rip you to shreds.”

Quinn clicked his tongue, dropping David’s limp head, and continued to slowly pace around in the glorified dungeon. “It’ll be easier if you just—” he paused, placing his foot on David's back and crushing him under his heel, grinning at the grunt of pain the Alpha let out. “Give them to me. You could never love them the way I do, it's clear with the way you call them trouble." 

David knew it. It was something he told himself every single night for years. He wasn’t good enough when it came to welcoming them to the pack. He wasn’t good enough to keep them away from trouble, and they had the scars on their body was proof of his failure. He wasn’t good enough to keep their heart from breaking, watching and doing nothing as they fell in love with the monster in front of him.

He wasn’t good enough back then and not much has changed since.

But he was better than the sorry excuse of a person sneering at him.

David gathered the spit and blood and bile in his mouth. He refused to lay down and let Quinn say another word about Darlin’. 

But as Quinn's ears perked up, David's heart sank. There were footsteps coming down the steps, rushed and desperate to reach the basement of the bar. One sniff of the air confirmed who it was sprinting towards him, the last person he wished it was. And the person he was desperately hoping for.

Darlin' had found him. They were racing straight for the belly of the beast.

"They always hated to be late," he mused, soft and sweet like he had the right to think of them like that. Quinn turned back around to David, a crazed and wicked smile on his face. "Shall we give them a warm welcome, Alpha?"

David didn't want Darlin' to see him like this; his stomach curled at the thought. As Alpha, he tried to maintain that aura of invincibility that was expected of him. Any comment that compared himself to his late father made him beam with pride, all efforts made to replicate his presence rather than replace his father with his own leadership. But it had taken some time to find his stride with his new title, and Darlin' was instrumental to that. It was them who continued to stand by his side, even when his displaced anger should have scared them off. Yet Darlin' knew what pain hid under his anger, and he's incredibly thankful for them being patient with him.

From then on, he made an extra effort to control and compose himself around them. Apologies through acts of love weren't uncommon, and for a man who's as bad with his words as he was, actions spoke volumes. It wasn't fair that Darlin' had to constantly deal with his outbursts without any respite, so he opted to give them an extended break.

Covered with blood from various sources and broken beyond repair, David was far from the usual picture of poise. He pulled against his shackles in a vain attempt to be free, if not to save himself than at least to provide them enough time to run away. The chances of both of them escaping were improbable, but he can make sure that at least one of them will be free.

"What the fuck did you do, Quinn!?" they screamed with desperation, their voice entering the room before they did. He couldn't help but smile, at least he would see them one last time before he died.

Quinn's arm wrapped around David's neck like he was giving him a noogie, squeezing it and causing another choking fit. "Oh you know, precious, just two buddies hanging out, ain't that right, Davey?" His smile darkened, or maybe it was the blood around his mouth. If you take away all the gore and move this scene to a picnic field, this could have been cute. David chuckled in his head, morbid thoughts like those were exactly what he needed to keep sane. 

With no fear for their safety, Darlin made a move to step forward, only to stop when Quinn clutched his neck, nails breaking skin and dragging down his back. "If you take a step forward, I will hurt him."

Hesitation flashed in Darlin' eyes, and he hoped that it would be enough for them to turn their back and run. (It wasn't, and it never will be.)

Stomping towards the two and their claws peeking, David could feel their core become a ferocious snowstorm, cold and vicious, making sure that there would be no survivors. "I swear to God, if you don't let him go, I will—"

Familiar pain burst across David's neck, teeth and claws becoming too familiar to differentiate at this point. He wanted to throw up at the lewd moans that Quinn let out, disgusted that this man- monster was finding pleasure in his pain. He shivered at Darlin' being in his spot, the one who Quinn's fangs dug into. Quinn had passionately spoken about their blood, to an obsessive and slightly creepy extent.

Biting David had the effect that Quinn wanted on Darlin', with Darlin' stopping dead in their tracks. Their fearful eyes locked with his, retaliations dying in their throat. Despite being frozen in place, David could see them go backwards, going back to the person they were when they were with Quinn. All the healing they had achieved was undone at sight of the monster in front of them.

He tried to speak, willing to beg in front of them to leave, but any attempts to speak were crushed like his windpipes. Quinn's doing, of course. 

"Quinn, please…" Darlin's voice quivered as the anger within them died down, while David's rage continued to fester. How dare Quinn bring fear to their voice after going on about how much he cared for them. If Quinn really loved them as much as he claimed to, then he wouldn't be doing all of this. But it wasn't love that he felt for Darlin', it was the desire to control them.

"There's my precious little wolf," Quinn cooed, letting David's limp body slump onto the ground. He was glad that Quinn finally let him go, but David was too concerned with the way Quinn was stalking towards his wolf. He tried, Lord knows he tried, to crawl towards Darlin' and save them, but with all the injuries, he was lucky to move a finger.

To their credit, Darlin' didn't take a step back as Quinn got closer. Davidd knew it was because they refused to let him scare them. Defiant in the face of death, dying as a martyr with conviction of steel was an honourable way to die. 

Their cold expression faltered a little bit when Quinn started to play with their hair. Growls died in David's throat, the only noise he was letting out was blood choking him to stay quiet. His inner wolf was begging to let himself out, but try as he might, he couldn't tackle Quinn where he stood. David didn't know if this hurt him more as their Alpha or as the man that loved them.

"What do you want, Quinn?" they asked, careful to not look him in the eyes, presumably to stop them from being tranced tonight. Darlin' took a moment to compose themselves, giving their signature killer look that would turn Quinn to ash. But they weren't Superman, and this wasn't a fairy tale.

(It could be if you wanted it, no? You have the power to turn this around and make sure everyone leaves tonight alive. They would be broken and bruised and would never forget this night, but they'll be able to remember. So please, help us, save them.)

(Darlin's hand slipped into their back pocket unbeknownst to the two men. They were lucky that their silencer was on.)

"Oh precious, that's no way to greet your man," he purred, eyes trailing their body in a way that made Darlin's skin crawl. He held the side of their face, nails digging into their cheek and making them look into his eyes. They ignored the pain, keeping their eyes shut to stop any trancing. Drawing blood from their face, Quinn growled, "open your damn eyes, mutt."

"Oh please, you never needed to trance me to force me to do whatever the fuck you want," they said with a cold fury. David's mind conjured up the worst of what they meant by that. He threw up at the thought of it, more blood leaving his body.

Sick bastard that he was, Quinn laughed. "It really is so much fun to make you, I love seeing your fighting spirit." His smile dropped, voice going cold, making another switch from his frantic personal to someone more composed. "But I need you to open your eyes, pretty thing. You wouldn't want me to bite your Alpha—"

Quinn didn't need to finish his sentence before Darlin' shot their eyes open, pleading with him to not hurt David even more. He didn't know why they were so set to defend him, he could take care of himself. What the fuck was the point of being Alpha if he couldn't protect the people he cared about?

"Quinn please…" David wanted to cry at how quiet Darlin's voice became, an effort to not set off the vampire in front of them. It was too rehearsed, a tone they practiced many times in the reflections of shattered mirrors. "Why are you doing all of this? I don't understand why you can't just leave me alone."

"Well it's quite obvious, precious," he started, his hands trailing from their face to their waist. "I want you back, sweetie. I've missed you, your love, your care, your intoxicating aroma," he sniffed the air around them, moaning at their scent. "It's nice to know that after all this time spent with these wolves, you still are my ferocious little thing."

"They're not yours!" David yelled out as best as he could, even though his voice was still muffled by the blood in his throat. It wasn't a lot, but it was better than sitting on his broken bones and doing nothing.

Quinn glared at the Alpha behind him, finally acknowledging his presence. Finally, David was getting bored back here. "Which brings me to this mutt," he said with so much disdain, it filled David up with pride that he was able to make Quinn hate him as much as David loathed him. 

Darlin's eyes went wide and their mouth moved before they could think. "He didn't do anything wrong—" 

"Oh yes he did precious, don't you dare try to protect him," he sneered at them.

Finally letting go of Darlin', Quinn stalked around the room, eyeing the two wolves with accusations ready at his lips. "You never really loved me, not the way I loved you." He stopped a few paces behind them, staring David in his eyes. Good, as long as that fucker looked at him and not Darlin', then it would be a good thing in his book.

“So that got me thinking, why could you never commit fully to me? Why wouldn’t you compromise your ‘moral compass’ for me? Why didn’t you love me the same way that I love you? It hit me." Frantic voice and manic eyes had David wondering how on Earth Darlin' was able to love a monster like him. They were the only person he knew that would treat this vile creature with love and respect that he didn't deserve. 

"But I did love you," they said with hurt and guilt in their voice.

"But you didn't!" he finally yelled out. "You couldn’t because of how you felt for him.” Quinn pointed at David.

…Darlin' loved him? Darlin' loved him.

This was a dream come true in the most nightmarish way possible. 

He had no time to ponder on this new revelation, already light-headed with the way his heartbeat pounded. A selfish part of him was happy that his feelings were reciprocated, that they long for him the way he did for them. But like this? Against their own will and him bolted to the wall, there was no way this was their ideal way to confess. Knowing them, they'd probably have a meticulous plan to make sure that everything went perfectly. They'll never have the chance to confess the way they wanted to. Neither would he.

His rationale came back to him after the initial high. He may have not known Quinn the same way Darlin' did, but from what he'd heard and seen from him tonight, he was a delusional and jealous asshole. Never trusting anyone to have pure intentions. He couldn't fathom that he was the issue, so he might have created this reality to remove himself from any accountability from what he did to Darlin'. Yeah, that must have been it. It broke his heart, but he'd rather a lie than Darlin' having their feelings ripped out of them to be on display.

(David remembered how casually their parents would talk about their biggest failures, as if it was gossip to them. How Darlin' would laugh along with their parents' friends, in a vain attempt to stop themselves from crying. Dance little wolf, dance for us, they would yell out, finding joy in every fumble and misstep. Yet they never stopped, always getting back up and entertaining the crowd. Ripping their heart on a silver platter to feed the wolves around them, but it was never enough. So they would break and build themselves to entertain and if they could get a good laugh, then their job would be complete.)

Again Darlin's shining eyes stood in stark contrast with their stern face. "Congratulations, you spilled my darkest secret," they said coldly. Their darkest secret? David could see their magic coursing through their veins, ready to shift at a moment's notice. 

"The fuck are you going to do now?" they asked while cracking the bones in their hands, a sign that they were itching to fight but desperately needed to calm down.

"No need to bring out the claws, pretty thing. Unless you're going to dig them into me," he cackled, but the sick desire to be mauled by them was painted in bright colours on his face. Quinn took a couple steps towards them, standing between himself and Darlin'. "I just want one thing from you, precious," he started with a composed tone. "Come back with me, and I let your pathetic Alpha leave tonight alive."

The only thing that was stopping David tearing Quinn apart limb from limb were the stupid fucking magic dampening cuffs that were still on his wrist. So instead he pleaded to anyone above who was listening to force Darlin' to turn away and run. He might not have been able to save them back then, but he could at least stop them from reliving the same tragedy.

David could feel Quinn's fingers dig into his hair, pulling him up to look into his rotten eyes. "Don't speak while they make their decision, mutt," he ordered and with a flash of red, he felt the trance take over his body. Throat constricted and choking on a silent scream, he couldn't do anything while Darlin' was mulling over their options. 

There was no point in trying to guess what choice they would make, it being as obvious as they were beautiful. David tried to memorize every inch of them before they were gone forever.

Darlin' had always been too selfless for their own good, always putting others over themselves. It was what made David so obsessed with them, finding beauty and good in even the most despicable people. They had a gentle heart, one that was beaten and hardened with life but at the very core still remained one of the best people he's known. If given the option to save themselves or another person, they would choose the other no matter the circumstances.

They looked up with determined eyes and a final answer. David tried to scream and yell to get them to stop, but both their resolve and the trance were too strong for him to overcome.

Walking up to Quinn, Darlin' put their hand in his. A sheep walking straight into the jaws of a wolf. 

"I'll go with you, only if you promise to leave the pack alone," they demanded, making sure their sacrifice would not go in vain. Not that it would stop him, but empty promises were always better than none.

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll make sure that your silly little pack will be ok," he sighed with great effort and rolled his eyes. David couldn't help but be disgusted, not understanding how anyone could act like they needed to inflict pain to survive. "Besides, why need anyone else when I have you for the rest of our eternity?" he asked in glee, knowing his answer already.

(There were wolf howls in the distance, not far, but not close enough to make it there in time. They needed to find a way to stall him a little longer.)

Before Quinn could drag Darlin' off to their doom, they resisted, pulling back their arm to make one last request. "I want to say goodbye to him," they requested while looking at David. If they were scared, then they were doing a good job of hiding it. Something told him that he was the more terrified one between the two.

Quinn tried to argue against it, saying that if they stayed a second longer then he would go back on his promise. But with enough pleading and ass-kissing, he relented. "You can have your last goodbye. Make it count though because you'll never see them again," he sneered, spitting in Darlin's face in a show of dominance. 

They didn't respond, not wanting to test him even further. Not when David was here and in immediate danger.

They shuffled over to David, kneeling to be on eye level with him. Holding his broken and bruised face in their hands, he could see the amount of unsaid words running through their head. David tried to speak again, cursing the trance for forcing his silence. He wanted to reassure them that no matter what, he would always love them. That he was sorry for not telling them sooner. Maybe if he had they wouldn't have to turn to Quinn in the first place.

But most importantly, he wanted to tell them that he would hunt Quinn down, that through hell and high water that he was going to bring them back home. This wasn't a promise, this was a declaration that David would follow through with.

Finally finding the words to condense the years of love that they buried within themselves, Darlin' opened their mouth to speak. “I love you David," they whispered, tears already dropping onto their cheeks. "And I’m so sorry it has to end this tragically before it can even begin, but I would do the same thing. A hundred times over. In every damn universe where I have the honour and privilege of being able to love you.”

Darlin' did love him. And he repaid that love with nothing but pain. 

Quinn clearly had enough with not being the center of attention, deciding to take matters into his own hands to take Darlin' away. "Let's go, precious," he growled while dragging them up to his feet and pulling them away from David. "And before we go," he said, grinning while grabbing the necklace around their neck and ripping it off into a broken chain. "We don't need any extra baggage with us, right?" he snarked, glaring right at David. Quinn knew exactly where the necklace came from.

It was the necklace David gave Darlin' the night he realized how he felt for them.

As he tried to scream after them, his vision began to blur. Fuck, he couldn't have been passing out now! Not when they were still too close for him to save. But he lost too much blood, it being a miracle that he was still able to move, even if it was to hold his head still to look back at him. The further Quinn walked away from them, the looser the trance became. It didn't matter though, his voice was raw from earlier, and his body couldn't move with how beaten he was.

Darlin' managed one last look behind them, with one last apologetic look. He couldn't do much, but he could at least let them know the answer to their forced confession.

'I love you', he mouthed over to them. Tears were already welling in his eyes, knowing he would never get the chance to say to them properly, with confidence and love. 

But it seemed like that was all they needed. Vision fading, his last image of them was a content smile and the thought that they were loved was all they had asked for. Darlin' deserved so much more.

His eyes closed, hoping that maybe this would be the end of this nightmare. Maybe when he wakes up, Darlin' would be beside him, or even in his arms. Wouldn't that be lovely.

(The other wolves were close enough to help, leaving nothing but carnage and an unrecognizable corpse in their wake.)

–

"Oh God, is he gonna wake up?"

"It's gonna take time for him to wake up. Quinn left did a shit ton of damage, so the healing magic's need to take his time to work properly."

"Thank you, Marie. I don't know what we would have done without you."

"No problem, Asher. How bout you and Milo go grab us some food to eat? It's been a hell of a week for all of us."

"No problem ma."

"Hey kid, you alright?"

"Hm? Oh. Yeah I'm good. It's just… weird seeing David so… vulnerable."

"But he's alive and that's all thanks to you, Darlin'."

"He wouldn't have been hurt if it wasn't for me!"

"We both know this ain't your fault, that was Quinn's. So don't be out here blamin' yourself for shit you didn't do."

"…Ok, I won't shit on myself."

–

David never was a deep sleeper, always waking up at the slightest sound in the area. So why didn't he wake up to the sound of another person's breathing in the room?

He opened his eyes, immediately wanting to go back to sleep. Exhaustion was so embedded in his bones and his throat was as dry as sandpaper. Looking to his bedside table on the left, he saw a water bottle and silently cheered. He uncapped it and chugged it down, getting some feeling back into his mouth.

He was so focused on his thirst that he didn't realize Darlin' was sleeping in a chair to the right of him.

His breath hitched. How on Earth were they still so pretty while they slept? So serene and peaceful, David would do anything to keep them in this state. The detail that stood out most to him were the tear tracks on their face. Who the fuck made them cry? Where were they so that he could give them a piece of his mind and a bite with his teeth.

His head throbbed in pain with memories from what he felt was last night. Quinn torturing him to lure in Darlin'. How fucking creepy he was when they showed up. The way he was about to drag Darlin' away from him and the pack permanently. The confession that seared itself into his brain.

Oh my God. They confessed their feelings to each other.

In his pondering about the confession, he didn't realize that Darlin' had woken up. It was only when they jumped into his arms to give him the biggest hug they could have given anyone.

"Thank God you're alive," they said softly, voice muffled with their face in his chest. Frozen and unsure of what to do next, he followed his instincts and wrapped his arms around them. One arm snaked his way to their back and he put the other on their head, giving them a little massage. (Their gentle hands were nothing like Quinn's harsh ones.)

Reluctantly, they both let each other go, letting their hands linger on the other's body. Silence filled the room as the two wolves stared at each other, his green eyes meeting their tear filled ones. David brought his hand up slowly, giving Darlin enough time to move away if they needed to. But they didn't. He wiped the tears falling down on their face, watching as that simple action was enough for them to break.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," they sobbed and apologized profusely, pretty eyes not looking at him anymore. He was scared that they were going to pull away from his hand, but instead they went back to burying their face in his chest.

David was confused. He didn't know why they were apologizing. If anything, he should have been the one saying sorry. Had he been not stupid enough to get kidnapped by Quinn, then they wouldn't have felt the need to play the martyr. Not that either of them were to blame, the reason was hopefully left to burn in the sun.

"Shhh, this wasn't your fault," he said to comfort them, rubbing a hand up and down their back. They pulled their head back and he could imagine all the arguments that they were willing to bring up as a rebuttal. He wasn't going to let them get the chance to atone for the sins of a dead man, especially one as cruel as him.

Before they could open their mouth, David held them by the shoulders. "Hey, nothing was your fault," he said sternly. He needed to be clear with them, lest they carry this unwarranted guilt with them for the rest of their life. "You don't need to apologize for what that asshole did to the both of us. Look at me when I tell you this," he emphasized while tilting their head up. "Everything, all of this, that was Quinn's shit, not yours. Don't let the leech tell you otherwise."

A shaky sigh and nod indicated that they heard him loud and clear. But he knew that Darlin' hearing his words and understanding them were two different things. It was ok though, he was going to stand by their side and help them through this.

Another period of silence settled in the room, this time with stiff and uncomfortable air. David didn't know how he was going to address the fucking confession. There was no denying their feelings for each other, no way to downplay their words to just a heightened adrenaline rush. So close to their hearts coming together, only to let circumstances from putting their hearts on their sleeves.

He was tired of letting circumstances dictate when or how he got what he wanted.

"I have tickets to the Dires game if you want to come with me." He absolutely didn't have tickets for the game, given how hard they were to come by. But he was sure that he could use his connections to get some. Anything for Darlin'.

Confusion grew on their face. "…You don't like hockey," they said with a questioning tone, and they weren't wrong. He was never a fan of any sports, not finding the intense stress he's seen his friends go through worth the struggle. But he could learn to like hockey for them. He could learn to like anything for them.

He shrugged to hide the fact that his heart was beating erratically. Acting in the most nonchalant way was his only answer to not making a fool of himself.

Ever observant as they were, Darlin' asked him, "is this your way of asking me out on a date?" They nailed the coffin that buried David's confidence.

"Well yeah, only if you want to of course." He stopped himself from rambling, it would have been unbecoming of him as an Alpha. But David couldn't help but let his nerves and anxious thoughts run rampant until they gave him an answer. The butterflies in his stomach were at their beck and call, and there wasn't any other way he would want it.

"Well, I guess I can't say no to free tickets," they giggled. It was a heavenly sound, worth all the pain and strife he'd had to go through in his life. If he had a purpose in this world, it was to keep them smiling, and he was going to take that job seriously. 

He told them the details about the date, when to get ready and when he was going to pick him up. While he was talking, he was trying to find a way to get tickets, going through all of the contacts that he knew. If all else fails, maybe he can beg Milo for his tickets. Dreams can come true and David was going to get those tickets somehow.

Mustering up the confidence, he leaned in closer to their face. "Can I kiss you?" he asked, making sure he had their full consent before kissing them. (He couldn't help but remember what they said about Quinn forcing them to love him.)

"Mm, I don't know," they teased with that perfect smirk of theirs. "I only kiss after the first date, Davey."  Their sultry tone did nothing to hamper the desire to bite their lips.

Instead of rejection, he laughed at their joke. "You're such an asshole," he said, in awe of the beautiful wolf in front of him.

"Yeah, but you love me."

He did. He loved them the way water rises to kiss the moon.

[anxiousotters]

I don't even go here but I simply must know about PaxAxe child of divorce au?

AHHHHHH PAZAXE MY BELOVED THANK YOU FOR THE ASK <3<3<3 (I’m so normal about them I swear)

In this AU, Paz and Axe (who were never married in the first place) have split custody of Ragnar due to some convoluted mandalorian adoption laws after Paz was falsely declared dead, and now they’re learning how to co-parent

“Come on,” Paz says gruffly. He turns and heads up the stairs without so much as a backwards glance. Axe rolls his eyes, but follows him up to the roof. “Sit.” The man orders. Axe shoots him an irritated look, but does so, folding himself down onto the smooth sandstone ledge and letting his legs dangle over the side. Their pauldrons clink together as Paz settles into the space beside him. For a moment, neither of them say anything as they watch the sun set over the ridge. “Do you want to talk about it?” “No thanks.” “Suit yourself,” Paz shrugs. Out of the corner of his eye, Axe sees him pull a flask from his belt. Paz turns away slightly, tipping the lip of his helmet up and— Axe quickly averts his gaze. He didn’t see anything, but the casual air of the gesture— and the subsequent trust it implies— makes his heart skip a beat. “Here,” Paz says, nudging the flask into Axe’s hands and breaking him out of his thoughts. “Drink.” “Has anyone ever told you that you’re quite pushy?” Axe grumbles as he takes a pull, even though he uses it to hide his quietly pleased smile. The tihaar burns on the way down. He’s not sure if he’s imagining the lingering warmth of Paz’s lips on the bottle.

[cryptidclaw]

Do you have any tips for writing/making allegiances?

Im not sure if you mean writing accurate/full allegiances for the warriors canon/aus or in you mean just generally?

General advice: keep descriptions simple or as simple as they can be, I found this very difficult at first since I had my own designs for them and I wanted to include all the details, but that makes descriptions convoluted and hard to understand! I still feel like my descriptions could be better but they are certainly more understandable than before!

also if you can get someone to read over your allegiances to check for type-os / mistakes... i dont do this and there is ALWAYS a problem that I missed LOL

....

for warriors/warriors aus? I can go over my very tedious process...

what i do is go thru all the alligiances on the wiki in which cats mentioned could/ would be a part of my alligiance's time period.

so for example: with the first arc, I looked through future allegiances of books into the 3rd arc and took note of the cats mentioned in those allegiances, especially cats who have not been mentioned before, I also take note of which book's allegiance they first appear in to guess at when they could have been born. I also looked at allegiances for books before the first arc, like Yellowfang's secret, there I found cats that would also be warriors in the first arc allegiances!

I also will open each cat's wiki and see their noted relatives bec sometimes those cats are seemingly never noted in the allegiances but they exist somewhere?? and they should be there! often kits or parents!

I then think about which cats I want to still be alive, how big do I want the clan to be? which side characters could have died at this point, or could have been born later?

also! for clans where there are very little cats mentioned to be in them, (cough Windclan cough) i may also add my own little side characters to fill in some spaces or I may let some kits survive who are never mentioned again after a certain book/ are assumed dead!

oh ya... and having a family tree really helps, Family echo my beloved

anyways... ya.... this is why the arc 2 allegiances aren't out yet.

[asciidot]

who is this magnificent specimen??

I physically reacted to someone asking me about him but thats the subject of my special interest of four years. That is Laz. Lazureus.

Lazureus is the player character of Just shapes and Beats

Laz is the small blue square here. But as a Special Interest of Five Years my jsab au spiralled greatly out of control and into its own universe with spinoff oc casts and like five parallel main storylines in which became a convoluted yet beloved mess. Lazureus is one of the central characters! I am absolutely more than willing to never shut up about him if you have any more specific questions >:]. I also started and put on pause a little ask blog @soundscape-sandbox which has Some Laz Content if youre interested which i realised was not all that sustainable as i swap art styles on an hourly basis and also Suck at ordering questions. And also started it during exam season iirc

also this is him. From 2020. Vs him 2023. I should draw him properly again just to see how its changed. He is thankful for being pried from being the sole subject of my attention

[ad-hawkeye]

posing you a potentially difficult task:rate artem’s year three worst to best(when you get the time ofc)

anon this was difficult on my soul. but i did it. mostly. because there's one or two i haven't watched in full myself, and one of those i legit have heard nothing about in terms of quality, i will mark them with a star.

i will also be including some of the upcoming third year cards i've read the translations of.

with that disclaimer out of the way, here's my list! worst from best.

ocean’s enchantment [summer splash] - i have no clue how they made a card that i consider worse than artem's second anniversary card but. by god did they do it. never say anything is impossible. at least artem was dressed nice in his second anniversary card. and also shitfaced. literally nothing is in this card's favor. also artem knowing how to surf is mind numbingly stupid i'll say it. lavish invitation [second anniversary] - i've bitched and moaned about this card for nearly two years now. you all know the takes on this one. third anniversary - this one nearly put me to sleep! 2/10. despite some weird short lived ooc moments, not as bad as artem's second anniversary card. its main sin is being a chore to get through. i was fighting against the urge to skip forward. mediocre art. top up cello ssr - ugh. i got so annoyed by this one i stopped watching a few minutes before the end. it's yet another "omg no way artem is a master at this random ass hobby?!?!?!?!??" card that year three LOVES and the explanation for it is so convoluted. really pretty art though. always happy to see rosa's canonical violin skills mentioned. calm as the night [billiards] - this one was fine. i guess? first of the cards i don't actively dislike. epic highs (omg this part made me smile like a year one/two card!) and epic lows (why are they licking each other's arms) velocity of desire [racing]* - i'd rank this one equal to artem's billiards card. one of the ssrs i mentioned that i haven't actually read, but i've seen people have generally indifferent to positive commentary on. better handling of jealousy. the actual event this came with was super cute though. love for the ages [3rd birthday] - cute art, serviceable if not a teensy bit convoluted story. an enjoyable time. this ranking is NOT about the birthday event it came with which, imo, sucked major ass. enshrouded sunglow - to the surprise of no one the au cards are going to wind up topping this list. funny enough i think this is artem's weakest au card. it's afraid to take risks and was a bit more boring than the other aus. still ages better than most of year three though. cutie ollie - mind boggling how this card where artem "isn't used to this kind of physical touch" in regards to mc playing with his hair, comes AFTER the daddy dom sex god ssr. anyways this one is very cute. i'm convinced it was supposed to be a year two card bc the only mention of second anniversary is a quick mention of an engagement ring. lmao. stormy enigma [bakerlon] - bakerlon my beloved. save me bakerlon save me. one of artem's better au cards, but i still wouldn't rank it first. also celestine is in it! a win! belle nuit d'amour - further evidence to my claim that tot's personal story cards rarely if ever suck. some good character stuff, the closest we've seen to artem fucking up a case, really good art. would recommend. or maybe not idk i haven't actually read the global version but i can't imagine it's too different from the fan translation i read. dragonsbreath - this one ties with the weeds for my favorite artem au card story. neil is in this one. fun plot. good art. good characterization.

[UNRANKED] voice of comfort* - i have not read this one nor have i ever seen anyone talk about it like. ever. or maybe i did read it and just fucking forgot. idk. don't really have the energy to read it regardless. the art is kinda mid. if anyone wants to message me their thoughts on this one, i can tentatively adjust my ranking on it

*i have not personally read either of these. any ratings are done via word of mouth or summary. regard these ratings tentatively.

[theimaginatrix27]

I've been in the Star Trek fandom spaces long enough, time to talk publicly about a thing that I am injecting into every fic where it is relevant

So if you've been paying attention to my blog the last couple months, you will know I am a huge fan of @enbygesserit 's work. They write the absolute best Dominion lore and fic I have ever had the pleasure of reading/encountering, and I eat up each new piece like my favourite confectionery.

What I am about to discuss predates any exposure I had to their work by at least thirteen years.

And the ship it surrounds was my DS9 OTP for two entire decades (before I discovered the O'Brien polycule and now my DS9 otp is a "One True Polyamorous tangle", but moving on).

That ship being Kiraodo. My heart broke when Odo confessed his love to an apparently dying Kira, she said she loved him back, and that was the clue for him to realise she was not Kira at all. And then when the Female Changeling Voice of the Link told him Kira would never love him because he was a Changeling, I was a tiny sad twelve-yo who thought, "But I love him!" And then I wanted it to be a thing.

And when I found out it was a thing in canon but they had to part ways at the end of the series, I was happy and sad at the same time.

I was a teenager, I didn't know the relationship felt awkward to some (though to be fair I still hated Children of Time and what the alternate/Gaia Odo did, but I address that in another fic so it's fine). I just wanted the sad Changeling and the fiery Bajoran to prove the mean Changeling wrong.

But also, I acknowledged to myself, even in 2009-10, that it would not be fair to Odo at all to make him leave his people again so quickly. I felt sympathetic toward the Changelings/Founders even as a teenager who had not and would not see DS9 in its entirety (curse you, cable TV! You with your reruns and exorbitant prices making it so hard for us to keep you for more than a few months at a time!) Anyways, I knew even then that I didn't want to take Odo away from his people again, even for him and Kira to be together.

So what was my solution?

Here were the canon points I considered at age nineteen (I was creating the bare bones of the Galactic Warp AU at the time and also had a strict must-adhere-to-canon policy for any fanfic ideas I'd had at the time):

The Great Link turned Odo into a solid.

The baby Changeling in The Begotten turned him back, at the cost of its life (but maybe not if it hadn't already been dying).

Therefore, it is canonically possible for a solid to become a Changeling.

What if Kira had been Changelinged?

WHY IS THAT NOT CANON?

I have this as a significant plot point in any Kiraodo content I'm going to write, so if you see Kiraodo becoming a thing in any fic, expect to see Changeling Kira show up somewhere.

"But wait!" someone yells. "You just said you didn't want to take Odo from his people, and Kira's Bajoranness is a huge part of her identity! And you're gonna just take that away from her?"

No, actually. You think the Prophets give a shit whether or not Kira's corporeal form is solid? Fuck no, they're not corporeal and time is not linear for them! The Kira is always the Kira. The Kira is always of Bajor. The Kira is always beloved of the Prophets.

This holds true in every single fic in which I have inserted this. Kira doesn't always become a Changeling full time (some of my AUs have magic), but more importantly, She never stops being Bajoran in the ways that really matter.

Which, if this had been a canon episode, would have been emphasised by the Prophets themselves and I am not taking critique on this.

"But the Founders would never do this in canon!" I hear you cry. "They hate solids and the Voice doesn't like Kira especially!"

First of all, the convoluted love triangle between Odo, Kira and the Voice was stupid.

Second of all, it doesn't even have to be them who do it, we got other more powerful entities around! Q was basically banned from DS9, sure, but what if Kira and Odo weren't on DS9?

Here's my idea for how this could have happened in canon, if the writers had really wanted to sell us the ship.

Odo and Kira have been away on a mission together (doesn't matter where, they just have to be off the station). It's sometime in Season 6, post the Dominion occupation of DS9. When the runabout returns, Odo coms the station and says he needs to give them warning about something, and they're going to have to take him at his word, however hard that may be.

"What's wrong?" Sisko asks. "And where's Major Kira?"

In response, Odo holds up his bucket. There is a Changeling in goo form inside.

"There was an—incident while we were returning from our mission. It was successful, by the way."

Sisko stares at the screen intently for a moment.

"Are you saying," he asks slowly, "that Major Kira was replaced by a Changeling?"

"No, Captain," Odo responds. "I am saying this Changeling is Major Kira."

Cue opening theme!

And possibly this would be a two-parter! I feel that with the whole theme of DS9 being nuance, and with the Dominion being such a big deal, it deserves to be!

Basically the plot would first involve a flashback to Q popping in while Kira and Odo are arguing about something Changeling-related or whatever, going "You know, I've been watching you and yours for a while now—from a safe distance of course—and frankly, I've been surprised by the lack of nuance with regard to the Founders."

And Kira's all, "Oh come on, don't you start with this high-and-mighty attitude! I read all the records about you after your last visit to Deep Space 9, you don't have any room to talk!"

"And neither do you," Q fires back. "You think your terrible acts were justified, don't you? Oh, you know they were dreadful, the fact that you could be so violent distressed you so! But when it comes down to it, you can sleep at night, because you helped drive out the Cardassians and set Bajor free. But when the Dominion imposes their order on their part of the galaxy because they used to be oppressed and were traumatised, you sit there on what moral high ground you have and pass judgment on them!"

"I don't need to hear this! Especially not from you! Sisko made you stay away from the station—from us! Now get off this runabout and leave us alone."

"Oh, you do need to hear it, Nerys. But if you insist on me leaving, let me do so on my terms. Don't worry, my little firework, I'll make sure you don't need my help undoing this." And he snaps his fingers and disappears.

And Kira's form begins to melt and she barely has time to call Odo's name before she dissolves into Changeling goo.

Back on DS9, everyone's a bit frantic after seeing the runabout footage, which confirms Odo's story. He links with her and is able to help her reform after a little time, during which we get to hear panicked Kira thoughts and some cool visuals of what the link is like for her. We get a scene after she's able to shift back into herself where Jadzia quips that she's got purple hair and Cardassian neck ridges or something, which is not amusing to her at all.

Then there's a whole discussion on how they're going to fix her before the rest of the Federation finds out, because "Are they going to believe the testimony of one rogue Changeling and the footage from a runabout computer? What if they decide Kira's a threat and take her into custody?"

And the answer is pretty obvious, especially after Julian examines a sample of her matrix and discovers traces of her dna are still in it.

They have to take her to the Great Link so she can be restored to solidity. The Founders are rather good at genetic manipulation, after all. It'll be fine!

Except they're at war, and the Voice does not like Kira, which forms the majority of the conflict, as they have to convince any Dominion forces they meet that "Seriously, we are not here to fight, please don't blow us up, we just want to help our friend, yes we mean it, don't fire!"

And in the end Kira has to pretend to be a Founder just to get the various ships to leave them alone, and it's weird as fuck for her but she makes it to the Great Link and the Voice is there and doesn't believe her at first until they link and she gets proof from her memories.

Which leads to Kira finding out about the morphogenic virus early, and being incensed, because "Look, I don't like you, but that's crossing multiple lines! I'd never have signed off on that if it were up to me, and I know Sisko wouldn't either! Doctor Bashir's brilliant—he can help you, I'm sure of it."

"Even if we did not help you right away?"

"I can wait, if I have to. I'm kind of getting used to this whole thing. It's been—an interesting experience."

And after another link to confirm that yes, she means that and it's not even in a bad way, the Voice consents to help her regain her solid status and she goes into the Great Link, gets a small taste of the Founders' collective trauma and is deeply moved by it, bursting into tears when she emerges, once more humanoid. There's a whole final scene about how she wishes more people in the Federation could have experienced what she did, and then she goes to write a log entry on the whole thing or something.

But this would absolutely change the trajectory of the war because that's how DS9 works, so it wouldn't just be handwaved away. in subsequent episodes, Julian is able to find a cure—possibly with help from within the Dominion itself because the Founders would very much like to not die and Julian is being Julian at them and they're taking a real liking to him.

And the galaxy is saved because Q did a thing! But also Kira understands Odo better after this and their relationship is all the richer for it.

*Starts chanting* It should've been canon, it should've been canon, it should've been canon, IT SHOULD'VE BEEN CANON!

[sparky-is-spiders]

JON

Jon!! Jon my most beloved!!!!!!!!! He's so important to me and I love him so much. This one got long so putting it under a cut lol.

First impression:

Ok this is a fun one because of how I got into TMA and you're gonna get some Sparky Lore.

So. Through a convoluted series of events involving a warriors fan-comic, Voltron (the remake), and several video-essays, I stumbled my way into a TMA fanfic. It was a J//mart soulmate AU that I honestly really enjoyed despite having zero context for the entire rest of TMA, but my complete lack of knowledge meant I ended up w/ a very... skewed impression of Jon. I imagined him as like, a balding, middle-aged white guy with wisps of gray hair, thick-rimmed glasses, and jowls. In his 50s, maybe his 40s. No I don't know why. I also sort of thought Martin was the main character and Jon was a major supporting character in the podcast itself (I. Don't really know why??) despite the fic being entirely from Jon's perspective. Aaaaand then I scrolled the TMA tag on the author's tumblr account. Idk how I reacted to that though my memory fails me. All I know is I have now adopted the common fanon perception of Jon's appearance and also I have been made aware that he is, in fact, 28. I was right about the graying hair tho.

I can't remember how I felt about Jon at first, but probably I liked him.

Impression now:

I'm very normal about him.

Favorite moment:

Oh I'm supposed to just choose ONE????

Idk. The entirety of episode 81 (yes it's my favorite). Literally any of his snarky little comments. His interactions with Sasha. His interactions with Elias. Whenever he was rude to Martin. "Our Gerard." When he talked about hoping Jonah was good. When he was experiencing Horrible Agony. Everything.

Ok ok. But seriously. I don't know if it's my favorite but one scene that lives rent-free in my head is that one moment near the end of episode six, talking about the death of Harriet Lee, where he says "though obviously it’s a tragic loss of life, etcetera, etcetera." It's so small but I think about it all the time... just. Jon who struggles with empathy. With caring about other people. Going through the motions of it so obviously because he knows that he has to but also doesn't think it should matter... idk. Does that make sense?

It's basically this post, really.

(Maybe this is projection. It's not a condemnation I don't think any of these make you better or worse as a person.)

Idea for a story

Idea... singular? Oh boy. Ok. So I'm not sure I have a singular solitary idea for a fic that DOESN'T involve Jon.

Okok here's one I'll never write because it would involve Too Much Martin. I've talked about it before but I don't think I've ever given it a full deep-dive. It's also like 75% Pure Salt. Much of it was Rotated while listening to Arcade Fire's Ready to Start so I think you should listen to it while reading this if you want. Also it's a good song.

Anyway it's one of them "Somewhere Else is Jonah Magnus Times" AUs and also one of my (several) bitter "Jon dumps Martin for someone better" AUs. Mostly canon compliant except instead of Jon asking Martin to kill him in e200 Martin takes matters into his own hands. They're kinda stuck together because they're literally the only person the other one has in a new and strange world but there is SO much festering resentment oh my god. Lots of arguements and tense conversations that are theoretically about what they should do next but actually about what happened in e200.

Sometimes Jon considers ending the world himself. Just doing it all over again because then he can complete his initial plan to kill everyone and starve the fears. It's like an idle "what-if" but the more he thinks about it the more sense it makes. No matter what there's going to be another apocalypse. And another. And another. And another. And clearly, he can't trust anyone but himself to do what needs to be done and stop the fears for good.

(And goddammit those few moments as the pupil felt so right.)

(But this isn't about that. It isn't.)

The thought of putting someone else through what he went through is beyond soul-crushing, but there is one person who could, theoretically, deserve it. One person Jon knows would do the exact same, if given the chance.

Idk if Jon founds the institute or seeks out Jonah to join his, but either way Jon wants Jonah's help. He breaks things off with Martin (does NOT mention any of his plans) and goes off to insert himself into Jonah's life.

Jon and Jonah begin a strange, very intense relationship. Jon is sort of a mentor figure, trying to guide Jonah the way Jonah guided him (potentially Jon tries to make Jonah the Archivist??) where Jonah is constantly digging for Jon's secrets and Jon is constantly trying to keep his true plans under wraps. Also they start having an affair (obviously).

Martin is probably still in the background trying to stop Jon but he fails <3. I think Jon maybe kills him in a fun parallel to how this began. But maybe not idc.

Jon does succeed in getting Jonah to read the statement but the ending flip-flops based on how I'm feeling. Sometimes Jon does succeed and kill the fears, dooming this universe to save countless others, but I think a stronger ending would be Jon failing. Jonah learning of his plans and killing him and starting the whole cycle over again, with them transported to a new universe and trying for their own armageddons, with the implication that this is going to be an endless cycle playing exactly into the Web's plan over and over again.

Unpopular opinion

He wouldn't date Martin. They don't know each other, they don't like each other, in just about any other circumstances Jon wouldn't give him the fucking time of day. I don't care.

Favorite relationship

Currently in Jon//elias hell but Jon//sasha dual archivists makes so much Sense to me...

Favorite headcanon

Oooooh... tie between aro Jon and trans Jon. I don't buy any interpretation of Jon as cis honestly. Usually I default to transmasc (PROJECTION) but I think Jon has soooo much Transgender potential in every direction. Aro Jon just makes so much sense to me. Like it suits them so well. Aro Jon........

[presidentdisastraofgallifrey]

Judging Doctor Who: Eleventh Doctor

Disclaimer: This is all in good fun and I don't take fandom serious

Good episodes I like

The Eleventh Hour - I hate the time cracks arc, but if you just focus on the plot itself the escaped shapeshifter prisoner thing is fun

The Beast Below - It's so sad!! And Liz 10 is hot and badass and a good person but not, which is my favorite type of lady

Victory of the Daleks - A delightfully classic dalek plot

Amy's Choice - Basically another au-type episode and it's fun. And also reveals the Doctor's deep self hatred!

Vincent and the Doctor - Yes everyone likes this one. But it is impressive. It manages to be both heartbreaking and have scenes of him fighting an invisible creature!

The Lodger - fun and silly, a nice breather

A Christmas Carol - very clever and sweet, wonderful use of time travel. And there's flying fish that like singing!

The Curse of the Black Spot - A nice monster of the week with no real monster! And historical pirates became space pirates!

The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People - yes I hate this arc too, but the self-contained plot here is actually a fun who gets to be a person one

The Girl Who Waited - I think this is the only episode where Amy has enough character for be to like her. Plus it's another (horrifying) what if story!

The God Complex - Creepy and fun. I loved seeing all the fears, and the mystery was interesting

Closing Time - A fun and silly enough adventure that I don't mind the cybermen

The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe - Sweet and magical, and I liked that the adult got to go on the Narnia adventure

Asylum of the Daleks - Good dalek episode, good (first?) use of the dead humanoid dalek slaves, excellent heartbreaking reveal that their new friend is no longer human, and I love the daleks all just forgetting him

The Snowmen - Very nice creepy but silly monsters, and at this point the Clara mystery was intriguing

Rings of Akhaten - SO all around beautiful, and I also love the inclusion of a rare multi-alien gathering. There should be more of those

The Crimson Horror - Vastra my beloved! And also this was an interesting mystery, and the Doctor isn't even in most of it, but I just love too many aspects to name! It's very good!

The Day of the Doctor - Do I necessarily love this answer to the Time War? No. Do I understand it? Yes, because at this point they were stuck with it and this gives them an opening for Gallifrey to still exist (they squandered it but that's beside the point). Besides, the episode itself is great fun (the Doctor never gets along with himself!)

Bad episodes I like

The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone - Yeah further lore made the angels less interesting, and the story didn't make sense. But I enjoyed it! And River is there!

Night Terrors - THIS story would have been perfect if they hadn't made the logic circular (all this is happening because the kid is scared he'll get sent away, but they only discussed that because of these problems). But it's still fun

Hide - I'm sorry, the Doctor does not consult random ghost hunting psychics. However. The answer of a time traveler moving wrong through time was great fun

Good episodes I don't like

The Vampires of Venice - pretty typically goofy, but I didn't enjoy it that much. Maybe because of Amy and Rory

The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood - Again, it's fine but I was kind of bored. And wish if they were going to bring back Silurians they'd let them stay

The Doctor's Wife - well written and all, but I found it uninteresting

A Town Called Mercy - Absolutely nothing wrong with it, but I don't have much interest in the wild west

The Bells of Saint John - It was fine, and as a monster of the week actually fun, but I didn't love it as Clara's intro

Cold War - This falls under the genre of running around a small trapped ship that I just don't like

Bad episodes I don't like

The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang - What the hell was this?? Everything about it was convoluted, poorly executed, and uninteresting

The Impossible Astronaut/The Day of the Moon - I actually like the Silence, but the plot itself is just so convoluted and bad

A Good Man Goes to War - No. Just no to everything about this.

Let's Kill Hitler - The robot ship thing is fun and there's like one funny joke, but the rest of it is so terrible

The Wedding of River Song - All of time happening at once is kind of fun, but not enough to make up for (1) the ridiculous to begin with plot, (2) the way they absolutely cheat in a way that should not work, and (3) the implication that they never REALLY got married

Dinosaurs on a Spaceship - Just feels like a bunch of different things randomly thrown together

Journey to the Center of the TARDIS - A little too nonsensical for me

Nightmare in Silver - Both too busy and also boring

The Name of the Doctor - A disappointing answer to an actually compelling mystery

The Time of the Doctor - Disappointing use of Gallifrey, and really no reason he should be able to physically age

[linka-from-captain-planet]

The L Word: Faerûn, Part 2: Tav Lore (aka why Counsellor Florrick is the actual main character)

Part 1 here.

The Thong Straps that Launched a Million Headcanons

To make TLW:F even vaguely comprehensible to anyone but me, there is something important yet convoluted to explain:

The protagonist is a Tav, but the most important character in the entire story is Counsellor Florrick.

I'm not an OC gal. Creating a brand new character is not my wheelhouse; my type of creativity is interpreting or expanding on things that already exist in canon, not really adding new things to it. So the way I went about developing an OC for this story was to start with the character that I really wanted to highlight---my beloved Florrick, the sexiest creature in this entire game (FACT not opinion)--- and build the OC around her, working more or less within the confines of canon because that's how I operate generally.

Why? Because I'm a crazy person I guess and I wanted it to seem semi-reasonable for Florrick to get her ass ate at Waukeen's Rest. Being a fan of drama, multishipping, and elaborate headcanons about background characters, the concept spiralled from there and eventually morphed into TLW:F.

So, yes, like 70% of the entire reason this thing exists is because Florrick is hot. The other 30% is the aforementioned story gripes from Part 1.

Florrick isn't the protagonist because I need her to fulfill her usual roles as a supporting character in the overall story, but she IS the most important character because she and her relationship with the protagonist drives much of the plot (and also fills in the semi-pot holes of "why the fuck would a drow agree to do any of the Baldur's Gate-centric side quests", since obvi the Tav had to be drow because they're the coolest duh).

Tav Lore: Alekto T'Elvord, and her relationship with Florrick

Note: lore mistakes are just part of the AU

Imagine Bette Porter from the L Word (snobbish, selfish, completely insane under a veneer of success) combined with Gaston from Beauty and the Beast (vain, obnoxious, but a legitimate talented hunter and tracker), add on some subjugation trauma on top (to match the other origins), some hidden depths (to match the other origins), and that's Alekto.

Born at the tail end of her clan's several hundred years of indentured servitude to House Xorlarrin, Alekto spent the first fifty years of her life underneath the boot of the Matron. Trained as a fletcher/bowyer (ranger with artisan background), her skill in crafting and using fine drow archery raised her individual clout in the status-obsessed drow society. Once her clan reached the end of servitude, most of them were simply slain rather than set free, but Alekto was spared due to her relatively high esteem and talents as an artisan and huntress. Although technically a free woman thereafter, Alekto to the present day feels bound to the Matron's beck and call, fearing what would happen if she defied her. Despite actively avoiding drow society by spending as much time as possible hunting (poaching, for trophies and alchemical ingredients to sell) in the wilds of the underdark and, eventually, the surface, Alekto recognizes that social climbing is her only real route to freedom, and so ostensibly, her individual goal in life is to win herself a high-status spouse, preferably one ranked even higher than Xorlarrin.

But really, what Alekto truly yearns for is security and reassurance, and a partner who makes her feel safe. Although it's been decades, her first love, Neerstra, another drow peasant, was sacrificed to Lolth and although Alekto tries to rationalize this event was normal-thus-fine and even honorable/romantic, she privately is very disillusioned by and resentful of the senselessly brutal and bleak drow culture.

Shortly after being granted "freedom", Alekto traveled to the surface in pursuit of a unicorn, but was captured by a village of wood elves defending the forest. Among them happened to be the future-counsellor Florrick, visiting home to share news of her promotion to the office of an up-and-coming duke. Recognizing a fellow black sheep (a city-dwelling, wizard wood elf?) and someone whose urbane sense of justice could be exploited, Alekto sought to manipulate Florrick into saving her, which worked!

But also, Alekto was sincerely drawn to the steadfast, virtuous Florrick, and although Florrick was not initially impressed by a drow poacher, the two bonded over several days of forced proximity and a long, tumultuous relationship was born.

For about the next twenty years, Florrick and Alekto were often on-and-off, and further often separated as Alekto traveled between Menzo and Baldur's Gate. They were a poor match, compatible emotionally and sexually but not socially, morally, or in lifestyle; but both were stubborn enough to stick it out way too long. Over the course of these decades, Alekto became (by drow standards) familiar with surface culture and the fixtures of Baldur's Gate, such as Ravengard and his young son, Wyll (although Alekto avoided having to meet them), as well as 'personal' associates of Florrick such as Naoise Nallinto (a member of the wood elf polycule I can only assume Florrick has) and Nine-Fingers Keene (a political rival and sometimes-lover of Florrick's).

In around 1482, ten years pre-canon, Alekto and Florrick called it quits 'officially', but find it hard to stay apart, officially. Alekto especially feels attached to Florrick, and in times of duress, finds herself 'relapsing' and returning to Baldur's Gate to check up on (stalk) Florrick, allegedly in hopes of reconciling, but really, it's more of a desire for the stability that Florrick represents than a desire for Florrick, herself.

So, in Eleasis 1492, after Minthara Baenre is drawn away from Lolth in favor of the hot new cult on the block, the Matrons of Menzoberranzan put together the growing cult and increasing rumors of illithid activity and come to a conclusion: Araj Oblodra must be involved, and may be ascending from a worthless crackpot to an actual threat. Thus, Xorlarrin sends Alekto to track Araj down in her last known location: Baldur's Gate.

Powerless to refuse, Alekto travels to the city and raids Crimson Draughts, and in doing so uncovers the indisputable evidence that Araj has joined the Cult of the Absolute and is actively mobilizing plans to reinstate her House, and/or destroy Menzoberranzan.

Nervous about the ramifications of all this, Alekto dallies in the city, hoping to find comfort in Florrick's stalwart arms. However, after connecting with Naoise, she learns that Florrick is several days late returning from Elturel with Ravengard, which worries her further.

But, before she can investigate further, she's snatched off the streets by the nautiloid.

Next part: The Pre-Canon Chart