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bucketsofmonsters · 11 months ago

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Where the Light Enters - Part 2

cw: unreliable narrator, hurt/comfort, slow burn, eventual sex, enemies to lovers, past childhood sexual assault, past sex trafficking, referenced noncon, offscreen dubcon, happy ending, the tags look scary but this is mainly a story about recovery

Cole/Female Inquisitor

word count: 4k

ao3 link

Masterlist

It didn’t take long to find the spirit. As soon as she was alone he appeared once more, his wide hat creating a distinct silhouette out of the corner of her eye.

As soon as she caught sight of him she whipped around to face him.

“You,” she hissed out, keeping her voice low just in case of prying ears. She was certain Leliana had some around. ��Need to leave immediately.”

Cole seemed uninterested in responding to what she had said, instead announcing, “I tied myself to you. Cole was gone so I needed something to help me get back out. If I kill you, I get pulled away and I can’t fix the hurt.”

She stepped back cautiously. “Kill me?”

He nodded. “You hurt people. You shouldn’t be here anymore, but things don’t come through the fade often. You were the only choice.”

“So we’re stuck together?” she asked, praying that the answer would be no.

“Not physically. When you are here, I am here. If you are in the fade I will follow. If you’re nowhere then I have to go back because I have nothing to hold onto anymore.”

She threw her arms up. “So you don’t need to be here then. Just go somewhere else and do your creepy spirit thing there. Leave me out of it. I’ll promise I won’t die and you promise to leave me alone. Everyone’s happy.”

He shook his head in the most adamant way she’d ever seen him do anything. It almost felt like there were real emotions behind it. “I take away the hurt,” he said, sounding almost distressed. “You cause more hurt than not. I need you to stay but I need to help more than you hurt.”

Typical that she got the one creature from the fade that was against any harm coming to humans piggybacking onto her brain.

“I’m not hurting anyone here,” she said in a poor attempt to defend herself.

“You will. You always do. I can see it. You don’t know anything else.”

The way he spoke made her nervous. She could tell he was dangerous, unstable, potentially violent.

And none of her other tricks worked on him, so she figured she could be too.

She drew her rarely used dagger and slammed him against the wall as soon as the idea occurred to her, trying her best to avoid him reading the intention off of her and getting out of the way.

He seemed in no rush to get out from under her blade, just looking down at her, both of them now hidden underneath the brim of his hat together.

She could see his eyes this way, revealing they were an unnervingly light shade of blue. She could see the way his hair covered them almost entirely and wondered if the fade spat him out looking so shaggy on purpose. But then, he mentioned another Cole before, maybe he’d been here longer, had stolen his name while his hair grew.

Did he even know he could cut his hair?

It didn’t really matter, was entirely besides the point.

The flat of her blade sat against his throat, pressing against his flesh. She held him back with her other hand and felt he was inhumanly cool to the touch.

“It’s lonely,” said the spirit, unconcerned with the new threat pressed against him. “It doesn’t like being used in the dark, never seen, stowed away.”

Her fingers tensed around the handle.

Most of the people who’d felt the dagger’s other end hadn’t had any idea it was coming. They’d been asleep or calmed by practiced airs that only the blade would betray.

She preferred to not let it come to this. Those uses were few and far between, massively eclipsed by soft looks and a willingness to agree.

“Just need to help more than you hurt,” he insisted. “I need to mend as you break and break and break.”

“What would you do, if I hurt more people than you helped?” That was the only question that mattered, the thing he kept leaving unsaid.

“I’d kill you. And then things would be balanced.”

“You won’t kill me. You also will not interrupt my presence here. You can’t stop me,” she hissed. “I won’t let you.”

“Yes, I could. But I can’t. For them, not for you. You cause the hurt, guilt heaving, dizzy with worry. You leave the good ones with blame and the bad ones don’t care. The only ones who hurt are the ones who never would.”

“They all would. They all did. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Bull wouldn’t if he knew how it pulled at you, tugged at wounds, ripped and healed, ripped and healed. Too long scarred to feel anything anymore.”

“I need him,” she said, because she did. He’d responded best to her little ploy, had allowed himself to be endeared to her. She needed a protector and he seemed happy to do so for the precious little thing that fawned over him.

The horrible creature nodded. “You need him. He wants you. The scales are off. It’s all in the book.”

She pushed the dagger further into him, the pressure almost nicking his skin. “You will tell no one about that book or I swear, I will gut you.”

He shook his head sadly. “You would, but you can’t. I’m too slippery for you, you’re too slow, limbs dragging in years of stillness. You’re afraid to move, afraid it gives you away. Played weak for too long and now it’s all you are.”

“Fine then,” she said, taking stock of the man in front of her, filing away the chinks in his armor to list out in her book full of nothing but flaws and weaknesses. “Tell them and I swear I will hurt them. I will use all those words in my book to tear them apart however I can and you cannot stop it all. You cannot stop as much hurt as I can cause. I think you and I both know that it is faster to break than to mend.”

He froze, the cool blade of the lonely dagger steady against his throat.

“I won’t tell. Try not to hurt them. I’m not going anywhere.”

And then he was gone, leaving nothing but a blade held up against streaks of green hanging in midair.

She wanted to sit on the floor. To curl up in a ball or scream or do something to stop feeling pinned.

But she had things to do, and so she set off to find Bull.

It wasn’t hard, he was difficult to miss. He stood in the training area, towering over everyone else who resided there.

She gave him a shy wave and he grinned back at her, flexing a little in a way she was sure he thought was subtle.

She noticed it every time. It was embarrassing for him, turning her stomach a little, but she fawned over him as she sidled up at his side.

He gave her a once over, hand shifting down to tilt her chin up. “Some nasty bruising on you. You did real good, fought hard.”

She beamed up at him, quietly pleased there were marks left behind, a physical reminder of why they shouldn’t be sending her on missions.

It was partially unavoidable. Her accidental trip through the fade had given her the ability to shut gaps in between the world and the fade and that wasn’t exactly a replaceable position, but surely they didn’t need to send her out quite as often as they did.

“I should’ve been there,” he added, fingers stroking lightly over the bruising. “He shouldn’t have been able to get to you so easily.”

She shrugged and fought off a spiteful comment. “You did your best. I could never begrudge you that. Besides, everything turned out okay, didn’t it?”

“Mostly. Who’s that weird kid hanging around?” he grunted.

She turned to see Cole, perched up on one of the roofs, staring down at them. “He’s a spirit. He saved my life so we’re letting him stay.”

Bull’s brows raised immediately. “Right. And you signed off on that?”

She sighed. “Sort of. I think it’ll be okay.”

“So optimistic,” he said with a chuckle. “Now come on, you’re going to start training more.”

“What?” she asked as he thrust a bow into her hands.

“You heard me. Next time, you need to be ready. I can’t always be there to protect you.”

She could feel Cole’s eyes on her as she began to train.

Bull was the obvious choice of protector. Prone to forming casual attachments, easily flatterable, the biggest guy around. Even if he wasn’t a damn good fighter, he’d be a great shield. There was no one else here who could cover that much surface area.

But now, being forced to train, she was starting to regret it. Maybe she could switch gears and convince Cullen to go on missions with her, or figure out something that would make Blackwall less weird around her.

But no, an easy target as good as Bull wasn’t something she could pass up, even if every flirtatious touch to her side or murmur that she was doing “real good” made her stomach turn and a pit of dread start to form inside her.

She knew where this was leading, what the price for his protection was, even if Bull didn’t know the terms of the deal.

But she’d done this before. She could handle it.

And so she suffered through what felt like hours of archery practice. She only hit the target twice but then, she wasn’t really trying to.

Her attempt to get Bull to give up on her proved ineffective, but there was some entertainment to be found in seeing how badly she could miss and still get praised.

As she hit a tree that was about six feet to the left and a handful of feet back from the target, Bull muttered, “Well at least you hit something,” before giving Rosemary a soft pat on the back. “That’s enough for today. What you lack in skill you make up for in perseverance. Keep on trying, you’ll be a deadshot before you know it. Good to see you’ve got stamina at least.” He shot her a wink with his final comment.

She wanted to throw up, but she gave him a shy smile instead, thinking of old embarrassing stories to force herself into a soft blush.

He seemed pleased with her response, wandering over to go talk to some of his troops. They had a name, she was certain. The Champions, or something like that.

It didn’t really matter.

She left for her quarters, content with her progress. Cole was there, perched on the end of her bed.

“I don’t think you know what leaving me alone means,” she said, throwing her jacket at him as she pulled it off.

“I do know,” he said as the jacket missed him entirely, and he seemed unconcerned that his indifference actually made it worse. “You’re learning to fight.”

“I am,” she said, throwing her inner coat to the floor as the warmth of the fire filled room washed over her.

“Why?”

“Bull’s making me,” she huffed as she shed more of her thick woolen layers, built for the cold.

“You are… I didn’t know it came off,” he said.

She shrugged off the last of her clothes and pulled on her night things. They weren’t quite as warm as her day clothes but at least they were less bulky. “What, you thought I just looked like that? Fur and all? I thought you could see in my head.”

The first thing she’d done when she’d gotten here and realized how cold it was had been to insist on acquiring a pile of furs, ones she’d since bundled up in religiously.

His eyes were still fixed on the pile of clothes. “Not always. You didn’t know it in a way I could hear.”

So he didn’t have unfettered access to everything in her head. That was good at least.

“I see the hurt and the things that help,” he decided to clarify. “You’re mostly hurt so it’s easy to see.”

“So you what?” she couldn’t stop herself from asking. “You just go around helping people by reading their minds? That’s what you expect me to believe?”

“Just because no one ever helped you doesn’t mean no one ever helps. You don’t even give them the chance anymore.”

A knock sounded at her door and she turned to look, surprised Cole didn’t immediately disappear at the noise. He seemed content to linger.

“Yes?” she called, deciding whether she’d try and shoo Cole away before this new visitor came in.

She heard Cullen’s voice, muffled by the wood of the door, as he asked, “Are you decent?”

“Yes, you can come in.”

Cole watched as the door squeaked open slowly, Cullen slowly entering like he didn’t quite believe her when she said she was clothed.

He froze the second he saw Cole.

“You make him nervous,” Cole said, at full volume and with no regard for the way the words made Cullen’s eyes widen and his face flush.

“What is he talking about?” Cullen demanded. “Why is he here?”

“He doesn’t seem to want to leave,” she said and she watched anger flash across Cullen’s face.

Cole seemed to pick up on this, although she imagined it was from his thoughts and not any ability to read facial expressions.

“I told you harboring a spirit was a bad idea,” Cullen hissed at her.

“The mages are safe from me,” Cole said. “I don’t want them. I won’t make you hurt them again.”

Cullen tensed immediately, ready to bolt. “I came to tell you that you’re heading to the Hinterlands tomorrow to help with more rifts,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Is that wise?” she asked, wishing Cole hadn’t put him in a bad mood before she had to try and wriggle her way out of another dangerous assignment.

“The rifts need to be dealt with, you will handle them,” he said, and then set off immediately, obviously eager to get away from the spirit and giving her no time to argue her case.

The door slammed shut behind him.

“I made it worse,” Cole said softly.

“Look at you, you’re upsetting more people than me,” she said with a scoff, finding this all very amusing right up until she remembered the threats that had been leveled at her if Cole felt their collective presence wasn’t doing good for the world.

He seemed distressed and contemplative, but at least it seemed like few of those thoughts were directed at her. The less he thought about her, the better.

And then he turned to her, his eyes obscured by his hat. “Can I come?”

“What?”

“Cullen said you’re going to the Hinterlands. I want to see them.”

Everything in her wanted to turn him down but perhaps it was best to keep an eye on him, at least until she got a better grasp on what he was like.

“Can you even fight?”

He nodded, pulling daggers out from some unseen place on his person. “I’m quick and they are sharp. We can both do our job. Who do you want me to fight?”

She thought hard, trying to remember if there would be any people Cole would refuse to fight against on the other side.

It was hard. To her, everyone on the other side had committed the most egregious sin of all, trying to hurt her. She supposed Cole didn’t think like that, that he was interested in a far more complicated tangle of emotions, intentions, actions, and regrets.

“I don’t know if they’re bad,” she said carefully. “But they’re hurting the people there.”

He nodded. “Sometimes that's enough. I will fight.”

That was a relief. At least she probably wouldn’t have to deal with him becoming a turncoat mid fight.

He seemed to read the acceptance from her mind. “I will go. You want to put me in your book.”

And then he was gone.

She wondered if he meant he’d go now or tomorrow. She supposed it could have been either. More likely it was both. He didn’t seem one to repeat himself when a single statement would do.

Now alone in her room, she kneeled down, pulling up the loose floorboard and moving aside the scattered leaves, picking up her notebook.

It was absolutely filled with information on everyone at the Inquisition. On patterns of behavior, on what made their eyes soften when they looked at her, on which enemies they swung their swords the hardest at. She carefully noted who she thought she could turn against who and which people were too close to try safely. She wrote which people she could get to through others, like the way Bull’s group, called the Chargers in her book, regarded her with softer eyes because of the way Bull had come to shield her in battle and look for her first when he returned without her.

And she created a section for Cole.

She had little to say. He was dangerous, she knew that much for certain. He could read her mind, seemingly everyone’s. He couldn’t be that clever because she could think of a dozen ways he could keep himself tethered to this plane while still doing something to incapacitate or declaw her, and yet he’d done none of it.

Or alternatively, perhaps worse, maybe he knew it all. Had come up with on his own or had plucked it from her. Because then, he wasn’t stopping her for a reason, some horrible plan he had for her.

She needed something on him. It was hard. He wasn’t unemotional, but he had this undeniable practicality to him where she knew he wouldn’t hesitate to hurt himself if it balanced out his little equation of harm and help.

She wished she’d been stuck with a demon. Vices she could handle. In fact, she handled very little else.

Virtues were harder. Faking them was easy enough, but she hadn’t had the privilege of being allowed to be virtuous in a long time.

She wrote everything in her journal. Cole knew where it was, but he could pluck it out of her mind regardless, what did it matter if he read it out of the book?

Could he even read? She couldn’t imagine spirits had anyone to teach them, but then again he knew how to speak. Maybe they had some inherent knowledge to them.

She looked down at the pile of her furs and warm clothes lying on the ground. He clearly had some gaps in his information about humans.

It didn’t matter. The less he knew the better, but there was nothing she could do about the things he already knew.

She should be careful about the things she said around him.

She chastised herself for the thought. He could see in her head, she could not play this how she typically did.

Another knock sounded at the door and she quickly tucked the book away before forcing out a polite, “Yes?”

Varric’s voice called out a friendly, “It’s me.”

She felt her anger melt a little and called him in. She liked Varric, against her better judgment.

She imagined most people liked Varric. He was easy to like, easy to talk to, acted like you’d been friends for years.

“You talk to the spirit kid yet?” he asked, and she deflated a little.

“More than I’d like.”

Varric chuckled. “He does have a lost puppy energy about him, I’m not surprised he’s following you around like one. I had a talk to him earlier about the way he was staring at people. Said it was off putting and he said he’d just make it so they couldn’t see him. Said he wanted to help. I poked him a little and he admitted he was curious too.”

She sighed. “I’m glad you talked to him. Someone had to do it, and you were probably the best one for the job. I was half convinced Cullen was going to run him through when I saw them talk.”

“We wouldn’t want that. He's off putting, but I think he means well.”

“I certainly hope so.”

“A little birdie said you’re heading out tomorrow,” he added, giving her a knowing look.

“Who, Cassandra?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, Cassandra. So are you?”

She nodded.

“Mind if I tag along?” he asked. “The kid sounded like he wanted to see some stuff, I figured it would be good to show him some of the world. We could see what he’s like out there.”

“I already told him he could tag along, but if you want to babysit you’re more than welcome.”

“I’m happy to. Someone’s gotta do it and everybody else seems ready to slit his throat.”

She shrugged. “He’s a spirit, it’s scary, I get it.”

“Yeah, maybe. Not his fault though. And how old are you anyways? Sometimes I feel like I should be babysitting you too.”

She wasn’t sure how old she was. She’d been seventeen when she’d come here but it had been some months since then, she was fairly certain her birthday had long since passed her by.

She hadn’t told them that, of course. It was antithetical to how she needed them to see her. She wanted to seem young, certainly, but not that young.

She’d been saying she was twenty one for weeks and then one day Leliana asked and she’d sounded so judgmental so she’d blurted out twenty five. Blackwall thought she was twenty five too. She’d decided a twenty one year old would trigger that seemingly ever present instinct in him to feel guilty about everything if she ever needed to do a hard pivot in his direction.

So now there was a spread of beliefs going around and she wasn’t sure what to say. She looked at Varric and said, “Twenty five,” figuring he was old enough that he’d see her as too young either way.

“Too young for this shit,” he said, and she just nodded. She didn't think she was, not really, even at her real age. But Varric didn’t need to know that.

“Maybe. The fade didn’t seem to think so.”

“Do you think there was a reason it was you? Religious or otherwise?”

She shook her head. “Just bad luck. Pretty standard for me.”

He laughed that low, gravelly laugh that had the women in the taverns they visited swooning. “Well, let’s see if we can turn that around for you. And hey, Rosie?”

“Yeah?” she asked, worried about his tone getting serious. Varric so rarely got serious.

“If you need anything, just ask, okay? They expect a whole lot of you, but everyone needs help sometimes.”

“Of course,” she lied.

#dai cole #cole dai #cole dragon age #dragon age cole #dragon age inquisition #dai #colemance #where the light enters #I'm putting the enemies to lovers tag to work

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d34thbyr0ck4ndr0ll · 11 months ago

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Different types of goth

I didn’t really feel like going into detail about them all in one post, so I’ve decided to post exclusively about one type randomly through out time. When I first decided to get more into goth (sub?) culture, I didn’t know much, I was an 11 year old who had never seen a goth before, only read about them so everything was based on assumption. Now, years later, I’m back at it, only with more knowledge. Goth is pretty flexible fashion wise, there’s a goth style for everyone, I swear. Here’s some of my favourites (in order, the first four) only doing ten.

1 Trad Goth

Traditional, or trad goth is pretty much what you get if you look up ‘goth’. It’s like the Black Sabbath of goth, the one that started it all.

2 Mall Goth

This is more decorative than trad goth, as in with mall goth, it’s all about layers of chains, spikes, etc. I don’t know what else to say

3 Victorian Goth

Basically Victorian era clothing and literature, with a whole lot of black. I love it so much

4 Hippie Goth

Exactly what it sounds like: hippie and goth. It’s all hippie style clothing, shawls, skirts, Birkenstocks, flowers, etc, but with more dark greens, blues black, etc. (what happened to italics?)

5 Pastel Goth

Again, pretty self explanatory. Pastel goth mixes pastel colours with black, cute and creepy things. You’ll find a lot of Hello Kitty merch in a pastel goths home, especially the character Kuromi.

6 Romantic Goth

this is goth with a romantic vibe, think dark red silk bedsheets, four poster beds, candles, corsets, red lipstick, roses etc. it’s actually pretty cool, I can’t really explain it. I feel like it’s slightly similar to Vampire Goth

7 Vampire Goth

Playing into the vampire aspect of goth. Vampire goth, in my mind, is quite similar to Vampire Goth, because vampires are often described and depicted as romantic, lustful creatures.

8 Cyber Goth

You can always pick the cyber goth out of a crowd. They prefer neon colours to go against the black, and are living in a dystopian world, only doing it now. A lot of people don’t like cyber goths, but I think it’s still valid and pretty damn cool. They wear the cyberpunk goggles (which I love) and basically dress like they’re in a dystopian movie which is cool.

9 Gothabilly

A mix of goth and rockabilly music, goths within this type will listen to rockabilly. They wear stuff like silk, velvet, corsets and those cute little hats.

10 Corp Goth

I almost forgot this one. Corp goth is great if you work somewhere like an office or whatever and want to keep your dark style at work, but still look professional. It’s basically whatever people who work in corporations wear, but black and it’s so cool :)

Sorry if this sucked or didn’t help you, it’s too early for me to have much inspiration.

#goth aesthetic #goth #trad goth #mall goth #victorian goth #gothabilly #hellbilly #cyber goth #corp goth #romantic goth #vampire goth #goth types

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pumpkinstrawbrew · 2 months ago

Note

The question I wanted to ask you has been stuck in my head for a long time.

You already answered the question (as i remember) where you were asked about your favorite scarecrow design, but what about the ones you don't like? Maybe even some kind of tier list in descending order from favorite to least favorite xD

oooh, okay! sure-sure, i can spill the beans about the designs! creating a tier list was such a great idea too btw! as it indeed made it a tad easier, considering that the scarecrow has a looot of designs. i won't go over every single one ever created, naturally. i would only adress the ones, i'm familiar with / seen around.

*for the usual disclaimer, everything below is just my opinion. so if someone really-really loves scarecrow designs, which i don't, that's cool with me. to some degree, i'll always try stan by 'i hope at least one person out there appreciate it' kind of mindset. i'm not here to mansplain why smth isn't good objectively, i'm merely here to chit-chat about it from my own fully subjective perspective.*

but welp, as it come to be, i predominantly an' historically feel aesthetically pleased by ‘simpler’ forms. or as i call it, a moderately detailed kinds of designs. that's one of the reasons why my heart will always stay with jonathan’s classic scarecrow designs. such as these ones :

(1) that's, like, my personal top tier. my 1:1s spookycrows.

i prefer it, when jon doesn’t bother to overcomplicate his spooky looks with any unnecessary trappings. partially, bc it doesn't make sense for his character to do it. he's a man of a few limited resources, even if it doesn't mean that he's one trick pony. but if we look at those fellas, aside from sticking straw, ropes, nooses an’ whatnot, they dom't have much else on them. jon's costume is also the sort, which can easily be repaired an' it still would fit the bill. as his looks supposed to be ragged an' worn. there is no posh with that guy. an' i deeply appreciate it, since crane is typically a fairly practical kind of villain. less so depending on his general looks an' more so on what works. i also have a hc, that he pretty much sews / crafts his costumes by himself, which gives it more grounded feel too.

i love his hats a lot too. a lot! *i just love hats lol* i generally, think that scarecrow shall have a hat or at least a hood, like he does in arkhamverse. it makes sense for his character to want smth to cover or shadow his face with. mask or not.

speaking of which, features wise, i think, that him having eye-slits or just well, eye-holes in his mask really gives a nice contrast to batman’s own mask. as bruce’s mouth / jaw is always exposed. meanwhile, you typically don’t see his eyes, just those milky slits. for crane, it feels appropriate to mirror it, while his own mouth isn’t shown, but his mask does have a grotesque, stitched parody on it. there are some classic-inspired designs of him, which expose both of his eyes an’ his mouth, mainly teeth, but ah … can’t say, that i’m fan of it. i do love some uh ... mystery to that mouth of his lol.

(1) with this being said, i do also love classic desings of jonathan, where his mask is literally just a sack, that gives us idea of his features, but not much else.

he can still somewhat emote though that as the fabric clings to his face. creating shadows / outlines of his expressions behind the mask. but naturally, it’s a bit less poetic an’ functional, than the first one. it's also a tad less creepy looking too! for jonathan, i always think that actually knowing that there is a man underneath his mask an' less so a creature, is more eeriery. it gives him a more proper serial killer / sadistic professor vibe, vs when his face is fully covered. tho as i said, i do love those a ton still! the visually wise, there can be some fun stuff done with it. to a degree, this is low-key reminds me of rorschach's mask, where the only way you can tell what he feels is those black moving bolts. an' that's some clever writing / visual gimmick, truly. an' there is no way, that i wouldn't be facinated an' charmed by all those possibilities!

(1) an' on the topic of possibilities, i feel like kelley jones's scarecrows deserved their own spot as well, alongside with the first row, as while he also technically draws crane's classic spooky designs, he also takes a lot of liberaty with how horrifying an' macabre, he might make it look.

it really feels like crane's mask is almost as 'alive' as the face would, bc of how it shifts along with his emotions, an' intrigued by this effect for him. even if it's like a trick of one's imagination. also love how in the place, where his nose should be, it looks like a hollow point you'd see on a naked human skull. love this detail a lot! not to meantion, that jones also draws scarecrow with two other atributes, that i adore aka big hats an' clawed fingers. also props to him for drawing batman with huge capes an' big bat eras too just to mirror it. esp since when it comes to batman, i cannot stand designs where bruce's cowl have those stumby, odd-looking, short ears. it looks so ugly to me lol.

(2) but now, that we wrapped up the first tier, the second place, goes to those fellas :

even if they do feel like they can only work in specific timelines an' settings, i do appreciate what they have going on. the first one is like a mixture between cute an' creepy, an' since that jon is most likely undead, this look suits him. like, i imagine that it is his face at this point. which is ironically enough can be said about ak!scarecrow too. he's maimed, sinister, an' generally i love how sickly he feels compared to other cranes. all the details that he has also have a purpose vs being there just for aestetics. the tubes as he apperently have troubles breathing properly sometimes, an' his leg brace are just such nice adding to how he is in that game overall. an' how much it suggests an' shows just wait for me to write my fix it arkhamverse fic for me to exploit all of this also the fact, that he apprently cannot tie his own shoes an' have exposed ankles will always be hilirious to me. that does feel very jon. aa!scarecrow is also a gem in its own right. not only it's one of the most decent modern look for him, but it also does a good job between mixing BTAS an' comicverse scarecrow looks, creating a half-naked, but still frighteningly looking crane. also it was the first design that inproduced us the syringe freddy kruger glove, i believe. an' that thing is pretty dang wicked! an' then, the 4th scarecrow design in this row is ... well, i know for sure, that there is an action figure like that. but i can't say for sure from which comics it is. i love the look of it tho. like his long coat. skeletal mask. the straw, which is sticking out of his hat almost like a thorns of a makeshift crown *which if fitting, bc i think, that on box of his action figure it says 'prince of fear'* overall, he's a pretty fun looking crane! i'd like to one day see him in anything properly. like in a game or long comics.

(2) an' right next to them, in that very same tier, we have those guys :

the first one is a pure nightmare fuel an’ also gives off the vibes from ak!scarecrow with his gloves, coat an’ general feeling like he didn’t have a shower in a month, if not longer. i also love the idea of his mask being made of leather that time around, since it does suit this look he has going on. in comparison to that lovely monstrosity, 'the nightmare before christmas' scarecrow is endearing. an’ also so colorful. a combo of both classic look an’ just straight up hot topic goth. it's very-very 90s, an' i like how well this color pallete played with one of my most fav looks for catwoman too. just an eye candy all around. an’ lastly, if not the least, the BTAS muppet scarecrow as i call him, is also pretty dang cute in his own way. i’m generally not all that sold on scarecrow’s mask having straw hair tbh. since it’s like hair on top of hair to me, which does feel very strange for my brain. but i am somewhat fond of this design, or well, re-design for him, even if my pref lies with the op one. still, this scarecrow does can pull of way more creepy looking mask expressions, than his predecessor. tho, how exactly those teeth *an' what they are made of* is still puzzling to me. even if it does adds flavour to his looks.

(3) an' now, that we finished with goats an' kings, let's get to less personally benevolent ones. ironically enough, the fan favorites, which don’t exactly do it for me for various reasons. but i'd still consider them to be in a 'breaking', not bad tier. i don't dislike any of those per say, they just don't fully work for me.

so ah. the fear state scarecrow have a lot going on an’ maybe a bit too much for me lol. how he does anything at all, when both of his hands have syringe gloves is impressive. also returning back to those things, that i'm not super hot about, he doesn’t have just straw hair, he has a whole wig for some reason. an' a gas mask an' a poncho an' a huge hat. an' some kind of belt, i think ... overall, the design does look pretty striking an' impressive, but when i see it, my first thought ‘wow, he looks like a villain from an anime’, an’ that’s not my scarecrow. even if i like how he apparently wore baggy pants, an’ then when it was time to met batman, he switched to leather leggings instead *it literally looked like he had asked modern jack o' lnatern for his pants for this. an' then modern jack wore jon's baggy pants instead lol. just guys being bros an' switching pants betweem themselves* an' not far off from this, the scarecrow next to him also wears these same leggings from what i can see. i like his hat an’ mask, but everything past his neck is like uhhhh …. i dunno. a bit odd to me ...?? exposed arms with rolled up sleeves. a lil bag cape … strangely looking vest. overall kinda cute, but also too much skin showing. an' not randomly like with arkhamverse scarecrows, where it feels more accidental an' just generally shows that they really not-aware or really care about it. in here, it almost feels like an intentional douchy look somehow? maybe, that's just me. an' lastly the salecrow. when i see him, i have a very strong gothic, witchy prince vibes. which isn't all that bad per say, but also, i'm more into jon being a scrawny, haggard looking middle aged man vs when it feels like this version of him can be somewhat pretty in comparisson.

still, even with all of the lil personal nitpicks, all of those are decent. an' interesting looking. not to meantion, that i did want to try drawing both salecrow *after finally reading that comics* an' fear state scarecrow just for fun an' to see how i would feel after 'having those designs in hand'. while they don't cause any sudden pang of inspo inside my brain, i can easily understand people's appeal to any of those, even if myself don't vibe with it. an' i do respect creativity which went behind each of them!

(4) which cannot be said about the next tier. the 'just dude with the bag on their head' row, which is just lame to me. i look at them an' think 'man, i really dislike what i see' lol.

as this gotta be the most boring an' also kinda the most lazy designs for scarecrow out there. two of them are literally wearing freaking suits! an' then, the new 52 scarecrow straight up ripped off marvel's scarecrow, even colors wise an' now, there is literally zero difference between them, apperence wise. gotta be the most bizzare way to give marvel the middle finger. also, this tier is kinda funny, bc i can't even bitch at any creative choices here in details, considering that they all look rougly the same lol. they're just lil meh dudes.

(5) an' now finally, the tier, that i call 'i don't understand why it looks like this' an' 'who is that', respectivly.

we start soft tho. the gotham knight scarecrow wasn't much of the scarecrow, an' it shows. his design is both, kinda interesting, but also weird. i also wouldn't have known that this is supposed to be crane, unless it was openly said so. which the exact same case with the new batman adventures scarecrow for me. inside my mind, i call him jeepers creepers, since that what he is. how jonathan went from thiny, short nerd to this is a question. i guess, he was gremlin after all. someone must have fed him after midnight. bc this is the only explanation. but jokes aside, i was literally confused who this was as a kid, until they were like 'professor crane' an' i had to stare at my tv for a bit, bc for real ... this?? how? batman chocking the living hell out of him was low-key hot tho. but if this wasn't enough, right on this monster's heels, we have a cursed fusion of the joker an' the scarecrow. why they gave him that red mouth, i don't know, but i don't think that he needed one lol. love how his lipstick is more bright than batgirl's tho. i guess, it goes well with his fishman hat. but next to him, we have another buff, weird looking scarecrow ... with green hair. an' green arms. the hulk scarecrow. i don't know the exact timeline for this one. i just know that it's out there. existing. why an' for who, idk. but perhaps, someone saw this an' thought that they always wanted crane to look like this.

an' to finish this abomination tier off, there is that too. another oddly mainly, an' build scarecrow.

even if i had to admit, this cover makes me laugh. the mainly jaw scarecrow is about to snatch bruce with his yaoi hands. who has yaoi hands now, batman? tehehe. an' batman's face here is just smth else. a very uh ... mainly display of fear lol. but then again, jon went from straw-twink to straw-chad for no reason an' it indeed a pretty scary concept lol. batman has every right to be scared to the point, where his eyes went back into his skull. tho, that's aside, the whole comics literally drawn like an old yaoi manga an' there is some beauty in that alone, even if i dislike jonathan having that chiseled chin, wide shoulders an' all, i still can have smth to giggle at, when it comes to this. the ending of that issue, where batman very playfully tells gordon that whatever he did with the scarecrow was very catatonic, before sailing out of the window all happy and' smiling gave some food for the thoughts too.

there are surely way-way more designs for scarecrow out there, that i've missed or forgot about, but those are the ones, i'm familiar with the most. an' as conclusion, i think, that whatever design you yourself or someone else might gravitate toward, it's pretty cool that we have so many to pick from. along with crane's characterizations as well. it's like pick your own fanon / adventure lol.

an' thank ya a lot for asking me such a fun question. really made me get deeper into why i like some of crane's looks. i hope, it was somewhat entertaining to read! ❤️

#❓#scarecrow related things #long post

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small-tragedies · 10 months ago

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(Click on pictures for better quality)

Lisa Simpson lay on the rooftop of the Simpson house, gazing up at the starry night sky. The cool breeze rustled her hair as she sighed deeply, feeling the weight of her thoughts pressing down on her. She had always found solace in the stars, but tonight, even their twinkling beauty couldn’t lift her spirits.

Suddenly, a strange, triangular figure materialized above her. Bill Cipher, with his single, glowing, and mischievous eye, floated in the air. “Well, well, well, what do we have here?” he said in a voice dripping with curiosity. “A troubled mind seeking answers in the cosmos?”

Lisa sat up, startled but not entirely surprised. She had encountered many oddities in her young life but was still weary. “Who are you?” She asked, her voice steady despite her surprise.

“I’m Bill Cipher, a muse of sorts,” he cheerfully replied, tipping his top hat. “There’s a crazy amount of ‘weird’ energy surrounding this place, and I thought I would check it out.”

Lisa gave the one-eyed little creature a flat look. “And why did you appear in front of me then?”

“I’ve been watching you for a while, kid, and I think out of all these meatsacks here, you’re the most interesting one.” He said as he gave her a wink—but since he only had one eye, it honestly just looked like he blinked as if he had something in it.

Lisa grimaced. Well, that was creepy. She was pretty sure he was trying to be flattering toward her, but she didn’t quite think he understood social cues.

“So if you’re some kind of ‘muse’ then what makes me so special?” She asked while she crossed her arms over her chest in skepticism.

A fascinated glimmer twinkled in his eye. “Ooh, skeptical, huh? I like it!” His one lone eye looked around, seemingly lost in thought. “Well, then let me tell you why I’m here~ I appear to those who are troubled, those who think outside the box.” He said while spreading his arms out before pointing at Lisa. “And you, Lisa Simpson, are quite the outside thinker.”

Lisa raised a brow, slightly concerned with him knowing her full name, but responded with a flat. “Uh-huh.” Well, that was a first, since not a lot of people commend her for her ‘outside thinking’.

Bill floated closer, his eye narrowing in a conspiratorial manner. “Kid, I don’t know if you know this, but you got a lot of inner turmoil going on. You’re at a crossroads, aren’t you? Something about college and your mother giving you a hard time?” He said sounding not unlike a mentalist—whom Lisa knew more than not—could be con artists.

Lisa’s shoulders slumped as he hit the nail on the head. She sighed. “Yeah. I don’t really want to go to college. I feel like it’s not the right path for me, but my mom... she just doesn’t understand. She thinks it’s the only way for me to succeed.”

Bill chuckled softly. “Ah, college-schmollege, who needs it?!” He said it with a wave of his hand. He sobered up a little, becoming slightly serious. “You see, Lisa, you and I aren’t so different. Let me tell you a little story. I came from a place called Euclydia, a flat world with flat minds and flat dreams. I was different, always thinking beyond the confines of my dimension. My ideas made me an outcast, but they also made me who I am.”

Lisa listened intently, an unsure light reflecting in her eyes. “...Why… Why are you telling me all of this?”

Bill said, his voice growing more animated. “Because your outside-the-box thinking is what makes you special~ College isn’t the only path to success. You have the potential to carve your own way, like I did. Stick with me, kid, we’ll go places.” He winked, “I’ll make it worth your while~”

Lisa looked at him and commented dryly. “‘Worth my while,’ huh? Maybe I should go to college.”

Bill’s eye narrowed just a smidge. “Well, I can see you need time to think about it.” He floated down, reached into his non-existent pocket, pulled out a crisp one-dollar bill, and placed it into the palm of her hand, using his much smaller hands to close her fingers around it. “If you ever want to see me again,” Bill continued, his single eye narrowing playfully, “just hold this bill up to the light. You’ll see the color-shifting ink and some other strange symbols. It’s a little trick of mine~”

Lisa examined the bill, noticing the intricate details and a pyramid with an eye on it. She looked back up at Bill, who was already starting to fade away.

Bill tipped his hat once more. “Until then, I’ll be watching you.” He said in a chipper tone. “Always watching~ And remember, reality is an illusion, the universe is a hologram, buy crypto, bye!” With that, he vanished into the night, leaving Lisa alone with her thoughts and the twinkling stars above.

****

Notes:

(Whatever is blue and underlined is a link)

The two manips were made by my sister, @twisting-echo Thank you, sis. They look fantastic!

So... I'm not going to lie, I've secretly shipped Older!Lisa Simpson with Bill Cipher ever since I watched the Bill Cipher cameo in the Bart's in Jail! episode back on October 3rd of 2021, and in light of "The Book of Bill" and BillFord craze that's sweeping the internet, I thought that I'd share my mini-fic idea of how Bill and Lisa met based on the events of the Mother and Child Reunion episode.

The reason I ship them is because Lisa is often portrayed as an outcast in Springfield due to her outside-the-box thinking and intellectual pursuits. Her interests in science, literature, and social issues frequently set her apart from her peers and even her family. Her struggles to fit in due to her progressive views and high intelligence make her similar to Ford Pines in a lot of ways. And Bill’s attraction to Ford Pines was primarily driven by Ford’s intelligence and curiosity. Ford was a brilliant scientist and researcher, which made him an ideal partner for Bill’s plans. Bill saw Ford as someone who could help him unlock the mysteries of the universe and achieve his own goals.

🚫IF YOU DO NOT LIKE THIS SHIP, PLEASE DON'T COMMENT OR REBLOG🚫 🚫PLEASE DO NOT STEAL OR REPOST MY SISTER'S EDITS🚫

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spirallingshape · 3 months ago

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Ok it's time for me to go needlessly in depth and give my opinions about the Chapter 3+4 trailer!!

I legit think this is a secret boss's attack. Firstly, pink and yellow together has been teased as a recurring colour scheme for them. Secondly, you can see that the ribbons(?) say L and R on them, meaning you probably control them with left and right. I think this is a special soul mode and you're supposed to mash the buttons to keep the doodle things from hitting you. The dog heads might mean you need to get through this attack three times total in the fight. Finally, the background looks like a huge pair of eyes staring at you, which fits the creepy vibes of a secret boss imo. (Actually, it super reminds me of Majora's Mask, like the mask itself...)

OHHHH COOL KRIS.... wow they can play piano AND guitar, they're so talented. Hmm, didn't Dess play the guitar? Maybe they learned it from her....

I love how Susie is just a blur. She is going at it like Animal from the Muppets. I wonder why her section of the bar is crossed out. Maybe you only do two bars at a time so it's not too tricky. Also, Ralsei's UI has triangles while Kris's has bars, and I think Susie's is bars also but it's hard to tell. Probably indicates different buttons being used for them. Z and X for the bars, directional for the triangles?

What the heck is going on with Ralsei's hat.

The sign behind them seems to say "Lightners Love". That's probably the name of the band. Bit rude to Ralsei.

So their colours are washed out here, but they actually match the colours of the rocks they're on? I think this might just be a lighting choice to indicate this place is Even Darker than usual, lit only by those windows. We see part of the landscape shatter like glass just before this as Susie throws Kris up. This could mean the Dark World they're in is collapsing into pure darkness or something. Also, I was really confident chapter 4 was going to be Ice-E's but it looks like it's going to be the church. I kind of thought church would be more of an endgame thing.

Ok I really never paid attention to fan Tenna designs but I think it's funny that it literally is just a TV-head guy. Assuming this is Tenna.

This looks like it might happen very close in time to the other screenshot above, as part of one big escape sequence. The kids have the same muted colours here and are once again in a very dark place. I think the critters could be like... unformed darkness. Creatures in a dark world with no fountain to shape them. Kind of like those things that shoot at you in the very beginning of chapter 1.

Also. Where is Ralsei in this sequence.

But this final animation, this is the biggest part of the trailer to me. We see a pair of huge, angelic wings open up to reveal... a save point. Like, that's just a giant save point, and that has some implications. Save points in Deltarune are connected with "power", implied to be the power that Kris and/or the player has to make a change to this world. To impose one's will on it. We are explicitly told that only Kris can even see the save points, so I wonder if Susie and Ralsei understand what's going on here. There is also the fact that they only appear in Dark Worlds and that Toby was very hesitant to put a save point in the Light World. I think that can tell us more about what they represent. They are the creative power that Lightners have over the Dark Worlds, the power to shape them with dreams and imagination.

So what does that mean for this scene? The huge wings, as well as the general Big Ending Boss Vibes, probably indicate that we're looking at The Angel here. Why would the Angel look like a save point? Because it's a being of great power. A being that has the same type of creative power over the Light World that Lightners have over the Dark World. I was already leaning toward this, but now I am REALLY confident in saying that the Angel is us.

PS this is the ACTUAL most important part: krusie momence

#deltarune #spoilers

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dufferpuffer · 6 months ago

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Finally watched Fantastic Beasts while waiting for new years and I am full of thoughts... here are my initial thoughts B^)

+ I like the super-strict direction of American wizarding society - since it was the same puritans that caused the Statue of Secrecy to be written that colonized America, I doubt many Wizards went there initially - so western Wizarding society is a newer frontier over there... and puritan ideals are stronger in no-maj society. Like real America All the wizards being constantly in no-maj clothing because they have to mingle with them to get anywhere - they have no standard clothing culture or infrastructure that allows for hidden travel like an old Floo network - that's awesome. Muggles built the (colonized) country; not a combined Muggle-Wizard history like in England.

+ I like most of the major characters. Newt was a fun 'polite trickster' who nods his head to anything people say... but then goes and does whatever the hell he wants. I like him more than movie Harry (but not book Harry). Jacob is adorable, its hard to hate the wide-eyed, overwhelmed, brave and sweet sidekick. I love him. I wanted him to be happy and full of wonder and to get his bakery. He and Newt had good chemistry tbh. All the 'fat jokes' were fucked up though, what the hell Queenie... frightens me. She's a bad bitch when she dropped her creepy cutsey flapper act and became dangerous, and her genuine desire to understand people when her powers push them away was sweet. Being deeply uncomfortable was icing on the cake. Credence is sorta cheating. His character is 'confused and abused, turns to shifty sources for help' - and then 'has lived a life of CONSTANT suffering and is freaking out in immense pain'. He's a tragic boy. You're meant to want to give him a hug and tell him it's okay... and they hit that nail on the head. Success.

- I DIDN'T like ex Auror much. Whats her name...? She wasn't very compelling. I liked that she peeked around corners and tried her best - she's cutsey in an 'anime girl' way and had a nice hat - but she seemed wasted. No chemistry with Newt, either. At least Queenie and Jacob had the decency to be weirdo's...

+ I like most of the beasts. I typically prefer when HP leans to more 'grounded' designs rather than trying to be super colourful and whimsical - I prefer Erumpants to Mooncalf - but it's all cool. I was a little disappointed by Occamy, it was my favourite creature in the book and the movie had different ideas - how DARE they not consult me >:^( Newt actually feels like he LIKES animals and is trying to do well by them with what he has, in a world that's otherwise cruel to them... that's rare for a HP thing. I like how Niffler are like... if there was another monotreme. Something between a platypus and an echidna... and yet FEELS British somehow? I could imagine that thing in The Wind in the Willows

+ I LOVED Newt's suitcase. So full of character. It seems like a very special, powerful magical item many people would want to get their hands on... yet didn't feel too overpowered? I suppose because the downside of 'can be easily closed and carried away while you're inside' is actually a steep downside - It was just cool and I liked it. I think it would have been fun if it had a bit of a mind of its own. It unclipped its own locks, but if it had a bit more of its own personality that would have been cool. :^)

But that's kinda the limit of what I liked. There was more that didn't really work, or only sorta-worked...

- What was the point of the rich Muggle guy and his politician son who was killed first, and the younger brother...? Why were they there other than to waste time that could have been spent on the anti-witch group? The Bitch, red-herring Girl and Credence worked. But all of them barely did anything. I wish they did something.

- Sometimes shit just... happened. Why did the tight-ass Muggle banker walk down to see Jacob and Newt 'steal' from the vault? How did ex-auror find them after the Erumpant? Why is the American execution system so... weird? An oddly modern looking chair that spins around over a molten metal pool, they tempt you with nice memories and then you go in the chair instead of walking in the pool... why don't they killing curse? A Potion? What was the point of their execution...? Why did Newt think to cast a revealing spell on Graves at the end?

- All the elements of the story felt disjointed. I get it, Newt's Beasts are being blamed for the destruction of the city - which is actually being fostered by Gellert's pet Obscural... it just doesn't feel like the story flows like that? Newt doesn't feel especially blamed, the beast hunt doesn't feel important beyond Newt simply caring for them... the stakes are weirdly low. The beast hunt felt like key-jangling.

- All the elements lacked punch. Breaking into a bank, being caught covered in jewels, chasing down beasts for their own safety, dodging being caught, being sold out by sleazy weird-finger guy, almost being executed - none of it felt weighty. No tension aside from when Newt's trunk was taken away and Queenie stepped the fuck up - and Credence had a big wobbly near the end.

- I have very mixed feelings about Graves. He was dull most of the time but intense when interacting with Credence. I LOVED his manipulation - the sweet-soothing, the knowing exactly what that boy needed to hear, hugging and kissing him like a father but sharply punching him in the face when he was overwhelmed - not stopping all the fatherly sweet talk for it! That barely contained violence under a perfectly acted mask - and you can see how confused Credence is by it. Graves heals his injuries, soothes him with affection he has never had - but then dishes out sharp, sudden pain... he is SCARY!

Most of the movie he wasn't much of a player in events, didn't stand out much, wasn't interesting... I just figured he was one of Gellert's followers. In a way I liked that for him. He was a small-fry trying to help by doing small-fry things.

But then at the end it is revealed he was Grindelwald. Yippee...? It never felt like there was any mystery about him. Graves was a man-in-the-shadows, using his power in America-Ministry to his advantage... and his goal seemed to be using an obscurial as a type of weapon and propaganda to Gellert's goals. I feel like that would have been a good way to set up Gellert for the next movie: arrest Graves and have him be like 'Don't you see how we suffer??? Grindelwald is right-!!!'

But no. Graves WAS Gellert. Suddenly Gellert seems... small-fry and pathetic. BUT. BUT - I definitely get why the FB Albus/Gellert ship is popular: Gellerts manipulation of Credence as an example opens SO many doors to how he and Albus' romance could have played out-!!! From the darkest abuses and control to the monster being tamed. When 'Graves' was like 'so Newt... what does this 'albus dumbledore' teacher see in you...?' man just wanted to talk about his ex lol

- My main takeaway is like... this movie was BEGGING on its hands and knees to be an 8ish episode series. An episode per beast - so re-capturing them feels like an important achievement and we fall in love with them as much as Newt does. Make sure the American-Ministry is applying constant pressure. No-Maj cult sub-plot every episode - try to build the mystery. Get us really used to Graves as a player in the story that seems both reasonable and shifty.

Episode 3: Teddy the Niffler A plot: After checking inside the wonderful case the previous episode, Jacob and Newt escape the apartment to track down the missing beasts - running into the elusive Niffler rampaging a jewelry store. As Newt doesn't know much about Muggles and their police - they are surrounded and then chased. Having learned previously that magic around Muggles is more trouble than its worth in America, Newt tries to escape with non-magical means... for the most part. While previously unsure of magic, Jacob now trusts in it - urging Newt to 'be more magical!' in their escape. (A temporary role reversal - Newt going 'I don't want to draw attention!' and Jacob going 'for gods sake man, they have GUNS!') Jacob is starting to feel his lack of magic keenly. Miraculously they are saved by mundane creatures Newt finds just as wondrous - but Jacob knows it can only mean something is very wrong... the hook for the next episode. B plot: First real look at the anti-magic house since meeting them briefly on the stairs in episode 1. It is the end of a long day making pamphlets, and the kids are being checked and ushered to bed. All the kids are creepy - especially red-herring girl - but are treated with at least some care by The Bitch... until Credence. He tries to slip into his room but is stopped. He is blamed for going out when he shouldn't, and he tries to deny it - but seems to know he will be punished, anyway. Next time we see him he is housing injuries, curled up in bed... but in the middle of the night, we see he is a liar: he HAS been sneaking out. He gets out of bed as the clock reaches midnight and goes out to meet... Graves. He seeks affection, shows his injuries, cries and is treated with comfort and care - it seems like Graves is using him to get information, but does genuinely care for the boy. (for now the viewer trusts him enough as a tough wizard cop who isn't afraid to break the law a little and has a soft heart, even to no-maj.) C plot: Ex-Auror is pissed (Queenie heartbroken) that their pet boys have escaped. Bugger. On her way out to find them again she runs into other Aurors. Graves is there. There's been ANOTHER Statue of Secrecy breach - a bunch of Muggle police. It's odd for him to be out for such a small event - but he seems worried this string of cases will get worse unless the perpetrators are caught quickly, so he is investigating. He tells ex-Auror to not get in the way and heads off in a different direction... (to see Credence) Ex-Auror almost turns around to leave the real Auror's to it... but as she discovers Newt and Jacob scurrying to their next destination she gets a burst of confidence - if she catches them it might impress Graves and might give her back her job-!

...Something like that.

It's not quite that the movie didn't have enough time. I mainly feel like it chopped itself up poorly - a different structure would have suited it better. A little more time wouldn't hurt either, though.

#personal #fantastic beasts #WW #fantastic beasts and where to find them #movie review #not really though #just me recording this for myself later so I can disagree with myself and form more rounded opinions

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sp-growingpains · 7 months ago

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Hi hi again!! I havent gotten around to answering your ask yet, but in the meantime let me ask about your girl Jean once more 🫶🫶

1. How would you define Jean's style and aesthetic? What kind of clothes does she wear: is it more form or function? What clutters her room?

2. Does she have pets/would want pets in the future? If so, what kind of pet?

3. I'm not sure if you've answered this one before, but what kind of job would Jean have? And do you have a Post Covid design for her?

4. Since I asked about her SOT AU last time, can you tell me about her TFBW/superhero version?

Hi you!! I'm so glad you're back! You genuinely brighten my day! When I get over my crippling fear of being annoying, you will be bombarded with love back!

LET ME COOK CHAT!!

What an Ass-testic!

I've always seen Jean as a person who prides comfort over style.

When she's a kid, she's all about overalls and things with pockets. The front pocket of her overalls has any cool bug she finds and/or a cool lizard! The freakier looking the creature the more likely it's going to stuffed into the pocket, at least until someone makes her put it back.

Middle school turns to gym clothes mostly. Jean is 100% that fucko who's wearing basketball shorts in the cold, the baggy kind that come down to your knees. But this is also where she starts wearing more band shirts! Dio, Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Black Sabbath...the whole nine yards!

High school, there's not much of a change. The only difference is that she starts to embrace the fact that she is in fact a woman. It's around this time where she begins the uphill struggles of accepting her body. Jean honestly thinks for a long time that she's a lumbering, giant. (I won't go into this too much because I'm working on a tiny fic that goes into her inner monolog). Long story short, through the help of the other girls, she begins to wear skirts. She starts small, putting shorts under them and if it gets to be too much she carries a pair of jeans with her. But this era of Jean is what I could only lovingly describe as "Tony Hawk Underground 2 grunge."

When she's an adult, she grows a little more and gets comfortable in her own skin. She realizes that her height shouldn't restrict what she wears and rocks the punk/80s rock style.

If we had to pick a defining clothing item, the "poof ball hat" or the "orange parka" for her, it would he her blue jean jacket. The one with her patched all over them. That jacket she keeps as long as she can, each patch she has on there is for someone special to her. (I plan on redrawing that soon!)

Her space!

Oh man, is it embarrassing to say that I've redone her room like three times in the sims? Her room is what most can relate to where it's an ADHD mess. Like, she understands where everything is because it's in its own little special place. If she cleans it or organizes it, it might as well be gone. That's not to say her room is insanely messy... just well lived.

For starters, lots of posters and pictures. The picture with her and Stan gives a good little look. Jean has those lights and printed photos along her walls, hanging from her ceiling. Posters of horror movies and different bands she's seen live! Beside them are her different instruments. Guitars of different sizes and colors, a few bases, maybe a few records.

The only guitar that isn't up on the wall is her purple one. That stays beside her bed or on her back. When she's bored or feels the need to practice, it's within arms reach. I can see her also having a few energy drinks within reach as well.

She chooses sentimental over material value. The only thing she really splurges on is her bed! She's a tall lady and treats herself to many blankets and pillows. On it is her old stuffed tiger. You know the kinda plushy that's old as hell and has clearly been patched up too many times, so it looks kinda creepy? Yeah, that's just sitting there in her room, sometimes on her beanbag chair.

Pets~!

While Jean would have loved a dog, especially when she was younger, she's not really responsible enough for one. She neglects herself quite often, and even though I just went into detail about her room, she's not home if she can help it. Jean understands that it's not fair for any pet, so she doesn't really get one until she's an adult. Though she does live vicariously through Stan with Sparky. Or Cartman with his cat!

I can see her doing some research and getting a snake when she's an adult! Probably a Western Hognose Snake! She'd fall in love with their goofy little faces. Letting it rest on her shoulders and neck when she finally gets comfortable with being home. That little guy makes it easier to want to be home!

Poss-Cauvid

I do have a design for her! Maybe once I finish the mountain of projects I have, I'll post an actual picture! I don't see Jean changing too much!

This one is pretty close, though! Jean keeps up with her body, growing to really love it! The only real difference that I would add is that she kinda ditches the braids and starts putting her hair up in a bun. The only time she cut her hair was when she was a kid, and she looked a little too much like Tweek and swore never again. So she keeps her hair long, and the braids just get to be too much. That and she gets a few tattoos! But those are on her back and on her calves, and I'm still debating an arm one for her. (One of them will be a call out to Rhea Ripley because that's who I based Jean's body type off of!)

Professional Dumby

I have talked about it before, but it never hurts to say it again! I kinda said it in passing anyway!

Jean stays in South Park her entire life. That mountain town is her home, it's a part of her. It's something she loves with all her heart.

So, of course, she centers her career around the very thing that made her who she is. Music!

Jean is a high-school music teacher full time! It isn't until the very last minute of high school that she figures this out. Teaching some younger kids how to play guitar because she got roped into volunteer work, and she finds that she's pretty good at it!

The music and arts are very important to her! Especially in such a little town!

Fractured, Broken Even

Oh baby! You know AUs are my favorite thing to ramble about! So yeah, I have a design for her Superhero!AU design. I scrapped it a few times and I've got to work on it again but I based it heavily off of Pizzaz from Gem and the Holograms!

She's not a hero, just like her TSOT!AU, she's an antagonist!

If we're talking about them being kids: She puts on this 80s glam wig, paints her face these vibrant colors of orange and green. Grabs her stupid little guitar and causes problems! Why should Professor Chaos have all the fun? He shouldn't be the only one! Besides, it's unfair that South Park has two superhero teams and theirs only like one antagonist (and Cartman). She's goofy and plays up wanting an arch-nemesis so bad it makes her look stupid!

As for the AU: Jean Wellman only wants one thing in life, the consistency in every universe, and that's to be remembered and loved. What better way to do that than to carve your name into music. So she takes to the stages and gives the people all that she is.

That is until a fight between The Freedom Pals and Professor Chaos crashes into one of her shows. Electricity from the Professor goes haywire, hitting the wanna be Rockstar. Stage lights, wires, amps, the screams of the crowd. It's all she hears before things go dark.

Wires

Amps

Sound

...

Wires

Amps

Sound

...

Music

She hears it. Feels it thumping in her veins. She's not carving her name into music, it's carving itself into her.

And fuck does it feel good. It makes her feel alive. More alive than she's ever felt on stage.

That's when those buzzing fluorescence lights pry her eyelids open. When she comes to, her body feels like energy. Feels like a power cord.

Her hair's changed. A single bolt of blue through her raven locks. It's puffed out just like those 80s glam rockers she grew up loving so much. It won't go down anymore, but why would she want it to?

It's when she checks herself out of the hospital, her legs taking her back to the stage where it happened, that every step feels like she's walking on air. It's when she pulls her guitar out of the wreckage, seeing how it's still in great condition. It's when she slams her nails across the metal strings, and it plays the perfect note; that it all clicks and makes sense.

She cackles, it crackles.

She laughs, it echos.

She's a star baby, and everyone is gonna know it.

Name: Hologram

Class: Blaster/Support

》 Hologram uses a mix of short-range attacks mixed with long-range support moves. She is by no means an ally to anyone, however. Constantly playing both sides. She's a hero when it's convenient and fun, a bad guy when she thinks the tides are a little unfair. Her favorite thing to do is to get the crowd going! Order has no room in her life. It's all about the show!

○ First Move: Catch The Rift- Hologram pulls a cord on her trusty guitar, and in a straight line, enemies are staggered back by the sick rifts. (Causes enemies in a straight line, up to 3 spaces, to get knocked back. Causes confusion.)

○ Second Move: Amp Up- Hologram strums her guitar, and the music heals the soul, rejuvenating her allies. (Small AOE heal in a cross pattern from her location. Cures debuffs)

○ Third Move: Punk Tactics - Hologram brings down the axe crushing legs and hitting below the belt. (A front melee attack that deals massive damage, Causes stun. Can be used every other turn)

☆ Special: Backstage Pass- Hologram steps up to the stage and demands the attention of the crowd. All eyes on her, her song causes the crowd to get lost in the music! (Attacks the entire battlefield. Enemies are charmed and shocked. Allies get an attack up. Does no actual damage.)

How Well She Plays With Others

Fastpass: Is her favorite hero, one of the only heroes in her eyes. Not only is he a true hero, but he's fun! He's so much fun! His speed makes every fight a challenge. Less a game of cat and mouse, and more like two lighting storms going at it. Flashy, hard to predict, charming. What's not to love?

"Fastpass! Can I get an autograph!? Wanna sign the guitar? Come ooooon buddy! Surely you have the time?"

> Will most likely team up with

> More likely to quip with (which she loves)

> Will try to outrun just because it's funny

Captain Diabetes: Her second favorite hero. This is the other true hero to Hologram! She knows that when it comes down to it, he will always do the right thing. Which means he's perfect for the show! Hologram often puts him in a predicament where he's forced to choose. Chase her or save the victims? Knowing him, he always chooses to save civilians. Hologram then makes a scene about it.

"Look at you! You'll do anything for these people! God, you're amazing! You're my favorite superstar!"

> Will never team-up with him, despite really wanting to.

> Loves getting him riled up, even though it's incredibly bad for her

> It's absolutely a game of cat and mouse with him

Toolshed: The fix it hero. He was the one who brought her to the hospital. The reason she can hear the music. The reason why the electricity hit her in the first place. If he hadn't dodged that attack. If he hadn't been there. Well, she wouldn't be the main event. He made her. So she owes it to him to make him a real hero! Hologram knows if she breaks it, he'll always fix it. Make it better! Like he did her!

He's a hero, sure, but he's not a real hero. Not yet. He's got some imperfections, little kinks that she's more than happy to work out! The day she knows she's won is when he acknowledges her as his arch-nemises.

"Look at me! You made me a star! You made me something! It's the least I can do for you, Toolshed! You need me to make you a hero!"

> Will never team-up with him

> Wants more than anything for the city to love him like they love Mysterion

> Acknowledgment or not, she's gonna make him a hero

Human Kite: An alien? From the stars? How fucking rad is that!? At least Hologram thinks so. Her favorite thing to do is to knock him out of the sky. It's a game to her because, in actuality, no one flies higher than her. No one is ever allowed to make her look like a stage hand! She's the main event, and no one from this planet or the next is gonna take that from her! If he remembers that and stays out of her way, they can work together. She'll even let him play alongside her...if he's good.

"You never fucking learn, maybe you need another lesson. Call for backup, I want them to watch me knocking you outta my sky."

> Will team-up with him sometimes, but she'll be pissy about it.

> She does think it's really fucking cool that he can shoot lasers out of his eyes and that he's an alien, it's all jealousy really

> If she successfully knocks him out of the sky, she'll make a show of catching him, smirking the entire time.

Professor Chaos: What a funny guy. What a perfect opener, like those small bands that open for the main event! He's got plans that are beyond her understanding, but they're fun! If they leave room for her and they don't get in the way of her goals, then he's fine! If the city starts to love Mysterion a little more because of him, though, she's gonna have some words for the Professor.

"Look Proff, I owe ya. You're part of the reason I'm like this...but lets not pretend you're the only one playing games. Some of us want a turn too."

> Will team-up with him with no complaints, even follow orders to a degree

> If she thinks it's funny, she'll turn the tables and go rogue

> Is a pain in the ass for both sides, it's only fair!

Callgirl: The last and final true hero on her list. This woman can do no wrong in her eyes! This woman's presence both online and in person leave Hologram star-struck. She's the one person who's allowed to share a stage with her. If only the female hero could see that!

"You're her! You're Callgirl! I'm a huge fan! Can I write your theme song?"

> Will always team-up with her unless Toolshed is involved!

> Constantly tries to get a photo with her. Often photo-bombing if she can help it

> Was a fan of Callgirl before she became Hologram, still follows her social media!

As for the others? She's not really concerned about them. They're small stuff. Boring. Or at least they haven't given her a reason to give a shit. Although, Wonder Tweek's lightning is fun. She loves the feeling of it, tastes like coffee for some reason?

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dumptruckofanass · 1 year ago

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tbh i really get the statement giver. as i am very much into creatures that are just mysterious and creepy and connected to luck, i would also start wearing cool mysterious outfits and a hat and just approach people

can't grow a goatee unfortunately but if i could i would

#the magnus protocol #tmagp spoilers #tmagp

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aro-luigi · 10 months ago

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Lets-a-go! [For context, Phantom is answering these, and others will reblog with their own answers]

---

1. Phantom is my name! I have several sources but the ones I'll be referring to in this are Phantom Wantstobattle, LM!Luigi, and Paper Luigi

2. Multisourced fictive :D

3. Very connected to those three

4. A *lot*, my fav exomemory is probably leaving the hotel at the end of LM3

5. The NWTB fandom I don't interact with, so I don't have anything to say. As for the LM & Super Paper Mario fandom(s), I have mixed feelings.

6. Only SPM sourcemates and LM doubles (or other Luigis from an AU)

7. I met Mario and Luigi (from another system) once, but we didn't really talk. I also met two Natemares a while ago which was fun :]

8. Several times over on discord, it only got answered once and that's how I found one of the Natemares I talked about in the last answer.

9. My Luigi source - I'm very alike to him, I have anxiety issues and I'm very much in my siblings' shadows, I actually use him to describe my own personality sometimes. As for for Phantom - I talk like him, but other than that we aren't really similar.

10. Simple answer - yes. It makes me feel seen as myself rather than 'just some guy who thinks he's these characters'

11. LM! Luigi - I *love* the spooky aesthetic LM1 & LM3 have, and I really like the level design in LM3. I have a lot of good things to say about the LM trilogy tbh. Paper Luigi - well, other than the character development? Other than the amazing new characters? Other than the good writing? I adore Paper Mario (the first three), and I don't think anything can change my mind. Phantom - banger song, great music video, cool outfit, need I say more?

12. LM - the memories, tbh. Now, in this world/life/reality, I'm not afraid of ghosts, but whenever I remember that source, I start to panic. It's... Not fun. Paper Luigi - knowing what 'i' did as Mr. L, it makes me feel like I betrayed Mario. Phantom - the fact there isn't much canon, but considering he's a character in a music video that was made into a character by the fandom... I can't really complain about that-

13. A lot. Here are some of my favorites from each source: LM - between LM2 and LM3, Mario and I played some games together, and when I beat him in game, he tripped over the carpet trying to dramatically rage quit. Paper Luigi - the furby-like thing I had at some point, it's not canon, but it was so funny. And terrifying. Take all those funny/creepy furby stories from online and put them into a cat-like robot instead, that's basically it. Phantom - the police finding Natemare. I laughed my ass off, he was so sure he'd get away with it.

14. Yes and no ^^. I look like Phantom, and I can't change my form. So yes, I do look like my source self (Phantom), but also no, I don't look like my source self (Luigi)

15. I'm mainly a host but I'm also memory holder for dormant alters (those that have important info in their memories)

16. Probably only for Phantom. I don't think I'd be able to handle another haunted mansion or paper adventure, those are exhausting.

17. Yes, yes, and yes. For Phantom, it was a reality alike to this one but the multiverse was connected and you could freely travel between universes, so I am actually not originally from the universe I live in. For LM, afaik ghosts, boos, toads, koopas, and all those creatures don't really exist here! For Paper Luigi, I think it's pretty obvious, this world isn't 2D or made of paper.

18. Easy, Luigi hat.

19. Yes, I have a Luigi hat, Luigi figurine, Mr. L pin, and a Luigi controller for my Nintendo Switch. I don't have any Phantom merch, sadly.

20. All the time.. mostly what I do for my LM source is play LM3 or LM2HD, because I have the games, but it doesn't feel the same. For my other sources, I can't do much. I don't have any Paper Mario games, and there isn't anything I can do for Phantom. It gets tough sometimes, but my headmates help comfort me and help me through it.

21. For Phantom it's pretty obvious, Phantom by Natewantstobattle. For LM & Paper Luigi, I actually have the same song, which is Control by Halsey.

22. Writing, mostly. In all of my sources I did writing in some way. Whether it was a diary, or a story about different universes, it was always writing.

23. For the longest time I would've answered no to that for both my Luigi sources, because of the amount of trauma there is. But now, I really do like interacting with source-related media, it comforts me a lot ^^

24. Yes, for all of them ^^ I drew Luigi three times, and I write fanfics of all my sources' media all the time

25. It's odd, but I'm alright with it. You kinda learn to accept it when your whole system has Luigis sprinkled everywhere- (I'm not kidding, our brain really likes the guy)

26. This was fun ^^ I forgot how much I like sharing my experiences, I should do this more!! Can't wait for the others (/sys) to do this too :3

Introject Ask Game!

We've seen a lot of these, but never one directed specifically at introjects (fictives, factives, fcktives, etc), so we decided to make one!

1. What's your name and source?

2. What type of introject are you? (Fictive, factive, etc.)

3. How connected do you feel to your source?

4. Do you have any exomemories? What's your favourite one?

5. What do you think of your source's fandom?

6. Do you have any sourcemates in your system?

7. Have you ever met any sourcemates outside your system?

8. Have you ever posted/sent a sourcecall anywhere? Did it help you find sourcemates?

9. What do you think are your biggest differences from/similarities to your source?

10. Do you like being compared to your source?

11. What's your favourite thing about your source?

12. What's your least favourite thing about your source?

13. Any funny exomemories?

14. Does your appearance differ from your source's appearance?

15. What other role, if any, do you have in the system?

16. If you could go back to the life you had in your exomemories/source, would you?

17. Does this universe differ at all from the one in your exomemories/source?

18. What's your favourite clothing item/accessory that the system owns?

19. Do you have any merch of your source?

20. Do you ever get homesick? If yes, what do you do to deal with it?

21. What songs remind you of your source?

22. What activities/things remind you of your source?

23. Do you like engaging with your source/content about it?

24. Have you ever created content related to your source? (Art, fanfiction, etc.)

25. How do you feel about doubles?

26. Talk about anything you want, relevant to rhe rest of the questions or not!

⚠️ This post is inclusive of all system origins ⚠️

#plurality #plural #endo friendly #endo safe #actually plural #ask game #fictives #🃏

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pastaanglerfox · 5 months ago

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Monster Review : All My Favorite Characters/Monsters In Nightmare Before Christmas (not including Jack,Sally or Zero)

Oogie Boogie - at first he is a big burlap sack shaped like a ghost , he has man snakes , bugs and spiders squirming from him , he first appears as a shadow, he has a vortex mouth like abillity. when Jack ties one of his stitches to a spinning contraption Oogie's skin gets ripped off revealing he's nothing but a pile of insects as he falls apart screaming "My Bugs !" a pretty interesting version of the Boogeyman

Twin Shadows - only appears for a bit in "This is Halloween" a shadow of conjoined twins holding a rolling bin and knife

Ghosts - 2D animated spectres with wavy movements

The Bed Monster - A pair of red eyes and jagged teeth in the darkness under the bed , even though it's not the best monster I do like ominous faces in darkness as a monster

The Man Under The Stairs - a creepy hunchback man with live snakes for fingers , a long sock puppet like face with bulgy eyes and crooked teeth and he has long stringy hair full of spiders , his voice is also quite unnerving a deep gutteral voice added to such an odd creature

Mayor - he has a cool quirk where he has a rotating cone head with one side being an abstract looking smiley face and the other being a more ghoulish panicked face, a play on the term "Two Faced", The Mayor is an emotional mess

The Tree - a big walking dead tree with a jack-o-lantern like face, banches for arms and multiple skeletons hung from his other branches

Gatekeeper - barely visable in the begining a man in a tench coat and bowler hat with a giant beak for a face (I like raven monsters)

Behemoth - a big fat zombie looking dude , having kind of a slasher villian look to him , no shirt just overalls , gloves , axe stuck in his bald head and some stitch marks , he doesn't say or do that much mostly because he's usually just staring unblinkingly at something

Lock , Shock and Barrel - 3 kids in halloween masks that look exactly like their actual faces, their chaotic energy makes them more akin to Imps or Goblins

Clown - a fat clown with a deranged expression frozen on his face , speaking of face he can rip it off leaving a black void where his face was

Lake Woman - a fish woman looking like the creature from the black lagoon , I like lake monsters that are just fish people

The Hydes - a man with a ghoulish snaggletoothed face and various smaller versions of himself under his top hat

Corpse Kid and Mummy Cyclops - Corpse Kid is a zombie with kind of a Pugsly Addams look to him , his creepiest feature being his SEWN SHUT EYELIDS. Mummy Boy is a skinny little critter wrapped head to toe in bandages with a single green eye in the middle of his face

Witches - one has a skinny body and bird like face while the other is really tiny and has a bumpy nose

The Duck - one of the living toys , a wooden duck with a spooky face and bloody holes on its body it even speaks in a creepy little goblin voice

Vampires - a group of vampires that look like a mix of Dracula, Nosferatu and the vampires from salems lot , they have weird goofy body proportions and glassy eyes, also they speak in a soft sing song voice

Bat Kid - a creature with a giant head , red eyes , little body and it walks on its wings , in the song (Making Christmas) the bat kid says "it's ours this time" in a cute little voice , The bat kid is a cute little critter

Devil - He looks like a stereotypical devil but with a long nose and bulgy eyes

Wolfman - A werewolf with a large toothy snout and looks more like a rat

Harlequinn Demon - his design is so odd I can't really describe it but he kind of has a Where the Wild Things Are look to him

Melting Man - a guy who's head is a blob of running goop , he kind of looks like a man with sewage for a face

Dr. Finkelstein and Igor - Well Igor looks like Igor but Dr. Finkelstein is a mad scientist with a duck like face ,no nose , giant head that can be opened revealing his brain , and glasses with no eyes under them

Snake - an orange and black snake with a sock puppet face looking like a sandworm from Beetlejuice, it uses its toothless maw to swallow things whole with gross gutteral gulps

Evil Reef - it has eyes , sharp teeth lining the inside and tentacles made of leaves

Jack-o-lantern in the box - A jack in the box with a pumpkin head , it moves around by hopping foward

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feralocsnkids · 2 years ago

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After a fun birthday celebration with her friends, Misaki got an invitation for a specific event. While she was unsure about going to the center for everything spooky and scary for the Halloween season, she was encouraged to go by the others, especially Kokoro, so... why not? Besides, she was actually curious about what exactly the events were. It did seem like fun, and what better way to help people smile than to have fun with them? So with a deep breath, she went to Halloween Town.

Upon getting to the town, she was changed yet again. Her hair turned pink, and her arms got... furry? Huh. Her "fur" was the same shade of pink as her hair, and most noticeable were the bear ears and newfound claws that she had. In all, she looked like a very pink were-bear. She wasn't fully sure how she felt about turning into what was basically Michelle, but... it's Halloween, so everything was on the table. Either way, she definitely seemed at least a little ready for whatever happened here.

"Well... At least it's only for the month? Besides, it's just a little bit more pink than I'm used to." No one tell her what happens to were-creatures during the full moon.

However, she's not the only one here for the festivities either. There's also one specific girl from the hoenn region who honestly seemed to be really excited! Eliza did love going in costumes after all! Not to mention, she actually did love all manner of things spooky, creepy, you name it! It... also helped that it was a time that she could also show her ears instead of hiding them under a hat or a bandana. When she had gotten the invitation, she was so excited! A place dedicated to Halloween and there were gonna be games and the such there? Sign her up!

Once she got to Halloween Town, surrounded by ghosts, ghouls, and things just made to scare or spook someone, she felt... different. Her body was more stiff than she was used to, and when she looked to see what the matter was, she noticed that she had stitches all across her body! With the weird skintone and how everything was stitched together, it was almost like she was made up of different body parts that were just stitched together! Of course she found it incredibly cool, if a little bit weird to get used to while walking. Either way she was pumped for Halloween, and she loved the new spooky makeover!

"This month is gonna be great! And this looks so weird... I love it!" Ever the fount of optimism it seems.

#the kids are loose! {ic}#to adventure! {eliza}#all in moderation {misaki}#event: spooky smashing fun #yes Eliza does Not know what a Frankenstein's monster is but she's having a good time so #Also misaki def will turn into Michelle come the full moon

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carpetcat2 · 2 years ago

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Want yo know your fusion knights better! 😲

16. What makes their stomach turn?

21. Why do they get up in the morning?

B) What inspired you to create them?

D) Have they always had the same physical appearance, or have you had to edit how they look?

Sorry for the long wait ^_^u 16. What makes their stomach turn? They're all toughies! I'm sure most of them could handle things the average person would find creepy or crawl-y. Most of them would agree that whatever degree Parasite is awful, though.

21. Why do they get up in the morning?

Hiber: To appreciate nature <3 and to take care of basic health needs that's really important too. Snare: Sometimes he doesn't. Wheel: Spite. Psilo: For the thrill of discovery! Every new day is an opportunity to learn plenty of new things! Like "hey, did you know there were a billion spiders under your porch?" Very cool. Train bros: Well, they've got a business to run, don't they? They have to make sure the trains run on time! Lumin: There are always new stories to be collected. Tales of treasure and tales of woe, of fortune and of fate. Parasite: "Oh boy! I can't wait to make other people's lives miserable! On purpose!"

B) What inspired you to create them?

I wholeheartedly love character design exercises and this was one of my favorites.

D) Have they always had the same physical appearance, or have you had to edit how they look?

I have plenty of concept art for these guys lol. I think Hiber, Wheel, and Steam are the only ones that basically didn't change too much from their initial concepts.

Design notes -

Hiber was a lot skinnier before, but she has a lot more meat on her bones now bc I wanted her to fit more into her hibernating theme. Gotta have enough meat survive the winter.

Snare was always gonna be big and tall and imposing, but it took a lot more finangling than I first thought to finalize his design. His earlier concepts had a more armored and ragged look. One cool idea that I scrapped was that he'd have his head and hands in a pillory, but he had extra arms on his back that he could use instead. Another one was that he’d carry around a giant coffin and smack people around with it the same way Puzzle used his compass. Those were overhauled bc they leaned into Specter a bit too much, and felt incohesive with his theming. I ended up taking more design notes from BodySwap Specter since they had a bit more design overlap with Puzzle. In was a fun decision in the end bc I think that caused him to look a little like Luan too.

I think I had a pollution theme going on in Lumin’s early concepts. He was and still is based off of siphonophores so I imagined he would steer around some long train of boats absolutely filled with human garbage and human treasures, but underneath they’d be attached to some gigantic eldritch sea monster. I think his earlier concepts had mechanical arms for some reason. I think I’ve solidified him into being a vaguely eldritch creature cosplaying as a goofy pirate trope, but his design itself is still a bit of a work in progress.

Coal and Steam were supposed to be one guy, but I couldn’t decide between making the one guy a conductor or an engineer so I had to split them up. I don’t think they changed too much from their initial designs except for some tweaks, like giving Coal a belt and fixing his hat, or shaving off a few inches from Steam.

Wheel’s design is mainly based off bikers and medieval jousters. One thing that didn’t make it in was her also being a cowboy(?????). I got rid of that pretty quickly bc trying to fit too many concepts into one character would be really messy, but I mourn the fact that I couldn’t figure out how to fit in wheel spurs in her boots. Her final design didn’t stray too far from her first concept, but some stuff was reworked.

The funny thing about Psilo is that I specifically chose Plague, Spore, and Prism as his components bc they had a lot of similar design elements. That turned out to be more of a challenge rather than a convenience bc I had to actively work to make Psilo Not look like one guy over the other. He still looks too much like Plague Knight, but I will keep convincing myself he is not a Plague clone. I wanted to go for a witch-y design for him at first, and I settled on that for a while. I don’t really remember why I went in a different direction but I guess it’s bc I wanted to represent Prism and Spore more in the design. I think his final helmet was actually based on concept art of Plague Knight from the SK artbook where he had a bottom visor that made him look like he had a big toothy grin, which was really cute and convenient for incorporating Spore’s visor.

A Lot happened with Parasite. I was gonna settle on "grouchy old man" Parasite, but he was being developed to be used in a friend's DnD campaign as an enemy and said friend characterized him very differently to that idea, so I wanted to make him fittingly look unhinged. The way I draw him now vs his current "official" render is a bit different, but that mostly comes down to me getting a better idea of his proportions rather than any significant design changes. Sorry about how disorganized this concept compilation is. I'll try to organize these by character later.

#Carpart #carpet rambles #ask game

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grahoriasfancave · 3 years ago

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Just finished Chapter 1 of The Quarry, here's my thoughts on the characters so far

Prologue

Laura: the reckless one who goes "let's go into the creepy abandoned house, don't be a wimp" and then gets killed, methinks. But I don't think she's dead yet?? Max: the malewife to Laura's gaslight gatekeep girlboss. Feels like the kinda guy to unashamedly watch sappy movies while crying and eating tubs of chocolate ice cream when sad. He's the Hannah Washington of the game. Cop Dude: creeeepyyyy. Either the motel's a trap or he knew exactly what was going on when Laura "tricked" him.

Chapter 1

Jacob: himbo with fratboy energy, has definitely won a game of gay chicken despite being straight. He needs to learn that no means no, but in a big-dog-that-thinks-he's-still-a-puppy kind of way. Kaitlyn: QUEEN. Takes no shit, will still be the designated driver of the group and provide emotional support on a bad day. Not mom material, but would make one heckuva cool aunt. Dylan: the token ADHD-coded snarker. Smells fruity, and I'm not talking about his little sister's shampoo that he uses bc he refuses to admit he packed it by mistake. Lowkey craves validation and uses humour to both acquire it and play it off as a joke. Nick: awkward softboi. Probably gonna fulfil the Final Girl/Main Character trope. I can see him fending off beasties with a hatchet or crowbar or something. But will he get the girl? (absolutely not) Abigail: sweetheart who needs protecting. A closeted lesbian who panicked and told Emma she had a crush on Nick when pressed, because he was the first guy that came to mind. She carries around one of those travel hand sanitizers that smells like cookies. Emma: sassy wine aunt vibes. Took both ballet and martial arts from an early age and half wants some creep to catcall her so she can kick his butt. Feels like she could go from bestie to poisoned dagger at the drop of a hat, but in a "I will roast you to your face and it will hurt" way, not a backstabbing way. Ryan: everyone thinks he's a brooding loner, but it's really the autism. 100% had to grow up too fast and is habitually the responsible one. His love language is quality time. Mr. Hackett: needs to CHILL. Explain your involvement with the local creature attacks a little please, sir. Other than that, the dadliest of dads.

#the quarry #laura kearney #max brinly #jacob custos #kaitlyn ka #dylan lenivy #nick furcillo #abigail blyg #emma mountebank #ryan erzahler #chris hackett #will update once i've finished the gameplay

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inventors-fair · 3 years ago

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Tightrope Walkers - Balancing Act Commentary

It’s that time again, folks! Here for your perusal and amusal are all the cards you’ve submitted this week, with my thoughts and musings attached. As always, feel free to give me a shout if you have any questions, comments, discussion points, bad puns, anything. Here we go!

Lightning Compressor by @dimestoretajic

art prompt - an Izzet goblin with an impressive electric hat is throwing the switch on a large glass tank with a nightmarish face resembling the M10 art for Ball Lightning pressed to the glass inside it

Ball Lightning tribal support crops up in the fair every so often, and this is a pretty cool take on it. No fancy, flashy buffs or ways to mitigate the downside, just making a bunch of Ball Lightning tokens. Like... a bunch. I do like this card, but as a general rule of thumb, a repeatable effect should cost more than the same effect as a one-off. This costs the exact same as Ball Lightning, lets you make multiple per turn, and doesn’t cost you any cards to do so. It should either be more expensive, or maybe have an additional cost associated with it like discarding X cards. Alternatively, you could make the tokens smaller, though I know that loses some of the connection to the flavor. The flavor text is not bad, but it does feel like it runs on a little and the punchline deserves a bit more attention. Still a very solid card though!

Repeated Repetition by @little-red-rabbit

At first, I thought this card fell into the same trap as the previous one- of having a really good rate. Then I realized, this doesn’t actually do anything unless you spend UURR, which means it’s actually sitting at a fairly poor rate. The golden spot would be somewhere in between, I think? The effect is super cool, and I’m surprised we haven’t seen something like this yet. The choice to hit just instants and not sorceries is interesting, and I think some players might be confused by that. It’s a very clever base idea, but the lesson to be learned is that designs should be double, triple, and even quadruple-checked for all those tiny fiddly bits- things like adding “instant spell”, and checking over the flavor text for typos and grammatical errors. I do like where your head's at, though!

Jabberwock by @evscfa1

Eugh, you’ve successfully dredged up memories of my grade 10 drama class, which is... blech. Hated that poem. But the card! The card is cool! Based on the fairy-tale creature inspiration and the “Syr” in the quote, this is likely meant to be set on Eldraine, which... neat. I honestly could see us getting a Jabberwock-inspired card when we return to Eldraine. In terms of a design contest though, I did mention that french vanilla creatures may not be the best submissions for this week. Beyond that, I’m not sure I understand why you chose the keywords you did? Obvious one for each color, but deathtouch on a big creature seems strange- and you could easily convey the creepy evil flavor with menace instead, which would make this thing even more of a powerhouse. Finally, I don’t fully understand what the flavor text is trying to get at- implying that there’s multiple of these things, but there’s only one on the card? If it had some sort of self-replicating or self-recurring ability, I could definitely make more sense of the flavor text.

Crop Failure by @piccadilly-blue

Gonna get this out of the way- flavor text? Simple. Strong. Punchy. Informs the world around it. Everything I’m looking for this week. It’s cool as hell! The ETB is solid, and it hits you too so it’s not really too brutal, it just sets everyone back a turn. The static hate ability is... a little weak? I totally understand the flavor you were going for here, and I think it’s awesome, but I think that flavor would have absolutely held up if you broadened it to, say “players can’t create noncreature tokens”? Or “players can’t gain life”? Cause you’re not just denying them food, you’re denying them resources, and I think this is an instance where you can sacrifice just a bit of the obvious flavor for some better mechanical impact.

Tal Inquisitor by @wolkemesser

Okay, so we’re looking at devotion that isn’t on Theros, but still tied to the concept of gods and prayer. The worldbuilding you’ve done in the flavor text is fantastic, and I love the questions it raises about this world, but it’s very exposition-y. I think it could have been cut down, or maybe made into a quote? If someone is saying it, then you could adjust the text to be a bit more active, and draw the reader in more. Heck, you could make the inquisitor himself be saying it! The card itself seems... pretty strong for a one-mana uncommon? I dunno, maybe I’m just a little skittish. At base, it’s a 1/2, but it has the potential to get a lot bigger, so I dunno. Probably woulda made it two, maybe three mana, just to be safe.

Sudden Realization by @yd12k

Art: A young man is standing over a scrying pool, shocked backwards by the vision within it. Within the pool there is an upside-down image of a girl with similar hair sitting in a forest clearing.

You shared a lot of backstory alongside the submission to flesh out this fanwalker character, and it was awesome! We always need more trans characters in magic, and Nifah seems pretty cool. The card on its own is fairly good. As it stands, you’re essentially spending one mana to draw a card, and another to make your next spell uninteractable, since the X is you “paying” for the creature. I do suppose it lets you color fix as well. The other minor issue is that you need to define X before you get to draw the card, which would lead to some feelsbad moments of being only one or two mana shy of dropping the creature you just drew. It’s still a cool card, and I like the flavor text, but maybe there’s a different way to scale it? Also, congrats on making a hybrid card with no bends or breaks- that’s no small feat.

Aelius, Sunchase Heartstoker by @reaperfromtheabyss

Art Direction: An older Therosian resembling the impetuous sunchaser is helping a younger man put on a pair of wings. The background is an open sky filled with a warm golden sun

Okay, so until I read the art direction, I didn’t realize this was meant to be Daedalus, and that’s a very cool concept. Daedalus was known for not exactly... respecting the gods, so having his Magic version basically be trying to dethrone Heliod in favor of this other (real???) sun god? Very cool. I did read the name as “Heartstroker” at first, but that’s more a me problem. Flavor text is A+, and I like the abilities- stoking the fire in other creatures and encouraging them to attack. Based on the flavor text of Wings of Hubris, it does seem like we already have a 1:1 Daedalus, but that’s also a pretty minor complaint. All in all, very solid card, and was very close to making it into the runners-up.

Bank Shot by @hiygamer

Rebound being a literal rebound shot is hilarious, and I love how this works with the combat-trick heavy environment of battlebond. “Cast from a hand” feels super weird to read, but I’m not sure what the alternative is. A player’s hand? Maybe? Yeah, I don’t really have much to say about this other than it’s very solid. For three mana, you more or less get to “copy” two of your other spells over three turns. I’m not sure if this is exciting enough to be a rare, but I’m also not sure if it’s too strong for uncommon. This card occupies a very interesting liminal space, and I would like to see how it plays. The flavor text is okay. The first sentence as a setup is great, but the delivery of the second is a bit dull. Instead of “so much more”, maybe inference how skilled players use it for not-intended purposes? “So much more” kind of implies that they... protect the players as well as the audience? I dunno, something’s just not quite jamming with me, but the bones are good.

Plow the Earth by @i-am-the-one-who-wololoes

The invocation of these flavor text is POWERFUL. I can feel a character crying this out as they’re surrounded by whipping winds, and plants explode out of the ground around them. It’s very appropriately epic. The inverse of Zendikar’s Roil for sure makes for some interesting play- obviously the tokens are bigger and the enchantment is cheaper, but it’s a lot harder to put lands in grave than it is to just play them. This still plays very nicely with fetch lands, or any of those many green cards that let you sac lands for various benefits. This is very much a solid design, and was one of the toughest ones to cut from the running. I would love to see this one get printed, because I have several decks I would put it in.

Visshox’ Gaze by @ghoulcaclulator64

I’ll admit, I thought a Visshox was a creature until the flavor text corrected me on that. The menacing glare being interpreted as forcing someone to reveal their hand is inspired, and I love how it captures that intimidation aspect. Menace tribal is interesting for sure, and the two different modes have an interesting tension between them. Even if you do control a creature with menace, there still are situations where you want them to discard lands. As for the flavor text, I’m not sure what it is, but it reads a bit awkward to me- “years since I just barely escaped” seems a bit too... straightforward, I guess? I’m not sure what I’m trying to say here, I just think that this character, whoever they are, needs more of a defined voice. As it is, it feels a bit like exposition with quotes slapped onto it.

Maniacal Scheme by @deg99

You know, as specific as this flavor text is, I was almost certain someone would do exactly this- after all, a villain monologue is pretty much exactly what I was asking for this week. The card is reminiscent of the Benalish Commander cycle, and it has a really solid amount of diversity to it. You can either slam it down after an alpha strike to be a straight boardwipe, or use it to keep your opponents’ boards locked down for a while. So far, we’ve only seen this effect in white, which is interesting. I’m not sure if that means black doesn’t get it, or they just haven’t done it yet, but anyways. My other issue is that the base cost might be a bit too cheap- this has a lot of versatility, and 5 mana for what is likely a mostly-unconditional boardwipe (since you’re the only player who will have all their stuff untapped when you play this), might be a bit too strong. Then again, maybe not. It’s the kinda thing that would show up in playtesting.

Grind of Eons by @real-aspen-hours

Art direction: location, desert: both the moon and sun in the sky, both day and night to show the rapid passage of time, day on the left, night on the right, with stars stretched out into lines like on a long period exposure photo on the night side. In the foreground, a monument to a figure is turning to sand and blowing away on the wind. The figures identity is obscured by age, and the aging becomes more pronounced the further right in the drawing.

Mood: the rapid passage of time

That is some FANTASTIC art direction. I can clearly picture it in my mind, and it looks amazing. The card itself is one of the fairly typical “big expensive boardwipes with upside”, the upside in this case being a strange mill variant. I’m not sure what situations this card will be in where exiling ten cards from libraries becomes relevant, but it does a lot to help support the flavor, so it’s not a bad choice. Also, I like how the flavor text, while strongly invoking decay, also subtly references rebirth- as one kingdom was built on the dust of the previous one, so too will a new one come from this one. I like that! A small glimmer of hope! One issue- there is nothing wrong with submitting cards in a text-based format- we totally understand that not everyone has easy access to a card creator- but please make sure you have all the card information clear and visible. Your submission didn’t have a rarity, which does make it difficult to judge- I have different opinions on this based on whether it’s a rare or mythic. Please double check submissions for the little details!

Resonant Echo by @izzet-always-r-versus-u

Y’know what’s funny? I made this exact card about a year back- like exactly. Mine was called Resounding Echo. I love it when that happens- shows that Magic players really are all the same, in the end. It’s a very fun card, though it can get pretty crazy. Spells without targets tend to be more big, flashy, and expensive, and doubling all of them can get real scary, real fast. I’m not totally sure how I feel about the flavor text? I do like Zaffai, and this seems very fitting as a Prismari card, but “Echoes” and “Harmonies” are two different things to me, so I don’t get what this card is meant to represent flavorfully. I think some more specificity here would help a lot, maybe referring to exactly what the students are doing to produce this echo? Still a very cool card tho!

Suffocating Smog by @misterstingyjack

Definitely a topical card, given the events of the current and future sets. In fact, I could see this exact thing getting printed in The Brothers’ War, maybe with some different flavor text. Anyways, this has the potential to be a super nasty asymmetrical boardwipe, especially given how easy it is to make a bunch of artifact tokens and whatnot. I think it might still be fine at 4 mana? I dunno, it’s treading dangerous waters for sure. Let’s talk about that flavor text. I love the imagery you’ve got going on there, and “it is their subtler horrors that breaks a world” is GOLDEN. This really feels like someone speaking, so I think it definitely deserves quotes and maybe an attribution. Also, the starting bit could afford to be tightened up a bit. Very solid card all around.

Triskaidekavore by @gollumni

So it... eats bad luck? I think I love this guy, he’s so adorable. I have no idea what eating bad luck would entail, but I support him. It is a little funny that it’s bad-luck-themed, but you can only easily play it if you’re having good luck (ie drawing lots of cards). It is a big, splashy mythic, which is what I love to see. I think maybe it could get a keyword as a treat? Also, I may be blind but I only count six 13s? Is there supposed to be 7? Or 13? Regardless, fun little card, solid flavor text, A+ all around.

Curse of Yargle’s Spawn by @squeezyboi

Okay, so taking this flavor text in conjunction with Yargle, Glutton of Urborg... Dominaria’s about to have a real problem with overgrown wildlife, huh? I like the flavor text a lot, but I don’t get the “always satisfied” bit. Why would it be satisfied if it’s constantly eating? The trademark of big gluttonous monsters is that they’re never satisfied. The card itself is another matter. Giving a massive power buff like that is awesome, and feels very yargle-y, but even in exchange for a big body, black doesn’t get to wipe a creature’s abilities like that. That’s a pretty strictly blue-and-white thing to do, even if you’d mostly be putting this on your own creatures. Still a neat card with devastating implications for Urborg’s ecology.

Forlorned Lover by @beandrea99

Spoooooky. I like how this spirit would work in limited- drop it and start swinging to try and keep your opponent’s big threat down, or to make room for your other attackers. But you need to have other answers on hand for any potential flying blockers, or this gets eaten. It’s solid, simple, and I think would play really well. I’m not totally sold on 1UU as opposed to 2U, but that might be a matter of preference.The flavor text is decent, though the ending feels like it’s trying a bit too hard to up the creep factor, and it ends up just sounding cheesy. I think subverting the expectations there and using different language could really help that bit along.

Spectrum Purge by @hypexion

Very hard not to compare to Vanishing Verse on this one. Obviously there are some small differences here and there (destroy vs exile, sorcery vs instant), but I’m just not sure this would be much fun to play unless it was in a very multicolor-heavy limited environment. Not to say that’s impossible- after all, we just had New Capenna. But in that instance, it becomes likely the best removal in the format, and would be highly prized. I’m not sure there’s a middle ground for this card- or if there is, I’m just not seeing it. The flavor text is good, if a bit dry. I really like what it’s going for, but I don’t fully understand what it’s going for- is this like a “anything different from me must die” kind of vibe? And what does “finding purity in death” mean? It sounds nice, for sure, but I don’t quite grok it.

Four-Point Urstag by @horsecrash

Like some of the other submissions this week, this card does fall into a trap that I tried to warn against- near-vanilla creatures don’t really show off the submitter’s design skills, unless it’s something wildly out-of-the-box creative. This is fine, it’s a good card that would probably have been great support for Ikoria limited, but it’s not something I can judge very easily, since there’s not much to it. That being said, the one thing I can comment on is the flavor text- it’s pretty solid. I do like the idea of “green character who hates nature”. Even though it would be tricky to pull off, I think it could certainly be done. Besides, any sane person would look at Ikoria and immediately planeswalk the other way. I’m not sure I agree with Ikoria’s people being “tree-huggers”, since most of them seem very murderous towards local flora and fauna? But maybe that’s one of those differences between the cards and the lore, so who knows. I like the flavor text a lot, I just wish it was on a more interesting card.

That’s that for this week, folks! Reminder that the week after next (when I’m back in rotation), I will be running a contest from our lovely folks over in our #contest-suggestions channel in Discord! If you have an idea you want to not-so-subtly suggest, throw it in that channel in the next few weeks!

Au revoir,

~judge @naban-dean-of-irritation

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom Magic card #Inventor's Fair #balancing act #commentary #naban-dean-of-irritation

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